The Gathering Place
A place where thoughts congeal

Prayer is one of the most difficult practices that we engage in on our faith journey. One of the main reasons this is so is because it is so much easier to talk about “why” we pray than explain “how” to pray. At it’s core, prayer is simply talking with God, connecting in conversation where we share our thoughts and feelings to God and He shares His. When you read that sentence, it make sense, but when you try to do it, it seemingly becomes so much more. Prayer is not something that can remain in the realm of principles, forms, and stories but it must be lived, experienced, and practiced.

Prayer is much like riding a bike. When I was 4 or 5 years old, I got my first BMX bike. My birthday was on Easter that year and I had gotten up early to begin my hunt for chocolate. When I passed our laundry room, I peeked under the door and saw the two black wheels, white pedals, and the training wheels. I dropped down to get a better look and saw this shiny, red bike. I ran and woke up my parents and was out in my driveway in no time trying to learn how to ride. I was totally excited.

In the beginning, I struggled to get going. It was awkward to try to balance myself and have enough strength to move the bike forward. In fact, since my driveway was full of gravel, the wheel would often spin but not catch so I wouldn’t go even an inch forward. When we meet God, there is such an excitement because He touched us. We are immersed in His love, His forgiveness, we know inside that we are new. We feel His power and want more. We are told that we can talk with the Creator of the Universe and that He will talk back. We’re so excited, but then we try and it is awkward. How do you talk to someone who you’ve not seen? What do you say? How do you know if you’re doing it right?

My first bike had training wheels, guides to help me keep my balance and enable me to go. In prayer, there are forms or patterns that we can follow that help us in the same way. These forms help guide us in our experience of prayer, give us the sense that we’re starting off correctly, and help us to go. Jesus’ prayer life was so remarkable that His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. They didn’t ask Him how to do miracles, how to read the Bible, how to preach, or how to get stuff. In response, Jesus gave them training wheels.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” (Mt. 6:9-13 NKJV)

This model prayer is pretty basic. We pray to our Father in heaven. We praise Him because His name is holy. We invite His kingdom to come and when we know what His will is in heaven we declare it so on earth. We ask for daily provision (bread is both food, clothes, etc. and a fresh word from God - Mt. 6:33, Jn. 6:28-41/Jn. 1:1,14). We ask for forgiveness of our sins, because our sin separates us from God and makes Him ignore us (Is. 59:1-2). We forgive people who have sinned against us because if we don’t forgive, we won’t be forgiven (Mk. 11:25-26). We ask for wisdom and protection from temptation and the devil. We remember that no matter what is going on, He is King and has all power and glory.
Even though we have training wheels, we don’t just jump on the bike and go. It’s more complicated than that. Balance, control, how to brake, all of these are something that must be experienced to be learned. That day I began to ride, my father and mother were there to help and encourage me to do it. My father instructed me and helped me get on the bike. He helped me stabilize the bike and gave me a push when the wheels wouldn’t catch on the gravel as I tried to pedal. My mother encouraged me and cheered me on. My father even got on and demonstrated how to pedal, steer, and brake. If my parents were that involved with me learning to ride, how much more is God interested in teaching us to pray. God gives us His Holy Spirit, to live in us, teach us, and comfort us. The Holy Spirit knows God’s will and reveals it to us (1 Cor. 2:12) and He helps us to pray when we don’t know how (Ro. 8:26-27). God gives us leaders who can also teach us, show us by their example, and encourage us.

I rode my bike pretty much every day and within no time I was ready to remove the training wheels. After the training wheels were off, it was a little awkward because now I had to shift my weight a little differently to maintain my balance. When I stopped, I needed to put my foot down or I would fall. Despite these changes, I could now try to do jumps and tricks, I could go more places, I could go faster. There comes a point in our journey where we go to the next level in prayer. We keep the fundamentals that we learned while on training wheels, but now we have a freedom to explore more and do more. So it is with prayer. The forms lead us into deeper levels of prayer and experience from God. We shift from basic, “God I want/need this thing” and “God bless our food” to hearing His voice, seeing visions, and having encounters. The more we do it the “better” we get. We become like Jesus who, did what He saw the Father doing (Jn. 5:19-20, Jn. 8:38), said what the Father was saying (Jn. 8:26, Jn. 12:49), and lived what the Father taught Him (Jn. 8:28).

Prayer was meant to be experienced and lived. If there is no exchange with God, no actual answer, then it is not prayer. It is just words and emotions. The same rule that says “faith without works is dead” applies: prayer without an answer is dead. You ride a bike or you don’t. You can talk all you want about how Dave Mirra or Ryan Nyquist pulls tricks but if you can’t do it, you don’t truly know. If you haven’t face-planted while trying to do an Indo, then you can imagine what it is like, but you don’t know. If you don’t try that jump, then you can’t brag on how you made it. If you don’t pray for the sick, they don’t recover. And you don’t have an awesome story of how God healed this person of paralysis or sickness or disease. If you don’t pray God’s will into the earth, it doesn’t come.

When I hit high school, got a car, and started playing basketball, football, and wrestling, I stopped riding my bike so much. I stopped thinking about it. I stopped talking about it. I had one, but it sat unused on my back porch. It was no longer a part of my daily life. When I stopped riding, it stopped being important, it stopped being fun.

Some time later I got a new bike. I was excited about having it and ready to go out and ride it. As I began pedaling I was a little wobbly, a little rusty. I still remembered how to ride a bike, but I was nowhere near as good as I used to be. I tried to do a few tricks and they didn’t come as easy. After spending some time on my bike, my backside got sore because I was no longer used to sitting in that seat. Where I used to be able to spend whole days riding my bike, now my legs were tired and worn out after a short period of time. Yeah, I could still ride, but not very good. Not like I used to. Yet something else began to happen when I started riding again. I started to think about it. I thought about riding my bike to work, or riding with my family after work. The experience was something I began to look forward to once again.

This brings me to the whole point of this article. Prayer is absolutely meant to be experienced, tested, tried, and lived instead of ritually performed or talked about. It’s an invitation into experiencing God - so much more than words, thoughts or ideas. Although riding a bike is a general concept, there are different types of bikes that are suited for different things. The same is true of prayer: there is intercession, petition, adoration, encounter, and so much more. In prayer we meet God and come to learn how He does things, how He thinks, what He likes, and we get invited to do what He is doing and say what He is saying. We get to participate in bringing His will into the earth, in actually healing sick people. We get to see the works of God in us and through us. Yet, like riding a bike, the moment you start doing it again, you will start talking about it again and thinking about it again. It is then that you realize that you can only value what you are giving value to. You can only love prayer when you pray. You can only know how to pray when you pray. You can’t read enough books, hear enough teaching, or watch it on TV to provoke you to pray. You have to pray, see answers, struggle with putting your life into words, strain to hear God’s voice, and obey His response to truly know what prayer is. I’m convinced that this is a lifelong process in our journey of faith. An experience which gets better and better as time goes by.

Here are some notes (not exhaustive) from the 1st service message:

Intro
Luke 1, especially v 37.

Vines Expository Dictionary of new Testament Words
Logos: denotes (I) "the expression of thought," not the mere name of an object, (a) as embodying a conception or idea, (b) a saying or statement, (1) by God, (2) by Christ,
In connection with (1) and (2) the phrase "the word of the Lord," i.e., the revealed will of God (very frequent in the OT), is used of a direct revelation given by Christ, in this respect it is the message from the Lord, delivered with His authority and made effective by His power ; sometimes it is used as the sum of God's utterances (c) discourse, speech, of instruction; doctrine

Rhema: denotes "that which is spoken, what is uttered in speech or writing;" in the singular, "a word,"  in the plural, speech, discourse, of a statement, command, instruction

?The significance of rhema (as distinct from logos) is exemplified in the injunction to take "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God," Eph. 6:17; here the reference is not to the whole Bible as such, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in time of need, a prerequisite being the regular storing of the mind with Scripture.?

Logos expresses thought, intent, and substance of the Spirit of the speaker and is very much connected with the logic of the content. Rhema releases faith to respond, without necessarily knowing all the details (Romans 10:17).

What the Word is not
    Merely a collection of stories and men?s wisdom (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
    Dead (2 Cor 3:6)
    Comprised of men?s traditions and wisdom (Matthew 15:1-6)
    A mantra or incantation or simply a principle or law
   
What the Word is
    A person (Rhema must sound like Him...John 10:27)   
    Living and active (Hebrews 4:12-13)
    Full of life (John 6:63, 2 Corinthians 3:6, Matthew 4:4)
    Has creative power in itself (Hebrews 1:3)
    It comes to pass (Moses)
   
How not to respond to the Word
    Zechariah (Show me a sign...Luke 1)
    Disciples (Offended....John 6)
    Excuses (John 5:7)
    Pride (John 5:39-40)
   
How to respond to the Word
    Receive (John 5:47)   
    Mary (Luke 1)

    Warfare: Eph 6:17 word [rhema] of God, 1 Timothy
    Effective prayer: John 15:7-8 words [rhema] abide
    Miracles: Mark 11:21-24
    Paul (Acts 27) - speak the word, until (Last week's message)
   

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Tags: wordof God

I am a Christian... I am born again... I'm saved... Heaven bound... on Fire for Jesus... this train is bound for Glory
Here is a question that I want us to begin to ask, "Does God know you?" It's one thing to believe that we know God or the scriptures. It's also easy for many of us to determine our own path to God's acceptance with or without any scriptural foundation. Most of us judge ourselves by our potential and not by our own actions. If we basically feel good about our lives or ourselves we have a sense of justification. Another thing that makes it easy for us is that it's possible to look at other people's lives and compare what they've got going on to ourselves and then find some sort of comfort there because we are not as bad as they are. Plus I know in my life at times it feels almost as if you can play God like you play other people. We walk around faking it and nobody really seems to know. If we do it long enough it feels like maybe even God is somehow bamboozeled by our charade. Have you ever felt that way? I have. I hate to admit it but I have.
Take you Bible out now. Seriously, stop reading this for just a moment and take your Bible turn to the book of Matthew chapter 7 verses 21 - 29. Read it again and then read the whole chapter, then let's begin our discussion. This will be our next series of talks. Does God know you? Let me hear your thoughts and questions on this.

Tags: urshel, blog, theFlood, river of life, salvation, jesus, October

Romans 8:16-17

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.

Recently I saw something in this portion of Scripture that I hadn't seen before. I believe that every time, when hearing about the fact that we are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, I have heard this passage spoken of in reference of the blessings we receive when we are in this position. Suddenly I saw another side to this position - that of responsibility.

If we are joint heirs with Christ of the kingdom of God this also means that not only do we share the riches, wealth, and luxury of that position we also share the responsibility of administering the kingdom. We are responsible for executing lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness (cf. Jeremiah 9:24). We are responsible for binding the broken hearted, healing the sick, freeing the oppressed, and caring for the orphan and the widow.

As this truth began to unfold before me I thought of a dictator or leader of a nation who has incredible wealth and power. They live a life of luxury and abundance while the people they are responsible to serve and lead live in poverty and despair. In cases like this, a revolt is soon to come. People despise leaders who turn away from justice (cf. Proverbs 29:2).

It's the same with hollywood news. Think of the most popular heiress you know. I don't even have to mention her name and you probably know who I'm talking about. She is an heiress to a fortune, lives without lack, parties all the time, has access to about anything she could ever want or need. Yet people despise her. They hate her frivolous living and her position and wealth. I think many question how someone so irresponsible could be blessed with so much wealth.

I think that the world, i.e. the world system and the spirit that governs it, those who do not have Christ, have great disrespect for the average American Christian and the Church in general for a similar reason. With all our abundance, our proclamation of blessing and our attitude about the lost, no wonder people have turned away or classified us as fools. Many seem to enjoy taking offense at being discriminated against "for the sake of the gospel" and make a big show of it. They attack the non-believer and expect special treatment. They are "the head and not the tail, the top and not the bottom" and won't be treated like anything else. They walk in judgment upon the lost, the poor, and the broken. They are saved and sanctified and do not want to be defiled. Those who are famous who point their finger towards heaven and give glory to God with their lips but live far from Him in their lives enjoy the gifts of God and even credit Him for it, but do not accept the responsibility for this blessing. The American Church has more money than any Church Era in history, yet there are millions of lost souls, millions of orphans and widows, millions of poor and hurting people who are awaiting the message of hope and looking for help.

Don't misunderstand - I am totally for being blessed. In fact, God commands the blessing in my life and I am grateful for every good and perfect gift He gives me. I would have nothing without the blessing of the Lord. I am not despising the good things that come with it. The bible says that "the blessing of the Lord makes one rich and He adds no sorrow to it" (Proverbs 10:22). But what I am saying is that we have a responsibility attached to that blessing. In fact, in Deuteronomy 8, God says that He gives us power to get wealth so that He can establish His covenant. He also warns the people that when they are blessed that they are not to forget Him or His ways. His ways are to love the unlovely, champion the downtrodden, provide for the orphan and widow, serve others...basically to love.

So, what does this mean then? I know that I now am seeing that my being a joint heir with Christ empowers me to use the blessings of God to make a difference in those around me. It requires that I do. And by so doing, I will gain credibility with those in the world around me. They will see my good works and glorify my Father in heaven. They will know who to turn to in times of need. They will look for help and find a loving hand.

What do you think? Are you living like a spoiled heiress or despot ruler wielding your wealth and privilege like a weapon against those who have not entered into the kingdom, or are you living like Christ, the One who chose to wash His disciples feet after He knew that all things were given to him (cf. John 13).

Do you think I'm wrong, confused, or have something you'd like to say? Post your comment and add to the discussion.

Truth.

It isn't what most people want.
Most people want the show.

They want to be wowed and stimulated but don't want to know how it really is. It's like watching a DVD - you see the movie and the special effects and editing make a scene look awesome. It draws you in and seems so real, so life-like. Then you watch the special features and see that the scene was full of miniatures and computer generated graphics. Then it's not so cool. In fact, it really turns out to be smoke and mirrors and plastic and foam and paint. Not real, not alive at all. Truth.

Yeah, when it comes to life we want the show. We want the glamour and spotlight - we'll even settle for moderate success. The crazy thing is that daily life is mostly none of that. The success we achieve are built upon many, many mundane and really boring moments and activities.

It's like drinking: you drink until you get the buzz - it's all good then. Until. The next day you find out that there is a price, a penalty. You acted a fool, you said something stupid and wrecked a relationship, you feel like you've been scraped of the floor of the bus. Truth.

But there is another side to Truth that is amazing and at our core it is what we long to put words to. It is the Thing that holds everything together. We look at the most amazing view off a mountain trail, waterfall cascading down the granite cliff. Trees ablaze in the colors of autumn. The air crisp and clean. The calming sense of peace that envelopes the moment. It's so surreal. Truth.

Love. The intimate kiss. The longing gaze between two souls who desire to press beyond the limitations of time, space, and physical reality. The force of that love extending beyond rational thought and causing people to do extreme things out of their character. Truth.

A man once asked, "What is Truth." The response still echos from eternity, "Truth is a Person." Jesus said that He is the "way, the truth, and the life." He is the binding principle of life and peace and love. The absence of life and peace and love is the other side of truth, or really the emptiness which abides where truth is not present. Even more it may be that it is the shadow of truth. Like the hangover after a night of hard partying, the absence of wholeness stirs up a desire for it.

I wonder how much of our lives are wasted in the pursuit of the show and the glamour of life instead of abiding in the Truth. When I come to the place where I embrace life and peace and love, where I take upon myself the yoke of Jesus, then I become a participant in the life of God. I can experience a peace and wholeness that is free to reign in me because I no longer strive to build and create and craft the perfect show. No masks, no reveals, no prestige - just real, just me, just Truth.

Truth is a Person and in Him I find myself. When I let go of my idea of living and embrace that for which God has created me for, I experience wholeness and real peace and a real zeal for life. I experience shalom - the presence of the goodness of God, wholeness and completeness.