This prayer is for them.
They're after Your heart, oh God. Seeking, chasing, longing (after). Hearts after Yours, oh God. Fashioned, modeled, mirrored (after).
Caught up in the tangle of dark before dawn, they do not see what we see. Unaware, quite completely, of their fragrance of beauty. I watch them slip down the mud-heap of lies, and I break as the spark dims to ash in their eyes.
If they could but glimpse: the way their voice sounds just like You, the way through their gaze You come bleeding through.
Call my brothers, call them by name. Consume them forever in Your jealous flame.
Blessed sons of the Most High--the world is waiting for you to rise.
Showing posts with label Revival. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Revival. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Under Construction.
Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?
How quickly we are caught up in our own little lives, our own personal problems, that somehow loom so much bigger in our eyes than the Kingdom of God. How enthusiastically we strive after our own desires and dreams, while the Father's heart breaks for the lost and hungry lambs we have stopped searching for. How contentedly we gorge our bodies with food and drink, as His Body wastes away, weary muscles wilting from the brittle bones. How easily we question God when things don't go our way, how suddenly we are reminded of Him, just long enough to shift the blame.
Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.
For six months after graduating college, I lived in complete misery. The degree I had spent four years pursuing seemed suddenly useless to me. Nothing I did eased my unhappiness. Filling out job applications came to nothing. Writing did little to soothe me. I couldn't find a way to escape the town I hated. I beat my head repeatedly against unyielding brick, begging God to give me a reason why.
You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why? Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I called for a drought on the fields of the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands.
Four years ago, God told me to pray for rain. Revival for His Church, a restoration of the Holy Spirit that we so desperately need. But I became caught up in myself, swept away in my own selfish troubles. I stopped seeking after His Kingdom. I paid little attention to His people, unless they directly impacted me. I forgot about the bigger picture. I forsook His House to build my own. And I wasted away in the drought.
But in December of 2012, God spoke to me, just as He did to His people through the prophet Haggai. He told me that I had been selfish. That He had a calling and a purpose for me among His people. It was time to stop wallowing in self-pity and start building His Temple (Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple? 1 Cor. 3:16).
On that night, I obeyed the voice of the LORD, and He reminded me, I am with you. He stirred up the spirit, that I would be strong enough to accomplish the task He had called me to. He surrounded me with others whose hearts are bent on building His House. And I have never felt such joy.
Be strong, all you people of the land, and work. For I am with you. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear. In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory. The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house. And in this place I will grant peace.
*Italics from Haggai 1:3-6, 9-14, 2:4-7, 9
How quickly we are caught up in our own little lives, our own personal problems, that somehow loom so much bigger in our eyes than the Kingdom of God. How enthusiastically we strive after our own desires and dreams, while the Father's heart breaks for the lost and hungry lambs we have stopped searching for. How contentedly we gorge our bodies with food and drink, as His Body wastes away, weary muscles wilting from the brittle bones. How easily we question God when things don't go our way, how suddenly we are reminded of Him, just long enough to shift the blame.
Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.
For six months after graduating college, I lived in complete misery. The degree I had spent four years pursuing seemed suddenly useless to me. Nothing I did eased my unhappiness. Filling out job applications came to nothing. Writing did little to soothe me. I couldn't find a way to escape the town I hated. I beat my head repeatedly against unyielding brick, begging God to give me a reason why.
You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why? Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I called for a drought on the fields of the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands.
Four years ago, God told me to pray for rain. Revival for His Church, a restoration of the Holy Spirit that we so desperately need. But I became caught up in myself, swept away in my own selfish troubles. I stopped seeking after His Kingdom. I paid little attention to His people, unless they directly impacted me. I forgot about the bigger picture. I forsook His House to build my own. And I wasted away in the drought.
But in December of 2012, God spoke to me, just as He did to His people through the prophet Haggai. He told me that I had been selfish. That He had a calling and a purpose for me among His people. It was time to stop wallowing in self-pity and start building His Temple (Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple? 1 Cor. 3:16).
On that night, I obeyed the voice of the LORD, and He reminded me, I am with you. He stirred up the spirit, that I would be strong enough to accomplish the task He had called me to. He surrounded me with others whose hearts are bent on building His House. And I have never felt such joy.
Be strong, all you people of the land, and work. For I am with you. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear. In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory. The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house. And in this place I will grant peace.
*Italics from Haggai 1:3-6, 9-14, 2:4-7, 9
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Not-Dear Satan,
You cannot have them. They do not belong to you. I see God in their eyes, feel the tug of His Spirit threading our heart-strings together. We are His sons, His daughters. You have no claim on us; you lost it in a moment, a sliver of time that echoed through eternity, that whisper of the Lamb: It is finished.
Jesus Christ. (Even now, do you feel the urge to bow?) His blood covers us. His Spirit fills us. His authority goes before us. His protection goes behind. His word springs from our lips, alive and active. His love wells up in our hearts, driving out fear.
For many years, we have forgotten. We have been foolish enough to believe your lies. We have been arrogant enough to battle you in our own strength. But no longer. Our Father is restoring the hearts of His children, free from the caskets we covered them in. He is stirring up the ashes of a long-dead flame, the coals set aglow by the taste of His breath. It is a fire many waters cannot hope to quench. It is a fire that burns forever.
We will no longer stand quietly by while you rip our brothers and sisters to bleeding bits. We will no longer back down at the first sign of the fray. Our God is for us, and you will not stand. His seal upon our hearts, upon our arms. His Name, written on our foreheads. (Can you even bear to look?) The victory is ours. Through grace, we are learning how to wield it.
So back the Hell away. Or we'll send all of Heaven after you.
Jesus Christ. (Even now, do you feel the urge to bow?) His blood covers us. His Spirit fills us. His authority goes before us. His protection goes behind. His word springs from our lips, alive and active. His love wells up in our hearts, driving out fear.
For many years, we have forgotten. We have been foolish enough to believe your lies. We have been arrogant enough to battle you in our own strength. But no longer. Our Father is restoring the hearts of His children, free from the caskets we covered them in. He is stirring up the ashes of a long-dead flame, the coals set aglow by the taste of His breath. It is a fire many waters cannot hope to quench. It is a fire that burns forever.
We will no longer stand quietly by while you rip our brothers and sisters to bleeding bits. We will no longer back down at the first sign of the fray. Our God is for us, and you will not stand. His seal upon our hearts, upon our arms. His Name, written on our foreheads. (Can you even bear to look?) The victory is ours. Through grace, we are learning how to wield it.
So back the Hell away. Or we'll send all of Heaven after you.
Friday, April 19, 2013
April Showers.
"Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. As they pass through the valley, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion." -Psalm 84:5-7
"The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." -James 5:16-18
"Do idols have the power to bring rain? Does the sky itself have the power to send down showers? No, it is You, LORD our God. You are our only hope, because You are the one who made all these things." -Jeremiah 14:22
"When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because Your people have sinned against You, and when they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin because You have afflicted them, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land You gave Your people as an inheritance." -1 Kings 8:35-36
"Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of My mouth. Let My teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants." -Deuteronomy 32:1-2
"Now listen, O Jacob, My servant, Israel, whom I have chosen. This is what the LORD says--He who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, My servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring and My blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. One will say, 'I belong to the LORD'; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, 'The LORD's,' and will take the name Israel." -Isaiah 44:1-5
"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to My people, My chosen, the people I formed for Myself that they may proclaim My praise." -Isaiah 43:19, 20b-21
"The land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven. It is a land the LORD your God cares for; the eyes of the LORD your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end. So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today--to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul--then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains." -Deuteronomy 11:11-14
"I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit." -Leviticus 26:4
"I will rain down bread from heaven for you." -Exodus 16:4
"The Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest. Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest." -Isaiah 32:15-18
"The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for man or linger for mankind." -Micah 5:7
"The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God." -Isaiah 35:1-2
"The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of His bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands." -Deuteronomy 28:12
"Be glad, O people of Zion, rejoice in the LORD your God, for He has given you the autumn rains in righteousness. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before." -Joel 2:23
"There is the sound of heavy rain." -1 Kings 18:41
"The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." -James 5:16-18
"Do idols have the power to bring rain? Does the sky itself have the power to send down showers? No, it is You, LORD our God. You are our only hope, because You are the one who made all these things." -Jeremiah 14:22
"When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because Your people have sinned against You, and when they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin because You have afflicted them, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land You gave Your people as an inheritance." -1 Kings 8:35-36
"Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of My mouth. Let My teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants." -Deuteronomy 32:1-2
"Now listen, O Jacob, My servant, Israel, whom I have chosen. This is what the LORD says--He who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, My servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring and My blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. One will say, 'I belong to the LORD'; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, 'The LORD's,' and will take the name Israel." -Isaiah 44:1-5
"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to My people, My chosen, the people I formed for Myself that they may proclaim My praise." -Isaiah 43:19, 20b-21
"The land you are crossing the Jordan to take possession of is a land of mountains and valleys that drinks rain from heaven. It is a land the LORD your God cares for; the eyes of the LORD your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end. So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today--to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul--then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains." -Deuteronomy 11:11-14
"I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit." -Leviticus 26:4
"I will rain down bread from heaven for you." -Exodus 16:4
"The Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest. Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest." -Isaiah 32:15-18
"The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for man or linger for mankind." -Micah 5:7
"The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God." -Isaiah 35:1-2
"The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of His bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands." -Deuteronomy 28:12
"Be glad, O people of Zion, rejoice in the LORD your God, for He has given you the autumn rains in righteousness. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before." -Joel 2:23
"There is the sound of heavy rain." -1 Kings 18:41
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Awake, Oh Sleeper.
God has so much more to offer than what we have been satisfied with.
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So tell me, where is He? Where is the God of the Bible, the God I've read about all these years? The God who parts seas and rains bread from heaven and raises the dead back to life? The God who causes His people to speak in tongues they have never heard, who gives them visions of the throne room of Heaven? Where is the God whose mere Presence causes people to fall flat on their face and cry out, Woe is me, for I am a person of unclean lips!?
Jesus said, "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13).
That has been my prayer of late. God, show us how much more! Show us how much more you will give Your Spirit to those who ask!
The key being: we have to ask. We have to get hungry. We have to get thirsty. We have to get desperate. We have to start seeking with all we have.
If you want more of God: ask. If you want to want more of God: ask. And if you don't receive an answer? Plead. Beg. Don't give up; press in. His promise was for those who seek Him with everything.
If you truly desire to find Him, He's your only option. Not books, not sermons, not songs. Not good deeds or spiritual words. Just God. He is the only one who can stir up a holy hunger in our hearts. He alone can save us from this sleep.
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So tell me, where is He? Where is the God of the Bible, the God I've read about all these years? The God who parts seas and rains bread from heaven and raises the dead back to life? The God who causes His people to speak in tongues they have never heard, who gives them visions of the throne room of Heaven? Where is the God whose mere Presence causes people to fall flat on their face and cry out, Woe is me, for I am a person of unclean lips!?
Jesus said, "If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13).
That has been my prayer of late. God, show us how much more! Show us how much more you will give Your Spirit to those who ask!
The key being: we have to ask. We have to get hungry. We have to get thirsty. We have to get desperate. We have to start seeking with all we have.
If you want more of God: ask. If you want to want more of God: ask. And if you don't receive an answer? Plead. Beg. Don't give up; press in. His promise was for those who seek Him with everything.
If you truly desire to find Him, He's your only option. Not books, not sermons, not songs. Not good deeds or spiritual words. Just God. He is the only one who can stir up a holy hunger in our hearts. He alone can save us from this sleep.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Desperate Times.
Lately, I feel as if I have been tiptoeing, arms outstretched, along the brink of overwhelming. It is beautiful, and it is terrifying. And it is teaching me:
God wants us to be in a constant state of desperation. Not in a panicky, fear-driven sense of the word. Rather, it is the desperation of Moses when he pleaded, If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here (Exodus 33:15). It is the desperation of David as he sang, My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water, and begged, Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me (Psalm 63:1, 51:11). It is the desperation of Peter, who cried out Lord, save me!, and the desperation of a broken-hearted father who exclaimed, I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief! (Mark 9:24).
It is the desperation of those who are aware of their own weakness, their utter lack of control, their absolute need. But it is also a desperation that knows there is an answer, a solution, a victory, in the arms of One who is greater--and pursues that answer with everything.
Regardless of the depths of our passion or the height of our intellect, we cannot create a movement of God. In fact, on our own, we cannot even sustain a movement of God. If God's Spirit is absent, no amount of worship music, no amount of quotes from Scripture, no amount of acts of service, can open up the doorways for souls to hear from Him. When God's Spirit is absent, the best we can manage is a wave of emotion, followed by a burnout.
But. Jesus looks at us and says: With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).
It's time for us to get desperate. God is moving. He is calling us out, calling us up. He is leading us into the realm of the impossible. Only--don't run ahead of Him. Don't disconnect yourself from the vine. Don't fall into the delusion that you can do this on your own. Because you can't. None of us can. Stay desperate. Stay dependent. Stay focused on the light of His eyes, and the feel of His hand in yours. And in your time of weakness, He'll be all the strength you need.
God wants us to be in a constant state of desperation. Not in a panicky, fear-driven sense of the word. Rather, it is the desperation of Moses when he pleaded, If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here (Exodus 33:15). It is the desperation of David as he sang, My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water, and begged, Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me (Psalm 63:1, 51:11). It is the desperation of Peter, who cried out Lord, save me!, and the desperation of a broken-hearted father who exclaimed, I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief! (Mark 9:24).
It is the desperation of those who are aware of their own weakness, their utter lack of control, their absolute need. But it is also a desperation that knows there is an answer, a solution, a victory, in the arms of One who is greater--and pursues that answer with everything.
Regardless of the depths of our passion or the height of our intellect, we cannot create a movement of God. In fact, on our own, we cannot even sustain a movement of God. If God's Spirit is absent, no amount of worship music, no amount of quotes from Scripture, no amount of acts of service, can open up the doorways for souls to hear from Him. When God's Spirit is absent, the best we can manage is a wave of emotion, followed by a burnout.
But. Jesus looks at us and says: With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).
It's time for us to get desperate. God is moving. He is calling us out, calling us up. He is leading us into the realm of the impossible. Only--don't run ahead of Him. Don't disconnect yourself from the vine. Don't fall into the delusion that you can do this on your own. Because you can't. None of us can. Stay desperate. Stay dependent. Stay focused on the light of His eyes, and the feel of His hand in yours. And in your time of weakness, He'll be all the strength you need.
Monday, February 18, 2013
All Together Now.
I've been saying we a lot lately. I used to have the opposite tendency; whenever I read Scripture or sang songs to God that used the collective terms of we or us, I'd often personalize it to I or me. It was what I needed at the time--for God to pick me out of the crowd, call me by name, focus in on the individual strands of hair on my head. I needed to know that He saw me.
But God is drawing me into a new season. He is opening my eyes to the bigger picture, expanding my vision to line up with His. This is the season of the Church, rising up with one Body, unified in the Spirit. This is a season of the severance of the denominational and ideological binds that have for so long divided us. This is a season of the fulfillment of Jesus' prayer:
This is bigger than you, and it's bigger than me. God is raising up His sons and daughters in this nation, anointing them with a deeper passion to dive into His mysteries. I've heard testimonies of God moving powerfully in the lives of friends in different states, different cities, simultaneously. And I've witnessed His power moving in this city--in different churches, different denominations. Because the truth is, there is no difference.
A revival of love is stirring in the hearts of God's children. I have heard it; I have seen it; I have felt it. And I'm learning I'm crazy enough to believe it. Believe with me. The Spirit of God is calling. And if we answer, we will take this world by storm.
But God is drawing me into a new season. He is opening my eyes to the bigger picture, expanding my vision to line up with His. This is the season of the Church, rising up with one Body, unified in the Spirit. This is a season of the severance of the denominational and ideological binds that have for so long divided us. This is a season of the fulfillment of Jesus' prayer:
"I pray for those who will believe in me, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one. I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:20-23).Complete unity. Does it sound impossible? It should, because it is. But I've said it a thousand times, and I'll say it a thousand more: Our God is a God of the impossible.
This is bigger than you, and it's bigger than me. God is raising up His sons and daughters in this nation, anointing them with a deeper passion to dive into His mysteries. I've heard testimonies of God moving powerfully in the lives of friends in different states, different cities, simultaneously. And I've witnessed His power moving in this city--in different churches, different denominations. Because the truth is, there is no difference.
"You were all baptized into Christ, and so you were all clothed with Christ. This means that you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. In Christ, there is no difference between Jew and Greek, slave and free person, male and female. You are all one in Christ Jesus. You belong to Christ, so you are Abraham's descendants. You will inherit all of God's blessings because of the promise God made to Abraham." (Galatians 3:26-27)Therefore:
"Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought. Just as each one of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to us. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves." (Romans 12:3-6, 10)And:
"Do not owe people anything, except always owe love to each other, because the person who loves others has obeyed all the law. Do this because we live in an important time. It is now time for you to wake up from your sleep, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The 'night' is almost finished, and the 'day' is almost here. So we should stop doing things that belong to darkness and take up the weapons used for fighting in the light." (Romans 13:8, 11-12)A bit overwhelming? But that's not even the beginning. Read Colossians 3:11-15. Read the book of 1 John. We are a family. We are an army. We are a body. We are one.
A revival of love is stirring in the hearts of God's children. I have heard it; I have seen it; I have felt it. And I'm learning I'm crazy enough to believe it. Believe with me. The Spirit of God is calling. And if we answer, we will take this world by storm.
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