Get Outside The Reach @Christmas

December 19, 2012 by Phil Larson

Usual travels this week include a trip from OKC to Matamoros and back again. Sort of a Bilbo Baggins adventure. Though, I’m not sure which end is the Shire. Raul and I certainly don’t look like Hobbits even though we might have hairyness.

This year, I am staying home. Raul and Abdiel are in Matamoros. Fiero will take another load of toys today. I will watch the star from afar and trust the wise men to do the job.

Why do we do this? Why have we connected with this congregation in Matamoros called CAREVI? Why don’t we just stay home instead of drive for 12 hours one way? What is the purpose?

Get Outside Your Self…

A big reason is to stay outside of ourselves. It is easy to go downtown and deliver gifts to kids who have more on a poor day than some kids in Matamoros on a rich day. Ever watched a kid who has never opened a new box open a new toy? Used stuff really is not the focus. But getting a new toy in the box is an amazing experience for some of these kids. Sure, I’ve helped a little and my wife has helped a lot right here in OKC with families needing Christmas. Yet, they have so much even when they have little.

Get Outside Your Comfort

There is a need to be uncomfortable. Our lives have little real sacrifice. Try driving toys across an armed border knowing you will drive past military and cartel operations just to bless someone. A little unnerving. We need to be unnerved. We need to remember. We need to think about the chaos our comfortable, drugged, entertainment, make me happy culture in the US creates to sustain. All of those guns and threats exist to supply US entertainment and leisure. Hmmmm

Get Outside The Reach

Sometimes we need to see the miraculous. How in this world doe multiple churches and business professionals in OKC come together to support folks in Matamoros? Black and Latino and White churches here; Baptist and Nazarene and Full Gospel churches here; join and bless with gifts and gospel folks they will never meet.

Return

Then we come home. Then we live with memories and facebook connections in between. Sure I get to stay connected unlike missions works in the old days. But it doesn’t smell the same. It does not taste the same. It does not love the same. Sorry, I can’t hug a facebook post. I can hug a friend, a child, a cohort, a fellow human on the journey.

That is Christmas

There you go. That is Christmas.

Jesus went outside Himself and became an extension in humanity.

Jesus went outside His comfort zone in the throne room and stepped into an earth zone.

Jesus went outside the heavens and touched the earth, where we live in sin and destruction disturbing His intended peaceful creation.

Jesus returned to heaven; yet, He stays connected with us. He is more powerful than facebook. He takes up residence in hearts and stays even though He returned.

Guess That’s Why

I guess reliving that journey of Christ every year is what drives me and the team. Thanks for sending us. Thanks for allowing us.

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Powerful Healing: Unshakeable

August 30, 2012 by Phil Larson

Psalm 16:8 I am always aware of the Lord’s presence; He is near, and nothing can shake me GNT

Near To Me In Healing:

How powerful is healing? A friend described his last three weeks of healing journey. He had a violent condition that resulted in waking several times a night choking and gasping for air. The doctors had prescribed major medicines, inhalers, etc… As he said, “I have quarts of medicine.”

Then we prayed in his home one evening.

That night he slept. Every night since then he has slept. All the symptoms are gone. The doctor is puzzled. His friends are puzzled. They are so puzzled they are opening up and talking to him about issues in their life that need prayer.

That is God being close to us. He is so near, others want to touch Him through us.

Near to Me in Healing:

How powerful is healing? M came to CAREVI in Matamoros years ago. It was before Raul and I began working with Dr. Carillo and the team. M is on the leadership team. There are many stories to tell. He and his family are a blessing to watch. They are busy expanding the kingdom. M ministers the gospel from the point and testimony of his new life, healed and whole. Once he was addicted and trapped. Through scripture and prayer and counsel and love, that is past and he is healed. When visiting this summer, he showed me an outline he made of Los Siete Secretos de Los Padres (the Seven Secrets of Effective Fathers). He is teaching 17 men. 10 are in the congregation and 7 in the community. I gave him the book three years ago. He has devoured and put the truths to work for his family and others. That is healing.

When Are You Unshakeable?

Another friend and I talked over lunch. The press of painful events in my life is enormous these days. Six family deaths, job change, deep betrayals by trusted friends, near death accidents, and more than I want to mention all occurred in an eight week period. Wow. My wife and I should be rattled and locked up under drugs somewhere. Yet, we pursue peace and continue to live and reach others. How so? Why are we not shaken beyond the calm?

Easy. Prior to the onslaught and while it was happening, I was in a period of reading from Genesis to the Revelation. In the same eight weeks, in prayer, I felt strongly impressed to make that prayer and reading journey. That was before the onslaught. That was during the onslaught. The effect is still flowing. The words of God can create unshakeable health in us.

These friends to whom I point are living in strong circumstances. One lives in a war zone city in Mexico. The other works in law enforcement. They are bright lights of Jesus in dark circumstances. They have chosen to allow God’s healing in them to reach others. They chose to be near to God when others run away.

When Are You Unshakeable?

When you are near to God, you build the unshakeable force of health and healing.

In the scripture

In prayer

In healing

In comfort.

In peace

In living

In pain

In problems

When you allow Him room to show through you to others in all your experiences, you build the unshakeable force of health and healing.

For Tomorrow, Be Healed

Another friend called to cancel an appointment. It happens often. He plans to be sick tomorrow morning. Yes, he plans to be sick. He is sick now and plans for it to continue for a while. Hmmm

Yesterday, I worked helping some friends move. They are new friends and coworkers. We started at 8:30am and I finished at 7pm. Many finished along the way and the friends were still going when I left. It was a long day of carting and carrying boxes and chairs and desks. Sleep was sweet. This is being written in the early morning hours. I am up and ready for a new day. No time to plan for sickness. I went to bed early and planned for a good healthy day.

He is near for healing.

He is near for peace.

He is near for strength.

He is near, now and here.

Pray:

Father, I’d like my time to be with you now and here.

Fill me with Your presence.

Heal me.

Peace me.

Joy me.

Estoy aqui. I am here.

Powerful Healing: Living Large in Boundaries

August 11, 2012 by Phil Larson

Psalm 16:⁶The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. KJV

You make my life pleasant, and my future is bright. CEV

The boundary lineshave fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. NIV 1984

Boundaries

Along with every gift comes a set of conditions and expectations. Giving a BB gun to a nine year old comes with conditions that it is only used with Dad. Giving a wedding ring to a spouse comes with promises to love, honor, and cherish. There are boundaries. There are definitions of the blessing and how to enjoy and conditions to limit and protect and fulfill purpose.

Every job comes with a set of conditions and expectations. Overlooking a contract arrangement it impressed me I might have to take extra time to really understand how to make this new relationship work. Conditions and clauses limit and liberate my abilities with the group.

Every call of God comes with promises and extensions. The call to do something helps define our path and helps us to understand obedience in the path will result in extended boundaries. Resistance to path will result in confusion and possibly greater limitation in order to get us back to the path.

Limiting Boundaries.

Some boundaries are limits. Gravity is a limiting boundary. Jump off a 20 story building and the limiting boundaries of strength of your physical body coupled with the limiting boundaries of gravity will pound your body into death. Expect it. Those limits allow us to define actions in a safe and full living manner.

Liberating Boundaries

Some boundaries are liberation. A grant for an education is meant to expand our knowledge and ability to do more in life. It is a boundary, but it has an intention to liberate. It may be restricted to a certain university and course of study, but there are liberties all along the path. The same would work with an employment contract. The employer may give us latitude to work and make commissions within a certain product and service. The boundary can be liberating.

Healthy Boundaries

God given boundaries always lead to life and health. Understanding, acknowledging, and living inside them bring us greatness in life, health in our bodies, blessing in our minds, and peace to our souls. Defining the boundaries of envy, jealousy, strife, and contempt keeps us peaceful with our fellow humans and enjoying our lives. Defining the boundaries of the power of God focused toward us, righteousness in Christ, full salvation, and the fruit of the Spirit brings incredible liberation and blessing to every step we take.

Recognize

The smart and healthy and balance Christian sees the right boundaries of call and position in life and uses them to good for themselves and others. Boundaries can be stretched when obedience is engaged. Boundaries can be tightened with disobedience is the norm. It is our choice to study, recognize, acknowledge and activate the boundaries.

Short Story

A friend challenged me on some of my activities. His best knowledge of me was my gift of organization and administration. Since I am more active today in birthing and building and developing new works and businesses, he is confused. How can I be going outside my boundaries and hope to succeed? The answer is simple. My boundaries have been stretched through obedience and fulfillment of call. What fell to my lot before is much bigger today through study, acknowledgement, acceptance, and obedience.

Had I simply stayed safely in the middle portion of my boundaries and never explored them fully to the outside edge, I probably would have no understanding of the build components God had in my future. My friend would be right to tell me to stay in my older boundaries. But the boundaries have been expanded and there is much more life and abundance to be enjoyed. The boundaries of my future need not be the boundaries of my present experience.

Where Are You?

Struggling with health issues? Struggling with emotional distress? Struggling with bad relationships? Sometimes our best strategy for healing is to acknowledge our present boundaries and begin growing them into future boundaries through prayer, action, and engagement. The boundary I have today provides a safe place in which to grow and expand and become healthier.

Prayer: Father, it really can be hard to understand life. You want us full of health and life and living. You want us complete in Christ. Yet, we must grow in grace and power. We must acknowledge the present and grow into the future. We must seek You first and Your kingdom to understand how we are protected and given room to grow. Grow us safely, in good season, and with ever increasing faith and results. What a Good God You are.

Powerful Healing: Righteousness: Path To Healing

July 25, 2012 by Phil Larson

Psalm 16:2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.”

Matthew 6:33 Seek first the kingdom of God and all His righteousness and all the rest of this will be added for you and into your care and pleasure.

Proverbs 21:21 Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor

Live prayer at http://youtu.be/lYZXjDHVnb4

Righteousness brings incredible blessing, restoration, and a sure footed path. Couple it with love and you find life, prosperity, and honor. Now that is a balanced and healthy life.

Life instead of disease and death.

Prosperity instead of poverty and despair.

Honor instead of disaster and depression.

Righteousness brings a powerful and balanced health to our bodies, our minds, our spirit, and our relationships.

Look at all of these promises at the end of the lesson of principle in Proverbs. There are as many that reference the righteous and we will cover those in another lesson.

What is the difference between living in righteousness and being righteous? One is a condition of principled living, the other is a state of being. In the next lesson, we’ll talk about the state of being righteous. It is attained through faith in Jesus Christ. He who never knew sin, became sin and suffered and died for our punishment so that we might be called the righteousness of God through faith in Him.

We have righteousness through our faith in God. We are accepted and stand before Him.

Abraham’s faith was counted to him as righteousness and so it is with us.

We live righteousness when we allow the Holy Spirit to enable in us right living according to the principles and heart and mind and ways of God. It is not about law and legalism. Righteousness is a focus of the heart to follow after God’s ways. To love the Lord, Your God with all your heart and soul and might and to love your neighbor as yourself. Living in righteousness is not a condition of perfection but purpose and principle.

Righteousness is that attitude in Psalm 16:2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” There it is in the simplest form. When we say of God that He is the source of all good things and nothing else, we invoke righteousness by faith. Give Him all honor. Give Him all praise. Give Him all glory. Give Him and His priorities first thought when making a decision. That is righteousness.

Proverbs 8:20 I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

Proverbs 10:2 Ill-gotten treasures have no lasting value, but righteousness delivers from death

Proverbs 11:4 Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.

Proverbs 11:5 The righteousness of the blameless makes their paths straight, but the wicked are brought down by their own wickedness.

Proverbs 11:6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.

Proverbs 11:18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages, but the one who sowsrighteousness reaps a sure reward

Proverbs 12:28 In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality.

Proverbs 13:6 Righteousness guards the person of integrity, but wickedness overthrows the sinner.

Proverbs 14:34 Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people

Proverbs 15:9 The LORD detests the way of the wicked, but he loves those who pursue righteousness.

Proverbs 16:8 Better a little with righteousness than much gain with injustice.

Proverbs 16:12 Kings detest wrongdoing, for a throne is established throughrighteousness

Proverbs 16:31 Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way ofrighteousness

Proverbs 21:21 Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor

Father, here I am again and again and again. I will never cease to come to You for supply and answers and strength. Who else is there? Where else would I go?

In You are all the answers needed.

In You is all the health and life wanted.

In You I live and move and have my being.

You are all my righteousness. I am complete in You. I worship You.

Father, you have made this body of mine a temple of the Holy Spirit. Only because You call me righteous in Jesus can I live in such a manner. Cause the life of the Holy Spirit in which there is no disease, no want, no distraction from Your will and way, cause that life to stir in me today and every day and I will live complete in You and Your way and life and truth.

The Inheritance Heals: Establishing the Presence of God

July 21, 2012 by Phil Larson

Psalm 16: 5-11 NKJV

O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You maintain my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.

Full health comes with full experience of all God plans. His plan includes an inheritance and a cup. Let’s consider those in light of our healing. For our purposes let’s consider the inheritance the things outside of us and the cup thethe strengths of our heart and personality and talents inside of us. Gifts in us of God can change all the things outside of us in the world.

Our birth starts us out with a certain set of talents, personality, physical abilities, and leanings in life. Some of that was designed of God for goodness. Some of that like so much else is influenced by the curse that lives in our world. God wants to take all that we start with and bring it to greatness. Have a good outlook on how you start and allow His management and you always end up in a better place.

He promises to maintain our lot. At the lake I have four lots of equal size. Together they make up a full acre. It takes maintenance. A crack in a water line meant spending a day under my cabin with the albino spiders. That is just what needs done. Today, I enjoy the birds from my deck. They are health and peace to my soul. God gave me these lots. He placed desires in my heart 30 years ago that guide me when opportunity presents richness. He gave me a love for the outdoors. He gave me a father who always wanted an outdoor place for his children. All of that is God maintaining my lot and leading me to more peace and joy with family and friends.

He promises to maintain our lot. I was born with a skillful mind and a love for communication and people. I also was born with a significant hearing deficit. Today in some ranges I am 80% deficient. So I have learned to read faces and body language. Praying for tens of thousands of people has taught me to listen to my Father’s voice first and see great miracles. My ears don’t work in loud auditoriums at prayer lines with music playing, but my heart and spirit can easily cast off distraction and listen to the Holy Spirit. Continually, I have people send me notes on how a certain lesson pierced personally to their situation. God has maintained my lot to bring great healing and comfort and health.

The lines or boundaries of our inheritance fall in pleasant places. Oh, take that attitude! How often do we decry our situation instead of enjoy it? A simple situation can lead to great blessing. A recent change in structure at a company for which I have worked has launched me into a broad new opportunity I would have never taken. Comfort can leave us constrained. Full health comes in full expression of who we are. God will maintain your lot by giving you special opportunities to grow and enjoy life to the fullest. They will take fearless faith to embrace. Embrace them.

Yes, I have a good inheritance. Tell yourself that over and over. Drop the negative focus of judgment and criticism. An inspective attitude and propensity for detail is a blessing unless you turn negative. One can see a picture leaning to the side and straiten it or one can see the picture leaning to the side and complain about how the dry weather is affecting the building foundation. It is a choice of life or destructiveness in our heart and mouth for us and those around us.

Health and healing come with perspective and agreement with God. Grab positive agreement. Allow His hand to take your right hand and lead you into greater fullness.

Pray: Oh, Father, what a wonderful God You are. You do magnificence in all You do. Teach us to see the blessing in our present situation. Enliven in us an expectancy to do more, see more, enjoy more and have abundance to bless others. That brings healing. That brings life. That brings You into our life by invitation and open acceptance of Your love and unconditional plan of growth. Oh, how I love the life You have given.

Reverse the negatives that the world and the enemy and my own stubborn and selfish desires have created. Let me wander and wonder in You and see what plans exist to build on what is in place in my life today and bring brighter moments in my life this day. Help me to see the opportunities of today and do not worry about tomorrow.

Today there is greatness for me.

Today there is health for me.

Today there is life for me.

Today there is blessing for me.