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Research Material and Tips

How to give a Powerful Altar Call?

Photo of a person laying hands on a woman and praying for her.

In most churches, the altar call is considered a crucial moment. It is an appropriate ending to a powerful message because the altar call provides the congregation with an opportunity to immediately respond to what they have just heard. It doesn’t matter how powerful your sermon was unless you did justice to it with a convincing altar call. After all, that altar call of a few minutes can be the difference between life and death, and heaven and hell for somebody seated in the congregation. Therefore in today’s post let us find out how to do it in the most effective way.

Q & A: Fasting and Prayer

Sign indicating no food and beverages are allowed in premises.

At least some form of fasting and prayer is universally practiced in almost all religions. It’s not distinctively Christian although Judaism and Christianity have their own way of doing it. The reason for this Q&A is the lack of understanding among Christians about the spiritual discipline of Fasting and Prayer. It answers some of the basic yet commonly asked questions. Read on to learn the major spiritual truths about this discipline.

10 Qualities of an Effective Preacher

Graphic of a burning microphone session.

Pastors today are asking, what are the qualities of a ‘real preacher’? Actually, the question should be ‘what are the qualities of an effective preacher?’ So let me share with you today, the 10 qualities that transform an ordinary speaker into an effective preacher. BTW: I know I have stressed the importance of the ministry of preaching many times before but the ministry itself is so important I cannot stress it enough. [Image Credit: RAWKU5]

How to Prepare and Present Your Sermon Effectively?

Photo of a young man preaching in the street.

Preaching God’s Word may be, is the greatest privilege we have as men of God and sons and daughters of man. It’s one of the primary reasons why preparation is crucial if you are a preacher. I covered this in great length in a previous post. Today, I want to introduce another element important for the preaching ministry to balance the equate. That is none other than how to present your sermon effectively. It doesn’t matter how many hours you spent in preparation for your sermon unless the delivery of your sermon wasn’t effective. [Image Credit: Eli Cristman Used with permission from Dr. Arnold Lastinger’s Teaching Notes]

We want another Pentecost at any Cost!

Photo of a woman spreading her arms.

Pentecost is the second greatest festival in the Jewish calendar. It was the in-gathering of the harvest and was a great event in the life of Israel. In the New Testament too, Pentecost is a great event for it was the in-gathering of souls which began the first-century church. Coming fifty days after the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, Pentecost was the fulfillment of the greatest promise that Jesus gave to His disciples before He ascended to heaven. So He told them to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endued with the power from on high. He said “… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) [Original Article by Dr. Colton Wickramaratne]

Questions & Answers on Spiritual Backsliding

Man walking on the road holding black luggage during the sunset.

The name Charles Bradley Templeton (1915-2001) might not ring a bell to some of us but all of us are familiar with the International Christian Movement known as “Youth for Christ.” Templeton was its co-founder with Dr. Billy Graham. According to The Christian Post–in the year 1957,  after a struggle with doubts, Templeton rejected Christianity and became an atheist. He later authored the book “A Farewell to God”

Backsliding or falling away is one of Satan’s most effective weapons against us. The Bible doesn’t always use the precise term but it has several examples such as King Saul, King Solomon in the Old Testament, The Parable of the Prodigal Son, and The Parable of the Sower and man by the name Demus in the New Testament. In this Q & A I will answer six questions often asked about backsliding.

Spiritual Gifts: A list of those specifically mentioned or indicated in the Holy Bible

A beige color gift box tied with a blue and white ribbon set against a beige color background.

While spiritual fruit is for our personal edification spiritual gifts are for the edification of the body of Christ or the Church. This list is in alphabetical order and as inclusive and extensive as possible because we want to help you find at least one area of giftedness with which you can serve in your church. Please feel free to leave a comment if you have anything to add that we may have missed. [Taken from “Shared Life” Study Series by Lutheran Hour Ministries]

The Four-Fold Application of Speaking in Tongues

Woman in an Orange coat with Black Scarf praying in a church.

Speaking in Tongues is the New Testament phenomenon where a person speaks in a language that is unknown to him. This language is either the language of angels or other earthly languages (1 Corinthians 13:1). Tongues are important as initial physical evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit as well as a gift of the Spirit. This is why I have discussed the doctrine of tongues here as well. Today I wish to present the four-fold application of speaking in tongues.

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