Out Of Their Clutches

it was God's decision

to woo my volition

He painted His vision

with uncanny precision.

i was His choice, a subject

from life's train wreck.

at the point that

causes cracking

'cuz o' constant

demonic whacking.

delivered from

that rubber room

my witness is as

the flower in bloom

fire-dross-burning to

heart-consume

then drenched in wafts

of kingly perfume.

why am I pointing to

His anointing?

to me it's just as

clear as a bell.

He took the time

to wipe my crime

and now i'm no longer

bound for hell.

scratch your head

along with me

His ways are

way above us.

objection filed

from hell below —

i'm why there's

spiritual ruckus.

they hate the fact

that people like me

are yanked right out

of their clutches.

to top it off,

i'm cleaned and groomed

and given

the heavenly touches!

- Tony Mujica ©2011

Love For The One You Can't Have

This is an ode for those who have experienced the solitary, lonely place in God's loving presence. Those who have tasted sometimes are altered so that nothing else will do. They've tasted the highest love and cannot settle for lesser loves, but yet the desire for lateral love remains as a whisper. By God's grace, vertical love triumphs over the lateral.* The poem is also for those who have experienced deep heartbreak and rejection.

Love For The One You Can't Have

Vials and bottles on Heaven's shelf
       are filled with tears dripped by self
Collected they are, by my winged escorts
       dripped grief-drops of all sorts.
Running into position, I go again
       to the embrace of my eternal friend
              between the trusted hands of
                     the olive press.
Slow-squeezed-cranking out my duress,
       the stress of duress under an olive press
squeezes 100% pure essence - no less.

Is this a true virgin olive oil?
       To the victor goes the spoil.

I used to toot a jazz-tune called
       "Love for the one you can't have".
On my wounds
       the sounds were salve.
Audible translation of healing balms
       like straight out of the book of Psalms —
Temporary relief for life's rejection,
       a transitory shelter
              my pro tem protection.

That worldly song pointed me there
       to Otherworld
              — the Judah Lion's lair.

You see, that love for the one
       you can't have
(whether not for today
       or never to have)
drives us to God's faithful one
       Heaven's Darling,
              the only begotten Son.
Rejection, whether real or perceived
       brings reward
              when properly relieved.

Lateral love, misguided as it may be,
       can bring in close the Son who sets free.
When overturned to side, it points one up.
       Sour dregs to lemonade,
              sipped from the cup
Rejection, whether real or perceived
       reveals Godly treasure,
              when properly relieved.

— Tony Mujica © 2012
 
 

"Fragrant Pressing, Fragrant Blessing"
Graphite on paper
Tony Mujica © 2008

When I am squeezed what comes out of me?

 

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* note: "Vertical love triumphs the lateral." This is a reference to the vertical and horizontal aspects of man.

Vertical
Built into mankind is a vertical longing. Man was created to love God. It may be expressed in negative ways, through drugs, sex, etc., but the root desire is a longing for God. The vertical (when aligned with God) goes straight to God outside creation.

Horizontal
Also built into man is horizontal longing. Man was created in relationship to a larger element, creation. Man wasn't made to be alone. Despite Cain's Genesis cry, we ARE our brother's keeper. Like John, the revelator, we are not to worship angels. They are beings created within the horizontal aspect. Worship is meant to be pointed up through the vertical, to the one who stands outside the bubble of creation. Worship directed sideways is idolatry.

The Cross
Together the two form a cross. The shorter crossbeam is sideways, parallel to the ground. It isn't rooted (without the tall centerbeam, it remains on the ground). Man's priority focus was originally on the longer beam (Longer beam, vertical = Primary emphasis, God), which is rooted in the ground and extends toward Heaven. Adam in his original state was totally reliant on God.

Emphasis on God alone is incomplete. Without the horizontal, a cross is just a lonely pillar. God enjoys us corporately, as well as individually. Our interaction with each other is part of His design.

Running In The Spirit

Floored Again! Once more, He peels me off the pavement.

“He who runs in front of the car gets tired. He who runs behind gets exhausted."
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
I saw this in my Droid's daily joke app. I thought it was funny and posted it yesterday on Facebook. I woke up in the middle of my sleep to write another thing. I saw this silly post. I wondered, "why on Earth did I post this". The question really needs rephrasing. "Why in heaven... The Lord started pouring out the following idea to me:

Tire Squeals

I stand here with tire marks on my face, from the moving car of God and His presence. I ran in front of His car (which is more like an eighteen wheeler) with confident expectation that He wants to spend time with me. Of course He does. He runs toward me with even more excitement (and speed) than I, just like a Father sees beloved son in the distance (a prodigal? I pray not). Not only that, He flattens me. I recover in a cartoon state, with flattened image of Tony on the road. He picks me up, brushes me off, revives me, and then places me in the distance for another go at it. I hear God laughing (in His "loving” way) while He revs His engine, as He moves with tire squeal. He loves these "hit and re-runs". This is His grace.
But it seems whenever I chase Him from behind, in my own strength, I just get exhausted. It's so hard to chase God. Yet even when I chase Him in my flesh, there is validity and blessing in this. In the process, I am overcome with God's exhaust. (Naturally, His exhaust is not like earthly poison.) I wind up "down-for the-count-on-the-floor" again.
He stops the truck. He laughs and says "That kid o' mine has got spunk. Let's do this again!". He gets out of the vehicle, walks back to me, picks me up, dusts me off, and whispers kind words to me. Then He either leaves me there to engage in the chase again, or He places me off in the horizon for the next round of hit and re-run.

Such is life in His presence — running, not walking, in the spirit.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

Note about this post: For creative license and comedic effect, I did not include the countless rides in God's vehicle — the encounters in His presence. I focused on the God chase, the romancing process.

A Kingdom Word For Those Who Would Receive It

I recently prophesied a word to a friend. I felt that most of the content was for others as well, so I asked Jesus for more. The following is what the Lord impressed me to share. It may seem distant from your present reality but lean into it anyways. He often speaks from eternal perspective, which is why it can sound disconnected from where your walk is at the moment. It may float in present tense and in future tense. These are observations of you from outside the bubble of time. Ask God to make this future reality collide with your present one. He will help you succeed with this because He really wants you to succeed.

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

I have given you much so that you can be a giver to others. I have comforted you so that you can comfort others. I love you with passion so that you will pass on My passion to others.


Be encouraged. Keep pressing into My heart. I will open up the depths for you. As you spend time before me, I will cause you to explode on the inside with my resounding love song. I will echo resonantly and cause changes to happen in you from the inside out. You are my workmanship, my masterpiece. I will bring you to completion. I will refine and define you. That's my job. After all, a painting doesn't paint itself now, does it?


I delight in making you look good. I love watching my lambs roar like lions. My process in you gives me glory. It has thrilled me to watch you grow up. You started walking in your diapers, then gained confidence and began running. But when you fell, I caught you. I wiped away your tears, but then you broke away to run some more. As you grew, you learned how to scale mountains while humming songs, my favorite songs. You learned how to worship Me in everything you do. You learned the ways of My Kingdom of Love. You learned how to hum throughout the day. I watched and smiled as you grew in confidence. Wherever you went I was also with you. You included me in your life. You stopped pushing me away. We did everything together.


As we began to walk as one, you began to do great damage to the Kingdom of fear. Just as My perfect love casts out all fear, My love kingdom pushes out that fear kingdom. The soles of your shoes are filled with demon guts. You trample on enemy forces. You don't seek out confrontations, you just walk with me, as we sing songs. The enemy begins to scatter when they see you coming. They hate your songs. You have grown out of their influence and are becoming a direct threat to their strategies. Continue to worship me in everything you do and I will fight your battles.


As you spend time with me, I line up people for you to minister to. You minister out of overflow, sharing my light with those that need it. They are greatly affected by the light bouncing off you. When you were still before Me, I polished you so you would be my reflector. Every time you are still before Me, I do this. You see, I paint you from the inside out as you fill your mind with my word. Then I polish you so that my painting shines bright from your interior outward. You mirror my likeness.


My favorite sound of all is the yes coming from your lips. That one word is the sweetest symphony and serenade for my ears. You are learning to always say yes to Me, like I did to My father when I walked on Earth. This is holiness, My Shulamite.


Obey Me.


Reflect Me.

A "MUNDANE" ROUTINE THAT LEADS TO CREATIVITY

I am writing this as a result of a Facebook conversation about creativity. It started as a post by FBer Paulette Insall, referring to an internet article, "How Mundane Routines Produce Creative Magic". 

My approach is the antithesis of routine, and not mundane by any means. Please share in my comments section after this post, about your daily routines. I value your opinion and would appreciate your input.  

1) Do you have a daily routine that helps you create?

I concentrate on staying in constant communion with God. Very simple.

  

Hard to maintain at times, but I am growing in staying in this constant flow. I diligently work at cutting out distractions of any sort. When I first consciously explored this approach, I spent several days, even weeks, in my room alone with God. I did not plan on fasting but the Lord pulled me into it. No food or drink for days and not even missing it! I would get lost in His presence. I have found that it's easy to enter the disciplines when God woos you into them. They become effortless. If you want to change the way you think or behave, to come more in line with God - stand in His presence. It's hard to stay there and not get some of Him rubbing off on you.

I had my phone and sketchbook with me in my room, which enabled me to write/sketch out revelations from the Lord.

Many years ago, I attempted to maintain marathons in His presence like this, but I would inevitably be the one leaving, never God. He would say, "Don't go." I would later realize that in my hurry to run off to do errands, I didn't hear the rest of what he was telling me, "Don't go, take me with you." Those last four words have turned my lifewalk upside down.

I noticed that when I first started applying those four words, I had extreme difficulty. It's easy to be isolated, but very hard to reintegrate into a world that marches to the beat of a different drummer. I would leave my room on the second floor. By the time I reached the last step into the first floor, I had left my flow, and fizzled into an old man mindset, as if I had never had any exchange with the Lord. But God as Jealous Lover of my soul, patiently brought this to my attention. I retreated to my room as a saline puddle on the floor, crying out for a solution to this problem. I say this because all of this is His doing. It takes God to know God. I can only know Him by His revelatory permission, only entering in by His grace. There is nothing in me that enables me to access Him, other than the blood-stained garment of Christ (Hebrews 10:19-22).

This approach keeps me in constant flow. It may be quite different than other means. I run away from seeking my own expression. Part of being a minstrel (visual minstrel) is dedicating and surrendering my expression in favor of seeking out God's expression.There's power in the unaltered song of the Lord (music), or vision of the Lord (visual arts). Like King David, prophetic worshipers must be priests after God's own heart, a kingdom of priests. I never lose my identity in this. My expression always comes through in the process. God loves the soulic part of my being (when it is lined up with Him). HE SAVORS OUR FLAVOR. That's why I can say I'm His favorite and His flavorite.

One of the benefits, of using this "routine"(anything but mundane routine - a thrill for every second):

The creative element flows into everything you do. One can become a musician orchestrated into the symphony of life (even if you have a tin ear and don't know how to play). In other words, it provides the means to practice the presence of God, thereby enabling one to "walk in the Spirit". This is just the beginning. This is NORMAL CHRISTIANITY, the way God intends everybody to walk (that's a direct quote from the gospel according to TONY, he-he-he! Good thing there's no such book). Good thing, there's no such book!

Even when recent illness (Quad bypass heart surgery and resultant nerve damage) derailed my ability to paint or play trumpet, God so wanted me to worship Him without skipping a beat that He brought in another avenue for me to explore: writing and poetry. He gave me the ability to focus my thoughts in words. The day before, I could not write. I mean I knew how because of schooling, but couldn't put words together, couldn't rhyme. Often, in school I would be the last one turning in an exam. I would get frustrated at the blank sheet, whenever I attempted to journal. God so loves me that He provided a way for me to express my love to Him, when my other routes became too painful. Isn't that something how much He cares for every detail of our lives? I love Him so.

One of the most difficult things I find with this approach:

1) Time oriented things

Schedule is an area that I find most difficult. I am on God's schedule, not my own. When I spend long hours before God I find myself in the timeless place with the eternal God, the Ancient of Days. Because of that, He has stretched my understanding of schedule, of anything related to time. He has taught me to view things from eternal perspective. I now know the value of pulling back from viewing things from a human mindset. I don't always do it, because I am a work in process. But at least, I am aware that God's ways are high above man's ways of thinking.

During the long stretches with the Lord, He began showing me another discipline (like fasting, silence, or solitude). It is an outgrowth of the Watch of the Lord. I call it the discipline of the "Surrendered Schedule". It's not for everyone, most cannot grasp the importance of it or even the validity. But it is another form of voluntary weakness. It causes a wooing cry within your spirit. It is yet another avenue to walk while worshiping God. If you have time for it.

I used to work as a limousine chauffeur. I always had to be on time, in fact, early and well prepared for my client's needs. When my client arrived I was on their schedule. They paid by the hour and I did whatever they wanted (well almost whatever), drove wherever they wanted to go, even if it meant driving across multiple states. Whenever I went on these long excursions, It was so difficult to return to the usual everyday schedule of airport transit. So it is with serving God in this manner.

2) People think you're anti-social

While He is working this way of living into my life, it will seem that way. But I have noticed that He causes me to view people in a different way. It seems that everyone has become precious to me. When I am around people, I find it easier to give wholeheartedly into their lives. I can say this because I used to be a sourpuss. Even now, when I grow distant from God that's a sure way of knowing I'm off. I return to my curmudgeon dudgeon dungeon.

I see that He isn't going to let me stay a miserable shambles. I think it's because of those dangerous prayers. You know the ones, "God do whatever it takes to...", or we've all prayed, "make me just like Your Son". I think I winced immediately when those words rolled off my tongue. I think Misty Edwards knows exactly what I mean. Listen to her song ,"You Won't Relent (Until You Have It All) -Track 4 on my blog's Mix Pod above. My Heart is Yours, oh God, most worthy, most holy! You are my everything, my. . .

. . .Where am I? . . .What's my name? I just fell on the floor. Oh Yes, back to writing.

Is this isolated approach worth all it entails?

Even with the difficulties, it is absolutely worth everything. It is worth all the things I give up, the things I used to call "loss". Now I see them as gain. I am finding that God is helping me reintegrate back to a do-able schedule. What I gain is a slight shift in thinking that enables me to re-enter whenever I feel I am growing distant.

Walking this way is like learning a new embouchure (mouth formation) on the trumpet. At first it seems like it's not worth it, but after a while you gain confidence about why you made the change in the first place. Well worth all the changes and times when you thought you couldn't do it.

2) What are the most important triggers for your creative state of mind?

Only three:

Abba Father, Overseer

Jesus, Darling Son of God

Ruach, Spirit of the Most High God

3) What happens to your creativity if your routine is interrupted?

I fall out of sorts. It can lead to personal mayhem. It's both disastrous and painful to dull down once you become sensitized. It's like reintroducing poison into your body's system after you have worked hard to detox. The great thing is God wants me to succeed. So even when I fail, He brushes me off and helps me get back up. Yay God. None of this would be possible or even fathomable, if I were an atheist. But then again, God doesn't believe in Atheists. Yay God, again.