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Life Around "The Fire"
Life Around "The Fire"
Why Slowing Down Can Help You See God More Clearly
Amid the lush embrace of northern Minnesota's woods, a deep and reflective conversation unfolds about the relationship between nature and our spiritual journey. The latest episode takes listeners on a personal journey through the host's early memories of learning the art of seeing from his father during quiet, slow walks in the wilderness. Connecting those lessons to our understanding of the Kingdom of God, we explore how the pace of life influences our ability to genuinely perceive our surroundings, both earthly and heavenly.
Throughout the episode, we discuss the profound significance of truly knowing God over mere religious performance, making a powerful case for intimacy with the divine. By diving into thought-provoking Scripture passages, we encourage listeners to rethink the nature of their spiritual encounters. Through engaging anecdotes and heartfelt reflections, you'll discover that being still, as highlighted in Psalm 46:10, is not just a suggestion but a vital practice for spiritual awakening.
The episode brings insights into how long-term bonds shape our identity, highlighting the beautiful convergence of a life well-lived in relationship with God. By the end, you'll feel encouraged to step outside, to slow down, and to allow nature to reveal deeper truths about yourself and your faith.
Join us for this inspiring journey toward understanding and connecting with the Kingdom of God—it's a conversation meant to spark curiosity, reflection, and engagement. Don't forget to subscribe, share with friends, and leave your thoughts—we'd love to hear how you experience God and His Kingdom in your everyday life!
Loving Yeshua/Jesus, Loving people... Come as you are and you will be loved!
Feel free to check out our website by typing in lifearounsthefire.com or Life Around The Fire ... We think you'll find some beneficial stuff to look at and apply to your life.
Shalom to you and your home.
I know I told you before this story about my dad. When I was growing up he would take me out in the woods with him. My dad was a great hunter, loved the woods, and we lived in northern Minnesota and so we were surrounded by woods. In fact, we lived on a 40-acre farm that had woodland all around the farm, so I was born, as it were, in the woodland and so my dad would take me out with him from when I was young and I would love to go with him. And he was, like I said, he was a master at the woods, he knew the woods, he was raised in the woods when he was a child on a homestead, and so he was deeply entrenched, experientially, in how to function in the woods and he could see things in the woods that if you didn't have a trained eye and experience with the woodland, you wouldn't see anything. You wouldn't see what he could see. You wouldn't experience what he could see. You would experience what he could experience. You could, you can hunt, you could not hunt. And so he said I'm going to teach you how to see in the woods. And I was excited. I thought, wow, this is going to be, you know, something really incredible.
Speaker 1:And when we first went out, he said you got to be real quiet and you got to walk slow. And so I thought, okay, this is going to be good. So we'd walk like five feet and he would stop. And after about two minutes I started to get antsy. I was not accustomed to doing things that way. I was a little more. I was younger, so I was a little more fast paced, but also my attention span was just not that keen on going at things at pace. But he would, and he would start pointing at things and say you see that? And I'm like all I could see was a tree. And so we did this a few times and one time he, after we'd done it a few times, he began showing me okay, you see that over there, and I looked at it. I don't see anything. He goes no, just wait and keep your eye on that piece of wood right there. And I did, and in like 15 seconds that wood, the piece of wood, started to move. Lo and behold, it wasn't a piece of wood. It was the neck of a bird that was stiff like a stick, pretending to be a stick, camouflaged in the woods with its feathers. It didn't want to be seen, but it was curious and my dad was teaching me how to experience the woods by doing things at the pace of the woods.
Speaker 1:Now there's a correlation in that concerning the kingdom of God to see, to perceive the kingdom of God. We've been talking about the kingdom of God for quite some time. We're going to continue on because it's a central theme in the teaching of Jesus Was and still is, and we are called to participate when we're born again, when we're infused with the spirit of God as a result of our faith in Jesus. We have that transaction, that covenant relationship that takes place with mine is yours, with yours is mine, and we covenant together and there is a literal exchange. We receive the life of God in us. We become a new species. Well, we are then called to participate in the life of God in us. We become a new species. Well, we are then called to participate in the kingdom of God. We are called as citizens of the kingdom, a whole new realm and rule and reign, way of life, and we are designed then, at that point in time, to begin to see the kingdom Blessed appear in heart, for they shall see God, the perception of God and his kingdom. The seeing of it comes with going at the pace of things that are his pace and learning that pace. We learn the ways of the kingdom, and that's what we've been doing, we're learning. We learn the ways of the kingdom, and that's what we've been doing, we're learning, we're going to continue to learn how to function as citizens in the kingdom of God, because, much like the woods, we need to learn how to do that right.
Speaker 1:And so there's some scriptures that I want to look at as a baseline today, and they are Acts, chapter 4, verse 13, primarily. Matthew 7, verse 21 through 23, primarily. And Psalm 46, verses 8 through 11, primarily when I say primarily, I mean things around that but those are the central texts, the baseline for what we're looking at today concerning the kingdom of God, relationship with God and our ability to function in that, to live, to have that relationship and to function in his kingdom, because that's our first loyalty is the kingdom of God. If you're American, it's not to be American first right. I mean, granted, we are born in America, so we are citizens of this particular land, but our loyalty, if we're born again, is first to the kingdom of God, and so we're looking at this aspect of relationship because that's really also what is involved in our interaction with God. It's not religion, it's not just works, doing stuff, it's relationship. It involves the internal dynamic of our lives, interacting, intertwined, and there's some key words that are found in the scriptures and it involves us knowing, involves us experiencing God and his kingdom. Experiencing God and his kingdom.
Speaker 1:And in Acts, chapter 4, verse 13, there's a story concerning Peter and John how they were out preaching. They were on their way to prayer and a man got healed, crippled, got healed, and they, and the result of that, ended up proclaiming the word of the Lord to a group of people, and it upset some of the religious folks and they brought him in. They were interrogating Peter and John and in the process of doing so, luke, and in the process of doing so, luke got a message about this and he wrote down the account in Acts, in the book of Acts, writing to Luke. He captured this account and so what happened was in verse 13,. It says in his account he said when they saw the courage, when they meaning the religious people, when the religious people, when they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized they were unschooled, ordinary men. They were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. And they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
Speaker 1:Jesus, I want people to take note that I have been with Jesus. I want my life to be so clearly demonstrating the reality of his kingdom and my relationship with him that people could actually tell. They could tell these folks could tell these were unschooled men. But the way they were talking was not in an unschooled fashion. They were using wisdom that was just profoundly familiar because they had heard it from someone else before and that was Jesus. And they could tell by the way these men talked, by the way they handled themselves, that they had been with Jesus. I want that. I, if you're listening to this and you have relationship, real relationship with, with, with him. You, you want, undoubtedly you want the same thing. You, you want to. You want people to be able to see man, that person, with jesus. Not as well, aren't they great? But man, look at that, that's God's kingdom. Undoubtedly these folks have been with Jesus. He is glorified In Matthew.
Speaker 1:Matthew, chapter 7, verses 21 to 23,. Matthew is recording what Jesus said and did while he was alive and in delivering the Sermon on the Mount, jesus is saying to a group of people something very it was very strong and needful. He said not everyone he goes, not everyone who says to me, lord, lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day Lord Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name, drive out demons, and in your name, perform many miracles. Then I will tell them plainly I never knew you. Away from me, you evil doers. Huh, was it because they were prophesying that he said evil? Because they were doing miracles, that he said evil? No, it was because they didn't know him and he didn't know them. He never knew them.
Speaker 1:Now, just hold on to that for a minute, because that's where we're going to unpack a bit more the fact that knowing this, knowing it wasn't in the doing, what we're going to unpack a bit more? The fact that knowing this, knowing it wasn't in the doing. The doing was all good, but you know, if I want to hold my wife and all she wants to do is make me something to eat, I don't really necessarily want something to eat and that's all she ever does. I can never really hold her, always doing something, avoiding any intimacy, avoiding any real interaction, emotional bond, something that she's letting go and give it. Yeah Now, fortunately that's not the case at all, but I'm using it as an example. What if we're on that level? Jesus said I will tell them plainly I never knew you, not like I didn't intellectually know what your name was, or you didn't know who I was. You called me Lord, lord, but we never really had that, did we that? What is that? We never really had that.
Speaker 1:A new, no new, no new. What would it mean? Psalm 46, verses 8 through 11. Psalmist said come and see what the lord has done, the desolation he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear. He burns the shields with fire. He says be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge in our fortress. Be still Right, Verse 10. Be still and know that I and know that I'm God. Be still, be still that word still in the Hebrew language and that's what this psalm was written in Hebrew.
Speaker 1:In the Hebrew language that word still is the word rafa. Rafa means to sink down or to relax or let go, or, better yet, be weak and throw back your arms and your head down. Relax, let go, be weak and throw back your arms in your head. You know, when I embrace my wife and she does that, I don't care about dinner, I don't care about having my clothes washed, I don't care about doing anything, I care about experiencing what goes on when two people share that emotional connection. That word no in Hebrew right, there'd be still a no that I'm God is a carryover to what Jesus was saying when he said I never knew you.
Speaker 1:That word no, yes, it has an intellectual basis to it, where it's like one plus one is two. I know that you intellectually know things, but it also has emotional and spiritual dynamics to it knowing. That's what we're getting at in relationship. That's what we're getting at in relationship. That's where the Pharisees didn't have that. They didn't have relationship with God. They had religion, they had a lot of stuff they were doing, always doing, and never could do enough, because we can't work our way into things being right. There's just not enough doing that we can do to make it right.
Speaker 1:What's it? Yeah, life, relationship, connection. It takes life, interaction and exchange. It takes experientially letting go of any willful resistance Yada is the word, no Yadaah To experience you, let go of any willful resistance to relax and take in, to relax and give. Oh man, I laugh because it's so beautiful. It makes me happy, makes me happy to say that, rafa, be still to sink down, relax, let go, be weak until you get back your arms in your head. Be still Yadah to experience you. Let go of any willful resistance, to relax and take in, to let go and give, to know we're called into a beautiful relationship, to know God and for him to know us On a human level. One of the more direct ways of expressing that is when two people join together and they make love. They know each other. That's beautiful. There's a beautiful exchange that takes place.
Speaker 1:Funny thing, you know, I was thinking about this again, thinking about it as a kid. I remember as a kid, going my mom and dad. We'd go on on Sundays. We'd do stuff called go visiting. Right, let's go visiting, visiting what I don't know, back in the 50s and 60s. We'll just go 1950, 1960. Let's go visiting, jump in the car and go visiting people, and so we would and and, uh, sometimes we'd go visit these, these people that were elderly and, um, you know, I kind of didn't like it, but sometimes I did, you know, because they always thought it was kind of cute. I was young and I'd visit them and they were old and they treated me nice, but I'd see their pictures of some pictures that they'd take of themselves and some portraits on the wall right, and the people that had been married a long time funny thing they kind of almost looked alike. You know, they had similar. They looked a lot alike and when I'd really talk they kind of talked alike. They looked a lot alike and when I really talked they kind of talked alike and they would laugh and their mannerisms were a lot alike and I noticed that it wasn't just one couple, it was like a lot of the people that had been married for a while looked and sounded like each other a lot so, and sounded like each other a lot. So there's actually a study these days now, right, everything's studied, of course. So studies have been done and it's the truth.
Speaker 1:It's become known that older married couples often appear to look alike because they tend to share similar lifestyles, emotions and unconsciously mimic each other's facial expressions over many years, leading to a convergence in their physical appearance, particularly in the subtle details of their facial features and wrinkles. This phenomena is often referred to as convergence in physical appearance of spouses. It's got a name to it Convergence in physical appearance of spouses. Huh, how about us and Jesus? Is there a convergence in physical appearance of spouses? Ah, you know what Within my life, I'm kind of I can see it now and I like that.
Speaker 1:I like that. On one hand, it is really comforting, but on the other, I'm noticing that it can produce some real mixed opinions. No-transcript, funny thing, right? Not everyone is all jazzed about, they're not all like happy about Jesus, and so I've had to wrestle. I've had to man, and I have. I've wrestled with that because I like people like me.
Speaker 1:I don't necessarily go out to try to make people upset with me. Some people are like that and I go man, I don't know out to try to make people upset with me. Some people are like that, I'm like man, I don't know. But on the other hand, being a people pleaser is no better, it's different and I have been in the past I'm saying really more so in the past a people pleaser. I get a read on things and I'd find out, okay. Well, I know that upsets them, so I'm going to stay away from that For the sake of people, until you get to a place where you realize and I've kind of got to that place people are people and being liked by people is not a big prize because it's fickle, it's here one day and gone next. And if we live our life for the sake of getting a bunch of people to be pleased with us, actually live a very lonely life and empty, because being liked by people is not fulfilling.
Speaker 1:Fulfillment comes from the experience of true love Hands down, hands down, hands down and being in a loving relationship with God. In a loving relationship with God, a real one, not a religious one, a real relaxed, letting go of your hand and your head back, resting in the arms, being still. Sometimes we need to learn how to be still, how to relax, how to be intimate, how to see things differently Like seeing in the woods differently how to see the kingdom. See, sometimes we can't even see the kingdom because we're so busy On a different wavelength, on a different vibration, on a different vibration, on a different light frequency, on a different mind, just a completely different mind, a set of mind, synapses Synapsing our brain's firing in a completely different way. We don't even see. But Good news is that that can change, that's changeable, that is changeable. But Relationship with God Is not always In the In the doing. Sometimes he just wants to be with us, sometimes he just wants to be with me. He just wants to be with me and for me to learn his glances, to learn the subtle nuances of the change of his mood and the direction of his look, and to begin to the change of his mood and the direction of his look and to begin to imitate it.
Speaker 1:Convergence in physical appearance of spouses Couples in long-term relationships often unconsciously mimic each other's facial expressions, especially when expressing similar emotions, which can gradually shape their facial muscles and create similar wrinkle patterns over time. Couples living together often adopt similar habits regarding diet, exercise and even stress levels, which can manifest in similar physical characteristics. The deep emotional connection between long-term partners the deep emotional connection between long-term partners can lead to a subconscious desire to look like their partner, further contributing to physical resemblance. And they took note that these men had been with Jesus. I will tell them plainly I never knew you. Be still and know that I am God.
Speaker 1:Let's pray, father, that I am God.
Speaker 1:Let's pray, father.
Speaker 1:Thank you that you're teaching us, you're showing us, you're making yourself known to us, and I love that.
Speaker 1:Thank you. I want you to know me. I make myself known to you. Relax around you, just sink into you. Jesus, thank you for showing us that Holy Spirit. Thank you for making that real. Thank you, god, for leading us and guiding us in the path that you have established ahead of time for us. Thank you that it's a good one and that we can follow you and not be uptight. Teach us, show us, help us, god, where we find ourselves, getting wound up. Help us unwind and trust you and walk without fear, without guilt, without shame. We stand here in the name of Jesus. We declare this to be so. We say amen, amen, amen, amen. All right, folks, I love you. If you have any thoughts, questions, concerns, please feel free to drop us a line at lifearoundthefire at gmailcom, or you can look us up on the web and type in Life Around the Fire, and we've got a pretty cool website. Check it out. We would love to hear from you In the meantime. God bless you. Adios amigos.