End Times Witnessing: End Time Now -Last two jobs

The watchman was asked to read the Gospel of John again during these last few days that remain in this year. He was told that he would read and receive new revelation. So he obeyed. On 26th December morning, he read from Chapter one to four. Then he was asked to stop. He saw what the Lord wanted him to see. There is one type of real food that gives life at the end time. The food according to Jesus is "“is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work."
What is the will of the Father? What has Jesus just done prior to saying this to His disciples? He demonstrated how it was done.
The watchman read the following passage again with fresh revelation. His comments are in brackets.
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John 4 Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman
(He was sowing the seeds of God's Words and reaping the harvests)
3 So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. 4 Now he had to go through Samaria. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

(How Jesus sowed the Seeds (God's Words)
7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”
16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”
17 “I have no husband,” she replied.

(How Jesus reaped the ripe Harvests - many Samaritans' souls through one fruit: the Samaritan Woman)
Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”
(The woman became conveinced when jesus showed that He knew more all about her secret)

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

Jesus spoke about true end time worship: only in Spirit and in truth
(The Samaritan woman was concerned with cultural and religious differences based on political and traditional differences)

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”

(The disciples were preoccupied with physical living like food, and were concerned about man's religious tradition and practice. They were no different in their lack of true worship like the Samaritans. They missed out the whole demonstrations of the two essential works for Jesus' disciples: sowing and reaping!) 

27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”


(How The One Fruit of Jesus sowed and reaped more harvests!)
28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
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(Jesus spoke on two end times essentials:
1. true worship: only in spirit and in truth.
2. true disciples of Jesus: doing the will of the Father in heaven.
what is the will of the Father in heaven? They belong to only two professions:
1. The Sower of Seeds (Words of God) for the advancement of the kingdom of God
2. The reaper of the crop for eternal life in the kingdom of God.
Observe that the disciples were asked to reap what Jesus (and the prophets until John the Baptist) had sown. "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing and forceful men lay hold of it." Matt11:12)

34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”


(Many Samaritans Believed and became sowers and reapers themselves!)

39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. 41 And because of his words many more became believers.
42 They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”
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There are only two jobs left for end times. Are you doing one of the two? If not, you need to seriously consider what Jesus has said to His disciples to enter the kingdom of God.

END TIMES VACANCIES FOE KINGDOM OF GOD:
A watchman/intercessor is a sower.
An evangelist is a reaper.
There are currently many vacancies for both types of jobs. Anyone applying?

Management for Christians (3): how are you managing?

How are you managing? We always ask others this way. Often, the reply is, “Just/barely managing.” A Christian will reply, “Praise the Lord, we are managing.” (Often the reply does not reveal the real situation. Managing has become a cliche.)
1. The word ‘managing’ refers to ‘living’. Managing is synonymous with living.
2. There is no other word which so boldly claims its importance in daily living. We therefore need to learn effective management in all aspects of life.
3. Management is all about living your life. How you want to live your life will affect how effective your management will be.
4. Your values impact your management of life. Do you know your values? Why do you live?
5. Management is based on the ‘why’ and then works on the ‘how’. When you know why you live, you can then work on how to live an effective life.
6. How to manage effectively? You need a management road map.
7. A Christian management road map includes the following navigation tools:  a Bible, a heart that is willing to listen to the Holy Spirit, an attitude that is open to learning.
A. Bible: you need a New Spirit Filled Life Bible -Kingdom equipping through the power of the Word (Thomas Nelson Bibles)
B. Holy Spirit: you need to pray to be filled by the Holy Spirit.
C. Open attitude: An attitude that submit totally to God and resist the devil daily.
8. Be prepared to receive revelations daily from the spiritual realm. Your road map is a living reality. A dynamic force.
9. Be adventurous as you will be required to sail into uncharted waters and break into new territories.
10. Be hopeful for a life that will not be the same once you are on course on this new management journey!

Revised February 2013: towards ‘the end of a journey’ in the Spirit

Revised 2013 February: It is always with good purpose a man ends a major episode or starts a new episode of his life with a resolution.

At the time this blog was written on May 20, 2010, the spiritual man was at a cross road not really knowing where to go next but he believed he would follow the Holy Spirit. Now that quite sometime had passed, he realizied that the Spirit of the Lord did lead him through management-God's Way, but not exactly in the way he thought he would be doing. It transpired that he did not go beyond a few episodes on this subject. The major discovery he found was God's Way is the only way. God does not need man's input in any ways at all. So he abandoned his quest to write a management manual. On the other hand, he was led through end times visions, dreams, and words in the Bible. He became a prolific blogger in the things that matter to God during the last two years. Life in the Holy Spirit means sailing onto deeper waters, living a life which hitherto was deemed impossible in the flesh.

The revelation shows how little he knew the Lord before and how far more he needs to go in his new journey to see God!____________________________________

Original Blog on May 20, 2020: Indeed, as Jack approaches the end of the series on ‘One man’s journey in the Holy Spirit’ which he intends to end by the 100th Episode, he asked the Holy Spirit what his next assignment would be. Of course, it does not mean that he will no longer be walking by the Spirit, it would only mean that he would no longer write so much about his experience in seeing visions, dreaming dreams or hearing God through His words.

He had no clue until yesterday when he was urged to write a bit about management. After he got down to writing two blogs it dawned on him that he was led by the Spirit to write about ‘Management -God’s way’ (Management by the Holy Spirit)!
There had been a number of similar occurrences lately in his own household. A close one (a medical professional) had been led by the Holy Spirit to ponder on and now teaches ‘Healing -God’s way’. Her sister (a professional mental health counselor) was led to ponder on the topic ‘Counseling -God’s way’. And now it is his turn to look at ‘Management -God’s way’. He also knows of many Christians business men doing business -God’s way. The list of practical living -God’s way is practically endless.
It is indeed a very full life living by the Holy Spirit! It is like sailing in uncharted waters, fresh, revitalizing, renewing, transforming!

Management according to Jack (part two)

What are some essential requirements for effective management? Here are some tips:
1. Effective management works on the assumption that resources are scarce and limited and valuable.
2. Effective management's success does not depend on the dead know how (systems, records, files, figures, practices). Effective management's success comes from the availability of and effective use of dynamic living things: e.g. people who manage and are being managed, and other essential resources (tangible and non-tangible: opportunities, time, money, premises, equipment, technology, creativity, relationship, distribution channels etc.) that can produce, create values and contribute to desired growth.
3. Effective management means using available and limited resources in optimum combination to produce maximized results/targets as expected.
4. A primitive man with the basic essential resources can still produce something even when he has to start from zero with no figures, no files, no records, no established system etc.
5. In a modern organization, management system is created or adopted to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of management, often with the objective of maximizing and optimizing the use of limited resources for improvement and expansion of desired results (in quantity and quality).
6. Management system changes overtime like a live creature, adapting to various forces (internal and external environment) working for survival. It therefore requires to renew and often transform, to keep up if not move ahead of its competition for scarce resources.
7. Effective management system aims to be ahead of the pack, based on the assumption that desirable resources are scarce.
8. Christian management system is different from others. The main distinction is the management manual (the words of God).
9. When Christian manager follows God's management manual, he can only succeed. This is guaranteed by the ultimate Authority Himself.
10. Effective Christian management practice requires: faith in the unseen God, supernatural belief in all His promises, knowledge of and adherence to the words of God, submission to His will and being led by the Holy Spirit in all aspects of decision making and operational execution.

Management pearls for Christians according to Jack

Background
Jack has been practicing management since 1970s. He has been through many facets of various management fields. To him, management is like a part of life and indeed encompasses many daily living aspects whether one knows it or not.
After his career as a corporate employee he has branched into training and coaching others (business owners and employees). He also did postgraduate studies in health (physical, emotional and mental) and social behavioral management. All this while, he has been active in church (organizational and spiritual) and other similar non-profit organization management counseling as well. Due to the nature of his job, he has had numerous encounters with public sector management/administration practices.
He has now sensed an increasingly urgent need to put down some of his thoughts (in bullet form) on the management of life in view of such a lot of management messes out there even for Christians. 

 Management according to Jack (part one)
1. Management is part of daily living. You can live on comfortably by managing effectively.
2. You manage effectively by identifying values, setting goals and priorities, and act on them accordingly.
3. The most important thing is to identify your values. If tomorrow is end day what would be the one thing you do today? Give top priority to do that one thing.
4. Focus your resources on doing the one thing that guarantees to bring you to your goals.
5.  Do not manage by documentation or theory. Manage by practice (e.g. act on your faith, be doers of the Word, walk by the Spirit.)
6. Manage lives (people) and not dead things (system).
7. Admit that there is no perfect plan or program or man (woman). There is only one perfect Savior (God).
8.  Build on solid foundation. Who is your foundation (your real Rock)?(Don't be like the foolish man who built on sand).
9. Use one management manual that lasts, the Word of God.
10. Be accountable (to yourself, family, human authorities, and the ultimate Authority in heaven).

chapter four: ALAS, still following his head

This is day number three and Jack realized that he needed to read the Bible to increase heart knowledge of God instead of head knowledge of God. He was still relying heavily on the little booklet to pray. However, at the end of the day he discovered that the blessings on the Mount of Olive were all meant for our relationship with God and not as what we used to think.
When Jack was human works focused he was totally off the track. When he became God-focused, that was the turning point and this was only the third day. Was the Holy Spirit guiding him? Indeed He was. But Jack did not know at this point and he was working hard, using his brain to learn how to practice Biblical living.

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Day three: be merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, persecuted for righteousness sake
I got up late as I forgot that today was the day of prayer as a “watchman” (in prayer) for the city. When I managed to start praying it was 6.15am. I read the verses from the hymns of worship and praise instead of singing. I reaffirmed my belief through the reading of “We believe” written by Graham Kendrick. “We believe in God the Father, Maker of the universe, and in Christ His Son our Savior, come to us by virgin birth. We believe He died to save us, bore our sins, was crucified. Then from death He rose victorious, ascended to the Father’s side. We believe He sends His Spirit on His church with gifts of power. God His word of truth affirming sends us to the nations now. He will come again in glory judge the living and dead. Every knee shall bow before Him, then must every tongue confess, Jesus Lord of all, Name above all names.”

After reading I prayed for the city, using a booklet prepared by the prayer group. Based on my previous day’s reading of the words from Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel I prayed that the people here will repent, humble themselves, thirst for righteousness (Jesus), be meek and gentle, and mourn for the terrible conditions many are in right now, in captivity and held under the bondage of vices and darkness.

What a wonderful city this will be when that happens! (I admit I am an idealist. I am a realist too. I believe. Otherwise there is no point foregoing my sleep. )

merciful
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy”. (Matthew 5:7)

“Blessed is he who considers the poor; the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble”. Psalm 41:1 is the cross reference. How do I apply this today? I took this to mean doing a merciful deed to the poor today when given the opportunity. The repair workman was here again today to fix the roof. He wanted to come at 8am but I was not available. He said he would come around 11-12pm but he only turned up at 1.45pm! The workman/proprietor was alone (cutting cost?) and only finished his work in the late afternoon. After that I had to rush off to reach the government office before it closed to pay some important bills due. The usual roads were blocked and I was diverted into a police station! Thank God the police man was courteous and showed me the new direction. I arrived seconds before the closing time!

pure in heart
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”. (Matthew 5:8). This verse cross referred to Psalm 15:2, in which King David described the person who could draw near to God: “he who walks uprightly, and works righteously, and speaks the truth in his heart”. He believed in God’s presence. He put God in every aspect of his life. No wonder he saw God in his spirit. Even when David failed to meet the standards of God he continued to seek God’s presence. This was the clue to seeing God.

I am no David. I need to improve in appreciating the reality of God’s presence in my life. I need to read the Bible with the intention to increasing heart knowledge of God instead of head knowledge. Jesus defined eternal life as He prayed for us in John 17:3 “and this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent”. Eternal life is knowing God and Jesus!

peacemakers
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). This verse reminds me that Jesus, the Son of God is called the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). In the Book of Ephesians (2:14-19), Apostle Paul pointed out the fact that Jesus Himself is our peace. He has by His blood, made peace and reconciled us to God through the cross. Through Him we have access by the Holy Spirit to the Father (God). In verse 19 Paul declared: “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household”!

The peacemakers are those who lead others to make peace with God. How do I apply this requirement? I shall continue to write and hopefully reach some friends and strangers who are seeking to make peace with God.

persecuted for righteousness’ sake
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:10). This requirement seems tough for me. However, Proverbs 16:7 stated that “when a man’s way pleases the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him”. Apostle Peter also encouraged us in I Peter 3:13-14, “and who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.”

I shall certainly heed the advice of a senior citizen in God’s kingdom. She advised young Christians to ask God to work into them, to put iron in their souls so they will be ready when the tests come.

Review for the day: it dawned on me that the blessings requirements were all meant for our relationship with God through Jesus Christ. They form a basis for me to interact with God.

AAA Jack

He stooped and fed us

In today’s reading, I read Matthew 11:28-29. Jesus called out to everyone here, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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.”
When I first read these two verses long ago, I always thought it rather contradictory. On one hand Jesus wanted us to remove our burden/yoke, on the other hand He urged us to put on His. A lot of churches taught me to be extra hard working as I have to carry Jesus’ burden. So I had to make a lot of effort to serve Him in churches, doing good work etc. The burdens became heavy and impossible to carry on my own. I know of Christians and pastors burning out too. It doesn’t make sense as Jesus specifically assured us in the following verse, “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30)
However, I am determined to understand these verses this time in this living Biblically quest. I prayed and read crossed reference verses and found the following treasure in Hosea. God spoke.
“I drew them with gentle cords, with bands of love, and I was to them as those who take the yoke from their neck. I stooped and fed them.” this wonderful verse is taken from Hosea 11:4. God said He loved Israel (Christians) when he was a child. He taught them to walk, take them by their arms. He healed them. He then described how He drew them with gentleness and took away their yoke. Try picturing God as a tall and mighty person who stooped down to a little child and fed him patiently and lovingly.
The definition of a yoke:
1 a: a wooden bar or frame by which two draft animals (as oxen) are joined at the heads or necks for working together b: an arched device formerly laid on the neck of a defeated person c: a frame fitted to a person's shoulders to carry a load in two equal portions d: a bar by which the end of the tongue of a wagon or carriage is suspended from the collars of the harness.
When I thought of Jesus before, I always had the idea that He was like any of us, small and insignificant. I thought of carrying His cross/yoke for Him as if He was walking to the place of crucifixion. How wrong I had been! Jesus is no longer on His way to be crucified. He has already been crucified, died, buried, risen from the dead and now sits in heaven as God! The Jesus now is a mighty, magnificent and majestic God. He is definitely not the little man like any of us.
When I thought of this truth, I saw a different picture of the yoke on us. Instead of me carrying the yoke by myself, the yoke is shared now between me and Jesus. But Jesus is so much (infinitely) taller and bigger, so it is He who carries the yoke and not me. I am just like the child described in Hosea 11:4, whom Jesus stooped down to feed and nurse.
My application: continue to come near to God daily and feed on His words. Yesterday after interceding for the nation I had an unusual encounter. I was prostrating on the floor and the picture came to my mind. Jesus was holding a little narrow jar/vase in His hand and poured out some oil on His fingers. Then He touched my forehead. I had the word “anointing” in my mind.
After that, I forgot about the picture. By mid morning a thought came to me that I needed to record down the picture I saw. But I have forgotten it entirely. I was troubled. So I prayed that I could recall it. Immediately the picture came, exactly as I had seen in the early morning. I am not sure what this means and I have no Bible reference in my mind. I decide to leave this subject for the time being. However I believe I need to continue to pray/intercede for the nation, seek guidance and clarification of goals and directions for my life, especially at this time of uncertainty.
Meanwhile I am happy that it is not me who carries the yoke. No wonder Jesus assured us that His yoke is easy and His burden is light!
AAA Jack
March 28, 2009

be the wise man who built his house on the rock

“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and when the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was built on the rock.” Matthew 7:24-25
Yesterday I finally heard what this passage is all about. I always thought I was the one who had to do the work of building. I had to choose the ground properly. I had to calculate and select the materials for the building. I had to make sure that the house was built on strong foundation or it would tumble down in the storm. I had focused on the word “I” and no wonder I failed.
Yesterday a speaker told us that it was the other way round. He asked, “Do you let Jesus dig deep into you?” “Do you let God build into you deeply, all the way to the bedrock?” He was preaching on something else but he opened his sermon by mentioning this passage and asked us these questions.
What? I never thought of this passage this way. It makes sense as it tallies with what the apostle Paul had told us. He reminded us that we are God’s workmanship. It is God who builds into us. Another preacher writer also had been writing on this subject of work too and has been hammering into my head and my heart that Christians’ main problem is that we do not let God work into us. We like to be in control and feel important by working for God! It is obvious that our foundation is like sand if we persist on serving and working without allowing God to work deep into us and build our character!
The depth and strength of our character comes from God’s working in our lives. There is no way any one can work (whatever good works he does) his way to strength and power without God’s building and molding him.
My application: Let God work deep into me and build me on His solid foundation. Continue to rise early to seek God and worship Him, pray and intercede for others too. Continue to read His Words in chunks and be alert to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
This morning while praying for my church’s recent project of raising a big sum $15million to build a mega building, I was filled with the idea of writing to the pastor and urging him not to proceed even though the church building committee had already collected over $5million.
I could see my thoughts gathering clearly. Recently I had been thinking how to save the world from its fast track of sliding downhill. I had the idea of asking every family to grow organic vegetables and rear chickens or goats in our backyards. I thought of home schooling and keeping a self sufficient family independent of the world economy. I thought of re-cycling practically everything and conserving instead of destroying and depleting more rare resources. I read up on the subject and discovered that more and more people are thinking on this future. Today I read about the US President’s wife doing exactly the same project of gardening in the White House!
I could envisage the pictures of a church growing fresh vegetables and fruits and even keeping sheep and goats to support the unemployed congregation members and families. The pastor may ask how he will accommodate the worship service members if the existing hall becomes too full. Well, I saw in my vision people sitting on grass, under trees, in glass houses, in sheds etc. Loudspeakers are fixed on the trees and church organ music filled the air everywhere in the huge organic garden. Just think, a bit of Paris (the gardens in the city where we used to sit around and listen to classical music under trees) right here. After church service, healthy lunches can be bought at reasonable prices too.
Bible references: I keep reading a lot about agricultural and pastoral blessings from God and none about construction. GROW instead of CONSTRUCT appears to be the key word for receiving supernatural blessing. Grow something organic that gives life and generates produce in return. Do not construct something dead which depreciates with wear and tear. (Not to mention the wasting of resources and spoiling the environment). When we build, be like Abraham. Build altars for God. (Not monuments for men).
AAA Jack
March 23, 2009