Guilt or Manipulation?

If I go for healing prayer & am not healed, why would that be cause for guilt?

God or Prana?

Hmm.

Western new age thinking teaches that the guru can confer a "kundalini awakening" with a touch on the forehead, much like the revivalist minister can transfer healing power.

Both mystical experiences have many of the same properties, but one implies power in the universe there for the taking & one is the universal power that is freely given/received.

Both are said to be able to cause uncontrollable laughter, shaking, glossolalia, & visions, followed by a life changed for the better.

Then again traditional Christianity teaches that one of the "marks of the beast" will be on the forehead.

Hmm.

On Emptying the Learned Self

I remember studying the phrase "To yield is to be preserved whole, to be bent is to become straight, to be empty is to be full, to have little is to possess".

It wasn't taught in church, but maybe it should have been.

Christian Conditioning

I sat in the circle with the others to pray. The music started (track 3), within 10 seconds there was moaning, tongues, cries of "yes Lord".

My first thought was-look at them, so conditioned. Dance, monkey dance!

Then it hit me. Why can't I have a cathartic moment like that when I pray? Have I worked out all my issues-->no. Do I need help from God-->yes. Am I better than these people-->no, obviously not.

I want to meet Him. I am looking for Him. I know He is around.

How Do You Know It's God?

That's a question that's been bothering me. When I was younger I had a God experience that just bowled me over & I was filled with enthusiasm for a long time. That was pretty much the only time that I remember. I'm told that I should experience "fire in the belly", the unbridaled experience that is God flowing through the body--an experience that changes everything. (Sounds like prana to me)

I haven't experienced it yet. Does that mean I'm a lukewarm Christian-about to be spit out by God?

Is it possible to experience God in a more muted way? Maybe He speaks to me all the time in softer ways & I just don't know how to hear Him?

Isn't that why Spiritual Disciplines & Spiritual Formation came about in the first place?

Defining Revival

Wikipedia defines the word revival as: a term that generally refers to a specific period of increased spiritual interest or renewal in the life of a church congregation or many churches, either regionally or globally.

This should be distinguished from the use of the term "revival" to refer to a highly emotional evangelistic meeting or series of meetings either in a church building or a large tent or even in the open air; see Revival meeting.

Ok, so I pretty much agree with that-for now.

The Night Was Long & I Dreamed...

My dream flipped & I was no longer in a restaurant, but rather somewhere up in space. There was no up or down. I looked around & thought to myself "wow, I've got to remember to tell Tom that the stars are different colors when you're actually up here in space".

Then Smith spoke to me--"Speak your mind"

I said "where is the revival we were promised? The revival they were so excited about in Kansas City, the revival that caused the Vineyard to build giant warehouses for the soon-to-be newly saved, the revival that caused the 3rd wave to fervently train their congregation to handle? Why has it not come yet? It's been more than the 50 years the Pentacostal's talked about & God's people are ready to be renewed! Where are the people? Why aren't they pouring into the church every Sunday?

Smith said "why would you confine God to a building? Do you think He confines Himself? (in the background I heard Swayze say "nobody puts baby in a corner"...

Smith showed me an image of a spark of light going into a network wire.

David Byrne sang "same as it ever was"...

I realized Smith wanted me to know that God is going where the people are going. If we're looking for Him, He will be there. The revival is happening, it's just not necessarily inside a building...

Now I've got to figure out where He's living on the Net...