Steve Harling, President of Reach Beyond, shares a series of messages unpacking the vision from Reach Beyond's 2017 Vision Summit. This is the first of them. 


1 Corinthians 9:23 (NLT)

I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.

Word has it that Clarence Jones [cofounder of HCJB, now Reach Beyond] never sat next to his wife on the plane rides to and from Quito. It’s not that he didn’t like being with her or that he preferred an aisle seat while she preferred a window. It’s that Clarence and his wife both wanted to share the good news with the persons sitting next to them. It wasn’t enough for Clarence that he was running a global ministry devoted to broadcasting the good news. He was a “personal gospel spreader.” He wanted to do everything he could to spread the message of salvation through Christ. He had been “gospelized.”

I also read somewhere that Bill Bright, the founder of Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ), couldn’t spend five minutes with someone without launching into a presentation of the “Four Spiritual Laws.” It wasn’t enough for Bill that he was running a huge mission organization that specializes in communicating the message of Jesus. It was personal to him. Bill wanted to do everything he could to spread the good news. He had been gospelized.

I want to be gospelized. I want everyone in our organization to be gospelized. Last week I listened to a fellow co-worker as he talked about his experiences as an Uber driver. For him it’s not just about the money (though that helps). It’s about sharing Jesus and spreading the good news. He too has been gospelized.

So … here’s my prayer this morning: “Lord, gospelize me! Gospelize us! We want to be able to honestly say with Paul, “I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.”

Let’s get gospelized and get going!

You are loved,

Steve

Resources:

Great Commission Action Guide: downloadable

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