11:00am
We had a great turn-out last night. The Common Room was packed. We will have to move to the Sanctuary tonight.
I believe last night was a great start to our fast. The worship was intimate and focused on relationship with God. The presence of God was rich. Jesus, our great Shepherd, was leading us beside the still water and restoring our souls. It may have seemed quiet or uninvolved but we are just starting. We will engage more and be engaged more with our God. We need to let Him set the pace and respond to it.
As we progress with this fast, be sure to be walking it with Jesus. The weight and pressure of spending time in His presence has affected us and will increase. The apostles told the early church that, "through many pressures we must enter the Kingdom of God." (Acts 14:22) There will be increasing pressure in fasting that will bring out what is inside us--the good, the bad and the ugly. We must give it all to God. He is transforming out lives and we must submit to the process.
I look forward to meeting again tonight.
Tonight we went further on our journey. Melody shared how on Thursday night she had seen Jesus, the anointed one, filling everyone's horn with oil for the journey. That we would need the oil for our lamps. She also saw a bowl with an eye dropper, ear dropper and a "tiny sickle." This was to open our eyes, open our ears and cut away the "flesh" that is left on our hearts. That's exciting to know God is giving us what we need to complete this journey with Him. I then opened in prayer including a reminder that through many pressures will we enter the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:22) and that the oil will assist us in coming through these pressures.
Barb shared Joshua 10:7-14. This is where Joshua was pursuing the Amorites. God tells Joshua that none of them would stand before him and then has the sun and the moon stand still for about a whole day. The Lord is fighting great battle and winning a great victory on our behalf.
Emily shared with me Isaiah 33:8 to the end of the chapter and Isaiah 59:21 to the end of the chapter. It speaks of the desolation that came to the land and then of the redemption and restoration of God. There is certainly a barrenness of a clear manifestation of God in our church and community. That redemption and revelation is coming.
At the end of our time together, I shared from Romans 11:8 where it speaks of Israel concerning Christ saying, "God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, unto this day." I believed that many of our spirits were slumbering and that this related to the eyes and ears that Melody spoke about. We spoke to our spirits to wake up just as David told his soul to not be cast down. We need to continue to purpose ourselves to a complete work of God in our midst. We cannot falter.
With our spirits now awake, I read from Isaiah 42:5-9. We are not just pursuing some little god, but God Almighty who the heavens and the earth and all that are in them. He has called us in righteousness and in covenant "As a light to the Gentiles, To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the prison, Those who sit in darkness from the prison house." (v.6-7) The old has passed away and He declares the new things He is accomplishing even before we have seen them spring forth.
We closed with Terry reading from Acts 4:23-31. It is the prayer of the disciples for boldness to "speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." Jesus' prayer in the garden included him stating: "I have manifested Your name." God's name is far greater than the manifestation we have seen. Let's continue to press through in fasting and prayer that His name might be great in our lives, church and community.
No comments:
Post a Comment