February 28, 2018

Restorer of Life

“Then the women said to Naomi, ‘Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel!  And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.”  Ruth 4:14-15

The son’s name was Obed.  He was the father of Jesse, who was the father of David.  His name was famous through all Israel, and the entire Christian world.  Obed did restore, or return back, to Naomi, her joy.  No longer would she cry out “call me Mara” (bitter), for the Lord had been gracious to her. 

Picture in your mind someone laboring over a piece of wood, stripping away the varnish and stain, until the wood is restored back to its beautiful original product.  This creates a great image of God’s process of restoration in our lives.  Once we have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, we then can choose to allow God to restore us back to our beautiful original product – created in the image of God Himself!  This process will be labor-intensive, time consuming, and not always easy.  We all have several coats of stain covering us.  We might have layer after layer of varnish that has been applied over our lifetimes.  The stripping and removal of all that covers the “real us” can at times be painful.  Yet God knows best, as He made us and knows what we are truly to look like and be like.  The world may have concealed the real you – if you let Him, Jesus will reveal the real you!

The process of restoration is the continual process of returning, or turning back, to our Father and our Creator, despite our many mistakes.  Each time we return to Him, we find He lovingly removes the varnish, the stains, and continues the process of refining us back to our original condition.  After all, we are the apple of His eye.  After each experience, we find ourselves more Christlike and less like ourselves; that the “old man” before we were saved is being transformed into the “new man” He eternally intended for us to be. 

February 27, 2018

Spiritual Blessings

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every  spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ…”  Eph. 1:3

It is vital that believers know who they are IN CHRIST and in fact, that they are IN CHRIST!  We cannot walk out what we do not know!  Our Father has placed all that we need into us IN CHRIST.  Once we accept these truths and claim them as our own, we can then begin the process of walking (and working) them out in our experiences.  Each experience will increase our faith.  In essence, who we are to our heavenly Father is established by who we are IN CHRIST.  When we know who we are in Christ, we will come to realize that our position is unchangeable.  This is significant!  Though our condition may change, our position does not!  Our condition is not our position.  Beloved, affix yourself to the Unchangeable One!

Our spiritual blessings include:

·         We are chosen

·         We are predestined

·         We are blameless

·         We are adopted

·         We are accepted in the Beloved

·         We are redeemed

·         We are forgiven

·         We have an inheritance

·         We are sealed

Yes, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing!

February 26, 2018

The Lord Set Ambushes

“So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, ‘Hear me O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.’  And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the LORD and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: ‘Praise the LORD, for His mercy endures forever.’  Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.” 2 Chron. 20:20-22

The Biblical patterns and principles we can take away from this passage include:

q  Believe- have faith in the Lord;

q  Engage in active thanks and praise before the battle;

q  Look for the ambushes the Lord sets against the enemies of God (and of you and your children!);

q  Expect those enemies to be defeated to the glory of God!

If we look back to 2 Chronicles 20:15, we read: “Thus says the LORD to you: Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”  The Lord will fight for our children and us – our job is to ask Him to fight, to thank Him for fighting, and to praise Him for the victory!  Are your children facing a battle right now?  Get out in front of that battle with your prayer of thanksgiving, your song of praise and worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!  Picture yourself giving that battle to the Lord and ask Him to fight it on behalf of your child.  Thank Him for the ambushes He is setting right now for fear, for discouragement, for anger, for addiction to climb into – the Lord is setting a trap for the enemies of your son or daughter!  See that enemy step into that trap, walk into that ambush.  Watch that enemy go down in defeat!  Praise the Lord!!  See God’s unfailing love come down into the life of your child.

February 25, 2018

We Serve

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give His life as a ransom.”  Mk. 10:45

Imagine it if you can:  a King; the King of kings in fact; God Himself in the flesh; our Savior; saying He came to serve.  He came to serve, not to be served.   Earlier in Mark’s gospel, James and John ask Jesus for positions of honor, evidenced by one sitting on His right side and the other on His left side.  In their minds, this is a way in which they can be recognized and acknowledged for all they have done.  That is the way of the world:  promotion; titles; positions of prominence.  The world views such things as greatness.  Just take a look sometime at the news – it speaks for itself about where secular values are placed and what is considered important.   If we need the position, something is wrong with the foundation!

Jesus informs James and John that they really don’t know what they are asking (much like the expression: be careful what you pray for!), yet they persist.  The other disciples hear the conversation and controversy erupts.  In a matter of moments, the brothers have managed to sow discord with their words that uncovered their ambitions.  Such self-focus created problems for the disciples, just as it can create problems in churches and ministries today.

Jesus quietly and conclusively shreds the mind set of James and John about greatness.  Understand these words of our Lord in 10:42:  “…whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.”

Jesus told the disciples, as He tells us today, that greatness comes by serving.  There is no place for self-promotion in the Kingdom; no value in titles in the Kingdom; and no use for positions of prominence. 

Father, build in us character.  Shape us as Your vessels for use in Your church to advance the Kingdom, for the purpose of Your glory.  Refine us, Lord, that we may serve You.  For who are we Lord Jesus, but Your servants?  We seek not crowns, but character.  We desire not to be famous, but to develop fruit.  Grow in us Lord, compassion and remove comparison. 

  

February 24, 2018

Prisoner of Hope

“As for you also, because of the blood of your covenant, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.  Return to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope.  Even today I declare that I will restore double to you.”  Zech. 9:12

One woman has a son and is due for an early release.  She is scared to go back home.  Another was to be released in four days and was sobbing as she came for prayer, sharing that she had nowhere to go.  Yet another will be released in the fall after serving five years.  She is uncertain, unsure and unsteady.  There is a young woman who is quite ill.  She is scheduled to be released soon and has no idea what to do or where to go. 

These are among the women who may be our neighbors; who sit in the relative safety and security of a cell where structure exists, routine is established, meals are provided.  These are the women who are afraid to be released because they are more secure in the prison they know than the prisons looming large and unknown in a cold and indifferent world.  They are women who surrendered their possessions at the prison gates, who surrendered their hope.  They walk in an environment of contained hopelessness.  The prospect of unlimited hopelessness is a burden too big for them to bear.

On a street a block away is a woman who sits in the prison of her house, chained to a fear that has gripped her for years.  There is a family whose hope is placed in the lottery, only to lose week after week.  Then there is the widow, who sits in isolation, waiting for anyone to knock on her door.  At the hospital is the man they call terminal, waiting to die.  Under the bridge is the one they call homeless, young and doe-eyed.  There is illness, tragedy, and another crisis.  There are the relationships that don’t work.  There are the jobs that fall apart.  It seems as if hope is gone, vanished and vanquished by life.  There are people in cells of all kinds with locked gates.  Some are wards of the state, some wards of the fallen world.  We might prefer to live in known hopelessness rather than unknown hope.

There is this one man in heaven; His name is Jesus Christ, the Lion and the Lamb.  He died for our addictions, our sins, and our hopelessness.  Jesus was, and is, and shall forever be, the Restorer of our hope.  To the abandoned He says, “I have not forsaken you.”  To the widow He says, “I call you friend.”  To the imprisoned He says, “You’ve not been given the spirit of fear, but of adoption.”  To the lost and brokenhearted He says, “Beloved one, I’ve come for you.”  To the hard-hearted He says, “Just open up so I can touch your heart.”  To the prideful He says, “Little one, lay those crowns you’re holding onto down at my feet.”  Jesus, the Restorer of our hope.  Jesus, the one who turned our valley of Achor into a Door of Hope.  In heaven the doors are open – the door of hope is open to us today.  It is an open door for us to walk through.  Walk through it today and receive hope. 

February 23, 2018

All Things Work Together for Good

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”  Romans 8:28

 God works in such wonderful, yet mysterious ways.  The verse from Romans 8:28 can bring us comfort in times of adversity, waiting, or silence.  When our eyes see the current condition, God’s vision takes in the whole picture and He sees how all things, yes all things, can work together for good.   We are very involved in prison ministry.  Prison is a place where for some people; their situations don’t look good at all.  Yet, over time, it is remarkable the number of offenders who see how God has worked even a prison sentence together with other circumstances, for good.  Many women inmates have expressed how prison was the best thing that ever happened to them.  That might be very difficult for some to believe, but it is a powerful testimony of women who know that God has worked things together for good.

As the Lord builds testimonies in our lives, it is also a positive and powerful witness to others.  We can meditate on the things that God has uniquely, creatively strung together that is our lives.  He has used the low moments to establish qualities in us and from it, created high moments.  The J.B. Phillips version presents Romans 8:28 as follows, “Moreover we know that to those who love God, who are called according to His plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good.”  It is truly remarkable to begin to see the pieces of the pattern for good in our lives.  God works even in the tragedies of life to bring about yet another part of that pattern for good.  It brings to mind the verse from 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of all mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in our tribulations, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”   The purpose of God’s comfort in our lives is twofold: for our own comfort; and so we may be able to comfort others.  We seem to minister comfort best to others when their need is one we have had ourselves.  In those moments, good comes out of grief.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 expresses it this way, “He has made everything beautiful in its time.  Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.”  As we trust God and try to remain obedient to what He has asked of us, He will make everything beautiful in its time. 

February 22, 2018

 

Meditating on the Word

“Oh how I love Your law!  It is my meditation all the day.  You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; for they are ever with me.  I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.  I understand more than the ancients, because I keep Your precepts.  I have restrained my feet from every evil way, that I may keep Your word.  I have not departed from Your judgments, for You Yourself have taught me.  How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!  Through Your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.”  Ps. 119:97-104

There is a pattern that emerges from this passage.  The Psalmist writes that as he meditates upon the law and the testimonies of God found in the word, he receives understanding.  His understanding is great, because he not only meditates upon the law, but he purposes to be obedient to the law.  Let’s look more closely at the pattern on:

• Meditation;
• Understanding; and,
• Obedience.

Psalm 1:2 states, “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night.”  This supports and confirms what we have read in Psalm 119.  The word meditate in Hebrew is hagah.  It means to reflect, to moan, and to contemplate.  It is much more active than our western way of meditation.  Often times, people will take a verse of Scripture and softly repeat it.  We find a similar Scripture in Joshua 1:8, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.  For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”   In this text the Lord is giving instructions to Joshua before he leads Israel into the Promised Land of Canaan.  Notice the Lord tells Joshua that the Book of the Law – the commandments – is not to depart from his mouth.  This again implies a speaking forth in the act of meditation.  Another example found in the Psalms is Ps. 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.”

From this process of meditating upon God’s word, the Psalmist received understanding.  The same holds true for us today.  The Hebrew word for understanding is sachal and means wisdom, prudence, and the process of reaching an understanding about something.  The Holy Spirit reveals understanding to us as we meditate upon God’s truth found in His word.

The final piece is the action of obedience to what has been contemplated and understood.  Note that the Psalmist writes that he has “more understanding than all my teachers,” and he “understands more than the ancients, because I keep Your precepts.”  With this understanding comes the responsibility to be obedient.  There is then a responsibility to obey the truth once we know it.  May the Holy Spirit help us to be obedient to God’s word.

February 21, 2018

Remain in Christ’s Love

“As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you.  Now remain in My love.” John 15:9

Picture a bloody, battered beyond recognition Jesus barely walking up a road to the Hill of Golgotha.  He is walking, each step carrying our sins, my sin, further away.  He desires us to think about the walk, His walk.  He carries the Cross for a time, until He is too weak underneath its weight.  A crowd of onlookers jeer and taunt Him.  As He slowly moves one foot, then the other, He turns and looks directly at me and says: “This walk is for you.”  It causes me to write to God.

Dear God,

I sit here before you humble - grateful and awed by your position in me.  Thank you.  I owe you my life and indeed, these days I have begun to see more clearly what that means. 

Because you first loved me - completely, unabashedly, and without condition or pretense, I am able to love.  Without your love for me, there would be no love I could feel or show for others.  My safety and security can only come from your love – and I know what love is:  that You laid down Your life for me.  And now you ask the same of me - over and over again.  You say – ‘Go there’ and it is up to me to go or not go.  You say, ‘Now leave, it is finished.’  Again, the response is my free will.  And each time God, you ask me to leave myself behind.  My heart stays in a living room, in a chair, in an office, wrapped in the arms of another.  You promise to always renew and restore me - for this I am thankful.  The leaving, or sense of knowing that there will be a leaving, brings my flesh pain and I resist going and giving.  It is hard work being obedient to love.  Yet You continue to reveal Your glorious work for the kingdom - each task requiring the going and giving and leaving. 

Only a loving Father could work in me to bring together those He loves in unity.  Only a God whose grace is sufficient and love is abundant could move lives in such a way that He controls the chessboard, the moves, and the outcome.  Only a Perfect Savior could take the yoke off me and bend down to feed me in times of despair.  Lord, I pray that you will help me to love; I pray Father that You would fill me to overflowing each day with Your perfect love for me.  I pray that You would guide me in all truth, in all righteousness, in all wisdom and understanding.  Jesus, I pray You touch my heart to open the floodgates of love for others.  Father, I come to you.  I long to talk with You and be with You.   Let my days be our days together in a loving relationship. 

February 20, 2018

The River of Life

 “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.”  Ps. 46:4

While vacationing in Vermont a group of friends and I were driving alongside a river.  It was a beautiful day and after quite some time one of us suggested stopping to walk down by it.  So we agreed to stop, and made that decision to pull over, get out of the car, walk down and take a look at part of God’s creation.  It would have been easy to keep driving; to think about stopping but choose otherwise; to find an excuse not to get out of the car.  We exercised our free will and chose to stop, to get out, to walk down and to see firsthand this river.  For the Giver of Life created the River of Life.

Once we were down to the banks of the river, we took some time to admire the force of nature and God’s precious handiwork.  Even though it was summer, the water was still quite chilly.  We first dipped our hands in the water, and then off came our sneakers and socks so we could put a foot in.  The water running over our feet felt so refreshing and invigorating.  As we looked out at the river itself, we could see the places where the water was gentle and quiet.  We could also spot the places where the current was most strong, forcing itself over rocks and running headlong downstream.  A separate bank, or jetty, was in the middle of the river and it was there that the rapids were the most severe.  As we looked and pondered there was a silence among use.  Finally the silence was broken when it was suggested:  we really need to go into the river.  It’s not enough to just stand here on the bank.  And it’s not enough to put a foot in – even both feet in.  We need to get out there – right in the middle and experience this river. 

We determined to reach the jetty and so had the cross the first section of the river to reach it.  The going was slippery and slow.  At one point someone fell and was banged up.  Still, we kept our eyes on that place by the jetty where the current was strongest.  It seemed to be our place of invitation – and so we moved forward.  Despite the setback, we persevered and eventually made our way to the jetty and the rapids.

We first spent a few minutes in the quieter section of the river, splashing and playing around, before making our way into the stronger current.  Each of us occupied a special place – and there we praised God for His gift of the river.  We prayed to Him, we prayed for each other and at one point the sun broke out in fullness from behind a cloud.  It shone on our faces and we looked up in awe and wonder.   God had deeply blessed us, as we entered into His presence, into the living water which flowed over us with His grace and power.

February 19, 2018

Riches of Understanding

“I want you to know how much I struggling for you and for those in Laodicea, and for all those who have not met me personally.  My purpose is that they would be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”  Col. 2:1-3

I come to encourage you, to continue to work together, knit in love, hearts connected to hearts in deep relationship, to reach, or attain the riches of understanding.  In the Greek, understanding is defined as “sunesis” – which is analyzing and discerning; a way of putting two and two together.  This discernment gives insight; some might say revelatory insight, into the mystery of God, where the ultimate treasure chest is found and unlocked.  It does not open to material gain, but rather to the true treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 

1 Cor. 1:30 describes these treasures a little more in depth, declaring that we who are in Christ Jesus have access to the revelation of wisdom and of righteousness, sanctification, and redemption – all of which the Lord is.  As He is Jehovah-tsidkenu, the Lord our Righteousness (Jer. 23), we who believe on Him are His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21 and Rom 3:22).  Righteousness is a legal term, taken from the courts where all charges pressed against us have been paid for and we are acquitted.  The wrong, or sin, has been righted, by Jesus’ death.  He is also Jehovah- Mekoddishkem, the Lord our Sanctifier(Ex. 31:13).  As he sanctified Israel, He sanctifies us today, calling us a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a chosen people (1Peter 2:9).  Sanctification is a temple term, describing how we are set apart and made holy in His sight.   And He is our Redeemer. Israel was redeemed by God in the book of Exodus, and the book of Ruth elaborates on the role of the kinsman-redeemer.  Jesus is our Kinsman-Redeemer, for redemption is a term to describe the enslaved who have been redeemed.  Boaz redeemed Ruth.  Jesus redeemed us through His shed blood upon a cross.  We are His redeemed, the sanctified, and the righteous – all because of Calvary.  It is grace and we get to wear it, and share it.  May we be grace-bearers for Christ.

February 18, 2018

Lifetime Favor

“For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”  Ps. 30:5

The favor of God lasts a lifetime.  This is a marvelous truth.  Momentary anger is quickly gone and replaced by God’s gracious and kind favor.  It is unmerited, thus it is by grace and grace alone that we receive His favor.

The word favor means goodwill, acceptance, and delight.  Let us reflect on the significance of this verse:  God’s goodwill lasts a lifetime.  His acceptance lasts a lifetime.  His delight lasts a lifetime.  God is for us.  So often we may get down on ourselves.  The guilt and shame may weigh upon us so heavily that we feel unworthy of God’s acceptance.  We wonder how God can delight in us when we have such small regard for ourselves.  Thank the Lord that our self-image doesn’t influence God’s view of us!    

The Psalmist is direct in telling us that God’s anger may come in our lives.  There may be seasons of weeping.  But they are momentary.  Rejoicing comes in the morning.  We are not to be misled into thinking the Christian life will be easy or without pain, hurts, loss.  In our sorrows, God will meet us.  He will comfort us.  He will be with us as we go through that time in our lives.  It is part of our sacred journey.

February 17, 2018

Living Stone

“As you come to Him, the living Stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him – you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”  1 Pet. 2:4-5

There is no turning back

I know exactly where I stand

Your touch has changed my life

You hold my heart in your hand.

Life is different now

You are my sun and my shield

I called out Your name, Lord

By Your Grace I have been healed.

I’m no longer alone

There’s a living stone

Occupying me.

I have a home

With this living stone

Rising up in me.

The future’s looking bright

Now that I am whole.

This gift that’s come my way

The completion of my soul.

No longer alone

With a living stone

Occupying me.

I have a home

With this living stone

Rising up in me.

Jesus redeeming me

Life eternally.

He is perfecting me

A living stone that’s set me free.

February 16, 2018

Famine in the Land

"Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land.  And a certain man of Bethlehem-Judah" (which in Hebrew means "HOUSE OF BREAD"), "went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife, and his two sons.”  Ruth 1:1

We find some interesting facts concerning the Book of Ruth.  Ruth is the 8th Book of the Bible.  In Hebrew the number 8 means "new beginnings".  Now even more awesome, the Book of Ruth is only 85 verses long.  Again, 8 meaning "new beginnings and the number 5 in the original Hebrew text means "GRACE".  New beginnings with grace, and yes in the days of Judges when everything seemed to some that God had just forgotten them. 

In this verse, it tells us a certain man went to sojourn the country of Moab with his wife and two sons.  This man's name is Elimelech.  His name has a significant meaning:  Eli, meaning my God and Melech meaning "is King."  He lived in Bethlehem, meaning House of Bread and Judah meaning "place of praise."  In the New Testament we find this is the very city  where Jesus, The Bread of Life, would be born centuries later. 

However, out of fear that his family would starve, he thought it right to bring them to Moab.  Psalm 108 refers to Moab as "His washpot."  The modern translation would be "His toilet bowl."  They also worshipped pagan gods in this land.

How many of us run to a strange place in times of trouble?  After all, it seemed to make so much sense in the natural.  It made sense to Elimelech to bring his family out of famine and into a strange land with food.   He was not going to let his family starve.  As we read on, we know the lesson will be that we should always diligently seek the Lord before we make a move. We can trust that God had a plan for HIS people and would give back anything the locusts had stolen. In this Book we will see that there would be a time when the famine in that land was over.  His Word and His promises are food.   

February 15, 2018

You are God’s Yes!

 

2 Corinthians 1:17 – 20:  “Therefore, when I was planning this, did I do it lightly?  Or the things I plan, do I plan according to the flesh, that with me there should be Yes, Yes, and No, No?  But as God is faithful, our word to you was not Yes and No.  For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us – by me, Silvanus, and Timothy – was not Yes and No, but in Him was Yes.  For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.”

This Scripture will put a smile on our faces so big we won’t be able to wipe it off.  When we experience this word and get it into our spirit and up into our hearts and our minds so our thinking is renewed, this truth will cause us to rejoice and it will set us free.  Truth experienced always sets us free.   The best kind of laughter I know is the laughter that comes from walking with the Lord and tasting to see that He is good.  His goodness is marvelous.  It makes me grin – inside and out.  I call it Victory Laughter – we can laugh at what life throws us because we know we have won.  We don’t try to win – we already have won! 

Jesus is Daddy’s Yes Man.  And the Spirit of God has chosen today to speak to each of us in this room – “You are God’s Yes.”  Christ is in you and you are in Christ and therefore You are God’s Yes.  God says Yes to you today.  He says Yes and Amen.  Amen means surely, or so be it.  I like to think of it as ‘most definitely.”  He says to us, Yes and Most Definitely. 

The world tells us no all the time.  The prince of the air fills the air with no and not likely.  But we have overcome the world – Amen – Most Definitely! – We have Christ in us, the hope of glory!  We are over comers.  We do not need to live in the world of “no” because we have access to the Kingdom – and in the Kingdom it is all about Yes and Amen!

February 14, 2018

A Double Portion

“When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?’  ‘Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,’ Elisha replied.”  2 Kings 2:9

The Old Testament laws governing inheritance point to what is happening in this exchange between Elijah and Elisha.  Elisha’s request was consistent with the laws of inheritance: that the first-born son would receive a double portion of the father’s inheritance.

Elijah was a spiritual father to Elisha.  As the time was fast approaching for Elijah to depart in the whirlwind, the spiritual father asked his son what he could provide.  Elisha’s request depicts their relationship.  His request is one based on relationship, for only a spiritual son could ask for a double portion. 

We are the children of God and we can ask our Father for a double portion of our inheritance.  It might remind us of the great words of Paul to the church at Ephesus: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”  (Eph. 1:3)  The spiritual blessings we have received in Christ are part of our inheritance.  Children can approach their parents and ask.  How much more will our perfect parent in heaven grant to His children – exceedingly abundantly more!  Beyond what we can ask or think or imagine! 

Fame and fortune are not what we desire.  God, we ask for the double portion of Your spirit – may that be our inheritance, to the glory of the Most High God!

February 13, 2018

Oneness Power

“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey.  And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.”   Acts 1:12-14

Oneness power is something I experienced during a prison ministry campaign in Ohio.  Daily there would be prayer requests sent out over the line to praying people in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Kansas, and Ohio.  Despite the differences geographically, this group came together in “oneness power.”  The group came together, much like the disciples in the Book of Acts:  “they all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication.” 

We were all gathered in one accord, for one purpose.  Ours was a group that though scattered in the natural, was ever so close in the spiritual.  We shared a common bond of unity.  It was the kind of unity Jesus prayed for in John 17.  It was the kind of oneness where the oil of anointing flowed down the beard of Aaron, and the Lord commanded the blessing, as described in Psalm 133.  It was the unity of the body “standing fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for faith of the gospel,” according to Philippians 1:27.  

As we gathered ourselves in these different locations, we prayed.  We continued in one accord with prayer and supplication.  This was our prayer:  that the lost would be found; the broken would be made whole; the wounded would be healed.  We shared a common focal point: Jesus Christ, the one man in heaven who sits at the right hand of His Father and intercedes.  Our earthly intercession was lifted to our Savior, who perfected each prayer through His priestly role as intercessor.  He presented those prayers to His Father.  And the band of faithful prayer warriors witnessed heaven’s response to earth’s request.

Oneness power is where fifteen become one and the one is greater than the fifteen.  Oneness power is dunamis power to use the keys of the kingdom given to us by our Lord, and unlock through prayer what has long been locked.  Oneness power looses love from heaven to earth – enough love to cover every prison, every prisoner.

February 12, 2018

Abounding in Magnificence

“Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You; according to the greatness of Your power preserve those who are appointed to die…” Ps. 79:11

Magnificence in Hebrew means greatness and comes from the root word, magnify, which also means rope.  A rope is a cord made by twisting fibers together – the more numerous the fibers, the stronger the cord.   This word magnificence has great meaning for the ministry this year.   We are believing that God wants to do grander and greater things in this year.  We are praying for His miracles of magnificence to be on display.

This requires a great deal of faith, as we are being asked to look into the unseen and catch a glimpse of the Lord’s heartbeat for the oppressed, the captive, the broken, the abused, the neglected, and the forgotten.  The more of us who come together and agree by faith for these miracles, the stronger the rope; the greater the miracle.  We seek other like-minded ministries, churches, and people to come together and strengthen that rope.   It will be a time when the groaning of the prisoner will come before God and he will preserve those appointed to die.  The greatness, or magnificence, of God’s power, will be on display for the world to see.

We praise our God and King who abounds in magnificence and is worthy of all honor!

February 11, 2018

God is Faithful

“God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.”  1 Cor. 1:9

Many years ago, I sensed the Lord encouraging me to go on a mission trip to Ukraine as He had something there for me.  After much prayer and deliberation, I joined the team and off we went.  The trip itself was incredible – filled with special moments and the lots of opportunities to share the gospel, to love on women young and old and even watch as a new church was planted in front of our eyes.  It was wondrous and yet as each day passed, I kept waiting for what God had for me.  I knew He was faithful, it was just that I hadn’t seen it yet.

We reached the last full day of our trip.  Our travels had taken us to many locations throughout the country.  On this final day, we were scheduled to visit another orphanage.  As we made our way I asked the Lord to make it clear what He had for me.  We arrived at the orphanage and had a great visit with the children there.  We were allowed to spend a little extra time with two of the children.  As the visit with them ended and the van returned to the orphanage, we said good bye to the two children.  My heart was pounding hard as I watched them get out of the van and begin walking up the drive.  I was compelled to leap out of the van and cry out their names.  Another team member was right behind me.  The two children turned and looked at us – then turned and looked at the women in charge of the orphanage waiting for them.  They hesitated – and we held out our arms.  Slowly, brother and sister walked back to us.  And then it happened, the moment God had for me.  This young teen boy put his arms around me and hugged me and I hugged him and Jesus had to have been hugging both of us.  

That hug from that boy was Christ’s healing balm poured all over me.  It went into the deep hidden places where I had been hurting.  The beauty of the moment was that I knew it as I experienced it, and so all I could do was cry.  God was faithful and had chosen this boy from an orphanage to be the arms of Jesus wrapped around a broken mom.  Healing had made a holy visitation in an unlikely place.  I was forever changed by that divine moment.

February 10, 2018

He is Our God

“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord.  I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts.  I will be their God and they will be My people.”  Jer. 31:33

These are the awesome words of old spoken through the generations and reaching out to you today.  Let God’s truth resound in your heart, mind, and spirit.   The voice of the Lord can reassure you with these eternal words of life.

God speaks, “I made a covenant for you.  Before you were born, I put My law of love in your mind and I wrote it on your heart.  This was done when I fashioned you in your mother’s womb.  I was your God then, before the time of your birth.  Indeed, I was your God before the foundation of the earth.  I am your God today.  Right now, in the midst of what you are going through, I am your God.  And I will be your God, now and always.  It shall not change, for I cannot change.  You are mine.  I made you for Myself, that you would praise me and have none other before Me.  I am jealous for you.  I want you to know the truth.  I want you to know Me.  For when you know Me, then you are free.”