Hush

Take a moment, and slow down.

  Pick a subject, it matters not what it is. Can you hear it yelling, screaming for your attention? Everything is trying to grip you with emotions, demanding that you pay attention to it, and it alone.

  From the many train wrecks in Christianity to the political world. You hear it everywhere as your buying power at the grocery store, and town pump has evaporated away like mist in the wind. And in every corner, they continue to tap away at your mind like a heartbeat. Pressure builds, and hard choices are made as you watch the world from the safety of your car, or truck as you drive by the people on the streets. 

  The reality is tensions are high, and they will get higher. Issues and systems of this world are getting stretched like old rubber bands that will soon break, losing their control. And I think everyone at this point knows, even greater problems will arise, especially as we draw close to the presidential election.

The Current State of the Body

  A prophetic friend of mine had a dream. In this dream, in more than one location the Body was still in the same old places as the leadership continued to try and manipulate them to buy things. The leaders wanted the money, and they filled the room with hype and pressure to get what they wanted. But no one moved, in this case, desperation in the leaders was reaching an apex, yet the people no longer moved to their words.

  The reality was that in this dream, the people were finally awake to the deception of the fake leaders… but they were not moving. They continued to sit in the same places, unaware that there were options.  I suspect this means the shaking is not done. They have been shaken awake, but not walking in new life. The Body was meant to be moving, alive, and expanding, not pew sitters.

But is there Another Reason?

  Maybe the reason that no one was moving was not what we thought. Perhaps the saints are tired, so tired of the hype that the very concept of joining or doing anything was too much mentally. In effect, the corporate Babylonian system has worn down the saints. But where have we heard that phrase before? “He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.“ Daniel 7:25 

  Congregations that are heavily dependent on volunteers run a serious risk of overworking their people. This is because people’s work ethic mentality has been abused by leaders who seek their own kingdom first and will always keep asking for more. As a result, these people are so entrenched in this hamster wheel of performance that they have no personal time to “look up” and see the daylight around them.  In some places I have known people so interconnected that they have in essence become economic slaves to the system they serve. So the question is, is the Body of Christ just tired?

Get off the Hamster Wheel

  When believers get stuck on the Hamster Wheel, they get stuck in a system that is preprogrammed to play on their sense of spiritual duty. In some cultures, German, Norwegian, Bible Belt states, and many others, work ethics are high. No one needs to preach to them about concepts like, “if you don’t work, you shall not eat!” 2 Thessalonians 3:10. These people get it, and the leaders above them sometimes use this in negative ways. This is often Spiritual Abuse under a narcissistic leader.

  It’s not easy to get off these wheels, that is because in some ways we have become addicted to how it makes us feel. Just as some people feel that a screaming mad preacher yelling from the rooftops was a great spirit-filled sermon. Some people falsely think that they “deserve” to be treated like trash by senior leadership. This is all spiritual warfare of the mind and the best thing to do, is just walk away.

  The reality is healing can not occur in a stress-filled environment, and if that means becoming a hermit for a season, well I approve. Don’t let the self-appointed hall monitors in the corporate church guilt you into coming back with arguments that “you must stay in the body.” Is it right for a victim to go back and live with the abuser just to satisfy someone’s idea of right and wrong?

  I know I am using harsh language and concepts here, but to be honest I am “toning” it down. I strongly feel that many pastors would do far more to help the Kingdom by getting arrested and serving a little jail time than standing in a pulpit. Right now, statistically, it is far safer for a parent to put their child in a regular daycare than in a church-run daycare. 

  There was once a period of time in the late 80s and well into the 90 when churches screened workers with background checks before allowing them near children. When did that stop? Is there anyone left still doing it? 

  Healing

  Many of us who finally get out of the system require serious downtime. Yes, we still need to earn a paycheck, but stillness and silence can be our refuge. “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways when they carry out their wicked schemes.” Psalm 37:7 In our high-impact world, taking a step back to do nothing but rest in his presence is the most valuable thing we can do to stay sane.

  We are a people who need downtime, it was simply programmed into the very core of our being at creation. That is of course one of the biggest reasons for God making the sabbath mandatory “Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 Quite simply this is something many of us have forgotten.

 

Music, a Tool

  Many years ago when my wife and I lived on the west coast of Washington State the local radio station had “Evenings in December.” I was one month of instrumental Christmas music. In time several shops in the local town got smart and started running the music over the store speakers for everyone to hear. Then they put speakers outside and filled the streets. This had an interesting effect. A person swimming in this mood from this music could go from home to car to shop after shop and almost everyone was on the same page.

  Now as a person who has since learned that Jesus was not born in December, but most likely a few months later in the spring. And that this “holiday” was created for darker reasons to satisfy Catholic purposes I personally would suggest believers seek to celebrate our Lord’s birth another way. But having said that, I can not argue the positive effect music like this can have.

  Music is essentially a spiritual thing, it is meant to impact people on levels that few of us understand. Through music, you can bring people to war, riot, or even put them to sleep. I have seen too many Christians believe that music is just music and they can listen to anything they wish. I can also point to these same people and identify issues of internal strife within the home.

  We now live in a time where people understand that we need to take care of the food we eat. Or the care of cooking and cutting surfaces to prevent cross-contamination. How much more should we not take care in the preparation of our spiritual foods as well?

  “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character,” 1 Corinthians 15:33 to me not only means the day-to-day people you interact with. But it also means the unknown spiritual entities that inhabit the atmosphere around you. If you allow an environment of anger and rage to exist like you find in some forms of music like Rap. Are you then not inviting the same spirits to hang around you?

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  Below is a Spotify link to a Public Playlist that I have created. I often use this playlist when I am writing, reading, or as background music. If you are already on Spotify, feel free to listen in, if you like it then consider hitting the follow button. It will let me know who finds this useful. The image below is a sampler, for more click on “save on Spotify” to open it up for the full version if you have the program.