My wife, Brooks, wrote the following observations following our return from a ministry trip in Kenya:
The Revolution is happening – it’s happening all over the world. We are in a Reformation. Acknowledge it or not. Be a part of it or not. Jesus longs for his church to come alive, to become a living, breathing, organism. He longs for us to be in a real, live, intimate relationship with Him, regardless of others – and then in real, live relationship with our families – earthly and spiritual. And, He’s begging us to come alive, be who we are as individuals, alive and free in Him, telling the world who and what He has done for us.
While visiting Kenya recently, I saw a part of the world that is saturated with Christianity. However, like many of us, the church there is dull to true life in Christ. We are like dead men walking. We depend on evangelists, teachers, preachers, and prophets to experience God, to hear from God, to learn from God, to have that deep relationship with God and then to tell us all about it. We are lazy, apathetic, and very content to have second-hand relationship with Him. We are insecure. We are busy and exhausted from seeking relationship with other people and other things first. Or, we believe our relationship with God is second-rate to someone else’s and so we put our relationship with Him aside and live out our lives through someone else’s relationship with Jesus. Jesus is calling us out. He is calling his disciples out. As Felicity Dale refers to in her book, An Army of Ordinary People, He is forming an army and He is calling for soldiers to join the ranks!
What I saw in Kenya, I see in America and I see in other parts of the Christianized world. The enemy accepts that Christianity is in the world – real, strong, alive Believers in Christ. But, if he can just contain us, keep us from contaminating others, there’s little to worry about. If he can contain us in buildings, then the world will not know the truth and few will be set free. But what I saw in Kenya, I also see in America and other parts of the world. The virus is leaking. The Reformation of the 21st Century, led by the Holy Spirit, is taking Christianity out of containers into the open spaces of the neighborhoods and nations of the world. The virus of Jesus Christ’s love and resurrection power is leaking into the world. Disciples of Christ are no longer content in the restraints made by man, they hunger to hear what their Master is saying. The virus is gaining momentum and it is intensifying. There is, indeed, a revolution happening and it’s happening all over the world!
Comments
8 responses to “The Virus Can No Longer Be Contained”
Well said!
It is so true – people are apathetic to seeking a real, alive, personal relationship to the one true Lover – Jesus Christ. I like how your wife put it, “We depend on evangelists, teachers, preachers, and prophets to experience God, to hear from God, to learn from God, to have that deep relationship with God and then to tell us all about it.” Not only in Kenya, not only in America, but in Barbados in the Caribbean, where I live, as well…
Unfortunately, all true. But thank God that the virus is leaking out!!!!!
AMEN!!!!!!!!!!
Our friend and Christian brother Harron Adams and his wife Mary are bringing the Word of God, His hope, and His joy to the people of Kenya and Uganda.
God bless the EPIDEMIC of Your Love!
Ben and Bunny Wardlaw
Hilton Head Island, SC
(843) 341-5066
Great blog and comments! As believers we dare not wait for someone else to come speak for us. The Word of God is powerful and effective through each of us. If we are willing God is faithful to give us the words. God’s greatest works happen in ally-ways, on the road home and at the stream-side while we are just living out His life. We often miss the signs and wonders and assume they are just happenstance. Neil
I wanted to write you a general letter, not in response to this article … however, because I have MS WORKS not MS WORD I was unable to do that so I’m writing here instead because my husband and I are DESPERATE.
WE want … no, we NEED … simple church … but there are none in this area (rural, midwestern) … we’ve been simply worshiping together in our home … but there is no one else there and we really need fellowship.
I’ve searched several websites with directories but there are none listed.
What can we do? We aren’t in a position to run one ourselves (financial, especially) … also because we may be called upon to move at any time to find work.
We’re getting desperate for fellowship. Please help if you can!
2 Samuel 12:11-14 NAB
Thus says the Lord: ‘I will bring evil upon you out of your own house. I will take your wives [plural] while you live to see it, and will give them to your neighbor. He shall lie with your wives in broad daylight. You have done this deed in secret, but I will bring it about in the presence of all Israel, and with the sun looking down.’
Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan answered David: “The Lord on his part has forgiven your sin: you shall not die. But since you have utterly spurned the Lord by this deed, the child born to you must surely die.”
The Lord says that he going to allow a man to rape another mans wives (pluar) and make him watch it.
Then he is going to kill a baby not yet born, being condemned before birth, for something it didnt even do?
Seriously you cant see the problem here ?
Thanks, Brooks. God’s Spirit is preparing the Bride, and what you’ve spoken is truly the “Voice of the bride and the bride”. Wonderful. Encouraging.
Sorry! 😉 Here’s a 2 A.M. correction to my post…
Brooks — what you’ve spoken is truly the Voice of the Bridegroom and the Bride…
(Mea culpa…)
aaamenn wonderful post this was ! a living vibrant relationship with Him helps us to truly understand His heart and His love for broken humanity. WE are compelled by this great overwhelming love of our Saviour, it has everything to do with living free in Him and sharing HIm whenever, whereever, This was a great post @