The Unmasking

HAG 1:7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your
ways.





Ok, I have talked about self and what this means to know God better. In the "Gift of Being Yourself", Brenner talks about the authenticity of self and are we really deceiving ourselves with the idea of who we really are.




"At the core of the false self is a desire to preserve an image of our self and a way to relating to the world. This is our personal style...how we think of ourselves and how we want others to think of us." we create a style that suits us and makes us feel good. We create a core style.




I am a pretty good person

I have the vision for the big picture

I have the ability to look at the pieces of puzzle on the table and put them together

I like people

I try to stay fit and love the outdoors

I like to be with people and have a good time

I have a good sense of humor

I am inventive and creative

I can do about almost anything, with a little practice

I am a good leader

I am enthusiastic and love a challenge



I guess I should stop here. If you are reading this and you think I am FOS, keep reading or submit your comments to my editorial board who will screen them for me and provide me with some positive uplifting feedback.



Not what is needed!



"Our false self is built on an inordinate attachment to an image of our self that makes us think we are special"



Ouch!



In a book by Rohr and Rohr, they ask "are we prepared to be other than the image of our self? If not we will live in a bondage of our false self"



Double Ouch!



This summer I stopped living the status quo.



I looked at my self and saw a reflection in the mirror of a false self that lived in me for a long time.



A self that was built on from my childhood.

A false self that was encouraged.

A false self that put me in the light of me, not in the light of God.

I learned to pretend and hide the inner most feelings of my soul

I learned that love had to be earned and not given freely

I learned that failure was not acceptable and success was at all cost

I learn that getting things done matter

I learned that feelings were something after you got things done

I learned the cry of the heart was the soul reaching out, and I ignored it

I learned that gentleness was something you did after you completed things

I learned that kindness sometimes got in the way of completion

I learned that a gentle touch took too much time.

I learned alot... I needed to forget.

I traded lies for the truth about myself.

God took me to a place where he showed me an honest look at myself and started to unwind the tape of years of believing a self that was created for my own good , not his.

He showed me to take an honest look at myself from these truths

• I am sinful and are powerless to stop sinning on my own, so I need to rely on God’s power;

• I am not in control of your life, but God is;

• The world doesn’t revolve around me, and I am a nit in God’s great story;

• All my strengths are from God, so I can’t take credit for them and should use them to serve and glorify God; and

• My weaknesses are greater than my strengths, because my weaknesses cause me to depend on God’s greater power not my own tainted abilities and desires.

God let the awareness of my brokenness lead me to the wholeness I can only find in Christ.

God put his light on me this summer. He started the process. He took away the pride and selfishness and is replacing it with the unearned love he can only give.




"Few things are more difficult to discern and dismantle than our most cherished illusions. And none of our illusions are harder to identify than those the lie at the heart of our false self."



This summer God helped me realize the price of the mask I wore was not worth it.




Starting to understand my mask prevented me from experiencing real intimacy with God and others. Rather than trying to impress God, I need to pursue an honest and intimate relationship with Him while relying on His strength.



My masks prevent me from pleasing God.



Instead of vying for other people’s approval and praise, I need live to please God alone




...The time of unmasking came at the masquerade ball of the century.



I was having a good time at the ball with the masks of un-reality I created for myself.



I was pleased with who I was behind the mask of deceit an illusion.



I was thankful that I would leave the party before the unmasking took place.



God changed my plans.



He came in and unmasked me at an unexpected time and place.



I was scared that God would really see who I was and who I became even thought I did love him.



I was fearful to see my self in light of God and the fallacies and illusions I created.



God tore of my mask and said, "Rick, I am here for you. You do not have to earn my love. It is here for the taking because I love you for who you are and who you will become."



I love you today and forever more while we continue our walk on the path while on the Adventure in Middle Grove.

The Gift of Being Yourself - Life Comes at You Fast

Psalm144:4 (The Message)

^3-4 I wonder why you care, God—
why do you bother with us at all?
All we are is a puff of air;
we're like shadows in a campfire.

Good Question...

There is a television commercial by Nationwide Insurance that says,

"Life comes at you fast" Psalm 144 tells us we are but a puff of air or a fleeting shadow in a campfire. That is Fast! We need to know ourselves before we can really know God and we really do not have much time here on this earth to get to know God and know ourselves.

Brenner says in "The Gift of being Yourself" we are rear view mirror Christians. We look back over the day and do an examination but do we really do a self examination about ourselves? Do we avoid the feelings and indwelling sin in our lives escape the scrutiny of examination and reflection? If we do, we are allowing a disconnect between our self and God. We are not looking at our self in view of the transformational knowledge that God give us in his word.

What we are left with is the shame we have by not being true to God and the shame we bring on ourselves for not knowing ourselves. It is the shame that keeps us from the true knowledge with action if we really know ourselves and God.

"The goal of a prayerful review of recent life experiences is not self-analysis. The point is not to peel back the onion and find some problem or meaning. The goal is to increase our awareness of God in the events of life and the depths of my being."

Lord, let me come before you this day and put my shame before you.

The shame I have for not always following your wisdom;

The shame I have for not always loving people close to me the way you love them;

The shame I have for not always looking at people through your eyes, not mine;

The shame I have for not always yielding to you.

Release me this day from the shame and sin in my life so I can see a path that is clearer this day as you care for me on the Adventure in Middle Grove.

The Flip Side

"Stand up; I too am a man." (Acts 10:25-26 RSV).


"Peter was a Galilean, the characteristics of which at the time included a strong sense of independence and a direct, impetuous manner. His "frontier mentality" made him as quick on the draw with a sword (e.g. when he cut off Malchus' ear ) as many American cowboys were with a six-gun in the Old West nearly 2,000 years later."

Sometimes weird connections come to me as I a labor during the day. Yesterday I had one of those connections. I was cleaning the storage area in the basement and was not looking for anything in particular. I stopped to think about a box of 45 records I had in the basement and started looking for them. I couldn't find them but finding them was not the point by now. For those of you who have never seen a 45 record, you are a lot younger than me!

45 records were pressed on 2 sides. I guess they figured why waste a side of the record, we will put something on it. Sometimes it was not even the same artist. So, you could get a top 40 song on one side and "The chorus of German shepherds howling Gregorian Chants" Most of the time a purchaser of the 45 did not know what was going to be on other side until the record came out.

Just a point of meaningless trivia. Decca records pressed many of their 45 records in Gloversville NY. Don't know how that happened!

Ok back on task...

So, you would potentially have a hit on one side and a dog on the other. Alright, it was a cheap attempt at a joke.

But there were a few that had hits on both sides. This was VERY rare.

The Internet is great for an ADD person. I found a site that had all the 45s ever pressed and had the front side (A) and the flip side (B) and where they appeared on the record hit list.

1 COME TOGETHER A / 2 SOMETHING B- The Beatles (1969)

Two hits on one 45!

This was was Peter. He had a flip side.

"Reading Peter's epistles makes me wonder if this is the same hot-headed fisherman we meet in the Gospels! Something dramatic has happened to him. His knowing of both God and his own self underwent a radical change because he came to know Jesus. "

Our ideas about God are formed in the relationship we have with him and the relationship we have in knowing who we are before God.

If that doesn't humble you, nothing will!


Our objective knowledge of God is good but it is pale in comparison to the transformational knowledge available to us if we get to know God on a more intimate level.

I believe this is what happened to me this summer. I had the same 45 playing for a long time but it was side B. God said "Rick, enough of listening to side B, I am going to flip this record over"

He did, literally..

He flipped me over to a new side that had rarely been played before;

the quality of the sound was something that was never heard before

and the words were only his words.

God can change people

He Changed Peter, he changed me

Lord, Side B sounded pretty good for a long time. the words and the music were soothing to me. They satisfied my desires and my longings.

But you flipped me over to Side A, "The number one hit"

The music and words are now your music and your words. Side A is for you because I know more about me. Keep the music playing as the Adventure in Middle Grove likes the sound of your tunes.

Transformational Knowledge or Walking on Water Part 5

Why Many Christians Never ‘Walk On Water’

This will finish up my look at transformation knowledge. Knowledge that moves us to action in Christ. Knowledge that takes the words off the page and puts them in our hearts. It is true faith and action.

The boat represents our natural life: the visible means of support around us that we are so familiar with. The disciples were in the boat because Jesus had told them to get in. There was nothing wrong with them being in the boat. In our Christian life we often go along just fine in the ‘boat’ God has given us. It was God’s perfect will for us. He gave it to us and there is no sin in it. The boat is not leaking and there is no reason to the natural eye to get out. But if we are growing in Christ there comes a time when we will have to leave some comfortable place and step out in obedience to His command.

When we walk on water, we are walking away from what we find natural and comfortable and walking towards our highest goal in life, Christ. This isn’t about quitting your job and moving to Africa as a missionary. It isn’t only about making changes in your external circumstances at all, although that may happen as a result.

It is about drawing closer to Christ.

This may require you to give up something that you’ve been turning to for comfort or pleasure in order to make more time for Christ in your daily routine.

So why do so many of us remain stuck where we are and never come into the purpose God has intended for us? I believe this story of Peter suggests a few reasons why this happens.

1. First, as we’ve noticed, Peter asked. NO PRAYER is probably the number one reason why Christians remain spiritually stunted. Nothing of eternal value happens in our life apart from communion with Christ in private prayer. Without that, there will be no power, no life from God to reach loftier heights. We will only grow spiritually as we seek Him in prayer and feast on His word. Until we are doing this, we cannot expect God to call us to higher things.

2. Next, we see the eagerness in Peter in that he boldly asked to do such an outrageous thing. Of all the maladies afflicting the Body of Christ today, one of the greatest must certainly be apathy. Once we strip away all our excuses, plain lack of desire for Christ is what is really behind our prayerlessness. We will always make time for what we really want to do after the inescapable duties of daily life. The redeemed of Christ are “eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:14). Christ counseled the lukewarm church to “be earnest” (Rev. 3:19). Among the other 11 disciples that remained in the boat, some I am sure harbored a desire to walk out to Christ as well, but not as much as Peter. Many Christians never “walk on the water” simply because they don’t want it enough to leave the boat. The question is not whether you love Christ, but how much do you love Him? Do you love Him more than all these other things, or are you allowing the cold water of worldliness to douse your desire for Christ?

3. We will also note that Peter was willing to leave the boat. He wanted to walk out to Christ, and he was willing to leave the relative comfort of the boat to do so. Unwillingness to give up the things we currently enjoy keeps many of us back. It is much easier to stay comfortable where we are. Walking on water requires that we make some hard choices in life and give up some of the things we enjoy and comfort ourselves with so that we can spend time with Jesus. The boat that Peter walked away from was not sinful. It was perfectly legitimate and given by God. Christ had told them to get into the boat. But Peter walked away from it in order to have more of Christ. The worldly Christian remains a spiritual infant because they will not give up their grasp on something that may be legitimate, but takes them away from Jesus, all the while arguing for it’s innocence or harmlessness. They are simply unwilling to give up some worldly pleasure, such as TV, or a favorite hobby, in order to make more time to seek Christ in prayer and the Word.

4. Many never ‘walk on water’ because they are letting fear and unbelief stop them from obeying Christ’s call. They are looking to the flesh – taking stock of their strengths, weaknesses, abilities and limitations – and not looking to Christ. Or they are looking at the difficulty of their circumstances. Either way, they are not looking to Christ. In short, they are saying ‘I can’t’ , instead of realizing that whether they can or can’t has nothing to do with it. Christ will give us the strength and ability we need to obey Him.

The only way we will ever be able to take great steps of faith is to look to Christ and not self.The only way is to know ourselves so we look to Christ. Peter did this when he left the boat.

5. There are conditions to receiving God’s power, often overlooked by the church today. Many never ‘walk on water’ because they haven’t met the necessary prerequisites. Peter was a disciple. He had left all to follow Jesus. His boat, his employment, his family, everything he knew, to follow Christ. Jesus came first before everything else.

Peter wasn’t perfect, but sin had been dealt with and wasn’t an issue in his life. He had surrendered his life to Christ completely and his heart was undivided.

Many Christians are waiting for God to move in their life, to make some dramatic change, to open doors to greater power and ministry while they lounge in front of the TV for countless hours each week. Everything we read in the bible has application to our daily life. All scripture is given for our instruction, admonition and growth in righteousness.

We often get ourselves in trouble in one of two ways: We are presumptuous in our faith and try to get out of the boat before God has called us, or we are not trusting Him enough to ask and leave the boat when He calls as I am ready to get out of the boat that floats in the Adventure in Middle Grove

Transformational Knowledge or Walking on Water Part 4

1Corinthians 2:5 (NIV)

...so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

Transformational knowledge must also move us forward and not keep us stagnant in our walk. When we hear God's call, we need to act. This is why we really need to know our self. If we know our self and we know God, we then can make the critical decisions in life just like Peter had to do.

There was no turning back...

Faith is Zealous

When Christ gave the word to come, Peter didn’t procrastinate. He didn’t stop to reconsider or ask Christ to supply some more details. He didn’t need to be pushed overboard by the other disciples. He didn’t need any further reassurance. In he went. He was obedient. He sought the Lord’s will first, and waited on the Lord for His answer, but when it was all said and done, Peter had a great desire to go. He was eager, and didn’t need to be invited twice. His eagerness is also shown by the initiative he took in asking Jesus to walk out. He was, as the scripture exhorts “eager to do what is good.”

The faith that walks on water is a zealous faith, eager to do what is good.

Now, we all know what happens next in the story. Peter started out with great enthusiasm , but as he went on his way toward Jesus he saw the winds and the waves, and began to sink. As he was sinking, Peter cried out to the Lord, and Jesus extended His hand to Peter and pulled him up. There are times when I stepped out in faith, only to find me sinking, whether due to a lack of faith or an error of the heart. It is not the error of direction I need to fear so much as the error of heart. If my heart is right with God and I sincerely desire to do His will, I can always trust the extended hands of our God to hold me up.

Christ is the Goal

Have you ever seen motivational posters so popular in business. Usually they show a rock climber, a white-water kayaker, or a runner, with some motivational slogan encouraging you to strive for excellence and higher attainments in life, or to reach for your dreams. Many preach Christ as some kind of personal enabler, come from heaven to help us achieve our full potential in life.

I call it the "make a wish God"!

The story of Peter walking on water is a popular passage with preachers who turn it into a motivational message encouraging people to reach for higher goals, to take risks ‘for God’, to dream bigger dreams. They often sound like a religious version of the many motivational speakers popular in business who make a living hyping people to “be all that they can be” and to “reach for your dreams”.

The Bible teaches us otherwise.

“Unless the seed falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone.”

The gospel is not a motivational message from heaven to bring us into greater personal fulfillment. Christ did not come to earth and die on the cross to become our personal enabler so that we can achieve a better life.

The goal of the gospel IS Christ, and to bring us to Him.

Peter’s request was to “come to you on the water.” When he got out of the boat, he “came toward Jesus.” Peter’s desire and request was to go to Christ, not to walk on water. Walking on water is not about miracles; it’s about drawing closer to Christ in our personal lives. It is about coming to Jesus daily in personal communion.

The gospel of Christ invites us to come and die to self, our will, our dreams, our ambitions, our agendas and become servants of the cross. Unless we hate our life, pick up our cross and die to self we cannot be His disciples.

It is no longer our path in life we follow, but His.

The goal of Christian faith is always Christ, to know Him and obey Him. If that is not our overriding desire in all things, then my motivation is wrong, and if my motivation is wrong than nothing I do can be right with God. In my asking, my goal must always be to do His will and not my own.

“Not my will, but yours be done.” The faith that walks on water has the person of Christ and His will as it’s supreme goal in all things as the Adventure in Middle Grove continues to seek Your face..

Transformational Knowledge or Walking on Water Part 2

Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

“Come,” he said. Then Peter… walked on the water and came toward Jesus.’

Matthew 14:28,29 NIV

This is going to take longer than 2 days. Transformational knowledge is so important in my life as a Christian, more and more keeps coming to light for further investigation.

Transformational knowledge is: where the head meets the heart;

the knowing of self transects the knowing of God;

It is the moment where the reality of Christianity meets the depths of the soul;

It is where self is actualized in the Spirit of God as actions of faith are moved by God.





I believe this is what happened to me this summer. The soul and the self met the spirit and God moved in ways that could not be explained in human terms. This is what Peter experienced in his encounter with Jesus his faith was brought to the place of impact.

Faith Waits On the Lord

After Peter sought His will in asking the Lord for permission he didn’t immediately jump out of the boat. Peter didn’t presume upon the Lord’s answer, but waited for it.

I would rather have a puff of smoke and be done with it.. It does not happen this way.

This brings us to the next point:

The faith that walks on water is faith that waits on God until He answers.

This passage of scripture is a popular one among preachers who love the vivid metaphor it provides for believing God for great things. We love to hear about the action, the excitement of taking leaps of faith and ‘walking on water’. It’s highly visible and empowering. It suits our busy, externalized culture and modern temperament.

But the waiting aspect of faith taught in this passage of scripture is often overlooked. There is a lot of ‘faith’ teaching around these days telling people to step out on promises and take risks. To many such preachers, Peter’s waiting would have looked like unbelief, and no doubt if they had been on that boat they would have been encouraging him to ‘have more faith’ and jump.

But Peter didn’t jump into the water until after he had waited on the Lord and heard from Him, and this is precisely where many Christians go wrong in their faith. They ‘jump out of the boat’ without sufficiently waiting on the Lord, and end up in troubled waters.

Satan literally tempted Christ to take a similar leap of faith. Luke 4:1-13 gives the account of Christ being tempted in the wilderness. In the last temptation, Satan took Jesus to the top of the temple and challenged Christ to jump off, based on a promise of protection in the scripture. Satan even quoted chapter and verse. Satan was challenging Christ to step out on the promise of God. It is a legitimate promise in Psalm 91:11,12 that God will protect us and keep us from harm. Now, there is nothing wrong with God’s promises and every Christian knows that we are to trust those promises. So what’s the problem here? Sounds pretty scriptural, doesn’t it? But instead of jumping, Christ responded by quoting another verse, from Deut.6:16 - “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

Testing God means deliberately putting ourselves in a situation where He has to come through or we end up in trouble. The temptation here was twofold: to cherry-pick certain promises from the word of God without heeding the entire written word, and to test God by deliberately putting Himself in a risky situation so that God is forced to prove Himself.

This is a common pitfall Christians fall into. We cast ourselves down on a single promise.

We take a rash stand on a certain promise, without taking the whole counsel of scripture into careful consideration and waiting upon the Lord.

This may result in placing ourselves in a risky situation where God has to respond in a certain way or we end up in trouble. If Peter had jumped before receiving Christ’s word to step out, instead of it being a legitimate step of faith, he would have been putting God to the test.

Faith waits on the Lord, and takes the whole of God’s word into consideration. It requires that we heed the entire counsel of God in His written word and not simply cherry-pick the parts we like. Notice that Christ looked to the rest of scripture for the right response to this temptation, and didn’t make His decision based on a single promise.

Faith isn’t about naming and claiming the promises, or insisting that God honor some ‘step’ of faith we’ve decided to take. It is about looking to Christ and seeking His will, and humbly waiting on Him that He may guide us.

The faith that walks on water is the faith that waits on the Lord as my faith is waiting as the Adventure in Middle Grove moves on to another week.