Real Fire

I faked knowing God for 8 solid years so I could fit in with the Charismatic Crowd.   Raising my hands during the music, pretending to understand the scripture that was being delivered, wearing Christian Gear and adorning my car bumper with the annoying Fish Magnet and so on.  There was one problem.  I didn’t KNOW GOD.  I only knew about God through others. John 17:3

In 1991 the Spirit of The Living God interrupted my beige life & took me to a place that is beyond words.  My life has been lived in Vivid HD ever since.  Eternal Life (All of Heaven and its glorious Features and Benefits) are to be birthed in and enjoyed by God’s children in this life.  Interoperating with God’s Spirit and taking our cues straight from the Heart of the Father is NORMAL.  Don’t let this world squeeze you into its mold;  instead, be transfigured by God’s Power and find out who you are and why you were created and be about the business of doing the miraculous.  Anything less is pedestrian…

We were made to know God, not know about Him.  The Holy Ghost is the PERSON of God on Earth who we need to establish lines of communication with.  He is a Person with a Personality and He reveals Himself to our spirits not our flesh.  The more you deposit the Words of God into that spirit of yours, the one that hungers and thirsts to know Him, the more intimate your RELATIONSHIP with God will become.  Maybe you’ve heard the term “Fake it Until You Make it?”  That is not how God wants us to live our lives.  We should be ablaze with the TANGIBILITY of His Spirit and be ever-aware of His manifested Presence.  Again, that is normal.  I may step on some religious toes here (not that I care), but, most church people know about God but they don’t know God and the difference is Profound.  What the Charismatic and Spirit Filled Church calls the Baptism in the Holy Ghost (for the most part), is a ritual and not does not produce a radical epiphany, which it should.  If you don’t believe me, look what happened to the folks in the Upper Room when the Holy Ghost fell on them.  They were changed and they were emboldened and they had FIRE on them.  They had to go do something with that fire or they’d have burned up.

I challenge you to throw off religious tradition and the fear of man (feeling like fitting in is more important that knowing God for yourself) and find someone who is carrying the tangible Presence of God and get what they got!  This stuff doesn’t fall out of Heaven.  It is transferred by one who is full to another who has need.   Articulated differently, that simply means that God always uses people to do His Work.  So many religious folk act all pious (like I did) and the world is repulsed by the spam they are trying to pawn off as caviar.  If it isn’t ultra pleasant and totally organic and if doesn’t appeal to your eternal palette within, you can bet it ain’t worth having.

Their is only ONE true Baptism of The Holy Ghost and Jesus Himself is that Baptiser.  We are living in an hour where God is peeling back the veil of bull and living in a day where we need REAL POWER to be people or genuine impact.  A little sermon and a latte in the foyer after church is window dressing.   Don’t get me wrong;  I love my caffeine.  Nonetheless, God is wanting to cut through clutter and get at people’s hearts.  No matter what part of the equation you find yourself, consider what I have said and seek that which is REAL with all that is in you.  Apart from Him (The Holy Ghost), you will never do anything for God.  Harsh words?  Not meant to be.  Just The Truth.  Acquire the real fire and then spread it.  There are millions and millions of people whose real identities are coated over with fear and religion and doubt and God only knows what else and they are crying out for someone who has THE POWER to electrocute them and bring them into genuine liberty and newness of life.  Let the Games Begin…

The Truth

You pick the subject or the purported challenge or something that is overwhelming or vexing you;  this one thing I can tell you for absolute fact;  if the Victory doesn’t manifest itself on the Inside you can be assured you will NEVER see it on the outside.

The Holy Ghost does all of the Heavy Lifting in the Unseen Realm of God.  It’s God’s Place of Divine Commerce where His Spirit replaces your natural currency with His Supernatural Resources.  No other way to be lifted into the miraculous.  Who removed the Power of the Holy Ghost from the Church and from the Bible, anyway?  Mark 11:24

ARE YOU PARTAKING?

What’s on my Mind?  Silly Question.  The Word of God, of course!  It’s in my heart and on my lips.  What is?  The Word of Faith.  What’s the Word of Faith?  It is God’s Faith that is breathed into and onto my spirit (inner) man directly from the Heart of God.

Remember, it is through the Written Word of God that He (God) reveals the Living Word of God (The Lord Jesus Christ Himself) to our spirits.

Partake> To have (possess) something of the nature or character;  to take or have a part in; share.

How do I know God?  “It is through these exceeding great and precious promises that we become PARTAKERS OF THE DIVINE NATURE.” 2 Peter 1:4  We are always Partaking something.  Voices are shouting at us constantly.  The way to escape the nullifying effects of Doubt and Unbelief (that rules the sense minded man) is to beat what is seen to the punch.  How?  When you feed your inner man with the Words of Eternal Life, the Spirit of God will take those words and recreate you from within.

This is a Holy Ghost, Spirit to spirit Religion that I’m talking about.  I did plenty of PARTAKING when I was alienated from God (spiritually dead) which was a misplaced hunger and thirst for The Real Thing.  What’s that?  The Life and Nature of God Himself!  I know but I want to know God.  Put the Word of God in you (Romans 10:17;  that’s your part of the deal) and God will hold up His end of the Bargain by acting on what you have digested.  This is THE TICKET out of a life of beige living and pretend church and into amped up, Holy Ghost inspired, Mountain Moving Faith.

You’re a million times bigger on the inside than you are on the outside.  You feed that new man within the Word of God and He will make and mold you into His Image and His Likeness and bring you into an awareness and then the experience of fulfilling HIS DESTINY for your life.  Everything that is SEEN is DECAYING.  The brand new car you buy off the lot today is USED tomorrow.  In five short years it’ll be rusted and you’ll still be married to the Payment Book.  Transact with God in the UNSEEN Realm and you’ll leave a legacy that others will follow and you’ll walk into Heaven with a “Well Done;  thou Good and Faithful Servant.

JCH

Color My World!

HD or Bust

Dare to believe.  Step out of the natural and run into the supernatural.  Jesus said ONLY BELIEVE for a reason.  BELIEVING is the ONE and ONLY Ingredient necessary to commune with Christ in Heavenly Places and to rule and reign with Him in this life.

This isn’t my writing;  this is the Word of God!  Run at Him as fast as you can and you will be changed into His Image.  We are Risen with Him. Let the man on the inside loose. Break out of tired clothes and tired habits and let Him wash you down in the Holy Ghost Drive Thru Car Wash.  That drive thru only takes a few minutes and that old Ford that went in that Car Wash will come out a gleaming new Bentley!

HD Christianity.  It’s all about being tuned in to the correct frequency.  If you’re a child of light than tune in to Light and you will get lit up and become a spectacle.  Let’s stop praying and start doing.  The Modern Church is BORING.  We need the Holy Ghost to move NOW and He is ultra available and just waiting for one, single person to believe Him and wrap up the Book of Acts with Signs and Wonders and Miracles and a Mega Harvest and then let’s wrap this thing up and get caught up in the clouds.  Now what was I talking about?

JCH

Another World

It would seem that God cannot be found among the senses.  I think we grossly underestimate how embalmed we really are with sensory overload.  Its unyielding assault leaves our spirits so coated over with spin that we can barely come up for air and breathe before that voice of reason jams us back down and into submission.

Don’t tell a man who is full of vigor to shut up.  Maybe you are the problem.  I know that I am.  Frankly, I am a contributor to more problems than I am solutions.  Let’s try putting it another way;  there is so much self-deception in me that I can’t even trust myself.  “Well now, Brother H, you’re being a little hard on yourself, aren’t you?”  Absolutely NOT!

God desires TRUTH in the inward parts and filtering is not allowed.  I’m talking about all of our natural, fallen tendencies.  They entrench us in a righteousness that is of our own making and they keep that glorious light of Heaven and its Realities from ever gaining the Right of Way in our spirits.

TRUTH takes courage and our flesh flees from it with all of its petty excuses and good intentions and fabrications of every genre.  The list is endless and the end is death.  First spirit, then flesh.  It all happens so subtly and so seductively that it fits so conveniently into the fabric of our soft, western lives.  Our blessing has become our curse.  Is it a wonder that three quarters of the rest of the world call us UGLY AMERICANS?  They’re right.  We are weak and we have an excuse for everything and electronica is our medium and fallen media is our daily bread.

Finding God is the goal of all of this.  If that isn’t your goal then you are probably visiting the wrong blog.  I can’t think of anything else.  I am pre-occupied with communing with the Unseen.  Could there be anything more fundamentally sound and worth pursuing?  I was a great big mess after my daugther died in 2007 and it has taken me three years and a heart attack and a torn rotator cuff and a flooded house full of mold to learn that “Apart from Him, I am nothing and I can do nothing.”  I have already been marginalized so you can’t marginalize me! won’t

The wind blows where He wills and His desire is that we chase after it until we know everything about it.  You can’t stop once you’ve jumped upon the Winds of Heaven nor can you take your spiritual eyes of of Him.  The minute you try to MAKE something out of what God was already doing to begin with, you have died and the process of decay sets in.  We must learn to navigate the winds and become satisfied with gliding alongside the One who Created us. It is in this place and this place alone where Heaven will thrust its sickle into your heart and reel you into all of its wonders. Believe it.  If it were any less glorious (and simple) than this I wouldn’t be interested.  I tried everything under the sun as an unregenerate person and that carved out a mighty thirsty pallette, within.  Don’t shove a Cube Steak at me and tell me it’s $100 Kobi when it isn’t and please don’t do that to people who don’t know God.  You’ll drive them away from him not to Him.  Leave the drawing of souls to the Holy Ghost.  That’s His job.  Ours is to BELIEVE and PRAY IN THE SPIRIT.  That’s it.  Jude 20.

Make sure you are ready for this stuff.  It is for everyone but it takes a certain abandon and belief that are of the heart and not the head.  God doesn’t work with hybrids.  He desperately wants us to learn His language.  How else can we ride with Him if we can’t communicate with Him?  Praying at God is not praying in God and the difference is profound.  If you haven’t an idea of that which I speak you might consider asking God to visit you and show you who He really is.  There’s no formulas and He Loves everyone.  Give Him your whole heart and watch what happens.

Gotta Pay to Play

Gotta Pay to Play

I had a dream many years ago that has served the wife and I quite well over the years.  In my dream, I was driving on a Toll Road and came up on an un-attended Toll Plaza where drivers toss their money in the chutes and drive on.

For some reason, I found myself looking to the left and to the right to see what the other drivers were doing.  Interestingly, they glanced quickly in both directions and then slipped past the chute without paying.  Not that the same temptation has never crossed my mind, to be sure!

Anyways, after paying my toll and driving on for some miles down the highway I noticed a broken down car on the right shoulder.  I rubbernecked it to see what was up and then a Voice from within (or so it seemed) said, “He didn’t pay his toll and that disqualified him from receiving Roadside Assistance.  I became more and more fascinated as the Narrator continued with His lesson.

He went on to tell me that many people in His Church are that way.  They like all the amenities His Church provides, like great Teaching and Preaching, Air Conditioning, Padded Seats, super-sweet people who greet you at the door, Children’s and Nursery Services and even latte’s nowadays, but, when that bucket comes their way during The Offering they do the same thing;  quick glance left, another right and then NADA!  They let that bucket go right by ‘em without paying for services rendered.

"Loosen Up, Man"

Don’t get all religous on me, now!  After all, I’m just telling you about a dream I had.  So, The Voice goes on to tell me, “I want to bless you but you don’t qualify.”  Actually, the picture He was painting was beginning to make sense.   I think something God shared with me some time ago will fit in nicely, here.   He said, “If you’ll take care of my business, I’ll take care of yours.”  Why the dime, though?  Why the ten percent of our increase (wages)?  Glad you asked!  God Loves us so much that He wants to deliver us out of this world’s economic system (which ain’t exactly going gangbusters here, lately) and translate us into His Way of doing things.  To do that, He asks us to “bring our tithe into the Church and put our money where our mouth is,” so to speak.  This is the only place in the Word of God (that I know of) where God challenges us to test Him.  He goes on to proclaim, “…and prove me now or test me and see if I’ll not open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that will not be able to be contained.”  I’m talking about being blessed, not barely getting by.

Don’t even think about looking at me with that Religious Tone of Voice!  Don’t take my word for this, look it up for yourself.  You get your actions in line with God’s Word and you’ll have what God promises.  I guarantee it.

We take that dirty green paper we call money (it’s actually called cash and yes, there is a difference) and put the first fruits of our increase in that bucket and we get an insurance plan that has no rival.  Check this out.  You help the Church you worship in to pay its bills and you get grafted in to ever good thing that ever happens in that place because your tithing qualifies you and on top of that you can expect God to Open the Windows of Heaven and exceed your need.  That’s why “Bucket Time” is my favorite part of Church.  It’s my opportunity to show God I love Him, get that dirty money laundered by God and then duplicated by His Promise of Abundance.

Hung out to Dry

I’ve been here before myself so don’t get offended or send me any hate mail but I used to treat the Valet at a nice restaurant better than I treated God.  That velvet offering tray would come by and I’d fold up that $20 really tight so no one would notice the denomination and then all full of ambivalence I’d slide that $20 into the tray like I’d done God a favor or something.  Let’s keep it real, here.  God is not a Car Wash Attendant and yet many of us want to Tip Him like He’s the guy drying the family SUV at the Car Wash.  Hmm.  We better  move on…

Hang me.  I don’t care!  I already given my only child to God at the tender age of seven and God told me during the onset of a Heart Attack, “BABY ASPIRIN.”  He takes care of those who love Him, straightaway.  My daughter graduated to Heaven (God told me she had completed her course) and I survived a Heart Attack with ZERO damage to my Heart because He gave me a head’s up by suggesting I pop a baby aspirin.  This stuff is real.  It’s supernatural.  Extraordinary.  I’ve never known God in any other way.  He’s involved in everything I do and everything I am.  I’ve been immersed in the Things of God for 27 years now and if this was a religion I was told I must follow with a long list of rules or if it was a religion that temporarily appeased my need for a taste of relief from feeling guilty or something, I’d have bailed a long time ago!

Stop and think about it.  With times as bad as they are now there has never been a better time to get your spiritual house in order.  God will take what you pay Him and will multiply it.  Make a decision to Pay your Tithe.  God, by His Holy Spirit, will translate you supernaturally out of this world and all of its greed and manipulation and trickery and will shore your scene up for you.  If you think you can’t afford to tithe, you have just moved to the front of the line.  You can’t afford not to tithe!  You can’t get that dime in the bucket quickly enough.  It will take some time (God doesn’t offer Drive Thru Service) but if you will faithfully put that 10% in the bucket every week and you do it with a confidence and assurance that He will ACT on what His Word promises), your days of living thin will be replaced by Abundance in every area.God wants our hearts and where our heart is, there our treasure will be also…

For those of you who want to debate whether to pay your tithe on the Gross vs Net Pay, I think you know the answer.  You want ALL of your money blessed by God, in my estimation.  Don’t let that money the Government takes (taxes) go to everyone’s program except yours.  Get it in there and be IT according to the measure of your faith.

Hollinshead

God’s Wind

God’s Wind

“I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth” (Isa. 58:14).

Those who fly through the air in airships tell us that one of the first rules they learn is to turn their ship toward the wind, and fly against it. The wind lifts the ship up to higher heights. Where did they learn that? They learned it from the birds. If a bird is flying for pleasure, it goes with the wind. But if the bird meets danger, it turns right around and faces the wind, in order that it may rise higher; and it flies away towards the very sun.

Sufferings are God’s winds, His contrary winds, sometimes His strong winds. They are God’s hurricanes, but, they take human life and lift it to higher levels and toward God’s heavens.

You have seen in the summer time a day when the atmosphere was so oppressive that you could hardly breathe? But a cloud appeared on the western horizon and that cloud grew larger and threw out rich blessing for the world. The storm rose, lightning flashed and thunder pealed. The storm covered the world, and the atmosphere was cleansed; new life was in the air, and the world was changed.

Human life is worked out according to exactly the same principle. When the storm breaks the atmosphere is changed, clarified, filled with new life; and a part of heaven is brought down to earth.  –Selected

Obstacles ought to set us singing. The wind finds voice, not when rushing across the open sea, but when hindered by the outstretched arms of the pine trees, or broken by the fine strings of an Aeolian harp. Then it has songs of power and beauty. Set your freed soul sweeping across the obstacles of life, through grim forests of pain, against even the tiny hindrances and frets that love uses, and it, too, will find its singing voice.