The awe and wonder of birthdays

I do not really enjoy most birthday parties: people come together for food, give presents to whosoever’s birthday is celebrated, and wish him or her a “Happy Birthday”. In Christian circles we might add a short prayer, asking God to bless that person throughout the coming year. Now, there is nothing wrong with good food, presents and prayers. But if that is all there is, the occasion remains like a celebration of a rich harvest without thanking the One who makes all things grow; it is like looking at nature, marveling at the countless species of animals and plants without ever thinking of the one who created them; like delighting in a symphony without honoring its composer or like being impressed by a magnificent building without realizing that there must be an architect who drew the plans. It sounds silly, but that is exactly what we tend to do. We worship created things rather than the Creator!

David, the great king of Israel, had a different perspective. He prayed:

“For you, LORD, created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:13-14

Every birthday should be a Thanksgiving Day, an opportunity to thank God for creating an absolutely perfect, miraculous human being, made in his own image, so precious to him that he gave his own son to die on a cross in order to redeem us from the powers of darkness, pride and evil that try to keep us from everything our souls long for -  from the moment we are conceived until we die.

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, angels appeared in the sky, gave glory to God and challenged the shepherds in the field to do so as well. I think that every birth is surrounded by great awe and wonder in heaven, no matter whether the newborn is male or female, whether it is Asian or Caucasian, born in or out of wedlock, into poverty or riches and no matter whether it is born to Jewish, Christian, Hindu, Muslim, Atheist or Buddhist parents, may they live in Gaza or in China, on the Red Sea or the Black one: A new soul, a unique personality with needs, dreams and a deep longing to be loved and to love has been born!

Therefore, instead of just wishing each other a “Happy Birthday", let us celebrate our birthdays by thanking God and by worshipping Him, our maker, for giving us a brother/sister, friend, neighbor, … - a gift He and we can delight in.

Is God unjust?

There are some kingdoms of this world that seem to be more blessed by God than others. How can that be? Is God unjust? I think we find the answer when we address a basic misunderstanding in our view of history. Because we all grew up learning that the different peoples developed independently from one another, created their own culture and religion and that now, for the first time ever, missionaries would tell the people of a foreign God, whom they never heard of before. But that is not the story of mankind. Truth is that all peoples trace back to Noah’s three sons and their wives. After the flood, Noah lived another 350 years, and we can be sure he told the people around him everything he had experienced and everything he knew about God. Abraham was 58 years old when Noah died, so there is a good chance that these two actually met! While Abraham’s family had preserved the heritage and feared the one true God, others moved away further and further – both geographically and spiritually. Eventually, only bits and pieces of the true story remained and new ‘gods’ were created. Wherever truth got lost, forgotten or outright rejected, the glory and the blessing of God departed; and with every new god invented or called upon, the kingdom of darkness expanded. In some places, you can feel a much stronger presence of evil than in others, or, to say it positively, you can feel the presence of God in some places more than in others. But God lets it rain on the just and the unjust.

---

[1]  Noah’s son Shem lived another 152 years; by then, Abraham had already died, his son Isaac was 110 years old and Jacob 50! See Appendix 4 in my book "Christianity, Politics and the Sovereignty of God" (This article is an exert from Chapter 5.1 "Kingdom Geography").

Our attitude towards sickness and healing

Here are some thoughts, jotted down after listening to a teaching by Bill Johnson on unanswered prayer. I hope you will find some encouragement and/or some food for thought and further reflection. God bless!

• "If you just had enough faith, you would be healed!" This is not a cruel thing to say to somebody who is sick (even though it certainly can come across in a condemning way), but it is throwing them a life-line, pointing them to the only solution to their problem. It is actually cruel not to tell them that they should have faith for their healing!
• The opposite of "a little faith" is not GREAT faith, but NO faith! Jesus said that with faith as small as a mustard seed we could move mountains – no "great" faith required even for such a monumental task. Jesus also simply asked whether He will find "faith" on the earth when He returns – again no "great" faith required or expected. Similarly, Jesus asked the disciples after He stilled the storm WHERE their faith was. He did not rebuke them for not having "enough" faith, but simply made it clear to them that their faith was in the wrong thing (i.e. in their own ability top maneuver through the rough sea, in this case).
• "Complacency and ignorance tolerate unanswered prayers." Bills Johnson
• Accepting sickness in our lives somehow seems to be easier than believing God for healing, as you will not be disappointed (you cannot be disappointed if you didn't really expect to get anything in the first place), but it simply does not glorify God.
• If we pray for somebody to be healed, but doubt that God wants to heal that person, we are actually saying that we have more compassion for that person than God, but that is impossible. That makes me think that God wants to heal me more than I want to be healed myself!
• If we expect to be healed because of some kind of merit from our side, we are doomed. God is our Father, and as such we do not have to and we cannot do anything to earn His favor. He heals us because He loves us.
• I want to be healed so that my life glorifies God. It's a sad, man-made theology that says God would be glorified when we accept sickness because He wants to teach us something or build character in us. Jesus never told that to ANYBODY who came to Him for healing!
• Rather than shaking or being bedridden or being dependent on medicine, I am convinced it glorifies God much more when I am hiking through the mountains, enjoying His creation while snorkeling off the coast of the Cayman Islands, riding a bicycle to a waterfall around Chiang Rai, or playing football, being fully alive FOR Him, IN Him and together WITH Him.
• I do not want to be healed merely so that I can SERVE God better, but to ENJOY Him more (even though it will certainly be much more fun to preach, teach, drive busses, clean stuff or do whatever, rather than being miserable, unable to do anything. Jesus did not die on the cross because the Father needed servants… He wanted CHILDREN J
• God wants us to pray for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. There is no sickness in heaven, thus to "seek His Kingdom" here on earth entails for people to be healthy and whole.
• 2. Timothy 3:12 says that everybody who wants to lead a godly life will suffer PERSECUTION, not sickness.
• I do not want to accuse God ("You don't want to heal me") and neither do I want to blame myself ("I deserve to be sick") but I am guilty of self-pity, believing that I have to convince God of how miserable my situation is – as if He had not noticed.
• Healing was God's idea, not ours.
• Mt 6:33 ("Seek first His Kingdom"): We should never make our needs the primary focus of our prayers, even though it is absolutely legitimate to pray for our "daily bread" – instead, we should always be praying for what is on HIS heart.
• "Answers to prayer reveal God" – we need to pray for more than one thing at any given time, not to focus on just one issue. The breakthrough in one area will give us the hope and perseverance to see breakthroughs in other areas.
• Some things God does not give to soldiers / fighters, but only to sons and daughters. This point seems to be the easiest one, but often turns out to be the hardest, because we grow up being taught that we only get what we deserve…
• Just in case you were wondering: No, I am not a parrot. God created me to be a son, made in His image, not a parrot who just says what we think He wants to hear…

The Gospel

                                  Deutsch    ภาษาไทย

I don't know how the gospel was presented to you, but I am convinced that Jesus will not come into anybody's life as a guest. He will either enter as Lord or He will remain outside. God opened my eyes to this reality on what began as a normal Friday in February 1989.

I had driven about 3 hours to the city of Muenster, Germany. While driving, my friend and I listened to a teaching tape by Wilhelm Pahls, a German evangelist. I had never heard a man speaking so passionately about bringing people to Jesus, never before and hardly ever since. I knew that the things he said were true, and it was as if he spoke directly to me. Every word pierced my heart. Without having a scientific proof for it, I knew that the Bible was God's word. I had no defense, no reason not to accept what Jesus had done for me and that He now wanted to come into my life as Savior and Lord. After we finished listening to the tape, I had maybe the most terrible two hours of my life. We went to visit my friend's girlfriend in a hospital, but I could not participate in the unfolding conversation whatsoever. There was a war going on inside of me! A part of me wanted what Jesus was offering, another part of me wanted to stay in control of my life, and reasoned against it. And one of the main reasons why I hesitated was that I knew I could never have the kind of sex I desired if I really followed Jesus.

I finally found a reason to leave the room and went back to the parking lot. I could not look into anybody's face and everything seemed to be dark and gray around me. I arrived at the car, but instead of getting my guitar out of the trunk I sat down in the driver's seat and prayed.

I do not remember what exact words I used when I prayed, but when I opened my eyes, the world looked different. Everything dark and gray was gone. I got out of the car and I recognized trees, people, LIFE! I literally saw the world with new eyes! I read later in 2. Corinthians 5:17 that those who are in Christ are a new creation, and I sure felt like that!

From my book "Tempted, But Holy!" You can purchase the book from Amazon and other online bookstores or directly from me here!

Discipleship

Jesus told us to go into all the world and make disciples. Some challenging thoughts to those of us who are claiming to do that.

Whom are we discipling? 
Jesus did not wait for people to apply at his ministry, but he approached his disciples and asked them to follow him. Likewise, we should not wait for people to choose us as their mentor, but we should choose people to follow us!

Requirements in a mentor - disciple relationship

• Required: The mentor needs to love the person he calls to follow him!
• Not required: The person called loving the one who calls him. 

In fact, the motive of the person called does not really matter:

• he might be looking for financial stability and wealth (like Judas)
• he might be looking for an increased social status (e.g. from fisherman or tax-collector to teacher religious authority)
• he might be in it for some other personal benefit (like a "Greencard," English language, education,...)

How or why did Jesus choose the 12  apostles? 

Obviously, Jesus prayed before he made his decision. But here are a few characteristics that I found:

• The natural gifts, talents and abilities of the disciples were not important - on the contrary: God chooses the foolish things!
• Jesus didn't abandon the disciples when they show certain signs of progress, growth and maturity after a while
• The only criteria that Jesus seemed to have was that he loved them!

That is good news for us, because Jesus chose us. After 3 years of having been with Jesus, the disciples did not "get" most of the things that Jesus had taught them, but Jesus didn't kick them out of the discipleship training school. How much did we not get yet that  he has been teaching us all along? And how much did the people we disciple not get yet, even though we have been trying to teach them for years?

Remember: The only thing that is required for you to make disciples is that you love them. So keep on loving them. If you haven't really started to make disciples yet, then maybe now is a good time to call somebody you love to follow you. It will mean that you allow that person to be a part of your life, because I cannot see there being a different way of making disciples. That's how the Master did it, and I don't think we have come up with another, better way than that yet.

The goal of discipleship, but not required at the beginning, is to love Jesus. After 3 years of having been with Jesus, Peter can't help but to realize that indeed he loved the one whom he followed. And it is in that very moment, that the Lord releases him to feed his sheep... Before then, Peter had been send out to preach and to heal, but only now, after he realized that he really loved the Lord, was he given the greatest task of all - to make disciples :)

Brothers and sisters in the ministry: Let us delight in this high calling!
May the peace and joy of the Lord be with you all!

Honoring God's work in one another

Sitting in a classical concert tonight I found myself in awe of the musicians' excellence. Each member of the orchestra performed on his or her instrument with almost stunning perfection. And while each instrument by itself would be nice to listen to, the real feast for the ear (and the spirit) is to hear the orchestra play the symphony together. It made me realize how little I appreciate what God is doing in and through other people. No, it is even more than that: I don't really appreciate WHO HE IS in other people. I don't know about you, but I don't like it when I have the feeling that people are trying to point out to me what God still needs to do in me, how far I am falling short and how many problems there still are. It makes me feel belittled and unappreciated. But I know that I often look at people in the same way. And with that I am expressing a lack of appreciation not only of the person I am thinking about, but also of who Christ is in that person. "Jesus in us, the hope of glory," it says in Colossians 1:27. Instead of pointing out other people's faults and shortcomings, let us honor what the Lord has already done and what he is currently doing in one another. Yes, let us honor who He is in one another. We have more reason to thank Him than we think. And not only that we should ask the Lord to show us what he is doing in the lives of our Christian brothers and sisters, but also in the lives of those who don't yet follow the Lord. If we honor and praise the Lord for that, not only will we encourage one another, but we will also pave the way for God doing even more! Because why should He do anything else if we don't give him praise for what He has already done?
Oh Lord, open our eyes that we would see who you are in us; for your name's sake, I pray.

Instant prayer answers Part 3: God sends a friend!

It had been a long journey already. After a 2-week excursion from my university in Germany to the Greek island of Naxos, I had traveled by myself to Turkey in order to see the ruins of Ephesus. It had been an exciting time to walk where the apostle Paul and other heroes of our faith had walked some 2.000 years ago. This morning I had taken a bus from Selcuk via Izmir to Bursa, where I now had to wait for a ferry that would take me across the Sea of Marmara to Istanbul. Being alone in a different culture (Turkey is a Muslim nation) and not speaking the local language I was feeling quite lonely already, and when I found out that I had to wait several hours for the next departure, I couldn't help but feeling a little bit downcast. "Lord, I could really need a friend," I prayed silently, just in my thoughts. Immediately, as soon as I had had this thought, a man approached me and said in perfect English "You look like you could need a friend!" He invited me to have some tea and for the next couple of hours we talked as if we had known us for years. This was a great example for me that our Father in heaven really knows what we need even before we ask him, as Mathew 6:8 says. Because the man must have started to approach me from where he had been sitting before I even prayed! Needless to say that the waiting time for the ferry flew by in no time. So, dare to ask for a friend even when you are far away from home and it seems impossible that there should be anybody near by who cares for you. Our Father knows what we need, always :) Oh, by the way, this was before the time of cell-phones, internet and Facebook. Are we missing out on opportunities like these because of technology? Just wondering...

Healed on Halloween!

Times Prayer Changed Everything - Instantly! Story # 2

Once while visiting a missionary friend in Kolkata (at that time it was still called "Calcutta"), India, I got very sick: I had fever and stomach pain, threw up, and felt completely miserable for about two days or so. I tried various remedies, but nothing worked until I realized that it was Halloween. Knowing that Halloween is the highest holiday of Satanists around the world,* I broke the power of curses put on missionaries by Satanists by claiming the power of the blood of Jesus and Proverbs 26:2 which states that an undeserved curse will not come to pass. Within an hour, I was completely back to normal!

* A day lasts 24 hours - in one location. But taking in account the different time zones and the international dateline, a calendar-day actually lasts almost 48 hours globally. So I think that I started to get sick when Satanists in Eastern Asia began to "celebrate" Halloween by worshiping Satan and making sacrifices to him, and when the Holy Spirit brought my attention to it some 36+ hours later, it was still October 31st in the US and other parts of the Western hemisphere...

Times Prayer Changed Everything - Instantly

We all believe it: Prayer changes things. But sometimes change seems to come slowly. And when we don't see a prayer answered after a while, we more often than not give up prayer altogether. After all, we reason, it must not have been God's will, otherwise He would have done something already. As I thought about this today, I was reminded of some situations in my life when the Lord responded to prayer instantly and the idea was born to write them down and post them on this Blog. Thus the start of this little series today. I hope that you will be encouraged to be uncomplicated and spontaneous in your prayer, as it seems to be the pattern in the stories that came to my mind so far: It is when we pray simple, childlike and not pre-meditated prayers that our Father in heaven rushes to move heaven and earth, and even people's hearts!

Story #1: A drug addict set free!

"Are you willing to make an experiment tonight?" I asked. He looked at me with big eyes and said "What do you want to do?" "I want to pray for you, and see what the Lord will do." That didn't seem to be too threatening to him, and so he agreed. We were in downtown Los Angeles on a rather chilly night. Together with a team of students from our Discipleship Training School I had come to what is known as "Skit Row" to hand out sandwiches, hot coffee and cocoa to the homeless that populate the streets here after business hours. In many ways it was a crazy night. Hundreds of men were more or less aimlessly walking around, some had made fires on the street to keep warm. Drug dealers waited for their regulars, many of the men were drunk, here and there were quarrels with people yelling at each other. A police car had stopped by a few minutes earlier and one of the officers had made it clear to us that we should not be there as it was too dangerous. They urged us, just as some of the homeless people themselves, at least not to go into certain side streets, but I am not sure whether all of the team members even heard the warning and thus some of us probably went there anyway. I was glad that I had called a prayer meeting before we had jumped into our two vans to get here. This way we knew that God wanted us to be here and we felt completely safe and were very much aware of the peace of God surrounding us. While I had talked to Peter*, an obviously demon-possessed man tried his best to make us scared by yelling at us and rolling his eyes weirdly. But he kept a respectful distance to us. So did the drug dealer who was eager for me to finish talking to his client. "Okay, let's pray: Father, I pray for Peter, that in the moment he walks away from here you would change his heart so that he would no longer want to use drugs. In Jesus' name. Amen." When I opened my eyes after this short prayer, Peter looked at me curiously and maybe just a little bit mockingly. "So you think God will answer your prayer?" he asked. "Yes," I said, with a confidence that you cannot manufacture by your own effort even if your life depended on it. "But I don't feel any different," he said, and I heard his dealer laughing a few meters away from us. "You remember," I reminded him, "I prayed that in the moment you walk away from here God would change your heart." I had never prayed like that before, and I had not thought about what to pray before I had closed my eyes. And I certainly had not thought about how to respond to his questions after the prayer. As it was time for us to go back to our base on the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, I pointed to our vehicles and asked Peter whether he wanted to walk with us to send us off and maybe grab another sandwich. He agreed. We had walked just a few steps when he pulled his drug equipment out of his pockets and cheerfully handed them to me: "Here, please keep this, I don't want to do this anymore!" I was stunned, but then again not even really surprised. Rather, me and my friend who had been part of this encounter were genuinely happy and thankful. Don't ask me what it was that Peter actually handed over to us, because I have been blessed with total ignorance in regards to things related to drugs - I've never tried anything but cigarettes and never made it my mission to study up on the subject in regards to how exactly to use the various drugs, whether you smoke, inhale, shoot, sniff or simply eat them. I do know the difference, though, between a fake surrender for whatever reason and a genuine change of heart. And Peter didn't pull a stunt on us, but he was delivered from his drug-habit in an instant. As our vans had parked at one of the Missions that are offering meals and shelter for the homeless in the area, we connected Peter with it for follow-up and discipleship. 

This happened in January or February 1996. I haven't heard anything from Peter since, but I trust that the Lord continued what He started in this young man's life. I also have never prayed for other people in this way again. I simply was led to pray in this way on that day for that man. I didn't use any "technique", didn't go through 10 steps of intercession and didn't even spend time listening to how the Lord might want to have me pray. I just prayed whatever came to my mind in the situation and God answered. 

I guess you could write volumes of books on the theological implications of this incident, and maybe someday I will do that. But much more do I wish for the same child-likeness in my everyday prayer-life. To help me (and maybe some of you who read this) to get there, I wrote down this little story. If you were encouraged by it, please feel free to post a comment, click on "Like," share or let me know in some other way. I want to post more stories in the weeks to come, so come back to this site every now and then. Be blessed, and be a blessing! :)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Probably this is not the actual name of the person we prayed for that day. It's a long time ago and I don't remember the person's name. The rest of the story, however, is a true report, with the quotes reflecting the heart of what was said, not necessarily the exact words that were spoken.

Should Thai Christians support the "Yellow-shirts" or the "Red-shirts"?

Because of the current political situation in Thailand, I want to re-post an article that I first published in 2010 under a slightly different title (see here). So far, the recent protests have remained mainly peaceful, but the country remains deeply split into two camps and the situation continues to be very tense. As Christians, we are supposed to be "salt and light" and I therefore think it is crucial that we have the mind of Christ (or call it a "Biblical World View") on the matter. May Thai people see the peace, joy, love and unity among us Christians that only the Lord can give, and may one day the world see Thailand as a country marked by these attributes!

Here are the main parts of the original article:

A few days ago my attention was turned to Joshua 5:13-14, when Joshua encountered a man with a drawn sword just before the Israelites were to attack Jericho:

"Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?" "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell face-down to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?" Joshua 5:13-14

As we have followed the ups and downs of politics and the changing of governments and constitutions in Thailand (which seem to change more frequently than the weather in Southern California) we might be tempted to take sides and support the Red Shirts, the Yellow Shirts, or another group/color. But I am convinced that we, as the body of Christ, are not to take sides, similar to the commander of the Lord's army in the passage from Joshua quoted above. According to Romans 13, we are to obey, support, and pray for the people in authority, no matter what color they represent or how they got into the position of authority. Whether through elections, coups or by other means. We should always remember that the governments of this world are just that: they are of this world. But the Kingdom that we seek is NOT of this world! The advancing of this Kingdom of God does not depend on political systems or political parties. The Bible was written not as a manual to build kingdoms of this world (i.e. political and geographical entities known as "nations"), but as a manual for believers anywhere, anytime, no matter whether they happen to live in a monarchy, a democracy or in a communist nation like Laos. I think that the best testimony we can give to society in Thailand and to the rest of the world that's watching, is that we are content, loyal and supportive to the government at all times, even though we might not like some of the values and/or policies that each particular government stands for.

Unfortunately, there are not many good examples for us to look at, because in most nations the church is acting as if the body of Christ was nothing more than just another political lobbying group, trying to push their agenda and their values on the rest of the society. Unfortunately, this is especially true for the American church. However, when non-believers look at the church, they should not see just another political party (or color...), but something that is radically different, something that no political, religious, cultural or humanistic movement can produce. People should see us as people who genuinely long to lead a holy life, people who know their sins are forgiven, people who find their joy, confidence purpose, value and meaning in God and who try to love even those who hurt them... Another benchmark for Christians is that we are to give honor to whom honor is due, and whether the Prime Minister's name is Sonthi, Surayut, Somchai, Samak, Thaksin, Aphisit or Yingluck, we can certainly trust the Lord to work out everything for His purposes. That does not mean that we should not vote or participate in other ways in the political life of the country. It does mean, however, that we should never try to use force in any way. The only reason we have to not obey the government is when the government either tries to force us to do things that are against scripture (like bowing down to an idol) or tries to keep us from doing things that are commanded by scripture (like praying, witnessing, and raising our children according to Biblical standards). But because we know that our freedom does not depend on the rules and laws of the nations, and because we know that God is able to do everything according to his purpose we should never put our hope in any man, party,"system" or color. The Kingdom of God is not of this world, and it is not in question who is in charge of it. Let us live our lives for him who sits on the throne and reigns!

Charismatic vs. Evangelical: Pleading for the middle ground

As expected, John MacArthur's "Strange Fire" Conference (October 16-18, 2013) has sparked a tsunami on the web in form of blog-posts, articles, radio shows, web-site statements and YouTube videos. I love and very, very highly respect John MacArthur and other speakers at the conference. However, some of the things that were said at the conference (which you can watch in its entirety at FloydFamilyValues and, partially, on John MacArthur's "Grace to you" YouTube channel) are disturbing, as they are very divisive and don't do justice to the vast variety within the charismatic movement. It looks as if a few black sheep are used to discredit the entire movement. Granted, these "black sheep" have a very high profile and might indeed easily be seen as the official "face" of the movement that, according to MacArthur's on words, includes about 500 million (!) people. But I think that pastor Shane Idleman speaks for many people who consider themselves charismatic, when he says that "I read the John MacArthur Study Bible, not the Benny Hinn Study Bible" and "I love John Piper, not Creflo Dollar". I am also with Michael Brown when he says that John MacArthur owes an apology for saying that there was "essentially zero social benefit to the world from the charismatic movement". I post pastor Shane's message here, as it reflects my own views on this matter quite well. Living on the mission field (in Thailand), working with an overwhelmingly "charismatic" organization (YWAM), attending a Baptist church and having connections to many missionaries, pastors and normal believers from super-charismatic all the way to super-reformed backgrounds, I am very much aware of the need for balance and wisdom in all things. I consider myself blessed to have good friends among people from the entire spectrum of Christianity and I am hopeful that the "Strange Fire" Conference and its aftermath will eventually have a very positive impact on the unity of believers worldwide - because God is still able to bring about good even when man's intention should be evil. I am not saying that John MacArthur had bad intentions by hosting this Conference, I am only focusing on God's ability to bring about good... It is my prayer that an honest, humble dialogue about the raised issues would result in a deeper love and a greater appreciation for one another. Impossible, you think? Ha, you ain't seen nothing yet... :)    

"We trust the time will come when Dr. John MacArthur and those who share his perspective will acknowledge the great contribution that Pentecostals and Charismatics are making in the evangelization of individuals without Christ. We pray God's blessings on their efforts to share His gospel with a lost and dying world. Pentecostals and charismatics are their co-laborers in this effort so we ask that they would similarly pray for God's blessing on us as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission that God has given us all."

From a statement by George Wood's, General Superintendent Assemblies of God posted online

Obedience and Revival

I am convinced that the believer's obedience in small things (e.g. in Thailand: the wearing of helmets when driving motorcycle) would do more to bring about true revival than all "Revival Meetings" and "Prayer Movements" combined (see 1. Samuel 15:22-23, Romans 13:1-2)

Better than New Year's Resolutions...

Rather than focusing on what I should do in the new year, I found it to be much more helpful to focus on what God did in the outgoing year!
Every year I am surprised by how long this list ends up to be, and every year again I find that He has proofed himself faithful, merciful, forgiving, loving and good beyond comprehension in my life. I fall short of the glory of God, He never does. I would again break all the well-intended New Year's Resolutions within a few days (or weeks at best). He will again show himself faithful to His word and He will again keep all his promises :)
As C.H. Spurgeon used to love to say: "Look to him, dear sinner!"

Sickness and Healing in a Believer's Life

Introduction

To say one thing very clearly in the beginning: God is able to heal any disease, any sickness and any kind of pain at any given time. In Psalm 103 David says: "Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits - who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases"! Every true Christian believes that God forgives all our sin, so it is only appropriate to believe that he heals all our diseases as well. When Jesus walked the earth the Bible reports that he healed “every disease and sickness” (e.g. Matthew 9:35). Jesus gave this same authority to his 12 disciples (Matthew 10:1) and to everybody who follows Him (Mark 16:18). In addition to that, some people have a special gift of healing (see 1. Corinthians 12:9). God is the same yesterday, today and forever, so there is no doubt that He can heal and is still doing just that all over the world to this day. By Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, God has provided for healing of our physical bodies, because “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

A realistic look at causes of sickness 

However, experience of Christians throughout the centuries, ever since the early church, shows that many times Christians are sick and are not miraculously healed (e.g. 2 Ti 4:20, where Paul himself, though plenty of people were healed through/by him, left behind his co-worker Trophimus sick in Miletus). It seems that more often than not God chooses not to heal people through prayer and a miraculous intervention. It is certainly wrong to base our believes and our doctrines upon experience - they have to be based upon the word of God. But it is nothing short of denial if we ignore the experience of many faithful believers who have struggled or who are currently struggling with sickness, be it a common cold or more serious illnesses like cancer. A simple “You just have to believe”, or “You just need to claim the promises of God” might not always do justice to the one who is suffering, even though it is no doubt well-intentioned advice. God seems to be bigger than that, and at times might have other things in mind, rather than an instantaneous healing. It is absolutely not my goal here to make people (or myself) feel comfortable with their sickness and to stop pursuing God for healing. On the contrary: As Psalm 103 says that the LORD heals all our diseases, it only makes sense if at times we do have diseases - otherwise God wouldn't have to heal us from them... It is therefore my goal to bring a balance and hopefully some understanding about why at times we are sick. God is God, and we are not - thus there will always be things that we will not be able to figure out before we get to see Him face to face, and once we see Him like that all our questions about “why” and “how” might cease to be important. But as long as we journey on this side of heaven, I think it's worthwhile to fight for understanding. God is after being glorified, and a people who understand His ways glorify Him! But there is a “but” here…: A people who do not understand all His ways but worship Him anyways, might glorify Him even more!
Besides having been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2007, there have been 6 times so far in my life when I was no longer able to walk because of back pain. Every one of these 6 times (plus many more times with minor issues) has been completely different. Causes and cure were not always the same. So, I am far from making general statements. But I want to suggest 7 different categories of causes for sickness. There might be more, but I find these categories helpful to consider:

• Bad care 

• Emotional problems affecting the body 

• Spiritual Attack 

• Simply for God's glory 

• Sin 

• Accidents, Natural Disasters and Terrorism 

• Other Purposes of God