I recently returned from “The Call” in Nashville, Tennessee. “The Call” was simply a day of fasting and prayer, crying out to God in repentance and worship. I met up with the My Canada crew (Tamara Crampton and Faytene Kryskow) in Ontario, took a 12 hour bus ride through the states and met up with Pastor Jim and some of the Anderson fam down in Nashville. Here’s what The Call organizers said, and what drew me down there:
In 1967, 100,000 young people, aged 15-25, flocked to San Francisco to experience the hippie movement. The mass convergence was sparked by the hit song, San Francisco (Wear a flower in Your Hair). Once there, they experimented with LSD, pot, causal sex and Eastern mysticism in what became known as the “Summer of Love.”
When these newly recruited flower Children returned home at the end of summer, they brought with them new styles and ideas, flooding the cities of the US and Europe with a message that opposed authority and scorned conservative morals. This counterculture rebellion was fueled by music and art, and it rapidly shifted global culture.
The effects of the Summer of Love” are still with us today. That same year the Jesus Movement was born, a youth revival starting on the streets that swept across the country, exploding into college campuses and coffeehouses. Its lasting influence was through countless pastors who got saved and called into ministry during these turbulent times. It’s time to remarry the Lord! In the ‘60’s there was a Great Divorce and a Great Divide as a generation turned from the heart of God and His ways. Now at the 40 year mark, it’s time to return to the Lord, to renew our covenant vows of love to Him.
So I went. “Marry us, God.” That’s what some 100,000 of us said to God. It’s sort of like at some point in our past, God asked us to marry Him. We said yes, but maybe we didn’t understand the ramifications of a commitment like that because we’ve not yet severed other loves and relationships that have been trying to win our heart and rule our lives.
It’s amazing to sit, stand, worship, pray, repent and be silent among that many people (while we had a moment of silence I got the hiccups – that wasn’t my favorite. Pretty loud and embarrassing). I felt like I was among the children of Israel gathered at a critical time and the leaders were reminding us of God’s laws and saying “YOU CAN’T BREAK GOD’S LAWS AND GET AWAY WITH IT.” I’m not interested in finding out what’s in store for us if things don’t change.
So there we were. It was so hot. We fasted. We prayed. Three couples got married (it was planned ahead of time – the brides had their pretty white gowns on and walked down the aisle on their dad’s arm while the crowd cheered like crazy). We worshiped. We repented. Many people fainted because they forgot to drink enough water. We sweated. We held hands and prayed with strangers. We prayed alone. We danced… we waited and listened to the Lord. We celebrated Him. All this for 14 hours. I have never done anything for 14 hours straight before. It was one of those days where so much happened around me and inside me that I might never really understand the impact of it all, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what happened July 7, 2007, and what continues on in our hearts is of enormous and eternal significance.
Canada will only change to the extent that we are willing to change . . .
What is in your Canadian heart? What prejudices do you carry there toward others in our country? I am always surprised at what venom is in us towards the French. Do we realize that no one chooses where or to whom they are born? Neither do they choose their language, or race. I know races have general strengths and weaknesses but should we teach our kids to despise some of the others unlike ourselves? All it took for me was to meet a few French Canadians before all my little racist jokes turned to sand in my mouth and I suddenly became so ashamed of all the ignorant French bashing I had engaged in most of my life. I grew up resenting French on my cereal boxes, I refused to take French in high school. I made fun of the French in Quebec for… I’m not sure what, but I blindly cultivated ill will toward them. But you really can’t hate your brother and love God. How can you pray for revival and hate your neighbor? I know that there are people groups in my own community that I honestly don’t understand. I get mad and frustrated at some of our differences. I feel righteous in my anger. And then I disqualify them as people I need to love. I’m not broken over their brokenness. But if we do not love our brother who we have seen, how can we love our Father in heaven who we have not seen?
They handed out these red bracelets. It’s a totally non-trendy movement started by people (www.bound4life.com) who wondered what would happen if every day a million looked at this red band on their wrists and prayed, humbled their hearts and cried out to God, say 5 times a day in repentance, asking for revival and the end of abortion. What if there were 5 million of us doing that? Praying from our hearts. Torn over the state of our country. Broken over the pain that millions in our country endure.
Jesus I plead your blood over my sins and the sins of my nation.
God, end abortion and send
revival to Canada.
WHY LINK REVIVAL AND ABORTION?
Revival and the unborn are at the heart of Lifeline. It’s a connection that never even occurred to me until I met Pastor Jim. In the Old Testament God commanded His people to worship no other gods. This wasn’t because He lacked self-esteem and wanted to be the most popular God, but it’s because He knew what the other gods required. Old Testament gods like Molech and Asherah required temple prostitution and child sacrifice as part of the worship requirements. People activated their sexuality as an act of worship. Very often children were conceived as a result. Many of these children, as well as others, particularly firstborns, were then sacrificed back to the gods. Men and women were giving their themselves to the gods and children were paying the price.
The same phenomenon occurs today– we have a culture of free sexuality where people “hook-up” with whomever it happens to be this weekend, and if that 15 year old or if that lady at the office, gets pregnant, her relationships, her job, her future, her marriage (if it’s an affair), her value, everything is threatened. In order to stay in the game, in order to avoid the lasting consequences (if we dare call a child that) that woman ends the life of her child. Abortion. In order to maintain the lifestyle, the baby is aborted. It’s a sacrifice to god of sexual immorality. It might not be Molech and his fiery image, but it’s the same attitude, the same spirit. This other god is being worshiped
Unfortunately, if you look, people in the church aren’t that different from those outside of it. We’re confused too. Look at our sex saturated culture and try to get 10 Christians to agree on what “Purity” is. The Bible says, “Not even a HINT of sexual immorality” but I’ve heard myself say, “That movie wasn’t so bad. It only had a couple of sex scenes. But I closed my eyes & plugged my ears.” Isn’t that weird. If my approach is to ignore it and think I won’t get burned (or my children after me), I’m a fool. Someone’s going to reap the harvest of the seeds we’re sowing into the culture.
When God’s laws are ignored, another god is being worshiped. Sexual immorality is the worship of another god. Abortion is a sacrifice on the altar of another god. Revival is tearing down altars to false gods and worshiping the true God again. This isn’t a fight against other people with other beliefs – it’s a struggle against principalities and powers, against rulers in heavenly realms. It’s a struggle against the god of this age who wants to rule in our hearts and minds. Our only hope is a revelation of what’s really going on. Laws have never guaranteed the end of lawbreaking, but when hearts change, everything changes.
That’s why abortion, and that’s why revival.
********************
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT AND NOTES OF ENCOURAGEMENT! Things are coming together.
UPDATE ON THE OTHER STUFF
Web site
The “Testimonies” page is up. Take some time to read people’s testimonies. There’s also a new opening/index page with some music you might recognize. Or not. Actually there are a few opening pages we’re rotating through. Pastor Jim wants people to be ministered to as soon as they get to the web site. I’m working on it. So, as always, new things are being added. Check it out. Soon you’ll be able to order stuff online. That’s a little bit tougher and requires more brains that I have. Thankfully I have a cohort in Oregon who is building some web forms so we can soon be ordering online. Visit the web site and let me know what you think!
Book
Chapter’s 1 - 3 are done. Only 7 or so more to go. What I have to do is make sure the flow is right, that we haven’t used the same illustration twice, and that it’s readable. Things like that. So, the book is in its semi-final stages. I am working with people in Spokane who are putting together a marketing package. This is all new to me. I’m praying and believing that God will help us connect with the right people at the right time, publishers of integrity who will get this book to as many people as possible as quickly as possible – without watering down the message. One thing I am thinking a lot about right now is the title of the book. Even though your mama always said, “You can’t judge a book by its cover,” I must say that it is important that what’s on the cover gives a good indication of what’s in the book. I don’t want the title to mislead anyone, for example for guys to think, “This book is just for girls” or for women to think, “it’s only for people who have had abortions . .” This book is for the entire church because everyone plays a roll in our culture. We all shape it. We all participate in the problem, we need a revelation so we can be part of the solution.
In 1967, 100,000 young people, aged 15-25, flocked to San Francisco to experience the hippie movement. The mass convergence was sparked by the hit song, San Francisco (Wear a flower in Your Hair). Once there, they experimented with LSD, pot, causal sex and Eastern mysticism in what became known as the “Summer of Love.”
When these newly recruited flower Children returned home at the end of summer, they brought with them new styles and ideas, flooding the cities of the US and Europe with a message that opposed authority and scorned conservative morals. This counterculture rebellion was fueled by music and art, and it rapidly shifted global culture.
The effects of the Summer of Love” are still with us today. That same year the Jesus Movement was born, a youth revival starting on the streets that swept across the country, exploding into college campuses and coffeehouses. Its lasting influence was through countless pastors who got saved and called into ministry during these turbulent times. It’s time to remarry the Lord! In the ‘60’s there was a Great Divorce and a Great Divide as a generation turned from the heart of God and His ways. Now at the 40 year mark, it’s time to return to the Lord, to renew our covenant vows of love to Him.
So I went. “Marry us, God.” That’s what some 100,000 of us said to God. It’s sort of like at some point in our past, God asked us to marry Him. We said yes, but maybe we didn’t understand the ramifications of a commitment like that because we’ve not yet severed other loves and relationships that have been trying to win our heart and rule our lives.
It’s amazing to sit, stand, worship, pray, repent and be silent among that many people (while we had a moment of silence I got the hiccups – that wasn’t my favorite. Pretty loud and embarrassing). I felt like I was among the children of Israel gathered at a critical time and the leaders were reminding us of God’s laws and saying “YOU CAN’T BREAK GOD’S LAWS AND GET AWAY WITH IT.” I’m not interested in finding out what’s in store for us if things don’t change.
So there we were. It was so hot. We fasted. We prayed. Three couples got married (it was planned ahead of time – the brides had their pretty white gowns on and walked down the aisle on their dad’s arm while the crowd cheered like crazy). We worshiped. We repented. Many people fainted because they forgot to drink enough water. We sweated. We held hands and prayed with strangers. We prayed alone. We danced… we waited and listened to the Lord. We celebrated Him. All this for 14 hours. I have never done anything for 14 hours straight before. It was one of those days where so much happened around me and inside me that I might never really understand the impact of it all, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what happened July 7, 2007, and what continues on in our hearts is of enormous and eternal significance.
Canada will only change to the extent that we are willing to change . . .
What is in your Canadian heart? What prejudices do you carry there toward others in our country? I am always surprised at what venom is in us towards the French. Do we realize that no one chooses where or to whom they are born? Neither do they choose their language, or race. I know races have general strengths and weaknesses but should we teach our kids to despise some of the others unlike ourselves? All it took for me was to meet a few French Canadians before all my little racist jokes turned to sand in my mouth and I suddenly became so ashamed of all the ignorant French bashing I had engaged in most of my life. I grew up resenting French on my cereal boxes, I refused to take French in high school. I made fun of the French in Quebec for… I’m not sure what, but I blindly cultivated ill will toward them. But you really can’t hate your brother and love God. How can you pray for revival and hate your neighbor? I know that there are people groups in my own community that I honestly don’t understand. I get mad and frustrated at some of our differences. I feel righteous in my anger. And then I disqualify them as people I need to love. I’m not broken over their brokenness. But if we do not love our brother who we have seen, how can we love our Father in heaven who we have not seen? They handed out these red bracelets. It’s a totally non-trendy movement started by people (www.bound4life.com) who wondered what would happen if every day a million looked at this red band on their wrists and prayed, humbled their hearts and cried out to God, say 5 times a day in repentance, asking for revival and the end of abortion. What if there were 5 million of us doing that? Praying from our hearts. Torn over the state of our country. Broken over the pain that millions in our country endure.
Jesus I plead your blood over my sins and the sins of my nation.
God, end abortion and send
revival to Canada.
WHY LINK REVIVAL AND ABORTION?
Revival and the unborn are at the heart of Lifeline. It’s a connection that never even occurred to me until I met Pastor Jim. In the Old Testament God commanded His people to worship no other gods. This wasn’t because He lacked self-esteem and wanted to be the most popular God, but it’s because He knew what the other gods required. Old Testament gods like Molech and Asherah required temple prostitution and child sacrifice as part of the worship requirements. People activated their sexuality as an act of worship. Very often children were conceived as a result. Many of these children, as well as others, particularly firstborns, were then sacrificed back to the gods. Men and women were giving their themselves to the gods and children were paying the price.
The same phenomenon occurs today– we have a culture of free sexuality where people “hook-up” with whomever it happens to be this weekend, and if that 15 year old or if that lady at the office, gets pregnant, her relationships, her job, her future, her marriage (if it’s an affair), her value, everything is threatened. In order to stay in the game, in order to avoid the lasting consequences (if we dare call a child that) that woman ends the life of her child. Abortion. In order to maintain the lifestyle, the baby is aborted. It’s a sacrifice to god of sexual immorality. It might not be Molech and his fiery image, but it’s the same attitude, the same spirit. This other god is being worshiped
Unfortunately, if you look, people in the church aren’t that different from those outside of it. We’re confused too. Look at our sex saturated culture and try to get 10 Christians to agree on what “Purity” is. The Bible says, “Not even a HINT of sexual immorality” but I’ve heard myself say, “That movie wasn’t so bad. It only had a couple of sex scenes. But I closed my eyes & plugged my ears.” Isn’t that weird. If my approach is to ignore it and think I won’t get burned (or my children after me), I’m a fool. Someone’s going to reap the harvest of the seeds we’re sowing into the culture.
When God’s laws are ignored, another god is being worshiped. Sexual immorality is the worship of another god. Abortion is a sacrifice on the altar of another god. Revival is tearing down altars to false gods and worshiping the true God again. This isn’t a fight against other people with other beliefs – it’s a struggle against principalities and powers, against rulers in heavenly realms. It’s a struggle against the god of this age who wants to rule in our hearts and minds. Our only hope is a revelation of what’s really going on. Laws have never guaranteed the end of lawbreaking, but when hearts change, everything changes.
That’s why abortion, and that’s why revival.
********************
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT AND NOTES OF ENCOURAGEMENT! Things are coming together.
UPDATE ON THE OTHER STUFF
Web site
The “Testimonies” page is up. Take some time to read people’s testimonies. There’s also a new opening/index page with some music you might recognize. Or not. Actually there are a few opening pages we’re rotating through. Pastor Jim wants people to be ministered to as soon as they get to the web site. I’m working on it. So, as always, new things are being added. Check it out. Soon you’ll be able to order stuff online. That’s a little bit tougher and requires more brains that I have. Thankfully I have a cohort in Oregon who is building some web forms so we can soon be ordering online. Visit the web site and let me know what you think!
Book
Chapter’s 1 - 3 are done. Only 7 or so more to go. What I have to do is make sure the flow is right, that we haven’t used the same illustration twice, and that it’s readable. Things like that. So, the book is in its semi-final stages. I am working with people in Spokane who are putting together a marketing package. This is all new to me. I’m praying and believing that God will help us connect with the right people at the right time, publishers of integrity who will get this book to as many people as possible as quickly as possible – without watering down the message. One thing I am thinking a lot about right now is the title of the book. Even though your mama always said, “You can’t judge a book by its cover,” I must say that it is important that what’s on the cover gives a good indication of what’s in the book. I don’t want the title to mislead anyone, for example for guys to think, “This book is just for girls” or for women to think, “it’s only for people who have had abortions . .” This book is for the entire church because everyone plays a roll in our culture. We all shape it. We all participate in the problem, we need a revelation so we can be part of the solution.
Comments