Psalm 81

I love Asaph’s prose. He is thinking about Father’s goodness and our tendency to stray – to follow “the stubbornness of” our heart and “to walk in [our] own devices.” As he contemplates this he breaks forth in praise and encourages others to do the same.

I relieved his shoulder of the burden,
His hands were freed from the basket.
You called in trouble and I rescued you;
I answered you in the hiding place of thunder;
I proved you at the waters of Meribah.

This is fascinating! Father is saying that He answers us in the midst of our fears and in the midst of our pain. It is these experiences that draw us to Father. The suffering we endure provides for us a greater hope of being like Jesus – of “walk[ing] in [His] ways.”

These Inward Trials

I asked the Lord, that I might grow
In faith, and love, and every grace;
Might more of His salvation know,
And seek more earnestly His face.

I hoped that in some favoured hour
At once He’d answer my request,
And by His love’s constraining power
Subdue my sins, and give me rest.

Instead of this, He made me feel
The hidden evils of my heart;
And let the angry powers of hell
Assault my soul in every part.

Yea more, with His own hand He seemed
Intent to aggravate my woe;
Crossed all the fair designs I schemed,
Blasted my gourds, and laid me low.

‘Lord, why is this?’ I trembling cried,
‘Wilt thou pursue Thy worm to death?’
‘’Tis in this way,’ the Lord replied,
‘I answer prayer for grace and faith.

These inward trials I employ
From self and pride to set thee free;
And break thy schemes of earthly joy,
That thou may’st seek thy all in Me.’

John Newton

Father is reasserting His covenant with His people. He is pleading with them that the covenant is more than doing His deeds but walking in His ways. However, we “walk in [our] own devices.” We have our schemes, our agendas, our ways. How sad that Father has to give us “over to the stubbornness of [our] heart” before we learn.

There is a better Way.

Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.

Jesus said we must eat His flesh and drink His blood. He has already broken the power of sin, satan, self, and the world over us. We are free! We are not partially rescued!

"It's truer to say that these days patriotism is the highest form of dissent--against a culture where the media award each other Pulittzers for damaging national security, and the only way a soldier's mom can become a household name is if she's a Bush-is-the-real-terrorist kook like Cindy Sheehan." -- Mark Steyn

Black and White TVs

I've been posting from Mom's which has proven difficult. She has the old type of internet service you plug into a phone line. I can't believe how slow this is. (I've asked my wife to hide the razor blades.) It's like watching TV on a black and white screen with a selection of only three channels. Remember those days? I'm reading a book while waiting for the page to load up. I can read a page in the book faster than the service can load a page.

The Generational Movement of the Spirit

I'm reading Edwards as I said previously and come to find out that he predicted that the kingdom of antichrist would be destroyed by the year 2000. It seems he had the Y2K bug as well. He believed that the kingdom of antichrist was the Catholic church. This is fascinating given the political and spiritual environment of the time. Today we are focused on the Muslims. They were not many generations removed from the protestant reformation at that time and still experienced it in some fashion. They demonized their enemies more than focusing on the truth. They demonized those who didn't hold to their distinctives. Edwards thought the Quakers undermined the faith. I wonder if the Quakers were not a form of 17th century charismaticism. I've set in classes that taught that pentecostalism was emotions and demonic and not spiritual yet we see the great increase to the kingdom after such movements. At the time of Edwards revival flowed the Quakers then the Methodists. Early 20th century we see the Pentecostals. 60 years later the Charismatics. What will the next movement of God be called and will we demonize it or will we be open to the Spirit's call allow Him to move as He wishes - out of our box if He wills. I believe Father is continually reforming His church: Catholic to Protestant to Quaker to Methodist to Baptist to Pentecostal to Charismatic to ?? As a Church and as individuals, we are continually being conformed into His image.

It's funny how at each movement by the Spirit there arose several "denominations" if you will. Their own marketed brand of what God was doing and how he was doing it. We still see this today.

Experiences

I'm reading Jonathan Edwards by George Marsden. On page 191 Edwards is preaching a series on I Cor. 13. He said that humans would not be able to love as fully as they should in this life. He focused on the next life for us being able to fully express love to God and each other. In so doing He put a mental ceiling, an excuse for not living up to what Christ paid for in His life, death, resurrection, and Lordship. Edwards implanted an underlying belief - a support beam - that holds up falsehood which prevents Christians from being who they are in Christ. The potential and possibility is limitless - limited only by the mind of Christ or the unbelief of believers. We must not use experience to interpret Scripture. However, experience colors the lens that views Scripture. It is only by the Spirit giving revelation into experience can we come to truth. I must allow Scripture to stand without being propped up by my experience. But I must listen to what Father might be saying in the events I encounter. I must not automatically interpret an experience without first listening to Father's voice.

The Pilgrims viewed the experiences they encountered as being God's favor or displeasure and 100 years later Edwards was doing the same thing. Father allows hardships - they knew hardships more intimately than we - for His purposes regardless if I can figure them out or not. They don't have to make sense. Having answers will not make the pain any less intense. This just momentarily distracts from the pain. We don't have to know why. The truth is we serve a loving God. He knows; He sees; He feels; He loves. And that is enough. We are fulfilling His purposes no matter how grand or minute they may be. He sees and says it is good. So Squanto served and slept with his fathers. We serve and will sleep with our fathers. Our suffering is recorded in Father's memory for His purposes. All lives and exeriences are significant to God, He is the only One who matters.

Slavery

The reason we have poverty in America is because we abolished the institution of slavery. On the surface this sounds controversial. I’m not advocating that slavery be reinstituted but I am inferring that the institution was never abolished and we need to truly set people free. When a slave depends on someone else to free him he will look for another master once he is free. When a revolutionary frees himself he will be his own master. However, neither viewpoint produces true freedom. We are all slaves to someone or something.

A slave is always dependant on someone unless he learns to be independent. If I grew up a slave then as long as I think of myself in those terms I will always be in bondage. If I think differently about myself then I can be free from bondage.

Now replace the word slavery above with poverty. The principle is the same. We can use the words literally or metaphorically.

I was working with a young man who was having difficulty adjusting to being taken out of the home and relocated to a different town. He physically was living in a different place then he was mentally and emotionally. He would continue to have difficulty until he moved his whole person to his physical location. As it was, he sabotaged himself in relationships to where he liked no one and no one like him. It was all in his mind because he was a very likable guy.

I was a slave. Someone else set me free. I was unable to free myself. And sometimes in my mind I still live like a slave trying to free myself. But I’m already free. Free to live in freedom. Free to do what is right. Free to live without resentment (which is bondage) to my former master. Free to love. Free to grow into maturity. I’m not free to harm or to be selfish or to use my freedom to sin. But I have been set free.

In Galatians 5 Paul contrasts the bondage of the Law and freedom in the Spirit. Freedom is a life of dependence/walking through faith on the Spirit. It is “faith working through love.”

For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. v. 17

When I am mentally and emotionally struggling to live up to a standard I cannot meet, I will be in bondage. The Law never set anyone free. The Law has never given me one second of freedom.

But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. v.18

My bondage to the flesh is replaced with motivation from the Spirit. The Spirit is a real person that is capable of handling my carnal desires – the control of the flesh. Prior to verse 17, Paul says

walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. v. 16

Surrounding his comments about the flesh and Spirit war (which sounds like the flesh is stronger) are comments about how to live in freedom from the flesh, that is, how the war has already been won.

Paul further contrasts the deeds of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit and then concludes his talk on freedom with a reminder that we belong to Christ. His readers would understand belonging differently than we do. Some of them would have literally belonged to someone else with all the implications of being a slave. Their context was one of slavery. They would have instilled in their programming that they were not their own.

Our programming on the other hand is one of independence. We think we belong to ourselves and even worse others belong to us. We take ownership instead of being owned. Jesus belongs to me. I try to fit Him into my box. I try to get Him to do my bidding.

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions
and desires. v. 24

Being belonged precedes being crucified. It is difficult to crucify the flesh when I try to make Jesus belong to me. When I recognize and accept that I am a bond-slave to Jesus the flesh will not be a problem and I will truly be free.

Catching Up

It has been a while since I’ve consistently posted, mainly because of an incredibly busy schedule – added work responsibilities. Upon my load of clients that always picks up when school starts I have done some training in K.C. and they have given more responsibilities over the other contracted therapists on the children’s unit. The CEO has encouraged me to take more ownership. This has not bided well for some on the unit. And I thought only children engaged in power struggles – silly me.

To catch you up I got an 8 point in Arkansas in Oct. This was an exciting hunt. I usually return lead to mother earth but this time hit the mark, largely because I didn’t have time to think but had to react as I saw the deer. Currently it is modern gun season in MO and I’ve gone out a few times and have seen nothing. The family farm hasn’t provided many sightings over the last three years although they are there, just not around me. Do I smell? I took a kid from church this year. I love doing this. His dad doesn’t hunt and he wanted to learn. I will set him up better next year. There are still some opportunities for him. I would like to go out several more times, too bad he has to go to school.

One of the reasons I have not been posting is because I have been writing my prayers most mornings and this has been my process. I was having difficulty focusing. I would recommend this practice. The main reason for this site was to post my insights as the Spirit awakened me. I have not written much in this regard but have had insights. Currently, I’ve been meditating on 1 Tim. 1:5. The contrasting of carnal and spiritual goals, “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience, and a sincere faith.” I believe that “love . . .” is equivalent with maturity or growing up in Jesus. We don’t involve ourselves in meaningless arguments but they are fruitless and do not promote the “administration of God.” This is what is currently on the plate.

So, I’ll try to be more consistent in posting. Until then, blessings and peace to you.

On Being Borderline

“For such an American icon, it’s pretty un-American thing to do to me,” said the man with poor boundaries as he was shocked that someone would hold him accountable for having poor boundaries. Mr. Fly portrays the real Mr. Griffith as the villain for confronting a man who changed his name to Andy Griffith for political gain. This has become the American way. I can inappropriately enter someone’s space and then blame them for being uncomfortable. Then, loudly proclaim that they have a problem and everyone will come to my defense. What a bunch of children.