Formation by information!

Recently I?ve heard a phrase several times that goes something like this, ?Christians should not be seeking information but formation?. That statement has an aspect of truth, but to often there seems to be a denigrating and judgmental attitude against people seeking biblical knowledge and in-depth Bible studies. This attitude doesn?t bear out or hold any weight in any arena of secular life. Would any of us go to a doctor that has not gone through countless, repetitive and informative classes, research and internships? Pilots, professors, Cpa?s, doctors, police, scientists, pastors, mechanics, chef?s, stylists, computer programmers, military leaders, (take a breath) Ceo's, ship captain, architects, engineers Olympiads, teachers, lawyers and even truck drivers (only to mention a few) go through various aspects of training, learning and researching which have an information and application aspect. Would you rely on any of them if they hadn't?


Granted, we?ve heard of people who practice without a license, unauthorized, uncertified. Heck, Leonardo DiCaprio starred in the movie ?Catch Me If You Can? which was based on the true life story of a fraud. In comparison, we?ve seen what I call, ?Christian parrots?. There are people who memorize and quote facts and passages, emotionally unattached to the information. They quote the Bible as if it were a magical talisman, lucky charm or rabbit?s foot. It?s often quoted to ward off evil spirits, or have the hand of God move on their behalf. They can win Bible trivia games but they can?t get their life straight, they quote and quote but don?t put to death sins, attitudes or agendas that God has declared as unpleasing to Him; And that?s not even talking about the countless ?professional Christians? that justify and manipulate the masses for ill gotten and selfish gains through various forms of media.


This is not to be confused with the Christian who is learning to memorize for the sake of coming under the disciple of God?s authority in their life. They for a time will quote and quote and know the facts until it is actually applied, deciphered, scrutinized, made sense of, learned from, submitted to and walked out. Then they no longer need to quote for quoting sake, they quote or paraphrase it because it has worked itself into their life and transformed an apsect of who they are, their character. In that area they have become soft clay in the potter?s hand formed by yielding to the at times uncomfortable and relentless pressure within God?s workshop. (Galatians 3:23-25)


I would submit that true spiritual formation takes place after a conscious choice to believe, with the search for and application of studied and applied information that is then breathed upon by the Holy Spirit and the impartation of His power to be formed. We are justified by faith in Jesus' work on the cross for us, but we are sanctified by continued submission, obedience and application of the knowledge and authority of God?s principles, laws and ways though the impartation and illumination of the Holy Spirit. Study and application takes a series of facts, seemingly fragmented and disjointed trivia, like clay and then as we submit to the pressure of God's hands (impartation of Holy Spirit, and His activity in our lives) to creating a vessel of honor. This is a radical transforming process.


When ?information? is simply a noun in our life, it is unfruitful, agreed. When we have been 'informed' as a verb by the impartation of the Holy Spirit's power and authority breathed into the knowledge we have as we submit, we are trans'formed'.

Check out the website www.GraciousVine.com or www.JoannaFruhauf.com

Calamity of Christianity

Miracles, healings, raising the dead, signs, wonders, visions prophecies, so on and so on... and then, the man of the hour (Todd Bentley) announces he is getting a separation from his wife - And this sends people into a tailspin! Why would a man who hears from an angel named 'Emma' with bizarre and sadistic visions surprise anyone that he's been having an affair with the worship leader??????

Maybe they should have questioned his dogma, his visions, and prophecies - Listening and speaking with angels and relaying their messages?
Since when does a 'Christian' do that? I may be mistaken but I believe Paul stated,

"But even though we, or AN ANGEL from heaven, should preach to you any gospel other than that which we preached to you, let him be cursed. "(Gal 1:8)

Another Botched up mess!
But who is to blame? God? Leaders? Followers? The Devil? Answer: Everyone BUT God! Certainly Satan loves this kind of thing, Certainly Satan uses people who aren't rightly hearing from God or interpreting scripture, and 'helps them' with visions and encounters to 'proclaim the truth', Certainly leaders who do not question, test, prove or scrutinize the person they put in position, their life, their ideas, their understandings their ideology, and certainly the followers who do not search the scriptures themselves to see if these things be so.
People from Charisma Magazine , God TV and Leaders that have validated, ordained and promoted Todd Bentley are reeling from this newest announcement from his ministry. They are concerned that this may cause many people to fall away from the revival, and even Christ.

SHAME on US! The worldly are more discerning! They pegged Him as a Hypocritical freak a long time ago! What is so desperately wrong with 'Christians' that they couldn't see, wouldn't see?
Where is the discernment that is supposed to be in the church and its leaders? OH I Know ....
It's been thrown out with every message over a pulpit that shook its finger in our face saying we are not supposed to judge....Yet, Jesus demands we judge a tree by it's fruit!

I would wonder if they were even in a revival at all that was truly ordained by Jesus Christ? Signs and Wonders are NOT always evidence of a revival ordained by our Lord God. Satan can manifest lying signs & wonders, and his ministers can come as ministers of the light. What do you think 'wolf in sheep's clothing' really means, do we as Christians really believe that the big bad devil is going to show up with his horns and pitchfork and that we will recognize him because of that? Remember it is FRUIT that we judge by/discern by!

Todd Bentley's antics, doctrine, preaching, visions, dreams and manipulation of the crowds have been altogether shameful. The fact that any leaders, Magazine or TV station are now backpeddling simply goes to show that as Christians we are seriously lacking in our personal understandings of the word of God, and are more enamered with the glitze and glamour, the flashy and the fantastic, the fame and fortune$$ that unscriptural teachings and a hyperspiritual frenzy can produce.
Everyone wants revival but noone wants to pay the price for it. Christians are looking for the fantastic, they are nearly as hungry and malnourished spiritually as the unsaved. Why? Christians are looking for quick answers, they want microwaveable spirituality, they want to see POWER. They DON'T want to have to study, sacrifice, hear about sin, be offended or unliked by their worldly counterparts.

We as a whole are looking to be entertained, whether by the flashy loud and seemingly 'anointed', while others swing to the other extreme on the pendulum, to the smooth talking, sleek looking, cool dudes that are altogether hip intellectuals, yet just post modern humanistic philosophers parading around in Christian cloaks. These may be more dangerous because of the appeal to the refined, to the acceptable, to the well to do, a 'love for the world and friendship with it'. They play themselves as a friend of all, an enemy of none, they never really plant themselves securely on the word of God because they don't want to offend anyone or give up their position, or justification of their own agendas. Yet Jesus never behaved like either of the two extremes in my bible, nor did his disciples in the book of acts, nor is any of it condoned within the New Testament writings.
With either extreme of the pendulum's swing, we as Christians are swallowing it hook line and sinker! A few more generations in this direction and it may be the Christians burning Bibles!
Boy, do we need to get back to understanding and knowing our bibles! There really is no other way to know Jesus.

Check out the website www.GraciousVine.com or www.JoannaFruhauf.com

History Maker - Dr. Shelby Foote

I enjoy history, I?m fascinated with all types of shows that bring different aspects of it to life. Whether the program is expounding on a military campaign from somewhere in time and history or exposing various elements of a ?cold case? criminal investigation.
I remember as a child watching a show with Walter Cronkite in the 1970's called ?You Are There?. It fascinated me to see reenactments of historical events displayed as a news broadcast with Mr. Cronkite as the anchor. Seeing the event unfold and supposed interviews with the characters made it more than likable; It made it real. It made it understandable. It made it mine.
Another aspect of historical appreciation came as we camped up and down the eastern seaboard from Maine to Florida and up and across to the Mississippi River?s border states. Often we visited various American memorials, landmarks and battlefields. In Listening to the guides, though some simply rattled off facts, we often had guides with a really passion for what was being shared. It was as if they were telling a first hand account of what happened. They were able to answer questions, show various ramifications and outcomes, all while expressing both humorous and sad aspects in such a personal way that you were emotionally affected by the telling and at times changed by the encounter. Certainly you walked away with something of value.
Yet school dampened my interest in history. Most of us were taught with the same mentality in the class room. Here are dates and events ? memorize them for the test! Oh yeah and here are some more facts about it?memorize - Boring! No passion, simply go through the motions of learning. No human interest element, no behind the scenes intrigue, no personal relations, no life . It was taught much the way math and spelling were. Elemental, binary, 2 dimensional, it was taught as a series of emotionally unattached and fragmented facts from historical archives somewhere. No wonder nearly all kids ask the universal question, ?What do I need to learn this for? How does this help me in real life??
Last night CSPAN?s Book TV program hosted a three hour special with Author, Historian and Civil War expert Dr. Shelby Foote. It was a casual yet privileged interview held openly and intimately within his bedroom. All over the room were elements of the man?s passion. A host of books, most relating to every aspect of the war but many others even Homer?s Ilyiad, Poems and Odysseys nine honorary doctorate degrees, stacks of letters, pictures of generals, battlefields, charts, maps and military rosters of the era, all paper moments captured in black and white. He sat at his writing desk and answered 56 callers as well as the host?s questions about his personal life, his career, his writing, his youth and his understandings of the Civil War.

I was transfixed by his grasp of the events, his personal relating of them, the depth of knowledge he had acquired and how it was conveyed with passion and how accessible he made himself to the public.

Fascinating! When the show was over I was still hungry for more. I was stirred up. It got me thinking about things on a spiritual level. How much time had this man put into learning all of this stuff? How many countless maps and charts had he seen and even made of his own to map out events and then solve a mystery or uncover one? How was he able to convey with such a degree of intimacy about so many events and people from 150 years ago? How was it he was able to decide, judge and discern that if certain individuals were still alive today he would either like or dislike them? How did he come to know the ins and outs of everyday life from the lowly private soldier trudging through the back hills of our country to the southern women not able to get enough needles to sew with? Their heart aches their disappointments, their commitments, their sorrows? How could he have so intimately come to know or convey any of this without having searched and diligently applied himself to the task of learning about it and digging deeper than most people were willing to go on their own?
He certainly didn?t have all the answers but he most definitely had a lot of them! Those he could not answer, he was not completely ignorant of, he simply and passionately pointed people with a specific focus in the direction they should search further, commending them to the task.


How can we as Christians humbly convey with such authenticity, passion and confidence, the gospel of Jesus Christ without a devotion to God?s word? A passionate love for the Author of the scriptures is deepened with the reading, much the way a long distant relationship is fueled and strengthened by the transmission of love letters.

Check out the website www.GraciousVine.com or www.JoannaFruhauf.com