Bobby Bosler: Welcome to the Thee Generation Podcast. I’m Bobby Bosler, and I’m speaking to you today from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, where I have the privilege of having missionary Daniel Needham on the program. Daniel and his wife, Rachel, are servants of the Lord. They have been serving in Cameroon, West Africa, but unfortunately have had to come off the field because of the conflict happening over there. I know Daniel is a young man who believes that God is on the move and that you young people are a part of it. His vision and burden have always been an encouragement to me, and even in the midst of great challenge and difficulty, his desire has been to see God do all that is in His heart.

Bobby Bosler: As Daniel speaks and shares some practical pointers with you today, I trust that you will listen with attentiveness and let God work in your heart.

Daniel Needham: Thanks for the opportunity, Bobby. I appreciate joining you all here on Thee Generation.

Daniel Needham: All around us, we see people rallying around different causes and movements. Many of them, I think, are just tired of their current life and want it to count for something. A movement pops up, and they rally around a loud voice or a leader, and things start to happen—or so it seems, anyway. We see things like the downfall of society, right is called wrong, and wrong is called right. I really believe that our generation is looking for something more than what they’ve had—not just money and a good life, but a cause worth living for.

Daniel Needham: I certainly want to have something to live for. Just recently, I was making a list of what I want my life to count for. I want to be a pure man who walks with God, who is called the friend of God. I want to have a specific purpose for my life. I want to be a world changer. I want my life to count for eternity, and I want to see a worldwide revival in my lifetime. These are certainly causes worth living for.

Daniel Needham: I’m excited for you all who are part of Thee Generation. You all have joined a cause worth living for. I really think that in the coming days, this cause is going to be very exciting. The cause is not just about a religion or going to church. It’s about a real battle—a battle for people’s souls. It’s going to take people willing to give up everything and live for that cause.

Daniel Needham: Here’s a question for you all: What is it going to take to reach America with the Gospel? It’s going to take something a whole lot bigger than what we’re doing now—a cause bigger than yourself, a cause bigger than you can imagine.

Daniel Needham: So what is God’s big picture? Second Peter 3:9–10 says, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. The earth also, and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”

Daniel Needham: God’s big picture is the salvation of people. He is patient, waiting for us to reach the lost. He’s giving us time to get on board with His plan before He comes back. He’s coming back anytime. We don’t know when. Every day that we are here on earth is an extra day to get on board with God’s big picture.

Daniel Needham: In a time of uncertainty and unprecedented intolerance of religious freedom here in the United States, we as young people must move forward into an unprecedented time of discipleship and multiplication. In a time when pastors are losing hope for their communities and are just holding on to the end, we must move forward in faith, finding our encouragement in the Word of God, believing that God is planning a mighty expansion of His kingdom in the near future.

Daniel Needham: In a time when God’s people are powerless in the face of secular humanism and socialism, we must bend our knees to the all-powerful One who loves to use the weak, the helpless, and the commoner to accomplish His mighty miracles of grace in our culture—an answer to bold and unceasing prayer. Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” God is ready to do something so big we can’t even imagine it. It’s time for us to get on board.

Daniel Needham: But how do we get on board? It starts with getting on our knees and telling God that we are joining His cause, that we are giving our body to Him as a living sacrifice to be used for God’s cause. It starts with surrender.

Daniel Needham: From there, it takes listening—listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit who indwells us. We listen to His voice when we pray and when we read the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never tell us to do something that goes against the written Word of God.

Daniel Needham: Thirdly, it takes action: obeying the voice of the Holy Spirit immediately, no matter the cost, and even if it seems radical to those around us.

Daniel Needham: Before I’m done, I’d like to give you a little tool to help you listen to the Holy Spirit while you read the Bible. It’s called SOAP. It isn’t original with me, but I found it helpful even this week. SOAP is an acronym: S is Scripture from your Bible reading. Write out one or more verses that are particularly meaningful to you today. O is observation. Rewrite those verses or key points in your own words to better understand them. A is application. Think about what it means to obey these commands in your own life. P is prayer. Write out a prayer telling God what you’ve learned and how you plan to obey. The final S is sharing. Ask God who He wants you to share with about what you’ve learned.

Daniel Needham: Here’s a short example of this written out. Let’s say you’re reading Isaiah chapter 55. You might write out verses 8 and 9: “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Daniel Needham: Observation: As a human, I’m limited in what I know and what I know how to do. God is not limited in any way. He sees and knows everything. He can do anything.

Daniel Needham: Application: Since God knows everything and His ways are best, I’ll have much more success in life if I follow Him instead of relying on my own way of doing things.

Daniel Needham: Prayer: Lord, I don’t know how to live a good life that pleases You and helps others. My ways lead to mistakes. My thoughts lead to hurt. Please teach me Your ways and Your thoughts instead. Let Your Holy Spirit guide me as I follow You.

Daniel Needham: Sharing: I will share these verses and this application with my friend who is going through a difficult time and needs direction for important decisions he is facing.

Daniel Needham: I hope this simple tool will help you as you listen to the Holy Spirit in your Bible reading. God has a big plan for all of you. He is a cause worth living for, and He wants you to join that cause. Let’s get on board with Him and see the great things that He has planned. Amen.

Bobby Bosler: Thank you so much for that very practical instruction there, Daniel. Young people, I trust that you won’t take for granted the opportunity that you have with the Word of God, or the fact that you have the Holy Spirit in you. I appreciated what he said about the fact that it takes choices and it takes listening. As you open the Word of God, don’t just go through a ritual, and don’t just read to be informed. You need to read and observe, but you also need to make plans to obey.

Bobby Bosler: I appreciate Daniel sharing that with other people. Young people, that’s going to require some surrender on our part. We need to be totally yielded to the Word of God and to the will of God, and we need to depend on the power of God to do what He calls us to do. Thank you so much for listening.