Showing posts with label Strategic Intercession Global Network. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Strategic Intercession Global Network. Show all posts

Monday, August 21, 2017

Greater Authority - SIGN (Strategic Intercession Global Network) by Morris Ruddick

SIGN (Strategic Intercession Global Network)

Building Community Builders

Greater Authority


By Morris Ruddick on Aug 21, 2017 03:01 am


GREATER AUTHORITY During challenging times, one would think it enough to wield the authority to walk out an individual, overcoming believer’s life. Yet, it is not enough. Nor, in such times, are the safe places of congregations operating in their appointed authority, generally quite enough. Recent escalations of tragic events and dire threats in the […]

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A Safe Place
The Counterfeit Spirit
Turning the World
Shroud of Clutter
Linked Generations

Wisdom for the Times

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Tuesday, June 27, 2017

A Safe Place By Morris Ruddick

SIGN (Strategic Intercession Global Network)

Building Community Builders

A Safe Place


By Morris Ruddick on Jun 27, 2017 
A SAFE PLACE Since God has had a people, His design for community has had at its core being a safe place. This design serves as a trust society to nurture the gifts and the maturity of its members to the benefit of all. This blueprint for community began through the instructions God gave Moses, […]

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A Safe Place (http://strategic-initiatives.org/a-safe-place/) appeared first on Global Initiatives Foundation (http://strategic-initiatives.org) .

Recent Articles:

The Counterfeit Spirit
Turning the World
Shroud of Clutter
Linked Generations
Pioneers, Entrepreneurs and Tz’dakim

Wisdom for the Times

Building Community Builders
Copyright © 2017 Global Initiatives Foundation, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
Global Initiatives Foundation
3838 South Wabash
DenverCo 80206

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

THINKING LIKE JEWS - Morris E. Ruddick SIGN

SIGN
THINKING LIKE JEWS
 
(c) Morris E. Ruddick
 
 
Our exploration of Jewish business secrets has observed that Jews think differently than most of their worldly counterparts. This different way that Jews have of thinking is reinforced from one generation to another, within Jewish culture.
 
Creativity is at the core of the way Jews think. God indeed is the Creator. God's nature is to create, innovate, build and multiply. The sequence of these factors -- to create, innovate, build and multiply -- also represent the core components of entrepreneurship. It should not be surprising then that Jews have become known as the people of business and discovery. It is the fruit of this different way of thinking. It is where Jewish business success begins.
 
The FBI sets a high selection standard for potential agents they train. They draw heavily from backgrounds in law, accounting and military leaders, because experience in these disciplines tends to produce a different, more systematic way of thinking. Jewish thinking tends to be more systematic, disciplined and proactive.
 
I've heard Peter Wagner comment that what distinguishes Jews in their thinking is that they think like God. I'd modify that by saying their way of thinking has been designed by God and reflects a process that aligns with His thoughts. The principles of the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, are the foundation for this alignment, engrained across generations in Jewish culture. It is what differentiates Jewish thinking from the rest of the world.
 
Stephen Pease's extensive research compiling "The Golden Years of Jewish Achievement" has observed that Jews are disproportionate achievers and contributors to civilization as we define it today. Caroline Leaf in her comparison of biblical truths and her own neuroscientific research has concluded that science is just catching up with what the Bible has espoused all along. In other words, Dr. Leaf affirms the dynamic observed by Mr. Pease that these disproportionate results have their root in the fundamentals guiding the way Jews think.
 
In the early 70s, after leaving a career in the Marines at mid-course and then spending a year at Oral Roberts University studying the Word of God, "retooling" my lifestyle and preparing for the call of God I was pursuing, the Lord led me then to get a masters degree at Oklahoma State University.
 
I wound up in a program that had a focus on research designs -- which I was surprised was part of the studies I had elected to pursue. I initially struggled with these additional courses, thinking I might have missed God. Then in the midst of my challenges with my graduate program, God unexpectedly and sovereignly gave me a gift in understanding research designs and statistics -- and told me He was changing my way of my thinking. It represented a systematic, disciplined and proactive way of problem solving. 
 
How basic that has proved to be in the way I simply looked at things. Yet how profound everything else has flowed from that. This approach to my thinking became the basis of my role over the years as a consultant, in problem solving, in creatively finding solutions and strategies to dilemmas being faced by the global clients I served. Yet, with this approach to problem-solving has been a discipline of daily Bible reading and annual scripture memorization.
 
What this parallels is the multi-faceted spiritual maintenance observed by the Jewish community. As it is written: "Tell the children of Israel, surely my Sabbaths you will keep. For it will be a sign between Me and you throughout your generations that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you."
 
A well-known rabbi whose books have drawn great appeal to both Jewish and Christian audiences tells the story about several very successful Jewish entrepreneurs, who have become millionaires and more, and then well known as philanthropists. All were holocaust survivors, many losing most of their families to this travesty. Yet they were not crippled by their horrid experiences. With a culture that refuses to be broken and communities that support the gifts of their participants, they thought differently and overcame their toxic memories.
 
My wife, who spent many years in practice as a licensed psychotherapist is one of the more gifted counselors I've ever known. Her gift has helped many people, many of whom were brought out of the muck of their thinking. Part of Dr. Pease's observations is that we need to reprogram and bring under control the toxic input that shapes our standard, 21st Century way of thinking.
 
Contrary to many current medical conclusions that the brain cannot regenerate, Dr. Pease concludes that our thinking is the means by which we can regenerate our minds and even restore health. As it is written, it is by "the renewing of our minds." Abraham shaped his destiny and that of his descendants for the centuries to follow by believing what God spoke to him, in essence, embracing that which was not as though it were. Such thinking is the basis of faith.
 
While there are few who genuinely can presume to know how God thinks, as His ways are always higher than our ways, it is vital to understand and embrace the ways God has given to His people. Jewish wisdom states: "Listen well to my words, tune your ears to my voice. Keep my truth in plain view at all times. Concentrate! Learn it by heart. Those who discover these words live, really live body and soul. Be vigilant to watch over your heart. That is where life starts." 
 
Definers of Jewish Thinking
So, there are reasons that Jews think differently than most other people. The definers of what characterize Jews as a people begin within, in the way that Jewish community is designed.
 
The dramatic choice and the foundations are spelled out in the words of Moses. Speaking prophetically for God, Moses described the bottom line to the alternatives: "I set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. So choose life that both you and your descendants may live." The choice of life begins with the thinking. Thinking determines the attitudes. Attitudes then guide behavior and the actions we take.
 
Jesus explained that what Dr. Leaf calls toxic thoughts will pollute the process. Undisciplined thinking is like a cancer that devours the true potential in not just an individual but the community and will affect the generations that follow.
 
Identity and Responsibility. Trans-generational community identity is the first differentiator affecting the uniqueness of Jewish thinking. Engrained within the Jewish mind-set is how success is viewed as one's role and responsibility as a part of the community. In Maslow's hierarchy of needs, the community plays a key role in meeting the lower level needs of the physiological, safety, love and belonging.
 
This shared identity and responsibility functionally translates into a complete social system, a safe place, whereby the needs of its members are met in such a way that within the community there are no homeless, none who are left alone. Holocaust survivors and the elderly are honored and are cared for.
 
This functional community identity is more highly developed in Jewish culture than in most other cultures around the world. It reflects an assumed community responsibility. In the words of Moses: "If there is a poor man among your people, do not be hard-hearted but give generously to those in need." The significance of the community responsibility for the poor and needy among its members was also expressed as being tied to the heart of God by Isaiah. While there are many expressions of Judaism, all passionately come together in a shared identity by agreeing on: "Worshipping the God of Israel and helping the poor."
 
Cultural Moral Traditions and Protection. The instructions Moses gave on keeping the Sabbath represents a tradition that protects and sanctifies. To sanctify means to be cleansed from something that can impact or influence you in a negative way. It is a means of protection against the toxic described by Dr. Leaf. With that protection there comes a peace of mind.
 
A few years ago, during a working visit to Israel, I was having Shabbat dinner with a family of Jewish believers. I was sitting on a couch that looked out over the neighborhood and a fairly busy road. As the sun was setting and the Shabbat began there was an awesome conscious stillness in the environment around us. Hardly any cars were on the road. Most people were in their homes preparing for this weekly Shabbat meal with family and friends. These are traditions that honor God. Not only does the process strengthen the foundations for the community's faith in God, it provides a shield of protection that impacts both the attitudes and thinking of those who are a part.
 
Righteous Standards and Trust Society. At the core of any community will be shared beliefs and priorities. In a world in which compromise is defined by the degree at which it operates, higher standards represents a choice upheld by the community and those comprising it. A righteous standard determines how people in a community relate to one another. Without a righteous standard, there can be no trust society. A trust society is a safe place, whereby its members contribute to and foster the welfare of others, knowing that when you cast your bread upon the waters, it will return to you.
 
In previous sessions, we've noted the research done by Francis Fukuyama on trust societies. Dr. Fukuyama's conclusions are that high-trust societies do much better entrepreneurially than low-trust societies. It follows that creativity, innovation and bringing about increase are ways of thinking that will excel to a much higher degree in high-trust communities.
 
Gifts, Opportunity Enablers and Honor. Within Jewish trust communities is a system of mentoring. It incorporates identifying and nurturing the gifts of its members and enabling opportunity. This process begins early with the rites of passage of its young people, the bar mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs. Within the community, its members are blessed in order to be a blessing. This was the mandate God gave to Abraham. It begins with this shared identity, moral traditions and righteous standards. It involves the community's role in the final two steps of Maslow's hierarchy of needs whereby esteem and self-actualization become entwined with one's identity in the community.
 
When these factors function as they were designed in the writings of Moses they become a system of honor that combines the enhancement of the destinies of its members into the destiny of the community. These are the foundations of how Jewish thinking is designed to be cultivated within the community, from one generation to another.
 
The Impact of Jewish Thinking
However, with their identity entwined in the mandate God gave their forebear Abraham, the destiny of these people of God is designed to have an impact on the rest of the world. God told Abraham that through his descendents all the peoples of the earth would be blessed. Whether it has been liked or not, whether it has been embraced or not, Jewish thinking is shaped by this destiny. To the degree that this destiny has manifested to the outside world reflects the degree by which Jews have been described by Mr. Pease as disproportionate achievers and contributors to society.
 
God-Dependency and Self-Sufficiency. The process within the community of being a people who operate with God so much at the center, that they become God-dependent, results in a community self-sufficiency. The challenge over the centuries has been the urge to assimilate, to be like the societies around them. However, when the God-dependency and self-sufficiency is functioning according to the design, it will result in them becoming a light and a blessing to the societies around them. At least in part, it is because their thinking is not polluted by the toxic influences of the world.
 
The differences in beliefs, the way the community takes care of themselves and the way Jews think will be quickly observed within environments in which people are out for themselves. It reflects the character of Jews as they are seen as a people. It is a cultural foundation that then translates into service and leadership.
 
Service and Leadership. Jesus articulated a very Jewish concept to His followers about leadership. He noted that without God, leadership is about the conduct of personal power. However with God, leadership is about service. Along these same lines, Jesus gave focus to another very Jewish matter, the Kingdom of God. He outlined principles of the Kingdom and how to apply righteous power in corrupt settings. At the core of these instructions was the premise that true leadership and influence came by means of service and faithful stewardship of one's responsibilities. It is the manifestation of the Jewish way of thinking.
 
Joseph the Patriarch, having been sold into slavery in Egypt, demonstrated this faithful service orientation and in each of the three stages of his tenure in Egypt, it brought him promotion into leadership. In the process, it is written, that everyone around him observed the reality of God operating through Joseph. When promoted to work alongside Pharaoh, Pharaoh's response targeted Joseph's way of thinking, not only that it was unusually wise, but that Pharaoh discerned as coming from God.
 
Authority, Influence and Power. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob has always been a God of infinite power. He is the Creator. He who formed the heavens and laid out the foundations of the earth is no less powerful today than when He parted the sea or when He answered the defilement of His people with fire from heaven.
 
Returning to the example of Joseph, during each of the three stages of his time in Egypt something unusual happened. When Joseph was but a slave in Potiphar's house, with no status or position, Potiphar observed the authority of God operating through Joseph. His response was to entrust Joseph with his authority as administrator over his household. The same thing happened when through no fault of his own that Joseph was put into prison. The jailer began observing the authority of God that operated through Joseph, due to Joseph's different way of thinking and operating. The result was the jailer entrusting Joseph with the responsibilities of overseeing the rest of the prisoners. So it was when Pharaoh was exposed to Joseph's way of thinking. Joseph's God-thoughts were ascribed to God. The outcome was Joseph being promoted to administer the resources throughout the entire land of Egypt.
 
A Different Way of Thinking with Purpose and Action
Jesus spent entire nights in prayer, aligning Himself with the heart and thoughts of God.  He then gave a very dramatic illustration that gives insight into how Jews think. Jesus said that whoever comes to Him and hears His words and does not act on them is like a man building a house without a foundation. When the flood comes, then the house is destroyed. The foundation to the thinking takes root in the doing.
 
Time spent in prayer with a listening heart is time in which God's people are able to align themselves with the heart of God. This alignment will change the thinking of those seriously pursuing this level of prayer. However, as the change of thinking takes place, so then does the way of acting on the alignment brought about by the prayer.
 
In our hometown is a Vietnamese man who in the early 1990s fled his country by boat, seeking a better way of life. He wound up in an Indonesian refugee camp, in conditions of squalor. Because he spoke English and initially to alleviate the boredom, he became an interpreter for a Bible teacher who visited the camp. He relates that despite initially not understanding the principles he was interpreting, he eventually began understanding the ways of God. He describes his response to applying these ways, within these very humble circumstances, as being the happiest he had ever been.
 
The process resulted in him becoming a man of prayer. Then when the refugee camp was disbanded and he was returned to Vietnam, the uncertainty of what lay before him became a serious matter of prayer. He began acting on the truth that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mine.
 
As it happened, this was the time in the late 90s when the US Secretary of State came to Vietnam and relations between the two nations were being restored. Part of the agreement made during that visit of State was for the US to grant green cards (a work permit and the first step toward citizenship) to 250 of a very long list of Vietnamese seeking to immigrate to the US. Our friend was one of those selected.
 
There is something in the Jewish model of processing thought that brings definition to one's identity, develops one's gift and sets before them a destiny that is bigger than the span of their years. It dovetails with the culture and the community which reinforce and supports both the goal of its individuals and the community to do something more, something greater that extends beyond the generation at hand.
 
Community as God defined it becomes the foundation for nurturing the way its members think and interact. It defines and hones the purpose and meaning of its members as the role of each is honored and nurtured and melded into the aggregate bigger picture. Then with prayer, the standard and traditions that strengthen the alignment with God and gives strategy and wisdom to the thoughts of its members, God's people are then primed to become people of action, each employing their unique gifts to bless those around them and in so doing, contributing to their mutual destinies.
 
As it was written to the descendants of Abraham, the children of Jacob: "Seek the Lord and His strength. Seek His presence continually. Remember the works He has done, His wonders and the judgments He has pronounced."
___________________________________________________
 
Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and spokesman for the higher dimensions of business leadership since the mid-90s. As founder of Global Initiatives Foundation and designer of the God's Economy Entrepreneurial Equippers Program, Mr. Ruddick imparts hope and equips economic community builders to be blessed to be a blessing where God's light is dim in diverse regions around the globe.
 
He is author of "The Joseph-Daniel Calling;" "Gods Economy, Israel and the Nations;" "The Heart of a King;" "Something More;" "Righteous Power in a Corrupt World;" "Leadership by Anointing;" and "Mantle of Fire," which address the mobilization of business and governmental leaders with destinies to impact their communities. They are available in print and e-versions from www.Amazon.comwww.apple.com/ibooks and www.BarnesandNoble.com.
 
Global Initiatives Foundation (www.strategic-initiatives.org) is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 non-profit whose efforts are enabled by the generosity of a remnant of faithful friends and contributors whose vision aligns with God's heart to mobilize economic community builders imparting influence and the blessings of God. Checks on US banks should be made out to Global Initiatives and mailed to PO Box 370291, Denver CO 80237 or by credit card at http://strategicintercession.org/support/
 
Likewise, email us to schedule a seminar for your group's gathering on the Joseph-Daniel Calling or on anointing the creative in business.
 
2016 Copyright Morris Ruddick -- info@strategic-initiatives.org
 
Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since early 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors and leaders committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. For previous posts or more information on SIGN, check: http://www.strategicintercession.org
 
Global Initiatives Foundation 

Global Initiatives is a 501 (c) 3 Tax-Exempt Organization

Copyright © 2016. All Rights Reserved.
Global Initiatives Foundation, PO Box 370291, Denver, CO 80237

Thursday, February 11, 2016

THE GOD OF STRATEGY - Morris E. Ruddick SIGN (Strategic Intercession Global Network)


SIGN

THE GOD OF STRATEGY
 
(c) Morris E. Ruddick
 
 
"Then David gave Solomon the plans for all that he had by the Spirit. 'All this,' said David, 'the Lord made me understand in writing, by His hand upon me, all the works of these plans.'" 1 Chronicles 28: 11,12,19
 
One of the greatest virtues of God's game-changers has been the ability to respond to current developments in a manner that resets the course of the future.
 
When David was made King and brought all Israel together, the clan of Issachar served as his special advisors. Their gift was in understanding the times in order to know what should be done. They were the planners and forecasters. They evaluated and they made predictions.
 
The tribe of Issachar served as the observers of the dynamics and trends tied to the events of the day. Together with the prophetic insights and David's abilities to discern the heart and intentions of the Lord, the result combined as a gift to the community. The opening scripture then describes how David captured in writing these matters he got from the Lord for the next generation. All together, they combined as the elements forming the strategies shaping Israel's future.
 
The Components
So it is that in this time of global turbulence, we see the unfolding of the restoration of the components of this cooperative effort between the Lord and those who are called by His name. The Lord is the God of strategy.
 
It includes the restoration of the anointing of Issachar to discern the times and advance change. It combines shrewd evaluation with prediction, but is ultimately driven by the prophetic. It manifests with the actions of game-changers.
 
When out of balance it represents analysis that results in interim, albeit man-made efforts. When properly enshrouded in the prophetic it becomes revelation that predestines the future ordained by God.
 
This grasp of anticipating the future, which merges forecasting and the prophetic into God's plans for the future, is a vital differentiating factor between God's game-changers and those whose impact of leadership may simply be less than global in nature. It is encased by a big-picture outlook that triggers the application of the diversity of gifts to spawn the type of change that challenges the status quo.
 
The Gifts
Throughout the history of God's people, the Lord has given gifts to men. These gifts have combined natural "gifts" or abilities with spiritual ones. For the game-changers, more often than not, they've been applied during times of duress, enhancing their dependency on God. The application then, guided by the God of strategy, eclipsed by the prophetic, has been the catalyst for paving the direction of societal change.
 
It represents the discipline of the process in reaching for God in concert with the action needed to implement God's prophetic strategies. It defines the heroes of faith. In viewing the primary feats of the heroes of faith, we observe a progression of strategy.
 
Abraham began the legacy by his sensitivity to God and radically obeying God's voice. He honored God with his willingness to get out of the box by leaving everything familiar to him. He established the community model for God's people to live in self-sufficiency, as a people of God. Isaac's response to God amid a time of famine unveiled the secret of God's economy. He supernaturally prospered through God, gaining the respect of the regional power-brokers observing him.
 
Joseph demonstrated how stewardship and an identity and faith in God can influence and release God's authority to harness the spiritual climate and resources of a pagan society. Joseph then managed the largest wealth transfer the world had ever seen.
 
Moses outlined the framework for the Abrahamic model to inoculate God's own from the subtle wickedness of the world and become a society of the righteous, living for God. David demonstrated the leadership response to God's guidance and then shaped a society of diverse factions into a Kingdom of God's people, that would prompt awe for God and His people from all those around them.
 
Each involved strategies that changed the course of events for the people of God. Jesus then raised the bar to the challenge of strategy and opened the gates to the authority that governs cultures, economies and seats of power. In so doing He set up the Kingdom standard for applying righteous power in a corrupt world.
 
The Uniqueness
For each it involved understanding the times and knowing what to do, not as an analytical precept, but as a strategy discerned and acted on from the heart of God.
 
When game-changers such as these go into action, the change begins with a shift in the spiritual climate. In each instance spiritual climate change came as a result of the response of God's people interacting with and obeying Him. The implementation of God's strategies then influences a mix of the cultural, the economic and of power. Technology-advances factor in as accelerators to the change. The status quo is both the blind-spot and the resistance in the application of God's strategies for change.
 
However, beyond the role of the game-changing heroes of faith, there is another way to look at the impact of the God of strategy. It is the change brought about by the community of those known by His name. God's heart has always sought for it to be His people who would respond to His path of strategy, becoming as a light on a hill.
 
If we fast-forward to the book of Revelation, in between the lines is the story of the people of God, together with the angelic hosts experiencing this pathway of oneness with Him. It is God's strategy triggering the final face-off with and death-throes of the forces of darkness and its minions.
 
The Tripping Point
What has made the heroes of faith stand out from the crowd has been their ability to determine and act on the tipping points rather than the tripping points. They have been the ones unconstrained by the spiritual myopia that has plagued far too many. 
 
Today, one of greatest challenges and sources of confusion is the Body's grasp of the prophetic. Despite God's intention of the prophetic being the tipping point, instead it too often has become wrought with clutter and short-sighted prognostications.
 
The prophetic is not an analysis or consensus. It is the heart of God acted on that comprises the strategy of God. More often than not, it comes to the forefront in the midst of times of turmoil. It is the foundation for God's unfolding will that reshapes the economic, cultural and power factors driving the course of events in the world.
 
However, with the shift materializing that changes the spiritual climate, the factors that should be the tipping point instead become the tripping point: namely the dimensions of the cultural, the economic and of power. In other words, there has been a tendency to major in the minor things and miss the focus that ought to be given to major, big-picture things.
 
Within the cultural is one's worldview. Across Christendom today there is a subtle skewing of doctrinal precepts interpreted through the prism of a Western worldview. This blended perspective not only dilutes the power of God, but impedes the change intended within the cultural setting.
 
Within the economic setting is much the same thing. Success and money create a blinding to the realities of the economic infrastructures that hinders the change needed to be acted on in those infrastructures. This Western "overshadowing" is evidenced even in Israel. It influences believers on all corners of the globe.
 
It is the same in seats of power. As the changes in the world's framework accelerates the manifestation of the age-old challenge to God and His people is again rearing its head. The power shift underway is being driven by distorted views of cultural or economic models that may have shaped past exploits. This myopia and confusion has penetrated the ranks of God's people, impeding the amassing of the prayers and the move of God needed to precipitate the real shift of power and God's strategy. 
 
The root snares among the community of faith have long been and continue to be the desire to be like everyone else. Among the leaders in Jesus' day, it was the idols in their minds that came with the seduction of power. For God's people both the identity and the strategy must be in and from God.
 
The Tipping Point
The need is for what makes the Lord to be the God of strategy in the cultural, the economic and power structures. The call is for those known by His name, in humility, crying out to Him for the hunger that will bring forth His presence and intervention. Israel is the focal point, with the people of God seeking His face with the right focus.
 
In both 1948 and 1967, the crucible of the shift in the spiritual climate has manifested with war in Israel, accompanied by significant moves of God in the Body. These dynamics have changed the equilibrium of the equation. These are a part of the birth pangs.
 
Yet the carry-through to the tipping point ushering in the strategy impacting the cultural, economic and that of power requires more. This is where the way of the Kingdom, Jesus' central earthly message, combined with maturity in the prophetic becomes critical to God's way of strategy. It is where the premise of "he who loves his life will lose it, but he who hates his life will gain it" becomes significant.
 
Times of revival or renewal in the Lord are not driven by seeking ideals or their conception of solutions, but rather the One who creates the ideals and solutions. When we abandon our comfort zones and precepts, it demands a humility and commitment to His pathways. This humility and unreserved commitment to the God of strategy opens the gates and paves the way for the new thing God seeks to release among us.
"Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. I will shake the nations, so that they will come with the wealth of the nations and fill this house with glory." Haggai 2:6-7
 
It is the simple things that confound the wise. A wall-hanger in my office states: "Seek not after ministry, but after the fruits of a disciplined life." When combined with the words of Jesus, "seek first the Kingdom and His righteousness and all these other things will be added," it incorporates the pathway needed for God's strategy of change.
 
We have reached a climax in which the change needed will only come from the God of strategy. God's change will shake up the status quo. It will bring restoration of His ancient paths and release the power that raised Jesus from the dead. It will trigger the mantle dormant within the covenant descendents of Abraham.
"What will their acceptance be, but life from the dead." Romans 11:15
 ___________________________________________________
 
Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and spokesman for the call of God in the marketplace since the mid-90s. As founder of Global Initiatives Foundation and designer of the God's Economy Entrepreneurial Equippers Program, Mr. Ruddick imparts hope and equips economic community builders where God's light is dim in both the Western and non-Western world.
 
He is author of "The Joseph-Daniel Calling;" "Gods Economy, Israel and the Nations;" "The Heart of a King;" "Something More;" "Righteous Power in a Corrupt World;" "Leadership by Anointing;" and "Mantle of Fire," which address the mobilization of business and governmental leaders called to impact their communities with God's blessings. They are available in print and e-versions from www.Amazon.com,www.apple.com/ibooks and www.BarnesandNoble.com.
 
Global Initiatives Foundation (www.strategic-initiatives.org) is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 non-profit whose efforts are enabled by the generosity of a remnant of faithful friends and contributors whose vision aligns with God's heart to mobilize the persecuted church to be the head and not the tail. Checks on US banks should be made out to Global Initiatives and mailed to PO Box 370291, Denver CO 80237 or by credit card athttp://strategicintercession.org/support/
 
Likewise, email us to schedule a seminar for your congregation on the Joseph-Daniel Calling or on anointing the creative in business.
 
2016 Copyright Morris Ruddick -- sign@strategicintercession.org
 
Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since early 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors and leaders committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. For previous posts or more information on SIGN, check:http://www.strategicintercession.org
 
Morris Ruddick
Global Initiatives Foundation
www.strategic-initiatives.org
www.strategicintercession.org

Global Initiatives is a 501 (c) 3 tax-exempt organization

Sunday, October 11, 2015

Morris E. Ruddick - [SIGN] BUSINESS AND MINISTRY

Morris Ruddick

SIGN

BUSINESS AND MINISTRY
(c) Morris E. Ruddick
"I have called you to an interlinking between secular business enterprises with overriding Kingdom objectives."
Prophecy given to Morris Ruddick in 1986

The setting was pretty grim. Having been at the helm of successfully orchestrating a major corporate turnaround, I became a casualty due to some unscrupulous corporate politics. In my attempt to understand what was happening to me spiritually, I simply asked the Lord why it seemed the harder I tried to be obedient in following Him, the more trouble I seemed to get into. This wasn't the first instance of the bottom dropping out of something I knew had been ordered by the Lord.

Without hesitation, the answer the Lord gave me was that it was because of the calling on my life, that He had called me to an arena in which secular enterprises would be linked together with objectives that would serve His Kingdom.

While at the time I barely had a glimmer of the depth of what the Lord was telling me, this word brought much peace to my heart and a yearning to better understand what it was the Lord intended for me in the days that were to follow.

A Company of Josephs
My calling and the calling of a global company of others was patterned after the Patriarch Joseph. Little did I realize the significance of the change that would come from this twenty-first mantle and how it would serve to restore principles and ancient secrets the Lord began imparting to his people from the days of Abraham.

Joseph's calling was distinctive. With clarity, he heard from the Lord with a keen understanding of God's heart and attentively acted on it. He broke ranks with religious traditions in his response to the voice of God.  In giving testimony to his prophetic dreams, he found life as he had known it taking an abrupt turn, as he lost his freedom, his family and any semblance of status and power.

He became immersed in the world's system in a distant culture. His response was in adapting to being a matchless prophetic steward with both the mundane and as God's emissary. His identity in God combined with the Lord being the source of his exploits, as God's hand upon him was made obvious to all.
"The Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man and everyone saw that the Lord was with Joseph and made all that he did to prosper." Genesis 39:2-3

Joseph anticipated the future with prophetic clarity and insight. He mastered his new culture from the bottom-up before being entrusted with the resources and future of the nation. His amassing of grain became not just the means to feed the people, but served as the commodity of value when the money failed. All this was a backdrop to restoring and protecting God's people from the judgment encroached at their door.

Exhibiting prudent discipline, his stewardship anticipated opportunity for the common good. He cornered the livestock market and later took over the land, until when the famine passed he eventually turned the land back to its owners in a modified land-grant program.

Joseph oversaw the greatest wealth transfer the world had ever known.

Unorthodox Change
Apart from a prudent, self-sustaining means for his family to care for themselves in Goshen, not one religious program is mentioned in his activities other than his unswerving commitment to and identity in God -- and him acting on the prophetic insights he got from the Lord.

Yet no hero of faith achieved greater exploits for God in the context of harnessing the world's system than did Joseph.

He clearly linked secular enterprises and resources to establish a Kingdom model designed for the care and redemption of God's people as he gained the trust and allied with the source of these resources during times of great challenge and change. In so doing he demonstrated the sovereignty of God over both the secular and those called by His name. Operating under great prophetic authority, he provided a safe place for ALL those under his authority.

With this snapshot of Joseph's anticipatory response to famine and crisis, the question arises to the role and function of the company of those called as modern-day Josephs. How will today's Josephs serve God's purposes with the potentially unlimited resources they prophetically are destined to manage? More appropriately, do we really understand those purposes from God's long-range perspective outside the parameters of our short-term religious mind-sets?

Understanding the Times
The answers have got to begin with an understanding of the times from a big-picture, God-perspective. Isaiah 60 tells of a time when darkness will cover the earth and deep darkness the people. The implications have an amazing parallel to the time of famine anticipated by Joseph.

We also are on the threshold of such a time. Isaiah 60 prophetically paints a portrait of a time in which God is restoring His order to His creation and preparing to fulfill the promises to His people that began with His covenant with Abraham.
"Darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people. But the LORD will arise over you and His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light and kings to the brightness of your rising." Isaiah 60:2-3

The focal point is Israel.

A Shift of Power and Resources
Isaiah went on to prophesy (Isa 60:8) that the abundance of the sea would be directed to Israel and the wealth of the nations would come to them. The ramp-up of turbulence and lawlessness underway today represents the periphery of the birth pangs spoken of by Jesus in Matthew 24 and Mark 13. It will be a time of great restoration, a vast shift of wealth and power.

Unfortunately, the topic of the callings patterned after Joseph and Daniel, as well as that of "the wealth transfer," of strategically tapping the resources of the world's systems, have become a part of distorted, pop-Christian culture. It is appropriate therefore, to begin by stating what the wealth transfer IS NOT.

The wealth transfer is not a means by which super-achievers fulfill their glimmer of the great commission. Nor will the wealth transfer be driven by Western financial institutions and markets. Neither is it a prosperity doctrine. The wealth transfer will not be the result of the efforts of elite networks of ultra-spiritual zealots. Nor will it be linked to mega fund-raising agendas. It will not be an eschatological orchestration of the weird built on the precepts of men. While each may contain elements of truth, individually they simply miss the mark.

For the sake of the zealots and prematurely eager -- and not in anyway to dampen the intentions of those genuinely called, it should be remembered that the calling of Joseph involved serious betrayal of those closest to him, along with a complete loss of his status and freedom. It involved an extremely long waiting period for God's set time, a wait involving some very humble conditions.

Yet, during his wait even as a slave, Joseph exemplified the mantle of his great-grandfather Abraham, whose calling was to be blessed to be a blessing. The wealth transfer will be stewarded by those who not only have paid the cost of the calling, but have been uniquely prepared, a global company of individuals with callings patterned after that of Joseph and Daniel.

These will be men and women of God whose prophetic gift and authority, sensitivity to God's heart and stellar obedience to God marks their identity and wisdom to those in non-religious circles. They are people of trust who worldly power brokers will seek to align themselves with. The calling will functionally be diverse. From a human standpoint it will involve an element of compartmentalized enterprises, reflecting numerous divinely-connected, yet self- and mutually-supporting enterprises.

The Joseph-Daniel calling is at the crux of this great time of restoration, of this shift of power and wealth. As has already been noted, Israel is central to it all.

The Issues from God's Perspective
Returning to the questions, when the wealth transfer assignments are given out, what is it that will distinguish the genuine Josephs from his brothers who may consider their family position in the household of faith as being ahead of Joseph? Then to what purposes are the resources to target? To better discern this focus requires a look at three key spheres of influence: culture, economic and power.

The Culture. Culturally, this great shift will divide the sheep from the goats. It will exhibit a sweeping spiritual awakening accompanied by great signs and wonders. This spiritual awakening will be paralleled with merciless persecution. Despite that, this time will reflect innovative alliances between secular institutions that fulfill overriding self-sustaining Kingdom purposes.

The way of the Kingdom will define both the identity and culture of true believers. The Kingdom model is comprehensive in combining the spiritual, entrepreneurial and community, a model familiar to those in touch with the Hebraic roots of the faith.

The result will reorder foundations of culture, power and the economic. The Josephs now coming into position encompass what is termed the marketplace movement. It is the restoration of societal-spiritual leadership that interlinks the Kingdom with the secular -- business with ministry, if you will.

God's Economy. A study in Global Inc. (Gabel, Bruner, 2003, New York), notes that 53 of the world's 100 largest economies are corporations. That's a major twist in outlook. Despite the change that can be expected in the days ahead, in the same way that God sent Joseph to prepare Egypt as a safe place, preparations are already globally underway for the shift that lies before us.

God has forerunners who have been preparing both select corporations and nation-states as safe-places and Kingdom harbingers. They will involve extraordinary alliances with secular enterprises serving Kingdom objectives. They will be self-supporting models of what results when God is dwelling with a people.

With unique ties to Israel, there will be a keen focus on new discoveries, inventions and advanced technologies that serve the purpose of averting the chaos, disasters and persecution in establishing the foundations in which God dwells with His people.

Kingdom Power. Revival attracts. The global spiritual awakening, demonstrating God's power and restoring ancient truths of the faith beginning with God's covenant with Abraham will sweep every sector of society.

Leadership will accompany the anointing of those who unwaveringly have paid the cost, like Joseph in having lost everything personally meaningful to him. They will be ones who within their spheres are graced with unusual trust and favor, but also are targets, initially even with their brethren.

The Book of Revelation describes a time of varying discord and hostility against believers. Those leading the way through the persecution will be those who already bear the brand-marks of the Lord Jesus (2 Cor.)

In this generation, starting with the Cultural Revolution, key segments of the church in Asia have gone through a cleansing of its Western trappings and accoutrements. Those who withstood and survived the purges became a pure church, one with a very humble dependency based solely on God and a genuine prayer-base. From this foundation, God's power was released.

A Time of Great Restoration
The release of Kingdom power will bring restoration of the ancient paths. The restoration will trigger a process. At the core will be Israel. At the climax will be the fulfillment of the Kingdom and every promise uttered by God to His covenant people.

With Israel being the focal point, emphasis will be given to inventions, technologies and potential discoveries that build the foundations for Israel and God's Kingdom intentions. Investments and alliances will have focus on Israel's means of being self-sustaining. The strategic agendas will range from the return of the House of Israel to the land, to mechanisms that enhance the role of genuine friends of Israel (John 15:13-14), to initiatives toward Israel's energy independence, to advanced technologies, to discoveries that bring healing and fertility to the nations.

The Sound of the Kingdom
"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts. The whole earth is filled with His glory."
Isaiah 6:3

The sound of the Kingdom will conform to the patterns and responses exhibited by Jesus in His earthly ministry. His unveiling of the Kingdom released the harmony by which the natural and the spiritual realms are bridged. John's gospel progressively disclosed the simple secret to Jesus' power: God-in-us and the secret of abiding. It is all about God dwelling with and manifesting Himself through His covenant people.

It involves the simple things that confound the wise. It releases God's most unlikely candidates executing the most unlikely strategies to bring about the most unlikely results. Put simply, the players and strategies ahead will not conform to the way people normally view things. Jesus pointed to the Father being in Him and Jesus being in the Father (John 14:10-11). John quoted Jesus as saying: "On that day you will know that I am in My Father and you in Me, and I in you." (John 14:19-21)

THAT is the simple answer to how you distinguish Joseph from his brothers. Pharaoh saw it clearly and stated: "Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?" (Gen 41:38) It is the foundation for answering the question of the purpose the modern-day Josephs will serve in this groundswell of restoration.

Just as Joseph served God's purposes in Egypt, today's Josephs are God's advance party. Their apostolic-prophetic role in some very chaotic conditions will be served in very practical terms, in strategies that link secular enterprises with overriding ministry objectives in restoring God's order.

Today's Josephs are the forerunners, the servant-leaders, heeding the sound of the Kingdom, serving as the foundation of the apostles and prophets for the restoration of the ancient purposes being triggered by the anointed description captured by the Apostle Paul.

"God's household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, is now being built into a holy temple of the Lord in whom you also are being fitted together as a dwelling for God in the Spirit." 
Ephesians 2:19-22

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Morris Ruddick has been a forerunner and spokesman for the call of God in the marketplace since the mid-90s. As founder of Global Initiatives Foundation and designer of the God's Economy Entrepreneurial Equippers Program, Mr. Ruddick imparts hope and equips economic community builders where God's light is dim in both the Western and non-Western world.

He is author of "The Joseph-Daniel Calling;" "Gods Economy, Israel and the Nations;" "The Heart of a King;" "Something More;" "Righteous Power in a Corrupt World;" and "Leadership by Anointing," which address the mobilization of business and governmental leaders called to impact their communities with God's blessings. They are available in print and e-versions from www.Amazon.comwww.apple.com/ibooks and www.BarnesandNoble.com.

Global Initiatives Foundation (www.strategic-initiatives.org) is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 non-profit whose efforts are enabled by the generosity of a remnant of faithful friends and contributors whose vision aligns with God's heart to mobilize the persecuted church to be the head and not the tail. Checks on US banks should be made out to Global Initiatives and mailed to PO Box 370291, Denver CO 80237 or by credit card at http://strategicintercession.org/support/

Likewise, email us to schedule a talk or seminar for your congregation on the Joseph-Daniel Calling or on anointing the creative in business.

2015 Copyright Morris Ruddick -- sign@strategicintercession.org

Reproduction is prohibited unless permission is given by a SIGN advisor. Since early 1996, the Strategic Intercession Global Network (SIGN) has mobilized prophetic intercessors and leaders committed to targeting strategic-level issues impacting the Body on a global basis. For previous posts or more information on SIGN, check:http://www.strategicintercession.org

Morris Ruddick
Global Initiatives Foundation
www.strategic-initiatives.org
www.strategicintercession.org


Global Initiatives is a tax-exempt 501 (c) 3 organization