We received a phone call one morning. A friend of ours was tired of taking cold showers and, at my convenience, would I try to repair his shower faucet.
I had been at this home a couple of months ago to replace a cartridge in the Moen faucet in the bathroom. Moen faucets contain cartridges that can be reversed by simply turning the inner stem 180 degrees. When installing, we must check by running it for a few minutes to make sure that we have the hot and cold on their respective sides. That day, I was in a hurry for a combination of reasons. I ran the water until it was warm and assumed that it was adjusted properly. I completely forgot that it was summer time and I should wait longer for the hot, hot water.
For those not familiar with Arizona, hot water tanks are often in the garage and when the temperatures are exceptionally hot, the water will follow suit. Two things happened simultaneously; there was not the demand for hot water in the shower because of the location of the hot water tank, and, by turning the handle in the opposite direction in the sink, they could get the combination of tempered water desired.
To add a little confusion, they took a vacation and we took a vacation and nothing was said about the problem that existed. They simply turned to the available water supply. What was not realized was that, psychologically, they were being programmed. When returning from vacation, they turned the shower handle in the wrong direction, as they had been doing with the sink, and acquired only cold water.
Once the problem was corrected, which only took about a minute, I said: “Do you realize that I deceived you into believing a lie? Before you realized what was happening, the psychological mind-play went into effect and you thought what you were doing was right. One needs to check out their leaders. I led you astray!” We were able to joke about what had happened and how it happened; then, we talked about it from a spiritual concept.
The Scripture warns about teachers who lead believers astray. Paul advised Timothy, in 1 & 2 Timothy, to watch out for those “deceivers”. Arrays of leaders fall short of the stipulations for leadership in that Epistle. Some of the doctrine we hear propagated today has led many saints into ignorant practices. Some of our worship is worldly; some of our financial endeavors are far removed from Scripture; and a lot of what is going on is psychological and manipulative. Instead of Holy Spirit empowerment, the spirit of the flesh prevails. We are being “psyched out” into believing numbers to be an indication of God’s approval. We simply “turn the handle” in the opposite direction.
The church of this hour needs repentance, refining, refreshment, REVIVAL… “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6)
ETCetera 