Bob Hamp

23 Aug 2009

Transfer of Power

“When the frequency of one system matches the frequency of another, power is transferred between the two systems”

I heard him say this as he continued his demonstration of the nature of God and His Kingdom revealed in the principles of physics. I was exhausted, but I heard something important in his words.

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I was exhausted because we were several months into the reconstruction of our home. It had been ruined in a flood and we were living in our “refugee house” while we oversaw the gradual restoration of our home. What had once been home was a chaotic conglomeration of foundation, frame, loose wires and ducts. Life went on. The kids had school, Jackee and I had work, and we did not have a home.

It was in the midst of this disruption that The MIllion Volt Man came to town. A one man science demonstration, I attended as a distraction and because the auditorium was air conditioned. I left re-connected to God.

He told us that power transfers from one system to another when frequencies match. A note sustained and intensified could shatter a crystal glass, if the note was the same frequency as the glass. A guitar string, untouched by human hands would begin to vibrate if another string, tuned to the same frequency was struck and sustained in proximity. Power was transferred.

Power is transferred when frequencies match.

I was exhausted because I was completely tuned in to a construction project that had been my home. Concrete and adhesive, unfinished cabinets…all these things daily transferred to me their power because I was absolutely on the same frequency they were.

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Broadcast from the throne of God is the very Nature of the King and His Kingdom. Power—Life—Peace—Joy—all just hanging in the air nearby waiting to be received.

Broadcast from all around are a variety of other power sources. Traffic—Conflict—Sickness—Your own construction project; all these and more would broadcast to you the life draining force of their activity.

Our hand is on the dial…we choose each day that which we will match frequencies with. Judgment, fear, injustice…or the invisible presence of God-with-us.

Either way—power transfers between systems when frequecies match.

Click here to see The Million Volt Man

22 Aug 2009

Some Days I just want to “Think the Same”

Thinking differently takes some work you know. Sometimes I just want to think the same. It’s easier…You know what I mean?

Some days I want to pretend that what I see is all that there is. The past has nothing to do with my life and there is no spiritual dimension to my being and my existence. Whatever impulse I have, I would love to just act on it.

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Some days I want to act as if my, yet unrefined desires, are all completely accurate, and that the rest of the world around me just hasn’t come to agreement with me yet. I am tired of asking the question “why do I experience this?” or “where did that thought come from?”

Some days I want to live a if I really am the center of the universe and everyone else ought to just get on board.

Some days I want to let my impulses tell me what to believe about life, God, you , and reality. And then I want to act on those things.

Some days I want to act as if I’m not connected to the other people on the planet and in my immediated geography, and that my choices and words don’t affect anyone but me.

Some days I just want to tell God that He is not doing it right because He is not doing it the way I would.

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Some days I want to keep a record of wrongs.

Some days I just want to scream, cry and throw a fit. Am I the only one?

Even as I write, I try to picture the ruin I would make of my life if I thought “the same”. Holy Mackerel…what a mess that would be!

By the way, if you are my friend, family, or boss, and you are worried about me when you read this, most days, I think differently, and I want to laugh, play, hug people and transform the world into the picture that I believe God puts in my mind.

But, if I am completely honest, some days I just want to think the same.

21 Aug 2009

Real Friends

Yesterday I spent time with an old friend. Not just a guy I used to know; a real friend. Someone that, when we met, we saw each other as partners in something bigger than ourselves. When we met, we saw that our hearts were made out of the same stuff, and we knew that we had the same Father. When he spoke I knew that he saw the things I saw. And I knew that when I spoke, he knew the same about me.

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We had a short time together after five years of separation, and it was like we had seen each other only yesterday. No awkward “catch up” period. We laughed and tried to remember our adventures. Neither was offended at what we couldn’t remember. What we did remember brought us real joy.

We looked each other in the eyes. We told each other of the genuine-ness of the love we have for one another. As we drove away from the coffee shop, he said something important to me. We had talked about plans, and ideas, and strategies. We have big plans. But this one thing he said echoed in my mind the rest of my day and again this morning. Here is what he said.

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“Bob”, he began, “the more I live, the more I am convinced that the Kingdom of God is made up of friendships. A lot of people have plans and strategies, but God moves in friendships.” So simple, but it keeps repeating in my mind, and stirring in my soul. I love plans, and God knows I love strategies. But in friendships we discover the kind of relationship which was the strategy of Jesus Himself. ”I have called you friends” He said to His disciples near the end.

God…calls us…friends. Not employees, not servants and not soldiers. He looks us in the eyes. He declares the genuine-ness of His love for us. And He loves to have coffee with us. He know our hearts are made of the same stuff.

Here is what I heard. Communicating the message of God’s friendship through marketing, speeches, and techniques will fall short of the whole message.

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Make friends. In a personal environment, watch for those people that God made similar to you. Look them in the eyes. See who they see. Share. You just may find the Kingdom of God in your living room.

20 Aug 2009

Limitless Ways

I have discovered that I don’t have much to say really, I just have lots of ways to say it. This week, I topped one hundred posts since I began “Thinking Differently”. Recently when I sit down to write, I have these great ideas, and then I begin to realize I have already written about them. It dawned on me, I only have a few things to say, but it seems to me that there are limitless ways to say them.

God is not complicated…He is just eternal. Eternal not just in duration, but in scope. God is One Thing. He is Love. Now how many ways can you say it? The simplicity of the One Thing can be overshadowed by all the ways to express it, and all the fanfare (and confusion) that surrounds it.

I only have a few things to say. But I plan to say them in endless ways the rest of my life, but here they are.

1. God and His Kingdom are greater and different than we think: If it is possible for us to “Get it” then He is limited and we are gods.

2. Our “Ways of Thinking” are a greater obstacle to knowing God than the content of our thinking.

3. The Invisible world functions in a different way than we expect. We must “Think differently” to interact with it. We must utilize different senses to take it in, and different thought processes to comprehend it.

4. Only God can: Well, you name it. this is a pretty big list. Only God can create, sustain, redeem, resurrect, empower, etc. Pretty much everything that real living is made of, comes from God. This whole “eternity and time” thing is really about God unfolding a story that expresses His nature. We just get in on a great deal.

5. Our Life is part of a much bigger picture: Really this is another way to say we must think differently. See, I am already out of “things” to say, and on to new ways to say them. Part of thinking differently is perspective. Look at your life from the outside. Now step back. Now step back. Now step back. Rinse, lather , repeat.

If I counted right, I have about four and a half things to say, but I plan to keep saying them in limitless WAYS.

13 Aug 2009

Dream

All men dream but not all men dream equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recess of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible. ~ Thomas Edward Lawrence

All my life, I have had the same dreams over and over again. I often dream I can fly, and I frequently dream that I find money, which leads to finding more money. I don’t necessarily take these dreams literally, but nor do I take them lightly. I cannot help but think of the Sea Lion in John Eldredge’s amazing book, Journey of Desire. In short, this Sea Lion had long ago lost the sea, but regularly had dreams of the environment for which he was created. Twisitng, diving, swimming, only to wake again and find himself in the barren lands.

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A truth buried deep in his soul stirred his sleeping mind. His environment could not transform his deepest nature nor his deepest longings. And what of us?

I dream I can fly. Should I leap from tall buildings? I am not ready for this, but nor am I ready to surrender to the limitations I have seen thus far in my life. I am CERTAIN THERE IS MORE. More than I have experienced so far. I can sense it. Can’t you? Things that appear to be boundaries or limitations, I am not ready to accept these things as the final word. A part of me was made for dominion over these things. They shall not have dominion over me. Sickness, fear, shattered souls. I have seen God overcome these things in small measure, I am contending for MORE.

I dream again…

So I find money. Just a dollar. But because I look down, I notice a five or a ten nearby. As I move to pick them up, I notice a roll of bills. When I pick it up, they are large bills. The discovery keeps growing. Oddly, in my waking life, I am always looking for treasure. Ask my poor kids…was that a shiny thing on the side of the road? We are turning around. Ten candy wrappers for every one real find, But I am still looking.

Something in me says that treasure is all around us. Probably not cash, but when I find some I am certain that looking that direction will net me MORE. So perhaps keeping my eyes on the ground is the wrong direction to turn, but watching for treasure is not. Treasure in the hearts of people, treasure in the presence and the moves of God in daily life. If I find some, and look, I am sure that more is not far away. Much more.

So these are the dreams I have at night. But something about the deep call of these dreams leads me to dream BIG when I am awake.

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I still believe I can change the world. Well…not so much, “me” but the search for treasure and the failure to buy into the limitations. Something about a man who finds treasure in a field and is willing to sell everything he has to purchase it….

I still believe that you and I are citizens of a Kingdom whose ultimate completion is the transformation and restoration of all things. And I believe we are the conduit to usher that Kingdom into now.

Don’t go jumping of any cliffs, but don’t bow so quickly to gravity either. We might just be able to fly

Thanks, Laura Dubroc for the quote at the beginning of the Post.

“I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble.”… Helen Keller.

11 Aug 2009

Why do we act differently?

“You Don’t drink, don’t smoke, what do you do…Subtle innuendos follow…it must be something inside”

Adam Ant, Goody Two Shoes, 1982

Should we do this? Should we not do that? What should be our motivation? That’s a stinkin’ lot of “should”.

I am thinking of three motives for behavior.

1. Someone else thinks I should: I do it out of respect, or obligation

2. I think I should: I respond out of my own sense of what “ought” to be

3. It is true about me: What is true in my heart is naturally transmitted through my actions

When I signed up for this Christianity thing, I did not sign up for any reason other than this: What was true about me was not working, I needed something else to be true about me. Because I was the thing I needed help with, I needed Someone Else to help.

Nothing personal, but, I didn’t sign up to help you, or anyone else. I signed up because I needed help. It’s been really helpful. Many of the things that were once true about me…have actually been changed. Being myself is not nearly as harmful to me and others as it once was.

Amazingly, the more “helped” I get, the more it seems to help others. The more I get changed on the inside, the more the things that come out of me seem to actually help people.

I suppose that to act right because I should, is better than acting in destructive ways…but if I spend the rest of my life relying on what I “should” do as my motive, my heart will grow more and more sick. I won’t tell you, becaue I “should” not be so sick. And I won’t be honest with myself because I “should” have changed by now. But I will keep doing what I should on the outside, while I die on the inside.

Apparently I still need help. Perhaps that is the point. I needed help to be someone different, and now I need help to be that new person in this moment. “Helped” is way better than “should”. You should try it.

11 Aug 2009

God is With Us…and it’s a good thing!

This is it. The center of the target. The Main Point. Possibly the most opposed truth in all the cosmos. God is WITH US. Now. Here. Where you are. Where you are going to be later. Where ever you go…there He is.

Isaiah the prophet said that Jesus would be named “Immanuel” which is to say God with us. God with us, God about to be with us, and God ALWAYS BEING with us. I hope this doesn’t scare you. Depending on who has told you about God, and what they have told you, you might not want God to be WITH YOU. Trust me. It’s a good thing.

The Bible says that in the life of Jesus we see an exact representation of God. You want to have lunch with Him? Invite Him to your wedding? (He can help your caterer!). You want to talk to Him when things aren’t going well? (He can help your therapist…)

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I fear our picture is that, since He is God-being-with-us, we better straighten up. He’s watching. Well, He is watching, but He likes you more than you think. Look at how He acted with normal humans in the Gospels. People who screwed up. People who suffered loss. People who were hurt and afraid. He came near them to bind up their broken hearts and heal their wounds. If you had a friend who did that stuff, you would want Him around all the time.

God is with us. Not only with us He is also for us. There is a reason we call it Good News.

I think it will affect our actions to know He is with us. Not just that we would not misbehave…

I think we would listen after we spoke as though He might respond…

I think we would expect Him to do things when we ask…

I think we would introduce people to Him, and not to a religious idea…

I think we would worry less…

I think we would be courageous…

I think we might even like ourselves more…hey…the God of the Universe is hanging out with you…maybe you’re the cool one now.

I think we would rest more…

Look Carefully…there He is.

10 Aug 2009

The Kingdom of God is like…

I have described the Kingdom as the presence and the power of God. The Kingdom is a concept defining God’s work, not the work of humans. So what about humans? Don’t we have some role in this relationship with God thing? Absolutely we do! So to help us further consider this parable: The Kingdom of God is like an oven.

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The oven is an environment of intense heat. Anything placed within the oven is changed by the heat. Cookie dough exerts no effort of its own to change itself; it must simply enter the oven. The heat will do what it does. Heat causes ice to become water, water to become steam, and batter to become brownies.

The atmosphere of the Kingdom, just like an oven, has a transforming power all of its own. As I have said previously, that power is life, love, peace, joy and rightness. If you dive in, then these forces will begin to change you. Try to live from your own resources, and these powers will have no effect on you. The Kingdom of God has the power to effect anything that enters its atmosphere. Our role? Enter in. Change our source. Surrender self-reliance and surrender to the immediate present rule of God. He will bake you. Change will come; but it will be His power, not your effort, that changes you.

BTW: Like the pics you see? You should see my amazing daughters work: Jillianhamp.com

9 Aug 2009

Influence…

I have been noticing lately a strange paradox in the pursuit of influence. I think embedded in this paradox is an important message.

When men and women begin to seek positions of influence, the desire is often sparked by a genuine desire to do good, or repair social ills. A real sense that from a position of influence I can make a difference. It is the process of gaining these positions that has caught my attention.

It seems that in many cases the process of gaining influence can alter or even distort the original message or messages that led the person to seek influence in the first place.

Our political system is a great example. A young politician gains popularity because of a message or a stance. The sphere of influence is increased because of popularity. Some will say, “with greater position comes more influence…more opportunity to do good…” The pursuit begins. Our young leader begins to shift his goal…subtly at first, but as the race heats up, the focus on “winning the race”. or “defeating the bad guy” replaces the original message. In some cases this can be a distraction, in other cases it can lead to compromise, or even corruption. To gain greater popular support, more people must be pleased. People pleasing is risky.

The process of gaining influence has undermined the reason for which influence was initially sought.

Consider the process Jesus pursued. He did not run for office. He did not build an organization. He rigidly avoided people-pleasing. What did He do? He went about doing good to all men. He proclaimed and demonstrated to indiviuals and small crowds that God had come back to the earth and made Himself available again. He opened a door for those who would voluntarily follow. Then He said “it is finished”.

Really?

Finished?

It seems we have so much to do. We must influence the masses. We must gain positions of influence. We must increase our visibility, and our positional authority.

Really?

What if…

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Today you loved someone unlovable.

This week you served someone who could do nothing for you

You begin to give time and resources to someone who has less than you, and told no one about it.

You begin to surrender your thoughts and motives in every moment to the present work of God in that moment

You began to give God honoring worshipful time when nobody could see

You allowed God to show you things about yourself you don’t want to see

You began to re-present God to those least likely to understand what you were doing…

You loved those who hate you

You honored those who have not earned it

If one of us did that, people would be influenced by that

If that one kept doing that, people might ask that one to be aleader

If they continued to influence others, soon people would begin to suggest that they run for office, or go into “professional ministry”

But what if we all did that? Just a thought.

27 Jul 2009

When Two Fronts Collide

Before God created the sun, He spoke light into existence. Before He made living beings, life was present, and before Adams body died, death began it’s reign.

I think it helps us to recognize that God’s perspective on such things (the forces of reality) is not limited to their work in a particular body or place. In fact it may be the other way around. The work of life in a specific body may be connected to how much alive-ness hangs in the air around us.

The work of death in a given body or circumstance may be connected to how much that body has been immersed in an atmosphere of death.

I am certain that this is not a rule…(if this then that), but it just seems that if the forces of life and death exist separate of the bodies they impact, we should learn how to engage them.

It also strikes me that this picture of life and death can enlarge our view of the cross.

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Like a cold front and a warm front collide and create violent storms, so on the cross did these the forces of life and death collide. The “ultimate weapon” of darkness, the power of death, collided with the source of all life and alivness, the very Life-giving Spirit of God, in a very specific geographical location. At the moment of impact, the lights went out, and the earth shook. Amazingly, Life, the very Source of all Life, succumbed, and was swallowed up by death. For three days it appeared that death had actually come out on top.

Stay tuned though, with God appearances can often be deceiving. The reality is that Life, the Author of all Alive-ness, had in mind to journey to the center of death and blow it up from the inside. We sing occasionally, and rightly, that Jesus conquered the grave. Do not mistakenly think you are singing only of His grave, He conquered yours too!!! Sing Loudly!

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