Saturday, November 12, 2011
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Monday, September 5, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
Video Update
I have decided this week to do a video blog and will probably be doing these for a while, it makes for a more personal experience for all of you who are so used to reading my blogs. Enjoy!
Monday, July 25, 2011
The Glory of Breakthrough
It is already the third week of the Awaken DTS and it is honestly hard to believe things have moved this fast. I am constantly amazed each year at the growth rate of the students, it seems as though they are going deeper faster each year of DTS. During my DTS I wasn't seeing the type of growth I am already seeing this year until the seventh or eighth week of my DTS. Already the Lord has been breaking through and tearing down strongholds in the hearts of the students. We have truly been seeing Jesus becoming the Lord of their lives at a rapid rate that is commonly not experienced in a DTS so quickly. I am a little perplexed at how or why there is such acceleration upon this school but the best opinion I could give is - it is because the staff is such a hungry for God group and we are all pressing into the glory of the Lord. Leading up to the school we had leaders around the base constantly coming to us as a whole and telling us they had never seen a group of staff that were pressing so hard into seeing heaven invade earth; so if I had to attribute the acceleration of this DTS to one thing it would be the staff crave and pursue intimacy with their creator above anything else.
Our first week of speakers was staff, which was an absolute blast. I got to take a slot of 30 minutes or so and I shared on 1st Corinthians 13, speaking on God's love for us and what it looks like toward us. As Awaken (the name of our DTS) we have done a lot of pioneering on this base in the area of breaking DTS out of the box that many have put it in. One of those things was having the staff take the whole first week of teaching and use that time to bring their testimony and share it with the whole school and also to bring a short prophetic declaration about this generation. The week was amazing, it was glorious and the Holy Spirit showed up every day! The messages the staff shared on an individual day all lined up with each other, just exhibiting to me the orchestrating power of God in every circumstance of our lives. As I took time to ask students what they thought of the first week of class all I got back were raving reviews about how they felt more comfortable with the staff of their DTS. Most students that come to DTS think the staff are high and mighty with a 'holier than thou" mentality; but with our approach to the first week it broke all preconceived notions about the staff and showed the students that we are on the same level as them. This take on the first week opened almost every heart to build deep relationships with all of the staff very quickly.
The second week of this DTS we had a man by the name of Ivan Roman with us; he spoke on hearing the voice of God. Truthfully, I was expecting another average teaching on this topic and I didn't think I was going to get a lot out of it. I could almost spend the week half listening and half paying attention to the class environment. But as the week kicked off Ivan had all of our attention through his story telling methods, he began the week with telling the school several stories of his salvation and how he entered the ministry. The great thing about stories is they put everybody listening on the same level. The first day of teaching he really felt to hit on the orphan spirit, which is what has affected all of us before we realize that we've been adopted as sons and daughters of God, and then to impart, imparting is a process of laying on of hands and praying that what you have would be given to the person that you are praying for, and pray for the spirit of adoption to fill the students hearts. The reason for this is - that if you don't understand your position in the kingdom and your position as a child of the King you will tend to listen for the wrong voice when you are seeking to hear God. The rest of the week was spent teaching on hearing God's voice, prophetic ministry, baptism of the Holy Spirit, and dream interpretation. It was honestly the best teaching on hearing God's voice that I have ever had.
This week we are blessed to have the founder of our mission, Loren Cunningham. He is speaking on the foundations of missions and the first day was filled with gold nuggets of wisdom and truth. There is a high expectancy upon this week and we are so honored to have him with us.
I am still in need of approximately $5,000 toward my outreach expenses. I am leading a team this fall to Northern Ireland (more about that coming soon!). If you feel lead to give towards furthering His kingdom as this team goes forth, you can follow the link on the right hand side of my blog. As always, thank you for reading and God bless you.
Our first week of speakers was staff, which was an absolute blast. I got to take a slot of 30 minutes or so and I shared on 1st Corinthians 13, speaking on God's love for us and what it looks like toward us. As Awaken (the name of our DTS) we have done a lot of pioneering on this base in the area of breaking DTS out of the box that many have put it in. One of those things was having the staff take the whole first week of teaching and use that time to bring their testimony and share it with the whole school and also to bring a short prophetic declaration about this generation. The week was amazing, it was glorious and the Holy Spirit showed up every day! The messages the staff shared on an individual day all lined up with each other, just exhibiting to me the orchestrating power of God in every circumstance of our lives. As I took time to ask students what they thought of the first week of class all I got back were raving reviews about how they felt more comfortable with the staff of their DTS. Most students that come to DTS think the staff are high and mighty with a 'holier than thou" mentality; but with our approach to the first week it broke all preconceived notions about the staff and showed the students that we are on the same level as them. This take on the first week opened almost every heart to build deep relationships with all of the staff very quickly.
The second week of this DTS we had a man by the name of Ivan Roman with us; he spoke on hearing the voice of God. Truthfully, I was expecting another average teaching on this topic and I didn't think I was going to get a lot out of it. I could almost spend the week half listening and half paying attention to the class environment. But as the week kicked off Ivan had all of our attention through his story telling methods, he began the week with telling the school several stories of his salvation and how he entered the ministry. The great thing about stories is they put everybody listening on the same level. The first day of teaching he really felt to hit on the orphan spirit, which is what has affected all of us before we realize that we've been adopted as sons and daughters of God, and then to impart, imparting is a process of laying on of hands and praying that what you have would be given to the person that you are praying for, and pray for the spirit of adoption to fill the students hearts. The reason for this is - that if you don't understand your position in the kingdom and your position as a child of the King you will tend to listen for the wrong voice when you are seeking to hear God. The rest of the week was spent teaching on hearing God's voice, prophetic ministry, baptism of the Holy Spirit, and dream interpretation. It was honestly the best teaching on hearing God's voice that I have ever had.
This week we are blessed to have the founder of our mission, Loren Cunningham. He is speaking on the foundations of missions and the first day was filled with gold nuggets of wisdom and truth. There is a high expectancy upon this week and we are so honored to have him with us.
I am still in need of approximately $5,000 toward my outreach expenses. I am leading a team this fall to Northern Ireland (more about that coming soon!). If you feel lead to give towards furthering His kingdom as this team goes forth, you can follow the link on the right hand side of my blog. As always, thank you for reading and God bless you.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
What is DTS?
Greetings from Kona, Hawaii! It’s been awhile since I have posted a blog, so I am going to give all of those who read this blog a simple run down of what a DTS (Discipleship Training School) is, what we do and what our goal for DTS students is. A DTS is the flagship school of Youth With a Mission (YWAM). If anyone would like to be part of YWAM long term they are required to take a DTS before they can work with the mission. This may sound a little weird to some, but it is done this way so everyone who works with YWAM will be on the same page as far as beliefs and values go. DTS is a school that lasts six months. It consists of three months of lecture on topics such as the character and nature of God, hearing God's voice, and spiritual warfare, etc...; the next three months are spent on a field assignment (outreach). This is the application portion of the school where students put into practice all they have learned and seek out the lost so they can disciple them. As a staff, my role in the school is directly for the students, I take part in discipling a group of men for the lecture phase, having one on ones with them, where I take time with them and process what is going on in their lives at the current point in time. I am also blessed with the opportunity to lead an outreach team for the field assignment phase of the school.
What do we do in DTS? I have given a short summary above but I would like to dive deeper into this topic. Most people who come to DTS are either young in the Lord or sometimes they do not know the Lord yet. What we try to do through a DTS is lead people into a correct perspective of God and what his will and purpose is for their life. We do this through the teachings during the lecture phase and through the application of the teaching during the outreach portion. The school lectures are a time where speakers are brought in to teach specifically on a topic they are educated on and point students toward the correct view of Jesus, The Holy Spirit and God the Father. We see a lot of change in people during these teaching times, especially during the teaching on the Father Heart of God. During the lecture phase we have worship a few mornings a week and prayer (intercession) on the other mornings. After class students have work duties for a couple of hours and/or they have small groups or one on ones with staff. The small groups and one on ones are built into the schedule as a processing time for the students so they can talk about the lectures and anything that has arisen in their hearts concerning the topic. This is the basic layout of a DTS lecture phase, along with different odds and ends added in over the course of the three months.
I'll group the goal of DTS and what a field assignment is into this last paragraph. The field assignment of a DTS is a three month trip to a different location from the lecture phase. During this time students are going out from the base so they can put into practice what they have learned during the DTS. Sharing with others the love of Jesus and bringing others into the same revelations of God as they received during the lecture portion of DTS. It is really a time for the students to step out into their callings and to advance the Kingdom of God through showing the love of Jesus Christ; which leads me into the goal of DTS. Our goal is to graduate students who can model the same thing they have been witnessing during the DTS. We want to create a reproducible model of discipleship so that when students go home or when they go onto something else in missions they have a model to base what they do from. Our goal is not to fix people so they are all better, but to get people more intimate with their Father God, Jesus and The Holy Spirit, so they can continue to be sanctified even when they have left the DTS environment.
This is simply a short summary of what I am going to be doing for the next six months. If you would like to partner with me either in prayer or financially it would be an enormous blessing. You can contact me at Cbergus@gmail.com if you have any questions, would like to partner with me, or if you would like to know more about DTS. God Bless.
What do we do in DTS? I have given a short summary above but I would like to dive deeper into this topic. Most people who come to DTS are either young in the Lord or sometimes they do not know the Lord yet. What we try to do through a DTS is lead people into a correct perspective of God and what his will and purpose is for their life. We do this through the teachings during the lecture phase and through the application of the teaching during the outreach portion. The school lectures are a time where speakers are brought in to teach specifically on a topic they are educated on and point students toward the correct view of Jesus, The Holy Spirit and God the Father. We see a lot of change in people during these teaching times, especially during the teaching on the Father Heart of God. During the lecture phase we have worship a few mornings a week and prayer (intercession) on the other mornings. After class students have work duties for a couple of hours and/or they have small groups or one on ones with staff. The small groups and one on ones are built into the schedule as a processing time for the students so they can talk about the lectures and anything that has arisen in their hearts concerning the topic. This is the basic layout of a DTS lecture phase, along with different odds and ends added in over the course of the three months.
I'll group the goal of DTS and what a field assignment is into this last paragraph. The field assignment of a DTS is a three month trip to a different location from the lecture phase. During this time students are going out from the base so they can put into practice what they have learned during the DTS. Sharing with others the love of Jesus and bringing others into the same revelations of God as they received during the lecture portion of DTS. It is really a time for the students to step out into their callings and to advance the Kingdom of God through showing the love of Jesus Christ; which leads me into the goal of DTS. Our goal is to graduate students who can model the same thing they have been witnessing during the DTS. We want to create a reproducible model of discipleship so that when students go home or when they go onto something else in missions they have a model to base what they do from. Our goal is not to fix people so they are all better, but to get people more intimate with their Father God, Jesus and The Holy Spirit, so they can continue to be sanctified even when they have left the DTS environment.
This is simply a short summary of what I am going to be doing for the next six months. If you would like to partner with me either in prayer or financially it would be an enormous blessing. You can contact me at Cbergus@gmail.com if you have any questions, would like to partner with me, or if you would like to know more about DTS. God Bless.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
So it begins
Staff training... the road to the DTS. We have officially pulled onto the fast track highway to the Awaken DTS this summer. Starting on June first our staff group of 29 have had Jeremy West from the YWAM training base in Montana with us and will have him for another week and a half. He is sharing with us about staffing a DTS and what kind of mindset a staff needs to have as they step in to this amazing role that influences lives for years to come. He has also shared a lot about the basic principles of being a Christian and how they pertain to our role as staff.
The one thing that has impacted me the most that Jeremy has shared so far, has been how as staff, we have to remain in a stance of a disciple always. We have to continue to be teachable and never think we are above learning or in a place of knowing it all. The students we disciple this summer will always have something to share with us and just because we have been doing this thing (YWAM) longer should not mean we can't learn from those who have just entered into the radical Christian lifestyle. We've gone into what a disciple really is; they are a person who lives and shares the teaching of the one who is discipling them. As followers of Jesus, therefore, we've got to go out and share what we have learned. We must live our lives worthy of our calling and never think we can know it all, simply because He is infinite and we can constantly be learning more.
The second topic the Lord has highlighted to me out of all of the teaching we have received so far is that I am to be a person who conducts his life equal to the gravity of my calling. I can't expect to simply live my life as Christ would only at certain points, but I must always be looking at how I am living and how I can improve my actions. Out of all of this, the Lord has been highlighting to me that I must change the attitude of my mind, simply because all of my actions come from a belief system in my mind, whether correct or incorrect. I am to do my best to conduct myself as Christ would and the easiest way to find out how to do this is to read my bible and live a life in accordance with the word of God. Like Paul says in Romans, we will be transformed by the renewing of our minds, so to you all, conduct your life in accordance with the weightiness of your calling.
There is so much more on my heart and if I were to write it all it would be extremely long. If you would like me to expound on anything I have written it would be my joy and pleasure. You can email me at Cbergus@gmail.com. I enjoy hearing from you, by email or snail mail, it’s always good to hear from friends. Thank you for reading!
The one thing that has impacted me the most that Jeremy has shared so far, has been how as staff, we have to remain in a stance of a disciple always. We have to continue to be teachable and never think we are above learning or in a place of knowing it all. The students we disciple this summer will always have something to share with us and just because we have been doing this thing (YWAM) longer should not mean we can't learn from those who have just entered into the radical Christian lifestyle. We've gone into what a disciple really is; they are a person who lives and shares the teaching of the one who is discipling them. As followers of Jesus, therefore, we've got to go out and share what we have learned. We must live our lives worthy of our calling and never think we can know it all, simply because He is infinite and we can constantly be learning more.
The second topic the Lord has highlighted to me out of all of the teaching we have received so far is that I am to be a person who conducts his life equal to the gravity of my calling. I can't expect to simply live my life as Christ would only at certain points, but I must always be looking at how I am living and how I can improve my actions. Out of all of this, the Lord has been highlighting to me that I must change the attitude of my mind, simply because all of my actions come from a belief system in my mind, whether correct or incorrect. I am to do my best to conduct myself as Christ would and the easiest way to find out how to do this is to read my bible and live a life in accordance with the word of God. Like Paul says in Romans, we will be transformed by the renewing of our minds, so to you all, conduct your life in accordance with the weightiness of your calling.
There is so much more on my heart and if I were to write it all it would be extremely long. If you would like me to expound on anything I have written it would be my joy and pleasure. You can email me at Cbergus@gmail.com. I enjoy hearing from you, by email or snail mail, it’s always good to hear from friends. Thank you for reading!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
What I've been doing
Since I have been writing so much lately about what has been on my heart and not so much about what it is I have been doing I am sure there are those of you out there a little curious of my whereabouts. Well you're in luck, this blog is going to give a brief overview of what I have been doing and what is going to be happening next month.
Since FCM ended in March I have been on the construction staff here on the YWAM campus in Kona. Currently I am working on a two story dorm building on campus that is located right across from my room. This is such a blessing because it literally takes about 5 seconds to walk from my bed to work in the morning, a great commute! Over the past two months I have been learning a lot and am really blown away by the amount of growth I've experienced. I worked with an electrician for a few weeks and learned how to run conduit through a building, as well as running fire wire from each smoke detector to the fire box at the end of our building. During this time I have also had the chance to grow in leadership; I am the work duty coordinator for the current DTS students who work with me, which means I'm their boss. Having this opportunity has helped me to better learn to delegate and given me a chance to lead by myself in a different circumstance than I'm used to. It is nothing like leading an outreach team where you have your team with you constantly and it is easy to lead them because you have relationship. I am also learning a lot about discipleship through having these work duty students, the most profound thing that has been revealed to me is -I have to model and not teach. I can tell them to pull weeds every work duty, but until I am willing to get down there and pull the weeds with them they are not going to hold the same amount of respect or follow my instruction the same way. This translates a lot into discipleship; we must model ourselves to others if we expect them to listen when we ask them or tell them to do something.
Onto the next month! Starting on June 2nd the Awaken staff is going to be having staff training for the DTS this summer. I am really looking forward to having all of the staff back and pursuing the Lord together. During this time we are going to be spending a lot of time together bonding, praying, calling students, etc . . . It is going to be a divine time for sure and there is so much expectancy in my heart for what lies ahead. If you have any questions or would like to know more about what I have been doing or will be doing in the next few months, please email me at Cbergus@gmail.com I would love to hear from you.
Since FCM ended in March I have been on the construction staff here on the YWAM campus in Kona. Currently I am working on a two story dorm building on campus that is located right across from my room. This is such a blessing because it literally takes about 5 seconds to walk from my bed to work in the morning, a great commute! Over the past two months I have been learning a lot and am really blown away by the amount of growth I've experienced. I worked with an electrician for a few weeks and learned how to run conduit through a building, as well as running fire wire from each smoke detector to the fire box at the end of our building. During this time I have also had the chance to grow in leadership; I am the work duty coordinator for the current DTS students who work with me, which means I'm their boss. Having this opportunity has helped me to better learn to delegate and given me a chance to lead by myself in a different circumstance than I'm used to. It is nothing like leading an outreach team where you have your team with you constantly and it is easy to lead them because you have relationship. I am also learning a lot about discipleship through having these work duty students, the most profound thing that has been revealed to me is -I have to model and not teach. I can tell them to pull weeds every work duty, but until I am willing to get down there and pull the weeds with them they are not going to hold the same amount of respect or follow my instruction the same way. This translates a lot into discipleship; we must model ourselves to others if we expect them to listen when we ask them or tell them to do something.
Onto the next month! Starting on June 2nd the Awaken staff is going to be having staff training for the DTS this summer. I am really looking forward to having all of the staff back and pursuing the Lord together. During this time we are going to be spending a lot of time together bonding, praying, calling students, etc . . . It is going to be a divine time for sure and there is so much expectancy in my heart for what lies ahead. If you have any questions or would like to know more about what I have been doing or will be doing in the next few months, please email me at Cbergus@gmail.com I would love to hear from you.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Prepared
"Preach the word; be ready in and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. 2 Timothy 4:2. As of late the Lord has been speaking to me about the value of being prepared so we can live from Gods perspective and not from a circumstantial perspective.
From a young age we are taught many subjects in school, from history to math, and I hadn’t really thought about why these were so important until now. Many, if not all students ask themselves at some point, "when will I ever use this?," I'm here to tell you all you learned in your days of schooling was to prepare you for your life ahead, so that you would be prepared in and out of season for the tasks set before you. While we are learning, whether it be a trade or what we see as simple book knowledge, we don't often grasp the value of the information at hand. But think about if a mechanic had no idea what he was doing when he opened the hood of your car. Now anybody with enough time and deductive reasoning can figure out how to solve a problem, but wouldn't you much rather have a skilled person working on your car so it takes the least amount of time? Tradesman go to school and sit as apprentices under skilled men of whatever specific field and sometimes they learn things that just seam pointless, but it prepares them so that in and out of season they will be ready for whatever may come their way. Take the military for example, every soldier is trained in hand to hand combat but rarely will they ever have a chance or even need to use the skills that they've learned in this arena, but when that rare situation occurs those soldiers are very glad they were prepared for such an encounter.
All of this being prepared can be viewed the same in the Kingdom of God. Some of us read the bible very reactively; when an event happens in our life or we are burning about a specific subject we want to read about that and only that. But as Paul tells Timothy, we must be prepared in and out of season. We ought to be reading the word all of the time so when a specific situation arises we don't have to scrounge around searching out where there is something in the word to encourage us in our time of need. A perfect example: in the western world we teach about persecution and that it will come and to know Jesus is with those who are persecuted. In our western society it is not very common for people to be persecuted for their faith, but when this does come those that have been taught about how God views it will not react to the circumstances because they know how God views this and that will lead them into the correct action.
Being prepared is why it is so important to study. You don't want a doctor who skipped one of their classes simply because they didn't see how it was useful to be diagnosing you. It is the same with the Bible, it is not smart to skip over parts or books you think are irrelevant. The word of God is relevant to all of us and it is relevant to every event in our life, so to be prepared is of great value. My challenge to you is to better know the word of God so when troubles and trials arise you are already equipped with God's perspective on your situation.
From a young age we are taught many subjects in school, from history to math, and I hadn’t really thought about why these were so important until now. Many, if not all students ask themselves at some point, "when will I ever use this?," I'm here to tell you all you learned in your days of schooling was to prepare you for your life ahead, so that you would be prepared in and out of season for the tasks set before you. While we are learning, whether it be a trade or what we see as simple book knowledge, we don't often grasp the value of the information at hand. But think about if a mechanic had no idea what he was doing when he opened the hood of your car. Now anybody with enough time and deductive reasoning can figure out how to solve a problem, but wouldn't you much rather have a skilled person working on your car so it takes the least amount of time? Tradesman go to school and sit as apprentices under skilled men of whatever specific field and sometimes they learn things that just seam pointless, but it prepares them so that in and out of season they will be ready for whatever may come their way. Take the military for example, every soldier is trained in hand to hand combat but rarely will they ever have a chance or even need to use the skills that they've learned in this arena, but when that rare situation occurs those soldiers are very glad they were prepared for such an encounter.
All of this being prepared can be viewed the same in the Kingdom of God. Some of us read the bible very reactively; when an event happens in our life or we are burning about a specific subject we want to read about that and only that. But as Paul tells Timothy, we must be prepared in and out of season. We ought to be reading the word all of the time so when a specific situation arises we don't have to scrounge around searching out where there is something in the word to encourage us in our time of need. A perfect example: in the western world we teach about persecution and that it will come and to know Jesus is with those who are persecuted. In our western society it is not very common for people to be persecuted for their faith, but when this does come those that have been taught about how God views it will not react to the circumstances because they know how God views this and that will lead them into the correct action.
Being prepared is why it is so important to study. You don't want a doctor who skipped one of their classes simply because they didn't see how it was useful to be diagnosing you. It is the same with the Bible, it is not smart to skip over parts or books you think are irrelevant. The word of God is relevant to all of us and it is relevant to every event in our life, so to be prepared is of great value. My challenge to you is to better know the word of God so when troubles and trials arise you are already equipped with God's perspective on your situation.
Rest
As the second part of this three part series I've felt the Lord give me the topic of rest. God has been teaching me and bringing me back to the basics of what rest really is. In the western mindset we view rest as something you do that is relaxing and takes your mind off your 'job,' it lets you focus on yourself and not have to worry about the other stresses in your life. This view point puts a lot of emphasis on the beloved weekend, viewing days off as the prize or goal of your work week. But it always seems we start to do some type of work instead of the rest we had so longed for. I think man was never intended to fully do nothing. Take vacation for example, how many times do you hear the phrase "I need a vacation"? Only to return from the longed for vacation and need another vacation. We take time off to fulfill our western perspective of rest and then we don't rest. We work in the yard on a day off or on vacation we go hiking, etc... I think we need to redesign our view of rest.
On the seventh day of creation God rested, but we know God never stops doing anything, because He holds all things together, Colossians 1:17. Therefore God never fully rests, but He still calls it rest in Genesis. It's time we start to re-define what rest truly is. I believe rest is a state of being and not time to focus on yourself or relax.
How do we get to this state of being is probably the question you are asking right now. There are very few things Jesus gave formulas for in the Bible but one of them was on how to not worry. Matthew 6:33 tells us that if we seek first the kingdom and His righteousness then all of the previously mentioned things in the scripture passage will be added unto us. I take this to mean that if I seek a relationship with the Holy Spirit and I seek to do God’s will and not my own, then I will be at rest in God because I will not have to worry about anything. Many of us hear the phrase, "Be still and know that I am God." But how many of us actually take time to be still before God in our spirit and know that He is God? Knowing He is God is not stating that Jesus is the almighty living God, it means you acknowledge Him as the sovereign ruler of your life, that He has it all under control and that He knows what to do in every circumstance. When you know these things you KNOW that He is God and you have nothing to worry about.
Why is this important? Because if we are not seeking His kingdom and acknowledging Him as God, we will worry about our provision and start to seek out how we can solve our own problems and not what God’s will is for our life. Worrying is also a sin, in Matthew 6:25 Jesus says "do not be worried about your life..." When Jesus tells you not to do something that is a command. When you do the opposite of a command it is disobedience, which is sin. Self-centeredness is also a sin, Jesus never intended for us to be focused on ourselves; we know He is going to provide for us and therefore all of our concern should be for others, being self-centered is literally centering on yourself and our true center should be God and not ourselves. Even self-confidence is a sin, so many people will say they have high self confidence but if we are taking confidence in ourselves instead of God it is a sin because, again, we are looking inward and not toward God.
We need to live in a place of rest and not look at it as a place that is waiting for us at the end of each week. I challenge you to look at your life and see how you can change your perspective on rest so you are living for the kingdom and not for yourself. If you are still and know that He is God you will be able to have complete confidence in God and know that He is going to fully satisfy those needs and completely provide for you. If you would like to chat about this subject or simply have any questions please email me at Cbergus@gmail.com.
On the seventh day of creation God rested, but we know God never stops doing anything, because He holds all things together, Colossians 1:17. Therefore God never fully rests, but He still calls it rest in Genesis. It's time we start to re-define what rest truly is. I believe rest is a state of being and not time to focus on yourself or relax.
How do we get to this state of being is probably the question you are asking right now. There are very few things Jesus gave formulas for in the Bible but one of them was on how to not worry. Matthew 6:33 tells us that if we seek first the kingdom and His righteousness then all of the previously mentioned things in the scripture passage will be added unto us. I take this to mean that if I seek a relationship with the Holy Spirit and I seek to do God’s will and not my own, then I will be at rest in God because I will not have to worry about anything. Many of us hear the phrase, "Be still and know that I am God." But how many of us actually take time to be still before God in our spirit and know that He is God? Knowing He is God is not stating that Jesus is the almighty living God, it means you acknowledge Him as the sovereign ruler of your life, that He has it all under control and that He knows what to do in every circumstance. When you know these things you KNOW that He is God and you have nothing to worry about.
Why is this important? Because if we are not seeking His kingdom and acknowledging Him as God, we will worry about our provision and start to seek out how we can solve our own problems and not what God’s will is for our life. Worrying is also a sin, in Matthew 6:25 Jesus says "do not be worried about your life..." When Jesus tells you not to do something that is a command. When you do the opposite of a command it is disobedience, which is sin. Self-centeredness is also a sin, Jesus never intended for us to be focused on ourselves; we know He is going to provide for us and therefore all of our concern should be for others, being self-centered is literally centering on yourself and our true center should be God and not ourselves. Even self-confidence is a sin, so many people will say they have high self confidence but if we are taking confidence in ourselves instead of God it is a sin because, again, we are looking inward and not toward God.
We need to live in a place of rest and not look at it as a place that is waiting for us at the end of each week. I challenge you to look at your life and see how you can change your perspective on rest so you are living for the kingdom and not for yourself. If you are still and know that He is God you will be able to have complete confidence in God and know that He is going to fully satisfy those needs and completely provide for you. If you would like to chat about this subject or simply have any questions please email me at Cbergus@gmail.com.
Unity
I have had a few things burning in my heart lately that I feel need to be expressed in some medium. It will be a three part series of what the Lord has been speaking to me about in recent weeks and months and has been transforming me. My prayer is that in you reading this it will spark something inside of you that will start the same transformation in your heart and will lead you to a deeper relationship with your Savoir.
As you can probably guess from the title of this post the first part will be on unity and the power it has for us as believers and the necessity it is as a whole community of Christians wherever you are. Unity is of the utmost importance. if you are running a three legged race and one of the people you are partnered with suddenly starts to walk out of rhythm and tries to start doing their own thing it will throw the whole group out of sync. Just like it takes practice to get in sync with those you are tied to, it takes practice and perseverance to be unified with one another. Jesus knew unity would be one of the most important aspects of the whole body if it expects to function, so important, that in John 17 after he prays for the disciples, his first prayer for 'all believers' is "... that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you." That is VERY intense unity if you ask me. Jesus was one with the Father, knowing his every move and only doing what he saw the Father doing, Jesus wants the WHOLE body to be like that!
Now picture the whole body of Christ in a three legged race, running for the prize in each their own way. They are stumbling over each other and yelling at each other, telling one another their way is right and to follow them. In this way we actually end up with a lot of people who are offended at each other and it results in complete disunity. How do we unify ourselves with one another if everybody is following their own will? Paul tells us in the book of Ephesians chapter 4:3, to keep the unity of the body we must be at peace with one another. I don't know about you, but honestly this hasn't happened very well throughout church history. There are constant church splits, arguing over doctrine or theology which almost always ends in one group of people splitting from the other. Which is where we get denominations from, the root of denomination is divided nation, that is NOT unity. From the looks of it, we have not done a good job of listening to the teaching of Paul from Ephesians 4:3 or done a good job uniting ourselves as Jesus prayed.
Unity is important as you can see from above. We can't be the body Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 if we are in disunity. Paul gave us a picture in that passage that one part of a physical body can't function as a different part of a body, i.e. a foot can’t be a hand and a hand can't be a foot. But imagine if we all knew who we were as part of the body of Christ and acted like what we were called to. Instead, each person wants to do their own will and not combine with the other parts to complete one task; example: a foot knows it is a foot but wants to do the job of a hand. A person may know who they are called to be but not want to move in the calling they've been given. The body must know who it is AND function in untiy. Solomon gives us a great picture of what unity looks like as human beings with the visual of a chord in Ecclesiastes 4:10-12. The law of multiplication is amazing, one of the many reasons God continues to amaze me on a daily basis. If you have one chord it can hold its own weight, but if you have two chords they can hold four times the weight, three can hold nine times the weight. Imagine the work we would get done as a full functioning unified body, going for the same goal and doing it in unison.
I hope this has inspired you to seek unity among those you are around. I wish I could include all of the verses that are written about being unified with one another. It truly shows the importance of treating each other with the same kindness and love that you show to God. If you have any more questions or would like to simply talk about how you can become more unified with those around you feel free to email me atCbergus@gmail.com. My heart is to see the body walk in true unity with one another, caring and loving each other just like Jesus and the Father did on earth and continue to do in heaven.
As you can probably guess from the title of this post the first part will be on unity and the power it has for us as believers and the necessity it is as a whole community of Christians wherever you are. Unity is of the utmost importance. if you are running a three legged race and one of the people you are partnered with suddenly starts to walk out of rhythm and tries to start doing their own thing it will throw the whole group out of sync. Just like it takes practice to get in sync with those you are tied to, it takes practice and perseverance to be unified with one another. Jesus knew unity would be one of the most important aspects of the whole body if it expects to function, so important, that in John 17 after he prays for the disciples, his first prayer for 'all believers' is "... that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you." That is VERY intense unity if you ask me. Jesus was one with the Father, knowing his every move and only doing what he saw the Father doing, Jesus wants the WHOLE body to be like that!
Now picture the whole body of Christ in a three legged race, running for the prize in each their own way. They are stumbling over each other and yelling at each other, telling one another their way is right and to follow them. In this way we actually end up with a lot of people who are offended at each other and it results in complete disunity. How do we unify ourselves with one another if everybody is following their own will? Paul tells us in the book of Ephesians chapter 4:3, to keep the unity of the body we must be at peace with one another. I don't know about you, but honestly this hasn't happened very well throughout church history. There are constant church splits, arguing over doctrine or theology which almost always ends in one group of people splitting from the other. Which is where we get denominations from, the root of denomination is divided nation, that is NOT unity. From the looks of it, we have not done a good job of listening to the teaching of Paul from Ephesians 4:3 or done a good job uniting ourselves as Jesus prayed.
Unity is important as you can see from above. We can't be the body Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 if we are in disunity. Paul gave us a picture in that passage that one part of a physical body can't function as a different part of a body, i.e. a foot can’t be a hand and a hand can't be a foot. But imagine if we all knew who we were as part of the body of Christ and acted like what we were called to. Instead, each person wants to do their own will and not combine with the other parts to complete one task; example: a foot knows it is a foot but wants to do the job of a hand. A person may know who they are called to be but not want to move in the calling they've been given. The body must know who it is AND function in untiy. Solomon gives us a great picture of what unity looks like as human beings with the visual of a chord in Ecclesiastes 4:10-12. The law of multiplication is amazing, one of the many reasons God continues to amaze me on a daily basis. If you have one chord it can hold its own weight, but if you have two chords they can hold four times the weight, three can hold nine times the weight. Imagine the work we would get done as a full functioning unified body, going for the same goal and doing it in unison.
I hope this has inspired you to seek unity among those you are around. I wish I could include all of the verses that are written about being unified with one another. It truly shows the importance of treating each other with the same kindness and love that you show to God. If you have any more questions or would like to simply talk about how you can become more unified with those around you feel free to email me atCbergus@gmail.com. My heart is to see the body walk in true unity with one another, caring and loving each other just like Jesus and the Father did on earth and continue to do in heaven.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Transition
he counseling school that I was taking has officially finished and I am excited and saddened at the same time. On one hand I am glad to be done with school and free to do more around campus, but at the same time I am going to miss school. Until I started this class I hadn't realized how much I actually had missed school in general and the work that comes with it. While I was in high school I really didn't enjoy it, mostly because of all of the homework that we had. I had envisioned college would be different simply because I would get to choose the classes I would be taking and thus be able to choose what I enjoy. My assumptions turned out to be true. I enjoyed the work we did for the counseling school a lot more than I would any other type of school work, because I wanted to do it. The lectures were something I looked forward to on a daily basis and not something I was dreading each and everyday like I remember doing in my high school days.
Although these past three months have been such a growing time for me I am stoked to start the next season of my life here in Hawaii. For the next two months or so I am planning to work with the campus development department here on base. I have been working with them for the past three months as my work duty (2 hours a day worth of work for student, essentially a job), during that time we did an assortment of construction jobs from framing walls to pouring slabs of cement. During the next two months of work I will be doing whatever is necessary to see the completion of the buildings that are currently under construction on the mission base here. As soon as all of electrical and plumbing is finished we will be dry-walling the whole new two story dormitory, which will probably take around one full month of work.
During this time the members of the Awaken DTS staff will be continuing to meet and prepare for the DTS this summer. We meet a few times a week to bond and build relationship with each other. We are a very dedicated group of people and we expect a lot out of this summer. Among the group there is a deep hunger to see the Kingdom of Heaven invade earth and at the same time relaxing in knowing it’s the Lord who will bring it as we wait on Him. We are all learning about resting in the Lord, gaining new understanding of what it truly means to "be still and know that I am God" and that all we do HAS to be based out of a love for God and a love for others. Without the foundation of those two things all of our efforts will fail. The Lord is doing amazing things among us and we are ready for even more! Pray for us as we long for a deeper understanding of the love and restful relationship with our creator.
Although these past three months have been such a growing time for me I am stoked to start the next season of my life here in Hawaii. For the next two months or so I am planning to work with the campus development department here on base. I have been working with them for the past three months as my work duty (2 hours a day worth of work for student, essentially a job), during that time we did an assortment of construction jobs from framing walls to pouring slabs of cement. During the next two months of work I will be doing whatever is necessary to see the completion of the buildings that are currently under construction on the mission base here. As soon as all of electrical and plumbing is finished we will be dry-walling the whole new two story dormitory, which will probably take around one full month of work.
During this time the members of the Awaken DTS staff will be continuing to meet and prepare for the DTS this summer. We meet a few times a week to bond and build relationship with each other. We are a very dedicated group of people and we expect a lot out of this summer. Among the group there is a deep hunger to see the Kingdom of Heaven invade earth and at the same time relaxing in knowing it’s the Lord who will bring it as we wait on Him. We are all learning about resting in the Lord, gaining new understanding of what it truly means to "be still and know that I am God" and that all we do HAS to be based out of a love for God and a love for others. Without the foundation of those two things all of our efforts will fail. The Lord is doing amazing things among us and we are ready for even more! Pray for us as we long for a deeper understanding of the love and restful relationship with our creator.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Cathedral vs. Temple Thinking
When Ashley presented the topic of cathedral vs. temple thinking last week I realized I had debated over it a little in the past, but when she gave it to the class I was pretty set in temple thinking. The difference between the two types of thinking is still based out of Greek and Hebraic mindsets, cathedral- Greek and temple- Hebraic. Simply explained, the cathedral thinking is we must get out of this world so we can dwell with God and when we die we are going to heaven. Essentially it is an escapism mindset that doesn't care about the earth because we are leaving it anyway. The temple thinking is we are here on earth and this is where God wants to dwell with us and when we die we aren't going anywhere. At the end of the age when Jesus comes back he will create a new earth and we will dwell there with him. Let me go into more detail.
Cathedral thinking was developed by the Greeks and the church adopted it through Greek philosophers who got saved and then started to influence the Christian church. This mindset believes the earth is only a place we are passing through and the treasure lies at the end of your life when you die and go to a giant mansion in Heaven. They display with the physical cathedrals in our cities here on earth, huge roofs, beautiful interior. They were meant to give you an out of this world experience when you entered them. Many churches today are still under this influence, they don't see the earth as a place we should take care of simply because we are going to leave it and God will destroy it.
On the opposite is the temple mindset which is what the Hebraic mindset is oriented towards, it is a biblically based mindset. When God created man He desired to dwell with man here on earth, man was never intended to die. If man was never intended to die, then the earth was never intended to pass away. But after man sinned, death entered the earth and thus the process of destruction started. As you go on through scripture you will see many times how God wants to dwell with man on earth, he lead the Israelites through the desert as a cloud by day and fire by night, He dwelt in the temple that was built for Him in Jerusalem. Of course He is never restrained to any specific roll man places on Him; He just wants to be here with us. Under the new covenant we are the temple of the Holy Spirit and He dwells in every believer, showing again that God wants to be here with us and not waiting for us to die so we can be with Him. At the end of the age Jesus is coming back and He will create a new earth on which the New Jerusalem will be built and we will live there for eternity.
I don't know about you, but I think the Hebraic mindset sounds like a lot more fun and it is way easier to believe because of the fact it is biblically based. Just as last time, if you would like to hear more about this topic you can email me at Cbergus@gmail.com.
Cathedral thinking was developed by the Greeks and the church adopted it through Greek philosophers who got saved and then started to influence the Christian church. This mindset believes the earth is only a place we are passing through and the treasure lies at the end of your life when you die and go to a giant mansion in Heaven. They display with the physical cathedrals in our cities here on earth, huge roofs, beautiful interior. They were meant to give you an out of this world experience when you entered them. Many churches today are still under this influence, they don't see the earth as a place we should take care of simply because we are going to leave it and God will destroy it.
On the opposite is the temple mindset which is what the Hebraic mindset is oriented towards, it is a biblically based mindset. When God created man He desired to dwell with man here on earth, man was never intended to die. If man was never intended to die, then the earth was never intended to pass away. But after man sinned, death entered the earth and thus the process of destruction started. As you go on through scripture you will see many times how God wants to dwell with man on earth, he lead the Israelites through the desert as a cloud by day and fire by night, He dwelt in the temple that was built for Him in Jerusalem. Of course He is never restrained to any specific roll man places on Him; He just wants to be here with us. Under the new covenant we are the temple of the Holy Spirit and He dwells in every believer, showing again that God wants to be here with us and not waiting for us to die so we can be with Him. At the end of the age Jesus is coming back and He will create a new earth on which the New Jerusalem will be built and we will live there for eternity.
I don't know about you, but I think the Hebraic mindset sounds like a lot more fun and it is way easier to believe because of the fact it is biblically based. Just as last time, if you would like to hear more about this topic you can email me at Cbergus@gmail.com.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Greek Vs. Hebraic Mindsets
This past week's teaching was brought by Ashley Little, the older sister of one of my best friends, Chris Little. She started off this week speaking on how our mindset in the American church has been heavily influenced by the Greek philosophers of old.
The most prominent way this is evident is by looking at the way we think opposed to the way of Hebraic thinking (anything related to the culture and/or language of the Hebrews). The Greek thinking pattern is a linear one, A+B=C and so on, but if A+B doesn't =C then it can't equal D, E, etc. Most of the Christian church is in this pattern of thinking; for example, Romans 8 says that we have been predestined by God, but we are told to pray in other passages. All of the apostles and Jesus model prayer as a spiritual discipline and something that moves the heart of God, the Greek thinking looks at this and says that one is wrong because they contradict each other and proceeds to get rid of the one they think is wrong, because it doesn't line up with the linear thinking pattern. Now the Hebraic way of thinking is what is called 'box' thinking, each book of the Bible is divided up as a box and each of the boxes is the inspired word of God and since "it is impossible for God to lie" (Hebrews 6:18) then each of these boxes, no matter how much they contradict the other are 100% truth.
For most of us this is hard to grasp, because as Americans, whether in or out of the church, we have all been taught with a linear thinking pattern and “the teacher is always right”. This is something else that contradicts what was originally designed for the church. The way the Jews would teach in the temple is they would read scripture out loud and then everybody would discuss it, there wasn't one person who knew it all and would be the single person teaching. That design came from Constantine, when he started to Romanize Christianity. Constantine outlawed the Jewish style of teaching and made it like the Roman senate, where one person would get up and teach all of the lay people. This has continued on today and was not the original design for the body of Christ. Our best representation of church is the house church, lead out by a single person and the 'congregation' is open for discussion on the topic that is shared.
This week has been a very challenging week for me and it has tested my thinking on many levels than I had anticipated. I had no idea how much the Greek philosophers had influenced our church and the way we look at scripture these days. I would love to chat more about this if any of you are interested, please email me at Christerbergus@gmail.com. I will be posting another blog very soon including more principles Ashley taught.
The most prominent way this is evident is by looking at the way we think opposed to the way of Hebraic thinking (anything related to the culture and/or language of the Hebrews). The Greek thinking pattern is a linear one, A+B=C and so on, but if A+B doesn't =C then it can't equal D, E, etc. Most of the Christian church is in this pattern of thinking; for example, Romans 8 says that we have been predestined by God, but we are told to pray in other passages. All of the apostles and Jesus model prayer as a spiritual discipline and something that moves the heart of God, the Greek thinking looks at this and says that one is wrong because they contradict each other and proceeds to get rid of the one they think is wrong, because it doesn't line up with the linear thinking pattern. Now the Hebraic way of thinking is what is called 'box' thinking, each book of the Bible is divided up as a box and each of the boxes is the inspired word of God and since "it is impossible for God to lie" (Hebrews 6:18) then each of these boxes, no matter how much they contradict the other are 100% truth.
For most of us this is hard to grasp, because as Americans, whether in or out of the church, we have all been taught with a linear thinking pattern and “the teacher is always right”. This is something else that contradicts what was originally designed for the church. The way the Jews would teach in the temple is they would read scripture out loud and then everybody would discuss it, there wasn't one person who knew it all and would be the single person teaching. That design came from Constantine, when he started to Romanize Christianity. Constantine outlawed the Jewish style of teaching and made it like the Roman senate, where one person would get up and teach all of the lay people. This has continued on today and was not the original design for the body of Christ. Our best representation of church is the house church, lead out by a single person and the 'congregation' is open for discussion on the topic that is shared.
This week has been a very challenging week for me and it has tested my thinking on many levels than I had anticipated. I had no idea how much the Greek philosophers had influenced our church and the way we look at scripture these days. I would love to chat more about this if any of you are interested, please email me at Christerbergus@gmail.com. I will be posting another blog very soon including more principles Ashley taught.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Meyers Briggs
As you can probably guess from the title of this blog we've been studying Meyers Briggs this week. I'd never heard of the Meyers Briggs test, but as I mentioned the topic to others around me they would list letters saying, "I'm an ESFP," or something like that. It wasn't too long before they explained this was a personality test. As the week started I was very skeptical of the topic, mostly because I felt like personality tests put people in boxes that define who they are and then tell them how they should act. Usually they will tell you your strengths and weaknesses, which are very helpful, but I don't think those things should define your identity or how you treat others.
As the week got started it seemed my conclusion was correct, we were slapping a label on every person in our class, with labels such as "ESTJ" (Extroverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging). When they would start to explain each letter and what the combinations meant and how certain combinations would act in daily life I thought I had this thing figured out. I started to assume there was a ranking system and each type was better than another, like rock paper scissors. I realized there wasn't a “best” one but they each compliment the other. Just as I thought I had this whole test thing figured out, the speaker said something that will stay with me forever, "Meyers Briggs doesn't put you in a box, but takes you out of one." What?!?! That completely went against everything I ever thought about personality tests.
Let me explain what he meant in this statement. Many people put themselves in boxes because they think others should act the same way as them, make decisions the same way, or look at things the same way. What the Meyers Briggs test is designed to do is to take people out of that box and to show you there are different personality types that look at things differently and makes decisions different, etc. Now many people think when they give the traits of your personality type you must act that way and fit into that paradigm. But our speaker also explained many people operate all over the board in the different personality types and you can fix very few people to one set of letters. We also found out almost all of the letters are split evenly in the USA, meaning half of the people are extrovert and half introvert. This week of class totally changed my view of personality tests and how they help and teach people. I'm very excited to help people come to the same revelation I did about these tests. Most of all, I'm looking forward to using this tool in all the different types of ministry I work in throughout my life. It truly helps me to know how to relate and treat those around me like they should be treated, like Jesus would treat them. If you would like to learn more or chat about this week’s topic you can email me at Christerbergus@gmail.com.
As the week got started it seemed my conclusion was correct, we were slapping a label on every person in our class, with labels such as "ESTJ" (Extroverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging). When they would start to explain each letter and what the combinations meant and how certain combinations would act in daily life I thought I had this thing figured out. I started to assume there was a ranking system and each type was better than another, like rock paper scissors. I realized there wasn't a “best” one but they each compliment the other. Just as I thought I had this whole test thing figured out, the speaker said something that will stay with me forever, "Meyers Briggs doesn't put you in a box, but takes you out of one." What?!?! That completely went against everything I ever thought about personality tests.
Let me explain what he meant in this statement. Many people put themselves in boxes because they think others should act the same way as them, make decisions the same way, or look at things the same way. What the Meyers Briggs test is designed to do is to take people out of that box and to show you there are different personality types that look at things differently and makes decisions different, etc. Now many people think when they give the traits of your personality type you must act that way and fit into that paradigm. But our speaker also explained many people operate all over the board in the different personality types and you can fix very few people to one set of letters. We also found out almost all of the letters are split evenly in the USA, meaning half of the people are extrovert and half introvert. This week of class totally changed my view of personality tests and how they help and teach people. I'm very excited to help people come to the same revelation I did about these tests. Most of all, I'm looking forward to using this tool in all the different types of ministry I work in throughout my life. It truly helps me to know how to relate and treat those around me like they should be treated, like Jesus would treat them. If you would like to learn more or chat about this week’s topic you can email me at Christerbergus@gmail.com.
Friday, January 28, 2011
What does freedom feel like?
Over the summer the Lord set me free from so much, For the first time in my life I actually feel like I know who I am and what I was created for, so coming into the FCM (Foundations in Counseling Ministry) I wasn’t sure what the Lord wanted to work on in my life. I knew He called me to do the school and I also knew He wouldn’t tell me to do it without a purpose, because of Romans 8:28 ‘that he has predestined everything to work out for our good.’ I thought I’d dealt with everything over the summer, repenting of my past and truly receiving the forgiveness and freedom from God. We all should know that He wants us to be set free, like Paul says we used to be slaves to sin but we died with Christ and now we are dead to sin. And for freedoms sake we have been set free. It’s obvious that God doesn’t want us to be bound up and be a slave to anything but righteousness. All of this lead me to wondering what else the Lord wanted to set me free from, little did I know I would find out very soon.
The first two weeks of FCM we learned about Plumb line ministry, Amos 7:7. The whole idea is that since we live and have grown up in a fallen world we’ve been raised along a false plumb line. The two false plumb lines fall under the main areas of rejection and rebellion. Everybody will always swing to rejection first and then decide to swing a rebellious plumb line, while some will stay in the rejection plumb line their whole life. The creator of this ministry is Bruce Thompson and we have had the pleasure of Bruce teaching class this week. As the creator, Bruce knows exactly how to work and direct the teaching and ministry, just like a watch maker knows how to disassemble and reassemble a watch. Bruce’s biggest dependence is on the Holy Spirit, which is where all real freedom comes from.
As the week progressed the Lord started to highlight areas of my life I thought I had repented of and given to God. But I came to realize I had only been repenting of the sin and never the root of the sin. Just like a weed, if you want to kill it you must take out the roots so it doesn’t come back. Sin is the same, you must find the root of the sin and repent of that, in essence cut off the root, and that is exactly why God has me doing this course. There were many things I thought I had broken off and was free from, but I realized I had only been cutting off the leaves of the sin and not going after the roots. After the Holy Spirit revealed these roots in my life, I fully repented and received the forgiveness Jesus gave to me and all of us 2000 years ago. Today I feel freer than I have ever felt in my life. But even more than being excited for myself, I am excited to be able to minister to others using this tool of plumb line, to bring them back to God’s original, straight plumb line.
The first two weeks of FCM we learned about Plumb line ministry, Amos 7:7. The whole idea is that since we live and have grown up in a fallen world we’ve been raised along a false plumb line. The two false plumb lines fall under the main areas of rejection and rebellion. Everybody will always swing to rejection first and then decide to swing a rebellious plumb line, while some will stay in the rejection plumb line their whole life. The creator of this ministry is Bruce Thompson and we have had the pleasure of Bruce teaching class this week. As the creator, Bruce knows exactly how to work and direct the teaching and ministry, just like a watch maker knows how to disassemble and reassemble a watch. Bruce’s biggest dependence is on the Holy Spirit, which is where all real freedom comes from.
As the week progressed the Lord started to highlight areas of my life I thought I had repented of and given to God. But I came to realize I had only been repenting of the sin and never the root of the sin. Just like a weed, if you want to kill it you must take out the roots so it doesn’t come back. Sin is the same, you must find the root of the sin and repent of that, in essence cut off the root, and that is exactly why God has me doing this course. There were many things I thought I had broken off and was free from, but I realized I had only been cutting off the leaves of the sin and not going after the roots. After the Holy Spirit revealed these roots in my life, I fully repented and received the forgiveness Jesus gave to me and all of us 2000 years ago. Today I feel freer than I have ever felt in my life. But even more than being excited for myself, I am excited to be able to minister to others using this tool of plumb line, to bring them back to God’s original, straight plumb line.
Monday, January 10, 2011
First Steps of 2011
Stewarding is a calling God places on our lives and should always be one of the greatest desires in our hearts. This is what the Lord has spoken to me many times over the past two weeks. How do we do this? What does stewarding look like? This is where we turn to the universes’ greatest guidance counselor, The Holy Spirit. He will be able to guide us in the correct direction for the calling that He has placed on our lives.
Over the past year God has spoken to me many times that I've been called into leadership in the body of believers. Now I'm at the same place that many of us have been at before. What do I do to steward that calling? As 2010 came to a close the Lord pressed upon me that I need to take steps toward preparing myself for this roll that He's called me into. What He led me to is a school known as FCM (Foundations for Counseling Ministry) which is based here in Kona. I continued to seek Him as to why He had lead me in this direction and He spoke to me that the best way I can ready myself for leadership in this season is to learn to counsel others with scriptural wisdom.
Recently God has highlighted identity to me and how vitally important it is for every Christian to get a firm grasp of who they are in Him. Without this identity we won’t be able to operate in all God has for us. We must come into an understanding of who we are in Jesus. To understand that we don't have to work for a single thing in this kingdom we have been given as sons and daughters. Our identity was given to us when we were created by Him and known by Him since He formed us. We must work from our identity and not for it. Through this course (FCM) I know God will help me to better grasp my own identity and in turn be able to help those I mentor to better grasp their identity.
I am in great expectancy of all the Lord is going to do in this season and what He has planned for us all.
Over the past year God has spoken to me many times that I've been called into leadership in the body of believers. Now I'm at the same place that many of us have been at before. What do I do to steward that calling? As 2010 came to a close the Lord pressed upon me that I need to take steps toward preparing myself for this roll that He's called me into. What He led me to is a school known as FCM (Foundations for Counseling Ministry) which is based here in Kona. I continued to seek Him as to why He had lead me in this direction and He spoke to me that the best way I can ready myself for leadership in this season is to learn to counsel others with scriptural wisdom.
Recently God has highlighted identity to me and how vitally important it is for every Christian to get a firm grasp of who they are in Him. Without this identity we won’t be able to operate in all God has for us. We must come into an understanding of who we are in Jesus. To understand that we don't have to work for a single thing in this kingdom we have been given as sons and daughters. Our identity was given to us when we were created by Him and known by Him since He formed us. We must work from our identity and not for it. Through this course (FCM) I know God will help me to better grasp my own identity and in turn be able to help those I mentor to better grasp their identity.
I am in great expectancy of all the Lord is going to do in this season and what He has planned for us all.
Trip to China
As I have had time to process my outreach in China and think about how the Lord moved, I am awestruck by what He has done and what He has taught me through many stretching situations. We were blessed with the opportunity to see 50 Chinese come to the Lord during our time in China. Through that, I came into the full revelation of what it really means when people say that a salvation is the greatest miracle and why Jesus leaves the 99 and goes out after the one. Being able to personally lead a lost soul to eternal life with our savior has to be one of the biggest highlights of not just my outreach but my entire life!
Watching a person’s face and eyes change as they come into understanding of the One who died to save them and praying with them to be filled with the Holy Spirit was a direct blessing from God.
I also had the pleasure of leading half of the team (by myself) to the country of Hong Kong to get their visas renewed so that we could return to China and finish the work that we'd started. The Lord used this time to grow me in ways that I thought wouldn't have been possible at my age. There was definitely a special grace on me to lead alone, that, if I didn't have I wouldn't have been able to lead by myself. I grew in my dependence on God the most, seeking him in and for everything I did.
Most of our ministry was to university students and it really captivated me that most of them had read at least one book of the Bible. These students were so hungry for the Lord that they were seeking him out even without people telling them to or showing them the way. When those beautiful feet of the ones who bring good news come, there is a ripe harvest waiting around every corner!
This outreach fulfilled and exceeded every expectation that I had for my time in China and for the ways the Lord would move during our time. It gets me even more excited to lead another team next year to a brand new location and see what God is doing in a different part of our globe. He is moving everywhere, He just wants us to join in.
Watching a person’s face and eyes change as they come into understanding of the One who died to save them and praying with them to be filled with the Holy Spirit was a direct blessing from God.
I also had the pleasure of leading half of the team (by myself) to the country of Hong Kong to get their visas renewed so that we could return to China and finish the work that we'd started. The Lord used this time to grow me in ways that I thought wouldn't have been possible at my age. There was definitely a special grace on me to lead alone, that, if I didn't have I wouldn't have been able to lead by myself. I grew in my dependence on God the most, seeking him in and for everything I did.
Most of our ministry was to university students and it really captivated me that most of them had read at least one book of the Bible. These students were so hungry for the Lord that they were seeking him out even without people telling them to or showing them the way. When those beautiful feet of the ones who bring good news come, there is a ripe harvest waiting around every corner!
This outreach fulfilled and exceeded every expectation that I had for my time in China and for the ways the Lord would move during our time. It gets me even more excited to lead another team next year to a brand new location and see what God is doing in a different part of our globe. He is moving everywhere, He just wants us to join in.
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