Living in the Last Hour

Rich Mullins

His music continues to minister to me. Truly he was a man sent by God. I pray that his music and his message continues to move our heart, soul and spirit closer to the awesome God, he so willingly and unselfishly served. May 6, 2014, the Rich Mullins movie will be available on DVD exclusively at Walmart. Even if you have never heard of this man, his story and his music will tug at your Spirit man. I highly recommend everyone watch this movie. I just watched the story of Rich Mullins, second time, and it is an awesome story. His life was full of grace and mercy.

I think I would rather live on the verge of falling and let my security be in the all-sufficiency of the grace of God than to live in some pietistic illusion of moral excellence. Not that I don’t want to be morally excellent but my faith isn’t in the idea that I’m more moral than anybody else. My faith is in the idea that God and His love are greater than whatever sins any of us commit. ~ Rich Mullins

Rich Mullins Find A Grave Memorial

My take on the life of Rich Mullins

I pray that God always gives you understanding when you read my stuff. The life of Rich Mullins represents the spirit of the Lord when pursuing his children. God, the creator of man, has never stopped, not for one moment, to reconcile with His children. Man has rejected God, renounced Him, denied Him, however, you want to define it, man has pushed God to the edge. Still, God has never abandoned man.

For me, the life of Rich Mullins brings up a few questions:

1. In these last days, how do we recognize children born, or rather set apart for God? And, how do you raise children that have been set apart for God? The bible gave a few examples, but how can we accomplish this task today?

2. Do you believe that God loves you? And if you do, do you not know that a father that loves his children will do everything in his power to put his children on the right path?

3. If people had to describe you, or define you by your lifestyle, your mannerisms, what would they say?

4. Are you being pursued by the living God?

Rich Mullins’ life was not about the girl that got away, or the women in his life, or the struggles that continually hindered his ability to relate to his earthly father. His life was about the love of God, and relating to his Heavenly Father. It was about rejecting the things of this world, for the things of God…not an easy thing to do, especially these last days when you can get God in any flavor, made to order. His life was about the message that God wanted to deliver through his music. I am also convinced that Rich Mullins came in the spirit and the power of Elijah. And like the prophets that came before him, he too was dismissed, because he did not fit the sanitized Christian mold.

From infancy, his life had been set apart for God’s purpose. His mother knew it. His father was clueless, as many fathers tend to be (no insult intended). God called him early and he heard the call and responded, but he was filled with bitterness, and the ugliness of the world. The Lord had to break his heart, so he could be an effective vessel for His use. It took years. It’s interesting that the relationship with his father mimics our relationship with our Heavenly Father in that God has expectations of us, yet we seek Him on our terms. His struggle to communicate with his dad was representative of the struggle he had communicating with his Heavenly Father. Surrendering does not come natural to anyone and Rich Mullins learned this lesson all to well. I am convinced that even to the end he was still learning to surrender.

No, his life was not meant to be perfect. His life was meant to characterize the life of one chosen by God. Only Jesus was born perfect and ready to go about His Father’s business. The rest of us have to be prepared. The rest of us have to learn obedience. We must be refined by fire, but we must desire to be obedient to things of God.

When God calls, rarely is anyone ready to do the Lord’s business. Our lifestyle, our habits, our desires must be transformed to those of God. It can take awhile to accomplish this feat…and it can and probably will be a painful, heartbreaking experience. And the intensity will depend greatly on our willingness to obey His will, because rarely are we willing to count everything lost for the cause of Christ. In our brokenness, God can use us, because when we are weak, then He is strong. Rich Mullins wrote and sang from a broken heart, a heart broken by the living God that gave him breath.

It was the living God that loved him and pursued him to the end, then he stretched out His arms and called him home. His Heavenly Father was waiting for him on the other side and the angels sang.

I fell in love with his music. I fell in love with the spirit of the man that loved the same living God, that I love, and that so pursues me. That his music still moves the spirit man, that his life will now be told only serves to show the awesomeness of the God he so loved. As Christians, we should not be conforming to the ways of this world, yet too often it is difficult to tell us apart. To live is not to live for self, but to live to do the will of God.

It is disheartening to know that Christians, with full knowledge of the truth, continually turn to the world to find completeness. No one needs to live with a big hole in their heart. Jesus can fill it, overflow it and make you whole. All you need to do is trust God and have a smidgens of faith. That’s all you need…mustard seed faith. God will do the rest. And God will send another prophet, and another…

This is an awesome film. I never met Rich Mullins, never went to any of his concerts, and probably never would’ve, but his music has touched my soul like no other musician. His life was filled with relationship issues, but if you think about it… that’s the biggest problem Christians have with God, relationship problems. From what I have read, and after watching the film, Rich always sought God, just as someone that truly loves you will seek you with a whole heart.

I wish I had met this man while he lived, certainly it would have been just amazing to carry on a conversation with him. The film is well made. The characters are real, the emotion is powerful, but the spiritual lessons are all God. I recommend everyone watch this movie. In these last days, God is pouring out His Spirit, it is up to us to take heed. Be blessed.

Man of God – Rich Mullins by Irma Mathis

As he walked into the building His presence filled the room. In his tattered jeans, and white v-neck tee shirt he took the stage to impress no one, only to sing praises to his God. And The Lord listened and filled the room with His love.

His appearance was not what anyone would expect of someone so famous. A broken life, a broken heart, his life was less than perfect, but he lived it.

Pursued by the living God, he experienced God’s love like few ever will. He was a stranger in this land as all children of God should be, and step by step, he followed his Heavenly Father. It was not always a pleasant experience, but he knew his Father was with him and leading him everywhere he went.

He came in the spirit and power of Elijah to bring a nation to their knees, to deliver the message of God’s love to a nation drowning in self righteousness and condemnation. As typical, few listened.

His time on Earth would be only for a moment. He knew this place was not his home, but he made the best of it, and like his predecessors the message that he would deliver would live on.

A prophet finds no favor in his home. They deliver their message and then they go to be with their Father. Glory to God.

20121228_073246 — “But I look back over the events of my life and see the hands that carried Moses to his grave lifting me out of mine. In remembering I go back to these places where God met me and I meet Him again and I lay my head on His breast, and He shows me the land beyond the Jordan and I suck into my lungs the fragrance of His breath, the power of His presence.” ― Rich Mullins

Hello,

I’m Irma

Welcome to my little corner of the blog world. Here, I share my thoughts on Christianity, the things of God, and the ways He has shaped and guided my path through life. My journey with the Lord has been long and transformative, marked by moments of peace and joy and periods of uncertainty. I write, first and foremost, for myself—to process what the Lord so graciously reveals to me in Scripture. Sharing some of these truths has become a mission of sorts, via blogging. His word urges us to bear witness and encourage one another.

As I reflect on my own transformation, I can say that the church itself has transformed over the years and not necessarily for the good. I speak about my own experiences with the church. One lesson the Lord impressed upon me this year is that “truth is not always truth.” What do I mean by that? There have been times when I’ve shared a biblical insight, only to realize that other faithful believers interpret the same passage differently. In that instance, I find that the Lord reveals according to our understanding. When I share the need for a Damascus experience understandings diverged sharply. Believers that have been raised in the church do not feel that such an extreme experience is necessary for spiritual maturity. Our faith is truly shaped by our backgrounds. Spiritual journeys are not for everyone. This taught me that early socialization deeply colors our grasp of faith; what’s true for me may not resonate in the same way for someone else.

Similarly, lately I considered how “ignorance of Scripture was its own blessing,” I remembered my early walk with Christ. I had a blind faith. I knew little of doctrine or debate. I trusted the pastor. In those days, my faith and trust in the church and church leaders was simple—I accepted what was taught from the pulpit without questioning. I did not have the knowledge needed to question any teaching. There was a peace in not knowing all the controversies or complexities. As I grew and studied the scriptures, and did some additional research, as the Lord gave understanding, I found myself questioning everything I had been taught. I did not question my faith, or the existence of God. That ignorance, while limiting, protected me from confusion and doubt, allowing me to rest in childlike faith.

The church itself has seen many changes over the decades. Self-proclaimed prophets have introduced new doctrines, some bordering on heresy, while believers wrestle with their flesh and what it means to follow Christ in a society with so many freedoms. I remember a time, more than thirty years ago, when I trusted every word spoken in church. Now, I understand how easy it is to accept teachings that stray from biblical truth. The Scriptures warned us this would happen in the last days.

2 Timothy 4:2-4 (NKJV) “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”

Current events—like the 2024 Election—have exposed deep flaws in American Christianity. Yet, through it all, Scripture assures me that God is sovereign. No wall built by human hands can withstand His judgment; no scheme crafted in darkness escapes His light. These lessons have become more real to me as I look back over my journals, filled with stories of God’s faithfulness during trials, tribulations and abundant grace. By sharing I hope those the Lord leads here will desire to seek God wholeheartedly, to find comfort knowing that He is always at work in our lives—often in ways we never considered.