Wind-Graspers, Chasers and Catchers

During my career in international development, my colleagues and I had a ubiquitous concern for measurable and sustainable results. This was undergirded by a strong sense of accountability to the Congress (per legislative requirements), and through Congress to the American public. We were highly skilled in designing, implementing and evaluating elaborate projects and programs to tackle intractable development issues across our world. Our programs/projects constructed extensive and expensive supply networks of:

·      Policy frameworks and institutions

·      Technical savoir faire

·      Management/financial systems

·      Education/training

·      Budgetary and commodity support

·      Collaborations with other donor projects and programs

·      Complex monitoring and evaluation systems

·      Extensive reporting protocols

The designs of these various program aspects were carefully integrated, collaboratively developed with host nationals and other donor agencies, and supported by comprehensive, long-term strategies and, of course, the latest-greatest logic models available.

In spite of such elaborate supply networks; typically, the highest level of potentially sustainable results was as elusive as our quest was ubiquitous! Often unanticipated factors easily prevented, reduced or wiped out gains (e.g., cultural shifts, wars, politics, corruption, diseases, poor designs, weak implementation, leadership changes, etc.).

This is reflective of life across our world, with concerns about:

·      'Where the rubber meets the road’

·      ‘The last link in the chain’

·      ‘The arc that sparks’

·      The challenging ‘So what?!’ question

·      The pivotal, last connection linkage

·      The clear purpose and meaning of life

Irrespective of our best efforts, that last, critical connection is either not achieved at all, or as well and sustainably as anticipated. King Solomon wrestled with this ‘supply network - last connection - so what’ conundrum, and concluded:

All our toil under the sun is circuitous vanity – 

grasping for the wind!

(Ecclesiastes)

I used to discount Solomon’s (paraphrased) expression as being based on the carnally minded thinking of a king who was apparently not walking with God during the latter part of his life as he had done as a young king. Upon reflection, I conclude he is spot on! Here’s why.

God commissioned us to ‘subdue the earth’, and He also instructed us to, ‘Trust Me!’ He gifts us with skills to construct and connect elaborate supply networks to address problems and create opportunities across our world, much like you and I do in our careers. We have done a pretty good job thus far. Yet, if we could perfectly make and sustain that last, pivotal connection every time, we would have no need to trust or even believe in God. I doubt His commission meant for us to engineer Him out of our lives. Given our inherent proclivities to be our own gods, we naturally resist His instruction to ‘Trust Me’. So we plod on, grasping for the wind, as Solomon so aptly put it.

Undoubtedly, we are wind-graspers! How and why? In essence, we are wind….spirit, unlimited and insatiable, made in the very image (spiritual, soulish and physical) of our unlimited and eternal God. He, too, is wind, and has fashioned us so that only His wind – His Spirit, will satisfy us at the deepest, most intimate and imaginable level. Though shaped to grasp Him/His wind, we have rather designed life to grasp for physical things, i.e., vanities that can only satisfy at the surface-level. This is what Solomon did -- the richest man in the known world of his day. His conclusion echoes loudly in practically everything in our world today – vanity, all is vanity, chasing after the wind!’

           

King David apparently discovered the answer to the conundrum his son, Solomon, wrestled with. David wrote:

As the deer pants for the water brooks,
so pants my soul for You, O God.
Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls. 
(Psalm 42:1, 7)

From deep within his spirit, David learned to perceive and draw from the depths of God’s spiritual treasures. In response, God blessed him materially and meaningfully because David had his priorities right about Whom he was chasing. Without this perception and drawing, Solomon, who was wealthier than his father, ended up chasing material things in the most un-meaningful manner. As a result, he struggled to make that final, pivotal and sustainable connection to meaningfulness in life.

Yes, by divine design, we are wind-graspers and wind-catchers! The key question is:

After which or Whose wind are you grasping to satisfy deeply

…the wind that you, in essence, are?

The God-Imagined Life (poem)

Quick, quick, what is the biggest container in your house? 

No matter what container came to mind, God is both willing, able and eager to get it up to running over! 

Want to rethink your answer to my question? Have at it. Go bigger still. You won't even begin to even approach exhausting God's willingness, ability and eagerness to fill it to over flowing. 

By now, you know very, very well,
The one condition He has applied.
It's ringing in your mind like a bell,

"That in Me you faithfully abide."

Here is my answer to the above question: My imagination! Yep, that is the biggest container, not only in my house … in my LIFE! Why not?? After all, Paul affirms:

God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to His power at work in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen! (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Ergo, in Christ:
I’m as healed and healthy as I am saved! (Isaiah 53:4-5)
Both wise and wealthy as I am engraved,(1 Cor. 2:16; 2 Cor. 8:9)
In palms of this very great God of mine. (Isaiah 49:16)
With whom I’ll spend eternity…without time! (Daniel 12:3)

I let God’s Word change what I was thinkin’; (Romans 12:2)
Change actualities at which my eyes were blinkin’. (Psalm 34:17) 
Now my new life to Him is no longer stinkin', (Colossians 1:10)
Since to His ways and plans, I’m better syncin’. (Proverbs 3:6)

My thoughts are my powerful set of brushes, (Proverbs 4:23)
With which I paint on my imagination so vast. (Proverbs 16:3)
As I paint, one-by-one my fears He hushes, (Psalm 34:4)
As over me His comforting shadow is cast. (Psalm 91:1)

My past was the paint in which my brushes dipped, (1 Peter 4:3)
Rehearsing mistakes; facing satan’s plaints. (Revelation 12:10)
But now as a painter, I’m much better equipped, (Ephesians 6:13)
With brand new brushes, and God’s fresh, bright paints. (Phil. 4:7)

So…  

Consider lingering thoughts as a draft final report,

Of things into your life you’ll soon likely import.

Activating DNA of things hidden in your heart,

Opening gateways to the river your life will chart.

Lingering, dwelling thoughts become beliefs,

Seeding words, then actions that shape life’s motifs!  

~~~

My imagination -- the ‘gateway to and from my heart’.

My heart -- the ‘nuclear core’ of my life.

My tongue -- the ‘release valve’ of my heart.

Slain in The Spirit - Response to Tradition

Another post addresses what I believe is 'the real deal’ concerning the concept of being slain in the spirit (Slain in The Spirit? The Real Deal (poem)) based on insights from Ezekiel 9, Joshua 6 and other similar passages of Bible Scripture.

This post addresses the traditional view of the concept, and is based on a broad, integrative interpretation of Scripture rather than typically narrow interpretations used to support many traditional practices and beliefs. I am aware of many traditional interpretations based on church experiences from both my childhood and adult life.
 
The expression, ‘slain in the spirit” (also referred to as falling under or being overcome by the power of God or resting in the spirit), is used by many charismatic Christians to mean falling (most often backwards) on the floor during an intense, often emotional religious experience. They attribute this to the power of The Spirit of God, and base it on several seemingly related Scripture verses, such as:

• John 18:6  Roman soldiers drew back and fell to the ground when Jesus said, "I am He".
• Acts 9  Saul’s fell off his beast (likely a donkey) upon encountering a bright light.
• Revelation 1:17  John, the beloved disciple, fell as dead at Jesus’ feet.
• Ezekiel 1:28  Ezekiel fell on his face during an encounter with the glory of The Lord.
• 2 Chronicles 5:14  The priests could not ‘stand’ to minister by reason of the glory cloud of The LORD filling the first Temple.

It is important to note there are many documented occasions when people did not fall prostate on their faces at the presence of The Almighty.

Definitional issue: The word, slain, is the past participle of the verb, to slay, which means to kill by violence, to destroy or extinguish; to impress strongly or overwhelm, e.g., by humor; to strike; to kill or murder.

Response: Jesus came to offer abundant life on earth and eternal life in the hereafter. (John 10:10) He is, however, in the earth exercising loving-kindness (Grace), judgment and righteousness. (Jeremiah 9:24) Many verses clearly demonstrate this includes passing sentence on the consistently wicked, and turning them over to evil forces to administer God’s judgment. This is a multi-stage process, first spiritually and ending physically. Examples are of what happened spiritually are in Ezekiel 9, Joshua 6, etc., and the physical results are in examples such as 2 Chronicles 25:16; 36:15-21; and many other such cases where God’s judgment was executed, resulting in the ‘slaying’ of many. Undoubtedly, this is the exact opposite of the current day concept and practice of being ‘slain in the spirit’. In these cases, people were spiritually marked for death, and physical death ensued.

Identification issue: Whose or what spirit is being referred to in the phrase, ‘slain in the spirit’. Is it The Holy Spirit of God, or a person’s spirit, or is the term simply referring to the spiritual realm, or perhaps some combination of these? 

Response: This signification is not clear, hence, the meaning is easily confused. God is not the author of confusion. (1 Corinthians 14:33)

Resting issue: How can being slain in the spirit be in anyway equivalent to resting in The Spirit of God?

Response: Connecting these two opposing concepts (being slain and resting in the spirit) immediately creates an inherent conflict with Scripture. Jesus said come to Him and find rest for our souls because His yoke is easy and His burden is light. (Matthew 11:29) In light of this, it is both risky and contradictory to associate ‘being slain or killed in the spirit’ as a type of ‘resting in the spirit’. While we can/do experience and enjoy the heightened presence of The Lord for a while during periods of worship, we are called to ‘enter into God’s rest’, not for a few short minutes of bliss on the church floor, as in some form of religious ecstasy, but for eternity.

Directional issue: The overwhelming majority of Bible references (except two that I recall) to people falling in the presence of The Spirit of God are of them falling prostate to the ground, on their faces, as in the highest form of worship, obeisance, respect and awe (e.g., before a monarch who has the power to kill or leave alive), not on their backs like dead people.

Response: Big difference. Falling prostate on one’s face was an apparent cultural practice of the past monarch era, and certainly God trumps any human king. Moreover, even Jesus ‘fell on His face’ and prayed to God. (Matthew 26:39) In light of the context of this verse, He was certainly neither ‘slain nor resting in the spirit’, as if experiencing some form of religious ecstasy.

Soldiers falling issue: When the soldiers of the Sanhedrin came to arrest Jesus, they drew backward and fell to the ground when He said, “I AM He.” (John 18:6)

Response: Clearly, the soldiers did not fall prostate to the ground on their faces in highest worship or respect. Neither did they fall and lie on the ground as dead men. Soldiers on a secret, nighttime operation would likely deploy in a rather tight formation. When they encountered the disciples, and Jesus so quickly and easily admitted being the one whom they sought, the guys in the front of the formation may have staggered backward, possibly knocking over some of the soldiers behind Him, with a falling dominoes effect. Hence, a good number ended up on the ground. Moreover, Jesus had an incredible reputation and the soldiers likely knew of it. A sudden, up-close, nighttime encounter with such a personality could easily trigger some trepidation, even among soldiers. To my knowledge, the Bible does not indicate whether some or all of the soldiers fell to the ground, or why. Should we simply fill in the blank?

Saul on the ground issue: The Bible includes no clear reference to Saul being physically ‘knocked off’ of his donkey to the ground. It clearly says “he fell to the ground”.

Response: Even Saul’s/Paul’s own accounts of his experience reference him as having ‘fallen to the ground’. (Acts 22:7 and 26:14) Following in a few of his steps, I visited Damascus, including the ‘Street called Straight’ (Acts 9:11), and have even ridden on a donkey while crossing the rugged passageway to Petra in Jordan. While donkeys are sure-footed beasts, even on rocky ground, it takes all you have to hold on and ride their (very uncomfortable) bony spines. Being blinded by a very bright light would likely cause any experienced rider to fall off a donkey, but this does not necessarily mean the power of the light ‘knocked him off’, per se.

Conclusion: The religious practice of having hands laid on people, and them falling to the ground, or being conveniently caught by ushers prepared with sheets (to cover up ladies in dresses) has no Biblical basis from my study of Scripture. The concept and practice of people being both ‘marked in the spiritual realm for either protection or destruction’ is clearly supported by Scripture, including in The Book of Revelation. Yes, the power of God is totally unlimited. He can do anything. When He is alleged to be doing things that are apparently contradictory to His Word, we should have reason to … pause and ponder. It is much safer to embrace what Scripture says, rather than embrace the traditions of man, and our traditional mis-interpretations of The Word.  

See:
--"What Does It Mean to be Slain in the Spirit” (https://carm.org/questions/about-church/what-does-it-mean-be-slain-spirit)
--“Is Being Slain in the Spirit Biblical?” (http://www.gotquestions.org/Spirit-slain.htm) 

Pic source: http://www.voamonline.com/trend-1/007_bennyhinn/slain-2.jpg

Keepsake Letter to a Pre-teen

See the Letters series here

  
My Dear Child, 

Congratulations! You are about to become a teenager. As you prepare to make this grand transition, here is an important 'life tip' we learn from growing crops.  

Whenever a seed is planted in the ground and covered up with dirt, it first has to die. Laying there in the darkness, hidden from view, the chemistry in the dirt around the seed tries its best to kill the seed, crack open its hard shell, and reduce all its contents to the raw elements of dirt. As it dies, however, the DNA God placed inside that seed fights back, and starts to change the chemistry of the soil immediately around it! Then suddenly, inexplicably, as the seed's shell opens up, something inside that's alive starts to shoot downward, seeking food and water. Next, just as suddenly, something inside alive starts to shoot upward, pushing and fighting its way through the crusty soil, until it breaks through to the wonderful light and air above. 

Though the dirt tried its best to kill this seed and reduce its contents to dirt, it lost the battle, and ends up actually nurturing the DNA in that seed! The 'roots below and shoots above' thus provide the basis for that seed that was sown to become a mighty tree that can live and bear good fruit for hundreds of years!   

Now imagine with me that the seed is the good and Godly teachings your parents  lovingly and carefully planted into your heart and mind. Initially, as a child, you readily accepted them, just like the dirt accepted the planted seed. As you become a teenager, this seed will begin to DIE, seeming to be irrelevant to you and your new, teenage life. The world and its un-Godly influences will do their parts to help kill this seed inside you. However, God's Word is ALIVE forever, and will eventually accomplish the job He assigned to the 'DNA' in His Word seed, your parents faithfully planted inside you. It may take a long time; and you may end up having to experience a lot of hard bumps and bruises in your life, but trust me, because of my/our abiding faith in the seed carefully planted into your life, your life WILL eventually produce good fruit pleasing to God.

Just like a tree that grows and experiences rough seasons of floods, droughts, poor nutrients, being pruned, abused, etc., but eventually produces good fruit, so will you. That's life. But you have a choice of whether to fight against the seed already inside you, or to go with the flow. Trust me, I have lived L-O-N-G and learned well....it’s easier to learn to go with God’s flow! May you likewise learn this important lesson.

Always remember I love you and will be with you in spirit throughout this and all other transitions of your life, come what may.  

Love

Does God Have a Hand? (Poem)

Hmmm, does God, who is Spirit, have a hand?

This is a question worth some pondering,

So I’m glad you’re reading and also wondering.

May be better to ask, “How can I be His hand?”

It’s His hand that shakes and wakes me in the night,

“Get up, J!, I’ve got a new song for you to write!”

Angels are His hands… and also His feet.

You, too, the very same can be

When for Him you decide to live,

And to the needy you decide to give.

Don’t wait until your clock of ages strikes midnight

To find the answer to this question – that’s right!

Then, before Him not one man shall be contended.

Surely all knees will bend, all heads will bow.

You who rejected His hand that long had been extended

Will wonder, “Where, when, why did I miss it?  How??

~o~

In the shadow of His hand He has hidden Me.

Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.

Isaiah 49:2, 16

Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,

that He may exalt you in due time.

1 Peter 5:6 

Removing the Façade: Transacting the Translation

Hey Christian,

Do you really believe Jesus died to save you from the penalty of your sins? Think carefully before you answer in your mind and heart.  

Now, consider this. If there were apparent physical evidence that He did not die to save you from the penalty of your sins, would you still believe He did? If you are honest and like most of us, I'd bet you would seriously consider this physical evidence, and most likely would be swayed to disbelieve. After all, evidence is convincing, right?  

No, it isn't. And that's the tap root of what I believe may be God's second greatest problem in interacting with us humans. As noted in another post (What's In A Name Anyway), I believe the first problem may well be His invisibility and our slack in getting to know Him via His physical Word through which He cracks open revelations and insights to us. The second problem is training us to receive from Him who is invisible, the real, yet invisible things He has given to us.  You must admit it must be relatively easier for us to receive, believe and embrace invisible things given, but which remain invisible throughout this life, than it is to receive invisible things given, which we, by faith, are expected to translate into physical actuality. Our inability to ‘transact this translation’ does not, however, prove God did not give us those things....the "all things" referred to so often in New Testament Scripture. (2 Peter 1:3; 3 John 1:2; Revelation 21:7, etc.)

Our proclivity to believe physical evidence blocks or inhibits our ability to transact this translation, whereas we have less of an issue believing and receiving spiritual things that are not expected to become physical evidence in this life.  So our great problem remains -- how to believe and receive by faith, and actually translate into physical actuality the many invisible, yet spiritually real gifts given to us by our invisible God?

Actually, this problem is not as grand as it may sound or appear to be.  It is put into its proper perspective when we realize ... get this, everything physical is essentially a very thin, ever morphing façade cast over (cloaking) things spiritual.  (Façade: A superficial appearance or illusion of something) God gave real spiritual, invisible gifts to us, paid for by the blows with which He personally smote (beat) Christ on the cross. Isaiah 53:10-11  affirm as the Roman soldiers and other participants in the crucifixion performed their roles, physically, God was performing His role, spiritually, casting upon and punishing Jesus for the sins of all mankind, from Adam to the last human to ever be born. This punishment opened the portal through which God became legally able to (i) invade satan's kingdom on earth, (ii) re-take all authority and power Adam had given to satan when he sinned, and (iii) give gifts to mankind...gifts satan and his cohorts never wanted us to have!

These gifts, summarized throughout Scripture, are very real, but because of our unbelief, they largely remain cloaked by the physical façades of unbelief, ignorance of who we are in Christ, and bad habits and personal cultures of this life that conflict with the culture of God's Kingdom. As our spiritual man is fed and strengthened, he becomes able to cast off (uncloak) these façades, and we are then able to experience physically what God intended.  

In our world, façades and veneers are used to cover up blemishes and imperfections, enhancing the view of an item. (Veneer: A superficially valuable or pleasing appearance) God made us beautiful in spirit, but the stains of sin and our cultural habits/expectations serve as façades or veneers over this beauty -- the direct opposite of what happens in our world! These veneers are sickness, disease, poverty, strife, greed, selfishness, hate, covetousness, fearful, etc., covering up the beauty Christ died to restore in us. Through faith in the blood of Jesus, the stains of sin are immediately removed. The habitual and cultural veneers, however, remain  and are only removed as we systematically and thoroughly renew our minds to The Word, change old habits, and exchange our personal culture for one that  aligns with the culture/principles of The Kingdom of God. Only then will our true, inner beauty be revealed externally.

I believe God sees us in the beauty of His forgiveness, i.e., healthy rather than sickly, rich rather than poor, in harmony rather than in strife, as givers rather than getters, etc., whereas we tend to see ourselves otherwise. Our words and actions attest to this. What if we could see ourselves as He sees us, and speak/act accordingly?  What if our image of self matched what He sees?  Well, that is the purpose of His Word, The Bible -- to help us understand how He sees us, so we can align our self-image and words aright.

Once our vision or perspective of self is properly aligned with His perspective of us in Christ, the remaining key area to tackle is that of 'corresponding actions',  required to complete the uncloaking process. This clearly is a long-term process, requiring both Godly and worldly wisdom. This is an area worthy of serious consideration -- moving into action-oriented faith, based on our renewed, Godly image of self. I hope to address this area in future posts.  

There are many examples in our world of people who have worldly wisdom (savoir faire), but who lack a Godly perspective of self, and Godly wisdom concerning what to do. All three are required in their proper order and respective balance in order to transact the translation of God's great, yet invisible gifts...

...from spiritual reality-to-physical actuality.

Your Tongue, Your Ladle

Have you figured out what this picture is?  It is that of a dog’s tongue lapping water. In order to drink water, dogs (as do many other animals):
   --Curl their tongues backward
   --Extend (slam) it into the water
   --Pull a column of water upward
   --Then bite the column of water

Their tongues serve as a ladle in a sloppy, yet very effective manner, extended from one medium (air) into another (water) in order to satisfy their need (thirst).  The fact that all dogs and so many other animals satisfy their thirst in this manner suggests it is not evolution, but by Divine design.

We have made life on planet earth all about the stress of meeting our needs.  In His great wisdom, God has surrounded us with many examples, lessons, and models of how He intends for us to meet our needs.  The simple act of a dog lapping water could be one such example, if we will receive it. 

Still not with me yet?  Ok, here’s the significance and lesson as I understand it, in bullet form for easy comprehension, retention, and hopefully, application.

1. God, by/through Jesus, created all things by His spoken Word and corresponding actions. (Genesis 1; Hebrews 1:2)
2. In speaking, He ‘called things that did not exist, as if they did exist, and by His faith-filled corresponding actions, they (be)came into existence.  (Romans 4:17)
3. He not only created mankind in His own ‘image’, i.e., as a spirit being capable of the highest levels of reasoning, imagination, and speech, but He also cautioned us of the exceptionally strong linkage between our tongue and spirit (Proverbs 4:23; Matthew 12:34), and He informed us that words are spirit. (John 6:63)
4. He has met all our needs (physical, soulish and spiritual) in and on the earth.  (There is no need to leave planet earth to meet our needs, and stain another planet with our bloodthirsty lifestyles!)
5. He intended our needs to be met in the same manner in which He created all things, namely, speaking faith-filled words and doing corresponding actions.  (Hebrews 11:1, Joshua 1:8)  Sin changed this.  Rather, we started speaking fear/doubt-filled words and acting on them, thus producing  evil things, both desired and undesired. 
6. He sent His Word, in various forms (spoken by prophets, as Jesus incarnate, and written as The Bible), for us to study, learn, speak and act on the promises therein to get us off this treadmill, and back onto His plan for meeting our needs.
7. As we speak and act on His promises for meeting our needs, our tongues ‘curl back’, (as if ‘going against the grain’ or norm of only speaking our existing circumstances), dip deeply into our well-resourced spirit (just like the spiritual ladle it is), and dare to speak words to ‘call things that are not yet, as though they are!’

Got it?  Here is the connection back to the dog lapping water:
   Dog curls its tongue backward 
      ~~> We go against the grain of the world, speaking God’s promises

   Dog slams its tongue into the water 
      ~~> We slam faith words into the world of spirit manipulated by evil forces

   Dog pulls a column of water upward 
      ~~> We catalyze the flow of spiritual resources to meet our needs

   Dog bites the column of water 
      ~~> We take actions corresponding to seize this flow    

Bottom line: Your tongue is your personal ladle into God’s unlimited supply.  Learn well to use it to dip continuously and deeply into your spirit to draw out unending streams/columns of His abundance. 

Happy dipping~

What’s in a Name Anyway?

As a child, I was taught strictly not to ‘take the Name of The Lord in vain,’ as many of you were. Other than using His Name as a curse word, I had little understanding of this concept. With age, experience and insight, I have come to a much broader understanding of what a name conveys and means. No doubt, this is ‘elementary, my dear.’
 
Here is something that is not so elementary, though our lives and world would be in much better shape if only it were:

God honors His Word

far above His Name  (Psalm 138:2)

The Amplified Bible translates this verse as: You have exalted above all else Your Name and Your Word, and You have magnified Your Word above all Your Name!

All along, we were taught to not disrespect the Name of The Lord, and this has largely ‘stuck’, even in the minds of people who are not practicing Christians. Ever hear a practicing sinner remind another not to disrespect His Name? Like me, have you even done this yourself?
 
Point-to-ponder: How do we seek, in general, and how have you, personally, sought to honor the Name of The Lord, yet manage daily to disrespect His Word, which He honors far above His Name?
 
As you ponder this point, consider what I believe may be God’s greatest problem – invisibility, that is His physical absence from among mankind. From the beginning, God, Who is Spirit, intended to have on-going physical contact (fellowship) with human beings through Jesus, His Son, who is the physical representation or representative of the invisible God. Sin changed the calculus, and God physically removed Himself from regular, on-going (fellowship) contact with humans. Had He not done this, all humans would have been disintegrated because sin cannot consist in His abiding presence. Rather, His contact (through pre-incarnate Jesus) was sporadic, highly selective, and seemingly always toward laying an important ‘building block’ towards achievement of God’s redemptive plan for mankind, hinted in Genesis 3:15. That plan was launched with the selection of Abram/Abraham to be the father of a nation through whom Jesus, God's sacrifice for sinful man, would be born, be crucified, and be resurrected from the grave. This multi-millennial plan is being unfolded across the middle five of seven ages of humanity, namely: (1) pre-flood, (2) post-flood/pre-cross, (3) post-cross (Church Age), (4) tribulation period, (5) Millennial Reign, (6) post-Millennial Reign, and (7) eternity.

 
Meanwhile, God remains invisible, physically separated from mankind, even from us who are redeemed through faith in Jesus as God’s sacrifice for sin. Being physically absent in our physical world means God must compete with everything physical, for our attention, affection and affinity. To bridge this incredible gap, He sent His physical, written Word. And by His Spirit in the Earth, He cracks open important revelations and insights as we meditate on the historical stories, poetry and admonitions in His book.

 
Though it is in the Earth, dishonoring and disrespecting His Word, therefore, shuts down this critical bridge between God and His beloved mankind. Apart from The Bible, it is impossible to ‘know’ God, His character, charity, compassion, and company of holy angels dispatched to help us counter the effects of fallen angels in the Earth.

What say you?
How will you show greater honor and respect for God’s Word?
Your decisions will be an example (good or bad) for your on-lookers.

How Come?

Here are a few conundrums that make me stop and take note:

1. How come it is perfectly fine for a non-believer or a cold - lukewarm believer in Christ to say and do things that show just how carnally-minded they are, but they get upset, offended, defensive, suspicious (or all of the above) when a practicing believer does or says anything that demonstrates spirituality?

2. How come America is so outwardly gun-ho to pressure other countries to ‘respect human rights’ based on our expanding definition, while in private hospitals and clinics across our land, the most basic human right is quietly and legally abused, namely the right to be born ALIVE?

3. How come we accept names like Joan of Arc, Simon Bar-(son of) Jonah, Jesus of Nazareth, etc., but totally ignore both the lesson and significance of Jesus’ rebukes of His adversaries and His disciples when He respectively said, “You are of your father, the devil” (John 8:44), and “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.” (Luke 9:55)? And how come several modern translations of the New Testament totally ignore this insightful second part of Luke 9:55?

4. How come smart scientists rightfully conclude the universe is expanding (i.e., increasing distance between stars, solar systems, galaxies, etc.), yet they totally ignore the age-old insight and wisdom from Psalm 104:1-2: “O Lord my God, You are very great: You are clothed with honor and majesty, Who cover Yourself with light as with a garment, Who stretch out the heavens like a curtain.” Imagine a beautifully decorated, one-way curtain that is slowly closing after a grand performance (the creation) on a huge stage (the universe), revealing the Maker’s design more fully.

5. How come we toil to find, market and then hoard exquisite pearls the world over, yet are totally oblivious the key lesson about how oysters respond gently, patiently and beautifully to ...irritations?

6. How come we accept the reality of things like groupthink and collective consciousness, yet continually allow (and even pay for) the worldwide media to feed us a steady diet of negativity that, in turn, feeds groupthink, collective consciousness, copycat crimes, etc.?

7. How come scientists say the universe started with a mess (ok, big bang), then became peaceful and orderly (i.e., peace-from-a-mess notion), yet reject and say ‘Impossible! Foolish!’ to The Bible’s promise that our world will descend into a deepening mess, but will conclude with a millennium of peaceful reign of Christ, followed by peace forever (peace-from-a-mess notion)?

8. How come the news media seems surprised at, and even sensationalizes increasing Jewish immigration to Israel in response to anti-Zionist pressures worldwide, yet ignore God’s oft iterated promises of His plan to scatter, then re-gather Jews to their heritage land, respectively in response to their sin and His Grace?  (By the way, their heritage land extends far broader than current day Israel!)

9. How come, though all Christian believers will likely play the role of the ‘prodigal son’ (i.e., be unfaithful to The Father) in some manner and to various degrees during their lives, the very people who should rejoice like crazy upon the prodigal's return, don’t?

10. How come the world embraces the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as historical fact, even The Muslim Qur’an, yet we totally ignore Jesus’ clear warning: To reject His good news of The Kingdom of God, i.e., that He was sent from God to be the only way (door) to God, is much worse than the historical destiny of these twin cities?

What would you add to this list?

Slain in The Spirit - The Real Deal (poem) UPDATED!!!

Those of us in charismatic Christian circles are no doubt familiar with the concept, ‘to be slain in The Spirit’. Typically, it means to fall out, literally, under the power/influence of The Holy Spirit. It is a practice that understandably attracts considerable controversy. The objective of this post is not to explore the traditional understanding of this concept or practice. Rather, it is to focus attention on what I believe may be the ‘real deal’ or meaning of the term, one that, based on perceptions from my experience, has been totally missed across the entire Church world! Moreover, I suspect this ‘real deal’ has far broader and deeper implications for our world today. Stay tuned…

Psalm 91 remains one of my favorite of the psalms, and definitely a cherished set of promises from God. Other posts share my powerful personalization of this psalm (i.e., interpreting/translating it into the first person present tense), and explain how it is a discourse among four voices/persons. Powerful!
 
As I read/see horrific news reports from across our world, there is one section of this psalm that echoes in my mind, namely verses 7 - 8: “A thousand shall/may fall at your side. And ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked.” Across the entire spectrum of The Bible, ‘the wicked’ are those who staunchly reject and disobey God’s way and plan. In John 14:6, Jesus declares, “I AM The Way, The Truth, and The Life!” Ergo, Jesus rejecters are ‘the wicked’ in God’s sight.

Irrespective of the reason, we who love and nurture life, generally do not like the idea of thousands falling (being judged or dying), especially if we have to witness their apparent sentences or their deaths in real time, or learn about it shortly thereafter. Yet God promises the righteous will witness/see the rewards of the wicked – rewards or punishments that become due and payable after Grace has been l-o-n-g extended, yet rejected. 

These rewards or punishments are delivered in stages. The above verses, however, only refer to the final stage, the actual, physical fall of the wicked, whether it is death or lesser punishments (e.g., jail sentence, public shaming, broken homes, lost jobs and opportunities, etc.). Well before this physical fall, the real fall, the real deal, occurs…spiritually! This is the point at which God pronounces His “judgment that allows the destroyers access” or entry to bring the spiritual fall to physical fruition. Consider it as a high court judge pronouncing judgment on a criminal, who is then turned over to law enforcement officials to administer or execute the judgment.

An absolutely clear example of this staged judgment/execution process is found in Ezekiel 9. Those familiar with Scripture, may recognize this as the chapter in which God reveals, ‘Judgment begins at The House of God.’ This chapter is worth frequent reading and pondering/meditation to perceive how it may apply to our world today. I believe it does.

In it, we clearly see One, believed to be pre-incarnate (pre-birth) Jesus, pronouncing judgment on those who have rejected God’s way. They had killed His prophets, sacrificed their babies in fire to demons, worshiped idols, or simply sanctioned or did not cry or sigh about the above evils. He directs a spirits (who appear to Ezekiel in the form of men) first (a) to ‘seal’, put a protective mark on those who do cry and sigh over evils committed; then (b) to kill/slay all the rest, with no mercy – “old and young men, maidens and little children and women.” Shortly following this pronouncement, one of the angels returns to say, “I have done as You commanded me.”

Ponder this: Though they were sealed/marked for protection, the righteous (those protected) felt no such thing, neither could they or others see the mark received. Similarly, though slain in the spirit, the wicked felt no such thing, neither could others see anyone being slain. But indeed, ‘slain in the spirit’ they were! This, my Friend, is ‘the real deal’ about being slain in the spirit, i.e., judgment pronounced and executed spiritually, yet undetected physically, for the time being. Judgments pronounced and executed spiritually in Ezekiel 9, were subsequently brought to physical life when the Babylonian army sequentially/iteratively invaded and destroyed Judah and Jerusalem, its capital, leaving alive only a remnant of the people, just as God had promised on many occasions. Another remnant was captured and taken to Babylon to serve King Nebuchadnezzar. This group famously included Daniel and his 3 close friends who rose to the apex of wise men in the Babylonian, and subsequent kingdoms of Medo-Persia, and Persia. It also included Mordecai, who raised a young relative whose parents had died. Her name was later changed to Esther, and she eventually became the queen of Persia! Voila! The Bible stories (books) of Daniel and Esther were thus birthed! 

Another similar example of this spiritual principle, the real deal about being slain in the spirit, is hinted at in Joshua 5:13-15 and 6:1-2. Here, however, Joshua does not see the destroying angels over whom the pre-incarnate Jesus is captain. Nevertheless, the inhabitants of Jericho were slain in the spirit well before the Israeli army took the first step toward that city!

Here's a handy way to remember lessons from this post:

Though marked for goodness, we righteous won’t feel it,
And slain in the spirit, the wicked won’t even know it. 

But know this in the recesses of your mind and heart,
Though full of Love and Grace, God is Judge in Heaven’s court.
Even when His judgments are pronounced, He still may relent,
But this is only possible for those of us who repent.

Tell me, Friends, have you?

Across our world, unrepentant folks are thus being slain,

When long-term Grace from The Lord, they decided to disdain. 

Others, who responded righteously to Grace, are being sealed.

They’re protected when lives and life quality, judgments steal.

Even when, by collateral damages, they’re impacted,

Alive or deceased, The Lord ensures ..they will be protected! 

In which group are you?