Make A Difference

As the season changes into Fall it makes us think of pumpkins, raking leaves, candy, and Thanksgiving just around the corner. But it also makes us think of Harvest. And when we think of the word Harvest here at LifeLight we think about the Harvest Jesus told us about.

He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." Luke 10:2

Yes, we all love the beautiful changing colors of the leaves and trees, and we love all the candy at harvest festivals, sweet corn and more, but most importantly let’s think about how we can make a difference in another person’s life! All it takes is a helping hand, a listening ear, or a kind gesture all in the love of Jesus. Whether you leave an evangelistic tract in a public restroom, or you ask your waiter if they attend church, we hope and pray that you would see how great the need is and how plentiful the harvest is and DO SOMETHING about it!

Rachelle Brewer
Missions Coordinator

Festival Ministry Report

“I will praise you forever for what you have done; in your name I will hope, for your name is good.” Psalm 52:9 (NIV). Our God is an awesome God! What a privilege it is to be used by Him to further His Kingdom. Our 2009 LifeLight Festival Ministry Report is moving; many lives were touched by the love and hope of Jesus Christ!

But what goes on “outside the walls” of the LifeLight Festival? Did you know that the festival goes beyond the fields, tents, masses of people and stages? LifeLight is honored to minister to many others in need of a Savior who are unable to attend the festival.

On Saturday afternoon, Lincoln Brewster visited Avera Behavioral Health Center, bringing music and the Good News to many in need of Hope.

On Sunday morning, evangelist Andrew Palau visited the inmates at the South Dakota State Penitentiary and shared the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.

On Sunday afternoon, we had the opportunity to bless a 6-year old boy with a rare bone marrow failure disorder with a home visit from Tait and Duncan of the Newsboys.

Thousands of lives were touched by the saving grace of Jesus Christ at the festival as well. Our prayer counselors report a busier year than ever before in the prayer tents! A regular flow of individuals, couples and families streamed into the tents seeking Hope. Here is a preliminary report:

Gospel Booklets: We handed out over 9,000.

Gospel Tracts: We handed out over 10,000.

Bibles: Gifts provided 3,000. We ran out of Bibles for children and teens at 2:00 PM Saturday.

Prayer Counselors: We trained over 500 volunteers through live and video training to minister in the prayer tents.

Prayer Ministry: We had constant prayer activity and ministry each day from early morning until after closing at midnight. Hundreds and hundreds of decisions for Christ and prayer needs on response cards submitted.

Child Sponsorships: 125 children from Belo, Ethiopia were sponsored at the festival. More are still coming in.

We are still gathering information and statistics, so some numbers will change in coming weeks.

Praise to the Lord, the harvest is plentiful. To God be the Glory!!!

Alan & Vicki Greene
Founders

What a weekend!

Now that it’s over, what’s next? Currently, we are in the midst of cleaning up from a fantastic festival. Staff and volunteers are still on their feet working tirelessly to clean up the festival grounds. Without a doubt, this was a record breaking year. For the first time ever, the LifeLight Festival ran out of parking. People parked in the ditches along the gravel roads, nothing stopped the people from coming and the crowd just kept growing. This was a record breaking year for single day attendance!

But the ministry of LifeLight in many ways is only just beginning. God moved in miraculous ways and many came to Christ. As I am writing this, I have a box of response cards in front of me. Throughout the festival weekend, a missionary volunteer prayed over each and every card individually. Many tears fall down our faces as we read of the many hurts; “I need help with my sex addiction,” “I want Jesus in my heart and to break my pornography addiction,” “My family ripped apart and I tried filling it with everything but God,” “I have been trying to commit suicide for many years now.” The ministry of discipleship begins now.

Our year-round ministry also kicks off immediately post festival. With the festival just closing this past Sunday night, I am already busy preparing to speak at the SEA meeting on Thursday and will give the invocation at Cry Out America on Friday. LifeLight Missions is hosting missionaries from Mexico and our Student Ministries team is gearing up for a school assembly this Wednesday evening as well as preparing for the See You At The Pole Rally on September 23rd. Planning for the upcoming Fall Tour (Nov 4-15) is underway with just two cities left to fill. While the Festival is our most visible area of ministry, the ministry of LifeLight is a year-round work.

I want to extend my sincere thanks to all of our many volunteers! And thank you to everyone who came to the festival. We pray that you were richly blessed.

To God be the Glory!!!

For the Kingdom,

Alan Greene

The Ultimate Retweet!

The LifeLight Festival is almost upon us and we have been flooding you with social network news, videos and invitations to the festival.

Isn’t technology an amazing thing?

Some of you younger people receive like 96 text messages on average every day, not to mention facebook, twitter, etc. Here’s a recent tweet on my page:

Quote on Tweeting: Does God tweet? Jesus was the original Tweep. He was always saying cool stuff that got him new followers - the Bible is the ultimate RT

But facebook, twitter and social networking are nothing to God. He wants us connected to Him 24/7

We can communicate ourselves, and our profiles around the world! What an opportunity to not only communicate with each other but to get Gods message out.

Yet with all this technology and all our communication devices people are lonelier, more disconnected and possibly less unified than ever.

Here’s the most amazing thing…the God of the universe (your creator) desires to have a relationship with you, in fact a friendship with you and me. He calls us friends. How awesome is that!

Enjoy the music and the message but remember to stay connected to God.

John 15: 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit.”

Spreading the Word,

Alan Greene
Follow me on Twitter @LifeLightAlan

Be ready and willing to meet Jesus!

Be ready and willing to meet Jesus! He will transform and fix your broken life.

The Bible says, “That anyone who comes to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” 2nd Corinthians 5:17

It moves me to see how much God loves us and meets us in the time of our greatest need. I just came from the festival grounds where all the setup is taking place. A couple approached me and said, “God saved our marriage last year at the festival! We are here to help and serve by volunteering.” This was quite a moving story because while one of them had to learn how to truly forgive, the other had to really release everything to Jesus and truly repent (turn away from sin and walk with Jesus). During the song 'Above All' by Michael W. Smith, Jesus met them and restored them as a couple, and as parents. You could see both of them and their daughter beaming with joy.

At the mere mention of His name, “Jesus” the Holy Spirit is set into motion and God is there to rescue us. What a friend we have in Jesus! The only true hope for any of us is in surrendering to Him. I hope you will trust Him today and cry out to Him. He will hear you and rescue you right where you are.

For the Kingdom,

Alan Greene
Founder/CEO

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

Are You a Witness?

Are you a good witness or bad witness? The bible says we are all witnesses. There are four characteristics of a witness, three for a courtroom witness and the fourth for a Christian witness.

1) A witness must have good character in court and in life. Your lifestyle must be consistent.

2) A witness must have seen or experienced something. Each person’s perspective might be different but it is valid. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all experienced Jesus but each had a unique way of expressing the same event.

3) A witness is someone who tells of his or her experience. If a man with a good reputation saw something and was subpoenaed to appear in court and said nothing he would be held in contempt of court.

4) This fourth characteristic of a witness pertains only to a Christian. This is the aspect of being filled with the Holy Spirit. It is interesting to note: in the New Testament the phrase ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ and what immediately follows it in almost every situation. They spoke the word boldly.

Acts 4:8 “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them”

Acts 4:31 “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”

Eph 5:18 “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”

I pray you are overflowing with the Holy Spirit and ready at any time to boldly speak the word of God.

Alan

Daily scripture @LifeLightAlan on twitter

Ambassador for Christ

I read a story one time about a gathering of angels who had gathered around the Lord Jesus Christ after He had come back from earth. They were asking Him questions, and one angel said, "Lord, how are you going to spread the Gospel message throughout the world?" Well, the Lord Jesus said, "I have called out some disciples to carry out my Great Commission. They in turn will go and share this wonderful message with others who will respond, and they in turn will go and share with others who need to be saved."

Surprised, the angel said, "Are you telling me that you have entrusted the task of getting out the message of eternal life and salvation to those earthlings counting on them to be witnesses to the Gospel message and take the gospel around the world?"

The Lord Jesus said, "That’s absolutely right."

The angel said, "Well Lord, if they don’t do what you command them to do, what is Plan B?" To which the Lord replied, "There is No Plan B.”

If you want to know how God intends to reach a lost world for Jesus Christ, go home and look in the mirror. It’s not just the responsibility of pastors and evangelists to spread the gospel around the world. It’s up to all of us.

There is no Plan B.

If we do not do it in the power of God’s Spirit, it will not be done. 2nd Corinthians 5:20 "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us”.

Be an ambassador for Jesus!

Alan Greene
Founder/CEO
LifeLight Communications, Inc.

Twitter: @LifeLightAlan

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

Thanking our Special Guests

This morning I spent some time calling on out of state donors to thank them for supporting and encouraging our ministry. One gentleman asked me “What night are the Newsboys playing?” Guessing correctly I said, “Sunday night, and it is likely to be Peter’s last performance with the band.” Shocked the gentleman asked “What do you mean his last performance, where is he going?” The truth is that I don’t know much about the Newsboys but I answered confidently that he was going to continue to write songs for them and spend more time with his family.

I also spoke with a woman from Beaver Creek, MN. She was thrilled to be talking with someone from LifeLight about the Festival. I had the website up and told her it’s only: 28 days, 21 hours, 48 minutes and 43 seconds away! She has been to every festival except the first one. Her words: “I have been in rain, heat, dust, great weather, bad weather, mud, sun and I would not miss it for anything!”

I spoke with another woman from David City, NE (not the City of David). She is driving the 205 miles to the Festival with a group of girls. How big a group of girls you ask? For the third year in a row they will be booking 13 rooms at a motel by the Empire Mall.

Positive and encouraging (has someone else used that??) is all I can say about my morning of visiting with our special guests at the LifeLight Festival.

Tom Gage, Chairman of the Board

Salt & Light

We are to be salt and light. To be salt and light!

Matthew 5:13-16 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? ... You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid... Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

How did you come to Christ? Most people will answer, someone shared with me or someone invited me to an event or a concert. We all have a story.

Sometimes we get our mission mixed up. A survey reported in the book “The Purpose Driven Church” asked the question: What is the purpose of the church?

The survey of those in church showed that 89% said the purpose of church was to take care of their needs. They felt it was the Pastor’s job to care for their needs.

11% said the purpose of church was to spread the Gospel around the world. To take the hope and love of Jesus to those outside the walls of the Church.

In the same churches the Pastors were surveyed… and the results were exactly the opposite.

89% of Pastors said the main purpose of the church is to promote the gospel and teachings of Jesus around the world … and 11% said the Pastors job and the churches job is to take care of the sheep.

You came to know the savior. You must tell others. Why not start praying and talking to someone now and invite them to the festival? Help us continue in “Taking the Church outside the walls.”

For the Kingdom,

Alan

Follow me on twitter @LifeLightAlan

What is the Church?

Church--Ekklesia: (1) those called out (2) those assembled together

(The original Greek word ekklesia is composed of two words: ek, meaning "out of" or "out from," and kalleo, meaning "I call." Accordingly, the original word means "I call out from.”

When Jesus said, I will build my Church," He was saying, "I will call my people together out of the world. It’s a people, God’s people. )

Actually, it has two meanings: that of being called out, and that of being assembled together. We cannot experience church until we come together. You and every other believer in your city constitute the church even when you are not assembled. But we cannot receive the benefits and blessings of church until we come together.

Jesus prayed in John 17:21 “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

We can assemble together and gather together in a building, or in houses, in a hut in Africa, in a school building or in a field at the LifeLight Festival! I am looking forward to seeing you there. If you are a Christian, then you are the Church! And your mission and mine is to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ! To be salt and light.

Be the Church!

Alan
Follow me on Twitter @LifeLightAlan

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

The Parable of the Fishless Fisherman

A good thought for the day. This parable was first shared by John Drescher. Where can we see ourselves, the church, in this parable?

The Fishless Fisherman

Now it came to pass that a group existed who called themselves fishermen. And lo there were many fish in the waters all around where they lived. In fact, the whole area was surrounded by streams and lakes filled with fish. And the fish were hungry.

Week after week, month after month, and year after year, those who called themselves fishermen met in meetings and talked about their call to fish, the abundance of fish, and how they might go about fishing. Year after year they carefully defined what fishing means, defended fishing as an occupation, and declared that fishing is, always to be a primary task of fishermen.

Continually they searched for new and better methods of fishing and for new and better definitions of fishing. Further they said, "The fishing industry exists by fishing as fire exists by burning." They loved slogans such as, "'Fishing is the task of every fisherman," "Every fisherman is a fisher," and "A fisherman's outpost for every fisherman's club." They sponsored special meetings called "Fishermen's Campaigns" and "The month for fishermen to fish." They sponsored costly nationwide and worldwide congresses to discuss fishing and to promote fishing and hear about all the ways of fishing such as the new fishing equipment, fish calls. And whether any new bait was discovered.

These fishermen built large, beautiful buildings called "Fishing Headquarters." The plea was that everyone should be a fisherman and every fisherman should fish. One thing they didn't do, however, they didn't fish.

In addition to meeting regularly, they organized a board to send out fishermen to other places where there were many fish. All the fishermen seemed to agree that what was needed was a board which could challenge fishermen to be faithful in fishing. The board was formed by those who had the great vision and courage to speak about fishing, to define fishing, and to promote the idea of fishing in faraway streams and lakes where many other fish of different color lived.

Also the board hired staff and appointed committees and held many meetings to define fishing, and to decide what new streams should be thought about. But the staff and committee members did not fish.

Large, elaborate and expensive training centers were built whose original and primary purpose was to teach fishermen how to fish. Over the years courses were offered on the needs of fish, the nature of fish, where to find fish, the psychological reactions to fish, and how to approach and feed fish. Those who taught had doctorates in fishology. But the teachers did not fish. They only taught fishing.

Year after year, after tedious training, many were graduated and were given fishing licenses. They were sent to do full-time fishing, some to distant waters which were filled with fish. Some spent much on study and travel to learn the history of fishing and to see faraway places where the founding fathers did great fishing in the centuries past. They lauded the faithful fishermen of years before who handed down the idea of fishing. Further, the fishermen built large printing houses to publish fishing guides. Presses were kept busy day and night to produce materials solely devoted to fishing methods, equipment and programs to arrange and to encourage meetings to talk about fishing. A speakers' bureau was also provided to schedule special speakers on the subject of fishing.

Many who felt the call to be fishermen responded. They were commissioned and sent to fish. But like the fishermen back home, they never fished. Like the fishermen back home, they engaged in all kinds of other occupations. They built power plants to pump water for fish and tractors to plow new waterways. They made all kinds of equipment to travel here and there to look at fish hatcheries. Some also said that they wanted to be a part of the fishing party, but they felt called to furnish fishing equipment. Others felt their job was to relate to the fish in a good way so the fish would know the difference between good and bad fishermen. Others felt that simply letting the fish know they were nice, land-loving neighbors and how loving and kind they were was enough.

After one stirring meeting on "The Necessity for Fishing," one young fellow left the meeting and went fishing. The next day he reported he had caught two outstanding fish. He was honored for his excellent catch and scheduled to visit all the big meetings possible to tell how he did it. So he quit his fishing in order to have time to tell about the experience to the other fishermen. He was also placed on the Fishermen's Central Board as a person having considerable experience.

Now it is true that many of the fishermen sacrificed and put up with all kinds of difficulties. Some lived near the water and bore the smell of dead fish everyday. They received the ridicule of some who made fun of their fishermen's clubs and the fact that they claimed to be fishermen, yet never fished. They wondered about those who felt it was of little use to attend the weekly meetings to talk about fishing. After all, they were not following the Master who said, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men?"

Imagine how hurt some were when one day a person suggested that those who didn't catch fish were really not fishermen, no matter how much they claimed to be. Yet it did sound correct.

Is a person a fisherman if, year after year, he never catches a fish? Is one following if he isn't fishing?

The Mission of the Church

If we are taking the Church outside the walls, what is the mission of the church?

What is our purpose? There are multiple purposes; worship, fellowship, shepherding etc., but what is the #1 mission of the church?

I submit that the #1 mission or the call of the church is to proclaim the gospel throughout the world and make disciples.

Mark 16:15 says “He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature."

Matthew 28:19 “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”

These were Jesus' final words to His disciples and to us (before He ascended to Heaven): in Mark's gospel "Go preach the gospel to the world," and in Matthew, "Go and make disciples of all nations."

The mission of the church is an extension of Christ's earthly ministry (John 14:12). Jesus viewed redeeming people’s souls as His whole purpose for coming to the earth.

"For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost" Matthew 18:11. Jesus says, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men" Matthew 4:19.

It is the purpose of every believer, not only pastors and evangelists, to bring souls to Jesus Christ.

Will you join with us as we prepare for the harvest of souls at the LifeLight Festival?

Alan Greene
Founder/CEO

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

Our mission statement at LifeLight is “Taking the Church outside the walls, bringing Light into the darkness with the life-changing message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Years ago God got a hold of mine and my wife’s hearts and we became driven and passionate about spreading the Gospel. Many others have joined in. This mission and call of “Taking the Church outside the walls,” having a festival and launching a ministry came about after a missions' trip to Mexico. As we heard God’s voice and calling, a festival was then born and has since grown into a year-round ministry. It has been awesome to watch what God has done and is doing. Partnering together to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Did you know that 75% or more of people are not in church?

Jesus said in Acts 1:8 “But 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."

As we partner together in unity “Taking the Church outside the walls, bringing Light into the darkness with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ,” God through His spirit reaches people and changes lives. Will you join us in the command to take the Good News to the ends of the earth?

Alan Greene
Founder/CEO

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

Campaign '09

We have 52 days to go before the largest free Christian music festival in the nation begins. Over the years many thousands have been reached with the Good News of Jesus Christ, some as a result of many of you joining in the challenge and supporting the ministry of LifeLight.

As an extension of the church we seek to “take the Church outside the walls with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.” We are on a campaign, a campaign to reach one million people with the gospel. We reach them through the festival and all of the year-round ministry areas of LifeLight. As the message is proclaimed from stage God through His spirit reaches and rescues people one at a time. The #1 mission, the call of the church is to proclaim the gospel throughout the world and to make disciples.

That’s what we do at LifeLight. On this campaign we know that souls are at stake and we want to reach as many as possible. We need to fund the festival and keep it free so that all may come and hear how to be saved.

We will be providing regular updates on our website. Visit us at www.LifeLight.org. Will you join us in God’s work to reach people with the greatest news of all time?

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

May God richly bless you as you seek and serve Him,

Alan Greene
Founder/CEO

P.S. Want to experience thousands surrendering their lives to Christ? Watch the video titled "2008 LifeLight Festival Celebration" in the upper right hand corner of this blog, or click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AA0gm2m6HMM

"Taking the Church outside the walls"

Lift-off!

3, 2, 1... lift-off! Here it is, our first ever blog. As we dig deeper into social media and the optimal use of the internet and all that entails, you will see that your level of interaction with LifeLight is going to increase dramatically. Take a look at our updated website for example, front and center you will see all the links to the social media sites where LifeLight can be found...Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, shoutlife, tangle and now Blogger!

So here we are. But what's the point? Good question. The point is to make you the viewer, the "follower" become more involved, more educated, more aware but most importantly more a part of our family. We want you to interact with us! That is why we have named our blog "Backstage Pass." We are giving you the inside view of the goings on of LifeLight and the ministry that is constantly taking place. Follow us and see! There are many testimonies and stories to share.

Your Backstage Pass will be multi-dimensional. We will not only post stories, but testimonies, devotions, photos, and more! You will also have multiple authors. Everyone on staff at LifeLight will post their thoughts and experiences here.

So come along side and join us! To God be the Glory!

Carol Hayzlett
Executive Assistant

"Taking the Church outside the walls"