I am continually amazed at the number of super-sincere, dedicated, committed Christians who are doing their best to follow Jesus. In every country where I travel, in Canada, Brazil, and the United States and also South Africa, Ethiopia, Angola, and Mozambique, sincere Christians are embedded in communities. I am honoured to know them and to be their friend.

It’s not just people, either, who try hard. One of our dogs always runs up to me when she sees me in the yard. She sits in front of me, wrinkles her forehead, and stares at me. She tries so hard to be obedient and please me that I feel sorry for her. It is impossibly hard for her to understand my world.

Thankfully God came to earth to help bridge the understanding gap between us humans and Himself. But still… what do we do when we are trying our best to obey God and do the right things, and it doesn’t seem to be enough? What happens when we sacrificially serve God, and we are misunderstood, people criticize us, friends leave our church, or our husband/wife/children act in ways that don’t make sense? It is a short distance between trying your hardest and developing a victim mentality. “I know I am doing my best, so the problem must be somewhere else.” Maybe there is a better way forward.

A Different Gear

If a leader gets stuck along the development path of those they are/were leading, it may be like a truck driver who doesn’t shift gears in a mountainous region. They keep trying their best with the gear they are comfortable with, but other trucks pass them, and people are honking and impatient… it’s dangerous.

In Genesis 2:24, the biblical author included a foundational principle of human relationships. There is a time we are like God to our children. We provide all they need to live. Our children become adults and develop their own relationships directly with God. Our family authority/responsibility/power relationship slowly shifts. Our power-over relationship shifts to a side-by-side peer relationship.

In my observation, this organic-relationship principle is true in families, teams, church plants, and movements. A different style of organizing is hierarchical, where submission is an important doctrine, and this appears to work well for some groups of people. But, when Christian leaders are trying their best, and their followers act in ways that seem bizarre, perhaps the followers are not actually rebellious but crying out to mature as people and as Christians.

Why Do We Hesitate To Shift Gears?

We Might Feel Responsible For our Followers

For sincere followers of Jesus, feeling responsible for followers is a big deal. The problem comes in when your followers do not agree that you are responsible, or at least not in the way you are trying to protect them. For example, have you ever tried to help someone who does not want your help? How did that work out for you? Have you ever tried to give counsel to someone who did not want your counsel?

We Might Feel Responsible to God

The most sincere Christians feel their responsibility to God. They are not afraid of sacrifice. They will make difficult decisions when necessary. The challenge is that when we overpower those around us for the greater good, who knows who is right? Jesus said the time was coming when people would think they were serving God while persecuting the disciples. People who want to follow God sincerely may work against God.

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“For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God” (NLT, John 16:2).

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The Transition

When God has leaders who sincerely want to serve Him, God is capable and willing to orchestrate circumstances to get their attention. The question is the shifting target of when to press in, and when to change our ways. Jesus has some advice.

Jesus’ Solution

 

Lower the Hierarchies

Jesus thinks it’s not only ok for His disciples to lay down their burden of authority, but He is also willing to pick it up if we will only work to connect people to Him. People are most ready to turn to Jesus when they are hurting, but when leaders strive to protect their followers from mistakes and pain, sometimes they risk short-circuiting God’s work. Does that make sense?

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But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matt. 23:8-11).

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Servant Leadership

Jesus taught that God desires servant leaders.

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But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:25-28).

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In God’s Kingdom, the leaders work to serve their followers. When we study the example of Jesus, we see He did not mean that leaders lose their self and lose their way, but rather that they continue resiliently on their journey to heaven while serving those around them.

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Servant Leadership is characterized by leaders who put their followers above their bottom line. The hope is that if the leader selflessly serves their followers, the followers will respond with their best efforts.

Do you have experience with Servant Leaders in your family, church, school, or work? Do you think that servant leadership is possible in families, marriages, churches, and businesses?

If you have relationship challenges, what would happen if you let go of your “right” to authority over others or their authority over you? What if the Holy Spirit could teach you Servant Leadership, Holy Indifference, and Passionate Love for God and Neighbors, all at once?

Your thoughts?

Lara found a little bird this week, so they will raise it until it can fly away.

The remnants of FIFA 2022.

Every day at dusk, Venus and Jupiter appear brightly on the horizon.

I have a free app on my phone called Sky Guide. Wherever I point it, the app identifies the stars, planets, and constellations.

Douglas came over to practice speaking English with Deanna. English speakers are rare in Marabá.

Every day I get to look at a new bird on my Christmas calendar and wonder how God created it. Razor-billed penguins. Are they aware of how cool they look? Does each bird long to identify with its flock, or do they also want to be known as individuals within their group? “A new calendar bird every day. Chicken soup. Cheese toast. Pink salt. Life doesn’t get any better than this!”

I remember Mom saying at mealtimes, “Life doesn’t get any better than this.” We would often push back, “No, I think it will be better when I have a new bike, or when dad comes home from up North, or when I finish school, or … on and on.” Mom would look at us over the food and say, “No, This, right now, is as good as it gets. Watch and see.” The secret to the best life is the freedom to fully enjoy every present moment.

On the one hand, we want to belong, to lose ourselves in a group identity.

On the other hand, we want the group to recognize us as individuals with unique gifts and names.

Sometimes things happen in our lives that are beyond our control. We are no longer in our comfortable place, and we think we are heading to a much better place, but we are not there yet either. 

A Liminal Space is when you are no longer where you used to be, but neither have you arrived.

The Liminal Space is Not What You Expected

When the Israelites headed out for the Promised Land, they were no longer in Egypt, but nor had they arrived. They were in a liminal space. When things got harsh, fond memories of the safety of their slavery years bubbled to the surface. When they sent in 12 of their most adventurous to see the reality of the great dream God had given them, 83% (10 of the 12) of them shrank back in fear. The journey to God’s best place for you can be scary, and the path there can look and feel much different than you expected.

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Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.

 FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, 
HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME,
AND WILL NOT DELAY.
BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE
SHALL LIVE BY FAITH; 
AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK,
MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM.But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul (Heb. 10:35-39).

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Maybe God has given you a dream of a better future, and then everything gets a lot worse, but you still feel you are tracking with God. Every morning I review one month of my old journal entries in sequence. Yesterday I reviewed what I sensed God saying to me in July 2016. Today I reviewed June. Tomorrow I’ll review May. Etc. Since March 2013, I have been noting current-month observations and reviewing my historical journey notes. Here is my review from this morning.

June 24, 2016 – I feel stalled, like I am not moving forward. My personal vision feels vague like it’s on autopilot. I sensed a Word from God this morning. “My plans for you are Big. Big Plans. Lots of stuff will happen soon. In the meantime, enjoy this season. Life is richer if you enjoy the seasons. This is like a winter season or a fallow time, necessary for a fruitful life. It is a gift to you.”

I don’t know how many times, even in this year, 2023, and throughout the last ten years, I have heard these words from God. Frequently people who do not know one another or my specific situation come up to me and say, “God told me that you are on the verge of something huge.” I write these reminders down in my journal because they are like GPS markers. They keep me on track.

In one sense, the liminal-space journey is God’s destination for you at this time.

Secret Places to Meet God

The Garden of Eden was the perfect oasis where God enjoyed creation. Outside the garden were four rivers filled with “good gold” and other jewels, but the way back into God’s Perfect Garden was open . . . until people decided they wanted to become judges of good and evil. Then God blocked the access back into His Perfect Place with cherubim and flaming swords (Gen. 2:24). In Exodus, in the liminal place, God designed a way to meet with people. He instructed Moses to put reminders of the cherubim guards on the curtains to His presence (Ex. 25-26). Inside the Holy place were many symbols of the Garden of Eden, like almond blossoms, flowers, and branches (Ex. 25:31-40).

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Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet material; you shall make them with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman (Ex. 26:1).

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The Holy of Holies was a cube.

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The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits in length, twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in height, and he overlaid it with pure gold (1 Kings 6:20).

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The Heavenly City is Also a Cube!

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The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal (Rev. 21:16).

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The heavenly city is like a huge Holy of Holies, where God lives with people.

Jesus’ sacrifice opened the way back into God’s Garden. The curtain with the cherubim guardians was ripped open. Free access! We can re-enter the secret place where God rules if we come on His terms.

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For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind . . . 
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel (NASB, Heb. 12:18-24).

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How to Thrive in the Liminal Space

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And they overcame him because of (1) the blood of the Lamb and because of (2) the word of their testimony, and (3) they did not love their life even when faced with death (Rev. 12:11).

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1. We Prioritize Quality Time With God in the Secret Place

We spend time with God in a spiritual garden, city, mountaintop, or secret place. We get filled with God’s presence, so we can embrace a chaos world in search of the “good gold” (Gen. 2). 

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But we have this treasure in earthen vessels (2 Cor. 4:7a).

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2. We Share our Stories

We present ourselves to those around us as spiritual people by sharing our stories.

A friend from South Africa shared the above quote on Facebook.
I smiled all week at the idea.
The opposite is also true.
Social media is a place where we can share our stories.
I like Mailchimp, but there are many platforms.

Twelve years ago, I told a mentor, “I think I will start a weekly newsletter.” That week I wrote my first Mailchimp. The next week I wrote another one. Today I wrote my 638th Mailchimp. Meditating on and then recounting my experience with God’s activity became a source of strength and encouragement to me.

Lessons Learned:

1. It is scary to write our testimony and send it out because we do not know how it will be received. In our desire to encourage some, we position ourselves as targets to be judged.
2. It is exhilarating, like getting out of the bleachers and into the game.
3. Writing doesn’t replace telling our stories personally, but there is an element of thoughtfulness in the writing process that helps us understand what we believe.
4. Our testimonies help our friends, and they help us.
   1. Seth Godin wrote a book called Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us (2008). The premise is that we are all part of a system of our people. We need each other. Your people are waiting for you to speak up and show them the way forward. How does Christianity work for you? What if we had no stories of the Israelite’s progress through liminal space to the Promised Land? How many millions of people have been helped by the honest recollection of God’s faithfulness through their transition from slaves to landowners?
   2. When we retell our stories, they become part of our identity. We own the victories. If we do not tell our stories, we risk losing them as they fade away.
5. Do not complain to people. It might be a way to bind your anxiety, but God thinks complaining to people is a bad idea and will not improve your situation (Phil. 2:14-15). Transparently working on your issues with God or a trusted mentor is helpful. Once you are through your challenge, share your victory in a way that gives glory to God.
6. If you wonder whether or not you should tell a story that includes another person, do not share it. Let the doubt be a warning.
7. Moses wished everyone would prophecy (Num. 11:29). Paul wished everyone would speak in tongues privately and prophecy in church (1 Cor. 14:5). I wish everyone would share a God-honoring weekly story and photo with their tribe. One nice thing about social media is that we can take our tribe with us, even if we move to another country, church, or job. Rather than trading one tribe for another, we keep expanding our tribe.

3. We are as Completely Abandoned to the Journey as Peter Was When He Stepped Out of the Boat

• We commit to complete abandonment to follow Jesus.
• We learn to like manna and quail more than leeks and onions.
• We listen to God and luxuriate in following Him, even when everything feels wrong and scary. 
• We lean into risks of faith, experiencing seasons of abundance instead of self-reliant poverty.
• We do not quit because something is impossible. We often do not see how it can work out, but we keep our eyes on Jesus and courageously take the next step.

In 2019 our daughter Emma carved and woodburned this masterpiece into a large piece of wood and gave it to Deanna for her birthday.

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”

—Theodore Roosevelt
Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

The back of Emma’s masterpiece gift to Deanna.

What is your experience with Liminal Space?

Rick.

Until I was 14 years old, I was extremely sensitive to my parent’s feelings; both parents, but Mom was more prevalent. Until I was 14, my dad worked paving many of the highways in Northern BC. He would come home for Christmas, and Mom would take us kids North to live in hotels during our summer holidays. My brother, sister, and  I were raised mainly by Mom during those years. When Mom was unhappy or displeased with something I did or didn’t do, I would get uncontrollably sad, often to the point of tears. At times this frustrated her. I remember Mom telling me as I stood by the piano in our living room, “Quit crying. Grownups don’t cry.” I do not remember the reason for my tears, but I remember hardening my heart. I never cried again until I was 24 years old. I spent the next 12 years trying to discover who I was as an adult. I became careless about the feelings of others to cope. In Eagle Plains, when I got filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues, I was surprised that I sometimes wept during my prayer times.

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“Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (NASB, Ezek. 36:26).

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I lived in Eagle Plains for three years. I was the only professing Christian of the twelve who lived in that remote location. We were 800 km (500 miles) from the nearest shopping center in Whitehorse and would generally go to town once a year. Inuvik, the next city to the North of us, was near the Beaufort Sea and has some small stores and churches, but their prices were astronomical. All this to say, I started to fuse to God in those solitary years and still remember them as among the best years of my life. 

Lessons Learned

1. Fusion with other humans is healthy for infants, but healthy adults redirect their attachment to God.

Apostle Paul told the Corinthians that if they depended on other people to hear from God, they were like infants that needed to be spiritually nursed. Mature Christians learned to hear from God for themselves and, out of the abundance of hearing, to encourage one another.

 

Infants

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“But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, ‘I follow Paul,’ and another, ‘I follow Apollos,’ are you not being merely human?” (NIV, 1 Cor. 3:1-4).

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Mature Christians

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For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged” (1 Cor. 14:31).

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2. Human Carelessness may transform into Holy Indifference.

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“Indifference does not mean not caring. One can be indifferent and yet be deeply passionate. In fact, since God is love and God’s redemptive work takes place through love, we cannot be indifferent in the Ignatian sense unless we love and love deeply.” The idea is to be free of unhelpful attachments (web reference).

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As hard as we try to serve God, we are not in control of much. As we learn to cast all our cares on Jesus, we become free to enjoy life. We do our best to be obedient and leave the results up to Him. Childishness, or reacting to others, may transform into childlikeness, where we develop a profound trust in God.

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At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children…” (Matt. 11:25-30).

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3. Obedience

Thinking about God as He reveals Himself through nature and His Word helps me abandon myself to obedience, even when I do not entirely understand. The closer I get to God, the more amazed I am at all creation! Creation is overwhelmingly complex!

Some people shy away from the word obedience because they believe it has negative connotations. For example, Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered (Heb. 5:8). But Jesus thought obedience was the path forward (John 6:38). He encouraged His followers to wholehearted obedience. Jesus often compared the Kingdom of God to a vast farm. Let’s suppose God wants to train you to run a half-a-million-dollar combine in His grain field. But all your friends are doing other things, like working in the vegetable garden at the home ranch, building silos, or maybe not doing much at all. Maybe you are torn between hanging out with your friends or going to combine-training-school.

Will you trust God’s personally-tailored training program even if you do not understand all of His plans? Noah trusted God for 100 years as he built the ark, one board at a time.

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“Thus Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so he did” (Gen. 6:22).

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Obedience is sometimes complicated because what if we get it wrong? We might suffer for nothing. The Pharisees traveled far and wide to make converts, suffering in an unhelpful way for God (Matt. 23:15; John 16:2). How do we get it right? Paul counseled the Colossians to follow the peace in their heart and to recognize the fruit of the Spirit, which includes joy (Col. 3:15; Gal. 5:22-23). 

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“I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances” (Ezek. 36:27).

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“By this, we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:2-3).

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In summary, if our adult emotions are fused to another person, they are out of our control. The other will determine our good and bad days, leading to chronic stress. Fusing with God, on the other hand, increases our love for people and this planet, our joy, and our desire to abandon ourselves to obedience to Him.

Your thoughts?

Rick.

Silmara, who is pregnant, and Lara and Kelly walk to the road in the evening to meet Mauricio after he worked a 12-hour day.

Who doesn’t long for a family who looks forward to seeing them again, even if they’ve only been gone a few hours?

I left two jars of sauerkraut in July. Six months later it is still good, and delicious. If you cut up cabbage and put it in a jar with salt and water, it will percolate for three days. After a month, it is ready to eat.

A papaya tree and fruit.

Deanna and I take one day off a week to enjoy God and to enjoy life. God’s plan is for people to create beauty and organize things for six days, and then to enjoy the order for one day because (1) that is what God did at creation, and if He is not too busy for a day off, neither are we (Ex. 20:8-11), and (2) because we are not slaves. God’s people can take days off (Deut. 5:12-15). Such an awesome God, and such an awesome life!

Have a great week!

Rick and Deanna.

Here is a house we pass on our daily walk through our neighborhood.

A massive iguana enjoys the view from the peak of our roof. We have the netting there to discourage bats from flying into our house. This region is thick with bats.

The government kindly paved the road in front of our church and house.

Does it seem impressive that this ball can explode in slow motion to turn into an intricate flower? Year after year, century after century, these prickly plants keep producing these slow-motion explosions of beauty. The flowers last for about a day, so we must live in the moment to appreciate them. If we are worried about other stuff, we will likely miss the present beauty, and it helps no one.

Have a great week!

Rick and Deanna.

Deanna is starting several small groups to help participants grow spiritually by lowering their anxiety.

The groups range from children to families to young mothers of all ages.

This Saturday night group included the celebration of Mauricio’s 44th birthday!

Aline and her mom and her daughter (behind the chair).

Do you remember helping someone learn to do puzzles?

I had a dream a few weeks ago.  There was a huge mob of people racing past me. Everyone was running down the road, and the street was packed right to the buildings on each side. Then I saw one of our daughters. And then another. When they saw me standing on the side, out of the way, they came over. “Why is everyone running down the road?” “We don’t know! But we’re getting away! There must be a reason because everyone is running away!” “Yes, I see they are running, but what are they running away from?” When the mob thinned down, we could see nothing was chasing them. Social Anxiety is a Thing Social anxiety has increased dramatically since 2020. Fears and speculations feel real to many. How often do people tell me, “This is what I’m seeing…” Then they relate their conclusions based on news stories or facts they gleaned from social media. Even when social media is from trusted friends, we never know the whole context and may quickly jump to the wrong conclusions. Social Anxiety can Produce Crazy Behavior. In Exodus 19 God invited the children of Israel to personally come to the mountain where Moses’ had the burning bush experience. The people were afraid and promised to follow Moses’ lead if he would hear from God for them.  Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die” (Ex. 20:18-20). When Moses went up the mountain to hear from God for the people, the people convinced Aaron to make them a golden calf, and then “Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry” (NIV, Ex. 32:6b). “After this, they celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry (NLT, Ex. 32:6b). “and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and got up to engage in lewd behavior (NASB, Ex. 32:6b). How did this happen? The whole group had just experienced incredible adventures with God. Aaron had just seen God.  “Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of lapis lazuli, as bright blue as the sky” (Ex. 24:9-10). One can only vaguely imagine the stress of being slaves, racing away through the Red Sea, not knowing how to live as free people, and feeling lost in an unknown desert. Still, what a jump, from experiencing God to large-group, mass immorality. Have you ever heard of Groupthink? Our current social stress is not uncommon in human history.  “Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they indeed craved them. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: ‘The people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.’ Nor are we to commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day” (NASB, 1 Cor. 10:6-8) The Antidote God’s plan is that His people will represent Him to the chaos world. God still wants a personal relationship with everyone. God wants to put His laws in our hearts and to walk and live among us.   “And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying,16 ‘This is the covenant which I will make with them After those days, declares the Lord: I will put My laws upon their hearts, And write them on their mind,’He then says,17 ‘And their sins and their lawless deeds I will no longer remember.’”(Heb. 10:15-17). Centering Prayer To guard ourselves against Social Anxiety and Groupthink we need to each develop a personal relationship with God. I used to care so much for my team and to excel in the task He gave me that I struggled with anxiety. Over time I am learning to cast my cares on Him. Life is much better now. 1. The first thing I do daily is to spend time with God. 2. I go to God first, before I look at my messages and all the distractingly choice tidbits that arrive on my phone during the night. I do not want extra distractions from my relationship with God. 3. My quiet time includes a Bible reading program, Bible study (Bibleproject Classroom), Centering Prayer, and praying through lists. I learn to quiet my mind and spend time with God. When thoughts come up, I acknowledge them and let them go. If I find myself obsessing about something, I grow wary. Is this an idol of sorts? I don’t understand idolatry, but it has something to do with me putting something ahead of my relationship with God. I explain to my mind that we have given the event over to God, and this is not the time to be working on it. This time is for enjoying God and His presence. 4. After building up my spirit I am equipped for the day. After first spending time in the realm where Jesus is King (the Kingdom of God) I am better equipped to deal with the chaotic realms. 5. I prioritize putting God first each day. If I have to travel at 4 a.m., which happens often enough, I get up at 2 a.m. I have been doing this for many years. I share it now as an encouragement because this is working for me. The Church If I am strong in my faith and secure in my relationship with God, I can appreciate my church people because they are the folks with whom I am going to heaven. Consider how flowers do not envy and strive against one another. They bloom together, each with its own fragrance, color, and size. The people of 1 Corinthians were passionate about the church, but Paul thought they were infants because they loved certain teachers. Does this sound like the Israelites in Exodus who preferred to hear God through Moses rather than for themselves? Paul thought they were such infants he had to give them milk, not solid food. In those days there was no store with 2% milk. Paul was comparing his teaching to mother’s milk because the Corinthians depended on hearing God through other people. Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?” (1 Cor. 3:1-4). Can you see how depending on people to teach us what God is saying is like babies feeding on breastmilk? Real food is compared to hearing personally from God. Does focusing on a personal relationship with God lessen the value of hearing from God through others? Not at all. Paul’s whole letter to Corinthians is to encourage them to meet together, to encourage one another, and to quit with the subgroups. He contended that in church prophecy was a better gift because in this way the church can encourage one another.  Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to people but to God. Indeed, no one understands them; they utter mysteries by the Spirit. But the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging, and comfort (1 Cor. 14:1-3). When we come to church filled with God’s Spirit and love for people, God will give us encouraging words for one another.  “Since you are eager for gifts of the Spirit, try to excel in those that build up the church” (1 Cor. 14:12). The World God started with Adam and Eve. That culminated in the flood. Then God restarted with Noah and his family. That culminated in the Tower of Babel. Then God restarted with Abraham and Sarah. That evolved into Jesus and The Church. The fellowship in the church is the opposite of the Tower of Babel. Instead of languages that divide, we get tongues that build up our spirits and prophecies that help us encourage one another along our path to heaven. The Lord had said to Abram . . . and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you (Gen. 12:1-3). If we work on becoming the right individuals and groups, we grow in power to attract the world to Jesus.  Final Thoughts I changed the way I intercede for people. I now pray to become the right person God can use to minister to my family, relatives, mission partners, church families, neighbors, and the world. I have the power to make choices for myself, which helps me feel proactive rather than like a victim of social unrest.  With God’s help, we can each be part of His solution in a chaotic world. Your thoughts? Rick.