Life Application
Ministries
June 2006
Newsletter
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LAM's 10 Year Anniversary! by Linda Lange What a wild and exhilarating ride it's been for Life Application Ministries. Along with the ministry that has gone world-wide, we now produce a weekly TV show that airs in Roseville, CA on their local Cable Station. Unfortunately, it's not available to everyone at this time but it's a start. We are going to broadcast in Sacramento and in Stockton in the near future. I ask for your prayers that the Lord open many doors from these programs to help bring individuals to having a deeper and meaningful relationship with Him. Yes, this is our 10th year of ministry. We look forward to another ten to twenty years as well. Thank you for your prayers and your support all along the way. It's because of YOU that I have this ministry at all. Thank you! An Illusion by Linda Lange The Lord showed me something that helped set me be free even more as it comes to relationships with others. I have a sense of responsibility for others, especially those who are close to me. I take on the role of making sure they are OK, when they are sick, trying to take on their pain, when they have a need, trying to fill it. Now this is good I part, but not good when it takes away of who I am. Here is a story: I had a couple of dreams, both very bizarre, and very vivid. I awoke and shared them with Tom. One was about a snake that ate a man whole, and I began to pray for him because he was being digested alive. The other was I misplaced my son 32 year old son, and was fretting about him and his safety. Pretty strange, wouldn't you say? Normally I don't pay much attention to dreams, but then I got the interpretation! I was having illusions of "me" being the one to take care of everyone! That it's my responsibility to ensure everyone's happiness. Some time ago the Lord freed me from doing this with my son, I was released from that responsibility, and after all, he is an adult. I wasn't released from praying for him and loving him, I was released for "doing" for him to make him happy. So I realized I was doing this with others. And the Lord pointed out to me I was doing it for my husband! See he got into a motorcycle accident recently, and yes he's OK, but he was hurt. His back was hurt internally - God spared him of any outward bruising or abrasion, but the pain was great! He couldn't laugh without hurting, and move without hurting, he was plain hurting. I would constantly feel bad for him, trying to figure out what I can do to make him better. Then the Lord spoke so plainly to me. Linda, you prayed for him, the rest is between him and I." In other words, I am to love, do what I know to do to make him comfortable, but I'm not the one to "make" him comfortable - see my meaning? God told me that during this time, He was working with Tom on something that had nothing to do with me! Wow, what a revelation! I've had the "illusion" and it is all an illusion, that I had any control of other people's walk!!! Tom would always say to me, "I have my walk, you have yours, and we share in it together." Instead I try to change his walk, fix his walk, and try to control. That's all been in my own head, and an illusion. What a breakthrough! A Thought: by Linda Lange Along the lines with illusions, I am one to like to be entertained by science fiction, mysterious things, etc. And I heard the Holy Spirit speak to my heart saying, "You want science fiction and mysticism? Then look at Jesus. He is a spirit, raised from the dead, did miracles, and is still working through people in mysterious and miraculous ways thousands of years later! If that ain't mysterious, I don't know what is." Words, Servants or Masters? by Pete Plitt Ever wonder what words taste like? You know the saying, "You're going to eat those words!" Words can bring encouragement, or devastate a soul. They convey the message of liberty into the kingdom of light, or enslave the mind to eternal darkness. Consider
this actual example of words in action. Part of
the responsibility of the priesthood of that day was to, in essence,
take the hand of God and the hand of man and bring them together. They
were supposed to be in God's restoration business. Yet, the very violation
Jesus exposed in them, that is, shutting the door of the Kingdom of
Heaven in the face of "them that are entering to go in" was
demonstrated with Judas. We can recognize the confession of sin where
Judas "repented himself" and said, "I have sinned in
that I have betrayed the innocent blood." Judas went to those in
charge of providing absolution, but instead the Pharisees SAID: "What
is that to us? See thou to that," or as one might say today, "So
what, deal with it!" Many believe that Judas was the prophesied
son of perdition because of his betrayal of the Messiah, but his crime
was just as forgivable as was Peter's denial of Jesus. The crushing,
condemning words of the Lawgivers denied Judas the redemption he sought.
What do you suppose the Pharisees' words "what is that to us?"
taste like now? What's more, we having the ministry of reconciliation
[II Cor. 5:18], what is the flavor of our words concerning other's eternity?
Would we want to eat our words? Luke 17:1-9 Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him. And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamore tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? The trailing apologue of Luke 17 offers a great visual of Jesus' message. If one has a servant [as they did in those days] in the field, no master starts to serve him or give him first consideration. A servant is always a servant. It is unacceptable for a servant to be in charge. He must keep his place. Today, it would also be out of order for an employee to boss the boss. Similarly, words have a place they must be kept. If one uses words to offend, those words master instead of serve, enslave rather than liberate, which is unacceptable. Ever had your day ruined by an unkind or unthinking comment? Then you were mastered by words. Remember, Jesus said offenses will come, but instead of accepting offense, neutralize the intended effect by forgiving. No words can master the one who forgives. That is keeping words in their place. We may not always "feel" like blessing those that hurt us, but we always have the power of choice in spite of our feelings The disciples found the whole "forgiveness" idea a bit much too. It wasn't when Peter climbed over the rail of the boat to walk on water, or when they all were sent out to raise the dead, but to forgive 7 times in a day, Jesus, "INCREASE OUR FAITH." To forgive really is Divine. The other aspect of keeping words in their place is to use them as your servant. "If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might SAY unto this sycamore tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you." There is your servant, the using of words to remove obstacles from your path, to liberate the oppressed, even erase the sin of betrayal, to edify the Body of Christ. Words, when used by construct of the Word, nothing doubting, cause mountains to give place, and that my friend, is good taste. Tom's Tidbits "Losing yourself for the sake of others" Tom shared this with me a few days after he had his accident (April article). He had talked with the Lord and discovered what took place. The accident was due to his stupidity of following along blindly with others. He was riding behind an inexperienced rider who was goofing off. Well, that affected Tom and his other friend (who knew better) and went along. They were racing between stop lights, something Tom never does. And because he went along not "thinking" anything of it, it resulted in this accident. All three of them went down. But Tom and the other experienced rider realized they had let the "new be" lead them. They made a mistake of judgment and lost themselves for the moment for the sake of another. Tom learned a big lesson that God was trying to show him, something "I" in my own little world could never do, "Not to lose yourself, get off your own walk, or allow others to sway you from what you know to be right." The pain that Tom experienced from his back injury is going away, and truly began healing once he "recognized" this and repented to God. I too repented to God for "thinking" I was to make Tom all right. That accident happened to teach Tom something, not me. But it did teach me to "stay out." See I know the power of prayer. I prayed once at the start, and know that I don't need to keep asking God to heal him, he heard me the first time. But instead I would try to take on his pain… sounds like trying to be Jesus? My job is to do what "I" can do, help him not "be" him. TV? Who Me? by Linda lange I have asked God a couple of weeks ago to begin helping me to "understand" the things I know. One of those things is in the area of watching TV. So I asked him to help me understand why I watch so much and how to find the truth I need so that it doesn's consume me any more. So then I simply asked God why? He said, "Because you desire relationships with others (fellowship) and aren't getting it, so you are getting it artificially from TV." Then as I thought on that, He was right. I found that TV is very comforting; I have found friends on TV that I can be myself with. I feel good when I watch certain shows that I've become very familiar with. There is a "NEED" in us for fellowship whether we like people or not, it demands to be filled so it will find things to fill it with. I think this is part of the addiction issue. I know for a fact that all addictions are rooted in the need to be loved. Watching a favorite TV show, reading a book by a favorite author, etc., is a way that we are filling that void of "fellowship." God created us for relationship, so that need HAS to be filled or we find things to fill it, thereby, producing various addictions. It's still based on the need for love produced by relationships with others. I wonder if you too have artifically produced friendships? Something to talk with God about. See I had also asked God for more understanding in the area of needing to attend church. I had read the scripture that says to not forsake assembly of saints. And of course, I don't forsake, I encourage others to go, but that still wasn't a clear reason I had to attend. Well, He answered this with the TV issue; because I was looking for fellowship; when all along that is what church is really supposed to be! Relationships, relationships, relationships! The Lord showed me that my need for fellowship can be fulfilled when attending church. So now that we have started a LAM Fellowship; we are actually getting to know one another in a more deeper way; not just with a "greeting" as we do in many churches. We have time during the service to really hear from one another and thereby, building relationships through fellowship. My need of fellowship is being fulffilled now and the need for TV has deminished greatly!! What a blessing that is. I hope
you have enjoyed this months' newsletters. See
you next month! |