Apostle David Johndrow - Fire And Grace

I often talk about being led by the Spirit. There are so many doctrines and versus that you can debate in the Bible. I have heard both sides of lots of issues. Isn't that what denominations are, people that disagree on certain versus in the Bible; or place more importance or certain versus? There are those that debate if there could be an apostle in this day and age, if you can really speak in tongues, are there idiots in the church, can believers be possessed by demons... if you ask me, that answer is yes to all of them... but certainly they are debatable. I guess, I was thinking about times when I was sure that I heard God. Four or Five years ago my kids wanted to go to a conference about 120 miles from the house. The registration fee for the three of us was nearly $100; plus the price of food and gas. I had heard so many good things about Acquire the Fire , that I wanted them to go... and me too! I talked it over with my wife who says "yes" to just about anything she t...

I have been pondering miracles lately. If you have been reading this blog for a few months, you'll know that I believe in a supernatural God, one who does supernatural things. I love reading books such as "Like a Mighty Wind" and "Caught up in Paradise". They inspire me to believe God for amazing stuff. And you know, He has done it in front of my very eyes. As I look around at the people that I am in contact with, I see lots of needs. From finances to cancer, I know folks that need miracles.... or so it seems. Here are some of the things that I have heard about miracles over the years. "If you have faith, you'll have miracles." "If you pray for potatoes, God will give you a hoe." Or, "coincidences are God's way of remaining anonymous." "We don't need miracles, we have science." And today's winner, "miracles ceased with the death of the last apostle." All of these statements are intended to illustr...

I continually stand amazed at how we function, or dysfunction in the church. Look, everyone in church is looking for grace, and in loads of other places besides. Getting off the hook, not being found out and being forgiven are top of the list for most folks. When we do get caught, grace is wonderful. I remember my dad not whacking me for busting a neighbors window with a poorly thrown rock. Because of his grace that day, I didn't have to suffer any punishment, OR make excuses. Had I been pressured, my 10-year-old mind would have blamed someone... the spinning of the earth on its axis, that fact that my dad hadn't taught me to throw rocks with better accuracy... umm... the target that I was trying to hit moved (Technically the targeted telephone pole had once been a tree in the woods which was moved to our front yard by the power company.). The question is when is grace appropriate versus consequences, or punishment for our actions? As I write this, it sounds a little harsh, but...

Having experienced Christianity in a number of denominations and cultures, there are more then a few bad teachings regarding spiritual gifts floating around out there. They come in three types. 1) NONE - The gifts do not exist since the apostles died. Any supernatural activity in the church, is of the Devil. 2) EXTREMELY RARE - They are not something that you have, or can even predictably enjoy as part of your faith, they are something that God sends when he darn well pleases.... and that is not very often. Or they exist, but we don't know how to use them. 3) WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU IF YOU DON'T HAVE THEM? - The "Everybody has them all" and your faith is so low you can't operate in them... or worse yet, you are not even saved! All three positions, in my view, are biblically off. There is just too much information about spiritual gifts in the Bible for this issue to end up in one of the above named "catch alls". If we look at all this scriptural informa...

Even though the following is a hoax, the actual column is worth reading. http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/hitnail.asp If you're not a Jay Leno fan read what he wrote anyway. My respect and esteem for him has really increased. "The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right? The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence 2/3s of the citizenry just ain't happy and want a change. So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, ''What we are so unhappy about?'' Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter? Could it be that 95.4 percent of these unhappy folks have a job?...

I watch enough forensics shows to know that the use of alternate light sources can reveal evidence unseen by the naked eye. DNA tests can reveal the identity of virtually any perpetrator. The entire science of forensics, from gas chromatography to scanning electron microscopes, make it hard to hide anything from criminologists. I also find it amazing that in the city of London there are thousands of video cameras on which all types of activity can be watched on virtually any street. Undersea remote submarines equally amazing. They have ruined the myth of the Titanic and exposed the secrets of the Bermuda Triangle by finding ships that "supposedly" vanished. Those very mysteries, along with the illusions of Harry Houdini, intrigued me when I was in fourth grade. Even more intriguing is the NTSB as they reconstruct an airliner from a crash site. It is astounding how they seem to find all the pieces, let alone reassemble them! Have you ever thought about the thousands of yea...

20/20 hosted a special on Hell and it's many "versions" Friday, July 13th. Maybe people feel Hell is unlucky... I don't know. The commentator, Bill Weir, presented what I am sure he thought was a balanced view of the subject. What always amazes me about these intellectual and supposedly educated exposés, is that they don't really present the Biblical view. They don't quote any scripture and hence, we get a biased, uneducated worldview which is simply a collection of people's thoughts on Hell. I am sure the average viewer found it enlightening to hear 21 different religious and secular views of Hell. That, I guess, would allow them to make an educated guess of what Hell is to them. A friend of mine thinks that it is always good when we are confronted with eternal issues... I am always concerned that people will believe a lie and miss the real thing. Here is a quick list of the thoughts presented: Hell is a place for evil people only, hell is reserved for th...

A few days ago I went and test drove a few cars as I am pretty sure that I will need to replace my 12-year-old one sometime soon. While I was looking, I just decided that I should take a spin in some of the more exotic 2-seaters. After all, I can always look for a used Honda some other time. What's the big attraction for me? I guess they have always been exciting and I simply decided that this was my opportunity for a little fun. They were cars that I have always wanted to own, but I haven't been able to afford. As I looked past the Estimated MPG window stickers(which was 12 on the 427R Mustang!) at a luxurious and sporty cockpits, I was in another world. In the end, I was impressed with the Corvette, an American automotive legend. The Crossfire, well that was underwhelming to say the least. I really liked the Mustang. It is amazing how the Mustang and Corvette have come of age in 50 or so years. It appears to have taken a long time for the automakers to return to their roots i...

Just about all people follow some one's leadership. They have heroes, bosses, managers, parents, pastors and teachers. And yet most of us also lead. We can lead ourselves, a family, or a country; someone is in always in charge. I believe leadership is partly talent, partly learned and always entrusted to us by God. All of our choices have consequences, and therefore are leading somewhere. Every entity has some sort of leadership; the church is not exempt from that. It seems I have come across more then few uniformed church people in the area of leadership. They don't seem to understand the fundamentals of leading, but have no problem taking control. They don't seem to get that leadership is not about them, but about those they lead. Simply stated in the Bible, "But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first." Leadership in the church is about getting at the end of the "blessing" line and encouraging others to join you. Church le...

Not a day goes by when we hear some saying that pertains to so-called wisdom. "Seat Belts Save Lives", "Two Wrongs Don't Make A Right", "Low Fat", "Low Carb", "Easy Does It", "Jesus Saves"... the list goes on an on; while the more popular ones are bumper stickers. If you have ever been in a church, you've heard a lot more of them. Here is one, "It Take Two to Tango"; meaning that both partners are responsible for negative outcome in a relationship. Another version is "relationships are 50/50%" when they are really 100%/100%. And my favorite, "good intentions paved the road to Hell." Oh yes, and let's not forget the "money is the root of all evil." I think in an effort to make things more understandable, some actual scriptures get changed while the original meaning stays intact. Other times well meaning folks try to make these sayings more palatable while they entire truth is ...

Today is the day after Father's Day. Yesterday I thought about my dad on the way home from visiting two of my daughters. I have thought many hours how prayer might have changed things in his life. Fortunately he received Jesus 7 or 8 months before he passed away... June 23 I think it was. He lay there sick in the hospital with brain cancer trying to answer the eternal question "is there really a life after death?" For him, by faith, there was. Amen. I thought to about the events leading up to his acceptance of the Lord. When we first heard the word "cancer" I decided to take my family and go visit him. A few nights before I was praying on the phone with one of my close friends. I felt the Lord say that my youngest daughter (at the time) would be the one to minister to my dad. As we prepared to go see grandpa, she busied herself with finding a suitable gift. She chose a plaque that had been on the wall in her old room at our previous home. She picked it because o...

Yesterday morning I awoke to news about a local teachers strike that has gone into it's fourth day. The teachers were ordered back to work but they have refused to go. Now the union has a $150,000 fine to pay. What is going on in America? First, let me say that it is sad that teachers make so little for the amount of education they have. Most people with a masters degree in greater Boston would make 100K or more... they are not even close. I know I taught school and when offered $16K a year I chose something else. I am sure you're wondering what is so important to me regarding this situation. Here it is, we have people breaking the law and public support is subsiding quickly as parents scramble to find suitable care for their kids. The law and the court order is being enforced. I remember my mother getting a ride to local pokey after six or seven days after her teacher's union decided to strike. She had a court appearance and a fine. Justice was swift. The details of this s...

I remember it like it was yesterday-- my first mission trip to Brazil. My friend Carlos was there with a couple of his friends waiting to meet me in Curitiba airport. His amazing smile and that box of Brazilian chocolate he brought as a welcome gift; it is a picture that is stuck in my mind and event that will always be in my heart. We all stood there in the modern concourse greeting each other. It was really quite a moment for me. It is a bit of an amazing story how I actually met Carlos in the first place. He had come here legally to bring a message of salvation and love to the US; as a missionary to this country. There we were in the midst of something that God was doing, in back hallway of the in Salvation Army, in downtown Hyannis. That was nearly 10 years ago. The rest is history, good history. He has been a friend, a best man and the iron that sharpens iron in my life. We are as close as Johnathan and David were. We often talk about that. We love to travel, eat sushi, enjoy cars...

Today while I was waiting to hear news about my father-in-law's kidney surgery(which at the time of this writing seems to have gone well), I received news of another co-laborer in the Kingdom who died in an auto accident. He was known to me as Theodore, but those who were really close to him, called him Grandpa Theodore. He was well into his 80's, a missionary in Mexico... well for the last few years anyway. His legacy was missions in Asia including Vietnam, China and the Philippines. He was the mentor of a friend of mine who I know, and finally met, from a prayer chain on the Internet. We had many e-mails over the last decade... Time flies no matter what you are doing. I am sad today. As I sit here and think about Theodore's impact on my life, I remember when we first met. He was part of a team in doing a mission in Vietnam. He was located in California arranging things for Bobby and the gang over there. In 2000 the team finally got kicked out of Hanoi for their work. (Whi...

The stats come out every day, who goes to church, who believes in God, who believes they are saved... we have stats, loads of them. What I find amazing living here in New England, is that I don't hear anyone talk about God outside of church at all. I have had one conversation with American strangers about God in the past 6 months. Sure, maybe it is up to me to bring it up, but for a country where 70% of the people say they are Christian and believe in God, I don't hear to much about it. I have done much better with the Hispanic community, probably because I can speak a bit of Portuguese. Research by George Barna says Biblical views are waning. DETAILS Wow, what a surprise. NOT! There are lots of reasons people don't know about the Bible. Partly because we now have the largest generation of Americans ever; one that was completely raised without prayer or Bible reading in school, amongst us. But I think the other part, which is worse, is that Christians don't even have t...

As I descended the three flights of stairs in my office building to the ATM, I had a deja vu moment. In a thought, I was taken back to high school some 30+ years ago. I was then on my way do something during class. For a moment today I was really "there." During my jaunt around the building I began to think of an eclectic array of moments in my life: my wife's shaking hands while we stood at the altar preparing to say our vows, the faint moment I had at 4:39 am the day our daughter was born, the memories of my mother's last moments here on earth; and my dad too. The vapor of this life over for them... the grief, the joy over loved-ones trapped by cancer for months of suffering... over forever. I also thought about my missed opportunities, the fact that my mother never my met my wife of youngest daughter... the day I quit a job I wish I had now... the regret of selling my vintage guitar collection for thousands when it is now worth hundreds of thousands... there are a ...

Whatever you think of Jerry, he has left his mark on American society. Some will remember him as one that proclaimed that the AIDs epidemic and 9/11 are judgement from God. Others will remember him as a political influence that got Reagan elected in the 80's. Here is what I think. (That is why you are reading this blog, right?) Whatever gains we have made politically, are cancelled by proclaiming judgment on the nation which is the job of Jesus. Don't get me wrong, I believe that sin has consequences and when an alcoholic dies from cirrhosis, or a smoker from lung cancer, I think, well you got what you paid for. I know there is grace and mercy, but that wages of sin is still death. It was God's plan for us to live forever, that is why we need Jesus. The point is to leave the judgement up to Jesus. History bears out the sins of a a nation bringing judgment on themselves. It happened to Israel a number of times. It also happened to the Roman Empire and the early Greek states....

With Mitt Romney and Al Sharpton facing off over religion, I have to say, I don't get it. As a Christian I was taught that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Light and that there is no other way to heaven. He said, and I read it, therefore; I am just repeating it. The apostle Paul said this, if you confess salvation with your mouth and believe it in your heart, then you have it. (Romans 10:9-10) So where is the argument? The Christian; Sharpton, claims to know, but acts like he doesn't know better. Romney, a very nice guy, thinks that we need to be tolerant of all religious practices not just his. Sharpton may know the answer, but it was not presented with love. *Gong* both sides in error. Why? Defending the truth without love is being a clanging gong... see 1 Corinthians 13 to see what I am talking about. Not believing in Jesus as a savior is an eternal error. But who can prove it? So, what is it that made Jesus say what He said? How could he say, I am the only way to heaven?...

Last night I was impressed with the topic at our Thursday night group. "What is church?" Wow, you get all kinds of answers. It is a place of redemption, love, hope, "not a building", people, institution.. and the list goes on. I guess I would ask the inverse, what is the church expected to be that it is not? Well, it is not a building, not a social club, not a political machine... I am sure you can think of some others. If we look at church history, and we should. We'll see that the 1st century church was comprised of communal living and small home churches with occasional services held in synagogues. In truth the persecution of the early church caused it to be primarily underground in many respects.... or the parishioners would be stoned to death, fed to the lions, forced to burn to death on an iron chair over hot coals... it was ugly, very ugly. So, why did the early Christians claim faith in the face of torture and death? I would say because church was not a ...

This morning I heard a local political analyst talking about his perception of government and the church. I guess it's true, talking about politics and religion are fodder for heated debate. In the argot of political correctness, it seems that there have misperceptions regarding the church. It doesn't surprise me that people don't trust the government... just the thought of what is "spun" our way can make you sick. It seems that most of it is a position that benefits a certain group whether it makes sense or not. What puzzled me was the stone cold analysis of the church according to this man. He said, and I quote, "Those in the church are loving until it comes to homosexuals and the sexually abused (referring the the clergy sexual abuse scandal here in Massachusetts.)." Wow! Do we have a long way to go or what? How are we going to fix that? I have to say that I am so stunned that I don't really have much of an answer. I do think that this man, A) onl...

Wow, I was watching Dr. Phil and he did a segment on "What are you thinking!" He had two Christian guests on. The first was a famous evangelical Christian talking about deliverance. I was a little concerned; casting out demons can be pretty scary to the average onlooker. Generally Christians get a bad rap in the media, sometimes for good reason, but most times not. I don't personally think that Phil McGraw is all that spiritual. For him to have a Charismatic/Pentecostal minister on for some good reason was a stretch for me. He can be very condescending at times. I was interested to see if he was actually going to listen. My other concern was the Christian-ese culture that looks pretty stupid to the outsider. Dr. Phil didn't seem that "impressed" that with Bob Larson ... he didn't' say there was going to be a link on his web site like he does for other promoted guests. I do believe people think that Larson looks for demons under every rock. I think th...

This week I was reminded of how the prophetic gift works (the working of the Holy Spirit). I have a friend that I talk to a least a few times a month, and have from quite a few years. We don't see each other often, but God seems to have a purpose in this relationship. And God seems to give me knowledge of certain situations in his life. I find it enriching and fascinating what God has done over the years as we have talked, prayed and thought of each other. I know there are some readers that don't believe people actually hear directly from God; I have gotten a few e-mails. What I find interesting is this: I am very certain one of the skeptics has been to a psychic. They told me they were dually impressed that the medium knew exactly how many children they had given birth to. The truth is this, even this person believes in supernatural "hearing". However; what I find funny is that once you wrap the word Jesus, or church around that type of hearing, then people want to c...