From The Archives: No You Can’t, Uh Uh, No Way!

So there was Jesus making His way along the road. And there was the usual crowd, pressing, squabbling, gawking, chattering.  Seems a familiar scenario - Jesus and crowds go together, right?  No, not this day.  This day Jesus turns, faces the crowd and presents them with something they didn’t come for. “You can’t follow Me” … Continue reading From The Archives: No You Can’t, Uh Uh, No Way!

In Search Of Authentic Authority

Leadership. For many of us the word leaves a bad taste. For some it evokes a sense of deep disappointment, emotional pain or abandonment. And for far too many it awakens traumatic memories of spiritual abuse. Jesus didn’t have a lot to say about leadership, except to warn the disciples that His idea of leadership … Continue reading In Search Of Authentic Authority

The Woman Who Touched God

There came a day when a woman, ritually unclean, dared to approach Jesus, and with trembling hand, reached out and touched His rabbi’s garment¹. Defying all convention, disobeying the Law, risking sudden and violent death, she carried within those tremoring fingers years of hope unrealised, nights of anguished tears, and one last act of final … Continue reading The Woman Who Touched God

The Sweet Sufficiency of Jesus

You know, the further I travel along this Christ-following journey, the more I’m persuaded there’s just one overwhelming priority for the Bride of Christ in this late hour. There is no shortage of prophetic voices proclaiming numerous messages in the name of Christ: messages about the end times, spiritual warfare, cities and nations, world events, … Continue reading The Sweet Sufficiency of Jesus

The Insanity of The Kingdom

Recently a blogger friend, Becky Johnson, remarked in one of her posts “I think this is normal to a life of faith – this feeling like we …. are doing something completely insane” I think she’s on to something. You don’t need to spend a lot of time reading the gospels before you realise the … Continue reading The Insanity of The Kingdom

Awakening

Sometimes we need a reality check.   Sometimes we fall for our own propaganda.  Sometimes we just need to sit at the feet of Jesus long enough, still enough, to cease striving to live up to our own warped image of ourself.   Sometimes, no often, we need to give ourselves permission to admit we don't have it all together and quite … Continue reading Awakening

Royal Seal – SoS Saturday

Sharing today this post from Ben Nelson at Another Red Letter Day. May it help us remember how very much we are loved…..

Ben Nelson's avatarAnother Red Letter Day

Put me like a seal over your heart,
Like a seal on your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
Jealousy is as severe as Sheol;
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
The very flame of the LORD.

Song of Songs 8:6 NASB

As you may know, in the days of Solomon a seal was a mark of identification and ownership.

A seal acted as a signature for kings and nobles. They used wax seals to signify the authenticity of a document or artifact. A title-deed for example, or private communication,  after it’s writing, would be rolled or folded. Then the writer melted wax and the pressed his seal into the it. If the recipient found the seal broken, he knew that the communication was no longer secure.

The king’s army was the force behind the kings seal, and it was that force that would ensure the safety of the message, and…

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Unconditional Love – Or Not

Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned.( Luke 8:37) “Just go Jesus, OK? We don’t want anything to do with you. Don’t even think about entering this city. We’ve seen … Continue reading Unconditional Love – Or Not

Jesus Was Cool About Breaking The Rules

So there I was, frantically squeezing my feet into my brown school shoes, eyeing the wall clock with alarm and breathlessly leaping onto the back of the school bus as it pulled away from the bus stop. My heart was pounding as I rehearsed suitable excuses for missing roll call. My throat tightened with a … Continue reading Jesus Was Cool About Breaking The Rules

Silent Encounter

What can I say about that infamous night? How weary we were As we followed Him to the garden He prayed, we slept, He woke us, again we slept While we dreamed, He wept Then came torches, voices, soldiers, Armour gleaming in the moonlight The betrayer moving in close With his cold, calculated kiss Before … Continue reading Silent Encounter

Beholding The Glory

Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me….. Jn. 17:24 We who follow Christ have been invited to be with Him, where He is, that we may behold His glory. We are conditioned by religious … Continue reading Beholding The Glory

The Old Man and The Train

    Imagine yourself in this scenario. You are on a train travelling at high speed, a speed that grows faster with each passing moment. You are in a crowded carriage where every other passenger is seated. But you are standing in the aisle, trying very hard to stay on your feet as the train’s … Continue reading The Old Man and The Train

When Jesus Isn’t Enough

The young pastor peered intensely at me through searching brown eyes, trying hard to articulate his dilemma. “Tell me, please tell me, how can I move my ministry into these wonderful things that have been promised to me and that I so desire? I believe you can instruct me in this.” Sitting across the table … Continue reading When Jesus Isn’t Enough

Sinnerwoman and The Bride, Reblogged from May 2012

The Bride of Christ can be likened to a woman, a known sinner, arriving unexpectedly at a banquet held by a respected religious leader.  Entering unannounced, her eyes quickly scan the room for one face,  the face of Jesus Christ.  At first few notice her uninvited intrusion, caught up as they are in conversation and … Continue reading Sinnerwoman and The Bride, Reblogged from May 2012

So It’s Really Not About Me? Really??

Our Father has one holy, consuming passion, a passion that we find difficult to perceive.   It is the revealing of His Son. It pleases God immensely to reveal His Son. From the beginning, the ongoing revelation of His Son has been, and continues to be, God’s chief delight and primary objective (John 5:39). It fills … Continue reading So It’s Really Not About Me? Really??

ALTAR, TEMPLE, KINGDOM Part Three

For a fuller understanding of this article please first read Altar, Temple, Kingdom Part One and Altar, Temple, Kingdom Part Two. As Jesus related parable after parable to demonstrate kingdom life He presented to His hearers a Kingdom not to be imagined in a distant future but freely available in the present, or ‘at hand’. … Continue reading ALTAR, TEMPLE, KINGDOM Part Three

Tuned In

You know, it makes me scratch my head every time I realize God, who created the mountains, the oceans, the heavens and all forms of life, chooses humanity for company. It makes me stop and wonder when I remember that He who gave lions their majesty and dolphins their swiftness,  fashioned towering redwood trees and … Continue reading Tuned In

The Word

Fellow blogger and  Christ-disciple, David Bolton  at Christ Centred Christianity recently asked me to contribute to his The Word in 3D Project with a prophetic poem based on John 1:14.  The Word in 3D regularly brings together three Christian writers in prayer and fellowship to share their different perspectives on a specific passage of scripture.  … Continue reading The Word

Many Will Be Offended

Visibly angry, the man with the long dark beard backed away from me as if to avoid catching a dreaded disease.  “Get away from me!  You are an offence to me!” he sputtered hatefully, eyes flashing with rage, face heavy with indignation.  Beside him his approving wife glared at me in agreement, while their two … Continue reading Many Will Be Offended

Lessons from the Wilderness Part Two

Imagine, after a long period of relative obscurity, you suddenly become a spiritual celebrity.  The greatest prophet in the nation publicly affirms your calling to ministry, the Heavens open and it seems God’s highest favour rests on you, while the anointing of the Holy Spirit is poured out on you mightily.   In the church or conference where … Continue reading Lessons from the Wilderness Part Two