BEGINNING TO WALK A THIRD PATHWAY

/ joseph elon lillie / Leave a comment

I do not know what it is like where you live, but here in the USA, it is becoming increasingly difficult to walk the divide between Liberal and Conservative, Democrat and Republican while maintaining a Christian lifestyle…at least for my part.

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I have never identified strongly with either party, and though I always considered myself a Conservative, at least culturally, I am finding it more and more difficult to live a hard line along with what is currently being called Conservativism. Nor can I call myself a Liberal.

During this year’s 21 Days of Fasting and Prayer, I have been hearing the words, “Find the third path”. I have been wondering what this third path looks like, where it leads and about how to walk it. Over the next weeks I am going to be journalling some of my thoughts here about what the third pathway is and what it looks like.

We just put up this new piece of Writing on the Wall at Cornerstone. It is something our church board put together, and I think it is as good an onramp to this discussion as anything else.

21 DAYS OF FASTING AND PRAYER 2026 MEDITATION 16

/ joseph elon lillie / Leave a comment

Well, folks today is day 20 of our 21 days of fasting and prayer. We are on meditation 16. So I will be quickly catching up to finish these meditations over the next 24 hours. Here is meditation number 16 from 1 John.

1 John 4:7-12

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

1 John 4:7-12 (Source: Equip the Called)Theme: God is Love
1. Love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
2. God showed His love for you by sending His only Son into the world so that you might live through Him.
3. If God so loved you, you also ought to love one another; God abides in you when you love.

THINKING TIME:

  1. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BEING BORN OF GOD AND KNOWING GOD?
  2. WHAT IS THE GOAL OF KNOWING GOD?
  3. HOW DOES GOD’S LOVE FOR US COMPEL US TO LOVE OTHERS?

21 DAYS OF FASTING AND PRAYER 2026 MEDITATION 15

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Here is our noon time meditation for this 19th day of the 21 days of fasting and prayer in 2026.

1 JOHN 4:1-6

 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.

4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

1 John 4:1-6 (Source: Equip the Called)Theme: Testing the Spirits
1. Do not believe every spirit, but test them to see whether they are from God.
2. Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.
3. The One in you is greater than the spirit of the antichrist in the world.

THINKING TIME:

1.HOW DO YOU TEST THE SPIRITS IN LIFE?

2. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SPIRIT OF ANTICHRIST ALREADY BEING IN THE WORLD?

3. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE GREATER THAN SPIRIT WHO LIVES IN YOU?