Be Discipled in 2007 Through CLU!
“Throughout my courses at CLU, I gained a deeper understanding of spiritual truths. Every course presented theology from a balanced biblical perspective. I am eternally grateful to CLU for the dedication and commitment in their unending search for theologically sound and well-rounded materials. The courses, instructors and administration have worked diligently to encourage, inspire and help me every step of the way.” Gayle Smith
Course of the Month: Through the Bible Series
Is one of your New Year’s resolutions to read through the entire Bible this year? Has it been a resolution in years past that fell by the wayside sometime around April? Perhaps it is time to try a different approach. Rather than simply reading through the Bible, wouldn’t
it be great to slow down a little and finally get a handle on all those kings
and judges and prophets, and how the history of Israel all fits together, and
why we should even care about it? The Through the Bible series of eight courses
with CLU can help you do just that.
Reading an average of two chapters each day,
it will take you longer than a year to complete the series, but once you do,
you will know the Bible better than you ever dreamed possible. The collateral
text gives you the basic information about each book, such as author, when
it was written, brief historical context, etc. It also presents an outline
graph
of each individual book on a single page, helping you recognize major characters
and events and how they fit into the larger context. Then, you make that outline
your own by meditating on each chapter and creating your own title for it that
summarizes the content of the chapter for you.
You will also write down anything the Lord specifically speaks to you through
the chapter, as well as questions and insights you have. Finally, there are
open-ended questions that encourage you to explore specific themes throughout
the book and on throughout the entire Bible. You will be guided in building
your own personal theology on a variety of subjects directly through your meditation
on the Scriptures.
It is a tragic fact that many Christians do not know their Bible as well
as they would like. It is even more of a tragedy that most Bible school “Bible” courses do not even require that you read the entire Bible. It is our passion to see this trend change, at least at CLU. This is not a “light” series, and we recommend that you take other “topic-oriented” courses
along with it. But we truly believe your life will be changed if you commit
yourself to meditating on every word of the Scriptures, from beginning to end.
Why not make these courses the foundation of your daily devotions for the
next two years? You can start with any of the eight
courses. Enroll
during the month of January 2007 and you can request a 25% discount off the cost
of books and tuition for as many Through the Bible classes that you order. (Students
already receiving a financial aid discount can request a 10% discount.) There
is no better investment of your time or money that you could ever make than investing
in greater knowledge and understanding of the Word of God!
2006 Ministry Report – Another Year of Solid Growth!
Though much of our efforts this year were focused on acquiring and
settling into our new facilities, the Lord continued to bless and increase
our ministry.
Forty-five Certified Communion With God Facilitators have teamed
up with Mark Virkler to
teach people how to hear God’s voice! These individuals have a passion to
share this life-changing message and they have received specialized
training from
Mark Virkler. They are posted with their picture, bio and contact information
at www.cwgministries.org/certified/facilitators.htm. Please
contact them directly and book them to do a CWG seminar for your
group!
In addition to these 45 certified CWG facilitators,
hundreds of you are teaching the CWG message in your churches and home groups
using the
DVDs on How to Hear God’s Voice. In the first year of their
release, 775 sets have been sold, along with 500 sets of the CDs. Thank you
all for sharing this message with your friends. Together we can change the
face of Christianity.
Christian Leadership University enrolled 675 new students in 2006, bringing the total number of students who have ever registered to 3594. Currently 2463 students are enrolled in courses, with 202 mission students and 108 prisoners. We had 51 graduates this year, and a wonderful graduation ceremony at Abundant Life International Baptist Cathedral.
Our students may be found in 84 different countries around the world! Click
here for the full list.
Our Internet Presence Remained Strong in 2006. In 2005 we more than
doubled the traffic to our websites, averaging 67,000 visitors per month. Though
we
didn’t put much effort into web marketing this year, the numbers were
almost unchanged for 2006, totaling about 800,000 visitors for the year.
Our free
downloadable books were twice as popular this year! 22,000 English books were downloaded in 2006, as were almost 45,000 non-English
books and articles. Specifically, here is how our messages are penetrating various ethnic groups through these free downloads:
One reason for the exceptionally high number of Spanish downloads is our
strong presence in the search engines. For example, you will see us
listed at the top of the page when doing a Google search for
the popular phrase “Libros
Cristianos Gratis,” which is Spanish for “Free Christian Books.”
We praise God for His hand of blessing upon us!
Journaling
and Healing in the Philippines – Emmanuel
Abrea shares his story
“Ejoy (our youngest daughter; 5 years old) got vomited for 3 days and 3
nights and with some LBM. We rushed her to the Doctor on her first day of vomiting,
but it was not stopped. On the second night, she vomited continually and cried
because of her stomach was aching. We don’t know what to do; we agreed
to rush her to the hospital but the Holy Spirit reminded us to listen to the
voice of the Great Shepherd Jesus. So we prayed so hard and while praying, I
received the following messages from the Lord:
“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Peace I give unto you...
Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength
and whose heart turns away from the LORD...
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you”
“After hearing these words, we asked God’s forgiveness, we submitted
our lives to Him; we stand on in His promises and then started rebuking the devil.
Then, we felt the presence of the Lord in the midst of our room and Ejoy calm
down! Praise the Lord for His miracle!
“We thought that this sickness was over. But it wasn’t! Ejoy vomited
again for the third night. She is crying so loud and saying to God: ‘Lord
Jesus, why don’t you heal me completely? I’m tired of vomiting and
can’t able to bear this pain!’ After hearing this, I put her into
my arms to comfort her and start praying: ‘Lord Jesus, what is your message
to us? Please talk and I’m listening.’
“While saying this prayer and closing my eyes, I saw the Lord Jesus appearing
in a vision, He went inside the stomach (looks like a roaring waves and strong
wind) of Ejoy and then He said: ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then
I saw Ejoy’s stomach died down and it was completely calm. After seeing
this vision, she was completely healed! Her vomiting was stopped and her stomach
aching was gone! Glory to the Lord Jesus!”
You or your group can support this missionary to the Philippines:
Emmanuel Abrea desperately needs $488 per month to meet his family’s needs.
Contact him at emanabrea@yahoo.com.
Journaling from a CLU Student
“Father, You know that I have started (again) doing the Communion of God course. While exercising and listening to one of the tapes, I felt to journal – to
come to You and to open my heart and ask You what You wanted to speak to me.”
“Son, I am proud of you. You are making good progress. Do not be afraid
of missing out. I won’t
allow it. I am too committed to you. I am forever loyal to you and will never
turn My back on you.
“Choose to take to heart My words because they really are life to you. Choose to turn your ears and your eyes away from all the negative, all the games and all the other voices that are around you. There is only one voice that matters. There is only one ‘opinion’ that matters. What I say is true. What I say is eternal. What I say is fact - period. It’s
final. What others say and act is so temporal and foolish.
“Choose the wise and reject the foolish. Choose to believe Me, My words
above all else. You cannot go wrong.
“I am taking you a way that feels so lonely and unfair. Did you hear Me? I said I am taking you. Trust Me. I have also placed a few strategic people in your life to help you along the way. You don’t
have many. But you have enough. It is better to have a few that you can trust,
than to have many that you are never really sure of.
“I am answering your heart’s cry. I am bringing you to a place where
you and I can have such deep, intimate and wonderful times together - where you
can feel, and hear and receive such great things from Me and where you can experience
daily and continuously all the treasures that I have laid up for you.
“Do you realize that there are treasures just for you? Your name is on
them. No one else can have them but you. They are yours to enjoy. I have specifically
wrapped them and chosen them for you. I know what you like and I know what will
bring you joy and happiness.
“Come, learn of Me. Come, receive of Me and all that I have for you. I
so enjoy and love to lavish you and My children with good things. I love to see
the joy of when My children receive and enjoy My bountiful blessings.
“Turn away from it all and look at Me. You can see Me with open arms, welcoming
you tenderly, calling you intensely, and inviting you openly to come and have
fellowship and to sit with Me. Trust Me, Mike. Trust Me, son. I am forever yours.”
Tent-making
Activity (Acts 18:1-4)
We just received the following report from our good friend Jan Balch.
“Clare and I want to wish you a happy New Year! We are very excited
about the juice. My Aunt Gwen has been taking it only 3 weeks and has found
it has
improved her leg situation...she was able to shop for Christmas for the first
time in 2 years, since having a hip replacement. She also said her blood sugar
levels have dropped down to normal now as well! She is VERY happy! Yet another
great benefit to taking ‘The happy juice!’”
Click here
to learn more. Then start your own 90-day trial to see what this life-changing
superfood can do for you or someone you love.
Laughter
Is Healing to the Bones – “The Computer is Down”
Two priests died at the same time and met Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates.
St. Peter said, “I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer is down. You’ll have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can’t
go back as priests. So what else would you like to be?”
The first priest says, “I’ve always wanted to be an eagle, soaring
above the Rocky Mountains.”
“So be it,” says St. Peter, and off flies the first priest.
The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, “Will any of this week ‘count’,
St. Peter?”
“No, I told you the computer’s down. There’s no way we can keep track of what you’re
doing.”
“In that case,” says the second priest, “I’ve always
wanted to be a stud.”
“So be it,” says St. Peter, and the second priest disappears.
A week goes by, the computer is fixed, and the Lord tells St. Peter to recall
the two priests. “Will you have any trouble locating them?” He
asks.
“The first one should be easy,” says St. Peter. “He’s
somewhere over the Rockies, flying with the eagles. But the second one could
prove to be more difficult.”
“Why?” asketh the Lord.
“He’s on a snow tire, somewhere in North Dakota.”
Grace Chinese Lutheran Church seeking an assistant pastor in the New York City area. Contact Annie Young at 718-760-4132. ssayoung@gmail.com
New
translation posted – Spread
the word to those who could benefit!
Special thanks to Jocelyn Agpalo for translating
the Four Keys to Hearing God’s
Voice into Ilocano.
We have received offers from individuals around the world to translate our books
into various languages, and we now have free material available on our website
in 24 different
languages (plus English!). We appreciate each and every person who has given
of their time and talent for this work. If you would like to volunteer to
translate any of our materials, please contact
Mark Virkler.
Start
a Lamad Encounter Group in
your home or church today!
E-mail: mark@cluonline.com
Websites: cluonline.com
and cwgministries.org
Enroll in Christian Leadership University: cluonline.com/apply
Mark’s speaking itinerary: cwgministries.org/itinerary
Online shopping for books by Mark and Patti Virkler: cwgministries.org/catalog
Ordination opportunity: cluonline.com/network
Establish a church-centered Bible school: cwgministries.org/college
