Week 52: Sermons on Jonah

I started this blog at the beginning of the year.  This being the 63rd post for the year and likely the last one of 2011, I wanted to make it count. 

It happens to be Christmas night; the Bears are getting beat by the Packers ( as is fitting) and the kids are playing with their toys.  As good as this day has been, there is a deeper goodness at work today.  Last night our Pastor told us that unless we were there to celebrate the resurrection, then we were there for the wrong reasons and basically were just wasting our time.  He said it nicer than that but that was what I took away.  I love it when Pastor Steve talks about Jesus and glorifies Him.  I jokingly go up to him after a sermon in which he has done this and tell him that was one of the best sermons on Jonah I have heard in a long time.  I think he thinks I am just joking around as if I did not understand what he preached on because he has not even mentioned Jonah.  Oh but he had! 

Jesus says that the resurrection is represented by Jonah's three days in the fish.  The prophet spent 3 days in the fish and then was brought back to the world.  Jesus declares that this is a sign that points to His own 3 days in the tomb and that the fish spitting him back on the shore to bring the message of hope to Nineveh was the same as Him being raised from the dead to bring new life to the lost (many of whom do not even know their left from their right).

Christmas, according to Pastor Steve, is all about Easter.  So to really get a good handle on what Christmas is all about, try reading Jonah.  Christmas is all about fish.

Bless you all

David Warren

The Best Time to Dig a Ditch

"Carpe Diem", Seize the Fish! There is an old Arkansan joke that goes like this;

Q. "Do you know where the best place to fish in Arkansas is?"

A. "In the water."

The humor is that this seems like a silly question to someone from Arkansas because the fishing is good everywhere. This joke came to mind the other day as I was working in my yard during the middle of a downpour. It had rained so much that my garden area had flooded and i did not want all my newly placed mulch to wash away. I had worked the whole weekend before preparing my garden for winter and it pained me to see it all disappear. As I looked out into my yard at the shallow lake that had formed, I decided I needed to take action.

I could see where the water was deepest and I recognized that as the natural channel that the water was following. So I went to the end of the lake where a miniature delta had formed and I began digging a small ditch. Mind you, it is not deep (I'm no Paul Bunyan). The tiny ditch immediately started attracting a torrent of water. I continued up the slope toward my house next to my garden all the way around to the front yard. It worked like a charm. While it could still use some cosmetic touches and will ultimately need a more permanent solution, it saved my garden mulch.


Where you see a little stream running through my yard now used to look like Lake Erie (slight exaggeration).

So what is my point? While digging this ditch, it struck me that I probably would not have been able to dig it as easily had it not been flooded at the time. This is true for two reasons.

1. I am not a golfer, so reading slopes and greens is not a skill I possess. I would have probably ended up digging the trench is a location that would not have served my needs at all.

2. I am not a prime physical specimen and the soggy mud was actually very easy to move. I determined that the best time for shoveling dirt is when it is mud (at least where I live).

What does this have to do with fish? Nothing, but note that there is a best time and place to do things and then there are all the other times.

Jesus said that the Spirit blows and we really don't have the benefit of knowing what way He is going to come from or what way He is going to go. One cannot plan ahead very well when it comes to something the Holy Spirit is going to do in their life. Most of the time, you are just going to find yourself caught up in something He is doing, but you can learn to participate once you become aware. Learn to recognize when He is moving and rather than trying to anticipate His every move, follow His lead.

For example, the Holy Spirit may call you in a certain direction at a certain time. Our tendency is to try and work ahead of Him and get all the kinks worked out to make it smoother. The problem is that we are not always aware of where He is actually taking us. Direction is very different than destination. Often times, the Holy Spirit will show us our destination and we try to figure out the directions (and also the other way around). One of the reasons that the Holy Spirit rarely shows us both the destination and the direction at once is because we'd think He was crazy and did not know what He was doing.

We need to learn to trust the Holy Spirit; to trust that He has already worked all the kins out for us and that His final destination for us is the best place we could possibly be and that the path He has chosen for us is the best possible path for us. We forget that the journey itself is often what shapes us and fits us for the destination. Many a pioneer learned to live in the wild west because of the journey they took from the east. After the trains came along and made the journey effortless, people showed up who were ill equipped for the harsh environment. Many returned home because of that. Missionaries used to get over much of their homesickness n the 6 months boat voyage. Now it hits 6 months into their mission and they hurt so much that they go back home. Why is it so hard for us to simply trust that the Holy Spirit knows what is best for us and we really don't.

Think back through your life at some of the best situations and experiences you've ever had. How many of those were planned by you? now think about all the plans you have made that ended in failure and disappointment and you blaming God. Getting my point now? Next time it rains, watch the water and go dig where it tells you to dig.



Jesus loves Evansville,

David Warren

Check This Out! Shechem & the Oak of Mamre

Shechem & the Oak of Mamre

Ok, so I have become somewhat of a typology addict.  Actually it is more of a Jesus addict, but I can't really help it.  Everywhere I go, I see Him.  I have been searching through Genesis and noting all of the references to the gospel as I can possibly see.  I have been doing this for over a year now and only recently made it to Genesis 12 because there is just so much to study and so much to find.  i am certain that I have only found a tiny fraction of what is actually being said.

At any rate, every once in a while something jumps off the page at me where I did not expect to see it.  There are simple ones such as  Noah bringing a new world and his name means Peace and Rest or the animal that covered Adam & Eve's nakedness pointing to Christ's substitutionary atonement.  This is even seen in Noah being covered by a garment by his two eldest sons after he went a little crazy with the wine.  But this one has captivated my heart for the last few days.  Let me share with you the tip o' the iceberg. 
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So Abram Travels to Shechem (sent by God right into the land of the cursed nation of Canaan which means "brought low") and sets up camps at the Oak of Mamre.

Jacob buries a bunch of idols (put away the false gods) under the Oak at Shechem. (Gen 35:4)

Joseph is sent by his father to go find his brothers in Shechem.  Interestingly enough, he did not find them there.  A man told him that he heard them say, "let us go to Dothan" in order to pasture the flock.  (Gen. 37)

Joshua (Ya-Shua) calls the people together at Shechem to make a covenant with them; that they would put away their gods, turn their hearts to God and obey His voice.  He then put a large stone under the Oak at Shechem next to the Tabernacle. (Josh.24)

Joseph's bones were buried at Shechem also. (Josh. 24)

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Shechem means "Shouldered" or to carry the weight of something on your shoulder as a responsible person.  (citation)

The name Shechem comes from the root (shkm) that yields the verb (shakam) meaning rise early, and the noun (shekem) meaning shoulder, back.

Mamre     means "bitterness" and "animal for offering or sacrifice".

Mamre is an oak-owning Amorite and a region associated with him (Genesis 14:13). This region is close to Hebron and Abram lived there for a while (Genesis 13:18).

1) (memer) meaning bitterness, from the root (marar) meaning to be bitter or, peculiar enough (as suggested by HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament ), being strong. Possibly, a bitter taste was referred to as a strong taste. A consequence is that an event or situation that was considered "bitter" was known as a "strong" event.

2) (mr'), the root of the word (meri), meaning fatling (fattened calf or other animal, specifically for offering).  (citation)

Dothan (dotan) means "law" or "edict" (citation)

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So Jesus (Abram, Jacob, Joshua, Joseph) is sent by his Father to find the broken (Canaan), the lost, the cursed. The spiritual leaders of Israel (Joseph's older brothers) turned to the Law (Dothan) to find righteousness and led others (The flock of Jacob/Israel) to do the same.

He comes to shoulder (Shechem) our burdens on the cross (Oak) as a sacrificial offering (Mamre1) and He drinks the bitter (Mamre2)cup on our behalf.

We are beckoned to come to the cross and lay down our burdens and to put way our own false gods and find forgiveness and redemption in Christ.

Also interesting to note that the parcel of land at Shechem where the Oak stood was purchased for silver.

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"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness,"^{[1 Pet. 2:24]}

"For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God."^{[1 Pet. 3:18]}

Jesus is everywhere for a reason.  He is our only hope.  Does it not stand to reason that God would shape all of history and even the universe to point us to this Man, Jesus, who alone can save us and bring us back home to Him.

David Warren
...................................
"You should see the way He looks at you." -Rev. Jerry Daniels

Broken Greenhouses

I used to have a really neat greenhouse in my back yard.

I made it out of reclaimed windows (some of them were absolutely huge). My sweet wife found them for me in town and I went to pick them up in our van. I had to take all the seats put in order to get these windows home. They sat in my garage for a while because I had to plan out what I was going to do with them. I had all sorts of different ideas about how I was going to put them together.

At the end of winter, I finally started putting it together and by early summer, I had a pretty nice little greenhouse. I even painted it green. It being summer, I really did not have a need for it, so it just sat there in my garden sheltering some weeds that had a very nice time in the greenhouse. We have just entered the season in which actually planting some seeds and seedlings in a greenhouse would work and I had some good plans. However...

Today, we had a strong wind advisory. I took my family to church and as we came home, I looked into my backyard. "Oh no, that is so unfortunate." yes, I actually talk that way. My greenhouse had been assaulted by a gust of wind that had picked it up and dropped it on its head/roof. Strange how my lawn chair was still just sitting in the yard next to it having not moved an inch. I had broken glass all over my garden as it seemed to have exploded on impact. After about an hour long clean up effort, I was left with one really large window that used to be the wall of my greenhouse and the roof frame still had one window in it. Other than that, all I had was a wheelbarrow full of wood and shards of glass.

Tempted too mourn and pout about this unfortunate situation, I simply turned my heart toward heaven and God began to speak.

He simply stated that "the greenhouse is broken. It is time for my garden to grow in the elements.". I understand this to mean that the season we find ourselves in right now is not one that is conducive to spiritual growth (we have been in the season of the greenhouse and we chose not to take advantage of it).

Yet while this environment we are in is not ideal for fruitful living, God has planned this for our blessing. Just like to flower that pushes its way through the concrete in the middle of main street, we have been called to bear fruit in season and out of season. We have been called to be in this world but not of it. We have been called to effect change in our environment, not to be changed by it. What the Lord is doing here in this day is not unprecedented though.

The children of Israel were brought straight to the desert in order to see the most superb growth they have ever known as a nation. Deserts are inhospitable to every kind of growth apart from spiritual growth. It seems that we humans are opposed to growing spiritually when we ate given all of the best an environment can offer.

Think about this, we can go to Walmart and by a bible in just about any version we want. If we can't find it there, we can go to the grocery store. We don't even have to go to the Christian bookstore. If we want to here a specific sermon, we can dial it up by topic on the Internet or on iTunes. If we think it is too offensive, we can just change channels till we find something that tickles our ears better.

In stark contrast, the portions of this world that are seeing the most significant spiritual growth are those places with the least opportunity; those not in a greenhouse, if you will. Africa and Asia are skyrocketing towards Jesus while we are already in boredom with the Jesus we have too much of and are always looking for alternative Messiahs.

God, in His rich mercy and kind intentions is going to help us out.

We are entering into a season of great pruning and adversity. The purpose of this is that we may also see a great surge of righteousness in Christ; that the Kingdom of Heaven would be found in our midsts with such prevalence; that we look more like Jesus than MTV or Hollywood; that our lives would be fantastical signposts that point directly to Jesus rather than pale imitations of what the world system has offered up.

Right now our church meetings tend toward the massive multi-media productions that place more emphasis on curb appeal than on meat. We as a Church are more concerned with getting people in the door than what we actually give them once they are in.

Again, God is the one who us going to come to our rescue. We have spent too much time at the buffet line and gotten spiritually lethargic. We need this. We really do. Thank you God for your unfailing love.

Lord, please give us the wisdom to see the joy in order to endure the suffering. Draw us to you and together as a body. Let us not be forsaken. Let's us put out hope and trust in you alone.

I welcome your thoughts and comments. More so, I welcome your partnership in praying for the season we about to enter. The world needs the Church to stand now more than ever. The Church needs to be able to stand in adversity. Lord, in Your mercy, come quickly.

STRONG DIVINE WEAPONS: Hope

A life without hope is a life filled with despair.  Hopelessness is the fruit of what I like to call Dark Faith.  Believe it or not, we all have faith.  We all believe in something.  When we choose to put our faith in chance or circumstances rather than in God, it tends to get dark very quickly.  When we put our trust in our own abilities that have proven to be insufficient, our future always looks grim to us.  This Dark Faith produces a hopelessness that leaves us in despair.  Despair begins to whittle away at our resolve and then we become quitters instead of overcomers.  When we begin to quit, we become failure oriented and we can even begin to forget what it was like to succeed.  In a very small amount of time, this puts us in a pattern of thought that completely locks us out of any positive outcomes or scenarios. 

A Computer virus can work in much the same way.  Computer programs are designed to respond to certain inputs and produce specific results based on those inputs.  For example, if I put in a, the program spits out b.  Some viruses are designed to come in a corrupt programs so that they either don't give any output or give an undesired one.  So if i put in a, I get back x or nothing at all.  Dark Faith (Consistently trusting in incapable sources) is basically the code for this type of spiritual virus.  It messes up the programming code so much that we don't even know how to have faith anymore. 

So here is how the "Faith Program"is supposed to work in us. 

God promises something > We hear that promise > The product is hope.

The "Dark Faith Virus" works like this.

Problem occurs >  We turn to lesser things > The product is despair.

When hope is present, we are told that we are not to be disappointed.  (Romans 5)
 

So when we take hope, we overcome and when we despair, we are constantly disappointed.  What is the huge difference between Hope and Despair.  Both take faith.  One is dark and the other is not.  Dark Faith is based on the promise of the powerless.  Real Faith that produces Hope is based on the promise of the All-Powerful One.  Need hope?  Stop listening to the wishful romances of the weak and begin to hear the Word of God. 

Bless You Evansville,

David

Dreams: God's Carrier Pigeons - Part 2

GeoTagged, [N37.96884, E87.52661]

Last time I posted that I would share a little more about dreams and visions and "other" ways God might communicate with His children. I intend to do that here, but first let me state that the
Litmus test or filter through which we must receive every word is Scripture. The written word of God is the sole source for doctrine and confirmation for
anything we receive spiritually. If it is God, it will not contradict Scripture. It may conflict with our understanding of it at times, but it will never go against it.

That being said, God spoke to people throughout Scripture through all of the above mentioned formats. Acts 2 clearly states that we are to expect this. I wrote about dreams in particular in my last post and while this has not been the primary manner in which God speaks to me, it seems to be happening more frequently. The key is to realize that He will come as He chooses and we are simply to receive Him at all times and all ways.

What are these ways? Dreams, visions, imaginations, impressions, whispers, alerts and more, but I will stick to these for now.

Visions are more like a dream than anything else; only you are awake. I have only had one really clear vision experience. I was at a conference at a rather prominent church here in town and I was walking to use the bathroom. As I left the conference room, I saw a dog at the end of the hallway. I recognized it as a coy-dog (part coyote and part sheep dog) and while it had a collar and leash, I could see that the leash was not held by anyone. The leash actually lay wrapped around the corner, but I instinctively knew it was not tethered. I also knew that I was seeing something that was not really there, but was a spiritual reality. I had no understanding of what it meant though. I then went to wash my hands and saw the image flash in my mind (a divine imagination of sorts, or a really strong and vivid impression that was meant to get my attention. Later that night, I dreamt of these same coy-dogs tending to children in my living room alongside these beasts that seemed like small dinosaurs. All very strange. Again, even writing this now, I am receiving new insight from the Lord about the interpretation of this message. I am a youth pastor (a shepherd of youth) and one of the dangers in shepherding people is that you can fall to temptation and actually begin to feed off of them rather that feeding them. The coyote nature comes out and the sheep are there to build you up instead of to build them up. I still have no idea what the dinosaurs mean. Good sheepdogs don't even really need a leash, but this dog had one. However the coyote nature had overpowered the shepherd nature and the dog was roaming free and without discipline or guidance. Not good for anyone ministering the gospel.

Imaginations come when I am in prayer and simply priming my spirit to be receiving from the Lord. I then see pictures or have words or phrases dropped into my mind that begin to form a prophetic word for Someone or about a particular situation.

Prophetic impressions are just what they seem; vague notions with varying degrees of intensity that God is saying a certain thing. I tend to get more impressions about situations I am close to emotionally. Partly because my vision is hindered by that emotional connection and partly because I am not always the one to get involved apart from prayer.

Whispers are those "way back in the quietness of your mind" thoughts that are very clear and to the point. I often hear God whispering my name, "David." over and over again to get me to stop and rest in Him about a certain situation.

Alerts are like whispers, but much more blunt, loud and less subtle. I once was driving down the highway and saw a hawk on top of a billboard. I then saw a turtledove on the opposite end of the same billboard. I noticed it and thought to myself, "that dove is in dangerous company". Instantly, the Holy Spirit dropped the following phrase into my mind; "pay attention to that sign". I was thinking He meant the billboard but I had not even noticed what it said. But He said,"No, the sign.". I then new He was referring to the hawk and the dove. I have prayed about this and I believe He was telling me that part of what He is doing here in the Church is shaping in us the dual nature of the hawk and the dove; the lion and the lamb; the warrior and the servant. That when we begin to see these two natures come closer together in the Bride, it will be a sign of something greater yet to come.

Embrace these examples as just that. There are few hard and fast rules to the ways in which God speaks other than the fact that He is speaking. He wants you to hear Him and He will speak to you in the way you hear Him best most if the time. Enjoy life with this living God.

In HIM, David Warren

Dreams: God's Carrier Pigeon - Part 1

First, let me tell you a few stories.  Then let me explain a few things.  Then let me say, "goodnight."

When I was just a little kid growing up in rural Arkansas, I had a reoccurring nightmare in which I would find myself (usually how dreams begin) in the middle of a swamp on a cement pad.  Water Moccasins were coming out of the water onto the concrete and biting my ankles and legs.  I would wake up in a panic and a cold sweat.  You tend to block out trauma and I had no recollection of that dream until a few yeas back when I had the dream again.  I was just starting out in my current position as Youth Director at The Methodist Temple.  The stress was high, the expectations were higher.  I was just a Dave from Arkansas.  How could I live up to what this job required.  I felt very inadequate.  i felt like a boy in a man's world and that I did not belong.  I went to bed one night just a few weeks after getting the job and had this same dream.  However there were two very different things about this second installment.  In the dream, I was in the same swamp, on the same cement pad, and surrounded by the same snakes.  But what was different is that I was wearing some very large hiking boots and as the snakes were coming toward me, I was stomping on their heads and kicking the snakes back into the water.  I was still a little boy in the dream, but I had man boots on and the snakes were not winning this time.  I woke up and immediately I heard a voice in my head speak very clearly to me.  "David, men are not afraid of snakes."

Now we could chalk that up to an overactive imagination or pizza (and I may well have had a slice before bed, I honestly don't remember) but in all sincerity, I don't believe in coincidence anymore.  I was struggling with that issue and I fully believe that the God who loves me perfectly sent me a message. The message:

Don't be afraid, you are fully equipped for what I have called you to.  Not only that, the enemy will attack, but you are going to crush his head because you are standing on "The Rock, Jesus".  Your foundation is firm and though you are still My child, you are a man.

Getting that message from the dream did take some time and prayer, but I am convinced of this interpretation.

I first got interested in dreams when I read some things in the Bible about God talking to people that way.  I was just learning about the person of the Holy Spirit and how He moved in the lives of believers and I had simply prayed this prayer;

"Father, I want to learn more about the Holy Spirit.  I want to experience His presence in my life.  I am asking for dreams and visions specifically and that you would give me the gift of prophecy."

I read 1 Corinthians 14 and Acts 2 and put two and two together.  It seemed to me that this stuff was for me and I was supposed to ask for it.

That very night, my wife woke me up because she had just had a really vivid dream and she knew it was from God.  Honestly, this frustrated me a great deal.  I was the one who wanted it and asked for it.  She did not want it, nor did she ask for it.  Instantly, that familiar voice of the Savior spoke to me and said, "What's the difference?"  My mind heard that phrase but understood His words in a deeper way.  What my heart heard was, "You two are one and that is not just poetry, that is reality.  I answered your prayer perfectly by giving you a dream that was from me."

As my wife began to tell me the dream, my mind was understanding the imagery in the same deep manner as I had His voice.  I had to keep myself from interrupting her as I was understanding what her dream meant.  This went on for quite some time and there were a few occasions in which I woke up from my sleep and the Lord would start speaking very clearly to me about something and then moments later Rachel would wake up having had a dream about the same thing.  He was speaking to us simultaneously with two very different methods about the same thing.

I began to resign myself to the fact that God was not going to actually speak to me personally though dreams and visions, but that I was going to be one of these interpreter types and could hear His voice in my heart and understand Him.  Then another good friend of mine started having multiple dreams in the night and writing them down.  She had not asked for them and did not even know that God would do such things but she recognized them as being from Him without any help.  She started bringing them to me and again, it was as if a download started in my mind whenever she would start talking about the dream.  Then the floodgates opened and tons of friends and acquaintances and even one lady from France started sending me their dreams.  It was all very fun, but the newness wore off and I wondered why God could not just tell us these things without all the cloak & dagger stuff.

Then I started having dreams myself.

I still don't dream quite as often as I'd like to, but much more than before.  Once I started having my own dreams, I began to understand why God would want to use these to send us messages.  Dreams are multidimensional messages that convey deep truths that we could not fully receive or understand if they came in a different way.  Like a movie or a song, you get some truth from it the first time you watch or hear it, but the more you revisit it, you start to see deeper truths that were meant to be conveyed.  God can send several deep messages all at once that have multiple applications for different people.  He can even speak to your heart without you even knowing it.  I now have "remembered" dreams that I was totally unaware of before and that continually blows my mind.

To illustrate what I mean by the depth of imagery that God can put in a dream, I titled this post and put a picture in that conveyed the meaning in a deeper way.  The picture and the title are meant to help you remember what the post was about.  If all you got was the text, then you might not receive it quite as well or understand the message even.  Have you noticed that I put pictures in almost all of my posts?  Now you know why.

In a dream, God can have a specific person say something to you.  The person's personality, job, position in your family or even the fact that they are different looking than normal can be a message that is sent at the same time as what they are saying.  Sometimes this message can be a deeper understanding or a key to unlocking what was spoken.  Along with that, the clothes they are wearing the color of the flower on the table next to them or even the kind of car that drives by can all be part of this mufti-faceted message from God.  Even the emotions you are feeling at the time can be part of that message.

When you stop to think about it, how could one method of communication be sufficient for a God as big and powerful as ours?  There is so much that He is imparting to us when He speaks, that dreams and visions are basically a no-brainer.  (Visions are pretty much the same as a dream, just more pointed and sudden and while you are awake).

Be aware that not "every" dream is a message from God.  The Devil loves to fake the things God does.  We also have a subconscious mind that is very active.  It takes intimacy with Jesus to be able to discern the difference.  There are no hard and fast rules as Jesus is a living and real person.  I like to say that the only rule when it comes to Jesus is, "LOVE."  Yet even this is something that we need to learn to recognize.  Also, it is very important to note that all doctrine is established by Scripture (The Holy Bible) and the Holy Spirit will never give you a dream that is not bathed in the truth of the Word.

I encourage you to write your dreams down for a couple different reasons.  First, they come in invisible ink to our minds and can fade away with the sun just like fog does.  I try to write them down as soon as I can.  there are times when i have had to go and pray and ask God to remind me of the dream and He has.  The second reason is that it can take a long time for a dream to fully be understood.  And if it is prophetic in nature in regards to your future, it may take years to fulfill.  IT is good to be able to revisit those dreams and remember them and even see that you may have already come to an understanding about something that you did not previously have.  Case in point, I had a pretty good understanding of my swamp dream for several years, but only while writing this post did I come to realize what the cement pad represented and that was something God has been teaching me over the past year.  If you have been reading my previous posts, you can see that theme.  It seems he has been teaching me about His firm foundation a lot longer than just this past year!  How good is He?!

In the next post, I am going to try and shed some more light on the issue of dreams, visions and other things God uses to communicate with His children.  I fully expect there to be a few questions or comments about this.  I welcome them.  I am no expert, but I know One who is.

Goodnight,

David Warren

Strong Divine Weapons: COURAGE

COURAGE is the theme for our youth ministry at Temple this school year.  We are focusing on this word for our upcoming fall retreat.  We are talking about it during our lessons.  You may at first wonder how courage is one of our divine weapons for tearing down enemy strongholds in our lives.  Let me explain.

I learned from my wife that there is one command from God that is given more often than any other in the Bible.  Almost every single time an angel shows up in scripture, this command is given.  The command is, "Do not be afraid."  Now obviously this command is given by angels because, quite frankly, they are frightening.  I find it interesting that the angels never get on to people for being frightened.  It is almost as if they know our frame; our constitution if you will, and they are trying to strengthen our hearts before we pass out.  One such instance when an angel showed up and forgot to say, "Don't be afraid." is when Ezekiel saw his vision at the river Kebar in Babylon.  The Holy Spirit had to literally pick Ezekiel up so he could hear the word of the Lord.  My point is that God tells us to have courage for one very good reason; we need it.

Things can be quite scary at times and it is not foolish to tremble when frightening things come around.  However, we have hope in God who saves us and makes ways where there are no ways.  But in order to walk in those ways that God provides, we usually have to push through some terrifying situations.  One of my most favorite discoveries was that the word, "encourage" actually means "to put courage into" someone.  I always took that word to mean, "make them feel better and baby them."  But no!  It means to pick them back up and throw them back into the ring and say, "Go get'em!"  The only reason we need courage is because what we are about to go and do is scary.

Taking down spiritual strongholds in our lives and in the lives of those we love is a daunting task.  It is not to be taken lightly.  In many cases, we are going into places wear even angels move with caution.  Human hearts are delicate and when endeavoring to rescue them from darkness, wisdom and grace are a must.  Yet there are frightening and violent things that must be done at times in order to set prisoners free from darkness. 

If you are struggling with pornography, there is a violent dismembering of attachments that is necessary just so you can get to the root of the issue in your heart.  The removal of television and internet access from your life is something that takes tremendous courage in so many areas.  And this does not even set one free.  This simply puts you in a position where you can get to the root of the problem (selfishness and rejection) and pull it out without temptation getting in the way.  Still more courage is needed to face the elemental pieces of our souls and face the fears that lay at the heart of our struggles with sin.

If you are struggling with gluttony (compulsive over-eating with an unexplained hunger), then it takes extreme courage to watch your calories and ask someone to help you maintain a healthy diet.  Again, this simply moves some temptations out of the way while you deal with the heart of the issue and ask the hard questions about why you need to medicate your fears with food.  Courage is a must.

If you are struggling with sexual temptation with your boyfriend it will require great courage to run the risk that he may reject you and you may lose the emotional bliss that you have with him.  The risk is real, and in many cases likely, but the end result of sexual promiscuity (dishing it out to anyone you are not married to) is always heartbreak.  Yes, always.  But again, cutting off these unhealthy relationships will only give you some breathing room as you deal with the core of your problems.  Are you really wrestling with depression, abandonment, mistrust, abuse, etc.?  Courage is your life breath as you tackle these giants.

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide, you are going to need courage to keep searching for hope is a world that wants you to be addicted to hype.  It is not good enough just to have someone tell you that you matter or that they loves you.  You want to be loved; you want to really matter to the world.  It is going to take courage to put the pills in the toilet, tell your parents or spouse to lock the gun cabinet and not tell you the combination, go see a counselor.  Yet this is just a stop gap measure that allows you to find real hope and real meaning in a real relationship with a real God who has real love for you.  Courage can rescue you.

In Joshua 1:6, 7 Joshua tells the people to be strong and courageous.  Then he says, "be very strong and very courageous."  This was not even because they were about to go into several years of battle.  This was just so they could follow God.  They needed courage to forge a relationship with God and He would see to it that the battles were won.

Here is the most important thing to be courageous in, your pursuit of intimacy with Jesus Christ.  Overcoming sin and kicking the enemy to the curb will come easily when walking in right relationship with Jesus.  But yes, this takes courage.

The psalmist was always cheering himself up; placing courage into his own soul.  We can do this too.
In fact, we can do it for each other.  Pull out your strong divine weapon of truth and remind each other of who they really are in Christ.  Tell each other of God's greatness, His kindness toward us and His unmatched power.  Hebrews 3:13 says,

"But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." 

Help each other get clean.  Immediately after raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus gave instructions for those around him to remove his grave clothes.  We can do the same for others.  We can place courage in our own hearts and in the hearts of those wrestling with sin.

Pray this prayer with me, tri-state.

"Oh my soul, rest in God.  Put your hope in the Lord.  Put your hope in the God who saves.  put your hope in the one who makes ways.  Why are you downcast, soul?  Have you forgotten who is on your side, in whom you can always hide, on whose shoulders the mountains and oceans ride, who has never spoken to you and lied?  Have you forgotten who is on your side?  Be strong and courageous, oh my soul.  Be very strong and very courageous, oh my soul.  Don't give up.  Press on.  Fight the good fight.  Stand.  Oh my soul, take courage for your God in near.  You are not alone.  You are more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ.  no weapon formed against you shall prosper.  All who rise up against you shall fall. DO NOT BE AFRAID, oh my soul.  Instead, be filled with COURAGE."  

Amen.

Bless you all, dearly beloved of God.

David Warren

Letting Jesus Have His Way In You

Short and simple post today.

If the Tr-state really is at the epicenter of God's love for this nation (and I truly believe it is).  If Evansville is destined to be a city of refuge in the dark days ahead (and I truly believe that she is).  If the current generation of young people really is set apart as a chosen generation that will usher in the last day harvest of souls (and I truly believe this is who they are).  If these things are true, then what now?

We prepare the way of the Lord.

We prepare His way in this region.  We prepare His way in this city.  We prepare His way in this generation.  But most important, we prepare His way in our own hearts.  He is the one who rescues the heart and lifts the soul out of the depths of it's own darkness.  But we are the ones who invite Him in to do His work.  We are the ones who remove the blockades of selfishness, fear, self-reliance, etc.  You have just as much of Jesus in your life as you have chosen to have.  He is not hiding from us, we are avoiding Him.  This must stop if we are to realize our destiny as believers; if we are to realize our destiny as a city; as a region.  We must let Jesus have His way in us.

This is my prayer for the tri-state.

Bless you all,
David

13 Minutes

This is a slightly unusual post for me (though not if you truly know me), but this is so big in my heart right now, that I feel the need to share it with you readers of The Refuge City so you can intercede (pray) and prepare your hearts.

This Labor Day, I woke up from a dream early in the morning.  I don't dream a lot, but on occasion I have a significant dream that I believe comes from God.  This was one such dream.

In the dream I was asleep in my bed and was startled awake by a shaking.  I realized that we were having an earthquake.  It only lasted a few seconds and I assumed it was a minor quake with a local epicenter in the Tri-state.  The scene changed to my kitchen table where a few friends of mine were gathered and we were watching the news.  As it turns out, the quake had its epicenter somewhere in the east (in my minds eye, I was thinking eastern Pennsylvania).  The shocking part of the newscast was that the quake had lasted 13 minutes.  Pictures being shown were of entire cities having been leveled.  Then I woke up.

First, let me make this very clear that I am not prophesying that a 13 minute earthquake is about to hit Pennsylvania.  Dreams use a language of imagery that rarely turn out to be of a premonition type nature.  They usually point to something through a very artistic and representative manner.  For instance, earthquakes could represent getting one's attention or a hard season of unsureness about foundations in one's life.  While it could mean an actual quake is coming, even those natural quakes tend to point to a deeper spiritual event.

I immediately sent this dream to several friends of mine that I trust to seek the Lord about what He might be saying to me.  I received two responses that were completely independent of one another and were very near identical.

I share them both here with some more insight that I believe came later as I have been praying about this.  Following these interpretations, I want to give you some encouragement on how to prepare and how to respond as the Church in the Tri-state.

The first interpretation:

"The physical earthquake, though I believe He's saying it will happen, is not as much the issue He's concerned about.  The spiritual earthquake is more on His heart.  We often think of a shaking as a good thing in the church and in the world, as productive things come about from a shaking, but this will be different.  This shaking will bring down the foundations this country was built on...back when it was the 13 original colonies.  The beliefs of freedom, liberty, and God will crumble.  This will strongly effect the spiritual atmosphere in the east, but will also impact us as well.  While the physical earthquake will be very destructive, the spiritual earthquake with be even more so.  In the spiritual shaking, there will be an abundance of husks and chaff that will blow away in the wind and although the true grain will be left, it will be greatly diminished in size. 

Having said all that, I don't want to disregard that fact that there could be an earthquake of significant proportion in the east, but my Spirit is not as uneasy about that as it is to the spiritual fall out of this event."

The second interpretation:

"13 represents the 13 colonies.  The foundation of our country.  People are currently looking to our government to fix the country and their lives.  They depend solely on the government.  Our founding fathers looked to God for guidance our current leaders ignore Him.  Our country's foundation is not our government.  It is God.  God shook what we see as the foundation to the point of destruction.   God is more powerful than the most powerful government in the world.   Thus we felt His power.  He got our attention."

Since having and sharing this dream, the Lord has confirmed for me on several occasions that the number 13 is very important here.  In fact, one morning He sent me three confirmations in the matter of seconds that seemed to me to be saying, "I am serious about this and it is imminent (ready to take place or already underway but yet unnoticed)."   A final interpretive piece I want to add is about the word "minute".  Not only does this word also speak to the imminent nature of this dream, but I believe it refers also to the minutemen of the American Revolution.  These fighting forces, while not seen as a threat or even a reliable army,  made up about 1/3 of the fighting forces during the Revolution.  They were known for being ready to go to combat at a moment's notice and had the nature of being locally based and well acquainted with the fighting terrain.  I believe that the notion the Lord wants us to receive here is that we are to be "prepared" like this fighting force to spring to action without hesitation and part of our preparation is that we have intimate knowledge of the terrain in which the battle's are being fought.  


Along with this dream, the Lord brought to my memory a prophetic experience I had a few years ago in which He expressed that the foundations of the nation (Economy, Government and even the Institutional Church) were going to be shown as untrustworthy; that people would be scrambling from one to another without hope.  It was during this that He spoke very clearly to me, 

"People are putting their hope in the economy and in the things this world has to offer.  They are putting their hope in foundations that are crumbling.  Those who put their hope in the stone that the builders rejected will be the only ones standing in the end.  It (Jesus) does not look like a good corner stone.  It (Jesus) does not look like it will work.  Jesus is the only hope this city has." 

Many of the things we do and say as believers will be seen as foolish in the days ahead, but our hope is built on Jesus Christ and in the end, only those who hope in Him will be standing.

So what is the application here?  What are we to do as minutemen to prepare, and what are we preparing for?

In a nutshell, terra firma (solid ground) is a myth apart from Jesus.  As the trusted foundations of the people around us turn to gelatin, we need to already be standing on the Rock (Jesus).  We should be very familiar with the terrain or nature of Christ; so much so that it is reflected in our very nature.  We are to be those who offer hope that does not disappoint.  We can be ready to do this, but only if we fall on Him now before the shaking happens.  

Finally, I don't believe it was an accident that I had this dream on Labor Day (Labor Day is a celebration of workers and their positive effect on the economy and society as a whole).  Along with the fact that our nation's employment rate is in shambles and this is a major portion of the shaking that is going on, I believe He wants us to remember the following verse of scripture.

"Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief."
-Hebrews 4:11

Let us make every effort to make sure our feet are standing on the Rock or we shall have no rest and we will be sure to fall.

Bless you Tr-state.  Jesus is In You.

Dave Warren

Strong Divine Weapons: FAITH

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for."  My sister visited me recently and told me to meditate on that phrase.  She emphasized the word, "substance".

I know that about half of you could care less about the pictures I put up with my posts, but I have learned that a picture really is worth a thousand words.  For that half of you who really only look at the pictures, here you go.  The pictures really do connect with the content of the post and as you look at this picture, I hope that you will gain a better understanding of what I'm trying to relate in this post.

The word, "substance" really makes me think about food.  My wife cares for me deeply and buys me rice cakes to snack on in-between meals.  The idea of snacking on low calorie food during the lull between smorgasbords is to sort of prime your appetite for eating normal portions when it comes to dinner time.  Faith is nothing like rice cakes.  I think the spiritual equivalent of rice cakes is probably more along the lines of doubt and disillusion.  While eating a rice cake, I'm thinking, "I really hope lunch has more substance than this." and I start to get depressed about my dining life.

Here is where hope comes in.  As I walk to the fridge, I see that we have all the makings of a very nice sandwich of substance.  The refrigerator is literally full of promise.  No, I don't have a sandwich in my hands yet, but because I have the promise and I know that it is "real", I have hope for lunch not being a grand disappointment. 

Is anybody getting this?  If not, just go back and look at the picture again and maybe Jesus will tell you something that I can't.

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for". 

Perhaps we could word it like this?

"Lunch is what yo have waiting in the fridge, not the rice cake you are snacking on at 9am."

How is this a strong divine weapon?  Well, when you suddenly have guests for lunch that were unexpected and you go to the fridge and you only have rice cakes , it will make more sense to you.  (Don't ask me why anyone would keep them in the fridge, just stay with me here.)

The phrase, "We walk by faith, not by sight" has taken on meaning for us that we translate as, "We believe that our rice cakes are big sandwiches full of meat."  NO!!!!!!  I have hope for my lunch being more than rice cakes because my fridge has "substance" in it.  I am not relying on what I see in my hand at 9am, I am counting on what "I Know" is provided for me in the fridge.  How do I know?  'Cause I went and looked and I saw it in there. 

How do we know that God will be real for us when we are in need?  Because we have been in His presence;  we have seen His storehouse and we know it is real.  It really is not this mysterious magical thing that just poofs into existence.  Faith is substance.  Faith is real.  Faith is a fridge full of sandwich fixings.  You don't need to hope God in to existence.  You have hope because He does exist.

Lots of seemingly random thoughts, I know.  Just go back and look at the picture.  That sandwich will tear down strongholds of hunger because it is real.

Bless you tri-state!  You are a city of refuge.  Begin to prepare yourself for those in need of that refuge.  It is coming.

Love, Dave

Time for _________.

Life goes through seasons.  The earth, the solar system, the life of a local church, a city and the hearts of people.  Yes, our hearts go through seasons.  For each and every one of us, there is a season of change coming.  No, I am not being prophetic here, just noticing the pattern.  There is an old saying, "This too shall pass."  That goes for the good and the bad.  If things are good, rest assured, something bad is around the corner.  If things are bad...  Oh, how are things with you? 

But let's take this in a more hopeful direction (because most of us, even if things are going quite well, seem to dwell on the negative and now I have just depressed you).  Life's seasons are not just a series of waves from bad to good.  It is a bit more complicated than that.  There are good things that happen that are actually bad for us and bad things that happen that are actually good for us and all sorts of in-between things too.  But for those found in Christ Jesus; now that's a game changer!

For those of us who find ourselves seated with Christ, "all things are good" and the bad parts of the seasons in our lives are just preamble to blessing.  Take hope in this truth; YOU HAVE A DESTINY AND PURPOSE IN GOD THAT WILL NOT GO AWAY.  No matter what stupid thing we've done to slow down the event horizon; no matter what the circumstances of the past may be saying about your future; no matter what the disappointed people around us think of our current status as sons and daughters of the Living God; no matter what traps and schemes the enemy may throw at us in attempts to thwart God; no matter what, you are destined to be transformed into the image of Jesus Christ. 

Take all of the negative onslaught of the world system and scoff in its general direction because some day soon, the world is going to take a second look at you because it is having a very difficult time distinguishing between you and Jesus Christ.  This is your destiny.  You have been broken and sifted for a season, but the imperishable seed that was sown in your heart is about to bring forth fruit.  All that rumbling in your tummy that you thought was just your miserable life was, in fact, the germination of the Morning Star preparing to rise in your heart.  Don't give up!

The earth is rumbling, the sky is falling apart, the oceans are raging.  Do you know why?  Not because it is the end of the world!  No!  Because it is the prelude to the dance of the ages when the sons and daughters of God are finally revealed in all of their glory, when the Bride of Christ takes center stage in her majestic beauty and purpose and calls out to her Beloved, "Come!"

What is next for you?  I firmly believe it is time for glory.  You sense it, don't you?  You know you were made for more that worrying about bills, trying to make it through the next day of classes or struggling with that same sin for the rest of your life.  Be bold!  Be strong!  For the Lord, your God, is with you.  He will never leave you and He is going to complete what He has started in you. 

It will look different for all of us.  Some of us will take a step down into awesome destiny because we were going the wrong direction.  Some of us will take a step up because we were too timid.  others of us simply need to trust that we are really what He says we are. 

This week, begin to take some time and seek Him about where He is taking you.  It may be something you've heard before or it may be something new and scary.  Either way, it will be good.

Here is the word that I believe God has given for this upcoming season; "COURAGE".  Think on that.  Regardless of what He whispers or shouts to you concerning where He is taking you, I believe you are going to need courage to get there. 

Next post will take us back to those strong divine weapons that help us overcome enemy strongholds.  Remember, we already spoke about TRUTH.  Next up is FAITH.  I'm seeing how courage plays an integral part in the use of all these weapons.

TRUTH - Our Strongest Divine Weapon

Scripture tells us that we have these "Divine Weapons" that we are supposed to use to tear down spiritual strongholds.

II Corinthians 10:4 "For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds."

Just a few thoughts on this and I think we may discuss some more in the next few posts.  It occurs to me that the strongholds we are meant to tear down are obviously not literal castles and forts so much as they are areas in our lives and in our thinking that the enemy as established an overpowering presence and it is hard to get by it.


Before we go any further, let me state that the primary arena for the tearing down of strongholds is in our own hearts.  Yes, we are to go out and tear them down wherever we may find them, but no sense in tackling something somewhere else or in someone else until after you've tackled it in yourself first.

It also occurs to me that there are some weapons that stand out among all of them as super powerful when dealing with darkness.  Knowing me, you might think I'd start with love because I am at heart a Hallmark junkie.  But no!


I believe that the most powerful weapon for demolishing evil strongholds is the TRUTH!  Speak it, live it, love it.  When we encompass ourselves with the truth, we are set free from holds that happen to be strong.  I am not talking about telling the truth wherever you go (though this is a good practice) but I am talking about living a life of truth.  I'm talking about falling in love with the truth.  For instance, don't just give that extra change back to the cashier who gave you too much on accident because you feel guilty.  Give it back because you love seeing truth win.  1 Corinthians 13 tells us that love rejoices in the truth.  That is what it means to love seeing truth win. 

We are not talking about a righteousness that points out other people's lies.  we are talking about a vulnerable transparency in our own lives that compels others to seek the light of Christ and get set free themselves.  Truth is not just something that will set you free from strongholds, it is the most decisive blow in beginning the demolition process.

Think about this too.  If you are wrapped up in truth and it just surrounds you in every way, how can anything untrue get a hold on you.  New strongholds are impossible to form in your heart as it is steeping in the truth.  Only when we listen to and give into the lies are we subject to strongholds of demonic persuasion that lead to fear, doubt, disillusion, depression and ultimately death.  Don't be afraid anymore.  

Let us decide today that we are going to seek the truth in everything we do; that we will embrace truth as a lifestyle and endeavor to learn to love the truth and rejoice in it.

Jesus said, "...If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31b-32)

Hey Tri-state!  Why don't we get together and tear down some strongholds?  

Truth - I really do think you will be able to handle it.

Who Do You Love?

It is a simple question, really.  Who do you love?  If you can answer that question, it gives you the answer to a lot of other questions too. Here are some questions it will answer for you.

What should I do in life?
Where should I go?
Why do I do what I do?
How should I spend my money?
Do I I use the word "do" to much?

Okay, it may not answer that last one, but it will answer the others and many more besides.

First, let's set one rule.  You have got to be honest with yourself.  You know who you are supposed to love and you know you can try and justify not loving them, but you just have to do it anyway.  Scripture is clear in this one thing (that is actually two things), "Love God with everything at your disposal and love your neighbor just like you do yourself."  When asked to clarify the whole neighbor bit, Jesus made it pretty clear that a neighbor was anyone that is not you.  So the people included in the list of those we are supposed to love is pretty large.  I think the only ones left out are...hmmm, can't think of any right off hand but I will get back to you on that.

That being clear, how does knowing who we love answer these questions for us.  Perhaps it will help if we define love real quick.  Not an easy task, but let us start with what it is not.  Love is not about only liking those people who treat you well or bless you.  Love is not about your enjoyment.  Love is not about being satisfied with the circumstances of a relationship.  The best way i have come to understand love is to put others first in all situations.  1 Corinthians tells us that love does not seek its own and it is not puffed up.  Real love simply does not look to please itself.  Real love is about blessing others and lifting them up.  God is love.  Everything God does is motivated by His love for us.  He demonstrated that love for us by dying on the cross and suffering that shame on our behalf.  This is what love really is.

So, how do you figure out who you love?  Well, who do you lay down your life for?  Who do you seek to bless and get nothing in return from?  Who do you carry and not expect them to carry you?  I know, I know, who can do this?  I struggle myself.  I can't even love my wife perfectly.  Most often, I am more concerned about her loving me.  However, there are occasions when I am struck by a capacity to love her the way I have been called to and I let her have the last of my lemon cookies. 

Is it really that simple?  Yes, but make no mistakes about how hard it is.  Simple just means that it is not complicated.  It is extremely hard to love sometimes.  If it was easy, then we would not need Jesus to do it through us.  If it were easy, we could just love, love, love all day long and not break a sweat.  But love is a hard conscious decision to put someone else before yourself.  Not only that, we can grow in our love.  While it is a truly deep act of love to let my wife eat my special reserved lemon cookies, I could have just bought her some cookies that she enjoyed and not myself.  Or even better, I could have gotten cookies for the entire tri-state area (been watching Phineas and Ferb?).  Do you see how love is real in small steps and it gets more influential as you grow and increase in your capacity to love.

When you know who you love, it makes decisions so easy.  What do I do today?  If it helps me love, I am all for it.  I may need some clarification as to how to best go about it, but I know that if it does not help me love, then I should not be doing it.  Where should I go?  Why should I do what I'm doing when I get there?  What should I spend my money on?  Love is not just a great motive, it is a great guide.  Love not only covers over a multitude of sins in other people, it keeps you from those same sins yourself.  Kind of hard to be a selfish jerk when you are acting in love.

So, my prayer for the tri-state and Evansville today is that we would all grow in our capacity to love God and to love others.  As we become more like Jesus, we will learn to love like He did and that will set this region free from darkness.  May we be a people known by our love.

Growing Pains

  

What was once, and could be again, a beautiful garden is now overwhelmed with weeds.  Let me cut to the chase.  Obviously I am not talking about gardens or weeds with this post.  I am talking about our hearts.  We bring them to Jesus is a furious rush of love and in the rapture of those first moments in relationship with Christ, we are much like a freshly tilled and planted garden.  The plants have been placed with such joy and anticipation.  The soil is rich and inviting.  The weather is perfect for germination and the coaxing of life from the seeds we have planted.

Then the weeds.

It seems that over night, our hearts are savagely swarmed by these squatters that simply were not invited to the party.  We pulled them all out when we tilled the garden.  We threw them into the burn pile with such great joy.  In our heart of hearts, we wanted only the good fruit of our garden to be found in our garden.  When we see these weeds, we wonder, "Who did this?  I thought I got rid of them all!  How could this happen!  I am so ashamed and embarrassed by my heart and the darkness it contains."

Two things I want to share with you at this point.  As a new gardener, I am currently engaged with a battle with weeds in my garden and in my heart.  Also, I believe that we (the Church) are currently in this season of battle against spiritual weeds.  So I hope that what I share here will be a help to you.

I spoke to one of my neighbors the other day and as my wife and I were looking at her Herb garden, Rachel asked, "how do you get rid of all the weeds, do you spray?"  My heart sank as I knew that Rachel had noticed all of the weeds in my garden.  I had recently spent several hours weeding our front flower garden by pulling out the vile things by hand.  But my vegetable garden was still full of the things.  Our neighbor said, "Oh, by hand.  My husband uses a hoe, but I like to get in there with my hands and pull them out."  Then my wife asked, "How do you get rid of all of them?  We have so many."  My neighbor explained, "With a new garden, that is what you get.  All those seeds lay dormant in the soil and as you till up the soil and add food and water, they start to wake up and germinate.  Keep at it.  Next year will be easier."

This truth hit me like a lightening bolt.  I had not been attacked by a hateful neighbor who sowed weed seeds in my garden.  I had not failed to pull them all out like I thought.  The seeds of the weeds were already in the soil.  They just had not germinated yet.

So, when you find yourself living a life with Jesus Christ and all of the sudden you wake up to find your heart swarmed with things you thought you had gotten rid of and even new and different things that you never knew were in you, just remember that it is not your failure that caused this.  You are not a disappointment to God.  He is not looking at you and thinking, "Wow!  I did not see that one coming."  You did not know this stuff was in you, but He did when He welcomed you into His arms.  Look at this season of growing and battling weeds as an opportunity to uproot the weeds that you did not know about, but lay dormant in your heart.  Better to get rid of them as soon as possible so you won't have to deal with them later.  And just as my neighbor so lovingly put it to us, "Next year will be easier."  The next growing cycle you go through as a Christian will likely produce some more weeds that lay dormant still.  But it won't be as many and it won't be as discouraging for you.  Next season will be easier.

Remember that this life is a process.  It is the Highway of holiness, not the transporter beam of holiness.  It is a journey to be embraced and not an instantaneous reconfiguration of your heart.  

I want to leave you with this final story of encouragement.

I was standing in front of our church sanctuary one day praying for some people.  I looked at them and with the eyes of my heart, I saw them as frightened little children who really needed Jesus to come and take care of them.  Suddenly, I could see myself that way too.  I was having a deeply spiritual experience with God, but it was disturbing me.  Rather than seeing my need for Christ to come and sustain me and carry me, I saw my own wickedness and darkness and began to feel unworthy of praying for these people.  In my heart I spoke this prayer to God; "How can you stand to love me?  I have so much darkness in me."  Without any hesitation and is quite the startling manner, Jesus began speaking to me.  He spoke the following words to my heart in a way that only Jesus can.  I hope you will hear them as I did and be set free from fear and condemnation for the short falls.

Jesus said, "David, it is a whole lot darker than you think."  This hurt my feelings at first and just as I was about to say, "I did not realize it was that bad.", He continued, "But I love you a whole lot more than you think."  Even faster than my own heart could condemn me, Jesus Christ had crashed through the wall and set me free.

Do you get how vast this love is?  

Do you sense its depth?  

We mistakenly assume that we are loveable.  We are not.  We have nothing redeemable in and of ourselves.  I thought that the garden of my heart was pretty good until the weeds showed up.  And God just says, "There are more weeds in your garden that you could ever hope to pull out, but I love your garden so much more that you think I do."  Is it not a great thing that God's love is not depending on our performance?  The weeds need to be dealt with for sure, but they are not keep Him from loving us.

 

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:38-39

For while we were yet weak, in due season Christ died for the ungodly.
Romans 5:6

Next year will be easier, don't give up.

Conversations With God

About 5 years ago, I began seeking the Lord about who the Holy Spirit is and how He operated in our lives as believers.  Having been to Bible School, I had a great deal of theology in my head.  I knew just enough to know that my knowledge was not enough.  I needed experience and a manifestation of the Holy Spirit in my life.  It was my understanding that the Holy Spirit would empower us to live the life God called us to live and that though His empowering, we could walk as Jesus walked.  One of the things I was very interested in was hearing God's voice and learning to recognize it.  I wanted all that the Holy Spirit had to offer by way of gifts and intimacy with my Father.  I prayed for Him to speak to me.  On the very night that I did this, my wife began having very vivid dreams.  She woke me up in the middle of the night and told me she had these dreams.  God was speaking to her in her sleep and I was jealous.  She did not even want it and I was the one who asked for more.  It was then that I learned that God spoke to me in a different way than he did her.  I was complaining in my spirit about her getting what I asked for.  At that very moment, a voice went off in my head (yes, I hear voices) that was very close to my own thoughts, but very different also.  The thing being said was "What's the difference?"  I was complaining that my wife got something I asked for and the Lord was telling me that her getting it was the same as me getting it; that she and I really were one.  This is one of the main reasons I recognized this as being God.  Who else would correct me, teach me and love me all in one breath?  My Heavenly Father, that's who.  God was speaking to me. 

One way I explain this is that most of us can readily identify where a natural voice is coming from if given enough time to listen and locate the speaker.  still most, but maybe fewer, can also recognize the voice of the speaker.  Now, let's assume that the speaker is speaking in a different language that ours.  We may not understand everything that is being said, but we know who is saying it.  Given time, we can learn what words are being said and how to interpret them.  I believe it to be much the same with God.  He speaks, I recognize it is Him because I am one of His.  The more I listen, the more I'm able to understand what He is saying.  Understanding His words still falls short of understanding His heart or even grasping why HE may be saying what He is saying.  As Paul wrote, "We see in part and we prophesy in part."  Not knowing all of it backward and forward is not a reason not to share what He may be saying to you.  Just remember that you may not be getting the whole picture from Him and your spiritual ears may still have some deaf spots in them.  Share what you may receive from God with humility, but also with confidence.  If you really believe it, be bold.  But don't embellish it or detract from it because it may be rejected.  Remember that the litmus test for anything you may receive in your spirit is the Bible.  It may not be a direct quote from the Word, but it won't conflict with it and the concept will be found there.  Keep in mind though that your current understanding of the Word may be flawed and God will still speak to you.  Sometimes, I fear we reject what we are hearing from Him because we don't like it and we have a poor understanding of scripture.  Many of us interpret the Word based on pop culture lenses and whatever may be trending on Twitter. 

Why am I laying all this on you right now?  I am about to share a great many things on The Refuge City that I believe come from the heart of God.  Some of it is fantastical, some of it is difficult to receive.  But I also believe it came from His heart of love.  From the very title of this blog, to the heart of my ministry to teens at The Methodist Temple or through Chrysalis, I believe that God has a destiny for this city that is much greater than just being nicer than the next town.  While I have eluded to some of these things in the past and I have spoken with many of you directly about what I believe God has spoken over this city, I have recently been convicted about not sharing things more openly.  I have another website called emberfoundry.org/APropheticJournal and I have posted much more there than I have on this blog.  Please feel free to browse that site and comment here if you have thoughts or questions.

I don't expect all of our readers to buy into everything I share in the coming posts, but I do hope that you will give it an honest read and seek the Lord for yourself. 

Time

Why do we hate that things take time? This angst that has set into our hearts to get things done before they are ready to be done has become epidemic in our nation and in the Church. No longer content to cook, clean, prepare, travel or even form relationships the way they used to be done. We now nuke, dispose of, purchase, jet and social network our way through life.

I like fast just as much as anyone, but I have learned that slow and steady really does win the race. There are delicious meals that simply can't be made up to par without tedious and time consuming preparation and attention to detail. There is a quality that is completely lost when dining on paper or plastic. Missionaries used to get over half of their culture shock on the boat ride. Today, they have second and third manifestations of culture shock for years because they had an instant transition to the foreign culture.

The opposition may counter that we reach more for the gospel now and we accomplish such a great deal more in volume than before.

First, I'm not convinced that we are so far ahead of our ancestors in our accomplishments and I am discovering that we may even be doing ourselves a great disservice.

This week I'm with my youth group and we are planning a VBS for a local town near by and we went out to pass out fliers. It was a small town and it took several hours. We may get a nice bunch of kids, but I really don't think we will be seeing a rural transformation over night. The method for ministry for the Church for so long now has been to go to where the crowds are. I know that the motivation we claim is that we are reaching large numbers, but I tend to believe that in actuality, we are just wanting credit for large numbers without the huge effort and the enormous time commitment it takes to actually reach those masses.

We could continue doing rural outreaches for a long time and still only minister to a few hundred over the years. But why would we want to lose out on the Glory God has in these people just because we can get a bigger number quicker somewhere else? I even contend that the end result of our get big quick schemes are a shadow of what transpires in time consuming ministry to others.

Paul traveled far and wide to reach just a few for the Lord. It changed the world in time. It changed the world because it was deeper, stronger and more solid than what passes as evangelism today.

Let us not be afraid to take time.

Worn Out

Galatians 6:9

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

 

Ever get tuckered out?  We all do.  Just want to post this as an encouraging word for all you mighty warriors out there.

We are in a battle and the front is multifaceted.  From family strife to church life to work related issues, we are under constant attack from the enemy of our souls.  The Devil does not show mercy and he likes to kick us when we are down.  

But don't give up!  Keep fighting.  Do good, bless those who curse you, pray for people who abuse and use you.  Remember that the people around us that we may be receiving punches from are not our enemies.  Very rarely do we run into someone who is evil just for evil's sake.  Most of the people we are having a hard time with are in just as much pain, if not more, than we are.  Let us take courage from our Lord's example.

Luke 23:34

"And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments."

He spoke this blessing of forgiveness over the very men who had beaten Him beyond recognition, nailed Him to a tree and mocked Him.

Now, before you say, "Yeah, but He was Jesus", let me remind you that He has promised you this same strength.  He poured His life out so that He could pour it into us.  It is a huge cop out to say we can't because we are only human.  We are not mere humans anymore.  We are supernatural humans.  We are sons and daughters of the living God, heirs to the throne, His beloved, a chosen and royal priesthood. 

Did not Stephen pray this same prayer as he was being stoned to death at the feet of Saul (later known as Paul)? See Acts 7.  Stephen was just a man...until the Holy Spirit filled Him with power. 

What is this great and awesome power?  I'm just as charismatic as the next guy and I love miracles and the mysteries of God.  But this power is no mystery.  This power that we have to cover over a multitude of sins is greater than any physical healing or display of authority over nature.  This power that we now have to bind up the broken hearted, release the captives and proclaim the year of the Lord's favor is nothing other than Love. L-O-V-E, love. 

Let love rule the day, my friends, and in the end you will find that love has won the day.

Bless you all,

Dave

Vision 101

In this bit, I have quoted Rick Joyner's book Leadership, The Power of a Creative Life; in particular, his chapter on cultivating vision (Ch. 12 pp 111-113) and then added some of the thoughts I was having while I was reading this.  The main reason I wanted to share this with you all is because cultivating and understanding how vision works is so crucial to the future of the Tri-state.   The scriptures are clear; "Where there is no vision, the people perish." (Proverbs 29:18).  This means that if we don't know where we are headed, then we will probably end up nowhere. 

"Cultivating vision is a practical way that we can increasingly open our eyes to see beyond the things that are and see the way they could be."  This is a truth that we need to grasp for the Tri-state.  What do you see that no one else does?  What do you see that needs to be?

"...great leaders dictate the course of history...True leadership is born out of vision and strategy that is established firmly on the bedrock of conviction and purpose..." 

By this, Rick is saying that when we catch sight of what could be and what should be instead of what is, we can allow that to fuel our resolve to see our vision become a reality.  Change for the sake of change is pointless.  Change for good is okay.  Change for the best should be our goal.

"By definition, a vision is a concept that is not yet real.  The first step in formulating a vision is to simply start thinking about what could be rather than what presently exists.  This does take a certain amount of optimism; the critical and skeptical will seldom have visions or dreams." 

It is easy to weed out the skeptic among us.  The difficult, and much needed, thing for us to do is empower the skeptics to see and back the vision for a brand new Tri-state.  To do this, I think it will help to be aware of their hesitations, stop dismissing them and address them with patience and love.  Taking the, "Fine, I'll show you" approach only serves to create division.  There is no quicker way to "de-vision" a people than "di-vision".

"To be optimistic is no small feat...70% of the average person's thoughts are negative (thinking bad about something, someone, or expecting something bad to happen)...lives lived in bitterness fall well below their potential.  Only those who believe they can succeed will be encouraged enough to put forth the effort it takes to succeed...The most important step...is to start thinking the very best about everything and everyone.  EVEN IF WE ARE SOMETIMES WRONG,...it is better to err on the side of believing in others...This will open us up to disappointments, but there are things much worse than occasionally being disappointed--namely, failure to accomplish anything."

Rick went on to talk about how every event in our life will either make us bitter or better.  We are not talking about ignoring wisdom or overlooking warnings that are meant to protect us from failure.  But the negative thinking will cause us to see only warnings and then we become paralyzed.  In another chapter of this same book, Rick talked about how canoes can only be steered when they are in motion.  So even a canoe that is headed in the wrong way must continue to move forward in order to be corrected.  Those who are so afraid of failure will simply stop their canoe in desperate hopes that the canoes will either right itself or the direction they are going will suddenly become the right way.  That, I believe, is very similar to insanity.  In the very least, it is silly.  Fear of failure leads us to the very thing we fear.  What we should fear is not doing anything at all.  This will bring us to accomplishing many great things.

"We must always keep in mind that the accomplishment  of any significant vision will take significant people, and significant people will almost always need to be led in a positive way."

I am very encouraged by this statement in that I know the Tri-state is full of significant people.  In fact, I have not met one single person here who is insignificant.  Sure, there are those who are not living up to their potential who are being hindered by wrong choices and the negative bombardment of society and the enemy, but they matter and it is our responsibility to awaken them and put the salve on their eyes so they can too see what could/should be instead of the negative reality they find themselves in.

What is this great vision that I see for the Tri-state?  It is actually pretty simple and I fully believe that it came from God's desire for this region. 

I believe He wants a city of people that love Him more than they do any other. 

I believe that He wants Evansville and the surrounding communities to be known as a modern day City of Refuge (thus the name of this blog) where people from all around will come to find peace with God. 

I believe this will be manifested in several ways, from economic strength to emotional well being and even on to environmental purity. 

We may be known now as a place that is fighting to stay afloat economically in a nation that is falling apart, but we will soon be known as an economically strong city that will be a beacon to those who are hurting. 

We may be known as a city full of depression and one of the highest suicide rates in the country, but we will soon be known as a city of joy.  This joy will be so infectious that it will spread to the rest of our nation and even the world. 

We may now be known for ozone alerts and allergies galore, but we will soon be known as a place of pure, fresh and cleansing air.  So much so, that people will come from all over just to breathe our air, drink our water and enjoy our produce. 

Seem crazy?  Good. 

Otherwise, it would not be a vision worth having.  If we could do it easy, it would be done and I think we all can asee what has been done.

Let me leave you with this thought from Peter Drucker, a military strategist.

"The best way to predict the future is to create it."