Tuesday 30 August 2016

find me in the river

I want and need to rise above all my bad habits. I need to break free from this  self-destructive cycle that I have allowed in my life. Like Paul said "My spirit is willing but my flesh is weak".

I want to experience God on a new level, I want to surrender my all - holding nothing back from God. I want to be ashamed of nothing.  I want to be able to face God with a clear conscience.

So today, I officially begin this journey. For the next 21 days I have committed to rewrite negative feelings and thoughts and ideas - addressing my thinking towards permanent progress in any area and stopping the cycle of shame and defeat.  I have had enough. I mean business and I know God is saying... You go girl!  With feverent prayers and petitions I will move forward. I will call unto my God who hears me when I call.  I know it is His desire for me to be fulfilled, to be a conquerer, to be more.
 
What are your cravings? Anything you would like to put under God's control?
Alcohol
Sex
Internet, Facebook, twitter, television
Drugs
Attention
Sympathy
Negative thoughts
Rejection

'find me in the river with my soul laid bare....'
 

I love You


If I was a painter, I would use the sky as my canvas so that the whole world would see how much I love You. I would use all the colours on my palette to be creative and daring to find more shades to describe how much You mean to me. I would paint a picture that would say a thousand words and I will sign it…’with love’

If I was a comedian I would amuse You with jokes and quotes. I would make You laugh until Your stomach hurts. I would playfully humor and entertain You.

If I was a poet I would charm You with words pleasingly arrayed that would make sense of the feelings that I cannot put to words.

If I was a sculptor, I would stun You with a piece of art that would show You how much I appreciate everything you have ever done for me.

But I am not a painter, a poet nor a comedian. I am just me. I don’t know how 2 express my love for You in fancy ways or with colourful words. I just don’t know.

But I know this… I love You with all my heart.

Thursday 25 August 2016

I'm Weak, But still Anointed

"And I am weak today, though anointed king;" (2 Samuel 3:39)

This was spoken from the mouth of King David following the cruel battles of the house of Saul and the house of David. David was exhausted physically, mentally, and spiritually from all that had transpired since his inauguration as King. Brothers were killing brothers, and life was throwing curve balls at David. He never even got to enjoy his first few days as King. 

However, here is the point I wish to make to those of you who know God has anointed you for a particular assignment. Being weak doesn’t mean your anointing is. This is one of the revelations we need to receive as God’s children that we don’t operate out of the weak identity of the flesh. What makes us powerful is the Spirit of God in us and the anointing upon us. It is the anointing that will make up for your fleshly weakness. 

Jesus said this to the Apostle Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in weakness." How many people get discouraged because they identify their weakness to determine their effectiveness? I have found over the years that I get better results when I feel in the natural I was less effective. Why is it that way? “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels (weak), that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us." (2 Corinthians 4:7) God likes to take the weak and show Himself strong through them, so that at the end of their assignment He gets all the glory for it. 

It’s time to be like the Apostle Paul and say, “Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Corinthians 12:9) Remember it doesn’t matter how gifted, talented, or charismatic you are, if you don’t have the anointing nothing will change either way. So you may be weak, but remember you are anointed!
 

Guest Article – Mark Casto

Tuesday 23 August 2016

five little stones

On my way to the office one morning, I heard this song on the radio and immediately fell in love with the lyrics because it captures a peace of my own heart:...
 
It never was about the oil dripping from my head
I never did dream beyond the pastures I could tend
It was never about the praise, not about the street parade
I didn't really need a crowd when Goliath fell down
 
I never meant to woo a king with simple shepherd songs
Or hide away inside a cave, safe from danger's arms
I never meant to wear a crown or try to bring armies down
It never was about me and who I hoped to be
 
Five little stones or a royal robe
Shepherd or king doesn't mean a thing
'Cause at the end of the day
I want to hear people say:
My heart looks like Your heart!
 
[Your heart from Chris Tomlin]

Connected to the Vine


I want to get to the place

Where I can meet with my Saviour

face to face

I need to connect with my Source

Who will aid me to withstand all evil force

that’s keeping me from entering the bridal chamber

It is in Him that a find peace in the midst of all the danger

He delivers me from all evil

Surrounds me with a legion of angels

Blesses me with His presence

Anoints me with His oil

and aligns me with His truth

He is the Great I Am!

Monday 22 August 2016

Tearing down barriers

...And now a personal but most urgent matter; I write in the gentle but firm spirit of Christ. I hear that I’m being painted as cringing and wishy-washy when I’m with you, but harsh and demanding when at a safe distance writing letters. Please don’t force me to take a hard line when I’m present with you. Don’t think that I’ll hesitate a single minute to stand up to those who say I’m an unprincipled opportunist. Then they’ll have to eat their words.

The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

You stare and stare at the obvious, but you can’t see the forest for the trees. If you’re looking for a clear example of someone on Christ’s side, why do you so quickly cut me out? Believe me, I am quite sure of my standing with Christ. You may think I overstate the authority He gave me, but I’m not backing off. Every bit of my commitment is for the purpose of building you up, after all, not tearing you down.

[2 Cor 1-8]

His Sovereignty


He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—He is supreme in the end. From beginning to end He’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is He, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in Him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe; people and things, animals and elements —get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of His death, His blood that poured down from the cross.
Colossians 1:19-29 [MSG]

Thursday 11 August 2016

My Commanding Officer

My Commanding Officer
I am in the army of God.
Jesus Christ is my Commanding Officer.
The Holy Bible is my code of conduct.
Prayer are my weapons of warfare.
I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience, tried by adversity and tested by fire.

I am a volunteer in this army.
I am enlisted for eternity.
I will either retire in this army at the rapture or die in this army.
But I will not get out, sell out, be talked out, or pushed out. I am faithful, reliable, capable and dependable.

I am not a wimp.  I am in place saluting my King. Obeying His orders, praising His Name and training up His disciples. No one has to send me flowers, gifts, food, cards, candy or give me handouts. I do not need to be cuddled, cradled, cared for or catered to.  I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around.  I  cannot be discouraged enough to turn me aside. I cannot lose enough to cause me to quit.

I am more than a conqueror. I will always triumph. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Devils cannot defeat me. People cannot disillusion me. Weather cannot weary me. Sickness cannot stop me. Battles cannot defeat me. Money cannot buy me. And hell cannot handle me.

Even death cannot destroy me, for when my Commander calls me from this battle field, He will promote me to captain and then bring me back to rule this world with Him.

I am marching around claiming victory. I will not give up. I will not turn around. I am a christian soldier marching heaven-bound.

Here I stand, division will not make me fall.
Will you stand with me?
 
http://men-under-construction.blogspot.co.za/2011/08/my-commander-officer.html

Tuesday 2 August 2016

Elijah

One of the most important things the Lord has ever spoken to me is taken from a passage of Scripture involving Elijah the prophet. Once I saw what it was really saying, it linked many other truths together and made a big impact on my life. This is so simple that once you see it, you’re going to wonder how you never saw it before.
 
Here’s what it says in 1 Kings 17:2-4:
And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, [3] Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. [4] And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
 
Elijah’s provision wasn’t where he was; it was where God told him to go! This is profound!
Some of you have an impression from God to do something. Maybe you’re supposed to start a new business, make a job change, move to another town, go to Bible college, speak to a person, etc. You want to do it, but you’re holding back because the provision isn’t there yet. You’re saying, “God, I can’t do what You’re asking without first seeing the provision. How do I know all these things are going work out‌” This principle in 1 Kings applies directly to your situation. God is sending the provision for your needs not to where you are but to where He told you to go! The question is, “Are you all ‘there’‌” Some of you aren’t experiencing supernatural provision because you aren’t “there.”
 
There is a place called “there” for you.
 
In verse 4, God said, “I have commanded the ravens,” (emphasis mine), meaning He had already spoken to these ravens and they were on their way to where Elijah was supposed to go.
First Kings 17:5 says,
 
So [Elijah] went and did according unto the word of the Lord: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
 
In other words, if Elijah had stayed where he was, he could have prayed and fasted, saying, “God, why haven’t You supplied my needs‌” But he wouldn’t have seen God’s provision if he hadn’t gone where God instructed.
 
One of the reasons we aren’t seeing a greater provision from God financially, emotionally, or in our circumstances is because we aren’t doing what God told us to do. We’ve got a word from God that we haven’t acted on. We’re somewhere other than where He told us to be.
 
Now, this is an important point because I preach on the grace of God a lot. I talk about how God’s grace is how He provides things and that it’s not based on our obedience or holiness. God loves us independent of our performance—that’s absolutely true! But does this mean obeying Him is unimportant‌ Just the opposite. I believe God has a plan for my life and that He chose me from my mother’s womb and ordained me to be a prophet and to minister. I believe He has great things planned for me, things earmarked for me that have my name on them. But if I hadn’t obeyed, stepped out, and done what He told me to do, God still would have provided, but I would have missed out on it. I had to go “there.” I don’t believe God just makes things come to pass; it takes cooperation on our part.
 
This isn’t intended to hurt or condemn anyone, because I know that some of you are thinking, Maybe that’s why things aren’t working in my life—I haven’t been obedient to what God told me to do! Well…that’s absolutely correct! It’s not that God won’t bless you because you haven’t obeyed Him; it’s that His blessing is over “there”! If the reason you won’t step out is because you’ve got some form of “security” but you’re miserable and things are just going wrong, I encourage you to do what God told you to do.
 
I played football in high school, and what I’m talking about is similar to how a quarterback throws a football to a wide receiver. A quarterback doesn’t throw the ball to where the receiver is; he throws it to where the receiver should be. If he doesn’t do that, he’ll miss the receiver. Likewise, God is meeting all of your needs—He’s sending His supply to where He told you to be.
 
Another great example of this is with our prospective Bible college students. The Lord gives them a word and tells them to come to Bible college, but they struggle with it because they’ve got good paying jobs, nice houses, families, and friends they don’t want to leave. The security of those things keeps them from taking a step of faith because they don’t see how God is going to provide. But I’ve seen what I’m sharing inspire hundreds of people. And when they get to their place called “there,” they find themselves with better jobs and better houses, and things work out. Their entire lives change. And there would have been no way to anticipate this before they took that step of faith. I’m telling you, when you get out of doubt and into your place called “there,” when you start doing what God called you to do, there is supernatural provision. This is one of the great lessons from the life of Elijah.
 
Let’s look at 1 Kings 17:6:
And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
 
As I mentioned before, I believe that since God had already commanded the ravens, if Elijah hadn’t obeyed, God would still have been faithful to send the provision where He told him to go. I believe that these ravens would have brought bread and meat every morning and evening but that it all would have piled up beside the brook and gone to waste. Elijah could have starved to death even though God had been faithful to provide for his needs.
 
Here’s something else to consider: How did Elijah know which spot along the brook Cherith to go‌ If the brook was ten miles long, he could have been five or ten miles away from where the ravens were bringing him food. The ravens could fly faster than Elijah could walk or run. I’m convinced that one of the ways he knew he was at the right spot was because the ravens were already “there” with the bread and meat. When Elijah saw the provision God had promised, that was one of the signs that he was in the right place.
 
The same will be true of you when you step out. You have to take a step of faith with no guarantees that things are going to work. And then you will start seeing the provision of the Lord. It’ll be confirmation that you’re going in the right direction and doing what He told you to do. You’ll be able to say, “It was God who told me to do this.”
 
This is how it’s worked in my life. I haven’t seen God’s provision accidentally. I’ve applied what 1 Kings 17 is talking about and taken steps of faith to get where I am. And I’m going to keep taking steps of faith. All you have to do to get started is take a step of faith. There is a place called “there” for you. It’s not necessarily a location; you may not have to change where you live. It could just be an attitude change or decision you need to make. But when you take a step of faith and start following what God tells you to do, there is a supernatural flow of provision—not only of finances but also of peace, joy, blessing, anointing, influence, power, and authority—that you cannot duplicate with all your human effort. All of these kinds of things follow obeying the word of the Lord.
 
You can look at the life of Elijah; he was a nobody before he had a word from God and acted on it. But then—boom—after he stepped out in faith, he became the dominant figure in the nation. He was blessed, miracles began to happen, a person was raised from the dead, and a revival broke out. You’ve got to find your place called “there” and then get there! It’s imperative. I tell you, this could change your life if you would act on it.
 
 
[Andrew Wommack]

Monday 1 August 2016

The power of HOPE


Hope is second only to love in the Christian life (1 Cor. 13:13). Many believers might disagree with that, especially when you tell them hope involves imagination. But imagination dictates how your life goes, and if you're ever going to receive what God has for you, you'll need to understand that hope is a positive imagination. When you do, you'll be able to reject a negative imagination, which becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure in your life. Learn how to operate in a positive imagination today, and you'll know the true power of hope!

What Is Hope?
The anticipation, or the constant expectation, of good is how most people define hope. But the Bible says in Romans 8:24 that hope is for that which is not seen. How can you see something that isn't there? The answer may surprise you.

Hope Paints A Picture
A large percentage of what you experience in your life is a result of what is seen on the inside of your heart. Did you know that the Bible says you can change the direction of your life by using the hope that God has given you? Learn how hope can produce a picture that your faith can give substance to.

Developing Your Hope
Once we understand what hope is and what it can do, how do we develop it? If we can learn to understand the relationship between our hope, our imagination, and our understanding, it can truly make us ?stronger than horseradish.?

Looking Beyond The Natural
Nobody is as blind as someone who can see only with their eyes. That's a strong statement, but did you know that Jesus operated on that very principle? He saw things not only in the natural but also in the spirit. You can learn how to do the same thing and see supernatural results.

What Do You Expect?
Hope and expectation are two words to express the same thing. If your faith gives substance to what you hope for, then what you expect becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. In this message, Andrew gives illustrations from the lives of Abraham, Elijah, and Paul to show that what they hoped for, what they expected, is exactly what came to pass in their lives.

[Andrew Womack]