July 30 -- Intellectual or Spiritual -- Szczecin

Intellect  [as applied to humans] -- the power or faculty of the mind by which one knows or understands; the faculty of thinking or reasoning.

Spirit      [as applied to humans] -- the inherent nature derived from God breathing His spirit into man, the part of man that returns to God.

All people have some level of intellect.  Some are born with a higher level of intelligence.  Some have by education or other experiences more fully developed their abilities to use their intelligence.  Using this God given intelligence, and the person's accumulated education and experience to serve people is what I am referring to as Intellectual Ministry.  

All people are born with the same inherent spiritual character.  When born all of people's spirits are disconnected from the Spirit of God as a result of the sin of Adam.  When any human enters into a covenant relationship with God acknowledging Jesus as his or her final decision making authority (Lord) he/she is given a gift of having that inherent spirit reconnected to the Spirit of God and he/she thereby becomes alive in the eternal realm where God lives and operates without the constraints of time, space, or human logic (he/she becomes born again).  When such a person, alive in the eternal realm, invites  the Holy Spirit to come and participate, Holy Spirit begins a process of bringing character, power, and revelation into his/her life as the person cooperates in the process.  Cooperating with Holy Spirit and utilizing His fruit, His gifts, and His revelation to serve people is what I am referring to as Spiritual Ministry.  

We have given these definitions so you may understand what we are saying.  However, at the outset we must acknowledge that in practice the lines of demarcation can be quite blurred.   Obviously, in Spiritual Ministry one also uses his intellect but only in cooperation with Holy Spirit, not in opposition to Him nor as a substitute for Him.  Similarly, in Intellectual Ministry Holy Spirit will from time to time influence what is being said or done.  I remember once when I was a college sophomore, before I had any working relationship I was aware of with Holy Spirit, I went with a team of students to share with the youth of a congregation a couple hours drive from the college.  I ended up being " stuck with" a group of third and fourth grade children. I suspect it was because the team leaders knew I was incompetent.  I was alone with the group.  I was then a terrible public speaker.  I had no idea how to connect with such a group of children.  But, there I was in front of them.  In my heart I cried out to the God who had saved me but I barely knew.  Somehow, only God knows how, when I opened my mouth Holy Spirit gave me words to say.  I spoke with them for about 45 minutes.  Their attention never wandered.  They were moved by what Holy Spirit was saying.  When I was done and we rejoined the rest of the young people and the team, someone asked me what I had talked about.  I honestly could not answer because I did not know.  I came with every expectation of doing Intellectual Ministry.  But God ....

It is also important to understand Intellectual Ministry is not all inherently bad, evil, or wrong.  Many of the people who regularly minister intellectually are good people doing good things with the tools they have available.  Conversely, Spiritual Ministry is not all inherently good, righteous, and correct.  Some people who regularly minister by the power of Holy Spirit, use the gift God has given to serve their own greed, lust for power, and self-glorification.  Many persons who minister intellectually are loving, gracious, humble servants who bring the character of Jesus to virtually every encounter.  Tragically, many people who have received the gifts of Holy Spirit power, are self-centered, vicious, prideful people who defame the character of Jesus by their actions virtually every time they make a pretense of serving others.  Jesus, in His amazing humility, takes both the good and the evil and works them toward good for His Bride.  But that does not make that which was evil any less evil.  It just acknowledges the amazing grace of God toward mankind.

With this background, and with recognition of the risk of mis-use, let it be clear Spiritual Ministry is essential to develop the Body of Christ to her potential.  It is not possible to fully function as an apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, or teacher as described in Ephesians 4 except by the power of Holy Spirit. (See Scriptures below.).  Moreover, "humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" are equally essential for  effective ministry.  And our functioning as servants depends upon the grace that has been given to us.  The nature of that grace varying among us in accordance with the nature of the gift that we are.  The gift that Jesus has formed us to be to His Bride.

The gifts change from person to person, but all the gift ministries have one common purpose, the equipping of the saints, the family of God, so that each child of God would be fully equipped and armed for the ways in which he or she is called to serve in the Body of Christ.  And equipping them is critical because it is their service that builds up the Body of Christ.  It is not the pastor's job to build up the body; it is the work of the saints, the "ordinary" believers.  Moreover, the saints are the ones intended to move us to unity, maturity and knowledge of Jesus.  For far too long we have been deceived into believing that unity was the work of ecumenical counsels; maturity was the work of apostles and pastors; and, knowledge of Jesus was the work of seminarians and teachers.  But these are all  deceptions -- they are false.  These things are all intended to flow from the work of the ordinary believers in the Body of Christ.  Sadly, our intellects and experience lead us to believe the deceptions.  It is only logical that it is the intelligent, well educated, trained men and women who should be bringing us to unity, maturity, and knowledge.  But that is not the way Jesus designed His Church.  It is an error in which the equipping ministries can easily be entrapped.  The innate pride of man starts us to believe in our own importance.  The desire of the ordinary believer to escape his responsibility leads him/her to choose to leave the burden for the gift ministries to carry.  Nonetheless, it is still a lie.  Thus, we see that both the gift ministries and all the "ordinary" believers need to be empowered to walk in Spiritual Ministry not merely Intellectual Ministry.  

As you no doubt recall, most of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians revolves around this topic and the proper understanding of Spiritual Ministry and ways to avoid its abuse in the Church.  Very early in the letter Paul writes to help the folks in Corinth distinguish between the intellectual and the spiritual.  At the transition from chapter 2 to 3, Paul states it very bluntly.   ". . . a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them . . . ".  Thus, for us to expect anyone who does not have an intimate relationship with Holy Spirit to understand Spiritual Ministry is simply a false expectation.  Paul makes it clear that it is essential for us to have " . . . received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God . . . ".  I have often thought of the irony.  We have large arms of the "church" teach us to receive power from Holy Spirit. We have smaller arms of the "church" teach us to receive character or holiness from Holy Spirit.  But very few are talking about receiving revelation from Holy Spirit.  Why is this true ?  Simply, it is because having power makes me think I am better than you; having holiness makes me think I am better than you; but receiving real revelation makes me know that I am not better than any one I am just another servant in Father's house.  It is so much easier to appeal to men's pride than to convey the humility of God.

Later in the letter Paul strongly urges us to " . . . earnestly desire the best gifts . . ." of the Spirit especially that we might prophesy.  But such earnest desires are in vain if we do not develop an intimate and very personal relationship with Holy Spirit.  I encourage you to pursue such an intimate friendship with Him.  I urge you to keep on building that relationship on a daily basis.  He will reveal the heart of Father God to you and continually build your intimate friendship with Jesus.  If you have never started on that road of friendship with Holy Spirit, I urge you to invite Him today to come and occupy His residence in your heart and to lead you into all Truth.

But as you look at the leaders you follow, I urge you to move quietly and quickly away from ones who do not walk in humility.  Further, I urge you to realize that ones who do not practice Spiritual Ministry are very limited in their ability to lead you.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

Ephesians 4: 1 - 16 (NASB)

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.

But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says,

“When HE ascended on high,

HE led captive A host of captives,

And HE gave gifts to men.”

(Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.) And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

I Corinthians 2:12 - 3:3 (NASB)

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Foundations for Living

And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly.

  

July 29 -- A Heart Cries Out -- Szczecin

The sky is cloud covered.  Last night Mariusz slept on the overnight train to Kraków. I have my ticket to take the same overnight train on Sunday night.  From now to then I will remain visiting friends and serving saints here in the Szczecin area.  This evening I will be with the same group that I served last Friday evening.  I expect to meet and chat with a number of other saints between now and train time Sunday.

This morning I have been chatting electronically with a very special saint back in the USA.  It is so very pleasing and exciting to talk with the ones who have begun to catch the vision for the importance of relationship.  I am continuously dismayed when I realize how few people actually grasp the concept.  Funny, Holy Spirit just said to me, "Why are you so surprised ?  If people are willing to extract the beauty of sex out of the context of intimacy of the marriage relationship, why would you not expect them to try to extract the beauty of worship out of the context of intimacy of relationship with Jesus; and to extract the beauty of fellowship out of the context of intimacy of the discipleship relationship."  I think He has a point.  I concede my hopes and expectations are sometimes unrealistic. 

Family, the time has come for us to teach and train up a generation of people with vision for intimacy of relationships -- with God; with disciple makers; with spouses; with children; and with their own disciples.  The tragedy of false intimacy in sex, in ritual worship, in organizational systems, and in our friendships must be brought into the light of real Jesus style relationships.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

July 28 -- Outrageous Freedom -- Szczecin

Good Morning, after its blue sky beginning, the weather yesterday turned cloudy and dropped a bit of rain in the afternoon and again in the evening.  This morning the clouds remain but there are a few blue holes in them.  We will wait and see what the weather will deliver.  I do notice that the humidity is much higher today.  It is inconvenient for those who have done a bit of laundry this morning.  Here in Poland, and in most of Europe, having an electric clothes dryer is a rather rare thing.  Electricity here is very expensive and only wealthy or foolish people would waste it to dry clothing that a simple metal rack will allow to air dry in a day or two.   

Last evening Ian and his friend Michael came to have dinner with us.  Instead of spending hours in the kitchen preparing food this time, we simply purchased some delicious broiled chickens and some prepared pasta salad.  We complemented the entree with some salad and a lovely simple cake for dessert.  The whole meal preparation was simple and the results delicious.  One of the important things in the process of loving people is hearing Father about which details are important and which ones can be glossed over with simpler less time consuming solutions.  Last week it was important to Him for the meal to be one we cooked.  This week it was totally unimportant.  But, it was important that it be simple and no fuss for the men eating it.  There is simply no substitute for hearing Holy Spirit moment by moment.

Michael is a factory worker in a plant that makes cast aluminum products.  His job is moving casks of molten aluminum through the plant to the right spot and then pouring the molten aluminum into the molds.

I intentionally gave you that accurate description of Michael's employment.  When I tell you that and nothing more, it is very likely that you begin to believe things about Michael.  I suspect you might already imagine him as a big muscular fellow who you might meet in a bar after his day of work.  There you would find him all sweaty and a bit dirty sucking down three cold beers while engrossed in watching a football game on the television.  If he has a family he would arrive home a little drunk and with no energy for wife or children.  He would eat, belch loudly,  and then fall asleep in his chair while watching the television.  In fact all this stereotype of a factory worker would be completely wrong.

Michael is actually a follower of Jesus.  He is a very handsome young man who is slim and trim and very neat in his appearance.  He is a man who is truly a gentle man with true gracious humility.  He is continually attentive to the people around him.  He is quick to pick up on any opportunity to serve people gently and graciously.  His strong drink appears to be Coca Cola (he seems to prefer it over Pepsi).  And he is destined to serve the Bride of Christ in powerful ways throughout Europe and Asia.  Currently, so far as I know, he has neither wife nor children, although, he seems willing for that to change.  As the five of us sat together eating and chatting, Michael was continuously attentive asking the questions that would maximize what he was learning about the Kingdom of God.

Michael was so refreshing to the group.  In part this was because he came to us with very little religious baggage to burden the conversation.  This was in such stark contrast to Ian who was caught up in a terrible struggle between his desire to have a true intimate love affair with Jesus and his feeling of need to cling to his religious rules and rituals.  Throughout the conversation Ian seemed to think in a world where the book of Galatians had been removed from all the Bibles.  While Michael was thrilled with the concept that in Christ he could find and live in true FREEDOM.

IT WAS FOR FREEDOM CHRIST SET YOU FREE. 

Like the Apostle Paul, I implore you.  For God's sake; for the sake of the people around you; for your own sake;  PLEASE let go of your religious rituals; PLEASE let go of your self imposed rules that "make you" pleasing to God; PLEASE walk away from all of those entanglements and walk into the glorious freedom that Jesus has for you.  It is there, and only there, that you can serve others and help to set them free also.

Let go of your false belief that it is only when you pray or worship or discipline yourself that you can enter into the presence of God.  The curtain that separated you from the Holy of Holies was completely ripped apart.  You are welcome in Father's presence continually.  His Holy Spirit lives within you.  There is NOTHING you can do to get any closer to Him than you already are.  He lives IN you. 

Please as you work and walk and enjoy life today,  with no religious thoughts at all, just enjoy His companionship.  He actually likes you just as you are.  He is not your critic.  He is a Father filled with hope, and life, and laughter, and gentle encouragement for you His beloved child in whom He takes great pleasure.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

 

July 27 -- What DO You Know ? -- Szczecin

I hope you also are having a great day today.  The sun is shining brightly and the sky is blue over Szczecin.  Yesterday was a magnificent day.  In the morning I did a bit of writing and some administrative tasks.  In the afternoon I met with a wonderful Saint who has been set free from a horrible destructive relationship.  I was blessed as I watched her let go of the false guilt that she had been loaded down with by her "christian" friends.   I marvel that religious people can believe such garbage.  And, I cannot conceive of any reason to be so hateful as to load other people with burdens that no one can carry.  Later in the evening I met with a brilliant young couple who have set their hearts to love and serve the people of God.  It is so exciting to see Holy Spirit pour revelation on young saints who suck it in like a desert receiving spring rains.  Then to watch in awe as like that desert the young people burst into bloom with all the glory of spirit life.  

Meanwhile back at the flat, Mariusz seemed to alternate between pouring out spirit and life over the telephone in conversations with saints around Poland and feeding spirit and life into Marek as they worked together to prepare Marek for employment interviews.  As the Lord brings him to your memory over the next few weeks, I am sure Marek would be grateful for your prayers that Holy Spirit would lead him to the employment position the Father has for him.  He very much needs to find employment that will enable him to begin the process of bringing his finances within the realm of his self-control.

Those of you who have spent much time with me have no doubt heard me talk about the response, "I don't know."  There are two kinds of responses either of which can be expressed in that phrase.  The first is a simple statement of fact.  You ask me a question which needs an answer but I do not have the facts needed to answer your question.  In healthy people in important conversations this kind of I don't know is often followed by, "But, I will find out and I will let you know."   The second kind, and sadly the far more common kind, of I don't know, is the one that really means, "I really do not want to be responsible for the answer I would give to your question. So, I will avoid your question by pretending I do not know."  This kind of I don't know is a way to avoid commitment and/or responsibility.  It is a way to evade the need to make a decision.  Most sadly, many of us are just as willing to use this lie with God as we are with people.

Jesus had the grace to protect people from knowing things for which they were not yet ready to be responsible.  He taught in parables so that men would not understand Him.  But, that should never be the case for those of us who have become sons of God.  In Isaiah chapter 1 we hear the cry of Father's heart.  He says quite clearly that His desire is for sons who understand Him.  But, all too often we choose to not understand Him because we know that once we understand we will be held responsible for what we know.

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.

Once Rob and I were chatting on 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.

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.  But even more important it is time for us all to stop pretending that we do not know the things that we are afraid to face.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

Pursued by Papa

Good Morning, I have had my coffee and some wonderful breakfast with Mariusz and Marek.  Mariusz is off for a morning swim and to meet up with a local leader.  Marek is out attending to some personal business matters and to pick up a few things we need from the store.  And I am here listening.  You may have noticed my Facebook occupation lists me as a professional listener.  An old friend often pointed out, "God gave us 2 ears and only one mouth.  We need to listen twice as much as we talk." In my view we also need to listen, first to hear God; because it is in what flows from His words that we receive true life.  We also need to truly listen to the people we are called to serve; because in their words we find the revelation of their hearts.  And, we need to listen to our enemies; they are a wonderful source of information about the ways in which we need to change so that people see God's love in us.

Holy Spirit has been talking this morning about how God relates to His people.  He has  been talking about the simple Truth that God has placed no value in men's buildings or organizations.  Indeed from His perspective both buildings and organizations often do more harm than good.  Here in Poland, for example, about 97% of the population is affiliated with the Roman Catholic organization. And yet fewer than 5% of the population would know Jesus if He walked up and hugged them.  The large organization creates for people an illusion of connection with "god"; however, there is no reality to the connection.  In every town in Poland one of the largest, most beautiful, and most elaborate buildings is one built by and for the Roman Catholic organization.  But God does not choose to dwell in any of them.  Virtually since Roman Catholicsm came to Poland the organization has been one of the most powerful political forces in the country.  It has so often taken positions that were contrary to the best interests of the country that its leaders were at times universally regarded as spies and enemies by the Polish people.  Whether led by the Pope, or Jimmy Falwell, or anyone else, organizations which begin to use their power and popularity to influence the political processes are not functioning as the Bride of Christ.  They are nothing more than political parties trying to use the reputation of God to achieve their own purposes.  

What does God think of ALL these clubs and organizations which call themselves the "church" ?  He looks at them, and the power brokers who run them, in much the same way He looked at the group that set out to build the Tower of Babel.  The big difference being He  does not need to come and confuse their languages again because they are already confused.  Spiritual things, as Paul wrote, are foolishness to the carnal minds of men.  God is not in the business of saving clubs.  None of the organizations, whether they call themselves "church" or not, are part of the Kingdom of God.  They are purely illusions and people who put their trust in any organization are simply deceived. 

Such organizations might teach about God.  They might teach behaviors that look Godly.  However, each and every person must come to God as an individual through the grace of God found only in personal relationship with Jesus.  I am reminded of a luncheon meeting I attended.  I had been invited to share with the group. After I finished speaking, I opened it up for people to ask questions. One older fellow sitting directly across the room from me asked the first question.

He asked: How do we keep in balance our vertical relationship with God and our horizontal relationship with other people?

I answered: Get rid of both of them!

I went on to explain that it is important that we stop worshiping a god who is up there and begin to worship the God of the universe who has chosen to take up residence within us.  If God lives within me, how can I have a vertical relationship with Him?  The old religious notion of a vertical relationship is sponsored by men who want to maintain a hierarchy within the church. For them it is important to create the illusion of one man being closer to God than another.  If I am higher, I am closer to the God who is up there. If I am lower, I am further from the God who is up there.  By maintaining this deception, men who desire power and authority are able to justify a hierarchy within the "church" because clearly this professional Christian is operating on a higher plane and closer to God than we ordinary laymen.

But, if we believe that the God of the universe has taken up residence within each and every individual believer; if we believe that it is the birthright of each believer to hear personally and directly from his Father God; then, we know each believer who has made Jesus Lord over his life will simply choose not to follow the man who speaks things which do not align with what God himself is speaking within the believers own heart.  It is so wonderful when a man comes to the place he will sit and look at a decision. And, as he looks you will hear him say, "I have heard from my brother ABC. I have heard from God XYZ. Which should I believe? I think GOD."

In the same manner we also must get rid of the idea of a horizontal relationship with people. When we think a horizontal relationship with people we automatically conclude all people are the same and we are going out all the way to the horizon dealing with all these people.  But that is simply not an accurate picture of what is presented as the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  If we look to Jesus as our role model then we see something quite different. Jesus was closer to John than he was to any of the other disciples. He was closer to Peter, James, and John than He was to the other nine disciples. He was closer to the 12 disciples then he was to the 72 or the 120 who were sent out.  He was closer to his disciples and those who actively followed Him than He was to the crowds and the masses of people.

What we are taught in the New Testament is that we are members of a Body. The members of any living body are connected to one another in joints. These joints work very smoothly in a healthy body. They are bonded strongly together by ligaments which hold the pieces in place. Through these joints flow the blood that brings life and the nerves that bring instructions from the head of the body.

As we look around the world we can see lots of living animals that are not part of our body. In the same way the body of Christ can look out at the world and see that there are many people who are not part of the Body of Christ.

Within the living body we can see that each member has a different and distinct function from each other member. We stand and run depending upon our feet and legs. We use a knife and fork to eat depending upon our arms and hands. Hands are much more closely connected to arms. Feet are much more closely connected to legs.

Thus, we can see, it is intended in the body of Christ, each member should be much more closely connected with a very small number of members to which he/she is joined. Moreover, we can see while the body of Christ is aware of people out in the world, not part of the body, no member of the body is connected to anyone out in the world in the same way that he is connected to all of the members of the Body of Christ.  We might find our connected relationships among people in our organization.  We might also just as readily find the connection outside our club.  Indeed we might find connections with people who do not belong to any club.  It is not that there is anything wrong with clubs.  Rather it is that the clubs are irrelevant.  They simply make no difference in our relationships.  If we allow them to influence our relationships with Jesus or with other people we become deceived.

It is important that we grasp these concepts.  As we have previously discussed, the Holy Spirit is currently insisting that the Body of Christ make a transition.  That transition abandons a hierarchical structure.  It requires us to learn to function in connected relationships.  It is time for us to learn to live and model this Scriptural structure of the Body of Christ.  

• We are “…the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” Ephesians 4:16.  

His, thus Yours,

 Stuart

July 25 -- Using or Loving ? -- Szczecin

I hope you are having a great day.  If instead you have encountered an evil day [as we have all been promised from time to time], I hope that you have each and every part of your spiritual armor firmly in place and tightly fastened for your protection.

I am a bit later than usual writing to you this morning.  Yesterday Mariusz and I were each having interactions with several different men who have definite and serious problems in their lives.  In each case, although the men are quite different, we can see how the problems largely have resulted from the interactions each man had with his biological father while growing up.  I found myself meditating and pondering about these issues for quite a long time.  I suspect most children of God have had this experience.  I know with great certainty that Holy Spirit wants to reveal some important spiritual principle to me through these situations.  But, I am simply too blind to see what it is right now.  I simply must wait for Jesus to heal my blindness.  Often I struggle with being willing to wait upon the Lord.  But, I know waiting upon Him is what will result in my being strengthened and refreshed.  So, even though I thought I would be writing something about that,  I will not yet.

Yesterday was a fantastic day.  The weather was pleasant.  We spent about 7 hours just riding in the car from Szczecin to Koszalin and back again.  It should have been only about 4 hours but part of the road was closed and traffic moved slowly.  But, the ride provided a long period of time when the 5 of us could converse about anything we wanted to talk about.  I remember when I would drive the man who was watching over my soul from place to place on ministry trips.  My questions for him were virtually non-stop.  I received many many valuable teachings as I sat driving in the car with a wise older brother beside me.  There is something so precious that happens when we allow ourselves to truly hunger and thirst after full total intimacy with Jesus.  When that is our condition, we will not let any opportunity to learn more about him to be wasted with frivolous empty talk.  When we are truly hungry we live on a mission to let the Lord fill us.

In Koszalin we met and had supper with 3 parents and 3 children.  The husband wife team have 2 young sons.  The single mother has a beautiful young daughter.  As we talked about the true nature of the living Bride of Christ, Holy Spirit moved to help each of the 6 have a greater sense of personal vision for his/her own role of ministry among the saints of God.  It was such a delight to see the relief wash over faces as they were reassured that they had not lost their minds.  I find this happens many times as I share with people.  They suddenly realize that the ideas Holy Spirit had been planting in their minds are not crazy.  These ideas from the Spirit are actually being confirmed and affirmed by the words God is speaking to others with even more experience than they have.  Toward the end of the evening the husband admitted that because of his back ground with an extremely legalistic father he was actually unsure of his salvation.  In a few minutes he had reaffirmed his decision to follow Jesus and let Jesus be the final authority for all his decisions.  Thus we could completely reassure him that he is saved and is a living son of the Creator God.

As we spent time together with these folks, I was reminded again:  It is crucial to learn to build friendships.  As I thought about this today I went back and found something I wrote 6 years ago that I think will be helpful to you.

The Holy Spirit is currently moving among the Body of Christ, teaching us the importance of being connected together in joints.  You notice in Ephesians 4 that the Body builds itself up in love when the joints are working properly.  Ironically, in our society, people who gather in the local pub are better at building the early stages of relationships than the people who attend the congregational meeting under the steeple.  For most of the folks in churchianity, God's love is theoretical not personal.  That is to say we accept a doctrine that God loves the world; but we do not experience that God loves us.  In the same way, we know that we are called to love one another; but we do not know how to personally love the individual sitting next to us.  Institutional churchianity seems quite content to leave us in this condition.  It is extraordinarily rare to hear a teaching about the practice of love.  Tragically, it is also extraordinarily rare to simply experience being loved on a practical level, as the people we are today.

I remember when I was a child playing in the attic that I discovered a book of poetry given by my grandfather, when he was young, to the young lady who was to later become my grandmother.  He had penned an inscription inside the front cover of the book:

           Into every life some rain must fall.  

           I hope that I might be the young man who carries your umbrella.

As I read that inscription, I learned much about love.  I learned that love is gentle and not pushy.  I learned to love as a servant not a master.  I learned that love is protective.  I learned that love is realistic.  A simple romantic inscription in a book contained more practical wisdom about the nature of love than I had ever been taught in the churchianity.

How can believers today learn about practical, loving?  If we do not teach them, who will?  Are you leading your disciples to experience practical love?

We cannot impart what we do not have.  So the starting point for imparting love to others is to recognize that we ourselves are loved.  Many of us have never recognized that we are individually personally and attentively loved by God the Father.  Pause for a moment right now, and drink in the Father's love.  Papa loves you just the way you are right now.  You do not have to look any different or think any different or talk any different; you are loved just as you are right now.  Father knows everything that you are and everything that you have done.  Nevertheless, He loves you completely right now.  Moreover, He is very set in his ways.  There is nothing you can do to get Him to stop loving you.  So, make a decision right now to receive the Father's love and to continue to receive it moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day, for the rest of your life.

In the same manner, your disciples cannot deliver what they have never received.  The starting point for teaching them to love is for you to love them.  By loving them, you will model the Father's love for them so that they will begin to be able to receive it more easily.  But what does it look like when you love someone.  If we were to believe America's greatest teaching mechanism, the movies out of Hollywood, love would generally be expected to look like sexual attraction.  In most movie scripts, one could readily substitute, “I want to use you."  for each and every time “ I love you.” is said.

Most of us have read, on numerous occasions, First Corinthians chapter 13.  It is a worthwhile instruction on the nature of love, and I commend it to you again.  I want to look for a moment at the nature of love in the beginning of a relationship.  What is it that happens in the local pub, but does not happen in the local congregational meeting?  Perhaps the most significant thing that happens at the beginning of any relationship in the local pub is the mutual acceptance without judgment.  Throughout churchianity, we have been taught so many religious standards against which to evaluate people that it is virtually impossible for us to look upon another human being without judging whether the person is good enough to be worthy of our friendship.  We form these judgments on the basis of people's skin color, clothing, posture, cleanliness, and a host of other little factors.  But in Second Corinthians chapter 5, we are instructed to not know people on the basis of what we can perceive by our flesh.  Despite this instruction by the Scriptures, we have been trained to continuously evaluate people against our own personal standards.  We have forgotten how to see people from God's perspective.  God looks upon the heart.

A second dynamic of the meeting in the local pub are the social traditions that everyone has a right to tend to his own business, and everyone has a right to be left alone.  A man is privileged to drink his beer in silence.  A young woman is not required to respond to a pickup line.  When two men are having a conversation they are not required to allow a third to break-in.  Sadly, throughout much of churchianity, we have been taught that we have a right to inject ourselves into other people's personal lives.  We are taught that it is somehow "evangelism" to corner people on the street and ask them very personal questions.  We are taught that there is something wrong with people who reject our advances.  We are taught to have expectations of other people's behavior and thoughts.

But the Scriptures teach us that the starting point for Jesus’ entry into the world was he emptied himself.  He, the God of the universe, the one who had the right to impose expectations upon each of us, entered into our society having emptied Himself of His personal expectations concerning us.  Thus, we see that he was able to be the personal confidant and friend of rich young rulers and drunks and prostitutes.  People of all walks in all conditions He accepted and received as who they were not as who He expected them to be.

If we are to be successful, if we are to love one another as he has loved us, we also must learn to accept one another without our own pre-conceived expectations.  Notice, this does not mean that we must be people who have lost our own standards.  Rather that we must be people who adhere to our own standards without imposing them on everyone around us.  Jesus did not receive the woman caught in adultery as one without sin.  Rather acknowledging her sin he accepted and received her as the woman that she was.  We must learn how to accept and love people while they are still sinners.

While accepting people will go a long way is to remove the barriers to building relationships, it is also necessary that we learn to be trustworthy to those people around us.  People who have common sense will not open their lives up to someone who has shown himself not to be trustworthy.  First they must be able to trust us to respect their boundaries.  There is perhaps no faster way to turn off the development of a friendship than touching some personal area of another's life before the relationship has been developed.  It is just as offensive to people to have their emotions groped by a stranger as it is to have their bodies groped by a stranger.  There is great wisdom in the common rule of courtesy that we do not talk about religion or politics among a group of people whom we do not know.  One could readily exclude many other topics that are simply too personal.

Have you ever met someone whose only topics of conversation were about himself?  I have met people who are able to talk about their own work, to talk about their own failings, to talk about their own families, to talk about their own experiences, and to talk about their own health.  But among those people I have rarely found anyone who is genuinely interested in me.  Does it not seem ironic that the man who expects you to be very interested in him expresses no genuine interest in you?  Certainly, in order to build an honest open relationship, you must share some things about yourself.  But those things are best shared in the context of responding to other people's inquiries or responding to the things they have said about themselves.  In building relationships, it is always important to be more interested in the other person than you are in yourself.  This is not because you are of no value.  If you were of no value, why would anyone want to have a relationship with you.  But, if you communicate to the other person that you believe yourself to be the only one of value, why would he want to build a relationship with you?

Ask yourself, do you really care about the other person?  If you do not, simply walk away, you will do less damage.  If you do, ask yourself a second question.  Why do you care?  Do you care because of what that person can do for you or provide to you?  Or do you actually care about the person?

Perhaps, because I started first grade when I was only four years old, when I was young I was always very insecure about building relationships with any of the people around me.  When you are 2 to 3 years younger than most of your school classmates, it is very difficult to fit in.  This is especially true for a boy, whose ability to fit in often depends upon his athletic abilities.  During my early to middle 20s I learned to overcome this handicap.  I learned to be compassionate and caring and helpful to the people around me.  These attitudes will go a long ways toward breaking the ice and building social relationships.  Just after I began the practice of law I was working for a medium-sized downtown Washington DC law firm.  Because I had learned to be gentle and respectful to the members of the staff, whenever secretaries were having a problem, I was usually the first person they would ask for help.  One spring morning, there seemed to be an unusual number of minor difficulties in the office.  Just before lunch I was one more time fixing the copier.  When I had finished, I broke my usual routine, and went out for a walk to talk with the Father.

The question I wanted to ask God was this: why had I spent 19 years getting an education in order to be a copier repairman?  As I asked the question, He reminded me that I had made myself available and open to help. I acknowledged that what he said was true.  But, I pointed out, it also made it possible for the secretaries to talk with me and I had been very helpful to several of them in solving personal problems in their lives.  He then asked me: why?  After a bit of thought I had to admit I did not know why.  So I asked Him to show me why.  He said it was my evil crutch.  He said that I induced people to trust me and talk about their problems, so that when relationships broke apart, I would have someone other than myself to blame.  It took me a while to get around to admitting that he was right.  Ironically, I had developed a very good and valuable skill for a very evil and selfish purpose.  I was using people's trust as a way to protect myself.  This was not a pleasant conversation to have with the Lord.  But it was one that set me free.

Over the years I've discovered that many people who are in "ministry" are there for very selfish reasons: Some to get a paycheck, some to get honor and recognition, some to get power, some to justify themselves, and some for self-defense.  All too often we confuse our own personal desires and goals for the call of God.  Often, very good things are being done.  But, they are being done for the wrong reasons.  So, I challenge you again; ask yourself: why?  And when you think you have an answer, ask God, whether it is true.

At the end of this period of self-examination, come back to Father again.  Confess the faults you have discovered and let Father cleanse you from all the unrighteousness.  Then settle back and once again drink in His continuous unconditional love for you just like you are.  He did not wait for you to be perfect.  He loved you while you were still a sinner.  Now that you are a saint, His child, He loves you even more deeply.  Stop, again, and drink deeply of His love.  YOU are LOVED !

Now, as the beloved child in whom Father is pleased, go and love the people He has put in your life.  You have come to the Kingdom to be the expression of His deep love.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

July 24 -- Bridge Building -- Szczecin

Good Morning,  I am glad you joined me.  The coffee is delicious this morning.  My friend Mariusz is back with me.  Marek went home to celebrate his birthday with his family.  

Sto Lat -- Happy Birthday Marek from Mariusz and Stuart.  You are such a valuable part of the Kingdom and the team.

Today our friends Marchin and Monika, along with their daughter Marcella, will pick us up and we will drive about 2 hours northeast to a town near the Baltic Sea coast.  There we will visit with a lovely family.  It will be a fascinating adventure.  We plan to come back to Szczecin for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.  Mariusz and I have both heard Holy Spirit say that we are to return to Budapest in early August.  Other than that our plans remain vague and unknown to us until August 18 when I will fly to Lomé, Togo in West Africa.  This becoming comfortable in the midst of uncertainty is actually a bit of fun when you get accustomed to it.

A special greeting to our friends in Russia who have once again begun reading this Blog.  During the past few days we went from having no Russian readers to having more Russian readers than any other country outside my home country.  Years ago several Russian readers were with me but when I stopped writing they seemed to lose contact.  This week they are back and the brought friends with them.

That reminds me.  While most of the readers come to the Blog through Facebook and thus already have a way to send me a message, some do not.  So for everyone, if you want to contact me I will put my contact information below.  I will note that I am not fluent in any language other than American English.  I do have trusted friends who can translate French, Spanish, Polish, Russian, or Afrikans.  Although the translations are notoriously bad, I also have access to computer based translation programs. So while I strongly prefer English, I will find a way to understand you in other languages.

Stuart B. Mitchell

9764 Summer Park Court

Columbia, Maryland 21046

USA

Mobile for voice or text:  +1 541 337 0850

Skype ID:                         stuart.b.mitchell1      (Notice 2 periods and the digit 1)

Email:                               Stuart@His-Family.com

The web site is being reconstructed I will tell you about it when it is ready.

Here is a simple set of Truth concepts:

One of the most effective ways to build personal relationships is through humble service.

All of our service that brings about significant spiritual change in the lives of others must cross a bridge of personal relationship.  

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

Oh, one more thing, some of you have wanted to share a blog entry with your Facebook friends.  You are, of course, welcome to share them with anyone at any time.  The easy way to do that is to simple touch on that Facebook symbol down at the bottom.  It will automatically create the link for you. SBM

July 23 -- Big Mac and Fries ? -- Szczecin

Good Morning, I am still sipping the first cup.  Last night we had a great time as we gathered with about 30 saints to worship Jesus.  About half the group were old friends whom I have know from my prior visits here in Szczecin.  The others were new to me.  With Marek translating for me I shared about the nature of the Bride of Christ.  It was the first time Marek ever translated in a large group setting like that.  He did an excellent job.  When I occasionally threw in a word that was new to him, our friend Magda graciously came to the rescue and filled in the gap.  It was truly a fun time.  Several folks received fresh prophetic affirmations from the Lord. A few got set free from demonic harassments.  

This morning Holy Spirit took me back to something I share in this blog about six years ago.  He asked me to share it again this morning.  I hope you profit from it as much as I have from being reminded.  

Have you ever found yourself on the floor pounding with your fist crying out to God?  Have you ever been weeping and sobbing, because you knew that something was wrong, but just didn't know how to get it fixed?  Have you ever found yourself inwardly screaming, "God, it's just not fair."?  If so, perhaps you, like me, can identify somewhat with Esau.  The Scriptures tell us that Esau could find no place in which he would repent even though he sought such a place with tears.  Why not?  Why could Esau not find a place of repentance?

Esau, you will recall, was the brother of Jacob.  When he came hungry into their camp, he smelled the food that Jacob was cooking.  Esau, of course, was a very talented man.  He was able to find food for himself.  He was able to prepare his own food.  Esau, however, chose not to do so.  He chose instead to accept the convenience of a meal already prepared by his brother.  So what was wrong with that?  Nothing! The terrible wrong for Esau was not that he accepted a convenient fast food meal.  If his brother had freely offered him the meal, there would have been no problem with God.  Esau, however, had no problem paying as the price for that meal the surrender of the birthright that had been given to him by God.  The crux of Esau's problem was not that he bought a meal.  The crux of the problem was that he despised the gift of God.  He treated that gift as being of no greater value than a fast food meal.  By devaluing the gift, Esau was also devaluing the giver.  The jealous God of the universe does not accept being treated as worth less than a Big Mac with Fries.

Esau's difficulty in finding a place of repentance was not because he failed to understand that he had lost something of value.  Rather, his difficulty was that he failed to recognize the value of God who gave him the birthright originally.  When I was in my 20s, I found myself in a very similar place with the Lord.  Jesus had told me he was going to make me a pastor and teacher in my own home.  He confirmed that word through a prophet who spoke to me.  I was sure that I had understood him clearly.  So, the evening after I had heard the prophetic word I went home to see my wife.  I told her what the Lord had said.  And I proceeded to work diligently to fulfill the word of the Lord.  For all the rest of the time that we were living in Florida, I continued to work diligently.  When it came time for us to move from Florida to Virginia, I found and rented a very large and spacious home.  I was going to use that house to fulfill the word of the Lord.  I tried.  I tried.  I tried some more.  It seemed like God was miraculously intervening to keep the very thing He said would happen from coming to pass.  What was wrong?  What was I doing wrong?  Had I been wrong about what God said?  No, the problem was simply this: I valued the word of the Lord more than I value the Lord of the word.  I heard "make me a pastor and teacher in my own home." But my pride kept me focused on me.  I chose to ignore that Jesus said He would do it.  He would make me.  He would transform me.  He would bring to pass his own work.  I struggled and struggled to put myself in the place of God.

After about two years of this continuing struggle, I finally gave up.  I remember my giving up vividly.  I was literally on my face on the floor in the den of our way too large house.  I was pounding on the floor and crying out to God.  I was saying to God I have done everything that I can do.  Finally, I made the important commitment: I said, "God, if You want this to happen, You will have to do it.  I give up." It was like all of heaven gave a great sigh of relief.  A great peace came over my soul.  I could let go of something that had never belonged to me.  I could come back to value the God of the universe, instead of the word of the Lord.  I could let God be God.  Like Esau, I had valued very highly the thing I wanted to happen.  But, I had despised the value of the God who said He would do it.

A similar dynamic is at work among many people who think of themselves as the church.  Every child of God is given a birthright.  It is the child's birthright to hear directly and personally from the Father God.  Jesus affirms that right when he declares that His sheep hear His voice.  Jesus declares the importance of that birthright in his conversation with Peter.  It was not Peter that Jesus was saying was the foundation upon which he would build his Church.  It was not the revelation that Jesus is the Christ.  Jesus was declaring that the foundation of his Church is that we do not get revelation from flesh and blood but from the Father who is in heaven.  The Scriptures make it clear from beginning to end that Father God desires sons who understand Him when He speaks to them.  If you are a follower of Jesus as Lord, it is your spiritual birthright to personally hear the voice of God regularly, in every circumstance, without any question about being confident in Whom you have heard.

Tragically, every Sunday morning, millions of people who believe they are following Jesus go to a meeting, where they substitute the convenience of hearing someone else preach a message for that which is their birthright, the ability to respond to hearing God personally.  The millions think they are being fed the Bread of Life.  And, for the convenience of a fast food meal, they have traded the value of the God of the universe speaking to them personally.  Esau sought a place of repentance, with tears.  Ironically, most of these millions are not even seeking a place of repentance.  They believe they are living in the very best that God has to offer.  I watched on television as one congregation, sitting in front of a famous preacher, heard him proclaim they do not need to hear God they can hear him.  To this day, I find it amazing that the people in the room did not rise as one and run out.  Millions of people have become so accustomed to devaluing the God of the universe that they are prepared to listen to such blasphemy.

I started pondering these things this morning.  I was thinking about this blog.  And I was asking myself the question: "Are the readers of my blog substituting what I write for their own hearing of the Father?" When I heard myself ask the question, my immediate reaction was that I must stop writing the blog.  But the Lord said to me quite clearly that I am to continue following Him to write the blog.  How then, I asked the Lord, am I to prevent these who read it from substituting my blog for hearing you.  The Father chuckled and said to me, "That's not your problem son that's mine." Once again, I had been nosing around that subtle trap.  The dangerous trap is believing that I must deal with every problem.  Some problems are simply not ours to solve.  They belong to the Father and/or to other people.  But, they don't belong to us.  We must all learn to value God.  And, we must learn not to try to take over His position.

The more we deal with the God of the universe, the more we discover real humility.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

July 22 -- So WHY is Anger so Important -- Szczecin

I hope you also are having a very good day.  I awoke fairly early this morning and came to my iPad with the intent of writing to you.  Alas, as I settled into the chair, my body began to mumble about not having enough sleep.  When I leaned back to consider this I began to drift away.  So, not wanting to be defeated, I joined in agreement with my body and went back to bed.  After a couple more hours of sleep, three cups of coffee, and a fascinating set of conversations with Holy Spirit; here I am back to write to you.  You get to read the revised version of what I wanted to say as modified by Holy Spirit and a bit more rest.

Last evening was a wonderful time.  Two long time friends, a married couple from here in Szczecin, came to have dinner with me.  (In case you wondered, yes I can cook a little bit.).  As we chatted the wife, a teacher in the Poland school system, told me she was angry because the school system is destroying the lives of so many of the children entrusted to its care.  I said that I could empathize with her anger; but, the anger of man cannot work the righteousness of God.  I went on to point out she and her good friend (both prophetesses of God) were in a position as teachers in the system to speak the living Words of God into the lives of those young people. This will empower the young ones to make choices to follow the encouragement of God rather than the destruction of the school system.  We, the Body of Christ, are not empowered or authorized to tear down the World's system.  What we are empowered to do is to tear down the works of satan in the lives of individual people who will come and put their trust in Jesus.

The husband and I also chatted about the many things God is doing in him and his life to prepare him for, and expand his vision of, the apostolic ministry he will walk out in the future.  He is such a power house of spiritual insight.  I hope I am around to see some of the awesome ministry he will walk out in service to the Bride of Christ.

As I have been thinking about you this morning, I have also been chewing on that line from James 1:20.  "The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God."  {I have copied the Bible references below for you.}  Perhaps you remember that a few weeks ago, on June 29, I wrote to you about anger.  Then I discussed the root cause of anger and how you might be healed from your anger.  As you might expect, many times when I talk with people who are caught in the anger trap, they quote to me the verse from Ephesians 4:26 where Paul seems to command us to be angry.  But somehow those two ideas just did not seem to fit together in my mind so I went back to look at what the Greek words say and how they would have been understood.

When I looked at Ephesians 4, I discovered that the two words translated "anger" in verse 26 are two different words. Neither of them were likely to be understood the way we understand the word anger today.  The first "Be angry ... " means something much more like the English phrase "Have impulses ... ".  Paul's idea here was one of empathy.  Like, 'of course you have impulses to do some unwise things but do not sin.'  Indeed the Greek word is the root from which we get the English word "orgy", the ultimate indulgence in people following their own impulses.  The second word translated "anger" is a word that refers to our emotional irritation.  Paul here is saying, we need to get our peace back and not go to bed upset by the impulses that we struggled with during the day.

So then Holy Spirit took me to another word.  In James 1, we are warned that our temptation and sin result from our lusts.  Now for much of my life I thought that lust was a reference to intense sexual desires.  But, Holy Spirit asked me to look this word up this morning.  To my surprise I discovered a word that describes the whirlwind of emotions (including anger) that gets us so upset.  It is this whirlwind of emotions (any emotions -- anger, rage, sexual passion, intense greed, injured pride, etc.) the whirlwind sucks us into temptation and sin.  It is in this context that James warns us in verse 20 to slow down.  Be slow to allow these impulses to develop because the impulses of man do not produce the righteousness of God.

King David in Psalm 37 elaborates upon these concepts.  He says we need to stop being upset and fretting about the things evil people do.  Instead, he tells us to allow God to give us desires by taking the time to delight ourselves in Him.  As we receive these God given desires; as we commit them to Him; he will bring them to pass.  He goes on to encourage us to take a patient longer term view of life because in the end the evil doers will get what is coming to them and the righteous, patient, ones will receive the fruit of God's graciousness.

So, I also urge you:  Slow down your emotional reactions.  You are deeply loved by God.  Receive and abide in His PEACE.  Do not let your impulses cause you to act before you think.  Hear Holy Spirit about your path.  And when you do get irritated, take time before you go to bed to let God give you a patient long term perspective so you do not remain irritated.  Own your peace it belongs to you.  Then you will be able to deeply trust Papa God and let Him fulfill the deep desires He has put in your heart.

With much love, I remain,

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart

Ephesians 4: 26 (NASB)

BE angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.

Psalm 37: 1 - 9 (NASB)

Do not fret because of evildoers,

Be not envious toward wrongdoers.

For they will wither quickly like the grass

And fade like the green herb.

Trust in the Lord and do good;

Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the Lord;

And He will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord,

Trust also in Him, and He will do it.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light

And your judgment as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;

Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,

Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

Cease from anger and forsake wrath;

Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.

For evildoers will be cut off,

But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.

James 1: 12 - 20 (NASB)

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures. This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.

July 21 -- The LAW of the LORD.-- Szczecin

Good Morning, it's a beautiful morning here with high thin clouds accenting the blue sky.  We are loved.  He loves us continually.  That is simply amazing.  He, the God of all creation, loves you and me.  He actually enjoys you as His personal companion.  He likes to sit and chat with you even more than I do.  And I really would like to be sitting there sipping my coffee and able to see your face as we talk.

Yesterday, I was privileged to spend the day electronically back in the USA.  A long time friend of mine, whom I love deeply, was going through a medical emergency.  His medical emergency was the product of his own foolishness. So many of them are.  But, in this case, my friend reacted without losing his joy or peace.  He continued to believe in God's personal love for him.  He was able to recognize his own foolishness without letting the enemy overwhelm him with feelings of guilt or self-hatred.  When I consider where this man came from just a few years ago, this was a total miracle.  His growth was tested and he passed with flying colors.  He is genuinely ready for more advanced levels of training.  Wow !  God is good.  (Would you like a laugh ?  Think how different the Scriptures would be. Imagine, instead of Paul writing letters to be delivered weeks or months later to his friends, Paul sends text messages to Timothy or Titus.)

Often, when I am reading the translated Scriptures, I find myself curious about what the original words were and what the listeners to those words would have understood.  Having had occasion to speak through translators on four continents, it has become clear to me what the listeners receive from the translator is not necessarily what I said.  Indeed, one of my translators finally confessed to me that when I said something he disagreed with, he simply told the audience something different from what I said.  I have discovered that all translators have a certain amount of bias.  When there are two or more interpretations of the original language, they will choose the one that most closely aligns with their own framework of understanding because it seems right to them.

As I was reading Psalm 1, I read the part about the “law of the Lord.”  Given the enormous importance of the Law throughout the Scriptures, I became curious about that word “law.”  When I looked it up, I was shocked to discover it means something different.  The word was not referring to a set of rules like I had always understood it.  It was not a word that described a series of “Thou shalt …” and “Thou shalt not …” statements.  Rather the word in its original meaning was much more accurately understood to describe a whole group of precepts or principles.  Thus, the Psalmist was not discussing a man who meditates on a mere set of rules about our behavior. Rather the Psalmist was discussing a man who meditates about the principles and precepts that arise from the nature of who God is. He is a man who ponders these concepts continually. 

What about New Covenant discussions of “Law”?  In Romans 8 Paul is discussing the “Law of Sin and Death” as distinguished from the “Law of Spirit and Life.”  Again, I went to look up that word “law.”  The root of the word translated “law” has to do with the apportioning out of something.  That leads to a principle of how the distribution is done.  So, the passage is understood to be discussing the what sin and death apportion or give to us as distinct from what the Spirit and Life apportion or give to us.

You notice in both cases, Old and New, what the Scriptures are dealing with does not have to do with a mere set of rules.  Rather, they can be better understood to be wrestling with our grasp of and alignment with the principals and precepts embodied in the very character of God.  On this basis, it becomes clear and obvious that we are incapable of getting those principles and precepts clear by the power of our own reasoning and logic, the strength of our flesh.  Equally obvious, our only effectual approach is through the Holy Spirit.  

Again we realize the Book is about an introduction to the person of God not about rules for our behavior.  Our behavior will arise out of our relationship. But behavior is not what produces relationship.  Relationship is produced by our receiving His steadfast unconditional love for us.

Papa God loves you completely just like you are right now.  Pause a moment and drink in His LOVE.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart