If you ask most people: "What language does God speak?" they will usually answer whatever their native language is. Some, if they think a little harder, might say Hebrew, because the Jews are His chosen people.
Well, here's a thought. What if the original Hebrew and Greek versions of the Bible were actually the first translation.
God doesn't speak English; He speaks "God."
Here's what happens: God speaks a concept. The Christian receives the concept, and his or her mind immediately explains (as best as can be) the concept to him or her. Or, as often happens for me, God sends an image/vision. God is wise and knows us well. So, the concept or image is one that will mean something to us in a way that is beneficial to the person who is to receive the word--whether that be another person, or the Christian receiving.
This can sometimes produce interesting results. Sometimes we get carried away with our interpretations. Sometimes we get excited about all a certain metaphor could mean and then stretch it beyond what was intended.
We are often referred to as "Earthen Vessels" or "Jars of Clay." That description is good for this as well. Imagine that God wants someone to know that He knows that they are thirsty and that He can provide for their needs. He finds a willing vessel and imparts H and O atoms to the vessel. The vessel understands that 2 H's and 1 O makes water and then water is in the vessel. But then the vessel gets excited and agitates the water until, by the time the water is poured out, it has a lot of clay particles in it and doesn't look as clear or as clean as it started. It is still water (unless the vessel is more interested in making God's Word "fancy") and it still meets the need, it just has a funny taste to it. Kind of like THIS metaphor. :) But, like I said, God is wise and He speaks through people whose particular "Flavor" of words is acceptable to the receivers.
I can go into a lot more detail on this topic, if anyone is interested. Just let me know. I may do it anyway.
Love in Christ, Blessings to all who hear and receive!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
"So. Do you get Words from God a lot?"
For a while now, since I've become more comfortable with the idea that I hear God, I've been waiting for some smart tail to give me a hard time about it. Something like: "You mean you hear voices?" or "Okay, prove it. What's God saying RIGHT NOW?" I've been expecting it, but it hasn't happened.
Then, recently, I was with a friend and he stopped all of the sudden and looks at me and asks, "So. Do you get Words from God a lot?"
I was immediately wary. "Well, yes," thinking, where are you going with this? "I guess so. It's fairly frequent."
"Okay. What's God say about me?"
YIKES! A TOTALLY sincere question! I told him that it doesn't quite work that way. I'm not just going to "know" what God thinks about any one person at any given time. I'll have to ask and listen and then see. This isn't like some psychic gimmick or magic trick, and I don't take it so lightly that I'll just spout out the first thing that comes to my head. Even if I think that it's right.
So, we talked about that and I started asking God what He might want to say. I got something right away, but it was the same thing that I had heard and said not too long ago, and I didn't want my friend to think I was just using canned phrases. That message, or the feel of it, wouldn't leave me. Then, while there was a moment where we were both busy, I saw an image of a computer screen and it had a status bar gradually filling up and the word "LOADING" in big letters across the screen. I immediately knew that God was saying that the promise that my friend had been given was still valid and not to worry at the apparent lack of progress in that area: God says it's there; it's just still loading.
For those of you who have ever dealt with computer programs, you know that "LOADING" implies that the product is IN the machine; it's just taking its own time becoming available.
My friend was very familiar with the concept and was grateful for the word. It turns out that that was EXACTLY what he had been wondering about and why he had asked the question.
It's like God knew!
Oh, and to those who might be like the ones I was Expecting. . . please. ask. I might not hear anything, but then again I might. It'd be fun. :)
Blessings! Listen for God. You might be pleasantly surprised.
;)
Then, recently, I was with a friend and he stopped all of the sudden and looks at me and asks, "So. Do you get Words from God a lot?"
I was immediately wary. "Well, yes," thinking, where are you going with this? "I guess so. It's fairly frequent."
"Okay. What's God say about me?"
YIKES! A TOTALLY sincere question! I told him that it doesn't quite work that way. I'm not just going to "know" what God thinks about any one person at any given time. I'll have to ask and listen and then see. This isn't like some psychic gimmick or magic trick, and I don't take it so lightly that I'll just spout out the first thing that comes to my head. Even if I think that it's right.
So, we talked about that and I started asking God what He might want to say. I got something right away, but it was the same thing that I had heard and said not too long ago, and I didn't want my friend to think I was just using canned phrases. That message, or the feel of it, wouldn't leave me. Then, while there was a moment where we were both busy, I saw an image of a computer screen and it had a status bar gradually filling up and the word "LOADING" in big letters across the screen. I immediately knew that God was saying that the promise that my friend had been given was still valid and not to worry at the apparent lack of progress in that area: God says it's there; it's just still loading.
For those of you who have ever dealt with computer programs, you know that "LOADING" implies that the product is IN the machine; it's just taking its own time becoming available.
My friend was very familiar with the concept and was grateful for the word. It turns out that that was EXACTLY what he had been wondering about and why he had asked the question.
It's like God knew!
Oh, and to those who might be like the ones I was Expecting. . . please. ask. I might not hear anything, but then again I might. It'd be fun. :)
Blessings! Listen for God. You might be pleasantly surprised.
;)
Friday, April 8, 2011
Freedom and Attacks in Disguise
Frequently, when God delivers someone from spiritual bondage, they experience "relapses" or "re-occurrences" of the bondage.
I'll speak of depression and/anxiety specifically.
Say a person has been suffering from depression for a long time. The depression has robbed him or her of many experiences and daily pleasures that most people think of as commonplace. He or she can't even go to the grocery store because it brings on panic attacks. Before very long the person has become a prisoner in his or her own home with only the briefest, unpredictable breaks of normalcy.
This is a pure joy to the devil. Satan was one of the highest angels in heaven. His pride was so great that he believed that he could be greater than God. Take a moment and think about how much pride would be necessary for Satan, in the PRESENCE of God, to think that he could be greater. Then think about how he would feel to be rejected and kicked out. H. U. M. I. L. I. A. T. I. O. N.
Satan knows his fate. He knows that there is nothing he can do about it. He HATES God, and because God loves us, Satan HATES us too. We are the only avenue of revenge that Satan has.
The Bible tells us that God loves us so much that He sacrificed His Son for us (John 3:16). It also says that he cares for us so much that He saves our tears (Psalm 56:8 NLT).
So, in revenge, Satan wants us to suffer, to fail, to perish. He knows he is going to hell and wants to take as many of us with him as he can.
A person suffering from depression is a symbol of hopelessness. The bondage and suffering is something that the devil delights in.
God can and does break the bondage of this trap. (My wife is one who has walked free of it, and I have another friend who has recently been set free.)
The devil hates this even more because the person who is delivered from depression is suddenly free to be with people again, and, what do you think that person would talk about? Of course! "God loves me! He heal me!" If you were trying to lead people away from God, would you want this? A person that everyone knows has been bound up in depression is now running around free. And God did this?
The answer to this is to lie to the redeemed. Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). He will step into a moment where the person is exploring his or her new freedom.
"John walks into the store. He suddenly remembers how he used to panic when he was here. He has flash-back emotions and believes that he is panicking again. He leaves and fears that he has NOT be set free. He is afraid to try again and falls back into the old patterns again."
In this illustration, "John" had a memory and the devil attacked him and disguised the spiritual attack as a panic attack. He put on the pressure and "John" believed the lie and it became his reality. "John" was still free, he just didn't know it, so he couldn't benefit from it.
In training elephants, when the elephant is a baby, they chain it to a tree or a large post. Over time, as the elephant consistently tries and fails to pull loose, the elephant becomes convinced that the collar and line mean the boundary of what is possible. By the time the elephant is grown, the trainer has reduced the chain to a cord and the post to a small stake. The trainer will even have the elephant pick up the stake and move it, but the elephant will still not move beyond the reach of the cord. He believes that he cannot go beyond that point, so, he no longer tries.
Like the elephant, "John" believed the lie and did not push beyond the limit of his experience. Because of this, he did not exercise his strength nor did he realize his freedom.
For those who may say that this is all well and good for me to say, but . . .
I recently went with a "John" to the grocery store and he experienced the panic. I helped him deal with it and he pushed through. We talked recently and I asked him, "If that had really been like it was before, would it have mattered if I had helped?"
He responded, "NO. I would have just walked out the door and waited in the car."
This particular "John" went back to that store the next day without me and was successful.
Anyone can be successful. Just push through the lies and march into the truth. And DON'T give up if you aren't always successful. That doesn't mean that you haven't been set free; it means that you haven't learned HOW to be free yet. Look at the Israelites. The book of Exodus starts off getting them out of slavery and then the rest of Exodus and the following three books are dedicated to teaching them how to BE free. Like us, they too tried to slip back into their old lives/lifestyles.
God LOVES you. Satan HATES you.
Push through to the promises!
Be blessed; Be FREE, Know the Father!
I'll speak of depression and/anxiety specifically.
Say a person has been suffering from depression for a long time. The depression has robbed him or her of many experiences and daily pleasures that most people think of as commonplace. He or she can't even go to the grocery store because it brings on panic attacks. Before very long the person has become a prisoner in his or her own home with only the briefest, unpredictable breaks of normalcy.
This is a pure joy to the devil. Satan was one of the highest angels in heaven. His pride was so great that he believed that he could be greater than God. Take a moment and think about how much pride would be necessary for Satan, in the PRESENCE of God, to think that he could be greater. Then think about how he would feel to be rejected and kicked out. H. U. M. I. L. I. A. T. I. O. N.
Satan knows his fate. He knows that there is nothing he can do about it. He HATES God, and because God loves us, Satan HATES us too. We are the only avenue of revenge that Satan has.
The Bible tells us that God loves us so much that He sacrificed His Son for us (John 3:16). It also says that he cares for us so much that He saves our tears (Psalm 56:8 NLT).
So, in revenge, Satan wants us to suffer, to fail, to perish. He knows he is going to hell and wants to take as many of us with him as he can.
A person suffering from depression is a symbol of hopelessness. The bondage and suffering is something that the devil delights in.
God can and does break the bondage of this trap. (My wife is one who has walked free of it, and I have another friend who has recently been set free.)
The devil hates this even more because the person who is delivered from depression is suddenly free to be with people again, and, what do you think that person would talk about? Of course! "God loves me! He heal me!" If you were trying to lead people away from God, would you want this? A person that everyone knows has been bound up in depression is now running around free. And God did this?
The answer to this is to lie to the redeemed. Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). He will step into a moment where the person is exploring his or her new freedom.
"John walks into the store. He suddenly remembers how he used to panic when he was here. He has flash-back emotions and believes that he is panicking again. He leaves and fears that he has NOT be set free. He is afraid to try again and falls back into the old patterns again."
In this illustration, "John" had a memory and the devil attacked him and disguised the spiritual attack as a panic attack. He put on the pressure and "John" believed the lie and it became his reality. "John" was still free, he just didn't know it, so he couldn't benefit from it.
In training elephants, when the elephant is a baby, they chain it to a tree or a large post. Over time, as the elephant consistently tries and fails to pull loose, the elephant becomes convinced that the collar and line mean the boundary of what is possible. By the time the elephant is grown, the trainer has reduced the chain to a cord and the post to a small stake. The trainer will even have the elephant pick up the stake and move it, but the elephant will still not move beyond the reach of the cord. He believes that he cannot go beyond that point, so, he no longer tries.
Like the elephant, "John" believed the lie and did not push beyond the limit of his experience. Because of this, he did not exercise his strength nor did he realize his freedom.
For those who may say that this is all well and good for me to say, but . . .
I recently went with a "John" to the grocery store and he experienced the panic. I helped him deal with it and he pushed through. We talked recently and I asked him, "If that had really been like it was before, would it have mattered if I had helped?"
He responded, "NO. I would have just walked out the door and waited in the car."
This particular "John" went back to that store the next day without me and was successful.
Anyone can be successful. Just push through the lies and march into the truth. And DON'T give up if you aren't always successful. That doesn't mean that you haven't been set free; it means that you haven't learned HOW to be free yet. Look at the Israelites. The book of Exodus starts off getting them out of slavery and then the rest of Exodus and the following three books are dedicated to teaching them how to BE free. Like us, they too tried to slip back into their old lives/lifestyles.
God LOVES you. Satan HATES you.
Push through to the promises!
Be blessed; Be FREE, Know the Father!
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Don't Forsake the Fellowship
I just came home from a Men's Meeting. It was great. I was the speaker tonight, but the part that was great was the interaction with and from everyone.
If you are ever in a group of believers, who all want to hear God and know Him, who are all talking about God, listen closely to what they are all saying. Most of the time, when I do this, I can see (hear) the common thread and I see how God is using different people's personalities and sensitivities to address an idea in a much more "three dimensional" way than could probably be done by a single speaker.
This is one more reason why we are supposed to fellowship with other believers.
If five people stand at different places on or near a mountain, and each is asked to describe the mountain, you will get five completely different descriptions. If you ask them at the same time in the same room, you may start an argument about what the mountain is really like.
But.
If you listen to them all, assuming that they really are talking about the same mountain, you will get a more detailed image of the thing than you could get other wise. One person can only see so much without help.
If this is true about a mountain. . . . How much bigger IS God anyway? :)
Just a thought.
Blessings!
If you are ever in a group of believers, who all want to hear God and know Him, who are all talking about God, listen closely to what they are all saying. Most of the time, when I do this, I can see (hear) the common thread and I see how God is using different people's personalities and sensitivities to address an idea in a much more "three dimensional" way than could probably be done by a single speaker.
This is one more reason why we are supposed to fellowship with other believers.
If five people stand at different places on or near a mountain, and each is asked to describe the mountain, you will get five completely different descriptions. If you ask them at the same time in the same room, you may start an argument about what the mountain is really like.
But.
If you listen to them all, assuming that they really are talking about the same mountain, you will get a more detailed image of the thing than you could get other wise. One person can only see so much without help.
If this is true about a mountain. . . . How much bigger IS God anyway? :)
Just a thought.
Blessings!
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Who do Men Say that I Am?
Matthew 16: 13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
God WANTS a relationship with us and EVERYTHING points to that and warns against shallow, uncommitted people.
All you have to do is truly SEEK, God will do the rest.
God bless you all. Be at peace, know truth, and settle for nothing less than what you have been promised.
14 “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
15 Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus asked a simple question with a loaded answer. The first question is "Who do PEOPLE say that I am?" This question is about how he appeared to others. The answers made it clear that those who did not know Him personally could only guess wildly based on what they knew about OTHER people that they didn't know.
The next question was "Who do YOU say I am?" And they got it right.
I think that the point here was not that Jesus was(is) the Messiah, but that a personal relationship with Him is necessary if we are to really know who He is. This ought to be a "no-brainer," but how often do we settle for what we have heard about Jesus and neglect to seek Him for ourselves?
If you answer the question "Who do you say I am?" with "The Christ" or "The Messiah" and you are only quoting what you have heard, then you (we) are no better than the ones who thought that he was John the Baptist or Jeremiah.
Peter's answer was right because he had a relationship with Jesus and, through that relationship, he heard God.
Luke 13:
22 Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he went, always pressing on toward Jerusalem. 23 Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?”
He replied, 24 “Work hard to enter the narrow door to God’s Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail. 25 When the master of the house has locked the door, it will be too late. You will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Lord, open the door for us!’ But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26 Then you will say, ‘But we ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 And he will reply, ‘I tell you, I don’t know you or where you come from. Get away from me, all you who do evil.’God WANTS a relationship with us and EVERYTHING points to that and warns against shallow, uncommitted people.
All you have to do is truly SEEK, God will do the rest.
God bless you all. Be at peace, know truth, and settle for nothing less than what you have been promised.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)