Musings with PWC

  There are three things that are needed to keep you moving forward spiritually.     They feed off of each other.   What we mean by that is desire leads to intentionality which leads to effort which leads to desire and on and on we go. Where do you start?   To answer that you might want to also answer what came first, the chicken or the egg.   So don’t waste your time trying to figure that out. All of these three require input from you.  Don’t wait for the Holy Spirit to awaken you at 6 am to pray… use your alarm clock! Desire:  Psalms 37:4 (NLT) 4 Take delight in the LORD,  and he will give you your heart’s desires. Intentionality: Luke 9:62 (BBE) 62 But Jesus said, No man, having put his hand to the plough and looking back, is good enough for the kingdom of God. Effort: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (NLT) 24 Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to

My Desires A few years prior to the death of my dad, I had the awesome privilege of kneeling before him, and have him lay his hand upon my head and pray a special blessing on me.  Tonight I just re-read the blessing.  In that blessing dad used this term, "the desires of his heart." Below are three quotes from this marvellous blessing:  "Lord you know the desires of his heart and we pray that you would bless him, that you would guide him." ..."That you would move through him for your honour and your glory  that your love and your power will flow through him and that his desires shall be your desire, that the desires of our hearts shall be what you would have."   "Lord that you've watched over me and we pray that you just watch over Pete now and his family.  Lord give him the desires of his heart." As I think about this more and more...It's my desire to live for Jesus. 

  The objective word of God… needs to become the subjective word —-through Divine interaction between God and myself. The Objective word of GOD.  Is pure, holy, powerful Psalms 33:6-9 (NLT) 6 The LORD merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. 7 He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs. 8 Let the whole world fear the LORD, and let everyone stand in awe of him. 9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. Matthew 8:8-9 (NLT) 8 But the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. 9 I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.” There is NO issue at all with the power of the Word. The issue is my connection to that wo

  The Biblical modus operandi of signs, miracles, and healings: # 1:  See I am God!   Listen!  Repent! Psalms 106:8-12 (NLT)  Even so, he saved them— to defend the honor of his name and to demonstrate his mighty power. He commanded the Red Sea to dry up. He led Israel across the sea as if it were a desert. So he rescued them from their enemies and redeemed them from their foes. Then the water returned and covered their enemies; not one of them survived. Then his people believed his promises. Then they sang his praise. God shows up of His own accord! God manifests His power and authority…THEN his people believed his promise. They did not believe before!   It was a sign that revealed God!   It was not before the miracle but it was AFTER the miracle they believed. God sovereignly chose to do the miracle which then caused them believe.   # 2:  Through God’s anointed person(s) 1 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NLT) The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone el

  On Spiritual advancement and attainment: 1.   All spiritual advancement requires a higher degree of submission to the will and ways of God.  Think of Christ in the garden:  “Not my will but thine be done.”   Hebrews 10:7 (NLT) 7 Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God—as is written about me in the Scriptures.’ ” 2.  The higher or deeper the level of spiritual attainment the greater the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)  “ But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! ” 3.  These advancements and attainments on your spiritual journey bring you closer and closer into union with Christ.  Objectively you are in complete union with Christ. Colossians 2:10 (NLT)  “So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.”   Subjectively, you are o

  Stay in your own lane!   3 plus lanes of traffic, all going in the same direction, require each one to pay attention and stay in their lane!   There is an amazing story in the Old Testament of a king named Uzziah who changed lanes when he wasn’t supposed to! You can read the whole story in 2 Chronicles 26.  But for ease, I will simply insert two portions: # 1:  Obedience produces prosperity: Uzziah… 2 Chron 26 2 Chronicles 26:3-5 (NKJV) 3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem. 4 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 5 He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper. # 2:  Uzziah’s unauthorized act of worship 2 Chronicles 26:16 (NKJV) 16 But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he tran

  Hebrews 10:24-25 (NKJV) 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. It is interesting that during this COVID pandemic that Hebrews 10:24-25 has risen to center stage.  Proponents of various theories arise and petition governments and scream; “Hey!  We have to meet together!”  And then the Hebrew passages is quoted or referred to.  A couple of observations: Hebrews describes ‘meeting together’ in these terms. A- “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” B-  "but exhorting one another” Notice what is missing—-church as we know it.  Nothing is said about a platform, a worship team, a presentation by a paid professional.  In other words the meeting together had little if anything to do with the way we do church. Meeting together had to do with:

  2. The promise of a new king and a new kingdom  Dallas Willard in Hearing God draws, what I believe to be a fantastic thought.   John 3:3-8 (NKJV) 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” What Jesus does here is powerful. He clearly delineates a new kind of kingdom—a spiritual kingdom.  We have seen that the Old Testament is the

  Part # 1   Whom should I obey? An understanding of kingdom from scripture: 1.  Theocracy: (Theocracy. GOD-POWER or GOD-RULE Sometimes also called theonomous (GOD-LAW) The initial Kingdom:  God is king—Adam and Eve are the governors, the prime-ministers. Genesis 1:27-28 (NKJV) 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Idea behind the command: (i)    Fill the earth with people (ii)   Subdue the Earth  (iii)  Have dominion over the earth It is seen as an expansion of the garden of Eden.  Subdue the earth. The program?  Make the entire world a garden of Eden.  This kingdom fails because the governors rebelled and tried to overthrow the King.  Quite unsuccessfully I might add. 

  You don’t have to dig very deep to see the savage in anyone.   Many years ago when I was having a lot of church conflict, I was in conversation with my District Superintendent.  During that conversation he told me the following: You don’t have to dig very deep to see the savage in anyone.  Now I’m not sure who, if anyone he was quoting, but it has stuck with me now for over 30 years. You know what?  He was right.  But before me or you start doing a quick inventory of all the savages around us let’s do some self-examination.  First a little teaching:  There are three levels of your interaction with the written and living word of God. Lowest level:  Information—knowing ABOUT the written word (Bible) and the living word (Jesus) Middle level:  Formation—being and acting like the written word (Bible) and the living word (Jesus) Highest level:  Equipping—doing like the written word (Bible) and the living word (Jesus) The ‘savage’ in us keeps us at the lowest level. Self exami