Christmas' Bitter Reality

When did getting a car become part of Christmas?  Christmas is an exciting time of year, no doubt about it, and it's not a surprise the deceiver would keep twisting it into something other than what it is.  The more he can avoid the reality of what Christmas day represents, the more he can continue in his darkened version of life and not face the bitter reality - yeah, how about that?! Christmas Day is a bitter reality for him!!


So, because I think God Himself would like to remind that devil of the bitter reality of the meaning of Christmas, I think I'll join Him in recalling the details of ALL that day 2000 years ago signified.


First, let's remember the angels that night.  God sent them to shepherds.  Well, He sent ONE to some shepherds, but then, a whole host of angels couldn't contain themselves and just burst through Heaven and into this world of three little dimensions to shout and sing of the Glory of the King they worshipped eternally...  


Here was a demonstration of Love never seen before. The eternal God, creator of men who fell into Satan's grasp, was setting aside His Glory in Heaven to enter the world He created... as a baby.  Oh, I'm sure the angels knew why He was doing it.  He was going in to rescue men from the darkness in which they were chained.  He was going in to show, for all to see, just who had the authority here, and to take His own back from Satan's grasp.  






...more to come




I WAS going to add more about the story of Christmas... but I think this year I'm going to stop there and just relish the reality of the dawn of a new era.  Christmas Day was the beginning of the end for satan. ..and WE are the bitter reminder of that end for him.



So bless the Lord this Christmas.  Share the Love of God, say Merry Christmas to everyone, heal the sick while your at the mall, sing your favorite Christmas songs, cast out demons... you know, share the Christmas cheer! Its C-Day!

Isaiah 61: 1,2 - "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, and He anointed me to bring good news to the poor, to bind up the broken hearted... 
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God..."

Back from Redding III

This post has some pre-blog thoughts from November about loving and being loved by God.


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Nov 5, 2010 


So I'm asking God to show me how much He loves me. I can't believe I've never asked to experience this from God- to experience His love for me every day.  To wake up and not even start the day without asking to see my Father God's love for me during the day.  I've ignored any need for this until now. I'm just gonna write it all down.


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Nov 10, 2010


I was so impressed with people I met in Redding, and how good their relationship is with God.
I haven't actually beeen able to grasp it.  Today I suddenly realized it's not that  they have this really. really. good. good. relationship with God.  Its that they are absolutely, unashamedly in love with God!  


Its exactly like watching someone the day they realize they're in love with someone, and they find out the other person feels the same. Its a giddy, "I can't tell you how excited I am about this" expression on their faces and in their prayers and conversations.    It's being in love.  Wow.  It makes me want what they have. Who is this God that makes them so happy?  


But being giddily happy and in love?  Being touched and touching God in a close intimate way like someone who has met their soulmate?  God, my soulmate.  I can't say I've even considered giving Him access to my heart in that way...  Here we go!


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Dec 5, 2010


I sure have a lot of words to say, and a lot of theory.   Right now, I'm ready to pitch it all.  
If we're in love with God, and stop for one person every day and love them, we'll be living lives with eternal, eternal value. 




1Cor 4:20 - "the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power."

Back from Redding II

This post has some of my pre-blog thoughts from November about loving and being loved by God, and I'm compelled today and tomorrow to post this from the airplane ride back from California and other days from November.

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Nov  4, 2010 - God is good, and He's in a good mood, and He wants to do do good things today, right now.

I'm flying back from a leader's conference at Bethel Church, Redding California.  Everything I've come to believe about God's plan and purpose for us and for this planet, I saw not only being lived out, but lived out with enthusiasm, convinced of His Love and His authority.  In fact, all my "just dawned on me" thoughts have been fully developed, are in action, and being built upon. They have a vision for expanding the kingdom of God on earth. The leadership team is rock solid and believe Jesus didn't come to take sides, but to take over.  I could go on for a long time about what I saw and learned, but it all comes out of this one thing.  Coming to experience how much God loves you, and what that makes you.  Everything flows out of that, and there is a LOT to everything at Bethel!

I suddenly feel that, if I'm going to invite anyone into what I've experienced of God, that I'm not really experiencing a great relationship with God as my Father and me as his son.... What I mean is its not that Jesus hasn't washed away my sins, He has, and there is nothing like becoming a new creation in Christ.  But on a daily basis, I don't live in the love God has for me, or out of a great relationship with Him as my Father and me as his son.  In fact, I have never asked God to show me how much He loves me. To be honest, I've actually treated that subject like something you dont' really need.  But I think I really do. It may be pivotal. 

So, this is what I've decided to do, and I don't know exactly where it will end.  I'm asking God to show me how much He loves me, and who I am to Him.  I'm expecting this to be important and I wanted to use this blog to make it public.  I think God wants to be known for who He really is, and I'm asking Him to show me His love.  I have no idea where  this will lead.

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The second thing I want to do differently is to begin being generous. This is because generosity is like Love. Its just like love, you give it away... to someone.  Its going to start with paying for other people's meals when I'm at a restaurant, or for the groceries of someone behind me in line, or at the truck stop.  This is another thing that I think is going to be important so I'm also going to include it in this blog.

So, I don't think I'll have any more "just dawned on me" revelations of why the earth and man were created.  That seems settled in my mind. I've seen everything I've written about- and more- already being modeled on the streets and in emergency rooms in Redding CA (seriously- emergency rooms!).  The next step is on God.  And here is where I'll be writing about what he does with and through me...

1 John 3:1 - "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God." 
                






 .

...and we're back

...a brief hiatus due to the power cord for this netbook being stolen along with my 40" flat screen TV on Thanksgiving. ...I decided to take the opportunity to give up TV for a while.         


I was thinking about Luke 12:32 today, "your Father took delight in giving you the kingdom." Now that I read the direct greek translation I automatically have a theory about it.  You could make a case that when Lucifer got uppity and rebelled, what he really wanted was to take God's kingdom for himself.  


Well, Jesus said to his disciples, "your Father took delight in giving YOU the kingdom" like... INSTEAD of Lucifer.  Cool, huh?  Yeah, I like makin stuff up like that, just so I can say... MIND... BLOWN!  Well kids, stay tuned, cause today's blog will light it up- don't read ahead though, 'cause I really thought this all out.


About giving us the kingdom, I believe we'll be set into places of authority to administer God's kingdom one day- in an official way,  and I think God will do that while Satan is watching. As we're being preciously beloved by God, and He's freely and happily giving us His kingdom, Satan will watch and be galled as he spends forever in Hell, away from God- LOL... ROFLYSST (rolling on the floor laughing, yet somehow still typing).  Hehe!


OK, sorry, but I'm getting the picture that God has no qualms about doing this in direct response to Lucifer's prideful aspirations, and his challenges to God in who He is. I'm thinking it could be that God answered Lucifer that very first day, and He took delight in giving His kingdom to men. PSYCH! 


As if God said, "I'm not owned by anything. Even my kingdom is mine to hold or to give away. When Lucifer wanted to take it, that was sin. And He challenged Me in all the aspects of my nature.  Well in this one aspect, its my pleasure to give my kingdom away.  But not to Lucifer- I have something else for him.  I'll make a new creature.  I'll make him in my image- male and female. And they'll be sons and daughters to Me even as Jesus is the Son.  I'll give them my Spirit, and with pleasure, I'll give them My kingdom.  In fact I'm going to do that right now." And then He did it. He created mankind- to be sons and daughters, and to be the recipients of His Love, His Spirit, and His kingdom. He made us for that- to be His people, and He to be our God.

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...the game is changed

So, I've come full circle on this subject.  Why did Jesus die for me? Its not only Him dying for me, its Him being Love and dying to redeem us, and on top of that, giving us His Spirit, and on top of that, giving us His kingdom!  It's His response to Lucifer's challenges to the nature of God. Is God indeed loving? Oh, you have no idea!  In response, He displays the greatest love- setting His love on man; man who had fallen into Satan's lies and even joined his ranks. Yet God, in His love, unafraid, reached out to rescue man from Satan's deceptions.  With ultimate sacrifice, He took men back from Satan and showed what the Love of God is!  And, if you're able to believe it, He continously offers you more love than you can take, today, right now, where you are, all day long. For you, and everyone you ever loved.    

And beyond that, He predestined us to be conformed to the image of Jesus, that He would be the first born among many brethren. What?! Yes, there it is, man was created to become as Jesus is and to be set as heirs of His kingdom.  This work has already been done since the beginning.  We are heirs, and have inherited the administration of the whole kingdom of God. This is in fact what we were made for!  To receive the great outpouring of God's love and so, prove His loving nature forever, and to receive God's kingdom because He took delight in giving it to us.

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...Brace yourself

So, what does it mean to be given His kingdom?  THAT is the great part of our lives here on earth. To have the joy of bringing the kingdom of Heaven to earth. That's for us to enjoy.  I started doing this recently- walking into the mall or post office, and seeing someone with a cane or in a wheelchair, and ask to pray for their healing right there. I can easily say that I've never prayed for more strangers in my whole life as I have in the last month. I expect to start seeing people getting healed right there in public.  Bringin' the Kingdom.


And here's another thing.  I also started to pay (not pray) for people's groceries in front of me at the checkout line, or for their donuts at the Krispy Kreme drive up window... in Jesus' name (11 PM "Hot Donuts NOW!"  Yeah!). I'm praying for my city, Raleigh, to be changed.  


That's where I'm starting when it comes to bringing the kingdom.

It totally matters that Jesus said "Your Father took delight in giving you the kingdom." I want to see what it looks like for God's will to be done at Walmart as it is in heaven.  And I want to know how much He loves us.  I want to see it all- His abounding love, and His kingdom come.

I've been totally inspired by Catherine, Dustin and Stef, who prayed for so many people at the mall the other night, I lost track. ..yeah we're doin that stuff.

Then there's THIS little gem! She's doing the last two minutes of Kim Walker's song. I LOVE IT!

-Romans 8:29 - "...those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren"