Let's come together...
To all my extended spiritual family (especially youth ministry alumni...of any age) in the Twin Cities region ~ if the brick and mortar of the church has become more of a cage and less of a sanctuary and you consider yourself one of the following:
*spiritual refugee
*ex-angelical
*spiritually alive but ecclesiastically numb
*conflicted by the marriage of church and political parties
*troubled by the partisan and tribal divisions of our culture
I’m setting up a schedule of times and places to sit with you, to listen and to love. No agenda. I’m NOT starting a church. I simply want to give you what I’ve always tried to give you in the past; a father’s heart and a pastor’s ear.
Starting January 1, 2019 I’ll come to you—coffee shop, bar, small group settings, etc. Message me. One on one, or groups of any size.
I’m very serious about this.
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Saturday, November 24, 2018
Here's How You Can Support Randy Dean Ministries
Previously I tried to post my PayPal button and it failed to connect...here's another try!
Tuesday, November 20, 2018
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
An Important Update on Randy Dean Ministries
An Important Update on Randy Dean Ministries
The partisan and tribal divide of our time has given rise to a large group of people from within the Church of the USA. I have come to call them “spiritual refugees” because, while some have stayed in their churches they feel more and more separated by the harsh divides fostered even in the Name of Jesus. In addition, many are leaving church but not their spirituality. Not long ago one of these fine young adults identified for me the apt notion that this crowd of good yet weary hearts are “refugees from evangelicalism.” Others are identifying them as “exangelicals”; whoever they are, I want to love them as pastor, father, and a Bishop.
I’ve delightfully spent most of my 44 years in ministry speaking at youth camps and youth conferences. I have forged hundreds of friendships over the years with these lives. Additionally, God has always given me an empathy for folks thrown out of established religion and the forbidden of the same. I believe my whole life has been a set-up for this time so I am launching a mission to my own nation, the USA.
These spiritual refugees are not rebels but they most certainly are revolutionary. Western Christianity is ripe for their voice and their passion. I simply long to speak into these valuable lives with a spiritual father’s heart to run out and meet them right where they are, just as the Prodigal Father ran out to meet his younger son.
I believe the political bitterness of our time is a set-up for a raw discovery of the practice of Divine Love. Dealing with the hot topics of our day from a Christian perspective MUST default to this “one commandment” of Christ. We simply must walk away from all other methods (political, doctrinal, debate, and throwing Bible verses at each other) so that our best energies can be spent in a healthy and joyous practice of LOVE.
Jesus prayed for His people, the Body of Christ, in John 17:20,21 ~ “…that they all may be ONE even as You Father art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me.” The partisan/tribal divide I mentioned at the top of this blog is a cry for healing for the wounded Body of Christ.
To that end my wife and I are transitioning out from our current pastorate of 30 years and into a specific ministry to these refugees. I am developing a podcast, a blog, and finishing a book on this topic (as well as other related topics). My previous book, RADIANCE brushed into some of these important values but I am ready to spend this season of my life diving into the deep end of this vital need in America, and beyond.
We are looking for the support of people who have an understanding of everything just stated. We are looking for large or small sponsors for this leap of faith. I am convinced there are thousands of hearts who understand this cause. If you or someone you know can help us financially to give launch to this Mission to the USA, we would greatly appreciate your support. Not only will this support help underwrite the podcast, blog, and book, it will also give us the freedom to minister in small groups or places who might not otherwise be able to afford an honorarium or travel expenses.
As always, we will continue to be available for ministry to churches, youth conferences, retreats, and meetings of all shapes, sizes, and themes. Also, we have ordained sons and daughters into ministry and we will continue to offer them and others seeking ordination a Bishop’s heart and connection. God has loaded our hearts with over 44 years of love, life, and light.
Randy Dean Ministries is a 501(c)3 non profit ministry located at our home, 2694 200th Ave Emerald, WI 54013. My email is randydeanministries@gmail.com and our home phone is 715-265-7141. Donations can be sent by mail to our home address (above) or by PayPal ~
Friday, May 19, 2017
Wholly Spirit
I woke up this morning with a rolling thought process that cycled repeatedly and wonderfully. Without my full permission (though I must admit I’ve pondered the edges of these musings for many days) my mind was carrying on a conversation about the vitality and animation of a beautiful human spirit. A spirituality without dilution or distraction.
First, I want to say that such a condition is entirely possible although rarely sustained. We all attend concerts, worship settings, conferences, camps, and retreats and come away with a euphoric “mountain top” delight we are determined to retain yet internally acknowledging it will likely wane with time. We certainly don’t want it to fade, and we often make bold declarations such as, “I am not losing this experience this time!”. But alas, more often that not, it grows into a distant joyous memory.
But I still believe in, “the vitality and animation of a beautiful human spirit. A spirituality without dilution or distraction.” My early morning sleepy musings gave me a mural of ideas from pictures of my own life along with what I observe routinely in others. Here’s a sampling of that mural;
*I took my spiritual energy to debates about political issues
and I could see my
spirit being spent without any real value internally or
externally. It seemed,
however, that I was convinced of a non-existent value
because I placed such a
false high spiritual value on these debates.
*I took my spiritual energy to places of personal anxiety
almost as if to solve my
anxious challenges but knowing when I got there that
nothing would change.
*I watched as people around me were equally convincing
themselves of a spiritual value in practices when no such
value existed. We were all hoping for and working for that
value but no spirit enhancing value was to be found.
and I could see my
spirit being spent without any real value internally or
externally. It seemed,
however, that I was convinced of a non-existent value
because I placed such a
false high spiritual value on these debates.
*I took my spiritual energy to places of personal anxiety
almost as if to solve my
anxious challenges but knowing when I got there that
nothing would change.
*I watched as people around me were equally convincing
themselves of a spiritual value in practices when no such
value existed. We were all hoping for and working for that
value but no spirit enhancing value was to be found.
With those moments in mind as a back-drop, the scenes shifted to more positive pictures. The summary of these positives had to do with many of the matters I just listed, but in contrast there was shift of focus;
*My mind decided to direct love toward all the opposition.
*My meditation barricaded me from leaping into quarrels.
*My joy pushed back against angry gossip, strife, and
mob rule.
*My love reached for heavenly wisdom.
*My hope decided to issue a warrant on the atmosphere.
*My unbroken stream of prayer gave me bridges over chasms.
*My meditation barricaded me from leaping into quarrels.
*My joy pushed back against angry gossip, strife, and
mob rule.
*My love reached for heavenly wisdom.
*My hope decided to issue a warrant on the atmosphere.
*My unbroken stream of prayer gave me bridges over chasms.
In the first list of challenges I could literally feel my spirit drained. In the second list the Holy Spirit was engaged in giving me a more wholly spirit. In the first, I felt motivated by an indignant sense of right and wrong. In the second I was drawn along by an instinctive leading to guard my heart for the right moment to be enlisted for the right cause in the right spirit.
I’ll say it again, I believe in “the vitality and animation of a beautiful human spirit. A spirituality without dilution or distraction.” I have had the pleasure of connections to people of this marvelous quality. Just breathing air in the same room with them is a distinct pleasure. Imagine if and when a growing company of us are of this “wholly spirit” passion.
Many years ago I found this quote by Gil Bailie; “Do not ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go and do that because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” I’m convinced that every struggle of our nation and humanity is solved when a significant number of us refuse the bait of leaping into the baseline, common, and even vulgar debates of our times and instead we continue to fill our spirit with the Holy Spirit. Then, and only then will we pursue my second inventory;
*My mind decided to direct love toward all the opposition.
*My meditation barricaded me from leaping into quarrels.
*My joy pushed back against angry gossip, strife, and mob
rule.
*My love reached for heavenly wisdom.
*My hope decided to issue a warrant on the atmosphere.
*My unbroken stream of prayer gave me bridges over chasms.
*My meditation barricaded me from leaping into quarrels.
*My joy pushed back against angry gossip, strife, and mob
rule.
*My love reached for heavenly wisdom.
*My hope decided to issue a warrant on the atmosphere.
*My unbroken stream of prayer gave me bridges over chasms.
This is most certainly who Jesus Christ was and is. This is most certainly what I will live and I will lead those who follow me to this lush meadow with quiet pools to drink from (Psalm 23 The Message).
Come Holy Spirit, for the purpose of making us all, wholly spirit.
Amen.
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Part 2 of Crackers and Juice, or the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ
Of all the many outrageous words of Jesus recorded in the four Gospels, no words match the sheer mind blowing capacity of John's quote (6:56); "...eat My flesh...drink My blood..."; imagine how those six words landed in the ears of many present who also knew all too well the words of Leviticus 17:14, "...you are not to eat the blood of any flesh...whoever eats it shall be cut off."
The Leviticus passage is what many Bible thumpers of our day would call, "chapter and verse" underscoring the sole authority of the Bible in a believer's life. Well... Jesus veritably trampled on that particular "chapter and verse" replete with reviewing His statement several times and then defending it to His core leadership team after the crowd present for His, "say what?!" teaching ran for the exits!
Of course we know, with the luxury of 2000 years of sorting this out, that Jesus isn't introducing cannibalism. But who among these original hearers was even remotely prepared for such audacity? NO ONE! And yet, when Jesus asked His closest disciples, "Are you headed for the parking lot too?", their answer was, "We've come too far to run now...besides, when you speak, we come alive...and even THIS sparked something in our spirits."
Jesus Christ fulfilled Leviticus' commands, became the "flesh and blood" that we now know is the Bread of Heaven. To break the Leviticus' command was to risk being "cut off"; but now, on this side of the Cross, we are now bonded to the very essence of The Body of Christ. Touching the leper in the Old meant becoming a leper...now under the NEW, touching...indeed EATING the Body of Christ means becoming The Body of Christ.
So, it was vital for Jesus to crash into that train of thought with His audacious Words. It was significant for them and us to be introduced to a mystery meal on the New Testament value of the reverse efficacy of Old Testament thinking. The Old said, "BEWARE!" but now the New says, "BECOME!"
We are what we eat! Come to the Table...."This is The Body of Christ"...
Join me again in a day or 2, for Part 3 of "Crackers and Juice, or the Body and Blood of Christ" ...
The Leviticus passage is what many Bible thumpers of our day would call, "chapter and verse" underscoring the sole authority of the Bible in a believer's life. Well... Jesus veritably trampled on that particular "chapter and verse" replete with reviewing His statement several times and then defending it to His core leadership team after the crowd present for His, "say what?!" teaching ran for the exits!
Of course we know, with the luxury of 2000 years of sorting this out, that Jesus isn't introducing cannibalism. But who among these original hearers was even remotely prepared for such audacity? NO ONE! And yet, when Jesus asked His closest disciples, "Are you headed for the parking lot too?", their answer was, "We've come too far to run now...besides, when you speak, we come alive...and even THIS sparked something in our spirits."
Jesus Christ fulfilled Leviticus' commands, became the "flesh and blood" that we now know is the Bread of Heaven. To break the Leviticus' command was to risk being "cut off"; but now, on this side of the Cross, we are now bonded to the very essence of The Body of Christ. Touching the leper in the Old meant becoming a leper...now under the NEW, touching...indeed EATING the Body of Christ means becoming The Body of Christ.
So, it was vital for Jesus to crash into that train of thought with His audacious Words. It was significant for them and us to be introduced to a mystery meal on the New Testament value of the reverse efficacy of Old Testament thinking. The Old said, "BEWARE!" but now the New says, "BECOME!"
We are what we eat! Come to the Table...."This is The Body of Christ"...
Join me again in a day or 2, for Part 3 of "Crackers and Juice, or the Body and Blood of Christ" ...
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Crackers and Juice or The Body and Blood of Christ (Part 1)
Either Communion is what Jesus said it was, "this is my Body....this is my Blood", or it is crackers and juice. Either we serve everyone the Body and Blood of Christ, or we are serving everyone only crackers and juice and no one the reality of salvation through Jesus. Christ is present at HIS Table or we are offering the cheapest of all snacks and the worst of all symbols.
Hopefully I have your full attention for, what is to me, one of the most beautiful prophetic statements offered by the Church for a hungry and thirsty world: Communion, Eucharist, The Last Supper, The Table of the Lord...however you are familiar with the title, it is this glorious mystery originally offered by Jesus Himself to His treasured friends and disciples on that fateful night in which He was betrayed.
I've stated hundreds of times, "Let's dare to say what Jesus said, not what doctrinal statements say. HE said, '...this is My Body....this is My Blood..." Let's not add to that or take away from that. Let's simply say it the way HE said it. Don't put multiple syllable words to it or add a church policy statements before, after and during it. Let's just say what He said.
Then let's follow that with serving everyone in the room. Every doubting Thomas and puckered up betrayal kissing Judas. Everyone. Without threats of death or sickness, without caveats about worthiness or suitable holiness, and certainly, without denying anyone for lack of meeting a church policy statement.
Of course, we can default to crackers and juice but we risk sending most folks home profoundly hungry and their appetites spiritually ruined. The supernatural and transcendent is possible at The Body and the Blood of Christ. But crackers and juice won't feed the hungry, much less, ignite spiritual energy.
My experience with Communion actually began with the simplicity of "crackers and juice" (physically speaking) but served in an atmosphere of genuine hunger. The very first time I took Communion, I had NO clue what was happening. I only knew this to be a practice of church services (once a month where I was) but I knew nothing of any deeper notion than the pretty trays, the cracker like wafers and the shot glasses of cheap grape juice.
And I wept. At 17, in the middle of my friends, and feeling VERY conspicuously odd...I wept. The smell of the juice wafted into my nose and the tiny wafer felt so soft. Something from heaven entered my sensory perceptions, made its way to my emotional center, and I trembled with gratitude for a mystery I have spent the past 46 years exploring. Christ showed up in that broken bread and my heart burned inside my chest....
If you are interested in more, I'll continue this blog tomorrow. If you are hungry for more, I promise to serve more than crackers and juice...
Hopefully I have your full attention for, what is to me, one of the most beautiful prophetic statements offered by the Church for a hungry and thirsty world: Communion, Eucharist, The Last Supper, The Table of the Lord...however you are familiar with the title, it is this glorious mystery originally offered by Jesus Himself to His treasured friends and disciples on that fateful night in which He was betrayed.
I've stated hundreds of times, "Let's dare to say what Jesus said, not what doctrinal statements say. HE said, '...this is My Body....this is My Blood..." Let's not add to that or take away from that. Let's simply say it the way HE said it. Don't put multiple syllable words to it or add a church policy statements before, after and during it. Let's just say what He said.
Then let's follow that with serving everyone in the room. Every doubting Thomas and puckered up betrayal kissing Judas. Everyone. Without threats of death or sickness, without caveats about worthiness or suitable holiness, and certainly, without denying anyone for lack of meeting a church policy statement.
Of course, we can default to crackers and juice but we risk sending most folks home profoundly hungry and their appetites spiritually ruined. The supernatural and transcendent is possible at The Body and the Blood of Christ. But crackers and juice won't feed the hungry, much less, ignite spiritual energy.
My experience with Communion actually began with the simplicity of "crackers and juice" (physically speaking) but served in an atmosphere of genuine hunger. The very first time I took Communion, I had NO clue what was happening. I only knew this to be a practice of church services (once a month where I was) but I knew nothing of any deeper notion than the pretty trays, the cracker like wafers and the shot glasses of cheap grape juice.
And I wept. At 17, in the middle of my friends, and feeling VERY conspicuously odd...I wept. The smell of the juice wafted into my nose and the tiny wafer felt so soft. Something from heaven entered my sensory perceptions, made its way to my emotional center, and I trembled with gratitude for a mystery I have spent the past 46 years exploring. Christ showed up in that broken bread and my heart burned inside my chest....
If you are interested in more, I'll continue this blog tomorrow. If you are hungry for more, I promise to serve more than crackers and juice...
Saturday, December 10, 2016
HAIL MARY!
Those who know me well know that I adore the story of Mother Mary. To me she embodies every quality which ought to typify all of Christianity. While some in Catholicism verge on worshipping her as a deity but Protestants run the other way; both extremes are sadly in error. For the Catholic to make this beautiful lady a god is to miss the raw power of her humanity. But, for the Protestant to lightly pay her “honorable mention” pitifully misses the dare of God’s call to us to become as she was; a bondslave of the Lord and His impossible offer.
If we Protestants believed about humanity what most of Catholicism believes about Mary, Christianity would flourish with radiance and power.
Luke 1:37-38 records the summary of Mary and the angel Gabriel’s conversation, “(Gabriel) For nothing will be impossible with God. And Mary said, ‘Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; be it done to me according to your word.’” ... majestic simplicity.
Mary is, at most, 16. There is absolutely no precedent for what she is hearing. The closest thing that might have crossed her mind was that of much older, married women of the Old Testament who were given children of promise….along with their husbands!
Mary is on an island in this category. There is no other way to describe this encounter other than astonishing in its reach and stunning in its ramifications. Yet, something in the transcendence of the moment pushes Mary to the conclusion that she must become a bondslave to this impossibility! Hear that again; she happily surrendered herself as a SLAVE of the Lord and His offer of doing the impossible.
Bill Johnson says it this way, “Our debt to the world is an encounter with God”. To that end, we must become bondslaves of doing the impossible. A people of a covenant to live beyond our brown paper bag means. To do works transcending my limited skills to show the world a God of unlimited abilities. If all the church is offering is clean living born out of good doctrine then we have certainly become what Paul warned us about, “…holding a form of godliness although they have denied its power…avoid such men as these.”
We owe our culture a living, visible demonstration of the Kingdom of another world. Jesus told His disciples to heal the sick and define that moment of healing as the Kingdom’s appearance on earth. I’m not batting a thousand on that command, but I'm swinging hard for the fences of impossibility.
Along with Mary I’m a happy slave of conquering the impossible. I’ve discovered the true nature of Christianity is the presence of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. I’ve heard it said that when we get to heaven “some day” that we’re in for a lot of surprises. While I’m sure that’s true, I’ve decided to take a different path of life that minimizes my surprises tomorrow through discovery TODAY.
Just prior to World War II amphibious landings were deemed impossible due to notable failures in World War I. MacArthur, Eisenhower and other heroes of that day never got their boots wet in basic training for an amphibious assault. A lesser known military officer nicknamed, “Mad (as in mad-man) Smith advised the strategists of his day that the war could not be won without large scale amphibious assaults. “Mad” was told that such an idea was impossible. His answer? “Well, then we are going to do the impossible and we are going to do the impossible WELL.” Needless to say, we all know about the history of D-Day and the massive amphibious landing ultimately insuring the end of Hitler's hideous ambitions.
In the brutal shadow of Rome's raging arrogance, not to mention Religion Inc.'s stalled ignorance, a teenaged peasant girl said, "Yes sir. I'll do the impossible." Today, in the shadows of similar foolishness, the world is waiting for more of us to rise to the raw power of OUR humanity with the promises of God igniting our dreams for "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven."
We are going to do the impossible and we are going to do the impossible WELL.
If we Protestants believed about humanity what most of Catholicism believes about Mary, Christianity would flourish with radiance and power.
Luke 1:37-38 records the summary of Mary and the angel Gabriel’s conversation, “(Gabriel) For nothing will be impossible with God. And Mary said, ‘Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; be it done to me according to your word.’” ... majestic simplicity.
Mary is, at most, 16. There is absolutely no precedent for what she is hearing. The closest thing that might have crossed her mind was that of much older, married women of the Old Testament who were given children of promise….along with their husbands!
Mary is on an island in this category. There is no other way to describe this encounter other than astonishing in its reach and stunning in its ramifications. Yet, something in the transcendence of the moment pushes Mary to the conclusion that she must become a bondslave to this impossibility! Hear that again; she happily surrendered herself as a SLAVE of the Lord and His offer of doing the impossible.
Bill Johnson says it this way, “Our debt to the world is an encounter with God”. To that end, we must become bondslaves of doing the impossible. A people of a covenant to live beyond our brown paper bag means. To do works transcending my limited skills to show the world a God of unlimited abilities. If all the church is offering is clean living born out of good doctrine then we have certainly become what Paul warned us about, “…holding a form of godliness although they have denied its power…avoid such men as these.”
We owe our culture a living, visible demonstration of the Kingdom of another world. Jesus told His disciples to heal the sick and define that moment of healing as the Kingdom’s appearance on earth. I’m not batting a thousand on that command, but I'm swinging hard for the fences of impossibility.
Along with Mary I’m a happy slave of conquering the impossible. I’ve discovered the true nature of Christianity is the presence of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. I’ve heard it said that when we get to heaven “some day” that we’re in for a lot of surprises. While I’m sure that’s true, I’ve decided to take a different path of life that minimizes my surprises tomorrow through discovery TODAY.
Just prior to World War II amphibious landings were deemed impossible due to notable failures in World War I. MacArthur, Eisenhower and other heroes of that day never got their boots wet in basic training for an amphibious assault. A lesser known military officer nicknamed, “Mad (as in mad-man) Smith advised the strategists of his day that the war could not be won without large scale amphibious assaults. “Mad” was told that such an idea was impossible. His answer? “Well, then we are going to do the impossible and we are going to do the impossible WELL.” Needless to say, we all know about the history of D-Day and the massive amphibious landing ultimately insuring the end of Hitler's hideous ambitions.
In the brutal shadow of Rome's raging arrogance, not to mention Religion Inc.'s stalled ignorance, a teenaged peasant girl said, "Yes sir. I'll do the impossible." Today, in the shadows of similar foolishness, the world is waiting for more of us to rise to the raw power of OUR humanity with the promises of God igniting our dreams for "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven."
We are going to do the impossible and we are going to do the impossible WELL.
Sunday, December 04, 2016
Jesus Politics
Having "been there, done that", I refuse to be labeled as conservative, liberal, republican, democrat, right, left, moderate, progressive, independent, and all that jazz. I find in Jesus a genius rising up from His passion for the Kingdom of God so compelling and enthralling, that my dreams for a better world have been forever resurrected. No human schemes are adequate to match His government, resting magnificently upon His shoulders.
If we reduce the gospel to fit the politics of the USA, we risk the dangerous mind set of that which may have pushed Judas to his 30 pieces of silver solution for the naive notions of Jesus' Dream. All too often, we have been seduced to believe that the Gospel of Christ "needs" the assist of government amiability. The problem with that seduction is that what Caesar gives, Caesar will readily take away.
The recent eager reach of evangelical leaders to embrace political powers that would otherwise, in our better moments of clarity of soul, turn us away will ultimately teach us that we have a much higher calling. Jesus largely refused to speak to either Pilate or King Herod because His profound sense of discernment drew Him beyond their political expediency. Neither of these "powers" had any healthy or reasonable understanding of the transcendency standing in their oval offices.
If we are to be carriers of the leaf of a tree for the healing of the nations, we must, of necessity, sustain our roots in something far more nutritional than partisan posturing for Babylonian power. If our endorsement of a political side is useful for that side to "win", it will also become the wall preventing us from speaking with love or efficacy to all other sides. Worse yet, our embrace of a political view can also become the gag against our effective ability to carry a prophetic imagination for the side who celebrates our approval.
Simply put, we are not of this world. We were born from above with the possibility of the Health and Life that comes ONLY from above. Our position must never be sold, never be promised, and never given for the possibility of government favor or protection. We CAN honor all kings and authorities in a manner that grants us a welcome to their courts! Daniel blessed Kings Nebuchadnezzar and Darius without selling his endorsement to gain their favor. These Kings NEEDED Daniel, and not the other way around. Why? Because Daniel maintained his integrity consistent beyond their inconsistencies and above their short term political agendas.
The politics of the USA has crossed over to a time when ALL sides will need an anchor of love beyond the hate of divisiveness. Once we decide to find our higher power, all other powers will know we are not for sale AND we will learn to appreciate the greater opportunity of loving the whole world, left or right, black or white, blue or red.
Peace.
If we reduce the gospel to fit the politics of the USA, we risk the dangerous mind set of that which may have pushed Judas to his 30 pieces of silver solution for the naive notions of Jesus' Dream. All too often, we have been seduced to believe that the Gospel of Christ "needs" the assist of government amiability. The problem with that seduction is that what Caesar gives, Caesar will readily take away.
The recent eager reach of evangelical leaders to embrace political powers that would otherwise, in our better moments of clarity of soul, turn us away will ultimately teach us that we have a much higher calling. Jesus largely refused to speak to either Pilate or King Herod because His profound sense of discernment drew Him beyond their political expediency. Neither of these "powers" had any healthy or reasonable understanding of the transcendency standing in their oval offices.
If we are to be carriers of the leaf of a tree for the healing of the nations, we must, of necessity, sustain our roots in something far more nutritional than partisan posturing for Babylonian power. If our endorsement of a political side is useful for that side to "win", it will also become the wall preventing us from speaking with love or efficacy to all other sides. Worse yet, our embrace of a political view can also become the gag against our effective ability to carry a prophetic imagination for the side who celebrates our approval.
Simply put, we are not of this world. We were born from above with the possibility of the Health and Life that comes ONLY from above. Our position must never be sold, never be promised, and never given for the possibility of government favor or protection. We CAN honor all kings and authorities in a manner that grants us a welcome to their courts! Daniel blessed Kings Nebuchadnezzar and Darius without selling his endorsement to gain their favor. These Kings NEEDED Daniel, and not the other way around. Why? Because Daniel maintained his integrity consistent beyond their inconsistencies and above their short term political agendas.
The politics of the USA has crossed over to a time when ALL sides will need an anchor of love beyond the hate of divisiveness. Once we decide to find our higher power, all other powers will know we are not for sale AND we will learn to appreciate the greater opportunity of loving the whole world, left or right, black or white, blue or red.
Peace.
Thursday, December 01, 2016
For God So Loved the World, He Didn't Send a Book...
"Hi.. I'm Randy and I'm a book-a-holic. I love the sound of a page turned, the smell of fresh ink, the feel of a cover (soft or hard), fiction, non-fiction, self-help, history, biographical, coffee-table pictures, religious, non-religious....never mind. I'm addicted to books and I don't want out."
As a pastor and Christian I'm supposed to say that of all my books, I love the Bible the most. Well, (wait for it)... I do. I've worn out more than a few. My current Bible buddy is 13 years old, weighs 5 pounds, and doubles as a portable file cabinet. I dread the day when I'll need to replace it...the margins are loaded with my scribbles, arrows, and page numbers (so I can cheat when I tell people to turn to some obscure passage and I'm there first.. yes, I am that vain).
With that said, let's be clear about a few things too many Church folks rarely talk about, much less, admit: the Bible is not the Truth that will make you free, it is not The Word, and Bibles will not speak to your innermost secret self. Those distinctions are reserved for Jesus Christ alone.
Just to make it clearer where I am coming from, I know that Jesus will use the Bible as a bridge for those intimacies. And, I know I have heard Him whisper from the Psalms (as He did today from Psalm 38) and shout from Revelation. But God gave Jesus to be The Word (John 1) so we could hold Him, listen to Him, fuss with Him when we disagree (good luck with that), and dance with Him when His Truth makes us free.
"Only Jesus is perfect theology" (Bill Johnson). Jesus Hermeneutics (how to interpret the Bible) means that I'll need Him as my tour guide through every Levitical rule and all the gory weirdness of stories you shouldn't read to your children before bedtime. As a matter of fact, Jesus told His disciples that when the Holy Spirit came, He would make Truth an internal epiphany for our thirsty souls. How? By revealing more of Jesus.
The Bible has created some monsters. Unfortunately some of these beasts have the wherewith-all to purchase TV air time for the purpose scaring the pants off unsuspecting viewers. Often their scare tactics are followed with purchase options for curing the terror they've caused; with everything from survival gear and food to more books to insure we understand how much of the population will be destroyed when Jesus shows up again not looking AT ALL like the Jesus who came the first time, healing and restoring the needy.
But the Bible as revealed in The Word, Jesus Christ, has created some magnificent beauties as well. St. Francis of Assisi, Mother Teresa, Pope Francis, Bill Johnson, Heidi Baker, just to name a few. The old hymn "Break Thou the Bread of Life" says, "Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord". So keep reading books. PLEASE! Read the Bible, 7 chapters a day, and in a year you'll have completed it. Just go beyond, transcend, and elevate toward a renewal of spirit with a reading partner Who loves to look back at you from the page. There is no better translation than Jesus, and no finer vista than what He will reveal.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Condemn or Connect?
Dear Church Inc.,
Are we here to condemn or connect?
Maybe a few more connections will end our condemnations. Maybe a few more conversations will suppress our condemnations. Maybe our definition of "evangelism" (a word never used in the Bible) has become the very blockade to our goal of "evangelization" (another word never used in the Bible). If I am to do the work of an "evangelist" (a word used once in the Bible and then directed to a pastor) shouldn't my goal be less condemnation and much more connection?
Condemnation works splendidly when the Judge of a criminal court has heard the final verdict of a jury. After days, weeks, and maybe months, a jury comes back with a final decision, the Judge has no option but to "condemn" the accused to a sentence that fits the crime. Yet even then, a court of appeals might pursue a more fitting conclusion. Even in earthly terms, a fair justice system longs for REconnection to productive society and less condemnations to a hopeless box.
The machinations of evangelism have blurred the lines of authentic love and honest human connections. Somewhere along the way Church Inc. created a theology of self-loathing and disgust for humans as a means for giving glory to God through effective evangelism. We have been stuck in the need to convince humans how bad they are in order to see how good their Creator is...And we, who are called to lead humanity to FIND their way, have LOST our way. The only sin Jesus urged anyone to accept as their own was the sin of self-righteous, self serving bigotry. All others, He forgave with instant connection.
It wasn't disgust for the human condition that drew God to become a Human. He became one of us, and disguised Himself in a human costume in order to powerfully CONNECT! So powerful is this connection, that one of US is now at the right hand of God, making intercession for our continuing connection.
This is far from complete but not far from a truth we had better discover. Connections will almost always prevent condemnations.
Are we here to condemn or connect?
Maybe a few more connections will end our condemnations. Maybe a few more conversations will suppress our condemnations. Maybe our definition of "evangelism" (a word never used in the Bible) has become the very blockade to our goal of "evangelization" (another word never used in the Bible). If I am to do the work of an "evangelist" (a word used once in the Bible and then directed to a pastor) shouldn't my goal be less condemnation and much more connection?
Condemnation works splendidly when the Judge of a criminal court has heard the final verdict of a jury. After days, weeks, and maybe months, a jury comes back with a final decision, the Judge has no option but to "condemn" the accused to a sentence that fits the crime. Yet even then, a court of appeals might pursue a more fitting conclusion. Even in earthly terms, a fair justice system longs for REconnection to productive society and less condemnations to a hopeless box.
The machinations of evangelism have blurred the lines of authentic love and honest human connections. Somewhere along the way Church Inc. created a theology of self-loathing and disgust for humans as a means for giving glory to God through effective evangelism. We have been stuck in the need to convince humans how bad they are in order to see how good their Creator is...And we, who are called to lead humanity to FIND their way, have LOST our way. The only sin Jesus urged anyone to accept as their own was the sin of self-righteous, self serving bigotry. All others, He forgave with instant connection.
It wasn't disgust for the human condition that drew God to become a Human. He became one of us, and disguised Himself in a human costume in order to powerfully CONNECT! So powerful is this connection, that one of US is now at the right hand of God, making intercession for our continuing connection.
This is far from complete but not far from a truth we had better discover. Connections will almost always prevent condemnations.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Repent! God is Better Than You Think, So Change the Way You Think.
Religion Inc. has made a living with shame and guilt. It’s often chronicled by comedians of Jewish or Catholic heritage and an inside joke with some pastors and ministers of other backgrounds; “If it weren’t for shame and guilt I don’t how we could muster a crowd on Sundays” is a missive I’ve actually heard.
One of the driving factors for this phenomenon is that absent the real presence of Christ, there’s truly little other means of stirring religious interest. Think about it; if I’m desperate for statistical success as an amateur preacher or, for that matter, a veteran professional church promoter, I know instinctively that every human has a fairly easily reached threshold for feeling guilt and shame. When that’s used for some kind of “witnessing” venue or an agenda driven evangelism conversation, it becomes a tool in my tool box to achieve a result. Problem is, what I achieve by guilt and shame will likely have to be sustained by the same.
Thus, religious practices can drift into the lowest of human experiences and seek to hold the interest of followers with a misery that Jesus Christ actually came to vaporize. He announced His Kingdom as “the gospel” or, GOOD NEWS. He read Isaiah 61 to a stunned gathering and proclaimed healing for broken hearts, liberty for captives, freedom for prisoners, delight and pleasure and comfort for mourners. An utterly contrary notion for the Religion Inc. of His day who relied on shame and guilt to keep the masses showing up for the offering plates.
As a result the word, “repent” has inherited the sole ideal of “feeling bad for our sins”. And since (in my own opinion) most people have good hearts, it is easy to talk folks into the corner of “feeling bad for sins”, they admit it and presto, an evangelism statistic is born. “We went door to door witnessing and 22 people repented and received Jesus”. Here’s a possible interpretation: “We told 100 people they were born into sin, have no good in them at all and they live as totally depraved without any excuse unless they say this prayer and accept Jesus. 22 people were so honestly in touch with their own shortcomings they were willing to do whatever it takes to feel better. They repented!”
I know, I know. We have done whatever it takes to “plant seeds”... God gets the glory, etc. etc. etc. But at what greater expense? I’ll tell you what expense ~ the magnificent character of God the Father and full beautiful manifestation of the Goodness of God in the Face of Jesus Christ.
The Greek word for repent is “metenoeo”. It means to have a reformation, to think differently, to change one’s mind. It also certainly carries the notion of compunction, which is to be pricked of conscience. I am contending that we should stir these ingredients thoroughly until they come up like this; the epiphany of an honest inventory of my life where I have come to see that my actions at best have been a waste of time and, at worst, my actions have been destructive and painful for others and myself. I will change my vision to one of high values and purposes. I'm having a revolution of thought and destiny. I can finally SEE what I was created to be!
Repentance isn’t only about being sad about what I’ve been. It’s also, and actually more about, being thrilled with what I can become!
But if we introduce repentance as the connection with our shame and guilt without a greater connection to our purposes and value in this life, we create a system of belief founded in constant introspection with little or no escape other than to die and go to heaven... where we can finally BE who we were created to be.
Sorry. I'm not interested in that version of the purpose of Jesus Christ. He didn’t come to ramp UP the power of the Old Testament with heavier laws. He came to set the captives of Religion Inc. FREE.
In Mark 1:15 Jesus made it clear that the time was fulfilled, His New Kingdom was within reach and we should repent (change our minds) and believe the gospel, which is easily translated as....GOOD NEWS.
Through Jesus the old Kingdom/Covenant was about to be completed in order to make room for the fulfillment of the NEW. This NEW Kingdom required a complete epiphany! A complete NEW way of thinking. A total renovation out of fear based relationship with God, to a NEW love based relationship which would drive out all fear. The OLD thinking, Religion Inc. thinking, shame and guilt based thinking, would actually be a wall against this NEW Kingdom.
“REPENT! God is better than you think, so change the way you think. Do you feel that compunction of shame for stealing on your taxes last April? GOOD...that means you are alive. Now, make it right so that from here forward you can reach, run and respond ONLY to your destiny on earth. You were not put here to be a beggar for the dimes you can save by cheating on your taxes. You were put here to be a King/Queen whose wealth allows you to give more than you are forced to give by mere earthly laws”.
Jesus is not the King of bums. Jesus is the King of Kings and Queens. When we leave repentance in the poverty of religious manipulation we devalue Jesus into the CEO of Sin Management. But when we truly REPENT, He becomes the High Priest of our Destiny, praying at the Throne of God for our complete personal fulfillment in this life.
Raging angry preachers have made repentance a bad thing. They are wrong. Repentance is an epiphany! To repent says, “I’m waking up! I am picking a new direction. I’m not going to waste my life on mediocrity. From here forward I will live fully and abundantly”.
One of the driving factors for this phenomenon is that absent the real presence of Christ, there’s truly little other means of stirring religious interest. Think about it; if I’m desperate for statistical success as an amateur preacher or, for that matter, a veteran professional church promoter, I know instinctively that every human has a fairly easily reached threshold for feeling guilt and shame. When that’s used for some kind of “witnessing” venue or an agenda driven evangelism conversation, it becomes a tool in my tool box to achieve a result. Problem is, what I achieve by guilt and shame will likely have to be sustained by the same.
Thus, religious practices can drift into the lowest of human experiences and seek to hold the interest of followers with a misery that Jesus Christ actually came to vaporize. He announced His Kingdom as “the gospel” or, GOOD NEWS. He read Isaiah 61 to a stunned gathering and proclaimed healing for broken hearts, liberty for captives, freedom for prisoners, delight and pleasure and comfort for mourners. An utterly contrary notion for the Religion Inc. of His day who relied on shame and guilt to keep the masses showing up for the offering plates.
As a result the word, “repent” has inherited the sole ideal of “feeling bad for our sins”. And since (in my own opinion) most people have good hearts, it is easy to talk folks into the corner of “feeling bad for sins”, they admit it and presto, an evangelism statistic is born. “We went door to door witnessing and 22 people repented and received Jesus”. Here’s a possible interpretation: “We told 100 people they were born into sin, have no good in them at all and they live as totally depraved without any excuse unless they say this prayer and accept Jesus. 22 people were so honestly in touch with their own shortcomings they were willing to do whatever it takes to feel better. They repented!”
I know, I know. We have done whatever it takes to “plant seeds”... God gets the glory, etc. etc. etc. But at what greater expense? I’ll tell you what expense ~ the magnificent character of God the Father and full beautiful manifestation of the Goodness of God in the Face of Jesus Christ.
The Greek word for repent is “metenoeo”. It means to have a reformation, to think differently, to change one’s mind. It also certainly carries the notion of compunction, which is to be pricked of conscience. I am contending that we should stir these ingredients thoroughly until they come up like this; the epiphany of an honest inventory of my life where I have come to see that my actions at best have been a waste of time and, at worst, my actions have been destructive and painful for others and myself. I will change my vision to one of high values and purposes. I'm having a revolution of thought and destiny. I can finally SEE what I was created to be!
Repentance isn’t only about being sad about what I’ve been. It’s also, and actually more about, being thrilled with what I can become!
But if we introduce repentance as the connection with our shame and guilt without a greater connection to our purposes and value in this life, we create a system of belief founded in constant introspection with little or no escape other than to die and go to heaven... where we can finally BE who we were created to be.
Sorry. I'm not interested in that version of the purpose of Jesus Christ. He didn’t come to ramp UP the power of the Old Testament with heavier laws. He came to set the captives of Religion Inc. FREE.
In Mark 1:15 Jesus made it clear that the time was fulfilled, His New Kingdom was within reach and we should repent (change our minds) and believe the gospel, which is easily translated as....GOOD NEWS.
Through Jesus the old Kingdom/Covenant was about to be completed in order to make room for the fulfillment of the NEW. This NEW Kingdom required a complete epiphany! A complete NEW way of thinking. A total renovation out of fear based relationship with God, to a NEW love based relationship which would drive out all fear. The OLD thinking, Religion Inc. thinking, shame and guilt based thinking, would actually be a wall against this NEW Kingdom.
“REPENT! God is better than you think, so change the way you think. Do you feel that compunction of shame for stealing on your taxes last April? GOOD...that means you are alive. Now, make it right so that from here forward you can reach, run and respond ONLY to your destiny on earth. You were not put here to be a beggar for the dimes you can save by cheating on your taxes. You were put here to be a King/Queen whose wealth allows you to give more than you are forced to give by mere earthly laws”.
Jesus is not the King of bums. Jesus is the King of Kings and Queens. When we leave repentance in the poverty of religious manipulation we devalue Jesus into the CEO of Sin Management. But when we truly REPENT, He becomes the High Priest of our Destiny, praying at the Throne of God for our complete personal fulfillment in this life.
Raging angry preachers have made repentance a bad thing. They are wrong. Repentance is an epiphany! To repent says, “I’m waking up! I am picking a new direction. I’m not going to waste my life on mediocrity. From here forward I will live fully and abundantly”.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Christmas Beauty
I have not always loved Christmas. I tried real hard when I was a kid with some successes and some terrible failures. What I didn’t know then but I’ve learned since is that drug addictions and family dysfunctions don’t take a holiday break….in fact, they ramp it up. It can be summed up in the holiday greeting I grew up with, “Merry Kiss My A__”. Lovely sentiment, isn’t it?
But somewhere in life with two little kids and a wife who grew up with a family that relished Christmas, I had a Scrooge-like epiphany. Something, somehow broke into my reality and lodged in my heart and thinking. This life, this world, this one and only shot we have at spreading good cheer, needs Christmas.
And here, I am not talking about the Christmas “wars”. That’s nonsense. If I’m upset about losing influence in the world due to the fact that not enough people say, “Merry Christmas”, it is not a sign that the nation is in a moral free-fall….it’s a sign that I need to regain my credibility.
And, I am not talking about the droning of some who argue that Jesus’ Birthday is not actually December 25th (they’re right), or that we need to end the commercialization of the holidays (simple heart-felt gifts are always of higher value than money spent), or that various traditions of Christmas have been borrowed from a variety of pagan rituals (yep, it’s true; along with the modern calendar, astronomical maps and more names of people places and things than an encyclopedia could list) … blah, blah, blah.
I still believe this life of multiple disappointments and grieving needs a Christmas break. This world of scary people and hatred needs a Christmas break. This one and only shot we have at spreading good cheer, needs Christmas.
It’s about the insertion of beauty in a collection of far too much indignity and disgrace. It’s about clearing a small patch of ground, declaring a cease fire and singing Silent Night. I looked this up in Wikipedia, so the details might not be completely accurate. Just bear with me and read this;
"The truce began on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1914, when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres, Belgium, for Christmas. They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols, most notably Stille Nacht (Silent Night). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols.
The two sides continued by shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon thereafter, there were calls for visits across the "No Man's Land" where small gifts were exchanged — whisky, jam, cigars, chocolate, and the like. The artillery in the region fell silent that night. The truce also allowed a breathing spell where recently-fallen soldiers could be brought back behind their lines by burial parties. Proper burials took place as soldiers from both sides mourned the dead together and paid their respects. At one funeral in No Man's Land, soldiers from both sides gathered and read a passage from the 23rd Psalm:
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the path of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”
In a world of reality shows that become ugly reality, we need beauty. In a world of unhinged ego, we need beauty. In a world where a friend of mine presides and weeps over a daily parade of human agony in the justice system, we need beauty. In a world where the f-bomb is a noun, a verb, an adjective, an adverb and artistic musical expression, we need beauty.
I want you to understand why I don’t care if pagan paltry has had a role in shaping Christmas. In my opinion, if something is beautiful, it was created by and belongs to God. Winter solstice provides a unique opportunity for reflection on dark bone chilling nights. In the mind-set of the Old Testament, if you touched a leper, you got leprosy. But now, on this side of the Cross, when we touch the leper, the leper is healed! Some people just need a bigger God, a far more real Jesus and much more completely defeated prince of darkness.
Let me tell you about my own personal Christmas tradition that brings me to tears every year. I started this when my kids were tiny. Late on Christmas Eve, after everything is done and a quiet has settled in, I take my car keys (or bells if they are available) and I go outside. I look up at the sky as if to look for Santa, throw my head back, jiggle my keys and as loud as I can I shout, “HO, HO, HO! Merry Christmas!” I’m not kidding. Ask anyone who lives within a mile of me. Dogs howl and the valley around me echoes….and I cry.
I cry because it is my shout for beauty. I cry because I hope some kid somewhere hears me and wonders if there really is a Santa. I cry because I love the moment. In this one and only shot for bringing peace on earth and good will toward all people, beauty deserves at least 15 minutes of fame every year.
So, Merry Christmas…HO, HO, HO!
But somewhere in life with two little kids and a wife who grew up with a family that relished Christmas, I had a Scrooge-like epiphany. Something, somehow broke into my reality and lodged in my heart and thinking. This life, this world, this one and only shot we have at spreading good cheer, needs Christmas.
And here, I am not talking about the Christmas “wars”. That’s nonsense. If I’m upset about losing influence in the world due to the fact that not enough people say, “Merry Christmas”, it is not a sign that the nation is in a moral free-fall….it’s a sign that I need to regain my credibility.
And, I am not talking about the droning of some who argue that Jesus’ Birthday is not actually December 25th (they’re right), or that we need to end the commercialization of the holidays (simple heart-felt gifts are always of higher value than money spent), or that various traditions of Christmas have been borrowed from a variety of pagan rituals (yep, it’s true; along with the modern calendar, astronomical maps and more names of people places and things than an encyclopedia could list) … blah, blah, blah.
I still believe this life of multiple disappointments and grieving needs a Christmas break. This world of scary people and hatred needs a Christmas break. This one and only shot we have at spreading good cheer, needs Christmas.
It’s about the insertion of beauty in a collection of far too much indignity and disgrace. It’s about clearing a small patch of ground, declaring a cease fire and singing Silent Night. I looked this up in Wikipedia, so the details might not be completely accurate. Just bear with me and read this;
"The truce began on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1914, when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres, Belgium, for Christmas. They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols, most notably Stille Nacht (Silent Night). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols.
The two sides continued by shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon thereafter, there were calls for visits across the "No Man's Land" where small gifts were exchanged — whisky, jam, cigars, chocolate, and the like. The artillery in the region fell silent that night. The truce also allowed a breathing spell where recently-fallen soldiers could be brought back behind their lines by burial parties. Proper burials took place as soldiers from both sides mourned the dead together and paid their respects. At one funeral in No Man's Land, soldiers from both sides gathered and read a passage from the 23rd Psalm:
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the path of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”
In a world of reality shows that become ugly reality, we need beauty. In a world of unhinged ego, we need beauty. In a world where a friend of mine presides and weeps over a daily parade of human agony in the justice system, we need beauty. In a world where the f-bomb is a noun, a verb, an adjective, an adverb and artistic musical expression, we need beauty.
I want you to understand why I don’t care if pagan paltry has had a role in shaping Christmas. In my opinion, if something is beautiful, it was created by and belongs to God. Winter solstice provides a unique opportunity for reflection on dark bone chilling nights. In the mind-set of the Old Testament, if you touched a leper, you got leprosy. But now, on this side of the Cross, when we touch the leper, the leper is healed! Some people just need a bigger God, a far more real Jesus and much more completely defeated prince of darkness.
Let me tell you about my own personal Christmas tradition that brings me to tears every year. I started this when my kids were tiny. Late on Christmas Eve, after everything is done and a quiet has settled in, I take my car keys (or bells if they are available) and I go outside. I look up at the sky as if to look for Santa, throw my head back, jiggle my keys and as loud as I can I shout, “HO, HO, HO! Merry Christmas!” I’m not kidding. Ask anyone who lives within a mile of me. Dogs howl and the valley around me echoes….and I cry.
I cry because it is my shout for beauty. I cry because I hope some kid somewhere hears me and wonders if there really is a Santa. I cry because I love the moment. In this one and only shot for bringing peace on earth and good will toward all people, beauty deserves at least 15 minutes of fame every year.
So, Merry Christmas…HO, HO, HO!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Pre-Christian World
It has been said that Christianity has not failed but that it has rarely been authentically attempted. I believe we are not living in a "post-Christian" era as much as we are living in a PRE-Christian era; a time of genuinely REpresenting the beauty of Christ and the true character of His Father.
What if we are not at all living in a society of past Christian glory? What if the history we tend to see only with the most romanticized ideals does not at all support the notion that our best days of faith are behind us? Isn’t it possible we’ve never known a truly, majestically thorough impact of genuine Kingdom Come influence in the U.S.A. and the western world?
Think about it; a Christian nation did not advocate the ownership of slaves. Christianity was not the core value supporting the Natives of this land being herded off to reservations and marginalized into the near extinction of their culture. It was not a Christian nation that forbade women the right to vote for most of our history. A nation living out the full bloom of Christ like beauty did not sponsor segregation with its ignorant “separate but equal” world view.
To be perfectly transparent about it all, some people painted the above crimes with the brush stroke of their silly interpretations of the Bible, but they were utterly and completely wrong! The error of their ways is so thoroughly egregious it is impossible to say with any certainty how long it will take to live it down!
Here’s my thundering point; it is utterly and completely possible that we are wrong to think of our current day as being a “post-Christian” era! I’m proposing that to live in the illusion of our past being something it was not is to rob us of the potential of an outrageous dream inspired faith for today and tomorrow!
We have not yet seen what God could do in a truly Christ inspired environment. “Behold, these are the fringes of His ways; and how faint a word we hear of Him! But His mighty thunder, who can understand?” (Job 26:14).
Our day is a time of birth pains waiting the revealing of the authentic children of a Father Whose love is prepared to make an appearance on the stage of history. What wonders we will behold are limited only by our allegiance to fables of the past.
What if we are not at all living in a society of past Christian glory? What if the history we tend to see only with the most romanticized ideals does not at all support the notion that our best days of faith are behind us? Isn’t it possible we’ve never known a truly, majestically thorough impact of genuine Kingdom Come influence in the U.S.A. and the western world?
Think about it; a Christian nation did not advocate the ownership of slaves. Christianity was not the core value supporting the Natives of this land being herded off to reservations and marginalized into the near extinction of their culture. It was not a Christian nation that forbade women the right to vote for most of our history. A nation living out the full bloom of Christ like beauty did not sponsor segregation with its ignorant “separate but equal” world view.
To be perfectly transparent about it all, some people painted the above crimes with the brush stroke of their silly interpretations of the Bible, but they were utterly and completely wrong! The error of their ways is so thoroughly egregious it is impossible to say with any certainty how long it will take to live it down!
Here’s my thundering point; it is utterly and completely possible that we are wrong to think of our current day as being a “post-Christian” era! I’m proposing that to live in the illusion of our past being something it was not is to rob us of the potential of an outrageous dream inspired faith for today and tomorrow!
We have not yet seen what God could do in a truly Christ inspired environment. “Behold, these are the fringes of His ways; and how faint a word we hear of Him! But His mighty thunder, who can understand?” (Job 26:14).
Our day is a time of birth pains waiting the revealing of the authentic children of a Father Whose love is prepared to make an appearance on the stage of history. What wonders we will behold are limited only by our allegiance to fables of the past.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Heal the Sick and Say, "This Is the Kingdom!"
Two years ago I was awakened by the Presence of God on a Sunday morning. He poured into my heart the following promises for healing in our house and upon our region. The phrase “deluge and oceanic appearance of a Healing Presence and an environmental shift” is as near a quote as I can ever remember God speaking to me.
I urge you to join us in believing for these broken areas of our humanity to be healed in magnificent ways. This day October 11, 2011 we covenant again to the promise of God for our region.
God has promised me: A deluge and oceanic appearance of a Healing Presence and an environmental shift for the following 7 areas of healing and health;
1. Emotional healing; from unfounded anxiety, sudden-harsh, but brief; crippling nevertheless~ healed!
2. Thought life healing; self destructive-from self sabotaging success to unreasonable surrender to defeat~ healed!
3. To be significantly loved; undeniably, permanently connected to significant relationships ~ healed!
4. Healing from the inability to effectively convey the truest quality of love~ healed!
5. Healing from the victim mentality; asserting that my life has challenges that only others can correct ~ healed!
6. Healing from the spirit of poverty; “there’s never enough” must change to, “there’s more than enough” ~ healed!
7. Radical, raw, real, recognizable physical healings. YES, YES, YES!
As our doubts abound, so the pain will continue to own our quality of life. As a faith and passion for God and His presence abounds, so will our quality of life arise. Stay where you are and keep what you've always had. Or, you can arise and reach for what you have never known and you will grow beyond you're wildest dreams.
I urge you to join us in believing for these broken areas of our humanity to be healed in magnificent ways. This day October 11, 2011 we covenant again to the promise of God for our region.
God has promised me: A deluge and oceanic appearance of a Healing Presence and an environmental shift for the following 7 areas of healing and health;
1. Emotional healing; from unfounded anxiety, sudden-harsh, but brief; crippling nevertheless~ healed!
2. Thought life healing; self destructive-from self sabotaging success to unreasonable surrender to defeat~ healed!
3. To be significantly loved; undeniably, permanently connected to significant relationships ~ healed!
4. Healing from the inability to effectively convey the truest quality of love~ healed!
5. Healing from the victim mentality; asserting that my life has challenges that only others can correct ~ healed!
6. Healing from the spirit of poverty; “there’s never enough” must change to, “there’s more than enough” ~ healed!
7. Radical, raw, real, recognizable physical healings. YES, YES, YES!
As our doubts abound, so the pain will continue to own our quality of life. As a faith and passion for God and His presence abounds, so will our quality of life arise. Stay where you are and keep what you've always had. Or, you can arise and reach for what you have never known and you will grow beyond you're wildest dreams.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
MQ = IQ
Business and management gurus tell us that a person’s ability to think metaphorically is as important as intelligence quotients; hence my title, MQ = IQ.
I think that sails beyond the business world and is exquisitely true for all of life. Metaphor is defined as a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse” is a simple metaphor. It begs the listener to expand their knowledge base without undue or extreme literal explanation.
The Bible is rich with metaphoric delights. The person who says that every word is intended to be taken with a wooden and literal eye is unwittingly draining the Book of its potential awe and power. Even “Thou shalt not murder” grows when the Holy Spirit is allowed the breath of Jesus who says, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty…whoever says, ‘you fool’ shall be guilty…”. Suddenly murder becomes a subject of inventory for every single one of us whose resentment, dishonor and unkindness lives unchecked neatly tucked away in our hearts.
Cognitive researchers whose life is spent in thinking about how people think (how’d you like to live with one of these folks?) tell us that as the world grows more complex “imaginative rationality” has become ever more valuable. Metaphorically speaking in a tired cliché that’s called, “thinking outside the box”.
The Apostle Paul said it this way, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of His calling and what are the riches of His inheritance in the saints”. We are on the brink of a spiritual renaissance, or as Kris Vallotton calls it, “the eve of construction”.
Literalists have the world blowing up while others of us have the earth being consumed in the passions of an outrageous God whose Throne is encircled by a rainbow and surrounded by a leadership team saturated with eyeballs beyond count and bodies carried about by six wings.
Which reminds me; God told Noah that every time He looked at a rainbow He would be reminded to spare creation. As if to underscore this notion, God filled His own Great Room with a round rainbow. Metaphor or not, that’s just cool.
I think that sails beyond the business world and is exquisitely true for all of life. Metaphor is defined as a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse” is a simple metaphor. It begs the listener to expand their knowledge base without undue or extreme literal explanation.
The Bible is rich with metaphoric delights. The person who says that every word is intended to be taken with a wooden and literal eye is unwittingly draining the Book of its potential awe and power. Even “Thou shalt not murder” grows when the Holy Spirit is allowed the breath of Jesus who says, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty…whoever says, ‘you fool’ shall be guilty…”. Suddenly murder becomes a subject of inventory for every single one of us whose resentment, dishonor and unkindness lives unchecked neatly tucked away in our hearts.
Cognitive researchers whose life is spent in thinking about how people think (how’d you like to live with one of these folks?) tell us that as the world grows more complex “imaginative rationality” has become ever more valuable. Metaphorically speaking in a tired cliché that’s called, “thinking outside the box”.
The Apostle Paul said it this way, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of His calling and what are the riches of His inheritance in the saints”. We are on the brink of a spiritual renaissance, or as Kris Vallotton calls it, “the eve of construction”.
Literalists have the world blowing up while others of us have the earth being consumed in the passions of an outrageous God whose Throne is encircled by a rainbow and surrounded by a leadership team saturated with eyeballs beyond count and bodies carried about by six wings.
Which reminds me; God told Noah that every time He looked at a rainbow He would be reminded to spare creation. As if to underscore this notion, God filled His own Great Room with a round rainbow. Metaphor or not, that’s just cool.
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Wake Up!
I’ve noticed when I hear, “They need to wake up!” or the twin saying,
“They need a wake up call!” the clear suggestion is that someone else needs an alarm clock blast. Oh, and here’s the best one, “This nation needs a wake up call!” Seldom is it said, “I need a wake up call!”
Ephesians 3:14, “For this reason it says, ‘Awake, sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’”
The definition for “awake” in this passage is of particular interest to me. It means to collect one’s faculties, to waken. To rouse from sleep, sitting or lying, disease and death, obscurity, inactivity, ruins, non-existence. To awake, lift up raise and rear up, to stand and take up.
My definition is this: change your patterns. Shake up your standard procedures. Get out of your predictable thinking and force yourself into emotional, intellectual and spiritual fresh air.
A few days ago I downloaded a bargain book to my Kindle, “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin. The basic premise is about a researcher who built a simple buzzer box and put it in front of a one year old child. The box had 2 buttons, a buzzer and light. Push one button and the light comes on, push the other button and the box buzzes. Left in front of a child long enough and the little tike will learn to “poke the box” for the reward of sound and light. The sub title of this bargain book is, “When was the last time you did something for the first time?” I’m officially on the lookout for things to do for the first time.
America wakes up when I wake up. Others will wake up if I wake up, if for no other reason but to keep an eye on me to make sure I’m not about to disturb their snoozey lifestyle.
Revival does not come when we pray for the nation to be revived. Revival comes when I draw a circle, jump in the middle of it, throw everyone else out of that circle and I pray for the one person in the circle …ME… to be revived. In fact, I would say it this way; the whole world is waiting for me to WAKE UP!
“They need a wake up call!” the clear suggestion is that someone else needs an alarm clock blast. Oh, and here’s the best one, “This nation needs a wake up call!” Seldom is it said, “I need a wake up call!”
Ephesians 3:14, “For this reason it says, ‘Awake, sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’”
The definition for “awake” in this passage is of particular interest to me. It means to collect one’s faculties, to waken. To rouse from sleep, sitting or lying, disease and death, obscurity, inactivity, ruins, non-existence. To awake, lift up raise and rear up, to stand and take up.
My definition is this: change your patterns. Shake up your standard procedures. Get out of your predictable thinking and force yourself into emotional, intellectual and spiritual fresh air.
A few days ago I downloaded a bargain book to my Kindle, “Poke the Box” by Seth Godin. The basic premise is about a researcher who built a simple buzzer box and put it in front of a one year old child. The box had 2 buttons, a buzzer and light. Push one button and the light comes on, push the other button and the box buzzes. Left in front of a child long enough and the little tike will learn to “poke the box” for the reward of sound and light. The sub title of this bargain book is, “When was the last time you did something for the first time?” I’m officially on the lookout for things to do for the first time.
America wakes up when I wake up. Others will wake up if I wake up, if for no other reason but to keep an eye on me to make sure I’m not about to disturb their snoozey lifestyle.
Revival does not come when we pray for the nation to be revived. Revival comes when I draw a circle, jump in the middle of it, throw everyone else out of that circle and I pray for the one person in the circle …ME… to be revived. In fact, I would say it this way; the whole world is waiting for me to WAKE UP!
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
How To Walk on Water
Ephesians 4:31 “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”
I’m amazed at how many folks who read the Bible and say they believe every word can find so many routes around actually taking the Bible seriously when it comes to a passage like this one. Some of these same people can quote chapter and verse about what God has to say about sin in other folks, yet they don’t seem nearly as fascinated by what the Bible has to say about their own sin.
Ephesians 4:31 is a directive straight for the heart of the church. Get rid of bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander and malice. Here’s how each word of these nasty negatives is defined:
1. Bitterness – poison, sharp harsh feelings, acridity (the state of being constantly irritated)
2. Wrath – literally means to “blow smoke” or breathe hard. Fierce feelings of indignation.
3. Anger – violently passionate, indignant and generally abhorrent of others.
4. Clamor – to shriek or croak like a crow. An outcry of grief or agitation.
5. Slander – to vilify people. The greek word is “blasphemia”; as if to blaspheme a human like we might otherwise blaspheme God!
6. Malice – to aim worthlessness. To carry bad feelings and vilification of others.
I love the R.D.V. of the Bible….the Randy Dean Version. Ready? Here’s the R.D.V. of Ephesians 4:31; “Keep a healthy internal review of your emotions so that you are consistently aware of and removing from your heart every wasteful negative emotion. Sharp harsh feelings toward anyone for any reason must go! Breathing hard and fierce against anyone for any reason must go! Being indignant, disgusted and dwelling on how “against” someone your ideas are, must go! Making rude noises or disgusted sounds about other people must go! Turning people into villains because they don’t share your opinions, must go! (In fact, learning to look at all people as the expression of the image of God should keep this nasty habit far from you. Imagine yourself talking about God the way you talk about some people. It would be blasphemous!) Lugging around a generalized bad feeling about anybody and thus diminishing the value or worth of anyone for any reason, anywhere must go! Why? Because we were not designed to carry these high levels of toxicity in our bodies or our minds; we were designed to carry only the love and forgiveness that each one of us received from Christ and give it away as much as we like receiving it.”
I take aim at this kind of moral inventory on page 97 of my book, RADIANCE "The crippled man lowered through the roof in the Gospel of Mark had not spoken a word, but Jesus started the conversation by telling him that his sins were forgiven. The woman caught in the act of adultery and brutally dragged to Jesus had not whispered a word of repentance when Jesus took charge of the situation with the anointing to forgive her. The butchers standing around the cross were barely coherent due to their vile task, but Jesus spoke to the mountain of their sin and commanded forgiveness upon them."
Jesus didn’t have any of the Ephesians 4:31 list of poisons in His system. He didn’t have it in Him to wonder, “I wonder if this guy is really sick or if he just likes the attention? I wonder if this lady has done this before? Maybe she’s got it coming. If these jerks tearing my body to shreds only knew who they were touching, they’d be plenty sorry…in fact, hey God! Show these perverts how wrong their sin is!”
No wonder Jesus was full of life when He called Lazurus out of the tomb. No wonder Jesus could touch the sick and they were immediately healed. No wonder a woman washed His feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. No wonder He walked on water…His personal burden was very light.
I’m preparing my body to be a living sacrifice emptied of toxins and consumed with the Presence of God. I’m longing to be just as light as Jesus.
I’m amazed at how many folks who read the Bible and say they believe every word can find so many routes around actually taking the Bible seriously when it comes to a passage like this one. Some of these same people can quote chapter and verse about what God has to say about sin in other folks, yet they don’t seem nearly as fascinated by what the Bible has to say about their own sin.
Ephesians 4:31 is a directive straight for the heart of the church. Get rid of bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander and malice. Here’s how each word of these nasty negatives is defined:
1. Bitterness – poison, sharp harsh feelings, acridity (the state of being constantly irritated)
2. Wrath – literally means to “blow smoke” or breathe hard. Fierce feelings of indignation.
3. Anger – violently passionate, indignant and generally abhorrent of others.
4. Clamor – to shriek or croak like a crow. An outcry of grief or agitation.
5. Slander – to vilify people. The greek word is “blasphemia”; as if to blaspheme a human like we might otherwise blaspheme God!
6. Malice – to aim worthlessness. To carry bad feelings and vilification of others.
I love the R.D.V. of the Bible….the Randy Dean Version. Ready? Here’s the R.D.V. of Ephesians 4:31; “Keep a healthy internal review of your emotions so that you are consistently aware of and removing from your heart every wasteful negative emotion. Sharp harsh feelings toward anyone for any reason must go! Breathing hard and fierce against anyone for any reason must go! Being indignant, disgusted and dwelling on how “against” someone your ideas are, must go! Making rude noises or disgusted sounds about other people must go! Turning people into villains because they don’t share your opinions, must go! (In fact, learning to look at all people as the expression of the image of God should keep this nasty habit far from you. Imagine yourself talking about God the way you talk about some people. It would be blasphemous!) Lugging around a generalized bad feeling about anybody and thus diminishing the value or worth of anyone for any reason, anywhere must go! Why? Because we were not designed to carry these high levels of toxicity in our bodies or our minds; we were designed to carry only the love and forgiveness that each one of us received from Christ and give it away as much as we like receiving it.”
I take aim at this kind of moral inventory on page 97 of my book, RADIANCE "The crippled man lowered through the roof in the Gospel of Mark had not spoken a word, but Jesus started the conversation by telling him that his sins were forgiven. The woman caught in the act of adultery and brutally dragged to Jesus had not whispered a word of repentance when Jesus took charge of the situation with the anointing to forgive her. The butchers standing around the cross were barely coherent due to their vile task, but Jesus spoke to the mountain of their sin and commanded forgiveness upon them."
Jesus didn’t have any of the Ephesians 4:31 list of poisons in His system. He didn’t have it in Him to wonder, “I wonder if this guy is really sick or if he just likes the attention? I wonder if this lady has done this before? Maybe she’s got it coming. If these jerks tearing my body to shreds only knew who they were touching, they’d be plenty sorry…in fact, hey God! Show these perverts how wrong their sin is!”
No wonder Jesus was full of life when He called Lazurus out of the tomb. No wonder Jesus could touch the sick and they were immediately healed. No wonder a woman washed His feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. No wonder He walked on water…His personal burden was very light.
I’m preparing my body to be a living sacrifice emptied of toxins and consumed with the Presence of God. I’m longing to be just as light as Jesus.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Less is More...
If Christianity is to be genuinely Christian, we have no choice but to reach for a more authentic, happier and transcendent spiritual life. Less debates, more delights. Less damning, more dancing. Less political obsessions, more passionate worship. Less self-righteousness, more unselfishness. Less condemning, more compassion. Less pettiness, more powerful living!
If the powers of darkness can not get us to live outright dark lives, they will opt for having us dipped in self serving piety and walled up against the very world we could be joyously serving. No sin is so binding as the sin that masquerades as fierce opposition to sin!
If good, righteous living was all God ever wanted from His people, He would have had everything He needed in the Pharisees of Jesus’ day. If having a crowd whose disgust for national sin was accentuated with a proud higher standard was the end to all of God’s dream, He would have never inspired Jesus to say, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means, ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice’, for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners”.
If Christianity is to be genuinely Christian, we have no other choice but to arise to a shining brilliance of delighted and thrilling lifestyles of the beauty of God alive in us. Our self serving righteous misery is not illuminating a dark world. The only righteous living God is sponsoring today is a celebration of the bounty of heaven on earth.
Less misery, more party! -- “Let’s get it started in here!”
If the powers of darkness can not get us to live outright dark lives, they will opt for having us dipped in self serving piety and walled up against the very world we could be joyously serving. No sin is so binding as the sin that masquerades as fierce opposition to sin!
If good, righteous living was all God ever wanted from His people, He would have had everything He needed in the Pharisees of Jesus’ day. If having a crowd whose disgust for national sin was accentuated with a proud higher standard was the end to all of God’s dream, He would have never inspired Jesus to say, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means, ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice’, for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners”.
If Christianity is to be genuinely Christian, we have no other choice but to arise to a shining brilliance of delighted and thrilling lifestyles of the beauty of God alive in us. Our self serving righteous misery is not illuminating a dark world. The only righteous living God is sponsoring today is a celebration of the bounty of heaven on earth.
Less misery, more party! -- “Let’s get it started in here!”
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Kris Vallotton's Eight Core Values Regarding Eschatology
This is sooo good I'm tempted to say, "The Lord showed me these 8 things....".... then again, I'm allergic to dishonesty.
Unless you've been living in a cave lately, you've likely heard of the current hoopla from a group that believes "We Can Know...because Noah knew, WE can know". According to them, Saturday is the rapture and October 21st is The End.
In my book, Radiance, I do address nonsense like this, but Kris' words below establish a brief but powerful grid for discernment. Give a read...then pass it along. I routinely vaccinate the sheep under my care with truth like this as an ounce of prevention worth a TON of healing. Enjoy-
Kris Vallotton’s 8 Core Values Regarding Eschatology or
“the End-Times”
1. I will not embrace an end-time world view that re-empowers a dis-empowered devil.
2. I will not embrace an eschatology that takes away my children’s future and creates mind-sets that undermine the mentality of leaving a legacy or an inheritance or my kid’s future. I intend to leave my children a world in revival.
3. I will not tolerate a theology that sabotages the clear command of Jesus to make disciples of all nations and the Lord’s Prayer that the earth would look like heaven. Why is it that just the bad things have to be fulfilled? What about the amazingly good things?
4. I will not allow an interpretation of the scriptures that undermines hope for the nations and for the restoration of ruined cities.
5. I will not allow an eschatology that changes the nature of a good God.
6. I refuse to accept any mind-set that celebrates bad news as a sign of the times and a necessary requirement for the return of Jesus Christ.
7. I am opposed to any doctrinal position that pushes the promises of God into a time-zone that cannot be attained in my life or generation and therefore takes away any responsibility I have to believe God for them in my life-time.
8. I don’t believe that the last days are a time of judgment nor do I believe that God gave the church the right to call for wrath on sinful cities or nations. There is a Day of Judgment that God alone has the right to pass any judgment…but even that is a DAY …not days.
Unless you've been living in a cave lately, you've likely heard of the current hoopla from a group that believes "We Can Know...because Noah knew, WE can know". According to them, Saturday is the rapture and October 21st is The End.
In my book, Radiance, I do address nonsense like this, but Kris' words below establish a brief but powerful grid for discernment. Give a read...then pass it along. I routinely vaccinate the sheep under my care with truth like this as an ounce of prevention worth a TON of healing. Enjoy-
Kris Vallotton’s 8 Core Values Regarding Eschatology or
“the End-Times”
1. I will not embrace an end-time world view that re-empowers a dis-empowered devil.
2. I will not embrace an eschatology that takes away my children’s future and creates mind-sets that undermine the mentality of leaving a legacy or an inheritance or my kid’s future. I intend to leave my children a world in revival.
3. I will not tolerate a theology that sabotages the clear command of Jesus to make disciples of all nations and the Lord’s Prayer that the earth would look like heaven. Why is it that just the bad things have to be fulfilled? What about the amazingly good things?
4. I will not allow an interpretation of the scriptures that undermines hope for the nations and for the restoration of ruined cities.
5. I will not allow an eschatology that changes the nature of a good God.
6. I refuse to accept any mind-set that celebrates bad news as a sign of the times and a necessary requirement for the return of Jesus Christ.
7. I am opposed to any doctrinal position that pushes the promises of God into a time-zone that cannot be attained in my life or generation and therefore takes away any responsibility I have to believe God for them in my life-time.
8. I don’t believe that the last days are a time of judgment nor do I believe that God gave the church the right to call for wrath on sinful cities or nations. There is a Day of Judgment that God alone has the right to pass any judgment…but even that is a DAY …not days.
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