Archive for the ‘Philosophy’ Category

The Prophetic Ministry of the Body of Christ

February 20th, 2010

We see sometimes in charismatic Christian meetings, people acting vigorously yelling and rushing to the stage and trying to touch the preacher, hoping to get some prophetic anointing for themselves. It is true that the bible teaches every one of us to earnestly desire to prophesy. But being prophetic is much more than being charismatic. There is something more than dreams and visions and even the proclaiming of revelation. There are some meaning and functions for the Church of Christ to be prophetic which we should understand while earnestly desiring to participate in its prophetic ministry.

Being prophetic is more than able to predict the future. It is true that sometimes revelations from God foretell some events in the future, but in fact the most important value of prophecies is to reveal the heart of God. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Rev 19:10). The spirit of prophecy gives revelations to the testimony of Jesus, what He had done and what is in His heart. A prophetic person has the grace from God to experience His heart and reveal it to others.

As a follower of Christ, by the grace of God and through faith, we are able to know God intimately. To function prophetically, we experience God’s heart and reveal it according to His will. A prophetic ministry reveals the heart of God in different aspects and in different levels. God is love. He loves all man equally. He does not discriminate. He is just and true. He hates sin. He is joyful for His sons because of Jesus. We may speak of the affection and the wrath of God at the same time without contradictions.

He loves His people with an infinite love which is revealed progressively forever. And as a result of this revelation, we are imparted with the ability to show affection to Jesus. It takes God to love God. We are able to love God only because of His grace.

There are some common misconceptions among the churches. Some experiencing prophetic events like dreams and visions immediately claim themselves to be prophets. Others refuse any prophetic encounters with reason that they are not called to be prophets. There are clear distinguishments between being a prophet and operating with the spirit of prophecy according to the bible. The Lord promises to pour the spirit of prophecy on all of His sons and daughters, while only a few chosen people are called to the office of prophets.

An example of a prophet who revealed the heart of God according to the will of God is John the Baptist. He was called the greatest man born of a woman by Jesus. He was the forerunner prepared for the first coming of Jesus who also symbolize a group of God’s people who are being raised up in the end of the end time to prepare the second coming of the Lord. They will be revealing the heart of God, His mercy and His judgment and warn people of the coming crisis. The prophetic anointing will be operating mightily on them. Some would even call fire from heaven and beyond. Let’s follow the teachings of the Bible and desire earnestly for the spirit of prophecy.

Learn more about Christianity, Prophetics, Dreams and Visions, visit dreams

Tags: , , ,

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Philosophy | Comments (0)

A Millionaire’s Secret - Give A Piece Of Straw

February 16th, 2010

A millionaire created through giving!

Given below is a mythological story from Japan about the beauty of giving to others and it tells us how we can receive the most perfect gifts when we’re giving and grateful of what we own.

Here is the story.

A long time ago, there lived a penniless young farmer. Nothing that he did turned out to be profitable. He was completely impoverished without any money, without anyone to help and nothing to eat. One night, totally at his wit’s end, he went to a shrine and sat near the altar and pleaded to Gods to show him what to do.

“I have always been sincere and industrious, but all my industriousness never became beneficial to me. Where have I gone wrong?”

He slept at the feet of the deity after having put that question. In the morning, just as he woke up, one of the Gods of his dream appeared before him enveloped in a brilliant golden light. The voice of the God resounded in his mind.

“After you wake up in the morning, value that which you have in your hand and keep giving it fully to others as you move forward,” the God told him.

The farmer was brimming with questions when he woke up but he tried to shake off his sleep and clear his mind of the strange but clear dream he had. However, he saw a bit of a straw in his hand. It must have remained on his clothes while he worked in his fields.

He nearly dropped it to the ground, but stopped for a moment remembering what the God said. He sat down again. And looked at the straw.

He sat for a while unable to comprehend what all that meant. He did not know how a piece of straw can turn out to be useful. Then he saw a wasp hovering around. After a while the wasp settled on one end of his straw. He caught it and with the help of a thread from his clothes, tied it to the straw. And with a wasp at the end of his straw, he went on his way.

He had proceeded only a bit when he saw a woman and her child coming from the opposite direction. The child was crying. When he wished them, the boy saw the straw in the farmer’s hand with a wasp dangling at the end. The child was curious and asked the farmer if he could have it. He was about to refuse when he remembered how God had told him to cherish what he had and also at the same time to give to others what he had. So he offered the straw to the child. The mother became happy since the child stopped crying because of the gift. In return for the straw the lady gave the man three tangerines.

The farmer continued on. And as he walked, he began feeling a little hungry. He thought of eating the tangerines but he reminded himself it was about giving the gift to others, not to himself.

As he went over a steep hill, he saw a merchant sitting down on the ground by a tree. Next to him was a wooden box. The farmer said hello to the merchant. He seemed to be exhausted. The merchant saw the tangerines in the farmer’s hand and asked if he minded giving him the tangerines. He said he was so thirsty.

The farmer was as thirsty as the trader as he had been walking for long on that hot day. Nevertheless, he offered the tangerines to the trader, who then ate all the three tangerines and felt recharged. He felt very happy about the help rendered to him and opened the wooden box that was by his side. Inside the box were rolls of silk that was dyed with hand. The merchant gifted the farmer one roll and proceeded on his way.

The farmer proceeded again through the same route. He finally found a rivulet from which he drank water and felt restored. He felt more energetic and comfortable and went on.

The farmer walked and walked not seeing anyone for a long time. He started to think that maybe this was it - his fortune. So, he decided to go to the nearby town to sell the fabric.

And just when he turned the corner, he saw a group of warriors. One of the warriors who seemed to be the leader was standing by a horse lying on the ground. The farmer heard the voice of the warrior talking to his followers.

“It does not appear that this horse would live much. We will have to leave it here. Nurse it well and catch up with me.” With this the leader jumped on to another horse and rode off, moving out of people’s sight.

The other warriors were left talking to each other about what to do. They did not want to kill the horse but there seemed to be no other choice. One of them finally drew his sword.

The farmer quickly ran over to them and asked them to stop. He said he would like to look after the horse. He also offered the silk fabric to the warriors. They jumped at the offer and took off very quickly.

With the dying horse by his side, the farmer just remained there. He wondered if he had done things wrongly and whether he would never become rich. Suddenly he remembered the river he had seen on the way.

He turned back and went to the river, removed his shirt and immersed it in the river to get water for the horse. He went back to the animal lying on the earth and pressed the water out of the shirt gently into its mouth. As the water went inside drop by drop, the animal slowly got recharged and finally the farmer was able to help it stand up.

Once the horse could stand, the farmer was able to take it to the river. The horse drank directly from the river and the farmer also led it to the patches of grass nearby. Very soon the animal was rejuvenated.

The farmer now had a companion. They journeyed together, the horse in front, and the farmer panting behind to keep up with it. They traveled for miles in that manner. At last, as the sun was about to set, the animal came to a stop just in front of a rather big house. When the farmer drew alongside, the horse pushed him in the direction of the gate with its snout.

As the farmer made his way to the gate, all of a sudden the gate opened and an old man was standing there. The man looked drawn and he was hastening out onto the road. The old man took notice of the farmer as well as the animal standing nearby.

The old man asked the farmer what he was doing. The farmer said he was looking for a place to stay the night. The old man said he was going to the town for an urgent matter. He asked the farmer if he minded looking after his house until he returned. He said he might not be able to come back for a little while.

As the old man seemed to be in a hurry, the farmer offered him the horse. The old man appreciated the generous offer and took off with the horse. As he was leaving, he said something peculiar to the farmer.

“If I do not come back in three years’ time, this house belongs to you.”

As you probably guessed, the old man never returned.

The farmer stayed in the big house for the remainder of his life with a land that yielded a rich harvest and had friendly neighbours. And he always remembered to give away whatever he had.

I am grateful to you for reading this story. And how did you feel about it?

There is always a pattern to things. If the venture of getting can be converted into the venture of giving, our life would pour forth with greater profusion. But it may be a bit difficult to make this ancient wisdom a part of our lives.

The following are the interesting principles we can see in the tale:

* When we are ready to give what others need, they will consider it more valuable than while we are trying to ‘trade’ it (as basically we are always hopeful of getting something out of that transaction), as then they only consider the price we ask for and tend to pay less.

* When we are not attached to the things we have, we often find that we attract better opportunities as we can let go of existing ones.

* When life seems to deal us a bad hand, instead of focusing on the problem if instead we focused on giving and caring, life seems to end up bringing better luck later.

* When we try to ‘cash in’ what we have built up, thinking that “this is the best it gets”, because we think we may lose out it if we do not cash in now, our life’s growth often ends there. What if instead, we continued to be giving generously no matter what we owned or how physically wealthy we were or were not.

Giving is part of many successful people’s lives. When we give first, we have more chance of living a life of magnificence, ease and expansion.

Find out more about how Buy1GIVE1 (BOGO) can transform your business using Cause Marketing.

Tags: , , ,

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Philosophy | Comments (0)

What Exactly Is Mental Telepathy?

February 12th, 2010

Most people do not really understand the term ‘mental telepathy’. The definition of mental telepathy implies that two people are able to share their thoughts with each other without the intervention of the five senses. Nevertheless mental telepathy can involve a range of varied communication ranging from trying to watch somebody to trying to read someone’s mind. The science of telepathy has many facets to it which can range from utterly simple to highly evolved. The aim of this article is to delve into the various forms of mental telepathy

NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Kinesics, or non-verbal communication, occurs whenever two people communicate without speaking, using their eyes, body language, and facial expressions instead. This can range from simple messages like ‘go away’ to entire conversations. Any parent who has tried to communicate something to their spouse that they don’t want their children to hear has experienced this. Non-verbal communication is achieved easiest and most accurately between people who know each other well”siblings, parents and children, husbands and wives, and close friends.

Some can argue (with good reason) that this doesn’t count as mental telepathy, as the two people are using their senses to communicate (just not with sounds). Technically, this is correct. This doesn’t mean, however, that mental telepathy does not play a role. The fact that non-verbal communication occurs most successfully between people who are related (like family), or who have lived together for extended periods of time (like spouses) implies that their minds might be more attuned to each other than to strangers. On the other hand, one could argue that this merely means the two people know each other well enough to understand each others more subtle body language, or have created agreed-upon nonverbal signals to communicate.

EMPATHY:

Empathy is the ability to recognize, perceive, or directly experience the emotions of others. Some people are very poor at this, and others are very good at this, being able to mentally ‘put themselves in another’s shoes’ and understand how they must be feeling. Empathy can be increased with training and practice. Actors, for example, are able to imitate the emotions of others, even to the point of being able to make themselves spontaneously laugh or cry.

Most people have experienced ’sympathetic pain’”feeling another person’s pain as if it were your own. For example, after witnessing someone close to you break their arm, you may experience an uncomfortable feeling or even an ache in your arm, even though you know it’s fine. Similarly, when someone close to you is experiencing an overwhelming emotion, such as joy, grief, or depression, you may feel an echo of the same emotion inside you. Finally, there is the phenomena of long distance empathy. In this case, a person suddenly knows”they FEEL it”that someone close to them is in danger, has been hurt, or is in pain, even though they are not near the person at the time.

There are some skeptics and psychologists who scoff at these kind of incidents and call them the work of an overactive brain. In certain cases they may have a point because we can see the injury and the hurt. However in cases of long distance empathy where a person doesn’t even know that his loved one is injured or hurt, then they don’t have an explanation about why a person who cannot even see the other person can feel the pain.

SYMBOL AND OBJECT PROJECTION:

Thought transference of symbols, numbers, or names of objects between two minds is beyond the regular five senses in communication. A designated sender and receiver, intense concentration, training, and practice are often involved in this type of mental telepathy, such as a mind reader or physic with a television audience, who is able to guess the names of loved ones or what card a person is holding in their hand.

Here the principle is that simpler concepts are easily communicated. For instance an animal is more difficult to communicate than a shape or color.

Zener cards often used in mental telepathy test are an example of this principle. Simple, concrete black-and-white symbols (a circle, square, star, plus sign, and three wavy lines), gives even a random guess a 20% chance of being right. On the other hand, a shared, known, limited set of concrete symbols may increase the coordination of the thoughts between sender and receiver. A success rate of 50% or higher (which have happened) can not be explained away by simple statistics, but may indicate a level of mental telepathy, instead.

ABSTRACT COMMUNICATION:

Mental telepathy at this level involves abstract concepts like ideas or actions, which are more complex to communicate than colors and shapes. Telepaths rarely achieve this level, and lower success rates are indicated in experiments.

Interestingly there are certain animals which can communicate effectively and we have still not discovered their modus operandi. Telepathy may be one of the methods. In this kind of communication between animals very basic abstract concepts will be involved. Since animals do not have prefrontal lobes which enhance complex communication, this communication will be restricted to basic impulses like thirst hunger and even danger.

While humans may have once been capable of telepathy, as the species evolved and developed language, it was no longer needed as a form of communication. With the right stimulation humans may be able to call upon this dormant ability that includes abstract communication of ideas. Mental telepathy could be used to communicate, without the need for the use of the five senses.

If enough people can develop these powers, theoretically all humans in the future could use mental telepathy to communicate, according to some scientific beliefs.

The author Rachel Jordan writes for the http://www.telepathyrevealed.com website. You can enjoy the incredible experience of mental telepathy for yourself and get a free CD package to help you develop telepathy when you visit here.

Tags: , , ,

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Philosophy | Comments (0)

« Older Entries