I am thankful to you O Lord, that you have created me in your image and imparted a spark of your glory in me.

Your word tells me that when you speak, your words do not return empty and I am aware that, because I am created in your image, my words also contain creative power.

 You have told us that your message is close at hand, and is on our lips and in our hearts.

 If I or anyone confesses with the mouth that Jesus is Lord and believes in the heart that God raised him from the dead, then that person is saved.

I acknowledge and thank you Lord that I can be saved through confessing with my mouth and believing in my heart.

I know these principles apply to many things and if I believe that I have received what I have asked for, it has already been given.

In the blessed name of Jesus….

Note: I have published this quotation from Houston Smith several times on our Mother Site, LifeBrook Ministries. It is just a wonderful take on the church’s sometimes faulty relationship with Jesus…

…we have heard Jesus’ teachings so often that their edges have been worn smooth, dulling their glaring subversiveness. If we could recover their original impact, we too would be startled. Their beauty would not paper over the fact that they are “hard sayings,” presenting a scheme of values so counter to the usual as to shake us like the seismic collision of tectonic plates…We are told that we are not to resist evil but to turn the other cheek. The world assumes that evil must be resisted by every means available. We are told to love our enemies and bless those who curse us. The world assumes that friends are to be loved and enemies hated. We are told that the sun rises on the just and the unjust alike. The world considers this to be indiscriminating; it would like to see dark clouds withholding sunshine from evil people. We are told that outcasts and harlots enter the kingdom of God before many who are perfunctorily righteous. Unfair, we protest; respectable people should head the procession. We are told that the gate to salvation is narrow. The world would prefer it to be wide. We are told to be as carefree as birds and flowers. The world counsels prudence. We are told that it is more difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom than for a camel to pass through a needle’s eye. The world honors wealth. We are told that the happy people are those who are meek, who weep, who are merciful and pure in heart. The world assumes that it is the rich, the powerful, and the wellborn who should be happy. In all, a wind of freedom blows through these teachings that frightens the world and makes us want to deflect their effect by postponement – not yet, not yet! H.G. Wells was evidently right: either there was something mad about this man, or our hearts are still too small for his message.

Houston Smith

(from The Soul of Christianity)

Father of Lights, you have stated that you have plans to prosper me and I know that, even before I was born, those plans had already unfolded in your mind and in the heavenly places. I further know, Lord, that my purpose has its origin in your wisdom for you have said that, although many are the purposes of man, it is your purpose that prevails.

Based on this promise and this wisdom, Lord, I humbly ask that you open the eyes of my heart and give me spiritual sight – that you reveal your divine purpose for my life and give me the discernment to see it in just the way you intend it to be seen. May all of my plans that are not in harmony with the purpose you have for me fade away so that I can more clearly see your divine purpose for my life.

I know also Father, that it is you that works in me to will and to act in accordance of your good purpose and for this I am thankful, Lord. I ask as a Child of the Light that the Holy Spirit come forth in strength, love, wisdom, and power and renew my mind so that I may fully understand exactly what it is that you want me to do. May the Spirit now strengthen my limbs, my heart, and my entire being so that your divine purpose may be manifested completely in my daily life.

I pray these things in Jesus’ most holy name….

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

Lord, you have said that if I pray for heavenly wisdom, you will grant me that request and at this moment I earnestly ask for your wisdom, your guidance, and your divine insight, especially in terms of the important areas of my life.

You have promised in your Word that if I call unto you will not only answer, but you will also show me great and unsearchable things that I do not know. I ask that you now show me those great mysteries so that I might make right and true decisions that will help me to reach forward toward the potential you have placed in me. I want to be all that you created me to be, Lord, and I know from your Holy Word that you also want these things for me. I also know that in order to realize that potential in my life I must be open to your direction and your will. I know, too, that I must be obedient to your Word in all things.

I pray Lord that you indeed forgive me for my countless acts of disobedience in thought, in word, and in deed. I further pray that you forgive me for all of those times that I have leaned on my own understanding and have been either deaf to or heedless of your divine direction in my life. Please, Lord, heal me of the negative effects of this disobedience and, by your grace and love, create in me Lord a heart that is truly humble and teachable. May I now and forever be open to your Holy Word.

I ask these things in the name of Jesus, my only true source of wisdom and strength.

(c) L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

If you continue to play with sin and don’t agree with God about it, it will destroy you. What you have been desiring in your life will never happen, for you will be the ruination of your own pursuits…..Confession doesn’t mean merely bringing up your past. It means agreeing with and obeying God immediately when He shows you that you are wrong. Then God will draw near to you…..Whatever you justify, you have not repented of. Whatever you explain, your are not sorry for. Just say, “I was wrong; forgive me,” and ask God to forgive you.

Dr. Myles Munroe

(from Understanding the Principles and Power of Prayer)

Father of Lights, you have said that in aligning with you I am a Child of the Light. I thank you for that honor and privilege and also thank you that you have made me a new creation. Today, I seek to take possession of my reborn identity in you and I thank you for providing me with the ability to do so, through the blessed work of the Holy Spirit.

Father, I know you have placed in me from birth a right, preserving and steadfast spirit and I know that the Holy Spirit will empower me to contact, develop, embrace and enhance those divine qualities, all to your glory and for the sake of others as well as for the purpose of growing in sacred character.

I know Father that above all, you are a God of restoration and a God of renewal. I know that according to your holy Word, that you are, at this very moment, renewing in me the mind of Christ – the most sacred mind. Your Spirit is at work in me today, enabling me to live a life of integrity, enthusiasm and empowering me to maintain a commitment to excellence. I thank you Father for your faithfulness and the blessings you are bestowing on me today, both seen and unseen.

Father, thank you for your unfailing faithfulness. You have proven time and time again that you are there, walking as my companion, even when I don’t see you and even more when I don’t acknowledge your presence. I know that you have said that you desire my best and that all things, whether I can understand them or not, work together for my greatest good. Therefore, looking to you, I expect good and good alone.

Father of Lights:

I thank you for your presence with me;

I thank you for your presence in me;

I thank you for protecting me;

I thank you for providing for me;

I thank you for empowering me.

I am grateful my Lord, knowing that I will find in you all I will ever need.

In the name of Jesus, the name at which every knee shall

bow -

Lord, I have heard your Holy Word and I have understood. You are the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. You never grow weak or weary and no one truly fathoms the depth of your understanding.

You give power to the weak and strength to the powerless. I trust you, Lord, and, according to your promise, I will find new strength and soar high on wings like eagles. I will run and not grow weary; I will walk and not faint.

Even more Lord, I am blessed because I know you have called me back from the ends of the earth and have said, “(Your name here), you are my servant. I have chosen you and will not throw you away.” For this I am ever grateful my God and I am not afraid because I know you are with me. I have abundant courage because I know that you are my God. I draw my strength from you and know that you are always there to help me when I need you. I am more than blessed my God; you hold me up with your victorious right hand.

[from Isaiah 40:28-31; 41:9-10.]

Mick Turner

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28 NLT)

If ever there was a reason for Christians to be optimistic it is the promise recorded by Paul in this powerful scripture. The Apostle nestled this verse in the context of a number of other verses towards the end of the eighth chapter of Romans, all of which point toward the central reality that, as Christians, we really have every reason to rejoice and celebrate, whatever our circumstance. The unfathomable intelligence that forged this incredible universe and arranged all the subtle, complex laws that keep it in perfect balance, has also orchestrated the events of our lives to also work in our ultimate favor.

I don’t think this means that God planned everything that happens to us. Our own wrong choices many times get us into trouble. But Paul is telling us that even then, and even when disaster and tragedy strikes, God can use the results of our bad decisions, the results of tragedy, loss, and disaster, to ultimately work for our greatest good. In light of this reality, optimism is not only logical, it is unavoidable.

Lord, I know that you go before me, making my way both perfect and positive. I now take refuge in the serene peace and complete assurance that you are, indeed, devoted to the unfolding of my greatest good, even when I can’t see it. And I also am aware that this is your promise to all who love you and who are called to your purpose.

Father of Lights, I also am aware that each person you place before me is the person you are calling me to love at that moment. I am deeply aware that, just as you direct all things to work for my ultimate favor, I am to love the person before me in the same way. Therefore, I commit all my thoughts, actions, and plans to the unfolding of the greatest good of the persons you bring before me today. I am created in your image, Lord, and as your love directs you to bring out the best in me, I am also committed to bringing out the best in those you place in my path.

I thank you Lord for giving me the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to be able to accomplish what I cannot do on my own, and I thank you for making all things work toward my greatest good. In Christ’s most Holy Name…..Amen.

Mick Turner

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

Mick Turner

I recently finished reading Gordon MacDonald’s new book Who Stole My Church? I can say without reservation that I thoroughly enjoyed this book and was somewhat forlorn when I finished it. Every now and then I run across a book like that – one that I wish I could keep right on reading.

MacDonald’s book is highly relevant to what is happening in many churches throughout America these days. Reading Who Stole My Church gave me a deep appreciation of the task before our churches in general and pastors on the front line of change in particular. It can be a daunting process to steer a church through these turbulent times of transition. Most churches of over 100 members are likely to have several factions, each with its own agenda and own set of expectations. Meeting the needs of all these divergent people is, without the guidance of the Holy Spirit, an impossible proposition.

MacDonald has written the book in a highly readable format, one that lends itself very well to the topic. Rather than writing a standard didactic non-fiction work, the author has arranged the book in a fictional setting in which the pastor of a church is facing significant friction from a cadre of older, active members who are resistant to the changes being brought about by younger congregants with a different focus. In order to gently educate these resistant members to what is going on and why, the pastor forms a “Discovery Group” which meets on Tuesday nights to dig deeply into the matter. The group also serves as a venue where these committed church members can vent their ongoing frustrations about changes in the church. The fact that MacDonald puts the book together this way makes an otherwise difficult subject highly readable and even entertaining.

The book is subtitled, “What to do When the Church You Love Tries To Enter the 21^st Century.” MacDonald well understands that the future of the church lies with the younger generation, not with the older folks, no matter how loyal and committed they might be. This view is not to downplay or trivialize the needs of the older members in a church, but instead, to break through the church’s denial system and help us all see that unless the needs of the younger people come to the forefront, the church will go the way of the dinosaur. MacDonald states:

Any church that has not turned its face toward the younger generation will simply cease to exist. We’re not talking decades – we’re talking just a few years.

The author drives this point home throughout the book, usually through the voice of the pastor during the Tuesday night meetings, but also at coffee shops, the mall, and in other settings, including conversations with his wife. MacDonald also gives voice to those in resistance to these changes and does so in a way that shows he has deep insights into the nature and legitimacy of their concerns. In one chapter of the book, one of the male members of the Discovery Group is angered because he misperceives a point the pastor was making about evangelism and missions, two subjects this particular congregant is passionate about. The two meet for breakfast and, after giving this man an opportunity to express his feelings about evangelism and missions, MacDonald, through the pastor, states that times and methods are changing. Relationships and actions are more important than programs and words:

The difference is this. We’re in a new era where people want less of your carefully scripted evangelism sales presentation and more personal demonstration of your genuineness, your authenticity. They want to see evidence that what you believe had legs – that it does something.

MacDonald goes on to stress the vital importance of developing deeper relationships with people in our post-Christian culture in order to reach them. Stressing that more is now needed than the “Four Spiritual Steps,” the author states that we have to go deeper with people and allow them to see us for who we are and let our actions, not our words, demonstrate what faith in Jesus really means.

If you are concerned about the direction your church is taking, or if you want to gain insight into the dynamics of institutional change in a religious setting, then I would strongly suggest you read MacDonald’s book. I believe the author makes a solid contribution to helping both sides of the generational divide in today’s church gain understanding into what makes the other side tick. In the end, the book helps foster insight rather than animosity – compassion rather than conflict.

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

Mick Turner

The Normal Christian Life, written by Chinese Christian martyr Watchman Nee, is one of my favorite books. I have read it and re-read it many times over the years and can say without reservation that each time I go through this remarkable little book, I get something new out of it. My original version fell apart years ago and I purchased a second paperback copy. It is dog-eared now and highlighted from cover to cover. Recently, I purchased a nice hardback gift edition and treasure it greatly.

Nee came to Christ in the 1920 and over the years produced a copious amount of writing. He founded a Christian movement in China, known as the Little Flock, and this movement continues to this day in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and around the world. The U.S. branch of this group is located in Los Angeles. Nee was a controversial figure with a charismatic demeanor and sharp mind. He read voraciously and seemed to glean something from a wide range of theological perspectives. Arrested shortly after the Communist Party took power in China, Ni died in prison in 1972.

The Normal Christian Life, published in 1957, has been widely read and has influenced countless Christians in general and a number of Christian writers in particular. I can recall first encountering this book in the late 1960’s when, after serving in the Army, I moved to Arizona and, for a time, became involved in the now famous (infamous?) “Jesus People.” I think it was the clear way in which Nee broke down the work of Christ on the cross that struck such a resonant chord in many believers, especially the young.

In reflecting on the reasons I appreciate this book so much I find that I must be selective in the sense that there are so many aspects to this work that speak to me.  Pressing myself to choose a place to begin, I will start with how the book is organized. Nee begins with discussing the importance of the Book of Romans in general and the first eight chapters in particular. Further, he next breaks these chapters down into two sections, one dealing with the significance of the Blood of Christ and the other dealing with the Cross of Christ. The four and a half chapters from 1:1 to 5:11 form the first half; and the three and a half chapters from 5:12 to 8:39 the second half. In summary, he contends that the blood deals with our forgiveness and justification and the cross deals with our deliverance. Nee states:

In the first part of Romans 1 to 8, we twice have reference to the Blood of the Lord Jesus; in chapter 3:25 and in chapter 5:9. In the second, a new idea is introduces in chapter 6:6, where we are said to have been “crucified” with Christ. The argument of the first part gathers round that aspect of the work of the Lord Jesus which is represented by “the Blood” shed for our justification through the remission of sins.” This terminology is, however, not carried on into the second section, where the argument centers now in the aspect of his work represented by “the Cross,” that is to say, by our union with Christ in his death, burial and resurrection. The distinction is a valuable one. We shall see that the blood deals with what we have done, whereas the cross deals with what we are. The blood disposes of our sins, while the cross strikes at the root of our capacity for sin.

Much of what follows in subsequent chapters hinges upon the reader grasping a fundamental understanding of these two aspects of the gospel. Nee goes on to give a fine description of the difference between “sins” and “sin.” The former is concerned with our behavior and the latter with our core nature since the Fall.

As I said, I believe Nee has done a fine job in organizing the book. Each chapter paves the way for the following chapter and he builds a framework that is easy to follow, digest, and ultimately act upon.

After making clear his understanding of the difference between the work of the blood and the work of the cross, Nee goes on to discuss how a Christian should go about making this new identity in Christ a living reality in his or her experience. Again, he goes right to scripture to explain the process, which he sees as a four-fold phenomenon involving:

Knowing -> Reckoning -> Presenting Ourselves to God -> Walking in the Spirit

Nee’s main focus is on the role of God’s free and radical grace and our faith in accepting what God has granted us – basically, salvation and restoration. If we accept and believe that we have been forgiven by God through faith, then we should accept the reality of the second half of the gospel as well – that God will also sanctify us.

Nee also has excellent chapters on the division between spirit, soul, and body and the Holy Spirit. Although this is a short synopsis of the book, I hope it at least creates a thirst on the part of the reader to explore Nee’s book.

I have also read, twice now, Nee’s epic tome The Spiritual Man, which takes these ideas and delves into them with great detail. I would also recommend this book with the caveat that it requires a commitment in order to read it. It’s a long and at times tedious book.

Over the years Nee’s work, especially The Normal Christian Life, has been widely read. As mentioned earlier, his work has been a significant contribution to the growth of many believers, both clergy and lay, and this little book continues to be held in high regard by most who have taken the time to read it. Nee, like most writers, has also attracted his share of critics. Some of this criticism is founded, while much of it is not. Care should always be taken when reading someone’s work from another culture and another period of time. No writer, or reader for that matter, exists in a vacuum. Instead, our lives are all impacted at some level by what famous historian Carl Becker called, “The Climate of Opinion” that exists at the time a particular book is produced.

Another factor to consider when reading Nee is the fact that he wrote in both Chinese and English and, in either case, English was not his primary language. As a writer and a person who taught writing and journalism in China, I am well aware of how easily it is for one’s thought, especially when dealing with abstract ideas, to be misunderstood and/or mistranslated. For these reasons, critics need to realize the difficulty he may have had in attempting to fit his eastern mind into a western language. Every time I have to write something in Chinese, I am well aware of the difficulty involved.

Nevertheless, I agree with much of what Nee wrote and disagree with parts of his thoughts. I am careful, however, to never throw the baby out with the bath water. I find Nee a generally effective teacher and one that I would highly recommend. This is especially true of The Normal Christian Life.

Read it – reflect on it – enjoy it.

(c) L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved