Redemption.

Redemption.

For a little while now I’ve been hand copying books of the bible. In hand copying books of the bible I’ve found I take more notice of what’s written there. Things jump out that I hadn’t noticed before. 

I just spent an hour and a half on one page of the bible. Thirty minutes of which was directed towards a semicolon.

I got an awful lot out of it and it all started when I questioned that said semicolon. Who does that? Question a semicolon from a book completed 2,000 years ago? It’s such a little thing; a semicolon. Ah, the joys of being a writer.

Now, explaining what I learnt is the hard part. Putting it all into words is the challenge, but here goes.

The semicolon first…

Ex 12:50 Thus all the children of Israel did; as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

It could also be written as – Thus all the children of Israel did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. A slight variation with the self-same meaning. A prerogative of the author at the time.

Then we move down to Ex 13:4 On this day you are going out in the month of Abib, which is March and April. Further study revealed March/April to be the connection between Passover and Easter. Also, that the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt with a strong hand (Ex 13:9), denoting the futility of resisting God, as Pharaoh had tried to do when God sent various plagues upon his nation.

Having struck down the first born of Egypt, the Lord then exacts a return with the redeeming of the first born of Israel (Ex 13:13). This is a foreshadow of the redemption of God’s one and only Son, His sacrificial Lamb.

The first-born son to be given to the Lord. The first-born animal, sacrificed. The donkey, viewed as unclean, could be redeemed by a lamb. That Jesus (the Redeeming Lamb) rode on a donkey, shows an example of humility. A horse was considered an animal of war, a donkey; meekness.

The whole purpose of these passages are to show us how God will deliver His people from the curse of the Law, our prior condition being one of slavery, and what is entailed to set us free. From Genesis to Revelation God’s hand points us to Jesus, moving us out of sin and slavery and into our King/Priest inheritance.

One more thing today; in looking all this up, God showed/reminded me to enjoy where I’m at as I live my dream. We are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb and the devil cannot defeat us if we’re resolute in our faith. We’re not guaranteed earthly success or prosperity. Death is the believer’s ultimate victory, for to be ‘away from the body’ is to be ‘at home with the Lord.’

I do believe we are overcomers in the Lord, that success and prosperity are within our reach, but it may not be on this side of the heavens. God promises to meet our needs and desires. He doesn’t promise wealth as we know it, but peace, joy and longevity. 

Disaster Action Plan.

Disaster Action Plan.

When disaster strikes you have three directions you can take; regress, stagnate or rebirth. The decisions you make following disaster cause you to either turn back, shut down and withdraw, or move you to action.

Disaster is a lesson to learn, to grow and to move through, like a birth canal. Once you get to the other side, you’re stronger and wiser. Don’t let disaster break you. Instead, use it as a spring board to move you forward at a greater pace.

The school or hard knocks are difficult to go through. Better is an action plan, an intention of where you want to head and when you get off course, reset your dials towards your desired destination. It’s better that you decide what you want and need for your life, than to let the disasters of life toss you like a small ship in a large ocean.

Be intentional about who you want to become, where you want to go, who you hang out with, how much money you want to earn. Set goals, make a list and take action every day, for that is the only way you’re going to arrive at your destination. You’ll never get where you’re going sitting in your rocking chair, for you can rock as hard as you like, but you won’t go anywhere. It’s never too late and there’s nothing like today to get started.

You don’t need to be ready; you just need to take one action today which will move you towards your goal. And another action tomorrow and keep going. Don’t quit until you reach your destination. Will you have difficult days to traverse? Absolutely. Pick up the pieces as soon as you can and keep plugging away.

You need to be intentional every day. We’re all busy and some days are busier than others. Write up a schedule which will incorporate your dreams and desires and continue to work towards your action plan. Don’t ever stop. Keep asking the question; “What’s next?” and your world will open up to you.

God is Willing. Are You?

God’s Willing. Are You?

When Elijah arose into the clouds, he dropped his mantle. Elisha had to stoop over and pick it up. When Samson attacked the Philistine’s, he had to stoop down to pick up the donkey jawbone, which then killed a thousand men.

We need to stoop, to bend to the Father, as we pick up what we need in order to defeat our enemies. There’s much trouble and distraction in the world today and we cannot allow ourselves to be railroaded into what isn’t our concern. Yes, pray over matters but don’t worry over them.

Neither Elisha nor Samson had to go looking for what they needed. Both found what was needed close by their side. What we need is also close to us. We don’t have to go looking. Keep your focus on God and He will direct you to the right pathways.

There’s your perceived truth and then there’s God’s truth. Who are you going to believe? The devil is not in charge – God is! And if you’re not liking your journey so far, start to live from a place of joy, for it’s only from a place of joy that we shall hear the Father speak.

God will make you aware of His plan for your life. God will transform your life, as long as you give Him praise, honour and glory. As you praise, honour and glorify God it will also rub off on you for what you behold you become.

God has chosen you to reflect His glory. You are an army of 1. No matter how you feel, God has confidence in you.

Seize God’s power; seize the power of Jesus. You are not the problem but part of the solution. You were born for a time such as this. You are here at the right time and in the right place to make a difference in the lives of others.

The nation of Ester was spared, because of one person, one story. One person can make all the difference. You are that person. Realise: You’ve been chosen!

Billy Graham was just one person and yet he reached over 2 billion people. Billy Graham started because of his Sunday school teacher, who was just one person.

Are you willing to go forth in Jesus name? God’s willing to lead if you are willing to go.

I Am that I Am.

I Am that I Am. I Am the Living God.

Lightning and thunder - fireworks in the sky.

A living light for all the world to see.

I bring you that light.

With it comes joy and wonder.

Awe and majesty.

A showcase of My glory.

The stars in the night sky.

The comeliness of a splendid sunrise.

The marvel of all creation.

The rainbow, the northern lights, the southern aurora.

The magnificent colours of the true and living God.

From My throne these emanate perpetually.

A display of My greatness reflected upon this planet.

A bursting forth from the heavenly realm to the earthly.

That you shall know; I Am that I Am.

I am the living God!

The Hidden Manna.

The Hidden Manna.

What is manna? Manna is substance, bread from heaven, heavenly food. It’s akin to a pool of water, a respite from the midday sun. It’s both worldly and heavenly in form, still being found today in the Sinai Peninsula.

The hidden manna – a reward for those who help Jesus carry out His plan to return the world to its original state. Hidden manna is the help you receive from the prayer you sent out; it’s nourishment to the soul from on high.

Did you know there are rich rewards for those who say ‘yes’ to Jesus and overcome sin? The more you struggle, the greater and more noble the reward, but only if you continue and don’t quit during a tough season.

Your testimony and spiritual truths are the foundations of the Christian life. They are hidden – a hidden hand pours in secret the food and the fuel needed for success.

The abundance of life is in the moral qualities, vitality and energy, not in what we possess.

We come to God spent and weary from the battles we’ve fought. As we enter into God, we enter into peace. In the place of peace, a table is set with a spread to absolute satisfaction of all who hunger.

The wider the heart expands, the more we’re able to receive a sustenance of the Spirit. The tree of life becomes the crown of life, the hidden manna, the bread of life; sweet, fragrant, flavour, sustenance.

Feed on Him. Trust in Him. Give your heart to Him. Obey Him. Think about Him. Tread in His footsteps. Taste, touch, feel, hear and see the angelic food given by Christ. It’s there for all who desire it.

The pot of manna, hidden in the ark; a sacred treasure of the temple which had not perished, but buried in secret spot on the mountain Moses climbed.

The ark, the oil, the stone, the rod, the manna and Jesus himself – hidden and then restored.

The above writing has been sitting in the computer for a few weeks now. I’d forgotten it was there. Today I had a vision, after which I came across this small body of work and I realised how well the two married up.

As I was writing, I got that overwhelming sense of tiredness, the one which tells me God is about to speak. I closed my eyes and a vision came to mind; two hands coming together, forming a circle between arm, heart and chest, converging into prayer. God’s very large hand, wiping away all our troubles.

In this vision, all the troubles were represented within a speech bubble as lots of unrelated chattels, and with one swipe of the Lord’s enormous hand it was all gone.

The circle; the symbol of eternity and never-ending existence. Totality, wholeness, perfection, infinite, timelessness. God; the circle whose centre is everywhere and circumference is nowhere. Zero in number yet full of potential.

I felt God to be saying, when we bring our hands together in conjunction with our heart (the connection to Him), one swipe of His hand will cast aside all our fears.

Who knew I’d get all that out of a quick snapshot of two hands coming together and a speech bubble? It made sense too, as I’d written a snippet only yesterday, called “Praying in the Spirit.” This piece spoke of a greater anointing when we see the Spirit in Him; the complete wholeness of the Trinity together with each of us.

As we open our heart to the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ and the Holy Spirit, the convergence between them and you, the hidden manna stored for this day is revealed; then shall our troubles fade into oblivion.

Praying in the Spirit.

Praying Always in the Spirit.

Before you begin to read this piece, I'd like to point out that God is always with us. As born-again believer's, the Holy Spirit lives in us, whether we feel Holy Spirit there or not, whether or not we are aware of His presence, Holy Spirit resides in us. 

There are things we can do, however, which bring a stronger anointing of that presence, a special endowment from the Holy Spirit. This piece is hopefully going to do that for you; bring in a strong anointing presence, with a greater capacity towards answered prayer.

Ephesians 6:10-11 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

There’s a tremendous spiritual battle with unseen powers. We live in a material world but our citizenship is that of the eternal. Without the strength of the Lord, the devil will pit against us.

Once we realise the reality of the unseen spiritual life and the powers held there, we can then work towards winning our battles, taking captive the unseen and bringing it to the seen.

To overcome and not be cast down is to put on the full armour of God, provided by God, that we may stand in the evil day. We must also pray. And we must know Who we are praying to. To conquer the might and power of the enemy means knowing where to go and what to do and Who to do it with.

So, then, how do we pray?

The disciples asked; “Lord teach us to pray...” (Luke 11:1) It was important enough for them to want to know how to do it correctly. Prayer is not effective so much in general principles but by exactness.

The most essential thing about prayer is that we are to pray in the Spirit.

There’s time and methods for prayer. But it is useless to spend our time on those other things without knowing this first principle …. How to pray in the Spirit.

After Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples met together in the upper room and the Spirit filled them. The great baptism into one body, the body of believers. Let’s not look at this in the wrong way. We’re impressed by the manifestation of power displayed on that day, but the ultimate point is that of salvation. Salvation is simply to bring us to know God.

Christ died in order to bring us to God. That’s the importance of salvation. God’s Son died so we would have it.

The primary function of the Holy Spirit is to bring us to God, worked out by the Son of God; that we know God and have fellowship and communion with Him.

The more excellent way than just prayer alone, is communion, love, knowledge and certainty. We are to pray in the Holy Spirit. Worship isn’t worship unless we pray in Spirit and in Truth. That is to pray with heartfelt sincerity and in accordance with God’s word. A heart motivated by love and gratitude, conforming to the revelation of scripture. And we can’t pray according to the scripture unless we’re reading our scripture.

The partition was torn by the death of Christ and we now have direct access to the Father because of the Son. It is this one and only Holy Spirit, brought through the death and resurrection of Christ that we are to pray. We are to worship God, in or by the Holy Spirit and rejoice in Christ with no confidence in the flesh.

The only true way to pray is in the Spirit. The Spirit is of Jesus and the only way for intercession to occur is through the Spirit in Jesus name.

Prayer isn’t because of a place. It’s not in the rushed and flurry of our morning routine. It occurs in the warm and compassionate centre of the heart. It’s in the reverence and holy fear of the Lord. Know Who you are praying to! Revere Him.

Prayer isn’t in the monotonous repetition of routine. It’s not in the time or the date that you pray, or even the place. Yes, it’s disciplined and directed, but it’s in the Spirit. Mechanical prayer is better than no prayer but it’s not in the mechanical, not in the quiet time but in the heartfelt prayer brought before God through the Spirit.

True prayer comes from the heart, from compassion, from love. To Whom are you praying? Vain repetitions, counting beads, or numbering your prayers aren’t the answer. Being mechanical isn’t the answer. Frantic prayers in crisis, while better than none, is not the answer. Anxious and fear filled prayer won’t move God.

Praying in composure, led by the Holy Spirit, guided by the Spirit, taught and directed by the Spirit. Seeing God as Spirit, seeing Him, really seeing Him as He is in Spirit. Stop and look at Who you’re addressing. The essence of prayer is to know the Eternal Holy God. Pure Spirit, who is in all, above all, through all, below all, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent. The Holy Father. That’s a prayer in the Spirit.

Pray with reverence and Godly fear; with awe, wonder and amazement. If we don’t start with that, surely it isn’t prayer.

Whom are you addressing? It is the One for whom the blood of the Lamb was sacrificed. God needs to be great in our mind, with Jesus at the centre and the Holy Spirit at the helm, directing the believer in the way they should walk.

In honouring the Lord, we will have forgotten our supplications and be worshiping the great and mighty God. Realising we’re in the very presence of God, we are then in the full assurance of faith and in boldness and knowledge of the Father.

We’ve been unsure, desperate, not quiet, restless, uncertain, unhappy, with no peace, and feverish, on the off-chance God will hear and that’s not the way to pray.

Prayer in the Spirit realizes the presence of God. We know and feel that Thou art here. Never be content in your prayer life until you know and feel God is there. A living and vital prayer, free, warm and loving.

Not mechanical, not stilted, but with an open heart we come to Our Father, as a child to his daddy. Confident, assured, a prayer which realises the presence of God. Knowing and feeling the He is here. Never rest content until we know and feel that God is here, face to face with us.

Prayer will always be in accordance with His will, when done in the name of Jesus Christ, according to the mind of Christ and His will. A prayer of faith and divine expectation. A prayer led and directed of the Spirit, looking for answers. Not double minded like James, but in faith, believing and expecting answers. Always looking forward with peace and joy.

James 1:7- 8 “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.”

Now I don’t want to complicate this any more than it has to be. There’s a place for discipline, for discipline brings healing. There’s a place for the mechanical; doing everything we can to do in order to bring us before the Father. Some days all we have time for is a quick “help me" in the morning and “thank You” in the evening, for life can get busy. As it says in Romans 8:28 And we know at all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

If we pray in the Spirit the rest will look after itself. Pray on all occasions. Never give up praying. Methods are not the concern. It isn’t in the way we do it or the order we do it in, as long as it’s done in the Spirit. All prayer and supplication, done as we ought in boldness and assurance, but always in the Spirit. Then we shall stand in the evil day.

Resist the Devil and he will Flee.

Resist the Devil and he will Flee.

Some weeks ago, I mentioned to a friend how lonely it can be going to church by myself week after week. My children have grown, now living their own lives and my husband isn’t a believer. More recently, I also mentioned to laugh at the devil and say; “Is this all you got!”

I remember I also wrote to her describing when 26 years ago, I learned to feel the fear and do it anyway and where only recently did I learn not to feel the fear, but to cast it out. For all these years I’ve been stepping out in ‘fearful faith.’ Stepping out in faith, but with anxiety attached to the hip.

Even though I’ve read my bible through, cover to cover 7 times, I still didn’t connect ‘cast out fear’ to what I was doing. Once I hit on it, I could then walk in courage, leaving sin on the sidewalk, so to speak. No longer in fear filled faith, but in courage and with a sound mind, I now march into my day ready for any battle.

Coming back to feeling lonely; it hit on occasion. Or it did. Not now, as now things have changed. Recently, when I had a terrible loneliness three weeks in a row (funnily enough – only ever at church), I saw it was a ploy of the devil. Him thinking he could stop me attending church, although he never did. I felt the loneliness and went anyway, in spite of my feelings.

Once I realised this, once I realised this was a ploy, I said to the devil; “Is this all you got?” and laughed. I haven’t been lonely at church since.

Now that I have this in hand, the devil thought he’d try a new thing today. While worshipping I got an overwhelming sadness for our beautiful dog, Soxx, as her days are coming to a close (she’s 17 years old now, arthritic, stiff and slow). And who knows, she may go another 2 or 3 years but for whatever reason, today I got teary and again only at church.

Straight away I realised it to be another ploy of the devil. Satan can no longer get me in the loneliness department and so, ever the optimist, he’s trying a new thing. “Ha, ha, ha; is this all you got?” I went right on worshipping and didn’t think of Soxx again throughout the service.

It’s a new tool for the tool kit on battling the enemy, don’t you think? New to me anyway.

When in condemnation; Is this all you got!

When in pain; Is this all you got!

When in poverty; Is this all you got!

When in fear; Is this all you got!

When in illness; Is this all you got!

The list is endless, but I guarantee, when you laugh (a form of resistance) the devil will flee, for as it says in James 4:7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Now I’m not saying we should poke the bear. That’s never a good idea. We need to be “prayed up” before we attempt this kind of thing. There are two forces at work in our world; good and evil (Christ and satan). Unprepared, it’s not so easy to laugh at the devil.

We need to be tapped into the wisdom of God, for to laugh at the devil is no simple thing. In this instance, it’s not to be taken lightly. Done the right way the devil’s plans are brought to nought, as we break the chains holding us back, under the guiding hand of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As we look through Christ’s eyes and pray for wisdom and understanding, as we ask for the strength and courage to take us where we need to go, as we hear the Lord’s prompting over our situation, then with His leading and guiding can we overcome the evil one.

Laughter transmutes our perspective on an issue, be it a form of evil, or the mundane of modern living. Proverbs 17:22 states a merry heart does good, like medicine. But a broken spirit dries the bones.

Laughter is good for us. A crushed spirit is the opposite of a cheerful heart. If you would rather joy than sadness, take a moment to laugh. Force it if you have to. Even forced laughter causes the mind to react in a positive manner, lifting our pleasure endorphins.

God’s word says in Job 5:22; You shall laugh at destruction and famine and you shall not be afraid the beasts of the earth.

Laugh at destruction and famine – not an easy thing to do when you’re in the midst of the situation. But God can change situations. Beasts of the earth - satan is a beast and one of whom we should not fear, for God is our strength.

Follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, pray, study God’s word, take Communion, worship and stand your ground, have faith, testify to all and you will resist the devil and overcome your battles, in Jesus mighty name.

Remember Baal-Perazim; the God of multiple breakthroughs. He can do what you can’t. Amen.