tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164147422009-02-23T11:52:38.126-05:00Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-40131008473064774682008-05-03T09:41:00.002-05:002008-05-03T09:46:23.280-05:00

The Beautiful Feet of ApostlesBy Ron WoodThe hands of apostles have healing power. The feet of apostles are always going, being mobile, not stuck in the same place like those on a career path in their vocation. These preaching apostles (unlike marketplace apostles) have left their nets to follow Jesus and fish for men. It was at the feet of God’s risk-taking sent-ones that wealth was laid. This

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-60912390897791693902007-09-11T19:38:00.000-05:002007-09-11T19:41:55.022-05:00

Six years ago, my wife and I sat in our humble apartment in Johannesburg, South Africa, watching live video of the World Trade Center attacks.My wife had obeyed the prompting of the Lord to switch on our TV set which aired only one channel in English. At 4:30pm local time (8:30am Eastern US) there was nothing worth viewing. But someone in the local station had just flipped a switch so the global

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-21102637010664556502007-07-15T20:11:00.000-05:002007-07-15T20:13:45.496-05:00

Have you noticed that the Lord never uses manipulation on anybody?God would rather have an active enemy than a passive follower. The Lord would rather you be a rebel than a weak-willed sycophant. God wants obedient sons with stout hearts, men and women who delight to do his will. His commands are clear so that we have clear choices.Obedient sons become partners in the family business. At some

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-85461468109564018772007-05-14T14:20:00.000-05:002007-05-14T14:44:13.644-05:00

We've got it backwards. Prophets are supposed to be in the church, not the marketplace... or at least, I thought so.Over my three-decade career in the ministry and the marketplace, I've been whip-sawed back and forth between the church world and the business world so much that I could win an insurance case for whiplash. This is a real pain in the neck!Based on what I've seen, I have to ask the

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-76010694720101387752007-04-22T11:28:00.000-05:002007-04-22T11:29:23.330-05:00

Church-in-a-BoxBy Ron WoodThe church-in-a-box is stuck in its own success. Read on and you’ll see why.Based on the previous article, Present Perspective, let’s accept the fact that the church has been injected with the Holy Spirit who has interspersed his dynamic potential of gifts and grace into the church’s corporate life. The Church will never be the same.Some Presbyterian churches now pray

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-31772364283621311142007-04-22T11:24:00.000-05:002007-04-22T11:27:53.347-05:00

Present Perspective on PentecostBy Ron WoodFor the last five or so years, I have been more involved in business than in ministry but I have found that the gifts and callings of God don’t go away. The pull to proclaim God’s word is strong in me. Yet my identity is in who I am in Christ, not in how I earn my living. And I’ve enjoyed a much-needed break as I have considered my own life and ministry

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-81909010995474684542007-02-26T08:25:00.000-05:002007-02-26T08:27:38.615-05:00

The New RomansBy Ron WoodOver forty years ago, I began preaching. My first sermons were in front of an open-air bus stop on the sunny streets of Lakeland, Florida. In High School at the time, I staged my Saturday morning sermons behind a banner with an American flag. My pastor was Karl Strader, who went with us and encouraged us by his example. My outdoor congregation had about a ten minute

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1159964182724532722006-10-04T07:12:00.000-05:002006-10-11T09:18:40.283-05:00

In February of 2001, my friend John Stanko took me with him to visit the World Trade Center. Its famous restaurant was called "Windows on the World." The sunset view of the entire island of Manhattan with the sprawling city of New York more than a hundred floors below was amazing, to say the least. That evening, I enjoyed a point of view that I can never again repeat.Historically, there are times

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1156080368443870462006-08-20T08:22:00.000-05:002006-08-26T17:42:31.086-05:00

The Red-Handled AxBy Ron WoodIn May this year, while worshiping in a small Morningstar church in Wilmington, North Carolina, I heard the Lord say, "I’m laying the ax to the orphan spirit that has invaded my church…" (To read more, see my previous posts in the Teachings section at http://www.touchedbygrace.org/, "The Orphan Spirit," parts 1-4).Last month, my wife and I returned to live in

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1155750127154384562006-08-16T12:37:00.000-05:002006-08-16T12:42:07.176-05:00

UndersightBy Ron WoodIn a dream, I saw this block of text as though I were reading a printed page:Undersight: the ability to see under; to know what is beneath the surface; to discern hidden motives; to observe concealed aspects; to see invisible forces at work; to know the latent versus the patent factors, trends, or spiritual powers at work in people or situations.Like Superman’s x-ray vision,

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126623753877283702005-09-11T09:49:00.000-05:002006-01-10T20:10:51.430-05:00

Foreword: I realize the previous article, “Waiting for the Turn” andthis one, “The Church in the City,” are both long pieces. “You shouldwrite a book!” one friend said, and I intend to. But for these lengthywords of late, I do apologize. I really wish I could say it in fewerwords. Pray for me to be a better teacher/writer and to have betterillustrations so I can say it succinctly. But the

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126015556307523102005-08-30T07:52:00.000-05:002005-09-06T12:44:07.273-05:00

“God knows where I am and He knows what I’m feeling!” That was my reaction of relief when the Lord spoke to me. We were facing an enormously challenging season several years ago. I was pastoring a Baptist church my wife and I were helping transition from chronic defeat into healthy life in the Spirit. By the strength of God’s word to us, we were enabled to stand and to endure opposition while we

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368506115987382005-08-04T11:08:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:32:58.773-05:00

“You’ve never seen what a prophet can do!”Those words sprung from my mouth without forethought as I walked alonethrough our apartment. Two things were going on at the same time:First, the Lord was speaking to me by the Spirit, reminding me of howweak and immature my own ministry was and of how much I had to grow.Second, I was hearing a conversation in my heart that had propheticsymbolism and

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368469806746442005-07-17T11:07:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:26:18.393-05:00

If you wear the bracelet, you get off easy. If you walk the talk,you’ll stir up a hornet’s nest.Years ago as a young believer, naïve and full of zeal, I came to thinkthat being like Jesus meant we should battle in prayer to heal,deliver, and encourage hurting people. That’s what my ministrybeginning was like. Somehow I’ve gotten away from it and I confess thatI miss it greatly.I assumed then that

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368322323768192005-07-01T11:05:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:25:55.170-05:00

The Lord can create vivid images to get our attention.One such picture painted on our imagination was the recent news storyof the runaway bride. Originally thought to be the victim of foul play,this pitiful woman from Gainesville, Georgia later turned herself inand admitted fleeing from her own wedding, deceiving her own family,and lying about her situation. What caused her to behave

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368254382829892005-05-25T11:04:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:25:22.736-05:00

Thoughts have origins. They come from a spiritual realm, either thehuman spirit, or the Holy Spirit (or God’s angels), or from unholyspirits (demons) who hate God and want to destroy mankind which is madein God’s image. Thoughts may come as arrows fired from a distance. Ifwe are not fortified with God’s Word and faith in Jesus our Savior,poisoned thoughts may become lodged in our mind and make us

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368216972392442005-05-10T11:03:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:25:00.566-05:00

Peter and John were headed to an afternoon prayer meeting. A routine,ordinary, scheduled event on the church calendar, called “the hour ofprayer.” Today, another person would intersect their daily routine, aman lame from birth, laid alongside their path to beg for alms.Providentially, he was about to become the victim of a drive-byblessing. That was the moment when God’s aggressive grace

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368172473515522005-05-07T11:02:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:24:38.616-05:00

This Sunday is Mother’s Day in America. Twenty-five years ago, on thisvery same day, standing beside a hospital bed in Lakeland, Florida, Iheld my mother’s hand as she stepped into heaven to see the face of herbeloved Savior. What a special Mother’s Day it was!At Mom’s funeral a few days later, I remember saying a brief tributethat included, “She was a good mother,” and “She taught me aboutJesus.

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126368138376869042005-04-05T11:02:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:24:14.863-05:00

One of the blessings of the Holy Spirit is to provide insight into ourpresent season. Apart from His providing new perspectives to us alldirectly or perhaps through prophets, we tend to move blindly, glibly,mostly unaware of the significance of events around us. Time marcheson, but we are unaware of the importance of signs or ignorant ofopportunities being quickly lost.Isaiah said, “In the year

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126366785035095012005-02-01T11:39:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:23:48.376-05:00

It was an illusion that we were at peace. Our enemy had already begunto act in concert to lay siege against our values, capture or kill ourcitizens, invade and attack our territories or embassies, discourage ordivide our allies. Until we became disillusioned (delivered from ourstate of being deceived), we were denying his true intentions by seeingwhat we wanted to see rather than seeing life as

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126366751656255802005-01-18T11:39:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:23:19.740-05:00

I am releasing two postings on the eve of the Presidential Inaugurationto our Touched by Grace email subscriber list. One is by a warhistorian; the other is by me and is from a spiritual viewpoint aboutthis season for the church. Both have insight for American Christianswho pray for our nation and who pray for the gospel of Christ �f theultimate source of liberty, justice, peace, and prosperity �

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126366052752909492004-10-19T10:27:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:27:30.583-05:00

“In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left thehouse, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.” Mark1:35 NASIn my youth, my first power encounters with God occurred in the dark. Iwould shut my bedroom door, turn off the overhead light, bury my faceand muffle my voice in a pillow and cry out to God. To this day, Istill enjoy praying in the dark; no

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126366010594094922004-10-11T10:26:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:22:29.053-05:00

One of the most powerful weapons Satan uses against believers is shame.Shame afflicts people internally in their emotions and affects peopleexternally in their relationships. Shame is an enemy of heartfelt faithand a thief that prevents peace with God. In teaching on deliverancefrom bondages recently, this was an issue that came up as a hindranceto many people.My dad habitually abused alcohol. I

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126365958431597152004-10-07T10:25:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:21:58.290-05:00

Business men and women have an opportunity pastors don’t: they have theprivilege of rubbing shoulders on a daily basis with lost people. It isin this setting where carriers of the Light intermingle with peoplesitting in the dark that the kingdom of God shines the brightest. Asanyone knows who has ever been in the depths of a cave, even a candleseems bright when all you’ve had before was total

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16414742.post-1126365913822436772004-09-11T10:25:00.000-05:002005-09-10T11:21:21.410-05:00

Many of you know that there is a recurring theme, a thread of revelation that’s surfaced in recent years. I’ve heard this move of God described as “an end-time transfer of wealth.” The Lord has instructed me about Job and Joseph as end-time examples. The fact is- God isinvading the secular arena. His kingdom is bigger than just the church!While some people don’t desire to deal with issues of

Ron Woodhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09744675377252555368noreply@blogger.com