"Ideal Womanhood"
Bill Senyard
March 21, 2010
'Olah service
We are reminded that 'Olah refers to burnt sacrifice and that Spiritual Renewal (growth) rises out of disruption. This was a disruptive service for many but especially the women who were primed to participate with the sermon. It is highly recommended that one listen to a tape of this service, available in the LMCC Bookstore.
Today's culture is unfair to women, since a woman's value and identity is judged by beauty, freedom from blemish,etc. but begs the question "where is your soul?" To answer this, we look at Biblical ideal characteristics of a woman, a more radical belief relying on their willingness to lay aside deceipt and instead honor God developing a greater sensitivity to the presence of God. Proverbs 31 gives these characteristics, which today, seem unattainable.
Several weeks ago, men were invited by God to participate in a redo: the Adam narrat5ive. Adam needed to "look" right instead of going to God, to become filled with the Spirit. Likewise, it is woman's task to redo the Eve narrative when she fell to temptation instead of asking God or deferring to Adam who was commanded to "rule and subue" thus covering his wife. Instead she trades her intimacy with God and Adam for an "illusion of control" and her attainment of glory for "feelings on a level with God". To help those women present to particate in "disruption" (for spiritual growth), they were invited to find another woman and tell their story. My wife could not do that and consequently was disrupted for being unable to know "what to do". I pointed out a nearby lady she could go visit with but she didn't go. Now, both of us had been "disrupted". The last week or so I had become aware that, like Adam, I hadn't "manned up" for my poor decisions. Now, my wife could have "submitted" to my suggestion of just going and visiting with another woman, but she couldn't. By the grace of God we were able to discuss our experience the next day. This is the way God worked: We had stopped for dinner before the 'Olah service and as I looked at her, a wave of emotion came over me and I told her how unbelieveable beautiful she was. She told me later that this was the first time in years that I had genuinely acknowledged her hair and how she looked in a loving, postitive way. God's hand was preparing me and I, unlike Adam, was preparing her for the 'Olah sacrifice she would experience that evening. I pray for our spiritual growth together. It is an unbelieveable journey, one of intimacy and redemption, a journey from man's natural spirit to God's holy spirit and it happened at Lookout after many, many years.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Seventh week Bible in 90 days "It's Our Heart, Stupid"
Bill Senyard, March 14, 2010
We are entitling our 'Olah experience this week The Battle: HOLY
The battle is in our heart, the battle between worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. Our "Hebrew" heart, composed of mind, emotion and will experiences worldly sorrow through conscience, addictions, our sinful nature and ignorance. Godly sorrow is the sorrow that our heart is so offensive to God. We need to change! We sing "Open my eyes, that I may see" knowing that our heart must change BUT we can't. Slowly, we realize that the battle is one between our internal, sinful nature struggling to access an external power, that of the Holy Spirit which will change our heart.
Our NEW heart will replace repression, ignorance, singul nature and conscience with the Cross, God's Love for me, His Law written on our hearts and most importantly, His Holy Spirit in us. We can lay all our disruptive experience at the foot of the Cross and present our 'Olah burnt offering to Him, leaving only our humanity, but with a new, free, moral Spirit.
At the prayer table, my wife and I came to God's minister, Weston, and told him that our prayers we prayed last week had been answered. Our daughter and new granddaughter fought a brave battle and were victorious! Both were blessed by God's grace and are well. We now ask for a prayer of Thanksgiving! However, we experienced great pain in the process as our son-in-law asked that we NOT be there for the battle, for reasons we didn't understand. Recall last week we learned that 'Olah, our burnt sacrifice, worships the bitter pain of disruption. We had "failed the test" by showing up at the hospital unsummoned. My wife experienced great worldly sorrow. Weston pointed out that this was exactly what the sermon was about: asking forgiveness from our son-in-law, since our hearts were so offensive to God, in His great battle for our daughter's life. He asked us to do this verbally, out loud. This offering, burnt and humbled, was led by the power of the Holy Spirit to strengthen us as we verbally asked for forgiveness from our son-in-law. We prayed, took the bread and wind and lit two candles, one for our daughter and one for our baby granddaughter. We left our offering of Thanksgiving and the battle was over, our 'Olah, complete. Thank you, Lord!
We are entitling our 'Olah experience this week The Battle: HOLY
The battle is in our heart, the battle between worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. Our "Hebrew" heart, composed of mind, emotion and will experiences worldly sorrow through conscience, addictions, our sinful nature and ignorance. Godly sorrow is the sorrow that our heart is so offensive to God. We need to change! We sing "Open my eyes, that I may see" knowing that our heart must change BUT we can't. Slowly, we realize that the battle is one between our internal, sinful nature struggling to access an external power, that of the Holy Spirit which will change our heart.
Our NEW heart will replace repression, ignorance, singul nature and conscience with the Cross, God's Love for me, His Law written on our hearts and most importantly, His Holy Spirit in us. We can lay all our disruptive experience at the foot of the Cross and present our 'Olah burnt offering to Him, leaving only our humanity, but with a new, free, moral Spirit.
At the prayer table, my wife and I came to God's minister, Weston, and told him that our prayers we prayed last week had been answered. Our daughter and new granddaughter fought a brave battle and were victorious! Both were blessed by God's grace and are well. We now ask for a prayer of Thanksgiving! However, we experienced great pain in the process as our son-in-law asked that we NOT be there for the battle, for reasons we didn't understand. Recall last week we learned that 'Olah, our burnt sacrifice, worships the bitter pain of disruption. We had "failed the test" by showing up at the hospital unsummoned. My wife experienced great worldly sorrow. Weston pointed out that this was exactly what the sermon was about: asking forgiveness from our son-in-law, since our hearts were so offensive to God, in His great battle for our daughter's life. He asked us to do this verbally, out loud. This offering, burnt and humbled, was led by the power of the Holy Spirit to strengthen us as we verbally asked for forgiveness from our son-in-law. We prayed, took the bread and wind and lit two candles, one for our daughter and one for our baby granddaughter. We left our offering of Thanksgiving and the battle was over, our 'Olah, complete. Thank you, Lord!
Wisdom and Understanding 6th week Bible in 90 days
Bill Senyard March 6-7
Upon entering The Grand Story this week, we are told that we want 'Olah to be a disruptive service; our worship to be a burnt sacrifice and to worship whatever is the most disruptive. By spending time with the Holy Spirit for a disruptive experience, we gain wisdom. The following story attempts to describe allegorically, anti-wisdom and the paradox encountered in Proverbs 26:4,5 regarding knowledge and understanding.
Lady Wisdom stood at the gate and Wicked approached. He saw Her but wasn't interested. He only wanted to see what was inside the gate and if it weren't too epithumatic (of the flesh), he wouldn't be interested. Fool approached the gate and he, too, saw Lady Wisdom standing there and waiting by the gate, but he was on the way to folly and forgot about Wisdom. The Wise approached the gate, saw Lady Wisdom, and paused to think. She had disrupted his progress, the part of his spirit that was Holy, and he wondered if he should seek Her before he went through the gate. As he deliberated, he realized Lady Wisdom was the Way to the Almighty God and that She, was the only way. He stepped through the gate and immediately saw diverging paths; he understood that one was taken by Wicked and Fool, but that the other lead to God. He also understood that if he wanted God, Wisdom was the next, best step. He also understood that the key to understanding was Her accessibility, not just by following the rules but going beyond by choosing Her, for next time, She would be gone.
As Wise paused, he asked Lady Wisdom for Knowledge so that he might have wisdom. She answered, "To gain Truth of Knowledge, you must first meet my father, Holy, for Knowledge holds Understanding, the Paradox of both Good and Evil. To have true wisdom, one must become holy, for understanding must be handled with discipline, otherwise, wisdom will be strangled and I will disappear".
Wise then saw that prayer, asking his Holiness for wisdom, would free his natural spirit empowering him to make correct decisions; that, through faith, would create disciple of the Will. Now Wise was ready to take the next, best step.
Upon entering The Grand Story this week, we are told that we want 'Olah to be a disruptive service; our worship to be a burnt sacrifice and to worship whatever is the most disruptive. By spending time with the Holy Spirit for a disruptive experience, we gain wisdom. The following story attempts to describe allegorically, anti-wisdom and the paradox encountered in Proverbs 26:4,5 regarding knowledge and understanding.
Lady Wisdom stood at the gate and Wicked approached. He saw Her but wasn't interested. He only wanted to see what was inside the gate and if it weren't too epithumatic (of the flesh), he wouldn't be interested. Fool approached the gate and he, too, saw Lady Wisdom standing there and waiting by the gate, but he was on the way to folly and forgot about Wisdom. The Wise approached the gate, saw Lady Wisdom, and paused to think. She had disrupted his progress, the part of his spirit that was Holy, and he wondered if he should seek Her before he went through the gate. As he deliberated, he realized Lady Wisdom was the Way to the Almighty God and that She, was the only way. He stepped through the gate and immediately saw diverging paths; he understood that one was taken by Wicked and Fool, but that the other lead to God. He also understood that if he wanted God, Wisdom was the next, best step. He also understood that the key to understanding was Her accessibility, not just by following the rules but going beyond by choosing Her, for next time, She would be gone.
As Wise paused, he asked Lady Wisdom for Knowledge so that he might have wisdom. She answered, "To gain Truth of Knowledge, you must first meet my father, Holy, for Knowledge holds Understanding, the Paradox of both Good and Evil. To have true wisdom, one must become holy, for understanding must be handled with discipline, otherwise, wisdom will be strangled and I will disappear".
Wise then saw that prayer, asking his Holiness for wisdom, would free his natural spirit empowering him to make correct decisions; that, through faith, would create disciple of the Will. Now Wise was ready to take the next, best step.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Fifth Week Bible in 90 Days
As we began this week to renew our spirits by bible study and experiencing the Grand Story as presented by Adam Long during the "Olah" (burnt offering) service, we experienced both grief and joy. Stepping through the door in our church service into the Kingdom, we immediately encounter divergence of the path. One way, broad and well-traveled, points toward Epithumia (of the flesh) and the other path narrow, rocky and ascending up the mountain points to "Olah".
As we pause to think, deciding which way to go, we remembger from Sunday School, John the Baptist, a wild man coming out of the forest chanting, "Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord". We sorrowfully remember the path not taken 38 years ago, upon the birth of our stillborn daughter. I chose to take the broad path to not have a funeral and that decision has been a bitter root between my wife and I ever since. This week, in indescribable sadness, we grieve with the young mother and father, who have met with the same circumstance but in true faith are lifting their loved one up to the Lord. We know that unending tears will bring them closer to the Father as they cope with their loss.
THE SERMON
Ted Cooper in our Bible in 90 Days video emphasized that we are either obstacles or instruments in our own, grand story. We say in the Psalms and Proverbs that Pride always goes before death but that Humility is the path to Righteousness. Adam, in the sermon entitled "What About the Pygmies?" asked, "Where is your heart?" He points out in Psalms 67, there are three markers of where one's heart should be: whatever decision we make should be for God's glory and that we will be blessed by this and that we should have a heart for all peoples, even the Pygmies, when we stand silently before God and listne to his voice. We learn of the unreached "people groups" everywhere in the world, who do not have enough of their own people knowing the Grand Story to even reach themselves. We see now that the flyer in our church bulletin on Project See,is where our own church youth missionaries can impact the world (and themselves) in spiritual transition.
BIBLE STUDY DISCUSSION
Jamie expressed frustration about certainty in knowing the voice of God and Rick pursued this with the question of just what, should we cultivate in understanding when God speaks to us. Some answers were found in John 10 and John 15 where we read about the "sheep, knowing their Master's voice and following Him through the gate and out into the pasture; or about the Vine, whose prunig of the branches produces righteous fruit by our abiding in Him and following His commandment "Love One Another". Considering this, in reflecting upon the Proverbs, we begin to gain wisdom in choosing the path of our story.
MY WIFE AND I'S PERSONAL 'OLAH
Feeling lead by some unknown hand, two of God's instruments made our way to the prayer station, where we asked a church elder to pray for Tara Das, a little girl in Bangladesh, whom we've supported for several years. Tara has asked us to pray for she and her family. She is the blessing of God in the memory of our own, little lost daughter. After our prayer, we took the sacraments, the reminder that Christ suffered and died for us to cleanse us of sin, the Redeemer of God's Grand Story. Then we turned to light three candles, one for our grand child born last week, another for a grandchild to be born next week, and one for Tara. In her last letter, Tara thanked us for the little journal, hand-carried by a MIssion of Mercy missionary to her, in which she loves to read the Bible verses on each page while she writes of her "memorable events". The offering receptacle stands next to the burning candles and there we placed our offering, the amount to provide Tara, our little pygmy, with education, food, clothes and medical care for a whole month.
We pray that our 'Olah, is pleasing to God and we feel that it is, as we are dwarfs no longer, but rather, stand tall on Christ's mountain where our song is, as Longfellow wrote, "Let us now be up and doing, with a heart for any fate; still pursuing, still achieving, learn to labor and...to wait".
As we pause to think, deciding which way to go, we remembger from Sunday School, John the Baptist, a wild man coming out of the forest chanting, "Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord". We sorrowfully remember the path not taken 38 years ago, upon the birth of our stillborn daughter. I chose to take the broad path to not have a funeral and that decision has been a bitter root between my wife and I ever since. This week, in indescribable sadness, we grieve with the young mother and father, who have met with the same circumstance but in true faith are lifting their loved one up to the Lord. We know that unending tears will bring them closer to the Father as they cope with their loss.
THE SERMON
Ted Cooper in our Bible in 90 Days video emphasized that we are either obstacles or instruments in our own, grand story. We say in the Psalms and Proverbs that Pride always goes before death but that Humility is the path to Righteousness. Adam, in the sermon entitled "What About the Pygmies?" asked, "Where is your heart?" He points out in Psalms 67, there are three markers of where one's heart should be: whatever decision we make should be for God's glory and that we will be blessed by this and that we should have a heart for all peoples, even the Pygmies, when we stand silently before God and listne to his voice. We learn of the unreached "people groups" everywhere in the world, who do not have enough of their own people knowing the Grand Story to even reach themselves. We see now that the flyer in our church bulletin on Project See,is where our own church youth missionaries can impact the world (and themselves) in spiritual transition.
BIBLE STUDY DISCUSSION
Jamie expressed frustration about certainty in knowing the voice of God and Rick pursued this with the question of just what, should we cultivate in understanding when God speaks to us. Some answers were found in John 10 and John 15 where we read about the "sheep, knowing their Master's voice and following Him through the gate and out into the pasture; or about the Vine, whose prunig of the branches produces righteous fruit by our abiding in Him and following His commandment "Love One Another". Considering this, in reflecting upon the Proverbs, we begin to gain wisdom in choosing the path of our story.
MY WIFE AND I'S PERSONAL 'OLAH
Feeling lead by some unknown hand, two of God's instruments made our way to the prayer station, where we asked a church elder to pray for Tara Das, a little girl in Bangladesh, whom we've supported for several years. Tara has asked us to pray for she and her family. She is the blessing of God in the memory of our own, little lost daughter. After our prayer, we took the sacraments, the reminder that Christ suffered and died for us to cleanse us of sin, the Redeemer of God's Grand Story. Then we turned to light three candles, one for our grand child born last week, another for a grandchild to be born next week, and one for Tara. In her last letter, Tara thanked us for the little journal, hand-carried by a MIssion of Mercy missionary to her, in which she loves to read the Bible verses on each page while she writes of her "memorable events". The offering receptacle stands next to the burning candles and there we placed our offering, the amount to provide Tara, our little pygmy, with education, food, clothes and medical care for a whole month.
We pray that our 'Olah, is pleasing to God and we feel that it is, as we are dwarfs no longer, but rather, stand tall on Christ's mountain where our song is, as Longfellow wrote, "Let us now be up and doing, with a heart for any fate; still pursuing, still achieving, learn to labor and...to wait".
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