2007 May 05 « Faith. Hope. Love.

5 May 2007 • 12:00 pm 1

For my yoke is easy (Part 2: What NOT to do)

This is a 6 part testimony.

I tried everything to get the good stuff in the bible.

I prayed every prayer. I believed everything. I had worship music going 24/7 just about. I learned the names of God (there are hundreds). I looked for good teaching. I learned about the Jewish festivals and their prophetic signs. I read HUNDREDS of books. I went to Israel twice. I prayed. I begged. I tried working hard for God. I tried waiting on God. I tried soaking (and got deceived).

I tried “walking in” this and that. I tried naming and claiming. I tried submission to authority. I tried the be in “right alignment”. I tried to be selfless. I tried not saying negative things. I tried speaking good words. I tried walking in a contrary spirit. I tried to learn about “hope” and the valley of achor and the “doorway” out of the valley of achor. I wrote His name on my arm – literally (I have pictures).

It was all yadda yadda.

I tried absolutely everything. I listened to thousands of sermons. Nothing seemed to work all that well.

Eventually, exhausted again, I went back to simply trusting God and waiting on Him. Then I got bored with that because it didn’t work either, so I figured I needed to have intense faith again. So around and around I went. Does this sound familiar?

Passive – intense – passive – intense.

Crying out to God. Asking forgiveness. Crying out. Forgiveness. Crying out. Forgiveness.

My personal mood (and life) was swinging up and down depending on if I could see God clearly and feel Him or not. Up and down my mood would go.

During these decades I also traveled to 22+ countries, lived and worked in 4 different countries in computing, earning tons of money. I got married. Got painfully divorced (despite the tons and tons of money).

After the divorce (predictably) I redoubled my efforts to FIND GOD and KEEP HIM. More prayer. More books. More learning. More worship. More of everything that seemed Christian. I read about the “deeper experiences of famous Christians”. I read about the lives of Christians throughout the ages.

Nothing worked. Nothing helped. And this is why.

nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent. You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. – John 5:38-40

And during it all, the enemy bashed me and everyone I came into contact with. He didn’t want me to connect to God (what could a person with inner mongrel do if united to God?) I remember one day crying as I walked out the back of my house. I wept. In between tears I said to God “when this is over GET HIM for me please” (I wanted God to spank the enemy). God replied “No. YOU will get him.” (My theology was challenged and changed on that day)

Tomorrow I will publish part three of this series.

Filed under: Church

• 12:00 am 3

For my yoke is easy (Part 1: Mongrel Christianity)

This is a 6 part testimony.

Do you know what the Aussie word “mongrel” means? I looked it up on the web and most websites say it means “despicable person”.

But it is commonly used in sport, to mean that the player is like a dog with a bone. that player never give up. He’s in your face. He fights. He sticks, he stays. He keeps going. He won’t let up. Doesn’t give up. He’s determined.

Sounds good? No… not if you’ve been there or tried it. It’s not a solution and it doesn’t work. It’s just exhausting.

What did Jesus say? His yoke is light and His burden is NOT HEAVY.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” – Matt 11:28-30 MSG

Well, you could have fooled me. It was NEVER easy for me and it NEVER seemed easy for the church leaders around me. I attended a leadership training thing and the very respected leaders up the front told us noobs to NOT expect church to meet our needs. To expect burnout. We have to smile even if we don’t feel that way.

Hmmm… there’s a word for that. Ummm… FAKE? And it’s unbiblical. What happened to “My yoke is light” eh?

Start at the start

Maybe I should back up a bit and tell this story from the beginning.

Very early on in my walk as a young teenager I read about how Jesus said we should walk like Him. So I decided to. He said to sell out to Hi, so I did.

I read stuff like this…

And these attesting signs will accompany those who believe: in My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new languages; they will pick up serpents; and [even] if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will get well. – Mark 16:15-18

I took one look at that and logically concluded that I was not yet a disciple. And it was obvious to me that I didn’t know of any disciples anywhere either. Certainly no one at my church.

Do you know of someone who speaks in foreign languages like the disciples did on Pentecost?

When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers. – Acts 2:6

Do you know of someone who can drink poison?

As Paul gathered an armful of sticks and was laying them on the fire, a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, bit him on the hand. The people of the island saw it hanging from his hand and said to each other, “A murderer, no doubt! Though he escaped the sea, justice will not permit him to live.” But Paul shook off the snake into the fire and was unharmed. – Acts 28:3-5

Do you speak in foreign languages? Do you overcome poison?

So I realized that we are only just skimming over the surface of what God promised us, I had to decide what to do about it. Do I want it? Yes. I set out to be a disciple.

I’d like to say I stuck in there, hung in there. I’d like to say I was brave and determined. But mate… it must have been God who held me together.

Tomorrow I will publish the next part of this series.

Filed under: Church