Yo, devil, I’m not drinkin’
the Kool-aid that yer servin’

Tryin’ to stir dissension
among the beloved brethren

Seven point Calvinist
yep, that’d be me

Way out on a limb
sittin’ kinda pretty

Six points, five,
four, three and two and one

But it ain’t the points that save,
it’s the only begotten Son

Yo, devil, I’m not drinkin’
the Kool-aid that yer servin’

Tryin’ to stir dissension
among the beloved brethren

I”m receivin’, I’m lovin’
each and every one

the blood-bought, the redeemed
for the sake of God the Son

Sharers in one Spirit
We all call our Father, Abba

We drink the living water
We call each other brother

Yo, devil, I’m not drinkin’
the Kool-aid that yer servin’

Tryin’ to stir dissension
among the beloved brethren

One Body, yet diversified
perfectly joined, of one mind

You scheme, you plot, you prowl
awaiting every opportunity

To get a foothold in
this bless’d Christian community

Darkness slips in like an angel of light
you work envy, divisions, jealousy and strife

Yo, devil, I’m not drinkin’
the Kool-aid that yer servin’

Tryin’ to stir dissension
among the beloved brethren

Is the Lord Christ divided?
Are we not all one in Him?

Holy Spirit enlightened me,
led me back into all truth

away from your devilish confusion
free from your tangled web of subtle lies

He’s given me Christ’s power,
He’s given me Christ’s mind

Willing to submit, to serve,
resurrection power to be kind

Freely accepting my brothers and sisters
as He does to the glory of God our Father

Lord Jesus, keep me ever drinkin’
of the one Spirit that yer servin’

Tryin’ to stir up love and good works
among Your beloved brethren

Related posts:
Love for the brethren (Evan Roberts & the Welsh Revival of 1904-05)
More on love for the brethren (George Whitefield’s Journals)
from the archives: “How do we know if we’re speaking the truth in love?”
Does oneness in Christ mean . . . ?
What kind of pony are you asking for for Christmas?
How can we say we are unified when … ?
we are a wilderness and a desolation today (lack of love in the Church | Isaiah 64:10-11)
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when we dwell in unity!
forgive us for dividing Your Son, our Lord
May the mind and word of Christ dwell in us so we might arise as one man
Is Satan stirring the pot in your congregation? (and are you helping him?)

As you know, Deerlife is always on the lookout, ever vigilant…

just spied this ad on Xanga…

Brothers and sisters, how ’bout adding verses below with some Bible verses proclaiming how Jesus REALLY saves!

Dear friends in Christ,

I’ve found myself in the midst of writing another post on transparency and intimacy in our relationships within the Body of Christ as a follow-up to these:

• Transparency in blogging & the struggle for sanctification
• more on transparency ~ “Mercy on Me” by Sho Baraka Feat. Chinua Hawk

I’d appreciate your prayers for writing (as usual).

However, as I’ve been working on this post, as sometimes happens, the Holy Spirit convicted me once more of my lack of love for my brothers and sisters in Christ. (Blogging for my own sanctification = Priceless. As has been said, if the preacher is not preaching the message first to himself, then what kind of effect can his message really have on his congregation, what kind of life will inhabit his words if the words haven’t broken him first?)

How could I not be convicted when I found myself writing and then asking myself questions like these (I’m not actually sure these will make it to the final post or not…I’ve been changing it up a bit since I first wrote these, but haven’t gotten to editing this section of the post yet):

When we don’t have such fellowship with our brothers and sisters who are in the light, can we say we are God’s beloved children?

When we don’t have such fellowship with our brothers and sisters who are in the light, can we say we are walking in love toward them?

When we don’t have such fellowship with our brothers and sisters who are in the light, can we say we are loving them as Christ loved us?

When we don’t have such fellowship with our brothers and sisters who are in the light, can we say we are a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God?

The Lord once again caught me in my impatience toward, lack of love for, and judgmental attitudes toward those in the Body who may not believe exactly the same as I do. I’m not talking about differences in essential doctrine. To tell you the truth, I’m pretty sure I’ve never met anyone who believes exactly the same as me on the nonessentials. Even though I highly value unity in the Body, I still keep tripping up and trying to remake people into my own image. Grrr! Make war against self! Make war against the lust to scheme and manipulate! Yes, I am so much a Jacob. *sigh*

Sure, there are things I can pray for people that I believe they ought to be growing in, but I can’t be the Holy Spirit to them. And besides that, who’s to say my understanding is 100% correct. Please! Self-centered much?! All I know is that I’m to lift up Christ, to present the Word of God as the Spirit shows me and empowers me, and to do so in love (it’s not really the Spirit’s work if it’s not bathed in love, is it?!), to pray expectantly (yes, pray more!) and to be patient and to trust the Lord to work as He wills and not maneuver and usurp the Holy Spirit’s unique place in convicting, teaching and guiding His people into all truth – that’d be His truth, not my version of it.

Once more I Corinthians 16:13-14 came to mind:

13  Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. 14  Let all that you do be done in love. 

Yes, we’re to be watchful, stand firm in the faith, and be strong…but along with that we’re to let all we do be done IN LOVE!

Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner…I have a hard time loving like You loved me.

I John 4:20  If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21  And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. 

Um, brain drain…there was something else I’d wanted to share here, I think, but I can’t remember it right now. Well, this is plenty, and this is plenty important.

So, I guess this is my small step of obedience into a little more transparency. (Practice what you blog, or rather blog what you practice, right? Isn’t that part of what James was talking about ~ James 3…)

Thank you for coming here to read. I thank and praise God for each of you and very much appreciate your prayers and your kind words and support. 

If there are any ways I can be praying for you, please let me know.

Yours in Christ, a sinner saved and sustained by His grace alone,

Karen