Apostle David Johndrow - Fire And Grace

If you missed my Sure, I'll Answer That post last week, some of my readers sent me questions that they wanted to know what I know, or at least what I think. GCT said I know that you claim that you can't argue to god using reason, etc, but surely you must have some reason for belief in your particular religious faith vs. any other, correct? What is that reason and why is it compelling? Further, do you have any reasons that you feel are compelling coming from you but are not compelling coming from someone with a different set of beliefs? These are tough questions because it is hard to explain God to someone that can't see Him, or has felt His presence - but as always, I'll try. Me personal experience with God was a total surprise to me, and it wasn't in a church. I didn't say the sinner's prayer, or respond to an altar call. I was at an Alateen conference and they were closing it with the "God as We Understand Him" meeting. It was a bunch of ...

It was 7 years ago today, that I said "I do" - and so faintly, no one heard me. Mary Anne took my breath away then, and still does now. We stood there looking into each others eyes - her hands shaking. I think we also said "for better or worse." I certainly couldn't have done any better, and she couldn't have done much worse. ;o) My bride occasionally reminds me that men who are married live longer, and woman who are single, also do. I maintain, she's the best thing that ever happened to me. Thank you God! Today I wanted to take a few minutes to let you know how, and remind myself how awesome Mary Anne is. Not too long before meeting her I received a prophetic word about how marriage would heal me from not only divorce, but from some other issues. God is like that. He uses everything in our lives to bring us to the the fullness of His plan and destiny for us.It has definably been healing. Mary Anne and I met 9 years ago tomorrow. S...

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John Wimber, founder of the Vineyard movement, used to say "everyone gets to play." What he meant was that the leadership wasn't going to be doing all the ministry. And that is a good thing because, in most denominations, the pastoral and overseeing authorities were really separated from the laity. They were the paid "holy men," often doing all the praying, all the teaching and all the administration and counseling too. Bigger churches just had more paid holy men to carry out the so called ministry of the church. When I was doing missions in Brazil , I found it really difficult to just be a regular guy, trying to do what I saw the Father doing. Everyone wanted to address me with some sort of title -- out respect for sure -- but I wasn't ordained at the time. The separation between me and them was perceived. Sure, I studied the Bible in a formal school... but really, who gives a flying epistle? Paul the apostle was a very well educated Jew, but he didn't...

I have never had a guest blogger - but it seemed like a good time to have one - mostly because there is some stuff I don't know, which; today's guest does. I was thinking about writing a piece or two on the things that will happen in the last days before the return of Jesus. HERE is the last blog I wrote on the topic. As I was researching - trying to get my thoughts together - I read some of Les Young's research. I decided to ask him if he would write a blog on the subject. In the process, I learned: never ask a soon to be graduate of doctoral studies in theology to write a short blog. So here is the first installment, and there will be others as we have time. You can read more of his Les's writing over at End Times Encouragement . False Prophets/Christs There is no better place to begin this topic than with the Word of God. The Bible is full of warnings concerning false prophets, going all the way back to the Torah. I think we can learn much by...

I love James' description of church. James 3:4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are  steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. I am all for church, and I always hope to be an agent of change for the better - one that brings us closer to Jesus, and in line with His will for individuals (destiny), local church bodies and the entire Kingdon of God. On the decks of the ship called the church, we're should be taking take part in body life. Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread  and to prayer. I would say, for the most part, what I see is a lot of teaching, a fair amount of communion, various types of so-called fellowship and some prayer. In many ways I think the church experience almost has it backwards. We talk too much, pray too little, seem to have communion in balance (literally meals together), and we are delusional...

  My earthly father passed away om February 13, 1998. Certainly I miss him very much. He never had the chance to meet my youngest one, or my wife Mary Anne. He wasn't there for high school and college graduations - he missed a lot, and we missed having him there. I have written about him a few times in the past. HERE is the story of his illness and death due to cancer. HERE is a little about him on Memorial Day. HERE is a blog I wrote to remember him. I had the honor of speaking about my dad at his funeral. Due to his illness, we had some time - some good time together. The Lord gave me a wonderful perspective of his life. There were a lot of not so good times, so  seeing the Lord's hand - actually using my dad's life to show me His character was surprising. As I stood at the little podium in a Brattleboro funeral home; my daughter Erin giving me a pinky hug, here is what I sai...

After hundreds of blogs, about 500 between Kingdom Bloggers and Fire & Grace , I thought it might be fun if my readers asked questions that I could answer. Yeah, I know, its sort of lame, but I need a topic for next week. Maybe you want to know what Bible translation I read, or what brand of toothpaste I use? Who knows, maybe you want to know more about the End Times, tough scriptures, or how awesome my wife is - it's up to you. I should be able to answer most questions in an upcoming blog. If you write a blog, I'll be sure to add a link to it and give you a not so shameless plug. Until then, I have some questions for you to ponder: Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds? Why are there interstate highways in Hawaii? Why are there flotation devices under plane seats instead of parachutes? If you can't drink and drive, why do you need a driver's license to buy liquor? Have you ever imagined a world with no hypothetical situations? How does t...

Religion is a tough task master. I have been participating on LinkedIn discussion group. I posted two discussions, one about what the church needs to do to turn around is declining membership in the US. The other was specifically on WHAT YOU WOULD do to engage your local culture or community. The first discussion was a lot of back and forth on what's wrong with the church, and what's wrong with society. Some thought we should move forward and other back. Some blamed education, others government and liberalism. There were some edgy remarks regarding woman in the church, Pentecostals, that role of politics and some other subjects such as edification and authority. It was almost out of control, and certainly needed some moderation. I tried to press for solutions, and I got some pretty standard answers. - Prayer - Returning to our first love - Repentance - Humility - Ridding ourselves of worldly influences - Just do God's will - Read the Bible Nothing surprising...

My blog title is grammatically correct. Jesus did not get a touchdown, that was the nickname a 62 foot tall, upper torso sculpture, of Jesus was given. The sculpture, off I-75 in southern Ohio, was struck by lightening and burned to the ground. HERE  is the Yahoo News story. I an not going to segue into some prophetic sign of how the End Times are upon is. Much more interesting, and relevant, are the comments on the article by some 3,500+ readers. Here is one by Joshua - "God and Jesus was just made up in a book too. Same with Lucifer and every other angel. Anyone who says Zues is just made up cant prove it. Nor can anyone prove Jesus or God is too. Anyone can write a book and make up some higher being and some poor fools will buy into it." This is one of my favorites from What122: "I wonder if their insurance will cover it, or will the insurance company say it was an act of God?" One commenter characterizes Christianity by using the Bible against itself. Be...

As I embark on a new church adventure, it never ceases to amaze me how pitifully retarded Christians can be. I was researching a prayer method this church uses for inner healing (That's right, Christian's still need help after salvation), and I came across some of the stupidest comments I have ever heard to date. Here is a sample: "It sounds like a cult, the church would never put up with that." (See logo, forgiven, healed, delivered) "Those people don't fall down under the power of God, they use ropes." "The Bible is clear, woman have no place in the church." "Why would they need 2 hours for prayer? They are just trying to wear people down so they can control their minds." I'm still shaking my head. What is the purpose of posting stupid opinions that only show how unloving you are and occasionally your sheer ignorance of the true meaning of the Scriptures? Worse yet, I bet SinFinder45 has never been to a service or chu...

Some days I am just looking for the little things - stopping to smell the roses, as the saying goes. I have been at a few services where the presence of the Lord was a fragrance. One time it was Easter Lilies, another time roses, and another frankincense. I know, it is not your average church service, but it happened to me. I love when the Lord suddenly does something supernatural and wonderful! As noted not long ago, I have been pretty negative about a lot things since my move to greater Boston. When I sit down and have a talk with myself, I long for a few days to do nothing with my wife, rollerblading the Cape Cod Canal, fried clams in East Orleans at sunset, and some creative time that is not sandwiched between 100 responsibilities - and the ocean; complete with the sounds of thundering waves, that squawking of seagulls and the smell of the salt air. For a few weeks I have been thinking about my day-to-da...

Sunday seems like a blur. I woke up with my regular dilemma: do I go to a church that is local with a short service so I can get something else done on Sunday, or drive over an hour each way and take my chances on being totally disconnected at a new church? I decided to start driving and see what God wanted to do. Either way I would be at church, and the distance/service times work, allowing me to be on time at either one. As I started to drive, I was focusing the negatives - yeah, I have the problem. My thoughts went like this: "Nothing much has worked out since the move." I had sent an email to the new pastor, but he hadn't responded. "Maybe I missed it and last weeks blog was a false alarm." "Maybe just going to church and being faithful in that is enough for God and for me. I'm feeling pretty empty - I don't see how this is God." "I wish this new thing would work out." *Flip on the Worship CD* Tim Hughes singing Oh Happy Day -...

It doesn't matter how many rules you have, few folks, if any, ever empty the dryer trap. In my house, growing up, that was the first thing that you did before drying your clothes - then you'd leave it for the next one. It must have something to do with having your hands full of delightfully warm Levis with rivets so hot you could brand a calf. It's that same at work and home with the K-Cup coffee maker. I never open the cup clamp and find it empty. I always have to toss someone else's Mocha Creme Latte Deluxe Comprede Alfredo before making the next cup of Columbian. There is one more thing that never seems to get done by the last person that uses it  - changing the toilet paper. Is it just men, or do woman do this too? So you are all hiked up or zipped up and ready to roll (pun intended); is there is no time to put fresh roll on the roller? I'm guilty. If I think about it, leaving the lint or K-Cup for someone else is a little selfish. I realize ...