Quote from Forum Archives on January 2, 1999, 7:07 pm

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Following is the current issue of THE TIMOTHY REPORT, which is a FREE e-mail
newsletter sent out every Monday of the year. Designed for use by pastors,
Bible teachers, church secretaries and anyone who is is interested, The
Timothy Report provides fresh illustrations and applications for those seeking
to communicate the truths of the Gospel.

You have subscribed to Idea-Central because you wanted a good source of
illustrations, but the traffic is minimal and unpredictable. With The Timothy
Report, you receive a number of quality illustrations every week.

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Welcome to THE TIMOTHY REPORT for January 4, 1999, Part One of One
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"To assist, encourage, enable and equip"
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Published every Monday by Swan Lake Communications, PO Box 6687,
Jackson, MS 39282 (E-mail address: [email protected])
601-372-7305.
COPYRIGHT 1998 by Swan Lake Communications. Any forwarding or
retransmission of this publication by anyone, by electronic means or
otherwise, MUST include the following statement:

"This material is copyrighted 1998 Swan Lake Communications,
Jackson, Mississippi. To receive your FREE subscription, address
your e-mail to [email protected]."
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NOW SERVING PULPIT MINISTERS AND BIBLE TEACHERS in 32 states,
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See more info at the end of this report.
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COMMENTARY
October was "Pastor Appreciation Month." Did your church do anything special
for you or the others on your church staff? Share it with us! Please answer
the following questions and e-mail them back to
[email protected]

1. How long have you been serving your current congregation?
2. How did your church observe Pastor Appreciation Month?
3. Did the observance include others on your church staff?
4. If your church didn't observe it as a whole, did anyone in your church
express appreciation to you in any way?
5. Can we use your name, church name and postal address-in case someone would
like to contact you?

We plan to include these in an upcoming issue. Some churches are very creative
in expressing love and appreciation, and sharing these ideas may spark
something in a congregation somewhere.

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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A GOOD TIME TO PREACH ON THE CERTAINTIES we have as Christians.

As we enter a New Year, let us as pastors and teachers offer hope to our
people! There is so much uncertainty facing us as we enter the last year of
the century/millennium. Those of us here in America are dealing with a pending
trial of a sitting president, as well as the on-going confrontation with Iraq.
Worldwide, there are financial uncertainties, AIDS, military conflicts-and the
looming Y2K computer crisis.

On an individual level, there may be someone in your congregation or class who
is dealing with brain cancer, or leukemia in a child, or the collapse of a
business, or loneliness, or a deteriorating physical condition which leaves
one wondering how much longer he/she can provide for the family.

Offer them hope! Preach on "What We Can Be Sure Of," building your sermon or
lesson on the great promises of Scripture. Here are some examples to get your
brain started on this topic-taken from the Thompson's Chain Reference Bible
(item 3719, if you have a copy)

Comforting Certainties:
1. Sure Promises, 1 Kings 8:56
2. Sure Foundations, Isaiah 28:16
3. Sure Reward, Matthew 10:42
4. Assured Acceptance, John 6:37
5. Divine Love, Romans 8:38-39
6. Assured Immortality, 2 Corinthians 5:1
7. Eternal Anchor, Hebrews 6:19

A little effort will reveal many more from Scripture. You might even restrict
your message to one passage, such as Paul's encouragement regarding the return
of Christ from 1 Thessalonians. What a certainty is the return of Christ-and
what comfort it gives!

Item 3718 is "Uncertainties: Seven Things that are Uncertain," and lists such
things as beauty, men's promises, riches, the future, friendship, life, and
earthly glory. You might list these and others, such as the SuperBowl winner,
Y2K, health,

You might entitle this "Are You Sure?" or even "You Can Count On It!"

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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PREACHING
DOING A THOUSAND THINGS, NEGLECTING ONE
The supreme work of the Christian minister is the work of preaching. This is a
day in which one of our great perils is that of doing a thousand little things
to the neglect of the one thing, which is preaching. --G. Campbell Morgan

Note: Entering a New Year is a good time to evaluate our own preaching styles,
habits, methods, motives, etc. In this New Year, let us each resolve to focus
on the things that really matter, and not get caught up in the minutiae of
living.

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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INTERRUPTIONS IN MINISTRY
Sometimes God's best plans are hidden in that inconvenient phone call that
interferes with your routine, or in a conversation someone engages you in that
makes you late for an appointment. Who knows--it could even be a miracle.
--Joni Eareckson Tada, "More Precious Than Silver," Zondervan, 1998

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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LOYALTY TO GOD VS. POSSESSIONS
Dan Reiland, who serves as vice-president of leadership development at INJOY
(John Maxwell's organization), has shared seven warning signals that can be
used to see that loyalties are shifting from God to possessions.

1. When you go from managing your money to being anxious about it.

2. When envy and jealousy creep into your life.

3. When you lose appreciation for what God has already given you.

4. When you lose the joy of cheerful giving.

5. When you seek things more than God.

6. When you think that things will make you happy.

8. When enough is not enough.

Visit the INJOY website at www.gospelcom.net/injoy

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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HONESTY PAYS
From the October 1981 edition of "Reader's Digest":

A rather hefty woman stood in front of me in a line of people waiting to board
a charter flight for Europe. The clerk asked her the routine questions and
then came to, "Personal weight?"

"One hundred and eighty," she replied. "Why do you need to know that?"
"That's how we compute our fuel consumption."
She thought a minute and then leaned forward and whispered confidentially, "Up
that 20 pounds."
--Contributed by Mrs. B. R. Kirkindall

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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QUOTATIONS

Witnessing
We do not stand in the world bearing witness to Christ, but we stand in Christ
bearing witness to the world. - A. J. Gordon

Surrender
God is ready to assume full responsibility for the life wholly yielded to Him.
-Andrew Murray

Integrity
"Integrity is not a 90 percent thing, not a 95 percent thing; either you have
it or you don't." -- Peter Scotese

Character
Character is not built by battling and excitement alone. The harvest is not
ripened by the thunderous forces of nature, but by the secret silent invisible
forces. So the best qualities of our spiritual lives are matured by quietness,
silence and commonplace. -- A. P. Gouthey

(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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MY COMMITMENT AS A CHRISTIAN: (This is a real gem!)

I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have stepped over the line. The
decision has been made. I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let
up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes
sense, my future is secure. I'm finished and done with low living, sight
walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions,
mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need
preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I
don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or
rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by
prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way
rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be
bought, deluded, or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice,
hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the
enemy, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up,
until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the
cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till
I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for
His own, He will have no problem recognizing me... my banner will be clear!
(The Timothy Report, Swan Lake Communications, [email protected],
January 4, 1999)
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IDEAS/ SUGGESTIONS?
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If you have an idea or a suggestion for making The Timothy Report better and
of more value to you in your ministry, please do not hesitate to send it to
us!

Swan Lake Communications
PO Box 6687, Jackson, MS 39282-6687
Phone: 601-372-7305 E-mail: [email protected]
Web site: members.aol.com/swanlc/SwanLake.html