Author Archives: Steve Simms

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About Steve Simms

I like to look and think outside the box. In college I encountered Jesus Christ and I have been passionate about trying to get to know Him better ever since. My wife and I long to see the power and passion of the first Christ-followers come to life in our time. I have written a book about our experiences in non-traditional church, called, "Beyond Church: An Invitation To Experience The Lost Word Of The Bible--Ekklesia." If you need encouragement, search for: Elephants Encouraging The Room and/or check out my Amazon author page. Thank you!

Living Water Surge Protectors Limit Pentecostal Power

Posted on June 5, 2014 by Steve Simms

Religious surge protectors can suppress (quench) the flowing of the Holy Spirit both in churches and in individuals. Paul of Tarsus put it this way: “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, from such turn away.” A … Continue reading →

Posted in Apostle Paul, Bible, Bible concepts, Bible quotes, denying the power thereof, flow, flow of the Spirit, flowing of the Holy Spirit, from such turn away, godliness, having a form of godliness, Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit flow, John, John 17:38, John the Beloved, New Testament, New Testament quote, out of your inner most being, Paul of Tarsus, rivers of living water, spirit, Spirit of Truth, Spirit's flow, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, Spirit-led church, Spirit-prompted, spiritual, spiritual flow, spiritual formation, spiritual growth, spiritual healing, spiritual innovation, spiritual life, spiritual listening, spiritual movement, spiritual presence, spiritual training, spiritual transformation, spiritual walk, spiritual worship | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

21st Century — Get Ready For God’s Fire-Fall & Spirit-Flow!

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Steve Simms

It’s coming!  Get ready for God’s fire-fall & Spirit-flow! On Pentecost Sunday we celebrate God’s fire-fall and Spirit-flow releasing the current of His supernatural power in and through ordinary Christ-followers and transforming them into spiritual powerhouses setting the captives of … Continue reading →

Posted in birthday of the church, burn for Jesus, burning desire, burning heart, church history, fire, fire of the Holy Spirit, flow, flow of the Spirit, flowing of the Holy Spirit, General William Booth, how to flow in the spirit, how to grow spiritually, outpouring of the Spirit, pentecostals, people of God, power, quotation, Quotations, quote, Quotes, Salvation Army, Send the fire, speaking in tongues, speaking out, spirit fire, Spirit of Truth, Spirit surfing, Spirit's flow, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, Spirit-led church, spiritual fire, spiritual passion, spiritual power, supernatural, supernatural praying, tongues, tongues of fire, We need another Pentecost, William Booth | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Spirit-Prompted Words Are Better Than Any Teleprompter!

Posted on June 3, 2014 by Steve Simms

Spirit-prompted words are better than any teleprompter!  Politicians, public speakers, and even some preachers use teleprompters. However, as Christ-followers, we have something far superior to a teleprompter. We have the inner prompting of the Holy Spirit that will release words … Continue reading →

Posted in church, he that has ears, hearing the Holy Spirit, inner coach, inner Light, inner prompting, inner teacher, listening prayer, listening skills, listening to God, listening to the Spirit, Open your mouth and I will fill it, organic church, Quench not the Spirit, quench the Spirit, quenching the Spirit, Salvation Army, teleprompter, wifi, witness of the Spirit | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Should Church Meetings Be Choreographed?

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Steve Simms

We think of surrendering to the Holy Spirit as an individual thing, but perhaps it is also something that we need to do when we meet together as a church. Perhaps we need to yield our program and our agenda … Continue reading →

Posted in church leader, church leadership, church program, church programs, church roles, house church, how to do church, how to get involved in church, open church, order of worship, organic church, scholarship, simple church, worship, worship gathering, worship innovation, worship service, worship styles | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Beyond Spectatorship To Discipleship

Posted on May 31, 2014 by Steve Simms

Every Christ-follower is called to preach. Every believer is a minister ordained by God. The clergy/laity concept is not in the New Testament. Instead all believers are expected to minister to one another, to openly testify about their faith, and … Continue reading →

Posted in André Cox, called to preach, calling, clergy, clergy/laity, clericalism, layman, laymen, laymen preaching, laywomen, ministers, ministry, ordaination, ordained, priest, priesthood of the believer, Protestant, Protestant Reformation, quotation, Quotations, quote, salvation war, universal priesthood | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Right Way To Have Church

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Steve Simms

Is there only one, correct way of doing church?  Sometimes it seems so. For five hundred years there has basically been only one, right way of doing church. Regardless of denomination or doctrine, church has almost universally contained a central, … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Corinthians 14:26, 1 Corinthians:14, Bible, biblical, Biblical concept, church history, communion, denominations, doctrine, doctrines, Fresh Expressions movement, homiletics, homily, house church, Lord's supper, Martyn Atkins, Methodism, Methodist church, open church, organic church, participation in church, participatory church, preacher, preaching, preaching the Word, Protestant, pulpit, pulpit ministry, sacrament, sacraments, sermon-hearing, sermons, the right way to do church, UK, ways of doing church, worship, worship gathering, worship service | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Have We Silenced God’s Lambs (Keeping Them Silent With Preaching)?

Posted on May 24, 2014 by Steve Simms

Have we silenced God’s lambs with a gag rule for church?  Perhaps. I believe that many people have powerful messages from God burning in their heart, but they are too intimidated to share them because: 1) They are never given … Continue reading →

Posted in lay preaching, laymen preaching, multi-voiced church, Music City, Nashville, Nashville charity, participation, participation in church, Salvation Army, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Nashville, shared sermon, speaking up, Who can preach? | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Worship Wars — Make Room For Sermon-Free Church

Posted on May 24, 2014 by Steve Simms

Is There Room For Sermon-Free Church?  (Of course there is.) Worship wars, a popular name for disagreements in church about how to conduct the Sunday service, have been going on for years. But there is no need to argue. There … Continue reading →

Posted in answer to worship wars, Ben Franklin, contemporary vs. traditional, do away with the sermon, Kierkegaard, Layman's Prayer Revival, Laymen's prayer revival, laymen's prayer revival of 1857, Methodism, Methodist class meeting, Methodists, preacher, preaching, Søren Kierkegaard, see a sermon, sermon, sermon-free, sermon-hearing, sermons, sharing | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Did modern innovations in churches create worship wars?

Posted on May 23, 2014 by Steve Simms

Church innovation has become widespread & refreshing! Guess what is my favorite church innovation. Over the past generation or two, the way of having church in our society has changed a lot as we have seen new ideas creatively introduced … Continue reading →

Posted in Bob Rognlien, changes in worship, church meetings, church program, church seating, church services, church speakers, competition, conflict, contemporary Christian music, contemporary church, contemporary society, controversy, debate, definition, experiential worship, house church, how to do church, hymn, hymns, innovation, lip syncing, open church, open sharing, organic church, participatory church, participatory culture, participatory sermons, pew, Power Point, powerpoint, quotation, Quotations, quote, raising hands, simple church, worship, worship dancing, worship drama, worship gathering, worship innovation, worship leader, YouTube | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Karaoke Spoken From The Heart (Lay Witness Missions)

Posted on May 22, 2014 by Steve Simms

Before people in the USA sang karaoke, they spoke it spontaneously, from the heart as they told how the living, resurrected Jesus Christ had changed their life.  It was called Lay Witness Missions.  This spoken karaoke began in United Methodist … Continue reading →

Posted in a shout out, Ben Johnson, can I get a witness, Christian history, church history, church meetings, church program, church programs, church services, evangelism, evangelistic meetings, Frank Billman, Jesus, Jesus Christ, lay evangelist, lay speakers, lay testimonies, lay witness coordinator, lay witness movement, lay witness team, layman, laymen, laywomen, Methodism, Methodist class meeting, Methodist revivalists, Methodists, Music City, Nashville, Nashville church, non-traditional church, open church, open forum, open mic, open mike, open sharing, religious karaoke, Salvation Army, Salvation Army church, sharing, sharing Christ, Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, Spirit-led church, spiritual experiences, spiritual karaoke, spoken karaoke, team, testimonies, testimonies in church, testimony, witness, witnesses, witnessing, worship, worship service | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments