How to Be Clothed with Power from the Holy Spirit

October, 2012 Exalt Educate Equip Evangelize Extend Issue #228

FROM THE DESK OF BISHOP FELIX ORJI:
"How Can We Be Clothed with Power?" by John Piper

Ephesians 3:14–21
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the
riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with might through his Spirit in the inner man, and that Christ may dwell in
your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have power to comprehend with all the saints what is the
breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all
the fulness of God. Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, to
him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.
God Gives Special Power for Witness
The point of last week's message was that God gives special power, extraordinary power, for the extraordinary challenges of an ex-
panding witness to Christ.
Luke 24, "You are witnesses . . . but stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high." Power from on high will be
essential for the expanding witness of world missions.
Acts 1:8, "And you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in
all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth." The power is essential for the challenges of an ever-expanding witness to Christ.
"Filled with the Holy Spirit"
This extraordinary power fell upon the Christians at Pentecost. It says in Acts 2:4 that they were "filled with the Holy Spirit." And
this power, this unusual fullness came upon the church and its messengers again and again in the early church for the special chal-
lenges of witnessing to Christ.
Acts 4:8, "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit," spoke to the rulers of the people. And they saw the boldness with which he spoke
(v. 13).
Acts 4:31, "And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken and they were all filled with the
Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness." Acts 6:5, 10, Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit and faith and the Jews could not
withstand the wisdom with which he spoke.
Acts 7:55, "Stephen filled with Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of
God."
Acts 11:24, Barnabas was full of the Holy Spirit and faith; and a large company was added to the Lord.
Acts 13:9, "Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at Elymas and said . . . "
"Filled with All the Fullness of God"
And not only the book of Acts, the letters of Paul talk of this same extraordinary power available to Christians. For example, here in
Ephesians 3:16 Paul prays that "according to the riches of his glory he might grant you to be strengthened [empowered!] with might
through his Spirit in the inner man . . . " And in verse 19 he prays that we would be "filled with all the fullness of God." And in verse
21 he says that God "by the power at work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think."
In other words there is an extraordinary power available to believers, a power that can accomplish far more than we ordinarily think
or imagine. It comes by the Spirit. It accords with the riches of God's glory. It is the very fullness of God, as unimaginable as that

sounds.
Revival and Witness to Christ
And I tried to show in the STAR this week that when God sovereignly pours that kind of power out on a church, we call it revival.
And God's purpose in such a revival is that our witness to Christ will have more conviction, more courage, more wisdom, and more
effect, so that God is greatly glorified as more and more peoples are reached and more and more people are added to the Lord.
Now the question is: what should we do? Does the Bible teach us that there is a way to seek this power, or that there is a way to pre-
pare ourselves to receive it? The answer is yes and in the few minutes we have I want to show you four ways to seek this power.

Four Ways to Seek the Power of the Holy Spirit

1. Immerse Yourself in the Word of God, the Bible
It is almost certain that you will not be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit if you are not filled with the Word of God.
Why do I think this?
1.1. Acts 1:8 and Luke 24:48f. teach that the power is given for effective witness. And we witness primarily with the Word of God.
There is no reason to think that God will ignite the powder of his Spirit if you don't load your rifle with the bullet of the Word.
1.2. Luke 4:14 says that Jesus returned from the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit. And how had he fought the devil with power in
the wilderness? Every time he was attacked he answered, "It is written." And he quoted Scripture. Jesus was full of the Spirit because
he was full of the Word of God.
1.3. In John 6:63 Jesus said, "It is the Spirit that gives life, the flesh is of no avail; the words that I have spoken to you are Spirit and
life." The words of Jesus are the voice and life-giving power of the Spirit. If we don't hear his words, we don't receive his power.
1.4. In Ephesians 6:17 Paul says that we should put on the whole armor of God including "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word
of God." If you want the Spirit to come mightily upon you so that you can defeat the principalities and powers, then you must take
his sword, the Word of God. He will not fight without his sword.
1.5. In 1 John 2:14 John says, "I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word
of God abides in you, and you have conquered the evil one." They are strong, powerful; they have conquered the most powerful en-
emy, Satan. How? The Word of God abides in them. If you don't lay up the Word of God within you, there will be no power, and no
victory. (See also Hebrews 4:12 and Jeremiah 23:29.)
If you want the power of the Holy Spirit in your life, if you are tired of being a weak replica of ordinary non-Christians, then change
your routine and immerse yourself in the Word of God. Read it, think about it, memorize it, use it.
I remember hearing a seminary teacher say how he was shamed when he saw Muslims memorizing page after page of the Koran
while he tossed off his devotions with ten minutes of superficial reading.
The first way to seek the power of the Holy Spirit is to immerse yourself in the Word of God.

2. Believe the Word of God
Let me be more specific. Trust that God intends to do wonderful things for his glory through you because that is what the Bible
teaches. Be expectant that the Holy Spirit within you will give you power according to God's Word.
Now why do I think that faith is the way to seek the power of the Holy Spirit?
2.1. In Galatians 3:5 Paul says, "Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or
by hearing with faith?" Answer: by the hearing with faith. Hearing what? The Word of God. The promises of God. The good guid-
ance of God.
For example, you change your routine and set aside an hour to be with God in the Word before work. You get alone and immerse
yourself in the book of Ephesians for an hour. The Lord impresses on your mind especially 1:12 that we who first hoped in Christ
have been destined and appointed to live for the praise of his glory. And 3:20 that by the power at work in us he is able to do far
more abundantly than all that we ask or think.
Then you head off to work. During the day the natural occasion arises to speak a word of testimony to the praise of God's glory. But
you feel weak. Two things can now happen.
One, the Word of God comes back to you—this is what you are alive for—the praise of his glory —and he is not weak; he can do far
more than I can dream. It's his power at work in me.
The other thing that can happen is that in this critical moment you can believe the Word of God. Trust that God intends to do won-
derful things for his glory through you. Be expectant that the Holy Spirit within you will give you power according to God's Word.
And when you believe, this belief becomes the channel of God's Spirit. God supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you
by the hearing of faith . . . when you believe the Word of God with eager expectation.

2.2. In Romans 15:13 Paul says, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the
Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." Notice the phrase "IN BELIEVING." May the God of hope fill you with all joy and
peace IN BELIEVING. In other words by believing in God and his Word, we are filled with joy and peace. And then it says,
"so that by the power of the Spirit you may abound in hope." In other words, the power of the Spirit is the result of the believ-
ing or the faith that begets joy and peace.
We could paraphrase it like this: Put your confidence and your trust in God's Word so fully that joy and peace abound and the
Holy Spirit is released in your life with extraordinary power and hope.
2.3. In Acts 6:5 and 11:24 Stephen and Barnabas are described as full of the Holy Spirit and faith. Probably because the two
have to go together. To be filled with faith is to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be filled
with faith.
Picture yourself drinking ice water with a straw. The water is the Holy Spirit. The air in the straw is doubt and unbelief. Faith
is the vacuum you create when you suck on the straw. And what happens when the vacuum of faith is created? The water of
the Spirit comes in immediately. And if the straw is full of the vacuum of faith the straw will also be full of the water of the
Spirit. So Stephen and Barnabas were full of the Holy Spirit and faith.
So the first way to seek the power of the Spirit is to immerse yourself in God's Word, and the second way is to believe that
Word. To be confident and expectant that God aims to do wonderful things through you for his glory. The Holy Spirit always
fills the vacuum of faith.

3. Pray Earnestly for It and Fast
The third way to seek the power of the Holy Spirit is to pray for it earnestly and sometimes with fasting.
3.1. According to Acts 1:13 this is what the disciples devoted themselves to in Jerusalem during the ten days of waiting for
Pentecost. "All these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer."
3.2. This is what the disciples were doing in Acts 4:24–31 when (verse 31 says) they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and
spoke the Word with boldness. They were praying. And they were saturating their prayer with Old Testament Scripture, and
they were confident in God's sovereign power.
3.3. In Luke 11:13 Jesus says to his disciples, "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good things to your children, how
much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"
The Holy Spirit is given to those who ask the Father. Now, since these men already had a measure of the Holy Spirit in their
ministry, I take Jesus to mean that we should ask for more of the Spirit—not that he comes in pieces, but that he reveals him-
self and stirs himself up in varying measures. And we should pray for the fullness of the Spirit.
3.4. In Ephesians 3:14–21 Paul is praying for the Ephesians and what he prays is that they might be strengthened with might
through the Spirit and that they might be filled with all the fullness of God. He must believe, then, that Christians might re-
ceive this power and this fullness if he prays that they will.
We should ask God for the power of his Spirit. And sometimes we should do this with fasting. Luke 4:14 says that Jesus came
from his 40 day fast full of the Holy Spirit. It may be that God reserves his extraordinary power for those who long for it in
extraordinary ways—and show that longing by extended fasting and prayer.
So we seek the fullness of the Spirit's power by immersing ourselves in God's Word, and by believing its promises with ex-
pectant faith, and by praying earnestly, sometimes with fasting, that God would give us our heart's desire for his power in wit-
ness.

4. Obey the Holy Spirit
The fourth way to seek the power of the Holy Spirit is to obey him even before you feel his power.
I'm speaking very personally here now. On July 14 of this year I was alone at a cabin. I sent the family home so that I could
pray and seek the Lord concerning this fall's messages. I stayed up late one night pleading with God for power in the ministry,
and struggling with why it is that we see so few people converted in our ministry at Bethlehem. Why do I not have more
power in soul- winning witnessing? Here is what came to me, and I read from my journal written the next day.
The question arose in my mind: Have I resisted the offer of the Spirit's power for witnessing so often that it is now being with-
held from me? Has the voice of the Spirit in the past prompted me to write a letter or make a phone call or pay a visit or say a
word, with the readiness to give me all the power I would need, only to find my heart resistant and unbelieving, so that now he
will not (and probably dare not) give me the tokens of this power until I am on the brink of some special act of witnessing
obedience?
I believe this is where many of us are. We have resisted the Holy Spirit so often when he was calling us to bear witness to

Christ that we are unfit for the flow of his power. The channels have become so clogged with fear and self-consciousness and doubt
and rationalization and worldly preoccupation that what we allow through is a barely discernible trickle of God's love.
And I believe that once we have begun to immerse ourselves in God's Word and battle the unbelief of our hearts and pray and fast for
his power, we may have to simply step out with very little power felt in advance and do what we know what we ought to do. And I
believe that in this doing, little by little the old clogged channels are cleared and we begin to feel the power flow again.
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Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: By John Piper. ©2012 Desiring God Foundation. Website: desiring-
God.org

Kind regards,

The Rt. Rev'd Dr. Felix Orji,
Bishop, CANA WEST
Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA/ACNA)

Deacon Daphne: Daphne Orgeron
I want to use my article this month to thank everyone who prayed for my daughter, Jenny, who
had breast cancer. Her surgery was Oct. 1, and they only had to do a lumpectomy, and the
lymph nodes were clear. It couldn't have been any better.

There are many of you who DO know the power of prayer. Mary Jane Brown and the prayer
chain were praying for Jenny, and they are fully aware of how much God loves prayer, and
and never ignores it. Bishop Orji is encouraging us to gather together on Wednesday evenings
to pray. Please give up an hour or so once a month, and come pray with us as a group. Group
prayer is very strong. We all have thanksgivings to give to God, and requests to make of Him.
Let's come together and do it as a group. It is cleansing, and unifying, and Our Father loves to
hear from us. I look forward to seeing each of you and first Wednesday of every month, at 6:00
PM, in the sanctuary for evening prayer.
Deacon Daphne+

Lay Pastor David: David Basch
This was posted Sept. 2 on Fr. Chuck Collins’ blog from Holy Trinity Anglican Church in San Antonio. Al-
though I personally disagree with his interpretation of some historical points, his discussion of infused and im-
puted righteousness is the core distinction of the reformation. It deserves our prayerful thought as to the theo-
logical difference between Roman Catholicism and Protestant Anglicanism.

I can’t be a Catholic. Even though some of my best friends… well, you know. A neighbor asked me yester-
day, “Is Anglican different from Catholic?” He was raised Roman Catholic, but for various reasons has
fallen away.

There are many similarities. Both churches trace their beginnings back to Jesus Christ and the Apostles. Both
honor the “church fathers,” theologians of the first five centuries of Christendom, as wise interpreters of
Holy Scripture who boiled down essential Christian beliefs into Creeds. Both believe that God is so awe-
some and worthy that he deserves our best in worship, including ancient and modern hymns of praise, Holy
Communion (because Jesus said, “This is my body; do this in remembrance of me!”), and all of this in an
atmosphere in which heart-engaged Christians are given a taste of heaven. But that’s about where the simi-
larities end.

In the Middle Ages, around the 12th-15th centuries A.D., the Catholic Church veered off the road from its
original Scriptural foundations and formally adopted some extra-biblical and unbiblical beliefs. This in-
cluded the belief that normal lay people need a priest (a “worthy” intermediary) in order to connect to God,
that the Bible can only be rightly understood and interpreted by priests and bishops and is too dangerous to
be in the hands the Catholic populous, that Catholics should receive only the bread of Holy Communion be-
cause the wine was thought to be too holy for anyone who was not ordained, and the made-up doctrines of
Purgatory, indulgences, Transubstantiation, and praying to the saints. It has been really eye opening to watch
the series “The Borgias” on Netflix – Wow!!

When John Wycliff and the Lollards came on the scene in the 14th century, and the Reformers of the 15th
and 16th centuries, they challenged the unbiblical practices of the Church, but the Church used all its muscle
to refuse to reform itself. The Reformers had no intention of ”breaking away” from Roman Catholicism, only
to reform it and reestablish it on biblical foundations. But their consciences compelled them to continue
down the road of biblical faithfulness. Thus the Protestant church was born. The real schismatics in this story
were Post-Tridentine (Council of Trent – 1545-1564)) Roman Catholic’s who refused to return the church to
its biblical teachings.

Today there are Protestants who are quite Catholic in their beliefs and practices and Catholics who are al-
most indistinguishable in their beliefs from Protestants. But the one big distinction of the Reformation that
continues unresolved today is the question of the formal cause of our justification (salvation) – how we are
reconciled to God. Catholics and Protestants don’t agree on this, and it is the main reason why I cannot con-
sider becoming a Roman Catholic.

Roman Catholics believe in “infused” righteousness and Protestants in “imputed” righteousness. This
is not just semantics – it is major! In simple terms, it means that Catholics believe that we are OK when we
actually become OK – when we “become” innately and morally righteous with the infused righteousness of
God. Protestants believe we are OK – declared righteous before we actually become OK – when we are

declared righteous based on the righteousness of God imputed to us through Jesus Christ who took upon
himself the punishment we deserved. HU??!! Confusing, yes, but important.

Catholic theologian, Thomas Aquinas, spoke of the “ontological healing,” or the remaking of the soul,
making God’s forgiveness conditional upon the current state of our actual righteousness. Catholics follow
Thomas in believing that “righteousness” is a gradual, incremental process by which we actually become
morally righteous over time through the sacraments and personal, spiritual disciplines – so that he looks
down on our righteousness and says, “Boy, that guy is finally righteous enough to warrant only a few
years in Purgatory so that his remaining sins are purged and he is holy enough to enter heaven.” When a
baptized person sins, according to Catholic teaching, he no longer is in a state of grace and must be re-
stored through the sacrament of penance. He is left to hope that he dies in a state of grace.

Protestants, on the other hand, believe in imputed righteousness: we impute to God our sins and he im-
putes to us his righteousness – the Great Exchange (a major theme of Romans Ch. 4). It’s a fantastic,
wondrous exchange that is based solely on God’s unmerited love! Christ has clothed himself with the
guilt of our sins and, because he died as our substitute, clothes us with his righteousness. The result is for-
giveness of sin and acquittal. In other words, Christ declares (or “reckons”) us righteous based on his
righteousness imputed to us, “not having a righteousness of our own that comes from the law, but that
which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” (Phil 3:9). Luther
calls this “alien righteousness” because it comes from outside our behavior/works. Therefore we can have
the assurance of salvation because salvation is based on God’s faithfulness, not ours. Christ exchanged his
righteousness for our sin so that through faith we might exchange our sin for his righteousness (2 Cor
5:21).

The distinction of infused and imputed righteousness remains the major distinction between Roman
Catholics and Protestants. Is it a deal-breaker? It is for me. Infused righteousness, it seems to me, God
shares the glory with humans in a cooperative effort towards salvation. Imputed righteousness, God gets
all the credit for our full salvation. The Christian Gospel is not about self-realization, but about salvation
that is wholly won by the substitution Jesus made for us on the cross.

Does this mean that we Protestants are superior human beings? No; just the opposite! We are not
“superior” in any way. If the Protestant protest is about giving God all the credit for our salvation, Protes-
tants should be the most humble and contrite people walking the face of the earth. We should go through
life shaking our heads in wonder at the mercy and grace of God in the face of our utter unworthiness. “We
do not presume to come to this thy table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy
manifold and great mercy” (Prayer of Humble Access). And because we have been treated so graciously
and tenderly by God, that’s exactly how we should treat those who don’t agree with us.

Bob Tipton: Scholar in Residence
SIN
Bob Tipton

Greek, even the common or koine of the New Testament, made subtle differences which we often miss in our Eng-
lish translations. In general we can be confident of our understanding of the Bible in our use of the English translation.
Occasionally, however, we miss some richness of the shades of meaning in the original. One example is the use of sin to
translate five words from Greek.

Missing the target. The most commonly used word translated sin in the New Testament is hamartía, missing the
target. An inept archer or spearman committed this fault. Obviously, he didn’t win any prize. Incidentally a word with
the same meaning is the most common word for sin in the Old Testament. The meaning of this word was broad enough
to cover the meanings of the other four words translated sin; it obviously means imperfection. One misses the target be-
cause of not seeing it clearly—ignorance; sad to say, we often sin because of our innocent or willful ignorance of God’s
will for us. Ignorance rather than malice motivated Paul to persecute Christians; through his ignorance, he sinned. Or
we miss the mark by inaccuracy; we can’t hit the target if we jiggle around. The shooter must have a firm stance and be
in control of himself. They call this failure nerves or jitters—human weakness; we often miss the target from lack of
attention, lack of concentration, fear, or peer pressure. The apostles slept rather than prayed in Gethsemane, and being
unprepared for the test, they failed. Regardless of how inconsequential we may believe this imperfection, this hamartía,
to be, hamartía separates us from God.

The other four words are more specific in meaning.

Debt. When we repeat the Lord’s Prayer from the King James Version, we get the meaning of opheílēma, or simply
debt when we say, “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” [Matthew 6.12]. A different form of the same word
is used in the parable of the two debtors in Matthew 18. Jesus told the story of the servant who owed his king ten thou-
sand talents [about $3,600,00], but was forgiven when he could not pay. He then met a man who owed him one hundred
denarii [about $16], but when it could not be paid, had the man put in prison. The king reminded him that he had been
forgiven “all that debt” and should have forgiven his fellow man. These two are the only uses of this word in the New
Testament.

Whether we like it or not, we owe obedience to God. When we could do nothing to save ourselves, He died for us
on the cross; He bought us. Having been saved by His sacrifice, we owe Him everything we are and have. When we fail
to obey His will, we are running up our debt. We may not be hurting others—though most likely by not obeying God,
we are leaving undone the things that others should be receiving from us. Thus in Jesus’ description of judgment in Mat-
thew 25, the folk on the left hand are condemned for not having provided for the needs of other people. In spite of the
blessings received from God, they had not extended, as we often do not extend, the benefit of His blessings to those in
need. In one sense, this concept of sin is the most frightening because we just don’t do anything—but we are still guilty.

Slipping across. Slipping across, paráptōma, seems to be that of slipping and falling on a wet or icy surface, a misstep,
or tripping. In Matthew 6.14-15 and in Mark 11.25-26, for example, the term is translated transgressions—from roots
meaning to go across. Jesus declared, “For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions” [Matthew 6.14-15].
The concept is crossing a line or losing footing. Thus, we are told to forgive those who have, perhaps inadvertently,
wronged us in some way so we can be forgiven of the sins we have committed. But make no mistake: the consequences
of slipping down or falling are equally severe even when we fall by accident. A person’s arm may be just as broken by
an accident as by intentionally acting foolishly. Two friends suffered broken necks in gymnastics. They just “fell
wrong.” The first lesson in gymnastics is learning to “fall right;” each of the accidents was the result of inattention to the
basic lessons they had learned as beginners and had practiced for years. So also with sins described as paráptōma.

Our committing this type of sin is often the result of drifting. We should be aware of the world around us and be
busy doing something for others. The Boy Scouts’ motto, “Do a Good Turn Daily,” is one that we could all adopt prof-
itably. It would require us to be aware of what is around us, think of the things that would improve life for others, and
do them. The story of the Good Samaritan is an obvious example of what we should be doing daily. In a sense, we
should be the biggest and best “Good Sam Club” in the world.

Stepping across. The Greek word is similar: parábasis—intentionally stepping across a line. This word seems to
imply a willful violation of a limit. This is the word that Paul used in condemning the Jews in Romans 2. They had the
Law, they knew the Law, and they failed to keep the Law. There is no claim of ignorance; there is no hint of inattention.
But, as Jesus had pointed out, the rabbis had developed their self-serving interpretations to escape the burden of keeping
the Law. The person who had no law would still incur a debt to God and even step over the line to do the thing he knew
to be wrong. It is clear that all people everywhere have a sense of right and wrong. We were taught as children that
there were things we simply do not so; and we have taught those things to our own children. This knowledge may be
innate or it may be inculcated—we cannot always know which—but everyone who is responsible for his own actions has
an “innate moral sense.” To violate one’s own conscience leaves him condemned in his own sight as well as in God’s
sight. Paul used this word in Romans 5.14: “Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses,
even over those who did not sin by breaking a command as did Adam, who was a pattern for the one to come.”

Stepping across a limit seems more intentional than slipping across that same line. But the results are no more
deadly. Some seem to “tempt fate” intentionally. I read of a Muslim [their drinking alcohol is forbidden] who enjoyed
drinking with his western friends. When he was served, he held up the glass to heaven and prayed, “O Allah, if you do
not want me to drink this, strike it from my hand.” He justified his drinking by claiming that it was the will of Allah—
obviously—that he drink with his friends. Similarly, I often think of a limerick I learned long ago:
There was a young lady of Kent
Who said she knew what it meant
When asked to dine
On lobster and wine.
She knew. Yes, she knew! But she went.
When we should be praying, “Lead us not into temptation,” we too often seek out the temptation. And then we are sur-
prised when the result is sin.

Lawlessness. Living as if there were no laws is anomía. John wrote: Everyone who practices sin also practices
lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness [1st John 3.4]. Paul counseled: Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what
partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? [1st Corinthians 6.14] The
unbeliever in his failure to submit to law or authority cannot have anything in common with the believer who does sub-
mit to the will of God in all things. The very refusal to recognize the necessity of behaving according to the authority of
God opens the door to all sorts of evil and sin. This seems the most flagrant of sins and the ánomos, one who does not
recognize law, the most hardened of sinners.

Conclusion. As Christians, we should be aware of these various aspects of SIN so we can protect ourselves from
taken by the snare of Satan. To be aware of the danger and to pray all the time are the best defense against “the sin
which so easily besets us.”

FROM THE EDITOR: VOTE!!!

We are approaching what many believe to be the most important presidential election in our history. It is not
only our right to vote but our duty to do so. I urge everyone to exercise their right to vote and encourage eve-
ryone they know to do the same. The course of history may be radically changed by the outcome of this elec-
tion. I hope you enjoy the following quotes.

“Bad politicians are sent to Washington by good people who don't vote.”
William E. Simon quotes

Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves and
the only way they could do this is by not voting.
Franklin D. Roosevelt

I hope that no American will waste his franchise and throw away his vote by voting either for me or against me
solely on account of my religious affiliation. It is not relevant.
John F. Kennedy

Our DNA is as a consumer company - for that individual customer who's voting thumbs up or thumbs down.
That's who we think about. And we think that our job is to take responsibility for the complete user experience.
And if it's not up to par, it's our fault, plain and simply.
Steve Jobs

Perhaps the fact that we have seen millions voting themselves into complete dependence on a tyrant has made
our generation understand that to choose one's government is not necessarily to secure freedom.
Friedrich August von Hayek

Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safe-
guard of democracy, therefore, is education.”
― Franklin D. Roosevelt

Remember something, if you will, about voting: Voting is not a horse race, you're not going there thinking
"Gee, I gotta pick the winner so I can brag to my friends 'Oh, I picked so-and-so and he or she won'". Voting is
voting your heart and voting your conscience and when you've done that, don't ever, EVER let a Democrat or
Republican tell you that you've wasted your vote because the fact is, if you DON'T vote your heart and con-
science then you HAVE wasted your vote.”
― Jesse Ventura“

If you are bored and disgusted by politics and don't bother to vote, you are in effect voting for the entrenched
Establishments of the two major parties, who please rest assured are not dumb, and who are keenly aware that
it is in their interests to keep you disgusted and bored and cynical and to give you every possible reason to stay
at home doing one-hitters and watching MTV on primary day. By all means stay home if you want, but don't
******** yourself that you're not voting. In reality, there is no such thing as not voting: you either vote by
voting, or you vote by staying home and tacitly doubling the value of some Diehard's vote.”
― David Foster Wallace, Up, Simba!

INTERCESSORY PRAYER: Jim and Martha Williams will be leading the Intercessory Prayer minis-
try at St. Francis. Intercessory prayer will be offered in the library at 9:30am every Sunday morning. You are
welcome to join. It’s a time to pray for God’s power and blessing on our Sunday service. I asked them to
lead this ministry and highly recommend it to you. -Canon Felix

ADULT CHRISTIAN EUCATION: Beginning Sunday, Sept. 9th between the services
from 9:15 - 9:45 am, in the youth room.

PASTORAL CARE - Please pray for Ed Azar, Ann May, Joe Fries, Mary Frances Keisling, Midge
McReynolds, Kay Lassiter, Susan Smith, Harriet Winters, Lynne Payne, Linda Moore, Heather Stevens,
Ainsley Hines, Bill Bihn, Jim Berg, Nancy Calvin, Alexander, the Eleje family, Mary Lou, Marion and Milt
Rindt, Karli Baldwin, Chika, the family of Bob Hamilton, Jenny, Sharon Carr Leamon, Michelle McCowan,
Loy Doty and Nick Malkani.

MEN’S BIBLE STUDY: Now Studying Gensis. Meets Wed. at 7:00 am (after 6:30 wor-
ship). Breakfast included! All men are invited.

FIRST WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH: Parish Prayer Meeting at 6:30 pm. All other
Wednesdays: Evening prayer with homily at 6:00 pm.

LAVERDE CASA GROUP: Meets on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month at 6:00pm Pot
luck supper and bible study. We will begin studying the book of James. Call Mike for more
information: 490-5402.

FLOWER CHART - A new flower chart sign up is posted on the bulletin board across from the gift shop.
Sign up for flowers on the altar in memory of, in thanksgiving for, in celebration of, etc. The cost of a flower
arrangement is $30 each. Call Sheila Huchton at 833-2382 for more information.

SUNDAY LUNCHES: The Hospitality Ministry is looking for volunteers to help with lunch after the
10:00 service on the first, second and fourth Sundays of the month. Sign up in the foyer to help provide
lunch, dessert, drinks (tea, lemonade), and clean up after. Thanks in advance! -Linda Gunter

COMMUNITY CORNER - Ways to Help
Polly Harris Senior Citizens Center –
Provide cookies and punch the third Friday of each month for their Social from 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Angela Guevara Child Development Center –
Rock babies and/or read to preschoolers
Kelly Memorial Food Bank –
Donate staples for the hungry- beans, rice, cereal, etc.
L B Johnson Elementary School –
Volunteer to mentor children once a month for 45 minutes beginning in the fall
Rescue Mission –
Provide bake goods the first Sunday of the month
Contact Sudy Todd for more information or to volunteer 490-5349 or sudyt@hotmail.com

THE ALPHA COURSE: Sept. 19 through Nov. 14, Wednesdays at 6:00 pm. Call Steve Anderson at
549-6987 or email at Steve@andersoncrout.com for more information.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH—We will be accepting rice, beans or cereal for the Community Basket.
There will be a collection basket in the west end entrance to the church. Next time you are in the grocery
store pick up an extra box of rice or beans and bring it to the church. Sudy Todd

LETS TALK! If you have any suggestions or
comments please call me at 581-1292 or 222-1729.

Jim Uphoff, Editor

JUST FOR FUN ETC….

It’s vocabulary time!! Let’s improve our minds.

APRICITY (the warmth of the sun in winter);

BALTAR (to dance clumsily);

EXPALPATE (to get something through flattery);

FARD (to paint the face with cosmetics, so as to hide blemishes);

IGNOTISM (a mistake that is made from ignorance);

HYPERGELAST (a person who won’t stop laughing);

KANKEDORT (an awkward situation);

LANT (to add urine to ale to make it stronger);

PATRIZATE (to take after one’s father);

WONDERCLOUT (something that is showy but useless)

From Ammoj Shea’s book “OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages”. Source: The Daily Telegraph

EVERY WEEK AT ST. FRANCIS… CLERGY AND STAFF
BISHOP FELIX C. ORJI, Rector
THE REV. DAPHNE ORGERON, Deacon
Sunday THE REV. Dr. MYLES CALVIN, Asst. Priest
8:00 am Worship Service THE REV. CINDY ANDERSON, Asst. Priest
10:00 am Worship Service DAVID BASCH, Lay Pastor
10:00 am Children’s Sunday School THE REV. H. EUGENE MYRICK, Rector Emeritus
MIKE LAVERDE, Lay Pastor (Pastoral Care)
PAUL COLEMAN, Lay Pastor (Bible Study and
Discipleship)
STEVE ANDERSON, Lay Pastor (Evangelism and
Missions)
Child care is provided RANDALL CROSSLAND, Chair of Buildings and
Grounds
Dr. BOB TIPTON, Scholar in Residence
LEA MAGRUDER, Director of Music, Church
Secretary
JOANN CASPER, Parish Administrator
Wednesday SONIA LOPEZ, Sunday School Director
6:30 am Morning Prayer & Bible Study LEA MAGRUDER, Secretary
weekly at the church.
VESTRY
7:00 pm Bible Study; Parish Prayer Meeting— Bill Burton, Sr. Warden
1st Wed. of the month Bill Stevens, Jr. Warden
6:00—8:00pm Youth Bible Study Mark Musgrave, Treasurer
Justin Benedict, Sonny Brown, Bill Burton, Jason
Chapman, Elvia Crossland, Sonia Lopez, David
Thursday Moody, Bernard Moye, Ron Munden, Kirk
7:00 pm Choir Practice Rosenlund, Pam Slusher, Melinda Skillern, Bill
Stevens, Kevin Coleman (Youth rep.)

****
FRANCISCAN : Editor; Jim Uphoff Staff; Neva
Uphoff, Loy Doty

Inside this issue:
From The Bishop Page 1

Deacon Daphne Page 5

Lay Pastor David Page 6

Bob Tipton Page 8

From the Editor Page 10

St Francis Happenings Page 11

Just For Fun Page 13

How to Be Clothed with Power from the Holy Spirit

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