|
| Experience the UNITY (blogging from the road) |
|
| |
As mentioned in comments already, we’re heading out on vacation this weekend. This Lord’s day we’re in Suffolk, Virginia, after spending the night with friends. Today we could have easily passed on church and simply had a family worship time, but I’m so glad we didn’t! Instead we visited Village Christian Fellowship, our friends’ church. God blessed us richly through the experience!
I can personally attest that the Holy Spirit was with the assembled this morning. Imagine that, we didn’t leave the Spirit behind when we left Columbia, Maryland! (lol) The time of adoration with our fellow believers in Suffolk was wonderful. With different people, in a different place, in a different worship style, we adored the same Lord! The unity that we felt in this place far from home truly heightened the spiritual atmosphere for us.
Intellectually we know God is omniscient, existing everyplace at once. But there’s just something to be said about experiencing his omniscience personally by worshiping in far away places. I have a feeling worshiping God with believers across the ocean, even farther from home, would be still more exhilarating!
Finally, to those who say the whole church is apostate, that God has withdrawn from most congregations, and that he exists most forcefully in their own, I say you need to get out more! There is a unity in the Spirit to be experienced, an adoration of the Father that goes on in hearts all over the world. And we are only experiencing a foreshadowing of what’s to come!
And oddly enough, the following scripture, read today in the church we visited, reinforced that, though we are hundreds of miles from home, in a certain sense we haven’t left home at all:
3:14 For this reason I kneel before the Father, 3:15 from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.
[Our access to the internet will be extremely limited this week, so we’ll be unable to closely follow comments or respond in a timely way. May God bless all who read this!]
|
|
| To add a comment to "Experience the UNITY (blogging from the road)" |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
 |
|
|
Alright now Mike! Yes isn't it wonderful. The experience God wherever we go? But there’s just something to be said about experiencing his omniscience personally by worshiping in far away places. Oh yes it is. and that he exists most forcefully in their own, I say you need to get out more! There is a unity in the Spirit to be experienced,..... This is an understatment.... If only people would stop the nonsense and have an experience every now and again.. God is so much bigger than you or I, don't ya just love it!
God Bless you.. Mike and Laura.
Pastor Aminata |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
For this reason I kneel before the Father.......
Let us kneel before our God during our prayers and our worship. At times, we feel that kneeling down is not necessary. |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Fortunately you didn't take the Spirit from Columbia to Virginia and leave us high and dry :) What an awesome, omnipresent Lord we serve! |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Mike,
Amen!!! Thanks for sharing this. It's good to hear this kind of encouragement. The Spirit of God has NOT left the organized church, but continues to draw His people into deeper intimacy and unity with Lord Jesus and Father. I do believe the face and expression of church is going to change radically in the very near future...is changing even now. But the Spirit is brooding over ALL of God's people and effecting that change in many ways and in many contexts. It is ironic that those who have been hurt or rejected or marginalized by a particular expression of church so often turn around and embrace or create a teaching that is just as exclusive and marginalizing. But the Father's heart is for something different. One Spirit, One Lord, One Baptism. The Bride IS being prepared and transformed... She is in process...but her heart is turning ever more clearly to her Lover. And she will be revealed without spot or wrinkle, and whole! No parts missing!
Blessings, and have a GREAT trip! |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Mike,
Alright man, next time you are in my neck of the woods you gotta let me know! j/k. Anytime you need a church to go to when you are down this way you can always come to Lighthouse! :)
Jeremy |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Thank you Mike I need to step out of my comfort zone more. |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Hey Mike, I was wondering where you guys were this morning, but as long as you were worshiping the Lord also then that is ok that you were not there today. Hope you have a blessed week, hope to see you next Sunday. toni |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Wonderful experience. Please be assured of our prayers
Matts
http://www.freewebs.com/mathewp66 |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Thanks for sharing this Mike. I felt the Holy Spirit strongly this morning at our church as well, so I am glad that He was not only with you, but with me. How awesome is that! |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Have a wonderful vacation and be safe.
GOD IS EVERYWHERE- Amen to that. In a church of believers and it doesn't matter where in the world you are, he is still there. He has not abandoned us at all. He is everywhere and he chooses to come among the ones who truly welcome him.
Great Blog |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
| My friend Deb calls it cross pollenating (is that spelled right?) |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Thanks Mike. For Sharing your experience. Years back I was in Taiwan (Formerly Formosa). It was about 13-14 years back. I had earlier perceived Taiwan to be a communist country with lots of restrictions. In those days there was no internet and no mobile phones too. When I landed in that country ( I was on a training regarding cultivation of vegetables), I had the opportunity to tell a friend of mine in the training institute that I was a christian. From the very moment she arranged to go with me to a pentecostal church about 30 kms every sunday evening. Though I attended an anglican church at home, I was very comfortable with the church that I went to. Later this news spread to other christians and each offered to take me to a different church every sunday. I enjoyed the fellowship with the believers. In some churches they worshipped in Taiwanese ( Chinese ) language. The hymns were familiar by the tune and I understood the words in english. The order of service almost same world over, I felt at home though I was not attending a service in English. The mere fellowship with members of the body of christ in a strange country gave me an experience to understand the love of God which he has in store for believers across nations and languages. I could also relate to the hard work and obedience of those missionaries who travelled to other countries to share the gospel in a very sacrificial manner. Similarly some years back I had travelled to Korea where I had the opportunity to worship our Lord with the South Koreans. I can undestand Mike how you must be feeling. I love that experience. |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Wow, Mike, how timely! Let me share my story of UNITY from just today!
You remember that woman that eavesdropped on our conversation on the trinity on the bus? She mentioned she goes to a church nearby? Well, this morning I went to that church. What an amazing church! I felt such a connection with all the dedicated Christians there.
But praise aside to keep it short, I attended one of their training sessions afterwards, the one on eclesiology. The topic today was on the Niceno-Constantanople phrase "one holy, catholic and apostolic church," specifically on the words "catholic" and "one." Regarding "one," check what he quoted: "The church is one by virtue of its union with Christ. All its members are baptized by one Spirit into one body having one Head and one Lord." (Reymon p. 839)
In other words, the Reymon quote is the unity I felt worshipping with strangers! Ephesians 4:4 says there is one body of Christ. Also, the church is called one flock, one people of God, and one temple of the Spirit. To attempt to solve the "problem" of Christian unity becomes strange in this light.
The pastor went further to suggest that denominations actually assist in the unity of the body! Check it: "Denominations allow us to have organizational unity where we have full agreement, and allow us to have spiritual unity with other denominations since we are not forced to argue our way to perfect agreement but can accept our differences of opinion on secondary matters. ... we not only can be united, but if we are in Christ we are united. His Spirit lives in all true believers and unites us in the truth, love, and purpose." (Phillips, Ryken, Dever p. 27-28) In other words, highest "tier" is our position before God. Yes, doctrine on, say, whether women can preach is secondary. The pastor said he's against women preaching, but he also said he'd rather have a woman preaching the correct gospel than a man preaching the wrong gospel!
That was this morning. This evening I attended my own church where Pastor Ince taught from Genesis 11:1-9. The passage shows how all people were once united, albeit against God. So God split them up because they were working against God. Is all lost? Are we all still split up from this Babel event? Well, in light of this, check out Acts 2:1-13! The Holy Spirit enabled the Apostles to trancend language, thus nullifying (briefly) the divisive act of God in Genesis 11! Acts 2 is a scene of unity!
I had an awesome day of unity today! What a way to finish it off with a blog post of yours on unity! |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
And I'll throw this out there: I visited a Seventh Day Adventist congregation once on Saturday and had a Spirit-filled experience worshipping with them. I felt the unity with them. I mentioned this to a member of my church and he said he did the same thing several times and agrees with me. He says he loves to worship with them, but when they start talking doctrine, he leaves the room ;) I encourage you readers to try a "competing" denomination yourself.
InTheHandsOfThePotter, you use the same term I like to use: cross-pollinization! |
|
|
| October 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
In The Hands of the Potter and Eric, the term is cross pollination. But this word can be used if believers are getting married across various denominations and not for visiting other denomination churches, if my understanding is right. |
|
|
| October 29, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Wonderful! |
|
|
| October 29, 2007 |
|
|
|
Hey Mike,
Have a great vacation! Thanks for sharing your experience and being so encouraging to each of us here.
peace |
|
|
| October 29, 2007 |
|
|
|
Don't you just love God's washing machine? Where else can you get covered in [the] blood, washed in [the] water and come out looking like everyone else?
Mike I hope you have a great vacation! |
|
|
| October 30, 2007 |
|
|
|
I love it! Unity in the body, lack of competition, it makes my heart sing!
And yes Mike, across the ocean the experience is so exhilerating. I had the pleasure of attending a church while on a mission trip to Hong Kong. What was so incredible was that this church had visitors from Australia doing the worship and many other international missionaries visiting. For once in my life I felt like I was apart of a BODY of believers. During the worship I heard the Chinese, English, African, Australian, and American accents singing. Mike there are no words to describe the experience. Two years later and I'm still tearing up thinking about it. Jesus changed my heart that day. :) |
|
|
| October 30, 2007 |
|
|
|
Mike, Thanks for sharing. Have a great vacation. The other Mike. |
|
|
| October 30, 2007 |
|
|
|
We've missed you, Mike. I'm glad you had a chance to get this important message to us. We've done a lot of traveling lately around Texas and also in Southern CA and found what you said to be true. Unity and the access we have to Spirit-led worship wherever we go are definitely reasons for celebrating! |
|
|
| November 01, 2007 |
|
|
|
| god bless |
|
|
| November 01, 2007 |
|
|
|
I will always be amazed how some of God's children want nothing to do with His other children...I think to strive for unity (which we cannot claim if we are not submitting ourselves to eachother as often as possible) is an awesome act of obedience yielding true worship. I teach my congregation that unlike most thought processes, music is not worship...reverence and obedience is worship and what makes a "worship service" so unique is that it is actually a corporate culmination of reverence and obedience and the response is such. The music just assists in us being in one accord before the Father.
Excellent post. |
|
|
| November 05, 2007 |
|
|
|
| JUST READ THAT YOU ARE OUT AND ABOUT HAVE A GREAT TIME AND BE SAFE..... |
|
|
| November 05, 2007 |
|
|
|
| Thanks Rosie, we're back now!! :-) |
|
|
| November 13, 2007 |
|
|
|
| We went to services in S.C. while on vacation, a small, Baptist congregation in a little church out in the woods. The preaching was on the same thing I've heard elsewhere recently: our inheritance. I love to see the common threads He weaves by His Holy Spirit. :-) |
|
|
Follow this blog
