Sunday, August 10, 2008

No Place Like Home

Hey bloggers,

Everything was great...too bad about the air time running out, but it's all good...it's a little after midnight at this writing, and we have to leave for the airport at 5:30 (up @ 4:30), so I'm going to end it here for now...but I'll see you ITB in a few and tell you all about it...Washington was off the chain, but I'm really looking forward to being home at wonderful CITN...

Peace...

Happy Birthday to my mother-in-law, Shirley Flanders...

____________


Later...

Hey bloggers,

The atmosphere at church this morning was wonderful, especially the worship experience...the liberty in the house was obvious...I felt very connected to everyone ITB (and even to the cyber-congregation)...the unity seemed exceptionally authentic...

The "Let It Rain" video had the same effect on the congregation today that it had the first time they played it...

It was good to see even more faces that I haven't seen in a while...

Stood at the West Entrance in the Narthex and greeted people afterwards...got to speak to, and pray with, several of our college students who are returning to school this week (and meet many first-timers)...

That's all for now...I'll let you know about video from the GPF when I get the 411, and will also let you know if Judah and P. Scott will for sure be performing at the U.N. this week...

Feedback from the service today is welcome...

Anyway, let me reiterate how happy I am to be home...


(The music's back on...)

24 comments:

el ojo y la luz said...

Travelling mercies to everyone. See you ITB tomorrow.

Peace.

el ojo y la luz said...

You know Bishop, it really does feel good to come home. Thanks for keeping the light on.

Anonymous said...

When I think of home, I think of place where there is love overflowing...

from Broadway musical the Wiz...those lyrics were in my head

love, Yvonne

Anonymous said...

Welcome back & "Happy Birthday Shirley!"

Anonymous said...

Hey SOZ, the program I use to record on the internet is the newest version of real player (version 11) you can download it at http://www.real.com/freeplayer/?rppr=rnwk

Blessings
Iconoclast

Anonymous said...

I have been blasted, praise the Lord!, it came outa nowhere and I am being blasted, and don’t know where I'm going next, praise the Lord!, and I'm waitin to get blasted again! Praise the Lord!

My name is Dennis which as far as I can find out means "god of wine" but my name was Daniel up until about an hour before my parents had to fill out the papers at the hospital...........? The name Iconoclast was given me by revelation. This name tells me I can’t just sit around and prop my feet up I have to live up to the name that was given by prophecy, so I have work to do. God help me to be about doing it, not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the LORD!

I also know by the Spirit and a prophetic word from the Lord that my life’s purpose is to "Bridge the Gap But all I know NOW is that I trust Him to work this all out because "He who began a Good work in me will complete it" PRAISE GOD!

I am sure this all fits together somehow and it will be revealed to me NOW that I have heard the word of the Lord in this sermon today

I love the NOW, there is peace in the now, there is security in the now, there is good in the now, there is revelation in the now, there is what it is in the now, I can believe in the now, I don’t know all about then, I don’t know all about later, but I know about now, and I believe NOW! that's all I need to know NOW, because the Spirit is NOW, the Truth is NOW, the reality is NOW, I am NOW and God is NOW! For in Him we live and move and have our being NOW!

Praise God I can see/perceive the kingdom of God all around me and it's all GOOD. Even the darkness is Good for it reveals the light for what it is, Praise the Sovereign God of all things. Praise God for the resistance that we come up against when we are out of our comfort zone that makes us work our spiritual muscles; the process of building strong spiritual bodies of Christ able to go out and accomplish His purposes in us and in the earth. Our idea of our purpose or our vision statement may not be His vision statement. His vision statement for our life and ministry is much higher than ours; because his ways are higher that our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts

Praise God for being in the Now, a part of Church in the NOW!

Iconoclast

Anonymous said...

I am going to go out and eat lunch and tell everyone I have a chance to that I was at church in the now today, not church in the then because it’s past and over, and not church in the future that doesn’t exist yet. So I go to the Church in the NOW! I think when ever I can get a group in this area big enough to actually get in a building, I will call it "CHURCH NOW" because this message is being received by so many non-church goers when we do get a church for them to go to when they are asked where do you go to church? they can just say I go to "CHURCH NOW" and they will say I know but where do you go........that will open a door for some interesting conversation it truth.

Burning bridges,
Building new ones,

Teezy313 said...

Iconoclast,
CHURCH NOW...why didn't i think of that haha!

Bishop,
With all that has been done at CITN you have broken the mold for what a church is supposed to be...not only that CITN has become the spokesperson...err...spokeschurch for walkin in faith and walking by the Spirit....it doesnt look like a church...certainly we dont always act like a church...more like a comedy or a night club sometimes minus the alchohol and bouncers hehe...which makes me wonder..is there anyway to do something different than CITN and still be out of the box when it comes to conventional church as we have come to know it...as far a I know we're about the furthest out there that I know of...
Teezy

Happy Birthday Momma Flanders!!

linda said...

Oh my goodness, worship this morning was to wonderful for words, and the message... I have been blasted into another dimension, not blown by a gentle wind, but blown by the full force gale of the Holy Ghost.

Love everyone,
Linda

PS Bish.. I wanted to let you know that this past week during our pre-planning we met for devotions each morning, the book that was read from was A Year in the Now. GO Bish, GO CITN, GO YITN,

Anonymous said...

Bishop,
All I can say is from someone who named their organization "New Level" to someone who named their organization "Church In The Now" - I hear ya!
We've been "feeling the blast" ever since, but it's great, it's refreshing, it's the only way we want it to be. It is freeing us from the status quo and releasing us into the supernatural realm where God is moving and shaking all the time.
Wisdom is good and necessary, but Revelation is where "it" is - whatever "it" is for you.

I heard the final song of the service today with new ears - Give me the PEACE Lord that FREES my soul, I want to get lost in the Holy Ghost and drift away! What a petition/prayer - blasting is ok too, but I believe that moving in the Spirit can become easier and more likened to drifting and flowing as we walk in the PEACE that FREES my soul (my mind, my will, my emotions).

Your Word today was confirmation for many things I have been thinking on lately (as usual), but I'm sure it also "blasted" some out of their comfort zone and gave others what I like to refer to as a "Revelation Headache". I've experienced quite a bit of both of those things in the past few months, but "In The Now", it's ALL Good!

Maurine

Anonymous said...

Welcome home Bishop & Pastor Debye! I know what you mean there being no place like home! As time goes by, I love home more and more! May yall get Divine rest NOW!

I only got to be ITS for part of the service...cuz off to work. It was awesome (the service)! Just something 'New'....can't explain it. Refreshed, lighter, joy, and there definitely was a PEACE that filled my being (calming....real peace). The prophecy you gave~"Oh my goodness!" Wonderful! What is amazing is it went along with the following devotional that I read before streamin in fit with it about waiting on the Lord! Loved the part too about not asking for signs...cuz look at all the signs the children of Israel rec'd and it still wasn't enough. Never thought of it quite like that. Really good. I just pray not the 'it will get worst before it gets better', please Father!!! (the following is the devotional I read)

btw...Iconoclast....the Church Now idea is awesome!...and that would be too funny with people asking! hehehe Also, I can already see where you are a bridge builder...gotta email you with some questions as soon as I get a chance if that is ok with you as recommended by Bishop.

....somewhere over the rainbow dreams come true 'IN THE NOW'! God's now is not always our now.

Love everybody~Crownjewel



Waiting on God
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Sunday, August 10 2008

"Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him!" Isaiah 30:18
Have you ever noticed that God is not in a hurry? It took 40 years for Moses to receive his commission to lead the people out of Egypt. It took 17 years of preparation before Joseph was delivered from slavery and imprisonment. It took 20 years before Jacob was released from Laban's control. Abraham and Sarah were in their old age when they finally received the son of promise, Isaac. So why isn't God in a hurry?

God called each of these servants to accomplish a certain task in His Kingdom, yet He was in no hurry to bring their mission into fulfillment. First, He accomplished what He wanted in them. We are often more focused on outcome than the process that He is accomplishing in our lives each day. When we experience His presence daily, one day we wake up and realize that God has done something special in and through our lives. However, the accomplishment is no longer what excites us. Instead, what excites us is knowing Him. Through those times, we become more acquainted with His love, grace, and power in our lives. When this happens, we are no longer focused on the outcome because the outcome is a result of our walk with Him. It is not the goal of our walk, but the by-product. Hence, when Joseph came to power in Egypt, he probably couldn't have cared less. He had come to a place of complete surrender so that he was not anxious about tomorrow or his circumstances.

This is the lesson for us. We must wait for God's timing and embrace wherever we are in the process. When we find contentment in that place, we begin to experience God in ways we never thought possible.

~PEaCE~

Donald said...

The service today was normal. At many places that might mean nothing more than "blah". But, at CITN, normal is always OUTSTANDING!
The prophecy was right on time, even here.
The weirdest thing happened yesterday after doing an "act of kindness". I walked away from the situation and couldn't wipe the smile off my face. I understand the law of reciprocity, but at that moment and even now, it doesn't matter if someone comes along and does something like that for me or not. The good feeling that came along with doing that was so overwhelming. I can't help but believe that the recipient of my action will at some point in time do something for someone else and hopefully the cycle will continue.
I've always heard the saying, "what goes around comes around" and it has always been said with a negative connotation.
I have to believe that if the saying can work in the negative, it will just as certainly work in the positive also. So, from that perspective, I guess I should expect someone to come along and show me an act of kindness.

Iris said...

Bishop, Pastor Debye, Wonderful Blog Family...

So much happened yesterday in the Spirit at the GPF… like a drop of water in a very large mass of water…. The ripple effect will continue on for years to come…

The impact of what took place yesterday was amazing… So many emotions welled through my being as I sat next to two brothers from the Middle East and listened intently to all that was said and done on stage… From the very start… with the dance of the American Indians… to the singing of the Qur'an… Judah and Pastor Josh…. (OMG… The spirit of the living God was manifested through them… and it was “Blasting” off the stage)…the children with the Peace quilt (How powerful was that)… then when all of the different religions pouring their bowls of water into one vessel… (That was extremely emotional for me… the tears flowed and touched deeply)… to Dr. Moon... (Totally connection there Bishop…. I can say that I agreed with almost 99% of what he had to say…God is moving in that relationship) … even to the ending… even though there was a shift in the overall flow of the festival… you and Pastor Debye still brought the Selah to the service with the Holy Spirit flowing from every fiber of your being and every word you spoke…Just your presence there from the beginning to the end, although not always seen but deeply felt…your spirit was very apparent…

It was all amazing… and so wonderful… The move of what God is doing is so big… the vastness of what is happening has yet to be comprehended… I can’t really articulate all that I experienced… I am still absorbing, taking in and digesting… The spirit knows the enormity of it and I stand in awe and am truly honored to be apart of this move of God…

Bishop, Pastor Debye, you are living your destiny… God has appointed you and set you apart to be where you are NOW!!!!... What an honor it is to watch… What an honor it is to be apart…

I wouldn’t have missed yesterday for the world…

Peace!!!!
Iri'ni!!! (Greek)
Írq!!! (Amharic)
Salam!!! (Arabic)
Shanti!!! (Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu)

Iris
P.S. The service this morning was awesome as usual... your right there is no place like home...

Bishop Jim Swilley said...

Thanks, Iris, that means a lot...I'm still trying to digest it all, and your take on it helps to discern what took place...right now it nearly seems too dreamlike to me...like I imagined it...again, thanks...

Iris said...

You are so right Bishop...I know for me because of the enormity of what took place it will also be a while before I can absorb it all.

Love you both...
Iris

Erik said...

Hi One Family Under God,

Been traveling today, finally settling in.

The GPF yesterday, was real. That is what is inside of me. It is who we actually are, this is reality. As was shared by the two mothers (one whose son was murdered by the other’s son in a gang shooting;) the Israeli soldier and the Palestinian man who both lost family to the conflict there showing they can sidestep the vapid flaw in hatred, bitterness, & revenge. Instead they claimed the human rights were are endowed with by God, strength, love, forgiveness, action for peace. Those are the basic characteristics of humanity. The feebleness of hatred is sub human - A perversion of God’s creation.

The standing by so many representatives of unique expressions of faith, pouring their ‘bowls’ into a shared bowl, displayed there is no fear in connection. The water each poured remained its unique characteristics, while showing how much more there is in common, that there was no conflict in the water as each distinguished bowl shared presence with the others. It is not about diluting any one experience, but each being distinct, and in harmony. Like the parts of the body, kidney cells are distinct from the tongue cells, but each shares the same body without discord.

Taking the ability of this nation to finally find change in civil rights, and expanding that to Our Spirit for the world, the finally shake off the scales and see the reality that each of us is family, to love each one as we love what we limitedly describe as our family .

The US has a special blessing to offer to the world. That was stated in our Declaration of Independence. These truths are self evident… Our Creator has endowed all with unalienable rights… pursuit of live, liberty, and happiness. The US has been and is a world community. The reality is, a full citizen of the US, of its dreams, foundation, heart, is a world citizen. The US at its best, is a template for the world. Multi cultural, freedom of all faiths, free expression, and all embraced, loved as sisters and brothers. Peace among and within us. That is who we really are. That is why our Spirits choose to be in The US, in this realm, NOW.

The Christ within us, represents God becoming through the inception, embryo, fetus, going through the birth canal, as an infant, toddler, child, adolescent, young adult, mature adult. Birth and death. All human, all God. Experiencing the full aspect of being human, and experiencing Godself as Jesus through family, community, friends, disciples, enemies. That is the difference between the one we call Jesus, The Anointed one, and the Prophets, The Avatars of Hindu faith, the Buddha , the Philosophers. They all expressed revelation. None claimed or expressed as fully God, and fully human.

The United States at its best, and whatever a ‘Christian’ is at our best – have the incumbent blessing to spearhead peace, forgiveness, acceptance, Love first, without reliance upon reciprocation, because ALL have this from God first. Nationalism does not fit God, nor the anointing on The United States. The 60 and 100 fold return for ‘Christians’ and The US is to Love ALL first, as family, under God. That is the reality we are in.

Praise God!

Larry Usher said...

New lyrics for the song today:
Gimme the peace Lord that frees my soul,
I wanna get LOFT in the Holy Ghost & BLAST away!

Great service of victory today!

We walk on a BRIGHT PATH that is illumined as we put one foot in front of the other.

The Lord says: "Stand here with me, stand here with me, stand here with me..."

Home, home ITB,
Where there's Bish and Pastor Debye,
Where seldom is heard, a discouraging word,
And your eyes are not cloudy all day.

-Sung to the tune of Home on the Range

Homeward bound
I wish I was
Homeward bound
Home, where my thoughts escaping
Home, where my musics playing
Home, where my love lies waiting
Silently for me
Silently for me
Silently for me

Simon & Garfunkel

Another summer day
has come and gone away
In Paris or Rome...
but I wanna go home
..... Home
may be surrounded by
a million people I
still feel all alone
just wanna go home
I miss you, you know

And I've been keeping all the letters
that I wrote to you,
Each one a line or two
I'm fine baby, how are you?
I would send them but I know that it's just not enough
My words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that

Another aeroplane, another sunny place,
I'm lucky I know
but I wanna go home
I got to go home

Let me go home

I'm just too far from where you are
I wanna come home


And I feel just like I'm living
someone else's life
It's like I just stepped outside
when everything was going right
And I know just why you could not come along with me
This was not your dream
but you always believed in me...

Another winter day
Has come and gone away
in either Paris or Rome
and I wanna go home
Let me go home

And I'm surrounded by
A million people I
still feel alone
Let me go home
I miss you , you know

Let me go home
I've had my run
baby I'm done
I gotta go home

Let me go home
it'll all be alright
I'll be home tonight
I'm coming back home"

Michael Buble

Congrats Judah on the gig! How's the prayer list coming so far? So much your head is swimming! Ha! Me too!

It's funny about the hair thing you mentioned today Bishop...I'm getting this picture of a kid with his hair all coiffed when his dad comes up to him and messes his hair up as dads do. The kid then tries to brush it back into place only to have dear ol' dad come right back with the same thing again. Finally the kid just realizes it's ok to wear it that way as long as he can say "my dad messed it up".

Like Jacob with his hip out of joint...

He is the God of the messes,
Blasts your tresses,
It is He who blesses,
With muliple yesses.

Y'all have a blessed night,

Larry

Anonymous said...

Hey Crownjewel, I would be glad to be of help if I can.

Peace,
ICLST

Sweepea said...

Welcome Home Bishop and Pastor Debye, so good to be ITB with you yesterday. I wasn't mad that I didn't get to see and hear you both at the GPF, just disappointed. I so enjoyed everything up to that point.

Thanks for your comments about Rev. Moon yesterday; I had questions about the interpretation of some of his comments. It's all good!

CITN - what a BLAST!!

Anonymous said...

Bish,

My wife and I enjoyed the service and were welcomed with open arms. It's difficult to imagine anyone not feeling comfortable in the kindness of your church.

Your musicians are talented and their music is hypnotic at times. There were moments when I was reminded of a chanting mantra. It serves its purpose.

Your word was the best part of the service. You're a truly gifted speaker and teacher and I found myself taking notes, not so much on the content, but more on your style and delivery. That's not to say I/we didn't follow and agree with what you had to say. As Ghada said, she agrees with you on many things.

You focused for a time on the name of your church. "In the Now" you said, is something that hasn't been done. But, don't you think this is the message of the Buddha? Living in the present moment, mindfulness, and experiencing every second of life as it happens is the essence of Buddhist living. Check out the writings of Thich Nhat Hanh, particularly his book Living Buddha, Living Christ. This book also fits in with your message of interfaith dialogue, I think.

Salaam alaikum for now, until next time,

Abraham

Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday Mama Flanders

Bishop Jim Swilley said...

Erik, awesome observation on the GPF...thanks for the insight...

Karen, you said P. Josh when you meant P. Scott (a lot of people do that), but you were right about the Spirit "blasting" through them...

speaking of...please keep P. Joshua in your prayers...

Abraham, I didn't realize you were there until I saw you and your wife in the Narthex after church...interesting paradigm of the service...safe trup back to Egypt...

Bishop Jim Swilley said...

Actually, Abraham, I would prefer that you just have a safe TRIP to Egypt...

...and the prayer I requested for P. Joshua, without going into detail, is for his physical healing and health...

Iris said...

My bad Bishop, I knew it was P. Scott... My appologies... Thanks for noticing the mistake...

P. Scott... you and Judah make quite a team... rock on....

Also prayers for healing for P. Josh... I am in agreement with you that his body lines up with the word of God...

Karen...