A New Creature. . . an Apostolic Pentecostal blog

Mark 8:15 And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. In a team meeting at work this morning, it powerfully struck me the responsibility I carry as a leader. The realization came to me that to be an effective leader, I must both understand, and utilize the power of position. For a leader especially attitudes are contagious. . . in battle a lowly foot soldier can be overcome by fear and panic with little ill effect, but if the same feeling of terror visibly overtakes a general or a captain, all other things being equal the battle may well be lost solely for this reason. Negative attitudes can move like a disease from the leader to the entire team, like a disease passing from one to another, infecting each with a sickness of the spirit. . . Bitterness. . .cynicism. . .skepticism. . .resentment. . . unforgiveness. . .greed. . .blame laying. . . anger. . . fear. . .panic. . . depression. . .despair can easily f...

John 8:31-36 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; (32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (33) They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? (34) Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. (35) And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. (36) If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. Interesting passage here. Jesus speaking to “those Jews which believed on Him”. I thought it interesting to lay out the statements as follows: If ye continue in my word => then are ye my disciples indeed If ye continue in my word => ye shall know the truth If ye continue in my word => the truth shall make you free Whosoever committeth sin => is the servant of sin Whosoever comm...

Specifically why do we need an alive, independently authoritative God who never changes: Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. Because left to my own devices, I will always be able to construct a logic. . . find a viewpoint that justifies my actions, shines the best possible light upon my decisions, and ends up in my own mind allowing me to do whatever it is that I want. Hitler killed millions. . . Stalin killed further millions. . . Mao. . . again 10’s of millions. . . In our nation, we have murdered 10 of millions of babies. . . In my own life. . . lying, stealing, cheating, drunkenness. . . hatefulness . . .  I was in my own eyes a good person. . .In my blindness. . . in my ignorance. . .I was somehow justified in everything I did.   In each case, there was. . . there is logic, and rationalization that somehow these killings. . . and sinful behavior were/are logical and acceptable. This is why we need an unchangeable r...

A Perfect Mirror. . . I remember my Grandpa Brown, my Mother’s Dad,. . . the only Grandpa I ever knew, as being one who loved gadgets and the latest technology. Younger people today may laugh at the thought of a techno-geek grandpa in the 1960’s, but that’s what he was. I still remember the time he came to visit us, excited to show us his new reel to reel tape recorder, and the wonder of hearing your my voice for the first time still stays with me. Another time he showed up at our house with, a cutting edge for the day, Polaroid camera, and it was interesting but not quite as magical to see a picture within a minute or two, for I had already seen myself in a mirror. But that scene from long ago, brings to my mind what magic a mirror would be to someone who had never seen themselves before. The shock I think would be immense, to see yourself for the first time. . . There are always parallels between the physical and the spiritual. As one living their life without a physi...

1 Peter 3:7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered. Experiencing vicariously the trials of mothers. . . knowing the heart of my wife, and how she lives and dies with the ups and downs of the lives of her daughters. . . reading the recent heart rending accounts on Facebook of mothers who are my friends and acquaintances. Sarah. . . Erin. . . Liz. . . my daughters . . . reading and knowing a little of their struggles, and sorrows. . . burdens, even with the best, and most compassionate and well intentioned of husbands, the weight of motherhood still carried largely alone. . . Extrapolated into surely, the same unspoken, unknown tears and trials of my own mother. . . long passed away, beyond my reach to give her a fervent hug and thank you for her lonely task long decades ago. . . The weaker vessel. . . a...

The intertwined interworkings of life. . . The tapestry of life’s events that God has woven, completely beyond random happenstance that convinced me. . . from a hard core evangelical atheist for the first 45 years of my life, into now believing in God so fervently and so completely that today I am an Apostolic Pentecostal minister. . . . Don’t try to tell me it is coincidence that would stretch belief far more than believing in God. . . . I began working at Speedgrip Chuck, Inc. in 1979. I was 25 years old, and I had only a few months before, been discharged from my 3 year tour in the U.S. Army. I began working as a machinist. I worked on the night shift, attending college, on the G.I. Bill during the day for about 3 years. My major was computer technology. . . computer programming. I enjoyed working in the factory. I have fond memories of my time as a machinist, but I desired more. I spoke with the shop management, and I told them that while I liked working at Speedgrip very much...