The Hand Of The Lord Upon My Life.
This blog is about the first division - my early life as a Christian, and it is for the purpose of retaining the blessings of the Lord in my life of years gone by. The Lord calls us from all walks of life. It still dumbfounds me after all these years how the most unlikely to be saved accept Christ - i was one of those. I truly was and am an infinitesimal insignificant speck of humanity with no pedigree of fame, fortune, reputation, or hope to extrapolate myself from a degenerate life. As you look at my life and despise any aspect of it - it is on me; if you see the operation of any virtue - you are beholding the work of Christ.
My Lord's promise that He would never leave me nor forsake me is fulfilled until this very day. A song that i learned as a new Christian is readily bouncing around in my heart this very moment - "Through It All, I've Learned to Trust in Jesus". My life lends itself into a threefold division to date - the productive years (God willing), the great divorce, and life after that death (productive also). This is an extension of my personal biography and testimony (which see at http://www.christianblog.com/bio/bimonics).
The evening was March 19, 1971. A black preacher was painting a gruesome picture of Jesus on the cross. This young rock musician was moved upon by the Holy Spirit. Raised on public evolution, humanism, and naturalism; what was this sense of wind and water that i felt? Jesus was revealed in my spirit and penetrated my soul's most inward part. I was changed from the inside out. The hand of the Lord was upon my life.
Through the next twenty-eight years God saw fit to expose me to a wide variety of people, places, and ministries. The ups and downs of a spiritual journey had begun, both inwardly and outwardly. The experience was one of pursuing the Father, leaning on Jesus, and standing amazed at the continual presence of the Holy Spirit.
The 'Youth for Christ' organization was the instrument of my salvation. The Methodist Church back home did not really know what i meant by 'meeting Jesus'. The local Assembly of God church drew my loyalties, and soon after there was the joy of being baptized in water and in the Holy Spirit. A ceremony of holy matrimony was experienced exactly one year after i met Christ. My first pastor tearfully left his position shortly after that time and left this zeal filled novice in charge in his place. There was conflict present inwardly and outwardly that was beyond my power of understanding.
Onward to Sandpoint Idaho to serve as a Youth Pastor. This early 70's midsized Assemblies of God church was a new world of wonder to me. This assignment was cut short by forces larger than i, and i was forced to make some decisions. The next obvious step was to find some training for ministry. Trinity Bible Institute was a fine choice. The cold, treeless, German owned landscape of North Dakota was a shock to this boy from a mountain timber culture.
One year of school was enough for a presumptuous one - who knew little about the inner battle with self-righteousness and pride. There was however an innocent zeal, the energy of being young, a growing faith, and the ever present Holy Spirit also at work. In that one year however there was a man rightly named Paul, who possessed a profound gift and opportunity to teach the Bible in ways i never deemed possible - impacting the rest of my life.
The New Rockford Assembly of God invited me to be their Pastor. The life of a small town pastor proved to be a difficult and patient work. The Lord be praised for the fruitful labor of those days in spite of the lack of experience. After one year i allowed myself to be recruited by some friends to pursue 'missions'. The Lord used my choice to expose me to several different types of ministries that i could not have even imagined existed and to bring an end of self as it existed then. The hand of the Lord was on my life.
Santa Cruz was a dramatic contrast to North Dakota. Bethany Bible College was supercharged with spiritual activity. A local Pentecostal Church of God congregation received me as an assistant pastor. There was at that time for me a growing family, a new role in ministry, a part-time job, and a full-time college student part to play. Life was full and exciting with so many ministries and opportunities, with so little time. I stayed long enough to qualify for the next stop.
Arlington Texas was where Bible translators were being trained. This was a world apart from previous ministry concepts. Full-time college, full-time night shift at a convenience store, and full-time as a family man was quite a challenge and could not be sustained. The Wycliffe missions board required much more than one semester of linguistics regardless of aptitude or desire. Zeal and resourced dried up. Responsibilities in marriage, fatherhood, and fulfilling a call from God seemed impossible. Was this discouragement and defeat? The hand of the Lord was not empty - "Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me".
Married now for five years and not a clue about the dynamics involved, the father of two little girls and another one on the way - the Lord spoke clearly, "your new and only present ministry is marriage and family". Here i must skip over the temptation to write about many life lessons born out of being forced to grow up and my responses to the discipline and instruction of the Lord in real life - for many lives of family, friends, and fellow Christians were by this time intersected with mine and several of those lives were those of my beloved children.
A complete circle around Mt. Sinai brought me back to my home county, into a town called Weed, California where i found my old job again at the sawmill. We joined a controversial fellowship that had moved into the area. The Lord allowed us a close and personal view of the Shepherding movement of the late 70s. What an experiment of the power and danger of doctrinal extremes applied to the lives of young families. The Lord preserved us as we concentrated on the basics. The timber industry changed dramatically, the local economy was shaken - my sawmill job came to an abrupt end.
Jobs were available in Alaska! The Alaskan adventure was physically extreme. The drive alone from my home town was 3,102 miles through seemingly endless forest and terrain. The church of choice there (Abbot Loop Christian Fellowship) presented and unfamiliar form of church government. Meanwhile most of the fellowship of family and friends back home moved to Hawaii. We responded to an invitation for employment and ministry in Hawaii.
Hawaii was yet another different environment for me. I now belonged to Covenant Christian Fellowship and worked for a company formed by the church. My pastor and boss were one and the same person. The Lord was exposing me to a business ministry experiment. The experiment was ultimately a failure, but some good things came out of it and i was made aware of the contracts that underlie most exchanges in life. Also, i now felt the impact of the issues of free will, legitimate authority, true submission, vested interest, ministry recognition, and a host of other things applied to life. To this very day i see these issues played out in the lives of individuals, local churches, and entire denominations.
The Lord reminded me of His call; taking me back to a wooden fence, a guitar, a meadow at sunrise, a small soft voice, and a call to forsake all and follow Him - it was a call to full-time ministry, although i perceived it then as something other than it is. A move to California's Capital seemed best at the time. Capital Christian Center was strong and blessed, like an oasis in the desert. She was thriving with a great variety of activities and ministries. The Lord had stabilized and strengthened me as i discovered the value of practical humility.
House painting was the trade that allowed me to support my growing family. We were now a family of eight. A ministry position became available at Sabastapool California. We were baptized deeply into children's ministries at that church. The pastor literally started and established Sunday School and midweek classes using and serving my family. We were glad to be involved in any and every way. We were avid home schoolers and began to press for depth and quality in that area of life.
The move to Guerneville California to pastor a struggling home-mission church was an act of faith. I was warned against moving my family there because of the homosexual, lesbian, and immoral activities for which the area had a notorious reputation. The church attendance tripled when we arrived - when you consider that there were four people in the church and we were a family of eight. Many Christians who found Jesus during the 'Jesus People Movement' of the 70s joined together with us to form a great little local church. The Lord allowed us (by His kindness) to reach and minister to young people, tourists, and the gay community.
Years later i said goodbye to two children (now young adults) when i resigned from the church and moved to San Antonio Texas. I found a job working nights in a dangerous part of the city, all along entertaining the idea of inner-city missions. We attended a unique mid-size southern style Assembly of God church. Through our friends we were allowed a close-up view of the internal workings of the modern day Prophetic Movement. We also had opportunity to visit many large and diverse ministries in that city.
Eventually we relocated to Redding California which was mainly about being around family - our aging parents and extended family. Bethal Assembly was quite a contrast to Faith Assembly of San Antonio. The contrast was not in the size or denomination, but rather in the dynamics of the spiritual atmosphere. Not to claim that one was better than the other (for who can or should judge such things?), but rather just marking the contrast. Working in a group home for difficult boys was an eye opening experience and education. Such a humanistic approach and application to their problems was troubling, to say the least. The practical skills gained however, and a clear view of human need was invaluable and adaptable to ministry.
Happy Camp is in the wilderness. There are few California towns that are as remote. I can identify more than ever with that large body of Christian literature relating to monastic life after that experience. The community was slowly shrinking because of the closing of the once thriving lumber industry in the area. Remarkably there were five evangelical churches that continued to operate in a town of about 800 people. The biggest shock and blessing was the adjustment to quietness. Gone were the many years of small children bustling about. The hand of the Lord was and is upon my life - He has a calendar of days for each of us.
The Lord in His goodness has allowed me to meet many people, see many places, and to serve in many ways. He has allowed me to experience and observe a wide spectrum of expressions of His Kingdom - up close and personal. What does He have in store for the remainder of this passing life? I quietly wait. I quietly rejoice in prayer.
Some of my richest experiences during these times came from things that i had to do and often times hated doing. Many of these things were mixed up with certain necessary employments to meet my responsibilities and stay off the infidel list.
I've held jobs as a bus-boy in restaurants, a cashier in various stop-n-robs, a choker setter in the woods, a lead guitarist in a rock band - in a traveling gospel band, a gas station attendant and truck tire repair person. I've done a variety of saw mill jobs, run a brush clearing saw, and worked on a railroad tie gang. There was the remodeling, basement digging, plumbers helper, and ditch digging. I worked as a box-boy at grocery, a ranch hand on a dairy farm, and a clean-up man at a meat butchering plant. There was the household mover, the construction, and the self-employed house painting. And yes, there was the construction clean-up, group home counselor, and the truss dispatcher. Also, i worked as a shipping supply receptionist, a warehouseman, and a foreman for a crew that inspected and treated utility poles. Some of these jobs came complete with some very difficult people! You would think that these circumstances would remove every trace of human pride - but then, that would reveal an underestimation of the basic human condition.
Things i cannot do to this day, but once did with Christ working in me.
1. Concerning Administration. Led two different California home-mission churches as pastor for a total of ten years. Directed a twelve step Turning Point program for a year. Represented the Church Development and Education Department of a major denomination in one of their sections.
2. Concerning Counseling. Provided pastoral counseling for singles, couples, and families for ten years. Gave care, supervision, counseling and love to six at-risk teenage boys.
3. Concerning Evangelism. Telephoned every free local number in a small town to share Christ. Personally distributed several thousand gospel tracts. Sang, called out, and preached on various streets and beaches.
4. Concerning Youth. Organized a fourteen day mission trip to Mexico. Established and directed a Royal Ranger program for boys. Commanded four different Royal Ranger programs in four different California towns over a period of nine years. Served as a pastor to the youth for a year.
5. Concerning Music. Served music in 13 churches in 5 different states over an accumulated period of 28 years. Played guitar, bass, harmonica, and sang unto the Lord. Directed a worship program and worship team. Provided special gospel music, evangelism music, and gospel guitar instruction.
6. Concerning Preaching. Preached every Sunday morning for 1 year, then 7 years, followed by 3 more years in three different home-mission churches.
7. Concerning Teaching. Established and directed a home school for 17 years. Taught an adult Sunday School class for 1 year. Trained disciples with discipleship materials for 2 years. Taught witnessing workshops for 1 year.
Disclaimer: Lord, you know that i list these things that You might shine. To this day i cannot do these things, nor without your presence and leading would i try. You know that i would not be surprised if all my life amounts to wood, hay, and stubble. Furthermore, the zeal of my youth is gone, although i experience your zeal at times. I ask that you would cause to grow any seed of yours that i had the fortune to plant, and let the rest pass away not causing any more trouble. I publicly post that i count all these things and more but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, for You are my Lord: for You - i determine to suffer the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that i may win You, and be found in You, not having mine own righteousness ... but that which is through Your faith, the righteousness which is of God by faith: that i may know You, and the power of Your resurrection, and the fellowship of Your sufferings, being made conformable unto Your death; if by any means i might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. ... i follow after, if that i may apprehend that for which also i am apprehended of You - my Lord and my Savior.
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Author: bimonics
Location: Rocklin California USA
Gender: Male
Age: 58
Blog Entries: 219 (archive)
Blog Comments: 3
hello, my name is grant. my user name is bimonics which is short for bible mnemonics. i am blessed with a wonderful loving wife; a gifted, mature, christian lady. between us we have 8 children and at present 27 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren. i was born in 1952, to...
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i was lost when jesus found me. i am still lost without his company, and without all that he does. i was a lead guitarist in a rock band, until i gave up my old life and picked up the bible. i am still a guitarist for the rock that...
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