This is a letter written to me by former member of (Shepherds Church) El Camino UBF Mr. Rory Wurfbain who left the chapter just 2 months ago. It is his way of showing his spiritual journey after leaving UBF. And it was meant to be an encouragement to me and other ex-members.

Dear Eric,

This is what I said via text message:

When you live by faith (trust) in Jesus doing what He wants you to do, (I know, it sounds like Shepherd’s, but it’s true, as with some other things they taught) then I have found that He changes me just like He would if I was doing testimony writing. Only, in this case, I find it to be more personal and real with Jesus because this change/transformation is between you and God. (You’re not being forced to work before men with testimony, but before God Himself in all that you do.)

God communicates to us in various communicative ways and when we recognize who He personally is to us, we do what He tells us to do by trust. (Faith) As a result, we grow to be like His Son and gain the kinds of Godly fruit as Jesus said via His Word (Love, joy, peace, etc./ changed inner person being more and more like Christ)

Please refer to these references:

  • John 10:27 KJV (“The sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”)
  • Genesis 12 (God credited Abraham with righteousness because of his trust in God’s Promise (His Word, no pun intended, but true, nonetheless, because God’s Word is (=) His Promise.
  • Exodus 7:8-13 (Be very cautious and aware like God says in Ephesians. Satan can also communicate personally to us. I bring up this reference because, as we walk together with Christ, we find that we get to truly know Him in various personal ways and, in that way, we get to know when Christ is speaking to us versus when the devil is. It’s understanding this crucial and personal distinction. God made a serpent out of Moses’ staff just as He said He would, but so did Satan with the wise men and sorcerers of Pharaoh. As we grow in Christ, we grow away from sinfulness and way from the threshold and tyranny of Satan and into Christ’s loving personal embrace, free from death and destruction. We know Him and wish to follow Him and we know what to do and what not to do because we know who He is personally and what He has done for us (both at the Cross, His Resurrection, and even in our own personal lives.) See John 10:27 reference above.
  • http://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/8-ways-god-speaks-to-us-today.html
  • http://www.awmi.net/reading/teaching-articles/gods_voice/
  • For me, I’ve relied on His Voice, and I got to distinguish Jesus’ Voice from Satan. BE VERY CAREFUL: IT TOOK ME A LONG TIME TO DISTINGUISH CHRIST’S PERSONAL VOICE, BUT EVENTUALLY I DID. I MADE A LOT OF ERRORS AND MISTAKES IN THE BEGINNING. JUST FYI. Is this experience only so with me? No. I’ve read online articles and even met people who claim to hear God’s voice.
Does this all make sense? This is a Life-and-death critical to our walks of personal trusts (our faiths) in Jesus.
Remember: Faith is Trust. The two are One and the Same. Faith = Trust. Refer to Hebrews 11:6. “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” In addition, Paul stated in Romans 14:23 that, “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”Our hearts should be solely dedicated upon Jesus for everything, anything, and everyone. Shepherd’s is correct in teaching that we should keep our eyes on Jesus. This is very true. When we live, we do everything by faith. However, prior to faith, comes the sincere, genuine, and committed heart to see life through, together with Jesus, in faith. If we don’t have the heart, then forget about it. 

We must stay the course even in the most arduous and hardest of times. These times are actually the best times because Christ reproves, disciplines, and even wrestles (like Jacob) with us so that we would have breakthroughs in character and personal change. Most importantly, we get to see both who we are and even who Christ is on a personal level (so much better than testimony writing where your personal edification is negated, not by God, but by man, who hinders your free thought and even your ability to do what is really right before God). I can testify, with each new experience, that God is really Good and that His Son is worthy of following.

Is the walk of faith hard? It depends with each individual. Perhaps some believers, when reading this, will have leaps and bounds greater growth than myself and others. As for others, the experience(s) may take longer. Regardless, Jesus’ Truth about the narrow road being difficult is still oh-so relevant because it is, indeed, very difficult. However, we can take heart because Christ has already conquered the world. If He did it, then we can have the blessed assurance that we can too, but only because Christ helps us to do so. Here’s a beautiful bonus: Jesus said that we would do greater things than what He did so, when it comes to His Salvation Purpose for all mankind.

Just bear in mind that we are sinners and that we will come short of the glory of God. If this happens, just pick your feet and keep going no matter what. You’ll eventually (this varies with each person) pick up momentum and you’ll find God Perfecting you more and more (Be ye perfect as my heavenly father is perfect.) so much so that you don’t want to sin at all. 🙂 This is what I’ve found personally. You’ll want to know Jesus and His Love. You’ll want to live for Him. You’ll want to love others, take care of others, and even help Jesus save others via the Great Commission.

In Christ,

Rory Wurfbain