Stone Speak A symposium on worship, arts and the prophetic,
here and across the pond...

The love of Christ does not negate accountability. Rather, it gives a context for which healthy accountability can function.
There are those who claim that it is incorrect to call Christians into account for sin due to a very lopsided view of the grace of the cross. Please note: I am not speaking of those in the process of coming to Christ, but those who claim to be Christians and desire good standing within a congregation, or a ministry.
The grace of the cross is simply not available aside from truth. The apostle John tells us that not merely mercy was realized through the cross but ‘grace AND truth were realized through Jesus’. (John 1.17) Psalm 85.10 tells us “loving kindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.” This is a prophetic picture of the grace of Christ. To claim forgiveness, as in one’s sins being washed away without truth (repentance) renders transformation an impossibility.
Should we have compassion for victims of sexual and substance addiction? Totally! But Biblical compassion is far more than feeling sympathy for the victim. It is to be moved by God in such a way that we lovingly call the victim into a sense of responsibility for their choices and assist them in reaching out to the power of God’s compassion. It must be stated, however, that God will not violate one’s free will. One must make the decision to reach out to God and trust in His power to change. That power through the Word and in the Holy Spirit cannot be experienced aside from repentance. We must take repentance out of the dusty church closet of shame and condemnation and view it as a great gift that God has given us to move towards wholeness & holiness.
Pseudo Restoration
Due to the onslaught of adultery taking place among church leaders today there has arisen a common scenario of what I call ‘pseudo restoration’. Pseudo restoration is a less than a real healing process that in many ways is simply waiting until the dust settles and then reinstating the still fallen leader back into their ministry position. Pseudo restoration has more to do with spinning the message than it does true accountability of the messenger.
Just because an individual takes a short break from ministry does not necessarily mean the root issues have been dealt with! It takes real time to realize God’s convicting truth in one’s innermost being. Merely feeling sorry for being caught and the damage one may have caused by one’s sins is less than knowing truth on a deep, deep level.
Partially the syndrome of quick fix restoration is due to the church not always grasping the importance of Christ like character being the foundation for one’s ministry. But, mainly, it is due to unsanctified compassion. We say ‘look at the high calling’ and ‘well, there under so much stress due to ministry’. Both are an affront to God. How can one claim to be a servant of Jesus and refuse to honor the ways of Jesus? Jesus after all stated that if we truly love Him we will obey His commandments- the Word of God!
True restoration takes time.
As stated it takes time to allow God’s truth to filter past layers of guilt, shame, and bring about deep down change at the root level. It takes time to rebuild equity and trust between a leader and his/her followers and supporters. It takes time to close the doors to condemnation so that the enemy can no longer manipulate one through the memories of sin. It takes time simply to rebuild trust in one’s own self towards one’s own will. When we see patterns over several years of sexual sin, or financial impropriety, or substance abuse some of the blame lies at the church which places greater value on that stumbling leader’s ministry than on the leader as a person in need of true, not false, compassion.
“If the foundations are destroyed what can the righteous do?”

(Psalm 11.3) Edmond Burke is credited to have written “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” I believe that God is calling church leaders today to rise up and begin to champion grace based holiness. Grace based holiness is teaching the truth in love, without condemnation!  While the foundation of Christianity can never be destroyed we can quench the Holy Spirit to the degree that we render the church impotent in moving in the fullness of the grace and power He has for us. He is after all ‘the Holy Spirit’. I believe that God is calling the contemporary church to essentially four responses in regards to the plague of misperceived grace, which is afflicting many ministries and congregations.
1)   Pray for a revelation of God’s heart and power to walk, model, and champion grace based holiness especially for leaders. Let’s cry out for a revelation that would cause us to echo the cry heard around  God’s throne- ‘holy, holy, holy’. Isaiah 6.3 & Revelation 4.8
2)   Begin to boldly, yet, with love & humility, educate and encourage the church in what the Bible has to say regarding healthy behavior to the point of hating sin! It is possible to hate sin, and yet love sinners- after all Jesus did it.
3)   Become intentional about taking to heart Paul’s admonishment to “not grieve” (offend) the Holy Spirit- the very presence of God in our lives and midst! After all we no longer belong to ourselves. He is the one who is in us to do His will & good pleasure.
4)   When serious sins do emerge in the life of a leader, let’s learn to value them as a person, more than their ministry. Let’s take the time to deal with the source of the issues rather than simply putting on the band-aid of ‘time out’.

God’s grace does not give us the freedom to do what we like and get away with it. It releases the power of God’s Word and Spirit to become individuals conformed to Christ.
Over the last few years a number of ministries have embraced a perception of grace that, Biblically speaking, is demonically distorted. True God given grace does not give us the freedom to do what we would like and get away with it. Rather, it releases to us the power of God’s Word and Spirit to become individuals conformed to Christ Jesus. Two passages found in Romans- 8.29 & 12.2 both address the conformity God is after in our lives. Perhaps more directly to the point, however, is Peter’s writing found in 1 Peter 1.14-16, which reads:
“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

1) The assault of Old New Age Gnosticism
There are three primary sources feeding the current perversion of grace. First is a resurgence of Gnosticism. This, in essence, as with much of ancient Gnosticism, is a false separation between what is spiritual and what is physical. In ancient Gnosticism there was the teaching that the two were completely unrelated. In effect the belief was that what one believed and nourished in the spiritual realm was unrelated and untouched by one’s actions within the physical realm.
The emerging Gnosticism in the contemporary church is not so much due to a deliberate teaching as it is from a growing ignorance and ignoring of the Word of God. In some church circles where things like prophecy, healing, and impartations of the Holy Spirit are valued there is also, unfortunately, a devaluation of the written word of God. This vacuum of ignorance has sucked many into a spiritual climate with a lack of regard for the holiness of God. That holiness is what we were born again to experientially walk in. To reference Peter a second time, 2nd Peter 2.20-22 warns that those who have come to know Christ Jesus but return to practicing former sins are like ‘dogs who return to their own vomit’.
To some degree the current hunger for spirituality and spiritual experiences devoid of an appetite for the Person and ways of God is witchcraft. This witchcraft manifests in two essential ways: 1) a hunger for spiritual experiences aside from the Lordship of Christ, and 2) a prevailing of anti authority attitudes. Witches love to move in spiritual dimensions but also despise authority, which is in keeping with the demonic realm. As well, as was with Jezebel, there is usually a fascination with perverse sexuality. To sum up modern day Gnostic traits emerging in the church there is a hunger for spirituality while there is a de-emphasizing of the Lordship of Christ governing one’s attitudes and actions. The false application of grace provides the loophole to continue in doing what one feels like doing and still praying the prayer “bless me, Lord”!

What has also, in a huge way, fed into current Gnosticism is a de-emphasizing of the Biblical mandate to make disciples. In many churches today the gospel is reduced to the two things: 1) free fire insurance, to escape the flames of hell, and 2) consistent teaching from the pulpits that God simply wants to give us formulas for success regardless of our lifestyles. Of course, God does want to bless people, but not apart from our embracing God’s principal of dying to self and living for Christ by embracing Christ’s ways. Galatians 6.7 reads: “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”
If we sow to carnality that is exactly what we will reap- bondage and death, on many differing levels. The growing mantra today is “it’s okay to do what you like. God will forgive you.” Forgiveness is the result of repentance. Repentance, essentially, means to see things from a higher perspective (God’s vantage point) and to change one’s behavior accordingly.  The remedy is church leaders must return to preaching the gospel of ‘the kingdom’ that Jesus preached and seek ‘its righteousness’ not merely its blessings. Otherwise, when a so-called Christian is continually grieving the Holy Spirit it is the spirit of this age that rules them, not the Spirit of the living God!


2) The Assault of Fear

As much as the church growth movement has been a help to many leaders for the last several decades, I believe, it has also proven to be a curse for some. It has mandated the wrong measuring stick. God measures the success of leadership by things like obedience, fruitfulness, and the making of disciples. Strictly using the ‘nickels, noise, and numbers formula’ to qualify/quantify one’s ministry is like trying to assess heaven by earth’s standards. By many church standards today Jesus would have to be labeled as a poor leader due to His message of ‘eating His body, and drinking His blood’. Because of that message He went from the multitudes following Him to barely the twelve. It would be a contemporary pastor’s worst nightmare. Jesus, however, measured success by obedience to the Father, not the accolades of man or the size of the crowd!
Proverbs 25.29 states “the fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted.” Due to success being primarily measured purely by numbers there has come about a great fear of offending church attendees by saying the wrong thing from the pulpit. That ‘wrong thing’ too often means anything that might cause that attendee to stop attending. Without necessarily intending to we can inadvertently become pleasers of men rather than of God. We must constantly remind ourselves that the gospel message itself (if Biblically preached) is offensive. It is offensive simply because God calls people to die to themselves and change their behavior. Less than a changed lifestyle is less than Biblical Christianity.
When the incomplete message of ‘it’s okay, God loves you just the way you are’ prevails there will be very little room for the Spirit’s conviction for change. The other half of that message is begging to be preached: “He also loves you too much to leave you the way you are”! Yes, by all means let’s be as welcoming and as friendly as the good news itself to all. But a physician who won’t warn a patient about a growing cancer tumor out of fear of depressing, or offending that patient is a lethal care giver! There is after all a sorrow the Spirit can release that leads one to repentance. (2^nd Corinthians 7.10)
We need to learn to discern between religious condemnation and the Holy Spirit’s conviction. The former wraps people up in the legalism of religion, while the latter opens people up to the potential of healing and abundant life in Christ!
The current statistics of 50% percent of all Bible believing, church going Christian men and 20% of the same group of women being addicted to pornography tell us that something is seriously out of order in the church today.  As if that is not enough of a problem there is almost the same percentage of divorce in the church as there is among non-church goers. If the ancient boundaries that God has established for healthy living are moved then we have managed to learn to graze in the camp of the enemy without fear of consequences! If the foundations are destroyed, or at least obscured, what can the righteous do?
We can begin by proclaiming and praying for a return to God’s standards of ‘grace based holiness’. If judgment starts first with the household of God, then it is probably a safe bet that judgment will start first with the gatekeepers of the church- leaders. We can either fear man, or fear God, but not both at the same time.


3) The Assault of Unsanctified Compassion
Due to past movements, which practiced a focus on the control of individual Christians, the word ‘accountability’ has almost been thrown out the window. Accountability, Biblically speaking, is not so much a thing of control, but rather of encouragement and strength. The truth is all healthy relationships demand some sort of accountability in order to function well. A relationship where there is a fear, or pride, based resistance to honesty is doomed to fail to reach it’s potential.
Out of fear of treading on people rights, or offending people in one’s church, accountability has become neglected. So when problems arise due to ongoing destructive behavior (sin) there is too often the tendency to issue blessings based on ‘unsanctified compassion’. Many church attendees and members want prayers of blessing and breakthrough despite the fact that the hurtful condition they are in may be due to reaping what they’ve sown. To continually bless some one who will not truly repent (change) from destructive behavior is comparable to giving throat lozenges to some one dying of throat cancer and thinking that because the pain is temporarily gone all is well.
In contrast to unsanctified compassion Paul and Jesus were seemingly harsh. Paul wrote,  “if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat” regarding the distribution of charity to poorer church members. There was absolutely no sense of unearned entitlement with Paul! Obviously, he was not speaking of those who simply could not work. When it comes to those who refuse to stop coarse sinning Jesus said to treat them as sinners, not as redeemed members of a congregation. (Matthew 18.17) Jesus also, categorically, without any ambiguity what so ever, stated that a man who leaves his wife to marry another woman is to be treated as an adulterer- a flagrant practicing sinner. (Matthew 19.9) Of course, this is excepting when his wife first committed adultery. Today there is a veritable plague of men and women in church leadership abandoning the ‘wife (or spouse) of their youth’ for a younger version! Truths regarding marriage, such as oneness and covenant, which God emphasizes have been treated as obsolete by many current ministry leaders. God simply sees this as sin on a grand scale. Yet the church has learned to sweep adultery, financial impropriety, substance abuse, and many other sins under a heavy carpet incorrectly labeled ‘grace’.

I was recently prompted to consider what the five most significant challenges facing the church today are.  After considering this for quite some time, I believe I have arrived at how I feel at this time.
We Christians must discover our individual identity in Christ.

“As Wesley emphasized, the image of God is restored within us. If the leading edge of the gospel is that ‘we matter to God,’ the ‘trailing edge’ of the gospel is that Jesus Christ has come to make it possible for each of us to become, in this life, the people we were born to be, conceived to be, and deeply within us have always wanted to be.” (Hunter, 52)

It seems odd that this is a challenge facing the Church. The reality is that we have largely become a religion of people who have become very good church members, instead of becoming very good Christians. This is not to say that there are not people, or even congregations who have become both. This said, it has been my observation that more often than not, the trend is that there is a profound disconnect between the life being declared on Sunday mornings, and the life being lived. This has led to the common perception of Christians being hypocrites.
Hypocracy has been used, and to an extent, abused when targeted toward Christians. There are common accusations of this double standard-living that stem from the cultural opposition to accountability or universal acceptance, and these are debatable in validity. The hypocrisy that Christians must learn to overcome is the temptation to live a complaisant, apathetic faith instead of a compassionate, apostolic faith. The radical life that Christ calls us to live is one of boldness. In God’s ultimate plan, through the workings of prevenient grace, and through the careful attention to the calling of the Spirit, each and every one of us has an identity we are to stand up and respond to in the Kingdom.

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels." Luke 9:23-26

We the body must work together.

“Churches differ in which … populations they “target.” Many growing churches effectively target unchurched Christians – people who believe but do not belong. Many “renewal” oriented churches show less “numerical growth” than “Kingdom growth” because they target churched non-Christians – helping nominal church members experience reconciliation with God and become genuine disciples. (Hunter, 26)

Many times, it seems as if a churches greatest critical opposition comes from the church up the street. I hear of camp meetings that warn of the Calvinist epidemic consuming America. There are hateful things spoken of Orthodoxy and how they only care about ceremony, and there is uninformed hype surrounding churches that are described simply as experientialists. There is an unfortunate amount of tearing down of churches by other churches, and this is not unnoticed by non-Christians.
There is a level of healthiness for the Kingdom in having a wide variety of denominations and forms of worship. They all have their distinct atmosphere that can be an effective witness to individuals that may be turned off by other atmospheres. While this level of superficial personal preference will need to leave an individual at some point during their path toward authentic worship, it can be healthy from an evangelistic perspective.
The danger is that we make enemies within our own faith instead of rallying as the greater Church toward the mission and calling that God has placed on any healthy congregation. Becoming the bigger man, setting aside the “but they believe…” and living in peace with one another is important. It is likely that a day will not come where all churches suddenly work happily in unison, but not tearing each other down or dismissing them as not being authentic worshipers is essential and must come to an end if the Church is to continue to thrive in our time.

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit— just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:1-6

We must appropriately leave our buildings and seek the lost.

… many believers confuse biblical word pictures, and this leads to unintended results. For example, one could say that holinessi s a call to heart purity and to be “set apart” for acts of spiritual service. However, this imagery is often confused to mean “come apart,’ thus encouraging the isolation of the church from the world. Such a confusion can cause the church to see itself as a fortress, a refuge from the dangers of a sinful world. (Sweet, 86)

It is safe to stay inside. It is comfortable, to stay inside. It is easy, to stay inside.
We live in a fallen world and this can often lead to messy evangelistic situations. These truths have led to many churches falling into one of three responses.
The first is, we do not leave our doors and wait until someone is willing and open to the Lord to walk in. This is safe, and easy.
The Second approach is one of exstreme boldness by entering into the world, standing on street corners with a bible, bullhorn and signs, boldly declaring the gospel truths. This is abrasive, and often does more harm than good.
The final is to stand around and conversationally talk about what is happening at church, but never turn the table and ask what another person believes.  This approach is easy to feel missional while doing, but rarely leads to actually influencing another person to be reflective in their own life.
The thing about all of these methods of outreach is, they are all incomplete. They lack boldness out of the desire for holiness. They lack compassion or love, out of the desire for boldness. They lack discipleship, out of the desire for love and compassion.
As the church body, we need to try to generate good press. We need to spend more hours in the week ministering to the community than we do hiding within the safe fortress of our church buildings. If the Church does not begin immersing ourselves in the community, carrying with it the uncompromised word of God with it by way of genuine love and gentleness, then our churches will die and our missions will fail.

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8

We must assess what are the core beliefs of Christianity, and make sure to prioritize the teaching of those over guidelines stemmed from wisdom.

In seeking to communicate the core of the gospel among people who have little or no knowledge of who Jesus is or of the biblical stories and concepts, much more time and patientce is required. The same missionary principles must be applied in a Western Context as in other parts of the world, whether pre-Christian or post-Christian. In both scenarios, a great number of misconceptions may need to be cleared away in order for the message to be heard. (Gibbs, 207)

We live in a culture with a rapidly increasing illiteracy rate. With Christians not being immune to this intellectual epidemic, the wisdom in assuming that members of our churches will know the Biblical narrative from their own devotional time is becoming questionable in its wisdom. It is unfortunate that this is a truth we must begin to contend with, but it does not mean the death of Christianity is on the horizon. For nearly 1900 years of Christian history, illiteracy was common place in the regions of the world where it thrived. For these  centuries, people still knew the Biblical narrative through the use of iconography and oral tradition.
While we live in a new era with advanced technology, it would be foolish for us to ignore the need to recognize the likelihood of the majority of our congregations reading their Bibles on their own time. We must therefore respond in ways that may differ from congregation to congregation in order to ensure core knowledge.
It is helpful, when teaching people toward a life of holiness, to teach lessons that give guidelines that come from wisdom. It is also good to teach conceptual, topical messages about day to day living. It is essential, however, that if we are to expect the Church to carry out the call of the Priesthood of all believers, that we offer lessons that teach the Biblical narrative. How are we to expect people to deliver their testimonies and explain who Jesus was if we never tell his story start to finish? Above all this, we must also ensure that before we address culturally focused topics, that people within our faith understand and are dedicated to core Christian beliefs. These can be summed up within the Apostles creed.

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ Philippians 1:9-10

We must train others into the priesthood of all believers.

The New Testament idea of “priest” has so radically departed from the Old Testament that the entire body of believers is now described as by nature a priesthood. . (Gibbs, 88)

There is a widespread attitude among Christians that the majority of the priestly duties fall on the pastor, staff, and perhaps deacons of the local church. This attitude is a symptom of a lack of ownership of identity among Christians. I believe that a serious concern and challenge for the church today is to minimize the perceived gap between laymen and leaders. To raise up the priestly nature, and the authority of those who declare Christ as Lord who are among our churches. To encourage them to visit the sick with an authority and compassion that is equal to the presence of anyone else.
This priesthood is the fruit of finding one’s identity in Christ, of cooperating with others, of leaving the buildings and carrying with us the basic core that Christ laid out for us. This priesthood is God’s destiny for all who proclaim his name.

9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests,* a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. 1 Peter 9

Works Consulted

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. Revelations 19:10-16

The Coming of Arthur by Alfred Lord Tennyson (an excerpt)
`The King will follow Christ, and we the King
In whom high God hath breathed a secret thing.
Fall battleaxe, and flash brand! Let the King reign.'
So sang the knighthood, moving to their hall.
There at the banquet those great Lords from Rome,
The slowly-fading mistress of the world,
Strode in, and claimed their tribute as of yore.
But Arthur spake, `Behold, for these have sworn
To wage my wars, and worship me their King;
The old order changeth, yielding place to new;
And we that fight for our fair father Christ,
Seeing that ye be grown too weak and old
To drive the heathen from your Roman wall,
No tribute will we pay:' so those great lords
Drew back in wrath, and Arthur strove with Rome.
And Arthur and his knighthood for a space
Were all one will, and through that strength the King
Drew in the petty princedoms under him,
Fought, and in twelve great battles overcame
The heathen hordes, and made a realm and reigned.

In the years to come, the crossover and changing of the guards will be signified by many things:

1. The coming of the King
2. The restoration of the prophetic
3. The release of ancient wisdom and treasures

JERUSALEM (from 'Milton') by: William Blake (1757-1827)
AND did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England's mountains green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen?
And did the Countenance Divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among these dark Satanic Mills?
Bring me my bow of burning gold!
Bring me my arrows of desire!
Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire!
I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.

Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” Revelation 5:5

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 1 Peter 2:9

Gird your sword on your side, you mighty one;
clothe yourself with splendor and majesty.
In your majesty ride forth victoriously
in the cause of truth, humility and justice;
let your right hand achieve awesome deeds.
Let your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies;
let the nations fall beneath your feet.
Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever;
a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy.
All your robes are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia;
from palaces adorned with ivory
the music of the strings makes you glad.
Daughters of kings are among your honored women;
at your right hand is the royal bride in gold of Ophir. Psalm 45:3-9

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Does Truth Matter?

Two presidencies ago (in the U.S) the president was caught in a very public lie
regarding martial infidelity. At one point while being questioned he responded to
a particular question with the question: “what does ‘is’ mean?”. Essentially, with
one swell swoop, the truthful meaning of words was, to a large degree, thrown
out the window. And while politicians have always been politic to the point of
saying the right things to the right crowd, in today’s arena of public speaking,
whether political, or otherwise, truth is now largely seen as negotiable. In a
demonic Machiavellian manner the end justifies whatever means are utilized.
This almost absolute disregard for truth has, in turn, infected some contemporary
prophetic ministries. When I say prophetic ministry I am more speaking of the
ministry of prophets as opposed to the ministry of prophetically gifted people in
the local church. These are two very different ministries with two widely differing
spheres of influence.
The first red flags I began to notice were back in 1998 and 1999. At that time
it was quite fashionable, albeit, unanoited, to prophetically jump on the Y2K
bandwagon. A lot of the ‘whose who’ in the prophetic arena prophesied that
global economic destruction was going to take place as we entered the new
millennium due to the computers not being able to handle the digital change.
While I have certainly made my share of prophetic mistakes I heard the Lord say
quite clearly that not only was the Y2K catastrophe not going to happen, but the
false prophecies were actually going to derail many churches which were quite
focused on prayer and outreach to their communities. To a certain degree this
did happen. Many, many churches began to focus on the supposed inspired
message to buy generators, store up food, water, and supplies and get ready.
Well, the catastrophe never happened. And a lot of the church members who
were part of those ‘get ready for the worst’ scenarios ended us very disillusioned
with prophetic ministry. I saw first hand how the number of churches in North
America, Europe, and the UK who were beginning to grow substantially in
intimacy with God and seeking to know His voice began to view prophecy today
with real skepticism.
As bad as all of that was, that in and of itself, was not the worst part of the
problem. The big problem was the lack of accountability. Very few, indeed, of
the big voices who had given the false words ever came back in a public way
and said “sorry”. For the most part no one is expecting prophets to be perfectly
accurate. The weight of New Covenant priesthood is for  the hearer of
a word to correctly weigh the word and see if it bears witness with his or her
own discernment from the Holy Spirit, as well as ascertain the Biblicality of it.
But to the level that God grants visibility
accountability must be in evidence, or else the whole of the ministry comes into
disrepute.
A friend of mine who pastors an influential church on the East Coast confronted
one of the loudest voices of the Y2K message. When he asked for a mere public
acknowledgement of being wrong that prophet responded “oh no, because we
prophesied the warning the church prayed and the problem never happened”!
The problem with her justification, how ever, was it was simply dead wrong.
The prophecy had not been “if My people pray”. It had been “this will absolutely
happen and God will use the chaos to birth revival”. Now 10 years down the
road many so called prophetic ministries used this sort of ‘open ended’ theology
as a loop hole for false prophecies. Any evidence of humility and authentic
accountability has been thrown by the wayside. The reality of this can be seen
in the 2008 U.S. presidential elections when so many prophetic ministries cooked
up wrong predictions as to who would win. And only a few of those I know of
who falsely predicted the outcome have publicly acknowledged their mistake.
In order for the body of Christ to take seriously a critically important God
given gift there must be accountability within the context of grace. Since many
prophetic ministers head up their own ministries the weight is doubly on them to
regard accountability as a context for the operation of the gift. Other wise the gift
of God speaking will continue to be devalued in the church at large and those
ministries will end up kings of ‘anointed entertainment’. There will be a degree
of revelation and power but it will not have the true kingdom fruit God desires.
If we are going to represent the truth of Jesus, in truth, then that begins with our
hearts and motives being focused and absorbed with the Truth, Himself. Let’s
take heed of the prayer from the ‘man who shook the world’: “Now to Him who is
able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the
power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus
to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”
Marc A. Dupont
September 28, 2010

I have had the opportunity of being involved with prophetic and apostolic ministry
and ministries internationally for close to 3 decades. I count myself the richer
and wiser for this privilege of rubbing shoulders with many men and women who
God has spoken through to the body of Christ in wonderful ways with wonderful
messages of encouragement and exhortation.
Unfortunately, over the last decade, or so, I have also seen the current prophetic
movement both become more extreme and, more extremely irrelevant to
true Biblical Kingdom purposes. I believe there are three specific harmful
phenomena that have emerged which are much in evidence today. They are:

1. A Phenomenal focus on self promotion
2. A Phenomenal lack of self accountability
3. A Phenomenal emphasis on phenomena, to the cost of de-emphasizing
   the Lord Jesus

Dangerous Territory
For the sake of not unduly loosing anyone too quickly, allow me to discuss the
last point first. I have absolutely no problems with Holy Spirit caused, or induced,
manifestations. Whether it is Holy Spirit induced laughter, weeping, shaking, or
such things as gold dust appearing, or even gold teeth. My concern is rooted in
the hunger for these things as opposed to hungering and thirsting for the person
of God and His righteousness. As my friend Loren Sandford has written “In the
church today there is a trend toward seeking ways and means to generate these
experiences by our own initiative”
The danger of seeking after spiritual phenomena is really two fold: Firstly, it
ends up becoming a downward spiral of deemphasizing the Person and lordship
of Christ in one’s life and ministry. Secondly, it opens the door for demonic
deception in a huge way. The devil can, and will, appear as an angel of light
if that’s what you’re hungering for. My fear regarding this current hunger for
phenomena is summed up by the apostle Paul’s words found in 2 Corinthians
11.3: “I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds
will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”
Ministries which continually emphasize extreme phenomena and revelation do so
to their own, and others, destruction. There is absolutely nothing more extreme
than the love, the compassion, the power, and the majesty of God Himself.
The moment we begin to emphasize His gifts, or manifestations, more than He,
Himself, we are headed down the same track of those carnally obsessed lost
souls Paul spoke of in Romans. They chose to exchange the worship of creation
for the worship of the Creator!
Until we have truly grasped and realized the height, the width, the depth, and
the breadth of God’s love let’s not settle for focusing on anything less than
that. If, as we journey with God, He sovereignly causes phenomena to happen
and releases paradigm shaking revelation then let’s grow in our sense of
amazement and wonder of His goodness. But to digress from seeking Him and
allowing Him to lead us and guide us as He sees fit is a demonic digression.
What’s being built- the Kingdom of God, or the empires of man?
Earlier this year (I won’t say when, or where) I spoke at a conference with two
other speakers. One of the speakers took one of the night sessions and spoke 3
hours and mentioned the Lord Jesus twice in passing. The Bible was never once
referred to. His whole message, and his whole ministry I suspect, is all about…
his ministry. God wants to heal us of all woundedness, but there is such a thing
as a Godly brokenness which David sang about in Psalm 51.16 & 17: “You do
not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt
offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart,
O God, You will not despise”. This ‘godly brokenness of David’s is evident in his
prayer in Psalm 27: “One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD And to meditate in His temple.”
Jesus’ whole ministry on earth was to restore people to a vital relationship with
the Father. (John 17.3). His protein, what nourished Him, was to do the will of
the Father. He was so fixated on pleasing the Father He walked away when
the crowd wanted to crown Him- it simply wasn’t the Father’s time. Too many
ministries today, however, run to any opportunity at all of being crowned before
men.
Speaking for myself, I love to tell testimonies of God healing, delivering, and
revealing Himself to people. And I thoroughly enjoy the privilege of being able
to be part of the process. But there is a huge difference between telling stories
in such a way that glorify the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as opposed
to glorifying me, myself, and I. Much of the self-promotion being done today on
websites, book covers, and presentations is at the very least self aggrandizement
and at worst demonic in that it, again, deemphasizes the wonder of Jesus. And
what seems to be a bigger problem is the willingness of many Charismatics
to chase after ministries that are preoccupied with themselves. After nearly
sixty years of the countless moral failings of supposed giants of faith with midget sized
character the Charismatic and Pentecostal church is still hungering for the next
hero. This speaks volumes of our lack of discernment due to a lack of experience
with the real thing- Jesus. At the very least let’s take hold of Paul’s wisdom
regarding reputation; “For it is not he who commends himself that is approved,
but he whom the Lord commends.” (2 Cor. 10.18) Let’s live and breath for the
commendation that comes from God. That commendation is often far from the
conference crowd.

    So with it now established that it is through multiple levels and forms of calling that we are now called into a state of discipleship wherein we fulfill the great commission, where does this line reside that divides those who are Professional Christians, and those who are Christian Professionals? In an era of such strong value place on ordination, credentials, education and, regardless of career, professionalism, it is a pretty radical notion to declare that there is little difference between these individuals.    In his book Unfinished Business, Ogden speaks of another reformation that is coming where the ministry is to be returned to the people.  We again look to the influence that Luthor and Calvin, in particular, had in the movement of trying to remove the hierarchy of the high church and provide a more direct line from Christian to Christ, as well as a more universal priesthood among believers.  This institutionalized church had been established for thousands of years prior to their day.  In the Old Testament, the priests and Levites were set apart from the other tribes as it was their duty alone to act as the go between people and God.  As previously discussed with calling, they were called to this practice due to their position in the system, their circumstances and accepted this duty.  This did not exempt the other sons and daughters of God’s chosen from worship and sacrifice, but it did essentially predestine those who were to become the priests and those who were to be the laymen. 

    This Old covenant system was turned upside down with the coming of Christ.  With Christ, the office of priesthood is actually eliminated, in the sense of it belonging to a select group of people.  Through Christ shedding his perfect sacrifice, acting as both high priest and sacrificial lamb, he removed the need of further sacrifice and therefore, the key function of the Old Testament priesthood.

In fact, the New Testament idea of “priest” has so radically departed from the Old Testament that the entire body of believers is now described as by nature priesthood.  By ascribing to the church the images formally applied to the nation of Israel, the apostle Peter makes it clear that the new priesthood is the church: “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people.

And this was echoed by Luther when he wrote:
Therefore we are all priests, as many as are Christians… The priesthood is nothing but a ministry as we can learn from , “Let a man so account of us as the ministers of Christ, and the dispensers of mysteries of God.”

So with this Biblical perspective of the priesthood of all believers, what does this leave the role of the clergy with?  I heard it phrased once as, a pastor is a teacher of teachers.  This has always stood out to me as a great viewpoint of the role of New Covenant clergymen.  The mission of a professional Christian is barely different than that of all other Christians.  The key difference is, the professional Christian would ideally be to minister to those who have already entered into a relationship with God, whereas those individuals would minister to the world.  This is a pretty lofty goal, though.  Consider the words of Luther above, and similar words from Calvin, and even as recent as Billy Graham and the philosophies of the Emerging Church movement.  All of these echo a similar longing to return the priesthood to the people.

During our recent conference, John Paul Jackson had spoken of the Tower of Babel and used the example of how many churches build buildings with a heart not too different than that of the Babylonians.  I'm inclined to think that there is a risk of repeating the error of the Babylonians on an emotional and spiritual level as we grow into the priesthood.  There is a tension that must be held between having an intimate relationship with God and also having the honor and respect that the Alpha and Omega deserves.  When a person who matures as a believer and enters into the priesthood, if they focus entirely on the relationship element, then they risk of effectively climbing up a great building to reach God, instead of respecting the Almighty as someone who descends and comes upon our lives.  We must not raise ourselves up, but instead point others to Heaven and establish them as leaders in the Kingdom.

This fall, we have an amazing opportunity to hear John Paul Jackson speak at our church during the Kingdom Transformation Conference. I have been privileged over the years to hear John Paul share on everything from dream interpretation to current revelation facing America... but the most exciting thing I ever heard John Paul share was the prophecy he spoke over my son in the spring of 2000.

In the early part of that year, my son, Logan was experiencing a series of encounters. Logan has always been very gifted...as early as 3 years old he was seeing angels. Logan also scored at age 5 with an IQ of 155. The combination of gifting and brightness led my confused, teenager down a very strange path. He began to entertain the demonic and saw spirits in our house. He scared kids in his youth group with talk of these images. I returned from a Global Awakenings Conference in St. Louis to find Logan without any color in his face and ranting about a character in camouflage clothing that he had no control over. He said this entity told him he was to be “promoted”. I was very distraught. As a single mom I was receiving all kinds of advice as to what action I should take. Logan's older brother, Michael, and I began to seek the Lord for a plan of action. Many pastors and counselors thought we should medicate Logan. The images were so vivid; many thought he was bipolar or schizophrenic. I was so unsure what to do. I didn't want to put Logan on medication.

I was sure this was spiritual. I prayed and began to think that if I had to pay to get John Paul here I would do it. Within a week or so, we found out John Paul would be in Columbus, Ohio. I told Logan,” You are going to this." Well, our entire small group went. The Vineyard in Columbus seated over a thousand people. They needed an over-flow room for this conference. It was packed. John Paul had several people stand that he had prophetic words for...one was my Logan. John Paul prophesied about Logan from birth to the present and told him "You have been told you would be promoted." John Paul spoke to Logan about all the things the Lord had waiting to give to him from heaven if he would turn from the dark things he was focusing on. All those who were with us were crying, knowing the accuracy of the words being spoken over my son. When Logan sat down, he looked at me and said, "Did you get all that, mom?" I told him it was recorded and that we would get the tape.

I keep that tape in my kitchen and play it often for friends.
Shortly after the words John Paul spoke, Logan's color came back, he turned from all he was doing, started school at Morningstar, and five years later launched a church from the ground up in Ireland...he was 24 years old. I cannot tell you how much this created change in the other kids in our family. Two other children went on to Morningstar and one of Logan's sisters joined him to do ministry in Ireland.

It is a privilege to have John Paul coming to our church during a time when our focus is on transformation. It was a real transformation that happened to Logan, a beautifully gifted kid who was heading down such a wrong path till that day in Columbus, Ohio in 2000 when the Lord, through John Paul’s words, picked him up and placed his feet on a new path. May you experience the transforming power of God’s love in a miraculous way at the Kingdom Transformation Conference September 22-25 at the Dayton Vineyard.

Cheers,
Rebecca

Christian Vocation
Following the notion of a personal call to a specific profession is the broader concept of a Christian Vocation.  There is actually rather little biblical evidence to support the idea that one would be called to a specific career field.  When we look to the Old Testament concept of calling, we see many patriarchs and heroes who are called through circumstances that unfold around them.  People who are called are brought forth to fulfill God’s greater purpose, and not often a sensation of being guided toward a specific position or office.  In the Old Testament, we see many miracles unfold and dramatic stories surrounding individuals, but these occur only because of the individuals absolute submission to the Almighty. 

When we look to the New Testament, we do see a transformation occur within the disciples where they leave secular jobs to follow Christ.  I must question the right-ness of basing the way we should live our lives off of the dramatic encounters with a physical Christ and a personal teaching that these first disciples encountered.  When we consider the twelve, they all had other jobs prior to meeting Christ and they abruptly left them to follow Him and learn. These close apprentices to Christ were more or less prototype disciples that Jesus was establishing to spread the good news.  Jesus knew his time on earth were short, and he therefore called upon these to continue the good work after the crucifixion and resurrection.  When we look at the words kalon who is God, the one who calls, and then keklemenoi, the called ones, then it seems to fit that the act of kalein, to be called, is a general call to salvation and commitment than it is to a specific ministry.  This essentially levels the playing field that all Christians are expected to be equally committed to discipleship. 

What does a disciple look like in scripture?  There is a threefold image that can be rooted.  First, belong to God.  Identify yourself as a member of the heavenly family and and recognize others as brothers and sisters.  Second, be a member of this family in life.  Pray and commune regularly, live a life of holiness and recognize God’s sovereign and providing hand in all situations.  Third, do God’s work.  Consider the things we’ve discussed in this article, as well as the previous one.  Your natural talents, abilities, circumstances, background and passions and embrace these through the lens of holiness.  This can be accomplished in virtually all career fields, save those professions that are in direct contradiction to living a life in accordance to scripture.

Calling. This is something that I've heard thrown around since coming to Christ.  It seems as though there is a rift created between those “called into the ministry” and those everyone else. I’d like to unpack this sense of calling for a few minutes, and explore what could be viewed as three vocations or callings to which all Christians are called. Over the next weeks, we will be exploring the Personal and Christian Vocation, and the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

Personal Vocation.
 It is with the Puritans in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that we first encounter a systematic distinction between the call placed on all Christians and a specific call which God places on an individual. In the New Testament, there is no specific doctrine of calling to a particular task but rather, it is out of Greek dualism that we see a differentiation between the Marys and Marthas. From the dawn of Christianity through the middle ages, Christians did not seek any sort of divine revelation to determine calling, but rather it was out of economic status or generational vocation that calling was established.  It was assumed that people were actually called into royalty, serfdom, wealth or poverty and people of faith were to operate within those capacities in accordance to the manner all Christians are expected to operate. Later, Luther embraced a bold and new translation of 1 Corinthians 7:17 and applied it to all occupations and applied the call to all Christians. Luther stressed that calling is the duty of serving God by faith according to the Word in one’s situation. Note this does not point to a career, but rather something that everyone should do no matter their place in life.

John Calvin later established two forms of calling, the call of salvation and the call of ministry. The Puritans then built on Calvin and emphasized calling as “the particular dutie [sp] which God requires of us in our estates." There was a balance achieved between duties and occupation. In that culture, though, the concept of family business was heavily engrained, and the only avenue by which one could escape following in the footsteps of a family trade was to pursue a vocational call in the church. This has essentially led us to our current understanding that there is a unique call wherein people feel led to pursue a specific role; more often than not leading to being a pastor or missionary.  In our modern culture, the sense of calling to a profession has spread to other professions, such as medical professional, care-giver, school teacher, and other positions of influence where our culture can assume to clearly do God’s work.  

This notion is an interesting one, as it seems to limit what professions one may feel called. This leads to the question of, "Does everyone receive a call?"  After all, if everyone receives a call, and yet a calling is usually attributed to select professions, then what is a Christian to do who is not inclined toward these fields?

There are four different calls which can emerge in our lives that will determine the path by which we serve.  The first is the “The Effectual Call of Christ to Become a Disciple.” This is the process of discipleship and deepening of our relationship with Christ. Within this call, some might arrive at the realization in an instant and never look back. Others will take their time, growing in a slow eb and flow motion, and slowly work into a rhythm, embracing the spiritual disciplines. It is however, a fundamental call that applies to all healthy, growing Christians.

The second is our “Providential Calling.” It is here we look to discern the providential hand of God in our lives, background, education, personality, and the opportunities that unfold in our lives with the Almighty to discover our calling. 

The third is “The Charismatic Call.” The Charismatic Call is geared toward the gifting and talents we possess.  These can be skilled trade abilities, leadership skills, anything that we have an overwhelming natural aptitude to do. As long as these skills can be done in unison with a healthy progression of discipleship, then these skills are of God and may very well be pointing us to the calling that God has ordained us to pursue.

Finally, there is the “Heart” call. It is this call which many people speaking about when they feel a burning desire to do something. This calling requires the most prayer and guidance, as it is one that will often make the least sense. Obedience to God is essential, but if one does not see any inherent skills that would support the calling, nor see God’s hand guiding them through life toward that destination, then prayer for discernment, guidance and confirmation should be sought.

In the next post in this series, we will explore the nature of the Christian Vocation, and then the fufilment of the Great Commission.

Have you ever been really excited about worship? This is one reason why our fall conference is going to be unlike anything you have experienced before. We thought our readers would like an inside look at the upcoming Band, Kevin Prosch and The Black Peppercorns, who will be leading worship for the Kingdom Transformation Conference September 22-25. The following is a history of Kevin and the band taken from Kevin Prosch’s website...


Kevin grew up in the deep south with a love for music early on. His father loved country music and stayed up all hours of the night playing records, his mother loved classical music and played the Piano. His childhood was a troubled time and music became a great encouragement for him. He listened to the likes of, Motown Artists, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Hank Williams and Ron Woods, and the Mystic Moods Orchestra. He began to travel playing gospel music from county to county and eventually began to do larger events.

Kevin had a fresh new sound and loved the spontaneous element of music. Along with many ethnic instruments, long time friend and drummer Martin Neil had played a big role in encouraging him with this sound, himself also playing several of these instruments, such as log drums and didgeridoos.

Kevin has influenced more worship artists than any other worship leader in this decade such as Martin Smith of Delirious, Matt Redman, Darrell Evans, and many others.

Kevin then in 1993 formed a club band, The Black Peppercorns produced by Ethan Johns (Kings Of Leon, Emma Lou Harris, Ray LaMotayne) with the likes of Counting crows and Peter Gabriel as his influences and began to travel to different countries and play shows from Albania, Switzerland to New Zealand.
He now resides in Amarillo Texas and owns and operates a recording studio Third Ear Music which specializes in old tube equipment and an unusual array of old instruments and amplifiers. He also pastors a church.

His hobbies are helping other musicians with their music, Engineering, Fishing, lots of camping, and a good glass of Lagavulin.

He also has a not for profit organization that sends musical instruments to young musicians in need around the Globe.



I hope you will join us for an outstanding time of spontaneous and engaging worship with Kevin Prosch and the Black Peppercorns during the Kingdom Transformation Conference. We thought you might like a sneak preview of a call to worship that translates the mundane into the realm of God’s presence. Enjoy! (insert Music video)
For more information about Kevin and his latest projects, check out this web address:
http://www.themusiccoope.com

Recently I have been trying to challenge myself and figure out where I want to go with my art. I realize that art is much more powerful and enjoyable when it is well communicated especially to those who aren’t usually “artistic”.
I pull most of my inspiration from music. Some of my favorites are Angels and Airwaves, Adam Young, and Switchfoot. If I get a new cd, I usually listen to it for the first time with my eyes closed; imagining things that go along with the sound. I love
delay pedals and guitar loops; I love stage lights and sunsets. I hope to capture this type of energy with my art.
I love that God blesses us as artists and as his co-creators. I love that I can pull inspiration and beauty and truth from anywhere because God has already blessed my passion to create when he created me.
I am a sixteen-year-old. I am active in the drama department at my school, Xenia Christian High School, and I work at Tim Horton’s. I live with my fantastic parents, Jeff and Annie, and my hilarious brother, AJ. I like to dance for fun, and I enjoy eating with chopsticks.
Thank you so much for reading. I’m willing to sell my art, so contact me if you’re interested and we’ll decide on a price. If you have any comments or things to say to me, I’d absolutely love to talk to you or receive an email from you.
Sincerely,
Laura Hoke
ImageNation@hotmail.com

We recently witnessed the dramatic act of nature on I-75’s sculpted Jesus that burned to the ground. Lightening hit the $300,000 sculpture constructed of Styrofoam and plaster over a metal frame covered by a thin skin of fiberglass. The sculpture had been the centerpiece of the front lawn of the Solid Rock Church, and was the talk of media across the country, referring to the piece as, “Butter Jesus” or “Touchdown Jesus.” According to Newsvine.com, church leaders are vowing to “rebuild the iconic King of Kings statue.”

The enormous, sculpted form has been a shock to many over the years. My daughter’s response, after seeing the sculpture for the first time was, “Oh Jesus!” She had been napping in the back seat and was startled by the sight. It was probably most people’s response even when they were awake.

Strangely enough, the same week I received phone calls and emails about the meltdown of the statue, I had a vision of a man on a ventilator for life support. The Lord asked me if I knew who he was. I said no. He said it was Jesus. The problem wasn’t that Jesus needed assistance to breathe or maintain life. The problem was assuming our assistance was needed to keep Him alive in our ministries. The vision was metaphorical to the fact that people had discovered how to keep ministry self-sustaining by life support techniques of their own-making. With these techniques, Christians are able to monitor the life and breath of what they are doing for Christ. In fact, the Father said that an epidemic had developed in the body of Christ; an epidemic I have decided to call the “Ventilator Jesus Syndrome.” It is the syndrome that occurs from self-reliance as the life support that powers our ministry.




How did we get here? The answer is not as simple as it may seem. Self-reliance is spreading through the country like a disease. The following are a few symptoms to help you evaluate your spiritual health and see if you have caught the Ventilator Jesus Syndrome.

1. Blurred Vision
This symptom is revealed when people find themselves creating good ideas that are not God ideas. We borrow perspectives that work outside of our own sphere and then things get cloudy as we try to make them fit our own environment. If you find yourself stumbling around trying to make something work that keeps tripping you up, you may have blurred vision.

Jesus said, “I only do what the Father says to do.” Actually, Jesus goes deeper than this when speaking to the mother of John and James in Matthew 20:20-23,
“Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. ‘What is it you want?’ he asked. She said, ‘Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.’ ‘You don't know what you are asking,’ Jesus said to them. ‘Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?’ ‘We can,’ they answered. Jesus said to them, ‘You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.’”

Jesus clearly saw whose vision He was to align Himself with. He did nothing on His own. When we think we can create, build or establish government or a church apart from the Lord’s voice, we will always have blurred vision.

2. Irregular heartbeat
This symptom is a result of not getting to the heart of what Christ desires. It is manifested when our personal interests over shadow God’s heart in a situation creating an abnormal heart pattern and rhythm that is unlike His. The systemic problems are revealed in these verses of Philippians...
“If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Philippians 2:1-4

Jesus desires that we have nothing tugging at our heartstrings other than His heart’s desire. Over time we can become calloused to this, thinking we have things figured out or that our ideas are the right ideas. This symptom makes us territorial and arrogant toward others. If you find you are having trouble getting to the Father’s heart due to your heart beating differently than His, you may be experiencing a heart irregularity.

3. Restlessness
This symptom is related to those aspects of ministry where you are not satisfied with how things are going. You may find you react instead of waiting for answers. You may also experience boredom and lack motivation. Many times when a person is operating out of their own strength, restlessness is the result. Restlessness is directly related to the need to push forward when you should be patiently preparing your spirit for the next God move. The tendency is to “jump the gun”. This is a serious symptom to address. Such conditions stem from having no “God time” on your radar. It happened to Cain...

“Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth...” Genesis 4:14

This symptom of restlessness mutates into fear when you become concerned about others getting ahead or becoming more successful.

“Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways.” Psalm 37:7

If these symptoms persist, they will inevitably lead to other side effects. The tendency is to get busier, fueled by driven ness, when the remedy is to stop moving.

4. Confusion
This symptom is of a more serious nature and is a result of the first three symptoms persisting over time. Unless this is treated soon, confusion will lead to chaotic responses and disorder in choices. This is the development of old patterns of worldly thinking...

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2

The result will be a type of spiritual, cognitive dissonance where we act and do things out of a fuzzy state of understanding and imbalance, placing our trust in our own thinking and becoming double-minded.

“But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.”
James 1:6-8

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

“And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

Confusion creates the illusion of right thinking. We fabricate in our own wisdom ideas we attribute to God. It is the substitution of relevance for genuine revelation.

5. Shortness of breath
With this symptom comes burnout. Anytime we are operating out of our own strength, we begin to find ourselves short of breath. It will not be long before we experience sleepless nights, anxiety attacks and other related conditions that are a result of shortness of breath. In time we breathe artificially to sustain our existence and eventually lose the strength to withstand the forces around us.

“We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.” Colossians 1:28-29

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.” Acts 17:24-25

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

Shortness of breath is a clear signal that you have the Ventilator Jesus Syndrome. This symptom has developed as a result of striving in ministry to the point of exhaustion. When we operate out of the spirit, “His burden is light and our joy is made complete.” He really is the one who “holds all things together.”






So what is the cure for the Ventilator Jesus Syndrome? On the spiritual health-meter, how do you score?


1-------------------- ♥---------------------10

We have become so clever, finding so many ways to be self-reliant. This is surely why Paul said we must “labor into our rest.” The reason for such a declaration is because of how hard we struggle to get the job done or how guilty we feel when we don’t. Here is a remedy you may consider if you are struggling with this syndrome:

• Take daily doses of the Bread of Life.
• Exercise the eyes of your heart.
• Get a lot of Sabbath rest.
• Meditate on God’s word.
• Don’t forget to breathe.

Warning: Take no supplements to this lifetime plan. If symptoms persist, increase the remedy till the problems are eradicated.

Acts 2:42 "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer."


In this post, I will address the third part of Acts 2:42: "They devoted themselves to the breaking of bread" When looking at this statement, we must look at it in 2 parts. First, breaking bread is symbolic of sharing a meal together. Secondly, breaking bread is symbolic of communion. As we have been looking at what it takes to sustain a revival that will last an entire generation, we see a significant theme. This theme is the importance of intimacy. As we talk about breaking bread, I really want to drive home the importance of intimacy.


Intimacy can be defined as a close association with, detailed knowledge or deep understanding of a person, place, or subject. How do we gain detailed knowledge or deep understanding? We do this by spending time with a certain person or in a certain place. We can also study subjects to gain knowledge and understanding. The main theme in defining intimacy as we see here, is spending time with who or what we are trying to know and understand. As we spend time with each other, we begin to know and understand each other on new levels.


In the buisiness of our everyday life, how do we find time to get to know and understand each other? The answer is quite simple. Slow down and make time for each other. One of the best ways to make time for each other is by sharing a meal together. Sharing a meal invites people into our home. When we are in our home, our defenses come down and we tend to open up who we truly are to each other. Conversations during the meal provide opportunities to bond, plan, connect, and learn from one another. Meals provide an atmosphere of warmth, security and love, as well as feelings of belonging. When we feel like we belong to something greater than ourselves, we become free to open up, explore, and become who the Lord has called us to be.

Exploring, with each other, who the Lord has called us to be is where the concept of communion comes into play. Communion can be defined in two ways. First, communion is an act of remembering what Jesus did for us and our connection with Him. When we accept Jesus, we come into communion with Him.

Matthew 26:26-29 says, "While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is My body." And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins. "But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom."


Secondly, the word communion comes from the words common and union. Merriam-Webster defines communion as mutual participation; an act or instance of sharing; intimate fellowship or rapport; and, having a common faith and discipline. When we come into communion with each other, we share a common ground and are able to strengthen, encourage, and help each other become who we are called to be.


In my next post, I will be addressing the final point of Acts 2:42 – the importance of prayer.

by Graham Cooke

When the Gospel came to the Greek people, they had no language for unconditional love. No word could adequately represent the magnitude for the concept. They had to make up a word that defines God's loving nature. That word is Agape. The most important thing about love is what we do with it.

Agape is unselfish love which expects no return We love for the sake of loving. Love begets love as surely as hate produces hatred. Love grows when given but diminishes when withheld. Agape is the unconditional love that God give us because of Who He is in Himself. He absolutely loves His enemies. The absolute proof of which is John 3:16 and Ephesians 2:1-10.

We love those who have lost sight of themselves and as a result have no clear idea of how to behave around people. The selfish, the arrogant, the abuser, and the miserly; people who are stingy, narrow-minded, and ungenerous. Love catches all and touches everyone. The difficult people are the proof of love since they need the most to be changed by it. Loving the nice is good practice; loving the unlovely is a sure sign that we know that we ourselves are the Beloved.

Love is feeling good about ourselves in the eyes of the Father and seeing what He sees in other people. It takes patience to love some people. Time is required for us to get over our prejudice, open our heart to God, and make life decisions about who we are going to be for the people who get on our last nerve. Christians are not renowned for thinking patiently. We preach about love but practice the worldly kind. We do not set people free with God's love; we imprison them with our own fleshly habits of anger, judgment and blame. Love does not make people pay. We confuse judgment with justice. Judgment revolves around blame, punishment, and condemnation. Justice is the mix of righteousness with integrity and dignity. It is about fair treatment and impartiality. Love enable people to be advantaged even in ways they least deserve.
Such love is not weak. It is powerful but meek, kind but firm, generous and righteous. Meekness is not weakness; it is strength under control. Love will not abandon others to their fate. Love changes the course of life. It does not wash its hands of people. Agape love will never diminish another human being, but will make a point to enhance their quality of life.


When we love as God loves we are most connected to our truest identity. We discover ourselves in God. We are always more free when practicing love and always more bound when we imprison other people by guilt. Agape love is not self-conscious, overly sensitive or self-righteous. We must expect to be criticized for real love. The sure sign that we are manifesting God's Presence in Agape is revealed in our vilification by the super-spiritual and the religious minded.

We cannot pretend to love people; that is unreality. however we can practice the nature of God on everyone, and in so doing, be transformed ourselves. Agape is a very deliberate choice. It cannot be merely spontaneous — it must be consciously planned. Such love is not simply a feeling but a definitive act of the will. We choose love regardless of how we feel. We love because of who we are now and because of who we want to become in Jesus.

Love expressed increases. Love withheld declines. Love is not about having the right person in front of us, who can see us in the right way. If God has loved us first (1 John 4:19) then we must look inward, not outward, for Agape. Love, like the Kingdom, is within us now! Accept it, receive it, and rejoice in it. Love being loved. The best way to express love is to do it.

Giving love demonstrates Jesus. Agape is not contrived and it is not selfish. Love always returns to us by use. We have love now - give it! nothing makes people more dependent, self-pitying, bitter, cynical and emotionally crippled than thinking they don't have love unless someone gives it to them.

We must start where we are slowly. It is vital to let love be a conscious act that defines who we want to become in our own identity. Love needs no reward. It does not keep score. It bears, believes, hopes, and endures all things. It needs no fanfares, grandiose statements, promises or resolutions. We do not need to draw attention to ourselves. Love from within the shadow of God's wings. Quietly, unannounced, in secret. The Father who sees in secret will multiply Agape to us. When we love, we bless ourselves. Just do it, quietly, for God's sake!

-Graham Cooke

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I was at the Winds Cafe with good friends, some I have known for a while, some new. We were sharing about life, about art and our spiritual journey. We had an amazing moment to speak prophetically into the life of our waitress whose name happened to be "Genesis".

As the evening quietly moved along, a storm hit with torrential rains that a member of our party said looked like the floodwaters of India. The storm took out the power, so we sat by candlelight and inspired conversation. Taylor, my son, pulled out his journal and began to read his poetry, and we all sat in a moment of wonder hoping the rains would not stop anytime soon.

It was art, a God moment. It felt timeless... it was being in dreaming... a convergence of who we really are and all that God imagines for us to be.

It is as one fine poet said, "We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn, which does not forsake us in our soundest sleep."

Imagine using your time to express the gifts God has given you as you walk through life everyday. What would that look like? What if being naturally supernatural had nothing to do with anything other than you simply being and living out of the Spirit's power within your creative edge? How would that change your journey?

When I consider God's purpose for me on this planet, the art I am to be as well as create, I hear something quite different than the white noise that presses me to think that doing is more important or more powerful than being. When I think about those who inspire me most and challenge me to live a life that expresses God in all the areas of my life, they are the people who have walked a simplistic road of wholeness and creativity. To live as Christ is not as hard as we make it. It is only when we compartmentalize who we are from what we do that we find the struggle.

Paul said we have to "labor into rest" because the toughest thing for believers to do is to stop being busy and just be. It takes Sabbath reflection to see we are created to be God's masterpiece and to sculpt out what His vision is for our destiny. The ebb and flow of our lives requires personal time of meditation and creative expression.

I know that I most touch the lives of others when people see my gardens, my art and my passion for intimacy with Him. If we move through the world like cattle, becoming domesticated and calculated, we quickly lose sight of our true north. Jesus said, "Consider the lilies of the field." Imagine taking the time to ponder what that looks like for your life? Would you change? What would your response be?

My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner
strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite
him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love,
you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant
dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test
its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives,
full in the fullness of God. God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Ephesians 3:16-21 (Message)

I want to truly live. This does not require neck-breaking effort that guilts me into a performance-based understanding of the Gospel... in fact it is just the opposite. As Thoreau said, "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."

This is a challenge to you for the season we are in...to live more deliberately, to labor into His rest, to fan into flame your gifts. It is time to step into the picture of the dream God has for you. As you watch this video by Andy Goldsworthy, artist and sculpting poet, imagine what it would be like if you left all behind to live the abundant life Christ died to give you...? Imagine "being in dreaming"... where all of the dreams you have, become the reality of who you are.

Cheers,
Rebecca

Living "in Christ" is full of surprises!

I have just begun to “unpack” my current art talent. Yet my creative juices began flowing early in life as a young gal growing up on a farm in the 40-60's. For me using ones imagination was the way of choice for adventurous fun and exciting play.

Curtains, old clothes, discarded dishes and just about anything else kept my sister Cathy and I busy for days on end. We were seldom board! Between the two of us we could imagine and improvise something to do out of practically nothing. Sparkie, my pony and I could be whatever struck my fancy on any give day. I had acres to claim as my domain for imaginary play and discovery. My great grand father, Ira was well acquainted with my building skills since his tools were easily accessible in the tool shed. I helped myself more frequently than Poppy approved of. However, he tolerated my borrowing. There were numerous trees on our property where my tree house designs were displayed.

In my teens the family moved to Kettering. My babysitting money was spent on art supplies from Fernandes art store at Town and Country Shopping center. I had a burning desire to express my self via art of some sort and for years I spent hours trying to teach myself and let out this energy of expression.

Before long my life was consumed with marriage, children, working and adult life in general. No time for art.

Gardening had always been an outlet for creation and expression for me. In my early empty nest years I became a master gardener and began working with a design/installing/maintenance group in the area. The creative energy began to flow. I was working with other creative thinking people. The seed of creativity was growing once again.

Last summer I began getting together with a few artist friends at the Vineyard.  It was exciting to be with people who “did” art. One friend was even willing to tutor me. My first assignment was to draw a circle and paint it to look like an apple or ball. Before long she suggested I take a drawing class. So I did.  My first art class ever!!! I was shocked! I could draw. Then I took an acrylic class and oh my, I could paint too. Praise God!!!! What a relief for me.

At the conference Graham Cooke spoke about giving our baggage to Christ in exchange for the opportunity to unpack the luggage God has prepared for us. I can clearly see that my new title as artist is one that God created me for. I spent much of my life dragging by baggage with no energy or time for unpacking the blessings God has for me.

In Christ I am discovering who I am and how He sees me. A part of His plan for me is to let out His creative energy of expression via art. My heart sings with joy to be able to share our, His and my, paintings with you. God bless you to discover what God has packed in your luggage, just for YOU!