Hunger

Spiritual hunger, that is.  Let's see what John G. Lake had to say about it:



"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

~Matthew 5: 6

Hunger can be a good thing. It is the greatest persuader I know of. It is a marvelous power. Nations have learned that you can do almost anything with a populace until they get hungry. But when they get hungry, watch out. There is a certain spirit of desperation that accompanies hunger. I wish we all had it spiritually.

I wish we were desperately hungry for God. Wouldn’t it be glorious? It would be a strange thing, if we were all desperately hungry for God, if only one or two got filled in a service.

“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness.”
Righteousness is the rightness of God. The rightness of God in your spirit, the rightness of God in your soul, the rightness of God in your body, the rightness of God in your affairs, in your home, in your business, everywhere. God is an all-around God. His power operates from every side. The artists paint a halo around the head of Jesus to show that there is a radiation of glory from His person. They might just as well put it around His feet or any part of His person. It is the radiant glory of the indwelling God, radiating out through the personality. There is nothing more wonderful than the indwelling of God in the human life. The most supreme example that God ever performed was His taking possession of men. By the Holy Spirit He comes in and takes possession of those who are hungry.

I will guarantee to you that after the crucifixion of Jesus there were 120 mighty hungry folks at Jerusalem. If they had not been exceedingly hungry they would not have gotten so gloriously filled. It was because they were hungry that they were filled.

“Blessed are they which do hunger.”
We are sometimes inclined to think of God as mechanical, as though God just set a date for this or that event to occur. But my opinion is that one of the works of the Holy Ghost is to prepare the hearts of men in advance by putting within them a strong hunger for that event that has been promised by God until it comes to pass.

The more I study history and prophecy, the more I am convinced that when Jesus Christ was born into the world He was born in answer to a tremendous heart-cry on the part of the world. The world needed God desperately. They wanted a manifestation of God tremendously, and Jesus Christ as Deliverer and Savior came in answer to their soul’s cry.

Many look forward to the second coming of Jesus as though mechanically, on a certain date, when certain events come to pass, Jesus is going to appear. I do not see it that way. I believe there must be an overwhelming hunger for the Lord’s coming in the hearts of men so that a prayer such as was never prayed in the world before for Christ to come will rise to heaven. And when it rises to heaven on the part of sufficient souls, it will take Jesus Christ off the throne and bring Him down to earth.

Daniel says he was convinced by the study of the books of prophecy, especially that of Jeremiah, that the time had come when the Israelites should he delivered from their captivity in Babylon; the 70 years were fulfilled, but there was no deliverance. So he diligently set his face to pray it into being (Daniel 9).

If deliverance were going to come to pass mechanically on a certain date, there would not have been any necessity for Daniel to get that tremendous hunger in his soul, so that he fasted and prayed in sackcloth and ashes that deliverance might come. God’s purposes come to pass when our heart and mind get the real God-cry, when the real God-prayer comes into our hearts and the real God-yearning gets hold of our nature. Something is going to happen then.

No matter what your soul may be coveting, if it becomes the supreme cry in your life, not the secondary matter, or the third or fourth, the fifth or tenth, but the supreme desire of your soul, the paramount issue—all the powers and energies of your spirit, soul and body are reaching out and crying out to God for the answer—it is going to come!

God Wants to Deify....Us?

"For God’s purpose through Jesus Christ is to deify the nature of men..."

I read this in a John G. Lake book that my wonderful Aunt and Uncle let me borrow. :)  I thought the language was pretty striking -- not only here, but throughout much of the book.  It got me thinking, is this true?  Why is it true?

The Trinity spoke words of love and said, "Let Us make man in our own image" (Genesis 1:26). Adam and Eve were in the element of God, yet they forgot who they were and then blew it.

So also it has been written: "The first man Adam became into a living soul; the last Adam into a life-giving spirit."                       ~1 Corinthians 15:45

Jesus made up for what Adam lost.  He overcompensated for it!  He inhabits those who love Him and pull them up to an otherwise unapproachable God.  God chose to make Himself available.  He chose to open us up to His love.

Yes, one of God's purposes has been to "deify the nature of men" (in my opinion, at least).  But the fruit of this truth does not lead us to self; it leads us to God!  He's been so merciful.  He's been so good.  He's called us to this elevated life, not because of anything we've done, but because of His faithfulness (Romans 9:12).

Having ourselves been redeemed in nature means we can fellowship with God.  It's all about Him, and He's all about us.  Hopefully we're all about Him in response!  Sometimes with great revelation comes the need for great thankfulness.  We'll see.  It's been an interesting and electrifiying book so far.

My Valentine

My love for Vanessa grows all the times it seems -- just when I think admiration can't get any deeper, stronger, or sweeter, it does.  She's awesome!!!

I'm realizing that my love for her, though, is only effective as an extension of my love for God.  My love for her is only fulfilled if I can see God in her.  Deep calls to deep (Psalms 42:7).

There is a greater love here, though:

"This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."

~1 John 4:10

I'm His valentine, before I'm hers.  Isn't that interesting?  I've been coming into a realization that every believer is the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:25).  And just today, a friend of mine told me about an interesting Christian book called "God's Wife".

I mess up often...so often. I think back to a recent situation and realize that I could've loved more; I could've cared more, I could've thought about good things more. I could've given my time for something that really mattered. But there is a willingness to forget that comes with forgiveness (Hebrews 8:12). Sometimes, it's time to move on.  On to how our Heavenly Father unconditionally sees us...

"You are altogether beautiful, my darling; And there is no blemish in you."    

~Song of Solomon 4:7

This is the true, whether we as believers really believe it or not.  This is true, whether I fully experience it or not.  This is true, in spite of my real and perceived flaws.  This is a truth that compels us, by Love, to keep pressing ahead!  God belongs to you, and you belong to Him.  Happy Valentine's day!






 

Unity of the Church

“…there has come an expanding vision and a profound conviction that somehow, if this is real Pentecost, there must come out of it eventually the thing that Pentecost produced in the early church and that was the real body of Jesus Christ. Not a church but the Church; not an organization, but the real organism that we have always recognized; not an ecclesiasticism, nor a dictatorship, nor a bureaucracy; but a group of Holy Ghost-baptized souls in which dwells and through which is manifest, the life of the Lord.“

-John G. Lake (March 24, 1927)

Jesus prayed that all of us would be One (John 17:21).  I believe that He always gets what He prays for.  I think it all comes down to having the same love.  

"So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind." 

 ~Philippians 2:2

Communion: It's Different

Communion is awesome--yet it's also not for everyone.  We need to walk on the right path so that we can take the Elements faithfully.  We need to be woven into Jesus by the Spirit.  If we know the truth, then we'll have been set free.  If we've already been set free, then we are free to take communion!

Communion is for Believers:  It's through our belief that we are justified (Romans 10:10).  If we have the faith of God, then we will be blessed in our doing.  In other words--If you know Jesus, remember Him thru communion.  Receive what He's done with thanksgiving and reverence--Yahweh does not give as the world does (John 14:27).



Communion is a Proclamation:  When we partake of the Elements, we are proclaiming the Lord's death until He comes (1 Corinthians 11:26).  And when we proclaim God's will in faith, it is established for us (Job 22:28).

So as we take communion, we are having Jesus' death established--fulfilled-- in our new life.  We realize that One died for all and that therefore all died (2 Cor. 5:14).  We proclaim Communion as the most sure Word of prophecy (2 Peter 1:19)--the most reliable prophetic word.  It is the most powerful positive confession.  We proclaim that God really did send His Son for us.



Communion Requires Discerning the Body:  We need to treasure what Jesus has purchased--our brothers and sisters, for whom He died (1 Cor 8:11)!  We need to be perfected in forgiveness and love (Matthew 5:48).  And because God's already done the perfecting, we just need to choose to yield to it.  This means having the faith to discern that Jesus is enough.

We need to acknowledge that Jesus came in the flesh (1 John 4:2).  With that, He destroyed the sinful nature once and for all (Romans 6:6).  Let's receive the grace of freedom from sin (Romans 6:18). We are a sacrifice of Holiness!  We have received the sinless body of the Lord.



Communion Requires Discerning Yourself:  The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin and of righteousness (John 16:8).  He shows us a wonderful paradox--we were sinful in the flesh, but now we are flawless in His Spirit.

If we are convicted of our own righteousness, if we know that Christ is in us, then we can turn from sin and understand how we need to yield to God's growth.  We can discern how we've went wrong and see communion as a marking point of change.  It's so important to remain in His purifying fire.


Communion is Seperate: Do you know what the word 'Holy' means?  It's original meaning is different, set apart, other.  We are a holy priesthood, a chosen nation (1 Peter 2:9)!  We have been selected and set apart by God, and communion can activate our living like it.

The Holy Spirit is saying come away, He's saying come out of oppression.  He's saying be in the world, just not of it (John 17:16)!  Communion is a spiritual force that draws us away from the world and into the wonderful, sacrificial Love of our Saviour.  It's a blessing for those who are worthy, and a curse for those who are not.  It's a torrent of God's love for those who believe, and the cup of His wrath for those who do not (Matthew 26:42).  When we receive the needed belief, we receive the abundant blessings!

Communion: It's Important

And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me." And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.…

Communion is so important, yet it is so overlooked in much of the church today.  We are ignorant of communion and all of it's glory to our own loss.

The receiving is in the believing.  Let's choose to trust Jesus when He said that His flesh was real food, and His blood real drink!

A Silver Cord Connection to Heaven?

I was at work last week when God showed me something that got me soo excited.  And the verse started coming....

"Remember him--before the silver cord is severed..."        Ecclesiastes 12:6

We need to believe God at His word.  See, all are called to become sons and daughter, but to be chosen, we have to remember (Matthew 22:14).  We all have to believe Jesus!

Our true identity is in Him.  Our true birth is the second one--from above, from heaven.  Creation longs for our awakening and realization of the life Jesus is taking us to (Romans 8:22).

Jesus answered him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that unless a person is born again (anew, from above), he cannot ever see (know, be acquainted with, and experience) the kingdom of God.

John 3:3, AMP

Once we realize this, once we conceptualize that our citizenship is of heaven, we will walk in an upward call.  The earth won't have such a hold on us!

See, the silver cord is the substance of our lifeline to the Father, to the heavenly realm.  We receive an influx of our daily bread 24/7.  We receive constant nourishment and a table is set for us wherever we go, even in the presence of our enemies (Psalms 23:5).  We yield to Christ in us, the Kingdom of heaven within us (Luke 17:21)--we yield to the hope of glory (Col 1:27).  It's an upward call.

See, the silver cord connects your spirit and your body.  And once you believe, you are part of the body of Christ--which has been raised up with Him into the heavenly places! It's your brand new umbilical cord!  And it won't be severed.  There's a call for all to remember Him.

"And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus..."

Ephesians 2:6

We have this connection to the Father whether we feel like it or not.  When we believe, we receive! You don't have to pray for peace--it's within you.  You don't have to pray for life--it's been there since you first believed.  Just lay hold of it (Matthew 11:12).  Lay hold of it and yield to God's truth, and His life will flow.  The stream that makes glad the city of God is within you(Psalm 46:4)!

Ever wonder why the Spirit flows out from your belly?  It's because that's where your connection is! That's where the silver cord brings union. That's where you're knit to Jesus.

"He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."

John 7:38

*Amazing confirmation:  Less than 10 minutes after I got home and told this whole thing to Vanessa, our Mom, without having any idea what we had been talking about, insists that I see a certain picture that she'd taken a few days before.  Here it is:

(The brightest ray is coming from the belly--from the cross!)

The Gift of Faith in Prayer, Part Three!

God gives good gifts to us--liberally and without finding fault!  And He wants to give us the gift of faith to empower us to reach others for Him.

The gift of faith moves us to simple and restful prayers.  We need to realize the power of simply saying our Master's name!  As we do, the supernatural will just start to flow.

The Word says we prophecy in accordance with our measure of faith, and it is the same with healing prayer.  The more faith we have, the more we'll see, because our own unbelief can hinder God.  We can all acknowledge God's power, and as we do, the more we'll see His power at work.

It's for freedom that we've been set free.  We are free to eagerly desire the gift of faith.  Desire leads to the revelation that God's been holding out the blessings to us all along.

The Gift of Faith in Prayer, Part Two

God wants to give us enough faith to pray effectively.  God wants us to have enough of His faith to not hold back!

The gift of faith approaches when you just think about the Lord.  He's with you wherever you go!  All you need to do is step out on God's goodness.

Included are some examples of what it looks like to operate in different levels of faith.  Faith is resting in the assurance of God's will.

The Gift of Faith in Prayer, Part One

"And I will do whatever you ask for in my Name, so that the Father's glory will be shown through the Son. If you ask me for anything in my Name, I will do it."

John 14:13-14

We need to recognize the promise here.  We need our faith to be built up, or else we risk hindering the coming influxes of God's glory.  

God wants to give us increasing faith.  He wants to take us on from one level of trust to another.  We're free to step out in faith, and we're free to be released from the doubts of our own human logic.  

We don't need to be afraid to ask.  We need to be ready to ask, so that we can readily receive.  Whoever asks receives (Matthew 7:8).

As much as we decide to try, that's the extent we're going to see.  God takes pleasure out of bold prayers.  

Video Journal: Visions and Fruit

This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls"

Jeremiah 6:16

God has given us as Christians lots of ways to receive direction from Him. He allows us to know the unknowable so that we can confidently walk along that ancient path.

The Holy Spirit's been giving increased guidance through visions recently.  There's a measure of foresight He reveals so that we can walk how He wants us to.  It's called the spirit of prophecy! (Revelations 19:10)  God's foresight--what He shows us--is always given to bring us closer to Jesus.

So, here's some recent stuff the LORD's been doing....enjoy the high quality video! (well, I thought it was uploaded in HD...oh well)

“In the last days” God said, “I will pour out my Holy Spirit upon all mankind, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men dream dreams.”

Joel 2:28

Video Journal: God's Faith in Kids!

But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 19:14

Recently God has been at work (well, I guess He's always been at work...) among kids.  We've been blessed to see several healing miracles in the last week, all because parents, children, and friends decided to come together and simply trust God.  All it takes is a little faith!  Jesus provided the substance for our healing some time ago....

"Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants

You have ordained strength,

Because of Your enemies,

That You may silence the enemy and the avenger."

Psalm 8:2

Will you Seek Him?

When things get hard, will you still seek God?  Will you put off all those distractions and the "sin that so easily entangles"?

God wants us to always pray and never give up.  God wants us to continue to search for Him, so that He may be found.  He wants us to find Him!

Do we really, really trust God?  Do we believe that He is who He says He is?

Let's forsake all, and just be with the Lord.  Let's experience His power and flow in His love.  Let's seek Him, because we believe He is good.

Let's make Jesus our hearts' delight, and look for Him even in those empty places.  God said that He'll never leave you nor forsake you.  Do you believe it?  Will you yield to the Holy Spirit within you that wants you to believe it?

What Is Truth? It's Not Sin and Sickness

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.                        John 14:6

What is truth?  I feel that God wants us to know that Truth goes beyond our own feelings and experiences.  Truth transcends what our present life is like, and it transcends what we think is possible.

What is truth?  Jesus is Truth!  And we need to remember that Jesus took captivity captive.  We need to remember that He paid it ALL.  Jesus made a way for us to escape the burdens of the world and be living in the heavenly realms.

What is truth?  Truth is God's perspective--His perfect will.  Truth is a higher vibration.  Truth is a place that we can and should access--but only because Jesus is Lord, only because He is our mediator.  Truth is not sin, and truth is not sickness.

No, f you are sick, you may feel it, you may be affected by it...and consequently, you may believe it. But ultimately, as a Christian, sickness is a lie.  Remember that Jesus came to give us life-- it's the enemy that comes to steal, kill, and destroy.  IF we are operating in truth, IF we are where God would have us, then we will be experiencing His Life.  And if we are experiencing life, then we will be experiencing truth, and the truth will set us free.

It's time to put theory into practice.  It's time to accept the truth.  It's time to await it's manifestation. The manifestation will be health and freedom and deliverance from sin.  The manifestation will be a closer walk with the Lord and a deeper experience of all of His benefits.  The manifestation will be a realization that God is love, and that this love is the force of God.

If we are not seeing the truth in our lives, in our families, and in our situations, then it's time to pray. It's time to usher in the presence of the Holy Spirit and have him bring the Kingdom changes down. All we need to do is say the word--to speak the truth in love--and then God does the rest!  When the presence of Jesus becomes greater than the presence of the world, then we will be able to walk in truth.

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth."   3 John 1:4

Peace Produces Good Fruit

"Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace."                        Psalm 37:37

When we have peace, we have a foundation.  When we are at peace, we realize that our foundation is in Christ! And when we are rooted and grounded in Him, blessings and fruitfulness flow:

Peace produces prosperity (3 John 1:2)

Peace produces health (Jeremiah 33:6)

Peace produces joy (Romans 15:13)

Peace produces good fruit.  Why?  Because the fruit of the Spirit is love (Galatians 5:22).  And if we have love, then we won't have fear or anxiety (1 John 4:18).  If we don't have fear or anxiety, then we will be open to receive from God His peace.

Peace is a force and a flow, and it carries us onwards into the future.  Peace establishes us in the spiritual world as a force of God that cannot be shaken.  He Himself is our peace (Ephesians 2:14), and He himself makes our path perfect (2 Samuel 22:33)!

And we have peace by relaxing in the Lord.  We have peace by focusing on God.  We have peace by reading and resting in His promises.  When the word becomes flesh, that's when we have peace (John 1:14). And that happened over 2,000 years ago!  So we just need to realize this, and then apply it to our own lives.  When we experience the Spirit of Jesus for ourselves, then we will find a peace that lasts.

Declarations Make A Way

A recent theme--declarations!  God says something, we believe it, and then we speak it.  Receive, believe, achieve!

There are two types of declarations I want to go into here.  We can declare things from the written word, or we can declare things from the spoken word.  Both types can be Spirit-filled and Spirit-led, but one usually requires more discernment than another.  Let's look at both.

1)  Written-Word Declarations

Here we recite something written in God's Word--we take a written promise and make it our own.  For example, I may say, 'I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus'.  This is truth, according to 2 Corinthians 5:21.  Believing the Word, and hearing and speaking it, is how we are sanctified.  We are sanctified by the truth! (John 17:17)

We can also declare scripture when we are tempted by the devil.  Remember, that's what Jesus did!  So the Word is for upliftment, but it's also for warfare--it's our sword and our weapon for battle.

2)  Spoken-word Declarations

These can be tricker.  We need ears to hear; we need our own spiritual ears to be closely attuned.  The voice of the Holy Spirit is worth listening for!  For example, today the Lord showed me the shield of faith, and prompted me to pray that over myself.  So I did.  Another example--I may hear the Spirit speak strength to my body.  What should my response be?  Well, probably to speak strength to myself.  That's where faith comes in!  If God said it, then I need to believe it.  Do I feel stronger?  Yes!  Because it is written!  The joy of the Lord is my strength.

We declare what God says first.  If God didn't set the precedent, our declarations probably won't work. Remember that Job's friends were wrong! We need to be in tune, discerning, and not presumptuous.  We need to value His voice.

Written-Word and spoken-word declarations go hand in hand!  They feed off of each other!  We can have the Bible confirmed by hearing His personal voice, and we can confirm our rhema words by testing them against scripture.   Faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17), and hearing comes in many forms.

When we declare God's will, it looses the heavens.  It loosens angels and an empowerment of the Holy Spirit.  It loosens any blockages and binds any opposition.  God's will comes down unrestrained, on earth as it is in Heaven!  That's what declaring does!  It brings us up into God's reality.  It brings up our faith, and our faith takes us to a place where God really is.  Declarations make a way.

Snapshot: Jesus Sows The Prophetic Word

Last week, I saw a vision where the Lord Jesus was holding a large, intact loaf of bread in His hands, just waiting and smiling at me.  Then He began to break off pieces and throw them up into the air, where they were caught in the wind and scattered across a larger area. It was really cool!  This vision was confirmed the next day in the natural, because Vanessa and I started feeding our chickens old bread by hand, first breaking it up and then throwing it to them.

And the Lord also gave the knowing into the vision--what He was holding was our daily bread.  He was breaking it up according to His will, and each piece of bread represented a specific and personal prophetic word.  He tossed the pieces, pretty much all at once, into the air, and it was the Holy Spirit than distributed each message to it's recipient.  Wow!

"So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."
Isaiah 55:11

It is Jesus who sends out the word.  He's the one mediator! (1 Timothy 2:5)  He's the one through whom all blessings flow.   His testimony is by the Spirit of prophecy, and by this same Spirit, we ourselves receive a message that points us back to Him. (Revelation 19:10)

"All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills."
1 Corinthians 12:11

So Jesus sows this word, which is our daily bread, and then the wind of the Holy Spirit carries out the Father's will in delivering each message to the intended person.  One person gets one message, another gets a different one. They all come from one body of life, which is Jesus, and they are all given to one body--the Church.  And it's the Spirit that elevates the prophetic message so that it can be carried to it's recipient!

"Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth."
Ecclesiastes 11:1-2

Sometimes there is a lag time between a message from God and it's fulfillment.  There probably will be!  The revelation is waiting for it's appointed time (Habakkuk 2:3).  We need to give our prophetic words, our gifts, back to the Father, and trust Him with them.  We need to acknowledge His faithfulness, and we need to acknowledge the work of the Holy Spirit.  He may deliver the same word again and again, in dynamic ways, until it is finally fulfilled.  Jesus casts our bread upon the winds of the Spirit, and once we have received, we may need to wait patiently, knowing that our promise will not be lost.

Once our word returns to us fulfilled, then we can share it with others!  Then we can use God's message to redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16).  When disaster happens, mercy can triumph over judgement. (James 2:13)  And then we can look back to Jesus, hopeful that He will continue to give us our daily bread.

Mark Four: Mysteries and Parables

So, onto the second part of Mark four.  Jesus gives the disciples several other parables and explains to them that these parables speak of Kingdom mysteries.


 Later, when Jesus was alone with the twelve disciples and with the others who were gathered around, they asked him what the parables meant.

He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secret of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables for everything I say to outsiders, so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled:

‘When they see what I do,
    they will learn nothing.
When they hear what I say,
    they will not understand.
Otherwise, they will turn to me
    and be forgiven.’” 

Mark 4:10-12


It's taken me a little while to realize, but God still speaks in parables today.  And He does so in a way that is modeled by how Jesus did so for His disciples.  Often I'll perform an everyday task, just going through the motions, when the Lord reveals to me a parable relating to what I just did.  God wants to turn even the little things into a learning experience for us.  He wants to give us revelation and understanding on the big things by speaking to our minds as we work on the small.

It is a great feeling when you are working on something, and then the Lord begins to speak.  He tells you the symbolism behind what you just did, and how you essentially just walked out a Kingdom principle by your actions.  He gives you a now word that reveals a new segment of truth.  Our God wants to redeem every bit of our time--provided we are using it to try to please Him (Ephesians 5:16).  He wants to re-purpose the ordinary and turn it into an opportunity to learn from Him.  He wants to speak to us through parables!

And it's within our own minds and in our time alone with the Lord that He reveals to us something that unbelievers just wouldn't understand.  He reveals a spiritual truth out of the ordinary, and as we spend more time with Him, He imparts more and more.   The parable may be played out in public, but the interpretation, the knowing, comes with His inner stillness as we take time to put our attention onto Him.


Then he added, “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given—and you will receive even more. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.”

Mark 4:24-25


There is no end to the depth of revelation we can find in a parable.  God can just keep giving more and more!  He may symbolize His love by our action first, and as we go deeper into the parable's symbolism, He can then reveal a message of spiritual giftedness, too.  If we listen, He will continue to speak.  If we listen more closely, He will speak more deeply!  We can be comforted in knowing that if we try, God will come in and equip us with all the understanding we need to discern what He's saying.

We need to take every message from God seriously.  Every word from Him gives life, and every parable from Him gives understanding.  If we have an ear to hear, He can speak to us nonstop!  He can redeem every action, and turn it into a parable or an opportunity to learn.  God wants to speak to us about even the little things--He wants to give us that 'blessed assurance' even while we work on smaller tasks.

Confirmed:  The Lord spoke to me about Mark four yesterday afternoon, and in the evening, I came across a new word on the Elijah list.  It's called "God Has a Specific Word Waiting For You", and for me, it in itself was a very specific word, as it ties in so closely to what God had just been showing me!  So cool.  That's the link, if you have time to read it.   

Mark Four: Sowing a Better Word

Earlier today, the Lord said "Mark 4", and told me to read it.  And so I turned there, and it was the parable of the sower!  And I realized that it was such a word in season. The Lord has led me to start gardening this Spring, in hopes of one day restoring our farm, and so the concept of sowing seeds really resonated.

“Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. As he scattered it across his field, some of the seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn't have deep roots, it died. Other seed fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants so they produced no grain. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Then he said, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

Mark 4:3-9

SOWING WITH OTHERS

All of us are spiritual farmers.  All of us can sow a seed.  And all of us should--we should all speak the truth in love so that others can hear and believe. All we need to do is lay out God's word in front of others.  The more God draws me near, the more I have a desire to sow the truth among those who have not yet heard it.   And once we share, our work is done--we can rest in the knowing that God will work!  

We need to sow goodness into those who don't yet possess the light.  We need to encourage and exhort.  And we will probably need to rebuke.  But we need to do all of this in love and in the spirit of prophecy.  We need to plant into the minds of the lost and confused good thoughts.  And all of us will feel lost and confused at some point! So we can sow truth into both believers and unbelievers.

Sometimes we may give the truth to others, only to see satan come in and steal that word away from them.  And that's sad--but we need to know that we did what we could, that we pleased God.  We are not accountable for the effects of someone else's shallow or thorny soil--we are just accountable for our own efforts to sow.  Once the Word is sown, it's up to the receiver to humbly accept it (James 1:21).

SOWING WITH OUR WORDS

So we sow seeds among those with less knowledge; among unbelievers and less mature Christians. And that's great!  But we also need to sow good seeds in our own life.  We do this in 3 ways:

1)  We speak life over ourselves 
2)  We speak life over our surroundings and families
3)  We make sure that our soil is good

Remember that the power of life and death is in the tongue (Proverbs 18:21).  Let's make positive confessions accordingly!  We can speak life in many ways--by thanking God, by declaring His goodness, by claiming His promises, etc.  Praying in tongues--praying in the Holy Spirit--is also a way of speaking life.  It's a way we can speak life and build ourselves up in our most holy faith (Jude 1:20).

If the seeds sown are good, then we should ensure that our soil is,too.  We are not of the world, so our thoughts, emotions, and words should be sanctified.  We can then walk in humility and accept any seed of truth that might come along.  Anything opposing our belief of the truth needs to be cast down by the knowledge of God (2 Corinthians 10:5).  Then we can say something over ourselves or our families--something pure and true--and also be conditioned to believe it.  If we confess and believe, not only are we saved (Romans 10:9), but we will also become more and more fruitful!

SOWING WITH GOD'S WORD

We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).  And we sow into others because He first sowed into us!  We need to let Him sow. by the Word.  We need to accept His truth and accept His reality, because that is when more can be given.  We need to accept all that He has to give us.  This, too, happens in 3 ways.

1)  We receive God's written Word
2)  We receive God's personal (prophetic or specific--rhema) word
3)  We prepare our soil to accept God's power.

Step one is obvious, but it's most important.  There are so many promises in God's Word.  These are the seeds Jesus was referring to!  And many are conditional.  Just like seeds, they will not grow nor become fully manifested unless properly nourished.  So we need to read and believe the Bible, God's written Word.

Step two is also important.  God stills speaks today, so we need to continue to listen.  He gives personal promises.  He speaks mysteries and talks of the future.  He reveals to us great and mighty things, which we otherwise would not know (Jeremiah 33:3).  We need to position ourselves and spend time in the presence of the Most High.  We need to hear His loving, comforting voice for ourselves.

Step three--we need to get ourselves out of the way!  God dreams big, and I think it's very biblical to say that He also likes to show off.  Don't be surprised if He says something daunting.  Don't be surprised if a personal promise from God seems unlikely--or even impossible.  On your own effort, it is!  The solution starts with a transformation of our own thoughts into His, as we take on God's mind.  We need to have enough faith and enough trust to believe God for something great.  We need to do away with old ways of thinking and old strongholds, in order for our soil to be a nourishing climate for God's rhema words.  In short, we need to acquire from the Lord new wine skins (Matthew 9:17)!

If we receive and accept every word that God speaks, we will also receive every one of His blessings. We will become more and more fruitful in bearing good fruit!

"You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways."
~Job 22:28

Asking or Commanding?

 **Note:  This post refers mostly to how we should approach praying for others--especially if they are in need of healing, miracles, deliverance, or release from opposing spirits.  These instances are the main times when we should command.  Asking God for something is not wrong of sinful if it is done in faith.  We should all ask God for things everyday!  But there is a definite time to accept the power of God and tailor our prayers in accordance with the fullness of His will.**

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone,” he said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

John 11:38-44

We need to realize that Jesus is our Master and Lord, as well as our role model.  The works He did, we can do, too.  And so it follows that the ways He walked in, we should walk in, also.  We should talk like He talked, pray like He prayed, and think like He thought--all on the way to loving like He loved.  So let's look at how He prayed, and aspire to do the same!

HOW DID JESUS PRAY?

We can learn through the Word that most of Jesus' prayers for miracles were short and to the point. Jesus did not repeatedly ask or beg the Father to move His hand.  He simply spoke out of assurance and commanded the change.  In the instance with Lazarus above, Jesus says one of His most interesting prayers.  He actually prayed more than a couple sentences for this miracle, but not for His sake or for the Father's!  He only did so for the sake of the understanding of those listening! He didn't say a long prayer just to go on and on.  He never incorporated cop-outs into His prayers. Whenever Jesus prayed, His words were only a means to an end--that end being a manifestation of the Father's will.  And that manifestation always came quickly!

ASK OR COMMAND?

So let's say we are in a situation where someone needs and is seeking a healing from the Lord.  What do we say?  What do we ask God for?  Many times, people make the mistake of begging and begging God for something, something that He is much more eager to do than they are!  People sometimes ask God for something--they ask Him to carry out a promise--as if God otherwise was not so into keeping His promises.  I feel God wants us to command His true will, rather than ask Him if He might consider changing a situation that has been caused by the enemy.

COMMAND WITH EXPECTATION

We need to trust God enough to be in tune with Him.  And then we can be in tune with Him enough to command!  We command the will of God out of a place of knowing the will of God.  We need to pray with enough faith and enough passion that the end of our prayer is the best part--because that's when we can see that the faithfulness of God has achieved the desired effect!  That's how praying should be.  We should know that just a few of our words is enough for God, in His goodness, to completely change things.

COMMAND IN THE SPIRIT, NOT THE FLESH

Now, there is a danger in our commanding if it is done in the flesh.  Commanding away an affliction in Jesus' name is much, much different than trying to order God around.  We need to stay in the Spirit to avoid presumption and pride.  We need to be in the Spirit and operating in Christ's love whenever we pray and command on His behalf.

COMMAND UNDER THE APPROVAL OF GOD

So the solution to praying correctly is to pray in the Spirit--driven and under the influence of God's will.  Realize that if we are in the Spirit, we may still ask God for the healing.  We just ask Him before any corporate prayer begins--we ask Him on our own time, so that we can command when the time to see the manifestation comes.  We may ask God beforehand, or we may just have the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. The important thing about commanding anything is this: we need to be driven and guided by God up until the point of prayer.  

COMMAND WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD'S GOODNESS

When we command by the Spirit, guided by His love, that's when we become fully convinced of God's goodness.  That's when we realize what we're up against--and it's not God!  We realize that what we are commanding out is opposed to God.  And we realize that His will is nothing other than a completed overcoming. We can realize victory, because Jesus has already won the victory.  We can realize God's passion and longing for us to triumph.  Most of all, when we're in the Spirit, we are so assured that God's will is healing and not sickness, joy and not depression, purity and not pain.  We don't need to ask Him if things are any different!  And we don't need to ask out of doubt, because God's truth comes in and moves us to decisive action.  God wants to take us to a place of being moved to accomplish His true and perfect will.

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will."

Romans 12:2