…spreading the fragrance of His knowledge…
Scenario 1:
Until I left the area, I used to attend an amazing weekly service a few years back: awesome music, relevant and uplifting word – and the tangible presence of God.
The head pastor – while not as ‘extremely famous’ as some other ministers – is still well known in the country. He is also regarded by some other leaders as a ‘father’: not really in terms of age or spiritual status – but with regards to his heart…
(continued from last post)
(4) Limit Your Communication
A certain man once fell deeply in love with a lady – but there was a major problem. He was far, far away at war. To show the seriousness of his intentions, he decided to write her a letter and mail it – every single day.
At the end of 365 days and after 365 letters, the lady got married – to the mail delivery man…
(3)Don’t Pray With – Or For – The Person. Rather, Pray About The Person.
I know this sounds very strange, but since I am predominantly talking to Christians, this has to be said – and it is so important that I am dedicating this whole post to it.
Usually, before you become emotionally attached – before a person gets past your walls and into your heart – you know. There’s an awareness. It might be gradual or swift, but you know there’s ‘something’ going on.
Years ago, I ‘fell in love’ with someone. I put the phrase in quotation marks because, even though it sounds normal and healthy, it is a gross, laughable understatement.
My feelings were neither normal nor healthy.
I was obsessed. Crazy about him. Overwhelmed and consumed with emotion. Possessed with thoughts of him.
Two points for our groundwork:
(1)A recurring lesson throughout these bootcamps will be: The foundation you both lay as singles in the army will greatly influence – positively or negatively – your marital impact as a unit.
(2)As stated in an earlier post, a major part of any bootcamp is indoctrination. Therefore, as God works in certain areas of your life, He deals with your mindsets and belief patterns in that area…
In a military bootcamp, new recruits are indoctrinated, trained to follow instructions, and undergo rigorous physical fitness training. Three major facts about a bootcamp are:
(1) It is usually intensive or gruelling
(2) It does not last forever
(3) It is meant to prepare the enlisted individual for the main army or war.
If you have not been called to a life of celibacy, your single period will be a series of bootcamps. These bootcamps can be discrete or continuous, occurring sequentially or concurrently – but they have one goal: To prepare you for your role in the family-army these end times.
In Spiritual Bootcamp, God’s major focus will be to Build Spiritual Capacity.
I had always known I was going to write on this topic – experiences and lessons learnt as a mature, single Christian. I had already jotted down the outlines, but I was going to write it (1) as a book, and (2) ‘safely behind matrimonial walls.’
When it dropped into my heart a few months ago to write it now – I thought, “No way. What will people say?! No, Lord.”
(It’s strange how we can join two words that do not belong together: ‘No’. ‘Lord’.)
Debby Osa 