Hans Herr's Father was a Knight

In the teaching from Sunday, May 3, 2015, we trace a unique trail from the family of Lancaster Pioneer Hans Herr to the calling on the region and our response to this calling.  When we develop a personal history with Him it is ultimately unto something more than simply knowing Him...it is to become ambassadors for him in an hour of human history starving for the knowledge of God...this is the legacy of our Anabaptist forefathers and if we will embrace it, it is our destiny.

Follow the link below for the audio:

Hans Herr's Father was a Knight - May 3, 2015

Pushing Beyond Our Boundaries

This week Julia Kuro shares about her experience in YWAM Orlando and India before we look at Jesus and the disciples journey to Cesaerea Philippi and what it invites us to consider.

Pushing Beyond Our Boundaries - The Journey to Caesarea philippi

Developing Our History in God

Easter Sunday we began by blessing recent Father of the Bride Don Breneman, whose daughter Ashlea was married the day before.  We paused and then shared the words of encouragement which came.  We then took time to bless and release four young women to minister to several individuals in the class.  God wants to continue to help us learn to trust and follow his leading.  For the audio of the morning, use the following link:

Developing Our History in God

Samuel Listening...

This week we began by looking at the high level of synergy which is evident in synchronized swimming.  Similarly, there are times and places where God seeks to synchronize a group of people.  This seems to be happening in our midst as we take time to share with one another what God is doing and saying to each of us as individuals.  In this way, we begin to see and hear more clearly where He is putting His finger and what is on His heart.  For me, it seems like the class has been highlighting some work that God is doing in women in our congregation.  We moved from this topic into a time of looking more carefully at the story of God's calling to the boy Samuel in I Samuel 3 and looking at what truth stuck to us as we experienced that story.  Finally, we spent some more time looking at God's desire to deliver us from a shame orientation.  The audio from Week 5 is below:

Week 5 - Samuel Listening...

I also distributed some questions to consider as we look back upon the first month of this elective.  Please consider taking time to look over the questions and respond.  Think about what God is saying to you, what is taking shape in your heart, in your life during these weeks...in what ways is God synchronizing you with what He is doing in our community? 

  For a PDF of the questions click below:

Elective Questions for Reflection March 2015

What Happens When We Open the Well?

We began this week by considering the question, "What relationship is the Holy Spirit speaking to you about right now?"  We then spent time hearing from two women, Carol Ebersole and Gemma Bruner, about what God has been speaking to them during the classes thus far.  Each of these women and their journey are prophetic pictures of what God is doing as we dig into the well in this region.  The region is designed to bring life to people and especially healing to women.  This land was set aside by God, cared for by a variety of stewards until it was given to the Anabaptist pioneers who settled the region in 1710.  When we touch God's design for the land, it brings a fresh release of life.  We continued to look at the ways of God in dealing with people, and his heart to both use and provoke questions that will result in increased revelation and the knowledge of God.  This week's class closed with a look at why Jesus "needed to" go through Samaria in John 4.  Just as the history of that region was important, so too is the history of our region and the reason that God has set us here in this hour.  To listen to this week's audio, follow the link below:

What Happens When We Open the Well?

Identifying Judgement, Shame and Looking into the Father's Heart

We began our 3rd week by considering the question,

"Are you easily offended?"

And then exploring the reality that Jesus was not (and is not) afraid to offend us.  We paused to consider what the Holy Spirit wanted to reveal through surfacing specific memories of our fathers and our earliest memories of shame.  Finally, we looked at the destructive patterns of judgment that arise from embracing religious principles which teach about God in preference of walking in relationship with Him as we grow in the knowledge of God.

We wrestled with the question of "How we are to handle those in sin, specifically sexual sin?"  and heard a testimony from Bree Henry about how God patiently worked in her life to bring her to salvation through a series of experiences which took place when she was 30 years old.

The class closed by considering the question,

"What did Jesus write in the sand that moved those accusing the woman in John 8 to walk away?"

Action Step:

Ask the Holy Spirit what Jesus wrote in the sand, listen for a response and write down what you hear.  

Identify one situation in your life where you need the creative wisdom of God to demonstrate the knowledge of God to a friend, family member or co-worker who is struggling.  

For the audio from week 3 click the link below:

Week 3 - Audio - Shame & Judgement - March 15, 2015

Week 2 Connecting to Our Past

In our second week together, we look back briefly at the Anabaptist story that began in 1525 and connect it to the birth and life of Samuel Miller, who is considered the first child born in the settlement initiated by Hans Herr, Martin Kendig, Martin Meylin, Jacob Miller, and Wendall Bowman on the land surrounding Willow Street.  His birth on January 21, 1711 serves as a prophetic reminder of the birthdate of the Anabaptist movement and stands as a call for us to remember what God initiated in that group of people.  I believe that Samuel Miller's life was a prophetic marker...a sign of what God wanted to birth in this region.  Therefore tracking his life can give us a picture of some of what was taking place in this region as the Great Awakening was impacting the colonies from north to south.  As we look at his life, and the events that shaped Lancaster Conference in those years, we look back to see both what we can celebrate and issues that took root then which need to be dealt with today.

As we shift into how we can embrace this calling into the future, I invite the class to consider two questions as we consider what discipleship looks like.  Those questions are:

What is God saying to you right now?
What are you doing about it?

ACTION STEPS:

Look for an opportunity to use those two questions in conversation with someone in your life this week.  

For a link to the audio click below:

Re-Digging the Wells - Week 2 - Connecting to Our Past

Re-digging the Wells 2015 - Introduction - Week 1

One of my favorite passages to imagine is the burial of an otherwise unknown man in II Kings 13.  As he is being buried, a band of Moabite raiders are seen and the man is quickly discarded into the tomb of Elisha.  What happened next must have been stunning to those watching...the corpse of this dead man touches the bones of Elisha and he revived and stood up on his feet.  I love to imagine what that would have been like to see the faces of those who just thrown him into the tomb as he came out of the tomb.  The scene is a picture for me of what it is like when we touch treasures from history...those realities like Elisha's bones contain the power to release new life to us.

That is what this class is about...

We began on March 1 by looking back at the birth of the Anabaptist movement in 1525 moving up to the early 1700's when a group of pioneer Anabaptists trekked across the relative wilderness of Pennsylvania to carve out a settlement in the region immediately surrounding Willow Street.  The history of those events invites us to consider our identity, both the original calling and those habits which have gotten in the way of that calling.  We took time to celebrate the reality that God does not stop pursuing us, but rather continues to speak, often asking questions which will help reveal clues to our calling.  We paused to specifically ask God questions and then listen to God, and see if there were any specific questions He was asking us.  One of the questions that came out of the time was shared by Jeremy Peifer who said that he was asking God the question,

"Who are you?  And because of that Who am I?"

This question is at the core of our moving forward, getting unstuck and living lives that match the quality Jesus dared us to believe in...

At the close of week 1, I invited the group to dig into the scriptures and look for questions that God asked, examining them for clues about the way that God relates to people alongside the reminder that when He asks us a question it is not because He needs information from us.

ACTION STEPS:  

1.  What question do you have for God right now?

2.  Pause and listen, ask God if He has any questions for you...then write them down.  

3.  Look through the Gospels...jot down some of the questions that Jesus asked...what does this tell you about Jesus?  

Ongoing Discoveries

This week we continued to explore what God is saying to us and how we step into that in a practical way.  We concluded by identifying the reality that many times we pull back from what God has said about us and in doing so embrace something less than fulfillment in our lives.  Come next week with questions that you have.

For the Audio from Sunday, click on the following link:

The Eagles, Our Destiny and Questions that Emerge Along the Way

The Importance of Asking the Right Questions

There are many times when we are focused on getting the right answer and there are times that this is important.  However, sometimes it is more important to ask the right question.  Many times we respond to God the way that the disciples did in John 4.  They came back from a village and found him talking with a woman, a Samaritan woman who we know had a questionable reputation.  They marveled that he spoke with a woman, yet the scripture is clear that they didn't ask him about it.  We often hesitate from asking questions about scriptures or topics which puzzle us.  This often doesn't serve us well in our search for Truth.  Especially, as teachers it is important that we learn to ask and encourage those we are teaching to ask questions which are real to them.  This is a vital part of learning and owning our faith. 

For the audio from this Thursday evening teaching session, click the following link:

The Importance of Asking the Right Questions

Exploring the Redemptive Gifts in Action

This Sunday, we began to take another step in exploring the redemptive gifts in action.  We look specifically at how the gifts can function in a small group setting.  We also hear from one couple in the group about how the gifts are coming up in the context of their marriage.  As we use the month of December to pursue questions, please come to class on Sunday with yours!

Here is the link to the audio: 

Exploring the Redemptive Gifts in Action

Again, for this Sunday, please bring your questions!

Spiritual Warfare & The Introduction to the Mercy Gift

On Sunday, November 18 we began class by looking at one picture of what spiritual warfare looks like.  We followed this with a personal illustration and prayer prior to introducing the mercy gift and looking specifically at one mercy - the Apostle John - and his journey.  To listen to the audio click the following link:

Spiritual Warfare & The Introduction to the Mercy Gift

Introduction to the Ruler

In this week's class we begin by hearing from a number of people about what is "landing" with them through the teaching.  Then we move into a discussion on the unique ways that God will get our attention.  Finally, we introduce the behavioral characteristics of the Ruler and look at the influence of the ruler as we consider the magnificent accomplishments of some rulers from scripture.

For the audio from the week, click on the following link:

Introduction to the Ruler

The Giver

This week we took time to look more closely at the giver.  When givers understand the significance of the generational blessings and spiritual authority they carry, they can step more confidently into their role in the Body.  For the audio click the following link:

The Giver

To look at some of the scriptures and behavioral characteristics which correspond to the giver check out the giver chart.

Introduction to the Giver

As we have continued through this class, God is stirring deeply in many of us.  For some, we learning more about the way we have been designed and finding freedom to flow in that.  Others of us are experiencing the touch of the Holy Spirit in a different way as we are invited again to let go of some area of pain, disappointment or brokenness which has kept us from moving into our full capacity.  Regardless of what you are experiencing, I want to encourage you to lean into what God is doing in you at this time.  His process, His wisdom, His ways are the best and they will bring life.  I also want to encourage you to express what he is doing, whether in your own journal, a phone call to a friend or an email - record what is happening in you.

This week, we began to look at the giver.  If you want to hear the audio from the week, the link is listed below.  

Introduction to the Giver

The Exhorter's Process

As we explore the Romans 12 gifts, one of the realities which becomes clear is the interconnectedness of our gifts.  When one individual falls short of his / her ultimate design, the whole Body suffers.  Likewise, the pathway to fulfilling our purpose can only be accomplished when the Body functions together.  This is especially true when we experience pain and brokenness along the way.  Much of what has limited the Church has been a real difficulty in overcoming the pain and suffering we experience.  In today's class, we explore God's process with the exhorter.  For the audio use the following link.

The Exhorter's Process

John Deere & the Exhorter

John Deere's name is widely recognized as one of the major tractor companies in the United States and around the world.  However, the story of John Deere is about much more than green and yellow tractors.  In the audio from Sunday, we explore the lessons revealed by his life and begin to dig into the 4th of the Romans 12 gifts - the exhorter.  For more on John Deere check out the following video / website:

John Deere Video

For the audio from Sunday morning use the link below.

John Deere & the Exhorter

Audio on The Teacher

The Teacher is the third of the seven gifts listed in Romans 12.  The teacher is a linear thinker who specializes in cumulative reporting.  Teachers have been used throughout history to help establish a foundation which supports new truth being revealed to the Body of Christ.  For more on the teacher check out the audio from Sunday, October 7.  Simply click on the following link:

The Teacher

Exploring the Teacher

One of my favorite parts of studying the gifts listed in Romans 12 is how they highlight and celebrate the uniqueness of each individual AND their role in the Body.  Our exploration of the teacher continued this trend.  The teacher has been designed to be patient and attentive to detail.  In fact they go to great lengths to substantiate truth (see Luke 3:1).  This is by divine design to provide stability particularly in the midst of great transition.  As you explore teachers in the scripture consider Luke and Mary in the New Testament Levi, Samuel and Ezra in the Old.  Here is the chart for teacher.

Teacher Chart 

A Picture of the Servant

On Sunday, September 30 we continued to look at the redemptive gift of Servant.  We looked first at the behavioral characteristics of the servant (see link to "Servant Chart" in last week's post) before moving on to the 7's in scripture.

The first 7 that we look at with the servant is the second day of creation.  The second day of creation speaks to the creation of water and sky.  In these two features of creation, we find vast revelation regarding the nature of the gift of servant.  First the air - the atmosphere is vast.  It does not know boundaries.  There is not an east coast atmosphere / west coast atmosphere, the air moves freely from place to place.  Servants do not get caught up in "turf" issues that can hinder many of the other gifs, they simply don't think this way.  Additionally, you typically cannot see the air, it is always present but unless something is unusually wrong (pollution) you cannot see the air.  This is a picture of how the servant prefers to be in the background - unseen - it is here that God has designed them to be most comfortable and efficient.  While it is not visible, when we consider that which is required to sustain human life (air, water and food), we note that air is the one which we must have most regularly.  We can go weeks without food, a few days without water, but we can only go a few minutes without air.  This is a picture of the importance of the redemptive gift of servant to the rest of the body.  Likewise the water provides insight into the nature of the servant.  Consider the vastness of the oceans, while we have managed to pollute small sections of the oceans, the  simple vastness of the oceans quickly cleanses itself by diluting.  This is another picture of the impact of the servant on the body, it is designed to provide cleansing where there has been defilement.  We can see this attribute in the way that the air provides oxygen for us, which we use and then release carbon dioxide which is used by plants and trees in the process of photosynthesis which ultimately yields oxygen.  This is another picture of the servant's role to provide cleansing.  We will see that this applies as the servant relates to both land and other people.

The next 7 that we will consider related to the servant is the second piece of furniture found in the Tabernacle - the bronze laver.  As you can see in the image below, the bronze laver was placed in between the tabernacle and the altar.  Remember the altar was a place of a lot of activity - animals being sacrificed and burned - lots of blood, the scent of burning animal hair - therefore as the priests passed from the altar to go into the tabernacle - they had to stop at the bronze laver and wash in the water that it contained.  This is again a picture of the servants role in the Body to provide cleansing from defilement.    It also provides a picture of the unique connection that happens between the servant and leaders in the Body of Christ.  Servants are instinctively drawn to leaders, especially to those with the redemptive gift of prophet.  Their desire to be behind the scenes and serve are part of this, but so to are the unique ability that the servant has to protect leaders in intercession and through helping the leader get away from the burdens of administration and maintain their vital connection to God.



The third 7 from scripture that we connect to the servant is the name Jehova-Raphe which means the Lord who heals.  While we may be familiar with this name of God and connect it to physical healing (which is obviously one of the ways that God manifests), that is not the context where it was first introduced in the scripture.  In Exodus 15 the children of Israel had come out of Egypt as a completely healed, whole nation - it appears that God did something miraculous among this massive group (hundreds of thousands of people) that they were completely whole - without any who were feeble or faltering (see Psalm 105:37).  As they cross the Red Sea and move out into the Wilderness of Shur they come to the waters of Marah which they were not able to drink because it was bitter.  The people complained, Moses sought the LORD and the LORD showed him to throw a piece of wood into the water and it miraculously became sweet.  He then spoke saying, "If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to his commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I the LORD am your healer."  (Jehovah Raphe)  In context then God heals the water and then gives a conditional promise related to physical healing.  Notice that it this passage is about obedience providing protection which prevents healing, not healing those who are sick.  The difference in that passage is indicative of the servant whose presence in the Body of Christ is largely protective, passive and rooted in simple obedience.

The fourth 7 related to the servant is the second miracle in the gospel of John.  The second miracle is found in John 4 where the officials son is healed.  This man goes to Jesus because his child is sick and dying.  He pleads with Jesus to come to his house, after an initial response Jesus says, "Go, your son lives."  The man takes Jesus at his word, returns home and learns that his child recovered at the hour when Jesus had spoken to him.  This is vintage servant, simple obedience - one of the "free money" areas for servants and the result is household salvation.  Again, when we think of the servant and obedience we come to Joseph the father of Jesus who repeatedly heard difficult things from the LORD (take Mary as your wife, take your wife who pregnant and due at any moment and travel to Bethlehem (approx. 80 miles), get up and leave this place because Herod wants to kill the baby) and he simply did them.  Note also how important this was to preserve the life of Jesus.  The servant has a natural response of obedience to the leading of the LORD.  We also see in John's account of the Nobleman that the servant has significant authority in the family.

The fifth 7 is the message to the Church of Smyrna in Revelation.  Again in the messages to each of the other churches there is a rebuke for sin, but not in the Church at Smyrna.  Instead we see introduced the issue of death.  This is one of the areas that the servant has specific authority.  The most clear scriptural example is Esther who was redemptive gift of servant.  She was sovereignly placed in a position of authority to intercede and break the assignment of death that had come against her people.  This is a picture of the authority that servants have over the spirit of death.  This is of particular interest as we consider how God will place servants in situations (like the Noblemen in John 4 and Esther) to stop a  attack of premature death.  The passage in Revelation also eludes to the the issue of suffering, at times the servant must endure great rejection, yet the promise of Christ is clear, "He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death."

The final 7 that we visit is the statement "Today, you will be with me in paradise" made by Jesus to the thief who hung by his side.  To understand how this relates to the servant we must first dig to gain the context of this account.  Both Matthew and Mark record that Jesus was crucified between two criminals who mocked him.  However, Luke captures a portion of this event that Matthew and Mark do not.  We know that Jesus hung on the cross for several hours (see Mt 27:45) and Luke helps us to see that something happened in the heart of one of the criminals during that time.  As Matthew and Mark point out he joined with those who mocked and insulted Jesus and calling him to save himself, if he really was who he claimed to be.  However, as he hung there, pushing up on his pierced feet to get breath into his lungs, alongside a man who was exerting great effort to do the same, he began to see a different picture of Jesus.  Perhaps it was when Jesus responded to the chief priests who had mocked him by saying, "Father forgive them...they know not what they do."  He may have begun to think, "they know not what they do?"  I watched them measure out your hands and feet and nail you to that cross just like they did to me..."they know not what they do?"  Maybe he watched the soldiers cast lots for his garments and something stirred in him from a passage he had learned as a child about the Messiah.  It is difficult to know for certain what he saw, but one thing that we can clearly see is that sometime during those hours that he was hanging beside Jesus, he got a revelation about who Jesus was and it pierced his heart.

Imagine that you were hanging there next to Jesus, looking over at him, mocking him, ridiculing him for being a liar and a fake - a false messiah.  Then as you watch you begin to see pieces in the story you hadn't before, you realize that this man, beaten, crushed, back split open, hands and feet pierced, crown of thorns on his head, blood everywhere - is actually who he said he was AND you realize you were mocking him...what would you do?  Well, this man made his decision, the next time his fellow convict began to ridicule Jesus, he speaks up and says, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  And we are indeed suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."  Wow!  Over the course of the afternoon he has moved from seeing Jesus as one worthy of ridicule to now defending him - amazing!  Next he turns to Jesus and says, "Remember me when you come in your kingdom."  I have always thought of this as and 11th hour cop out, as if the criminal was saying, "Well I have nothing to lose, I'm gonna die either way, just in case he's real its worth a shot..."  However, as I look closer at the texts and his specific language, I noticed what he said.  He said remember me when you come into your KINGDOM.  He was saying, I see it, I get it, you have chosen to forgive, you are the one who was foretold - you are the King.  And so he looked at Jesus and with his last breath made that appeal to a man who looked like the furthest thing from a king in the natural that a man could.  This is a picture of the servant - often suffering a great deal from those close to them, suffering so much that it appears in the natural like death is imminent - but interceding to the end!  Jesus looks at him and says, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise."  Wow!  Right through the end Jesus is interceding, believing the best about this man who was a legitimate criminal AND IT PAID OFF - this man got it in his final hour on the earth.  This is classic servant - believing the best about those who everyone else had given up on, loving them when they are ugly and almost unlovable, loving in a way that brings them to the place of revelation about how God sees them.  This is another aspect that characterizes the selfless, life-giving nature of the servant.

In closing, we see that the battlefield for the servant is illustrated beautifully by Christ's statement to the thief.  When it looks like defeat, when it seems like the words of people have accurately defined you as a failure and it seems like it is true - your rejection is real - will you rise like Jesus and defy the circumstances and bring life to the situation.  Or, will you embrace the rejection and illegitimacy that have come in response to that pain?  This is the battlefield - to push through the dishonor, to move beyond the insults and the lack of appreciation and honor and simply do what God has created you to do - like Esther, like the Nobleman, like Ananias, like Barnabas, like Joseph the father of Jesus and like our great Champion Jesus who overcame to bring life!  This is the invitation before the servant and the Body of Christ greatly needs this gift to fulfill its calling in this hour.