Amos 7

 ¹ This is what the Sovereign LORD showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts after the king's share had been harvested and just as the second crop was coming up. ² When they had stripped the land clean, I cried out, "Sovereign LORD, forgive! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!"

 ³ So the LORD relented.
      "This will not happen," the LORD said.

 ⁴ This is what the Sovereign LORD showed me: The Sovereign LORD was calling for judgment by fire; it dried up the great deep and devoured the land. ⁵ Then I cried out, "Sovereign LORD, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!"

 ⁶ So the LORD relented.
      "This will not happen either," the Sovereign LORD said.

 ⁷ This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in his hand. ⁸ And the LORD asked me, "What do you see, Amos?"
      "A plumb line," I replied.
      Then the Lord said, "Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.

 ⁹ "The high places of Isaac will be destroyed
       and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined;
       with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam."

I never cease to be in awe of how God uses the simplest of realities in my own life to bless others.  The strengthening of my own masculine walk in Christ is being drawn upon by other men for their healing.  This is what Jesus meant when he said that we would bear fruit...fruit that would last.  To be His servant is an endless source of great joy.

I also preached to the Awakening Canada church on Sunday night.  I taught what the Lord has been showing me about the parables.  I was nervous, as I always am in opening new things I have discovered in the Scriptures, but the Spirit prevailed.  I am humbled to teach God's word.  I am blown away how it changes minds and hearts.  The word is truly powerful.

Now I am home.  It is a precious time to be fully present with my children after being gone for 5 days.  I love doing ministry, however, they remain my greatest investment of time, energy, and love.  Bringing Brennan up in the ways of Jesus and shaping his masculine journey is what will change the world.  Nurturing Elisabeth to be a confident, inwardly beautiful woman of God is the stuff that will transform nations.  They are my primary stewardship and my two favorite people!

Thank you for each prayer while I was gone.  Their value will only be known fully when we go to be with the Lord.    

Your prayers are precious to me and powerful in helping me fulfill my calling.

When one browses through the TV schedule you will find shows like Ghost Hunters, Ghost Hunters International, MonsterQuest, Destination Truth, Haunted History, and even one marketed to kids called The Othersiders.  This is only a thumbnail of the dozens of shows covering the paranormal.

These shows seek to find evidence of paranormal activity using personal experiences and electronic/video equipment to capture activity and either confirm or debunk through evidence.  They have caught some legitimate experiences and very compelling video and audio.

Many of us have had paranormal experiences that we can't explain.  Children are especially susceptible and frequently report things to their parents only to be dismissed with "Oh, you are just imagining things."  I am grateful that my parents, as informed Christians, didn't do this to me growing up.  Because of their understanding, I grew up with an ability to discern, process, and deal with these experiences.

In pastoral ministry, I have often been called to people's homes to pray and "clean out" demonic entities.  Through these dealings, the Scriptures, personal experiences, my parent's teaching, and deliverances of individuals, I have learned much and been blessed to share with others.

I want to state a few beliefs, based on my understanding at this point, that can serve to open up dialogue:

1.  There are no such things as ghosts or aliens.  When someone sees or experiences legitimate entities there are only a few possibilities.  There are 4 types of spirits: human, demonic, angelic, and the Holy Spirit.  Human spirits, when disembodied, do not remain "with us."  Sorry Ghost Whisperer fans...you've been duped. Demonic spirits often parade as humans who are deceased.  This is called a familiar spirit.  It is only mimicking the one that has passed on. 

2.  What some have seen as "alien abductions" are actually demonic, supernatural experiences often under the oversight of Satanists and witches.  These visitations open people up to all kinds of misconceptions about the supernatural and are partially meant to keep them in fear and away from the truth of Christ.

3.  There is only one answer to demonic activity: Jesus Christ.  No amount of "other help" like psychics, mediums, or paranormal investigators will deal with the problems. The believer in Jesus has authority to deal in the spiritual realm with demonic spirits.  As we grow in our understanding of Satan's schemes, our effectiveness in using our authority in Christ increases.

Give me some feedback on this one.  I want to get other's perspectives.

Love that waters down the truth as found in the Scriptures isn't love...it is compromise.  Many believers compromise truth under the guise of loving their brother or sister.  However, love holds fast to that which is true and becomes a bulwark to draw the erring brother or sister back to the right way of living, thinking, or walking.

It is hard to stand firm on the word of God.  Yet, the Father has called us to this very thing.  Compromise leads to subversion and erosion of our faith in Christ.  My heart aches as I hold the line.  His strength will sustain me and those standing with me. 

Dear friends, the time is now to join the Father in the move He has initiated in our land.  Pray like you've never prayed before.  Let's quit our petty complaining and rise up in Spirit-directed action.  The Lord is directing His people.  His hand is moving mightily and we have the privilege of joining Him in this awakening time. 

This entry is a call to prayer.  Many of you know that I have been writing a book on kingdom simplicity.  It is progressing along slowly, but steadily.  The Lord has moved another book up to the forefront that I am writing simultaneously.  It is called Freedom Train:  Essays for Men on Christian Sexuality. 

A number of things have added up to moving this one forward:

1.  So many men are coming to me for help on issues related to their sexuality.  They desire freedom and are seeking help. Pornography, masturbation and homosexuailty are the 3 main issues.

2.  The warfare to preserve my own sexual purity has been intense.  I know it is because of the battle I am engaged in for the purity and freedom of other men.

3.  The Spirit keeps prompting me to learn more from the Scriptures in this area and has been building my faith for the battles. In the process, He has been drilling down on my own purity to purge me of all hints of sexual immorality.

There are other things as well but these reasons will suffice.  Please pray for these three things:

-Finances and time to write. 

-Freedom for the men I am helping in their journey.

-Preservation of my own purity in the midst of great tempation and warfare.

Thank you for each prayer breathed up to the Father on my behalf.  You are part of helping set men free to have pure lives.

Now, can we speak frankly? We all do things that are important to us that aren't necessarily important to God.  We willfully choose to do things without submitting them first to the scrutiny of the will of God.  Because of this our commitments often go unmet because life is just "too busy".

Much of this can be dealt with by living a life of kingdom simplicity.  The first pillar of kingdom simplicity is listening to and obeying God.  The Lord never leads us to do more than our time allows.  His leading is always in order and doesn't cause greater stress than we can bear.

Let us submit each moment and action to the will of God.  Listen to him, really listen and seek to obey what He has said.  We can find great freedom and ability to accomplish what is needed because it is within the boundaries that He has set out for our lives, namely, His perfect will.