Outside the Pigeon Holes

I don't usually relay testimonies that are beyond 3 degrees of separation because then it starts getting into Urban Legend territory...But this was cool...It is just a really good example of the absolute wildness of God! He'll do sooo much to make Himself real to us! if we'll just ask! My friend's sister was at church and there was a guest speaker who was delivering prophetic words (like calling out illnesses and situations he was receiving from God and having people come up for prayer regarding those things). A woman from the audience came up to him during the service and said that that God had given her a word. She didn't know why, but she needed to borrow the stage for something. The leaders from the church assured the speaker that this lady was pretty accurate when she got words of knowledge and to let her. He stepped aside and this woman - wearing a dress, mind you, turned a cartwheel right across the stage...A man in the balcony stood up with his hands in the...

The Lakeland Revival has made the mainstream news. The following article is one from MSNBC. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24524742/ For what it's worth here are are my musings on the article: Bob Gomeringer, a Lakeland retiree, works part time parking cars at Lakeland Center events and finds the services unsettling. He hears loud music – "the same song being played over and over and over again" – coming out from the arena. I'm kinda with him on this. I like some repetition in songs - "Let it rain" and "Open the eyes of my heart" are fab but when it goes on and on and starts to get into a frenzied feel it starts to get on my nerves. I think of old brainwashing techniques I read about psychology classes. He watches ministry workers carry in buckets "to rake in all the money" during offerings. And secular events like concerts and sports don't "rake in money"? Why is it that people are always suspitious of Christian organizations ...

OK, I know I seem to be harping on the wrath issue lately...I ask for grace. Since I am "detoxing" as Melanie so aptly described it, I have to have a place to put all of this processing...My blog is a great place! You lucky readers! I was talking to a dear friend of mine this week and she made a comment that at first I wanted to agree with and then the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I have absolutely no interest in agreeing with it. She said she loves to read the stories in the Old Testament of God's wrath...When he takes out a village, she says happily - "Yeah, that's my dad!" Now, I understand where she is coming from - we do have a big, strong daddy who is just and righteous who takes out evil...But I just can't be down with gloating when people went against God's plan so many times that he saw it better to destroy them than to let them continue on. I don't believe God takes pleasure in that...I think it breaks his heart. ...

In the past week, the Holy Spirit has been showing me things that have contributed to my spiritual struggles with fear. I believe He is doing it so I can continue to deal with these things and be free from them. Last night I got wrecked at the prayer meeting and got rid of some more of it - including the "spirit of religion"...Below is a good example of some religious propaganda that I internalized as a kid... This is from one of the tracts that they used to have at the church I grew up in. These things gave me nightmares. All of the tracts had images similar to this and the point was to scare the sh-- out of you so you'd repent. (italicized comments are mine :) )... Bad dude dies and judgment day comes: He visits the faceless, impersonal, wrathful God... Angel takes bad dude on a review of his life and we see all the bad things he did, like being mean to someone, giving a lady the once over, smoking and drinking. Then they return to God for the verdict: Bad dude wakes ...

Sozo is a greek word that appears 110 times in the New Testament. It means "to save or make well or whole". As part of the prayer and healing ministry at church a group of us are studying a ministry called Sozo that began in California at Bethel Church . The training provides tools (not rules) with which we can more effectively assist a person to the feet of Jesus so that He can minister to them. It is not therapy or advice. It simply allows facilitates connection with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Yesterday we were given our first opportunity to minister. A wonderful gentleman I will call James was a sport enough to allowing this gaggle of Sozo newbies to sit with him and see what God would do. As a war veteran he struggled with a lot of issues that he has tried to deal with in various ways over the years including counseling and therapy. Still, he had lingering problems and feelings he dealt with day in and day out. He said he was tired. Without divulging too much, in 30...

All of the entries were fun to read! :) Thanks all! First place goes to Dan Thoms: If you love gas station bathrooms than you'll love our store. Thanks, Dan! Honorable mentions: Cynthia Jane: "We are out of Speed, but Heroine is on sale in Aisle 6...Thanks for shopping at Peedway." Steve Nixon: "I drank too much water and peedway too much" Carol Whetstone: "Your too busy to stop! So get a catheter and pee away in your own bag today!"

Disclaimer: The following is a discussion of teachings that I take issue with and in no way implies that I am judging the people behind them who are my brothers and sisters in Christ. I went to a revival last night...And it WAS a revival - it revived all sorts of bad stuff inside of me. It went from great music and expressive worship to a little visit to my past. Yipeee. My friends told me that some cool stuff did happen later on in the service but I had since left. Here is the low down in Reader's Digest form: I was doing great until the preaching turned into a holiness teaching that included things like this, "Tell Him you won't be secular anymore!" "Tell him you'll do what he says" "Tell him you'll obey"..."We want revival! We want to get our fire back!" On the overhead it said "Fire comes through obedience"... Read between the lines here: IF you obey, you'll get that revival, If you are good God will bless you...

Thought? Winner gets their caption posted in a new blog with credit and everything! :)

I have 4 weeks to finish my screenplay that was conceived over 20 years ago. It has gone through a lot of changes but the core story has remained the same since almost the beginning. The very first idea was really stupid but the 2 main characters were born there and have remained...Their story has unfolded in my brain as the years have gone on and it has been a fun, sometimes frustrating ride. It will be good to finish... But it will be hard because these characters are so close to me. It will be hard to let them go. In the last year since I turned the story over to God He has brought in some cool elements that I hope will make it a story that will reach people who are hurting and struggling. Maybe God will use it to teach about His patience and also put skin on the words "God works everything together for good for those who love Him." I'll also miss that this screenplay has provided some intriguing weirdness. :) Situations and themes that I have written about have happ...