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
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
God Has Not Given Up On You
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Job's Security
"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."
Monday, June 30, 2008
"Don't Quit On Me Now"
A David Psalm
Thank you! Everything in me says "Thank you!" Angels listen as I sing my thanks. I kneel in worship facing your holy temple and say it again: "Thank you!" Thank you for your love, thank you for your faithfulness; Most holy is your name, most holy is your Word.
The moment I called out, you stepped in; you made my life large with strength.
When they hear what you have to say, God, all earth's kings will say "Thank you." They'll sing of what you've done: "How great the glory of God!"
And here's why:
God, high above, sees far below; no matter the distance,
he knows everything about us.
When I walk into the thick of trouble, keep me alive in the angry turmoil. With one hand strike my foes, With your other hand save me. Finish what you started in me, God. Your love is eternal
—don't quit on me now.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Ayuda Me!
The older I get the younger I feel
The false gets replaced by the real
The more I know the more I see
I know nothing of eternity
As days go by my strength wanes down
In lieu of such, the One renown
No more dependency on me
But on Him who will carry me
The closer I come to the Savior
The more I see flaws in my behavior
Totally helpless and lost in sin
If not for Him who had me cleansed
No grip on time, on life, on anything
No hold on anyone except my King
Stripped of all my laurels and pretense
Now worship increased and intense
Falling but getting up more
Wearied but hopeful for what's in store
Running but not feeling faint
Pushing forward with the Saints
Decreasing so He will increase
Intimacy will never cease
Needing Him more with every breath
Learning the art of daily death
So help me God
... TABANG LORD!
Monday, May 12, 2008
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
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Lament/Repent
LAMENTYou 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."
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Kept From Harm
The Lord watches over you – the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm – he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Psalm 121: 5-8The Lord gave me this passage of scripture last night before going to bed. It reassured my that He DOES take care of me and keeps me safe.
This morning, two people in the office told me they noticed that I lost weight. I knew this already since I had dropped from 125 pounds at the start of the year to my current 120 pounds. The two people who pointed out my weight to me made it sound like my losing weight was fearfully negative or a cause for concern. And it made me feel a bit worried.
The enemy inserted fear about my health and about my image – I don’t want to be too thin. The enemy made me worry about my body and its state if especially if keep busy and eat little these days. It almost got me really down.
But as I continued on the work day, the Lord reminded me of the passage of scripture that He gave me last night: Psalm chapter 121, verses 5 to 8. He reminded me that one of the devil’s tactics is to make me doubt His word. So I went online and searched for this scripture on Biblegateway and the Lord’s comfort came.
God’s word is fixed. God’s word is unchanging as He is. God’s promises are yes and amen. The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy through lies, doubts and fear. But Jesus came to give us life and life in abundance. This challenge from the enemy just makes me want to bury my head even more in God’s word!
The Lord watches over ME – the Lord is MY shade at MY right hand; the sun will not harm ME by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep ME from all harm – he will watch over MY life; the Lord will watch over MY coming and going both now and forevermore.
That’s one of God’s promises to me…
…and He never breaks ‘em!
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This entry goes out mainly to the demonic spirit who tried to make me despair and doubt the Word of God earlier. “Nice try!”
Monday, January 28, 2008
Proverbs 3:5-7 [The Remix]
[Worry not when the waiting starts]
And lean not on your own understanding
[Please try not to be so demanding]
In all your ways acknowledge Him
[He may not give in to your every whim]
And He will make your paths straight
[If you don't stray while still in the wait]
Do not be wise in your own eyes
[Don't look around for any other prize]
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Monday, December 3, 2007
From the Last Season
It has been such an intense season, the one that just passed by recently. It was, in hindsight, God's way of training my hands for battle and arming me with strength to make my way perfect. The circumstances aren't any easier now than they were in the past season but with the lessons the Lord taught me then, I feel more equipped to face the challenges of this new season -- with God's grace of course. After all, what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger.The lessons that I have had to learn in the past several months included the discerning of spirits, the exercising of faith and total dependence on God, and the bending of the ego to an even lower level of humility. And if there is one word that I would use to describe how I felt in the last season it would be stretched. I really felt the Lord stretching my spirit to see how much more I can have of Him, and my body to see how much more of my flesh can be submitted to His will.
At the start of the new season, I believe that the Lord has anointed me and equipped me to take on the things that are yet to come. With the lessons I learned in the last season and the encouragements that culminated with the propetic conference last month, I really believe that God has trained my hands for war, lifted me up to a new level of dependence on Him, and gave me His supernatural strength to soar in this season of war!
Thursday, November 29, 2007
On 24/7 Watch
I got hit today! And I fell. Looks like the enemy is striking where it hurts me most. But I cannot -- did not -- stay down long. I am already aware that this is a season of war. I guess I got a little bit careless on the battlefield earlier. Won't happen again... by God's grace.Now more than ever, I find the need to be constantly vigilant. I know the Lion of the Tribe of Judah is strong within me, but there is also another lion out there who's just lying in wait, looking for someone to devour. The prophetic word during the Let the River Flow conference was really a timely warning. The watchmen really need to be watchful... 24/7.
The Lord prepared me this morning as well. On the commute, He reassured my that He is my Deliverer, my Help in time of trouble, my Rest in the rage of war, my Faith in the face of evil and my unfailing Hope. Also, Stacey Campbell's words during the conference comforts me now: "God loves me no matter what!"
The scripture says in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." I stand on that word and I will not let the enemy butcher me in the battlefield. I HAVE AUTHORITY OVER THE DEVIL. NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND!
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
The Tower
The Tower still stands in the place it was built
While the birds have all flown and the flowers now wilt
It is mighty and high as its powerful Builder
And when the Day comes, it will leave all bewildered
The Tower is tall and a bit unrelenting
Its Spires are high and they seem never-ending
Its Gates may be hidden from mortals ascending
But Windows announce the Immortals descending
The Tower is far from the hands of the reaching
It is closer to those whose hearts are not beating
It glimmers afar, on a wide, barren field
Its secrets the Tower won't easily yield
Some look at the Tower in awe of its gaze
While some are but humbled and greatly amazed
It welcomes the weak, pursuant of vigor
And when they draw near, the Tower gets bigger
The Tower still stands in the place it was built
No longer the hidden, not troubled with guilt
It beckons the famished to take on their fill
And shelters warrior who knows to be still
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The First Act of War
Wow! This is it! After the briefing and equipping for war last weekend, I get back to the battlefield and find the first act of war already pointed out to me. I visited Elijah List yesterday and the headline that greeted me? "Declare War on Ungratefulness and Grumbling with a Heart of Thankfulness."
Whoa! 
The prophetic word from Francis Frangipane zeroed in on the problem with grumbling and how it can lead to moral decay. "The offenses we do not transfer to God in surrendered prayer inevitably decay and become a venom we transfer to others through gossip. In the process, we embrace slander, but we feel justified. We become malicious gossips, but in our minds we're only communicating a 'truth,' a character flaw, that we self-righteously 'discerned.'"
This sentence also spoke to me when I read it yesterday: "Grumbling caused people to stop seeing and appreciating miracles. It caused disciples to be offended by Jesus' teaching and they stopped walking with Him."
The old song used to say: "Give thanks with a grateful heart." That's the remedy, the cure, the weapon of warfare we should use against grumbling, ingratitude, gossip, slander, malice. Frangipane states, "An unthankful heart is an enemy to God's will. Can you join me with this? Can you crucify a murmuring spirit? We have received too much from God to allow ourselves opportunities for ingratitude and unbelief! We have received too many gifts and privileges to allow grumbling to disqualify us of our destiny."
{read the full text of the prophetic word here}
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I pray that we would keep our hearts grateful with what God has done in our lives. We need to recognize His hand of blessing, protection, provision, guidance, love, mercy and grace. There is so much we need to be thankful for. An ungrateful heart and a grumbling spirit has no place in the Kingdom of God.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
A New Season
During last night’s revival service, I got confirmation of many things that have been swimming in my head. It felt good to know that despite my shortcomings the Lord has graciously led me to the path that He wants me to walk on. Those confirmations were also assurances that my desire to be able to clearly hear God speak to me has been granted in ever increasing measure.My pastor, Joseph DiSarno (my friends fondly call him Joe Di), mentioned in the midst of the service that he sees a changing of seasons. He sees it in the spiritual: a new season is coming. This confirmed what I have been sensing in my spirit: that the Lord is bringing me into a different season. I also sensed this changing of seasons in Maranatha Christian Fellowship (my congregation), the New Life Sounds Choir (one of the ministries I am involved in) and the Philippines (my beloved nation).
Another word I received last night was a confirmation of my decision to totally lay down something that I had been holding on to for quite some time. When one lays something down before the Lord, it has to die. And when something is dead, it has to stay dead... until God decides to resurrect it, or use it as a seed to grow more Christ-like qualities in one's character. Either way, the decision has already been made. This particular season in my life has ended. The rest is now up to God.
Thirdly, Pastor Nap, who shared the word last night, spoke on the need for change in the Philippines; that there needs to be a turning of the fathers' (the Elijahs') hearts to the children and the children's (the Elishas') hearts to the fathers. This one confirmed the Lord's recent reminder to me to pray for my nation, and to continue fasting and praying with my congregation until God pours out His justice on the Philippines.
- - - - -
A few days from now the Let the River Flow Prophetic Conference will take place here in Cebu. Stacey Campbell is coming and so is Pastor Jerome (Ocampo). Things are stirring up in the spiritual atmosphere in the Philippines, particularly in Cebu. I believe, along with my congregation, that God will unleash a prophetic word and anointing for the body of Christ in this nation. New oil that will bring the church -- and the country -- to a new level of faith and dependence on the Almighty God.
A new sesason is coming. The prophets are rising. And a new Philippines is just a matter of time.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Just Believe
When the shadows grow long and the answers are grey
When all you prayed for seems to go away
Do not fix eyes on the visible or ears to the audible
Do not jettison hope, have faith in the impossible
Broken wings can mend if you just give them time
Broken dreams are pieces of the strength you need to fly
Keep your heart humble and your spirit tender to touch
Keep the little you have, in time it will become much
Press on, continue to seek the One who holds your life
Press in until you fall face first before the light
Till shadows disappear sooner than you thought
Till the battle is won which you never fought
Lay it all down, the load, the burden you carry
Lay it at His feet, for His yoke is not heavy
Stop the struggle; trust His hand, His promise
Stop doubting His plans; you can go beyond this
Just believe
Just believe
Just believe
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Fly Away Dimly
Let me be independent of what I see
And rely not on what my feelings tell me
For You have said it and so it shall be:
I will never leave nor forsake thee
May circumstances be not my gauge to say
You were with me then but not here today
Your unchanging promises will forever stay:
And surely I am with you all the way
Let me learn to trust that You are here
Whether I feel You or not, I will not fear
Your Word makes it absolutely clear:
Draw near to Me and I will draw near
[note: the title is an anagram of the first letters of this poem.]
Five Lessons of Purpose
2003 is a touchstone year for me. I would say it is the hinge of my spiritual maturity. The Lord has spoken to me through many ways in that year. One of the ways He spoke to me was through the Purpose-Driven Life, by Rick Warren. I received wisdom from the Lord then that I still am living out and living with right now.Lesson #1 – I am not in control!
Control is an illusion. God is the creator of the universe, the solar system, the earth, and me. Everything is under His power, including my finite, insignificant life. He made me and chose me before I was born, before I knew Him. He is the God who orders my steps and who wrote the days of my life in His book even before any one of those days came to be. He’s got it all planned out and he’s got it all under control. My purpose is to seek Him and find out what His best for me is, and walk in it.
Lesson #2 – Please God, not men!
This is one of the lessons the Lord has been hammering in on me in the past few years. “Let the people pleaser die, Mike! And do what pleases Me!” my Daddy said. So, up to today, the people pleaser is gradually digging its own bunker, six feet under. And the best thing about pleasing God is that He is the only One that really matters and deserves pleasing.
Lesson #3 – Pray for everyone!
A tall order when I first received this from the Lord. I used to have a problem keeping awake or attentive when I pray. But over the years, my prayer life has evolved. I’m not saying I’ve made it, but only that I get better with each passing day. It’s a challenge to pray for everyone because everyone is such a great number. Nevertheless, the Lord is wise, being a God of order, so He reminds me to pray for the people in my life in an orderly fashion. Lately, God has been reminding me to pick up my call to pray for MY NATION [capitalized because I need to take ownership of the Philippines and bring it before the presence of God in prayer]. I’m working on it. With all the other believers praying for this country, it’s only a matter of time before God SHOWS UP!
Lesson #4 – Not feelings; not sight!
Faith is one of the things the Lord has been growing in me since my 2003 turning point. Learning to transition from depending on what I see in the natural to relying on what I see in the spiritual is one of the disciplines I have had to undergo in the last four years of my life. I praise God from brining me from glory to glory in this aspect of my life and for giving the increase in my faith. After all, the Christian life is walk of faith, not by sight.
Lesson #5 – Rely on the Lord and be victorious!
God is looking for people who are solely dependent on Him. People who will seek His face to worship Him, and His will to obey Him. These types of people get to be the victorious ones. People who have a wholehearted determination to find God are the most likely to succeed and get more of Him. Me? A work in progress. I’ve got the whole dependence-on-God part down pat (who am I without Him anyway). But I still work on the wholehearted-determination part. And I’m glad I still have lots of room for improvement.
I am so blessed to have read the Purpose-Driven Life. Other people may have different responses to the book, but for me it was life-changing.
And now, I’m moving onward to my next touchstone.
Revived
I don’t want to be ever parted from You
I love You my God and I desire truth
There’s so much more I want to know about You
Let Your Spirit guide me, reveal Your truths
May my mouth speak nothing but Your praises alone
And my life show Your mercy, glory and grace
And from my heart overflow the love that You’ve shown
And Your joy manifest all over my face
In surrender and obedience I lay down my life
To do as You please, Lord have Your own way
Consecrated, set apart, a living sacrifice
To live for You and die to myself everyday
O God, to You my life truly belongs
All praise, all honor, all glory, all love
My psalms, my hymns, my spiritual songs
Ascribed to You who reigns from above
Friday, November 16, 2007
Warrior
fight the battles that face you now
don't run away and don't be cowed
once you win this one, though scarred
you will be brought much closer to your star
the struggle is not really a necessity
if you put on the armor that you carry
march on the path and leave your fear
your shield is your faith, your mission is clear
stand your ground, unsheathe your sword
take aim and advance like never before
the wind is on your back; unfurl your wings
you can take on what the future brings
whatever you encounter here today
prepares you for things to come anyway
so always brace yourself, at all times be ready
be vigilant and watch out for the enemy
be still and know that you are not one
if all your courage is harnessed by the sun
you are chosen and you will surely win
know that and be strengthened from within
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Driven by Faith
“Don’t define truth by what you see!”I recall Coach Al Hollingsworth saying those words a few months back when he brought Vertical Leap to my city. Those words are essentially what faith is all about: having the courage to believe in the invisible and the intangible in the midst of the overwhelming visibility and tangibility of our circumstances.
In recent months, those words have been the anthem of my waking life and, to the best of my abilities, made every effort to march to its beat (I’m still learning how, day by day). It is not easy – especially for someone who has been conditioned to walk by sight and to gauge reality by emotions and circumstances.
As a human being, I have been given a plethora of physical senses – sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, temperature, pain to name a few. These physical senses are designed to help me perceive things physical in nature. They enable me to define my physical reality. However, for those who believe in God and have a faith-based relationship with Him, another set of senses overrides the physical ones.
Man is more than just flesh and blood – he is a spirit being, made in the image of God who is also a spirit being. To perceive the things of the spirit, we have been given spiritual senses to live by. Spiritual senses that help define our truth in line with God’s truth. This is where faith comes in.
“Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” [Hebrews 11:1]
The tough part about faith? You don’t perceive what’s coming to you using your physical senses. Tough because most – if not all – of us have been trained from birth to rely on what we see, hear and touch to determine reality. To see is to believe after all. Faith, on the other hand, requires more. Faith is taking a step out of the boat and believing you can walk on water. Faith is turning the laws of physics upside down and commanding a mountain to throw itself into the bottom of the ocean. Faith is believing first, seeing second.
It is absolutely essential for professing Christians, who believe in the invisible God, to have faith - to live in it, walk in it, breathe in, sleep with it. We have to be sold out to the fact that when we are called out to tread on water, we won't sink; that when we are called to uproot mountains, they will obey; and that when we believe, what we prayed for and believe in will come to pass. Otherwise, all will be meaningless and useless because without faith, it is impossible to please God.
It is now the Holy Spirit that guides me past the capabilities – and limitations – of my physical senses, as He shows me that I can see more, be more and do more when walking in faith, using my spiritual senses. The worlds says to see is to believe. The Spirit says believing is seeing. This is the essence of a faith driven life.
My goal? To let God show me how to live not only a purpose driven life, but a faith driven one as well.