You Are The Temple

The first semester of our Living Stones Fellowship “School of Ministry” will be ending on March 31 with a gathering at the House of Refuge in Duluth at 10:00am on that Saturday. The course offerings for the next semester will also be presented on that day at 1:00pm. I offer thanks to all who have worked so hard to take this step of faith, especially to Kevin Raihala, who has made our web presence possible. This will be a key to the future of the school. I encourage all who read this to consider how God would have you join this effort. Making disciples is at the center of Christ’s mission. This is a way that you can have a vital role. Please contact me to get involved.
218-590-4759 or jkrhin@hotmail.com

A historic event unfolded yesterday at Living Stones Fellowship House of Refuge. The School of Ministry was born! It may seem like a small event
at first glance, but I believe it will greatly enable Living Stones Fellowship to fulfill Christ’s Great Commision via all of its locations, present and future.
Will you pray for this effort as it unfolds?. Also, you can connect with the
School of Ministry and all the rest of our ministries at our new developing website www.livingstonesfellowship.org . To God be the glory!

It’s always a challenge for me to preach during the Christmas season, not for lack of source material, but because I want my hearers to truly be inspired.  You see, there is a numbing down of the Christmas Season, both in and out of the church. Commercialization, familiarity, and the hectic rush of it all can rob us of the joy that God intends for all.  If you are bogged down in making your list or checking it twice, here are a few things you might consider adding to it.

First, meditate upon the Christmas story as it is presented in the Bible.  No, not just the narrative of Christ’s birth popularly depicted in every Sunday School pageant, but the fullness of it…the prophecies, God’s Nature, our need, those who do not yet understand.

Secondly, take time to personally examine lines from some of the greatest Christmas hymns. “Come, Desire of nations, come! Fix in us Thy humble home: Rise, the woman’s conquering seed, Bruise in us the serpent’s head; Adam’s likeness now efface. Stamp Thine image in its place: Second Adam from above, Reinstate us in Thy love” (Hark! The Herald Angels Sing). “How silently, how silently, the wondrous Gift is giv’n! So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of His heav’n. No ear may hear His coming; But in this world of sin, Where meek souls will receive Him still, The dear Christ enters in” (O Little Town of Bethlehem).  ”And ye, beneath life’s crushing load, Whose forms are bending low, Who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow, Look now! for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing: O rest beside the weary road, and hear the angels sing” (It Came Upon the Midnight Clear).

Finally, no matter how politically correct our culture becomes or how tradition laden the church appears, ask Christ to inspire you.  He is Christmas.  He is the Gift who keeps on giving.

All of us are called to wait on the Lord. I am finding that self-publishing and distributing  a book can be a drawn out process.  Now the wait is on for my target audience to read, discuss, and reply.  I am encouraged by the many biblical examples of those who had to wait. Abraham, Joseph, and Moses are certainly at the top of the list. Then I think of Jesus, who was slain before the foundation of the world.  Together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, true waiting is manifest.  It translates into that Godly attribute we call long-suffering.  Can we in turn become more like God as we wait?  Do God’s purposes require this process to unfold? I believe so.  What are you waiting for?  Yield to the transformation that only waiting can produce.

Many thanks to all who have been praying for our trip to the A/G General Council in Phoenix. Yesterday we had the privilege of distributing almost 900 copies of You Are The Temple. In addition we had many wonderful conversations with God’s people. This is the time for the church to be all that Jesus desires. Step up, step out, answer His call!

To date, this has been the most difficult “30 Days” for me to observe…maybe because it is the most unstructured so far. I realize again that our Christian culture has become very activity orientated with a great emphasis upon what happens in church services. During this season of our ministry, my wife and I have been very active in bi-vocational work believing that our financial contribution to the local church is much needed. But also we see it as a time of preparation for ministry related to a book we had published this Spring entitiled “You Are The Temple”. The first of these activities reminds me that most of God’s people spend much of their day working in the market place not anywhere near the doors of where they worship on Sunday. Yet we often grade the “success” of the church by what happens within those doors, forgetting that the Kingdom is within us and is growing wherever we bring its influence. On numerous occasions our “work day” is interrupted by opportunities to share the love of Jesus. Recent visits to my elderly brother and sister and two other elderly couples with whom we frequently relate confirms this truth. Be sure that Jesus wants you to manifest His Kingdom’s presence daily in all of your activities. Also, God puts a very high value on rest. The duration of the Jewish captivity was directly related to the number of years they failed to observe God’s Sabbath. The writer of Hebrews admonishes us to labor that we may enter into God’s rest. This involves growing in our understanding of Christ’s finished work for us and participating in the works that the Father is initiating and doing. Our own activities can often lead us clear of these, hence the need to focus on “thy Kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We’ve only had two public showings of the Jesus video, with just a handful of participants on site. But on the other hand we’ve received numerous responses from participants in a variety of places voicing prayerful encouragement and sharing prayer requests. Consider these two. One respondant who I have not seen in the last few years indicated that she and her husband daily pray that the Father’s will be done here on earth as it is in heaven. We know that these words are directly taken from what we commonly call the Lord’s Prayer. But knowing that this couple is daily looking to participate in the works of Jesus makes the effort most worthwhile. Another comment from one of our Assembly of God leaders brought encouragement and a prayerful anticipation to hear about the fruit of our effort. During our first year’s observance of the theme we gathered nightly for 30 days to do nothing but read gospel accounts and pray for His manifest presence. Several miraculous healings took place during the month accompanied by salvations, recommitments, and water baptisms. One couple came from as far as Washington State, prophetically declaring that God sent them to help build the House of Praise that we were just beginning here. How is the Kingdom manifesting in your life? Sunday night witnessed several testimonies being shared of how Jesus brought salvation to broken lives. When was the last time you shared your testimony with another? Broken lives surround us. Will you extend a hand in faith to bring the healing virtue of Jesus? Don’t wait until Sunday to see what God does during your local worship service, though that is important. Allow God to manifest His Kingdom’s influence through you today, declaring to whosoever will, “this day, the Kingdom of God is drawn near to you”.

As we gathered for prayer this evening,  several blessings came to mind. First, bonds of fellowship  are being strengthened as we observe 30 Days of Heaven on Earth.  We welcome Elvis and Clara from Omaha and rejoice with them for the addition of little Jeshua to their household. Bruce from Cambridge, Kevin from Hibbing, Michelle from Oklhoma, Joyce from Washington, Tom from South Dakota, and Dan from Chicago have all responded to our prayer invitation. Second, Lloyd from Toivola and Joanne from California joined our first viewing of the Jesus video.  Their presence accented our time of intercession and Lloyd announced that he will be with us at the end of the month to teach and minister deliverance, details to follow.  Third, as the Holy Spirit gave witness to the Jesus video (which is a narrative based on Luke’s Gospel), we are praying about showing it in other venues as He directs. Let us know if you have any suggestions. Finally, several themes are emerging as prophetic words come forth.  ”Get ready”, ” Faith rather than fear”, “Anticipation concerning God’s promises to Us”, and “Growing hunger for God and His Kingdom purposes”.  When we pray  ”Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven we can expect it to happen!

I received several immediate responses to this year’s 30 Days of Heaven on Earth. Pray for a miracle in Charles and Cindy’s lives.  Also for blessings to fall upon Ben, Marie, and Rene.  I am believing for an increased awareness of Christ’s Kingdom activity in every life that participates!

Seven years ago I began to encourage the saints to observe 30 Days of Heaven on Earth with me. I am doing so again beginning today and extending for the rest of June 2011.
The observance is simple. Each day join me by praying “…Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”. It is my conviction that doing this once a year for 30 days will help us put Christ’s Kingdom in the forefront of our activities throughout the year. Seeking first the Kingdom of God was Jesus’s instruction to us. In Side Lake we are purposing to show the DVD “Jesus” nightly at 7:00 pm as we are able. It will be accompanied by an offer to pray for and with all that respond. We will be asking God to save souls, heal the sick, and work miracles in response to faith in the name of Jesus. As able I will be trying to get the word out on Facebook, Twitter, and email as well. Please plug in as God leads you.

Several voices inspire me this morning to take advantage of this blog. A Reader’s Digest article revealed the story of a homeless young lady who overcame great obstacles, graduated both from high school and Harvard, and now is helping other desperate young people. She attributes her accomplishments to a choice to be grateful for her blessings rather than focus on her difficulties. Secondly, my brother in the Lord, Mike Goldsmith, shared in his e-letter about Christ’ universal willingness to heal all that come to Him. Thirdly, my son-in-law, Mike humbly led our Sunday School class by sharing a struggle he was experiencing. The fact is, God has designed us to both need one another and to encourage one another. Are you experiencing this interaction or are you going it alone?