Podcasts + Posts

Quick question- How many of Jesus' miracles weren't miracles?

Yeah. Sounds kind of heretical to even ask it doesn't it?

Turns out, there are a few different words in the Bible used for "healing." Let's break them down...

One word, iaomai, means "instant healing." It's abrupt. It's cataclysmic. It changes things immediately.

I've seen iaomai firsthand.

* I watched it when my brother's eye was healed (he scratched it rushing through trees in the backyard when we were kids and wasn't supposed to be able to see out of it, again, when we were kids).

* I saw it when my little sister's heart murmur was healed... Now, the doctor uses the chart of her first heart rhythm to teach was a bad heart is like- and he uses the second to show what a perfect heart is like...

The tension for me is this...

Jesus said that we would lay hands on sick people and they would recover (Mark 16:15f.). He said we would do greater works than He did because He was going to the Father...

Somewhere, we bought the line that poverty is noble, that sickness is a blessing, and that Heaven is when things really start happening in our favor. Yet, a quick look at the Father of our faith shows us something radically different...

In fact, Paul writes that one of the reasons Christ redeemed us was "so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles..." (see Galatians 3:13-14). 

What does the blessing include? Well… 

• Health, vitality- see Genesis 12:14, Genesis 14:14f., Genesis 21:1f., Genesis 17:1f., Genesis 12:10, 20:1
• Financial, abundance- see Genesis 13:2, Genesis 14:14f., Genesis 14:18, Genesis 12:16, 20:14)
• Spiritual awakening- see Romans 4:1f., Genesis 12:1f. 

Here’s the deal: Abraham's blessing "caught" his descendants in this life, while they were still living. They experienced the presence and power of the Kingdom of God now. In this life. As a person walking this planet. 

Furthermore… and this is...

I'm coming to grips with something, because I see it in myself. Since I'm a pretty normal (read: average) guy, my guess is that it's common to many people. Maybe even you. Here it is: many of us struggle with "worth" issues.

In a sense, we REALLY need a t-shirt, bumper sticker, or tattoo that says, "ENOUGH"- meaning, "I am enough." Just as I am. Enough. 

Here's the deal, though: You're not just a person... a random guy or gal walking around on this planet as one of 7 billion. You're not just a number... like 6,001,0934,112...  or 7,012,301,056... you're actually a unique creation, something unrepeatable, something majestic.

Who we are instead

When Paul described how you were created, He actually said it like this...

“[You] are His workmanship… created for good works He planned before hand [before time began] that you would walk in" (Ephesians 2:10 ESV).

I want you to see two things... 

First, you are a workmanship, and invidual creation....

Salvation isn’t just Jesus’ name (the name Jesus / Yeshua literally means “He saves”), it’s what He does. Furthermore, Jesus not only saves us FROM certain things, He also saves us TO an amazing life. 

The word in the New Testament used for “save” is sozo (this part of the Bible was originally penned in Greek). That word means far more than being “saved” from sin, though. The word is used to denote- 

• forgiveness of sin, guilt, and condemnation
• physical safety
• spiritual freedom / deliverance
• physical healing
• raising the dead

Jesus moves us beyond a life of rules and legalism AND moves us into a life of supernatural meaning and spiritual power. In this episode we discuss what that looks like.

In this episode I mention The Healing Workshop.  You can access the free healing eBook and seven free videos here: www.WeOverflow.com/Healing  

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2016 was a difficult year for us. It's one of those years you don't want to repeat. Ever. 

After moving through it- and after experiencing several people toss out "life rafts" to us along the way (not even knowing they were doing it- just blessing us by being them, and gifting us in many ways with their presence at just the right moment)- I decided it was time to go after the deeper issues... and to get some healing from the things that had happened. 

I'll give you more details in a future post. I'm not hiding them- that's just not the point of this post, alright?

I studied several topics related to emotional and spiritual healing over the past few months- and I studied in a different way than I had with most of my studying before. You see, as odd as it sounds, reading and writing can be somewhat of a "getaway" for me. 

• I can read a book and actually "check out" of reality
• I can write and do the same thing. 

I know. Sounds odd. I get it. You'd think...

Many times, we envision God as being anxious, stressed, or angry… 

Or we see Him as Holy. As a Judge. As Righteous. 

The Bible tells us that God is also joy, though. In fact, one third of the Kingdom of God is joy (Romans 14:17). And, we learn that the One who sits in Heaven laughs (Psalm 2:4), rejoices over His people with singing (Zephaniah 3:17), and empowers us to lean into His joy- as that is our strength (see Nehemiah 8). Indeed, the sound of the throne is one of joy (Psalm 89:15).

When Jesus came, it was a message of great joy (Luke 2: 10), and He communicated deep truths to His disciples so that their joy would overflow (see John 15:11). He even tells us to enter into the joy of our Master (Matthew 25:21). 

Did we miss something? 

We often equate tears, mourning, and seriousness with spirituality. And, we equate happiness and laughing with… well… irreverence (if expressed in a church service). 

Listen in… and see, sense,...

Every person that gets anywhere learns to swim underwater. In fact, they learn to hold their breath for a very long time. And they often do so in isolation, wondering if they surface will come.

Here's what I mean.

A few years ago someone told me about icbergs. No doubt you've heard this before. "You only see 10% of the iceberg," the saying goes. "90% of the iceberg exists beneath the surface."

Of course, in this analogy, the guy was using the metaphor of the icerberg to describe character flaws beneath the surface of our lives. Unseen things we hide. Things that left unchecked can bring things as big as the Titanic down in a night. 

You and I've both seen it...

• Ministry leader fails- because of some huge thing beneath the surface
• Marriage falls apart- because of some relational rift that kept getting swept away under the rug rather than discussed
• Kids shun parents; parents shun kids- because of some hurt that dug so deep that no one will simply own so that everyone can move...

I grew up in a constant state of anxiety, believing that if I didn’t keep up with my sins and then confess them that God wouldn’t be able to hear my prayers- that I would be distanced from Him. 

The truth is that grace isn’t restrained and your Heavenly Father’s love isn’t contained by a few words- or a lack of words. God has not only forgiven your sins- and forgotten them- He’s also determined that He won’t hold any future sins against you (see Romans 4:7-8).

In addition, when we look at the place of confession in the Bible we discover that confession is a gift to us. Through it, we learn the  incredible transformative power of relationships. 

More info?

You can learn more about this topic in lesson 5 of The Next Best Step video class. Access free at www.TheNextBestStep.info  

I also mentioned the Advance weekend workshops for men. Learn more at www.EatSleepAdvance.com  

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Some people are hoping for a miracle. That's their health plan. And, let's be honest, sometimes that's exactly what's needed- a miracle. 

However, even if a miracle comes, you'll need to manage it, to steward it... in the same way lottery winners have to manage their money.

Ask the tough questions with me...

• Why do most of the people get a financial windfall- be it through the lottery, through a large inheritance, or through a huge sports contract- go broke within just a few years?
• And why do some people "lose" their healing?

I don't know about you, but I've seen people healed of something- radically, miraculously- and then watched it all go away. It's almost as if the healing never happened. Honestly, I struggled with this concept for a few years.

Why does the healing disappear?

One day it dawned on me...

I was watching an ESPN documentary about professional athletes- how many of them earn incredible sums of money (in the millions, overnight!),...

 I bet you can fill in the blank of this Bible verse: “All have ________ and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Problem is… well… we tend to focus only on the first part of the verse- the “falling short” part. When we do, we miss the second part, the beautiful message that declares who we really are.

You see, we were created- YOU were created for glory. For greatness. To carry the presence + power of the Kingdom of God.

Yes, something happened. Sin. And it was ugly.

But the message of redemption is that all things are restored. All things are made new. There’s nothing left outside of the scope of God’s greatness that can’t be put back together to its intended purpose…

More info?

In this podcast I reference the Emotional Wholeness video class, which you find at https://www.overflowfaith.com/p/emotional-wholeness-free-offer 

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