Apprentice2Jesus

Ramblings of a Confessing Pentecostal

Archive for the category “Spiritual gifts”

16 Jun 2011

Walking in Kingdom Power is About Using What You Have

I am walking my way through the Old Testament narrative right now and currently find myself in the story of David and Goliath. I love these stories!

When David volunteered to take on Goliath, Saul tried to lend David his armor. They were not fit for David. They had been fit for Saul. David simply said, “I cannot go in these.” He used what he had: his sling.

What do you have? Too often I obsess about what I don’t have. (“Well, if I had THIS our church would do that…”, or some other such dreaming.)

It’s not about what you don’t have. It’s about what you HAVE. What is in your hand? What have you been trained in to this point? Offer it up. It was absolutely absurd to think of going into battle with a sling. But it would have been insane for David to go into battle with untested equipment.

What you have in your life is from God. Use it. Become familiar with it. Then, watch what he can do with it when battles come. Being used in the Kingdom isn’t about what you don’t have. It’s about what you have in your hand, and you offer it up for use in the Kingdom.

Posted in Spiritual gifts, spiritual warfare | Leave a Comment
21 Feb 2011

Apostolic Ministry

My life is challenged by modern-day apostles. True apostles. Not the ones taking out full page ads in magazines. The ones actually doing the work of an apostle, too busy to self-promote. They are affirmed in this ministry by the Spirit and the Church recognizes it.

The past few months we have had a few in that company visit our church. We support their ministries. They are plowing new ground in areas where the gospel may never have been preached before. These are people who are humble, yet have a clear vision of what the Spirit has ahead for them in their lives. I am deeply grateful for their ministry, their example, and their friendship. Their lives challenge me, calling me to refresh my own calling from the Lord.

I am grateful for the Lord stirring those gifts up in his Body in times like this.

Posted in Church, Church Life, Ministry, Spiritual gifts and tagged | Leave a Comment
19 Nov 2010
2 Comments

The Divine “Yes”

Yesterday I was at a day of fasting and prayer for pastors in our district (actually a section in our district). It was wonderful to get away for a day to spend time seeking the Lord in prayer, especially with other pastors and a few other church leaders as well.

There was a point in the day that was an incredible adventure in prayer. When it comes to intercession, I get nervous. I have to admit it. I make a petition before the Lord and really ask for him to work in a situation. That’s not the problem. It’s when I really sense there is a declaration in my spirit from the Spirit of God that there is a definite “YES” to this request. I don’t mind hearing, “YES.” I did ask, didn’t I?

But when it comes to this powerful sense I had yesterday, I don’t have this experience very much. The situation was praying for three people battling cancer. Their situations are incredibly grave and we’ve been praying as a district for these friends for a LONG time. Yesterday, however, as someone led in prayer collectively for them, the Spirit flooded my heart. The next 20 minutes were spent praying in the Spirit, praying in tongues, praying in English, declaring things in my spirit that I sensed the Lord was saying, “Just go with this.”

In my spirit there was an attitude that rose up and said, “This sickness will not take them out. The enemy does not win this one.” (I don’t get those kinds of words very often. Not like that.)

I spent my time in prayer walking and declaring what I sensed the Spirit telling me to declare. NO to cancer. NO to the attack of the enemy. YES to healing. YES to deliverance.

It was a time where there just seemed to be a divine “YES” to this situation. Heaven was open, the Kingdom was moving, and all I was doing was agreeing. There was no immediate indication as to healing, of course, but I long to hear soon what the Lord may be doing in their lives!

The time of prayer was a time I admit I don’t experience very often. It was just a time of openness in heaven and the Spirit saying, “Join this chorus.”

There are times of intercession where the prayer is tough. Those moments yesterday, praying for huge mountains to move, were incredibly easy in the Spirit. The Kingdom was moving and I was along for the ride.

Posted in Prayer, Spiritual gifts, spiritual warfare
24 Nov 2009
2 Comments

The Healing Presence of Jesus

The Church should be about the healing presence of Jesus. My wife told me about a dream she had, and then I was reminded of two incredible stories in Acts. In Acts 5 it was Peter walking down a street and people could be healed by Peter’s shadow touching them. In Acts 19 it was Paul working at his trade. People would take work items from him and bring them to the sick and demon possessed… and they were healed.

It wasn’t Peter. It wasn’t Paul. It was the healing presence of Jesus. That should be the Church. We are to be so saturated with the Spirit that at any time the presence of Jesus touches infirmities and healing can flow. All kinds of healing. Not just physical healing. The Church is to bring the healing balm to the nations. We are to be the place of peace. Come around the Church and you find wholeness and healing.

We need that healing presence of Jesus flowing from us!

Posted in Church, Church Life, Holy Spirit, Pentecost, Spiritual gifts, Spiritual hunger and tagged , ,
13 Sep 2009

Fruit

Paul talked about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians. In Philippians 1 he is discussing being with Christ or staying in his body to be with them. He notes that being with them is fruitful labor. He lived his life with meaning. It’s a powerful statement.

A comment I read from George Wood in his book, Living in the Spirit, said, “Fruit is meant to be tasted.”

My life yielded to Christ is incredibly meaningful. May people truly taste and see that the Lord is good from my life.

Posted in Spiritual Formation, Spiritual gifts and tagged , , | Leave a Comment
11 Sep 2009
2 Comments

The Systems Are in Place…

Over the past few months I have been preaching on the Holy Spirit. One of the key areas of Spirit-filled life I’ve examined is Acts 2:42. The Early Church had a “system” to catch what the Spirit was doing in their lives.

1. The apostles’ teaching

2. Fellowship

3. The breaking of bread (which I think emphasizes the Lord’s Table)

4. Prayers

These forms came out of their Jewish heritage. They were already in place and God had set it up for them. It’s a good lesson! There are basic things we need in our lives and too often we’re out looking for God to do a “new thing.”

What I wonder is this: There may be a need for a “new thing” in how these disciplines look in our lives. Maybe THAT is the “new thing.” So, how do I lead my church in a way where the power of the Spirit is touching us and we have these “systems” in place?

What forms do we take on that are useful for our day? For teaching, for fellowship, for the Table, for Prayers. What do we, as a church, create to make sure we are capturing in our lives what the Spirit is doing?

Posted in Bible Study, Church, Discipleship/Spiritual Formation, Holy Spirit, Leadership, Ministry, Pentecost, Spiritual Formation, Spiritual gifts
28 Sep 2008

Thoughts on Spiritual Gifts

Having gone through a series on spiritual gifts, one thing I did not do was get into specific lists in the New Testament. I focused mainly on being used, discovering the gifts, and how we are called to USE those gifts! We are stewards in the Great House of God and the call of the Owner is to utilize the grace given to serve the Owner. All we need is available to us. It is time to serve the great cause of Christ.

When it comes to individual gifts, discovering your gifts, etc., there are just a myriad of resources. I cannot even come close to knowing which ones are top notch and which ones are suspect because the web is FULL of both!

A couple of resources that can be useful:
1. Gift analysis, where you take a short survey to see how your temperament can guide how you are used in the gifts.

2. Good books can be a helpful resource as well. David Lim has a great resource on spiritual gifts I have found helpful over the years.

Another favorite from early 20th Century Pentecostal theology is Donald Gee. This link to Amazon will show one book he wrote many years ago, but is still useful. However, scroll down the page to see other books listed. One of my favorites is Pentecostal Experience, a compilation of Gee’s writing by David Womack. It is a great book to read for me, having grown up Pentecostal but being a generation or two removed from the experiences of Azusa Street and early Pentecostal revivals.

We must search the Scriptures! We must learn through the study of the Word and prayer. Then, PRACTICE! May we sense this call once again to the great cause of Christ!

Posted in Spiritual gifts | Leave a Comment
28 Sep 2008

Thoughts on Spiritual Gifts

Having gone through a series on spiritual gifts, one thing I did not do was get into specific lists in the New Testament. I focused mainly on being used, discovering the gifts, and how we are called to USE those gifts! We are stewards in the Great House of God and the call of the Owner is to utilize the grace given to serve the Owner. All we need is available to us. It is time to serve the great cause of Christ.

When it comes to individual gifts, discovering your gifts, etc., there are just a myriad of resources. I cannot even come close to knowing which ones are top notch and which ones are suspect because the web is FULL of both!

A couple of resources that can be useful:
1. Gift analysis, where you take a short survey to see how your temperament can guide how you are used in the gifts.

2. Good books can be a helpful resource as well. David Lim has a great resource on spiritual gifts I have found helpful over the years.

Another favorite from early 20th Century Pentecostal theology is Donald Gee. This link to Amazon will show one book he wrote many years ago, but is still useful. However, scroll down the page to see other books listed. One of my favorites is Pentecostal Experience, a compilation of Gee’s writing by David Womack. It is a great book to read for me, having grown up Pentecostal but being a generation or two removed from the experiences of Azusa Street and early Pentecostal revivals.

We must search the Scriptures! We must learn through the study of the Word and prayer. Then, PRACTICE! May we sense this call once again to the great cause of Christ!

Posted in Spiritual gifts | Leave a Comment

Post Navigation

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 34 other followers