The Week In Review : Part 2

As the sun will be setting soon and a new week shall commence, I'd better finish my review.

Relationships and Church: Preach Prophetess Bynum!

I want to share a few snippets from Juanita's book Matters of the heart. ( bold emphasis me)

Loving God brings about a commitment to Him. When you love somebody, you are committed to him in every way. There is nothing that you will not do for someone you love. You would be willing to lay down your ife for your loved one . So when you say "I love you Lord" , but still walk in your own ways,then you do not really love the Lord. You are still going about in your "religious affairs", and you so not have a real relationship with Him, which will bring about a change of character and a change in the way you walk. A real relationship with Him enables you to walk in His commandments.
If you do not have a real relationship with Him then you merely "appreciate" Him for the life and breath that He has given you. You are grateful for the way He makes for you out of no way and for all the things He permits you to have . But you are still operating from a materialistic standpoint-and that is not real love. It cannot become real until you become committed and submitted to HIS ways. pg 11

Amen sister girl!

How many time I have said " I love you Lord" but then refuse to walk the way He has told me to. that's not love , that's me wanting my own way, that's me wanting ,thinking that me and God are ok all the while knowing that I'm not in right relationship with Him. I want to appreciate and love Him. To do that I've got to invest in my relationship with Him, He's already done that for me by sending Jesus to die in my place. He has already shown that He is committed for the long haul..The issues is am I will to make the same sacrifice.

This second quote comes from pg 13 and deals with Church:

We have to plow deeply into the church system to find people who are crying to God.....a remnant sitting in the body of Christ in this hour that is willing to say ,"I have to have the heart of God. I have to have a new heart. I have to be able to have a real relationship with God outside of the pews, outside of the choir roll ,outside of my favorite preacher or evangelist.How do I get back to God-Simply God? Simply God , without all the props. Simply God , without all the drama. .........

How can the church do the work of the Spirit - not just the work of Christendom - to the point that she has the power to be as compassionate as Christ Himself?

I have a friend who as he states " has left the church" . He has not left God but the church ...for a long time I worried about him( you know I did ) and his statement, because to me If you left the church you were in fact leaving God. My view has changed somewhat due to my own internal struggles with denominationalism, structured worship and traditions. You see I am called to be a Pastor , but I often wonder where within my denominations walls will I find a place to do that which I am called to do.This is because of many reasons( gender discrimination is a big one) but mainly because I realize I am becoming increasingly tired of " church " stuff. Christians make it harder to find God than He does himself. We are more concerned about numbers than the members who are in the pew hurting from all manners of diseases( spiritual, physical and mental) Why is this ? well I agree with Juanita and P.M . It has to do with relationship . We are caught up in the form and fashion of Jesus but know not His power or Him. And because of this fake relationship, it spills over into our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ .

So the Prophetess ask the question"How can the church do the work of the Spirit - not just the work of Christendom - to the point that she has the power to be as compassionate as Christ Himself?" The answer is found with the teacher ..Jesus .....Read the red passages in the gospels and then walk it out in our lives...be disciples and not just pew warmers. Only those who truly have the a heart for God will rise to the occasion and come out of there comfort zone.

For me this means that I may not fit into the status quo church because first of all I desire a real relationship with God and would want that for all that I Shepard. Come out of the box, go into the world and allow God to make up His church and follow His mandate as to how it should be run .

It all comes down to right relationships, take the mask off, deal with issues and walk in love.
It's the horizontal and vertical thing. So Juanita has just helped to stir the pot of my discontent with the "norm' and fuel the fire for something more ...so much more.

Last but not least ...... Jesus

One of the scripture covered while doing my Sabbath school lesson this week on the Holy Spirit and the unpardonable sin was found Matthew 12:24-27.

The Pharisees Rebuked
22Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw.
23All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, "This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?"
24But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons."
25And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, "Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand.
26"If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?
27"If I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges.
28"But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

It's a sad day in the "church" when we see the move of God and attribute it to satan . Lord I want to always be able to see and know . Lord never be so caught up in the traditions and trappings of ' religion" that I miss you.

Ok made it just as the sun is setting...

Day is dying in the west
Heaven is touching earth with rest
Wait and worship while the night
sets the evening lamps alight
Through all the sky......
Holy , Holy , Holy . Lord God of Host ! Heaven and earth are full of Thee . Heaven and earth are praising thee , Oh Lord Most High!