OVER THE NEXT TWO WEEKS THIS SITE WILL BE UNDERGOING SEVERAL CHANGES. THE POST BELOW SHOULD HAVE BEEN POSTED PRIOR TO THE 4TH OF JULY, BUT SYSTEM GLITCHES ON MY COMPUTER PREVENTED THAT FROM HAPPENING.
THE POSTS FOLLOWING THIS ONE WILL BE VIEWED IN THE NEW FORMAT.
THANK YOU FOR READING!
This site came about as a result of a journey. The journey came about as a result of a crisis. The crisis came about for three reasons. The first being I was so locked into the matrix (the religious structure that is currently called the church) that I had lost sight of the purpose for being a Christ follower. The second reason is that my actions caused a reaction in someone dear to my life. However that person became a casualty of the matrix. The third reason this became a journey is the deep long abiding cry of my inner most being to follow Christ.
The writings on this site are a partial result of this journey. The purpose of this site is still unfolding, but would not have happened had the tragedy not occurred. The focus of this site is because of the desire to follow Christ.
You will notice as you read that the most current installment is first, with each subsequent installment following until you reach the beginning of the blog posts.
Current Installment
In a few days, the United States of America celebrates 243 years as a nation dedicated to freedom. The founding Father’s declared that a fledging nation would not be ruled by foreign powers, but instead be governed by elected officials who would uphold the rights of freedom.
Through the years, many of those freedoms have changed, all in the name of protection, to keep Americans safe. Although there could be many reasons for this, two stick out like a red, swollen, sore thumb. The first is evil intensions, while the second—although possibly more subtle, still evil—is corruption; groups of people that wield power and finances, seeking their own agenda.
I point this out because of the parallel it represents with religion. A couple thousand years ago, Jesus—God the Son—provided a way for all of humanity to become free from the bondages of sin. This freedom necessitated the need for leadership. In the early days, that leadership was righteous and God-honoring. Through the years, evil intended people found ways to exploit that freedom for their own gain. This in-turn produced leaders willing to partake of that gain—corruption—for their gain. This led to less freedoms, more bondage—all in the name of protection—so that corrupt people could gain more power and wealth.
This is a picture of religion.
Jesus dealt with it during his journey on planet earth. The early Christ followers dealt with it for around three hundred years. When Christianity went mainstream, it required leadership; and the religious structure was ready to step in.
Although there have been changes over the centuries, the religious structure is still in place. Even though there are those within the structure, who buck the structure, it continues to hold a firm grip on its position and power.
The unexpected journey to simple church, that has led to the unexpected journey to a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit; is about stepping away from that structure. This means that sometimes, there must also be a stepping away from the people wrapped up in that structure.
If that is the case, understand that it is not because of the people within the structure—although that too could be the case. It is about becoming free from the tentacles of the structure. Jesus’ own family did not realize that he had to do the (God) Father’s business.
There is an analogy in the movie The Matrix that illustrates this. Neo’s whole world changed when was unplugged from the Matrix. Everything he once thought to be true was challenged. However, he did not have to face those challenges alone. There were new friends that came along side to help him in the process. This is the simple church.
As often is the case, when I set down to write this post, I had no idea of the direction it would take. I only had it on my heart to start with Independence day. I bring this up for two reasons. The first reason is that I write these posts from my heart rather than some prescribed guide on “how to” have a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The second reason for bringing this up, is to point out that something I believe very strongly. I strongly believe that God the Holy Spirit has a reason for this post at this time. This means that you can take comfort in knowing that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are thinking about you. Take comfort in the fact that you are reading this post. You are not alone. You will make it. Take the next step, then the next, and the next. You will be amazed at where it (HE) leads you.
Last week’s installment
It is on my heart to pull out my last manuscript—the working title is, Rediscovering the New Testament Church—and prep it for editing. I began working on it in 2010. I bring this up because, as I reread the pages, I see how much my perspective has changed. I struggled with scrapping the project and starting over—because of the things my journey has shown me. However, I feel the stirring of God the Holy Spirit saying to leave it the way it is. Perhaps it will speak to people that are at the searching place I was nine-years ago. In my logic, that makes sense, but greater than my logic, is the prompting of the Lord. It also makes sense, in my logic, that a sequel—perhaps two—will follow; but again, only if that is the will of the Father.
I mention this for two reasons. The first reason for mentioning it a realization of how much I have changed in my beliefs regarding my walk with God. I grew up in the church—or matrix as I have come to call it. In some ways, I suppose, I was like Saul of the New Testament, because I was zealous for the ways of my religion—the church.
As I read the pages of this manuscript, I can clearly see a change-taking place in my walk with God—back then I did not have the revelation of a walk with the godhead. I can also see a change from then until now in both my perspective about the church and my journey with the godhead.
This is important to note because the life of Jesus as written in the New Testament Gospels, reveals clearly that the religious leaders were NOT willing to embrace change, thereby missing the mark regarding Messiah, and the establishing of the New Testament church.
Change is important—howbeit, the right change.
One of the many things this journey to simple church will do is give you an undeniable opportunity to change. God the Holy Spirit, will show you things about yourself, about the ekklesia—we call it church, and about the godhead—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Once that change is shown, it becomes your opportunity to embrace it, or reject it. There is a story in the New Testament book of John, where the followers of Jesus turned away, refusing to follow him any longer. This is story in itself, worthy of further study. Jesus was revealing truth and it is too difficult for them to embrace it—so they left.
Humanity always has a choice.
The second reason for mentioning the manuscript is to challenge you to keep your own journal of your journey. Although the manuscript has never been a journal, looking back, I can see the value of having one.
I have never been a journaling type, but that is not to lessen the value of doing so. I had forgotten how long I have been on this journey. I can clearly see the change in thinking in the pages of the manuscript. I am amazed at the degree of change from then until now.
I have friends who are avid journalist—writing down their life events—that have books and books of journals because of years of journaling. From time-to-time, they have shared stories from early days in journaling, comparing them to the present time. It has been very enlightening stuff.
If you do not journal, maybe you will consider it. If you do journal, perhaps you will review the past few years and see your own changes.
Either way, thanks for reading today!
Next installment
Father’s Day is a national holiday that carries great importance. In an age where men are often demeaned and portrayed as pathetic second-rate human beings, Father’s Day is an opportunity to honor the man—dad, or father.
I have read that the purchase of Father’s Day cards is significantly less than the purchase of Mother’s Day cards. Although there are many reasons for this, part of it is due to the “dummying down” of men. This should not be so.
The primary key in a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, is communication. Granted that communication seems to be one way—you do the talking, or asking, or praying, while God sits in silence. That is a matter to be addressed at another time.
The point is, talking to your father is a key ingredient to a healthy relationship with him. It is highly possible, that this is a perfect time to reach out to your father to begin reconciling with him. It could be this is a perfect time to choose to forgive him and begin to mend a broken relationship. Perhaps this is the perfect time for a phone call that simply says, “I love you,” or “I forgive you.”
If your father is no longer alive, turn your eyes to Father God telling him that you love your dad, or that you forgive him. Perhaps today is a perfect time to start a healing process in your heart.
On the other hand, if things are good with you and your dad, make sure to tell him that you love him. As a male, I know how difficult that can be. I recall when I made the decision to tell my dad that I loved him. Not only was it hard, it seemed weird. In the beginning, he would look at me and smile. Before long, he would tell me he loved me too. There was a point that he actually initiated saying he loved me.
I have trained our sons to do the same. At first, it was difficult, but now it is a natural as breathing. It is important to take the steps necessary to communicate with your dad.
The other issue confronting many in our world is that people know their dad—the male that raised them, but have no clue who their father is. In this case, love your dad, and forgive your father. Do not allow things that you may know nothing about—as to why he left—stand in the way of your heart being right or righteous.
For the father’s, I bless you and encourage you to uphold the sacred honor of fatherhood; things like being a positive example, encourager, protector, and provider. Enjoy the day, speak blessing of over your children, telling them that you love them.
To God our Father, Happy Father’s day, I love you!
Next installment
I awoke this morning with a song about the return of Jesus running through my mind. I have been a student of revival my entire adult life. I have held to the belief of a great awakening before the return of Christ. In part, this is based on the writings of the Apostle Peter, who wrote about the Lord’s return. He states that God is not willing for any to perish; that all should come unto salvation.
The way Peter’s words are written in the King James English, seem to say that God will not let anyone die before they have accepted Christ as their savior. This theory has many holes, and this is not the place to examine them.
Humanity was and is, made in the image and likeness of God. This means that each male and female have the privilege of making his or her decision. God is willing to do any and every thing he can to make certain mankind has the opportunity to make that decision.
I have long imagined an outpouring of Holy Spirit power spreading across the land drawing men, women and children into the church so they have the opportunity to make that decision.
This unexpected journey to simple church has lead to the unexpected journey of a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—the godhead. It has confronted so many of the beliefs I held close. This idea—if you will—of revival is one of them.
I do believe that God the Holy Spirit plays a significant role in this end-time event. I do believe the church also plays a vital role. The difference is the church is not a place—it is a people—the called out, and the Holy Spirit shines through their lives to touch a lost humanity.
I am calling this revival by one.
I do not yet have a complete understanding of the godhead’s purpose of this. I do know that it is not something new, for a close personal relationship began in the garden. I do know that as Christ followers are willing to take this unexpected journey, that it will bring them, prepare them, for such a time to be God’s salt seasoning or a light to the lost humanity in his or her world.
You will find a page on this site, Revival by One, which unfolds what I am talking about. I have a sense that this page will become more meaningful in the time to come.
A close personal relationship with the godhead begins with the understanding that an invitation is offered. This understanding leads to the carefully thought out decision to accept it—some do, some don’t, perhaps many don’t, I do not know.
For those who accept it, an excitingly scary joy overwhelms them. His or her spirit is excited to take the next step, while his or her mind—the logical part—does so, even if reluctantly.
This process is beautifully illustrated in The Hobbit movie, An unexpected journey, when Bilbo Baggins is invited on the journey. At first, he is intrigued—this is the beginning. Next, he is curious—this is the careful examination. Following these two steps, he flat-out refuses—this is logical mind. After a night of sleep, he accepts. Even though the company has already departed, he gleefully gathers his belongings and rushes out the door and down the path to meet them.
Next installment
There are so many things I want to do with this website, and so many stories I want to add. I have not visited I can only Imagine, in quite a while; and I need to. The story of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament is one of the stories that belong there. In his letter to the Christ followers in Philippi, he offers some amazing insights into his life.
This man lived a close personal relationship with the godhead. In the third chapter of the New Testament book of Philippians, he makes this astonishing declaration, “That I may know him.” He makes this statement near the end of his life, not at the beginning—which would make more sense. By this time, Paul has walked with the godhead more than 30-years. This part of the Apostle’s story belongs in the Lessons from my Mentor’s page.
The focus of his life was to “know” Christ, not to evangelize—as we know it. The many exploits of the Apostle came because of wanting to “know him,” not a requirement to fulfill a mission.
I bring this up, because, it is hugely important to understand, humanity was—and is—created to have a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The intent of mankind’s existence is a close personal relationship; the result of that relationship is a righteous life shining life-light of Christ. This is not the place to unfold how that looked in the Apostle’s life, even though it is clearly seen.
Paul did not stop with saying, “That I may know him.” He continued by saying, “to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” (New International Version)
Think of it this way. If God gave the Apostle Paul a mission—reach as many Gentiles as you can—then the goal would be to do so as safely as possible without being killed. The Apostle Paul faced both death and prison often.
The point is, his focus was “knowing him,” not accomplishing the mission. The mission—as it were—came because of God’s plan for the Apostle. The relationship came because of Paul’s desire to “know him.”
The Apostle Peter—in his writings—mentions that the writings of Paul are often hard to understand. The same is said of his life. He lived about 30-years in religion. After meeting Jesus, he lived about 30-years getting to “know him.”
This is what a close personal relationship with the godhead is all about. It is also important to note that depth of Paul’s desire to “know him,” brought about the loss, pain and suffering, he so willingly experienced.
Not everyone is willing to go that far in a close personal relationship with the godhead. The beauty of that is that God the Father knows this, meeting us on whatever level we are willing to reach.
Next installment
Memorial Day is set aside as a time to remember the sacrifices made by those who died in defense of the virtues and values we hold dear as citizens of the United States of America.
Think about how important such a remembrance is. Without such a remembrance, people forget the high price paid that affords us such a freedom. Once forgotten, it becomes easy to slip into a mindset of entitlement, where we think, even strongly believe we are owed such a freedom. This type of mindset is dangerous because people begin to show disrespect for authority, to the point that demonstrations—even if violent—are held to demand what is—in their eyes—rightfully theirs. (This is not addressing Article I addressing the freedom of speech, or right of peaceful assembly)
Once fully embraced, this mindset, strips people of a sense of responsibility to defend the freedoms that they now demand. This means a shortage of people willing to serve in the Armed Forces for the protection of the people. This weakens national defense, making the people vulnerable to enemy attacks.
This is true both naturally as well as spiritually. When Christ-followers forget the sacrifices made by the many who have gone before them, an entitlement mentality begins to plant seeds of want in his or her mind. Left in place, untouched, these seeds grow until they produce the fruit of selfish, self-centered demands, like my possessions, my provisions, or my positions.
There is no possible way for someone with such a mindset to have a close personal relationship with the godhead. Every encounter, prayer or request will be about me my need or my want.
Consider how prevalent such a mindset is in Christendom.
The Bible—both Old Testament and New Testament—makes it quite clear that battles and warfare are part of a Christ-followers life. However, with an entitlement mentality, warfare is virtually impossible because such a mindset is devoid of accepting responsibility; that belongs to someone else.
I say that to say this, a Memorial Day for a Christ-follower should go deeper than taking a moment to remember the men and women who died in defense of our country. Memorial Day should also be a time to reflect on the men and women of faith—those recorded in the Bible—as well as those in his or her personal life, who have done so much to help you get to the place you are today.
Next installment
I recently posted a new page entitled, A Close Personal Relationship. I trust it will offer a simple guide to developing a close personal relationship with the godhead—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
As I read the headlines of current events around the world, I cannot help but see the influence of the god of this world—the devil, or Satan, or Lucifer. There is an undeniable friction that is rubbing (or perhaps, more accurately, already rubbed) an open wound into the very core of humanity.
The Bible makes it very clear that the devil’s goal is to turn mankind (male/female) against creator God. History proves this repeatedly. In the Old Testament book of Genesis, the devil uses a serpent to seduce Eve into doubting what God says. The temptations of Jesus in the New Testament speak of the devil attempting to seducing him using verses from the Bible.
The Bible gives many references to sexual promiscuity. The use and abuse of sexual deviance is clearly recorded throughout human history. The second-page headlines are filled with stories ranging from the latest clothing (or lack thereof) trends, to self-expressions of sexual behavior. This too, is a strategy of the devil to lure mankind away from God.
Dotted throughout the headlines are stories of people’s self importance—making a name for themselves—who are boldly, blatantly at times, proclaiming one cause of another. The headlines reveal prominent people openly, even violently mocking and ridiculing men and women in high-ranking positions of authority.
The Bible records in the New Testament that God’s angels, will not speak an accusing word against the devil; and yet these people openly do so, to the laughter and applauds of many.
The sad reality in today’s world is that anyone willing to stand up and say that is wrong behavior, is labeled with some homophobic label.
I bring this up because a close personal relationship with the godhead will place Christ followers in the cross hairs of such people. This is true because anyone willing to take such an unexpected journey will themselves be surrounded—much like Bilbo Baggins and company—by those who not only oppose their journey, but have an adamant hatred for them as well.
I like the reference to The Hobbit movie because Bilbo so defines a Christ follower who struggles with taking such a journey. When presented with the idea of taking such a journey, he flat-out refuses, only to suddenly change his mind and hurry off to join the company.
He struggles with where his loyalties lie as each hurdle comes along. He is there, part of him wanting to be there, but another part—perhaps the larger part—wants to get away as quickly as possible.
This journey is not some casual walk in the park. It is life changing, life altering. It is more difficult because of the ease of living modern humanity enjoys. It is more difficult because the devil has so successfully deceived humanity regarding the existence of God. It is even more difficult for the Christ follower because the devil has so thoroughly used religion to keep him or her in the matrix of religiosity.
There is a point in The Hobbit movie, where Bilbo settles the matter in his heart that he belongs on this journey and will see it through to completion. From that moment forward, things change for the hobbit. The battles continue to come, the enemy never relents, but in his heart he is resolved to fight—and so he, and the company, wins.
This is a picture of the unexpected journey to a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I call it an excitingly scary journey. In my heart, I have settled the issue that I am on the journey therefore, I am excited about it. In my mind, which I wrestle with daily, I am scared stiff because of the unrelenting uphill battle before me.
I like the way The Message states Jesus’ answer to someone who asked to follow him. “Jesus was curt: ‘Are you ready to rough it? We’re not staying in the best inns, you know.’” Matthew 8:19 The Message.
Next installment
This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. These are the words of the Old Testament book of Psalms. Have you ever considered what these words mean?
As a child, I used to think that at the stroke of midnight, God would do his “thing” and create a new day. Each morning the world would wake up to a new day the Lord had made. As an adult, it seems a silly notion, but as a child, it was something of wonder and amazement.
In the beginning—however long ago that might be, thousands of years or billions of years—God set about to create. He created a sphere in the midst of open space. He spun it into motion and made it to rotate around another sphere, which he called the sun. From that moment of creation until now, the earth has been doing exactly what God created it to do. It has not deviated once. It is no closer—or farther—from the sun since the day God spun it into action.
So, God really did make this day—a few thousand or billion years ago.
I bring this up because a close personal relationship with the godhead means getting close to God—the creator—the Father. Can you imagine the things he can show you, teach you, about life and creation?
This is what I mean when I say developing a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. To be sure, there is one God, but just as mankind his three distinct parts—spirit, soul, body—so the godhead as three uniquely distinct expressions.
I have an upcoming appointment with a neurologist. This is a person devoted to the study of the brain. They desire to learn every possible way the brain functions. In like manner, someone developing a close personal relationship with the godhead, is devoted in learning every (though impossible) possible thing about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
This is also, why I call this a journey. Can you imagine the possibilities of learning about the trinity—from the trinity!? What an honor.
This is also, why I call it an unexpected journey. Before my journey began, I thought I was doing quite well in my relationship with God. There was no need to make any changes. The same was true for Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit. Everything was just fine, no need to change a thing—but Gandolf had other ideas.
In like manner, God the Father has other ideas for his sons and daughters. In the movie, Bilbo was free to make up his own mind, and initially he chose not to take the journey. You and I have the same choice. You are not forced into it. But, afterwards, Bilbo tells Gandolf that he would do it again. And, so will you, once you take the journey.
Next installment
A special note:
If you are one of the billions of women across the globe with children, I commend you for your sacrifices, and wish you the happiest of Mother’s Day.
I am working on a new page entitled A close Personal Relationship. I hope to have the initial post online within the next two weeks. Perhaps it will offer some practical guidelines into developing a close personal relationship with the godhead. It recently dawned on me that nothing has been written, other than a blog post here and there, that offers any detailed understanding about it. Perhaps this is the right time to do so, or perhaps it has taken me this long to acknowledge the prompting of God the Holy Spirit.
I hesitate to give anything too specific because God the Holy Spirit works with each one according to his or her particular make up and purpose in the kingdom. Part of the challenge in the past has been an outline of “how to” do any number of things for the sake of the King and his Kingdom. Even though there is not anything wrong with that, it tends to—unwittingly—create clones instead of heirs/joint-heirs of the kingdom.
This is in no way intended to be harsh or demeaning to anyone who has done such a thing. I am simply being over cautious about the matter. To take an unexpected journey means you pack light, and go out with more excitement than instruction. This is by design, because it forces a dependence on the Lord.
The discoveries that I have made have been wonderful—for me. It is possible others find them amazing as well, but that isn’t the reason for putting them out there. The reason for putting them out there is to—hopefully—encourage others to take the steps that will lead to his or her own discoveries.
Can you imagine how much energy would be in a room where everyone has an experience they are bursting to share with someone else? This is what the Apostle Paul speaks about in his first letter to the Christ followers in Corinth. He states that (when they come together) everyone is to have something to contribute.
In the traditional setting, I, like my peers, was stuck on the latter part of the Apostle Paul’s message, where he says everything must be done within an orderly fashion.
I have conveyed this story before, but it illustrates what I am talking about. While in Bible College, I accompanied two other students on a road-trip to retrieve a broken down car. On the way, each of us had stories to tell about things the Lord had done, or was doing in our lives. By the time we reached the broken vehicle, we were so filled with faith—some might call it adrenaline—that we jumped out of the truck we came in, laid our hands on the hood of the car, commanded it start, and to our amazement, it did!
Many years later, I can poke a lot of holes in the story about the car, but for three young college students, God performed a miracle that day. The car ran fine all the way back to the college!
The point is, a close personal relationship with the godhead will give you stories to tell. When you gather with other Christ followers, you are to have the opportunity to share those stories. The result of such a gathering will bring encouragement to everyone present.
I hope A Close Personal Relationship will bring encouragement to you.
Next installment
Imagine hearing the news that a very close friend was brutally murdered. Beyond the shock would be a hardy dose of denial as you begin processing the flow of emotions attacking your mind.
Imagine being invited to a private family and close friends gathering at the funeral home where the body is, to say goodbye. You sense the panic in the room as you enter the funeral home, as people rush this way and that, ignoring your arrival. The conversation is tense, even accusatory as people rush by.
After a few awkward moments, a Funeral Director approaches you with a bewildered look. With a shaky voice he asks how he might help. You notice the color draining from his face as you explain why you there. He tells you to have a sit as he abruptly turns and walks away.
At that moment, two policemen arrive. The Funeral Director whirls around to meet them. As he takes them into an office, you overhear him saying something about the body is just gone.
What would you do? How would you react to such a scene?
This is simply a modern version of a real life story that took place over two-thousand years ago in the land of Israel. A group of ladies gathered before dawn, on this very morning, loaded with spices and oils, to give Jesus a proper burial.
Perhaps you can imagine their conversation as they walked to the garden tomb. It was hardly a week earlier that he entered the city with the cheers of the masses. His entrance set the stage for a glorious Passover. They may have even talked about the hope of the Sanhedrin recognizing him as the Messiah. They found themselves speechless when the news of his arrest came. They were in utter shock as they heard about his guilty verdict; and then that morning, that dreadful morning when the governor gave him the death sentence.
It was not the glorious Passover they had imagined.
But, here they are, walking in the dark to the tomb to place spices and oils on his lifeless body. As they approached the garden, a bright flash of light, followed by a sudden rumbling of the ground, stopped them in their tracks. They looked at each other in complete shock, wondering what more could possibly go wrong.
The scene they saw as they approached the tomb was not at all what they were expecting. The bodies of the soldiers who were guarding the tomb lay lifelessly on the ground—in shock, not dead. The huge stone placed in front of the tomb, lay off to the side. And then, to their utter shock, a being, manlike, appeared right before their eyes telling them not to be afraid. “He is not here. He has risen from the dead. Go quickly and tell his disciples.”
How many stories do you have about someone rising from the dead? These ladies have one—and boy is it a whopper! I suppose you could say that it turned out to be a glorious Passover after all!
Jesus is alive. Happy Resurrection Sunday!
Next installment
Developing a close personal relationship with the godhead is about a journey, a journey some are willing to take, while some are not. In the New Testament book of John, Jesus talks about some very difficult things—spirit things—that with the natural hearing are hard to process. The Bible says that many of the disciples thought what he was saying was too hard to deal with, impossible to embrace, so they left no longer following him. Jesus responded by saying, “Every word I”ve spoken to you is a Spirit-word, and so it is life-making. But some of you are resisting, refusing to have any part of this.” John 6:60-ff)
Please understand that I am NOT comparing developing a close personal relationship with the godhead to a difficult teaching of Jesus. I am saying that building a close personal relationship with the godhead is spirit-breathed and therefore life-making. I am saying that some, perhaps many, will resist it and have nothing to do it—as I am unfolding it; and that is okay.
In what we have come to call the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus conveys some of the results of a close personal relationship. The focus is drawing close to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In drawing close to the godhead, you find the purpose for your life, an eternal purpose.
The Be-attitudes (as we have come to call them) gives a glimpse of that relationship. Jesus outlines several commonly held practices and laws from the Old Testament writings. He follows each with a deeper commitment. Jesus is saying that it is no longer acceptable to have an outward appearance of relationship—saying and doing the right things in front of the right people at the right time. A close personal relationship is going deeper to a “heart” commitment—the mind, will and emotions—of the Christ follower.
In one place, he likens the religious folks of his day to cups and saucers; telling them how nice and clean the outside is. This is a true showing of religion, as long as it “looks and sounds” good, it must be good. He continues the analogy by saying the inside is filthy—not just dirty—and in need of scrubbing.
Jesus is saying that being good and saying righteous things is what matters. In other words, a close personal relationship deals with matters of the heart. In another place, a woman with a certain reputation comes behind him and washes his feet with her tears while drying them with her hair. The religious “saw” the outward expression and became indignant because of her reputation.
Jesus commended her because of her heart. The repentant condition of her heart prompted her to show the outward expression of appreciation. This is a powerful picture of a close personal relationship with the godhead. The motivation of this woman’s heart caused her to “show” an outward expression of love. The Lord applauded it, while the religious folks criticized it.
The page Salt & Light deal with reaching the unreached by “being” rather than “doing.” This writing has prompted a deeper study that will likely find its way onto that page. The longer I am on this journey, the longer I see the path been that draws me into the presence of the godhead.
I am not saying that it is an impossible journey; I am saying that the depth of this journey is more like hiking from Key West to Canada. It isn’t a “save” 30-minute shortcut to get me back on the main highway.
Next installment
This week my son asked if he “had” to read his Bible every day. It seems to me that God the Holy Spirit thought it important to write about it today. But first, allow me to build a small portion of the back-story.
When I was 18-years old I had a strong desire to read the Bible in one year, so I did. For the next 30-years I faithfully accomplished my goal. In the early years, I would write the date that I completed a book on a corner page. Through the years, I ran out of space to write the date. I still have that old King James Bible, and those dates—though many have faded with time—are still there. From time to time, I notice them and reflect on where I was when I wrote it. (There is no value in what I have written, other than the fact that it was brief trip down memory lane)
Below is the dialogue of that conversation with my son.
Son: Dad, I have a question. Do I “have” to read my Bible every day, or can I just read it when I have more time?
Dad: Reading your Bible every day isn’t the question you should be asking. You should be asking do I have a close personal relationship with God? Reading your Bible is important, you know my routine of Bible reading.
Son: I’ve got the relationship thing; I am just wondering about reading the Bible.
Dad: For years I read my Bible religiously. I read it when I did not want to read it. I read it when it was totally boring. I read it because I had made a commitment to read it.
As a result, I have knowledge of the Bible. I know many passages in the Bible, even though I do not know their address (chapter/verse). But when the Lord began to deal with me about simple church, I saw that change. At that time, you were too young to recall, I had no idea about a close personal relationship with the godhead. That journey opened up another avenue of reading the Bible.
Son: So, it’s okay if I don’t ready my Bible every day?
Dad: The key is getting to know God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Reading the Bible is one very important way to do that. To simply read the Bible has some value; after all it is the written word of God. But if you read the Bible so you can check it off your list, you have missed the reason for reading your Bible.
Son: So, I should read my Bible every day?
Dad: (chuckling) What is important is that when you read your Bible, you determine to understand what you are reading. There are times that I read the same passage over and over. I read the references to that passage, I read Bible commentaries, I read other translations; whatever I need in order to understand what it is saying. That is why I began using The Message Bible. I like the picture it paints in my mind; but even with that, I still research until I am comfortable with wrapping my brain around it.
Son: So, I don’t need to ready my Bible every day, but I do need to understand it when read it?
Dad: I suppose you can say it that way. If you are looking for an excuse to not read the Bible, any excuse will do; I don’t have time, or I can’t find it, or I simply don’t want to read it. When you read the Bible to understand it, you begin to look at it differently. You no longer see it has a history lesson about a group of people in a time long ago; you begin to see the heart of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Then it becomes something that you “want” to read.
Son: Okay, so I should read it every day, but I should understand what I am reading?
Dad: Something like that will work. It is important to have a routine in place, just like brushing your teeth, or getting a shower, or eating. When was the last time you didn’t eat because you didn’t have time? I guess what I am saying is this. If your heart is not in it, then it becomes easy to not do it; even when you do, it has little meaning. However, when your heart is in it, you will be more determined to do it regularly. After that, it is important that you understand it. Does that make sense?
Son: Yeah, I suppose so.
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There is a pull from the god of this world that beckons every man, woman, and child on the planet. Many—both Christ followers, religious people, as well as those who have nothing to do with Christ—are completely unaware of its presence, or its power to control them. This is part of why I make reference of the movie, The Matrix; people are living their lives totally unaware of what is really going on around them.
This journey to simple church and a close personal relationship with the godhead is another reason I use the Matrix analogy. Those who have taken the “red” pill (as it were) are being made aware of how complex the system of religion is and how it chokes the life out of everyone under its power.
This too is the doing of the god of this world.
It appears to me that this pull that I have mentioned is either becoming stronger, or I am becoming more aware of it. Either way, I am more keenly aware of its presence when I go to work. I can tell that it greets me at the door, gladly wrapping its tentacles around my mind to pull me into the vortex of stress and pressure to conform to its demands. If I am not careful, I loose sight of a close personal relationship, focusing instead on meeting quotas, deadlines and company pressures.
The Apostle Paul speaks about a continual prayer habit in his New Testament writings. During my days in the Matrix, I wrestled with how do I spend time in prayer, then leave that to do my work, and fulfill this mandate? I never could find a balance.
Since being on this journey, I have come to understand that it is a mindset of not loosing focus on the plan and purposes of God for my life; not that I spend all my time locked in a closet praying to God. It is never loosing sight of whose I am while doing the things I do in life.
I suppose an illustration could be an imaginary friend that is standing nearby. At the height of my distress, I look up to see him or her intently looking at me. Perhaps there is a look of concern on their face because of my struggle. Perhaps there is a smile of encouragement letting me know that I can do this.
I find myself having to set away from work for a few minutes in order to refocus on God the Father, or God the Son, or God the Holy Spirit. It is certainly important that I meet this deadline, or this production, or this company assigned goal, but what is most important is that I do not loose sight (focus) of whose I am and what he has planned for my life.
I am finding that a couple of minutes is sufficient to bring my perspectives back in line with my God. It allows me to step back into the fray free from the stress that began overwhelming me. The beauty is that it is okay if I need to do this several times a day in order to get through the day. My God is with me. I cannot loose for winning; I cannot go under for going over, and I will not be ensnared by the pull of the god of this world.
Next installment
Developing a close personal relationship with the godhead is at the center of this website. The church simplified was the available name at the time of setting it up. The premise is an organic or simplified approach to reaching out to God.
For me, the journey from being a traditional (matrix) pastor to a shepherd servant was no small task. The journey began quite unintentionally. The small group of believers I was given to groom and grow into a viable congregation resembling the ones I pastored in the past could no longer handle the expenses of the building. Being the wise steward I considered myself, I rented out the facility to a Messianic congregation that met on Saturdays and a Hispanic congregation that met on Sundays. We continued to meet on Sunday, but moved our meeting into the parsonage.
That is where the journey began. I liken it to Moses turning away from the sheep to see the burning bush. Once God saw he had Moses’ attention, he spoke with him. In like manner, once we moved away from the building into a more intimate setting, God began speaking to me about approaching “church” in a different way. Little did I know that the denomination I belonged to had a segment of pastor’s hearing and doing the same.
It wasn’t like we woke up to a different way of doing things. It was more like slow little baby steps that began unfolding an entirely different way of doing “church.” Instead of going to church, we were gathering to meet with God. It has never been about pointing a condemning finger at the traditional setting. It has always been about an inner yearning to get closer to God and his purpose in our lives.
The idea of a close personal relationship did not come on the scene until several years after my family and I moved away. The idea of seeing God as the godhead did not come along until years after that. In fact, when the website was first launched, a close personal relationship was not even on the radar.
The point of saying this is to illustrate the progression of the journey. The destination has been uncertain, other than an unexpected journey with God. This is why the Lord of the Rings movies took on such meaning. The correlation was clear; the journey, not so much. The leader was God, and that was good enough, so off we went.
The website is about a place others sensing the same yearning can come to in order to find some direction, hopefully encouragement, as well as a safe place to explore a dangerous message—a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The page Word of God Speak is about my observations of the books of the Bible as I continue my journey to read the Word of God annually. If a book speaks to me, I write it down and post it. If it doesn’t, that page remains silent. Since the Word of God is alive, I know that future readings will reveal new revelations in some of the same books. This means I will write about them and post it. I recently added two Old Testament Prohpet books, Haggai and Zechariah.
Next installment
Last week my family and I visited the matrix—we attended service in a traditional church. We do this for a couple of reasons, not the least of which is to stay in contact with the larger body of Christ. This is important to understand because simple church is not anti-church—as we know it—but rather a way to learn how to have a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The very structure of the traditional church setting does not allow a simple church gathering to take place. This is why small groups of many kinds, are vital to the traditional church. The challenge is, these groups are secondary to the main service. By virtue of this, the general church population views the secondary gathering as unnecessary. I do not speak this in judgment, but from my years of experience in the matrix setting.
The focus of the leadership is making sure the primary gathering is well oiled—as it were—so as to attract as many as possible. The secondary gatherings are often viewed as a means to assist those within the general church population who desire more, which is not a bad thing.
That being said, a guest speaker, who moved in some of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, began speaking into the lives of those coming forward. To our (my wife and I) surprise, our children were interested in having the man speak to them. I must say, it was a tear jerking time as he correctly spoke to each of our children things we know to be true.
On the way home, I started a conversation that lasted through lunch, about what each of them thought about it. It was a wonderful conversation. The word of God spoken by the gentleman found the “good-soil” of their hearts thus causing them to pause and reflect on what the man said and how it applied to them. It truly made their mother and I feel a sense of pride knowing that all the years of input showed some fruit that day.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is not about isolating yourself in a closet away from interaction from other Christ followers. Nor is it about only interacting with those seeking a close personal relationship with the godhead. In fact, many have no idea what a close personal relationship with the godhead means. There is an idea of drawing closer to God, but that is scary because of what is generally perceived as “giving up” things in order to do so.
I am prompted to say, that if any of my writings have given the impression that the matrix is bad and must be avoided—or even worse, attacked—then I humbly ask your forgiveness.
The Old Testament prophet Moses in the wilderness founded the matrix—the traditional church. God instructed him to implement a regular routine to be followed by the children of Israel to help them stay in right standing with a Holy God.
The New Testament church adapted that model making the necessary changes like doing away with blood sacrifices, in order to keep the structure of the Old Testament church in place. Although there is nothing wrong with this in and of itself, Jesus modeled a different approach, a simplified approach. The Apostle Paul, (the New Testament book of Acts mentions others as well) through the person of God the Holy Spirit, carries this model throughout the region with tremendous success.
The point of today’s blog is to develop a close personal relationship with the godhead—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Do this by setting your heart to follow him in both gathering with others who are on the same journey, as well as those who have no idea about the journey; draw close to him, not away from others.
Next installment
I spoke about taking a Sabbath day of rest in an earlier post. I found a definition that helped me visualize what that would look like for me as well as my family. It described Sabbath as an intermission—a prescribed pause in the production. Another way of looking at it is to liken a Sabbath with your lunch break. After so many hours, you are supposed (required to by law) to take a prescribed break. You are not looked down upon for taking it, no one is talking about you behind your back because you are on your lunch break, in fact your supervisor may approach you asking when you plan to take it.
Both the intermission and the lunch break are designed to give you a small reprieve from the work at hand. In the case of an audience, it is a chance to stretch their legs, get a snack, or use the restroom before returning with fresh focus for the next Act.
My purpose in writing today is to confess that I am struggling with being consistent with my Sabbath. I am finding it difficult to surrender habits that have become a part of my daily life. For me those habits center around my computer. I read the newspaper, my mail, my banking, my shopping and so many other things on my computer.
This isn’t to say that my Sabbath is supposed to be computer free, or that my computer is bad, or even bad for me. It is to say that I so quickly get sucked into the vortex of the next link, or the next “favorite’s” page that hours can pass without me moving—except to go to the bathroom.
I am on the computer at work as well as at home. Since mankind has not evolved to the point he or she can actively work while enjoying recreational time, the Sabbath means—for me—leaving the computer once the necessary things are complete. What is “necessary” could open up a Pandora’s box of “what-ifs”, but this is where God the Holy Spirit is present to teach, guide, and even correct, when it is time to stop.
The focus on a Sabbath is to pause—in this case for about 16-18 hours, (you gotta sleep sometime)—for a brief time to recharge before hitting it again. It is also a time to reflect on God, his Word, and/or the thing you might be wrestling with in life.
This is where gathering with others of like heart and mindset is important. We are supposed to be there to encourage each other along the way. This where simple church shines because it offers—if it doesn’t, it isn’t simple—a safe place to be yourself.
The beauty of the godhead is the fact that God the Father is there with instruction, while God the Son is there with hope and encouragement, and God the Holy Spirit is there with comfort and guidance to help you succeed, not fail.
The stories of the Old Testament show you the sovereign majesty of the eternal God. Do right, both in word and in deed. Doing right has consequences just as well as doing wrong does. The right consequences are called rewards, while the wrong consequences are called punishments; but each are consequences of our decisions.
God knew what he was doing when he introduced a Sabbath rest through Moses. Human’s need to rest and the most do not have the good sense to know how to do that; So God gave the Sabbath.
Next installment
A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that faith plays an important role in speaking the word of God. Faith is an intangible element that is woven into the very DNA of humanity. It is utilized without thought or question in daily life. For instance, when was the last time you put your feet on the floor, wondering if the floor was strong enough to support your weight? Can you recall the last time you pulled out a chair, pausing before sitting in it, to wonder if it would support you?
With rare exception, you haven’t given a thought to sitting in a chair or placing your weight on a floor because you exercised faith without giving it any thought.
In its simplest form, faith means belief. In one definition it is stated as a belief for which there is no evidence. This is the faith that is woven into the DNA of humanity.
It is exercised without question countless times in any given day. You will not find a protest, or politically correct version of this belief, because it is unconsciously used by every human being.
Why then, is faith so difficult when it comes to things of God? The answer is doubt and unbelief that is hurled at mankind from the time he or she is born. Religion plays a huge part in this process. Religion is a man-made attempt to get close to God. The fact that it is man-made means it is flawed and therefore will experience shortcomings and failures.
These failures naturally create doubt, unbelief and mistrust in those experiencing them. To add insult to injury, Religion offers non-answers (because those creating the religion have no idea of an answer) designed to safeguard Religion. For example, the totally not-found-in-the-Bible phrase, “The Lord moves in mysterious ways.”
The truth is life ebbs and flows throughout humanities lifetime. The ebbing of life by hurt deeply, while the flowing may bring laughter and enjoyment. The difference is the ability to have faith—or belief—that as a Christ follower the end will be wonderful.
The definition of faith most often found in the Bible is, the belief and assurance that God is, that God will. This works whether you are journeying down a path you are completely unfamiliar with or whether you are speaking the Word of God concerning situations in your life.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead gives you the opportunity to believe at many intervals along the way. It allows you to trust the still small voice of God the Father that seems to permeate your very being with a thought. It enables you to find comfort in God the Holy Spirit as a verse of scripture from the Bible explodes in your mind. It gives you a peace of mind as the unseen presence of God the Son embraces you.
Faith is a very important element in this journey to simple church. It is a close companion in the discovery and building a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Next installment
The Old Testament book of Genesis tells us that in the beginning God spoke; the result being creation coming into existence. Jesus tells us in the New Testament that if we speak to the mountain—believing in faith—to be removed, it will be removed.
In Western culture, we have been taught—largely by Hollywood—that a force field, of sorts, goes forth when something is spoken and immediately things happen. The scene moves to an Arial shot where this massive wind rushes across the landscape changing everything in its path. Perhaps this is accurate when the God of creation speaks. Perhaps it offers some explanation as to why Scientists are able to look through powerful telescopes across the expanse of space and see creation taking shape before their eyes.
However, this can often taint our perception of the Word of God as we expect something to be done immediately when we speak about things pertaining to God and his word. Keep in mind that a timeless God spoke in the book of Genesis, and things happened. But did they happen immediately or over a period of time—as humanity understands time?
God spoke to Prophets in the Old Testament, many times instructing them to declare–speak things to happen—that happened in a process of time. To muddy the waters, Jesus spoke in the New Testament book of the Gospels, and things happened immediately. So, how do you reconcile that?
The answer may sound to simplistic, but it does not change the fact; God is God and will do what he wants to do, when he wants to do it. The things Jesus did were to stress a point about his relationship with God the Father and to set in motion the master plan of humanities redemption. The things that God spoke were out of his nature to create, and may have happened immediately or over a period of time. When you live in a timeless dimension, time means nothing.
The point of this is three-fold. God is timeless, God speaks and the thing spoken happens. Humanity is created in the image and likeness of God. This means—just like God—mankind has three parts, equally important, equally relevant in his or her makeup.
Many years ago I was taught it like this; man—meaning mankind—is a spirit, has a soul, and lives in a body. God is a spirit, has a soul, and lives in a body. This is difficult to comprehend and this isn’t the place to unfold it.
You (the whole of mankind) are created to be creative and to speak. The Bible speaks of both life and death being on the tip of the tongue. The spoken word is therefore quite powerful. Perhaps the page, “Word of God Speak,” will offer more understanding on this.
I am not certain when these things came together, but on this journey to a close personal relationship with the godhead, I understood the importance of knowing the word of God and knowing the voice of the Spirit of God, especially in regards to speaking the word of God.
Perhaps it is something that is—to coin a phrase—caught instead of taught; meaning it is not found in a book, but rather found in a relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
Consider this.
Did Jesus speak to his dead friend Lazarus to “Come forth,” because he missed his friend, or because he was the Son of God, or because in that moment, the Spirit of God spoke to him to speak those words?
The Bible does not give any reason as to why Jesus said what he said, other than the fact that he knew when the messenger told him of Lazarus’s death, that Jesus spoke to his disciples that he was not dead.
The point being, it is important to know the word of God. It is equally important to know the voice of the Holy Spirit and to speak the words the he gives you the moment he gives them to you.
Those words will create life.
Next installment
The Bible states in the Old Testament book of Genesis, that the Word of God was in the beginning. The New Testament book of John reiterates that truth. I bring this up because building a close personal relationship with the godhead—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—centers around the Word of God.
Since—for the most part—humanity has not seen God the Father, or God the Holy Spirit and by comparison, few have seen God the Son, the Word of God takes on huge importance. Faith (see the page We walk by Faith) plays a key role, in the whole of humanity, but especially in this journey to simple church.
We live in a time of unprecedented political correctness, which calls into question the very words spoken. I bring this up because for someone to say that he or she believes in the Word of God is to be labeled with an ever-growing list of negative labels. Without a close personal relationship with the godhead, such negativism will affect you to the degree that you doubt the truth of God’s word.
The Apostle Peter speaks of this in his New Testament writings in the book bearing his name. He states in the end of time—as humanity knows it—scoffers, those who mock or teach false things, will make fun of the truth, imposing their own brand of truth. He forewarns Christ followers that it will happen—as is evident today.
This is why gathering with others on the same journey is so important, which is what simple church is all about. The positive influence will serve to override the negative voices in the world.
This is why spending time in the Word of God—as opposed to just reading it—is so important. There may be times when a certain portion of what you are reading needs to be re-read, or read from another translation so as to grasp the meaning. This is where gathering with others on the journey is meaningful as you dialogue about that portion of the Word of God.
The Apostle Paul speaks about this in the New Testament book of First Corinthians. He states that when you gather, that each one should have something to bring to the table of discussion. During this time you may discover that one person has a revelation—something shown to him or her by the Spirit of God—and that revelation becomes an inspiration in your heart that causes you to look deeper into the Word of God. The result of that inspiration may likely be a revelation—something shown to you by the Spirit of God—to you.
Next installment
I read a verse of scripture in the Old Testament book of Daniel that spoke to me about Revival by One. Daniel is one of the Minor Prophets. His writings largely speak of things that will happen sometime in the future—only God knows when that future is. This Old Testament book of the Bible is quite possibly the most written about because of the visions given to Daniel and the words of the angel that theses things are for the end of the age.
These words are found in the twelfth chapter. “Men and women who have lived wisely and well will shine brilliantly, like the cloudless, star-strewn night skies. And those who put others on the right path to life will glow like stars forever.” (The Message)
To be clear, the passage is speaking of the end of the age—which perhaps we are living in. The image they paint so clearly speak of what I am calling Revival by One. The perfect illustration is found in the third chapter of Daniel’s book. It is the story of his three Hebrew companions, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego by their Babylonian names) and the important role they play.
The king creates a 90-foot tall statue of himself demanding everyone in his kingdom, “bow before it in worship or risk being thrown into a fiery pit.” Image the scene. There are thousands of people gathered all around this statue. On the main platform, a huge orchestra, the king and his court. The announcement is given; everyone will bow in worship as the orchestra begins to play. The king gives the command, the orchestra strikes up and thousands of people fall to their knees as ordered by the king—that is everyone but three Hebrew men.
At this point, it is obvious that they are the only ones standing. Enraged, the king orders the men to stand before him. He repeats his command. Their answer sends him over the top; “We will never bow to that image; our God will deliver us from your fiery pit—but even if he doesn’t, we will only bow to him,” they say.
The command is given, the three men are bound, gagged, and taken to the fiery pit. The flames are so hot that they consume the men charged with throwing them in the fire.
“That will put an end to that,” the king thought. But after a few moments wide eyed, he cries out, “I thought we threw three men into the pit? Why do I see four men, all walking around as though nothing is wrong?” Rushing to the pit, the king calls the men out, proclaiming that their God is God!
What a powerful story of a life that glows (no pun intended) like the stars.
These three men had a close personal relationship with the godhead. It was not a religious form or experience. It was a real relationship. They did not make a scene at the gathering shouting we will not bow to the image. They simply, quietly settled it in their heart that they would remain faithful to their God. The result of their decision had a huge impact on the people in their world—that is Revival by One—that is evangelism!
This is not to say that organized, or structured, forms of evangelism are wrong. It is to say that Revival by One is the impact of one righteous person simply living a righteous life no matter how popular or unpopular it is. His or her decision to remain faithful will point people to the path of life; it will cause them to shine bright as stars in the sky.
Next installment
The year-end necessary things are complete, which means I am able to focus on the many things on my heart. The articles that are stirring in my heart will begin to show up on the site. I may even delve into some of the upgrades being offered by WordPress to make the site more eye appealing.
The birth of Jesus has many wonderful stories going back many hundreds of years. There are prophecies spoken by Old Testament prophets that give insight in how and where the Christ child (Messiah) would be born.
Each of these prophetic words came true precisely the way spoken even though hundreds of years had passed. This is important to understand, because God’s word will always come to pass. There are two significant reasons to bring this up.
The first is the understanding of the Word of God. I find it interesting that the word “prophecy” is being used in so many Hollywood films. Someone may say, it was prophesied, or the ancient prophecy, or it has long been told that… and yet true biblical prophecy is mocked or dismissed as some misguided notion of a loving, caring God.
It is important to have a discipline of reading the Bible. I say this with some hesitation because simply having a discipline of reading three chapters in the Old Testament and three chapters in the New Testament is NOT what I am talking about.
This is the beauty of building a close personal relationship with the godhead; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will whisper something into your spirit, a thought, or a question, or something that intrigues you. This will require some searching in order to find out more—Jesus did this often in his teachings to the public.
(This is not the place to unfold this, but what I am talking about is different from the Holy Spirit breathing something into your spirit that causes you to simply “know” something that you did not know before)
You may recall in a recent post that God delights in concealing things, while Scientists delight in finding them. The whisper of the Holy Spirit is to cause you to search for something that is concealed. This searching will take you to the Bible, the Word of God.
This is what I mean by a discipline of reading the Bible.
The second reason this is important is that God’s word will happen just the way it is written. There are thousands of years of history proving that. This is important because the world we live in today is filled—and growing in intensity—with people who full-on refute the Word of God. The New Testament Apostle Peter speaks of this. He speaks of people who scoff, saying the world is doing business as usual who no sign of the return of Christ.
I know in my own life, I have been convinced that Jesus would return during my lifetime. However, I am not as certain as I once was. In fact, if I did not embrace this second reason, I too may be like the scoffers.
God’s word will happen precisely the way he says it will happen.
Perhaps this will help to wrap your brain around this truth. Also found in Peter’s writings is a verse of scripture that says something like, a day with the Lord is like one thousand years. This does not mean that in eternity one day is equal to one thousand years. If that were the case, time would be relevant in eternity; and even science has shown that that is not the case.
What it does is help a finite mind comprehend an infinite God. Consider it this way. Using this understanding of time, Jesus returned to heaven only two-days ago. This means the celebration of his return is just getting started.
It does not mean that the godhead have forgotten about the spoken promise of Christ’s return. The fact is those words are even more important than when they were first spoken. The adversary—the devil—has been defeated offering a clear path for humanity to return to his and her rightful place in eternity.
Be assured that God’s word will always come to pass precisely the way he spoke them.
Next installment
There is such expectation in my heart as 2019 unfolds. There are so many articles to write, new pages to post, upgrades to the site, even dusting off manuscripts, that I can hardly wait to get started. It is as though I am drudging waist deep in molasses in January to get there.
All of this screams the “P” word, patience!
I remember the stories (called nightmares by some) of those who prayed to God for “patience,” only to find things getting worse. This confuses many young Christ followers. It seems (Western culture especially) we have this Hollywood mentality about God being some kind of sugar daddy, or benevolent grandfather that quickly gets us out of whatever mess we find ourselves in.
God the Father does not work that way. God the Holy Spirit works within whatever situation we are in, to teach us a lesson. Perhaps the lesson is how “not” to do something, or how “to” do something, or—the best yet—how to find patience in the midst of our January molasses (as it were).
The beauty of building a close personal relationship with the godhead is learning. The Old Testament book of Proverbs speaks of God’s delight in hiding things, while scientists delight in finding things (from The Message).
This is such a powerful passage of scripture because it conveys the godhead’s delight in interacting with humanity. Why do you suppose God delights in hiding things? He delights in hiding things because mankind, being made in the image and likeness of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, delights in finding things.
I believe the stories in my heart have been placed there by the godhead, for the purpose of encouraging us (his creation) to “find” things this year. Could it be that many will be set free from the matrix (or religious bondage) in order to find a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit? Is it possible that this year will see a large in-gathering unto the King (Jesus) and his kingdom?
I believe the answer to be yes. I also believe this site to play some small part in that. This excites me and explains why I can hardly wait to get after it—hence the drudging through molasses in January.
Be encouraged, you cannot loose for winning; you cannot go under for going over; and you cannot be defeated for being victorious!
Next installment
My family and I began our Sabbath journey today. It is one of the things stirring deeply in me for 2019. As a pastor, I preached the Sabbath, without really understanding it. I knew it in principle—a day of rest, a day where you were not allowed to work. Since I could not really wrap by head around it, I could not preach it with much conviction, so it was not followed with much conviction.
I decided to research Sabbath instead of looking for my old notes on the subject. I found a definition that made sense to me. It said that Sabbath means intermission—something I can wrap my head around.
This is how I imagine it. I am at the theater, appropriately dressed, enjoying a performance. About midway through, the curtain closes while the announcer states that there will be a brief intermission. Everyone understands what that means, and gets up to go into the lobby to get refreshment, or use the restroom, or speak with friends, or any number of things.
There isn’t time to run home, change clothes and mow the yard, it is simply a break in the action. It would not be inappropriate to find a charging station to catch up on work, the show will resume in a few minutes.
The Sabbath is a break, an intermission from the things you are doing. It gives you permission to relax for a few moments before getting back to business. It allows you to take some time to talk with friends or meet with the family.
The Sabbath is an opportunity to kick back and enjoy the things around you.
This is something I can wrap my head around, which means it is something I can do with conviction. It means I can finally honor something God the Father set in motion from the beginning of time—a Sabbath, a day of rest.
This is important to understand because Sabbath is not an Old Testament command. From the very beginning of time—as we know it—God rested on the seventh day. He instructed mankind to do the same. Jesus honored the Sabbath, although offered new insight concerning how to honor it.
Through the years, religious people set rules, regulations and boundaries on the Sabbath. It was so far removed from what God the Father intended it to be, that Jesus upset the apple cart—as it were—to bring Sabbath back to its original design.
Jesus tells the religious people that the Sabbath is in place to assist mankind, not be enslaved by. This meant that it has never been about blindly obeying some set of rules and regulations, as the religious leaders mandated.
Sabbath is simply about taking a break, an intermission; from the things, you do every day. It is godly permission to not have to work.
Sabbath is also about trusting the godhead to take care of you by following the plan laid out by God from the very beginning. It means you do not have to work in order to make it. The godhead will make certain of that.
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As we approach the end of 2018 and prepare to cross the threshold of 2019, one thing hangs large in the air. Although it isn’t seen, it is certainly felt. For some it is the gentle breeze of spring, while for others the faintest wisp of wind.
It is the unwritten law of human nature to gravitate towards it. If even in the smallest of possibilities, it is held onto. Somewhere a sales-person once said it is the ruin of sales people. It hangs large in the air, and humanity cannot help but grab it.
It is hope.
Hope is the promise of something better; it is the thread that binds an otherwise hopeless people together. “Come on, we can do it, or Just over that hill, or around that curve, we can make it,” come the words of hope. While it could be the ruin of sales people, it is the unseen presence that humanity holds onto.
In 2002 God the Holy Spirit spoke through a man some words that pierced our hearts and permeated our souls, and gave us hope. We spent the next 16-years holding onto those words, although at times it seemed like a very thin thread we were holding onto.
At times we would boldly proclaim the words spoken by the prophet of God; then at times, we could barely whisper them.
As I read through the Old Testament in 2018, I saw three reoccurring themes. The first was a spoken promise from God. The second was a long-season—in some cases, decades or even centuries—with no fulfillment of the promise in sight. The third was the promise fulfilled—precisely the way it was promised.
I share this because, at least in part, this blog has been about our journey to simple church and finding a close personal relationship with the godhead. The journey is far from over, and hope hangs large in the air as we enter the threshold of 2019.
I also share it because this site is about finding a close personal relationship with the godhead and our story might stir “hope” in the hearts of those who venture to read the words written on it.
In the Old Testament book of Wisdom, King Solomon writes about hope. He says that when it (hope) is delayed in coming, that is creates challenges within the human soul. The most common phrase used in the many translations, say that delayed hope makes one heartsick.
To be heartsick is to be depressed. Wow! God the Holy Spirit gives you some words that inspire hope in your life, then the delay of those words happening bring depression. That is complicated and far too weighty to get into today. (Perhaps a new page is being born)
The good news is there is hope. God will honor his word, precisely as he gave it.
2019 represents another reason to grab onto hope. It is a New Year, with a fresh start and a new beginning. Yes, it could like every year before it, with all the hurts and disappointments, but it could also be the year that your heart is filled with joy because hope proved worthy of holding onto.
Happy New Year!
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It happened sometime in the fall, when the cool breezes from the north began to spread throughout the land. The journey was difficult because of the pregnancy. The road was filled with other traveler’s forced to obey the order to return to the town of his or her birth in order to be counted.
The scene outside the only Inn in town did not look promising as they approached. Shouting and arguing could be heard along with laughter as the door opened and angry people pushed their way outside.
The Innkeeper shouted, “There isn’t a room left to rent out! You will have to find someplace else to stay.” “But there isn’t another place in town,” someone shouted back. “That isn’t my concern,” said the Innkeeper. “Not even for a pregnant woman,” another cried,” as they walked into the door. “Not even for a pregnant woman,” barked the Innkeeper, now get…” his words trailed off as he saw her. Something touched his heart deep inside.
He took them outside, pulling them aside, saying, “I have a small stable around back. It isn’t much, but at least you will be out of the weather; it can get chilly this time of year.” He took them around back where they were greeted by a donkey, two goats, a milk cow and a bunch of chickens.
“You can use the straw to make a bed and cover it with your blanket,” he said. “I will make sure to bring you some food from the Inn. It isn’t much, but it is the best I can do.” Deep in his heart, he knew something was different about this couple. He could not say what it was, he only knew he had to do something to help them; he wanted to help then.
Just as they were settling into their temporary dwelling, the Innkeeper appeared with some bread and lintel soup. Following him were two women, the town mid-wife’s. They immediately began to offer help, making Mary as comfortable as possible.
As night began to fall, the labor began to intensify; Mary was about to deliver her first-born child. She had no idea that what was about to unfold, as this miracle child would be delivered. She did not understand that she had to be in place, this very place, in order to give birth to this child.
She knew he was special because of the visit from the angel nine months earlier. She held close to her heart the thoughts and dreams given to her by the Lord during the time of her pregnancy.
That night the perfect plan of God was made known to mankind, and mankind had no idea what eternity-changing events were about to take place. More importantly, the god of this world was caught off guard.
As far as anyone could tell, this was just another woman giving birth to another child.
The plan of God needed a huge cast as well as stage. The unrighteous Roman ruler had to give the order for everyone in Israel to be counted. The unrighteous leaders had to devise a way to count them. Every person in Israel had a part to play, even the Innkeeper who offered the stable.
In all of this, no one had any clue that they were fulfilling a plan of God. Not one person felt as though they were manipulated into playing their part. Everyone did so of his or her own will.
The lesson’s that are wrapped in this one story of the redemption of humanity are enormous. For today though, simply realize that God the Father has a plan for humanity as a whole, as well as a plan for you individually. His plan will happen, naturally. The part you and I play is simply to listen and obey the unction’s or impressions he places within our hearts.
Merry Christmas should mean, Thank you godhead for devising the plan that brought God the Son into the earth to set the stage to bring me back to you!
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God the Holy Spirit is central to a close personal relationship with the godhead. Jesus speaks of the importance of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament book of John. He outlines the release of the Holy Spirit on the earth, in chapter’s 14-16, after his ascension. He (the Holy Spirit) becomes the central agent of the godhead, connecting with Christ followers, until the end of the age—whenever that will be.
Because of the Holy Spirit’s importance on the earth, the god of this world—satan—has worked to discredit the Holy Spirit throughout Christendom. This is been done by focusing on the speaking of a language that is not naturally acquired—called tongues in the New Testament. This language, according to the Bible, is simply an evidence of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This means to focus on the language is to minimize the importance of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Christ followers.
The success of this schism has widely divided the body of Christ, while creating denominational (manmade) cultures that accentuate a language rather than the purpose of this third person of the godhead.
As sad as this is, it is a brilliant strategy of the adversary, one that has been very successful through the ages. The sad reality of this fact is the minimizing of the work and purpose of the Holy Spirit on the earth today.
I bring this up simply because in developing a close personal relationship with the godhead means understanding the person and purpose of God the Holy Spirit.
The Old Testament prophet Elijah—when running for his life from the wicked queen Jezebel—is given a series of test from God. The prophet is hiding in a cave when an earthquake erupts. After the earthquake, a fire breaks out. Following the fire, a still small voice speaks to the prophet.
God was not in the earth-shaking earthquake, nor was he found in the raging fire. However, in the stillness of waiting, his voice could be softly heard.
This is important, because it speaks of a close personal relationship. It isn’t in the “doing” that gets God’s attention, nor causes him to speak. It is in the quietness, the stillness, the resting place, where the voice of God the Holy Spirit will be heard.
For me, it has not been the hearing of a voice—although that has happened at times. For me, it has been a “knowing” that permeates my entire being. It is difficult to describe. I have not “heard” anything, and yet I “know” something. I cannot say I feel something, but rather simply know it.
There are several stories in the manuscript regarding this. This is important because it was written before I had the understanding of a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Perhaps this will help someone in this journey to simple church. Perhaps you will find new strength to simply be still and wait on the Lord. Perhaps you will hear—or know—the voice of the Holy Spirit.
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There are so many things on my heart to do for the website this coming year. They are not the “fluff” things that bring eye appeal, but rather new topics and pages that will hopefully be of value to anyone who visits the site.
By business will slow down in the coming weeks, allowing me the time to devote to adding these changes. I am excited about them, and trust they will be a blessing to many.
In the mean time, my family and I took a walk downtown to see the sights and sounds of Christmas in our little town. The night sky was filled with laughter, Christmas music, and horse hoofs clicking down the road. The smells of fresh pine, popcorn and yummy hot coca, filled the air.
The steps of City Hall were turned into a stage, where period dressed actor’s preformed A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickinson. The outdoor stage was complete with snow—thanks to a couple of bubble machines tirelessly spewing out tiny snowflake bubbles.
With a wind-chill factor of around 45 decrees, it certainly seemed like Christmas.
We walked down to the waterfront to enjoy the displays and the 30-foot tall Christmas tree. The aroma in the air changed to steaks on the grill and fresh seafood as the waterfront restaurants were packed with patrons.
We stopped in the town square for a photo op when it happened.
A man approached me and very politely asked me if he could give me something, a tract. Upon seeing what he had, I declined saying he should keep it for someone who did not know the Lord. This prompted him to ask if I knew Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I suppose he was not expecting me to answer yes, but what happened next saddened my heart.
I could tell he went into some kind of defensive mode that set off a series of questions about my salvation. At no time was he mean, angry or rude, but it appeared he did have an agenda.
He seemed adamant about giving me the track, and making sure that I knew Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I politely refused his offer, telling to give it to someone who needed it. I believe he would have stayed there until I confessed my sins, asking Jesus to come into my heart. I finally excused myself telling him it was time to take our picture.
It is important to understand that the gentleman did not offend me; in fact I commend him. He had enough conviction about wanting people to know Jesus to walk up to a complete stranger and engage me. I would even venture to say that an evangelist anointing was on his life.
Would to God, every Christ follower carried such a conviction.
But having said that, it is also important to know that not everyone does, nor is he a model of how to present the message of the king and his kingdom. I point this out because this gentleman—as sincere as he was—is an example of religion and not a close personal relationship with the godhead. Let me also say, that this lesson runs far deeper than a single blog post can cover.
My perception of what happened is what made me sad. It seemed to me that the “defensive” mode I noticed was the man shifting gears in order to control the conversation. (Again) My perception is that he resorted to his mental notebook to find the response to, “Yes, I know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.” Once finding that page, he looked for the response, which must have been, “Oh, so when did you get saved?”
I point this out because this is precisely how I trained people in what the matrix calls discipleship. I did my due-diligence in order to train them with as many comebacks to objections as possible. Once they memorized enough of them, they were ready to go be a “witness” for Christ.
This sounds great in theory and I in no wise condemn it; however, it has nothing to do with the godhead or listening to the prompting of God the Holy Spirit.
There is so much to be said about this. There are several pages on the site that speak more in depth about it. In the Garden, Salt and Light and Revival by One, (all of which need to be updated) are some that come to mind.
Let it be said that our God (I often call him Papa) is looking for a relationship (a close personal one) over a religious experience.
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The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah speaks a strong word to shepherd-leaders. It struck a cord in my heart as I recently read it. Shepherd-leaders are more commonly known as Pastor’s, and the words of this Old Testament prophet have such meaningful focus for the New Testament church of today.
The Message translation records some of the prophet’s words this way: “Doom to the shepherd-leaders who butcher and scatter my sheep! God’s Decree. So here is what I, God, Israel’s God, say to the shepherd-leaders who misled my people: You’ve scattered my sheep. You’ve driven them off. You haven’t kept your eye on them. Well, let me tell you, I’m keeping my eye on you, keeping track of your criminal behavior.” Jeremiah 23:1-3.
There are shepherd-leaders who butcher and scatter the sheep (flock) of God. What does this metaphor mean and how does it apply to modern Pastor’s?
A Butcher is defined as one who slaughters animals, prepares the meat, and then sells the meat of those slaughtered animals.
These tasks are done on purpose. They are intended to produce a profit for the butcher, as this is his or her way of living. It is an honest living. However this is an atrocity for a Pastor.
The implication is that the Pastor does not care for the sheep, but rather cares about taking care of his or her self. It implies that selfish motivations are the deciding factor in tending to the flock of God over Godly desires for his sheep.
This can be seen in decisions like, having a bigger building, having a high-priced speaker, or having a high dollar salary or life-style. Although none of these things alone signal a “butcher,” they may be cause of alarm among the flock.
This speaks to the condition of the heart. Is the care for the congregation (flock) based on what is right by the Word of God; or is it a veiled attempt to get something the pastor desires?
It is often said that sheep are dumb, but they are not stupid. Jesus speaks about sheep hearing the voice of the shepherd and fleeing the voice of a stranger. The Butcher disguised, as a Pastor does not have a voice that the sheep are familiar with. This means they do not trust the shepherd.
This is an indictment on the Pastor.
Obviously not everyone who is called a Pastor falls into this category; but those who do will have a harsh day of reckoning. It will be a day when God the Father sets straight the record.
I bring this us for two reasons; the modern church hardly resembles the New Testament church of Jesus Christ. Religious traditions of form and familiarity have replaced the fresh focus on following the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Millions, perhaps billions have deemed the church irrelevant and as a result have “scattered” to the four-winds. This is the second reason and it is not the intent of godhead; and this is where simple church signs a spotlight on the simple gospel with simple shepherd-leaders caring for the flock of God.
I know I run the risk of sounding anti-church, which I am not. I am simply pro-ekklesia (the called out, who are called unto a public place). Bound by love and the abiding presence of God the Holy Spirit, making a difference in the lives of mankind.
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There is a man in the New Testament who was a fisherman, who later became a disciple before being called an Apostle. His name was Simon Barjona. Jesus called him Simon Peter, likening him to a stone used in building.
In Bible College, I called him “stick-your-foot-in-your-mouth” Peter, because it seemed he spoke first and thought about it later. Peter was nobody’s fool, nor was he anyone’s servant. He knew how to serve being brought up under Roman rule, but he did not take a backseat to anyone.
I wouldn’t call Peter, a mans’ man, but he wasn’t a coward and did not back away from telling you what he thought.
The family business was fishing on lake Tiberius, called by many the sea of Galilee. One day Jesus shows up asking to use his boat for a platform from which to speak to the crowd along the shore.
Since Peter had already fished for the evening and was mending his nets, he consented launching out a little ways for the shore. As Jesus spoke, Peter attempted to stay on task of mending the nets; the words spoken by Jesus captured his heart and this intrigued Peter.
Upon finishing, Jesus instructed Peter to head out on the lake to fish. Peter objected because they had unsuccessfully fished the evening away and he was tired. However, he could not refuse the words of Jesus; his heart still tender from what Jesus spoke to the crowds.
Soon there are more fish in the net than Peter can haul in by himself. He called for his partners to join him as he and Jesus worked at bringing the huge catch into the boat.
By this time, Peter was more than intrigued, he was convicted, and crying out for Jesus to leave such a sinful person has him. I can only imagine the thoughts and feelings that overwhelmed Peter as he looked into the face of Jesus, having no idea that he was in fact the Son of God.
I share this snippet of Peter’s story for two reasons. First it is a lesson about developing a close personal relationship with the godhead. Since Peter had no idea who Jesus was, he spoke to him as he would any man—not with disrespect, but rather in open honest terms.
So often the religious idea of approaching God is one of great reverence and awe. While it is true that God is grand and worthy of all praise, he is still the creator of mankind (today called human kind by those attempting to be politically correct). Even though it is true he is to be awed as well as revered, he is still the approachable Son of God.
The point is to be yourself, open and honest with God as you approach him.
The second reason I bring Peter’s story to light is the amazing picture it paints of what I am calling Revival-by-one.
Consider this.
Jesus approaches Peter requesting to use something belonging to him. Once he is finished using it, Jesus desires to repay Peter by providing him with something very important to him—in this case, fish. This encounter opens up a dialogue with Peter and Jesus, in which Jesus simply tells Peter that he would like him to catch people instead of fish.
Think about how important this is.
Jesus offers Peter an analogy that he can totally relate to. In order to fish, Peter needed a boat, a location where fish were and a net. In order to catch people, he would need a way to get to where people were and something that equated to a net to catch them.
Jesus never pointed a finger, shook a fist or pounded a table while shouting at the top of his lungs; he simply asked would you catch people?
Revival by one is a simple concept that is as old as the New Testament. Jesus gives a clear outline of how it works, beginning with Peter and many times throughout the four gospels of the New Testament.
The continuation of the story goes like this, Peter accepted!
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There is a song/psalm that used to be sung back in the day. Perhaps it still is, but I have not heard it in a long while. It goes something like this:
“Give thanks with a grateful heart, give thanks unto the holy one,
give thanks because he’s given us Jesus Christ his son.”
The chorus says,
“and now let the weak say I am strong, let the poor say I am rich because of what the Lord has done.”
I woke up with that song on my heart. It stirred me deeply as I reflected on the past year with all of the “stuff” (we call it Ship High In Transit) that has happened. I can say with certainty that we are on the other side and things are indeed easier.
However, it does not mean that life is sunshine and lollipops. There are—and will always be—challenges, trials and testings, along the way. Jesus tells us that there would always be trials in this world. He offered words of comfort—sometimes they comfort more than others—saying to be thankful because he has overcome the world.
I say it this way because last year the comfort was more a choice to believe his word, than an experience that was being lived. This is important to understand because as a Christ follower, our comfort comes from Him rather than circumstances. To be sure, positive circumstances make for easier comfort, but trust and hope in Jesus prepares us for whatever situation we might find ourselves.
So, wherever you are in your journey with the godhead, give thanks with as grateful a heart as you can. Be encouraged by the comfort of those who are “experiencing” comfort and be thankful that, if your comfort is a choice, your experience of comfort will come.
God bless your hearts.
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David was a shepherd of the family’s sheep. The Prophet Ezekiel calls David the one chosen of God to shepherd his people (Israel). This reference is very significant because David tended to the people of Israel in the same manner he looked after the family sheep.
He led them to good pasture to eat. He guarded them, protecting them from predators; when necessary, he attacked them. He sang over his sheep and tended to their needs.
David was an excellent example of a good shepherd.
These shepherding skills did not go away, in fact, they were evident in David’s life from the day he began serving King Saul until he was crowned King.
David was an excellent example of a good king.
Many years later, after his resurrection, Jesus tells Simon Peter to feed his sheep, meaning the Christ followers about to enter into the kingdom of God. The reference is, like David, to shepherd the congregation of Israel.
This reference has not changed for the New Testament church today. The Pastor is to shepherd the Christ followers. The challenge to successfully accomplishing this is not in following David’s example of care, comfort and correction, but in not falling victim to secular methodologies.
When I was in the matrix, the “pastoral talk” around the water-cooler was which popular minister’s sermons were you using, or how successful was your last member-growth campaign? The leadership would often press you for a certain number in attendance, because it meant community recognition. The conference speakers were the latest super-stars behind the pulpit.
These are just some of the pressures facing a Pastor today. Perhaps you can see why it is so important to have regular prayer for them. This is also why simple church is so significant. It unplugs you from such secular pressure thereby allowing for a more focused effort to “shepherd.”
Please allow a disclaimer.
This is not a “one-indictment” condemns all statement. Neither is it a simple church is the answer endorsement. There are challenges in both arenas. The answer is learning how to develop a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Perhaps this offers some understanding concerning what is being called “church.” Perhaps you can find some compassion for those locked into what I am calling the matrix. Perhaps it offers some understanding about the importance of developing a close personal relationship with God the father, God the son and God the Holy Spirit.
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What does having a close personal relationship have to do with simple church? The answer is, in some ways nothing at all, and yet, in other ways almost everything.
In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul writes a letter to the Christ followers in the city of Ephesus. That letter, along with many others, is now part of the New Testament of the Bible.
In this letter—among other things—the Apostle explains certain functions of certain people in the New Testament order of things. He lists positions such as, Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher. The purpose of these positions is to bring to maturity the “saints,” which by simple definition means one who is blameless.
These people are to also carry out the functions, or business, of the administration, while building up the Christ followers, called the body of Christ in the King James Version of the Bible.
Once again, in simplified version, this is where the current New Testament church is constructed. This is where I lived, from the time I was born until about ten-years ago.
As the Pastor, it was my responsibility to “build up the saints,” and to make certain the administration of the “church” was in proper order. This order of church has been in place for millennia and will remain in place until Jesus returns.
In this model, these five positions have duties that relate to the three purposes of those positions. In the structure of the church today, the Pastor bears the weight of the three purposes, while—not always—the other four positions travel from place to place conveying a story about God.
In this model, the Pastor carries the burden of growing the numbers—considered building up the body of Christ—bringing to maturity the followers—considered equipping the saints—and making certain the business of the church is financially sound.
I did not realize how deep this is within me until I began putting it down on paper. I can tell this needs to find its own page, but suffice it to say, that today it will be brief.
Simple church removes almost all of that, thus freeing the Pastor from such a (religiously) heavy burden. It places the focus on the Christ follower to draw close to God—or the godhead as I am calling him.
Simple church is about learning how to be still and hear the still small voice of God—the Holy Spirit—that Prophet Elijah heard from his hid-away cave. It is daily doing the simple things that invoke a close personal relationship; simple things like, talking to God, taking a bath with the Word of God so as to be clean from the inside, and determining to learn something new about God the Father, God the Son or God the Holy Spirit.
As for these five positions, those who fill them are to lead by example and make certain things are done in a righteous way, so that the body of Christ is growing in righteousness.
I suppose I gave myself some homework in putting another page in place that offers a deeper understanding of this contrast between (what I am calling) matrix church and simple church.
Blessings on you.
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Hear my cry oh Lord and attend unto my prayer, is a prayer David, the Shepherd/King of Israel used several times. “I need to talk to you God, please listen to me,” could be a modern way of saying it.
It is said of David that he had/has a heart after God. I remind myself of this when I do the “stupid” human things that fallen humanity so often does. Things like, anger that leads to rage, or resentment that leads to bitterness (I suppose the list would be endless).
David was very much human, and yet very much in a close personal relationship with the godhead as he knew him. For me, “Hear my cry oh Lord,” is the cry of a pure heart that is surrounded by a tainted soul—mind, will and emotions. It could easily be characterized by the expression, “act now, think later.”
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is not about finding the right pattern to follow or formula to adhere to; it is about learning how to hear that still small voice. It is about understanding that he—the godhead—is right there along side when you do the right things, as well as when you do the wrong things.
It is important to understand this. The Old Testament teaches us that God is a righteous God and requires righteousness to come into his presence. The thirty-nine books that make up the Old Testament of the Bible, also shows us that God is full of grace, slow to anger and willing to forgive humanities mistakes.
You will learn that the wrath of God, or the judgment of God only comes when humanity willfully takes a path that ignores the righteousness of God. This means that the soul of mankind—the mind, will and emotions—are in control and the heart (as it were) of that man or woman has aligned with the unrighteous path.
I hope you see the difference. David—as well as all of humanity—did stupid things, but his heart, his desire was to serve/please the Lord his God. This is someone the godhead is continually around, in the right decisions and in the wrong decisions.
The Apostle Paul in the New Testament echoes this thought in his letters to the Christ followers in the city of Rome. Using the language of the King James Version, he calls himself a “wretched” man for doing the things he does not want to do. He cries out, “Who will deliver me?”
The answer, of course, is Jesus.
My point in all this rambling, is building a close personal relationship with the godhead is a meaningful endeavor in this journey to simple church. As long as you have desire—this deals with the emotional part of you—to get close to God, God is there ready, willing and able to assist you in succeeding along the way.
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It recently dawned on me—I like to think the Holy Spirit brought it to my attention—that I may over-emphasized an important element of developing a close personal relationship with the godhead.
I have had a committed walk with the Lord since I was a teenager. Prior to that, I walked through the ritual Christian practices like, reading the Bible, praying, and attending church. There were times that I had—what I call—special encounters with God during that time.
I bring this up simply because I have walked with God a long time. My journey will not be your journey. The things I experience will not necessarily be the same things you will experience.
Somewhere around 2005 began a journey that I am calling a journey to simple church. It is about both discovering as well as developing a close personal relationship with God. During this time I have come to identify times in my journey where I recognize that I am in the presence of God the Father, God the Son or God the Holy Spirit.
I understand the uniqueness of this experience. However, I may have inadvertently conveyed this as a goal to be achieved. If this is the case, it is wrong and I do apologize. As awesome as it is to realize such a relationship can happen, the purpose of building a close personal relationship with the godhead is to draw close enough to God to fall in love with him and both recognize his presence as well as act on the promptings felt or given.
As I understand it, the Holy Spirit—God the Spirit—is the active agent of the godhead in the earth today. For this reason, much of our interaction with the godhead will take place with the person of the Holy Spirit. This is a spirit-to-spirit connection that permeates your entire being. The interaction is more a “knowing” than a thought.
I have wrestled for some time whether or not to post a reading list concerning the matter. In the beginning of this site, my intention was to do so with a link designed to collect a few cents from any purchase.
However, as I have talked to the Lord about it, I realize how these books have helped me, and may not speak to you at all. So, I have hesitated in posting them. That being said, I will list them along with a brief explanation as to why they spoke to me. This way, you could be benefited from reading the material.
Either way, I do hope you can forgive me if I incorrectly conveyed something that created any hesitation if your life in—either—taking or continuing along this incredible journey to a close personal relationship with God.
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Our family life has been so hectic this past month, that I have not updated several of the pages on the website. Word of God speak, needs a good update, as does I can only imagine. I need to update Lessons from my Mentor’s and Does God Lie? There are several new additions that I hope to add to the site. I guess I say this to ask your patience as I process it all into an actual plan of action.
Life is filled with so many “things” that vie for our attention, especially life in Western cultures. How do you keep your focus on the important while placing the urgent or interesting on the “to-get-to” shelf? It isn’t always easy.
Just this morning I was on a site that required a pass code be sent to me before moving forward. I went to my e-mail to look for the code—my phone was in the bedroom and I did not want to disturb by sleeping wife. As soon as I opened the e-mail, I saw that I had been tagged on a facebook post announcing someone’s death. I immediately clicked the link to find out more. I became so enthralled in the kind words from people I knew, but had not seen in a long time, that I completely forgot about the reason I opened my e-mail.
The correct way to handle the e-mail would have been to come back to it once I completed the important task that brought me to there in the first place. However, my illustration is reality not ideal, nor is it anything of significance.
The question is how do maintain my focus in a world of distractions? I am becoming more and more convinced that the answer is love. Jesus would awaken early in the morning to find a quiet place to spend time with God the Father. Why do you suppose he did this? In the early days of my matrix life, I was taught that is was because of discipline. Discipline has a part to play in all human life, but I do not believe that it was the reason he did this.
Jesus rose early to spend time with God the Father because he loved him. This love created a discipline of rising early. Can you see the difference? Love created the discipline, not the other way around.
This love created the “important” element of Jesus’ day. The Bible does not reveal what took place during those times with God the Father, but I believe instructions for the day were included. His time with the Father may have gone something like this. “Good morning Papa. This is such a beautiful day.” The Father might have responded, “Yes it is son. I hope you will enjoy the things I have planned for you to do today, but before I get to that, tell me how you are doing.”
Can you understand how such a relationship would create a discipline to get up early?
I recall the early days when my wife and I were dating. It completely changed my routine. I got earlier in order to get done the things that had to be done in order to be with her. I had a purpose for doing what I was doing along with a motivation to get it done.
In all of my humanness, my love for this woman created a discipline that motivated my life. I say it this way because if human love can create that kind of disciplined motivation, imagine what divine love can accomplish.
Ask yourself this question. What is it about Jesus, or God, or the Spirit of God, that is attractive to me?
Think about that. I believe a close personal relationship with the godhead could have a place to develop based on your honest answer.
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Almost three-months ago to the day our world was totally turned on its collective ear. In case you are interested, you will find the entry on the 6/24/18 post.
Due to circumstances completely beyond your control, my family and I were displaced. I was able to check us into a homeless shelter, by the grace of God, with no idea what the next day would bring.
The situation gave me ample opportunity to be angry with God as well as a good many people. After all, it is unfair, unmerited, and most certainly unwelcome. But nonetheless, there we were.
I gathered us together to thank God for a roof over our head, a bed—even if it was a blow-up mattress—to sleep on and food to place in our belly. The prayer was heart-felt, though void of any cheerful emotions.
By this time in my own journey to a close personal relationship with the godhead, I had learned not to ask why, but rather, what. So, I began with a long list of “what’s.” I asked, “what am I supposed to do now; what am I to say to those who ask to explain what is going on; what am I to do to get us out of this mess?”
I also asked a different set of “what” questions. “What am I to learn in this; what kingdom value is there in is; what are asking of me?”
God’s favor showed up—you could read or re-read the post—in many amazing ways.
I am retelling the story simply because a close personal relationship with the godhead is not a one-way ticket to life on easy street. Joseph in the Old Testament can attest to that, as well as Moses, and David—to hardly touch on a long list. The Apostle Paul in the New Testament is also on the list.
A close personal relationship with the godhead is simply a standard that allows the Ship High In Transit (think of an acronym) in life to successfully be both endured as well as overcome.
I usually log these posts on Sunday, with rare exceptions, this past weekend being one of them.
Three months ago all of our worldly positions were placed in a non-climate controlled storage unit. This past weekend we emptied that unit, placing our belongings in our summerhouse. I mentioned the non-climate controlled, because the heat of the summer showed up as mold on almost every piece of furniture and many pieces of clothing.
The point being that as wonderful as the settling in is, it was not sunshine and lollipops, there was much work to be done.
God is faithful, his word is true, and his promises are sure. His faithfulness, his word and his promises rarely—if ever—happen when it is convenient for us, the Christ follower. A close personal relationship with the godhead make it possible to enjoy the journey even while the ride is less than hopeful.
Believe me when I say, you really can’t loose for winning, you can’t go under for going over, and you can’t be the tail for being the head!
Thank you for following along.
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There is a song that is permanently embedded in my brain—actually there are many—which I sing to the Lord throughout the day. Some mornings I awake with the song already in full swing. I think the title is, Here I am to Worship, but I am not certain. It speaks about simply coming into the Lord’s presence to love him, to worship him, and to acknowledge him as God in my life.
It is difficult for Westerners to grasp being servants of and to a King. For me, Hollywood has (for the most part) helped me wrap my brain around both what that means and how it looks. I particularly like the image the Lord of the Ring trilogy, Return of the King, paints. Following his coronation, Aragom strolls through the mass of people occasionally stopping to acknowledge one of his servants. At one point he lifts his voice to sing a song that touches everyone in attendance. I see Jesus as such a king, fully God, fully in charge, and yet fully engaged in the lives of his servants.
I haven’t visited this page in a great while—which means I need to—it is titled, I can only imagine. I can only image actually standing face to face with Jesus, which is the premise of Mercy Me’s song of the same title.
Jesus is our King. According to the Bible, he is also our elder brother. Can you even wrap your head around that?!
There is a line in the song in my head that goes something like this. “Humbly you came to this earth you created, all for loves sake became poor.”
God the Son, King of all ages, stands up disrobing, while looking God the Father in the eye, and says, “I’ll go Father. I will bring them back.” With that the journey to mankind’s redemption begins.
This is what makes a close personal relationship with the godhead so important. God the Father desires a relationship. To a large degree, it is why mankind was created. God the Son paid a price that will not be comprehensible this side of eternity. God the Holy Spirit is present to bring that relationship to fruition.
This means it is up to mankind to begin the journey. In his writings in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul asks the question, (paraphrased) how can this happen without someone telling them?
This is where evangelism comes into play. This is what I am calling revival by one, your story being told to someone else, someone in your world. That story will intrigue some, who will in turn desire to learn more.
If you will allow it, this website is such an example. I am telling my story to a close personal relationship with the godhead. In this case, the people in my world are so by electronic means—it is the world we live in.
Some of those people are intrigued and come back to learn more. Some of those people tell others about the site, which check it out, also becoming intrigued.
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“What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks, to sing an anthem to you, the High God!
To announce your love each daybreak, sing your faithful presence all through the night…” The beginnings of Psalms 92
“Who stood up for me against the wicked? Who took my side against the evil workers? If God hadn’t been there for me, I never would have made it.” Psalms 94 (about verse 14)
“Come, let’s shout praises to God, raise the roof for the Rock who saved us! Let’s march into his presence singing praises, lifting the rafters with our hymns!” The beginning of Psalms 95
I saw two intriguing similarities between a close personal relationship and these Psalms. The first is the heart of someone in love with God. Can you hear the compassion in the Psalmist’s voice? “What a beautiful thing, God…”; “Come, let’s shout praises to God…”, are expressions of love and adoration to almighty God.
Developing a close personal relationship with the godhead will bring you into a love relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I will draw you into a place of desire to be near God. It will overwhelm your emotions to the point of shouting and singing words of love and admiration to him.
A close personal relationship is about knowing him; it is about getting close enough to understand his heart, and he yours. It is a wonderful thing.
I recall one time being afraid to open my eyes because I knew if I did, I would see God! His presence so strong in the room, I felt there wasn’t room enough for the both of us. The love permeating every fiber of my being to the point of shedding uncontrollable tears of joy was the best I could offer.
You may ask, is every day like that? The answer is, sadly no; but when it happens, nothing can compare.
If you are on this journey to a close personal relationship with the godhead and have not yet experienced this, be patient, for it will come. If you know the utter joy of such an encounter, celebrate it and do not be afraid to share it with others on the same journey.
I do caution you though to be careful with sharing with “traditional” Christians, as they may not be so kind or understanding of your close personal relationship encounter.
The second thing I see in these passages of the Old Testament book of Psalms is what I call Revival by One. There is a page on the site devoted to this theme. Consider what the Psalmist’s is saying.
“To announce your love each daybreak, sing your faithful presence all through the night.” “Who stood up for me against the wicked? Who took my side against the evil workers?”
“Let’s march into his presence singing praises, lifting the rafters with our hymns.”
These are testimonies of God at work. They are stories of God’s deliverance, his salvation from some impossible situation.
This is what evangelism is supposed to be, a story of your encounter with the godhead. It is a story that you cannot wait to tell because of what happened, how He did it—got you out of a mess.
Jesus makes it clear that Christ followers are to be about the father’s business. He leads by example throughout the New Testament books of the Gospel’s how to have a close personal relationship with God. He shows the Christ follower that out of that relationship opportunities arise for God to show up in your lives.
When He—God—shows up, share the stories. This is evangelism.
The problem with evangelism today is that it has become a program rather than a relationship. It has become a collection of memorization, with someone elses stories thrown in, rather than a fresh story about a real encounter with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Let me be clear, a close personal relationship with the godhead is NOT about evangelism. Evangelism is a wonderful outcome of having such a relationship with the godhead. There is a vast difference.
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I am currently reading in the book of Psalms. It is as though my eyes are open for the first time because of the things I am seeing. This is why the page, Word of God Speak, is an ongoing work. The Bible is alive with insight and direction for daily living. Even though I have read through the Bible many times, I do not recall seeing this much insight.
I believe the reason is because of my close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. To be sure, I saw things in the past. What I am talking about is fresh and new, unlike anything I have experienced before—which has been quite a bit.
The Bible tells us that the Word of God was in the beginning. It tells us that the Word of God was WITH God and that it WAS God. Have you ever wondered why it is worded that way?
I believe the reason is that the Bible is speaking about God the Son—with God–and God the Father—was God. God the Holy Spirit was very much present, hovering over the face of the waters. So, the godhead was both present as well as active in the beginning.
I believe this is why the first seven chapters of the Old Testament book of Genesis are accurate, because the godhead was an active witness. This report was passed along to Moses, who had a close personal relationship with the godhead—although he did not understand the triune nature of God.
In the New Testament book of John, Jesus reveals the focus—ministry according to the traditional church—of the Holy Spirit. God the Holy Spirit—called Holy Ghost in the King James Translation—will teach, testify, and remind the Christ follower the things of God the Son, or the Word of God.
I imagine it might work something like this. Jesus, God the Son, speaks to the Holy Spirit, giving instruction for a son or daughter. The approving nod of God the Father seals the matter. God the Holy Spirit then seeks opportunity to reveal this instruction to the child of God.
Receiving this instruction is where a close personal relationship with the godhead becomes important. I speak this from my own experience. Before I understood a close personal relationship with the godhead, I understood that the Holy Spirit was the active agent of the godhead on the earth today.
God the Holy Spirit began the process of getting my attention. This could happen by any number of scenarios. Someone could reach out to me with something to say, or something I read, or saw, left an impression on my heart. It could be a dream or an impression in my mind that would catch my attention. It is possible that I could miss the various attempts made by God the Holy Spirit.
In the Old Testament book of Genesis, God placed a bush on fire that would not burn up. The scene got Moses’ attention. It was only after Moses came close to the bush that God spoke to him. If you will, God the Holy Spirit got Moses’ attention through the burning bush, and God the Father was ready to speak once that attention was gotten.
It took years before I came to any understanding of a close personal relationship with the godhead. I simply thought it was the Holy Spirit doing everything because he is the active agent of the godhead on the earth.
It was only after being taught what a close personal relationship is, that I came to understand being in the presence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The three are one. The three work as one. God the Holy Spirit actively moves in the hearts and lives of humanity in order to bring them into a position of readiness to hear from God the Son. In religious circles, this is called being drawn by the Holy Spirit. It is not incorrect to view the process this way; the above explanation simply offers a deeper understanding of how and why that process works.
The Christ follower who has learned how to have a close personal relationship with the godhead finds himself or herself with the wonderful opportunity to get closer with God the Father or God the Son or God the Holy Spirit.
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As you may know, the Old Testament book of Psalms is a book of songs written by various authors with David being the key author. Written in—modern day—ballad form, they tell the story of struggle and triumph. It seems that David was often in trouble taking it to God for help or deliverance.
There are two things about this aspect of David’s relationship with God that need to be addressed.
The first is the religious aspect of going through the paces, doing your religious duty of reading the Bible, praying, tithing and giving to the poor. Once you have accomplished your duty, you go about your day, only calling on God if trouble arises.
This Old Testament mindset sadly lives large in the New Testament church of today. Numerous studies throughout the years have concluded that the decline in traditional church attendance can be traced to this very element. It is form and fashion without any real relationship. Much could be said about this, but today’s focus is on David’s close personal relationship with God. I say God as opposed to godhead, because God the Son, Jesus, as not known and God the Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets.
The second aspect of David’s relationship with God deals with three key elements of David’s life.
First David was not afraid to speak his mind—to God. He freely told God what he thought about the matter. In the sixth Psalm, David has this conversation with God.
“Please, God, no more yelling, no more trips to the woodshed. Treat me nice for a change; I’m so starved for affection. Can’t you see I’m black and blue, beat up badly in bones and soul? God, how long will it take for you to let up?” The Message
David makes it very clear that he is in trouble and God—as far as he can see—isn’t doing anything to help him. There is so much to be said about this; the page, Be still and know that I am God, may be of value to read.
David continues: “Break in, God, and break up this fight; if you love me at all, get me out of here. I’m no good to you dead, am I? I can’t sing in your choir if I’m buried in some tomb!”
David realizes that God is his source as well as supply. This is the second element of David’s life. Instead of raising a fist of angry retaliation towards God, he raises his voice in petition for deliverance. David is confident that his God will deliver him. Even though the situation is hard, almost overwhelming, with no victory in sight, he looks to God.
This is the heart of the Shepherd, the King and the Psalmist. This is why God speaks of David the son of Jesse as a man after God’s own heart.
“Get out of here, you Devil’s crew: at last God has heard my sobs. My requests have all been granted, my prayers are answered.”
This song is David’s praise to God for delivering him. This is the third element of David’s life. His close personal relationship with God centers on praise. As a musician he picks up this instrument allowing his heart to express his love to his God.
This is where I am so thankful for the Psalm that says, “Make a joyful noise” unto the Lord. I am certain that what I do is not considered music; but a joyful noise, yes! So, like David, I lift my voice in thanksgiving to God.
Like David, I am not afraid to lift my voice in complaint about the rotten situation I find myself in. I am not afraid to life my voice to God the Father reminding him of his word and promise over my life. I am not afraid to lift my voice and sing (at least the godhead hears it as singing) praises to God for the great things he has done.
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Have you ever allowed your mind to wonder what it must have been like to walk in a perfect place with the creator of the universe? Adam, the first human, personally created by God, had that opportunity.
Consider this
“God spoke: ‘Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature so they can be responsible for the fish in the sea, the birds in the air, the cattle, and, yes, Earth itself, and every animal that moves on the face of Earth…God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul! Then God planted a garden in Eden, in the east. He put the Man he had just made in it…God took the Man and set him down in the Garden of Eden to work the ground and keep it in order…God said, ‘It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a helper, a companion.’” Portions of Genesis1 & 2, The Message
This portion of the Old Testament book of Genesis clearly explains the purpose of mankind on the Earth. You and I are predisposed to be in charge, to tend to things, and take care of things. Exploring this fact alone has filled up volumes of books. But suffice it to say that is who you are.
The third chapter of the book of Genesis tells the story of mankind’s fall. The Message records part of the story this way. “When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in evening breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God.”
This portion of the story is important because it paints the picture of God and mankind spending time together in the garden. They walked and talked and explored the wonders of the garden. God told the Man of the various trees that bore fruit. He explained what fruit could be eaten as well as what fruit could not.
God brought before the Man every animal God made, tasking the Man with giving each one a name. So, you can thank Adam for naming the Orangutan or the Opossum.
These are only two events recorded in the Bible that God did with the Man. Consider how long they took to complete. Do you think the garden exploration was concluded in an hour? Do you suppose that each animal gathered in a parade marking by God and the Man, or do you suppose while exploring God pointed out this animal then that one asking the Man to name them?
This is the perfect close personal relationship with the godhead. It is about spending time being friends, enjoying the things around you. This is why I enjoy the book The Shack, it paints this vivid picture of mankind spending time with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
It enables me to imagine my relationship with the godhead. It helps me destroy the religious idea of some starchy formal dress engagement where you only speak when spoken to.
There is a page on the web site—In The Garden—that goes into more detail about this “garden” experience with the godhead. I trust you will find it helpful.
David, Israel’s king and Psalmist, brings another component to a close personal relationship to bear. I will expound on that next week.
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I found a Psalm of David this week that spoke so clearly about a close personal relationship with the godhead. I am reading through the Bible from The Message translation. It is the fortieth Psalm.
David begins by saying how he waited and waited and waited for God. He says, “At last he looked; finally he listened. He lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn’t slip.”
One of the first challenges Christ followers have in building a close personal relationship with the godhead, is the understanding that waiting is a necessary component.
In our Western world culture, it is not acceptable to be inconvenienced with any kind of waiting. The traditional church (matrix) today has fallen prey to this, offering multiple gathering times so as not to inconvenience its memberships. Meetings are held to an average (depending upon denominational preferences) 45 minutes to 75 minutes.
Waiting is (loosely spoken) un-American, however absolutely mandatory in a relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
Eugene Peterson’s rendering of David’s Psalm pegs this very important element of godly relationship building. Waiting and waiting, and waiting longer are vital in building this kind of intimate relationship.
I believe there are several good reasons for this, but two stand out in my mind. First God is eternal and concerned for the life of his or her child in the scope of eternity. This means putting aside the human tendency of urgent, or convenient in building such a relationship.
Trust is the second reason to consider. If God is God and will do what God says in His word He will do, then do YOU believe that? Once that answer is settled in your heart, you must take the next step, which is wait until he shows up, because he said he would.
David says, “At last he looked; finally he listened.”
It is impossible to try to build a close personal relationship with the godhead simply because you will grow tired of waiting for him to show up.
It is Yoda in the Star Wars movie The Empire Strikes Back, who says to Luke, “No! Try not. Do or do not. There is no try!” Is your heart or your head in it? It is your heart that will do with everything within you, while your head will give it your best effort.
Please understand this isn’t to say God is mean or uncaring, quite the contrary. In another place the Bible says the God is simply looking for a people who give his or her heart to him. The very nature of trying something suggests a less than wholehearted commitment.
David also comments that those who make this whole-heart commitment will “abandon themselves to God.” He continues, “Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God, turn your backs on the world’s ‘sure thing,’ ignore what the world worships.”
If you find yourself in a waiting period, be encouraged, you are in a good place. If you find yourself struggling in that waiting period, look to David or the other biblical mentor’s (the Lessons from my Mentor’s page may help) for strength and hope.
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Jesus speaks of the “ministry” of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament book of John. Being called The Comforter, the Holy Spirit will guide you in truth; not just some truth, but ALL truth.
I have seen how the Holy Spirit works in the hearts and lives of those open to him (I say him for lack of a better descriptive expression). There are times in our lives when Jesus—God the Son—as the good shepherd, takes us from one place—pasture—to another.
The Holy Spirit is present, offering understanding of the journey. At times He is like a very talkative tour guide explaining the important sights around you. The atmosphere is usually light and cheery.
There are other times when the good shepherd is taking you through a difficult path that the Holy Spirit is silent. Even if you ask a question, there is no response. These times are usually tense and even scary.
In the first illustration, the Holy Spirit is serving as a guide showing you many things. In the second illustration, the Holy Spirit, though quiet to you, is actively working to avert the many dangers that are nearby.
Although I enjoy the times when the Holy Spirit is like the guide openly engaging me with truth, I wish he were more open when the tense scary times were upon me. I have learned that trust is needed most during these times.
There will come an understanding of the scary parts of the path, but the unseen dangers lurking in the shadows are not the time to talk about it.
It is like the time Gandalf is leading the Fellowship through the path under the mountain. It was very tense with everyone cautiously placing one foot in front of the other. Gandalf knew the orcs—the enemy—were close. It wasn’t a time to carry on conversation, but to reach the other side.
Willie Young, author of The Shack, depicts the Holy Spirit as a female, constantly moving in a fluid motion. I have likened this in my journey as a “knowing” when in the Holy Spirit’s presence. It is as though I know the answer rather than hear it, as though it permeates my entire being.
It is important to understand that these experiences with the Holy Spirit did not happen after I learned about a close personal relationship with the godhead. However, it has only been after being on this journey and learning what a close personal relationship with the godhead is about, that I have recognized the difference of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
As the active agent of the godhead in the earth today, a close personal relationship with God the Holy Sprit is most important. Who can tell the times you—and I—have been saved from demonic assault by following that unction deep within your being?
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I awakened this morning to bright sunny skies, a warm tropical breeze and a troubled heart. It appears that several dreams were an attempt from the Holy Spirit to give me some instruction, even though I did not grasp what it is.
My heart is particularly sensitive having just finished reading the Old Testament book of Job. (An update to Word of God speak is forthcoming) It has revealed things in my heart that will be addressed in the coming days.
I often used an illustration, when in the matrix (traditional church), of peeling an onion one layer at a time. This is what I am experiencing; another layer—deeper layer—of an area of my life that I long thought was gone. It is the area of pride.
As I read through Job I saw this ugly blight still has a place in my heart.
I mention this because it is at the core of a close personal relationship with the godhead. I once thought—because of being religious—that a godly life was a life of sunshine and lollipops, like the early part of Job’s story.
This journey will open your eyes to many things once you allow the Holy Spirit to continue the work the saving grace of God began. This is what happens with a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
I find it amazing that this journey is about eternal preparation for the King (Jesus) and his Kingdom, not my kingdom. In fact, this journey has little or nothing to do with temporary goals that satisfy human ambition. It is about preparing me, and you, for whatever place God the Son envisions for us in his eternal kingdom.
As exciting as that sounds, it is equally scary to live out on this side of eternity.
This is where the peeling of the onion comes in. A long time ago, while I was very much entrenched in the matrix, I was full of pride. I was proud of the fact that I could quote many of the scriptures that dealt with pride. It was a central part of my life. It defined my existence.
Through the years I have allowed God the Holy Spirit—even though I did not recognize him as such—to peel many of those layers away from my life. As this unexpected journey to simple church began, pride was not in the picture—as least as far as I could see.
God the Son has a place that you and I fit in his eternal kingdom. This journey is about preparing us for that place. This is why suffering comes into our lives. It is to reveal and remove an area of our lives that will be harmful in our eternal position.
I understand this is difficult to comprehend, especially in Western society. However, once this truth—there is much said about suffering in this life in the Bible—is embraced, it opens up the ability to endure it.
A close personal relationship with the godhead enables you to be willing to be made willing. This means that even though you cannot justify it by any rational means—this is where religion is blinded—you accept it as from God for eternal benefit.
I cannot stress this strong enough, because this is where so many well intended religious people—those who have made a commitment to follow Christ—loose hope, shake a fist at God and walk away.
This life is a preparation for eternity. Testing’s, trials and tribulations are not meant to work out for our temporary pleasure. They are meant to prepare us for the eternity to come.
A close personal relationship with the godhead prepares you for such things. It opens your heart—not necessarily your understanding—to embrace those things that appear to be out of whack in your walk with God.
Perhaps this will help your understanding not be so vocal because it does not understand why what is going on, is going on.
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Draw me close to you, is the essence of a close personal relationship with the godhead. It is the anthem that should be sung within every heart of every Christ follower. In his letter the Christ followers in Philippi, the Apostle Paul makes a profound statement. In my days in the matrix (traditional church) I would have made a series out of this because there is that much material in it.
As the apostle begins to conclude his letter, he lists his impressive credentials, but quickly dismisses them as “dung” (in the language of the King James Bible). He expresses how he wants to know Christ and to experience the power of his resurrection.
Think about how incredible his statement is, to experientially embrace the “raise me from the dead” power of God. The apostle isn’t timid in asking for great things.
The reason he can make such a statement is because he has more than a religious relationship with the godhead. He has a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
It is that relationship that allows the Apostle Paul to complete his desire of knowing the power of God’s resurrection. For me, this is the apex of a close personal relationship with the godhead. Who wouldn’t cherish that kind of power running through your body? (Even though it already is because of the resurrection of Christ and indwelling Holy Spirit).
It is the second part of the apostle’s statement that makes it so powerful.
“I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death.” Philippians 3:10 New Living Translation.
In the movie, The Hobbit: an unexpected journey, Bilbo sets out on an adventure even though his heart is firmly fixed in the Shire. He often spoke of returning home, even once attempting to do so.
Following the narrow escape from Gollum and the trolls, the group gathers in the forest. Using the ring to make himself invisible, Bilbo listens to the conversation about him and how he doesn’t belong.
Taking off the ring, he steps out from behind a tree to address the negative sediment about him. At this point, Bilbo’s heart experiences a dramatic change. Admitting that he misses the Shire, because it is his home, he acknowledges that the dwarfs do not have a home. He pledges his support to help them return.
At this point in his journey, Bilbo is willing to share in their suffering, even though it is not to the point of death. That revelation shows up later.
The point of Paul’s story and Bilbo’s illustration is that a close personal relationship with the godhead will take you on an unexpected journey that will transform your life one path at a time.
It begins with a desire, like Biblo, to experience a wild and crazy adventure. It concludes, like Paul, laying down your very life for the king (Jesus) and his kingdom.
In the world we live in today, it will be rare that this means physical death—although it could. It will certainly mean willingly giving up any and everything you once held dear in your life in order to honor Jesus.
This does not mean forsaking your family—although it could. It means willingly laying down your hopes, dreams and aspirations for success, or fame or greatness in order to honor your king (Jesus) and his kingdom.
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We live in a rushed society. It is a problem that is steadily spreading globally. We have to get it done and get it done now. We are pressured to do more, faster and longer, than our parents and grandparents.
If you were to look up the word relax, I would not be surprised if you saw a picture of a family staring at their devices!
I bring this up because our Western Culture is counter-productive in building a close personal relationship with the godhead. Every story of the Bible that I have used to outline a close personal relationship depicts a culture that moved at a snail’s pace compared to our North American culture.
To add insult to injury, when you factor in a classic over-achieving type A personality—like mine—it makes the journey very interesting.
I often struggle with time, taking too long to do something. I am forever looking for a quicker way to get home from work, or to complete a task or assignment. My mindset is to bypass the traffic light at all costs!
This is the life that I am bringing into a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Somehow I am supposed to lay that aside, slow down and wait on the Lord, (Good luck with that one!). Yet around 10-years ago that is the baggage I carried with me as this journey to simple church began.
At that time I had no idea that the path would lead to a close personal relationship with the godhead. In my mind I was doing quite well with that. I prayed so long each morning, I read my Bible so long each day and I gave my money faithfully to help the church (matrix) run smoothly.
The point to be made is that anyone can find a close personal relationship with the godhead, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
I have endeavored to be as honest and transparent as I can about my life in hopes of encouraging someone—anyone—willing to listen that if I can do it, so can you. There is a page, that is still on the virtual shelf, that bears that title, “If I can do it, so can you.”
The Bible speaks much about gaining understanding or discernment, or intelligence. The challenge I have had with that is a “rushed” North American mindset that thinks it should come .0001 seconds after I ask for it! It doesn’t work that way.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is a slow, meaningful, purposeful, process. In fact, in the beginning, the godhead—God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit—do not come into play. You are just getting close to God.
I think it is the movie, “What about Bob,” that speaks of taking baby steps. Taking the first step is as important as taking the second step. Bilbo Baggins had to sleep on it before taking the first step. In fact, once he decided to take it, it looked as though he was too late. Instead of thinking, “Oh well,” he became determined to join the others.
What a lesson!
There is a scene in one of the Star wars movies where Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are fighting the Darth Maul. The closing of the force field causes the battle to pause. Darth Maul is pacing back and forth as Qui-Gon kneels closing his eyes in order to focus. Obi-Wan stands watching the scene unfold neither pacing nor focusing.
I entered this journey much like Darth Maul. I could not do anything, so I paced until something happened. Through the years I have progressed. In some area’s I am like Obi-Wan, neither pacing nor focusing; while in other’s I am like Qui-Gon, quite and focused.
This is why it is called an unexpected journey. There are times that you are quite impatient. Then, there are times when you are simply watching as the events unfold. Finally, there are times when you are able to be quiet and focused as the battle looms.
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If this journey has taught me anything—and it has—it has taught me that the plan and purpose of God the Father is centered on the heart of man. The stories of substance in the Old Testament are about people whose heart (the soul of mankind) was surrendered to God. Noah, Enoch, Abraham, Joseph, Moses and David, are some of those people. As imperfect as each was, the defining fact is that they followed God with their heart.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is about surrendering your heart—mind, will and emotions—to God’s will and ways. It isn’t an easy journey as the stories of these people have shown.
In comparison to their journey’s mine, has been very easy, although my mind and emotions would argue otherwise. My will has been stretched beyond what I ever imagined it would endure; but it has.
Another lesson that is emerging from this journey is that a close personal relationship with the godhead is not a “cookie-cutter” relationship. It is not a “Stepford Wife’s” experience where everything is perfect and obedience means compliance.
This, I believe, is another fallacy of the traditional church, (what I have been calling the matrix) where you obediently attend the prescribed number of services, volunteer for the set number of duties and agree to place a certain amount of money into the plate.
Let me quickly state that I am not being critical with this statement, simply pointing out a perception that is not meant of the New Testament Christ follower. Nor am I suggesting that gathering, helping or giving are wrong; they are simply done differently in the simple church of the New Testament.
As I am reading the Old Testament stories this year, I am seeing something that I have read hundred’s of times before. In the stories of the king’s of Israel, David is the standard by which every king is measured. The Bible will say something like, he served the Lord like David his father, or his heart was not like David his father.
This tells me two very important things about my close personal relationship with the godhead.
I want my heart to mirror that of David’s. I desire the obedience that David showed in his life towards God. He obeyed without wavering. It did not matter how easy or difficult the task was, David held true to whatever his God asked of him.
I long for my life to exhibit that kind of commitment to my God.
Secondly, I see that God blesses according to the level of the heart’s commitment to him. Even though the king—whoever that king may be—did not have a heart like David’s, God blessed him to the degree his heart was like Israel’s second king.
This isn’t the place to unfold this observation, but the people of the Old Testament got away with a lot of “stuff,” David included. For example, not only was polygamy allowed, but live-in prostitutes were as common as children.
As I said, this isn’t the place to unfold this, but consider that the above statement describes King David, the man who, in the New Testament, is said to be after God’s own heart.
Last week my family and I moved into what we are calling our summerhouse. It is a temporary move until our home is revealed to us. I say it this way because I not yet have any understanding as to what this particular path in our journey is for.
I know that lives have been touched for the king and his kingdom that would not have otherwise been touched. I know that one family has been placed on my heart to help; but—at least in my eyes—at a steep price for my family.
The outcome is still not known, but a roof is over our heads, food is in our stomachs and clothing is on our backs. The New Testament tells me through the Apostle Paul, that I am to be content; and so I am.
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I began this blog with the hopes of both challenging as well as instructing Christ followers—called Christians by many, but the word has become cliché-sh that I seldom use it—to find a close personal relationship with the godhead. I call it the godhead, because, on this journey, I have discovered a distinct relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
I have intertwined some of my personal challenges—not because this is a blog about my journey—in hopes of relating real-life experiences along the way. I have known those “proclaim” one thing while living a quite different life.
I mean no disrespect to any of them, but there is a difference between finding another million dollars to pay for airtime and finding a place to sleep at night. Their challenges are real and faith is faith no matter the situation; but sometimes-everyday life can be very challenging.
While I am rambling like this, allow me another thought. I have meant to post a page entitled Recommended Reading, where I list the books that assisted me from traditional salaried pastor to an unexpected journey to simple church.
I may still post my reading list, but I have come to understand that it is MY reading list and not offer any assistance to you what-so-ever. That is one of the fallacies of my past life. I explain it this way; one person’s revelation is meant to be another person’s inspiration.
As I build this relationship with the godhead, I hear or see something that opens my eyes—as happened just today—about something that brings me hope or comfort or encouragement.
In the past you would turn that into a book or sermon series and offer it sale. The problem being that everyone who read it or heard it, would attempt to duplicate it. It was my revelation, not yours. It may bless you in some way, even inspire you—as it should—but it is seldom ever meant for you to follow the way I may have been instructed to do it.
I also realized the reason for posting the reading list was to attach it to Amazon so I could collect twenty-cents when you purchased it from my site—another piece of the matrix falling off me!
Thank you for enduring my rambling.
This week my family and I moved into what we are calling our summer-house. We call it that because it isn’t what we need, nor is it what we are accustomed too, but it will work for the summer.
Things have begun to turn for the better. The experiences of the past couple of weeks liken me to past missions trips to Africa or Mexico. The accommodations were far less than the comforts of home, but they were tolerable. However, the lives that were touched during out stay were absolutely priceless.
I can say most assuredly that kingdom business was accomplished.
A friend of mine told me that every time he prayed for us, that he heard the Father say, “It is well.”
I recall being told by the Father in January of this year that we would be moving in June. As I spoke with my wife about this, I told her that had I any idea what “moving” meant, I would have prayed for something else?
A close personal relationship with the godhead does not mean a life of sunshine and lollipops; it means being close to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It also means that no matter what happens in this life, it will be all right.
The Bible speaks about the still small voice if God speaking to you in the midst of troubling times. You only hear a still small voice when you are quiet, and a close personal relationship with the godhead enables you to be quiet in the midst of troubling times.
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Independence day is upon us. It takes on new meaning in light of our current situation. The place we are currently staying at has many restrictions—and for good reasons—that take away ones independence. It is usually the little things that we take for granted, that are missed the most. Things like going to the bathroom whenever you want to, or visiting the fridge for a late night snack, or desert. Perhaps the most restrictive is being able to come and go whenever and wherever you desire.
It causes me to wonder if Jesus had such feelings of loss while he lived out his life on planet earth. Think about it. He gave up the independence of being God the son with all the glory, splendor and beauty of being in the vastness of eternity. Talk about a loss of freedom; that had to be the ultimate loss.
When I think about it like that, it makes the temporary restrictions my family and I are dealing with seem quite small. It helps put into perspective the words of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament when he speaks about the “momentary discomforts” of life. Humanity is eternal beings momentarily living in a finite world. Jesus is an eternal God who choose to set aside his eternal habitation in order to redeem mankind from satan’s grip.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead allows you grasp some understanding of the fact that our now is temporary. Mankind is eternal, like the godhead; and will live for eternity—either with God or without him. Jesus is the human connection with the godhead, which means building a close personal relationship with God the Son allows you the opportunity to embrace both the now as well as the eternal. This relationship will help you understand the eternal nature of mankind. It will allow you to glean from Jesus’ perspective this journey from finite to infinite.
Here is an example of how that relationship might look.
The four gospel—good news—books of the New Testament chronicle the life of Jesus. Each book offers a different perspective of his life. People often miss the truth of the gospel stories saying that they contradict each other. The truth is you see four different versions of the same story brought to light.
This is important because when you begin to build a relationship with God the Son, you have four distinct books of the New Testament offering four distinct perspectives of who Jesus is and how he lives his life on planet earth.
As you read these stories, you will begin to see the sense of humor Jesus has. For example, one day the disciples were walking through a grain field on a Sabbath day. Since they were hungry, they pulled off some grain-heads and ate them. The religious folks would not have that; so they reported it to Jesus. In one translation Jesus’ response was, “really?”
You will gain understanding of how he views human customs and rituals. For example in one place he scolds the religious leaders for caring more about ceremonial washings than taking care of people.
You will see patterns of behavior emerge. Jesus had a set time each morning that he found a quite place to spend with his father. He regularly ended his day by finding a quite place to spend time with him.
All of this serves the Christ follower in building a close personal relationship with God the Son. The beauty of the godhead is that God the Holy Spirit is right there to illuminate the word of God thereby giving you life-changing insight.
Consider this
Why do you think Jesus spent so much time with the father? Could it be that father-time kept him connected to the eternal? Is it possible that father-time helped him keep a righteous balance in the sinful world he lived in? Do you think father-time gave him insight into what to accomplish that day?
These are interesting questions; questions that find answers in a close personal relationship with the godhead.
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I checked the family into a shelter for the displaced this week. A
tangible anointing (it felt like electricity flowing) was present as I spoke with the night manager. It turns out that because of the many issues in her life, that she had decided to walk away from God. The anointing broke the spirit driving her and she began to weep. I told my wife it we had to go through this for that lady, it was worth it.
We arrived too late for dinner and because of curfews, we were not allowed to leave.
The manager came to us shortly after checking in saying, “this just doesn’t happen! But the cook decided to prepare a meal for you, so you can eat.
The word of God declares that the word is confirmed from two or three witnesses. We are supposed to be here!
This is where a close personal relationship with the godhead pays off.
I have no understanding as to why, but I know that the God I have given my life to, is on my side. I know that my family and I cannot loose for winning.
when he was running for his life. He remembered the time his God delivered him from a bear, a lion and a 10-foot tall giant. He found courage to face the current crisis. As for my family, and me we find courage from the past experiences that give us hope for this crisis.
We have yet to see the salvation of the Lord is out situation, but we will. Until we do, we will keep our heart right and our conversation on the Word of God.
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I saw a marquee this past week that read, “Hey Father’s, Honor thy Father.” Having once been in the matrix (traditional church) I understand the logic behind the sign. However, having been on this journey with the “Father,” (godhead) I saw the sign as a religious guilt trip. To be fair, I would imagine that this was not the intent.
That being said, it is the day when Father’s are honored. I do wish every father a joy-filled day.
I happened to see the sign as I was returning the rental truck that was used to move all of our belongings into a storage unit. “Honor thy Father,” it read. How do I honor my father while in the midst of a most uncomfortable, deplorable situation as being homeless?
There are a number of paths I could take to answer this, but for the sake of space I will focus on what it means to honor.
The Hebrew definition is difficult to understand because it means to be heavy. But it also means to endure adversity. This is the definition that Job uses in the Old Testament book bearing his name.
He endured the adversity of such tremendous loss and heartache while holding on to the God he had given himself to serve. In this he honored his father.
Jesus referenced one of the Ten Commandments in the Old Testament, Honor thy father and thy mother, in one of his teachings. The Greek word for honor means to fix a value on, to revere, to prize.
For me, enduring the adversity of what my family and I are going through means we grit our teeth and keep putting one foot in front of the other. This is a necessary part of life. There is no lying down to die or sticking our head in the sand until the storm passes.
For me, there is a high-value placed on the infallible word of God. I revere the God of the word because I have a lifetime of experience that has proved to me how faithful he is.
Even though I have no understanding—the word declares there will be understanding, in his time—I believe that my father is taking care of me, whether I presently see it or not.
This is the essence of a close personal relationship with the godhead—God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Without such a relationship I would boldly declare (as wrong as it would be) that God failed me!
The Apostle Paul, writer of much of the New Testament, has much to say about this. In his letter to Timothy, he makes—what I consider—a bold statement when he declares that if we have clothes on our backs and food in our stomach, that we should be content or satisfied.
That passage of scripture has new meaning in light of our current situation. It isn’t like I can take my family into a nearby cave and stay until God shows up. Sleeping under the stars might be an option if we had the necessary camping equipment and some forest to go to.
The point is, the situation is different today, but the word of God is unchanging.
The apostle reveals in another place that he is speaking out of his experience to be satisfied with either a lot or very little. He most likely camped on the side of the road while going from one place to another. That wasn’t uncommon in those days.
However, that isn’t the point and there is a point to be understood.
This means that I have his experience to draw strength from as well as my own experience. This is huge because it validates the word of God. It is said in the Bible that two or three witnesses establishes—or validates—a matter. In this case, the experiences of Biblical mentor’s—Paul and all the others—coupled with my own experiences give me strength to carry on rather than throw a fist toward heaven and curse God.
The writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews puts my situation this way. “Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have. Since God assured us, ‘I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you,’ we can boldly quote, God is there, ready to help. I’m fearless no matter what. Who or what can get to me?” (The Message)
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A close personal relationship with the godhead does not mean a life of sunshine and lollipops. Come to Jesus and your problems will be over is a marketing ploy designed to take advantage of the hopeless.
A close personal relationship with the godhead simply means a close connection with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It means having someone to draw close to no matter what life throws up.
In the Old Testament book of Ruth, Naomi—Ruth’s mother-in-law—experiences crushing blows with the death of her husband and two sons. She is in a foreign country with two daughter-in-laws.
What does she do?
She proclaims how hard God has been to her and heads back to her people. In other words, instead of running from God, she runs towards him.
This is what a close personal relationship with the godhead does for you. Naomi had every reason to shake her fist toward heaven blaming God for what happened in her life.
But she didn’t.
She acknowledged that God had been hard on her, and yet she moved toward him anyway. You will not find this mindset in those who believe that coming to Jesus is a life of sunshine and lollipops; which could be a reason why so many are leaving the traditional church.
Life is tough, but God is good. When you know him—are close enough to see him as God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit—you find out how much he really cares for you.
In the Old Testament poetic book of Job, following the sudden death of his children and an acute skin disease, Job makes a profound statement. He says to his wife that he must accept both the good as well as the bad that God delivers to him.
It is impossible to make such a statement unless you have a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Consider Naomi’s daughter-in-laws, Orpah and Ruth. Orpah returned home, while Ruth refused to leave. Both of them lived under the same religious banner. Both partook of the same Jewish rites and rituals.
What caused one to leave and the other to cleave?
The Bible does not give any insight into why Orpah decided to return home. It could be that the things Naomi said to her made sense. Another way to view it is that the rational ruled Orpah’s life; which is why she returned.
Rationale will not allow you to have a close personal relationship with the godhead. It simply doesn’t make sense to spend time talking to a God you cannot see. Logic will defeat you every time. This journey is a faith journey and will remain as such until the return of Jesus.
The Apostle Paul states in his New Testament writings to the Christ followers in Corinth, “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now, will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” (The New Living Translation)
Ruth, on the other hand, did not receive Naomi’s logic. She was willing to take a risk to follow her mother-in-law into the unknown. Ruth saw something in her mother-in-law that enabled her to make such a life-changing decision.
This is what a close personal relationship with the godhead is like. It is a journey into the unknown where logic and rationale must be set aside in order to find the joy of knowing God as Father, as Son, and as Holy Spirit.
This does not mean that Christ followers are to check his or her mind at the door—so to speak. It simply means that following Christ isn’t about what can be understood or explained.
Once again, the Apostle Paul states that you do not hope for something that you already have.
Hope. It is such a scary word and it is used so flippantly: I hope you are well, or I hope it works out, or I hope you can come. Each of these statements is well meaning and convey a desire for something to happen. But hope is something much deeper, much more life challenging than a mere desire.
A sales manager once said that hope is the death of any salesperson, because he or she holds to the hope that a person will buy from them at a later time.
The captain of a ship—be it boat or aircraft—cannot hope that the right navigational course has been set.
The chef can only hope the meal will turn out if there is no recipe to follow.
Next installment
Hope, real hope, must be based in something better than ourselves. Hope, real hope, is the anticipation, the expectation that something good is going to happen. Once the captain of the ship has set the course, he or she has an anticipation (hope) that the ship will arrive at the destination. Storms may arise that throw the ship off course, but a course correction will ensure a safe arrival.
In the Old Testament book of Genesis, is a story of a man who had such hope. This man is one of my mentor’s. This portion of his story will soon appear in the Lessons from my Mentor’s page.
At this point of the story his name is Abram (God will later change it to Abraham—father of a multitude). He is 75-years young when God speaks to him, telling him to leave everything familiar and take a journey with him to a land he will show him. That part of Abram’s story is a lesson about faith; a lesson for another day.
Abram packs up his life possessions and sets off on an unexpected journey with God.
Over the next 25-years God speaks to Abram five times promising him great possessions for his many children. This is much like the course correction the captain of a ship may make. At age 100, Abraham holds his first child Isaac.
Abraham is mentioned in the New Testament book of Romans. The Apostle Paul, who wrote the book, speaks of the hope Abraham had. One translation goes something like this, When there was NO reason to hope, Abraham held on to hope believing what God told him.
This is such a powerful story and Abraham’s life so richly conveys it. He was not perfect; far from it. He had periods where he questioned God about the promise made to him. In each case God graciously encouraged Abraham giving him strength to continue on.
Consider this
For 25-years Abraham clung to the anticipation (hope) of God honoring his word. Anytime he waivered, God renewed that hope by reminding him of his promise. This gave Abraham the strength to keep anticipating God will show up—and one day he did.
When things become challenging in my life, I turn to my biblical mentor’s for guidance. The challenges of this past week have found me running to Abraham.
Four days ago (without going into the back-story) I found out that I have two-weeks to pack up and move my family from our home. At the moment, there is no place to move to, nor is there the financial resources to make such a move.
What do you do?
When there was not reason to hope, Abraham hoped. How could Abraham do that? What could possibly cause a grown man to stand in the midst of certain disappointment and say, “I am expecting my God to show up?”
Abraham’s answer is my answer, God promised me.
The Bible tells me that God promises to take care of everything I have need of. It also states that God will not forsake me, but will make a way of escape when there does not seem to be one. There is another promise that says God has a plan and purpose for me.
Like Abraham, God promised me something. Just as Abraham believed that the God who does not lie, will honor his word, so too I believe that my God, who is the same God, will honor his word concerning me.
I can make such a statement because, through the years, I have developed a close personal relationship with the godhead. This means that God the Holy Spirit brings encouragement to me through the words of people, the Word of God as well as the remembrance of things God the Father has shown me in this journey.
It is most certainly scary; but it is equally exciting. In fact I call it the excitingly scary journey.
On the days my mind attempts to run my life, it is scary. I have no idea how this is going to work out. Perhaps I could do this, or this, or some other thing.
On the days my spirit is in control of my life, it is exciting. I have no idea how this is going to work out, but I know my God—Papa I often call him—is looking out for me.
On the days when my emotions want to offer their two-cents, I remind myself of the times past when my God showed up thereby making a way of escape.
If there is one thing an unexpected journey has taught me, it is to expect Papa to always be on (his) time.
Next installment
I recently read an article written by a career military individual concerning Memorial Day. The article stated that the national holiday is not a time for celebration, but rather for reflection on the lives of those who have paid the ultimate price for the freedom’s that most American’s take for granted. This is true, not only of Americans, but any country whose brave men and women have laid down his or her life on the battlefield protecting freedom.
The article touched me in a very deep way. I realized how sad it is that modern humanity has become so self-focused as to forget—or at the very least give no thought at all—the many sacrifices paid by so many, that allow such freedoms—including self-centeredness—to be taken for granted.
In a very small way, this post salutes those who fought and died for such freedom.
That being said, the article reminded me afresh of the rich stories of the Bible and the men and women who walked a walk of faith to follow a God they could not see. There is a page on this site entitled, Lessons from my Mentors, that reflects on their lives and the things that can be learned from them.
I had “forgotten” about that page.
The timeliness of reading that article coupled with a personal crisis have brought it back to my remembrance. This is important because of what can be learned about a close personal relationship with the godhead.
To begin with, I was simply in my daily routine of checking the weather forecast—in Florida it can change hourly—checking local news followed by national/international news. There was nothing out of the ordinary.
I read the headline along with at least a dozen other headlines. This one caught my attention. I attribute that to the Holy Spirit. I did not have any swelling impression that I must read the article. There was not a booming voice thundering out of heaven telling me to read it. It was simply an interest.
I choose to read the article because of that interest. This is the part that I play in a close personal relationship—to choose. I could have dismissed it and continued along in my routine.
However, I choose to read the article. The Holy Spirit did his part by impacting me when I read the words, “not a time for celebration.”
Once again nothing attention grabbing happened, only the emotional pull brought on by those words.
I played my part by choosing to reflect on those words.
This brief interaction took nano-seconds, but brought up my personal crisis. This is when the Holy Spirit reminded me of the Lessons from my Mentors page. I say it this way in hopes of illustrating how a close personal relationship with the godhead works.
I have mentioned the Holy Spirit because as the active agent of the godhead, my primary interaction is with God the Holy Spirit. This interaction comes in a most “natural” way as opposed to some grandiose encounter such as lightning flashes or angelic appearances.
In a close personal relationship, the godhead plays a part and I play a part. The interaction is as natural as any relationship with another person. As with any relationship it takes time to develop and once developed, must be maintained.
If you haven’t visited the Mentors page in awhile, I invite you to do so. This story took me into the Bible, the Old Testament in this case, to learn something else from David, one of my (Biblical) mentors.
To all who have served, and most importantly, to the families of all who have experienced the loss of a loved one while in service, God bless you.
Next installment
Religion is a man-made attempt to get close to God. It is the commitment to following a certain set of rules, regulations and rituals. The problem with religion is that it puts mankind in charge of getting close to God.
In the beginning God created. Among his creations’ was a man, a male human. God and his man had close fellowship for an undetermined amount of time. At some point in this fellowship God created a woman, a female human, for the purpose of offering companionship to the man.
The man and the woman lived in harmony with God in a garden for an undetermined amount of time. They had daily interaction with each other; it was a perfect setting.
God gave them free reign of the garden and everything in it. His only stipulation was not to eat of the fruit of a certain tree.
A fallen angel used this stipulation to get back at God for removing him from his position as heaven’s worship leader. He went with subtly to deceive the human’s. He found a listening ear in the woman who was willing to consider the words he spoke. His speech was so convincing that the woman agreed to disobey God and eat the fruit. The man too was curious at the words of this fallen angel, as he remained silent while the woman listened to the angel’s speech.
The result was catastrophic! The man and woman were removed from the garden and God removed himself from them. It is commonly referred to today as Adam’s sin.
In the beginning God had fellowship with humanity.
A close personal relationship with the godhead is about having such a relationship. The challenge is the millennia of mankind’s attempts to get close to God. According to the Bible, a couple of hundred-years passed before humanity attempts to reach out to God.
From that time until now, mankind has concocted endless ways to get close to God. None of them have succeeded. They have only elevated certain men/women into positions of authority while trapping the masses into some kind of servitude. The results have been unanimous; countless people have become disillusioned, thus abandoning a relationship with God.
This site is dedicated to providing a return to the kind of relationship God had with the first man and woman. The battle will be uphill because of all the hurts, disappointments and religious voices that must be conquered.
God the father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are longing to restore mankind into such a relationship. Jesus paid a tremendous price to provide a path for humanity to return to a close personal relationship. The Holy Spirit, as the active agent of the godhead in the earth today, prepares opportunities for mankind to find that path to such a relationship.
The part humanity plays is the willingness to move towards that path. Jesus teaches that he is the door and that there is no other way. This means accepting his sacrifice by asking for forgiveness and surrendering your life to him.
The simple church element of this is realizing that a close personal relationship is not found in following rituals—though rituals can be important—but rather in the willingness to come close to the godhead.
Gathering with others who are on the same journey is one important step in the journey; but it is not the destination. Encouragement is gained from being surrounded by those who are growing closer to the godhead. The shared experiences offer hope and comfort to continue on. They provide encouragement to follow the simple message of the Bible rather than the complex rules of religion.
I can feel the bristle’s rising as I write this, and there is much that is not being said that can lead to misunderstanding. However, the simple truth is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit long to once again have a close personal relationship with mankind.
If you read this and something stirs deep within you that this is truth, then it is time to take the journey. If you will allow me, be like Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings. Sleep on it if you must, but in the morning, get up, sign the document—as it were—and head out the door to catch up with the party for the most unexpected journey of your life.
Next installment
I promise that I do not spend my time looking for things to compare with a close personal relationship with the godhead. But, after reading an article on Mother’s Day in America, I could not help but seeing a glaring comparison.
It is estimated that consumers in America will spend 23-billion dollars on Mom this year. Even though the majority of the spending will be on cards, flowers and food, 4-billion dollars will be spent on jewelry.
Please understand that I have no problem with any of this. I think it is wonderful that mother’s are being recognized. The reason for pointing it out is to draw a comparison to a close personal relationship with the godhead.
A lady by the name of Anna Jarvis is credited with bringing recognition to Mother’s with a memorial honoring her mother. Several years’ later Congress recognized the second day in May as Mother’s day.
By the 1920’s Ms. Jarvis would resent the holiday because of how commercialized it had become. She felt the day was meant to honor your mother, not make a profit from her.
In the early days’ of the New Testament book of Acts, the Christ followers were scattered across, what is now called the middle-east, the region spreading the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Groups of people were springing up everywhere.
They gathered to share the word of God, a meal and to fellowship with each other. It was the beginning of building a close personal relationship with the godhead. It was powerful even though it went largely unnoticed by the establishment.
Just like Anna Jarvis, those Christ followers went about spreading the good news. Unlike Ms. Jarvis, whose message of honoring mother gained national recognition in about three-years, it took about 300-years for such recognition of the New Testament church.
If you will allow it, once Constantine officially recognized Christianity, the commercialization began. Ever so slowly the close personal relationship with the godhead was replaced with allegiance to the church. Instead of spending time with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, time was spent in the weekly gathering listening to the minister.
The subtly of the adversary—the devil—went into full force relegating the church to the Old Testament model. Instead of each individual drawing close to God, he or she began relying on the minister—including his or her staff—to give them counsel or guidance.
There is a difference between a person coming to Moses (Old Testament Church) in order to receive counsel about a matter and a person coming to a minister (New Testament Church) to receive confirmation of what he or she heard from the godhead.
It is important to understand that neither is bad. One promotes freedom (New Testament) while the other can—and often does—leads to bondage. “The pastor said,” has replaced “the Lord told me.”
The point to see is that one has a dependence on a person while the other interdependence on the godhead.
This is what I mean by the comparison between Mother’s day and a close personal relationship. If not careful, the commercialization—falling into an Old Testament pattern of church—will erode the closeness with the godhead.
Happy Mother’s day moms’!
Next installment
We sat in the balcony—which is where we usually sit when we attend the matrix—listening to the message the pastor was delivering. I was encouraged at the words coming out of this mouth. Because of a close personal relationship with him, I knew them to be true words from his heart.
He was talking about a relationship with God. He commented that reading the Bible, praying or doing some other religious duty, did not qualify as a relationship with God. He spoke from the New Testament book of John where Jesus was comparing the Christ followers’ relationship with the godhead (not that the pastor identified it as such) to a branch attached to a vine.
As he spoke—and often is the case when we go to the matrix—I began thinking about a different path than the one the pastor was on.
The life-giving value of the vine must always be at the forefront of the Christ followers’ mind. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are not accessories that are to be added to the Christ followers’ live—they are life itself.
This understanding is huge in the journey to simple church. Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is vital to the life of the Christ follower. Just as a branch that is cut off from the vine will wither and die, so too will a Christ follower who is not firmly attached to the godhead.
I say firmly attached for this reason.
Have you ever seen a branch on a tree that is damaged? The branch has been all but severed from the trunk of the tree. There are just enough life-giving nutrients flowing from the trunk into the branch to keep it alive.
The branch is essentially good for nothing; but it is alive. You would never use it hold something, for it would certainly brake. You could not grab it to hoist yourself up the tree, for it would fall off in your hand.
It is possible that—if a fruit bearing tree—a piece of fruit could be seen on the branch. This is possible because the life-giving nutrients of the tree are present in the branch, and the branch is designed to produce fruit.
It could be said that this describes the vast majority of Christians in the world today.
However, this is not the intended purpose of the branch/vine. The intended purpose is to be firmly attached so as to both be useful to those—in the Christ followers’ world—who would grab it, as well as to produce abundant fruit.
This comes from a close personal relationship with the godhead, while the other—barely alive vine—comes from a religious ritual.
Let me be quick to say that this is in no wise an attack on those who dutifully attend a traditional church. It is not to say that they do not have a relationship with God, for many of them do.
It is to say that the analogy of the vine and branch offer a powerful picture of a close personal relationship with the godhead as well as a religious relationship with the church. The one prepares the Christ follower for kingdom effectiveness, while the other prepares the Christian for religious service.
It is my earnest desire to see the former rather than the latter multiplied in the earth in these last hours—however long that may be.
Jesus offered another picture of the branch that is worthy of looking at. He stated that the Father was in charge of both the vine and the branches. It belongs to the Father to tend to the branches by doing one of two things.
The first is to cut off the branches that are loosely attached. This should be a sobering thought for all who call on Jesus as their savior. Remember that the Bible states in another place that the Father is capable of grafting the branch into the vine (which—without getting in-depth—is the Father’s desire). However it belongs to the branch to remain attached. This speaks to the God-given choice to choose one thing over another.
If this branch is cut away something very interesting happens to it. It is tossed into a fire and burned up.
The branch actually serves a purpose—although not the intended purpose—by being thrown into the fire. It provided heat that either warned chilled bodies or cooked a meal for hungry bellies.
Consider this
Is it possible that those in Christian circles who have had momentary impacts in and on the lives of Christians—whether by their incredible pulpit presence or musical ability, etc.—only to fade into forgotten thoughts, have been branches once attached to the vine, but who have been tossed into the fire? Perhaps their momentary brightness could be likened to the warmth the branch in the fire gave while it was burning up.
It is important to stay attached to the vine.
The second picture to be drawn is what happens to the branches that are firmly attached to the vine. Jesus said the Father cuts them back, pruning away the unnecessary portion.
This is one of those “yippie-skippie” moments when the Christ follower experiences seemingly unexplained pain and suffering. This where the why v what, (a new page soon to be released) questions abound; “Why are you doing this to me, or what did I do to deserve this?
Jesus gives the answer when he states the purpose behind the cutting away is to allow the branch to be more productive or fruitful.
This does not ease the pain caused while the cutting is taking place; but the fruitfulness that comes as a result causes the earlier pain to fade away.
The Christ follower is a branch on the life-giving vine of Jesus Christ. His or her relationship with the godhead will allow them to be a part of the fruitful vine of eternal life.
There will be necessary pain and suffering along the way, but it will yield lots of eternal fruit that will bless God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It will also reveal an eternal blessing for the branch—Christ follower—as a result of its—his/her—willingness to endure the temporary suffering.
Next installment
Abram (later Abraham) was somewhere between 75-years and 80-years old when he had a life changing conversation with God. By this time having children was out of the question as both he and Sarai (later Sarah) were too old.
When God shows up to speak with Abram in the fifteenth chapter of the Old Testament book of Genesis, Abram was a burning question on my mind, “What about me?”
A number of years earlier God promised to give him an inheritance; Abram believed him. An inheritance was—and still is for the most part—passed down to the children. However Abram had no children, only a servant’s son. This concerned him greatly; how could God promise to bless him without giving him children to pass the blessing along too?
During this visit Abram asks him about this concern. God’s answer was astonishing, but Abram’s response was incredible.
God takes Abram for an evening stroll. As they are walking along he points to the stars in the sky challenging Abram to count them—if he can—because those stars represent the number of children that Abram will have.
I recall being in East Africa one evening when my host brought me to an open field. We lay on the ground looking up at the evening sky without an artificial light within miles. The stars were so big they looked the size of basketballs, and there were so many, it looked like they were connected. It was the most amazing sight to see.
I imagine this is what Abram saw as he and God had that conversation that evening.
Consider this
God’s love and concern for Abram was so great that he provided such an amazing visual for him. He follows up this visual with these words, “this represents your children.” Think about the impact this would have on your heart, because the Bible tells us the impact it had on Abram.
Abram believed God.
Abram has a very deep concern that he asks God about. God so cares about Abram that he offers him a visual reminder of his answer. Abram believes God.
The Apostle Paul addresses this encounter in the New Testament book of Romans. I like the way one translation puts Abram’s response. It says, “Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping…”
Abram’s story is a powerful reminder of the importance of having a close personal relationship with the godhead. God the son had not yet been revealed and God the Spirit occasionally touched men (sometimes women) with divine inspiration. God the Father was the central figure in early Old Testament writings.
Abram grew close enough to God to be comfortable with asking hard questions. God was willing to answer the hard questions because of the relationship he had with Abram.
The answer contained two very important elements.
First God provided a visual aid to serve as a reminder. What do you suppose happened every time Abram looked at the stars? I imagine God’s words came rushing into his mind, “this represents your children.”
The second element is simply God’s word.
Not a single thing had changed with Abram when he left that encounter—at least on the outside. However in Abram’s heart a huge change had taken place. Abram believed God. This belief gave him the strength to hope even when there was no reason to hope.
Think about this.
What would be your reaction if you met a couple in their late seventies who told you they are hoping to have a baby? You would find that an impossible hope—I will help you with these hard questions—because there is no way for that to happen due to their age.
However, this is precisely what Abram did. He hoped—believed what God said—when there was no reason to believe.
A natural mind cannot believe this, nor can a religious mind. Only a mind that has been renewed by a close personal relationship with the godhead can embrace such a ridiculous notion.
The reason is NOTHING is impossible with God.
A natural mind may respond by saying it is a noble theory, whereas a religious mind would response by agreeing in principle. Only a renewed mind could respond by hoping even when there is no reason to do so.
Humanity is living in a time with hope is declining. In one place Jesus asks the question about finding hope upon his return to earth.
This means that “hope” becomes a key ingredient in the Christ follower’s life.
A close personal relationship with the godhead is a lifelong adventure that takes you on many impossible journeys. Each journey will challenge both your natural belief as well as your religious belief. It will give you the opportunity to embrace hope—even when there is no reason to have hope.
Next installment
I find it interesting that on the heels of this dream about the end of time, that yet another prediction about the end of time splashes across the headlines. This latest prediction states that Monday April 23, 2018 marks the day of the rapture. It is only the thirty-something time such a prediction has been made in the twenty first century alone.
Consider this
One day Jesus is having a conversation with his followers about things that will happen in the future. He gives them an example that is very familiar to them when he tells them to consider a fig tree. He explains that it is possible to understand the season based on the foliage on the tree. He sites the example of the leaves appearing on the branches as an indication that summer is approaching.
He draws a comparison to the fig tree sprouting leaves and the coming fulfillment of an end of time event called the rapture or the catching away. This event is the culmination of catastrophic upheaval of worldwide proportions.
Jesus follows this with three very important statements:
1—his return is very near when these things happen
2—the generation that sees these things will not die before they are completed
3—the accuracy of the Word of God will outlast heaven and earth
This means that without a doubt Jesus will return to earth. It means that there will be clear signs when this time is close. It also means that when those signs are evident the generation of mankind that are alive at that time will be the last generation on the earth before Jesus returns.
These are powerful words and for millennia countless people have predicted when that time will be. I am certain, for the most part, that these predictions are based on global events occurring at the time.
The only problem with every one of these predictions is the fact that in the same context Jesus makes an all-inclusive statement. It is recorded in the New Testament book of Mark and taken from the New Living Bible translation; he says, “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.”
“Only the Father knows,” are powerful words.
This means that only the Father knows which events mark the sign of Jesus’ return. It means that only the Father knows the generation of mankind that will be alive when this happens. It also means that only the Father knows when he will turn to Jesus telling him it is time.
I believe that what has happened is that well intended humanity has missed the forest for the trees—as it were—by focusing on events that could indicate the season. Every generation has seen indicators that “could” point to this time. So, perhaps the indicators are not to be the focal point.
Perhaps the focal point should be the words of Jesus that follows this statement of end-of-time events.
“And since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert.” (NLT)
For the one that is alert is the one that is ready!
However, if I am wrong, see you in heaven tomorrow!
Next installment
The dream
Waking up to see a clock 3 hours 12 minutes ahead of time, showing 6:twenty something am.
I fell back to sleep, thinking about time and daylight savings time. I opened my eyes to see light shining through closed blinds. I jumped up thinking it was later in the morning, that time had sprung forward and it was time to get ready for work. My wife also woke up saying it is Sunday and there was no need to get ready for work.
The brightness of the light seemed to increase causing us to look around to find out what time it was—realized the power was out and the clocks stopped at 6:twentysomething am.
In the kitchen looking out the window there were three moons positioned across the horizon. Each moon varied in brightness—although each was intensely bright. Above the moons was a shaft of light, like a spotlight, shining down with another light within it. My wife commented that the light within the light came to get someone.
The light eventually raised up then disappeared, it became dark. The earth then moved across the sky also disappearing, along with the three moons.
Standing there amazed at what just happened, we wondered who else saw this. Finally realizing it was Sunday, wondered if this vision could be told at church? I then woke up, amazed it was a dream. Then I woke up again thinking how real it was. Then woke up—this time for real—realizing a dream within a dream.
Looking at the clock, it was 6:26 am.
The time 3:12=scripture reference II Peter 3:12
“looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames.”
Three moons=three periods in human history
1—creation to fall
2—fall of man to resurrection
3—resurrection of Christ to end of age
Shaft of light=Spirit of God shining on church throughout history
Time to go to work=kingdom business to be completed
Earth moving across the sky=the end of the age
The Apostle Peter speaks of this time in history as “the last days,” saying that scoffers will make fun of a “supposed” return of Christ. Peter reminds the Christ followers of the faithfulness of God to honor, as well as perform his word.
Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Matthew that Christ followers are to be ready at all times because he will return at a time he is least expected.
He also asks a troubling question in the Gospel of Luke concerning his return. He asks will he find those who have faith at the time of his return?
This is troubling for two significant reasons. First the Apostle Peter’s words about scoffers, or those who speak with contempt about a matter, looms very large. The Holy Spirit is saying through the apostle that humanity will enter a time that people will openly mock and make fun of godly things. Those who speak about the things of God will be ridiculed and made fun of as outdated even labeling them as a type of “phobic.”
Secondly, this describes the world we live in. Such behavior is not only tolerated, it is celebrated throughout media outlets. What was once held as sacred is now openly mocked as if there is no place for such a philosophy in the world.
Then comes this dream.
Is it possible that “the last days” spoken of by the apostle Peter are the very days humanity is now living in? Could it be the “scoffers” he spoke about are the very ones celebrated in the media?
If that is the case, and I believe it is, then what is the “work” spoken of in the dream that the collective “we” must be getting to?
I think the answer is found in having a close personal relationship with the godhead. I believe that establishing such a relationship allows the Christ follower the ability to both hear and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit by acting on the inner prompting in his or her heart. This is why I told last week’s story about my friend taking me to the truck.
Consider this
What do you think would happen if every Christ follower simply obeyed that still small voice of the Holy Spirit? Do you think chaos would break out, or do you think Jesus would be lifted up?
I believe that going to work does not mean being religious, but rather being obedient to the prompting of the Lord, working through the Holy Spirit, to simply do, be or say whatever is asked of him or her.
There will be at least one more mention of this dream in the coming days. I believe the Lord has given me some direction to follow and I will as the various pieces are set in place.
It must not be forgotten that there is a promise of the return of Christ. Jesus told the twelve disciples that the father alone knows when this return will take place. Throughout the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, the phrase, “last days,” “end of time,” and return of Christ, are mentioned several times. This means the word of God is established and will come to pass. The unknown factor is when that will take place.
Is it possible that humanity is now living in that time? I believe the answer is yes. The question then is what part am I as a Christ follower to play? I believe the answer to that question is found in the dream—go to work.
The question then is what work am I to do? I believe the answer is found in a close personal relationship with the godhead. As that relationship is strengthened, the Holy Spirit will speak the “work” each Christ follower is to do.
It would be safe to call this an excitingly scary time, for the reborn spirit of mankind is excited to know the will of the father. On the other hand, the carnal realm of mankind is scared at the unknown that lies ahead.
Next installment
The truck I inherited from my dad sat stranded on the side of the interstate 150 miles from home. Not only did this mean making arrangements to have it towed, but also getting someone who could take me 300 mile round trip in the middle of the week.
I asked the Father for direction; everyone I knew worked and would not be able to take a half a day off to make the trip. Dave (not his real name) came to mind. Even though I consider him a friend, we and not close enough to ask about taking a five-hour road trip.
I wasn’t surprised when he agreed because I trusted the decision to reach out to him to be the Lord’s prompting.
The few times we had been together in the past were rich in conversation about things the Lord was doing in our lives. I hoped this time would be the same—I was not disappointed.
True to our previous meetings, each said things to encourage the other in our journeys with the godhead.
Then it happened.
Something he said triggered a remembrance that I shared with him. I told him about a song the Holy Spirit had given me last year. As I told him the words, he stopped me mid-sentence telling me that the Lord had given him the exact same words earlier that morning.
You could feel faith strengthening our hearts.
As we continued our conversation, it was determined that the reason the truck broke down was to get the two of us together so we could encourage each other in our walk with the Lord. Since we were not close friends, we would not have done so otherwise.
As amazing as that encounter was, it palled in comparison to what happened next.
On the return trip, he asked me if I was able to interpret dreams; to which I responded, no, but that I knew someone who had that ability. As he told me what happened in the dream, I sent a text to my friend asking him what certain things in the dream could mean.
He promptly responded asking why I asked.
I am telling this story for two reasons. First the manner in which the two of us were brought together speaks volumes about building a close personal relationship with the godhead. Second, the dream is so important that it has to be put out there for as many to hear as possible.
The truck broke down
I wasn’t at all happy that I sat on the side of the interstate so close to home. However, there I was. I transferred the important things from the truck into our car—my wife was following me—and we continued our trip home.
I would not have thought about asking Dave to take me because we were not close enough to ask such a request. Even though the few times we had been together were rich in conversation and encouragement, there was not a friendship in place that—at least in my mind—allowed me to ask him to make such a commitment.
The Bible says in the Old Testament book of Proverbs that a friend is one who “shows” himself (meaning male/female) friendly. This resembles a close personal relationship. The bond is so tight that there is no hesitation making almost any request.
This is why getting close to the godhead is so important. Can you imagine asking anything of the God of all creation?
The only reason I asked Dave about taking me is because I trusted the impression on my heart to be the Holy Spirit. This could happen because of the relationship that is in place with the godhead. It allowed me to reach out to him without hesitation. Otherwise I would have either doubted or ignored it altogether.
This is why I wasn’t surprised when he agreed to take me.
The truck broke down 150-miles away from home
The distance we had to travel is also important to understand. Dave and I would not have gotten together without a reason for doing so. The broken down truck gave us a reason. He and I would not have spent that much time together in one setting. Thus the distance gave us enough time to bring up the dream.
It will be next week before I can share the dream, but it is that important, as it deals with end-time things.
I could have asked all the usual “why” questions as my wife and I drove away from the truck that afternoon; but instead I began asking “what.” What am I to see in this? What am I to do with this? What is your purpose in this?
The answers to those questions are the reason for this post.
Next installment
Sadness filled their hearts while grief hung over them like a ball and chain. Still they wanted to give him a proper burial, or as close to proper as they could since he had now been dead three days. They carried the spices they had prepared hoping that the guards assigned to watch over the tomb would allow them to anoint his body.
To their surprise the guards were nowhere to be found and the stone was no longer covering the opening of the tomb. Slowly they approached, too afraid to utter a word, they looked inside the tomb; empty! Wide eyed they looked at each other in wondered amazement.
Suddenly two men appeared asking them the strangest question, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” Before they could offer an answer the men continued, “He isn’t here. He is risen; just as he told you he would back in Galilee.”
Can you imagine the flood of emotions that overwhelmed these women that early Sunday morning? All of those negative feelings were hit head-on with the possibility that Jesus was alive!
I like the Apostle Luke’s account of the resurrection for this reason. It shows the devotion of these women to Jesus even during the worst of times. It shows the Father’s interaction with them because they were willing to “act” during such a difficult time. It also shows the power of the Word of God as the angels remind them that Jesus said it would happen this way.
Think of it like this.
Resurrection is by definition the act of restoring to life that which was dead. Although it is certainly true that the body of Jesus was indeed restored to life, what is almost always missed is the fact that these early followers experienced a resurrection of hope and belief.
It was their devotion that led to act. That action led to the mystery of an empty tomb. The mystery led to the announcement by angels of his resurrection and His resurrection led to the resurrection of hope and faith in them.
After being raised from the dead, Jesus appears to his disciples and lovingly confronts Thomas by showing him his crucifixion wounds. He then makes a very powerful statement, “Thomas you believe because you have seen; but those who believe without seeing are blessed.”
Jesus is speaking of me and he is speaking of you and every other Christ follower.
I believe him because of faith; the belief and assurance that he is God and will do what he says he will do.
What has Jesus said to you, either through the Word of God or because of a close personal relationship with him? Have you seen the thing(s) happen in your life, or is it still yet to be realized? Has it been so long ago that you have lost hope of it happening, or have you questioned whether it was even from the Lord?
Today is resurrection Sunday.
Can you, like the women that first resurrection Sunday, allow your emotions to be hit with the reality that Jesus is indeed alive, therefore the things he has said he will do are also alive?
I believe you can; I believe you are blessed!
Happy resurrection day!
Next installment
My dad was buried this past weekend and with that was also laid to rest a piece of my life. For thirty-five years our family gathered in this small fishing community to celebrate the many family things that families celebrate.
His passing means that a chapter of my life is now closed. This means that all that is left are the memories that are safely tucked away in my heart.
This brings to mind two important life-lesson’s.
The first lesson is the powerful ability that God has placed within each and every human being to hold on to things. They are called memories—or even nightmares.
Just as a new chapter of my dad’s life began when he entered into eternity, so too a new chapter began in my life. From that day forward all that are left are the treasured memories of days gone by. These memories are precious even though at the moment they bring a certain pain and sorrow.
God has also created humanity with the ability to find healing in such sorrow.
Grieving is meant to be a natural part of life. Unfortunately fallen humanity has learned how to suppress the grief as a way of hiding a perceived weakness.
This is sad because it denies the very mechanism that God has placed within the human race to overcome the sadness or sorrow.
Each time my mind recalls one of the countless stories stored in my heart, it causes a sorrow at the loss that has taken place. The worst thing to do is to hide the memory because of the pain it causes.
Pain is powerful because it signal’s something within the body that needs attention. In this case the emotional hurt or sadness that is caused by a loss.
Studies show that crying—the most effective way the body deals with grief—actually releases chemical’s into the bloodstream that allow healing to take place.
It is okay to cry!
Crying is not a sign of weakness; in fact, it is a sign of a very healthy human.
The best thing to do is to share the memory, allowing the pain and sorrow to also be expressed. This brings a very important healing to the physiological part of mankind. This is why support groups—those with like experiences—can be so helpful.
God has placed within humanity to ability to heal the hurt through this very simple act of conveying a memory and shedding tears.
The second lesson that comes to mind is equally—maybe even more—important to understand.
Throughout the years painful memories were also deposited within the heart. The very nature of what created the nightmare-memory brings sorrow, sadness, hurt and pain.
This is the time to let them go, to lay them to rest as it were.
This may take more effort because the nature of fallen humanity is to hold on to things that can be harmful. However, this is also where a support system will be very helpful.
It starts with a decision to let it go and continues with a willingness to share it with others you have established a relationship with.
This is where a close personal relationship with the godhead becomes very real. The ability to sit down alone with nothing more than a box of tissues and have a heart-wrenching cry is powerful. Couple this with short bursts of questions to God about your grief and something positive is about to happen.
The unseen hand of the living, loving Father will show up through the warm embrace of the Holy Spirit. The Word of God will also be present with something comforting out of the Bible.
The Bible declares that after Jesus rose from the dead, he presented himself alive by many undeniable irrefutable proves. This will be one of those times. I have experienced this over many times through the years.
The God who so-loved that he gave his only son, reveals himself in (unseen) ways that bring a comfort beyond natural understanding.
This is allowed to happen because a close personal relationship with the godhead has learned not to raise a fist of accusation to God, but rather a hand of surrender, perhaps even questioning why—although asking “what” is far more productive—as the tears freely flow.
It is said in the Bible that when Christ followers come close to God, God comes close to him or her. This is very true in the place of grieving.
Consider this
As Jesus breathed his last breath, for the briefest of moments, God the Father was separated from God the Son. He experienced grief, which means he is well acquainted with the sadness and sorrow that it brings.
He is there for mankind; he is there for the Christ follower, he is there for you.
Next installment
My dad passed away this week almost three-years after my mom went home. Over those three-years, my siblings and I did everything we could to keep him around, but he was ready to get home—to heaven—and be with his wife.
I mention this because it speaks volumes about a close personal relationship with the godhead. My dad loves (present tense, not past tense) my mom and nothing stopped or stifled that love; not time or distance.
The Apostle Paul speaks about the husband/wife relationship in regard to Jesus and the church as a mystery. As true as that is, I want to paint the picture of mankind and the godhead being in love and living life together, yet apart.
Their love endured a lifetime. I outlasted the trials and storms of life, the disappointments and heartaches of fallen humanity. It even outlasted death.
This is a wonderful lesson about building a close personal relationship with the godhead. It starts slowly before building over time until the one realizes that they can trust the other. That trust begins to build until words alone are enough.
For the Christ follower, this means building the relationship with the godhead to the point that the written Word of God—the Bible—is sufficient for strengthening that relationship.
In other words, because it is written in the Word of God, I accept it as truth. Therefore I will act on it because it is what “my” God has said he will do.
This can happen, partially, because past history (the stories of the Old and New Testament) has proven that if something is spoken, it is followed up until accomplished.
The Christ follower has the history of the Bible to show that God will do what he says he will do. His or her personal experiences allow them to move that relationship forward.
This is where a close personal relationship differs from the religious relationship. When I was in the matrix (as I call it) that relationship looked like a regiment of reading the Bible and praying followed by some religious duty like telling so many people that Jesus loves them.
Although there is nothing wrong with Bible reading, praying and speaking about Jesus, it is not an indication that there is a relationship with the godhead. All of these “things” can be done with a heart that is far, far away.
Jesus spoke of this in one of his many illustrations about the religious people of his day. He said that they say and do the right things, even giving him honor as they do so, but their heart—mind and soul—are thinking about many other things.
When my dad first saw my mom, something stirred within his heart to find out more. This is the basis of human creativity on all levels of life, relationships included.
Over the course of time, familiarity breed’s complacency, which causes the heart to be in one place (as it were) while the actions are doing another thing. This too is a normal part of fallen humanity’s existence. It ebbs and flows as life (in this case relationships) goes on.
Building a close personal relationship means developing a mindset of active pursuit rather than complacent routine. The Preacher, as he is called in some translations, in the Old Testament book of Song of Solomon points this out as the groom comes to the bride late in the evening. Her response is not to be bothered because she is already in bed. This is an example of complacent routine, while the groom is expressing active pursuit.
I saw my parent’s model this throughout my life. They managed the ebbs and flows of life while finding ways to actively pursue a relationship.
The Christ follower is allowed to do this as he or she purposes to draw close to God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. There will be times when the relationship is more intense than other’s; this is a normal progression. However, the desire of the heart is to remain in active pursuit.
This is where love is able to transcend both time and distance.
This close personal relationship is spiritual (another article in the works) rather than physical, which means trust is paramount because you are taking the “word” of someone you do not see.
Next installment
A pastor friend, who happens to be a singer/songwriter, has a song that helps me quite a bit when I find myself being challenged by life.
One line in the song goes like this:
In your presence, your holy presence,
Burdens roll away.
In your presence, your holy presence,
Troubles melt away.
When the trials of life are screaming for my attention, and I am inclined to react to them, I remember my friend’s song, “In YOUR presence.” It serves as a reminder that I have slipped out of the Father’s presence into the cares of the world.
I have come to realize that instead of shaking a fist of accusation at God that I must remember that HE is the good guy (if you will) and that I have left his presence. In his presence is where I find peace—burdens and troubles roll away—and if there is no peace, I am not in HIS presence.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead means being in his presence throughout the day.
Jesus was certainly the master of this, but (at least in one very real respect) he is God, so I sometimes struggle with following his example. (I completely understand that he left his deity to be fully human).
However the Apostle Paul is an example that I can—and often do—relate too.
I so much appreciate his words in the New Testament book of Roman’s where he says, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?”
Then in his writings in the New Testament book of Corinthians he exclaims that he prays in his prayer language more than anyone.
I believe the apostle knew what it meant to be in the presence of the godhead. He undoubtedly learned the power of a prayer-filled life to get him through the trials of life.
For me, singing my friend’s song is a huge help because it helps me to re-focus my thoughts back toward the Lord.
This is important because with every voice clamoring for my attention, it becomes easy to get distracted. The Apostle Paul used his prayer language to keep his focus in place. I am using a song that reminds me of where my focus must be in order to get through the barrage of distractions.
This is also important because of what it does not mean.
I used to struggle with passages of scripture like I Thessalonians 5:17—Pray without ceasing, never stop praying as another translation says.
How do you do that? How could you ever get anything done? What do you tell your boss when asked why your work isn’t finished?
I have come to realize that this means keeping your focus on the one who can get you through the trails, testing’s and tribulations of any given day.
This is very different from the compartmental “time of prayer” that I had been taught as a young Christian. I get up early in the morning, spend time in prayer—after all Jesus did it—after that read so many chapter’s from the Bible. Only then was I prepared to face the day.
These things are important, but building a close personal relationship with the godhead means coming into his presence throughout the day by being aware that God the Father, or God the Son, or God the Holy Spirit is close and willing to offer assistance as often as I ask.
The Old Testament book of Proverbs says that a man (male/female) that has friends must be a friend and that those friends will stick by you closer than a brother.
As a friend of God (or the godhead) I have the best friend in the universe sticking close to me.
Wow, what an awesome thing that is. I believe I can make it through any of life’s challenges.
Next installment
It wasn’t until early 2006 that I came to realize my walk with God as a journey. Prior to that it was a daily ritual that I had committed to keeping. I awakened every morning at a certain time and followed a certain pattern of prayer and scripture reading. The more time I devoted to this meant I was more spiritual.
This meant the goal was to spend “more” time doing it.
I dare say few people enjoy reading the Bible. I am certain there are portions of it that people enjoy, but for the majority, it is read—if read at all—out of some obligation.
When I was around 20-years old, I determined that I was going to read through the Bible in one year. It became a ritual that I continued for the next 30-years. I read through various versions to give me a more rounded understanding of what I was reading. However it was a goal to be accomplished rather than an amazing book about life to be enjoyed.
All of that began to change in 2006.
Throughout my life as a pastor, leader and supervisor of pastor’s, there was a constant companion residing deep within my being. It was more like a gnawing, like something locked up, wanting to get out. I never understood it, I just knew it was there and would not go away.
Every time I was promoted or recognized for something, this companion would grow increasingly unsettled. I learned to accept its presence even though I had no idea—at least in my conscience mind—what it was.
In 2006 the door that kept this companion locked up began to open.
To my surprise I discovered this companion to be the Holy Spirit. Patiently he waited for me to come to a place of willingness to listen to his still small voice.
This is important because, I could have shut him out at any time through the years, by simply refusing to acknowledge the gnawing deep within my being. I could have told it to leave me alone, to never bother me again. I could have even buried it under all the success that I had accumulated; but I didn’t.
I knew that my life belonged to God because of the commitment I made very early in my walk with him. Even though I had no idea what this gnawing was, I somehow knew it wasn’t bad. Even though I had no idea how to deal with it, I knew my life belonged to God; so I learned to deal with it.
There is a page on this site titled, “In the Garden,” that talks about this time in my life. This is where I became aware of the journey with the Father to an excitingly scary adventure.
I say excitingly scary because the spirit part of me quickly embraced this gnawing as the Holy Spirit’s desire to lead me down this path, while the soul (mind, will and emotions) part of me screamed in uncertainty—largely because it was a path I could not control.
I mention this because in 2006 I had to decide to enter into a whole new level of trust. As much as I could not see it before, I controlled my relationship with God by determining the time I spent with him as well as how that looked—praying and reading.
I learned to trust his voice while in prayer or in reading the Bible—He is an amazing God—but I determined when this was going to happen. This isn’t to say that my efforts were in vain, for they were not. In fact they were born out of honest desire. I did what I knew to do and God honored that.
Jesus says those that seek the Lord will find him.
The beauty is that once you have found him, you will discover that there is more of him to be found; and this is what happened in 2006.
I found a path—as it were—that was narrow, but inviting. It wasn’t a well-traveled path, but it gently called me to walk it.
As I began this journey, I realized that it would require a deeper level of trust, a trust that would spill over into faith.
Perhaps you find yourself in a similar place; if so, rejoice because as old Ben Kenobi told young Luke Skywalker in Star wars Episode IV: A New Hope, “you’ve taken your first step into a larger world.”
Next installment
Trust is an important component in any relationship, without which you are not willing to move forward. This hesitation is there because something inside you is screaming STOP!
It is said that certain animals, particularly dogs, are able to sense untrustworthy people. Although the studies offer various reasons for this, such as the ability to smell hormonal changes in people, I believe this is part of creation’s DNA, especially mankind, to sense danger.
Think about it. How many times have you met someone, and even though polite on the outside, something within you says that there is something about him or her that you do not trust? Why would you say that? What bases do you have for having such a judgmental thought?
The fact is you don’t.
Therefore it must be something deeper than experiential knowledge that causes such a response within you. I believe it is part of a safety mechanism, if you will, that took place after the garden sin. It is there for mankind’s protection.
This is important to understand because in building a close personal relationship with the godhead, you must be able to trust God; but how do you trust someone you cannot see?
The answer to that question is you trust because of faith. Faith is the belief and assurance that one (in this case God) is who they say they are and will do what they say they will do.
This too has been placed within the DNA of mankind and is often used without recognition. For example when was the last time you gave any thought about taking a seat in a chair or bench? The fact is you don’t, unless the chair is old and rickety, in which case you doubt the trustworthiness of the chair.
The point is that faith is used because you believe the chair will hold your weight without collapsing under you.
However faith becomes more difficult when applied to something you cannot see.
Take for example skydiving. Have you ever been? Many people have and can testify of the intense rush of adrenaline as you take a leap—literally—of faith and jump out of the plane that is around 13,000 feet above the ground below.
The stories that are told are incredible; but they are someone elses story, not yours
You learn to trust the God you cannot see by the stories of those who have jumped out of the plane—as it were—before you. You find these stories in the pages of the Bible as well as in the testimonies of people around you.
This leads to a new understanding of a Christ follower’s testimony in his or her world that is called evangelism. This kind of evangelism is vastly different from the evangelism you will find in the traditional church; which isn’t to say that kind of evangelism is wrong.
In the coming weeks there will be a new page entitled Revival By One, that will explain this type of evangelism. However, today’s post is about building trust.
So the willingness to “trust” is what sets this journey in motion. And it is a journey. It takes time to move from one point to the next. You are only able to move to the degree that you are able to trust, and you will only trust to the degree you are able to move in “faith” towards God.
If something inside of you is screaming, “Stop”, then you must explore why. In the case of God, you must determine what it is that is causing the alarm. Perhaps a bad experience or a perceived wrong to yourself or someone you know or knew.
This is often the reason people do not trust a God they cannot see.
This can be a huge hurdle to get over, although not impossible. It starts with the willingness to trust, which leads to the willingness to exercise the faith within you. This is often triggered because of someone in your world who is living life in such a way as to make you curious enough to think differently about the distrusts you have—in this case—about God.
I recently had such an experience. This person challenged me to rethink some things in my life that will likely move my journey with the godhead forward in a particular area of my life.
I trust this isn’t confusing.
I hope you can see how each of these components, trust, faith, evangelism work together to bring you along in this journey to a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This journey is a simple one, yet one that can have many interrelated components; such as this trust issue.
It is said that dogs that on longer trust their owner, will stop obeying their commands. The same can be said for humans; we will not follow someone we do not trust.
Trusting God is essential in building a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Hopefully this will help those dealing with such issues to see a way to move forward.
Next installment
This week I have had to deal with what to do when your heavenly Father decides to be quiet and not answer you! I suppose it is arguably one of the most difficult challenges for a Christ follower to walk through.
I think this affects people in different ways. For example I am a classic type “A” personality who takes charge to get things done. In many ways I resemble young Obi-wan in the Star Wars movie Episode 1: The Phantom Menace when they are on Tatooine looking for a replacement part for the queen’s ship. Obi-wan (me) is very impatient while Qui-Gon (my wife, not an ”A” personality) calmly tells his young apprentice that an opportunity will present itself.
I never liked that scene; it meant “waiting,” which is something I do not do best while my wife is able to stay cool, calm and collected. It just isn’t fair.
The Star Wars scenario speaks to the asking “What” instead of “Why,” when things do not go according to our thoughts of how they should go.
Focusing on the “What” keeps your thoughts moving forward instead of the constant rehearsing of the past “whys” in your life.
I am reminded of an African pastor I was with in his native Nigeria. This was before internet and all the instant gratification it offers. He wanted a Bible Concordance so he could better study the Word of God. He asked me to pray with him that he would receive one; so we prayed.
About a year later this pastor was able to come to America. I provided him a place to stay with during his visit. I asked if he had received his Concordance; to which he replied no. I took him into my study walking to my library I pulled out one, of several, Bible Concordance’s on my shelf, and gave it to him.
I still recall how his eyes lit up as he received it.
The man had patiently waited for about one-year to receive something very important to him. It taught me a lesson about patience. Nigerians are known for being forceful and aggressive, and this pastor was true to form; yet in this matter he was as calm and patient as a child.
Speaking of movies, I think another reason this time is so difficult is because of the influence of Hollywood and media in general. All television drama is resolved in 42-minutes while the big screen will take around two-hours. It doesn’t matter that “six-months later or 3-years later” flashes across the screen, we didn’t come back in six-months or 3-years to see the conclusion—we saw it all in two-hours.
Seldom, if ever, does life work that way; and never, if ever, does the plans of God work that way. This isn’t said as a criticism though. There is always a greater plan and purpose at work in the lives of Christ followers. There is an eternal purpose being worked out or worked into place that takes place during the here-and-now.
The Old Testament Psalmist speaks of the Lord leading and guiding his children along life’s journey. In the New Testament Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit guiding his followers into truth.
This reminds me of a story about a shepherd taking care of his sheep. There are times the shepherd leads them to a particular place in which they can graze on fresh grass. Then there are times when the shepherd guides them through rough terrain in order to take them to a desired location.
This is like the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christ follower today. There are times that he leads you to a fresh place. During these times the conversation is free and flowing. The atmosphere is warm and happy.
Then there are times when he guides you through rough rocky terrain in order to get you to a secure location. There is generally very little conversation during this time. The atmosphere is usually tense and troublesome. The focus is trust as he guides you to a safe place.
A close personal relationship with the godhead is at the center of times like this because you have an experiential understanding that He is with you. You have come to know his voice and trust him to take care of you.
This is like the time I spoke about when the Holy Spirit impressed the song in my heart, Be still and know. I was not going through such a time at that moment, but the song has served as a comfort in the times that I have gone through quiet periods without a word of comfort.
Finally a close personal relationship with the godhead is important in developing fellowship with like-minded people of faith. These relationships are different from the acquaintances you find in most church gatherings today.
There are a couple of men that I do not see often. In fact it can be months before our paths cross. However the Father knows when they need to cross and makes such arrangements. Such a meeting happened this past week and spoke comfort into my heart as we sat and talked, laughed, cried and even prayed.
Once again to err on the side of caution, it is not to say that such relationships cannot be found in a traditional church setting; they can. It is to say that the essence of simple church is building a close personal relationship with the godhead that affords each of these elements to be present in a Christ follower’s life.
Next installment
There is a song I still sing—it is seriously outdated, but it speaks to me—I think the title is Draw me Close to You. I like it because of the message is conveys about drawing close to the Lord.
It goes something like this:
Draw me close to you, never let me go.
I lay it all down again, just to hear you say that I’m your friend.
You are my desire, no one else will do.
Nothing else can take your place; to feel the warmth of your embrace.
Help me find a way to bring me close to you.
The song speaks of desire, without which you will not get close to God.
This is important because it can never be forgotten that mankind, (for the record, this speaks of both species, male and female) being made in the image and likeness of God, has been given a choice.
This is something that I learning as a parent of three teenagers. Do I love them enough to let them fail? Is that really love at all or is it really a derelict of duty?
The answer to that would depend on who you has your ear; for the present day mindset seems to be that good parenting means you do not let them fail.
True love exhibits the incredible ability to let go, no matter the personal cost, in order to accomplish a far greater reward—the love of a child. The greatest example of this being found in the New Testament verse John 3:16, where God loved so much that he gave his son in order to gain the whole of humanity.
Consider this.
Would you rather be in someone’s presence because you “want” to be there or because you “had” to be there? (The answer is “want” to be there. I will help you with these hard questions)
To say “draw me close” is an indication of someone that “wants” to be in God’s presence. This is the first step of developing a close personal relationship with the godhead.
In the world of sales it is called risk/reward. This is what comes to mind when I think of the second line, “I lay it all down again, just to hear you say that I am your friend.”
Can you even imagine how Enoch—last week’s post—must have felt when the God of all creation, his friend, says to him, “We are closer to my house than yours. Why don’t you just come home with me?” Do you suppose Enoch hesitated for even a second?
This desire isn’t something that just happens overnight, although it can. It is more likely something that takes a steady consistent diet that enables it to grow over time. If you recall Enoch’s story from last week, he developed this relationship over a period of 300-years.
The point is that you allow the desire to lead you down the path. The heart of the Father is very willing to patiently wait for that desire to grow, just as he was with Enoch.
When I was pastoring, I was afforded the opportunity to lock myself away and spend hours studying, praying, singing, crying in the presence of the Lord. There were amazing experiences that occurred during those times.
However being on this side of the pastorate and working a job that requires my time and attention, I rarely find such an opportunity. This isn’t to say that I have lost those amazing experiences with the Lord. During my recent stay in the hospital and my subsequent return home, there have been some incredible moments when I would swear that I have “felt the warmth of his embrace.”
The point to be made is that desire is the starting place of developing a close personal relationship with the godhead. The more often you are able to pull away to spend time with him, the steadier that desire will grow. The more that desire grows, the sweeter the time with him will be and the more attune to his voice you will become.
I am currently working on a piece that deals with evangelism that is centered in this close personal relationship. It is still a work in progress and once complete will be posted.
I mention this because a close personal relationship with the godhead is the epicenter of the Christ followers’ existence of planet earth. It is meant to be an essential part of your daily life.
Next installment
Just a brief update on my health situation: improving! The personal “paycheck” potential that I mentioned last week has found new light thanks to this journey. I am amazed at the logic—or lack thereof—of either the healthcare community or the pharmaceutical community (or both) in regards to the “benefits” of drugs outweighing their “risks.” This alone has produced an entirely new storyline to follow.
Building a close personal relationship (cpr in case your haven’t caught that) with the godhead is what this site is about. This blog is an attempt to reach out to people who realize that something isn’t right with the current religious system. To repeat myself, I am not suggesting that “church” as we have come to know it is evil; it is not! I am simply suggesting that the model in place is not designed around the desire of the Father in a post-resurrection Jesus world.
I am also saying that simple church is very much a reality that can very easily walk along side the current structure. The primary challenge however is not at all different from the mindset of the early religious leaders, who—as I mentioned last week—feared that a disruption of status quo would have a negative impact on their positions of power and authority.
This is certainly not a blanket statement suggesting that everyone in authority within the matrix—as I have called it—feel this way; but those who handle the strings of influence most certainly do.
The Enoch story found in Genesis is one of my most intriguing character stories throughout the Bible.
Enoch was a man like every other man born during that time. He tilled the land, as did his neighbor’s and his family before him.
At the age of 65 Enoch’s wife had a child, a son, Methuselah, who happens to be recognized in the Bible as the longest living human-being at 969 years.
This is where Enoch’s story becomes quite interesting. For the next 300-years he continues to live life, this is evident by the fact that he and his wife had other children. This is an important fact because Enoch did not become some crazed recluse who closed himself off from his family or friends.
What is amazing about Enoch is that during this time he added what might be considered an unexpected journey to his life. You might say that Gandalf (Lord of the Rings) stopped by with an offer of an adventure too good to pass up.
The New Living Testament records it this way, “Enoch lived 365 years, walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him.” Genesis 5:23-24.
Catch the picture: in the 23rd verse it states that Enoch had a child and lived 300-years. The very next verse, which occurs 300-years later, states that God, took Enoch because he walked in close fellowship with him.
I imagine the day unfolded something like this.
Enoch arose quickly, his heart filled with a sense of expectation. He gave his son’s and steward their tasks for the day and headed out to the edge of the field where the tree line to the wilderness began, positioning himself at the foot of the old Jujube tree. He enjoyed the shade the tree provided as well as the tasty date-like fruit he could pick on the occasional time he was hungry.
He took a deep breath as his settled into place and slowly turned his face toward heaven and said, “Hello Papa.”
The hours passed unnoticed as Enoch and Papa walked and talked, laughed and cried as they discussed many different things. Deep inside Enoch knew something was about to happen, but was unable to put his finger on it, but that mattered little because he was where he longed to be, in the presence of his creator.
Following a long silence—there was no need for conversation, just the simple joy of “being” in His presence—God spoke up and said, “This has been a wonderful time today, wouldn’t you agree?” Enoch eagerly turned to face Papa with a soft but strong “Yes, yes it has.”
He somehow new what was coming, when Papa said to him, “We are actually closer to my house than yours, so why don’t you just come home with me.”
Overwhelmed with excitement, Enoch simply took the hand of God and walked into the brightness of the light in front of them.
The New Testament writers record Enoch’s journey this way. “It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—‘he disappeared, because God took him.”’ (Hebrews 11:5)
Wow!
Next installment
I am writing this entry from a hospital bed that I have been in for four days and I confess that it has opened my eyes to something very profound. Perhaps for the first time in my walk with the Lord I realize the importance of asking “what” instead of “why.”
To ask why is to be “me” focused.
It directs all attention to my circumstance, to my problem or my dilemma and how your focus must shift to “me.”
This is the height of religion; the manmade attempt to get close to God. It focuses on what “I” can do, must do, better do, in order to get to him or to get his approval in order for him to move in my behalf.
This is such a religious way to view life. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were this way. Jesus speaks of them in Matthew’s gospel saying that the things they do are for show to look good in the eyes of the people. Their leaders were convinced Jesus had to be stopped because it would affect their place and position within the Roman government.
I am amazed at how blinded I have been to this element of religion even up to until this very incident. I have been looking at it incorrectly all this time.
It took me being flat on my back unable to “do” anything that enabled the Holy Spirit the opportunity to show me this error in my walk with him.
I know the scriptures. I know that good things happen to righteous and unrighteous alike. I know that being a Christ follower does not exempt me from heartache or hardship. I understand he will be there no matter what happens in my life. However knowing these truths about the scripture I was still asking why!
While laying here I understand that I need to be asking “what.” What am I supposed to see in this? What am I to learn from this? What purpose do you have for me in this?
It was almost immediately seeing this revelation that a young nurse was assigned to look after me. She has been assigned to me each day I have been on her floor. I have been able to speak into her life in a very real and personal way.
This means that kingdom business has been accomplished that may not have otherwise happened.
You may ask if such drastic measures were necessary in order for this encounter to take place. I would have to answer that the Father must have thought so.
Alfred Lord Tennyson wrote in his patriotic poem The Charge of the Light Brigade, “Ours not to reason why, Ours but to do or die.”
The “what” question completely eliminates the need for the “why” question. It doesn’t matter how you get to the “what,” it matters that you ask the “what.”
I had to shift my focus from me to him because it is the only way to be able to ask the right question.
The second lesson that opened my eyes while laying flat on my back is that four articles were given to me to research and write about. This represents an income stream. As a writer, I get paid for publishing my writing.
So, not only has kingdom business been accomplished, the potential for a paycheck has presented itself that otherwise would not have happened. This means that personal business was also accomplished.
I hope you see how important this is.
None of this happened because of a religious relationship with God. It has taken place because of a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Jesus tells us in John’s gospel that there will be many trials and tribulations on earth, but to be encouraged because He (Jesus) has overcome the forces of the world that would defeat us.
Perhaps this is part of what he is referring to.
Perhaps it is because he has overcome the forces of darkness that would certainly defeat the Christ follower, that we are able to leave the “why” question on the table looking quickly for the “what” question.
I continue to be amazed as I write this being reminded of sermon’s I have preached about this very thing; and yet I remained religious in my thinking.
What an amazingly patient, loving, caring Father we have.
Stop asking why and start asking what!
Next installment
As I sit down to write, it has been 22-days since the knot appeared on my neck. It appears the outward rash has found new life renewing its quest to spread across my body. It beckons a second question that I have fought to ask. If the Bible declares something, not once, but twice, doesn’t it solidify its promise?
According to the scriptures words are established when coming from two or more witnesses. I know contextually this is referring to a testimony as it relates to an incident. Would the same not also be true regarding the word of God?
I believe the answer to be a resounding yes!
In the Old Testament book of Isaiah the prophet declares that Messiah would take a beating that would ensure humanities healing. In the gospel’s Jesus took a horrendous beating ripping and tearing his flesh from his bones before being taken to Golgotha to be crucified. The Apostle Peter repeats the words of prophet Isaiah claiming mankind’s healing by the beating of Messiah.
As a Christ follower, it is my deepest desire to honor the Lord Jesus Christ, to obey his word and walk a life worthy of his sacrifice.
Since I believe Jesus Christ to be the Messiah who was beaten, crucified, died, buried and three-days later rose from the dead; then I believe his beating was to secure my healing.
That being the case, why after 22-days do I still suffer from the pain and anguish of this thing called shingles?
I must confess that I have no definitive answer.
I know it has caused me to rethink things that I have held close throughout my life as a believer.
Is healing really for modern day Christ followers?
Do miracles still happen in modern times, or did they really cease with the death of first century believers?
This is important because the essence of simple church is having a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This relationship is deeper than a casual knowledge of the Bible or the ability to recite a prayer. It is a real, personal, up close relationship with a God who—for the most part—is not seen.
It is a relationship that is built on an unseen substance called faith. It is built over time through a persistent dedication—at times determination—to get close to him.
Do I still believe that healings are for today? Yes I do.
Do I still believe that miracles happen in modern times?
Yes I do, and here is why.
“God is not a man and does not lie…” Numbers 23:19
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise…” II Peter 3:9
“You have received the Holy Spirit and he will teach you what is true.” I John 2:27
“Fight the good fight of faith…” I Timothy 6:12
“Endure hardship as a good solider…” II Timothy 2:3
“In the world you will have tribulation…I have overcome the world.—Jesus John 16:33
As I mentioned last week, perhaps there is a lesson, a purpose, reason that may or may not be revealed in this lifetime. I believe that some lessons are purely purposed for our eternity with him. God experienced humanity up-close, personal, and intimately through Jesus Christ. This is now an experience that will present throughout all eternity.
A case could be built that reports how horrible a life Christ had on planet earth. There are a number of things that seemingly made no sense at the time he went through them. For example why his earthly family not believe in him? How did that make him feel?
Why would God put Jesus through something like that?
The answer is the eternal value that is brings to the table. Why do Christ followers endure hardships and heartaches?
I have always been taught—even taught it myself—the answer is so we can be a witness to others that will endure the same hardships and heartaches?
I do believe the value that experience brings to someone going through a hard place. I also believe that some experiences are meant to shape and prepare Christ followers for the eternity we will spend with the godhead.
I have a saying that is appropriate to place here.
We really can’t loose for winning; can’t be defeated for being victorious; can’t go under for going over!
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On December 26, 2017 I was diagnosed as having shingles. What started on Thursday before Christmas as a knot under my skin on my neck had turned into full-blown shingles by that Tuesday.
The interesting thing about shingles is that the virus lives in your spinal cord having been deposited there while having Chicken Pox as a child. It lives there unnoticed until your immune system is too weakened to keep it in check.
At that point it finds a vulnerable area of your body to erupt into a spider-web like rash attacking the nerves in the affected area.
There is no known cure for shingles, only medication to help limit the spread of the virus. There is also medication to ease the nerve pain that is caused by the virus.
On Sunday December 31, 2017, I wrote a blog that I realized was not for human consumption; at least not at this time. The pain of the shingles captured my attention and I never returned to write a new post.
The incident has opened my eyes to a potential danger that cold be lurking in my very life. This danger isn’t sin—necessarily—but past habits or traits that could be lying dormant in my soul waiting for the opportunity to make a grand—unwanted—entrance back into my life.
I have become very aware of a deep-seated anger that has attempted, on numerous occasions of the past couple of weeks, to spring to the forefront of my life. The simplest miss-steps have caused a rush of angry emotions to all but explode.
I can honestly say that if it were not for a having a close personal relationship with the godhead, it would have won on many occasions.
According to the doctor, this virus has lived in my body for years. I do not recall having Chicken Pox, but that is supposedly when the virus made its entrance into my body.
This is like the various instances in my young life that allowed anger issues to enter my life—my mind, will and emotions, or soul.
Because of accepting Christ into my life, this anger began to fade away. Over time, I had forgotten the influence it once held over my life. I can even say that there had been times when I knew the hand of God had set me free from things that created such anger.
It wasn’t until I experienced a weakened physical condition that this dormant anger showed its ugly hea
Could it be that humanity has entered into a time when the called out must begin to examine our lives to expose such hidden areas?
The Apostle Peter speaks of a time—a time I believe to be the end of the age—when judgment will come to the house (oikos, tabernacle, dwelling place) of God. This judgment is to expose the hidden things that lurk in the shadows so as to bind men and women into sinful ways.
There are numerous scriptures that speak of the adversary, the devil, lurking, seeking ways to trip up the righteous.
A close personal relationship with the godhead will be our first line of defense against such attacks, but the prompting of the Holy Spirit to examine our lives can prepare us to rid our lives from such things.
I am reminded of a line in the movie Evan Almighty, when God is talking with Evan’s wife. He asks her a very probing question. He asks if she supposes that when someone asks for patience that God gives them patience, or places them in a situation where his patience can be exemplified through their lives?
To that end, if God wanted to reveal some lurking problem in our lives, do you think he would say, “Address this problem,” or do you think he will place us in a situation that exposes the problem?
I think the latter is true; but you will need to decide that for yourself.
Once a problem has been exposed—because of a close personal relationship with the godhead—it can be taken to the Lord to be corrected.
Think about it.
Happy New Year!
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“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Pea
ce.” Isaiah 9:6 KJV
“His government and its peace will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies
will make this happen!” Isaiah 9:7 NLT
Jesus is that child. That son is the savior and this promise is true and righteous.
This Christmas reveals a world divided by so many things. Political correctness has invaded the very fiber of humanity. In a recent news story, a neighborhood family was told to take down a sign this holiday season because it offended some of their neighbors. The sign simply read, JESUS.
We mustn’t forget that a child was born who will fulfill the promise of the Father. His birth has been celebrated for centuries by millions even billions worldwide during this time of year.
We must also remember that this child accomplished more than redemption of humanity; he represents the future of eternity.
With everything that is taking place around the world, it could be easy to loose sight of one very important fact; Jesus said he would return to earth at the time appointed by the Father.
It is customary in Western civilization to annually celebrate ones birth. It is meant to be a time of happiness and well wishes upon the birthday man or woman, boy or girl. It seems that this tradition applies to everyone except Jesus. The growing trend is clearly defined to celebrate the holidays, but ignore the Christ child around whom this holiday has been centered for centuries.
I would like to point out that as wonderful as celebrating ones birthday can be, we must be ever mindful of the promise penned by prophet Isaiah over four-thousand years ago.
Jesus is a king, with a kingdom and a ruling government that will rule fairly in righteousness. He speaks clearly in the gospel pages of Matthew, Mark and Luke about his return. He speaks plainly about being seen in the clouds coming with his kingdom in great power and glory.
While it is important to honor Jesus during the time we celebrate his birth, it is even more important to be reminded, “Men of Galilee,” they (the Angels) said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11 NIV)
Merry Christmas
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I grew up in a quasi-religious family. After being told she would miscarry, my mom went home and prayed asking God to give her the child, which she promised to raise up in church.
God answered that prayer and my mom kept her promise. I recall times that my parents would drop me off at church. I was there all the time.
At some point my mom had a parting-of-ways with the church over wearing make-up. It was during that time that she found this group of women who were meeting in someone’s home. In those days they were called prayer-meetings. This prayer-meeting began to grow until it became a house church gathering, although in those days they were not called that. In fact, in those days they were called rebellious because they opposed the established church.
While that was going on, a family from the church would often pick me up on their way to church. I do not recall this time being hard ot difficult, but I was a pre-teen wrapped up in my own world. I maintained a relationship with God, as I understood it. I do not recall the political stuff swaying me one-way or the other.
Eventually we became part of the house church group and I found my relationship with God grew because of it. I remain thankful for the experiences I had with that group of believers even though it became cult-like at the end.
These early experiences shaped my thoughts and feelings as a young pastor. I understood the value of small group meetings in bringing people into a closer relationship with God that was missing in the corporate setting.
I eagerly embraced the cell-group concept when it was introduced into the church.
I also had deeply embedded in my mind the error of the group I had been part of; for this reason I wrapped the cell-group meeting in safeguards. This worked for a season, until some groups began to experience things that I thought were potentially dangerous; things like the moving of the Spirit, or people who believed the Lord was directing them in a different direction than the one I had laid out for the group.
I bring this up for two reasons.
The first reason is the religious side of the church. As a pastor I was genuinely concerned for the safety of my congregation. There is certainly no fault in that; in fact, it is a commendable thing. However because I was in the matrix (as I have called it) I could not see any other way.
For this reason, my actions and attitudes were not wrong.
I was however missing the direction of the Holy Spirit regarding the church. You could say it is the classic conundrum. How could I do anything differently? The answer is I could not. The challenge is being open to the direction of the Holy Spirit to see something differently than I had seen before; to believe something differently than I was accustomed to believing.
Looking back on this time in my life, I can now clearly see the patient attempts of the Lord endeavoring to open my eyes. I now recognize that deep inner turmoil as the Holy Spirit trying to get me to notice the burning bush, if you will, that captured the attention of Moses in the wilderness.
What do you think would have happened had Moses refused to pay attention to the bush? I suppose he would have lived out his life as a shepherd in the wilderness and God would have risen up another deliverer.
There is much that could be said about this, but it is important to understand that God would not have abandoned Moses, he simply would have missed out on a tremendous blessing of the Lord.
The second thing to understand about my story is the fact that the Father was very gracious in setting things in place that brought me to such an understanding about building a close personal relationship with the godhead and the simple church plan for this time in history.
For those who are willing to “turn aside,” as it were, to see the burning bush, there awaits an adventure that will truly be life changing.
I believe that a revival is upon us unlike anything we have seen or known in our lifetime.
These elements of a close personal relationship and simple church will play a significant part.
Time will tell if I speak by the Spirit of the Lord or my own human heart.
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The New Testament book of Acts gives an overview of Pastor Moses and the church in the wilderness. The passage in Acts 7 states that God spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai giving him “life-giving words to pass on to us”—Christ followers today.
Centuries later those “life-giving” words became known as the Pentateuch or books of Moses. Centuries after that, they became part of the sacred writings called the Old Testament.
Year’s later men who walked with Jesus wrote about their experiences with him. These stories would later be called the Gospels. This was followed by men who wrote letters to Christ followers about how to live a righteous life. These letters would eventually be called Epistles.
These writings were eventually recognized as sacred words that were placed into a volume of books called the Bible.
Why is this important for a Christ follower who is on an unexpected journey to a close personal relationship with the godhead?
It is important because each of these people—both men and women—had a close personal relationship with God as he had revealed himself to them. That relationship created a bond between them that allowed them to trust God as well as be trusted by God.
Consider this.
God created mankind with the ability to “know.” This “knowing” is different from the instinctive knowing that is in all things created; the ability to perform certain functions on an ongoing basis. This “knowing” has the ability to be inquisitive, to create, to rationalize.
Mankind would want to know about the beginning of creation and how things got to where they were at a certain point in time. So God had a relationship with Moses that allowed him to trust Moses enough to write the story of Creation. You will have to ask God why Moses out of the millions of people he could have chosen. Perhaps the heart of Moses was softened to respond to God.
The point is a close personal relationship had to be established before these writings could be put forth. The same is true with each individual who wrote words that became the sacred writings of the Bible.
The other side of the trust issue is the fact that each person writing these things had to trust it was God giving them true and accurate words to write—especially Moses, especially the Prophets.
This could happen because of a close personal relationship.
Most importantly, this understanding of the lives and relationship of these people are meant to encourage the heart of Christ followers today because God is the same God. Those who dare to get close enough to him to hear him speak will have a genuine advantage over those who simply read the words of the Bible and move on to the next thing to check off for the day.
His words come alive.
The song the Father gave me a few months ago is a case in point. The many inclinations or impressions, from the Holy Spirit regarding my daily life is another.
Drawing close to him, daring to have a close personal relationship with him is what allows this to happen. This is the journey that I believe the Holy Spirit is calling those who will listen, to come on.
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My heart is being stirred by the Father to make some changes in 2018. There are several articles that have been placed on my heart to study and write about. I will renew my quest to have this manuscript published in the New Year as well as delve into possible speaking engagements.
It appears that my family and I are being directed into an extended time of fasting and prayer in the New Year as well. I do not know what is in store for this New Year, but I do know that a renewed sense of anticipation is growing within me.
I share these things because they are a direct result of this journey that began in 2001 when my wife and I were challenged by the Lord to “cast off” the constraints that held us locked into a routine and certain way of life.
We left everything as well as everyone comfortable and familiar to us to obey God’s direction in our lives. Writing this reminds me of a line from a commercial a hundred years ago (it really wasn’t that long ago) that said, “Try it, you’ll like it…I thought I was gonna die!”
However hindsight being 20-20 (in vision) has once again proven correct, as I would not change the journey—as painful as it has been—for anything.
This relationship is real.
I no longer get up spending hours reading and praying before I begin my day; although there are times that I spend hours reading and praying. My day is consumed with the presence of the godhead in everything I am doing.
I still have my routine of prayer and bible reading, but I talk with the godhead often throughout the day. I talk with each one separately, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. There are times that I can sense the presence of one over the other. There are also times that I know I am in the presence of God; I assume the fullness of the godhead.
Here is what is important to understand.
I had experiences like these in my past life as a committed dedicated Pastor. At the time though, I did not, or could not, recognize the difference. It was just the presence of God. It was also compartmentalized in that these experiences only happened during the times I was “seeking” the Lord, or “pressing” into his presence.
It was as though I had my time with God, then I lived my life—mindful of God, to be sure—but the two were separate. It was not uncommon for me to say something like, “Let me get to church so I can experience the presence of God.”
I must emphasis that there is nothing wrong with what I am talking about.
I am saying that in this part of this incredible journey with the godhead, I experience those things often no matter where I am. For instance, I opened an e-mail at work late Friday afternoon and had a “Kairos” moment at my desk that went with me on my drive home. It was incredible.
This is the reality of the relationship with the godhead.
I am also sensing the timing of this kind of relationship as it relates to evangelism. It is spoken about extensively in the manuscript, but it could be the timing is approaching when the importance of such a relationship will impact evangelism in the world.
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Building a close personal relationship with the godhead is essential in simple church life. It is the foundation from which everything important is built upon. A close personal relationship builds trust, establishes hope and allows faith to work in your life.
I remember how my life was affected when my wife and I started dating.
I seemed happier while working. The challenges I faced didn’t seem as hard because I knew that at the end of the day I would see this amazing woman. I had a purpose to get done things that I may have put off for another day.
I recall how nothing else mattered but meeting her. Once I left the office, I would hurry to see her. The things I counted as important changed because my priorities had changed.
We would spend hours together talking, walking and playing tennis. I got to know her as much as she got to know me. We learned what the other liked and disliked. We learned about family, dreams and ambitions.
That time established a lifelong bond that has endured many trials, tests, and setbacks.
This is what a close personal relationship with the godhead is meant to do. It is meant to get to know God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. It is meant to learn what God likes, dislikes and even loathes. It is a time to discover what dreams, hopes and ambitions He has for you.
Throughout the Old Testament we find stories of men and women who had such a relationship. Some, like Abraham, talked with God face-to-face, while other’s had dreams and visions about him.
King Solomon writes poems and prose about such a relationship using the allegory of a man and woman in love. Queen Esther speaks about drawing close to God by fasting and prayer to find a much-needed answer for a very serious problem.
This is why spending time reading these stories are so important in building that relationship.
However reading scripture alone is not how such a relationship is established. It is equally important to talk with God. The Bible tells of Enoch who walked with God and could not be found because God took him.
Imagine getting so close to the godhead that, like Enoch, you are invited to skip death and come straight into God’s presence in heaven!
That kind of closeness did not happen by occasionally reading a few scriptures or uttering a prayer here and there.
Abram—before God changed his name to Abraham—had a conversation with God asking him about the heir of his estate. Abram complained that the child of his trusted servant would inherit his possessions. God spoke to Abram inviting him to take a nighttime walk. God answers Abram’s question by challenging him to count the stars—if he could—because that is how large his family would be.
Abram believed God.
This is the essence of a close personal relationship. Abram had been walking with God between ten to fifteen years. Within this time he learned that he could trust what God told him.
This is why having such a relationship is so vital in your walk with God.
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This Thursday 13 people will sit down around the makeshift table that will be set up in our family room to eat a meal that centers around one theme, being thankful. It will be a diverse group of people that will be family, friends and strangers.
I like Thanksgiving; I like the Fall of the year and the festivities that accompany it. My wife, one of our daughter’s and I were born during this time; our anniversary is also during this time. There is a freshness about this time of year.
It is that freshness that I would like to speak too in this post.
Never in my lifetime have I seen America as divided as we are today. In the sixties there were racial divisions, but they pall in comparison to what is our new reality today. The seventies had its cultural divisions while the eighties brought about economic divisions and the nineties was full of social divisions; but none of them compare to what we see everyday across our land.
Today it seems to be a banner of honor to speak against the President of the United States, or the members of Congress, or law enforcement personnel. Businesses are openly criticized and boycotted because of their particular beliefs.
People of notoriety or fame feel as though they have a right to boldly speak out against political matters, while sports celebrities find it acceptable to protest in ways deemed offensive to the general public that supports them.
A person is labeled some type of “phobic” when expressing an opinion about a matter while media outlets openly make-up stories that are slanted to give a negative opinion.
We live in a vastly divided country in virtually every arena of life.
Then you come to the Fall of the year and find yourself preparing for Thanksgiving; which has its issues with Black Friday, Cyber Monday and now Blackout Wednesday.
Thanksgiving has always been about a “thankful people” giving “thanks” to Almighty God for taking care of them.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this Thanksgiving people throughout the vast diversities abounding in America took time out from their agenda to give thanks to Almighty God for any number of reasons?
Simple church is about building a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if those who have taken such a journey to that kind of closeness with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, quietly led a charge to cross the lines of division and divisiveness with a kind word and an open heart?
Wouldn’t it something if such a gesture brought about a “revival by one” across the land?
What a refreshing that would be during the Fall of the year!
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I mentioned a few posts back the song the Lord gave. The chorus says,
I will be there when you’re not sure,
I will be there when it’s crashing in around you,
I will be there, be still and know that I am God.
The song came to me while driving to an appointment. It began to roll out of my mouth like something I had known for a long time. The words were not coming from my intellect; they were coming from deep within my being, my spirit was singing.
During this time I had found a note in my Bible from a man who spoke into my life 25-years earlier. He spoke Philippians 4:19 over me. In King James English, it says that My God shall supply all of your need according to his riches in glory through Christ Jesus.
This note has been in my Bible—along with many other notes—for 25-years. It wasn’t that I had lost it; like every other note in my Bible, I had not looked at it for a long time.
What made it different this time was the fact that I was being drawn to the note. This means that the Holy Spirit was prompting me to read it. It was speaking to my heart (and situation) like never before. I began to meditate on it, read it in various translations, and do a word study on it.
The Holy Spirit was endeavoring to show me something. I realized that 25-years ago the Father was preparing me for the unfolding events taking place in my life 25-years later.
I immediately remembered a story in the Old Testament about God and Abram (before God changed his name to Abraham). God promised Abram children as the stars in the heavens; and at 75 years old, he believed God.
It would be 25-years later before his first son Isaac would be born; but that day Abram believed God
This is why this story is important.
Had I simply been prompted to read Genesis 15 where the Abram story is found, I might have commended Abram for believing God.
Had I not spent time reading the Old Testament stories, I would not have made a connection with Abram when I re-read the old note.
Had I not been developing a close personal relationship with the godhead, I would not have made a connection between the note and the Abram story. The 25-year thing may have triggered a memory about an Old Testament story, but it would have ended there.
However, building a close personal relationship with the godhead, reading the stories of the Old Testament in light of building a close personal relationship with the godhead and finding the note allowed the Holy Spirit the opportunity to prompt me to read Genesis 15. Because of building a close personal relationship with the godhead, while reading the Abram story again, and seeing that he believed God, it resonated in my heart that the Father wanted me to believe him in the same manner.
Consider this.
Abram had nothing but a word from God and a picture of a starry heaven; with that he believed. He not only believed that night, he held to that belief for 25-years until his first son was born.
For me, the lesson was—and remains—that 25-years before it ever happened, God the Father was preparing me. Now that it is happening, I am to believe him that he will do what he said he would do.
All I have to go on is his word, scores of Bible stories of him honoring his word and my own personal experiences with him in the past.
Here me why I say this.
A religious relationship with God would not have produced this. It would have produced a bitter heart because God had not shown up when I thought he should have.
This isn’t a criticism, but the cruel fact of many crushed lives of good people that have walked away from following God because of things like this.
I hope this offers some comfort, some understanding and most of all, some hope.
This site is dedicated to helping Christ followers build a close personal relationship with the godhead, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
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It is said of Adam and Eve that they walked with God in the garden in the cool of the day. They had a close personal relationship with him. I cannot even imagine what that must have been like. Remember there wasn’t any sin, temptation or ulterior motive in anything being done. It was pure, simple and genuine. The man (male and female) stood naked and unashamed before creator God carrying on stimulating conversation.
The temperature was perfect—whatever perfect is—the breeze comfortable and inviting and the scenery breathtaking.
They walked, talked and laughed. Along the way God would point to an animal asking Adam what he would call it. Adam spoke a name and it was so. From now on, that animal would be a zebra or a giraffe, or horse.
It was perfect in every way, until temptation entered in.
I find it interesting that Eve wasn’t the least bit concerned that a snake spoke to her. I also find it interesting that the questions asked by the serpent did not alarm her. Perhaps it is because she may have had the same questions.
From everything I understand about an infinite omniscient God, none of this happened without his knowledge. He would also know the outcome of the conversation along with the consequences that would follow.
Why would he do that?
I bring this up for two reasons. The first reason being that it is a Bible story from the Old Testament book of Genesis. The second reason is how the above thoughts came about as a result of reading that Bible story.
Years ago I made a decision to read the Bible from start to finish in one year. It was a decision that I followed through on for decades. I would dutifully open up the cover and read the prescribed number of chapters that would allow me to complete my task in one year.
I was quite proud of myself for being disciplined enough to do such a great job.
As a pastor, I would spend time studying certain portions of scripture that related to the sermon that I would deliver; but I had my reading time and my studying time; never did the two meet.
It wasn’t until much later that I began to read with the idea of finding out the back-story; thus the Adam and Eve piece earlier.
When I was in the matrix, I would dutifully do my prescribed time with God, in reading and praying. I did it with a pure heart, meaning—for the most part—I wanted to do it. There were times though that I did it out of obligation because it was the “right” thing to do.
Even though there is merit in that, what I hope you will see is the difference in doing something out of the since of obligation so you can check it off the list, verses doing something in order to build a close personal relationship.
The Bible is to be read in order to assist you in developing a close personal relationship with the godhead. The Old Testament books are meant to paint a picture of mankind’s purpose in being created. The stories are to be understood rather than simply read.
It is far more important to glean the lessons in the story rather than marking it as read.
Reading is important, but understanding is paramount in building a close personal relationship. The stories of the Old Testament are rich with questions to be answered by the Holy Spirit for those who are willing to first find them and then ask them.
In doing so, a relationship begins to be built.
The New Testament certainly has its place, but today’s focus is on the relationship building opportunities found in the Old Testament.
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My wife recently saw a snippet of a broadcast of a series of meetings going on at a local church. These meetings are called Revival services; which is a story in itself. What she heard raised a question that she and I spent several minutes discussing. The speaker was telling the audience about a time when he and his wife were talking about purchasing a new high-end vehicle. He also mentioned that at the same time their “dream-house,” had become available. Her question was why some people seem to be so “blessed” while others seem to struggle so much?
Let me be quick to say that I am in NO way speaking ill of the person my wife saw on the broadcast.
The person on the broadcast represents a mindset of people who are locked into what I have called the matrix; the religious leaders who set the example for the religious followers to follow. This system has been in place and will remain in place until Jesus returns.
There are those in the system who are enslaved by the system; those who game the system and those who, with a pure heart, serve the system because they do not know any other way.
Through the years I have seen each type. I have worked closely with some—the names of some you would probably recognize—and can testify that their heart is honest towards the Lord.
These men and women are serving the Lord where they are called. For whatever reason, they are not able to wrap their heads around the simple church model; but they completely understand having a close personal relationship with God.
Simple church is about building a close personal relationship with the godhead—simply a deeper understanding of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
One understanding that I have come to see on this journey is that the Father does not care for the “now” as humanity does. This speaks to the new car and new house mentioned earlier. This does not mean that Christ followers are to live in poverty. The Bible clearly states that Abraham was quite rich in material things as was Joseph, David and Solomon. However in the New Testament Peter was a common fisherman, Matthew a tax collector and Paul was a religious scholar told how much he would suffer for Christ and his kingdom.
The missing ingredient is eternity.
The New Testament book of Hebrews speaks of Abraham not having received the promise of God. It speaks of him looking down the corridors of time and seeing the city of God—his true home.
This speaks of eternity.
Consider this, the Bible states that Abraham was quite rich by worldly standards—new car and dream house—but he wasn’t looking for those things; he was looking for an eternal possession.
Building a close personal relationship with the godhead isn’t about finding out how to gather “things” while here on planet earth; it is about preparing yourself for the eternal things as Abraham had done.
In my past life, I could relate to the statement made about the cars and homes. It spoke to how “blessed of God” I was. Today I understand that cars are important, as are homes; but I also understand how temporary and unimportant they are.
Am I preparing myself for eternity?
The closer I get in my relationship with the godhead, the more I understand how unimportant the “things” in life are. To be sure they are nice, comfortable and enjoyable, but they will wear out and have to be replaced.
Jesus speaks of this in what we have called the Sermon on the Mount when he says Not to hoard treasure on earth that will soon be gone, but rather stockpile treasure in heaven. In fact he concludes the thought by saying, “The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.” (Matthew 6:21 The Message)
Developing a close personal relationship with the godhead will open your eyes—spiritual eyes—to eternal things that begin to overshadow the natural things once held as important.
This means that the answer to the question why some people seem to be so “blessed” while others seem to struggle boils down to a matter of the heart. If your focus is on the here and now, then yes the cars and houses signify blessing. If however your focus is on the eternal, then the cars and houses are simply conveniences to be enjoyed, if they come, while you look for the eternal.
This is a matter that can only be answered in your heart rather than in the accumulation of “things.” Abraham accumulated a lot of “things,” but in his heart, he was looking for the city of God.
If you are looking for the “things,” then Jesus tells us in another place in the Sermon on the Mount, that you have received your reward.
If on the other hand, your heart is focused on building a close personal relationship with the godhead, you may or may not see the “things” deemed important or counted as “blessings” by those in the matrix. You will however position yourself to see the city of God.
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Simple church is about community and the focus of the community is encouraging one another to build a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The Apostle Paul speaks to this in his first letter to the Corinthian Christ followers. He uses a very interesting Greek word in First Corinthians 11 to explain the gathering of believers. It is a primary focus of the manuscript I have mentioned. The word is, Synerchomai (sün-e’r-kho-mī) and carries an assumptive meaning. It assumes there is an understanding of the reader that coming together is going to occur.
This is important to comprehend and here is why.
The structure of the gathering is to encourage the Christ follower in his or her faith to continue to draw close to the Lord. The way this is done is by communicating stories—or testimonies—by fellow believers in their journey with the godhead.
Think of it this way; consider this story.
I was struggling with the weight of everything going on in my life. I knew that I needed to get closer to the Lord in order to find some peace that would carry me through. One day while driving to an appointment, I was—yet again—asking the Father for some understanding as well as an answer. These words rolled into my conscience; it seemed that I “knew” them rather than thought them. “Be still and know that I am God,” were the words. I knew them to be a verse of scripture in the Old Testament, although I did not know the address.
What happened next was amazing.
I began to quietly sing,
Be still and know, be still and know, be still and know that I am God.
I will be there when you’re not sure,
I will be there when it’s crashing in around you,
I will be there.
Be still and know that I am God.
Let’s apply this.
In the traditional church setting I will hear some great music, enjoy being around some great people, and hear a great sermon. There is nothing wrong with that. I may have an opportunity to briefly mention my experience with one or two people who may or may not be interested in listening.
In the simple church setting I could hear some great music, and I will have the opportunity to share my experience—maybe even sing my song—with some great people. I will also be able to hear about their experiences. There could be a great sermon, but that isn’t the focal point of the gathering. There is nothing wrong with that.
Generally speaking, in the first example believers “get” to go to church, while some “have” to go to church, and a few—generally speaking—“what” to go to church.
In the second example believers—again generally speaking—“can’t wait” to gather with other Christ followers in order to share their experiences or testimonies as well as listen to the testimonies of other believers.
This is why the assumptive meaning of the Greek word used by Paul is so important.
In the first example believers are gathering because they are supposed to gather; again generally speaking. In the second example believers are excited about gathering because they have the opportunity to relate with each other in a meaningful way.
It must be understood that this is not anti-church, the church as we currently know it, is not going away.
It is about understanding a different way of approaching the gathering of believers that more closely resembles the New Testament model introduced by Jesus.
The gathering or coming together of the believers is about building a close personal relationship with the godhead. One model promotes that while the other model may encourage it.
There is much more that needs to be expounded upon, but not in this setting. The manuscript offers more insight.
Next installment
Before I return to the focus on simple church, I want to offer a thought about a subject I was once passionate about. It seems that through the years both the passion and the subject have slid to the far corners of my mind and soul.
As a young Christ follower full of zeal and ignorant passion, I was quite adamant about the soon return of Jesus. I recall one summer while being home from college and working a summer job that a news story blared over the radio of a man in the Middle East being shot in the head. At the time of the report the man had not died. I remembering thinking this guy must be the anti-Christ. I almost left work to rush home to tell my mom and get ready for the rapture.
I do not recall why I didn’t do that and the man later died from his wounds.
The example is simply an illustration of how attune I was concerning the return of Christ.
Through the years that passion has waned while life has continued and circumstances have clouded my soul. This doesn’t mean that I stopped believing; it means the zeal is much more sedate and the passion isn’t ignorant (By that I mean that a fool tells everything he/she knows; a wise person waits until the right time).
Over the past several weeks I have been reading in the New Testament book of Revelations and have had tinges of that passion pinging my soul. The return of Christ is central to the Christian faith. The early believers had a regular diet of the imminent return of Jesus. The Apostle Peter addresses the issue in his writings warning believers not to listen to those who scoff at his return.
I believe in the return of Christ at the end of the age, though I have no idea when that will be. I believe that the spirit of mankind (male/female) will live forever; either in a god-forsaken eternity of torment or a God-filled eternity of peace. I believe that mankind’s existence on planet earth is designed to prepare him or her for that eternity. This explains the necessity of trials and testings, heartaches and hardships.
I also believe that the current structure of church as we know it has played an unwitting role in keeping Christ followers from God’s original design for mankind. This isn’t a criticism of the current structure; I lived it, proclaimed it, preached it for years. In my heart-of-hearts, I would defend the position of the church. But on this side of the fence, I now see how it has moved the Christ follower away from the simple to the complex.
The New Testament church is supposed to be about building a close personal relationship with the godhead. The simple church concept is about returning to that close personal relationship.
For example, the Bible is to be read in order to assist the Christ follower in developing that relationship, not to see if it can be read in one-year. Don’t misunderstand; having a daily discipline of reading is good if the discipline is to build a close personal relationship.
The stories of the Old Testament help the Christ follower understand mankind’s purpose in God’s grand scheme of things. The characters of the Old Testament bring understanding of how God desires to interact with mankind. It reveals what righteousness means to God and how important it is for mankind to be righteous.
The New Testament introduces the godhead through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Even though the Holy Spirit is mentioned throughout the Old Testament, it isn’t until the New Testament that his place in the godhead becomes clear.
As the central figure of the New Testament, Jesus models a close personal relationship with God. The New Testament believers illustrate what this looks like through their writings in the books that make up the New Testament. The Apostle Paul emerges as a key figure because of the revelation given to him by the godhead.
Back in the day, I would instruct believers to have a daily discipline of reading at least three chapters a day in the Bible, praying at least 30-minutes a day–starting first thing in the morning—and telling at least one person a day about Jesus.
Here is the problem with that instruction; it focuses on accomplishment, not relationship.
Today I will encourage Christ followers to spend time daily learning about the godhead by carefully reading the scriptures, asking questions along the way. Ask the godhead—God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit these questions. This could be called prayer, or it could be called having a conversation with God. If answers do not come, then take those questions to the gathering of believers to discuss them. As this relationship develops, talking to someone about Jesus will come naturally.
Can you see the fundamental difference between what is called church today and the gathering of Christ followers being called simple church?
The Apostle Paul gives insight on this. It is a large part of the manuscript that I have been talking about. I will expound on this next week.
Next installment
Please allow one more week reprieve before continuing our journey. In a way this week’s post represent’s the very essence of that journey.
After two and a half weeks in the hospital, we were able to bring our son home; only to get prepared for an approaching hurricane. Our family had radically altered our schedule rising early and staying up late in order to take care of our son. The last thing we wanted to do on the one morning we could sleep in and lazily ease into the day, was to get up early to prepare for a storm; but that is exactly what had to be done. Both my mother-in-law and sister-in-law’s houses had to be boarded up.
After we made sure our oldest son was tended too, the rest of the family loaded up and headed to my sister-in-law’s. On the way I realized that life is on the clock. There are times when we can be lazy, but for the most part life requires us to be responsible doing the right thing. In this case, the right thing was altering our schedule not once or even twice—we would have to undo everything that was being done—in order to do the right thing.
This is what being on the clock means; doing what must be done, when it must be done.
Jesus tells a story of a servant working in the field. At the end of the day the master does not invite the servant to sit down to dinner with him; but rather tells the servant to prepare dinner so the master can eat. It is only after everything is done that the servant can sit down to eat. The servant is on the clock and therefore required to do the right thing. This isn’t an act of punishment, but rather an act of obedience that will lead to a time of refreshing.
In what we have come to call the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us that if we are compelled to do something—in this case doing the right thing—do it twice as long. This isn’t meant to be a punishment, but rather an expression of love; even when you would rather be selfish.
There is another story where a father asks his two sons to work in the field. The first son tells refuses, but later changes his mind and goes to work, while the second son says he will go, but doesn’t. Jesus asks which of the two did the Father’s will; the first of course because he did the right thing.
The writer of the book of Hebrews makes a remarkable statement when he writes, “We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” Hebrews 12:2 NLT
Simple church is about developing a close personal relationship with the godhead. Jesus modeled what that looks like while on earth. In the King James Version, it states that he “despised the shame,” but did the right thing anyway.
Jesus did this with an anticipation of what would come, sitting in the place of honor beside God’s throne. In like manner, our simple church journey has a divine purpose of preparing us for an eternal position.
There is much to be said about this that is written in the manuscript that I am working on having published.
The Lord willing, next week the journey continues.
Next installment
I apologize for missing last week’s post. Our oldest son has been in the hospital for nearly two-weeks. His appendices ruptured, which caused no small stir concerning his health and well-being. He has undergone a couple of procedures to get everything corrected.
The wondrous thing about the ordeal has been the hand of God throughout the entire process. My wife called the EMT’s, which placed him at the front of the pack at the ER—as opposed to taking him. It was determined that exploratory surgery was needed to determine what the problem could be. Because of his age—16—the pediatric surgeon was contacted—he happens to be one of the best in the world. The surgery revealed the problem that was quickly addressed. Following the surgery, the surgeon walked us through each step of what to expect followed by the corresponding action.
My wife has moved into the hospital since this started. One morning I was not able to bring her coffee; the pastor showed up with coffee.
The shift meant adjustments for our other two children concerning school, practices and daily routines.
Enter Grand-mamma–she continues to be awesome.
People have brought us food and gift cards and given Grand-mamma an occasional break.
There have been dietary concerns when our son was allowed to begin eating. The Charge Nurse stepped in telling us she would take care of it.
So many small things have happened that scream “the hand of God” is taking care of us. In the midst of all of it has been an incredible, calming peace that can only be described as supernatural.
There is still no word on when our son will be released; but we know that Abba Father is taking care of it—all of it.
I trust that next week I will be able to resume our simple church journey.
Thank you to everyone who is coming along in the journey.
Next Installment
Gathering together is very important in the life of the Christ follower; but what does it mean? For the vast majority it means coming to a building—called a church—standing, sitting, singing, being quiet, then going home. I understand this is an over simplification of what is called “going to church,” but I am endeavoring to draw a comparison; not offer a criticism.
The Apostle Paul provides a look inside a simple church gathering throughout his letters in the New Testament. He speaks of meetings in houses and by brooks. Any time he speaks of the Synagogue it is in reference of the Jewish gathering. There is a distinct difference. The leaders he sets in place are over the first group, not the Synagogue.
There are two reasons to point this out. The first reason is to gain the understanding of how the early New Testament church functioned. The second reason is to gain an understanding of how leadership functioned in those days.
The structure was more organic (another term for simple church, organic church). The leadership role was a title of designation, representing one “with” authority as opposed to one “in” authority. This was duplicated from town-to-town as well as region-to-region and it worked very effectively in spreading the gospel message of Christ.
In pointing this out, I hope you see the stark difference between the early New Testament church and church, as we know it today. I know I repeat myself as I say this, but it isn’t a criticism of what is now in place, simply an endeavor to recognize another way of not forsaking the gathering of believers (Christ followers).
I suppose I feel the need to express this because I know the reaction of the vast majority of today’s church leaders, some of who I have been in association with.
The focal point of this site, this blog, is to bring the Christ follower into a close personal relationship with the godhead. The believers of the early church developed this naturally, if you will, because of the structure of the simple church.
Now think about this in our Western cultural mindset.
There is a synergy that is present when like-minded people get together. As one begins to convey a compelling story about their life, it ignites a desire in another to have such an experience. At some point this person will act on that desire, which will eventually lead to his or her compelling story.
Below is a crazy story that happened while in Bible College. It is an illustration of simple church in its simplest form.
Stan’s car broke down on his way to Bible College. He needed someone with a truck to tow the car to a repair shop. Dave had a truck and was free on Saturday. I agreed to come along. The car was in a business parking lot about an hour away. Dave’s truck was an old Ford F150 with a bench seat. We loaded the chain in the truck’s bed and climbed into the cab.
It wasn’t long before our conversation turned to things about God; after all we were Bible College students. One story led to another that led to another, each of us having a story to tell. I told them about the time I worked in a grocery store where a guy attempted to steal some beer. I happened to be at the front of the store standing near the entry doors talking to the manager, when this guy shot by me like a bullet leaving a rifle barrel. An employee shouted, “Stop him, he just stole some beer!” I darted out the door in hot pursuit. The guy was fast, not giving me any chance to get close to him. He headed into the field across the street from the store with me running as fast as I could to catch him; but that wasn’t going to happen. At that point I shouted, “Stop in Jesus name!” The guy froze in mid-stride with one leg in the air and one hand in front of him. It took me a couple of seconds to reach him. As I put my hand on his shoulder, he crumbled to the ground saying, “What did you do, man?”
We were so energized by the timed we reached Stan’s car that we jumped out of the truck, placed our hands on the car’s hood and told it to work. Stan jumped into the car, placed the key in the ignition and it started! He drove it back to the Bible College. I don’t think he ever took it to the repair shop.
Did the car start because we prayed over it, or because it had sat there a few days? As far as three young Bible College students were concerned, it was most definitely because we prayed over it.
The story is a great example of how simple church encourages Christ followers to continue in their journey. There are several analogies that can be drawn from the story in support of simple church; but what is important is the encouragement that was brought by each one having something to contribute. The story also conveys the importance of gathering together by encouraging each other.
Next Installment
The church in the wilderness was set up according to the Old Testament customs given my God to Moses. The Catholic Church is set up under that pattern or structure. Through the course of time this model has been altered, but the general structure remains intact.
Under this model Jesus cannot be a high priest because he did not descend from Aaron.
This creates a challenge; if Jesus is our high priest, then the structure is illegitimate and therefore not blessed by God.
However the church today is very legitimate and—for the most part—blessed by God. How can this be?
It can be because Jesus is a high priest after the order of Melchisedec; an Old Testament mystery.
The scriptures say he has no parent’s nor a beginning or ending. He is the king of righteousness and then the king of peace.
The book of Hebrews declares that because of this appointment as a high priest, that a change must take place. The Old must be laid aside while the New is taken up.
Jesus is the high priest of the New Testament church, not Aaron. Jesus has implemented a change in the way church must be done. This isn’t to say that Aaron’s way was wrong; Jesus simply brings a better way. Aaron’s way could not offer salvation, only the covering of sins through the blood of animals. Jesus offers both a cleansing of sins—washed as though it never happened—as well as returning to mankind’s original state in the garden—we call it salvation.
This is why simple church—as one of its many labels—cannot be discarded or branded.
The church in the wilderness was always meant to be a temporary fix while the true plan of redemption unfolded.
Consider how ingenious this was. In the unseen battle in the spirit realm for human kind, God kept the adversary, the devil, focused on the temporary plan—he quickly moved to corrupt it—leaving him completely unaware of the eternal plan.
The eternal (new) plan allows mankind the opportunity to once again get close to God; to have a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The old order was only able to show humanity an image of what the new order would look like.
This change was meant to change everything.
It is my belief that the way church has been done over the past two-thousand years represents the old order in that it was not designed to draw mankind into a close personal relationship with the godhead; but rather was designed to satisfy the innate need for form and familiarity; which as already stated, has its place.
The New Testament church today is meant to operate on a different premise than the Old Testament church.
If you are going to church to get filled with the spirit, you are operating under the old order.
If you are going to church to get fed the word; you are operating under the old order.
If you are going to church because you are not to forsake gathering together; you are operating under the old order.
As the church you gather with those of like belief in order to encourage each other along in your journey until the coming of Lord.
This is why Christ followers are not to forsake gathering together. But what does that look like.
Next Installment
The writing of the New Testament book of Hebrews offers tremendous insight into simple church life. There is a passage of scripture in the tenth chapter that is often quoted regarding church attendance. It states that we (Christ followers) must not forsake gathering together as some do. We are to encourage each other as the return of Christ approaches.
In order to grasp a fuller understanding of what this means, it is important to find the context surrounding the passage. The sixth chapter is a good place to begin to grasp this lesson. It talks about father Abraham receiving a promise from God—the supreme deity—to bless both Abraham and his descendants. God backs up the promise with an oath in his name. He says to Abraham that as the God who cannot lie, he will bless Abraham and his descendants.
Consider how powerful this is.
The supreme God—creator of everything—tells you that he will do something. Do you think he is not going to do it? Do you think he will twist his words so as to get out of doing it?
Think about this.
He—God—wasn’t tricked into saying this—not that God could be tricked into anything. He wasn’t obligated to say it because of something Abraham had done. Nor did he unintentionally say it in a weak moment. God told Abraham in no uncertain terms that He would bless him and his descendants.
There is much to say about this, but keep in mind today’s subject is not neglecting to gather.
God makes a promise.
The challenge comes when the promise falls on human ears. It is certain that Abraham did not have the challenge with patience that modern humanity has; but like all fallen mankind, to be patient is challenging.
The Greek word used in this passage is translated to persevere patiently and bravely; something Abraham spent years doing.
This patience produced hope and hope brought perseverance. Developing a close personal relationship with the godhead takes patient perseverance. The hope that kept Abraham in the journey was God’s inability to lie. It is this hope that must be embraced today in order to see the promises fulfilled.
The journey is designed this way for a reason. It is available to everyone, however only those with a determined desire will see it through. This isn’t an escape clause to justify why so many do not complete the journey.
Quite the contrary; it is somber picture of a committed heart.
It is said in the Gospel of John that following a certain message taught by Jesus, that many of the disciples walked away because they were no longer willing to follow him. It is written in the Epistle’s that the ones who stick it out until the end are the ones that will be saved.
It all goes back to choice.
Will humanity choose to believe God or not? There are those who will flat out refuse; then those who will go along for a time; and finally those that are committed no matter what.
This is why the church of today will be present when Jesus returns. It represents a safe place to practice form and familiarity.
This is not a criticism, simply a harsh fact.
In one translation it is said of Abraham that he looked down the corridors of time and saw Jesus. This gave him the strength to carry on.
Today mankind is to look back through the eyes of history to find Jesus and thereby receive hope to carry on. Not only will Jesus be seen, but everyone who determined to take the journey to a close personal relationship.
This hope is wrapped up in Jesus.
The book of Hebrews continues by pointing out a very important fact about Jesus. He was made a high priest, but not according to the law. The law made it clear that the priesthood belonged to the sons of Aaron. This could not be changed or altered…to be continued next time.
Next installment
Form and familiarity are not bad words. They are, in fact, necessary for the existence of life. The sun rises each morning in the east as it has done since the beginning. The moon circles the earth from east to west; as it has always done. The movement of the moon controls the ocean tides. The various seasons are governed by earth’s rotation around the sun. These are undeniable examples of form and familiarity without which humanity would be unable to function.
The advancement of any civilization is depended upon the education of the children, without which would lead to anarchy.
Form and familiarity are essential to mankind’s growth and development.
This is why discipline is necessary in everyone’s life. It instills habits and rituals into children that are carried out as adults. Do you suppose that at age 30, some bright idea sprang into Jesus’ head saying he needed to have time alone with God?
I liken that to opening the door of our children’s bedroom one morning to find them out of bed cleaning their room. They inform me that this overwhelming thought of cleaning their room caused them to jump out of bed and get started.
I awaken to realize that I was dreaming!
Jesus learned from the traditions of the elders, his family and their clan about spending time with God. The discipline came over many years of “doing,” not by some overwhelming desire.
It is said of world-class athletes or musicians, that the daily discipline of the basics is the earmark to their greatness. The Polish pianist, composer Ignacy Jan Paderewski is noted for saying, “If I miss one day of practice, I notice it. If I miss two days, the critics notice it. If I miss three days, the audience notices it.”
This is form and familiarity.
In one place in the scriptures, it is stated that heirs are no different than servants until their training is complete. Think about this. Here is the future boss; yet until the form and familiarity are completed, he or she isn’t any different than me.
It is a grave mistake to think you can escape form and familiarity.
Growing up, I practically lived at the church. I recall times my parent’s would drop me off so I didn’t miss some service or function. I tell people that I have slept under more pews that most folks have sat on. I was always there. I was immersed in form and familiarity as a child having no idea what it was.
I now know that such learning became the foundation of my walk and relationship with God. I recall one day as a teenager having a desire to know more about God. That day I determined to read through the Bible, something I had never before done. For the next 36-years I read the entire Bible cover to cover in many different translations.
Form and familiarity played a large part in this; however the desire to get closer to God coupled with his grace enabled me to continue.
The problem arises when form and familiarity are confused with a close personal relationship.
This is where my single greatest struggle began. I would often say to myself that I spend time with God; I read his word; I honor him with my life. True as it was, I was confusing form and familiarity with a close personal relationship.
Think of it this way.
Let’s say that my wife has written me a large number of letters. Every day I spend time reading those letters. I laugh, I cry and I thoroughly enjoy spending time with her through the letters. As a result I learn a great deal about her. I understand what makes her happy, or sad or even angry. I get an idea of her personality and habits because of the letters. The letters are great; but they are form and familiarity.
If I never spend time alone with my wife, I have missed the beauty of building a close personal relationship with her. Even though I know a lot about her because of the time I spend reading her letters, I will never truly know her.
I believe this is the state of many in the traditional church today.
Form and familiarity are necessary, but are only a stepping-stone to something better.
Next installment
When the Father placed me on this journey over 10-years ago, I had no idea what to expect. The further down the path he took me, the more convinced I became that the way church is being done is incorrect.
Through the years I have experienced shifting opinions regarding the structure and place of church in the Western mindset. At one point, I viewed it as a necessary evil, one that will not go away, but is fundamentally flawed. There are those who hold this view so adamantly that they have written books about it. Some of those books are included in my recommended reading because it is important to have a balanced view of any subject.
Today I understand that the church has become commercialized. This means the leadership follows the same business model or mindset of successful businessmen and women in the secular circles.
In the King James translation of the Bible, the word church is used 77-times. It is translated from the Greek word Ekklesia and means to call out or to call forth into some public assembly. Simply stated, it is an assembly of people. This is important because it addresses a mindset of what church is and isn’t.
It isn’t a building, although a building could be involved.
It isn’t a location, although a central location could be used.
It isn’t form, although a certain order is to be followed.
I have come to understand that the model of today’s church is deeply rooted in the church of the wilderness with its form and familiarity. This isn’t a criticism, but an observation and one that must be understood.
Form and familiarity are easy. Once you learn the system, you simply follow it.
You need structure in order to maintain form and familiarity, so a hierarchical structure is put in place. It is complete with a set of rules and regulations, do’s and don’ts for the participants to follow. Those who follow them are said to be in good standing, while those who don’t are subject to the prescribed disciplines.
This is how God set up the Old Testament church in the wilderness. It is also the model of the church today.
The challenge to this model is in the form of a question.
Is this the model Jesus intended his disciples to adhere too? The New Testament church in the book of Acts seems to indicate the answer is no, it is not the model to follow.
This is what church is supposed to be. It is where the idea of simple church begins to emerge.
It is important to understand that this isn’t an attack on the Old Testament model; God gave it to Moses. Nor is it to say that using this model today is wrong. It is simply to say that Jesus seemed to have a different idea in mind.
From the beginning of his public showing, Jesus represented a different approach to God. He both lived and proclaimed a personal relationship with the Almighty. The result of such a relationship being walking with authority.
In the New Testament books we call the Gospels, Jesus repeatedly tells the people that they have heard—been taught—a certain precept of the law. Jesus, however, is now telling them a different way to live out that precept.
For example in his first lesson, Jesus addresses murder by saying in the past you have been told not to murder. He then offers a different way to live out that precept of the law by saying not to even be angry or speak ill of a person.
Understand that form and familiarity says do not kill. Jesus is saying do not even be angry with or speak ill of someone. Form and familiarity deal with the outward matters while Jesus is touching the inward matters of the heart.
I am certain that virtually every minister behind virtually every pulpit in the world will agree with that. I know it was a deep cry of my heart to have the congregation I served not only get that, but live it.
The idea of simple church does not focus so much on the form and familiarity as it does on the close personal relationship with what I am calling the godhead—God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Jesus both taught as well as lived this relationship with his disciples for over three-years. There are numerous stories in the Gospel pages where they operated in the Old Testament form and familiarity only to be corrected by Jesus. Peter asks Jesus if he should forgive a person that offends him seven-times—form and familiarity. Jesus responds by saying not seven-times, but seventy times seven times—close personal relationship.
By virtue of the structure, the Old Testament model of church cannot address the heart issues that a close personal relationship can.
This is why home-groups or cell-groups began springing up in the church in the 1980s. It was a way to address the heart issue. Because of the Old Testament model of doing church was in place, Form and familiarity had to be involved. This involvement stifled the close personal relationship because it could not be controlled. This is not a judgment, but a very true reality of my attempts at cell-group gatherings.
It is said of King David that he had a heart after God. I find it interesting that this isn’t said of all humanity.
This tells me that form and familiarity must be in place in order to assist the vast number of people who do not have a heart like David’s.
More on that next time.
Next installment
This journey began in the most unusual way. It was with much reluctance that I agreed to step into the pastorate of a small struggling church that I at one time oversaw. My wife and I sensed it was God’s will as did the counsel of those I held myself accountable to.
About four years into the rebuilding process I knew a change had to take place. It wasn’t a spiritual change, but rather a very practical one. The finances were simply not there to keep doing what we were doing.
The decision was made to rent out the sanctuary and move our services into the parsonage. The plan was to do so for a couple of years while we restored our financial stability.
During this time the Holy Spirit began working on my heart about doing church differently. It is described in detail in the manuscript that I am working on publishing.
But what is important to understand is why I accepted this position in the first place.
I agreed to become the pastor because my wife and I were agreement about it, because those I made myself accountable to were in agreement with it, and because that still small voice of the Holy Spirit had been confirmed by the above.
To my way of thinking, this meant that God was going to grow this congregation to a sizeable force in the community. In fact an invited guest speaker publically announced during a service that God had given me the city—even though it was a small town.
Four years later the decision is being made to cut expenses and move services into the parsonage.
The first question to arise was where did I miss God? This was followed by how did I miss him? There were many more questions that flew across my mine during that time, and rightly so. Given my mindset going into the project, (notice my choice of words) how could I think any other way?
However given the fact that I had willingly and sincerely given my life over to the will of God, it must be his plans that were being implemented rather than mine.
This is huge.
I was close enough to the Lord to know his voice. I walked with him long enough to know how to confirm his voice, however I still had my agenda concerning his-will for my life. It was my assumption that purpose for my being there was to grow a sizeable congregation in that community.
I could rationalize a dozen different reasons to back this up, but the point to embrace is I missed one key element in this relationship with God.
I knew his voice, I knew how to confirm his voice, but I had not learned how to wait on him to carry out his plan.
It is like attempting to stand up a tripod using only two of the three legs. It will fall every time. And this is what was happening. I was falling—not failing (although it felt like I was failing)—because I was attempting to stand without the third leg.
I cannot tell you how many times I have replayed that scenario in my life.
Nor can I tell you the vast amount of grief it has caused me as well as many others throughout my years of leadership in the church. The sad reality is this scenario is played out countless times within the lives of godly people on a daily basis. It is because, like me, Christ followers have not been taught how to have a close personal relationship with the godhead.
In those days I had no idea what that meant, much less what it looked like. Others might be able to wait on God to see his plan, but fail to wait on him as to when to implement that plan. Still others might know when the plan should be implemented, but fail to understand that it is God’s plan
This is not say that everyone is guilty of missing this critical step; but I have seen it played out over and over for many years.
I have also seen the enemy of mankind use this to confuse as well as defeat many godly men and women. The disappointment is more than they can bare, so they turn their back on God.
I can tell you most assuredly that the reason I did not throw up my hands and walk away during this time is the unity my wife and shared coupled with the inner witness in my heart to stay the course.
From that beginning has grown the close personal relationship with the godhead. It is coupled with what is called by some, simple church, because this relationship does not come by joining a secluded monastery and living a life of solitude. It grows where simple community is present.
The truth of this reality is plainly seen in the New Testament. However the larger segment of the body of Christ has missed it. There could be many explanations for this, but I believe the primary reason to be man-made rules disguised as righteous behavior.
Jesus began recognizing this at age 12 as he sat in the midst of the religious leaders in Jerusalem asking them questions. He dealt directly with it once he was known in the region as a teacher.
He often confronted the religious leaders with questions of “why” when they attempted to correct him. He would ask them why they make God’s word useless in favor of their traditions.
Many arguments could be fought over this, but it is important to understand the lesson to be seen.
A close personal relationship with the godhead is at the core of every Christ followers life. I speak with full confidence when I say that at one point in my pastoral life I would have argued that I am teaching that. However at this point in this unexpected journey, I can now look back and say that I was wrong. I have a lifetime of experiences to prove it.
Further more the intent is not be to argumentative, but rather to move understand what a close personal relationship with the godhead looks like; and then develop that in ones own life.
Next installment
“The polls are in and the news is bad for the Church in America.
Christianity is on the decline, Americans have given up on God, and the “Nones”—those who have no religious ties—are on the rise. It is indeed true that parts of the Christian Church in America are struggling, while a growing number of Americans are far from God,” Ed Stetzer, author and Christian Missiologist.
Last week I wrote about the church exodus that experts are seeing in America. I mentioned two particular groups of people that could contribute to such an exodus.
The first group mentioned are those who do not have an inward witness of Christ. This does not mean that they have never experienced some type of emotional draw to the Lord. It simply means that they have never developed a close personal relationship with him.
They could well represent the pathway soil in Jesus’ story in the New Testament book of Luke. There was a hearing of the word of God—the seed—that reached their heart, but because it was so hard, it became prey to the advise of those around them, or the philosophies that they held to be true, or the popular opinion of society.
Whatever the reason, the word of God did not find an opening to begin working in their lives.
I believe this is one place simple church can really shine in a darkened world. The relationship element of ones individual life should serve as a calling card to a lost soul.
I recall a classmate in college that openly professed his disbelief in God or anything to do with God. He would constantly want to challenge me in conversation about God. It seemed he thrived in being contentious.
It took place so long ago that I do not recall particular instances, and I do not remember him asking Jesus to come into his life; but I do remember him saying one day that I always had a rebuttal to his challenges about God.
The point is that something in my life stirred him to approach me in an effort to challenge me about God. I know that it was the adversary that stirred him to challenge me, but I believe that my lifestyle is what got his attention.
My lifestyle is what is important to understand. If you can receive it, this is evangelism. It is a Christ follower living out his or her everyday life in such a way that gets the attention of those who do not know Christ.
I remember a friend who was promised a promotion at work. All of the employees knew he was up for this promotion. They also knew him to be a righteous person. He didn’t beat them over the head with bible verses that they knew nothing about anyway. Neither did he browbeat them telling them what sinner they were. He simply lived his outward life like he lived his inward life.
The day of the promotion announcement came and to everyone’s surprise the company gave the position to someone outside the company. To be sure, my friend was upset, but never said an angry or crossword about the company.
This got the attention of everyone in the company. They could not believe that he didn’t get mad, pitch a fit and quit. He simply went to work the next day doing what he had been doing the days and weeks and months before.
As it turned out, the outside guy didn’t perform to the company’s expectation and was fired. Guess who got the job and the promotion?
This single act had a huge impact on the people who worked with my friend. It gave him many opportunities to speak with them about the Lord.
The scriptures tell us in the New Testament book of Acts, that the religious people marveled that two uneducated men like Peter and John spoke with them with such boldness and conviction. The reason for such a display of confidence was the fact that these men had been companions of Jesus.
A close personal relationship with the godhead produces a boldness that causes those in their world to take notice. It is possibly the most effective evangelism tool in the Bible.
This certainly isn’t any attempt to minimize evangelistic efforts, simply to emphasize the value of such a relationship.
In the likelihood you have missed the connection with simple church, allow me to explain. The focus of simple church is the simplicity of developing a close personal relationship with Christ followers, the godhead and then the lost in your world.
There is a section devoted to this in the manuscript that I am working on having published.
The fact that statistics are showing people are leaving the traditional church—what I have called the matrix—is a clear indicator that a change must take place. This is not to say that traditional church will go away. It is to say that the early New Testament way of gathering was so effective that it reached the then known world.
Perhaps it is time to embrace that way of being the church today.
Next installment
Consider why people will leave a church. The reasons could be many as well as varied. For example the first group of people mentioned in last week’s post, those without a close personal relationship with the godhead, might leave because the message being proclaimed was convicting them. Instead of surrendering to the drawing of the Holy Spirit, removing themselves from the conviction would be easier.
Another reason this group of people might leave is the lack of entertainment. There wasn’t enough action to keep them engaged, so they departed to seek it elsewhere.
Another reason could be fear of being found out. For them saving face was far more important than having a close personal relationship with the godhead.
I think my favorite reason, although I did not recognize any of this at the time, was they were not being fed. Even though this reason applies to the second group mentioned last week, it is important to see how it applies here.
With the exception of the first reason for leaving—the convicting power of the Holy Spirit—each of the other reasons are about me. I am not being entertained, I might be exposed or I am not being tended to.
The Apostle Paul addresses this in his letter to the church at Corinth (it is mentioned in an earlier blog), when he states that every one of you will have something to contribute when you come together. In other words he is saying that you are not coming to be entertained, you are coming to participate.
Jesus uses a parable in the gospel of Luke to talk about a close personal relationship by describing four types of soil—hearts—that seed—the word of God—will be planted in.
The first type of soil was hard because of continued use. It is likened to a path. Because the ground was so hard, the seed could only lie exposed on the surface. Since it was exposed, birds or rodents were able to come along and eat it up.
This is like the first group of people mentioned. The word of God has the power to convict, but without it settling in the soil of ones heart, it is exposed making it easy for anything to pluck it up. It could be someone’s comment, or a past hurt or an evil thought that snatches the seed away. The seed has no chance of reproducing.
The second type of soil was rocky. Even though the soil had not been prepared, the movement of the rocks had at least softened the surface thus allowing the seed to find a place to be planted. Because of a lack of moisture the seed eventually dies.
It took years on this journey before I was able to see what the Holy Spirit wanted me to see in this parable. The hardships of life can do one of two things to people. It can make them bitter—the pathway group—or it can make them better—they rocky group. The hardship at least has softened their heart enough to allow the seed of the word of God to settle there.
Unlike the first group whose heart was to hard to even give place to the seed of the word of God, this group was open enough to receive it.
The reason the seed dies is due to a lack of moisture. The scriptures are full of illustrations regarding water. For example the Apostle Paul speaks of the church, the ekklesia, being cleansed by the washing of the word of God.
In another place the Apostle Paul speaks of planting the seed in the heart, while another waters the seed that was planted. The context of the scripture is the fact that God causes it to grow.
This watering is connected with a close personal relationship. The purpose of this blog isn’t to explore the connection.
The third type of soil in Jesus’ story is full of weeds. The outer layer is soft enough to allow the seed to settle in, but it immediately begins competing with the weeds for survival. The weeds win out and the seed dies.
In another place in scripture these weeds are likened to cares, worries or anxieties about life. Because the seed must compete with these things in a person’s heart, it isn’t able to receive the nutrients needed to bring it to fruition, so it dies.
The last soil mentioned in Jesus’ story is called good soil. Anytime a farmer plans to plant a crop, the field to be planted is toiled, raked and made ready to receive the seed. This ensures the seed will have the right conditions to give it the best chance of growing.
There is much to be said about a close personal relationship with the godhead in this passage of scripture. However what is important to understand today is why people might leave the fold in order to discover a way to draw them back.
It begins with your close personal relationship with the godhead.
Next installment
“The church in America today is in decline,” Thom Schultz, CEO of Group Publishing.
“Christianity is on the decline, American’s have given up on God,” Ed Stezter, Pastor, Author, Christian Missiologist.
Each of these respected men sight staggering statistics backing up their claims. Mr. Schultz estimates between 2.8 million to 7.8 million have left Christianity within the past seven to eight years.
Do these numbers represent men women and children who made a profession of faith in Christ that have walked away from church? What would cause such an exodus?
The Apostle Paul speaks of a falling away or apostasy, taking place before the return of Christ. This could be part of the reason that so many who once said yes to Jesus have decided to leave. However once you understand the falling away, it only reinforces the necessity for a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This defection is that of true religion. The understanding of what Paul is saying is based in teachings that lead to people believing a lie rather than the truth.
Paul was accused of teaching such lies with the message of the gospel. Even though looking back through the eyes of history, that is certainly not the case; it appeared so in the minds of the religious leaders of his day.
Paul details such a person who walks away from the truth in his writings to Timothy. He outlines traits of selfishness, self-centeredness, and arrogant defiance to authority. He speaks of them as those who follow their own path as opposed to a righteous path.
If these are the ones leaving the church, they had no real relationship with Christ to begin with. They only had a form of godliness; an outward show without an inward witness.
If on the other hand, this exodus represents people who have an inward witness, who walked in a godly conviction, then there is an issue to be addressed.
These are the lives that are of concern to the Lord. This isn’t to say that the first group isn’t important. Christ died to save sinners. However what I am speaking about relates to the church (ekklesia).
Jesus gave the illustration of the shepherd leaving the ninety-nine sheep in order to search for the one not present. These millions of lives referred to by Mr. Schultz represent the one in Jesus’ story.
There could be a thousand reasons why this is happening; but I can assure you that one key-missing ingredient is the lack of a close personal relationship with the godhead.
As a pastor it was one of my biggest concerns. Even though at the time I was unable to identify the problem, it grieved me that week after week I proclaimed the word of God to a congregation that week after week continued struggling with the same issues.
It is becoming clear to me that the mandate from the Father for me, is to proclaim a close personal relationship with the godhead.
In doing so, perhaps these millions will have an opportunity to return to the fold. Perhaps those sitting in pews across the globe will be able to find victory over the issues they have struggled with for years. Perhaps the message of the king and his kingdom will in-sight a revival unlike anything humanity has seen since the founding of the early New Testament church.
The scriptures tell us that Christ gave certain gifts to his church, his ekklesia. Some of those gifts were apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.
I was taught that these were offices within the church. I functioned within one of those offices called pastor. I have no problem understanding that men as well as women operate in these various gifts.
Since being on this journey with Abba, I have come to understand that instead of offices, they are positions within the church (ekklesia) to assist the Christ followers into a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This being said, the Evangelist is to assist the church (ekklesia) in reaching the first group mentioned above. There is much that could be said about this, but not at this time.
The pastor is to come along side the Christ follower to assist them in reaching the second group mentioned.
The purpose of this blog is to assist in building such a relationship, for how can one teach something they know nothing about? How can this massive harvest field be reaped if there are no laborers to reap it? How can Christ return without the message of the good news being spread throughout he world?
Together we the church, the called out of bondage—whatever that bondage might have been—are being called upon to build a close personal relationship with the godhead in order to reach a growing number of humanity—both lost as well as wounded—with one simple message.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life, John 3:16.
Previous Post
What is the simplified church? What does it look like? Is it relevant in today’s Christian world?
I believe the answer to the last question is a resounding YES given the fact that “church” as we know it is in serious decline. One study pointed out that 80 percent of churches are either stagnant or in decline. The reasons vary, but relevance, lack of purpose and lack of trust are often sited as why people are leaving. The numbers also vary by age with Millennial’s leading the exodus with only four in ten in church attendance.
I found it very sad that every single article I have researched offers traditional “church” logic as to how to turn this around. Below is up one example of what I am talking about. In an article written in March of 2016, Best Selling Author David Murrow writes, “Let me spend a little time on that last one. One of the hallmarks of 20th century evangelicalism was the focus on individual unction: personal salvation, a personal relationship with Jesus, personal devotions, etc. Pastors taught people to dig into the Bible themselves; to self-feed by reading Christian books and listening to Christian radio; and to share their faith with others – all without much support from the church.
But by placing the individual in charge of his own spiritual life the church unwittingly de-emphasized the importance of community. This produced a generation of spiritual James Bonds – lone wolf agents who imagine themselves serving God without much help from headquarters.”
Let me be quick to say that I am not disagreeing with Mr. Murrow’s logic. It was only a few years ago that I would have given a hearty, “Amen” to his comment.
This journey of discovery that Father has placed my family and me on is one that has radically changed the way I view many—if not all—things church.
What if the things Mr. Murrow mentions in his article are actually the very things the early New Testament church practiced?
Please understand that I am not attacking or refuting Mr. Murrow’s view. I am simply pointing out a very fundamental fact that has been missed or at least overlooked.
The outcome of the council in the book of Acts the 15th chapter conclude that Gentile Christ followers only need to adhere to a simple practice. They were not to engage in certain pagan rituals surrounding food. There was no mention of attendance or obedience to church leaders or any such thing.
Before the Apostle Paul left a city, town or region, he would appoint elders, older men, to look after the church or the called out (ekklesia) and the apostle turned them over to the care of the Lord. He did not leave them with a list of do’s and don’ts; the godhead simply directed him to certain men—in those days—to take the oversight of the ekklesia.
Later in his travels Paul offers instructions for what the gathering of believers should look like. In his writings to the Corinthians, he tells them that everyone is to have something to bring to the gathering. It may be a song, a teaching, a prophetic word or utterance, but whatever it is, it must be done for building everyone up.
The Apostle Paul uses a very interesting verb when giving this instruction in I Corinthians 14:26. This verb carry’s an assumptive meaning. In other words it assumes the one reading already knows what to do. The Greek word is synerchomai (sun-er-kho-mi) and is translated, to come together.
The apostle gives certain instructions to the ekklesia about what should happen when they gather. It includes participation from many as opposed to a few. It is assumed that those reading his letter will be gathering together.
This raises the question why are they to make such an assumption? There is a section devoted to this matter in the manuscript I am currently working on having published. Because of that, I am tempted to write several paragraphs in response; but in order to stay on track; I will not yield to that temptation.
The point that I believe Mr. Murrow missed in his research is the simple fact that the original intent of the Christ follower in the early church was to develop a close personal relationship with the godhead. Because of this relationship, they would know—through the prompting of Holy Spirit—the importance of gathering with other believers. This relationship would bring them insight or revelation that they would in-turn share with the ekklesia under the leadership of elders or those with spiritual maturity who encouraged such exchange.
Perhaps the decline in church attendance, at least in part, is due to the fact that the current model cannot support this kind of community. Perhaps the reason home cell groups do not flourish today as they once did is because of man-made control.
My heart longs for a strong vibrant force in the earth called the ekklesia—the called out—who radiate the love of God, the grace of the Son and the power of the Holy Spirit in a sick dying world.
This is what this journey the Father has taken my family and I on are searching for. It isn’t to call out the church, as it exists today. It isn’t to point a finger of accusation or to threaten an uprising.
It is about change!
It is the kind of change that totally turned the live of a radical zealot into a radical Christ follower. He wrote these words, “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” Phillippians 3:10 (English Standard Version).
His name is Paul.
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Have you ever taken the time to imagine what it must have been like to walk, talk, eat and be in the presence of Jesus when he walked on along the Sea of Galilee? I have been privileged to visit there once. It has been indelibly embedded in my mind the moment it happened.
We were on a boat ride in the middle of the lake when the guide had the captain stop the engine. There was a light breeze blowing creating a small chop on the water. He began by saying that the disciples were at about this spot on the lake when Jesus came walking to them on the water. He pointed in the direction that the Lord would have been coming; that is when it happened.
At that moment I was no longer on a historical visit to the holy land, I was in the land where Jesus walked some two thousand years earlier.
That moment completely changed my entire perspective of our visit.
One of my favorite accounts from the gospel stories about Jesus is found in Matthew chapter 16. Jesus is asking his disciples about the word on the street concerning him. Different disciples are giving him different answers when he interrupts with a most exposing question and asks them to tell him who they believe he is.
I cannot help but think that it was one of those defining moments for Peter when—as I like to imagine how it happened—his ears heard what his mouth was saying, “You are the Christ,” he explained. I can imagine him pausing mid-sentence, his eyes big as saucers as the realization penetrates his heart.
What an incredible time it must have been in Peter’s life.
Jesus affirms Peter by assuring him that he had a God-inspired revelation. He continues by telling Peter that on this rock will be built the ekklesia—called the church.
He tells Peter that he is about to build something so strong, so powerful that even the power of Hades will not overcome it.
In about 30-years following the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, the message of Christ had spread throughout much of the known world with untold numbers of gatherings and meeting places proclaiming the good news.
Consider how amazing this is given the fact that there is no structured organized plan or committee to carry this out. The Apostles had a simple mandate, proclaim the good news.
For the most part the Apostles remained in Jerusalem, while converts took the message of Jesus to the uttermost parts of the earth.
A leadership conference is recorded in Acts 15 when a dispute arises regarding doctrine. The simplified message of a close personal relationship with the Lord is conveyed and carried back to the new believers.
This bond of closeness with the godhead remained strong among the ekklesia—the church—throughout the lives of the Apostles.
It appears this unity began to erode with the second generation of leaders taking the reigns. Doctrine began to be the keynote and separation began to follow. The unrelenting disapproval regarding doctrine among the Jewish leaders led the way for the first tier of this separation to take place.
Sadly it became the beginning of more separation as sect after sect emerged with their own version or belief.
The purpose of this brief history lesson is to simply point out that the results of such separation are the many church-camps that exist today.
This isn’t to speak ill of them, but simply point out what happens when a close personal relationship with the godhead is replaced with a doctrine or belief. This isn’t to say doctrine isn’t important. It is to say that a close personal relationship with the godhead is more important.
What such a relationship is in place, doctrine will find its proper place.
The leadership conference in Acts 15 offers an important lesson in cooperation when a close personal relationship is in place.
There was stark disagreement on a very key doctrinal issue—circumcision; this doctrine being central to Jewish belief. There were Jewish believers that felt strongly that the Gentile converts had to be circumcised in order to follow Jesus. The Apostle’s—especially Paul—did not hold to this belief. He made the case that this doctrine was a Jewish custom not a universal mandate for salvation.
The contention was sharp.
The disagreement was resolved because they prayed, then they discussed, then the Lord gave them a solution.
I recall being such a meeting within a certain denomination regarding some fundamental changes that needed to be addressed.
I recall listening to each side of the argument with compelling points being made by both sides.
What grieved me was the fact that not once was stated that their arguments came as a result of much prayer, fasting and seeking the scriptures. The basic argument was it has been done this way since the beginning verses it is time to make a change.
The point to be understood is the fact that either sides were right; however, the issue wasn’t right or wrong; it was what the Lord of the church wanted. This answer is only found by prayer and fasting.
Without a close personal relationship with the godhead, one is left with personal feeling or popular public opinion.
In the simplified church, such relationships with the godhead as well as those within the community enable godly solutions rather than the formation of new sects and divisions.
Previous post
Holiday’s that mark a date in the past have always intrigued me. Two-hundred forty one years ago on this very day (July 2nd) a group of 56-men agreed on a course of action that would both shape as well as change the course of history. Setting aside the dispute as to when the Declaration of Independence was actually signed, this day in history marks the accord that set America’s future on a course of freedom. This simple, yet monumental act would help change both American history as well as world history. It would insure that tyrannies and ruthless dictators would be held in check around the globe.
One of the many things I find interesting about these men is that they were all white.
There was not a woman or person of color who cast one single vote. The reason this is so profound is the fact that document these men signed would help to bring equality to women as well as every ethnic group who would call America home.
These men had varying beliefs about the issues of the day; but they found a common point of agreement that caused them to set aside their differences and ratify a history-changing document.
Thanks to the creative imaginations of men and women in Hollywood, we have graphic images of what life in Philadelphia Pennsylvania would have been like when this momentous event took place.
I can only imagine the mixed emotions that swirled around the room as discussion ended and the vote began.
If it were possible to travel back in time, one could set the date to July 2, 1776 and actually watch as this event unfolded.
What intrigues me about this date is the fact that it actually happened.
Perhaps more importantly, it hasn’t been forgotten. For well over 200-years American’s have gathered to celebrate July 4th. I find this important for two reasons—one spiritual, the other historical.
The day marks a momentous change. Even though on July 5th, 1776 life wasn’t any different than the day before, a shift had taken place that could not be ignored.
This is how the life of a new Christ follower may feel after making a decision to accept Jesus as the savior of their life. On one hand, everything is as it was before; the same problems, challenges and concerns. However on the other hand, everything has changed in ways that cannot even be comprehended.
It should become a date—like July 4th—that is both remembered as well as celebrated for the remainder of ones life.
On July 3rd you were going this way and on July 4th the decision was made to go another way. It was a life-changing decision.
There are two reasons to note that date.
The first reason is to remember where you were on July 3rd—as it were—and reflect on what happened on July 4th—as it were. This remembrance is to keep fresh in ones life the decision made to make the change. In other words it is a time of reflection.
The second reason is to take note of the changes that have occurred since that decision was made. Year after year it is important to pause long enough to realize just how much—or perhaps how little—change has taken place.
This reflection allows for either a celebratory reminder of how much better life is, or a reflective admonition for additional changes that must be made.
Either way, something positive is meant to come out of the reflection.
When this celebration is coupled with family and friends, it reinforces the desire to either stay the course or make course corrections. Since there is safety in the counsel of many, this element of celebration should not be ignored.
The historical reason for remembering this day is to take a reflective survey of the past.
I recently saw a headline that stated that our founding fathers would not be happy with today’s America. A case could certainly be built for a second declaration of independence from oppression and political abuses.
What a breath of fresh air it would be to see the political scene in this country to pause long enough to take a hard look at the America the Second Congressional Congress envisioned when signing the Declaration of Independence. This is why the earlier reference was made as to the makeup of this Congress.
Without the ethnic diversity, these men found a way to ensure ethnic diversity could take place. Without gender diversity, gender equality was ensured—even if these men would not agree with the gender issues of our day.
I find it amazing that with over 200-years of every imaginable advancement humanity has made, that these simple-minded—by comparison—men could accomplish something the political establishment of today cannot; the willingness to compromise for the sake of the country.
Perhaps if these political leaders of today would take such a pause, they might see some things that could be done differently.
Either way, Happy Independence Day—whether it be a spiritual or an historical one!
One of the key arguments I had about the cell group movement of the Nineties was accountability. As the pastor, I could not allow some groups running off doing their own thing. There must be accountability. It wasn’t that I was endeavoring to control them; I was responsible to watch over the flock.
I know that many pastors’ hold to this way of thinking and I would not have disagreed with them; until I began this journey.
The role of the pastor is to shepherd or watch over the flock; this is certain. However for the most part the current role of the pastor doesn’t match the role of that of the New Testament. There will be more on that in another post.
The role of the Christ follower is to develop a close personal relationship with the godhead. This too is something that looks far different in the early New Testament church.
A close personal relationship begins with the acceptance of Christ’s invitation to be born again. It continues with spending time with other’s who also know Christ. This is key because that represents those who have a deep established relationship with the godhead as well as other’s who have recently made the same commitment to follow Christ.
The result of this relationship becomes a strong desire to draw closer to the godhead. As a result, the new believer takes steps toward God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit according to their willingness to be open.
The Apostle Paul addresses this in his letter to the Christ followers in Corinth. He instructs us—as he instructed them—to come together with the expectation of having something to present to everyone. It could be a revelation from the word of God, or a song, or even an inspirational utterance called prophecy.
This is something you will not see in most churches today. It simply would be too chaotic to allow such a thing to take place.
As this close personal relationship develops, it reaches a point where the Christ follower is receiving instruction from the Lord regarding his or her life. As that instruction is shared with those he or she comes together with, the accountability of the gathering (the leadership along with the other Christ followers) confirms that the believer is accurately hearing the voice of the Lord—or not.
The things that are conveyed while meeting together serves as a confirmation point that the Christ follower is indeed on the right track. This is huge because it allows the community to participate in the growth and development of the others in community.
It is also huge because it eliminates the need for the pastor to carry the burden of being like Moses listening to the needs of the congregation. This is true even if there is a well-structured matrix in place with elders and deacons as Jethro—Moses’ father-in-law—instructed Moses to do.
It is also huge because it eliminates the demigod mentality that is prevalent in many church leaderships today.
Even though at the time I did not understand this, I knew the growth of the congregant would take place in small group settings. The focus of these groups was a dialogue about my sermon. This would put everyone on the same page; which would create excitement in the church service. The result of that excitement would be inviting more people to attend; which would mean growth.
Let me illustrate what a close personal relationship with the godhead may look like.
This past week was a particularly difficult time for me. There was a larger than usual attack of oppression that would not let up. It was the kind of oppression that constantly ran negative thoughts through my mind. It was so severe that it affected my dreams at night as well as my work during the day.
No matter how determined I was to think good thoughts, quote scripture after scripture, it did not let up.
As I was in prayer I had this impression to reach out to several people who I have close personal relationships with. I simply sent them an e-mail asking them to pray.
On the way home from work—I had to leave early—I had this portion of scripture run though my mind. It was, be still and know that I am God.
When I arrived home, I pulled my wife aside from her work to talk with her. After a good cry, we prayed. She then spoke to me in her usual loving, but stern way and said, “I give you permission to take the rest of the day off.”
I complied.
I went to the scriptures to locate the portion of scripture that earlier ran across my mind.
I have included it in this post, without comment, for you to review. However before I get there, it is important to understand that something.
I could have called the pastor, who would have lovingly offered wise counsel.
The reason I did not call him is because of the counsel of the Father that filled my mind while in prayer was to reach out to friends.
The counsel of the Son was a verse of scripture; that ran across my mind while driving home.
The counsel of the Holy Spirit was to read that portion of scripture from a particular translation.
This combination of obeying the counsel of the godhead provided the victory that I needed in this situation. It had nothing negative to do with the pastor; it wasn’t an act of rebellion or unwillingness to submit to authority; as a matter of fact I submitted completely to authority—that of the godhead.
The lesson to hopefully be learned is the importance of developing a close personal relationship with the godhead and what that looks like.
I invite you carefully read the following words. They are taken from The Message.
God is a safe place to hid,
Ready to help when we need him
We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
Courageous in sea-storm and earthquake,
Before the rush and roar of oceans,
The tremors that shift mountains.
Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
God of angel armies protects us.
River fountains splash joy, cooling God’s city,
This scared haunt of the Most High.
God lives here, the streets are safe,
God at your service from crack of dawn.
Godless nations rant and rave,
Kings and kingdoms threaten,
But Earth does anything he says.
Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
God of angel armies protects us.
Attention, all! See the marvels of God!
He plants flowers and trees all over the earth,
Bans war from pole to pole,
Breaks all the weapons across his knee.
“Step out of the traffic!
Take a long, loving look at me, your High God,
Above politics, above everything.”
Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
God of angel armies protects us.
Happy Father’s Day
It was not my intention to post anything regarding Father’s Day. However while driving home this past Friday I began to think about my dad and the ever-changing role of fatherhood in our culture.
My dad was the single income earner of a family with four children. Mom took care of the household based on the budget given to her by my dad; but dad brought home the paycheck.
For the most part mom took care of the discipline and general raising of the children. However I will never forget those fear provoking words, “Wait until your father gets home,” because we had done something so severe that it took dad to bring correction.
Television portrayed dad in a positive light with Ward Clever (Beaver’s dad), Jim Anderson (Father knows Best), and happy-go-lucky Andy Taylor (Opie’s dad) letting children know that dad was in charge.
Then dad began to change when Archie Bunker (All in the Family), and Al Bundy (Married with Children) began putting dad in a not so positive light. Dan Conner (Roseanne) added to this decline of dad’s image all for the sake of a cheap laugh.
Homer Simpson (The Simpsons) took dad to a new comedic level of being an authority figure that is nothing less than an idiot, while Bob Saget (Full House) portrayed dad as a modern man raising his children without a mother. His being a friend approach made dad somewhat more approachable.
Sadly Hollywood has assisted the world in defining what dad is supposed to be; and the images are less than honorable. It appears that achieving a laugh became more important than presenting a positive image.
Today’s dad must be politically correct, socially accepting of whatever trends or behavior the children choose to relate to. Anything less is labeled as some type of phobic behavior that is certainly unacceptable.
Equally as sad is how I have seen this trend fully embraced—for the most part—in the church culture where the really cools dads look as well as act the part. The appearance is that their children are culturally balanced and socially relevant.
That sounds nice, but I have a problem with it.
As a Christ follower, godly men do not look like their worldly counterparts. They strive to live a life that is God-honoring in such a way as to inspire their children to walk with them.
Godly men are not perfect self-centered egoists, but rather sensitive caring men who endeavor to walk up-stream of popular ideas of what dad should be. They are not some bumbling idiots that are out of touch with the world around them whose children are embarrassed to be seen in public with them.
Godly men are far from perfect, but who embrace a perfect father by having a close personal relationship with the godhead. They endeavor to train their children in tandem with their wife to also develop such a relationship with God.
It is my hope that today, THIS kind of dad is honored all across our great nation and around the world.
If you are striving to be this kind of dad, I commend you. If you fall short of being this kind of dad, I encourage you start today.
Stand in front of your children and make a bold proclamation that you are going to change. Ask them for their patience as well as support as you make good on your promise.
When you need help, ask for help. If you do not know who to ask, reach out to me, I will gladly offer assistance.
Don’t be afraid to let your children see you being real; it will impact their lives in very real ways.
Together we can mark 2017 as the beginning of a very Happy Father’s Day.
The next installment
It is important to understand that Jesus grew up within this Old Testament model. It is recorded in the gospel of Luke that Jesus’ habit was to attend the Synagogue on the Sabbath.
This tells us that God the Son was not opposed to such a gathering. However because of the intense hatred for Christ and his followers, following his resurrection the new believers were not welcomed in the Synagogue.
They continued to meet in the temple courts where Jesus often taught the people. The difference here is that the New Testament book of Acts points out that the new believers did this daily.
That will put a crimp in your lifestyle!
It soon became their habit to gather each day in the courtyard, then move into someone’s home to eat. According to historical accounts, this went on for about one year before persecution from the young zealot Saul forces the young believers to scatter throughout the region.
This is when the believers began meeting in homes and remote places in order to avoid suspicion that would lead to further persecution.
This practice went on for about 14-years creating a large number of gathering places called churches (ekklesia).
Today we label such gatherings with names like, organic church, simple church or house church. Whatever the name, its origin is found in the book of Acts and facilitated the rapid expansion of salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ.
As one brought up in the current way of doing church as well as a leader within its structure, I have seen the decline and/or shifting of church attendance. Smaller groups have been absorbed into larger groups while larger groups experience a decline or stagnant state of existence.
The rise of the simple church movement—it has been called by some—in the early twenty-first century, is not some uprising of disgruntled congregants mandating their right to be heard.
I believe the cell-group meeting that flourished in the eighty’s was of supernatural origin, leading the way to the house church gathering following the turn of the century.
I also believe this is by divine providence for reasons stated in the previous post.
As one sovereignly brought out of what I have called the matrix and placed into this way of being the church, I carry a unique understanding of both its dynamic as well as its purpose.
Think about it. If this vehicle, call it whatever you will, was used by the Holy Spirit to expand the good news of kingdom throughout the known world, wouldn’t it make sense that at the end of this age the same Holy Spirit would once again use the same vehicle to impact the known world?
I believe the answer is a resounding Yes.
Does this mean one way is right while the other way is wrong? I believe that is the argument the enemy of the cross would like to use to divide the Christ followers.
There are many arguments that can be brought up regarding this; but what cannot be denied is the fact that such gatherings are taking place around the world.
Perhaps the wiser thing to do is to take the advice of Jesus when he told his disciples about the man casting out demons, “Don’t stop him!” Jesus said. “No one who performs a miracle in my name will soon be able to speak evil of me.”
The next installment
The simplified church is a gathering of Christ followers. The word church in the New Testament is the Greek word Ekklesia (Ek, kla, see-a) that means a gathering of citizens into some public place. The word simplified means to reduce to the basic essentials. The combination of these words forms the bases of site. It is a place where Christ followers can come to learn about essential ways to follow Christ. It isn’t a gathering place in and of itself. It is simply a place to learn the most basic lesson of following Christ; having a close personal relationship with the godhead. It is about falling in love with God the Father and his infinite wisdom regarding all manner of life and living. It is about falling in love with God the Son and the incredible gift the Father presented to mankind through his son Jesus Christ. It is about falling in love with God the Holy Spirit, the giver of eternal life and truths to be revealed about God the Father and God the Son.
Best selling author David Murrow published an article earlier this year commenting on the decline of church attendance in America. Thom Shultz, CEO of Group Publishing also published an article with staggering numbers into the millions of American’s leaving the church.
Both men agree that there is a problem.
I was particularly intrigued by Mr. Murrow’s comments. He states,
“One of the hallmarks of 20th century evangelicalism was the focus on individual unction: personal salvation, a personal relationship with Jesus, personal devotions, etc. Pastors taught people to dig into the Bible themselves; to self-feed by reading Christian books and listening to Christian radio; and to share their faith with others – all without much support from the church.”
He continued his comments, by saying,
“This produced a generation of spiritual James Bonds – lone wolf agents who imagine themselves serving God without much help from headquarters.”
The observations made by Murrow’s are an important. If the reason attendance is in decline is because people are finding a close personal relationship with the godhead, then perhaps that isn’t a bad thing.
Secondly what support from the church is he referring to? The article does not clarify, but as a pastor I believe I have a good idea.
I recall the early days of the home cell movement. I eagerly embraced it and quickly implemented it into our weekly worship. It was very structured with elders heading up each group. It was discussion based giving the congregants the opportunity to dig deeper into the message or sermon that the discussion was based on.
It started out great; but something unexpected happened along the way. The elders began reporting back that the various groups wanted to delve into other topics. It seemed that the natural flow of things would lend itself to discussing the subject at hand rather than the subject prescribed.
I couldn’t have such strife in the ranks. Everyone had to be on the same page in order for us to move forward as a church.
What started out growing wonderfully well began to dwindle under the increased control I had placed on them.
It wasn’t until I embraced this unexpected journey to simple church that I began to see my mistake. The Apostle Paul addresses this very issue in his letter to the ekklesia in Corinth. He tells them that when they come together that each of them is to have something to contribute. Has goes on the say that such a gathering is to have order.
Since the church is the gathering of Christ followers, the support comes from three places. The first is the godhead through the person of the Holy Spirit who instructs, guides and directs them. The second is the assembly who affirms the things being presented by the others. The final area of support is from the leader of that group whose responsibility is to discern the direction they are to take.
This is a simplified approach, but that is simple church.
This is something I could not see in those early days. If I wasn’t controlling it through my instructions, then chaos would ensue—or so I thought and was taught.
The last comment Murrow makes is simply a matter of perception. In his comment he says that these, “spiritual James Bonds,” are “serving God without much help from headquarters.”
I understand completely what he is referring to because I once thought the same way. I had to take control of the home cell groups because it was my responsibility as the pastor.
However, the result was a failed attempted at a God ordained movement.
I now understand headquarters to be God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. This does not mean that every little gathering or assembly is an island unto himself or herself.
It does mean that when everyone is in communication with the godhead (headquarters) that everything flows smoothly.
If someone is not in communication, this becomes obvious to the others and a corrective course of action can be taken.
All of this sounds as though I am advocating the decline on the American church; I am not.
I am simply stating that if Mr. Murrow is correct in his assumption, that there is a biblical place for those who are developing a close personal relationship with the godhead that the traditional church is unwilling to embrace.
The fact of the matter is that not everyone who calls on the name of Christ will embrace the call of Jesus to deny his or herself and daily take up their cross to follow him.
For those who are not willing to walk such a radical lifestyle there is the traditional church setting. However, for those who are wiling to cast off such constraints, the teachings of Jesus and the New Testament book of Acts builds a strong case for such a simple way to be church.
This may be difficult for some to wrap their head around, but the model of the church today is based on the church in the wilderness pastored by Moses. To be sure there are modifications to this Old Testament version, but the New Testament gathering began quite differently than the Old Testament model.
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a federal holiday honoring the men and women who gave their lives while in service of this great nation. It is fitting to set aside a day to honor and pay tribute to them. It is a righteous act, one that respects the value of human life.
This is important because of the devaluation of humanity that is taking place in our land and around the world.
This is not a time to reflect on the lives of the hero’s whose very name invoke thoughts of bravery, courage and heroism; no, this is a time to remember every unsung hero, every ordinary Joe or Jane who stood in harms way so that other’s could be saved.
To the families of those brave men and women, I say thank you for your sacrifice. It is because of it, that I am able to sit in the comfort of my home and write this.
May God bless you all.
Memorial Day also reminds me of the simple truth of a simple church life. It is about service, about laying down your life in order for other’s to live. I think of one person whose courage allowed God to show himself alive to a non-believing people.
The General was a highly decorated soldier as well as a noble man. He had the respect of his peers and his government. He had everything any man could want in life. He had riches, servants and a faithful staff to tend to his every need. But he longed for one thing that no one had been able to give him. He longed to be cured from this horrible skin disease.
There was not a single doctor in all the land who had been able to cure him.
One day his staff overhead the servant’s talking. The conversation caught the attention of one of them. He pulled the servant aside asking her to explain what she was telling the others. He could not believe his ears for she told him of a man in her hometown that could cure the General.
The staff member went to the General; the General went directly to the King, who wrote a letter to the King of that country announcing the General’s visit.
The very next day the General and his entourage were off to find this man. The General took his King’s letter and presented himself to the King of that country. The King thought it to be a trick and dismissed the visit as a rouse.
Determined to find the man, the General’s staff located him through the town’s people. There was quite a commotion as the General and his company arrived at the man’s house.
As his attendant knocked on the door, the General imagined what the man might require of him. His thoughts were interrupted when the man’s servant came to the door asking them to wait.
A few minutes later the servant returned with one simple instruction; you are to dip in the river seven times. The General was outraged. It was humiliating that a man of his stature would do such a thing, in a river as dirty as the one in this country no less.
The General turned in disgust thinking he had been played.
Then it happened.
The General’s attendant made a bold move, one that could cost him his life. He took it upon himself to approach the General uninvited. The General was so angry he did not rebuke the attendant, but rather barked at him, “What do you want?”
In a move very uncommon among attendants or servants, he asked the General to reconsider his decision by appealing to his common sense.
The General stopped in his tracks looking the attendant squarely in the face. After what seemed an eternity, the attendant’s heart beating hard, sweat pouring down his face, the General replied by saying, “You may be right.”
With that the General and his party headed to the river. By the time they arrived the General had determined to follow the man’s instructions to the letter. He stripped down to his under garments and walked straight into the river, dipping himself seven times.
As he came up the last time, his eyes noticed that his arms were completely normal. He touched his face; completely normal too. He threw his arms in the air shouting, an uncharacteristic move for him.
At first the entourage did not know what was going on. They stood on the shore frozen until they realized that the General was excited and showing an unusual act of emotion. They began to cheer with him.
An unnamed hero, an ordinary person, who had enough of a relationship with the General and the willingness to risk his life, was able to offer him counsel that changed his life.
This is simple church in action.
The church in the wilderness
In the Old Testament Moses took the Children of Israel into the wilderness. It was God’s design to avoid the armies of the surrounding tribes. The intent was to position them to enter into the land of promise. The journey took forty years longer than God intended; it seemed Jacob’s children needed to learn a very important lesson.
Once the journey was over, Israel crossed the river Jordan to enter the promise land; where they were instructed to drive out their enemies.
In the New Testament Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness for a series of tests. Following the test Jesus emerged from the wilderness in the power of the Spirit.
Within these two wilderness accounts lie the lessons for Christ followers today.
The wilderness is a mandatory destination, yet not a permanent one.
The Old Testament shows us the journey you and I must walk in order to enter the promise land today. The New Testament shows us the way to walk through the wilderness.
The Old Testament shows us the journey into the promise land, while Jesus shows us the way to walk through the promise land.
The children of Israel had trust issues. The wilderness addressed those issues. God used Moses to show them how to trust him.
Mankind is meant to live by every word God speaks.
Jesus shows us that in his wilderness experience as well as his daily life.
In the Old Testament Israel had to drive out the enemy—people who had lived there for years.
For the Christ follower today our promise land is returning to humanity’s original intent—abundant eternal life.
The enemies we are to drive out are the thoughts, beliefs and suspicions that have pledged us our entire life.
There will be many battles—it took Israel years to conquer the land.
Jesus shows us how to be victorious by using the word of God. This is far deeper than memorizing verses in the bible in order to accomplish our selfish desires.
It is developing a close personal relationship with the godhead that causes you to desire to learn what the bible says, and why it is saying it, rather than simply memorize it.
The journey will take years.
Sadly some will die in the wilderness having never learned the most important lesson of all; mankind lives by every word out of God’s mouth. The answers to your questions in life, about life and everything related to life, are all found in the Word of God.
This is why the Bible is so important to humanity.
It is also why the Christ follower must cherish the Word of God. But let’s be clear about it; it is paramount that you develop a close personal relationship with the godhead. The Word of God cannot be read simply to learn the stories contained in it. It cannot be read to gather knowledge about God the Father, God the Son or God the Holy Spirit. These are reasons people read the Bible every day; and yet they are no closer to the godhead than when they started.
Happy Mother’s Day
What a unique creation, a Mother. Have you ever stopped to consider that in the beginning God did not create a mother, or a father? God created a man and a woman.
A mother is a by-product of the love and union of that man and that woman.
In the beginning the close personal relationship with the godhead spilled over into a close personal relationship between the man and the woman. The result of such a close, personal relationship is a child.
Consider how powerful this is.
Creator God placed within each gender of his creation one very unique item, that by itself has no purpose in order for creation to function. However when that very unique item meets the other very unique item, a miracle takes place that we call pro-creation!
From that , God’s creation experiences an entirely new way to live—parenthood.
This could go very deep when you consider that throughout the animal kingdom, it is predominately the female—or mother—that takes responsibility for the raising of the offspring.
However the focus of this post is to honor this wonderfully unique person called Mother!
Because humanity is so fractured, there are many adaptations of the word Mother. Terms like birth mother or biological mother, or surrogate mother, or stepmother are a few of them.
I cannot tell you how many times I heard some version of, “This child did not come with an operations manual!” Parenting is a challenge and it becomes especially difficult when it comes to the mother’s role.
I am expressing it this way because the world we live in has produced all kinds of women who have surpassed expectations as well as failed miserably as a mother. My wife and I are fortunate to have very good mothers. We believe that our children—for the most part—believe that they have a very good mother.
However I knew countless thousands that cannot make that claim.
For them this day is either just another day, or a day that conjures up bad memories otherwise forgotten.
If that describes you, then I encourage you to think about this. I was fortunate to have a very wise instructor while in Bible College. If something turned out really bad—like a parent/child relationship—she would say, “Today we learned how NOT to it.”
To be sure it can—and probably will—hurt. But what is important is to learn from it so as not to repeat it. Where your mother (or father) failed, you can succeed.
This is possible because of a close personal relationship with the godhead. Once you allow yourself to get close enough to expose those bitter hurts, wounds and bruises, you will find the love of the ultimate parent lovingly and graciously taking them away.
This enables you to look at your mother in a different light; which gives you the opportunity to forgive her and move on.
It isn’t easy. If it were, everyone would do it. Those willing to take the journey will find incredible joy on the other side of that journey.
For those who were blessed enough to have a good, or even great mother, you have the foundation for a close personal relationship with the godhead.
Jesus and his mother is a great example of such a mother/child relationship. The focal point of the scripture’s is Christ, but remember that Mary had at least six more children after Jesus. The reason this is important is the testimony of a mother’s ability to love each of her children in an equally special way.
The scriptures tell us that Mary stored up in her heart—she held them close—the things that were told her regarding her son. Even though this is speculation, it is reasonable to believe that she talked with Jesus about these things over the course of his young life. It is also reasonable to believe that she even encouraged him along the way.
I say this because I understand human nature as well as draw on my own relationship with my mother. She would be there with a positive word even in the midst of the worst situations.
Her words would always comfort me because even though she was my mom, I knew she believed what she was saying—as opposed to saying it to make me feel good. Because of this, I find it easy to believe that Mary did the same for her son.
Just before Jesus dies on the cross, he honors his mother by telling one of his disciples, John, to take care of her. What a powerful testimony of the bond between a child and a mother.
So, Happy Mother’s Day.
I trust you are able to celebrate it to the fullest potential that you can. Whether you determine that this year is the year you decide how not to do mothering, or you celebrate with your mother, or like me, you celebrate it knowing that your mother is having an awesome time in heaven; celebrate the day and the reason for the day.
The next installment
As I understand relationships, they are as individual as the people who are in them. Of all the people mentioned in the Bible, only Abraham is called a friend of God.
Consider this man once called Abram.
He obeyed his God by leaving the land of his heritage and journeying to a strange land. At the age of 75-years old, he began a journey that would bring him into the promise land; even though it would be as a stranger. Abram journeyed up one side and down the other of the land of Canaan as a stranger. He died as a stranger in the land of promise.
And yet, this man is called a friend of God. How can that be? How could Abram be so blinded as to trust—much less follow—a God who would treat him that way?
Abraham believed God and that belief carried him past all the doubt, all the heartache, and all the grief, into a very close personal relationship with God.
Every time Abraham found himself in a difficult place, he cried out to God. Every time he cried out to God about his difficult place, God would show him something about his promise to Abraham and that satisfied him.
How can that Be?
What would cause a person in crisis to find a place a peace in the midst of the crisis simply because this unseen entity showed him something about his future?
Abraham believed God.
This means that Abraham choose not to believe other things. He choose not to believe the crisis he was facing. Even though every fiber of his natural being screamed otherwise, Abraham grabbed a hold of the word of God.
There is a lesson in Abraham’s life that applies to the journey that you and I are currently on. Like Abraham there is a wilderness to walk through. Like Abraham there are crisis’s to endure. And like Abraham there is a choice to be made.
The question is which choice are you making? Are you choosing to believe the evidence of your natural being and surroundings; or are you choosing to believe the promise that God has given you?
The next installment
How does one have a close personal relationship (CPR) with someone you cannot see? Perhaps the bigger question is why would any rational human being even consider such a notion? Humanity has become so self absorbed that anything religious—there are a few exceptions—is looked at as narrow minded or some type of phobic.
I find it interesting that in a world of individualism almost anything is tolerated—even embraced—except religious beliefs.
The irony is that religion prescribes ways to have a relationship with God while controlling you in that relationship.
As I understand relationships, they are as individual as the people who are in them. Of all the people mentioned in the Bible, only Abraham is called a friend of God.
How does one have a close personal relationship (CPR) with someone you cannot see? Perhaps the bigger question is why would any rational human being even consider such a notion? Humanity has become so self absorbed that anything religious—there are a few exceptions—is looked at as narrow-minded or being some type of phobic.
I find it interesting that in a world of individualism almost anything is tolerated—even embraced—except religious beliefs; perhaps that should be qualified as Judeo-Christian beliefs.
The irony is that religion prescribes ways to have a relationship with God while controlling you in that relationship. I honestly think that out of ignorance that many have done this; although there are those who have full understanding of what they are doing.
As a pastor I did not want my congregation to get into some bondage under the guise of hearing the Lord tell them to do something. It was meant to be a safety net to have them run it by the elders given charge over them.
It was not until years later that I saw the danger—as well intended as it was—in this.
Think of it this way. Would it make sense that the God of all creation would lead his creation astray? If someone is pursuing a relationship with God, would God deliberately lead them into bondage?
I can hear the voices of my former pears screaming, “But to not be accountable is to open oneself up to the devil;” to which I wholeheartedly agree. The assembling of ourselves together keeps us safe. The voice of the shepherd allows us to stay in the fold.
We are talking about a close personal relationship with the godhead.
The next installment
While I was reviewing previous posts, I ran across this one and realized that it had not been posted. What I find interesting is that in some ways it dove-tails off the last installment regarding the wilderness. The wilderness, you see, is designed to teach us how to trust the godhead by living according to every word He has spoken in the word of God.
This story—that took place earlier this year—unfolded before the revelation of that truth—living by every word from God—was made more clearly known in my life.
Read it and see if you can determine what I am talking about.
I experienced something the other day for the first time. The funny thing is, I am certain that I have experienced it countless times over in my life. Here’s what happened.
The last three months have been disastrous financially. Since I work in a commission only sales position, no sales means no income. I have attempted every legal method I know—almost every legal method, I did not write a note on a piece of cardboard and stand on a street corner—to get money to pay the bills, keep gas in the vehicles or keep creditor’s from calling—who I talked on an a weekly basis.
I have made every confession, repented of every sin and made proclamations out-loud regarding the finances. I have prayed, cried out to God begging, pleading and asking in faith for ways to get the necessary finances to take care of my family. I sent a gut-wrenchingly honest letter to key people in my life asking them to pray over the matter as well as offer counsel; which some did. I heeded the counsel offered without any different result.
I am in a hopeless situation and yet not hopeless. I have walked with God far too long to know that he will show up and take care of this mess—at my house it is code named Ship High In Transits!
There is an old hymn that correctly describes the situation. I believe it is the chorus that says, “Mercy drops ‘round us are falling, but for the showers we plead.” There have been little “blessings,” if you will, that have brought encouragement along the way. Someone has called asking me to stop by so they could give me a box of groceries. Someone has asked me to meet them at the convenience store, then put gas in my vehicle. On a couple of occasions, a check has even shown up in the mail.
These little “mercy drops” are indeed falling, but the needed showers of a steady paycheck has become a longing thought.
As you might imagine, this has brought an immeasurable amount of stress on my physical body as well on the family. I have borrowed money from our children and siblings—that is a not-so-fun experience. I am not only working full time to make sales, I am working full time to locate some kind of employment to get a paycheck into the household. Even though my wife is home-school mom, she has been unsuccessful in landing any employment.
It is a hopeless situation, but we are not without hope.
I gather the family together to talk over the matter. I am honest about what is going on—I certainly have no understanding to explain it. I make sure we avoid the “why” questions because they do not offer any helpful answers. I make certain that we read God’s word and that we continually pray for his guidance.
I address the anger issues that flare up as a result of this Ship High In Transit.
Then it happened.
I have walked with my God far too long to raise my fist in anger toward heaven and blame him. I have far too many testimonies of his mercy and grace showing up in my life to walk away in disgust. I have seen him make a way where there simply was no way to be made. These are my experiences, not just some stories that I read about someone else.
I recall a song by a Christian recording artist many years ago that went something like this, “Through it all, I have learned to trust in Jesus, I have learned to trust in God. I thank God for the mountains, I thank God for the valleys, I thank for the Storms he’s brought me through. If I never had a problem, I’d never know God could solve them. I’d never know what faith in his word would do.”
I have lived it, so I knew, I know, he will be here as well.
One of the sales I had been working on came through. That same day, three other sales I had been working on, came through. The next day I had an offer for some part-time employment. Then another opportunity was placed before me.
The challenge now before me is determining which one the Father wants me to say yes to!
Last night as I leaned against the counter in the kitchen, I experienced something for the first time; but I am certain I must have experienced it many times before. As I leaned on that counter sipping my coffee, I realized that all of the anguish, all of the sorrow, the sadness had been replaced with a calm assurance, a peace and a renewed hope that everything was going to be all right.
I still do not have a complete understanding as to “why,” and I may never know this side of eternity. But I do know that if I hadn’t had this problem, I wouldn’t experimentally know that God would solve it!
So be assured that He does and He will.
The next installment
It happened on a certain day that the things he heard Jesus saying had stirred the son of a rich man. He inquired as to what more he needed to do. Jesus knew the young man had much wealth. Perhaps it was by the clothes he wore, or the manner in which he carried himself. Or it was probably that the Holy Spirit revealed it to him.
His answer to the young man’s question shocked both the young man as well as Jesus’ disciples. Jesus told the young man to give up the thing he treasured the most and come follow him. The young man could not think of doing such a thing—he would be poor. The disciples could not imagine Jesus saying such a thing, who would be crazy enough to follow him?
Certainly they left everything to follow him because they were stirred by something deep within them—little did they understand that stirring to be the Holy Spirit. But they were not rich and giving up what little they had was nothing to giving up riches.
Jesus did not flinch. He knew that whatever holds you, owns you. Riches both held and owned the young man. In another place he boldly claimed that humanity couldn’t serve both God and money, or riches.
This prompted Peter to ask the question racing across each disciple’s mind. “What about us?” They wanted to know what would happen to them; they gave up the little they had.
The answer must have equally shocked them.
Without batting any eye, Jesus told them that anyone who gives up possessions of this world in order to be a follower of his, will receive possessions of this world in this lifetime along with eternal life.
How powerful is that!
There is a lesson in that that will be saved for another day; but understand possessions are not easily given up. This is where the wilderness experience becomes so important in the life of the Christ follower.
The lesson isn’t in the things that are given up. The lesson is learning how mankind is supposed to live—by every word spoken by God.
The Wilderness part 2
The other side of the wilderness experience is what I am calling the promise land. It is a place where the close personal relationship with the godhead is put to use on a daily basis. It is a place that has been promised by God to everyone who has taken the journey that has led them into and through the wilderness.
In order to understand this promise land, you need to understand the land God gave to the children of Israel. This understanding has very little, if anything, to do with the terrain, the geographic location or the natural beauty of the land.
This understanding has everything to do with how Israel took such a land making it their own. It is first important to understand that it was the fulfillment of a promise to Abraham who walked with God; eventually being called a friend of God—one having a close personal relationship.
For the Christ follower today there is also a promise; a life eternal promise. This is the fulfillment of the redemption plan set in place millennia ago after mankind’s fall. Eternal life is a privilege of being created like God—the original intent when mankind was placed in the garden.
You must remember that humanity is eternal because God is eternal and will live forever. Because of Adam’s sin and mankind’s fall, the eternity humanity had to look forward to was eternal separation from God.
The promise of Jesus was to restore mankind back to that original place of eternity with God. This is why God is so intent on giving mankind every conceivable opportunity to make the right choice—it will always remain humanity’s choice.
However Adam and Eve enjoyed more than eternal life—they also enjoyed the garden they were placed into. In like manner, the Christ follower has a world of life to enjoy before stepping into that eternal joy.
Jesus told his disciples—thereby telling us—that much more awaited them in this lifetime.
A Special Easter installment
Resurrection! It isn’t a word that is used in everyday conversation. Neither is it a word that is used in a broad sense. The meaning is to be raised back to life. If the word is even used in conversation today, it is a figurative reference to an object or a thing rather than a person. For example, There seems to be a resurrection of the old band; meaning the old band has come back to life.
I find it interesting that it isn’t even a word that is used today, Resurrection Sunday. It is called Easter taken from a Greek word Pascha which refers to a central religious feast of Christians.
The point being that resurrection is a very powerful word and yet it isn’t used to proclaim the risen Christ. Oh indeed he was raised from the dead, but that is downplayed for the greater importance of a feast; eggs and candy and lots of food.
While I have no problem enjoying a good meal, especially with those I love, the meal hasn’t been resurrected, Jesus has.
In the Gospel books of the New Testament, the religious folks used the word resurrection as a way to trip Christ into saying something they could use against him—that failed of course.
In John the Apostle’s writings, he mentions the just and unjust in regards to the resurrection—the future tense. Martha—Lazarus’s sister—speaks about resurrection in the future tense, when talking with Jesus.
The book of Acts tells us of the disciples proclaiming the resurrection of Christ as a way of compelling non-believers to follow Christ. They believed it so much, that it impacted the way they conducted their lives.
This is what I am talking about.
Because Jesus Christ rose up from the tomb coming back to life after being dead, the promise of the Father to restore humanity back to our original place has been set in motion.
Because I have accepted that as true and acknowledge that God raised Jesus from the dead, I now begin my journey of restoration to that original place.
This means that I am convinced that Jesus was indeed resurrected; which means I am a child of the most high God on an incredibly unexpected journey to my original design!
I cannot up help to talk about that to others, as the early disciples did in the book of Acts.
Yes I will gather to enjoy the food, the fun and the fellowship; but my passion is to talk about this journey to anyone willing to listen. It will be your loss if you choose not to listen; I will simply go on to someone else until I find that person who is!
Happy Resurrection day!
The Wilderness part one
After mankind’s fall, Adam and Eve were removed from the garden into a wilderness experience. It was here that they found out about thorns and thistles, weeds and poison ivy as well as every other negative thing that was now part of their new reality.
Imagine how daunting that must have been. They went from having everything at their finger tip to making everything work with their hands. The ease they enjoyed for so long now replaced by labor and toil for the remainder of their lives.
I must have been a difficult transition.
When God called Abram—later to become Abraham—he took him from a good place and placed him in a very different place. The transition must have been difficult.
When Moses realized that Pharaoh was out to take his life for killing the Egyptian guard, he fled from the comfortable life he grew up in into the wilderness—a life he knew nothing about. The transition must have been difficult.
When it came time to implement the plan of redemption, Jesus left the wonder of eternal happiness to be born as the son of a peasant family. The transition must have been difficult.
When it was time for Jacob’s children to be delivered from the harsh bondage of Egypt, Moses took them into the wilderness. I can only imagine what a relief that must have been for them after generations of slavery.
And then, following his water baptism, Jesus is taken into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. Do you think this was a difficult time for him; or do you imagine he looked forward to it?
The point to be understood is that a wilderness experience is truly a natural part of humanity’s existence. It does not automatically mean suffering is to follow as the case with Israel leaving Egypt or Jesus going into the wilderness for testing.
For many in Western civilization that experience has been lost. In fact most developing nations of the world are loosing that experience as well—even though there remains much grief and suffering in the world.
The question is why is a wilderness experience a natural part of mankind’s existence? The answer is found in the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy—the story behind the page “I am about to bring you into a good land.”
The overwhelming reality that mankind was made to live by God’s word.
The story is compelling. In the beginning we see two perfect human beings living in perfect harmony with God, with nature and with each other. It is a picture of humanity living by the word of God.
This is followed by mankind being duped into believing they can do better by taking control of matters themselves. In this part of the story you see some good, some bad, but a lot of evil.
Then comes the intervention.
Mankind has the opportunity to return to his/her original state—with some exceptions. Those who have much to loose by following such a path meet this with much opposition. Little do they realize that a soulless adversary is using them to fulfill his self-willed purposes.
If this isn’t enough, this adversary is successful in duping those who refuse to fully buy into his wicked scheme by selling them a bill of goods called religion. This seems to appease mankind, tricking them into thinking that they can form their own pathway to God.
This is what I have called the matrix.
I call it this because of those who have been awakened to a true pathway—called a journey—to the godhead. That journey must take you through a wilderness experience.
So thus, we have come full circle in the world of simple church and finding a close personal relationship with the godhead.
It is the reason this site was started.
Religion forces you to comply with a certain number of rules, regulations and ordinances. Its contention is if you follow the pattern or system, you will reach a certain result. This principle is found in the business world and for the most part it works. A pattern has been identified whereby if followed will lead to a certain result.
Although this may work in business, it only produces religious people in the church community.
It is the Apostle Paul who identifies this as a powerless act rather than closeness to God.
Having a close personal relationship with the godhead is what simple church is about. This is a journey that has similar stops for everyone along the way, but by no means the same stops for everyone.
Fifth Installment
A story began to develop that needs to be told, but I have not seen the moral of it yet. The reason it must be told is simple; it speaks to the very heart of the simple church concept and having a close personal relationship with the godhead.
It began developing a week and a half ago. I was faced with the very likely probability of exceeding my work related goals, which meant a financial bonus. As the week came to a close, the probability began to fade—but not by much.
While driving home that afternoon, I began talking with the Lord about it.
Then it happened!
I felt such an excitement come over me, that I knew that the Lord had this. All I needed to do was relax, trust him and everything would work out. As the next week went by the probability dwindled with each passing day.
While driving home I encouraged myself by quoting the word of God and saying it was in the Father’s hands—relax, trust him and everything would work out.
The bonus opportunity ended at the close of business on Friday—without it being taken care of—and the bonus went away!
What happened? Why would God do that? How could he tempt me, and then torment me like that?
That is how I used to think about such an incident; but not now.
There remained six opportunities to realize this bonus; one of them was the strongest possibility. I arrived at the meeting with full anticipation of a positive outcome. As I walked out the door, I thought, “That didn’t go the way I thought it would.”
I texted my wife the outcome and she texted back her condolences. My response to her was one of those Jesus asking Peter who people say that I am, moments. Just as Peter must have been shocked at the words that came out of his mouth, so too my mind was having a difficult time believing what my fingers were typing.
This is what I wrote; “It has taught me that I need to find out what His expectations are instead of knowing what mine are.”
When Jesus when through the testing’s with the devil following his wilderness experience, he responded to each test by quoting the scriptures. The first passage of scripture he used is found in the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy.
This portion of scripture has great value to me personally because the Lord has used it to open my heart in the midst of my own journey. I expound on this in the post, I am about to bring you into a good land.
The verse Jesus quotes rebukes Satan by reminding him that mankind lives according to every word that comes from God’s mouth.
That is a mouthful—no pun intended.
Jesus was hungry; he had an expectation of eating. The adversary attempted to use this very natural desire to tempt him to do something unnatural—turn rocks into food.
In like manner, I had an expectation of closing a deal with a customer that would bring me financial gain—a very natural desire to provide for my family. For me the temptation was to get angry with God for not intervening in my meeting and closing the deal. If you will allow this, it is an unnatural thing to do.
This is the part that I have not yet wrapped my brain around. I was not expecting God to manipulate the other party in order to bring me a favorable outcome. I was however expecting that his favor on my life would bring a favorable outcome. I preserved the overwhelming feeling to mean God would bring the financial bonus into my checking account. It is quite the conundrum—and one I am still seeking an answer on.
The point to be made is the realization that my expectation did not line up with the Father’s expectation. This meant that I had a decision to make. Do I raise my fist in anger to accuse God of not honoring his word; or do I simply blow it off as another misfire in my walk with God?
The answer is neither.
The truth is this is exactly what I had done in the past. This attitude comes from having a religious relationship with God rather than having a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This is what I have called the matrix—taken from the 1990’s movie with the same name.
This particular time instead of getting angry or just blowing it off as another missed opportunity by God, I opened my mouth and spoke the word of God. I spoke out loud the following words. “I can be sure that you—God—will take care of everything I need. Your—God’s—generosity will exceed even my own in the glory that is revealed in Christ Jesus.”
The difference is that I have developed a close personal relationship with the godhead.
This means that I have gained a level of trust that allows me to know that if something did not go down the way I thought it should have gone, that God has something else in mind. I know that I have to inquire of him what I have missed—which could be as simple as the timing—because I know from his word that it his good pleasure to give to me the kingdom of God.
There are serious trails that could be taken to offer a deeper understanding of this, but what is important to comprehend is the developing of a close personal relationship.
This is the essence of the simplified church.
The next installment
You are to remember that I discipline you even as a father disciplines the child he loves.
Because of this, it is of absolute importance that you keep my commandment, that you walk down the road that I show you and you reverence me; because
I AM about to bring you into a good land.
The above is an excerpt from my page “I am about to bring you into a good land.”
This story is quickly rising to the top of my must read list on this site because it outlines the necessary steps each Christ follower must take in his or her journey.
Fourth Installment
The challenge is—and this is the state of the “church” today—that someone receives a revelation about God, makes it a series and everyone pastor who is worth his/her salt, grabs the series and begins delivering it to their congregation.
That isn’t relationship.
Consider this statement. One man’s (woman’s) revelation is another’s inspiration.
This journey is about discovery. It is about building a close personal relationship with the godhead. This kind of relationship cannot be built by listening to a lecture—no matter how well delivered it might be. Nodding in agreement once in a while, or giving a hearty “amen,” isn’t going to get you there.
This isn’t to say listening to the lecture is wrong—far from it. I can tell you many stories about listening to a minister deliver a sermon, only to find myself engulfed in thought based on something that was said. There have been many times that I feverishly wrote notes that had nothing at all to do with what the person delivering the sermon was talking about. Something they said certainly triggered a thought that the Holy Spirit exploded in my mind, which began a thought process that took me on a journey while quietly sitting in the congregation.
I realize how damaging this could sound. I understand how one could take it as a sign of disrespect; but I assure you that quite the opposite is the case. The individual’s message—i.e their revelation, became my inspiration. That inspiration took me on a path that eventually led me to my own revelation.
If, during this time, I am being disruptive to those around me, then I am the one in the wrong. If I simply let the thought go because I it would be disrespectful to the person giving the talk, then I have conformed to religion rather than a close personal relationship with the godhead.
When the Apostle Paul admonishes the church to do things in an orderly fashion, he isn’t saying to become mindless drones that conform to religious rituals. Rituals have their place, but understand that Jesus himself told the religious folks of his day that the Sabbath was made for the son—i.e. son’s/daughter’s of God—not the other way around.
This means that those who have this close personal relationship with the godhead are sensitive to the prompting of the godhead.
Let me give you an example of what I am talking about. I can remember many times after a sermon standing at the back of the building shaking member’s hands as they left. I recall people telling me things about my sermon that I never said. I would always smile and say thank you, not understanding what they were talking about. It wasn’t until my journey brought me to this revelation—one man’s revelation is meant to be another’s inspiration—that I began to comprehend.
Something I said sparked a thought in their mind that allowed the godhead to place an inspiration into their heart. When you think about it that is powerful!
The simple truth is that Abba God is looking for those of his children whose heart is open enough to allow him to speak to them. Once they show their willingness to listen to him, he gladly opens up things to them that help them along in their journey.
As a pastor, I must say that I did not understand that, nor did I appreciate it. However, as a child willing to take a journey with his father, I am thrilled that it happened in spite of me my ignorance.
Third Installment
I mentioned in an earlier post that I have been raised within the “church” structure my entire life. Through the years I have learned what it means to have a close personal relationship (CPR) with the God. I have also mentioned that I served as a successful pastor, pastoring other pastors. The trauma of experiencing a divorce in the middle of that became the doorway that lead to the path that has become a most unexpected journey.
It has been on this journey that I began to understand what it means to have a CPR with the godhead as opposed to God.
The Shack is one of my recommended reads for anyone willing to take such a journey. I am thankful that the recently released movie about the book stuck close to the message of the book. It helps you grasp the concept of a triune God; three, but one.
This understanding did not come all at once. In fact, it took quite some time for me to wrap my brain around it. I knew about spending time in the presence of God. I knew the joy of sensing his presence. I felt the supernatural power in my being. I was amazed at how quickly I would “know” something simply because of a thought that seemed to permeate my being.
But this is, has been and will continue to be my journey.
Second installment
Do you remember the old saying, “hind-sight is twenty-twenty?” I certainly found it to be true in this situation. As broken as I was, as devastated as I had become, I knew God had not left me. I knew he was still looking out for me. At the time I had no understanding whatsoever as to the “why’s,” of this; it did not cause me to shake my fist in the air blaming him.
Let me pause at this point and state what this blog is not. It is not an attack on the church, as it is known today. It is not an indictment on those who have poured their lives into developing and maintaining the church, as it is known today. You can be certain that there are those who are using the vehicle being called the church for their personal gain—the apostle Paul made that abundantly clear in his writings to Timothy—but this blog isn’t about that either.
This blog is about a journey that began in the most unexpected way, to the most unexpected person, for all the most unexpected reasons. My entire life had been centered around the church. I left college—pursuing a career path that was very important to me—for the sake of the calling of God on my life to become a pastor. I became a pastor to pastors. I was on an upward career path within the denomination I was serving.
I did not ask for this!
I can tell you—hindsight being 20/20—that I now understand the gnawing in my inner person—the spirit part of me—that I was never able to place my finger on. I can tell you that I rationalized it as being called to a particular arena of prayer known by some as intercession.
I can tell you that overwhelming cry of my heart for all of those years—and still remains—is the will of the Lord be accomplished in my life.
I can tell you that I did not want a divorce. I have never been a proponent of it—there are exceptions—but a husband and wife who love each other can find God’s amazing grace to work it out.
I can tell you that it took a major overhaul in my thinking to embrace remarrying a woman who was not my first wife. I both practiced as well as preached reconciliation.
All of these things happened because the cry of my heart was to know God and to be so close to him. They happened in order to prepare me for a journey that I had no idea was in my future.
I thought I was prepared to cast off restrains and go for God—boy was I mistaken. You can be sure that “I” thought I was ready and in a manner of speaking I was. The spirit part of my life was indeed ready while the intellectual part of me was ready as long as it went the way I had it planned. It was a nice neat little package where life was sunshine and lollipops; where God responded the way I thought he should and the devil tripped all over himself anytime he attempted to disrupt my perfectly blessed life.
I recently heard a minister comment that if you have not been in the wilderness, then you have not been close enough to God. Think about how powerful that statement is. The gentleman pointed out that God took his chosen people into the wilderness—their hard-heartedness kept them there for forty-years—before bringing them into the promise land. He then took his son into the wilderness for forty-days—one day for each year Israel wondered in the wilderness—before presenting him to the world in miraculous power. The question he poised is profound; Do you think there is any chance he will not take you into the wilderness?
What does this have to do with a simplified church? It has everything to do with it. The wilderness experience begins with a relationship. It isn’t a meet with a group of people—no matter how large or small—for 60 minutes to 90 minutes once a week kind of relationship. The fact is, that isn’t a relationship at all. It could be classified as an acquaintance; but certainly not a relationship. Secondly a relationship is something that is two-fold. It involves dialogue between two people. Sitting for 20 minutes to 30 minutes listening to someone talk to you does not qualify as a relationship. Let me clarify something. I am not speaking negatively about the structure that is currently in place that is called the church; it is the best thing going. I am saying that for the majority of people who attend such gatherings, this is the extent of their relationship with the godhead; and that is no relationship at all. This subject will be looked into at a later time. The focus at the moment is to establish a viable meaningful relationship with Abba God.
This journey began with a wilderness experience.
The back-story
The doctor was looking at the files in his hand as he came into the examination room. After a few awkward moments of silence, he said, “I think the best thing for you do is to go home and let nature take its course. Your body simply will not carry this pregnancy to term.” He placed his hand on the stunned young woman’s shoulder and said, “I am sorry; but come back in next week and we will follow up with you.” With that he turned and left the room. “What am I to do,” she thought? Sobbing as she arrived home she curled up in her bed and cried out, “God if you give me this child, I will raise him to serve you.” It was about seven months later that I was born. I am the oldest of four and my mother kept her promise. I remember being dropped off at church as a child. I remember sleeping under pews as a child. I even remember being snatched by the hand by my mother for making fun of the lady the next pew over. I spent my entire life in the church. I guess it isn’t any surprise that I became a pastor; although that wasn’t by my choice. I went to college to become an accountant. While home on break the summer of my junior year, I had an encounter with the Lord that set me on the course that has lead to the journey that I am on today. (An excerpt from the page, “My journey)
This is not to say that I am some Samuel who lived into the walls of the compound being totally immersed in scripture and religious practices; my life as quite normal in that respect. But I did have a solid background in the Christian religion.
The first time I left the traditional church was following a divorce—a much unplanned, unwanted divorce I might add—but a divorce nonetheless. Since I had been behind the pulpit since I was 18 years old and salaried as a pastor since I was 25 years old, a brief respite from pastoring seemed like a good idea. I understood that it was necessary given my situation. (An excerpt from the page, “My journey)
This leads to the second reason for this site being created. I had become someone that neither my wife nor I enjoyed being around. She increasingly became dissatisfied with who I was. I had become so blinded by the matrix, that I did not realize who I had become. I resisted her efforts to change as some sad attempt to get me to leave the matrix. The result was she left and our daughters left.
There I was alone.
This could have lead to a tragic ending had it not been for the third reason, in desire to follow Christ.