Sunday, April 22, 2012

April 2012


The winter has been remarkably full.

Frankly, it’s been too full of funerals for my liking, but that’s what happens when the guard changes. For some, it was a relief. For some, an injustice. For at least one, it was a triumphant return home to accolades and festivities. A mutual friend said it best: “Darn it! He ditched us!”

My own house, substantially less full than before, has now become an “empty nest,” except that it’s seldom actually empty, which is really the way we prefer it. The lovely Mrs and I have enjoyed the rumored peace and hypothetical quiet. It’s been wonderful to re-discover the magic in our un-distracted (well, less-distracted) relationship. I think I’m in love.

We’ve also enjoyed a stream of fire-filled young warriors filling our home and our lives, who have inspired us and helped us not become complacent. Did you know that God is up to something in the generation behind us old Jesus-People saints? It’s very exciting! Pray for them! Make room for them! Befriend them. (But don’t try to keep up with them. Just sayin’.)

I have to say that I have been treasuring knowing these folks. Yes, we’re older than most of their parents, but they don’t seem to hold that against us. They’re a great deal of fun, they ask such amazing questions, and they remind me of the kind of passion that I’ve wanted to live my own life with.

It’s on our hearts to host a number of gatherings for saints of all ages over the summer. We’ll see how well that desire gets turned into action. I’ve been learning about such gatherings of saints; maybe more accurately: “I’m unlearning quite a lot about home groups.” We’ve had one coalesce into our living room, and it’s been an interesting education, as well as wonderful fellowship. I won’t bore you with the details, but the most recent thing that Papa said to me about it was, “Purpose? Why do you need a purpose for fellowship?”

The online resources of Northwest Prophetic have been around for almost a decade now (since early 2003), and we haven’t hidden ourselves. Recently, and without any change in how we do things, it appears that NWP is becoming more known, becoming less hidden than before. It’s always interesting how these things change. I’m really quite curious to see what God does with the new visibility. 

One of my desires has long been to help bring maturity to the prophetic movement in the Pacific Northwest. On one hand, that’s involved some really fun one-on-one times with individuals, and some fascinating small gatherings. With the new visibility has come a new flock of relationships, many online, some local, some regional. Some of the ones that challenge me the most (and thereby are most effective in bringing maturity to my own prophetic movement) are out of state, or nearly so.

(Note to self: don’t ever try to help others grow into maturity without being willing your own self to be stretched and challenged to more personal maturity. It doesn’t seem to work that way.)

Thanks for the prayers. Thanks for the friendship.