Apostle David Johndrow - Fire And Grace

-5 Church Hopping - Why is it that Catholics seem to go to the same church for a lifetime, and most evangelicals go to a church on the average, for just a few years. Is God confused about where He wants us? Choosing a church should be like choosing a spouse, not dating! I confess, I have been one of these people. But I still don't think that it is normal to hop around. It seems that all that is required to start a new church these days is a resentment and a coffee pot. If you've been following along in this series, there is more of a problem when churches focus on church, and not on Jesus and people. Churches that focus on Jesus, while providing significance to their members do much better at retaining those members. That in a nutshell is the role of leadership. Our part is to be passionate about Jesus, and to dialog with Him about ways in which we can grow. If we are mature Christians, our priorities are in order, we are praying, studying, and giving, then Sundays sho...

I've had trouble coming up with a topic and the Heavens have been silent. I thought I would fall back to some lame attempts to blog " random thoughts " but they were too vulgar. I pondered posting videos of me playing guitar , but I have it on good authority that some of you hate country - it makes Dave T. sick. I have written about health care , but Washington isn't listening to me - Mitt says it's broken. I was going to post some twisted conversation that I had with one of my kids, but I've been so busy, that nothing seems entertaining enough to post in public. Today I was thinking about being a Christian, and how grateful I am that I have joined the club of faith, but on occasion I have my doubts. You know, it seems like yesterday that I was rescued from the midst of alcoholism and all that goes with it. There I was at the New England Ala-teen Conference during the summer of 1978 and God surprised me as I let go of the fact that I didn't believe in G...

Well, I've lost it. I tried so hard to fit the religious mold, I really did. I went to a church for all of 2009; tried to follow all the little programs, got a newcomers gift; mints and all, reached out, gave out business cards, called everyone that gave me a number and emailed everyone else I met. I attended a few small groups, volunteered for some stuff and stood by the coffee pot trying to catch a little conversation. Religion is not working for me. Instead of lifting my spirit, it makes me sad. I finally had to tell myself I am not of this world I call church. I am sorry, this can't be the gathering that I was warned against forsaking! I must be doing something wrong. I might not be needy enough, old enough, short enough, clean enough, interesting enough or of the right lineage. I dunno. Maybe I am in denial, but my daughter's youth pastor thinks I am awesome. Too bad I am not 16, I could go to those meetings! What am I going to do? I am going to pray this prayer ...

Last month I posted a survey on the blog - maybe you took it. I asked my readers what their basic belief or religion was. Here is how things tallied up. I am a Christian. (69%) I am an Atheist. (19%) I just believe in God. (11%) I am Other/Jewish/Muslim. (0%) I also asked the same folks what their particular religion or belief encompassed. I believe in a supernatural God. (76%) I believe in spiritual gifts. (63%) I believe that prayer works. (63%) I believe in the paranormal. (30%) I believe in don't believe in the supernatural. (10%) It is not a very scientific poll, but it does reveal a few things. Here are a few conclusions. 19% of the respondents are atheists. I guess I am doing OK for a Christian guy - even non-believers are reading - or at least taking the poll. Our churches should be so lucky as to have 1 in 5 who need to hear the gospel. 80% responded saying that they believe in God or god. 76% see him as a supernatural entity. Hmm... 4% believe in a God that is what? A con...

-10 Lack of Deep Relationship - I think of all the stupid things Christians commonly do, the fact that so many do not understand what it means to be a church family, a brother or sister in the Lord, or a godly friend tops the list. John 15:12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Somehow this scripture from John (above) has been Americanized to mean "be nice to each other." Sure, some will take it deeper and pray for others, and some will even serve each other by bringing a meal or visiting someone in the hospital. The deeper the better - but I don't go to church to be "niced" to death! I think the basic problem is that we love as we have been loved , not as Jesus has loved us. The true test of a loving and deep relationship, however; is not good feelings, personal satisfaction and a plaque for expressing love using one of the 5 Love Languages . A deep relationship creates an atmosphere of trust, accountability and camaraderie. It i...

-9 The Influence of Witchcraft In the Church - What? The church does not engage in witchcraft! Well, some Christians do. Human beings are designed to engage the supernatural realms. Some of it's just not God! Even 33% of atheists believe in the paranormal and prayer. Martin Luther taught that witchcraft was a sin because the 2nd commandment says, "you shall have no other God before me." With that in mind, and before we look at the scriptures, here is brief list of practices and topics that I found in the Google search "christian witchcraft." - Divination, Fortune Telling, Horoscopes, Tarot Cards, Psychics and Ouija Boards - Fantasy characters such as Harry Potter, Chronicles of Narnia, Disney, Santa and the Easter Bunny - Holidays that take place on pagan holidays such as Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Valentines Day - White and Black Witchcraft, Wicca and Liberal Christians only casting loving spells (I really found that!) - Satanism - Repetitive prayers and ma...

-8 Settling for Less - Mediocrity in the church is a foothold for Satan. As church members are lulled into lifeless religious pursuits, believers grow lukewarm in their relationships, commitments and passion. Revelation 14"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. We have all heard this verse. Most church hoppers use it at least once to describe the church they are leaving for another church. The question is this: is being lukewarm the fault of the believer, or the fault of the church? I believe the answer is both. When individuals are not passionate about the Jesus, about the mission of the church, then, for lack of a better word, they get bored like teenagers on MySpace. When you have...

-7 Missed Opportunities and Overlooked Treasures - I find it interesting that the church often says one thing, and does another. Quite a few years ago John Wimber discovered that evangelical churches claimed that bringing folks to salvation in Jesus was there main mission. He then asked the question, how's business? The truth was that most churches claiming to be evangelical were in fact, not seeing regular salvations! When John looked closely at what churches were spending time and money doing, salvation was often near the bottom of the list. For a church to be effective, it needs godly vision, solid priorities and dedicated leaders. Too often the church can get so filled up with programs that it can easily miss what God wants to do. Every church needs to be part of the local community. Churches are not meant to cloister the saints in some sort of secret society. Every community has needs. Within those needs are opportunities for the church to make an impact for the Kingdom. Firs...

-6 Fighting Amongst Ourselves - A few years ago, there was a division within a local church; it made the headlines. One group of founders had purchased the land that the church was now built on. A second group of believers had donated money for the church building. The pastors from both groups had originally agreed to work together for the good of the region. A few years into the endeavor the pastors had a disagreement over theology and the church split. That's nothing new - however, the respective founding groups ended up in court to decide who should get the building and land valued at about about $1 million dollars. The battle went on for over a year, and each court proceeding was made public in the left-leaning, anti-religion newspaper. There were scathing editorials by staffers as well as malicious comments from the church folks on the web articles. What was going on in the church was even worse. The Bible is very specific on how we should resolve conflicts in the church...

-5 Church Hopping - Why is it that Catholics seem to go to the same church for a lifetime, and most evangelicals go to a church on the average, for just a few years. Is God confused about where He wants us? Choosing a church should be like choosing a spouse, not dating! I confess, I have been one of these people. But I still don't think that it is normal to hop around. It seems that all that is required to start a new church these days is a resentment and a coffee pot. If you've been following along in this series, there is more of a problem when churches focus on church, and not on Jesus and people. Churches that focus on Jesus, while providing significance to their members do much better at retaining those members. That in a nutshell is the role of leadership. Our part is to be passionate about Jesus, and to dialog with Him about ways in which we can grow. If we are mature Christians, our priorities are in order, we are praying, studying, and giving, then Sundays sho...

-4 Talking Like Experts About Things We Have Not Studied - Don't you just hate know-it-alls? We do not expect a 9-year-old to drive a car; we also do not expect them to teach someone else to drive. Why is it that we feel the need to answer every theological question? Although I find it interesting that many Christians have not really read the Bible, that is not the entire problem. Often times those that have taught us, tend to round the corners of verses to fit a particular point, or topical teaching. I do that here. It is always a good idea to take a look for yourself! The Bible is an amazing book, and no one will know everything about it. Christians seem to find it important to defend God and the Bible. Well, God doesn't need defending. Nor is He threatened by popular culture running off in the ditch. In life, we will often meet folks that are better educated than we are. It happens all the time. But we don't start telling a doctor how to do a medical test or procedure, o...

-3 Not Living Up to the Level of Our Beliefs - Healing, creative miracles, salvation, power over demons and other supernatural abilities are ours - well if we believe. I know it sounds a bit like Peter Pan. Why is it that we know what God can do, yet we do not pursue the type of relationship with Him that produces Kingdom results? The fruit of the kingdom of God is power. I am not talking about the fruit of the spirit outlined so eloquently by Paul in Galatians 5:22. The substance of God's kingdom is power manifest in you and in me. The Gospel message is about becoming a disciple of Jesus, not merely a follower. Those that are disciples do what Jesus did, that includes the miraculous. They are not robots waiting for their ticket to the heavenlies when the rapture comes. The violent take the Kingdom by force. (Matthew 11:12) The Bible says that signs and wonders will follow them that believe. Are they following you? If not, why not? If you are truly born again and full of the...

-2 Winning People to the Church, Not Christ - You may be all about your denomination, you may have a great church, a pastor that is amazing; you participate in small groups, you have Bible verses all over your MySpace, your Facebook and your refrigerator - even a Honk if You Love Jesus bumper-sticker - you are a soul winner to boot. You are, after all, out to get folks saved, isn't that the purpose of the church? Each one of us comes from some sort of Christian upbringing, background or heritage. Our religious experiences and influences tend to shape our view of what church is, as well as who Jesus is. To some, God is a legalistic, rod bearing tyrant, that will have His way, or send you down the chute to Hell. For another, God is so full of grace, He wouldn't want you to be unhappy, so those rules, well, He'll just forgive you if you if you break them. Others think that if they are devout enough, never miss church, try to be good, and help with the poor; they are in good ...

After 30+ years hanging around the church I have noticed some odd behaviors. I wrote them down and then discovered a book that I have not read, nor do I intend to, entitled: The 10 Dumbest Things Christians Do . After a quick look at the Table of Contents I noticed that Mr. Atterberry and I matched 7 out of 10! I felt like I was a contestant on Concentration waiting for Hugh to let me solve the puzzle. Having nothing planned, except to avoid Black Friday crowds at the local mall, here is part 1 of 10. -1 Shooting Our Wounded - Isn't it bad enough that church people get caught with their pants down; their failures televised on broadcast news? Look, we all sin. It doesn't matter more to God that someone is a televangelist or mega-church leader when they sin. Sin is sin. What matters is how we act towards those individuals who do sin. Newscasters make money by reporting the news. From the Baker' of PTL fame, to the Clergy Sex Abuse Scandals in Massachusetts and Ireland, chur...

I have an old friend named Percy that I have known since I was in first grade. This is him (2nd from left) in 1967, posing with me (1st on left), and some others, at my brother's birthday party. We grew up in a small Connecticut town, spent years in the same schools, knew each other’s family, and did stuff together as kids. We haven't seen each other since high school graduation about 30 years ago, but we have reconnected on Facebook. Percy is, in my estimation, a genius; holding at least one software patent. Our discussion threads have been about politics, religion, the origin of life, intelligent life, evolution, global warming, creation, and a host of other subjects with which normally identify folks as liberals or conservatives. I really hate labels and stereotypes, preferring to simply think for myself. The two of us could easily be labeled any number of ways. But that is not what Jesus would do; therefore, I am not going to either. What I do know about my friend is this: ...

If you have been following these last few blogs , you can see that God is at work against the powers of darkness, while He makes it possible for us to participate. As a Christian I never would have picked many of the circumstances that I have been in where God has used me. I would have preferred some much neater, and less stressful situations. Something like Sunday school teacher, nursery worker or vacuuming the sanctuary. But that is just not me. I am looking for the types of meetings where God is at work, it is not always entirely predictable, and there is some sort of anointing -- a song, a word or a prophesy. I have a lot of other things that I would rather do with my time then sit and listen to what I can hear on the radio. I am looking for a relationship with my Lord. As the last part of my series on the the demonic and the wiles of the devil. Some times the life of a minister can become routine; even a part-time one. I admit that I was kind of board of teaching home groups, mess...