Love Is Not Enough

What if you are that person that someone has been waiting on?

That someone is anyone and everyone you come in contact with. Let’s say that someone has been struggling with Christianity. They have a bad taste in their mouth from what they have been given. They are familiar with the message of Christ, yet have seen very little of it in people. They are at a pivotal point and have decided that this day they are going to come to you, knowing that you are a Christian. You are now that person.

They are not seeking advice. They are searching for Christ in you. They have had enough advice pounded into them. They need to see Christ. This is life or death . They pour themselves out to you. You have one of two choices. One you step out of the way and let the Holy Spirit love them through you and speak life into them. Or you get in the way, and  in your messy state that  your humanness is, you speak death into them.

I know that when I stand before my Lord I do not want to look back and see that I got in the way of the Holy Spirit. It is never about how we personally feel about a person. It is not about us. That wrong line of thinking is what got us kicked out of the garden in the first place.

Our goal as Christians is to become Christ-like. Christ fellowshipped with sinners. He did not show partiality. He just loved all that sought Him, and He loved those that did not. Yes, He did judge and condemned those that rejected Him. It is His birth right, not ours.

We have been given the gift of grace, and, as Christians, we should impart grace upon all persons. Grace goes above and beyond love. Loving all people is right, but left on its own love is not powerful enough to change the heart. God loves us, but that love alone was not enough. He saw that we needed grace, amazing grace. Grace is what sets us free. Grace amps up love. For us as Christians we must extend grace to those that are waiting. We must check the condition of our own heart and be mindful that love on its own is not enough. Love is often a gift that we put in a box and wrap it with bows of reactions, conditions and expectations and when we feel as thou one or all have been violated we grab the end of the bow and pull it back according to the degree of violation. Often when we try to rewrap the gift of love it is not the same as it was when we first gave it away. The only thing that should be attached to love is grace. Grace is God’s love in action.  

Love Went to Heaven

LOVE WENT TO HEAVEN

Love went to Heaven the day that you died.
It was the day that the angels cried.

Your body was beaten and broken.
While they fought for your clothing to be taken as a token.

They laughed and jeered,
Yet you shed not a tear.

They shouted and mocked ”King of Jews”.
No one was willing to walk in your shoes.

Upon a hill the nailed you to a cross.
Feeling forsaken, abandoned and lost.

Carrying a burden from the cradle to the grave.
Shedding blood for every life that you saved.

Your spirit was not broke.
And with bruised lips you spoke.

“Every promise has been kept.”
And you lowered your head and wept.

Your death for our sin, yet you had none of your own.
And on the wings of doves you have been carried home.

Love went to Heaven the day that Jesus died.
It was the day the angels cried.




Leah Woodard
September 19, 2003

Who do we say this Jesus is?

Mark 8: 27-29  Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, “Who do men say that I am?” So they answered, “John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.”

     Peter is right with his words, yet he is wrong with his thinking. Christ the anointed one, the chosen one. Yes, Christ was anointed by God. He was the chosen one to share the Good News and to free us from sin. Jesus speaks openly to the disciples, telling them that the Son of Man will suffer, be rejected and killed. On the third day, He will rise again. Peter takes Jesus aside and rebukes Him. Peter is not questioning Jesus about His statements, but Peter is flat out telling Jesus no. The idea of a suffering Christ does not align with his image of the anointed one.

The truth is harsh. There was only one way for Christ to set us sinners free. Suffering, rejected, mocked, beaten and crucified. Salvation could only come to us through the cross.

On a second occasion, while passing through Galilee, Jesus predicts His death and resurrection. This time there is no rebuke from Peter or any questions asked. The disciples did not understand and where afraid to ask. Why are they afraid to ask? Christ the anointed one is telling them about His suffering and death. This is not the image that they had. They thought that Jesus was going to reign then. He was going to free them from the Roman oppression.  Life was going to be grand with Christ as the ruling king. They were thinking in the here and now. The disciples could not imagine Christ as a suffering, rejected and murdered king. They kept missing what Jesus is telling them. They kept missing the last word, resurrection.  Too often, we do the same. We want this life to be easy. We want our comforts. We want to be free from suffering.  We want to be wanted. No suffering, no rejection. So how can we see Christ as a suffering and rejected king?

Jesus tells the disciples a third and final time about His impending death and resurrection.

 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles; and they will mock Him, and scourge Him, and spit on Him, and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again.” Mark 10:33, 34

Rejected, the anointed one will be rejected, persecuted, spit upon, scourged and killed.  This is no king to rule and set them free from the Romans. This is not the king that they thought they were getting. However, this king is needed. The suffering, rejected, crucified king.  The risen king is Christ, the anointed one, He is in this for the long term, eternity. The here and now is a passing thing.  This is our King, the risen King! Who do we say this Jesus is? He is the risen Lord.

The Donkey Stole My Joy !

The donkey stole my joy!

“But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” Luke 19:40

How can stones cry out? They have no life. So how can Jesus think that if the crowd is silent that the stones will cry out?

Jesus enters the city and the crowds are crying out their praises to Him. The Pharisees tell him to make the people stop blessing him as a king. He answers with the above statement. On Palm Sunday as Christ rode in on a young donkey, the people, at that moment, recognized His sovereignty and shouted Hosanna! Hosanna!

Now imagine if you will, that Christ and His disciples come into the city, and the crowds are gathered, but they are silent for the Pharisees have done their own crowd control, knowing what a spectacle this man that called himself Jesus would cause. The twelve disciples are stealing glances about the crowd and at one another, looking to see what Jesus will do. There is a feeling of discord in the crowd. They begin to grow restless as the donkey slowly makes his way into the city. You can hear the occasional clipping of the hoofs and see the puffs of dust as his hoofs strike the ground.

The donkey begins to move a little faster, and the clipping becomes louder. He strikes his hoof on a stone, and the sound rings into the silence. The donkey's lumbering pace is quickly turning into a trot. Moreover, he seems to be intent on striking every stone as he moves through the silent crowd. Before long, the donkey is prancing among the stones. The sound from the stones is musical. In the silence, they seem to be shouting out. This little donkey, a beast of burden, is prancing and full of joy. He is making the very stones shout out praises to Jesus. The crowd stirs, yet they remain silent for fear of the Pharisees. Behold a little donkey came prancing along the city street and stole the joy of praising and shouting Hosanna! Hosanna!

Do not let the donkey steal your joy. Do not let the stones shout out your praises. Raise your voice. Lift your hands, and shout unto the Lord. Praise Him. Feel the joy that is in the Lord. Be like the crowd on Palm Sunday. Sing Hosannas to the Lord, for He is sovereign.

The Lord's Table

Passover is an 8-day celebration for the Jews. This is the freedom celebration from slavery. It is a time of rejoicing over their freedom. The Exodus story. Reflect on the mindset of the disciples. They are in festival mode, granted it is low key but, nonetheless, it is a time of joyful freedom. Now think on what weighs on the mind of Christ. He is soon to be facing betrayal, denial and lack of support by those He loves. He is going to be striped, humiliatingly broken, beaten and his blood will be spilled for all those that He sits at the table with. This is our Lord's last supper. This is the last moment of fellowship before the brutality of the cross and the heartbreak from those He loves.
I wonder which pain was the most unbearable for Him? Think on it. Christ's last meal was a celebration meal. Thus His disciples, unaware of the events that would be soon transpiring, had a light and happy heart. However, Christ was all too aware of what was going to happen to them and to Himself. He knew one would betray him with a kiss and another would deny him thrice before the cock crowed. Yet he still sat in their company and loved them.
 I wonder if He even partook of the food? However, I know what he did do. He broke the bread, blessed it, and told those at the table that this is the body broken for you, even the one that would betray and those that would deny. And they ate the bread. He then took the wine and blessed it. This is the blood that is spilled for you. Once again, it was for all that sat at the table. He excluded no one. Even the three that cannot give him an hour of their time.
This was the beginning of an evening of humble servitude. He removed his clothing and garbed himself in servant cloth. He took on the lowest position and washed their feet, knowing the heartbreak that was soon to come. The pity of it is that the disciples had no idea, no understanding until after. However, we do understand. We know. So why have we lost the reverence of communion, this time of worship and reconciliation, this time of refreshing ourselves in the holy presence of our Lord?
Too often when we come, we take a piece of cracker and our cup,  go back to our pew,  and have a moment of prayer. Our minds begin to wonder, and then our words start to do the same. We have reverted to the idleness of the disciples during the Passover meal. What excuse have we for this? We are not ignorant. We know what happened. This is the time when we stop hiding the part of our soul that has rejected the bread of the broken body from entering. Let it in. Let it bind the brokenness in our soul. Take the juice. Let it refresh you. Let it reconcile you into the embrace of Christ.
This is not intermission. This is the time to enter into the Holy of Holies. This is coming into the courts and worshiping in His presence. This is loving the one that betrays you. This is loving the one that denies you. This is loving the one that wants from you but does not give back. There is nothing that is hidden that will not come into the light. The table before us may be small, but the broken body and the blood that was spilled is mighty and great. Remember this love, this sacrifice. Stay in the refreshment of reconciliation and the reverence of worship of our Lord and Redeemer.

SAD (SOUL Affective Disorder)

Many of us are suffering from SAD (Soul Affective Disorder).

 Soul Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that's related to changes in seasons of life. SAD begins and ends at various seasons in life. If you're like most people with SAD, your symptoms start when you have fallen away from relationship with the Light. This disorder will continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you worry, stress and suffer from feelings of disconnectedness. If left untreated SAD can and will cause depression, darkness and in some cases lifelessness.

Good news, there is a cure for SAD.

 First step: Light Therapy. “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.'”(John 8:12)

 Second step: Prayer. The Lord is my light and my salvation: My God shall make my darkness to be bright. Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night. To you be praise and glory forever. As darkness falls, you renew your promise to reveal among us the light of your presence. By the light of Christ, your living Word, dispel the darkness of our hearts that we may walk as children of light and sing your praise throughout the world. In Jesus name. Amen.

Third step: Daily reading and meditating on the Word of God. ”Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer." (Psalm 19:14)

 Fourth step: Share your light with another that is suffering from SAD. ”For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:9-14)

Do not brush off that feeling of SAD as though it is only a passing thing or a seasonal life funk. Do not attempt to fix it on your own. Take the above steps ASAP. This will keep you in the light and your steps steady throughout all seasons. “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;” (1 Peter 2:9 )

Logos

Logos

God spoke the world into existence. He spoke. He used words. Words, He spoke into nothingness and the nothingness became the very words that He spoke. There is great power in words. Words can build up or take down. They can glorify or they can denounce. Even the words that are kept inside have power. Words form and shape. They are a reflection of the condition of the heart. Even Satan knows the power that is in words. God’s spoken word created the world into the void. He brought forth life. Satan used words to bring the fall of man, to bring death. There is great power in words.

Sticks and stones may break bones but words, they can kill or they can bring life. I see words being used to take pieces out of another’s soul. I see words that are used to lift another up.

 Choose this day the words that will bring life for yourself and share the life giving words to another. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Colossians 3:16

Abba Father may Your words be the balm for my heart. May Your words become the condition of my heart so that when I speak, aloud or in quiet, that You are what my words are. Thank you Father for Your words that became flesh. Thank you for Your words that bring eternal life.

Casting the net into life's waters

Luke 5:1-7 NKJV

So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.

4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.

     I love the interaction between Jesus and Simon. Simon, a master fisher, he knows the waters and that there had been no fish for the nets. He talks back to the master of all creation telling Him that there are no fishes to catch. I can imagine the doubt and perhaps some exasperation in his voice as he was telling this to Christ. I can imagine that Simon gave a heavy sigh looking Christ in the eye and saying, “nevertheless at Your Word I will let down the net."

      I can think of how often in my own life that I have cast my “net” out into this great lake of life only to have it come back empty. I have been “fishing the waters” of my life for a very long time. I know better than anyone does where there “fish” are or are not. Like Simon the master fisherman I am the master at knowing where the bountiful catches of “fish” are in my “life waters”. 

      I need not just to remember the lesson of Simon casting out His nets I need to act on it. The glorious thing about Simon aligning his will with Christ he had more than what he could take in by himself. He had enough to share with many others. I want to be obedient when Christ tells me to go back into the waters that I have already fished and came up empty. How glorious it will be to have enough to share the love of Christ with many more. When it happens, I know I will talk back, perhaps shake my head and roll my eyes, but I will answer, ”Nevertheless, at Your Word, I will let down my net.”

God my creator thank you for my life’s waters, the times they have been empty and the times they are bountiful. May I always respond with yes to your bidding of me to cast my net into all the waters of my life, especially when you call me to cast where I have fished in what I thought have been barren waters. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Top Shelf

     This morning I made my once a week work shopping trip to Wal-Mart. While I am at Wal-Mart I tend to people watch, to notice people. Every now and then, I will actually get a glimpse into people. This happened today. I noticed and older couple. She was in a motor scooter. He walked beside her. She was dressed to the nines, looked like she came off the pages of a 1920’s Vogue magazine. Her hair and make-up were in perfect order. She wore what looked to be a short mink coat. He was dressed in upper-end business casual wearing a tan trench coat.

I have no idea why I was walking down the soup aisle, only that perhaps it was a God thing. They had stopped at the soups. He held a can of soup out to her. “Here, I know you like this kind.” She did not look up at him. She was intent on looking at the self. She pointed with her cane and told him,”There, there’s the off-brand. Get that. “

On my drive back to work, I was reflecting on what I noticed between these two. He knew what she liked. That means that he has taken the time to take notice of her. He cared enough to offer her something that he knew she liked from the upper shelf. She declined; she wanted the off-brand, the one that was on the lower shelf. Why she made this choice, I do not know. However, I saw myself and my relationship with the Father in this couple.

There stands my Abba. He has taken from the upper most and said, “Here, I know you. I know you will like this. I know that you are in need of this. Here, take what I have reached into the uppermost to give to you.” I am so focused on the lower shelf that I do not notice what He is offering me. I respond with, "But there, right there, on the lower shelf is what I was looking for.” Here God is offering me so much more, and I forget to look up and see what it is He is offering. In my single vision, I stay focused on what I know instead of taking what He is offering me. I want to meet God where He is offering to reach me. I do not want to stay focused on the lower shelf.

God's Love a healing Love

     My daily reading for today was focusing on love primarily God’s love. I assume that this is because today is Valentine’s Day.  I was hit by something that someone had said to me. “You make it hard for anyone to love you.” Even though that has not been said to me in a long time, the words still hurt. They did enough damage that some part of me believes that it is true. That person was not just saying they had a hard time loving me but that anyone would have a hard time loving me. Perhaps it was there way of justifying how they felt to include everyone. Nonetheless, I believed it I believed for so many reasons. I remember when I was in second grade I was not yet adopted but in foster care with my soon to be adopted parents. I cannot recall how the subject was brought up but one of my classmates said” Your real parents do not love you if they gave you up. They don’t love you”  I remember my stepfather telling me that if I wanted anyone to love me I had to do certain things that grown-ups do for each other because that is what love is.  Those are just a few of the twisted statements about love that damaged my idea of the meaning of love up until the past four years.  

    1 Corinthians 13:4-8 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.

Love is: Patient, kind, rejoices in truth, bears up under all problems, trusts, hopes understands the faults of others, never fails it perseveres

Love isn’t envious, proud, boastful, inappropriate, rude selfish, short-tempered, evil, accepting of sin

Love is not just a word we say, but also an attitude that we have towards others.

 I have love an over flowing endless supply of love. A love that heals the damage, I am an adopted child of my Abba Father. He loves me He loved me first and all I have to do is say “Yes” to the love and run freely into His embrace.  Because I understand and I can feel the love of God I know that all the twisted ideas have been replaced by the agape love from my creator. I can love God I can love others and I can love who I am as a new creation in Christ.

God seeks to save only a chosen few.

     I have to disagree with the idea that God’s ultimate goal is one of interacting with and redeeming only a portion of humanity. Timothy states in 1 Timothy3-5” 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,…” To make the statement that God is interacting with and redeeming a portion of humanity sounds to me as though God is showing partiality. This is in contradiction with the Bible. Acts 10:34-35 Peter is preaching to the household of Cornelius “34 Then Peter opened his mouth and said: “In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. 35 But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.” (NKJV) In the second chapter of James, James addresses the issue of favoritism.” 1 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality… 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; 9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.” ( James2:1,8-9 NKJV)  Peter states in 2 Peter 3:9 “2 Peter 3:9New King James Version (NKJV)   9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.(NKJV)

     The question arises: How can those who never heard about Christ be saved? The question puts limitations on God. If humans are saved only after hearing about him, the multitudes, which never had this chance during their lifetime, would necessarily be damned to eternal suffering in hell. Such a cruelty would not be consistent with His love for us, which sent Christ to die on the cross for our sins. If God is all-loving, all-knowing and all-powerful, he must have a solution for those who have never heard about his final revelation in Jesus Christ.

      If all other religions were valid ways to God, the Christian claim that Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is the only possibility for human salvation should be rejected. If humans could have worked out their salvation by carefully following any available known religion, God would not have acknowledged the crucifixion of Christ. Christianity would have been a mere alternative religion along with all the others to reach Him.  This makes Jesus only one religious teacher among others. However, Jesus himself claimed to be the only possibility for our salvation and reconciliation with God. He said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14, 6 NKJV).  As stated above He commanded his disciples to go and proclaim this truth in the whole world (Matthew 28, 18-20; Mark 16, 15-16) Hence, we cannot sacrifice the uniqueness of Jesus’ atonement.

      According to Christianity, salvation is provided only because of the specific historical deeds of Jesus Christ in his life, death on the cross, resurrection and ascension. What he did is essential for the salvation of any human being who has ever lived, whether thousands of years BC or currently. The fact is that no human being is excluded from God's plan of salvation. The element that solves this dilemma is the criteria according to which God will judge those who never heard about Christ and grant them salvation. The Bible states that God is holy and will judge humans with justice (Acts 17, 31), according to the available measure of revelation they had and their response to it, expressed through their deeds (Romans 2, 6), words (Matthew 12, 36-37) and thoughts (Hebrews 4, 12). The amount of revelation one has determines a consequent measure of responsibility on his behalf (Luke 12, 47-48).  For those who never had the chance to hear the Christian message or have heard a perverted version of it, it is obvious that their judgment will require other criteria than responding to the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. In Hebrews 11 we can find a whole list of people who never heard about Christ but still are saved :Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, David and others, are all considered heroes of faith, despite the fact that none of them heard about Christ. Faith is the key not knowledge. As we respond in faith to His revelation, no matter how limited it might be. Faith means trusting the promises of God and responding to Him through action (Hebrews 11, 1-3). It is not a mere understanding of the doctrine of salvation. Not only people belonging to the chosen people of Israel are said to be saved, but also Gentiles. None of these people of the Old Testament was saved through their merits, but through the grace of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, grace is retroactive. The object of faith has always been the same - God himself, and the basis of his forgiveness was always Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Whether one lived before or after Jesus’ crucifixion, God’s forgiveness was always granted through grace and not by one’s own merits, and the proper way of accepting grace was always faith.

       Salvation for those who never heard about Christ but accept the importance of grace. The above considerations do not imply that God rejects all those who do not know anything other than their native religion. There have been many spiritual masters who recognized the necessity of grace and the impossibility of attaining salvation by one's own efforts. For example Hindu and Buddhism. The spiritual trend called Prapatti in Hinduism and the Pure Land school of Buddhism focus on grace as the only solution for attaining liberation. According to them, the whole merit for being saved belongs to the god they worship. There are also many tribal religions in which grace plays a key role in salvation. The God who reveals himself in the Bible knows one’s inner attitude and motivation for performing certain religious duties. Any efforts, which aim at self-justification, are of no value, no matter how impressive they might be. The appropriate attitude is one of humility and openness towards God's grace, which he offers unconditionally. These spiritual trends in other religions demonstrate that the Holy Spirit is at work in the world, convincing people of their sin and limitations and turning their hearts toward God's grace. The character displayed by the God of the Bible, we can expect that he will save such people, by the grace available for all in Jesus Christ. They will be saved not through their native religions, but despite them, not because they did not hear about Christ, but despite the fact that they did not hear about him. It will be for their humility and recognition of the need for grace. It is not Vishnu or Amida who saves them, but Christ through his grace, because of their need for grace expressed towards Vishnu or Amida. God can use unorthodox methods to reveal himself to those who are foreign to his revelation in the Bible. He has sufficient means to do it all over the earth.  The most important factor in defining faith is human response to his revelation. Most of Jesus’ contemporaries rejected him because they refused to believe despite all fulfilled prophecies, miracles, and healings and even despite his resurrection. People are given everything they need in order to be saved, but if they refuse the available revelation, they are fully responsible for it and cannot be justified at God’s judgment. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ tells us that humans cannot please God by their own efforts and that God’s grace is an outright necessity for us.  Another question than arises: If people can be saved without hearing about Christ, does it mean that Christian missions are futile? There are two important reasons for Christian missions in the world. First, Jesus himself commanded it (Matthew 28, 18-20). He is the final revelation of God and his message of salvation has to be proclaimed. That people can be saved without hearing about Christ is only a temporary solution, which operates only until his message will reach all people. Jesus came to redeem our earthly life as well, so that we could start to experience his love now, in a personal relationship with him and in the Christian community.

      If the salvation of tribes living in remote areas depended entirely on missionaries’ preaching, many people would suffer eternal damnation in hell only because Christian missionaries did not manage to reach their part of the world in time. In many cases, the disobedience of Christians to go into remote parts of the world would be responsible for that. There are the cases of missionaries that have reached remote parts of the world but did not preach the "right" Jesus. Unfortunately, Christian missions have not always been inspired by love. Therefore, God could not condemn people to hell because followers perverted His message. This would not be at all consistent with God’s perfect justice and love for the lost. If there, so no grace in God and if His grace is not sufficient then all of Christianity is futile, the cross is meaningless. 

Prophetic Musicians

Prophetic Musicians:

     One administration of the prophet’s anointing is through music. There are prophets who function as psalmists and minstrels. David is a wonderful example of that. He is called the sweet psalmist of Israel (2 Sam. 23:1) He understood the importance of music in stirring up and maintain the corporate flow of God’s spirit. The strength of the spirit of prophecy in our midst will always be determined by our level of worship. (Revelation 19:10)

     I have longed in my heart to play the cello. I have had this longing for years. The cello moves my spirit. I want to play and move the spirit of others to glorify God. 

     I got my cello about two years ago, I took a few lessons, time, money and discouragement began to hinder my spirit and longing to play. I put the cello back in its case and placed it in a room in a corner out of sight but never fully out of mind.  I put it away in harsh conditions one the room was not very well climate controlled; the other was my heart toward it.

     Not long ago, I had three dreams in a row that the cello was broken. I was heartbroken.  Know I would never get a chance to play, to move others in the spirit of God to glorify Him.  The emotions in the dreams overwhelmed me.  I got the cello out of its dirty and dusty case and my heart sank, it was broken.

     I sat down on the floor and just held it my dreams had become reality.  In truth it was not broken at some point in time it had fallen over causing the bridge to come off and popped the A string off.  I took it and had it “fixed” Took the guy at Old Time string Shop all of 7 minutes to do it.  I get it home and attempted to tune it. While adjusting the D string it broke. I cried, I got angry. So many things set against me; my thoughts are that it is not meant for me to play. No glorifying God with the cello. I placed it on top of its case on the chest freezer in the kitchen.  It is not out of sight or mind. I have not given up I have encountered yet another bump in the road. The question is how long do I wait and try again. 

     I do not aspire to be a great musician.  That is not what I am called to do. However, I do long for the music that is hidden deep in my soul to be played.  God has placed it there to be shared. The enemy would rather it stay hidden and abandon and have a victory over one of God’s greatest gifts.     

    

   “Beautiful music is the art of the prophets that can calm the agitations of the soul; it is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us.” ~Martin Luther

“Next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world.”~ Martin Luther

“Music is God's gift to man, the only art of Heaven given to earth, the only art of earth we take to Heaven.”~Walter Savage Landor

Spiritual Battery

      Spiritual Battery:  We all are borne with a spiritual battery. God the creator in His wisdom created it as part of our spiritual DNA.  We have this spiritual DNA because in this world we are fighting a spiritual war. Idealistically we should always be plugged into the power source. Unfortunately, that is not the case.  The good news is that our spiritual battery is rechargeable. Because of spiritual warfare and the very nature of our flawed humanness, we need to plug into the power source. Our power source is the Holy Spirit, God the Father, Christ the interceder, and the Word of God.

     As spiritual beings, we are created to walk in relationship with God, however the world in which we live can and is a power drain on our spiritual battery. Our sin nature and we as humans can often be caught up in our humanness. We try to control things in our life. We try to fix ourselves with our brokenness or by the brokenness of others. We may seek worldly things to help recharge our battery. These actions will drain us spiritually. We take “control” and forget to plug into the ultimate power source.

     We must build ourselves up in faith; we do this by confessing the Word of God. We can experience greater confidence when we start to understand the Word. We begin to walk in revelation.  We plug ourselves into the power source through prayer.  Prayer is our direct line of connection to God. This allows His power to flow into us regardless of any situation we maybe in.

     We must be strong in the Lord and the power of His might (Eph. 15:3), not our own might and not the might of other or worldly things. We walk in His strength. We war with His power. We must be humble and completely dependent upon God. We cannot be confident in our own power and strength. If we do so, we open the door of pride for the enemy to walk on in.

      We depend upon His power, His direction; we plug ourselves into His power so that He can fight on our behalf.  We at all times need humility. God’s grace gives us the ability to be humble. God is the strength of our lives. By His power and His might, plugging into the power source, we are given the ability to overcome fear. We put our trust in Him.

     God is our power source. We confess that He is our strength. We must be people of prayer and worship. We must take joy in the presences of the Lord. His presence is our joy and strength, the recharging of our spiritual battery. Our worship, our prayers, our talks with God are a weapon forged against the enemy.

     The Word of God is the sword of the spirit, and when that sword is fully charged it can strike a mighty blow to the enemy. We use this sword to battle and become victorious over the spiritual battles with the enemy. The Word of God is His wisdom. We are guided by His wisdom to defeat the enemy.

      As part of our spiritual life, it is imperative that we confess the Word of God. Our salvation comes from confessing with our words. Our words are connected to our soul. The tongue releases faith. Faith that is released by the tongue, which comes from the soul, can move mountains; those spiritual things that hinder us from plugging into our power source.

     God is the source of all our victories and spiritual breakthroughs. He is the source of our wisdom and strategies. His Word is the source of our understanding of the spiritual warfare that we are involved in. It started in the heavens. We bind what is bound in Heaven. We also loose what is loosed in Heaven.

       As we plug into our spiritual source, we have an unlimited source of wisdom and knowledge. The Word of God contains an abundance of revelation for all believers. We as believers should desire and enjoy the liberty and the victory that comes from plugging into the power source of the Holy Spirit, by studying the Word of God, and praying in the name of Jesus. We ask for revelation. This is the key to authority.  That revelation is that Jesus is Christ.

     God has promised to make us joyful in the house of prayer (Is.56:7). We should be plugged into that house of prayer. Recharge our spiritual battery. Even though we fight an ongoing spiritual war, we can be joyful in the Lord for He is our strength and might. Praise Him sing a joyful song.

…“I will sing to the Lord,

For He has triumphed gloriously!

The horse and its rider

He has thrown into the sea!

2 The Lord is my strength and song,

And He has become my salvation;

He is my God, and I will praise Him;

My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

3 The Lord is a man of war;

The Lord is His name.” (Ex 15:1-3)

Twilight

     Twilight: it means to be in a place of transition, it also means to be in a place where things are not clearly defined. The prefix Twi means two. Twilight: between two lights. In a manner of thinking, we all are in twilight.  This earthly realm is one light and, for some of us, we have a clear idea of where we are. At other times, we have no defined idea of where we are. This is our twilight.  We are between the here and the now waiting for the other light to dawn upon us.

        This twilight, this in between time, revolves around two elements, our words and our thoughts. They are the creative substance that molds and shapes the way we live in this light. Our words and thoughts here in this light of transition are the substance that molds and shapes our ultimate destination. The thoughts we think, the thoughts we put into action, and those that we secret away in the depths of our hearts with the words we speak aloud, the words that are written and shared, and words that are spoken alone in solitude, these are the fundamental elements that  make us who we are.  We each become the person we are (free will), and determine the direction we take. The things we accomplish in this light mold and shape us into something that is either greater than ourselves and something that glorifies God or something that is ignoble and brings dishonor to God.  

     Our thoughts and words serve to transition us from this light into the next. Whatever we harbor in our innermost chambers of our hearts, eventually, will reveal itself in the outer areas of our life through our actions, which are a direct result of our thoughts and words. Whatever we may think is hidden will eventually be brought into light.  As spiritual beings created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26), it is in our spiritual DNA that we hold the power to frame our world by our thoughts and words.  What we think and speak are divine tools given by the Creator and are a vastly powerful tool. It is the will of the Father that we use these tools to edify one another, to build up, not to tear down, and to bring glory to the Father.  We must be ever diligent in our thoughts and words. Our journey from our thoughts and words is the transition into the next light.