3 Days to Change the World - Lofton

3 DAYS to CHANGE the World.

Ordinary people with extraordinary influence.

By Tom Lofton

THREE DAYS TO CHANGE THE WORLD

Copyright 2009 Tom LoftonPrinted in the United States of America

Published by Convoy of Hope, Springfield, Missouri.

Cover design by Lee Steffen at PenguinCreative.com

Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible

Society.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be used without written permission of the publisher, with the

exception of brief excerpts for magazine articles, reviews, etc. For further information or permission, write Convoy of Hope, 330 South Patterson Avenue, Springfield, MO

65802.

This book is dedicated to the unsung heroes on the home front who are praying for those serving on the front lines of compassion.

Heaven knows each of you by name and you are dearly loved.

Tom LoftonJuly 15th 2009

Contents

Foreword................................................................7

Introduction.........................................................11

DAY 1 MorningPray to Be Like Jesus................................................15

DAY 1 Afternoon/EveningPray for More Workers............................................19

DAY 2 MorningPray for God's Power...............................................23

DAY 2 AfternoonPray Fervently...........................................................29

DAY 2 EveningPray for Passion........................................................31

DAY 3 MorningPray to Stay Focused................................................35

DAY 3 AfternoonPray that You Are the Answer to Someone's Prayers........................................................................37

DAY 3 EveningPray for the Compassionate Heart of Jesus..........39

Foreword

Their would-be tomb was the cold, steel hull of the submarine. It had sunk days earlier and now they were trapped on the ocean floor. Oxygen was running low and the temperature had plummeted. To add to their distress the darkness enveloped them like a wet blanket. Desperate to be rescued they tapped out Morse code messages on the inner walls of the sub.

One of their last messages went as follows:"Is ... there ... any... hope?"Right now more than a billion people do not

have access to clean drinking water. Every day 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes. In the United States alone more than 37 million people live in poverty. Like the desperate sailors trapped in the submarine there are countless people all around us wondering if there is any hope.

As followers of Jesus we know there is. And we also know we can be conduits of hope. This

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3 Days to Change the World

is proven every week at Convoy of Hope outreaches.

A single mom who had been laid off from her job stood in a line at one of our outreaches. Her two grade-school children stood quietly next to her. They looked as hungry as she seemed desperate. But suddenly the woman's sad demeanor changed when volunteers started loading her arms with bags of groceries.

"All of this is really free?" she asked skeptically as she accepted the food. "Why would you do this?" "To let you know someone cares," one of our volunteers replied. "To remind you that there's hope."

Tears welled in the woman's eyes. She nodded, said "thank you" and slowly walked away.

Real life experiences like that are exactly why Convoy of Hope exists. In fact, we think it is a mandate to not only meet people's basic needs, but to give them the hope that is only found in a relationship with Jesus.

But to do that effectively we must also pray.

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Foreword

Without prayer and God's help—our compassion, love for others and efforts to change people's lives are in vain.

A young outreach volunteer asked me a good question: "Hal, I pray for the hungry and impoverished, but I really don't know what to pray about other than to ask God to meet their needs," admitted the volunteer. "But my prayers ring hollow because I feel like their situations demand so much more—how can I more effectively pray for the hurting people of this world?"

The answer to that important question is found in this book. Read on so you can play a role in changing the world.

—Hal DonaldsonPresident and founder of Convoy of Hope

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Introduction

Three-day weekends—who doesn't love them? An extra day to kick back, relax and spend time with family and friends is always welcome going into and coming out of the summer months. It's amazing how an extended weekend can recharge the batteries, shift priorities back to where they need to be, and give a person pep in his or her step.

Seventy-two hours of rest and relaxation can change our view of life and give us the boost to steamroll hectic schedules. But what if I told you that in three days you could help change the world?

What if I told you that in three days you could help feed a starving child, bring fresh drinking water to desperate villages, help an unemployed father find a job, and respond to victims reeling from a hurricane or war?

What if I told you that in three days time you could give countless people the kind of hope that never disappoints or fails?

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Would you commit three days of your life to something if it could really change the world?

Two thousand years ago, a small band of men saw how three days can change the world. In three short days Jesus died, was buried, then rose from the dead!

The world would never be the same.Those three days served as the catalyst that

would encourage Jesus' disciples to spread Christ's message of love and forgiveness throughout the world.

As you can see, three days can turn the world upside down. In three days you can change the world, too.

But how? You may be asking.Through prayer!Isn't this supposed to be a book about

compassion, ministry and meeting people's needs? Absolutely.

But to effectively fulfill our biblical mandate to rescue the lost and suffering, we must first

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Introduction

pray. In other words you need to be as dedicated to praying as you are to doing good works.

In three days you'll not only learn how to pray for the hungry, impoverished and hurting, you'll take your first steps on a life-long journey that will help change the world.

Right now you have a compass in your hand. This book will guide you in the right direction. As you follow this compass, allow the Lord to speak to you about where you can be the most effective for Him.

Like all good journeys this is one that should be savored. So set aside enough time each day to talk to God and wait for His response and direction.

In three short days you will have completed the first part of a journey that will literally change the lives of lost and suffering people. Are you ready to break out of your comfort zone and do something that will not only transform your life, but those of others?

If so, read on and embrace the challenge to

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pray at least three times a day for the next three days!

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DAY 1 Morning

1 PRAY TO BE LIKE JESUS

In the New Testament Christ and compassion are found in the same context 14 times. In three of those passages—Matthew 9:35-38, Mark 9:22-29 and Luke 10:33-37—prayer is mentioned directly or indirectly.

Here's the bottom line: no matter what is going on in the world our prayers are extremely important to God. Every time you pray you are spending time with God. You are inviting Him to speak into your life and communicate with you.

Jesus prayed constantly. So should we.When Jesus saw a need, He didn't weep and

walk away. He responded in a tangible way, He repaired eyes, befriended the lonely, and fed

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the hungry.Were there throngs of reporters buzzing

around Jesus when He met people's needs? Did He demand compensation for His deeds? Was the inconvenience to His schedule thrown in the faces of those He helped? Did He demand that the people He helped be of some certain economic or social standing?

No! He served freely and asked for nothing in return other than the people He helped believe in Him. We should do the same.

PRAY TO BE LIKE JESUSSpend the next 10-15 minutes praying and

waiting on God. Ask Him to give you:• A compassion for others.• Opportunities to exercise God's grace,

humility and generosity.It is easy to overlook or underestimate how

important prayer is in Jesus' life and ministry. But time and again He slipped away from His disciples to talk to God. Which begs the

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Pray to Be Like Jesus

question: If Jesus, the Son of God, could take time to pray, shouldn't it be a priority for us, too?

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DAY 1 Afternoon/Evening

2 PRAY FOR MORE WORKERS

"But when Jesus saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest'." (Matthew 9:35-38, NIV).

If we are going to change the world, we need as many workers as possible to join us on the journey. Though Jesus spent much of His time with His 12 disciples, He invited those He met to join the journey. He asked them to pray.

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In Matthew 9 Jesus sees multitudes of people with every kind of need imaginable. It resembled the scene of a fireman arriving at a house that is fully engulfed and people are trapped inside. You would think Jesus' first instinct would be to rally His troops and get everyone involved in rescuing those who are trapped and putting out the fire. But in addition to healing and teaching, Jesus does something entirely unexpected: He takes a moment to survey His surroundings and then implores His followers to pray for more laborers. That might not make sense in the short term, but it makes perfect sense in the long run.

At Convoy of Hope, to be as effective and efficient as possible, we pray for more laborers who can bring a variety of talents and resources to the cause. We could accomplish very little without generous supporters and thousands of selfless volunteers who represent families, churches, organizations, government agencies, and corporations.

If you have ever volunteered at a Convoy of Hope outreach or assisted us during relief

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Pray for More Workers

efforts, you know teamwork is absolutely essential to everything we do.

The more workers, the more that can be accomplished—the more lives that can be changed.

Jesus knew this to be true. Yes, His disciples were talented and committed to the task at hand. But Jesus knew that more workers would spread His message of hope more rapidly.

As many coaches have said over the years, "Teamwork makes the dream work."

That's certainly true at Convoy of Hope.Because of it, we have grown into a

worldwide humanitarian organization with a fleet of tractor-trailers, a 300,000 square foot warehouse and arms in Europe, Africa, South America and the Philippines. Teamwork has allowed us to distribute more than $200 million worth of food to some 30 million impoverished people.

None of that could have been accomplished without prayer and the help of workers dedicated to serving others. That is exactly why

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we believe in asking God to send us more workers, partner ministries, agencies and organizations to help us help others. It enables us to cover more ground, meet more needs, share Christ's message of love and hope with more people, and provide more assistance to people during disasters.

Spend the next 10-15 minutes praying and waiting on God. Ask Him to:

• Send more workers.• Open up partnerships and alliances that

can help you to reach more people with Christ's message of hope.

It has been said that one horse is able to carry two tons of weight using its own strength. That's impressive, but did you know that two horses are able to carry thirteen tons of weight?

It's true and a powerful reminder of the awesome work God can accomplish when we stand together with other believers.

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DAY 2 Morning

3 PRAY FOR GOD'S POWER

The needs of this world are overwhelming, disheartening, complicated, and ruthless. Even so, compassion is able to trump such challenges. But, as it says in Mark 9:22-29 (NIV), compassion in action in the face of adversity requires the power of God.

So He asked his father, "How long has this been happening to him?" And he said, "From childhood. And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."

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Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!" Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, "He is dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?" So He said to them, "This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting."

When it comes to compassion ministry you must be equipped with the power of God to be truly effective. And as Jesus told His disciples, that power comes through prayer and fasting.

All too often, those who go looking for opportunities to exercise compassion rely solely on their own experiences, knowledge, talents, gifts and power instead of trusting in God.

Doing so is a big mistake!

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Pray for God's Power

Convoy of Hope has held countless outreaches in impoverished communities throughout the United States and around the world. At these outreaches thousands of people are treated as honored guests. Often they are given a meal, offered medical and dental services, haircuts, job opportunities and bags of groceries. Without hundreds of volunteers at each outreach none of that would be possible. We believe each volunteer is empowered, equipped and sent by God.

Manpower is not enough. We need God's power to overcome obstacles, setbacks and deterrents.

In Mark 9, Jesus is traveling with Peter, James and John to the top of a mountain. There, they have an incredible encounter with God. Christ is transfigured and God speaks. It's a moment that would transform and mark the disciples for the rest of their lives.

Meanwhile, the other nine disciples are encountering a demon-possessed boy and a desperate father. The father is anxious to see his son delivered and restored. But he needs power

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from on high and he assumes the disciples have access to such power.

Think about how many people today are desperately yearning for God's power to be evident in their lives. Whether they're struggling with the indignities of poverty, reeling from a natural disaster, or trying to outlast a famine in sub-Saharan Africa, people need God's power.

In a world overwhelmed with needs, people are searching for the kind of power that only God can dispense. His strength is sufficient for every situation.

Will you join our Convoy of Hope team in praying for God's power? Ask God to:

• Help us realize our dependence on Him.• Remind us that He is the only source of

power that can truly transform people's lives and eternities for the better.

• Give us the kind of strength and power needed for each task.

So, what were the disciples who were trying to deliver the possessed boy missing? Was it

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Pray for God's Power

compassion? No! They had tried their best to meet the need. Was it lack of desire? No! They had laid hands on the boy and prayed fervently.

So, what was it?They had failed to fast and pray for God's

power.We should learn from their mistake. Seek

the power of God daily.

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DAY 2 Afternoon

4 PRAY FERVENTLY

Early in Convoy of Hope's history, on occasion finances ran thin. Once tens of thousands of dollars were needed to meet a need.

Hal Donaldson, founder of Convoy of Hope, prayed fervently for God to meet the need. And, at the very last moment, God provided the funds.

In 1 Samuel 16, God says,

"I want to see your heart. Show me your heart. Are you seeking my face through prayer?"

If you want to be involved in compassion ministry you will have much work to do. But to lose sight of the role of prayer and power is a

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monumental mistake.Invite God to:• Meet your needs.• Strengthen you physically, emotionally

and spiritually.• Open opportunities.• Guide you to the right place and right

people.

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DAY 2 Evening

5 PRAY FOR PASSION

In Luke 10:33-37 (NIV), Jesus tells the story of a suffering man who needed help:

Then Jesus answered and said: "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn,

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and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denari, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.' So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?" And he said, "He who showed mercy on him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

In Luke 10, we find the final reference to prayer and compassion within the Gospels. Here, Christ tells the parable of a man who was robbed, beaten, and left for dead. Three men passed him. The first, a priest, passed by on the other side. The second, a Levite, looked away and kept walking. The third, a Samaritan, stopped and tended to the needs of the man.

The reference to prayer in this passage is very subtle. In fact, at first glance, one might miss it altogether. Nothing is written about the prayer life of these travelers; however, the message is clear.

Consider the description of the first two travelers. These were religious men. They

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Pray for Passion

understood the Word of God. However, knowledge—and lack of intimacy with God—did not produce action and real ministry was left undone.

In college I worked at a Greyhound bus depot. Early one morning, having worked all night, I got lost driving home and ended up in a seedy part of town. At a stoplight I noticed a homeless man passed out on the sidewalk.

He was as motionless as a rag doll and had dried blood in his hair. Immediately, God gripped my heart and I began to pray, "Lord, please touch that poor man."

No sooner had I finished praying than God shook my heart and said, "You touch him, you're closer!"

We can pray for workers to minister to our world, and we can seek the power of God to strengthen us, but unless we respond to the Holy Spirit's promptings to put action to our prayers and meet the needs we encounter—our prayers are in vain. James 2:17 (NIV) says,

"Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied

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by action, is dead."

As you pray ask God to give you:• Eyes to see the hurting.• Ears to hear their cries.• Hands to meet their needs.• A heart to extend compassion.• An unselfish desire to serve others so

people may see Christ.

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DAY 3 Morning

6 PRAY TO STAY FOCUSED

A young reporter was in Calcutta, India to interview a missionary who worked among orphans and outcasts. One night during the reporter's visit the missionary asked that the car be stopped. As soon as it did she raced over to a man laying in a gutter covered in blood.

The reporter wrote that the missionary carefully removed the bandages, washed his wounds and wrapped him in fresh linens. Back in the car the reporter asked the missionary why she would do such a thing. She replied, "Because every time I stoop to help one in need, I touch the face of God."

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That kind of compassion can only come from one immersed in sincere prayer—one who has an intimate relationship with God.

Compassion ministry can expose us to exhaustion, frustration, sickness and disease. It can be time consuming, humbling and demanding. Compassion ministry can cause the most dedicated persons to put their prayer time on the backburner in order to respond to ministry demands. Thus, prayer can be mistakenly viewed as a duty or religious ritual. We must cherish the time we have to talk to God.

When you pray, honestly express to Him:• Your needs.• Your frustrations.• Your enthusiasm.• Your love.• Your thankfulness.• Your devotion.

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DAY 3 Afternoon

7 PRAY THAT YOU ARE THE ANSWER TO SOMEONE'S PRAYERS

You are the answer to someone's prayer.Throughout the pages of church history,

countless believers have obeyed the Lord and prayed that God would send workers for future generations. Some believers prayed that God would send someone like you to fulfill a particular task.

In Hebrews 11, the writer talks about a great cloud of witnesses assembled in heaven. Those who have gone before us are gathered in heaven rejoicing in the answer to their prayers.

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So be encouraged! And be thankful that those who have gone before have prayed that God would prepare you for service.

Perhaps you are not yet serving in any type of ministry. Why not become the answer to someone's prayer today? You can do that by praying and asking God:

• Where you would be most effective for Him.

• To show you any obstacles that are keeping you from serving.

• Who needs your skill sets, experiences and services.

There is no doubt God has a great purpose for your life. If you ask Him to direct you to exactly where He needs you amazing things will happen.

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DAY 3 Evening

8 PRAY FOR THE COMPASSIONATE HEART OF JESUS

Jesus demonstrated the greatest act of compassion by taking upon His shoulders the burden of sin. At Calvary—the site of the crucifixion—He was more than a Good Samaritan; He served as our Great Substitute.

Prior to offering Himself on the cross for our sins, Jesus bathed the experience in prayer. On the night in which He was betrayed, Christ bowed in the Garden of Gethsemane. In His most trying moment, Christ enters into communion with His Father.

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Shouldn't we do the same?For those involved in compassion ministry,

Christ is our example. Through His life and teachings, we see that prayer plays an indispensable role in meeting the needs of others. As His followers, we are called to immerse ourselves in prayer.

We have been given specific instructions: We are told to pray that God will send workers, empower us, and give us compassion for a lost and dying world.

The needs around us are so great. The world is looking for answers. We have the privilege of partnering with Jesus to be their answer.

Today, millions of suffering people are teetering on death without knowing Jesus as their Savior. Yet, through prayer and compassionate acts we can give them the hope they so desperately need and play a part in changing their world.

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Pray for the Compassionate Heart of Jesus

PRAY FOR THE COMPASSIONATE HEART OF JESUS

You have just finished the first three days of a journey that can change the world. Keep moving forward, praying and doing compassionate acts—and stand amazed at what God does through your life.

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