Prayer and Presence

Our gathering of misfits watched The Passion together last night. I was not really looking forward to it, but I think that our hearts were stirred as we took communion together immediately following the movie. Watching the movie from a perspective of what Jesus went through to break the power of sin out of his great love for us is quite different than watching it from the perspective of appeasement of God's wrath toward humanity. Did that make sense? If not, read He Loves Me by Wayne Jacobsen. He explains it far better than I. . .

I've been putting some thought into our journey recently. It's been a little while since we have been "unhooked from the Matrix." We are moving on from being critical of the Institutional Church to learning how to live the way that God has called us to: loved by Him, loving Him, and loving others, and letting the rest work itself out.

I need to confess that there are some things that left bad tastes in my mouth about organized religion that have caused me to react in ways that may not be positive. I think one example is prayer. I have been turned off by some of my charismatic brothers and sisters that over spiritualize every little thing in life and turn any difficulty into and attack by Satan. I have participated in praying for the sick that never got healed. I have prayed for and against circumstances that never worked out the way we were praying. (Looking back, there were many reasons why those prayers weren't answered. Don't want to go into it now.) So, I figured, screw it! I'll pray for the basics: God's will etc. But, I need to confess that I stopped praying with passion. I stopped praying with eager expectation. I was really paying God lip-service. . . and I thought this was part of my new journey.

As I begin to understand and live in the love God has for me I am learning to discern God's will in prayer. There is a spiritual realm where there is a battle going on, and prayer does affect it. I am asking God what He is doing. How does he want me to pray in certain situations? I am not taking for granted that God wants to heal somebody, or make a certain situations benefit my, or someone else's, self-interest.

God is active in His creation for the purpose of our redemption. He wants to transform humanity into His image and make us whole. He wants to see us free from sin. Can I pray those things for myself, for my friends and family, for my town, and eagerly expect God to answer? I think so. . .

If God is present in us, can we expect His power to flow through us? In the Naked Church, Wayne Jacobsen says, "We are a generation mostly won to Christ through the persuasion of orators, not the power of God's presence. Paul warned us that such people would have the inclination to put their trust in man's wisdom instead of God's power." What I get from that is talk is cheap. Intimacy is linked to God's power. So many people we come into contact with need the healing presence of Jesus. I have begun to see the fruit of God's presence in my life and His power flowing through me as people are being changed. I hope to see more as I continue to grow closer to Him. . .

For those of our friends and family that would like to better understand this journey that God has us on take a listen to The God Journey. Wayne Jacobsen has been very influential in our journey and has a very loving way of explaining some of issues that we find important in living the life of God....

During some conversations with some brothers on a different blog I have really given some thought to our interpretation of the Bible. Especially the influence that bias and presuppositions have on our interpretation. I am no theology Nazi and I hold my interpretations fairly loosely. I have had to many experiences where I have found out my interpretations were flawed, or flat out BS.

For instance, when I first started following Jesus I was reading something like Mat 21:21

"Jesus answered and said to them, Truly I say to you, If you have faith and do not doubt, you shall not only do this miracle of the fig tree, but also; if you shall say to this mountain, Be moved and be thrown into the sea; it shall be done. "

I took this verse to mean that if we want to pray in effective ways that we MUST verbally speak our prayers. There were some other verses where Jesus says something similar, so I thought my interpretation was on strong grounds. . .until I told someone my interpretation. . .

We can look at the Bible through a hundred different lenses. If you are a music worship leader you will be able to find verses that make you think the core of the Bible is about worship. If you are passionate about helping the poor you will find enough verses for you to believe that the core of the Bible is about that. The bottom line is that our bias and presuppositions can drastically shape our interpretation of the Bible.

We really can't get rid of our bias and presuppositions. We are who we are. We were born in a certain nation, in a certain region, in a certain town. . . We all have had different religious experiences in different denominations. . . We all have had different family experiences, some healthy and some not so healthy. . .and all those circumstances influence how we read the Bible. For instance, isn't it interesting that European Christians typically don't believe in the rapture, yet it is a common belief among North American Christians?

Additionally, as we read the Bible we may be likely to give more weight to some parts of the Bible than others. We may choose to interpret the rest of the Bible through one our two verses that back up a certain position we hold. Our we may have certain beliefs about the nature of God that color our interpretations. Is God love? Is God just? Is He both?

So if we can't totally rid ourselves of bias and presupposition, how do we deal with them in order to move toward a better understanding of the Bible? I think the answer is to be self-critical of our bias and presuppositions. All of us have them. Most of the people that I discuss the Bible with are not even aware of them. Ignorance is bliss when it comes to presuppositions and bias. Once we realize that we have them we have to do the hard work of becoming aware as we read and interpret the text. We start asking questions like: Why do I interpret the text this way? What in my history biases me in this interpretation? What are the other possible interpretations? What were their presuppositions? If I change my presupposition can I see how it changes my interpretation? Am I willing to let others critique my interpretation? Am I willing to readdress my interpretation?

There are tons of other issues involved in this topic. The role of reason, sin, language, history etc. Understanding the Bible is a journey. As we gain knowledge, as we let God deal with and change our presuppositions, as we become conformed to God's image, as we interact and converse with others on this journey, we will gain a better understanding of the Bible and the story of God , of which we are part. . .

I wholeheartedly apologize for my blog silence as of late. I have been working two part time jobs and filling in for another guy at my night job, which turns it into a full-time job. They have Blogger blocked, so I can't post or comment on other peoples sites either. I am reading yours though...just can't respond....

We see God working his way with some people around us. It is cool to see some of our prayers being answered! Our desire for freedom is increasing...as is our desire to see other's healed and set free....lots of stories but so little time....

Here are a few of my uncensored "prophetic" thoughts:

The time for God to pour out his presence in Highland is beginning. We have had occasional cool drops of water poured on our parched tongues, but now God wants to reveal His river to us…ever-flowing, satisfying, refreshing, powerful…

The time for human devised plans is over. God wants us to seek His heart, not just for Highland Hope, but all of Highland. What are His plans? How can we cooperate? What is our part? The time for church growth principles and financial campaigns has past. It is time to move in the Spirit and activate our faith. It is time to activate the supernatural that flows from our dynamic relationship with Abba.

We must pray against the spirit of religiosity and legalism that has infected Highland for many years. This is a spiritual battle that must be overcome by prayer. It will not be easily or quickly overcome. The root is very deep. Freedom is at stake. Fear of man is at the core.

Churches are situated to get the results that they are currently getting. Embrace change with eager expectations of what God is doing. S T R E T C H !

God is bringing inner healing to many who have been “walking wounded”. Spiritual warfare, intercession, unity, reconciliation, prophecy etc. will be more effective as God heals the inner hurts in His bride. God is going to release gifts, birthed from His power, fueled by His love, for nothing other than the purpose of making His Bride healthy.

Movement

God has been at work in our little part of the world, not that he hasn’t been, but something different is happening. In my previous post, I mentioned my friend Rich. I am so blessed to have Rich for a friend. We have known each other since before either of us were Christ-followers, and it is amazing to see what God has done in our lives. Rich was blessed to find an awesome church family that has nourished his spirit, encouraged his spiritual gifts, and loved him into the presence of God.

Rich’s church is very charismatic. Most of the experiences that I’ve had with Charismatic churches have been uneasy at best. I’ve witnessed people so caught up in chasing religious experiences that it was like a drug. I’ve seen people do all kinds of crazy stuff in God’s name so I was skeptical when Rich started talking about what God was doing in his church. They have been helping people through sort through the crap in their lives and helping people get healed and set free by God. But the more we talked, the more it made sense. My background is with 12-step groups, so I’ve been through some of this stuff… Unfortunately, not many other Christians have….

Anyway, I was blessed to watch and assist several people deal with their past and lay it as the cross this week. People are getting free as they are dealing with unforgiveness, vows and judgements that have bound them for years. People in our little religious, legalistic town are tasting the freedom that only comes from having a relationship with God, and they want more. People are beginning to experience what we’ve only talked about until now. God is moving, and it is good….

I’ve got more to write, but no time at the moment...

I apologize for the silence on the blog front. There have been some awesome things happening around here though!

First, my friend Rich, has been visiting us from England. God's Spirit moves mightily in him and he is a great encourager. Rich has reminded me of the passion that I used to have for Jesus, and how it has wained in the past few years. He has also reminded me that I cannot just keep giving and giving without being encouraged and filled by Jesus and those who passionately follow Him. God is doing some good things around here....I am encouraged for the first time, in a long time...

More to come....