Forgive The World! Pt. II

“You see, God’s love for the whole world – His paternal affection for the entire cosmos – was so all-encompassing and complete that He freely gave His unique Son to it, so that anyone from that world who believes in Him would not perish, but would awaken to the fact that eternal life is theirs. It certainly was never God’s intention to send His Son into the world to pronounce a sentence of condemnation upon it. Rather, He was perfectly focused on saving it...on redeeming the whole of humanity, everyone and everything on the planet...through the gift of that unique, manifested Son."
(John 3:16, 17 - John In The Now)

“Let me ask you something . . . our ancestors worshipped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”
“Lady,” Jesus replied, “Believe Me when I tell you that a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. The truth is, you Samaritans are basically clueless about worship. We Jews do understand the dynamics of it, for salvation, before becoming universal, is going to originate in Israel through the Jews. But there is another and greater dimension of worship that is opening up . . . one that transcends nationality or ethnicity or religion or ancestry."
(John 4:20-22 - John In The Now)

“But I do not pray for these alone…these who know Me as I am, here and now. But I pray for those everywhere and in every dimension of time, including those in the future, who will ultimately believe in Me through their witness and their word. And I pray that they all may be one in the now...all around this world of yours, not just the ones here in this time and place. Make them all one as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You. Integrate them as You and I are integrated – unified, in harmony, inseparable. I have actually given them the glory that You gave Me, so that it would be possible for them to be one, even as We are. I have become one with them in the same way that You are one with Me, so that they may become completely one. This unification – this melding and merging of separate entities into a perfect oneness – is the thing that will ultimately show the whole world that You sent Me. They will all see that You love My followers as much as You love Me."
(John 17:20-23 - John In The Now)

10 NEW SONGS ON THE PLAYLIST...

Forgive The World!

Yesterday was the 60th Anniversary of the Nation of Israel, and, coincidentally, yesterday I received the itinerary for our upcoming Israel trip. It includes sightseeing in the Old City of Jerusalem – The Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, Mount Scopus, the Western (or Wailing) Wall, Church of the Ascension of Christ, the Tomb of Mary, the house of the Upper Room, the Tomb of David, The Basilica of the Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion, and more. We’re going to walk the Stations of the Cross, and visit the 700 year old home of an Ambassador for Peace in the heart of the Old City.

And all of that part is certainly going to be cool, but what I’m really excited about is the list of topics that we will be discussing with both Israeli and Palestinian leaders throughout the week, such as: “Abrahamic Faiths: from Coexistence to One Family under God”, “Israeli Perspectives”, “Palestinian Perspectives”, and “Strategies for Peace - Non-violent Social Change”. Later in the week we will be touring Jerusalem and then Ramallah, where I will be ministering on the topic of “The Reconciliation of the Sons of Isaac and the Sons of Ishmael”.

Interestingly, I have been in the flow of reconciliation here in Conyers a lot in the last few days through my involvement with the Rockdale School Superintendent’s Advisory Committee and the United Rockdale Summit. I had recently hit a little bump in the road with the latter group, but that was all resolved this week, and through it I had a wonderful exchange with Pastor Gallman from Trinity Baptist Church. I was sad to hear that he is leaving Conyers to take a church in Florida in a few weeks, because he’s a really open and humble guy with a sweet spirit, and I’ve gained a lot of respect for him through our collaboration with the URS this last year. And also this week I have been involved in a series of conversations that has brought some reconciliation and healing in many of my personal relationships.

At the same time, I am also aware that there are so many divisions among people right around me, particularly among many people of faith, who build walls between themselves instead of bridges. Covenant relationships are being severed right and left, despite the great move of unity that is taking place among so many others.

Yesterday I had lunch with Dr. Lovelace, and at the table he made a statement that I’ve been thinking about a good bit over the last few hours. He said that everyone just needs to learn to forgive the world. I think that that is a powerful concept, because there are too many people that are angry with the world for different reasons, and that is why there is so much strife and violence and war and unnecessary death and killing.

I’ve finally reached a point where I don’t even want to waste my energy on trying to explain to those angry, small-minded people who don’t understand CITN or my/our message...those who think that love and grace and forgiveness are taboo subjects, and signs of unorthodox theology. Those who want a fight will not find one with me any more. I want to be a peace maker…whether it’s helping to make peace between Israelis and Palestinians, Charismatics and Southern Baptists, or just in my own personal relationships.

I believe that all of the physical upheaval that is occurring right now on the planet (cyclones, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, etc.) is evidence of the whole earth "groaning and travailing together in pain, waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God" (Romans 8:22, 23). This earth is convulsing, because a new one is about to be born. I have more to say on this subject, but I’ll continue it tomorrow.

WELCOME TOMORROW!

"Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning . . . ." (Job 42:12)

Today I will live in the now! I will live in the now because, even though I am living my life with an appreciation for the present, I know that I have so much more to look forward to in the future! I am open to the possibility that tomorrow will be better than today, as I go from glory to glory and grow up in God. I will not let anything negative from yesterday determine the quality of tomorrow!
Today I will not dread what I have to face in the future, but I will confidently move toward my goals, regardless of the unpleasant things that I may encounter along the way. I will deal with whatever I have to deal with when the time comes, and will not hide from hardship or run from responsibility.
Today I will use my current experiences as a proving ground for future promotion. I will be faithful over a few things, so that I will be qualified to be a ruler over much down the road. Discipline is doable for me because I have a vision; so, I will be a good steward over my regular routine, knowing that I will reap in due season if I do not faint.

Today I will plan my work, and work my plan. I will see the big picture everywhere I look, and will lay a foundation through my diligent efforts and godly work ethic in the now for success tomorrow. Because I know that there is no such thing as luck, I will be a doer of the Word with great expectations. I will not be afraid of hard work, but will partner with God in the realization of my own destiny.

Today I will not be afraid to be radically optimistic, even if I come across to others as unrealistically idealistic! I will not quit until I find the cloud's silver lining; I will not leave the theatre until my movie has a happy ending. God's picture of Kingdom fulfillment for my life is being painted on the canvas of my heart by the Word and the Holy Spirit, and He will finish what He started!
Tonight I will rest well, confident that tomorrow will be a brighter day than today. Joy will come in the morning when and where His mercies are always new for me. I will not just get up tomorrow morning – I will rise up!
Today I will patiently pace myself as I persistently prepare for progress, thereby producing a prognosis for prosperity! My adventures in the now will take me to the next level of discovery, as I watch for the dawn of a new day. Today I will believe that the best is yet to come, and today I will live in the now!


Father, help me to prophetically prepare myself for tomorrow today. In Jesus’ name, amen.

The Holy Spirit In The Now!

The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and cried out, “See, recognize, discern and perceive the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the whole world! “This is He of whom I said would come after me in time, but is actually superior to me because He existed, as He is, in the now. He was before me, because He is before me.“I myself did not recognize Him at first, but now that I can see who He is, I am baptizing with water as a means to reveal Him to the nation of Israel.” Then John went on to say, “I saw the Spirit come from the eternal realm, like a dove that appeared to fly down out of the limitless sky and light on Him. And it, or He, remained on Him and filled Him, making His home in Him. “And that is how I recognized Him, because the One who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’"
(John 1:29-33 – JITN)



But on the final and most important day of the feast, Jesus just stood up right where He was, and without any timidity or self-consciousness at all, began to yell out at the top of His lungs these words: “Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink! Whoever believes in Me, as the Scriptures have stated, living rivers of life will continuously and freely flow from within their inner beings!” This was His way of introducing them to the ministry of the Holy Spirit, whom those who believed in Him would later receive. The era of the Holy Spirit had not yet begun at this time, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
(John 7:37-39 – JITN)


“If you really love Me, keep these commands of mine. And I will ask the Father to send you another Helper, just as He sent Me to you. And this Helper will be your Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor, Standby, and He will never have to leave you as I have to leave you now. He will be with you indefinitely…forever. He is the Spirit of Truth, and the world at large cannot comprehend or accept Him at this point, because it has no perception of His reality. But you already know Him, because He has been living with you, and as soon as I am released from this physical manifestation, He will begin to live in you. Just because I will no longer be seen by you in this incarnation, does not mean that you will be orphaned by Me. I will come right back to you as My Spirit-self. In a few hours the world will no longer see this flesh-man, but you will still see Me with your spiritual eyes. You will not be limited any longer to only seeing this Jesus, but you will be freed and released to see this Christ! And because I will transcend and outlive the physical, you will also transcend and outlive the physical. When all this comes together for you, you will realize that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you…all together…all connected…all one! And whoever holds on to My commands and does them, proves that they love Me. And those who love Me will experience the reality of the Father’s love for them, and it will ultimately reveal to them who I really am and who I have been all along.”
(John 14:15-21 – JITN)


“I have told you as much as I can while I am still with you in the physical realm. But this Advocate/Helper that I’m telling you about – the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My behalf – will teach you all of this. He will remind you of everything that I have said to you and will make it all make sense to you. So don’t be unsettled about these mysteries. I don’t want to leave you in a state of turmoil."
(John 14:25,26 – JITN)


“If you find that the promoters of this world-system hate you, don’t take it personally. Remember that they hated Me first, and their intense dislike is more about Me than it is about you. If you blindly followed the rules of the religious world-system, its proponents would love you. But you are non-conformists and iconoclasts like Me, so the people who feel threatened by you will hate you. People who do not walk in the light always hate and fight what they don’t understand. So don’t forget this: A servant is not greater than his master. If people mistreat Me, they will mistreat you. It comes with the territory. But if they have done what I told them, then they will do what you tell them to do. Basically, people will do to you exactly what they did to Me, because you belong to Me and they don’t know the One who sent Me. If I hadn’t been so open and candid with them, they would not be guilty of the sin of closed-minded unbelief. But now they have no excuse; from now on there is no excuse for anyone refusing to walk in the light. But the bottom line is that whoever hates Me, hates My Father, also. You surely must realize that I have done things that no one else has ever done, and I have done them right before the eyes of the general public. If I had not been so visible – if I had not made the truth so accessible – they would not be guilty. But many of them have seen and heard it all and still hate both Me and My Father. That is why the Scriptures are true when they say, ‘The people hated Me for no good reason.’ But when The Helper comes, whom I will send from the Father, He will be revealed as the Spirit of Truth, and He will tell you all about Me. He will fill in all the blanks for you and will make all of this make sense to your spirit and to your mind. Then you will be empowered to also easily tell others about Me, because you have been with Me from the beginning and you will know exactly what to say." (John 15:18-27 – JITN)



“But you need to realize that this is really a new beginning for us all! It is to your advantage that I go away, because if I do not leave this fleshly incarnation, the Holy Spirit cannot come to you. But if I leave this realm, I will personally be able to send Him to you. And when He comes, He will show everyone around the world the truth about sin and God’s justice and about how judgment works. The Spirit will show them that they were wrong about Me – that it was a sin to reject Me and not believe in Me. He will show them the truth about righteousness, and they will be able to understand it then, because I will be with the Father and you won’t see Me in this present incarnation again. And He will show them the truth about judgment, because God has already judged the so-called ruler of this world. I really have so many more things to say to you, but I think that you are already saturated and a little overwhelmed with all this. But don’t worry about it. When the Spirit of Truth is finally revealed, He will guide you into all the truth that there is. He will not speak on His own and tell you something different than what I have told you. He will only tell you what He has heard from Me, and He will give you the insight to know what is ahead so that you can actually see into the future. The Spirit will glorify Me, because He will take My message and make it global and universal. And He will declare it to you, directly. Everything that the Father has is mine. That is why it is so important that the Spirit takes My message and integrates it into your consciousness. In just a short while you will not be able to see Me with the natural eye, but then you will be able to perceive Me by the Spirit, because I am returning to the Father in the now.”
(John 16:7-16 – JITN)



Once again He said to them, “Peace be to all of you; just as the Father sent Me into this dimension, now I am sending you to all the people of world.” Then He took a deep breath and began to breathe and blow on them, and into them, in the same way that God had breathed into Adam in the creation. As He continued to blow on them, He began to say, “Receive…receive…receive the Holy Spirit. Receive the power to forgive sins; if you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you refuse to forgive them, they are unforgiven. You now have the same power and authority on the earth that I have had, not just to heal diseases, but to forgive sins, as well.”
(John 20:21-23 – JITN)



Be filled with the Spirit today!

The Spirit is Moving!

"Yes indeed, it won't be long now." God's Decree. "Things are going to happen so fast your head will swim, one thing fast on the heels of the other. You won't be able to keep up. Everything will be happening at once—and everywhere you look, blessings! (Amos 9:13 – The Message)

When I preached from this verse a few weeks ago, I didn’t realize how personally prophetic it was going to be for me. I am literally living out this Scripture right now, so it’s kind of ironic that the reading for AYITN today is Slow Down! Then again, it’s a good word for me, and for us all, because it helps to bring some balance to the fast pace at which we as a people seem to be progressing here of late. The Spirit is moving, and we are moving with the cloud.

Yesterday was a very busy day… lots of “taking care of business”…a series of fires to be put out…lots of intensity and drama. Through it all I had to make the effort to stay focused on the big picture, and to walk out the theme of my Carpe Diem article. But it’s all good, and throughout every conversation there was a theme of reconciliation running.

By the way, the choral program last night was really impressive and beautiful…and it was cool to see and hear orchestral instruments played on our stage like that. They didn’t have quite the turnout that they expected, but I’m still glad that we hosted it because I believe that it’s always a positive thing for us to support education in our community.

I’m home all this week, but the schedule is still super full. Tomorrow is Body Builders and Dr. Lovelace is coming in from Alabama for it, Pastor Harrell is coming in from Virginia, and bringing with him a guest minister from another state…and who knows who else might show up…maybe the Dalai Lama…these days nothing surprises me.

Those of you in Indiana and North Carolina, don’t forget to vote today…



Be at peace...walk in the Spirit today...remember that love is the more excellent way...spend some time in His presence...and if God is speaking something to you on this beautiful Tuesday, share it with us...

Carpe Diem!

Happy Monday, Happy Cinco de Mayo and Happy Birthday to my daughter Christina!

Carpe diem is a phrase from a Latin poem by Horace which is popularly translated from the movie Dead Poets Society as "seize the day". The general definition of carpe is "pick, pluck, pluck off, gather" as in plucking or picking a rose or apple, although Horace uses the word in the sense of "enjoy, make use of, seize." The point is, this is the day the Lord has made…don’t waste it.

If you’re angry with someone today, just go ahead and forgive them if you can, because what you’re mad about is, more than likely, not worth it. This time next year it probably won’t even matter to you…you might not even remember it. One thing is for sure, if you knew that this was your last day on earth, you would definitely wouldn’t care about some petty offense or hurt feelings.

If you’re dealing with disappointment today, get things in perspective. If you can move away from it a little and try to see the situation objectively, you’ll probably realize that the perceived disappointment may, in fact, be a blessing in disguise. Who knows? Something may have been removed from you to make room for something new and better.

If you are dreading or fearing something that is coming up, just stop worrying about it. Things are rarely as bad as they first appear, or as your anxiety makes you feel that they will be…and if it is actually a negative thing, worrying about it isn’t going to make it any better. Just deal with it when the time comes.

It’s a beautiful day, so make the decision to enjoy it and make the most of it.

Something really wonderful may be on its way to you right now. Don’t miss it. Opportunity may knock today, and if it does, you don’t want to be distracted by a lot of unnecessary noise in your head…you don’t want opportunity to have to leave a note that says, “I knocked, but no one was home so I moved on”.

Get into your day…live in every moment…Carpe Diem!

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.’ (Matthew 6:34 – The Message)

Prophetic Pictures

I know that we've referred to this song a lot, but I just had to revisit it today. The reading for tomorrow in AYITN is Colorful Coat!, and it's about Joseph the Dreamer...the picture of Jesus at the bottom is called Coat of Many Colors, Lord of All, by Thomas Blackshear (it's one of my very favorites by one of my favorite artists) and if you look closely at His robe, you'll see that it's made of the flags of the all the nations...how do you interpret these pictures?

Let the river run, let all the dreamers wake the nations. Come, the New Jerusalem...
It's asking for the taking.
Trembling, shaking. Oh, my heart is aching...
We're coming to the edge, running on the water, coming through the fog, your sons and daughters...
We the great and small stand on a star and blaze a trail of desire through the dark'ning dawn...
It's asking for the taking. Come run with me now, the sky is the color of blue you've never even seen in the eyes of your lover...
We're coming to the edge, running on the water, coming through the fog, your sons and daughters...
Let the river run, let all the dreamers wake the nations. Come, the New Jerusalem!