Category: Relationships

humility

The Unusual Humility Of William Seymour

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In 1906 something very unusual began happening in a small meeting in Los Angeles. People testified that the Spirit of God was coming upon them and filling them with joy and power and praise for God. Their lives were transformed. It was the beginning of the Azusa Street Revival which was the leading contributor to the biggest movement in the Christian church in centuries: Pentecostalism. It was also the second largest social movement of the 20th century after communism – and unlike communism it was still skyrocketing by the end of the century. In the year 2000 over 500 million Christians worldwide considered themselves Pentecostal or charismatic. The pastor of the church that hosted these meetings on Azusa Street was a black man named William Seymour. The meetings were filled with whites as well as blacks and many other nationalities. As news of the meetings spread many ministers spoke against Continue Reading →

fellowship

True Discipleship Is A Taste Of Heaven – Col. 3:12-15

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Colossians 3:1-17 is one of my favorite passages in the bible. It’s hard to think of other passages that describe what it means to be a disciple of Jesus so well, It reminds me of the Sermon on the Mount! Today we are looking at Col. 3:12-15: “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” (NLT) In Col. 3:10 Paul directed the Colossians to put on their Continue Reading →

spiritual friend

Spiritual Friendship And Spiritual Advisers – Should We Admonish?

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Bruce and Tom (or Linda and Rachel) are spiritual friends and have edifying conversations on a regular basis. They encourage one another and each one feels stronger because of the friendship. Bruce starts to notice that Tom makes little joking putdowns of others in his conversations with people. Of course, this isn’t a cardinal sin but it is definitely not godly speech. What should Bruce do? Being a spiritual friend to someone is a huge blessing, for you as well as them. Believers are recognizing they need spiritual help and so life coaching and spiritual direction are more popular now than in the past. But how can we be a spiritual friend who actually makes a difference in someone’s life? How can we be God’s channel for transformation? One of the keys to being a good spiritual friend is saying the hard things that you don’t want to say. In Continue Reading →

How Do You Value Supernatural Ministry?

How Do You Value Supernatural Ministry?

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Several years ago there was a minister who was a very popular speaker at Pentecostal and charismatic conferences. He was known for his unusual supernatural gifting and older leaders were giving him a lot of support in his ministry. He even went on a high profile speaking tour and many testified to miracles through his ministry. But after a couple years it was revealed that he was having trouble in his marriage, since he was pursuing another woman. Apparently, there had been problems in his marriage for years. His ministry practically dissolved. This makes me wonder how other ministers decided to help promote this person to such a high profile ministry. Why did they think this person was mature enough to be given such influence? Did anyone do personal discipling for him? And why does this keep happening over and over again? In one of the more shocking pronouncements on Continue Reading →

gong

“Without Love You Ain’t Nothing” – Larry Norman

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“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.” I Cor. 13:1-2 (NIV) The title of this post is from a Larry Norman (Christian music pioneer) song of the 1970’s, and he was echoing the words from I Cor. 13:2. He sang them because these are some of the most important words in Christianity. This passage shocks us with the surprising truth that even if someone has great spiritual gifts they are nothing without love! In fact, they are a nuisance, like a noisy gong. They are not a true disciple. What is surprising is that God would give spiritual gifts Continue Reading →