RE-present Christ

I love the English language, really I do. I’m one of those who truly believe that words are important, and the way we use them is an art, one which I am still developing. At times I have bashed the American use of such a fine language as English. This however is not one of those times, for there has recently been an “Americanized” word which has left impression on me, this word is “represent.” Now, the English linguists would claim that the correct use of this word would have us pronounce it as “Rep-present”, please forgive the frenetic. The Americans however pronounce it as “Ree-present”. Now while at face value this seems to be clutching at straws, the difference in pronunciation brings imperative understanding on certain topics. For example, as Christians we are charged with a certain mandate, being, to represent Christ. How did you read that? If you simply read it as correct English you would have glanced over the word “represent” as a simple descriptive of basic Christianity, however if you read it in the way which I have personally come to appreciate, as “Re-present” then your understanding is somewhat different. You see, we are not simply here to represent Him, we are here to RE-present Him. That means that we are to present that which He has already presented! We are to only re-present that which He has already presented, then we are to only live what He lived, speak what He spoke and do what He did. Paul writes in Galatians 1:8 “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” No, man or even angel can change the gospel of Christ, that is to say that everything about our Christian life, Christian community, theology, is to RE-represent what Christ presented as the true gospel. This is our lead toward Christ centered theology, Christ centered churches, Christ centered outreach, Christ centered communities, families, and so on.

Check out Bill Johnson’s message called “Real Jesus”, one of my favorite sermons along the lines of this topic. I have listened to it multiple times, and will do so many times more, enjoy!

Spiritual Growth is a discipline

Well, its been a while since my last post. I believe that transparency among Christian leaders is such a key principle to personal growth as well as the growth of fellow believers, and so on that note I must say that instead of over-spiritualising my absence, it simply has been due to laziness and a battle against discipline. We never want to call ourselves lazy, do we! But the truth is the truth :) and the reality is that if we want to grow spiritually, we must give ourselves to discipline. That is while the followers of Jesus are known as two particular names: Disciples, which means that they came under the discipline of being with, learning from, and becoming like Christ; and Apostles, which are sent out to operate in the disciplines they have come to live by. I would say then that without discipline we cannot be disciples, and without first becoming a disciple we cannot become an apostle, for what will we have to take with us as we go?

This morning I have been watching some Bill Johnson messages on Youtube... Life-changing stuff...

Sometimes we are tested by what we DON'T have

I remember, not so long ago, watching one of my spiritual father's cry during his preach as he had broken away from his sermon notes and was speaking from the heart about the many family events, anniversaries and his kids' birthdays that he had missed over the years while he was travelling apostolically into the nations. Some in the room shared his tears, the ones who did were the ones who knew what he was feeling, the ones who had shared in counting the cost, the cost of the work of the gospel. I remember hearing another preacher, I think it was Brian Heasley from the 24/7 prayer movement in Ibiza, saying that the testing we are often faced with is not merely the testing of the desire for material things but rather the desire to have what some one else has, that's covetousness. Coveting another man's wife, another man's house, his life or his ministry, whatever it is, we are faced with seeing what someone else has, and we are left desiring it. The temptation is even stronger when what we see in another's life is something we have desired for a long time for our own lives, perhaps even something we have prayed and stood in faith for. Stronger yet is this temptation to covet when we have counted the desire as part of the cost we have paid as we have considered ourselves going about the King's business. For example, we may have always wanted to travel but have spent our money on apostolic trips rather than on going to holiday destinations, or perhaps we have given up a career to follow the call of Christ and as a result have had to delay certain desires such as having children until the time, or finances, are right and things are more settled. I must be honest, I am not usually faced with this feeling, but today I am, well sort of. I don't feel covetousness over what I have seen in the past 24 hours, but I do find myself faced with the option to travel down this road, which I know to be depressing.
I won't travel that road, not today, or any other. FOR I AM ABOUT THE KINGS BUSINESS. His timing is perfect, and He will make a way in His perfect time. He has us in His hands. He has the blueprint for our lives. The questions I am left pondering then are of a healthier nature, I hope. How long till we see Your promise coming to life Lord? Your promise over our lives, family, ministry. For as we go forward we will continue to count the cost, we will try to follow Your timing as best we can, but please, PLEASE don't allow us to miss out on things in our life that You have for us. Lead us not to sacrifice things that You are not asking us to sacrifice. Help us not to give up the blessing You have purposed for us. As we sacrifice this earthly economy to build into our spiritual savings account, help us not to discount the wonderful life that you have also purposed for us to have on this earth. All Lord, in Your time. Your time.

Transferred Authority

Over the past few days I've read and meditated on the book of Jude as well as 1 John. Jude is so relevant to the modern day church it is scary! Almost as if written yesterday it addresses the issue of false prophets, false teaching "with swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage" (v16), and an attitude of grumbling and complaining, walking according to the lusts of the flesh. I don't want to be the one Jude is describing here! The solution... verse 20,21... build yourself up by praying in the Holy Spirit, keep on loving God and sharing that love, and stay focused on Jesus who gives us eternal life.

1 John also deals with deceptions of the last days but focuses on the issue of sin in the lives of believers, overcoming it, and living holy lives. As I've written before, I believe strongly that a holy life is the very foundation for sharing in the privilege of carrying God's manifest presence. As with Jude, 1 John also highlights the importance of loving God and living in community which outworks love with each other.

Of course these are the briefest of summaries, but in my quest to carry His presence I come to understand once again the need for holy living, the importance of love and by extension compassion, and our need for total dependence on the Holy Spirit.

Over the past 3 days I have felt a strong pull of the Holy Spirit to just be with Him in my devotional time. To allow Him to fill me, but more than that to just simply BE present and allow Him to be present to me. He is doing something and I feel that I am about to get to know Him! Perhaps something that many believers never do.

I found myself praying this:
Holy Spirit, come and take control. Become all encompassing of my life, become BIG over my life. I don't want to administer You, I want You to have the freedom to do whatever You want in, through, around and all over my life. The authority I have in this earth, which is the authority the Father created me to carry through His design in Adam, the very authority You need to operate through, is the authority I now give to You. I place it back in your hands. As opposed to me operating and making some space for You to move, I choose for You to operate and make space for me to be used if needed. I choose not to administer You, but for You to administer me, You steer this ship. Thank You!

Lord, I feel You all around this morning.

Come Holy Spirit,

come.

Come fill me.

Holy Spirit I want to know You.

I want to know Your personality.

I want to know Your character.

I want to know Your likes and dislikes.

I want to come face to face with You,

in a friendship for which there are no words.

Come, please,

show me who You are... 

His Glory is ever before us

My wife and I have just returned from a 3 week holiday to South Africa to visit family. Part of our time there was spent in the Drakensberg mountains at a sports resort. It's wonderful how we can never escape the visual reminder of our Fathers presence. How majestic He is, and what would have been such a small feat of His awesome creativity is to us awesomely overwhelming. What am I on about? Well, I've developed this passion for playing golf. Not because of the game necessarily, but largely because golf courses are some of the most beautiful places to walk. Someone once said that golf is a good way to ruin a nice walk, that's funny, but I guess it largely depends on who you are walking with. You see, when I'm out on the course surrounded by all this beauty, I can't but help myself from talking to God. I can't stop myself from saying "Wow Dad" and being overtaken by this beauty created to show a mere glimpse of who He is, His beauty, and the love He has for us in that he created this beauty for us. Golf courses may be sculpted by man, but he has never created anything. God created the land for man to sculpt, and somewhere in that partnership I find a connection, a merging of our presence meeting His. This truth came into full light on the Drakensberg course, which sits at the foot of the mountains. There it is, mans sculpted beauty of what God created, and yet while the course is beautifully sculpted it still cannot touch God's creativity. For what man has sculpted a mountain so overshadowing that it fill half the sky? We are not gods, we are men. He is God, worthy of our worship, worthy of our praise, worthy of our service. What and honour to be aware of His presence. Open your eyes, look around, He is calling out to us, the display of His presence draws us to Him.

Build yourself up

But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit

Jude 1:20

Be found by Him

This was posted on Facebook by a good friend of mine, Rudolph Boshoff, whom I studied with at bible school a few, or make that many, years ago.


"For most of my life I have struggled to find God, to know God, to love God. I have tried hard to follow the guidelines of the spiritual life—pray always, work for others, read the Scriptures—and to avoid the many temptations to dissipate myself. I have failed many times but always tried again, even when I was close to despair.
Now I wonder whether I have sufficiently realized that during all this time God has been trying to find me, to know me, and to love me. The question is not “How am I to find God?” but “How am I to let myself be found by him?” The question is not “How am I to know God?” but “How am I to let myself be known by God?” And, finally, the question is not “How am I to love God?” but “How am I to let myself be loved by God?” God is looking into the distance for me, trying to find me, and longing to bring me home."

From The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming by Henri J. M. Nouwen (New York: Image Books, 1992).

Living in Favor - Warren Eltringham

This morning I listened to a preach by Warren Eltringham.
Some great keys that stood out for me in relation to my ongoing quest to seek His presence are:
- The word affirms our identity
- The word affirms our favor
- His affirmation of us is revealed by His love over us
- One of the greatest expressions of His favor is access to His presence

http://www.wolhome.com/Message%20Downloads/11-07-16%20Warren%20Eltringham.mp3

History Makers

Tonight I leave for my third ministry trip to Sri Lanka for 5 days. We are history makers. Our simplest acts of travelling to another country with the truth in hand and the power of God, are recorded in heaven for eternity. My prayer for this trip is this...

Not to impart mere knowledge Lord,

not to flow only in wisdom.

Not merely to see signs and wonders,

not only to see blind eyes open and deaf ears here.

But, that your presence will flow.

That we will feel You tangibly with us,

And people will come face to face with You.

Demons will flee,

Sickness will leave,

Salvation will come.

We cannot go unless Your presence goes with us.

Come Lord.

Come Holy Spirit.

Come Jesus.

Let us go together on another mighty adventure!

Take a knee

There is an image in my mind. The one above is but a shadow of the emotion attached to the one I see. It is of the warrior, immediately after a battle. He is clearly exhausted. It is cold, cold enough to see the vapor in his breathe as he exhales deeply, as if having just run a race. Steam seems to be coming from his body, through his armour, evidence of how hard he has fought. The dark, blue haze in the air only makes him feel colder, and more fatigued. And yet as he comes here he is strangely refreshed. He is not here to rest. As he takes to one knee he places his fist, knuckles down, in the dirt, and bows his head. He is here to take orders. Orders from his King. He knows he must go on. He knows that he must return to the battle. But without His presence, he cannot continue. This is my secret place