Okay, actually this is not so much part two as a prequel to part one.

Part one was a work in progress. Then, at last Sunday's service, Vince said some things that were clearly relevant to what I had already written, but were not where I was initially going. It's easier to steer a moving vehicle - that's a great illustration to how the Lord works. Of course, we have to be willing to let Him have the wheel - even when it seems like it's taking us away from our anticipated destination.

To me, the great thing about a blog is that there is an organic nature to it. It's akin to journalling. Each entry is not necessarily a finished work. It is more like a rough sketch or a quick study. At some future time, I may look back over my sketches and refine and compile them into a finished work, but for now it is enough to record the basic details so that they are not forgotten. Please keep that in mind, dear reader, if you are even out there.

There is a dichotomy to this technology for me. As I sit here alone, typing, it is possible to forget that this is no longer a private journal entry that will be filed away on my hard drive with my other documents, only to be seen by those who are granted personal access. No, I send this out into the ether, fully exposed to friend and foe alike. The implications of that I am too culturally naive to fully grasp at this time. At least I have the comfort of posting within the framework of SPCC, where one stated purpose of these entries is to build relationships and community around our mutual love of our Lord Jesus.

These blog entries are not necessarily doctrinal, though hopefully they are based on sound doctrine. Rather, they are a picture of my individual attempt to faithfully walk out and process what God is teaching me as I personally strive to know Him more and fulfill His plan for my life. I offer them as an explorer's trail map, both so that I can remember where I came from and how I got here, as well as offer some guidance to anyone who might be led to follow the same trail. I felt moved to express this perspective with the understanding that it may not be that of every reader, or of every blogger. My hope is that it will help to minimize misunderstanding and perhaps provide a foundational basis for interpretation. I write primarily to and for myself. I share, because that is what human beings in relationships do. We all have a God-given need to be seen, to be heard, to be understood - if not by most, at least by some. To connect.

All that being said, the path I am currently on is to reclaim the prophetic in the life of the body of Christ. There is so much revealed about the spiritual, supernatural nature of the body of Christ in the New Testament. For years I have been able to quote most of the sections from memory, but it is only in the last few years that the light of the Holy Spirit has brought them to life. Have you ever had the experience of looking back at something you have said - perhaps even repeatedly - and suddenly seen what it really means? You have been speaking the truth but weren't seeing it? That is the place I find myself at this moment regarding the body of Christ. This new light for me is illuminating things that I don't yet have words for. My desire is to grab others and say, "Do you see this?! What does it look like to you? Help me understand what we're seeing."

So, as a starting point, I offer a few initial impressions that will serve as some points of exploration for future blogs in this series.
I am learning to ...:
... be aware of and seek to overcome the unspoken limitations I put on God. (God is Sovereign. It is impossible to grasp the limitlessness of His creativity. It delighted Him to create us individually, personally and uniquely. There is and only ever will be one of you. Only He knows the specific plan, purpose and placement for the thread that you contribute to His tapestry. When you seek and surrender He will place you exactly as it pleases Him. What a joy that is!)
... depend on God alone, always and in every situation. (There are no spiritual formulae, only spiritual principles. The key to profitable application is to submit what we think we know - even what repeated experience may have taught us - to God, and seek Him for specific wisdom in each situation. You may get the green light to go ahead with what you were thinking, but you might just get your mind blown by a completely new thought that will cause you to marvel and wonder anew at this amazing God we serve!
... put my expectations on God alone. (Even the most mature, submitted Christ followers are flawed and imperfect. God allows others to participate as the vessels of His provision, but we can't lose sight of the fact that the provision itself is from Him. As He once reminded a daughter who was crying out in bitterness over an instance where her husband had disappointed her, "If your husband were perfect, what would you need Me for?")
... acknowledge my incompleteness apart from the body of Christ. (The "just me and God" mentality is a lie that has effectively robbed God's people of the rich knowledge of His infinite greatness. Think of the 5 blind men and the elephant. Or the adage, "When the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail." The lie on the other side of the pendulum was addressed above. I am called to love and embrace you as the unique expression of Christ that God has made you to be, thankful for the perspective and provision you bring, but releasing you from all pressure and expectation. Imagine for a minute the impact it would have on the world if God's people could get over themselves enough to live this out consistently.)
... accept the fact that as one individual I have inherent limitations that prevent me from fully knowing and experiencing God outside of close and open relationship with the members of His body. (This is His will and His plan. He loves and cherishes each one of us and wants us to love one another. This necessitates allowing others into our lives. Every individual reveals another facet of who God is, and therefore who we are called to be.)
... cultivate a lifestyle of thankfulness. (Our God can't resist a truly thankful, grateful heart. Take this as a principle, not a formula, but God has never failed to show up and speak when my mind and heart and soul have been in a state of complete thankfulness and gratitude. The paradox is that those times are never a calculated attempt to hear from Him, they are a gift in response to an attitude that He finds irresistible.)

Well, that's a start. I guess we'll get back to the real part two and the resolution of part one in my next post - "part three"?

Shalom and Agape!