We are writing this article to answer questions about our (George Smith and Janet Weaver Smith’s and Garden Ministries) position on end time’s (i.e., eschatological) teachings. We feel we would better serve the question by describing our position on excellent Bible teachers who hold differing eschatological (end-time teaching) views and then direct you toward their teachings.

The Biblical calling of Teacher (I Corinthians 12:27) has strict accountability (James 3:1) and thus requires Bible teachers to have a certain spiritual keenness and corresponding humility, i.e., the teacher must have a passion for and discernment of sound doctrine, while possessing in himself or herself, a teachable spirit.

That means that whoever is called to teach theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind, (i.e. eschatological or end times teaching), understands their important role and great responsibility to the Body of Jesus Christ. Equally, it is critical that those of us being taught also consider it our Acts 17:11 “Berean” responsibility to “receive the message with great eagerness and examine the Scriptures every day to see if what [the Bible Teacher] said was true.”

In John 14:26, Jesus told his Disciples that the Holy Spirit is our Teacher. “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” As we daily abide and grow in relationship with the Holy Spirit, we are taught by him. “As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit–just as it has taught you, remain in him.” I John 2:27

In other words, at the same time we are listening to Bible teachers teach, we are also engaging the Holy Spirit within us and looking for his “tuning fork” of truth to resonate with what we are hearing. By “tuning fork” resonance, we mean that we can spiritually recognize and receive truth through the power of the Holy Spirit who is guiding us and bearing his testifying fruits of peace, joy, wisdom, counsel, and understanding as we hear his Word spoken through men and women of God. As you listen, ask yourself: Does this teaching resonate? Does my spirit “bear witness” to the truth of it? If not, why not? If so, how does it fit with other resonant Bible teachings on the same subject?

George and Janet personally believe (but do not say that others should agree with them) that God has purpose in placing teachers of the Bible in the Body of Christ who hold differing eschatological views. It places equal responsibility on the teacher and on those being taught, to depend upon the Holy Spirit to “resonate” with what is from him, while we humbly love and accept each other in our process of learning.

George and Janet also believe that when the Holy Spirit releases greater revelation on a particular subject, greater clarity happens which leads to greater integration and unity. We believe that a good Bible Teacher may hold strongly to their eschatological view while their godly character humbly accepts that because we “know in part,” (I Corinthians 13:12), we may be “further taught” on any subject in the Bible. When spiritual revelation occurs that is scripturally grounded, and the teaching of this revelation resonates with our spirit and causes a change of our current view, we are willing to adjust our teaching curriculum to reflect our “growth” in this area.

Over the years, George and Janet have recognized that the character quality of Bible teachers directly affects the quality of fruit produced in their teaching. Good, godly character releases sound doctrine that the Holy Spirit blesses with his fruits of peace, joy, love, gentleness, etc. Conversely, immature Christian character, not rooted and grounded in faith, hope, and love, will presumptuously release teachings that promote self-centeredness, fear, and division rather than God-centeredness, love, peace, and the unifying effects of a servant heart that prefers others to themselves and “lays down their life for a friend” (John 15:13). “For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” 2 Timothy 4:3. “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.” 2 Peter 2:1.

That being said about Bible teaching and teachers, George and Janet can easily and whole-heartedly recommend two Bible teachers with good and godly character who hold some same and some differing end-times views. They are Dr. Chuck Missler (www.khouse.org) and Mike Bickle (mikebickle.org). We recommend that you ask the Holy Spirit to impart to you a hunger for his Word on this subject and then take the time to listen to both of these teachers and populate your information base with their teachings.

While drawing from their teachings, and as you personally study the Scriptures, you can trust the Holy Spirit to teach you in all things on these subjects.

As of the date of this article, 2/22/2012, Americans enjoy the right to religious freedom. When the Harlot religion comes to America, religious freedom will not be the law of the land. So right now, it is extremely important that we utilize the vast teaching resources that are freely available to us and learn all that we can from these hard-working teachers of the Word.

May God bless you as you hear his Word. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17

Yours in the faith, hope, and love of Jesus Christ,
George Smith and Janet Weaver Smith, ©gardenministries.org
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For your convenience, we have compiled a list of web links from god.tv that connect you to Dr. Chuck Missler’s teachings on the Book of Revelation and a list of web links from mikebickle.org that connect you to Mike Bickle’s teaching on the Book of Revelation.

Our Recommended End-Times Bible Study Learning Strategy:

1.) Start by clicking on and reading this online Bible study

2.) Next, watch this video of Mike Bickle giving an Overview of the Book of Revelation

3.) Then listen to Dr. Chuck Missler (Dr. Missler holds a pre-tribulation viewpoint) (see web links below)

4.) And end with Mike Bickle (Mike Bickle holds a post-tribulation viewpoint) (see web links below)

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Recommended End Times Teaching by Dr. Chuck Missler (Dr. Missler holds a pre-tribulation viewpoint)

STRATEGIC TRENDS 2011
A Planet In Jeopardy

ISRAEL
Will Israel Stand Alone?

THE BOOK OF REVELATION (40 posted videos)
#1: Introduction-Part 1
#2: Introduction-Part 2
#3: Introduction-Part 3
#4: The Book of Revelation: Chapter 1-Part 1
#5: The Book of Revelation: Chapter 1-Part 2
#6: The Book of Revelation: Chapter 1-Part 3
#7: The Letter to Ephesus – Part 1
#8: The Letter to Ephesus – Part 2
#9: The Letter to Smyrna – Part 1
#10: The Letter to Smyrna – Part 2
#11: The Letter to Smyrna – Part 3
#12: The Letter to Pergamos – Part 1
#13: The Letter to Pergamos – Part 2
#14: The Letter to Thyatira – Part 1
#15: The Letter to Thyatira – Part 2
#16: The Letter to Thyatira – Part 3
#17: The Letter to Sardis – Part 1
#18: The Letter to Sardis – Part 2
#19: The Letter to Sardis – Part 3
#20: The Letter to Philadelphia – Part 1
#21: The Letter to Philadelphia – Part 2
#22: The Letter to Philadelphia – Part 3
#23: The Letter to Laodicea – Part 1
#24: The Letter to Laodicea – Part 2
#25: The Letter to Laodicea – Part 3
#26: The Throne Room of Heaven – Part 1
#27: The Throne Room of Heaven – Part 2
#28: Opening the Seals
#29: Sealing the 144,000
#30: The Seven Trumpets
#31: The Two Witnesses
#32: The Woman and Man-child
#33: The Two Beasts
#34: Prelude to the Bowls
#35: The Seven Bowls of Wrath
#36: The Mystery of Babylon
#37: Return of the King
#38: The Millennium
#39: Eternity

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Recommended End Times Teaching by Mike Bickle
(Mike Bickle holds a post-tribulation viewpoint)

The Book of Revelation-A Verse-by-Verse Overview of the Book of Revelation by Mike Bickle

“This series by Mike Bickle is an in-depth exploration of the person of Jesus and the events surrounding the second coming as revealed in the book of Revelation. The major conflict at the end of the age will center around defining the truth of who Jesus is. The Father commissioned Jesus to reveal His majesty, personality, and power as the Bridegroom King who judges all that hinders love. Through the book of Revelation, God unveils His action plan for preparing the Church to participate with Jesus in releasing His glory throughout all the nations. This “end-time book of Acts” was given to us so that we may walk unified, never wavering in our faith, as the judgments of the Lord are poured out on the earth.”

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Article by Janet Smith – January 12, 2012

Ephesians 1:18-23, I pray that the eyes(1) of your heart(2) may be enlightened(3), so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

The Greek words for “Eyes” “Heart” and “Enlightened” provide fuller meaning

Eyes(1): Strongs Exhaustive Concordance, #3788, Gr. optanomai; eye; by implication, vision.

Heart(2): Strongs #2588 kardía – heart; “the affective center of our being” and the capacity of moral preference (volitional desire, choice, desire-producer that makes us tick, i.e our “desire-decisions” that establish who we really are.)

Enlightened(3): Strongs #5461 Cognate – enlighten; (figuratively) God sharing His life, exposing and overcoming darkness – like the ignorance (prejudice) caused by sin. Bring to light, illumine. From 5457 – phṓs, light; in the NT, the manifestation of God’s self-existent life; divine illumination to reveal and impart life, through Christ.

In other words, Paul is praying that God will change my heart as only God can. He is praying that the deep center of my being (my heart; the place where I make decisions from desire that establish the truth of my identity) be divinely illumined by God’s revealed and imparted life, through Christ. Paul prays that my heart’s desire (and subsequent decisions) be completely influenced and affected by God’s imparted life, through Christ instead of being influenced and affected by my old, carnal, selfish, sin-sick nature.

How does God change, i.e. circumcise my heart and transform me?
By drawing me into circumstances that require me to relate to him through faith, trust, and complete dependence on him. This ever-increasing state of faith, trust, and dependence extracts (or circumcises) off from my heart, that which through sin and my fallen-man-nature, is apart from (uncircumcised) and independent of God. By trusting in and depending on God, and not trusting in the limited, temporal resources of the world, others, or myself, I shed the old, dead skin of my sinful nature. This “shedding process” allows Christ to renew my mind through the increased presence of his Spirit who I am making room for in my heart of trust and dependence.

In the moment when opportunities to trust and depend on God are presented, I enter into the shedding process when I believe the truth of who God is and what he has promised. I simply choose to “go there” with God in my mind instead of indulging in the fear presented within the language of contradicting lies from the enemy of my soul. The lies always attack the nature and character of God and/or my identity in God—my created place in his heart. The process of transformation is this: When the opportunity comes, I choose to believe and trust God while I reject the power of fear that perpetrates lies about God’s trustworthiness. This is how God circumcises my heart and transforms me. And each person’s transformation process is unique.

Colossians 2:9-15: For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (See also Romans 2:28-29)

Ezekiel 36:26-27: I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

This is why James 1:2-4 tells me to “consider it pure joy” when I face many trials
God is sending me opportunities to come to know him more through trials that provoke greater trust and dependence. It’s as though I am to lean so hard on him that I would fall over without him next to me. If life did not hold extreme challenges (“opportunities”), I would not grow in my trust and dependence on God. I Peter 4:13 echoes James call to take an optimistic view of trials, telling me to “rejoice that I participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that I may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.” By leaning hard into Jesus, I am making room for the glory of God to fill me by viewing extreme circumstances and sufferings as “opportunities” to know God more deeply and to carry more of his ever-increasing presence.

Why doesn’t God just change my heart in an instant? Why the seemingly long, dragged-out process?
Plain and simple: FREE WILL. Of my own volition (volition defined: the power of using my will), I must daily choose to receive God’s gift of love and enter into (or conversely, avoid) his opportunities to be transformed. He doesn’t force them on me. I must regularly subject my free will to the Lordship of Jesus Christ who invites me into an intimate relationship with him. I may feel compelled to enter in—but he never forces me. Therefore, as both a gentle and all-powerful, Sovereign King, he waits for me to respond to his compelling invitations. This process will take the amount of time that I, in my free-will-to-choose cause it to take. Ironically, those of us who are called to be leaders in the Kingdom of God are innately strong-willed! Thus, the process seems to take way longer and feel far more extreme than we ever thought it would. Undaunted by my push-backs, questions, and groaning, God works seamlessly within the context of my personal “dynamics” and always seems to effectively work all things together for my good.

What will a transformed heart mean to me?
1. I will know what is the hope(1) of his calling(2)
2. I will know what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance(3)
3. I will know what is the surpassing greatness of his power

What does knowing these things do for me?
Knowing these things, i.e., the hope of his calling, the riches of the glory of his inheritance, the surpassing greatness of his power, helps me know God better and thus, increases my faith in him and deepens my love for him. The more I know God, the more I will trust God and love him. The more I trust and love God, the more fully I will experience his presence. The more I have made room for the love of God to fill my heart, the more the God of love is attracted to his love in me and will fill me. This is the path to complete union with Jesus, just as he prayed in John 17.

In short: more love in me means more of Jesus in me.
By choosing to know him more through daily, one-at-a-time, believing-trusting-depending-on-God decisions, I am transformed. The time it takes to be completely transformed is in God’s hands—and I can trust him to lead the charge and finish the work he began in me. Philippians 1:6, “…He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

God is in the NOW. I must be with him NOW with no worries about tomorrow or the next day.

He’ll be there with me tomorrow just like he is with me now.

I often tell myself, “Just calm down! NOW is all you need to be concerned with.”

Janet Smith – gardenministries.org ©2012
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Hope(1): 1680 elpís (from elpō, “to anticipate, welcome”) expectation of what is sure (certain).

Calling(2): 2821 klḗsis (from 2564 /kaléō, “to call, summon”) – calling; used of God inviting all people to receive His gift of salvation – with all His blessings that go with it.

Inheritance(3): Cognate: 2817 klēronomía “an heir, apportioned inheritance by the casting of lots” i.e. the portion God assigns (selects)

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By Janet L. W. Smith
I Thessalonians 5:11: Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up.

Believing the Truth about God and our Identity in Him, ENCOURAGEMENT means to:
• give support, confidence, or hope to someone
• give support and advice to someone so that they will do or continue to do something
• help or stimulate an activity, state, or view to develop

In walking out the Truth of our Identity, all Believers in Jesus Christ have an ASSIGNMENT which means we have:
• a task or piece of work assigned as part of our job or course of study
• the task or post to which we have been appointed

We are given at least THREE TOOLS OF ENCOURAGEMENT to stay the course of our Assignment
1. Promises
2. Prophecy
3. Fellowship

1. PROMISES
a. Obtained from God in our daily pursuit of knowing Him by reading His word.
i. Romans 15:4-5: For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had”

2. PROPHECY
a. Received from Jesus, through the Spirit of Prophecy (Revelation 19:10) and often delivered to us through His people in the form and gift of prophecy.
i. I Corinthians 14:3: but everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.
ii. I Timothy 1:18-19: …I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith.
iii. I Timothy 4:14-16: Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
iv. I Thessalonians 5:19-20: Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. (contempt: the feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.)

3. FELLOWSHIP-can’t have fellowship without:
• Trusted Leadership
• Assembling
• Hospitality
• Participation
a. In the company of the body of Jesus Christ, and submitted to His leadership through the love and fellowship of that body, we make ourselves open and available to encouragement. The fellowship we don’t give is the fellowship we don’t get.
i. Hebrews 10:23-24: Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
ii. I Peter 4:7-11: The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer. Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaint. As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength, which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
iii. I John 1:7-9: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
iv. James 5:14-16: Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
v. I Thessalonians 5:12: But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace with one another. We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

HUMILITY accepts God’s provision for encouragement by searching for, submitting to, and standing in the promises, prophecies, and fellowship of the body of Jesus Christ. If you can’t trust the leadership and the members of the body you are in, then ask God to provide a body where you can. He is faithful to give you a body of believers with whom you can be open and authentic.

PRIDE rejects God’s provision for encouragement by indulging in anger (“I don’t need this hardship or this person or these people in my life”), self-justifies holding on to offense and anger (“I can’t trust God with this pain”), and puts down (demeans/criticizes) self and/or others as a means of justifying rejection and isolation from fellowship (“no one gets me”).

NOTE: When the assignment feels overwhelming and God has not said that our assignment is completed, it will help to shift our focus from being “about me and my needs” to being “about Him” and saying to our “me, me, me” needs, “I (me, me, me) am crucified with Christ; it is no longer I (me, me, me) who live, but Christ in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20. We can say with all confidence, “Until this assignment is complete, I can trust God with my heart and to give me strength to endure.”
Jonah 4:19-22: Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?” And he (Jonah) said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!” But the LORD said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”

© December 4, 2011

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Now you can listen online and/or download Garden Ministries House Church messages by clicking the links below:

George speaks 11-6-11: Jesus, His Humanity – Part 1

George speaks 6-19-2011: “Faithfulness to Father”

George speaks 5-29-2011: “On Earth as it is in Heaven”

George speaks 6-5-2011: “Abraham’s Promise—The Real Story”

PC Downloading tips: Right-click on each link that you would like to download. Choose ‘save link’ or ‘save link as.’ You then have the option have choosing where to save the file. You may want to create a ‘GM House Church’ folder in your music folder. Note: you have to follow all of these steps to download each file that you want. Once downloaded you can locate the folder you downloaded the file(s) to, select them and drag them into your iTunes library. You can search for them by either ‘House Church’ or ‘The Garden.’

MAC – APPLE Downloading Tip: Using a Firefox internet browser (Safari doesn’t work), and once the Quicktime mp3 file has completely loaded on the browser screen, Click the small “down arrow” on the right side of the gray sound bar and “Save Source As.” Then choose the folder/area you want to save your file to.

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Marriage: Between One Man and One Woman
See Garden Ministries complete Statement of Faith

Garden Ministries believes that the Holy Bible is the irrefutable Word of God and thus, through its written and living principles and commands, has an inherent and imparted authority to guide and direct a believing Christian’s moral and practical everyday decisions. Anyone who believes in Jesus as their Savior and Lord has access to his forgiveness and his grace in order to live a life in union with Jesus and with his commands. And we understand that learning to live in union with Jesus and his commands is a process that happens over time.

What does the Bible say about joining in sexual union?

Because Garden Ministries believes that the authority of the Bible is irrefutable and therefore, the Holy Bible’s principals, laws, and moral standards can be trusted and adhered to, Garden Ministries accepts that the Bible clearly states that the sexual benefits of a “joined relationship,” i.e. marriage, are to be shared and enjoyed exclusively between a woman and a man and only shared during marriage—not before. Garden Ministries accepts that the Bible adamantly states that a man having sexual relations with another man or a woman having sexual relations with another woman is strictly prohibited.

Genesis 2:18–25 (NKJV): “And the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.’ Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’ Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.”

Leviticus 18:22 (NIV) “Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.”

Mark 10:6 (NIV) “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’”

Romans 1:26–27 (NIV) “Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.”

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 (NIV) “Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”

1 Timothy 1:8-11 (NIV) “We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.”

Hebrews 13:4 (NIV) “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and the sexually immoral.” Other scriptures: 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8, Colossians 3:5, Ephesians 5:3.

Christians Answer First and Foremost to Jesus and His Righteousness

Inspired and led by the indwelling Holy Spirit, followers of Jesus Christ are to make moral and ethical decisions first and foremost based on the living and tangible authority of God’s written word, the Bible. When the surrounding culture affects the Christian’s decision-making process, believers in Jesus are to submit to the authority of God’s word over any cultural influence whose moral standards contradict the Bible.

In a democratic society, such as the United States of America (U.S.A.), it is understood (though not pure in its outworking and practice) that the majority will prevail in deciding what the “law of the land” supports and enforces. It is also understood that citizens of the U.S.A. have the inalienable right to exercise freedom of religion and speech, even if a majority of citizens cast a vote that does not support and enforce the moral and ethical standards of their belief.

Religious and Civil Disputes and “Good Manners”

When one group of citizens and their beliefs outnumber another group of citizens and their opposing belief, and democratic legislation supports the majority’s views and beliefs, the minority group is protected under the freedoms of the constitution’s provision for such opposing beliefs. But the minority group must also respect the rights of the majority’s belief.

Ultimately, no matter what position anyone takes on an issue, no one should threaten, insult, name call, or accuse of “hate crimes,” people who ethically and peaceably hold opposing social and religious views. “Peaceable” behavior does not throw glitter, pink feathers, or anything else at a person, or name-call someone who is giving the general public access to their person for the sake of book signings, or other public events. Such behavior is beyond bad manners. It is violence and should not be tolerated by either side of an issue. For those who hold opposing religious and social views, it takes courage to agree on anything. It should be easy, however, to agree that unprovoked violence is always unacceptable.

Thus, Christians or Same-Sex Marriage proponents alike are to respect each other’s freedom to choose while not necessarily respecting the choice that is made. In the matter of social issues, when people passionately disagree and hold opposing views, their opposition tactics are to remain peaceable and respectful of the dignity of the individual(s) and of the collective whole, which means, no name-calling, no physical or emotional injury or imposition of property, etc. by either side.

Because homosexuality is strictly prohibited in the Living Word of God, i.e., the Bible, Christians who adhere to the principles and precepts of the Bible in its totality, are necessarily unable to agree with and support homosexual practices in any part of society (like marriage). Biblical principles and commands do not allow Christians to say that sexual union between two men or between two women is a good and moral choice. That said, though they may not respect the actual choice, Christians are to respect people’s freedom to choose their sexual preferences. And while standing firm in their belief, Christians are commanded to practice love, especially using the forms of kindness, gentleness, patience, and respect for all human beings, no matter what their sexual choices are. Believers in Jesus are to treat all people, including themselves, as those whom Jesus loves and for whom he died to save. (James 3:13-18, II Timothy 2:22-26)

In the state of Minnesota and in the democratic country of the United States of America, the majority (not a select few), should be given the right to decide what the “law of the land” defines marriage as being. Giving Minnesotan’s the right to choose their stand on the definition of marriage can only happen by providing the entire general population the ability to cast their collective vote. Christian Minnesotan’s, who believe the Bible is the inherent word of God and hold to its infallible precepts, are expected to define marriage and its sexual benefits as exclusively between a woman and a man. Recent legislative action has given Minnesotans this opportunity.

The following is an excerpt from the Minnesota Christian Examiner, June 2011 edition.

SAINT PAUL, MN: MARRIAGE WINS – Legislature passes amendment, sending issue to the voters for the 2012 ballot. Amid protests, name calling, a controversial prayer delivered at the Capitol and cries of discrimination, the Republican-controlled Minnesota House and Senate passed the Minnesota Marriage Amendment last month. The Amendment, which doesn’t need the governor’s signature, will now be placed on the 2012 election ballot, giving Minnesotan’s a chance to vote on whether the state will recognize same-sex marriage. Minnesota already has the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), yet proponents of the marriage amendment believe the constitutional protection of the amendment will prevent lawsuits that otherwise could more easily be waged against the legislatively enacted DOMA.

Additional Important Information on Defining Marriage in Minnesota and the U.S.A.

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA Act) signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996 was written to defend the rights of Christians and those who do not want same-sex marriage legalized. In February, 2011, President Barak Obama declared the Defense of Marriage Act to be “Unconstitutional.”

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) – Public Law 104-199
Approved September 21, 1996 and signed by President Bill Clinton:
7. Definition of ‘marriage’ and ‘spouse’
“In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word ‘marriage’ means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word ‘spouse’ refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.”

The United States of America: Bill of Rights – Amendment 1 – Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression. Ratified 12/15/1791
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

US Civil Rights Act – 1964 – Public Law 88-352
An Act: To enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations, to authorize the Attorney General to institute suits to protect constitutional rights in public facilities and public education, to extend the Commission on Civil Rights, to prevent discrimination in federally assisted programs, to establish a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity, and for other purposes. http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=97

2/23/2011 – WASHINGTON — In a major policy reversal, the Obama administration said Wednesday it will no longer defend the constitutionality of a federal law banning recognition of same-sex marriage. Attorney General Eric Holder said President Barack Obama has concluded that the administration cannot defend the federal law that defines marriage as only between a man and a woman. He noted that the congressional debate during passage of the Defense of Marriage Act “contains numerous expressions reflecting moral disapproval of gays and lesbians and their intimate and family relationships – precisely the kind of stereotype-based thinking and animus the (Constitution’s) Equal Protection Clause is designed to guard against.” The Justice Department had defended the act in court until now. Excerpt from an article dated 2/23/2011 in The Huffington Post: Obama: “DOMA Unconstitutional”

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Proverbs 3
Wisdom Bestows Well-Being
1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but keep my commands in your heart,
2 for they will prolong your life many years
and bring you peace and prosperity.

3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Then you will win favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.

7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.
8 This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.

9 Honor the LORD with your wealth,
with the firstfruits of all your crops;
10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
and your vats will brim over with new wine.

11 My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline,
and do not resent his rebuke,
12 because the LORD disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.

13 Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain understanding,
14 for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways are pleasant ways,
and all her paths are peace.
18 She (Wisdom) is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed.

19 By wisdom the LORD laid the earth’s foundations,
by understanding he set the heavens in place;
20 by his knowledge the watery depths were divided,
and the clouds let drop the dew.

21 My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight,
preserve sound judgment and discretion;
22 they will be life for you,
an ornament to grace your neck.
23 Then you will go on your way in safety,
and your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25 Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
26 for the LORD will be at your side
and will keep your foot from being snared.

27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.
28 Do not say to your neighbor,
“Come back tomorrow and I’ll give it to you”—
when you already have it with you.
29 Do not plot harm against your neighbor,
who lives trustfully near you.
30 Do not accuse anyone for no reason—
when they have done you no harm.

31 Do not envy the violent
or choose any of their ways.

32 For the LORD detests the perverse
but takes the upright into his confidence.
33 The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the home of the righteous.
34 He mocks proud mockers
but shows favor to the humble and oppressed.
35 The wise inherit honor,
but fools get only shame.

ISAIAH 30:18-26

18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!

19 People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. 20 Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. 21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” 22 Then you will desecrate your idols overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold; you will throw them away like a menstrual cloth and say to them, “Away with you!”

23 He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. In that day your cattle will graze in broad meadows. 24 The oxen and donkeys that work the soil will eat fodder and mash, spread out with fork and shovel. 25 In the day of great slaughter, when the towers fall, streams of water will flow on every high mountain and every lofty hill. 26 The moon will shine like the sun, and the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days, when the LORD binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds he inflicted.

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What can we learn from recent events such as Hurricane Katrina and the earthquakes in Japan and Haiti? One thing is sure: It is wise to PREPARE FOR CRISIS BEFORE DISASTER STRIKES. It is likely that electricity and various forms of electronic technology would not be available and useful during the initial stages of an emergency. Please use the links below to learn how to prepare.

Food and Water Storage Resource Handout (10 pages of simple instructions)

Aggregated List of Emergency Resources (several helpful downloads)

How to Build a Rocket Stove

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March 25, 2011 – published by gardenministries.org

The following is an aggregation of several Prophets (and Apostles) and their prophetic predictions of global events that will soon impact America and the world. Thus, this bulletin serves as warning resource because of the “sooner than later” implications. The first is a list of credible Christian Prophets who have contributed to this aggregated list (“credible” because they have a strong track record of predicting events that happen).

• Bob Jones
• Rick Joyner
• John Paul Jackson
• Terry Bennett
• Patricia King
• Jill Austin
• John Mulinde

PROPHETIC WARNINGS FOR AMERICA – THE WORLD

1.) Soon, a large earthquake, coupled with volcanic eruptions and tsunamis that travel up to 50 miles inland, will cause major impact on the west coast of America, especially along the Pacific Ring of Fire.

2.) There will be a global economic unraveling. The American dollar will be nearly, if not completely, devalued. A barter system will serve as an interim source of trade until another currency is formed. Many Banks will freeze accounts and people will not have access to their accounts and safety deposit box items.

3.) Cities of Refuge will form. These cities are safe places to live where the presence of God dwells and the predicted catastrophes will not have direct impact.

4.) A plague will be released and infect many. It will have “H1″ in its name.

5.) Civil war in the church will break out. Those who are called by their Bridegroom Jesus to be his Bride will be spiritually “birthed” in the middle of this civil war. The accusations and persecutions assailing those called to be the Bride will come from their brothers and sisters in the church. The Bridegroom will use these fiery trials to form the Bride’s character of gold. They will rely only on their faith and trust in God. They will be known in the earth for their Love. The Bride will not “return evil for evil.”

6.) Civil unrest, anarchy, and thus, the need for martial law will come to various places in America.

7.) Several prophets have seen an attempt to assassinate President Barak Obama. Though Muslim extremists are behind the assassination plot, if it is successful, it will be publicized as a racial war and spark race riots in the streets. Christians are to fervently pray against this attempt to remove the President and pray for his protection. We are also to pray for wisdom and courage for our leaders to govern America in the midst of chaos and calamity.

8.) Though some have seen this earthquake averted; several have predicted a major earthquake along the New Madrid Fault line that would impact cities such as St. Louis, Memphis, and Chicago.

9.) The spirit of antichrist (which seeks to counterfeit the fruits of the Holy Spirit described in Galatians 5:22, 23) will capitalize on the rising fears from the growing chaos and calamity and will propose “solutions” to the world’s problems. “Doctrines of demons” will be taught (even by Christian leaders) saying Jesus is “one of many ways” (but not the only way) to the Father and to eternal life with God. These false doctrines “absolve” people from eternal punishment by denying the existence of hell. The teaching is a humanistic attempt to “lessen or remove eternal consequences” for not believing in Jesus as the exclusive way to eternal life and the Father.

10.) Apostles in the church will be called upon to stand as spiritual plumblines and preach the truth of God’s Word in opposition to the spirit of antichrist and its doctrines of demons. By opposing doctrines of demons and by calling for repentance and a return to God, Apostles will help avert the judgments of God, such as the predicted earthquake along the New Madrid Fault Line.

11.) A religious, political system, specializing in social justice, will come to America that will look so good that it will deceive even some followers of Jesus Christ. Those who are self-seeking and have not been forged in the fire of their faith and trust in God will be vulnerable to the deception of it because this political/religious system appears as an “easy way out” economically and spiritually and looks good socially. People will have to compromise the truth of God’s word to buy into this system. The prophetic word is, “Beware the Harlot.”

12.) God is a God of justice, but his justice does not allow for a compromise of his precepts and principles as they are laid out in the Bible. The Bride will act as a compassionate agent of the great love and mercy of God in the earth through an unprecedented display of God’s splendor implementing his power through miraculous signs and wonder. Through the Bride of Jesus Christ, the voice of Hope will arise in the land.

13.) The end-time Laodicean church described in Revelation 3:14-19 will be polarized by the upcoming events. Christians will have to choose whether they are “hot” or “cold” toward God. A time is coming where the love of most (Christians) will grow cold toward God (Matthew 24:12). And, a time is coming where the love of the Bride of Jesus will be so impassioned (hot) that these followers of Jesus are even willing to lay down their lives for the sake of Jesus and their fellow believers (Revelation 12:11). Pray that the remnant of God in America is large in number, strong in spirit, and ready to reclaim America for God.

14.) A harvest of over a billion souls will come to accept, know, and love Jesus as their LORD and Savior. Pray to the Lord of the Harvest to send workers into his harvest field (Matthew 9:38).

15.) A synchronized, worldwide worship event will usher in the presence of Jesus as we have never experienced him before. An outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon ALL people of all ages and races will come (Joel 2:28-32).

16.) There will be a rise of anti-Semitism, even in America, forcing Israel to passionately turn to God for help.

What can we do to prepare?

1.) Above all else, accept, pursue, seek to know more of, believe in, and trust Jesus as our LORD and Savior. Ask him to help you and give you the grace to become who he created you to be. Read and study the Bible.

2.) Pray for a big, strong, remnant to form in America to reclaim and rebuild it for God’s glory.

3.) Increase the amount of times when you assemble with others in the Body of Christ. Pray together, seek the LORD together, worship Him, pray for spiritual renewal and exercise His gifts to encourage each other.

4.) Do not be afraid. Whenever we feel tempted to fear, we can ask the LORD to increase our revelation of his love for us and for others. He promises that his love will drive out any fear (I John 4:18).

5.) Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Pray for Israel.

6.) Practically:

– If you live in areas where disaster is predicted, ask the LORD if you should stay in or leave the area.
– Consider becoming trained to deal with disasters and emergencies through programs such as C.E.R.T. or Red Cross.
– Prepare an emergency supply that lasts at least 6 weeks.
– If you have financial resources and believe God is calling you to invest, gold has been “seen” in prophetic dreams to reach $1,700 short term, and in the longer term, even higher. Silver will go into the hundreds.

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By Janet Smith, gardenministries.org

Let’s face it. No one likes hardship. It’s hard. In fact, many of us invest big chunks of our time, money, and energy avoiding hardship. But what if hardship isn’t all bad? What if hardship is an important part of realizing our destiny in God? There are two kinds of hardship: God’s disciplining hardship, which is productive hardship, and Self-inflicted hardship, which is unproductive hardship. Hebrews 12:6,7 “…the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?” 2 Timothy 2:3 “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”

The Self-Inflicted Curse of Hardship
When God created mankind, he gave us the freedom to love and obey him, or not—making love a heart choice, not a mandate. Before Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they lived in a state of complete harmonic union and dependence with their Creator. There was no hardship in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 1, 2). But after Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, they gave sin entrance into humanity, reaping the curse of hardship (Genesis 3) for their disobedience. Thus, mankind took on a propensity to turn to their own ways and means to accomplish life, with the expectation that they could achieve the same quality of life—only without God. Unfortunately, this gravitational force toward living independently from God has big side effects. Because of the curse, and because God created people to be in a state of supernatural communion with him, the vacuum, created by an independent-from-God lifestyle, makes humanity vulnerable to another supernatural power—the seduction of evil. The curse of hardship and the affects of evil have infected every aspect of creation, producing global disharmony and corruption—creating an environment of continual toil and a longing to live supernaturally engaged, with no more toil.

The Vicious Cycle of Avoiding Hardship
No matter who we are, how much money, talent, or smarts we possess, because we are naturally bent toward selfishness, and because we live in a world (and a body) that is in a declining state of corruption and decay, we will regularly encounter hardship and difficulty. By accepting this reality and by believing in the gracious promises of God, when hardship comes our way, we know that we have direct access to God’s effective answers. The immediate way out of the hardship doesn’t necessarily come, but the answer and the grace of “Trust” comes right away. And standing on the Rock of Trusting God, we will make daily decisions that confront fear.

Decisions to comfort our fears instead of increase our faith and trust are always narrow-minded decisions that cause us to shrink back and self-protect. Fear comes with a belief that it is all up to me to fix what’s wrong or prevent harm. In contrast, trust-based decisions will always expand and advance us. We believe it is all up to God to bring justice and prevent harm. We believe that God will teach us how to make decisions that create a greater dependence on him and advance our ability to love and trust him.

Without submitting to and basing our decisions from God’s perspective—a perspective that will always challenge us to live in greater levels of dependency on him—we don’t see how our fear-based decisions end up creating more hardship in other areas of our lives. We don’t take into account the amount of time, work, money, emotion, and personal sacrifice we will end up investing as we reinforce our fears by building and accumulating protective measures that we think will avoid perceived hardship. Using our personal resources to reinforce fear instead of building forward-motion faith and trust in God will always cost us more than we thought. Especially in the areas that we should not sacrifice; like relationship time with our loved ones, getting outside of our selves to spend time with and help others in need, resting, finding and imparting hope, enjoying every day things, etc. The world’s system does not teach us how to trust God. It teaches us the opposite—to trust man’s ways instead of Gods. And thus, we turn to the same broken system that keeps disappointing us. We jump on the treadmill one more time using our limited, temporal-and-material means to obtain a sense of comfort. Before long, we find ourselves back on a “new” treadmill, a little more tired and exhausted than the last round, pushing the “start” button on another attempt to solve our problems and satisfy our discontent.

We Think We Know Better
Instead of seeking and submitting to God’s ways and being open to possible changes, we make “new” treadmill decision. We buy and remodel that house. We start working out. We start a diet. We start a family. We stop having kids. We get new furniture. We get married. We don’t get married. We change jobs. We travel. We consume. We purge. We do. We think. We act. We play. Just like the little piggy, we “We-We-We” all the way home! And that is not to condemn any of these actions. They may very well be in God’s plan for our lives. It’s when we turn to these things for comfort and happiness instead of turning to God first and getting his clear direction, we have chosen to act independently of him and have tagged these “things” as our answer. We are using them to avoid hardship, satisfy our discontent, and gain comfort. For a short while, they might even work for us. But in the long run, if we honestly evaluate these self-made decisions-for-a-happier-life, in every case, the overall payoff was much less than the price we paid to obtain them. The comfort and satisfaction these decisions gave us wore off long before the full price for them was paid.

Wisdom is Proved Right by Her Offspring
In comparison, the decisions and plans we make in a state of complete dependence on God, following his clearly articulated direction, will always prove out to be wise and productive. In the end, the payoff of following God and trusting him will outweigh the price we are called to pay. We will see the most payoff in the authentic, thriving relationships we have gained through it all. We are not lonely anymore.

Can’t Give Up the Control
So why do we keep throwing ourselves under this same bus? Why do we succumb to the vicious cycle of avoiding hardship? Why? Because we aren’t yet ready to trust God and follow him exclusively. At best, we will give him lip service but when decisions to trust him butt up against the decision to rely on what we think is best or “wise,” we would rather trust ourselves than him. Besides, deep down, we subconsciously know that we are likely to encounter the God-disciplining hardship by following God so we’d rather stay in control of what hardship we are willing to face and not entrust that power to him.

Take the Issue of Money for Example
Take the issue of money for example. Saving money isn’t bad. In fact, to live debt-free, saving money and then buying something is way smarter than borrowing the money and paying interest on that thing. Yet many people save money, not because the Holy Spirit is leading them to save it, but because they are afraid of being in a state of hardship without money to save and support them through the hardship. Matthew 6:24 says, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

If saving and stockpiling money or things is based in our fear of a “rainy day,” then we are protecting ourselves and are avoiding the extreme challenge of walking by faith and trusting God. If we are asking God for a closer relationship with him, then we can be sure, he will give us a “rainy day” to drain our self-protective, fear-based, self-preserving resources. He does this to give us a platform of trust and faith to stand on—the required basis for a pleasing relationship with him. God wants us to depend on him because he knows that as the Creator of all people and all things, he is the God of the impossible and does everything with our good in mind. He is perfect and loving in all his ways and has proved this to be true over and over again. The Scriptures chant, “The Lord is good and his love endures forever.” We have an entire book called the Bible that spans thousands of years documenting the stories of this truth. Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Even so. When the rainy day comes and our self-protective measures are gone, do we view it as reinforcement for our fears and begin again to save and hoard for the next crisis? Or do we stop acting independently from God and turn to him, asking for direction and show him our love and devotion by implicitly obeying his commands. (John 14:15)

God is not focused on giving us hardship. God is focused on restoring dependence on him. Andrew Murray describes Humility as being “complete dependence on God.” Conversely, independence from God is based in Pride. And Pride is delusional. Hardship happens to be one of God’s ways of gaining our dependence on him. The good news is that God delights in showing himself faithful and loving. He loves to affirm our choices to turn to him. He will always give us the grace to endure the hardship as we turn to him. He is a good Father and always has our best in mind. And as a good Dad, he will not affirm our decisions to rely on our SELF or the World. He is not obligated to own and support decisions we make that he did not author. If we seek, daily surrender to, and align our will with Jesus as Master and LORD, if we put our trust completely in him when making decisions, and daily walk out his direction, putting our trust in God and leaving it there, we can be completely confident that we will discover all hardships endured actually turned out for our good. They are a necessary discipline that prepares us to handle the responsibilities of our destiny. This discipline creates humility and actually shortens the process of preparation. If you are still wondering if all this is true, just read the biblical stories of Joseph, Esther, Abraham, Ruth, David, Moses, Mary, Elizabeth, Paul, John. Plenty of “hardship” there. Plenty of fantastic destinies realized too.

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The Spirit of Divine Love will set us free from Anxiety – Anger – Stress – Disappointment
2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

The following article written by Janet L. Smith uses excerpts from the book entitled “Freedom from the Self-Centered Life” by William Law and edited by Andrew Murray

The Spirit of Divine Love is defined by these characteristics:

• Patience: forbearance, perseverance, the capacity to accept or tolerate delay without getting angry or upset, serenity, imperturbability, staying power
• Meekness: the gentleness of restrained power (in this case, the restrained power of Self)
• Humility: rather than relying on the power of Self and acting independently from God, we make daily decision grounded in a mental, emotional, and physical state of utter dependence on God. We host a mindset and live a lifestyle that directly reflects an acceptance of who God says a person is in heaven and in the earth.
• Resignation to God: reverent submission to Jesus, the One who has the power to accomplish God’s will in us here on earth. The refusal to be double-minded which uses the will and power of Self along with the power of God to accomplish our own ends. Self is the power we resort to as a backup plan if God doesn’t answer our prayers or people don’t respond in the way we want them to.

Problem solving when presented with an “opportunity” to Love in union with the Spirit of Love:

• Sink down into and acknowledge my helplessness to solve this problem.
• In humility (i.e., in complete dependence on God and not on Self)
• And with patience (i.e., employ staying power and calmly embrace my helplessness to stop or fix the throbbing ache of the problem presenting itself),
• Resign myself to the Spirit of Love who has the only viable solution to the problem (i.e., refuse to think that I have to immediately figure out a way to fix this problem in my own strength).
• Turn to the Spirit of Love as the only true source for a solution and wait for truth from the Spirit of God to come, keeping in mind that part of the solution includes our personal transformation—which means that I am bearing the good fruits of the Spirit of Love in the moment. “Good fruits” being Patience, Humility, Meekness, Resignation to God.

When we respond by the Spirit of Love in this manner, we are “embracing the cross” and “dying to Self.” And when we don’t respond by the Spirit of Love, we simply admit it to ourselves and, if necessary, admit it to others affected by our lack of it, and ask Jesus to help us increase in His Spirit of Divine Love.

Learning how to love in union with the Spirit of Divine Love has two stages:

1. Stage 1: Promise and Preparation. Intellectually we accept the principals and doctrines of the Spirit of Love, for example, taking in and accepting the information listed above in this article and below.
2. Stage 2: Fulfillment and Possession of the Spirit of Love. This means that what we have intellectually learned, we are employing in everyday life situations in union with the Spirit of Love—God himself.
3. Warning: Works of love, humility, benevolence, and prayer that are performed under obedience to rules and doctrines will produce a mixture of good and bad fruit because our humility will help our pride, our charity to others will nourish our self-love, and our increase in prayer—our opinion of our own sanctity. Thus, these rule-based “to-dos” are grafted upon a corrupt bottom. The “corrupt bottom” is the belief that following outward instruction alone will produce a pure heart.

The fruit of Divine Love

The fruit of Divine Love is perfect peace and joy; it is a freedom from all disquiet; it is all content and mere happiness, and makes everything to rejoice in itself. Love is the Christ of God; wherever it comes, it comes as the blessing and happiness of every natural life, as the restorer of every lost perfection, a redeemer from all evil, a fulfiller of all righteousness, and a peace of God that passes all understanding.

Through all the universe of things; all of nature that is uneasy, unsatisfied, or restless, is that which is not yet governed by the Spirit of Love. It has not yet reached or attained the full birth of the Spirit of Love.

How do I transition from following outward instruction to possessing the Spirit of Love?

The difference between following outward instruction and possessing the Spirit of Love is that I have transitioned from assimilating information (outward instruction) about the Spirit of Love and, through a series of events, such as setting my heart to possess it, praying for it, employing the instructions and information, walking it out in my everyday “opportunities” and not quitting, I finally come to the end of my Self. That is when the Spirit of Love enters in such a way that I am finally possessed by Love itself. I can now operate from the truth of the Spirit of Love as it is rooted and grounded in my heart, not just from an information-based “to-do” list of “should’s” and “should not’s.”

The yielding of my independent Self to the Lordship of Jesus has over time, produced humility (complete dependence on God) and made room for him to dwell in my heart in an ever-increasing measure. In Romans 6, 7, and 8, the Apostle Paul described his own frustration with this same process. Thus, the times when we feel worn down and weary—painfully aware of our ineptness to ever get it right—we can be encouraged, we are closer than ever before. The power of Self is almost vanquished. We are approaching the end of ourselves.

Complete transformation is possible

“I and my Father are one” (John 10:30). Just as Jesus and the Father are one, Jesus prayed for us to attain to oneness with him and the Father when he prayed in John 17:22, “…that they may be one as we are one.” All of Jesus’ prayers will be answered. We can attain to the full possession by the Spirit of Divine Love. When the full birth of the Spirit of Love has been reached and attained, every hunger is satisfied and all complaining, murmuring, accusing, resentfulness, revenging, and striving are totally suppressed and overcome, just as the coldness, thickness, and horror of darkness are suppressed and overcome by the breaking forth of the light.

If you ask why the Spirit of Love cannot be displeased, cannot be disappointed, cannot complain, accuse, resent, or murmur, it is because Divine Love desires nothing but itself. Divine Love is its own good. It has all when it has itself because nothing is good but itself and its own working. For Love is God, “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives [dwells] in love lives [dwells] in God, and God in him.” 1 John 4:16.

What complete transformation looks like

The fruit of being possessed by the Spirit of Love (i.e., living in the full birth of the Spirit of Love) is that the power it exerts is not as it was in the promise/preparatory stage (that of effort and strain with continual failure). The power of the loving nature, born of the Spirit of God, is that it cannot help but to love. The more opposition or ingratitude it meets, the more opportunity for proving its divine nature and power. Love is its own happiness. It is a joy to love. Thus, death to self does not precede the possession of the Spirit of Love, it coincides with it and is the result of possessing the Spirit of Love.

The difference between the Promise and Preparatory—Stage 1 and the Fulfillment and Possession—Stage 2 is that those who possess the Spirit of Love have paid the price that embracing the cross daily and dying to self has called them to pay. Without quitting or drawing back, they have paid this price until the transformation is complete and the Spirit of God has utterly replaced the prideful power of Self. As John the Baptist said, “He [Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30

1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”

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