For a talk given at Blazing Fire (blazingfire.org). This version includes more notes than the original slide deck. Also included - 2 short video clips on Youtube. To listen to the talk, go to: http://blazingfire.podbean.com/e/the-shack-an-opportunity-to-engage-russ-fochler/

1. The Shack
An Opportunity to Engage
Russ Fochler
March 11, 2017

2. An Opportunity to Engage
Lani Netter and other intercessors — bathed
the making of “The Shack” with prayer.
Let’s also pray for wide and deep impact on
our culture and around the world!
And we can be part of the Trinity’s desire to
engage with people who are touched by The
Shack.

3. Listening with Our Heart
Many folks carry stories about their
“great sadness”.
One of the most loving things we can do,
is truly listen to their story, and truly see
them.
Tip: Listen with empathy and resist the
pull to “paper it over” with platitudes or
even scripture.

4. Life Can Be Excruciating.
Is a loving God truly there
in the midst of my “great sadness”?

5. This is the experience — and the question many people have.
When the important people (mom, dad, etc.) were not “there” when
we were young. When they did not lovingly take care of our needs
for affection, touch, comfort, physical needs, etc. Or worse, when
important people were scary/dangerous. Then, we have a hard
time having healthy relationships and emotional resiliency.
People either withdraw emotionally (which Mack did) or see-saw
between anxiety and longing.
We fear being vulnerable and then abandoned.
Is a loving God truly there
in the midst
of my “great sadness”?

8. Prepare to Share One of
Your “God” Stories
Besides listening with our heart to their
story
People will often want to know — is God
real, really loving and present?
Let’s ask Holy Spirit to bring to mind one
story from each of our lives. A part of our
history with the good and loving Trinity.

9. Practice!
Please Pair-up with someone you don’t know
well.
You’ll have ~5 minutes each to share the story
Holy Spirit just brought to your mind.
Practice listening well when it’s your turn to
listen.
When it’s your turn to talk, imagine you are
sharing with someone who is curious about the
God they met watching The Shack.

10. A Few Nuggets

11. Freedom
Papa to Mack: “Only I
can set you free,
Mackenzie, but freedom
can never be forced.”
“At this point, you don’t
even comprehend that
freedom is an
incremental process.”
pg 95

12. Freedom
Gently reaching out, she took Mack’s hands
in hers, flour covered and all, and looking
him straight in the eyes she continued,
“Mackenzie, the Truth shall set you free and
the Truth has a name; he’s over in the
woodshed right now covered in sawdust.
Everything is about him. And freedom is a
process that happens inside a relationship with
him.” pg 95

13. Trust
Sarayu spoke. “Mackenzie, you cannot
produce trust just like you cannot “do”
humility. It either is or is not. Trust is
the fruit of a relationship in which you
know you are loved. Because you do
not know that I love you, you cannot
trust me.”
pg 126 “The Shack”

14. It’s all about…
Relationship

15. Ambassador
The Honorable James P. Zumwalt,
Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary of the United States
of America to Senegal and Guinea-
Bissau, presented his letter of
credence to H.E. José Mário Vaz,
President of Guinea-Bissau, at
Guinea-Bissau’s Presidential Palace
on Tuesday, March 10, 2015.
Ambassador Zumwalt and
drummers from the neighborhood
that hosts the “Friends of Children”
Center for trafficked children - a
recipient of the Ambassador’s Self-
Help Grant Fund. (Photo US
Embassy)

16. As Ambassadors — what are our
“letters of credence” - our credentials?
Our King (Jesus) lives in us and through us. Therefore,
we are well able to represent our King and His kingdom.
From this comes our authority - our exousia.
The Holy Spirit is given to us - and provides dunamis
power. “For God’s realm is not a realm of words but of
power!” 1 Cor 4:20 The Source.
The fruit of The Spirit and the gifts of The Spirit in us and
through us — bring Heaven to earth, bring experiences
of the love, beauty, kindness, wisdom, and power of the
Trinity.
The Kingdom we express and represent is
righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
(Romans 14:17)

17. We may feel dismayed and frustrated
about ourselves and our brothers and sisters in
God’s family who do not display God’s realm well.
So, we need to acknowledge that our freedom and
transformation is an incremental process. Our
freedom from independence, self-determined
judgments, narrow, selfish/self-protective mindsets.
As well as freedom from the twisting and heart-
breaking damage we’ve experienced.
It is really a journey from fear to trust and love.
And that can only happen in a healthy relationship.

18. You Are an Ambassador
18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us
to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us
the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God
was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not
imputing their trespasses to them, and has
committed to us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as
though God were pleading through us: we implore
you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.
2 Cor 5:18-20 NKJV

19. Gems from Baxter Kruger
The gospel is not the news that
we can receive Jesus into our
lives. The gospel is the news that
Jesus has received us into his.
“Baxter, Baxter, there is the
gospel. There is the resurrection
and ascension of my Son coming
home from the far country.
There is our embrace. … and he
has you and the whole world with
him. (pgs 142,143)