From the Desk of James W. Goll
Well the New Year is upon us! Ready or not – here it is. So how would you like to start the year off by joining us in Nashville, TN for our annual Secret Place Gathering on January 15 – 17, 2009? The theme this year is Secrets from the Fathers with Bob Jones, Bob Mumford, R. T. Kendall and Jack Taylor all joining us. For more information or to register for our 4th annual gathering >>Click here<< . For the staff and attendees this gathering seems to be one of our most impacting. God always seems to show up and wreck us as we cry out for more and this year will be the same! Join us as some of the fathers in the land share from their deep and rich experiences of walking in the Kingdom of God on earth!
Prior to each of our gatherings I like to expose you to the writings of each speaker that will be a part of the conference. This week we are featuring Jack Taylor. Jack has pastored several churches and is the author of twelve widely accepted books. After a visit to Toronto in August of 1994 during which a significant healing took place physically and spiritually in Jack, his ministry took a dramatic turn. The Lord has gifted Jack with an apostolic insight into the word of God and the heart to communicate the fullness of His Kingdom to any who will hear. Jack also has a blog titled Coffee with Jack, and we have taken a few of his more recent ponderings and want to share them with you. I enjoy so much the simple yet deep message Jack brings to the truths we often overlook.
Remember that everything in our Bookstore is an additional 25% off through January 1, 2009! This includes already discounted items! We encourage you to take advantage of these savings to get those last minute Christmas presents for some of your loved ones.
Blessings to you!
James W. Goll and the EN Team
Kingdom Bites
by Jack Taylor
WHERE ARE WE HEADED?
Are you feeling prodded, shoved, pushed, pulled, nudged? You’re not alone! All these issues are involved in moving along with God. We can’t always hear but we can most always “feel”. I have good news for you. We are being “put upon” by our Heavenly Father in order to taking us somewhere and that gives being prodded, etc., a delightful perspective. We’re going somewhere and though there may be a few “providential bruises” along the way, you’ll really like it when we get there.
“. . . til we all come in the unity of the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God
and become mature unto the measure of the stature of Christ (Ephesians 4:13)”.
Wow! That’s where we’re headed. The trip may be rough but the destination will be royal. Take heart, Dear Saint. The sweat and struggle of the journey will soon be forgotten in the beautiful blaze of glory that will be revealed in us. Feel the knots, view the scars, celebrate the pain . . . then go happily on! Think about it. Much!
THE KINGDOM IS RELATIONAL
The Kingdom of God is nothing, if not relational. It begins and continues with a vital relationship between God and man. The moment we are related to God through the new birth we are simultaneously related to one another, whether on earth or in heaven. When you and I are connected with God, we are immediately connected spiritually with like citizens on earth and in heaven. As our relationships on earth are changed, due to our citizenship in the Kingdom, our relationships include those in heaven. We are part of “all the saints”. We have been changed from the common to the cosmic!
As this idea is soaking in our souls, we will find it more difficult to exclude any fellow Kingdom citizens from our circle of love and cooperation. We are all part of the same Kingdom, universal and infinite. We are part of one another and parts together comprising the unending Kingdom. We must give up the philosophy behind the adage:
To live above with saints we love,
Now that will be glory!
To live below with saints we know,
Now that’s another story.!
It’s not another story; it’s a part of the whole story and a glorious part as we learn to enjoy, not endure, Kingdom relationships here and now. “As it is in heaven”, the scope contained in the model prayer (Matthew 6:9), will put heaven on exhibit as we “live below with saints we know, exhibiting Kingdom love (agape).
The Kingdom is inherently relational. God’s kingly rule on earth, while including all citizens of the Kingdom, call for a Kingdom, corporate and unified in experiencing and extending. At no time are we to lose the individual facet of our relationship to the government of God on earth. It is from a healthy concept of our individual relationships to the King and His Kingdom that we facilitate the corporate aspects as well.
I must think “cosmic” and if I don’t I will narrow and diminish my concepts and practice of life until I am alone and left out of the wider plan of God. I am not sure what all it will involve, but I feel strongly that God’s greatest waiting initiatives are held in check until we report For duty. For my part, count me in! Reporting for duty, Sir!
Oh, by the way, the “relational” designation covers both the personal and corporate!
A FORMULA FOR LIFE: THE PATH OF BLESSEDNESS
I am not usually given to formulas but the morning of Dec 14th I was awakened with a blast of blessing from a Scripture that, sad to say, I had not recently considered.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding; in all your way acknowledge him and he shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5,6
It fell into place as I meditated on it.
The Prerequisite: Total trust in God (with all your heart).
The Program:
1. Negative: Avoid self-trust: Don’t even lean toward your own thinking.
2. Acknowledgement of God in everything
The Payoff: God’s guidance in our walk.
This passage is gladdening my heart as if I had just discovered it for the first time. I find it intensely practical, immediately applicable and instantly rewarding!
You know, I feel the Bible is full of passages like this one that we have not thought much about recently that would break over our heads with great benefit if we would simply stand still for a moment to hear what God might say and is ready to do.
Try it! You'll like it. I have. I did!
Jack Taylor
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