The Language of Dreams

  Men and women are made uniquely by God and in that creation we witness both substance and mystery. In the book of Genesis we read an astounding creation narrative, "God formed man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive--a living soul!" (Genesis 2:7)

  Man's story begins in the garden of Eden and it includes an amazing intimacy of relationship between creator and creation. The original perfect intimacy was broken through stepping out from under the God given boundaries meant to protect and preserve that relationship. Disobedience led to lost innocence and a change in relationship. A distance was created that we call shame. Disobedience has consequences and a break and distancing of relationship is a harrowing result of the sin that permeates our present reality.

  In Genesis 3:8, we get a little insight on what was lost, "When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God. Intimate fellowship is impossible when we're covered in the shame of true guilt. There is a huge gulf between man made relationship (religion) and God birthed relationship. One is a temporary salve of short term effect... the other is forever relationship of deep and satisfying joy. From the time of that initial break in relationship, God has been on an unending divine rescue mission to restore us back to himself. Lost is not primarily a place or location on a map we need to find.... it's actually more accurately defined as a break in relationship. When your relationships are right.... with God and others...you always wind up where you're supposed to be.

  We are complex creations of God. Our beings are a unique mix of body, soul and spirit. Our physical frame, our emotions, our minds and our inner person... our spirit are melded together in unique ways deeply impacted by the tragedy of sin. Hebrews 4:12 tells us of how we need truth to bring healing to the complexity of who we are, "For the word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

  We need truth to penetrate us before we can fully understand who we are in the depths of our personhood. At night when we get quiet we lay our heads down to rest... and we sleep...or at least we try to. For many sleep is a huge struggle. Restlessness keeps us feeling tired. Our bodily health, our emotional and spiritual state impact our 'night life' of dreams and rest.  We live in a broken world and our dream life is often tainted by various types of pain that seek to interrupt our sleep which is meant to be restorative and revelatory. We need many things to be whole and healthy. We know deeply that we need water, food and shelter to keep us well...but did you know you need to be able to dream to stay healthy?

  When Jesus died on the cross he was performing a selfless act of eternal significance... he as an innocent (sinless) sacrifice was dying for the sins of all humanity. Literally he died for you and me... to carry the penalty of our own waywardness and sin. Jesus rose from the dead and as a great gift of grace he poured out his Spirit on whoever would humbly call on that amazing grace of forgiveness.

  One of the signs of the Spirit of God being poured on his people is an increase in dreams and visions. In the book of Acts chapter 2 and verse 17 we read, "And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams...."

  God wants to speak to us in every conceivable way. We spend fully one third of our lives asleep!  Far too many of us don't fully embrace the value of the dreams God wants to both give and refine for our lives... in relationship. Like everything else that's broken by sin, our dream life is often distorted and tortured by our own rebellion and self centered souls. When we yield our lives to the great God of love we are meant to experience a renaissance of communion that deeply impacts every single moment of our transcendent existence. I want to challenge you to gain a new appreciation and desire for God to speak to you 24/7! 

Jim

The Call

  There comes a time in all our lives when we know we need something outside of ourselves to break in and show us the way forward. Often it comes in times of deep disappointment and pain. It might come after the death of a loved one, a fracture in a critical relationship, a loss of employment, a critical illness. 

Isaiah the prophet (chapter 6) responded to the death of King Uzziah with a new vision of reality. He saw things which he'd never seen....and he became someone he otherwise would have never been.Tragedy can either be an impetus to a life of meaning or lead us to a place of imprisonment. So much depends on our vision of God....and of ourselves. 

Isaiah saw God for who he really is. Majestic, on the throne, surrounded by Glory and HOLY. His glory covered the whole earth. In the shadow of who God is, Isaiah also discovered who he really was....a man of unclean lips ( a sinner) surrounded by people just like him. We're all equally lost and equally separated from God until the call comes to our heart and soul. 

We were created for something greater than the soley material realm. Buying and selling... sensual pleasure and carnal desires never totally satisfy someone created in the image of God. All of us were created for relationship with our maker. Until we hear his voice beckoning us.....calling us to himself, we're only living half a life. There is a VOICE crying out to all of us. We seldom hear that voice. Our small distractions and selfish decisions keep us far removed from hearing what really matters. We insist on our own way. We hear the screaming of the selfish hordes rushing on the broad highway of destruction. 

  But God comes and touches us on the inside. He shows us our broken places. We sense our weakness. We slow down our movement on the highway of destruction. We turn our ears heavenward and begin to hear the voice calling us home. Our Father touches us and heals us....and remakes us in his image. His call thrills our soul, "Who should I send? Who will go for us?" And with humility and hope, we reply, "Here am I. Send me." He's calling you right now. Slow down, listen carefully....his call is worth everything. Listen for his voice.

A Seamless Life

Over the years I've developed the habit of beginning each new year in prayer listening for God's direction and wisdom for the coming year. In January, 2007 I sensed the Lord telling me he wanted my life to be more 'seamless'. Honestly I had to look up seamless in the dictionary to get a better understanding for what God might be calling me to. The dictionary definition of seamless is: smoothly continuous or uniform in quality, combined in an inconspicuous way, continuous or flowing.

  As I continued to reflect on how the word seamless might be related to various areas of my life I began to get some direction. I sensed God wanting every area of my life to flow out of one central and connected purpose. In July, 1998 my family and I relocated from Pakistan to live and work in Mobile, Alabama. After 5 years helping to establish and develop an eye hospital in Gilgit, Pakistan the Lord had spoken two words to me in the winter of 1997: International Students.... and thus began a major shift in my life. Jesus tells us clearly in the gospel of Matthew, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." It seems that God's purpose and direction for our lives are meant to flow out of relationship.... a relationship that depends on hearing and obeying the voice of God to us.

  Nearly 10 years after our family arrived to Mobile, God was calling us to some significant changes in our lives and ministry. Serving as the directors of the international student ministry known as Friends of Internationals had been deeply rewarding. Over the years literally thousands of students from nearly every country on the planet had become a significant part of our lives. However saying goodbye was difficult to say the least. One significant memory is from the spring graduation in 1999 at the newly opened USA Mitchell Center. As the international graduates from FOI crossed the stage to receive their diplomas I wept.... something significant was leaving my life and I didn't know if I could bear the loss.... I told God I could not do this year after year. The sorrow I experienced that day lessened over time but never fully left me. If life is all about relationships... and I believe it is, than how was I able to tolerate the sudden abrupt leaving that graduation entailed?

  In 2001 I met a young man from Nepal in my living room during an international dinner. In a very crowded room Sudip Khadka grabbed my attention with his pointed and heart felt invitation for me to visit Nepal. Sudip was a student from the Brownsville school of ministry in Pensacola who had driven over with fellow students to experience the international fellowship of FOI. For the next several years Sudip had been asking me to come to Nepal. I rather abruptly said No many times to his overtures. I was very busy with all the related activities of Friends of Internationals. Deep down I really did want to go to Asia again but was afraid of getting stretched too thin.

  Now in the spring of 2007, God was in part saying through this word 'seamless' to begin to prepare for international travel. God's will was for our lives of ministry to international students to continue to the countries of their birth. We were to have a seamless and ongoing relationship with all those who came into our home and lives through the years. Since that time I have visited both Nepal and India and hope to visit more nations in the coming days....but more change was coming.

  In 2009 after years of prayer for someone else to pioneer a multi-ethnic church in Mobile I surrendered to the call to help begin All Nations Community Church. For years we had hosted a large and vibrant bible study in our home on Monday nights. I loved doing it...but it wasn't seamless. No matter how hard I tried it was difficult to connect some students to our local area churches. It seems God was making me a Pastor and I didn't recognize it! Since those early days of beginning the church in homes through small groups we have continued to develop a truly seamless international vision. In the book of Acts chapter 1 and verse 8 we're told, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." There was to be a seamless continuity to every aspect of our international relationships and community. We were to establish an ongoing and progressive relationship to God birthed friends from across the globe.  In some ways I would continue to have to let go of the majority of people who came into our lives through their connection with the University of South Alabama...but we were getting guidance and direction from God to be willing to go and be with those whom God has brought into our lives by his sovereign will.

  In 2011, All Nations Community Church became the Mobile campus of Liberty Church.... a multi- campus church we've had relationship with for over 20 years. The Senior Pastor of Liberty is my Pastor and mentor Buford Lipscomb. In many ways this is a seamless connection to our spiritual roots. Mary and I attended Liberty Church in the late 80's and early 90's where we studied international ministry at Liberty Bible College. We were being reconnected and reestablished in a local church family that would offer accountability, wisdom and guidance. We continue to be stretched and guided by the word seamless.

  Yesterday as I asked God in prayer to again define the word seamless to me personally he surprised me when he said, "It's Holiness." To be holy is to be whole... in body, soul and spirit. Too often we have a huge distance and separation between our body, soul and spirit...we proclaim one thing with our lips and live another.  Holiness is nothing less than a seamless continuity in every dimension of life.  I am meant to be the same person wherever I am and with whomever I am in relationship.  I want to live a seamless life.

Jim

Waiting on your Dream

Waiting is hard. Dreams are born of desire & passion. When our dreams don't develop or come to pass in our expected time frame it hurts....sometimes the delay destroys our hope for the future. We become despondent and even depressed. It's so important to remember that just because something is 'not yet' doesn't mean it will never be. Dreams are spiritual. They come to us from deep inside our souls. They are born from both within and without. Our soul was created by God and he communicates to us often through depositing something of heaven in our thoughts ,desires and dreams.

While we're waiting on our dreams, God wants us to discover him. The bigger the dream the more we need our creator to breathe life into it and us. Faith really isn't an option in life. We all believe in something....or someone. If our faith is misplaced or distorted our dreams will certainly die and our soul along with it. You truly were born to believe....to dream....to love.

Cynicism is a disease of the soul you can't afford to 'catch'. It eats away at your dreams, your desires and your passions. Before your dream can come to pass, you need to 'see it' in your soul before you can see it with your eyes. Cynical people will destroy your hopes and dreams. They have been hurt by disappointment and are intimidated by people with fresh vision and desire. Choose your intimate friends carefully....they will either nurture your passion or put the fire out in your life.

Today, you must choose to be led by your passion and not your hurts. Your injured soul is not a trustworthy guide in a world of pain & suffering. Dare to dream again. Listen to the voice of hope... the voice of love. Dare to dream again.
Jim

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen." (Hebrews 11:1)

When Dreams Collapse

 We are built to believe, to hope and to dream. All of us universally are created with a capacity to create and shape our futures. Right now, our world is experiencing a world wide recession. We seem to be moving backwards on an escalator out of our control. Our dreams are collapsing personally, nationally and internationally. Just what in the 'world' is going on?

  The concepts of economic and political unity which have forged a European Union and even a United States of America are fraying and faltering. Today, we are hearing of the likely collapse of Greece due to its overwhelming debt. What often starts as a grand vision of hope and excitement often collapses somewhere along the way.

  The concept of unity offers so much to those who will agree to key unifying concepts related to values and goals. But the unification of people is a very difficult thing to achieve without deep commitment and effort. Politicians can't create unity over the long term.  Democratic freedoms are dependent on an inner sense of morality and a commitment to a cause greater than oneself. Selfishness leads to an eventual collapse of a society and economic and moral chaos .

  Dictators and despots arise at times such as this. Adolf Hitler arose in a time of economic disaster and hopelessness. He offered a false sense of national unity and pride and his guns and butter philosophy set the table for the destruction and death of millions. The times in which we live could likewise produce another false hope.

  What or who are you hoping in? What are you dreaming about? There are false messiah's in every realm of life. When you put all your hope on a person or a politician you will inevitably be disappointed. The chaos we are seeing in our world today is at its core a spiritual struggle. There is real evil trying to overcome good through deception and an appeal to our sinful nature.
 The false god of wealth is not doing so well in our current climate of economic uncertainty. Money in and of itself is not evil. Money is an exchange for time.... for life.  What we do with our wealth reveals much about what we worship and what we value. When we recognize that life is about relationships and keep that front and center in our priorities we preserve and honor truth. Jesus told us clearly that a man and woman's life does not consist 'in the abundance of their possessions'.

  There is a time and a season for everything under heaven. At present we are all experiencing an economic recession or contraction. Don't waste this recession! Evaluate your priorities, your dreams and your hopes for the future.  Are your goals too materialistic? How would your dreams fulfillment impact the relationships in your life? Would your dream bring honor and glory to God?

  We are all in a time of change and transition. We're all headed somewhere and now would be a good time to decide where you want to go with the rest of your life.  As for me and my house....we will serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:15)

Jim