My sister and I helped our mom celebrate her 85th birthday in Ireland last week thanks to my sister and her husband whose generosity made it all possible. The weather was great and the scenery was beautiful. We had a blast exploring castles and other fascinating relics and ruins, some of which had watched over 900 years come and go. We enjoyed rich fellowship in the home of a precious couple I first met two years ago when close to one hundred people gathered from around the world to share their journeys outside the box of organized religion.

And as sometimes happens, Father had a little surprise for me when we made a spontaneous stop at a bed and breakfast halfway around the Ring of Kerry on our way to Waterford. A sign that read “The Father’s House” had caught my sister’s eye as we were driving by. After unpacking our bags and exploring the premises, we were relaxing in the atrium when the husband of the couple that ran the place joined us and began telling me about my life. He had been busy elsewhere when his wife checked us in, so we didn’t even know one another’s name, but it was obvious that Father had let him in on some things about me.

The upshot of this little encounter was that Father made me aware of some lingering grief and recent disappointment that had clouded my vision and diminished my perspective on the greatness of God in certain aspects of my life. I had let some precious things he had given me become dormant. He let me know that it was time to move on. Though he alone can turn the page, I must take the initiative
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I share this having met others on this journey who, like me, have become passive in certain areas of their life. False expectations, failed self effort and the life sapping consequences of performing for others have killed god given dreams and made so many afraid to move in those places. But perhaps it’s time to close the page on the past and, as Paul instructed Timothy “stir up the gift within” while trusting Father for the good things he’s already prepared.

David F

Posted: July 3rd, 2009 under General.
Comments: none

I read something the other day that reminded me of a conversation I had with a brother about God’s direction. He said he was waiting on the Lord for direction. I thought about his statement. It seemed odd to me. It’s not that I’m against waiting on Father for direction. It was the since of detachment I felt when he said it. If there is one thing that freedom brings to an embraced child of Father, it’s the end of that sense of detachment where you’re waiting for that telegram from heaven as to the next step to take.

Going back to what I read, the author pointed out how Paul had the fire of outreach in his heart. Clearly Christ said “Go!” He wanted to go to Asia but the Spirit held him back. He wanted to go to Bithynia, same thing. It was the Spirit that dialed him in to go to Macedonia. We may not always get immediate answers from Father, but isn’t it cool how the Holy Spirit keeps us tuned in to the timing of the season that we’re in, attached.

bob humphrey

Posted: June 29th, 2009 under General.
Comments: none

The battle for the throne of God. Satan was cast down for trying to ascend to the throne of God, and has never really stopped trying. He’s just changed his tactic, his direction. He’s been after the one place outside of heaven where God has chosen to dwell… in the hearts of people. Think about it. Why would Satan have targeted Adam & Eve? Why did he show up personally to try to thwart Jesus’ plan of redemption? The hearts of people is the goal, the conquest. Knowing this, it is no wonder that religion has been the primary method satan has used to capture the throne of people’s lives.

bob humphrey

Posted: June 26th, 2009 under General.
Comments: none

This topic has really gripped me recently. It’s one thing to know something and another to live it. There’s no way that you can you can know what it means to be incarnational without living it. But living the incarnational life means that your not living life on your own. Knowing the reality of Christ in you w/o religious obligation sets you free like nothing you’ve ever experienced.

The whole topic of ‘detoxing’ from religion is getting you used to freedom. What a concept. I recently had a couple of opportunities to see this reality take place. I helped a friend out at the last minute the other day that ended up with me being a part of a Gay Pride parade.

Are you kidding me? Nope.

Not a token part either. I was on a float in the parade! (I’m not the guy with the cowboy hat) It wasn’t until a few hours later that I understood why Father had me there. At a critical moment when the trailer we were towing came off the hitch, Father had me there to be the only one that was able to jump into the situation to get us safely where were heading. Later I realized how much Father was showing his love to the driver by having one of his kids there to help him out at his critical time. Incarnational living isn’t flashy, it’s just being Christ where ever you are.

bob humphrey

Posted: June 21st, 2009 under General.
Comments: 3

Lately I’ve received emails, read articles and had many conversations about the way our freedom and future are being threatened by the direction of the current US administration. Passionate frustration and a sense of helplessness seem to be running rampant among many Christians today. What to do is always the big question.

Maybe the focus of such passion is misdirected.

It’s interesting to me that Jesus and the writers of the epistles always focused on the inner disposition of his followers as the key to freedom. Paul exhorted the Galatians to stand firm in the freedom for which Christ set us free and to never again submit to the burden of slavery that comes with trying to be righteous through our own efforts. He even went so far as to say that those who tried to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ and fallen from grace! And he warned them to beware of those who tried to force their own legalistic beliefs on others.

I like this statement of Oswald Chambers: “We are called to present liberty of conscience, not liberty of view. If we are free with the liberty of Christ, others will be
brought into that same liberty – the liberty of realizing the dominance of Jesus Christ.”

I think if our passion is for Christ to be our life as we use our freedom to serve one another in love, the power of his life through us will have a greater impact on society than we can imagine. And if there’s anything specific he wants us to do, it will be accomplished through his power rather than our feeble and frustration fueled efforts.

David F

Posted: June 16th, 2009 under General.
Comments: 2

But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God–and righteousness and sanctification and redemption– 1Co 1:30

I’ve recently been reading stories of how believers have left the institutional mindset of utilizing their gifts for ‘Christian Ministry’ and began to actually believe what Paul was writing to the Corinthians in the above passage for their everyday lives. Father has placed the treasures of wisdom within us through our union with Christ to impact and be a catalyst in whatever circumstance we find ourselves in.

We have underwhelmed the world with our religious piety. I’m excited about being his wisdom displayed in the cross-current of our culture as Paul also wrote to the Roman believers “faith expressing itself in love”. But here’s the kicker, I’m not doing it to defend or burnish a rustic system, I’m just doing it with Father.

bob humphrey

Posted: June 12th, 2009 under General.
Comments: 1

Stanislav Mishin, a blogger and columnist for the Russian newspaper Pravda recently wrote a very sobering article regarding “America’s decent into Marxism”. He first asserts that “the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather than the classics”. After expounding on that, he goes on to make his second point:

“Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different “branches and denominations” were for the most part little more than Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more than happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the “winning” side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the “winning” side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power.”

I heartily agree, except to state my belief that the path this country has taken reflects the condition of the church first rather than second. Harvard, Yale, Princeton and most other great institutions of learning were founded as Christian universities where presidents, scientists and pastors were educated. But beginning in the 1870’s, Christians adopted a stance of “pietistic withdrawal”. The line between secular and sacred was ever more widened to the point that Christians no longer engaged the world around them. So secular humanists soon filled the vacancies in the areas of education, technology, the arts, media, and politics.

Now the pendulum has swung back the other way. The problem is that the “church” as an institution can never engage the world on an incarnational basis, and can therefore only seek its favor and power. Hardly the “winning side”.

But God will not lose. When all of our religious efforts, hyper “faith” and dead works have failed we may struggle with passivity. Yet Father loves to partner with those who have hope in nothing and no one else but him. And he always seems to use the few, the small, often the despised and the sometimes hidden to change the course of history.

I think he’s probably preparing a Gideon’s army that hasn’t the slightest clue of what their part is or what’s about to happen next. But they know who they trust and are convinced that he’s holding the winning hand.

David F

Posted: June 9th, 2009 under General.
Comments: 3

You know with all of the rampant political/economic changes ushering in a storm unlike anything we’ve ever seen before, it causes you to be still and find out what’s on Father’s heart for you. It would be easy to go Saul on the situation, or curl up and go Ahab on the situation. But I prefer how Jesus responded when satan offered him the kingdoms of this world in exchange for bowing to him: “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”

Jesus knew who he was, and who he was related to. He was just reminding satan what he had lost.

bob humphrey

Posted: June 5th, 2009 under General.
Comments: 1

Recently I was talking to a young woman who once had a seemingly solid relationship with Father but is now wandering down a path that can only lead to pain for herself and those who love her. In choosing to ignore the values she once lived by, she explained that she has to “find herself.”

It would seem that Identity crisis is at level red now days. Just read the bumper stickers. People are eager to slate themselves with everything from being a smooth haired dachspoodle owner to a Christian American.

Some desperate folks live vicariously through sports heroes, movie stars and rock idols.
I use the word ‘desperate’ because who and what one believes they are, sets the goals and determines the meaning and destiny of their life.

But the sad thing is that most Christians have greater issues with grasping the essence of who they are than many that don’t know Christ. They’ve been mentored by religion which has stolen their true identity and then fragmented it further by slotting them in sub-categories such as AOG, Baptist, Catholic and on down through the alphabet.

Being crucified with Christ, buried with him and raised with him into a heavenly kingdom remains a vague concept of which adherents of religion haven’t a clue. The fact that this kingdom stands in direct opposition to the religious system with which they identify is a stark reality of which they are completely unaware.

Some may never “find themselves” but Father knows each one and has a way of opening the eyes and turning the hearts of those who hunger for him. We all know sincere people who’ve been deceived and stolen from by religion. The Spirit has a way of revealing and killing every trace of religion left in us as we identify with Christ alone. I don’t doubt that Father moves in concert with our prayers for those still in bondage.

David F

Posted: May 31st, 2009 under General.
Comments: 2

I wanted to give a little update about the FRM website. We just added a Movie Review section to the site. It was something that we had thought about awhile back because of our total frustration with other “Christian Movie Review” websites that contain those simplistic reviews that must fit in the context of the IC media template. Another motivation nudging us onward was the recognition of how many movies contained within the subtext of the story a variety of messages of people desiring real relationships; freedom from institutional religion; people wanting to know God without religious obligation, freedom from the pain the IC had inflicted on them or their family; allegories and hints about the unconditional love Father God must really have for us. I’m sure you can think of many more. In fact if you have a review or movie that you’d recommend let me know and I’ll add it to the list. The idea is to grow the list regularly.

Another addition is to the forums. I’ve expanded the movie topic section to include recommendations and non-recommendations. Also movies that had an impact on you. With so much junk out there, it’s nice to find out about some of the good stuff that’s shining in the darkness.

Also check out the new page with photos and video from David’s recent trip to Singapore

bob humphrey

Posted: May 27th, 2009 under Website news.
Comments: 1