Do you want to get well?

I watched an Evangelist Nathan Morris (https://shakethenations.com/about/nathan-morris/) revival service on my computer one spring day in 2011, one of many such services, live and recorded, that I watched that year.

I was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer, a total of five months’ worth.*

And as is common, chemotherapy had lowered my immune system and thus I’d been told to not go out in public (except for the doctor’s office and hospital, of course). That meant no shopping in stores, no attending church, no going any place where some sick person might cough or sneeze on me, until my immune system recovered from chemotherapy. That could take a while, my doctors informed me. And so, a lot of television, a lot of internet programs, and a lot of reading occupied my day.

In the middle of Nathan’s message, he walked down the steps from the platform into the crowd. He approached a section off to the side where a number of people sat in wheelchairs.

The television cameraman followed him as he approached one lady and asked her an odd question: “Do you want to get well?”

I wondered why he asked such a question. She was there, wasn’t she? At a healing service? Conducted by this evangelist well known for the many miracle healings that took place in his services?

I wondered if he anticipated her answer… Because she said, No.

He gently asked her, Why not? And through some tears she told him it was because she was afraid she’d lose her disability benefits, her only income. Fear. Fear of being unable to support herself if she was well again kept her from truly wanting or seeking to be made well.

Nathan did pray for her, but he prayed that the Lord would minister faith to her, faith that he could not only make her well, he could also provide all her needs, body, soul and spirit. After a hug and a smile, he moved on to pray for several other people in the crowd. There was no follow-up information about that lady, whether she ever got out of her wheelchair or not. I hope she did.

Jesus also asked that odd question.

Most of the time when Jesus healed somebody, he just did it. Different ways, of course. One time he spit on the ground, made mud and slathered a blind man’s eyes with it. Not exactly polite. Another time he just told a crippled man to do something he couldn’t do, like get up off your mat, pick it up and go home… on another occasion he wasn’t even in the same town with the sick person he healed, he just said a few words and it was done.

One thing he usually didn’t do was ask – what do you want? Only on two occasions did he ask such a strange question.

John 5 tells about the crippled man at the pool of Bethesda. Do you want to get well? Jesus asked him.

What an odd thing to ask. The crowd around the pool was there for one thing only, to get healed. Occasionally an angel would come and “trouble” the water, whatever that means, and whoever got into the pool first would get well. (Seems cruel to me. Only occasionally? And only one?)

The crippled man explained his situation to Jesus, as though this was an obscure, out of the way location and only a few lucky people knew about it.

But this was just outside the Sheep Gate of the Temple in Jerusalem, a prominent building surrounding an upper and lower pool with five colonnaded porches, quite well known to the city. (See http://www.generationword.com/jerusalem101/51-bethesda-pool.html)

The man had been crippled for 38 years, a long, long time. And for a long, long time he had been brought to the pool, hoping today would be his day. But for whatever reason, no-one there would help him get to the pool in time, so day after day he just watched as somebody else got healed.

How discouraging. How depressing. Why bother coming to the pool?

Then Jesus paid a visit to the pool, and asked one particular man a peculiar question. Do you want to get well? From his response, the answer was obviously YES.

So Jesus told the poor man to do something he couldn’t do. Get up, pick up your bed and walk. And he did. He didn’t lay there and wonder — Who is this crazy fellow, doesn’t he know I can’t walk? He just did it. Jesus really didn’t need to ask, he knew the man’s heart. He healed him even before he attempted to rise to his feet.

Jesus didn’t stick around and so the man couldn’t follow him, but his miraculous recovery caused quite a commotion around the Temple. It was the sabbath, after all!

It’s a wonderful story, but I’m curious. Why did Jesus ask him that question?

Here’s the only other person Jesus asked such a strange question… blind Bartimaeus, the beggar. All four gospels recount this event; Mark 10 gives us his name.

Jesus, the disciples and a large number of other people were coming through Jericho. Now, obviously with this crowd there was a lot of commotion. What’s going on? Who is it? Bartimaeus no doubt asked somebody. When he heard it was Jesus, he knew who that was. He knew what that meant. Here’s my chance!

He yelled, Jesus! Son of David! Have mercy on me! He soon got the attention of the crowd, who tried to shut him up. He kept right on yelling until he got the attention of Jesus, who called for him to come. And he did.

I wonder how long it took him to get through that mass of people… When he finally got there, Jesus asked him that peculiar question:

What do you want me to do for you?

Now, I can think of many things Bartimaeus might have said. A big house, a lot of money, a beautiful wife, nice clothes, lots of things. What he did request was simple — to see again.

Jesus didn’t speak a command, didn’t touch him, didn’t make mud, didn’t tell him to do something impossible. He just said, Go your way, your faith has made you whole. Suddenly Bartimaeus could see again, and he did indeed go his way – Jesus’ way! Joining the noisy crowd, he became a follower of Jesus.

Think what having his vision restored meant to this man. Now he could work for a living. Now he could go to the Temple in Jerusalem and worship! He could do all the usual things men did, meet with friends, help out a neighbor, perhaps have a family. But first he followed Jesus. He could see in more ways than one, now. He did want to get well!

(This article is adapted and enlarged from the original.)

* (Yes, the breast cancer “shrank, shriveled, died and disappeared from my body,” as I prayed, praised God, took authority over my body and commanded the cancer cells attacking it, and followed my doctor’s instructions. There have been no recurrences. By the way – I also prayed for my doctors, privately and in person. I still do. They seem to really appreciate it!)

Holy Spirit Adventures, continued

After receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in April 1974, I wanted to learn everything I could about it, what exactly had happened, who the Holy Spirit is, and what this would mean to me.

And so I read, studied, prayed, and studied some more, especially the Gospel of John, Chapters 14-16.

For Mother’s Day that year my children gave me a small Bible to keep in my purse, and every day I would take it out at lunch time to read as I munched on a sandwich. Every time I found a verse about the Holy Spirit, I underlined it in red ink.

(I still carry that little Bible in my purse. The print seems to have gotten a bit small over the years!)

One Sunday as I was driving home after church, I heard the Lord speak to me, very softly but very plainly. “Why didn’t you do what I asked you to do?” Grief hit me like a ton of bricks.

He had given me a word of prophecy for the adult Sunday School class I attended. But I was very new to the class and I didn’t know many people yet. Sitting toward the back of the room, when I heard the Holy Spirit’s voice I wasn’t sure it was real. But he persisted, giving me a short few sentences and nudging me to speak it to the entire class. My heart rate had gone up, my palms got a bit sweaty, and I kept my mouth shut.

I’d had no idea how to get the teacher’s attention, how to actually speak that word to him or to anyone else, much less the entire class. And so I had kept silent.

Driving on while the tears came, I asked the Lord to forgive me. And I promised, whatever the circumstances in the future I would obey him. I would use wisdom, understanding, courtesy as much as possible, but I would obey.

Believing that situation would come up again, I promised myself to learn how to actually give a word from God to other people. Than meant more reading, more studying, and more praying!

Then one day I came across John 2:5. Mary, Jesus and the apostles were attending a wedding in the little town of Cana, not far from the town of Nazareth, when an embarrassing situation arose. The wedding host ran out of wine.

How did Mary know about that? Maybe the servants told her, maybe a family member told her, the scriptures don’t say. But Mary then told Jesus, who basically said to her, “What does have to do with me?” But this was his mom, these were surely her friends, and she knew — she KNEW he could do something about it.

Mary told the servants at the wedding at Cana, “Whatever he says to you, do it.”Jesus did say something to them, they did it, more wine appeared, and the wedding day wasn’t ruined after all.

It was a remarkable and wonderful story, but it was Mary’s command to the servants that stuck in my mind. They became my commitment to the Lord then and there, whatever He said to me to do, I would do it. Speak a word of prophecy? Yes. Go somewhere? Yes.

While studying for this post, I found several good examples from the Bible:

(1) Philip was one of the first deacons. He was enjoying a very successful miracle ministry in Samaria when the Holy Spirit spoke to him, telling him to go somewhere else. And he did. When he did, he discovered the Ethiopian in the chariot and led him to the Lord. (Acts 8:26-29)

(2) In Acts 10:19, 11:23, the Holy Spirit spoke to Peter, gave him a vision of a sheet with unclean animals in it, had a conversation with Peter about that, then told him to go with the men at the door to the house of Cornelius. He did, and many people were born again and received the Holy Spirit that day — while Peter was still preaching!

(3) On Paul’s Second Missionary Journey, Paul and Barnabas wanted to go further north into Asia but the Spirit told them NOT to go. Why? The Lord gave them a vision of a man from Macedonia begging them to come west, to help them. They realized that the Lord was directing them to go there, instead of to Asia. And so they did. (Acts 16:6-10)

Many times since those early days the Holy Spirit has given me words to speak or places to go. Some messages are personal for just one person, some are for a small group, and occasionally for a whole congregation. These days, most of those words are published first in Esther’s Petition, then shared on other of my social media sites, like Facebook or Twitter.

When he tells me to go somewhere, even if it’s just around town to a particular place, on a specific day at a specific time, I’ve learned not to wonder why. I just do it. And even if it’s halfway around the world! See below.

I’ve written several posts about times the Holy Spirit has led me to go somewhere or do something, some ordinary things, some unusual. In every case the timing was important. Here are two that I’ve written about before:

https://estherspetition.wordpress.com/2015/05/07/encounters/
https://estherspetition.wordpress.com/2017/05/12/led-by-the-spirit-how-does-that-work/

Here’s one I haven’t written about before — one day the Lord spoke plainly, clearly, and with no further explanation: “Go get a passport.” Now, I had no plans to travel outside the United States, why would I need a passport. Why? I asked. He didn’t answer.

Well, I knew it really was the Lord speaking, and I’d learned by then that he always had a reason for his instructions. So I went down to the local passport office, applied, and within a short time I had a passport. I filed it away with my birth certificate, marriage license, will and insurance papers.

A few days later, while doing volunteer work as a writer for OM Ships, my boss Hans van Baaren came into my office and said, “You need to see one of our ships in person. Let’s send you to Iceland.” He was probably puzzled by the odd expression on my face!

I just said, “Okay.” Now I knew why I needed the passport! Not long afterward I found myself aboard the Logos II in Reykjavik Harbor, interviewing crew members and taking photographs for OM Ships online and print publications.

Well, there’s a lot more I could relate, but as you can see it’s truly been an adventure for me, being led by the Holy Spirit over these years. It’s one that continues.

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. … 26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:14, 26)

“But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law… If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Galatian 5:18, 25)

 

Childhood Salvation

Is there such a thing as childhood salvation?

Is there really an age of accountability? Some people think so, some people don’t. Some say it’s 8 years of age, others say it’s 12.

But have they ever lived with a strong-willed 3 year old? One who knows what it means to be “naughty?”

I think the article at this link explains the issue quite well. https://truthforkids.com/age-of-accountability

I don’t remember a time in my life, ever, that I didn’t know for sure that Jesus is the son of God, that he is God himself, and that he took my sin on himself and died on the cross to pay for MY sins.

“Jesus loves me, this I know.” And I do, actually. I was taught that simple song as a young child, and I believed it then just as I believe it now.

For God so loved the world, including me, that he gave his only begotten son, Jesus, and that whosoever (including me) believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16). I was taught that powerful verse as a young child too, and I believed it then just as I believe it now. It summarizes the gospel very well.

I have been trying to understand how I came to believe what I know to be true. Several things come to mind.

One:

My parents were both Christians who had been raised in Christian homes. (That really does make a difference.) We loved them and we trusted them. We trusted them to tell us truthful things, not to tell us lies.

They prayed for us and with us, my brother and me. We prayed over all our meals, prayed over both ordinary and special events, prayed at bedtime, and of course prayed in church. And we went to church as a family. We went to Sunday School and “preaching,” attended nearly every revival at our own church as well as other churches, plus tent revivals.

Even in the days when one or the other of my parents were far from perfect parents, far from perfect in their actions towards each other or towards themselves personally, they still turned to the Lord to help them. To deliver them. To restore them. And he always did.

I never knew my father’s parents; his dad died years before I was born and his mom died when I was about 3 years old. But they were church members (Baptist) and I can imagine them praying for their family and the families that would come in later years. That would include me. Many of the older Motte generations are buried in the Grove Hill Cemetery in Darlington, South Carolina.

My mother’s parents and most of their Powers siblings were members of Methodist churches. Many of their generation of that family are buried in the cemetery at Pine Grove Methodist Church between Timmonsville and Darlington, SC. My own parents are buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in Florence.

When I would see either set of relatives, Christmas Day, Easter, birthday celebrations, whatever the occasion, there was always a time of catching up with family news, and there was always prayer. Every meal where Da (my mother’s father) was at the table would begin with him saying grace – “Thank the Lord for Dinner.” (Or Breakfast, or Supper.) And he meant it, as short as it was. He was indeed thankful. So were we all.

I didn’t hear my great grandparents’ prayers, but I am convinced that they did know the Lord and that they did pray.

Two:

My brother and I were taught the Bible, as being the real, actual, word of the living God. Sometimes it was Mama and Daddy doing the teaching, sometimes a Sunday School teacher, and sometimes the pastor. The Bible was important to all of us, as important as eating food and drinking water.

Early days we were read Bible stories from a children’s book. We learned about Abraham and Sara, Moses and the Ten Commandments, Noah and the ark, Jonah and the whale, David and Goliath, Elijah and Elisha, many others from the pages of the Old and New Testaments.

We also learned about Jesus — lots and lots of stories about Jesus. Who he was, why he came, what he did while on planet earth. We learned about sin and what it was, how it first got into existence, what God thinks about it, and what God did about it, for us, by sending Jesus.

We learned what grace is too, and that we didn’t deserve God’s grace but we got it anyway. We didn’t deserve God’s love, but we got it anyway.

We also learned that salvation isn’t automatic just because our parents were Christians, that we ourselves were responsible for that decision. I will never forget two little lessons we learned somewhere: “God has no grandchildren,” and “Living in a garage doesn’t make you a car!”

We were first taught these concepts in simple, easy to understand words. We learned that we have the ability to ask Jesus into our heart — meaning, to ask him to forgive us when we did wrong (i.e. naughty, bad things), ask him to be our “saver” and ask him to help us change our messy way of selfish thinking.

As a teenager I had occasions to think about all that once or twice, and each time I made a conscious decision and recommitment to that truth: Yes, Jesus was indeed my Saviour. As an adult living a troubled life years later, I made an expanded, deliberate decision that Yes, Jesus was both Saviour and Lord, and although I hadn’t really been acknowledging him as MY Lord, I wanted him to be.

And in an instant, he was. A lot changed that day… I changed a lot that day! See https://estherspetition.wordpress.com/2011/03/04/all-things-became-new/

I don’t have a specific date written down anywhere when I was born again. Some folks would say I wasn’t really born again, then. I wasn’t saved, I wasn’t really a Christian, as a child.

I have to disagree. Father God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit have been my loving companions for too long, the Bible has been too precious to me for too long, and the Kingdom of God has been too real to me for too long.

But I have often wished I’d made Jesus both Saviour AND Lord of my life much earlier.

Jesus wears street clothes

God showed up in street clothes when he came to visit Abraham and Sarah.

Three travelers in the plains of Mamre approached a tent in the heat of the day, the time when people rested from their usual work.

Abraham was sitting in the tent door and when he looked up, there they were — three men, travelers. Tourists? Tradesmen? What did they look like?

Apparently they looked like ordinary travelers, perhaps a little dusty from walking along the road. They all wore the normal street clothes of the day for that part of the world.

But they weren’t ordinary travelers, of course. One of them was Jehovah, God himself. The other two were angels on assignment to destroy Sodom. (Genesis 18:1 – 19:1)

What do you imagine when you think about God’s appearance, or the appearance of angels? Probably not men in street clothes.

It didn’t take much, though, for Abraham to realize that he was talking to the Lord God. He had seen him before. He had heard his voice before (Genesis 12 ff). But he couldn’t have told that by the physical appearance this day.

Jesus showed up in street clothes when he lingered near the tomb to talk to Mary Magdalene. She’d already seen two angels, and she recognized them as angels because of their appearance. This man looked ordinary, a gardener perhaps, Mary thought.

“Why are you crying?” he asked her. She explained as best she could, still not realizing who he was. But he wasn’t an ordinary gardener, of course. It took one more word, “Mary,” from Jesus’s voice for her to recognize the Lord, Jesus resurrected from the dead. (John 20:15)

Jesus showed up in street clothes when he caught up to Cleopas and his friend. Ttraveling from Jerusalem to Emmaus, “It was great while it lasted,” they must have thought as they commiserated.

They’d had high hopes that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah, they explained sadly to the inquisitive stranger. Quite a conversation took place on the remaining walk into town. This well educated stranger really knew the prophecies! And he had a knack for opening the scriptures.

They didn’t realize who he was, this ordinary looking fellow. It took Jesus breaking bread and blessing it for them to recognize him. (Luke 24:30-31)

Jesus showed up in street clothes a few hours later, when he suddenly stood in the middle of the 11 apostles, terrifying them by his appearance. They supposed he was a spirit! I wonder what they imagined a spirit to look like…

Why didn’t they immediately recognize the Lord? Mary Magdalene? Cleopas and his friend? The 11 apostles? Their master, their teacher, the one they had followed and worshiped for so long?

Think about the last time they had seen him. Dirty, bloody, ragged, naked. Broken. Dead. This man was none of those things. He was clean and healthy. Any scars he had were totally healed – he kept those for evidence, I think.

Jesus had taken every punishment I deserved, every sickness or disease I could be afflicted with, every fear and anxiety, every sin and guilt, for me and every other human being on planet earth. Whether physical, mental, emotional or spiritual, he accepted them all as his own.

Then he overcame them. Defeated them. Destroyed their power. The creator of the universe had recreated everything about his own personal appearance, in a moment of time.

Now he looked like, and was, a healthy, confident and knowledgeable adult male. No wonder they didn’t know who he was.

Many artists have painted depictions of Jesus over the centuries. Did you notice — they always seem to paint him in the past tense? Wearing street clothes of ancient Israel?

That’s not how I see him.

I imagine him dressed in ordinary street clothes, a workman’s uniform maybe, or a business suit, or jeans and a t-shirt. Whatever would be appropriate for the place and time, and perhaps the occasion, that’s how I visualize him.

Would you recognize Jesus if he showed up physically at your house, dressed in modern-day street clothes?

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.” (Heb. 13:2 NASB)

Finished… am I finished?

Ever felt like a cog in a wheel?

What exactly is a cog? It’s one of the tooth-like parts around the edge of a wheel in a machine that fits between those of a similar wheel, causing both wheels to move; cogwheel, a wheel with cogs around its edge, used to turn another wheel or part in a machine.

In human terms, it’s a member of a large organization whose job, although necessary, makes them feel as if they are not important. (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/)

“A cog in a wheel is an important element; it keeps the machine running smoothly. If it’s cared for – cleaned, oiled, and polished regularly – it will serve the machine well for years. If it’s not cared for, it will break, bringing the machine to a halt. The breakage may even cause greater damage to other parts of the machine.” (https://www.drivingresultsthroughculture.com/2015/05/18/a-cog-in-a-wheel/)

“Is it time for me to quit?” I asked myself the other night. “Time to quit reading, quit studying, quit writing, quit praying – quit interceding? Is my time on planet earth over? Am I finished?”

I was feeling tired. Exhausted, actually, physically, mentally and emotionally. And a little bored, too. I was feeling like a very unimportant, worn-out old cog in a machine, no longer necessary and easily replaced if broken or removed.

I had been thinking of Jesus’ words in John 19:30, “It is finished.”

What was the IT, I wondered? The IT that was finished? His earth-life existence as a human being? His work as Savior? His sacrifice for sins? What exactly did he mean by that?

I’ve read some opinions on the meaning of that final statement. Here’s one I like:

“Jesus became the final and ultimate sacrifice for our sin. The word in this verse, “finished,” is actually from the Greek word, “tetelestai,” which is the same word that means “paid in full.” Often, it was used in an accounting term, which indicates a debt was paid. The uniqueness about the way it was written is that the tense of the word indicates both a point in time it was complete and that it would also continue to be complete or finished. And this is the essence of what Christ came to do. He came to “finish” God’s work of salvation in us. He came to “pay it in full,” the entire penalty, or debt, for our sins. He’s at work in our world still today in powerful ways.” (https://www.ibelieve.com/faith/the-power-of-jesus-last-words-the-meaning-behind-it-is-finished.html)

But think about this: Some things were not actually finished. Jesus would return as a human being in a few days, remaining on planet earth for a few more weeks. At the moment on the cross when Jesus said “Finished,” he had not yet presented his blood in heaven so his sacrifice for sins wasn’t finished; his work as Savior was not complete.

His ministry to human beings wasn’t done either. More was still to come on the day of Pentecost! And beyond that, his ministry as intercessor for believers is a never-ending assignment.

Of course, none of those things could have been realized had Jesus not actually died on the cross — died body, soul and spirit. In that regard IT was indeed finished. The debt we owed was truly PAID IN FULL.

As I meditated on all this, the Holy Spirit began to talk to me.

“Finished, hmmm? Just an old cog? Unimportant? Unnecessary?” He began to show me a few examples of old cogs, the way He sees them.

• Abraham and Sarah — parents at 100 and 90 years of age; think they needed to be re-energized?
• Moses — failed son of Pharoah’s daughter who became a shepherd in a foreign land; recalled to be deliverer of Israel at age 80.
• David — many long years running for his life from King Saul, chased, persecuted; tired?
• Zachariah and Elizabeth, John the Baptist’s parents — elderly new parents whose son became a “wild man” living in the desert.

I’m sure they’d all prayed, waited and wondered; wondered if IT was finished, whatever IT was in their lives.

Things to think about.

More of the same

17 August 2017
“What’s going on today, Lord?” I asked. Somewhere in the back of my conscious (finally awake) mind, I could hear How Great Is Our God, being sung. For a few moments I had just stretched and listened – and agreed with – those powerful words, then asked him that question.

“More of the same, accelerated and intensified,” he answered. Suddenly in my mind’s eye I saw fires again, popping up here and there across America.

I’ve seen and written about prophetic fires before: fires of revival. Small pockets of revival, spreading, enlarging and joining, until a conflagration of glorious Holy Spirit fire is burning coast to coast. Burning away dross, chaff, sin, decay, sickness and disease. Leaving wholeness and holiness, God’s creative life and that “more abundantly” in its wake. (John 10:10.)

These current images weren’t like that, though. These were destructive, toxic, evil. Then he reminded me – nothing that ever happens is a surprise to the Lord. He has a plan for believers to respond to every event, and he’s more than willing to tell us how to do that. Respond, not react. Be a thermostat, not a thermometer. How?! Ask him. Then listen!

Postscript to “Do you know the way?” God’s infinite contingency plans…

I was thinking about the word “way” the other day. No special reason, I can’t recall anything in particular that started that train of thought.

“Do you know the Way to San Jose” wasn’t playing in my head. Not even Jesus’s statement, “I am the way.” It was more like random abstract thinking.

What does the word “way” mean? I was thinking. How to do something? Like a way to cook collards so they don’t smell up the house? (Yes, there is one. Ask me.)

Or maybe a way of looking at something? Like through my trifocals when watching TV but not when reading a book. Or looking at something from somebody else’s point of view.

Then the Holy Spirit interrupted my thoughts. “Do you know the way from Florence to Columbia?”

“Sure,” I said. “There are lots of ways to get to Columbia from here.”

Inserting postscript here, in the middle, not at the normal position — God’s will and our free will. Does God always get his will? His way? I asked him about free will one day, and he said with the hint of a smile, “I have infinite contingency plans.” If I choose to disobey, or if I make a mistake trying to figure out his choice in one of my actions, not to worry. He has a way of working things out to get his ultimate will. Think about that a minute. I did and got a bout of brain freeze. But it did help me to quit worrying about some stuff.

I began to think of a few. Turn west on Palmetto Street to I-95, then north to I-20, then west to Columbia. Or just continue west on West Palmetto, which is US Highway 76. Take a few side roads, not main highways necessarily. They’ll all get you there, eventually.

The Holy Spirit began to ask more questions. “Which way is the right way? What time of day? One unbroken trip, or pit stops along the way? Detours to browse through other towns? An overnight stay in Sumter, maybe, to visit Swan Lake? Or picnic at a historic Revolutionary War site near Camden?” Hmmm.

“What about going east into Florence first, to pick up items for the trip? Or how about go all the way through Columbia to visit Lexington first, then come back to Columbia? Which way is the right way?”

Well, that sure got me to thinking. Then he continued.

“What is the best day? The best time of day? Or should you go at night? What’s the best season of the year? Is any one of those better than any others?”

“Should you drive your own car?” he went on. “Or maybe rent one? Or ask someone else to take you? Should you go alone, or with a companion or two? Maybe go by bus? Or by train? Or by plane?” I was accumulating quite a few mental images of what had been a simple trip. “If enough others went along, you could form a caravan!” he added.

“On the other hand, perhaps you could ride a motorcycle, or a bicycle, or walk, actually. Of course you could run, or jog. You could even hitchhike. Couldn’t you? All those are ways to go from here to Columbia, aren’t they?”

Uh huh. Hmmm. Now I was really suspicious about that first question. I wondered just what way he was getting at.

“So, which way is the right way?” he asked again. I sensed a smile in that voice.

“It all depends,” I slowly admitted, “on the purpose of the trip.” He stopped speaking and let me mull over all that.

Follow me, Jesus said to his first disciples. Take up your cross and follow me, he told them later on. Follow me as I follow Christ, Paul said to his readers. But that was after the cross, wasn’t it… so where was Jesus when Paul wrote that?

Where is Jesus now? I asked myself. Where is he going now? How do I follow him, unless he’s going somewhere? But he is going somewhere.

He’s not standing still like a statue on a Brazilian mountain top, or an icon in a church building. He inhabits believers, and while he is seated in heavenly places in the spirit world, he is also standing when I’m standing, sitting when I’m sitting, and going when I’m going, wherever that is.

“You’re beginning to get it,” the Holy Spirit encouraged me.

Suppose that Jesus wants to go somewhere, somewhere specific, in this imaginary trip from Florence to Columbia, I asked myself. What is the right way, then, to get from this house in Florence, to wherever it is he wants to go in Columbia?

I understand a little better the puzzlement of Thomas when Jesus told him, “Where I go you know, and the way you know.” (John 14:4)

Thomas said, “Lord, we don’t know where you’re going, how can we know the way?”

The disciples no doubt had the same puzzlement when Jesus felt he needed to go through Samaria to get to Galilee. (John 4:4) Now, no self-respecting Jew HAD to go through Samaria, they always went around it.

But Jesus knew there was only one way for him to go that day, because of the purpose of the trip. To rescue the Samaritan woman at the well, and her whole city.

Jesus told the puzzled disciples, “My food is to do the will of him that sent me… lift up your eyes, look on the fields; they are white already to harvest.” The whole city of Samaria, the whole area of Galilee, the whole world was ready to harvest! And it still is.

Believers still recite the Lord’s Prayer every week. “Thy will be done,” we say. If we really want to do his will, really want to carry out his wishes, we’ll listen to his voice. We’ll take him where he wants to go, the way he wants to get there.

There’s something a  bit fascinating about that word “way.”

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nbg8zdBVcPc
“Do You Know the Way to San Jose,” a 1968 song written for Dionne Warwick by Burt Bacharach (music) and Hal David (lyrics).

Remember the donkey

Discouraged. Hurt. Angry at God. Disappointed. That’s how I was feeling one morning, after a lot of discouraging things had happened the day before.

And so I had a conversation with the Lord about faith (which I had been studying more about recently).

I told him that it seemed to me faith wasn’t real; that the scriptures about faith weren’t true. The things I had believed in faith when I prayed just were not happening.

I said a lot more than that, of course, but basically I was deciding as I talked that it was pointless for me to pray for anyone or anything, or even go to church any more. What was the point, if what the Bible said would happen when we prayed really DIDN’T happen? If there were no results?

Then Jesus began quietly talking back to me. “Remember the donkey,” he said. “Remember the colt.”

The colt? I began to remember. The week before Passover, on what we call Palm Sunday, Jesus told the disciples to go to a specific place, find a specific donkey and colt, and bring them back to him. (Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 20, John 12.)

I visualized that, could almost see the disciples looking at each other, shrugging their shoulders with unasked questions.

What did the disciples think Jesus was up to? Why did he want a donkey? He and they walked everywhere, didn’t they? We know now why he did it, Matthew 21:5-6 says it was so the prophecies would be fulfilled. But did the disciples know that? Whether or not they knew why, they obeyed him. They went and collected the colt.

“What were the results?” the Lord asked me. That required more thinking on my part. Well, there were several levels of results…

• Jesus got to his destination. (The Temple in Jerusalem)
• The crowds began praising Jesus. (Shouting Hosanna)
• The religious leaders got upset. (Seriously plotting)
• God kept his timetable. (Crucified on Passover)

This journey on the donkey’s back, the praise from the crowd and the upset Pharisees were necessary steps to instigating the crucifixion by the right date – Passover.

Okay, I said to the Lord. So what does that mean for me, for my prayers, my desire to see you DO something when I pray? What does all that have to do with faith at all? He recapped for me what I had just been thinking:

Immediate results – arrived at destination.
Intermediate results – stirred up opposition necessary to fulfill God’s plan.
Final results – God’s plan fulfilled.

So there are short term results, mid-term results, and long term results. Obviously some answers to prayer, God’s plans, may take a really long time to arrive. But they will arrive.

Then I began to consider that faith question, again.

Faith comes to everybody, but not everybody takes it. (Faith comes by hearing, according to Romans 10:17.) Children have to be told something first, in order to have faith, i.e. trust, just as adults do. A child learning to walk, for example.

“Walk to Mama,” we say. “Come on, you can do it!” We can show him how, help him stand up and get his balance, but we can’t walk for him. The child must obey our words and do something that requires trust in the person speaking. He must take that first, perhaps wobbly step, then another.

He can obey or refuse to obey. If he obeys and experiences positive results, i.e. takes a step or two without being hurt, he acquires trust that this will work. That trust leads to another few steps, i.e. more experience in walking, and more experience becomes stronger trust. Faith that yes, he can do it. He can walk. And pretty soon, he is walking, and running.

That process began with hearing words from someone speaking to him, him trusting the one speaking, accepting those words and obeying them. The faith was actually contained in the words of the trustworthy speaker, but it wasn’t forced on the hearer. The hearer was never forced to accept the words as true or trustworthy, he had to make a choice. Choose to believe the person speaking, or not believe the person speaking. And choose, sometimes really often, to keep on believing.

“Remember the donkey,” the Lord said. That was pretty much the end of my conversation with him that morning, but I’ve been thinking more about it since.

Getting answers to some prayers – certain long term results – seems like too much hard work for many of us. Too much painful trouble. Too much stress. Too much time, too much energy, too much disappointment, too much anguish. Too much waiting.

That’s what I was thinking when that familiar voice interrupted my thoughts with a whisper: “Long term results begin with short term results.” I thought some more.

I began to think about the Olympics. About Usain Bolt winning an Olympic gold medal in running… how did that begin? Well, it began with him hearing those first words, “Go for it, you can do it, you can do it.” It began with him believing those words and accepting them as true. Stepping out to obey, to try, to gain experience. To fail sometimes but not quit. To fail sometimes, and succeed sometimes, and eventually win the gold medal.

How long did that process take? How much experience? And how much reinforcement?

Faith comes by hearing, present tense, not having heard, past tense. How many times did a parent, a coach or a team-mate say those words of encouragement to Usain Bolt, “You can do this, you can do it!” And so he did.

The first thing I did after that conversation was to apologize to the Lord, to repent and ask forgiveness for my attitude, and to ask for his help in reinforcing my faith. What I asked him for is stubborn, determined, persistent, persevering, teeth-clenching, gutsy faith. I think that’s what he wants me to have. What he wants all his children to have.

I want to “Remember the donkey” today, and every day, as many days as it takes.

Comfort / Comforter

What kind of comfort do you need?

The origin of the English word comfort from the Oxford online dictionary: “Middle English (as a noun, in the senses of strengthening, support, consolation; as a verb, in the senses of strengthen, give support, console): from Old French confort (noun) or conforter (verb), from late Latin confortare, strengthen, from com- (expressing intensive force) + Latin fortis, strong. The sense of something producing physical ease arose in the mid 17th century.”

Thus scriptural comfort is a reinforcement of strength – mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical.

In 2 Corinthians 1:4 the Apostle Paul said this about comfort:

• “who (i.e. the God of all comfort, v. 3) comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (KJV)
• “who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” (NIV)
• “who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” (NASB)
• “who comforts and encourages…” (AMP)

Note: The KJV word tribulation in this verse is from the Greek word thlipsis, meaning pressure, oppression, affliction, distress, straits; it’s translated trouble or affliction in other versions.

Comfort here is from the Greek word paraklesis (G3874, noun), defined in Strong’s as meaning:

– a calling near, summons, (esp. for help); impartation, supplication, entreaty; exhortation, admonition, encouragement
– consolation, comfort, solace; that which affords comfort or refreshment
– thus of the Messianic salvation (so the Rabbis call the Messiah the consoler, the comforter)
– persuasive discourse, stirring address
– instructive, admonitory, conciliatory, powerful hortatory discourse

John 14:16-17 (NIV) says, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever — the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”

Advocate here in the NIV is translated Comforter in the King James Version. It is from the Greek word paraklatos (G3875, noun), defined in Strong’s as:

– one who is summoned, called to one’s side, esp. called to one’s aid
– one who pleads another’s cause before a judge, a pleader, counsel for defense, legal assistant, an advocate
– one who pleads another’s cause with one, an intercessor
– of Christ in his exaltation at God’s right hand, pleading with God the Father for the pardon of our sins
– in the widest sense, a helper, succourer, aider, assistant
– of the Holy Spirit destined to take the place of Christ with the apostles (after his ascension to the Father), to lead them to a deeper knowledge of the gospel truth, and give them divine strength needed to enable them to undergo trials and persecutions on behalf of the divine kingdom

John used this word to describe the Holy Spirit. It is translated Comforter in KJV, Advocate in NIV, Helper in NASB, and Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) in the Amplified Version. He is all that, in every imaginable variation and circumstance.

What kind of comfort did Peter need?

• Understanding, wisdom, speaking ability, revelation knowledge
• Angel for a jailbreak…

5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. 6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists. 8 Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. 9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him. (Acts 12:5-8 NIV)

What kind of comfort did Paul need?

• Understanding, supernatural information, healing from beatings, resurrection from stoning, deliverance from mobs
• Earthquake for a jailbreak…

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” 29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:25-30 NIV)

See the Book of Acts for these and many other examples. Also see I Corinthians 12 for Gifts of the Holy Spirit, i.e. God’s power tools, equipment, supplies, inside information, wisdom and weaponry.

God the Holy Spirit, the believer’s indwelling Comforter / Helper / Assistant / Intercessor / Strengthener does more than just bring emotional calmness and peace of mind which is what most people today tend to think of as comfort, although he certainly does that.

And he isn’t just called alongside to help, he’s INSIDE to help.

So – what kind of comfort do you need?

Snip, snip

Last night as I was praying, meditating and trying to keep my attention in check, I was having a lot of trouble. Thoughts went here, there and everywhere except where I wanted them to go.

People, places, things, events, situations, issues all interrupted. Spiritual, physical, political – if it had been on the internet, on the television news, in the newspaper, in conversations with family and friends, emails, no matter where, they all crowded in. Sometimes in gangs! Like impish brats they demanded attention, sometimes loudly, sometimes sneakily. Psst!

Suddenly I realized what was happening. I recognized the work of the enemy and began to demand his distracting minions to get out of my presence. As I started praising the Lord and thanking him instead of being distracted by all that intrusive negative stuff, they left (whining as they went). It was almost funny.

That wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened when I prayed, of course. Daytime or night time, controlling my thoughts in prayer sometimes becomes a skirmish, even a battle. I’m usually quicker to recognize the enemy’s tactics.

When my focus was finally back to the conversation I’d been attempting to have with the Lord, he said to me plainly – with a bit of humor – “Snip, snip.”

I knew what that meant. John 15:1-2. “I am the true Vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that continues to bear fruit, He [repeatedly] prunes, so that it will bear more fruit [even richer and finer fruit].” (Amplified Bible)

The Holy Spirit is doing some pruning. In me, in my local church, and in the body of Christ as a whole.

He’s shaking off debris, pulling away viny weeds, straightening out tangled branches, cutting off deadwood and snipping away unproductive tendrils.

At times we need to put off some things ourselves, although we may be a little slow in getting that done. Other times we need to let him prune off some things. It doesn’t always feel like fun, but it’s always necessary.

The “distractor in chief” didn’t want me to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice last night so he threw in lots of other subjects to misdirect my attention. He didn’t succeed, though. I’m coming to grips today with what is going on in the spirit world. Shaking. Rearranging. Pruning.