Your comments are refreshing to say the least. You are seeing things that few others can comprehend. This is not to pat you on the back or to boost your pride and ego, but to confirm that vision, sight, and hearing have been gifted to you.

His righteousness is our cloak, and it is He Himself that we pursue, and it is His face that I am dying to see, and to gaze upon His beauty, and to share, with the weakness of mere human words, the wonder of His glory.

We can express these things with brothers and sisters and urge them toward Godliness, but with the unbelievers, whether Christian or non-Christian, we preach a message of God’s displeasure and His wrath to come. How wonderful it would be if we could preach only the effects of God’s great satisfaction with His creation. Our greatest act of love, at this point, is to blow the trumpet, and to sound the warning, and to lay our life on the line.

Those in both the organized evangelical Church, and the dis-organized emerging mess, need this message of love that stings like a whip, and makes the messenger a lighting rod of the Devil’s disgust. What a real missionary that preacher is who has no regard for his own life to save those who will hate him or her.

Praise the Lord, it is a calling to all of God’s elect, and how the message needs to go out, but the laborers are still few.

Good to hear from you Steve,

Blessings from Indiana,

Steve B.

I agree wholeheartedly that the “Christian Right” has prostituted itself to the idea of political change vs. spiritual growth and repentance. Truth be told, the vast majority are not even “Christian”. I was a Moral Majortity person; a boycotter of things I considered a threat to my sacred Americanism.

When I was born again, George Bush came down from my wall (he was only up there to irritate people anyway) and I resigned all political affiliations. I was initaially attracted to the Emergent church movement, but more for their seemingly close involvement a ground Zero with the disaffected and forgotten. I evetually discovered that resepect for true scriptural authority is no more theirs than it is the Christian Right’s. The Emergents have, for the most part, bought into a relativistic social gospel, which is intended to solve societal and justice issues, not to preach the gospel of liberty and changed lives in a spiritual sense.

Almost all institutional religion is bankrupt. What is most telling is that 60%, or more, of Americans claim a “born again” experience, yet most show no true evidence of knowing, or being known by, Jesus the Christ. There are still quite a few God fearing and righteous people out there, but they are nowhere near a majority. Also, most unfortunately, most of the people I try to discuss faith and hope with push away with the claim, “I am a Christian, too!”.

I long for a fellowship with people who really and fervently walk the walk and not just talk the talk. I am inclined to include myself with the latter, but I am not satisfied with the talking. I want to change people, but only God can do that. I missed services (actually a songfest and teaching class) because I really needed “alone time” with my Lord. I am not happy with where I am at, spiritually. But, I also know that Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” That is my quest.

Thanks for this article, Steve.

Steve Foltz