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Introduction

At a time when many Apostolics are 3rd, 4th or even 5th generation, many are losing sight of the landmarks that our previous generations have left us. This eagerness to depart from the things that identify us is not always a lack of love for truth, but is often the result of a lack of adequate teaching. This is reflected in my own life. Being a 4th generation Pentecostal myself, I fell for the "it's only a consecration" philosophy and for a period of time lost my way. It was not due to a lack of love for God, but it was because I had only been taught "The Rules" without ever really learning the reasoning behind them. By the grace of God my wife and I found our way back to fullness of truth and for that we will be eternally grateful. In retrospect we now know that by turning away from our heritage God opened our eyes to see that what before seemed like bonds and burdens was the very thing that brought us back and into deep relationship with Him.


Because of our past experience, God has given us a burden for what we will call Prodigals. The dictionary defines prodigal as a person who spends, or has spent, his or her money or substance with wasteful extravagance. This seems very fitting as many former apostolics are using their God-given talent wastefully. Many fine singers, musicians, and even preachers are using their talents for pursuit of worldly gain rather than to glorify their Creator. We know that everyone is called to be a minister in some capacity and we pray that you will join us in praying for these that have gone astray.


Many days I will simply post the prayer requests that I have received while other days I may be able to post an encouraging scripture or story. To subscribe simply click the RSS subscription button below or simply visit this page to check for updates. Because of other excellent resources for prayer, such as World Network of Prayer (www.wnop.org), I ask that your requests would be limited to lost children of Apostolic parents. I will be accepting prayer requests, praise reports and encouraging stories for entry into the blog. If you or anyone you know is praying for a son or daughter who has wandered or has been led astray, please do not hesitate to send me a prayer request through the comments section below. Comments are not public and only prayer requests, praise reports etc. will be published. In order to maintain anonymity only first names along with the state of residence will be posted on any prayer list.


This blog is a new venture for me entirely and I will apologize in advance for any growing pains we may experience over the next few months. I pray that you will be patient with me as we begin this journey together.


Thank you for taking the time to view this blog. I hope and pray it will be a blessing to you.


For the Kingdom,


Mark Barnes

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Our Magnificent God

When I think of the goodness of Jesus and all that he's done for me, my soul cries out Hallelujah, thank God for saving me.  This old song is running over and over in my head today.  I can't stop thinking about how great my God is.  The one who created the universe with its Billions of stars loves me enough to speak with me, protect me, and even die for me.  
The world today is consumed with celebrity, we are consumed with wanting fame.  If we have any connection to someone of renown we use it to our advantage in business or other relationships.  We want to know celebrities, or should I say we want to be known by celebrities.  The same holds true in the church, we seek to be known for OUR great works and not for what God has performed and privileged us to experience.  We want everyone to know how many people come to OUR church, how many people are in OUR youth group, and which internationally-renowned evangelist we have speaking for us this week.  We want everyone to know that OUR local church has been called to be great, we desire recognition at sectional events and yet we know the only true God.  We know the only true celebrity, we know the ONE who should be celebrated.
Over the past few years several of the very prodigals that this blog was created for have found worldly fame.  Because of their background they have a following within the Apostolic movement.  Admittedly, I have followed their rise to fame. I have imagined what it would be like to rise to the peak of worldly fame.  And I have decided to follow Jesus.  I have decided to follow the ONE who, according to Job, hung the world on nothing. I have decided to follow the ONE who loves me unconditionally. The ONE who died for me, the ONE who only desires my praise, love and obedience.
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