At NCM we are completely reliant on the Lord. This applies to everything from our counseling work to our overall approach to running the ministry. We need the Lord to speak to us and guide us every step of the way (and he has been faithful to do it). I could cite many examples but I will give you one that proved very practical and helpful. Several years ago (when I was in the thick of working with clients) the Lord said to me,
I wrote down what the Lord told me and dated it. I figured I would show it to Vanessa (our office manager) when things began slowing down so she could understand what was happening. But then I realized if I did it this way she might be tempted to think, “No, Russell. We are losing clients because we’re doing something wrong—not for the supposed reason you are giving me now.”
Vanessa is not a cynical person; she simply has a good nose for sniffing out “spiritual baloney” (and I didn’t want her to think that’s what I was feeding her). So I decided to tell her that same day. That way she could have a ‘heads up’ when the business started slowing down (and know there was a divine purpose behind it). A short time later it happened just as we were told.
I share this with you because we are in a similar situation now. We’ve completed two series of video teachings (complete with workbooks and leaders guides) and made them available to churches and groups. And we have promoted these over Google and Facebook platforms (thanks to a Google advertising grant we received recently). As a result, many people are finding out about NCM and what we offer. A staggering amount of people are clicking onto the information and coming to our website.
But here’s the perplexing thing, with all of this new traffic we’ve only sold one copy of the Breaking Free Series (to someone in Singapore). Quite frankly, it had Mike and I scratching our heads in bewilderment. We know the Lord told us to do this and to promote it. And we know he is going to use it to change lives—but we aren’t seeing it happen. When Mike and I asked the Lord about this he gave both of us a vision of what is going on.
I saw a key being inserted into a lock and turned. All of the tumblers lined up with the grooves in the key—all except the last one. That’s when the Lord said to me,
This gave me great encouragement. The Lord was telling me that we’re doing the right things in the right ways but there is timing involved. Certain conditions have to be in place before the church even knows they need our message or can be open to it. That made perfect sense to me.
The same day the Lord gave Mike a picture and spoke to him about the situation. He saw Noah and his sons building the ark so that it was ready when the floodgates opened. The Lord told him,
Mike and I went from puzzled and discouraged, to having cold water splashed in our faces. Now we realize we can’t wait around for our resources to sell we have to be busy and conscientious about creating other needed resources. We are energized, pumped, and excited about our work. But we are sobered as well. There is a lot at stake.
If you are seeing the same vision we are then we could really use your help. You can help us in the following ways:
- Please pray for us that we would have continuing wisdom and perseverance.
- Consider purchasing one of our curriculum’s (either the Marriage curriculum or the curriculum for men) and offering it to your church for use in their ministry.
- Continue supporting us financially so we can do this vital work that few understand.
Thank you for standing with the Lord. And thank you for standing with us as—together—we boldly proclaim the truth of godly and healthy sexuality to both the world and the church.