The Father's Plan for your Day

It is the plan and purpose of God this day to bring into your life people and circumstances that will make you more like Jesus.  Today you have awakened to His classroom.  He has prepared lessons for you to learn and work for you to do.

 His plans for you today are good and perfect.  You can trust His heart.  He loves you.  You can trust His Mighty power.  He is able to accomplish His lofty, and seemingly unattainable goals.  He has already seen this day.  Nothing will surprise Him.

He will bring to you today wonderful opportunities to see Him at work in your life, opportunities to join Him His beautiful work and opportunities for you to grow.  Often these opportunities come in the form of annoyances, inconveniences, unexpected interruptions, delays, pain and heartache.  They also come in the form of laughter, exciting surprises and enjoyable moments.  And yet it is also the plan of God to use the mundane, ordinary, experiences of life as well.  They, too, are a part of His perfect plan.  All of these things have been carefully chosen for you to experience  and masterfully woven into your life by our loving and perfectly wise, Supremely powerful Father so that you might experience His highest good.

 If you fully cooperate with our Heavenly Father, not fighting and resisting Him, not complaining and not trying to avoid the things you don't like, you will experience blessings in such HUGE MEASURE that you won't be able to hold it all!

Protection
Provision of every need
Power
Peace
Healing
Joy
Wisdom
Freedom
and every good gift

Or you can spend your day choosing the path that is most comfortable for you.  You can complain, whine, argue and resist our Father's PERFECT PLAN.

It's up to you.

He hasn't left you to go through life alone.  He's given all of His children a priceless,  gift--His Spirit.

I'm praying that you will choose the path that the Father has prepared for you today.

His plans for you today are perfect and good!

Have a wonderful day!

Setting the Stage

So I'm setting the stage for my glorious God
Getting all eyes ready
Getting hearts ready
I'm not the star of this show
But the star is on the way
Are you ready?
It's going to be so good
When He shows up
You'll be amazed
Delighted
and filled with wonder
Oh His beauty will overwhelm you
The joy He brings will bubble up and overflow
You will tickle all over with laughter
Your heart will be filled
bursting with hope
Oh it will be so good
Are you ready?
I'm setting the stage for the Glorious One
He's getting ready to appear
I know you're getting antsy
Everyone stay in your seats
You don't want to miss this
He's coming soon
he's getting ready to open up the windows of Heaven
His vast treasure store
He's getting ready to rescue
To provide
To comfort
To solve unsolvable problems
To break the unbreakable
To answer the cries
of the helpless
of the hopeless
of the desperate
of the heartbroken
of the forgotten
of those held captive
You see all these challenges set the stage
Are you ready?
He's coming
Don't miss out on this
Sit on the edge of your seat
with eager expectation
He's getting ready to appear
I'm just one of His servants
preparing the way
for His coming
Get ready
Are you excited yet?
Are you like a little kid on christmas morning?
Unable to sleep because you know something good is coming?

I am.

He's coming
soon!

Beautiful Love

It is a mind- boggling thought to consider the perfect unity of the Father and the Son. Their beautiful love relationship which has no human comparison and yet all beautiful relationships find their origin in it.

 Perfect love. 

 Fully understood. 

 Fully satisfying.

 Completely accepted.

 Hearts fully open wide. 

 Complete vulnerability. 

 A complete capacity to bring the highest good to each other. Lifting each other up. No strife among them. Complete peace. 

 Joy.

 Love in its purest and complete form. 

 No Jealousy. 

 Not even a hint of selfish motives. No harboring of bitterness for past hurt. In fact, no pain at all. 

 Complete delight in each other.

 Complete.

 Complete. 

 Complete. 

Forever and ever and ever. 

 And this amazing and perfect God calls us—all humanity to join in this beautiful love relationship. It's awesome! It's amazing! It's humbling! In fact, this marvelous God desired so much that we would enjoy the glorious perfection of His love, that he sacrificed his own perfectly undisturbed love relationship.

 He sent his son here to this place called earth. His son willingly obeyed all that the Father required. He became one of us. He entrusted himself to the care of His Father. He laid aside His crown, his power, authority, and glory. Because their hearts were so tender towards us, He was willing to take on the limitations, weaknesses, and vulnerabilities of humanity. The Creator became like one of His created. 

 This led him to a cross. 

 And while on that cross, God experienced something that He had never experienced before. The perfect love relationship that they had always shared with one another was not only disrupted, it was broken. The Father refused to even look on his own beloved son as his son took upon himself the wickedness of all mankind. As Jesus took upon himself the crimes of ALL humanity, the Father turned his back on him because sin cannot survive in His presence. The pureness of His holiness and goodness and beauty consumes every evil thing that attempts to come near him. It just cannot survive! So the perfect unity that they shared was broken.

The perfect love relationship was broken.

In fact, Jesus cried out in agony to His father, “My God, my God why have you forsakened me?” Yet Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame because of the joy that was to come. Not only would he be reunited with his Father again, and their relationship be restored, never to be broken again, but he would bring us with him to join in the intimacy of this perfect love relationship. Now we have the opportunity to be a part of this perfect love relationship with God, fully satisfied, with no hint of animosity or selfishness.

Jesus had to bring us there. Not only that, he had to give us his righteousness so that we could live in the glorious presence of the perfect one. He had to give us his power, his mind, and his heart so that we might have something to contribute to this relationship. He has to teach us how to trust Him so that we might commit ourselves fully in this love relationship—open and vulnerable. As we live in this love relationship, he asks of us the same thing the Father asked of the son. To entrust ourselves completely to Him, to trust His love, to trust His heart, that we might fully submit ourselves to Him and not resist Him-- that we might be His lover, His friend, His children, and His bride.

There would be no selfish motives, but instead a desire to lift him up and he promises to lift us up. Amazing, right? And so it is that we find all that our hearts long for in this beautiful, satisfying, and pure relationship that we've been given the opportunity to enjoy—forever and ever.

Hallelujah!

Amen.

My New King

I've been rescued from the Kingdom of Darkness
I now pledge my allegiance to a new King.
A Righteous, Holy, perfect and loving King
A King that brings only good
A King that is generous and kind.

The old king was a tyrant.

The old king hated me
The old king lorded his power over me
oppressed me
belittled me
and used fear to keep me submissive and weak.
He does this to all of his citizens.
He is a liar.
He made big and bold promises in order to trap me, but once I surrendered myself to him, he immediately accused me,
bringing guilt and shame.
His rules brings hopelessness and despair.
It is a life that is no life.

It is death.

His citizens are the walking dead.
Empty
Lifeless
hopeless
pressed down under the extreme weight of his tyrannical rule.

But I've been set free!

And My new King loves me!
I'm free!

I've been given life that is full
complete
satisfying
I've been given hope that does not disappoint.
I've been given love that is free,
flowing
and abundant.

I've been given  power--
an All-surpassing power
to rule with the King.

I've been given an extravagent supply of gifts with the promise of more,
with NO END in sight.
His gifts are FAR BEYOND my capacity to imagine or understand

He gives and gives and gives.

Every word that comes out of His mouth is true.
I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again
He loves me,
And He is my friend.
I trust this King,
and I gladly and willingly give my life to serve Him.
For serving Him brings utter joy
and the deepest satisfaction
I am satisfied in ways I never even imagined.

It is so good!!!!!!!!

Saying No to Religion, and Yes to Jesus

Part of my family and I spent the morning volunteering at a local food pantry.  I spent the time getting to know people, hearing their stories, and re-introducing them to Jesus.  I say re-introduce because Jesus is so familiar, and yet so unknown.  Most people have been inundated with religious jargon, that seems completely irrelevant to our lives.  We've heard that Jesus died on the cross on our sins.  People know they should go to church, pray, read their bibles and try to be good people.  Religion is all about trying to be good.  Over and over I've heard  people talk about going back to church so they can start living better, or get themselves right.  Others go to church so that they hear an encouraging message that will jump start them for the week, then they go back to life as usual.  I spoke with a lady today who was more concerned about God answering her prayers than God himself.  "Yes, I believe God answers my prayers because I always see a rose when he does."  That's cool, but do you know God?  Why would God do something so personal, if he didn't want you to know Him intimately? 

(Many of us want God to answer our prayers, but we're uninterested in actually knowing Him. He's just our Genie-in-a-bottle.)

The American culture is full of religion.   So many of us put on religious masks that keep us from encountering the real Jesus.  We can say the "right" words.  We pray the "right" prayers.  We can quote scripture, and sing the "right" songs.  We go to church and participate in church activities.  But... do we know God(aka Jesus)?

How, you ask?

Great question.  How do you get to know anybody you want to know?  It's quite simple.  By spending time with him or her.  Get alone and spend face to face time getting to know God.  That requires, quite obviously, a recognition that there is a God to be known.  If you don't believe that God exists, why would you ever attempt to spend time with Him?  Once alone, talk to God.  We call that prayer.  If you're going to talk to God, you must believe that He's listening.  Why would you waste time talking to someone who can't hear you, or who doesn't care to listen?  Next you must listen to Him.  That's right, listen.  Of course, that means that He speaks.  Not only does that mean He speaks, but He wants to speak to each of us personally.  He speaks through His words.  Many of His words are written in the Bible.  He reveals to us who He is.  He shows is ways of working in the world.  He gives us examples of others who were His friends.  He teaches us much about ourselves and the world. 

He will speak specifically to us.  About our lives. About our destiny.  About our circumstances.  About who we are.  His words aren't simply printed words on a page, they are words that are overflowing with life, and meaning.  They are relevant and true.  They go beyond our natural understanding. They go deeper than deep.  Those who continue to dive into His word daily find themselves discovering treasure after treasure. There's an endless supply! 

God also speaks to our Spirits in ways that cannot be explained in words.  He speaks in our minds.  He speaks through creation.  He speaks in dreams and visions.  He speaks  in the silence.

And once He's spoken, we must believe His words to us.  What's the use in listening, if you won't believe? And what's the point of believing, if you won't do what He tells you to do?

We can also know Jesus by being around others who know Him--His children.  His children are also known as "the church".  God wants us learning together, praying together, and serving together.  TOGETHER is the key word.  He doesn't want us on our own.  In fact, He promises a special manifestation of His presence when we gather together.  I can't completely explain it, but I've experienced it many, many times.  When we come as humble seekers of the true and living God, expecting Him to speak to us and to do something special among us, He does.  Often, we come with our own agenda, that we expect Jesus to follow.  We often gather with others in order to check off our, Went-to-church-this-week box, rather than with the desire to meet with Jesus, and pour out our love and devotion to Him.

Don't abandon gathering with other true followers with Jesus.  Just find some true followers to gather with.  God will guide your search. He doesn't want you alone.

I'm currently reading a book that is encouraging me in my search to know the "real Jesus".  I want to know Him for myself.  So I'm reading the gospels with new ears, and new eyes, asking God's Spirit to show me the real Jesus.  The author of this book encourages His readers to do the same.  We've painted this flat, uninteresting, powerless, and quite frankly, impersonal Jesus.  We've made Him distant and unapproachable, sorta like the Pope.  That's not the real Jesus!  The real Jesus was continually surrounded with sinners.  Prostitutes. The despised. Thiefs. The sick. The demon possessed--crazies. The destitute. The broken. The  poor. Jesus welcomed these people in His presence.  Jesus isn't somewhere up in the clouds, unapproachable by us.  He wants us to know Him and to live in a continual relationship with Him. 

The last lady I spoke with today talked about her frustration with her church.  She wants more.  She thought that there was more. 

There is.

Religion doesn't fill the deepest longings of our souls.

Jesus does.

Say yes to the real Jesus.

He wants you to know Him.

Impossibilities

I desire to do the impossible
to walk on water
but...
that takes faith
Because the impossible is...
well...
impossible,
without God
He makes all things possible
when my focus is on me,
the impossibilities of the situation
overwhelm
and I begin to sink under the waves of
doubt and fear
When I focus on Jesus
His power
His might
His absolute control
authority
magnificence
glory
greatness
and his constant personal care and compassion for me
I can walk confidently on Mighty waves as though walking on flat dry land
With every step I take
My heart says
My God is able
My God is ABLE
It's so easy for Him
My God is ABLE
He won't let my foot slip
He redeems all my failures
My God is ABLE
My God is ABLE

Untitled

Blinding beauty

magnificence that we cannot begin to take in

Love that fills and overflows leaving no place untouched

compassion

gentleness

You care

it is your deepest desire that we might

know you

And you are enough

Enough

Enough

Your treasure stores are filled with inexhaustible supplies of ALL that is good

And you delight in providing for the needs of your children

If only we would ask

If only we believed

Then we would wait

Then we wouldn't try to make our own way

Then we wouldn't settle for so much less

You're not holding back

You're waiting for the best possible time

for all you give

when you give

will be good in every possible way

to give too early or too late

harms your beloved

And the arms of the One who loves

 would never bring harm

but he will bring pain

pain that brings blessing

the pain is temporary

the blessing will NEVER STOP

You are truth

there isn't even a hint of a lie in you

from your mouth comes truth

for when you speak

all things must obey

All things

Every power

Every authority

I cannot begin to fathom the greatness of this power

This power

You've placed in me?

I don't understand

I live far beneath my capability

Far beneath

I don't know how far

Oh God

stretch my mind

Help me to believe

I have resurrection power

All-surpassing power

I have authority over the enemy

Demons MUST SUBMIT to my authority as I carry out your plans

Lord, open our eyes

by your Spirit

to truly know who we are

Your Children

Your beloved

Joint heirs with Christ

Seated in Heavenly Places

Amen.

Notes from the Father IV

Do not doubt my Spirit.  Do not doubt my power to redeem your mistakes.  Do not doubt my love and compassion for you.  Why would I not tell you that you are doing something that will bring harm?  I love you!  I want NO harm to come to you.  I want you to know my voice.  As you listen to my voice, I will direct you.  Don't worry.  Keep moving forward inspite of what you see or feel.  Do not let fear have control or motivate your decisions.  Let faith reign!

Notes from the Father III

My people have substituted the internet, books and the experts for me.   Instead of seeking my face, and calling on my name.  They seek many other things.   And I have rendered these things useless.

For I am the Lord your God.
 Seek my face.

Notes from the Father II

Follow the example of the woman with the blood disease.  Stop searching and make every effort to be near me.  For in my presence, is healing, joy, peace, strength, freedom...life.  I am a compassionate and loving God.  I heal all who are in my presence...

At my time.

Through the process I choose.

Ultimately, full healing comes in my presence.

Stop searching and come near me.  I will direct your paths. 

I am Yahweh Ropheka, the healer and restorer.  Trust me.  I will do it.  

I love you and I desire to bring health to your body and healing to your soul.  My grace is sufficient for you.

Keep praying.

Help others to get to me.  Your prayers, your offering of time, energy, your tears, your travailing,will help others to see the path to me.

I just want them and you near me.

 In my presence is Every good and perfect gift.  I hold no good thing from you, or any of my children.   You need only to receive.  Come with open arms, like a child on christmas morning with eager anticipation that I have prepared good gifts for you. 

The Principle of O

God (who is perfect, holy, good, and complete) x anything = perfect, holy, good and complete

When God is interjected into any equation, goodness, righteousness, and completeness overflows.  All is complete when God enters, for He makes everything right.

Naked and Thirsty

I've been reading through the gospels this year and more recently the Gospel of Luke.  I've been learning so much as I've been studying about the life of Jesus.  Several weeks ago I read something Jesus said that has confounded me for years.

 

Luke 5:36 He told them this parable: "No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. [37] And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. [38] No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. [39] And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, `The old is better.' "

I've heard people talk about this referring to new paradigms.  Ok.  But I really wanted to understand this parable.  So I ask my Teacher to teach me.  And Oh boy!  The Holy Spirit opened my mind to understand this scripture, and spoke to me very personally.   I'd like to share what He revealed to me.

So Jesus gives two examples, to make a point.  First He uses clothes.  When your clothes or old, what do you do?  First, consider the culture in which Jesus lived.  The common person only owned one item of clothing--maybe two..  Believe it or not, many people around the world live like this.  Anyway, when clothes became worn, one would patch the holes, until it couldn't be patched anymore or until they were able to get a new garment.  Why would a person damage a new garment, to patch an old garment?  If you have access to a new garment, you would replace the old garment with the new garment, not patch up the old.  If a person were to patch up the old garment with the new cloth, the patch would be ineffective.  The new cloth would pull away from old cloth, and end up becoming an unwearable garment.  And guess what?  The new garment is ruined too!  The result:  No wearable garments.  

We end up naked!!!!

 Jesus uses wine and wineskin to illustrate the same point.  When a person was out of wine, they would need to make more wine.  If a person was to put new wine in an old wineskin, the wine would burst through the wineskin, leaving the person with no wine.  So instead of having wine, and a wineskin, they end up with nothing.  

They end up thirsty! 

So why would anyone do such absurd things?

Jesus answers that in His last statement.  "And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, `The old is better.' "  

No one wants "the new", because...

• The old is familiar
• The old is safe
• We think the good of the old will stay good

When we hold on too long to the old, being UNWILLING to change, we end up losing everything.  The good of the old is gone, and we don't experience the good of "the new" either.  We find ourselves in need of change, but instead of changing we want to patch our lives. You know, just fix the things in our lives that don't work.  

When "the new" presents itsself, take hold of the new.  Stop trying to make the new, fit into the old.

I'll be honest here.  The Holy Spirit is convicting me of this BIG TIME!  I've been praying that the Lord would change some things in my life, and I've been praying for a patch job.  God wants to give me a new garment.  Something I've never seen.  Something I'm not familiar with.  Something-- better.  Don't get me wrong.  The old garment wasn't bad.  It was good for a season, but now it's outdated and no longer provides the best for our family.  It's time to let go, before I lose all that I'm trying hold on to.  

Just as the old garment was good, I can trust that the new garment is good too.

Just as the old wine was good, the new wine will be just as good--maybe even better.

Are you in need of a big change in your life?

What are you refusing to let go of? 

 What are you asking God to patch in your life?  Are you asking Him to fix the things you don't like, so you don't have to really change?

Can you trust our Loving, and completely wise Heavenly Father to give you that which best for you?

Will you give Him permission to change anything He wants to change?  Anything.

 

He wants to replace your old and worn garments with a fresh new garment.  He wants you fully clothed, not naked.  He wants to replace your old and empty wineskins with new wineskins full of wine.  He wants you satisfied, not thirsty.

Let's encourage each other on this journey.

Let me know what big change you've been praying for, and how God surprised you (or is surprising you) with the most amazing blessings as you walked out into the unknown of "the new".  

I'll be sharing my story of change soon.  I think this post is long enough.  ;-)

40 Days of Discovery- Day 19

   Ephesians 3:20 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, [21] to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

If God is able to do immeasurable more than I ask (exceedingly, abundantly more!), why do I ask so little of Him?  My sights are too often too low.

Father help me to ask you for greater things--higher things--those things which fulfill your immense plans and purposes for our lives.  Help me to trust you more.  More than I ever have.  Let me rest soundly in your loving care.  Help me to have full confidence that YOU WILL TAKE care of us--of every need.  Help me Lord. Help me.

Just recently, the Holy Spirit has given me a special gift.  His gifts are amazing, and often surprising.  They are given when we least expect them, and I've decided to receive every gift He wants to give me.  I know I cannot manipulate Him into giving me gifts.  I am absolutely in awe, that my Lord loves me so much as to give me another gift.  He's blessed me so lavishly already.  I have so, so much, and here He comes with arm full of gifts again.  Let me tell you, I'm like a kid on Christmas morning.  I'm so enjoying His gifts to me.  Each one is so perfect for me, so special, so beautiful...  Jesus, thank you for making it possible for me to be in the family of God.  Thank you for sending me your Spirit, and thank you for ALL of the gifts.  Amen. and Amen.

Oh by the way, just in case your wondering...

I've been given the gift of a greater sense of God's presence and power.  I can literally feel His presence--physically.  I've also been given the gift of tongues.  I feel like a two year old trying to talk, and I guess I am.  This is all so new and unexpected.  So unexpected.

40 Days of Discovery- Day 16

Just a couple of things to share today:

I was praying with my friend Sue Cleaver recently.  She said something that was so profound, and it made me smile Big Time!  She said that if God dumped everything he had on a person, God would turn around and find that He still has EVERYTHING.  I love that!  God can give extravagantly, abundantly, lavishly and His supply is never diminished one bit!  And He is my Father.

I truly want to live knowing that I'm the beloved child of the King of the Universe, of El Shaddai-- the one who is the inexhaustible supply of every good and perfect gift.  He says that he withholds no good thing from us.  NO GOOD THING!  He also promises to provide ALL of our need from HIS GLORIOUS RICHES in Christ Jesus (Phil 4:19), not my assets.  Praise God for that!

Romans 8:32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

So when there is a need, there's no need to worry, to get frustrated, or to try to figure out how we're going to take care of our own need.  We can live like Jesus lived.  He never worried about how he would eat, where he would sleep, or even how to pay His taxes.  He was confident that His Father knew His needs and would take care of every single need.  The only time I ever read of Jesus being hungry was when he was fasting--intentionally.  And scripture never says that Jesus had a job!  We always read him eating at someone's house, or staying at someone's house.  He even commissioned his followers to do the same.

Luke 10: 4- 7 ] Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.  LK 10:5 "When you enter a house, first say, `Peace to this house.' [6] If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. [7] Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

Later Jesus gives them permission to save, and carry what they needed.  By that time, His disciples understood the lesson that Jesus was teaching them.  Our Heavenly Father will take perfect care of you, and meet EVERY SINGLE NEED from His supply, not ours.  

  LK 22:35 Then Jesus asked them, "When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?"
    "Nothing," they answered.
LK 22:36 He said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.

He supplies our through jobs, savings, friends, families, strangers--through a myriad of means.  God is creative and He often surprises us with His means of provision.

My oldest daughter needs braces.  After a consultation yesterday, I realized that braces are about $4000--and that's with insurance.  That's definitely NOT in our budget!  Our income can't support the monthly payments either. So what do we do?  Well, I'll tell you my normal response.  Frustration. Hopelessness. Or dismiss this need as a luxury and go without.  God is teaching me how to respond as His child.  We're bringing this need to the Father who has amply resources to take care of this need.  Does that mean that I'm not being a good steward of what He's given us?  No.  But we're not perfect either.  It means that we ask, and wait for His provision.  I'm looking for His answer, and trying not to be closed minded about His ways of providing.  But I'm NOT taking matters into my own hands.  I'm not using credit or putting our family in some financial bind, because I'm trying to meet a need with the resources we can SEE.  And I'm not trying to make His provision come at MY TIME.  He is all-wise, and He knows when the time is right.

I'll just wait for Him.