- Jan 25, 2009
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To anyone interested
I'm currently wrestling over an issue that has been on my heart for awhile...and processing where I'm at currently in life, after all of the experiences I've been blessed to go through. As this is the WOF forum, I was hoping to get some perspectives from others within WOF that would either confirm what I've been processing or give me room to think more on it. . Edward de Bono, who is definitely the leading specialist in creative learning processes, remarked that if there is a known and successful cure for an illness, patients generally prefer the doctor to use the known cure rather than seek to design a better one. Yet there may be much better cures to be found. He rightly asked how we are ever to find a better cure if at each critical moment we always opt for traditional treatment.....and in regards to our usual ways of solving problems, we do the same...as we constantly default to previous patterns and ways of tackling issues of theologyy/spirituality and church.
For more clarity on why I brought that up, I was listening the other day to one of the ministries within the Faith Movement (or, more specifically, a branch of the Faith Movement) that I grew up with......and it really encouraged me the other day.....from the ministry of G.Craig Lewis and an interview of what he/another discussed on the issue when it comes to Biblical Prosperity and what it truly means in the times we live in:
Listening to it, I heavily enjoyed it--as it reminded me of the many messages I remembered growing up as it relates to creative ways to show faith and work with what you have. At one point, it was discussed in the interview how believers need to invest in the land rather than just in standard jobs/means of making money....looknig to find ways of cultivating it (land) to live while also learning how to work with the little that many may have/see it grow into more...similar to another discussion that happened before between myself and another WOF believer when it came to discussing faith/urban agriculture as well as other creative means of blessing the saints. For as it's a big issue today with others either feeling as if they do not have the money to do things, especially giving to the needs of the saints for provision, or feeling as if they can only provide for others one way, sometimes people can end up feeling in bondage.
This goes into another issue, of course, that is very dear to my heart----known as Urban Agriculture. It is something I've really considered bringing up to some of my friends who do street ministry in the city/rural areas and finding ways of expressing Biblical Prosperity differently than usual..as it's a blessing/transforming many communities looking for ways to grow.
There are many places others advocate urban farming techniques and teach young people through workshops how to grow food in poor, inner-city neighborhoods...working, of course, with other non-profits around the country and seeking to aid urban communities in showing residents sustainable ways to grow their own fresh fruits and vegetables in small spaces.
Others have it as their hope to bring healthy, affordable food directly to the communities that have the least access to them....and find ways to empower others to feed themselves in all situations
Rather than focusing on having a canned food drive/praying for financial aid or sowing seed into that, why not have a church exercise faith via GROWING FOOD on their lawns/using what they grow to aid the poor and destitute? For many times the canned foods used are not really that healthy since they're processed already/full of bad ingrediants. So often it seems that the things many churches invest in are not truly God's Best...and though he can work through it, it may not be what he always prefers. And we can end up creating systems of development that are counter-productive to our goals----preaching, for example, on Biblical Wholeness and yet producing goods that make others unhealthy...
IMHO....If more people were aware of the effectiveness of things such as Urban Agriculture or growing your own food/resources, then I'd think they would begin directing attention and faith there more so than canned food drives alone----as their minds have been expanded on more effective ways that one could perhaps go about addressing issues of the poor---and it's no different than living within a box with 4 walls/no windows and being content with life there... but later having one of the walls opened up/a window given so that they can see the Outside World. Because of that, they'll no longer be content...as they know that more's possible to experience/believe for...and God's more than willing/able to operate for others believing for RADICAL THINGS..
For those in the Faith Movement who are passionate for issues pertaining to Social Justice/finding ways of loving JUSTICE, its something I do wish was discussed more in the camp. But on the issue, it is my hope that I'll be able to find other believers here who share similar visions in regards to where we choose to exercise our faith. In the times we live in, it does seem we need to think more outside the box.
And on what I've been processing in-depth of late, it seems that many have done just that before but many today are not aware of it. I cannot help but be reminded of one man of GREAT faith that changed our nation----known as "George Washington Carver" ( ) and the extensive myriad of things---through experimentation of plants--that he developed..with there being literally hundreds of uses for things he discovered from peanuts and other plants.
Exercising faith creatively....
I was discussing recently with a friend on how many older men of faith there are which we've forgotten about....seeing how often it was on the mission field that natural disaters would occur and others prayed in faith for Gods Hand of Provision/Grace on the weather conditions, as well as the miraculous to occur. And with George Washington Carver, it was wild to see the miraculous occur. The man literally created an ENTIRE NEW AGRICULTURAL Market that has aided MILLIONS in many ways....
To see how the Lord used him for creating more than 300 peanut-based products, numerous developments for the sweet potatoes such as 118 uses for sweet potatoes, including vinegar, molasses, rubber, ink, and postage stamp glue, and developing revolutionary crop rotation theories. Having no real laboratory when he started early in his studies, Carver asked students to help him comb through garbage to find usable glass and containers for reuse. Everything was made useful, and nothing was thrown away..and Carver believed everything had a purpose, even if that purpose might change over time.
His techniques for crop rotation enlightened Southern farmers on how to cooperate with natural laws, thereby allowing them to grow better crops, prevent erosion and improve production. He discovered that through crop rotation, using peanuts, soybeans and cowpeas, nitrogen was replenished in the soil. For years farmers had been planting cotton season after season. They were depleting the soil and actually producing less and less. Carver also watched the destructive path the boll weevil made as it worked its way through the South. He warned farmers that their cotton crops would disappear and all that would remain would be famine and unusable soil.
With crop rotation Carver ushered in a new era in agriculture in the South when he encouraged the farmers to plant sweet potatoes, peanuts and soybeans to help restore the soil. These crops were easy to grow and provided the much needed nutrients for soil. When the farmers did listen, they found themselves with a huge crop of peanuts and no market for their crop. Farmers were mad at Carver. The story goes that he locked himself in his laboratory and asked God why He made the peanut. Days later he emerged with over 300 products that could be made from the peanut plant.
As George Washington Carver said best when the Lord spoke to him on that issue:
When I was young, I said to God, 'God, tell me the mystery of the universe.' But God answered, 'that knowledge is for me alone.' So I said, 'God, tell me the mystery of the peanut.' Then God said, 'Well, George, that's more nearly your size.'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Llater Carver was asked to speak before Congress about these discoveries and the usefulness of peanuts.
[FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']Carver believed his ideas and inventions were gifts from God. Therefore, he never accepted any money for them. Unlike many inventors of the time, Carver earned nothing when he might have become a millionaire. Patents were issued for many inventions, but only a couple were set up to benefit Tuskegee Institute after Carver died.[/font]
His testimony was simply amazing---and interesting to considser, seeing that many times he noted that in his prayer walks/conversations with the Lord, He'd simply ask God how/what to do with the resources He had...and in listening, God gave him inspiration/creativity and showed him how the plant could be worked. Though well known for these inventions, of course he was in the trenches with others aiding children/serving the poor---which is why in Black Culture, he's truly one of the coolest men of all time. It was really amazing to see how he testified on many occasions that his faith in Jesus was the only mechanism by which he could effectively pursue and perform the art of science....and should ANYONE investigate his testimony, I think they'd be blessed. More in the times of recession we live in need to rise up as him, IMHO...those who are about finding CREATIVE WAYS in knowing how to invest properly/deal with diasterous situations...and work with what one already has.
Carver was very big on man walking in environmental stewardship with his resources and understanding that many of the devestations we see in our world are brought upon us ourselves. Carver was in many ways an Environmental Missionary. For more on that, An environmental missionary, as a new category of missionary, believes in the fullness of Christs glorious redemption, and takes seriously our stewardship of Gods creation. Often the poorest nations of the world are also the most environmentally devastated....and when preaching the Gospel in Power, one of the areas where power of God is needing to be seen/authority taken is in regards to the natural world. Carver was very much about that....and for more info, one can go online/investigate an article under the name of "Global Community: What is an Environmental Missionary? --Flourish" . One can also go online/investigate the article entitled George Washington Carver: a mighty vision beyond peanuts: "we are the architects of our own fortune and the hewers out of our own destiny." .
The History network thankfully did an excellent review on his inventions that many are not aware of, on their show called "Modern Marvels":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfKTf9NjAcY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtkXsG4KZdo
God's Pleasure At Work video #15 An Introduction to Dr. George Washington Carver
Other ministries have arisen following in his footsteps/basing their goals on the methods he did things in...and for examples, go to Technology For The Poor /"Technologies for Sustainable Development"/ Job S. Ebenezer - GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER'S VISION OF SUSTAINABILITY
I was amazed seeing how much of a man of faith he was....and it really shocked me to see how many of the concepts taught within the Faith Movement today were already been walked in by Carver long before there were categories for certain things that people have given it today. For a good book on the issue, one can investigate the work entitled George Washington Carver: His Life & Faith in His Own Words
Again, I have been very amazed seeing the RADICAL ways that the man applied his faith to situations that many previously would've thought were crazy....and yet it made a difference. Talking it over with other members of the Faith Movement, they've confirmed the same..and I was curious as to what others here felt on that. Do you personally feel that George Washington Carver is an example of what it means to walk in faith today? Moreover, does anyone here feel that the subject of faith is something that isn't limited to the WOF movement and has perhaps been in existence in many differing ways long before anything on the term "Word of Faith" ever came into development?
I'm currently wrestling over an issue that has been on my heart for awhile...and processing where I'm at currently in life, after all of the experiences I've been blessed to go through. As this is the WOF forum, I was hoping to get some perspectives from others within WOF that would either confirm what I've been processing or give me room to think more on it. . Edward de Bono, who is definitely the leading specialist in creative learning processes, remarked that if there is a known and successful cure for an illness, patients generally prefer the doctor to use the known cure rather than seek to design a better one. Yet there may be much better cures to be found. He rightly asked how we are ever to find a better cure if at each critical moment we always opt for traditional treatment.....and in regards to our usual ways of solving problems, we do the same...as we constantly default to previous patterns and ways of tackling issues of theologyy/spirituality and church.
For more clarity on why I brought that up, I was listening the other day to one of the ministries within the Faith Movement (or, more specifically, a branch of the Faith Movement) that I grew up with......and it really encouraged me the other day.....from the ministry of G.Craig Lewis and an interview of what he/another discussed on the issue when it comes to Biblical Prosperity and what it truly means in the times we live in:
Listening to it, I heavily enjoyed it--as it reminded me of the many messages I remembered growing up as it relates to creative ways to show faith and work with what you have. At one point, it was discussed in the interview how believers need to invest in the land rather than just in standard jobs/means of making money....looknig to find ways of cultivating it (land) to live while also learning how to work with the little that many may have/see it grow into more...similar to another discussion that happened before between myself and another WOF believer when it came to discussing faith/urban agriculture as well as other creative means of blessing the saints. For as it's a big issue today with others either feeling as if they do not have the money to do things, especially giving to the needs of the saints for provision, or feeling as if they can only provide for others one way, sometimes people can end up feeling in bondage.
This goes into another issue, of course, that is very dear to my heart----known as Urban Agriculture. It is something I've really considered bringing up to some of my friends who do street ministry in the city/rural areas and finding ways of expressing Biblical Prosperity differently than usual..as it's a blessing/transforming many communities looking for ways to grow.
There are many places others advocate urban farming techniques and teach young people through workshops how to grow food in poor, inner-city neighborhoods...working, of course, with other non-profits around the country and seeking to aid urban communities in showing residents sustainable ways to grow their own fresh fruits and vegetables in small spaces.
Others have it as their hope to bring healthy, affordable food directly to the communities that have the least access to them....and find ways to empower others to feed themselves in all situations
Rather than focusing on having a canned food drive/praying for financial aid or sowing seed into that, why not have a church exercise faith via GROWING FOOD on their lawns/using what they grow to aid the poor and destitute? For many times the canned foods used are not really that healthy since they're processed already/full of bad ingrediants. So often it seems that the things many churches invest in are not truly God's Best...and though he can work through it, it may not be what he always prefers. And we can end up creating systems of development that are counter-productive to our goals----preaching, for example, on Biblical Wholeness and yet producing goods that make others unhealthy...
IMHO....If more people were aware of the effectiveness of things such as Urban Agriculture or growing your own food/resources, then I'd think they would begin directing attention and faith there more so than canned food drives alone----as their minds have been expanded on more effective ways that one could perhaps go about addressing issues of the poor---and it's no different than living within a box with 4 walls/no windows and being content with life there... but later having one of the walls opened up/a window given so that they can see the Outside World. Because of that, they'll no longer be content...as they know that more's possible to experience/believe for...and God's more than willing/able to operate for others believing for RADICAL THINGS..
For those in the Faith Movement who are passionate for issues pertaining to Social Justice/finding ways of loving JUSTICE, its something I do wish was discussed more in the camp. But on the issue, it is my hope that I'll be able to find other believers here who share similar visions in regards to where we choose to exercise our faith. In the times we live in, it does seem we need to think more outside the box.
And on what I've been processing in-depth of late, it seems that many have done just that before but many today are not aware of it. I cannot help but be reminded of one man of GREAT faith that changed our nation----known as "George Washington Carver" ( ) and the extensive myriad of things---through experimentation of plants--that he developed..with there being literally hundreds of uses for things he discovered from peanuts and other plants.
Exercising faith creatively....
I was discussing recently with a friend on how many older men of faith there are which we've forgotten about....seeing how often it was on the mission field that natural disaters would occur and others prayed in faith for Gods Hand of Provision/Grace on the weather conditions, as well as the miraculous to occur. And with George Washington Carver, it was wild to see the miraculous occur. The man literally created an ENTIRE NEW AGRICULTURAL Market that has aided MILLIONS in many ways....
To see how the Lord used him for creating more than 300 peanut-based products, numerous developments for the sweet potatoes such as 118 uses for sweet potatoes, including vinegar, molasses, rubber, ink, and postage stamp glue, and developing revolutionary crop rotation theories. Having no real laboratory when he started early in his studies, Carver asked students to help him comb through garbage to find usable glass and containers for reuse. Everything was made useful, and nothing was thrown away..and Carver believed everything had a purpose, even if that purpose might change over time.
His techniques for crop rotation enlightened Southern farmers on how to cooperate with natural laws, thereby allowing them to grow better crops, prevent erosion and improve production. He discovered that through crop rotation, using peanuts, soybeans and cowpeas, nitrogen was replenished in the soil. For years farmers had been planting cotton season after season. They were depleting the soil and actually producing less and less. Carver also watched the destructive path the boll weevil made as it worked its way through the South. He warned farmers that their cotton crops would disappear and all that would remain would be famine and unusable soil.
With crop rotation Carver ushered in a new era in agriculture in the South when he encouraged the farmers to plant sweet potatoes, peanuts and soybeans to help restore the soil. These crops were easy to grow and provided the much needed nutrients for soil. When the farmers did listen, they found themselves with a huge crop of peanuts and no market for their crop. Farmers were mad at Carver. The story goes that he locked himself in his laboratory and asked God why He made the peanut. Days later he emerged with over 300 products that could be made from the peanut plant.
As George Washington Carver said best when the Lord spoke to him on that issue:
When I was young, I said to God, 'God, tell me the mystery of the universe.' But God answered, 'that knowledge is for me alone.' So I said, 'God, tell me the mystery of the peanut.' Then God said, 'Well, George, that's more nearly your size.'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']Carver believed his ideas and inventions were gifts from God. Therefore, he never accepted any money for them. Unlike many inventors of the time, Carver earned nothing when he might have become a millionaire. Patents were issued for many inventions, but only a couple were set up to benefit Tuskegee Institute after Carver died.[/font]
His testimony was simply amazing---and interesting to considser, seeing that many times he noted that in his prayer walks/conversations with the Lord, He'd simply ask God how/what to do with the resources He had...and in listening, God gave him inspiration/creativity and showed him how the plant could be worked. Though well known for these inventions, of course he was in the trenches with others aiding children/serving the poor---which is why in Black Culture, he's truly one of the coolest men of all time. It was really amazing to see how he testified on many occasions that his faith in Jesus was the only mechanism by which he could effectively pursue and perform the art of science....and should ANYONE investigate his testimony, I think they'd be blessed. More in the times of recession we live in need to rise up as him, IMHO...those who are about finding CREATIVE WAYS in knowing how to invest properly/deal with diasterous situations...and work with what one already has.
Carver was very big on man walking in environmental stewardship with his resources and understanding that many of the devestations we see in our world are brought upon us ourselves. Carver was in many ways an Environmental Missionary. For more on that, An environmental missionary, as a new category of missionary, believes in the fullness of Christs glorious redemption, and takes seriously our stewardship of Gods creation. Often the poorest nations of the world are also the most environmentally devastated....and when preaching the Gospel in Power, one of the areas where power of God is needing to be seen/authority taken is in regards to the natural world. Carver was very much about that....and for more info, one can go online/investigate an article under the name of "Global Community: What is an Environmental Missionary? --Flourish" . One can also go online/investigate the article entitled George Washington Carver: a mighty vision beyond peanuts: "we are the architects of our own fortune and the hewers out of our own destiny." .
The History network thankfully did an excellent review on his inventions that many are not aware of, on their show called "Modern Marvels":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfKTf9NjAcY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtkXsG4KZdo
God's Pleasure At Work video #15 An Introduction to Dr. George Washington Carver
Other ministries have arisen following in his footsteps/basing their goals on the methods he did things in...and for examples, go to Technology For The Poor /"Technologies for Sustainable Development"/ Job S. Ebenezer - GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER'S VISION OF SUSTAINABILITY
I was amazed seeing how much of a man of faith he was....and it really shocked me to see how many of the concepts taught within the Faith Movement today were already been walked in by Carver long before there were categories for certain things that people have given it today. For a good book on the issue, one can investigate the work entitled George Washington Carver: His Life & Faith in His Own Words
Again, I have been very amazed seeing the RADICAL ways that the man applied his faith to situations that many previously would've thought were crazy....and yet it made a difference. Talking it over with other members of the Faith Movement, they've confirmed the same..and I was curious as to what others here felt on that. Do you personally feel that George Washington Carver is an example of what it means to walk in faith today? Moreover, does anyone here feel that the subject of faith is something that isn't limited to the WOF movement and has perhaps been in existence in many differing ways long before anything on the term "Word of Faith" ever came into development?
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