Take Note

Sometimes this writer/editor's pen runs amok [or alternatively (some would say correctly): amuck]
I promised to write some thoughts of my experiences of late, & I promise I will do so....in the mean-time enjoy some poetry written by yours truly.

I am a pendulum swing-ing.
Who will come swing with me?
I am a leaf dancing on the lawn.
My ballet skirt is orange and red and gold.
Who will come dancing with me?
I am a water droplet rippling on the ocean's boulevard.
I ripple blue and green and gray.
I am cold and in an understatement, I am wet.
Need I ask? Who will come ripple with me?

"I thank my GOD every time I remember you." from Philippians 1 verse 3 NIV

I don't want, I do want
I don't want your pity.
I don't want your fears or your dire predictions.
I don't want to be a saint in your eyes.
I don't want to be left alone.
I do want your honesty.
I do want your physical affection even while I find it hard to start the hug and hard to end it.
Hugging is with eyes and fingers and hands and arms and lips and with bears.
I do want you to be authentic with me.
I do want your love: philo, eros and agape.
Is it not terrible to have so many meanings for a word that should mean something deeply significant?

Philippians 4:8 NIV
Finally, Brethren, what so ever things are true, what so ever things are honest, what so ever things are just, what so ever things are pure, what so ever things are lovely, what so ever things are of good report, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Brothers and Sisters,
I hope I have done that what I have "blogged" has done that for you.

Describing My Childhood Christmas

I am trying to describe what Christmas was like when I was a child, but well, since I was a child I don't really remember many details...here is one Christmas [plus Epilogue] I do remember...
When I was about five, as I recall Christmas Eve was when I discovered The True Santa was MOM!
At that time I shared a bedroom with my two older sisters, and we had been sent to bed so that, "Santa would come." I was really very excited to see what I would get in my stocking [more on that later]. In fact I as so excited I was practically jumping on the bed to the great annoyance of my sisters. Finally exasperated, one [who shall remain nameless, but she knows who she is] told me to go see if Santa had indeed come. As quietly as a five year old could manage I crept into the living, breathlessly hoping to catch a glimpse of Santa if he was still there; and what did I see?
MOM!
Over time I did learn that the Spirit of Christmas and the idea of playing 'Magi' to one's children is what it really means to be Santa. And my Mom and yours are the True Santa Claus after all.
On a side note, from then on I swore up and down that I would spoil the surprise of Santa to this sister's children. And *YIKES* I almost did one year!
One day close to Christmas, many moons ago I was absentmindly talking to my Mom about what I might want in my stocking when I heard a chair or some such squeak...OH My Cow, my niece, maybe 5 at the time and still believing in a "Real" Santa, was sitting right there. AHHHH! In a moment that had the power to break a child's heart, The LORD really blest me with fast thinking! I was able to tell her a plausible story about how many children are in the world and for Santa to be able to grant all of those wishes...that once a person reaches a certain age (I might have said age 13), their mom and dad take over Santa's job of providing a stocking. I am so glad she could and did enjoy believing Santa for a few more years.
More to Come....

My Thoughts Drift

Another Sunday in the Service of the LORD....
Preface:
So the Pacific Time Zone is 2 hours behind Central [Texas] Time. And because so many of my loved ones are set to function according to those pesky two hours, and because I really don't want to wake them at say 10PM Pacific [Midnight Central], I thought I would handle this in what I [again] thought would be a very convenient manner. I left the clock on which my computer runs set to Texas time. Leading to it always seeming like I am awake and ready to go two hours before the rest of creation, which is laid back anyway, this being California and all.
Story:
The faith community I am worshipping with meets at 11AM on Sundays. Before I left you, my faithful friends, I was not looking forward to getting up that early. Those of you who were worried about me changing while I was out here, at least in this instance, don't, I still really do prefer the crack of noon or 1PM, 3PM at the very, very latest I promise. But in the four weeks I have been in this neck of the woods 11AM seems to be late enough even to please me, especially since my sister-in-law makes fantastic baked goods.
Getting to the point...
As I held the communion bread this morning, I was thinking about that pesky time change between the 'zones'. I was thinking okay, it is not quite 2PM in Abilene...I wondered if Chelsa was in her kitchen baking Hope's bread for this evening. Is my 'gluten-free' bread made by Abby going to taste as good as her bread always does? [It was pretty good, but Chelsa is, as always in my book, the uncontested Blue Ribbon Winning Champion of Bread].
I was also thinking about time marching on...2000 years ago JESUS broke bread, blessed it, and giving it to HIS disciples, saying, "This is MY Body, when you eat it, remember ME."
And I did. I remembered CHRIST.
I remembered the first Sunday I ate the bread with a congregation, warning the lady in the white dress that this was the first time I would take communion and I was so very worried about spilling the tray, which of course, I proceeded in doing.
I remembered as we approached Christmas last year, how Hope remembered the death of CHRIST and the death of cherished friends and family in the sharing of communion in three un-traditional [non-tradition, however you want to say it] but quite lovely ways...goodbye past, standing still, walking into the future knowing we are leaving faithful footsteps behind.
I remembered when K.B. stood up and announced that after prayer, fasting, and listening to the HOLY SPIRIT move in their hearts, the elders decided the ladies of Hope could nourish our faith community by baking the bread and by serving it to the congregation.
I remembered the first time I baked bread with Chelsa, the same day I first stood up and opened my heart wide enough to share the profound abiding joy I often experience in communion.
I remembered how Janet loves the personal benediction I offer to those I commune with.
In that moment of communion today, as I sat thinking, I remembered Hope who would "Come to the table," and hopefully leave with what their hearts had been longing for tonight.
I remembered and thanked our GOD for the hands stretched behind the faithful to lift me to the hands holding mine now, and the hands I am hoping will help me spread out the bread dough that I plan to bake for all who I encounter along my walk to Emmaeus before I am laid to rest with my fathers and my mothers.
Thank YOU and You who communed with me this day, The Day of The LORD WHO Is The SPRING of LIVING WATER. Hallelujah and Amen.

More about SF, CA "ikon" Church

As I previously stated, I did not get to attend church here until October 25th. That Sunday, as I approached where "we" meet [meaning me with the ikon attendees], The HOLY SPIRIT inspired me with the song, "Sanctuary."
'Oh, LORD, prepare me to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true. With thanksgiving I'll be a living sanctuary for YOU.... LORD, teach YOUR children to stop the fighting, start uniting, all as one. LORD, let's get together, loving forever. [I'll be a] Sanctuary, for you' [I personally think that this 'you' is me saying that I want to be a place of peace for you, my friends]....
I think this gift of song was both a prayer that I was asking JESUS and an assurance from HIM that I was being sent to just such a place of The LORD'S Peace and Love.
Now you should know that after Services, my brother Warren and his wife Martha picked me up and with several little girls we all went to a pumpkin patch to obviously pick pumpkins for Halloween. Several times during that day of fun and the next week or so, I realized from comments that ikon meets in what is most nicely referred to as a bad part of the city. This Sunday it finally dawned on me that we meet in an operating nightclub...yes I am naive...no I am not an idiot.
The LORD GOD constantly amazes me! "Shout with Joy to The LORD!" (Psalm 100) The song given to me before my first Sunday which calmed my nerves [and I think we all know how shy (also known as scared or being a wimp) I can be when I am unaccompanied by a friend to [quaintly termed] have my back as I step into the unknown] and the Prayer The HOLY SPIRIT gave me to write [see below] during my first communion time with ikon; with these two gift, I feel that I am in the complete security of my FATHER'S Arms. I am sure that if other people could read my feelings when at ikon's house of worship and among this group of Christians they would interpret and speak of them as reckless, especially if they worry for my health and safety.
If you know me, you may know what my two favorite words are [and no, they are not Rachel and frogs]. It is vital to know these words are only my favorite when together. "But GOD..." are my favorite words because they resound throughout every day of my life; and I challenge you to think about how they manifest themselves in your life.
Nine times one or more doctors have specifically said to my family that I had a few days or a few hours or a few minutes to live and to say goodbye to me...But GOD said no, I have a purpose of this girl who is MY Child. The number of times of hospital admission I have is more than the number of years I have lived, even more than the years I will have attained on my birthday in January. "But GOD..."
But GOD tells me HE walks with me and can carry me through this city and any I visit in the future. I might not be physically safe. But GOD says I am safe spiritually. So here is the Prayer I received. After that are a thought I had this [November 1] Sunday and song lyrics sung at ikon. Although I don't know who authored the words, I know The AUTHOR of life.
Prayer [I love to pray songs]:
'YOU are LORD of creation, and LORD of my life, LORD of the land and the sea. YOU were LORD of heaven before there was time, and LORD of all lords YOU will be. Thank YOU, I think YOU have given me another ,"peek-a-boo." I know that ikon is the place YOU have sent me to continue to bloom. Thank YOU, thank YOU, thank YOU! May we bow to the Precious NAME of our SAVIOR, amen.'
Thought:
'Bath all things in prayer.'
Lyrics:
'We are all in this together.... Walking the line between faith and fear... This life don't last forever... When you cry I taste the salt in your tears... Spell your name to GOD.'

Now ask yourself, "Is Rachel in the right place, or what?"

Sorry ...This is NOT PART 2

Okay, so this is not Part 2 of the story I told at Church October 11. Don't worry it is just postponed, not canceled. Someone emailed me and asked me to write a little about what I am doing here.
Without further ado...well that church we prayed I would be sent to, well I was sent to exactly the right one! It might not say Church of Christ on the sign [but we all know I don't care what the sign says], but they do serve weekly communion [something quite frankly I thought I was going to need to sacrifice while I was out here], so Chi-Ching [this is a prize winning sound]! I feel truly blessed by The Lord for HIS SPIRIT leading me to this church! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEAH GOD!!!
If you want to know who I am worshipping with, their web address is http://www.ikonsf.com
Last Sunday was the first I got to attend because of family and health reasons. But I do want to tell you what we are studying and the notes I wrote after the sermon [which they call a "conversation", Ha Ha, joke's on me, they should have said something like Today's "message" or "thoughts" because to me "Conversation" means giving you my input vocally during the "conversation"]....
From the NIV Genesis [all emphasises are mine] chapter 2, verse 15 and following...
v.15 THE LORD GOD took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
v.16 And The LORD GOD commanded the man, “You are free to eat of any tree in the garden;
v.17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."
My Thoughts on the “When”
“When”? I was always taught, “If.” But “when” shows GOD'S protective nature, HIS earliest longings to save us, mostly from ourselves, from the horror that is death. “When” also reflects that the Power of The LORD includes the power to give life and to take it away. The mere fact that this word "when" [or rather its language equivalent] was told throughout the whole of Hebrew oral history and later included in Holy Scripture practically screams “THIS IS A LORD UNLIKE ANY OTHER.” Continuing...
v.18 THE LORD GOD said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
v.19 Now The LORD GOD had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. HE brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.
v.20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found.
v.21 So The LORD GOD caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, HE took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. [Do you ever wonder if a scar was left behind?]
v.22 Then The LORD GOD made a woman from the rib HE had taken out of the man, and HE brought her to the man.
v.23 The man said,/"This is now bone of my bones/and flesh of my flesh;/she shall be called 'woman,'/for she was taken out of man."
v.24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
v.25 The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
My Thoughts on This Chapter [or Section of the Chapter]
GOD made Adam from dirt [it might say 'dust' or 'ground' or 'earth,' but basically dirt].
Then HE made all of the rest of the creatures, big and small, from the same dirt but HE realizes that none of them was a suitable mate for Adam?
If we presume that all of those creatures were made from the exact same dirt as Adam, none were suitable for him?
Well, what made the difference? What about the fact The LORD HIMSELF breathed into Adam's nostril to give him life, is it the difference? Or did woman [watch: “Rob Bell: Everything Is Spiritual”] need to be formed from Adam's rib in order that the instincts or the emotions to care for and protect would arise from him? Or was it a different instinct that needed to be brought forth? Maybe man had to learn to share his heart and everything else that is within him? Did Eve need to know how she was made in order that she might find the things named above within herself? Was it necessary for man and woman to have this physical connection for the “leaving” & the “cleaving” to really take place?
Or did Adam need a sense of loss of self to desire intimacy with Eve, made from a part of his body? Was it Plato who wrote about belly-buttons enabling the Perfect Mate to be found? C.S. Lewis wrote about a GOD-shaped hole in every heart that humans try to fill with all kinds of things: drugs, money, sex, you get the idea. But The Only TRUE Plug for that shape is GOD. But what if Lewis got the idea, and forgot to add the “twist”? [Isn't there always a twist in every good story in/of the human experience?] If we imagine that Lewis's puzzle piece, the one he theorized about, as being in the cookie cutter shape of a person, could maybe a toe [or even the toenail] have to be filled with a mate? Could the “plug” or the “rib” be a euphemism for the sense of connectivity and responsibility I feel [and should rightfully feel] for those I love, including the last generation [and back and back and back], my generation, and the next generation [and the next and next and next], as far as I or any Christian can reach up or down through history? As a Christian I do feel this connection and this responsibility for all people and I do desire for each of them to fill their GOD-shaped hole with The ONE TRUE GOD. Is this the connection which The LORD desired for us when HE made us, male and female? Is the ability to reconnect to/with each other, one of the points of the Salvation by our GOD, WHO sits upon HIS throne...purpose and unity? For us to declare it AND live it?
How will we know? Can we know?
Postscript:
This Sunday Aaron [ikon's minister] examined this second section of Genesis I wrote about above. He pointed out something that I like to think would have eventually blossomed for me out of my own questioning and faith process. His point was:
Part of our [meaning males and females] vulnerability and intimacy to each other and to GOD comes from the creation as a whole. Then taking the idea even further... the restoration of that ability [to be vulnerable and intimate with one another] is one of the reasons The LORD JESUS CHRIST, GOD-INCARNATE poured HIMSELF out for us, to reconnect us, to allow us to expose the gooey center that is our soul.
And all GOD'S People said, "Amen?"
Amen! The point of being part of the Body of CHRIST is to be a people that when non-believers look at us, "They will know we are Christians by our love." For me, I cannot love another person if I don't give him/her a piece, however tiny, of my gooey center. I just cannot do it. And I don't want to...love you that is without giving you a space on my soft underbelly [think armadillo] on which to write your name. CHRIST called us to be gentle as doves and shrewed as serpents. If I have not been gentle with you and I profess to love you, my deepest & most sincere apologies. I commit to begin anew on how I will show you I love you. We ARE new every morning. My heart IS once again open for business. Please take out your pen and rewrite [or write for the first time] your name.
More to come...

My Narrative + the Things I Left Out

If you haven't seen The Princess Bride, you need to, especially since I am about to make references to it in this and the coming posts.

Because I [and a couple of other people] consider my life "epic," the following paraphrase from this movie seems completely appropriate:

Inigo says to Wesley something like, “Let me tell you, No, let me explain, No, let me sum-up.”
So here is my "Sum Up."
Thirty years ago I went into remission from childhood cancer.

The chemotherapy I took led to a bunch of nasty side effects,[http://www.stjude.org: look at the published long-term follow-up study] but the left over consequence I am focusing on for this narrative is the enlarged heart. For most of my growing up years, my heart did not really cause problems IF I did not overly tax it...
However when I was in high school [1991], my brother came home on leave from the military, and the whole family got sick with a strep infection. Everybody but me recovered after just one round of antibiotics....my infection? Well, when I got this strep infection, it went to my heart...damaging it in such a way that my doctors in Abilene, Dallas, and Houston reported to my family that I had perhaps 5 years to live.

So, I had my Make*A*Wish trip, I struggled through classes at school, et al.

But activities don't really explain how this changed the essential me inside [my id, my ego, my spirit, my soul, you get the idea].

The Essential Me made a 180 degree turn around...while I had been suffering from the teenage angst, now I was eager to get down to the business of forming of WHO, or rather WHOSE, I wanted to be. The LORD lifted me hardly seems an adequate explanation, but that is EXACTLY what happened. I learned what adults meant when they said that JESUS was the Best Friend you could ever have. I made the choice that HE would be just that for the rest of my life...something I have never regretted.

This is the end of the "Sum Up"
Stay Tuned for More...

Be Conformed by the Holy Spirit to the Image of God

An email I received this week, cautioned that women must be in submission to men when worshiping the LORD, stating implicitly that women must be silent when the BODY is assembled, i.e. no participation in a worship service with the exceptions of singing and eating the LORD'S Supper. When I read this I felt compelled to ask myself these questions:

1. Should the women be in submission to the men during worship, including the LORD’S Supper?

( I still have no answer on that one.)

2. How should this “submission” look in the twenty-first century?

(still mulling over a complete answer)

3. Further how is “passing” the meal left and right: being in submission, but “serving” the LORD’S Supper up and down aisles not?

4. AND what does “submission” mean anyway?

The Microsoft © Dictionary defines submission as:

yielding, or readiness to yield: a willingness to yield or surrender to somebody, or the act of doing so

demanded nothing less than total submission to his authority

This dictionary paints a picture of the act of submission:

WRESTLING withdrawal from wrestling bout: an acknowledgment by a wrestler that he or she cannot continue a bout because of pain

Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

Then I was reminded of the following Scripture:

The WORD of the LORD

From Acts 5

New International Version (NIV)

29 Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey GOD rather than men!

The Message (MSG)

29-32 Peter and the apostles answered, "It's necessary to obey GOD rather than men. The GOD of our ancestors raised up JESUS, the ONE you killed by hanging HIM on a cross. GOD set HIM on high at HIS side, PRINCE and SAVIOR, to give Israel the gift of a changed life and sins forgiven. And we are witnesses to these things. The HOLY SPIRIT, whom GOD gives to those who obey HIM, corroborates every detail."

Amplified Bible (AMP)

29 Then Peter and the apostles replied, We must obey GOD rather than men.

New Living Translation (NLT)

29 But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey GOD rather than any human authority.

New King James Version (NKJV)

29 But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey GOD rather than men.

American Standard Version (ASV)

29 But Peter and the apostles answered and said, We must obey GOD rather than men.

Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

29 And Peter and the apostles answering, said, `To obey GOD it behoveth, rather than men;

30 and the GOD of our fathers did raise up JESUS, whom ye slew, having hanged upon a tree;

31 this one GOD, a PRINCE and a SAVIOR, hath exalted with HIS right hand, to give reformation to Israel, and forgiveness of sins;

32 and we are HIS witnesses of these sayings, and the HOLY SPIRIT also, whom GOD gave to those obeying HIM.'

New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

29 Peter and the other apostles replied, "We must obey GOD instead of people.

While not entirely sure this Scripture applies, after reading that, I asked myself:

I. What men am I submitting to during worship at Hope?

My Response and Thoughts:

1. John Deere [my Dad]

2. The Commissioned Elders at Hope: Daniel, Foy, K.B., & Steve

II. Do these men work hard to obey GOD?

My Response and Thoughts:

I am continually amazed by my Father’s and my Elder’s hearts’ desire to seek the LORD and be obedient to HIS Call and HIS Direction.

III. Am I seeking to be “in true submission” [a.k.a. obedient] to the LORD, rather than just men?

My Response and Thoughts:

1. Well, isn’t being in submission to my earthly father’s will part of being obedient to GOD, since I am not married, living in his household? And if it is, am I doing this?

I know that on the issue of serving the LORD’S Supper, I am in compliance to my earthly father’s will, because he has encouraged me in serving all the people of GOD. When I serve him Holy Communion, he glows with parental pride. He also acknowledges that he sees that I am concentrated on emulating CHRIST and focused on remembering the Gift of HIS Death on the Cross, just as JESUS asked us to when HE implemented it at HIS Last Passover. My Dad has also asked me theological questions in the manner of a brother to a sister in the Family of GOD, with particular emphasis on the role of women in the first century church, an issue he knows I have studied for quite a while. He has also asked if I thought the Church was continuing to pursue the goal to match those first century Christians’ example of how a church should function. My father and I have had many discussions on faith and living it in our everyday lives. I believe I know my father’s will, AND I hope that I pursue obedience to it daily.

2. I believe the head of the “household” I attend among the Family of GOD are the elders at Hope [my home congregation]. Isn’t part of being submissive to the LORD, being in submission to them? And if it is, do I obey them?

Knowing that I am not perfect, I know I want to be [no, not perfect] and am trying to be [again, not perfection] in submission to them. I know that it is their will that every Christian who feels called serve communion: male or female, member or visitor, a CHRIST-follower or a seeker. By serving communion, am I not submitting to their will as I meet those requirements as they pertain to me [called, female, member, CHRIST-follower? Do I know my elders’ will as they have stated it while the Body of CHRIST has met when setting forth statutes to follow concerning womanly participation in worship services? Yes, I understand their will, not only from their announcements before the entire congregation, but also from quiet conversations I have had with them and their wives. Am I respectful, a.k.a. in submission to, these men? To the best of my efforts, I am trying. On serving communion, I know I am obedient because several have told me that I am acting with their commission in all modesty, grace and faith.

Because I am also trying to be in obedience to the LORD and HIS leadership to the place I am being called to, I have sought my elders’ counsel on where I should attend to the Body of CHRIST with true service in San Francisco for the three months I will be there. Is that not meeting the command in Hebrews 13:17 to obey the leaders of your church? Am I endeavoring to be obedient here as well? Yes, they have encouraged me to pray for the LORD’S Will in this matter. I strive to pray for just that daily, again admitting that I am not made perfect in CHRIST yet, and will not be until I am welcomed into my Loving FATHER'S arms.

3. Is the LORD’S Will revealed anywhere else? Is the Bible not the revelation of GOD’S Will?

If I have read HIS Will and am making every effort to understand it and be obedient to the conforming of the HOLY SPIRIT, am I not in a position of submission to the will of my Heavenly FATHER? When the FATHER looks at me, does HE not see me covered in the Blood of the CHRIST? Is that also not in submission to HIS Will?

I ENCOURAGE MY READERS TO COMMENT ON HOW & WHAT I AM DOING TO BE REVERENT TO THE HEAVENLY FATHER OF ALL CREATION.

Heart and Hands: ONE to the first Power

Psalm 86 verse 11 (AMP)

“Teach me Your way, O LORD, that I may walk and live in Your truth; direct and unite my heart [solely, reverently] to fear and honor Your Name.”

Most of you know that if it is the LORD’s will, I will be away from home for three months, beginning in autumn and extending through a portion of winter. As a Christian, I try to live and take action only from within the center of God’s will for my life. With this in mind I know that the LORD of all things has a specific church and a particular people He desires for me to minister to while I am in this other community.

Because I do know this, I feel the prompting of the Spirit to examine my heart, my actions, my desires and my temperament. I pray and am partnered with others who pledge to pray for the discernment needed in finding just that place in which He desires to place me. To help in this, I feel the need to develop lists to aid me. Lists of:

how I desire to serve the LORD;

how I serve HIM best currently and how I can translate those spiritual gifts into a new setting among a different population;

where the LORD wants to give me a deeper faith and understanding;

&

where I need to be “shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves” ( Matthew 10:16 NIV)

How do I best serve God and His people now? Will I be able to offer this service to the body of Christ in a different location?

I Corinthians 12:4-7, 11 (NIV)

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same LORD. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men…

“… Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and HE gives them to each one, just as HE determines.”

Assessment of My Spiritual Gifts

Prayer

In the New Testament alone, 305 verses are devoted to the word "prayer": who, how, when and why. Outside of the Son who is my Savior, Prayer is probably the gift from the LORD I most treasure. In Joel 2, God’s people are promised a Teacher who will train them and us how to live within the circle of God's love and grace. Professor Jesus has and continues to instruct me to cling to Him in prayer.

Growing up, no matter how this theological doctrine is wrong, I believed that if I didn’t personally “convert” or “save” at least one person, I had no chance of entrance into heaven. I heard the refrain of James 2:26 (NIV) parroted often at church and at home, “Faith without works is dead. Faith without works is dead. Faith without works is dead.” Not realizing that salvation is a FREE gift, I lived in despair for many years because I didn’t feel I could “DO” anything to prove my faith. Anytime I would bring this up at home, and sometimes tentatively with friends, I was told, “But, Rachel, you are such an inspiration.” Why, I wondered? According to me, I hadn’t “Done” anything.

Never let it be said that we do not have a patient Teacher!

Again and again I have called out to the LORD of lords to open my eyes in revelation of my "true" purpose. It took quite a while for me to recognize that prayer is not just a speech or a thought transfer to the LORD, but prayer is actually something to “DO.” No matter the physical condition I am in, no matter my physical location, I can always always always pray. In fact this is an avenue open to every seeker and every Christian, everyone is capable of prayer. Why else would Jesus teach all of the disciples to pray several times in the Gospels?

However, I do not believe every Christian has the spiritual gift of prayer.

James 1: 6 & 7 speaks about requests that are made of God must be made with the belief that HE Does answer prayer. Scripture also reveals: The LORD grants us the desires of our hearts [Psalm 37 verses 3 & 4].

I believe the truth of this intensely.

When I say I was given the gift of prayer I am not boasting in myself but in our Lord Jesus Christ [ I Corinthians 1:31; Galatians 6:14; Ephesians 2:9].

Over many years, the LORD has continually shown me that along with all the people of the earth, I possess a short leash, figuratively. Anytime I get too full of myself and believe I have the world by the tail, God gently tugs the leash attached to the collar of covenant I choose to wear. I remember that I am walking with HIM only by the Grace of the Cross.

In a shorter but more appropriate analogy, like an addict I need our Savior on a minute by minute basis.

The central desire of my life is for the Master to say to me, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25: 14-30 NIV)

Faithfulness in prayer is an honor and a privilege. On the flip side of the same coin however, prayer also takes time and yes, work. In Genesis 32, Jacob wrestles with the LORD. Well, prayer is not quite a wrestling match, but it isn’t just sitting at a piano recital either.

The purpose of prayer is a conversation in order that I may better understand the performances of others and my own vain attempts at music by banging on the keyboard, read these as “actions.” The answers to questions I pose to the LORD are quite often resolved by participation in this conversation. Prayer has a second purpose as well. In scripture there were several who have questioned the purpose of the LORD, and even occasionally “changed” HIS mind. Examples include: Abraham in regards to the outcome of Sodom and Gomorrah [ Genesis 18]; Moses after the Israelites worshipped the golden calf [Exodus 32]; David pleading for his first son born from Bathsheba [II Samuel 12]; the king of Nineveh in Jonah [Jonah 3]; the widow of the parable told in Luke 18; and even Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane [Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22].

So prayerful that I am not hurling pearls before swine, here are some of my beliefs:

I am a Prayer Warrior.

I pray believing God answers all prayer.

No matter where I am or how I feel, I can and will pray.

Often when someone I know has a particular need or in the midst of great joy, I carry them or rather their names around with me on an index card…in living color so to speak.

God is in the details.

Sometimes I will ask a person at what hour she needs the prayer, i.e. time she is being wheeled into surgery or when a court will convene. I also ask what outcome she desires from the LORD. [Rest assured, I pray for men too. It's just more fun to type she.]

In the LORD, I seek the growth of faith for those surrounded in the details I request HIM to orchestrate.

Surgeons’ hands are steadied.

Judges’ decisions are bound in love.

Faith grows.

God and His perfect and pleasing will become the center of more lives.

Our GOD Reigns!

How do I know prayer is my greatest spiritual gift?

I can continue to serve in prayer for the Christians and seekers I know now and those I will meet soon.

Prayer Works!

God is The Praise in my life!

To be continued...

Heart and Hands

I am preparing for a journey. As part of that journey, I made this list and was asked to post it by a friend.

How can I serve the Lord and His people?

prayer

participate in Bible studies

worship

communion

"testify"

encouragement

blog

cards

visiting

meals

mentoring

What do I desire in a church?

multiple PM services

open discussion on a variety of topics

theological

social

political

multi-generational

multi-cultural/multi-ethnic

Commitment

to an authentic faith

to a community of believers and seekers

to the neighborhood surrounding the building

to living biblical-ly

NO Faking

What do I NEED in a church?

for it to be Spirit-led

more than 2 elders...who actually do meet the requirements set down by Paul

Christ is the center of all of its spokes

At what Point would I say good-bye to a church and seek membership at another?

if homosexual marriage is accepted and performed

if all ministry and/or leadership positions are completely closed to women

a "formula" church

worship style

admittance style

etc.

if the church is one at which the unstated rule was: "No Perfect People Allowed"

Questions I thought I knew the Answers To...My Purpose

Over the past few months I have come to the conclusion...I have FORGOTTEN how to communicate in such a manner that I am easily "Understood"! I "used to" be such a great communicator that I was told repeatedly that I should take up public speaking as a career. For a long while I thought I would...essentially isn't that what every teacher, professor, minister, survivor of "Great Tragedy" or Christian does, speak publicly? I believed for a while that role was what the LORD had in mind for my life.

BUT I was **GASP** WRONG!

I am not saying I have complete & confident knowledge of HIS perfect will for my life. I am saying the role I described above is not it, at least for the time being. Instead, I am thinking about doing the writing I have been urged to...And I think now, maybe this is how I communicate best anyway. I love spell and grammar check, and let's not forget about that delete key. I also find it more difficult to edit myself verbally. On paper/computer the message I want to send to all who read this is crystallizing [Is that even a word? If not: "I'm pouring out concrete."] even as I type.

I have been warned by a friend or two about revealing too much of myself in a blog because once the thought is out there I can never take it back. Here the thing though, I am not sure I want to, take it back that is. I think of these postings as a statement.

Here I am warts and all.

I want to show and examine and remind myself [and if you read this, you too] GOD isn't done with me yet. AND I don't want HIM to be until HE is ready to call me Home. I am tired of putting the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY in the itty bitty box of my perception. I want MORE! Not more stuff, but MORE GOD and MORE time with HIM and MORE godly friends and MORE of anything HE wants me to have.

So let's choose today, whose side to be are on: the side of pagans OR the side of our HEAVENLY FATHER! I choose the NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES, The LORD! [paraphrase of Joshua 24:15]

I choose today to no longer be on the sideline, but to walk into the HOLY ONE's Arms and to remain there until the war for my soul is done. Join me on my journey and pray that it continues to be ruled by The WAY, The TRUTH, & The LIFE.

Can I get an amen?

God the Father

Next Sunday is Father's Day, and unfortunately I will not see a few faces at church that I usually would get to worship with 2 or 3 times a week.

The "Why?" is a complicated subject. To say the least words possible, for some the idea of celebrating their fathers is painful. I know I have been that missing face upon occasion.

Growing up I had a tough time seeing God the Father. To me a father was not someone to be relied upon. Then roughly half way through my life the Lord blessed me with a miracle, I got a step-father. Now I am NOT saying he is perfect, far from. I'm saying that God provided an example of what a good earthly father could be.

Jesus said that as earthly parents we would not give bad presents [i.e. snakes] to our children; and if we would not, than how much more would God the Father would bestow blessings on us.

Father's Day for me is never a celebration of earthly fathers, as it is for some. I celebrate the Only Father who is reliable 100% of the time. I celebrate God the Father who sent His Only Begotten Son to die in behalf of all of the His adopted sons and daughters.

Finally, I also know that some of those missing faces will still be missing Sunday because of their broken relationships with their fathers has not been healed. But if you read this blog and have these issues, I beg you to cry out to your Heavenly Father for the healing of your heart. Yes, sometimes a relationship with an earthly parent can never be healed. There is a Parent though Who CAN tear away the scars on our beat-up souls and make us a new creation. All you have to do is ask.