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Enter with Thanksgiving

David hungered and thirsted for God’s presence because he knew from experience that God and fullness of joy dwelt together. Life apart from God was stressful, scary, and dangerous. My life has had stresses, but nothing compared to his! Having had a taste of the Presence at an early age, I have been pursuing God ever since. I have discovered an important key to access that joy. There are other keys, but today I am going to focus on only one, and encourage you to try it.

Thanksgiving

I have struggled to fulfill the exhortation to give thanks and praise. Having grown up with a Dad who was a pessimist, although he saw himself as a realist, I was trained to see the negative rather than the positive. Only uneducated simpletons saw life through rose colored glasses, and I didn't want to be classified as one of those! This early training left me in the school of mind renewal for decades. I witnessed others who excelled in positivity, joy, thankfulness and encouragement, while I failed to pass.

Thankfully, the Holy Spirit has continued my tutoring. He knows my desire to be in the Presence of God and has convinced me of the value of thankfulness, the key to Presence. He reminded me of the words from Psalm 100:4: “enter His gates with thanksgiving.”  This is not a suggestion, but a requirement for entrance into His realm. Not just any key will open the gates. The only way to open the lock on these gates is with the key of thanksgiving.  

Of course, my mind wanted to know why. The Holy Spirit was gracious to give revelation. He showed me that gates are the boundary to God’s kingdom. The atmosphere, language and currency of that kingdom is truth. Only things based on truth are allowed to enter. Pessimistic, judgmental, and critical thoughts or words are based on lies, not on truth. That means I am not allowed access into His Presence with words and thoughts based on lies, but only with words of thanksgiving and praise based on the truth. Pessimism doesn't praise. I realized I had a choice: stay negative and remain outside His Presence, or give thanks and enter in. I am learning to enter his gates every day with thanksgiving!

As a tool to grow in gratitude, I keep a daily journal, which I call “Daily 12”. This is a list of 12 things for which I am thankful. This exercise helps prime the pump and open the gates. Recently I have started daily Instagram post titled “Every day - Entering with Thanksgiving.” Check it out if you need a daily shot of thankfulness!

I would love to hear from you: how do you cultivate thankfulness in your day-to-day life? What things are you most thankful for right now?

I'm Praying for You!

Great comfort comes in the midst of a hard season when a friend says, "I am praying for you." Even receiving a text with those words changes the atmosphere. The Bible is replete with exhortations concerning prayer as well as testimonies of answered prayers. When a crisis happens we don't need a reminder from the scripture in order to call a family member or friend and say: "Please pray for me!" It is as automatic as breathing. It is comforting to know we have a Friend in Heaven who is always available to pray for us.

Prayer

Recently I was dealing with some issues and was feeling alone, overwhelmed, and discouraged. One day, out of the blue, almost audibly, I heard Jesus say: "I'm praying for you." The tone of His voice was like warm oil, covering every raw, exposed emotion. I was completely taken off guard. In that suddenly of God, I was transformed. In less than a twinkling of an eye peace returned to my mind and heart. His words were with power during His earthly ministry, and they are still able to stop the winds and waves of any storm in my life today.

While on earth, Jesus modeled a life of prayer, going into the mountain in the evening to spend time in prayer. During the day He prayed as He met people in need of healing, deliverance, forgiveness, and provision. The prayer was always directed to His Father, just as He taught the disciples to address their prayer to the Father. He knew that the one who answered His prayers was our loving Father in heaven.

Not only strangers, but also friends were the beneficiaries of the prayers of Jesus. In the midst of the sacred Passover Meal, the night of His betrayal, Jesus confronted Simon Peter with a word of knowledge. The Holy Spirit had shown Jesus that Satan was going to attack Peter, trying to shake his faith. Jesus said to him: "I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren." (Luke 22: 31-33.) Peter was shocked, adamantly rejecting any suggestion of denial. We know as we read those words, that the prayers Jesus prayed for Peter were answered. He made it through this dark patch and has strengthened the Church through the centuries with his writings.

Jesus has continued His intercession for the Church. He had only 3 years of public ministry, but has had over 2,000 years of 24/7 prayer ministry since His resurrection. It is good to know from Scripture that Jesus continues in this activity. However, it is even more powerful when the truth of this intercession intersects with a need in our own life. The revelation I had recently of the reality of His awareness of my needs and constant prayer for me every day has been life changing. I pray today you will hear His compassionate voice say to you: "I am praying for you."

What's Next?

April 9th has been a significant day in history on more than one occasion. Googling the date pulls up many events. Here are just a few:

  • Henry V crowned King of England - 1413
  • Sir Walter Raleigh departed England for Roanoke Island (now North Carolina) - 1585
  • The Civil War ended – 1865

All of these events took place with much fanfare. Another event, a prayer meeting, took place on April 9th, 1906 in a run-down house in Los Angeles. No one knew about it except those who were inside, but in a short amount of time people all over the world were talking about that meeting on Azusa Street. The reason this small gathering of no-names made the front pages was because the headliner was the Holy Spirit. The recent Call convocation on April 9th, 2016 got lots of press with over 100,000 people registered.  For a period of time on the 9th, Azusa Now was the top trending topic on Twitter and Facebook.

Azusa Now What's Next?

From the social media results it would appear that the world was watching. I believe the world is now waiting and wondering—what’s next?  They have a right to ask. We have a responsibility to give them an answer. Will this be merely a memory, a post on Facebook or a Twitter hashtag? I pray it will it be the igniting of a switch in the body of Christ that propels us forward with God’s plan for Heaven to invade earth.

For the latter to happen I believe we must believe something significant took place on the 9th.  Perhaps some were expecting fire to break out from Heaven, God to appear on the stage and non-stop revival meetings to take place in the LA Coliseum for the next 3 months till all of Los Angeles was saved. The fact that this didn’t happen doesn’t mean nothing happened. From God’s perspective, when we pray, something always happens, whether we see it or not. It is crucial to see Azusa Now through eyes of faith.

I believe Azusa Now was a holy re-set for the body of Christ, not simply for the fulfillment of a prophecy given 110 years ago. It was a re-set of:

  • Purpose—to boldly preach the gospel of the Kingdom of God with signs and wonders with expectation and hope.
  • Affection—for Jesus and the expression of love for Him in worship, prayer and fasting.
  • Relationship—for a new love of the body of Christ and commitment to unity and reconciliation in humility.

Here are 7 action steps I am taking to be positioned to participate as the Holy Spirit reveals the "What's Next?" in the days ahead.

  1. Believe that April 9th was the beginning of something not merely a one-time event.
  2. Stay plugged in to the Presence experienced during Azusa Now.
  3. Plan for the inevitable revival. I have taken disaster-training courses to prepare for natural disasters. I am asking God how to prepare for mass revival.
  4. Give thanks for what happened on April 9th, both the seen and the unseen.
  5. Live daily from Heaven—keeping in touch with the revival command center for blueprints, deployment, and execution strategies.
  6. Keep these weeds out: Jealousy, Offense, Impatience, Looking at circumstances, Immorality, Fear, Laziness
  7. Stay focused on Jesus

It is time to get this done! God has been planning this revival since Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden. He had redemption in His heart and set the plan in motion that very day.  He strategized, planned, executed, and persisted for centuries. He knew the end from the beginning. That is why He could sit in Heaven and laugh. God has done His part. He is waiting for us to do our part. He has given us the world, the present and the future as well as everything we need for life and godliness through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. (See 1 Corinth. 3:22 and 2 Peter 1:3)

Here are some Daily Declarations I plan to make to stay focused. I invite you to join me.

The petitions from this house of prayer will be without ceasing.

The fire on my altar will never go out.

I will seek first your kingdom not my own.

Your praise, not criticism, will ever be on my lips.

The world will know I am a Christian by my love and not by my judgements.

Signs and wonders will follow me all the days of my life.

I will keep my faith anchored in hope not in fear.

Preparing for what's next!

The Waiting Game

Waiting can be the most painful experience any of us face. For children, it is worse than hell itself! The frustrated cry from kids, sitting in the back seat, of "when are we going to get there?" is heard around the world in every language. As adults we may have that same cry, but have learned to use our "inside" voices to impatiently, but quietly, ask God a similar question.

Patience

Another word for waiting is that awful "p" word patience. Whether we like it or not, patience is a character trait that God wants to produce in His kids. It is not an optional extra for a select few. He wants all of His sons and daughters to perfectly imitate His Son, Jesus Christ, who is His exact likeness. It is heartening to know God isn't asking us to do something He doesn't do Himself. He is not an unkind parent who says "Do as I say, not as I do."

God never requires something from us without also supplying His power and strength for success. The Holy Spirit in us is the dynamic energy we need for the development of obedient, faith-filled patience. He lends me His strength for the long ride in the back seat.

Consider for just a minute the extent of God's patience towards the human race. He waited for generations until the fullness of time arrived for Jesus to appear. He is still waiting for us as we disciple the nations and bring Heaven to earth. In the midst of His waiting He doesn't lose hope, condemn, criticize, complain, get depressed, throw tantrums, disconnect, or send another flood and start over. He is always loving, always hopeful, and always patient with us.

Paul gave a character checklist in 2 Peter 1:5-8. Here's the list in the order in which he gave them: "And besides this, giving all diligence add to your faith…”

Virtue
Knowledge
Temperance
Patience
Godliness
Brotherly Kindness
Charity

Patience is the key, the turning point that brings us into godliness from which the greatest commandment to love one another is possible. It is impossible to obey Jesus’ words to His disciples to love God, and to love their neighbor as they loved themselves, without embracing patience. We know that from experience. It is difficult to act in love towards someone who is driving us crazy keeping us waiting!

Recently I was talking with God about some “waiting issues” in my own life. He showed me an image of myself in a waiting room. There was one door and periodically someone from the other side would open the door, call someone's name and usher him or her through the door. There were various responses from those in the room whose names were not called. Their faces spoke, even if their mouths were silent: expressions of discouragement, impatience, and anger.

I asked Him to show me what I could do in the waiting room in order to stay patient and not lose hope. With those who currently receive my emails, or for those who subscribe now, I am sharing my list of 25 Things to Do in the Waiting Room.  I hope this will help if you feel stuck and forgotten in the waiting room!

Hope from History: Resources

Hi friends! To accompany my recent thoughts on getting God's perspective on the past, here is a little list of resources I have used to get informed and increase my level of hope for the future!

...and my talk Hope for the Nations is now available online!

I pray your expectation is stirred and that you experience God ministering to you personally as you explore all that is on His heart for our nations!

Hope from History

Today I want to share what I have been thinking about regarding the power of history. All of us have history. The body of Christ has a history. Each of our nations has a history. But do these stories fill us with hope?

When I think of my past, what do I feel? Thankfulness, satisfaction, amazement? Or do I feel shame, guilt, or regret? How I see the past really matters. If I cannot see God’s involvement in my past, I usually struggle to expect His involvement in my future! If I have not received forgiveness for mistakes I made in the past, I have a hard time living in the blessing He wants to pour out on me today.

Like it or not, having the wrong version of the past holds me back from enjoying God’s plan for my future. If this resonates with you, might you want to take a moment right now to talk with God about your past? Ask Him to show you where He was in the moments He seemed absent. Ask Him to forgive you and reaffirm His love for you in spite of past failures.

I want to take this a step further: what about the Body of Christ? What about our respective nations? The Church has a remarkable history of revival. Likewise, each of our nations - as different as they may be - have stories of how God has intervened and used His people to change the course of history. When I forget God’s involvement in the history of my nation, it is harder for me to expect His involvement today. Yet, God calls me to “be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12), knowing that “our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed”! (Romans 13:11)

I am eager to understand what God has in store for my nation.  It is important for me to increase my expectation for Him to fulfill the promises I read in the Bible. My number one way of growing my expectation is to study what He has already done! For me, that may involve reading about Christian revivals, watching a video, listening to a podcast, or having a conversation with someone who has a longer history with God than I do.  I have found that as I search through history, His glorious acts shine through and fill me with expectation for what He wants to do next.

Click here to see some resources I have used to get God's perspective on the past to increase my hope for the future!