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Overview
I was raised in church all of my life. I thought that faithfully obeying all that my pastors taught me would position me to receive the promises of the Bible. I wanted to have life and life more abundantly (John 10:10). I wanted to experience righteousness, peace, and joy as the atmosphere of my daily existence (Romans 14:17). Because I knew about Jesus and prayed and sang to Him, I thought that I “knew” Him. I wanted to believe that I was a new creature in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), but the reality of daily living for me was far beneath all of this.
In the Introductory Book to the Relationship or Religion, Your Choice Series entitled My Quest - My Personal Journey to Jesus, I share in detail about being personally brought to an understanding that I did not really know the Lord Jesus Christ, though I genuinely wanted to. I will not repeat any of the details of my story; but, suffice it to say, Jesus got my attention. He demonstrated to me that He wanted to know me and also wanted me to know Him in a measure of relationship greater than I could ever desire for myself. The Lord has demonstrated to me repeatedly that He is so determined that I know Him that He will allow anything to happen to me or do anything necessary in my life to keep me on track in my journey.
You may experience considerable discomfort while reading the first two chapters of this book, not because they are written above your head, but because the truth contained in them may be beyond your current relationship with Jesus. First through experiencing them and then through writing about them, the things contained in these chapters were very painful for me to face; but, after I had started my journey I realized that if I was to truly know Him, then it was extremely important for me to be confronted with them. You cannot know how to get to where you are going if you do not first determine where you really are.
Having served in the U.S. Navy and having been taught how to navigate a ship (before the GPS System was available), I learned that all mariners who sailed the oceans of our globe, having no points of land for reference, could only find their way by studying the heavens in order to determine their exact position and thereby set the course to their destination. Since the position of the primary stars has been calculated for every day of the year, by determining his position in relation to those stars (called bearings), the skilled navigator can plot his ships precise location on his charts. From that determination he can decide on the necessary course (direction) to set that will take the ship to its desired destination. The night allows sailors to know where they are, but they cannot see where they are going. During the day the Sun allows mariners to see where they are heading, but they cannot determine exactly where they are. Navigators need to regularly experience both the day and the night in order to safely navigate the worlds oceans.
For many Christians, just maintaining the ship and standing watches are all that is necessary to fulfill their spiritual duties. They don't really know where they are; neither do they know exactly where they are going. They are more passengers than participants. I hope that just going through the motions of shipboard life is not enough for you. It definitely is not enough for me!
The Lord desires so much more for us than just living in the spiritual darkness. Jesus wants us to know that He has a plan for us individually in Him. He wants us to know that He created us specifically for Himself and that He has a place in Him for each of us that belongs to no one else but us. The BIG question in all of this is, Will you and I desire to know Him, to find our place in Him, and to be a part of Him enough to pursue it?
I pray for you, in Jesus name, that you will receive these first two chapters with enough of the grace of God to realize that I am trying to help and not hurt.
In the Introductory Book to the Relationship or Religion, Your Choice Series entitled My Quest - My Personal Journey to Jesus, I share in detail about being personally brought to an understanding that I did not really know the Lord Jesus Christ, though I genuinely wanted to. I will not repeat any of the details of my story; but, suffice it to say, Jesus got my attention. He demonstrated to me that He wanted to know me and also wanted me to know Him in a measure of relationship greater than I could ever desire for myself. The Lord has demonstrated to me repeatedly that He is so determined that I know Him that He will allow anything to happen to me or do anything necessary in my life to keep me on track in my journey.
You may experience considerable discomfort while reading the first two chapters of this book, not because they are written above your head, but because the truth contained in them may be beyond your current relationship with Jesus. First through experiencing them and then through writing about them, the things contained in these chapters were very painful for me to face; but, after I had started my journey I realized that if I was to truly know Him, then it was extremely important for me to be confronted with them. You cannot know how to get to where you are going if you do not first determine where you really are.
Having served in the U.S. Navy and having been taught how to navigate a ship (before the GPS System was available), I learned that all mariners who sailed the oceans of our globe, having no points of land for reference, could only find their way by studying the heavens in order to determine their exact position and thereby set the course to their destination. Since the position of the primary stars has been calculated for every day of the year, by determining his position in relation to those stars (called bearings), the skilled navigator can plot his ships precise location on his charts. From that determination he can decide on the necessary course (direction) to set that will take the ship to its desired destination. The night allows sailors to know where they are, but they cannot see where they are going. During the day the Sun allows mariners to see where they are heading, but they cannot determine exactly where they are. Navigators need to regularly experience both the day and the night in order to safely navigate the worlds oceans.
For many Christians, just maintaining the ship and standing watches are all that is necessary to fulfill their spiritual duties. They don't really know where they are; neither do they know exactly where they are going. They are more passengers than participants. I hope that just going through the motions of shipboard life is not enough for you. It definitely is not enough for me!
The Lord desires so much more for us than just living in the spiritual darkness. Jesus wants us to know that He has a plan for us individually in Him. He wants us to know that He created us specifically for Himself and that He has a place in Him for each of us that belongs to no one else but us. The BIG question in all of this is, Will you and I desire to know Him, to find our place in Him, and to be a part of Him enough to pursue it?
I pray for you, in Jesus name, that you will receive these first two chapters with enough of the grace of God to realize that I am trying to help and not hurt.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940013905924 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Antioch Publishes the Word |
| Publication date: | 02/29/2012 |
| Series: | Relationship or Religion, Your Choice , #3 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 82 |
| File size: | 121 KB |
About the Author
The writer of this series (Relationship or Religion, It Is Your Choice) is Chester M. Wright. His father was a career officer in the U.S. Navy and his mother was an active member of a United Pentecostal Church when he was born on February 18, 1946 in Pensacola, Florida. By the time he was 18 he had lived and had attended various UPC churches in every major geographical area of the United States.
At age 7 Chester attended a UPC church in San Diego, California and first sought to receive the Holy Ghost at age 9 in Memphis, Tennessee. He was filled with the Holy Ghost and baptized in Jesus name at age 12 in Jacksonville, Florida. At 14 he publicly acknowledged a call to preach the Gospel in a youth camp in Old Town, Maine and delivered his first message at a youth service in Cranston, Rhode Island. He graduated from high school in Oxon Hill, Maryland and in June of 1964, he entered the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis.
Then, on December 4, 1968, Chester awoke with a pain in his shoulder. Three days later he was diagnosed with “right-winged scapula,” a paralysis of the muscle group which controls the shoulder blade. He was placed on limited duty for a year, during which time he was able to preach several revival meetings. The Florida District of the United Pentecostal Church granted him General License in November, 1969 and the following month the U.S. Navy medically retired him as a Lieutenant JG (Junior Grade).
From December, 1969 to September, 1970, Chester and Alice evangelized full-time in Mississippi, Florida, and South Carolina. On September 12, 1970, they moved to Annapolis, Maryland to pioneer a new church under the auspices of the Home Missions Division and the East Central District of the United Pentecostal Church. At that time he was 24 and she was only 19, and there were no people of their faith in the entire vicinity of Annapolis. In May of the following year Chester was ordained in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Today, Antioch, The Apostolic Church in Annapolis has over 1000 members with regular Sunday morning church attendance averaging around 850. From the ministry at Antioch, 21 autonomous churches have been started and more than 90 ministers have found their calling, including 3 serving full-time on foreign fields. The church incorporates a full-time staff of 11 and has sponsored the Antioch Christian School (grades K-12) since 1978.
At age 7 Chester attended a UPC church in San Diego, California and first sought to receive the Holy Ghost at age 9 in Memphis, Tennessee. He was filled with the Holy Ghost and baptized in Jesus name at age 12 in Jacksonville, Florida. At 14 he publicly acknowledged a call to preach the Gospel in a youth camp in Old Town, Maine and delivered his first message at a youth service in Cranston, Rhode Island. He graduated from high school in Oxon Hill, Maryland and in June of 1964, he entered the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis.
Then, on December 4, 1968, Chester awoke with a pain in his shoulder. Three days later he was diagnosed with “right-winged scapula,” a paralysis of the muscle group which controls the shoulder blade. He was placed on limited duty for a year, during which time he was able to preach several revival meetings. The Florida District of the United Pentecostal Church granted him General License in November, 1969 and the following month the U.S. Navy medically retired him as a Lieutenant JG (Junior Grade).
From December, 1969 to September, 1970, Chester and Alice evangelized full-time in Mississippi, Florida, and South Carolina. On September 12, 1970, they moved to Annapolis, Maryland to pioneer a new church under the auspices of the Home Missions Division and the East Central District of the United Pentecostal Church. At that time he was 24 and she was only 19, and there were no people of their faith in the entire vicinity of Annapolis. In May of the following year Chester was ordained in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Today, Antioch, The Apostolic Church in Annapolis has over 1000 members with regular Sunday morning church attendance averaging around 850. From the ministry at Antioch, 21 autonomous churches have been started and more than 90 ministers have found their calling, including 3 serving full-time on foreign fields. The church incorporates a full-time staff of 11 and has sponsored the Antioch Christian School (grades K-12) since 1978.
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