Weapons of Our Warfare -- OBJECTIVES

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.    II Cor. 10:3-4 

When we engage in the spiritual warfare that is a daily part of life, it is important that we understand what our God given objectives are and are not.  Notice first in the quote above our weapons are for the destruction of fortresses, also translated the tearing down of strongholds.  What are these fortresses or strongholds?  The best description I have heard is that a person is caught in a stronghold/fortress when he knows the will of God and wants to do it but he has no hope of actually accomplishing it.  Satan and his demonic forces build these imprisoning strongholds by building powerful deceptions and character traits into the lives of their victims.

The Scripture teaches us that Jesus came to us for the purpose of tearing down the works of Satan.  His resurrection from death served as proof positive that the Satanic purposes to kill, corrupt and destroy were all totally subject to the power of the Sons of God and all equally vulnerable to being torn down at any time the Father instructs us to act.  We are warriors.  We are not victims.  We are a family of champions who rise to assist and set free the victims who are not able to free themselves.

Of course, any warrior foolish enough to set out on the battlefield without putting on all of his armor is in for a very bad day.  In the evil day which we have been told to expect, merely remaining standing at the end of the day is a victory.  But, we are not merely intended to put on our armor and barely survive.  We are intended, like Jesus, to be engaged in tearing down the works of Satan under our Father's direction.

Notice, it is the works of Satan we are tearing down.  I have known folks who became obsessed with fighting and casting out demons.  That is a silly and fruitless preoccupation.  If no demons get in the way of the job you were sent to accomplish, do not let them disrupt your focus on the task at hand.  If they get in the way, kick them to the curb and move on.

The objective is to set people free.  It was for freedom that Christ has set us free.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

I Want to Know You

Pause a moment and think about your contacts list. Whether you keep it on Facebook or your phone or an old fashion rolodex, there will be people on the list you know very very well and there will be people whom you only know in one narrow context. If you are young there is probably someone on your list that you have had no contact with except for having a date once. If you are older, you might have someone whom you have known only as the person who mows your lawn or fixes your car.

Imagine for a moment that you were forced to pick out someone today from your contacts list that you would be required to share your home with, work with and vacation with continuously for the next 20 years. If you are rational, you would almost immediately eliminate all those people with whom your relationship is only in one context. You would drop all the ones who you only know from doing business, or you only know from seeing them at church meetings, or you only know from playing softball together.

You would want someone you know-- finances; temper; sexual orientation; criminal record; favorite foods and vacation spots and television shows; and so on.

I sometimes wonder why we do not expect Jesus to be as smart as we are. If you or I would want to know all these aspects about a prospect for a long term relationship, why do we expect Jesus to want an eternal Bride whom He only sees her relationship with Him in once a week meetings.

When He says to the people who have prophesied and healed the sick and cast out demons, "Depart from me." He says it is because He never knew them.

You know a bit about Jesus. But do you really know Him? Have you given Him the opportunity to really know you? Do you know how He feels about cleaning the bathroom? Have you ever invited Him to be with you while you clean yours? Have you invited Him into the most intimate and difficult parts of your life? Have you invited Him to be with you during your favorite times and greatest moments? Have you really gotten to know what Jesus thinks is fun to do with you?

He does not merely love you. He wants to know you and like you.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

Living by Every Word

I have a friend whom I love deeply. She is on a medically supervised weight loss program that is going to help her live much longer. However, there are moments when emotionally she feels like she would do almost anything just to have a chunk of fresh bread to munch down.

Do you remember the last time you walked into a place where fresh bread had been baking and was just coming out of the oven ? Or perhaps you dropped into a Great Harvest Bread Company store where they offer the free samples of their fresh breads. It reminds you that some people eat so they can live; others seem to live just so they can eat.

But Jesus defends Himself with a simple concept. Man does not live by bread but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God. For a man who has gone without eating for about six weeks, this is a rather amazing idea. In His view, hearing the Father speak to him personally was still more essential to life than chewing on a bit of fresh tasty bread.

Notice: Jesus had someone with Him at the time who was quoting Scripture to Him. Jesus (about age 30) was Himself well educated about the contents of the Old Testament Scriptures. But, His defense was not based on knowledge of the Scriptures. It was based on the importance to Him of hearing Father's voice personally, moment by moment as He walked through life.

If hearing Papa was that important to Jesus when He was nearly starving how important is it to us ?

It is tragically common to choose putting on a headset to fill our minds with noise; listening to an inspiring speaker tell what he thinks God is saying; or, reading some passage of Scripture as a substitute for simply becoming still and quiet so we hear what Father God has to say.

I recommend you feast today on every word that is coming from Papa's mouth.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

Should I ?

I really should ...

If I don't do it, who will ?

If I don't the consequences  could be ...

What will she think if ...  

Do you find yourself thinking or saying things like these ?

All of them (and many similar ones) reflect the feelings of fear and/or guilt that are Satan's tools to manipulate us.

God is love.  Perfect love casts out ALL fear.  So God never uses fear as His means to guide His children.

There is NO condemnation those who are in Christ.  So God never uses guilt to guide His children.

So it is really simple.  If you are a child of God.

Feelings of fear, of guilt, of fear of God's rejection or disapproval; these things are never God's way to lead us.  Neither is the fear of what other people will think of us.

Father's voice is one that expresses love and encouragement.  He invites us to engage with Him in an adventure that cannot possibly work if the Holy Spirit is not carrying the responsibility for what is happening or not happening.

The work of God is to believe in Him who was sent.  

Jesus was very tired as He sat down beside a well, but still He believed in Himself as one sent by the Father.  His simple act of asking for a drink of water started a conversation which led to the transformation of an entire city.

Jesus is sending you in the same way He was sent.

If you will simply believe in yourself as one sent by God, you too will see miraculous transformations happening in and through the people whose lives you touch.

Every moment of everyday is an adventure. This is not because of what we fear, or what we feel guilty about.  It is simply the result of who we are and know ourselves to be. 

Yes, YOU are a sent child of God.  Believe in yourself and the anointed one who lives in YOU.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

July 5 -- Blown up by Terror or Blown down by Winds -- Zakopane

Most of the ideas in this blog entry were published previously in June of 2013.  Papa God asked me to refresh it and publish it again for you today.

Spiritual foundations are very important to our lives. Jesus talks about the difference between the person who builds his foundation on the rock and the one who builds his foundation on sand. In Ephesians, the Holy Spirit instructs us that the foundation for the Church of Christ is Jesus as the cornerstone in connection with apostles and prophets. Anyone who thinks they are part of the Church without being connected to Jesus and an apostle and a prophet is part of something that has no Godly foundation.

Jesus, is building His Church, His Bride. He stated very clearly that He is building on a rock. That rock is that the Called-Out-Ones are not based on anything we can learn intellectually, by the power of flesh and blood. Rather, The Church, the Called-Out-Ones, are built upon direct personal revelation from God the Father. As Paul points out to the Corinthians, Spiritual things cannot be understood by the carnal mind. It is the Holy Spirit in us who reveals to us what is in our Father's heart for us.

The Kingdom of God does not depend on our intellectual understandings. It is not dependent on our ability to correctly parse detailed verses of scripture. Our spiritual lives are based in our ongoing day to day, moment by moment, direct communication with Papa God through the person of the Holy Spirit. Without that simple solid rock undergirding us we remain vulnerable to the winds and storms of life and we can never become truly stable. 

Our enemy is continually working to distort this critical communication process. An important function of both the process of disciple making and the nature of true prophetic ministry is to help build in us confidence in this important communication link with Father.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

Where is My Trust

Wow ! What a great weekend it was. It should have been no surprise that my body wanted to take a nap today.

A Granddaughter graduated with highest honors and has been awarded at least 3 different scholarships to pay for her university education. Another Granddaughter and a son in law each giving outstanding performances at their piano recitals. And my daughter giving birth to my sixth grandchild {second grandson} who is a very peace filled boy destined by God to bring great stabilizing revelations to the Bride of Christ. How much better can one weekend get ? God is great and wonderful !

As I awoke from my nap, I was reveling in these thoughts and giving thanks again. The Holy Spirit reminded me of another time when I was giving him lots of praise and thanks.

It was decades ago when I was first starting a law firm of my own. Now I know that there is a myth that all lawyers are rich. But, it is just a myth. As I was starting the new law office, it was necessary to rent space, buy furniture, hire a secretary, buy a typewriter, a copy machine and a fax machine and find clients long before I could send out bills or expect any money to come into the business.

After enduring the stress of all these expenses with very little income for a few months I was often talking with The Lord about the need for some money. He kept saying He would take care of it. I kept feeling like that was easy for Him to say but I was the one who had to take care of my wife and children.

One day a very large check arrived in the mail. When I picked it up and looked at it I gave a great sigh of relief. I began giving thanks to The Lord. It was then that the Holy Spirit asked me, "Stuart, do you believe more in that piece of paper than you believe in me ?" I wanted to say of course not. But ......

I was beginning to learn how tempting it is to have more confidence in the things God has done than we do in God Himself.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

It IS NOT About You

One aspect of my wife Joy's final illness was that she lost her ability to make appropriate social judgments. As result, she would often say things that were painful to hear. One day when I was particularly frustrated by this my daughter was walking past and heard my frustration in the tone of my voice.

My daughter turned to me and said, "Dad, it's not about you."

Her meaning at the time was completely obvious. She reminded me that what my wife was saying was really not about me at all. It was the product of the inability of Joy's brain to function and make appropriate decisions about what is nice to say.

But in that simple statement, "Dad, it's not about you." my daughter also conveyed to me a revelation from God. That revelation has been changing my life in all the subsequent weeks and months.

Father God keeps echoing the statement, "Stuart, it's not about you." Like most people, I have often looked at the circumstances of my life and felt that I was somehow being hurt by the way God permitted the events to unfold around me. But God keeps trying to get me to understand, "Stuart, it is not about you."

When you hear people saying hurtful things to you, more often than not it is not about you. It is about their own wounds. When the tire on the car or bicycle goes flat, it is not an attack on you. It is a loving God protecting you. When the sunny day turns rainy, it is not about you.

It will help us all if we find a less self-centric world view.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

Be BOLD; Be BOLD ! Really ?

If we have heard it once it seems we have heard it hundreds of times. The exhortation of leaders for us to be BOLD to declare our faith is a common recurring theme, The Scriptures, however, are replete with examples of God instructing His people to use a completely opposite tactic.

Consider just a few examples:
When God was looking for a leader for His people, He chose Gideon, a man who was busy hiding himself. When God instructed Gideon about how to lead, He did not favor a large army that could not be hidden. He wanted a paltry group of 300 who would readily escape notice. When He led them into battle He did not say lift your light up high for all the World to see, He said to hide the light inside a clay pot. BOLD, not at all; actually very secretive.
When Moses the greatest leader of the Old Covenant was born; he was hidden in a basket. When he killed the brutal Egyptian, he ran away and hid for 40 years.
When Jesus was an infant, God had Joseph run away and hide in Egypt until Herod had died. Jesus, unlike many "churchianity" leaders today, did not have a public advertising campaign. Indeed, He asked the people who received healing and blessing from Him to keep the matter a secret.
When the Apostle Paul was threatened, he hid and snuck out of town. He did not call a press conference.

The repeated calls for "christians" to be bold has had the appalling result of persuading them to be rude, obnoxious, judgmental people who attack other people's beliefs and actions and claim they are doing so in "love." With friends like these who needs enemies.

Do not misunderstand. If the loving God is asking you to love people and speak to them about the Kingdom of God, I urge you to do what He suggests. But always remember that the LOVE which is God's character is always more significant than the need for you to speak any particular truth. Love people.

Be slow to speak. Avoid ever speaking judgment. Be a comfort to people allowing the Comforter to flow through you.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

What Can You See Today

My good friend Rob is a brilliant man. I mean brilliant - genius level IQ kind of brilliant. He has walked with the Spirit of The Lord for decades. He has had a longing to understand Biblical prophecies for most of that time. He has gone through periods when the forces of Satan were beating him severely. And He has gone through periods of seeing the miracles of God on a regular basis. He has had a deep hunger for knowing and understanding the Scriptures. He has always been a fellow who pays attention to the details of things he studies. He has been through many life experiences, some good, some bad. He is about as old as I am.

Yesterday, Rob and I were chatting on the Skype. He was telling me about a facet of understanding one of the most complex books of the Bible. It was a simple thing. And yet, despite all his years of study, he had never recognized it before. I likewise had never seen it before he described it to me.

Once he had shown it to me it was totally obvious. One of those but of course, that is simple and clear. So far as Rob or I know no one else has ever written or spoken about this simple reality. But, suddenly there it is as plain as the sunrise on a clear summer day.

Why, I ask myself, did neither of us notice this before ?

Simply, it was not yet God's time for us to see it before.

The Scriptures are filled with examples of men and women not being able to see or understand a thing until God was ready to reveal it.

Perhaps the time has come for each of us to stop moaning and crying about what we do not know. Today is the day The Lord has made for us to walk in what we do know and let Him carry the burden for all the things that we do not yet see.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

History or His Story - It Is Our Choice

I awoke a bit early this morning. So, with my first cup of coffee I was watching some very interesting shows on the History Channel's H-2. The first program was a well constructed study of how the development of connections among people have influenced the course of history. The second, likewise was a well constructed study about how natural forces (volcanos, ice ages, floods, wind storms, etc.) have influenced the course of history.

As I reflected on the teachings of the programs, I could not help but notice a glaring omission from their content. Indeed it has become the glaring omission from virtually all public communications in modern life. The omission: Any acknowledgement of God's role in the development of human history.

Prior to the early 20th century, the influences of natural disasters on the affairs of man were commonly referred to as "Acts of God." Discoveries, scientific break throughs and inventions were frequently viewed as revelations from the creator God of the Universe. Penicillin was a gift of a merciful God to mankind. Alexander Graham Bell's first words on the telephone were reported to be: "What has God wrought ?"

Think about your own conversations. How frequently we use words like:
Luck, Fortune, Chance, Coincidence, Unlucky, Unfortunate, Misfortune.

In our popular fictional detective stories, in our court room trials, we readily acknowledge that we do not believe in coincidence. In our conversations we develop expressions like, "Where there is smoke there is fire." So, it is clear that when it comes to the affairs of men, we readily acknowledge that men cause events to happen.

Why then do we choose not to acknowledge the roles of God and Demons in the affairs of history ? If we worship The Lord God Almighty, Creator of the Universe, Author and Finisher of our Faith, the Alpha and Omega; how is it that we ignore His role in our version of history. If He is who we claim He is, then true history really is His own very personal story.

The worshippers of demons whether allah or beelzebub or any of the other myriad tools of Satan including the demons of secular humanism are often quite open about their acknowledgement of the roles of their demons in human events. Terms like jihad and channelling are commonly sprinkled through their explanations of their purposes and the events of history. Ah, but, when it comes to the role of the loving creator God in the affairs of man, we His own people people so often fail to acknowledge Him.

True history really is His Story. Let us resist the temptation to allow others to rewrite it and leave Him out of the story.

His, thus Yours,

Stuart

Home Again -- The Poland Trip Republished due to Accidental Erasure

Well, here I am again. As you can see it has been more than 2 years since I last posted to the Blog. For those who read this Blog but do not have any other contact with me a brief explanation may help.

In 2011, my beloved wife Joy made good on her promise that she would go to Heaven to be with Jesus before I would. In early 2012, my adjustment to that drastic change in my life was complicated by the physicians' diagnoses that I had developed prostrate cancer. After about six months during which I had to focus primarily on my own physical health, I managed to get away from home for about three and one half months to travel, renew contact with many old friends, and try to find out who this changed person really was. During the Winter Holidays Season of 2012, I discovered two realities: First, the grief process over the loss of Joy affected my emotional state during that time far more than I had expected. Second, the various medications that the physicians had prescribed were having effects on my physical and emotional states that were really quite strange. 

After some changes to medication, some love from my brother Rob who watches over my soul, and a sweet encounter with the Holy Spirit (one I might write about some other time.) I was beginning to feel "normal" again. (I put normal in quotes for the sake of my friends who would comment that I have never been really normal.) By this time it was almost time for me to prepare and pack for a trip to Poland. (May 15 - 29, 2013) 



THE POLAND TRIP -- Some Personal Impressions and Lessons



Berlin, Germany -- May 16



The 5 person team met together in the Berlin Airport. 



Ronald Gray, team leader, is an anointed apostle who has specific vision for serving men and women called to build businesses serving the world's economic needs. Ron has become a wonderful friend. He is a great musician and loves the people of God deeply.



Angela Hough, team administratrix, is an anointed prophet with a tremendous gift for keeping time schedules and expenses reasonable and in order. She and her husband have been long time friends. Angela has such a pure and simple way of making God's love clear to people. She is also an excellent business manager and teaches Godly principles of business management with great clarity.



Chris Hough, in addition to being Angela's husband, is an apostle of The Lord. Chris is an architect both in his profession and in the development of the Temple of God being built of Living Stones. Chris is uniquely anointed to clarify how the analytical and creative aspects of business decision making can function smoothly together.



Jack Turner has a special anointing to communicate to people how deeply they are loved by the Creator God. His prayers and his hands laid on people were transforming folks throughout the trip. He also is an extremely gifted teacher in the field of business personnel selection, management and leadership. His years of experience and his clear presentations build tremendous confidence in the lives he touches.



As you can no doubt see, as the newest member of this team, God gave me many opportunities to learn from my companions.



Szczecin (sounds like - stet chin) -- May 16 - 20



My initial impression of Szczecin was one of an industrial city. The architecture is striking in that it has a small number of older buildings which were beautifully crafted and left primarily undamaged by the wars of the 20th century. It also has a small number of newer buildings built in the last 30 years. However, its skyline is dominated by buildings built during the Soviet/Communist era post World War Two. During that period of severe austerity little or no value was placed on esthetic appearance. As a result the buildings are depressing gray concrete structures.



It was in Szczecin that we first encountered a powerful spiritual dynamic of the peoples' inability to trust one another. We found the same dynamic virtually everywhere we travelled. It seems to be rooted in powerful principalities that have dominated the national culture for generations. Even a casual look at Poland's political history gives ample reasons for the continuation of this dynamic in the Polish social and business communities.



In Szczecin we also found some wonderful friends. While no one would claim that the Body of Christ here is in robust good health, nevertheless there are a small number of leaders who are deeply in love with Jesus and effectively equipping the saints. One of the sad effects of the lack of trust in relationships has been that the process of making disciples is all but unknown among the believers.



Conversely, the distinct minority status of the true believers has fostered a greater closeness and love bond among them than we have seen in other communities around the world. This bond of love is strong and among the saints it offers great hope for the future of the Bride in Szczecin. 

Historically various denominations who call themselves the church in Poland have been identified with specific political positions. As a result some such groups have, whether justified or not, been labeled as treasonous. More justification for the lack of interpersonal trust has resulted.



Nonetheless with all the struggles, a solid core of believers now exists in Szczecin. That core is growing and being strengthened. As is true around the world, one of the primary current difficulties facing the body is the discernment between the good ideas of well intended leaders who have good social engineering skills to build organizations and the God given revelations in the midst of the saints which are intended to build and foster healthful joints between members of the Body of Christ. For Szczecin this is an important area for the intercessors to understand.



Legnica (sounds like - leg neats ah) -- May 21;
Wroclaw (sounds like - vrots loff) -- May 22;
Krakow (sounds like - it looks ) -- May 23



These three cities in the southern part of Poland were each distinct and unique communities. For our purposes however they were very similar. In each we were present for only one day/evening. Our efforts were specifically focused on the business community, primarily the Christians in that community. In each we taught groups, counseled individuals, and were warmly received by some wonderful friends.



Torun (sounds like - it looks ) -- May 24 - 28



Torun is a strikingly beautiful city that was not as devastated by the bombing of World War II as many other cities. Here the team met old friends and made new ones. To our surprise the numerous attempts to meet again with the business and academic segments of the community as the team had in past years seemed to produce no results. However, several solid contacts were developed during our visit which would appear to make for more action in those arenas on future trips.



Conversely our interactions with the Bride of Christ were blessed by The Lord. Revelation flowed and many of the saints were deeply encouraged. We saw the foundations of the Church strengthened and relationships were showing signs of renewed growth and development.



Warsaw -- May 29



When all the team except the Hough family drove into Warsaw, we had contemplated the idea of spending some time seeing the older historic parts of the city. As we arrived however, we were admitting to ourselves that we were just too tired to enjoy being tourists for a few hours. After a night of sleep we headed for the airport and the very long flights home.



I arrived here at home about 1:30 AM on May 30. Today, June 1, is the first day I have felt like my mind and body were both readjusted to the Pacific time zone.



Love to all. 



His, thus Yours,


Stuart


The following 2 Comments were posted to the Blog entry before I accidentally erased it. Your added comments below will be enjoyed by all.

Shannon Dee Bailey said...
It's a good thing you put normal in quotes cause you know I would have walked through that door :-) Good to have you back home and thanks for the blog. I enjoyed reading about your adventures in Poland. Love you deeply and miss you more then you words can express :-)
June 1, 2013 at 10:12 PM

Bill Rinderknecht said...
Stuart, I am moved by your poignant description of the state of the Church in Poland. I can imagine after so many years of Communist rule, and in spite of the labor political uprising for liberty in the 80s & 90s, the people in the natural have no real basis for trust except through Christ. I so appreciate your communication and will pray as the Lord brings these precious ones to mind.
June 2, 2013 at 4:34 AM

Maturing / Ripening

Summer has begun here in the Willamette River valley of Oregon. Although the nights are still quite chilly, temperatures 10-15 degrees Celsius (50's Fahrenheit) daytime highs are 25-30 degrees Celsius (80's Fahrenheit). In the garden there are already some tomatoes as large as golf balls. Cherries and Blueberries are beginning to color and the Strawberries glow bright red hidden among the weeds. While mowing the lawn on Saturday the lawn mower malfunctioned and will require a visit to the repair shop very soon. Anyone who likes to pull weeds and get dirty and sweaty would be more than welcome. Showers, fresh towels, and nourishing food would be cheerfully made available. (Just joking, I need the exercise. Polish food is excellent.)
As I was just waking up this morning, feeling loved and energetic, Father brought you (my blog readers) to mind. It was clear to me that Papa wanted me to write for you again this morning. So, I was asking Him what He had in mind to say to you. He did not quickly reply. He left me pondering the idea for a bit and then quietly suggested that I go back and read the older blog entries. I do not know how you react to such ideas. For me the idea of reading stuff I wrote years ago feels a bit like eating stale cold food that was fresh days ago. But, ... So I went back to the old ones and started to read. To my surprise, it was not like eating stale stuff at all. Indeed it was like eating something that had spicy hot sauce sprinkled on it. Time after time I found the Holy Spirit asking me a question.
The question He kept repeating was: "Stuart, you can see when I revealed that to you clearly so you could write about it, how are you doing at living in the revelation I gave to you ?" He was never asking this question as a criticism or nagging condemnation. Always it came as a bit of encouraging warmth. It was always spoken with an underlying sense of approval. And yet, each time He asked I could clearly see how He wanted to strengthen me in my inner being so that I could walk in each bit of revelation in greater, stronger, more powerful ways than I have before.
Once again He points out to me that He never gives me a test so that He will know how I handle it. He gives the pop quizzes so that I can learn about myself. The famous Scotsman's poetic quote is a plea that God would give us the ability to see ourselves as others see us. But, all of us know that we are able to hide our real selves from others most of the time.
My prayer for each of us today is that the gentle Holy Spirit would reveal to each of us what He, the Comforter, the Encourager, the Fruit giver, sees in us.
Love to all.
His, thus Yours,
Stuart