Release My Sound

 I hear a roar and see a lion roaring….I hear “The Lord is roaring out of His holy temple….I see Him roaring from within a person…then I hear Him say “ My sound will push back the enemy. My roar will set people free….learn to release My roar…the frequency of heaven is in My roar.  It will bring things into heavenly kingdom alignment…. Yes the sound of the shofar as you blow it…but also releasing my sound from within:   a tune, a hum, a song, a cry, there are many possibilities….just do it in the way I instruct/lead you…You will see and you will be amazed by what is released when My sound is released.  Angels respond to My sound. Creation responds to My sound. The spirit of man responds to My sound.”

 Song of Songs 2:14 TPT

O my dove, in the clefts of the rock

in the crannies of the cliff.

let me see your face,

let me hear your voice,

for your voice is sweet, 

and your face is lovely.

"Voice" can also be translated "sound".

Roots Sent Deep

 In a vision I saw roots being sent down and growing downward into the ground. As they extended downward, eventually they tapped into hidden rivers that were running deep underground.  There were rivers of revelation of the mysteries of God.  And there were rivers of the revelation of the depths of the love of God.  I had the sense that neither of these types of rivers are easily accessed, but are available to those who will persevere.  They are available to those who will press to send their roots deep to find these rivers.  As they draw the revelation from these rivers into their lives, they will be greatly enriched and will bear much good fruit in the kingdom of God.  

 

God Is Love

God is love.  Love is the nature of God.  Thus God is always loving.  He never changes.  His love never changes.....So God always loves me.  He can't be any other way.  I am not powerful enough to change the very nature of God.  I am not powerful enough to change the love of God for me. Nothing can separate me from the love of God, not even me.

1 John 4:8-10  ESV 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Romans 8:35-39  ESV  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Fire Breathing People

 Recently in a worship time, I began to hear the words “Fire breathing people.” Then as I sang more it got expanded out to be…..”I am bringing forth a fire breathing people, a people who breathe in the fire of God and breathe out the fire of God.  Breathing in and breathing out the fire of God.  Breathing in and breathing out God who is a consuming fire.  They will be first partakers.  The fire will do a work within and then they will breathe out fire wherever I send them, releasing the purifying fire of God, the fire of My passionate love.”

Roar of the Lion

Reposted from 6/10/15

God is raising up a governmental people in this day who will stand up and roar with the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.  He is preparing a people who can stand in the face of opposition and persecution and roar as the Lion of Judah.  They will stand in the authority of Christ against the darkness with no agenda of their own, only the agenda of the Lord Jesus Christ.


Joel 3:16-17 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. 17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more. 

Heart Connection

Repost from March 5, 2016

About a year ago, one day while I was at the piano worshiping the Lord, He began to speak the following to me:

"O my child come and sit with me a while.  I am so lonely in the depths of my heart, come and sit with me a while that I might share my heart. Many will have a surface relationship with Me.  But few will share My heart. My bride will share my heart.  Many run here and there to try to find Me.  And many will even pray, but few will share my heart. Come and be with Me, My child, and I will share My heart with you."

I believe that cry in God's heart is for each one of us. With the billions of people in the earth, God is lonely for a heart to heart relationship with each one. I believe there is a special slot/spot in God's heart carved out for each one.  And when that slot/spot is filled it brings satisfaction to God's heart. The deepest satisfaction comes when there is a real heart to heart connection.

Barnabas--Son of Encouragement

Repost of blog from August 14, 2012.

Recently I looked into the life of Barnabas. I would like to be more like Barnabas. I think I would like to have known Barnabas while he walked on the earth and look forward to meeting him in heaven.

Barnabas was a Levite from Cyprus. His name was Joseph but he was called Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement.” (Acts 4:36) This alone tells us that he was a man that encouraged others. He was one who could see the best in others. He would come alongside and help them on the path that God had for them. He did this most notably with Saul/Paul. When we think about the New Testament church we mostly think of Paul. But had it not been for Barnabas, we may not have known much about Paul.

Barnabas was the only one in Jerusalem initially who believed that Saul had a real conversion experience. While others were still cowering in fear of Saul, Barnabas took him under his wing and introduced him to the church leaders in Jerusalem. (Acts 9:27) Later when Barnabas was ministering in the new church in Antioch, he went to Tarsus and found Saul to enlist his help. (Acts 11:25) Barnabas obviously recognized that Saul had the necessary teaching gift for the work needed. From Antioch they were sent out together as missionaries. (Acts 13:1-3) In the early part of their ministry together Barnabas was listed first in references to them, indicating that he probably had a more prominent role. He did not seem to mind eventually taking the “lesser” role in the team. To me this shows humility.

Later Paul and Barnabas had a disagreement about taking John Mark along because of his failure to remain with them on a previous journey. Barnabas chose to work with the young John Mark and let Paul go on with someone else in ministry. (Acts 15:37-40) Again we see the willingness of Barnabas to work with someone that another would not and encourage him in his ministry calling. And again I wonder what may have happened to Mark, had Barnabas not stood with him and had just went on with Paul and left Mark by himself. Would Mark have become the man he did without the support and encouragement of Barnabas? Would Paul have become the man he did without the support and encouragement of Barnabas? It causes me also to wonder if there are people that I have not given a second chance or just wrote off that their lives may have been different had I acted differently toward them.

After the separation from Paul we don’t really hear much more about Barnabas, but I am quite certain there is much more to his life than is recorded here. We will just have to wait to talk to him about it on the other side. I would also assume that we would find more that he encouraged along the way than just Paul and Mark.

We also see from what is recorded in Acts 11:23-24 concerning his initial work at Antioch that “he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith. And so a large number of people was brought to the Lord.” He seemed to have pastoral heart and successful evangelistic outreach. Also according to Acts 13:1, he was considered amongst the prophets and teachers in Antioch. So he really functioned in several different "offices."
In addition Barnabas was one of the early church members who sold property and gave finance toward the work of the ministry. (Acts 4:37)  We see in this also a generous heart

FIERCE LOVE

I feel that God is asking me to republish some of my older blogs.  So here is the first one that I felt to republish. It was first published October 31, 2013......

Song of Songs 2:4  He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.

According to Nelson’s Bible Dictionary “A banner is a flag, ensign, streamer, or emblem attached to the end of a standard. Banners served as rallying points for military, national, or religious purposes……The most common use of banners was for military campaigns. A large signal flag usually was erected on a hill or other high place.”

God is raising up a warrior bride/army. The banner over God’s warrior bride/army is a banner of love.  This warrior bride will have a fierce love for God and for each other.    

Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. ³⁸ This is the first and great commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. ⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

You may wonder about my choice of the word “fierce.”  That is the word I heard from the Lord.  I looked up the word in the dictionary.   Here are some definitions of “fierce” from Webster’s Dictionary:   “marked by unrestrained zeal or vehemence, furiously active or determined, having or showing a lot of strong emotion : very strong or intense.”

I think that could describe the love that will characterize the bride of Christ in these last days.  It will be necessary to have that kind of love.  That kind of love comes from God.  It is not something we can find within ourselves.  God is love.  His love shines forth to us.  Then through us back to Him and to each other.

Song of Songs 8:6-7 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. ⁷ Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.

LET IT BE TO ME ACCORDING TO YOUR WORD

According to the record of the birth of Jesus, in the book of Luke chapter 1, an angel visited Mary. The angel told Mary that she would have a child who would be the Son of God and that Elizabeth, who had been barren, was pregnant. The angel also stated, “For nothing will be impossible with God.” I can’t imagine what all must have been going through Mary’s mind at the time. To be visited by an angel would be a little overwhelming. Then to be told she was about to have a child that would be the Son of God. What must she have been thinking!?!

Yet Mary’s immediate response was, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” What an amazing response!

Right after this angelic visitation Mary went to visit Elizabeth and when she greeted Elizabeth the child within her womb leaped. This unborn child, we know as John the Baptist, recognized the living God within the womb of Mary. And Elizabeth by inspiration of the Lord began to speak concerning the child within Mary’s womb. Elizabeth also stated, “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

May we, like Mary, be quick to respond in faith to the word of the Lord. God may speak to us directly, through another person, through the Scriptures, or even through an angel. May we respond in faith, even when it seems impossible, for as the angel stated, “Nothing will be impossible with God.” And may our response be, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

Luke 1:35-38 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Luke 1:45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of of what was spoken to her from the Lord.

Delight Not Surrender

Several months ago I was sharing with someone about some things I was struggling with.  Their answer to me was that I just needed to surrender more.  Each thing I shared they said, “You just need to surrender more.” It felt so hard and heavy, not all encouraging.  I even said to them, “I don’t know how to surrender any more than I already have in these areas.”

 A few days later as I was waking up in the morning, Psalm 37:4 was on my mind.  (Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the LORD and He will give the desires of your heart.) As I began to meditate on that scripture I heard the Lord say to me, “It is about delight not surrender.” I knew He was referring to what was said to me a few days before.  So I asked the Lord to teach me how to delight myself in Him. Since that time I have been learning more and more to delight myself in Him and have been finding that the struggles have become less and less of an issue. 

There are times when surrender is the key, but in this case for me at that time it was about delighting myself in the Lord. 

Embrace The Fire

 

Around the time of Pentecost/Shavuot I was worshipping the Lord and began to sing about the fire coming down on Sinai at the giving the of the law which was the first Shavuot and about the fire coming down at Pentecost.  As I did I began to think about the previous blog post about not abandoning the ship when God pours out His fire.  As I did I heard the Lord say, "If you embrace My fire and let it do its work, you will no longer be afraid of Me, but you will walk in the fear of Me."  So I encourage you once again to embrace God's fire and let it do its work.  

Our God is a consuming fire.  I believe that fire is the fire of His love.

Hebrews 12:28-29 NASB

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let’s show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; 29 for our God is a consuming fire.

 Song of Songs 8:6-7 The Passion Translation 

Fasten me upon your heart as a seal of fire forevermore.
    This living, consuming flame
    will seal you as my prisoner of love.
    My passion is stronger
    than the chains of death and the grave,
    all consuming as the very flashes of fire
    from the burning heart of God.
    Place this fierce, unrelenting fire over your entire being.
7 Rivers of pain and persecution
    will never extinguish this flame.
    Endless floods will be unable
    to quench this raging fire that burns within you.
    Everything will be consumed.
    It will stop at nothing
    as you yield everything to this furious fire
    until it won’t even seem to you like a sacrifice anymore

Don’t Abandon Ship

I saw myself with Yeshua, as a Lion, walking down a sunny beach. I could hear the waves coming in.  As I looked to my left I saw sand dunes.  When I looked up I saw what looked like a kite coming over the sand dunes.  Initially it looked red. Then I saw that it had some yellow on it and was more like a flame of fire.  It broke loose and flew out over the ocean to a ship that was near the shore.  It set the ship on fire. 

 It was a good fire.  As the fire began to burn on the ship, many people jumped overboard.  But many other people stayed on the ship and embraced the fire, letting it purify them until they were transformed to look like pure white light. 

I heard the Lord say, "Don't abandon ship in the coming outpouring of the fire of My Spirit."

 In the coming outpouring of the fire of the Holy Spirit, many will abandon ship.  But others will embrace the fire and be transformed.  As the fire of God falls don’t abandon the ship embrace the purifying, transforming fire.  

WHO WILL STAND WITH THE LORD?

 “Who will stand with Me? Who will stand with My Warrior King?  Who will stand on My side?”

 The above is what I heard during a time of worship recently.  I had a sense that the Lord was speaking about the coming election. We are not to stand with a political party or candidate, so to speak, but with the Lord.  It is not about parties or personalities.  It is about the Lord God Almighty and His Kingdom purposes for this nation. 

 Immediately I thought of this scripture:

Joshua 5:13-15 Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, he raised his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” 14 He said, “No; rather I have come now as captain of the army of the Lord.” And Joshua fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down, and said to him, “What has my lord to say to his servant?” 15 And the captain of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

 A few days later a friend posted the following quote from Abraham Lincoln: “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right.”

 Last Sunday morning the message shared at church by one of our elders started off by talking about Martin Luther, since it is Reformation Day today.  At his defense at Worms Martin Luther stated the following: “Unless I can be instructed and convinced with evidence from the Holy Scriptures or with open, clear, and distinct grounds of reasoning ... then I cannot and will not recant, because it is neither safe nor wise to act against conscience…..Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me! Amen."  The primary message was about standing and what the scriptures say about standing. 

 I believe the Lord is speaking about more than just the election.  He wants us to stand with Him, to seek Him and hear His heart and take a stand with Him for His Kingdom. 

Lighthouse In The Storm

In an experience I had a few months ago, I saw myself with Yeshua, as a Lion, walking down a sunny beach by the ocean. As we walked I saw a lighthouse at the end of a pier.  Suddenly both Yeshua and I were at the top of the lighthouse.  We became the light of the lighthouse. At first there were two separate lights shining, one very dim and one very bright. Then they joined together and became one large light.  Soon a large dark storm came and there were turbulent waters all around the lighthouse. 

As I continued to look at the scene, the Lion and I began to roar from the lighthouse in addition to being a bright shining light.  At this point I began to see the heavens opening over the lighthouse with a multitude of angels above us and bright light streaming down over us.  People have gathered around the lighthouse.  The gaze of the people is being directed heavenward and the angels are being released to help the people.

 After the storm passes the Lion and I are standing at the top of the lighthouse we turn to look at each other and smile.  There is such a sense of peace and satisfaction.  The crowd that gathered at the base of the lighthouse are singing praises to God and the heavenly portal above us is still open.  As I look up I see a throne room.  The Father is on His throne and other heavenly creatures around it. 

The two lights becoming one is significant of become one with Yeshua, union with Christ.  You in union with Christ will be a light for many in the coming storm/turbulence.  Stay the course.  Remain steady and firm in your walk with Yeshua and become an elevated light in union with Him.  Then join with Yeshua to release the roar from within to open a heavenly portal. The heavenly sound will open a portal for angelic help to be released into the earth realm.

Isaiah 60:1-3 Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

²     For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,

and thick darkness the peoples;

       but the Lord will arise upon you,

and his glory will be seen upon you.

³     And nations shall come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your rising.

Joel 3:16 The Lord roars from Zion,

and utters his voice from Jerusalem,

and the heavens and the earth quake.

       But the Lord is a refuge to his people,

a stronghold to the people of Israel.

Under The Canopy

In the summer of 2014 I had a vision in which I saw a small group of people standing under a white canopy.  The wind was blowing very hard. Even though the wind was blowing quite hard, the edge of the canopy was barely fluttering.  It was not going anywhere.  I heard the Lord say, "The winds of change are blowing and everything that can be shaken will be shaken. But you have a kingdom that cannot be shaken."  We have the kingdom of God within us. Every place where Christ rules is His kingdom.  His kingdom cannot be shaken and will stand forever.

Hebrew 12:25-29 ESV See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire. 

I then saw that the people were standing on a rock and the canopy was anchored into the rock.  This caused me to think of Matthew 7:24-25 ESV Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 

The canopy of the Lord and the Rock are not going anywhere.  We need to find and stay in that place on the Rock and under the canopy of the Lord, in that secret place of the Most High.  We must abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  One time God said to me, "the secret place of the Most High is a place to abide, not just a place to visit." It is not just a place to run to in time of trouble.  We need to learn to live there.

Psalm 91:1-2 ESV He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. 2  I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 

When I was trying to find a picture of a canopy to go with this post in 2015, I couldn't find a canopy that looked like the one I had seen.  Several weeks later I was reading Isaiah 4:5-6 ESV Then the LORD will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory there will be a canopy. 6 There will be a booth for shade by day from the heat, and for a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain. 

With a little investigation into the original Hebrew for canopy, I realized the word translated as canopy is the word  chuppâh, which is the Jewish bridal tent.  It is the canopy under which a Jewish couple would get married.  When I looked at pictures of  chuppâhs I realized that was the type of canopy I had seen.  This spoke to me of the importance of maintaining our intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the vision I saw the wind was blowing their hair of the people standing under the canopy, which to me means they were affected in some way by the winds of change that were blowing.  But they were not moved.  In these days of we will be affected in some ways by the things going on around us.  But if we stay on the rock and under the canopy we will not be moved.

The wind is beginning to blow and things are beginning to shake  and there is much more coming.  Now is the time to be prepared.  Now is the time to find that abiding place and stand there in faith.  When the things swirl and shake around us we need to keep our focus on the Lord and not on the things swirling and shaking around us.  God has spoken that very clearly to me when I have gotten my focus in the wrong place.


(This is a slightly revised blog post from 2015.)

GOD'S DEFINITION

While thinking about humility, I was considering false humility and pride as being in the ditch or gutter on either side of true humility.  As I contemplated what real humility looks like, I felt like God told me that we have little understanding of what real humility looks like.  He indicated that even our dictionary definitions of many concepts are not exactly how He sees them. 

Sometime ago I was before the Lord and declaring God You are always patient, You are always good, You are always kind, etc. As a I said You are always kind, I began to think of some situations in which Jesus' actions would not fit my definition of kind.  For example, when He drove the money changers out of the temple, the things He said to the Scribes and Pharisees, or letting the rich young ruler just walk away.  I heard the Lord say, "you don't understand My kindness." 

I think there are many words and concepts that we have a little distorted because of running them through our own grids of understanding or because of how they have been traditionally defined.  

Do I have answers yet?  No.  But I am in search of God's heart and an understanding of how He defines these terms and many others.

Come In The Midst Of The Storm

 Come in the midst of the storm and uncertainty...take a step of faith

Matthew 14:26-32 And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. ²⁷ But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. ²⁸ And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. ²⁹ And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. ³¹ And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? ³² And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

Sometimes the call of God requires a great step of faith.  In the midst of the stormy seas Jesus was standing on the water and called for Peter to “Come.” 

We often don’t give Peter any credit for responding to that call to “come.” We just focus on him sinking.  I remember a speaker talking about being in Israel in a boat on the Sea of Galilee, at or near where the above incident took place.  He said he was thinking about it being the place where Peter sank after he got out of the boat.  Immediately the Lord corrected him reminding him that this was where Peter walked on the water.  Peter may have had little faith and began to doubt once he took His focus off the Lord and focused on the surroundings, but Peter did walk on the water in response to Jesus’ call to “come.”

Peter’s experience is a good reminder to keep our focus on the Lord in the midst of difficult circumstances.  When our focus gets on the circumstances is when we begin to sink. Even when our faith wavers, Jesus will reach out and pull us up and walk us back to the boat.  He won’t let us sink and drown when we call out to Him. 

Peter’s experience is also a good reminder to respond to the call of the Lord to “come,” even when the circumstances around us look rather precarious, in the midst of a storm and uncertainty.  When we step out on His Word, with what faith we have and He will meet us there. 

Come Ye After Me

Mark 1:17 And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.

Mark 3:13-15 And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him. ¹⁴ And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, ¹⁵ And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils:

Song of Songs 7:10-13 I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me. ¹¹ Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. ¹² Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates bud forth: there will I give thee my loves. ¹³ The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved.

The first call of Yeshua is to come and be with Him.  The relationship with Him is the most important part of our Christian life and ministry.  Without relationship with Him, we really have nothing to offer.  He is the vine we are the branches.  We must stay connected into the vine as the source of life and sustenance to have anything of lasting value to share. 

We see in the verses in Mark that Yeshua called the disciples to come and be with Him. Then He sent them forth.  He called for them to come after Him and He would make them to become fishers of men.  The onus was on Yeshua to prepare them for the work of sharing the Kingdom of God as kingdom ambassadors. That preparation came in time spent with Yeshua in everyday life, as well as watching Him minister, and participating with Him in ministry. Then he sent them out. 

In the passage from the Song of Songs we see that the call is also to come. Actually much of that book is about coming to Yeshua and growing in an intimate relationship with Him.  As already stated that is the relationship with Yeshua is essential.  Then going forth is done together. The going forth is into the harvest field of the unsaved.  The going forth is also to the villages, the places where there are believers dwell in fellowship.  In the villages there is ministry to the needs of those who are already believers. All ministry is done co-laboring with the Godhead. Yeshua only did what He saw the Father doing.  We need to learn to operate in the same way to be effective.  We function in this earth realm as ambassadors of the Kingdom realm.

It all has to start with “come” and then being sent out. Being sent is another key.  To just go of our own accord is not good.  We must look to Yeshua to send us in the right time to the right place.  As we are being sent we are going out to co-labor with Yeshua under the direction and anointing of Father and Holy Spirit. 

Come Let Us Reason Together

Isaiah 1:18-19 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. ¹⁹ If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:

God’s first call to us is to come.  His desire is for us to come to Him, not allowing anyone anything to stand between us.  God created us for relationship with Him. It grieves His heart when there is something in the way of that relationship.  When God was inquiring of where Adam and Eve were, after they had partaken of the forbidden fruit, it was not as an angry God looking for vengeance.  But it was a broken hearted God feeling the loss in the relationship. 

When we stray from God, His desire is always for restoration.  His call is to come as you are.  He doesn’t ask us to clean ourselves up or jump through a bunch of hoops first.  His call is to “come.” He will do the cleansing.  He has made the way of restoration available to us.  The remedy was made in Christ before the foundation of the world. 

The blood of Jesus Christ is like an eraser.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Psalm 103:8-14 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. ⁹ He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. ¹⁰ He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. ¹¹ For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. ¹² As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. ¹³ Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. ¹⁴ For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

Once our sins are cleansed there is no record of it in God’s book. They are put far from us, never to be found again.  One time a number of years ago, I was confessing a sin before God that I had long ago repented of, but was remembering for some reason. I heard the Lord say, “I keep no record of wrongs. Neither should you.” Initially I was a little puzzled. As He repeated His statement I realized what He was saying.  In 1 Corinthians 13:5 NIV one of the characteristics of love is to keep no record of wrongs. God, who is love, keeps no record of wrongs once they have been confessed and repented of.  His blood erases the record of that sin. 

Micah 7:18-19 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. ¹⁹ He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

I am so thankful I serve a God who delights in mercy.  His call is always to come to Him and reason together with Him.  He is a very reasonable God who has made the way for us to be forgiven of all our sins and to be able to daily walk in intimate fellowship with Him.

Things Aren't Always What They Seem To Be

Testimony:

A couple years ago as I was finishing up my doctorate, God told me someone was going to provide for me to go away for a week or so to work on writing my thesis. Some months later a friend offered for me to come to her house and stay in the upstairs apartment that was going to be empty for the week.  (When she offered that to me she did not know what God had spoken to me.)  So I made plans to go.

About a week before I was supposed to go, my computer developed a severe problem and I was unable to use it.  I took to the store where I had bought it.  After some diagnostics the verdict was that it had to be sent back to the manufacturer to be fixed.  I was not happy.  In just a few days I was to be leaving to go to NH to write and needed my computer.  But it was unusable and was sent off to the manufacturer. It was going to take some time to get fixed.

I decided to go to NH anyway, I wasn't going to take a week off from writing.  I would just write the old fashioned way with pen and paper if necessary.  When I got to NH, my friend loaned me her laptop to use since she had access to another one.  I was very thankful for the use of the laptop.

So I started to work.  But it wasn't long until I was a bit frustrated. Although I could find the Scriptures and some of the other things I needed on the internet, it wasn't as easy to find or use as the Bible software that I had on my computer.  With the Bible software I have I can get to scriptures and other info really fast. And can copy and paste into my document easily.  It even puts  the footnote in for me. That wasn't the case with what was available on the internet. It was difficult and time consuming.

At the end of the first day I began to wonder if perhaps I could load my Bible software onto my friend's computer for the week.  So I called the software company and asked.  Much to my surprise, they said, "Yes,"  and told me how to download it on to the computer.  It made my work so much easier.

When my computer stopped working I thought it was the absolute worst time for that to happen.  But it turned out to be the best time for it to happen.  Had I not been going to NH for that period of time I would have been at home without a computer to write or the Bible software to use.  God's provision of a place, a computer, and favor with the software company made it all perfect. It wasn't at all what it seemed to be at first.