fatherheart

An Unreasonable Faith

2009-11-30T13:14:00.002-05:00

Some folks think the notion of a superintelligent, Creator God is essentially and irredeemably irrational.

Because they see no proof for God’s existence, this group believes that science has consistently proven there is no God. They contend that people who believe in God are superstitious, obscurantist, naïve, and in denial about the advances of science. At the very least, atheists see faith in God as infantile – a childish notion that should have disappeared as soon as a person was capable of evidence-based thinking.

Just because something is shrouded in mystery doesn’t mean it’s stupid to believe it. In fact, it’s natural and rational to believe something based on a preponderance of evidence. This natural faith is the result of a simple curiosity that examines the evidence and makes hypotheses about possibilities. This is the same sort of faith that makes a scientist explore the mysteries found in the world of nature.

The order and complexity of the universe reasonably points to a creator or a transcendent being. But since no one caught the Creator in the act of creating, the skeptic can propose the notion that the whole concept of God is a hoax, and that would be fair as far as the rules of skepticism are concerned. Even though some people claim they know God, such claims don’t prove he exists. However, to suggest (as writers like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens do) that openness to the reality of God is evidence that one is deranged, deluded, and deceived is unfair by anyone’s rules. Belief in God’s existence is not irrational.

Let me point out that simple belief in God does not constitute a faith that has strong conviction. It isn’t settled. Such belief is restless and longs for more information and validation. This general belief isn’t the deep faith that Scripture identifies as being “sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Belief in the notion of God is only the first step down the trail to having a transformational, personal encounter with God. This type of faith is perfectly reasonable.

However, when it comes to the deeper faith described in Scripture, the critics are right. It isn’t rational at all. At some point, faith calls for a leap past logic and reasoning. Many things have been proven through the scientific method, which rigorously studies the evidence and refuses to allow hypotheses to become beliefs until something is unquestionably demonstrated. In contrast, even though there are clues that point to the existence of God, those God clues will never prove God’s existence.

As we suggested in Chapter 1, a person investigating a belief in God will bump into one clue after another, until somewhere along the way a choice emerges. This is faith of another ilk. This kind radically leaps over the lack of empirical proof and believes what one cannot possibly prove. This is unreasonable faith, and we should call it that because it violates the rules of reason. Its roots are metaphysical; it is the stuff of the supernatural. Unreasonable faith isn’t just the result of human effort; it is the coworking of an open heart and a sprinkling of divine grace.

- Ed Gungor, What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections from an Open-Minded Christ Follower, pp. 23-27.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affectionate love!

What Bothers Me Most about Christianity

2009-11-07T13:13:00.003-05:00

I came across an intriguing book on Amazon.com this morning, What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections from an Open-Minded Christ Follower by Ed Gungor. Here's a particularly thought-provoking excerpt:

We may not like it, but the nature of faith makes it an untidy enterprise. It demands persistence in the face of uncertainty. Real faith has doubt in the mix, as the coin has two sides.

This makes many Christ followers nervous. They view qualms and questions as evidence of a lack of faith and insist, “Jesus is the answer!” But what if Jesus isn't the answer? What if he is the question? What if we aren't supposed to have all the answers? Could it be that in the discomfort of unanswered questions we are forced to face our own pride and admit we only “know in part”? Is it possible that questions cause us to face the choice to believe or not to believe?

There is a great story in the life of Jesus where he asked a man if he had faith. The man responded, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” Notice that it is possible to believe and still be wrestling with “unbelief.” Just because you have misgivings does not mean you do not have faith. The guy in the Jesus story asked that his doubt be “overcome” so that it would not be the prevailing force in his life.

I believe God wants people of faith to question, to be bothered, to seek for tenable answers, to consider the “What if it's true?” juxtaposed against the “What if it's not true?” Faith is not the result of quelling doubt but the result of a choice after one has earnestly sought to understand. It is a venture of human consideration and divine illumination. It's hard, sometimes painful, often disorienting, and always messy - certainly not a cheery, no-conflict, refreshingly bubbly, perpetually happy place. Only in a world where faith is difficult can faith exist.

If this is a true description of faith, then faith is more like an intense mud-wrestling contest than anything else. Our role is to stay in the ring, even though we don't see God all that clearly and even though it would be easier to quit than to stay in the fray. When we hang in there, fighting through uncertainty and doubt, we are living by faith.

When I look at the Bible and Christian faith, I am left with some formidable, disturbing questions. And I don't have the answers. I may never have them this side of eternity. I hate that, but it is what it is. In spite of what bothers me about faith, I choose to be a God follower, and because I am, he meets me where I am, despite my questions. And that is worth it all!

I read a quote from notable scholar and author Dallas Willard that captures the why behind my decision to forever follow Jesus: “The issue is, what do we want? The Bible says that if you seek God with all your heart, then you will surely find him. Surely find him. It's the person who wants to know God that God reveals himself to. And if a person doesn't want to know God - well, God has created the world and the human mind in such a way that he doesn't have to.”

I have found him. And I don't want out.

- Ed Gungor, What Bothers Me Most about Christianity: Honest Reflections from an Open-Minded Christ Follower, pp. 217-219.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affectionate love!

joyful uncertainty

2009-04-29T23:22:00.005-04:00

The spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, just uncertain of what He is going to do next. If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy.

Jesus said, ". . . believe also in Me" (John 14:1), not, "Believe certain things about Me". Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in – but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him.

- Oswald Chambers, "The Graciousness of Uncertainty", My Utmost for His Highest, April 29th

Live free! Live in Daddy's affectionate love!

top priority

2009-04-27T15:21:00.002-04:00

“I want to propose to you that freedom is a top priority in Heaven, because it is what makes relationships possible. Heaven’s culture of relationships is vastly different than most everything we see on earth because God, the Father, is less interested in compliance and much more interested in love. This is the reason that He is trying to prepare us to live absolutely free lives in an environment of unlimited options more than trying to keep us from sin. This is the heart of Loving Our Kids on Purpose, and so I would like to show you how to love your own kids with this goal in mind.”

- Danny Silk, Loving Our Kids on Purpose, p. 36

I just received this book from Amazon.com and I can't wait to dig in. It came highly recommended by Wayne Jacobsen.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affectionate love!

boston revisited

2009-04-19T23:11:00.003-04:00

As I reflect on my first Boston Marathon one year ago today, several good life lessons come to mind –

The first lesson has to do with the dreams Father drops into our hearts. Five years ago, if you’d told me I’d be running the Boston Marathon a few days before my 49th birthday, I’d have thought you were delusional. It’s amazing what can happen when we open our minds to Father’s possibilities and embrace the dreams He puts in our hearts.

The second lesson has to do with the way Father relates to us as unique individuals, personalizing the gifts He gives and the blessings He bestows, all of which are designed to deepen our friendship with Him. The Boston Marathon was Father’s special gift to me. He gave me the vision to see it, the passion to pursue it, and the strength to finish it. The Boston Marathon was our race, a shared experience between Father and son.

The third lesson has to do with the various roles Father plays in our lives and His desire to be involved in each and every detail. Throughout my Boston Marathon experience, Father was my ever-present trainer and coach, giving me practical wisdom and encouraging me to persevere through the challenges of training and the race itself. Our partnership, working together as one, made the Boston Marathon a life-changing event.

Thank you, Father, for such a special gift!

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy’s affectionate love!

atheists

2009-01-19T22:22:00.000-05:00

In The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, Tim Keller makes some interesting observations about early Christianity -

"It is hard for us to realize this today, but when Christianity first arose in the world it was not called a religion. It was the non-religion.

"So the Romans called them 'atheists,' because what the Christians were saying about spiritual reality was unique and could not be classified with the other religions of the world.

"The irony of this should not be lost on us, standing as we do in the midst of the modern culture wars. To most people in our society, Christianity is religion and moralism. The only alternative to it (besides some other world religion) is pluralistic secularism. But from the beginning it was not so. Christianity was recognized as a tertium quid, something else entirely."

- Tim Keller, The Prodigal God, pages 13-14.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

prodigal god

2009-01-12T13:08:00.004-05:00

Just finished a wonderful book that expresses the nature of Father's love through an insightful analysis of the Bible story commonly known as "The Parable of the Prodigal Son". In The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith, Tim Keller emphasizes the Father's loving response to both the rebellion of his younger son (the prodigal) and the resentment of his older son (the elder brother). Keller applies the parable to modern religious and secular culture, showing how Father's love transcends both to meet our deepest needs.

Click The Prodigal God to read reviews and purchase on Amazon.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

culture wars

2008-11-23T16:35:00.003-05:00

We’ve been known for boycotting Disney, decrying the Teletubbies and rallying behind pet legislation. Christianity and the culture wars have been synonymous now for a long time. When it comes to media attention, Christians most often seem to get it for something we’re against. The last few decades of the Church seem to be ones in which we’ve taken an adversarial relationship to the culture around us. We’ve spearheaded protests, boycotts and letter-writing campaigns. If Christians are against it, we’ve done a decidedly good job of making the public aware of it. It seems we have made it our mission to loudly denounce those things in society that don’t match our worldview, and find ways to pressure the culture into rejecting them. As such, evangelical Christianity has developed a reputation in society for being angry, boorish and self-righteous.

Yet, should Christianity be engaged in these culture wars? Is it our lot to remake the world in God’s image? The answer is, of course, a resounding yes. It is absolutely our role to stand against the tide of culture and to be a clarion voice for God in the midst of darkness. The problem is, we often go about it all wrong.

Without a doubt, we are called to stand apart from culture. Paul admonishes us, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2). The life Christ calls us to is one of being countercultural, and of spreading the Kingdom of God throughout the culture around us.

What does it mean, though, to be countercultural? Does it mean that we organize protests or pen invective letters to the FCC for some sitcom’s latest grievous offense? If we follow the standard Christ set, it is a much deeper calling than that. When Christ speaks of being countercultural, it looks so much more revolutionary and bizarre than merely fighting for legalistic ideals. The picture Christ paints is of a peculiar people who confuse the culture around them by being so utterly different. Whereas our society worships status, we are to be servants to all. When the culture tells us we have to seek fortune, we hold material goods lightly and give all we have to the poor. If prevailing public opinion says that we should lie to get ahead, we cherish honesty and keep any oath we take. Where cynicism and pessimism pervade those around us, we are agents of constant hope and tireless faith.

Ultimately, though, the absolute most countercultural role a Christian can take is that of truly loving our enemies rather than treating them to our usual show of angry saber-rattling. This is hard for a people who have spent so much time viewing those who would tear down God’s Kingdom with such vitriol. But Jesus did not suggest this—He commanded it. He told us: "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you” (Matthew 5:38-42).

This is a revolution born not of anger or discord, but of unmitigated love. It is one that confounds culture by showing resilient mercy and charity at times when it makes the least sense to do so. How would society be impacted if, instead of staging counter-protests when we disagree with a group of pro-abortion demonstrators, we showed up and served them in humility and love? What kind of reputation would we gain if we quietly showed love to our homosexual neighbors instead of putting signs in our yard touting our political views on their relationship?

Are we at war with the culture? Yes. But we’ve been fighting the wrong battle. Ours is not a war of taking shots at things we deem offensive to the public sensibility. It is one of standing against the tide of selfishness, wrath, vainglory and cynicism that surrounds us. It is a battle of refusing to be swept up in the idea of consumerism. Of fighting the concept that we should avenge every wrong done to us. Of taking up arms against our culture’s mindset that the rich, famous and powerful are to be admired and the poor despised. This is a war of loving our enemies, praying for those who persecute us and speaking God’s abiding truth with genuine compassion for those whose ears it falls upon. Now is not the time to back away from a fight. It’s time to actually engage the true enemy.

- "A Treaty To End Culture Wars", 850 Words of RELEVANT, email dated Nov 17, 2008

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

boston marathon

2008-07-03T16:39:00.016-04:00

Monday, April 21, 2008 - what a beautiful day for a marathon! The Boston Marathon more than lived up to its reputation for being a challenging course, especially the long hills beginning around Mile 19 at Newton, MA. The hills, especially the infamous "Heartbreak Hill", were almost my undoing. It took all the willpower and determination I could muster to keep pushing on to the end. I had to break the final part of the race down into 100-yard chunks to motivate myself to keep going. My thought process went something like this - "If I can just make it to that next stoplight, then maybe I can summon the strength to go another 100 yards." I finished the race at 3:49:28, completely spent, but satisfied that I had given it my all.

One of the highlights of my first trip to Boston was the cheerleader who accompanied me - my 20 year-old daughter, Elisabeth. We arrived in Boston on Saturday evening and spent all day Sunday exploring the city. Some of our stops were Quincy Market, Faneuil Hall, the Paul Revere House, the Old North Church, Copp's Hill Burial Ground, and Long Wharf. After the race on Monday, we picked up where we left off, walking from the finish line at Copley Square to Boston Common, and then to Quincy Market for a post race snack. Elisabeth and I concluded our day with dinner at one of Boston's finest seafood restaurants, Legal Sea Foods. We drove home Tuesday morning, full of fun memories from one of the nation's most historic cities.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

divorce

2008-06-29T11:11:00.005-04:00

Our divorce was finalized on Friday, June 27, almost three years after the process began. Talk about a marathon. Truly an incredible journey into a deeper understanding of Father's love, mercy and compassion. Two overriding themes of the past three years - grace and freedom. Grace defined as the inner revelation of the magnitude and depth of Father's affectionate love. Freedom defined as the simplicity of living as His beloved child, progressively unencumbered by fear and a sense of religious obligation. His grace has transformed suffering into glory. Today, I can honestly say that He is far more glorious and beautiful than I ever dared to imagine. Isaiah 61:3 has become my testimony - "To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified." I just love that last phrase, "that he might be glorified." He is truly worthy of ALL glory!

A heartfelt thanks to all of you who have extended grace and prayed for our family over the past three years. Your lovingkindness has been a very real source of comfort and healing.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

surf city usa

2008-02-18T21:41:00.008-05:00

On Sunday, February 3rd, I finished my second marathon - the Surf City USA Marathon in Huntington Beach, California. What an incredible experience from start to finish!

Shortly after I completed my first marathon (the OBX Marathon on the Outer Banks of North Carolina) in November of 2006, I began looking for another marathon to run. The first marathon that caught my attention was the Surf City USA Marathon. The thought of running a marathon along the Pacific shoreline was quite compelling.

In August of 2007, I registered online for the 2008 Surf City USA Marathon. On the registration form I was asked to put down my predicted time of finish. Based on my OBX Marathon time of 4:11:15 (4 hours, 11 minutes, 15 seconds), I nervously typed in 3:59:00, hoping that if I trained hard enough I could shave 12 minutes off my OBX time and break the four-hour barrier.

At the end of August I began training in earnest. Having recently joined a local fitness club, I decided to incorporate weight training into my training regimen three times a week. The payoff was almost immediate. I recovered from my longer training runs much more quickly and the nagging aches and pains that had been a regular part of my OBX Marathon training were almost nonexistent. I felt great!

As late summer turned to fall and fall headed towards winter, I had to face the prospect of doing something that seemed utterly dreadful - running indoors on a treadmill. Yuck! I had never run on a treadmill before, and I surely didn’t want to start now. But I was a man on a mission, and if achieving my goal of a 3:59 marathon meant running on a treadmill, then I was willing to bite the bullet.

Fortunately, I found the perfect training partner to accompany me on my dreaded treadmill training runs - a purple iPod Shuffle. Armed with a collection of my favorite Motown, R&B, Disco, and Pop tunes from the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s, I was ready to tackle treadmill monotony head on. One advantage of using the treadmill was the ability to closely monitor my pace and mileage. This proved to be a key component of my training.

Following several of my training runs, my thoughts would turn to Lindsay Dunn (see “lindsay dunn” post dated December 29, 2007) and I’d begin to cry. Running was one of our common bonds and this would be my first race since her death. I missed Lindsay’s kindness and encouraging words. I began to think of the Surf City USA Marathon as my “Dunn Run” - a way to honor Lindsay and her positive influence in my life.

After playing around with the pace setting on the treadmill, I felt comfortable with 8.2 miles per hour, a pace of 7:19 per mile. As my training progressed, I was very encouraged to see that I could maintain a 7:19 pace for 4 miles, 8 miles, 12 miles, 16 miles, and finally, 20 miles. When I compared my 20-mile training time (2:26:43) to my 20-mile split time for the OBX Marathon (3:13:46), I was blown away. I had shaved 47 minutes off my 20-mile time from the OBX Marathon!

Pretty soon I got to thinking that my goal of a 3:59 marathon wasn’t quite ambitious enough. Maybe I needed to set my sights a little higher. Out of curiosity I went to the Boston Marathon website to see what time I would need in order to qualify for the 2008 Boston Marathon. The magic number was 3:30. I now had a new goal - to qualify for the world’s oldest and most prestigious marathon, the Boston Marathon!

Towards the end of January, with the Surf City USA Marathon fast approaching, it was difficult to contain my excitement. I was so focused as I began making last-minute preparations for the trip to California. My flight from Harrisburg to Los Angeles presented some challenges, but in the end it all worked out perfectly. Thanks to a canceled flight, a delayed flight, and then a missed connection, I ended up arriving in Los Angeles almost 24 hours later than originally planned, but the upside was two solid nights of sleep - one in my own bed and one at a Holiday Inn in Kentucky.

When I touched down in Los Angeles on Saturday, the southern California sunshine was in full effect. A short drive down the San Diego Freeway put me in Huntington Beach just in time for a beautiful afternoon along the Pacific coast. After picking up my marathon bib number and timing chip from the Expo, I met up with my brother, Peyton, for a leisurely stroll through the lively streets of Huntington Beach. We stopped for a nice pasta dinner before he headed back to LA and I headed to the hotel for an early bedtime.

Sunday morning dawned and just as forecast, it was raining and windy. I caught a 5:30 am cab to the starting line where I spent the next hour trying to keep warm and dry. Fortunately, I brought along my disposable “poncho” - a 30-gallon trash bag. “Surfin’ U.S.A.”, the classic Beach Boys tune, signaled the start of the race at 6:50 am as the rain and wind continued unabated. Despite the adverse conditions, I was thrilled to be running along the Pacific Coast Highway with a perfect view of the storm-tossed Pacific Ocean on my left.

My shoes were completely soaked in no time thanks to some very large, unavoidable puddles. By Mile 5, my “poncho” had become more of a hindrance than a help, so I tossed it aside. The Huntington Beach Pier, Huntington Central Park, and the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve were some of the more interesting stretches along the 26.2 mile course. Nine of the last ten miles were run on the beachfront running path right along the Pacific Ocean. I laughed out loud at the irony of running in such terrible weather at a place known for its warm, sunny climate.

When I checked the race clock posted at Mile 25, I knew I had Boston in the bag. I ran past the Huntington Beach Pier one more time en route to the finish line. Nearing the finish line, I could hear Peyton cheering me on. As I crossed the finish line, I was completely spent. With bottled water and finishers’ medal in hand, I slowly walked across the road to a spot where Peyton could pick me up and drive me back to the hotel to recuperate.

After a warm shower and a cold bath to help my legs recover, I was ready to roll. I checked out of the hotel and headed over to the Olive Garden with Peyton for my post race lunch. I followed Peyton back to LA after lunch and we arrived just in time to catch the kickoff of Super Bowl XLII.

During the Super Bowl, I checked the Surf City USA Marathon website to see if the race results had been posted. I could hardly believe what I saw! I finished 44th out of 1087 runners overall and 5th out of the 95 runners in my age/gender category. My time was 3:22:01, shaving over 49 minutes off my previous marathon and qualifying me for the 2008 Boston Marathon. Needless to say, I was ecstatic.

Several days after the marathon, I told Lindsay Dunn’s parents about my desire to honor Lindsay and how her life had given me a sense of purpose and determination I would not have otherwise had in preparing for the race. Lindsay’s mom, Diane, shared the following with me last week - “Lindsay would have been very happy for you. She had hoped to run a marathon with you one day. She shared that with me. Sounds like she did--two weekends ago.”

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

stoked

2008-01-21T20:43:00.000-05:00

Last week as I was reading through my 2005 journal, I came across a passage that expressed the Father's heart for me during a very dark and painful time. It's so encouraging to look back and see how Father's words became life and joy and peace -

"Patience. Patience. Patience. The Father has made EVERY provision for you to live and thrive in the midst of this dark situation. Run into His mercy! Appropriate the fullness of His grace. Tap into the resources of the Body of Christ - those brothers and sisters who are supporting you from the heart. Roll all of your burdens and worries onto Him. He is fully able to carry them without any assistance from you! Rejoice in the trial. Rejoice in the suffering. Glorify the Father violently and passionately in the midst of the fire. Remember the three Hebrew children in the furnace! Revelation comes IN the fire! Suffering begets glory. Let the glory of the Father rest upon you - trusting Him to work out ALL things concerning you in perfect accordance with His plan and purpose. HE'S GOT YOUR BACK. HE IS SO INTO YOU! HE DELIGHTS IN WHO HE'S MADE YOU TO BE! HE'S EXCITED BEYOND WORDS ABOUT YOUR FUTURE. IT'S GOING TO BE GLORIOUS AND MIND-BLOWING, HOWEVER IT PLAYS OUT!

"Don't take the easy way out. Live out of your heart. Do not fear!!! The Father's got your back.

"Continue to wait patiently upon the Lord - allow Him to unfold His purpose in your midst. Entrust yourself into His love, care, and faithfulness. He will never let you down! Allow Him to have the fullness of His way in you and through you. Above all things - let HIS LOVE be your guiding light. The knowledge of His love for you! Be a vessel of that love for others. Love your children lavishly. Give them the fullness of your heart. Feel their pain and release love, affirmation, and healing into their lives!"

- October 18, 2005

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

lindsay dunn

2007-12-29T12:34:00.000-05:00

As I reflect on 2007, one event stands out above all others - the death of a special young lady, Lindsay Dunn. Lindsay passed away in the arms of Josiah, my middle son, shortly after the minivan she was riding in slammed into a tree on June 23rd.

During the year leading up to her death, Lindsay had become one of our dearest family friends. Her kindness, grace and sensitivity touched each one of us. She was like a daughter to me, and I cherish the memory of our driving lesson a few days before her death.

My heart aches and the tears flow as I continue to process Lindsay's death. I miss her warm smile and wonderful sense of humor, her bright eyes and zest for life. I am so grateful for the time I had with her - a precious gift from Father's loving heart.

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

prayer

2007-09-01T19:25:00.000-04:00

My parents were always hosting missionaries in our home, and one very prominent missionary was staying with us when I was a boy. I was struggling with the idea of “praying right,” and I thought, if anyone would know how to pray, it would be this famous man. He was dozing in the hammock in [the] back of our house, and I simply asked him, “How do you pray?” Without even opening his eyes, he said, “Son, I haven’t prayed in 40 years.” This was very disconcerting! I was shocked! Here is this famous man of God, and he hasn’t prayed for 40 years? I was afraid to tell my mother. I didn’t want him lowered in her estimation.

Years later, when I was a pastor, I saw the wisdom in what he told me. I was looking for a “How do you do it?” I was thinking that prayer was something you do in order to create a relationship with God. It’s not.

Eugene Peterson, RELEVANT, May/June 2007

love letter

2007-06-01T19:10:00.000-04:00

My Child,

You may not know me, but I know everything about you. Psalm 139:1

I know when you sit down and when you rise up. Psalm 139:2

I am familiar with all your ways. Psalm 139:3

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. Matthew 10:29-31

For you were made in my image. Genesis 1:27

In me you live and move and have your being. Acts 17:28

For you are my offspring. Acts 17:28

I knew you even before you were conceived. Jeremiah 1:4-5

I chose you when I planned creation. Ephesians 1:11-12

You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. Psalm 139:15-16

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live. Acts 17:26

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14

I knit you together in your mother's womb. Psalm 139:13

And brought you forth on the day you were born. Psalm 71:6

I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me. John 8:41-44

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. 1 John 4:16

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. 1 John 3:1

Simply because you are my child and I am your Father. 1 John 3:1

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. Matthew 7:11

For I am the perfect father. Matthew 5:48

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. James 1:17

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. Matthew 6:31-33

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Because I love you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3

My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Psalms 139:17-18

And I rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

I will never stop doing good to you. Jeremiah 32:40

For you are my treasured possession. Exodus 19:5

I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul. Jeremiah 32:41

And I want to show you great and marvelous things. Jeremiah 33:3

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. Deuteronomy 4:29

Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

For it is I who gave you those desires. Philippians 2:13

I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. Ephesians 3:20

For I am your greatest encourager. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. Psalm 34:18

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. Isaiah 40:11

One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes. Revelation 21:3-4

And I'll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. Revelation 21:3-4

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus. John 17:23

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. John 17:26

He is the exact representation of my being. Hebrews 1:3

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you. Romans 8:31

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you. 1 John 4:10

I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love. Romans 8:31-32

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me. 1 John 2:23

And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Romans 8:38-39

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. Luke 15:7

I have always been Father, and will always be Father. Ephesians 3:14-15

My question is…Will you be my child? John 1:12-13

I am waiting for you. Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad

Father's Love Letter used by permission
Father Heart Communications
Copyright 1999-2006
www.FathersLoveLetter.com

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

ever present

2007-05-26T14:10:00.000-04:00

More excerpts from Divine Nobodies -

Jesus was always there. Through all those years when it seemed God was absent, he was actually present - seeing, listening, caring, and hurting with me and over me. Perhaps my feelings and five senses are not always a reliable guide to the facts of God. God can be intimately present even if it feels like he's nowhere to be found. Whenever I sank down into my black hole of depression, I often felt unbearably alone and abandoned by God, but now I was seeing this wasn't true.

God longs for my awareness that his divine love holds me, and that awareness brings healing and a sense of wholeness. God's love is there in the darkness of depression with me, there next to me in my little locked house, sharing my pain, holding me closely, and offering the light of his love.

- Jim Palmer, Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find God (and the unlikely people who help you), pp. 74-75

Click Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find God to order

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ministry

2007-05-23T22:14:00.000-04:00

Here's an excerpt from a book I'm reading -

God has been trying to free me from the burden of doing something spectacular for him. It has a way of distracting you from the opportunities to be salt and light right where you are. I'm starting to see that the "cup of cold water given in Jesus's name" sometimes means running the register by yourself during lunch so your heartbroken coworker can cry in the break room, or volunteering to reshelf all the returns in your area so a worn-out coworker twice your age won't have to. A kindness shown here, a listening ear offered there, a caring hug as you go might be the case for Christ a cynical waitress most needs. I'm starting to recognize that I am immersed in a sea of hurting people every day. If I simply pay attention and follow the promptings of the Spirit in all these little ways, my life is "ministry."

- Jim Palmer, Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find God (and the unlikely people who help you), p. 43

Click Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find God to order

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the shack

2007-05-16T22:02:00.000-04:00

Tonight I finished one of the most incredible works of literature I have ever read. The Shack unveils the heart and nature of God like few books I’ve ever read. It elicits tears and laughter, wonder and worship. It faces the hard questions of life head-on, and challenges the reader to go beyond conventional religious thinking. It beautifully captures the tender, loving heart of God in the midst of tragedy and suffering. The sweet breath of God emanates from its pages. I came away from The Shack with a very real sense that I had been privy to some of the most intimate moments between Father, Son, and Spirit. If you are longing to know God in a deeper way, this book is a must!

Click The Shack to order

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy’s affection!

an angel

2007-05-01T22:44:00.001-04:00

One thing I love about Father is how He works in our lives in the most creative and unexpected ways. Several weeks ago my brother invited me to visit him in New York where he was directing a television pilot for ABC. I arrived in New York on Tuesday evening, March 20, and he took me to an underground Mexican restaurant for dinner with some of the cast and producers. One member of the cast, a young lady from Brooklyn, showered me with warmth and kindness throughout the evening. Father touched my heart through her sweetness and awakened me to the possibilities that lie ahead in Him. As winter turned to spring in that busy New York restaurant, Father began to melt away the rejection and doubt I've felt in seeing my marriage dissolve. If I didn't know better, I'd say I was touched by an angel.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

who am I

2007-04-30T21:44:00.000-04:00

One of Father's purposes in leading me through the pain of a broken marriage has been to show me my true identity. Who am I? What defines me? My physical appearance? My ethnicity and nationality? My family and friends? My religion and politics? My career? My balance sheet? People's opinions of me? Although all of the preceding categories can be used to describe me, there is one answer that supersedes them all in defining who I am - I am His! The song below illustrates this in a beautiful way -

Who Am I

Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

Chorus:
I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me

I am Yours
Whom shall I fear
Whom shall I fear
'Cause I am Yours
I am Yours

Written by Mark Hall
Music by Casting Crowns
Song based on Psalms 52 and 139 and Ephesians 2

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

jackie robinson

2007-04-29T18:09:00.001-04:00

This month marked the 60th anniversary of one of the most significant events in professional sports - Jackie Robinson's debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. On that day, Jackie became the first African-American to play Major League Baseball, paving the way for people from all ethnic backgrounds to participate in professional sports at the highest level.

Some national publications have questioned Jackie's legacy due to the fact that the percentage of African-Americans in Major League Baseball this season (8.3%) is the lowest since the 1960's. Those who would question Jackie's legacy fail to appreciate the broader scope of his accomplishments and his impact on American culture as a whole. Jackie's courage and fortitude continue to serve as an inspiration for people of all races and walks of life.

A four-sport athlete at UCLA, Jackie carried the hopes and aspirations of an entire race of people on his shoulders in the face of unimaginable opposition. I would argue that his debut with the Dodgers in 1947, not Rosa Parks's refusal to give up her seat on a bus in 1955, was the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement as we know it. Ironically, while Jackie was serving in the Army during World War II, he was court-martialed for refusing to move to the rear of a bus on his Army base. He was acquitted of the charges.

Reflecting on her husband in Jackie Robinson: An Intimate Portrait, Rachel Robinson had this to say: "Like Mallie (Jackie's mother), Jack felt God's presence in the most personal way. ... I attribute the wonder he experienced as group after group saluted him to one of his least publicly recognized traits - his humility. I admired this characteristic when I first met him, and I watched it develop and deepen as he matured. I am convinced that this humility stemmed from both his religious faith and his sense of himself, for he often told me that he believed he had been endowed with talent to be of service to others."

I am moved to tears every time I watch the segment on Jackie Robinson in Ken Burns's PBS documentary, Baseball. Jackie is a true American hero - a man of conviction and integrity who laid down his life so that others might have the freedom to pursue their dreams.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

super bowl

2007-01-26T16:29:00.000-05:00

This week I read an excellent piece by Michael Smith of ESPN.com about the two head coaches who are leading their respective teams into Super Bowl XLI, Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts and Lovie Smith of the Chicago Bears. Here's an excerpt -

"Dungy and Smith are role models, not just for coaches who look like them or men who look like them, but for all coaches and all men. They live their lives the right way, and as a result they do their jobs the same way. Their priorities are, in order: faith, their families and football. The outcome of the Super Bowl or any game does not define them. They personify words such as class, grace, dignity, honor and integrity. We all can draw inspiration from men such as these.

"Dungy and Smith haven't sold their souls in pursuit of the game's Holy Grail, and yet here they are, reminding us that good men can do great things, that nice guys can and do finish first. Dungy learned from Dennis Green and Chuck Noll and passed it on to assistants Smith, Mike Tomlin, Herman Edwards and Rod Marinelli (all head coaches now) that it's OK to enjoy life outside the facility. Dungy and Smith are family men. And they still win.

"You won't hear either utter a word of profanity. And they still win. They care about and foster relationships with their players. And they still win. They serve their communities. And still, somehow, they find time to do what it takes to prepare their teams.

"Dungy can -- imagine -- spend the Saturday evening before the AFC Championship Game against the Patriots at the mall with his family. Or Dungy, Smith, Edwards and each of their wives can gather for dinner at P.F. Chang's the night before Dungy's Colts and Edwards' Chiefs met in the first round of the playoffs. And yet it didn't halt the Bears' or Colts' journeys to Miami.

"Dungy and Smith are Christian men who serve the Lord first and spend nearly as much time serving their communities. Doesn't prevent them from winning. And often. In just three seasons Smith, last season's Coach of the Year, has helped build the Bears into a league power. Dungy has won more regular season games than any coach since 1999. Where does color factor into that?

"After they won their conference championships, you heard Smith talk about his "being blessed" and Dungy give thanks to God. That isn't just lip service with these guys. As Christians they believe it is their responsibility to let their light shine whenever they're in the spotlight. Just as they have a game plan for each other come Super Bowl Sunday, both plan to use the global platform that the Super Bowl provides to speak words that could make an impact beyond football. At his oldest son James' funeral last year, Dungy used the eulogy as an opportunity to teach lessons about manhood and fatherhood.

"Neither man gets caught up in, you know, being the head coach. Talk about humility: Smith was seated among the fans at the RCA Dome for the Colts-Chiefs playoff game (the Bears had a bye) when a fan approached him for an autograph. Smith, who had been signing for several minutes already, politely told her "not right now" and said he would like to turn his attention to the game. But he watched as she returned to her seat, and during the next break he went over and gave her the autograph.

"Regarding a coaching matchup between friends and former colleagues, these are the kinds of things we should be talking about exclusively leading up to the game, the class way in which Dungy and Smith lead their respective organizations. Not something as trivial as Dungy and Smith's skin color. It seems as if every day we hear about players getting arrested or being involved in some embarrassing incident -- and failing as role models. When Dungy walks away from coaching he likely will devote more of his time to the prison ministry about which he's so passionate. He and Smith are examples of what a strong man is. Never mind what they look like. They're the perfect people to represent not just the African-American community but the NFL community.

"On Jan. 15, the nation celebrated the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We could honor his dream by celebrating Dungy's and Smith's achievements not because of the color of their skin, but the content of their character.

"There's a lot of talk about hoping for a day when black coaches in the Super Bowl won't be a big deal, when we won't find it necessary to refer to a coach as a "black coach" (or any person by their race, for that matter).

"What's wrong with that day being today? Dungy and Smith have made history, and we happily acknowledge it. As for our practice of categorizing NFL head coaches, let's make that history, too."

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

marathon memories

2007-01-23T21:46:00.000-05:00

It's been ten weeks since I completed my first marathon, but I continue to get stoked as I reflect on the entire experience. From the first time I saw the OBX Marathon ad to the moment I crossed the finish line, I felt the Father's pleasure and encouragement every step of the way.

Coming off a yearlong case of plantar fasciitis (heel pain) and with little more than two months to train, a marathon seemed out of the question. But overriding all of my reasonable objections was the conviction that my Daddy was inviting me to run and that He would enable me to achieve my goal.

My training started well, but along the way little aches and pains crept up, challenging my belief that I could run a marathon. With less than a month to go, a right calf strain forced me to cut short a long training run and take a week off. Due to responsibilities at school, I was unable to train during the week leading up to the race. In spite of the setbacks, I had a sense that I was destined to run my first marathon.

The site of the race, the Outer Banks of North Carolina, holds a special significance for me because many of my ancestors were born there in the 1800's. My great-grandfather and namesake also built several cottages there in the early 1900's that are still standing. As I started the marathon along a country road lined with tall Carolina pines, I felt right at home.

The race itself was an incredible experience. I usually run alone, so starting a race with over one thousand fellow marathoners was a blast. There was a real sense of community - each runner encouraging the other in the pursuit of a common goal. Outer Banks residents lined the course to offer encouragement all along the way. One gentleman even offered cups of beer to passing runners.

After running several miles through a light drizzle, the clouds burst open at Mile 16 and I sloshed through a torrential downpour for a couple of miles. The rain was refreshing and I reveled in the challenge of pressing on through the driving storm. My previous longest run was twenty miles, so when I passed Mile 20 two thoughts hit me - "you're in uncharted territory now" and "you're going to make it!" I choked back tears and pushed ahead with renewed strength.

The most challenging part of the race was Mile 21 - the long bridge leading to Roanoke Island. The steep grade taxed every muscle in my legs and forced me to push through the pain. On the way up the bridge I pulled alongside an older runner who was maintaining a nice, steady pace. I decided to let him lead me across the bridge and we ran in perfect lockstep. Ironically, I spoke with him after the race and he remarked how I had helped him make it across the bridge.

Miles 22 and 23 were pretty tough. The nearness of the finish line inspired me to continue putting one foot in front of the other when every fiber of my body was screaming for rest. A couple of gulps of Gatorade and a packet of carbohydrate gel helped replenish my body for the final stretch. At Mile 24, something exploded inside and I felt a sudden burst of physical and emotional energy. I was so pumped that I broke into a full-bore sprint all the way to the finish line. This was my freedom run and with every stride I felt like I was being released into my destiny as a child of God.

The finish of the race was almost anticlimactic. There was a real sense of accomplishment, and my heart was filled with gratitude towards Father for enabling me to realize my dream of running a marathon.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy’s affection!

surely

2007-01-01T22:20:00.000-05:00

As I embark on a new year, I am reminded of David's declaration in Psalm 23:6 -

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life (KJV)

Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life (NASB)

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life (NIV)

What a wonderful reality to begin the new year with - Father's goodness and love will follow me ALL the days of 2007!

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

fiery furnace

2006-12-15T18:46:00.000-05:00

But these three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up.

Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astounded and stood up in haste; he said to his high officials, "Was it not three men we cast bound into the midst of the fire?" They replied to the king, "Certainly, O king."

He said, "Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!" (Daniel 3:23-25)

As I reflect on my times in the fiery furnace over the past two years, two words come to the forefront of my mind - freedom and revelation.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were bound when they fell into the furnace. After the fire had accomplished its purpose, they were free!

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego entered the furnace as three men alone together. Then Jesus showed up, "walking about in the midst of the fire" WITH them - Immanuel revealed!

Don't you just love the ways of the Lord? The fire that we think will utterly destroy us actually releases us into His glorious freedom and enables us to see Him more clearly. AND He doesn't just stand on the sidelines, guiding us from a distance. He gets into the midst of the fire WITH us. What did David say? "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are WITH me" (Psalm 23:4).

"When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you." (Isaiah 43:2)

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

short answer

2006-12-10T10:28:00.000-05:00

While completing a questionnaire last night, I was asked to describe my religion. Here's my answer -

"It's all about relationship, not religion; following a Person, not principles; living from the heart, not by rules and regulations; loving and accepting, not judging and criticizing. Church is a people, not a building or a meeting."

How would you describe your "religion" in 40 words or less?

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

the debate

2006-12-05T20:32:00.000-05:00

In its November 13, 2006 issue, TIME magazine featured a "God vs. Science" debate between Christian genome pioneer Francis Collins and Oxford atheist Richard Dawkins. Last week, TIME published several letters in response to the debate. Below are two letters that rang true:

"Scientists will not find God unless they think outside the box, as Collins has done. Faith and miracles, so central to Christian thought, are anathema to the scientific method, as Dawkins reaffirms. 'Why am I here?' and 'Is there a God?' are questions that cannot be answered by science. God comes to those who have the insight to think in another dimension and have the wisdom of a child."

John S. Mackiewicz, Professor Emeritus, Biological Sciences
State University of New York, Albany, New York

"Science and religion seemingly cannot coexist because religion is all about the past and science is all about the future. Scientists and theologians need to stop making the mistake of equating the concept of God with religious doctrines. Every scientific breakthrough reinforces my belief that God cannot be contained by the confines of religion or science."

June Dordal
Moorhead, Minnesota

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up close

2006-11-22T21:33:00.000-05:00

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!

obx marathon

2006-11-12T21:46:00.000-05:00

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!

divine nobodies

2006-11-04T15:19:00.000-05:00

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

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soul surfer

2006-10-31T07:22:00.000-05:00

Three years ago today, a thirteen year-old girl paddled into the pristine waters off Kauai, Hawaii for an early morning surf session. Minutes later, the unthinkable happened - a shark attack. The past three years have been an incredible story of triumph through tragedy for young Bethany Hamilton. Few stories have touched my heart quite like hers.

Here are some excerpts from Bethany's autobiography, Soul Surfer:

“My plans to be a professional surfer got hit pretty hard on that Halloween morning. It was my own personal tornado. In the days, weeks, and months that followed I had a lot of cleaning up to do. Often, it was scary or trying. And I won’t lie to you: in some ways it still is.

“But for me, knowing that God loves me and that He has a plan for my life that no shark can take away is like having solid rock underneath me. Look, lots of bad stuff happens to people. That’s life. And here’s my advice: don’t put all your hope and faith into something that could suddenly and easily disappear. And honestly, that’s almost anything. The only thing that will never go away, that will never fail you, is your faith in God.

“I don’t pretend to have all the answers to why bad things happen to good people. But I do know that God knows all those answers, and sometimes He lets you know in this life, and sometimes He asks you to wait so that you can have a face-to-face talk about it. What I do know is that I want to use what happened to me as an opportunity to tell people that God is worthy of our trust, and to show them that you can go on and do wonderful things in spite of terrible events that happen. I don’t think it does any good to sit around feeling sorry for yourself.

“What does God have in store for me? I really don’t know, but I do know one thing for sure: the adventure has only started."

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

akeelah

2006-10-29T08:27:00.000-05:00

"The Best Family Film Ever!"
"Absolutely Irresistible!"
"A Jewel!"
"Two Thumbs Way Up!"

That's what critics had to say about "Akeelah and the Bee" - a wonderful movie I watched on DVD this week with my fourteen year-old daughter. "Akeelah and the Bee" is the story of an eleven year-old girl living in South Central Los Angeles who dreams of winning the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Early in the movie, Akeelah reads a framed quote in the office of the UCLA professor who is coaching her for the spelling bee. Here's the quote -

Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our greatest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, talented, fabulous?”

Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.

Your playing small doesn’t serve the world.

There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people
won’t feel insecure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.

It’s not just in some of us, it’s in ALL of us.

As we let our light shine,
we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear,
our presence automatically liberates others.

- Marianne Williamson

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

wild ride

2006-10-28T22:59:00.000-04:00

As a sixth grade teacher, one of the first books I read aloud to my students is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. With each new reading comes a fresh insight into the heart of God. This year, Aslan’s post-resurrection romp through Narnia really stirred my heart. Here are some choice selections -

Aslan (to Susan and Lucy): “'We have a long journey to go. You must ride on me.' And he crouched down and the children climbed onto his warm, golden back.... And with a great heave he rose underneath them and then shot off, faster than any horse could go, down hill and into the thick of the forest.”

“That ride was perhaps the most wonderful thing that happened to them in Narnia. ...this is a mount that doesn’t need to be guided and never grows tired. He rushes on and on, never missing his footing, threading his way with perfect skill.... And you are riding not on a road nor in a park, nor even on the downs, but right across Narnia, in spring....”

What a great description of the wild, off-road, springtime ride I’ve been on these past two years. My journey has been unpredictable, unorthodox, and utterly liberating - a time of new beginnings like no other. As I wrap myself in the warm, golden folds of His loving heart, there is peace and exhilaration in abundance.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy’s affection!

love prophecy

2006-07-25T10:05:00.000-04:00

Twenty years ago when I was a young, unmarried twentysomething, a precious young lady gave me a single sheet of paper filled with words straight from the Father's heart. At the time, it was a challenge to receive the full impact of those words into my heart because my relationship with Father was very much based on performance - specifically, my ability to keep rules and follow principles. Even though I fancied myself quite spiritual (full of God's life), in reality I was quite religious (full of my own efforts).

Thanks to the Father's abundant mercy and grace, the words of this prophecy resonate far more powerfully today than they did twenty years ago. Although the prophecy was given directly to me, I believe it is a beautiful expression of the Father's heart for each and every one of us -

LOVE PROPHECY TO LINDSAY

My Delightful Son Lindsay,

I watched you last night while you slept - My heart was so overwhelmed with Love for you! I thought about you all night, excited to see you wake, and think of me. All day I have watched, and smiled, because you Lindsay, are such a joy to me! I have so much for you - I am constantly planning and bringing to pass things to bless your heart, and lift up your soul.

I want to remind you of my Love today - Love that you can accept and be confident in. Don't ever count yourself as not being worthy of my love - You are worthy, simply because you are my child. I proved my love, when I sent my son...Had I not loved you as deeply as I do, I could not have stood back and watched Him die - but when you Lindsay, understood and accepted what I had given, it was worth it all...and my heart was full of joy in knowing that my lost son had come home.

For I chose you, Lindsay! You can come to me with your daily hurts, frustrations, and joys - knowing that my hand of love will be upon you, doing what is best...I will be right beside you, when you feel as if your heart might break - when you're overwhelmed with yourself and the world - and I'll lead to the rock that is higher than you are - Which is me! I'm solid and strong, yet gentle and tender. In me you can find your strength.

I have made you new, Lindsay! I have ingrafted you in Jesus, and in Him you are new and fresh. Totally. Completely. I have drawn you to myself and invested in you the preciousness of my dear son...All that is His, is Yours - which is everything! So remember today Lindsay, that the old you has passed away. Do not carry the weight of it around. Be as a butterfly, just out of the cocoon - free and joyful in the new creature he's become.

Find your security in my Love Lindsay. Let your roots grow deeper each day. Press into the breadth, length, height and depth of it. For my love has no limits. I want you to experience it to the fullest. Be wholly filled and flooded with me! I have great plans for you, far beyond what you could ever imagine. I am at work within you each day, and am able to carry out my plans - All you need to do, is let me!

So today Lindsay, rest secure in my love. Seek me, for I have so very much for you, my dear son. And at the end of the day, fall asleep in my arms...Knowing that my eyes are on you, and I'm smiling!

Received February 6, 1986

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

daddy's love

2006-07-22T21:26:00.000-04:00

Excerpt from an email to a friend this week -

It seems that so much of this walk with Father is about moving from the concept of His love in our heads to the reality of His love in our hearts. Several years ago, I prayed, "Father, show me your heart. Let me feel what's in your heart." He continues to answer that prayer on a daily basis. Many times He uses the simplest things to communicate His love - the song of a bird, a smile, a butterfly, a cool breeze, kindness from a stranger, an email from a friend or just a simple impression in my mind that I am loved with a love that cannot be quenched.

In all of these things, Father shows me that He loves me simply for who I am - the person He's created me to be - not for what I can do for Him or others. He doesn't love like the world loves. He simply delights in who we are - nothing more, nothing less. Nothing we do can make Him love us more. And nothing we do can make Him love us less. We are loved simply because we are His!

His love is tender and gentle, passionate and relentless. His love frees us from the expectations of ourselves and others. His love frees us from all our fears, whether it be fear of the future, fear of failure, or fear of rejection. His love frees us to walk free, living true to the dreams and desires He's put in our hearts, regardless of what others might think or say. His love is unfailing, always there for us.

So...in the quietness of your heart, just say, "Daddy, show me this incredible love you have for me. I want to feel the intensity of your love for me. I want to live in the reality of your affectionate love." He is faithful, and He longs to answer that prayer far more than you could ever imagine.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

knowing him

2006-07-20T10:28:00.000-04:00

"When I get in a situation now that creates anxiety in my heart, here's what I know - there's something about Father I don't know, that if I knew it, I wouldn't be anxious here. That takes me right to my prayer life - 'Father, what is it about You I don't know, that if I knew it, I wouldn't be anxious here?'"

- Wayne Jacobsen, Transition: Moving From Religious Thinking to Relational Living, Disc 6: "How God Changes Us"

Click the link above to listen to or download the Transition series - highly recommended!

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

the guardian

2006-07-19T17:26:00.000-04:00

Last night, I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest with my fifteen year-old son. One of the coming attractions was The Guardian, a movie about a student and instructor at the Coast Guard "A" School (search and rescue training). Towards the end of the trailer, these words appeared on the screen:

“Your darkest hour can be your finest moment”

Those words really struck a chord in my heart as I thought about events in my life over the past twelve months. In the midst of some very dark hours, Father showed me a level of gentleness, comfort, and compassion that I had never experienced before. It's been a life-changing revelation - a further demonstration of the Father's loving heart.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

each day

2006-07-18T12:33:00.000-04:00

More gems from So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore by Jake Colsen:

"The greatest freedom God can give you is to trust his ability to take care of you each day."

"Our worst moments result from grabbing for ourselves that which Father has not given us."

Click the following link to read the book online, download it, or order a copy - So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

trust

2006-07-17T11:34:00.000-04:00

"Ultimately, trust is the fruit of a growing love relationship. You trust somebody to the degree that you know they love you...."

- Wayne Jacobsen, Transition: Moving From Religious Thinking to Relational Living, Disc 6: "How God Changes Us"

Click the link above to listen to or download the Transition series - highly recommended!

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

trust me

2006-07-15T19:49:00.000-04:00

"Trust Me" - this has been my Daddy's constant invitation over the past 12 months in the midst of a failed marriage, strained relationships, and dwindling finances. When anxious thoughts arise, Father gently reminds me of His unfailing love and unlimited resources, and then invites me to trust anew. Through it all, I've seen this dynamic at work: the Holy Spirit makes the Father's love REAL (I can actually feel it), and as I experience greater and greater depths of this very real and personal love, it becomes easier and easier to trust Him with every aspect of my life. His love truly changes everything!

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

mighty breakers

2006-07-14T22:20:00.000-04:00

More than the sounds of many waters,
Than the mighty breakers of the sea,
The LORD on high is mighty. (Psalm 93:4)

Few things in nature express the power and majesty of God quite like the big waves that break off the north shore of Maui. Riding Giants (2004), a documentary on the history of big wave surfing, beautifully captures these waves and the men who ride them. Laird Hamilton, one of the film's main characters and the greatest big wave surfer of his generation, offers this perspective on the 60-foot waves of Maui - "How can you look at something like that and not believe in something more powerful than us?" (Men's Journal, April 2006)

Good question, Laird.

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

surfing at Huntington Beach Pier

2006-07-14T22:17:00.000-04:00

relax

2006-07-11T10:15:00.000-04:00

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes."

- The words of Jesus in Matthew 6:30-34, The Message

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

indescribable

2006-07-08T13:58:00.000-04:00

"When we see Christ as All in All then it will be impossible for us to ever again be reduced to the small, the trivial, the petty things which occupy us and waste so much of our time. Our only hope is seeing a Christ that fills us, a Christ that is greater than us, a Christ that is larger than we can fathom, an indescribable Christ that overshadows, overwhelms, and consumes us through and through!"

- Chip Brogden

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

trusting

2006-07-06T09:03:00.000-04:00

Conversation between John and Jake, two main characters in So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore by Jake Colsen -

John: "Our biggest messes come when we try to do something for God that we're convinced he can't do for himself."

Jake: "Then what do I do, just sit around and wait for God?"

John: "Who said anything about sitting around? Learning to live by trusting Father is the most difficult part of this journey. So much of what we do is driven by our anxiety that God is not working on our behalf, that we have no idea of the actions that trust produces. Trusting doesn't make you a couch potato. As you follow him, Jake, you'll find yourself doing more than you've ever done, but it won't be the frantic activity of a desperate person, it will be the simple obedience of a loved child. That's all Father desires."

Click the following link to read the book online, download it, or order a copy - So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

coming home

2006-07-04T11:36:00.000-04:00

"In the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), there are two sons: the younger son, who runs away from home to an alien country, and the older son, who stays home to do his duty. The younger son dissipates himself with alcohol and sex; the older son alienates himself by working hard and dutifully fulfilling all his obligations. Both are lost. Their father grieves over both, because with neither of them does he experience the intimacy he desires.

"Both lust and cold obedience can prevent us from being true children of God. Whether we are like the younger son or the older son, we have to come home to the place where we can rest in the embrace of God's unconditional love."

- Henri Nouwen

Live free! Live in Daddy's affection!

relentless pursuit

2006-07-03T13:02:00.000-04:00

Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired
His understanding is inscrutable. (Isaiah 40:28)

For many years in my relationship with Father, the majority of my focus was on my pursuit of Him. One of the most influential books in my early days was The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer. I was driven by the desire to be closer to God. Much energy was expended in religious activity designed to realize my goal. I prided myself in the level of effort I was willing to put forth to apprehend Him, but over time I became weary and tired.

Recently, I have come to realize how relentlessly and tirelessly the Father pursues us. Wherever we might be on our journey, He is in full pursuit of our hearts - ever longing to reveal greater depths of His love, ever desiring to bring us into sweeter and sweeter intimacy with Him. I am so glad that the depth of my relationship with Father does not depend upon my efforts, but on His. Isaiah 26:12 rings loud and clear - "LORD, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us."

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

in christ alone

2006-06-11T08:41:00.000-04:00

This song beautifully conveys the fullness of who Jesus has been for me over the past twelve months -

In Christ Alone

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, my strength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heights of love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save
‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Bought with the precious blood of Christ

No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life’s first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny
No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
‘Til He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand

- Keith Getty and Stuart Townend

Live free! Live in Father's love!

extravagant love

2006-05-29T12:32:00.000-04:00

This is the heart of the Father - extravagant love. Love that is lavish, boundless, limitless. Love as a mighty, rushing river and a gently flowing stream. Love that energizes and exhilarates. Love that liberates and empowers. The Father delights to lavish His extravagant love on us!

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

revolution

2006-05-28T19:21:00.000-04:00

Last week in Los Angeles, I came across an interesting marquee on Hollywood Boulevard, just across from the famed Grauman's Chinese Theater. As I read the message, I couldn't help but think of the revolution the Holy Spirit is bringing on the earth - a revolution birthed in the Father's heart - a revolution of love. What are the foundational precepts of this revolution?

1. Our love for God and others originates in the Father's loving heart for us! (1 John 4:19)

2. As we embrace the Father's loving heart for us, we are empowered to love as He loves! (Luke 10:27)

3. As we love with the Father's love, our world WILL be changed! (1 Corinthians 13:8)

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

2006-05-28T19:05:00.000-04:00

freedom

2006-05-21T14:26:00.000-04:00

"Jesus was truly free. His freedom was rooted in his spiritual awareness that he was the Beloved Child of God. He knew in the depth of his being that he belonged to God before he was born, that he was sent into the world to proclaim God's love, and that he would return to God after his mission was fulfilled. This knowledge gave him the freedom to speak and act without having to please the world and the power to respond to people's pains with the healing love of God."

- Henri Nouwen

Live free! Live in Father's love!

father's blessing

2006-05-18T21:35:00.000-04:00

This "blessing" was prayed over Henri Nouwen by his spiritual mentor:

"May all your expectations be frustrated,
May all your plans be thwarted,
May all your desires be withered into nothingness,
That you may experience the powerlessness and the poverty of a child, and sing and dance in the love of God the Father, the Son and the Spirit."

What an apt description of the blessing I have received from the Father over the past 12 months. What a stark constrast to the blessings we often seek from the Father. Thanks to Wayne Jacobsen for sharing this on The God Journey podcast - my favorite!

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

father's gift

2006-05-15T20:38:00.000-04:00

"Uncommon love is the Father's gift to us in Christ. We are to be loved in a way that is healing, releasing and uplifting. In His love we see ourselves as the Father sees us. He sees the best in us. He loves our potential. He has a plan for our freedom and our welfare that is wrapped in His goodness and kindness. He has dealt with our past and He owns our future. Today while it is still called today let us live in the present moment, filled and surrounded by uncommon love."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

living relationally

2006-05-13T17:34:00.000-04:00

"I love the term ‘relational’ when it speaks of how we live this walk. To me, it means to live out of relationships—the first one with the community of Father, Son and Spirit, and then to share that experience of community with people in our lives.

"I notice the term, however, is now being used by people to describe house church, small groups, or even large congregations that set to be more focused on relationships. People even write me telling me they want to be more relational so they are going to start a small group in their home.

"Living relationally is not about whether or not you go to a specific group. Living relationally means you recognize that God is a God of relationships and works through our relationship with him and our relationships with others. Those who are relational make room in their lives for relationships. They get to know their colleagues at work, their neighbors down the street and find time to encourage other believers, whether they are or are not on a similar journey. And when they find brothers and sisters who share their passion and hunger for the kingdom they take time to let those relationships grow, whether it is through face-to-face contact if that is possible, or even on discussion boards and email if it isn’t.

"Being relational is an active lifestyle, looking to engage relationships, even at the most rudimentary level to anyone that crosses their path. It may only be a greeting in passing at an airport, or a conversation in the grocery store line, but it says that people are important to Father and to me and I’m going to make room in my lives for others, and watch what God does with the relationships he gives me…

"Don’t go this alone, or wait quietly in your home for fellowship to break out. Just live each day open-handed and gracious to everyone you can, without any agenda, and watch what God will do through you to bless others, and through others to encourage you."

- Wayne Jacobsen, Living the Relational Journey

Live free! Live in Father's love!

endless love

2006-05-06T21:12:00.000-04:00

“'Love one another as I have loved you.' Not just a command but a glorious possibility. It tells us the extent of our freedom. Such love makes God glorious. He shines with love. He radiates with the splendor of His love and when we are touched by the magnificence of such love our selfishness is burned away. It is wonderful to be loved in return but our hearts are no longer defined by what we receive. Love is who God is and who we are becoming in Him.

"Think of it. A life full of possibilities in the endless love of the Father. His love is enthralling. It captures us, ravishes our heart and then joyfully commands us to do the same. We have permission to love outrageously.

"In God, all things are possible."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

boundless love

2006-04-14T13:47:00.000-04:00

"In our failures the depth of God's love compels us to see ourselves as the Beloved. Our hearts are broken by kindness, and we weep our way into romance. We love as the bride; powerfully, beautifully, unconditionally. We give ourselves to intimate love without fear because the love of the Bridegroom is stronger than death. We become charged by His love; energized towards a loving disposition to others. Love knows no bounds. We are fully loved and therefore loving."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

steadfast love

2006-04-12T22:09:00.000-04:00

"His grace is the empowering presence within that enables us to feel good about ourselves. We are learning to live as much loved children before the Father. Grace sets us up to succeed at loving God with all our hearts.

"Grace empowers us to receive love and return it to the father heart of God.

"His mercy is His total favor given gladly to the undeserving heart. Jesus stands with us in our struggles. He never leaves us nor forsakes us. He knows our frame. He remembers that we are dust. He is not ashamed to call us His brethren. He is not embarrassed by our failures. His mercy makes us clean because His blood washes over us continuously. Jesus stands in the credibility gap between our capacity for sin and our hunger for God. He weans us off the former and establishes the latter as He daily occupies Himself with our growth and development.

"He is the kindest person I have ever known. His goodness is so outrageous and shocking… it is actually disreputable to the religious minded. Only Pharisees would distance themselves from human failure. When we need Him the most, Jesus steps in close. Loving kindness is a hard thing to learn. All our conditioning leans us towards rewards and punishment which often means we withhold love when it is most needed. Uncommon love never ceases, it is steadfast. It endures to the end of all our circumstances no matter how recalcitrant we can be. Love never fails.

"Because uncommon love is continuously present and fully available, we may become saved to the uttermost. Uncommon love is the Father intentionally doing His utmost to empower us to be loved and to respond to love by loving."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

scandalous love

2006-04-10T17:14:00.000-04:00

"Jesus has an immense, immeasurable and eternal compassion. His compassion is always greater than my sin. He is scandalously forgiving. His mercy burns as He destroys shame. There is not an ounce of condemnation within Him. He loves the fact that He has bought our freedom, paid the price for our sin nature to be redeemed.

"He has unbounded patience. He is full of unending goodness. The glory of God is His goodness. He will cause His goodness to pass before us all the days of our life. The good News is that He is eternally good. His goodness stretches beyond infinity. What He is; He is forever.

"His love is so compelling… it heals us. It strips away all of our pretense and restores us to happiness. Only God can love God effectively. The First Commandment came from God not as a command only, but as a revelation of His own intention toward us. He will love us with all His mind, heart, soul and strength. God does not measure His love to us; He does not mete it out according to our performance. His love is not a reward. It is not based on a loyalty program like frequent flyer miles.

"God’s love is scandalous and disreputable to Pharisees.

"It is poured out in the context of grace, mercy and loving kindness. It is lavished upon us gladly. A price has been paid and now we are free to be fully loved by the One who knows that love covers a multitude of sins."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

uncommon love

2006-04-09T18:51:00.000-04:00

"Life is funny, often sweet, and occasionally deadly. It comes at us real fast or painfully slowly. It rains, it snows, it’s cold, it’s warm, it’s too hot, it’s nice and cool; it’s wonderful.

"It’s lovely because of who we have with us on the journey. I AM is with us. Smiling, laughing, embracing, nodding, shaking His head at us in merriment. He is comforting, patient, faithful when we don’t get it; optimistic, full of possibilities.

"He is strong, fierce and immoveable, implacable against the enemy. He is stern, holy and unapproachable in His purity. Only His mercy enables us to stand before Him on the ground of grace. He is sovereign, supreme and unknowable except by the Holy Spirit. He is imminent and transcendent. You don’t mess with the Father. You obey. You surrender. You don’t take liberties. You live in the paradox of delight and reverent fear.

"You come before Him with open faced joy as a child to a beloved Father, and you also stand before Him trembling as a fully mature son. Grateful for Jesus. Always grateful for Jesus. That you can stand in Him; be included in Him; live your life in Him. Because of Christ, the Father comes to us and breathes life into our seeking heart.

"Always truthful, He imparts a grace that is frankly astonishing. His mercy has no place for judgment. Jesus has been punished (thank God!) so I can find clemency. The sheer beauty of God is marvelous to behold. This is the Christ that I have personally encountered these past few years of my journey into Uncommon Love."

- Graham Cooke, "Uncommon Love"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

his glory

2006-04-03T20:39:00.000-04:00

Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" (John 11:40)

"Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (Isaiah 40:5)

Do you believe?

Live free! Live in Father's love!

surrounded

2006-03-25T21:13:00.000-05:00

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. "Oh, my lord, what shall we do?" the servant asked.

"Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."

And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:15-17)

Over the past weeks, I’ve experienced some of the same emotions as Elisha’s servant must have felt in being surrounded by the enemy. Each time I've begun to feel overwhelmed, the Holy Spirit has faithfully reminded me to lift my eyes heavenward for a fresh glimpse of the Father's wondrous glory. In the light of His glory, all of my fears are dispelled.

Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident. (Psalm 27:3)

Live free! Live in Father's love!

gentle power

2006-03-20T22:25:00.000-05:00

See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
and his arm rules for him.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.

He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young. (Isaiah 40:10,11)

I love these two verses in Isaiah 40 because they so beautifully illustrate how two seemingly incompatible characteristics, gentleness and power, are perfectly united in the Father's loving heart. Over the past months, the Father has gently gathered me in His arms and carried me close to His heart while manifesting His power in the midst of some very painful circumstances. In my weakness, His power has truly been perfected. As David said, "Your right hand upholds me, and Your gentleness makes me great." (Psalm 18:35)

Live free! Live in Father's love!

passion hunger desire

2006-03-07T20:47:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email I sent to a friend this week -

At the beginning of last week, three words started resonating in my spirit - "Passion, hunger, desire!" As I sought the Lord, I sensed that these words represented His heart longings over His bride. I also sensed that just as we love because He first loved us, we have passion, hunger, and desire for Him because He first has these longings for us. When we see and receive these heart longings from Him, we will in turn have them towards Him.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

tender kiss

2006-02-28T23:45:00.000-05:00

Jesus, your tender kiss
- has ravished me
- has captured my heart
- has changed everything

Fantasy and reality have become One!

ravish: to fill with delight
capture: to attract and hold
change: to make different

"May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!" (Song of Solomon 1:2)

Live free! Live in Father's love!

exhilarated

2006-02-27T21:06:00.000-05:00

"Exhilarated: feeling God’s affection brings pleasure and exhilaration to our hearts. The inheritance of every believer in Christ, includes being exhilarated by feeling God’s affection and pleasure for us and in feeling it back for Him. We were created to delight in the feeling of being loved by God. Our spirit craves this. God desires to release this to us. We are too often content with a Christianity that is devoid of feeling, or a Christianity that is mostly an intellectual exercise and not a heart experience. He wants our hearts ravished because His heart is ravished. He feels such intense feelings towards us and desires that we have intense feelings for Him. We do not base our experience on feeling, but they do enhance our experience of Jesus. God is glorified in us when we are exhilarated with Him (His emotions, wisdom and power)."

- Mike Bickle, "Beholding God's Beauty - Encountering God's Personality"

Live free! Live in Father's love!

immeasurable

2006-02-13T23:22:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email I sent to a friend today -

This thought keeps coming to me - "I don't even begin to grasp the full grandeur of who He is." I have a very dim glimpse. When He pulls back the veil of our human frailty and gives us the smallest little peek into who He is, we'll be blown away. He's just so enormous and expansive in who He is that He completely swallows up everything. We can't even begin to imagine because we have no reference point with which to adequately compare Him or measure Him.

And yet, this infinite, immeasurable God is my Father - the one who loves me intimately and delights in every part of me. I, Lindsay, am His constant joy and delight, and He is mine! This is simply too good to be true - it's the fantasy of all fantasies, the epic of all epics. Such knowledge is truly too great for me! And yet He continually confirms the reality of it all by the sweetness of His presence within.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

his hands

2006-02-04T20:45:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email I sent to a friend today -

Your words really cause me to pause, reflect and look at my heart. The first thought that popped into my head was "Wow, this doesn't even feel like 'discipline' anymore!" As I think about that thought, I have to believe that the Holy Spirit has dropped "a gift of faith" into my heart that gives me the grace to see all of this from the Father's perspective. There are two overriding convictions that have continued to light my way over the past several weeks - 1. the Father is going to be glorified in a truly awesome way, 2. the path I am on is the result of the Father's intense love and delight in me.

I can't even begin to describe the joy and exhilaration I'm experiencing. Sometimes I almost begin to feel guilty about how good I feel inside, and then the Father gently encourages me not to underestimate the power of His love and comfort. Yes, there is still sadness when I think about the reality of a failed marriage and its potential impact on my children, but then the Father comes in and gently asks me to continue to trust Him and release it all into His loving hands.

Whatever "theology" I had before this all happened has been completely blown away by the events of the past seven months. It's almost as if I never really "knew" the Father as He truly is. Of course our knowledge of Him is unfolding and progressive, but I believe there are watershed events in our lives that take our understanding of Him to a completely different level. I don't know that there's anything we can "do" to make it happen. It's all about His timing and purpose.

I ultimately see the events of the past seven months (and my whole life, as well) as the result of His indescribable, unfailing love for me. I am not a victim of anyone or anything. The Father has a very specific and unique destiny for me, and each moment He is gently guiding me into its fulfillment. Nothing comes into my life that He doesn't work out in accordance with the dream and destiny He has for me. To "fight back" against anyone or anything would be to hinder His purpose.

"Staying under the knife" sounds kind of scary, but painful though it may be, the knife is ultimately an instrument of love in the hands of an incredibly skilled and gentle Physician. Pain has become my friend in the sense that it serves to open up my heart to receive a greater revelation of the Father's love, comfort, tenderness, and mercy.

As I look to the future, I am filled with tremendous hope and excitement. In some ways, I feel like I am just beginning to live. This moment-by-moment heart knowledge of the Father's love and delight in me simply changes everything. Life for me has become an incredible journey into the unfathomable depths of the Father's heart, filled with adventure at every turn! Knowing that He holds me gently in His hands releases me to run into His purpose with unbridled joy and wild abandon.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

my confession

2006-01-19T16:36:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email I sent to a good friend today -

Your statement - "Life will be harder in the coming days" - was a good "heart check" for me. In the past, a statement like that would definitely have given rise to fear, apprehension, and speculation, but due in large part to what I've experienced over the past 6+ months, that statement is now cause for excitement, anticipation, and expectation over the wonderfully creative ways in which the Father will continue to reveal His infinite love to me. By the grace of my Daddy, the deepest, most devastating pain in my life has resulted in the deepest and most wonderful revelation of who He is and the depth of His feeling for me as His special child.

As a result of what I have been through thus far, I feel like I have a completely different relationship with my Daddy. I feel like I see His heart and feelings for me as never before. I have never experienced the degree of "inner freedom" that I am now experiencing thanks to the work of His Holy Spirit in me. The crushing, the breaking, the burning have all been by His hand - motivated by His deep love for me - so that I may truly know Him and His love for me in a fuller, richer, deeper way.

I know that great tests lie before me, but I am also more convinced than ever before that I am so securely in my Father's hands and that no one or no thing can snatch me away or separate me from His wondrous love. Strip everything in my life away, and I still have Him. And having Him, I am the richest, wealthiest man alive. Every other consideration pales in comparison to Him.

A year ago, a brother at Lancaster House of Prayer prophesied that I would be going through the refiner's fire in preparation for God's future purpose in my life. That word rang true then and it has certainly played out in my life over the past 12 months. I know there is more refining ahead, but having gone through the past 12 months and having seen and felt the Father's incredible gentleness, tenderness, mercy, compassion, and nearness, I have a different perspective.

Come what may, I know that I am in the Father and He is in me. Knowing the depth of His love for me and delight in me, I am not afraid of what the future holds, because I know who holds me. The coming fires, trials, challenges, and difficulties will only serve to bring me closer and nearer to the One whom I love the most and want the most - my loving Daddy.

So...in many ways, "harder is better" because it only serves to deepen the most wondrous love relationship I have ever experienced in my life. When I am weak, He truly is strong - STRONG in love, strong in compassion, strong in tenderness, strong in gentleness, strong in mercy, strong in passion, strong in comfort, strong in nearness. Wow! "I can only imagine...."

Live free! Live in Father's love!

heartsoft

2005-08-16T10:09:00.000-04:00

Here's a poem I wrote earlier this month that voices the continual cry of my heart over the past several weeks -

heartsoft

Keep my heart soft
Tender and warm

To live and feel
With a heart that's alive

To love and cherish
With a heart that's true

To hope and dream
With a heart that's full

Don't let the arrows
Harden and chill

Keep my heart soft
Tender and warm

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

healing pain

2005-08-09T09:19:00.000-04:00

Here's a poem I wrote last week that describes my spiritual journey over the past 40 days -

healing pain

The arrows pierced
To the core of my being

The pain struck
A distant part of my heart

The pain revealed
A darkened corner of my soul

The pain awakened
A desire long abandoned

The pain offered
A chance to feel again

The pain opened
A pathway to healing

The pain invited me
To love again

- Lindsay

Live free! Live in Father's love!

intuition

2005-03-15T18:06:00.000-05:00

"The older one becomes in the Lord the more intuitive one becomes. Everything is not cut and dry. With a clear word from God or supernatural sensation we advance with boldness, but when it is a still small voice or conscience or an impression or no guidance whatsoever, we will be less impulsive and more deliberate with each step. We will wait upon the Lord longer. We will be less confident in ourselves, and more dependent on the Lord. This dependency breeds humility. We eventually learn that we cannot reduce God to a formula, and we can never be certain where or how He may be speaking to us in a particular situation. We learn to look for faint traces of Spirit in common, ordinary vessels and in our daily lives, instead of the mighty rushing wind at the believer's meetings."

- Chip Brogden, Can You Hear What The Spirit Is Saying?

Live free! Live in Father's love!

entrusting

2005-03-12T13:08:00.000-05:00

Over the past several weeks, my world has been rocked and my faith has been challenged in ways that I never could have imagined even three months ago. Issues related to family and faith have brought me to the end of myself and caused me to cry out to the Father for deliverance.

At times the inward pain has almost been unbearable, but in my darkest moments the Father's mercy and grace have shone brightly. One of His redemptive purposes in allowing me to go through the fire has been to reveal anew that His mercies are new every morning and that His grace is sufficient for me. Without His mercy and grace to sustain me, I'd be wasting away in hopelessness and despair.

I've been reminded of David's words in Psalm 51:17 - "A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." As I've seen how my hardness of heart has affected my wife and children, I've been broken. In the midst of my brokenness, two portions of Scripture have been a tremendous source of peace and encouragement:

"while suffering, He (Jesus) uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously" (1 Peter 2:23)

"let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right" (1 Peter 4:19)

Even now, the Father continues to say, "Entrust yourself, your wife, and your children to Me. Release yourself and your family into My lovingkindness and faithfulness."

Live free! Live in Father's love!

living loved

2005-03-09T22:53:00.000-05:00

The freedom to live loved comes from a heart-felt appreciation of these realities:

* You have a Father who loves you more than any other human being on this planet ever has or ever will.

* Nothing you can do today will make God love you any more, and nothing you can do today will make God love you any less.

* God is not disillusioned with you because he had no illusions about you to begin with.

* Because shame, guilt and condemnation have no role in helping you live in God’s life, he has removed them in Christ and does not manage them for your growth.

* He wants to make himself known to you daily and teach you how to recognize and follow his voice.

- Wayne Jacobsen, Living Loved.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

the doorway

2005-03-05T15:52:00.000-05:00

"The doorway into the Father's love begins at the cross. Seeing what Father and Son accomplished together in that climactic moment defines love in a way that you can only experience in him. This is the love that will allow you to feel perfectly safe in the Father's presence. It frees you to be exactly who you are, weaknesses and all, and never again have to pretend before him.

"Then you will discover that life in God rises out of your security in his love, not your insecurity that you don't love him enough."

- Wayne Jacobsen, He Loves Me!, p 89.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

2005-03-05T15:46:00.000-05:00

March snowfall in Lancaster County, PA

kiss me

2005-02-24T23:41:00.000-05:00

Lord Jesus, I need your tender kiss.

"May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is better than wine.

"Your oils have a pleasing fragrance,
Your name is like purified oil;
Therefore the maidens love you.

"Draw me after you and let us run together!
The king has brought me into his chambers."

- The Song of Solomon 1:2-4

Live free! Live in Father's love!

father bursting

2005-01-24T21:25:00.000-05:00

"This is the best of good news: God loves us for ourselves. He values our love more than He values galaxies of new created worlds. He remembers our frame and knows that we are dust.

"The God we love may sometimes chasten us, it is true. But even this He does with a smile - the proud, tender smile of a Father who is bursting with pleasure over an imperfect but promising son who is coming every day to look more and more like the One whose child he is.

"We should revel in the joy of believing that God is the sum of all patience and the true essence of kindly good will. We please Him most, not by frantically trying to make ourselves good, but by throwing ourselves into His arms with all our imperfections and believing that He understands everything - and loves us still."

- A.W. Tozer, Whatever Happened to Worship?, p 29.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

2005-01-24T21:03:00.000-05:00

January snowfall in Lancaster County, PA

breathless adoration

2005-01-22T13:54:00.000-05:00

"There is the point of reality where we begin our fellowship and friendship and communion with God. But where we stop no man has yet discovered, for there is in the mysterious depths of the Triune God neither limit nor end.

"When we come into this sweet relationship, we are beginning to learn astonished reverence, breathless adoration, awesome fascination, lofty admiration of the attributes of God and something of the breathless silence that we know when God is near.

"You may never have realized it before, but all of those elements in our perception and consciousness of the divine Presence add up to what the Bible calls 'the fear of God.'

"What we need to plainly recognize is that the fear of God the Bible commends can never be induced by threats or punishment of any kind."

- A.W. Tozer, Whatever Happened to Worship?, p 30.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

islam

2005-01-19T18:51:00.000-05:00

"Since the horrendous events of September 11, 2001, anti-Muslim attitudes have increased among most Americans. Within the Christian community, prominent spokespersons have used inflammatory remarks to feed negativism toward Islam. One television evangelist has called Islam an 'evil religion.' Another of America's best-known evangelists has gone on record declaring Islam to be wicked.

"Christian missionaries serving in Islamic countries find themselves increasingly threatened by Muslims who react to such accusations by viewing these missionaries as people who despise them. It is no surprise that in some places, Muslim extremists have physically attacked and even killed missionaries.

"On simply pragmatic grounds, we have to ask what good we accomplish with such inflammatory rhetoric. And we have to ask if those outspoken Christian leaders who claim to be committed to winning Muslims to Christ have given any consideration to the possibility that their accusations might make Muslims even more resistant to the Christian gospel.

"At just about every missionary conference I attend, the speakers talk about the need to evangelize those who live within 'the 10/40 window.' This is a reference to that part of the world between 10 degrees and 40 degrees north of the equator, which covers North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

"What evangelicals have to recognize is that the majority of the people who live within that 10/40 window are Muslims. And if we really want to evangelize them, we had better find ways to show love to them rather than wage war against them. To that end, we must critique our rhetoric about Muslims, study who they are and what they believe, and seek out common ground for a creative dialogue in which we can tell them about Jesus and His salvation."

- Tony Campolo, Speaking My Mind, pp 138-141.

...God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all.... (1 Timothy 2:3-6)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood.... (Ephesians 6:12)

Live free! Live in Father's love!

muslim

2005-01-17T12:13:00.000-05:00

What a beautiful testimony of the Father's heart for a young Muslim -

"Suddenly a breakthrough of hope flooded me. Suppose, just suppose God were like a father. If my earthly father would put aside everything to listen to me, wouldn't my heavenly Father? ...Shaking with excitement, I got out of bed, sank to my knees on the rug, looked up to heaven and in a rich new understanding called God 'My Father.' I was not prepared for what happened.

"Suddenly the room wasn't empty any more. He was there! I could sense His presence. I could feel His hand laid gently on my head. It was as if I could see His eyes, filled with love and compassion. He was so close that I found myself laying my head on His knees like a little girl sitting at her father's feet. For a long time I knelt there sobbing quietly, floating in His love. I found myself talking with Him, apologizing for not having known Him before. And again came His loving compassion like a warm blanket settling around me.... I reached over to the bedside table where I kept the Bible and the Koran side by side. I picked up both books and lifted them, one in each hand. 'Which, Father?' I said. 'Which is your book?'

"Then a remarkable thing happened. Nothing like it had ever occurred in my life in quite this way. For I heard a voice inside my being, a voice that spoke to me as clearly as if I were repeating words in my inner mind. They were fresh, full of kindness, yet at the same time full of authority. It asked, 'In which book do you meet Me as your Father?'"

- Bilquis Sheikh, I Dared to Call Him Father: The Miraculous Story of a Muslim Woman's Encounter With God.

In light of the Father's heart, what should our heart be towards those who call themselves "Muslim"?

Live free! Live in Father's love!

father's pleasure

2005-01-16T11:24:00.000-05:00

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him.

He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

He is also head of the body, the church;

and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.

For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross;

- Colossians 1:15-20

It was the Father's good pleasure to reconcile you to Himself through His beloved Son, Jesus! How much more does the Father take pleasure in the fruit of that reconciliation - an intimate, ongoing relationship with you!

"We please Him most, not by frantically trying to make ourselves good, but by throwing ourselves into His arms with all our imperfections, and believing that He understands everything and loves us still."

- A.W. Tozer, The Root of the Righteous, p 16.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

2005-01-14T20:22:00.000-05:00

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children.

- Romans 8:15,16, The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

his mercy

2005-01-12T20:56:00.000-05:00

"Run into My mercy!"

These are the words the Father spoke through a dear brother last night. When we've failed, when we've fallen, when there seems to be no hope - "Run into My mercy!"

But the Father, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were lost in our transgressions, (Ephesians 2:4-5a)

Even at our worst, love and mercy flow freely from the Father's heart.

Live free! Live in Father's love and mercy!

no fear

2005-01-08T19:44:00.000-05:00

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

- 1 John 4:18

Live free! Live in Father's love!

no rules

2005-01-06T23:17:00.000-05:00

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

- Galatians 2:21, The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language.

Live free! Live in Father's love!

father's heart

2005-01-04T22:30:00.000-05:00

"And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.'" - Luke 15:31

"We have here two things describing the privilege: First, 'Son, thou art ever with me' - unbroken fellowship with thy Father is thy portion; Second, 'All that I have is thine' - all that God can bestow upon His children is theirs."

"'Thou are ever with me;' I am always near thee; thou canst dwell every hour of thy life in My presence, and all I have is for thee. I am a father, with a loving father’s heart. I will withhold no good thing from thee. In these promises, we have the rich privilege of God’s heritage."

- Andrew Murray, The Deeper Christian Life, Chapter II.

i believe

2005-01-02T12:27:00.000-05:00

Here's a "less is more" challenge for the new year:

State your "theology" in ten words or less. Here's mine -

1. Father is great!

2. Father is good!

3. Father loves me!

the gift

2004-12-25T11:23:00.000-05:00

"So deep and passionate was the Father's love for ALL of humanity, that He freely gave His only Son, that whoever trusts in Him will never perish, but live in the Father's presence forever."

- Jesus, John 3:16, paraphrased.

living

2004-12-22T23:04:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from Wayne Jacobsen's Blog at Lifestream.org:

"We have to remind ourselves and each other that Christianity is a life lived in Father’s reality. It is not at its root a theological system, though it does have a coherent theology. It is not primarily an ethical system, though it will teach us to live in God’s righteousness. It is not observing rituals or ethical mandates. We live the life of Christ as we learn to abide in him, like a branch in a vine. He yearns to teach you how to do that. All you have to do is ask him, lean into him every day and watch his glory sort out in the real experiences of your life."

"Live each day to the fullest. There will never be a day when God will love you more. There will never be a day when more grace is available to you. Too many people waste time pining away for a future that never comes or envisioning a future revival instead of living deeply in God each day they are alive. Religion has to keep you hoping for a better day, but knowing God lets you live every day in the adventure of following him."

- Taken from "A Life Lived, Not A Theology Observed" (June 10, 2004) and "Sharing the Journey With An Elder Brother" (July 5, 2004).

freedom

2004-12-21T22:01:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email to a friend discussing the Father's work in my life:

As far as what the Lord is teaching me, I think it can be summed up in two words: Father and Freedom.

Father: I have been brought back continually by the Holy Spirit to the simplicity of a day by day, moment by moment, living relationship with My Father. He is to be my continual Life and all in all. He is the only One I need to please. I need only walk with Him, hand in hand, spirit to Spirit. He will make known to me the path of life and in His Presence there are surely pleasures forevermore (Ps. 16:11).

Freedom: My relationship with Father releases me to walk in complete freedom, knowing that I need only walk with Him in love and simplicity. Walking with Him, I am free from the expectations of others (whether it be individuals, groups, or movements). I need only speak what I hear Him speaking. I need only do what I see Him doing. I am free from the compulsion to "be something great" or "do something great" for God. I am free to follow Him wherever He leads. Of course, this freedom will be challenged and tested, but this freedom is in Him and He is in me, so ultimately no one can touch it. It's not that I am even looking for freedom or desiring freedom, it's that when I walk in simplicity with Father, I have it in Him.

elder son

2004-12-20T20:09:00.000-05:00

"And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.'" - Luke 15:31

"The words of the text are familiar to us all. The elder son had complained and said, that though his father had made a feast, and had killed the fatted calf for the prodigal son, he had never given him even a kid that he might make merry with his friends. The answer of the father was: 'Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine.' One cannot have a more wonderful revelation of the heart of our Father in heaven than this points out to us. We often speak of the wonderful revelation of the father’s heart in his welcome to the prodigal son, and in what he did for him. But here we have a revelation of the father’s love far more wonderful, in what he says to the elder son."

- Andrew Murray, The Deeper Christian Life, Chapter II.

2004-12-18T23:42:00.000-05:00

December sunset in Lancaster County, PA

fellowship

2004-12-17T17:29:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email to a friend discussing the Father's leading in regards to fellowship:

I have seen over the past several months that as I walk with Father, He connects me with those of like heart and mind, completely apart from any planning or effort on my part. It just happens. Even though I see "house church" as a nice form/method for "doing church," I see that WE are truly "the church" and that as we are vitally connected to the Head, we will be connected by Him with those of like heart and mind. I see myself as part of one huge family - the Body of Christ - that cannot and will not be contained and restrained by the man-made barriers of groups, movements, and denominations.

In regards to our fellowship, the Lord is teaching me to completely release and lay down all expectations I have of others, my relationships with others, and even "house church" or "fellowship." I am to release others to follow the Lord as their heart leads. I am to embrace, accept, and love them as my brothers and sisters. Whereas six months ago, I would have been crushed if our "house church" had disbanded or ceased to meet, now I have a peace that the Lord will build His church whatever the outward circumstances. I don't doubt that I was looking to "house church" or our "fellowship" to meet needs in me that the Lord is jealous to meet. Now I know that whatever happens with our house church/fellowship, the Lord will connect me with dear brothers and sisters or send me out into a desert/wilderness with Him - it's ALL good when it's Him and when He's our Life and Source - when He has preeminence in all things.

I'm also seeing that it's NOT about house church, liquid church, emerging church, simple church, organic church, relational church, 24/7 prayer, worship, intercession, warfare, the Bible, prophecy, healing, deliverance, revival, etc. It's about Him and Him alone. He alone is enough!

bible study

2004-12-16T21:36:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email to a friend discussing the Father's leading in regards to studying "difficult" passages in the Bible:

In light of the Lord's current leading in my life, I don't feel an obligation to "reckon with" every one of the words that are written in the Bible in hopes of resolving every "difficulty" or "seeming contradiction." I don't feel obliged to compare specific verses of Scripture related to Calvinism and Arminianism in hopes of reconciling them. The Lord may be requiring that of you at this point in your journey, but I can honestly say with a clear conscience, that He is not requiring it of me.

Likewise, at this point in my journey, the Lord is not requiring me to wrestle with or explain difficult passages. I don't feel the need or the calling from God to square particular verses of Scripture with my "theology."

I am content to simply walk hand in hand with My Father, trusting that He will reveal all good things to me in His time. One of the verses of Scripture that rings loud and true to me right now is Psalm 36:9 - "For with Thee is the fountain of life; in Thy light we see light." Amen! Simply being with Him, resting in His Presense, captivated by His wondrous beauty - that is LIFE to me right now. In the Light of His Presense, He will reveal to me ALL that I need to know and understand about Him.

My passion is to know Him and love Him more deeply, and the Scriptures are definitely a means of grace for me in accomplishing this goal as they reveal the beauty of His nature and character.

his voice

2004-12-15T23:58:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from an email to a friend discussing the ways in which the Father speaks to us and the reality of His voice in our lives:

I believe your most pressing question relates to my view on the final authority in our lives as believers, especially in matters related to doctrine and practice. Who or what is MY final authority? The Lord Himself and the Word He speaks - whether it be through the Scriptures, an angel (Acts 10:3), prayer (Acts 10:9), a trance/dream (Acts 10:10), a voice (Acts 10:13), a vision (Acts 10:17), the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:19), divine direction (Acts 10:22), a revelation (Acts 10:28), a command (Acts 10:33), or a message spoken by a fellow believer (Acts 10:34).

Ironically, in the 10th chapter of Acts, the Lord uses all of the aforementioned means EXCEPT the Scriptures to communicate His authoritative Word to man. Each of the Lord's different means of revealing His Word is seemingly given equal weight and authority. At no point, does anyone make the suggestion to check with the Scriptures to see if what is being communicated (through angel, trance, voice, vision, Spirit speaking, etc.) "lines up with" the Scriptures. I believe the primary reason why they didn't appeal to the Scriptures to validate what was being communicated was because the Holy Spirit within them confirmed that what was being communicated was indeed the Word of the Lord.

Can we err in interpreting what we believe the Lord is speaking to us in our inner man? Absolutely! Can we err in interpreting what we believe the Lord is speaking to us through our open-minded study of the Bible? Absolutely! What's a believer to do? I believe that the New Testament teaches that the Father sent a Teacher to live within us - the precious Holy Spirit. Will the Holy Spirit ever contradict the Word of God? Absolutely not. Will the Holy Spirit ever contradict what WE believe the Bible "clearly" teaches? Absolutely, but thankfully, as we grow in grace and the true knowledge of Him, this tends to happen less frequently.

My confidence is fully in the Lord's ability to speak and make His Voice known to me. I can't begin to express the joy I feel in knowing that He is a Living Person, and that He lives in me - speaking to me moment by moment, guiding and directing me by His Voice within - the blessed Holy Spirit. A Living God - A Living Voice - A Living Relationship! Glory!

a child

2004-12-14T23:11:00.000-05:00

"I was visiting once in a wealthy home, where there was a little adopted child, upon whom was lavished all the love and tenderness and care that human hearts could bestow, or human means procure. And as I watched that child running in and out day by day, free and light-hearted, with the happy carelessness of childhood, I thought what a picture it was of our wonderful position as children in the house of our Heavenly Father.

"This life of faith, then, about which I am writing, consists in just this - being a child in the Father's house."

- Hannah Whitall Smith, The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life, pp 21-22.

2004-12-11T23:19:00.000-05:00

December sunset in Lancaster County, PA

his heart

2004-12-09T22:31:00.000-05:00

Well is it when our eyes are filled with His beauty and our hearts are occupied with Him. In the measure in which this is true of us we shall recognize the correlative truth that His great heart is occupied with us.

- Hudson Taylor, Union and Communion, p 30.