Monthly Archives: October 2009

My disorderly tongue

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I am living in Acts where the Spirit arrives and the disciples break out in languages they do not know. They lose control of their tongues. I don’t think I am actually very comprehendable to my listeners here, yet. But I do find myself babbling away, totally scrambling the language of Italian whenever I want to express myself. I have lost control of my tongue.

And that makes me think of Martin’s dream. Because the key is that we all choose to be calm and content with the disorder of the reordering. We should not rush out and find or create a new order. We must certainly not regress to the old order. Yet that is what we most want to do. When I find myself unintelligable in Italian, I immediately regress to the order I know – English. But that will not get my brain/tongue connection functioning in Italian, the new order for me. So I have to just relax, trust my brain to come along when its time, and move my tongue rightly so that I can operate in this new realm.

Likewise, while it is tempting to seek order, create order, or regress to the old during a time of upheaval, I think we need to trust that God really is capable of doing what He needs and wants to do, with or without our order. As we wait for clarity and some sense of what we each should be up to, we need to relax and trust the one in charge that it will be okay. Just like my tongue and brain will come into a new order, the Italian language, so too will we, and the planet come into God’s order for this new season. In the meantime, I babble.

Buongiorno,

Cheryl

Dream implication

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We are entering a phase now of acceleration, when the shapes we have held dear will no longer be appropriate. Business as usual, where we are shaped by the past and responding to the default will begin to be judged. This is a time to respond to what is now.
There is a complete change in everything, the order of the past has been shifted and this will get under the skin of the religious spirit that wants ‘order’ and lists.
The call is to a focus on Jesus that transcends even the doing of what is right (abortion issue etc.) and the praying of what is right. There has to be a radical new focus on Jesus, even when we cannot understand how this fits with what we have known. Areas that we think are right (an emphasis on politics, abortion etc., although we can argue how necessary this is) must be subservient to Jesus. The next wave of miracles is connected to a Jesus’ focus but will not be happening in the main place (or what we think is the main place).
There will be an increased intensity to know the right response at a given time. We will not be able to just speak a truth, we will have to know what truth is to be applied.
A new sound is here and is coming, but the understanding of it, the harnessing of it is being blocked by the Lord. It cannot be accessed too soon as it will be commercialised. It waits a connecting time as first a default has to be broken.
There will be many who will speak of a new sound but it will simply be the old remixed. The truly new sound cannot yet be accessed, although there will be an emphasis on new sounds in the mainstream music world.
It is the religious spirit that has to be attacked, and even how it manifests with a fall back to what is known. This enemy of faith, this reliance on the former, will also have to be dealt with. There are many who are beginning to align with God’s presence but have not been ‘trained’ (domesticated and tamed) and have rough edges. A judgement on them will stop a forward momentum.
There will be choices now as to who we align with: the rough ones called by God who enjoy freedom, or the ones of order who preserve the right way to do things.
So I believe the dream speaks of new manifestations, but is saying that the only way in is to break:
religiosity
conventionality
defaulting to what we know
commercialisation.
Current shapes will face many challenges. Default and stick, or go with those who are responding to God’s presence.

The dream that I recorded yesterday I am going to put a few thoughts out there with regard to it now. I consider that in it are patterns and trajectories that we have to anticipate in the next few years. The prayer work of the past years that countless thousands are involved in is not to preserve things the way they are, rather to bring to an end what needs to be finished and to make space for new things, for some greater manifestation of the kingdom of God. So here are my meditated thoughts from the dream:

We are entering a phase now of acceleration, when the shapes we have held dear will no longer be appropriate. Business as usual, where we are shaped by the past and responding to the default will begin to be judged. This is a time to respond to what is now.

There is a complete change in everything, the order of the past has been shifted and this will get under the skin of the religious spirit that wants ‘order’ and lists.

The call is to a focus on Jesus that transcends even the doing of what is right (abortion issue etc.) and the praying of what is right. It is not simply what we are doing, but how and why we are doing those things. There has to be a radical new focus on Jesus, even when we cannot understand how this fits with what we have known. Areas that we think are right (an emphasis on politics, abortion etc., although we can argue how necessary this is) must be subservient to Jesus. The next wave of miracles is connected to a Jesus’ focus but will not be happening in the main place (or what we think is the main place).

There will be an increased intensity to know the right response at a given time. We will not be able to just speak a truth, we will have to know what truth is to be applied.

A new sound is here and is coming, but the understanding of it, the harnessing of it is being blocked by the Lord. It cannot be accessed too soon as it will be commercialised. It waits a connecting time as first a default has to be broken.

There will be many who will speak of a new sound but it will simply be the old remixed. The truly new sound cannot yet be accessed, although there will be an emphasis on new sounds in the mainstream music world.

It is the religious spirit that has to be attacked, and even how it manifests with a fall back to what is known. This enemy of faith, this reliance on the former, will also have to be dealt with. There are many who are beginning to align with God’s presence but have not been ‘trained’ (domesticated and tamed) and have rough edges. A judgement that is made on them will stop a forward momentum.

There will be choices now as to who we align with: the rough ones called by God who enjoy freedom, or the ones of order who preserve the right way to do things.

So I believe the dream speaks of new manifestations, but is saying that the only way in is to break:

  • religiosity
  • conventionality
  • defaulting to what we know
  • commercialisation.

Current shapes will face many challenges. Default and stick, or go with those who are responding to God’s presence. The challenge is there for all, including me – after all that is how the dream ended.

A dream: 2010-2012

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In August this year I had a dream that I believe speaks into aspects of the next phase of what is coming. It relates to the manifestation of God’s people in the western world… so primarily Europe and USA. It was a fairly long dream and I will not include all the details here, but seek to draw from it.
I was present in a large auditorium and was there to share from Scripture, however I was unable to find the exact scripture that I wanted – there was a battle over finding what was appropriate, and a battle even to get across what I was carrying. Whatever had to be communicated could not be received easily – although the truths were not complex. I began to paraphrase what I needed to say, simply saying that there had to be a new focus on Jesus and his ways, that old ways of doing things was no longer appropriate. I also began to say that a movement does not face challenges when it is struggling, it really has its biggest challenge when everything is going well, and the people are experiencing ‘success’. That is the time when forward momentum can cease, and fall-back positions arise.
As I gave this focus so healings began to break out spontaneously, not in the room where we were but in a back room. The more I spoke of Jesus being the one to help the more that happened. For example, I saw a person move from almost total paralysis to standing on their head.
This brought people into the room where I was speaking – they were realising there was a connection between what I was saying and the breakouts.
I then became stronger and went on to say that the politics were not our battle, even abortion was not our battle. Truth was specific for a setting. I drew on Jesus’ words that, ‘If you are not for us you are against us, but how later he said ‘that if they are not against us they are for us.’ Truth is not relative but has to be drawn upon so that it is setting-specific.
The response was prayer, but the prayer began to miss it. The prayer would have been good and appropriate in another setting / time, but there was a reversion to what was known.
Everything around was being reshaped – and I knew that there would be signs everywhere that pointed to the future.
There was a recording studio behind where we were and the recording equipment was of a totally different order to anything that had been before. I went with a well-known worship leader but we were unable to access it, the door was locked, although we could see through the glass panel. The feeling in him was that we need to access this and release a new sound. But this was clearly not allowed.
As I walked round there were healings taking place: a young child maybe 12 now could speak, who before had been unable to speak. Then he raised his previously paralysed arms in the air and he could totally raise them. His speech and mobility was completely restored. He was totally transformed by Jesus’ presence.
There was a list on the wall that had been carefully prepared, but the whole list was totally reorganised. Names on it that should not have been, other names taken off. I remember someone being very upset and wanted to know who had changed them? Everyone else seemed to know that Jesus himself had done this. We also knew that he had reorganised the list as a joke. The list now made no sense!
Then into this auditorium (I hesitate to call it ‘sanctuary’, though I believe it was essentially something people had built for ‘church’ purposes) came birds. They were the most beautiful and they could be picked up and there was no evidence that they were messing the place up. They loved being there. (Some were clearly symbolic of the Holy Spirit, as I saw a person who loves the presence of the Spirit pick up a totally white dove – this bird was his to personally pick up. Others I think were symbolic of heavenly beings.)
Then someone in a loud voice that interrupted everything asked for a particular person to explain why she was smoking in the sanctuary? She was really embarrassed and put it out; I now had the choice to side with her or not – all the time I hesitated I was not able to move forward. She was very embarrassed and began to walk out. The dream ended and I knew that for me to move forward I would have to go outside and leave this setting.

In August this year I had a dream that I believe speaks into aspects of the next phase of what is coming. It relates to the manifestation of God’s people in the western world… so primarily Europe and USA. It was a fairly long dream and I will not include all the details here, but seek to give the substance of it and then draw from it tomorrow. I consider it sets one of the trajectories for the next few years.

I was present in a large auditorium and was there to share from Scripture, however I was unable to find the exact Scripture that I wanted – there was a battle over finding what was appropriate, and a battle even to get across what I was carrying. Whatever had to be communicated could not be received easily – although the truths were not complex. I began to paraphrase what I needed to say, simply saying that there had to be a new focus on Jesus and his ways, that old ways of doing things was no longer appropriate. I also began to say that a movement does not face challenges when it is struggling, it really has its biggest challenge when everything is going well, and the people are experiencing ‘success’. That is the time when forward momentum can cease, and fall-back positions arise.

As I gave this focus so healings began to break out spontaneously, not in the room where we were but in a back room. The more I spoke of Jesus being the one to help the more that happened. For example, I saw a person move from almost total paralysis to standing on their head.

This brought people into the room where I was speaking – they were realising there was a connection between what I was saying and the breakouts.

I then became stronger and went on to say that the politics were not our battle, even abortion was not our battle. Truth was specific for a setting. I drew on Jesus’ words that, ‘If you are not for us you are against us, but how later he said ‘that if they are not against us they are for us.’ Truth is not relative but has to be drawn upon so that it is setting-specific.

The response was prayer, but the prayer began to miss it. The prayer would have been good and appropriate in another setting / time, but there was a reversion to what was known.

Everything around was being reshaped – and I knew that there would be signs everywhere that pointed to the future.

There was a recording studio behind where we were and the recording equipment was of a totally different order to anything that had been before. I went with a well-known worship leader but we were unable to access it, the door was locked, although we could see through the glass panel. The feeling in him was that we need to access this and release a new sound. But this was clearly not allowed.

As I walked round there were healings taking place: a young child maybe 12 now could speak, who before had been unable to speak. Then he raised his previously paralysed arms in the air and he could totally raise them. His speech and mobility was completely restored. He was totally transformed by Jesus’ presence.

There was a list on the wall that had been carefully prepared, but the whole list was totally reorganised. Names on it that should not have been, other names taken off. I remember someone being very upset and wanted to know who had changed them? Everyone else seemed to know that Jesus himself had done this. We also knew that he had reorganised the list as a joke. The list now made no sense!

Then into this auditorium (I hesitate to call it ‘sanctuary’, though I believe it was essentially something people had built for ‘church’ purposes) came birds. They were the most beautiful and they could be picked up and there was no evidence that they were messing the place up. They loved being there. (Some were clearly symbolic of the Holy Spirit, as I saw a person who loves the presence of the Spirit pick up a totally white dove – this bird was his to personally pick up. Others I think were symbolic of heavenly beings.)

Then someone in a loud voice that interrupted everything asked for a particular person to explain why she was smoking in the sanctuary? She was really embarrassed and put it out; I now had the choice to side with her or not – all the time I hesitated I was not able to move forward. She was very embarrassed and began to walk out. The dream ended and I knew that for me to move forward I would have to go outside and leave this setting.

Can you see it?

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Have you ever been unable to see something that is right there in front of you but it is simply invisible? See the tower on the front of the map – I do now… but for 10 months I have not seen it. To make matters ‘worse’ the same photo is repeated on the inside page of the map, and the back of the map says exactly what the photo is off.

So here’s the deal… we have had a few days with Roger and Sue Mitchell, and Graham and Nicky Jones. The timing has been amazing – for encouragement, friendship, eating, and prayer.

In May this year Gayle had a dream – while we were staying with Roger and Sue – that there was a tower on the island where an angel was waiting to be released. She even drew a picture of the tower. Now we have thought about it from time to time, but we then began to pursue in earnest where it was during these few days. Still with me?

We find it on the internet… get the maps out – yes the map on the left that we use. The morning we get to go – suddenly… the tower has been on the map we have been using quite often, all the time… DUH!!!!

However, I found so many times that on spiritual issues it is only possible to see at the right time.

So press in for revelation – also be patient… but when it comes it is the right time to activate what has been see.

Eschatology #26

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This podcast covers the fate of those who have never heard the Gospel. I work with a paradigm of:

  • those who receive Christ are saved, and
  • those who reject him are lost.

The issue then becomes what does it mean to reject Christ. Or, in other words, does the above two categories cover all of humanity?

Some Scriptures are considered:

  • Cornelius & Peter
  • what does it mean to believe in the God who raised Jesus from the dead
  • is it believe in the one of whom they have heard (facts) or believe in the one they have heard (the need to hear Jesus, and therefore has implications for how the Gospel is communicated).
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Organic Leadership: last post

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  • portuguese

(Também em Português)
What to choose for this last blog on the book?

Seems as if I am just beginning to get into the book, but I need to leave this series after today – go buy the book… Also a book that has influenced Neil is a great buy: The Starfish and the Spider.

Chapter 12 has a great title, and says it all:

Lead, follow, and get out of the way

A discussion on authority is central to leadership. He suggests that there is:

  • positional authority
  • expertise authority
  • relational authority
  • moral authority
  • spiritual authority

The weakest is the positional authority. A desire for power will only ever yield that kind of authority (and perhaps some expertise authority too).

(Preparing to go to Brazil in a few days time I am reminded of being brought into the office of the ‘bishop’ whose building we were using. He said that I needed to be a little clearer with my teaching, otherwise people would begin to think ‘there is no difference between them and us’. Now there’s a thought!!!)

He also makes an important distinction between, delegated authority versus distributed authority.

In the former authority is retained and is how any hierarchical structure will work, in  the latter authority is given away. In the latter position and title are useless; in the former position is vital. In the former permission is granted within boundaries, in the latter the permission is already ours. Distributed authority is generous and empowering.

A good leader is a good follower who knows how to get out of the way.

Well lots more in the book. Hope you enjoy it.

Deal and stories

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The deal: if you would like a copy of the stories from the street book then email me – the first 20 emails I receive I will arrange for a copy of the book to be sent to you. So names and addresses please!

If you woudl rather buy one then use Steve’s site

Here are some excerpts from the book:

I had started using cocaine at weekends for fun, just for something to do with my mates. I was working, employed as a ground worker, driving machines and living with my grandma at the time. Weekend drug use quickly became three-times-a-week use, and it wasn’t long before I began selling it. I got it from mates up north and began to earn a lot of money. I spent a lot of money too. It was nothing for me to get through £100 worth over a weekend

For a while I enjoyed what the money could buy; the cars, the clubbing scene, a lot of fun. But soon I was spending every single day seven days a week sniffing cocaine. I still managed to keep down a job, though it was getting dangerous driving machines under the influence of drugs.

I was selling £5000 or £6000 worth of drugs a week and making a lot of money. At first I spent it on other things but towards the end, though I was still selling as much, I was sniffing all the profit up my nose. I was totally addicted. I couldn’t get enough of it and I started getting into a lot of trouble because of the money I owed people. I’d sell drugs, make money, sniff it all away and then borrow to get more and pay off debts. By then, at a conservative estimate I was using around £1500 worth of drugs a week. That’s around an ounce and a half of gear – a lot. I had a couple of mates who would go out and sell for me, meeting people in car parks or wherever to do the deals.

Eventually I owed people many thousands of pounds – around £27000 I think – and many times I found myself in a lot of trouble… (more in the book).

And a story from Sarah:

By the time Sarah was 18 she had already had three children and had experienced more trauma than most people do in a lifetime. This is the story of a courageous and strong-willed young woman who, though she has been knocked down many times, always finds a way to get back up and, amazingly, keep her dreams alive. Though the trials are not over by any means, she continues to rise above them with a passion for her own family and for the families around her who face similar difficulties.

Continue reading →

Leatherhead book

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leatherhead-book-cover-devol1Steve Lowton has been developing a broad ranging concept / service known as stories from the street. Part of that is to develop a series of books that tell the very ordinary but real stories that are on the streets of towns and cities. (Movements are fuelled by stories.)

At the end of October Stories from the Street are publishing a book on Leatherhead. The stories are amazing – I know a number of the people, and have read all-but-one of the stories in the book. Real, earthy, journeys of integrity. Not all would describe themselves as believers but all are on a journey of integrity and faith. I am not trying to ‘big’ this up, but for me, what has been taking place – at grass roots level, and hidden – has been one of the most exciting things I have touched, or been touched by, in recent years.

Here is the deal!!!! The deal is I will tell you the deal tomorrow in the blog, when I give you a sample of 2 stories (taken from Steve’s blogsite).

Organic Leadership: finishing well

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  • portuguese

(Também em Português)
Just two more blogs on OL… I am not planning to make this a total book review and then there is no need to buy the book!!

The personal stories in the book are great – educational and self-disclosing. Through them it is clear to see how the author has not simply learned through a  text-book. He is a practitioner. Here then are a few perspectives:

False dichotomies:

  • secular versus sacred
  • clergy versus laity
  • local church versus universal church
  • parachurch versus local church

Another rich insight:

Most leadership development and deployment strategies being with already committed Christians… it is the wrong place to start… instead of looking at the local Bible institute for future leaders, we should look at the local bar with more interest.

Leadership success involves being able to finish well (statistically both in scripture and currently only 1 in 3 finish well). To finish well we need:

  • perspective – the long haul
  • renewal – touched by God today not yesterday
  • >discipline
  • desire to always learn
  • being mentored from numerous sources and mentoring>

And finally for today. The centrifugal force pushes people to the crowds… this is the place of least significance; significance takes place when the few are influenced. So he says: never sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the urgent.

Organic Leadership: top and bottom

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  • portuguese

(Também em Português)
Chapter 5: messed up from top to bottom, challenges the hierarchical structure. Based on Jesus’ words in Matt. 20:25-28 that there is a structure in the world (rulers among the Gentiles) but that this was not to be the way among the Jesus-followers. Why then the fear of the flat structure of the body of Christ, Neil asks.

Because there is a belief it will result in:

  • anarchy – everyone doing what is right in their own eyes. The challenge though is that their is a head (Jesus) and to settle for something less is compromise. Is our faith in the structure (top-down) or in the Head?
  • a lack of leadership. Neil suggests that the mistake is to believe that leadership is position-dependent. Leadership can be exercised from any ‘position’ on an organisational chart, for leadership is influence. He points out the ‘among’ aspect of overseeing, not the seeing from ‘above’ others.
  • a lack of order. But this has to be replaced by what he calls a DNA: Divine truth + Nurturing relationships + Apostolic mission.

And a final quote about the alternative:

to support something opposed to this ideal is adulterous. It is sleeping with the enemy. It is not to be so among you.

OUCH!!

His approach is one of not compromising, but also of not seeking to destroy what might be considered as ‘old wineskins’. He suggests it is much healthier to seek change in people rather than structure. If people become truly free and in step with Christ as head then there will be shifts in the structures.

We do not need a revolution of the structure but of how we relate to Christ and to his people.

So she takes photos

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This is the news of the moment… Gayle has begun a photo blog… She has lots of ideas for it, how it can develop, telling stories, making connections with people.

Here is a screenshot – looks smart, huh? Well I did have a hand in it… Connect on Gayle’s photo blog. Don’t connect so much though that her site becomes more popular than this one.

Off to Brazil soon – some prayer for the schedule there – always quite heavy; for our entrance to the land – has been challenged in the past; we are also there during a strong festival: 2 years ago this was the festival when there were plans discovered to poison our food – another long story.