Posts about Ministry updates

Collegiate Day of Prayer

What would happen if our nation stopped to seek God on behalf of its 18.2 million college students? What would happen if we cried out to God together for the next generation?

Believe it or not, over a 100-year time span, our nation reserved a special day each year to do this very thing. The Collegiate Day of Prayer has been reestablished in order to give the body of Christ an opportunity to pray for its colleges and universities. Last February, we became aware of over 700 campuses and churches who joined us to pray. This year we are ...

Could It Be This Year?

Everyone experiences certain excitement when the New Year rolls around. Some wonder what new and wonderful things it may bring, while others simply have hope that this year will be better than the last.

In a revival ministry, one’s New Year excitement culminates in one question: Could it be this year? This question refers to the manifest presence of God falling on our nation, and this summit is certainly a promising start to a year of hoped-for revival.

Perhaps the first thing to recognize about the summit is the responsiveness the people demonstrated throughout the course of the two ...

So You Want to Be Perfect? Then Stop Striving, and Look!

Do you know what’s disconcerting? When you realize you’ve been looking for something that doesn’t exist. That’s where I found myself on the morning of New Year’s Day. The day before, I heard this intriguing question: “What is your vision for your life?” What should it be? I pondered. Verses started racing through my mind. Hmm ... I think I know ... and I don’t think that’s my vision. I need to examine this. So I did. And do you know what I discovered? My vision was to be the perfect wife, the perfect mom ...

Same Church, Different People

The podium of the small church nestled in the suburbs served as a symbol of spiritual triumph on Tuesday evening, as members of the congregation stood and testified to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. Life Action's Red Team headed up the two-week long summit, and one of the team members, reflecting on Tuesday's service, commented, "God is faithful to finish the work He has begun. What a privilege to be able to see Him changing lives!"

One woman at the pulpit noted that she had attended a conference held by Life Action twenty years earlier, and ...

God, Anoint the Travelers!

As our teams begin to travel this year, they need your prayers. Please pray that each team member will be freshly burdened and prepared to share the message of revival. Ask God to give each team member clear direction as to whether or not he/she should travel again in the fall. And pray for fresh anointing on each team member as they minister.

We look forward to seeing how God will work in the next few months, and we're grateful for how He has worked in the last few. Here are a few of the testimonies we've ...

The Movement

Life can get boring. If you view your days as merely the small cycle of work, home, and play, without the wildly expansive element of ministry, there comes a point where it loses its appeal. We are eternal creatures, made for eternal purposes. C. S. Lewis said that if you could see the person next to you as they will appear in eternity (a creature so hideous you would hide your face, or so magnificent you would think they were a god to be worshiped), it would change the way you live. "There are no ordinary people," Lewis said. In ...

A Fruitful Jericho Partnership

When a ministry partnership ends, that's usually not a good thing. But in this case, it is.

Collegiate Impact has officially ended their Jericho Partnership with Montana State University. This partnership produced much fruit. In fact, Mark Gauthier, National Director for Campus Ministry with Campus Crusade, said, "I know of no other campus closer to revival than Montana State University."

We believe that God used the Jericho Partnership to provide a spiritual breakthrough at MSU. Here is what some leaders and students have said over the past year about God's work there:

"Our staff women are not willing ...

How Collegiate Impact is seeing God hijack lives

God On the Move at UNH After the Saturday morning message at the University of New Hampshire fall retreat, Leo approached Dave Warn from Life Action's Collegiate Impact to talk about deep struggles in his life. After dealing with these areas and asking the Holy Spirit to fill him, Leo exclaimed, "I have never felt so free!" Leo was only the beginning of the changes God had in mind. After the evening message, most of the 82 students publicly confessed sin, coming to the cross for forgiveness and renewed life in Christ. This continued for nearly three hours before ...

Happy Thanksgiving from Our Staff

During this Thanksgiving season we want you to know we are grateful for your prayers and investment in this ministry and the mission of revival. As a staff, wanted to take a moment and with each of you a very happy Thanksgiving.

Praises from revive '11

No question about it, God met with us at True Woman revive '11!  As you probably already know, the conference sold out early and was packed with 1,000 precious, hungry-hearted women's ministry leaders and pastors' wives. They seemed to engage in the worship and messages almost immediately. Reports like these are already piling in: “I’ve been to many women’s conferences over the past 25+ years and this is the first one I’ve left exalting Jesus only. Thank you Revive Our Hearts for this God-exalting, Christ-centered, Holy-Spirit-empowered conference. I’m heading back home dying to self ...

Shedding the Satanic Shackles of Pride

We are never more like Satan than when we are proud. We are called to Christlikeness, but when we let pride rule in our hearts, we stand in opposition to God. However, when that pride is swallowed—when our concern for self-image lessens and our concern for Christ's image increases—God begins to receive the glory that is due Him, and we begin to fully enjoy the power of revival in our lives. Such was the case Sunday morning at the church where one of our teams is ministering. After a message on pride, people had the opportunity to ...

Please Pray for revive '11!

November 4-5, women from 30 states and 3 countries will gather in Indianapolis for revive '11! This conference is specifically designed for women who minister to other women. Leaders in women's ministry face incredible pressures and serve unending needs in their churches and families. Through personal refreshment and practical resources, our hearts' desire is that ladies will leave this conference with a revived passion to serve the women in their area of influence. Our desire is to continue providing resources and encouragement related to revival and spiritual renewal. We want to equip Women's Ministry Leaders with the practical ...

Circumstances Beyond Our Control

It's amazing what you can learn in circumstances that are less than ideal. Perhaps one of the greatest lessons is that circumstances are no hindrance at all when God is control. Our team left a beautiful campus and came to a church building under construction. The work that was scheduled to be finished two months ago is still underway. Abundant space and a wide selection of rooms have been exchanged for cramped quarters and multi-purpose rooms. But while circumstances are less than ideal, God is still in control, and this is shaping up to be an incredible summit. Through ...

Where Does a Pastor Find Rest?

Where does a pastor go to spend focused, uninterrupted personal time with God and to fellowship with fellow pastors and their wives? Where does he find a quiet retreat to be alone with his wife, to allow their hearts and minds to settle down enough to hear God speak?

Ministers and their spouses who met at The Lodge for a recent week-long Pastors' Retreat used the phrases above to describe what the retreat meant to them. They also said the retreat provided spiritual and physical refreshing, a season of renewal and reaffirmation of calling.

From the phone calls they received ...

God at Work in the Hearts of His People

In a church where one of our teams ministered recently, the people were asked to identify and write down their idols. They were then encouraged to come forward and leave those cards at the altar, symbolizing their surrender to Jesus. Here are some of the idols they listed:

• Fear of man
• Success
• Job
• Financial security
• Appearance
• Music/Entertainment
• Lust
• Control
• Sports
• Vehicles
• Possessions
• Food
• Fitness
• Sleep
• Family
• Relationships
• Desire for a spouse
• Desire for children/grandchildren
• Friends
• Facebook
• Phone
• Self-righteousness
• Future

Blue Team Update - Morton, IL

The kingdom of God grew a little larger this past Sunday, and for many of its citizens, Sunday was a day of spiritual healing. Souls were saved, lives were surrendered, and oppressive walls of bitterness torn down. It was certainly a blessed day at Grace Church.

We held two services Sunday morning. The first was an evangelistic service. Although evangelism is not a major focus of revival, since revival is for God's people, we clearly present the gospel on the second Sunday of every summit, and we pray that God will save souls.

All week long, we talk about ...

Collegiate Impact—Albania Trip

Imagine speaking to Christians in an atheistic nation with a predominately Islamic culture. In this context, Dave Warn, director of Collegiate Impact, had the opportunity to record three messages for an Albanian Christian radio station. He was interviewed about his conversion and Collegiate Impact. He also recorded a message on repentance and another on holiness. During his week in Albania, Dave spoke to 105 full-time Campus Crusade staff during their national staff conference. God directed him to speak about righteousness and brokenness over sin. By the end of their time together, the national director of Campus Crusade, Ylli Doci, said ...

Recent Ministry Highlights

ROH Celebrates 10 years

On September 3, 2001, Revive Our Hearts went on the air for the first time. Ten years later, they're celebrating with a ReviveOurHearts.com makeover! As you take a peek at their new site, please pray that God would continue to use their various outreaches in the next ten years to foster a grassroots movement of Spirit-filled women who reflect the beauty of Christ in their homes, churches, workplaces, and communities.

Life Action Celebrates 40 years
On August 27-28, Life Action hosted a 40th anniversary celebration for alumni and friends at our National Ministry Center ...

God's Presence Evident; Testimonies Flow

From a Team Revivalist: I sensed all day that I would not get to preach because of God's presence. We came to worship Him after the opening session, specifically asking the Lord to send His Holy Spirit. We wanted Him, and He came. I already knew that I needed to ask if there was anyone who needed to testify, but the Lord even beat me to that. While everyone was still on stage, the housing director came and took a microphone out of the hand of a singer, and that led to the next hour and forty-five minutes of ...

Road Team Training Begins

We are excited about this upcoming year of ministry for our local church teams. The new team members have been arriving, and training is beginning as we gear up for our next travel season the first of September. God has opened the doors for us to minister in over 55 churches this year. We are always amazed at the response in each church. In fact, more than 70% of the people at each church return night after night. We're also humbled at the depth of God's work in individuals' lives. We see everything from salvation received to marriages ...

One of the "Best Years Ever"

WHEN SOMEONE PRAYED LAST AUGUST for our teams to have "the best year ever," we could not have imagined the extent to which God would answer. These past ten months have been punctuated by a series of "firsts." These brief accounts of heart change can become seeds of
faith as we seek the Lord to dramatically awaken our nation to the power of the gospel. What a great way to begin our 41st season of ministry!
For the first time . . .

• We received over 5,000 hand written notes describing deep life change.
• 30,000 different individuals attended our meetings, with ...

Family Camp Kicks Off

This past weekend, the Life Action Camp kicked off its summer Family Camp outreach with a 4-day Memorial Day Family Camp! Life Action's Family Camps are designed to help families pause, reconnect, and engage—a vacation with a purpose. Eighteen families attended, and not only did they have a blast, but God did some amazing things in their hearts and lives as well. Here are a few of the testimonies we received from the weekend: "This retreat has taught me so much regarding relationships with my wife and children. I have learned strategies regarding communication and problem solving, and ...

Nearly 300 Pastors Gather for Revival Forum

Life Action Ministries has been hosting Revival Forums since 1989. The panelists at the 2011 Moody Pastors’ Conference included the following well known speakers and authors:

• Richard Owen Roberts, founder of International Awakening Ministries
• Jim Cymbala, pastor of Brooklyn Tabernacle
• Steve Canfield, revivalist for Life Action Ministries
• Colin Hansen, editor for The Gospel Coalition and editor-at-large for Christianity Today

Revival Visits Graduation Ceremony

Recently, God began an amazing work at a church in Tennessee where one of our teams had an extended summit. Last week we received the following report in an e-mail, letting us know of God's continuing work among His people there.

Wanted to let you know a little about what happened last night at graduation. It was wonderful to hear the salutatorian speak; the first thing he did was thank God and his Savior Jesus for blessing him with the accomplishments he had achieved. He then thanked his mom and dad.

The second speaker was the valedictorian, Sara, who ...

Wedding Ring Funds a Homeless Prayer Center

Report of God’s Mercies, April 22, 2011 Last night, we began teaching on Acts 2 and 4. It was beautiful to be reminded that we are experiencing, in a wonderful measure, exactly what was happening in the book of Acts. But we pointed out that there is one component we are not yet quite seeing. “Not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own” (Acts 4:32). This is hard for us to even imagine, because our thinking about our possessions, even among the most committed believers, is so Americanized. What would it be like ...

Ivy League Desiring Revival

370 Ivy League students met over the weekend at Harvard University to seek God and believe Him for another Great Awakening throughout these prestigious schools. The Ivy League Congress on Faith and Action is a triennial gathering sponsored by Christian Union to see Jesus Christ exalted throughout the Ivy League. In addition to plenary sessions by Pastor Eric Mason, Os Guinness, Scott Jones, and Baroness Carolyn Cox, ministry seminars were offered to equip students to impact their respective campuses. Also, working professionals in business, law, education, medicine, the arts, finance, and media participated on panels to give the students a ...

Ignite Newsletter, March 2011

Read the most recent issue of Life Action's newsletter, Ignite. Each issue includes practical encouragement for experiencing a revived life, stories about real people changed by revival, and timely updates on Life Action's ministry outreaches.

(Read Update)  

God Moves On Montanta State University

Dave Warn, Collegiate Impact Director, has just returned from Montana State University, in his words “floating home” because of how God is moving there. The following excerpts share evidence of genuine signs of revival he observed firsthand in the last few days:

God is moving at Montana State University! Mark Gauthier, National Director for Campus Crusade for Christ, has recently said on a number of occasions that the closest thing he has seen to revival is what’s happening right now at MSU.

• Last fall I spent time with the male leadership of a major campus ministry group at MSU ...

February 24th - Collegiate Day of Prayer

Join us on Thursday, February 24, as we seek to unite 2,000 prayer groups across all 50 states to pray for every college campus by name. Our forefathers understood the important role college students play in shaping the future of our nation. They truly believed that the direction of the church, as well as the whole nation, would soon follow the spiritual bent and character of America’s college students.
 
In light of this fact, the American church observed a united day of prayer for almost a hundred years (1823-1915). They sought God to awaken and revive our colleges ...

Honest Prayers

Are you ever afraid of being honest with God—even though He knows everything (1 John 3:20)? In a recent Life Action summit, the revivalist asked those in attendance to write a letter to God, beginning with the words, "Dear God, I believe You are sovereign. Tonight I choose to trust You with ..." Praise God for the people's honest prayers!

• I trust You with my gluttony. I am helpless against this. I am so focused on it and crave food instead of you. You alone can deal with this area of sin in my life.

• I trust You ...

Restoration Brings Joy

The following are real-life stories of God at work in the lives of pastors and leaders. We praise the Lord for the way he is restoring lives through Life Action's outreaches.

• This revival has been the best and most exciting part of my year! I feel I have come to know Christ more and what it means to be a true follower of Christ.

• God found me lost in my pride. I had allowed self-righteousness to creep into my spiritual life. I held things back from my church family and was not open and honest. I am free of ...

Families Experience Restoration

The following are real-life stories of God at work in the lives of pastors and leaders. We praise the Lord for the way he is restoring lives through Life Action's outreaches.

• Lost, lonely, and spiritually neutral. My wife and I were sharing a house—one in one room, the other in another. It was not until the conference that we came together on "the same page." We just needed to see and hear God's Word to break us both and come together. We are now more like we were when we first were married. Forgiveness, God's grace ...

Individuals Experience the Power of Forgiveness

The following are real-life stories of God at work in the lives of pastors and leaders. We praise the Lord for the way he is restoring lives through Life Action's outreaches.

• God found me a broken woman. I was harboring so much bitterness and unforgiveness in my heart. I was hurting so much and didn't even realize I was hurting other people because I was hurt. The revivalist's message on Tuesday night was the most powerful message I have ever been exposed to. There were several people in my life that no matter how much they had ...

Leaders Experience a Revived Relationship with God!

The following are real-life stories of God at work in the lives of pastors and leaders. We praise the Lord for the way he is restoring lives through Life Action's outreaches.

• As a full-time minister, I had become burned out and bitter, which led to anger, hurt, and a host of other sins. I wanted out of ministry, and to live a rebellious lifestyle. God is breaking me of my sin and revolt, and I know He isn't done with me. Thank you for being real and cutting through the "church" façade. Praise God for His grace ...

Fall Family Camp

Our final week of Family Camp for the year just wrapped up this past week. We hosted over 230 families during the 9 weeks of camp. God did some amazing things, and families were able to pause, reconnect, and engage once again with each other and God. "Fall Family Camp is the perfect blend of recreation, relaxation, and spiritual refreshment," says Luke, one of the 25 dads at Fall Family Camp. His wife and three kids have come to family camp for four years. Luke's wife, Amanda, told me that the minute she stepped on the camp property, she ...

Many in Congregation Find Genuine Salvation

What an incredible day we had this past Sunday.  As we dealt with genuine salvation there was great conviction, of the 350 folks that were in attendance around 20 responded to the prayer room and many were "hopefully converted". One of those who responded was a deacon who talked with me after the service, through tears he shared his story of doing all the service to the Lord but without the heart. It was awesome. Another deacon shared with me that his  house was different since his 16 year old son had received Christ that morning. Then after the service ...

Ignite Newsletter, May 2010

Read the most recent issue of Life Action's newsletter, Ignite. This issue includes practical encouragement for experiencing a revived life, stories about real people changed by revival, and timely updates on Life Action's ministry outreaches.

(Read Update)

Moody Church Responds to THIRST Conference

Is there a church anywhere in the world more widely known or more historically rooted in revival than Moody Church? This church has a rich history of periodic revivals and prolonged fruitfulness, and their pastor has carried a burden for revival for many years. Dr. Erwin Lutzer recently celebrated 30 years as lead pastor. His own roots include vivid recollections of revival in Canada four decades ago: I had experienced revival in the early '70s up in Canada, and once you've seen God work in people's lives, something inside you says, "We need to see this again." I ...

Thank You to Our Ministry Partners

Dear Ministry Partners,
Many of you prayed and participated in our annual year-end giving campaign to help Life Action continue its ministry for another year.  The year-end match of $150,000 was met and we thank the Lord for His gracious provision through you.  We are genuinely enthused about the opportunities before us in 2010.  This summer we begin our 40th year of calling God’s people back to the Lord in repentance and revival.  How blessed and grateful we are for His grace as we venture into this special season of ministry.  On behalf of all the staff here ...

Ignite Newsletter, October 2009

Read the most recent issue of Life Action's newsletter, Ignite. This issue includes practical encouragement for experiencing a revived life, stories about real people changed by revival, and timely updates on Life Action's ministry outreaches. (Read Update)

One Changed Life

The following testimonies are from a wife, her husband, and their three teenage daughters. They all share their side of the story of one changed life that will now change others. "I am a mother of five children, and in my heart I was preparing to separate from my husband. As we came each night throughout the week, my hope in our reconciliation waned. I didn't think the Lord was getting through the high, thick walls my husband had built around his heart. I was losing hope that his anger would ever end. On the last day of our ...

Accident Takes Life of Team Member

Remembering Stephen Maines
Stephen Maines, born August 22, 1987, was killed on Sunday morning, July 19, 2009, while riding his motorcycle to a church service and charity ride for burn victims. Stephen, a second-year team member, is the son of John and Sheila Maines, who have served with Life Action for the past 26 years. Please pray for the entire Maines family. The following is a letter from our Director to the staff and close ministry friends of our Life Action family.   "For I am sure that neither death nor life ... nor things present nor things to come ... nor anything ...

Help Equip Our Teams

I have never written at a time when I felt greater urgency.

Life Action is not an alarmist ministry. But there is no doubt we live in a season unparalleled in America’s past—and that is alarming. The prophet Jeremiah would be shouting urgently from the rooftops!

How unusual are the times in which we live? The economic outlook is certainly bleak. The rapidity of moral and social descent is almost surreal. Perhaps most startling are the claims that Christianity is inherently evil. Popular secularists now declare evangelicals to be the primary cause of the problems our nation faces ...

Risking Prison for a Clear Conscience

I attended the Life Action summit these past few weeks at my church, and God got a hold of my heart. A few months before I became a Christian (4 1/2 years ago), a few of my friends and I did several thousand dollars worth of vandalism at my school just weeks before graduation. I remember the school saying that they were going to find who did it and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. This has been haunting me for the past five years—not that I would get caught, but I had a guilty ...

Spirit of Conviction Followed by Obedience

One of our staff revivalists, who has experienced more than 30 years of seeing God work mightily in churches across our nation, recently wrote the following: Sunday was one of the most incredible mornings I have ever seen. We preached four separate services, attended by a total of 1200 adults and teens. In every service there was a spirit of conviction and receptivity that was followed by obedience. Over 100 people asked for prayer concerning genuine salvation, and over 80 of them went to the prayer room to meet with God. Many of those were hopefully converted. We have never ...

Finding Freedom Through Forgiveness

From 16 days ago to now, I have grown considerably. I have learned to truly forgive. I was not expecting to face bitterness and hurt from an issue with my husband. Sixteen days ago, my husband confessed moral impurity, looking at pornography. I forgave him when he told me, but I still felt shocked, hurt, and betrayed. I was having trouble completely reconciling with him and feeling completely open with him. I know that it is only the truths I have heard this week, prayer, and the power of the Holy Spirit that have helped me forgive my husband completely ...

Testimonies of Forgiveness

I was seeking the Lord, and Clint was occasionally visiting church on Sunday mornings. Clint hunted and worked, and I raised the kids. We communicated very little . . . just the bare minimum. I took the kids to church. Most attempts to reconnect our family quickly became arguments. We truly lived separate lives. He did his thing. The kids and I did ours. My heart was tough . . . not much tenderness toward Clint.

About two years before Life Action, the Lord revealed to me that I should meet Clint at his level, find a church of his choice. I resigned from my ten ...

Fifty Express Need for Genuine Salvation

Why would a person who has never come to salvation through Christ bother to keep up the outward appearance of being a Christian? Why would such an individual serve as a Sunday school teacher, deacon, pastor, or pastor’s wife?

There could be many reasons: to impress others, to please someone else, to enjoy the benefits of a believing community without the spiritual cost, because they really don’t understand the gospel of salvation by faith in Jesus, because it’s a commitment they’ve put off so long that it’s now a false lifestyle, because it’s what ...

Responses to God's Grace

James 4:6 says, “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Our staff evangelists like to describe God’s grace like an ambulance. When we see ourselves as we really are without His power, humbled and grieved by our un-Christ-likeness, and cry out to Him for His sufficiency, His “grace ambulance” rushes to the scene, providing all we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).

Following are several phrases used by various people in a recent Life Action summit, describing how God has revealed their need for Him and His grace:

“I have tried for ...

Church Members Get Honest

When God's Spirit is at work in a congregation, He not only speaks to corporate issues, but He also deals very personally, specifically, and lovingly in individual hearts. One of the evidences of this work is people's willingness to be honest, to tell others what God is confronting and how He has found us out. Following are phrases shared in current Life Action summits, written by church members who are being truthful, repentant, and willing for God's power change them. Can you identify with any of these? "I need to be a mother who models God's ...

Revival . . . Now More Than Ever!

The economic downturn could be an unprecedented opportunity for widespread revival, as people get serious about seeking God! That's why I'm excited about the mission of Life Action Ministries this season. We are seeing more interest in revival than at any other time in our 37-year history. Churches that prior to the economic crisis were struggling to get people interested in one extra service on a weekend are now eager to set aside protracted times for renewal and revival. By Gods grace we want to respond by being fully prepared both spiritually and financially for ministry in 2009 ...

Evidence of God's Hand

When God is at work in a church, His "fingerprints" are obvious. Examples of renewed life are evident as people respond in obedience to His Word. One of our staff revivalists reports that the four summits he participated in this fall have the marks of God all over them and are the best four back-to-back summits he's experienced in his time with Life Action. Here are some of the corporate ways God has worked:

• Incredible night-after-night attendance at the meetings--a very high percentage of the Sunday morning congregation; church staffs pleasantly surprised (even shocked) at the good turnout during ...

Revival Impacts Community in Alabama

God does not speak in generalities.  "Lord, forgive me of all my sin" is not a prayer that reflects the work of God's Spirit.  This revival reality was evident in the two weeks our team spent in one church near the campus of University of Alabama.  Though the make-up of the congregation was older in age, there was an unusual youthfulness about their eagerness to respond to the Lord . . .in specific steps of obedience. God dealt deeply with in many people's hearts in repenting over bitterness, and learning how to forgive.  Many cleared their consciences including: -          A father ...

700 Attend Florida THIRST Conference

I am writing from Florida, where Sue and I are with our Revival Conference Team, attending one of our four-day THIRST conferences being hosted by Cornerstone Church just outside Orlando. Some 700 individuals have been filling the auditorium every service, and today around 200 women attended the Seeking Him, Together ladies' luncheon. But the great response numerically from this church is of disinterest to those who are having their dry and thirsty souls refreshed by God’s presence. To a heart being touched by God, nothing else really matters. When you sense God’s amazing presence, everything else fades in ...

Ministry Update 9/10/07

I am writing from Charleston, SC, where 700 people are beginning a twelve-week journey of going through the Seeking Him study in small groups. I had the privilege last night of speaking at the launch of this church-wide emphasis on revival. East Cooper Baptist Church is a great work of God where body-life seems to be flourishing through community groups. They are engaging deeply in the process of seeking the Lord for individual and corporate revival. The pastor is preaching on the Seeking Him themes and spending time each week with his leadership to ensure they model the message as ...