Wednesday, November 22, 2006

up close

What a breath of fresh air Divine Nobodies continues to be! Here's a portion of what I read today:

Now I knew why I had to visit Kit. God put me with someone who had enough confidence in the Spirit to let my visit play out as God directed. I've received a lot of "ministry training" from some of the best and brightest megastars in Christendom, but I learned my most valuable lesson from Kit: Sometimes it's just best to get out of God's way. Plenty of people were willing to offer "biblical counsel" concerning my continuing career and ministry, which would have served only as distractions from listening to and knowing God himself up close and personal in real time. I was one of those people Jesus referred to who had their nose buried in the written Word but somehow missed the Living Word. Arriving in Connecticut, I wanted a five-point plan for putting my life back together, but Kit's unplanned agenda allowed for moments where I experienced God in ways I never had.

Maybe getting there requires coming to the end of yourself and the things and people you're depending on, even if they are inherently good, like the Bible. My striving couldn't get me any closer to knowing God. He had always been there, waiting for me to give up and listen. Though those dramatic encounters don't happen every day, I'm starting to become more familiar with his voice. In all Kit's improvising, I got a taste of God, making me hungry for more of him. He is what I'm looking for. The risks are worth it. I can't control or predict God, but I trust him enough to allow this journey of knowing him to take me wherever it may lead, even if I don't know where that is until I get there.

- Jim Palmer, Divine Nobodies, p. 15.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

Sunday, November 12, 2006

obx marathon

Today I accomplished one of my lifetime goals: I ran my first marathon - 26.2 miles in 4 hours, 11 minutes, 15 seconds. Three months ago I came across an online ad for the OBX Marathon while doing research on the Outer Banks, and my heart was stirred. The timing and location seemed so right. One of the Father's words to me this year has been "released to run" (set free to be me), and few places on earth inspire me quite like the coast of North Carolina. I sensed the Father's encouragement to "Go For It!" As I began to train and prepare, everything fell right into place, and the Holy Spirit coached me through training, minor injuries, last-minute preparations, and the race itself. I ran the perfect race - a steady pace and a sprint to the finish (the last two miles were my fastest). Thank you, Daddy, for an awesome experience!

"The Lord GOD is my strength, and He has made my feet like hinds' feet." (Habakkuk 3:19)

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

Saturday, November 04, 2006

divine nobodies

This week I started reading Divine Nobodies by Jim Palmer. The subtitle of the book is Shedding Religion to Find God. Jim writes with an honesty that is refreshing and challenging. Here's what one Amazon.com reviewer had to say -

Divine Nobodies will touch the deepest most intimate parts of your being as Jim meanders through life discovering God within and through everyday folks...the divine nobodies of life. You'll cry, giggle, hmph, chuckle and ROFL. Shedding religion is messy business, albeit foundation shaking at times. Jim tells of encountering the round pegs, those questions and life situations that just don't fit into the neat and orderly square holes of religion:

What is church? What does it mean to be the church? If a loving parent wouldn't send their child to eternal hell, how could God? Why do bad things happen? What is our journey about as a child of God...is it about living the 'perfect life' a striving for sinlessness? Just how far does God's grace go? Should believers do life with the "undesirables", homosexuals, adulterers, divorcees, alcoholics of the world or does being around "bad" apples spoil the whole bushel...just who are "undesirables" anyway? Is knowing about God the same as knowing God?

If you have an inkling there's something more to God than Sunday services and Wednesday night prayer meetings, pick up a copy of Divine Nobodies...Jim's story will fan that inkling into a knowing that will guide you to a deeper and more intimate relationship with God...and that 'is' what life's about.

- Rick Harris

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!