Stay Under Cover

You think submission to authority is restrictive? Try being confined in a box buried six feet under ground!

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DGen: One Dream at a Time -- Our Date With Akira Kurosawa

The guys who read about the scheduled cell group activity with Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa were intrigued as to what exactly was going to happen on the January 24 meeting. I gave as little information as I could on my Multiply calendar because I wanted to surprise the guys in the cell.

So we gathered together last Saturday at 4pm in the yellow room in our church building, and in attendance with me and the Lord were Charles, Louie, Elisha, Jason and Ronnie Jr., and, of course, the late Akira Kurosawa, who was anything but late [I wish I could say the same about the "other guys" who came to the cell. hehehe].

We had a wonderful time in praise and worship before we viewed Akira Kurosawa's Dreams. As always, burdens were lifted and cares were cast off in the presence of the Lord. We drew closer to God and He drew closer to us. The presence of the Lord was awesome.

Then, we proceeded with the film showing. There was one Famoso Guerrero who was really eager to press "play" on the laptop to get the movie started. I had to pacify his excitement by telling him to be cool and relax [FG was gushing with enthusiasm].

So, I turned off the lights and hit the play button and we started watching "Sunshine Through the Rain", the first episode in the series of eight "dreams", told in the form of short films [read the synopsis of the first dream].

The room was really quiet with a few whispers here and there, coming mostly from our invited guest and fellow DGen'er [FG!] who was eager to find out what was going on in this first dream. Sunshine Through the Rain was more of a fantasy-type, fable-like dream and it generated a question from the audience.

"I thought all Japanese films were supposed to be scary?" said one of the muffled voices in the room, who has obviously seen way too many scary Japanese films starring the likes of Sadako and Toshio.

"Shhh! Try to pay attention to the film guys, so you'll get the message of it," was my reply to this query.

Their eyes were glued to the wedding procession of the foxes who, according to the woman in the film, conduct this activity every time the sun shines through rain -- hence the title of the episode.

Afterward, the film came to it's open-ended conclusion and the lights came back on. It was discussion time.

I was very excited about what each of the five guys in the cell saw or derived from the film, as I myself have gotten so much revelation and insight from this part of "Dreams". My first question to the group was: what did you like about the short film? What element -- whether visual or thematic -- caught your eye?

Two of the guys in the group -- Jason and Elisha -- said they liked the foxes. I assumed they meant the wedding march as well. Cool! They liked the foxes. Who wouldn't? I mean when you choreograph a wedding march like that, what's not to like? [you gotta see it to know what we're talking about ;o)]

"Anything else?"

Ronnie said he found the film to be a very lonely one. I guess he meant the tone or the atmosphere of it. And to some degree I agree. He also noticed the issue of submission to authority as represented by the woman instructing the young boy to stay out of the rain to avoid seeing the fox procession, because they get "very angry" when someone does. Astute! I noted that as well.

Louie, on the other hand, was smoking hot -- nag aso-aso -- with revelation. I wasn't even able to ask my second question [which was supposed to be about the kingdom principles or insight they got from the film] and he was already firing off. I was secretly laughing at seeing his eagerness and enthusiasm. Lingaw ko.

"So much for my notes," I told the group, as Louie practically shared to the guys what I jotted down on my notebook. Hahaha! But it was all good. Nalipay ra ko with how the Lord spoke to him through the film and how it showed his depth of perception.

Meanwhile, Charles pointed out the young boy's hesitation in the film -- whether to obey the woman and stay indoors or to disobey his authority figure and wander off and check out the foxes' wedding ceremony. Charles said the boy's body language [again, you have to see it to know what we mean] conveyed the inner conflict we have each time we are presented with a choice.

It was a very enjoyable conversation and much longer than I could transcribe here but toward the end, I asked the guys what they saw in the final shot of Sunshine Through the Rain [pictured above].

Louie was quick to point out that it was about hope, thus rendering my notes useless... again! Hahaha! I didn't tell him right away that he was right but waited for the others to reply. The other guys associated the presence of the rainbow with the flood -- the great flood and Noah -- [they thought there were flood waters behind the rainbow in the picture]. Ronnie said something about the end being incomplete [bitin] -- we were never shown if the boy found the foxes -- and forgiveness for that matter -- or if he indeed used the knife to take his own life, to which I said, "that's the cool thing about open-ended conclusions: they open up room for discussion and speculation and it stirs up the viewers imagination."

I went back to Louie and told him he was right. The image was about hope. Then I asked him why he came to that conclusion.

"It's in your notes," he said pointing to my notebook.

"Yeah, I know that! But I'm asking you and I want to know what you think," came my reply.

Louie started to explain his answer, which was way too theological and complicated for me [hahaha], and the guys and I were too blown away with the way he pronounced "plateau" and "artistically" that we all had a good laugh. He was describing the picture in detail and what each detail meant, but I told him to simplify his answer because the answer in the image was very simple.

I explained to the guys that image was about hope because of the presence and implication of the "rainbow". It represented the nature of God as a covenant keeper and that no matter what trials, testing and storms in life we go through, even as a result of our disobedience, God's promises are always there for us. More importantly, He keeps every word of those promises.

Then somebody breaks out in song: "All Your promises won't let go of me!"

And I said, "Amen! That's it!"

I really loved what the Lord did for us that afternoon. He showed me and the guys a lot of things. Among the other things that we noted in the film were as follows:

+ Sin starts out small, but once you indulge in it and get caught up in it's web, you will find that it gets bigger and bigger to the point that you get glued to it. [depicted in the film when the boy first sees the wedding march making a smokey entrance and later fully parades in front of him]

+ Sometimes we never get the gravity of our sin until it looks us in the eye and we see how far we have been taken by our disobedience, which then causes us to realize the truth and flee from sin. [depited in the film when the foxes catch the boy ogling at their wedding march, causing the boy to run from them]

+ The wages of sin is death. When the boy goes back to his house, the woman tells him one of the foxes visited and left him a knife. The boy was supposedly to kill himself with it for seeing something "he should not have" [man, haven't we done this too many times in our lives! hahaha!].

+ Never take the delegated authority -- of your parents and leaders -- for granted because it keeps you covered and protected.

+ We Christians are called the bride of Christ. One of the things the Lord revealed to us that afternoon was that as a bride, we can choose to be either married to Christ or married to sin.

We ended the meeting by praying for each other... and that constitutes another blog entry altogether.

For now, I want to give God all the glory for what He is doing in the lives of these young men. He is the true Cell Group Leader, the Trainer, the Teacher. And He's doing a great and mighty thing in this Davidic Generation.




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By the way, the name "Akira" means "bright", "intelligent", or "clear".

Transformation. Confirmation.

Kathi Pelton: "The Transformation of the Passionate Believer"

[from the Elijah List website -- another prophetic word that confirms what I have been sensing in the spirit for months now. God is moving and changing His people. And in due season, He promised I would metamorphose and bloom -- Mike]


"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5-6


There has been much talk about a transformation or metamorphosis occurring in the Body of Christ throughout the world. As I pondered what this transformation looks like, the verse in John 15:5-6 kept coming to my mind.

I know that God is drawing us into a deeper and truer intimacy and passion for Him. Abiding in this passionate relationship is bringing a restoration to true Christianity and Bridal intimacy.

During this journey of transition, a friend of our family told me the true story of the life of the "the passion vine butterfly."

Looking at the Life of the Passion Vine Butterfly

Here are the facts regarding this amazingly prophetic little insect:

Entomologists study insects. Etymologists say that the word "butterfly" was originally "flutter by," but over the centuries it metamorphosed into its current form. The butterfly was once called a "flutter by," because as any amateur entomologist will tell you, this is what butterflies do.

However, not all butterflies exhibit this in-flight behavior. The "Passion Vine Butterfly" (Heliconius), flies in a slow, serene, straight line. This butterfly is so named because of its special relationship with the plant called the "Passion Vine" (passiflora).

The Passion Vine produces a cyanide releasing chemical that makes it inedible to most insects. But the caterpillars of the Passion Vine Butterfly are able to process the chemical without harm and voraciously eat the leaves of the passion vine. Not only do the caterpillars suffer no ill effects, but they store the poison in their bodies, thus becoming inedible to birds of prey and other predators.

This protection is retained when they metamorphose into butterflies. Since the Passion Vine Butterfly is unpalatable to birds, it does not need to fly in a "rapid and erratic fashion to avoid being eaten." Instead, it slowly flies in a straight, purposeful path from flower to flower.

There are mimics of the Passion Vine Butterfly that, due to coloration and general body shape, look very much like the Passion Vine Butterfly. These look-alike butterflies do not have the protective toxin in their bodies and therefore can be eaten by the birds - though most birds leave them alone as they are "fooled" by the mimicry.

However, there is one tropical American bird, the jacamar (galbulidae), that is able to distinguish between the inedible passion vine butterfly and the tasty mimics. The jacamar sits up in a tree and observes how the butterflies fly. If the flight pattern is slow and straight, the jacamar knows that even though it would be easy to catch, it would have a bitter taste and be inedible. If the butterfly has the rapid, erratic, typical "flutter by" flight pattern exhibited by most butterflies, it knows that it is not a Passion Vine Butterfly despite the colorization, and it swoops down for a meal.

I believe that God is calling us to eat and drink of our "Passion Vine," Jesus Christ. We are to commune with Him and be partakers of His Blood and His body so that we might live. We are to feed upon the Bread of Life. We are to abide in Him, our Passion Vine, and as we abide in Him we will be like those caterpillars that can digest this "cyanide" and metamorphose into a butterfly that is not susceptible to the predator (the enemy) that would want to take our lives. We will also be distinguished by our "flight pattern"...rather than moving in a rapid (frantic) or erratic pattern, we will move in a serene, slow and straight pattern (the rest of the Lord).

The Passion of Christ

I found this story of a Jesuit priest in Peru during the 1600's who saw the Passion Vine and the Passion Vine Butterfly as a symbolic picture of the Passion of Christ. Here is what he wrote:

"The crown of thorns, the nails, the color of Jesus' robe, the whips for scourging, were all seen in the complex structure of the flower now known as the Passion Vine Flower. This plant contains cyanogenic glycosides which release the poison cyanide. When the caterpillar of the Passion Vine Butterfly eats the leaves of this poisonous plant, it then has the ability to form a cocoon and become a butterfly. So too, when we accept the work of Christ's Passion; when we 'eat His body and drink His Blood,' we have the ability to be transformed into a new creation.

"And just as the Passion Vine Butterfly takes a straight flight path as it need not fear predators, so too, we have 'Christ in us, the Hope of Glory' and are now able to walk the 'straight and narrow.' Indeed, if we try to walk in our own strength, we will only be 'faking it' and the mimicry will not fool the prowling lion who seeks one whom he may devour - just like the jacamar looks for the butterfly that can't fly straight.

"Entomologists say that the mimics of the Passion Vine Butterfly use about 20% more energy in flight than the ones they mimic. Are we weary? Let us return to the One who says that His yoke is easy and whose burden is light...light as a butterfly."

What a wonderful picture of our metamorphosis. Through the Blood and Body of our crucified Christ, we are a new creation that now can fly straight and slow...and serene, not fearing our predators that seek to devour us. We have taken the communion of the "passion vine," Jesus Christ, and now we can enter into His true rest.

To Know Christ Alone

"For I resolved to know nothing (to be acquainted with nothing, to make a display of the knowledge of nothing, and to be conscious of nothing) among you except Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and Him crucified." 1 Corinthians 2:2 (Amplified Bible)

Recently, I was enjoying a conversation with a man that I highly respect. For years now I have watched in awe the journey of this man's life and witnessed his involvement in decisions that not only affect individuals but also nations; he is a man who moves straight and steady...always watching and waiting to see what the Father is doing. He has always had a deep intimacy with the Lord that causes him to "hit the mark" and to make wise decisions.

During our conversation, he began to tell me about the "plumb line" that he lives his life by. He said that each day (and in every circumstance and decision) he looks for the plumb line that Paul spoke of in 1 Corinthians 2:2, "To know Christ alone, and Him crucified."

He proceeded to explain to me how he is always searching for where Christ is and what He is doing and then he aligns himself as closely as he can get to that. Christ alone (through the power of the Holy Spirit) is his compass, his delight, and the wisdom that he lives by.

As he spoke, I entered into a deeper understanding that I cannot put my confidence in any knowledge that I may have gained, nor anything that I have been acquainted with; but instead, I need to daily find where Jesus is in each moment and every decision and then get as close as I can to Him. To only do what I see my Father doing...because that is where Jesus will be.

But the verse goes on to say, "...and Him crucified." Through the Cross of Christ, we have been reconciled to God and filled with the Holy Spirit who will lead us, not with the wisdom of man, but instead with the wisdom that comes only from God alone. By the power given to us through our crucified Christ, our weakness and dependency on His Spirit becomes the threshold for many to be carried into salvation, truth and relationship with the invisible God. The Cross is the threshold that we crossed to obtain eternal life, and it is the power that comes from the Cross that enables us to walk in confidence...slow and steady and fruitful.

Dependency on the Vine

We know that Christ is the true Vine, and just as the Passion Vine Butterfly depends upon the chemical that comes from the passion vine to keep it from harm, so we need to continually depend upon and feed upon the fruit of our true Vine to keep us from harm.

Apart from the chemical imparted to the caterpillar (that will become the Passion Vine Butterfly), it is not protected from predators, but as it feeds upon this vine it is infused with a protection that allows it, after becoming a butterfly, to fly slow and straight. No longer does it need to flutter up and down, here and there, trying to escape the predator that seeks to take its life.

As we abide in Christ and seek to know Him, we are infused with His precious Spirit that allows us to fly slow and straight, because we know that even our greatest enemy will recognize His Spirit who is within us.

I have to admit that much of my Christian walk has been spent "fluttering" rather than flying straight. I have walked in too much fear of the "predator" who seeks to devour our lives; forgetting that I have been infused with the Holy Spirit who is also like cyanide to the enemy. Our authority to fly slow and straight comes from the power of the Cross...from our Savior and Friend, the crucified Christ. As we remain in Him and go only where He is going and do only what He is doing, we will be kept from the "fearful fluttering" that attracts our predator's attention.

Ask the Lord to give you the confidence that the Passion Vine Butterfly moves in. We no longer want to live our lives "fluttering" in fear, but instead we want to live and move slow and steady, knowing that His Spirit is our shield and rampart. We want to abide in and near the Vine to keep our lives filled with His Spirit. If we are truly spiritual "Passion Vine Butterflies," then why do we fly as if we are imposters? Only the mimics have to flutter because they are not filled with the true chemical that makes them inedible to their predators.

A New Level of Surrender

"'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the LORD. 'As the Heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.'" Isaiah 55:8-9

Since the very beginning of 2008, I have personally felt as though I was in a refiner's fire where all the "precious" in my life is being purified and all the worthless is being burned away. The interesting thing is that much of what I thought was precious has been burned away as worthless. Many things: thoughts, beliefs and even personal convictions, God has burned away because they had become "laws written in stone" by me rather than by the wisdom of His Spirit.

I have been challenged again and again to walk in every circumstance by the leading of His Spirit of grace rather than by what knowledge I have gained through past life experiences...making laws from past successes.

There is a spirit of surrender coming upon many that is causing them to allow the Holy Spirit to rid them of all of their own ways...even things that seemed good. I believe it is the making of the new wineskin so that the new wine will not be spilled out as God pours it forth. We have seen that God is pouring forth new wine, but it cannot be contained in old wineskins.

In God's mercy, He is exposing all that would cause a bursting and spilling of His new wine. Though some exposures are quite high profile, I believe that all of God's people are going through personal exposures of the areas in their lives that have become brittle and old...or where we have strayed from abiding in the true Vine. Remember as we pray for one another that where sin abounds, grace abounds even more. We pray for grace for those that have fallen and for our own fallen places.

"God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 5:20-21

God is removing the stumbling blocks that are in the way of His Kingdom being established. He has called us to prepare the way for a great harvest and for His Kingdom coming to earth. He is preparing the way for the fullness of the Gentiles and the opening of the eyes of the Jews.

God longs to restore those who are bruised with sorrow for their sin. This is a time to pray for true repentance within all of the Body of Christ...for all of our wanderings and for all the areas that we have strayed from the purity of knowing Christ alone, and Him crucified. Let's look at Isaiah 57:14-19 from the Amplified Bible:

"And the word of One shall go forth, 'Cast up, cast up, prepare the way! Take up the stumbling block out of the way [of the spiritual return] of My people.'

"For thus says the high and lofty One - He Who inhabits eternity, Whose name is Holy: 'I dwell in the high and holy place, but with him also who is of a thoroughly penitent and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the thoroughly penitent [bruised with sorrow for sin].

"'For I will not contend forever, neither will I be angry always, for [if I did stay angry] the spirit [of man] would faint and be consumed before Me, and [My purpose in] creating the souls of men would be frustrated.

"'Because of the iniquity of his [Judah's] covetousness and unjust gain I was angry and smote him. I hid My face and was angry, and he went on turning away and backsliding in the way of his [own willful] heart.

"'I have seen his [willful] ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him also and will recompense him and restore comfort to him and to those who mourn for him.

"Peace, peace, to him who is far off [both Jew and Gentile] and to him who is near!' says the Lord; 'I create the fruit of his lips, and I will heal him [make his lips blossom anew with speech in thankful praise].'"

These verses are of great comfort to many of God's people in this hour. This is His promise of healing for not only the one who falls, but also for all those who mourn due to his fallings. We are learning as a people to rejoice with those who rejoice and to mourn with those who mourn. If we are one in the Spirit, then when one falls we all must own it and come to a place of corporate repentance. And when one is restored we can all rejoice in a corporate celebration.

God is calling us to abide in Him (the True Vine) and to drink of Him so that we might be those who fly slow and straight. No more fluttering, no more mimicking, no more fearful or frantic behaviors. It is a time of surrendering to the grace of His discipline and His transformation.

Will we allow Him to create in His Church the new wineskin that will hold the new wine? My white flag of surrender is raised and I want to go and drink from our Passion Vine.

Kathi Pelton
Light Streams Ministries
Email: jkpelton@sbcglobal.net


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ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250

True Disciples are Students

Rick Joyner:
"True Disciples are Students - Ever Learning, Growing, and Seeking More Knowledge of Their Callings and Purposes"

[from Elijah List]

Leadership comes on different levels. Armies tend to have ranks; Moses broke it down into leaders of tens, hundreds, and thousands. In Exodus 12:38, we are told that Israel left Egypt as a "mixed multitude," but then they were quickly formed into "martial array" (see Exodus 13:18), which means military order. This was the first thing the Lord did to prepare Israel for making it through the wilderness and to possess their Promised Land. We can soon expect this to also happen in the Church.

As we have stated, there is a reason why He uses the title "Lord of hosts" or "Lord of armies" more than ten times as much as any other title. He is a martial God - a military leader. His people will become the most awesome army the world has ever seen. We can expect a military demeanor to permeate the advancing Church throughout its ranks and a new breed of leader to arise.

Great Captains

Every great captain of thousands almost certainly began as an immature captain of tens. Maturity can only come with the passage of time and experience. In time, someone who began as an immature leader of tens will become a mature leader of tens. Then he will likely get promoted to a leader of hundreds. The Captain said: "If we are faithful in the little things, He will entrust us with greater things" (see Matthew 25:21).

However, that does not mean that person will now be a mature leader of hundreds when promoted. He will, in fact, be an immature leader of hundreds. He will not start as immature as at the previous level because he has the experience of the basics of leadership. Even so, there are dynamics of leading hundreds that will stretch our abilities to be leaders, regardless of how well we understand leadership.

This anointing for leadership is not just about how many people we can lead. Leaders of tens in some places are much better and more mature leaders than those who may be leaders of thousands in other situations. The same is true in our military. A small group of Special Forces may be a far more valuable and potent force than a much larger force of standard troops, so one who can lead the smaller Special Forces group may be a much more effective and valuable leader.

There is an anointing or grace for leading numbers, but there are special mandates and commissions from God that may take an even greater type of leader.

In every kind of leadership, we must be able to evaluate the status of the people we are leading so we can lead them further, but we must also be able to evaluate ourselves. Those who become great leaders of tens may think that they now understand leadership, and they may, and may be doing it well on their level.

However, there can be a huge difference between leading ten people and leading a hundred. Then there can be another big difference between leading two hundred and leading five hundred or seven hundred. Leading hundreds can prepare us for leading thousands, but there is a big difference that few can comprehend until they are there.

Understanding Something and Doing It

There can be a big difference between understanding something and being able to do it. As a flight instructor, I learned quickly to watch out for students who had read the training manual. These came for flight training with a cocky edge which was apparent by them constantly trying to show me how much they already knew.

These students were dangerous, maybe not unteachable, but at least much harder to teach. This always made it take longer to teach them how to fly the airplane. Also, something had to scare and humble them before they could fly solo or they would be dangerous.

Being able to explain the mechanics of how to land a plane and actually being able to land one are different things. As a Christian, I have also watched many gain knowledge about the manual, the Bible, and that knowledge would puff them up because they could not distinguish the difference between having intellectual knowledge of a truth and actually living that truth. In fact, some of the people I've met who have the greatest knowledge of "the deep things of God" have been some of the least Christlike people I've met and have little of His life and power.

However, reading the manual before beginning their actual flight training worked differently for some. Some were not puffed up by their knowledge, but rather humbled by it. These were the rare ones who cared less about impressing their flight instructor, but were more concerned about learning to fly the airplane. For these, their knowledge of the manual actually aided and sped up their training. Humility makes everything in life easier.

The Faster We Humble Ourselves the Easier It Will Be For Us

Even so, as a flight instructor I was just as resolved to get the proud ones to be good pilots as I was the humble ones, and I would give the same effort to each. In my observations of how the Lord deals with us, I don't think He gives up on people either just because they are proud. It may be harder and take longer for the proud ones, but He loves them too. However, just as my effort with the humble produced much faster results, the faster we humble ourselves, the easier it will be for us.

Higher levels of flying are identified by higher licenses, such as Commercial or Airline Transport Pilot ratings. In a sense, these are like being captains of tens, hundreds, or thousands because with each higher rating, there is likely a bigger aircraft which will carry more people.

There is a world of difference between flying a Cessna trainer and flying a Boeing 747, even though they both have the same basic controls and flight and navigation instruments. It may take pilots to fly both of them, but there can be a huge difference in them. Likewise, we may all be leaders, but at what level? What do we need to do to be as effective where we are called, and if we are going to be promoted, what do we need to do to go to the next level?

True disciples are students - ever learning, growing, and seeking more knowledge of their callings and purposes and using the experience to grow in wisdom. Let us be a true disciple every day we are in this life. It is all for the purpose of preparing us for the greatest promotion of all - to rule and reign with Him.


Rick Joyner
MorningStar Ministries
Email: info@morningstarministries.org


- - - - -


ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250

God Has Not Given Up On You

Victoria Boyson:
"NO MATTER HOW YOU THINK OR FEEL, GOD HAS NOT GIVEN UP ON YOU!"

An Abundant Life

God has not given up on you. Quite the contrary, actually. He's waiting in breathless anticipation for the dreams He's placed in you to come to pass. He's watching you...waiting, hoping - preparing to give you a bright future with abundant LIFE. You are His precious child and He watches everything you do with the expectant hope that you will realize your need for Him and turn and give yourself to Him.

God has promised us an abundant life. He wants us to live our lives experiencing every promise He's made to us and every blessing He has in store for us. The Lord dreams of us walking in the destiny He has planned for us and living fully in the abundant, extraordinary life He has destined us to have.

As our Father, God has made plans for us - a destiny for us to realize. From before our birth, He's waited anxiously to watch us live our lives having everything we could dream of and more. But the catch to all this goodness is found in Jeremiah 29:11: "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.'" They're His plans for us, not our own.

The only way to live an abundant life is by following the plans He's made for you. You are His precious child and He watches everything you do with the eager hope that you will need Him and turn and follow Him.

Surrender

One day, I had had a difficult time with my children. They were somewhat defiant and disrespectful to me. But most of what I didn't like in their behavior was their desire to stay in control. I tried to show them what they were doing wrong and how they were coming across, but it didn't work. So, the harder they pushed to show me they were right, the more determined I was to see a desired change in their attitude.

What did I want from them?

Surrender...full, absolute, complete and humble surrender. Their punishment continued and became more restrictive until at last they humbled themselves and submitted. It was really beautiful to see the change in them and sense the change in their spirit.

I said to God, "Wow! That must be how You feel when we finally let go of our 'need' to be right and in control, and just let You have Your way with us."

So often when we've blown it, we either tend to justify or condemn ourselves. But God doesn't want that anymore than He wants us to rebel. True repentance is basically saying, "God, You're right and I'm wrong." There's no justification needed with Him because He already knows our hearts thoroughly. We don't need to worry about how we appear to Him because He's seen it all and loves us anyway.

God doesn't want to crush or annihilate us. His goal is to correct us. He wants to bring us into right relationship with Him so He can, once again, walk with us. Like He walked with Adam in the Garden of Eden, that's paradise to our Father and it's the only place of abundant life for us.

How terribly silly we must look to God when arguing with Him and stubbornly wanting to be right, or even when we hold on to just a little bit of control. "Can't you see, God, this is how I felt?" or "Do you not see this is how I was treated?"

But our Father has seen it all - He's not blind. Indeed, He sees more correctly how we're feeling than we'd like Him to. He sees straight through us to all that we truly feel inside. Yet, we still try to convince Him that we know what's best for our lives, that our motives are pure and our feelings are justified.

Thank God He loves us enough to stand His ground and continue to require us to act right with righteous motives. He loves us enough to expect the best out of us.

It's God's love for you that keeps Him hoping for your destiny; it's His love that makes Him committed to the development of His heart in you. He doesn't want to dominate you. He's waiting for you to give yourself to Him in complete and beautiful surrender.

God's Plan

God knows you will never fulfill His destiny for your life without following HIS PLAN. So He's determined to keep you close to Him. He won't let go of you. He'll just draw you even closer until you collapse in His embrace. Our Father sees what's around the corner for you - He is excited to bless you with it. He knows it's what you need and He wants to give it to you.

Yet, before the fulfillment of the promise comes our humble submission to His Lordship. We can squawk and squirm all we want, but what He's waiting for is our sweet surrender.

The essence of repentance is our surrender to Him. He wants us to obey!

Learning to obey our Father is one of the most essential lessons we can learn. We must learn to hear His voice and surrender to His leading. The days ahead of us will be perilous and we absolutely must stay rightly aligned with Him.

We can have paradise on this earth; indeed, He's our Garden of Eden if we walk with Him and not off on our own. Going our own way can quite literally lead to misery and disaster.

There's a good reason why the Word says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean NOT on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6). Ahhh...doesn't that sounds nice? Straight paths?

Take a moment to think about it...with Him we have everything we need. But without Him, we can do nothing. And unfortunately, I have to say we've all produced a lot of "nothing" in the Lord's name. When we believe we know what we're doing, yet feel no need to acknowledge God and seek His will, we will accomplish nothing. Often, we've proceeded in our own propose, believing we are working hard for the Lord, only to end up producing nothing of eternal value.

There's a reason why God wants us to call Him "Father." If He's our Father, that makes us His children. And children do best when they exist in humble surrender to their Father, obeying His leading. The plans He has for our lives and the promises God's made to us can only be found where He leads us. If we move away from Him and try to make His promises come to pass by following our own initiative, we will be wasting our time. We lose sight of our Father and get royally messed up.

"Come Child, I'm Waiting"

The Lord won't force you to follow Him; He simply waits for you to come back to Him. He won't yell at you or try to manipulate you. He holds out His hand to you and simply says, "Come Child, I'm waiting."

Your Father is waiting for you to turn and take hold of His extended hand so He can once again walk with you making straight paths and experiencing an Eden-like relationship.

Let Him carry you and watch with utter amazement where HE takes you. "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4).

Pray this with me: Dearest Father, I want all that You have for me. I want to walk with You and experience paradise on earth with You daily. I repent of walking out my own plans for my life and I choose to give You control.

Help me to walk with You Lord. Keep me close to Your heart and increase my capacity to hear Your voice speaking to me. Guide me Father in every aspect of my life. I want to live for You, love You and know You.

In Jesus' name, Amen.


Victoria Boyson
Speaking Life Ministries
Email: victoria@boyson.org


- - - - -


ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250

Job's Security

Job 5:8-27 [New Century Version]

"But if I were you, I would call on God and bring my problem before him.
God does wonders that cannot be understood; he does so many miracles they cannot be counted.
He gives rain to the earth and sends water on the fields. He makes the humble person important and lifts the sad to places of safety.
He ruins the plans of those who trick others so they have no success.
He catches the wise in their own clever traps and sweeps away the plans of those who try to trick others.
Darkness covers them up in the daytime; even at noon they feel around in the dark.
God saves the needy from their lies and from the harm done by powerful people.
So the poor have hope, while those who are unfair are silenced.

"The one whom God corrects is happy, so do not hate being corrected by the Almighty.
God hurts, but he also bandages up; he injures, but his hands also heal. He will save you from six troubles; even seven troubles will not harm you.
God will buy you back from death in times of hunger, and in battle he will save you from the sword.
You will be protected from the tongue that strikes like a whip, and you will not be afraid when destruction comes.
You will laugh at destruction and hunger, and you will not fear the wild animals, because you will have an agreement with the stones in the field, and the wild animals will be at peace with you.
You will know that your tent is safe, because you will check the things you own and find nothing missing.
You will know that you will have many children, and your descendants will be like the grass on the earth.
You will come to the grave with all your strength, like bundles of grain gathered at the right time.

"We have checked this, and it is true, so hear it and decide what it means to you."

Kathi Pelton: "AM I ENOUGH?"

from the ElijahList website:


"I waited patiently for the LORD. He turned to me and heard my cry for help. He pulled me out of a horrible pit, out of the mud and clay. He set my feet on a rock and made my steps secure. He placed a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see this and worship. They will trust the LORD." Psalm 40:1-3

The Rock and the Waves

Living in Northern California near the Pacific Ocean, I am privileged to be able to visit the coast on a regular basis. Our coastline here is quite different than the coastline in Southern California, which has long smooth beaches where a person can walk for miles. Here, we have small secluded beaches, rough surf and rocky cliffs. If you sit on a beach and look out over the water, you will see it crashing and foaming about the tops of many rocks, jutting above the surface.

Recently as I sat and watched one of those rocks as it was hit endlessly by the turbulent waves, I began thinking of the above verses in Psalm 40:1-3: "...He set my feet upon a rock and made my steps secure..." Yet these rocks certainly didn't look as if they would provide secure footing!

In the past couple of years, my life has felt somewhat like I had been placed on one of those small rocks while the waves pounded all around me. At first I would flinch and try to move away from the crashing waves (leaving me worn out and storm tossed) but as time has passed, I find myself more and more at peace in the midst of the storm.

I have found that my Rock is secure and no harm will come to me as long as I stay upon it. There are times that a large wave will come and take me by surprise and cause me to lose my footing a bit, but I quickly remember the lessons that I've learned while upon this Rock and begin to rest again.

The truth is that Jesus, our Rock, is not small and jagged. Instead, I have learned that my trust in Him has been small and jagged. It seems that the more I learn to trust Him, the larger and more level the rock gets beneath my feet, even to the point that I can move around on it without slipping. Actually, the Rock was always spacious and secure—it was merely my perspective that made Him appear smaller than the waves.

He Will Complete the Work in You

For me, these past two years have been all about learning to trust! I thought I had trusted the Lord prior to this season—to the degree that I understood. But the Lord has wanted to take me to a place of unmovable trust so that I will not be swayed by the storms and the waves that this life brings. I have not arrived at the place that He longs for me to be, but I am confident that He will complete the work that He has begun in me.

"I'm convinced that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it through to completion on the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6

I am encouraged that God does not begin a work in us unless He intends to complete it. Learning to trust may not come overnight because trust takes time. All of us live in a fallen world and learning to trust has its challenges. We are raised by imperfect parents, we have imperfect relationships, we have never had a perfect day and most of us have even been wounded along the way by someone that we trusted.

So to trust God, even though we know that He is perfect in all His ways, takes time. We have natural reactions to situations, to trauma, to relationships and to life that all plays into our relationship with God. Though we long to trust Him, pushing through the fear of past experiences or natural circumstances can be difficult. We first learned to walk according to what we saw and felt, and we are now learning to walk by His Spirit, often having to ignore what we see and feel with our natural eyes and emotions.

God Does Not Promise that We Will Not Suffer

The difficulty for us is that God does not promise us that we will not suffer. In fact, He promised quite the opposite. Though we will experience some suffering in this life, we are comforted by the promise that His Spirit will always be with us, that we will never be left alone and we are loved. Not even death can separate us from that!

We are placed on this Rock in the midst of a turbulent life that is always shaking and shifting, and it is there that we learn to trust. Though our spirits know the Rock that we live upon is so much more vast and secure than the raging sea around us, still our eyes and emotions sometimes cause us to believe the opposite, giving us the feeling that God is small and we fear that the storm will wash us out to sea.

In my younger years, I often waited for God to stop the waves of circumstances so that I could live my life protected from any pain or opposition. (This will only come with the new Heaven and earth!). But as I have grown through the years, I have learned that God was patiently waiting for me to learn to trust Him in the midst of the waves of life. It is in this place where the work He has begun in us is perfected and matured until the day of Christ.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you are involved in various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. But you must let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.

Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to everyone generously without a rebuke, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith, without any doubts, for the one who has doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. Such a person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all he undertakes." James 1:2-8

Trusting Him with Our Pain

Whether it is relational difficulties, financial need, loss or sickness, God is always trustworthy. Most of the trials that I face are actually the "trials of doubt and unbelief." These are self-inflicted trials due to a reaction caused by the fear that "He will not come to my aid."

Rarely does God answer or come through in the way I expect, but His ways are always good and right. If only I could not fret, not worry, nor lose my footing, but just take the posture of rest and trust! How easy life would be!

Even when we are faced with our worst fears, it is then that we move into a new realm of trust. This is when we learn to trust God with our pain. The nature of pain is that it hurts, and often hurts badly! Trusting God with our pain—even when He could have prevented the pain, but didn't—can be hard. We must remember that God does not cause bad things to happen. Troubles come because we live in a fallen world; but God is the Healer of our pain and our broken hearts.

"The LORD is near to the brokenhearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the LORD delivers him out of them all." Psalm 34:18-19

The Gain of Knowing Him

Recently I was talking with someone who had faced many painful things in his life. His pain was very deep, and although he greatly loves the Lord, he was finding it difficult to see beyond the pain and wondered if his life was defined by "losses." As I began to ponder my talk with him, I realized that in Christ, losses and gains are very different than for those who have not found their life in Christ.

Philippians 3:7-11 states:

"But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."

What losses can be compared with "the gain" of knowing Him and being found in Him? This does not mean that we will not feel pain when losses come, but we can always find comfort in the true perspective that through it all, we have the great gain of knowing Him. Nothing can take this away from us...nothing and no one!

Trust Him With Your Pain

"What can we say about all of this? If God is for us, who can be against us? God didn't spare His own Son but handed Him over to death for all of us. So He will also give us everything along with Him. Who will accuse those whom God has chosen? God has approved of them. Who will condemn them?

Christ has died, and more importantly, He was brought back to life. Christ has the highest position in Heaven. Christ also intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love Christ has for us? Can trouble, distress, persecution, hunger, nakedness, danger, or violent death separate us from his love?

As Scripture says: 'We are being killed all day long because of You. We are thought of as sheep to be slaughtered.'

The One who loves us gives us an overwhelming victory in all these difficulties. I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love which Christ Jesus our Lord shows us. We can't be separated by death or life, by angels or rulers, by anything in the present or anything in the future, by forces or powers in the world above or in the world below, or by anything else in creation." Romans 8:32-39

This is where we put our hope and trust during times of pain. The love of God will carry us through this life, even through the painful times. We can trust Him with our pain because not even pain can separate us from His love. He will meet us in the most painful places and comfort us with His love. I personally find His love to be most keenly felt in the midst of painful times. It is as though He wraps His love around us like a blanket and holds us near. If you are in pain right now, allow Him to wrap you in His love and comfort you. He is very near to you.

Independence or Dependency

God has been speaking to me a lot in this past season regarding the subject of "independence versus dependency." I have personally experienced as well as watched others fight for control over potentially painful circumstances currently before them. In asking the Lord for wisdom as to why we so quickly move into a "default mode" of trying to control the outcome of our lives and relationships, He was quick to answer me, "It is because you demand independence rather than embrace dependency."

In our fear that God will not be enough or will not give us the desired outcome in life's situations, we quickly leave our posture of dependency (trust/intimacy) and run to independence (control).

I have been asking the Lord to change my "default mode" so that I will quickly embrace dependency when life and relationships are unsure and invoke personal fears. We are learning to live in the fear of the Lord rather than the fear of pain. Independence merely ushers us into a place of trying to "control and manipulate" while dependency ushers us into "relationship, intimacy and truth."

"The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?" Hebrews 13:6

The words that the Lord spoke through Moses to the children of Israel before they crossed the Jordan River still ring true today as we cross into the river of independence into the land of dependency:

"The LORD is the One who is going ahead of you. He will be with you. He won't abandon you or leave you. So don't be afraid or terrified." Deuteronomy 31:8

Am I Enough?

One of our dearest friends shared a question with us that the Lord had asked him, "Am I enough?" His initial answer was, "Of course, Lord." But as the days rolled by, he began to be challenged on every side and found that, though his belief is that the Lord is enough, his life was not being lived out that way. This question really challenged me, too.

Do I live as if the Lord is enough? In some ways I do, and I believe in my heart that He is...but in reality I don't live it out as a lifestyle. I often find myself restless if I'm not "doing" something or don't have something that I desire. I still get bored and restless and look for "things" to fill me. Can I really say, as Paul did:

"Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Philippians 4:11-13

Do we trust the Lord to be enough when all else fails? God longs for a people who can enter into the relational dependency that His Son lived in while He walked on this earth. This is the place where all that we need is provided by Him. I have not arrived at this place, but by faith I will continue to allow Him to take me there until my independent will gives way to dependency.

There is a Rock that can be trusted, depended upon and stood on to face times of pain. He never changes and never withholds love. He is faithful and true and always enough! He is inviting us into the land of dependency where we can eat of the fruit of intimacy and relish the bounty of His love.

Pray this prayer with me: "Father, I want to answer the longing of Your heart by entering into true dependency with You. I want to live in the unity that You share as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Forgive me and free me from my independent ways. I want to quickly embrace dependency and trust in both times of joy and times of pain. Usher me into the place of trusting You that frees me from the winds of doubt that have left me double-minded. I want to live what I believe and I want to live in the truth that YOU ARE ENOUGH. Thank You for Your patience with me and that You will complete the work You have begun in me. I love You! Amen"

Kathi Pelton
Light Streams Ministries
Email: jkpelton@sbcglobal.net

- - - - -

ElijahList Publications
310 2nd Ave SE,
Albany, OR 97321
www.elijahlist.com
email: info@elijahlist.net
Phone 1-541-926-3250

Taking Back What The Enemy Has Stolen

[notes taken by Arlene del Socorro from Pastor Jerry Berenguer’s preaching Tuesday, July 8, 2008]

We had the privilege of still having Pastor Jerry with us to share God's Word in tonights' revival meeting, and we basked in the river that night. It was soul-refreshing and mind-renewing. But so you understand what I mean, I am sharing with you my notes from Pastor Jerry's preaching that night and I pray God's living Word will become a "rhema" to you and bless you.

1 Samuel 30:3-10 When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. David's two wives had been captured — Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God. Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, "Bring me the ephod." Abiathar brought it to him, and David inquired of the LORD, "Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?" "Pursue them," he answered. "You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue." David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Ravine, where some stayed behind, for two hundred men were too exhausted to cross the ravine. But David and four hundred men continued the pursuit.

1 Samuel 30:18-19 David recovered everythingthe Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back.

Trouble's EFFECT in our Lives:

1) Troubles in life can wear us out, and it doesn't matter if we are faithfully serving in the ministry or not. When troubles come, they can wear us out. David was a man after God's own heart and yet trouble came upon him. The enemy weighs us down with troubles so that we are unable to move and accomplish what God has called us to do. David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep, much more do what God has called them to do.

2) Troubles can take away our focus and make us blame and fight one another. At every sight of trouble, the Israelites blamed Moses whom God used to lead them out of bondage in Egypt. David's men were bitter for their loss and blamed David who led them in many victorious battles and thought of stoning Him.

3) Some people become bitter in their spirit when troubles come. A lot of couples find themself in this situation and their marriages break because they have allowed the enemy to confuse them into blaming and fighting each other. When we allow bitterness to cloud our decisions, we lose because we cannot fight the enemy in the condition of bitterness.

How do we RECOVER?

1) Don't give up. David did not give up when trouble came upon him. Giving up is easy - staying on is the hard part - it's going to require everything we've got. God has a great plan for you and me (Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.). But we have to be moving on in our journey to discover His plan. If we are to recover everything the enemy took from us, we must not give up. Jesus is seated on the throne beside the Father - we are victorious and more than conquerors in Him.

2) Remain focused on what God wants you to do. David knew who his enemy was, and it wasn't his men who were threatening to stone him. We must get to the source of the problem for the enemy wants to destroy our life. Let us not allow bitterness to settle in our heart like that which happened to David's men. Bitterness ruins relationships and splits them up. We must be focused on our goal and the plan of God in our life. Instead of looking at our troubles, let us look on what God wants us to do at that particular time.

3) Find your strength in the Lord. In the face of trouble, David turned to God, not man. He knew who could restore him.

Psalms 46:1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Psalms 73:26 My flesh and my heart may fail ,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Nehemiah 8:10 ...Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."
Philippians 4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength .

We should not go out and try to do something ourself - let us find our strength in the Lord - He is our best encourager. The devil will weigh us down with troubles and will even use loved ones against us but the LORD IS OUR STRENGTH.

4) Pray and seek the Lord. David prayed and sought the Lord instead of taking a position of revenge. When we just run after, we make mistakes and fall because we have not inquired of the Lord. David asked for the ephod (a sacred garment worn by a priest when he comes before the Lord) instead of his armor, and went before God's presence to inquire of the Lord what he should do. Troubles cloud our decision and we make mistakes when we react and just go after. God tells us to call upon Him.

Psalms 50:15 ... and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."
Jeremiah 33:3 'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'

When we inquire of the Lord instead of going in our own knowledge, God reveals things to us when we come before Him. We need to hear the Lord because His Word will bring victory, breakthrough and confidence to go and pursue.

5) David pursued. After praying, move - do something. We must focus on what God has called us to do and take back what the enemy has stolen. David fought till evening and recovered everything. When you hear from the Lord, go and pursue and take back everything. God caused David to win even with fewer men, 400 instead of the original 600 with him. David heard from the Lord and he acted on it and God gave him victory.

Have you ever lost something in your life? in your family? Have you lost peace and joy over something? Because I lost them for a time... but praise be to our God and Father who is in the business of restoring everything to us through Jesus Christ. Dominion, power and authority, which have all been stolen from us through Adam, has been restored to us through Christ. If God has restored these to us, how much more is He able and willing to restore whatever was stolen in our life? He has restored to me joy and peace and freedom in worship. He is in the business of restoring and He wants to restore what has been stolen from you. Don't give up - set your eyes on the Lord - strengthen yourself in Him - pray and seek His face - then when you hear from Him, go and pursue! God bless you richly.

Ephesians 3:20-21 Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine , according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Being the “Hands Under”

[notes taken by Arlene del Socorro from Pastor Jerry Berenguer’s preaching Sunday, July 6, 2008]

This Sundays' Word spoken through Pastor Jerry Berenguer was such an eye opener, not just as a member of the Maranatha congregation, but as a wife, a manager and as a choir member as well. From the Book of Exodus 17:8-16, Moses lifted his hands up to the throne of the Lord and for as long as his hands were lifted, Joshua and the Israelites were winning against the battle with the Amalekites. But when his hands grew weary and were lowered down, the Amalekites were winning. When this happened, Aaron and Hur held his hands up, one on each side, till sunset, so that Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

1 Samuel 17:47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for THE BATTLE IS THE LORD'S, and He will give all of you into our hands."

Exodus 17:15-16 Moses built an altar and called it The LORD is my Banner. He said, "For hands were lifted up to the throne of the LORD. The LORD will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation."

Hands have to be lifted up to the throne of the Lord if we are to see victory in our home, in our community, in our office, in our city and in our nation. In Exodus, Moses was the one who had his hands lifted up to heaven and for as long as his hands were lifted up, the victory of the Lord was theirs. Moses represents the hands of those today, whose hands are or should be lifted up to the throne of God so that His banner may be over our lives. At home, those are my husbands hands, in Maranatha, those hands are Pastor Joe's hands, in the choir, those are Urduja's hands, in my office where I am the branch manager, those are my hands.

But like the example shown to us in Exodus, Pastor Jerry shares that while some of us are called to be the ones with hands lifted up like Moses, some are called to be like Joshua, with hands on the battle. Some of us are called to do the things that need to be done so that the hands that are to be lifted up are not worn down by these things. I have determined in my heart that I will do what I can do with the giftings that the Lord has given me to bless and honor the man or woman of God.

Some of us are also called to be the hands under the hands that need to be lifted up at all times. God really spoke to me through that Word. As a wife, I am to be like Aaron and Hur, who will serve as the hands under the hands of my husband whom God has placed over me. I am to hold my husband's hands up at all times, specially when he is wearied down, so that he may intercede for our family before the throne of God. As long as my husbands' hands are lifted up and my hands are under his, God will bring the victory.

Victoria Boyson: "Prisoners of HOPE--What Feels like a Prison Cell to You, God Sees as a FORTRESS"

There are times during the birth of your destiny that you feel as though you would like to give up hope, but God will not let you. It feels as though you are held captive by hope.

"Return to your fortress, O prisoners of hope..." Zechariah 9:12

There are times during the development of your dream when your hope seems to have turned into a prison. You cannot make your dreams come true, and you find it impossible to stop believing in them. You cannot go forward any faster than God will let you, and you cannot return to where you once were before you became pregnant with the promise from God. God will not let you give up! During this time you might feel like saying, "Okay, God, this is enough! I don't want to hope anymore! I am tired of being pregnant with this promise! I want out of this prison of hope!"

It is during this time that your dreams feel so real to you, yet to others they are not. The conflict between what you feel in the Spirit and what is evident in the natural grates at your soul. You feel much like you are on a Ferris wheel. You have your up times when you can see your dream's fulfillment far into the future, but you also have your down time when you cannot see anything. You think to yourself, "Am I crazy to think that God could use me?" The enemy comes in like a flood and you begin to doubt, causing anguish to your soul. This is the time when God is doing His greatest work in you.

It is Because He Loves You

You feel as though you are ready for your destiny, but once again God directs you back to the refinery for more tweaking. Oh how weary you are of the awful refinery and that seemingly endless tweaking. "Okay, God, You can stop now," you scream. But He does not stop. You are caught in a prison of hope and He will not let you out until He is finished with what He began in you.

It is like a child who has a sliver. They do not like the pain the sliver causes them, but they hate the misery of having that sliver taken out. Getting the sliver out is important, but they do not necessarily understand that. Even if they did, it is hard to keep still while it is being pulled out. Well, we all have spiritual slivers that we need God to take out, and sometimes it really hurts, especially when the sliver is way down deep in your heart.

This is when the refining process REALLY hurts, because He is getting down to the very core of your soul, to the deep regions of your heart. He is developing things in you that you did not even know that you lacked; things you did not even know that you needed. You think, "Okay, God, this is deep enough." But every builder knows you must dig down deep to lay a proper foundation first, before you start to build upward. And the greater the height of the structure, the deeper the foundation must be.

It is because God loves us that He will not allow us to enter our destiny until our foundation is secure. If He has held you back and you feel like a prisoner, He has done it out of love for you. He does not want to see all that He has worked to build in you crumble, because He did not take the time to develop a sure foundation. He loves you that much!

Even though it hurts you, He needs to hold you in the prison cell of hope until it is safe for you to come out. Even though you are sick and tired of hoping, of believing, of waiting; He will still make you hope, believe and wait even longer. And this can be the hardest thing He has asked you to do yet. But when you feel like giving up, but continue to carry on, you begin to sense a strength rising in you that you did not know you possessed. And really you did not possess it previously, because it was your reward for enduring this painful process. It is a gift from God that the enemy cannot take away from you, because you have earned it.

Held Captive by Hope

In the word of God we can find many people who have been held captive by hope. For examples, there are Moses, Joseph, and Abraham. But I think my favorite is David. It is his honesty in the face of misery that attracts me to him.

God had promised David the Kingdom of Israel, and Samuel had anointed him for it (1 Samuel 16:13). But after he had been anointed as king of all Israel he had to go back to tending the sheep. It was many years before the promise ever came to pass for David, and he spent many of those years being chased by the man whose throne he would inherit. I am sure he never dreamed, back in the pasture on his father's farm, that he would have to hide out in caves or that he would pretend to be a crazy man in order to save his life. After all, God said he was going to be a king. A king does not have to do things like that does he?

In Psalm 119:82, David cries out to God in song and says, "My eyes fail, looking for Your promise." I can relate to that. It feels sometimes as though the promise will never be fulfilled. But in fact, it was fulfilled for David and it will be for you too, if you do not give up.

Hopeless, No. Helpless, Yes!

Do you feel sometimes as though you are hopeless? Well, you are not without hope; you are not hopeless, but helpless. God has put you in a position of helplessness or complete dependency on Him and you are helpless to help yourself. You struggle to gain back some measure of control over your life. But your pride (that you did not even know that you had) is being crushed, and the only thing for you to do is to surrender. You may feel hopeless, but really it is the condition of helplessness that is causing you pain. God wants you completely dependent on Him, and He will keep you a prisoner of hope until you are.

Return to Your Fortress

Your fortress is trusting in a loving God. Trusting Him in spite of all the reasoning of your mind; in spite of the circumstances that surround you. You were content to give God control of your life until He decided to do something with your life you did not like. You were happy to surrender all to Him, until He decided to give your promotion to someone else. You believe in His sovereignty, until His sovereign will conflicts with your will. Then you are sure He has made a mistake. You want to run from Him, but He is your refuge.

How do you run from your refuge? How do you run from the only One who really loves you or understands you? The answer is...you don't. So, return, my friend, to your fortress and remain a prisoner until He is done with you; until He decides you are ready for all that He has for you.
What now feels like a prison cell to you, God sees as a fortress. And of course He is right. He loves you and if you give Him control of your life He will guard it for you. Perhaps what feels to you like a prison cell, may really be your place of safety and protection. David did not like being in a cave, but it saved him from King Saul. You may not like the circumstances you are in now, but do not run from it. It may be what is saving your life!

Double for Your Trouble

The second half of Zechariah 9:12 gives us the answer we are looking for. Why are we going through what we are going through? It says, "Return to your fortress, O prisoners of hope; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you."

God says, "Even now I announce to you that not only will I restore to you all that has been taken from you, but I will give you double for all the trouble you have endured." He says, "Don't stop now...keep trusting Me, because I can see your future and it is very blessed. Keep walking with Me and keep trusting in Me and I will give you rest."

"Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). When we have learned to "rest" in God in the midst of our storm, God is mightily blessed. Because it proves to Him that we trust in His goodness no matter what our circumstances are. It pleases Him very much when we trust in Him, and when He is pleased He will burst forth blessings from Heaven. He just cannot help Himself, He loves to bless those who trust in His goodness.

He, as He did for Israel in Zechariah 9:12, will stand up and announce to all that He is proud of you and intends to restore double to you for your continued trust in Him through all you have endured. And this is the beginning of your dreams coming true. Enjoy it, friend, because you have waded through the river of adversity and your heavenly Father is proud of you.

Return to your fortress, O prisoners of hope...



Victoria Boyson
Speaking Life Ministries
Email: victoria@boyson.org

Kathie Walters: The Almond Tree Challenge--God is Asking: "WHAT DO YOU SEE?"

What Do You See?

I have a question for you today--I believe it's a question God is asking you. God actually asked Jeremiah this same question I am going to ask you. Ready?

First, a little background. Remember that at the beginning of Jeremiah's ministry, he didn't exactly have a great established ministry. I mean, he wasn't running around Israel speaking at big conferences and doing seminars. He was a kid, really. Well, a teenager, anyway.

When God first talked to Jeremiah about his calling to preach, He said, "Jeremiah, you know I called you before you were born and ordained you to be a prophet to the nations." Well, Jeremiah freaked out. He heard this before--after all, his dad was a preacher. But, you know, in your mind it's always, "Sometime down the road, when I am more mature."

Jeremiah answered the Lord and said, "You've got to be kidding. I'm just a kid, don't ask me. I can't do anything." Now, I know this is the Walters Translation, but go read it--that's what it says. If you want the King James Version, Jeremiah said, "Then said I, 'Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child'" (Jeremiah 1:6). But, you know people didn't speak in King James English then, just like we don't do that today.

God ignored Jeremiah's vision of himself as a useless kid. He said, "Don't say that, because I have put My word in your mouth." Then God gave him a pretty heavy-duty commission right there. Did He say, "Now, Jeremiah, go off to Bible school and study hard. One day you will mature enough to qualify to be used in the ministry"? No, no! Out of the blue, God said to the teenager, "Oh yes, I've called you to go to the nations; in fact, I've set you OVER nations and OVER kingdoms" (kingdoms usually include several or many countries). "You can pull down and uproot stuff and all kinds of powerful things." He told Jeremiah not to be afraid of their faces; He said, "I'll be there for you." When it says the face (or eyes) are a mirror of the soul, let me tell you, it really is.

Without even stopping to ask if Jeremiah was okay about it all, God suddenly said, "Well, what do you see, Jeremiah?" Jeremiah's dad was a priest, so he was used to God stuff--but not at that moment. God said, "What do you see, Jeremiah?" Jeremiah had to get into faith, quick. That is, you have to see by faith. Young Jeremiah had a vision, "I see a rod of an almond tree."

Aaron's rod was made from the branch of an almond tree, and in Hebrew it means "an awakening one." Jeremiah was seeing his destiny in his faith (but he didn't realize it yet). He was called to be an "awakening one." God told him to prophesy and challenge the people of Israel about their calling and destiny. God told him to go and wake them up. Personally, I would have asked God to send someone else and pleaded ignorance. Well, he tried that anyway--but it didn't work.

You know what? Often people don't like to be woken up. Not too many people are woken out of a slumber and get up in a good mood. You are mostly unhappy with the cause of the "awakening." "An Awakening One" was a good name for Jeremiah. "Mr. Popularity" wasn't exactly a good description of him.

So then...this is my question from the Lord to you: "What do you see?" I am not talking about the natural realm.

Take some time to chill out--take a break, go out for a nice meal, relax, take a couple of days--then go sit at the feet of Jesus. "Snuggle, don't struggle," is one of my favorite sayings, or, "Nestle, don't wrestle." Then get into rest and ask the Holy Spirit to show you what He sees for YOU. Not for your town. Not for your church. Not even for your husband or wife right now--but for you personally. Your vision has to start with you, doesn't it? If you don't have a real vision for yourself, then you won't be able to believe with someone else for their vision.

The Thing About Vision

Do you remember those old TV sets? They had a tube, and when they got old, the tube would start to go. Do you remember what happened when the tube was going out? The picture would gradually get smaller and smaller. No one wanted to buy a new tube because it was expensive, so you waited until the last minute. You were leaning over sideways to see the wide but shrunken picture.

So what are you seeing? Most people are seeing a shrunken picture. My husband, David, says, "Most Christians aim at nothing and hit it." You can only aim at what you see. If you see a small call or a small destiny or a small vision, that's all you will aim for.

My challenge for you is this: See what God sees for YOU. He has a great vision--He has a big vision! We see our town, our family, our little place in the grand scheme of things. But God sees nations, God sees a place without walls. God has no limitations in His vision. He sees no limits for you--you can have what you believe and you can believe what you see--IF you can see by faith. You have God's faith in you--believe it! Because "...to every man is given the measure of faith" (Romans 12:3).

What Is Your Adventure?

The Bible says that the will of God is delightful, "I delight to do Thy will, Oh my God" (Psalm 40:8).

God puts His desires in your heart. In other words, He puts His desires in your heart so that when you do according to your heart, it's delightful, it's wonderful, it's full of adventure and it's full of God. All you have to do is allow the Holy Spirit to show you what He sees for YOU. You have a wonderful, awesome, big and great destiny to fulfill.

If you are doing something tonight in the way of serving God and it's not delightful, forget it--it's just works. And, sorry to say, God is not interested in your works, He's interested in His works. He is not going to anoint your works, He anoints His works. The glory of God will never come on what you do--the glory comes on what He does. It's not trying, it's yielding to the anointing.

Isn't it easier to yield rather than to try and strive and work at it? Trying can be very trying. God is not running around your city trying to recruit workers for the Kingdom, He is just wanting His sons and daughters to rise up and be who He called them to be. You're not a sinner saved by grace--you were a sinner saved by grace, but now you are a son or a daughter of Almighty God. You are royalty of the Royalty, an heir of righteousness and an heir of the Kingdom. You don't have to earn it, you can't qualify for it--Jesus gave you this inheritance, freely. He paid for it 100% when He died and rose again.

But First, Enjoy Him

I nearly forgot to remind you--your first calling is to enjoy God. He called you to first enjoy Him. Don't go out and serve Him unless you enjoy Him. Do you know Jesus is in love with you? He totally adores you--He doesn't just tolerate you. He made you of His divine nature--eternity is in you. He has given you His power and righteousness and clothed you with the beautiful garments of Salvation.

This is a new and living way--walk in it and begin to see what HE sees for YOU.




Kathie Walters
Good News Ministries
Email: kathiewalters@mindspring.com

Lament/Repent

LAMENT
You have asked me the one question that made me stop and think so hard
You made me wonder and ponder this question: for You, just how far?
You asked such a great cost, a price I now have to face and pay
You asked for my life and you left me crying for two days

Is this how much it cost to see these young ones grow?
Is this the value in exchange just for You in me to glow?
Is this what I must lay down to see this nation changed?
Is this what You require for me to glorify Your name?

I am already broken and stripped of all that I held dear
I am already down, bowed low and humbled by Your fear
I am already out my comforts and I don't know where I am
I am hanging on Your every word because I know in You I can

REPENT
But You say, "all you lose is gain to Me, if you come and seek My face
And if you just boldly come to Me, you surely will find grace"
You tell me to press on and run to You because You see
The man that I can truly be – my all, my destiny

You say, "no cost is greater than a man lay down His life
My Son was hung upon that cross to bring end to your strife
You say to Me I ask too much to want your life laid down,
But, child, that is exactly where your life in Me is found."

"I've given you the best there is and I spared no expense
My love for you has been expressed, you can't expect no less.
I only ask that you trust Me in all the ways I move
For when you lay down everything, you'll see that I'll approve."

"You'll see that all along my heart was truly all for you
That even if you fall away I'm still in love with you
You never lose what you entrust to Me, so just let go by faith
For when you truly trust in Me, you'll clearly see the Way."

Let the River Flow 2008: Kingdom Vision

Feb. 19, 2008 Tuesday 10:00 am
Pastor Rich Oliver

Kingdom - His rule, His power, His reign

God wants to see our government, our community, our schools changed.

God has transformed us and called us to be world transformers.

God is looking for people who will go where He goes and will say, "Lord, what are we going to do now?"

A revelation in our spirit about God's Kingdom will teach us about all we need to know.

CHARACTERISTICS OF KINGDOM PEOPLE:

Kingdom people have a GENUINE RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD THROUGH PRAYER.

It’s not just about God knowing our heart, it is also about KNOWING WHAT IS IN GOD'S HEART.

EVERY MOVE OF GOD BEGINS WITH PRAYER.

Breakthroughs come when you have the HABIT OF PRAYER.

Kingdom people have prayer as a CORE IN THEIR LIFE.

Kingdom people RECEIVE REVELATION FROM GOD... it is supernatural.

Expect dreams and visions from God. He has something for us; EXPECT GOD TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW.

The young do not have any preconceived ideas of how things are going to be done. We need to have that kind of spirit in us that says, "LORD OPEN THE EYES OF MY HEART. I WANT TO KNOW YOUR POWER."

Kingdom people are WILLING TO BREAK TRADITIONS.

We need to ALLOW GOD TO CHANGE OUR WHOLE THINKING just like He did to Peter. He broke the traditions of religion and society FROM A RIGHT HEART.

We need to SUBMIT OUR HEART TO GOD TO SEE HIS KINGDOM ADVANCE.

Pray for a teachable and accountable spirit.

Kingdom people LISTEN FOR GOD TO SPEAK.

God gives vision for a purpose. We have to wait on the Lord and ASK GOD TO UNDERSTAND THE DREAM.

Ask God and WAIT FOR THE REVELATION TO COME.

Kingdom people have EARS TO HEAR. We don’t have to keep moving when God is not moving.
YOU NEED WISDOM TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE VISION.

Pray for understanding with the vision.

Kingdom people OBEY THE LORD.

God is doing a new thing in our midst. We need to KNOW THE VOICE OF THE LORD and must BE WILLING TO OBEY THE VOICE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.

RADICAL BREAKTHROUGH REQUIRES RADICAL OBEDIENCE. He is looking for a people of faith who TRUSTS AND OBEYS BEFORE THEY KNOW.

OBEDIENCE TELLS THE FATHER THAT YOU LOVE HIM AND TRUST IN HIM.

Our relationship with Him is BASED ON FAITH RATHER THAN KNOWLEDGE.

Kingdom people are WILLING TO BE CHANGED.

More and more people will WANT TO BELONG BEFORE THEY BELIEVE.

We have to be willing to CHANGE OUR VIEW OF THE KIND OF PEOPLE GOD WILL SAVE. We have to ACCEPT EVERYONE because God's Kingdom is bigger than what we picture in our mind. We should purposely embrace these changes.

Pray for a willingness to be changed.

Kingdom people LIVE IN THE SPIRIT.

We need to LISTEN, WALK AND LIVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT. He will take you right to the edge.

His interest is FOR US TO GO TO PLACES WE WILL NEVER GO ON OUR OWN.

Kingdom people RELY ON THE HOLY SPIRIT FOR DIRECTION AND FOR EMPOWERMENT.

Kingdom people RECEIVE SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING.

Ask God for SPIRITUAL SIGHT.

DONT STOP AND BE CONTENTED WITH THE REVELATION.

Kingdom people ARE ACCOUNTABLE.

There is SAFETY IN ACCOUNTABILITY.

Pray that you are an accountable Christian so that greater revival is released.

Kingdom people PRAISE GOD TOGETHER FOR BREAKTHROUGHS.

REJOICE WITH ONE ANOTHERS' VICTORY, HEALING AND PROPHETIC INSIGHTS because we are called to be A FAMILY OF GOD that SPEAKS REVIVAL AND BREAKTHROUGH INTO OUR NATION TOGETHER.

Salvador del Mundo

I try to save the world.


That's my problem.


But I'm not the Savior...


...Jesus is!

Awake, o Sleeper

1 "Shout it aloud, do not hold back.

Raise your voice like a trumpet.

Declare to my people their rebellion

and to the house of Jacob their sins.

2 For day after day they seek me out;

they seem eager to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that does what is right

and has not forsaken the commands of its God.

They ask me for just decisions

and seem eager for God to come near them.

3 'Why have we fasted,' they say,

'and you have not seen it?

Why have we humbled ourselves,

and you have not noticed?'

"Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please

and exploit all your workers.

4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,

and in striking each other with wicked fists.

You cannot fast as you do today

and expect your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,

only a day for a man to humble himself?

Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed

and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?

Is that what you call a fast,

a day acceptable to the LORD ?

6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice

and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

and break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry

and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—

when you see the naked, to clothe him,

and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness [a] will go before you,

and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;

you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,

with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,

then your light will rise in the darkness,

and your night will become like the noonday.

11 The LORD will guide you always;

he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land

and will strengthen your frame.

You will be like a well-watered garden,

like a spring whose waters never fail.

12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins

and will raise up the age-old foundations;

you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,

Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

13 "If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath

and from doing as you please on my holy day,

if you call the Sabbath a delight

and the LORD's holy day honorable,

and if you honor it by not going your own way

and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

14 then you will find your joy in the LORD,

and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land

and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob."

The mouth of the LORD has spoken.