August 2010 Blog Posts (25)

Dear Heavenly Father, arouse my inner man to press in to You out of a place of desiring to be in your presence. Awaken my ears to hear your voice. Stir me up, hover over me and carry me on your wings. (Deuteronomy 32:11)

Dear Lord, initiate hunger in me as you stir up my spirit, and then I respond by calling out to You. You answer me by showing me great and hidden inaccessible things I did not know. (Jeremiah…

We have recited it in private and also prayed it publicly in unison with others; we have even sung it in reverence on select Sunday mornings. It's been a familiar prayer at somber cultural events.

What was in Jesus' heart when He gave His disciples the words to "The Lord's Prayer?"

Remember, they had asked Him, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1). Contrary to its most typical…

Revelation 1:11,12 - "Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band".

Here we see Jesus in the midst of the seven golden lamps.

The lampstands are allegorical…

2 Corinthians 11:3 -- "But I fear...your minds may be corrupted from the simplicitity that is in Christ."

The problem is that we mistakenly strive for information when in reality we need revelation.

Ephesians 1:17,18 -- "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being…

Draw Near

Intimacy with God begins when we radically pursue Him with our whole heart. King David wrote, "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, O Lord, I shall seek'" (Psalms 27:8). God invites us in…

Hebrews 10:12,14 -- But this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God....For by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.

God see us with no flaw, spot or imperfection, so we honor His Word and the finished work of Jesus by saying "Amen!"

To see ourselves as being far from perfect is not modesty, but a failure to understand…

The Church will begin to take on more of a "military mentality" in the coming times. We are called to be an army, and in many ways we will start to reflect this in a much more serious and focused demeanor in the leadership and the people. There is something about conflict that does focus our senses. We have been in a war against darkness of the most desperate kind for the whole history of the Church, but not all seem to understand this or live as they would if they did understand it. This,…

Psalm 13:1 -- How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide your face from me?

Believers want to know God. God's wisdom is to let us 'taste' dryness that we might become desperate enough to seek for living water.

Many misinterpret the dryness and become so discouraged that they stop seeking God altogether and even stop attending church. But God desires that, in our…

1Peter 2:5 - Come and, like living stones, be yourselves built into a spiritual house, for a holy, dedicated, consecrated priesthood, to offer up those spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable and pleasing to God through Jesus Christ.

Colossians 1:27 - To whom God was pleased to make known how great for the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you , the hope of glory.

When I realize that I am the House of God,…

As I seek You dear heavenly Father, You are equipping me to operate in the fullness of Your holy presence. The rivers will be loosed in me, toward me, for me, and through me. My intimacy and communion with You will reveal the seven fold operation of the Holy Spirit. You are uncapping the rivers of Your manifest presence: the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. You…

Titus 2:6-8

I am self-restrained and behave prudently -- taking life seriously.

I show myself in all respects to be a pattern and a model of good deeds and works, teaching what is unadulterated, showing gravity (having the strictest regard for truth and purity of motive), with dignity and seriousness.

My instruction is sound and fit and wise and…

Wait and hope for and expect God; be brave and of good courage and

let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect

God. (Psalm 27:14)

Commit your work to the Lord, and then your plans will succeed. Pr. 16:3

Hard work means prosperity, only fools idle away their time. Pr.…

1 Kings 19:9 ^{9Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (So the word of the Lord came to him "what are you doing here Elijah". This is one of the most important questions God…}

Revelation 4:1,2 - After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things." Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.

A sign in front of a church said "we are just a…

Acts 1:4,8 - He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for what the Father had promised. But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.

This power came through an encounter with God.

Some because of their fear of error, have said it's improper to seek for an experience with God.

For decades the church has…

John 1:51 - Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.

Jesus is Jacob's ladder which we ascend and descend upon.

It is our calling in Christ to both go higher and go lower. We are called to ascend into the heavenly places and be seated with Him there, and at the same time descend to the…

Matthew 28:19 - Go therefore and make disciples of all nations....teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you.

A young man told his pastor "I'll pursue signs and wonders when I know I have more of the character of Christ in me."

As good as that sounds, it comes from a religious…

Matthew 24:12 - And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

Satan wants you to become the temperature of the culture that surrounds you, a believer bound by a stone cold heart. By exposure to hardness and darkness in the times that we live in, our love and passion will begin to cool by degrees.

When you see churches and individual who do not have the energy to reach out,…

Acts 26:16 - But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.

Paul knew that King Agrippa's dad (King Agrippa I) was responsible at that time for the execution of James, one of the 12 disciples. Yet Paul made sure the truth was on…

John 1:16 - And of his fulness have all we received and grace for grace.

Most Christians believe God can do anything but experience very little. They believe that God can release His power in answer to prayer, but whether something comes to pass or not depends on their performance (ie. being holy, speaking right, studying the word. tithing, avoiding strife, etc).

This view short-circuits God's power…