“Bonjour, comment ça va?” roughly translated meaning, “G’day mate, how’re ya goin’?” which of course is Aussie-talk.
is brought to you by the folks at YWAM Associates International, and is written and designed for your pleasure, strengthening, encouragement and comfort; enjoy!
Home Sweet Home
A couple of weeks ago, just before leaving Singapore, a friend gave me Billy Graham’s latest book, “Nearing Home.” I am just about to start reading it and am excited at the prospect of receiving an impartation from this great man of God, who has lived a very long and public life and is now nearing home.
Upon returning from Asia to our earthly residence, I passed an apartment door on which was tacked a cute little wooden plaque proclaiming that this was someone’s home sweet home.
It got me to thinking . . .
Where and what is this thing called home? Can I have more than one of them? Can a person truly be homeless? Maybe we blur the meanings of the words ‘house’ and ‘home.’ (Kind of like the word church—is it a place or is it people?)
Jesus had the most splendiferous home in the universe, but gave it all up to become a member of a humble carpenter’s household in Nazareth. Rejected and almost murdered in his hometown, he left it and was basically homeless for three+ years (nowhere even to lay his head). I wonder if he and his pals sometimes slept under the stars on freezing nights, wrapped in whatever rags they could find, struggling to keep warm, longing to be home).
There were some friends; Lazarus, Mary and Martha loved to have him stay with them – theirs was a home away from home for Jesus. I feel sure that Jesus’ human family would have welcomed him back to his home sweet home at any time. It was the religious people that wanted him gone.
Then after those years of being mostly homeless, after suffering the brutality, shame and indignity of the cross, Jesus returned triumphantly to his real home, no longer homeless; the same home that Billy Graham is nearing.
Where and what is home for you? I’d like some feedback!
Home was a sometime thing for me. At eleven I marched off bravely and excitedly into a life away from home (read ‘away from parents’). I didn’t realize it, but I was making my own homes as I moved through life: boarding school, boarding houses, military dormitories – to name a few stops along the way—none of which was really a home.
Then all of a sudden (after seven years of hopeful dreaming), Donna married me and without even considering it, we were together and creating a home, soon to be filled with our four children. (Only they can give you the skinny on what sort of a home it was!)
We moved several times . . . but as I think back, like turtles, we always hauled our shell of home-ness with us. It was the same six of us wherever we went. Our address was mobile and it didn’t seem to matter what kind of structure we lived in. We learned that ‘a house is not a home.’ Only this week, my daughter Julie and I drove past several of the houses we lived in when she was a teenager.
Then one day, new homes sprang from the old as our kids stepped out on their own. I guess that’s ho-multiplication.
Jesus promised an even greater increase than that . . . if we would leave home for his sake, we would become richer in relationships and have many, many more homes (plus some other things—read Mark 10:29-30). Jesus didn’t say we would just visit other people’s houses. I think he meant we would have homes in hundreds of people’s hearts—as well as being welcomed into their dwelling places. Donna and I have proved that.
Home Sweet Home . . . Billy Graham is nearing his reward, anticipating the hope of being reunited with his wife Ruth, in his heavenly home that eclipses this world (from the book).
What—or who—is home to you?
The quality of my faith is measured by my patience
Hebrews 6:12
Faith receives
Presumption grasps
True faith includes a commitment to obedience
A W Tozer
There is no bad weather; only bad dressing
Marriage is death at the beginning and death at the end . . . with lots of fun in between; but it’s important to embrace those ‘deathly’ bookends
An invitation to write your story . . .
We would like to post on our website your ‘re-entry’ story, your ups-and-downs-and-up story, your how-God-is-using-you-now story—or any other story that would bring encouragement to like-minded people. Give it a try!
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Please pray with me as I’m nearly retired, want to be debt free so I can attend a DTS. I was in YWAM in 1979 in Kona where we met you. Life has been difficult but on my bucket list I want to go out serving Him! I have served two masters most of my life and it wears on a man! I am worn out. Gary
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Ahhh – 1st solo – yes there is nothing like it… thanks for blessing me with this. Shalom, Liz Wright (Liz, obviously a pilot, was commenting on last month’s Sheep2Sheep story.
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Writers’ Seminars with Jannie Cunningham Rogers
France . . . Sweden . . . Ireland
click photo for details
(UofN credits for Sweden & Ireland Seminars)
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BigFresh Media is hiring! Here’s a cutting edge company headed up by former YWAMers offering employment.Click here for details (Big Fresh Media is co-owned by Mark Lee who has served many years in YWAM, and is one of our Board members.)
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Any former YWAMers interested in listing your blogsites on our website? If there is interest, we could do it.
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And speaking of listing things, we’re starting a catalogue of books written by former YWAMers, also on our website. Click here
Donna’s Corner
Believer or Disciple?
I’ve been pondering a lot the last few weeks about the difference between believers and disciples. Not all believers are disciples, because Jesus told us what a true disciple is. I thank God for YWAM and the Discipleship Training Schools, because we are called by God to make disciples of all nations; but we who are teaching and leading, must be true disciples or it could be hypocrisy. Our value, and Jesus’ modelling, was to live first, then teach.
My heart is to be a true disciple, but my flesh can still get in the way until the Holy Spirit reminds me, “You want to be like Jesus don’t you, and reflect Him? Well?” Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really My disciples.” (John 8:31) The mark of a disciple is that we are not our own; we belong to Him so all that we have belongs to Him. Our possessions, our time, our families, yes even our own lives (including our thought lives).
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.(Matt 10:37-38; Luke 14:26-27)
We as His disciples must daily pick up our cross and follow Him. You may say, “But that’s too difficult for me.” My friends, His grace is sufficient and the power of the Holy Spirit living within us, makes it possible.
Peter and I aren’t usually separated more than three weeks, but once I was going away in ministry for seven weeks. As you probably know, I teach on listening to God, having faith in who He is and in what He says, and then being obedient to His word.
I was at the first DTS and was crying in the shower, saying, “Lord I don’t want to be away from Peter for seven weeks,” and He said in such a gentle way, “Donna this is spiritual warfare time, many soldiers go to war for the nations, and they can’t take their families, and they don’t even know if they will come back alive; aren’t you willing to go and teach my people to listen to Me? I’m their commanding officer, the King of Kings. You will return home.” Right away I said, “Yes Lord,” and got over my self-pity. I determined to go joyfully, in obedience to Him.
Jesus came to show us how to live and how to die, and He said, “I only do and say, what pleases My Father.”
He also said, just before going to the cross, “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34)
This is a daily commitment we make to Him. I make a lot of mistakes but my heart is always to please Him. Are you just a believer or are you known as one of His disciples? God sees our hearts.
Love and Blessings,
Renewal Camps & Gatherings
April 28 Northern Ireland: Rostrevor, YWAM An Cuan, a gathering of the clan. Come for the day—or the weekend. click here for details
June 7-10 GERMANY: with Donna Jordan – ‘Listening to God’ (Long weekend) To contact Dani click here
July 23-28 NORWAY: Skjærgårdsheimen (English & Norwegian). Click here for more information
Aug 5-11 FRANCE: Le Gault la Forêt with Mariette Louw (English & French) Click for information
Aug 19-25 SWITZERLAND: Châtel with Dr Bruce & Barbara Thompson “The Way to the Father” (English & French) Click here for more information
And Finally . . .
Home is . . .
. . . not where you live, but where you are understood
. . . a practice upon which no one has yet improved
Till next time,
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