Real

All I want is something real
All I need is something real
I don’t need emotion, ecstasy, or fame
I simply need the Eternal, All-consuming flame
To burn…
To baptize…
To cleanse…
To heal…
To lead me in to all things real
That is all I want, that is all I need
Bring forth Your fruit drawn from Your seed
God, burn in me…
Eternally…

K. Duane Carter 12-18-09

Real Life

I have struggled some this Thanksgiving for a variety of reasons. It seems like that recently I have met with multiple disappointments and just frank disasters in life that have gotten me wondering what life is really all about. Now I know there are others that have it much worse than I do, but that isn't the point. The point is what are we all doing here and what is life about? Anyone that knows me well knows that when questions like that strike me, they go deep and I will almost go to any length to find an answer. In the midst of receiving news about friends with cancer, children with brain tumors, people dying, and young people throwing their lives away I had to simply get before God and ask, "What is going on here?" It is very frustrating to me to KNOW that I carry the power of the Living God within me, yet I can't seem to take that out of my chest and put it to use where it seems it is needed most. Yes, I can do the humanly possible things like pray and send cards and encourage people, but I just know in my heart we were made for more than that. When Jesus speaks of abundant life I really know in my heart that He means a life just like He lived, and He lived supernaturally. I told Him today that I feel like I am a man with a key ring that has thousands of keys on it, and some of the keys are locked up in little lockets, and I have a group of hundreds of children with me. We are standing before a great fortress with a huge iron gate, and on the inside is safety and provision for our entire group, and I have the key on that ring to open the gate, but I don't know which one it is. And to add to the drama there is a pack of wild beasts coming full speed at us, fully intending to tear us all apart and devour us. I scream, "God help me find the key!" only to hear silence. Or worse yet someone that is there with me tells me that I have to fix some issue in my life to open up one of the lockets so I can even get access to the keys. So, right here at the point of my greatest frustrations, one of my spiritual moms sends me a devotional that talks of how it is the heartbeat of God and His love that holds the entire universe together. It speaks of how our call is simply to rest with Him and allow His love to fill us, and then just go out and allow that love to flow. This may not sound profound, but it is life-changing. I don't have to "do" something to change the world. All I have to do is walk with Him and stay with Him, and He is powerful and loving enough that the simple act of being with Him will change me into one that is truly alive. His light and His life are what changes the world. I just have to be available for Him to shine through me. I don't know why I can't grasp this simple truth of walking in real life.

Grow Where I am Planted

Trees, lovely and stately
All throughout the mountains
All throughout the valleys
Placed in precision
By the Hand that knows all
And is all
I almost feel like the tree on the ledge
I feel like there isn’t much future for me
I am not placed in the fertile valley
I was placed right on the precipice
But I will grow where I am planted
Because there is a purpose here
Maybe it is to draw the eye to the beauty beyond
Maybe it is to just simply be
Maybe it is to draw the heart to the wonder and adventure that is here
I know not, and I don’t need to know
I simply need to grow
Lord, I grow where I am planted
And thank You for the view…

K. Duane Carter 11-14-09

The Precipice

The Precipice
I sit here at the edge of a precipice
Six inches away from a fall to death
With everything in me telling me I am going to die
All fear and anxiety and foreboding rising up to join the party
Showing me visions of the grisly fall
The grisly landing, and the grisly death
But I refuse to move; I refuse to move
For the view is so grand and so glorious
That I know I am looking at a reflection of God’s glory
And suddenly I sense Him sitting right there beside me
And fear turns to awe, and I know I am not going to die
And even if I do it really won’t matter
Fear and anxiety and foreboding scatter
As He enters with me into a conversation
That has no words
And the meaning of it is so deep I cannot even comprehend it
Yet I know His life is going deep within
I know His life is going deep within
So deep that no devil, no fear, no sin
Will remove it, though they surely are trying
But there is an end to this selfish pity and sighing
And I will just rest here, right on the precipice
I will just stay here resting in the Presence
I will just know that He is tending my heart
Even as I am walking back home

K. Duane Carter 10-20-09

My Dreamers

My Dreamers


I look now as I saw you then
Taking in the sand, the sun and the wind.
And as I often do I now see so much more
Than at the moment that I stood on this beautiful shore

I wish that I had asked you then.
I was not thinking of the time nor when
You would suddenly become men and be free.
I wonder now at what you see:

Do you wonder what dreams are beyond the blue?
Do you ever, ever doubt that I truly love you?
Do you know you make me the proudest one?
Do you stand there and ponder the wonder of Sun?

I hope you stand in wonder with me
That as you grow into men, as you become free
You will see the wondrous works of God’s omnipotent hands
Which are shaping my dreamers that now stand on the sands.

K. Duane Carter 1-1-06

Waking the Dead

I am newly arrived
Got here 40 years ago
With my eyes to the skies
And then as time rolled on
My eyes turned downward
And then inward
And that is where I lost the view
That is where I don’t know me from you
And now I have no clue how to get out of here
I’ve got no prophet, I’ve got no seer
To show me the way
This is my day
Day in and day out
Day in and day out
I walk round and round and round about
In the very same circle
It’s just the smells that get older and older
I look at the autumn leaves of fire
And somewhere inside of me it lights a desire
To go back to that place, that place once again
Before my eyes were turned down
Before my eyes were turned in
And know what it is like to see the sun
And to know its fire
To know the life of a heart of desire
I know it is there
It has got to be there
Because I hear it burning right before my eyes
I feel it stirring, stirring in my chest
Could it be, could it be that it came in my rest
And not from walking around in the circles?
I see a moth, its wings spread wide
It rests upon the screen door outside
And the light does display its wonder
Now I feel the splitting asunder
Of those things that keep me imprisoned within
I see the moth take flight again
And know that is about to happen to me
Set me free, Jesus, set me free

My God, I am alive!! kdc 11-2-09


I apologize for taking the title from the book that I just read, but this poem and the theme of that book are so closely linked that I had to use it that way.

Your Own Back Yard

Sometimes to find God you have to take a walk in your own back yard

You have to quiet yourself, and open your eyes to hear and your ears to see

And you have to listen and let yourself be

And allow Him to make all of the difference

Sometimes He will begin to dig to the roots

And always your heart He will woo and pursue

Whatever He says, whatever He does

You will never leave that place the same

He simply whispers His name

And shows it to you in the colors of fall

He gives you His all

In the picture of the leaves at fall

Yet one has to take that walk in his own back yard

To hear this, to see this at all

K. Duane Carter 10-12-09

Let God Loose

WOW!!! Two months since I've posted anything at all and the world is still moving along!!! Ha! Shows how earthshaking my opinions are, huh?? I will just get to the point. I haven't posted in that time because God has been doing some major overhauling in my heart and soul. I mean MAJOR overhauling. And it is difficult to write when that is going on. Not to mention another thing that has been a major change: we now have our 3 new children from Uganda, and THAT has really been a challenge. Even though the number of children we have increased by 50%, the noise and energy level has gone up about 3000%. Mix all of this in with God revealing to Melissa and I new ways to raise our children, and God really pulling out all of the garbage out of my heart, and you have the perfect recipe for, well, not blogging. I am sensing it is time, though, to start sharing. I think the most incredible thing I have learned over the last 2 months has been that I was living my life completely out of a mindset of fear. Everything I did was fear-based. Everything I was doing to raise my children was fear-based. My relationship with God was fear-based. But God doesn't just show us the garbage and then leave us stinking. He is showing me how to live from love. Now this isn't as easy as it sounds. In fact, when one has been living out of fear for years, there are times when living out of love just seems impossible. But of course, God likes impossible. God shows up in impossible. And that is just what He is doing.

That brings me to something else I am seeing. My relationships with God and my family and my friends are more important to me now than I would have ever imagined. One cannot love in a vacuum. There must be others present there. And here is where I feel like our whole society is coming apart, and where I think the church (the people of God, not a building) MUST rise up and fill in the gap. If you look at our world, relationships are just getting RIPPED. The modern-day church (the organization, not the people) doesn't even come CLOSE to allowing relationships to form and build and bear fruit. We have got to realize that coming together and faking smiles and singing some songs that make us feel good and hearing a sermon isn't changing the world. It is NOT CHANGING THE WORLD. I hope everyone heard that. It isn't. The only thing that is going to change this world is the love of God. God has established the earth for mankind to co-labor with Him. The only way for mankind to get the love of God is to get it through God's mankind. And the only way that happens is through relationships. Relationships cannot be fake. You can't build them in an afternoon handing out tracts. You can't build them with a weak pat on the back and a meaningless response of "I'll pray for ya." They take time, and they take effort, and they take courage, and they take patience, and most of all they take love. I feel like God is really calling His people to begin to really connect. It is time for those who have the love of God burning in their hearts to open up their homes and get together with a small group of others. You don't have to have everything in common. In fact, it's best if you don't. You don't have to "learn" anything except each other's stories. The only "agenda" has to be allowing God's love in to do what it does: Change the world. You don't have to have a Bible degree. Jesus' most significant witness in the New Testament was a demon-possessed maniac who had been born again and delivered all of about one hour, and Jesus sent him out to tell about what Jesus had done for him. The next time Jesus went through that town EVERYONE wanted to see Him, even though the time prior the whole town asked Him to get out. What happened? One man told his story. He changed the world by releasing the love of God. And that is what it is time for us to do. I wonder what would happen in our churches if there were a thriving collection of small groups who all came together and simply released the stories of God's love that were occurring in their groups. I bet we wouldn't be checking our watches wondering if we should eat Mexican or Chinese. I bet we would actually see what happens when we listen to Jesus and simply do what He shows us to do. I bet we would actually begin to EXPERIENCE the love of God instead of just talking about it. That sounds like heaven on earth to me. Let's get together. Let's get real. Let's let God loose. Let's let His love change the world.

Pierced

I see the shafts of light
Piercing the darkness through
The dragon’s head is severed
And light keeps shining through
I see the ocean coming
In a never ending wave
I see the blue skies see it all
And it’s beauty I start to crave
These shafts of light are piercing
Even into me
But darkness now has been destroyed
And I have been set free
The cloud of glory is coming
To rest on this hardened earth
The light, the wind, the water
Will bring it into a glorious birth

And we will know Him in all His glory and wonder

K. Duane Carter 6-22-09

Mystery in the Mist

Mystery in the Mist
I am in the midst of this
A mystery of mysteries in the mist
A mystery of mysteries in the midst
No source of sun, no sign, no direction
No feelings of goodness, no answers to the questions
Only the sense that I am about to be soaked
One atom by one atom at a time
The Mystery will restore my rhyme
Literally saturating my DNA
And as I enter into life’s fray
I won’t understand, but I will know
Gladly into the Mystery I go
I won’t understand, but at least I will know
That gladly into the Mystery I go

K. Duane Carter 6-13-09

Waves and White

Waves and White
I see in this picture a truth from life
Where the sea is the depths of God
And the depths of His glory and love
And when they come so close to this earth
Where they come and join with dirt
A glistening white comes forth
A purity and wonder that is beyond comprehension
Meets in the rocks and the shoals
And the water and the wind
And the picture sends me on my way again
With a heart that knows that in the midst of the turbulence
There is purity and beauty being created
My being, my spirit is satiated
Knowing the depths on my skin
I look and look and look again
And see Him there every time


K. Duane Carter 6-7-09

The Lion Roars
The Ruler of the universe is near

He treads on paws larger than the sun
He is the King and the Glorious One
It is His heart, His heart I seek
He opens up His mouth to speak
And there is just this glorious light
This light that puts my fears to fright
This light that penetrates my soul
This light that says that I am known

By the One who releases it

The Ruler of the universe does roar
His calling makes our spirits soar
He is the King and the Glorious One
His word is brighter than the sun
It is His heart, His heart I seek
And some say He’s lowly, some say He’s meek
But I have seen and heard His roar

And I know that He is God

K. Duane Carter 6-6-09

Arise

Arise
I am treading in very unfamiliar waters
No sign or sun or wonder to follow
Only quiet darkened mists and silence that is hollow
To point and show me the way
I stand still, very still
Because I hear the noises calling
Yet I listen for the voice, the voice
The One that makes my heart rejoice
But I only hear the rumblings
Of the deeper tempests tossed
He led me here, He led me here
I said that I would not, I would not fear
Yet I may have spoken quite prematurely
Yet He led me here, He led me here and surely
He will see me through this place
So I may enter into His embrace
And gaze upon His awesome face
And peer into those deep green eyes
The eyes of my Love and my Friend
Within them the joy it never does end
At least so I am told
I have come on this pilgrimage to be so bold
As to find out for myself
I want to know just for myself
If He is all He is said to be
If He is the One Who can set me free
From all of this fear and all of this indifference
And here I stand face to face
With those very things
Surrounding me, speaking to me,
Drawing nearer and nearer
The surroundings are dark and could never be clearer
This is the place for the Springs to arise
This is the place to look into His eyes
I sit and I wait for Him to arrive
And enjoy the sounds of the water beginning to rise

K. Duane Carter 6-4-09

Sound

Sound

Sound is a release of energy

It is the spark of God hidden in things

Released when they are put under tension

And then plucked or moved or breathed upon

The sound is a picture you see with your ears

A picture of His energy and will

A contrast of His silent still

His secrets are within it

Our minds can’t comprehend it

But our hearts surely can

It is the honor of man

To hear it and know that He is God

K. Duane Carter 5-25-09

I wrote this as my seven-year old played with a rubber band. He was just playing and strumming away, and the message just came to me. I am beginning to realize that the mysteries of God are much more satisfying than the cold, hard answers of earth. I would never demean or belittle what God has allowed man to accomplish through science and historical study and math, etc. because all of these display His order and His great intellect. Yet, it is His mystery that I am finding is so beautiful because it requires me to become closer to Him. It requires me to be more intimate with Him, and I find this much more wondrous. Thank You Father, that you reveal Your secrets to children!! Thank You that You draw us closer with Your mystery.

Conqueror

Conqueror
Something much bigger than all of us is bringing us together
Drawing us from all parts of the world, all parts of society
Drawing us into itself and thus into each other
Something that has been forever known to change the world
But is rarely shown
Something that has freed men and women and children from slavery
Something that has conquered disease and even death
It is drawing us, wooing us, calling for us, longing for us
And it is Love.
It is Love.
Love conquers all

K. Duane Carter 5-13-09

Wow. Two months since I have posted anything at all. I have my reasons, but I will have to wait until later to explain them. I have basically spent the last 2 months of my life having God give me a complete overhaul. Now please don't misunderstand me. I know He isn't finished, but I am definitely not the same person I was just a couple of months ago. The changes He has made are beyond my reasoning, so I can't really do a good job writing it out right now. Maybe one day I'll be able to look back and find the words, but I'm kind of hoping that I don't. I think the biggest change in me has been my losing the need to know the answer and embracing the mysterious side of God. God owes me no explanations, and I am happy to trust Him and love Him even in those places where I have no idea what He is up to and where it even seems like He is absent. I will have no opportunity to praise Him in heaven during times of loss, disappointment, and confusion. I have that opportunity here and I will not waste it. I've spent so much time and energy in my life looking for answers, and all He wanted me to do was to sit at His feet and love Him. So that is where I am at. I may seem a little more care-free, and I may seem even disinterested, but I only care about what He cares about. I am definitely losing my "serious" side. I'm tired of having to be serious with God. He laughs a lot. He is joy. He is happiness. He is peace. That doesn't sound somber to me, so why do I have to be somber every time I do something "spiritual"? That's another thing He has taught me. My whole life is spiritual. It's not just church. It's not just something I do. It is who I am. I am His. I am always with Him, and He is always with me. I can worship anytime, in any place, and in many ways. And I don't even have to be serious about it. So if you see me in church during prayer with my eyes wide open looking up to the ceiling, don't be offended. I just simply refuse to be confined by religious rules and somber rituals. Plus I want to see Him smiling on me, because that is what He does all the time. Sorry, I've gone long. I pray He brings all of us into His love, because when He does that He brings us all into Himself, and that is truly heaven on earth. Father, let Your kingdom come, let Your will be done on this earth right now as it is in heaven right now. I love You.

Trilogy

Trilogy

Light
I see the shadows shifting
Moving across my window pane
The dancing of light in moving motion
It travels down the lane
The moving speaks of time and times
That sing and dance all around
Just what you think is moving up
Is really coming down
As His goodness showers us all

Wind
I cannot see You, I cannot see You
Yet I see You move in what You do
The swaying branches, the rustling leaves
The golden harvest in browning sheaves
The movements, the motions, the sounds, the dance
They level and flatten all mere circumstance
I see You, I see You in all that You do
I see You, I see You making all of me new

Water
The power of droplet, and the cleansing of wave
Universal solvent meets the passion of love
That washes over and over and over again
It cleanses what will be, it cleanses what has been
Even cleansing what is and what is now
Though I know it with my brow
I still cannot comprehend, no, I still cannot comprehend
But I drink it in.

I drink it in

K. Duane Carter
3-19-09

Cage of Lights

Cage of Lights

I am sitting in a cage of lights
Yet pretending I am unseen
Looking out at those looking in
And wondering what it means
I sit here in my sleeping dreams
Releasing all of my doubt
I wonder when the Sun will rise
And cast the darkness out
I am sitting in the silent noise
That speaks but doesn’t say
I am wandering as a little boy
Just wondering how to pray
I live in a land of wonder here
And when I open up my eyes
I hear the sunlight coming through
My heart is mesmerized

I am free


K. Duane Carter

3-16-09

The Mystery in a Rose

Σπιριτυαλ

there is something fascinating about the rose
that not even quantum physics can quite explain
though it seems to be getting closer and closer
just like we could be doing
if we would simply allow ourselves to see what is real
instead of seeing with our eyes

there is a mystery here in the subtle depths
there are patterns and contrasts that point to God
there is a picture of a never-ending promise of love
that continues to unfold and unfold and unfold and unfold
just like the string theory

there is something fascinating about the rose
that not even quantum physics can quite explain
yet we get closer and closer and closer
rather He gets closer and closer and closer
so we can see what is Real
instead of what we see with our eyes


K. Duane Carter

3-13-09

Color of Light

Color of Light
I see color now in mixed array
I see light now joining in the fray
I see goodness flowing in it all
I see darkness falling in a glorious fall
I see mercy flowing over me
I see grace now rising from a tree
I see green and yellow and red and blue
I see light and know that I’m seeing You
I see roses and daisies and flowers of spring
I see beauty and stillness and in You everything
I see lilies and buttercups and flowers of spring
I see beauty and stillness and in You everything

K. Duane Carter
3-11-09

Picture of God

I see God in this picture
First in its mystery that some would say
This isn’t in focus, the camera did sway
But no, it did not, there was simply delay

And the lens captured God in the moment

We see Him through glass and darkly at that
But He is here, He is here and today as I sat
And I saw Him my heart did leap up with glee
Because He had chosen to give His picture to me

I see Him in rock, I see Him in water
I see Him in light and all other matter
I see Him in the flowing, I see Him in the still
I see Him amongst us in the wonder of will
I see Him in the contrasts of shadows and light
I see Him in the depths and in the midst of my sight

As I ponder this picture I could go on and on
But I will give you time to see Him
And to sing your own song

K. Duane Carter
3-1-09

The Great Exchange

It has been a while since I have blogged because I frankly have been struggling with who I am and where I am and what I am supposed to be doing, and it is very difficult to write in the midst of a battle. It all started with a trip to a marriage conference with my wife, and as God is prone to do, He addressed way more than my marriage. He plunged into the depths of me and brought up what was there and I was none too proud of it all. In fact it made me mad because I thought all of that stuff was “under the blood of Jesus” and gone and forgotten. He quickly showed me how it was still affecting the way I act and think and respond to others (including my wife), and that even though Jesus had paid the price for its removal I had simply hidden it all away instead of allowing Him to take it away. In fact, I was lying to myself thinking it was gone when it manifested itself every day in the way I acted and lived. I then spent some time in sheer drudgery and in even more anger because I began to rehash through all of my old stuff, but I forgot that God is found in conversations and not in mere introspection, so that opened the door for the accuser to come in and just hammer me. Finally, God got my attention and gently reminded me that He is often found in the conversations of life, in the face-to-face interactions with others that I so rarely enter into and even more rarely seek out. He began to show me that if I would simply listen to what He has to say, that His truth was more than adequate to set me free. Even deeper than that was the fact that the truth was found in the seeking itself; that is, in my simply being present with Him and before Him, I am being transformed. In other words, I don’t have to work to be perfect anymore. I can actually be honest before Him and give Him all of my failure and heartache and loss and allow Him to give me Himself. WOW! It’s no wonder it is called “the great exchange!” So, that is the point today. I had to learn that God doesn’t want me to clean up before I can approach Him. Rather, He saw me off in the distance dirty and stinking and covered in pig filth, and He ran to me. And before I could even explain what had happened and what I had done, He was looking at me and saying, “Bring the best clothes, put the ring on his finger, and let’s have a big party! My boy is home!” THAT is God. That is how He responds to me right in the midst of my garbage. And that is how He responds to you, too.

Western Civilization's Biggest Blunder

We modern people think we know so much of the natural world, yet we hardly know anything at all. Think about the depth of knowledge and wisdom from the subatomic world and then expand that into the vastness of the universe. Think of the wonder of the cellular world and then expand that wonder into the majesty of the humpback whale. Think of the diversity of ecosystems around the world and all that it takes in winds and weather patterns to keep this all in balance. Yet God knows and understands all of this. All of this falls within His field of expertise which is, well, everything. And then go on to consider that even in the midst of all the wonder of the natural world, there is a spiritual one that is even greater and more magnificent than the natural one. Here is our greatest deficit, and the west’s greatest blunder. To our utter detriment, we have almost completely ignored the spiritual world. Sadly we have ignored it to the point of even denying it exists. Why? The answer is because we cannot use rationalism to discover it; the scientific method is powerless here. So instead of searching out how to discover it, we have ignored it, or worse denied its existence, and this has caused us tremendous loss. We have ignored the world where our true purpose lies, where our true meaning is, and where we truly live. We have completely lost touch with this spiritual world because we have been taught that if the scientific method cannot discover a thing or demonstrate a concept, then it therefore doesn’t exist.
So we have died as human beings, and we have become mere animal. In a way, Nietzche was right: we have “killed” God. What is more right is we have killed our capacity to know Him.
But God is not dead. No, He is alive and well. Not only is He alive and well, but also He is in quite a good mood. He is in such a good mood that He is ready to unleash His goodness into the earth. Those who are ready spiritually will see Him, those who are not will try to explain it all away. To be ready for Him we must be ready for a spiritual world. We must realize that God is far and above the scientific method. That is one thing that has completely baffled me about the embracers of naturalism. Why would anyone want or need a God that could be boiled down by the scientific method? He would be no better than us. And why base the entire meaning and purpose of life in the scientific method? Why? The scientific method cannot discover ANYTHING beyond itself. It is limited in its scope. It is a powerful method, yes, but it is limited nonetheless because it is bound by the observation of limited man. And even if the knowledge of man obtained by science reaches incredible peaks and we can explain emotions and behavior and thought and soul, it will still not be able to touch the spiritual world at all. And because the scientific method cannot touch the spiritual world at all, then it cannot be used to prove that the spiritual world does not exist. Even simple logic shows a universal negative cannot be proven, so we cannot cry “the spiritual world doesn’t exist” because science cannot touch that world and it therefore cannot comment on its existence.
We have suffered tremendously as a people for ignoring the spiritual world. In our quest for knowledge (which isn’t necessarily evil in and of itself) we have ignored the very world where the deepest mysteries and greatest wisdom reside. We have ignored the world where God Himself dwells, and we can readily see the results of ignoring this world by looking at our cities and their spiritual and moral dilapidation even in the midst of growing material splendor. As the glory of steel and money and luxury increase, so do the terrors of murder, theft, divorce, drug abuse, and child abuse.
So when are we going to wake up? When are we going to see that in order to meet the world’s needs we are going to have to enter into the place where science and humanism cannot possibly lead us? When are we going to begin to ponder the existence of better and more incredible worlds and beings? And in that quest when are we going to begin to see that we have missed the mark on an incredible scale? When are we going to see? When are we going to see?

Time for Reformation

Time for Reformation
Everywhere I go there is a dissatisfaction with what we have all been taught about God and church. Everywhere I go I talk to people of all colors and social classes and the talk is the same: there has got to be more than this. I believe that God is helping me to see why.
The enemy has so far succeeded in creating a religious society within “Christian” nations that in most places one cannot differentiate between the “real” Christian and simply a religious person. There is no visible difference because there is no visible power, so therefore people come to the logical conclusion, based on their premise and their experience, that Christianity is not for real and it is no different than any other religion. See, people are looking at a structure that the enemy built and put the label “God’s House” on it, so they look at it and rightly say, “That is not God.” So people say, “Heck with this” and they just live the best they know how. Those people are not full of evil intent, they are simply speaking what they see. They are simply living out what they have been shown. In other words they are in the dark because the light has never been shown to them. They have HEARD about it, but they have never SEEN it. Some people know deeply within them that God is for real, but that is all they have to cling to as they struggle through their lives. They believe He is for real, but they are never led to really experience Him. If the church of Jesus wants to see a transformation then we must undergo a reformation. Not an awakening, not a renewal, not necessarily a revival, but a reformation. This reformation will be where God Himself forms us into a loving and radiant bride for His Beloved Son. She is to be perfect, spotless, and without blemish. She is to be the perfect match for the Perfect King. That word “radiant” is there for a reason. Radiant things emit light and that is what a world of darkness needs. Yet God must be the author of such a work. No work of man could ever achieve this place of intimacy with God, nor could any work of man, no matter how extravagant and costly, ever put us into that place where He longs for us to be, emitting the light of His love. When we arrive there, the enemy will have no ability to counterfeit God’s intimacy with us. God is love and God Himself cannot be counterfeited. Sure, the enemy will have his alternatives, yet just like when the magicians of Pharoah stated, “This must be God for no one can do miracles like this” so will the reformation of the church be.
This reformation is not God’s call for the distant future. It is not to come to be in the millennial “sweet by-and-by.” It is not for us to simply say, “That is for heaven after I die.” NO. It is for now. The responsibility is on us for now. We can no longer ignore the promises of God that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea, nor can we ignore our Lord’s commands (not suggestions, not requests, COMMANDS) to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons, and spread the good news of the kingdom to the poor. We have changed His commands to our simple deeds of pray for the sick, comfort the survivor of the dead, give medicine to the leper, ignore the demonic or send them to the psychiatrist, and tell the poor about their future in heaven. I wish God would have destroyed this false gospel much sooner than He is going to, but I would probably not be here if He had. Yes we are to do good works, but they are to be the works that the Father has ordained, not the ones we simply achieve with our good planning, fund raisers, and organizational skill. Many cults and religious organizations can do that. It is time for those who call Jesus Lord to let Him be. It is time for those of us Who God has named “Son and Daughter of the Living One” to be just that. The time for reformation is upon us and many people are crying out for it to be birthed. Congratulations! You have been chosen. You are a part of making history!

Spontaneity

Spontaneity
Time for some spontaneity
And in that statement is no spontaneity at all
For it is bound within earth and time
And schedules and pressures and all sorts of rhyme
That even takes the spontaneity out of the spontaneous
And turns it into rigid rules
Where life dies
The phone rings again
Bringing up a spirit of sin
I am so sick of the ring
That would change if I would sing
The goodness and graciousness of God
Instead of the praise of the devil, which is complaining
Complaining is praise in reverse
Where my entire being grows terse
And my health and my happiness fade
My heart turns as cold and hard as jade
But isn’t nearly that colorful or beautiful
And it smells bad too.
I say I long for the new
Yet I am not willing to choose to walk in it
Until now when the spirit was able to overcome my brow
And the Light of the universe let out a spark
That quenched the hot and fiery dart
That the complaining spirit had in me
My spirit now set free
Will release a “thank You” to the only One
His light much brighter than the sun
It even makes my jaded heart turn warm
It turns from stone to flesh
And the aroma of Jesus starts to rise
It reaches my spirit, reaches my eyes
And I can finally see that what is bothering me
Is nothing in His presence
I have His life, I have His essence
And there is nothing else I want or need
His life is the very wondrous seed
That I want planted in me
In good soil that grows a hundred fold
In a good heart that lives and never grows old
Plant it deeply, Lord,
Plant it deeply
I receive it freely, I give it freely
Plant it deeply, Lord,
Plant it deeply
I receive it freely, I give it freely


K. Duane Carter
1-3-09