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Frank Viola | Beyond Evangelical
Official Blog of Author & Speaker Frank Viola. Digging below the surface and moving beyond the shallows in today's Christianity.
Spiritual Transitions
We too (my husband and I) are in a state of transition.. here in Europe we know of no organic church and all of our lives as christians we have been in an IC faithfully serving.. but longing for relationships that go deeper than just seeing each other in official events..what the next steps are? we don´t really know but are trusting each day that Jesus would lead us to others that are wanting to have a real relationship with Him and each other. Thank you for your loving example of venturing out to totally go after Him!
Thank you for this Frank. This reminder honestly couldn’t have come at a better time.
Oh my gosh thank you so much for this! I KNOW I am going through a transition. It has not been comfortable. I just cry out to Him that His will be done and that I will HEAR Him and understand why this has to take place. I get concerned that I won’t hear Him, with all the clutter of life. When I use to go to church (the building) a pastor once said to me that sometimes God will deliberately put someone along side of you that causes a rub or a friction and that is His way of filing off what needs to come off (from myself). Well I just went through a brief season within the wilderness when I felt I was being sand blasted 🙂 Hearing these encouraging words helps me to know Frank that there is purpose, and we just need to wait on our precious Lord. He is soooo good to give that encouraging word right when you need it!
Hope you and your wife have a peaceful Christmas Frank.
No matter where you are in your spiritual transition don’t give up! Even if you don’t think there is any kind of organic church life happening in your area. We’re from Bozeman, MT not exactly the big city and as many other people we’re not able to move right now because of what happened in the housing market. Our spiritual transition started about 2 to 3 years ago. In November 2009 we attended a conference on organic church life in Las Vegas which really confirmed a lot of what I had read from Frank and other brothers in Christ. Today what started out as Bible study a couple years ago has moved into the realm of fellowship/biblestudy/Body life. We’re not there yet but it sure is a relief to know this is Gods work and not my own and letting Him be the head of His body.
Thanks Frank for all your hard work, your writings have been a real blessing to me!
Jona
Ah, transition.
Hey Frank,
Are there a list of books or resources that you recommend on the subject of communing with the spirit within? I probably didnt use the right words there, but I am guessing you will know what I mean. I would assume that that is critical for one to move into a new season.
Thanks Frank!
Brad: Check out the “Satisfy Your Soul” & “Experiencing God Through Prayer” in the “Spiritual Growth” section at http://www.ptmin.org/library. But let me say this. Pursing the Lord is a corporate journey that’s designed by God to be done in close-knit community. It doesn’t work well as an individual. God never designed it to be so. That’s one of the pink elephants that’s standing in the room of mainstream Christianity today. For this reason, the deeper aspects of communing with the Lord in Spirit cannot be found in a book. They are given live to Christ-centered, close-knit communities.
I appreciate the insight. I find it very hard to realize if there is a season transition, but having the adivse that as long as your facing the cross, abiding in Love, and his eternal purpose helps tremendously. It’s always good to know whatever the new season may be there is a reason behind it. That the father strategically sets up oppurtunities to point you to Christ. He is the Wisdom the Father gives us. Love it.
It is important for all believers to realize that seasons and transitions are an important part of our walk with the Lord. Institutional Christianity has the tendency to encourage people to stay put, physically, mentally, and spiritually. However, organic Christianity says for Chrsitians to “go.” The way to grow spiritually is to go, to stretch — to step out and follow and obey the Spirit rather than remaining stationary. Holding on to where we are spiritually will keep us from going on to where God is calling us to be.
Thank you for this, Frank!
It is very timely in my life! It is exactly where I am today and your post gives me a needed “boot” and yet, at the same time confirms that it is, indeed the Lord leading me.
It is a very exciting time, albeit a wee bit frightening when circumstances “press”. May I press closer into His nail-pierced side through it all!
I love how the Lord works. During my quiet time this morning I started thinking of you all of a sudden and I had no idea why until I read this.
Thanks again!
virginia
Great article, so on target. As a family who has transitioned much in the past 5 years I want to add that we should not look back with doubt about what God was doing during those seasons. The enemy likes to try and confuse, but we are each on a unique journey and at different places on the path He has predestined for us, according to His craftmanship of us as individuals.
For example: during one transition my husband and I wrote down over a dozen confirmations that we were to move and serve at a certain location. Thinking it was a long term planting we let go of many earthly possessions including our home. Two years later God sent us back where we came from.
The confusion began, “Did we hear wrong?” No, we followed God – we just assumed wrong – it wasn’t permanent, it was for a season and in looking back we see He did many great things! Both through us and in us. The journey continues…
Frank,
Thanks for sharing this wisdom. It is good to recognize the season that we’re in and recognize what the Lord is doing around us. Seeking the Lord’s heart is essential!
Thank you, Frank…that was definitely a timely word for our family. My family and I have been going to an institutional church since the beginning of January 2010. A few weeks ago strange things started happening while we were at church…I sensed in my spirit that something was really wrong by the second song, in “praise and worship.” My wife thought it was her or the devil trying to fool her. The whole thing seemed forced and the people in the congregation looked like they were all putting on a performance. What’s really funny is that, in your book, ‘Pagan Christianity,’ you mention something about putting on “Sunday dress” and “costumes”…they have hundreds of costumes, if not more, in storage at the church building. The irony. Also, the sermon was spoken by an elder, and it was extremely confusing like he took someone else’s words and cut and pasted them to try to make them his own…definitely a “canned” message. I prayed and prayed and prayed to God for answers about why “church” went the way it did that Sunday and little did I know at the time God was waking me up to the reality of oganic Christianity you outline in your books. Frank, it was like God took me out of this whole illusion we have created for ourselves and showed me what was really going on. I felt betrayed, but then again it was my own fault for not carefully examining the Word of God and what He says. We do not have an organic church in Moline, IL or the greater Quad Cities area. We have been feeling stuck in a rut about where to go from here. I wish we could relocate to one but we can’t right now. I do have the desire to start an organic church where we live and have meetings in our home, but don’t have an action plan yet. I realize it doesn’t happen over night also. I don’t want to go back to an institutional church because I feel like our lives are being stifled into luke-warm passivity there and that everyone is doing there own individualistic thing. There seems to be no genuine, authentic connection of community to me. I really want to save the mass that go there and work there to share what I have been learning from you without trying to cause division, but I feel like if I continue to go to where my family and I have been going we will be yoked again with the bondage of institutional religion. I also feel like I am in a stage of grief over all that I have learned (with much wisdom comes much sorrow) and that my growth and development as a Christian is being stunted, but I do believe that our Lord God is transitioning our lives into a new season of change ’cause we definitely need it. Apologies for taking up so much space…I’m a chatter box at times…..lol. I’ll try to do better to keep my comments short and to the point. Pray for us! Thanks again!
Erik: I wrote FINDING ORGANIC CHURCH for people in your exact situation. As well as to church planters of all stripes. http://www.ptmin.org/foc – I trust it will help give you some direction.
Yes, He will take us to that lonely position and place where we must trust in Him fully, and have complete reliance upon Him for everything. If we are in the wilderness alone with Him, then we may consider that He has us there for a time, a season, where He is our only food Source (manna), our only Substance of Life. There is a great work He does in us during this season, a preparing work that is only done in the wilderness.
In my wilderness experience, more than ever before, came a tremendous desperation for Him, a complete reliance. And also the lesson of full trust with patience not to take action in my own flesh, but patient trust to wait upon Him. We come to know Him as our Peace, our Comfort, our only Source of survival. I would like to also say there is a price, a high cost, and that cost is different for each person. There is much fear in letting go of all the things that have created a false sense of security, and following Jesus Christ into the Land as He leads us out of the wilderness into body Life. May we all learn the Reality of relying solely upon our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thank you, Frank.