Are You A ‘Kingdom’ Person? Part 5 – Evolving into Sonship

June 24, 2015June 24, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / Leave a comment

Kingdom people are evolving into their ‘sonship’/’daughtership’! It comes by the revelation to our hearts that God is a Father and He’s chosen us to be His children. It’s an amazing reality and it’ll totally transform our lives for the better when we ‘catch’ it!

When we’re born again we come into God’s kingdom as a little child, so to speak. Our immaturity in regards to spiritual things is pretty obvious at first but hopefully we’ll grow through the childhood stage into spiritually mature adults. I say that with all sincerity, but I’ve observed through the years that many people in the church today have never matured and remain childish and immature. There’s really no excuse for that.

God is our Father and He wants to interact with us on a regular basis. There’s a lot of reasons why we need to hear the Lord but one of the ‘key’ reasons is that the things that God says to us forms us and shapes us into our true identity. He desires to raise us up as His own sons and daughters.

Evolving into our sonship is a lifelong process but we can, and should, start now. We start out with a lot of ‘orphan’ characteristics. We want to be the center of attention, we self-promote so people will accept us, we embellish the details of our lives so we’ll look important. That’s just a few of the characteristics that we might have as immature believers but as we begin the growth process into sons and daughters we start to leave those things behind us. In the light of God’s love, and through our ongoing relationship with Him, we begin to ‘grow up’. *All creation is anticipating the revealing of the ‘sons’ of God!

Kingdom people are evolving into their Sonship!

Are You A ‘Kingdom’ Person? Part 3 – How To Communicate With the Father

June 19, 2015June 20, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / Leave a comment

Kingdom people communicate with the Father! They realize that He has the ‘secrets’ and ‘mysteries’ of their lives. I’ll bet there are some really good parents reading this blog….but as good as you are….you aren’t as good as He is! That being said, it just makes sense that God wants to talk to you.…probably even more than you think you need to hear Him! Father’s want to communicate with their children.

Now, this’ll stir up the religious folk but, the Bible doesn’t have all your answers. It has a bunch of ’em but it doesn’t have ’em all. It can’t tell you who to marry, what job to take, what city to live in or who you should pray for. The list could go on and on. Now don’t misquote me here; I’m not saying that you shouldn’t read your Bible. In fact I think you should. But I must tell you, as important as the Bible is, it’s not a substitute for your relationship with God! My experience in 30+ years of ministry is that there’s a lot of people out there whose relationship is with the Book……rather than with the Author! It was a problem even in Jesus’ day; “You search the scriptures for in ‘them’ you think you have eternal life….but you’re not willing to come to me that you might have life.” From God’s perspective, it’s always been about His encounter with you…..and the ensuing relationship that He desperately longs for with you!

So, how do we communicate with the Father? Don’t complicate it!! Talk to Him like you’d talk to the person you’re the very closest with. Pour your heart out to Him; Let your requests be made known to Him. Tell Him when you’re happy or sad. Ask Him all the who’s, the what’s, the when’s….and the where’s! And remember….God’s not limited to speaking with an audible voice. He speaks in a myriad of ways. And, yes He does speak through His Word, the Bible. He speaks through dreams and visions and prophetic words. He speaks through the ‘still small voice’. He speaks through our circumstances and through people who come in and out of our lives. You have His Spirit living in you to help you discern the voice of ‘your’ Father.

Kingdom people take full advantage of that!

PS-It’s my opinion that He didn’t have all the details of your life recorded in a book on purpose! It’s because He wants you to come to Him…..and there He’ll reveal Himself to you!

Are You A ‘Kingdom’ Person? Part 2 – Communication With The Father

June 18, 2015June 18, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / 4 Comments

It’s an important question and how you answer it will decide how fruitful your spiritual life will be. A ‘kingdom’ person is keenly aware of the ‘moving’ of the Lord in his/her generation. And they’re willing to accept their place in the Body of Christ to make a difference with their life.

Kingdom people have a genuine relationship with the Father and they communicate with Him on a regular basis. The Bible says that we didn’t choose God….He chose us! That’s pretty amazing if you think about it. God could be anything He wanted to be…..and His choice was to be a Father to us. Jesus came to reveal Him, as Father, to us. Even when the disciples asked Jesus how to pray He answered, “Pray like this…..our Father……” That’s Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, giving you and I permission to relate to, and interact with, God exactly like He did! If we don’t wake up to that reality we’ll miss much of what life’s about.

It seems that some people think it’s the Pastor’s job to communicate with God for them….but that’s not true. In fact, it’s ludicrous! Father’s have a driving desire to communicate with their children. Now, think about it; God invented this ‘Father’ stuff and He’s a lot better at it than we are. I’m a dad to 5 awesome kids. They’re all pretty much grown up now but I still love to communicate with them. I like to hear what they’re interested in; I’m concerned when they’re going through trials; I care about every area of their life. I don’t want to intrude but I do want to help them and their families in any way I can. Well as much as you can agree with those things….God’s more interested than I could possibly be! Your pastor is important but remember, your Father wants to talk to you! Kingdom people communicate with their Father!

Are You A ‘Kingdom’ Person? Part 1

June 17, 2015June 17, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / Leave a comment

Maybe you’re not sure how to answer the question. That’s OK. I”ll be writing a series over the next few weeks and defining what I would call a ‘kingdom’ person. You might decide early on that you are….or you might decide that you’re not. No pressure from me but how you answer the question might just dictate how fruitful the rest of your life will be, from a spiritual standpoint. I will promise that by the time the series is completed you’ll know beyond the shadow of a doubt whether or not you’re a ‘kingdom’ person.

There’s always been a lot of talk around the church about what God used to do. No doubt, whatsoever, that stuff is extremely important. There’s also always been a lot of talk about what He’s going to do in the future. Likewise, very important stuff. I have a strong feeling that if we’re not careful we’ll find ourselves suspended between what He used to do…..and what He’s going to do. Relative to you and I, a great question would be, “What’s God doing today?”

For starters a ‘kingdom’ person has great respect for what God has done in the past and great respect for what He’s going to do in the future but refuses to be suspended and ‘stalled out’ between the two! A ‘kingdom’ person has a keen understanding that God is up to something BIG in our generation and desires to be a part of it! A ‘kingdom’ person is not content to stand around and wait for something to happen. They want ‘in the game’.….and they’re willing to be led by the Holy Spirit to find their place of anointing (supernatural ability), and responsibility. A ‘kingdom’ person is aware of what the Father’s doing now!

“100”

June 16, 2015June 16, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / 6 Comments

I was actually kind of surprised to realize that I had made it up to 100 Blog Posts since January 1! That happened fast! I guess it’s a ‘milestone’. Writing has been something I’ve enjoyed for quite awhile now. I started writing years back when my friend Derek Manning, who owned a newspaper in nearby Elk City, Oklahoma, asked me to write a weekly article for his paper. Although Derek has since sold the newspaper I’ve written over 600 articles! A few years back Melanie Cole, owner of the Cheyenne Star Newspaper, started to put the articles in her paper. I’m grateful for both her and Derek because it has helped me to develop a talent that was pretty much untapped. I was a little intimidated at first but once I got ‘untracked’ I found that I really enjoyed it. I look now at the things I wrote 7 or 8 years ago and I do think that I’m getting better at putting my thoughts down. It has been very therapeutic for me, too. Writing, for me has really helped me get in touch with my emotions. There’s just something about writing from the heart that’s good for a soul!

I try my best to keep the posts from getting long….but there are some stories that you just can’t tell in 300 words. (that’s my target #) So, I try to keep ’em fairly brief. I’m getting better at condensing! My Blog, “The Way I See It”, has been good for me but my primary reason for writing in the first place is to help others. I’ve learned a lot in 61 years, and still have a lot more to learn, and I enjoy passing along some of those things to people who are interested.

I love feedback so anytime you read something that really ‘speaks’ to you….let me know about it. *Best case scenario.…go to andyrtaylor.com and click the “Follow” link. You’ll get an email every time I make a post. Please feel free to “Share” them with your contacts, too!

Here’s the numbers after 100 posts (in terms of ‘views’):

Views: 20,970 *(seems pretty amazing to me!)

Visitors: 10,650 *(equally amazed!) For the full stats, click here

**If you do go there…under “Posts & Pages” you can see the Top-10 Blog Posts (# of Views)

Which Blog has been your ‘favorite’……and why??

Do You Have Enough Faith??

June 10, 2015June 10, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / 2 Comments

Let me answer that for you…..before you answer it wrong! YES!! You do ‘have’ enough faith. Now, whether or not you’re using it is another question, altogether. The Bible is clear that we’ve been given ‘the’ measure of faith. The Father loves us all! And because He doesn’t favor any one of us over another….He gives each of us the very same measure of faith. It’s enough faith! Enough to navigate every single event we’ll ever encounter in our whole life. It’s also enough faith to enable us to fulfill our destiny (God’s perfect plan for our life)! It’s not a flimsy, cut and run at the first sign of trouble, kind of faith either. It’s powerful enough for the sick to be healed, demons to be cast out and enough to empower us to tell the ‘good news’ to the poor!

This amazing faith that’s been given to us works in every situation. But you and I must activate it! It works in perfect synch with the Holy Spirit Who lives in us. “Signs and wonders will follow them that believe”! If we’re to experience this to the degree that the Father has purposed we must be ‘given’ to His Spirit. We can’t ‘go rogue’ with our faith and make ‘unilateral’ decisions. We must be devoted and reliant on His Spirit to see the miraculous manifested.

When our faith is ‘exercised’…..it grows. We have the potential of ‘mountain moving’ faith but if we don’t activate it…..it just abides there dormant. It’s like having a fortune in your bank account but never writing a check on it! The Bible says, “We’re created in Christ Jesus for good works.” The world is waiting for a people like us who really believe! Let’s ignite our faith! Write some ‘checks’ and see what happens!

Do you have enough faith?? Yes you do!! Use it!

Faith……..Use it or Lose It!

June 4, 2015June 4, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / 2 Comments

I had an interesting thought the other day. You know, as believers, we’re supposed to be people of faith. It doesn’t always work out that way in real life, though. I must admit that I don’t exactly have it perfected either. I’m working on it, and I’m better than I used to be but still have a long ways to go.

We’ve been ‘given’ (Rom 12:3) ‘the measure of faith‘. It’s actually a measure of the same quality of faith the the Father, Himself, has. That’s a pretty big deal if you think about it. It’s no flimsy faith; it’s faith that’s full of power. That’s very Biblical, by the way. We have a measure of the same kind of faith that the Father exercised when he ‘spoke’ the world into being!

This faith that we’ve been given is there for a myriad of reasons. For one, it’ll help us to navigate the events of life, good and bad, in such a way that we prevail in every circumstance. With this faith we’re encouraged in the Bible to “heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons and communicate the good news to the poor”. But there are many people who actually never exercise their faith at all. It’s there lying dormant, but it’s there, nonetheless. It’s like having a fortune in our bank account but never writing a check on it.

What if we approached our faith like we do our vacation days with our work? Many companies give a week or two paid vacation to their employees. Some of those companies require that you use those vacation days before the end of the fiscal year. It’s use them-or lose them. Nobody really wants that to happen. I doubt the Lord looks at our faith like that. I’m sure He’s always blessed anytime we exercise our faith. But it wouldn’t hurt us to look at our faith that way. It might just motivate us to walk in faith a lot more.

It could mean more people saved, more people healed from diseases, more addictions broken, more marriages put back together, etc. Maybe we should view our faith from a “Use It or Lose It” standpoint!

All I Know Is, God Loved John a Lot!

June 3, 2015July 26, 2020 / Andy R Taylor / Leave a comment

I’ve done, in the neighborhood of, three hundred ninety funerals over the years. I’ve never been able to separate my feelings from the feelings the family of a deceased loved one has. That being said, they are all pretty taxing on me, every one of them. It’s just one of those things that I believe the Lord has wanted me to do.

I had one a few years ago for a dad and his little boy whose pickup got hit by a truck. Another one for a dad and his two kids that burnt up in their house. Those really took it out of me. I clearly remember driving to the gravesite after the funeral service. That day, I’d had all I could take.I told the Lord, straight up, I didn’t want to do funerals anymore. I felt like I heard him clearly; “You don’t have to do them anymore, but if you do I’ll give you a greater anointing to do them.” That was thirteen years ago and I’m still doing them. (did one today, in fact)

But I had one some months back that was, maybe, my greatest challenge yet. It was a funeral service for an atheist. I had met John (name changed to protect the family) several years before when he and his fiance came by my office for me to marry them. He told me that day that he was an atheist and that he didn’t want to talk about the Lord. I said, “OK, but if you ever do want to talk about Him, I’m your guy.” He agreed. We never had that conversation. I found out later that as a little boy his dad would take the Bible and shame him and condemn him with it. In my mind, it turned John away from the Lord.

I got the call about doing John’s service. His wife’s family is a very special family to me. I met with his wife and we talked about the service and John’s wishes. I thought about it for hours. What would I say? I just kept coming up empty. I didn’t sleep much the night before, still weighted down by the task ahead. As I walked out of my house the next day to drive the 40 miles to the graveside service, the Lord spoke clearly to my spirit. “Andy, John’s life mattered.” He had a bout with drugs earlier in his life and took it upon himself to get free, which he did. He made it one of his life projects to help anyone who was wanting to do the same, which he did. He had three sons who he was a great dad to. He was a good husband to his wife, as well.

There were a hundred people or more at the graveside service. The attitude of most everyone there was extremely somber. I said what the Lord had spoken to me, “John’s life mattered. It mattered to his wife, it mattered to his boys, it mattered to the ones he helped to kick the drugs. His life mattered to God!” I said, “Most everyone here knows that John’s convictions about God were different than most of ours’.” I continued, “I’m glad that I’m not responsible to be the Judge; we’d do well to examine our own selves and leave the judging to God.” “But there are a couple of things I’m a hundred percent certain of, God is fair……and God loved John a lot!”

You ‘Can’ Get There From Here!

May 28, 2015May 28, 2015 / Andy R Taylor / 8 Comments

You’ve heard the old adage, “You can’t get there from here”, right? It’s kind of a tongue-in-cheek reference indicating that it’s next to impossible to make the change to get from one place to another. Can you imagine stopping for directions at some little out of the way service station in the middle of nowhere on how to get to your destination….and hearing the attendant say, “You can’t get there from here.” Well, we all know it’s not true but it definitely feels like that sometimes.

In 30 + years of ministry I’ve seen some amazing life transformations; mine for one!! I’ve seen people whose lives were in a worse mess than you can possibly imagine. I’ve seen marriages that were totally over and done with. I’ve seen those who were so entrenched in their sinful lifestyle that it looked as though there was no way out. I’ve seen people so hopeless that they could never believe that their life could ever be fixed. I’ve seen addicts and alcoholics who were so messed up they just couldn’t see out. I’ve seen those whose financial situation was in virtual ruin. I’ve seen plenty of people who sincerely believed that God would have absolutely nothing to do with them because of their stupid choices. And for all those to think that they could, somehow, end up with a decent life is so far fetched….it’s kind of like, “you can’t get there from here”.

But I’ve got good news…..no, actually it’s great news! God’s a ‘rescuer’!! He’s a ‘fixer’!! He’s never intimidated at the messed up state of our lives.He can restore any life and give it the significance that it deserves. It’s why we all need God. We’ll all make a monumental mess of our lives without Him.

So, if you’re in a place where you have no hope…..or if you’re wondering if your life could ever be livable and enjoyable, I’m here to tell you that it can! You ‘can’ get there from here!

Lives Matter!

May 27, 2015July 9, 2016 / Andy R Taylor / 1 Comment

Lots of conflict on the news lately. It seems that racial tension is nearly as high as it was in the ’60’s. I remember that. I actually thought we had made some major strides in overcoming that in the last few decades but it doesn’t take too many like Al Sharpton egging it on to get everyone stirred up again. In my opinion he’s used up way more than his fifteen minutes of fame!

The cry from communities like we’ve seen in Baltimore and Ferguson, MO is that “Black Lives Matter”. I could not agree more! It’s kind of a ‘no brainer’, huh? I saw a sign in a yard in a nearby town that says that “Police Lives Matter”. Agree again! The truth is, and only an idiot would argue otherwise, that all lives matter! I’m discouraged that in the greatest nation on the planet we’re even having this discussion. I don’t doubt that in many areas there are some strong prejudices and biases against minorities. I’m a country boy and I haven’t had to deal with that much, so I don’t consider myself an expert in the least. I just know it doesn’t work….it doesn’t work for anyone! It’s the classic ‘lose-lose’ situation!

I think we’ve gotta stop making it a ‘white’ issue, or a ‘black’ issue and make it a human being issue! “Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you” still works! I agree that it’s a deeper and more complex discussion and that there’s at least dozen or more points to be considered. But let’s not make it any more complicated than it already is.

If there’s anything positive going to happen, you and I should at least do our part. A good start is deciding that “Lives Matter”….. all of them! And anytime we see racial prejudices in our little world, we should step in, if possible, and be the voice of reason, righteousness and reconciliation. We should take the position of ‘peacemakers’ and see what happens. I know the Lord’ll bless the effort.

I doubt that many of my regular blog readers are racist…..hopefully none! So, in that sense….I’m preaching to the choir. But if you were to “Share” this post it might just hit someone that could make a huge difference. In the meantime, let’s all decide that “Lives Matter”!!