Prophecy Q's

This one is pretty long, I agree -- but it's got some valuable information regarding something very important so read it if you can!

Last night I came across a situation (or, more specifically, a person) that brought me back to a rather controversial topic in the church these days... the idea of Prophets and prophecy.

First of all, do I think Prophets exist today? Yes. I think they're needed. I think for a time they "went out of style," you could say -- but I do believe the Lord is bringing back the 5-fold ministry to the church. Instead of a "board" leading a church (which, in my opinion, is an entirely unbiblical way to run a church anyway), the Lord is bringing the church back to rulership under the Apostle and Prophet. He's restoring both, by the way.

Now, what is a Prophet? I don't believe that we can count the Prophets of today in the same category as the Old Testament Prophets. Why? Because of one simple thing: Jesus. I'm under the impression that if you can't find something portrayed in Jesus' life, it's illegal to use. Example, if Jesus didn't preach the doom and gloom message of the Old Testament, but preached the "favorable year of the Lord" -- then we can't look at the Old Testament and say "God is all about doom and gloom." He's not. Why? Because Jesus said that He wasn't. So Prophets today won't typically carry the same message as Old Testament Prophets. They're role is to be in charge of the Bride and prepare her to be pure and spotless with the washing of the Word. They use revelation from heaven ("prophecy") to bring forth the realities of heaven onto earth for the purpose of the Bride. A Prophets role today is to reveal the heart of God to His children.

Now that brings me to the concept of prophecy. Prophets prophecy, obviously. However, prophecy and the office of a Prophet are two completely different things. Prophecy is the revelation of heaven available to everyone, while a Prophet is a specific person called to be at the head of the church using prophecy to help the body of Christ. Everyone in the church is called to prophecy. Everyone. But not everyone is called to be a Prophet.

Prophecy, though, is a spiritual gift sorely needed today. It's purpose is to hear from heaven on behalf of another (or, on occasion, on behalf of a church,etc.) and release grace and life to that person. If you look at 1 Corinthians 14, prophecy is for edification, exhortation, and comfort. Basically, for an individual to prophecy means that they are speaking out "revelations from the Lord" in order to build someone up, call someone near to God, or comfort them (i.e. "the Lord really loves you and He's wanting to bless your life!"). But not all prophecy has to be "the Lord sayeth.." -- it's as easy as telling someone they have nice teeth! Seriously! I've seen many people prophecy without even knowing they were doing it. Prophecy is amazing and life-building and everyone in the church should be pursuing it. After all, what's wrong with having someone tell you how amazing you are and calling out into reality the dreams of your heart? In my opinion, nothing! It's great! We need more of it in the church today.

Now, prophecy can get a little confusing because you'll find people saying things like, "I think such-and-such an event is going to happen in the future, etc..." and people are wary of prophecy because if the event doesn't happen, they get confused and think people are crazy. There are two different kinds of prophecy's beside those meant to build someone up (remember: prophecy is used for edification, exhortation, and comfort) - they are foretelling and forthtelling. Foretelling is to know the future (i.e. "I believe the Lord is saying that financial blessing is coming your way" -- this tells the future and still keeps in line with edification, exhortation, and comfort); while forthtelling is to cause the future to happen (i.e. saying that someone is about to receive financial blessing actually causes the grace to be released in their life for financial blessing to come -- basically, the Lord will cause the blessing because someone declared it). This can all get kind of confusing, but if you remember that no matter what if you're prophecying or someone else is prophecying, what is being said should either cause another to be encouraged, to draw near to the Lord, or to be comforted. Stick with these guidelines and you'll be okay. (Also note: prophecy is different than word of knowledge -- if you read Treasure Hunt testimonies, we get those by word of knowledge not prophecy; though a prophecy can come out of a word of knowledge. For more info check my "resources" info at the bottom of this post).

However, there are many ways to prophecy can and has been abused. For example, preaching a doom and gloom message that God is angry? Not okay. Why? Because Jesus changed all that. Prophecy should come out of a heart of love and an understanding that God loves His children. Also, calling out sin in someone's life? NOT OKAY. Under no circumstances should someone be calling out the negative stuff in your life (i.e. "I see Satan is using you for this..." or "I know you've been struggling with pornography..." or "the Lord says He's going to deal with your anger problem..." Bad bad bad!) or giving you direction (i.e. "The Lord is telling you to read your Bible more!"). Not okay. Let me repeat: NOT OKAY. I've seen so many people hurt by churches or individuals who called out sin in their lives or gave them directions claiming they were "from the Lord" and it only caused havoc. I'm under the impression that prophecy should be confirming something the Lord already told you or at the very least bringing you life. Now, Prophets are a little different in that they have a role of authority so they can sometimes give directional words or point out specific areas of your life, but they still should never be calling out sin in your life in a way that makes you uncomfortable. But someone who does not hold the office of a Prophet and is simply prophecying over you should NEVER give a directional word (without a relationship with you and having submitted it to an authority like a Pastor or a Prophet) or should under any circumstances call out sin in your life. It can be very damaging to a person, which is the opposite of what prophecy is meant to do.

Let me state this, however: prophecy is very powerful. It can literally change a person's life. Prophecy in itself reveals the dreams of someone's heart and actually releases grace for someone to step into their calling. 1 Corinthians 14:24-25 says "But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you." This is not talking about revealing his sins. Its the LOVINGKINDNESS of the Lord that leads to repentence. A non-believer walks into a room, and suddenly everyone in there is telling him how awesome he is and that the Lord wants to fulfill the deep dreams of his heart he's never told anyone before (and how did they know he wanted to be a chef all his life, anyway?) -- you can guess that this guy is going to think about how much God really loves him. Prophecy truly is a remarkable thing if its used correctly.

However, it can be used for manipulation. This leads me to another point: False Prophets.

We know that in the end times the Lord will pour out His spirit on all flesh and all with prophecy and perform signs and wonders. But we also know that there will be specific people called to prophecy who will lead people astray (also known as False Prophets - but remember Prophets hold an office while everyone else is called to prophecy. At the same time, however, someone who is prophecying who is not a Prophet may use prophecy to manipulate someone, so these can apply to them, too). So, then, how will we be able to identify a False Prophet from a real Prophet?

Let me tell you one thing: a False Prophet is NOT someone who prophecy's incorrectly. Let me repeat -- it is NOT someone who prophecy's incorrectly. Sometimes real Prophets get things wrong. People hear things wrong all the time -- no big deal. So if a False Prophet prophecy's correctly, what exactly makes them False?

A False Prophet is someone who uses their gifting to manipulate people into following them. A real Prophet will always lead you to God. A False Prophet will always lead you to themselves. It's about them prophecying out of the wrong motives of the heart. Remember when Jesus described "wolves in sheep's clothing?" These are the kind of people He's talking about. It takes real discernment to pick them out sometimes -- that's why Jesus warns us not to be deceived. Typically, though, they can be spotted with a certain amount of accuracy if you know what to look for...

Here are some tips: If you get uncomfortable about the way they talk about themselves (i.e. right away they identify themselves as "Hey, I'm a Prophet. Listen to me!"), chances are something is fishy. This doesn't necessarily mean they are a False Prophet, but typically Prophets are pretty humble and will not come right out and identify themselves. After all, they are the friends and servants of God. A general rule: They should talk about God more than they talk about themselves.

Here's another IMPORTANT ONE -- if they don't belong to a home church and have people keeping them accountable (i.e. they wander from church to church proclaiming the "word of the Lord" like a "lone Prophet") something is definately wrong. Prophets should always be connected to the body of Christ through a home church. No Prophet is a one man "God-show."

Also, beware of Prophets who put on the "God-show." Meaning that all they care about is the big prophecy's from stage and amazing healings and things like that. Those things are great and most Prophets will probably get a chance to do them -- but if they care more about the show and about drawing attention to themselves than to God, there's a problem. I'm under the impression that any person (especially a Prophet) cares just as much about taking out the trash at their church as they do about getting someone out of a wheelchair.

Another thing to look out for is "parking-lot" prophecy. Now, I'm generally under the impression that when a Prophet or anyone else is giving you a word it should be done in a private manner -- but at the same time there should be room for other people to have their impute (remember: "Let two or three prophecy and the rest judge"). Others should be allowed impute or confirmation on a word given to you. If a Prophet chases you out to the parking lot after the service and waits until no one else is around to prophecy something relating to your sin or its a directional word (and it causes you not to share it with anyone else), beware. Most real Prophets know how to keep themselves and others accountable for the words they give.

And, of course, if they are constantly saying "the Lord sayeth" without leaving room for interpretation (i.e. they make everything they say "directly from the Lord so you should do everything they say") something is also fishy. Most real Prophets know the Lord really well so they can speak pretty confidently about what He's saying, but if someone tells you "the Lord says you should marry this person" and manipulates you into believing you should without letting anyone else have any confirmation -- something is definately a little sketchy. Note this: God always confirms the words He gives - either in scripture or through several witnesses.

Finally, their character should match their ministry. If you know them personally or can hear someone speak about them personally, and their character (what they do when no one is around) doesn't match up with the things they preach -- its a problem.

But remember, someone prophecying a wrong word over you doesn't make them wicked hearted or false or anything like that, even if it's a Prophet. People get things wrong. If something doesn't sit right with you, feel free to pray about it or "flush it," as we like to say.

And of course, you shouldn't freak out when someone starts to prophecy over you -- not all Prophets are False Prophets and not all prophecy's will be wrong. My point in writing this is to let you know that prophecy is real and that real Prophets do exist today, and they are awesome! But I'm also wanting people who are wary of this sort of thing to know that there are people out there who will leave a bad taste in your mouth. It shouldn't cause you to forget that God has real servants here who want to love you and help you into your calling.

And also, even if you never run into a real Prophet (or False one, for that matter), everyone should be pursuing the gift of prophecy. Prophecy is an awesome, awesome gift and it is truly needed in the church today. There are a lot of broken people who don't know their identity in Christ, and prophecy can help identify what the Lord is saying to and about people. Seriously, eagerly desire this one!

Anyway, I thought I should share this simply because last night while I was prophecying over a group of people I ran into a Prophet-type who was a little sketchy to me and I know that in these days this is going to get more and more common in the church (prophecy and Prophets, I mean, not necessarily sketchy ones -- but perhaps those too). So I thought I'd address some main points about prophecy, Prophets and False Prophets and what the difference is between them and what you should look for (or look out for!) when it comes to these things.

I have met and know several real Prophets very well and I can attest to their powerful ministry and stand up character. I also know a ton of non-Prophets who can prophecy at amazing accuracy and have personally given me some of the best affirming words of my life! So this stuff definately exists out there, and I want to let you know to be aware of it and to pursue it. I've been dealing with prophecy and Prophets for a while now and I have many examples of both good and bad prophecy (and I've run into both good and bad Prophets) so if you have any questions, comments, or concerns - email me or leave a comment. Blessings!

Recources:
This stuff will become more prevalent in these last days-- so be sure you know your stuff!

• A really good book that teaches how to prophecy correctly is A Call To War by Kris Vallotton (He's one of the Prophets out at Bethel Church in Redding, CA)
• This is a great blog post about prophecy if you're looking to learn more about it than what I've said here: http://jesusencounter.wordpress.com/2007/09/03/prophetic-guidlines/ (this mentions more info about word of knowledge vs. prophecy)
• A really good article about the nature of prophecy can be found here: http://www.jba.gr/1-Corinthians-14-prophecy.htm
• Wanna learn how to prophecy? Here's a quick lesson: To get a word for a specific person is very easy. One really good way to get a prophecy for someone is to picture Jesus sitting next to that person and ask yourself, "What would Jesus say to them if they were having a conversation?" Then listen for a response. Usually what comes to mind after you've asked that question is your prophecy. If it's something negative, try to put it into a positive spin. For example, if you get "I'm releasing you from such-and-such a sin" you could say "I believe the Lord is going to bring restoration into your life!" Another good way is as simple as asking God this: "Lord, what can I say to this person that lets them know that you love them and have a plan for them?" or simply, "Lord, show me how to love them." Don't over analyze your thoughts, either. Even if you get a word in your head like "Jesus loves you," and you think it's a silly word - just remember that you only see and prophecy in part. You'll never know the full story or see the full impact of your word unless you tell it to them!! I've had many seemingly "silly" words come into my mind but when I spoke them to the person they've broken down in tears praising the Lord.

Testimony

Last night at our prayer room there was a group of us watching the movie Finger of God (which, by the way, if you haven't seen -- GET IT!! It will shatter your religious box), and the spirit of healing fell over us. 

We began to pray for one another for healing and almost everyone who got prayer was completely healed! It was incredible. We saw shoulder injuries, neck problems, and heart problems among others being healed... Even I got healed!

My right knee has always been slightly bow-legged and it hasn't usually bothered me except that it causes my right foot to turn outwards at an angle and it messes up my balance. I was working out the other day and I hurt my knee doing lunges, so I was in some pain when I went to the prayer room. After watching the movie and seeing everyone get healed I asked my friends to pray for my knee that it would stop hurting (I was just expecting the pain to go away). 

But when they began praying for me I felt heat like fire in my knee and a strange, almost indescribably tingling feeling start shooting out from my kneecap. Then the weirdest thing happened -- my kneecap started shifting over!! I freaked out and my friend told me to stand up and test out my knee. When I did I noticed that my right knee wasn't crooked anymore, but it was completely straight in line with my other knee. When I tried walking I also noticed that my balance had shifted and my right foot didn't turn out when I walked.

The Lord completely rearranged my knee. He totally straightened and restored my balance to me! It was awesome! I now completely enjoy walking around. =)

The Lord is doing a new work! I'm excited to see what He's got up His sleeve in the future. Hopefully I'll be able to find some way of updating this or getting a "testimony" page for future testimonies. 

Revelations 19:10 says that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. That basically means that what He did for someone else, He'll do for you! Hallelujah!

What It Takes

I heard a phrase today that struck me... "If you want a movement, get moving."

Revival is here. We're in the midst of it. But its come down to action. We can't just pray for it anymore -- we have to open our eyes and see that its all around us. He's all around us. But He's not where we think He is. He's not in church (well, He is), He's out on the streets calling to His lost Treasure. He's out in the darkest places of this world waiting for one person to say "yes!" He's looking for His lost sheep. 

So many people say they want revival, but they don't really want it. Revival is messy. It's not politically correct. It's not normal. Jesus was the most normal Christian in the Bible, and He was radical. He was messy. He was politically incorrect. But Jesus didn't suffer through all of the things He suffered through just so that we could do church. He suffered in the dirt with sweat and blood in order to find those who are in the dirt, sweating and dying. He died a messy death to produce a people willing to get messy to find Him. He's looking for followers who are willing to do the same. He's looking for people willing to GO and sacrifice to bring His kingdom.

It's not about church anymore. It's about living radical lifestyles willing to go way out of the box in order to find the kingdom of God. It's about selling out. If we give anything less, what we find won't be worth it. 

God is looking for people who don't just "go to church," but who are the church. Who aren't bored by the lives they live -- but who spend their time getting people out of wheelchairs by the power and love of Christ. After all, no one who's raised someone from the dead is going to tell you that "Christianity is boring and irrelevant." 

Our lives are about action. About GOING. About bringing the power and love of God into the world around us and declaring that His kingdom is here. We have to be willing to get messy. We have to not care about being politically correct. We have to be DESPERATE. Desperate people see the kingdom.

It's about being fully abandoned. Being fully unashamed. Being fully capable of laying down our "grids" about who God is and what He is doing -- about not saying that "God is normal, so He wouldn't do that." It's about admitting that God isn't normal, He'll do whatever He wants, and He'll do crazy things to get the Treasure He's fought so hard for... even if it means being messy, or ridiculous, or out of the religious box. 

What it takes to REALLY live this "Christian" life is being willing to take God home with you. It means being willing to take God to the grocery store, or to the gym, or to school with you. It's not just about leaving Him at church or at your quiet times... it's about bringing His kingdom IN YOUR HEART to the darkest reaches of the people around you. Then, and only then, will true revival happen in this world. It's not about keeping God in the church. It's about getting Him out to the kingdom of this world through power and love. 

What it takes to bring revival is you. 

Be willing to go out of the box. 

(My favorite quote)

"I wouldn't cross the state line to tell you about my religion, but I'd crawl on my hands and knees on glass - go to Hell and back - to tell you about the love of my Savior."

Treasure Hunters

My whole perspective on life has been changed today. You would think that I had some major revelation of God's heart, or that I was baptized in fire, or something extremely religious and godly happened and now I am forever a better person... nope. I played a game. 

It's called The Ultimate Treasure Hunt.

Here's how it works: You get a group of three or four individuals together. You have a prayer meeting. At the end of the prayer meeting each person gets a piece of paper (a "treasure map") and begins to ask God for specific words of knowledge ("clues") about people they will encounter as they go out into the community. Then, you jot down the clues (things like, "green shirt" or "blond hair" or "John" or "knee problems" or "keychains") on your "treasure map." After you've spent a couple minutes writing, you join up with your group and you compare notes and hit the streets in search of your Ultimate Treasure (the person who the Lord wants to encounter).

It's like a real life mystery. The Lord gives you specific clues about people He wants you to meet and influence, either with blessing or prayer or miraculous healing. Then, you go and find them! After all, its the glory of God to hide a matter, and the glory of kings to search it out (Proverbs 25:2)! 

Today a few of my friends and I decided to become treasure hunters. We prayed and worshipped for a little while, then we created our treasure maps. We all were incredibly unsure of how accurate our maps really were. Essentially, you're just writing down words and phrases that come into your head. You don't really know if they're from the Lord or if you're a lunatic -- but it's all a step of faith in the end (and sometimes the Lord will anoint your thoughts -- after all, we have the mind of Christ!! That's a story for a different day). But with anticipation and fears all bundled into some kind of massive hay-bale in our stomaches -- we set off for Target.

Now, we had various ridiculous words on our treasure maps. Some of mine were "eggs" and "orange tie" which never amounted to anything. Other clues did produce a Treasure, however,  only to have the Treasure reject our request of blessing. One of the words I had on my list was "injured wrist" and sure enough, in the shoe section, was a lady who had a cast on her wrist. When we ask if we could pray for her, her daughter boldly stated that "you have your beliefs and we have ours" and asks if we would kindly let them shop. So much for that.

Another lady was for sure our treasure, since several of my friends had gotten "blue button-down shirt" and "knee problems" as clues, only for us to find a lady grocery shopping wearing a blue button-down shirt and limping with knee problems. When we approached her she even added that it "fit her to a T." Unfortunately, she turned down our request to pray for healing but added that she would pray for us. 

Two other even adamantly denied that they were Treasures, giving us flat out rejection of our attempts to bless and heal them with a sharp "No!" and "I'm not a Treasure." 

However, we were determined to succeed in getting a Treasure before we left. So we kept looking. 

We were headed over to the "video game section" (another clue) when we stopped to check out the sunglasses. As we were goofing around, I overhead a conversation that caught my attention. Two apparent friends had run into each other while shopping, and one stopped to ask the other, "How's your brother doing?" I looked over to see who was talking and I saw that the lady who asked the question was standing in the middle of the jewelry section next to a stand with a pink watch inside, talking to a blond-haired young woman wearing a green sweatshirt. Now, normally this wouldn't be anything to get into a stir about - but when you have a treasure map pointing the way to a God-encounter that has the clues "blond-haired woman," "jewelry section," "green sweatshirt," "pink watch," and "brother needing prayer," things become a whole lot more interesting!

We approached the young woman and asked if we could pray for her (I later got a word of knowledge that she was a waitress and asked her if she was -- and she confirmed she was, in fact, a waitress -- then I was able to tell her that God knew her and cared for her). She accepted our prayer even though she admitted she "wasn't religious" and "didn't go to church." So we prayed for her and prophesied over her the destiny and grace she had on her life, and even though she walked away slightly taken aback, the peace of God left with her. 

It was awesome! It changed my perspective on how we do things... meaning how we minister to people. God is about love, friends. The only commandments He gave were "Love Me" and "Love Others." I used to hate the idea of "evangelizing" because it meant you had to argue or debate your theology with someone until they cracked into accepting Christ. But that's a greedy sales pitch. That's the way the world does things. The way the kingdom works is through blessing and love without accepting anything in return. Bless, and be blessed. God heals and loves whoever He wants -- whether or not they "buy" the salvation package at the end of the day. It's okay, He'll usually get them later! =)

The point is this: I want to be a treasure hunter. I want to find the glory that the Lord has hidden for me and I want to spend my life searching for the people who God has said "You are my Treasure." It's the "lost coin" parable in Luke -- the Treasure that God's lost is humankind and He will spend all the time and energy it takes getting His Treasure back. And you better believe He will rejoice once He's found it! Someone once told me that every person is only one encounter away from knowing God. If I could be that encounter... if everyone could just position themselves to BE an encounter -- we might find the REAL pot of gold at the end of this rainbow.

*For more info and awesome testimonies check out the book The Ultimate Treasure Hunt by Kevin Dedmon!

Identity and Trust

I know this is a long one but it's worth it.

Here's something I am pushing through right now. It it probably the greatest battle that every man will ever face. It's actually two battles. Two issues. Identity and Trust.

Let's look back at Genesis. In the Garden of Eden, Satan didn't wage war against Adam. He didn't storm into the Garden and proclaim that he was going to overthrow Adam and rule over mankind. He didn't face it head on... if he would have faced Adam head on, it is more than likely the outcome would have been drastically different. [ In fact, most people when faced head on with a problem know what to do (especially if you understand Jesus)]. However, Satan decided to use a side-door tactic. Instead of flat out commanding Adam into giving him the authority over the earth, he tricked him into it. How did he do it? He got Adam (or, more specifically, Adam's wife) to question what God had said.

The first temptation was this: "Did God REALLY say that?" It had everything to do with trust in what God had said. God said, "Eat this and you'll die." Satan asked Eve, "Did God really say that?" Eve wasn't sure. She hadn't heard it from God, she heard it from Adam. And in the end, she fell to the very thing Satan wanted -- her trust in God was broken. Here enters sin.

Flash forward to the book of Matthew. In Chapter 3, we see Jesus being baptized. As he rises from the water the heavens open up and the Spirit of God decends on Him. Then a booming voice from heaven proclaims, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased!"

Immediately afterward, Jesus, "the second Adam," goes out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan again. Now, we assume that Satan was tempting Him with food, and authority, etc. etc. But if we leave it at that, we've missed the real temptation. What is it that Satan actually says? Let's read what it says -- Matt. 4 - "Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God...."

Stop right here. If You are the Son of God. What just happened before Jesus went into the wilderness? The heavens opened and God the Father proclaimed to Him, "This is My beloved Son."

Jesus' temptation wasn't really about food, or authority (well, to be clear, it was... but there is more to the story). Jesus wasn't even hungry until AFTER the temptation ended. He already knew He had all the authority on earth! So what was His temptation? Identity. And, if you notice, His temptation was in His ability to trust in the fact that He was who God said He was.

The two temptations: Identity and Trust. If we miss these, we've missed everything.

Here's what happens -- we come into a situation, and we don't know who we are, and so we don't know how to respond. Say we screw up, for example. Lets say we commit some sort of sin and we feel really guilty about it -- but what we don't realize is that our IDENTITY isn't in the things that we do... it's in Christ Jesus, who paid for all our sins and declared us righteous and in right relationship to God the Father. But we don't know that. I mean, we've heard it, but we don't really believe it because we continue to walk in shame and condemnation. We don't really trust that He forgave us, so we'll spend our lives looking for ways to prove ourselves to God. We think, "How could God love me like this?" and we try to make it better with our own works. And we run away from God instead of towards Him, thinking He's mad at us -- when really, we just don't realize that there's no condemnation in Jesus. He called us clean.

Or something like this will happen. The Lord will tell you something, like, "I'm going to heal you of this disease." You think, "Great! Amen! Hallelujah!" But then if time passes and nothing happens, here comes that battle inside your head... "Did I hear that right? Maybe God meant heal me partially. No, I'm pretty sure He meant heal me completely.... Did God really say that?" The seed that gets sown is stolen by the devil. We don't know that God has called us to walk in divine health, and when the word comes we don't trust Him. Therefore we throw off everything and we live under the confusion of the devil.

Or say you're around a group of friends, and the Lord tells you to go and pray for one of them... but suddenly you get scared, because what if they think you're funny for asking? So you wage that familiar war again, "Well, did God mean to pray for them now? Did He mean I should pray with them or for them? Did God really say that?" And in the end, we'll miss our chance.

Pick any situation... I can almost guarantee you that every problem or doubt you will ever face in your life has something (if not everything) to do with either who the Lord has said you are or what He's told to you, and whether or not you believed Him and did something about it. It all comes down to trust and identity.

I'm giving these examples and saying all this because these are the very things (and situations!) that I'm running into in my life. In fact, I had a breakdown today and I didn't even realize why I was so messed up until somebody helped me work it through... and what do you think I was having issues about? "Did God really tell me that this is who I am?" Bingo.

God has told me who I am, but I haven't believed Him. I'm telling you, it's a struggle. And as I'm looking back at all the situations in my life that are causing me to struggle or doubt, I'm seeing the same old temptation... It's "Who am I?" and "Did God really say that?" These are big issues!

I'm wanting to share what I've learned about it so that other people don't have to struggle in this area... because I'm finding out that these two area's of your life will affect EVERY decision you make. When the Bible talks about giving the devil a foothold, man this is it. Letting him talk you out of receiving from the Lord about what to do and who you are... that's a big foothold.

For me personally, I'm wanting to spend the time pursuing these -- because if the word of the Lord comes again, I don't want to fight it, I want to obey it! So this is where I am. I'm fighting the greatest temptation faced by both Adam, and Jesus, and all of mankind before and after: my identity, and my trust in His.

** also one last point: Remember how Eve was easily deceived because she heard the news from Adam and not from God? Make sure the words you are getting about your identity are from GOD and not from other people. One thing I've learned is that other people will always put their own spin on things. So, if the LORD has told you something, believe it! If someone else tells you something, and it's not a confirmation (i.e. already a word given to you by God), then seek God and get Him to tell you the real deal.

Let Your Fire Fall!

So I had an awesome God encounter last night!

A bunch of us from the church were gathered at a prayer meeting at the House prayer room in order to seek God for a fresh baptism of His fire. We were pressing in and Pastor Jamey had everyone come up to the front so He could impart some of the things he got while being out in Redding, California with Bill Johnson (fyi: their ministry is exploding in miracles, signs, and wonders! http://www.bjm.org/ and http://www.ibethel.org/ -- check them out!).

I was the first to rush up there, because lets face it - when you're hungry for God nothing is going to stand in your way! Jamey laid hands on me and I don't know how to describe it other than the fire of God fell on me. My hand began shaking and trembling and it felt as though they were on fire. Then it was as if my whole body was burning from the inside and there was just a heavy glory resting upon me. It was incredible!

After I "recovered" I went around praying for other people around me and they all experienced the same thing -- the burning fire of God.

The most amazing part of the evening, however, was after everyone was done and a few of us (mostly the "younger crowd" of 20-somethings) were underneath the lights and we began noticing that our hands were sparkling. So when we checked it out we noticed that we had gold flecks all over our hands! It was awesome. There are countless stories of gold dust falling from heaven during worship gatherings and prayer meetings, and I believe we encountered it! My friend Matt mentioned that he wouldn't be surprised if it kept happening at all our worship gatherings.

Anyway, the point is that God is wanting to pour out His Spirit on His people like never before! We are called to walk as Jesus walked - in signs, miracles, and wonders.

Jesus was just an ordinary man. No, truly! He couldn't do miracles or heal the sick or raise the dead. He laid down all His God-given rights and became fully a man in order to recapture what Adam lost. He lived His life as a man in right relationship with God, fully dependent on Holy Spirit. The difference between Jesus and us is that He had no sin (except through His death now we are counted as without sin, blameless in His sight! glory to God!) and that He was FULLY dependent on Holy Spirit (how fully dependent are we? maybe that's why we aren't moving in the things that Jesus moved in). Jesus said that He could do nothing, but that all He did was from the Father.

So with us, its the same. If we aren't moving in signs and wonders and if we aren't raising the dead... we are living FAR below our birthright!!

But the Lord is bringing His Spirit on His people. It's been happening all around the world and both in Lakeland, Florida (Todd Bentley) and Redding, California (Bill Johnson). Both of them prophecied recently that there would be an outpouring in Minnesota and the midwest. I believe I was evidence to the beginning of some kind of revival last night. Jesus is really on the move here!

I encourage anyone reading this to consider pressing in for more baptism of fire! The Lord is beginning to show Himself in signs and wonders and miracles all around us and if we continue to seek Him while He's near, we might just catch the wave!

Lord, I pray that Your fire would fall on Your people! That the consuming fire would come and remove all that hinders love. That You would shatter the box of our theology and pour out a new release of the baptism of Your spirit! Father, move in our midst that we may see Your glory and Your kingdom advanced on this earth! Amen.

This image is from another outpouring where gold dust came upon a Pastor.

Ours was similar but not as intense.

The Reality of Desire

Everything He does is out of desire for us. Every discipline. Every pathway He makes. Every door He opens and every door He shuts. Everything He gives and everything He takes away. Every word of life. Everything meant to bring us into the realization that He truly desires us.

He truly desires us.

If we live out of this reality, it won't matter that we've messed up a thousand times. It won't matter that we've always run away from Him when we should have run towards Him. It won't matter that we were angry when we only heard silence for all our prayers. It won't matter that we questioned whether or not He was even real, much less listening to us. It won't matter that we've stretched His hand and tested His methods when we should have been obeying Him.

It won't matter because we will realize His desire is for us and that His arms are always open wide -- there will never be a day when He says, "I told you so," and no matter what, He wants us. We will realize that we can always run to Him, and He will always lift us up -- and we will walk in the Reality of Desire: that the kingdom of darkness can never be victorious against us because His love burns for us so greatly that no enemy will stand against His consuming fire.

This is the reality needed in order to survive this life. This is the reality needed when we go to pray. This is the reality needed when we screw up. This is the reality we need if we think that He's an angry God. Because if we don't realize that no matter what He loves us and is jealous for us, and is never angry, and that He is good -- we'll end up fighting against Him instead of joining with Him. We'll end up taking up arms with the enemy, instead of riding in the victory He already won for us.

Lately I've forgotten who He is -- I've forgotten the eyes in which He sees me through -- and I've been running so hard away from His gaze because I thought it would hurt to look into it. But I forgot that there is no condemnation there. I forgot that He desires me.

He desires me.

Jesus. Where else can I go? You have the words of life. What other lovers could I pursue that would love me the way only You can? Lord, You have the only thing my heart will ever need. And only You can burn with desire for me. Oh Lord, I want to know the yearnings of Your heart. I want to feel your Jealousy over my life. I want to know the great desire you have towards me -- desire that overflowed enough to give me Immanuel. I want to see what You see when You look at me.

Because despite the chaos -- despite the confusion and the silence -- despite every notion and idea I have about my life -- it all boils down to You.

Your inheritance is that You get what You paid for -- and Your inheritance is that You get my life in the end -- and Your inheritance is that You will never relent until You get it all -- You will never stop until You get me.





He is jealous for me
Love's like a hurricane, I am a tree
Bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy
When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory
And I realize just how beautiful You are and how great your affections are for me.

Oh, how He loves us so
Oh, how He loves us
How He loves us so.

He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves.

So we are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes
If grace is an ocean we're all sinking
So heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest
I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way...

He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves us
Oh, how He loves.

A True Revival

I've been burdened lately with my own inept ability to pray.

I see so many people who want revival, yet how many people are willing to pain through the process of prayer in order to get it? Let's face it: prayer is painful. When you come into the presence of God, the Spirit longs and groans from inside you and it hurts! We have a tendancy to run from pain -- I have a tendency to run from pain -- but the breakthrough comes from leaning into the pain in the place of prayer knowing in faith that the revival is just on the other side.

In fact, no revival has ever come without the pain, sweat, and tears in the process of prayer -- and no revival ever sustained without it. Even Pentecost was a result of a 10-day prayer meeting (Acts 2), and after Holy Spirit came they sustained by "constantly devoting themselves to prayer..." Revival takes work! So many want it, yet so few are willing to sacrifice for it.

And then here I am face to face with it in my own life -- yearning for revival in my family, in my community, even in my church -- and we are on the very brink of revival even as I write this, waiting for the greatest outpouring of the Spirit the world has ever seen! Yet it is difficult for me to make the effort.

The Lord told me once that prayer isn't about time spent praying -- it's about the burning in your heart. Praying fervently or "constantly" for something isn't about praying for six hours a day... it's about the groaning on the inside and the burden that you carry with you. Because prayer isn't meant to change God, it's meant to change you.

So, that's where I am -- face to face with the groaning I can't handle and face to face with the revival waiting to happen. But this isn't a power revival, it's a prayer revival, and I have full confidence that revival will be birthed, and it will be birthed through the place of prayer. Even in my own prayer life, I know that revival is coming.

The Great Misconception

** update 5/12/08 - I don't want this to come off as preachy or mean-spirited, but I'm pretty passionate about this. God is sovereign and we do live in a fallen world -- However, there's a midset switch that needs to take place before people can begin walking in the power of God's glory that's about to be revealed on the earth. This is the place I'm coming from when I write this.

One thing that I keep running across in my interactions is the fact that so few people really believe God is good. It doesn't seem that such an idea would be so difficult to grasp. When the Lord brought this to my attention a few weeks ago I was stunned! I didn't truly believe Him to be good? But God is good... all the time... right? I realized, however, that I had deluded myself. I had a common misconception of God that many people seem to fall under.

The epiphony came after I read an article about faith and healing -- one part struck me in particular:

"Misconceptions of who He is and what He is like restricts our faith. For example, if we believe that God allows sickness in order to build character, we won't have confidence praying in situations where healing is needed. However, if we believe that sickness is to the body what sin is to the soul, then no disease intimidates us. Faith is more free to develope when we truly see the heart of God as good."

It hit me -- I had believed the notion that God causes pain in order to bring good. That, however, is not the definition of a good father! If an earthly father acted like that, he'd be arrested for child abuse! God, on the other hand, is not like us -- He doesn't have to cause or allow pain in order to produce good... He can just produce good of His own hands. If I were to believe otherwise, it would be like saying that a child has to fall away from God in order to find Him. Couldn't it be, though, that a child can just walk with God the whole time? Does wickedness have to prevail in our lives in order for there to be righteousness? Or can there just BE righteousness? Well, if we're talking about a righteous God...

I'm now under the assumption that there is no reason to suffer hardship or put up with the devil's reign in my life in order to force God to make some good out of it (which He always will, by the way -- He takes what the devil does for harm and turns it for good).

After coming to terms with this, I've realized that there is a superior reality that God has called us to walk in -- but it takes setting aside the silly idea that God wants us to suffer in order to "build character" when He can just build character using His own works! I do not want the idea that there is "no pleasure without pain" to rule my life. When I see a work of the devil, I'm not going to think, "Oh, well, God must have a plan so I'm going to sit around and wait until He does it..." NO! I'm going to pursue the reality I know that says God is always good, and He always will do good, and the Kingdom of Heaven is coming to earth and there are no works of Satan in heaven!! Let's face this: God is always good, and the devil is always bad. I'm going to fight for the will and reign of the Kingdom and will of God in every situation, no matter what it looks like.

** update 5/12/08 - Testimony - Every so often I've struggled with bouts of "depresssion" like tendencies, and usually at the end of that period of time (about a couple days or a week or so) where I'm depressed the Lord will deliver me and I'll grow and change. It's one of those situations people will say, "I wouldn't trade it for the world!" But I always think, isn't there a better way I could have learned this? Well, one time I realized I was headed for another one of my depressive episodes again...but I realized God's "goodness" (or what I thought was His goodness) and knew that He would grow me out of the process, so I sat down in prayer and said, "Lord, if I have to go through this again, I'm okay with it... because I know at the end of this I'll be better than at the beginning." His response shocked me. He said (paraphrased), "That's true. But you know... you don't have to go through it at all. If you just turn to me now and let me work it out in you, you won't have to suffer through the sadness. You'll come out the same in the end. And it will save both you and I some pain." So, keep this in mind. We really, really don't have to go through pain and suffering in order for the Lord to produce character and life lessons in us. Does He use them if they happen? Yes! He's sovereign and we live in a crappy world... but He's also good. He's extraordinarily good.

However, with this understanding it also brings the responsibility of action. When I am confronted from here on out with negative circumstances, it is my responsibility to act out of faith knowing that God is good. I can no longer let idleness be confused for "waiting on God" because faith is an action, and faith is birthed out of an understand of who I'm having faith in -- God. And if I don't know anything, I know this: God is ALWAYS good.

*update - 6.5.08 - An interesting topic was brought up - does God allow pain in order to bring about His glory? I think sometimes He does. However, this is my problem: People assume that the Lord allows them to have cancer, for example, in order to produce a work of character in them. So their testimony becomes "I have cancer, but the Lord is doing all this good work in and through me because of it!" That is a wrong perspective. In the Bible, even the man who was sick so that Jesus could show His glory was healed by Jesus immediately afterwards. Jesus said (paraphrasing) "This man is sick so that I can show my glory" and then what did He do? He healed the man who was sick! The testimony shouldn't be "I am sick so God can have His glory." It should be, "I was sick, but then God healed me." That is what gives God the glory. God is a Healer. It's who He is, therefore, it's what He does. He heals EVERY disease. Our testimony should never be "I am sick but God is doing good things." It should be, "I was sick, and it produced a work in me, but then I was healed, and now God has the glory."