May | 26 | Set The Juice----Loose! Serve it Like Sushi

Dream Word – STREET-CRED

Mark 12:37b
And the common people heard Him gladly. NKJV

Set The Juice----Loose! Serve it Like Sushi

I remember performing some poetry for a about forty very rough, 'rough sleeping' homeless folks in the city of Brighton. It was surprisingly well received. Afterward, a very well spoken, silver-faced, Einstein-like figure came over to me and said, “I just wanted to say how much I appreciated your poetry and especially your delivery. You know of course, that you are following in the footsteps of the great Englishman, Chaucer, who also communicated so well in the vernacular of his day.” I was really pleased with this. Sure he was raving tooting bonkers, but I was really pleased with his comments. So, when I arrived home I immediately shared my grand comparison with the proud bubble burster of my home, my wife, who simply said, “Hmmm, yes, Chaucer. He was crude as well.” Typical. What does she know anyways?

Unfortunately we have upwardly diminished the power of the Bible in making it palace worthy rather than pavement worthy, making it a book for the studious instead of a book for the sidewalk. The common people heard Jesus gladly and I can guarantee you, He wasn’t received in the majestic language of the King James Version. The common people. They heard Him. They received Him. Gladly! I am not talking about dumbing down here either, but rather about tooling up with the words of the day.

We need to regain some street credibility in the delivery of the Scriptures. Before that happens however, we need to let loose the so long now muzzled, powerful jaws of the lion and allow it to roar once more. I wonder if the hidden and diluted Word of God which we are peddling from our pulpits now, which over the years we have also so tightly dressed up like a gay and mincing, little white and pink padded poodle-ette, is quite frankly too embarrassed to be taken out doors? It's embarrasing, for our misuse of it in this way, and that is what the diluting of the Word of God is, a gross misuse, has robbed it of its awesome power and thoroughly embarrassed it. God help us please! For this Word in its undiluted form is the very life giving juice dripped from the leaves of the squeezed out tree of life! So, yes indeed, we need to let the juice loose even if it does cause so many letters to be written by ‘disgusted of Tunbridge Wells!’ I say again, Let the juice loose!

However, before we can let thus juice loose once more, I wonder if we need to let loose most of the Christians who read the juicy book and especially those frightened little folk we have sent to seminary dentistry, where they have had their teeth removed and the rough and ready garments of the prophet replaced by a smart and casual respectability. Lord God! (and that’s a calling prayer) I hate respectability. With a vengeance! You see, I reckon that nice speaking polite little Christians have done more damage to the Kingdom of God than the devil could ever do.

I have two things to leave with you tonight.

First an equation and frankly, maybe it’s just me, but I do find that in my life, that the more righteous I experientially and practically become, the less outwardly, pretentiously respectable I both appear and act. How’s your life adding then up in terms of middle class, middle England respectability tonight? Are you above all things, nice?

Secondly, that when a clawed and sharp beaked, sharp eyed hawk even gently glides past the settled nests of the starling colonies, the little birds attack it. Prophet. Jesus street preacher. Watch out for the darling, little starlings for they are not as sweet as you might think and I tell you, they do not want their nice little nest much ruffled, especially if their religion gets in a state. If you are not nice, they will peck you to death.

Even so then and never the less, do remember to drink the Bible in its undiluted form, yes remember to simply let the juice loose and always preacher, I mean always serve it like sushi. Raw!

Pray:- Deliver us O God, from all the darling, darting starlings and all the ‘Disgusted’s of Tunbridge Wells’, yes deliver us from all the pale pulpit pansies planted in graveyard flower pots and placed neatly in old varnished pulpits, who hate to be disturbed and loathe to disturb others. Don’t give us gold fillings O Lord! No, You can keep all that useless rubbish Lord, but rather, please grow us a new set of sharp canines and grant us that deep and guttural, testosterone filled roar of the prophets of old. Lord set the juice loose and give us some “street cred” once again, in Jesus name we ask it, amen!

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May-05-Coaching Columbus

Key Word:- HONOUR

Title:- Coaching Columbus

1 Peter 3:5,6
For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord,

So she says “Hey! We should have taken a left back there!” He doesn’t reply but inside he’s thinking “Christopher Columbus didn’t need directions and neither do I!” Such are the thoughts of everyman in the driving seat when any woman, wife or otherwise, attempts to give him some dimensional direction. Call it chauvinism, call it childishness, call it instability, call it even God’s design; yes, call it lack of security, or call it what you want but accept this fact and make peace with it, “Men are just like that!” I mean, what can women tell them about finding directions?

Unfortunately, this male attitude does not translate well when the opposite sex also tries to give any ‘non-dimensional’ direction to them. Men will rarely sit peaceably under the authority and teaching of a woman. On the odd occasion, they might listen to and follow a Royal Queen, a Boudicca, a Deborah, an Elizabeth or maybe even a Margaret! However, it’s rare friends, it's so very rare. Women have to be seen to have wisdom, age, respect, maybe even a kind of motherhood but preferably a grandparent-hood about them, before men will even countenance some good advice from their lips. You will forgive my lack of political correctness here I hope, because my New years resolution was to ‘Stop putting square pegs into round holes’ and just face some plain old facts, even if they are contrary to popular politically correct opinion! My statements reflect nothing on the abilities of women but on everything to do with being a man. Yes, don’t get me wrong, for every wise husband learns that he should listen to his wife. After all, she’s usually correct!

May I suggest the failure of women to communicate and instruct men is not so much in the content of what is said but in the delivery. Not so much in the rightness but in the approach. The male ego is a fragile commodity remember, and needs treating with honor and respect. If you don’t, then women, you will not be received. End of story.

The benefits of honorable communication from women to men are however, far reaching, even reaching into the future. Ask any mother and they will tell you that there comes a point when their loving son will not listen to a word they say! Never the less, ask any man, and they shall tell you that when sensibility eventually came upon them, they remembered and cherished every word spoken from the loving lips of mothers and grandmothers. Yes, every passionate plea and every overheard heard prayer became to them a means of re-instruction, a treasure of remembered love that repeated itself in their more mature days. Such honorable instruction as this ,will be respectfully received, recovered, and regurgitated. Men are just like that and you dear sisters would do well to take note.

Listen: - when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. 2 Tim 1:4-5

Pray: - Thank you Lord Jesus, for the great and honorable and courageous women in the Kingdom of God. What would we do without them Lord? Make them wise tward men. Now O Lord, help the men of the Kingdom glory in their manhood, in Jesus anme we pray, amen.

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May-03-Simple Yet Sumptuous!

Key Word:- SATISFY

Title:- Simple Yet Sumptuous!

Matthew 11:29
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Everyone knows that when Henry Ford first mass-produced his Model T Ford, you could have it any color you wanted provided it was black! Today of course, Mr. 'Monotone' Ford would not have been able to compete in this vast market place of color choice.

Whenever I go down to the local supermarket it is not long before I become overwhelmed with the array of choice that is set before me. For me to be found perplexed in the aisle of most any shop nowadays is not unusual, as on average, each store has some 50,000 separate items to choose from! From the vast array of competing service providers and all their sumptuous socks in sizzling and saucy colours that the marketting mantra of the century is indeed found to be , ‘Competition afforded by choice.’

Churches both large and small have spotted this seeming need to provide ‘choice’ to seekers of spiritual truth and have unwittingly engaged themselves in that self same competition afforded by the lust for choice! So, on most weekends you will find churches offering services on Saturday and Sunday, Monday morning, various afternoons and most evenings, contemporary and traditional, long and short, dressed up, dressed down, smells bells and hope on a rope. I’m not knocking it; after all it is getting in the punters! After all, people expect choice and are coming to worship and to participate in the style of their choice on the day of their choice at the time of their choice. Indeed, it’s so needful now in Christendom to present such ‘spiritual’ choice, such ‘spiritual’ options that today, this ‘service choice’ has been re-presented to us as the ‘Christian Norm,’ even the cutting edge of postmodern evangelism! After all, look at all the choice in the availability of the multitude of protestant denominations, and hey, didn’t Paul say that he would become all things to all men if by any means he could win some, and by the way haven’t we got four different gospels with one message, you know four different flavors with a different emphasis for at least four different sets of audiences? Good grief isn’t it obvious, God is into choice!

Laying aside the honorable and dutiful question of which day of the week to gather as a body to adore God together and to minister to one another; laying aside the exceptionally cheap ‘mile wide and inch deep’ quality of such a present day presentation of spiritual ‘choice’; laying aside the market place competition set by postmodern day consumer Christianity; laying aside the subsequent ‘Wal-Marting’ of Christendom, we still come to another massive problem for the sheep of His pasture and that is, that although the postmodern spiritual punter may easily quench his natural curiosity, may easily sign up for his shopping reward card and get the nice little spiritual discount his truly unrepentant soul requires, the real sheep are left rotting on the hills and wasting away for lack of good nutrition. Such choosing, such foul presentation of choice, such pandering to the flesh, for that is what it is, has left in it’s wake an emaciated Christianity that now teeters and totters pathetically through the land. The spiritual punters have touched and tasted and are some are even satisfied with the tasteless drivel, as after all, it would appear that being a Christian is not as demanding as they thought it might be. However, the people of His pasture, are left both hungry and even starving.

Sheep you see, don’t want choice; they just want feeding the food that is fitted for their needs! True sheep just want to eat! Crispy or grilled, they just don’t care! They don’t want fries, and they don’t want coke with it and no, they apparently don’t want honey mustard either! Good grief they just want a burger in a bun! They just want food from a shepherd who is sprinkled with the anointing from on high and glows with the manifest presence of the Saviour. I tell you what: sheep will travel a thousand miles for such simple and sumptuous fare and you know what, they may even do it on a Sunday mate. Imagine that!

Listen:- “Stand in the ways and see, And ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then you will find rest for your souls. Jeremiah 6:16

Pray:- Grant me O good Shepherd, a simplicity of life, a focus on the fundamentals and thenO my God, come quench my thirsty soul and feed me with the food allotted to me. Amen!

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May-03- Building On A Math’s Lesson For Moles With Memory Problems

Dream Word – SURE

2 Peter 1:10
Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; NKJV.

Building On A Math’s Lesson For Moles With Memory Problems

We Protestants against spiritual abuse, against doctrinal deviousness, yes, we reformers of a previous and terrible travesty of pure religion, now hang our certain and hopeful hats on five giant pegs, those being,

1 Sola Scriptura (“by Scripture alone”)
2 Sola Fide (“by Faith alone”)
3 Sola Gratia (“by Grace alone”)
4 Solus Christus (“Christ alone”)
5 Soli Deo Gloria (“Glory to God alone”)

How wonderful.

It is therefore a real shame that the outworking of these five central pillars of Protestantism, of Biblical Christianity, have on the whole led to an ever emergent and “lazy ass” Christian. We have become far too much at ease with the once wonderfully simple marriage of faith and grace, which seem nowadays to have given up producing vigorous, respectful, thankful and sacrificial offspring and have somehow been left with a nasty nest of twittering cuckoos, all over-fat children, who in their subsequent and sedentary post-modern growth, display little relation to the revelation of Scripture, which that marriage of faith and grace once so wonderfully proclaimed, and so subsequently, they have no heart or inclination, no stomach and no staying power, to either know what they should look like, desire to become nor be determined to die for. This must be rectified. We Protestants have gone soft.

Our text for tonight, is built on a ‘Therefore.’ So, looking at the previous verses in the opening of 2nd Peter, we see they speak of a multiplication of a Divine grace and peace, which in turn results in a super abundance of faithful and fruity action! 2 Peter 1: 5-9, is in fact a math’s lesson for blind moles with memory problems and is rooted in the superabundance of the promises of God and therefore prefixed with a very demanding and all encompassing action phrase, translated as, ‘Giving all diligence!’ Phew, I am tired already! Yup, this maths lesson for moles with memory problems demands ACTION. Indeed, the word diligence here, is from which we derive our English word, SPEED. Peter says in effect, “Give all eagerness, all earnestness, all business, all forwardness, haste ,despatch, diligence, yes, give all SPEED, to add my previously stated seven ‘active ingredients’ to your Christian life. Why? Well because if you do not, you will turn into a smelly blind mole which burrows in pig swill and bathes in dog vomit.” Simple!


So, now in our text for tonight, Peter goes on to say, “Be EVEN MORE diligent.” Peter uses the verb SPOUDAZO here, so in other words he says, “Hey, move faster still folks, for when it comes to being SURE of your calling and election, I want you to PUT YOUR SPEEDOS ON!” Oh, yes indeed! We might paraphrase Peter then by saying, “Oi! If your knowledge and testimony, if your service and story of present salvation and future happiness is as real as you say it is; if it is truly through God’s grace, by faith alone in Christ alone, resting in the Scriptures alone and all for the glory of God alone, then show me the active goods! No, more than that, forget assuring me so much of your salvation, rather, ASSURE YOURSELF! Yes, make your calling and election forcefully firm to your own heart. Make it steadfast, make it sure and certain to yourself! Do this all the time. Yes, let your action reveal your faith, first of all to yourself .”

Friends, the outcome of such a speedy and consistent effort which is rooted in those five Scriptural pillars, is that you shall run so confidently, that you shall never run and ruin yourselves in the bumbling and blind blundering of ignorant little moles. Now that’s magnificent!

Listen: - But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. James 2:20-24 NKJV

Pray:- Lord, deliver me from the bondage of works but help me always to righty and continually, make both my calling and election sure. In Jesus name I ask it, amen.

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Apr-27-The Clang of Symbols

Dream Word – LOOK

Revelation 17:3-6
So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication. And on her forehead a name was written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marvelled with great amazement. NKJV

The Clang of Symbols

No, today’s title is not a spelling mistake! Rather, let it be known that symbols communicate. Yes, symbols make a sound, they inculcate a message, they congregate peoples, they educate the masses, they articulate core values, they rally the disorderly, and once they are most fully embraced, symbols define directions and ultimately rule over those people they fly over. Why do you think that after WWII and the defeat of the Nazis, every effort was made to completely remove any symbolic representation of the black jack boot which was placed over most of old Europe then? Because it had residual and unifying power. Indeed, it is still an illegal and punishable act for the swastika to be displayed in present day Germany or Austria. Yes symbols are powerful. I think we can say these three things then concerning symbols:

First that the creation of symbols have declarative power.

Second that the emplacement of symbols have immense practical power.

Thirdly that the application of symbols give rule.

As I write this Whisper, Schiller’s ‘Ode To Joy,’ it’s sentiment of unity and brotherly love so marvellously illuminated by Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, has now become the official anthem of the European union. The blue skied background twelve golden starred banner has become its official flag, and the Euro, its official currency. Latin is being moved to become its official language of ‘unification, ’ its symbolic motto and tag line being ‘In Varietate Concordia – ‘United in Diversity.’ The Revived Roman Empire is now festooned with symbols of declarative power. The systems that now form under these flapping symbols arm the union with practical power and move the whole to a ruling stance. Yes Europa, robed in priestly colours, sits now ever stronger, astride her scarlet beast. These symbols speak loudly to those with uncorked ears. Are you listening?

Undoubtedly you have symbols in your life, which of those then, at least to some extent, maybe dictate, direct and rule over you? The British Pound and the American Dollar despite their maybe current frailty, still rule over many of you tonight. Pierre Cardin and Givenchy still rule over many more maybe. Mercedes and Jaguar, PhD’s and 6 Golden Rings together with a multitude of other symbols, which might include even the Stars and Stripes and the Union Jack, rule over many millions more.

Examine the ruling symbols of your life. If they are contrary to the symbols of God, then I tell you, you need to get yourself out from under them and raise some new and Godly symbols of your own. Yes, symbols are powerful. I think we can say these three things then concerning symbols: First that the creation of symbols have declarative power. Second that the emplacement of symbols have immense practical power. Thirdly, that the application of symbols give rule. What symbols rule in your life tonight?

Listen: - I have also spoken by the prophets, and have multiplied visions; I have given symbols through the witness of the prophets." (Hosea 12:10 NKJV)

Pray:- Lord, brand me with the symbols of Your love, yes, come fly them over my life and also place Your white streaked bark before my almond peering eyes and anoint them with the symbols of the stripped poplar of your unstoppable blessing, in Jesus name I ask it, amen.

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Apr-26- God The Grave Digger

Dream Word – JUDGEMENT


Nahum 1:14
The Lord has given a command concerning you: "Your name shall be perpetuated no longer. Out of the house of your gods I will cut off the carved image and the molded image. I will dig your grave, For you are vile." NKJV.

God The Grave Digger

The prophet Jonah had previously been mightily, if not reluctantly, used by God to preach repentance and grace to that great city of Ninevah. The Ninevite’s response to Jonah’s reluctant proclamations then had been to repent and to accept God’s goodness and thus, God’s falling feet of judgement pounding their way toward them, had then happily been turned away. Now however, the prophet Nahum in effect says that, “Now Ninevah shall fall!” God is returning to Ninevah once more and this time, He has a shovel in His hand and the word on His very angry lips is “I’m gonna bury you!” What on earth had happened here?

Do remember that a peoples past repentance does not guarantee a present grace. Repentance must be continually lived in for mercy to ever flow. There is a lesson here for individuals and for nations, for the lions of the earth and their blood-lines, can always be finally done away with. For good! For when God brings His shovel and digs for the much warned yet unrepentant a pit, then the earth He heaps upon them shall cover them forever and the wind will blow away every remnant of their once proud existence. For example, I remember when all my maps of the world at school were mostly covered with pink, indicating the breadth, depth and spread of the once great British Empire. Selah.

There are two marked contrasts about God presented to us in this book of Nahum and the fact that God is the God of the whole earth and that all nations are therefore accountable to both Him and His laws is the basis of this reactive contrast.

First if we as nations obey God and seek to follow Him and honour Him then this attitude and action will assure for the obedient nation concerned, both peace and prosperity; on the other hand, disobedience to His purpose and disregard of His rule and laws, will bring catastrophe to that nation and on its heals a most terrible judgement. Do you see the reactive contrast? To the nation seeking to obey Him, God is a rock and a refuge, a God of goodness carrying a basket of goodies. However, to the nation that disobeys Him and in the so doing “does the dirty” on those seeking to follow Him, then He a jealous avenger, clothed from top to tail in the black suit of the undertaker, striding angrily across the mountains of doom, carrying a shovel across His judgemental shoulders. This is a terrible but simple picture and calls forth the choice of both individual and national obedience or disobedience, of life or death, even from every generation that sees it!

I look at our falling nations of the West, least not this isle of mine, and believe we are in the time of the prophet Nahum, but Oh my God! I long for the time of Jonah the prophet to come again once more and even now I still sniff the air in prayerful hope, to try and smell the vomit of the whale upon our darkened streets once more and see a stomach acid stained white prophet rise from the puked up mess and preach repentance to us once again. Though all our fishing grounds are empty, maybe God has a few of His own great fish still hidden in His deeps? Maybe these will carry some reluctant prophets to come to these beleaguered shores once more and preach righteousness, sin, coming judgement and repentance in Jesus to us again. I hope so. I pray so. Maybe some of you should do so.

Listen:- Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them. So passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them. Acts 16:6-10 NKJV

Pray:- Lord help us all by sending Jonah's to our shores once more. Amen!


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April-17-Mi-nute Men or Minute Men!

Key Word:- FIGHT

Title:- Mi-nute Men or Minute Men!

Isaiah 40:9
"O Zion, You who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”

Some people have said it was Longfellow’s poem that made Paul Revere and his ride an important event in American History.

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
The contents of the poem, the facts of the ride, the man himself, and even the supposed cry of “The British are Coming,” have all been subjects of historical dispute. Even so, these facts remain true:

• People were aware of the times.
• People were watching and waiting.
• People were ready at a minutes notice to bear arms and fight for what they thought was right!

Friends, where are the watchers and the minute men of the church today? Where are the prophets and the proclaimers, the true disciples and disdainers of all that glitters and is not gold. Where are the spiritual fighters and the holy men of old?

Our enemies are not primarily flesh and blood but our warfare is mostly and primarily spiritual. So, where are the spiritual fighting men of this our day, where are the warrior women? When looking back at our time to put a stamp of victory on the pages of His story, who will call these days and years famous? Who will seek to remember them, or maybe rather seek not to remember them for fear of shame and embarrassement as the stamp of victory has had to be replaced with the smudge of defeat.

The Words of another American, William P Merril, maybe should be sung at the multitude of leadership, family and marriage conferences that teach men how to be ‘nice’ and to ‘get along’, maybe this should be the old new song that shakes the salt cellar of the church so much, that the damp and lumpy masculine mess which it now is, begins to come apart a little?

Rise up, O men of God!
The church for you doth wait,
Her strength unequal to her task;
Rise up and make her great!

Lift high the cross of Christ!
Tread where His feet have trod.
As brothers of the Son of Man,
Rise up, O men of God

Listen: - Another popular lyric poem from long ago reads like this: - “Then the horses hooves pounded, The galloping, galloping of his steeds.’Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the LORD, ‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly, Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the mighty.’” Judges 5:22,23

Pray: - Lord, awaken me, heal me, help me, arm me, that I may be mentioned in eternal dispatches and known on the field of battle. O my God do not let my carelessness become my curse. In me, I ask it O Lord, in me I say, “Rise up O Lord, O Lord our God may Your enemies all be scattered!” Lord, come shake my damp old saltcellar, shake it Lord, shake it hard over the pages of my history!

From April 24th 2011
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