The Lord put it on my spirit saying that one of the ways we can really grow spiritually is when we move outside of our comfort zone. When I look at my own life for examples, so many of the times that I've had spiritual breakthroughs was when I was willing to do something that was uncomfortable, something I would rather not do. I have found myself again having to learn to move outside of my comfort zone recently, to really be willing to put myself out there. It has been a little scary, truth be told, but each time it gets easier. It is being willing to take that first step that is the hardest part.
When we are too comfortable, it is easy to get lazy. It is easy to lose sight of the goal in being obedient to Christ. Even worse, it is easier to find ourselves falling into a state of lukewarmness. Look at many of the comfortable churches, and then look at the church and nations where persecution exists and is common place, and consider the two examples. What do you see?
Jesus said,
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. ~ Matthew 16:24 (KJV)
What I wonder is, why is it common assumption that this does not apply to us? Why is it believed that we do not need to do anything else once we are saved? I once heard it said that when it comes to our relationship with God, we are either moving forward in it or we are moving back. There is no standing still. If we expect to move forward, we need to be willing to do our part as well. It's not all on God. He wants us to do our part. We have to move whichever way He wants us to move. We need to be willing to take up our crosses and follow Christ.
Do you really want to know how far ahead you can move? Do you want to see God really moving in your life? Do you want God to use you? Then when there is something He wants you to do, no matter what it is, even if it is something you really don't want to do . . . do it anyway. It's hard, but like I said before, the hardest part is simply being willing. Once we have taken that first step, it gets easier. When you are willing, when you do step out there and do whatever it is He is moving you to do, you will find yourself advancing spiritually. You will find Him moving in your life.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Are You Looking at the Storm?
In Matthew 14:23-33, we read:
23And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
24But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
25And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
26And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
27But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
28And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
32And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.
33Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.
Many of you may be facing storms in your life right now. Maybe you've found yourself unemployed, and having a hard time finding work. Maybe you're having trouble paying your bills, or simply having a hard time keeping up with them at all. Maybe there is some kind of drama in your family right now, or maybe you are feeling that your job is making more demands than what you are able to give. In some ways, you may be feeling overwhelmed by the situations that you face. Even looking outside of personal experiences, you may be thinking that the future looks harsh. Prices being raised, a struggling economy, increasing tensions among nations, and simply bazarre news stories. These things can be enough to create fear in people, wondering what's next.
In all of these concerns, and all of these struggles, it's important to keep our eyes on Jesus. If you have a storm that is brewing in your life, or even if it is raging, keep your eyes on Jesus. Just as Peter when he was standing on the water, Jesus is able to keep us afloat. The greater the storms we face, the more cautious we need to be of where our focus is at. These things we have to deal with, they demand our focus and they insist on our attention. It can be really hard not to find ourselves dwelling on these things. Then like Peter, we find ourselves sinking and struggling, fearful. But even then Jesus will be there, reaching out His hand to us, saying, 'You of little faith. Why did you doubt?'
You see, no matter what we are facing, no matter what our obstacles are, no matter how high the odds are stacked against us - Jesus is there. He is with us, and He will keep us afloat. We just need to be sure that we are keeping our eyes on Him rather than the storm.
Don't let the storm capture your focus. Keep your eyes on Jesus!
23And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
24But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
25And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
26And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
27But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
28And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
32And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.
33Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.
Many of you may be facing storms in your life right now. Maybe you've found yourself unemployed, and having a hard time finding work. Maybe you're having trouble paying your bills, or simply having a hard time keeping up with them at all. Maybe there is some kind of drama in your family right now, or maybe you are feeling that your job is making more demands than what you are able to give. In some ways, you may be feeling overwhelmed by the situations that you face. Even looking outside of personal experiences, you may be thinking that the future looks harsh. Prices being raised, a struggling economy, increasing tensions among nations, and simply bazarre news stories. These things can be enough to create fear in people, wondering what's next.
In all of these concerns, and all of these struggles, it's important to keep our eyes on Jesus. If you have a storm that is brewing in your life, or even if it is raging, keep your eyes on Jesus. Just as Peter when he was standing on the water, Jesus is able to keep us afloat. The greater the storms we face, the more cautious we need to be of where our focus is at. These things we have to deal with, they demand our focus and they insist on our attention. It can be really hard not to find ourselves dwelling on these things. Then like Peter, we find ourselves sinking and struggling, fearful. But even then Jesus will be there, reaching out His hand to us, saying, 'You of little faith. Why did you doubt?'
You see, no matter what we are facing, no matter what our obstacles are, no matter how high the odds are stacked against us - Jesus is there. He is with us, and He will keep us afloat. We just need to be sure that we are keeping our eyes on Him rather than the storm.
Don't let the storm capture your focus. Keep your eyes on Jesus!
Armor of God
I've been wanting to do a message regarding the armor of God for a while now. But for one reason or another, wasn't able to quite get it put together. I have a renewed sense of importance that we need to examine just what it means to be clothed in the full armor of God. I've been observing things that have been going on in the world, and things that are happening with Christians right now, and there's a lot of spiritual influence going on that we need to be careful of. I believe that there is a lot going on in the spiritual realm. I believe our adversary seeks to knock us from our paths, and the closer you're following God's will for your life, the more focus that "bull's eye" will be on you. So I believe it's important to understand the armor of God, and how it is that we can apply it to our lives.
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:10-17 (NIV)
So, looking at these verses, how is it we can do this? How can we apply this to our lives? Well, this is at least the way I've come to understand it.
The first part, Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist...
I believe it's important that we live in truth, and speak in truth. If we find deceit to be a regular player in our lives, then we will not be able to wear the belt of truth. Likewise, the occassional lie here and there, even "white lies", make it increasingly difficult to properly wield the belt of truth. Like the Roman soldiers in the past whose belts' sole purpose was to support the rest of the armor and their weapon, this, too, will support the rest of the armor of God. Jesus is truth, and therefore the support and foundation for the rest of the armor.
The next part, with the breastplate of righteousness in place...
In battle, the breastplate serves one purpose, and that is to protect the vital organs. We need to understand that our own righteousness will not protect us. Only through God do we receive protection. However, we should make every effort to follow God's commandments. While we're not perfect, we cannot use this fact and the gift of grace as an excuse to go out doing whatever it is we want to do. We need to seek to live righteous lives through Christ. God grants protection for those who follow His commands. This protection, I believe, is mostly observed in the spiritual, though it can translate into the physical as well. This doesn't mean that we won't be without hard times, it's the hard times that allow us to grow and rely more heavily on God. It does help us in dealing with these hard times, though. Those who live in active sin open a doorway to spiritual influence. Oppression, and in most extreme cases even possession. If we apply the breastplate of righteousness by living under His will and repenting of any sin in our lives, then the foothold the enemy can gain against us will crumble. The door we didn't even realize was opened, would be slammed shut.
It goes on to say, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace...
I believe that this means we need to be prepared with the good news of Jesus Christ, and to be ready to share this with others. It is through Jesus that we can be brought into peace with God. Show peace in your actions and the way you encounter others, and allow this to be your firm foothold.
Then it says, In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one...
Faith is truly important. With faith, mountains can be moved. The enemy will use any tactic against us he can manage, but having faith that God is greater than anything that comes against us will shield us from their advances. If we hold tight to the shield of faith, then we are protected. Without the shield, we rely only on ourselves, our own abilities. But if you think about it, just like the person standing in the battlefield without a shield, can they rely on their own ability for protection from the rain of arrows that's coming down on them? Likewise, we can't rely on our own defenses against the arrows of the enemy. But with faith in Christ, we are shielded.
Take the helmet of salvation...
Needless to say, without being saved we cannot wear the helmet of salvation. It is an essential part of the armor, and without it there is no survival. We have to give ourselves fully over to Jesus, and allow Him to be our Savior, our Deliverer, because we can neither save nor deliver ourselves.
Then it says, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God...
God's Word is powerful, and it can cut down the defenses of the enemy. The written word is the Bible, and the living word is Jesus Christ. The power of both the living word, and the written word are mighty weapons against the adversary. Simply the name of Jesus alone holds much power. His name alone causes demons to flee. We can even see the power that His name holds, or even that the Bible holds, in the physical as well.
Looking at names like Muhammad and Buddha, Krishna, Zeus, or any of the many that you can take your pick from, if you mention these names in front of a group of people you won't create nearly the reaction that you would if you'd speak the name of Jesus Christ instead. All we have to do is mention HIS name or quote a verse from scripture and the world squirms and takes offense. When we wield the sword of the Spirit and allow it to be directed by God, it then becomes a very powerful piece of the armor.
The important thing is to be sure to equip the full armor. If any piece is missing, that leaves us open to attack and we become less effective.
Also notice that there seems to be two aspects of applying each piece. The first and most important is that every piece always comes back to Jesus. Without Jesus, we cannot apply this armor. The second is the condition of our lives. We need to examine ourselves and see how our lives line up with this. We need to examine what areas we need to change in order for the armor to be able to fit. This doesn't mean that you won't slip up, but what's important is that when you do, you just need to be certain that you pray and repent over it. Active sin, as I mentioned before, will open us up to spiritual attack and spiritual strongholds. A stronghold is an area of your life in which the devil knows is a weakness for you. It's an area that they will seek to use against you, and it's particular strong spiritual influence is aimed at disturbing your walk with Christ. Now, if we've opened ourselves up to influence and strongholds through sin, how can we expect the protection that the armor of God will grant us if we have allowed ourselves to be exposed in the first place?
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:10-17 (NIV)
So, looking at these verses, how is it we can do this? How can we apply this to our lives? Well, this is at least the way I've come to understand it.
The first part, Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist...
I believe it's important that we live in truth, and speak in truth. If we find deceit to be a regular player in our lives, then we will not be able to wear the belt of truth. Likewise, the occassional lie here and there, even "white lies", make it increasingly difficult to properly wield the belt of truth. Like the Roman soldiers in the past whose belts' sole purpose was to support the rest of the armor and their weapon, this, too, will support the rest of the armor of God. Jesus is truth, and therefore the support and foundation for the rest of the armor.
The next part, with the breastplate of righteousness in place...
In battle, the breastplate serves one purpose, and that is to protect the vital organs. We need to understand that our own righteousness will not protect us. Only through God do we receive protection. However, we should make every effort to follow God's commandments. While we're not perfect, we cannot use this fact and the gift of grace as an excuse to go out doing whatever it is we want to do. We need to seek to live righteous lives through Christ. God grants protection for those who follow His commands. This protection, I believe, is mostly observed in the spiritual, though it can translate into the physical as well. This doesn't mean that we won't be without hard times, it's the hard times that allow us to grow and rely more heavily on God. It does help us in dealing with these hard times, though. Those who live in active sin open a doorway to spiritual influence. Oppression, and in most extreme cases even possession. If we apply the breastplate of righteousness by living under His will and repenting of any sin in our lives, then the foothold the enemy can gain against us will crumble. The door we didn't even realize was opened, would be slammed shut.
It goes on to say, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace...
I believe that this means we need to be prepared with the good news of Jesus Christ, and to be ready to share this with others. It is through Jesus that we can be brought into peace with God. Show peace in your actions and the way you encounter others, and allow this to be your firm foothold.
Then it says, In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one...
Faith is truly important. With faith, mountains can be moved. The enemy will use any tactic against us he can manage, but having faith that God is greater than anything that comes against us will shield us from their advances. If we hold tight to the shield of faith, then we are protected. Without the shield, we rely only on ourselves, our own abilities. But if you think about it, just like the person standing in the battlefield without a shield, can they rely on their own ability for protection from the rain of arrows that's coming down on them? Likewise, we can't rely on our own defenses against the arrows of the enemy. But with faith in Christ, we are shielded.
Take the helmet of salvation...
Needless to say, without being saved we cannot wear the helmet of salvation. It is an essential part of the armor, and without it there is no survival. We have to give ourselves fully over to Jesus, and allow Him to be our Savior, our Deliverer, because we can neither save nor deliver ourselves.
Then it says, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God...
God's Word is powerful, and it can cut down the defenses of the enemy. The written word is the Bible, and the living word is Jesus Christ. The power of both the living word, and the written word are mighty weapons against the adversary. Simply the name of Jesus alone holds much power. His name alone causes demons to flee. We can even see the power that His name holds, or even that the Bible holds, in the physical as well.
Looking at names like Muhammad and Buddha, Krishna, Zeus, or any of the many that you can take your pick from, if you mention these names in front of a group of people you won't create nearly the reaction that you would if you'd speak the name of Jesus Christ instead. All we have to do is mention HIS name or quote a verse from scripture and the world squirms and takes offense. When we wield the sword of the Spirit and allow it to be directed by God, it then becomes a very powerful piece of the armor.
The important thing is to be sure to equip the full armor. If any piece is missing, that leaves us open to attack and we become less effective.
Also notice that there seems to be two aspects of applying each piece. The first and most important is that every piece always comes back to Jesus. Without Jesus, we cannot apply this armor. The second is the condition of our lives. We need to examine ourselves and see how our lives line up with this. We need to examine what areas we need to change in order for the armor to be able to fit. This doesn't mean that you won't slip up, but what's important is that when you do, you just need to be certain that you pray and repent over it. Active sin, as I mentioned before, will open us up to spiritual attack and spiritual strongholds. A stronghold is an area of your life in which the devil knows is a weakness for you. It's an area that they will seek to use against you, and it's particular strong spiritual influence is aimed at disturbing your walk with Christ. Now, if we've opened ourselves up to influence and strongholds through sin, how can we expect the protection that the armor of God will grant us if we have allowed ourselves to be exposed in the first place?
Saturday, May 14, 2011
A Royal Invitation
People have been enthralled by royalty for ages now. People have wanted to know everything there is to know about the lives of the kings, queens, princes, and princesses. In modern times this also includes celebrities because they function as American royalty.
Prior to the wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton, so many were watching and waiting for every detail. Many of the ladies have been intrigued by the fashion and learning ways to make it their own. People swoon over and idolize royalty and Stars. Many are willing to spend a lot of money on a ticket in hopes of finding themselves in close proximity to one of their favorites.
Prior to the wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton, so many were watching and waiting for every detail. Many of the ladies have been intrigued by the fashion and learning ways to make it their own. People swoon over and idolize royalty and Stars. Many are willing to spend a lot of money on a ticket in hopes of finding themselves in close proximity to one of their favorites.
So many are so caught up in a life they will never be a part of. But don’t you know? You have the King of all kings wanting YOUR attention! The Lord of all things longs for your love, for your acceptance, He wants YOU! Why do you wait? He offers eternity! He offers you the Cross! Through the cross forgiveness of sins, ALL sins can be had. What greater gift could you possibly receive? All He asks for in return is repentance and obedience. This in exchange for LIFE!
Friday, May 6, 2011
Cities in Ruin and a Message (A Dream)
This is the dream that I woke up from yesterday. I think my dream started out here at home. My mother was with me and it was evening time. We were looking out the window and mom was sharing some ideas about how to deter an intruder should they try to come through these windows. I remember looking out the windows and was drawn outside because there was more people out there than what there should be. We went outside to see what was going on and I noticed that the scenery outside wasn’t quite like that of what home should be. I thought this was a little strange because usually when I have a dream and the setting isn’t quite right I don’t notice this until after I wake up. But this time I was observing it in the dream. There was a certain amount of people walking around and driving though as if it were perfectly normal for so many to be there. In reality my road is typically very quiet and only occasionally traveled.
I looked around and noticed there was a very large and steep hill right in front of the house. As I observed this hill I became concerned because of there being a number of very large rocks on top of this hill right over the house. I mean these were like huge boulders, more than capable of crushing the house should they come falling down. While I was observing them the verse came to my mind about how in the day of the Lord men would be hiding themselves beneath rocks, begging that these rocks would fall down on them and hide them from the face of the Lamb.
As I began to look around some more I realized I was seeing a lot more than what I should be able to see. Mom was still with me and she was seeing them too. We were pointing things out to each other as we looked around. We could see images of various world landmarks all around us. I can’t remember what they all were, but I know that a few were from the United States. The ones I remember for sure was the statue of liberty. Another I saw and I said liberty building, I'm not sure if there is actually anything called liberty building. I’m thinking it was supposed to be the Freedom Tower that they are constructing in New York. The thing is every single landmark we saw was in ruin. Then I saw an image of a baby being held by its mother, mom saw it as two babies side by side because this is what she said to me in my dream. But we both saw a look of sadness on this baby's face.
Suddenly I’m in this building. I realize that I’m with a small group of people, but they aren’t in there with me. They are outside somewhere. We have contacts with other groups. I think we are preparing to meet up with one. While I’m in there this communication device starts ringing or buzzing or something. It reminded me of a fax machine at first, except it had a handset to answer it and you could speak through it like it was a radio. While this was ringing I had in mind one of my contacts who was a police officer. She was one of the group we were supposed to meet. While this radio or whatever it is keeps ringing I keep trying to turn it off. Every time I think it’s disconnected, it just starts ringing again. I keep disconnecting it over and over again, and it just keeps ringing. At one point during this I receive a voice mail on my phone. So I listen. I hear the voice of the police officer amid a lot of static saying that they wouldn’t be meeting with us. They got hit and they all died. She even said she died! I’m thinking to myself, "What? What do you mean you died? You’re leaving me a voice mail." I realize at this time it was this same thing that was trying to come across on the radio I kept trying to disconnect. Then I have a second voicemail. This time there is still static, but I can here her a little bit better. Again she says that her group was hit and they all died. But then she says that there was another group that was hit as well and they all died. She mentions another person who was killed. This person is someone I remember from youtube. She is a member of the military and the thought in my mind was a realization that she was our military contact. She then goes on to tell me information directly from God Himself. I don’t remember all of it, but I got the impression there was something for us to do. I specifically remember her mentioning that God was putting His mark on us, what crossed my mind was that God was spiritually putting His seal upon our foreheads. There was more that was said, but it wasn’t much more and I don’t remember what it was. In my dream I broke down balling because of all the sudden death of these people who were my friends. I intended to alert the rest of my group once I recovered my composure. It was at this time that I woke up.
I looked around and noticed there was a very large and steep hill right in front of the house. As I observed this hill I became concerned because of there being a number of very large rocks on top of this hill right over the house. I mean these were like huge boulders, more than capable of crushing the house should they come falling down. While I was observing them the verse came to my mind about how in the day of the Lord men would be hiding themselves beneath rocks, begging that these rocks would fall down on them and hide them from the face of the Lamb.
As I began to look around some more I realized I was seeing a lot more than what I should be able to see. Mom was still with me and she was seeing them too. We were pointing things out to each other as we looked around. We could see images of various world landmarks all around us. I can’t remember what they all were, but I know that a few were from the United States. The ones I remember for sure was the statue of liberty. Another I saw and I said liberty building, I'm not sure if there is actually anything called liberty building. I’m thinking it was supposed to be the Freedom Tower that they are constructing in New York. The thing is every single landmark we saw was in ruin. Then I saw an image of a baby being held by its mother, mom saw it as two babies side by side because this is what she said to me in my dream. But we both saw a look of sadness on this baby's face.
Suddenly I’m in this building. I realize that I’m with a small group of people, but they aren’t in there with me. They are outside somewhere. We have contacts with other groups. I think we are preparing to meet up with one. While I’m in there this communication device starts ringing or buzzing or something. It reminded me of a fax machine at first, except it had a handset to answer it and you could speak through it like it was a radio. While this was ringing I had in mind one of my contacts who was a police officer. She was one of the group we were supposed to meet. While this radio or whatever it is keeps ringing I keep trying to turn it off. Every time I think it’s disconnected, it just starts ringing again. I keep disconnecting it over and over again, and it just keeps ringing. At one point during this I receive a voice mail on my phone. So I listen. I hear the voice of the police officer amid a lot of static saying that they wouldn’t be meeting with us. They got hit and they all died. She even said she died! I’m thinking to myself, "What? What do you mean you died? You’re leaving me a voice mail." I realize at this time it was this same thing that was trying to come across on the radio I kept trying to disconnect. Then I have a second voicemail. This time there is still static, but I can here her a little bit better. Again she says that her group was hit and they all died. But then she says that there was another group that was hit as well and they all died. She mentions another person who was killed. This person is someone I remember from youtube. She is a member of the military and the thought in my mind was a realization that she was our military contact. She then goes on to tell me information directly from God Himself. I don’t remember all of it, but I got the impression there was something for us to do. I specifically remember her mentioning that God was putting His mark on us, what crossed my mind was that God was spiritually putting His seal upon our foreheads. There was more that was said, but it wasn’t much more and I don’t remember what it was. In my dream I broke down balling because of all the sudden death of these people who were my friends. I intended to alert the rest of my group once I recovered my composure. It was at this time that I woke up.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
This May Surprise You
I’m going to say some things here that will likely shock some of you. At the same time, I believe there are others on here who will find confirmation in it. Earlier this evening I had a thought put on my mind. I felt the Spirit was very insistent that I put this out here, and I’ve been trying to listen more to what the Spirit leads me in.
There are a multitude of people in this world who see Christianity as little more than a religion dead in its claims; one option among many; one path no different than the rest. They say why does the Bible speak of miracles yet we see nothing? Even many churches no longer believe in the capabilities of God. Doubt plagues the mind of even some believers. The Bible speaks of great things which many don’t expect to see today. Why is this?
Is it because God no longer does these things? Is He less capable today than He was then? No . . . He is just as capable as He has ever been. The problem is many of His people have forgotten. The Bible speaks of great things that would be demonstrated in the lives of believers. Jesus said that they would go on to perform exploits even greater than He did. The early church was on fire! The book of Acts shows many great things performed by the Spirit through the believers in Christ. Did these things pass away?
Would it surprise you if I told you many great things were occurring today in the Church in other areas of the world? The underground church in China has seen miracles on par with the book of Acts. This is only one such example. Why? Why do they see these things and those of us in the West, for the most part, have not? Because they have believed. They took Jesus at His word. When the Bible speaks of such things being possible, they believed it! Therefore they have seen it. These areas in the world have seen great revival because the believers know the Spirit is alive and active in this world. They know the Bible is true to its word, even in the areas that can prove hardest for people to believe. And they know if they do what the Bible teaches then God will come through.
The western Church tends to have trouble in some of these areas. Many try to find ways to make their faith fit with what the world expects. Many have been taught a watered down Gospel lacking the power of the Spirit. When they are told these things are not for today, they believe it. My suggestion is this. Stop listening to what you are being told. I don’t care who tells you. Stop listening. Pick up your Bible and read it for yourself. You might find yourself truly amazed at how different the teachings you have been hearing are from what you can find in the written Word of God. You will find Jesus teaches you to live a life quite different from what many churches practice. You will see a great importance placed on faith, prayer and fasting. And you will discover a variety of possible giftings of the Holy Spirit freely given to the believers in Christ to build up the spiritual lives of the believers; and to build up the Church.
We have not been utilizing these spiritual giftings. It’s because we lack the faith that they are there. For the most part churches have even stopped teaching them, or they have not been teaching them in their entirety. Now if this has surprised you so far, then I’m about to surprise you again.
When I say much of the western Church has been lacking in these ways, I’m not speaking about everyone. I say this not as a guess or assumption. I say this because of experience. I know the Spirit is still greatly active in this world because I have seen the results first hand. And I also know there are still many others even right here in the western church that has as well. I believe a number of you have as well, but we’ve not been talking about it. We’ve been afraid to share these things. We figure who will believe us, and so we keep quiet. I believe we should stop remaining quiet and start declaring the ways in which God has worked in our lives. Fully, not holding back because the world is skeptical. Part of the reason some are skeptical is because they have not learned of just how God has been moving still.
So I’m going to take my own advice here and put some things out there. I’ve had dreams, which I’ve recently mentioned on here once before, that I have no doubt were God given. It was such dreams that drew me to Christ to begin with. On one occasion my life and the life of my sister was spared when others insisted a car we were in should have burst into flames. Twice I’ve known first hand of miraculous instantaneous healings from those who were dying. One was a lady from a church I attended for years. She had cancer. Her stomach was eaten up by it and it was continuing to get worse. One day the pastor went up to her and her husband and told her she had been healed. They were in shock and didn’t quite understand what he was saying. So he said, “God has healed you. You no longer need your treatments.” This was confirmed when the doctor could no longer find her tumors. The second, and I know some of you will find this silly. Though it was something that was important to me and I believe if things are important to His children then it's important to God. A few years back I received this little puppy that after a little while became sick. I had been reading about Jesus talking about the importance of faith and how even faith the size of mustard seed could move mountains. So I decided to apply this lesson to my prayer and pray in full faith for the health of this pup. The very next day he was in perfect health. His sister however became sick and went down fast. We didn’t even have the chance to get her to the vet because we hadn’t realized she was so sick. The two slept in the same house and ate from the same food. After she died and the next started showing signs of this same illness we took him to a vet. This one was diagnosed with parvo and was treated. My puppy, the first to show symptoms, (and as it turns out were the later stage symptoms) was still doing well. When we described to them at the vets office how close he lived with the one which died and his age, they said there was no way he wouldn’t get sick and it was unlikely he would even survive it because he was so young. Yet he was in perfect health without even receiving veterinary assistance. All this time later I still have him, and he never did fall back into ill health. I call him my miracle dog.
Another instance of God at work is that a number of times God has provided for my family when we found ourselves in need at the exact time this help was needed. There was no previous indication that any form of help was coming and if it had not we would have been in trouble.
Another time I was in the room with my maternal grandmother as she passed away. Minutes before it happened the little dog which had been too afraid to come into this room for the whole week prior came running in with excitement. It stared at the space above my grandmother's bed, wagging its tale making happy puppy noises, and looking as if it wanted to approach before deciding to leave the room again. I believe it was watching something occur that the people in there could not see. These are only a few of the instances in which I’ve experienced something beyond what people tend to expect these days.
The interesting thing is, since coming online I have discovered that there are a number of others who are having these same types of experiences. I believe there are a lot more as well.
For so long I wouldn’t talk about these things unless I really trusted the person I was telling. I knew people wouldn’t believe me. Even members of the church wouldn’t believe me. I suspect that many of the people out there who have witnessed these things have had the same thoughts. “Why share? They’ll just think I’m lying or crazy.” But here is the thing. As long as we remain silent on these things then people are going to continue believing them impossible. The Bible mentions there will be certain attributes that will be seen in the lives of believers. Not for us to take pride in. But to serve as confirmation of the Gospel being preached. Will people disbelieve if you tell them these things? There are those who will. However the more willing we are to talk about the full extent of the things God is doing in our lives the more you may find others admitting these same things. Beloved don’t be afraid to share. Don’t be afraid to admit that your God still has power in this world. He is just as capable today as He was yesterday. The greater the faith of His people, the greater He will move among us. When God is moving, true revival follows. When Elijah stood before the prophets of Baal it was the God of Abraham that had the true power. And today when His people are faced with preaching the gospel in a disbelieving generation; a generation who believes that Jesus is no different than any other, it will again be our God that has the true power. His people just need to believe again and those who have witnessed it first hand need to be honest about what they have encountered.
The Church needs to come alive. Deception is taking hold of those around you. To those of you who have experienced the miraculous start talking about it. The Church needs to remember who their God is. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. People should know there is still real spiritual power in the name of Christ. So beloved I urge you, if God has done something in your life beyond what people believe is possible, don’t hide it. If you’ve had a prayer answered, known someone healed or been healed yourself, been given a prophecy, spoken in tongues or any number of possibilities don’t be afraid to talk about it. Share it! Let people know this was done by your God and you serve a risen King.
Monday, March 7, 2011
It Will Cost You Everything
I had a dream this morning. I went back and forward from thinking it was real, because it was very vivid and detailed to knowing it was a dream. Either way I felt it was important to pay attention.
I was lying on the couch sleeping when I heard a motor. I got up to see what was going on when I spotted a UPS truck coming around the corner of the road. I thought it was a little unusual because I live on a little country road just outside of town and I don't order from somewhere that uses UPS only shipping because they have a hard time finding my house and the packages are left elsewhere.
As I was watching I noticed a rather large package was being carted out and set up on the bank behind my house. When it was opened up there was something along the lines of a large radio. From what I could hear of the conversation of those up there (now it was more than just a single delivery man) I got the impression this radio was something being used to keep track of and spy on people. I heard a mention of the Census people as well. Like the excuse was to keep the Census takers safe when they came back through. (In real life when the Census takers came through there was one that was brutally murdered and strung up somewhere close to my area maybe a state over. The official report was suicide . . . )
Then I noticed two men up there talking with each other. They were almost like parodies of what they were supposed to represent. One was like an old testament prophet complete with long white hair and beard and robes. The other was a modern Christian who looked a little like a hippie. He came off a bit on the ignorant side. Like he didn't really understand spiritual truths and was more parroting things he's heard. They were having a conversation. It was like the prophet was trying to teach things to the Christian, and he was having a hard time understanding. I remember the Christian asking the prophet if he had been baptized at one point. I also remember the prophet looking slightly annoyed, but still patient that he was having a hard time getting this man to understand the things he was trying to tell him. Although I heard the conversation in my dream, I've forgotten much of it. Though at the end they were talking about the cost. How much being a Christian would cost us. The Christian man still wasn't understanding the importance of the conversation. Then I heard a very clear voice-over saying, "It will cost you everything." It then flashed back to an image that was a closeup of this same Christian man's face. I realised that it was his head lying on the ground. He had been beheaded. It wasn't the prophet that had done it through. It was more along the lines of, this is what his future was. At this point I woke up.
I was lying on the couch sleeping when I heard a motor. I got up to see what was going on when I spotted a UPS truck coming around the corner of the road. I thought it was a little unusual because I live on a little country road just outside of town and I don't order from somewhere that uses UPS only shipping because they have a hard time finding my house and the packages are left elsewhere.
As I was watching I noticed a rather large package was being carted out and set up on the bank behind my house. When it was opened up there was something along the lines of a large radio. From what I could hear of the conversation of those up there (now it was more than just a single delivery man) I got the impression this radio was something being used to keep track of and spy on people. I heard a mention of the Census people as well. Like the excuse was to keep the Census takers safe when they came back through. (In real life when the Census takers came through there was one that was brutally murdered and strung up somewhere close to my area maybe a state over. The official report was suicide . . . )
Then I noticed two men up there talking with each other. They were almost like parodies of what they were supposed to represent. One was like an old testament prophet complete with long white hair and beard and robes. The other was a modern Christian who looked a little like a hippie. He came off a bit on the ignorant side. Like he didn't really understand spiritual truths and was more parroting things he's heard. They were having a conversation. It was like the prophet was trying to teach things to the Christian, and he was having a hard time understanding. I remember the Christian asking the prophet if he had been baptized at one point. I also remember the prophet looking slightly annoyed, but still patient that he was having a hard time getting this man to understand the things he was trying to tell him. Although I heard the conversation in my dream, I've forgotten much of it. Though at the end they were talking about the cost. How much being a Christian would cost us. The Christian man still wasn't understanding the importance of the conversation. Then I heard a very clear voice-over saying, "It will cost you everything." It then flashed back to an image that was a closeup of this same Christian man's face. I realised that it was his head lying on the ground. He had been beheaded. It wasn't the prophet that had done it through. It was more along the lines of, this is what his future was. At this point I woke up.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)