Madre
03-01-2007, 12:36 PM
This greatly encouraged me this morning:
My father often emphasized simplicity in the K.I.S.S. method: Keep it Simple, Stupid! He would say, "Mike, it is technically possible to milk a mouse, but I am certain what little it would yield would not be worth all the effort." The advantage to those who keep Christianity complex is that they never have to get around to living it.
A friend once told me that he could teach any doctrine and afterward do exactly whatever he wanted. However, when he came in touch with Life, he simply could not move in anything that did not suit his new life. Life is simple and natural. I remember watching our director in Australia doing something quite genius in relation to raising his children. I asked in what book he discovered the approach. His comment was, "I did not read it; I just prayed!" What I had studied for years to understand, he had come by naturally through a relationship with the Person of Christ. Having a relationship with the Person is far more broadening than the grandest library that exists. Simpler, too!
People of the world travel through life trying to fill their bags with the right answers, the right abilities, and the understanding to meet every situation. They attempt to strengthen self through a full bag of tricks. Their desire is to be ready for every possible situation that could arise. Yet their lives are in constant chaos.
Worldly discipleship attempts to prepare the disciple with the knowledge of what to do in every conceivable situation. After all, we may be confronted with a cult member, someone who does not believe in the historical Jesus, opposing church doctrine, women in places of leadership, or endless other scenarios. What I discovered as I set out to fill my bag is that I never seemed to have the right things for the right situation. If a Mormon knocked at the door, I had spent all month studying the gift of tongues. If a believer came seeking advice on knowing the will of God, I was equipped to discuss the second coming of Christ. If I were in a church meeting talking over leadership, I had researched the missionary journeys of Paul. Then I discovered the secret: God wanted me to have an empty bag, with which I had to walk in faith, humbly trusting Him. Within the context of my relatioship with Him, I would be given in a moment exactly what I needed. Mark 13:11, "And when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but [it is] the Holy Spirit." The relationship became the focus, not the filling of the bag.
He is the "I AM"! That is, the God of the now! We walk into every situation with an empty bag, and the God of the now gives, in fellowship with Himselof, all that is needed for that specific instant, when "all" we have is a reliance on Him. We clamor for everything except the one thing needed and freely given: present, unbroken fellowship with God! To be a success, walk with empty bags and be a receptacle for God. This is the spirit of true humility. I will repeat over and over that a humble believer does not say, "I am nothing, " but rather, "I have nothing." Christ was divine humility; He emptied Himself (Philippians 2:7) and was filled with all wisdom and glory. If we are empty, then we are filled with something better than methods and knowledge. Ephesians 3:19, "and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fulness of God." Heavenly discipleship promotes learning to walk with empty bags. "He emptied Himself." How I love that phrasing, for here we see the Inventor revealing how the invention works. The invention--man--works best when running on empty! Amazing! "Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (I Corinthians 1:20)
Heavenly Discipleship
Michael Wells
My father often emphasized simplicity in the K.I.S.S. method: Keep it Simple, Stupid! He would say, "Mike, it is technically possible to milk a mouse, but I am certain what little it would yield would not be worth all the effort." The advantage to those who keep Christianity complex is that they never have to get around to living it.
A friend once told me that he could teach any doctrine and afterward do exactly whatever he wanted. However, when he came in touch with Life, he simply could not move in anything that did not suit his new life. Life is simple and natural. I remember watching our director in Australia doing something quite genius in relation to raising his children. I asked in what book he discovered the approach. His comment was, "I did not read it; I just prayed!" What I had studied for years to understand, he had come by naturally through a relationship with the Person of Christ. Having a relationship with the Person is far more broadening than the grandest library that exists. Simpler, too!
People of the world travel through life trying to fill their bags with the right answers, the right abilities, and the understanding to meet every situation. They attempt to strengthen self through a full bag of tricks. Their desire is to be ready for every possible situation that could arise. Yet their lives are in constant chaos.
Worldly discipleship attempts to prepare the disciple with the knowledge of what to do in every conceivable situation. After all, we may be confronted with a cult member, someone who does not believe in the historical Jesus, opposing church doctrine, women in places of leadership, or endless other scenarios. What I discovered as I set out to fill my bag is that I never seemed to have the right things for the right situation. If a Mormon knocked at the door, I had spent all month studying the gift of tongues. If a believer came seeking advice on knowing the will of God, I was equipped to discuss the second coming of Christ. If I were in a church meeting talking over leadership, I had researched the missionary journeys of Paul. Then I discovered the secret: God wanted me to have an empty bag, with which I had to walk in faith, humbly trusting Him. Within the context of my relatioship with Him, I would be given in a moment exactly what I needed. Mark 13:11, "And when they arrest you and deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but [it is] the Holy Spirit." The relationship became the focus, not the filling of the bag.
He is the "I AM"! That is, the God of the now! We walk into every situation with an empty bag, and the God of the now gives, in fellowship with Himselof, all that is needed for that specific instant, when "all" we have is a reliance on Him. We clamor for everything except the one thing needed and freely given: present, unbroken fellowship with God! To be a success, walk with empty bags and be a receptacle for God. This is the spirit of true humility. I will repeat over and over that a humble believer does not say, "I am nothing, " but rather, "I have nothing." Christ was divine humility; He emptied Himself (Philippians 2:7) and was filled with all wisdom and glory. If we are empty, then we are filled with something better than methods and knowledge. Ephesians 3:19, "and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fulness of God." Heavenly discipleship promotes learning to walk with empty bags. "He emptied Himself." How I love that phrasing, for here we see the Inventor revealing how the invention works. The invention--man--works best when running on empty! Amazing! "Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (I Corinthians 1:20)
Heavenly Discipleship
Michael Wells