Adaptation of Don and Marti Schneider's Your Neighborhood: Your Primary Mission Field

A WALK IN HEAVEN…A SIGH FROM THE EARTH

Your Family, Your Church, your Friends and Your Neighborhood: Your Primary Mission Fields
Adapted by Carl Edward Nicolas from Your Neighborhood: Your Primary Mission Field by Don Schneider(President of the North American Division of SDA) and Marti Schneider (His wife)

PRAY
Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
1) Spend time daily in God’s word. As God changes you, He will give you a testimony to share with others.
2) Pray—Ask God what He wants you to do to touch your family, your church, your friends and your neighbor for Him.
3) Pray with a pencil in your hand—Write down whatever God shows you.
4) Pray and consecrate yourself to God, He cares about your happiness and He will guide you in all your endeavors and your relationships.
5) Discover the names of everyone in your immediate environment and show them interest. Write their names on a prayer list and begin to pray for them each day. Some specifically and some through meaningful groups of name (like friends), and each day try to focus on some names in the different groups
6) Pray three times a day at least. Pray with your family everyday. Pray with your collaborators at church every week. Pray with your friends every month. And Invite your neighborhood for a special service of prayer every three months. Churches should facilitate a special service of prayers every three months for neighborhoods: The Neighborhood Prayer Service.
7) Pray at every moment of your life, your life should be a prayer, but most importantly before every decision, for every little difficulty and for every contentment.



CONTACTS
1) Call your family members, your church members, your friends and your neighbors by name as often as you can.
2) Keep a record of each family you come into significant contact with so you can add additional information, such as birthdays, occupation, interests, contact information etc.
3) Take a little walk and/or reach out so you may have the opportunity to come into contact with your family members, your church members, your friends and your neighbors (following their schedule, so observe your surroundings, love your environment), so you may greet them and chat a few minutes whenever possible.
4) God has a plan for everyone, for you to come into contact with those you bump into. Make the occasion fruitful by being a blessing, and enjoying the blessing. Be willing to learn from each other.

LOVE AND KINDNESS
1) Smile. And ask your neighbors: “How are you doing” Remember to ask about their significant others by name. If you learn of a need, thank them for telling you, by saying: “Thanks for telling me about that need” I remember you in my prayers, so I will mention that need.
2) If you see a need that is very important to a family member, a church member, a friend and a neighbor, pray a brief prayer for the person at that very moment, expressing trust in God who loves them so much. Then inquire later about the outcome of the situation and continue to pray until the matter is resolved.
3)
4) Remember to show kindness at every occasion special or not so special, make it special. Give them a small gift of cookies, banana bread, or something special to them with a small note telling them who you are and how you can be reached.
5) Be real, Jesus is real. Be innocent like a dove and prudent like a serpent. Let Jesus live in your heart and let the Holy Spirit guide you. Let God take care of those things that you have no control on.

RELATIONSHIPS
1) Share your own life experience with your family members, your church members, your friends and your neighbors, even as you invite them to share their day’s or work’s experiences.
2) Look for small ways to celebrate. Perhaps you may invite them to celebrate your anniversary or birthday with you.
3) Greet the children warmly. Inquire from them about school, pre-school, or play activities. Treat them like your own nieces and nephews.
4) After you have built relationships, water them like beautiful plants that need to be nurtured. Ask your relations to pray for you for special needs (The grace of God, A larger portion of the Holy Spirit and more Love, a family need, a trip, a work in progress etc.)
5) Be humble. And add credits to your bank account with your family members, your church members, your friends and your neighbors by being nice. Love, Wisdom, Respect, Courage for what is right, Humility, Affection and Care will go a long way in relationships.
6) What you’re letting in your body and you mind will influence your relationship with your self and with others. Encourage healthy habits by setting them for yourself, keeping them and preaching by example. Eat fruits and share them. Experiment with a vegetarian diet and share cooking recipes. Invite everyone in your circles to good healthy entertainment and exercise opportunities. Share Christian literature, music and movies and especially web sites, by including Christian links in your e-mail signature, like www.bibleuniverse.com and http://www.amazingfacts.org/FreeStuff/BibleStudies/StoracleLessons/tabid/104/Default.aspx
http://www.amazingfacts.org/FreeStuff/BibleStudies/StudyGuides/tabid/105/Default.aspx
7) Read and share the principles in the 7 habits of Highly effective families by Stephen Covey: http://www.google.com/books to learn more about any relationships
And check the keys to a happy marriage at : http://www.amazingfacts.org/FreeStuff/BibleStudies/StudyGuides to learn about great bible principles






SMALL GROUPS FELLOWSHIP
1) Begin a story time for children using Bible stories and
Character-building stories. Invite other family members, church members, friends and neighborhood mother/fathers to
help you
2) Offer a bible reading evening to simply begin in Genesis to read the Bible accounts. Prepare ahead by seeing how the various biblical doctrines can be found in Genesis and Exodus. Teach any guests to use the center reference in to look up Bible texts that refer to similar passages. Rather than pushing doctrine, let them discover truth for themselves.
3) Consider planting a Discipleship Group, a House Church, or Adventist Congregation in your neighborhood.
4) There are a lot of opportunities to minister using common interests to bring people together and to enjoy life with balanced and varied activities. And all those activities will provide great fellowship occasions, and the crucibles for small group ministry. It might be a small group discussing family issues, relationships and singleness. It might be a Christian Finances small group. It might be a Christian reading group etc.





GOSPEL EFFORTS
1) Show care and love for the souls of men, because God wants to save them. A
Gospel effort starts there in Relationships and Small Groups Ministry.




MISSION FIELDS
1) BEAR FRUITS BY THE GRACE OF GOD THAT HAS BEEN IMPARTED TO YOU
THROUGH JESUS LIVING IN YOUR HEART WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. Go make disciples and I will be with you until the end of the world, JESUS SAID. CHRIST IS COMING TO WALK US INTO HEAVEN.


A Great religious awakening (chapter 20) under the proclamation of Christ's soon coming is foretold in the prophecy of the first angel's message of Revelation 14. An angel is seen flying "in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people." "With a loud voice" he proclaims the message: "Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." Verses 6, 7.
The fact that an angel is said to be the herald of this warning is significant. By the purity, the glory, and the power of the heavenly messenger, divine wisdom has been pleased to represent the exalted character of the work to be accomplished by the message and the power and glory that were to attend it. And the angel's flight "in the midst of heaven," the "loud voice" with which the warning is uttered, and its promulgation to all "that dwell on the earth,"--"to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,"--give evidence of the rapidity and world-wide extent of the movement. The message itself sheds light as to the time when this movement is to take place. It is declared to be a part of the "everlasting gospel;"
www.ellengwhite.com (search Christ second coming)