Now itcame to pass on a certain day, that Jesus went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. Luke 8v.22
After Passover, there are more "passing-overs"! Higher ground, new levels of faith but Jesus is in the boat with us as we launch forth today. His command for us to go on "over there" could be the "there" of reconciliation for a relationship that is in a desert. Who will take the first steps towards re-building love? Or His command could push us out of our comfort zone and into the zone of confrontation for the sake of justice and righteousness. (That may be easy for those of you who sprinkle "confrontation" on your granola for breakfast in the morning - you like it so much. But it is harder for the diplomats among us.) Passovers change us.
Father, Energize everyone reading this to push and run, run, run to launch our ship out into the waters. At your command we receive the strength and joy of heart to go over to the other side.
And the priests who carried the ark stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan. Jo.3v.17
All, all, all - The Real McCoys' theme song listed all the names of the family members. The stubborn of heart, the slow to believe, the introvert - there was no personal issue that could keep any family member from passing over to the Promised Land. The completeness of the miracles impresses me. Each one of the millions of the Hebrews former slaves got to see and experience the miracle deliverance of the River Jordan parting.
The Lord wants to encourage your faith about your family today. He is parading your highest hopes before you as we study this Family Miracle in Joshua today. Don't settle as the devil tries to wear you down into compromise. See your children saved, serving God and on fire for Him. See them flowing in the gifts of the Spirit - champions born for such time as this. Part of your very inheritance is to enjoy them- and their great conquests for the Kingdom.
Father, We open our eyes and hearts to this Parade of Faith in Your Word today. We see our family crossing over with us into the Promised Land. We stand and see the salvation of the Lord and miracles for all our household.
For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up for us until we passed over. Joshua 4v.23
I woke up seeing your feet stepping on dry ground as the river waters parted under your feet. Even before I saw the calendar and remembered Passover is Tuesday. Even before I heard the words: This will be asupernatural week.
Father, Because of the Cross, our every deliverance has a Resurrection in it. I thank you for a week of supernatural deliverance by the same power that raised Christ from the dead. Your deliverance will not be accomplished by the hair of your chinny-chin-chin. Your story this week is not about survival, but about dominion.
That all the people of the earth may know the hand of the Lord is mighty and that you may reverence and fear the Lord forever. Joshua 4 v.24
Blessed are the merciful, they shall receive mercy. Matt.5v.7 ;But God, being rich in mercy...Eph.2v.4
"Using your mercy like money" what I hear for you today. Consider a mercy as part of your wealth in Christ. Like a government extending amnesty or offering safe harbour to refugees, you can send, give, apply and even lavish mercy as part of your rulership in the earth.
If you insist on having people complete two-hundred pages of an eligibility questionnaire to prove they qualify for your mercy ration, you have already misused your power. Remember the qualifications we demand, will also be demanded of us. Be merciful!
When I have faced a huge, unexpected financial debt or if I am waiting on some King ( an HMO, a Pastor,) to make a decision regarding my life, I will look for those to whom I can show mercy. I look for opportunities to invest my vast supply of mercy. I have forgiven financial debts. The returns from taking these spiritual steps are not immediate, but I trust the Spirit of God to keep good accounts of my Mercy Bank.
I have also used my desperate need to also trigger a (much-needed) change in me and make me more tenderly merciful to friends or family. The devil wants the crisis to bring out the worst in us. Turn the tables on him- "surely goodness and mercy shall follow you." (You'll be known for your mercy "following"!) all the days of your life.
Take heed to yourself... (Deut 4v.9); Therefore take good heed to yourselves... v.15; take heed unto yourselves... v.23
The New Testament definition of "take heed" gives a set of meanings for take and a set for heed. Both sets major on vision and today the Lord is majoring on paying attention to your vision.
Sometimes I get so busy responding to life's latest ping-pong volley, I forget to fight to move forward in my vision. "What vision?" is my puny response when I am jumping from one thing I have to do to another. Can I tell the truth? But if I don't try to live it, speak it, and daily nurture my belief in my vision, who will take heed to it for me?
The "take" in "take heed" comes from the Greek word skop. Think of a rifle scope. It means to take aim, to mark, consider, look at. When wasthe last time youconsidered the vision God hasgiven you for your life? If your vision was born of God, it is destined to overcome the world and to flourish. Maybe one day you'll have an army of grateful, passionate people praying for your vision to grow and prevail. But right now, the praying and the passion are your lonely Maytag-repairman job!
Yes, pray for your pastor's vision, but also pray for yours. Just as He set Adam in a garden to tend it and make it grow, so the Lord has set you in the garden of your life. Can you see where one day you'll put the oak grove? And over there you can add the apple orchard to feed a multitude on fresh truth? Set your sights.
The "heed" in "take heed" comes from the Greek word "blepo" - which means to look on or look at, behold, beware, perceive or regard. Can you see it? In Gen. 13 v.14, God told Abram, "Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are..." to see the land He would give to him. Can you see your vision from where you are today? Taking heed to yourself is not just for yourself, but for the Glory of God!
And the Lord shall take away from thee all sickness... Deut. 7v.15
I am praying for your immune system this morning. It is strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. (Eph.6) Your immune system raises up the shield of faith against every fiery dart of the enemy. No weapon formed against your immune system will prosper. Your immune system resists the devils of allergens, germs, and bacteria. They flee! (James 4) Viruses and germs fall off the perfect defense of your immune system, skid away and die in Jesus' name.
Your immune system is immune to defeat. Today I am sensing the same spirit of defeat in the air over the Body of Christ as I sensed after the last Presidential elections, I say Victory is in your bloodstream- streaming down from Calvary. Apparent obstacles are hurdles to make you stronger. They are simply a higher mark for the Glory of God to rise over and beyond. (Christ in you- the hope of Glory!)
Whatever the political shifts, we will not fear. Though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea and the earth changes (Ps.46) - though the world as we know it vanishes- we will not be afraid. The world is dying, but the Church is destined to rise and shine. You and I can bow low in intercession over this world's needs and tangles, but we were designed to live tall and live high in the Spirit. That is our place of prevailing faith and that pristine, valiant,unfailing immune system is part of our high-life equipment. High-ho, Church! Arise!
Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus. 2 Cor.7v.6
Little Titus comforting Big Apostolic Paul! Pastor John Osteen loved this scripture. The truth is that we need each other and God's chosen help may be disguised by a small stature or a small, little-known name. Are you willing to be the help for someone bigger or smarter or richer than you? If you refuse to let intimidation freeze you up, God can trust you with a Titus-assignment.
The same obedience and humility leading you to minister the love of God to someone you feel is a "big-shot," should also be there AFTER you complete your Titus assignment. It was Paul who revealed his heart about what Titus' coming had done for him, not Titus who went on the talk-shows or wrote a tell-all book. Can you be trusted not to tell everyone in the office that the Boss got saved and you broke the generational curses off him, too?
Father, Here I am, Send me! Anoint me and give me the humility to reach high with your great love even to the "Greats" - saved or unsaved.
His divine power has granted to us everything that pertains to life and godliness. 2 Peter 1v.5
Miracle Recipe main ingredient: TODAY! ( 24hrs, 3/22/10)
"Today" is your prized possession for the unlocking of God's precious and magnificent promises for your life. Though you might say you have nothing special planned, though you may be tempted to feel a little down or out-of-sorts, He says He has given you everything that pertains to life and godliness. Every ingredient for your miracle recipe is in your hands. Where there is life, there is hope. Where there is the Life of God, there is limitless hope.
Whether it is your forging-ahead day, your "standing" day or your "holding-on" day, Oh Happy Day is how God stamped it when He sent it down from heaven last night when the clock struck midnight.
When you get cooking on your miracle, avoid the temptation of comparing yourself with others. The other people have always seem to have all the right stuff that we don't have. I still remember comparing myself to a girl named Betsy in a high-school enrichment program at a local university. She always had the right clothes and never seemed to sweat in 100-degree weather. Her mother picked her up right after class, but I always had to wait for my mother to leave work to come get me and take me back to work with her. My comparison was wasting the value of my mom's sacrifice in my miracle recipe of a getting better education. My dissatisfaction dripped into the batter and made my miracle days not as tasty as they could have been.
Father, This is the day You have made and You have given each one reading this ALL that pertains to life and godliness. We believe we receive everything necessary for our miracle. We taste, see and SAY that You are good!
Greet Prisca and Aquila...who for my own life risked their own necks... Rom. 16v.4
Do youknow who your allies are?The term "ally" is used of an associated party or state; it is especially applied to associates in war. You are bound to them by ties of friendship, treaties, leagues, or marriage. They are with you, and you can count on them. The Apostle Paul had a telephone directory of people he listed, greeted and referred to at the end of several of his New Testament epistles. In just a few words, he categorized, commended or banished them by name.
Staunch ally - the words I heard for you this morning, would suggest the importance the Lord is placing on constant, loyal steadfast, and sound associates for this war we are in. The verb form - stanch - means to stop the flow of blood from a wound. I think the Lord is saying to us that the right associations aid you in the fight of faith. The wrongs ones will be like a bleeding wound, draining you of strength.
Father, Give us wisdom to see who is with us. We stop the life-draining flow of wrong associations. Today we strengthen our staunch allies through prayer and through practical ways.
...but we who have and enjoy the firstfruits of the Holy Spirit ( a foretaste of the blissful things to come)... Rom. 8 v.23
Vacation Bliss : house locked, phone off, you're heading out and jumping into the car or on the plane; VROOM- dive in the waterfall of a holiday's peace and joyful fun. For those of us who have received the baptism in the Holy Spirit, we have can enjoy that bliss anytime. Why have it and not enjoy it?
Decide to spend your break time "at the beach" with the Spirit of the living God. Give your mind a break and get His mind: The mind of the Holy Spirit is life and soul peace both now and forever. Rom. 8 v.6 Just start praying and give yourself over to prayer for whatever time you have.
Father, Give me quick access through that ever new and living way Jesus made for us to get to You. I believe in the power of praying in tongues. I open my mouth and You fill it with bliss!
March 18, 2010
The mind of the Spirit is life and (soul) peace (both now and forever. Rom 8 v.6
Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy and singing. He who goes forth bearing seed and weeping (at needing his precious supply of grain for sowing) shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him Ps.126 5-6 AMP
Dream seeds is what I heard for you this morning. God is remembering your precious seed sown and stirring me to say "SHALL DOUBTLESS" over your giving and giving and giving to the Kingdom. Luke 8 promises that the noble, steadfast-hearted giver will steadily bring forth fruit with patience or perseverance. Though today you may feel there has been more "holding on" than fruit, the Father is saying "SHALL DOUBTLESS" over your every dream seed.
Your dream seeds may been deliberately and specifically sown. You labeled the memo of the check, inscribed it in your journal and sent it to heaven via registered faith-mail. Or you may have scattered dream seeds in a field of Love during a powerful trysting time with the Lord. (Take it all, Jesus. I lay it at your feet.) Whatever measure you used to release your dream seed, He will add to it - putting heaven's magnifying and imperishable touch on it as it rises up in the earth.
Life may be sternly telling your dreams seeds to be quiet, but like Blind Bartimaeus (Mk.10v.46), your seed is crying out all the more. Like those nearby, I say to your seed this morning, "Take courage, arise, He is calling for you."
Go then and make disciples of all nations...teaching them... Matt. 28 v.19
Salvation and the powerful evangelizing work of the Spirit are vital, but we read today that God is not satisfied with converting people only and leaving them. He wants them taught. A disciple is "one who is taught." In these days of harvest and coming revival, God is resurrecting the gift of Teaching.
If you believe this as well, how can you respond and prepare to be used? Tell Jesus you want to teach. He went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues.... (Matt 9. v35). Because your primary teaching material will be the Bible, start to read it like a teacher. Begin to think of how you would share the truths you study. Some practical experience- volunteer with your church's children or consider having a Vacation Bible School on your block for a few days this summer. Would your job give permission for a short lunch-time Bible study?
All this is assuming you have already gone and made a disciplined disciple of yourself. You already have a reputation for trustworthiness and faithfulness. Your good reputation is your springboard for your dreams and gifts to bounce right up to meet the opportunities God will bring your way.
Father, Open our mouths wide and fill them with your anointing and wisdom to teach and made disciples of all men. Open doors for us that no man can shut!
It takes no account of the evil done to it (it pays no attention to a suffered wrong).1 Cor.13v.5
Some government forms print "Record-keeping: 20 minutes," but our Love Archives should be empty. Empty to make room for the next awesomely unforgettable, greater, more lavish demonstration of how much God so loved the world! The Love of God is always out-doing itself!
The "evil done to us" is also always busy, but where sin abounds, grace abounds even more. The Bible is telling us that we can to expect that evil will be done to us. (Now we're not to believe for it.) We expect to overcome it by the overwhelming power of the Holy Spirit. He is the gift-pourer and the Love-pourer. "Give me that love!"
This Sunday morning we came in late (forgot the time-change) as Pastor was preaching on "Love" and I had on my really cool, white/black bangle with L-O-V-E letters big enough to see halfway across the church. But what all the people could not see as we were ushered to our second row reserved seat, was that I had a list in my heart with letters N-O- L-O-V-E on it. Pastor's fourth example of suffered wrongs that Love does not remember hit it right on the head and nailed me. All my self-justification failed to justify me. I repented and I released.
After church we stopped at a nearby super-center, where I was given a surly clerk who treated me like an idiot. It was a Love-test that I was doing fair-to-middling on when a couple from my church suddenly walked up. As we talked about "love" in front of the clerk, I got enough of a "Love-forgets" booster to help me lavish love on the store employee and cancel my plans for a Senate Investigation of their customer service failures.
Father, Pour out your love in my heart through your Spirit who has been given to me. (Romans 5v.5). I forget and I forgive. Fill my Love File with new unforgettables that I won't have room to contain.
My help cometh from the Lord... Ps. 121 v. 2 God is our refuge and our strength...a very present and well-proved help...Ps.46 v.1
Today my prayer for you is for help from the Lord, urgent help. The Father's very present and well-proved help doesn't look like your ex-husband or your future husband. Though I'm thankful for my friends' noble husbands who solve my brake light problem or my computer problem, the urgent aid I'm asking for you is not of human origin.
This divine infusion that He supplies for your deepest need is ready, speedy- it appears, comes forth, it is enough. There is a light-switch of revelation, powered by faith, that no devil can block, hinder or stop. It swallows up darkness and floods the eyes of our heart with light. Oh, help has come from heaven! In a moment, in an instant! Joseph would tell us that you can hit that light-switch in an Egyptian prison. I have stood and looked into the Roman prison-hole where the Apostle Paul found the light-switch that still helps men see God today.
Father, Help us, Oh God! Presently. Speedily. We believe You are doing it now. You are undoing the work of the evil one and shining on us- Light of the World!
But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good, my anguish increased. Ps.39v.2
When life gets bad, we get silent. The devil's muzzle snaps our lips shut as one, two maybe three waves of attacks hit. Intimidator-demons try to convince us we'll be invisible on their evil radar-screen if we stay quiet. Scream this part for me, "The devil is liar!" My Bible says that our anguish increases when we are silent. Nothing beats a psalm for bad-mouthing the devil and encouraging ourselves in the Lord like our brother David! The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them and delivers them.
Read aloud what the Bible says will happen to the weapon formed against you: crush, crumble, crack, utterly fail, brought to nought- a big, fat zero. Instead of your anguish increasing, it will decrease, diminish, desist - and GO!- as you exalt your God above your problem.
Father, Help me not to fall silent! I will speak, speak, speak Your Unfailing Word by the power of Your Unfailing Love for me!
One who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate. Their king will pass through before them, the Lord at their head. Micah 2v.13
Our treasure for today is hidden in the Book of Micah (a name that means "Who is like the Lord"?). Full of warnings. Full of promises of throngs of people released, delivered and gathered together to His glory - because of His direct, overpoweringintervention BREAKING THROUGH. Hallelujah! The Gospel is a warning and Jesus is the Breaker.
It is clear that for our God the warning and the breakthrough go together. Like peanut butterand jelly. (OK; organic, non-hydrogenated peanut butter and jelly with no sugar). In my reading of Micah I see warnings and I see gatherings of throngs. What is God saying today? That our fear of speaking truth, speaking boldly, being unpopular- is actually holding back the release of the throng. The courage to obey and give the warning will allow the righteous God to break though in some hard places and hard hearts. And of course in God's perfect economy, He works both on those hearing the warning as well as the one giving the warning.
Ever been in the kitchen, noticed a jar on the edge of the counter and heard that faint warning in your spirit- "You better move that now." Ignore the warning and CRASH! - there goes the mayo. Or you're in the store, a light from heaven falls on garbage bags or brown sugar- meaning- "Buy this, you need it." But I talk myself out of it, and then get home to discover I ignored a warning from God!
Father, Make me your Breaker to warn and to gather!
Imitate those who through faith and patience have obtained the promises. Heb. 6v.12
I often use my automatic-pilot for giving, whether for an offering of money or for giving consolation - or even for giving of myself to others. There is an amount in my mind that I am comfortable with; I write that check without even thinking. But as the size of my expectation increases, I need to move from automatic and release my hand for the standard shift. Am I giving more than I gave last year? And giving it more cheerfully? (He prizes and won't do without a cheerful giver. 2 Cor.9v.7) Does that mean He needs me? I like the idea of God needing me!
Our scripture today encourages us to imitate the great givers. They are not all famous. Was there a hard-working family on your block who would feed anyone hungry? Was there a priest in your Catholic neighborhood who made sure the poorest kids got shoes or found a dentist? We can study their faith and learn from their heart of mercy and compassion. See their patient and prophetic sowing. (A seed is a prophecy).
Father, We want to shift into great and prophetic giving. Give us seed to sow. Thank you for the Bread of your Word that we are eating today!
So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters over the people and their foremen, saying, "You are no longer to give the people straw to make brick as previously; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But the quota of bricks which they were making previously, you shall impose on them; you are not to reduce any of it." Ex.5 v.6-8
Change is usually a collision between the plan of God and the devil's plan. When God's plan prevails, there is a cakewalk of deliverance. But before that comes the crisis point where we can't see what the Mighty Hand of the Lord is doing and the situation is demanding of us more than we can possibly give - bricks without straw.
What I am hearing today is that "bricks without straw" were always part of the devil's plan for all our lives. The enemy wants us to believe that God's impossible plan of blessing is root of the problem. (The Father of Lies says, "Just stay in Egypt & I'll keep you a happy, well-fed, safe slave.) But satan's hidden plan is to steadily reduce the resources and steadily increase the demands. There are names for that; poverty, a cursed life.
Last year my mother and I began to make a huge change in our lives. I was terrified over the changes the change was bringing. Now that the process is almost over, we found out about some "bricks w/out straw" that were already in the works but hidden from us when we struggled with the decision to follow God's cloud or not. Rent increases, new legislation changing status of this or not. God saw ahead and made provision.
Father: I ask for Trust and Grace for everyone reading this, as they go from bricks without straw to cakewalk of deliverance! They are not afraid of change!
Now the company of believers was of one heart and soul... Acts 4v.32AMP And being let go, they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. Acts 4v.23 KJV
Have you found your company of believers? A company is a society, an association and a strategic military grouping - part of the army. While our church should be our strongest company, Christian friends and family make up other companies of believers in our lives. With today's shifting and shaking earth, we could have an impromptu company of believers on the elevator, in the grocery store during a power failure, or at a roadside stop during a traffic logjam. Hey, anywhere believers gather to touch heaven and change earth, there in that place is a company of believers.
And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. Acts 4.32
Has victory been delayed? Does your faith need strengthening? If you don't have a company of believers in your life or if you have parted company and find yourself alone, consider this word for today. Keys from the Book of Acts that I noted are:
Share openly and honestly if you want help.
Stay true to yourself. Spirit-filled & Word of Faith? - don't drop your faith identity to try to blend and win favor. Your company needs what you have or you need a different company.
Do not fret...trust in the Lord and do good... cultivate faithfulness...do not fret...do not fret... Ps.37 v.1,3,7b,8b
A friend's name and a date are written just above Psalm 37 in my Bible. I drove by her house yesterday and from what I could see, the situation she was praying about a year ago has not changed. (Yet!). Though I could not see the change she is crying out to the Lord for, I know two things. She is not fretting ( just like you today!) and a whole lot of cultivation has gone on during this past almost twelve months of prayer for God to move.
To cultivate means to till, to prepare ( soil for the growing of crops), to improve or develop by care, labor or study, to refine; to devote oneself to...Cultivate is the word I heard for us today. As it regards prayer, it takes us from Emergency Room Prayer to long-term rehab prayer. One day at a time. All the time God wants. Don't fret. He is working in the situation both to will and to do for His good pleasure. (Phil).
We can see by the list of definitions that devotion is a part of cultivation. Are you devoted to prayer? Are you a fan of prayer? The words mean the same thing in the New Testament. Acts 2v.42 tells that the early church devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. They were fans of prayer, fans of fellowship and fans of food. Let's go eat! And pray! And cultivate faithfulness.
What is your prayer cultivating? My friend (whose name/request is written in my Bible) will get more than she is asking for! Change, growth and glory!
Father, Today we pray, and we believe to see the goodness of the Lord cultivated in the land of the living! No matter how long it takes, we don't fret!
...and unto the uttermost part of the earth...Acts 1v.8
How far is it to your utmost? Sometimes just driving I-45 or I-10 can seem like Samaria when your zeal for God's best is waning. His best can seem too far for us on a tired day. In Texas the cowboys ride the range to ensure that the ranch's farthest reaches are secure. That is the picture I am seeing for us today. Stretch your ready supply of faith to cover the outer edges of your assigned area of dominion. It is kind of like cleaning the garage or picking up trash along a back fence - but in the Spirit.
Uttermost (KJV) and utmost mean thesame thing; greatest, most removed in space or time, farthest, extreme limit, greatest possible degree, extent or effort. We all want God to expand our tent pegs- remember the Jabez prayer- and to enlarge our territory. But can we maintain it? Do we have the internal and external resources to manage Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost?
As a minister and a lover of people, my greatest challenge is reaching those I love and keeping up with their lives. It has been a while since I have come over to Judea to see you. But there should be a steady supply of Spirit-powered love watching between you and me even when I'm on this side of Highway 290! My zeal for God and my love for you will keep vigil and ride the range along the land of the commonwealth you and I share in the Spirit.
Father, We believe you have given us the world to watch over and to win. A garden to keep and to get ready for Your return. Strengthen us to ride the range of our uttermost today!
Unless I go away the Counselor will not come to you...he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin... he will tell you what is yet to come. John 16 v.7-12
Acts 1 v.2 says that Jesus gave instructions through the Holy Spirit for us. This day there are instructions for us that can only be obtained through the Spirit of God. "Hindsight" might give us some instructions, but it could be too late. If I wait until I am sitting on my bed at the end of this day, I could look back over my mistakes and fumbles and perhaps realize where I missed it.
How much better to hear my instructions for the day from the Counselor! To stay in the divine flow as we move in the gifts of the Spirit during a church service, there are certain ways to sharpen our hearing. I am finding that the same sharpness and ready responses are necessary in our daily lives for Kingdom-mindedness, for winning the lost, and for living victoriously.
Let me share a few ways to stay in the Daily Divine Flow:
1. How Can You Tell When God Is Speaking To You?
a. Your heart is beating faster- your stomach is tightening!
b. A thought suddenly comes to your mind- it could be a scripture or a picture
c. A person comes to mind
Now depending on the circumstances- let's say you are about to go into your boss's office for a meeting- you may have time to quickly ask the Lord for a verse confirming what you are about to say. Or you may already have it. God may need you to speak out what you are hearing in your heart, or to do it. Perhaps your picture was of you writing a check to meet someone's secret need or laying hands on a co-worker with a broken foot.Remember we have a Counselor whose job it is to instruct us. The Helper will help you to know what to do with the prompting and leading God has put in your heart.
Start to speak or move while you feel your heart beating fast or your stomach tightening. That difference you feel on your body is the anointing. Stop before it leaves you. Don't say more than you heard Him say, and don't do more than you saw yourself doing. Stay within the confines of the anointing.
Father, Thank you for this day's Divine Flow streaming from heaven to water a dry and needy earth. I hear and I obey! (Fear not!)
One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself...1 Cor.v.4
"Building" is the word I heard this morning and I knew the Lord was asking me, "How much are you praying in tongues?" Though my outward man is perishing (2 Cor.4v.16) and all my exercising and healthy eating can't change the fact this earth suit won't last forever, my inner man can be built up and renewed today.
Many of God's Generals prayed in tongues all the time - putting out the garbage, at the car wash, at their desk, or while driving. Like me, you may have to squeeze out making lists in your head or "figuring out what they are going to say when I tell them this!" to use the time to actually give myself over to praying in my heavenly language. Of course, increasing our quiet times is part of it, too. We all want to build ourselves up on our most holy faith. Tongues is the greatest tool for doing just that.
Father, Help me today to pray more and more in the Holy Ghost. Holy Spirit, let me your best friend- talking to you all the time.
Have a beautiful week!
March 1, 2010
LEE'S WORD FOR TODAY 1/6/17
SEPARATE FROM PAST BAGGAGE, DIVORCE OLD SIN, MARRY NEW FUTURE IN CHRIST!
Lee's Word for Today 1/6/17
from past baggage
NEW FUTURE IN CHRIST!
And Lot also, which went with Abraham, had flocks and herds and tents. And the land was not able to bear them, for their substance was great...And Abraham said,
"Lot, separate thyself, I pray thee, from me." Genesis 13v.5; ...forgetting what lies behind, straining for what lies ahead. Phil.3v.13
You can't take it with you. "It" means your (unfruitful) way of thinking, your old " it ain't working" way of working. Abraham's nephew was a dear relative, they had so much in common, so many sweet or tough memories shared. How long before we get God saying, "Separate from your old way. There is a new way."
As always with God, you must obey the first step (separate, leave the baggage, drop it,) before the land under your foot's path for the 2nd step appears.
And the Lord said unto to Abraham AFTER that Lot was separated from him:
Lift up now thine eyes from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward. For all the land that thou seetst, to thee will I give it...v.14-17
FATHER: Show me Your new way today! I PRESS TOWARD THE PRIZE!
Love you guys more than you know,
Will you keep silent at this time, Queen Esther? Now that you have prevailed before the King and your petition for deliverance for you and your nation from the evil Haman Hillary, will you decree, reign and use your authority? Not many days hence, about 30, the inauguration of the President God chose and we died for (died to pizza and blueberry pancakes, died to distractions to cry out, some died to fear of voting Republican for the 1st time!)) will be inaugurated.
Though the media is attempting to spread dishonor and rebellion,your intercession for FULL MORDECAI HONOR will crown the event and will also REAP HONOR for you. The honor you intercede for in these 30 days to January 21 is the degree of honor that will (or won't) come to you in the New Year. God is teaching us to reign in this extraordinary season, this amazing Last Days Age. Can you honor a husband if God gave you one, a boss, a mother-in-law, can you honor the Office of the President or the Plan of God? Skimping on honor at this time, will skimp on the Glory of God!
When God's choice is fully honored, - as Mordecai was - God's reward is FULLY given! God gave the people of the nation light ( a new dawn of hope) and gladness and joy and honor.The enemies of the Kingdom were destroyed. Esther 8v.16 Victory is indeed sweet!
....And the king said to Haman/Hillary, what shall be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?...Haman answered... Let royal apparel be brought which the king has worn(NOTE: THE ANOINTING)
And the horse which the king has ridden
(NOTE: same as David's instructions for Solomon's inaugurations for David's mule to be ridden)and a royal crown be set upon his head.
Let the apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king's most noble princes. Let him array the man (NOTE: divine order- Mordecai was not putting king's robe on himself- but nobility and established order robing him) whom the king delights to honor and conduct him on horseback through the open square of the city(NOTE: We need to pray for the city- the sea of people to OPEN to Trump and not resist him whom Our king has appointed.)Esther 6v.6-9
The King's instructions in Esther 6v.10 Do so to Mordecai the Jew (Make it happen).
Leave out nothing that you have spoken. (Don't mess this up.)
We need a full Mordecai inauguration. Esther (the church) has prevailed before the King.We won. We Arise, We Shine for Our light has come!


Bonne année et bonne santé is the classic French saying to wish one a Happy New Year. Literally, it is "good year and good health".
New Year's Eve is the celebration of la Saint-Sylvestre, the 33rd pope who is credited with converting the Emperor Constantine, the first Roman emperor who converted to Christianity. The feast is called le Réveillon de Saint-Sylvestre and includes champagne and foie gras. The celebratory party ranges from an intimate dinner to a grand ball, une soirée dansante.


This week concludes our readings of the Gospels in the New Testament. Although they all have many things in common, one particular person stood out to me: Joseph of Arimathea. For some odd reason, this name seemed familiar to me; after doing some research, I finally figured out that Joseph of Arimathea was mentioned in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. After learning this, I didn’t really expect to find anything else interesting. However, as I started reading more about Joseph, the more intrigued I became. This led me to this week’s blog question: who was Joseph of Arimathea?
John 19:38 states, “After these things Joseph of Arimathea who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission.”
So Joseph was the man responsible for properly burying Jesus. But why would Pilate listen to a supporter of Jesus? According to the BBC, Joseph of Arimathea was a “wealthy man who came from Arimathea in Judea,” and a member of the Sanhedrin (BBC). This shows that Joseph was an influential member of society, making it easy to believe that the Roman govern of Judea would grant his request. Other than his appearance in the Gospel accounts, there are no other mentions of Joseph of Arimathea (at least not in the Bible we’re using). Naturally, I was curious as to what he did after this scene in the Bible. This is what I found…
“Apocryphal legend…supplies us with the rest of his story by claiming that Joseph accompanied the Apostle Philip, Lazarus, Mary Magdalene & others on a preaching mission to Gaul. Lazarus & Mary stayed in Marseilles, while the others travelled north. At the English Channel, St. Philip sent Joseph, with twelve disciples, to establish Christianity in the most far-flung corner of the Roman Empire: the Island of Britain. The year AD 63 is commonly given for this ‘event’, with AD 37 sometimes being put forth as an alternative” (Britannia). Another source confirms this, and goes even further to suggest that Joseph is an ancestor of many of Britain’s monarchs (Early British Kingdoms). Along with this, it is also said that Joseph built the first church in England (or maybe the entire world) (BBC). So not only did Joseph play a prominent role in the spread of Christianity, he also was important to the British monarchy. It’s amazing to see how a man who appeared a total of four times in our reading could have been so influential.
Along with Joseph’s importance in Britain, several sources seem to agree with another apocryphal legend, one that states that he is a not so distant relative of Jesus. One site states that the “Jewish Talmud records that Joseph was the great-uncle of Jesus, a younger brother of Mary’s father” (Joseph of Arimathea). This familial relationship with Jesus could have been another contributing factor to him using his prominent position to try to obtain Jesus’s body after the crucifixion.
Joseph of Arimathea is also a prominent figure in another type of legend: the legend of the Holy Grail. Yes, the very same Holy Grail that King Arthur sets out on a quest to find in both Arthurian legends and Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Joseph of Arimathea is actually believed to be the original guardian of the grail (Joseph of Arimathea, Keeper of the Holy Grail). What is the Holy Grail you ask? Generally, the Holy Grail is believed to be the “cup that Christ used at the Last Supper and that Joseph held to collect Christ’s blood at the crucifixion” (Joseph of Arimathea, Keeper of the Holy Grail). According to legend, Joseph hid the Holy Grail in a well in Glastonbury, and to this day the well is called Chalice Well (BBC). However, there has never been any concrete proof of the existence of the Holy Grail, despite all of the legends that revolve around it.
Another legend states that Joseph was in England before he went with St. Philip; on this early trip, it is said that he might have taken Jesus to England as a teenager (BBC). Personally, I find this hard to believe. The Roman Empire was massive, and although they had a fairly advanced road system, a trip from Galilee to Britain would likely take several months.
Although Joseph of Arimathea may seem like an insignificant character in the Gospels, historically he played a very influential role in the spread of Christianity. Many legends surround his existence; while some may seem a bit unbelievable, others seem like they could very well be true.


Current Focus on Dachau and
its Protestant Church of Reconciliation:
A Grotesque Display of Religion on the German Soil
or Is it Something Else?
Since 1960, four religious memorials have been erected at Dachau:
Arguably only the Jewish Memorial is a Holocaust Memorial, the others memorials being --at best-- memorials of World War II (WWII) and not of the Holocaust that was a part of WWII. (For this distinction and differentiation that not all victims of Nazism were victims of the Holocaust, please see, if you will, this Holocaust Definition detailing the Holocaust and its precise boundaries.)
-- the Catholic Mortal Agony of Christ chapel;
-- the Protestant Church of Reconciliation;
-- the Russian Orthodox chapel; and
-- the Jewish Memorial.
It is the purpose of this note to focus only on the Protestant Church of Reconciliation at Dachau.
In 1967 the Protestant Church in Germany built the Church of Reconciliation on the sacred grounds of Dachau --the infamous concentration camp of Germany.
According to the Church's website at <versoehnungskirche-dachau.de/engl-rundgang.htm> and posted by us as Exhibit-ProtestantChurch_Germany, the Church performs weekly services and other functions where, and we quote, "they try to help visitors at their public meeting room, they offer guided tours and courses, and celebrate a service every Sunday on 11 a.m." [underline supplied]
How a particular organized religion --no matter what that religion may be, could proclaim that its God would lead it to the path of forgiveness and reconciliation with the memory of the Holocaust and its victims?. Where was that elusive and imaginary God during the Holocaust when million of people, children and adults alike, young and old, male and female, were killed, tortured, humiliated and deprived of their liberty and pursuit of happiness solely for the reason of who they were and not for what they did or believed in? Does such a God deserves any worshiping, in the first place?
Let this be clear: The Holocaust most certainly was not about the Protestant victims of the Nazi Regime but about something entirely different. To see what Nazi Holocaust was and how is being defined, please click in here. The victims of the Nazi Regime opposing the Nazism were victims of the War and not of the Holocaust. This fundamental distinction that is being clearly emphasized in our definition of the Holocaust is completely absent from the Memorial Wall at Dachau where these words are being engraved:
To include all victims of the Nazism into one indistinguishable pot is a preposterous historical undertaking and a mockery of the victims of the Holocaust who were killed not because they were opposing anything (including any religious belief), but were killed solely because of who they were.
"May the example of those who were exterminated here between 1933-1945 because they resisted Nazism help to unite the living for the defence of peace and freedom and in respect for their fellow men."
The Protestant or Catholic victims of the Nazi Regime were infinitely small when compared with the millions victims of the Holocaust. Yet their memorialization, vested through the Protestant Church of Reconciliation build at Dachau appears to be at parity with the victims of the Holocaust. That preposterous travesty of History currently displayed on the German soil at Dachau is something that needs not be buried in silence. (The same goes of course for the Catholic Mortal Agony of Christ chapel and the Russian Orthodox chapel build at Dachau.)
On what sort of perverted religion this Church of Reconciliation has embraced to be guided to "celebrate" services on the grounds of Dachau --one of the most sacred grounds of the Holocaust? What is to "celebrate" there every Sunday? How sick an institution proclaiming to server God could be to see fit in placing its base of operation and "celebration" on the sacred grounds of the Holocaust? How anything can be celebrated on the grounds of Dachau?
Why the Government of Germany that made so many strides in confronting its horrendous Nazi past would allow a Church or for that matter anything else short of a Memorial be build and operate on the sacred grounds of Dachau?
There is absolute irrefutable historic evidence that the vast majority of the Protestant Church leadership did not lift even a finger in opposing the atrocities of the Nazi regime, with the exception of a few, very few, isolated cases. The Protestant and Christian Churches monstrous sins against all humanity can never be washed away or forgiven --as that would be a gross insult to the collective world's memory. There are things in history that can never ever be washed away or forgiven and, most certainly, the Nazi Holocaust is one such event.
This historic and irrefutable documented complacence of the Protestant Church to the killings and suffering of millions during the Holocaust years has been articulated in this way by the United States Holocaust Memorial in their summary analysis entitled "German Churches and the Nazi State":
Joseph Goebbels (far right) with German Catholic clergy and Nazi officials.
[Photo Credit: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek]
" In 1933, a small group of Protestant clergy formed the Pastors' Emergency League. Founded by Martin Niemoeller, the league took a stand against Nazi domination of the church. In 1934, the League's leaders founded the Confessing Church, representing a minority of all Protestant pastors in Germany. Its ideology was to resist Nazi coercion and to expose the moral hollowness of the pro-Nazi 'German Christian' movement.
The Confessing Church did not, however, protest Nazi racial or social policies. Although a very small number of individual German theologians --such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer-- opposed the regime, throughout the Nazi era the vast majority of the Protestant church leadership did not challenge the state's discriminatory legislation and actions."
What moral and historic standing the German Protestant Church could possible have had in building a church on the grounds of Dachau?, is a question that perhaps deserves an answer. Under what kind of twisted God the German Protestant Church is being guided? What are, if any, the current moral judgments of that church and its leadership?
How come the people entrusted with the guarding of Dachau would allow such an intrusion to take place into such a sacred place of history? What are their moral judgments?
Again and again we ask: How come the current Germany allows such a monumental travesty of history to continue to exist on its soil? --a soil that forever will remain tainted by its horrendous Nazi past.
It will be warranted perhaps to receive some answers from those in authority so to be able to have some understanding to all this and, be able to publish those answers and commentaries, in full, herein.
May God, if such thing exists outside man's imagination, have mercy on the German Protestant Church's monstrous sins during the Holocaust, or nobody will.
K. K. Brattman
October 31, 2006
Special Selected Links:
The Stuttgart Confession of Guilt
(Translated from the Original German)
From the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD):
1. First EKD Confession of Guilt Over Crimes Against Jews
2. An EKD Editorial on the Confession of Guilt
The Protestant Reaction To The Nazi Holocaust
by By Michael Hakeem, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Sociology
University of Wisconsin--Madison, USA
The Nazi Challenge to the German Protestant Church
by Victoria J. Barnett
Director for Church Relations, US Holocaust Museum
The Protestant Churches in Nazi Germany
The Role of the Churches: Compliance and Confrontation
by Victoria J. Barnett
Director for Church Relations, US Holocaust Museum
Martin Niemöller's visit to Dachau
by Dr. Harold Marcuse, Associate Professor of History
University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
Protestant Holocaust Scholar Confronts Years of Denial


Hotel Caorle - Caorle
The ancient name of the city was
Caprulae (possibly because of the wild goats that grazed in this
area, or in honour of pagan goddess Capris); Caorle was
founded in the 1st century BC, as a Roman bench mark.
Many archeological findings confirm that; for istance the
sacrificial altar called "Ara Licovia" (from Licovi's Roman
family), today kept in the cathedral.
Caorle gained importance when people from Concordia Sagittaria
looked for a refuge because of the barbarian invasions.
In that period, the Paleo-Christian church was built, some
remains of which are today kept in the cathedral museum. In the
11th century the current cathedral was built, the see of many
During the following centuries, Caorle became one of the
nine important cities of the Republic of Venice; the
witness of that are the many Istrian flagstones which composed
some monuments in the city, and also the ancient structure of
the city, with bridge and canals, like a little Venice. At the
end of the Serenissima Republic and with the napoleonic
invasions, Caorle went into decline; the diocese was moved to
Chioggia and Caorle was attached to Patriarch of Venice; for a
memory from ancient times Caorle still is an ecclesiastical
In the recent past, Caorle was an important strategic
location in World War I, until the Italian Army started
its counteroffensive from the Piave.
The Cathedral of St. Stephen is the most
important monument of Caorle; built in 1038, it is a particular
example of Romanesque and "Byzantine-Ravennate" style.
Its faade is simple; near the central door there are two
bas-reliefs (left St. Agatonico, right St. William); the
interior is organized with a nave and two side aisles, divided
by pillars and columns which support semi-circular arches, and
it has a truss-beam roof.
Outside, the characteristic bell tower, of
1048, rises to a height of 48 meters. It is a typical example of
romanesque style, but it has a cylindrical structure, and it is
surmounted by a cone-shaped cusp, that makes it unique in the
The church of Blessed Virgin of the Angel is
built on a little promontory on the sea. In ancient times, the
church had three naves, but the sea repeatedly destroyed one of
them. So in eighteenth century the church was rebuilt, with the
structure that it has today. The legend says that one day a
number of fishermen saw a light on the sea; when they approached
it, they found a statue of the Virgin Mary with Child, and they
carried it to the shore. The bishop and the townspeople tried to
carry the statue to the cathedral but it was very heavy; so the
bishop called a group of children (because of their innocence)
and they succeeded in carrying it to the nearby church of
Archangel Michael (for this "Virgin of the Angel").
Devotion to the "Virgin of the sea" is very important for
Caprulan people; to her are dedicated two festivals: the annual
"feast of incoronation" (during which there is
the traditional "fire of the bell tower", with fireworks) and
the five-year feast of the Virgin of the Angel (Pope John XXIII
wanted it to take place every five years).
Other points of interest nearby: the
lagoon of Caorle,


Dar es Salaam regional commissioner Mr William Lukuvi
By Elias Mhegera
A sudden change of attitude amongst the Christian bodies has left a lot of questions to Tanzanians in some circles.
A quick survey by The Express has indicated that the strong issues that leave some questions, are; the timing of the congregation and the tone of the clerics in the speeches that were made during the opening ceremony of the Tanzania Christian Forum.
The clerics raised seven issues that have made them to form such a body. They said that they want to protect the Christian faith, to cultivate a culture of respect, to have a single voice in sensitive national issues and improve cooperation in matters of theology.
Other issues were religious tolerance, educating the society on issues of peace and interreligious dialogue. All those were wrapped up in the form of maintaining peace, unity and harmony in
However, they rejected an outright possibility of forming a single religious sect that will conjoin them together. The three bodies that form the forum are the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), the Christian Council of Tanzania (CCT), and the Pentecostal Council of Tanzania (PCT).
The congregation of the clerics and scores of followers of the Christian denomination was blessed by the Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner William Lukuvi, who represented the government.
From the TEC the main speaker was Bishop Severine Niwemugizi, Bishop of Rulenge, while from the CCT the main speaker was its secretary-general Bishop Dr Leonard Mtaita, on its party the PCT was represented by Bishop Sylvester Gamanywa who was also the master of ceremony of the occasion.
Asked if the congregation might be seen as being politically motivated taking into consideration that this is an election year, Bishop Gamanywa said the congregation is apolitical.
He said that the question of threats does not necessary mean that these must be threats from within this country, but they can as well be threats from globalization, corruption and the like.
He said Christians have a right to resolve on matters that put them together regardless of the time factor. He defended that the congregation was a culmination of a long term process which started in 2007.
He added that some of those who have been condemned in various crimes in courts are Christians, so this unity is an attempt to bring them back to Jesus Christ their messiah.
Rev. Philemon Tibanenason a church overseer from the PCT supported this view saying that the forum is purely a religious affair and it has nothing to do with politics.
Asked why one speaker from his church Bishop David Batenzi said that the motive was also to get rid of the ‘power of darkness’ he said that anything that does not appease God belongs to Satan who is a representative of the power of darkness.
He defended the forum saying that the slogan “With a Single Christian Voice” means that now Christians will face the moral challenges from a more united front.
“Where there is Godly justice there is public justice,
must be revamped from the powers of Satan through Christian unity” he said. Tanzania
From the Roman Catholic Church a highly positioned priest said that he does not see anything ‘political’ in this forum. Instead he sees this as a necessary phenomenon to defend Christianity.
Asked to comment on the event, a prominent political science lecturer Prof Mwesiga Baregu said he needs enough time to study the matter before he make any comments.
A quick reminder however, is that he is currently employed by the TEC trough its constituent university, St. Augustine University of Tanzania. He possibly must have avoided conflict of interest with his employer.
In recent times in
there has been a tug of war between the Christians on one hand and the government on the other. Tanzania
Issues which have brought strong debates include an attempt by the government through the ministry of foreign affairs to join the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and the establishment of Islamic Kadhi Courts.
Another issue which has brought some mummers are why the National Bank of Commerce (NBC), has assumed religious tones, that it is an Islamic Bank, these and many other similar issues have raised eyebrows amongst the Christians.
Therefore the statement from the Forum, that they will raise a ‘Single Christian Voice’ could have far implications in many issues where Christians have a common stake.
But while this is going on there must be a quick reminder that the coincidence might send shivers to the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi that it must take religious issues with a due weight. Therefore this might be a Christian attempt on ‘gunboat diplomacy’.
In international politics, gunboat diplomacy refers to the pursuit of foreign policy objectives with the aid of conspicuous displays of military power — implying or constituting a direct threat of warfare, should terms not be agreeable to the superior force.
Other issues which have raised concerns in relations between the government and the Christian bodies are the Catholic Pastoral Document which brought a lot of commotion last year from the government’s response.
This was followed by a heated speech by the Cardinal Polycarp Pengo, Archbishop of Dar-es-Salaam during the burial of the Mwanza Archbishop the late Anthony Mayalla in Mwanza in August last year.


Dovenby WI April 2013
For the April meeting 22 members met at St. Mary's Church, Wigton.
Members were shown the Bragg Family windows. These three windows were commissioned by Melvin Bragg, with one dedicated to his parents, one to his children and the third for his aunts and uncles.
Artist Brian Campbell explained that his brief was to incorporate Christianity with elements of Wigton. It was two years before the church authorities accepted suitable designs.
Alex Haines of Brampton carried out the work, with the whole project taking five years to complete.
After looking round the church, members then adjourned to the Greenhill Hotel Restaurant for a light supper, which was enjoyed by everyone.
Dovenby WI is always glad to welcome new members or visitors. Meetings are normally held on the second Thursday of the month at 7:30pm at Bridekirk Dovenby School.
More details and a programme are to be found on www.bridekirkparish.org.uk.
Contact could be made by emailing firstname.lastname@example.org


A celebration of the life of Phyllis Jean Downing will be 1:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 26, 2013 at Cedar Grove Church in Locust Grove. Visitation will be today at the funeral home from 1-7 with family receiving visitors from 5-7. Burial will follow at Little Rock Cemetery in Locust Grove. Phyllis passed away on Friday, June 21, 2013. She was 73 years old.
Born in Claremore on October 9, 1939 to Blue and Ada (England) Rowe, Phyllis was raised and educated in her birth community with her five brothers and sisters.
On October 5, 1958 Phyllis married Richard Downing and their union was blessed with three children, Tammy, Clinton and Janice. While raising her children Phyllis worked at Parsons Ammunition plant and in 1970 Tulsa became their home. In 1978 she moved back to her home town of Claremore and began working as an aircraft painter for McDonnell-Douglas until she retired in 1990 due to health issues.
Christmas and Easter were two of her favorite holidays because of their religious significance as Phyllis was strong in her Christian faith. Phyllis never failed to tell others about Jesus. She was especially instrumental in instilling God’s Word in the hearts of her children and grandchildren. Phyllis also loved to attend church and visited numerous church camp meetings as far as Oklahoma City, Louisiana and Kansas.
Spending time with family was one of her favorite pastimes. Phyllis loved to travel and spent her weekends driving around with her grandchildren and discovering treasures at garage sales. She was also a huge fan of Elvis Presley and always enjoyed his spiritual and melodic music.
This loving mother, grandmother and sister will be missed by all whose lives she touched. Phyllis is survived by her three children, Tammy Butler and husband George of Pawnee, Clinton Downing and wife Hazel of Tempe, AZ, and Janice Downing of Claremore; 13 grandchildren Ricky Williams, Jerry Heneha, Phyllis Butler, Cynthia Butler, Stephanie Butler, Richard Downing, Ja-Li Downing, Alex Downing, Mark Downing, Misha Downing, Melissa Downing, Dylan Backwater, and Devan Backwater; 13 great grandchildren; 1 great-great grandchild; brothers Charles McLane and Thomas Backward. She was preceded in death by her parents, 2 sisters and 1 brother.


“But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets. Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for ALL THOSE WHO BELIEVE; for there is not distinction; for ALL HAVE SINNED and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift (not by works) by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicity as a propitiation in HIS BLOOD, through FAITH…..” (Romans 3:21-25a)
In Revelation 1:5 we read that Jesus Christ loved us and WASHED US IN HIS BLOOD .
This washing in His blood is a spiritual baptism. We are submerged or dipped in the blood of the Lamb and we are cleansed from ALL SIN. It is not merely a once in a lifetime cleansing, it is a day by day continued process. The Greek test reads, “And the BLOOD of Jesus Christ GOES ON CLEANSING from ALL SIN those who are walking in the Light. (I John 1:7)
The word Baptism cannot be found in the Old Testament, the reason why is because it is a Greek word and the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and Chaldean (Daniel). However, the Greek words found in the New Testament are:
Baptismos = washing (Strong’s Concordance #909)
Baptizo = “Wash” Comes from the word BAPTO which means to COVER OVER WITH A FLUID. (Not necessarily water) (Strong’s concordance #907)
The equivalent for these words is the Hebrew words:
Rachats = to lave, to bathe or “to wash” (Strong’s #7364)
Kavac = washing (Strong’s Conc. #3526)
To be washed or to be cleansed In the name of Jesus simply means to be baptized In the name of Jesus by faith in Jesus Christ, as we read in Romans 3:22-25. To receive redemption and propitiation (restoration) through FAITH IN HIS BLOOD.
This baptism has NOTHING TO DO WITH WATER. It has everything to do with the WASHING OF REGENERATION. We have been WASHED from our sins by the blood of Jesus. (Rev. 1:5)
“He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to his mercy, BY THE WASHING(baptism) OF REGENERATION and renewing by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)
This washing of regeneration, this washing of our sins in the blood of Jesus is exactly what Ananias told Paul that He needed to do. This was a baptism BY CALLING ON THE NAME OF JESUS. This would bring about a WASHING AWAY OF PAUL’S SINS.
“And now why do you delay? Arise, and BE BAPTIZED AND WASH AWAY YOUR SINS, (how?) by CALLING ON HIS NAME.” (Acts 2:38)
When Peter spoke about Baptism in this verse, He was not referring to water. If he would have been, then it would be necessary for everyone to be baptized in water in order to receive forgiveness of sins. But as we have previously seen the forgiveness of sins comes through the BLOOD and NOT through water.
“And corresponding to that, Baptism (In the Blood) now saves you (by calling on Jesus name) NOT THE REMOVAL OF DIRT FROM THE FLESH (water baptism) but an APPEAL TO GOD for a good conscience – Through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ: I Peter 3:21 (See Romans 10:9-10)
The Baptism here referred to is obviously a baptism through the BLOOD of Jesus and not a water baptism. Redemption or salvation comes through the BLOOD and not in any other way.
“In HIM (Jesus) we have (present tense) redemption through HIS BLOOD, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. (Eph. 1:7)
Thus we can see from the following scriptures that the Blood of Jesus cleanses us from ALL SIN and we have the following:
Redemption through the Blood. I Peter 1:18-19
Forgiveness through the Blood. Ephesians 1:17
Justification through the Blood. Romans 5:9
Peace through the Blood. Colossians 1:20
Loosing of Sin through the Blood. Revelation 1:5
Sanctification through the Blood. Hebrews 13:12
Access through the Blood. Hebrews 10:19
Victory through the Blood. Revelation 12:11
Through the Blood of Jesus we are all washed and baptized into the body of Christ.
“For by one Spirit we were (past tense) all (saints) baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” (I Corinthians 12:13)
To be baptized in the name of Jesus means to become a part of the body of Christ. The Spirit of God baptizes us all into one body, the Body of Christ. All you need to do is by faith call upon Jesus as your SAVIOR, believing that HE is the Son of God and that He was resurrected and is alive.
“For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
For all of you who were (past tense) BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:26-28)
We can all become the sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Faith in the cleansing power of the blood. We have been baptized into Christ and have clothed ourselves with Christ.
The words “clothed yourselves” mean: To cover up, as when you put your clothes on. When you put on Christ, it means you are covered over with the Blood of righteousness that Jesus shed for all and you are thus covered with or by the precious Blood of Jesus.
The word “covered over” or “clothed” are the Hebrew words: Kapporeth = A lid or a cover (Strong’s #3727). This word was used in the Old Testament for the cover of the Sacred Ark. It was a blanket covering the ark.
This was a type of the blood of Christ as we can see in the following scriptures:
“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse, and He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He judges and wages war. And His eyes are a flame of fire and upon His head are many diadems; and He has a name written upon Him which no one knows except Himself. And He is clothed with a robe DIPPED IN BLOOD and His name is called THE WORD OF GOD” (Revelation 19:11-13)
The Blood of Jesus is the Kapporeth or the Lid or robe which covers the Born Again Believer; and Christ wears this robe and Jesus being the Head of the body has no need to be covered by the robe. He is with out sin therefore needs no covering. Jesus became the believers KIPPUR (#3725 Strong’s Conc.) The Jewish celebration of YUM KIPPUR as a day to commemorate the atonement was a type of what was to be accomplished by Jesus. The Blood of Jesus was shed to atone for our sins ONCE AND FOR ALL.
Both of these words; Kapporeth and KIPPUR come from the Hebrew word Kaphar (Strong’s #3722) which means all of the following things:
To expiate, to condone, to pacify, to purge, to reconcile and “TO CLEANSE”.
The BLOOD OF CHRIST has done all of the above for us when we are baptized into the blood of Christ.
Few people realize that water baptism was performed by the Jews and that it was part of their atonement… That water baptism was a symbolic cleansing which in spite of the water required THE SPRINKLING OF THE ASHES OF A RED HEIFER which had been offered as a sin offering. This of course symbolizing the fact that IT WAS NOT THE WATER THAT CLEANSED but the BLOOD OF THE SIN OFFERING with which it was mingled. Likewise, water baptism does NOTHING for you unless you have received the CLEANSING BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS who was offered as a sin offering for us.
The very moment that you are born again something far greater occurs than the benefits received through water Baptism:
Redemption, Forgiveness, Justification, Sanctification, peace and cleansing are all benefits received as you are washed by His blood. You are free from the law and bondage to the law.
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made you free. You are COMPLETE in Him.
We are to leave the elementary doctrines which include the doctrine of Baptisms and not entangle ourselves with the law.


Mission President. Responsible for personal evangelization, restoration of those who have fallen away, and biblical counseling.
Social Media Administrator
Arise for Christ is a Christian mission that aims to mobilize Christians to action, connect them, and organize Christian organizations to be more effective in proclaiming the Gospel and extending the Kingdom of God. Through the portal ariseforchrist.com and using social media networking, Christians will be able to communicate more easily, unite, and encourage each other to act together for Christ. We join our efforts and knowledge to witness the Gospel and extend the Kingdom of God worldwide, starting from Romania.
Fulfilling God's desire (1 Timothy 2:4) is the mission of our association, motivated by God's love for us, and in turn, we do it for people (1 John 3:16).
We aspire to see a growing movement of Christians who act for Christ and implement the principles of the Kingdom of God. We desire churches and believers to be dedicated to winning souls for God, restoring those who have fallen, and helping those with different problems for their spiritual growth. We do not intend to replace the mission of the Lord's Church but rather emphasize, motivate, and serve as a bridge for evangelizing people and serving believers.
Our mission is built on values, which determine our actions and way of working.about_us.description_p4_4
Love for Christ.All things are from Him, through Him, and for Him. We love God by living for Him, and what we do is a response to His love. We act in a Christ-centered way, and our focus is on Christ.about_us.description_p5_3
The salvation of the lost.Love for the Lord Jesus Christ leads us to love people. Our goal is to see Him as the Lord and Savior of many people. His love has ignited a passion for people in us. The conviction that Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation drives us to use these methods to reach people's hearts.The importance of the family is a priority; therefore, our service focuses on families.
Concrete action for Christ.Faith is demonstrated through actions! We want to be influential, motivating, and contagious for believers in favor of the unchurched, those who have fallen away from faith, and those with various problems.
Romanians for Romanians everywhere.Like the Apostle Paul, our heart's desire and prayer to God is for Romanians to be saved (Romans 10:1, 11:13-14). We believe in a global vision that goes beyond the context of local and denominational church involvement and involves unity, diversity, and dedication to Christ's cause in the world. We support long-term or short-term missionary work in specific areas of the world...
Our mission can be summarized in two words: salvation and action. Salvation for those who do not know Christ and mobilization of believers through concrete actions.
God's love is the source of our passion, and we desire people to be overwhelmed by it. We pray and intercede for people passionately.
Without dedication in all areas of our work, there is no success. We have dedicated collaborators who are a source of inspiration for many.
We want to be real, honest, humble, and separated from any religious forms, anchored in the truth of the Scriptures, which we communicate in love. Being authentic Christians in our context means that our actions are the best evidence of our authenticity.
📌 Unity in Collaboration
We constantly seek zonal and local collaborations with missions, missionaries, evangelists, churches, and collaborators with whom we serve together for the Kingdom. We form partnerships and associate with those who share the same biblical values as us. We are aware that the work needs to be carried out in collaboration with believers at all levels of function.
⚓ We believe that the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments, is verbally inspired by God, inerrant in the original, unique, and the final authority in matters of faith, morality, and Christian practice.
⚓ We believe in one God, the Infinite and Perfect Spirit, existing from eternity in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Creator of the entire universe.
⚓ We believe that Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, in His sinless life, being at the same time true God and true man.
⚓ We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice, and that all who believe and trust in Him are justified by His shed blood.
⚓ We believe in the bodily resurrection of our crucified Lord and in His Ascension to heaven, where He currently intercedes for us as Advocate and High Priest.
⚓ We believe that man was created by God in His image and was good and righteous; however, he sinned through his own choice by disobedience, coming out from under God's authority, and as a result, he suffered not only physical death but also spiritual death, i.e., separation from God; that all human beings are born with a sinful nature, and when they reach the age of moral responsibility, they become sinners in thought, speech, and deed.
⚓ We believe that all who receive the Lord Jesus Christ by faith as Lord and Savior are born again by the Holy Spirit and, as a result, become children of God.
⚓ We believe in the salvation from sin (the salvation of man) through God's grace, through man's repentance, and through water baptism as a result of the change worked by the Spirit through the Word of God.
⚓ We believe in the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, in the operation of spiritual gifts for the service of the Lord's Church and the unchurched world.
⚓ We believe in that "blessed hope": the imminent return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the rapture of the Church.
⚓ We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust, for the eternal happiness of the saved and for the eternal punishment of the lost through God's judgment.


Part Time Custodian
Trinity is seeking applications for the Part Time Custodian position. This position requires excellent attention to detail, the ability to keep the facility clean and orderly and to set up and take down room settings as needed. The applicant must be willing to work a flexible schedule to include evenings and weekends according to the church schedule.
For more information and a complete job description please contact Dave Sundberg, Director of Building and Grounds, 952-469-6268


Bedminster (St John the Baptist)
Name or Dedication: St John the Baptist
Location: Bedminster, Somerset
Grid Reference: ST585714
The earliest records of a church on this site date from 1003. It was the mother church to both St Mary the Virgin, Redcliffe and St Thomas the Martyr in Bristol, the former being a mere chapel-of-ease to it until 1852. It was burnt down in September 1645 by the order of Prince Rupert during the Civil War and not rebuilt until 1663, parts of the destroyed church probably being incorporated into the new building. Bells are first mentioned in Matthew's Directory of 1793–4 which states "it has two bells, on the largest of which the hour is struck". The clock had at least one dial on the east wall of the tower, above the roof of the nave.
In 1854 the church was demolished in favour of a much larger one by John Norton, the last service being held on 25th June. This new church, consecrated on 30th October 1855, had a taller tower and a bellcote above the chancel arch for a Sanctus bell, but plans for a spire were never realised. At least one of the two bells recorded in 1793–4 was transferred to the new church, this being recorded again by Ellacombe in 1874 as 9½ cwt (37 in) and cast by Thomas Bilbie in 1729, before it was recast in 1907. Ellacombe doesn't mention a Sanctus bell but he does remark "One bell formerly more" which might refer to a Sanctus being provided and later removed, although this would have had to have taken place within the short space of twenty years. It is more likely that he is referring to the loss of the second bell prior to the church being rebuilt.
The church was burnt out once more by incendiary bombs on 24th November 1940. Most of the building in fact survived, but it remained a ruin until finally demolished in 1967, the rubble simply being buried in the churchyard. The site remains as a public park, all tombs and headstones having been removed, but there is no sign of the church that once stood there.
Incredibly, the bell was still in the tower 27 years after that fateful November night. It was then recast by John Taylor & Co. in 1970 to become an extra treble for the ring of twelve at St Mary the Virgin, Redcliffe.
Bells previously hung for full-circle ringing
|Llewellins & James
Source: Bell data from John Taylor & Co. with thanks to Revd David L. Cawley and Nick Bowden. Further information from "Church Bells of Somerset" (Revd Henry Thomas Ellacombe, 1874), ChurchCrawler (Phil M. Draper) and the website of St Mary the Virgin, Redcliffe.
Where the exact weight of a bell is known, it is given in the traditional way using the British imperial units of Hundredweight, Quarters and Pounds (cwt-qtr-lb) in which there are 28 pounds in a quarter, four quarters in a hundredweight, and 20 hundredweight in a ton (one hundredweight is equal to approximately 50.8 kilograms). However, if only an approximate or calculated weight is known, it is given to the nearest quarter of a hundredweight.
A bell's diameter is measured across its mouth (open end) at the widest point and is given in inches (to the nearest quarter of an inch), one inch being equal to approximately 2.54 centimetres.


Anna Rapp was told by doctors that she couldn't conceive naturally, but she refused to give up. She now blogs about her journey in To Make a Mommy. This is a prayer she wrote to Saint Brigit, to ask her aid in becoming pregnant. It comes from her post "Praying to St. Brigid for Fertility and Pregnancy." The title pane is from her blog.
Thanks, Anna, for your kind permission to publish your prayer here. May Brigit bless all who seek to bring children into their lives, and bless those children she brings us to.


Click on the above document to enlarge.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
John Paul "JP" Musagala
The short video above is footage showing our last visit to Uganda, Africa. Hope in the Land Ministries is a non-profit ministry that helps needy people around the world by supplying them with things such as mosquito nets, shoes, bedding, clothes, etc. See the People, Hear their stores, Bless the land.
Posted by sbb at 6:57 AM


Florida College Carolina Camp –
We are not accepting new counselor applications at this time.
However, we will be opening up the application process in the future.
What you need to know and what we look for in our FC Counselors:
- Did you attend Florida College?
- Are you a member of the FC Carolina Booster Club?
- If you have children, did they attend Florida College?
- Have you been out of FC 2 years or are over 21 years of age?
- Do you know Freddie the Falcon?
- Relevant Skills: First Aid, Special Skills, Sports, Camps Attended, Talents, etc
- References: Who are personal references you can give us who will testify why you’d make the next great FC Camp counselor.
- You understand that this is a Florida College camp which is used as a recruitment effort and you will enthusiastically support and help Florida College in this effort.
- You understand to clearly communicate the joy of Christian living through principles taught in the Bible.


Have you heard this phrase thrown about in Christian circles? "Jesus kept the law for me so I don't have to." Maybe you've probably repeated it yourself. If you have, please consider what the Bible says about the law rather than depending only on your doctrine.
When presenting my beliefs on what the whole Bible says—and how that should alter how God's people live and worship—I'm often accused of trying to earn my salvation through works. That used to bother me. Sometimes it still does. But I'm trying to grow in grace. And I have to remember that the apostle Paul was also misunderstood about Torah.


LOIS EILEEN HESLE MOSES | The Sumter item
Lois Eileen Hesle Moses, 90, widow of Douglas Moran Moses Jr., died on Monday, February 8, 2021 in Roswell, Georgia.
She was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and was the daughter of the late Arthur and Minnie Roth Hesle. Ms. Moses was a member of St. Anne Catholic Church and the longest-running member of the Sumter Newcomers Club. She was a member of the Tuesday Club, which meets on Thursday, and she was an avid bridge player.
Surviving daughter, Nancy Moses Ketchum (Peter) from Alpharetta, Georgia; two sons, Douglas Moran Moses III (Kay) of Roswell and Timothy Moses of Augusta, Georgia; 10 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and two daughters-in-law, Jane Moses of Sumter and Merilyn Moses of Roswell.
Two sons died before her, Tom Moses and Jeff Moses.
The Christian burial mass is held on Friday at 2:00 p.m. at St. Anne Catholic Church. Rev.3 Giovannie Nunez, CRM, officiating. The burial takes place in St. Lawrence Cemetery.
Memorials may be directed to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 1500 Rosecrans Ave., Suite 200, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266, or St. Anne Catholic Church, 216 E. Liberty St., Sumter, SC 29150.
Online condolences can be made at www.sumterfunerals.com.
The Funeral Home & Crematorium Elmore Hill McCreight, 221 Broad St., Sumter, is in charge of the organization at (803) 775-9386.


Holy Cross Children's Center
Celebrating 25 Years Of Care • Lic. #430710153 Holy Cross Lutheran Children's Center School Age Program provides a Christ-centered daycare program from 6:30 am - 6:00 pm before and after school for children in grades K-5. Daycare is available on school in-service days. The program is designed to help children develop a healthy self-concept, which includes accepting themselves, their limitations and talents as God has given them. The children experience God's love in action as the staff reinforces the belief of Jesus Christ as Lord, Savior and Friend. The School Age Day Care Program is held on the grounds of Holy Cross Lutheran Church. The program makes use of the Good News Building classrooms for indoor activities and the playground area for outdoor fun. The area where the children play is sealed off by gates while the children are at the daycare. You are always invited to come and see us! Activities: Activities include arts, crafts, cooking, carpentry, dramatic play, games and sports, music, study time and daily worship. Snacks are provided. The children provide their own lunches on full days. Safe, Reliable Transportation The children are taken to and from school in either our 15-passenger or 17-passenger Youth Bus. Both vehicles are licensed and inspected by the California Highway Patrol. Our drivers have Class B driver's licenses and youth bus certificates, undergo a physical every two years and must submit to a written examination and behind-the-wheel driving test. In addition, the drivers must also possess a CPR and first aid certification. Each day the drivers are required to sign in and inspect the vehicles before transporting children. The vehicles are equipped with seatbelts for the passengers and the drivers. Holy Cross Lutheran Children's Center admits students of any race, color, and national or ethnic origin. Facility # 430710153 Don’t Give Us The Silent Treatment… Please Let Us Know You Found Us At GayPinkSpots.com Gay & Lesbian (LGBT) Friendly Child Care
- We are a caring elementary aged child care program.
- We welcome children ages 5 through 12 years old.


NOT OF THIS WORLD HOODIE (CHOCOLATE)
• Made in U.S.A.
• Pre-Washed for a no-shrink true fit.
• 14 oz/yd2 Super Heavy Weight Shrink Free
• True to size
As Christians, we are called to lead transcendent lives, and our 'Not of this world' hoodie design embodies this sacred calling. In a world that often clamors for our conformity, this hoodie stands as a testament to our commitment to a higher purpose.
'Not of this world' encapsulates the profound Christian principle of being 'in the world but not of the world.' It's a bold declaration that we are deeply rooted in the reality of this earthly existence, yet our values, choices, and character transcend the material and fleeting.
Our hope, faith, and unwavering gaze are fixed heavenward. This design serves as a daily reminder to keep our focus on the eternal, to seek the divine amidst the mundane, and to draw strength from our faith in God's promise.
Wearing 'Not of this world' isn't just a fashion statement; it's a profound declaration of our commitment to living a life that reflects our Christian values. It's a symbol of our resilience in the face of worldly distractions and our determination to walk the path of faith and righteousness.
With every thread and stitch, this hoodie represents our unwavering dedication to the divine, our resistance to the superficial, and our pursuit of a transcendent existence. 'Not of this world' is not just a hoodie; it's an embodiment of our Christian journey.


Rev. Jana Green
Rev. Jana Green is an Ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church. Jana is married to Rev. Chase Green, who serves as the pastor at Primrose UMC in Little Rock and Keo UMC. They have an adorable toddler. She moved from Oklahoma to serve this community. Jana loves movies, design, and photography. Jana serves as the Executive Director of the Wesley Foundation at UA Little Rock. She has been serving as the pastor there since 2014. Jana is passionate about mission and serving the communities she serves.
Rev. Trinette Barnes
Rev. Trinette Barnes is a licensed pastor in the United Methodist Church. She moved from California and has been a Little Rock native for several years now. Trinette loves crafts, riding her bike, games, and having a great time. She invites you to come to the Wesley and learn more about our community and the way she serves at Wesley and as associate pastor at Oak Forest UMC.


Godly Magistrates and Church Order: Johannes Brenz and the Establishment of the Lutheran Territorial Church in Germany, 1524-1559
Whether Secular Government Has the Right to Wield the Sword in Matters of Faith: A Controversy in Nürnberg, 1530
By the beginning of the 1530s, the governments of many German territories that had abolished Catholicism and established the Reformation had begun to impose strict uniformity of doctrine and worship on their subjects. In some communities, individuals who felt threatened by the impending orthodoxy raised their voices in protest. The texts in this volume record one such protest and the responses that it evoked.


I want to know about your opinion about the role of the Jews in God's eternal purpose. I know this is a controversial question among Christians but since I have some friends who are messianic Jews who I want to share your book with I know this question will arise.
ANSWER God's passion is for the church, where "there is neither Jew nor Gentile." (I'm quoting Paul.). The middle wall of partition has now been broken down, and God's heart is set on "one new humanity" (Eph. 2). I don't know what God's plans are for the nation of Israel or the Jews as an ethnic people. And I don't believe anyone else does, despite those who sound certain about it. Romans 9-11 are difficult texts to interpret. My view of them is pretty much the same as that of N.T. Wright's. Let me say a word from my experience. When a local expression of the church of Jesus Christ is operating and functioning as she should, and God's people in that church (both Jew and Gentile) are revealing Jesus the Risen Messiah together, it provokes the religious Jew to jealousy. Interestingly, this is what Paul said would and should happen in Romans.
First I want to thank you Frank for working hard to get this revelation out. This book has seriously transformed my relationship with Christ. It has really helped me to strip away so many minor details that often cloud the big picture of the gospel. My question is, Do you think systems and traditions are ok as long as they produce loving relationships and don't override New Testament principles?
ANSWER I'd prefer to say that
they are ok so long as they do not 1) hinder the organic expression
of church life 2) suppress the functioning of the Body of Christ and
the full operation of the priesthood of all believers, and 3)
subvert the living headship of Jesus Christ and obstruct God's
eternal purpose in Him.
So much has been taught in the 'church' regarding God's purpose is mainly 'to save the lost'. Do you feel that your presentation slights that or seeks to simplify that both are in essence the same?
ANSWER The teaching that says that "saving the lost" is God's desire is certainly correct, but it's not complete. God's purpose was in view before the
fall ever occurred. Humans came into this earth not in need of salvation. Consequently, there was something else in God's heart that provoked creation, and He's never let go of it. This is what the book explores.
Who was your cover designer? I love it. I always wash my hands before reading it because I want it to stay white :) Love what I've read so far, it's been a great study book for me. I'm about halfway through. Blessings from Ocala! Leslie.
ANSWER The graphics designers at David C. Cook are great. They deserve all credit.
Man Frank, I don't think I knew the heart of the Lord really until I read your book. I'm returning to my first love and falling in love all over again. I think I might be able to write my own psalm now. OK my question. When is your next book coming out? You have moved my heart so close to him with this writing thanks. No really. THANKS BROTHER!!!!!!
What suggestions do you have for incorporating this paradigm into group situations? (Small groups, friends' discussions, Sunday School classes, etc.)
Discussion coupled with open-hearted prayer are the first steps, I
think. There's a group discussion guide that goes with the book on
When did you get the idea for this book? Looks like a captivating concepts with excellent endorsements.
ANSWER I've been speaking on the eternal purpose since 1992. But the actual idea to put the message into a book of this type occurred to me around 2005, I believe.
In chapter 8 you footnote your reference to Mary Magdalene as being the unnamed woman in Luke 7. Although the chapter is beautifully written and the point driven home about the importance of awareness of one's own darkness, it seems a bit reckless to confidently make a correlation that remains unverifiable.
ANSWER The footnote on page 80 reads: "According to most traditional scholars and the testimony of ancient church history, Mary Magdalene is the unnamed woman described in Luke 7:36–50. She is not to be confused with Mary of Bethany, who anointed the Lord in the home of Lazarus near the end of Jesus' earthly life." One cannot prove if this woman was or wasn't Mary. But I go with those scholars who believe it was, and it makes sense to me seeing that she's mentioned right after the story. I believe Luke didn't want to denegrate her. I don't see how using her in the story the way I did and footnoting the reason why can be considered "reckless." Nonetheless, if you don't believe the woman is Mary, no worries. It doesn't effect the story or the points I make in it. Let's be careful not to strain at gnats and swallow camels.;-)
In the beginning of the book, you talk about Eve being formed on the 8th day and there's a footnote about Eve begin in Adam on the 6th day (Genesis 1). Can you elaborate? It makes sense to me, but I have friends who don't get it.
ANSWER This is hard for some Westerners to "get" because we are taught to linearly read Genesis 1 and 2, which is the typical way modern Western Christians approach an ancient Jewish text. Adam is said to be created on the 6th day. he is already there in Genesis 2 before Eve appears. She comes out of Adam in Gen. 2. I agree with those scholars who have pointed out that the woman mentioned in Gen. 1 (Eve isn't mentioned, just "woman") is speaking of her being inside of Adam. Her coming out of Adam on the 8th day fits all the types and shadow of the new creation being born in resurrection perfectly. (8 is always the number of resurrection and new creation. The church was born on the 8th day. And Eve is a type of the church according to Paul). We have to understand how the OT is written. So I wish to be faithful to Scripture even if the modern Western mind doesn't understand it. Here is the way one scholar put it in his commentary on Genesis 1: "Eve received all her blessings in Adam: in him, too, she got her dignity. Though not yet called into actual existence, she was, in the purpose of God, looked at as part of the man." The view that "Adam" in Genesis 1 included Eve before she was taken out of him was argued by A.B. Simpson, C.H. Mackintosh, and Asbury Theological Seminary Professor Donald Joyce in his excellent book, Bonding. Male and female were included in Adam before God "split the Adam" and took the woman out of the man. This understanding is also articulated in the Jewish Midrash.
On page 68, you say that God could have divorced Israel. But doesn't the Bible say that He did divorce Israel?
ANSWER During Hosea's day, which I talk about in that section, God did not divorce Israel. Years later, the Lord gave the northern kingdom of Israel a certificate of divorce, but not the southern kingdom, Judah (Jer. 3:8). He eventually took her back, so it wasn't really divorce, but more like a temporary separation.


Our Mission on Guam
Based on the Christian Principles of the sacredness of human life and dignity of the human person, we aim to provide institutional quality care in a pleasant, wholesome, healthful and homelike environment to the frail elderly (Manåmko’) of Guam. Using a holistic approach – taking into consideration not only their physical but also their psycho-social and spiritual needs – we help to prepare our residents to encounter their Creator and loving Father and strive to make their latter years happier and more meaningful. Furthermore, we will not discriminate for either residents or personnel based on color, race, country of origin, social status or disability.
Religious Missionaries of St. Dominic


It’s days like today; when I feel that the whole world is against me, that I am so thankful for your grace.
I had a day that wasn’t terrible on the outside, but on the inside, I felt down and discouraged.
I had a day where I just felt so lost, but God you were there with me. Your grace covered me.
It covered me when I failed, it lifted me up when I needed it.
YOUR GRACE IS SUFFICIENT; IT’S ALL I NEED.
(I was singing the below song all day. I hope it helps you out. It did wonders for me.)


SpiritualityAdd to Favourites
Ravenswood is a Uniting Church School where our Christian faith and commitment to gospel values, underpins all aspects of school life.
The school draws from the Christian tradition, such essential elements as faith, love, hope and grace. Together with the school’s Guiding Principles of Respect, Courage, Excellence, Compassion and Optimism, they form the foundation of the school’s ethos and values.
Opportunities to explore the Christian tradition and its contemporary relevance include weekly Chapel Services led by the students and supported by the Chaplain, Religious Education classes, fellowship groups, guest speakers and special events. Through these activities, students have the opportunity to explore their own spirituality and understand and appreciate the Christian faith.