The story of Ahimaaz is our own: eager messengers overwhelmed by the weight of the message. Radically saved at the age of 21 & having spent more than two decades in full-time ministry, you'd think we had God figured out by now! But He's recently jumped out of the box we put Him in, forcing us to re-examine our views on gender equality, politics, what to do with homosexuality & more. And like Ahimaaz, we'll no doubt stumble some in delivery. But, guys, we need to talk...
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Red Letter Christians
Red Letter Christians posted our blog today and made our eBook available free for their readers. It's a real honor. Check it out at http://www.redletterchristians.org/does-god-really-prefer-men/
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Christian Feminism
In Defense of Christian Feminism
By Leslie Johnson
In the eyes of most, “Christian Feminism” is an oxymoron. Two words which are worlds apart…but are they? Webster’s defines “feminism” as “the theory of political, economic, and social equality of the sexes” - an idea that completely lines up with the liberating Gospel of Jesus Christ. No, it is certainly not the definition of feminism that gives us pause; it is the baggage of the modern feminist movement which causes Christians to passionately distance themselves from what one writer has appropriately dubbed “that word”. But we can no longer ignore the subject like a child tightly clamping his hands over both ears and humming loudly to avoid the unpleasant. Christian Feminism - a large and quickly growing movement within the Body of Christ – is here to stay. We would do well to understand what it is, and what it is not.
First, it is not connected to NOW (the National Organization for Women) or most other secular feminist organizations. The roots of Christian Feminism are, in fact, found in the Holiness/Pentecostal movement of the 19th century. A movement that produced such society-changing organizations as the WCTU - the Women’s Christian Temperance Union - founded in 1874. At this time, women had no voice in government, little or no control over their own property and no legal protection for themselves or their children. Prosecutions for rape were rare and the state-regulated “age of consent” for little girls to legally have sex with adult men was as low as seven years of age. Then God rallied housewives, daughters and old women, turning them into a formidable army for change in this nation. The boldness and success of the WCTU - just one mighty branch in this army – can be seen in how these ladies dealt with the unregulated sell of alcohol which was wreaking havoc upon families and whole communities at that time. These Christian women began dropping to their knees in local saloons in “pray-ins,” demanding that the sale of liquor be stopped. In three months the WCTU had driven liquor out of 250 communities!
No, the roots of today’s Christian Feminist movement are much deeper than the ‘Johnny-come-lately’ secular feminism. The history of Christian Feminism is rooted in women like Abigail Adams, Susan B. Anthony and Sojourner Truth, Christians who fought for equal voting rights and the eradication of slavery in First, it is not connected to NOW (the National Organization for Women) or most other secular feminist organizations. The roots of Christian Feminism are, in fact, found in the Holiness/Pentecostal movement of the 19th century. A movement that produced such society-changing organizations as the WCTU - the Women’s Christian Temperance Union - founded in 1874. At this time, women had no voice in government, little or no control over their own property and no legal protection for themselves or their children. Prosecutions for rape were rare and the state-regulated “age of consent” for little girls to legally have sex with adult men was as low as seven years of age. Then God rallied housewives, daughters and old women, turning them into a formidable army for change in this nation. The boldness and success of the WCTU - just one mighty branch in this army – can be seen in how these ladies dealt with the unregulated sell of alcohol which was wreaking havoc upon families and whole communities at that time. These Christian women began dropping to their knees in local saloons in “pray-ins,” demanding that the sale of liquor be stopped. In three months the WCTU had driven liquor out of 250 communities!
But there are two differences between what Christian Feminism espouses and what the traditional Church is currently teaching. Christian Feminists believe that God can and does use female vessels just the same as males. In other words, many women are called to be pastors, preachers, teachers and elders, just the same as men. And secondly, that husbands and wives are equal partners in marriage – one spouse does not have authority and control over the other. These are the beliefs of the modern Christian Feminist. No more…but certainly no less.
A Testimony
Gary's Testimony
By Leslie Johnson
By Leslie Johnson
The Beginning:
Life in the Delta
Billy & Gary (right) |
For a while the family ran a store, living in a trailer park, always struggling to make ends meet, and this is where Gary discovered the confusing world of Christian denominationalism. He laughs and says, "We were whichever bus got their first - I was Baptist one week, Pentecostal the next and the following week I'd be Catholic!" And while he certainly noticed all the differences from one denomination to the next, Gary felt they had one message in common: "God was unapproachable and distant, and definitely not very happy with me!"
Gary and his family soon moved to the woods - driving into Lake Village for school and work - but very much at home in the outdoors. Gary - who eventually reached the height of 6 foot 4 1/2 inches and weighed in at 320 pounds - loved sports, football in particular. And when he wasn't at school or practice, he was busy chopping wood, hunting and trapping. In fact, the family's existence was very much like something out of a Daniel Boone movie - no hot water, getting up when the moon was high to run the dogs and hunt raccoon. And Gary actually earned spending money by selling the skins of bobcats, raccoons and minks.
The after-effects of childhood abuse were also very much a part of Gary 's life. Though by nature Gary was very jovial and playful, he never hesitated to resort to his fists whenever he felt threatened. This only worsened after Gary started drinking at 12 and doing drugs when he was 16. And when he was old enough to get into bars, he soon discovered that many drunks try to prove their manhood by taking on the biggest guy in the bar. And, invariably, that was Gary . He's been in more fights than he can remember and had guns pulled on him more often than he can count - remember, this was the Delta 25 years ago and everybody had at least two shotguns in their trucks and many carried pistols in their glove boxes. Someone even pulled the trigger once, with the gun pointed right at Gary 's temple, but miraculously it never fired. During all this hard living, violence and confusion, Gary always had a tender heart towards God...he just thought God didn't love him. Many are the nights he'd pull his truck over to the side of the road and, with tears streaming down his face, scream out, "Don't forget me, God! Please, don't forget me!"
Having graduated from High School in 1979, Gary originally planned on working a year or two before fulfilling his dream of going to college and playing football. But time passed quickly and his dream of playing college ball along with it, increasing Gary 's bitterness, frustration and anger. And then one of his friends suggested they head out towards New Mexico and West Texas , where he had some connections, and make good money working on oil rigs. But their timing couldn't have been worse - the rigs had just begun capping off wells, and there were no jobs to be found. Gary 's friend soon returned to Arkansas , but Gary decided to stay and found work in a factory. But before too long, he had hooked up with a drug runner and was hired as a bodyguard, accompanying him on regular runs from New Mexico into Mexico and back again. He also worked protection for the drug runner's father, who was apparently involved in some shady business dealings. Like something right out of The Soprano's, Gary would accompany this man to bars and strip clubs where he would meet with his "business partners."
And like the drinking and drugs, Gary 's violence was rapidly increasing. Gary says, "All my dreams were gone. And I found myself in the underbelly of society. It wasn't that I was particularly brave. I just didn't care. I was scared, angry and always in 'attack mode'." He had become explosive. And after he smashed a car windshield and tried to pull a Mexican gang member out through the hole as the car was driving off, the drug runner Gary worked for said he was beginning to draw too much attention. He fired him, gave him a couple hundred dollars and urged Gary to return to Arkansas before he got himself killed. A few days later, Gary headed back to the Delta.
Salvation:
Jesus Is Calling
That was it. Gary exploded, "You better pull this $&!!$#& car over and let me out right now!!" There were other friends following them, and Gary rode with them for a while before returning to the car with Ajax further down the road. The next day, Ajax and his other friend came over and they all started partying again - drinking beer and smoking dope. And about 10 o'clock that night, Ajax did it again. He said, "Now Gary, I don't know why I'm telling you this - but Jesus loves you, man!" Gary shouted, "That's it!!!! You had better not say another word to me about Him - if He loves me, He's gonna have to tell me himself!!!!" And Gary reached over and cranked up the acid rock radio station as loud as it would go...and the radio went completely silent. Everyone's hair stood on end as the presence of God filled that room and the gentle melody and words of Kris Kristoferson's Why Me Lord? suddenly began to flow through the airwaves of Memphis ' famous acid rock radio station:
Lord help me Jesus I've wasted it...
So help me Jesus, You know what I am
Now that I know that I've needed you...
So help me Jesus my soul's in Your hands
Try me Lord, if You think there's a way
I can ever repay, all I've taken from You
Maybe Lord, I can show someone else
What I've been through myself
On my way back to You
"I heard you're supposed to tell somebody," replied Ajax .
So they hopped in Gary 's truck and drove up town where they saw two girls they had partied with many times before. Gary pulled over and excitedly told them what Jesus had just done for him. And the girls said, "Hey! That's great! What time are you going to be at the club?"
And Ajax assured Gary that, no, he couldn't go to the clubs any more. Then Ajax said, "Hey, I know one girl who's a Christian. Let's go see ask her what to do now."
And this is how Gary and Ajax learned that a former hippie was coming to Lake Village to speak and give his testimony. This young man, Joe Shelton, had been a rock musician for 10 years with many famous groups and was now an evangelist with a remarkable testimony of his own. So that night, Gary , Ajax and several other friends piled into a little, old church where they learned about salvation, grace and the amazing love of Jesus.
It's at this point, people always ask, "Whatever happened to Ajax ?" Well, Ajax and several other friends of Gary 's all got saved over the course of just a few days. In fact, the Spirit of God swept through that little town, bringing many former drug users, drug runners, violent and miserable men and women to salvation in Christ!
Joe recognized his important part in this tremendous move of God and decided to stay and start a church. And guess who named it? Why, Ajax , of course! "We all have 'faith' and this is 'fellowship'...let's just call it 'Faith Fellowship'" he said matter-of-factly. And so Faith Fellowship was born in Lake Village , Arkansas more than 20 years ago.
Well, needless to say, Gary 's life was never the same. He moved to northeast Mississippi where he enjoyed traveling with Joe and sharing his testimony in churches, camps and even schools across the South. He also became involved in the work of the Salvation Army where his remarkable gift of ministering to people in crises situations really flowed. In fact, it was prophesied several times that Gary would see "arms with tracks running up and down them" and minister to alcoholics, addicts and many others in bondage in the under-belly of society. And the Lord spoke more than once that He had made Gary "a big man" for this purpose - that he could walk into these places and immediately get people's attention and even respect because of his size. (Remember, Gary stands 6 foot 4 1/2 inches and is a mountain of a man - but his mom is 5'3" and his dad was 5'7" at the most!)
The word of the Lord has come true many times over. A few years later, he married a young woman who had recently returned to Christ after years spent in sin - that's me! - and we began our life together. It has been 25 remarkable years of marriage and I have never ceased to be amazed at the gifts of God that flow through Gary . He can speak into a situation and within three minutes get to the heart of what has kept a person bound for years. Why? Because it is the anointing that breaks the yoke (Isaiah 10:27 ). And God has sent this anointing into inner-city projects, to death-row inmates, alcoholics, addicts, and "at risk" adolescents to break the yoke of bondage, depravity and sin upon their lives.
And what of Ajax ? Well, he married a very sweet lady named Phyllis and they had two wonderful boys. Ajax passed on to glory a couple of years ago, but Phyllis and the boys remain in Lake Village. And remember the Grandmother that abused Gary and her other young grandchildren? She fully repented several years back and even went to a Christian crusade with Gary, me and the kids in 2002! She went on to heaven a few years later - but before she passed away, it was a beautiful demonstration of God's grace and forgivness to watch Gary at her bedside, singing some of her favorite hymns for her and holding her hand gently.
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