A Winnowed Church

Perhaps one of the most significant things to come out of this pandemic and stressful election cycle is the revelation that a wide variety of interpretations exist within the Church of what is actually taking place in the spiritual realm. This is not the first time in history that the Church has gone through a season of winnowing within its ranks. Until the dust settles and we are finally able to discern what God has been doing, we need to guard our hearts. That is the only way to guarantee safe passage through these turbulent waters. 

 

Something Has Been Birthed

This morning, Jan said to me, “Something has been birthed.” Around our house, that means the Spirit brought something into our realm that was not present before the birthing process took place.  This process has been very uncomfortable on many levels. Just like it is in the natural, a delivery is intense and fatiguing. At the height of the pain, it can also be disorienting. 

What you have been feeling for months was not the norm of your life pre-pregnancy. You have questioned yourself at times, wondering if something was wrong with you and how you have been feeling. While a pregnant mother can't forget that she is carrying a child in her womb, many of us can forget we are carrying a promise. We forget that a delivery requires a season of gestation and development. We may not have a physical belly bump, morning sickness, or crazy food cravings. However, we can manifest similar issues spiritually and assign our confused feelings to other areas of our life, especially if we have forgotten we are pregnant and carrying a developing promise. 

 

This reminds me of a movie I saw a long time ago. The title slips my mind. In the movie, a young woman was in a war zone nine months pregnant. In the heat of battle, with bombs going off and bullets flying everywhere, she had to stop and give birth to her child in the rubble of the conflict. Her context reminds me of what is taking place in our culture at this moment in our history. 

We all want the birthing of our promise to happen in a clean, calm, and secure environment, but that is not how things happen when conflict surrounds our lives. The promise God has destined for birthing in your life at this time may be delivered in the heat of battle, not in a place of peace and security. This is not a time to worry. Focus on the birthing. God was faithful to keep the promise alive and growing in your life even when you forgot it was there, and He will be faithful to see it through to its final delivery. Trust Him. He has been making these kinds of deliveries since Eden. 

Reading Our Bias Into Another Person's Life

It never ceases to amaze me (and I admit, at times, it can frustrate me) how easily some people can read into something I wrote or said and allow their bias to be the interpreter of my intent. Our bias is a powerful filter that can cause us to interpret the purpose of others in a way the person being accused or challenged never intended.

 

We live in a world where our ability to offer quick and unfiltered responses to others is readily available.  It can happen on social media or when hearing a passing comment made during a casual conversation. We do this without pausing and asking ourselves if our corrective confrontation is valid based on what the other party meant to say, or is it just our bias talking. 

 

We live in strange times made even more bizarre when people read into our content and attempt to reinterpret our words through the filter of their emotionally-driven bias. It makes me chuckle at times, causing me to respond, “Come on, really?”. It’s like predicting who will win an election. You have a 50/50 chance to be a “prophet.” These situations can be amusing at times, and on other occasions, they can be distressing. 

I would suggest taking a humorous posture when these things transpire.  It will keep you emotionally, and spiritually sane as the levels of social insanity continue to ramp up, and our biases are given free rein to run ahead of our integrity. 

 

  

The Debris of Undisciplined Opinion

I listened to an interview with an astronomer who said every day the Earth is bombarded with 100 tons of dust and sand-sized particles, remnants of space rocks that exploded when entering our atmosphere. There is another kind of bombardment taking place – the unrestrained bombardment of undisciplined opinion.

Perhaps the most impactful fruits of the Spirit being manifest at this time are patience and self-control. In frustration at the level of unrighteousness and deception rampant in our culture, there have been times when I was prepared to lash out and bombard my world with the depths of my frustration. Then I realized I would have lost my voice, not the sound, but its impact. 

 

Wisdom weighs the content of what it speaks by the scales of Heaven before it allows its words to enter the atmosphere of culture and relationships. Wisdom pauses long enough to allow the Spirit to intervene and thwart the hijacking of its voice from an untimely release. Wisdom refuses to become just another piece of falling social space debris used to support the chorus of undisciplined and angry voices that failed to weigh the substance and timing of their rant. 

 

This continual bombardment of opinion changes nothing. It is only dust and, in the course of history, will have become an unrecognizable deposit of debris just like the 100 tons of space rock grit that entered our atmosphere yesterday unnoticed.

Avoiding Unnecessary Conflict

This is a difficult time in our culture, and it has become a dangerous time as well. People are becoming increasingly frustrated, angry, and prone to violence. Be careful how you respond to the emotional responses of people, even on social media. Your well-being may depend on it.

It was a typical night on patrol many years ago. I was a one-man sheriff’s patrol unit working the streets of Cupertino, California. About midnight, I pulled over a car for a traffic violation. The stop was made in a dark and isolated place at the edge of an orchard. As soon as both our vehicles stopped moving, the occupant of the car I pulled over, quickly swung open his door and charged back toward me on a dead run. 

On each car stop I ever made, I had my door open before my patrol unit stopped rolling.  I was already out of my unit standing by my vehicle when the man began his charge.

 

As he ran toward me, I drew my nightstick and took a defensive stance, anticipating a physical altercation. As he got close, he stopped and yelled at me, “What are you going to do with that, hit me?” I said, “Yes, unless you back off, NOW!” He finally backed off, and after a few moments trying to explain my reaction to his action, he refused to be reasonable. l issued him a citation along with a word of advice should another officer ever stop him. At no point in my interaction with the man did he see the error of his ways. He drove off as angry as when I first stopped him.

 

Tempers are short in our culture, and emotions are thin. Some online and in personal conversations are beginning to look and sound a lot like the angry man who charged me on the car stop. If you are one of the angry ones charging every opinion that is different from yours, you might not realize the jeopardy you are creating for yourself and those you love. Dial it back before it gets out of hand. No opposing opinion will ever be changed by unbridled rage. 

"Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry" (James 1:19).

Redefining God

Over the last several decades in western culture, some have attempted to redefine God. The isolated halls of academia and a culture living insulated from much of the sorrow that afflicts the rest of the world has been a seedbed for this process of progressive redefinition. At the end of this process, an idol will stand before us, an idol forged by a misguided view of God formed apart from His word.

Some of these redefinitions sound appealing until they begin to stumble over Scripture. One example floating around and gaining some traction is the idea that when Jesus rose from the dead, all humanity was saved. We are told we no longer have to worry about the response of people to the Gospel since everyone will eventually end up in Heaven. After all, they say, the God we created would not have it otherwise. This version of God has no consequences attached to human action or inaction. Again, it sounds good until the Scripture gets in the way.

 

In the issue of personal salvation, words like “believe,” “receive,” and “accept” cause these redefiniions to stumble. John 1:12 is one example, “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.” All relationships require an invitation and a commitment. For those of us who have married, an invitation of matrimony was offered and accepted before we could enter into the life-long commitment of marriage. Love requires the exercise of our will.

 

When Jesus walked the earth, there were no altar calls or sinner’s prayers, but there was a point in each person’s life when they yielded themselves to the invitation of Jesus to receive the life He offered. There is a lot of freedom of expression offered in the exercise of our faith. But that freedom never lessens the importance of the exercise of our will when it comes to the offer of eternal life. 

 

In the days to come, those who actually take the time to read the Bible to understand its meaning and context, and remain teachable in the process, will be the ones who stay clear of the idols created by pop theology and the deceptions they produce. Even when we think we have it all figured out more revelation will come to challenge what we confidently thought was the truth, but sadly, was only an idol we created in the image of our limited understanding. 

The Smell of Smoke

It is 2:00 a.m. as I write these words.  I awoke an hour ago to the strong smell of smoke. We have experienced smoke from forest fires before, but this was the strongest yet, almost like a billowing smoke warning us that fire was near. Since we are surrounded by forest, I was concerned. As I rustled in bed, Jan said, “I smell smoke.” Immediately I was out of bed trying to find the source.

After a few minutes of checking our property, I got in my truck and drove the roads around our home to see where the smoke was coming from. After about 30 minutes, I returned home. No flames in sight. We were officially “up,” so I put the coffee on and went through my mental checklist of evacuation plans just in case. I called the non-emergency number of our fire department. I was told no reports of a fire. All is well at this point. 

It is amazing how simple things get when you think you might have to evacuate and run for your life. In an emergency, my go-list is simple and prepared. Jan, our dog, a briefcase filled with important documents, a few survival resources, and out the door we would go if needed. I am ready. What I am not ready for is the unknown that would follow. That is in the Lord’s hands. 

If you had to do a spiritual or emotional evacuation with no time to spare, what are the essentials of your faith? Do you know where they are stored? Are they ready to go? While it can a bit disconcerting having to think through the basics of what you would need to take with you in a natural disaster, it is an important exercise to complete. It is also a valuable exercise for a believer if the familiar trappings of your faith are ever removed from your life. 

 

This morning, I am thinking about smoke, fires, and possible evacuation in the natural. Spiritually and emotionally, in this pandemic/riot/election crazy time, I have once again boiled my faith down to just the essentials - love God and love people. It keeps me mobile and unencumbered, able to move with the Spirit wherever He leads. As a result, I have defined what I need to live my faith on the run. That has been a refreshing and affirming exercise. 

The Real Source of Our Conflict

At this time, when so much emotion is swirling about, and when each person holds a passionate and immovable position, it is too easy to forget what is taking place. Death is manifesting its presence, and that manifestation is taking many forms. 

There is a spirit called Death. In the Greek language, he is known as Apollyon. In Hebrew, Abaddon. This spirit is defined as “Destroyer” and “the author of apocalypse.” The definition also includes “ruin, “destruction, “the minister of death,” and “the author of havoc on earth.” These definitions are sourced from a root word meaning “perish.”

The manifestation of Death is not always a final blow, shot, or verdict. It works like the proverbial frog in a kettle giving its dark mission time to misguide us leading us down a path of greater forms of deception and decay until, at last, something dies.

 

When peaceful protests for righteous issues are allowed to become riots that lead to anarchy and eventually death, death will have accomplished its goal.

 

Abortion, once a sad solution for an early-stage unwanted pregnancy, moved its demand for death to mid-term pregnancies, and now to the unimagined horror of late-term abortion.

 

Poverty created by disadvantage and dismissal of those living in the decaying inner cities of our nation has created generations who have only known loss and lack. This disadvantage and dismissal have brought the death-producing mindset of hopelessness to an entire family line.

 

A marriage that began in love and commitment ends in divorce. Death has a mission to destroy the oneness of the earthly image of Christ and the Church by removing reconciliation and forgiveness from the relationship.

 

When Jesus rose from the dead, He disempowered Death. The faith of the Church is built upon that victory. Our response to the resurrection of Jesus is to bring life in all its forms to our conversations and actions. Paul repeatedly preached a message about the implications of resurrection life because it is what empowers the Gospel message by disempowering the ministry of Death in all its forms. 

 

Many are praying against the byproducts of this spirit. There are many examples of these byproducts of Death, along with the ones I noted above. Praying against these manifestations is a good thing, but only if we recognize the root that is spawning such issues and giving them a place in our lives. 

Going to the root cause of the brokenness in our world - Death - will keep us from making enemies of those who are manifesting the byproducts of that dark spirit. It will also help us reevaluate our response to what agitates us and allow us an opportunity to define our real enemy.

 

  

A Prophetic Reality Check

“Don’t say such things,” the people respond. “Don’t prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!” (Micah 2:6).

Some believe prophecy in the New Covenant should only be words that strengthen, encourage, and comfort. While that is true for some prophecy, it is not true for all prophecy. Love warns us and will challenge those things that weaken, discourage, and disquiet our souls. A prophetic word can also reveal the consequence of our sin if left unchallenged. 

 

We need to be careful we don’t craft prophetic messages in the image of our worst fears or false interpretations of reality. We need a daily infusion of discernment to help us wade through the sea of prophetic insight coming our way. 

 

Prophetic words travel from the heart of God and pass through the personalities of those who attempt to share those words. We need to make sure we have allowed the Lord to mature our discernment to such a degree that we can pick through the personalities and presentations involved to discover what the Lord is saying.  

We are living in a difficult and dangerous time in history. Be careful what message you choose to follow. All words have destinations for those who follow their content. Not all those destinations are where God wants to lead His people.

It's Sad

On Facebook, I have a combined list of friends and followers that number in the thousands. I only mention the number issue for the context of what I want to say. From time to time, in a sea of "friends," someone will become a friend who disagrees with me. They stand out because of the unpleasant nature of their disagreement. I had a person like that who just unfollowed me. Over the years, each time this person confronted me through a negative comment, my first response was, “Did they actually read what I wrote.”  Today, I realized they had enough of me and unfollowed my Facebook page.

Here is the strange thing, I actually felt a bit sad when they left. I was sad that expressing a personal opinion would lead to a dismissal. The person is a follower of Jesus. I always thought the body of Christ could express opposing opinions and still be able to find the way forward, working together to understand each other's viewpoints and grow in the process.

 

What are our relationships going to look like on Wednesday, November 4, the day after the 2020 Presidential election? How about the day after a verdict is issued for a heated trial? Or what about the aftermath of another police shooting when the full video is released, not just a cropped version used to create a false narrative and stir dissent? 

We could make a long list of relationship breakers some people might think are reasons to say goodbye to a person of an opposing opinion. For me, it’s a sad thing because it can announce to the world that people of faith do not have the emotional or spiritual bandwidth to process challenging issues and still remain in a relationship.  It is also sad because if we remove opposing opinions and the challenges they bring to our thinking process, we will create an echo chamber where the only input we receive is the sound of our own voice.

 

Repairing a Frayed Faith

With so many opinions and demands pulling at us during this unfamiliar time in history, it is easy to feel like a worn garment coming apart at the seams. This fraying can produce a thin faith that will rob us of the pure essence of our relationship with God.

I never think of Paul, the great and fearless apostle, as ever being afraid of anything. Yet, he told the Corinthians he was afraid of one thing. "I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3).

Unpacking the language Paul used to frame his comment, he described our faith as simple. Simplicity here refers to our focus. In all the cultural debris being tossed at us, a simple focus on Jesus is our greatest defense against deception. Paul described this simple faith as pure. In other words, unpolluted by any outside source no matter how noble or timely it might appear. He also said our faith should involve devotion to Christ alone. This is a phrase in the original text that means to enter into something, to move towards.

If you feel frayed and the seams of your faith are becoming threadbare, the only remedy for repair is to lay everything down and move once again toward the Lord as your only focus. Embrace the simplicity that you encountered when you first met Him. As you move toward Him, the pollution of other agendas will fall away, and a new clarity will come. A rewoven faith is a wise faith and a faith able to endure the harshest fraying abrasions that come from living in a challenging season of life.

 

  

Wait For The Good Report

A good report will always prevail because God is faithful. He will perform what He promised if we choose to believe and respond accordingly. If you haven’t heard the good report yet, wait for it before you act. All your future decisions will be affected by how you interpret your current reality in light of that word.

No Longer Have A Heart For It

You have been processing a transition taking place in your thinking. The phrase, “I no longer have a heart for it,” is not a negative confession, but a definition of your unfolding reality. Your transition is a work of God. Scripture tells us the Lord will give us the desires of our heart if we are seeking Him and His Kingdom. There are times when the Lord will radically change the desires of our hearts and what holds our attention. This change affects where we will invest our time, energy, and resources. Not everyone will understand. Change can be challenging if it upends a status quo you thought would be your forever place. 

 

Differing Perspectives

The body of Christ is not designed to walk and talk in lockstep over every issue in society and all aspects of theology. Our oneness is in the person of Jesus Christ, not our limited interpretation of Him or the events of culture. Paul said we are all unique and have a different place within His body, each with a different function, purpose, and location. We need to give each other a bit more room in our social discourse, especially when we see the same event or process the same information but interpret that input from a different perspective.  A growing number of people are becoming fatigued by the political spirit they see at work in our government. We owe them an image of Jesus Christ and His Church that does not empower its message by that same spirit.

 

Keep Your Eye on California

As a native Californian having lived in Oregon now for more years than I spent in the state growing up, I have watched California's life and politics with interest. Yesterday, Kamala Harris was selected as Joe Biden’s running mate. Again, my focus was directed to California. 

I was born and raised in California. I love the state’s diversity of geography, climate, and culture. The state is now large enough economically to represent the status of a nation. It is also a state in trouble. Some of its cities are revealing deep despair. People are leaving California in droves. It is not the state of my youth. California has been described as a national indicator of the future direction of the nation. At this moment, it is indicating trouble. It is also destined by the Lord to become a spiritual indicator exhibiting potential for revival and transformation. God loves California, and its people and He has something good planned for the future of the state. 

Four months ago, I wrote a blog article titled, “Out From the Shadow” (linked below). At the time, I knew what the Lord was saying to me, but did not have permission to write in detail. My words appeared like a riddle by design. At the time, I told Jan I felt Kamala Harris would be selected as Biden’s running mate. In the brief article, I said, “One will come forth and walk in the shadow of another. This shadowed one is the primary, not the secondary.”

 

Like some have already expressed they believe Mr. Biden may not have an extended stay in office if elected, for whatever reason. Behind Vice-President Biden now stands Kamala Harris and behind Harris in the shadows, stands the Governor of California, Gavin Newsome. Harris and Newsome both came from the seedbed of the San Francisco political arena. Harris was the city’s District Attorney and later became the state’s Attorney General, and was eventually elected to the state Senate. Newsome was the mayor of San Francisco and later ascended to state politics as Governor. Newsome has been seen by some political observers as a person with presidential aspirations. Also hailing from San Francisco is Speaker Nancy Pelosi. San Francisco is a powerful and well-funded political machine that has produced state and national leaders.

 

What California is revealing to us is the course of a nation’s future in natural terms. Politics, whether you like them or not, do not accurately reveal a nation's spiritual future. Keep your eye on California, not for its politics, but for its spiritual potential. Politics are only natural indicators, not the future spiritual potential of a nation. People in office from any party are not an enemy. They are people loved by God who deserve our prayers. Look past the personalities and platforms to see what God is doing in the state. Begin to pray for those in power and those aspiring to power. Don’t limit your prayers to simply a change of those in office or a particular policy with which you disagree. Keep praying for the hearts of the state’s leaders to experience God’s love. Also, keep praying for God's justice to be revealed so that real change can take place.

 

I am believing in something beautiful and transformative to happen in my home state. God wants to show us that those we might deem as enemies of the good can actually become partners in righteousness. For some, this will be a leap of faith to believe it could be possible because they only know and have been led to believe a negative narrative, not a Kingdom narrative.

 

God is creating a new narrative for California, and that sound is being heard by those with ears to hear. That is the narrative we need to pray into and its where we should invest our resources and energy. Keep God’s heart for California in the forefront of your thinking and call to remembrance the prophecies of goodness spoken over her. 

www.prophetichorizons.com/2020/03/out-from-shadow.html

An Approaching Moment of Singularity

I listened to an interview with a scientist describing the concept of Singularity. Singularity is a moment in history when seemingly disconnected events happen at the same time with such rapidity, they seem to the human mind as a single event. It would be like all the scientific and technological advancements made in the last 100 years happening in a single moment. It will be an overwhelming experience to a mind not accustomed to such rapid revelation.

A moment in human history is approaching that will challenge our understanding of life and how the future will unfold. When this time comes, the Lord will be the only safe harbor as these events unfold, seemingly out of control. 

This is not another end-times scenario. It is a moment of transition where the Church will be revived and reformed to engage culture with hope and offer solutions that will solve many of the struggles faced by humanity. The opportunity these events offer will become gateways into Ephesians 3:20 moments in human history where God will accomplish more than we could imagine. These events will lead us to a hope-filled future.

On the world stage, events are beginning to cluster into what will become a moment of singularity. The prophets have spoken of these events many times but as isolated revelations. A moment of singularity is being formed that will bring together the fulfillment of multiple prophecies that seemed wild and questionable at the time of their initial delivery. This single moment of mass fulfillment will create confusion and in some cases, delusion for many whose eyes are not focused on the Lord, even among those whose faith appeared strong in the past.

 

As this moment of singularity appears, there will be only one way to survive emotionally and spiritually. As the psalmist said, “I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 16:8). As the world shakes in a moment of unexpected singularity, we have an opportunity to live with an unshakeable faith in the One who is never shaken by the turmoil and transitions of humanity.

 

Politics and the Kingdom of God

Recently, someone asked me for advice on how, as a follower of Jesus Christ, they could wisely navigate the emotional terrain of the upcoming presidential election cycle. The person asking was sick and tired of the games both sides were playing as displayed on the various news outlets, 24/7.

I said, “Look at the platform of each party and align your vote with the issues of the platform that most accurately reflects your values. Don’t focus on the antics of any candidate who stands on a particular political platform. Antics are a diversion.” I went on to say, “Once you make your choice, don’t put your hope in the outcome of any election. The Lord will still be sitting securely on His throne after the election no matter who wins, and He will remain there for the remainder of human history and beyond. The Lord is able to exercise His will no matter how dire or disappointing the outcome of an election might appear.”

 

I ended our conversation by telling the person the only thing they had control over was their response to the issues of life. I said the mark of maturity for a follower of Jesus Christ is the ability to speak and live the truth in love. Once they have said and done all they could do, they had one more choice to make - to rest in the faithfulness of God. 

 

I remember many years ago a word spoken by Jack Hayford to worried congregants assembled the Sunday after the November election. Someone was elected to the office of President that most evangelical believers did not support. Jack said from the pulpit, “God didn’t lose the election. He wasn’t even running.” That message will still preach.

In Those Days and In These Days

“In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes” (Judges 17:6).

 

The spirit of rebellion manifesting in our nation has arrived and displayed its presence because many have become their own lords, believer, and non-believer alike. Just as Micah did in Judges 17, we can lose our way to such a degree that we create shrines and idols to honor our rebellion and begin to worship a false image of freedom. This indictment is for all from masked anarchists wanting to tear it all down to someone sitting in a church pew wringing their hands in disgust at what is happening in the streets and placing their hope in the outcome of the next election.

 

We don’t do well when we become our own lords and rulers. Only God can be Lord, and only He can rule righteously. This is why His Kingdom is not of this world but invades this world, displacing shrines of deception that rob us of real hope. 

 

A great apostasy is afoot, and the apostate spirit revealing itself is a practiced deceiver. Be careful where you hitch the wagon of your commitment. At some point, that commitment will require your worship. 

 

 

 

Beware of Accusation

Satan is described in the Book of Revelation as an accuser. He makes accusations based on false evidence. He is afoot today in ways that seem credible until you pry back the layers of deception and discover the hidden truth. Be careful before you toss out an accusation against anyone. Only God knows the truth no matter how persuasive the first draft of evidence might seem. A biased and profit-motivated media is not always a reliable source for truth, neither are frustrated and angry people. We may never know the full story upon which accusations or acquittals are sourced. At that point, it will seem counterintuitive to rest and wait for the Lord, but that is the way of spiritual discipline and self-control.

Chasing After God

There has been only one principle that Jan and I followed when needing to discover our next step in life. That principle has been to follow the Lord at all costs. We had a few times when we stumbled, but when we finally stepped out in faith, that single principle has led us without fail in the last 47 years of marriage and 40 years of service in God’s Kingdom.

At times chasing after God made no sense financially or logically. It created challenging times with good friends who did not understand. It changed how people viewed us, and in some cases, radically altered the trajectory of our lives.

As someone on the last lap or two of life, I can look back over the previous four decades of life and say, following the leading of the Lord has been the single most important decision we have ever made. It has been our key to fulfillment in all areas of our life. Today, Jan and I have no needs, but if tomorrow should a need arise, we know that in Christ, we lack no good thing. 

If you want to know your next step in life - chase after the Lord. His is the calling of your life, not what you do to express that calling. Follow Him wherever He leads no matter the cost or the jeopardy that choice creates. The place where God is leading you and how you will execute that calling will be the by-products of obeying His voice. That choice will challenge your faith when your doubts and the counsel of others tell you to take a safe and predictable course. 

Each day, Jan and I wake up and thank God for our life together, knowing we did not get here on our own or by our wisdom. We were brought to this place by a faithful Lord who invited us to follow Him. He is waiting to take your hand and show you how to move forward to something you could not imagine. Take Him up on His invitation, and you will never live with regret.