Hi everyone,

As Barb and I have traveled these past 7 1/2 months and visited many house churches, we see common elements no matter the country or language, culture or customs. The common elements are the family of Christ, the sense of extended family and community, just as we see in Acts and in Paul's letters.

It's been so rich to take people on many of these trips, or have them meet us at the destination, or they invested in the time and money to travel to our meetings - wonderful in every way! The commonality of family and instantly knowing we are each on the 'same spiritual page' is amazing.

But we also have seen the processes a body goes through to become centered on that sense of family and community, and it is those processes that vary, though still remaining consistent with human nature being what what it is, and the devil what he is.

Feel after Him
In Acts 17: 16-31 Paul told the elders of the (pagan) city of Athens that he could identify their unknown god as the God who made all things. In Greek, 'unknown god' is 'agnostos theos', where we get 'agnostic'.

He told them that his God made the world and all therein, and all mankind with the various nations, and knew ahead of time and even determined their borders and the times of their rising and falling. He said of one blood He made all nations in the hopes "they would feel after Him and find Him". v27

The Greek word for 'feel after' is 'pselaphao', and means "to feel or grope about". The root 'psao' means 'to touch'. It is used in Luke 24:39 where after His resurrection Jesus says: "Look at my hands and my feet! It is I myself, touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."

Struggles
It occurred to me how much house church is accomplished by 'feeling after Him' which feels more like 'groping about' at times. Some people who visit are rather 'agnostos theos' about us, about visiting a strangers home, about house church...it is unknown to them.

I think back to our middle son's description of Army training called 'reconnoitering'. They would drop several teams of soldiers over hundreds of acres of woods, each with a map of their destination and little else, with just instructions to meet at the location on the map 2 or 3 days later.

Imagine teams of soldiers all spread out over hundreds of acres of forest, too far from each other to hear or see each other, yet all trying to make their way to a common goal. They would feel their way, grope about, scavenge what food they could, holding first and foremost in their minds their common goal.

But they first had to find out where in the world they were. They could see their goal, but were confused about where they had been dropped off. So the first order of business was figuring out where they were.

Such is house church. At first, and I mean for the first year or two, it is confusing just figuring out where you have been 'dropped off'. You see the goal, but where in the world are you, and where do you go from here?

Many people from all sorts of backgrounds over time formed into a team, a family in Christ, trying to get to the goal of maturity in Him - and feeling and groping (at times it seems) their way towards maturity in Christ.

Time
What I found in the traditional church and in house church, is that people feel after God just to find out where they are, then they grope their way towards Him, but at points along the way for each of us, we must make a choice to make the right decision no matter what it feels like, but because it is towards our goal of maturity in Christ.

During our travels this year, and what I hear in Skype and Facebook Instant Messaging and such, I've had people say things like 'It took 2 years' and 'It's only now after a year that we are...' and '...after these 3 years we are just now becoming a family and community in the Lord...'

People will come and go, but those who want to mature in Christ, who want community and extended family in Christ, will become your core. I've seen seasons of a year or more for the Lord to whittle things down to a core group - before growth happens again.

House church is counter culture to the west, but it is the culture of Jesus. People need help as they feel their way to kingdom culture, for house church is a lifestyle where those we fellowship with are our top priority - let us realize people are groping, and help them with tender mercy and patience, for we are finding our way too.

Blessings!
John
www.cwowi.org

A personal note - a special thanks to those of you, individual or as a house church, who support us financially. Of the 10,000 or so people around the world reached weekly with my Weekly Thoughts, there are less than 600 people in a whole year who contribute financially.

That 600 includes those who contribute a donation and buy a cd/MP3 during the year. Even a small amount on a monthly basis makes such a difference. Thanks to those of you who do contribute, and know that you are prayed for and much loved.

Hi all,
We've learned a lot from movies and TV haven't we? 

• Anyone can land an airplane as long as someone in the Control Tower is talking them down.
• When the hero knows martial arts and is surrounded by 10 guys, they will take turns fighting the hero rather than all attacking him at once.  
• A woman's hair, make up and lip stick always stay in place through the night, rain, bomb blasts and childbirth.
• Sheets are cut in such as way that on her side of the bed it comes up to her armpits but on his side it only comes to his waist.
• If a strange sound is coming from downstairs at night, a baseball bat will always be in the hall to grab.
• All bombs have large red numbers counting down the time.
• If you are being chased, go to a train station and run across and behind trains as you'll always lose your pursuers that way.

We've learned a lot from church and Christian conferences haven't we?

• God requires 3 'excited' songs and 4 'slow worship' songs before He will grant a single prophecy to the congregation. Which means...
• God knows when His turn comes to speak: Just as the last worship song ends and the worship becomes almost inaudible. After He speaks once He knows it is time for announcements. 
• You will experience breakthrough by putting money at the feet of the speaker on the platform. 
• If you shout and scream and yell at the top of your lungs God hears you much better.
• If the speaker thinks a demon is present, praying in tongues as loud as possible is required (and if you stretch forth your hands while doing so you will REALLY scare it).
• The proper expression of humility before a guest minister is to fall down backwards when he or she touches or pushes you on the forehead. If you can flop and throw yourself backwards for dramatic effect it will bring just that much more 'anointing'.
• The number of people carrying a minister's jacket, Bible, and spare bottle of water is directly proportional to that minister's 'anointing', popularity, status, and wealth.

In the same way real life isn't accurately portrayed on TV, how to enter into His presence and receive from Him isn't always accurately portrayed in church either. This series is about actual scripture and my life experience showing you how to experience His presence.

The Father is a Spirit

Jesus said in John 4:24 that His Father is a Spirit, and in John 3:5-8 that we are 'born by the Spirit', what we call 'born again', meaning the Father's Spirit has re-created our human spirit. It is in our spirit that we have God's presence, and to sense Him, we must learn how to turn our attention to our spirit man.

When we are first re-created in our spirit through faith in Jesus Christ, it is similar to being a new-born baby. Peter said 'As new born babies, desire pure spiritual milk by which you may grow.' (I Peter 2:2)

In Galatians 4:19 Paul said 'My little children of whom I am again in birth pains for you, until Christ is formed in you."

We may be many years or decades old when we make that step to believe in Jesus, but in our spirit-man at the moment of belief, we are as a new born baby. As we grow in the Lord it is like Paul described above, similar to childbirth, with stops and starts, contractions and times of rest, but that process of discipleship is Christ being formed in us.

The word 'formed' above is 'morphoo' which means 'the form or feature of a person'. Paul was in childbirth again - not for their new birth but for their discipleship - praying that the fullness of the form or feature of Christ would grow in them. Even though our spirit man occupies the same amount of space as our body does, in innocence and ignorance we are born again like an adult sized baby and must mature.

Consider that a new born baby has all the required body parts to drive a car, but it will be many years before his or her body grows to be able to fit in the driver's seat, and also have the mental ability to handle the driving of a car. But they are born with all the right parts, they just haven't grown into their ability. This is similar to being born again in our spirit, having all the right 'parts' so to speak, but not yet mature in Christ.

What your spirit feels like
In Luke 24:32 the two men on the road to Emmaus who walked along with Jesus for what would have been about 5 miles or 8 km, said this: "Didn't our hearts burn inside us while He talked with us as we were walking along the road and explained the scriptures to us?"

These men were newly born again, having believed that Jesus is Lord and has risen from the dead. They were experiencing for the first time their born-again spirit, which was bearing witness to the things Jesus was teaching them.

The word 'burn' above means 'to set fire to, to light'. Notice that their minds noticed the burning as they walked, which would have been for an hour or so most likely, but they didn't realize who and what was going on until AFTER the Lord had gone.

Think on...
My experience has been that people who are very cerebral or are busy thinking while in worship often have trouble turning their mind to what is happening inside their spirit. By cerebral I'm not talking smart, rather those who are so used to thinking, to processing things mentally rather than by what they 'feel' inside, the act of sensing what is happening in their spirit is new to them. Some are many years old in the Lord but still clueless on the moving of the Spirit in their heart or in a meeting, or how to experience His presence. 

But to be able to experience His presence, to be 'in the Spirit' to feel and sense what is going on spiritually, a person must be willing to turn their attention to their inside, and look for that 'burning' or presence in their spirit.

Stop and notice
That means when we first sense that burning as the two above did, we have to stop and take notice of it. When I was a teen I worked long and hard, having experienced that burning or presence in my spirit in one of our teen prayer meetings, to find that 'wavelength' again.

It was like an old radio (which wasn't old when I was a teenager) where to find the radio station and that clearest reception of the signal, I'd slowly move the dial back and forth, listening for the station I wanted, and then once found, fine tune the signal by just the slightest touch of the dial left or right.

I'd think to what song we were singing, what I was thinking, when I felt His presence inside me. I'd work to get back to that 'wavelength', mentally putting myself back in the same context I felt Him. And then I would feel His presence flow up out of my spirit...yes feel, sense, become aware of His presence again inside.

Remember?
I'd be driving along and thinking on the things of the Lord when a great revelation would come to me. Wow, I thought, that is so good I'll never forget it, so I'll write it down later. When 'later' came, I couldn't remember what that revelation was. It made my heart burn within me, I saw how that revelation connected to other things in scripture and life, it was amazing....but that evening I couldn't remember a thing.

The reason is that revelation from God is in the spirit man, and unless you write it down or talk it out - do something to involve your mind and body which will record it, that revelation will be lost because it never made it into your mind. It stayed in your spirit.

To get it back you have to mentally and spiritually place yourself back in that same context. OK, I was driving along on that road at that place, I was thinking about...hmmm...listening to a Christian worship song...thinking on...and I'd go back there mentally, spiritually, finding that wavelength...praying in tongues as I did so...then that flow of revelation would start all over again, just as it had earlier in the day...it was finding the 'wavelength' which unlocked some door in my mind which allowed the flow of Life in my spirit to wash into my mind.

But...Since those years I've always kept a pen and paper in any vehicle I drive, truck, car, rental...always. Because I don't want a revelation to stay in my spirit, I want to commit it to memory, and to do that I have to involve my mind and body, thus the pen and paper.

He is 'real'
God is a Spirit and we are born again in our spirit, so if you want to experience His presence you will have to learn about your spirit and His Spirit. He is very humble, 'real', doesn't get freaked out at our human frailties and imperfections, and is committed to us.

And living inside us, you don't have to yell and scream to get His attention. He is as close as thought...start looking inside for that 'burning', that presence, that peace...find that 'wavelength' again down inside you, not between your ears...for down inside is your spirit and that is where we find communion with Him...more next week, blessings,

John Fenn
www.supernaturalhousechurch.org

Info upcoming HouseChurch Conference 2013 Netherlands

Dear friends,

Barb and I just returned from our trip visiting friends and affiliates in New England, and were thrilled that so many people flew or drove in during the week to join us. Every meeting was different, ranging from Q&A to very anointed times of worship and ministry by the Holy Spirit.

Thank you to those who hosted us, and to all who invested time and money to come!

But now that our travels are finished for the year I look forward to completing this fall and winter the Bible school courses of OT and NT Survey and another course or two.

It is also a time to reflect and give thanks, so my thoughts have been about how I have been impacted by many of you over this past year – by meeting people in our travels I only knew by email before, or renewing acquaintances and friendships, by those of you who have emailed ‘thanks’ because a Weekly Thought touched you, or you emailed a question, by the prayer requests written on offering envelopes, by your financial support, by notes saying ‘I’m praying for you’. You have positively influenced our lives!

As Paul told the Corinthians in II Corinthians 3:1-4: “You…are written on our hearts…written not with ink, but by the Spirit of the Living God…written not on tablets of stone (today we’d say pages), but on (pages) of the human heart.” This is how I feel about all of you!

2013
Have you ever had a peace about yourself and your life down in your spirit, yet when your thoughts go to someone or something else, you get a heavy feeling? That’s the way 2013 feels when I ponder the future. Unrest, unsettled, and clashes are three words in my spirit for next year, in the areas of society and economy, and there will be other difficulties as well.

But when you stay focused on the peace of God in your spirit you find yourself a bit detached from emotional turmoil, and that’s what I encourage us all to do. Paul said in Philippians 4:6-9 to be full of care about nothing, but pray and think on good and pure things, and then the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds.

In verse 7 the Greek word ‘keep’ or ‘guard’ means to ‘hem in, surround’. It is a picture of a city protected and surrounded by huge walls – let the peace of God in your spirit dominate your thoughts, that no matter what is going on; we don’t venture in our thoughts outside those walls of peace, and make decisions from the position of peace, safety, and having already won. I hope that makes sense, but that has worked for me for decades. Don’t fear, do what is right and wise and prudent, but decide things when in peace, not when in fear.

Thank you for caring for us!

You are written on the page of our hearts,
John and Barb
www.supernaturalhousechurch.org

Hi all,

The young man was very nervous as I directed him to a seat on the sofa in my office. I was the Director of a Bible school and he a student, so I thought he was nervous about being in my office. He was about 18

and I remembered that he sat near the front to my left and was always paying attention and writing notes.

Doubt

"I'm sorry for bothering you, but I'm in your classes and you seem like you'll tell me the truth, and I don't want to sound stupid or anything, but I really want to know: Is any of this real?"

I was confused: "What do you mean, 'Is any of this real?'" Suddenly the depth of his question hit me as the reason for his nervousness became clear - he was questioning the reality of God.

He continued: "You know, all of this. Is God real or is church just a show, a performance to stir up emotion and make people feel good? I just don't know anymore. I mean, I accepted the Lord when I was in junior high at our youth group and I really experienced something, and thought He was real. But now, I'm not sure."

I asked why he wondered and he said he didn't feel God anymore. He was very busy with school from 8 until noon, and volunteered in children's church on Sunday and 1 Saturday a month worked the puppets for the church's outreach to children in poorer apartment complexes. He also had a job, studies, and social activies. But he no longer felt God's presence inside.

Busy-ness doesn't equal Godliness
I was visiting a missionary in Mexico back in 1986 and one evening he handed me a piece of paper with about 20 names written on it: "You're a prophet, would you pray over these names because each one is a person who said they want to come work with us, but I don't know most of them and I need to know the Lord's will." I replied that he needed to spend time in prayer and interviewing these people, not have me get a word from the Lord on it. His reply: I'm too busy doing the work of the ministry to pray."

He was like the Bible student: Too busy doing Christian things to actually know God.

(The Father was gracious. I went back to my room and told the Father I was there as a guest, so under the missionary's authority, so had little choice in the matter though I didn't agree with it, and if He would indulge me by giving me a word about each person and their involvement yes/no with the missionary I'd appreciate it, which He did, which the missionary said he really appreciated and helped fill in the blanks on some things he had felt he had gotten from the Lord.)

Many of us are as busy as the missionary or the student, then when you add all our devices which connect us to the rest of the world, it is no wonder Christians can get more wrapped up in the production of church more than knowing the Lord church is supposed to be about.

TMI
American Internet users spend 23% of online time in social networking sites, 62% of adults world-wide now use social media, and 56% of social media users have admitted to using it to spy on their partners.

The average US teenager sends/receives 3,339 texts per month (111 per day). In 2009 there were 1.5 trillion texts sent/received in the year, in 2011 that had jumped to over 7 trillion. (7,000,000,000,000)

(mashable.com, dhtech.com, thesocialskinny.com)

There are some positives to being connected of course - it provides a distraction, a break in routine, we catch up on news, and opens us to new possibilities. The down side is that it can become addictive and people tend to share Too Much Information (tmi if you know the language of texting, lol).

Being too connected can be narcissistic - Narcissism defined as excessive self-love, inflated sense of self-importance and unjustified feelings of entitlement. Too many 'friends' may mean you are spending too much time on social sites and it makes people feel more comfortable with online relationships than face to face relationships, thus making thousands of friends actually mean 'none'.

And of course social networks have their share of weirdos and complainers, but the biggest reason to use them in balance is that social networks prevent people from being social and networking.

God is a Spirit
Jesus said "God is a Spirit, and those that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24)

The word 'must' here is not a demand or requirement like 'You must do your homework before you go to the game' or 'You must complete this report before you leave today'. It can mean all these things in scripture, but in this context 'must' is more of a road map instructing us on how to fellowship with the Father.

As in, 'When you're coming into town on that road you must pass the big library before you reach our street.' Or, 'To get food to your stomach it must pass through your mouth and esophagus first'.

So when Jesus said true worshippers must worship the Father in spirit and truth, He was providing a road map: To be able to worship the Father you must do so out of your spirit and out of a motive of truth. The 'entering of the gates' so to speak, must be accomplished out of the spirit.

The word 'worship' is 'proskuneo', one of my favorite words in the whole universe, made of 'pros' which means 'towards', and 'kuneo' which means 'to kiss'. Literally then, worship is the kissing towards the Father out of your spirit, your innermost being, and in truth - pure motives of love (not trying to remind him you have an urgent prayer request or trying to manipulate Him as if you can praise Him enough to motivate Him to answer your request).

Oh, so that's why the empty feeling!
Our physical bodies can only touch the physical world. Our minds can only touch the mental world. Your body can't leap into the pages of a book anymore than your mind can drive the car outside. But get your mind and body together and then you can open a book and go places mentally or get into the car and drive it where you desire.

When we sit in front of a computer to connect socially, we are using our mind and body to do so. Our spirit man is not involved...stay with me here I'm speaking in broad generalities...GENERALLY speaking, it is our soul and body that is involved, not our spirit.

But God is a Spirit...we can't touch Him physically and He isn't a mind that we have union with Him in the space between our ears. The road map to fellowship with Him is as Jesus said: Our spirit.

Your spirit is the innermost you. It is in your spirit questions arise which flow into your mind like 'Who am I?', 'Why am I here?', What is my purpose?' Your spirit is where God lives in you and when you hear His voice, it is in your spirit. Your spirit and your soul (soul includes your mind) are eternally connected, for your soul actually proceeds from your spirit and is what makes you, you. People in heaven are now spirit and soul, lacking a physical body, yet your spirit and soul look like you - because they are the real you.

As we renew our minds to learn to think like God it is the process of the Life in your spirit flowing to your thoughts to change them. That requires effort and an act of your will. Spirit and soul are housed in an earth-suit, a body.

One day we'll get a new body made of heavenly material such as Jesus has now, but for now we're stuck on planet earth in a body that has an expiration date. Only a blessed few know the season of their expiration date, for the rest of us, we just keep breathing and putting one foot in front of the other.

People try to fill the emptiness in their spirit with mental and physical things, but because physical can only touch physical and mental can only touch mental, their spirit man remains untouched. That is why surrounding oneself with 'things' in the physical realm proves empty. It is why no amount of education, drink, drugs, or money can fill the emptiness inside. It is why sex for the sake of sex alone can't touch the emptiness inside. And it is why too much focus on being 'connected' in social networks makes for a shallow and hollow Christian life. All these 'things' only touch the soul or body, not the spirit.

Reconnecting
I asked the young man in my office to remember when he last felt the presence of the Lord. He recalled a time at his home church before life got so busy, when he was just sitting (body) during the worship and his thoughts (soul) were focused not on talking to the Lord but rather more in neutral, then slowly his attention turned inward, away from the music inwardly to what was happening in him...(to his spirit), and there he felt peace, an overwhelming love...and he recalled sitting there for an unknown amount of time, unaware of anything but the love and Presence in his spirit....

And that is the subject for next week, for I don't want to present a problem like too much Internet social networking, without present the solution - Next week: How to experience His presence...until then,

blessings, John www.supernaturalhousechurch.org

Your hosts
Wil & Ank  Kleinmeulman welcome you to our annual conference in our beautiful country
Like the other times we are very glad to have John Fenn in our midst
We will have time for: teaching, edification, fellowship

John Fenn 
(Tulsa, USA) 
Founder of CHURCH WITHOUT WALLS INTERNATIONAL

Network of HOUSECHURCHES 

His website: www.supernaturalhousechurch.org


Costs:    €150,-- ***(all-in**) ; children (1-11) €40,-- (0-1 free!)

Info and apply: email Wil&Ank or tel.+31 30-6379786

*            = Conference starts April 5 2013: 4-6 pm.; and ends April 7 2013: 3 pm

**          = All-in=registration+conference +lodging expenses+ food

***         IF YOU WANT A SPECIAL ROOM (OWN TOILET+SHOWER)  YOU PAY € 12,50 P.P. EXTRA !! YOU HAVE TO RESPOND QUICKLY, THERE ARE JUST A FEW SPECIAL ROOMS AVAILABLE!!

The Conference will be held at:
Bezinningscentrum Emmaus, Helvoirt – NB

Hi all,

Chris and I were at the store picking up a few items, and though we were headed to the food department, we always stop by the toys to look at the cars and trucks. He loves all things car and truck, from the characters of the 'Cars' movies - Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater - to Herbie the Love Bug to whatever strikes his fancy that day. Easiest to handle and therefore his favorite are the 'Matchbox' cars - those little metal cars of all makes and models - some modeled after real cars, some imaginary. 

Normally Chris' attention is focused on whatever is within arm's reach, but on this day he saw the display of 'Matchbox' cars from way off; "Look dad, look! Look at the cars!" As you can see from the picture, if you count the rows there are 72 cars on display, with more cars behind each of the ones in the front.

He quickly and forcefully rolled up to the display and started putting cars in the basket so fast that I started laughing at his pure glee, and took the picture. He would grab one, carefully examine it, then say 'I want this one' as he dropped it in the basket and returned his attention to the next car on display.

He loves those moments when he is totally in charge such as these, so we allow some freedom in the store, and that's how he ended up with 2 new cars that he picked out that day!

Though he lived at home for his first 24 years and had say in what he wanted to do and when, the move to the group home 8 years ago meant giving up a lot of control in his life. With 7 other people living in the home and 2 aides, life for him has become a matter of doing what the group is doing, and much of that is unchangeable routine.

The bus to the workshop leaves at 8:30am, someone wheels him onto the bus lift, he does what is set before him at workshop, returns to the home about 3:30pm, has a snack, dinner about 5:30, bed around 8pm, medicine is given at 8am, 12, 8pm/20:00 every day, and so on, all at the direction of others.

By contrast, when I pick him up to come home for the 2 days and 1 night each week when we are in town, my first question to him is 'What do you want to do?' Because I get him at 8:30am when the others are headed to workshop, his normal reply varies: "Hmmm, donuts I think" or "Let's go to McDonalds" as he loves the #9 breakfast burritos with a carton of milk.

Then we may park near an intersection or by the train tracks as the Lord nearly always seems to arrange for a train to come because "Jesus just loves trains", and then we begin our 'errands with dad'. Our errands usually take until about 3pm, some at his direction, and that's why we were at the store the day this picture was taken.

Instant control, instant communication

Our lives are not unlike Chris' in that most of the time we live according to what the group is doing. From the time we awaken the expectations of others are upon us. We rise, eat, and go to work or school to be somewhere at a set time, with tasks set before us by day, week, and month.

But when the end of the day comes we have many choices before us like the display of 72 cars at the store: What shall I choose?

For many, the first thought is to 'connect' online in one or more social groups. This age of instant communication allows us to be fully in control of our lives, or at least provide the illusion it is so. We can put our attention wherever we want it to be: Let me see who is on Facebook Messenger right now. What are people saying on the groups I'm in? Maybe I need to check the farm in Farmville. Let me open Skype to see who is online I can call or instant message...

Of all the choices to make, rarely do we choose 'nothing'. 'Nothing' isn't on display grabbing our attention. Today, being alone is often a result of not connecting rather than a choice we make to be alone.

A problem to be solved

Being alone feels like a problem to be solved not something to be desired. We have so many choices we don't know what to do with ourselves.

If you don't learn how to be alone, you will be lonely.

Having people around you, electronically or real, isn't a cure for loneliness. Loneliness is defined as: An unpleasant feeling in which a person feels a strong sense of emptiness.

But that emptiness can't be totally filled by 'net friends because though righteousness comes through knowing Christ, it is unproven all by itself. God designed that righteousness is proven within personal and close relationships. Cyber-only relationships therefore don't by themselves, allow us to prove and walk out our righteousness.

Here is the difficulty: Technology appeals to us where we are most vulnerable. Picking up from last week, living vicariously through those in our online social network means if our weakness is genuine friendships or loneliness, we can become over balanced towards 'connecting' as soon as our time is our own.

When I was growing up 'electronics' meant a radio or the 4 channels on the TV. We had to spend time with ourselves, it wasn't a discipline, it wasn't something we had to schedule. We were the entertainment so we knew ourselves. We knew what it was like to be alone and play by ourselves.

The first clue for many that things were changing was a popular 1970's TV commercial whose line was: 'Calgon take me away' as the viewer saw a woman taking a leisurely bubble bath as the troubles of the day melted away. 'Me time' now had to be scheduled. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVLzkTuVmrw for you youngsters :)

When we choose to be constantly (electronically) connected we think we aren't alone - the social networks provide the illusion of meaningful relationships, but are in fact 'inadequate', and that's why the more some connect to social networks the more alone they feel. It is counter-intuitive; the more we are connected in social media the more we feel lonely.

Feel like yourself?

If we don't know how to be alone we don't feel like ourselves if we aren't connected. We feel like something is wrong, out of sorts. We turn to others to feel less anxious or to feel alive, which means we are using them for our gratification, for our own selfish ego and purposes to support our fragile selves.

We must learn to be alone, to use social networks to bless others rather than a means of self-gratification to support our fragile ego. But how do you learn to be alone?

Finding the wavelength

What were you doing the last time you felt the Lord's presence? What were you doing the last time you know for sure He showed you something or spoke to you? Was it while studying the Word? Were you taking a walk, riding a bike, driving aimlessly, riding the bus, taking a long bubble bath?

Now look for patterns through the years, connect the dots to those times you received revelation or felt His presence or know that He spoke to you - do you see that during those times you were in a certain frame of mind, a sort of 'wavelength'. Like the old radios where you'd have to move the dial back and forth to tune in to the strongest signal, look for the patterns of where and how He has communicated to you in the past and return to that 'wavelength'.

Set aside 'me' time and don't feel guilty about it. Separate yourself from your devices - off or silent and in another room - and get yourself into the mental place where you've had the Lord communicate/reveal to you in the past...and know yourself...which is where we'll pick it up next week. Until then, blessings,

John Fenn

www.supernaturalhousechurch.org

Hi all,

This week I have a confession to make. But first let me tell you how I got myself into that situation.

Barb and I were flying out of Billings, Montana in July, making our way to Tulsa via a change of planes in Minneapolis. Barb took the window seat and I got the aisle, and as we got settled a young man in his late twenties took the seat in the row in front of us, directly in front of Barb on the window.

Montana has a lot of ranches and therefore cowboys, and this young man looked the part, except he had a baseball cap instead of cowboy hat on. But if you've been around ranches and cowboys you know that a cap often replaces a cowboy hat when in public away from home - it doesn't scream 'cowboy' if you are in the big city and away from the ranch.

I took stock of our flying companion. He was definitely a real cowboy: Short hair neatly trimmed, baseball cap, round tin of chewing tobacco in his hip pocket, clean and new or newer tight jeans 'boot cut', which means the pants legs flare a bit to be able to fit over his dress cowboy boots. Large silver belt buckle, plaid long sleeve shirt western style even though it was July, and he called the flight attendant ma'am. Yep, the real deal. I wondered why he was going to Minneapolis, but I soon had my answer.

As soon as Cowboy sat down he asked the flight attendant for a beer, which she delivered promptly - while we were still sitting at the gate! Then he began texting, and being right handed, his phone was clearly visible to me in the space between the seats. His thumbs were flying on his Blackberry and he was holding it in such as way that just screamed an invitation for me to eavesdrop on his conversation.

Sorry, Lord

So I did. The first text I saw said 'You always criticize the way I dress. You always criticize me in front of my friends.' The name over the text was something like 'Jenny', and he responded with something like 'No I don't, we'll talk about it when I get there'. I realized I was reading an argument between boy friend and girl friend, and felt embarrassed but all the more curious at the same time. They weren't using abbreviations and symbols, they were writing out each and every word with full punctuation; it was a real texting conversation, and I was violating their privacy.

I said something to myself like 'You know you shouldn't be reading his texts, but sorry Father, I'll pray for him if that makes it any better' as I chuckled to myself at the instant recognition of the stupidity I just prayed...(enter short prayer for Cowboy and Jenny)...then resumed stolen glances at their conversation.

Cowboy wouldn't let it go, like he was going to adequately explain via text messages why he was critical of his girlfriend's clothing on their last date and why he criticizes her in front of her friends, when he knew he was going to have to turn the phone off in about 5 minutes...

I felt like telling him the first thing you do to get out of a hole is to stop digging! Just apologize, learn that she is feeling insecure about you and her relationship with you, and shut up already or no one will be there to meet you at the airport dude!

But nooooo, he had to respond....so then she brought up how critical he is about things she says, her choice of restaurant they ate at on their last date - and he responded that he was just trying to help her and how she comes across to people - and like a World War I pilot getting shot down in one of those old biplanes, he was going down in flames fast.

Soon I was in his world, my mind whirling for answers, waiting to see how Jenny would next respond. My pulse quickened, I tried to switch my attention to the airline magazine in my lap I was pretending to read, but kept glancing up at his texts...hurry Jenny they're about to close the door!

I briefly toyed with the idea of confessing to him my eavesdropping and offer to give him advice, but thought the better of it. About that time the door of the plane shut, all electronic devices were turned off and stowed, seat backs were in their upright position, we learned for the umpteenth time how a seat belt buckles and unbuckles, and off we flew.

Another beer ma'am

As soon as he could turn his phone back on, airplane mode I assume, he did, reading and re-reading the text conversation with Jenny though unable to transmit or receive, and going through 3 more beers in the process. As soon as we landed the phone was back on normal mode, and the texting began again. I prayed more earnestly and honestly this time for him, because I figured with 4 beers on the plane and Jenny waiting curbside and the text conversation they'd had 2 hours earlier, he needed prayer!

Vicarious living

My sin of eavesdropping on Cowboy and Jenny allowed me to live vicariously through them. Vicarious is defined as "Living as if through someone else, not experiencing it yourself, but using someone else's experiences as your own."

Through them I was able to relive past arguments Barb and I had when we were in our 20's, when I was just learning to stop digging when I argued myself into a hole...(alas, I'm still learning that one) by reading their texts I was back in time to when our sons were children.

I connect, therefore I am

People have lived vicariously ever since Adam and Eve sat around the dinner table telling their kids what it used to be like in the Garden of Eden. It isn't necessarily a sin (though like any God-given gift, it can be used to sin); in fact it is a God-given part of our imagination. Books, movies, TV, radio, the Internet and more, tap into our imagination and people live vicariously to some degree as part of entertainment.

But today, with so many ways to connect to people, many have taken those once-in-a-while vicarious moments and turned them into a lifestyle. As a result their life is 'out there' in cyberspace, while neglecting people close to them. Some are so 'out there' they have forgotten who they are, what their real priorities should be, and have even lost social skills with real people.

Experiencing God vicariously

In a few years we have gone from only living vicariously for 2 hours on Saturday at the matinee movie to vicarious living as a lifestyle, involved in peoples' lives through social web sites, 'friends', tweets, and more. Our emotions flow just like a real relationship, though we can keep 'friends' at a distance. We feel what they feel, we worry and pray, we rejoice with our virtual friends. We are living vicariously through them.

We then go to church and expect to experience God vicariously - through the worship, the preaching or teaching, the overall experience. Sadly though, most experience church rather than experience God, which is the result of being in 'vicarious' mode. Their relationship with the Lord becomes hollow and they don't know why. Church is boring, they don't know how to connect in worship, the Word, they don't feel His presence.  

You can't experience nor know God vicariously

Their walk with God has the same shallowness as their relationship with their Facebook friends and for the same reasons: Relationships work best in person. To say it another way, you can't truly know a person (or God) if you only experience them vicariously.  

So people search out the prophet for a word, the meeting where angels are being seen, the holy goose bumps and more, all to experience something real in their faith life. Christians you think are solid suddenly wonder if God is real - all because their faith has been a vicarious one, not genuinely knowing the Lord. They've lived their faith life through the eyes and ears and experiences of others instead of truly knowing the Lord and the Father themselves.

And that's where I'll pick it up next week...for my house church friends this should prove to be a good study and discussion for this week if you should choose this topic. Until then, blessings,

John Fenn
www.supernaturalhousechurch.org