Gratuitous Greeting...
Welcome! I have created this blog for the purpose of documenting the renewing of my mind and the transformation of my perspective about the reality of the Kingdom of Heaven. This blog is and will be the result of many 5:00 AM meetings with the King of Heaven.
I realize this sounds ludicrous for some of my readers, even some believing Christians. I will assume if you continue reading this blog that you have chosen to suspend your disbelief and have made an effort to connect with the whatever measure of faith exists past the skepticism that each of us must reconcile when dealing with matters born in an unseen realm. But, I digress...
On this journey, I have experienced an ongoing crisis of belief that challenges my current attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, paradigms and values. As a result, I have begun to encounter God and His favor in every aspect of life.
My readers should be aware of the major streams of apostolic thought that have worked together to get me to this point of my transformation:
- The International House of Prayer (IHOP) - The IHOP has been praising, praying and worshiping 24/7 for over a decade. They are located in Kansas City, MO. Their focus is ultimately on restoring the tabernacle of David and ministering before the Lord day and night until His return. Their focus is on His beauty, and have impacted most by the revelation of the Bridal Paradigm. Look it up: www.ihop.org
- Bethel Church - Bethel Church has been gifted with a revelation of restoration of the authority of the believer and Kingdom Culture. Bill Johnson, the pastor, has authored a book called "When Heaven Invades Earth" that has been pivotal in renewing mind to understand the how to walk in the authority of Christ that was demonstrated during his life and restored in the Great Commission, and regifted through the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
- The 7 Mountains Mandate - This prophetic mandate was separately, but concurrently, given to Loren Cunningham (Youth with a Mission - YWAM) amd Bill Bright (Campus Crusade for Christ). The gist of the story is that they while they were headed to meet each other for lunch, the Lord gave both of them the same vision to communicate to the other at relatively the same moment in time. The message given was that in order to influence a nation for God, there are seven mind molding realms of society that must be renewed with Kingdom culture: Government, Education, Economy/Business, Media, Arts (Entertainment and Sports), Family and Social Services, and Religion. A good book to read is The Seven Mountains Prophecy by John Enlow.
- The Call - This is a movement of young adults committed to living a extreme lifestyle of devotion through abandonment, abstinence and appointment for Kingdom culture. They reflect a similar consecration as that of biblical Nazarites. There is a short book by the founder, Lou Engle, that describes this movement called the Nazirite DNA.
You can Google any of these topics and books and find a plethora of information. When you do, notice how the Lord has integrated them to get a bigger picture of His Kingdom purposes.
Furthermore, I feel I should provide some biographical context to help you understand how I got this point in my journey.
I grew up in church, a pentecostal church. I have been indoctrinated with biblical, doctrinal, and religious laws and precepts. I have had a number of encounters with God. In fact, I don't remember ever not knowing the name of Jesus Christ. I remember being in church every time the doors were open, even if my mom had to literally drag me by the ear to get me to get out of the car and go inside.
Furthermore, I feel I should provide some biographical context to help you understand how I got this point in my journey.
I grew up in church, a pentecostal church. I have been indoctrinated with biblical, doctrinal, and religious laws and precepts. I have had a number of encounters with God. In fact, I don't remember ever not knowing the name of Jesus Christ. I remember being in church every time the doors were open, even if my mom had to literally drag me by the ear to get me to get out of the car and go inside.
At the age of 12, I had my first personal experience with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I responded to the call to full time ministry in my teens. I became a church planter, pastor, and itinerant preacher in my early 20's, and lived a lifestyle consecrated and devoted to God. I practiced the spiritual disciplines of prayer, fasting, and daily study/meditation of God's word. Consequently, I experienced some major disappointments and moral failures that caused me to leave full-time ministry, complete my education, and pursue a different career path in 2000. Over the last ten years, I have been educated to the level of MBA with some doctoral education, and carved out a niche for myself in the IT industry.
