Good Grief!

Is there a good way to grieve?

I believe God gives us a pattern so that we can direct our sorrow in a healthy way. “The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end.” (Deu 34:8, CSB).

I believe each of us has a time period in which God allows us to be "devoted to" the memory of that person who was so intertwined with our lives. We have permission to sorrow, but never "...like people who have no hope.” (1Th 4:13, NLT)

In the story of Moses, the whole nation grieved for thirty days! Then they moved on.

They never forgot Moses. They continually honor the memory of him. But they needed to fully embrace the next season, under the leadership of Joshua.

I believe there is sometimes a danger in heartbreak, that grief could turn into debilitating depression. There may need to be a conscious decision to move on at a certain point. Each believer in Christ must determine how to process what that is with God himself.

God can be so personal to each of us as to intervene and say, "That's enough, child. Let's move into the beautiful future that I have prepared for you."

The Apostle Paul had learned the secret of turning from deep regret and moving on. He indicates that this was the one secret of his effectiveness in ministry. He wouldn't let the past weigh him down. (Phil 3:13-15a)

And let's never forget that the person who is in the presence of Christ is certainly experiencing a reward beyond comprehension. That person, that father or mother, that brother or sister, that son or daughter, that friend, may feel honored in your season of heartache, but would not be happy see you living under a dark cloud, crippled by their departure.

At a certain point it becomes about you and not about them.

Finally, it can never be understated the value of being a part of a community of believers, whether that be other family members or a healthy church environment who can help us process our losses and celebrate the good memories!

The Noisiest Day of the Year

“God arises with the earsplitting shout of his people! God goes up with a trumpet blast!” (Psa 47:5, TPT)

I enjoy observing Rosh Hashanah, the New Year (counting from the beginning of the creation of humanity) along with my Jewish friends, especially the Yom Teruah, which translates, literally, Day of Blasting or Shouting. It also implies the blowing of trumpets. In the Jewish tradition, there is a certain observed protocol with the shofar (ram’s horn), but in the Torah, there is not a specific reason given for Yom Teruah (which is celebrated concurrently with Rosh Hashanah). It seems that God was giving permission to simply celebrate with lots of noise. If you have a shofar, blow loud and long. But anybody can participate if you have a mouth and lungs. 

Teruah is a full-throated piercing noise, similar to the battle cry of American Indians or the Confederate “Rebel Yell” that stoked fear in the hearts of their adversaries. Israel as a nation responded to the command to shout and blow the shofar in unison, and saw the walls of Jericho fall down like the twin towers on 911. A famous story in 2 Chronicles 20 puts loud praisers in front of the army to win the battle without a fight. Gideon with only 300 men shouted, blew their horns, and saw hordes of enemy combatants flee in stark fear.

Most of us need permission or at least a good reason to participate in such revelry. I’m reminded of New Years Eve celebrations when crowds of people scream and revel without inhibition as a kind of reset. Even then, most people need a few drinks to overcome societal restraints.

On certain college campuses, at the beginning of exam week, students collectively and simultaneously engage in a time of screaming and revelry to release pent up frustration. Some report that this tradition also creates a bond of togetherness among the student body.

I was raised in a traditional evangelical church where, other than hymn singing, there was no place for loudness. In spite of the direct commands in scripture to worship with high praises to glorify God, loud ecstatic expressions would have been grounds for excommunication!

Stories of people shouting in the Bible are retold in Sunday School and the pulpit, yet most American Christian Sunday “services” are programmed spectator events for the sake of maintaining order. But the early New Testament church was often so expressive that Paul had to remind them to tone it down lest visitors and “uninformed” attenders would think them crazy! (see 1 Corinthians 14:23)

The Bible is a record of Creation, beginning with the creation of people made in God’s image until its conclusion–the Resurrection of the redeemed when the last enemy (death) is subdued under our feet. At each of these events, all of heaven shouts! ““Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth... as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7) “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever.” (1Th 4:16-17, NLT)

On Rosh Hashanah, the sound of the Shofar mimics the voice of God and clears the air, opening up a Portal between heaven and earth. For the next ten days, devout Jews observe a time of prayerful introspection. The next trumpet blast (the Last Trumpet) announces Yom Kippur which is the highest holy day when the nation repents for their sins and receives forgiveness for the next year.

Under the New Covenant, the veil between God and Mankind has been torn, obliterated! Heaven and Earth have been fully reconciled, legally, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ! God has thrown open the door in heaven and all of restored humanity who believe in Jesus can go in and out! This is the Gospel (Good News!). That inspires me to blow my shofar when I need a reset on ANY calendar day. Also, when I fall short or feel inadequate or even condemned because of my personal failures, I recall God’s extravagant mercy toward His Creation, and it just comes naturally to SHOUT, “Hallelujah!” Then, suddenly, I see it again, the open door in heaven revealing a Father who sees no fault in me, Jesus interceding on my behalf, and the Church of the Firstborn who have gone ahead, the Cloud of Witnesses cheering me

on!

Shalom House

...“‘The LORD declares to you: The LORD himself will make a house for you.” (2Sa 7:11, CSB)

He's building me a house on top of a hill, And the name of the House is Seymour Bill!
It's a home with a courtyard and a fountain too, Old Will and his kids, and a dog named Blue.
Mom fills the front room with the music of prayer And daughters surrounding her rocking chair.
Dandies in the front yard, and lemon balm too, Tinctures in the kitchen where the honey flows through
Health and wealth and the gospel of grace, On everyone's lips, on everyone's face
The Resurrect Man has every debt paid!
The power of the Cross has trumped o'er the grave!
Shalom and gratitude reign in the air
And people of peace are welcome there.

MA SHLOMKHA

"Hey!" is a common

informal greeting among friends in Western culture that can evoke a feeling of close connection with another. Another contemporary way to say hello: How’s it going? is an open ended greeting that really is not wanting or expecting a deeper response. It would be out of bounds to actually respond with a detailed recollection of recent events. 

The Hebrew greeting, similar to this, “Ma Shlomkha?” is a bit more specific and sincere, meaning, “How are you?” This communicates a more genuine concern. Literally, you are asking “What is your peace?”

“Shalom, shalom,” is a blessing contained in a greeting. It can also be used when departing, to bless another person. In history, among covenant (faith) people, when uttered from a sincere heart, an actual blessing is imparted. 

The meaning of shalom to the person who speaks the Hebrew language is actually much deeper than the English equivalent, “peace.” While “peace” is the core meaning, it actually carries additional weight, a wish for prosperity, safety and protection and restoration in every area of life. 

A popular definition that captures the weight of shalom: ”Nothing missing, nothing lacking, nothing broken.” It is helpful when praying peace over a person or group of people to speak this in their hearing. 

There are some that break down the ancient Hebrew hieroglyphs that form the word shalom, four Hebrew letters, to mean Destroy Authority Binds Chaos. That is, similar to other eastern languages, each letter has a meaning of its own. 

To me, this elevates the blessing, “Shalom” to another level. It is more than a passive wish for peace and well-being. It recognizes that there are unseen forces in this world that want to disrupt the harmony in our lives. By speaking shalom we can activate a power that encompasses a person or home, protecting them from anything that wishes to disrupt their happiness or divine order. Shalom DESTROYS the AUTHORITY that BINDS us to CHAOS. Read that again.

Jesus definitely understood this. When commissioning his twelve to go ahead of him into the various towns where he was about to visit and preach, he told them, “Whenever you enter someone’s home, first say, ‘May God’s peace be on this house.’ If those who live there are peaceful, the blessing will stand; if they are not, the blessing will return to you.” (Luke 10:5-6, NLT)

Leonard Nimoy, who helped develop the character Spock on the series Star Trek, introduced the concept of shalom with the Vulcan greeting, "Live long and prosper!” with his hand extended in blessing. This he adopted from his childhood remembering the rabbinical blessing.

I also recall how the hippies around me in the 70s used to say “Peace, man!” when coming and going. It is a shame that more of us didn't adopt this (although the so-called peace sign that was sewn on so many hippie jackets and jeans was an upside down broken cross, implying that a destruction of Christianity would lead to World Peace)!

Unfortunately, our contemporary greetings lack any weight to impart a blessing. I challenge everyone reading this to begin speaking peace and blessing to the people around you. In a time of turmoil and chaos it may make a difference in your own home as well as your personal circle of friends and acquaintances.

At first it may seem awkward but practice speaking the shalom blessing and watch the atmosphere around you begin to change!

Things Are Listening

Modern quantum physics is discovering mysteries about the world around us that affirm very ancient teachings about the laws of the universe.

We typically think that God gave humans language for the purpose of communication, but this is not the primary purpose of words. 

The Bible teaches that God created humans in His image, which means, in our original created state, we would have been able to think, talk and act like Him.

Humanity lost connection with our original design when we decided to rebel against His perfect leadership.

But when God sent Jesus, His Son into the world to pay the penalty for humankind's rebellion, He restored us back into a relationship with our Good Designer!

Now, because of what Jesus has done through His death on the cross, each of us can experience daily interaction with God, our loving Father.

By following the Father's advice each day, our lives can find meaning and purpose. Each of us is designed to flourish in this world and accomplish great things for God and ourselves.

So, getting back to the purpose of language, God and people use can words to communicate ideas to one other, but the Bible teaches that God's first purpose for language, was to create things.

"In the beginning [of things] God said [by decree], 'Let there be [things]!' And the result was THINGS. (see Genesis 1)

"Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children, and walk in love..." Ephesians 5:1 CSB

This is a big verse! It tells us to imitate God by walking in LOVE. That means loving people the way God loves them. That, dear friends, will take a lifetime of practice!

But that verse also means we can imitate God by using language as He does. This also, fortunately, comes with more proficiency in a lifetime of practice.

Jesus, God's Son [the Word (John 1)], used words to communicate God's TRUTH and to release God's sovereign, creative power through Decree.

He was imitating the Father, not just to prove that he had power, but also to show His followers how we would rule the world in the age to come.

By decree, as royalty.

The AGE TO COME began with his death burial and resurrection! Indeed, it is NOW time for us to imitate Jesus the way Jesus imitates the Father!

Modern science has proven that your voice can release power to your environment. Those who farm or garden will attest that TALKING to your plants, or PRAYING for your crops will produce better results!

“The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” (Proverbs 18:21, NLT)

The Bible is full of examples of people talking to animals, rocks, bushes and trees. Elijah shut up the heavens, Elisha split the river, and Jesus calmed the wind and the waves, by decree. 

Skeptics and many who worship science believe these Bible stories are merely fairy tales, but lately, Quantum physics brings those stories and teachings of the primitive church into the realm of scientific probability.

Speaking kind and loving words will open up a new reality of possibilities for you, and when those words are grounded in the truth (what you know in your heart to be true) the power from your words increases exponentially!

Moses was commanded to bring water from the rock by decree, but he disobeyed and smote the rock with his trusted staff. God was not happy about it. He really wants us to get this.

Early in the morning, as they were passing by, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots up. Then Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” Jesus replied to them, “Have faith in God.

Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, everything you pray and ask for — believe that you have received it and it will be yours. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven will also forgive you your wrongdoing.”

Mark 11:20‭-‬25 CSB

BLOOD ROYALTY

If you are IN CHRIST then you must recognize that you have been born into a covenant elite bloodline family.

The difference between this elite bloodline family and the elite bloodline families of the Earth is the METHOD of birth. Your birth is not a GENETIC birth. Your birth is, in essence, SPIRITUAL from above. It is an ADOPTED birth. It is a CHOSEN birth.

You discovered yourself to be an orphan who was presented with the choice of adoption into an elite royal family, the family of God, and you said, "YES, I ACCEPT."  You  ACCEPT that you are ACCEPTED.

This birth happened through a mixture of volition and faith.

You understood that it was the desire, the will, of Father God from the eternity past to create an elite bloodline for all humanity to escape the polluted Adamic bloodline. It would be through the shedding of untainted blood, through the bloody tortured death of his perfect firstborn Son, Yeshua. This was an act of good faith toward humanity on their part.

By accepting his offer of adoption, whether or not you knew it, you came into COVENANT with the Creator of all things, who is above all things, who is before all things and who knows all things.

There is no one above him. There was no one before him. There is no one who can instruct him or tell him anything he doesn't know.

You may have accepted his offer of New Birth out of desperation, or you may have come to understand that it was a logical choice. It was your opportunity to reverse every curse in your life that came through your genetic line.

You may have seen that you would be stepping into a higher plane, into a life of royalty.

You may have understood these things at the point of your decision to accept God's free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. Or maybe you didn't comprehend all of that, but now you do.

You are growing in your understanding of who you are, of what you are. You are being cultivated like a barren vine cut out of the wild, being grafted into a living vine that produces the best fruit.

You see now that you are more connected to this new family than the family of your first birth. You see now that all the components of your destiny are contained in the seed of God, the nature of God, that is within you from the time you said YES to Christ. There is nothing to do, on your part, except REMAIN in him and DRAW LIFE from him.

You want to dedicate your life to research and discov

er more and more about who is this God and who you have become in Him. But your education will not change your status in the family. What you know you must use to help educate others so that they can enjoy every benefit of living in this royal elite bloodline, connected to LOVE.

You must have by now discovered that God is LOVE. His motivation to grow his family and to bestow rich blessings upon every member of his family is LOVE.

You cannot, you will not ever fully comprehend the depth, the breadth, the width, the height of this LOVE. But you have come to a place of REST and LIVING FAITH. You are CONTENT and have PEACE within this BELIEF, and no person or circumstance will ever shake you out of it.

WHAT IS THE SPIRIT SAYING TO THE CHURCHES?

 Do you attend a “listening church?”

We know how critical it is for each of us to learn to HEAR what the Spirit is saying so that we can enjoy the status of "favored" believers and avoid the pitfalls of life that are unavoidable to those who walk in darkness. 

How much more important is it that the CHURCHES learn to hear and obey God’s voice?

I have been in a number of staff or board meetings where decisions are made that affect the direction of the church (which of course affect the lives of many individuals and families) which begin and/or end with a hurried, token prayer (thank you God, please bless our plans, guide and direct us), or sometimes not even prayer at all. There is no waiting on God the Holy Spirit to get the mind of Christ. 

Many churches never take the time to wait on God to RESPOND. The people are too busy--their schedules are too packed full. An hour and a half that is spent in church  is never enough time to allow God’s spirit to work beneath the surface of their lives because, even during the prayer, worship and sermon, their minds are anxiously racing.

In Revelation chapters two and three, there are exhortations and promises given by the Spirit of Jesus to seven churches in what is now the nation of Turkey. Each exhortation is summed up with these same words: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." Jesus brings a stern warning to the backslidden churches; Repent or else. It would seem that these churches did not heed these communications, because none of these churches exist today. 

I have been in meetings when the Holy Spirit clearly impressed the group assembled, and all who were there agreed that the message was from the Lord. Perfect unity. This rarely happened when we were unwilling to ask and wait for His input. It never happened when we settled for a “majority vote.”

There is much comfort in hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit to an assembly (as “discernment” and not an audible voice), as much as clearly hearing him in one’s personal prayer closet. The group always found that it has been worth the extra time to tarry, and also when members agree to fast and pray when making critical or controversial decisions.. 

He who has ears to hear (raise your hand!)--LET HIM HEAR!

Will Seymour