Whom do we honor, today? The approach to Memorial Day.

Whom do we honor, today? The approach to Memorial Day.

Yesterday in church, Pastor, like so many other Pastors and people in general, focused on and asked if anyone in our congregation had served or was currently serving in the military and if so would they stand up so they could be honored this Memorial Day. My husband who had served his country for 23 years did not want to stand up, I had to nudge him and say, “Stand up honey.” Later I asked him why he never wants to stand up on Memorial Day weekend when this occurs. His answer, “It is not about me. Memorial Day is for those who died serving; Veteran’s Day is for me.” I thought to myself now there is someone who truly wants to honor the ones who deserve honoring. I know Pastors heart was good, as is many on television and in pubic arenas who thanks our Veterans but as an old retired Veteran reminder me, let us all remember it is about those under the ground not the ones sitting beside us. We can thank them on Veterans Day for today let us take a silent moment to remember those who made it possible to grill today, sit with family, visit a military graveyard, whatever we choose to do we will do in part because one of those brave individuals who died.

Truth in Love – blog entry for May 25th 2012 - Question about Christian Community’s Survival

Re: Question about Christian Community’s Survival

Friday, May 25, 2012

For many of you much of what I am about to write may be a given, to others it may be new or even controversial. Please know my heart is not to be condescending or patronizing to anyone but instead to make a spiritual plea for the survival and wellbeing of the Body of Christ as a whole. Therefore, I humbly submit to you for your prayerful consideration what God has been urging me to share.

In order to impact and influence our society we must all be paddling our boat in a similar direction. We live in a time in history where the togetherness of the TRUE Christian Community is going to be vital to it’s health. The Body of Christ is being torn apart by an imbalance in its teaching or a flat out refusal to stand for God’s Standard on certain issues, the result being a loss of influence on and in our society. The world looks at us and sees so much infighting and so many wishy-washy beliefs that they have no interest in exploring what our Jesus has to offer them. Tons of once dedicated and devoted Christians and Christian Leaders have taken the concept of loving the world into the kingdom to the point that they have sold out God’s Principles and Standards along the way. We have lost our way as a collective group, many hearts have hardened and most are so guarded they cannot extend their arms to their brothers and sisters in Christ. Leaders are so worried that unity means selling out their beliefs that they are by default selling out Christ Church and purpose through their disunity.

There are many levels of commitment, many sub-cultures, and many forms of oppression within the Christian Community as a whole. A general lack of unity along with localized self-centeredness, which has taken the form of isolation within one’s own local ministry, project, outreach, and/or congregation, has perpetuated the growth of some dangerous teachings and/or positions on societal issues. Whereas the issues listed below are in no way an exhaustive list of the thorns of disunity they are some of the most important and influential of our current day. They are the issues, which the TRUE Church must come together on in unity and hold as God’s Standard in order to regain their godly power, godly strength, and godly influence as a light to the world. Let us remember our unity effects our anointing, Psalm 133. Jesus knew and stated in John 13:11 that not all of His disciple were clean, nevertheless, He chose to wash their feet.

(NKJV)

Psalm 133

Blessed Unity of the People of God

A Song of Ascents. Of David.

¹ Behold, how good and how pleasant it is

For brethren to dwell together in unity!

² It is like the precious oil upon the head,

Running down on the beard,

The beard of Aaron,

Running down on the edge of his garments.

³ It is like the dew of Hermon,

Descending upon the mountains of Zion;

For there the Lord commanded the blessing—

Life forevermore.

The issues of concern for contemplation:

We need to become one unified voice on these most critical of issues in our Body and in our society.

The Deity of Jesus and His virgin birth. This is not a debatable truth, it is critical to ones salvation that they have a proper understand of who Jesus is and how He came into the world from His heavenly abode. Jesus having no deity or not being born of a virgin equals no TRUE Christianity, period.

Homosexuality is a sin issue not a civil rights issue. The church and its leaders are much too politically correct on this matter. We are to be vessel of truth; therefore, political correctness is not something we should be known for possessing. We cannot sit by silently and watch those with the loudest voices decide what is right and not right, God has already done that. God in His Word, the Bible, labels homosexuality sin, not me, not you, and not man…God.

Marriage is only the man and woman relationship. Marriage comes from God, not government, and we must protect the scared union God formed. Marriage is representative of Christ’s union with His people, His Church, and as such should have its purity protected.

A balanced perspective on women’s service to the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ, and each congregation or ministry therein is made up of men and women. The idea that both sexes are not needed to minister to the needs of those people is simply ridiculous. Men need men and women need women in many if not most area of spiritual growth, restoration, and healing. We cannot allow the Body of Christ to be dominated by women who are oppressed by extreme fundamentalism nor by women who are in their mannerisms spiritual feminist. Women need to be affirmed in their personal calling by God and taught to serve God alongside men with full confidence and faith without usurping the authority of the direct and personal men God has placed in their lives; equal to in God’s eyes, yet, not dominate over these men. Both men and women have a purpose in and calling to ministry.

As Follower of Christ, our adherence is to God over earthly authorities. More so than any other time in my memory Christian Leaders and general Christians seems to be playing both sides of the fence. They are willing to represent God and God’s agenda to the point that it does not conflict with other authorities. Yet, most of Jesus’ disciples were put to death for siding with God and God’s Ways over local governmental and spiritual authorities. We obey as long as it does not require that we sin against what God has given us, or told us, to do. We as a collective group seem to have forgotten this inconvenient truth.

Okay you have been confronted now. So what are you going to do? Are you going to lift your voice and help the Christian Community survive in America?

Have a great Memorial Day.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

¹¹And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, ¹²for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— ¹⁶from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Truth in Love – blog for Tuesday, May 08, 2012 – Entry – The Great Divide

Truth in Love – blog

Tuesday, May 08, 2012 – Entry – The Great Divide

The different depths and cultures of Christianity, meaning true Believers and Followers of Jesus the Christ, within the United States along is so vast. Spiritually speaking, it is like the great divide of Christianity. Granted I have not been to or lived in every area of the country but I have been to and lived in a great many of them and have served to in full-time ministry in most of them I have been to or lived in; and I can assure you the difference between the spiritual depth of, and/or oppression of, God’s people is a vast. Now is this because of God or because of man?

The area of the country that I currently live in is vastly more spiritually oppressed and so far behind what God is doing among His people than any other place I have lived in since the beginning of my ministry. It is as though God has brought me personally full circle back to the same type of environment that I started out in some 20 years ago when I first went into the ministry. Things that God was showing us 20 years ago, things that we were enacting by the mid to late nineties, are brand new concepts in this part of the country. Yet they are not brand new, God has been moving in this capacity for at least 15 to 20 years. So this begs the question, Why the disconnect, why the great divide?

In part, the answer can be found in spiritual oppression itself. In more oppressed environments, God has a much more difficult time getting people to recognize and implement His Will and Purpose[s]. In these environments you find a lot of religiosity, better known as religious tradition, a heavy resistance to change, a lot of fear, unbalanced leadership meaning leaders who are way too liberal or way to dogmatic or fundamentalist in nature. Now don’t get me wrong, there something to be said for a certain amount of dogmatism and fundamentalism. The key here is a certain amount of each, as they relate to basic doctrine and the authority of the Scripture; both are fine and a necessary component in our society. However, there is a darker side to dogmatism and fundamentalism and that dark side stunts the work of God.

Another part of the problem that creates the great divide or that disconnect spiritually is the individuals who permeate the Christian community in leadership but are not servant leaders they are hirelings, there for financial gain, social gain, political gain, to feed it their own wants and desires, and or what the Bible calls selfish ambition. Yes, they are there, they are around you every week when you go to church. They are just more prevalent in some locations that others. Therefore, where people do not have a sincere heart for what God wants to do among His people, He cannot work or move. For these individuals it is more about them than it is about what God is doing or what God wants to do. That is completely backwards, it is always, I repeat always, about God!

In answer to our original question, it is not God who is holding up the show, it is man. Therefore, the reason that you see what appears to be God working among His people at different times in different places is really a manifestation of the people’s willingness to respond to what God is doing. God is continually seeking the cooperation of His people in order that He might manifest is Will and Purpose on earth. The problem is they will not respond to in unison. The fact that God’s people have not responded in unison has created a vacuumed that the Enemy has been able to come into and fill. That vacuumed and it results can be found in the distorted religious groups, which call themselves, chrisitan [small “c” intended]. If only Gods people would unite in fulfilling His Will the impact on our country would be astounding. Won’t you please join me in doing that? Will you please urge your local Christian community to do that? Do we not owe it to Jesus after all He has done for us?

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

¹¹And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, ¹²for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— ¹⁶from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Truth in Love – blog - - - Tuesday, May 1st 2012 – Entry – Difference Blindness

Truth in Love – blog

Tuesday, May 1^st 2012 – Entry – Difference Blindness

The Body of Christ is guilty of focusing so much on its internal differences that it has lost its ability to be a voice within the United States. What was once a country rich in the blessings of God, a country that honored Jesus, has become a country where Christians and Christianity is widely discriminated against. How did this happen? It was able to take place because Christians were so concerned with their internal and denominational differences that they took and focus off the society that they were living in and placed it on one another, to their own peril. Now they live in a society where it is considered an offensive to have a cross mark a memorial for fallen military personnel. Whether those persons are Marines’ killed in our most recent conflicts and wars or men killed years ago in World War I. Wake up Church take off your blinders, your difference blindness is creating your own demise!

In recent years, there have been many of us who have called for unity within the Body of Christ. We have called not for unity born out of sin or acceptance of sin or born out of the acceptance of doctrinal error regarding salvation through Jesus and Jesus along or doctrinal error concerning Jesus’ deity and virgin birth. But unity born out of an understanding that despite the fact that we disagree on traditions, doctrine [apart from salvation], customs, scriptural interpretation, manner and style of worship, etc.; at the point of salvation we are all part of One Body, we are all going to heaven, and we are all going to spend eternity together. When I use the word, “all” I speak of those individuals who have put their trust in Jesus alone for salvation. Jesus’ disciples disagree with each other, disagreed about what should be done, misunderstood each other, did not necessarily like each other, and even disagreed with Jesus himself; yet they understood that the mission of the Church was more important than the personalities within the Church. We too here in America better come to understand that same principle before we are a fully persecuted group, with all that might entail. If we do not stand up, we will be pushed down and shut up.

In the lifetime of anyone reading this today there are two places on earth which have probably been most identified with Christianity and Jesus. Those two places are first, Israel and the holy cities of a Bethlehem and Jerusalem and then second, the United States of America. Yet today Christianity is at an all time low in these locations. Christianity in America has given way to apathy and skepticism. Last week there was an in-depth news story on 60 minutes regarding Christianity and the holy land. In the birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem, and in the city of His death and glorious resurrection, Jerusalem, the number of Christians remaining amounts to less than 1% of the population. Where Christianity began is now almost completely non-Christian. The Christian spiritual leaders in that region are attempting to get the word out about the demise spiritually of these holy cities yet they are met with opposition from the government. In their words, they fear that the holy cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem will turn into mere tourist attractions or a Christian theme park. Someone within my own home expressed concern that if something was not done, some of the most sacred places on earth might one day be destroyed.

Why has all this happened? Because the Body of Christ has been so consumed with focus on each other and have been so busy tearing each other apart, they have failed to be the Moral Light to the world that they were called to be. May God forgive us. May we repent! May we once again come to realize that we are part of THE CHURCH, meaning the entire Body of Christ, not just our local congregation and that we have a responsibility to focus on building the ENTIRE CHURCH as a group and not just focus on our local projects and interest.

Spiritual/Political Disclaimer:

This blog will not be for the faint of heart or the easily offended. It will not be in any way politically correct. It will make every effort to share the truth in love, [Ephesians 4:11-16], to a decaying and dying society and church. I share what I share not to hurt, harm, or offend any person[s] or group; I do it because Christ Standard and Truth is not being represented by enough of His Followers and I do it out of love. I love enough to tell His Truth.

Ephesians 4:11-16 NKJV

¹¹And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, ¹²for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— ¹⁶from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.