Apostle David Johndrow - Fire And Grace

Today I plan on attending the Memorial Day parade in Holliston, MA; a little town not too far from Boston. We'll probably park the car at St. Mary's, arriving early enough to get a shady seat on the bench in front of Fisk's Variety Store. My wife's family and friends will be there. There will be the distant sound of a High School band and the crackle of police walkie-talkies. The kids will wave flags and have red, white, and blue balloons. It's a lot of excitement for a small town. As the parade nears our vantage point across from the Superette, with blue lights flashing, Charlotte's uncle John will round the corner onto Route 16 in his patrol car; clad in his Ray-Ban's and a proud smile, and he'll blip the siren signaling the last few pedestrians to clear the parade route. Behind him the rumble of a 30's something-or-other roadster, and the clickty-clack of a Ford Model-T will be drowned out by the applause of those of us lining the sidewalks. A ...

Today I have some unanswered questions. Some of these keep me awake at night, and others make me chuckle to myself. - How come we let teenagers live past 13? - How come air conditioners can only be put in when it 80+ and taken out when there is snow on the ground? - If it is tourist season, how come we can't shoot one? - Why would we want to drill oil when we could use electricity for cars? - What year did Jesus think it was? - Why does the president support policies that only 1/3 of the country wants when more than half voted for him? - If Christians believe the Bible, why do so many think their thoughts and feelings are a better moral guide? - Do Christians believe that the chicken came first - after all God did create the animals first, right? - If all those psychics know the winning lottery numbers, why are they all still working? - How come so many Christians think that money is the root of all evil? - Why would anyone want to know how many calories ...

The desert is a pretty popular topic in the Bible. I found well over 300 references to the word. The desert is an interesting place, dry and desolate to some, something to be endured by others, and to one with a keen eye, teeming with life. This week on Kingdom Bloggers, we wrote about doubt , and the desert usually is not far away. We wrote about that HERE . We know that Israel, although lush in some areas, is arid in others - the same is true of life. If we look at the biblical/spiritual events that take place in the desert, I think that we will see the parallels to our own lives. Here are some attributes of the desert that we should be aware of. There is life giving water in the desert: Genesis 16:7 The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert. God can be with us in the desert: Genesis 21:20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. God can get our attention in the desert: Exodus 3:1 [ Moses and the Burning Bush ] ...

What made you believe (or what would make you believe) in God? Faith in God, or belief in the Bible don't come easy in a scientific world; one filled with new discoveries and plausible theories. Christians often site proof texts and archeological finds, but the truth is that all of these discoveries have been refuted - with or without science. For many, the biblical fact that God says He is, is enough proof. Well, it wasn't enough for me! The Bible, a seemingly rambling collection for random writers and styles was no match for my intellect, reason and personal logic. For this Christian, there are only three things that make me certain of God's existence, and the validity of Christianity as described in the Bible. 1 Peace -  Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding.  Unless you have experienced it, th...

Healing is one of those supernatural happenings, that for those that are without faith, it is hard to grasp. And I hate to say it, is hard to grasp for believers sometimes too. I once went to an Anglican healing service in the early 80’s. There was a woman there that wore hearing aids. She went to the altar for prayer. Her hearing was restored and she no longer needed the hearing aids. Her priest and I were talking about it – me, I thought it was amazing, wonderful and exciting! He said this, “well, if she thinks that she is healed, than that is all that matters.” If doubt is where we start, then we need to look at the word of God. How is it that we can go out into all the world with the Gospel, and God will do nothing? Is Christianity only about getting folks past the sinner’s prayer, or become members at a social club of like minded folks? I think not! Salvation by faith is the doorway to the Kingdom. The purpose of Christianity is to advance the Kingdom, not just add new convert...

Healing in the Christian Church seems to be another one of those areas where the lack of good teaching seems to be tough to come by. It is, for some, part of the mystery of faith, while for others; and on the other end of the spectrum, a right . As usual every one has their favorite verses. Here is probably the most popular. Isaiah 53:5 And by His stripes we are healed. The question then becomes this, does God heal the physical body, and if so, why not everyone? If we take a closer look at Isaiah in context, many scholars think that it is a “spiritual” healing – salvation. The passage includes griefs, sorrows, iniquities and transgressions. And I am pretty certain that you can see the purpose of the crucifixion; or atonement in this passage. The problem with the above inference is this. Matthew 8:16 When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick , that it might be fulfilled which was spoke...

I don't think a blog can teach you to prophesy anymore than I believe that you will be born again just because you read the Bible. I do believe that there are some prerequisites or steps that you can follow if your heart is for the things of God, that should help you get in the ballpark. I can assure you that everyone that prophesies by the Spirit of God (as opposed to being a diviner for the Devil) fills these requirements. - One must be born again - truly born again. (John 3:16, Rom 10-9-10) - One must be filled with the Holy Spirit. I suppose there is some debate about this, and when and how it happens. I believe that sometimes it happens when we are born again, and other times it is a separate experience. No one doubts that Paul was converted on the Road to Damascus. (Acts 9:3-8) Paul, however; received the filling of the Holy Spirit at a later date. (Paul was born again after the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost (Acts 2, ...

As I thought about prophecy in the church, I realized the two major barriers to incorporating it and the other gifts into our everyday life, are unbelief and fear. Unbelief is a big problem for many Christians – not just in prophecy! It comes from a number of sources, but ultimately it is the devil trying to tell us that God is not able to do what He says He will in the Scriptures. We often take the doubting Thomas story to the extreme. Trust me, if you were Thomas, you’d have much more faith than the average American Christian. You may remember the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead. John 11:16 Then Thomas (called Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." 17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. We all know how the story ends. Lazarus was raised from the dead by Jesus. How about you, have you seen someone raised from the dead – I don’t mean revived at the hospital, but...

As a body of believers God has given each one of gifts in which to serve each other. We are not all meant to do the same job in the Kingdom. In fact, without others, we may not be able to do anything of real value. Christianity is a team sport with lots of sacrifice thrown in. For many the church seems as if it is run like a business. And the folks that attend the church are worker bees. They make sure that practical needs of the church are taken care of. Someone has to do the cleaning, the bookkeeping, the pastoring, the counseling and all the rest of the church business. And beyond all the mechanics of church (which yours truly finds exceeding boring and lifeless), there are supernatural ministries as well. We call these these spiritual gifts. No other religion has spiritual gifts, because no other religion has a living God. I mean in ABC religion, folks don't speak in tongues and heal the sick because...

I heard a commercial on the radio today.   Little girl: Daddy why is the sun in the sky?   Father: Well it is not in the sky, it's very far away.   Little girl: Why?   Father: Well if it were closer it would be too hot.   Little girl: Why?   Father: Because the sun is made of hot gasses.   Little girl: Why?   Father: I don’t know.   Fade to a commercial about saving for college. The creationist would say because God made it. And the scientist would tell us all about the Big Bang Theory. Both views are not able to be proven. The Christian says they have faith and that settles it, while the scientist says he has a methodical and logical process – and based on some facts (not all) he can make such and such a conclusion. His logic tells him that if he could go back in time, he’d show you how his hypothesis is correct. A lot of Christians feel that Christianity is under attack, both in our government, and in a number of ot...

You may have heard that 2 million folks in greater Boston were without potable running water . I wasn't one of them. Where I work, however; was. When I arrived on Monday morning, I never gave a second thought to what I would drink during my nearly 11 hours away from cool filtered water dispensed from my refrigerator. As I sat down to my computer and opened my email, there was a message from the owner of the company saying that we could not use the coffee pot, ice, or the water bubbler. I was thirsty just thinking about it. We were urged to wash our hands and then use sanitizer (sounds stupid right?). I thought for a moment about those that were trapped in the Haitian earthquake for days without food or water - certainly I could make it without water for 11 hours. Then I thought about being trapped for days without the bathroom under some rubble - *snap* time to get to work. There was a gnawing feeling of thirst, even as I worked and talked on the phone. I pounded away at the ...

I don't know about you, but I am appalled at the fact that the US government has abdicated from reforming arcane immigration laws that were designed during WW II! Add to that, the protests against Arizona's new law which intends to enforce unenforced Federal Laws. What did the White House expect? It is time to do something, and please, make is sane! Immigration has been the backbone of a free and prosperous United States since we became a nation. Why can't we make it work?!? Not one of us wold be here in the US if it were not for the process of immigration. I am a second generation American. My grandfather (mother's side) came over from Ireland to New York in the late 1800's. He worked hard and gained a lot of success in business but lost it all during the cash of 1928. He joined the US Army and was a decorated Captain until his retirement. My grandmother was a southern belle from a well-to-do farming family in Virginia who's family came to America (from En...

This is the last blog in my little series about the church. If we are going to solve problems, then some folks need to get motivated to do something different. Maybe that's you! The first "something" we need to do is get some vision from the Lord about how to go deeper and become more effective. But before we get all spiritual about this, don't you think there are some verses that we could make our own; mediating on them, and then putting them into action? Here are two that are paramount in turning around the "mother ship" we call church. Matthew 5:42-44 (NIV)  42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.  43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. Do I really need to list the enemies of God and the church which includes you? Take a ride through Galatians Chapter 5 . And church, ...