Turning Hearts of Fathers

As I read in Malachi 4:5-6 it talks about Elijah the prophet being sent to turn the hearts of the fathers towards their children and the hearts of children towards their fathers. Then in Luke 1:17 it talks about John the Baptist will be man that will come in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and also turn many in the nation of Israel back to God. I am asking the Lord many questions to understand these passages and the context of what God was doing in this time period and also today. One thing the Lord did point out was that the hearts of the fathers were not turned toward their children. I have noticed in many mature and godly men this heart that has an amazing depth of the Father's love for their children. If I am honest with myself and you, I adore and love my children but the depth of love I see in their eyes is different. Their hearts have truly been turned toward their children, they are genuinely remorseful for the ways they have hurt their children and have steadfast belief in them no matter how tough life gets. It is humbling to share my heart with you in this way but I am maturing in the Father's love for me and that love being poured out to my own family and beyond. I am believing there is a mystery that the Holy Spirit is revealing about family because I know that father's are critical in the restoration and freedom of families. As I have said in the past I am not looking for what I think is a healty picture of family, I am seeking see the schemes of the Enemy that have bound families and what God has done through Christ to set them free. I see that it is a move of God to turn the hearts of fathers to their children. I believe because of the curse that came upon the ground in Genesis 3 that men often seek to cultivate success in their lives with or without God's help but still function under the curse. Christ has freed us from the curse of the Law but we must appropriate this by faith. I see many men in my office who have attempted to be successful in life and thus have turned their heart away from God and thier children. Family just kind of becomes part of life, rather than the primary place where God's love and Kingdom are manifest in their lives. I do not judge men because I found myself in this same place and I am seeking the Lord to transform my way of seeing life to match the truth He reveals through His Word. There is something so deeply moving to see a father investing his very life into his kids, not just appeasing them until he can get to work or his other activities. I believe too many father's don't realize the depth of wisdom and revelation that God has given them, so they tend to devalue themselves and their impact on their children. Many who have talked about revival have talked about raising up spiritual fathers and mothers to invest in spiritual sons and daughters. I do believe the Body of Christ is a family but we often are a picture of the dysfunctional family. I believe it is only through the finished work of Jesus Christ and the revelation of His Word through the Holy Spirit that we will truly become the pure and spotless bride that Jesus will be returning for. Our efforts to clean ourselves up (perform and look together) are a thin veil over our brokenness and need for the transforming love of our Savior. I am so grateful that I have only begun to see the breadth, heighth, length, and depth of the love of God in Christ (Ephesians 3:17-18). Since God is the creator of all family in Heaven and on earth I believe He knows how to restore our broken lives, families, and even institutions. As the elections come closer I put my faith in the King that He will manifest the Kingdom of God which is above every government on the earth.

In His Grace,
Bret

A Man's Divided Heart

As I just finished a marathon conference this weekend on Healing, Deliverance, and Disbelief. One of the speakers said you should get a T-Shirt that says, "I survived Randy's Conference." It was indeed a marathon with many of the days lasting 14+ hours a day. I got a ton out of the conference but also found myself with a heavy heart, as I had once again sacraficed my family on this altar. No guilt or condemnation but I am realizing that Julie and I have a call on our lives together in ministry, this has not been fully realized. Going to the conference had been in some ways a step towards us being in seperate directions, her the kids and me in ministry. To be quite honest we are not sure what this call is but know that it is something deep in our spirits that we are asking God to reveal, confirm, and empower us to walk. We have found that we struggle with "balance" and looking at this call from "practical eyes" instead of trusting the Lord to also take care of the details. This led me to explore the struggle that tears at many families, which is the curse that came on the ground in Genesis 3:17-19. As a result of the Fall and sin's entry into humanity which not only brought death and a curse, we see that Adam's attempts to work the ground to produce for his family is under a curse. Clearly the Word does not say that Adam is cursed but that the ground is under a curse. I recall what the Spirit had shown me, believing The LIE (self-sufficiency) leads men to try to attempt to get their life, identity, and value from their success at their chosen profession. Remember though that curse doesn't necessarily mean immediate death but instead moving in that direction. What does all this mean for families? I believe it means that when men turn to work as a source of identity, value, and worth then they are following The LIE and thus it is cursed. This just means that men are led to spend increasing effort, hours, energy, and other resource towards working which then takes away from family. The only true balance comes from Christ's headship in our lives through the revelation and leadership of the Holy Spirit. Under the headship of Christ in 3 John 1:2 we see a different way. John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit tells us: "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even [as I know] your soul keeps well and prospers." I heard this weekend that us prospering is tied to our soul prospering (according to Bill Johnson). And since Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:13-14), so that "in Christ" we might receive the blessing promised through Abraham then we are freed to prosper in all ways (see Deutoronomy 28). Often curse simply means getting what everyone else in the world system gets, rather than supernaturally prospering. Prosperity has gotten a "bad rap" but this is not a prosperity gospel but instead life abundantly in all areas as Jesus talked about in John 10:10. After all this wonderful news it takes the revelation of the Holy Spirit to make this personal. I am still seeking the Lord to show me where I maybe believing lies and thus not walking in the Spirit. As one of God sons I don't want to be torn between the Kingdom of God and family; I believe the Kingdom of God is to be in evident in my family, my ministry, my friendships, and all of life. I also once heard it said that there are areas of work that we have grace for or are anointed by God. In these areas the passion of God through the Spirit empowers us.

In His Grace,
Bret Rutland

Ownership a blessing or curse?

The Lord often speaks to me in subtle ways, through thoughts, impressions, and directions. It is easy for me to ignore these because He is the "still small voice" and yet listening to His voice is so vital for relationship. It is amazing to me that so many Born Again Christians do not believe God speaks to His children today but as you look at John 10 you clearly see His sheep hear His voice. That is off the subject but an important "bunny trail". The "still small voice" was pointing me towards this idea of ownership that we take as a given in nation where Capitalism dominates. Capitalism has given us the freedom to own many things, to buy and sell material goods, and to own property. I am not here to question Capitalism, I enjoy many of the benefits of living in the world's wealthiest nation and I am blessed. We are examining the Kingdom of God to understand His ways and to live according to the freedom of Him being King in life. God began to challenge my possession of many things: my children, my house, my own spiritual walk, among others. As I looked at Psalm 24:1-2 which says "The earth is the Lord's, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it. For He founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers." I was remembering that the Lord owns it all. Even from the very beginning in Genesis, God gives stewardship over the earth and it's resources but He alone retains ownership. We see this theme carried into the New Testament down to God owning us as believers (We are His Workmanship and we belong to the Lord - Ephesians 2:10 & 1 Corinthians 3:23). I realized that for many years I was quietly offended by the statements of believers saying "God owns it all". See the mind of my flesh (carnal) still felt I had a right to myself, my money, my life, my stuff, and my etc... What the Holy Spirit began to reveal to me is that stewardship is a blessing, because you are not responsible for the end result. If I look at all the things I own materially and believe it is all up to me to maintain it, fix it, replace it, and buy new stuff then it quickly becomes a burden. In the Kingdom of God (where Christ is worshiped as King) I am set free of constantly trying to possess because it is the King who cares for His children. Another example is that if I believe as my children's father that I am totally responsible to raise them up and make them godly children then I have a tremendous task. I may start off well and with good intentions on disciplining them, teaching them, loving on them and even instructing them in the Word but I quickly burn out recognizing my limitations and weaknesses. Now on the otherhand if I believe that God has entrusted them to me as a parent but ultimately they are His, then parenting becomes cooperating/yielding to the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit as God raises His children through me. We live in a culture obsessed with possessing more and more, Jesus points to this when He talks about "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need these things." (referring to food and clothing) - Matthew 6:32. Jesus is contrasting how children of God live in His Kingdom versus how people who don't know God live. I believe that our culture's focus on possessing, owning, and controlling is really the world system which is under the direction of the Enemy. Being a steward of what God has given or entrusted to us frees us from constantly striving after things, we understand that God owns it all regardless of man's claims of things. Since God owns it all He can transfer property, wealth, and other things to people He decides. I have not taken this revelation any farther than this but I believe there are many implications in our life and areas of influence. Let's begin by agreeing with the Word "...the world has been cruicified to me, and I to the world." -Galatians 6:14. In other words I don't operate by the beliefs of the world system, even the religious world, but according to the Word of God revealing the finished work of Christ. I believe there is much freedom for you if you will go on this journey with the Holy Spirit.



In His Amazing Grace,

Bret