John Fenn, The Ways of Righteousness #1

Please add John@SupernaturalHouseChurch.org to your email address book to keep your Weekly Thoughts out of your SPAM folder. Thanks!   New Products 2 cd's or MP3 ($15 for 2 CD series; $5 for each of 2 MP3 files ($10 total)   The Gifts of the Spirit: How to Move in them in Every Day Life Most of us were raised in a church culture that allowed the gifts of the Spirit to operate only (if at all) during a church service, but the Biblical truth is the gifts were seen in everyday life. This series will reset your thinking to what the Bible says as it defines each gift, gives scriptural definitions of each gift, and shares modern life examples of their function in everyday life. This practical teaching will help you realize you’ve moved in some of the gifts for years but because it wasn’t in church and no one labeled what happened, you didn’t realize it. It will also help you move in them more often.       You may manage your subscription (change email, un-subscribe, etc) by clicking the link at the bottom of this page. And remember to use cwowi@aol.com to email me personally.                                                                                                                                         Hi all, Last Saturday morning Barb was sleeping in, Chris was up, bathed, and watching a favorite Christian TV show while playing games on his tablet, and I was cleaning up the kitchen after making Chris breakfast. Over the kitchen window we have blinds - they are horizontal, wood about 2" wide (5 cm), slightly off-white in color, with a wand on the left by which we rotate them closed at night and open during daytime, and a pull string on the right by which to lift them out of the way to see unobstructed out the window.    Being kitchen window blinds they collect grease and dust over time, and as I am always the first one up in the morning I am usually the one to rotate them from closed, which reveals the filth on each slat of wood, to open for the day which hides the grime. Out of sight, out of mind.    For the last month when I'd be at the kitchen sink I'd think to myself, "Somebody really needs to clean those. I wonder when Barb will get around to it." (Just being honest lol) Today however, I was 'Somebody'. I couldn't stand them any longer. Chris was happy, Barb sleeping, breakfast over with. I opened the catch on the bracket, pulled them out and lowered them to the counter, sprayed them heavily with a degreasing cleaner allowing it to soak in several seconds before wiping them clean with a paper towel.    Once back in place I gently touched up remaining spots I had overlooked, and thought to myself, "I wonder how long it will take Barb to notice I cleaned the blinds." As soon as that thought arose I heard the Lord ask me, "What are you going to tell her about why you cleaned the blinds?" My response was immediate, "Because they needed to be cleaned..." but that last word faded from my thoughts like a car running out of fuel and slowly coasting to the side of the road to a stop. I had answered before I had fully realized the Lord was asking for a reason, and I knew what that reason was - He was testing my motives for righteousness in my heart, or would He find pride.    Before Him, you can only tell the truth. He is like the worlds most perfect lie detector machine, a universal truth serum because He Himself is Truth - when He asks you something the truth of whatever is in your heart comes up. It is gentle, yet thorough, and only painful if you aren't teachable, are proud, stubborn, trying to hide something in your heart, or hate being wrong. In short, if you don't love righteousness you'll shrink away from Truth, but if you love righteousness you race to the light to be corrected.   Before Him truth happens and you are powerless to stop it from coming out of your heart into the light of HIs scrutiny - your motives just pop to the surface like grandmas's dumplings when they are thoroughly cooked. You are 'done' and there isn't a thing you can do about it.    I immediately changed my answer to the truth: "Alright, the truth is I couldn't stand them being that dirty any more." And then He responded, "But you would have told Barb you did it as a favor to her because they needed it and knew it would be difficult for her to take them down." "Yes. Sorry.", I admitted. "It's okay. You've grown a little today." And that was that. He was silent and I was left with a warm feeling of His presence that I love, intensified because I had grown just a bit more.    I have settled in my heart when Barb asks when I did the blinds and why, I will tell her the unvarnished truth - no spin to favor me and make me look like her hero - I did it because the blinds bothered me being so dirty. I couldn't stand it any longer. Purely self-motivated reason for cleaning them. That was the truth. It wasn't for her. Not for the look of the place. Not because it needed to be done. They bothered me being so dirty and I couldn't stand for it any more. That 's what I will tell her. (She hasn't yet noticed they are clean)   When God judges The Judgment Seat of Christ is what I experienced above, but here on earth. This is what happens at I John 1:9 - if we confess (admit) our sins He forgives us our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. If you are wise you will live like this, so that when you die your heart's motives and actions will be fully up to speed with very little to cover between you and Him at that moment. For some, their life will have to play out like a long running TV miniseries because they rarely judged themselves on their motives in this life, nor were sensitive enough to Truth to be honest about the how and why of their actions.    Two women had been best friends for 15 years until one day friend #1 sent an email to about a dozen mutual friends that was in fact a well known 'fake news' item. Friend #2 emailed her back to the fact she had sent fake news, a lie about a person and situation, and thought she would appreciate knowing that so she could correct her mistake to everyone she sent it to. Instead, friend #1 was offended, writing her back that the principle was true even if the story was a lie. Friend #2 apologized, said she was only trying to be helpful, figuring anyone would want to know they were spreading a lie by mistake - but no, friend #1 unfriended her and refused to answer her text messages and calls, even weeks after that exchange. Friend #2 was understandably heart broken and left wondering what she did wrong. That answer: Nothing.    Friend #1 would rather be right than be righteous. Do we want to be right, or be righteous?    Hunger and thirst; believer or disciple? There is an expected progression of one's life seen in scripture that starts at someone believing in Jesus, and from there they become a disciple. A disciple by definition is 'a learner'. For years people have been debating the dividing line between those who call themselves Christians, who may or may not be believers, versus those who are true disciples, living their lives in a never ending learning process of how to be more Christ-like as they walk with Him through this process called life.     One of the attributes of a disciple of Jesus is what He said in Matthew 5:6: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." Whether a believer hungers and thirsts for righteousness in their life or not, is revealed over time, and over tiny decisions of the heart. The right decisions move them to ever greater truth and transparency and therefore greater growth as a disciple, whereas decisions which are half-truths or made to make them look better (pride) confirm they are mere believers, at least in those particular areas.    The word and tense used by Jesus in Matthew 5:6 for hunger and thirst are ongoing in nature. He isn't talking about wanting a meal and then once consumed being satisfied. He is speaking of an ongoing hunger and thirst that are satisfied within the process, as in the course of a great meal it is satisfying, but you want more - you live within the realm of ongoing, never ending, satisfaction.    We might say it is the act of eating or dining. Eating would be the consuming food quickly and barely tasting it, or dining which takes time and savors every bite, every nuance of flavor the meal offers. Jesus is talking about living by dining on righteousness. Loving the flavor of it in our lives. Loving the nuances what we consume in Him reveals. Desiring righteousness above desiring to be right.    And that is why when Barb eventually asks about the blinds I'll be righteous in my answer: I couldn't stand them any longer so I cleaned them!   We'll pick it up there next week, until then, blessings,     John Fenn   www.cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com       New Products 2 cd's or MP3 ($15 for 2 CD series; $5 for each of 2 MP3 files ($10 total)   The Gifts of the Spirit: How to Move in them in Every Day Life Most of us were raised in a church culture that allowed the gifts of the Spirit to operate only (if at all) during a church service, but the Biblical truth is the gifts were seen in everyday life. This series will reset your thinking to what the Bible says as it defines each gift, gives scriptural definitions of each gift, and shares modern life examples of their function in everyday life. This practical teaching will help you realize you’ve moved in some of the gifts for years but because it wasn’t in church and no one labeled what happened, you didn’t realize it. It will also help you move in them more often.

Just a word about our On-line Video Bible School - these classes, so far; Old Testament I & II, Righteousness and Our Authority in Christ - are a go-at-your-own-pace, no test, investment in your own faith and understanding of the Word and Lord. Once registered, your password is good for a whole year so you can take your time, but as I'm hearing from students, once they start they have a hard time stopping! Each class is about 45-55 minutes long, so they are in easy to receive segments...consider investing in a deeper study of the things of God!

Should You 'Fear' God?

Should You 'Fear' God? ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​by Chip Brogden The first mention of fear in the Bible is in the context of man being afraid of God. You really need to see that a religious person trying to please God is just as ignorant as a “sinner” trying to hide from God. Neither one of them have a right understanding of God. Everything they do is based on fear. One refuses to go to church because he’s afraid of God. The other goes to church because he’s afraid of God. Isn’t it interesting how fear can drive people to do the exact opposite things! What is driving you? What’s motivating you? What’s controlling you? Fear, or Love? CLICK BELOW TO READ THE REST... http://www.chipbrogden.com/should-you-fear-god/ I am your brother, Chip Brogden

Rural, Village Africa: Where Life is Real

In This Issue...  Rural, Village Africa: Where Life is Real  More Recent Articles

Roger We find ourselves spending less and less time in the villages of Africa. Our role of coaching leaders means that we can normally get more done by gathering them together in a central location, a small town which they can access from diverse locations. To be honest, there are some parts of going out into the villages that I do not miss. The all-day travel on pot-holed roads that jolt your bones forever, the lack of facilities (toilets) or familiar food or comfortable seating or clean surroundings. Yes, in fact, there’s lots and lots of dirt and dust and heat and suspect food that may or may not result in another round of stomach bacteria. But… There is something that I terribly miss if we stay too long without touching life in the villages. There is something richly human and vibrant that can be found nowhere else. People that live in the raw simplicity and purposefulness required by rural life strike a chord deep in one’s soul in a way that nothing else can. I am not sure how to explain it. There are the faces of people running toward you as you arrive because you have come so far to see them. Even people you have not met before. They greet you eagerly as their guests, and their lives and hearts are obviously warmed just by your presence with them. There is their hospitality that, despite their poverty, is abundantly generous and overwhelmingly moving. Whatever they have, or whatever they can borrow from a neighbor, they will bring it to you and are not satisfied until you have eaten and drunk all. They are welcoming you into their family, and sitting with them and eating with them is part of becoming part of them. Indeed, within a short time you feel amazingly close, like family, to people you hardly know because life, love, and family just exudes out of them. There is the vulnerability that you feel because they do not have trappings to hide behind. There are no nice cars, houses, nor clothes to cover up the nakedness of simple humanity. They are simply people living, working, laughing, crying and doing it all together with many family members in the small confines of a one-room hut and an outdoor cooking area. There is the deep sense of community as you realize how much they truly depend on one another, including extended family and neighbors, just to survive. What you have one day your neighbor may need the next, to avoid hunger or medical or school fees or help with a dowry or funeral needs. Finally, there are heartfelt farewells from people you have only just met as they hug and smile and walk you down the road as far as they can go. One feels opened up to a side of humanity that is deeply moving yet rarely accessible… unless you are willing to leave the confines of one’s own world and enter that of another.

Why We Do What We Do

In This Issue...  Why We Do What We Do  More Recent Articles

Brooks There’s a couple I met a few years ago in Kenya. They live in a rural village area in the ancestral home of the husband. Their life is simple. They live in a mud house with a thatched roof. Their needs are met…most days…their wants are few. They exemplify “if we have food and clothes, we will be satisfied with that.” – 1 Timothy 6:8 They have one goal: to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Why? Because they believe they have one assignment: Matthew 28:19–20 New Living Translation (NLT) … to go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Caren, the wife, tells me, “We have a heart to go to people. Jesus commissioned us to go and baptize them. It’s very important to have the right DNA that is in Matthew 28, to go, make disicples, teaching them to obey, starting with baptism. Then we gather them together because we share love with each other in a practical way. This is Scripture. It is easy. It is God’s way of multiplication. Even someone who hasn’t gone to school can do these simple things. “This is what Jesus taught. Our ‘Baba (Father)’ is Jesus. He is our leader. He loves us as his children so we can do the work of God. It works well, this simple method of his. At the end of the day you have a big work of disciple-making and it costs no money. One person just shares the love of God with another person. You don’t leave him. You walk alongside of him and then take them with you to make another disciple. It doesn’t take long. It is very cheap. This is what we do in Kakamega. It is strong and growing. We have many relationships with people who are now good friends. This method we find so many who need and want to be loved. Their lives are being changed. “What we are seeing is that when we disciple someone they will come out just like us with the same DNA. The first thing we have to do is always to pray. Prayer takes time. We are praying for that man of peace to disciple. We take about one or two months with him, being with him, discovering through the Bible who Jesus is and what he taught. Every week I will meet with them and share. We then take that person with us to share with someone else. This person is now able to make disciples. We always start with Discovery Bible Study in a new group or home. That new disciple goes with me and he watches me; then the next time that disciple he is helping me to do that; the next time we go, the disciple does it and I am there to help him. You can’t just leave the new disciple there alone. It’s like with Peter and Barnabas. You want to make sure that disciple has the DNA of Jesus. This is what sustains the movement.” Here’s what some of the other disciple-makers are saying: “With our movement people help each other in very simple ways. They share each other’s burdens. We have very little, but what we have, we share.” “This is easy. We have received the love of God and we want to share it with others. We can share with so many people because of how easy it is to pass on God’s love. This is the Bible. The Discovery Bible Study is doing a lot. People from all over are seeing and hearing about this movement and what God is doing.” “I love this method so much because it is God’s way. We can be together anywhere, any time. This is easy. It is not only for the pastor or someone coming to the church. I meet someone anywhere I am, even at the river and I can share the love of God with them. When we meet, we are in the house and they know me and my challenges very well. Here no one is pushed down. Everyone is able to be lifted up. We look at the Bible together and we find what is the Truth.” “The gospel goes very quickly with this way of disciple-making, because it is a friendship atmosphere. Everyone can do this, not only if you are a pastor.” “House church people are reading the Word of God together and discovering the Truth. They are ridding themselves of witchcraft.” “We are reaching people in their homes. You don’t need anything, except Love.” “We are discovering that we need to be open to people and their problems. When we do this, we find that we can understand and love people very well.” “Our people are suffering and they are not being helped. House church is the way we can really help people. This is real help for people not just talking about help.” “We find with DMM there is a way to work with people without fighting. We only serve God and are not in competition with people to find people to add to our church building programs.” “God will go to any lengths to reach someone. What we are finding is that he usually does it through one person to another person.”

5 Reasons Why Fellowship Eludes Us

5 Reasons Why Fellowship Eludes Us ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​by Chip Brogden If everyone is looking for fellowship, why is fellowship so hard to find?  And once we have found it, why is it so hard to maintain it? When God begins to bring you out of church and into a deeper relationship with Himself, there is a lot of unlearning that has to take place – particularly in the area of fellowship. It has been said that every lost person has a Christ-shaped void in their heart that only Christ can fill.  A similar thing can be said of believers who come out of the religious system.  When God calls us to be with Him “outside the camp,” there is a church-shaped void in our heart where church used to be.  This void makes us feel restless and insecure and empty.  We remember the fellowship we used to enjoy, and we begin to long for it.  Pretty soon, we begin to look for things to fill the church-shaped void in our heart. Here’s a radical thought: what if the church-shaped void in our heart isn’t meant to be filled with anything?  What if God intends for us to get rid of that church-shaped void and stop trying to fill it?  Isn’t the church-shaped void in our heart really just an idol?  And that idol not only hinders our spiritual growth and maturity in a Christ-centered faith, it also hinders our relationships with one another and prevents us from entering into real Spirit-and-Truth fellowship with one another. CLICK BELOW TO READ THE REST... http://www.chipbrogden.com/5-reasons-why-fellowship-eludes-us/ I am your brother, Chip Brogden

He Does What You Cannot

He Does What You Cannot “We had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.” -2 CORINTHIANS 1:9 Know that Christ is not here to help you become a better person, but to make you so weak in yourself and so sick of your own way that you can do nothing but trust in Him to do what you at last realize you cannot do. It does not matter if that something “we cannot do” is save ourselves, control our temper, get along with others, raise our children, or overcome a lustful habit. The course is the same. After many attempts and failures we at last realize we cannot, so we throw ourselves on the mercy of God and trust Him to do what we cannot do. Source: "Embrace the Cross"  by Chip Brogden http://www.chipbrogden.com/books/embrace-the-cross Like this? Share your comments: http://www.chipbrogden.com/october30 I am your brother, Chip Brogden

The Body Building- Membangun Tubuh Kristus Bersama

Shalom,

Terpujilah nama Tuhan kita yang dasyat...... Kami mengucap syukur meski apa yang kami kerjakan begitu banyak kekurangan tetapi dapat membawa sukacita bagi rekan-rekan yang memerlukan bantuan Alkitab (baik lama maupun baru) maupun literatur Kristen lainnya. Kami mengucap syukur atas kemurahan Tuhan dan juga kerelaan keluarga kami di dalam Kristus Yesus yang mau menyisihkan berkat baik Alkitab, buku maupun dana untuk pengiriman paket-paket ke daerah. Namun kami melihat keterbatasan dana bukan penghalang untuk membantu hamba Tuhan di daerah, keluarga seiman kami baik di daerah pedalaman maupun yang melayani kaum marginal. Bila kita mau bersatu dan menyatukan sumber daya maka tidak ada perkara yang mustahil. Mari saudara-saudaraku kita keluar dari “tembok” denominasi kita dan mulai berfungsi sebagai bagian tubuh Kristus yang hidup...... Mari kita bekerja bersama membangun tubuhNya.

Bagi saudara-saudaraku yang hendak menyalurkan Alkitab (baik lama maupun baru) atau menyumbangkan buku rohani/ cd khotbah (baru maupun lama), akan kami salurkan pada rekan jejaring pelayanan kami di daerah, perpustakaan maupun pelayanan penjara. Bila Anda tergerak untuk memberikan donasi bantuan dana untuk pengiriman Alkitab dan buku dapat menghubungi kami melalui Facebook atau email davebroos@yahoo.co.uk.

God bless.