Homecoming With A Twist

This morning I am meditating on Luke 4, where Jesus goes back to Nazareth.  I was just thinking about impactful this visit could have been... compared to how it ended.  The exchange there is good proof, in my opinion, that Jesus said what He heard the father saying, and didn't stray into His own opinions or ideas.  Here is the account, its a bit long - Luke 4:14-30 NIV:

[14] "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. [15] He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. 

[16] He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, [17] and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: [18] “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, [19] to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.” 

[20] Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. [21] He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 

[22] All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. “Isn't this Joseph's son?” they asked. 

[23] Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: 'Physician, heal yourself!' And you will tell me, 'Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.' ” 

[24] “Truly I tell you,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown. [25] I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. [26] Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. [27] And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed---only Naaman the Syrian.” 

[28] All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. [29] They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. [30] But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way."

When I read something like this I try to imagine the actual context, the scene as it would have happened in real life.  Jesus had moved away from Nazareth to Capernaum and had recently begun His ministry, and word about Him was spreading.  The two towns are apparently about 40 miles apart, so its possible that they (The people in Nazareth) had only heard rumors of His ministry at this point.  

I imagine Him going back to his home synagogue, the one He would have frequented as a young man.  I imagine the place was filled with people He knew, people He grew up with, and there was a wonderful, familial experience to be enjoyed.  He got up and read from Isaiah 61, and essentially proclaimed that He was the messiah, for the verses He read were understood to refer to the coming Messiah.  Verse 22 captures, what I think is the initial response of the people.  They are amazed, surprised, trying to put him back into the context that they know Him in (Jospeh's son) and were of a favorable opinion.  

If the conversation ended here, one would think that this day would have been a grand celebration, a sort of homecoming celebration, as Jesus, once  a normal member of this town is coming back in God's Glory!  However, as we know from other Gospel's, Luke didn't quite capture the whole of the event here.  There are some additional details provided by Mark and Matthew. 

Mark 6:2-3 NIV:

[2] "When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What's this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing? [3] Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him."

Matthew 13:54-58 NIV:

[54] "Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. [55] “Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? [56] Aren't all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” [57] And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.” [58] And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith."

It is so helpful to gain the context of each of the other accounts, for we can start to see the heart attitude changing towards Jesus.  They were well acquainted with Him, and they had witnessed none of what He was doing in other towns and villages, and yet he had lived in their midst for close to 20 years.  He had lived an unremarkable life, from their perspective, and here He was proclaiming in their midst that He was the one Isaiah was speaking of prophetically!  He had demonstrated no miracles, none of the "wisdom" and "gracious words" that He was speaking.  I have spent quite some time reflecting on the quiet period of Jesus' life, and these people had witnessed that period.  

To try and put it in any context, I imagine this would be like coming back to your first highschool reunion, and the one quiet guy in your class who came from a large family, most of whom were more well known than him, stands up and says I am going to be the next President of the United States.  If he wasn't laughed out of the place, he certainly wouldn't be held in high regard afterwards... no matter how eloquent he sounded, for he was known, and he was of no-account! 

I think it is difficult for us to fully grasp the dynamics displayed in Nazareth that day, and into the midst of all that the Father has Jesus stoke the flames of derision a bit more byclaiming to be a prophet and then reminding His former townsfolk of some of the historical times where God's chosen was sent to someone outside of Israel, someone not of the chosen people!  He flat out says a prophet is honored everywhere but at his own home, and hometown.  

If the city folk had been ready to welcome Jesus back and give him the keys of the city, they quickly changed course and decided to just toss him off a cliff!  That was a pretty significant 180 degree change.   Both Mark and Matthew name this anger as "offense", and I think that is accurate.  The townsfolk were angry with His claims, angry about the fact that He hadn't done any miracles in their midst, angry that they had only experienced the quiet carpenter!  I would imagine that the faces of sick relatives or family members that had passed away during Jesus' 20 years in Nazareth were brought to mind; those that needed healing but weren't healed, all the prayers asking for help, asking for God's intervention that had seemingly gone unanswered, were all coming back to people's minds.  I can just see the accuser, launching salvo after salvo of accusation against Jesus, and the people were in total agreement... they had been overlooked, cheated, and ignored!  

In the very face of all of that Jesus then says, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”  Yikes!  

No wonder they wanted to toss Him off a cliff!

The question this morning is how this relates to my life?  What impact should this story have on me?

The First thing that comes to mind, is the danger of familiarity, to the point of judgment and labeling.  Jesus had done nothing remarkable, and the people had labeled Him, "Only a carpenter".  They had no room in their minds and hearts for Him to do more!   One wonders how many of us have constructed a "box" of expectations that tries to limit what God can do?  If someone ever steps out of that then it can't be of God!  

Similarly, one could see a level of jealousy in action, where the people of Nazareth were angry that God hadn't chosen to do anything miraculous in their midst, despite the fact that the "Messiah" had lived there .  One wonders how many of us are a little angry that God isn't moving in our churches, yet we hear about Him doing things other places?  We get our 'undies in a bunch', when someone tells us that they have experienced the very move of God we have hungered for through the years!  Or we think, ah those people are weird, and are probably making stuff up, and can't be trusted!  The only way I will accept that its God is if He does it here, the way I want Him to do it!  

Another example could be those who have prayed for years for God to do something, and have given up completely!  There is zero faith for God to do anything, as He hasn't answered prayers, hasn't apparently listened, despite the fact that we have faithfully gone to church all that time... its like God is purposely ignoring us!

We can get all out of alignment when we start listening to the accusations of the enemy.  We miss the very one who has been sent, who is moving in our midst, working all around us!  We get so 'butt-hurt' that we turn our backs on God!  We allow offense to drive us away from Him!  We take the unanswered prayers as evidence in our case against Him!  

Oh, that we would recognize the truth, and allow the Lord to love us, to touch us, to embrace us!  Oh, that we would refuse to listen to the accusations but rather choose to follow Him, knowing that our day will come, that He is moving!  I am reminded of a lovely set of verses from Paul's letter to the Romans 8:31-35,37-39 NIV:

[31] "What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? [32] He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all---how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? [33] Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. [34] Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died---more than that, who was raised to life---is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. [35] Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 

[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, [39] neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Amen and Amen!

Fasting and Flexibility

This morning I felt led to read a few verses from Matthew's Gospel.  I so enjoy the familiarity of the Gospels and try to spend time in them every week, for in doing so I am able to understand a bit more of the ways of the Lord!  This morning the verses I am reflecting on are very familiar to me - Matthew 9:14-17 NIV:

[14] "Then John's disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” 

[15] Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. 

[16] “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. [17] Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

This morning as I read through these verses, I was reminded of one of the themes our pastor spoke on last week.  He was discussing the different streams of the Western Church, and talking about how we don't want to just align ourselves with one flow, as often times those flows will focus on one perspective at the expense of the other.  In general, the two he mentioned were the evangelistic focus and the charismatic focus.  

As I was reading through these verses this morning, I was reminded that the new wineskin for new wine relates to religious practice (fasting specifically), at least in the context of the verses this morning.  Ritual fasting was apparently a significant part of the Jewish "faith" at the time of Jesus' ministry.  John's ministry was one known for a fasted life-style (See Matt 3:1-6), and apparently the  Pharisees fasted regularly.  The difference between Jesus and the rest was obvious enough for John's disciples to ask the question of Jesus.

The question this morning is how these verses apply to our life and faith today?  What in our faith expression is similar to fasting, requiring a different approach, requiring flexibility?   

I am reminded of some verses from the Prophet Isaiah 58:5-7 NIV:

[5] "Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for people to humble themselves? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying in sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? 

[6] “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? [7] Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter---when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?"

In these and the preceding verses, God was addressing empty fasting, where the people went through the motions of fasting, but never really repented, or changed their hearts or lives!  Fasting is not supposed to be some empty religious activity, but rather God's perspective was that it should cause people hearts to turn towards Him, and the things He is concerned with. 

Fasting is not a big thing in many protestant churches, but I think we can expand the application of theme.  I believe the Lord is looking for heart engagement!  He is wanting a people who are pursuing Him with their hearts, minds and lives.  He is looking for those who pursue relationship over ritual!  The thing about relationship is that you can't turn it into rote behavior and practices!  

In our pursuit of Him, we often don't know exactly what to do, or what to say, so we look to practices that seem to help.  We know that generations before us have found God in the midst of liturgical expression, and that seems like a good place to start.  The issue is that liturgical expressions is that while pointing us towards God, they don't guarantee relationship, in fact, they can become our focus, rather than the one we are supposed to encounter, God Himself! 

Again, the question this morning is how should Jesus' words impact my life?

First, I think we must get back the core focus of relationship with God!  

He wants relationship with us!  He wants us to encounter Him, to hear His voice, to engage in life-changing conversations! 

He wants us to look past the common faith expressions we employ, realizing that there is more to our relationship with Him, than Sunday observances.

He is after changed hearts, and changed lives, and if our present engagement and expression isn't fueling these changes, then we should be open to some sort of change in our behaviour.

He is inviting us into real relationship where our lives are changed, not because of His rules, but because of our affection for Him. 

He wants a people that will represent Him to a world in need, and for us to do so, we need to understand His heart and encounter Him. 

He wants us to be flexible enough to break out of our comfort-zone, out of our daily or weekly regimen, to really encounter Him!

He wants us to care about the things He cares about!  

He wants hearts and lives engaged!

He has a NEW wine-skin for us.... are we willing to accept it?

Oh Lord, help me to embrace all that You have for me!  Help me to lay down my preconceived ideas about You, about church, about following You, that I might truly encounter You!  

Help me to allow for changes in my life, and my faith expression, that I might really know You!

Help me to better represent You to the world around me!

Amen and Amen!

Branches and Grafts

This morning I am reflecting on some interesting verses from Paul's letter to the Roman's.  He is discussing ingrafted branches and Israel's salvation.  Here are the verses -  Romans 11:11-24 NIV:

[11] "Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. [12] But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring! 

[13] I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in my ministry [14] in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them. [15] For if their rejection brought reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? [16] If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches. 

[17] If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, [18] do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. [19] You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” [20] Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. [21] For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. 

[22] Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. [23] And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. [24] After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!"

This is such a good perspective, at least in my mind.  We have no place for pride, no reason to consider ourselves as superior, as we owe all to the original root (Jews) who were the first called, the first to believe, the first to follow Christ Jesus!  There should be no pride, no superiority, no looking down on anyone, for we are here, only of God's choice and free gift!  Our prayers should be for the fullness of the whole Body of Christ to be joined together in unity!  We need the whole Body of Christ, and our inclusion should be a reason for gratitude, not pride, for it really has nothing to do with us, and everything to do with Jesus!  

Oh Lord, please forgive me for any spiritual pride, any judgment towards others in the body of Christ.  Clean my mind, my thinking, my proclivity to think that my way of thinking is the right/correct way and help me to embrace humility in my thinking, my writings and my speaking and dealing with others.  It is clearly all about You Jesus, and I am just so glad to be considered one of Your own!

Parallels and Signs

This morning I felt led to reflect on some verses from Leviticus 9, which is definitely not in my normal reading cycle. I am always interested to turn to some of the more exotic locations (scripturally) as I am often pleasantly surprised by a hidden gem, and this morning was no exception.  Here are the verses I read - Leviticus 9:22-24 NIV:

[22] "Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down. 

[23] Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. [24] Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown."

This is the day that Aaron and his sons began their priestly ministry, the very first sacrifices they made for the people in the "new" sacrificial system. As I was reading this, I was thinking that in some ways this paralleled the day of Pentecost.  Jesus, through His passion, Death and resurrection, had perfectly fulfilled the requirements of the Law, made the perfect sacrifice and ended any requirements for further sacrifices.  The people were gathered and waiting, and the coming of God's Glory and the Holy Spirit, in the form of the mighty rushing wind and fire is very similar.  This time the fire came out and settled on the people, and empowered them, rather than burning up the sacrifice.  Instead of falling facedown the people started praising God, filled with joy.  I guess with these parallels, one could suggest that Pentecost is the day the Church began its priestly ministry!  

Here are the verses from Acts 2:1-6 NIV:

[1] "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. [2] Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. [3] They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. [4] All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. 

[5] Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. [6] When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken."

I find it quite interesting looking at the parallels.  One other thing I was researching was the Hebrew word for blessing.  In Lev. 9:23 it says Moses and Aaron blessed the people, and the Hebrew word there is "barak", which literally means to bend the knee. In Acts 2, following Peter's exhortation, in verse 41 we are told that 3000 received salvation that day and were baptized, which is a recognition of Jesus' Lordship, a bending of one's knee and life before Him.

Recently in our church we have been learning how to better "pay attention" when reading scripture.  We have been looking at parallels in scripture, symbology that repeats through all of scripture, signs that point to Jesus, and the way the Lord caused all of this to draw us to Him.  This morning I am reminded of the one major theme, that all of scripture points to Jesus, and this morning that is clearly the case. Jesus chose to be the perfect sacrifice, fulfilling every requirement that we might be restored to the opportunity to step back into the Edenic relationship with God!  God loves us and wants to be with us, and wants us to be with Him!   Jesus has made that way possible through Himself.

I am reminded of something Paul wrote in his letter to the church in Colossae.  He draws this whole theme (its all about Jesus) into a wonderful summary.  Here are the verses Colossians 1:15-23 NIV:

[15] "The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. [16] For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. [17] He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. [18] And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. [19] For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, [20] and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." 

[21] "Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. [22] But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--- [23] if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant."

Thank You Lord, that You have made a way for us to be restored, and reconciled to You!  Thank You that Your life has restored that which was lost!  Thank You Lord for the gift of salvation, paid for by You!  Thank You for drawing us back to You!

Amen and Amen!

He Touched Her Hand and the Fever Left her

This morning my prayer time is a bit of recounting my recent experience, a testimony of sickness, God's promise, my recovery and God's commentary on that recovery.  

For the last week I have been sicker than I have ever remembered, and so sick that I have been unable work, unable to do much of anything.  Symptoms were very flu-like, fever, chills, body aches, exhaustion, no appetite, night sweats, etc.  The symptoms came on quickly last Sat., and I have been relegated to the recliner or bed for all but maybe 2 hours all week, when I tried to attend a meeting or two or doctor appointment, but those events which would leave me utterly exhausted and require 2-3 hours of sleep to marginally recover.  I would literally have to save up energy for five minutes just to pick up my phone to reply to a text message, such was the level of my fatigue.  I was sleeping close to 14 hours a day, feverish  anywhere from 100 - 103F.  The scary part is that I had a five day bout of almost the same symptoms that ended only six days prior, so I missed 10 of the last 15 days of work. As the week progressed, I seemed to be getting worse, I was starting to have trouble breathing, or I should say maintaining a good oxygen level.  I found myself breathing hard all the time, having difficulty sleeping because I would wake up breathing hard.  By this past Thursday, we were strongly considering going to the ER.

Back to God's promise.  On Monday morning, with the little energy I had, I asked the Lord if He had a word for me, and I heard Ps 91:4.  At this point my feverish brain could only remember a couple of bible-verses and this wasn't one of them.  I turned there and saw this promise - Psalm 91:4-6 NIV:

[4] "He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. 

[5] You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 

[6] nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday."

I must say those were welcome words, and they settled strongly into my heart and mind.  They were about the only thing I could pray, and remember for the next 4 days.  

At this point we hadn't done any testing, seen the Dr., or anything, but based on my last experience I figured this was another bout of the flu, which although rare, it was possible that I caught the other variant that was out and about. I made an appointment to get into the Dr. on Monday and started the path of diagnosing my condition.  I was feeling rough, and not getting better.  By Tues. we knew it wasn't FLU, COVID, RSV of the recent surge of Pneumonia, or bacterial infection. I had a imaging appointment for my liver, spleen, gallbladder, kidneys and pancreas, and everything except my gallbladder looked normal.  They are not sure what they saw on my gallbladder, and I have an MRI scheduled on this coming Mon.  I had additional testing conducted and so far everything is coming back normal.  I had no abdominal pain, no sinus or bronchial infection, no sinus drainage, nothing that would indicate an issue, and yet my body was acting like it was being poisoned, as my symptoms were getting worse.

We had been enlisting the prayer help of close family and friends and Thursday ramped it up a notch.  My honey was talking to people, and sending out a more urgent summons to prayer.

Thursday afternoon, because of the issue I was starting to have with oxygen, my honey picked up an Oximeter, and we started monitoring my O2 levels, and I started taking my blood pressure.  My O2 was hovering at 92-93% at complete rest with plenty of heavy breathing ( my normal is 96-98%), and when I took my first blood pressure it was 134/45.  We were both pretty shocked as I never have a low blood pressure.  We checked it again and it was in the same range.  Note: I took it while reclined in my recliner.  We didn't panic yet, but we started thinking about ER at this point. 

Our Doctor had called in a prescription of Prednisone on Thurs. so that afternoon I took the first big dose. 

We decided to wait on ER, and monitor my temp, O2 and Blood pressure throughout the night and if we saw any negative change we were going to head to the hospital.  My fever broke at 10pm, but it had done so the previous 3 nights, for a 2-3 hour window before it would come roaring back about 1am and spike to about 102F.  I was experiencing severe night sweats, and ended up changing outfits 5 times through the night. As I monitored my vitals through out the night, my fever never came back, my O2 levels moved up into my normal range and my BP returned to my normal ranges as well.  I woke up at 7am Friday morning and had more energy that I had over the last 6 days.  I carried my massive load of laundry downstairs, started it and found myself whistling, something I always do, but hadn't done in 6 days!  To say I was well was a bit early, but I actually felt like myself for the first time since Sat. afternoon. 

I felt so good I told my boss I thought I could work!  I started work at 7:30am and finished my day at 5:30pm, feeling totally normal, having had a productive day, and feeling 100% like myself .  Today, I am every bit as normal, and feeling great. 

This morning as I sat down to pray I was thinking about this all and asked the Lord if He had anything to say and I was immediately reminded of Peter's mother-in-law.  The story is short and found in all three synoptic Gospels.  I am quoting the version from Matthew 8:14-15 NIV:

[14] "When Jesus came into Peter's house, he saw Peter's mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. [15] He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him."

I have to say, that is an astounding recovery, and my mine is no less so. I was literally bed-ridden from Sat. afternoon until Fri. morning.  I was unable to do almost anything, without experiencing crippling exhaustion.  The effort to think about something would cause me to sweat profusely and I struggle to maintain coherent thought and conversation. My sweetheart cared for me constantly.  I either took a miracle drug, or experienced the effective prayer of many, or both, this has resulted in the most complete 180degree swing I know of, with the exception of the story above!  As a man of faith, I think the Lord's word and ability to do exactly what He did for Peter's mother-in-law is every bit as true to today as it was back then, and I believe that is exactly what happened in my case.

I didn't feel His touch, or a heightened presence, but the results are undeniable. He touched me and the fever left!  I was talking to the nurse on Friday and she was equally astounded in my swift almost immediate recovery.  

We are still going to pursue the cause, trying to track down what inside my body was causing this attack, but for today I am celebrating my healing and living my life, enjoying every moment of my wellness!

Thank You, thank You, thank You, God!

Amen and Amen!

I Want To Be Like You

Last night I was reading one of my blog entries from May 2014, and a line I wrote grabbed my attention.  I was reflecting on how we are supposed to reflect or represent Jesus, who was representing the Father to the world. My concern was that the world is not convinced that we (the Church) represent God.  As I read that I thought, and the world is equally afraid that we do represent God, and that God is like the Church!  Ouch!

This morning my reflection starts at this point, how can I better represent, or reflect Jesus to our world?  

When I look at Jesus, at the years of His public ministry, at His love for the people, at His ability to walk in lock step with the Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit, at the miracles, signs and wonders that bore witness to His representing the Father, I realize how far away I am from effectively representing Him.  However, rather than being discouraged, I am filled with the belief that if this is my call and my invitation, then God has made a way for me to be able to represent Him, and that is my pursuit.  Hopefully that makes sense.

Looking at this another way, there are many people with skills and gifts that I greatly admire.  Quite a few of them I am not inspired to try and emulate, for I know their level of giftedness and skill would be unattainable to me.  I will never be a professional athlete, musician, nor singer, nor will I try to emulate them.  That type of gifting and skill doesn't reside in my old and tired body, nor will it ever.

When I look at Jesus, at His ministry of love, compassion, mercy, forgiveness and invitation to relationship with the Father, I see something I not only greatly admire, but believe myself capable of attaining some small success in representing Him.  What I lack is mostly the experiential reality of walking in the power of the Holy Spirit, something that has no age limit, nor reliance on physical gifting or skill!  I believe that Holy Spirit indwells me, and my main issue these days is how do I get out of His way, so that He can work through me, directing and guiding me?  

How do I surrender my life in such a way that I am literally saying the things the Lord wants me to say and doing the things the Lord wants me to do?

In this pursuit, Jesus is my great model and Holy Spirit my great encourager.

As I was writing that last bit, I was reminded of a song from "The Jungle Book" when King Louie, the Orangutan is talking about how he wants to be a man.  Here are the words to the chorus: 

"Oh, oobee doo 

I wanna be like you 

I wanna walk like you 

Talk like you, too"

If I remember the continuation of the scene correctly, King Louie wanted Mowgli to teach him the secret of fire, for in his eyes that would make him like a man.

In my case, it is this "fire from heaven" that I am in need of!  I am reminded of Acts 2:1-4 NIV:

[1] "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. [2] Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. [3] They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. [4] All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."

To be clear, none of what Jesus modelled for us is really possible on our own, under our own strength.  I don't have the natural ability to walk in the level of love, compassion, mercy, and forgiveness that Jesus modelled, and I certainly have no natural ability to follow Him, in lock-step with the Father.  That is why I need the "fire from heaven" the Holy Spirit to empower, and enable me supernaturally!  

I want to learn to walk in a consciousness of the Holy Spirit's direction and guidance throughout my day, and in my interactions with others.  I want to be able to  experience the reality of what Jesus promised in John 16:12-15 NIV: 

[12] “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. [13] But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. [14] He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. [15] All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Oh Lord, Help me!  I want to be like You, and in so doing, represent and reflect You to the world!  My prayer is that one day someone might say, 'I do believe you represent Jesus, and He is clearly God, for only God can do the things He has done through You!'

Yes, Lord, I truly want to be like You, as much as I can.  I want to walk like You and talk like you!

Amen!

Breaking Our Comfort Box

Yesterday I was reading some of my writings from 2015, having to do with Miracles as a part of the proclamation of the Kingdom.  Here are links to the three reflections in order in which I read them:

1) https://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-proof-of-pudding-is-in-eating.html

2) https://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2015/03/relying-on-lord-to-confirm-their-words.html

3) https://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2015/03/power-for-change-our-response-to.html

As I finished the last reflection, I was thinking about how interesting it is that we have whole church streams committed to preaching that all such miracles ceased with the end of Apostolic age, and many churches who are not specifically cessationist, but who do not regularly preach and see miracles.  I was pondering these thoughts and had a new thought run through my mind, that seemed like something I should dig into a bit more.

The last reflection had to do with something Jesus said, found in the Gospel of Matthew 11:21-24 NIV:

[21] “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. [22] But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. [23] And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. [24] But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

Part of Jesus' point here is that miracles are supposed to change us, to cause us to repent, to recognize that God is real and moving in our midst.  If we are confronted with these realities, and we don't change, woe to us. 

The thought that ran through my mind yesterday morning was as follows, "however, if they never see miracles, then they don't have to change, and they don't want to change, as they like their religion just the way it is." 

That thought was like an alarm bell going off in my spirit!  

Is it possible that, especially in the western church, we prefer our nice orderly services, where everything fits and we don't really want to be confronted with God in our lives, more than our "nice" Sunday gatherings, where we leave feeling good about our lives, and blessed because of our material wealth?  Is it possible that we have an undercurrent of unbelief that is essentially a "Holy Spirit not welcome sign", because we don't want to be confronted by something that will force us to change?  We hold ourselves better than Chorazin because we "believe", but I wonder if we are better, or actually more deluded?

Are we more like the people who didn't want Jesus to actually visit their villages?  (Luke 8:37)  

Are we afraid of the changes that might be required?

Are we happy when we hear about miracles happening somewhere else, as it affirms our general belief, but also glad its somewhere else so we don't need to change what we are doing, or how we are living?

If miracles are truly happening, why are we not hunting down the proof, proclaiming to the world that God is alive and working miracles on the earth, even today!?

I find myself very uncomfortable with these questions, for I find in myself some similar thinking, if I am totally honest!  I say I am all in, but I also love my comfortable life, my quiet evenings, my Sundays watching football, my generally normal life.  I like my little comfort box.  How would this change if the Lord started working miracles in our midst?  

Continuing on in this vein of thinking:

How will I react to moves of the Holy Spirit that are uncomfortable? 

How will I respond if I see God do something so significant that it causes me to re-evaluate my faith, my life pursuit, my future plans?

I was reminded of the story of the Lord healing (through Peter and John)  the lame beggar outside the temple, found in Acts 3:6-12,16 NIV:

[6] "Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” [7] Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. [8] He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. [9] When all the people saw him walking and praising God, [10] they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. [11] While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon's Colonnade." 

[12] "When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?" 

[16] "By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see."

- continuing the story to its conclusion in the following chapter - 

Acts 4:3-4 NIV:

[3] "They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. [4] But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand."

Doing some quick math, its possible that 2000 people converted to belief because of this one miracle and the following proclamation!  Imagine how that messed up the fledgling church!  Except it didn't, the church continued to grow in favor and believers!  Continuing on we find the following description of the church - Acts 5:12-16 NIV:

[12] "The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. [13] No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. [14] Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. [15] As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. [16] Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed."

Oh Lord, that we would have more hunger for You than desire for our own comfort!  Lord, we desire to see You glorified, to see Your name help high, to see You church respond in repentance and changed Lives!  We desire to see You move in the miraculous!

Oh Lord, forgive my unbelief, my own desire for comfort more than passion for You! Help me to lay down anything that would keep me in my comfort box!  

Lord, I want to see miracles, and proclaim Your Name, even as Peter did 2000 or so years ago!  You are the same today!

Amen and Amen!

Restoration and Abundant Blessings

Yesterday during our time of worship after the sermon, I felt like I heard something from the Lord concerning those who have gone through some difficult times.  The verses that I was directed to are as follows -  Jeremiah 33:6-11 NIV:

[6] “ 'Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security. [7] I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before. [8] I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me. [9] Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.' 

[10] “This is what the Lord says: 'You say about this place, “It is a desolate waste, without people or animals.” Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither people nor animals, there will be heard once more [11] the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord, saying, “Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; his love endures forever.” For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before, ' says the Lord."

We were reflecting on the Lord's presence, His indwelling Holy Spirit, and His desire to be with us.  As we were reflecting I felt led to the scriptures above and had this strong sense that the Lord wanted those of us who are living in difficult situations to have hope!  

In the scriptures above the Lord had just talked about Israel's rebellion, and disobedience being the cause of their present captivity, but that their hopes and dreams to return to their own land were going to be fulfilled by Him!  The sense I had was that the Lord was starting to put in motion processes of restoration, with the goal being rest and relationship! 

This restorative process flows out of relationship with Him! It is interesting all the "I will" statements in verses 6-8:

I (God) Will - 

Bring Health and healing to the land

Heal my people 

Let my people enjoy abundant peace and security (rest)

Bring my people back from where they are captive (freedom)

Rebuild my people and their homes/cities

Cleanse my people from their sin

Forgive my people's sin of rebellion

I love the imagery found in verse - [9] "Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.' "

The Lord will be so good to His people that all the nations will tremble (fear) because of the goodness of God, the very prosperity and peace He provides!  That is definitely more than just a Sunday "feel good" from going to church!   

Oh Lord, we pray that You would launch your grace, mercy, compassion and blessing and fulfill Your word in all its completeness in our lives!  Lord, bring healing and restoration especially to those in hopeless situations!  Please bring health healing, rest, freedom, abundant blessing, forgiveness and cleansing to  Your people!  Help to press into You for You are the one that will do all of this!

Amen and Amen!

Spiritual Vision Impairment

The verses for this morning come from the end of the story of Jesus healing a man who was born blind. The story is a great read, but today I am just focusng on the last few verses  - John 9:35-41 NIV:

[35] "Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 

[36] “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.” 

[37] Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.” 

[38] Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.

[39] Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” 

[40] Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?” 

[41] Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains."

Yesterday my theme in prayer was listening to Jesus, and this morning the theme is Spiritual Blindness, so I see a bit of a pattern.  Lord, help me to see and hear!

If I were to create a definition of Spiritual blindness from these verses, it would be those who think they can see and understand God but don't have relationship with Jesus.  

It is such an interesting thing that the Pharisees and other experts of the law, knew the words so well, but completely didn't recognize the author was in their midst!  Not only that, but when Jesus pointed out that they were misinterpreting the very meaning, they wanted to kill Him!  They were so committed to their understanding that they refused to change or even consider that they might be wrong, even when confronted with signs and miracles, healings and deliverances.

As I was thinking through this I was reminded of a story about a magician named the Amazing Rudi who created a fake psychic "Carlos" and worked with 60 Minutes in Australia.  The show was a complete hoax and at the end of it, they revealed it as such, but there were people who would not believe they had been tricked.  They were so firm in their belief, and judgments that when confronted with the truth by the author of the hoax, they refused to change their minds.  In the same way, the Pharisees were so committed to their way of understanding the Law and God, that they were unwilling to change their minds.

I know that at times I  certainly have been spiritually blind, or maybe vision impaired!  Especially when I was younger in my faith, I thought I had most everything figured out, and understood exactly what God was like, based on my own experience and what I had heard from trusted teachers.  I was convinced that the beliefs of our church were representative of the complete truth, and every other church only believed part of the truth.  I was spiritually vision impaired for sure.

There are many such churches out there, denominations that teach such,  and many of our brothers and sisters that refuse to believe anything other than what they have been taught or seen themselves.  There are those that hold the Bible as the complete record of God, and anything experienced that is not specifically found in the Bible as being not of God.  We have many ways of being spiritually vision impaired, of seeing things only through the lenses of our own limited understanding and perspective.  

The Lord has been gracious to me, providing me ample opportunities to change my mind (repent) about my beliefs and perspectives.  He has been gentle and merciful, knowing that it requires a level of humility to admit my own wrongness, and He is willing to help me get to that point!  

I guess if I were to modify my definition of spiritual blindness I would add spiritual pride, as a sort of spiritual vision impairment.  We can see in part, but be convinced that we see the whole thing and understand every bit perfectly.

I am reminded of the story of the blind men who encountered an elephant and each defined the elephant by what they could touch, but none were able to describe the whole elephant.  In my spiritual walk I have realized that I have only experienced a very small portion of God, and that as such, I better keep my eyes and ears open to further understanding and opportunities for repentance!  

I am impressed more and more how true God's words through Isaiah are , “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." ( Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV).

I am also impressed to be aware of anyone claiming to know everything about God, for while I once had similar thoughts myself, I have been mercifully corrected.  :-)

May the Lord bless us and help us to see!

Amen!

Listen to Him!

This morning I was reading from Mark, Chapter Nine.  There are so many things to think about and reflect on in every chapter of the Gospels, its almost impossible to really reflect on a whole chapter at once. That is why I read through the chapter and then think back over it and see which bit stands out the most in my recollection.  Often times it is not the one I would think going into the chapter.  This is just one of the many ways I have learned to listen to the Lord.  The verses that stood out to me today are the following - Mark 9:2-10 NIV:

[2] "After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. [3] His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. [4] And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 

[5] Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters---one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” [6] (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.) 

[7] Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” 

[8] Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus. 

[9] As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. [10] They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant."

The single verse that stood out to me this morning was verse 7, specifically - "a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!"   The thought that ran through my mind when I read this was how interesting that God the Father would choose to say that last bit, of all the things He could have said!  I think this is obviously REALLY IMPORTANT! 

In looking at the other accounts of this event, we have very similar words.

Luke 9:35 NIV:  "A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”   

Matthew 17:5 NIV:  "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

All three of the accounts end the Father's statement with the command to "Listen to him!"  I find it interesting that in my recollection of the different stories of the transfiguration, I remembered the first phrases, but not the last. I clearly need to get better at listening to Him.

In my reflection this morning, listening is the obvious focus!  This leads to the obvious question for those of us reading these words a couple thousand years later, "How do I listen to Jesus?" 

I am not an expert, that is for sure, but this is one of the things that I have worked on for the last 40+ years of my life, listening to Jesus.  I think it safe to say that if this was the last thing the Father said audibly about Jesus, we should probably pay attention to it.  I like to believe that if this is the Father's command, then it must be possible to listen to Jesus.  Secondly, if its possible to listen to Him then it is something I can learn to do, and even get better at it.

Listening for me includes all the following:

1) Actively taking time every day to quiet myself, focused just on my relationship with Jesus.

2) Reading Scripture and reflecting on it

3) Praying, which is really just having a conversation with Jesus, where I both speak and listen

4) Learning to discern what His voice sounds like, and the different ways He can speak

5) Reading about others who have learned to listen to Him, and how He speaks to them

6) Talking to other who follow Him, hearing how they hear the voice of the Lord in their lives

7) Working to be aware of His voice through out my day, and not just in my quiet time

8) Often reflecting at the end of the day, how I have encountered Him

9) Journalling my conversations, and interactions so that I can go back and read all that He has said to me

Each of the actions above could be broken into several sub-points, for I have discovered that listening to the Lord is a rich experience.  He speaks in so many ways, and I am working to be more attuned to each of the ways I have experienced Him speak.

This morning I am encouraged to make sure I "Listen to Him!"

Amen and Amen!

When Jesus Comes to Dinner

This morning I am reading again from Luke 11, and will spend some time reflecting on what I think is a somewhat humorous interaction between Jesus, the Pharisees and experts on the Law.  Here are the verses - Luke 11:37-46 NIV:

[37] "When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table. [38] But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal. 

[39] Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. [40] You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? [41] But now as for what is inside you---be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you. 

[42] “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. 

[43] “Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and respectful greetings in the marketplaces. 

[44] “Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, which people walk over without knowing it.” 

[45] One of the experts in the law answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.” 

[46] Jesus replied, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them."

My first thought on reading this was that I didn't want Jesus as a dinner guest!  :-)  Lately, I have been reflecting on the interactions between Jesus and the Pharisees and other "experts".  This morning, as I was reading these "woes" I initially was thinking, 'yeah that's right give it to them good and hard!'   However after a bit more reflection, I started wondering if I have similar issues in my life, where if I asked, the Lord would point them out?  As painful as that would be, I believe my heart wants to know so that I can do a better job of reflecting the Lord in my life! 

In both verses 41 and 42 above the Lord provided clear guidance on how to change or do better.  I know I need that in my life!  I do want to do better!  I want to reflect Jesus in my life, in my actions, and most importantly in my heart!  

In reading the verses above, I sort of felt sorry for the one expert of the law who had the gumption to try and correct Jesus, saying He was insulting them too!  I guess we can see from the Lord's response how concerned He is with hurting someone's feelings!  :-)

Seriously though, the Lord does bring correction and direction, and in my experience it is much more gentle and merciful if I am willing to hear, have a teachable heart, and a humble attitude.  I do want to be able to reflect the Lord in my day to day life, and I want to do better.  The Lord is gracious, merciful, compassionate and gentle when He brings correction.  A few weeks ago I was reading about the epileptic boy the apostles couldn't heal (See Mark 9: 14-29) and the Lord pointed out something in my belief that was incorrect, and provided me the opportunity to change my thinking and belief!  It wasn't a harsh word, more of a gentle revealing of an incorrect assumption, that led to a wrong belief.  

I think the Lord is looking for those who will follow Him, and not get offended with Him.  If we look at the verses following this dinner party,  the response of the Pharisees and experts of the Law was anything but that - Luke 11:53-54 NIV:  "When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely and to besiege him with questions, [54] waiting to catch him in something he might say."

Oh Lord, help us to receive and embrace Your correction!  Help us to desire to reflect You more accurately to those in our lives.

Amen!

Can God Speak To Us in Dreams?

This morning I am once again just pondering a dream I had recently about ministering in Papua, the Crosiers and Mango bread.  It is just so interesting that those three things stood out from the dream, and I am quite sure I have never read nor seen anything that puts these together, or would give any reason for my mind to  present these to me.  

Here is my description of the dream - Last night I had an interesting dream where my honey and I were ministering at some island, I thought it was Papua, but never had anyone say that specifically.  We were hanging out with the people, had a prayer meeting with them, were learning about their crops (huge onions) and plantings, etc.  I specifically prayed for fruitfulness for them as a people as they didn't have many kids.  I remember there was some Crosier missionaries that had established Christianity, and they had the greatest mango bread, it was carmelized on the outside.

The question is whether God can communicate real facts to us in our dreams?  When I woke up from this dream, I had no known reason to know any of these things, and had no idea if they were true, or even existed (like mango bread)  I started to do some research, and I have listed some of the links below:

Mango Bread - https://www.eva-bakes.com/hawaiian-mango-bread/   (The picture in the recipe looks very much like what I saw and tasted in my dream)

Crosiers in Papua - https://crosier.org/about-us/history/  (This fact was the most random, and specific.  Indeed the Crosiers established a ministry in Western Papua (not Papua New Guinea), in lowland area like I saw in my dream.  I knew next to nothing about the Crosiers and they actually did not send many missionaries to many different countries, but did to Papua)

Onions in Papua - https://www.oxfam.org.au/2019/07/how-onions-are-helping-families-to-smile-in-papua-new-guinea/  (While this is Papua New Guinea, it is still a very specific fact, that one would never randomly think up...)

After reviewing these links, it was clear to me that indeed these "facts" that I had seen or known in my dream were real!  Again, I cannot think of any time where I have read about any of these things, seen a documentary about any of these things, or any reason to think about them on my own. I even checked whether there was any TV shows that would have included these things, but nothing that comes up in a search have I ever heard of or viewed, or even aired anywhere near the time I had the dream.

When I told my honey about this dream she blamed my uncanny ability to remember random facts. Again, I can absolutely attest to the fact that these three things were completely new to me, and only verified since having the dream.  This brings me back  to the central question, can God speak to me in my dreams and provide real data, or facts?  

If I look at the scriptural evidence, it is clear that God did use dreams to communicate with people throughout scripture, in both the Old and New Testaments. Dreams are referred to over 90 times in scripture, so there are an abundance of examples. This morning I am just going to look at a couple of instances where God provided specific details or information in dreams.  The first that comes to mind is the story of Joseph interpreting Pharaoh's dream found in Genesis Chapter 41.  In this case the Pharaoh's dream was prophetic, and came true (seven years of abundance, followed by seven years of famine). This was not so much a providing of facts in the present as a prophetic picture of the near future (next 14 years), but certainly is a good description of how God can use dreams, even in the lives of those that do not know Him.

Here is the account of Pharaoh's first dream - Genesis 41:1-4 NIV:

[1] "When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, [2] when out of the river there came up seven cows, sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. [3] After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. [4] And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up."

Here is Joseph's description of the dream - Genesis 41:25-27 NIV:

[25] "Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. [26] The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. [27] The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine."

And here are the results - Genesis 41:46-48,53-54 NIV:

[46] "Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence and traveled throughout Egypt. [47] During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. [48] Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it." 

[53] "The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, [54] and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food."

Again, this is not exactly similar to what I experienced, but a great example of God providing "future facts" to someone in a dream.  The second example comes from the Gospel of Matthew, in which God again provides specific information in a dream that would not have been known or available.  Here is the account - Matthew 2:13-14,16 NIV:

[13] "When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” [14] So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt,.."

[16] "When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi."

These two examples show how the Lord can communicate to us in our dreams, sometimes specifically in words, other times in images and symbology.  Personally i have had many dreams where the Lord is apparently showing me things, sometimes future events, sometimes providing insight into what is happening around me, and sometimes random facts that prove to be true.

I think in this particular instance God is reminding me of His ability to speak in and through dreams.  He is capable of communicating with us, if we will pay attention and learn to listen.

Lord, I pray that You would continue to speak clearly to me, to all of us, so that we might hear what You are saying and act.

Amen and Amen!

Pruning and Fruit Bearing

This morning I am back in John 15, starting at the beginning, and reflecting on Jesus' famous teaching on being the vine.  Here are the verses - John 15:1-8 NIV:

[1] “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. [2] He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. [3] You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. [4] Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me." 

[5] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. [6] If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. [7] If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. [8] This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."

I was reading through some articles on pruning vines to make them the best producing and healthiest.  Grapes only are produced on year old wood, and the pruning process has a couple of purposes.  If left to itself the vine will put too much energy into growing leaves and vines and not enough into growing grapes.  The pruning of the vine removes unhealthy parts, distracting parts and focuses on creating the perfect mix of new growth and fruit bearing.  The optimal time for pruning is in the late winter, just before entering a new growing season.  True pruning doesn't go for quantity of grapes at the expense of the quality.  The vine dresser prunes the vine in a way that is appropriate for that particular vine, if it is well established and healthy the vine dresser will allow more grapes to form, if the vine is newer, the focus will be on shaping the vine to the support structure, and establishing a few healthy main branches.  

Here are some pruning tips from  https://gardeningtheme.com/theme/pruning-grape-vines-in-two-easy-steps :

• Immediately remove disease- or pest-infested wood from the vicinity of the grape vine plant and burn it. Disinfect the pruning shears used to cut diseased wood with alcohol to prevent the disease from spreading to healthy plants.

• If grape vines are pruned too much, their yield will be reduced and the bush will become thicker and stronger. If, on the other hand, pruning is insufficient, the vine will yield more, but it will also become weaker. It is therefore important to maintain a balance between yield and vine growth.

• The grape vine needs support in order to grow upright. Keep this in mind when planting the vines and place the proper support (wire, stake, trellis, pergola and other types of support) above the vines so that you can attach new shoots to it.

Overall it is important to note that it is only year-old wood that grows grapes... and properly pruning the vine is essential to producing healthy, disease-free fruit.  Normally a vine-dresser is looking for a limited number of branches that will in turn create an abundance of heathy and spaced out grapes.  There needs to be enough space for circulation of air between the clusters of grapes.  

When training the vine usually the vinedresser will wrap the branch around the support several times, creating a well supported branch. When choosing the main trunk, the vine dresser looks for one that is the most vertical, strong and healthy, and chooses the branches that are strong, healthy and well supported.  In Jesus' commentary, He is the Vine, we are the branches.

The are some very clear spiritual principles we can draw from these simple examples.  

1) Support is necessary for a healthy vine.  This means strong healthy relationships with others in the body of Christ.  I like the picture of the branch wrapped around the support.  This picture seems a good example of having our lives woven together, with deep life giving relationships of mututal support and encouragement.

2) Pruning is essential every year to maintain an optimal yielding vine, with quality fruit.  

The primary pruning takes place at the end of winter.  If we are referring to our spiritual life, this would represent a season where life seems difficult, relationship with the Lord is not producing abundant fruit... but pruning is done at this time to limit any possible damage to the vine.  Think of this as the Lord helping you get ready for a new season by removing some things that once were fruitful, but are no longer bearing fruit.  

For the believer this type of pruning can seem confusing, especially when that which is removed was formerly fruitful and good.  The Lord knows what He is doing, and that is preparing one for the next season of bearing fruit. 

The vinedresser also cleans the vine during spring and summer  growth periods.  This pruning is removing shoots, branches and weak growths that will pull energy from the vine  and the production of grapes.  Again, to a believer this might seems strange when the Lord cuts some new interest, engagement  or relationship that looks good, but in the end these would have been unhelpful.  In these seasons we need to trust that the Lord knows what He is doing, and allow Him to remove things.

Finally, true life comes from Him and it is essential that we remain connected to the Lord!  We need His word to clean us, and focus us. We will not bear fruit on our own, all life comes from our relationship with the Lord.  We may go through slow seasons or difficult seasons where the Lord seems distant, and in those times it is essential to remain in Jesus, so we don't miss the next season of bearing fruit, and allowing His life to flow through us.

Thinking back to Jesus teaching this all to His disciples, these words were spoken at the Last supper and they were about to go through a very difficult season, followed by a season of great growth where remaining connected to the Lord was essential to their survival and success.  We often don't have a good perspective of our seasons, where we are and where we are going.  We need to trust the Lord sees all and will help us to maximise our fruitfulness in Him, by staying connected to Him.  Daily prayer, reflection and listening is essential for us to stay connected. 

As I was thinking back through my life, I see that seasons usually take longer than a calendar year, and at times I find that frustrating.  I want to grow and produce fruit now... not years from now!    I also see that my daily walk with Him, staying connected, is the most critical thing to maintaining a healthy faith.  IT is so easy for me to get distracted, to start thinking only about myself, my needs, my wants that I lose sight of the fact that all life comes from Him.

Oh Lord, help me to better understand the season I am in, and help me to bear good and abundant fruit for Your Glory!   Help me to understand and trust Your pruning process, and embrace the cleaning and pruning that You are about in my life.  I do want to bear much fruit.  I want to remain connected to You!

Amen!

Gifts, Power, Authority and the Body of Christ

This morning as I have been setting my heart and mind to the Lord, i was reminded of something Bill Johnson said in a sermon I listened to recently.  He was talking about the difference between commissioning, being given authority, and walking in power in that commission.  A great example is the great commission in given to the Apostles, and then the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. 

Matthew 28:18-20 NIV:

[18] "Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Luke 24:49 NIV: 

"I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

Acts 2:1-4 NIV:

[1] "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. [2] Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. [3] They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. [4] All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them."

In sharing these, Bill made the distinction between the commissioning (Giving of authority) and the pouring forth of power (Pentecost) and how the first was really not possible until the second (empowering) occurred.  Clearly there are callings and commissions that require both in a fullness only God can provide.

As I was thinking about the way the Lord calls and empowers us, I started thinking about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and how we should approach them?  Clearly these gifts are given to be used, but often received without instructions or commissioning, at least in my experience.  The question in my heart this morning is whether the gifts are given with the express authority and power to exercise them?  

I am going to look at a couple of the sections where the giving of gifts is described, starting with Romans 12:4-8 NIV:

[4] "For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, [5] so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. [6] We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; [7] if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; [8] if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully."

Adding to these verses we have Paul describing additional gifts in his letter to the 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 NIV:

[7] "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. [8] To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, [9] to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, [10] to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. [11] All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines."

The first thing that I noticed is that Paul describes the gifts within the context of the Body of Christ.  The gifts are clearly meant to be part of our experience in the Body of Christ, and they seem to be meant for our common good.  These are all clearly gifts, and at least in my experience gifts are meant to be enjoyed, and experienced.  

The original Greek word that is translated gifts is xarisma - defined as follows:  

Cognate: 5486 xárisma (from "grace," 5485 /xáris) – properly, the operation of grace (divine favor), i.e. a grace-endowment to edify the Church (note the -ma suffix, focusing on the end-result of the endowment of grace).

5486 /xárisma ("grace-gift") divinely empowers a believer to share God's work with others, i.e. Spirit-empowered service to the Church to carry out His plan for His people.

[5486 /xárisma (but not limited to) "spiritual gifts." xarismata (the plural form) literally means "grace-endowments."]

I love how the definition essentially brings into focus not only the gifts (freely given) but also the empowering of the Holy Spirit.  In other words, we don't receive the gift without the power.  To put this in our modern vernacular, the gifts come with the batteries. :-)

While that is a semi-humorous take, this is an important distinction.  The gift includes the empowering from the Holy Spirit.  They are His gifts, and when He gives them He includes the necessary power to exercise them.  Secondly, they are grace-endowments, meaning given without any earning, something God freely chooses to do.  We don't earn these gifts through our maturation, or obedience, or anything else.  We get them because we are part of the body of Christ and they are given for us all, or for the common good.  

In regards to the common good, our experience in the Body is meant to be positively impacted and affected by the use and practice of these gifts.  We generally don't have a problem with most of the gifts described in Romans, but many places are uncomfortable with the list found in 1 Cor., for they seem more "spiritual".  Its one thing for someone to be giving the gift of leadership, its another to have someone given the gifts of miraculous powers, or speaking in tongues.  The point here is that they are all similar and all given by the same Holy Spirit, for the benefit of the whole Body of Christ.

If they are given in the context of the Body for the benefit of the Body of Christ, one would think that they also come with the authority, as well as power to be exercised.  If the Holy Spirit - who is leading and directing the Church gives out the gifts, it is for good reason, and He isn't making a mistake.  Its not like someone giving a two year-old a gift that should be used by an 18 year-old.  We need to learn to trust the Holy Spirit, believing that He fully knows what He is doing.

Lastly, while the gifts apparently come with the power, and even the authority (implicit in the giver being Holy Spirit) we can absolutely grow in maturity in our use of the gifts.  In the same way that a 16 year old can receive a license to drive (Power and authority), they usually get better at driving as they practice, so do we in our use and practicing of the gifts.  The wonderful thing is that since they are given to the members of the body, for the common good of the body, we have a built-in training center option.  They gifts are meant to be tried and exercised in the context of Body life, where older members can help guide, encourage, and hone the use of the gifts.  Our goal should be to raise up and encourage the use of the gifts every chance we get, as it is for our own benefit overall.

Without going to far down the path, what are we missing if we don't encourage the regular use of these Spiritual gifts?  We would be missing or lacking to some extent  that which these gifts were meant to impart... prophecy, service, leadership, giving, teaching, mercy, wisdom, knowledge, miraculous powers, healing, discernment of spirits, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues.   It's funny that those last two are the ones that get the most focus, and seem to me the least impactful to the body overall, yet are the reason many places quash the Spirit.  The other thing I noticed is that prophecy is on both the Roman list and the 1 Corinithians list (and one of the 5-fold ministries).  

In summary, as I reflect upon these few verses, it is apparent to me that we need the spiritual gifts; we need them for our own good; we need them exercised and regularly used; we need those things they are meant to impart!  Oh Lord, help us to welcome fully Your great gifts, that we might learn to use these gifts in the power and authority in which they were given!  Help us to grow and mature and experience all that You have for us!  

Amen and Amen! 

An Unusual Food

Recently I was listening to a sermon by Bill Johnson (to listen to the full sermon, see the link at the end of my note) talking about an unusual form of nourishment, that he came across in scripture.  It was a very encouraging message for those dealing with difficulty.  He starts with Numbers 14:9 NKJV: 

[9]  "Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.""

Looking at the subject of bread...and food.  He then tied this verse to the following 2 verses.

Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV:

[9] In this manner, therefore, pray: 

Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 

[10] Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 

[11] Give us this day our daily bread. 

[12] And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 

[13] And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

and finally - Psalm 23:1-6 NIV:

[1] "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 

[2] He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 

[3] he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake. 

[4] Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

[5] You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

[6] Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

His message focused on the belief that that there is something we encounter in the Lord when we view it from His perspective that is food to our spirit.  Difficulty viewed rightly can nourish us, and sustain us, in the face of the opposition, in the face of our enemies.  

After listening to this sermon a couple of times, I was reminded of Jesus' comment after interacting with the woman at the well - John 4:31-34 NIV"

[31] "Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 

[32] But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” 

[33] Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” 

[34] “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work."

In a very real sense there is meant to be something absolutely sustaining in experiencing the Lord's will fulfilled through our life, and in our life!  I remember when the Lord had us give away one of our cars, and how in giving it, it became apparent that the Lord had been working on something for years, and meeting heart cries and prayers, and sending a message of absolute love and intimacy to the recipient of the vehicle.  I knew it was a huge confirmation to our firend, and it was so sustaining to us, to know how the Lord worked through us... and gave us a confidence.

I am just thinking about how full one's life would be if they walked in a level of confidence and obedience as they pursued the Lord, stepping out of their own weakness into His strength, and seeing Him step in over and over again, providing what was needed in the time it was needed, providing victories where there shouldn't be victory, etc.

Oh Lord that You might help me to view my life from Your perspective, that I might see difficulties as opportunities for You to express Your provision and blessing!  Help me to stay in lock-step with Your plan and purpose!  Help me to not overstep and enter into presumption, but rather do Your will,a nd finsih the work offered to me!

Amen and Amen!

Link to Bill's sermon.  It is well worth listening to:  https://youtu.be/30VWk28p4WU?si=d77i05Uz82FznF7z

Dreams & Identity

Recently I had an interesting dream that got me thinking about my identity as a son of God.  We had a Men's retreat this past weekend and our speaker did a wonderful job, and the theme for the second day (Sat.) was our identity as sons of God.  Interestingly, I had the dream on Friday night.  I am so encouraged when the Lord does things like that, for it is hard to miss His message when He is providing repetition! 

Sometimes my dreams are epic dreams almost like movies and this was one of them.  My dream seemed to be a remake of a movie from the 1980s, a movie that I haven't seen in probably 20-30 years.  The movie is called Ladyhawk, and the very simple theme is that two individuals who love each other are cursed by an evil priest to never be able to fulfill their love and be together.  In my dream there was a very similar plot, an evil bishop was trying to keep two individuals apart and had cursed them and enlisted multiple demonic beings to help.  There was a group of us who came to understand what was happening and we were working to break the curse and set the two people free.  Just as the action started I woke up.  

I asked the Lord what that all meant, as He often uses dreams to communicate with me (its very common in the Bible).  I felt like He said this dream represents the spirit of religion, which tries to keep us from ever experiencing the true love of God, and establishing a real relationship.  I thought that was quite an interesting word picture and wrote it all down.  I headed to the retreat and had no real idea what the theme was for the second day, and sure enough our speaker starts talking about our identity and the way the religious spirit causes us to miss the relational nature of our identity as sons, and keeps us thinking we are just servants.  

I was reminded of the story of the prodigal son, found in Luke 15.  I am not going to quote all of the story, just a few specific verses.  It is well worth reading and reflection.  In quick summary, a man has two sons, the younger son asks for his inheritance and then leaves and blows all of the money in a sinful lifestyle. The following verses take it from that point - Luke 15:17-19 NIV:

[17] “When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! [18] I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. [19] I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.' 

Too many of us think this is the best we could ever hope for, to be a servant, working and earning what little blessings we can from God (for the Father in the story clearly represents God).  We think that we have sinned too greatly, lived a life chasing our own pleasure, whatever, and that we don't deserve a real relationship with God.  The spirit of religion would absolutely love to keep all of us in such a state, for a servant doesn't have real authority or power, and is task or rule oriented (we could say under the law). In this existence, we depend on our own efforts and the acknowledgment of a good master, but there is no true love.

Jesus in continuing the story shows us how wrong that attitude and thinking is, for the Father will have none of it!  

Luke 15: 20-24 NIV: 

[20] "So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 

[21] “The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' [22] “But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. [23] Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. [24] For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate."

The Father wants us all to recognize our identities as sons and daughters!  IN the story He immediately restores all that the son left, his authority, his identity and favor!  I love this story and the illustration of God the Father's love for all of us, His waiting patiently for us to come to our senses and turn towards Him.  The Father doesn't want servants, He wants sons and daughters!  

Paul writes about how we have in us this yearning for Abba, Father.  (Romans 8:15, Gal. 4:6)  In both of these verses Paul speaks about our adoption as sons and daughters.  To me, the idea of being an adopted son, while great, seemed one step from being a true son.  However, once I did some research into the term used by Paul, I came to realize why He used this Roman term.  Here is a link to my study on the meaning and significance of adoption, as used by Paul: 

https://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2017/06/adoption-as-gods-sons-and-daughters-its.html

To summarize, the significance of this term, is that in this particular Roman institution, the complete previous identity of the adopted son or daughter is completely erased, as if they never existed previously.  In fact, the family relationship in this "adoption" is so strong, that the Father could never disown the adopted child!  In other words, once adopted you are forever the Father's child, son or daughter forever, and your former existence no longer exists!  In other words, you can't actually go back to being who you were before, no matter what You do, that option/identity no longer exists.

I could continue on, but suffice it to say that the Lord is desirous of our stepping into our true identity as sons and daughters!  The world and the spirit of religion, try to keep us from experiencing true relationship, for as sons and daughters we have authority and power, and the ability to walk in intimacy and favor!   The one thing the enemy of our souls fears more than anything is sons and daughters of God who learn to walk in their true identity, for they have the same inheritance as Jesus (Rom 8:17).

Oh Lord, help us to come to our senses and return to You!  Help us to step into our true identity, and live our lives as Your daughters and sons!  Help us to fully experience Your Love and acceptance, Your welcome Home!

Amen and Amen!