Friday, July 20, 2007
What Is Your Nevertheless?
Nevertheless…by Max Lucado
And the king and his men… spoke to David, saying, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,” …Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David).- 2 Sam. 5:6–7
Did you see it? Most hurry past it. Let’s not. Pull out a pen and underline this twelve-letter masterpiece.
Nevertheless.
“Nevertheless David took the stronghold…”
Wouldn’t you love God to write a nevertheless in your biography? Born to alcoholics, nevertheless she led a sober life. Never went to college, nevertheless he mastered a trade. Didn’t read the Bible until retirement age, nevertheless he came to a deep and abiding faith.
We all need a nevertheless. And God has plenty to go around. Strongholds mean nothing to him. Remember Paul’s words? “We use God’s mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil’s strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4 NLT).
You and I fight with toothpicks; God comes with battering rams and cannons. What he did for David, he can do for us. The question is, will we do what David did? The king models much here.
Two types of thoughts continually vie for your attention. One proclaims God’s strengths; the other lists your failures. One longs to build you up; the other seeks to tear you down. And here’s the great news: you select the voice you hear. Why listen to the mockers? Why heed their voices? Why give ear to pea-brains and scoffers when you can, with the same ear, listen to the voice of God?
Do what David did.Turn a deaf ear to the old voices.Open a wide eye to the new choices. Who knows, you may be a prayer away from a nevertheless. God loves to give them. Peter stuck his foot in his mouth.Joseph was imprisoned in Egypt. The Samaritan woman had been married five times.Jesus was dead in the grave …
Nevertheless, Peter preached, Joseph ruled, the woman shared, Jesus rose ??? and you?
You fill in the blank. Your nevertheless awaits you.
From Facing Your GiantsCopyright (W Publishing Group, 2006) Max Lucado
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Monday, July 16, 2007
Change is in The Air - Are You Ready To Embrace It
Will you recognise the opportunities when they come?
Are you ready to step out of your comfort zone and take some risks?
This word from Kathie Walters is for Jazz and Janson and for everyone being called into a new season.
DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY GOD WANTS TO GIVE YOU
In the vision, I saw my friend squatting on the beach in the sand. He was turning over in his hands an old, English threepenny piece. The old threepenny piece was disregarded a long time ago and is no longer relevant for use, even though it's an interesting-looking coin.
As he was playing with the coin, a lovely sailing ship passed by--it had huge white sails and a good wind carrying it.
Just last weekend in Colebrook, NH, I saw the Angel of Change. I have only ever seen him 5 or 6 times in the last 10 years. He comes to anoint people just before changes happen. Do you know that you actually need an anointing for change? Well, the Angel of Change is here, so you can receive the anointing for change and also "catch the wind" or "jump on board."
Several years ago, the Angel of Change appeared in my living room while I was watching a movie (my friend Bunty, from England, was doing some ironing). I saw the angel out of the corner of my eye, and then he suddenly was standing behind me as I sat on the sofa.
He was the biggest angel I had ever seen at the time.
He had in his hands a small silver jug full of oil. He poured the oil over my head. It seemed to turn into a river, and I felt it go down my chest, arms, shoulders, and head, and I slipped out of the sofa onto the floor.
"What are you doing?" Bunty asked.
"Can't you see that angel?"
"No," Bunty replied, "But I can smell oil."
I scooted over and said, "Sit there," pointing to the place on the sofa I just vacated.
Bunty sat there, and the angel poured oil over her head. Next thing I knew, she was sitting on the floor.
There were a couple of people in our office on the floor below, and Bunty went to fetch them. Sure enough, when they sat on the sofa, they ended up on the floor. Well, word got around, and for 3 1/2 weeks, people in my area called my house, asking, "Can we come and sit on the sofa?"
"Help yourself," I would respond.
Suddenly, the angel went away. "What was that all about?" you may ask. I am not sure--I didn't invite the angel, and I didn't ask him to do anything. I did, however, notice one thing: during the following weeks, most of the people who had sat on my sofa received a major, direction-changing word for their lives. That was the first time the Angel of Change appeared to me.
The problem with being around prophetic people is that they are always trying to get you to move on--out of your comfort zone. It can get cozy there, can't it? Have you ever been "out on a limb" as the saying goes? Actually, it's not hard to go out on a limb, because you can crawl back to the tree. When you get out there on the limb, and then you hear the sound of the saw behind you, that's when you have to believe that underneath are the Everlasting Arms!
God doesn't push, but He does give invitations and make opportunities. Don't let them pass you by. Don't fiddle around, playing with old things that are really redundant right now in your life, like the threepenny piece--old things that are no longer valuable currency in the Kingdom.
Yes, maybe you'll have to stretch your faith and maybe leave some things (or people) behind.
Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4). You live today by the word you receive today. You can't live on yesterday's manna.
Sometimes you have to do what you have to do. Sometimes we dig in our heels because we have preconceived mindsets.
DON'T MISS THE SHIP...Don't Let It Pass On By
A friend who came on a trip to Ireland a New Year's ago was desperate--he knew he should come but had no money. At the last minute, he borrowed his brother's credit card. Well that doesn't sound very spiritual, but you can't put God in a box either. When he got back, his brother was waiting, amazed. An uncle had decided to pay off everyone's credit cards in the family!
Am I advocating putting everything on a credit card? Of course not. But on the other hand, you need to listen. Maybe you have some mindsets, and God wants to break the concrete over your mind.
Don't miss the ship; don't let it pass on by. Windows open and close. Doors open and shut. Sometimes it can be a long time before that window opens again.
Welcome the Angel of change. Sure, he might make you a bit uncomfortable, but what do you want? Do you want to stay where you are and go in circles, doing "good" things, and miss the GOD thing?
I was in a meeting one time, and I had a vision of a door. The Lord told me that there were people there who were asking God to open a door. I saw a few people actually leaning against the door, some were busy a little further away, but they were keeping an eye on the door. Others were busy doing good stuff, but they were oblivious of the door.
Suddenly, this door opened, and the people leaning on it fell through it; the others a little further away made a dash for it. The very busy ones didn't even know it had opened!
That week, my daughter, Lisa, who wanted to go work on Capitol Hill, had an invite, but she only had one day to decide and take the opportunity. Fortunately, she was leaning against the door, and she fell through it when it opened.
Another young girl in that meeting was waiting for an opportunity to go to England. She only had a certain amount of money, not enough for a ticket. On Tuesday, the Lord told her to call British Airways. Guess what? They had a 24-hour ticket sale. That door opened and closed in a day, but she fell through it.
CHANGES ARE GOOD FOR YOUR HEART--Good for Your Soul, Good for Your Spirit.
That ship I saw, "The Opportunity," looked very inviting, but it was going quite fast because it had a purpose and destiny. Jump on board. Do something I sometimes do in my meetings: Get all your loose change and strew it on the floor, then get a praise CD going and dance on change. That way you are saying, "I'm ready and willing, and God is able."
There are two things you can do with change: 1) Embrace change and have an adventure, or 2) resist change, and you know, that can be painful.
God is planning for you--even while you sleep.
Kathie Walters
Good News Ministries
Email: kathiewalters@mindspring.com
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Only Intimacy With God Makes You A Better Person
Could it be that you've got things upside down?
Could it be that it's time to let go and let God?
Read this inspired teaching from John Paul Jackson and allow it to draw you to intimacy with the Father.
From the Beginning
Many, many years ago in a garden far, far away, there lived a man named Adam and his wife, Eve. They were both very happy and loved each other very much.
But then one day, an evil snake told them that they could become better, stronger, and wiser people if they simply set their minds to doing so. They could even become like God. They listened to the snake and chose fruit from the wrong tree--a decision that caused a separation between them and God.
A lot of time passed, civilizations came and went, and now, thousands of years later, every culture (with the exception of the Judeo-Christian culture) believes that God has failed. You see, time has a way of twisting things in the human mind--this is true even today.
The "Good Person" Category
The secular arena will tell you that if you want to become better and stronger, you need to embrace "the good" that is within you. As Christians, most of us realize that this isn't true, BUT we don't live like it isn't true. Despite its pagan roots, this mindset soaked very securely into the Church, with only a slight twist: If you want to become a better person, you need to trust God--and then work really hard to get yourself into the "good person" category.
Therein lies the rub. The idea that you can do anything to help yourself, does not come from God. It's fruit from the wrong tree. You were created in His hands; He held you and formed you with His fingertips. If your very creation did not require your assistance, what else would? The theory of evolution was born from the belief that we do not need God; that we as humans can fill God's role if we just have the time.
If we truly can perfect ourselves, then the last thing we need is a savior. After all, who wants to be the servant if they can be the master? That's what satan suggested to Adam and Eve, and it's the same battle we fight with every choice we make today.
Accordingly, we think God wants us to try very hard to be everything He's called us to be, and that simply is not true. Yes, we do need to make the conscious decision for His will and not ours to be done in our life, but that's about it. We can't, by our own strength, carry ourselves down the path of His will. This mindset is very hard to break, because we've been taught this since "The Fall."
For example, our parents reward us if we're good and behave ourselves. Nothing's wrong with that practice, but it naturally produces within us the belief that we need to be good for God, and if we have issues we're working through, God must be upset and disappointed with us, which just isn't true. Why did the issue come up in the first place? Because He's dealing with it in us!
As difficult as breaking this mindset is, it can happen with this simple realization: You cannot get rid of your issues by yourself. You cannot save yourself. You are not and cannot be a good person by yourself. You do not have your life under control. You are not in charge of your fate. You...you...you...are not the final answer.
Only Intimacy with God will Make You a Better Person
Only one thing will truly make you a better person--and consequently "enlighten" you, as people like to talk about--and it's called "intimacy with God." Getting past our issues happens automatically as we grow closer and closer to Him, but it is not the process itself. Once we realize who God is and who we are in relationship to Him, all of Heaven will open to us, and we will walk in our true calling and destiny. Oh, and we'll become better people, too. That's the proper order, not the other way around.
John Paul Jackson
Streams Ministries International
http://www.streamsministries.com/
Monday, July 02, 2007
Dream Killers - Don't Accept False Labels - Do Whatever God Puts Into Your Heart
You'll find more articles by Jill at www.masterpotter.com
Counterfeit labels give the appearance of the real thing, but they are cheap imitations. In the case of dream killers, this means losing sight of the fact that you are an original, custom-designed by God, and accepting the false assessment that you were made in a sweatshop.
Labels have to do with unwritten rules. It happens like this. You have a calling from God, but you never seem to be put into a place to let it grow. Perhaps you are divorced and your church frowns on divorce. Or you are married, but your spouse is not saved. Or you are single, and your church is not comfortable putting single people in positions of leadership-particularly a single woman. Or perhaps you feel on the outskirts because you are in a racial minority or are elderly or your son is homosexual.
Whatever the reason for the labels that are put on us, we see others positioned ahead of us-the young couples, the financially well-off, the popular-and our hearts faint. We compare ourselves with others and jealousy shuts us down. We think, I'll never be able to fulfill my dream. I'm disqualified by the system.
The Lord goes beyond labels when He gives out marching orders. We could name many people in Scripture who defied convention, some of them pairing with other candidates who were just as unlikely. Simeon was an old priest and Anna was an old widow and prophetess, but the two of them were brought together in an assignment to announce the arrival of the Messiah.
Esther, an orphaned Jewish girl, teamed up with Mordecai, her cousin, and delivered the Jewish nation from destruction. Deborah was a judge and prophetess during a time when Israel was being harshly oppressed. She teamed with Barak, a great military commander, and, with the courageous efforts of a housewife named Jael, their enemy was destroyed.
All of these characters ignored conventional labels that could have disqualified them to achieve great things: age, marital status, race, sex, job descriptions. Because they were not afraid to dream, God could give them creative and dangerous assignments.
Copyright - Jill Austin
I hope this article has encouraged you to rid yourself of everything that gets in the way, and to run with determination the race that lies before you. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.