Influencers Weekly Devotional

Influencers Cabinet Introductions

Mark Sewell

Over the last four years of my life, God has done an incredible transformation in me through the power of His Holy Spirit. I am amazed how being in the Word of God can truly change us into vessels that can bear much fruit for his glory and cause us to be men of influence he can use profoundly to further his Kingdom here on earth. How he can raise us up to be mighty men of God who can influence the world around us for our King amazes me. For most of my adult life I had been living the typical American Christian life. I had been doing what I like to call “dating” Jesus. Some call it Religion and others have their own interpretation, but for the most part it is what I and many others have been raised to believe is true Christianity. Whatever you may call it, it is a hard way to live. It is selfish, powerless, disheartening, and deceiving. I believe God himself calls it “fruitless”. I attended church regularly, prayed every day, attended bible studies, paid my tithes, sent my children to Christian schools and gave money to help the missionaries. I believed that Jesus was the son of God, that He died for our sins, that He was raised from the dead, and that He lives to intercede for us. I had said the “sinner’s prayer” and had been baptized. I believed that if I had done all of these things and avoided the major sins, He would love me and God would bless me and prosper me. In all truth, I believed Jesus was my ticket to the American Dream and my fire insurance, should I die. I opened the Word of God on Sundays during the sermon at church and every now and then, on my own, when I was in a bind or really needed something desperately. In comparison to others, I thought I was really living right. I knew many verses in the Bible, and if I needed my beliefs supported, it was easy to pick out a verse that seemed to confirm what I believed. I was a nice guy, compassionate and caring, and always there to help others out. However, there was still something missing in my life. I knew there must be more, but I honestly did not know how or where to find it. I wanted to know Jesus more, but I didn’t even know how to do that. I felt I knew about Jesus, but I did not know him personally. I did not have a true intimate relationship with him. I had gone to all the bible studies available to men: Promise Keepers, How To Be a Better Husband, How To Be a Better Father. I went to classes and even found out what my love language was! All these taught me how to relate with others, but none of them brought me into a real personal relationship with Christ. I decided that I was giving up on men’s bible studies. They were not working for me. My wife had been doing a lot of Beth Moore bible studies, and she seemed to be falling in love with Jesus and getting revelation from the Lord. I decided I was going to try that route. Then one day, the day I was heading to buy the women’s study titled, "A Woman’s Heart; God's Dwelling Place," the Lord brought an Influencer into my life, and everything in my life changed forevermore! The Influencer's name is Jim Hyde, and he is a pastor at my church. He came into my office needing healing in his physical body, but God used him to influence me and guide me on the Journey that brought healing to me spiritually! He handed me the book entitled, "The Journey to the Inner Chamber," authored by Rocky Fleming. He simply asked me to read it and then, go to a book review the following week. Within the first few pages of the book, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that this was going to be the path I must take in order to come into a real relationship with Christ. I went through the entire Influencer’s nine-month Journey, and it was the most incredible journey of my life! Through it, I discovered that having an intimate, abiding relationship with the Lord is the greatest treasure to be found. I discovered that daily intimacy with Jesus is what transforms us. Only in His presence can we be made new through the power of his Spirit. Only by the Spirit’s enabling us can we bear much fruit that will last. Lastly, by bearing this fruit, we can Influence the world for Jesus Christ. When I look back over the years that I “dated” Jesus, I see that I allowed the Holy Spirit of God to lead my life at certain times, that I would trust him when I couldn’t do something on my own and I needed him. I was directing my own path and inviting God to come with me. I would surrender to His will only when my way was failing. The destination of my life was the focus, and daily, I worked hard to get to where I thought I needed it to end. Through Influencers, I have learned that it is all about the Journey. We must abandon our own will and follow Him daily. We must place our absolute trust in Him and know that wherever He takes us, it is for His glory. One of my favorite scriptures is Matthew 7:7-8. It reads “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” God is the greatest treasure we could ever find, but like any treasure, we have to be looking for Him. We have to search and seek diligently with all our hearts. I believe many people are looking for this great treasure, but they don’t know how or where to look, just like I didn’t know before Influencers. We get close, we are in the right vicinity, but we just can’t find the treasure. So, what do we need? We need a map that will guide us directly to the treasure. This is what the Journey really is to me. It is the map that will lead us straight into the Inner Chamber of God. No more wandering about aimlessly, working in vain, losing heart, and growing weary. Simply follow the map and find the treasure. It is a Journey worth taking that will transform you and change you forever. Then, once you know the way, you can give others the map and help them on their Journey and watch God as He grows his Kingdom here on earth. You see, we must be searching and seeking daily in order to find God. We must believe with all our hearts that knowing Jesus is the greatest treasure. We must be willing to surrender our all and abandon ourselves, in order to find Him. We must have absolute trust that He is all we need, and He alone is our source. Once we find Him and enter into that intimate abiding relationship, everything changes. We are no longer “dating”; we are ready and willing to forsake ourselves and all others and surrender our all to Him. It is then that we enter into a covenant marriage relationship with Him and become His bride. The intimacy begins and as we abide with Him, we begin to bear fruit. We no longer live to please ourselves. We live to please Him, which in turn, leads to serving and loving others. I started on this Journey in March of 2008 and since then, I have been so blessed to guide four other men’s groups and one couple's group through it. I thank God every day for allowing me the privilege to see people’s lives change as they find their way to the Inner Chamber of God and find their treasure. I am amazed at what we find when we follow the map and see the treasure produced, in and through our lives, which is, of course, MUCH FRUIT!! I have been married to my lovely wife, Regina, for fifteen years. We have two small boys: Braegan, who is nine and Blayne, who is 6. We have lived in Springdale, Arkansas for the past 13 years. My wife and I are both Doctors of Chiropractic, and we own and operate a private practice in Springdale. We love the Lord and do our best to be be lights in this world and to share the love of Christ with all he puts into our paths. Mark A. Sewell, Influencer for Christ