You may have noticed I've started ending ("started ending?" Oxymoron, Josh Lyle!) my blogs with a blessing. For the last year or so I've noticed God telling me that blessing people is an important thing for me to do. But I don't often have a good opportunity to offer them, except on SonDay's at our corps.
I've actually written out a few for certain people- when I know I am going to be able pray it over them in person. I believe I may even have blogged one or two after I gave them to the person awhile back.
Rob Bell, an awesome teacher I have come to listen to a lot, always offers a blessing after his teachings and videos. He speaks a truth that he desires to come into being over the listener, based on the teaching he just offered. He is a master of the blessing and I look to him as an example.
The Bible is full of instances of people pronouncing blessings over people. I believe they can take on a prophetic role and "announce" a prophecy that God desires to fulfill in that person's life. That's how I think of them: I think, listen and pray a lot over a blessing before I give it. I don't just want to offer something that sounds cool or pompous. I want it to mean something, and if the person believes it and allows it to happen in their lives, come into fruition.
The blessing is a lost art form, which we should be steadily rediscovering and using. That's my goal.
So please take my blog blessings seriously. Allow them to flow over you as anointing oil flows over the head and drips down the body. Allow them to permeate your being and begin to be fulfilled in your life.
BLESSING:
May you learn to receive the Good Word God sends to you through his people. May you grab onto it, pull it inside and plant it deep within. May you water it, shelter it and allow it to grow into the flowering plant God desires. May you, in turn, become a large flowering plant that others can rest in your shade.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Friday, August 18, 2006
To Comment or Not to Comment. That is the Question.
I just got an email note from a friend who reads my blog regularly. He said he has never signed up for a blogger account so he can comment, because he feels he would then spend too much time in "blog world." Reading takes enough time as it is!
This friend is not the first I have heard from with similar news- I often get email notes from people commenting on my blog. For various reasons, many people like to read certain blogs, but they prefer not to respond. I understand- many times I have commented with good intentions and ended up word sparring with someone I don't even know. When that happens I usually end up feeling bad because I am misunderstood or we just don't see eye to eye. Or sometimes I just don't have the time to comment like I'd like to, then I forget to get back to it later.
I recently heard of someone who reads my blog even though it irritates them! Apparently they don't agree with my basic views, but I hear they keep coming back anyway. I hope they are open enough to let God speak to them through my words. Maybe some day they'll come around. Scripture says speaking the truth in love may one day bring about a new friend.
There are times I feel like I should just close this thing down and save the time it takes to think and prepare a blog daily (I shoot for daily, if I'm not always successful). And it can get irritating if I feel no one is reading it in the first place. But I keep plugging away because I feel God has something for me to accomplish here.
Then I discovered ClustrMaps (the map to the right)! Now every time someone drops by my blog, it plots where they are from on the map. There is a key to tell you what the dot sizes represent- basically the bigger the dot, the more hits from that area. By clicking on the map itself, you get a bigger map that shows things a bit more clearly.
Right now, ClustrMaps tells me that I've gotten 239 hits since I started using the map and 29 hits from yesterday alone. Not bad! I've gotten hits from Africa, Australia, Spain and England (I'd expect Canada and USA- I wonder how I can get some from all those other countries? Know any friends you could encourage to drop by?). It's very encouraging to know there are really people out there reading what I have to say even if they aren't telling me specifically.
Now I'm NOT trying to guilt people into commenting! I figure your reasons for commenting (or not) are good enough for you and I'm okay with that. It's just comforting to know what I'm doing is not useless. I hope my thoughts are either helping people or at least stimulating some good thought out there.
BLESSING:
May you be encouraged in what you do today. May you see results from your labors. May you know your energies are going for good in God's Kingdom and may you know God is pleased with your efforts.
This friend is not the first I have heard from with similar news- I often get email notes from people commenting on my blog. For various reasons, many people like to read certain blogs, but they prefer not to respond. I understand- many times I have commented with good intentions and ended up word sparring with someone I don't even know. When that happens I usually end up feeling bad because I am misunderstood or we just don't see eye to eye. Or sometimes I just don't have the time to comment like I'd like to, then I forget to get back to it later.
I recently heard of someone who reads my blog even though it irritates them! Apparently they don't agree with my basic views, but I hear they keep coming back anyway. I hope they are open enough to let God speak to them through my words. Maybe some day they'll come around. Scripture says speaking the truth in love may one day bring about a new friend.
There are times I feel like I should just close this thing down and save the time it takes to think and prepare a blog daily (I shoot for daily, if I'm not always successful). And it can get irritating if I feel no one is reading it in the first place. But I keep plugging away because I feel God has something for me to accomplish here.
Then I discovered ClustrMaps (the map to the right)! Now every time someone drops by my blog, it plots where they are from on the map. There is a key to tell you what the dot sizes represent- basically the bigger the dot, the more hits from that area. By clicking on the map itself, you get a bigger map that shows things a bit more clearly.
Right now, ClustrMaps tells me that I've gotten 239 hits since I started using the map and 29 hits from yesterday alone. Not bad! I've gotten hits from Africa, Australia, Spain and England (I'd expect Canada and USA- I wonder how I can get some from all those other countries? Know any friends you could encourage to drop by?). It's very encouraging to know there are really people out there reading what I have to say even if they aren't telling me specifically.
Now I'm NOT trying to guilt people into commenting! I figure your reasons for commenting (or not) are good enough for you and I'm okay with that. It's just comforting to know what I'm doing is not useless. I hope my thoughts are either helping people or at least stimulating some good thought out there.
BLESSING:
May you be encouraged in what you do today. May you see results from your labors. May you know your energies are going for good in God's Kingdom and may you know God is pleased with your efforts.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
2 Specific Things to Concentrate on in Bangor This Year
There are 2 specific things God has told us to concentrate on this year in Bangor. And it's my plan to accommodate him! Since hearing his leading, I've been working on ways to make some changes.
God's Instruction: Concentrate on training your Intercessors.
Our Plan: I purchased a special book about the relationship between Leaders and their Intercessors, "Intercessors and Pastors: The Emerging Partnership of Watchmen and Gatekeepers" by Eddie and Alice Smith (Spirit Truth Publishing). I am reading it now (there's LOTS of awesome insight in there, so far!) to prepare myself for the next step:
I purchased 6 books for 6 of our Intercessors (I already have them singled out), "The Beginner's Guide to Intercession" by Dutch Sheets (Gospel Light Publishing). My plan is to work through the book together in a small group setting.
As you know (if you've been reading my blog for any time at all), my mission is to equip and empower His people for their ministries (see "About Me" upper right). Therefore this is right up my alley, so to speak! Intercession is one of our corps' spiritual gifts as well, so this training is vital to our reaching our purpose as a part of the Body here in Bangor.
I expect this to be an awesome time of fellowship, training and learning how to further release our corps' purpose of intercession. Watch this space to hear of our progress.
God's Instruction: Concentrate on spiritually developing your Pre-Teens.
Our Plan: I'm actively looking to find a young woman (there's reason for it to be a woman) to take a part time job focusing specifically on developing our Pre-Teens. Her task would be to work closely with them, teach their SonDay School class in which they would develop their spiritual ears (hearing God speak to them), praying and getting them involved in our worship services.
I'm hoping to get involved a bit myself. I'm not sure yet what that's going to look like, but I am working on it. We'll see.
We have such a powerful young force available, but we have not been faithful in developing them to their potential. God wants us to change that.
BLESSING:
May you hear God's voice and know it's him when he speaks to you. May you not only understand what he wants you to do, may you joyfully jump straight into his purpose for you and concentrate on the specifics that will make it happen, to the glory of God our Father through Jesus Christ by the power of his Holy Spirit.
God's Instruction: Concentrate on training your Intercessors.
Our Plan: I purchased a special book about the relationship between Leaders and their Intercessors, "Intercessors and Pastors: The Emerging Partnership of Watchmen and Gatekeepers" by Eddie and Alice Smith (Spirit Truth Publishing). I am reading it now (there's LOTS of awesome insight in there, so far!) to prepare myself for the next step:
I purchased 6 books for 6 of our Intercessors (I already have them singled out), "The Beginner's Guide to Intercession" by Dutch Sheets (Gospel Light Publishing). My plan is to work through the book together in a small group setting.
As you know (if you've been reading my blog for any time at all), my mission is to equip and empower His people for their ministries (see "About Me" upper right). Therefore this is right up my alley, so to speak! Intercession is one of our corps' spiritual gifts as well, so this training is vital to our reaching our purpose as a part of the Body here in Bangor.
I expect this to be an awesome time of fellowship, training and learning how to further release our corps' purpose of intercession. Watch this space to hear of our progress.
God's Instruction: Concentrate on spiritually developing your Pre-Teens.
Our Plan: I'm actively looking to find a young woman (there's reason for it to be a woman) to take a part time job focusing specifically on developing our Pre-Teens. Her task would be to work closely with them, teach their SonDay School class in which they would develop their spiritual ears (hearing God speak to them), praying and getting them involved in our worship services.
I'm hoping to get involved a bit myself. I'm not sure yet what that's going to look like, but I am working on it. We'll see.
We have such a powerful young force available, but we have not been faithful in developing them to their potential. God wants us to change that.
BLESSING:
May you hear God's voice and know it's him when he speaks to you. May you not only understand what he wants you to do, may you joyfully jump straight into his purpose for you and concentrate on the specifics that will make it happen, to the glory of God our Father through Jesus Christ by the power of his Holy Spirit.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
2 New Resources
You may have noticed I've added a couple of new resources to the right. The first will be fun as we see where people who read this blog come from. Tip of the hat to Larry for that one.
The second one (found on Andrew's site) is definitely NOT fun. In fact, I almost didn't put it there because while it intrigued me at first, it soon began to annoy me. I'm not much for distractions while I'm trying to do something like read a blog, so that little counting number thing irritated me. After a time I noticed it was counting faster than a second per number and I thought: "Hmm, someone got the timer wrong." Soon thereafter, it dawned on me:
It's NOT counting seconds, it's counting how many people are dying!
Ouch! More than 1 per second. You know, we don't think about that stuff often enough (if at all). Each number racing past represents a person Jesus created and died for. Each one represents another spirit leaving this physical 3D plane and moving on to higher (or lower) spiritual dimensions. Each one is known intimately by their creator. And each one is either celebrated or mourned as they make that move.
Now I'm saddened too. For almost all of these people, I can't make a bit of a difference. I never knew them; never came in contact with them; never had a chance to tell them about Jesus and their eternal spirits.
But there are some that I do know. They don't pass without my knowledge, but as each one leaves this realm, I must ask myself what I have done to either let them in on "the secret," or help them know Jesus better.
It's a personal question; directed at me. I require an answer from myself. But as I come to account for my actions or lack thereof, you too must ask a similar question of yourself. It's a personal question; directed at you.
BLESSING:
May you ask the right question of yourself and may it change the way you look at the people around you. May you be a huge influence on their lives by helping them know of their eternal spirits and the eternal lover of those spirits.
And may more of those speedily counting numbers to the right be a reason for celebration than mourning.
The second one (found on Andrew's site) is definitely NOT fun. In fact, I almost didn't put it there because while it intrigued me at first, it soon began to annoy me. I'm not much for distractions while I'm trying to do something like read a blog, so that little counting number thing irritated me. After a time I noticed it was counting faster than a second per number and I thought: "Hmm, someone got the timer wrong." Soon thereafter, it dawned on me:
It's NOT counting seconds, it's counting how many people are dying!
Ouch! More than 1 per second. You know, we don't think about that stuff often enough (if at all). Each number racing past represents a person Jesus created and died for. Each one represents another spirit leaving this physical 3D plane and moving on to higher (or lower) spiritual dimensions. Each one is known intimately by their creator. And each one is either celebrated or mourned as they make that move.
Now I'm saddened too. For almost all of these people, I can't make a bit of a difference. I never knew them; never came in contact with them; never had a chance to tell them about Jesus and their eternal spirits.
But there are some that I do know. They don't pass without my knowledge, but as each one leaves this realm, I must ask myself what I have done to either let them in on "the secret," or help them know Jesus better.
It's a personal question; directed at me. I require an answer from myself. But as I come to account for my actions or lack thereof, you too must ask a similar question of yourself. It's a personal question; directed at you.
BLESSING:
May you ask the right question of yourself and may it change the way you look at the people around you. May you be a huge influence on their lives by helping them know of their eternal spirits and the eternal lover of those spirits.
And may more of those speedily counting numbers to the right be a reason for celebration than mourning.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Anonymous Strikes Again!
I've had a quote stickied to my monitor since I discovered it awhile ago. It came from the mouth of that famous author, Anonymous (I think he lived back in the days when we called people by one name, like Aristotle, Plato, Cher and "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince-" O wait- that's more than one name).
I get frustrated, because truth is a non-negotiable, but it is still negotiated. People believe truth to be what they want it to be. We distort facts, add a bit of wishful thinking, sprinkle in a bit of poor logic and come up with something we call truth, but is often the very opposite. But worse than that, we then base our lives on this self-made shaky foundation!
"Jesus is Lord." This is truth, but there are people who refuse to believe it. While most people believe there are angels and fallen angels, they refuse to believe there are demons (the more common name we call fallen angels). Or at least they refuse to believe demons bother us. People join The Salvation Army to fight the "good fight" against Satan and sin, yet there are those who refuse to believe in "Spiritual Warfare." I could go on and one here . . .
I think people choose to believe certain things because 1) if we change our beliefs, it would show we've been wrong for some time, 2) if we change our beliefs, that would mean we'd have to change our actions [heaven forbid!], 3) we've been taught to believe certain things and, well, "so and so" just couldn't have been wrong! and 4) we're just too stubborn.
Too bad. I'd rather be proven wrong and learn the truth than hold onto my cherished falsehoods. Today we may be able to live with the lies, but some day we will not. Being wrong for eternity gives you no time to learn the truth.
BLESSING:
May God give you the grace to seek truth and desire it deep within your spirit. May you gain the humility to let go of your cherished falsehoods when you discover that truth. May you be set free by knowing Jesus as The Truth.
Truth is not always popular, but it is always right.Another famous person asked Jesus the question: "What is truth?" The more I think about what truth is, the deeper I get into frustration. One thing I know- one day we will all stand before God and know the truth. We will know many great truths of eternity as well as who it was that repeatedly stole just one of your socks from the dryer.
I get frustrated, because truth is a non-negotiable, but it is still negotiated. People believe truth to be what they want it to be. We distort facts, add a bit of wishful thinking, sprinkle in a bit of poor logic and come up with something we call truth, but is often the very opposite. But worse than that, we then base our lives on this self-made shaky foundation!
"Jesus is Lord." This is truth, but there are people who refuse to believe it. While most people believe there are angels and fallen angels, they refuse to believe there are demons (the more common name we call fallen angels). Or at least they refuse to believe demons bother us. People join The Salvation Army to fight the "good fight" against Satan and sin, yet there are those who refuse to believe in "Spiritual Warfare." I could go on and one here . . .
I think people choose to believe certain things because 1) if we change our beliefs, it would show we've been wrong for some time, 2) if we change our beliefs, that would mean we'd have to change our actions [heaven forbid!], 3) we've been taught to believe certain things and, well, "so and so" just couldn't have been wrong! and 4) we're just too stubborn.
Too bad. I'd rather be proven wrong and learn the truth than hold onto my cherished falsehoods. Today we may be able to live with the lies, but some day we will not. Being wrong for eternity gives you no time to learn the truth.
BLESSING:
May God give you the grace to seek truth and desire it deep within your spirit. May you gain the humility to let go of your cherished falsehoods when you discover that truth. May you be set free by knowing Jesus as The Truth.
Monday, August 14, 2006
The First Presentation of the Gospel
When does the Bible first present the Gospel message of Jesus Christ? Matthew? Isaiah? How about Genesis. Genesis 5 to be specific. Take a moment and look it up. Do you see it?
"The first genealogy!" you say. "Those things? I just bleep over them!"
Why do you do that? Doesn't the Bible say: "ALL scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching . . . " (2 Timothy 3:16)?
I learned an awesome tip the other day listening to a teaching tape (mp3) by Chuck Missler. When the Bible lists a genealogy or list of names, put the name meanings together and see what the sentence says! Tricky, huh?
So NOW take a look at Genesis 5:1-29. Adam means "man," Seth means "appointed," Enos(h) means "mortal," Cainan means "sorrow," Mahelal(eel) means "the blessed God," Jared means "shall come," Enoch means "teaching," Methuselah means "his death shall bring," Lamech means "the despairing," and Noah means "rest."
Put that sentence together (with a couple of connecting words) and you get:
Even at the beginning of time (as we know it), God was hinting at his planned redemption of his people! The more I learn about the God of the Bible and his Word to us, the more I see how very much we DON'T know. And the more I see how incredible he is!
Now try this with the lists of the tribes of Israel- they're often written in differing orders- maybe for a different message? Or maybe the Apostles? There are certainly plenty of other genealogies. Any other name lists you can think of? Anyone out there willing to do some research- fill us in on what you find!
BLESSING:
May you begin to discover the brilliance of our God, Yahweh. May you learn of the incredible ways he has worked throughout time to reach and connect with us. May you know his great love for his creation- especially his great love for you!
"The first genealogy!" you say. "Those things? I just bleep over them!"
Why do you do that? Doesn't the Bible say: "ALL scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching . . . " (2 Timothy 3:16)?
I learned an awesome tip the other day listening to a teaching tape (mp3) by Chuck Missler. When the Bible lists a genealogy or list of names, put the name meanings together and see what the sentence says! Tricky, huh?
So NOW take a look at Genesis 5:1-29. Adam means "man," Seth means "appointed," Enos(h) means "mortal," Cainan means "sorrow," Mahelal(eel) means "the blessed God," Jared means "shall come," Enoch means "teaching," Methuselah means "his death shall bring," Lamech means "the despairing," and Noah means "rest."
Put that sentence together (with a couple of connecting words) and you get:
Man('s) appointed (to) mortal sorrow. But the blessed God shall come down teaching (and) his death shall bring the despairing, rest.Sometimes it may be harder to put them together coherently, because some names may mean more than one thing. But all that aside, isn't this AWESOME?
Even at the beginning of time (as we know it), God was hinting at his planned redemption of his people! The more I learn about the God of the Bible and his Word to us, the more I see how very much we DON'T know. And the more I see how incredible he is!
Now try this with the lists of the tribes of Israel- they're often written in differing orders- maybe for a different message? Or maybe the Apostles? There are certainly plenty of other genealogies. Any other name lists you can think of? Anyone out there willing to do some research- fill us in on what you find!
BLESSING:
May you begin to discover the brilliance of our God, Yahweh. May you learn of the incredible ways he has worked throughout time to reach and connect with us. May you know his great love for his creation- especially his great love for you!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
SonDay Musings
In case you missed our service in Bangor today, you can go below and read my message (Saturday's blog)! Of course, in person I threw in a couple of good jokes (I said "good jokes" Tara- people actually laughed!), but you'll get the gist.
This message was one of those that you just knew God was going to bless, because I had an awesome sense about it even as I was writing it. Holy Spirit within was witnessing to my spirit (TSA doctrine #8) and I could hardly wait to speak it out to God's people. True to his word to me, God led seekers to our altar and we had a powerful time of prayer.
At one point during prayer, I looked over and saw "Walmart" (written on the crutch padding of one of our seekers) laying on the floor under the altar. Seeing Walmart prostrate at the foot of the penitent form hit me as a profound thing- kind of like the statuette of Santa kneeling at the creche of baby Jesus. Very enlightening: one day EVERY knee will bow . . .
It's good to bow at Jesus feet. I often spend my SonDay mornings on my face in prayer in our chapel. God has been faithful to my years long commitment and we regularly see God move in our midst these days. Good thing. I'm not sure I could survive without his presence. I certainly wouldn't want to; like when God told Moses to lead the people on, but God wouldn't go with them. Moses said: "If you don't go with us, why would we go?"
I wouldn't want to be in ministry without God's presence. I can't imagine doing all God has called me to do without his being right there with me in a physical way; his manifestation. I know there are people (soldiers, ministers, pastors, officers, etc) who don't know what God's manifest presence is (or at least experience it rarely)- it was around 12 years into my officership that I learned what that was and started experiencing it regularly! How sad.
Living in God's presence only comes with spending lots of time in prayer in God's presence. That's one of the reasons I'm thrilled to see the latest prayer movement growing strong. This next generation is spending time in God's presence praying and they will learn to walk in that presence. God will be able to work powerfully through them and they will know what it is to see the miraculous as a common thing. Incredible!
We're seriously talking about designing and building a newly partitioned room in our corps as a dedicated prayer room. It will probably take some time to get it up to 24/7 prayer speed, but we're already on our way. That will help us accomplish our corps mission of intercessory prayer for our community.
It's coming and I can hardly wait!
BLESSING:
May you learn to kneel in God's presence regularly. When you do, may he lay his hand on your back and fill you with his presence and power. May you not be able to live without him.
This message was one of those that you just knew God was going to bless, because I had an awesome sense about it even as I was writing it. Holy Spirit within was witnessing to my spirit (TSA doctrine #8) and I could hardly wait to speak it out to God's people. True to his word to me, God led seekers to our altar and we had a powerful time of prayer.
At one point during prayer, I looked over and saw "Walmart" (written on the crutch padding of one of our seekers) laying on the floor under the altar. Seeing Walmart prostrate at the foot of the penitent form hit me as a profound thing- kind of like the statuette of Santa kneeling at the creche of baby Jesus. Very enlightening: one day EVERY knee will bow . . .
It's good to bow at Jesus feet. I often spend my SonDay mornings on my face in prayer in our chapel. God has been faithful to my years long commitment and we regularly see God move in our midst these days. Good thing. I'm not sure I could survive without his presence. I certainly wouldn't want to; like when God told Moses to lead the people on, but God wouldn't go with them. Moses said: "If you don't go with us, why would we go?"
I wouldn't want to be in ministry without God's presence. I can't imagine doing all God has called me to do without his being right there with me in a physical way; his manifestation. I know there are people (soldiers, ministers, pastors, officers, etc) who don't know what God's manifest presence is (or at least experience it rarely)- it was around 12 years into my officership that I learned what that was and started experiencing it regularly! How sad.
Living in God's presence only comes with spending lots of time in prayer in God's presence. That's one of the reasons I'm thrilled to see the latest prayer movement growing strong. This next generation is spending time in God's presence praying and they will learn to walk in that presence. God will be able to work powerfully through them and they will know what it is to see the miraculous as a common thing. Incredible!
We're seriously talking about designing and building a newly partitioned room in our corps as a dedicated prayer room. It will probably take some time to get it up to 24/7 prayer speed, but we're already on our way. That will help us accomplish our corps mission of intercessory prayer for our community.
It's coming and I can hardly wait!
BLESSING:
May you learn to kneel in God's presence regularly. When you do, may he lay his hand on your back and fill you with his presence and power. May you not be able to live without him.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
More on BE Over DO
Anyone like Math? Not me! But I know you need it to live. Imagine paying for a $1 item with a $20 bill and getting back $5! No matter what we think of Math, we need it to live.
In Math you need to solve equations. Some simple (x-4=10), some hard (2x2-x-1=0). To get the answer, you have to solve the equation.
The other day, I mentioned God gave me a spiritual equation:
BE
- - -
DO
What does it mean? What is he trying to say to me? To get the answer, I had to solve the equation. So I started looking at Behaviors and Customs; I got the idea from reading Romans 12:2 (NIV):
The world is getting busier and faster. Daily, there's more to do, more to be aware of, more to get involved with, more you need to see, more you need- more, more, more!
Many years aog Alvin Toffler wrote a book called "Future Shock." In it he said we are learning information at such a fast pace, it will soon build up until we go into information shock. He was right. That's exactly what's happening all around us. Many Christians have gotten sucked in too!
When God gave me this equation, I was thinking about how much I HAD to do! I was rushed, I was anxious, I was stressing out! THIS is the Way of the World. THIS is what the World has to offer us. Do, do, do!
The Behaviors and Customs of The Kingdom
The Kingdom says there is time enough- to get everything done, to work, to play, to build, to tear down, to laugh, to cry (read Ecclesiastes 3:1-15) . . .
Ever notice how Jesus was never rushing anywhere? He always walked (I wonder, did he ever run?) Even when a close friend was dying, he took his time. People said: "Your Friend died! Run! Rush to him!" They all thought he was crazy to move so slowly!
But you see, accomplishing things is NOT what God is concerned about. He's concerned with WHO you ARE. Your character, not your resume! This whole "life thing," while we're here on earth, is just preparation for living in eternity. It's not about what you do, it's about WHO you are becoming, so you can live with God forever. Who you ARE when you go to be with him, is the most important thing. Period. It matters to him. That's WHY we're here. Be, be, be.
Which Behaviors and Customs are You Going to Follow?
So it all boils down to a choice. A choice YOU have to make. Which Behaviors and Customs are You going to follow?
If you choose The World, you can count on a life of rushing, a life of stress, of worry, of headaches and stomach pains. A life that just keeps adding more to your plate, keeps building until one day, you're going to POP! Or you're going to stand before God with a HUGE list of things you accomplished, but an empty character.
If you choose The Kingdom, you can count on a life of time enough, peace, trust, of happiness and joy. A life that keeps everything in the perspective of eternity until one day, you're going to bless someone! Or you're going to stand before God with an awesome character and he won't even CARE about the list of things you've done.
Stop a moment. Take a good long look into your heart. Are you at peace now? Or are you anxious to get to that next place; accomplish the next thing on your list? Hurry up and finish reading this blog so you can move on to the next one?
BE Over DO. Always. That's what really matters.
What is Holy Spirit saying to your heart right now? Have you solved the equation yet?
BLESSING:
May you be at peace as you listen to God's voice. May you make good choices in your life, starting right now. May you choose The Kingdom over The World in everything. May you always choose to BE over DO. And may God be pleased with what you have done with your time when you stand before him on That Great and Wonderful Day.
In Math you need to solve equations. Some simple (x-4=10), some hard (2x2-x-1=0). To get the answer, you have to solve the equation.
The other day, I mentioned God gave me a spiritual equation:
BE
- - -
DO
What does it mean? What is he trying to say to me? To get the answer, I had to solve the equation. So I started looking at Behaviors and Customs; I got the idea from reading Romans 12:2 (NIV):
Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world,but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.The Behavior and Customs of this World
The world is getting busier and faster. Daily, there's more to do, more to be aware of, more to get involved with, more you need to see, more you need- more, more, more!
Many years aog Alvin Toffler wrote a book called "Future Shock." In it he said we are learning information at such a fast pace, it will soon build up until we go into information shock. He was right. That's exactly what's happening all around us. Many Christians have gotten sucked in too!
When God gave me this equation, I was thinking about how much I HAD to do! I was rushed, I was anxious, I was stressing out! THIS is the Way of the World. THIS is what the World has to offer us. Do, do, do!
The Behaviors and Customs of The Kingdom
The Kingdom says there is time enough- to get everything done, to work, to play, to build, to tear down, to laugh, to cry (read Ecclesiastes 3:1-15) . . .
Ever notice how Jesus was never rushing anywhere? He always walked (I wonder, did he ever run?) Even when a close friend was dying, he took his time. People said: "Your Friend died! Run! Rush to him!" They all thought he was crazy to move so slowly!
But you see, accomplishing things is NOT what God is concerned about. He's concerned with WHO you ARE. Your character, not your resume! This whole "life thing," while we're here on earth, is just preparation for living in eternity. It's not about what you do, it's about WHO you are becoming, so you can live with God forever. Who you ARE when you go to be with him, is the most important thing. Period. It matters to him. That's WHY we're here. Be, be, be.
Which Behaviors and Customs are You Going to Follow?
So it all boils down to a choice. A choice YOU have to make. Which Behaviors and Customs are You going to follow?
If you choose The World, you can count on a life of rushing, a life of stress, of worry, of headaches and stomach pains. A life that just keeps adding more to your plate, keeps building until one day, you're going to POP! Or you're going to stand before God with a HUGE list of things you accomplished, but an empty character.
If you choose The Kingdom, you can count on a life of time enough, peace, trust, of happiness and joy. A life that keeps everything in the perspective of eternity until one day, you're going to bless someone! Or you're going to stand before God with an awesome character and he won't even CARE about the list of things you've done.
Stop a moment. Take a good long look into your heart. Are you at peace now? Or are you anxious to get to that next place; accomplish the next thing on your list? Hurry up and finish reading this blog so you can move on to the next one?
BE Over DO. Always. That's what really matters.
What is Holy Spirit saying to your heart right now? Have you solved the equation yet?
BLESSING:
May you be at peace as you listen to God's voice. May you make good choices in your life, starting right now. May you choose The Kingdom over The World in everything. May you always choose to BE over DO. And may God be pleased with what you have done with your time when you stand before him on That Great and Wonderful Day.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Ambassador of Grace
I want to plug a new Blog I have posted to the right (click on the title above or the link below):
Ambassador of Grace
This is a blog you'll want to read often, because Shaun Bellanger (the author) truly epitomizes an Ambassador of Grace (he also epitomizes a huggable teddy bear).
Shaun is one of my favorite people. It is always a bright moment when he comes into the picture of my day, either by thought or in person. Laughing 90% of the time and crying on his knees in intercession the other 10%, Shaun is a powerful Christian leader. I want to be just like him when I grow up!
So follow Shaun's musings with me as he enters the blogosphere, uniquely redirecting our way back to our Savior's unlimited grace.
BLESSING:
May you daily experience God's grace to you in new ways and may that grace become your foundation. May you not only receive his grace, may you also BE his grace to others who need his touch in their lives.
Ambassador of Grace
This is a blog you'll want to read often, because Shaun Bellanger (the author) truly epitomizes an Ambassador of Grace (he also epitomizes a huggable teddy bear).
Shaun is one of my favorite people. It is always a bright moment when he comes into the picture of my day, either by thought or in person. Laughing 90% of the time and crying on his knees in intercession the other 10%, Shaun is a powerful Christian leader. I want to be just like him when I grow up!
So follow Shaun's musings with me as he enters the blogosphere, uniquely redirecting our way back to our Savior's unlimited grace.
BLESSING:
May you daily experience God's grace to you in new ways and may that grace become your foundation. May you not only receive his grace, may you also BE his grace to others who need his touch in their lives.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Being Spirit-led
I just finished reading the Intercessors Update for Vancouver 614. Carla does a nice job with this and I am often taken by the requests and answers to prayer. This time, my reading came to a screeching halt with this request:
Pray that we will be Spirit-led and not program-led in our ministry.
WOW! I thought!
I was so impressed, I thought it backwards: WOW!
Program is NOT the end-all of our ministry. Friends, I'm sorry to drop that bomb on you. I hope you survive it's destructive explosion in your life! I really do, because if you survive, you might actually get over that trap of The Enemy and get back to the people who ARE the end-all.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not against programs. Sometimes programs are wonderful. But too often they control us and dictate what we do and who we are. Sometimes they even dictate {shudder} what we can't do (by the way, in case you didn't notice, "can't" is a 4 letter word according to Philippians 4:13)!
A program should come about when 1) a large group of people are clamoring for it to happen, 2) there is someone so interested in making that program happen they volunteer to make it happen by taking ownership and leading it or 3) Holy Spirit tells you to do it.
A program should NOT come about when 1) a couple of people are clamoring for it to happen, 2) neither of them are willing to lead it, 3) "every other" corps does it, 4) you need the stats or 5) leadership (somewhere up the line) tells you to start it because they have taken a special liking to that program and therefore all corps should now put their attention in this direction.
As you can easily see, there are more reasons NOT to start a program than to actually start one and the reasons are harder to come by.
We have started all kinds of new programs (or projects) over our years of officership. The only ones that were successful over the long haul were the ones that God told us to start. I guess this all boils down to listening to God's voice and doing what he tells you to do.
What a concept!
BLESSING:
May you be blessed with a keen ear to hear God's voice in your life. May you learn to discern the difference between God's voice, The Enemy's and your own will. May you not be convinced by people to move on something unless God is clearly the instigator. May his Spirit lead you in all things.
Pray that we will be Spirit-led and not program-led in our ministry.
WOW! I thought!
I was so impressed, I thought it backwards: WOW!
Program is NOT the end-all of our ministry. Friends, I'm sorry to drop that bomb on you. I hope you survive it's destructive explosion in your life! I really do, because if you survive, you might actually get over that trap of The Enemy and get back to the people who ARE the end-all.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not against programs. Sometimes programs are wonderful. But too often they control us and dictate what we do and who we are. Sometimes they even dictate {shudder} what we can't do (by the way, in case you didn't notice, "can't" is a 4 letter word according to Philippians 4:13)!
A program should come about when 1) a large group of people are clamoring for it to happen, 2) there is someone so interested in making that program happen they volunteer to make it happen by taking ownership and leading it or 3) Holy Spirit tells you to do it.
A program should NOT come about when 1) a couple of people are clamoring for it to happen, 2) neither of them are willing to lead it, 3) "every other" corps does it, 4) you need the stats or 5) leadership (somewhere up the line) tells you to start it because they have taken a special liking to that program and therefore all corps should now put their attention in this direction.
As you can easily see, there are more reasons NOT to start a program than to actually start one and the reasons are harder to come by.
We have started all kinds of new programs (or projects) over our years of officership. The only ones that were successful over the long haul were the ones that God told us to start. I guess this all boils down to listening to God's voice and doing what he tells you to do.
What a concept!
BLESSING:
May you be blessed with a keen ear to hear God's voice in your life. May you learn to discern the difference between God's voice, The Enemy's and your own will. May you not be convinced by people to move on something unless God is clearly the instigator. May his Spirit lead you in all things.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
A Spiritual Equation
Yesterday I had so much to do I got up extra early to head to the office. Early morning (or early evening) is a great time to get things done, because most people aren't in yet and the phone doesn't start ringing yet. And "off to work" I was, as I cleared things off my desk and emptied my Lotus Notes email. I was feeling pretty good, then the "people" started.
Now I don't want you to get the wrong impression- people ARE my business, as it were. But when things need to get done and paperwork piles high, the people "interruptions" can get me feeling anxious that I won't get everything done when it needs to be done. They also drain me so I feel wiped out at the end of the day.
I know, I know! People aren't the interruptions- the paperwork is. And the people are the main work, not the paper. But you know how it gets sometimes and you can be easily sidetracked by the "squeaky wheel" of paperwork. It wants grease. It wants it NOW! And it will make BIG TIME irritating noise until you deal with it.
{sigh}
Running late for lunch because of a building inspection, I sped up to Subway to grab a sandwich to take to the office and get back to "work." I pulled in next to Aurora's car (I could tell because of the repaired front bumper!) and peeked in the door to see who might all be there. Aurora and Mary Campbell were seated together near the back of the room. They had just come from helping clean someone's house. I ALMOST hesitated and went to another place, because I was in a hurry and I didn't want to be sidetracked. But that would take more time.
I went through the line and after I had my order, I noticed they hadn't seen me yet. Maybe I could sneak out before they saw me at all! But no, I felt I should go over and say "hi." After chatting for a few, Aurora asked me if I wanted to join them.
There it was. An invitation I didn't want because I needed to get back to work. If I said "no," would they be offended? Could I take a few minutes to eat with them?
At that moment, God spoke to me (thankfully I was listening) and reminded me: "It's all about the people." So I sat. And NOT reluctantly. It felt good to join them and chat for awhile. Too many of my quick lunches are by myself when they could (and should) double as fellowship.
I had a great time!
THEN I went back to work, but feeling better and a little bit refreshed.
In prayer this morning, God gave me a spiritual equation:
BE
---
DO
Be over Do. Always. It's a Spiritual Law. We should NEVER sacrifice BEING over DOING. Never. That would be similar to "the end justifying the means." It doesn't and we should never be caught in that trap of The Enemy.
Neither should we be caught in the trap of doing things instead of being the person God wants us to be. Or that things are more important than people.
Oh to be sure, there are things that NEED to be done. I get it. HOWEVER, those things NEVER take precedence over WHO we are and HOW we do those things.
BLESSING:
May you always remember to put people over things. May the fellowship of the body be more important to you than anything you have to do in any given day. May God's grace be obvious over your work and over your relationships. May you accomplish what God wants you to today. No more. No less.
And may you be at peace with that.
Now I don't want you to get the wrong impression- people ARE my business, as it were. But when things need to get done and paperwork piles high, the people "interruptions" can get me feeling anxious that I won't get everything done when it needs to be done. They also drain me so I feel wiped out at the end of the day.
I know, I know! People aren't the interruptions- the paperwork is. And the people are the main work, not the paper. But you know how it gets sometimes and you can be easily sidetracked by the "squeaky wheel" of paperwork. It wants grease. It wants it NOW! And it will make BIG TIME irritating noise until you deal with it.
{sigh}
Running late for lunch because of a building inspection, I sped up to Subway to grab a sandwich to take to the office and get back to "work." I pulled in next to Aurora's car (I could tell because of the repaired front bumper!) and peeked in the door to see who might all be there. Aurora and Mary Campbell were seated together near the back of the room. They had just come from helping clean someone's house. I ALMOST hesitated and went to another place, because I was in a hurry and I didn't want to be sidetracked. But that would take more time.
I went through the line and after I had my order, I noticed they hadn't seen me yet. Maybe I could sneak out before they saw me at all! But no, I felt I should go over and say "hi." After chatting for a few, Aurora asked me if I wanted to join them.
There it was. An invitation I didn't want because I needed to get back to work. If I said "no," would they be offended? Could I take a few minutes to eat with them?
At that moment, God spoke to me (thankfully I was listening) and reminded me: "It's all about the people." So I sat. And NOT reluctantly. It felt good to join them and chat for awhile. Too many of my quick lunches are by myself when they could (and should) double as fellowship.
I had a great time!
THEN I went back to work, but feeling better and a little bit refreshed.
In prayer this morning, God gave me a spiritual equation:
BE
---
DO
Be over Do. Always. It's a Spiritual Law. We should NEVER sacrifice BEING over DOING. Never. That would be similar to "the end justifying the means." It doesn't and we should never be caught in that trap of The Enemy.
Neither should we be caught in the trap of doing things instead of being the person God wants us to be. Or that things are more important than people.
Oh to be sure, there are things that NEED to be done. I get it. HOWEVER, those things NEVER take precedence over WHO we are and HOW we do those things.
BLESSING:
May you always remember to put people over things. May the fellowship of the body be more important to you than anything you have to do in any given day. May God's grace be obvious over your work and over your relationships. May you accomplish what God wants you to today. No more. No less.
And may you be at peace with that.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
SonDay's are Awesome in Bangor!
Today was another awesome SonDay in Bangor! I must admit, it took me awhile to sincerely believe this truth (a lot of growth has been going on over the last few years), but once it finally hit me, I have become always grateful for every chance to worship with this local family of believers.
Many of our number were still at OOB for the camp meetings, but we still had a good attendance. People were open to worship and the gist of the service (being faithful). Heather Dolby and Acacia Wulfing were visiting and participated with testimony and song. It was so good to have them with us! What they both offered was right on target with the intended theme without my previously filling them in (I LOVE it when Holy Spirit does that!). The theme of faithfulness was woven nicely throughout the service.
Afterwards, someone said how that message had been helpful for them. My response was that I usually preach for myself and let God apply it to others as he sees fit. That way I am more passionate about what I am saying. I have also found that if I preach "at" any specific person in the congregation, it ends up backfiring anyway! Besides, it's not my job to convict people, Holy Spirit does that quite nicely on his own, if we let him work!
I love SonDay's in Bangor at The Salvation Army! What happens at your place of worship? Are you filled with a sense of God's presence? Does God "show up" regularly? What kind of family has developed?
Fill me in. I'd like to know. Oh, and if you're every in Bangor on a SonDay- join us and be blessed!
Many of our number were still at OOB for the camp meetings, but we still had a good attendance. People were open to worship and the gist of the service (being faithful). Heather Dolby and Acacia Wulfing were visiting and participated with testimony and song. It was so good to have them with us! What they both offered was right on target with the intended theme without my previously filling them in (I LOVE it when Holy Spirit does that!). The theme of faithfulness was woven nicely throughout the service.
Afterwards, someone said how that message had been helpful for them. My response was that I usually preach for myself and let God apply it to others as he sees fit. That way I am more passionate about what I am saying. I have also found that if I preach "at" any specific person in the congregation, it ends up backfiring anyway! Besides, it's not my job to convict people, Holy Spirit does that quite nicely on his own, if we let him work!
I love SonDay's in Bangor at The Salvation Army! What happens at your place of worship? Are you filled with a sense of God's presence? Does God "show up" regularly? What kind of family has developed?
Fill me in. I'd like to know. Oh, and if you're every in Bangor on a SonDay- join us and be blessed!
Saturday, August 05, 2006
How Efficient are We?
I found a great quote the other day from Peter Drucker:
Yeah, good idea! So here are the ground rules:
1) Funny is good, but it's got to be truth. No fabrications!
2) Naming a specific person is NOT good (nor should it be obvious even though not mentioned).
3) Soap boxes are allowed, as long as you don't get mean spirited.
4) All answers should be efficiently written (ha!).
Let's see what we can come up with. Ready? Set. Go!
"There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all."Sometimes I wonder. While I love this Army dearly, we are often very good at doing things that just shouldn't be done in the first place . . . I was just about to list a couple and then got a brilliant idea. Why not ask you, the reader, to help me form this list?
Yeah, good idea! So here are the ground rules:
1) Funny is good, but it's got to be truth. No fabrications!
2) Naming a specific person is NOT good (nor should it be obvious even though not mentioned).
3) Soap boxes are allowed, as long as you don't get mean spirited.
4) All answers should be efficiently written (ha!).
Let's see what we can come up with. Ready? Set. Go!
Friday, August 04, 2006
Chapel Pictures - I Am; You Are
When renovating our last corps chapel at the Red Bank Corps, in New Jersey, we decided to put these two pictures on our back wall. The intent, of course, is to bring us into worship by reminding us of who Jesus is and who we are in relationship to our Savior. So these pictures were framed and placed prominently for all to see and meditate on.When I say these pictures, I mean these very same pictures. Recently, you might remember my blog on the dedication of the new Red Bank, New Jersey Corps. While there, I mentioned to Captain John Ferreira (CO) that I just could not find copies of those pictures we had on the old building chapel wall. He said they had placed them in an upstairs room in the new building and if we'd like them, he'd be more than happy to let us have them! He'd rather see them in a chapel than on the wall of a game room. I was overwhelmed with gratitude!
So they both went into our van to travel all the way to Bangor,
Maine where they were reframed and readied for their new "place of honor." Who would have ever thought where these pictures would end up?These two pictures are very special to Debbie and me and come to Bangor with a lot of sacred history pointing the way to worship. Good things happened in our Red Bank worship services; powerful things! We were truly able to cut through any evil resistance there and purely worship our Lord and Savior. May that truth be evident in Bangor as well.
We pray these pictures will continue to remind worshippers of who it is we come to honor in worship and who we are because of who Jesus is. This fits nicely with our corps vision of living the Promise of who we are in Jesus!
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Chapel Pictures - Jesus' Baptism
Well, we already had the main picture for the center of our back chapel wall, but I still wanted to use the picture we had found at our local Christian bookstore. What to do?I bought it anyway to put on the side wall! Ha!
This picture exemplifies the Bangor Corps' Logo: Promise, Purity and Power (the logo is posted in a much earlier blog, if you want to see it again). Here's the gist- when you Live the Promise you are in Jesus Christ and Model the Purity God expects of His children, You can Know the Power of Holy Spirit in our daily lives.
Is there any other event that can summon up this truth in our spirits better than the Baptism of Jesus?
This picture on our chapel wall is a beautiful reminder of our Vision in Bangor. May God remind us of his Son when we look at this image. May we truly Live the Promise, Model the Purity and Know the Power of God in our daily lives!
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Chapel Pictures - Jesus Praying
During the renovation process, I thought a lot about what pictures or banners would adorn the walls of our place of worship. I looked everywhere to find just the right images that would direct us to worship and our Corps' purpose.I searched the Internet looking through many different worship banner sites and Christian stores. I went to the local Christian bookstore over and over again (as if my walking in the door once more would change what they had to offer), looking at 2-3 pictures I thought might work well for us. I even borrowed their catalog and took it back to the corps to ask people what they thought.
I finally settled on one and was about to buy it, when I mentioned this whole process to Joel Boyd. Joel said he thought the current picture of Jesus praying on our back wall was perfect. Why would we want to change that?
So I went in the chapel and walked straight to the picture shown here. Immediately I knew he was right. I don't know how long this picture has been overlooking our worship, but it exemplifies perfectly what our corps mission is: intercessory prayer. Our Corps Purpose Statement (posted way back on this blog), offers as one of our objectives: "To actively practice intercessory prayer for our community."
This picture still remains on our back chapel wall where it has been for many years. It is a wonderful reminder of our purpose and our Savior who actively intercedes for us as our example. May we be faithful to our calling.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Renovations Complete!
Finally! The renovation work in the Bangor chapel is finished! Well, technically, there are a couple of stages to go, like re-staining the altar furniture to match and FILLING it with new people (we're happy to keep the old ones too . . . well most of 'em)! We now seat about 20 more people than before.I thought I'd post the pictures here, so you could all see what it looks like now. Especially those who haven't been to Bangor in a few years.
Here's a list of the changes: fresh paint with a new color scheme (egg shell whi
te with light gray on the front wall), new carpeting (also in the upstairs hallway), new seating, three new wall pictures, and new windows with new window treatments. All of these changes brightened up our place of worship tremendously, so we had to replace the LCD projector to one that was bright enough to see the images.As mentioned above, we soon hope to re-finish the altar furniture to match the reddish tones of the seating and windows.
We believe this refreshing was important because 1) We want to offer the very
best to our all-worthy God 2) We are starting a publicity blitz campaign this September to draw in new people and we wanted to spiff things up, and 3) things were getting old and frayed (like the carpet) and just plain needed to be replaced.I think I'll talk a bit about the pictures tomorrow, so for now I hope you can just get a feel for the physical look.
The chapel at the Bangor Salvation Army is a special place for many people. Here they have found God, deepened their relationship with God, reconciled with those around them, experienced holine
ss, prayed for healing (and seen answers!), etc. (I could go on and on!). But more important than our physical place of worship, is the place our worship originates- our heart.May your heart be continually renewed and renovated by God's Holy Spirit within you. And may you worship him from that holy place where he chooses to live.
Monday, July 31, 2006
Are You Paying Attention?
This past weekend we were able to see friends we hadn't seen for a long time. The first thing that noticed was the joy rising up in my heart when I saw them getting out of a nearby car. The second thing I noticed was my shock at how tall their "little" kids had grown! The last thing I remember was one hiding behind Mom's legs; now that same one was rivaling Mom's height! See what happens when you're not looking?
My son Chris, on the other hand, shot up mostly in a single year, but I hardly noticed it. Why? I was paying attention and looking at him daily. Little incremental changes are hardly noticed. Sounds a bit like the old "frog in the kettle" story:
Did you know that if you put a frog in a pot of boiling water, he will jump out immediately, but if you put him in tepid water and slowly raise the temperature, you can actually boil him alive, because he won't notice the deadly change.
Last night I arrived home from OOB feeling awesome! I had finally overcome the issue I've been struggling with for almost a year and was on top of the world. This morning, I feel sadness tugging on me and an almost overwhelming feeling of hopelessness. What gives?
As I spent time in prayer, I was reminded that there is a huge struggle with area Principalities in Bangor over depression and distrust. Leaving the area for just a few days was a refreshing break. Coming back, it always hits strongly again. That reminded me of this struggle which I had forgotten and gotten caught up in over the last year.
We can't allow ourselves to slowly get caught up in Satan's incremental ploys against us. We need to be vigilant and constantly remind ourselves of how he works on people in the areas we live in. And then, of course, fight against it! We should not allow him to gain an inch, because he will always take a mile.
We Salvos are a warrior people! We are raised up to fight the good fight; we are an Army. We are trained in spiritual warfare tactics and it should come as no surprise we are in this perpetual air/ground war until we leave this earth at our promotion to Glory.
During my time with God, I just pushed that junk the enemy was trying to drop on me right out the window. It has no place in my life and I refuse to take it on. I can stand strong in the fight, because I am empowered by the One who has overcome this world.
I believe it! Hallelujah!
My son Chris, on the other hand, shot up mostly in a single year, but I hardly noticed it. Why? I was paying attention and looking at him daily. Little incremental changes are hardly noticed. Sounds a bit like the old "frog in the kettle" story:
Did you know that if you put a frog in a pot of boiling water, he will jump out immediately, but if you put him in tepid water and slowly raise the temperature, you can actually boil him alive, because he won't notice the deadly change.
Last night I arrived home from OOB feeling awesome! I had finally overcome the issue I've been struggling with for almost a year and was on top of the world. This morning, I feel sadness tugging on me and an almost overwhelming feeling of hopelessness. What gives?
As I spent time in prayer, I was reminded that there is a huge struggle with area Principalities in Bangor over depression and distrust. Leaving the area for just a few days was a refreshing break. Coming back, it always hits strongly again. That reminded me of this struggle which I had forgotten and gotten caught up in over the last year.
We can't allow ourselves to slowly get caught up in Satan's incremental ploys against us. We need to be vigilant and constantly remind ourselves of how he works on people in the areas we live in. And then, of course, fight against it! We should not allow him to gain an inch, because he will always take a mile.
We Salvos are a warrior people! We are raised up to fight the good fight; we are an Army. We are trained in spiritual warfare tactics and it should come as no surprise we are in this perpetual air/ground war until we leave this earth at our promotion to Glory.
During my time with God, I just pushed that junk the enemy was trying to drop on me right out the window. It has no place in my life and I refuse to take it on. I can stand strong in the fight, because I am empowered by the One who has overcome this world.
I believe it! Hallelujah!
Sunday, July 30, 2006
The OOB Pier Ministry
Last night's pier ministry in OOB was incredible! I have never been so excited at the response and the results. Here's a run down of the evening.
This year from the very beginning, the Enemy has been fighting hard against the plans. Since my brother is in charge of organizing it all, I've heard of some of the issues that have arisen- all attempting to quash God's plan to reach the people. You already know about Jenn & Josh's troubles- not even getting there! Well, that's just the tip of the iceberg.
So as we are finishing setup, everything seemed to be going along nicely, except there was no electricity! Ah, microphones, music, lights . . . you get the picture, so we're all praying for that to get worked out. Then in the midst of high heat and humidity, there comes a wonderful cool breeze- not sweeping in from the ocean, but the other direction! We took that as a prophetic sign that God was sending the cool wind of his Spirit! Shortly after that, electricity was on and the program started. Actually, the program had already started in the Spiritual Readings (prayer) tent!
People started coming for prayer immediately and lined up at times. Groups were crowding around to hear what was being said to the "prayees." Eventually, the prayer team broke into 2 groups to be able to get everyone in. God was speaking powerfully into people through The War College team. I tried to contribute, but God wasn't giving me anything. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Not taking that hard, rather that God had something else for me to do, I started bringing people over to receive prayer.
Many of the people coming in for prayer were non-Christian, but I would say a good percentage were young Salvo teens and young adults. It was incredible to see what God was saying to them and I loved their countenance after they were finished! One person, after a long prayer session, stayed and joined the team! That one wasn't just watching, but actually praying and hitting it right on the head. That person was hearing from God BIG time!
The other aspects of the ministry were exceptional as well- including CAST, the Cornwolfs, testimonies, dances, skits, etc. performed by a variety of Salvos. There was a good sized crowd around at all times, enjoying themselves and hearing the Gospel. I am told 4 people accepted Christ and many others were touched enough to put their names down for prayer and/or future contact.
I gotta tell you, this is the first time I have ever wished I wasn't heading home on SonDay evening! I wish I could get to that pier every night and be a part of what God is doing. Watch this space- I believe there will be awesome results from this incredible ministry the rest of the week.
By the way, these kind of results are in no small way reflective of the 24/7 prayer ministry that is a HUGE part of OOB this year. Many people are getting involved there and seeing fantastic results . . . which is one of those DUH things. If you pray, OF COURSE God is going to answer and show you his power. DUH! I love my time in the prayer trailer. Or as SC would call it- The War Room!
God is awesome!
This year from the very beginning, the Enemy has been fighting hard against the plans. Since my brother is in charge of organizing it all, I've heard of some of the issues that have arisen- all attempting to quash God's plan to reach the people. You already know about Jenn & Josh's troubles- not even getting there! Well, that's just the tip of the iceberg.
So as we are finishing setup, everything seemed to be going along nicely, except there was no electricity! Ah, microphones, music, lights . . . you get the picture, so we're all praying for that to get worked out. Then in the midst of high heat and humidity, there comes a wonderful cool breeze- not sweeping in from the ocean, but the other direction! We took that as a prophetic sign that God was sending the cool wind of his Spirit! Shortly after that, electricity was on and the program started. Actually, the program had already started in the Spiritual Readings (prayer) tent!
People started coming for prayer immediately and lined up at times. Groups were crowding around to hear what was being said to the "prayees." Eventually, the prayer team broke into 2 groups to be able to get everyone in. God was speaking powerfully into people through The War College team. I tried to contribute, but God wasn't giving me anything. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Not taking that hard, rather that God had something else for me to do, I started bringing people over to receive prayer.
Many of the people coming in for prayer were non-Christian, but I would say a good percentage were young Salvo teens and young adults. It was incredible to see what God was saying to them and I loved their countenance after they were finished! One person, after a long prayer session, stayed and joined the team! That one wasn't just watching, but actually praying and hitting it right on the head. That person was hearing from God BIG time!
The other aspects of the ministry were exceptional as well- including CAST, the Cornwolfs, testimonies, dances, skits, etc. performed by a variety of Salvos. There was a good sized crowd around at all times, enjoying themselves and hearing the Gospel. I am told 4 people accepted Christ and many others were touched enough to put their names down for prayer and/or future contact.
I gotta tell you, this is the first time I have ever wished I wasn't heading home on SonDay evening! I wish I could get to that pier every night and be a part of what God is doing. Watch this space- I believe there will be awesome results from this incredible ministry the rest of the week.
By the way, these kind of results are in no small way reflective of the 24/7 prayer ministry that is a HUGE part of OOB this year. Many people are getting involved there and seeing fantastic results . . . which is one of those DUH things. If you pray, OF COURSE God is going to answer and show you his power. DUH! I love my time in the prayer trailer. Or as SC would call it- The War Room!
God is awesome!
Saturday, July 29, 2006
OUR Candidates
As mentioned in yesterday's post, I'd like to fill you all in on the accepted candidates the Bangor Corps is sending to the SFOT this year- Jeff & Becki Kirk.
Jeff and Becki have been living and working in the Central Territory for the last few years, but upon accepting God's call on their lives to become officers in TSA, they wanted to fulfill that calling in their home territory- USA East. Therefore they had to seek out a "home" corps to associate with. So how did they end up in Bangor? I'll tell you (what I know of it all):
Jeff spent 7 years of his life stationed with his parents in Bangor, Maine. From what I hear, he went through some rough times back then. But always supporting him and his parents through those times, were the faithful soldiers of the Bangor corps. So what better place to re-connect with his home territory than through his home corps, where the people still care about him and support him in prayer?
And, low and behold, after welcoming them back to the Bangor corps, we discover that Becki grew up in Winsted Connecticut- the very same small town where Debbie grew up! You should have seen them chatting on about the high school and the traffic light (yep- "the")!
Well, there's a whole lot more you could learn about Jeff and Becki, but the most important thing is that they have been called by God, responded to that call and are heading into the unknown, just because that's what God wants them to do.
It's because of these things, the Bangor Corps is proud to sponsor, support and send them off into the "wild 'red' yonder" of officership. They're OUR candidates!
Jeff and Becki have been living and working in the Central Territory for the last few years, but upon accepting God's call on their lives to become officers in TSA, they wanted to fulfill that calling in their home territory- USA East. Therefore they had to seek out a "home" corps to associate with. So how did they end up in Bangor? I'll tell you (what I know of it all):
Jeff spent 7 years of his life stationed with his parents in Bangor, Maine. From what I hear, he went through some rough times back then. But always supporting him and his parents through those times, were the faithful soldiers of the Bangor corps. So what better place to re-connect with his home territory than through his home corps, where the people still care about him and support him in prayer?
And, low and behold, after welcoming them back to the Bangor corps, we discover that Becki grew up in Winsted Connecticut- the very same small town where Debbie grew up! You should have seen them chatting on about the high school and the traffic light (yep- "the")!
Well, there's a whole lot more you could learn about Jeff and Becki, but the most important thing is that they have been called by God, responded to that call and are heading into the unknown, just because that's what God wants them to do.
It's because of these things, the Bangor Corps is proud to sponsor, support and send them off into the "wild 'red' yonder" of officership. They're OUR candidates!
Friday, July 28, 2006
OOB 2006 Starts!
Old Orchard beach 2006 has begun! Well, not technically. It officially starts tonight at 7 PM, but last night was the Northern New England's Musical night, when we preface the entire territorial event with an evening of musical worship, invoking God's presence, preparing hearts and lifting up the Name of Jesus.
I must admit, I was a bit surprised at the small attendance compared to previous years (but the current spiritual climate fits as no small part of an explanation). I wonder why it is often hard to draw people out for a night of worship?
We offered the musical "Experiencing God," by Henry Blackaby and, if I do say so myself (being a part of the presentation), it was a powerful expression of worship. There was a minor setback to the flow of worship when we took a few moments to officially send off our NNE candidates to the SFOT (it should have been done some other time- not during the musical; perhaps before it began would have fit better. If you follow my blog, you know I have a "thing" about carefully preparing the flow of a meeting! {stepping down off my soapbox for now}), but that was easily overshadowed by the seekers during the altar call. Many of these seekers were children! YES! They were listening to God's voice as he called them! I love that like nothing else!
By the way, the only Northern New England Candidates this year are from the Bangor Corps (more on that later- tomorrow?)!
This musical worship evening is a fantastic way of opening/preparing for the OOB meetings. Drew Poulopoulos (yes, it's spelled that way!), our Divisional Music Director, prepares and presents such powerful events! I believe it is because he works so hard and much of that work is done on his knees. He is also faithful to included the whole body of believers in his events. You just can't beat that kind of spiritual power! How blessed we are to have his influence in our division.
At the pier ministry this year, you will find a team from The War College helping out. The team is composed of staff, current and past TWC students. They will each participate in different ways including music, evangelism, prophetic evangelism, etc. (but no Jenn & Josh- {sniff}).
New to OOB this year, is the 24/7 prayer room. Another big YES! People have been encouraged to sign up and Debbie & I have taken a few slots between us. I am so looking forward to that time in prayer. There have been a few prophetic words regarding the prayer room, which will help us focus and fight off the enemy's attempts to kill it. Kudos to Janet Munn for arranging this prayer furnace. It seems our territory is warming up to this kind of power.
So if you're near Maine in the next few days, drop by OOB and look us up!
I must admit, I was a bit surprised at the small attendance compared to previous years (but the current spiritual climate fits as no small part of an explanation). I wonder why it is often hard to draw people out for a night of worship?
We offered the musical "Experiencing God," by Henry Blackaby and, if I do say so myself (being a part of the presentation), it was a powerful expression of worship. There was a minor setback to the flow of worship when we took a few moments to officially send off our NNE candidates to the SFOT (it should have been done some other time- not during the musical; perhaps before it began would have fit better. If you follow my blog, you know I have a "thing" about carefully preparing the flow of a meeting! {stepping down off my soapbox for now}), but that was easily overshadowed by the seekers during the altar call. Many of these seekers were children! YES! They were listening to God's voice as he called them! I love that like nothing else!
By the way, the only Northern New England Candidates this year are from the Bangor Corps (more on that later- tomorrow?)!
This musical worship evening is a fantastic way of opening/preparing for the OOB meetings. Drew Poulopoulos (yes, it's spelled that way!), our Divisional Music Director, prepares and presents such powerful events! I believe it is because he works so hard and much of that work is done on his knees. He is also faithful to included the whole body of believers in his events. You just can't beat that kind of spiritual power! How blessed we are to have his influence in our division.
At the pier ministry this year, you will find a team from The War College helping out. The team is composed of staff, current and past TWC students. They will each participate in different ways including music, evangelism, prophetic evangelism, etc. (but no Jenn & Josh- {sniff}).
New to OOB this year, is the 24/7 prayer room. Another big YES! People have been encouraged to sign up and Debbie & I have taken a few slots between us. I am so looking forward to that time in prayer. There have been a few prophetic words regarding the prayer room, which will help us focus and fight off the enemy's attempts to kill it. Kudos to Janet Munn for arranging this prayer furnace. It seems our territory is warming up to this kind of power.
So if you're near Maine in the next few days, drop by OOB and look us up!
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Blog Alert! * Must Read! * Blog Alert!
Man o man! I just found a new blog by Joe Noland (actually, Joel found it)! It's called "Slightly Irregular" and it is a MUST READ. Sadly, there are only 2 entries so far.
I offer this recommendation ONLY to those who can handle it. He gives a preface that states you must be open to change or he will not take any blame for your high blood pressure! I love it!
Joe Noland was our Territorial Commander a few years back. He was awesome for this territory! Of course, there will be people who will disagree, but most of them will have high blood pressure from reading his blog! {LOL!}
Joe Noland is a visionary; a creative thinker. He asks "why?" and "why not?" a lot and requires you to state a reason for your position (he won't just accept what you say because "it's the way we've always thought about this"). He is a leader of people. He is NOT a manager of people.
When he was in the USA East, he raised many a person's blood pressure, but he also freed a lot of people to dream and accomplish new things for the Kingdom.
I guess I could go on and on here, but you'll find out for yourself if you bookmark his blog and add it to your daily readings. You'll find it already added to my Blog Salute! to the right.
Click my title above or the link below to go to:
Slightly Irregular
I offer this recommendation ONLY to those who can handle it. He gives a preface that states you must be open to change or he will not take any blame for your high blood pressure! I love it!
Joe Noland was our Territorial Commander a few years back. He was awesome for this territory! Of course, there will be people who will disagree, but most of them will have high blood pressure from reading his blog! {LOL!}
Joe Noland is a visionary; a creative thinker. He asks "why?" and "why not?" a lot and requires you to state a reason for your position (he won't just accept what you say because "it's the way we've always thought about this"). He is a leader of people. He is NOT a manager of people.
When he was in the USA East, he raised many a person's blood pressure, but he also freed a lot of people to dream and accomplish new things for the Kingdom.
I guess I could go on and on here, but you'll find out for yourself if you bookmark his blog and add it to your daily readings. You'll find it already added to my Blog Salute! to the right.
Click my title above or the link below to go to:
Slightly Irregular
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
A Little Help From a Friend
I find it so interesting how God chooses to help us through our difficulties! Even before I finished writing my last blog, a long-time friend sent me the following interview via email. Patty is one of the FEW people I let send me "forwards," et al, because she almost never sends junk. It's either real powerful, funny or just plain hits the spot for me. In fact, many times her stuff becomes the meat of some of my blogs!
Now I'm not "over" my struggling yet, but this is definitely one of the pieces to the puzzle that will help me solve my seeming conundrum. Thanx Patty- you're the best!
All bolding below is my highlighting great thoughts from the interview. I will comment in between with {red italic} lettering.
- - -
This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren, "Purpose-Driven Life" author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California: "God wants us to be with Him in Heaven." In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act- the dress rehearsal of God who wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one. {Rick Munn says it this way (about the church): "The church is a MESS!" You know, they're both right. We're never going to get to that hoped for place in life where everything's perfect. It's all about learning how to cope with the mess.}
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ's likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to think that life was hills and valleys- you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails of a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life. No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good for which you can thank God.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. {As with a camera, what develops is what you focus on.}
If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, which is "my problem, my issues, my pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others. {Wow! How simple; how true! William Booth got it right- "Others."}
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy. It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do: II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases. Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church. Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation. Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, "God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better." {This is my new DAILY prayer!}
God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I AM than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings. {Why can't we seem to get this straight? Why is it we work so hard to DO things, when that's just not the answer? I don't have any problems with doing things, we just need to take the emphasis off of doing and aim for being. If we make this change, we won't see the results as obviously. But God will. Can we live with that?}
In happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
In difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
In quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
In painful moments, TRUST GOD. {This is the HARD one here!}
In every moment, THANK GOD.
Now I'm not "over" my struggling yet, but this is definitely one of the pieces to the puzzle that will help me solve my seeming conundrum. Thanx Patty- you're the best!
All bolding below is my highlighting great thoughts from the interview. I will comment in between with {red italic} lettering.
- - -
This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren, "Purpose-Driven Life" author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California: "God wants us to be with Him in Heaven." In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act- the dress rehearsal of God who wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one. {Rick Munn says it this way (about the church): "The church is a MESS!" You know, they're both right. We're never going to get to that hoped for place in life where everything's perfect. It's all about learning how to cope with the mess.}
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ's likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer. I used to think that life was hills and valleys- you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails of a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life. No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good for which you can thank God.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. {As with a camera, what develops is what you focus on.}
If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, which is "my problem, my issues, my pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others. {Wow! How simple; how true! William Booth got it right- "Others."}
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy. It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do: II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases. Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church. Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation. Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, "God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better." {This is my new DAILY prayer!}
God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I AM than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings. {Why can't we seem to get this straight? Why is it we work so hard to DO things, when that's just not the answer? I don't have any problems with doing things, we just need to take the emphasis off of doing and aim for being. If we make this change, we won't see the results as obviously. But God will. Can we live with that?}
In happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
In difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
In quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
In painful moments, TRUST GOD. {This is the HARD one here!}
In every moment, THANK GOD.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
My Blog Bog
Many of you have noticed my lack of blogging for some time now. It's unusual for me- especially after more than a year of daily entries, no matter what I was doing or where I was. I had hoped I'd be over this by now, but since I'm obviously not, I figure I ought to let you in on what's going on.
There's been a change that has affected me at a very deep spiritual level. I'm doing my best to overcome, but the effect is my writings are tending toward the negative. When that happens, I just hit delete or don't even start in the first place.
The last thing I want to do on this blog is be negative- that's not my purpose in blogging. I don't want to complain or cry "woe is me!" either, so the answer I have come up with for now is to not write at all- or at least, much less frequently.
I'm not happy with that temporary solution, but at least now you know what's going on. I am sure there is a positive solution and I will get to it eventually, but I'm also sure I need to do the work to get through it. It's just taking a lot longer than I would have imagined. Your prayers would be welcomed.
Below I offer the scripture passage God keeps sending me to. It speaks to me almost constantly and I recently read through it in the Message version which really wowed me!
Read it carefully. Don't bleep over it like we often do with passages we know well. God is in the savoring of scripture. In fact, it's a bit like honey (I would've said chocolate) when we lick it all up and relish it!
Psalm 91
You who sit down in the High God's presence, spend the night in Shaddai [The Almighty]'s shadow, 2 Say this:
"God, you're my refuge. I trust in you and I'm safe!"
3 That's right- he rescues you from hidden traps, shields you from deadly hazards. 4 His huge outstretched arms protect you- under them you're perfectly safe; his arms fend off all harm.
5 Fear nothing- not wild wolves in the night, not flying arrows in the day, 6 Not disease that prowls through the darkness, not disaster that erupts at high noon.
7 Even though others succumb all around, drop like flies right and left, no harm will even graze you. 8 You'll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance, watch the wicked turn into corpses.
9 Yes, because God's your refuge, the High God your very own home, 10 Evil can't get close to you, harm can't get through the door. 11 He ordered his angels to guard you wherever you go. 12 If you stumble, they'll catch you; their job is to keep you from falling. 13 You'll walk unharmed among lions and snakes, and kick strong lions and serpents from the path.
14 "If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God, "I'll get you out of any trouble. I'll give you the best of care if you'll only get to know and trust me.
15 Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times; I'll rescue you, then throw you a party. 16 I'll give you a long life with a long drink of salvation!"
There's been a change that has affected me at a very deep spiritual level. I'm doing my best to overcome, but the effect is my writings are tending toward the negative. When that happens, I just hit delete or don't even start in the first place.
The last thing I want to do on this blog is be negative- that's not my purpose in blogging. I don't want to complain or cry "woe is me!" either, so the answer I have come up with for now is to not write at all- or at least, much less frequently.
I'm not happy with that temporary solution, but at least now you know what's going on. I am sure there is a positive solution and I will get to it eventually, but I'm also sure I need to do the work to get through it. It's just taking a lot longer than I would have imagined. Your prayers would be welcomed.
Below I offer the scripture passage God keeps sending me to. It speaks to me almost constantly and I recently read through it in the Message version which really wowed me!
Read it carefully. Don't bleep over it like we often do with passages we know well. God is in the savoring of scripture. In fact, it's a bit like honey (I would've said chocolate) when we lick it all up and relish it!
Psalm 91
You who sit down in the High God's presence, spend the night in Shaddai [The Almighty]'s shadow, 2 Say this:
"God, you're my refuge. I trust in you and I'm safe!"
3 That's right- he rescues you from hidden traps, shields you from deadly hazards. 4 His huge outstretched arms protect you- under them you're perfectly safe; his arms fend off all harm.
5 Fear nothing- not wild wolves in the night, not flying arrows in the day, 6 Not disease that prowls through the darkness, not disaster that erupts at high noon.
7 Even though others succumb all around, drop like flies right and left, no harm will even graze you. 8 You'll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance, watch the wicked turn into corpses.
9 Yes, because God's your refuge, the High God your very own home, 10 Evil can't get close to you, harm can't get through the door. 11 He ordered his angels to guard you wherever you go. 12 If you stumble, they'll catch you; their job is to keep you from falling. 13 You'll walk unharmed among lions and snakes, and kick strong lions and serpents from the path.
14 "If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God, "I'll get you out of any trouble. I'll give you the best of care if you'll only get to know and trust me.
15 Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times; I'll rescue you, then throw you a party. 16 I'll give you a long life with a long drink of salvation!"
Monday, July 24, 2006
Bad News, Phone Calls and Trust
You just know it’s bad news when the phone rings at 2:30 AM. I suppose people actually have good things happen to them at that time, but if they do, they don’t usually call someone else to tell them about it until at least the sun comes up!
First, you don’t want to wake up- you think you must be dreaming (I know my brain refuses to be jostled out of it’s dream state)! You roll over, reach for the phone and knock the alarm clock to the floor. Still fumbling, you finally pull the receiver off the hook, all the while clearing your voice so you don’t sound like you’re a frog when you grumble, “Fwhewo?”
Last night it was Jenn calling. She and Josh were traveling by bus on the red-eye from London to Boston to visit Mom & Dad and then participate in the Old Orchard Beach Pier Ministry coming up this weekend. Here’s the story:
They were stopped at the border and their bus had already left them behind. Apparently the “border patrol” did not believe they were telling the truth. Instead, they believed Josh & Jenn were leaving Canada forever to take up illegal residence in the USA. When Jenn tried to show them her Canadian residency paperwork, the guy refused to look at it or even listen to her attempt to explain. Their one-way tickets were all the proof he was willing to consider. Waving the bus on after gathering their luggage, he directed them to a pay phone. They called us, Mom & Dad Ivany and Elaine Gillingham (the pier ministry team leader, from London).
Have you ever been in a situation where you are incensed at an injustice, but you can do absolutely nothing about it? There was absolutely nothing we could do. We couldn’t call anyone. We couldn’t go anywhere. When Jenn hung up, we just laid there praying for over an hour before we could get anywhere near falling back to sleep.
Shortly after we did get back to sleep, the phone rang again. I again went through the 2:30 AM phone routine. When I woke up (about 2 minutes into the conversation I realized it was Jenn), she told us they had both been detained in a small room behind a large glass window where everyone passing through could see them sitting and (Jenn) crying. They felt like criminals- in fact, they even mug-shot and finger-printed Josh!
Then they were sent back across the bridge to the Canadian border. There they were met with much nicer guards who were very gracious to them and explained to Jenn that if she had left the country this way, she would have lost her status on her request for Canadian residency and would have had to start all the process over again (including over $1,000 in fees)! Whew! She’s been working (and paying) on that for months!
Now every time we contacted someone about whether Jenn could leave the country or not (before receiving her residency), we got a different answer! It appears to me that her status issue is all up to the guard who meets her at the border. If he’s in a good mood, she’s okay. If he’s in a bad mood . . . “do-over!”
So 2 hours later, Mom Ivany came to pick them up and take them to Toronto. Who knows what their next couple of weeks will look like, but it’s definitely NOT including time in Old Orchard Beach or the USA. {sniff}
Sounds to me like God had his hand in this- even though it gave us all a late night scare. I believe that and trust him no matter what the outcome is. Even if I’m not happy about it.
First, you don’t want to wake up- you think you must be dreaming (I know my brain refuses to be jostled out of it’s dream state)! You roll over, reach for the phone and knock the alarm clock to the floor. Still fumbling, you finally pull the receiver off the hook, all the while clearing your voice so you don’t sound like you’re a frog when you grumble, “Fwhewo?”
Last night it was Jenn calling. She and Josh were traveling by bus on the red-eye from London to Boston to visit Mom & Dad and then participate in the Old Orchard Beach Pier Ministry coming up this weekend. Here’s the story:
They were stopped at the border and their bus had already left them behind. Apparently the “border patrol” did not believe they were telling the truth. Instead, they believed Josh & Jenn were leaving Canada forever to take up illegal residence in the USA. When Jenn tried to show them her Canadian residency paperwork, the guy refused to look at it or even listen to her attempt to explain. Their one-way tickets were all the proof he was willing to consider. Waving the bus on after gathering their luggage, he directed them to a pay phone. They called us, Mom & Dad Ivany and Elaine Gillingham (the pier ministry team leader, from London).
Have you ever been in a situation where you are incensed at an injustice, but you can do absolutely nothing about it? There was absolutely nothing we could do. We couldn’t call anyone. We couldn’t go anywhere. When Jenn hung up, we just laid there praying for over an hour before we could get anywhere near falling back to sleep.
Shortly after we did get back to sleep, the phone rang again. I again went through the 2:30 AM phone routine. When I woke up (about 2 minutes into the conversation I realized it was Jenn), she told us they had both been detained in a small room behind a large glass window where everyone passing through could see them sitting and (Jenn) crying. They felt like criminals- in fact, they even mug-shot and finger-printed Josh!
Then they were sent back across the bridge to the Canadian border. There they were met with much nicer guards who were very gracious to them and explained to Jenn that if she had left the country this way, she would have lost her status on her request for Canadian residency and would have had to start all the process over again (including over $1,000 in fees)! Whew! She’s been working (and paying) on that for months!
Now every time we contacted someone about whether Jenn could leave the country or not (before receiving her residency), we got a different answer! It appears to me that her status issue is all up to the guard who meets her at the border. If he’s in a good mood, she’s okay. If he’s in a bad mood . . . “do-over!”
So 2 hours later, Mom Ivany came to pick them up and take them to Toronto. Who knows what their next couple of weeks will look like, but it’s definitely NOT including time in Old Orchard Beach or the USA. {sniff}
Sounds to me like God had his hand in this- even though it gave us all a late night scare. I believe that and trust him no matter what the outcome is. Even if I’m not happy about it.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
This Puns for You
This is my last day at Divisional music Camp. In case you've missed me, I hope to be bogging again soon. Until then, here's my attempt to placate you with some typical Burr-humor puns:
1. Two vultures board an airplane, each carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at them and says, "I'm sorry, gentlemen, only one carrion allowed per passenger."
2. Did you hear that NASA recently put a bunch of Holsteins into low earth orbit? They called it the herd shot 'round the world.
3. Two boll weevils grew up in South Carolina. One went to Hollywood and became a famous actor. The other stayed behind in the cotton fields and never amounted to much. The second one, naturally, became known as the lesser of two weevils.
4. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, but when they lit a fire in the craft, it sank proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it, too.
5. A three legged dog walks into a saloon in the Old West. He slides up to the bar and announces: "I'm looking for the man who shot my paw."
6. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? He wanted to transcend dental medication.
7. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because," he said, "I can't stand chess nuts boasting in an open foyer."
8. A woman has twins, and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Amal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Amal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Amal."
9. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that: Hugh, and only Hugh, can prevent florist friars.
10. And finally, there was a man who blogged ten different puns, in the hope that at least one of the puns would make his readers laugh. Unfortunately, no pun in ten did.
1. Two vultures board an airplane, each carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at them and says, "I'm sorry, gentlemen, only one carrion allowed per passenger."
2. Did you hear that NASA recently put a bunch of Holsteins into low earth orbit? They called it the herd shot 'round the world.
3. Two boll weevils grew up in South Carolina. One went to Hollywood and became a famous actor. The other stayed behind in the cotton fields and never amounted to much. The second one, naturally, became known as the lesser of two weevils.
4. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, but when they lit a fire in the craft, it sank proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it, too.
5. A three legged dog walks into a saloon in the Old West. He slides up to the bar and announces: "I'm looking for the man who shot my paw."
6. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? He wanted to transcend dental medication.
7. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because," he said, "I can't stand chess nuts boasting in an open foyer."
8. A woman has twins, and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Amal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Amal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Amal."
9. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that: Hugh, and only Hugh, can prevent florist friars.
10. And finally, there was a man who blogged ten different puns, in the hope that at least one of the puns would make his readers laugh. Unfortunately, no pun in ten did.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Guest Blogger #2
Today I offer another Guest Blogger who attended Booth-Tucker Institute in Vancouver, Canada this year- Mary MacKay from the Bangor Corps! We were so excited when Mary stated her desire to go this year (we're proud of you, Mary)!
Praise God for our Army who supports us by sending us to such vital spiritual events! You're in for another great blessing when you read of Mary's experience:
Booth Tucker Institute - June 23-30, 2006
by Mary macKay
Bed Bugs, roaches, and rats, oh my! Incarnational Living- I am not sure that I even fully understood what this was until now. I also know that a couple years ago I could not have gone to Vancouver all by myself, let alone stay in the "poorest postal code"’ in Canada and do things so completely out of my comfort zone. But this was the time- God's time, and I really felt that God wanted me to do this. So after a long day in the air and arriving in Canada just in time for Knee Drill (a really cool time of Praise, Worship and Prayer) I was off to find where I would stay for the next 7 days.
My next and first official day of BTI started off with a War Room (Prayer room) shift at 5 a.m. and would last until 8 a.m. I can honestly tell you that I have never, I repeat NEVER spent three hours in prayer at one time but this was awesome. I found that you could pray, sing, read your Bible, look out over the intersection of Hastings & Main, (the main intersection in the Downtown East Side), to see the people that have pretty much been there all night, and even do God inspired art work. I spent some time reading my Bible and God gave me the verse in Isaiah 42:6b-7 that says, "And you will be a light to guide the nations. You will open the eyes of the blind. You will free the captives from prison, releasing those who sit in dark dungeons." And I thought, "what am I going to do with this? Is it for me or someone else?" I really wasn't sure what to do with it so I marked it and prayed about it and for the people sitting and sleeping on the steps of the Carnegie Center (library etc).
The time passed very quickly and then it was off to Crosswalk to begin my day, and what would be every day, with "Praying the Bible." We then met with the other delegates and shared a time of "why we were there and what we expected to gain from the experience." I was then paired up with a young woman named Fleur to Prayer Walk in the DTES for 1/2 hour each day.
I do have to say that one of the things that affected me most was the day that we saw a young woman sitting on the sidewalk just down from Crosswalk, her shirt pulled up to expose her very pregnant belly, and she was shooting up. I found myself welling up with tears and Fleur began to pray as we walked. She prayed for the safety of that baby, protection from drugs and many other good things. I have thought of that young woman many times in the days since and pray for her as well.
After that we were paired up with our partner for our daily BTI Challenge. The challenges ranged to everything from prayer walking a local store (check out the size of the store before you decide to do this one!), to praying in a government building, obtaining a meal for a homeless individual using the barter system and no money of our own, praying for people in the safe injection site (they wouldn't let anyone in), to a number of other challenges. Lt.-Colonel Howie Burr and I tried several different challenges with a margin of success. We prayed thru a department store one day and set up a "free prayer booth" another day among other things. It was a good experience and definitely out of my comfort zone.
The lecturers for the week included Michael Collins, Associate Pastor of Cariboo Hill Corps; Captains Steve and Danielle; Ian Gillingham and Aaron White, from the War College. Great speakers, definitely anointed and qualified to speak at Booth Tucker College. They each had inspiring topics and gave us a lot to think about.
I think one of the highlights each day was the daily "dusting off" sessions. The scripture says that Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 10:14 "if any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to you message, shake its dust from you feet as you leave." If I am not mistaken, I believe that Charles Roberts coined the phrase, "dusting off." Each day 2 delegates were given their own time for some listening prayers and prophetic words of encouragement and other revelations. There was some powerful stuff happening each day!! Sherry's (another woman from Maine) dusting was incredibly powerful as she was baptized in the spirit.
My own dusting was very meaningful for me and I was encouraged to use my healing gift more and to accept it. (By the way, Howie, I went to the hospital the day after I came home and prayed with a soldier that had four cardiac arrests and surgery while I was away and not expected to make it. He is now in his own room at the hospital, was alert, and doing quite well when I saw him this past Sunday)! It was very encouraging, not only for the person receiving the blessing or dusting, but for those listening as well. Fleur would transcribe the words given and then a time of discussion would follow. It was incredible each time that someone would hit the mark straight on (Duh!?). We were listening to God and it should not have been a surprise to anyone!!
I had two more shifts in the War Room (both were 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.) and also went out on Tuesday night for Street Combat. I had no idea what to expect but Crystal (a young War College Student) was patient with me. We walked a bit, talked with some people (one of which Crystal had not seen for a while) and we ended the night with a quick dusting off session and prayer before joining with the Canteen from Cariboo Hill as they passed out soup and sandwiches and just talked with the people from the DTES. A highlight of this night (and I didn't have my camera) was seeing Howie, in full uniform (it was tunic Tuesday), with Lisa, sitting on the sidewalk in conversation with a gentleman from the street.
The War College also operates a coffee house/cafe out of the Crosswalk Building (an emergency sleeping mat shelter) a few nights of the week. The coffee house/cafe is called REcre8 (sound it out!) and serves coffee, tea, and refreshment. The delegates to BTI are also scheduled for shifts in the cafe. The guests are also invited to play games, talk, or just sit and enjoy the company if that is what they want. It is a great way for them to connect with the 614 corps and community.
I really feel that I was truly blessed by this experience and am praying into what to do with all that I learned during this week. I know that people at home were praying for my safety and God truly blessed me and protected me while in Vancouver. When I got out of my shifts at 11 p.m. in the War Room, Wes (one of the tenants in the apartment) was there to meet me and walk me home then and on our last night after Recre8 at 10ish p.m. Bram (one of our cadets from the SFOT) walked me home as well). I think all these people just felt I was too old to be out alone)! Whatever the reason, I know God's hand was definitely in it!! Thank you , Jesus!!
Oh, yeah, I am pretty sure the scripture given to me on the first day in the War Room was for me. One of my goals for the week was to leave Vancouver a changed person.
In the words of a Hillsong song,
I will never be the same again,
I can never return, I've closed the door.
I will walk the path, I will run the race.
And I will never be the same again.
And I will never be the same again.
And I will never be the same again.
Jesus, may it be so.
Praise God for our Army who supports us by sending us to such vital spiritual events! You're in for another great blessing when you read of Mary's experience:
Booth Tucker Institute - June 23-30, 2006
by Mary macKay
Bed Bugs, roaches, and rats, oh my! Incarnational Living- I am not sure that I even fully understood what this was until now. I also know that a couple years ago I could not have gone to Vancouver all by myself, let alone stay in the "poorest postal code"’ in Canada and do things so completely out of my comfort zone. But this was the time- God's time, and I really felt that God wanted me to do this. So after a long day in the air and arriving in Canada just in time for Knee Drill (a really cool time of Praise, Worship and Prayer) I was off to find where I would stay for the next 7 days.
My next and first official day of BTI started off with a War Room (Prayer room) shift at 5 a.m. and would last until 8 a.m. I can honestly tell you that I have never, I repeat NEVER spent three hours in prayer at one time but this was awesome. I found that you could pray, sing, read your Bible, look out over the intersection of Hastings & Main, (the main intersection in the Downtown East Side), to see the people that have pretty much been there all night, and even do God inspired art work. I spent some time reading my Bible and God gave me the verse in Isaiah 42:6b-7 that says, "And you will be a light to guide the nations. You will open the eyes of the blind. You will free the captives from prison, releasing those who sit in dark dungeons." And I thought, "what am I going to do with this? Is it for me or someone else?" I really wasn't sure what to do with it so I marked it and prayed about it and for the people sitting and sleeping on the steps of the Carnegie Center (library etc).
The time passed very quickly and then it was off to Crosswalk to begin my day, and what would be every day, with "Praying the Bible." We then met with the other delegates and shared a time of "why we were there and what we expected to gain from the experience." I was then paired up with a young woman named Fleur to Prayer Walk in the DTES for 1/2 hour each day.
I do have to say that one of the things that affected me most was the day that we saw a young woman sitting on the sidewalk just down from Crosswalk, her shirt pulled up to expose her very pregnant belly, and she was shooting up. I found myself welling up with tears and Fleur began to pray as we walked. She prayed for the safety of that baby, protection from drugs and many other good things. I have thought of that young woman many times in the days since and pray for her as well.
After that we were paired up with our partner for our daily BTI Challenge. The challenges ranged to everything from prayer walking a local store (check out the size of the store before you decide to do this one!), to praying in a government building, obtaining a meal for a homeless individual using the barter system and no money of our own, praying for people in the safe injection site (they wouldn't let anyone in), to a number of other challenges. Lt.-Colonel Howie Burr and I tried several different challenges with a margin of success. We prayed thru a department store one day and set up a "free prayer booth" another day among other things. It was a good experience and definitely out of my comfort zone.
The lecturers for the week included Michael Collins, Associate Pastor of Cariboo Hill Corps; Captains Steve and Danielle; Ian Gillingham and Aaron White, from the War College. Great speakers, definitely anointed and qualified to speak at Booth Tucker College. They each had inspiring topics and gave us a lot to think about.
I think one of the highlights each day was the daily "dusting off" sessions. The scripture says that Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 10:14 "if any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to you message, shake its dust from you feet as you leave." If I am not mistaken, I believe that Charles Roberts coined the phrase, "dusting off." Each day 2 delegates were given their own time for some listening prayers and prophetic words of encouragement and other revelations. There was some powerful stuff happening each day!! Sherry's (another woman from Maine) dusting was incredibly powerful as she was baptized in the spirit.
My own dusting was very meaningful for me and I was encouraged to use my healing gift more and to accept it. (By the way, Howie, I went to the hospital the day after I came home and prayed with a soldier that had four cardiac arrests and surgery while I was away and not expected to make it. He is now in his own room at the hospital, was alert, and doing quite well when I saw him this past Sunday)! It was very encouraging, not only for the person receiving the blessing or dusting, but for those listening as well. Fleur would transcribe the words given and then a time of discussion would follow. It was incredible each time that someone would hit the mark straight on (Duh!?). We were listening to God and it should not have been a surprise to anyone!!
I had two more shifts in the War Room (both were 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.) and also went out on Tuesday night for Street Combat. I had no idea what to expect but Crystal (a young War College Student) was patient with me. We walked a bit, talked with some people (one of which Crystal had not seen for a while) and we ended the night with a quick dusting off session and prayer before joining with the Canteen from Cariboo Hill as they passed out soup and sandwiches and just talked with the people from the DTES. A highlight of this night (and I didn't have my camera) was seeing Howie, in full uniform (it was tunic Tuesday), with Lisa, sitting on the sidewalk in conversation with a gentleman from the street.
The War College also operates a coffee house/cafe out of the Crosswalk Building (an emergency sleeping mat shelter) a few nights of the week. The coffee house/cafe is called REcre8 (sound it out!) and serves coffee, tea, and refreshment. The delegates to BTI are also scheduled for shifts in the cafe. The guests are also invited to play games, talk, or just sit and enjoy the company if that is what they want. It is a great way for them to connect with the 614 corps and community.
I really feel that I was truly blessed by this experience and am praying into what to do with all that I learned during this week. I know that people at home were praying for my safety and God truly blessed me and protected me while in Vancouver. When I got out of my shifts at 11 p.m. in the War Room, Wes (one of the tenants in the apartment) was there to meet me and walk me home then and on our last night after Recre8 at 10ish p.m. Bram (one of our cadets from the SFOT) walked me home as well). I think all these people just felt I was too old to be out alone)! Whatever the reason, I know God's hand was definitely in it!! Thank you , Jesus!!
Oh, yeah, I am pretty sure the scripture given to me on the first day in the War Room was for me. One of my goals for the week was to leave Vancouver a changed person.
In the words of a Hillsong song,
I will never be the same again,
I can never return, I've closed the door.
I will walk the path, I will run the race.
And I will never be the same again.
And I will never be the same again.
And I will never be the same again.
Jesus, may it be so.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Guest Blogger #1
Today I offer a guest blogger- my brother Howie. He just got home from this year's Booth-Tucker Institute (BTI) in Vancouver, Canada. I know you'll be blessed by his reflections. There's more to come soon (I'm waiting on one more guest blogger to share her experience at BTI this year).
Reflections of the Booth Tucker Institute
by Howard Burr
My brother Doug made me do it! Ok, he just talked me into it by sharing his experiences with me and I wanted a similar blessing. My initial purpose in attending was to experience how a Salvation Army cell group church operates in the poorest postal code in Canada, because we want to start planting them in the Eastern Territory. My personal desire was to rekindle the Holy Spirit's flame in my spirit. Little did I know...
After the Thursday evening worship (very free and open) I went to catch several hours of sleep before I had the 2:00 - 5:00 AM shift in the War Room - a 24/7 prayer room in what we would call a "Welfare" hotel. I walked to the War Room past the many drug addicts and few scurrying rats on the street. It was a wonderful experience that goes by quickly as you talk with God and look over His lost children on the street below.
My sleep deprived morning began as all others (except Sunday when we chose which local Army service to attend) with knee drill which is praying and reading the Bible out loud while walking. We would then would have a presentation by Steve Court, Danielle Strickland, Ian Gillingham or a guest lecturer. The teaching was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit processed through holy men and women. (Your heart always knows the difference.) Then Lisa Luxford and I would prayer walk the streets and alleys of the community until lunch. Meals were eaten at the Harbor Light Center.
After lunch the BTI challenge took place - let's just call it experiments with innovative evangelism.Mary and I were pushed outside our comfort zone. We opened up a street healing prayer station and other teams responded with similar creativity.This was followed by "dusting off", a time of listening prayer and prophetic encouragement which often was a highlight of the day. The day would end with squad, which was discussion of several revolutionary Salvation Army articles that pushed everyone to think Biblically about what we believe and do.
During the week, I was personally schooled three times by War College students who did not even know they were showing me how to do evangelism right. I was invited to the beach with a group and they started singing and began an unplanned open air. I tried to teach truth to those who came over and no one wanted to listen. It seems that my generation looks for truth, but this generation wants to know what is real first. A simple testimony was far more effective than any logic I had to share. In the second "lesson" I was walking on the street with another student when we walked by a drug addict in a midday withdrawal dance. My thoughts were ineffective but the student dealt with the situation with practical love and direction - almost as an afterthought. The third lesson was in the value of relationships being far more powerful than I had imagined. It was a humbling, wonderful learning experience.
The most profound treasure was meeting other world revolutionaries and forming lifelong relationships - ok, eternity long relationships - with friends who urge you on to do great things for our Lord. Thank you, Ian, for pouring yourself out for all of us. Kathleen, you are the New Songs Colonel. Andrew & Fleur, I saw Jesus in you every day. Mary, Doug has no idea who the warrior is who is coming back to the corps from BTI! Bram & Anita - your joy in the Lord's service made me want to be young, go back to Training School and start all over again. Sherri, Mary & the Karlstens - thank you for your love and witness to me. Finally, special thanks to Steve and Danielle for your Great Commission vision and love.
Finally, I wanted fresh fire from BTI. After my second War Room shift I got up the next day and got a cup of seniors coffee (yes, I am that old!) at McDonald's and read my Bible by the window. I was reading in Ezekiel when I realized I was crying. I did not look cool in any way and I did not care. God the Holy Spirit showed up and ministered to some deep places in my spirit. Later that week I started crying while walking down the street in simple gratitude to my Lord. I am home now and the fire still burns. My prayer life will not let the fire grow dim again. I never want to flag in zeal all my days.
So here is the bottom line. Go see for yourself. If you want to do something revolutionary in your life for Jesus Christ, I suggest that you attend the Booth Tucker Institute. If you are considering attending the War College you will never be sorry. Tired, yes, but sorry? Never.
Reflections of the Booth Tucker Institute
by Howard Burr
My brother Doug made me do it! Ok, he just talked me into it by sharing his experiences with me and I wanted a similar blessing. My initial purpose in attending was to experience how a Salvation Army cell group church operates in the poorest postal code in Canada, because we want to start planting them in the Eastern Territory. My personal desire was to rekindle the Holy Spirit's flame in my spirit. Little did I know...
After the Thursday evening worship (very free and open) I went to catch several hours of sleep before I had the 2:00 - 5:00 AM shift in the War Room - a 24/7 prayer room in what we would call a "Welfare" hotel. I walked to the War Room past the many drug addicts and few scurrying rats on the street. It was a wonderful experience that goes by quickly as you talk with God and look over His lost children on the street below.
My sleep deprived morning began as all others (except Sunday when we chose which local Army service to attend) with knee drill which is praying and reading the Bible out loud while walking. We would then would have a presentation by Steve Court, Danielle Strickland, Ian Gillingham or a guest lecturer. The teaching was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit processed through holy men and women. (Your heart always knows the difference.) Then Lisa Luxford and I would prayer walk the streets and alleys of the community until lunch. Meals were eaten at the Harbor Light Center.
After lunch the BTI challenge took place - let's just call it experiments with innovative evangelism.Mary and I were pushed outside our comfort zone. We opened up a street healing prayer station and other teams responded with similar creativity.This was followed by "dusting off", a time of listening prayer and prophetic encouragement which often was a highlight of the day. The day would end with squad, which was discussion of several revolutionary Salvation Army articles that pushed everyone to think Biblically about what we believe and do.
During the week, I was personally schooled three times by War College students who did not even know they were showing me how to do evangelism right. I was invited to the beach with a group and they started singing and began an unplanned open air. I tried to teach truth to those who came over and no one wanted to listen. It seems that my generation looks for truth, but this generation wants to know what is real first. A simple testimony was far more effective than any logic I had to share. In the second "lesson" I was walking on the street with another student when we walked by a drug addict in a midday withdrawal dance. My thoughts were ineffective but the student dealt with the situation with practical love and direction - almost as an afterthought. The third lesson was in the value of relationships being far more powerful than I had imagined. It was a humbling, wonderful learning experience.
The most profound treasure was meeting other world revolutionaries and forming lifelong relationships - ok, eternity long relationships - with friends who urge you on to do great things for our Lord. Thank you, Ian, for pouring yourself out for all of us. Kathleen, you are the New Songs Colonel. Andrew & Fleur, I saw Jesus in you every day. Mary, Doug has no idea who the warrior is who is coming back to the corps from BTI! Bram & Anita - your joy in the Lord's service made me want to be young, go back to Training School and start all over again. Sherri, Mary & the Karlstens - thank you for your love and witness to me. Finally, special thanks to Steve and Danielle for your Great Commission vision and love.
Finally, I wanted fresh fire from BTI. After my second War Room shift I got up the next day and got a cup of seniors coffee (yes, I am that old!) at McDonald's and read my Bible by the window. I was reading in Ezekiel when I realized I was crying. I did not look cool in any way and I did not care. God the Holy Spirit showed up and ministered to some deep places in my spirit. Later that week I started crying while walking down the street in simple gratitude to my Lord. I am home now and the fire still burns. My prayer life will not let the fire grow dim again. I never want to flag in zeal all my days.
So here is the bottom line. Go see for yourself. If you want to do something revolutionary in your life for Jesus Christ, I suggest that you attend the Booth Tucker Institute. If you are considering attending the War College you will never be sorry. Tired, yes, but sorry? Never.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Cancel My AOL Account!
Thinking of canceling your AOL account? Think again!
Check out this MSNBC video recounting of a man attempting to do so.
Click the title above or the link below:
Please Cancel my Account
Check out this MSNBC video recounting of a man attempting to do so.
Click the title above or the link below:
Please Cancel my Account
The Extreme Diet Coke & Mentos Experiments
O you've just GOT to see this video!
Either click the title above or the link below:
Experiments Video
Either click the title above or the link below:
Experiments Video
Monday, July 03, 2006
A Starter or a Minor Leaguer?
A while ago, someone commented on my (and my wife's) officership. They were impressed with how many things we do well, but felt there was one thing lacking. They told us if we could just get that one thing going, we'd be good officers.
At that moment I mostly agreed with them. The thing they mentioned really could use improvement and it had bothered both Debbie and I for some years that no matter what we'd tried over the years, that one thing always seemed to be our one "unsuccess."
After awhile, this aspect of our ministry became a sore spot or me (and Debbie too, as we had many concerned discussions about it). This sore spot has grown to become a depressing thing for me and has eaten up a huge amount of my energy and spiritual resources to the point where I have been in a kind of spiritual funk lately.
I am a HUGE believer in the Body of Christ; that each person is created for a specific purpose and is gifted to accomplish that purpose. We are NOT gifted to accomplish someone else's purpose or another part of the Body.
The problem with human beings, though, is we too often take things into our own hands and decide what is important rather than listen to what God says is important.
I know my giftings. I have worked for many years specifically on what it is God wants me to do. Knowing my purpose not only helps me do what God wants, it also frees me to NOT do what God DOESN'T want.
Not that God doesn't want this specific "unsuccess" of ours to be accomplished- he just doesn't want it from us (believe me, I've asked and prayed until God has reminded me of my purpose over and over again). When we focus on that one point, what we were created to do goes undone. Or at the very least, gets done less well.
Who are we to tell God how he wants to use us in his plan of salvation?
Imagine a baseball player telling his coach how to best use him: "I don't want to play outfield, I want to play second base!" Oh, sorry- Soriano tried that this year! But by listening to his coach, he did what the team needed and has become an outstanding outfielder- even just being voted as a starter onto the All-Star team as an outfielder!
You know, I'd rather be a starter at what God wants me to do than a sub-standard minor-leaguer at what someone else thinks I should do.
At that moment I mostly agreed with them. The thing they mentioned really could use improvement and it had bothered both Debbie and I for some years that no matter what we'd tried over the years, that one thing always seemed to be our one "unsuccess."
After awhile, this aspect of our ministry became a sore spot or me (and Debbie too, as we had many concerned discussions about it). This sore spot has grown to become a depressing thing for me and has eaten up a huge amount of my energy and spiritual resources to the point where I have been in a kind of spiritual funk lately.
I am a HUGE believer in the Body of Christ; that each person is created for a specific purpose and is gifted to accomplish that purpose. We are NOT gifted to accomplish someone else's purpose or another part of the Body.
The problem with human beings, though, is we too often take things into our own hands and decide what is important rather than listen to what God says is important.
I know my giftings. I have worked for many years specifically on what it is God wants me to do. Knowing my purpose not only helps me do what God wants, it also frees me to NOT do what God DOESN'T want.
Not that God doesn't want this specific "unsuccess" of ours to be accomplished- he just doesn't want it from us (believe me, I've asked and prayed until God has reminded me of my purpose over and over again). When we focus on that one point, what we were created to do goes undone. Or at the very least, gets done less well.
Who are we to tell God how he wants to use us in his plan of salvation?
Imagine a baseball player telling his coach how to best use him: "I don't want to play outfield, I want to play second base!" Oh, sorry- Soriano tried that this year! But by listening to his coach, he did what the team needed and has become an outstanding outfielder- even just being voted as a starter onto the All-Star team as an outfielder!
You know, I'd rather be a starter at what God wants me to do than a sub-standard minor-leaguer at what someone else thinks I should do.
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Tilly the Video Eagle
I love to fly! Every chance I get to go on an airplane is exciting! I've always loved it since I was a kid. I wish I could fly without the help of an airplane.
Well, maybe I won't get that chance this side of heaven, but the website for Animal Planet has a wonderful set of videos provided by Tilly, a golden eagle. Tilly was trained to carry cameras while she flew and here are 6 very interesting videos for you to watch and experience flight just like a golden eagle. Incredible!
Click the link below or the title above to see the videos.
Tilly the Video Eagle
Well, maybe I won't get that chance this side of heaven, but the website for Animal Planet has a wonderful set of videos provided by Tilly, a golden eagle. Tilly was trained to carry cameras while she flew and here are 6 very interesting videos for you to watch and experience flight just like a golden eagle. Incredible!
Click the link below or the title above to see the videos.
Tilly the Video Eagle
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