Faithworks — Blowing In The Wind Of The Spirit

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Steve Simms

Faithworks are like the wind and the Holy Spirit!  When the wind blows, all the tree leaves are blowing in the wind (not just one leaf, while the other leaves stay stationary).  When the Spirit moves in a church meeting, all the believers present are prompted into action by the Spirit (not just one person, while the other people sit as passive spectators).

So perhaps we should let Jesus play church meetings like a piano!  When piano keys surrender to the Master Pianist and each one sounds out when He touches them, beautiful music comes forth.  In the same way, if a gathered group of believers would surrender to the Master Pastor (the Chief Shepherd of the Sheep — Jesus Christ) and each one sound out when He touches them, faithworks would shine forth — a beautiful tapestry of testimony & teaching would come forth! 

Faithworks are powerful demonstrations of God’s presence that occur when church goes beyond mere programs, presentations, & performances; to people openly sharing their hearts with one another as prompted by the living, resurrected Jesus Christ! Catch some Nashville faithworks (better than Nashville fireworks) every Sunday morning at 10:45 and Tuesday night at 6:00 at The Salvation Army Berry Street, 225 Berry St., Nashville, 37207!

See what church can be
When people are free
To speak up and share
What’s on their heart
And the Spirit blends it all
Into a visible demonstration
Of His glorious presence!

Posted in Berry Street, Berry Street Worship Center, Chief Shepherd, East Nashville, faith, faith in God, faith-based, faithworks, Holy Spirit like wind, Master Pastor, Music City, Nashville charity, Nashville church, Nashville events, Nashville fireworks, Nashville streets, Nashville tourist attractions, organic church, piano keys, playing the piano, release of the Spirit, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Corps, sheep, simple church, Spirit-led, Spirit-led church, Spirit-prompted, spiritual flow, spiritual worship | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Amazing manifestations of God happen when church moves beyond performance, program, and presentation to people openly sharing their hearts with one another!

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Steve Simms
Posted in church meetings, church program, church programs, church services, participatory church, simple church, Spirit-led church, spiritual church, spirituality | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

How 2 Celebrate The 4th Of July

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Steve Simms

How 2 Celebrate the 4th!

Celebrate the 4th of July by using your freedom of speech (while you still have it). Speak up, in a kind and loving way, about your love for God and your commitment to biblical principles and values. You have both a constitutional right and a God-given, moral right to express your faith.

So, in honor of Independence Day I say:

I am committed to follow and obey the living, resurrected Jesus Christ and not popular culture. I will live by and speak out for biblical principles. I will not be intimidated and/or forced into surrendering my freedom of speech by those who disagree with me. (How about you?)

free speech 4

free speech

Posted in America, American, American Constitution, American history, American patriotism, American values, ethics, faith, faith in God, faith-based, family values, moral decision, moral failures, moral foundations, moral judgment, quotation, Quotations, quote, Quotes | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What makes a country free?

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Steve Simms

When we celebrate freedom (on the 4th of July or other times) it is a good thing to ask:  What makes a country free?  Are we free?

Should a country be considered “free” when it’s people, culture, and communities are continually captured & controlled by compelling cravings, compulsions, and addictions (commonly called “epidemics” and spread by peer pressure & media brainwashing)?

Posted in bad habits, bondage, brainwashing, compulsion, cravings, culture, culture wars, drug epidemic, drugs, free countries, habit, obesity, obesity epidemic, slavery, violence, violence epidemic, violence in society, what is freedom | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Do Those Who Boast The Most About “Tolerance” Judge?

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Steve Simms

Nowadays many of the people who boast the most about their tolerance, harshly judge the Book that has inspired the best and most compassionate aspects of Western civilization and harshly judge the people who believe the moral truths taught in that Book.

Posted in acceptance, Biblical concept, biblical morality, Biblical principles, faith-based, family values, judgments, moral foundations, moral judgment, moral principles, morality, morals, quotation, quote, values | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Zip Line To God

Posted on June 30, 2014 by Steve Simms

Participatory church is a zip line to God.  (So don’t sit in the tree; step out and soar in the Spirit.)

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“Our faith should not be in the sermon, it should be in the Holy Spirit Himself.” ~Martyn Lloyd-Jones

“Being committed to Christ is no tame, humdrum, sheltered monotony, but the most exciting adventure the human spirit can ever know.” –James Stewart

“Some of you think that it’s extraordinary people who God uses, but actually it’s little lovers who are obedient. God is not looking for extraordinary magnificent people, he’s looking for little lives laid at His feet who say, ‘yes.’”   –Heidi Baker

A. M. Renwick, professor of church history at the Free Church College in Edinburgh, writing in The Story of the Church, said, “The very essence of church organization and Christian life and worship . . . was simplicity . . . Their worship was free and spontaneous under the leadership of the Spirit, and had not yet become inflexible through the use of manuals of devotion.”

John Drane, in Introducing the New Testament, wrote, “In the earliest days . . . their worship was spontaneous. This seems to have been regarded as the ideal, for when Paul describes how a church meeting should proceed he depicts a Spirit-led participation by many if not all . . . There was the fact that anyone had the freedom to participate in such worship. In the ideal situation, when everyone was inspired by the Holy Spirit, this was the perfect expression of Christian freedom.”

The New Testament makes no distinction between two groups, clergy and laity. The two groups simply do not exist. God calls every believer to minister..and full-time at that. God calls everyone that has been saved. God equips everyone that he saves for full-time ministry. That is accomplished through the ministry and presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer.” –Thomas W. Hudgins

God calls every believer to be a minister. One could even go so far as to say God not only calls all believers to ministry, but he calls them to a life of full-time ministry. Not only is everyone called, but everyone is also empowered and equipped for ministry by the Holy Spirit.” — Chistopher W. Goff (Asbury Theological Seminary)

“The lambs have been silenced by the example of their teachers. ‘Be silent in church and let the professionals do the talking. You are nothing but a support system to keep their mouths working.'” –Michael Clark (from the book, The Silencing of the Lambs)

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Posted in A. M. Renwick, Chistopher W. Goff, clergy, clergy/laity, Heidi Baker, James Stewart, John Drane, laity, laymen, laywomen, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Michael Clark, organic church, priesthood of the believer, quotation, Quotations, quote, simple church, The Silencing of the Lambs, Thomas W. Hudgins | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Nashville Sounds in Participatory Church

Posted on June 28, 2014 by Steve Simms

Participatory church presents the profundity and wisdom of ordinary people as they show and tell what God is doing in their lives.  Here are some Nashville sounds from an organic church in Nashville — The Salvation Army Berry Street Worship Center in Nashville, TN:

The Sound of Music:  Every week we have a different person lead us in passionate worship of God.

The Sound of Sharing:  Instead of listening to one man preach every Sunday, ordinary people share from the heart about the things that God is doing in them.

The Sounds of Silence:  We often experience the holy hush of awe and amazement at what God does among us.

The Sound of God’s Voice:  “And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps.” –Revelation 14:2

If a hand can’t make a puppet obey its directions, because it’s hard and brittle, there will be no puppet show.  If the Holy Spirit can’t make a person obey His direction, because she or he is unwilling to follow, there will be no release of spiritual life.

Experiences these Nashville sounds with us on Sunday mornings @ 10:45 & Tuesday nights @ 6:00 — 225 Berry St., 37207.

Participatory Church at Berry Street

Participatory Church at Berry Street

 

Posted in God's voice, harpists, hearing, hearing God, hearing the Holy Spirit, listening, listening prayer, listening skills, listening to God, listening to the Spirit, music, Music City, organic church, participatory church, relevation, Salvation Army, Salvation Army church, Salvation Army Nashville, sermon-hearing, sharing, silence, silent worship, simple church, sound of His voice | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Human Psyche — Wired For God

Posted on June 27, 2014 by Steve Simms

The human psyche is wired for God. Without Him it malfunctions.  If you get and maintain a sense of divine destiny your life won’t be derailed by disinterest, discouragement, depression, or defeat!

Posted in Christianity, conscience, consciousness, conversion, conviction, depression, discouragement, faith, faith in God, faith-based, mental health, salvation, spiritual listening, spiritual power, spirituality | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Flag Prayer Walking + Spontaneous Prophetic Songs in a Nashville Neighborhood

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Steve Simms

“May we sing you a song from God?” we asked J.D., a man we didn’t know sitting on his own front porch with several other people (adults and kids) in the McFerrin Park Neighborhood of East Nashville.

“Sure,” he said.  Then Michael began to sing a spontaneous song for J.D. trusting the Holy Spirit to give him the words and tune.  As the song flowed forth beautifully, J.D. was visibly moved and everybody on the porch was amazed.

As we turned to leave, J.D. asked:  “Will you sing one more song, this one for Shirley?”  Then he opened the screen door and an older woman in a wheel chair was sitting there.  So Michael sang another new song to Shirley.  She beamed and thanked us profusely after Michael finished.  Then I asked if I could say a prayer and asked God to be with J.D. and all of his family and friends.

This was a new experience for Michael, my wife, and me this morning.  We’ve been prayer walking while carrying a full-sized Salvation Army Flag in the neighborhood for more than 8 years.  However, this was Michael’s first time with us and our first time to offer prophetic songs.

When we began we went up to a couple of dozen kids on the grounds of the McFerrin Park Community center.  They were eager to have Michael sing to them.

Later we met a middle-aged woman and her adult daughter along the way and got to sing and pray for them.  Michael also sang an original song to a woman on a bus stop bench.

It was all very moving and powerful.  Here are a few pictures:

Singing a prophetic song over the McFerrin Park Neighborhood in East Nashville, Tennessee, USA, while prayer walking with The Salvation Army Flag

Singing a prophetic song over the McFerrin Park Neighborhood in East Nashville, Tennessee, USA, while prayer walking with The Salvation Army Flag

Singing prophetic songs to children in McFerrin Park.

Singing prophetic songs to children in McFerrin Park.

Singing a prophetic song to a woman on a bus stop bench.

Singing a prophetic song to a woman on a bus stop bench.

Posted in Blood and Fire, blood and fire battle flag, East Nashville, evangelism, McFerrin Park, Music City, new song, outreach, praying, praying in the Spirit, prophesy, Salvation Army | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Weather Station Church / Disappointment With Church / Children In Church

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Steve Simms

A weather station doesn’t try to program, direct, or control the weather. Rather it closely observes and interacts with the weather and then reports on and responds to it.

What if a church didn’t try to program, direct, or control its worship meetings; but rather sought to closely observe and interact with the Holy Spirit and then to report on and respond to what the Spirit says? (“Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” –Jesus in Revelation 2:7.)

Are you disappointed with church?  Many people are. For many, their longing for peace, love, and community hasn’t been fulfilled in church, so they have turned to other groups: clubs, support groups, gyms, multilevel marketing groups, AA or NA, and/or bars to find what they need.

Perhaps we need a fresh, interactive way of doing church. Participatory church where people share from their hearts with one another, as led by the Spirit, connects people in loving community.  Come see for yourself at The Salvation Army Berry Street, on Sundays at 10:45 am. and/or Tuesday nights at 6:00 at 225 Berry St., Nashville, 37207.

Here’s an example.  Even children can do participatory church:

My wife and I just did a devotion for 40-something 6-9 year olds who are part of our Salvation Army Summer Day Camp in East Nashville. We did a puppet show about the prophet Eli and the little boy Samuel who hears God talk to him. Then we shared how God talks to people today and that if He would speak to Samuel, He will speak to them. We asked the children to listen quietly to God. Then we asked them to come to the mic and tell what God told them. Half of them came to the mic, one after the other, and shared amazing words from God like: “God says you don’t have to be afraid;” “God told me to respect people:” “God said that I don’t have to be shy about talking to people;” “God says He loves me;” “God told me that I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” 

These kids (boys and girls) were so sweet and so sincere; it deeply touched me. There was a strong sense of God’s presence among us as they interacted with the Holy Spirit and then reported on and responded to what the Spirit said. 

weather station

Posted in can children hear God, children in church, East Nashville, fearfully and wonderfully made, hearing God, hearing Jesus, hearing the Holy Spirit, listening, listening prayer, listening skills, listening to God, listening to the Spirit, Music City, Nashville charity, Nashville church, Nashville events, Nashville news, Nashville projects, Nashville times, Nashville tourist attractions, organic church, participatory church, revelation, simple church, summer camp, summer day camp, teaching children | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment