But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.

Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.

Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”– 2 Kings 5:11-15

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That’s it. I’m going!

I wasn’t sure because of other commitments how I would get there, but I was going.

It’s called ‘A Night of Hope and Healing’ – an event in South Florida being hosted by Dr. Chauncey Crandall. Dr. Crandall is a highly-regarded cardiologist and surgeon – a man of science. He is also a dynamic Christian who has diligently and passionately pursued the power of God and has (as promised in Hebrews 11:6) been rewarded by God to be used in miraculous ways.

I’d never been to a major healing event before but this one was being organized by my Brother-in-Christ, Tim, who I have known for years (He officiated my Daughter’s wedding). Tim had called out of the blue one day and filled me in on the continued movement of the Holy Spirit in new ways across churches in South Florida. Knowing Tim, there was no doubt that what He was describing was new to him. I had been seeing God begin moving in new ways in my dynamic but fairly conservative New England church. So, I had to check this out.

As I prayed in advance of going, excited by what I had heard and in anticipation of great things a memory flooded into my mind:

Years ago, I visited one of my brothers in Hawaii. He took me on a tour of Oahu and as we toured we checked out the powerful and infamous surf of North Shore. When we arrived, due to a recent storm, the surf was even more monstrous than usual. Yet, there were no surfers. I was surprised and confused when I saw signs on the beach well away from the water’s edge warning to not go any further. What? Come on! The shore line seemed a mile away.

I didn’t see any lifeguards so I decided that the warning must have been for high tide. I crossed the line to get closer and to just dip my toes into the famous waters. I didn’t want to surf or swim or wade into the waters, just to dip my toes in.

Immediately, a life guard popped up from out of nowhere and came running at me screaming to get back.

He startled me and I threw my hands up calling out, “Really? Okay, okay.” I shook my head in disgust at his ‘overreaction’ but complied and went back.

Sure enough, moments later a huge, thunderous wave rose up and dropped onto the beach like a bomb exploding. The spray shot high into the air. The churning, swirling waters raced up to the signs I had just passed. The monster swirled for a bit and then receded, sucking everything that had been on the beach out to sea.

The power, the speed and the havoc of it all took my breath away.

Resisting the Spirit of Naaman

While praying with that memory filling my mind, it struck me that for most of my life while walking with Jesus, I have wanted to just dip my toes into the power of God’s Holy Spirit but afraid that I may be caught up and dragged away to a place I was fearful of going. To find myself isolated and bobbing in a sea of the supernatural. I lived something like the spirit of King Naaman, who wanted God’s healing touch but wanted it his way – resisting how God would dictate.

But, now I believe I’m at the point where my heart is more willing to go where God directs and willing to see what God will do in whatever way he wants to do it.

After all, what’s to be afraid of, if it’s truly God’s doing?

The event was located near West Palm Beach, Florida where my Daughter and Son-In-Law live. They are familiar with Dr. Crandall’s reputation for medical excellence (In fact he is a client of my Son-in-Law’s firm) and when they heard about this side of Dr. Crandall, they were surprised and intrigued.

Both my daughter and I attend wonderful churches where God is moving in amazing ways but where the sign gifts aren’t particularly emphasized. I called my Daughter only to ask if she would give me a ride to the event and she and my Son-in-law immediately said they wanted to join me. Awesome!

The event was at 6pm on a Sunday. So that Sunday, I attended worship and taught a class on the ‘Character of Christ’ at my church in Connecticut. From there I hustled off to catch the flight to Florida and had my daughter and Son-in-Law pick me up to go learn something of the ‘Charisma of Christ’. We went straight to the campground where it was being held – old tent revival style. After walking with Christ for almost 40 years, this was the first event of its kind I had ever attended. For all of us this was our “First Rodeo”.

We were late and missed the worship and the testimony by Todd Shoemaker – a man I’ve met who thrives on God’s sustenance in the midst of a seemingly never-ending string of life-threatening illnesses.

We approached the huge tent packed with a crowd that spilled out beyond its perimeter. The night was clear with a full moon and a cool breeze that I’d swear accelerated and swirled every time Dr. Crandall called on the Holy Spirit.

My anticipation and excitement for what God was going to do kept building. We settled in at the back of the crowd. I prayed as I fixated on a strange glow that seemed to hang over the tent.

I will admit that I went with some reservation knowing there would likely be certain things that, theologically, I’d be uncomfortable with. Indeed, there were a few things that caught my attention. But, I resisted the attitude of Naaman and decided to not pre-judge but to let God’s truth reign in me.

Dr. Crandall took the stage just as we arrived and shared stories of the amazing healing God has worked in people’s lives through him. It struck me as all due to his willing faithfulness to stretch himself in pursuit of all God wants to do through him. He made it clear that any ministry of healing was the avenue for those to enter into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. He then gave a clear message of the Gospel highlighting how sin drags us down to the lowest level and how God’s grace rescues us. He then extended an invitation to those who didn’t know Christ. To God’s glory and to their joy several accepted that invitation.

Then Dr. Crandall invited those who wanted prayer for healing to come forward. One of the reasons I felt led to race down from Connecticut to attend the event was because I was asked by Tim to do a “write-up” documenting the experience. I moved up front, but off to the side, with the mindset of a journalist, not for my own healing but to soak in and absorb the overall experience.

The Doctor asked that the sickest and most needy would be allowed to come forward first. He began praying for those who were brought right up front in wheel chairs and suffering from ALS, neurological disorders and mental issues.

The rest of the crowd couldn’t resist and pressed forward. Dr. Crandall tried to organize the group asking them to line up but the swirling desire of those wanting to be touched by God was too great. They pressed in. He would pray and move on and His team would continue to pray.

I was feeling overwhelmed by the crush of the crowd and the tremendous need of the people. It made me think of the crush of the desperate crowds that Jesus ministered to.

Then the image of that North Shore beach and the churning waters that swirled and lingered for a moment came back fresh into my mind. It was the power of the Holy Spirit mixing with the people, churning like frothy living water. It ebbed and flowed and sloshed following Dr. Crandall as he moved. The great, frothy tidal pool swirled around him.

Then my eyes were drawn to one head bobbing above the churning sea of spirit and humanity. A face filled with emotion crying out to God. I adjusted my focus and to my shock, it was a friend named Joe, from my church in Connecticut. Joe was suffering from early onset dementia. His deepest desire was to have his mind set straight by God’s power. Friends drew him out of the crowd and continued praying for him. They led him away before I could get across the crowd to join him.

The prayers continued. Here and there I would hear people crying out their thanks for God’s healing touch. A few people stumbled away after Dr. Crandall’s prayer and I asked how they were. They beamed. Some couldn’t even speak, unable to come up with words that could adequately describe what God had just done and they simply hugged me. Others declared their joy with simple superlatives like, “Great”, “Awesome”, “Fantastic”.

I watched as periodically, Dr. Crandall would put his hand on someone’s forehead and they would drop below the surface gently floating to lie on the soft seabed. (of course, there was a team there ready to catch those falling, being overcome by the instantaneous power and peace of God).

I had to laugh as I watched one particular woman who appeared to be simply trying to move past Dr. Crandall through the crowd. He reached up, placing his hand on her forehead as she passed. She dropped like a stone. The team was quick to catch her and after a few minutes she was helped up shaking her head and beaming with joy.

As the tide receded and the crowd began to thin, I couldn’t help but be drawn into the smaller tidal pool puddles of prayer that were left behind – groups gathering to pray for those that lingered. The Lord generously gave me some words of hope and encouragement for others.

When Dr. Crandall had a moment, Tim introduced me. The doctor placed his hand on my forehead and began to pray. He blessed me with my heart’s desire that God would use my writing in ways that would further His Kingdom. I’ll admit I was hoping that the Spirit would knock me down and turn me inside out. That didn’t happen. All I sensed as he prayed was a feeling of deep relaxation as if resting on a comfortable couch.

After Dr. Crandall prayed for me I realized that I had lost track of my family and went to locate them. I was concerned I would find them pointing at their watch, anxious to leave. But, when I came up to them they were peacefully sitting and taking it all in – in awe of watching so many desperate souls desiring to be touched by God.

I waved them forward, “Come on. Let’s go meet Dr. Crandall and be touched by the Holy Spirit.” I could see each with a mixed look of fear and excitement – an expression like, “Who me?”

We went forward and came up to Dr. Crandall. I chuckled when the Doctor asked them, “What’s wrong with you?” They were stumped and shrugged their shoulders saying, “Nothing. We just want to experience God.” He complied and prayed wonderful prayers over them.

Once again, there were no lightning bolts, no fainting, no falling over, just a sweet sense of peace and comfort as if the hand of God was messaging their neck and shoulders.

As things were wrapping up, we headed out and went to grab a bite to eat. In the restaurant, we shared about God’s movement in our lives and debriefed on what the evening meant to each of us. There was a lot to unpack.

Now, a few days later the results of the meeting are still yet to be fully known. Testimonies of God’s healing were beginning to surface.

I came to the meeting with hopes of seeing people walk away from wheelchairs, physical deformities restored, Blind and deaf healed, etc. Honestly, I did not see any of that though that’s not to say it didn’t happen and still won’t. Yet, I came away fully satisfied. God was present and He was working in powerful ways. For me, the fact that God has my daughter and her family in a place to desire to go to such an event borders on the miraculous. That I could enjoy sharing the things of God in this way with them was a source of more joy than I could have imagined in that place.

While I was kind of hoping to experience the Holy Spirit knocking me down and turning me inside out, I’m guessing God knew I didn’t need that. What He provided for me was a fullness of joy that was more than enough. And one more thing I know . . . I’ll take another dose of that!

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Follow-up on my friend Joe

I just recently spoke with Joe. He was excited and the memory of the Night of Hope and Healing has stayed clear in his mind. Joe exclaimed that it was the most powerful encounter with the Holy Spirit he had ever experienced. He went to the event with no intention to be ministered to, but only to assist in the setup for the evening. But, when Dr. Crandall began to minister in prayer, Joe found himself in the middle of the swirling tide.

In the midst of his crumbling personal life and the fading reality of Alzheimers, Joe was overcome by God’s presence – reassuring Joe of how much God values him and loves him, and will be there to care for him. What I had hoped for, for myself, is what God did for Joe. He was left feeling turned inside out – spiritually and emotionally healed from the inside out.

I also spoke with Joe’s close friend who had invited him down to the event. Since then she has had almost daily phone calls with him, and said that while he is still dealing with his dementia, she attests that ever since that evening his speech pattern has changed – no more stammering and stuttering. He’s more clear-headed and his speech is smoother. She surmized that it was God’s healing touch from that evening.

God’s healing is not always what we expect. But, God heard the cry of Joe’s heart and God poured His love into Joe’s life and for good measure – He touched Joe’s tongue.

“At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.” Mark 7:35

“My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” – John 14:2-3

Sadly, our young Brother-in-Christ, Andrew, passed away this week. But, our joy is in knowing where he is and who he is with. Please read my post about Andrew, There’s Another In The Fire – So Take The Plunge from November 26, 2019

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After hearing of the passing of Andrew by overdose, in my shock and sadness the Lord led me to Proverbs 30.

• There is a generation that curses its father, And does not bless its mother. There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, Yet is not washed from its filthiness. There is a generation—oh, how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up. There is a generation whose teeth are like swords, And whose fangs are like knives,
  To devour the poor from off the earth, And the needy from among men.
• The leech has two daughters—Give and Give!
• There are three things that are never satisfied, Four never say, “Enough!”: The grave, The barren womb, The earth that is not satisfied with water—And the fire never says, “Enough!” – Proverbs 30:11-16 

First of all, I am in no way suggesting that what is described above was Andrew. His was a joyful, exuberant and energetic spirit.

What the Proverb describes is what exists in our world that works to devour people like Andrew. It struck me as describing a generation fooled by the certainty of their inherent goodness, tormented by social media and driven to drugs, desperation and destruction.

Am I overstating? Perhaps. But, not in the light of this world’s intent to destroy Andrew and the growing epidemic of drug use and overdose.

The filthy leech that rules this earthly realm always wants more – to drain the lifeblood of God’s creation.

Truthfully, what I initially felt was not just sorrow but a mix of anger and sorrow – for the deception and corruption of this world. It was something like the only time in the Gospels that Jesus is said to be angry. His was not just anger, but a combination of anger with sorrow and mourning.

In the Gospel of Mark, chapter 3 a man holds out his deformed hand anxiously waiting for a miracle. Jesus hesitates and asks the Pharisees if it is right to heal on the Sabbath. They stay silent, condemning the man to stay deformed rather than admit to the truth and their error. Jesus experiences a mix of anger and mourning for their hardhearted, compassionless silence.

As I meditated on God’s word I heard, “Enough is enough!”

The prophets were often commissioned by God to expose the extreme sinfulness of Israel and the human suffering it caused, and to warn of the judgement that was inevitable, unless they repented. God warned that he will act to end the sin and suffering by judgement saying, “Enough is enough!”

But, this was not what I heard for Andrew.

It was not the great judgement declaration of the Prophets. What I heard was the great compassion declaration of a loving God that said, even with all God had done and was doing for Andrew: a new and vibrant relationship with the living God, a family that continued to lavish loving grace upon him, a church family rejecting any notion to turn their back on him and even a new beautiful, caring romance was not enough to drown out the years of the enemy’s voice screaming in his ear, “You cannot live without this drug!” God said, “Enough is enough!”

But, I had to chuckle. As I prayed, a familiar phrase from my ancient days (the 1960s) came to mind. The memory of a cartoon from when I was a child surfaced. It was Tooter Turtle and Mister Wizard, where Mr. Wizard would rescue Tooter from some catastrophe by crying out,

“Drizzle, Drazzle, Drozzle, Drome; time for this one to come home.”

Not exactly straight from the Bible but I sensed God saying, as Jesus shared in John 14:2-3, My victory is already won for Andrew. Enough is enough! It’s done. No more of the enemy having his way. Time for this one to come home!

God was not the author of this sin that led to death. In fact, God had stepped in to “rescue” Andrew’s life several times in the past. (Which by God’s loving patience led to Andrew’s accepting His gift of eternal life) But, by God’s love, this time He brought Andrew home.

Let’s lift up praise to our God now lovingly embracing Andrew – even as we pray comfort for his family and friends left behind.

For Andrew, no more questions about acceptance. No more feelings of loneliness. No more need for drugs to grasp at a deceptive substitute for experiencing God. All of it now perfectly satisfied in God’s powerful arms. Andrew rests unbound and unharmed.

He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.” Daniel 3:25

But, Andrew is no longer in the fire. He’s now swimming with his Savior – plunged into the refreshing waters of God’s eternal love.

For us, let’s use Andrews memory and Jesus’ example of what to do with our anger and sadness – to turn and to heal. To continue to offer true healing and hope for eternal life to the multitude who are desperately lost and hurting.

 

 

 

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” – Ephesians 5:15–16 

As I covered in the previous post, perhaps the biggest challenge for Sabbath Living is TIME.

When I decided to commit more time to deliberately engage God as described in my previous post (because there is no substitute for time in building a relationship) I wondered where I would find the time? My schedule was jam-packed. Yes, I would rearrange my schedule, try to reduce useless activities (mostly of the couch-potato variety). But, could I go in later to work, or substitute work during lunch for prayer time or take occasional breaks to be ‘Jesus’ to my co-workers? The thought of it left me with dread for the work I might miss, leading to poorer work performance and risking potential career advancement – the dreaded ‘Fear of Failure.’

God led me to Ephesians 5:15–16 in the King James Version says, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Interesting notion – redeeming the time. It’s not God redeeming the time but my actions “redeeming the time”. How is that done? What I decided was that God would honor a greater dedication to time spent with Him. Was my God big enough and real enough to do what I couldn’t do? Could I TRUST that He would fill in the Gaps for time I would take away from elsewhere to spend with Him? Well, I trusted and He did.

“Redeeming the time” means letting God fill in and take over when we don’t know how something will get done if we don’t do it. The phrase redeeming the time is also found in Colossians 4:5: “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (KJV). In both passages, redeeming the time is related to wisdom in how we “walk” – that is, in how we live.

To redeem something means to buy it back, to regain possession of it. In fact, the NIV’s translation of Ephesians 5:16 uses the phrase ‘making the most of every opportunity’. Rather than waste our days on frivolous pursuits that leave no lasting imprint, Scripture instructs us to be diligent about doing good (Titus 3:8).

I would add Paul’s charge to the Galatians – To walk and Keep in step with the Spirit – Slowing down and removing barriers to hear His voice. Making connecting in relationship with the living God a priority in my life. That is what Jesus did. In, fact He only moved as the Spirit led him – only doing and saying what he saw and heard from God the Father. For us, that means to live deliberately and engage God through Spiritual Disciplines.

If the thought of practicing all the 15 Spiritual Disciplines is too overwhelming Pastor John Mark Comer recommends this short list to practice:

1. Keep a Sabbath – People who keep a Sabbath life live all 7 days differently
2. Solitude – enjoying time alone with an interactive God
3. Simple living – strip down that which needlessly fills up our lives
4. Slowing down – Moving more at the pace Jesus did – directed by the Father and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Really? How can we possibly operate effectively always on “Slow”?

Does living a Sabbath Lifestyle meaning always moving at a snail’s pace? We never move fast? Even as I was away writing about slowing down, I got a call from my wife, Eleni. She was leaving late for work and a wind storm kicked up, knocking over our full garbage cans and scattering trash all over our and our neighbor’s yards. There she was scurrying all over the neighborhood chasing down wind-blown garbage while desperately trying to get to work. (I smartly resisted giving her this pious advice over the phone, “Hey, honey, just slow down.”

Circumstances will dictate we move fast at times but should it be the rhythm of our lives? We slow down to hear God’s voice and gather His wisdom and guidance. God’s voice then may dictate to wait, move ahead, slow down, or speed up.

1. When Jesus was called to come heal Lazarus, the Father said “wait”. While those he loved were incredulous that Jesus would delay, we know now the purpose of His waiting.
2. Conversely, when Mary asked Jesus to turn water into wine, He pushed back saying it was not His hour. But then He went ahead and performed His first public miracle. Did He just cow tow to his mother? No, I speculate that while He initially said it was not His time the Father whispered, “Actually, it is time.” and Jesus began his ministry in earnest.
3. Occasionally, the Gospel’s indicates that Jesus moved with a sense of urgency. Yet, the thing he did regularly with immediacy was healing as in Matthew 20:34, “Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately (Eutheos) they received their sight and followed him.”

A test Christ-follower’s use to gauge our trust in God is to consider how much we trust God with our Time, Talent and Treasure? Each of the 3 present major challenges. All three are impacted by Sabbath Living. But, of the 3, Time may be the most easily dismissed yet the hardest to comply with. While I covet the other 2, I am sooo jealous of my time.

Developing any relationship requires committing time. If we seek God it requires a time committment. Do we believe Hebrews 11:6 that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him? So, if we make that dedication of time with Him, it not only means that He will honor our commitment by covering our back, but even more so will reward us.

Be rewarded – Put yourself on Sabbath time. Commit more time to seeking after God.

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” – Psalm 8:3–4

“Rather, His is a revolution of character, which proceeds by changing people from the inside through ongoing personal relationship to God in Christ and to one another. It is one that changes their ideas, beliefs, feelings, and habits of choice, as well as their bodily tendencies and social relations. It penetrates to the deepest layers of their soul.”—Dallas Willard

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This post is an excerpt from a manuscript I’m considering publishing about the ‘Character of Christ’. This coming Sunday, February 9, 2020 at Black Rock Church I will begin teaching on this subject during the 11:30am hour. In addition to teaching, I’m looking for feedback to fine-tune the material. Please come join in.

In my last post I promised personal experience with the challenge of living a Sabbath Life. This is my experience with entering into Sabbath Living. I don’t suggest it is a model for every Christian but I will say that it may capture some biblical/universal truths about living out a Sabbath life.

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How Real Is my God?

The question was a scary one. How real do I really think my God really is?

I had been following the person of Jesus Christ for about twenty years. All along, I was growing in the knowledge of Jesus and experiencing him in very real ways. But, at this point I seemed to hit a wall.

I was living my faith out of dry bones. How big was my God? What kind of testimony to the reality of God in my life did I have? If someone were to ask me how I could prove God was real, what could I say?

Before heading off on a short-term mission trip with my church, I made a decision. I was going to take this time to begin treating God as more real than I ever had before. How would I do that? My plan was that I would begin reading through the Bible. (Pretty clever, huh?)

I had worked my way through the Bible a number of times before, but this time I was going to pray beforehand with a determination that I would engage with God and listen for his voice—listen for him to speak to me and then listen by reading his written Word. And, if I was truly going to believe God was real, whatever was coming into my head during this dedicated time was going to be his voice. He is big enough and real enough, and he was going to speak. Whatever it was, I would write it down, and then act on what God said. Little did I know what I was getting into.

Here was my biggest question: How would I know that what was coming into my head was from God? I decided on three tests. What I was “hearing” had to pass these tests if I would be confident that it was from God:

1. Was the voice I was hearing in my head consistent with God’s written Word, the Bible?
2. Was the voice I was hearing for myself or for others consistent with 1 Corinthians 14:3—speaking edification and exhortation and comfort to men?
3. Was it consistent with the character of Christ, utilizing the Fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23—love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control?

As I committed significant time and energy to this Sabbath endeavor, God responded and I saw James 4:8, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” and Hebrews 11:6, “[God] is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” being realized. As I drew near and lingered with God, He would speak and continue as much as I was faithful in being a “doer” of His word. God began to deliver more than I could handle. God seemed to be saying, “You want it, you got it!”

Isaiah 44:3 says, “I will pour water upon him who is thirsty.” The Hebrew phrase ‘pour water’ is Yatsaq Mayim. It indicates pouring to overflow of, yes, refreshing waters but with indication of almost violent waters.  At times I felt like I was drinking from the proverbial “Firehose.” He was bringing issues and people and situations into my mind and providing me with things I believed he wanted to speak into my own life and into others’ lives. Would I be receptive and his faithful emissary (or dare I say, apostle)?

It was a tremendous season of stretching my faith to not only act on what God was speaking into my own life but even more so for the challenge of speaking into others’ lives.

Let me now say that on the personality spectrum of extrovert to introvert, I fall on the introvert side of the spectrum—I basically find human interaction exhausting. For me, this was a huge challenge!

Offering up what I believed were God’s words of life and peace and joy and comfort that provided others with hope and direction was challenging enough. This was usually well received. But, more than a few times people stared back at me confused, not knowing what I was talking about. Easy enough—I heard wrong and if what I shared didn’t mean anything to them, I encouraged them to put it on the shelf or throw it out altogether. On numerous occasions people came back later, excited that the words had gelled into something meaningful.

The greatest challenge, however, was dealing with confronting difficult issues—bad behavior, sin, addictions, unfaithfulness, unkindness, coarse language, etc. Things in others God seemed to be calling on me to confront. (God wasn’t shy about bringing up my own issues, too.) The problem is that I am not very comfortable with confrontation (ask my wife). Plus, how do I do this and pass the third test of speaking with a voice that is consistent with the Fruit of the Spirit? Does being true to the Fruit of the Spirit mean I can only say nice things?

In these instances where people are behaving badly, the temptation is to jump in and righteously judge and condemn. Surely, the power of the condemnation should be enough to persuade the person of their sin and to change their ways! But it just doesn’t seem to work that way.

The truth is that Jesus was able to do it. Jesus confronted without condemning and by staying true to his character. I realized that I had to know what Jesus would say and how he would say it. Not my words and voice but his words and voice. This required knowing more fully Christ’s true character.

The point of sharing this experience is that if God wanted me to address some difficult situation, he wanted to tell me how to do it consistent with the character of Christ. For those occasions when I have truly sought out his words and his voice, I have seen God touch lives in amazing ways. Don’t get me wrong. Even when I am completely confident I have spoken with Jesus’s voice, it does not always result in the impact I hoped for.

Even Jesus was not always able to have the impact he seemed to be looking for. Even with words that are good and righteous and true, people turned away from Jesus (e.g. the rich young ruler) because the message was too hard. Still, I am convinced that if I am willing to put in the time and effort, any message can be effectively conveyed with the rich, full-nectar medley of all the Fruit of the Spirit, from the full character of Christ.

The truth, though, is that this does not come easy (not in my experience). When the disciples failed to heal the boy as recorded in Matthew 17:14-21, they asked Jesus why not. He replied, “Because of your unbelief . . . However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting” (verses 20-21). I believe part of this answer has to do with not operating in the natural but earnestly engaging God for the words and ways he directs us to best respond, which is always consistent with the character of Christ.

How BIG is my God? For me, perhaps the greatest evidence of His ‘bigness’ and ‘realness’ is through conversational relationship. A God that listens and speaks with a voice that can be heard and can be known.

“To Him who rides upon the highest heavens, which are from ancient times; Behold, He speaks forth with His voice, a mighty voice.” – Psalm 68:33

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”  – John 10:27

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The above testimony was my experience and my personal challenge. Is God asking something the same of you? I don’t know.

I do know that God is like a parent who desperately wants to spend more interactive time with their kids. Regardless of how much or little time the kids will give them, they love their kids and will cherish and covet any time they can get. Whether the child realizes it or not, it’s their most valuable time spent.

A test Christ-follower’s use to gauge our trust in God is to ask how much we trust God with our Time, Talent and Treasure? Each of the 3 present major challenges. All three are impacted by Sabbath Living. But, of the 3, Time may be the most easily dismissed yet the hardest to comply with. While I covet the other 2, I am so jealous of my time.

The next post I will explore being, On Sabbath Time.

“but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do.” Deuteronomy 5:14

“Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” Dallas Willard

A Church Story

A member of the Church Board of Directors was invited to sit in on a meeting of the Finance Committee. The Director was surprised when the Finance Committee member’s discussion went into a negative critique of Sunday Services. It further devolved into negative comments about the work ethic of the Church leadership.

The Director shook his head. This committee is an extension of the Board of Directors and is organized to serve at the pleasure of the Board on matters of Church finances. The Director wondered, How was this discussion advancing that purpose?

Before the Director could intervene, the high-powered business executive serving as Committee Chair injected with a negative tone, “Can you believe one of our senior staff leaders has the time to sit down to breakfast with his wife and kids every morning?”

The Director, with his mouth hanging open, stared back at the Chairman while shaking his head. The look itself said, Do you even realize what you are saying?

The Committee Chair met the Director’s gaze and a sad blush of conviction swept across his face. He sullenly admitted, “I guess I wish I could do that.”

The Director enjoined, “Let’s stop right now and pray that God would lead us all into life-giving practices that this particular Staff Leader has provided us as an example.”

The men prayed and the Holy Spirit changed hearts.

What is Sabbath?

It is not necessarily referring to Sunday or a given day. Sabbath is a day of rest, remembering, celebration and renewal. It is historically connected to the Creation Story – when God created the world and all forms of life in six days, and then rested on the Seventh (Sabbath).

The meaning of SABBATH was enriched when the Hebrew slaves were liberated from bondage in Egypt and camped in the wilderness for 40 years. (see Exodus 16) God provided Manna (meaning “What is this?”) for food, and instructed the Israelites to gather enough food on the 6th day to provide for the 7th (Sabbath) – but not to gather extra on the other days of the week. If they gathered more than they needed, the food would spoil and smell vile.

The Sabbath day was expanded to the Sabbath year, when the land and animals were to rest – debts forgiven, slaves released, etc. So, Sabbath includes release from bondage, debt and sin leading to healing, second chances, fresh beginnings.

Sabbath is more than a day, or a year (sabbatical) – it is a way of being (living) that can inform and permeate everything we do. It invites us to release our need to control, to let go – Letting God be a Bigger God. In our culture this requires growing in our trusting relationship with God.

Sabbath in a Wealthy Culture

In our culture of “success”, if we are not multi-tasking at breakneck speed 24/7 then we are no more than a slimy slug – a valueless lump of flesh. Who has time to value real relationship?

Very early in my corporate career I thought it was so nice that my boss was taking me for my first visit to the executive dining room as a reward and to build up our relationship. Then he shared the sobering reality, “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” He was just buttering me up to dump more work on my already exhausting workload.

This hurriedness and compulsion to “pack it all in” pervades every aspect of our society – school, business, family, leisure, church and even our spirituality. Does it all enrich our lives? Do we feel more satisfied, fulfilled, peaceful and joyful?

What do we expect from our Pastors and Spiritual Leaders?

While living a Sabbath lifestyle is meant for all Christ-Followers, my focus in this post is the incongruence of expecting the same level of frenetic activity and behavior of our Pastors and Church Spiritual Leaders, whose very charge is to lead us and teach us in “The way of Jesus.”

Christian theologian and author, Dallas Willard taught, “We can become like Christ by doing one thing – by following Him in the overall style of life he chose for himself.”

The Business Executive may say, “Living in a wealthy culture, requires a certain work ethic that I have to live up to. Why shouldn’t I expect the same for my Pastoral staff?” The questions is, “How spiritually satisfied are they?

Without diminishing the pressures people face in the secular work environment, do we as church members fully appreciate the tremendous pressure Pastors are under being burdened with the expectation that they should meet every spiritual, mental, emotional and urgent physical need of their flock? To be all things to all people at all times – to not disappoint? For many people coming into church, they come because they are damaged and need help. It can be an overwhelming bottomless pit that can swallow ministry leaders up.

They see a need and jump on it, another need and jump on it, another need and jump on it. Before they know it, from all the ‘doing’, the ‘connecting’ with God that they were called to imitate and teach is out the window. Now, they are the ones who are spent physically, spiritually, mentally and emotionally.

I’m certain it is happening in many Congregations – particularly those that are dynamic and growing.

If I only had more time!

Pastor John Mark Comer who is a leading advocate for Sabbath living teaches that the solution is not more time. It’s actually God’s mercy that he has limited the amount of time in a day. We would only exhaust ourselves more filling up that much more time. The key is to slow down and to simplify – living in step with the Spirit and “redeeming the Time”. To live deliberately and engage God through Spiritual Disciplines.

When author John Ortberg, asked Dallas Willard for wisdom on what he should do to be spiritually healthy, Willard only replied, “Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” Nothing more. That was it.

The Biblical Truth is that as followers of Christ, our conviction is that what Jesus offers us as an example is good, right and true – healthy and life-giving.

Church congregations should want our Spiritual leaders and church staff to be living the life of Jesus and teaching us to do the same.

How can we encourage and support Church Staff?

There are some obvious (not necessarily easy) solutions. The most obvious is praying for our leaders. Other obvious solutions are to look for opportunities to lighten their burden by volunteering in ways that free up their time to slow down and engage with God. There’s always throwing more resources into the mix or perhaps looking at ways to pull back on the ministry throttle.

Carl Jung famously wrote, “Hurry is not of the devil; hurry is the devil.”

I believe perhaps the most important thing we can do for our church leaders, as their ‘flock’, is to strip away our own urge to have them conform to the life pace the world dictates and to encourage them to live the life Jesus called them to live – to then be that life-giving example for us.

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

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Next post will be Part II of Ruthless Sabbath – Letting God Be A Bigger God – I’ll share some learnings and personal experience with the challenge of living a Sabbath Life.

“When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” – Matthew 8:5-10

Most often, those who Jesus healed came to him with Jesus physically touching them in some way. There are three accounts when Jesus healed from a distance. This account was not the first for Jesus but the Centurion’s faith amazed Him. The Greek word here for amazed, Thaumazo, has elements of wonder and surprise to it. What was Jesus surprised by? Certainly he was surprised that a Roman leader would show such great certainty in Jesus’ ability to exercise the power to heal. Is it possible that there was an element of surprise by the Centurion’s understanding of the model of authority as it relates to the spiritual realm? Was this a lesson for Jesus?

Just asking.

My Brother-in-Christ, Chris Bruno was similarly Amazed and Surprised.

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Guest Post by Chris Bruno

There is a husband and wife team I hire to do my annual pellet stove cleaning. Recently, I called to set up an appointment for cleaning and spoke with the wife. While we spoke she complained about having serious back pain. Being the good Christian who believes in the power of prayer, I asked, “Can I pray for you?”

Initially, she didn’t respond and we continued to talk pleasantries and sidetracked by “business” talk. But, as we were talking one of Pastor Dan’s testimonies flashed through my mind:

Dan was sitting in a diner with a leader from the Symposium he was attending. They got into a conversation with the waiter who said that his wife was dealing with serious back pain. The leader asked if he could speak with the wife on the phone. The man agreed and gave the phone to the leader who prayed for the woman’s healing. Dan could then hear her excitement over the phone as she was instantaneously relieved of her pain.

But, this woman had ignored my first offer and I found it tempting to take the opportunity as an “out” – to just finish the conversation and say goodbye. However, with the memory of Dan’s testimony fresh in my mind I mustered the boldness to press in. I gently asked again, “Before you go I’d really like to pray for you.” She agreed.

I prayed a simple prayer that God would heal her and then asked, “How are you feeling?” She politely responded, “Okay.” I pressed further, “Let’s pray again.” She agreed.

When I finished praying the second time, the woman declared, “Oh my God! I feel warm all over! I feel so much better!” She blurted out, “You have a gift!”

Whoa! I humbly redirected her to the one we just prayed to – Jesus and God’s power to heal. We said our goodbyes.

The next time she came in to do a cleaning she was perfectly fine though there wasn’t much said about the healing prayer.

Who was this healing for? What struck me was that while I was completely convinced of God’s power to heal, I just could not imagine that healing could occur praying over the phone. It was not in my realm of belief. With this experience, God broke out of the limiting box I had put God in. Before that encounter I would have said, “No, way does God work that way – particularly not through me.”

I’m always amazed at the multi-tasking work God does. Regardless of what God was doing to move in this woman’s life, this episode increased my faith and has empowered my walk. Jesus was teaching me of the Centurion’s faith – our authority in the spiritual realm. A lesson about increasing my level of belief in the power of God.

“Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour” – Matthew 8:13

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Our own Pastor G, who oversees our Church’s Care and Prayer ministries has seen enough to repeatedly testify that he is no longer surprised when God shows up in powerful ways.

This Christmas season I pray that we Christ-Followers might stretch ourselves with that same gift of Centurion Faith – recognizing our authority in Christ to believe in the powerful works of God that would become so commonplace we would no longer be amazed and surprised.

I recently read the book Raising The Dead by Cardiologist, Dr. Chauncey Crandall practicing in Palm Beach, Florida. Of our authority in Christ he says,

“I have learned to walk in the authority Christ gives his followers, and I feel now that when I see someone suffering from spiritual depression-someone who is captive to the enemy-I have the authority, like a general in an army, to command the forces of heaven to go into action so that the Kingdom of God will come to reign in the person’s life.”

“Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.” – Luke 9:1

Have Merry Christmas in His power!

 

“Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth.” – 3 John 2-3

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It’s once again Open Enrollment time for enrolling in a Health Plan. During this time I assist people in choosing the best Health plan option for them.

While in the public work settings I do not openly proselytize. I do not hide my faith but I am discreet, looking for God’s leading. (Perhaps a little too “discreet”?)

Recently, I was serving as a broker in an Enrollment Site located in a town library. There were three Enrollment Specialist employees manning the site. They work with the customers to complete their application before sending them to me to select a plan. The three employees obviously had worked together for some time and I could tell they were supportive friends.

When I first walked into the site I heard some beautiful and familiar music playing. I thought it was piped in from the Library but then realized it was coming from the woman named, Sandy’s phone. It was worship music from a popular Christian artist I had just been listening to in my car. I declared, “I love this song.” With that our familial connection in Christ was established.

Early in the enrollment period there is some down-time and it became clear to me that Sandy was taking time to share her faith with Justine. Justine is a young, single Mom to a young boy. She had to break family ties with her dysfunctional and abusive parents – now on her own and struggling to make ends meet. Sam was boldly and openly sharing her faith with some intimate details. I have to admit it was awkward for me. It seemed forced and uninvited – an imposition.

Still, I tried not to judge and prayed that God would use it and occasionally I jumped in to comment in support of the Gospel message Sandy was sharing.

As the 2 ladies were talking I heard Justine share that she did not know how she would even have the money to buy her son a gift for Christmas. The light went on in my head. I had purchased a gift for someone’ s child last Christmas. I thought the child was a boy and bought a robot toy. It turned out that the child was a girl so I had to get something else. (Forgive me for my politically incorrect use of pronouns) The robot sat in my garage for this past year collecting dust. I was planning to bring it to my church this Christmas for a wonderful inner-city youth ministry that gathers Christmas gifts for the parents to give to their kids.

But, now I knew who it was for. The next time I came into the site I brought the gift. At the end of the day I asked Justine to come outside with me to my car. She immediately thought she had done something wrong. I assured her that I just had something to give to her. She came out and I gave it to her. She was so excited. I said a quick prayer and told her that God loves her and has even greater gifts in store for her and her son.

Justine walked away beaming as I drove off. Later, I was stunned to hear that this was the first gift her 3-year-old son will have ever received. Little did I know that this was one of a sequence of events that God was revealing His love to Justine in support of the Gospel message that Sandy had been sharing.

The Greatest Gift

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He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. – Daniel 3:25

I recently attended our church annual Men’s Retreat. Over the past 36 years I have only missed a handful. For me, each year is different but it’s only because God presents Himself differently every year. In other words; God shows up each year in unique ways to powerfully impact the unique needs and desires of the men who show up.

I’ve mentioned my friend Pete who has been leading our Saturday morning men’s prayer group. For years we have prayed for each other’s family and the particular issues that our kids have been dealing with.

Now, several decades later, I find myself at Men’s Weekend in a breakout session with a group of guys (Dave D, Keith, Tim, Terry, Stephen, Albert, me & Andrew). Andrew just happens to be Pete’s son who we have been praying for for decades.

Also in the group was Albert, Andrew’s boss and spiritual mentor who had driven Andrew up to Men’s Weekend. All along Albert was praying that God would do something powerful in Andrew’s life.

As we circled together on the lake shore and shared some of our struggles, Andrew made a bold admission, “Just yesterday I had a needle hanging out of my arm. I’m struggling with drug addiction and I want it to be done.” We came around Andrew and prayed and poured God’s love into him. As we were praying an image came into my mind.

Taking the Plunge:

I saw Andrew step up to the water’s edge. He was fully clothed but with his body hot from fire within. He was reluctant but drawn to wade into the water. He took a few steps in and the water filled his shoes. The cool liquid refreshed his feet. It beckoned him to go in further. Slowly, he walked into the long shallow shore until he was hip deep. Would he go in further and get completely soaked? He knew he needed to take the plunge. He flopped into the water and felt the coolness cascade over his body, sizzling as it put out the fire.

I shared this with the group as part of our prayer. It occurred to me that this image may be something that God wanted Andrew to actually do. I offered, “Hey, Andrew, Jesus did some crazy things as a part of healing people. I know it is a cold Fall day in New Hampshire but what do you say we go walk into the lake and take the plunge? Let’s do it now! I’m in if you are.”

I learned later from Albert that God had prepared Andrew for a growing sense of God’s reality. Very early that morning many of the men had gathered on the same beach for prayer. Andrew was there but he was experiencing a deep throbbing pain in his back. The group prayed all together and then broke into smaller groups to pray for one another. Andrew testified that as they were praying, his back pain vanished. God was showing up to Andrew in a very tangible way.

Now, as I asked Andrew to walk into the water with me, he hesitated. But, there was something in his look that said, I want to do this. The problem was simple – he hadn’t brought a change of clothes. However, he did have a pair of shorts. I said, “Let’s go get changed and I’ll meet you back here in 10 minutes.” He agreed. Terry, one of the guys from our breakout group joined us. Albert and Pastor Dan who has also invested years in praying for Andrew said they were going in – fully clothed.

We lined up with Andrew in the center and slowly marched in. Just like the image, it was a long gentle slope so it took a while to get to hip-deep water. We turned around facing the crowd that had gathered on the shore.

We prayed for Andrew and we told him that God wanted to bring new life and refreshment to him so let this cold water put out the drug-induced fire and let the refreshment from God bring healing to his body and soul.

How do you put out the fire? By taking the plunge into God’s living water.

The five of us counted off to 3 and then fell back into the water. I was expecting my system to go into shock. It was cold but what I felt was refreshment sweeping over me. We all came up with arms raised and the guys cheering from the beach. I looked over at Andrew and he didn’t stop. He kept getting up and flopping back into the water. He wanted more – more of the physical, emotional and spiritual refreshment that this plunge was offering.

We headed back into shore and Andrew was pumped up. As we were drying off on the shore I asked Andrew if he was ready to take another plunge; to make a personal commitment to live for Jesus. I asked, “Have you ever done that before?”

He squinted and thought about it with a look that said, I’ve said some words to that affect but I’m not sure I really have. I looked at him, “If there is that much hesitation, it probably means that you have not.” He had to agree. I asked, “Do you want to do it now?” Still, he shook his head.

I said, “Andrew, this is why God has you up here in this place to make Himself real to you. While you’re here spend time treating God as if He is real and ask Him what He wants for you. God will keep showing up and you decide when you are ready. Any one of the guys here will be thrilled to pray that short, honest prayer of surrender with you.” He agreed to be open to the reality of God in this place.

I’ll be transparent, I spent the rest of the weekend with Albert praying for the opportunity to lead Andrew into God’s fulness of grace – chasing Andrew. What were God’s words He could give me or someone else to break through the final wall of resistance? Several of the guys were sharing with him what God had done in their lives. I know of at least one brother who shared the message of salvation and what Andrew needed to do. But, he decline.

It just seemed to me that in Andrew’s withdrawal-filled state that reciting the 4 spiritual laws and telling Andrew what he needed to do, or has to do, or must do (while all true) was not going to break through. What were the words from God that could trigger his heart to spark a desire to do it?

For the rest of our time, I felt like I was chasing Andrew all over the campground. I would see him and then go to stir up a conversation and he was gone. Yet, I still did not feel like God had provided the opening and His words.

The weekend speaker offered several opportunities for guys to make a commitment to follow Christ. A number of men responded. It’s always a glorious culmination of God moving throughout the weekend. But, on each occasion Andrew was not present.

For the speaker’s final message Andrew was there. The speaker shared about the figures from chapter 3 of the Book of Daniel – Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being in the fire and Jesus being there with them. The weekend concluded with that tremendous worship song – There’s Another in the Fire.

At the end of the weekend’s agenda, Pastor Jeremy strongly urged the men not to run off but for the breakout groups to meet one last time. Yes! We gathered and decided to focus our prayer time on the guys “In the Fire”. One of the guys was going home – going into the fire – to a crumbling marriage and we prayed for him. The other guy was Andrew – right at the moment in the fire. We gathered around him one more time and prayed for God to do a new work in his life.

We concluded and the guys shared their phone #’s to stay in touch. They began saying their goodbyes before scattering to go home.

(BTW – This group has been faithfully texting and supporting each other since returning home. In fact we recently all celebrated as Stephen took “the ultimate plunge” and was baptized)

God’s setup was just too perfect for even me to miss. I pulled Andrew aside and said, “You’re in the fire.” I pointed out to the lake. “The refreshment God provided for you in the water was real. That’s what He wants to bring to your life. It’s now as simple as this; all God wants to do right now is to be in the fire with you. But, you’ve got to invite Him to join you and then let Him do what you cannot. In Psalm 139 the Psalmist writes, If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

“Here’s the deal. God is the eternal gentleman. He won’t impose himself on you. You have to invite him in. Do you want that? Are you ready?”

With certainty Andrew nodded, Yes. I called the guys back together and we all joined with Andrew as he prayed that short, sweet prayer of surrender.

It was Awesome and it was genuine and it was real!

Andrew came back home a changed man. He was sharing his new-found faith with everyone he could while chucking aside a lot of the darker things in His life. There is no doubt in my mind that Andrew is now eternally secure in Christ.

Thank you God for your plans, for your words, for your ways and for your loving pursuit of us!

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“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” – Romans 8:28

Considering what horrible experiences many humans have to endure in their lifetime, I have lived a life relatively free of major pain and suffering. Certainly, it has not been without my share of heartbrake, difficulty and anxiety but mostly in the context of a safe, rich and full suburban US existence.

Next to losing a brother to suicide, one of the most painful experiences I’ve had was losing a dear friend (more like family) in a traffic accident. Though this, I do not believe, was an accident. She was run down on a well-lit, wide-open stretch of rode in the early morning hours by either a drunken, careless driver or a sadistic sociopath who pointedly gunned their car at her destruction. The thought of it, even right now, brings a dark anger upon my soul.

Poor Cici was our beloved 2.5 pound Yorkie. Just about the cutest/smartest little dog on the planet. I did not grow up with dogs but they came with my marriage to Eleni. None of our dogs over the years, however, drew out my affection like this one. She was special. But, while we were visiting my daughters’ family she disappeared.

From the guilt of negligently letting her somehow slip away, to finding her body crushed in the middle of the road, something inside of me broke. Why God? She was there, then she was gone.

Even now it sounds pathetic. The pain and depression was like nothing I had experienced before. I had to keep slapping myself to say this was not a child or a spouse or a friend or a relative or even another human being. It was just a dog.

What kept circling in my mind was Jack Nicholson’s character, Melvin Udall in the film, As Good As It Gets. Udall is forced to care for the neighbor’s dog for an extended period of time. Udall hated the dog. But, when the dog’s owner finally comes to take his dog back from Udall, the seemingly heartless and insensitive character begins to cry. Surprised by his rare emotional outburst, he chokes out, “Over a dog… over an ugly dog!”

When it happened, later that morning we had to face my 2-year-old granddaughter Stella to explain that Cici will never be back – she was there, then she was gone. It was heartbreaking. Ever since then both our Granddaughters include Cici in their prayers. We never encouraged it. They just started doing it.

The loss was particularly devastating to Eleni as Cici had become like another appendage, going everywhere she went. And, drawing crowds wherever she went. But, we chose to press in toward God and did not retreat. Still asking, “Why?” Yet, something lingered in my mind. Was this anything more than just a stupid consequence from living in a fallen world? Could God make something good from something that felt sooo bad?

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Now, 2+ years later we are back once more visiting our daughter and her family. We came to stay with the Grandkids while their parents went off on vacation. But, before the parents left we were blessed to be a part of our Granddaughters’ Dedication Ceremony at a special place called Family Church. A church not unlike our own wonderful home church. Seeing this body of believers come around our family, committing to support them in their Christian walk was awesome.

That evening, Eleni and I prayed with the kids as they were going to bed. Cici was again included in their prayers. We mentioned what a special event their Dedication was and that we hoped to see Cici again when we go to heaven. (Hey, it’s my hope and you’ll have to prove otherwise) I thought we were all done and left the room. But, Eleni stayed answering Stella’s questions about Cici and heaven.

The conversation led naturally for Eleni to pray a certain prayer with Stella. They both then marched downstairs to where I was sitting. Eleni asked her to tell me what she had just done. This precious little girl sweetly announced, “I prayed for Jesus to come into my heart.” I melted.

It took me back to the day we prayed the same prayer with Stella’s mom as a young girl. As Christians it is everything that we hope and pray for, for those we love – to enter into and enjoy a personal relationship with the living God.

Two + years ago, it was nearly impossible for me to think that any good could come from the random loss of that cherished little friend. How could I know that Cici’s life and death (a death not of God’s doing) would be used by God to trigger questions about life and death and eternity-with-God in a little girl’s heart leading to spiritual rebirth. Wow!

In the Gospel of John, Chapter 9 Jesus and the Disciples come upon a blind man and the Disciples ask a theological question – Jesus’ disciples asked, “Teacher, why was this man born blind? Was it because he or his parents sinned?”

I like the CEV translation best – “No, it wasn’t!” Jesus answered. “But because of his blindness, you will see God work a miracle for him.” John 9:2-3

In other words; Forget about what happened to make this man blind. Focus now on the goodness and power of God to restore this man.

For Cici, God was whispering in the midst of our pain, Don’t dwell on the evil in this world, but trust in my righteousness and power to make something good from it.

Thank you Jesus for your loving sacrifice to save our souls and for your masterful handiwork.

And, in memoriam I thank Cici for her sacrifice that God used to birth eternal life into our Stella.

For the love of Cici.

Until we meet again my little friend.

 

 

 

“In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:23–24

I’ve been on several Short-Term Missions trips with my church and have concluded that there are 3 reasons to go (Besides the overarching call of the Great Commission) 1. To love-on and share the Good News with the people of the region, 2. To encourage and support the Missionaries in the Field and 3. To experience God while stripped of our familiar and comfortable surroundings.

I’m not sure we put as much value to the 3rd reason as we should. If we desire to see God in fresh new ways this is powerful stuff. Why?

My theory is that in the US our spiritual lives struggle to break through the layers and layers of materialism, comforts, pressures and distractions – worldly stuff. When we go off to a 3rd world-like place with our focus on God’s Kingdom much of that is stripped away leaving the spiritual realm much closer to the surface. (Just my humble opinion)

This past January, my Brother-In-Christ, Albert joined a short-term missions trip from our church. The following is his story.

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Guest Blog Post by Albert Choi

I have been on a personal journey to learn about and to experience God’s power to heal and restore.  Coming from a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) academic discipline focus, it was something that challenged me on many levels. Recently, my friend Eric approached me in church and asked if I’d join him on a mission trip to visit his daughter, Becca serving in Nigeria. I prayed about it and called him back to say “yes.” On the phone he somewhat sheepishly replied, “I hope the fact that I won’t be going won’t change your mind.” Hmm? – the old “Bait and Switch.”

Our mission team would visit Missionary Peter Fretheim to explore and support the many wonderful ministries they have serving the Nigerian people. I knew relatively little about their ministries but had developed some expectations based on the anecdotal stories I had heard as well as Peter’s own description during a visit to our church.

Our team of a dozen arrived in Nigeria. The itinerary was filled with a Vacation Bible School, visits to a prison and a number of orphanages.

We were also blessed to be there for the arrival of the new bunkbeds provided through Becca’s efforts to answer God’s call to meet this basic need. Each experience was tremendous for different reasons, but due to time constraints, we were somewhat limited in how much time we could dedicate to each visit. I felt a growing desire to more directly minister to the Nigerian people.

The last day involved another quick visit – this time to a Women’s Health Clinic. We had perhaps 30 minutes at most to observe the work there and contribute as we saw fit. I’m a bit humbled to say that I wondered, “Why are we even bothering?” There was no real plan to do anything there and what could you do in 30 minutes anyway?

We arrived at the clinic and walked through. I was told that there were typically about 100 women receiving care, but today there were only about 20 women.  Our pastor asked one of us to share a devotion through our interpreter named, Patience. When our allotted time concluded, I sensed an urge to minister individually to these women so I asked the interpreter, Patience, “Do any of the women want us to pray for them now?”

She left to ask the women and returned to me and answered, “Yes.”

I was a little confused, “Yes, what? How many want prayer?”

She shrugged, “They all do.”

Oh! So, the team agreed to break up into small groups and each group pray for a few women.

I connected with a young, energetic teammate named Chris. We walked over to the first woman and asked what was wrong. She had a headache and stomach pain. We each prayed a short prayer for healing. I then asked how she felt. She smiled and said, “I feel better and the pain is gone.” We looked at each other and grinned. Cool!

We went to the next woman. She had bad knees. We held our hands over her knees and prayed short, simple prayers for God’s healing. When we were done, I asked her to do something she couldn’t do before we prayed. She then dropped down to kneel on the concrete floor and then jumped back up. She beamed, “I could not do that before.” She was healed.

Chris and I were excited – 2 for 2!

We went to the next woman. She had bad back pain. Something I had learned from prior experience was that bad back pain may be due to a difference in leg length – one shorter than the other. I asked her to extend her legs with her back against the wall. We looked and clearly one leg was about ½ inch shorter than the other. We closed our eyes and prayed commanding that the leg would grow like I had seen other ministries do numerous times before. When I opened my eyes, her legs were now identical length. The woman declared that her back pain was gone.

Amazing!  God was really rolling. Tears began streaming down my cheeks at the reality of God’s handiwork.

The last woman was a bit resistant, but she still wanted prayer from us – we learned that she is a Muslim. She had trouble with cloudy vision and pain around her eyes. We prayed in Jesus’ name and the pain began to subside, but her vision was still cloudy.  We prayed again and she then declared that the pain was gone but her eyesight was still cloudy. We left praying and trusting that God would finish the job. (When home a week later we heard from Becca that the woman’s sight had been completely restored.)

Chris and I were in a state of wonderful shock. This was new to the both of us. We had never experienced God responding so immediately and in such a rapid-fire way to our prayers for healing. Our faith had now become evidence for our belief.

We returned home from a fruitful trip, supporting amazing missionaries and their ministry and for me to observe first hand, the wonderful power of God.

“Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who expect and look and long for Him!” Isaiah 30:18

Follow-up to Albert’s story:

Months later I returned to Nigeria with a medical team that has been faithfully going to Nigeria for many years. The team was to perform hundreds of medical and dental procedures bringing hope and healing in Jesus’ name to many. Another tremendous ministry!

About 20 years ago, this ministry added a Prayer Tent that required every patient to receive spiritual counselling and prayer as a part of the overall medical treatment. The tent is manned by the pastor from the largest Evangelical church in Nigeria and prayer warriors that travel upwards of 3 hours to pray for patients.  I spent a fair amount of time in that tent and witnessed deliverance and miraculous healings. Hundreds were healed over the course of several days and three people actually raised from wheelchairs that they had occupied for years (including one pastor).

I spent some time with the pastor asking him about God’s miraculous power and sharing a little about seeing God do miracles back in America. He was surprised. I was confused. I asked, “What are you surprised about?”

He replied, “I have never heard about miracles happening there. I thought that this just does not happen in America.”

Now I was the one surprised! I smiled and assured him that God uses people and places in America to move in this way.

So, this past year I have been blessed and privileged to see and participate (in a brand new and exciting journey) with God working in many ways, in different ministries, in the same country, and yes, even in America.  Ministries that are being faithful to God’s calling of how he wants them to minister right where he has planted them.

Perhaps one of the lessons about God doing the miraculous I have learned is this:

God is the same everywhere – it has almost nothing to do with the “where” we find ourselves, rather, it has everything to do with trusting in the “who” – the one who gives us authority as His children.

I learned that God doesn’t need a fancy agenda or a half day in-depth game plan.  I think he just needs us to listen and to have confidence in what we hope for and have assurance in things we don’t yet see.

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I would say that Albert’s experience was summed up well by the writer of Romans who said,

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13