Rodney Drury

2012-01-23T10:03:00.001-06:00

Inside, Outside, Upside down

"therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. 2cor. 7:1 (nasv)

Most of the time I don't want to be cleansed or pure of all defilement. Most of the time what I want is to be right, powerful, truthful; and to have others honor me for what I want to be. When times come (and they come several times a day) for me to be what others want me to be, I mostly feel controlled. I love to be what I want to be and mostly reject what others want me to become. Do I treat God the same way as I treat others?

Inside transformation is very difficult. There is a natural part of this that has us use disciplines and techniques to develop. We can make and live out holy habits that help us, but this is not the same as being transformed. God uses the natural, but there is more. So far from our hope is transformation, that we now mostly promote God's love that over looks our sin and mostly avoid all the biblical calls to be holy, pure, perfect; Christlike. Why give your life to something that is never going to happen - right?

Hey! What if the desire to be holy was a good thing? What if "being what you are not" was a way of enjoying life more? What if the holy that you are seeking to be was a distraction to the wonder of being the holy that the Spirit of God seeks to make us be?

In the above verse we are to cleanse ourselves in flesh and spirit. Most of us know how to work on the flesh. We can read and apply the Biblical truth to one of the lists in Scripture. This is a good work. We are to cleanse our flesh. The body is good when it is under the rule of God.

Most of us have little or no skills at working in the realm of the spirit. Most of us tend to be an extremist. Either the things of the spirit are all good or all untrustworthy. We might enjoy a dream from God but not trust it for guidance, or we might tell our friends that this is the will of God for the world.

The Holy Spirit offers to us a thousand workings and wonders that change our natural and spiritual lives. Maybe it is time for us to re-discover the Holy Spirit as God again.

I am an 80%

2012-01-19T11:14:00.001-06:00

I now am in day two of recovery from surgery. What do we call it when going to the hospital and having surgery is a normal part of our life? Do we call that “medical restoration” or “mandatory renovation”?

I thought I might write a book to myself entitled “Reflections from the bathroom floor”. This booklet could contain my thoughts and emotions about life as seen from lying on the bathroom floor after passing out and collapsing. Some of my topics might be….

My family looks bigger from this perspective.
Why they don’t believe me when I tell them “I’m fine”
The floor is hard but I don’t seem to mind
I can hear my inner man praying even while I am mentally out of focus. It nice to hear my heart is more in love with God than my mind thought.
Why I am more concerned how others will deal with what is happening to me then I am concerned what is happening to me.
Will the paramedics be able to pick me up
I think this cold floor is actually helping to break my fervor.
Can I have a pillow

Thanks to the love of God, the prayers of many people and the medical blessings of our community, I live to have a 50/50 chance of having this again. If I apply that to my weather forecasting skills, this means, maybe I will and maybe I wont.

I any case God is with us on the bathroom floor, in surgery, in the recovery and with us back home. A lesson that I seem to be learning again and again and again over the last 12 months. I’m not complaining, but maybe I should apply my life to the prompting I had from the Lord on Sunday morning before all these events unfolded.

Rod, you get it right about 80% of the time, so you are wrong 20% of the time. Don’t be so confident in what you know as humble to learn/live what you don’t know.

For me just cross out the word “women” above and insert the word “others”.

Don’t Just Do Good!

2012-01-11T17:30:00.001-06:00

I have often sought to use my faith so that I would have something to share with others. I would use faith to produce a miracle, get a prophetic word, obtain some wisdom. For some, this may seem like a great thing, I feel it is less than “great”.

I now believe that using my faith for such things is good and at times, very good. But the greatest thing that I can use my faith for is having a relationship with God that is unending. I know that many think this impossible. But try and have faith for it. Try to have faith to live a life always abiding, always connected to the Father.

When we want to press on others what kind of person Jesus was, we often bring forth the truth that Jesus did nothing unless He saw the Father doing it. We stress that connection of the man Christ Jesus and God. Yet we often neglect this Christ like call when seeking a calling for ourselves. We want the miracles, signs and wonders but somehow think the burden of unions with God just that, a burden.

We can do a great many good works in life, but how many of them are in line with the will of the Lord? We can justify our virtues, our giving and our sacrifice as making them worthy apart from the will of God, but are they truly. What if “not doing God’s will” was just the same as “doing all kinds of good, but not doing God’s will”? I have been told hundred’s of times that you don’t need to seek the will of the Lord if it is written in the Bible to do.

I have discovered that what others mean by this is that they feel you do not need to seek God’s will to do what they want you to do. If you pray but they are driven by missions, you should do missions. If you do missions but they promote right doctrine, if they serve the poor but you encourage the wealthy….

Seeing the Father and doing what you see Him doing is your self identity. Do you know who you were created to be and do? The Father knows and takes the time to communicate that to you. The whole of a personal relationship with God rest on seeing our Father leading us. To be whole, complete, secure; you will need to develop the faith to do what God is calling you to do. You vision must be more upon the Father than focused on the needs and desires of man or the church. By doing the will of the Father you release His kingdom in heaven upon the earth. It matters!

When God is not near

2011-12-31T11:06:00.001-06:00

It Happens

I have gone through about a 60 day period of time that I have not felt the nearness of God. I knew with my mind that this often happens in life because God is trying to help us grow up. My emotions did not know what my mind thought it understood.

I have had so many years of the nearness of God that feeling His absence (in feeling not in reality) was alarming. I found that I could not find comfort in the sense of His presence. I was being led by the Great Shepherd into areas of life that I would not travel if He did not take me there.

At times when I share in this regard, I have people respond to me that all you need is the Bible. They seek to encourage me that if I “just did what the Bible told me to do”, I would be fine, and I need to learn to dismiss those emotions, promptings and feelings anyway.

The trouble for me is that I have had so many years of a personal relationship with God that going back to having the Bible only, and not having the encounters of the indwelling Holy Spirit are quite dis-satisfying. For me it seems like have the wedding license without the bride.

Faith

The reason that God removes the sense of His presence is to draw us closer to Himself, not to push us away into books, sermons and the counsel of others. When we go through times of not knowing that He is there, live in loving defiance. Speak to God more, set in His presence (though unfelt) more, depend on Him more. I am talking to myself here.

In the end your faith will increase. Not the faith that comes from standing upon a passage of scripture. That kind of standing is very good and essential. The word of God, the scripture lead us into all kinds of truth. One of these truths is that you can have a relationship with God who dwells within us through His Holy Spirit. So “abiding”, “having fellowship”, “hearing the word of the Lord”, all become more than interactions with scripture. Even when we read scripture, we seek to hear what the Spirit is saying to us, how God is convicting, what promptings to obey.

Grow up Rod

So my lack has been for my good. God has been working with me to help me grow up. I show how immature I am by how discouraged I get when God does something I don’t like. If I would grow up more I could not be discourage by how God is dealing with other issues around me. My fears would be confronted with faith.

Don’t Pretend

The last thing that I want to share is “don’t pretend”. Maybe this is a personal dislike, but I hate it when people pretend. Some people pretend that everything is great and others pretend that the whole world is falling apart. Where are those who live in reality. Most every day has good and bad and I feel sorry for those who attend churches where the standard “Christian” greeting is “I’m blessed, the head and not the tail, never been better”. I often think but seldom say, “You should serve somebody and change your perspective”.

I find it much easier to love real people. Those however who project un-reality, have little I can relate to as the vale of projected deception is not something others can hold or relate to. We need real people to have real relationships. We have a real God who relates to us both in His greatness and in His absence. He leads us into abundance and into poverty. He heals and allows us to die. Let’s not pretend that God is one thing when He is more than ten thousand. Let’s not pretend His is always near if He is not.

More - Not hungry for God

2011-10-18T11:41:00.000-06:00

October 18, 2011

Of all the stuff I have tried over the last ten years, I think this experiment has received the most passionate of responses.

For those just dropping in, I am in a season of not hungering and thirsting for the Lord. I am not going after God. BUT, what I am doing is seeking to be fully obedient to Him moment by moment. My mindset is like Israel being led by God out of Egypt and into the promise land. I see myself as needing more to obey than to set the course.

How can you not hunger for God and expect to grow, or even be a Christian? My response is “I know God has promised to reward those who seek after Him, I also know all who seek Him find Him. But is there another way?” And answer to “is there another way” is –yes.

In history some who were called saints, some who performed miracles, and some who lived extremely holy lives did what I am doing now. (I said it that way to bias my argument. How sad that I felt like I could not convince simply by saying “Godly people”). I didn’t just come up with this idea, I took it from them. Jesus Himself also did what I am seeking to do. Jesus did what He saw the Father doing. Jesus also taught us that His sheep know His voice. Combining all these I feel like this season of discipline is about overcoming my American spirit of elitism and humanism by practicing the humility of obedience. What leader wants to be told what to do? What missional purposeful ministry wants to put their agenda on hold and wait on the Lord? I am not saying they should. I am saying I am giving myself to discover if there is another way.

We appeal to the fact that Christ went about doing good, and we hold that the true imitation of Him consists in doing as He did rather than in being as He was. The hermits thought differently. Philanthropy was, in their view, an incidental result, as it were, a by-product of the religious spirit. Here, no doubt, there is a great gulf fixed between us and them. There is a difference of ideal. It is possible to aim at doing good, and snatch now and then, as opportunity offers, a space for the culture and of spirituality, for the "making" of the soul. It is possible also to shape life for the attainment of perfection, welcoming, as it may happen to offer itself, the chance of usefulness. The latter was the ideal of the hermits. Is the former ours? Surely the purest altruism will decline to accept it. We recognise, when we are at our best, that what we ought to aim at is that good should get done, and not that we ourselves should do it.

Hannay, James O. (2010-07-05). The Wisdom of The Desert (pp. 17-18). Unknown. Kindle Edition.

I am overwhelmed at times with the calls to do all the good we can. One troubling of my soul is all the pushing aside of others so that we might be the one who wins the prize. I must be the healer; I must be the prophet, the apostle or even the servant. We share the works of God very little. Being driven, not abiding in Christ and bearing much fruit, is the new call to order. We once thought that apart from Him we could do nothing, but now we do a great many things. Our independence is more productive than the old school of trust and obey.

Teresa of Ávila shares a list of items that assist a person in union with God – transformation. One of the items on her list is to not seek the right form but simply obey God, moment by moment. She coaches us away from trying to do things right in order to get God to bless us and encourages us to humbly submit to the Lord. I think I will keep trying this for a little while longer.

Beware, God is God

2011-10-15T15:01:00.000-06:00

October 15, 2011

I am once again in a situation where I discover that God is much more passionate than I am. While I was seeking to undergo this little discipleship exercise to become more in union with Him, it appears God is taking advantage of me and the situation to do much more. God is after my heart; again and again I live as though God is mainly after my behaviors, my outward behaviors. God is tricky in the way He works and takes the little that I intend to do and seeks to impact the whole core of my being. Beware, God is God.

I was going along quite well seeking to live moment by moment in being obedient to the Lord. This method of living life, as opposed to making a plan and setting a purpose, was going to be a 30 day exercise for me. It was going well; more peace, more freedom to listen…

Then I started to have the same symptoms that I have had twice before. I started to run a fever and had a pain in my butt where an internal infection lurked in the past. I was challenged to the core to set an agenda on my own behalf to get God to move and heal me. My mind started racing to gather all the information I could, what could I do to get God to move in my behalf- what I could I do.

But Rod, aren’t you on a discipleship exercise where you moment by moment do the will of the Lord and trust Him to lead you into all that you need? Sure, that is what I am doing when I am not taking care of myself and right now, since I am not feeling well, I need to take care of myself. Wouldn’t you? Would you trust God to lead you into healing? Wouldn’t it be foolish to trust God to take you where you already know where to go?

I thought of what it must have been like for Israel to be in the wilderness on day 2 and most of day 3 without water. I have gone some time without water, but never with my family in tow and never with no solution waiting. It is one thing to be thirsty and you need to get back to the car or next lake. It is another thing not to know if there is even a next lake. I suppose that most of the time in the wilderness, there is not. Most Israelites probably knew this even if they lived most of their lives in Egypt.

In my little discipleship exercise I have learned it takes more faith to trust God to lead then it does to trust God to reward you for your efforts. Both take effort. It may be the case that following takes more effort than leading and asking God to bless, confirm and reward; but I am not sure yet. Following God, in the discipleship exercise was one thing, in the face of potential sickness, is another.

I think this revealed a fatal flaw in my understanding and knowledge of God. I keep thinking of God mostly as a man. I keep considering that God is mostly concerned about my outward behavior, my actions. God may not be mostly concerned about these though. It may be the case that God is mostly concerned about my heart, my thoughts, my motives. It will be a cruel day of judgment if the leaders of the body of Christ have taught God’s children to control the outside but not be transformed in the inner man; that is if God is going to judge the thoughts and intents of our heart.

Could God be so aggressive as to desire that our thoughts and motives be filled with His intention and will? Could the love of God and power of God intend to work so deep as to transform the inner person into a whole new kind of person?

The first two days I was feeling sick, fever and pain, a couple of friends prayed for me. I was seeking to practice a following heart and not be aggressive in my need, but more humble in my following. When these people prayed for me I was overcome by the love of God. I do not say “overcome” to try to get you to agree with what I am saying, I want to give an accurate testimony. When they prayed love came over me. For me this was quite different. I have felt the power and presence of God numerous times. I have been prayed for many, many times and have felt God’s compassion through His children. But this time I was overcome by love. What I was aware of was the fact that I did not deserve their love or the Fathers. Love was in that moment a free gift that I did not have a right to.

Numerous times for me I have felt a right to the love of God. In seeking to live rightly before the Lord I made plans and effort to end up in a certain spot. That spot was “being loved”. I wanted God to love me and I was going to do what it required to be loved. This past week I was divorced from that mindset. I was not seeking God to mature me but simply loving Him by obedience.

In reflection I think I have it in my mind that hard work = deserved love. When I set a goal, even the goal of being more like God, and work hard to achieve that goal, I believe that I deserve His love. Love for me on the motivational level is no longer freely given, it is achieved. Without that mindset and in these situations, love was overwhelmingly free. It was my whole awareness of how vastly unworthy I was of love that enhanced love to overcome me.

So in these ramblings I was to reflect to myself and possible others, that following God via obedience is a lifestyle that may require more faith. A possible reward for this may be a deeper understanding and possible a deeper experience of love. In addition, if you are thirsty, it takes some effort to stay a follower and not run off by yourself to deal with the issue.

October 11, 2011 Observations

2011-10-11T08:35:00.000-06:00

October 11, 2011

Observations

(Philippians 4:11)

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.

I have noticed that focusing on the Spirit within, the ability to focus on the self is greatly diminished. Gazing to follow the Spirit brings a security not lived out in “serving to do right” from a human performance method. In just this short time I notice that I have more peace when I seek simply to obey the Lord , as opposed to managing my behavior. I will probably need some outside verification that I have not fallen into a “more selfish” pit, but I think my outward actions are more in line with Christ also.

One surprise that I have found is in listening. When I am not is self-manage mode, I have time to listen to others. I do not feel the compulsion to respond or defend my position or actions. It is more like I feel more sorrow for past mistakes, and a longing not to dwell on them or allow them to rule over me. So I think I am open to the Spirit and others more, I grant them a more true entrance into my emotions and thoughts. It seems like the Spirit highlights failure so that we move forward into Christ likeness. The Spirit choosing to have us dwell on our faults and failures only when we are not “getting “the lessons we need.

The first hours of this adventure I could feel a ripping of the souls’ delight away from my thoughts of pleasure. How can being holy be pleasurable? I feel a ripping, pulling, tearing away from my security of future fun. To trust the Master for fun, what faith is needed for this?

In reading the Desert Fathers I have considered their thoughts. To desire Christ Jesus you must have seen him. This seeing is not a vision but an unfolding of Christ into our hearts. Some who write on this describe it as seeing the Lord in a mirror. The clearer the vision of the Lord the more a person desires to behold Him more. When the vision is in a broken mirror, containing reflections of other things and distorted views, so also is the desire to see the Lord continually fragmented. Pride would have us seek to “self fix” the mirror. Humility would have us be a good steward of what we have received. Pride calls out, “I can do better”, humility whispers, “Lord Jesus have mercy on me”. I am aware of the two men who stood before the alter to pray.

What gain is Christ to the soulish man

In every way it seems

For un-separated from self he lives

And Christ heals everything

Does God tease us?

2011-10-10T10:16:00.002-06:00

Does God tease us with answered prayer? Does He hold answered prayer before us like some goal or carrot or does He simply value a relationship with us? God could give us endless provision but longs to give us endlessly of himself.

NOT hungry for God

2011-10-10T08:36:00.001-06:00

A while back I was reading some of the stories and teachings of those who desired to be conformed to the image of Christ Jesus following the “Christianization of Rome”. This was a time when Christianity and culture became mixed together. The practices of Christianity became a mainstream way of life and lifestyle and numerous behaviors and mindsets of Roman and Greek culture became standard expression of Christians in that region. I think it would be incorrect to believe that “BANG” and all of a sudden something happened where Christianity and culture became mixed. I think that whenever the grace of God took hold of people, and others saw the result, the merger began.

So out of the blending of culture and Christianity people went into the wilderness to find a way that would assist them in being holy. One of the ongoing criticisms of this group was that they are some of the most selfish people to ever pursue the Master, for what they did was to leave humanity behind, to leave behind doing good in order to serve themselves.

There are seven cardinal spiritual sins and a humble study of these would benefit most of us today. For that quest I would suggest starting with John of the Cross. Could we not argue that any effort that was focused on improving the self is selfish and therefore, unlike Christ? Or would we say that loving God with highest priority and loving ourselves as others is not selfish, but loving obedience? The truth is that reason, our own minds, cannot tell us what the Lord is requiring of us. Obedience is the only way to perfection and doing good works or study or having an anointed ministry will not do.

So, I am going to take some time (30 days or so) and see if NOT hungering and thirsting for God will bring an advance in transformation. I am going to NOT be desperate for the Lord. I am going to try to live out an ancient pathway of obedience and seek to mortify human pride and envy. For me this is what the quest for transformation tends to be most about. I want to be holy, not to be like Christ, but to be someone who is holy. I want to be transformed, anointed, spiritual, powerful, and insightful so that I am all these things. For somewhere in my thinking is the idea and emotions that being conformed to the image of Christ is rewarding, esteeming, deserving honor of others, praise worthy and financially beneficial.

All this hungering and thirsting after the Lord goes beyond effort and into selfish pride. I am speaking of me now; I'm not projecting this to others. I have come to reduce the grace of God to personal effort. I think very "American", where "I can be all that I want to be." My Christian transformation is starting to look more like an Army commercial than an inward transformation. Human effort, the "driveness" of hunger, has replaced the deepest pathway to conformity.

John 6:35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.

Over and over again I have heard numerous people refer to our life on earth as being reflective of “as it is in heaven”. I tend to think we take our idea of what heaven is like, project it into our theology, and then bring back to earth our idea of heaven so that we have a system that has God desiring what we want and think best. When I have read the passages of the Bible that reflect heaven I have found many things that I wish were not there. There is a lamb slain, a Master pierced, an accuser of the brethren, death and destruction in the hands of the Lord's servants, and more. So, the argument I am now going to use is invalid unless you disagree.

If heaven does not have hunger, why do we use it as the primary motivator of fullness now? Why do we take ungodly things and seek to make ourselves Godly by the use of them? Is it by telling big lies that we learn not to lie? I am not sure I want an answer to this.

Back from my ramblings and thinking again of John 6:35. Can you come to God now or only in eternity? Can I today have a life of never thirsting or hunger? Was the woman at the well being deceived? Did Jesus offer her a place of no thirst now, or was it just a metaphor for something yet to come?

Matthew 5:6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

When we read this do we consider more of the hunger and thirst than the promise of satisfaction? Do we tend to work this passage backward? I am not satisfied so therefore I must hunger and thirst more. Would this logic tend to train us to earn and deserve our grace from the Lord? And on the point of earning grace, I think we dwell in the American Church. I believe most of what we do is to earn. We earn financial blessings, we earn anointing, we earn status, we earn titles and positions, and all this without being conformed to the image of Jesus.

Jeremiah 23:5-6 "Behold, the days are coming," declares the LORD, "When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land. (6) "In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, 'The LORD our righteousness.'

What if Matthew 5:6 was telling us to hunger for the Lord and be satisfied with Him? Not practicing a lifestyle of ever more spiritual greed, not living out life for more, but living in love with God who amply supplies all we need for this life and the next. Is the pathway to transformation the one of ever needing more and more? What if contentment, thanksgiving, rejoicing in every circumstance and humility, were much more beneficial than hunger? What if less was the pathway to plenty and dying the way to life.

Luke 15:17-19 "But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! (18) 'I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; (19) I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men."'

Is there food in the father’s house and is His dwelling place in heaven? Can you dwell with God now and be feed? Do even servants, hired men have provision from the Lord or do they live life hungry?

So, I am going to try, for about 30 days, being satisfied with the Lord and seeking to obey Him fully moment by moment. This is not my idea but I got this method from those who went before me and sought, not just to do good like Jesus, but to be transformed in their inner man – to become Christ like. I am visualizing myself like the people of Israel who were being led by God into the wilderness and toward the promise land. I am trusting that I am being led, that daily manna is provided without hungering for it. I am going to try to live like God loves me and is directing my steps and that my passion for Him is not needed for Him to do a better job. I am going to try and embrace circumstance with peace, to except what I perceive as lack as discipline and not be motivated by need.

I will meditate on the 70 plus verses on satisfaction and the handful on contentment. Here is my first.

(2 Corinthians 12:9) And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

Beholding the Lord–Prayer Room Help

2011-08-22T10:29:00.001-06:00

Beholding the Lord

Following are a list of 6 topics you can use to behold the Lord. In this season of prayer it is our desire that you come away from the demands of life, even the demands of intercession and simply look to and at the Lord. Two traditional methods not mentioned below are meditating on the Names of God and reading the Scripture slowly to see and hear the Lord.

At times it is somewhat difficult to combine planned preparation and spontaneous creativity. In doing so, in combining planning with creativity, we can have a deeper season of encounter. I say that so that if this is your first attempt at beholding the Lord and it seem rather dull, do not give up. Keep seeking to add the disciplines with your spontaneous prayer life.

I offer this pathway. Take each topic and practice it for 10 minutes. If you are in fellowship with the Lord, stay longer. If you complete the list and still have more time you desire to encounter God with, repeat the cycle or use one of the two methods mentioned above.

A time to value the Lord as Lord

Lordship implies Master, Director, Ruler, Judge, and Authority

A time to rest in the presence of the Lord and trust

Use your body, just sitting with God, as a way to have fellowship

Use a simple prayer like “I love you God” , or “Lord you are beautiful”

A time to listen

Use a journal to write even your random thoughts

If your mind drifts off into the business of life simply return to focusing on the Lord

Often “singing” a childhood song to the Lord helps people listen. “Jesus loves the little children”

“Give me oil in my lamp”, “Rejoice in the Lord Always”

A time of thankfulness of what God has done in your life

Make a list

You can start with yourself and work outward socially to you family, friends, work, church

A time to list God’s previous previsions (through the work of Jesus and in your life)

This is a more specific focus than the one you just did

Think of specific events, gifts, knowledge or acts of grace God has given you.

God’s gifts often come through His body, list both God and others

A time to simply hope

Hope

In God

Psa_39:7; 1Pe_1:21;

In Christ

1Co_15:19; 1Ti_1:1;

In God's promises

Act_26:6; Act_26:7; Tit_1:2;

In the mercy of God

Psa_33:18;

Is the work of the Holy Spirit

Rom_15:13; Gal_5:5;

OBTAINED THROUGH

Grace

2Th_2:16;

The word

Psa_119:81;

Patience and comfort of the Scriptures

Rom_15:4;

The gospel

Col_1:5; Col_1:23;

Faith

Rom_5:1; Rom_5:2; Gal_5:5;

The result of experience

Rom_5:4;

A better hope brought in by Christ

Heb_7:19;

DESCRIBED AS

Good

2Th_2:16;

Lively

1Pe_1:3;

Sure and steadfast

Heb_6:19;

Gladdening

Pro_10:28;

Blessed

Tit_2:13;

Makes not ashamed

Rom_5:5;

Triumphs over difficulties

Rom_4:18;

Is an encouragement to boldness in preaching

2Co_3:12;

SAINTS

Are called to

Eph_4:4;

Rejoice in

Rom_5:2; Rom_12:12;

Have all, the same

Eph_4:4;

Have, in death

Pro_14:32;

Should abound in

Rom_15:13;

Should look for the object of

Tit_2:13;

Should not be ashamed of

Psa_119:116;

Should hold fast

Heb_3:6;

Should not be moved from

Col_1:23;

Should continue in

Psa_71:14; 1Pe_1:13;

Connected with faith and love

1Co_13:13;

OBJECTS OF

Salvation

1Th_5:8;

Righteousness

Gal_5:5;

Christ's glorious appearing

Tit_2:13;

A resurrection

Act_23:6; Act_24:15;

Eternal life

Tit_1:2; Tit_3:7;

Glory

Rom_5:2; Col_1:27;

Leads to purity

1Jo_3:3;

Leads to patience

Rom_8:25; 1Th_1:3;

Seek for full assurance of

Heb_6:11;

Be ready to give an answer concerning

1Pe_3:15;

Encouragement to

Hos_2:15; Zec_9:12;

Encourage others to

Psa_130:7;

Happiness of

Psa_146:5;

Life is the season of

Ecc_9:4; Isa_38:18;

The wicked have no ground for

Eph_2:12;

OF THE WICKED

Is in their worldly possessions

Job_31:24;

Shall make them ashamed

Isa_20:5; Isa_20:6; Zec_9:5;

Shall perish

Job_8:13; Job_11:20; Pro_10:28;

Shall be extinguished in death

Job_27:8;

Illustrated by

An Anchor

Heb_6:19;

A helmet

1Th_5:8;

Exemplified

David

Psa_39:7;

Paul

Act_24:15;

Abraham

Rom_4:18;

Thessalonians

1Th_1:3;

Names of God

ABBA.............................Romans 8:15

ADVOCATE.........................I John 2:1 (kjv)

ALMIGHTY.........................Genesis 17:1

ALPHA............................Revelation 22:13

AMEN.............................Revelation 3:14

ANCIENT OF DAYS..................Daniel 7:9

ANOINTED ONE.....................Psalm 2:2

APOSTLE..........................Hebrews 3:1

ARM OF THE LORD..................Isaiah 53:1

AUTHOR OF LIFE...................Acts 3:15

AUTHOR OF OUR FAITH..............Hebrews 12:2

BEGINNING.........................Revelation 21:6

BLESSED & HOLY RULER..............1 Timothy 6:15

BRANCH............................Jeremiah 33:15

BREAD OF GOD......................John 6:33

BREAD OF LIFE.....................John 6:35

BRIDEGROOM........................Isaiah 62:56

BRIGHT MORNING STAR...............Revelation 22:16

CHIEF SHEPHERD.....................1 Peter 5:4

CHOSEN ONE.........................Isaiah 42:1

CHRIST.............................Matthew 22:42

CHRIST OF GOD......................Luke 9:20

CHRIST THE LORD....................Luke 2:11

CHRIST, SON OF LIVING GOD..........Matthew 16:16

COMFORTER..........................John 14:26(kjv)

COMMANDER..........................Isaiah 55:4

CONSOLATION OF ISRAEL...............Luke 2:25

CONSUMING FIRE......................Deut. 4:24, Heb. 12:29

CORNERSTONE.........................Isaiah 28:16

COUNSELOR...........................Isaiah 9:6

CREATOR.............................1 Peter 4:19

DELIVERER..............................Romans 11:26

DESIRED OF ALL NATIONS.................Haggai 2:7

DOOR...................................John 10:7(kjv)

END....................................Revelation 21:6

ETERNAL GOD............................Deut. 33:27

EVERLASTING FATHER.....................Isaiah 9:6

FAITHFUL & TRUE........................Revelation 19:11

FAITHFUL WITNESS.......................Revelation 1:5

FATHER.................................Matthew 6:9

FIRSTBORN (3)........................................Rom.8:29,Rev.1:5,Col.1:15

FIRSTFRUITS............................1 Cor.15:20-23

FOUNDATION.............................1 Cor. 3:11

FRIEND OF TAX COLLECTORS & SINNERS.....Matthew 11:19

GENTLE WHISPER.........................1 Kings 19:12

GIFT OF GOD............................John 4:10

GLORY OF THE LORD......................Isaiah 40:5

GOD....................................Genesis 1:1

GOD ALMIGHTY...........................Genesis 17:1

GOD OVER ALL...........................Romans 9:5

GOD WHO SEES ME........................Genesis 16:13

GOOD SHEPHERD..........................John 10:11

GREAT HIGH PRIEST......................Hebrews 4:14

GREAT SHEPHERD.........................Hebrews 13:20

GUIDE..................................Psalm 48:14

HEAD OF THE BODY.......................Colossians 1:18

HEAD OF THE CHURCH.....................Ephesians 5:23

HEIR OF ALL THINGS.....................Hebrews 1:2

HIGH PRIEST............................Hebrews 3:1

HIGH PRIEST FOREVER....................Hebrews 6:20

HOLY ONE...............................Acts 2:27

HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL.....................Isaiah 49:7

HOLY SPIRIT............................John 15:26

HOPE...................................Titus 2:13

HORN OF SALVATION......................Luke 1:69

I AM....................................Exodus 3:14, John 8:58

IMAGE OF GOD............................2 Cor. 4:4

IMAGE OF HIS PERSON.....................Hebrews 1:3 (kjv)

IMMANUEL................................Isaiah 7:14

JEALOUS..............................Exodus 34:14 (kjv)

JEHOVAH..............................Psalm 83:18 (kjv)

JESUS................................Matthew 1:21

JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD................Romans 6:23

JUDGE................................Isaiah 33:22, Acts 10:42

KING.................................Zechariah 9:9

KING ETERNAL.........................1 Timothy 1:17

KING OF KINGS........................1 Timothy 6:15

KING OF THE AGES.....................Revelation 15:3

LAMB OF GOD...........................John 1:29

LAST ADAM.............................1 Cor. 15:45

LAWGIVER..............................Isaiah 33:22

LEADER................................Isaiah 55:4

LIFE..................................John 14:6

LIGHT OF THE WORLD....................John 8:12

LIKE AN EAGLE.........................Deut. 32:11

LILY OF THE VALLEYS...................Song 2:1

LION OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH............Revelation 5:5

LIVING STONE..........................1 Peter 2:4

LIVING WATER..........................John 4:10

LORD..................................John 13:13

LORD GOD ALMIGHTY.....................Revelation 15:3

LORD JESUS CHRIST.....................1 Cor. 15:57

LORD OF ALL...........................Acts 10:36

LORD OF GLORY ........................1 Cor. 2:8

LORD OF HOSTS.........................Haggai 1:5

LORD OF LORDS.........................1 Tim. 6:15

LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS..............Jeremiah 23:6

LOVE.................................1 John 4:8

MAN OF SORROWS.........................Isaiah 53:3

MASTER..................................Luke 5:5

MEDIATOR................................1 Timothy 2:5

MERCIFUL GOD............................Jeremiah 3:12

MESSENGER OF THE COVENANT................Malachi 3:1

MESSIAH................................. John 4:25

MIGHTY GOD...............................Isaiah 9:6

MIGHTY ONE...............................Isaiah 60:16

NAZARENE.................................Matthew 2:23

OFFSPRING OF DAVID.......................Revelation 22:16

OMEGA....................................Revelation 22:13

ONLY BEGOTTEN SON........................John 1:18(kjv)

OUR PASSOVER LAMB........................1 Cor. 5:7

OUR PEACE................................Ephesians 2:14

POTTER...................................Isaiah 64:8

POWER OF GOD.............................1 Cor. 1:24

PRINCE OF PEACE..........................Isaiah 9:6

PROPHET..................................Acts 3:22

PURIFIER.................................Malachi 3:3

RABBONI (TEACHER)........................John 20:16

RADIANCE OF GOD'S GLORY..................Heb.1:3

REDEEMER.................................Job 19:25

REFINER'S FIRE...........................Malachi 3:2

RESURRECTION.............................John 11:25

RIGHTEOUS ONE............................1 John 2:1

ROCK.....................................1 Cor.10:4

ROOT OF DAVID............................Rev. 22:16

ROSE OF SHARON...........................Song 2:1

RULER OF GOD'S CREATION..................Rev. 3:14

RULER OVER KINGS OF EARTH................Rev 1:5

RULER OVER ISRAEL........................Micah 5:2

SAVIOR...................................Luke 2:11

SCEPTER OUT OF ISRAEL....................Numbers 24:17

SEED.....................................Genesis 3:15

SERVANT..................................Isaiah 42:1

SHEPHERD OF OUR SOULS....................1Peter 2:25

SHIELD...................................Genesis 15:1

SON OF DAVID.............................Matthew 1:1

SON OF GOD...............................Matthew 27:54

SON OF MAN...............................Matthew 8:20

SON OF THE MOST HIGH.....................Luke 1:32

SOURCE...................................Hebrews 5:9

SPIRIT OF GOD............................Genesis 1:2

STAR OUT OF JACOB........................Numbers 24:17

STONE....................................1 Peter 2:8

SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS.....................Malachi 4:2

TEACHER...................................John 13:13

TRUE LIGHT................................John 1:9

TRUE WITNESS..............................Revelation 3:14

TRUTH.....................................John 14:6

VINE......................................John 15:5

WAY........................................John 14:6

WISDOM OF GOD..............................1 Cor. 1:24

WITNESS....................................Isaiah 55:4

WONDERFUL..................................Isaiah 9:6

WORD.......................................John 1:1

WORD OF GOD................................Revelation 19:13

I can be to busy living to live

2011-06-30T13:04:00.001-06:00

How skilled are you at using “busyness” as a tool to hide from a broken relationship with God? I have some great skills here. Doing stuff is a part of serving the Lord. Activity is important to people and the Lord. Those who follow Jesus do the works that He has called them to do. A question that is good to ask every now and again is, “how much of what I do is driven or motivated by my lack of faith in the Lord?” Good questions – right?

At times I think I see (notice how I postured this statement) 10 things done because we think we “ought to do them” for every 1 thing the Lord is asking of us. Now we are free in Christ to do what we want. We are free to give ourselves to the Lord and we are free to fool ourselves. We confess and declare that God is holy and uncreated while we tend to think that God thinks just like we do. In fact we can trap ourselves into thinking that God’s favor or anointing is on us because God thinks the same ways about something as we do. Oooooooops

Have you ever heard, “we don’t need God to tell us what to do, we have the Bible”? If we have the Bible, do we still need the Lord to give us instruction? Ponder that. Do we need God to speak to us personally, specifically? Cannot we read the historical truths about God and determine for ourselves how to act? Or at least can we not read some translation of the historical record of God and then reason out what we are to do. Usually when I find someone who is dogmatic on “just obeying the Bible” they are just as dogmatic on obeying the Bible the way they understand it (which of course is the right way).

Unbelief combined with pride seeks to motivate us to act apart from the living God, even with Bible in hand. We can be pressured to perform deeds that are not in harmony with the will of the Father. Instead of obedience, we use deeds to justify and establish a righteousness apart from God. We do stuff because we are seeking to live Christian more than obey. Instead of trusting Jesus alone for our salvation we do things to prove to ourselves we are true followers of the way.

In my opinion, it is much easier to work for God than to have a relationship with Him. You can give 40, 50 even 80 hours a week to the work of the ministry and yet turn to TV, Media, recreation, music, sex, sports; for your restoration and felt needs. Does having a relationship with God not satisfy the whole being? How many of us, when we are tired and stressed desire to spend time with the Lord to be refreshed? Do we not usually first of all turn to family and an endless list of other things?

I think we act this way mainly because we think God is mainly concerned with what we do for Him, not with Him. Have you ever heard, “if all you are going to do is pray, don’t even pray”? Is that the same as “if you are just going to talk to God, don’t talk to God, he wants you to work for Him not talk to Him”? Sure He wants both, but how are you going to know what to do if you do not know His voice or worse. What if you live your whole life in presumption – acting as if your thoughts about God were the same as God Himself.

OK, so how do I improve?

I think one of the first steps is to be at peace with who you are. You and I are created. We are human. We are needy. We cannot be defensive about this or proud. We must seek daily to live our lives in a place of comfort as we need the Lord to speak, guide, direct and comfort. We need encouragement from the Lord and understanding that need rightly allows us to have a relationship with God that is not based on what we do but based on who He is.

If we take the time required, we will encounter the Lord in a loving way. It may not be a form of love we desire or an expression that wow’s us, but it will be authentic. To enjoy the Lord on this level we must be overcoming a spirit of control. Our inner man knows when we are building an image of God and when we are encountering the authentic God Himself. Our inner man knows when we are pretending to have experiences with God and when we are encountering. We have so much “unreal” because we want to be the master of our own life, even our own life in God. We are quite happy to deceive ourselves about the love of God instead of being humble and persistent about seeking the Lord.

In my experience, which is only one person, I have found the love of God to be like a refreshing breeze more than a driving wind. I can easily neglect it or overlook His love should I be distracted by other things. Beyond my first assumptions I have found the love of God to calm and bring inner peace even while my mind is anxious. I have found love to satisfy inner longing even while the body is crying out for food, heat, relief.

Like the singing of the birds every morning, so too is God’s love. We can hear – but not listen, see but not observe, know about without embracing the sound or reward. Mystical. I can be to busy living to live.

Pain and Life

2011-06-30T09:25:00.000-06:00

Just a few moments ago I finished by bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. As I started to make my next move, I felt something strange come over me. It was like life was rushing out of me. I could feel my heart slow down. My mind became very peaceful, it was like I was going to slip into death. I thought to my self, “I’m slipping away”.

I sat in my chair thinking about my life, how tired I was. I have not slept in a few night because of the pain in my hips and back. I thought of how hard it is to keep fighting, how nice it would be to enter the rest of the Lord.

They it hit me. I was not dying. The pain was gone and my body was doing what all normal bodied do when they are not in a constant battle, relaxing. My heart slowed because my anxiety had decreased, an anxiety that I now take as normal. What I thought was slipping away was the gentle feelings of falling asleep after nights on restless sleep. After the startle it was enjoyable.

I realized again that pain brings to my life an endless resistance to that pain and a ever present resolve to do the next thing, even if the next thing is get out of the chair. A quick Google reveals that over 100 million people are suffering with chronic pain. What are we to do? What are they to do?

I have been prayed for hundreds of times, pray almost daily for my self, been healed, fallen out of a tree stand and became unhealed….I have tried a great many things to get better, to get healed, to live pain free. What is the answer?

Jesus is the answer. He is the answer as the healer, as wisdom, as truth and as our example of suffering until we are bodily transformed. The people of God who promote healing often battle with being friendly to those who are enduring pain. This pain is not just physical, but emotional, mental, spiritual. Pain is pain and living in pain every day, even in “imaginary pain” hurts.

Here is my offering of wisdom from a Red Neck Mystic. Make heaven rejoice and hell grieve over the way you endure suffering. Use every ounce of your suffering to bring glory to God, to make Angles proud that someone on the earth, surrounded by darkness; lives in such a way as to love God in spite of hurt. Live in a way that makes hell mad that you love God when God does not provide a better (pain free) life for you. Know this! That while some people do great works and are seen by many for meetings, miracles and networks; God is fully aware of you when you, in pain, turn to Him and endure with joy for His name sake.

I know that we can hurt so bad that we literally want this life to be over. The desire to be pain free can be motivated by pain and suffering from our situation in life, broken relationships, bodily pain and numerous other conditions. It takes a huge faith to keep going in the face of these daily giants. But God is a God who supplies all we need, if we turn to Him and seek Him.

If you do not endure suffering you can stop reading here. If you have real pain in your life I invite you to read on.

To those who live with pain and it’s various forms I what to speak openly with you about the TEST of dealing with religious people. It is our responsibility not to get offended, not theirs. It is our responsibility to love. We do not demand love because of our condition, but give more love out of our poverty of condition.

Simple answers, religious ceremonies, spiritual programs, going to conferences all have a very, very valuable place in healing and wholeness. God will use your desire to be well as a great tool in your Christ like transformation, so let Him do that. But do not be discourage because leaders and people of the spirit cannot help you. Love them but keep looking to Jesus. Do not be ashamed to look to Jesus. Do not be ashamed for others, that others are not enough to meet your need. Even if they dishonor you and neglect you because you represent to them some problem or issue that will not go away, do not, do not reject them.

Right now you ought to be wondering, “why should I have to go through all this”. “Why is my life full of pain when others are not”? That is a great question. So go to the one who can answer that question. Ask the Master why? He will respond and lead you even if His reply does not seem to answer the question. Often God, in His misdirection, is leading us on the shortest path to life. Counsel from a Red Neck Mystic.

The Bucket Video

2011-06-29T12:12:00.000-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/user/rodneypop#p/a/u/1/YXQvCWxctD0

Humble Yourself

2011-06-19T07:44:00.001-06:00

(Exodus 10:3) Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself (to be bowed down or afflicted) before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.

How far remove from my life this passage of Scripture first appears to be. Some wicked ruler in a distant land far removed in history, how can this connect to me? In what ways am I living in pride of a lack of humility that hinders God’s will and God’s people?

It is one thing to be humbled by the Lord, another to have people humble us. In this text, the call goes forth to humble yourself. Voluntary humility is tricky. Do we act in such a way as to appear humble? Do we truly humble ourselves and then have great pride on our actions of humility? Internal reflection will not serve us well here. What we need is an outside source giving direction and guidance. What we need is the Holy Spirit to convict us of both righteousness and sin.

A great step in living humble is to allow yourself to be under the rule and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The humility to “not be in charge” and not live “by your own opinions” is a step you take yourself. You start the process of calling on the Spirit of the Lord for help.

One test of how we humble ourselves before God is our control of others. The more we depend on self to make a way and get things done, the more we use control as a tool. While we often justify our controlling of others by the end result of doing the will on the Lord, this is a form of deception. What we need is enough of the Holy Spirit and His fruit to control ourselves. Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit and partners with humility as we choose to live by following and not by self-promotion or agenda.

When the evil of one persons actions is confronted with the evil of manipulation and control, even in the context of “trying to get them to do right”, the methods of the Lord are pushed aside for worldly ways. There is a way to overcome, but it involves a cross and suffering, two powers that are multiplied by humility.

Prayer for Fathers

2011-06-17T08:10:00.001-06:00

Our Father in heaven, we ask that you would encourage our fathers. Renew their spirit of adventure. Ignite their passion for you and for life. Fill their hearts, souls and minds with wisdom and revelation.

Father, we ask that our fathers would be set free from all past sins and mistakes. We cry out to You to give them courage to face what has occurred and what is yet to occur. May the earth be filled with might men of God. Bless our Dads so that they may bless the world. Remove from them all fear.

In this hour and in the days to come we ask for an ongoing outpouring of the Holy Spirit into their lives. We ask that Truth, Comfort, Wisdom and every aspect of the Holy Spirit impact their spirits. May ever Dad know the voice of their Father in heaven.

Just as you have forgive us, we too forgive. Just as you encourage, so too may you help us to encourage and build up our fathers. Release upon us all the joy of Your salvation in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ.

Prepare the way

2011-06-07T06:18:00.001-06:00

Isaiah 40:3-5

A voice is calling, "Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. (4) "Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley; (5) Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

Matthew 3:1-3

Now in those days John the Baptist *came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, (2) "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (3) For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, "THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, 'MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'"

I think that I would be hard pressed to see the move of God call for in Isaiah fulfill by one guy preaching in the wilderness. In my normal way of thinking I would be looking for a big movement and much to do. But my view is because I do not think much of people, but rather look mostly for the “response of others” to verify what God is doing. The truth is, I like many Americans, probably would reject the Lord Jesus Himself when He was capture, tortured and put to death. We simply do not see small, suffering, sacrificial people or events as significant to the Lord. The one possible exception to that is a mission. Unless the mission is a person, a struggling food pantry we except and help, a John the Baptist we tend not to.

This is all changing. People, maturing in intimacy with the Lord, are seeing and hearing Him speak through people of all positions and standing in life. Disciples, mature in humility, are hearing the Master speaking through people who are mostly hidden from public view and adorned with non-traditional culture. While we have a great tendency to value those who have a culture like our own, many are now starting to see the Lord in ways, forms and traditions that are foreign to them. Where once people determined the activity of God according to circumstances or their personal view of success, people are now seeing and hearing the Lord as He acts through others, regardless of external circumstances.

I have noticed that public leaders have started repositioning their hearts. Where once they felt that they were spiritual people with spiritual answers, more and more they are now seeing how great many who they called “followers” are. At the same time they are seeing the wisdom and revelation of the Lord in “common Church people” they are also very aware of their own personal sins and failures. This double edge sword of seeing others rightly and not thinking to highly of ourselves is God grace in this hour. It is God’s grace because some of the great highway builders are beginning to be released for their work.

God is not against church leaders and authority. Much of the present burden on our pastors and leaders is the result of the people not doing their part. We have built a system of watching waiting for ministry and service and not being responsible for our part. This is changing. In that change we will see that what one pastor did in eighty hours of work will be done in less than an hour as eight disciples do the work they were called to do. This lifestyle of following the Lord will bless everyone, the leaders, the disciples and the Lord.

Humans are not all that powerful

2011-05-19T09:39:00.001-06:00

Humans are not all that powerful

[To have imbalance or a false teaching all you need to do is emphasize one truth over all the others. Rather than live by every word of God, live by a chosen few. My thoughts are always only but a part.]

Whatever we walk with (sometimes listen to or spend time with) influences our lives greatly. We are mostly deceived at how skilled we are at keeping things “out of us”. Things both good and bad.

Some, using fear as their main motivation, proclaim evil as “easy in and hard out”, while good is just the opposite. This is not true. A little leaven of heaven does a great work or how would anyone come to surrender to the Lord? The journey to God may seem to be all uphill, but there is a great wind behind us. In the Bible book of Daniel, it is a stone that cruses all the world powers.

A great human pitfall is the desire for “self-rule”. We think self is in control and wrongly believe that freedom is independence. All freedom we are given by our ruling authority. Even the expressions of personal responsibility exist because this expression was given to us. Freedom in the direction we tend to think of it(action and choices) comes from God. His permission to us, His granting us the ability to turn from Him and reject Him, is given, not inherent. All things created are given all things.

Self-control is the fruit of God’s Spirit within. This is very different from “controlling pride” which appears to be like self-control, only it is all about self. Self-control is all about others and the environment of love. One restrains “for others”, the other for “self”. One is gentle and kind, the other self-righteous.

Figuring this and many other things out can be a blessing, but only if we live in the light of God. Being in the light is far better than being self-aware. Some of our most foolish things are the result of self-awareness without God’s presence. It is a great darkness to have “self” discover sin. This is “pride” judging the inner self and establishing itself as judge; seeking to abolish faith, hope and love to the land of the mystics. “By reason alone” it boast, but without reality, it seeks to discern. Great deception is in the self-man. When he is even fully evil, deceived is he in his own evilness. Some weak Christian light can make a shadow of him.

Light shines upon a world of trouble and fears it not. This is true both internally and externally. Light shows the way to all. God has a common grace to all things created. Receiving this grace is a daily choice of where we walk and who we have fellowship with (I am not talking about people here). Everyday light comes to the most evil of men. Everyday the evil man must push away the kindness of the Lord that calls.

At time the sun or light becomes a scorching place, a place that burns the earth and the inner man. This is not because the sun has changed or made a decision to harm. The Light is unchangeable. Circumstances other than the sun bring the burning. God is not mad one day and they happy the next. God has both a kindness and a severity that are constant.

We “feel” the light of God differently because the wind stopped blowing, the rain does not fall, the trees have been abused or misused and the provision of shade and breeze are gone. The light manifest in harmony with living. The conditions of our lives reflect conditions within our lives. Most of the time in small minded, self-centered living, we think that our living conditions is all about us and a result of our choices. Most of the time this is not true. Most of the time our life circumstances is about the Kingdom of God working within the world and within us and about our history and community. Self-rule hates this thought. Just read the Bible and look at the thousand of times where the conditions of a persons life was more about what God was doing than what they were doing. Behold, even evil kings like Nebuchadnezzar lived under the control and influence of God.

Even peace of mind comes from the light, for dwelling upon lights revelation brings peace. Peace of mind is not something we can do for ourselves. All anxiety must be cast from self to the Master who care for you in order to be free. So even in the most basic of mindsets – peace, we are unable to arrive through self-rule. We need another, the light of the world, to shine upon us and show us the way, and this His does every day we live.

Humans are not so powerful as we think. We cannot even live by our selves.

Questions

2011-05-16T07:38:00.002-06:00

The Lord instructed us that He rewards those who diligently seek Him. We know that all who seek Him, find Him. And also we are told to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to us.

Do you need to seek the Lord the right way? Will any kind of seeking suffice? Is there a right way? God is pleased with whatever we give Him, isn’t He?

Why bother much with human effort, does not God’s love for me negate all my effort? God loves me, even when I sin, so shy not just enjoy that love, why seek? Isn’t the age of Martha done, all that the Lord requires now is that we set at His feet, is that not true? Human striving and effort, even in seeking the Lord, is a reflection of man made rules.

Is there a mark or standard for finding Him? Is finding the Lord just an idea, a mental encounter? Do we each individually get to say when we have found the Lord or is it something that is revealed to us?

How often do I need to put God first to qualify to receive from Him? If the love of God cares for sinners and saints, why not enjoy His provision for all? Isn’t it religious to have different standards and rewards in Christianity? Are we not all His favorite? Are we not all receiving the same love and care? Are not all of God’s promises for all of His children?

Knowing God

2011-05-03T07:01:00.001-06:00

The very best thing we can do in this hour is to know God. The type of knowing I am referring to is not knowing about God, although that would be good. Knowing God in the manner I am referring to, is knowing God relationally. It is knowing what He likes, what He is doing on the earth, what He is sending, releasing or withholding.

Where can you go to know the Lord?

While the prayer room, the worship event, the sermon and the small group meeting are all great places, even places of encounter; the best place to know God is in your inner man. The Christ who dwells within you desires for an internal meeting and transformation. The pace, security and direction you need for life in this day, is found within. The Kingdom of God is within you. The holy dwelling of God in within true believers. It is great to have outward signs and wonders, but these will do little fi we do not abide in Christ Jesus and have authentic fellowship with Him.

There are many distractions that keep us from encountering the Lord. We often stop at worship, prayer or peaceful feelings. We are easily distracted from pressing on to the prize. Jesus prayed that we would be one with Him, with the Father. How often do we press on until union with God is achieved? How often do we go beyond wondrous feelings and enter into holiness and sanctification? Our God is a consuming fire and union with Him burns, wonderfully burns.

In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus asked the disciples to watch and pray with Him, then he went a little further and prayed. Why didn’t Jesus gather them up into a small group, hold hands and pray words of encouragement over one another? I am not slamming that type of prayer, but what to reveal it limits. There is this prayer of corporate prater of seeking the Lord in intimacy. Together along! Together alone we encounter the Lord. This has been a pattern from Jesus, the disciples, the desert Fathers, the monastic movement and through all cultures of God’s redemption.

In the time we live the influence of media and people is so powerful that we must literally fight to be free from it’s rule over us. It is about being a part of a body but connected to the head. We will find our unity, maturity and security all related to our connection to His headship.

Finding God in the prayer closet at home is great, But we also need to be able to enter into the fullness of God in public. This is learned by entering into the fullness of God in public. We need, you need, to be able to enter into union with God in public.

Tricky me, out tricked

2011-04-27T10:02:00.001-06:00

I made plans this summer to step out and lead an endeavor. These plans were good for me, they allowed me to exercise my creativity, comfort in being in charge and in control. I was going to have a chance to make things happen. But God….

God had some deeper plans for my summer. My plans would have been great, on the surface level. God’s plans are deeper, like a pit. Have you ever noticed when your in a pit you look up more? If you are not unaware of that reality you probably haven’t spent much time in a pit. Pits help you look up.

The day this “God tricked me” thing happened I was reading and praying through Col. 3:1-17. It’s a whole “look up” passage. We often can “look” with our thoughts.

From my years in construction I know that pits are foundational for building. If you don’t have good “pit people” your whole building can be off balance. Pits are also dirty. They are dirty both physically and emotionally. Few people enjoy the emotions of pits. Being a big guy, I tend to get squeezed in pits. Being put in a squeeze by God is another story though. “Lord, I’m OK with the pit – don’t put the squeeze on me unless you absolutely need to. I trust you Lord. Mostly.”

The pit I am called to (I am putting a Christian spin on God’s activity in my life this summer. I would have said the pit I am trapped in, but since I want to sound more spiritual I am saying “what I am called to”). Let me try again.

The pit I am trapped in, is the favor of God. Most people say God is favoring them when they get out of a pit. Yet the truth is, “getting out” only happens because you got in. So, “being put in the pit” is the favor, it simply is the kind of favor that takes time. (No spin here – honestly)

At times, or sometimes it takes days to rise out of the pit. Mostly it takes months and often it takes years. The whole “great tribulation” is only seven years, that is not that long of a pit. I have done seven years before. Coming out after the “great tribulation” will be very special. I wonder how many will learn to “look up” during those days? I suppose a few will be so depressed they will only look down. Sad! I am glad I have had some pit training. I ‘m gonna look up.

Did I tell you my pit? I’s helping others when I wanted to be the one who was going to do things and be helped. Yes. It’s like planning on cooking a great meal. You plan your menu, you think of how to do things to delight your guest. You consider your favorites and get this whole idea of doing something special. Then the time comes to prepare the meal and you are placed, not in the kitchen, but in the living room cleaning. You get to wash the dishes, clean the poach and get the heavy bowls and mixers down for the “real cooks”. The closest you get to preparing the food is running to the store so that they “other guys” can make something special. I know people like clean dishes, but no one has ever said, “these clean dishes are so special, thanks for having me over tonight”.

Can you see that a pit is a place where you are taken out of the picture, it is like a hole has opened up in the earth and you stepped into it. You dropped out of sight. You can be heard, maybe I’ll write on grumbling later.

So what can you learn in a pit.

To look up
Not to fret that people are looking down on you
How much you love being seen
How humbling, helping others is. It is an opportunity to be unseen and unheard (silence and solitude)
You are removed from actions that relate to people pleasing. The guy in the pit doesn’t see the smiles and awes at the dinner table, he is washing the pots and pans. He is at least one step away from the praise of man that can steal away right living. Why do we call it “people pleasing” when the real motivation of our heart is to please ourselves?

Well I’m in my pit now. I think I wrote this note so that I could raise my hand above the ground, just a little and say, “Here I am”, “see me” (my hand). I had better be careful, I know pits can get deeper.

YoU Be YoU

2011-04-25T13:40:00.002-06:00

Stuff to Come

2011-04-20T12:16:00.001-06:00

Right now I am amazed at how long many, possible most, prophetic words take to come about. It is like the “promise land” is just 30 days from here, but it takes us 40 years to be ready for it. What is sad is that in our time, most people throw away a word in a year or two if not in a day or two. I find it hard to find people who know their own history let alone the history of the people they live among.

I am also hearing reports of people trying to handle the things that are coming with the old failed strategies of the past – namely “control”. When fear, the unknown or lawlessness start to rise many turn to a spirit of control (making more rules and regulations) to keep people in order. At times you can see leaders selling out to make sure something appears to be safe and secure. A lot of human energy is being released right now to bring about a sense of peace and “if you do what I say things are goanna be all right for you”.

I want to share what I see. There is not safe place on the earth. All who desire safety and pace can enter into Jesus Christ, you can abide in Him – literally. This abiding is an inside thing and cannot be controlled by anyone else. You alone must be personally responsible to choose Christ and walk in His ways. No discipleship class, no Bible study, no mentor can do it for you. These can all help, or hurt, but in reality, you alone make the choice to indwell and be indwelt.

The person who is changed on the inside always, yes always, starts to change the world around them. It may not be a change that is noticeable by many, but it is there. It is not noticed by many because we tend to see what human energy and charisma are doing and tend to struggle to see the activity of God through another person. We have “stage vision”. We can see what people on a stage dramatize for us, but tend to miss the million acts of Christ like love displayed by common people ever day. I know this is an endless theme with me. Power to the people (the saints who live daily and do the will of God on the earth).

Right now I want to yell out (in full redneck fashion) stop killing your people. Stop trying to help them if all you have is a spirit of control. What we need is people who can help people live in freedom, not bondage. Set people free to make wrong choices and you will give them the power to live rightly before God and walk into all tribulation with confidence. Nothing is as good as having God lead us. No structure can do what God alone does through the Holy Spirit.

Over the last two thousand years what has worked and not worked? Beyond pragmatism, what is the way of the Lord? While all of us have been caught in the tricky wisdom of God, how many of us have been controlled by God? And since God is loving, which remembers not a wrong suffered, I don’t think God makes rules to keep us from hurting Him again. We make a lot of rules to keep people from hurting people. There is a huge difference between someone is prison (locked up to avoid bad behavior) and some who is free. Judas was a friend of the Lord just like Peter, James and John. He really was! If you learn to love Judas, how much more will you love the rest of the gang?

If you build it… your built it.

2011-04-09T07:18:00.001-06:00

The more we get to know God, the more we live by faith. This trust, this faith, becomes increasingly in “who God is” and not what we understand God to be. All those rules we have made to make God manageable in our mind, are deserted in order to lovely embrace who God actually is. Our best Bible studies are enhanced by our actual living with God. What we could not see in Scripture in our 20’s is clearly seen in our 40’s.

I am not saying that you need to be old to know the Lord rightly. I am saying that the longer you know the Lord the more you will know Him rightly. A maturing relationship is the way of the Lord. I personally believe that my relationship with God will be maturing throughout all eternity, and that is a long time (sort a).

Here are some of the rules that I have believed about God that effected the way I understood Him.

God always gets His will, His desire

If you pray it and it is God’s will, it will happen

God overlooks internal sin if you have external actions

You can have a little sin as long as you also have signs and wonders in your ministry/life. (Was your first thought “everyone sins”? Why did you have this thought and not “be perfect as I am perfect?”

God was angry at “stupid” evil people and I can join Him in that emotion.

I wanted God to be mad at people who disagreed with me so that I could justify my anger with their rejection and difference.

God’s emotions have limits. God gets “fed up”.

Deep down I wanted God to reject me and get fed up with me because I was fed up with myself. In this way I was making God after my own image. I was making a God I agreed with, even if this God of my making was not the real God.

OK, that is enough for now. There are more because I have lived a few decades on the earth now and I have had time to think. Now you see why I argue for a maturing relationship with God. If you are the same now as you were when you got saved, you may not agree the same way.

Here is the main point I wanted to make. You cannot give up on a life of prayer once you realize that God will not get all the things you are praying for. You and I (if you are called to it) will spend years crying out for God’s will and kingdom to come to earth. It is His hearts desire that His will would be done on the earth. But it may not happen in certain specific terms. And on this point, this point of unanswered prayers, you cannot be discouraged.

When Jesus, the God/man walked the earth, His desires for the earth were not always accomplished. Jesus desired Jerusalem to allow Him to embrace her, but she did not. God desires all men to be saved, but they are not. God wills that all His leaders and ministers be holy, but all are not holy.

I have encountered some people, people of prayer, who are sweeping some tough issued under a rock and making a rule to cover up their insecurity in their relationship with God. Don’t do it. Jesus is the main reward of our intercession and do not shove Him under some rock just so you don’t feel the pain of a maturing relationship with God. Did we make a rule that “knowing He who is unknowable” would be easy?

Here are a few more rules that I have faced recently, I wonder if they are partly true,

God is love and has no wrath
If you declare a thing it will happen

This is not the same as declaring a thing so that it happens

The more passion I express, the more truth I walk in. Zeal trumps wisdom
The best way to serve the Lord is to put your life on pause and join the prayer movement.

I wonder who would fund the prayer movement?

To live under the whole counsel of God is humbling. To live a life that is truly ever learning who the Master is, is both rewarding and full of insecurity. Insecurity, because we cannot control the relationship and must depend more on His love for us than our ability to be lovable.

Here is a link to some old books. I don’t want you to think I agree with everything written in these books. I don’t agree with everything I have written.

http://www.catholicspiritualdirection.org/catholicclassics.html

If you have some time in the rest of your life you may want to read about the intimacy and prayer movements of the past. What revelations did they know that we now call “new”? What did they lean that we can learn from them without making the same mistakes?

The 1300’s were a time in history when a lot of stuff happened. Google a time line of the 1300’s and look at the death, despair, disaster, war, Church conflict and weather. Why did God raise up a prayer and intimacy movement then? What did they learn that we should know? How do you survive with hope when half the world dies around you?

Discipleship Exercises

2011-04-06T16:28:00.001-06:00

The Edited Version

Most of us realize that when we watch a movie, even a reality show, that what we are watching is an edited version of the original. Time was spent improving the lighting, sound and retaking scenes. In the end we have a reality presented to us that is vastly improved and enhanced.

God offers to all who seek to walk in His ways an edited version of life. Through the power of forgiveness we can take the mistakes of our life and have them removed, even from the memory of God. I know that we, those who made the original mistakes and sins, often cannot let go of them. In this way we disagree with God. God came to give us such a wonderful life, an edited reality that is better than our first take. For the life that is forgiven and made new is real, it is not some repaired life after the mistakes are overlooked. All those who have been forgiven in God have been given a new life. This is our reality.

Are there past sins that you have asked God to forgive, but you still keep them as a part of your reality? Do you think of yourself in a way that is not in agreement with God? Do you say to yourself that your past sins are still a part of your life, a part of who you are?

Take time to seek the influence of the Holy Spirit and reveal to you those things that you maintain in your mind and heart that are not truly a part of your reality. Ask for God’s help to be set free and have a clean conscience. Ask the Lord for the power in your inner man to live this new reality, the edited version of life with grace and truth.

The life of Prayer

At some point in your life you will discover that God is the source of all things. This is true for prayer and intercession. It is like a seed that is planted in the ground. What that seed needs to grow and mature is supplied from the surrounding soil. The way that Jesus said it was that God is the vine and we are the branches.

Many in our day seek to be separated from the vine so that they can prove how good they are to God. They take on the role of creator, so that in themselves they can show God their devotion, strength and ability to be holy. I know this sounds strange, but we do this when we take on the world view that we are responsible to produce within ourselves a life of devotion and purity before God. The truth is that on every level we are dependent upon that which the vine supplies. We need God to move upon us so that we even love God. No one comes to the Father unless the Spirit draws them. No one can approach God in their own strength and righteousness. So why do we have all this rhetoric about our ability to make it happen?

It is like we are back in the garden seeking to eat of the Tree of Knowledge while neglecting the Tree of Life. We want to make the decisions, create the plans, rule. We have a hard time being in relationship with God, He is so ruling. We even make up phrases and saying to justify our not doing what we see the Father doing. Total dependence upon God is not replaced with maturity.

Do you spend time trying to make yourself a better person? What is the difference between being connected to God and receiving from Him new life and striving to have new life apart from Him? Is pride or humility a driving factor in your religion? Do we have the humility to depend on God for devotion, obedience and motivation?

If you have issues of independence from God, what ought you to do about that? How can you depend more on God than you do yourself?

Lessons

Life teaches us lessons, but we do not always learn the right lesson. A child can be learning to ride a bicycle and fall to the ground. They can come away with the lesson that they need to peddle faster or steer differently than they did. An adult learning to ride a bicycle and falling to the ground can come away with the lesson that they are unable to ride, that the bicycle is no good or that the one who instructed them in the fun of biking was wrong. They learned the wrong lesson.

In life we can learn the wrong lesson if we do not depend upon the Lord for guidance. Maybe you are like me and form a decision before the event is entirely over. I like being “quick”. But being quick to pick up on things is good as long as the things we are picking up on are the right things.

What events have happened in your life that you made some major decision on? Where these conclusions correct? Try seeking the counsel of the Lord about the conclusions to your life lessons. First, list out some of the big events that have occurred in your life. Now write down attitudes and actions you have made a part of your life because of those events. Wait on the Lord and see if there are any changes that need to be made about your conclusions.

Worth

Which is more valuable, the chicken that lay’s the egg or the egg? That may depend on if you need eggs for a long time or if you are looking for one big meal? Which is more valuable, a million dollars or a job that will last a lifetime?

Deciding the true value of something can be a little tricky, especially when our immediate needs are in the way. What is the value of a good relationship with Mom or Dad? What is the value of good relationships at work? Is the fulfillment of a project more important? We live in a world where the bottom line motivates us to abuse people. We fire workers to have a better bottom line and in the end our business is less creative. We purchase a large screen TV while the foundation of the house which needs repair, is neglected.

List out where you are spending most of your time and money. Now go to the Lord and ask for His help to discerning their worth. Ask the Lord to reveal to you things and people of value that you are neglecting. Ask the Lord for strategy to value what is valuable and know what is not.

You can “increase” your life value by being yoked to the Lord

2011-03-24T07:51:00.001-06:00

Mat 28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, (NASB)

In following the Lord in His way, the way is usually as important as the lessons or teachings. We would struggle with a Christ who only taught of great love while living a life of self-love. This is also true for us. We too struggle with ourselves when what we teach and proclaim with our mouth is not in harmony with our actions. Most of us face daily anxiety because of the inner reality that we are not inside what we proclaim on the outside.

To “be all that you can be” one must come to live a life and not just have a life. You are on the “go”. From the scripture above and from the ways of the Lord we see that our learning and our living are harmonized. The word “go” above can mean to “pursue the journey on which one has entered”. Those who “go” into the world to do His will of discipleship are those who journey with the Lord. The Method of following the Lord and the mission of discipleship cannot be separated.

In the most basic way, you cannot help another follow the Lord unless you too are one who follows.

“Go” also means to “depart from life”. To go you must leave something in order to take on something different. We who “go” are to depart from the life we had and take on a new life, both in kind and time. We live and new kind of life and we live in a new time. The “kind” is one of a disciple following the ways of Jesus and the “time” is one of eternity being in our hearts.

Do you have inner anger issues because you are not the person inside that you project outside? – go

Do you wrestle with unanswered prayer and desires? – go

Do you have fears of tomorrow, your children's future, your retirement and security? – go

It is the Lord’s way to journey with you into transformation. It is not a pill, a single prayer or prophetic word. Discipleship, is both giving and receiving, it is about a life with God on the go. Overcome sin and all the weakness of your life by living with God to acomplish His mission on the earth. Your life always has value because you were made in His image. You can “increase” your life value by being yoked to the Lord, because being linked to Him increases all that you can do.

Moment by moment living with God will take you on the journey of transformation you desire.

Discipleship - Fasting Words :)

2011-03-16T13:17:00.001-06:00

Sometimes we do not need to call for another Solemn Assemble, not for another prayer meeting, nor another attempt at doing what we have already been doing. All these are good. Faithfulness is good. But at times what we need to do is change the way we live – in particular, the way we relate to God. It seems we tend to attend gatherings in the hope that simply showing up will be all that the Lord requires.

Our bodies are the temple (dwelling place) of the Holy Spirit. God has made our physical and spiritual parts to work together. The physical and the spiritual may be much more harmonized they we feel comfortable with. Most of us do not consider that when we sin we are using the dwelling place of God against Him. We tent to think in terms of ideas rather than reality. We know, sort of, that when we lie we are making a dwelling of God lie – right.

OK, maybe you have heard that life and death are in the power of the tongue. I hear that a lot. I hear people proclaim that giving verbal expression ( a bodily function) has the power of life or death. I believe that. What we do with our bodies, our minds, our emotions has a relationship upon our spirit and the Spirit of God. If I make my body kneel in prayer, fast, be silent when offended; I am using my body to do the will of the Lord in heaven.

Since our bodies are connected to the Spirit what we do with one relates to the other. I suggest to you a fast will greatly improve your ability to sense what the Spirit is doing. What he usually does in a fast is to reveal to you how much you love food and other every day comforts, like people honoring you for fasting. So I have something I would like you to try. Consider a fast, not a fast of food, but of words.

Silence has always been one of God’s spiritual disciplines. Ask anyone who is in the wilderness for 40 years alone about who they talked to. In fact ask anyone who is in the wilderness 4 days alone. If you could do that it would be great. Silence and solitude are great, but if you cannot make that happen – how about one of these expressions.

1) Fast Grumbling and complaining. I think I do better at fasting food than this. If you want to try giving your negative thoughts no expression, use self-control and be silent. When you do you may find a level of self-love arising to your awareness. You may see that you are more critical and complaining than you thought. You may see that you have a strong need or desire to fix the wrongs and repair the deceptions of others. You may also become aware of when “good judgment” has slipped into accusation, grumbling and complaining.

2) Fast long, drawn out, explanatory answers. When you do this you are fasting the expression of your opinion, the reason behind the answer and you are leaving yourself open to the judgments of others. This is a form of humility because you are, not defending yourself. Doing this may reveal to you how much pride you have in your life, in desiring to impress upon others your insight, wisdom or maturity. I personally love to impress more than be impressed.

3) As much as possible do not listen to man made sounds, this would include music. If at all possible, spend time in the park, on a hiking trail or in your backyard. Intentionally entering into this type of isolation diminishes the amount of distractions our lives are bombarded with and allows to be a rest, yet engaged with the Lord. We want to be aware of becoming overly dependent on others things, even good things to bring us into the Lord’s presence.

4) As you fast or reduce the amount of words you use, try to make your thoughts agree with your expressions. If you are not going to say it, don’t keep pondering it over in your head. This simple practice alone could help many people be free from the weight of unexpressed arguments, defenses or attempts at justification. You will come into greater peace simply by the reality of your mind having fewer issues to deal with.

Actually, I think, your mind will always “be on”. But seeking to have your mindset on things above, upon love, joy, peace, patience, kindness and the Father allows for your mind not to be in “expression” mode but “listening” mode. If you are in need of a place to practice silence, just come over and hang around me. I would love to have someone to talk to that will not talk back. 

He supplies my every need

2011-03-05T09:31:00.002-06:00

For me, it is easy to look at life and try to gather enough resources to overcome all the obstacles standing in my way. Do you do that too? Have you ever sought to equip yourself enough to obtain the promises of God? It is good in the sight of the Lord to be faithful and fruitful. But we are not the source of our strength. Neither in the world or in ourselves is the strength, wisdom or resources we need to fully accomplish our life calling.

Do you need a house, a car, a mate, healing, understanding, anointing, favor or possible clean direction on what to do next? All this is in the Lord. You and I need Him. We need less worry, scheming and striving and more devotion, trust and obedience.

We do not have all we need today because something is out of alignment in our relationship with God. Hopelessness comes when we feel that even a great relationship with God will fail to bring to our lives all that we need for joy and love.

Be strong and courageous to pursue the Lord with the hope that He will give to you the promised land. Long for the Lord first and also the reward for devotion to Him. Your reward is a delight to Him because all that you obtain through God testifies of His love, faithfulness, mercy and grace. Every good gift from the Lord honors Him. Seek to obtain every promise He has spoken to you so that you know Him rightly and testify of His goodness on the earth.

Do not be overcome by time. Time is a servant of the Lord. If we must go through long periods of time to see a promised obtained - so what. We must not let time have dominion over us. Time must not be used to bring an accusation against God or against our own soul.

To use time rightly rather than being beaten up with time we must....
1) Make the most of every opportunity. This is not an opportunistic spirit but rather a heart that is a good steward of what we do have. Be faithful and you will be given more.
2) Live with God moment by moment. Do not carry the issues of tomorrow, next year or the next decade today. Plan, pray, obey and walk in this moment with the Lord- fully trusting in His ability to lead you in paths of righteousness for His name sake.
3) Replace all worry and fear with thanksgiving, rejoicing, recalling God's past faithfulness and intercession.
4) Realize that discouragement and depression are tools of the enemy to get you to miss opportunity and weaken relationships that advance the will of God in your life. Stay connected and involved.

What am I doing

2011-02-19T11:20:00.001-06:00

At times some people feel a loose of vision and purpose. This can come because of a great crisis, physical suffering or a simple distraction with the things of the world.

Passionate Christians are prone to the deception that the next Christian trend will be the thing they need for fulfillment and restoration. At times a spirit can slip into a community that says, “if I only had this ministry or this program I would have what I need”. Hopefully, that even in speaking this truth you can see the folly of it’s boast.

Moves of God, trends, do not complete a person, they were not intended to. Those who grasp onto a move of God to aggressively tend to stay in that move even when God has moved on. They camp where God has been and make the most of it. Usually living in a place of isolation and rejection. Others of us, most of us, quickly abandon the last trend for the new one, seeking the hope this fresh expression brings with it.

God sends movement to move us in His Kingdom, but each movement is not intended to replace Him. He alone is our resting place. Practicing detachment from the world and even from spiritual things we “cling to” is a great discipline for all disciples.

There was a young man, I’ll call him Passion. Passion loved and promoted attending the prayer room. His life was all about prayer and the prayer room. He loved the music, the gathering, they environment of people seeking the Lord together. He had a heart for God also. Passion went about encouraging, at times manipulating others to be a real Christian and engage in the prayer room. The center of his Christian life had become the prayer room. His zeal compelled him to inquire into a “next step” of growing in the Lord. I suggested a fast on prayer. Give up praying for a week to two, possible even 40 days. Even my assurance that numerous believers have failed to pray for months and God did not abandon them; seemed not to comfort or encourage him in this step of discipleship.

Passion could not give up the thing that he love in order to grow in the Lord. It was beyond his reason to see that the prayer room had become Passions God and that God himself was much less loved. When this happens our true vision and purpose starts to blur. Our activities become full while our lives become empty.

The foundation for maintaining vision and purpose is a simple, yet concrete thing. Take “who you are”, the being God created, who has gone through the life stuff you have gone through and….

keep growing in the love of God
keep growing in the love of others
seek the Kingdom of God and the doing of God’s will daily
as you can, seek skill in being and making disciples of the Lord

God’s plan of unending restoration and transformation is a people, living the lives they were intended to live, centered and focused on God. Satan does not usually try to get our vision off God by tempting us with some worldly thing. We are more likely to have some good, some ministry, some noble Christian purpose replace the centrality of Christ in our lives. Love the Bride but serve the King!

When you wonder where your life is going and what are you doing, stop and make an honest reflection about the 4 items above. Be real to your self, is loving God and others is something worthy of spending your life on? Ask yourself if obeying the will of the Lord has been replaced by appearing significant or being needed by others? Have you filled your hear with a thousand great teaching but your life has few skills in discipleship?

Book on Prayer and Fasting

2011-02-07T20:27:00.001-06:00

I think this would be worth most peoples time.

http://www.amazon.com/Prayer-Fasting-Kingsley-Fletcher/dp/0883685434

A Great, Great Sorrow

2011-02-07T20:24:00.001-06:00

It is a great sorrow when you have a life that looks Christian from the outside, but is not. It is a great sorrow when your real life is not the life that others see. For in time you too will come to approve of the outward and neglect the inward. It will be like FACEBOOK. Your life will appear to be what you post, but what you actually live will not be known.

How blessed is the man who slips up and reveals his anger or lust. How blessed is the women who exposes her lust for things or beauty. Would that we would be Christian enough to confess our sins one to another and be healed. I like to post on this blog and on facebook some of my endless mistakes, blunders and faults. It help me to be real to myself, to be mindful that others are more gifted, more influential and more better!!!!

But what real good would such humility bring. Would it deal with pride, our selfishness or self love. YES. It is an unsafe place to live a life where people think you better than you are. Better to be know for who you truly are. For this truth will help protect you from believing the lies that all others believe.

This is even more destructive for those in leadership. Is it not enjoyable to have people think you are much better than you are? Is it not nice to be though well of? What if we didn’t tell those little stories of our faults to build connection with our audience? What if we went beyond relevant communication and our whole life became the message, not just some words on Sunday morning or Wednesday night?

I ran across an article today that stressed how prophecy is replacing miracles in many churches. It was for the gift of prophecy, but revealed how we can replace the absence of miracles with talking about them. We can “predict” them in the future if we cannot experience them now – and most congregations seem to be content with this.

The authority for miracles require a lifestyle, not a message. In truth our city is unchanged because we/I am unchanged. I am unchanged because I become content with myself. I am not longer trouble by my own condition. You do not know me, so I am not compelled to live a holy life for your sake either.

It will be a most sad thing for me to lead a city wide prayer movement and not have people know how I live. If I dwell behind some title, office, position or status and do not open my daily life to others – I fail in the most basic Christian way.

Jesus was known to His followers in the most basic and humbling ways. I am not more important than He. And while the status of leadership in the American church has changed, status of leadership in the Kingdom of God has not.

Get a friend who truly knows you! If you can’t find one just find one of your enemies, they will be a great blessing to you.

Our Father

2011-02-01T11:26:00.001-06:00

The disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. I wonder if Jesus would have used the same expression if non-disciples asked the question?

Did Jesus ever give two different answers to the question about “How to have life everlasting” or the question of “who are the sons of Abraham” ? We know that He did. Jesus not only answer the question but He also spoke to the person asking the question.

It is the same way today, you and I can always depend upon the Lord to do more than answer our questions, we can depend upon His personal love for us that speaks to us, not just to an issue.

"Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 'Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 'Give us this day our daily bread. 'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 'And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]'
(Matthew 6:9-13)

At this time in America you can attend church and often here that we are all God’s children, but are we? Does the term “Father” have no other meaning than the ability to create? Do all the fallen angles, the ones that God made that rebelled against Him, also have a Father relationship with God? Do those humans that neither love or honor God have a son ship with God? Can you see that I have an opinion on this matter?

I think we need to be careful (full of care) not to deceive people. Just as the religious leaders of Jesus day felt pressure from religion and society, so do we. Are we teaching and encouraging deception in the name of tolerance or non-offence? Do we want to make everyone feel welcome to God so we gloss over any conditions required?

In historical theology there are 4 aspects of the Fatherhood of God.

The supreme value of man as a child of God. Human life is unique and priceless.
The duty of man as a child of God. Man owes God a relationship of trust and obedience.
The natural deduction of the brotherhood of mankind.
Sin has broken the relationship of son ship but in no way impairs the Fatherhood of God.

I believe all these are true but neglect a critical aspect. “Fatherhood” is a gift of the Kingdom of God! In the Biblical sense, not just the natural humanitarian sense, to be a son of God you must come into the Kingdom, you must be born again.

The point is not to battle theology, but to show the path of life to a relationship with God. I wish it were not so, but I often find people seeking to live a Christian life, and they are yet to be born again. They love what they know of God, but they have not given up their life to be one of His followers. God to them is a list of rules. He may be discovered through the obedience to the church. And yes, we the people of God do love, honor and obey one another. A relationship with the people of God is not the same as a relationship with our Father in heaven.

So right now, are you mad or upset about something? Do you feel like God has forsaken you? Do you feel like God loves others but does not love you? This discomfort is a part of your battle to resist the evil one and come to encounter God. Satan seeks to wreck your life by having you relate to the church or religion but not to our Father himself. The costliest, most demanding thing you will ever do is give up your life to follow Jesus. You cannot get away with just saying you did it, your must actually deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow Him. The Fatherhood of God is a treasure and each one of us must consider the cost of paying for that treasure.

As this truly happens, and it does happen in stages, you will grow in a true knowledge of God and of His Fatherhood. Defeat the works of darkness today as you overcome all the temptations to reduce Father God to a prize. Join the excitement of entering into a relationship with the most powerful being the the universe who can not be controlled, but can be trusted.

Day Off

2011-01-27T10:32:00.001-06:00

What if what we really needed to restore our soul was a day off? Not a day off for our selves, but a day off from ourselves. A day away from our worries and fears. A day away from our anxiety, negative judgments and self-condemning inner voices.

If you want to be restored and refreshed – enter into the rest of the Lord (I am not just throwing religious words at you). Enter into Christ and find a place to rest. Sure, like any journey there will be some issues that need to be addressed before you arrive. Know that the rest of the Lord is not only possible – it is waiting.

If you are one of those who’s mind has now ran off and is considering how your can get this done, how you can make it happen; you are off on the wrong path. Entering Christ does not come by human effort but by invitation. A heart responds to the cry of the Lord. A heart hears the Lord calling and calls back longing for an indwelling presence. Then we lovingly wait. When was the last time you disengaged from “self management mode” and enter into “responsive lover mode”.

It is counter cultural to wait on the Lord to feel good. Even most of the church promotes “doing more” as the way to feel good. (read, pray, missions, evangelism, serve) But look at those who cast those seeds. Are they patient, kind, longsuffering, gentle, without boasting, preferring and honoring one another? This discernment is not to judge others, but to be aware of the true spiritual food you are partaking of. Someone who never rests and seldom manifests peace in their life probably cannot help you find it.

But possible that is not what you want to become. Maybe you want to be powerful, impressive, honored, controlling, persuasive and important. Maybe the real goal of your heart is not to be like Christ, but to use God for your personal success. Even if that is you, God will not leave you or forsake you. God is not just there for those with the best of motives. He is bigger than that.

There is a place in God, a room, where it is easy to loose sight of yourself because we are so aware of Him. City wide transformation is about getting this inner reality outward, through an awareness of the nearness of the Lord. Thus we probably will not get the city there until the called of God are there. Every trial, temptation and pain cries out for us to learn how to enter into this room quickly. Bible study, memorization and meditation all have great value and purpose, but we are transformed by beholding Him. (for lessons on beholding just give me a call)

Right now, on a scale of 1-10 how much effort do you put out to feel significant in each of these areas.

How I perform at work
How much financial security I have
How many others need or value me (what they think)
How I do things the right way or not at all
How I wait and listen to God, having joy in silence and surrender to Him.

Take a day off from yourself and go on a date with God. Just let Him drive.

Reconciled to Christ Jesus–no really!

2011-01-21T10:55:00.001-06:00

If you are a busy person, stop right now and say, “thanks Lord”! Thank the Lord for your ability to do stuff. You can work, reason, raise a family or live as a single. You can eat, cook, do laundry, clean the house and even sleep when you fall into bed exhausted. WOW, you can do a lot.

Now I am not trying to be tricky – but real. The amazing thing is that all of you who have been reconciled to Christ Jesus can do this and give an endless supplies of love. You are more than human. You are empowered to love in the midst of all the cares and worries of life. You are simple and amazing at the same time.

Sure I know that most of you hear some voice in your head crying out for “more”. You can do more, work harder and smarter, give until it hurts, beat yourself into some unworthy life form than is humble because of brokenness, not because of grace.

But you can also embrace the humility of a life lived in loving obedience to God. Through loving others as your life your life, you will do a great many miracles, signs and wonders. We do want both God’s face and strength because we do not just want a part of God but all of Him. To have “the all” focus on abiding in Him and letting His love flow freely out of you. Do not focus on the results. The results will follow as fruit come forth from the tree. Be a healthy tree.

A healthy tree lives well where is it planted. It may be in the desert, in the rain forest, all alone or surrounded by a thousand others, but it lives will. No matter what your life situation, live well. Embrace the love of God for you in your situation and rejoice through excepting God love without thoughts of being better or doing more. You do a lot.

Now here is a little spiritual exercise.

Write down on a piece of paper all your goals and dreams. List them out.

Now make a mark by each one that you know God has specifically spoken to you about. You can say with 100% confidence that God has called you to do these things.

Now, when you start to be depressed or feel like a failure, go back to this list. Review it so that you know what are God’s directives and what are your desires. Ask God to work His grace in your life so that you are not discouraged by unmet desires. Unmet desires are not the same as abandoning God, they are not failings, just unmet desires.

You want desires, longing and dreams to be a part of your life. God made you to long and desire. You just want these desires to be in the rightful place. You do not want to live with a broken heart because some desires are not meet. You want to live in confidence as you seek to do all the things God has asked of you. Know the difference between desires and calling.

Some people waist their life because they feel like their unmet desire are the result of a life not rightly reconciled to the Lord. They look at what has not happened in their life and say, “God must not love me”, or “I am not pleasing to the Lord”. Take personal responsibility and do not let desires raise to the place of obedience to the will of God. Do the will of God. Keep praying and crying out for unmet desires, but don’t let them rule your relationship with God.

Does life suck?

2011-01-13T16:41:00.001-06:00

The New Year is in full throttle. For me it is like this year (which I started with the beginning of Advent this year) is one big unexpected savor! My life is a paradox of hopes and dreams of the past failing to materialize and my life being filled with unexpected love, kindness and help. It is like my life is a layered sucker; you know the ones where a new layer of taste is just waiting for you to lick off the one you are presently on. In this case the next layer is not just a surprise, but a shock. This shock is both an extreme of good and not good. It is like my life has become like the world; drought, flood, riches, and devastation. It is like a get a great “bailout” and “calamity” at the same time.

Just prior to my trip to AZ, something I will talk about later, we had an episode with the water heater and the carbon dioxide, the dishwasher went out (the machine not Shirley), our office and home computer failed and Shirley continues to battle a health issue. And at the same time we received blessings of money, food, furniture, friendship and gifts of food, fun and fellowship. WoW!

In AZ I recall laying in bed shaking with a fever at by brothers house on a Sunday night. I was feeling so bad but at the same time the presence of the Lord was so near that I could not stop praying. I recall thinking that “this is crazy”. But it was not crazy, more like wonderful. It was like by body was rotten, no good, miserable but I was keenly aware of the Lord. I felt so loved and so sick at the same time.

What I hope happens from writing this note is that someone will come up to me and say, “hey Rod my life is just like that”. “My life is full of troubles and full of God, it’s beyond sorting out”. I am looking for this confirmation so that misery can love company or so that I can rejoice with those who rejoice. But regardless of my motivation I do truly wonder how many great saints are living faithful lives in dark times.

I never wanted to be a Job, Jeremiah, Isaiah or even Paul during the prison years. I always wanted to be the guy that lived and great life for God on “easy street”. If enduring and going through stuff empowers us to love and serve others, what have I gained authority to say? Maybe the message that I have for the nations (small groups of people who do not know one another) is “keep sucking”. That sounds like a good redneck message.

Keep sucking and allow your deep spirit to love God no matter what taste is in your mouth. Enjoy the sweet but not so much as to distract you from His work yet to be done on the earth. Endure the bitter, but with no malice or self pity. God treats His friends in a rather mature way and going through pain and suffering is nothing more than an opportunity to validate your intimacy with God or enter into a deeper chamber of His love.

It was just after 5 in the morning. I just got out of the emergency room and into my room, waiting for surgery. The doctor came into my room, both a kind and direct man. He wakes me up and said that he did not have an opportunity to review the paperwork until now and that we have a problem. I did not have insurance. Do you know what it feels like to be sick, needing surgery and be told by your surgeon that “I don’t operate on people without insurance”. But then, as if an Angle of grace came into the room this doctor patted me on the leg and said, “but I will take care of you”. “But I will take care of you”, is the sound of a helpless sick man being given hope and healing. It is the sound of one layer of that sucker being licked off into the next. It is like this constant mingling of “worst news” “best news” lifestyle.

My life lesson – keep sucking!

He who endures to the end will be saved.

Unclean Spirits

2010-12-12T09:05:00.001-06:00

In the world we live in we deal with all kinds of stuff. I was reading through the book of “Mark” and found that Jesus dealt with “unclean spirits” about 20 times. This got me to thinking. Maybe I can blame my problems on a unclean spirit. Maybe I do have an unclean spirit and like it. Maybe I have no idea what an unclean spirit is.

So I started doing research. I found a book that lists all the names and ranks of both demons and angles. It looked like a great book, but I want to know how to deal with them, not get to know them personally. Someone might need to know all their names, height and “demon style” but I figured that if Jesus just called them “unclean spirit” I would give that a try. I can’t remember all the names of the people at church, how am i…. (is that an unclean spirit?)

Well, here is the part I wanted to say. After my research of both the modern ideas and the historic ways of dealing with stuff of the spirit, we (I) need to….

Take action when we come to realize a thought, behavior or emotion is not in agreement with Father God.

Here is a little blessing. We do not need to constantly seek to fix ourselves, but can trust more in God to convict us of our sins and unclean spirits. Rather than living in fear of being wrong we get to live in faith, trusting in God’s intervention.

Once I know something is out of step with God (actually I think this part works at the same time but it is hard to type an outline that has “same time” in it) we take PERSONAL RESPONSBILITY.

No matter what I got, what I have, who I am or who has me, I am responsible. This is great grace. For if I am responsible then I can do something about it. I can turn to God for all the help I need.

Get what you need. What we tend to need in this unclean spirit stuff is ..

An encounter with God that transforms me. This transformation may be fast or slow, but I know He is working in and on me for His glory.
Isolation and hopelessness is broken, even if the battle goes for years, I still live in the reality of God’s love for me that looks like the ongoing improvement of my thoughts, will and emotions.

God is an all consuming fire. Even if there is bad stuff in my life, God is burning it off, if I allow Him to. In the love that God has for me, I am being set free from all evil. It is just like Jesus is still here today. Only now He is living on the inside.

Peace on Earth (and in me)

2010-12-03T08:36:00.001-06:00

Peace

I have written some wonderful, insightful aspects of peace here. J But in the event that you live in a busy world or just have 2 minutes to invest in reading my stuff, let me put what I think is the most important first. Here is the illustration.

I love coffee. I did not always love coffee, but on some bitterly cold hunting trip back in SD coffee was the only thing available. So I turned to coffee for a personal need. I did not like it, but it served my need. Over the course of other hunting trips I used coffee over and over again to give me what I wanted, warmth. Then one day I found myself a Duncan Donuts. There, nest to the donut that I love was the coffee that I used. But for some reason I choose that which I had used to now be my friend. It was as though I was going to reward coffee for being good to me by choosing it when I did not need to. A relationship had developed.

Now years and decade later, I freely choose coffee. There could be tea, hot chocolate, water; but I tend to choose coffee. But at any time in my life I am free to not choose coffee. Picking coffee is a decision I make. Even if that decision is not a auto-response, it is still a choice. The same thing is true with peace. You must choose peace over all the other options in the moment. Peace most likely will not even cry out to you, “choose me”. You may start choosing peace just because it serves you, but still you chose to.

The most important thing is that you are free to choose. (It might be worth stopping right here)

An authentic encounter with the Master can bring a peace beyond earthly provision. Strangely- even when this encounter with God involves conviction of sin or judgment for wrong attitudes, God’s peace is still present. It is as though even the greatest conviction of sin is tainted with peace, the most profound rebuke still overflows with love. The greater the manifest presence of the Lord, the greater reaction we will have to His presence. Yet The Lord gives to us His peace so that we can endure His presence in a meaningful way.

If the peace you experience is only on the level of knowing, if your mind is at peace yet your emotions and will are not at rest, there is still more for you. It is good to know in your mind that the Master has peace for you. It is good to quote the scriptures and focus on the hope. However what you truly desire is to enter the peace of God. You want the reality, not just the idea. The peace of God transcends our understanding. His peace can be upon us even if our minds are still very busy. In some way we have this settledness, this confidence that arises within.

When you are paying your bills and you do not have enough money, His peace can come upon you. When you are listening to a sermon and are being convicted of sin His peace can help that conviction go deeper and accomplish a great work in you. Trusting in the Lord with all your heart will invite more and more of His power and presence into you.

Be honest about having only partial peace. Having only some peace tends to stem from partial surrender. To the degree of our full surrender is God’s peace released. To every kingdom of your heart un-yielded, un-surrendered, there you will find a lack of peace. Do not be offended at God’s justice as though he is requiring more of you than you can give. He is not. You can give God your all. His withholding of peace is His loving invitation to you to offer more of yourself to Him. To help you find those hidden un-yielded areas of your life, look for arguments. Usually at the doorway of these strongholds you will find “arguments justifying lack of peace” or “reasons, even scripture quoting peace” but behind the bold proclamation is darkness. The authentic peace of heaven will not be there.

In the event that this is true for you, do not think much about it. Rather, simply turn away from yourself and to the Lord. The only way to change your condition is to become freer from your self-rule and enter into greater dependency upon Him. Pondering why you are the way you are will not help that much. Turning to the Lord is greater surrender will be of more reward.

God calls us to whole hearted love. Thus every kingdom within us is to be surrendered. This call for whole hearted love is not a suggestion, but a deserving requirement. Fullness of devotion obtains fullness of indwelling. This is not earned – but the fruit of obedient love. Loving God with all your heart is a lifelong process and at different stages of your life you will need to offer new domains. As a youth your “zeal” will be one of your offerings, as an aging saint it will be your “knowledge”, as an mature believer it will be your “wisdom”. This never ending surrender is the fresh oil of eternal love. As long as we live we have something new to offer our Master.

Sweet is the peace of God. It is like a deep slumber, a hot bath, a refreshing breeze and the most rewarding praise all in one. It brings a great stability and contentment. It changes your vision and mindset so that hope, love, kindness are quite natural. Where once you needed to guard your mind against negative thoughts – now only positive ones can be found. It is not as though you are laboring to be something; you are not working to be righteous. You are filled with something; you are filled with His righteousness. His peace is indwelling you. This wonder of His presence lifts once His peace lifts. If does not actually leave you, but you re-enter you busy life and are not longer aware of His great work in you. Since now your vision of Him has changed, so too do your thoughts and mindsets. Seek to delight yourself in these moments, do not try to control God’s presence.

Seeking to maintain this state will only cause it to leave more quickly. Instead continue to honor the Master in your emotions and mind. Enjoying His peace helps it linger. Love Him for being near and enjoy all the blessings His nearness brings. Living in the moment of His presence and not seeking to control the events or maintain this situation will allow you to drink more deeply of these experiences. Some people find it best just to rest in the Lord, others are best served to journal or write poetry, still others sing in their hearts and with their mouths. Try not to manage what God is doing, try to enter into it. God is coming to you for communion; He does not desire your control.

When the deep reality of His peace has passed, seeking that state again is counterproductive. It is like trying to go back in time to some romantic or special event. All you have is the memory. Beware of making the memory an idol. Instead, have the courage to trust God for all your need in this moment and the next. Allow the past to give you a heart of gratitude, but do not linger there. The Lord is Lord of the past, but He is not there for you to meet. He is present. Allow the favors God has given you in the past to create in you a longing for more of Him. Even if you have never had an encounter with God, use that lack to cry out for Him to come.

Emmanuel, God with man is not an idea. God desires to walk with us. I believe that the word “walk” is used to refer to our everyday, common life. God does not just want to “work” with us or “minister” with us. God wants to walk with us.

What is the right way to seek the Master? Feel free to ask God for specific favors or be free not to. So you may seek God and trust Him to give to you what He sees fit, but you can also seek manifestations of His peace, love, visions and dreams. In time the issue of seeking the Lord in the “right way” will be consumed by His never ending direction of the Holy Spirit. The greater freedom the Holy Spirit has in you, the greater fellowship you are aware of. Even when you are unaware of His presence He is there. But to know God’s presence one must surrender to Him. This surrender is not setting down in a chair and striving to focus. Meditation and contemplation are valuable. I believe that the goal of all that is done in secret is rewarded in the public arena. The lessons learned in the prayer room teach you how to practice His presence all day long. The cultivation of hearing His voice enables you to walk with Him and talk with Him in every situation of life.

Growing in this relationship is not magic, it is not something that you obtain and no longer need to work on. It is a relationship. Relationships are constantly changing, responding, maturing. With that in mind, it is always a thousand times more beneficial to respond to the Holy Spirit than to investigate any reasons for dryness or distance in your relationship with God. We often seek to know the reasons behind God’s work so that we can manage our spiritual life with less dependence upon God. We do this while God is seeking for us to fully trust Him, even with our faults and rebellion. Obedience is better than sacrifice. Walking with the Holy Spirit is better than laboring to fix the relationship through human effort. God often honors our effort, but He loves our obedience. It seems strange to say that we must “trust God more than we trust ourselves”. Being aware of the pitfall where we judge God rather than God judging us, helps us to avoid it.

The deep peace of God is often accompanied by great creativity. This occurs as the inhibition and fears of failure we tend to live under are overcome by the presence of the Lord. Do not expect to have this level of creativity in the natural expression of life. Enjoy and respond to it when it is present, but be prepared to look at these creative ideas differently once God’s peace has lifted. This is often discovered in reading scripture. Passages that seemed to team with life, insight, power; seem somewhat drab once the peace lifts. What is giddy euphoria with God tends to be disciplined living when His nearness is not so powerfully present. Don’t pout – just value what you have when you have it.

2010-11-29T21:03:00.000-06:00

If God Cares

2010-11-29T10:34:00.001-06:00

I was reading Ps 72 and ponding the reality of God caring. So I took a few seconds and jotted down all the things God does because He cares for us. If you can think of some, add them to the list.

Makes intercession for us
Rules history with justice and righteousness (fairday is coming)
Gives gifts to people (leaders, servants, friends)
Answers prayer
Convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment (I thought I had to do this but I don’t)
Speaks through Scripture
Calls us to love – care- share one with another
Calls us to disciple the nations (change the whole earth)
Gives us focus for life (eternity, Jesus, things above)
Provides hope and encouragement
Cleanses our conscience ( I think the idea of conscience from Greek culture is “a remembrance of your past”. I love that my recall gets cleaned up.
He supernaturally intervenes
God renews our minds
The Holy Spirit guides us, directs us
The Holy Spirit comforts us
Jesus provides a way to escape being controlled by sin and evil (freedom)
God gives revelation (insight, understanding)
God gives wisdom (when and how to do the right thing)
We have the Holy Spirit, God’s very spirit in us, with us
Jesus came and did all that God would do. Jesus – the very image of God reveal to us who God is so that we can have a relationship with God – not just with our idea of God.

Well, that’s my quick list.

Jesus is coming to town

2010-11-29T10:22:00.001-06:00

Jesus is coming to town. I know that He has already come. I understand that He is coming again to the earth, to make it the most wonderful creation that He planned. But He is coming in a few days as we enter into the celebration of His life.

We can join God in His “outside of time” side as we live in time with a sense of His story (History). We get to have a fresh revelation in our hearts as we celebrate Jesus coming to earth to light this place up. I want this year for me to be a new beginning. I want to start this year with Jesus as the one I must care for as He is the most valuable treasure the earth has known, yet packaged as a helpless child. What a revelation of humility is that!

God came to get me is the reason for this season. Not just the random personal identity of Jesus. I mean not just the notion of another holiday, birthday or event. I am longing to learn and learn again the wonder of life it's self. I am seeking to know what it means to have a world filled with light. Darkness (both the inside kinds and the outside kind) are fleeing as the one who is the light of the world came, comes and is coming again.

Do the nations of the world even know that life on earth is about everyone finding completeness in life as we live in harmony with the ruler of the world earth? Do I know that? Come Lord Jesus and teach me to live!

Do you feel the excitement of a new year? Not a new year on the calendar but a new year of life in Christ Jesus? We get to experience again all that His heart desires for us. The one who came to set me free is coming again today, right now to help me climb out of this pit I made. Even now I can see those baby hands reaching to me. They look weak, but are deceptively powerful as they hold all things together.

I think this year, instead of celebrating Christmas, I will celebrate Jesus.(presence included)

Push Back The Darkness

2010-11-16T08:04:00.001-06:00

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
(Ephesians 6:10-13)

The problems and troubles of your life are not all your fault. Sure we all have made choices that result in negative results. And yes, we do reap what we sow. But we should not think (ponder, consider, wonder, worry) that our life is not what it should be because of us. If all we needed was “us” we would have no need for God.

We need God because He is the only one and only way to overcome sin. Sin is the trap of Satan, seeking for us to live in any other way than one in which honors our creator and redeemer. Sin in darkness creeping into you. Sin is loosing the battle of living your life in a way that gives and receives love.

We need to push back against Satan, evil and sin. We need to resist the Devil after we have submitted to God. We need to see and understand that believing in God is not enough. Even the demons believe in God. We need to act in harmony with God. We need to do His will and push back the darkness. We are in a fight.

Today when you are tempted to sin, tempted to act out in a fleshy way or to play in your mind judgments or critical thought of others, don’t. Don’t let Satan have control of you. Keep your freedom and promote the light. Choose eternal life over the momentary pleasures of this world. And come on, really, does the joy of anger, judgment, power, self-glory and self-promotion truly bring to you a better life? Do you think just because people fear you or are intimidated by you that you are special?

Satan wants us to think he has the best plan for our lives. Evil seeks to trick us into joining in evil’s work under the pretense of having fun and being free. But God is the only one who sets free, sin and evil trap us in bondage. Just look at the reality. Every follower of God is free to choose a path away from God. Every follower of Satan or sin is trapped, they need to be set free before they can choose to walk in the light.

The only way to not fear the dark is to be the light

Technorati Tags: The only way to not fear the dark is to be the light,Rodney Drury Push back the darkness

Everyone Counts

2010-11-15T18:41:00.001-06:00

Everyday people live their lives. Everyday they matter. I know that there are a lot of teachers and motivators who want to make you believe that you only matter if you do great stuff, but that is not true.

The person who helps others is just as vital as the one who has reached the highest levels of status in life. Christ Jesus taught us that 12 friends are enough to change the world. In fact 11 friends and a few enemies are enough.

I often tell people that Christianity will be a success when each one of us touches 12 others throughout the course of our lives. These touches are most often through love, kindness and hope. Many do much more, some do less.

Today, tomorrow, as you live your life, do your job, go to school; don’t listen to the accusations of Satan and the priorities of the world. Don’t spend your life pondering and re-pondering your worth. Allow the Holy Spirit to convict you of any short comings and don’t try to play God.

Technorati Tags: Everyone Counts Rodney Drury

The Most Radical Christians on Earth

2010-11-09T13:10:00.001-06:00

The desire to be more like God often leads us in unexpected places. Over the past few decades I have read numerous stories about the people of God. Some of these saints are well known and others are hidden from the public. In a few cases it seemed like the individuals knew their destiny in Christ Jesus, but for the most, they found their life as they lived it with the Lord. It was this adventure and life fulfillment, mixed together, that was the most common path.

I have recently talked with people in the greater Peoria area about their life. We shared stories about the road we hoped for and the rode we are on. We expressed our opinions on the radical extreme passion of youth and the loving tenacity of faithfulness. In all, we started to see in others both the longing of their heart to be all God desired of them, and the reality that they mostly thought of themselves as “not making the mark”. It is a hard life when the one you love the most is also the one whom you feel is most displeased with you.

I cannot speak to many people, but let me share with those of you who are mostly loving and kind, daily live with some unfulfilled aspect of your life and mostly wondering, “God what am I doing”?

In a land far away and in a time forgotten, the God of heaven had a plan to transform all who sought after Him. In this plan of divine wisdom and grace, everyone mattered and success was determined more in terms of decade than days. People were called upon to spend their whole lives living out the wisdom and instruction of God. No world changing events were required. No simplicity of devotion, to small. It was enough, maybe even more than enough, that you touch your family and a dozen others with full passion and forgiveness for the Master.

So take a moment and add to your life a historical reflection. Do you love God and desire to love Him more, through obedience to His will? Do you forgive your family and openly love them as best you can, not pretending to be better than you are and not pretending to be worse? Do you have friendships over the course of your life in which you have played a part in another person’s love and obedience to God? Can you name them? Can you name 12 people whom you have helped in life?

Today you live in a world where followers of Jesus Christ have mostly told others how to live when we were to show them how to live. That showing mostly involved the simple wonders of everyday life. Faithfulness at work, love toward enemies and abusers, humility in the face of praise, devotion to God in the pressure to love this world; these are the truths of great saints.

The most radical people for Christ I have ever met never told anyone they were radical for Christ. But I watched as they loved those we neglect, give when they had no wealth, share when they longed to horde to themselves and share the story of God when it cost them jobs, friendships and family. Our Theology says we are to be like Jesus, but our desires are to have a bigger ministry, reputation and impact than He did. Allow your desire to be like God to lead you to a simple and powerful life.

Loving the living word

2010-11-06T07:50:00.001-06:00

Princes persecute me without cause, But my heart stands in awe of Your words. I rejoice at Your word, As one who finds great spoil. I hate and despise falsehood, But I love Your law. Seven times a day I praise You, Because of Your righteous ordinances. Those who love Your law have great peace, And nothing causes them to stumble. I hope for Your salvation, O LORD, And do Your commandments. My soul keeps Your testimonies, And I love them exceedingly. I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies, For all my ways are before You.
(Psalms 119:161-168)

I do love the Bible, but wonder why at times it stands between me and Jesus. This great book of revelation and divine inspiration often is the closest I get to abiding in Christ Jesus. I want to be in fellowship with God and not just His written word.
In reading this passage I saw that I do not love Jesus as much as this author loved the law of God. It seems hard for me to see how anyone can love the law. I still see obedience more as a requirement than a blessing to my life. By this I mean obedience to things I do not what to do. Of course I love to do the things I love to do, but that is more selfishness than loving obedience in my life at this time.
That phrase “my soul keeps your testimonies” is a challenge too. I live in a time when most people think they cannot live a holy life let alone believe God can be testified in their thought life, emotions and will. How did this Old Testament Guy get so converted, so transformed? Do we need a little more legalism to smack us around some?
I think the answer of inner and outward transformation is all about living in a culture. The more we live in the culture of heaven, the more we live in the way our Father lives, the more we are transformed. In the Old Testament there was a city, a region and a nation that sought to live out the culture of heaven. Sure it failed often, yet is did exist. The world we live in has little authentic Christian culture. The best we have seems to be a culture of a church or community. These are great as far as they go, but they tend not to go into the world where we go the most.
I need friends, family and others to live the life Christ desire of me. I cannot do it alone. Sure I am responsible to live for God no matter what, but I forfeit the glory of God in my life to the degree that I walk out my life outside of His culture, His family. We stand in a world full of evil and darkness, yet we daily choose to partake of the tree of life. We are those who are living in this age of evil and yet turn our hearts to the good one, to the only good one.
If you want to build a transformed life, you need to build others and not just yourself. Sure I do think you can make it on your own, but why would you even try! Maybe there is a reason that the second command is to love your neighbor as yourself.

If I only lived better for God, my life would not have so many problems!

2010-10-21T08:30:00.000-06:00

Have you ever though that way? Why? Why would it be in our mindset to connect living a Godly life and having an easy life? Do we assume or desire that Godliness is next to easiness?

I ask this and write this in a time of personal great pain. Right now it appears that much of the life I wanted, a life of activity and outdoors, of freedom of movement and the ability to build and create is over. Depression desire to rule my life and make me live as though God has abandoned me, has love wicked and evil people more than me. It is a time in my life when selfishness is at its most crafty ploy and self-love empowered by pain.

God desires for me, and everyone in the world, to live the best life possible.
God made us free, so that each one of us can choose to hurt ourselves, others and our offspring.

God gave us power and authority to sow and reap, to invest and harvest what was invested.

God empowers us to break the chains of sin and evil and release in the individual and the culture, new hope and new beginnings.

Today, like millions of people around the world, I am looking for the coming of the Christ. I need His activity in my life and the testimony of Him that I have, creates a tension of hope and reality that brings conflict on the deepest internal levels. I know that He heals, but will He heal me. I know that I have a part to play in His plan, but am I up to it. Will I fail on my part?

As we search the Bible and History we find a mixed bag of results. Great people like Moses, Paul, Job and Jeremiah lived for God and had rough lives. Others like Daniel and Ester lived in evil cultures and were blessed by the Lord. Then in Hebrews 11 we see the testimony of great saints of faith, some appear to have an easy life, others suffer and still others choose suffering as a better way. And there lies the key.

Those who suffer so that others have a better way, so that others have an opportunity to receive the promise, choose a path that so conflicts with the world system that it hurts. From the child who is murdered for Christ Jesus to the business man who loses He business because he would not deceive, from the women divorced because she would not join in immorality to the teen beaten because they would not join a gang, all these can be those who chose to identify with Christ at the cost of being beaten by the world.

But still the question remains, why would you choose that? Why would you wound your family so that other families could possibly be healed? Why would you give your life up to that level?

Writing somewhere around the 1900 a missionary, now seasoned by years of service, realized that the very people he went to help, did not want his help. These people did not want to receive the light and knowledge of God, they loved their ways and darkness more than the light. Having been driven by the need of this people group this man now questioned why God sent him. He struggled through the issue of being sent because of their need, for in themselves they had no need for God, they did not want Him. But it was God who had the need. It was for God, for the will of the Father that this man was sent. It was not a human need that compelled, but the heart God of the Father Himself. So all the sacrifice, all the cost, all the suffering, all the rejection; was not for the people, it was for the Father.

Don’t waste your suffering. Allow the ancient words of “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” to speak to you. Even if your lot in life is a life of fighting against mental illness, poverty, sexual abuse, hatred or sickness; do so not for humanity but for God. Let nothing separate you from Him. Do not be overly burdened by apparent success in the world, yet look daily for the affirmation of heaven. In your weakness reveal divine strength. In your poverty, demonstrate the riches of the resources of heaven. This involves a mental attitude, but transcends it. You do not want just the desire or thoughts, but the expressions and impressions.

Souls are being ready for harvest, so too are the saints. People of God are maturing and coming to the place of living fully for God. This growth and maturity involves people of God living in the world, but now of it. It involves being “light” and “salt” while releasing kingdom power and authority, even in their suffering.

Honoring Others

2010-10-07T09:48:00.002-06:00

As we prepare for the trip to MI we are asking others to join us in intercession and giving even if they cannot go. I know there are literally thousands of Godly investments you can make. All these investments of time, money and prayer do make a difference. We are working together to build His kingdom and advance His will on the earth.
If you are directed please give and pray. It is great to feel Gods impressions. It is better (although much harder) to do them.
Prayer Points from Romans 12
• Believers in the area will worship God through living daily life well (12:1)
• Renewal of minds so that God’s will is know and done. (12:2)
• For many members of Christ body to come together and express Him. (12:3-5)
• For Faith, faith to work, pray, give, teach, feed, help and love (12:6-8)
• For all the “line items” in verses 9-20 resulting in the overcoming of evil with good.
Doing good in a Godly way is a weapon that overcomes evil! We are not victims of evil, if anything we are victims of the lack of good being lived out in our world. Living for ourselves has not produced in us or around us Godliness. Let’s try to live for Christ and others and see what the fruit of that looks like.

The only place to hide is in Christ Jesus, but He is in the world so you find yourself hiding in Christ in the world.

Ode (Old) to Love

2010-09-21T11:24:00.002-06:00

Here is a verse for Shirley Drury, my best friend these many years.

Old to be loved
Just as desired
A women of nobility
Not by birth, but adoption
5 am I, in decades count
Still a child in heart and love
Steadfast these many years in faithfulness
Opposing all the world’s selfishness
By divine grace strength was given
To match wounds with resolve
Love in purity and devotion
Expressed to others
Unlimited
My hand trembles more
My heart less
Some burdens cast off
Others endured
Am I the women I ought to be
Mercy and grace applied
I am
Most wonderfully loved

Doing the Right Thing

2010-09-16T08:01:00.003-06:00

God desires that we do the right thing. But what is the right thing. How can the human mind be so wise as to know and consider all the external and internal events? How can we know that an action, an expression is what should be done at any given moment?
In His wisdom God made man with the ability to have His Spirit indwell us. We are not alone and we are made to live in fellowship with God. Just as the Father walked with Adam and Eve in the garden, so now He desires to walk and have fellowship with us in our inner man.
The fruit of self-control that comes from the Spirit of God is a growing factor in our life that is the direct result of fellowship with God. This must be actual fellowship and not an elaborate trusting in our self made religion. Deep within us, at the level of our heart and soul we enter into communion with God and allow Him to speak direction, justice and instruction to our lives. And that is what He does naturally as He speaks. He awakes our whole being to His will.
While it is so old, it is also so foundational to the Christian walk, this truth “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done”. The believer who walks in fellowship with God is using the scripture to lead them into a deep personal fellowship with God. We are not just seeking to read and understand the scriptures to make for ourselves a religious order we can live out. We are allowing the truth of scripture to direct our steps to the Father, who in turn indwells us. The difference is as different as in making a meal and eating a meal. One is full of order and discipline, but no life. The other is full of life. We are called to partake, to eat of the Bread of Heaven.
So while right knowledge, good manners, humility and patience are working in and through my character; they are not enough. A believer is more than a good person, they are not even a very good person. What we are is persons filled with the Spirit of God. This Spirit governs our actions and teaches us what right things we should do. We are – followers. Even when we are bad followers, we still are of Christ, if we agree in our heart, ‘not my will but Thin be done”.

CALLED TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE

2010-08-16T08:25:00.002-06:00

Then Moses said, "What if they will not believe me or listen to what I say? For they may say, 'The LORD has not appeared to you.'" The LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?" And he said, "A staff." Then He said, "Throw it on the ground." So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it. But the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand and grasp it by its tail"--so he stretched out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand-- "that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you." The LORD furthermore said to him, "Now put your hand into your bosom." So he put his hand into his bosom, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. Then He said, "Put your hand into your bosom again." So he put his hand into his bosom again, and when he took it out of his bosom, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. "If they will not believe you or heed the witness of the first sign, they may believe the witness of the last sign. "But if they will not believe even these two signs or heed what you say, then you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water which you take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground." Then Moses said to the LORD, "Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue." The LORD said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? "Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say." But he said, "Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever You will." Then the anger of the LORD burned against Moses, and He said, "Is there not your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he speaks fluently. And moreover, behold, he is coming out to meet you; when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. "You are to speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I, even I, will be with your mouth and his mouth, and I will teach you what you are to do. "Moreover, he shall speak for you to the people; and he will be as a mouth for you and you will be as God to him. "You shall take in your hand this staff, with which you shall perform the signs."
(Exodus 4:1-17)

Moses had faith or grew in belief because He had an encounter with God that was life changing. Do we want to take the time for a life changing encounter with God or do we want to go out and make a difference in the world? Fulfilling our purpose and making a Godly impact in the world is a good thing. It just cannot be done in the flesh, by human genius or by sheer determination. We must “work while it is day” but often the work we are seeking to accomplish is our agenda and not the Lord’s. We are trying to perform the impossible with our skills and ability. We need God’s supernatural help or it is impossible for us to do what He is calling us to do.

Does this mean that we all should wait until something on the same scale as Moses takes place? No – we should wait until our call is matured into a commissioning or sending. Like Moses the world is full of people who feel a call in their heart and then they try to fulfill that calling. Like Moses this tends to result in our “killing people”. Moses felt the call to be a deliverer and deal with the injustice of his people. Yet Moses was not ready to do the impossible – but that day would come. Many passionate believers have been released into the public work of the ministry based on passion and not maturity, need and not inner conformity to Christ. The result is usually wounding and insecurity covered by the projections of “I am called by God”, “I am working hard, very hard” and “things would go better for me except for _______________”. Maturity is taking all the bad things on yourself and making life better for others. Moses became like this, like the Christ who was to come.

A prayer room can be a real blessing in your life as it provides a place to come and seek the Lord. Every believer should have a place of prayer so that they commune with God and in relationship pray.

A pitfall of the prayer room is when it becomes a hiding place and not a resting place. If people come to the prayer room to avoid obeying the Lord, then the very thing meant to be a blessing is a cure to them. This is not just a pitfall of the prayer room but of all the “places” we have in Christ. The worker who avoids prayer by work and the prayer who avoids work by prayer are both missing the will of God for their lives. In the same way the leader who uses the call of leadership to neglect humble service to others and the one who hides in acts of humble service to avoid the pressure and burden of leadership are again missing the will of God. All this is illustrated here in this passage about Moses.

Come to the place of prayer to enter into a relationship with God that compels you to live the life He has for you. Come to Christ Jesus to know and do His will. Come to be reassured, revived and renewed in your mind, heart and soul. Come to the Lord as you eat, walk, work and go through life’s daily grind.

So how often should a person enter the place of prayer? Do we receive from the Lord a onetime encounter and then use that single encounter as the source of our encouragement for the rest of our lives? Yes –and no!

We should do a much better job than we do or remembering all the words the Lord has spoken to us, both through His Scripture and through promptings. Most of us tend to need a new word from the Lord because the last word was not hidden in our heart. We tend to love the encouragement of a fresh word more than the obedience that word was to produce. It is a desire for a “new seed” to be planted rather than for the “old seed” to grow into maturity. But this desire is normal. Tending a garden is hard work with daily duties.

While we tend to make lists and have written goals and plans for things we seek to accomplish, turning your relationship with God into a list of “to do’s “ is not a good idea. While your mate may enjoy the diligence of your actions of love from a “to do” list, at some time they want a personal relationship more than a “this is what I do for you” list. God is the same way. Don’t try to replace a relationship with a plan. Instead let the plan keep flowing from the relationship.

The fruit of this relation to action living is ever increasing faith. Since without faith it is impossible to please God, having faith is a nice thing. You will increase your truth, believing, faith; as you live a life out of common union with God. You will see supernatural things happen in your life as a result of God intervention.

Just recently I planned a “wilderness retreat”. I felt this was in God’s heart to offer this event to people. At that time we had no money in any of our accounts. I wrote a 30 page manual and then rewrote it into a 43 page booklet. In other words I invested time into this time, yet I wondered how in the world where we going to pay for food, gas and camping. My mortgage was due and there was no money. If money came in should I take that for the event or provide for my family. I set the price for the event as low as possible so that people could freely come. Now I was dealing with the issue of even affording the printing of the booklet I labored to write. My wife criticized me for not increasing the price enough to cover some of the unseen cost. These cost were coming out of the family money, which was almost zero at the time. They she would feel compelled to help, give or go and cause an even greater demand for resources that were not there.

Now during this time prior to the event some situations arose that required common daily faith. We had about a quarter tank of gas in each vehicle. Then we found ourselves in a situation where people needed rides, helping others out required extra trips, running errands for the event and family needs seemed to expand. Even as we responded to these needs God sent someone to give us gas. Each day there was enough. Over and over again God gave us the very thing we needed for that day. It was never so much that we could bank it, but God was again showing us that He is faithful and that we could bank on Him.

Over and over again in planning for this time and during this time God prompted us to do something and when we did, things worked out. Promptings to buy extra food, bring a certain camping item, leave behind a normally essential item all fell into place for a blessing in the daily flow of life.

As we gave God kept giving to us. Money came in from friends. People who know us but have never sent us money gave us gifts, others who do support us did so again. It is a mini example of God confirming His will for our lives, not with a rod and leprosy, but with gas, food and fun (if you call the wilderness adventure fun).
And so here I am again, starting a new week. Just like you I desire that my life this week makes a difference. Last week and those Godly interventions are gone. They increased my faith so that I can trust and serve Him this week. I grew in walking by faith and thus in pleasing the Lord. Just like you, I take my situation, my life and connect it to the Father. We together cry out for His supply and direction so that our lives perfectly reflect His will. Let’s take all that the Lord has done for us, hold it in our hands and never doubt. Desiring to grow in wisdom and revelation, we grow in obedience and love. God has called us to live the impossible, so we might as well get on with it.

Bread of heaven

2010-08-05T13:03:00.002-06:00

In this life daily bread plays a great role. At the temptation of Jesus, it was one thing that the Christ could do which would bring a great many followers to Him. These followers He could have; simply by feeding them what they need each day. Yet this very thing was a temptation to be defeated.

Come to me and I will give you life.

God gave gifts, just like He gave His son, to the people of the earth. What have we done with the making of bead of heaven? Have we equipped, encouraged and discipled the people into freedom? Have we become the Masters of this world by being the source of bread, the bread of heaven? Who among us is free to eat at the Lord ’s Table without the permission and approval of the ruling spirits?

Rejection, will all it’s fears and realities is the cost we must pay to set others free. Rejection of our teaching, our understanding, our revelation, and our gifts are but the first fruits of whole hearted devotion. Is this not the very way of the Great Master? Are we not called to be made in His image, to follow His example in all we do? Should we who are His fellow servants of the bread of heaven use what was freely given to us as a tool for self-rule and control?

The simple act of keeping people coming to us for bread is the manifestation of failing to defeat Satan in the wilderness. This we should have done long before entering the ministry. But if not then, why not now! We too must not think this temptation is only for leaders in high places. To all who serve the Lord, from the small group leader to the mega-church director, the testing comes. Yet the foundation for gathering together is now the bread of life. We motivate people to come based on our ability to teach them, feed them, shepherd them, oversee them. And what does their Master in heaven do?

What I have shared above is a rewording of what was written in the early 1800. I will be glad to share the resources with you. But you’re going to need to feed yourself!

Take your place or be given one

2010-07-22T07:56:00.002-06:00

Deuteronomy 31:14 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, the time for you to die is near; call Joshua, and present yourselves at the tent of meeting, that I may commission him." So Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves at the tent of meeting.

If you feel the Lord calling you to a job or place of service you might feel tempted to go and prepare yourself. That would be good. But what if you started down a part of seeking the way to “get ahead”? In almost every field you can find help with the process of getting ahead, but ahead of what?
What you usually want to get ahead of is others. I was told over and over again in training for ministry that “unless you’re the lead dog, the scene never changes”. This became to me a graphic image of how far we have diverted from being a “body” and how much ministry is not a race for the lead. But you can also go into a time of redneck contemplation and consider the truthfulness of this statement. Here are some thoughts to consider.
• Is there only someone ahead of me isn’t there someone beside me?
• Is life only a race, what about the scenery, the views of daily life?
• Even if you are the last dog, is life all pulling? What about all the other things we do beside work?
• Do people born in North Korea, India and other places spend their life trying to figure out how to get to America so things can be easier, less confining and with less social restraints?
• Why would we bring one man’s motto into the realm of God? Why not learn from God what life should be like?

In the above passage Joshua is like David, years later. They both were chosen and called before the time for them to take their place. The time or ceremony of setting in place can be called a commissioning. It was the Lord’s good please for them to “be the guy” while living under the guy there were going to replace. Joshua was about to become the leader of the nation of Israel. He was about to be given the Law to live out and the Promise Land to conquer. Generations would be effected by his life.

Do you want to do something great with your life? Do you want to be important, to make an impact? Do you feel like you are in computation with others? Do you feel like other people are the ones that can make or break your life? If you are living under and in the world system, then that is the way it is. But in the Kingdom of God, the rules are different. So different that the world cannot understand how the last dog in the pack, the one overlooked and despised, the one serving and helping all the others – is the lead dog.

Matthew 20:26-28
"It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you (lead dog) shall be your servant (involuntary helpers or all others), and whoever wishes to be first(the best) among you shall be your slave(involuntary servant); just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

Let Us make man in Our image

2010-07-10T05:39:00.002-06:00

Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." (27) God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Genesis 1:26-27

It was agreed in heaven that we would be created in the image and likeness of God. It was heavens plan that we would be a people of God, men and women of God. Yet living our lives on the earth with this identity is one of the hardest things we do. There is barely a moment when we are not being tried to leave behind our identity and be conformed to the identity of this world.

God is content within Himself. One way we live out our identity in God is this contentment too. It is enough to be like Him and all the things we do, all the striving to be something, is the influence of the world seeking to remake us into another image. Even the most devout believer is hourly tempted to add to their identity the ways of the world. If you are in business, you face the pressure to add to your calling the acceptance and ways of the world. You will be pressured to conform to what the world thinks a business person ought to be and to deny the simple devotion of first being a believer and having all things follow that. So too the Mom will not be left alone to be a loving Mother but pressured to live up to the worlds standard of mothering. She will be tempted to go beyond devotion to Christ and perform in such a way that the never satisfied world will be happy with her.

So what specifically may the world be seeking to remove us from? What is the spirit of this age and the rulers of this world seeking to break off of our lives? One thing is fellowship and communion with God. God said, “Let us”. In His nature God is communion and fellowship. Humanity was created like no other creature, with heightened capacity to have fellowship and communion. We not only gather in herds (cities and towns) but we build family units of love, protection, devotion, support and training.

The anti-Christ spirit wants you to build your life on the identity of being alone. It desires that you feel you must be independent, self- sufficient and thus, disconnected from the Creator. God on the other hand, desires that you and I live in the reality He made for us, the reality of unbroken fellowship. At any moment in time we have access to God. God is always with us. We are made to live our entire lives in fellowship, community and felt companionship. Even when God hides himself from us, it is for deeper and more intimate communion.

Have you ever been tempted to quit the faith because you did not feel like God is real, you wondered if He was there? Maybe you judged what God was doing by a lack of His felt presence. Somewhere deep within us we are aware of this reality of “if God is real we should feel Him, encounter Him”. This is one of the battle grounds. The whole fallen world is against you. The whole system of fallen humanity desires that you do not live in community with God.

To take a step toward fellowship with God turn away from the images of this world. Turn away from striving to earn or receive status and value from the people of this world. Embrace the realty of your createdness, the reality that you were made for fellowship with God. You can live each moment of your life in communion with Him. Even when you mind fails to recognize it, your spirit will abide in union. It is not good for you to be alone. The more you silence the voices of this world which seek to make you into their image, the more you will be able to hear His voice resounding in your life. It is not easy, but few eternal things are.

One thing and more.

2010-06-29T06:25:00.002-06:00

If joy was easy it would be less joyful.
My best friend is unfriendly in his devotion to me.
Revelation is better held than observed
When you need to shout – whisper
Freedom results in a life of service to others while bondage has only self.

It seems like mankind keeps trying to make God into a very small image, one that is easy to grasp. This may come from our desire to move Him where we will and control Him. I believe the reality of God is that most of His beauty is hidden in extremes. It is like God takes two extremes and offers them to us as a snap shot of who He is. He does this, not like a coin having two sides, but as two very different things being the same thing. It is like the God of three who is one.
Could it be that God loves that? Does He love the busy worshipper, the simple proclaiming of profound truths, the humility of greatness and the devotion of the distracted lover? Man would tend to say, “let me be glorified by my achievement”, but God says, “enjoy living”. One is the pursuit of an idea so that we can arrive, the other is daily enjoying the gift of life we have been given. While we may think that the focused pursuit will have the best results, we miss that reality that we are made for relationships.

To practice the presence of the Lord is to surrender your focus, to a partnership with God. And then, since you are walking with God, others will be freely entering and exiting your daily life because he invited them in. So now the life of focus is filled with God invited distractions. Your ability to stay on trask and achieve is interrupted by divine desire to have your life full, but full of what? Living!
There are numerous Christians seeking to grow into maturity in Christ Jesus by cutting off the things of life so that they can focus on God and mature. This may be good for a season but it only leads to immaturity. We are called to be light in the dark. We need to be more humble and seek not to protect our self and our ideas as much as live out fully the life God has called us to, a life of living in the extremes with Him.

Over the past few years I have heard messages about the “one thing”. I have listed below some of the text from those messages. Please note that the “one thing” was different for each person. This is God’s way of extremism. He could have easily of given us an outline of devotion. But instead He gave us Himself in a relationship that is expressive, simple, complex …. We are called to know the unknowable. What could be more exciting than that? Oh, by the way. Some of us will have one “one thing” and others of us a few more.

(Psalms 27:4) One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD And to meditate in His temple.

(Ecclesiastes 7:18) It is good that you grasp one thing and also not let go of the other; for the one who fears God comes forth with both of them.

(Mark 10:21, Luke 18:22) Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, "One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."

(Luke 10:42) but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."

(Philippians 3:13) Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,

Loving God and Others

2010-06-21T08:35:00.002-06:00

Relationships matter. God calls us to relationships with Him and one another. Yet we are daily tempted to live “on our own” and interact with others according to what we need or desire. This “me” focused pressure manifest in a person’s prayer life when they mainly pray to get answered prayers. Praying to get answers to prayers is not bad, it just isn’t as fulfilling as having a relationship with God that transcends personal needs. God is the source and center for all we need, but according to the teachings of Jesus, “Jesus is not all we need”. We need one another too.

So how do we relate in the prayer room? Even if we are not talking to one another or praying for each other, is there a building up of one another in relationships?
• Just as you go to a movie with friends and mostly do not interact with each other, so too being in the prayer room increases our relationships one to another. Doing it together matters. This is true in hunting, fishing, sporting events, movies and numerous activities we do together but do not focus on one another.
• If you are called to a life of prayer or just called to give an hour or two a week to intercession, having a place brings accountability and wars against isolation. Sure you can pray alone at home. But you can also be encouraged by others seeking the Lord. It’s like “birds of a feather flocking together”.
• We are physical beings and we are spiritual beings. Why our bodies may not be connecting in the prayer room, our spirits can be entering into fellowship and unity. It is a spirit of unity that we seek for our city and region, yet we can be distracted from seeing this spiritual endeavor as we look for physical manifestations. These two, the physical and spiritual, are not in competition but complementary.
• We are instructed to know people “not after the flesh”. In our world of seeing, we can be deceived that appearance is everything. Being with others in a mainly spiritual atmosphere helps us to know one another in an entirely different way.

Every family that has family devotions knows that while they seek God together, God can strengthen personal relationships. Even when the focus is not on the family, the family can be bound together in love and devotion for one another.

In my isolation
You did not touch me
Yet your presence
Healed by soul
Love unbounded
Reached out to me
Speaking brother
“You are not alone"

False teachers, prophets, apostles….false everything

2010-06-17T09:08:00.002-06:00

In the wisdom of God, He allows both the wheat and the tares to grow together until it is time to bunch up the tares. These tares are not false teachers or prophets, they represent “false everything”. They represent all the stuff that is sown into God’s field so that the real is chocked out or at least diminished in growth. So you may be thinking in the natural and wonder, why doesn’t God believe in weeding His garden? God does gather the weeds, but only after they have served His purpose for His people.

Matthew 24:5
"For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many.

Just as we pray “in the name of Jesus”, people are going to come in that same spirit, “in the name of Jesus” and tell us that Jesus is the Christ. That is good, that is as it should be. Yet even some of these are going to mislead many. Are these false prophets, shepherds or teachers? Probable not.
In this passage in Matthew Jesus gets to false prophets in verse 11, but this section is a warning of all the stuff in life (what is to come) that can get us off track. Good people with bad direction, wars, international conflict, famine and earthquakes are all going to be stuff you need to go through and stay on course. God is giving us this “heads up” so we are in the know and not focused on this stuff, but Him.
A false prophet, teacher or Christian is not an immature one. A false is one who tries to take the place of the real. When someone who is not called to be a worship leader tries to be one, that would be a false worship leader. The same goes for pastor or teacher. When we go beyond the will of God for our lives, even if we think it is best for us (especially if we think it is best for us) we enter into a self-centered or man-pleasing motivation and choose ourselves over God. That can, for a time, be immaturity. But if we do not grow up we can mature into rebellious self living as we live our lives in the church. Do you know of any people who have loved God for decades and yet are still in bondage to themselves? Are they false Christians or broken Christians? God does know but we may not.
Presently in America I think we face the biggest challenge of being mislead through our longing for an easy life. We have strong desires to be a blessed people and our desire to be a blessing to others is fading. We are presently challenged to give according to our desires rather than the will of God. Sacrifice can mean, “Sharing the extra I have left over” and dedication can become “what I do after all my personal and family needs are met”.
God instructs us to discern according to fruit – not gifts. But we might be in some muddy waters if our vision of fruit is “man’s idea” and not God’s. (Isn’t there anything we can do on our own?) I encourage everyone to look carefully at and for the fruitfulness of others, just as soon as you get that thing out of your vision that is irritating you. When you can look on others with love and not fear or anger, you can see well.

Best Ways to Control

2010-06-15T12:58:00.002-06:00

Here is my meditation on the best ways to control others
1. Pretend not to hear what they are saying. You can give this technique even more power by saying some mocking word in reply – like “excuse me”.

2. Quickly get mad about most anything you don’t like. It won’t take long and people just won’t trouble you with stuff you don’t like. All good for you.

3. If you are not all that skillful yet at #2, you can follow up by going to others who know the two of you and say “I don’t know what is wrong with _______________”. You can also say “I just don’t know what they were thinking” as long as you really mean “I don’t know what is wrong with”.

4. Moan or groan when you are talking to people and they say things you disagree with. Turing you head is disgust or rolling you eyes helps people with hearing problems “get it” faster.

5. If you are in a discussion you can say about anything as long as you start with “I agree, but I think if we were wise…” Don’t say this to fast. Take a long pause after “agree” and say the word “wise” and thoughtfully as possible.

6. Don’t say “we have never done that before”, that just keys in those who know how to control the controlling person. You want to ask, “has that worked in the past” and since they never did it in the past it has not worked, so if it didn’t work in the past, why try it now.

7. Don’t be in a hurry to try and stop things you want to control, just slow them down and the busyness of life will take over. Instead of going forward suggest “slowing down for a little more insight”. Taking time to get everyone on board is a great way to control too. When was the last time everyone was on board (don’t mention that)?

8. If you find that you want to control people who are going to spend money in an area or way that you don’t want – just remind them that they promised to do ______________________ before they made any others investments. If you have been with this group long you should have several things they were suppose to do but you got them to not do them because that is not what you wanted them to do. Make sure you remember the things they were to do but failed to do, you can always use these later.

9. Threaten to quit. Don’t threaten to quit yourself, but rather say someone else will quit if this goes ahead. This other person should be someone who doesn’t like the direction and someone who is honest. Even if they are willing to yield you can gain control by threatening the group with this other persons leaving, someone who they probably like more than you.

10. If all else fails and you think your efforts to control are lost, go all out in the opposite direction. Go to the store and ask for those “cheerleader” vitamins and promote, encourage and sell others on this new direction. Hopefully others are so sick of you by now that they will go completely in the opposite direction just to avoid agreeing with you.

A Great Harvest

2010-06-15T12:26:00.001-06:00

If a great harvest is coming to Peoria and Central IL, we presently need to have many more troubles!
As I have prayer for a million souls from Central IL, I realize that if God answers that prayer, we will need every church in the region to take part in their discipleship and fellowship. And if the present trend continues some will go one place for worship, another for fellowship, a third for recreation and activities and possibly another for prayer. The church in Central IL could end up sharing people. It could be like one church with numerous ministries, personalities and emphasis. But have I been trained enough by God to let this happen?
Do I have enough humility and enough love to allow others to be vital in the work of the Kingdom? Do I feel a desire to correct the leadership of others? Do I want to avoid certain leaders who are Godly people, but just not enough like me to be trusted?
If we had more troubles then we presently do we could learn (even faster) how to act, and not react to those who are different than we are. We could learn how to suffer with Christ and in Christ and not be wounded or feel rejected when God moves through someone other than us. We could learn how to relate and talk with one another so that problems are solved and not just overlooked. Wow! If we had more troubles we would be gaining authority in the Spirit to minister to others, we would forgo our blessing to be a blessing to others.
So in my mystical redneck way – God bring on the darkness that I may learn that light invades the dark. Help me Father to be more faithful (full of faith) than secure, more redemptive than comfortable and more joyful in tribulation. Now what is it that tribulation does again? Rom. 5:3

Why would God desire to build a house of prayer when every church should be a house of prayer?

2010-06-14T12:09:00.003-06:00

Insights and observations from a Redneck Mystic

In our modern view of the world we tend to think more of the Church in terms of organizations and buildings. It is quite natural for us to drive around town and judge a church according to a building, grounds or even location in the city. Based on physical observations we make spiritual assessments. As you journey across Peoria you may be amazed by the 250 plus churches that already exist and wonder why do we need one more?
But if you looked at the Church as the body of Christ and wondered what God was doing with us, we might come to some different types of conclusions, if not revelation. All across our area the people of God are joining together for evangelism, food pantries, worship celebrations and teaching conferences. Numerous church bodies have community special events, special times of united focused intercession, and neighborhood ministries of mercy or discipleship. Even among the numerous local churches, God is collecting and connecting people together beyond their local expression and mission.
Turing to the House of Prayer question, we need to ask if God is calling people in this region to work together in a House of Prayer. Sure each body or church should have a healthy and expanding life of prayer. But can any one organization be and do all that God is doing in the city or region? Was the local church supposed to be a self-sufficient organization or was each organization to be a vital part of God in the city?

Well here is by expanded bullet list of what I think God is doing.
• God is establishing specialized prayer centers so that people can be discipled at a quicker pace. Whenever we specialize in an area in the body or church it is to assist others more rapidly. This has happened in the past with the roles of teaching, worship, children’s ministry, youth ministry. When God calls people to give their lives to an area it is not just for a “personal calling” but for a building up of the body.
• Unity, in all the walks of life, is a manifestation of the regional body seeking the Lord together. The people who gather together for intercession need a place to work through their differing views and expressions. Personal desires need to be lovingly separated from the will of God. The reality of seeking the Lord together is verified by our actual love toward one another in everyday life. Much of what happens in a regional house of prayer is the Cross being applied to a person’s life who is actively seeking God.
• God can use a local community House of Prayer or Prayer Room to validate prayer in a region. Just as church buildings, Christian recreation centers, hospitals, food pantries and shelter all witness to the city that the people of God care, so too can a public place of prayer proclaim God’s heart for the region to be prayed for and for the city to know it. Just as the 40 days of Prayer witnessed to our city that calling on God is a viable solution. So too an ongoing house a prayer can be a witness and solution for those with sickness, disease, unemployment and all the pains of life. Just as a food pantry can help minister to the region, so can the community prayer room.
• A house of prayer in the city also serves to remind us that we are made up of different parts. This is not a pride in the part we are but humility that we are only a part of what God is doing. We all should love and be devoted to our part as well as prefer and honor the other parts as better than ourselves. I believe that out of the context of a corporate prayer room a people of God will emerge that love others as much as they love themselves. I mean that the people of prayer will pray for, cover, bless and intercede for those in the market place, in the arts and media, in teaching and education, in government and church leadership just as intimately and passionately as they pray for themselves. This intercession will be for saved and unsaved, our nation and the enemies of our nation; love will abound as real intimacy and unity develop in the place of prayer.
• I also believe God is being tricky, or wise. A part of the regional house of prayer is offering to a community an alternative on how to spend our time. Sports, recreation, entertainment all have a community that supports those often “individual” efforts. A person of prayer or praying has often been an isolated endeavor. Even if you go to a prayer room and pray in private, doing that in the midst of others is encouraging. Isolation and loneliness can be confronted by community.
• My final point here is this. The house or dwelling of the Lord that God desires to be called a house of prayer for all people, is people. We, the people of God are His dwelling place. Deeper than all the organizational and institutional efforts, our Father is seeking a resting place within each of us that results in a transformed life living out His ways on the earth. Even if we have all the stuff we want, the right building, sound system, musical equipment, media links…all that stuff is only as effective as the people who serve in the place of prayer. We, the people of God, must become desirous of an identity that includes prayer. This identity is not at the expense of any of God’s callings, but rather to the blessing of them all. This identity is not so that we are esteemed by the world, but so that the whole world is esteemed through us.

Endurance

2010-06-12T12:41:00.003-06:00

It is hard to finish hard matters. Sports have a season. Life however has no off season and being hated or mistreated can last a life time. God, a loving Father, calls us to prepare our hearts to deal with a life time of hate. I got this from considering the Matt. 10:22 passage. Why did Jesus give such a hard word to such good followers?

Matthew 10:22
Everyone will hate you because of me. But if you remain faithful until the end, you will be saved.

“Everyone”, really everyone! Why not just be hated by a few messed up people. Why prepare our hearts for total rejection? But if I consider the original hearers of this message, I can understand better. These guys (people) in the text are betraying their ancient religion, they are deserting their family traditions, and through their actions they are boasting that Jesus is the right way. These actions imply that the old way is not longer right, somebody is wrong. So they broke with culture, business, family and faith. They were hated men.

Have you ever given in, compromised on some issue that God has called you to stand for? Have you ever given in on a purchase, or yielded to a choice that you knew was wrong? Yet enduring in “easy stuff”, stuff that should be easy to do because in the big picture it is not all that important, is still hard. Sure there are seasons of wisdom from God where we yield in love and restoration. Sure there are many times when we don’t make an issue of everything. But do we still have an enduring faith? Are we willing to be hated?

The hatred of our time is very crafty. It belittles in small crowds, mocks through “innocent humor”, shames through self-promotion and worships success. Hatred in our day neglects the needs of others, avoids the awkward and fails to listen to the broken and wounded. Hatred in our time does not want to totally cast you out, but rather keep us just close enough to keep hurting you. Even if, by the world’s standards you are a great person, criticism, judgments and ridicule will be ever present in your life. Gird yourself up.

There are two places (maybe three) where words are said that help us endure long. The most important place where words of endurance are spoken is in the garden of our inner man. In this place the Lord meets with us and prepares our life for living. In the inner place, eternal words and thoughts begin to reach the heart and a person advances from contemplation to transformation. What happens in this secret place is foundational to what we do or say. Abiding with God is critical for our personal endurance.

Secondly there is the place of family – both biological and spiritual. Family is the secret place in our society and culture. It is a garden dwelling where truth and accountability knock on our heart of behavior and mindsets. True the family is often a battle ground or rejection and hatred, but God’s heart is to restore family, not avoid it. Building a good family, both spiritual and biological, is like building a garden dwelling that will have years of fruitfulness.

Prepare your life to deal with hatred and rejection. Not by building a fortress to hide away in, but a garden to delight in. One is a prison of protection, the other a public display of eternal beauty.

Following Jesus – Changing directions

2010-05-27T07:55:00.002-06:00

Following Jesus – Changing directions
The direction of our life can also be called our “order”. When we get up each day and know what we ought to do and how we ought to do that, we feel order and feel like we have direction. Yet in life, many times we are called by God to change the direction we are going. This change in direction is not a diversion from following Him. In fact it is one way He works in the world so that we continue to follow Him rather than just trust in our own understanding.

Yet changing the order of our daily life often brings with it insecurity and thus an aversion to change. We enjoy the confidence of doing what we have been doing. Even if we know we are not getting enough done or if we are avoiding some important aspects of our life, just having the internal comfort is often is enough to keep us from doing different things.

So now in my life is a call of God to go a different direction. This new order will require that I work through the security of where I am and the insecurity of what I will be going. This in itself is growth and an increasing in my faith in God. What makes this difficult is that I am on the same path but now walking on the path in a different way. As the “what I am doing” of daily life changes, it is tempting to evaluate by what I was called to do in the past. I must prepare myself to love those who will want to relate to the Rod of the past and try to get me “back there” so that they know how to relate to me and how I integrate into their life and calling. This pressure of relationship often brings depression as we who have not figured everything out ourselves feel pressure to explain it to others. We get confused.

The pressure, the relationships, the insecurity are all a part of God’s plan for us. We are growing, breaking into new things, advancing. Have you ever had someone tell you that they were going to the next level but nothing changed? That is because while we may be called to go to the next level actually going there is not so much about what is around us, but about our internal transformation.

The path of life is not an interstate; it is a narrow way across a great wilderness.

How to be loved by God

2010-05-11T07:55:00.002-06:00

John 14:21
"He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him."

While all people of the earth, in fact all things created, are loved by God; there is additional love for those who love God. This favoritism is about relationship and not about elitism. If you and I want to encounter the love of God to the fullest measure, we are required to have a relationship with God. God is not a power source that can be contacted through meditation alone. Even the most insightful meditation will leave a person lacking in real encounter if that person is not doing the will of the Father. You can see this most any Sunday as people who did not love God so much as to obey Him throughout the week seek to encounter Him in a meeting.
Human emotions may run high, they may even boast about the presence of the Lord being there, but little, if anything of the supernatural occurs. There tends to be a lot of talk (positive meditation) with little manifestation. This is not to bring an accusation against these churches; my desire is to speak in such a way as to not have us sell out. We should not call human emotion the presence of the Lord. If we want the fullness of the Lord then we must not be satisfied with lesser things, even if the journey takes years and not minutes.
The real point I wish to proclaim is that any person, in any place, who is living out the ways of God for them, should be encountering the love of God. The business person who is in the meeting and does not intentionally lie or mislead may be filling the guilt and wrath of the business, but they should also be feeling the love of God for them. The man who treats women with respect and not lust should not only feel the rejection of other lustful people, he should feel the love of God for him. We have too long trained ourselves in knowing the rejection of the world and we have failed to mature in knowing the love of God for us. We must come to know this love in the heat of the battle. It is a blessing to be inwardly cherished by God even in the midst of outward rejection and condemnation.
God, who desires people from all people groups, desire business people, musicians, actors, teachers and politicians to stand in this world and proclaim, “I have no fear for the Lord loves me”. God desires the earth to be filled with His glory as in this dark day people are not consumed by the darkness that is seeking to overcome them. In contrast they live in darkness but radiate His light. These are light and salt of the earth. These are living stones, faithful witnesses of Jesus Christ. These are the ones God pours out His love to in the place where they stand and say “yes” to God and “no” to the world.
So why don’t they feel the love of God?
1. We are trained to see the dark, the evil, more than the light. Turn your thought more on things above and you will take a step in encountering the love of God for you when you are under fire.
2. The presence of God with you is not always euphoria. The most common manifestation of His love is peace.
3. You are living under tremendous projected spiritual conditions. Every time you seek to dwell under the shelter of His wing in the public world, you mind will be attacked through any doorway open to the enemy. Holiness is not an option of Christian maturity, it is practical living that allows us to stand and know the love of God in our day.
4. We love the approval of the world more than the approval of God. We love to have people honor us, respect us and we have pushed the approval of God back in our emotions to private places.
5. Compromise has so filled out lives that we fail to do the will of God In such a way as that it is real. We have mixed living for God with the ways of the world and even when we think we are living a holy life, we are still very far from it. I am not talking about immaturity. God has much grace for immaturity. I am talking about compromise.
The solution
Wake up tomorrow and start a new day. Do this every day. Use the gifts of God of new mercies every day. Forget the failures of the past, except to become wise from them, and press on to the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus. Start each day with thoughts of things above, chiefly on God himself, and seek to practice His presence all through the day. I could give you a thousand things to do but if you turn to the spirit of truth indwelling you, it would be better for you (if you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you).
One closing note. The ways of the Lord for us is usually easy to understand but impossible for us to do without Him. It tends to focus on the one area we tend to keep away from God, be it our sexuality, money, personality, and intellect, whatever. Even a 2% increase of obedience in that area tends to yield fruit 10 fold in encountering the love of God.

Bow Down

2010-05-03T06:21:00.002-06:00

Genesis 22:5

Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you."

Worship seems like one of life’s’ easy things to do. I live in a church age when people love to go to worship, but I often wonder if there is much like worship coming from my life. Even in the posture of our worship is a lot of standing up and seldom a bowing down. Why did the ancient people bow down anyway?
The more I separate love and obedience, the easier it is for me to worship. But if worship is a combination of loving God and fully obeying Him, worship is hard for me. It is hard for me because of me. I enjoy loving and obeying myself, not another, even when that other is God. I mean I do try and trick myself by calling my will and God’s will the same. I do tend the think that God and I see things the same way. I even tell people that I know and hear the voice of God, so surly I must be doing the right things – right?
Maybe worship can be identified by what
• What we leave behind
• What we take with us
• What we take up the hill
• How we return to the place we left

I am in the prayer room right now. I think I am writing about worship so that I don't fell guilty about not worshiping! I think I want to be Godly but avoid the blaze of His gaze by doing stuff (writing, reading, prayer, sermonizing, listening to the music). As I write the above statement I fell compelled to change my tactic. Maybe I should compare myself to others, others who are not in the prayer room right now. Maybe those who I know (I consider) not as Godly as I am. Is there anyway to escape the trap that this is all about me?

NO.
It is the door of selfishness, once we are aware of, that we go through to encounter the one who transform our self into His self. I must be me before I can be transformed into His image. Pretending to be another me will not help the me that I am. I think I am going to love on Him now for His patience toward me. I might even do most of the things He has asked me to do (both in my thoughts and deeds).

The House of Prayer

2010-04-16T07:14:00.001-06:00

With a great deal of attention on the Lord rising up houses of prayer all around the world, we can over look that they are for something. The House of Prayer is for all the people. Right now many are feeling the pressure to be a part of the prayer movement, and this pressure is good in that it aids the process of true refinement. But not everyone is called to the house of prayer for service. Most people are called to the house of prayer to be served.

The Peoria Prayer Center is a place were people of prayer can serve the body of Christ and the societies of the world through intercession. We are in the place of prayer so that others can be in the place of their callings and not be alone. We want to befriend and cover others. In the past where the people of prayer walked in this ministry of service those people served became demanding. The intercessors became worn out by the constant requirement to pray for this thing and that think while many others lived lives of entertainment and rest. Envy snuck in and people called to intercessors want to be preachers, teachers, leaders and most anything else. It was like a virus of “you can be it all, have it all, don’t need anyone else” had invaded the church.

Weakened by this situation and failing to have deep wells of refreshment to drink from , the people of prayer slipped away from the place of service and continued to pray on their own, in their own way and without the needed connections of responsibility and accountability. The prayer movement became invaded by pride as each one sought to do what was best in their own sight. Presumption and boldness joined with this pride and intercessors were proclaiming to spiritual leaders directions, truths and actions they should be taking but failed to do. A little jealously and a few wounds of rejection started to grip hearts as conflict and competition arose in the body of Christ as to who were the true spiritual people, who were the ones hearing from God, who had the real authority.

All the conditions of this previous cycle have not yet been healed and resolved. God is still sending out His call to build a house of prayer and there are still numerous issues surrounding it. Spirits of elitism, triumpulism and rebellion are still around and open to anyone who is open to having them influence their life. What I am saying, in short, is that opinions and ideas about a house of prayer are a varied and diverse as people you will talk to. These ideas are used to build camps of division, isolation and separation. Knowing that they exist will help us keep on turning to the Lord for their redemption.

I am writing this mainly to the people who serve with me at the Peoria Prayer Center. I want them to know and be at peace with the nature of the calling I think we are to labor under as we build a community wide house of prayer that endures for 100 years. We are still digging out for the foundation. But the time will come when we reach the bedrock of Christ Jesus alone and then we can start to build a lasting foundation on that. This is not a “vision statement” to which I want you to ascribe. Relationships will last far beyond what we can see and we want to build on relationships, not gifts, callings, talents or abilities. Loving God and others is that which will not fail.

Here is a bullet list of issues I encourage you to take to the Lord.
• The call to intimacy with God is not the same call as to the prayer ministry. God’s call to intimacy is for all people and not so much a call as a life of authentic relationship.
• From the place of communion with God the people of prayer are to pray for all people, all nations. We are to intercede for business, media, art, education and numerous other issues. The Kingdom of God is within people and people are taking it into the world.
• No calling of the Lord is better than another. The spirit that says ministry is better than business or that prayer is better than media is not of the Lord. “Apostle” means “sent one”. Sent people, people called of God are going to take the Kingdom to the world.
• True holiness can serve in evil places.(RE: Daniel, Ezekiel, Paul)
• Some callings are for a lifetime and some are for a season. God doesn’t take back a calling, but that is different than a calling lasting forever. (A person could be called to be single, then called to marry, then called to be a mom, then called to remain single again later in life after the death of their mate.)
• While each of us is to be a dwelling (house) of the Lord, having organizations that serve the Lord in equipping and discipleship are also a part of His ways. People are the church, yet we build buildings and have organizations we call churches. To say we don’t need literal houses of prayer because we are all called to be His dwelling place would also be saying we do not need churches because we are all called to be the church.
• Time was made for man, not man for time. You and I have the time we need to live the life God has called us to. While we seek to make the most of every opportunity, we do not need to hurry, be anxious or be opportunist. We have time for love to mature. We have time for character, wisdom and knowledge to grow. We have time for God and time for others.

Mark 11:17 And He began to teach and say to them, "Is it not written, 'MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS'? But you have made it a ROBBERS' DEN."

Isaiah 56:7 Even those I will bring to My holy mountain And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples."

The Crafty Trap

2010-04-13T08:13:00.002-06:00

There is a crafty trap in life
It’s set for those who care
In that to which you are called
The rap is set right there

It seeks to capture passioned souls
It blocks their loving work
It hides in appearance management
And in busyness lurks

It loves for you to do your call
As long as you do not
To avoid the very things it’s self
By endless management

And in the end ten thousand souls
Fail to do as one
For the very thing set out to do
Is the very thing undone

If you want to do something, it must get done.