Blog
The release of our calling can begin with a single act of obedience that requires courage to speak when others remain silent. It happened to Elijah. He did not remain silent but spoke what the Lord told him to say, even at his peril. We are living in a similar time...
The works of the flesh are contrary and opposed to the works of the Spirit. Whoever declares they are united in any way is walking along a path of deception. There is no union between the two. “The works of the flesh are evident, which...
When I was a flight instructor, I drilled things into my student's minds that would keep them alive in flight. I did the same when I became a pastor 43 years ago. Mastering certain spiritual skills will keep our faith alive when the engine of our faith encounters a...
Reading the book of Acts with eyes of faith is a dangerous exercise. It is dangerous because it reveals how the Church was assigned to function in culture as a transforming presence. Throughout the book of Acts, the culture was made aware of the presence of the Church...
Last weekend, I had a rare and wonderful privilege. I was invited to attend the retirement party for one of the finest rookie cops I had the privilege of training. Thirty-nine years ago I was a Field Training Officer (FTO) at the Springfield, Oregon Police Department....
Your place of restriction and enslavement is about to become the birthplace of a new song that will create a new sound. What has been formed against you will now be turned into an instrument of freedom. God has a new song for you to sing and its score will be written...
A spirit of compromise is descending upon the Church in Western culture. That compromise is not about the lesser things that occupy the mind of some believers like, what to eat, drink and where to go for entertainment. I am speaking of the deepest of all issues of...
When I was a young boy my brother and I sat in the backseat of our family car on road trips. If the trip was long we did what most kids do – we asked our father, “Are we there yet?” I remember the day when my badgering questions came to an end. When I asked for...
Have you ever wondered where you fit in the larger picture and function of the Church? You were wired a certain way by God to do unique things in the Kingdom. If you are one who is called to equip the Church to do the work of the ministry here is a simple way to see...
Each transition of life has an in-between moment. An in-between moment is that space of time between an old and expired season and the approach of something new. The momentum that brought you this far is the result of the faith you exercised in the previous season....
I was getting ready to begin writing this morning when an image entered my mind. It was the image of a blast zone. This blast zone was the center of a target where an explosion would take place from the detonation of an incoming missile. Anyone or anything within the...
Can you feel the shift that has taken place? I am not talking about the by-products of cultural change like the results of our recent election or the increasing levels of social unrest. I am talking about a shift that has taken place in the spiritual...
I talked to a friend who is an accomplished hunter. Each year he successfully harvests both elk and deer. He hunts with a bow and arrow. In order to get within the limited range of his weapon, he must be very aware of how the animals he hunts process a threat. He uses...
You can have a developed intellect, but not a renewed mind. The opposite is also true. I have talked with kind and wonderful people in the Church who have never allowed their intellect to be developed. They parked on the first step of revelation thinking it was a...
One of the most dangerous prayers you can pray is, "Come, Holy Spirit, come!" I prayed that prayer this morning at 4:30 a.m. as I drove by a church building in a small Oregon town. Immediately, in the Spirit, I saw the parking lot of the church filled to...