Holy Smoke-Finishing School

Holy scrutiny is both, unavoidable and awesome. The closer we get to the piercing light of His love, the more exposed we feel. An instant after exposure comes the covering of Grace and the sublime sense and knowing of acceptance via unconditional love! Holy Scrutiny is what I call "finishing school." And Love is the under-girding lesson of all the courses of life in Jesus.

For years I had the mistaken notion that I was finished with school…not by a long shot. Not finished. Nope; still in finishing school instead! My experience with God is that He, Holy Spirit, is a teacher, 'par excellant' and will not be dissuaded by any of my growth issues. 

Let' see how Scripture ways in on this? ⁶ And I am sure that God who began the good work within you will keep right on helping you grow in his grace until his task within you is finally finished on that day when Jesus Christ returns.He doesn't stop pursuing us. I thought only young women and aspiring debutantes went to finishing school. You know, where you are trained in cultural-social graces and activities. Granted, my cultural and social graces are somewhat limited-well, okay, very limited. But, come on Papa-‘finishing school’? Yes Son, finishing school.

So, I asked the obvious question…What exactly do you mean by ‘finishing school’? Of course, true to form…I got much more of an answer than I bargained for. I can imagine that your experience with Papa is just as surprising-no, serendipitous as mine. Don’t ever ask God a question that you aren’t ready for a big answer for. Son, I desire for you to finish the race complete, whole, and strong-with a unified heart. I had no idea how fractured my heart was. David asked for the same thing in his prayer recorded in Psalm 86:11.”Teach me your way, O Lord; and I will walk in your truth; Unite my heart to fear your name.”

There are four distinct problems with that prayer. Learning His ways, walking in His truth, having your heart united and fearing His name are all challenging to our comfort zone-to say the least. Most of us have the mistaken notion that we know His ways. Nothing could be further from reality. I have walked with Jesus for forty+ years and am just now beginning to have understanding about His ways. I am learning that His way involves shaking and baking. Everything that can be shaken will be shaken and what remains will be purified in the furnace of His loving correction. I must add that His ways are best and bring Him the most Glory.

This ‘finishing school’ process also includes getting acquainted with ‘truth and wisdom in the inner parts’ The ‘inner parts’ are often clouded with unresolved and unhealed issues. The longer we walk with Him the more light is shed on our inner parts. Holy scrutiny is both, unavoidable and awesome. The closer we get to the piercing light of His love, the more exposed we feel. An instant after exposure comes the covering of Grace.

Learning the truth about our self is always balanced by what my friend Alan Smith calls…LOVE, the truth that trumps all other truth. Eugene Peterson puts it this way in The Message. ‘We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles, because we know that troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert to whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary-we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit! (Romans 5:3-5). Got It? We will! Ron Ross   

Holy Scrutiny

Holy scrutiny is both, unavoidable and awesome. The closer we get to the piercing light of His love, the more exposed we feel. An instant after exposure comes the covering of Grace and the sublime sense and knowing of acceptance via unconditional love!. Ron Ross

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"In the world you now live in, to commune with Me is not defined by an experience of Me. Nor does it depend on Blessings from Me. To really live is to release My Son's life through yours, in any circumstance, no matter what you feel; to relate as He related, giving when no one gives back, loving when no one returns love, forgiving when no one deserves forgiveness, suffering in the place of those who should suffer."
"Don't look at your inability. Look at my Son's ability." Notice that no miracle Jesus ever performed served His well-being, that no teaching He ever presented was designed to win popularity, and that in no conversation in which He ever engaged did He ever maneuver things to His advantage but always to Mine." Papa relating intriguing nuances of His Son Jesus through Larry Crabb.
Ron Ross

Thanks Martin!

Thanks Martin Luther King for the countless lives who continue to have vast horizons of opportunity because you passed this way such a short period of time. Freedom is so precious and it's like a flower that blossoms around all that your life continues to do!

Get a Grip

Sometimes my life feels like I’m constantly trying to gain traction-on ice. The harder ‘you’ try the more you are spinning your wheels and getting off course. Traction enables you to get a grip, establish a toehold, and set your footing.

Maybe Joseph can shed some light for us? “Deeply moved on seeing his brother and about to burst into tears, Joseph hurried out into another room and had a good cry. Then he washed his face, got a grip on himself, and said, “Let’s eat.” (Genesis 43: 30-31, Msg) Joseph didn’t cave to what had to be very strong emotions. He obviously had let go of the past. Got it? Let go of the past-plain and simple! “Let’s eat.” Sounds like one who has traction in the moment and able to move on to what’s next in Jesus!

Hezekiah put his whole trust in the God of Israel. There was no king quite like him, either before or after. He held fast to God—never loosened his grip—and obeyed to the letter everything God had commanded Moses. And God, for his part, held fast to him through all his adventures. (2 Kings 18:5-6, Msg)

King Hezekiah was probably one of the most unsung heroes of the Old Testament. He also got it. Hold fast to God and you find out God’s been holding fast to you, even when you thought your life was; well-spinning out of control.

One day when the angels came to report to God, Satan also showed up. God singled out Satan, saying, “And what have you been up to?” Satan answered God, “Oh, going here and there, checking things out.” Then God said to Satan, “Have you noticed my friend Job? There’s no one quite like him, is there—honest and true to his word, totally devoted to God and hating evil? He still has a firm grip on his integrity! You tried to trick me into destroying him, but it didn’t work.” (Job 2:1-3, Msg)

He still has a firm grip on his integrity! Do you and I? Veracity, honor, honesty: would others use these words to describe your impression upon them? They will when we have a firm grip, kind of a ‘toehold’ on our integrity.

Dear friend, take my advice; it will add years to your life. I’m writing out clear directions to Wisdom Way, I’m drawing a map to Righteous Road. I don’t want you ending up in blind alleys, or wasting time making wrong turns. Hold tight to good advice; don’t relax your grip. Guard it well—your life is at stake! Don’t take Wicked Bypass; don’t so much as set foot on that road. Stay clear of it; give it a wide berth. Make a detour and be on your way. (Proverbs 4: 10-15, Msg)

When you go out looking for your old adversaries you won’t find them— Not a trace of your old enemies, not even a memory. That’s right. Because I, your God, have a firm grip on you and I’m not letting go. I’m telling you, ‘Don’t panic. I’m right here to help you.’ (Isaiah 41:12-13, Msg)

And here’s the footing and toehold of traction. [It’s a Good Thing to Hope for Help from God ] I’ll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness, the taste of ashes, the poison I’ve swallowed. I remember it all—oh, how well I remember— the feeling of hitting the bottom. But there’s one other thing I remember, and remembering, I keep a grip on hope. (Lamentations 3:19-21, (Msg)

[He Gets the Last Word] Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does. (1 Peter  5:8-11, Msg)

Getting’ a grip while being gripped! Ron Ross

Minding the Kingdom

"Think about things that are pure and lovely, think about things that are right and true. Dwell on the fine good things in others and think about all you can praise God for. And be glad about it and sing to The Lord. And be glad about it and give thanks to The Lord!"
In the crevices of our memory and in our darker thoughts we are too often drawn to the opposite of Kingdom minding; the pain, the impure, the disfigured, the worst in ourselves or others.
Set your thinking according to the mind of Christ. The invitation of each moment in each new day is the sublime minding of Jesus on the throne of our hearts. Here we can enter into the joyful dance of Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit's shared thought life! As we co-mingle with their Divine thinking we are lifted to places otherwise unknown and certainly not visited enough! Be exhilarated with 'Them' as they are 'minding' together the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.When we enter into and share their thinking we reflect their character.
 ^3-6 "Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God’s Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears." (Phil. 1: 3-6, Msg)

Being renewed while 'minding' the Kingdom, Ron Ross

Some would say, "We’re all capable of heinous acts"-I contend; we are all capable of Jesus sized, love fueled, hope inspiring, generous, grace-filled, merciful acts, behaviors and character. Christ in us, Christ through us! Let it be so! Ron Ross

Jesus-The Worship Leader

Jesus is our worship leader in 2015 by the Holy Spirit. Let’s enter in to the worship and sound of Heaven!

"So let's do it-confident that we are presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching." Hebrews 10: 22-25, Msg.

Hebrews 7: 20-22 and 8: 1-13, Msg.
^20-22 "The old priesthood of Aaron perpetuated itself automatically, father to son, without explicit confirmation by God. But then God intervened and called this new, permanent priesthood into being with an added promise:

God gave his word;
    he won’t take it back:
“You’re the permanent priest.”

This makes Jesus the guarantee of a far better way between us and God—one that really works! A new covenant.

^23-25 Earlier there were a lot of priests, for they died and had to be replaced. But Jesus’ priesthood is permanent. He’s there from now to eternity to save everyone who comes to God through him, always on the job to speak up for them.
^26-28 So now we have a high priest who perfectly fits our needs: completely holy, uncompromised by sin, with authority extending as high as God’s presence in heaven itself. Unlike the other high priests, he doesn’t have to offer sacrifices for his own sins every day before he can get around to us and our sins. He’s done it, once and for all: offered up himself as the sacrifice. The law appoints as high priests men who are never able to get the job done right. But this intervening command of God, which came later, appoints the Son, who is absolutely, eternally perfect."
8 ^1-2 "In essence, we have just such a high priest: (Jesus) authoritative right alongside God, conducting worship in the one true sanctuary built by God.

^3-5 The assigned task of a high priest is to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and it’s no different with the priesthood of Jesus. If he were limited to earth, he wouldn’t even be a priest. We wouldn’t need him since there are plenty of priests who offer the gifts designated in the law. These priests provide only a hint of what goes on in the true sanctuary of heaven, which Moses caught a glimpse of as he was about to set up the tent-shrine. It was then that God said, “Be careful to do it exactly as you saw it on the Mountain.”
^6-13 But Jesus’ priestly work far surpasses what these other priests do, since he’s working from a far better plan. If the first plan—the old covenant—had worked out, a second wouldn’t have been needed. But we know the first was found wanting, because God said,

Heads up! The days are coming
    when I’ll set up a new plan
    for dealing with Israel and Judah.
I’ll throw out the old plan
    I set up with their ancestors
    when I led them by the hand out of Egypt.
They didn’t keep their part of the bargain,
    so I looked away and let it go.
This new plan I’m making with Israel
    isn’t going to be written on paper,
    isn’t going to be chiseled in stone;
This time I’m writing out the plan in them,
    carving it on the lining of their hearts.
I’ll be their God,
    they’ll be my people.
They won’t go to school to learn about me,
    or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.
They’ll all get to know me firsthand,
    the little and the big, the small and the great.
They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven,
    with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.

By coming up with a new plan, a new covenant between God and his people, God put the old plan on the shelf. And there it stays, gathering dust."

According to the New Covenant, Jesus is The High Priest after the order of Melchizedek-His is a Priesthood of Heavenly Worship. Why this matters and what does it mean to our Prophetic call in Worship is following?

In 2015 you are to prophetically connect with the High Priest Worship leader of Heaven; Jesus. Conducting worship in the one true sanctuary built by God. The one true sanctuary is the earthly Body of Christ being led by the Head of the Body-Jesus! Jesus will lead worship (if we let him and enter in by faith) in the New Covenant sanctuary built by God. Notice; "no human intervention is needed" in joining up with Jesus in this Heavenly sanctuary as He Conducts Worship! The sounds and colors of Heaven will dance around us like the Northern lights and the Worship of Angels! Ours is too not neglect the worship of/and with Jesus!
"So let's do it-confident that we are presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching." Hebrews 10: 22-25, Msg.

Ron Ross

Empowered by Grace

Grace enables us to discover who we really are. It empowers us to live in our true identity-to be our true self and live out of the heart Jesus gave us. 'To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you everybody else, means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight, and never stop fighting,'' E.E. Cummings. Live today in the grace to be who He is making you to be! Ron Ross

Quieted in His Love

Ron Ross

There is nothing in our journey quite like being quieted in His love. Have you been? Is this a normal part of your walk with Jesus? All of hell is against this! Fear assaults us daily while stress, anxiety, nervous tension, constant worry and trauma work there insidious plan in our lives. We cannot quiet in His love if focused on these demons. But we must. It is a non-negotiable daily part of our joy in Him. These demons will flee as we quiet in His love!

“There's nothing to fear from evil ever again! God Is Present among You 16 Jerusalem will be told: Don't be afraid. Dear Zion, don't despair. 17 Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you. Happy to have you back, he'll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs. 18 The accumulated sorrows of your exile will dissipate. I, your God, will get rid of them for you. You've carried those burdens long enough. 19 At the same time, I'll get rid of all those who've made your life miserable. I'll heal the maimed; I'll bring home the homeless. In the very countries where they were hated they will be venerated.” (Zephaniah 3:15b-19, Msg) Truly, what marvelous news this is!

“The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior {who saves}! He will rejoice over you with joy; he will rest {in silent satisfaction} and in His love he will be silent and make no mention {of past sins, or even recall them}; he will (instead) exult over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17, Amp)

If you so much as bring up your failures and sins, He will look at you with a question mark. In the silence of His love he makes no mention of them. What more could he do for us to show his unconditional love. Truly He daily quiets us with His love.

He also daily heals the infirmities in our souls; those wounded places that render us weakened and hopeless. His love shores up those parts of our lives were we have languished in silence.

14 We have a great high priest. He has gone up into the heavens. He is Jesus the Son of God. So let us hold firmly to what we say we believe. 15 We have a high priest who can feel it when we are weak and hurting. We have a high priest who has been tempted in every way, just as we are. But he did not sin. 16 So let us boldly approach the throne of grace. Then we will receive mercy. We will find grace to help us when we need it. (Hebrews 4:14-16, NIRV)

The words to this great hymn shed more light as to what He has already done and will always do for you and me!
Could we with ink the ocean fill?
And were the skies of parchment made?
Was every stalk on earth a quill?
And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry?
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Tho stretched from sky to sky.

Your fellowship with God enables you to gain a victory over the Evil One. 15 Don't love the world's ways. Don't love the world's goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. 16 Practically everything that goes on in the world - wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important - has nothing to do with the Father. It (focus on the world system) just isolates you from him.

Truly He daily quiets us with His love. Dive heart first this day into His quieting love!

Quieted in His love, Ron Ross

There is No Plan B!

There is No Plan “B”

"Still, it's what God had in mind all along, to crush him with pain. The plan was that he gives himself as an offering for sin so that he'd see life come from it--life, life, and more life. And God's plan will deeply prosper through him. Out of that terrible travail of soul, he'll see that it's worth it and be glad that he did it. Through what He experienced, my righteous one, my servant, will make many "righteous ones," as He himself carries the burden of their sins.

Therefore I'll reward Him extravagantly--the best of everything, the highest honors--Because He looked death in the face and didn't flinch, because He embraced the company of the lowest. He took on His shoulders the sin of the many; He took up the cause of all the back sheep." Isaiah 53:10-12, (Msg). Where would we be had he not embraced the company of the lowest?

No ear has heard, no eye has seen, no mind can conceive, the wonderful things God has in store for those who love Him. The height, depth, width, and length of Papa's love are way above our ability to fully comprehend. We must simply place the fullness of our faith in Father's love-heart. Jesus, the only begotten Son has embraced all of His adopted brothers and sisters and become our Elder Brother.

As such; He lovingly shares His abundance of life, freedom from the tyranny and punishment of sin, and the making of our lives into what He calls "righteous ones." Today, no matter the circumstances, yours can be a life of life, life, and more life! No more sin consciousness, only love and righteousness consciousness!

What is life, life, and more life? In my experience it is the daily receiving of His life for myself, co-operating with the inner working of His life force in producing abundance of life, and then becoming a channel through which He is able to impart His life to others! He'll see to it that everything is worth it and you will be glad you embraced Him and His plan 'A'.

If you still see yourself as the 'lowest' and a 'black sheep'-then just go ahead and shout and hallelujah to your heart’s content!!! It is your cause He is taking up! Be 'nurtured' by plan 'A'.

In the firm grip of Plan “A”, Ron Ross