Category: Through The Looking Glass

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America Fresh Oil New Wine 2014 Friendship Living It Out In Real Time The Big Event The Life of Faith Through The Looking Glass

The Fine Art of Carrying Cats

Through The Looking Glass2

I love this quote by Mark Twain…

“A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.”

Our personal experiences – good and bad – make us who we are. Experience can be a brutal teacher. What we go through in life, and how we deal with it, can either make us or break us. Being gracious when times are good, and not becoming bitter when times are bad are both equally important.

Regardless of which applies to you on any given day, none of it is getting past your Heavenly Father. The Bible says that He “works all things together for good for those who love Him”. That means that He knows what you are going through, and regardless of what it is, He is going to turn it around for your good.

That’s a promise I can live with. How about you?

Pastor Ron

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Through The Looking Glass

Seeking The Kingdom

Through the Looking Glass

Canadian writer Laurence Peter once made this observation…

“An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn’t happen today.”

It’s easy to look at things in hindsight, and say what we would have, should have, or could have done. However, in spite of all of our advances in technology, we still cannot accurately predict the future.

If you don’t believe me, just watch the weatherman on the news.

Maybe that is why the words of Jesus still ring true…

 “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

Each day poses challenges and trials that cannot be planned for. But if our focus is on the Heavenly, and our faith is in the One who never fails, we can be confident in His hand in our lives.

Jesus said to seek first the Kingdom of God. Any future that has that as the focus is one filled with promise.

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Through The Looking Glass

Life In The Age of the Little White Lie

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A few of days ago marked the anniversary of the passing of one of the greatest minds of the last century. Albert Einstein was a German-born physicist who, among other things, developed the theory of relativity, as well as won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. Einstein once said…

Anyone who does not take truth seriously in small matters
cannot be trusted in large ones either.

We live in a culture that has grown to overlook the “little white lie”. In today’s society, the old adage ‘a man’s word is his bond’, is (I fear) exactly that… old. It seems that we often go from political season to political season in an attempt, not to get the best person for the job, but simply trying to avoid the worst. Whether personal, political, or business, we desire to overlook the “small issues” for the greater good in individuals, instead of looking at these issues as potential warning signs of more serious problems. Even King Solomon recognized the potential for the little things to become bigger problems when he said…

Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. ~ Song of Solomon 2:15

Jesus drives the point home in the parable of the talents when the master tells the servant…

…Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things… ~ Matthew 25:21

While forgiveness for past shortcomings is important, so is faithfulness and integrity. Character is critical, but it is unlikely that a person will learn from a mistake they are unwilling to take responsibility for.

C. S. Lewis once said…

The safest road to Hell is the gradual one — the gentle slope, soft underfoot,
without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.

Accountability goes a long way in keeping the “little thing” now from becoming the “big thing” later. As believers in Jesus, we must make every effort to be truthful in all we say and do, to be lights in a dark world, and to still be “as wise as serpents, and as harmless as doves.”

 

he safest road to hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts
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he safest road to hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/c/cslewis115353.html#ZtszMH3OHVUD2Hmo.99
Anyone who doesn’t take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.
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Anyone who doesn’t take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.
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Anyone who doesn’t take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.
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Anyone who doesn’t take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.
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America Fresh Oil New Wine 2014 Healing Living It Out In Real Time Miracles Out of Nowhere The Big Event The Life of Faith The Mysteries of God The Secret Place Through The Looking Glass

In Retrospect of Fear

FlagSometimes, some things that we say bear repeating (and truth much moreso). This week will mark the one-year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing. The following blog was written in the aftermath of that horrible event.
Recent events in our nation and world have brought fear and uncertainty back to the headlines, and whether it is fear of an unseen enemy, or fear of the very institutions and ideals we once thought made us safe… fear is still fear.
However, truth is still truth… whether spoken 5 seconds ago, 1 year ago, or 2 millenia ago.

No Fear

After following the news in the wake of this week’s terror attack at the Boston Marathon, it is obvious and understandable that emotions in our nation are running the gamut.

We are saddened by the physical and emotional pain that our friends and fellow Americans are facing as a result of those killed and injured. Our prayers for healing and comfort go out to the victims and their families during this time.

We are angry that someone had the audacity to commit this heinous crime on a day (Patriot’s Day) that was about everything that is right with our nation (courage, honor, freedom), on our own soil – our home.

We are confused as to why and how this could have happened. Who committed this act? Why did they do it? As our fine law enforcement officials investigate, we believe that answers will be forthcoming.

We are afraid. Many people in our nation are now living in fear on a variety of levels:

People are in fear that it could happen again.

Witnesses may face fear from the memories of that horrific day.

Victims are fearful of moving forward into a future of uncertainty.

Terror, by it’s very definition, is about eliciting a fear response. Terror means “extreme fear”. Terrorism is not simply about killing and wounding innocent men, women, and children; it is about inciting fear in those who remain, and causing people to live in fear.

The problem we face is that fear (terror) is a vicious cycle. Fear is a magnet to demons. The more we discuss and voice our fear with our lips, the more demons are attracted to the atmosphere of fear. Fear is more than emotion… fear is a spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that…

“God has not not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind“.

In the Bible, Job was considered a righteous man. However, Job had a fatal flaw. In Job 3:25, Job confesses:

“For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me.”

Job feared the loss of his children and his treasures, and Satan was drawn to that fear. And while we may think that fear is an unavoidable part of life, living in fear is an existence that we do not have to settle for. 1 John 4:18 tells us that “perfect love casts out fear“, and in Proverbs 29:25, we have this promise:

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.

Abraham Lincoln is arguably the greatest president our country has ever seen. However, history bears out that he lost every single election he ran until he ran for president. What if he had allowed fear from past experiences to convince him to quit? How different would our country look today.

Former South African President Nelson Mandela once said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” For the believer in Jesus Christ, the opposite of fear is more than courage… it is faith and hope.

For those of you that watch my television program, Ron Phillips from Abba’s House, you are familiar with my co-host, Angie McGregor. What many of you may not realize is that Angie is a gifted songwriter and singer. Several years ago, in the immediate shadow of 9/11, Angie released a song that resonates today. Having faced down some fear in her own life, she penned the song simply titled, I Will Not Fear. After the events of 9/11, this song took on a whole new meaning for all of us that heard it.

— from the CD Could We Dance? ©Copyright 2002 FacePlace Music

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Friendship Living It Out In Real Time The Life of Faith The Secret Place Through The Looking Glass

When The Mighty Oaks Fall…

For about 14 years, I had a radio program called CenterPoint. The person who produced my program was a recording-producer who was a member of my church.

Sunlight thru trees-editedA few years back, we had a series of storms and tornadoes come through our area, and there was a LOT of damage throughout the region. On our first visit back to the studio after the storms, while there was no damage to his home or studio, there was significant damage to my producer’s property (it was actually determined by the NWS that a tornado had, in fact, passed across the back of his property). He told me that the thing that really made an impression was that, although he had many smaller pine trees (which in our area have very shallow roots, and fall fairly regularly), it was actually several mighty oak trees that fell. In one place, three that were close to each other fell together, decimating everything around them… including some trees that were larger. He told me that, while he was never surprised when the pines fell, he never really concerned himself with the oaks. They seemed nearly invincible.

Snow 1JSometimes, what happens in the natural is a picture of what is going on in the spirit. How many times have we put our trust in something or someone we deem greater than ourselves, only to watch them fall, and leave those around devastated? How many times have we looked at the “mighty oaks” in our lives for security, only to watch them collapse, and leave us questioning everything else? How often have we seen the “small trees” in our life lead to the demise of that in which we placed an inordinate amount of faith and trust, leaving us shaken and confused?

So, what is their problem? How could they let us down like that? How could they put us in this “crisis of faith”?

Maybe the problem is not with them at all.

Maybe the problem is with us. Maybe it is our unreasonable expectations and misplaced faith that led us to this place of crisis.

Putting our faith and trust in anything or anyone but God will, inevitably, lead to disappointment. After all, He is the only One with the ability to make good on such a promise…

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
 in all your ways acknowledge Him,
    and He shall direct your paths. ~ Proverbs 3:5-6

Sometimes, when all is stripped away, we find that the love of God is the only thing we have left.

However, it is at those lowest of times that we find that the love of God is all that we really need.

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America The Life of Faith Through The Looking Glass

Learning To Fly

When he was 18 years old, Will was injured in during a game of hockey.

Wilbur WrightAlthough his injuries were not serious, depression crept in and Will became withdrawn, declining entry into an ivy-league school, and living mostly housebound. A few years later, when his younger brother (a high-school dropout) started a printing company, Will shook off the chains of his depression and joined his brother in his new business.

Sometimes we allow the smallest things to deter us from the life that God has for us. We allow our dreams to die because of the lies of an enemy who says we aren’t good enough. But God says that His plans for us are to prosper us… to give us hope, and a future (see Jeremiah 29:11).

Wright FlightWill (or as he was better known, Wilbur) joined his brother Orville in becoming successful businessmen and inventors. While no one remembers Will the hockey player, no one can deny the contribution the Wright Brothers made to the world with the invention of the fixed-wing airplane.

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America Friendship Living It Out In Real Time The Life of Faith The Secret Place Through The Looking Glass

To Tell The Truth

Former President William Howard Taft once said:

Don’t write so that you can be understood…
write so that you can’t be misunderstood.

Wars have been started over misunderstandings. Careers have been destroyed because of something someone said or wrote decades ago — things they thought long forgotten. I find it interesting during political interviews and debates when, asked a simple question, a candidate gives a two-minute response, and still never actually answers the question. In the age of social media, we hear horror stories all the time regarding simple misunderstandings that are blown out of proportion. Someone makes a comment on Twitter or Facebook which is promptly misunderstood or taken out of context. It is then regurgitated by someone else, and pretty soon feelings are hurt, relationships are destroyed, and the character assassins have more than enough to keep them busy for days and weeks to come.

And why all the misunderstanding? Because, in many cases, people are more concerned with being socially or politically correct than being honest.

Let your yes be yes, and your no be no.

Jesus said to “let your yes be yes, and your no be no”. He encouraged us to speak the truth with love.

BibleSometimes the truth is tough.

Sometimes the truth is difficult to say, and harder to hear.

Sometimes the truth hurts worse than a slap in the face or a punch in the chest.

In the movie The Dark Knight Rises, Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred, has a great quote:

Maybe it’s time we all stop trying to outsmart the truth, and let it have its day.

That’s good advice that we would all do well to heed. Maybe it’s time for we in the Church to be honest with each other, and operate with the truth and integrity that God has called us all to. After all, how can we expect people to hear the truth that can set them free if we ourselves are not operating in truth. And the great thing about speaking the truth is that no one who speaks the truth ever has to remember what it was they said in the past.

God is a God of truth, and in Him there is “no shadow of turning”. As long as we are standing on the truth of His Word, we never have to worry about where it is we are standing.

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Fresh Oil New Wine 2014 Miracles Out of Nowhere The Big Event The Life of Faith The Mysteries of God The Secret Place Through The Looking Glass

A Leader Worth Following

From inside the walls of our churches to the halls of Congress, people are looking for leadership. But what is a real leader?

Is it the person who “makes the rules” and “calls the shots?”

Is it the one who constantly reminds others of who is in charge?

Is it the person who has the “my way or the highway” mentality?

Or…

Is it the person who listens to the advice of others? Is it the person who takes suggestions and criticism, and has the wisdom to run with the good, and throw out the bad?

In his book, Jesus: The Man Who Lives, British author Malcolm Muggeridge made this observation…

If the greatest of all, Incarnate God, chooses to be servant of all, who would wish to be master?”

Jesus said that “whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.”

Do you wish to lead? If you do, then find out what it means to serve, and become a servant today.

This week…

We are in the beginning of what is already promising to be a great week at Abba’s House. Yesterday, we began our annual Fresh Oil New Wine Conference, and it is off to a great start. I’m being joined this week by Pastor John Hagee, Perry Stone, Rabbi Curt Landry, Dwain Miller, Randy Caldwell, and more. We are already seeing God move in mighty ways, and are expecting an outpouring of His Spirit as we tap into the ancient wells of our heritage as believers. I hope you can make it, but if you cannot get to Chattanooga, you can watch us online by clicking this link. You can find out more about Fresh Oil New Wine by visiting here.

I know that there are so many different social media sites out there, and chances are, most of you that follow my blog participate in at least one or two. I would love to stay connected to you…

If you are on Twitter, you can connect with me at @PstrRonPhillips

On Facebook, there is more than one way.

To connect with Ron Phillips Ministries, go to https://www.facebook.com/RonPhillipsMinistries

Our Abba’s House Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/AbbasHouse

You can also visit our website at ronphillips.org

Thanks for following my blog. Hope to see you at FONW14

Pastor Ron

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Fresh Oil New Wine 2014 Living It Out In Real Time The Big Event The Life of Faith Through The Looking Glass

Capturing The Olympic Spirit

imageAs we say goodbye to the XXII Winter Olympic games, and the world says goodbye to Sochi, Russia, with all of the pomp, opulence, and fanfare that any Olympic games is deserving of, I am reminded of the Olympic Creed, adopted by Pierre de Coubertin from the inspiration he received from a speech given by Bishop Ethelbert Talbot at a service during the 1908 Olympic Games…

The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.

During these games, this creed was borne out over and over again in the faces of winners and unsuccessful competitors alike. In most cases, competitors who came up short of the gold understood that this defeat was not the end, but merely a clarion call to work harder, find that “edge”, and bring the painful lessons of the past to bear in preparation for the next time, with a determined unwillingness to make the same mistakes again.

One has to wonder if the apostle Paul ever observed the Olympics firsthand (the ancient Olympics were believed by many to have begun around 776 B.C.), or if he was merely familiar with the stories of what athletes went through in preparation for the event. After all, it was Paul who penned…

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ~ II Timothy 4:7

At the end of the day, Paul knew he had done his best. He knew he had given his all. He knew there was a prize waiting for him at the finish line, and that it wasn’t reserved exclusively for him. In the next verse he goes 0n to say…

Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

… And not to me only, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

Paul knew there were many who had gone on before him… names like Moses, Elijah, Deborah, David, and Abraham… others who had fought the good fight, and had been his forerunners in the faith.

However, I also believe he knew there would be others after him, with names like Charles, Catherine, Billy, Bob, and Joyce… people who would take up the mantle and track shoes of the great runners of the faith, and continue the race. After all, the race we run is not a sprint, but a long-distance relay in which “the called” run the distance and then, at the end of their leg of the race, hand the baton of faith to the next tent-maker, fisherman, shoe salesman, gang member, or dejected teenager in line. And as the sweat-drenched, blood-covered baton is passed to the next competitor, they hear the call echo from all who have gone before…

Let us not become weary in doing good, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not faint. ~ Galatians 6:9

So what about you, Runner? Are you ready to strap on those shoes, and leave the thrills, spills, and defeats of the past behind? Your due season may be closer than you think.

Ready… Set…

Go!

FONW2014

I want you to join me at Abba’s House for Fresh Oil New Wine, March 2-6. Registration is free, and I will be speaking on Due Season the very first night. My friends Perry Stone, John Hagee, Rabbi Curt Landry, Randy Caldwell, Dwain Miller, and more will be joining me. I hope to see you there! Click here for more info and to register.

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Through The Looking Glass

Understanding the Answer

The 2006 movie, Amazing Grace, depicted the life of William Wilberforce, the member of the British Parliament who was most instrumental in abolishing the slave trade in Great Britain. Through sheer determination and prayer, he took on the slave industry, and eventually witnessed the abolition of the trade… without war… without firing a single shot.

Prayer2Wilberforce once said…

Of all things, guard against neglecting God in the secret place of prayer.

How much of what God wants to do in our lives is simply waiting for us to call on His name in prayer? How much of what God wants to do in our nation is on hold until His people humble themselves and pray?

But you may be saying, “Well, I prayed, and God didn’t grant my request… He didn’t answer my prayer.”

The thing that we often forget is that no is just a valid answer as yes is.

So, let me encourage you today: Make finding God in the secret place of prayer a daily habit in your life.