Let The Morning Bring Me Word…

Psalm 143:8 “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.”

How often we get this verse backwards! We seek God’s face for direction, but forget that FIRST we need to seek His unfailing love. We need to know beyond knowing that He loves us. We feel unfulfilled and directionless when we are not first fulfilled with His love. But once our hearts are satisfied in Him, with His love, we will be fulfilled, no matter what the direction.
Before we ask “what should I do?”…we should be asking “would you please show me again today how much you love me?” It’s when we forget how much we are loved that we lose our way. We begin to try to attain a sense of fulfillment within other things, with “fillers”. A “filler” is just something that just takes the shape of the what is missing. We make our lives numb with time-fillers, trying to satisfy ourselves and fill the empty places where once we were full of his love.
It’s time to satisfy our hearts with His love. To seek His embrace to fill the empty places. Then we will see the way to go out of the overflow of love.

The Faith of the Shunammite Woman

As we are in the final stretch of the final outcome of the current USA Presidential Election, I believe things are not going to be as they appear, and we need to be prepared in our hearts to have the faith of the Shunammite Woman.

In 2 Kings 4, Elisha the prophet says to the Shunammite woman that within the next year, she who had no son would indeed be holding her own son. After some years, maybe just a few, the boy unexpected dies in his mother’s arms. The Shunammite woman does not fall into despair or grief nor does she accept this as the final outcome and just accept her sons death for what it appears to be. No. She refuses to believe this is the end. So she rises up, and saddles a donkey and quickly sets out to find the man of God, Elisha.

In the distance Elisha sees her coming and sends his servant up ahead to inquire if everything was okay, but the Shunammite only told the servant everything was all right. She was determined not to speak in agreement with the bad report, but would ONLY plead her case with the one who she believed could help her. And the end result was that Elisha made intercession for the boy, and the boy was returned to his m other alive.

I think God is stretching us too walk in this kind of faith in this period of time. Things look desperate, they appear hopeless. It looks like all efforts and attempts have failed. But stir yourself up to lay hold of that which you firmly believe God has given us hope for, be steadfast in faith, even if an “official” statement is made concerning this election that we know is wrong, If we will just believe like the Shunammite woman, there will be no mourning for us in the end.

removing the dross

This last Sunday our pastor at Blessed Life Fellowship spoke on how our obedience effects our ability to eat of the good of the land, using Isaiah 1 as the master text he taught from. I highly recommend listening to it online, especially if you need to get some issues right in your heart before the Lord! It’s a very motivational word for obedience. (not yet posted, but will update with a link when available.) In fact, I was so inspired to dig into the text on my own, and got super excited when I came to IS 1:25-26.

Isaiah 1:25 in the NIV begins “I will turn my hand against you…”  not the thing you want God to be doing in your life!! Yikes! — But, if you go back to the KJV, you will get way encouraged! KJV says “I will turn my hand upon thee…” Why is that so exciting to me? Because when the hand of God is against you, baby, there’s nothing you can do. But when the hand of God is UPON you, there’s nothing you can’t do, because there is nothing he won’t do to fulfill what he says in the rest of that verse and then on into IS 1:26.

(in the KJV)²⁵ And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:
²⁶ And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city.

This excites me, because I have a particularly clear understanding of the process of “removing the dross.” I once worked in a factory and part of my job was to prep wiring for electronics use. There was a lot of soldering going on and I daily used a solder pot. The process of using that solder pot gives me a measure of insight into this verse I may have never had otherwise. First thing… turn the pot on. How high, oh only 700degrees! Let me tell you, that is HOT! And God has to do the same thing to us, turn up the heat. We may not like it at the time, we may feel the burn and pull away. But we have to let him turn up the heat to remove the dross.

Second, if the pot is hot enough, the dross rises to the surface. Ouch. Ain’t that uncomfortable to know! Not only are our lives going to endure the intensity of the purifying heat, but all that dross, that impurity, that sin from way down in, is gonna rise to the surface! Am I saying that from the firey trial we are experincing, all our junk from within is going to get stirred up and raise to be seen…? yup, that’s what it means. But this is good, because next is step three!

The third thing, we get to be “purely purged” by HIM! On that solder pot, when the dross was hot enough to rise to the top, before you could use the soldering pot, you removed the dross first. How? By dragging a metal spatula across the surface. You can think of it like this, God brings intense heat into your life, waits for the dross to be revealed and then uses the Word like a spatula to drag acoss the surface of our heart  until the dross is fully removed.

That’s pretty good insight right there, but there’s even more to be gained from our natural as we apply it to this verse by the Spirit. When dipping wire in solder, you first have to prep the wire. Let the wire represent our heart. Step one: strip off the protective coating and expose the wire. SAY WHAT?! You heard correctly. God will strip off all the works and pretense we surround ourselves with and brings us down to the bare wire of our heart. Step two: manually twist the wires together tightly. Okay, so first God is going to strip me down, then twist me up? Pretty much. He’ll strip you of your own self efforts, add a reasonable amount of pressure and twist you back together tightly. Be prepared for the pressure of life, of friends, of family, of whatever and allow Holy Spirit to do the work. Step three: solder won’t stick without a bonding agent called “FLUX”. Flux is like that seal of the Holy Spirit upon your life. Without flux coating the wire, you are gonna have a hard time getting the solder to bond to the wire, if at all. Likewise with us, without the Holy Spirit, all the work we do becomes just that, a lot of work. But when we allow God to do what the blood of Jesus paid the price to do, we see that He fully has completed the work, and can begin to walk in that obedient place where we are called not just a city on a hill, but a City of Righteousness, a Faithful City.

So be encouraged! If you are feeling the heat, or your life has been stripped, maybe you know the pain of having your soul cleansed so you can know the joy of being clean, or if your life feels like pressure from every side……. you are being positioned by God to be known by His righteousness!

From the heart of Father God

This is the word impressed upon my heart Sunday, March 12, 2018.

“Do not be afraid to give me all of you; the good, the bad, the ugly. Give it all, hold nothing back. ANYTHING I touch, I bring into my life. Don’t be afraid to bring whatever you have. Bring the stains, I will clean them. Bring the broken places, I will mend them. Give it all, bring it all.”

Father God, may we always come before your heart without reservation. We try to bring our best and hide our flaws, thinking that you will only be pleased with our best. Help us to see that even our best is nothing before your absolute holy perfection. Only when the blood of Jesus is applied to our lives are we acceptable and accepted.  Our flaws, our failures, all that we are, we bring unto your grace and blood, that the righteousness of Christ might be applied to us. Let us be open and true as your truth opens our hearts. Thank you Jesus, that your life brings life to all in us that was dead. There is no love like yours, and we are grateful.

What Moves You?

What moves you? We can be moved to tears of compassion, moved in a way that motivates us to action, we can even be moved to be generous according to the occasion. Those are examples of “good” moves. But what moves you negatively? How often are your buttons getting pushed? If you are a Christian, a follower of Jesus and a lover of God, a saint walking in communion with Holy Spirit, you shouldn’t have any buttons left to be pushed.

We live in a dark and hardened world as those have carry a great light. We are called, chosen, set apart and raised above, seated with God in Christ. What are we doing still responding to earthly triggers? We are not as we were, but are new creations, created to walk in the way of love! Kindness and compassion should be marking our way, creating a path behind us for others to follow. Though the darkness close in on every side, still the light within should be enough to cast darkness off. Why do we let ourselves so easily be provoked? Do we let the poor attitude of another influence us to react in accordance to the darkness we encounter?

Do you return anger for anger? Disrespect for disrespect? If someone is short with you, are you in return being short with them? Come on Body of Christ! You were made to be more than a short fuse. Let the peace of God dwell in you richly! Stop being offended by offensive people… stop reacting every time someone steps on your rights by treating you poorly. News Flash: YOU DIED with Christ, and dead men have no claim to rights. We are suppose to be sensitive to the Spirit, not sensitive to ourselves. Our feelings get hurt, we become offended, or maybe it’s just a matter not being shown the respect we feel we deserve. Such behavior is not Christlike.

If we are going to impact this world for our beloved king, we must walk where he walked the way he walked it out! We need to bring his peace into chaos. We have to have compassion on those who are up in our face. When we have been wounded by words or betrayed, does the pain make us lash out, or does the God of all comfort rule our hearts enough to calm our souls, that we may extend mercy?

So, here’s the question…  what moves you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bless The Work Of Our Hands

Father God, I thank you for your goodness, for the greatness of your mercy.  I stand in awe and wonder that you are mindful of such as me, that your thoughts are turned toward me always. The reality of your consistent, faithful love towards me is more than I can take in at times, but keep filling me Papa, Keep pouring into me Holy Spirit, until I am filled to the measure of the fullness of your love. Father, because your thoughts are ever on me, because you watch over my coming and going, my rising and sleeping, my doing or not doing, you are mindful of my every need, so I can trust in you. I give you glory and honor, for you are deserving. You take care of needs even before I speak the request, you know and are acting! But yet you long for us to ask, to come to you and lay our requests down, to enter into an active relationship, not to just receive your provision and never communicate our needs. How marvelous you are to, for our benefit, limit yourself to allow us to participate in a relationship that we have no ability to maintain outside of the Blood of Jesus. We are completely dependent upon you Jesus, to even have a relationship with Father…. nothing but the blood. Which, actually brings me back to the original thought that brought me here today; being completely dependent upon you.

Papa, there are several members at Blessed Life Fellowship who are business owners, and self-employed, which if incredible. These are truly wonderful people with gifts and abilities that make them excellent in what they do. Father, it has been my heart this week, prompted by Holy Spirit to pray your blessing and your favor over each of these businesses. Papa, we are grateful to know you care for our needs, yet sometimes, the weight of providing for our lives and our families is a weight that we feel we are carrying, and it can get stressful. Remind us, Holy Spirit, that the source of our provision is not an employer, not a client, not the marketplace, not a customer, and not even our spouse, The only source we have for provision is found in Jesus. Dig the truth into our hearts even deeper Lord, that you are our source, nothing else. Clients may come and go, business my rise and fall, but you Lord are always faithful. I know you will bless the work of our hands as we acknowledge our provision is you.

Papa, I lift up all the businesses, some I know of, I’m sure there are some I don’t. But I lift Doug & Sharon, Mark & Juli, Sarah, Pastor Kyle, Pastors Andy & Donna, Julie, Pam, and anyone else who is not directly employed by another. Help us to be excellent, serve diligently, and always remember that it is you we trust. In Jesus Name…amen

Lord Jesus I am so thankful that what the enemy of my soul means for evil YOU turn around in my life and use it for good!! The enemy tried to make me miserable with a persistent migraine and woke me up with that sick evil headache, so you turned it into an opportunity to glorify you for the grace of healing and worship your name and fall deeper in love with you! Hallelujah! Indeed you redeem all things Jesus, even a sick headache. So now that I’m here Father, allow me to enter into the prayers of Jesus, speak to my heart, and as we commune together, guide me Holy Spirit. What is on Your heart in this moment?
1 Corinthians 12:12 “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.”
Lord, by design You’ve made the body of Christ to be diverse and yet one. So often though, we don’t function that way. How do I pray into this Lord Jesus?… Father, I thank You for making each member within the local body uniquely different, each having gifts and specific calls and burdens from Your heart. Each member is important for the health and wholeness of the body. Some have gifts of evangelism and a burden to reach lost souls. Some have gifts of teaching and minister the truth of the word. Some have burdens of intercession, some burdens for mentoring young Christians. Some have gifts of healing, or a call to give to the work of the gospel. Each function is important. Father, because You have called us to be diverse, yet whole, I stand against the lies of satan that would make anyone in our body at BLF feel like they don’t fit, don’t belong, are out of place, or less than they are because they sense they are different in their gift or call or burden. Let every voice be heard. So often softer voices give way to the bolder voices, but they are no less profound and powerful just because they are softly spoken. I proclaim that You have made the body diverse and each part, every distinct function is important for the health of our body. I expose the enemy’s plan to isolate and separate anyone at BLF, and make them feel weaker than the rest, as if they don’t fit in. I expose the enemy and shame him before the courts of God! Each member has value!! Some may be strong in faith while others strong in mercy. I stand against the lie of satan that would belittle anyone in our fellowship!! NO MORE! I proclaim that we are many and diverse BY GOD’S DESIGN!! No longer can satan steal the joy and confidence of anyone at BLF.
Hallelujah!! The enemy is exposed!! Glory to God Most High!!

NEW MOVE FOR BLF

Holy Spirit, I ask you to reveal to me the prayers of Jesus this morning as He intercedes before the Father for BLF. Let the ears of my heart be sensitive to Your whisper as You direct this time. Papa, we are coming into a new place, a new building and everything is in that first “transition” stage, and not everything may run “smoothly”. Let everyone be well prepared with all that is needed the night before to be fresh and ready for whatever unexpected thing might happen. Father, I praise You for the peace you give us even during uncertainty. Let us enjoy and have fun as we all settle into a new season. Father, I ask for favor in that place. I ask You to stir up the intercessors and prayer warriors. Give us like hearts and like minds, with no personal agendas, but only hearts to hear You, Holy Spirit, as You lead and guide us in prayer. Build our company to stand and do the work and lay the foundation, even as Ezra laid the foundation so that the temple could be built. We can’t build on a weak foundation, or at least we shouldn’t if we desire the work to stand. So I ask You to call our hearts to prayer and that he who is willing and able will hear and respond, without compulsion or guilt, or ambition. Call those of us who have experienced the joy of hearing Your heart and praying on earth those things spoken in heaven, call us together in humility to support that which you have put in our pastor’s heart to do!

Give our church a purpose and direction in which to activate our faith, share our faith, exercise our faith, and duplicate our faith!! Because without faith it is impossible to please God, and also, faith without works is dead. So put our faith to work Father!! AMEN! YES! Give us a “work duty”, something measurable goal to put our faith to work in achieving. We know our faith in the promise to prosper us, is not just to bless us, but that we may bless others, so give us something to exercise our faith for. Don’t let us waste the abundant opportunity to minister life to those in the downtown community. Where we are going to make an impact on the atmosphere and spiritual climate just by being at the very center of the heart of our city, let us be wise to the tangible opportunities around us and not oblivious to them. Use our children even. What an opportunity they have to be little evangelists at that playground! How cool is that? Give them boldness and courage to tell kids they will be playing with about the church they go to right upstairs! Give them opportunities to invite the new friends they make to Sunday School. HOW COOL IS THIS RARE OPPORTUNITY!?!? God you are absolutely AWESOME! I am so excited for this door to open before us! I can see families of different origins and beliefs becoming exposed to love and truth! What an incredible opportunity to get outside the box, outside of the walls of our church, and beyond our comfort zones. Oh Papa, Let us rise up and take advantage of this. It’s like an open air meeting indoors!! We do not define ourselves with the “seeker-friendly” label by any means, because we will not compromise the message just to be “friendly”. But we can certainly draw their curiosity! Father, for me, would You help remind me of the YWAM days and just receive this as like unto that, so that I remember to make the most of this opportunity and realize that this time, this season I am there for a purpose and a reason! I don’t want to waste this time to make an impact on my community. Activate all those skills and all that training You’ve invested in me to overcome the uncertainty of approaching a complete stranger and engaging them in a meaningful God-encounter! Don’t allow me to be satisfied to walk out of a Sunday service without actively looking for a heart to reach out to. Don’t let any of us do that. Outside the Box!! Beyond the Walls! Break down the barrier between us and effectiveness. Father, I know that there are going to be many in our body who often reach out and are very comfortable with doing so, and there are going to be many who have never done something like that before… Break us beyond our comfort zones and use us each as You increase our faith and our passion for the unsaved to know you. Let those who do train up those who have yet to do. Let the weak say “I am strong” and the timid say “I am bold!” I just have to believe that this is both an opportunity to grow, and a test to see what we will do with the opportunity You have placed before us.

Father I am just so excited. Our whole church dynamics is about to shift into a different place. And as we step out in faith to impact this community, the level of warfare is going to take on new dynamics as well. So covering is key!! Surround our Pastors. Protect their time and energy so that they have all that they need to lead as we grow. Give them a strong supporting “core” group to do the work they are called to do. Protect their personal times with You, their family times, and their social times and as well as ministry and work times. Keep them balanced and not overwhelmed. This is for the Worship team and Sunday School teachers as well. May Saturdays be a time of shaking off the week and preparing each heart before You that we may be positioned to be used and available to You Holy Spirit! I pray for Matt and his family, as he leads our body to Your Throne in music. Keep him under Your protection and anointing. Give him wisdom and discernment because musicians are going to start to be drawn and Matt needs to discern who’s real and who’s seeking a platform. Keep him covered and protection over his whole family. I pray for our Children’s Workers, that they would not be overwhelmed or frustrated or discouraged by the obstacles and challenges presented by lack of classrooms and the call of that playground to become a distraction. Let them figure out what works best and have joy in the work. I pray also that whomever is responsible for bringing equipment and resources is strengthened and encouraged weekly concerning their service and faithfulness. May we remember to always give them thanks and honor them for their selflessness to do the behind the scenes work. Let them not grow weary in the week by week setting up and tearing down, or the packing and hauling, or the extra time or miles. Which reminds me, let everyone have transportation and those who don’t, we need to provide for, and we will, so just let them speak up and not be silent if they need a ride! Give us responsive hearts to do it.

Again Papa, Thank You for giving this opportunity to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ into the heart of the City of Columbus IN!! We give You glory and honor for it, may we bring You glory and honor through it as well.

Abandoned To You

Father God, I come before your throne of grace lifting up Blessed Life Fellowship and Pastor Andy. I thank you for this wonderful and exciting time of transition and the birthing of a new thing in our body. It feels as though we are about to enter the “birthing room” room of heaven and are joyfully anticipating the new life we are about to embrace, even if the birthing process is painful and full of unknowns and the unexpected. But we look to you to bring us through. And I know there is going to be a battle between the Spirit having full control of our worship, and the time constraints of renting a public venue. Father, we do not want to step backwards into a religious format that is dictated by an agenda and a clock, rather then sensitive hearts listening to your Spirit!!! I stand with your heart, o Lord, for the agreement with the prayers of heaven that we would not be governed by agenda, schedule, or routine, but ONLY by the Spirit of a LIVING God! This is a whole new level of warfare because the enemy is so subtle in the way he moves in. I come against the tactic, in the name of Jesus, that would pit “time management” over true Spirit-led surrender!! Father I just believe that the sound guy provided to us is going to give us favor with the time thing because he or she or they are going to fall so completely in love with Jesus that they would just want to stay all day and worship you. I pray that you have so much of the surrendered trust of our pastors that the door would be open for your Holy Spirit to fall and spark a revival in the downtown area beginning with the Commons Mall!! Prepare our children’s ministry team for what is about to be unleashed in our children’s ministry, because your Holy Spirit moving within our children is going to spread too all the other kids and families that are divinely lead to the play area during our services. I fully expect to see many good things coming from the work you are doing in the children’s ministry, and doing it through our children!!! Oh Hallelujah!!! And a little child will lead them!! Father, may each member of BLF be super sensitive to the ministry opportunities that you are going to bring our way, and also be sensitive to the call to prayer to see this all come about. We’d be both arrogant and foolish to think we could do a corporate work without corporate prayer covering that work. Move on our hearts Father, and stir us up. Open doors for your saints to take this work seriously and get in agreement together before your throne and seek your face for divine appointments, prayer assignments, heavenly strategies and overcoming faith for the victorious outpouring of your Spirit we are about to see in the heart of our city. I thank you Father for everything you are doing. I pray this in the marvelous name of Jesus!! Amen

Who is this coming up??

Morning Papa! Thank you for this wonderful day to come to worship you. Not because I “feel” the need to worship or even the desire to worship, not that I don’t. And some days it’s true, I do “feel” overcome with the emotions of gratefulness and a sense of awe that “inspire me” to worship you. But right now, in this moment I defy the Liar that says I need to connect emotionally for it to be real, because I’ve not come to worship you this morning because of how it makes me feel, but because of your value and worthiness. I worship because of who you are. I worship because you are God, and yet you stoop to know me. I worship you because you are King of all things, and you are Holy. I worship you because you are Righteousness and Truth. You are Savior and Redeemer, Deliverer and Friend. You are Master, Creator, Counselor and Comforter. I worship you not just because you saved me, but because you are Savior. I worship you because YOU ARE. You are not some fairy tale, some man-made religion, or some self consoling fantasy. You ARE, and without you, nothing is.
Father, I ask that for those in our fellowship that are experiencing a dry season, a desert season, that you would silence the Liar, extinguish his accusations that say you have left us and that’s why we feel nothing. Remind us that Song of Songs 8:5 says: “Who is this coming up from the desert leaning on her Lover?” Remind us that we can not “come up from” the desert if we have not first “gone into” the desert! Oh Papa, how glorious a place the desert is!! It’s a lonely place, a dry place, a parched place with few watering holes along the way… but it is a marvelous place, and wonderful place! It is the place where we learn to “lean on our Lover!” There, in the desert, we learn to lean. Oh Papa, how glorious it is to learn to lean!! To learn to rest in your ability, to trust in you. It meditate on who you are and grow in our resolve to follow.
Papa, mature us so that we are prepared for the desert. We need to know how to find the water to sustain us during the journey rather than going from one watering hole experience to the next. Mature us to know that the real relationship isn’t created at the watering holes of life, but only expressed there. It is created in the isolated desert where we learn to lean. It’s in the desert that we have to learn how to find the fresh water from your word. It’s in the desert that we come to know the necessity of dwelling in the secret place of the Most High so that we can abide under the shadow of the Almighty! For in the shadow we find refuge from the heat of the trials of the day. In the desert we learn to hide under your wing from the desert storm, and not be swallowed by the sandstorms of trial. Teach us to lean, Papa. To truly lean upon your word, your character, your truth and your heart. Teach us to lean on our Lover, Jesus.
Papa, we make it our choice to embrace the desert season rather than fear it. Because you only take us into it to bring us up out of it stronger, closer, more mature and resolute. To learn to lean is a glorious thing… thank you for this desert season. I glorify your Name, Jesus, King of my heart, Lover of my soul! Let me hear your voice today. And may others say of me “who is this coming up from the desert, leaning on her Lover?” In Your Name I pray, Amen.