This is simply my notes I took on my phone during our last worship & prayer meeting. I will clean it up and add to it as I get the chance later today or on Monday.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
I opened:
We are at the conclusion, culmination, coming to a head
Luke 3:15-16 beware of our own expectations; He will fulfill His expectations; there is great joy in that; Jesus will baptize us with the Holy Spirit & fire
John 3:27-29 there is great joy at the voice of the bridegroom
Psalm 126:2-3 God has done so much it is though we are in a dream; but this is the reality dream of God
Nathan - we want a greater experience than Moses, Solomon or David because of our access through Christ which they did not benefit from
Me - Isaiah 12:1-6 - draw with joy from the wells of salvation; make mention that His name is exalted; great is Jesus, the Holy One of Israel, in our midst
Me - The chains that we are singing about, that God wants to break, are more than personal chains, they are church and community chains. He has broken our personal and church chains during this fast. He came to set the captives free. Chris shared how he met a parent who had just gotten out from 2 months of jail. This was a parent of kids that regularly come to the youth drop-in. The parent was excited about the upcoming bike day for the kids.
Nathan - Consume us for more than our own pleasure, Lord that you would be made famous through us
Rob - the Lord loved me, the uniqueness of His love for us; His fire will consume all that is not as it should be; we sometimes disqualify ourselves for the way He has created us
Nathan - He is looking for my obedience as a unique person; he is all consuming
Merril - he is consumed with us; we are consumed by him; his fire is linked to his love as a groom & bride; we are also one body as a church; it may have been said in the past that God had forsaken this church
Phil closed:
Moses said to the Lord, show me your glory; the Lord hid him & proclaimed his name; there is nothing greater than the name of the Lord
Remember the disciples saying, show us the father; Jesus said if you've seen me
If you deny me before men I will deny you before my father, but if you acknowledge me before men I will acknowledge you before the father; he is proclaiming our name before the father;
Break fast with the mana from heaven
we are not coming to an end but a beginning; that your ears & hearts would know what He is proclaiming about you; it will take you beyond
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Sunday, 12 June 2011
Saturday, 11 June 2011
Day 9 of 10 - On the threshold of the fire
Friday, June 10, 2011
I opened our time together reminding everyone of what Melody had told us the previous night: to bring nothing for our journey. In Exodus 24:18, Moses stayed on the mountain for 40 days and nights. Moses did not pack a mule; he took his walking stick and the clothes on his back.
I also read 2 Corinthians 3:7-11. It is important to remember that the glory of our covenant is greater than that which Moses was under. We tend to think of the Old Testament encounters with God's glory, but we are seeking an encounter based on a better covenant.
We are at the end of ourselves. There is nothing we have to offer. We are at the point where it must be all of Him. We cannot finish in the flesh what was begun in the Spirit. (Galatians 3:3) We rely on a covenant not based on rule keeping but on the righteousness of Christ.
Nathan shared that all striving ceases in His presence. We have to rest and simply be.
Rob had a vision of a suspended membrane filled with treasure at the front of the church. He felt lead of the Lord to take a sword and in a prophetic act go across the stage and cut it open so the gifts could come out. The gifts are corporate, not individual. (Related Scriptures I thought of are - 1 Corinthians 12:27-28; Ephesians 4:7-8,11-13)
Nathan read Joel 2:18-32 and then prayed: Thank You that You are pouring Your Spirit on all flesh. You are calling in Your remnant. The harvest is great but the laborers are few. Call in the harvest, Lord. Make this house overflowing for You, that we would see visions beyond this house and our lives. May this barn be full of the harvest. We do not cry out in selfish ambition, but for Your Name's sake.
Nathan read Psalm 29, then prayed: It is Your voice, oh God. It calls to hearts and minds. Lord, make us instruments of Your voice so that Your voice may be amplified beyond these walls. There is nothing we need to add to Your voice. [Revelation 1:12-16]
Cliff read Romans 12:1-16 while prefacing it that this may be forward looking. We must be willing to associate with people of low position. We live in the midst of much poverty and how open are we to these people. We're transitioning in ministries and mindsets. [Cliff said] I'm not necessarily comfortable with this personally but my heart is also thrilled by the thought of them meeting with God.
Cliff also read 1 Timothy 1:15-16. We are going to enter a time of bold vision for going forward. People will rise up in our midst. The biggest qualification will be being lowly on heart. How will we receive them if we don't have humility? I [Cliff] say this not to condemn but to encourage that God will be bringing these people to us.
Tracy was amazed at how Cliff brought together many prophecies over our church without having been here long enough to know them.
Emily shard that there are lots of busy angels around that have been making preparations because of our fast--this Sunday will be huge.
Tracy had shared a Scripture with me about half way through our time together but was uncertain of it. Two of the verses stuck out to me--Revelation 8:3-4. Our prayers are insufficient for what God is accomplishing and so He is adding His own to it to complete them so that they might have His intended result.
Emily came back up with more detail on the angels. The angels are laying out cloth over the church of different colors: red, blue, purple reflecting flames of increasing intensity. There will be more angels tomorrow with orange and green.
I closed remarking how during this meeting it became very evident to me that we are functioning on God's time. I checked my watch several times during the meeting thinking that we must be 8:30 or well past it. However, I was wrong so many times. Barb shared from Joshua on Day 2 of the fast about where the sun stood still. We have entered into the eternal and therefore the temporal does not work as a mindset.
I asked Rob to close in prayer. He prayed that Father would break off anything hindering us in completing His purpose in us for this fast. He also prayed the Lord would bless us as we continue to walk with Him.
I opened our time together reminding everyone of what Melody had told us the previous night: to bring nothing for our journey. In Exodus 24:18, Moses stayed on the mountain for 40 days and nights. Moses did not pack a mule; he took his walking stick and the clothes on his back.
I also read 2 Corinthians 3:7-11. It is important to remember that the glory of our covenant is greater than that which Moses was under. We tend to think of the Old Testament encounters with God's glory, but we are seeking an encounter based on a better covenant.
We are at the end of ourselves. There is nothing we have to offer. We are at the point where it must be all of Him. We cannot finish in the flesh what was begun in the Spirit. (Galatians 3:3) We rely on a covenant not based on rule keeping but on the righteousness of Christ.
Nathan shared that all striving ceases in His presence. We have to rest and simply be.
Rob had a vision of a suspended membrane filled with treasure at the front of the church. He felt lead of the Lord to take a sword and in a prophetic act go across the stage and cut it open so the gifts could come out. The gifts are corporate, not individual. (Related Scriptures I thought of are - 1 Corinthians 12:27-28; Ephesians 4:7-8,11-13)
Nathan read Joel 2:18-32 and then prayed: Thank You that You are pouring Your Spirit on all flesh. You are calling in Your remnant. The harvest is great but the laborers are few. Call in the harvest, Lord. Make this house overflowing for You, that we would see visions beyond this house and our lives. May this barn be full of the harvest. We do not cry out in selfish ambition, but for Your Name's sake.
Nathan read Psalm 29, then prayed: It is Your voice, oh God. It calls to hearts and minds. Lord, make us instruments of Your voice so that Your voice may be amplified beyond these walls. There is nothing we need to add to Your voice. [Revelation 1:12-16]
Cliff read Romans 12:1-16 while prefacing it that this may be forward looking. We must be willing to associate with people of low position. We live in the midst of much poverty and how open are we to these people. We're transitioning in ministries and mindsets. [Cliff said] I'm not necessarily comfortable with this personally but my heart is also thrilled by the thought of them meeting with God.
Cliff also read 1 Timothy 1:15-16. We are going to enter a time of bold vision for going forward. People will rise up in our midst. The biggest qualification will be being lowly on heart. How will we receive them if we don't have humility? I [Cliff] say this not to condemn but to encourage that God will be bringing these people to us.
Tracy was amazed at how Cliff brought together many prophecies over our church without having been here long enough to know them.
Emily shard that there are lots of busy angels around that have been making preparations because of our fast--this Sunday will be huge.
Tracy had shared a Scripture with me about half way through our time together but was uncertain of it. Two of the verses stuck out to me--Revelation 8:3-4. Our prayers are insufficient for what God is accomplishing and so He is adding His own to it to complete them so that they might have His intended result.
Emily came back up with more detail on the angels. The angels are laying out cloth over the church of different colors: red, blue, purple reflecting flames of increasing intensity. There will be more angels tomorrow with orange and green.
I closed remarking how during this meeting it became very evident to me that we are functioning on God's time. I checked my watch several times during the meeting thinking that we must be 8:30 or well past it. However, I was wrong so many times. Barb shared from Joshua on Day 2 of the fast about where the sun stood still. We have entered into the eternal and therefore the temporal does not work as a mindset.
I asked Rob to close in prayer. He prayed that Father would break off anything hindering us in completing His purpose in us for this fast. He also prayed the Lord would bless us as we continue to walk with Him.
Friday, 10 June 2011
Day 8 of 10 - Moving through the darkness
Thursday, June 9, 2011
In a discussion Wednesday night after our prayer and worship time, Nathan shared 1 Kings 18 with me. I had Nathan come up and share it with those here tonight. It's the story of Elijah's confrontation with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. The prophets of Baal shouted and cut themselves to no effect. Elijah, on the other had, does the opposite of the prophets of Baal when, at the direction of the Lord, he has water poured on the sacrifice. Rather than having this emotional build towards an encounter with God, last night we were more subdued to where we ended in silence. God is asking, do you trust Me even though what I have you in and doing looks contrary to where you think I'm taking you?
I opened with Psalm 139:12. Even through we are in the thick darkness, the darkness is as light to the Lord. He sees us. This reminds me of the movie "Avatar" where the Na'vi greet each other with, "I see you." God sees us and sees into us. He knows exactly who each one of us is and while that may make us uncomfortable, He knowingly invites us closer. While we may not seem to be seeing in this thick darkness, Psalm 119:105 tells us, "Your Word is a light to my feet And a lamp to my path." This is not simply the written Word but Jesus, the living Word. He is guiding us along this path of righteousness and is faithful to complete what He has begun in us (Philippians 1:6).
Nathan stated, "Who may ascend the hill of the Lord but those with clean hands & pure hearts." (Psalm 24:3-4)
Nathan prayed - Lord we want to look at You so we can be more like You. (1 John 3:2)
I shared that I believe the Lord wants us to know that to go deeper into God you must be willing to deeper in yourself, for you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 6:19) Those areas of our temple that we have not accessed with the Lord skews our perspective of ourselves and of Him.
I also shared that as you get higher up the mountain the air gets thin. Will we progress anyway when He truly becomes the air we breathe? The joy of the Lord must become your strength. (Nehemiah 8:10) Apart from Him we can do nothing. (John 15:5)
Nathan proclaimed freedom to let go of what you are used to in going to God. We will learn greater trust in this process as we find come to Him in unusual ways and as He impacts our lives in ways we have never experienced. We must lean not on our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)
Shannon shared how she experienced new freedom in her life at YC this year. She thanked Father God for freeing her from all her guilt and shame. You can be free too. You don't need anyone/anything else but Him.
Cliff prayed - Lord you have called us & washed us clean. You have sealed this in the Lamb's Book of Life. Lord, we come to You humbly and surrender to You. You have good plans for us, not to harm us; You have plans in the world too. You have gifts selected for each of us and we accept them to use for Your glory. Knit us together as one body. Lord, our striving will not accomplish Your will. Lead & guide us. The battle belongs to You, Lord.
Bev shared a vision from previous fast she did. In it she was on the edge of cliff hanging from cracks on the edge and it was pouring down oil like rain. She slipped and was close to falling. As soon as she lost her grip and fell, she found herself outside of her body watching herself fall from the cliff. Then she saw myself on a hospital table opened up in her midsection and from it there was light. Jesus was standing in the room and when he saw her He smiled and then hopped in. She said the Holy Spirit is a deposit on the space and Jesus wants to take possession of His temple.
Chris had painted a new picture and shared that Wednesday night he had this picture in his mind but believed that it was not for that night. The first two paintings were darker but this one is brighter. The painting has two waters: above and below. In the middle there is the emerald glow of God (Revelation 4:3). In the middle is an upside down house referring to our church turned upside down. The house has two pillars, which are Jachin and Boaz from Solomon's temple (1 Kings 7:21). There is also a baby in the house referring to the newness of God here.
Mariette shared 1 Peter 2:4-10 about Jesus being the chief cornerstone and us being living stones He is forming into a temple to offer up spiritual sacrifices. She also shared Mark 6:45-56 where Jesus walks on the water and the disciples believe Him to be a ghost but He immediately allayed their fears. After He gets in the boat it the winds cease and they realize they did not understand the mystery of the loaves due to their hard hearts. They cross over and land at Gennesaret and the sick came or were brought to Him and were healed. Just as Chris painted the man stepping into unknown waters, He wants us going straight ahead. Everything we need is there with Him.
I shared that the unknown place is within us. We are that temple.
Looking back at this, there are some key points in these passages that resonates with me for our fast. Peter writes that we were once not a people but are now the people of God who have obtained mercy. We have entered the oneness that Jesus prayed for and His glory is in our midst. Now we may, "proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." Also, it's interesting that the disciples did not recognize Jesus in the midst of their storm. We have to be careful in our journey to not be afraid of Jesus when He isn't as we thought He should be.
I closed with Psalm 16:11, "in Your presence is fullness of joy." As we move into His presence our joy will increase to fullness.
Melody came up to close in prayer. We should take nothing for the journey we are on. Don't be as Lot's wife, who may have simply turned back because she forgot her makeup. We must keep going forward in this fast.
I broke in at this point as I was reminded how Jesus said those who put their hands to the plow and look back are not worthy of the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:62).
I also remembered something that happened to me earlier in the day. We must be careful to not allow the fast to become our personal fast instead of the Lord's. I was thinking about food and making plans for what I would eat on Sunday when the fast is over and the Lord caught me up short saying that it was now my fast instead of His. Keep the focus on Him.
Melody closed in prayer.
In a discussion Wednesday night after our prayer and worship time, Nathan shared 1 Kings 18 with me. I had Nathan come up and share it with those here tonight. It's the story of Elijah's confrontation with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. The prophets of Baal shouted and cut themselves to no effect. Elijah, on the other had, does the opposite of the prophets of Baal when, at the direction of the Lord, he has water poured on the sacrifice. Rather than having this emotional build towards an encounter with God, last night we were more subdued to where we ended in silence. God is asking, do you trust Me even though what I have you in and doing looks contrary to where you think I'm taking you?
I opened with Psalm 139:12. Even through we are in the thick darkness, the darkness is as light to the Lord. He sees us. This reminds me of the movie "Avatar" where the Na'vi greet each other with, "I see you." God sees us and sees into us. He knows exactly who each one of us is and while that may make us uncomfortable, He knowingly invites us closer. While we may not seem to be seeing in this thick darkness, Psalm 119:105 tells us, "Your Word is a light to my feet And a lamp to my path." This is not simply the written Word but Jesus, the living Word. He is guiding us along this path of righteousness and is faithful to complete what He has begun in us (Philippians 1:6).
Nathan stated, "Who may ascend the hill of the Lord but those with clean hands & pure hearts." (Psalm 24:3-4)
Nathan prayed - Lord we want to look at You so we can be more like You. (1 John 3:2)
I shared that I believe the Lord wants us to know that to go deeper into God you must be willing to deeper in yourself, for you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 6:19) Those areas of our temple that we have not accessed with the Lord skews our perspective of ourselves and of Him.
I also shared that as you get higher up the mountain the air gets thin. Will we progress anyway when He truly becomes the air we breathe? The joy of the Lord must become your strength. (Nehemiah 8:10) Apart from Him we can do nothing. (John 15:5)
Nathan proclaimed freedom to let go of what you are used to in going to God. We will learn greater trust in this process as we find come to Him in unusual ways and as He impacts our lives in ways we have never experienced. We must lean not on our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)
Shannon shared how she experienced new freedom in her life at YC this year. She thanked Father God for freeing her from all her guilt and shame. You can be free too. You don't need anyone/anything else but Him.
Cliff prayed - Lord you have called us & washed us clean. You have sealed this in the Lamb's Book of Life. Lord, we come to You humbly and surrender to You. You have good plans for us, not to harm us; You have plans in the world too. You have gifts selected for each of us and we accept them to use for Your glory. Knit us together as one body. Lord, our striving will not accomplish Your will. Lead & guide us. The battle belongs to You, Lord.
Bev shared a vision from previous fast she did. In it she was on the edge of cliff hanging from cracks on the edge and it was pouring down oil like rain. She slipped and was close to falling. As soon as she lost her grip and fell, she found herself outside of her body watching herself fall from the cliff. Then she saw myself on a hospital table opened up in her midsection and from it there was light. Jesus was standing in the room and when he saw her He smiled and then hopped in. She said the Holy Spirit is a deposit on the space and Jesus wants to take possession of His temple.
Chris had painted a new picture and shared that Wednesday night he had this picture in his mind but believed that it was not for that night. The first two paintings were darker but this one is brighter. The painting has two waters: above and below. In the middle there is the emerald glow of God (Revelation 4:3). In the middle is an upside down house referring to our church turned upside down. The house has two pillars, which are Jachin and Boaz from Solomon's temple (1 Kings 7:21). There is also a baby in the house referring to the newness of God here.
Mariette shared 1 Peter 2:4-10 about Jesus being the chief cornerstone and us being living stones He is forming into a temple to offer up spiritual sacrifices. She also shared Mark 6:45-56 where Jesus walks on the water and the disciples believe Him to be a ghost but He immediately allayed their fears. After He gets in the boat it the winds cease and they realize they did not understand the mystery of the loaves due to their hard hearts. They cross over and land at Gennesaret and the sick came or were brought to Him and were healed. Just as Chris painted the man stepping into unknown waters, He wants us going straight ahead. Everything we need is there with Him.
I shared that the unknown place is within us. We are that temple.
Looking back at this, there are some key points in these passages that resonates with me for our fast. Peter writes that we were once not a people but are now the people of God who have obtained mercy. We have entered the oneness that Jesus prayed for and His glory is in our midst. Now we may, "proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." Also, it's interesting that the disciples did not recognize Jesus in the midst of their storm. We have to be careful in our journey to not be afraid of Jesus when He isn't as we thought He should be.
I closed with Psalm 16:11, "in Your presence is fullness of joy." As we move into His presence our joy will increase to fullness.
Melody came up to close in prayer. We should take nothing for the journey we are on. Don't be as Lot's wife, who may have simply turned back because she forgot her makeup. We must keep going forward in this fast.
I broke in at this point as I was reminded how Jesus said those who put their hands to the plow and look back are not worthy of the Kingdom of God (Luke 9:62).
I also remembered something that happened to me earlier in the day. We must be careful to not allow the fast to become our personal fast instead of the Lord's. I was thinking about food and making plans for what I would eat on Sunday when the fast is over and the Lord caught me up short saying that it was now my fast instead of His. Keep the focus on Him.
Melody closed in prayer.
Thursday, 9 June 2011
Day 7 of 10 - The sound of silence
Wednesday, June 8, 2010
This was an interesting day. I believe we have moved into the "thick darkness" I spoke about yesterday. There is a sense of not quite knowing where we are or how to move forward. This was reflected in out time together. I know from previous experience that the seventh day can be difficult in a fast.
I started the meeting with a reference to the word that Melody left us with the previous night - flourish. Psalm 92:13-15 states: "Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." I believe this is something we need to be holding on to and meditating on as we complete our journey over the next few days.
The Scripture that I really started the session with was Acts 1:9-11. The disciples were looking up into the sky where Jesus had been and the angels basically told them they had to move forward. We can't look at where Jesus was but have to move forward. We should not look back to the place we were, we are past repentance and breaking chains--we have moved thru the darkness. We moved into the clouds, the place of refreshing. We are going to move into the thick darkness where we can't even see our hand in front of our face, where we will feel lost. Again, we cannot look back to the place of the clouds, where we felt refreshed and more comfortable. We must continue to focus on the Lord and we will move through to where He is, in the fire.
I read Isaiah 41:9-10 - "You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." In this place we must not allow fear to hold us back from moving forward. His plans for us are good, not for destruction.
Melody immediately felt the need to respond with Song of Solomon 8:6-7a - "Set me as a seal upon your heart, As a seal upon your arm; For love is as strong as death, Jealousy as cruel as the grave; Its flames are flames of fire, A most vehement flame. Many waters cannot quench love, Nor can the floods drown it." We treasure your love, oh God.
We sang "Come as Close as You Want." The whole song is amazing but the chorus struck a chord with what we are going through: "Holy God, Take my heart, Purge with flame and truth! A holy heart is all I want, That I may live with You!" (Listen to it by clicking here.) Lord, you are the author & finisher of faith (Hebrews 12:2a), increase our faith to finish this journey and continue the race. Lord, increase my faith!
After a couple more songs, Nathan felt led to stop playing & we prayed in silence for about 20 minutes.
I closed with John 14:4-6 - "[Jesus said,] 'And where I go you know, and the way you know.' Thomas said to Him, 'Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?' Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'" Jesus is our way. We may feel lost but we do know the way. Lord we remind You of Your Covenant with us and we trust Your way. You will get us there.
Melody came forward and said that there was lots of angelic activity and she had seen silver wings. She also saw a meteorite flying thru sky that was actually coal from God's altar and from it everyone received their portion from Him.
Melody then prayed in closing: Lord, You are teaching us to trust. Even when we do not know it, You are so active. Some of us are being cracked open so that Your glory will shine out as never before. Lord, seal what you have done here tonight by Your Spirit.
As I was thinking afterwards, it struck me that in the thick darkness we are stuck with ourselves. We can no longer see those we are traveling with. We must really come to terms with ourselves as we come face-to-face with God. In the silence, He is there and we are even more aware of ourselves and the flaws we don't want Him to see or touch. In the thick darkness, silently Jesus bore our sin on the cross. We are in the place where self can be dealt with in the deepest way.
This was an interesting day. I believe we have moved into the "thick darkness" I spoke about yesterday. There is a sense of not quite knowing where we are or how to move forward. This was reflected in out time together. I know from previous experience that the seventh day can be difficult in a fast.
I started the meeting with a reference to the word that Melody left us with the previous night - flourish. Psalm 92:13-15 states: "Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." I believe this is something we need to be holding on to and meditating on as we complete our journey over the next few days.
The Scripture that I really started the session with was Acts 1:9-11. The disciples were looking up into the sky where Jesus had been and the angels basically told them they had to move forward. We can't look at where Jesus was but have to move forward. We should not look back to the place we were, we are past repentance and breaking chains--we have moved thru the darkness. We moved into the clouds, the place of refreshing. We are going to move into the thick darkness where we can't even see our hand in front of our face, where we will feel lost. Again, we cannot look back to the place of the clouds, where we felt refreshed and more comfortable. We must continue to focus on the Lord and we will move through to where He is, in the fire.
I read Isaiah 41:9-10 - "You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." In this place we must not allow fear to hold us back from moving forward. His plans for us are good, not for destruction.
Melody immediately felt the need to respond with Song of Solomon 8:6-7a - "Set me as a seal upon your heart, As a seal upon your arm; For love is as strong as death, Jealousy as cruel as the grave; Its flames are flames of fire, A most vehement flame. Many waters cannot quench love, Nor can the floods drown it." We treasure your love, oh God.
We sang "Come as Close as You Want." The whole song is amazing but the chorus struck a chord with what we are going through: "Holy God, Take my heart, Purge with flame and truth! A holy heart is all I want, That I may live with You!" (Listen to it by clicking here.) Lord, you are the author & finisher of faith (Hebrews 12:2a), increase our faith to finish this journey and continue the race. Lord, increase my faith!
After a couple more songs, Nathan felt led to stop playing & we prayed in silence for about 20 minutes.
I closed with John 14:4-6 - "[Jesus said,] 'And where I go you know, and the way you know.' Thomas said to Him, 'Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?' Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'" Jesus is our way. We may feel lost but we do know the way. Lord we remind You of Your Covenant with us and we trust Your way. You will get us there.
Melody came forward and said that there was lots of angelic activity and she had seen silver wings. She also saw a meteorite flying thru sky that was actually coal from God's altar and from it everyone received their portion from Him.
Melody then prayed in closing: Lord, You are teaching us to trust. Even when we do not know it, You are so active. Some of us are being cracked open so that Your glory will shine out as never before. Lord, seal what you have done here tonight by Your Spirit.
As I was thinking afterwards, it struck me that in the thick darkness we are stuck with ourselves. We can no longer see those we are traveling with. We must really come to terms with ourselves as we come face-to-face with God. In the silence, He is there and we are even more aware of ourselves and the flaws we don't want Him to see or touch. In the thick darkness, silently Jesus bore our sin on the cross. We are in the place where self can be dealt with in the deepest way.
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Day 6 of 10 - Peace at the half-way point
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
It was a very busy day today. A few things were there to try to knock me off kilter. Part of it was finding someone to watch the soccer team I coach because the other coach was sick. Then I had to help get the team started in the game and rush over to the church to get there just before 7:00. Speaking with others I was aware of the resistance that was happening in people's lives to what God wanted for this day of the journey.
I opened our time together with John 14:26-27. The Lord left us His peace which is not as the world gives it. It's peace that passes understanding but allows us to understand because anxiety sidetracks understanding (Phil 4:7). I believe today is about peace. Having peace even in the midst of storms. We are half-way through the fast. We have agonized (remember my sermon from this last Sunday - to agonize is to lead one's self through the struggle) our way to this point. God wants us to have His peace and enter into the rest I spoke about yesterday.
While we were singing "Love Came Down" and the line "I am forever Yours" I could hear the echo of God saying, "You ARE forever Mine."
Nathan had a vision of someone needing the touch of the Father. If you will let Him, He will pick you up and set you on His lap.
The verse of the song "I Love Your Presence" struck me as we sang it. The verse goes: "In the glory of your presence; I find rest, for my soul; In the depths of your love; I find peace, makes me whole." We must remain in His presence. Yes, God is present everywhere but that is not the same as us allowing God to have Presence in our lives.
While singing "Your Love is Extravagant," the line, "I find myself moving to the rhythms of Your grace" was emphasized. This is true of our journey together with Him and to Him. There is a rhythm involved. That is why there is so little prayer being offered tonight outside of singing. That rhythm that is graciously moving us as a surfer on a wave is also going to shift our singing and our prayers.
Emily said she saw angels pouring buckets of water down the stage wall and it flowed past Nathan into the sanctuary. She had three Scriptures to go with it. Psalm 36:8 - "They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house, And You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures." Psalm 46:4-5 - "There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn." Rev 22:1 - "And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb."
I prayed and thanked the Lord for His river of life. He loves us so good. He leads us beside still waters & restore our souls. Let us not be happy with ankle deep, knee deep or even waist deep water, where we still have a bit of control. Lord help us abandon ourselves completely to You and Your river. Lord, continue to draw & move us by your grace.
We sang "Show Me Your Glory" and while the chorus repeats that theme, the emphasis was to walk in His Presence like Jesus did.
The closing Scripture I had was Deuteronomy 4:11-13a. The Lord is leading us up His mountain. This is the journey we are on. We have been through the darkness and now are in the cloud where there is a waterfall that the Lord has provided from His river of life. In the darkness there was repentance and the breaking of chains. We have moved beyond that now. We are resting 1/2 way up and while it would be easier to go down, the desire to reach the top overwhelms and compels us. When we transition to the thick darkness He will speak to us from the fire and with words of fire concerning His covenant with us. We should not falter, even though that can be a temptation at the half-way point. We will press on.
I asked Melody to close in prayer. She said we all have expectations of God for this fast that are written on a page and He wants us to surrender our page for His page. The page is mostly unknown and blank to our sight but she sees the word "flourish" on it. In Jeremiah 1, God calls him to be a prophet and to speak His utterances but Jeremiah came up with excuses. God then corrected him and came and touched His lips. This broke the yoke off him in a violent act. God wants to take our "but" off of us so we have no more excuses. The almond branch is a symbol of a new beginning. We are entering a new beginning.
Melody then released the word Flourish over everyone as she closed in prayer.
I added to it the blessing of Numbers 6:24-26 which I forgot ended with "and give you peace."
I look forward to the rest of our journey. We are continuing up the mountain. We will soon pass from the clouds into the thick darkness. While the unknown resides there, it is the unknown of God's presence. We shall flourish. Psalm 92:13-15 says, "Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him."
It was a very busy day today. A few things were there to try to knock me off kilter. Part of it was finding someone to watch the soccer team I coach because the other coach was sick. Then I had to help get the team started in the game and rush over to the church to get there just before 7:00. Speaking with others I was aware of the resistance that was happening in people's lives to what God wanted for this day of the journey.
I opened our time together with John 14:26-27. The Lord left us His peace which is not as the world gives it. It's peace that passes understanding but allows us to understand because anxiety sidetracks understanding (Phil 4:7). I believe today is about peace. Having peace even in the midst of storms. We are half-way through the fast. We have agonized (remember my sermon from this last Sunday - to agonize is to lead one's self through the struggle) our way to this point. God wants us to have His peace and enter into the rest I spoke about yesterday.
While we were singing "Love Came Down" and the line "I am forever Yours" I could hear the echo of God saying, "You ARE forever Mine."
Nathan had a vision of someone needing the touch of the Father. If you will let Him, He will pick you up and set you on His lap.
The verse of the song "I Love Your Presence" struck me as we sang it. The verse goes: "In the glory of your presence; I find rest, for my soul; In the depths of your love; I find peace, makes me whole." We must remain in His presence. Yes, God is present everywhere but that is not the same as us allowing God to have Presence in our lives.
While singing "Your Love is Extravagant," the line, "I find myself moving to the rhythms of Your grace" was emphasized. This is true of our journey together with Him and to Him. There is a rhythm involved. That is why there is so little prayer being offered tonight outside of singing. That rhythm that is graciously moving us as a surfer on a wave is also going to shift our singing and our prayers.
Emily said she saw angels pouring buckets of water down the stage wall and it flowed past Nathan into the sanctuary. She had three Scriptures to go with it. Psalm 36:8 - "They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house, And You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures." Psalm 46:4-5 - "There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn." Rev 22:1 - "And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb."
I prayed and thanked the Lord for His river of life. He loves us so good. He leads us beside still waters & restore our souls. Let us not be happy with ankle deep, knee deep or even waist deep water, where we still have a bit of control. Lord help us abandon ourselves completely to You and Your river. Lord, continue to draw & move us by your grace.
We sang "Show Me Your Glory" and while the chorus repeats that theme, the emphasis was to walk in His Presence like Jesus did.
The closing Scripture I had was Deuteronomy 4:11-13a. The Lord is leading us up His mountain. This is the journey we are on. We have been through the darkness and now are in the cloud where there is a waterfall that the Lord has provided from His river of life. In the darkness there was repentance and the breaking of chains. We have moved beyond that now. We are resting 1/2 way up and while it would be easier to go down, the desire to reach the top overwhelms and compels us. When we transition to the thick darkness He will speak to us from the fire and with words of fire concerning His covenant with us. We should not falter, even though that can be a temptation at the half-way point. We will press on.
I asked Melody to close in prayer. She said we all have expectations of God for this fast that are written on a page and He wants us to surrender our page for His page. The page is mostly unknown and blank to our sight but she sees the word "flourish" on it. In Jeremiah 1, God calls him to be a prophet and to speak His utterances but Jeremiah came up with excuses. God then corrected him and came and touched His lips. This broke the yoke off him in a violent act. God wants to take our "but" off of us so we have no more excuses. The almond branch is a symbol of a new beginning. We are entering a new beginning.
Melody then released the word Flourish over everyone as she closed in prayer.
I added to it the blessing of Numbers 6:24-26 which I forgot ended with "and give you peace."
I look forward to the rest of our journey. We are continuing up the mountain. We will soon pass from the clouds into the thick darkness. While the unknown resides there, it is the unknown of God's presence. We shall flourish. Psalm 92:13-15 says, "Those who are planted in the house of the Lord Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him."
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Day 5 of 10 - Breaking chains
Monday, June 6, 2011
I cannot express what a blessing this time of fasting and prayer has been. God is certainly able to immeasurably more than we can ask or think.
I invited Bev up at the beginning to share what she saw in Chris' picture on Sunday night. Instead of just a man standing in God's hand, she sees the man stepping out onto the water of the storm in faith & obedience. She felt we need to make the choice between faith or fear.
I opened the prayer and worship time with Acts 12:5-7. In this Peter is in jail and an angel of the Lord sent to free Peter. After waking him, his chains simply fall off. When I was speaking with Phil earlier in the afternoon and shared this Scripture with him, he shared that he had seen chains falling off people's ankles and wrists in such piles that it would be difficult to walk about because of them. He then saw them transformed into gold bracelets and anklets as a testimony and the rest also transformed into a vast gold plunder. I also thought of Elijah on 1 Kings 19 where the angel of the Lord came to him to give him sustenance for his journey. I believe God sent an angelic host into our midst to break off chains and give sustenance for our journey.
I read 1 John 2:16 and led out in prayer that God would first break off the chains of the world from His church. I asked for forgiveness where we have allowed ourselves to be bound with the chains of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We repented and asked Father for a greater measure of His love so we might stay free from the world.
Nathan led in the song, "Break Every Chain" which contained the line, "there's an army rising up to break every chain." He prayed that the hosts of heaven will go forth before the army of God with the worshippers in front & release the chains of those bound by the enemy. He prayed that we be so saturated with the presence of God that grace is given to anyone we come close to.
Betty read Isaiah 61:3. She prayed that God would perform His divine exchanges and make us into His planting.
Chris read Psalm 91 but focused on the last three verses (14-16): "14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation.” He said this is what he was painting tonight.
Nathan shared that as we speak of freedom, God is bringing us into a new place where we no longer break chains but step into the freedom God has accomplished. He prayed that God's freedom would reign continuously, not temporarily in our lives.
Throughout the evening many people prayed that God would break difference chains in people's lives and in the community. Here is a list of the chains people were praying about: mediocrity; fear; complacency; disobedience; fear of rejection; discouragement; not enough; selfishness; greed; timidity; lies that hold your children back; judgement; fear of judgement; injustice; religion; pornography; promiscuity; compromise; pride; self-condemnation; poverty; lack of tithing; doubt; mistrust; bullying; depression; lack of work; addiction; laziness; jealousy; workaholic; envy; vanity; coveting; impatience; loneliness; false comfort; hopelessness; idolatry; false expectation; false prophecy; sickness; infertility; perfectionism; hunger; insomnia; abandonment; ignoring; racism; mental affliction; intolerance; abuse; dishonoring; divorce; witchcraft; despair; physical disability; performance & striving.
There was a sense of how God is so gentle & compassionate & merciful in breaking chains.
Tracy prayed for God to fill those places where chains have been broken & removed so that they would not return or come back worse.
My closing Scripture for the evening was Hebrews 4:9-10. With the chains being broken and us being free, we need to now diligently enter the rest of God. I blessed people to leave with God's rest and peace.
Melody close in prayer thanking God for how He is preparing our hearts. She thanked Him for bringing us into a higher place of joy & strength beyond repentance. God is well pleased with us. She asked that God bless us to no longer be in a place of self-focus and to grant a revelation of His Father heart for us & our community. She thanked Him that His glory is risen upon us and He brings us out into joy. Melody shared that there will be sacrifice required to receive our broken community in honouring way when they come--we will sacrifice the right to be right with those that would want to contend; we will have to sacrifice our very self--to be selfless in loving the people into the Kingdom. She asked the Lord to help us walk in His wisdom.
We left in the blessing of God.
I cannot express what a blessing this time of fasting and prayer has been. God is certainly able to immeasurably more than we can ask or think.
I invited Bev up at the beginning to share what she saw in Chris' picture on Sunday night. Instead of just a man standing in God's hand, she sees the man stepping out onto the water of the storm in faith & obedience. She felt we need to make the choice between faith or fear.
I opened the prayer and worship time with Acts 12:5-7. In this Peter is in jail and an angel of the Lord sent to free Peter. After waking him, his chains simply fall off. When I was speaking with Phil earlier in the afternoon and shared this Scripture with him, he shared that he had seen chains falling off people's ankles and wrists in such piles that it would be difficult to walk about because of them. He then saw them transformed into gold bracelets and anklets as a testimony and the rest also transformed into a vast gold plunder. I also thought of Elijah on 1 Kings 19 where the angel of the Lord came to him to give him sustenance for his journey. I believe God sent an angelic host into our midst to break off chains and give sustenance for our journey.
I read 1 John 2:16 and led out in prayer that God would first break off the chains of the world from His church. I asked for forgiveness where we have allowed ourselves to be bound with the chains of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We repented and asked Father for a greater measure of His love so we might stay free from the world.
Nathan led in the song, "Break Every Chain" which contained the line, "there's an army rising up to break every chain." He prayed that the hosts of heaven will go forth before the army of God with the worshippers in front & release the chains of those bound by the enemy. He prayed that we be so saturated with the presence of God that grace is given to anyone we come close to.
Betty read Isaiah 61:3. She prayed that God would perform His divine exchanges and make us into His planting.
Chris read Psalm 91 but focused on the last three verses (14-16): "14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation.” He said this is what he was painting tonight.
Nathan shared that as we speak of freedom, God is bringing us into a new place where we no longer break chains but step into the freedom God has accomplished. He prayed that God's freedom would reign continuously, not temporarily in our lives.
Throughout the evening many people prayed that God would break difference chains in people's lives and in the community. Here is a list of the chains people were praying about: mediocrity; fear; complacency; disobedience; fear of rejection; discouragement; not enough; selfishness; greed; timidity; lies that hold your children back; judgement; fear of judgement; injustice; religion; pornography; promiscuity; compromise; pride; self-condemnation; poverty; lack of tithing; doubt; mistrust; bullying; depression; lack of work; addiction; laziness; jealousy; workaholic; envy; vanity; coveting; impatience; loneliness; false comfort; hopelessness; idolatry; false expectation; false prophecy; sickness; infertility; perfectionism; hunger; insomnia; abandonment; ignoring; racism; mental affliction; intolerance; abuse; dishonoring; divorce; witchcraft; despair; physical disability; performance & striving.
There was a sense of how God is so gentle & compassionate & merciful in breaking chains.
Tracy prayed for God to fill those places where chains have been broken & removed so that they would not return or come back worse.
My closing Scripture for the evening was Hebrews 4:9-10. With the chains being broken and us being free, we need to now diligently enter the rest of God. I blessed people to leave with God's rest and peace.
Melody close in prayer thanking God for how He is preparing our hearts. She thanked Him for bringing us into a higher place of joy & strength beyond repentance. God is well pleased with us. She asked that God bless us to no longer be in a place of self-focus and to grant a revelation of His Father heart for us & our community. She thanked Him that His glory is risen upon us and He brings us out into joy. Melody shared that there will be sacrifice required to receive our broken community in honouring way when they come--we will sacrifice the right to be right with those that would want to contend; we will have to sacrifice our very self--to be selfless in loving the people into the Kingdom. She asked the Lord to help us walk in His wisdom.
We left in the blessing of God.
Monday, 6 June 2011
Day 4 of 10 - A leap forward
Sunday, June 5, 2011
What an amazing time we had tonight!
Darrell shared at the beginning how on Saturday night during worship he had a vision of a stone hallway and the wind of the Holy Spirit blew down the hallway. His mind went to Paul & Silas and he felt the wind of the spirit was freeing all bondages.
I shared from 2 Timothy 1:3-7 in opening our time together. I believe that genuine faith exists in all of us who are seeking God's greater release. This faith has been imparted from previous generations who are part of the great cloud of witnesses. Therefore, we need to stir up the gift of God that is in us in pursuing Him.
During worship we were singing how good God is. Emily came up and shared how she had been healed on Saturday night. She had been in prayer and Holy Spirit began praying through her (she doesn't remember what) and afterwards her mind was clear. She no longer was feeling the effects of being OCD.
Mariette read from Colossians 1:15-23;2:6-10. The parts that stuck out to me were that Christ is before all things and the Head of His body, the church; Christ is reconciling all things to Himself; we are to "continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel," "as we have received Christ Jesus the Lord, we walk in Him," we are "complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."
During continued worship, Emily saw gold, shimmering fabric filling the room above us. I immediately took this as Isaiah 6:1 and that the train of God's robe was filling His temple. The temple was not the building but the temple built with living stones, that is the people (Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:4-5). I had Psalm 24 on my heart earlier in the worship and felt that the church was to open its ancient gates that the King of Glory might enter in. We agreed with this vision and proclaimed the King was in residence.
Tracy went to the cross which had a red cloth draped over it and took the cloth and started dancing with it. After a while of her and Verity dancing, Tracy said God was impressing on her that many people had placed their gifts on the cross and not put them into action. God is calling His church to stir up the gifts and use them. Tracy said she had been reading Revelation 2-3 and noted that Jesus always spoke of the deeds of the churches. We are called to obedience. Our love for Christ is to show in obedience to what he commands us.
I had also noticed them dancing. The impression I had was that they were like Miriam and the Israelite women in Exodus 15:20-21. God has triumphed gloriously over our enemies. We need not fear them pursuing us.
Nathan said that the King always does Kingdom business when He is present. We need to be seeking His audience to discover what He wants done.
Tarrus saw God building His temple out of stones that would not be damaged or destroyed by fire, wind and water. God is building a solid place for His Spirit to dwell. He is also releasing that temple to carry His presence out of the building and into the community.
Tracy asked me and Betty to stand on the cloth which she had been dancing with but was now laid on the floor at the altar. My impression of the cloth when she had been kneeling on it in worship was that it was like a magic carpet that was carrying the church quickly into its destiny and skipping over several obstacles that would have been hard work to traverse. I also felt that I was to stand there with my shepherd's staff. People gathered around to pray and Cliff prayed that I would lead the congregation into new and unknown pastures. Myself and the leadership were blessed to lead the congregation.
Betty shared from the end of Psalm 40 in The Message translation: "Let those who know what you're all about tell the world you're great and not quitting. And me? I'm a mess. I'm nothing and have nothing: make something of me. You can do it; you've got what it takes—but God, don't put it off." We do not believe God is putting it off, but is doing it now. She shared that there was emotional pain that has come up during the fast. God is cleaning up the mess. I shared how there had been a vision previously where God's fire fell in the sanctuary and on all the people who had gathered there. Some embraced the fire and were instantly consumed and became as the fire. Other were as stone and did not ignite. Still others were on fire but their flesh was burning and they were screaming in pain. They ran around and eventually chose to either go with those who burned and be completely consumed or go to those who were stone and have their fires put out. I believe this is a warning to us to embrace the flame of God amongst us and allow Him to consume our flesh.
Melody closed in prayer.
I'm looking forward to our fifth gathering Monday night.
What an amazing time we had tonight!
Darrell shared at the beginning how on Saturday night during worship he had a vision of a stone hallway and the wind of the Holy Spirit blew down the hallway. His mind went to Paul & Silas and he felt the wind of the spirit was freeing all bondages.
I shared from 2 Timothy 1:3-7 in opening our time together. I believe that genuine faith exists in all of us who are seeking God's greater release. This faith has been imparted from previous generations who are part of the great cloud of witnesses. Therefore, we need to stir up the gift of God that is in us in pursuing Him.
During worship we were singing how good God is. Emily came up and shared how she had been healed on Saturday night. She had been in prayer and Holy Spirit began praying through her (she doesn't remember what) and afterwards her mind was clear. She no longer was feeling the effects of being OCD.
Mariette read from Colossians 1:15-23;2:6-10. The parts that stuck out to me were that Christ is before all things and the Head of His body, the church; Christ is reconciling all things to Himself; we are to "continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel," "as we have received Christ Jesus the Lord, we walk in Him," we are "complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power."
During continued worship, Emily saw gold, shimmering fabric filling the room above us. I immediately took this as Isaiah 6:1 and that the train of God's robe was filling His temple. The temple was not the building but the temple built with living stones, that is the people (Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Peter 2:4-5). I had Psalm 24 on my heart earlier in the worship and felt that the church was to open its ancient gates that the King of Glory might enter in. We agreed with this vision and proclaimed the King was in residence.
Tracy went to the cross which had a red cloth draped over it and took the cloth and started dancing with it. After a while of her and Verity dancing, Tracy said God was impressing on her that many people had placed their gifts on the cross and not put them into action. God is calling His church to stir up the gifts and use them. Tracy said she had been reading Revelation 2-3 and noted that Jesus always spoke of the deeds of the churches. We are called to obedience. Our love for Christ is to show in obedience to what he commands us.
I had also noticed them dancing. The impression I had was that they were like Miriam and the Israelite women in Exodus 15:20-21. God has triumphed gloriously over our enemies. We need not fear them pursuing us.
Nathan said that the King always does Kingdom business when He is present. We need to be seeking His audience to discover what He wants done.
Tarrus saw God building His temple out of stones that would not be damaged or destroyed by fire, wind and water. God is building a solid place for His Spirit to dwell. He is also releasing that temple to carry His presence out of the building and into the community.
Tracy asked me and Betty to stand on the cloth which she had been dancing with but was now laid on the floor at the altar. My impression of the cloth when she had been kneeling on it in worship was that it was like a magic carpet that was carrying the church quickly into its destiny and skipping over several obstacles that would have been hard work to traverse. I also felt that I was to stand there with my shepherd's staff. People gathered around to pray and Cliff prayed that I would lead the congregation into new and unknown pastures. Myself and the leadership were blessed to lead the congregation.
Betty shared from the end of Psalm 40 in The Message translation: "Let those who know what you're all about tell the world you're great and not quitting. And me? I'm a mess. I'm nothing and have nothing: make something of me. You can do it; you've got what it takes—but God, don't put it off." We do not believe God is putting it off, but is doing it now. She shared that there was emotional pain that has come up during the fast. God is cleaning up the mess. I shared how there had been a vision previously where God's fire fell in the sanctuary and on all the people who had gathered there. Some embraced the fire and were instantly consumed and became as the fire. Other were as stone and did not ignite. Still others were on fire but their flesh was burning and they were screaming in pain. They ran around and eventually chose to either go with those who burned and be completely consumed or go to those who were stone and have their fires put out. I believe this is a warning to us to embrace the flame of God amongst us and allow Him to consume our flesh.
Melody closed in prayer.
I'm looking forward to our fifth gathering Monday night.
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