http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog Exploring the Kingdom Sat, 26 Dec 2009 22:46:09 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Ah, the day after the big holiday. The kids  can now play with their toys. The adults can sit around or play with the kids. The shopping and feast preparation stresses are done. In many ways my family enjoys this day after peace more than the event filled Christmas day ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=36 I love this season! We had the annual Christmas pageant yesterday at church. It was fun to see my grandkids, all 4 of them, and so many other members of the church family work together to retell the story of Jesus' birth. I love how the youngest generation is learning ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=35 The topic today is authority versus power. Gary Best reminds us that Jesus’ mind-boggling authority flowed out of his relationship with God the Father. So, for us today the invitation to draw near to God includes the invitation to walk through this day with all the authority of heaven behind ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=34 The difference between authority and power is the topic today. I was reminded of an old illustration. A policeman carries a gun with the permission of the municipality for whom he works. The gun represents power. His badge and the rest of the uniform represent the authority granted him to ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=33 The reading for today is really one of those “where the rubber meets the road” messages. Gary does a good job describing the tension of the already of the kingdom with the not yet. The call is for us to persevere. I am reminded of Ron’s word for us on ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=32 I would like to quote from page 213 of Naturally Supernatural. “Satan’s domination is not so secure or extensive that your situation is hopeless. In fact, the kingdom is already upon all and our salvation is at hand! Every time we cast out a demon or pray for physical sickness ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=31 Freedom, what a great word. Today we read several stories of people experiencing freedom from the oppression of Satan and his demons. Some stories were of quick deliverance and at least one was the telling of a process of deliverance that took 5 and a half years. What the stories ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=30 Wow, truth is powerful. Didn’t you enjoy reading the 2 stories of men who were miraculously set free by God’s truth? Today I want highlight a couple concepts. First, in the very first paragraph of today’s reading Gary shares the key to really knowing the truth. “If we are to ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=29 The assigned reading in Naturally Supernatural for today is on the restoration of Jesus. What an encouragement the whole reading was to me. Jesus has countered every attack and scheme of the enemy, praise God! His, God’s kingdom has come. On page 170 the 3 bullets at the bottom of ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=28 Wow, what a sobering reading today. Gary reminds us that we are at war. He describes the ancient conflict between the kingdoms of darkness and light. Gary points out that Satan’s strategy usually starts with deception, proceeds by appealing to independence from God, then finally to bondage. In the garden ... http://oceansidevineyard.org/clblog/?p=27