Hi all,
I've had 2 visitations from the Lord so
far this year. In the first one He taught me something He wanted me to
study and think on further, which I'll share starting Friday in
a new series in this week's Weekly Thoughts, and the 2nd one I asked if
He had any update from Him or the Father on world events, or what He
was doing in the body. His response was:
"You'll see more people starting house
churches as the momentum has shifted to the point massive numbers will
decide they want to meet at home, some after leaving their churches and
some who had stopped going earlier, but this is just the beginning. (He
told me some personal instructions about ministry direction concerning
these things) and then said: "As far as what the Father or I have told
you about the future; it is enough. What is happening now and about to
happen this year and next is within what we've said before. And as I've
told you before, as for you, you must be about the Father's business."
He shared more about house churches
being started all over this nation (and the world) in a huge move that
will be similar to the shaking that happened in the 1970’s in the
charismatic renewal but much greater – this time the people will be
leaving what they consider among themselves to be ‘cutting edge’
charismatic churches. He also said many of those churches the
people will be coming out of will follow or already are following the
path of the denominations of the 1970’s and '80's, shrinking into
worldliness, irrelevance, doctrinal error, and being
lukewarm.
I want to make it clear He speaks
to me within the context He called me to, and that I don't have anything
against the traditional church, but because I'm outside that sphere
He talks openly about how that culture affects what I'm called to which
is home based gatherings of the saints – He speaks to me within that
context, so that’s what I share.
The devil, God trying to teach us, or just circumstance?
Over the past couple of months Barb
had said the carpet in her office felt damp around the door to the
closet, but since there are no water lines near I, like any clueless
husband, passed it off as her imagination or maybe her feet were wet
already when walking into her office or some other explanation, so
frankly, her observations went in one ear and took the non-stop flight
out the other ear.
But this week she stepped into the
closet and definitely felt wetness in the carpet and called me in to
check it out. I flipped on the light switch for a better look, but the
light was out. That's when I reached up to the globe over the light to
change bulbs and felt a drop of water on the outside of the globe.
Unscrewing the screws holding it on to the fixture I discovered the
globe was as full of water as grandma's gravy bowl at holiday time.
How did water leak into the light
fixture? There was no water damage to the ceiling so we either had a
very localized roof leak which would be unusual as we have a metal roof,
or something else was the culprit. The only solution was for me to
climb into the attic and crawl around like a raccoon in the dark until I
discovered the
source.
Reluctantly but with determination I
did so, puncturing my back only twice on roofing nails protruding
through the roof, and with only minor damage to my knees and shins as I
crawled over ductwork and insulation in between roof trusses to the spot
above Barb's closet - doing this in a flashlight on and then flashlight
off process because I needed both hands to move from rafter to rafter,
groping for rafters in the dark like the above raccoon blindly feels in
the water for its meal along a stream's edge.
On came my trusty iPhone light,
love that flashlight feature, and there was a condensation line from the
furnace/air unit that is located in the attic, running directly over
Barb's closet where it dripped into the insulation, which is backed with
a water proof backing which explain why no ceiling damage, but finding
the path of least resistance, continued down into her light fixture.
Within an hour the heat/air company
had a man here, who, upon seeing his brethren's work just shook his
head and apologized, and quickly completed the connection to the drain
line a mere 6 feet (2m) away. Supposedly the heat/air people had talked
to the plumber who was there that day months ago working on Chris'
bathroom, and the plumber had said she would make the connection for
them...likely excuse but either way, it was up to the heat/air people to
make sure all work was done before pronouncing the job complete.
So the closet was emptied - most of
it in plastic storage boxes so no loss, but I had to pull the carpet up
and we have been running 2 fans against the underside of it in an
attempt to dry it before mildew sets in.
That was Wednesday, on Thursday...
Thursday
morning after adjusting the carpet and fans, I signed on our personal
checking account and found a charge for over $200 at a Walmart in a city
in Texas - knowing I was firmly sitting at home in Oklahoma, I called
the bank. They said my debit card was one of many from their bank that
whose numbers had been stolen, and there had been 4 other attempts on my
card after the Texas one but a fraud alert had automatically been put
in place, so nothing else could be charged. We'll get back that $200 in
about a week they said...nice way to start my Thursday, on the phone with the bank for an hour!
Friday I
picked up Chris (oldest son, handicapped, lives in part at a nearby
group home) and as we headed along the back roads into town I noticed a
large tree branch down on the opposite lane, blocking half the lane. I
always try to be like Jesus 'who went about doing good' when He had
opportunity, so I stopped to move the branch. The road is rural so
stopping briefly wasn't a major safety issue though it was a concern,
but when I shifted attention to my spirit I still had peace about my
idea of stopping, so in a couple of minutes the branch with all its
related pieces was safely moved off the road.
It wasn't that I patted myself on
the back or anything, but I felt good knowing some driver not paying
attention wouldn't run into the branch. Flash forward 2 hours and Chris
and I are quickly headed home, on the same road, and within throwing
distance from where I moved the branch.
Just as a car was coming towards
us, right where my right side tires would travel, a black rubber strap
with the metal S on the end was sticking up, and I ran right over it. I
couldn't swerve because I'd have caused a head-on collision with the
other car...
Immediately the right front tire
made a loud THUMP THUMP THUMP sound and I slammed on the brakes and got
out. That S on the black rubber strap gouged but did not puncture the
tire tread, but as it gouged the tread and held, the rubber strap part
went round and round and round, making that sound.
I pulled the S from the tread, held
my hand over the area to make sure no air was leaking, thanked the
Father for ordering our steps that it did NOT cause a flat as He caused
it to just gouge the tread because we were still 2 miles from home
(3.2km) on a narrow road.
My mind had raced through the
possibilities - drive home on a slow leak, use the portable plug in
compressor I keep under the back seat to inflate the tire temporarily,
and wondering why I didn't have a can or two of "Fix-a-Flat" to
temporarily inflate and seal the tire - I don't mind endangering my life
by changing a flat in that location if I have to, but didn't want to
endanger Chris' life.
As I got into the truck I
noticed it smelled like an Italian kitchen, which is when I discovered
Chris' leftover spaghetti from the restaurant I had taken him to for our
weekly lunch, had slid off the seat, hit the floor, and the flimsy
Styrofoam container had generously opened its contents upon impact with
the floor.
A thought came into my head,
"See what good happened for moving
that branch? That'll stop you from doing good the next time." If I had
been a religious Christian I might have blamed the devil for the rubber
strap attaching itself to the tire like the viper that bit and held onto
Paul's hand in Acts 28:3-4, and the subsequent 'Spaghetti Disaster of
2015', but I didn't.
Instead I acknowledged to the
Father the speed limit there was 35 and I was doing about 40, and had I
been doing the speed limit that oncoming car would not have been passing
me at the exact moment I needed to swerve away from the rubber strap -
in other words, if I'd been obeying the law I would have had room to
swerve around the strap, so I had done it to myself. The Father's role
was to cause it to gouge the tread only instead of puncturing the
tire. That's grace.
It is human nature to blame someone
else for something that happens to us - and there are times things
happen to us that are outside our control and there are people who do
things on purpose to cause us misery - but their evil doesn't mean it is
directly the devil, sometimes it is just people being ugly people.
In situations like these it is very
often 'according to your faith be it unto you'. If you believe it is
all the devil's fault and you hunker down into battle mode, then that's
what you will have, and learn little from the experience and gripe
loudly how the devil was after you all week.
If you will look for the Father's
provision no matter what and thank Him for the grace you find, such as
His ordering of your steps in the midst of it all, you will find grace
and peace. Look first to how you can become Christ-like in any given
situation. Then look and see what part you played in the situation,
acknowledge it to the Lord, and then learn from it.
For my part in the water leak,
I should have immediately investigated Barb's observation that her
carpet felt damp 2 months ago, but I didn't. I learned a lesson on
sensitivity as I was the one who had to crawl into the attic and I was
the one who moved the plastic tubs and I was the one who pulled up the
carpet...because as husband and head of home maintenance, it was up
to me to listen to her, thus it was right and just I do the work to make
it right. All the Father's ways are just and right, its just that we
don't like that sometimes.
The heat/air guys should have done
the job right and it wasn't within my sphere to double check their work,
it was just carelessness on their part - not the devil, just the human
condition.
Trips now and trips planned: I’ll be in Europe for our Dutch and Finnish conferences May 6-19,
with the Finnish conference consisting of me traveling to various home
meetings rather than people coming to a central conference center. The
week of June 4-10 at Lassen Pines
Christian Conference Grounds, Shingletown, CA as one of the speakers at
an international conference. In August planning a trip to the Pacific NW
and Vancouver, BC area, Florida in September, US east coast and New
England in the Oct/Nov time frame – stay tuned on those. Other trips as
invited in between.
Chris’ handicapped/ADA compliant
sink/cabinet should be installed Thursday – yippee! We’ll be done once
that is installed with only a few small things to get – rolling shower
chair and such. Thank you to all who pray for us and have donated to
help with this. This remodel has made rolling him through the house,
bathing and such so much easier on me and him –
Thank you and for your giving and faithfulness!
John & Barb
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