If You're Going Through Hell, Keep Going

Hola all!

This article left me in an odd peace and made me laugh a bit too. I don't have ANY of this down - so don't hear it from a condescending angle at all. Nor am I targeting you if you got this directly. I just thought it was handy. Bottom line is we're all thieves on the journey to gazing at Jesus on the cross (next to us and for us).

However, we have been listening to God as best we can and as a result, praying for the oil of gladness for the last week or so, gazing on His Beauty, contemplating the joy set before us and realizing that the fact is that God is plotting and planning and planting good things for us to discover - treasures in the darkness if you will. We are actively, intentionally blessing His goodness and love with our lips as a seed for the future of what we reap. So, you may not like that I posted this or agree and that is really o.k. but I'd be remiss in not sending it out. Love you all lots!! t

Saturday, December 27, 2008
If You're Going Through Hell, Keep Going
by Doug Giles
Read Article here

The economic times we are living in are rougher and scarier than Rosie just before getting bikini waxed. With our national cash crisis comes a bazillion other ancillary spiritual and physical spin-off problems. As a columnist, talk show host and minister I'm now getting my inbox inundated with emails asking me how to spiritually field this mucked up mess we're mired in (that's how bad it is . . . people are asking me for advice).

What follows is my attempt to Dr. Phil you folks thru this crap-laden crunch we're currently getting crushed by with seven hard learned lessons about God and life from the last 25 years of getting my butt kicked.

*Note to rabid atheists: This column (to become a book under the same title) is written to the heaven bound Christian who is currently going through hell. Yeah . . . it's not for you. You might want to read Thus Spake Zarathustra or something for encouragement.

Here are seven observations and exhortations to help us keep plowing through tough times.

1. Jesus Promised Pain.

Jesus said in His first YouTube lecture, the Sermon on the Mount, that "storms" are coming to everyone, Christian or not. Note: Jesus didn't say if storms come, but when they come. I know it sucks, but that's reality. At least He gives us a heads up, eh? Also, Jesus didn't forewarn us of tame storms on the horizon but "squalls" so violent that if you aren't well founded on His word that your house could be destroyed. How we have built our lives is revealed in the storm.

2. Are You Gonna Cowboy Up or Lay There and Bleed?

Modern evangelicals by and large are an emasculated group of Nancies who make mountains out of molehills. We aren't like our scriptural forefathers who were hardy and rowdy, tough followers of a rugged God. We are wussies pastored by wussies who grumble and complain when something pinches our flesh. This is a problem because demons love warfare, the flesh is incorrigible, and God's demands are high and holy-and we love Pepsi. To get through hell the first thing the believer has got to do is shut up, suck it up and grow a pair.

3. It's About Character, Stupid.

People have said over the years that there are two things you never want to see made, and that would be laws and sausage. I'd like to add a third to that list, namely Christians. Watching God process a believer from a dweeb to dynamite is about as fun as watching Blagojevich blow dry his hair. God's not in the least bit interested in your carnal comfort but in His crafted character reflected in your life. Y'know . . . who you are at your core, who you are when no one sees, the habits of your heart, all that stuff that gets avoided by the modern feel good pulpits nowadays. Being originally from West Texas and growing up around a lot of cows and crops, I learned at an early age that cow crap helps make plants grow. God allowing the poop to hit the fan in our lives is the only way to produce the fruit He likes.

4. Don't Blame God if You Brought This On.

I created most of the hell in my life that I have had to go through. I'd love to blame others-even God-but if I have to be honest, I spawned most of the monsters that I have had to deal with. Yep, my rebellious nature, my past hatred for God and His ways, and my innate stupidity has blown through the checks and balances of the Word of God, the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and the communion of the saints and has landed me facedown in the mud. There is no way I can fault God or the devil for 99.9% of the stuff that has happened in my life. What about you?

5. Solomon Says, "Relax."

Solomon states in the book of Ecclesiastes that one of the keys to surviving the brutalities of life is to relax . . . chill . . . drink some wine . . . and have a good laugh. When one begins to go through the meat grinder of life, the first thing to vanish is joy. Joy is serious business because according to God, without it we're oh so lame. You and I won't be able to stand against difficulties without getting happy in God. Yep, without the gravity-defying virtue of joy cranking through our spirits we won't be able to pray the fuzz off a peach. Fickle and vapid Christians disobey the command to rejoice in all things, and God means all things-this entails all non-yippee stuff. Consequently, they don't transcend their transient trials, and God has no other recourse but to send them around the mountain again until they learn the power of laughing their butt off in the face of adversity.

6. The "Gift" of Hell.

Y'know, I hate to bring the Bible into this, but according to the book of James, the Christian is commanded to view trials as a gift. A gift? Please. Go sell crazy somewhere else, thus says the narcissistic saint of the new millennium. The postmodern, puny dwarf Christians only regard as gifts that which further augments their immediate wants and needs. To have something come into their life that would rock their self love boat is seen not as a gift but as a curse. However, according to God, that which is meant for evil can be turned into good if you realize that this little pain in the butt has come into your life to test your faith, purge your heart and reveal God's mighty power. Joseph's road to the throne was routed through prison, twice. He didn't whine, cry, or become a Buddhist but rather embraced the gift of going through hell and subsequently was eventually exalted. How are you doing?

7. Once You've Made it Through "Hell", Don't Become a Jerk.

God exhorted Israel to remember that they used to be slaves in Egypt. It's prudent for the believer and profitable to the church for the person who has weathered storms not to become an insensitive jerk but rather a sensei who shows others how to navigate life's tricky streams. And don't get too comfortable or cocky just because you're currently out of this storm because the NOAA weather system says another tropical storm is brewing out in the gulf, if you know what I mean . . .




Montauk to Manhattan: Every House a House of Prayer

The Kingdom Come

Liked this Article enough to land on it regarding the House
the KINGDOM come – David Ruis

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

so much talk about the kingdom ...
might just be me - but I am sure hearing the term bandied about the subcultures of the church a lot - it’s used to endorse and explain all kinds of practices and experience across the spectrum of faith - “Hey ... it’s the kingdom dude ...” or “… all for the kingdom you know ...”
our understanding of the kingdom shapes so much of how we walk out our faith - it’s a pretty critical point of theology to wrestle with. This journey that we’ve embarked on is described as the “gospel of the kingdom” (Matthew 24:14) - our message is one of calling individuals, society and culture to align with the kingdom (Mark 1:15) - our call is to seek first the kingdom (Matthew 6:33) - and our prayer is to see the kingdom come (Matthew 6:10) ... seems kind of important that we know what we’re talking about ...
way too much to unpack here - but it might be high time for a bit of a talk about what we’re really saying. A good starting point may be around this notion of the kingdom “coming”.
kind of boils down to basically three approaches as I sift through what I see and hear:

1) a vertical “in the moment” understanding of the kingdom breaking in ...
2) an “off in the distance” coming (other than “salvation") - way out of reach so just hang on ‘til Jesus comes - understanding of the kingdom ...
3) a more horizontal eschatological understanding of kingdom breakthrough...

the first approach is this sense of urgency propelled by the thought that if we can just get it “right” - if we could just break through into the heavenly realms and “pull it down” - everything would be ok. So we look for the big healing, or the download of provision, or the ultimate revival as the answer to all our woes and the sure sign that God has come and His kingdom is here. All that’s needed is a purer bride, some serious fasting, a few “third heaven” experiences and a glory environment of worship and expectation complete with angelic activity and blow your mind prophecy. Then the kingdom would come ... all the time ... in the present ...
or ... if you’re uncomfortable with that - and a bit more conservative ... all we need is the right power point, or the hippest liturgy, a bit of spiritual anarchy and some justice activism ... then all will be set right.
my personal struggle with this perspective is that you’re pretty much forced into a mindset that is constantly looking for what’s “blocking” the in breaking and who’s to blame ... and a triumphalism (both charismatic and activist) can begin to bleed through your understanding of the church and her role on the earth. Everything from worship, to the disciplines of the faith and engagement with the culture at large can become extremely driven - constantly looking for the cutting edge, the latest cause and the “next level” of spiritual encounter.
faith is exciting ... but can become reliant on hype and potentially very self serving.
let the kingdom come ...
the second can be - quite frankly - at times a pretty attractive posture. Leaning hard into the sovereignty of God - which does bring a significant measure of joy and security this side of heaven - we do the work of an evangelist, keep our morals intact as best we can, challenge society with how far away from God they really are and hang on until the end of all things.
I lived with such a faith for a very long time - pretty secure - but really bored.
my personal struggle with this approach (although it seems quite safe the longer I walk this path) is that it leaves me ... quite frankly ... empty. The danger here is to loose the sense of God invading the present reality and the expectation that He could be up to anything at anytime.
faith sustains ... but can end up having very little impact.
let the kingdom come ...

the third world view is filled with tension.
some have coined this approach as one of embracing “the now and the not yet”, or “the time between the times”. The compass is set eschatologically and the in-breaking of the kingdom of God is seen as the future invading the present rather than a current reality “up there” that needs to penetrate the “down here”. There will come a day when all things will be set right, every tear wiped away and all injustice banished forever. Jesus will come again. So the return of Christ is seen as that ultimate “revival” if you will ... the time when all things ultimately will be set right ... but the good news is that we don’t just have to wait for the fullness of the kingdom and the presence of God - we can see it’s impact and dynamism now. The kingdom is upon us ... it is at hand ... so reach out to pray for the sick; take courage and feed the hungry; declare the gospel, challenge injustice and oppose the dark forces of hell. As we journey in the time between the times - you never know when the kingdom will break through. Have faith ... believe ... proclaim and engage fully expecting a present manifestation of the future reality - yet with a faith that is secure in an eternal hope, that is not shaken if the present need must wait for a future resolution.
my personal struggle with this understanding is that can be very difficult to model given the consumerism and fast food culture that surrounds us. There are no easy answers here ... so the default usually is to attempt to resolve any tension that is created by this “now and not yet” reality. In my opinion, so many of the “successful” templates of church life and the instructions on how to live as a “successful” christian end up promising relief from the tensions the kingdom (potentially) creates. As far as I’m concerned these empty promises - but It’s very hard to cut up stream in this.
faith is full of risk and constantly in motion straddling charismatic and conservative values ... a weariness can eventually set in (Galatians 6:9)
let the kingdom come ...
some of the differences noted may seem subtle ... but I believe they are far more than just a difference in semantics. It really is a difference in world view ... and that’s huge.
I’m sure you’ve guessed by now where I land ... I’ll take door number three Monty

Prayer for President Obama

"The first thing I'd do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. That's the first thing that I'd do." -- Senator Barack Obama, speaking to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, July 17, 2007



Please read the legislation proposed - you can follow the link through http://www.nrlc.org/foca/index.html



OK - so here we go . . . This is NOT an attack on our new President AT ALL - if anything, it is a call to pray FOR him . . . so regardless of how any of us may have voted . . . PLEASE read on. It is a call to prayer now, today, without delay.



I've looked at plenty of the church's varied responses to the election - both positive and negative - and given my own feeble one but now I want to get going and call us into action. We have NO time to waste.



There are many arenas of concern that we all care a great deal about, including war, civil rights, racism, poverty, the protection of Israel , etc. All of them have great weight and can NOT be neglected. But I want to focus on the issue of abortion because it is the matter of the day. One of the fundamental issues in the elections for almost as long as I've had an awareness (which was President Nixon's Election) has been this issues of life.



Very squarely, since before I understood what sexuality was about, I already understood what abortion was. The fact of the matter is that I knew then that the very word implied an end to something that has begun. I have been a participant in it and would have had one myself if I was faced with it and the only reason I escaped it was that somehow I did not ending up being pregnant. So, from the get go, you all need to know that I am not sitting in judgment or wanting to poke at arenas of the heart that many of us have our own grief over. I have committed so many sins, I consider myself a master and I squirm when any one of them are mentioned, including this one, even though I am hid in Christ. My point then is not to point . . . it is to rally, to awaken, to encourage.



"What is abortion? Is it more than people say it is? First the dictionary definition of abortion; Expulsion or extraction of the fetus from the womb before it is viable, usually before the twentieth week of gestation. Truly, there is more to abortion than any young desperate women could really see. Abortion is killing a living being. Not only does it kill it, but it could harm the women and make it impossible to conceive later in life. The definition states that abortion takes place before the twentieth week. Did you know that the baby’s hearts begin beating on the eighteenth day after being conceived? Also, doctors have begun using EEG, to detect brain wave activity to determine death. If a baby’s brain has activity at about forty – forty-three days after being conceived, shouldn’t it be considered a living being, after that amount of time? A baby is a baby right away. A baby is defined with forty-six – forty-seven chromosomes. If the baby was still part of the egg and sperm it would only consist of twenty-three chromosomes. Within twenty days a fetus becomes viable. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. What the bible says about abortion, the Bible really doesn’t say anything directly towards abortion. . . . The only reason it didn’t say anything directly towards it was because it was a completely unthinkable thing back then. "



"This may surprise you but out of the 4,000 abortions a day in America alone- only about 3% are because of rape and health of mother alone. can you believe that? The majority are because the woman chooses not to have a child at the moment. I do have compassion for the woman. I counseled them for over 10 years- and some of them never realized how devastating an abortion can be to the woman herself. There are many physical risks, but the main risks are emotional and spiritual. I counseled women who have not forgiven themselves for what they did, even if the abortion was years ago."



The practice of killing our infants is likened to the ancient worship of Molech and it basically was done in the guise of "protecting the family". Although we may claim it is different, it smells the same and the blood still cried out from the land. Biblically, we see judgment regarding it quite clearly in the conquest of Jericho whose walls were fortified with the blood and bodies of children as a sacrifice. As a note, our generation has been called a Joshua Generation. Joshua's first major conquest was Jericho - the tearing down of its walls through obedience and worship. Our first major conquest must be the end of this practice and the tearing down of THIS wall.



" . . . of the inhabitants who occupied the fortified city-outpost known as Jericho can raise many questions in the mind of the careful reader. The higher critic has claimed for many years there was a conflict between the Bible and current archaeological data and that the claimed historicity of the sacred text was merely exaggerated colorful myth. Some liberal thinkers have viewed the Jehovah of the Old Testament as a deity who required appeasement and blood sacrifice to satisfy his capricious lust, while the New Testament god, in their view, is all about love, acceptance, and toleration. Then, the atheist uses the Bible to “prove” to the Christian that the god of his scripture is a warmonger and the murderer of innocent women and children, and even if he did exist, he would remain unworthy of the worship and adoration required to satisfy his huge ego.

Even many an ardent Bible believer has felt some uneasiness at the unashamed transparency of the sacred text. Along with this comes the struggle to reconcile the relationship between a good and benevolent God and the obvious presence of evil in the world, especially as it relates to the death of women and children.

Recall the youthful gusto with which many have sung the traditional American spiritual.

“Joshua fit de battle of Jericho ,
Jericho , Jericho ,
Joshua fit de battle of Jericho ,
An de walls come a tumbling down.”

Of course, in Sunday School, as we marched around the chairs and pretended to blow the ram-horns, we were definitely on the side of the “good guys.” On the other hand, Jericho and its inhabitants were the villains who deserved to lose their city, though we didn’t know why. Only much later did we come to realize there was a sober side to this deadly dance, which gave new face and fresh meaning to our childish play.

Let us consider the text as it reads in the Authorized Version of the Bible.

And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword. (Joshua 6:21)

Try as we might, there is no way we can dodge the dilemma by laying the event at the feet of an overly zealous Joshua leading a nomadic army of marauding, misguided Israelites. Nor can we sweep it under the rug by allowing for some kind of modified divine permission or restraint, which might absolve God from any direct culpability. The fact remains; it was a carefully calculated act with a specific goal in mind. Jehovah ordered it (Deuteronomy 7:2), and Joshua did it (Joshua 6:21).

The qualifier in this saga seems to be what is referred to in Genesis 15:16 as the “iniquity of the Amorites.” The nations that occupied Canaan had become so hideously debauched, so degenerate in custom and practice, that the judgment of God became imminent. We are told in the Mosaic account that God is preparing to act and His longsuffering is about to end.

For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants. (Leviticus 18:25)

In the larger context of the writings of Moses, the Amorites are viewed by Jehovah as representative of the whole of Palestine . Further, it was as if they had become so saturated with corruption that the very earth itself spit them out.

Recent textual discoveries in Ugarit confirm the Scripture record of centuries filled with idolatry, sodomy, bestiality, sorcery, and child sacrifice. Consequently, each generation had polluted the next with idolatry, perversion, and blood. We must not read Deuteronomy 18:9–12 with an emotionless indifference in the way that some would read yesterday’s news. Parents offered up their children to the god Molech by fire. Child sacrifice is more than an unfortunate, ancient tribal custom. It is a hideous twisted ritual conducted by men who have reprobated themselves into beasts. Then again, the customs of Canaan are not really a quantum leap from ancient religious ritual to our current indulgence of “a woman's right to choose,” are they?

The problem of Jericho is easily solved. God has revealed Himself to us in the Bible just as He is. His self-revelation to Moses (see Exodus 34: 6–7) is very revealing:

And Jehovah passed before him and proclaimed, Jehovah, Jehovah, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness and truth; keeping loving-kindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgressions and sin; and I will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children. . . .

Can we not see that God’s disposition is showcased in His longsuffering, equity, mercy, and patience? He never acts in a knee-jerk, capricious manner. Yet at the same time God reserves the right to be God, doing as He chooses when He wills and with universal authority over His creation. Even as he pleaded for God to spare the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah , Abraham declared, “Shall not the judge of the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25). So, the answer to the problem lies bound up in the character of God as revealed in Scripture. Is there ever a time when divine genocide is justified? The answer must be “yes,” because the judge of the whole earth always does what is right. Scripture makes it abundantly clear that in time the longsuffering of God will transform itself into judgment if the warnings are not heeded.

A.W. Tozer in The Knowledge Of The Holy says it well:

Before the Christian church goes into eclipse anywhere, there must first be the corrupting of her simple basic theology. She simply gets a wrong answer to the question, “What is God like?” Though she may continue to cling to a sound nominal creed, her practical working creed has become false. The masses of her adherents come to believe that God is different from what He actually is; and that is heresy of the most insidious and deadly kind.

Here are words from the Apostle Paul challenging us to think Biblically about the nature and character of God. “Behold then the goodness and severity of God.” (Romans 11:22)



We have no time to waste. If God releases us into judgment because we have sanctioned the death of 50 MILLION infants, He is right to do so and legislating the end of abortion was/is a good strategy and right in God's eyes - I believe in it - however, at the heart of it, we as a nation need more than law to keep us in line - in ALL arenas - we need a true change of heart and mind. Legislating that would only resolve part of the problem and I am still believing for the whole problem to be resolved with true awakening, a great deal of love and heart-felt repentance.



I just refuse to believe that we don't have the mandate right NOW to press forward even harder in praying for President Obama- RIGHT NOW while there is still time and his choices have not been solidified; praying that he would have a revelation of Jesus that is even more profound than he has already experienced - life changing and mind changing regarding these issues; that his decisions regarding the appointment of his advisers would be very, VERY wise; that the perspective in our nation regarding abortion would dramatically shift; that WE as a nation would hear the cry of the aborted and yet unborn and that the Supreme Court Justices chosen would be turned and righteously inclined; that the nation itself would make choices regarding bringing an end to abortion that will super cede legislation; that right views of relationships and standing by those who are faced with a pregnancy that is not embraced would grow in depth and beauty and commitment and that the Church AWAKEN and fight this battle together - on our knees in prayer and fasting and in our hearts with compassion and actions that demonstrate Christ!



We as a nation can still choose to end this whether it is legislated or not and I refuse to lay down in the face of a "lost" political battle when we are called to fight a war that is in truth a heavenly battle as well as an earthly, governmental battle. I can't look at this in any other way. I can't spend time pissed at the church or the nation or myself or any one else anymore than I already can be inclined to be and I struggle with that every day - for real. But it needs to end! I don't want to be an "angry man" any more.



In the end, biblically, God refines the Church and Israel in these circumstances of great darkness and her light WILL and MUST shine (Isaiah 60). I'm going hard after that. The leading voices may be entirely dead on in everything I've been hearing regarding increasing judgments upon the nation, but I will surely die if I place my eyes on anything other than squarely upon the Lord Jesus Christ and until God says otherwise to me, I believe we have no time to waste in the arena of grief, blame and confusion; we only see in part still and I am pressing on to keep up the fight until God says stop. In particular, I will love, bless and pray for Barack Obama with fervency RIGHT NOW!!!!! according to the wisdom Paul instructed us with and I will pray that the Church awakens into her true identity TODAY!



As a House of Prayer, we will continue to pray in this vein and if nothing else, perhaps the Lord will say - "That IHOP-LI . . .they may be a sorry-ass, sin-wrestling, motley crew . . . but they are relentless in trying to figure out love and unyielding in trying to live in Me . . . and they make me smile." That would be just fine with me.



"Strengthen your hands"!!!!!!!!!!!! Zechariah 8 (Thanks Pastor Marie)



Build the House of Prayer by BEING a House of Prayer



"Jesus, we plead Your Blood over our sins and the sins of our nation. God, end abortion and send revival to America ."



So . . . I'm still all in. How about you?



Love you MUCH, t

Awake O Sleeper

Like many of you, we have been dedicated to praying through the elections and I've been listening to all sorts of interesting occurrences that caused me to stop and think. One issue was that at the last minute, some of my family and friends were compelled to vote differently than they had been inclined and they had no idea why. Second, that the church was so sharply divided over the candidates and all had compelling, redemptive stances that they hoped would affect the course of our nation.

It reminded me of the dilemma New York faced in the 2000 World Series. Mets vs. Yankees. You would root for New York in any other circumstance but this caused the city to divide a bit. Nothing serious but it was unclear except for die hard fans how to pray. Ever wonder about that? Every time there is a major athletic competition - you KNOW both sides are praying hard as is every 'believing" fan and even some atheists and which team has God's ear? How does a city or a nation stand under the division of well intentioned loyalties?

One thing is clear, as a whole, we all love this nation. As believers, we all love and desire God. Toward the morning light as Tuesday dawned, there were a few tokens God threw our way. A.) That this election was inexorably tied into Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech and we were living out the proclamation of that speech. On that note, there was nothing sweeter than watching thousands upon thousands of Americans weeping in joy over the graces of redemption and watching Jesse Jackson weep will be burned in my memory forever. B.) That David prayed and fasted for the child he and Bathsheba had conceived illegitimately until the bitter end and when the child died, he rose, washed himself and ate. Soon after, the Lord gave him Solomon and the House of Prayer was built through him. C.) That the prayer focus on the whole needed to focus on the church and Israel and not on the "world" per se; that she would stand in the identity of Isaiah 60 and shine in the days to come- that she would reveal and reflect Jesus.

The issues facing the church the day before and of and even after the election are still the same. The good news is that an entire generation was polarized in prayer. Now you may wonder why I would think that's good news, so here's my explanation. For those who prayed for John McCain's election because of the areas that concerned you regarding the welfare of America and God's perspective, you are now in this deep enough to understand that prayer must increase and there is no slacking. President Obama needs every bit of love, grace, protection and wisdom he can get to choose well for the United States. For those of you who prayed for Barack Obama because of the areas that concerned you regarding the welfare of America and God's perspective, you already care for him enough to be in agreement with the fact that he needs every bit of love, grace, protection and wisdom he can get to choose well for the United States and are already trained to pray hard for him. Excellent. Now, the church can come together in agreement. Now, we can agree over biblical mandates and love on the Church, Israel and the United States in complete agreement.

I ran across the devotional by Spurgeon below and thought: the church has been in the same battle for centuries and the Lord trains our hands for war through each generation. Truth be told, we don't like having to be the ones who are responsible for stewarding the land and would really like to take some time off regularly from it. It's the story of every generation - except ... maybe this one. I believe that THIS is a praying generation and we pray "Awake, oh sleeper. Rise up from the dead and Christ will give you life." Ephesians 5:14 It would be nice to leave it in someone else's hands and turn our attentions to our comforts. But . . . here we are, being trained to reign with Christ and we have a wonderful husband in Him. Let's worship Him. Let's pray with Him and lets love on each other while it is still day.

(http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word/6340 - something to discern through)





----- Forwarded Message ----
From: "listserv@lists.studylight.org"
To: devotional-spurgeon@lists.studylight.org
Sent: Wednesday, November 5, 2008 3:05:01 AM
Subject: Spurgeon's Morning & Evening devotional for November 5


Spurgeon's Morning & Evening - November 5

--------------------------------
Morning Devotional




"No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper."
- Isaiah 54:17



This day is notable in English history for two great deliverances wrought
by God for us. On this day the plot of the Papists to destroy our Houses
of Parliament was discovered, 1605.

"While for our princes they prepare
In caverns deep a burning snare,
He shot from heaven a piercing ray,
And the dark treachery brought to day."

And secondly-to-day is the anniversary of the landing of King William III,
at Torbay, by which the hope of Popish ascendancy was quashed, and
religious liberty was secured, 1688.

This day ought to be celebrated, not by the saturnalia of striplings, but
by the songs of saints. Our Puritan forefathers most devoutly made it a
special time of thanksgiving. There is extant a record of the annual
sermons preached by Matthew Henry on this day. Our Protestant feeling, and
our love of liberty, should make us regard its anniversary with holy
gratitude. Let our hearts and lips exclaim, "We have heard with our ears,
and our fathers have told us the wondrous things which thou didst in their
day, and in the old time before them." Thou hast made this nation the home
of the gospel; and when the foe has risen against her, thou hast shielded
her. Help us to offer repeated songs for repeated deliverances.
Grant us more and more a hatred of Antichrist, and hasten on the day of
her entire extinction.
Till then and ever, we believe the promise, "No weapon that is formed
against thee shall prosper.
" Should it not be laid upon the heart of every lover of the gospel of
Jesus on this day to plead for the overturning of false doctrines and the
extension of divine truth? Would it not be well to search our own hearts,
and turn out any of the Popish lumber of self-righteousness which may lie
concealed therein?



--------------------------------
Evening Devotional



"Be thankful unto him, and bless his name."
- Psalm 100:4



Our Lord would have all his people rich in high and happy thoughts
concerning his blessed person. Jesus is not content that his brethren
should think meanly of him; it is his pleasure that his espoused ones
should be delighted with his beauty.
We are not to regard him as a bare necessary, like to bread and water,
but as a luxurious delicacy, as a rare and ravishing delight.
To this end he has revealed himself as the "pearl of great price" in its
peerless beauty, as the "bundle of myrrh" in its refreshing fragrance, as
the "rose of Sharon" in its lasting perfume, as the "lily" in its spotless
purity.


As a help to high thoughts of Christ, remember the estimation that Christ
is had in beyond the skies, where things are measured by the right
standard. Think how God esteems the Only Begotten, his unspeakable gift to
us. Consider what the angels think of him, as they count it their highest
honour to veil their faces at his feet. Consider what the blood-washed
think of him, as day without night they sing his well deserved praises.
High thoughts of Christ will enable us to act consistently with our
relations towards him. The more loftily we see Christ enthroned, and the
more lowly we are when bowing before the foot of the throne, the more
truly shall we be prepared to act our part towards him. Our Lord Jesus
desires us to think well of him, that we may submit cheerfully to his
authority. High thoughts of him increase our love. Love and esteem go
together.
Therefore, believer, think much of your Master's excellencies.
Study him in his primeval glory, before he took upon himself your nature!
Think of the mighty love which drew him from his throne to die upon the
cross! Admire him as he conquers all the powers of hell! See him risen,
crowned, glorified! Bow before him as the Wonderful, the Counsellor, the
mighty God, for only thus will your love to him be what it should.

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Fall Update

IHOP-LI: The Ark House of Prayer
Fall 2008 Update and Blue Prints

A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

As we enter our second year as a visible House of Prayer, our first thoughts are “Thank You” to all of you and above all to the Lord for His great kindness. We are set now to move forward as a community in order to grow in our understanding of the value God places upon our partnership with Him in intercession and our individual/corporate contribution toward building a sanctuary of worship & prayer here on Long Island.

Above all else, we are set on hosting His Presence and while we know that worship & prayer are not means to an end, they do mean to end upon Him. It is Him and really only Him that we seek. With this as the full intent of our hearts, we are asking for those of you that desire to see a sanctuary of night and day worship on and for Long Island to prayerfully consider your involvement and time here as a “sacred trust” between you and the Lord. It’s not just a “prayer meeting.” It is the answer to the brokenness of our families and communities and the release of love, healing and justice.

“And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" Luke 18:8

Your worship & prayers are gifts of immeasurable worth and we value your place in this community. If there are ways that you would like to be involved that we have not thought of or made room for, you should know that it is our heart’s desire to make a way for all of us to minister to the Lord and to Long Island. Step up! Speak up!

For some of you, one meeting is all you have in you. With all of our hearts we bless and honor that –TRULY. For others, it’s your “time” and the Holy Spirit is calling you to this – even if only for a season. We are asking therefore that you prayerfully consider extending yourself beyond participation in a prayer meeting or “the Burn” to help form the internal supports and structures of “the House”. God will most certainly make a way for each of your gifts/talents to be honored, developed and employed as we engage together in this endeavor.

Here’s what we’re looking at and praying about for the Fall in order to facilitate growth in vision, understanding, relationship and commitment:

1. We will gather for our first corporate meeting on Tuesday, October 7th beginning at 7:00 p.m. It is our hope that we will all carve out the first Tuesday evening of the month thereafter to come together as a community. There is no other way to build together unless we make a concerted effort to come with one heart to hear, see, learn, create, worship and pray.
2. The October 7th meeting will provide an opportunity for us to teach about the Global Bridegroom Fast and prepare us for our first corporate fast in November. Three days of the month – beginning on the first Monday of each month - will be set aside for our corporate expression of a GBF (Global Bridegroom Fast). These days are meant to coincide with Houses of Prayer across the earth that are also fasting during these days in order to cultivate a deeper relationship with the Lord and each other. It is a very intentional fast of longing for Him and His return. (See John 3) It is a fast focused upon intimacy, identity and purpose. Therefore, whether you or I fast food, time, money, etc., it is a time we will intentionally set aside to seek Him and minister to each other. We’ll begin our first fast together just as we enter into the elections. Timely isn’t it? We thought so.
3. We have been approached by “Emanate” (Central Suffolk Vineyard’s young adult ministry) regarding ‘hands-on” ministry to the community. (We love to hear the passions that all of you carry and bring to this “House”.) We would like to partner with them to launch outreach weeks leading up to “the Burns” while covering their labors in prayer. It will be both scary and fun – God style. We’re aiming for the week leading into Thanksgiving as a launch date. If you are interested or have a desire to lead/serve in a particular arena, let us know and we’ll hook you up. More information will certainly follow.
4. “24-7 style” prayer watches are coming. (See www.24-7prayer.com or www.ihop-li.com under “Blueprints” for more info.) These are more individually driven “watches” and we will provide information about that at the Oct. 7 meeting. Beware of life changing God encounters.
5. We’re itching to begin setting up Harp & Bowl teams/training and we strongly recommend that you take advantage of this as it is an invaluable model of fusing worship and intercession that we are incorporating into the House. Come to the training to find out why! You don’t have to be a musician to do this. However, musicians and singers (regardless of whether or not you can carry a tune – completely irrelevant- it’s not a talent show or a gong show) . . . this is your opportunity to express yourself, stretch yourself and engage more deeply in a growing community. Can’t beat that. Dates TBA.
6. Intro to IHOP-LI mini-weekends will be offered quarterly beginning after the new year. All those who desire to lead/serve a ministry or take a watch are requested to participate in one. We think you’re going to really enjoy this opportunity and we know that we cannot move further without communal agreement on the values and mission of the “House” and the “ekklesia” expressed in prayer. It is a “starter package/on-ramp” for creating or joining a team and it will help you get connected with “la familia”. We love it already.
7. We will be developing workshops/trainings in various arenas in order to grow in our respective callings/gifting. We hope to pull out the gifts of various people within our community (which happens to be quite rich) as well as to partner with other ministries that have gained some mastery in particular areas. Some of the immediate topics that come to mind are: healing, revelatory/prophetic gifts (dreams, visions, words of knowledge/wisdom), the Kingdom of God, intercession, worship, etc. If there is a particular topic that you have an interest in, training in or if you would like to be part of coordinating a workshop, speak up! We care and we value you!

As we close this letter, please know that we have great love and honor for all of you who are a part of this community, regardless of your ability to commit time to this House. Your lives have their own stamp of God’s calling and destiny and it would be completely erroneous and contrary to our hearts to communicate a comparative value in any manner. Therefore, receive this letter as an invitation only. If it stirs your heart and you would like to be more involved, we encourage you to pray and ask God about what He says in this regard. His answer may be “Yes, now”, “soon”, “later” or “I have something else in mind for you.” We trust Him and we bless you!


With much love,

Patti & t

Prophets of Beauty - Benji Nolot, 3/13/2008

What follows is a somewhat dated article ( because of a Heath Ledger reference) by Benji Nolot that I finally got around to reading today and realized it was timely - the very thing I was craving in my own heart. I wouldn't be passing it on though if I didn't believe it was timely for all of us as a community of prayer and a challenge to the House of Prayer.

As a member of the Body of Christ and a House of Prayer, it is particularly tempting to wrestle with circumstances and then carve out prayers that appear loving and corrective but are in fact a choice criticism of what is wrong with the world and the church. Frankly, figuring out what is wrong with me, you, the church, the world, etc. is easy squeezy and terribly afflicting to my soul and everyone else's. It doesn't take much to jump into that task at all but I find it is incredibly destructive and food for anxiety. Don't worry about God not finding out about how crappy we all are. According to the vision in "Zechariah 3", Satan stands right next to us and does a bang up job. (But check out God's response. It's worth the read and unbelievably merciful and kind - ah Jesus - thank You for You. )

However, taking off someone's grave clothes and filthy garments; figuring out what is right and beautiful in the bloody, smelly mess of humanity - which includes my own stench by the way; hungering and thirsting for righteousness - especially my own expression of that in Christ; getting up off my tushy and championing true justice; calling forth that which is not as though it was; looking for Jesus in those around us and the circumstances we are wading through . . . THAT'S the challenge. Love is the HARDER task - and yet somehow the most joy filled. It is MUCH harder than the Law - which btw is impossible - just an fyi. Yet Jesus raised the bar by loving us and calling us to Love. AGGGHHH - OH to actually be a lover for a living in spirit and truth. God help us all.

Last week, as I was wrestling with the church and myself , I started "praying" (if that's what you want to call it - I would call it complaining to God) and it seemed like I received a challenge from the Holy Spirit. He basically chastened me for focusing my attention and vision on the church and not on Him and His Great Beauty. "Be Christ centered" was the challenge. "Don't look at the Church at all. Look at ME." Now I know that my prayers for life and the church are immediately changed into declarations of Beauty every time I look at Him and wrestle for His perspective. Still, it is like turning a dinosaur to get me to do it. It is why Mike Bickle is using the "apostolic prayers" to pray blessing over the church and we are trying to steer all those who pray in "the House" to use them as our prayer focus. They are remarkably encouraging and strangely not critical.

My final thought in this vein is a quick lesson the Lord hi-lighted for me yesterday. As I was watching my nieces and nephew for the day, I was repeatedly confronted with the annoying density of one of the neighborhood kids who was a friend of theirs. He was terribly annoying and persistent in trying to do things that were clearly stated as off limits or tattling over whether my nephew said someone they knew was "sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g."Like I care. Anyway . . . . I was sitting on the porch watching him coast by on a scooter and thinking "Lord, that kid is a bit weird, dense and really kind of wacky" when suddenly my five year old nephew followed - speeding by on his bike wearing cowboy boots, speedo swimming goggles over his eyes and a funky baseball cap. He was the epitome of weird, dense wackiness and I laughed, because he looked ridiculous and ABSOLUTELY beautiful to me. I had nothin' but love for the boy and I got the Lord's point of view like a sweet smack in the head. So, read on . . .

Prophets of Beauty
Recently, in the course of conversation, a friend said to me, “we (as people in general) have an obsession with bad news.” I had never consciously acknowledged that before, but I immediately recognized it to be true. Just a few days later I was catching up with some folks I hadn’t seen in a while. As I inquired about mutual acquaintances, every response was colored with negative reports. Had I not been pondering my obsession with bad news, I may not have even noticed these responses as being anything other than normal. I realized how conditioned we are to draw attention to misfortunes, disappointments, failures, and trials. We are curiously attentive to the sensational news that more often than not concerns tragedy, loss and pain.

Our culture serves as a continual reminder of how fallen we are. Last week I was at the gym when I saw a television set flash an urgent news message reporting the death of young actor Heath Ledger, which turned out to be drug related. I noticed that the songs played overhead are often of musicians who have either committed suicide or died from a drug overdose. Driving down the highway I was drawn to a massive billboard advertising a reward for a wanted criminal, his face displayed largely across the entire billboard. It seems that everywhere I look images are flooding my mind with darkness.

The voices of this world are loud and many. They come through emails, media, co-workers, family and friends. I feel a constant demand beckoning me to take notice of the latest story of child abduction, rape, or murder. I feel the pressure to give my attention to hear about what tragic thing most recently occurred, what shocking news that must be heard. These are more than distant voices – they are invasive. I have personally lost three friends to the tragic devastation of drugs and alcohol. Through prayer, I have felt the pain and desperation of those trapped in sex slavery. Even the alarm system on our home reminds me of the danger present just around the corner. I find myself living in a culture where I am tempted to be suspicious of everyone and trust no one. All of these things paint an awful picture of an ugly, fallen world – a world where my preoccupation with original sin causes me to forget original beauty.

In a recent meeting with a worship team from IHOP I reported an answer to our prayers for a town called Svay Pak in Cambodia. Fourteen young girls were rescued from traffickers shortly after two weeks of intense intercession. They now have an opportunity to be placed in a Christian recovery home to live and receive restorative ministry. This home has been very successful in their efforts because, by their own admonition, they recognize that Christ is the true healer. I began to share with our worship team, “…imagine where these girls will be under this type of care in 6 months, a year from now…” I was suddenly overcome with emotion and had to stop, tears welling up in my eyes. A very foreign emotion powerfully struck my heart – the feeling of beauty. I felt the beauty of God shine on me, the understanding of His ability to restore, His desire to give beauty for ashes, His pleasure in turning our mourning into dancing, our sorrow into joy. All the testimonies I had heard about the lives of so many young girls who have been rescued from sex slavery and restored through Christ began to flood my mind. I actually believed they could laugh again, dream again, dance, play, and just be children. I realized that I had become overwhelmed with evil, and that the experience of beauty had become totally foreign.

While heaven weeps, heaven also rejoices – continually. Because somewhere, somebody is finally surrendering their life to God, someone is experiencing the Father’s embrace for the first time, a young woman is being rescued from a brothel, someone’s innocence is being restored, a child is being born, a mother is nursing. In a world drowned in darkness, I must continually fix my eyes upon the Father who is ever bent over humanity with His arms open, patiently waiting and inviting us, His broken children, into His eternal embrace. He is the Father who has felt evil more deeply than we ever could, who has lost more children, cried more tears, and suffered more tragedy. He sees everything – nothing is kept secret from Him. Yet His beauty surrounds Him. He continually expresses Himself in hope, forgiveness, love, patience, care, compassion, tenderness, freedom, and life. He is “the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” He invites me to enter into His beauty, to be transformed by His glory, to embody His nature. Yet, I find it much easier to become cynical, a prophet of doom.

Henri Nouwen accurately defined the condition I am so tempted to embrace, “Cynics seek darkness wherever they go. They point always to approaching dangers, impure motives, and hidden schemes. They call trust naïve, care romantic, and forgiveness sentimental…They consider themselves realists who see reality for what it truly is and who are not deceived by ‘escapist emotions.’ But in belittling God’s joy, their darkness only calls forth more darkness.” As a prophet of doom “I try so hard in so many ways to convince others of how evil the evil really is. How intense the judgment will really be.”

We are not called to deny the darkness, but we are also not called to live in it, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Overcoming evil with good challenges me to step beyond my propensity to be a prophet of doom, to becoming a prophet of beauty. While Isaiah fiercely confronted the social evils of his time, he was nevertheless a prophet of beauty. He dared to describe God as a Bridegroom rejoicing over His bride, as a Mother who will never forget Her child, and a Redeemer whose love drove Him to die an innocent death for the sake of the guilty. He saw the zeal of God to overcome evil by the power of His Spirit. He saw the God whose glory shines brightest in the midst of deep darkness.

Jesus was a prophet of beauty. Rather than find curious fascination in untimely death, He raised the dead. Rather than bemoan the plight of the hungry, He multiplied food for them. Rather than relegate issues of social justice to Human Rights organizations, He healed the brokenhearted, set the captives free, and delivered all who were oppressed by the devil. In the hour of His greatest crisis when He may have been tempted to turn cynical, to curse rather than bless, He cried out, “Father forgive them, they know not what they do.” He pointed the way home for all of humanity. Yes, He wept, but He also hoped, believed, and called forth beauty in the midst of darkness.

To be a prophet of beauty is first and foremost to see beauty. I am not called to be curiously fascinated by darkness – I am called to overcome it. I am not called to exploit this world – I am called to save it. A prophet of beauty sees the light in the midst of darkness and dares to trust that that light is true and speaks greater volumes than the darkness that surrounds it. A prophet of beauty moves from suspicion, despair, and “realism,” to faith, hope, and love – moves from intercession to restoration. There are many prophets of doom, but few prophets of beauty. Moses asked God to show him His glory. The Lord then made His “goodness” pass before him. David said he would have “lost heart” had he not seen “the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” I am asking God to show me His beauty in all of its manifestations, that I might also become a prophet of beauty – one who is sustained not by self-righteous zeal and heroism but a fascination with the glory of God which empowers me to see beyond the ashes to the beauty, beyond the mourning to the dancing, beyond the sorrow to the joy.




Benji Nolot, 3/13/2008



Montauk to Manhattan: Every House a House of Prayer
Loving Long Island with 24-7-365 Worship-Filled Prayer
Links to IHOP-LI: the Ark House of Prayer on Long Island
http://www.IHOP-LI.com
http://www.theburn247.com/longisland/
http://www.squidoo.com/IHOP-LI/
http://gworship9.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7748449673
http://www.myspace.com/ihoplongisland
http://www.myspace.com/burnlongisland
http://www.joconetwork.org/ihop-li
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IHOP-LI/

Don't Fear the Tears

What is it with tears? Why do we find it uncomfortable to cry in front of others? It’s strange that when we have a tearful moment we often say, “I’m sorry”, as if somehow we have done something wrong. Benjamin Disraeli said, “Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth.” Perhaps when we cry we reveal something deeper within ourselves. Maybe we reveal the truth. Tears can show what really moves us, what really stresses us or what really hurts us. They reveal the truth that we are human.

Grief and loss are inevitably and justifiably a major cause of tears. Words can no longer express how we feel and our aching hearts overwhelm us to find their voice in tears.

Psalm 57: 8 “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” I have this picture in my mind that one day we will walk through a giant cellar with God, He will draw a bottle from the shelf and say “I remember this vintage, I remember when you cried these tears, I was there”. Pain, sorrow, loss - when we are in those hard places it is difficult to find God. But He’s present, bottling our tears and standing with us.

But what about other tears? Those that don’t come from personal loss, pain or suffering? What about those tears that come unexpectedly and almost take us by surprise? I was speaking at a gathering recently and found myself crying as I spoke. It was not the first time this has happened. I had been talking about an area or people group that I love and I started to cry. I had been recounting a story and suddenly the tears came. I can cry at a news report and I know I am not the only one.

At these times, it’s compassion that brings the tears. Compassion that longs to see change, to alleviate suffering, to show kindness where we perceive a need. Our tears reflect our heart again.

But where tears in times of grief may be part of a healing process, tears of compassion can move us to take action. When we are moved with compassion, we seek to help those that inspired those feelings in us. It is compassion that drives us to see a place changed, a life transformed, a need met, a situation resolved or an injustice righted. This is the very heart of God. Somehow in that moment of tears our hearts connect with His heart.

When Christ’s friend Lazarus died, he wept. But his weeping moved him to action, to prayer. One of the greatest responses we can have to our own tears of compassion is prayer. If these tears remain only tears they are fruitless. When we are moved to tears by what we think, see or hear; when we become affected by the suffering, pain and injustice that many people live under, it should be that prompt which brings us to our knees. Our tears morph into prayers, our cries and groans rise like incense to heaven and the God of heaven himself is moved to listen and to act.

Charles Swindoll said “A teardrop on earth summons the King of heaven”

Don’t fear the tears, don’t rush to brush them away and think of something more cheerful; rather let your heart response drive you to new levels of prayer, intercession and action.

Tracy Heasley is married to Brian and together they are base leaders of 24-7 Ibiza. Tracy is mum to Ellis (11) and Daniel (8) and has lived in Ibiza since 2005, working to establish a permanent 24-7base on the island. She works predominantly in San Antonio, which according to Operation World has more bars pubs and clubs per square mile than anywhere else in Europe. Tracy loves sunshine, windy days, walking, movies, books and chocolate.

Night Watch Article on Pressing in

I just read this kickin' article by Jeff Tyler (Nightwatch ministries) and maybe I thought it was kickin' because it embraces the current move of God with a real kiss while offering encouragement to go hard after wisdom, depth and endurance. I don't know - you always kind of lean toward your own opinions with a "yeah!" "There ya go!" which leaves lots of room for stupidity and error - so ......... in my best shot at heartfelt humility, I want to ask you to read this article and go hard after God for the whole enchilada and if you disagree with it- kudos to you for having a mind of your own and for loving me enough to wrestle with me. Love to all y'all! t

BLESSING – God is moving all over the place, here in the United States and in the nations, as well. There is a sovereign move of God touching lives, states, cities, and nations that is actually going on right now and actually has been for some time. Something major has started. Most of the press, of course, is going for Lakeland, Florida, but things have been happening in Fort Mill, South Carolina, and Graham, Texas, and in Georgia, West Virginia, and many other places, too, here and abroad. We get e-mails at least weekly of new outbreaks somewhere and rumors of outbreaks in other places. I want to say that these outpourings did not come from Lakeland, either. They came from God. We also want to say we have been praying for this for years, and it is really awesome, and we are thankful to see the fruit of this move. We fully endorse this move of God as being “of God,” and we support it. Last week we began to get extreme e-mails from people denying it, especially Lakeland, and calling it a false move brought about by witches and demons and so forth. We warn believers to be very careful of calling what likely is the Lord’s “of the devil.” This is extremely dangerous behavior. Some people apparently say it can’t be God because it came through Todd Bentley, or they give some other lame reason. I am just saying be very careful. Some people simply cannot accept a move of God because of what it looks like or who it comes through. This is what happened in Scripture when the man did not want to get into the Jordan River in order to be healed. His miracle did not come the way he wanted, and pride would not let him lower himself to obedience. When he finally resolved these issues and obeyed, God was gracious and healed him. Whoi cares what it looks like or who it come through? As long as it doesn't violate Scripture, we go with it and bless it! Period!

Part of the problem and issue is that in the west we have our own definitions of what revival is, and this really needs to be addressed and corrected. True revival, or a sovereign move of God, will change society around where it happens. That's the bottom line. That statement defines the whole thing. The crime rate will drop, hospitals and funeral homes will see miracles, and the people in general are changed and transformed in their hearts and behavior. It usually does not fall on one church. It can, but if it does, it usually goes out to the other churches and into the community. That is God’s goal, and it is almost always citywide or at least regional. When Brownsville happened, I am told that everything within about a 50 to 75 mile range changed. The same can be said of Cali when that one hit, too. It affected everything, even the plants and animals in the region. True revival does more than heal bodies and cast out devils. That should be everyday life for the modern believer. True revival changes hearts and brings on true repentance leading to a renewed and holy relationship with Christ. It brings personal deliverance within ourselves.

The Lord has shown me the Valley of Dry Bones in Ezekiel 37 as a wonderful example. When the dry bones came back together with the flesh and all that it entailed, they did not rise up the way they previously were. The dry bones were also changed somehow, changed into a mighty and massive army. That is what true revival is all about – the dry bones gain life again, but they are transformed into a powerful unit of believers, a mighty army that is to march and NOT remain the same. If it is only personal and never goes out into the community then it eventually stagnates and dies. I praise God for over 100 people being totally healed, and signs, wonders, and miracles going on. But without the Spirit changing lives and going outside the house, then it was, simply put, over 100 people being healed. It is wonderful. We love it. But it is NOT revival. It is healing, but it is not necessarily revival. Keep this as a sign to look for when calling moves of God a revival. Check the fruit of it, and see what it really is. It may just be a wonderful visitation. We humans have many ways of being revival killers, too. Be careful of those traps. We don’t want to find ourselves opposite of God. True revival causes major messes, too, and ultimately turns the world and lives upside down! Are we really ready for that? Do we still want that? I hope we are willing to do whatever it takes....

That brings us to a very important question. Why do we want “revival” anyway? It is always the rage to talk about, teach, and discuss. But when we say revival today, it merely means another round of things that did not work in the first place. Why in the world do we want to revive things that did not nor do not work? Why do we want to revive religion, traditions of men, and our precious programs? What are we holding onto? Christians and Christian leaders have been doing this for 2000 years now. I think the Lord is tired of it. I know I am. Revival can be wonderful. Get in the river and swim a while. But what the Church really needs is another “Reformation.” That is the prayer, and that is the issue. We need men to rise up and see it in the Spirit. We need to throw everything away and start over with Christ as the only foundation to build it all on, and furthermore, we need to get back to teaching Jesus and Him crucified like the Apostle Paul. We tend to teach everything around it and all the blessings of it, but we don’t actually teach the Cross and the Blood. So it comes down to Revival or Transformation/ Reformation in your city. Which do we want? Which do we choose? Mike Bickle had a visitation years ago in Cairo, Egypt in which the Lord told him that the expression of the Church and how it does Church would be completely changed in one generation in the Last Days. I believe that is the end time move of God. We've come full circle, and here we are.

Right now there is a gold rush mentality to rush somewhere where people are claiming an outpouring or a move of God is flowing. (Scripture clearly warns of this in the Gospels, too.) I am not against this at all. In fact, we are planning to go to Fort Mill sometime soon, as we can afford it. But we must be aware that this practice of running here and there can be very selfish and even become idolatry. It can also lead to division and being competitive between the churches. “I want to be the one to bring it home to my city.” Are we chasing signs and wonders, or are we chasing Jesus? Many people flocking around all over the country are chasing the wrong things, and it is sad, and grieves the Spirit. We must have a pure heart in these matters. What are we chasing? Have we forgotten that Jesus IS the gold, and the healing miracle is really not? Let’s chase Jesus, then all this other stuff naturally happens.

Sadly, the revival can actually become an idol. The outpourings did not happen because of Todd Bentley or Rick Joyner. They happened because intercessors fasted and prayed and God answered. You can do that anywhere. And now is the season to really do that as God is moving and descending seemingly all over the Earth. I believe in transferable anointings, but they will come to nothing unless intercessors are fasting and crying out for the unique and sovereign move that God wants to do in their city. People tried that in Brownsville and Toronto, too. They tried to duplicate it all over the country and transfer it, but in the majority of times, nothing came of it. That’s because we want the easy way in western churches. It is so much easier to have someone lay hands on us and attempt to transfer something than it is to work for it in fasting and prayer, or work your city toward unity.

Revivals seem to make people deaf, too, just like it did in the gold rush days. Many people are coming from Lakeland having not even listened to the prophets and what they were saying or even weighing that. They see and hear and feel. They get the warm fuzzies, but for some reason, do not listen many times. So, we need to listen. We need to discern. We must weigh it with Scripture, too. We receive prophetic words, and feel like they are to come together immediately, when the Lord could be speaking about something five years down the road. Get past the excitement and get alone with the Lord! It is in the quiet place where He speaks the loudest.

The Word of the Lord to the Intercessors across this nation and all around the world is this. “Steady. Press in. Your job is not yet done. Relax only for a moment in victory and celebrate only a few minutes. God wants to pour out everywhere, not just in five or six places. The job is NOT yet done. Do not be deceived with partial victory. Get back on the wall and back in the battle and push it all the way through until final victory comes. Pull down principalities and powers and demon spirits over the cities and nations of the Earth – not just yours or a few, but all of them. Back on the wall! Back on the wall! Take your place! Do what I have sent you to do! Your hands are trained for war. Steady. Press in. Do the job, and finish well. Don’t get carried away with victory or get too low with defeat. This is not the time to party or play. Do what you were called to do. Steady. Press in. Do the job. Establish the Kingdom. Know for sure that I am coming soon! Prepare the way of the Lord!”

Grace, Love, Favor, & Shalom! We love you on The Night Watch!

Mercy - Bob Hartley

A transcribed word from Bob Hartley, from March 26th in the IHOP–KC Prayer Room

This is a recap of a series of dreams—hundreds in fact—about Marketplace Reformers. These dreams were alarming, stunning, shocking and they were all do to with how Marketplace Reformers had not responded to mercy. The narrator of this dream said, "American Marketplace Reformers were to take people from sorry to soaring." This was to be especially applicable to the nation of Australia.. Shortly a month after this dream, Australia declared a ‘Sorry Day’. Which I knew wasn’t right since it did not reflect true mercy. I spoke to comrades about this in Canberra, Wellington, and Melbourne about this at our recent event in their area.

Marketplace Reformers
[Begins the transcribed prayer]

The Lord began this series of dreams and took me back to memories of 1983. He said in order to understand and call forth Marketplace Reformers, [referring to] political and Church reformers, you would have to see from the beginning what has happened and how and others have gone out to learn compassion on mercy. I saw the people that I knew from 1983 (South Kansas City Fellowship, Kansas City Fellowship, etc). Then all the others, from the present day, arrived in the dream. They were the Hilary's, the Obamas and the John McCains. The narrator was going through details of their personal lives, of which I didn’t pay much attention to because I was still dealing with my own issues. I was nobody else’s judge of how they were starving for mercy or not.

Definition of True Mercy
The narrator started talking about Marketplace Reformers and began to describe what true mercy looked like... Mercy was valuing God, His blood, and the incredible worth that He had placed on human beings. As I went through hours of listening to the narrator address different people and how they responded, the dreams showed me four or five ways where I saw how I measured the willingness of people, not seeing the true willingness of their heart or the value He placed on them. And I had been like Moses—hit the rock twice with other people. I also was dealing with my shame over not receiving mercy in areas that he had died to give me. I turned to the other person next to me and they said, “It will be a harder lesson to learn mercy than we ever thought it would be and yet, that’s what was required of us." And I knew that in the marketplace there was a lazy spirit about this and it was tremendous discipline commitment to learn mercy.

Bridging the gap between Marketplace Reformers & the other Reformers
He spoke to the Marketplace Reformers that they were to reflect mercy and the different faces of God in the marketplace. They were to be different than political or Church reformers. Because of the differences in their callings, the other reformers might misunderstand thoe called to the marketplace. The good news - the Lord would build a bridge to help create a heart connect. The reformers were to reflect a face of God in mercy through patriarchal means, which would lead the marketplace redemption. As a result, they would have the Zechariah 12:10 experience:


"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace
and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him
as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son."

Simon & the Marketplace Reformers
He spoke to the Marketplace Reformers next and said “You’re like Simon; you were the prostitutes in other ways in the Luke 7 passage.”


"Simon replied, 'I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.' 'You have judged correctly,' Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, 'Do you see this woman?' I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." Then Jesus said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.'"


To the marketplace reformers, He is saying, "I had given you mercy; however, you were incapable to give mercy to the prostitutes when they came in. Even more what you fail to realize is that the prostitutes were really YOU. You have been prostituting yourself in business as a consequence of not giving yourselves mercy."

I saw that we were like David when asked by Nathan what he would do to a man that stole another man’s prized lamb. David was harsh in punishment towards that man, and yet he himself was that very man. In the same way, we are not appraising how much mercy we ourselves need, and are not releasing it to others. And then He said, the only place you’ll understand this mercy is on your knees.

Getting on our knees

We ask that you join with us and pray the Philippians 1:8-9 prayer.


"God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer:
That your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight…"


Pray to receive the true knowledge of discernment of His mercy. In the dream, the Lord was giving everybody an invitation to mercy. I saw us walking on a high ridge path that lead to a place called Mercy. This path, I believe is modeled in the life of Daniel, who lived a holy life, so that they didn’t lessen His mercy toward others or the king himself.

From that place of living like Daniel, He would take us on this journey of mercy and He would tell us more on the days to come, just like he relased in that hour. Let us take the high ridge path to mercy through living a holy and intensely devoted life as exemplified by the life of Daniel. Let us get on our knees, receive His invitation to mercy and encounter Him in the place of love. Now is the time to be merciful. Now is the time to receive mercy. We must freely give and freely receive this, and most of all, we must do it together.

A word of encouragement

April 22, 2008

Kathi Pelton: GOD IS ASKING US, "WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?"


Recently, my husband and I stood with two of our dearest friends as they buried their precious son, Jason. Walking with them through his brief illness and death these last few weeks was both agonizing and beautiful. The pain and grief has been truly agonizing, and yet, as they kept their eyes fixed on the One who is forever faithful, we witnessed true beauty.

As we watched Jason's casket being lowered into the ground at his graveside service, his two young daughters (ages nine and two) moved as close as they could in order to wave goodbye to their daddy one last time. The scene would have moved the hardest of hearts to tears, and in the midst of it, I heard the Lord whisper to me, "Who do you say that I Am?"

Faithful and True

"I saw Heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice He judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on His head are many crowns. He has a name written on Him that no one knows but He Himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His name is the Word of God. The armies of Heaven were following Him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.

Out of His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. 'He will rule them with an iron scepter.' He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS." Revelation 19:11-16

Though often we do not understand God's thoughts or His ways, our spirits know without a doubt that He is forever faithful and true. Is God faithful to our friends, who just lost their son in the prime of his life? Is He "true" even though there were many unfulfilled promises that they buried with him? Though my mind cannot comprehend, my spirit cries out, "Yes...He is still faithful and true!"

On the night of Jason's death, I was taken into a brief encounter at the very time of his passing that greatly impacted my life. This encounter was not like having a vision or a dream; it was more like being taken somewhere unknown for a brief moment in time. In this encounter, I was standing in a place with swirling colors all around, and directly in front of me stood a man with curly hair. I knew in my spirit that it was Jason. I reached out to grab hold of him, but as I did, he saw something that I could not see and shouted, "My Husband!" and ran to the One he obviously could clearly see. Jason's words, "My Husband!" jolted through me like an electrical charge and instantly ended the encounter.

This very brief experience literally imparted something so beautifully intimate and full of life to my spirit that it is still difficult to describe. Those words, "My Husband!", carried in them a fulfillment of hope like nothing that I have ever experienced. It was like hearing the hope of all creation fulfilled in one moment, and in one life. I have watched video clips of American soldiers returning from Iraq to the arms of their wives and children, and even those moving reunions pale in comparison to what I heard in Jason's voice. He ran to the One who is forever faithful and true, the One who fills every promise with just one glance of His beauty, and the One who is the only King of kings and Lord of lords.

The God of Bethel

This month marks a ten-year anniversary in my life. In April 1998, I was confined to a treatment hospital for sixty days with a serious eating disorder. Though I was the wife of a pastor and mother of four small children, I had a problem that threatened to take my life. I asked my husband and our church family to help me get into a Christian treatment center so that I could recover and get the support I needed.

I had married young as a new Christian. Within a year after our wedding, my husband and I went off to Bible College together for him to study missions. Due to the fact that I had been raised in an abusive and dysfunctional home as a child, I should have taken the time to let the Lord heal me from the years of pain and wounding that I had experienced. But we were young and in love with each other and with Jesus, and we wanted to be world-changers.

During our years in Bible College, I didn't know how to deal with the pain that would emerge from my past, and I didn't understand the compassion that Jesus has on the broken-hearted. I had quickly developed a religious mindset that falsely believed that Christians didn't have broken places. Oh, how young we were! Therefore, my outlet became the development of an eating disorder that lasted over fifteen years, leaving me void of healing and full of shame.

When I came to the point of desperation and was able to humble myself and reach out for help, knowing that many would not understand, it was as though I entered a time and place in my life that I would call, "My Bethel."

The God Who Speaks

"Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel." Genesis 35:15

Though I look back on my time in the treatment center as my "dark night of the soul," I would also say that it became my Bethel. Bethel means "House of God," and in this time and place, God spoke to me more clearly than I had ever heard before and it became my House of God. I began to learn just who God was to me. Though I had called Him my Savior and Friend, in that time, I began to experience Him as Savior and Friend.

Living in the midst of sixty other broken lives, I began to discover the beauty of humility and dependency. I watched young girls and women who had lived through great suffering come face-to-face with the compassion of Christ and the love of their Heavenly Father. I was one of them. Though some did not recover, those who did stand today as pillars in the House of God. They carry a compassion for the broken and an understanding of the mercy of God like few I have ever met.

In this time, our God is speaking to those who have ears to hear. I sense that this season will mark for many a "Bethel" experience where God has spoken to His people, and it will be like an altar in their lives of moving from darkness to light.

The God Who Overcomes

"Now the salvation, and the power, and the Kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night. And they overcame him because of the Blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death." Revelation 12:10-11

Recently, I have become keenly aware that God is calling forth the broken ones and those who have felt the darkness; He is calling them to step into the Light of His love and be transformed. These will become pillars called "Overcomers," and they will know the One who is faithful and true; the One who has written on His thigh the words "King of kings and Lord of lords."

"I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of My God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of Heaven from My God; and I will also write on him My new name..." Revelation 3:11-13

Just as His name is written upon His thigh, so will His name be written on our lives as we overcome the accuser of God's people. We are in a type of spiritual boot camp where we are learning to overcome the world so that we can go into the world and not be overcome by it. It is a very vulnerable time because we are facing places of darkness. Yet, we are gaining authority through great adversity, and we are being prepared as a great army of overcomers...through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimonies.

The God Who Keeps His Promises

Though most of us entered this year believing with great excitement that we were entering a new day, this new day, for many, has not come in the way we expected. I am sure that our friends who lost their son did not think that this new day would begin with such a great loss. I am also sure that many of you reading this did not expect to face some of the trials that you have encountered in the first months of this year. But do not lose heart! When the Israelites crossed the Jordan into the land that God had promised them, the first things they encountered were fortified walls and great enemies. Remember what Joshua said not long after crossing the Jordan:

"And Joshua said, 'Ah, Sovereign LORD, why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan!'" Joshua 7:6-8

Even great men of faith like Joshua questioned God's ways. God never said that we would not face great battles; He said that we would win great battles. I believe that Jason's family has not yet seen the end of the story of his life. His life will be known as a victory! The battles that you are facing may be fierce and look as if they will overcome you...but through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of your testimony, YOU WILL OVERCOME!

There is great authority in this time being given to those who face such trials and overcome. God is creating pillars in His house. Pillars are made to hold things up! When the storms come and the battles rage, it is the pillars that strengthen the building under siege.

So, who do you say God is? I say that He is King of kings and Lord of lords. I say that He is faithful and true, even when we don't understand. I say that He is the God who keeps His promises, the God who gives us victory, and the God who heals our wounds. He is the Great I Am! He is the Author and Finisher of our faith, the beginning and the end, and our Everlasting Father.

God is asking us, "Who do you say that I Am?"

Kathi Pelton
Light Streams Ministries
Email: jkpelton@sbcglobal.net


Permission is granted (and you are also encouraged) to reprint these articles in hard copy form, as well as sending them to your own email lists and posting them on your own websites. We ask only that you keep ElijahList website, email contact info, and author contact information intact.

ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250

Reese's Pieces

Some of you may have heard me talking about following the Reese's Pieces trail that God lays out for us and how much fun it is to walk out the adventure with Him. This article does an excellent job at explaining it and encouraging us to engage in it. It is a fundamental approach that we take in the House of Prayer pretty regularly and I look forward to exploring the mysteries with you. Found a Reese's Piece just the other day in Brooklyn after representing Long Island at the House of Prayer meeting there. Check out www.thestorefront.cc and let me know what you think.

Also, on another note, there is an interesting worship gathering taking place in Kansas next month called Paradise08. love, t



Steve Witt: ""Moving from Mystery to Clarity
--Learning the Language of Heaven"
(Playing Hide and Seek with God)

"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter." Proverbs 25:2

Nature's Mysteries

There has been an urban legend that states that bees shouldn't be able to fly. Scientists are puzzled at the unique aerodynamic aspect of the wings of insects, in general. Obviously, the bees fly anyway! It is somewhat of a mystery.

I have hundreds of ducks and geese that live in my back yard. Some of them are domestic ducks that I purchased to populate our small pond. Several years ago, I wanted to move one of them to another pond about a mile away. I captured one of my large, white ducks and placed it in a closed box in my car and drove him to his new home.

After being released from the box, the white duck was surprised and puzzled at his new home, but he seemed to adjust fine. I had some work to do and periodically looked across the field to check on my new tenant. After an hour of work, I glanced to check on his progress. I couldn't see him and became alarmed, thinking a fox or large turtle might have consumed him. I investigated closer, but the duck had disappeared. I searched all over the property, lamenting over the loss of my duck...and the $15 it cost me!

I finished my work and returned home. I shared the mystery with my wife, poured a large glass of iced tea, and headed to my back deck to relax. The prodigal white duck was sitting by my lawn chair! It appeared angry at me. He had walked (he's too fat to fly) across roads, over a stream, and through fields for one mile and found his way back home. I've heard stories like this before, but I have never personally experienced it. It's a mystery.

Beer Parable

Last summer, I began to crave beer. I am not a beer drinker, nor do I even like it. Strange enough, I was craving a certain beer: Guinness. Can you crave something that you've never tasted? Apparently so! It became a joke around our house. Although I had no intentions of buying a Guinness, the strange connection continued for several weeks.

Then on a Friday morning, at 7:15, my prophetic friend, Marc Dupont, called. He began to give me a word about 2008 and, at the conclusion, recommended a book for me to read. I wrote the title of the book down, "Prophetic Untimeliness." In order to purchase the recommended book, I inquired regarding the author's name. Marc responded saying, "Guinness...Os Guinness." It was one of those odd moments. It's another mystery.

Several days later, I devoured the book, and it was life changing. Does God speak through such mysterious language? Bees that can't fly do anyway. Ducks find their way home without maps, and cravings are codes for upcoming books. He hides, we seek. He conceals, we search.

There are many mysteries in life. God is the greatest mystery, with our own destiny running a close second. The challenge of life is solving the mystery of God's communication. Is it meant to be difficult? I suppose that depends on your view of God as a Father.



Easy to Find

My children are all grown now, but I remember when they wanted to play "hide and seek" as a child. They would put their little hands over their eyes and begin counting. Quickly, I made my way to a place that would be easy to discover. Typically, I hid behind the window curtains with my feet sticking out at the bottom. In mere moments, the little kids would scream with glee and hug the daddy-shaped image in the curtain. Loving fathers hide...but not real well. We want to be found! It's a mystery, but not a difficult one. Anyone can play, and everyone can win! God is a loving Father and does the same thing.

Consider this following Scriptural passage in Deuteronomy 30:11-14:

"For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off. It is not in Heaven, that you should say, 'Who will ascend into Heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?' Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?' But the Word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it."


God's mysteries are meant to be solved. They are unto something. They are meant to reveal destinies, plans, strategies, and tactics. He does not hide them far, and invites us to participate. He loves to use terms like seek, ask, and knock.

Trusting the Father


My father used to play a similar game with me. He had a large, old-fashioned, jug sitting inside our front door. When he came home from work each day, he would empty the change out of his pocket into the jug. When vacation time would come, we would empty it, count it, and use it for something fun.

I worked my first real job when I was about sixteen. I came home one day with my first payday. My father must have tuned into my excitement about having cash in my wallet. He looked at me and said, "How much money do you have in your wallet?" I wasn't totally sure, but said, "About thirty dollars." He then said, "I'll give you everything in that jug for everything in your wallet."

This was not uncommon. It was his way of training me to take risks and make quick decisions. I asked him if I could lift the jug, because I couldn't remember when we had emptied it last and how much money it might contain. He declined. I had to take a risk, and I had to make the decision quickly. He told me that the offer was running out fast. I looked at the jug and into his eyes...back to the jug and responded, "You've got a deal." I handed him the thirty dollars and ran to empty the jug. A quick estimate was later confirmed...I had made a good deal. There was over one hundred and twenty five dollars in the jug. Do you know why I made the deal? My father loved me and I knew it! I knew that he would never make an offer to me that wouldn't work for my benefit. A loving God will not tease or trick a son or daughter. That was one of many deals we made over the years. His love empowered me to take risks. He made it easy for me to solve the dilemma, because He loved me.

"...but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits." Daniel 11:32b


It is essential for every believer to enroll in the school of interpretation. Questions need to be answered about God and about each human purpose. It is easy to back off in discouragement at dreams or circumstances that do not make sense. God is inviting us into a life of discovery...solving the mystery. To those that enroll, a life of epiphanies and glorious revelation will occur. Many marriages end today due to a lazy approach to relationship. Mysteries are replete in marriage and need to be sought out. It takes time and energy, but after all, doesn't anything of value require an investment?

Fear runs deep in our culture today. Thoughts of terrorism, sub-prime mortgage issues, and the teetering economy in general, as well as the diluting of our cultural values, leaves many living in a prison of worry. One of the fastest growing medical industries in the United States is geared toward sleep disorders. Movie star Heath Ledger's recent tragic accidental blending of medications to bring rest is a metaphor for our times. People are without rest. They have questions. They need a pioneering people that know the way and are willing to help others find it.

The Winter '08 issue of Leadership Journal had an interesting article regarding why Muslims convert to Christianity. The article had a thread of common theme throughout it. Muslims are intrigued by the lifestyle of Christians. The "pro-woman, loving God, love-filled, supernatural" lifestyle was magnetic to those that are searching and seeking. They are finding something that has previously been a mystery. They are finding that the Christian experience seems to emphasize a loving God versus the Muslim view of a punishing God. God is revealing what has previously been a mystery to many. They are discovering what many Christians have uncovered...that Jesus came to declare a "year of favor," versus a "day of judgment." The favor ratio is 365 to one. He is more favorable than judgmental.

Tricks of Heaven

God apparently loves puzzles. Why does He use mystery? I search this out in my recent book, "Voices: Understanding and Responding to the Language of Heaven." In chapter one, I tell the story of my son at the age of two. He was a typical toddler, full of energy and eager to play. Many times, I'd come home from work, just wanting to relax. He though, was eager to play, but wanted to get me off of the sofa. I'd lay there and call to him to come and give me a hug. He coyly replied, "No!" Being the lazy man I am, I developed ways to draw him to come to me. I called across the room and said, "Josh...come seg moy yum." I continued to repeat a version of this nonsensical statement over and over again. He was curious. He moved slowly closer, studying my lips, trying to understand what his Dad was saying. Eventually, he was standing right in front of me! Unaware that he had been lured into my trap through a mystery, I reached out and began to tickle him. He would go screaming to his mother. Mystery has the power to draw you in. God uses it to draw us closer to Him and reveal His purposes. Have you ever heard a sound from Heaven that said something like, "Come seg moy yum?" Many of us are unwilling to take the time...pay the price...seek the voice.

Desire is Needed

Moses had been living in the wilderness for forty years. His life was quickly turned upside down by a voice coming from a burning bush. The Bible says that he, "Turned aside to see the great sight." The text then says, "When the Lord saw that he turned aside to look...God called to him" (Exodus 3:3-4). In this case, a simple "turning aside" provided a doorway to revelation. The mystery of a burning bush was solved by simply taking a moment and reflecting. God saw it, and responded. Could it be possible that "intentionality" is needed to solve many mysteries? If we just stop and desire to understand, we might solve the mysteries of life? Many of us are frustrated and say, "If God really wanted me to do this, He would be clear." A simple look at the Gospels clearly shows that much of the time the disciples were confused as to Jesus' intentions. Phrases like, "And they knew not what He meant," occur often.

Jesus began to build curiosity regarding the next phase of God's unfolding plan by cryptic communication regarding His leaving and the Holy Spirit's coming (Luke 24:49). By the time that Acts 2 has appeared, Jesus is gone and they are waiting patiently for...a mystery. One hundred and twenty people are spiritually sequestered in an upper room, excited, unified, and probably very curious! The Holy Spirit came in power with unusual accompanying of manifestations. The followers of Christ had experienced tongues of fire and apparent drunkenness, with a new ability to communicate in seventeen different languages! The mystery of the new age of His Kingdom was unfolding.

Questions Needing Answers

This historic day brought up two major questions in the early Church, "What does this mean?" and "What must we do?" These will always be the two mysteries for the Church to solve. These are the same questions that people have today about every mystery in life. To the degree that the Church is able to answer these questions is the degree of influence it will have in today's culture. The questions demand wisdom, but at a deeper level, they call for a prophetic people. The people that hear from God will rule the day. They will be the lights. They will be the guides.

Many dilemmas face our society today. The challenging battle between traditional medicine and alternative medicine is flaring up, with record amounts of organic foods and alternative treatments being unveiled. Ecological and business concerns are starting to come together. These former enemies are finding common ground and solving the mysteries by finding symbiotic ways of forming alliances. Evangelicals and Charismatics have worn down walls and distinguishing between them is becoming more difficult.

Mysteries have been solved with record pace over the past twenty years. The Church needs to be at the forefront of the revolution of discovery. Where are the people who will hear the voice of Heaven? God has called us to solve the puzzles of life. Nehemiah had a plan to rebuild Jerusalem. Daniel received revelation regarding his King and the future of the kingdom. Joseph saved Egypt and secured the Jewish people during a time of famine. The recent movie, "Evan Almighty," brings this ancient challenge into the contemporary times. It's the story of a recently elected congressman that is given a Noah-like call for the 21st century. It is humorous, yet prophetic. An unfolding clarity came to Evan as he was challenged deeper into God's will for his life. Will we implement the interpretation of God's communication into our current lives? Will we take the time to listen...turn aside...and respond to the voice of Heaven? Our futures may be determined by how we answer this question.

Some mysteries will take greater time. The challenges today can be very complex, demanding a solomonic level of wisdom. How will we cope with extreme mysteries? I believe that 1 Corinthians holds the answer. When you encounter something that comes as a foreign language, what do you do? Consider this passage that speaks to a common mystery in the church of Corinth:

"For he who speaks in a tongue do not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries...There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without significance. Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me...Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret." 1 Corinthians 14:2, 10-11, 13

Mysteries come in many ways. Mysteries are to be interpreted. The onus is upon us. We are learning to be interpreters. Like a foreign language, conundrums of the day will need interpretation. Paul challenges us that when we face a mystery, "Pray that you may interpret." A life of intimacy will begin to unveil the mysteries of the ages. Enter God's language school. Give yourself to understanding His voice.

Learning a Language

There are basic components to learning any language. Learning the language of Heaven is similar. Here are the five paths to successful learning of any mystery...including language:

1. Motivation--Whether it's French, Spanish or Heaven, you must desire deeply to understand.

2. Equipping--The Bible is God's language book. Study it and know how He communicates. You'll be amazed at what you will discover about Heaven's language through the Bible.

3. Environment--Create a church culture that celebrates Heaven's voice and communication.

4. Humility--Every language will humble you as you begin to speak its sounds. Don't be afraid to fail. Find an environment that encourages and celebrates risk.

5. Time--Crash courses will leave you anemic regarding understanding. There are few shortcuts. Take the time to get it right. Learn the voice of God!

Where is the Church heading? How will leadership shift in the future? What is the right model for building a true Kingdom culture? Are tragic situations going to radically change how we live? What is my true destiny? What are the futures of my children?

These are all mysteries...are you up for solving it? We may never understand about the ducks and the bees, but God is willing to help us solve some of life's greatest mysteries. Are you willing to turn aside, be curious, move close and hear the heartbeat of God?



Steve Witt
Email: admin@istevewitt.com



Steve Witt has been a church planter for 30 years. He has been a leader in the Vineyard in Canada and former apostolic team member for Partners in Harvest (Toronto). He served as a business coach for nine years and has done training in over 25 nations. He is currently pastor for Metro Church South in the Cleveland, Ohio, area. Steve is married to Cindy and they have four grown children.




Permission is granted (and you are also encouraged) to reprint these articles in hard copy form, as well as sending them to your own email lists and posting them on your own websites. We ask only that you keep ElijahList website, email contact info, and author contact information intact.

ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250



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