Christian Community Living
How It Can Be Done Rightly & Quickly

Jim Searcy Interviews Pastor Charles Dowell of Straitway community

JS We have some strong men of God who join us on the GJiGT paltalk groups with the saints scattered abroad at various times of the day and night 7 days per week. On the line with us we have one of these men of God, Pastor Charles Dowell, from Straitway community in Nashville, TN. Pastor Dowell, we might say, holds the record for bringing a community of people of like minded faith together in record time. We welcome you Pastor Dowell.

CD All is well, all is well. The Lord is good, Brother Jim.

JS You have been working on setting up a big double wide trailer and that is a very dangerous operation which is especially dangerous in this case where you are setting it on a sloping hillside. One thing about the Straitway Community that the Lord has anointed you to lead, is that the brethren recognize the call and anointing of God. I am blessed to know some strong men of God and the call and anointing of God is what makes genuine spiritual leadership. Could you tell us what a difference that has made and just how important that spiritual authority is in a community of faith?

CD Sure I can, Brother. You know the bible teaches us that if you receive the prophet or rightous man you receive the prophet's reward. God has given oversight, spiritual oversight to the men He calls and anoints and the recognition of the call and anointing of God is vital to any community of faith. Men of God are anointed of God with wisdom to have spiritual oversight. What that means is that such men of God may determine, with the gift of spiritual discernment that he has, determines who to move on to the land and who not to allow to move on to the land. People are constantly looking to get into community lifestyle. An anointed man of God to give spiritual oversight, by God's call and anointing is important for this last days time frame in which we live. We, like you Brother Jim, are blessed of the Lord to know anointed men of God to take the spiritual oversight of our community.

Let me give you an example. When we first started this community, we started looking for used mobile homes. We believed the Lord would bless us with some that need a little work for very little money. By the time you get finished doing a little work on those trailers that need some work, you will end up with better homes than the brand new mobile homes. Sure enough the Lord blessed us and we can get trailers at unbelievable prices. The average trailer here in this community runs us now about $200 each.

JS Wow!! That is $200, not $2,000??? That is $200 for a home?

CD $200 Brother.

JS That is absolutely fantastic. There is only one thing that you can say, that is God! Brother that is phenomenal.

CD Brother Jim, you would just have to see them. It is one thing to talk about something. It is something else to actually see them. You know right now that many people have that doubting Thomas spirit. They have to see first before they believe.

JS Actually, the Lord has used you to bring that community together in a matter of months. Wasn't it brought together in a matter of just 4 or 5 months?

CD That is true, Brother Jim. Anyone who has come here knows that indeed this community was put together in about 4 to 5 months. There was no community and nothing was started at the time it was confrirmed that it was time to begin. It was 4 and a half months from when the confirmation came to get started until the time the Straitway community was established. This community is now almost as fully established as the one established for 17 years. There is Victory community in North Carolina has been established for about 4 years. Pastor Roberts was here a few weeks ago and these were his exact words, "Pastor Dowell, I knew the Lord was going to do a quick work here, I just did not know it could be that quick."

JS Alleluia! Before we began this interview we were talking about the fact that there are so few people in the ministry who will support and encourage people to take heed, and pay attention to, and HEAR the voice of the men who are called of God as overseers in these last days. We are sort of an exception to the rule. We were called to go out in '96 and strengthen faithful people along the I-35 corridor. These people had been hearing the Spirit of God say, "Come out of the apostate Laodacean churches and keep the 4th commandment." We were to meet with these people and tell them that they were not crazy and indeed it was the voice of the Lord. We were to confirm that the Lord was saying these thing. We were to confirm that the Lord did want them out of the churchianity apostasy and to keep His commandments, including the 4th one. We were to tell them that their important fellowship was to be with the Lord. That IF they were faithful to Him and would diligently increase their faith by diligently studying the Authorized bible, that God would eventually bring them together with others of like precious faith, and that He would use them for His purposes and His glory in the last days. We were to confirm that this indeed was what the Lord wanted them to do. All of them wanted more encouragement and that is part of the reason why we put up the Great Joy in Great Tribulation internet web site.

I am very thankful for these GJiGT paltalk groups. I can't tell you what a blessing it was to me. I finally had a place that I could recommend that these people of like precious faith, could go for encouragement on a 7 day per week basis. There was finally a place where I could tell these people that there are genuine SAINTS of God, and strong men of God who have answers, that you can trust. God has promised in these last days to raise up men that would give His people His directions on a daily basis. Genuine men of God with the call and anointing of God can pass RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT of what the many prophetic voices are saying. RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT will judge or confirm the words of the other voices so that the people of God will have clear direction. If it is important for God's people to hear a word, that word will be heard through the men that God has raised up. Such men of God will judge or confirm the words that the Lord may bring forth through other men of God. It is how the GJiGT groups work. The GJiGT gives platform to bring all these other people on. The GJiGT has always promoted genuine ministries. Yet, most ministries seldom mention the GJiGT because that the GJiGT is no compromise regarding the Authorized Word of God. Seldom is mention of the GJiGT made in their news letters, tapes or videos, or web sites, or anything else. Many even speak against the GJiGT while they are blessed by it. Yet the GJiGT will still brings these people on to the GJiGT paltalk groups.

It is so vital to have Genuine RIGHTEOUS JUDGEMENT, confirmation, and anointed spiritual oversight. Because the most important thing, please correct me if I am wrong, in any community of people of like precious faith is that there is a leader of that community that the people recognize is called and ordained by God as the spiritual authority for that community.

CD That is true Brother. You are exactly right.

JS People who God calls and places in authority are men who understand authority. Men who God places IN authority are men who are UNDER athority. These men do what they are called to do because of Who called them to do it and for NO OTHER REASON. Such men have experience, in military or business careers what authority is all about. Understanding authority is especially essential as you leading any community of faith. God's men IN authority know, that it is a lot easier, better, and necessary to FIRST be UNDER authority than it is to be IN authority.

CD AMEN Brother!

JS And human nature being what it is, especially for all of us in the American culture of covetousness, unless there is a clearly defined and recognized spiritual authority, the community will never get off the ground. They that build a house labor in vain, unless the Lord build the house. The first thing that the Lord will do to build a house is establish the man that He chooses to be that head or authority, or overseer of that household of faith. There is only one head and that is Yeshua. But there must be someone to clearly be in authority. Otherwise you will have nothing but strife and contention. You will probably still have it a little bit. Nobody in his right mind, would ever seek to be IN authority. The only way anybody who has been in authority, under authority, or understands authority, would ever want to be IN authority, is that if he were totally convinced that God had called him to be IN authority. Can you explain how strong men of God make that whole problem of authority in the community much simpler.

CD Highly anointed men of God will strengthen the hands of the pastors or leaders of the community. Men of God will recognize God ordained positional authority. He will always give spiritual insight and strengthen the hands of the pastors.

Many people have problems submitting to someone in spiritual authority. It must be a sign of the times. The difficulty in submission and strength of self will is amazing. People often have difficulty submitting to someone in spiritual authority over them. It is difficult for most to humble themselves and submit to even God ordained spiritual authority.

Now we are the pastors of the community and godly men do not question our authority. Godly men confirm it. They strengthen us. Godly men will affirms us. And yes godly men of God will surely judge us. God provides leadership but Yeshua is always the only head. He leaves the decisions totally to you. He is glad that we are in these areas. When seasoned men of God come to these communities, I recognize them. I will recognize by the Holy Ghost that I am in the presence of a seasoned man of God. The seasoned man of God will always strengthen the hands of the pastors.

JS That is right. One of the marks of God ordained men of God is how they recognize spiritual authority. They see or know by the Spirit how God has led him through his life in a certain way to prepare him for the high call of God in these glorious last days. He has seen the good, the bad, and the ugly from the big names in religion and churchianity. He is genuine. He will live modestly and dress modestly and be unaffected by men's persons or material status. You can trust a man like that. He does come out to the community and strengthens the hand of the pastor or leader of the community. That is so important. The people in the community must know that there is someone in the community who can settle the issues on a moment by moment basis within the camp.

CD Well this is true brother. There can only be one spiritual authority. No matter where you are there can only be one spiritual authority. Anything more than that is confusion. You cannot have 2 heads. The double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

JS In most American chruchianity structure today, there is usually a deacon board or some demon board as I usually call them, that tells a pastor what he can teach. When you dig a little deeper you often find these deacon boards are composed of freemasons in the majority. The god of freemasonry is Lucifer. So the demon board designation is not too far off in many cases. You know that God's structure of authority is not a democracy. "Let's take a vote on it," is not the way we find in the bible.

CD True. The reason why they do that is they want everybody accountable to everybody, with nobody accountable to God. We will hire you pastor to be our pastor. Of course such a practice would not be found in the bible. There is often even a contract that the pastor has to sign. It gives the stipulations, the usher board, the deacon board, worship board, music board and all of these different boards. They want everybody accountable to everybody so that if the pastor doesn't quite measure up to the standards of what the board members and controlling power structure in the church feels the pastor should be, you may be ostracized at a moment's notice.

JS Once you have a community of people of like precious faith, there will be a well defined spiritual leader just like James was the acknowledged spiritual leader of the Jerusalem community of faith described in the book of Acts. It is so different. People are hungry for truth and a truly biblical lifestyle. People are hungry to get into communities of people of like precious faith. Just to be surrounded by people who do not think you are crazy to literally believe the Authorized scriptures is God's word and should be obeyed is such a blessing. People are hungering to know what God is doing, and if they don't have a religious spirit on them, they can listen to the voice that God has raised up. I see God doing a quick work. The whole context of the Book of Acts is that what is mine is His, and His yours. What is mine is His, He is the creator, if He did not create it I would not have it, so it is really His. What is His is yours if you are my brother. If you have a need for it, then it is really more yours than it is mine. This whole concept and context of the Acts church, is so foreign to our American culture even our American churchianity culture of COVETOUSNESS. We have such a difficult time to relate to this concept and context of Acts in our churchianity culture of covetousness. But this church He describes in the book of Acts is the church that He is going to restore. That is where the spots will be removed and the wrinkles will be ironed out. Could you elaborate on this?

CD It all boils down to just trusting God. We have, in our selves, a measure of faith. We say we trust God. How much do we really trust God? In the book of Acts you read in chapter 5 about Annanias and Saphaira who had a chance to really be a blessing to the church. But they chose to hold back the price of the piece of land. Not only that but in holding back the price of the land they thought that they could deceive the man of God and they did not. The Holy Ghost was IN the man of God. There was no way they were going to deceive the man of God. They ended up dying on the spot at the altar before the man of God. They were killed by the Holy Ghost for lying to the Holy Ghost when they held back the price of the land. Jesus told us that unless a man forsake ALL that he has, he is not fit for the Kingdom. Now that revelation has never come to the church until NOW. Unless a man forsake All! What does that mean? Jesus said the foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the son of man hath nowhere to lay His head. Now it is all really coming to pass. Jesus said, unless you hate your mother, your father, your bothers, your sisters, even your children, you can in no wise be My disciple. He said all of these things. Over and over you often hear preachers itching the ears of the people saying, "It doesn't really take all that." They are saying that Jesus did not mean what He said! It amazes me because I believe Yeshua, and Yeshua did say it took ALL of that!

JS Yes it does take it all. Yeshua does mean exactly what He said. God can NOT lie. The context of Acts is that "They who had houses or lands sold them and brought the proceeds and laid them at the apostles feet, and NONE CONSIDERED OUGHT THAT HE HIS OWN. "Why is that so important in a community?

CD It is very important that we get rid of the things that we "CALL OUR OWN." In the Kingdom of God, the scriptures tell you that you are not your own. You are bought with a price. That price is the precious blood of Jesus Christ.

JS Alleluia!

CD Now, in Acts 4th and 5th chapter, we see that the people sold ALL their possessions and laid the proceeds at the Apostles feet. They laid it at the feet of that leader that God had raised up to lead and oversee, and care for that community of people who had that like precious faith. In THAT, they were saying, I AM TRUSTING GOD. I am trusting God for my salvation. I am trusting God with the man He has placed in authority to have oversight of your souls. Regardless of what we may have been taught or learned otherwise, this is the ONLY way that the saints will be purified and be made white. It will be when they live together. They must lay down everything.

JS Then the people loose that option of separating so easily. Then they have to work out the differences with one another. That is where the spots get removed and the wrinkles get ironed out. They have got to then bear one anther's burdens. They have to pick up that cross. Your brother in the faith is your cross. That is where the cross is. It is not easy to put up with your brother when you live with him.

But that leader has the heavy responsibility. He has to give account. God holds that man of God accountable. He must give an account for those souls God has placed in his charge. Heb 13:17 says "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you." The man of God must give account to God. You talk about responsibility that is HEAVY.

CD Sure brother. One thing about being in a community of faith, you have to remove all your obstacles, and all your options. You end up burning all those bridges with the world. You are going then to REALLY believe what the word of God says. Brother Jim, when you come to a community of like precious faith, then you have actually put your hand to the plow. The bible says that any man who puts his hand to the plow and looks back he is not fit for the Kingdom of God. You see this is the cross that Jesus was talking about. The cross is that you are bearing each other's burdens. Putting up with each other. You have got to. The saints of God have got to get this mind set right now, that we are going to be spending all of eternity with each other.

JS So if we can not learn to live together right here and now we are not fit for the Kingdom.

CD It is virtually impossible.

JS That again underscores why it is so important to have God ordained authority over the community. Why it is so important that there be someone who would be anointed of God to take the oversight. There are many who are feeling the call of God to come into communities of people of like precious faith. We have noticed since '96 when we were called to strengthen and encourage these people who heard the Spirit telling them to come out of these apostate churches, to keep the commandments including the 4th one, and get into communities of people of like precious faith, that they were each being given different kinds of burdens. He would cause some of them to gather some food. Some would be led to gather some clothing. Some would be led to get some land. He was moving in such a way that you could see that He was orchestrating something that was going to cause His people to come together. He was moving people in such a way that no one would be able to be self sufficient. They would be forced, of necessity to come together, to form communities of faith.

The men God calls as overseers have got more than a full plate. They will be seasoned men of God, strong in the Word. They will be men of such energy that can only be explained by the anointing of God upon them. Everyone should be lifting such men in prayer every day because of so much that they have to do. Unless there is someone to give that kind of oversight, I don't know how these communities are going to come together. Such men know that God has spoken to them and positioned them to have spiritual authority. Their plate is more than full. They do not want to have more burden added to take on overseer authority to strengthen the hands of leaders of communities. They will only do so if they are certain that God has so odained. I know that we have a God who is not going to hang His people out to dry. God is going to do something. We can find men of God's wisdom on the GJiGT paltalk groups to assist these communities. That in and of itself is a tremendous blessing just to be able to hear someone whom God has raised up. Because such men bring out the light of truth. Bringing out truth that we need to hear in this greatest hour of testing, but at the same time the hour of greatest opportunity to give God glory that has ever existed on this planet.

CD This is true brother. You know, brother Jim, the people who are listening will be blessed. Let me give you the example of what I have done. I was working in the world . I was troubled in my spirit about this pre-tribulation rapture. I began to study it and search it out in the bible. And according to what I was hearing it did not make any sense comparing with what I was reading about it in the bible. I need to tell the people, that once you get a clear witness in your spirit, you should never deny that witness. Because there are things that are going to happen, brother, that are going to totally come against that flesh. You are going to be constantly reproved and rebuked. There is so much that is in man. Jesus knew what was in man. SELF WILL! Self will is what is in man! God moved me to leave my job and go see how these people were living. The next thing you know, here we are starting a community with the blessings of the Lord as our strength.

JS Bless the Lord! That is just what happened to us being SENT to Cyprus by the call of the Lord in Jer 2:10. At some point it has to be checked out by eye witness over time. God is the answer. When you go there, you see the genuineness. There is really no other way. You KNOW when you see the REAL thing. There must be reality and genuineness.

We are not supposed to judge anybody before we ever even hear them. Listen to him first before you judge him. Listen to him for a while before you judge him. The more you listen the more you realized that some of these men are promoting themself in the name of the Lord. Some will be found over time to be men whose god is their belly. And the other men will be found to be GENUINE men of God, who are ONLY seeking the glory of God, and doing what God had called him to do. Other men over time you find using the name of the Lord to make himself fat, rich, and famous. Some men glorify God and others will glorify themself. Listen and over time you will know.

We may all be glad that God has promised to raise up in these times men that people can trust. It has made quite a difference for us. Most are still just out there by ourselves. But I know that God has His hand of protection over us and that some day He will bring us together in community with others of like precious faith. I see examples of His hand of protection over us every day. And so what are they going to do. Like the Colonel says, even if they try to threaten you with eternity -- Heaven is not that bad! If God's protection is on you, you are protected. Today there is no real protection apart from God's protection. People need to realize even if they hunger to get into these communities, that if you cannot find the peace of God where you are, before you get into the community; you will not find it even when you come into the community.

CD Well that is true, Brother Jim. You are going to first have to make your crooked path straight. That is what people are going to have to do. They have to bring forth fruit meet for repentance. You see, brother, we are living in the end times. These communities are a beacon for the whole world. We are actually living what the scriptures say. We are showing that it can be done. Brother, there is no more unity in the faith than these people striving every single day to live TOGETHER. When I wake up every morning I have to sit down at the breakfast table with over 50 saints of God. You follow me, brother?

I have to sit down with many saints of God. I don't get to wake up and go over and when I see the food think about whether I like it or not. I eat what is set before me and I ask no questions.

JS It constantly puts this flesh in subjection. That is what we need. That is the preparation we need. Again it underscores God's system of biblical, ordained, anointed, authority.

CD Let me give you an example of one of the blessings of the Lord. The average light bill is about $100 per month for a mid to low income family. Now within our community with 20 families in their own homes you would figure you would have $2000 per month electric bill, right? Here we are with 15 mobile homes and 2 doublewides, 50 people living here, 3 to 71 years old and our average electric bill is $250 per month.

JS Praise God! Alleluia! That is the blessing of God. The only thing you can say is that is the blessing of God. You are talking almost 20 families for the price of 2 in regard to electric, that is about a 90% reduction in cost of electric. It is phenomenal.

CD It is amazing what people can do when they come together and combine their resources. When they quit being stingy and tightwads. The bible says that the love of money is the root of all evil. There is a sure way to find out if someone really wants to do the will of God. All you have to do is get in their pocketbook and you will see. You will see where their heart is real quick. That is the one thing about seasoned men of God. They are the same whether there is abundance or lack. They live humbly and modestly and with food and raiment are content. They don't lust after stuff. When God blesses them they do not change one iota.

JS It is glorious and refreshing to see someone who is really genuine. The call of pastor or overseer is one of the most important ministries and positions in the Kingdom of God today. Such men are just totally set in obedient service to the King. He is equipped to give RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT. Righteous judgment is perhaps one of the rarest and most valuable commodities on the face of this earth today. It is something that is so vital and sorely needed. Can you address this need for righteous judgment? Again it ties into this necessity for having God ordained authority structures. What is righteous judgment all about and how important is it?

CD It is the ability, by having the Spirit of God in you to do right. To have a Spirit of Righteousness in you, the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of the Living God in you to do right. When you get a God ordained man, like the Apostle Paul said, follow me as I follow Christ. If you can find someone and you get that witness in you that he is a God ordained man, who has a Spirit of Righteousness, that will lead you, stay with it! I am 32 years old. Brother there men under my spiritual oversight who are 60 years old. I have a pastor who his 44 years old. I am 32 years old and I am directing this community as the Spirit of God leads me.

JS There again is where the God ordained oversight comes in. You better know there is God ordained spiritual authority if you are seeking to bring together a community of faith. First this oversight responsibility will have to be filled somehow. I was wondering if it is a principle that the man who owns the land is not necessarily the man who would be in the position of spiritual authority in the community?

CD My example is that when I purchased the land, the deed was put in the names of the people. The land is the people's land. If they wanted to run me off they could; but, they won't because they fear God.

JS That is the point. You don't own the land. You might have signed the deed but the deed is put together in such a way, you don't own the land. You are the spiritual leader of the community but you are not the owner of the land.

CD When we signed the deed the other brothers were the trustees who owned the land. I put the land in the name of other brothers.

JS I think there is a spiritual principle involved, found in Leviticus chapter 25.

CD It is. It is a principle of truth. It is a principle of righteousness. Even though I went and purchased the land the land is not mine. The land is God's. It is God's land brother because we are only here for a short time. A practical way of proving that the land is God's land, is that the spiritual authority raised up by God on that land, does not own the land. We know things are going to change radically soon and our King in coming back soon. We are not building a kingdom here.

JS Going back to the subject of righteous judgment, I think in first Corinthians chapter 2 about verse 12 it talks about how: Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

CD I judge everything here, brother. I do indeed judge ALL things here. If you don't have a spiritual gift of discernment, there is no way, NO WAY, you could be a leader in a spiritual community. It is just not going to work. It is not possible otherwise.

JS Unless the man, that God chooses, puts the community together, they that labor to put the community together are laboring in vain. Because the first thing that God will do, is that He is going to pick His man. He is going to set up His man in authority. Again it goes back to the importance that someone with God ordained spiritual oversight to confirm that authority in the community. The people should be praying that God would raise up such men who He calls and anoints as overseers. Such men are needed to confirm and strengthen and affirm the spiritual authorities in the local communities. Many great men of God fall when placed in such a position of spiritual oversight.

CD One thing is sure, that if it is God's will, then it will be done. The way it seems God is directing people right now, people should know that God has got all the land. God has got all the land. It is a real need to have a God ordained overseer with God's authority. He must be a man of integrity, honesty, truth, and he must walk in holiness, no shuck, no jiving with him. He must be a serious, sure, seasoned, strong and clean man of God.

JS For sure if you come in there with an agenda, he will take you apart. I am really glad that you are being led to join in the GJiGT paltalk groups and share with us. There are questions that the people have that you are uniquely equipped to answer. The men of God are all saying that NOW it is time to come into the ark. Now of course that ark is Christ. But also the people of God do need to come together. With what is coming at us we are just not going to be able to make it on our own. That is part of the process. To assemble together, to be together, to pray together, to eat together, to worship together, to work together. To be surrounded by people who don't think you are nuts. Everybody is scared to death of me. They think I am crazy as a loon. They think I am totally gone. That is what people in the world and the churchianity structures of the world think if you really take hold and believe the bible to the point of living biblically. If you order your life by the word of God the people in the world are going to think you are crazy. At the least they will call you a fanatic. Right now there is a verse that just keeps ringing in my spirit: Isa 26:20-21 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.

There is an urgency. (Click here for the GJiGT internet web site article on INIQUITY)

And one other thing that is very essential in these communities, that I believe that people need to know is that there is absolutely no place whatsoever for RACISM in the Kingdom of God. I remember when God first saved me within weeks He called me to prison ministry. He made it so absolutely clear that I was not to think about going into the prisons unless I could go in with a black brother or sister. Because racism is real in the prisons. In the world it is a real thing and no matter how people try to hide it, the only way it is dealt with properly, is through the Kingdom of God. It is a KINGDOM PRINCIPLE that there is absolutely no room for RACISM in the Kingdom of God. Could you address that Pastor Dowell?

CD Brother Jim, that is so true. The Devil knows what he is doing. If you can really see what is going on world-wide, racism, that prejudice spirit, is at the very top of the devil's agenda. It is at the very top. The reason why there is a lot of evil going on is that this racist, or prejudice spirit, is such a diabolical spirit. The bible tells us that FLESH PROFITETH NOTHING. The bible also tells you that all flesh is as grass. The bible also tells you that FLESH AND BLOOD WILL NOT ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD. The bible also tells you that that which is born of flesh is flesh and that which is born of spirit is spirit. The bible tells us that there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female but that we are all one in Christ Jesus. Alleluia! That is what the bible tells us. The color of your skin, if I may use this terminology, it doesn't mean a damned thing to Yeshua! Nothing at all, Brother!

JS Alleluia! That is straight talk.

CD The flesh profiteth nothing. Brother Jim, here at Straightway community, we have half black and half white. We have a mixture here, brother. It is just beautiful to see and beautiful to watch. When these people get up each morning, brother, they have to look at each other's beautiful smiley faces. If somebody is going through something we are all going through it with them. If somebody has got something on their mind or heart we all know it. That is why we all sit down to eat together each morning. It is important to see each other as we eat together every day.

JS So you know each other's burdens. You all join in bearing one anothers burdens. Amen!

CD Brother Jim, we bear each other's burdens. You see if that spirit is in you, brother, that spirit is definitely going to come out of you and be exposed. You see the communities are a purging process. That is the way. Right now what we are doing, Brother Jim, is that we are preparing ourselves to live in the Kingdom of God.

JS You are absolutely right. And in the communities is where the rubber meets the road. That is where all the "shuck" is removed.

CD That is the blessing of the Lord, Brother. It is the blessing of the Lord. Brother Jim, I wouldn't take any other thing for it. There is not enough money in the world that you could offer any of these saints of God to move away from this community.

JS Yes! And then again right away the people of the world are going to want to call you a CULT! And again that is why it is so important for people to understand that these communities must be racially mixed. If they are not you are going to give an opportunity to the devil.

CD True Bother! That is so true. You know Brother Jim, a lot of people the first thing they want to holler is cult. And they don't even know what a cult is. A good old dictionary will tell you a cult is a FORMAL RELIGIOUS VENERATION. It is a religious system that has rites and ceremonies and almost religious veneration of a person. Now think about the pope. A cult is a group having an exclusive sacred theology and a series of rites centering around their sacred symbols. That is what a cult is. Now they don't ever say much about the Roman Catholic church which is the biggest cult in the world. What we are doing is about as far away from being a cult compared to the Roman Catholic church as day is from night.

JS Yes! Now if you want a cult, there it is, the Roman Catholic church. The truth regarding cults is they are founded upon veneration of men and they are founded upon PERVERSE DOCTRINES. Now a PERVERSE DOCTRINE is anything religious for which you do not have any bible. That may not be a definition that you hear every day but that is what a perverse doctrine really is. Anything that is religious, it must be religious, but there is nothing in the written word of God to substantiate it. That is the definition of a perverse doctrine that you find in real life.

CD That is a good definition of a perverse doctrine.

JS The bible is the word of God. It is absolute truth. It represents a reality that is more sure and a greater reality than the physical facts of the circumstance. A perverse doctrine will be religious, that is a given, but for which there is no scripture to substantiate the doctrine. That is what makes it perverse. The classic cult then would be the Roman Catholic church, because it is full of perverse doctrines.

CD Right and all her daughters too. You have the Baptists, Methodists, Apostolics, Pentecostals, UPC's, all of them have perverse doctrines regarding the 4th commandment, if they don't have a bunch of perverse doctrines of their own.

JS One thing that I have come to notice over the years is that any time you are in an assembly, a group situation, and you see one person trying to go off to the side, and trying to get another person to talk with him, away from the group -- you can just be ready to hear a perverse doctrine. Have you noticed that Pastor Dowell?

CD Oh yes, Brother Jim, you see that happening all the time. The world calls it a spirit of proselytizing. That is very prevalent today. However, Brother, whenever you get somebody who is really rooted and grounded in Yeshua, you really have nothing to worry about. You find that you don't lift up the flesh of somebody that is in Christ Jesus. Flattery doesn't work very good on a real man of God.

JS Amen! That is very true. I hear people get all upset and say Jim is judgemental. I wonder if they will ever think that is a judgmental thing for them to think. The men of God walk in their call and they will be called proud, arrogant, anything but what they should be called, just a faithful man of God. They may make people nervous, but they in reality are not exalting themself. They are doing what they are called and anointed to do. It is sad how few today recognize God's call and anointing. It is simple obedience, it would be disobedience for the man of God not to do what God has called him to do. He is just genuine. For that genuineness and faithfulness the unregenerate will call him proud and accuse him falsely of exalting himself.

Pastor Dowell, I don't pull any punches. I don't separate from anyone but you will find mature men of God often separating from me because I am so direct. I don't believe there is time to be nice. I have come to find out that the meaning of the word NICE, way back before gay meant sodomite, nice meant ignorant, stupid, and wanton. It is not founded on the truth. Adam was being nice when he followed Eve to the nice apple at the suggestion of the nice serpent. Nice often is flattery and I am not nice. I will tell the truth and the truth very often is offensive. The Word of God will settle your spirit. All I know is the Word of God. From me you will hear the word of God or I don't know. You will hear the word, the word, and more word. And faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. He will strengthen your faith. That is what we need. When Yeshua comes back, His heart cry is, will I find faith on the earth.

CD That is truth brother. I wanted to comment a bit also about nice. The bible tells us that God chastens those whom He loves. Brother we are living in a generation right now, that is without rebuke. They are without rebuke, they hate it, Brother.

JS You are right. They can't deal with rebuke. Our generation has become that perverse.

CD How in the world is God going to chasten someone? If God is going to chasten you, you are going to get some rebuke. You will receive some rebuke. It is amazing because people don't understand that rebuke is a form of love from God that is pure. It is pure to be rebuked. Rebuke tells you who you are and where you are. Rebuke also offers you a measure of grace so that you can be what Jesus wants you to be.

JS Amen! I can tell you that when the anointed man of God gives you that word of judgment or gives that rebuke it doesn't hurt because you know he is exercising RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT. The first thing one learns about righteous judgment is that it is a righteous man. You know when he nails you on something you need to be nailed. You know the only reason he has for nailing you on something is for the benefit of your spiritual growth and maturity before the Lord.

CD The bible says rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith. It makes you wonder how many people there are to be found walking sound in the faith. There are not too many today, Brother. You don't find many walking in that sober spirit in that light of the gospel that are sound in the faith. Why? The answer is simple, we are living in a generation that is without rebuke. We hate the scourge. We hate the chastening. We hate the things that God uses to purify us and perfect us. God's people don't look for it because after the flesh rebuke is not good.

JS That is right. Rebuke hurts. But you have got to know that it is what you need. There is a red letter verse in Luke 17:3 that every Christian has probably read many times but there probably is maybe 1 in a hundred that have ever HEARD what that verse says. Many when they hear it now will probably want to check to see if I quote it correctly. Luke 17:3 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.

Red letters, Yeshua talking, and it opens with TAKE HEED. Yeshua says TAKE HEED if He wants us to know it is extremely important and He really wants us to understand something. This is just for true believers. If your brother trespass against thee, REBUKE HIM; and IF he REPENT, forgive him. Check it out. It is in your bible if you don't have a perversion version bible. So much of churchianity today has been reduced to just be nice.

CD Brother Jim, have you ever got a whipping when you were growing up?

JS Yes, especially in the Summer my brother and I would get a whipping every day. Praise God, we knew when dad was getting home. You could set your watch by when he arrived home from work. So my brother and I, about a half hour before, would go up and put on about 5 pair of underwear and 2 pair of long johns. My dad was a strong man who worked in commercial construction. He thought he had the 2 toughest boys God ever made. He would always hit that belt of his right on target and hard. We would say ouch but never cry and to this day I don't think he knew the underwear and long-johns were what made us seem so tough. Mom never dished it out she just took names. We got whippings every day during the summer. But I can honestly say that we never got one that we did not know exactly why we were getting it. It was justified. We earned it. And we had tremendous respect for out father as a result.

CD That is the way God does with us, Brother Jim. He chastens those whom He loves.

JS Amen!

CD He does. You know that is the problem that many people have with genuine men of God. They will rebuke and reprove you. People will think real men of god to be loud, obnoxious, rude, or crude and that is because they CAN NOT GET PAST THE FLESH. Even with men of God, when you have too, a lot of time spirits back you up into a corner where you have no choice but to come out with a "Thus saith the Lord!" The other day at the dinner table, I asked the saints of God, "What is that other gospel that the Apostle Paul warned us that if him or an angel came to preach that other gospel that they were to be accursed and that means they were to be damned." Accursed means God damned. It was amazing. I had to tell them what it was. It is the doctrine and gospel of prosperity, Brother. That gospel tells you to forget about being content with what things that you have. They teach that gain is godliness. They teach if God really is blessing you then He will give you a house with a 30 year mortgage with a big payment attached to it. If God is really blessing you He will give you a new car with a $300 payment note for the next 5 to 7 years. The truth is though Brother Jim, if God is really blessing you then He does not require a payment in process.

JS In fact it is one of the direct commands of the Lord that teaches us that it is indeed time 'to come out of her My people.' It says in First Timothy chapter 6 -- verses 3 -5 If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing THAT GAIN IS GODLINESS: FROM SUCH WITHDRAW THYSELF. Destitute of the Truth, that is where we are. And the big punch line -- supposing that gain is godliness: From such withdraw thyself. What is being taught, that if God is blessing you than you are godly, supposing that gain is godliness, is perverse, that is reprobate. The word of God says, FROM SUCH WITHDRAW THYSELF. If you are in a church that is teaching you that gain is godliness, get out of it. From such withdraw thyself.

CD Praise God! Brother, the bible tells us that a mans life does not consist in the abundance of the THINGS that he possesses. Brother today many are measuring their godliness and measuring their holiness according to what we own. That is the reason why God is telling people to get rid of everything. He is telling all His people to get rid of everything, you own nothing, and you put it ALL into the Kingdom. Right now though many people are putting everything in a bag with holes in it. What most folks are doing now will not yield any eternal dividends.

JS Didn't you teach a lesson one day to a man with a $1000 bill? Or was that Pastor Roberts?

CD That was Pastor Roberts. The best I can remember is that a man had sold a possession of some sort and he was going to give the man of God the $1000 bill. But he did it grudgingly. He brought it to him like the man of God really needed the $1000, just that sort of an attitude. Pastor Roberts said, "Man you think I need your money like that? I don't need your money like that. God doesn't need your money! I'll show you how much we need your money." Then Pastor Roberts then took a lighter and set the $1000 bill on fire and burned it up right in front of him.

JS That is some dramatic way of teaching an important lesson. I reckon the guy understood from then on. That gives understanding quickly.

CD See the man of God took the $1000 bill and just burned it up to make clear the issue to the man that neither God nor the man of God needs your money. Money is the least of our worries. Right now, Brother Jim, God is requiring all of His people to be found FAITHFUL. What the problem is today and the bible tells you in Hebrews chapter 4 -- the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with FAITH in them that heard it. It did not profit them, Brother Jim.

JS And how are you going to mix the word with faith, when you are surrounded by people that think you are nuts, to believe the word of God? See you can't mix it with faith with the people that are surrounding you. They are faithless people who think you are crazy for believing the word of God enough to really live it. And that is why the people must now come into these communities of people of like precious faith.

CD Amen! Brother Jim, you must come out from among them. It is time. I would advise everybody to turn that short-wave radio on, you can't miss that voice of the last day prophet of God. You can't miss him. He has the answers for God's people in this time. It is hard for a lot of people to believe, but check the record in the bible. God has always used one man at a given time.

JS This is right. God must have one single clear voice. If he is going to be a clear voice that God has raised up, to be His voice, one of the things that must do, is stomp all over our non-essential denominational toes, that divide us and destroy the unity of the spirit. He does that well, Brother. I know he smashed all ten of mine in the first week or two that I listened to him. Yet, how else are you going to grow? How else are you going to grow unless someone will reprove you with the truth. Now the other thing is that you do have a few people that do work off the community do you not?

CD Yes. It is true that we do have a few people who work off of the community. The big majority work here on the community. Those who work off the community are doing it for a short term. The idea is that we do not want to have to depend on the world for anything. In a matter of 4 months we are at a point that we don't have to depend on the world for anything. The whole system could break down right now and we could still go on. But you see the community is not our salvation. Our salvation is Jesus Christ.

JS Amen! Yeshua Messiah is the ARK.

CD Our faith and trust is in Him. He is able to provide for us. He is able to prepare a table for us in the wilderness.

JS Alleluia Yehsua! He is going to do it. These brothers are only going to be working outside the community for a time. Is that right Brother?

CD Right! Right now we are in a building process. So we can utilize some of the funds. But the Lord always provides. For instance, this year already, we just went today we went to pick up two more deer. Now how did the Lord do that! It is deer season and so far this year we have had 22 dear given to us.

JS Bless the Lord! Not too bad eating that venison and you don't even have to buy a bullet.

CD Brother Jim, there is nothing like eating venison. These brothers who are working outside the community are bringing every penny of their paycheck and bring it to the man of God at the community. The man of God uses all of that money for all the saints here. No one has anything that THEY CALL THEIR OWN.

JS That is the CONTEXT OF THE COMMUNITY OF FAITH described in the Book of Acts.

CD Now everybody has their own house. Yet like in the Book of Acts, they went from house to house breaking bread with singleness and gladness of heart. At Straightway community we just have to walk out our front door and walk 50 feet and we can go from house to house.

JS You do have a dining hall where everyone comes together to eat.

CD We have a consolidated dining hall. Everybody comes together to the same place for meals and we eat together 2 meals per day. We make it mandatory that everybody comes to the dining hall. The reason is that we are here in Straightway community to do things together. The main thing is that we know when someone has a burden. All we have to do is be together in the unity of the spirit and just look at each other.

JS The dining facility is that also your worship facility?

CD As of right now that is true, but we are getting ready now to build a sanctuary. We are going to build a sanctuary that the Lord has provided for us at a very low cost. We all know that God does not dwell in a temple made with hands. We know that our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. When you are starting off when two or more are gathered together there He is in the midst. So when you are starting off the dining hall will do fine for the worship. Yeshua makes the church. Right now we are attached to the dining hall. It is kind of like when we moved out of the basement. You get where you really don't want to leave but it is an improvement and it is more conducive. Brother Jim, we will have this sanctuary up and BUILT IN A WEEK!

JS Praise God! That is what happens when you have men working together in unity. The bible says Behold how good it is when brethren dwell together in unity. So you have a farm there too.

CD We are the smallest of the communities. We have 15 acres. Right now I could easily house 60 people here.

JS How many acres does that leave you to till and put crops in?

CD That is simple Brother Jim. We have a neighbor with a farm adjoining us and he lets us use as much of his ground to farm as we want to use. So God gives us favor.

JS Praise the Lord!

CD We have all the houses on about 5 acres and that leave us about 10 acres to farm, till, pasture and house the animals. We have cows and chickens and goats and guineas. Right now it is winter and the chickens are not producing all the eggs that we would like to produce for our needs here yet. We are just learning about such things and we will be getting more chickens when it warms up. We have only been at this community thing for a matter of months. But the Lord has really blessed us. Prophet Stair opened up the doors and allowed us to come down and to view and see how everything is done at the Overcomer community which is the model of the communities. You can get all your questions answered in one visit.

JS I know what you mean. I really appreciated how we were able to come down and live in the community for about 5 weeks. That is when you really learn. You see how important a dress code is. You see how important it is for there to be a proper way for men to address each other and how the women address each other. How important it is and how to do everything decently and in order. How important it is for everyone to eat together. Why food is not stored in and cooked in the homes. Why there needs to be a well defined schedule. Many things that they learned the hard way through some perhaps even bad experiences can be avoided all together by visiting the communities.

CD We have quite a thunderstorm going on here, if we get cut off I did not hang up on you.

JS I won't think you hung up on me. That usually doesn't phase me too much anyway. These are challenging time. It is time now that people speak the TRUTH in love. There are times you are not going to be speaking the truth without being offensive. Sometimes the truth is offensive. Yet if you are not telling the truth you are not loving that person. If you don't tell the truth their soul may end up in hell.

CD That is true Brother Jim. That is the reason men of God will cry aloud and spare not. They will lift their voice like a trumpet. And I thank God for them because that is what we need in this hour is the spirit of Truth.

JS I was wondering if there was anything else. We are about at the end of the time slot allowed to do this radio program time slot. Is there anything else that you would like to tell the people who are considering going into communities.

CD The main thing is that over and over the brethren wrestle with is SELF. No selfishness, no self will, is going to be allowed into the Kingdom of God. As a people of God, we are going to have to learn how to submit and how to obey them that have the rule over you. This is God's government. The rulers are not a terror to good works, but they are a terror to evil. They are ministers of God continually to this very thing. That is the one thing. If the people can just get the selfishness out, get that self will submitted. They will find so much blessing they will after a time wonder why they held so tightly to that self will. We are blessed with such a spirit of peace and unity here at Straightway. It is unparalleled to anything you have ever seen before. You have been to the communities. You have seen the brothers and sisters there. They are a beautiful bunch of people.

JS We spent five or six weeks there and neither one of us can remember any time in our life when we were so happy and at such peace. Now I will say, I had not worked that hard in a while, so the first week was specially tough on this old flesh; but, we did not even notice that muscle pain as a result of the joy of being in the continual company of people of like precious faith. What a joy to pray with people who have real proven faith. What a joy just to be with people that make you feel normal because they believe God like you do. It is a delight to submit to people of God. It doesn't make any difference if they are older or younger than you. You know that it is God's will that has put them in whatever position of authority they have. There is no strife because everyone is submitted to each other in the fear of God. People know their place and do whatever they do as unto the Lord.

CD I tell you now Brother Jim, I would not want have it any other way. It is a blessing of the Lord to be in submission in the fear of God. I have never had any experience in either community living or farming. Because of the time that we are living in right now the Lord has tremendously blessed us. It all comes from being submitted to God. Submitted, really submitted to the Lordship and Kingdom principles of the Lord Jesus Christ. From receiving the men who are anointed and sent by God, we receive the blessing. We know how important it is to submit to one another in the fear of God. We obey those who have the rule over us.

JS Amen! If you ask 50 different ministers you might get 50 different answers, and the ANOINTED man of God just blows all the smoke away. The man of God will have discernment to know when they are honestly seeking truth. The he will have incredible patience, to put up with them and put up with them. But then you get some PhDD calling to tell him how he is missing the interpretation and you hear the man of God rise us up and BOOOOM!!! He knows what to do, day in day out.

I wanted to ask you too, as the leader of Straightway community, you do still frequently go out from that community to preach, and that is a good thing for the community too, is it not?

CD Yes it is. One of the main reasons is because you can always see how much the Lord has done in the ministry. You will see how much the sheep have really grown.

JS That really identifies where you have to do your pastoral work. After going away and you come back and those friction points are obvious, and just what individual needs what sort of encouragement. Also do you have other pastors with you?

CD Yes there is another pastor and another ministering brother here. There are all the men who may bring the word at any time but there are really 3 of us here who regularly minister the word.

JS You have answers to a lot of questions about how to bring together a community of faith. I really appreciate you taking time to do this interview. We are hopeful that it will bear fruit maybe when things explode. We don't know maybe this is where God wants us. We are content. We know the peace and protection of God is on this place. Our hearts desire is to be in community of people of like minded faith. "When in doubt -- DON'T," has always been good advice; but, in these days it can be life or death, even eternal life or death. Often what God wants us to do is wait. Waiting, for me, is a difficult exercise of faith. But, when we KNOW He says go, we better go.

CD You know Brother Jim, you have to be ready and prepared for wherever the Lord might send you.

JS That is the way we have been trying to live and move. We have been trying to compartmentalize, and containerize, and trailerize. God has been leading Betty to put things together for quite some time. I know wherever we end up being sent that we will be prepared to go in as a blessing and not be a burden to the community. That is what we want to be. So we know God is on the throne. He knows our hearts. He knows where He wants us. We are very content with that. Our fellowship is with the Lord. We would love to join in with other saints of God but we are content. The Lord has opened quite a door for us on the Great Joy in Great Tribulation web site. All is well.

CD I thank God for you Brother Jim and I look forward to hugging your neck again like in South Carolina, and Oklahoma. It is always a joy seeing you brother.

JS It sure is likewise Pastor. You are one mighty strong man of God. You have heard how glad I am that we are on the same team. You are formidable in many ways. You know that you have my heart. Anybody who is called with the pastor's responsibility for His saints in this perilous time I want to strengthen your hands. That is what we were called to do at Passover in '96 to go and strengthen and encourage people of God. You are hearing God no matter who tells you otherwise or thinks you are crazy. This is what the word of God says for these last days. He is saying to withdraw yourself from the gain is godliness prosperity gospel and keep His commandments, including the 4th one.

That first time you were going to try to come down here the Lord gave me one of those lightening bolts of revelation. I have gotten to the point that if I don't feel the anointing I will either ask another brother to speak or just read the Authorized English scriptures. But that day I got one of those lightening bolts of revelation from Him. It was about the difference between sin and iniquity. I had not had one of those in quite some time. I had never studied it or looked at it ever before it came forth. I have checked the scriptures on it a great deal since and put up on the net what was revealed on this very important understanding regarding INIQUITY. Those things are good for you once in a while. It gives you something to hold on to when it really gets rough and shaky. We know that those things can only happen by the Spirit of God. Those revelations you hold on to. I don't know how much longer we are going to be able to keep going out there on the net we have been able to reach out to about 550,000 people in 5 years.

CD The family of God that I have Brother Jim, is the household of faith. They are the only family that I have brother. My family after the flesh, brother, think that I am a psycho or have gone off the deep end, just because I decided to live a totally committed life to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I really have nothing to do with my family after the flesh any more.

JS Pastor Dowell, it is getting to the point where the Lord is restoring all things. They accused the first century believers of turning the world upside down. I know what you are talking about. All of my family thinks I am totally crazy. They think we are boony bin bound because they can't understand that we are glory bound. When I see you brother I just can't hold back from just wanting to run up there and hug your neck. What a joy to be on the same team with you. Brother it is just good. There is nothing like people of like precious faith coming together. Thanks again Pastor Charles Dowell mighty man of God from Straightway, community of faith.

CD All is well. All is well.