Showing posts with label Don Finto. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Don Finto. Show all posts

Thursday, March 28, 2019

How to Stay Renewed in the Spirit—Even in Old Age - J. LEE GRADY CHARISMA MAGAZINE


Don Finto (Facebook/Don Finto)
This past weekend I preached at the historic Belmont Church in Nashville, Tennessee, a congregation that God used powerfully to spread charismatic renewal across the world in the 1970s. This was the church that gave us actor Pat Boone, Christian singers Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith, and many anointed songwriters and outreach ministries.
For years, Belmont was led by Don Finto, a brave spiritual pioneer who was willing to challenge old denominational mindsets after he had a profound experience with the Holy Spirit as a leader in the Church of Christ. Don "retired" from his pulpit at Belmont in 1996, but he didn't even begin to slow down. He launched Caleb Company, an aptly-named ministry that focuses on mentoring and outreach to Middle Eastern countries.
I interviewed Finto on the phone for Charisma a few times over the years, but I met him for the first time last Sunday. He was seated on the second row, beaming with all the energy of a 30-year-old. I learned before the service that he is 89.
If you ask Finto his age, he emphatically says: "I'm 89 years young."
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My good friend Paul Gonzalez, who serves as Belmont's teaching pastor, told me that Finto traveled to the Middle East last month with a team from the church. After the team finished their mission and flew back to the United States, Finto flew on to a few other countries. He is a true road warrior.
"Papa Don keeps the pace of a man half his age," said Gonzalez. "He carries boundless joy. His laugh is deep and genuine, and nearly everything he says he does so with a hearty laugh."
What's the secret to this kind of youthful energy in old age? Finto embodies principles that many of us need to grab now. Do you want to live long and finish strong? Here are a few tips:
  1. Keep yourself physically fit. Unless you are intentional about exercising regularly and eating healthy now, your body won't be strong in your 90s. If you carry around a lot of extra weight in your 40s, your heart or joints may fail—even in your 50s. Make a decision today to treat your body like a temple of the Holy Spirit so you can live longer.
  1. Let God's passions become yours. People who are consumed with God's purposes have an inner drive that renews them. Isaiah 40:31 says it best: "But those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint." An intentional focus on Jesus will give you extra energy—and the same boundless joy that makes Finto laugh so much.
British Christian leader George Mueller demonstrated this youthful energy in old age. When he was 70, he embarked on a 17-year period of missionary travel that took him to 33 countries. (This was before air travel, so he sailed on slow-moving ships.) It was his passion to share Christ with the world that kept Mueller moving at a frenetic pace until age 87. He died at 92.
  1. Hang around young people and invest in them. Finto is known in Nashville as a mentor to younger leaders. Even though he turned Belmont Church over to his successors more than 20 years ago, he continues to provide coaching and fatherly counsel to the next generation. You are more likely to find him mentoring and worshiping with a group of 20-somethings than playing shuffleboard with retirees.
  1. Stay in step with the Holy Spirit. Finto made a decision long ago to move with the cloud of the Holy Spirit. When the charismatic renewal hit this country in the 1970s, he didn't dig in his heels and cling to old religious wineskins. He broke away from Church of Christ traditions and moved the church into a season of fruitful growth.
Finto is a modern Caleb—and he reminds me of that biblical patriarch. Caleb said at age 85: "I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in." Caleb never looked for a comfort zone. He never parked on yesterday's victories. He was always looking for the next challenge, and eager to embrace the new thing God is doing.
No matter how old you are, I hope you will decide to live a life of spiritual passion. Don't let life grow dull. Let the Holy Spirit renew your strength until your last breath.
J. Lee Grady was editor of Charisma for 11 years before he launched into full-time ministry in 2010. Today he directs The Mordecai Project, a Christian charitable organization that is taking the healing of Jesus to women and girls who suffer abuse and cultural oppression. Author of several books including 10 Lies the Church Tells Women, he has just released his newest book, Set My Heart on Fire, from Charisma House. You can follow him on Twitter at @LeeGrady or go to his website, themordecaiproject.org.
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Sunday, June 21, 2015

"Lessons from My Spiritual Fathers" - James W. Goll


"Lessons from My Spiritual Fathers"
James W. Goll, Franklin, TN
The Elijah List

Fatherhood determines identity and identity releases security. Security produces a culture where it is safe to be unique, an environment where dreaming is the norm, and an expectation that dreams really do come true!
Well, that is my perspective from the chair I sit in today. I did not always know or experience these principles, as I grew up in a rather unsafe home with verbal abuse occurring almost every day. We each have a personal pilgrimage – and for a moment I would like to invite you into a window of mine. Jesus I loved without reservation, but the premise that God the Father was a "good God" unfortunately was a foreign concept to me. (Photo of Spiritual Fathers via James Goll)

Imprints From Spiritual Fathers

Unlike some, I have not had just one major, primary "spiritual father." But I have had the distinct honor of walking with and being impacted by several different fathers in the faith throughout my walk with the Lord, which has included over 40 years of full-time ministry.

As I grew up in the things of the Spirit, there were many teachers but few fathers and mothers. In this generation, I believe we actually have fewer teachers, but a plethora of authentic fathers and mothers and even grandfathers and grandmothers in the faith. One of my great joys over the years has been to nestle up to one of these spiritual veterans, speak honor to them and ask questions. 

Yes, ask questions!

Perhaps questions like, "Do you have a life Scripture verse that has guided you?" "What was one of the most difficult challenges you ever faced?" "What moves of the Holy Spirit marked your life?" "If you were to do it all over again, what would you do differently?" "Tell me about your family?" "What legacy do you want to leave for the next generation?"

I have always asked questions. Maybe it has been one of the keys to help me keep going in my roller coaster life and ministry. My mom always said I was the most curious child – asking questions like, "Mommy, where do babies come from?" Ha! I remember those days of wonder and awe. And I still live in those days of wonder and awe. You can too!

Word-based Discipleship

I always want to be a Word-based disciple. If I had no relational mentors, I would still have my Bible. I would still have the heroes of the faith inscribed in this Holy Book. They are the fathers and mothers I look to the most. They always have been, and frankly, always will be. (Photo of Don Finto with James Goll)

I have also been an avid reader. I keep feeding this insatiable desire for knowledge, lessons from history, and a desire to know and experience more of God by reading. Thus today, I have a vast library that is filled with both old books and new ones (Matthew 13:52). These books have acted as some of the primary spiritual mentors that the Holy Spirit has used as tools in my life. The shadows of these great men and women of God still exist today.

Perhaps that is one of the reasons I am so committed to writing. Books have been my primary source of teaching and mentoring. In one of my many journals I have written that when I am 70 years old I will compose a book called "Lessons from the Woodshed!" I can't wait to write it. But I can't yet – I guess I still might have a few more "behind the scenes" encounters! Ouch!

Key Scripture Verses

So here are some basic Scriptures to use as stakes in the ground in the process of establishing your own relational culture of honor as it pertains to fathers and mothers of the Faith. These Scriptures are immoveable markers in my life.

Ephesians 6:2-3 "HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise), SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH."

Psalm 68:5-6 "A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, is God in His holy habitation. God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out the prisoners into prosperity, only the rebellious dwell in a parched land."

2 Kings 2:9-14 When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, "Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you." And Elisha said, "Please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me." He said, "You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so." As they were going along and talking, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire and horses of fire which separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind to Heaven.

Elisha saw it and cried out, "My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" And he saw Elijah no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. He also took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him and returned and stood by the bank of the Jordan. He took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him and struck the waters and said, "Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?" And when he also had struck the waters, they were divided here and there; and Elisha crossed over.

ElijahList Prophetic Resources

Four Key Fathers that Imprinted My Life

By the Lord's grace I continue to cultivate relationships with forerunners. In recent years this list has included C. Peter Wagner, Don Finto, John Sanford and others. (I am not attempting to name drop, but am speaking in truth of the authentic relational impact of these men!) I would also add to the list many of my "peers" who are some of the dread champions of the faith in our generation. And I have not even mentioned the Women Leaders who have impacted my life! (I will hold that one for another time – but it is extensive for sure!)

So, you ask, who have been some of the most significant relational mentors in your life? Who helped shape your Spiritual DNA while your cement was still wet? Glad you asked. With great joy I share them with you!

• Derek Prince – The Late International Bible Teacher

I observed and learned more from this brilliant British Bible teacher and scholar than anyone. These lessons included themes like: Prayer and Fasting Shapes History, God's Heart for Israel, Church Government, Deliverance, Breaking of Curses, and so much more. The thing that probably impacted me the most was his reverence towards and relationship with the Word of God.

• Mahesh Chavda – Man of Prayer, Fasting and Miracles

My dear friend and mentor Mahesh Chavda. Where do I begin? I carried his briefcase, coffee mug and even had the honor of bringing more comfortable shoes for him to wear when he stood in healing lines for hours. He has been one of my primary mentors in the anointing, fasting as a lifestyle and obeying the voice of the Holy Spirit.

• Bob Jones – The Late Seer of Seers

Mercy! Where do I begin to describe the impact Papa Bob Jones had on my life? I got joined at the hip with this unusual man in 1983; he rocked my world and I am still left shaking from that quake. Dreams, visions, angelic encounters were Bob's daily bread. I absorbed, watched and learned a lot from this man who was so "heavenly minded he was of earthly good."

• Dick Simmons – Intercessor behind the Scenes

This elderly man today might be lesser known before men than some, but he is a greatly known before the throne of God. I learned and entered into greater authority in intercession, the power of "reminding God of His Word", and the value of Church history through the hours of personal intercession I spent with this forerunner. His shadow has deeply impacted my life, ministry and global reach.

I have said for years, that the Holy Spirit did not give me one mentor but different ones for different purposes. These are but four of the godly men that the Lord has brought into my life. Oh my, none of them are the same – not even close. But what they have carried in common is a love for God, His people, His purposes and the integrity of His Word.

Thank You Lord for the impact of these Fathers in the Faith in my life, and the opportunity to share with others what has been imparted to me. May the ceiling of my generation truly become the next generation's floor!

I also pray that each of you will glean from the lessons of the mentors that God has placed within your path – through His Word, books, and personal relationships. May God continue to raise up fathers and mothers of faith who will mentor others – including you!

Wisdom from the Trenches!

James W. Goll
Founder of Encounters Network • Prayer Storm • God Encounters Training e-School

Dr. James W. Goll is the president of Encounters Network, director of Prayer Storm, and coordinates Encounters Alliance, a coalition of leaders. He is director of God Encounters Training – an e-school of the heart, and is a member of the Harvest International Ministries apostolic team. He has shared Jesus in more than 50 nations worldwide, teaching and imparting the power of intercession, prophetic ministry, and life in the Spirit. James is the prolific author of numerous books and has also produced multiple study guides and hundreds of audio and video messages. James was married to Michal Ann for 32 years before her graduation to Heaven in the fall of 2008. James has four adult children who all love Jesus, and continues to make his home in Franklin, Tennessee.

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