Jason Castro singing "I'm Not Who I Was."

I'm Not Who I Was by Brandon Heath

De-genieizing the Holy Spirit

I can’t seem to get a certain line from Disney’s Aladdin out of my head. It is the line where the Genie of the Lamp is trying desperately to explain his reason for existence to Aladdin, the peasant boy who has just rubbed an ancient lamp (causing the Genie to be summoned from tiny living quarters to fulfill the wishes of his new master). The Genie, frustrated by Aladdin’s lack of understanding of what a genie really is, suddenly grows HUMONGOUS and with a mighty bellow, describes himself as having “PHENOMINAL COSMIC POWERS”, and then he shrinks into his lamp and squeaks out, “itty bitty living space.” The Genie is frustrated that he can only use his powers when he is summoned by a human.

Often, as Christians, we have the misconception that the Holy Spirit paces the itty bitty living space of our hearts, waiting to be summoned by us to fulfill our current wish or ease heartache. But it is imperative that we gain a true perspective on the nature of the Holy Spirit. Who is this mysterious Being that we have been assured by our Sunday School teachers and pastors indwells us to comfort and teach us when we accept Christ as our Savior? How is that possible? How do we tap this invaluable resource? What is the proverbial “rubbing of the lamp” of our hearts that gets the Spirit moving?

The question really should be: How do we move from a “summoning perspective” to a natural, ubiquitous, constant- not just daily, but minutely- fellowship with the Spirit of the Living God? Many of the answers to this question can be found in the book of The Acts of the Apostles.

First we must be certain of this fact: if the Spirit dwells in us, we have already been given the gift of the undeniably ultimate “PHENOMINAL COSMIC POWER” in an “itty bitty living space.” There is no magic lamp— no secret word, no mystic code, nor buried treasure to unearth that can— or will— summon the power of the Holy Spirit in us.

Yes, there are going to be times that the Spirit reveals more to us than others. However, if the Spirit dwells in us, we can have the constant fellowship, or companionship, of the Spirit (2 Corinthians 13:14). Fellowship is an ongoing sharing of experiences, not a summoning for help in time of need. And, if we are in the Word, the Word will be revealed to us by the power of the Holy Spirit – daily, minutely, in every circumstance. We should long for revelation, because God longs to reveal Himself to us, to show us how to be more like Christ every minute of every day. But why do we have the tendency to wait for a need to come along to suddenly desire the Spirit’s presence for comfort or revelation or a miracle? Why not when we are at peace? Why not when we are playing a sport or chatting with a friend or cooking dinner or watching TV or paying the bills? Why do we wait?

If we would fellowship with (not summon in a crisis) the Holy Spirit more, our tongues would spill less hurtful words, our hands would find more useful deeds, our ears would listen to less soul damaging noise, our minds would dwell on thoughts that are pure and honest, and our eyes would cease from straying to the contemptible things of this world. Oh, and best of all, our hearts will be tuned in to will of God! What freedom there is in His will!

Welcome to the Roman Holiday Inn Express

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7


Imagine you are in prison. Imagine you are shackled in chains, sitting on a cold slab of stone and the chill is creeping through your bones. Imagine that at any moment the guard could come and walk you to your trial and execution, or unlock your chains and release you.

What do you do with your time?

Do you wallow in your misery and ask, "Why, God, why?"

Do you call over to the prisoner in the next cell and play the "Name Game" just to pass the time?

Do you cry your eyes out?

Do you lay down and start singing "Oh, Danny Boy" as you lament your unfortunate demise?

Well, if you are Paul the apostle, you write a few letters. But not just any letters, oh no, you write letters that will be immortalized and will be part of the foundation of Christianity for an eternity.

Talk about a pedestal!

But wait, let's think about this for a minute. One of the letters he wrote during his stay at this oh-so-comfy "Roman Holiday Inn Express" is now the book of the Bible we call "Philippians." In four short chapters, as his bones are chillin' and his shackles are leaving welt marks, Paul writes the word "JOY" (or a derivative of it) SIXTEEN times!

And here he says do not be ANXIOUS about anything? He was in prison! These people have already killed his Lord and some of his friends!

What, are you kidding me? Did they have marijuana back then, cuz he must've been ON something? Nobody has THAT much joy! Do they?"

Oh, he was on something all right. It's called "the peace of God, that transcends all understanding."

"But," you might be saying, "how can I have peace if I don't understand what's gonna happen to me? How can I have peace if I don't know if things will turn out all right?"

The peace of God can never be explained. It comes BEFORE our problem is solved, and it comes EVEN IF IT IS NEVER SOLVED. It just IS. It is a promise for us all. And we can ALL have it, no matter what "prison" we find ourselves in. But Paul says we have to DO something to gain this reward. So what do we have to do?

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Hope you enjoyed your stay!

PS: photo is Rembrandt, The Apostle Paul. c. 1657. Oil on canvas. The National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA

Steven Curtis Chapman's Five Year Old Daughter Killed Wednesday

Please pray for the Chapman family. My heart is breaking for this family. Little Maria had just turned 5 years old ten days earlier. This really hits home with me as we are making birthday preparations for our son Joel will turn 5 soon. I can't even imagine what the family is going through. I pray for comfort for all of them, but especially for the brother who hit her. My heart aches for him! I have to say this one is FAR beyond my comprehension. But thankfully, it is NOT beyond God's. I rest in that as I pray for the family's grief.



Here is the Christan Examiner's report:

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Chapman's daughter killed in tragic accident at home
Christian Examiner staff report

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Maria Sue Chapman, the 5-year-old daughter of Christian entertainer Steven Curtis Chapman, was killed May 21 in a tragic accident on the family's driveway.

According to police, one of her teenage brothers accidentally hit Maria while backing out of the driveway in a SUV. Laura McPherson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol, told Associated Press that the teen apparently did not see his sister and will not face charges.

"It looks like a tragic accident," she told AP.

The child, the youngest of the six Chapman children, was taken to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital where she died of her injuries. Apparently other members of the family were outside the home, located south of Nashville, and witnessed the incident.

Maria was the youngest of three girls the Chapman's adopted from China at the insistence of their oldest daughter. As a result of those adoptions, Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth, founded Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption. The ministry is named after their first adopted daughter.

"I don't know of anybody who loves his children more than he does and is so committed to the adoption concept, and to lose one, no matter what the circumstances, is heartbreaking beyond all comprehension," John Styll, president of the Nashville-based Gospel Music Association, told the Tennessean.

The Tennessean said the accident was witnessed by two other children, and the entire family of six, including oldest daughter Emily and mother Mary Beth, who was home at the time.

"Your prayers are needed for all in the Chapman family. This is a family who has so generously loved and given to so many," Jim Houser, manager of the blog chapmanchannel.com, wrote. "Just hours before, this close-knit family was celebrating the engagement of the oldest daughter Emily Chapman and were just hours away from a graduation party marking Caleb Chapman's completion of high school. Now, they are preparing to bury a child who blew out 5 candles on a birthday cake less than 10 days ago."

The blog, with a page now devoted to Maria's memory, includes a video of the girl and her father washing dishes and singing a song in the family's kitchen two months before her death.

"The Chapman family is so grateful for the incredible outpouring of love and support at this difficult time," a brief statement posted at stevencurtischapman.com said before linking to the blog.

"Chapman talks about his kids all the time. That's his life. His kids are more important to him than music, that's for sure."

Chapman has won five Grammy awards and 51 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association. In a February 2003 interview with Baptist Press, Chapman said it was the adoption of Shaohannah that brought a life-changing "aha" moment.

"Until we adopted Shaohannah, I didn't fully understand the depth of what Jesus has done for us," Chapman told Baptist Press. "(Without Christ) I was hopeless, without a future, without a name ... then Jesus came into my life, gave me hope and a future. He gave me a new name."

Chapman called adoption the "visible gospel," a term he borrows from Christian author John Piper.

"Adoption is the perfect picture of what God has done for each of us in making us His children through Christ," Chapman said.

"God's done amazing things in our family. Without a doubt, adoption has been the most profound experience in God."

The Chapman Web site also indicated that another artist would be filling in for a scheduled May 24 performance by Chapman.

The family is requesting that, in lieu of flowers, donations be directed Shaohannah's Hope. For more information, visit www.shaohannahshope.org.