STORM IS COMING

When you begin this journey of walking with God, it will not always be a mountain top experience, there will be valleys and storms along the way, so be prepared. Yet there are times when the storms are so strong we think Lord if this continues one more day surely I will drown. That is when we have a choice either trust in Jesus or sink into the Sea of Despair. Look at the scripture below:

Luke 4:35-39
35 on the same day, when evening had come He said to them "Let us cross over to the other side" (this was a promise from Jesus they would get to the other side) 36 Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him He was. And other little boats were also with Him (when they left His very presence was with them) 37 And a great windstorm arose,and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep. And they awoke Him and said to Him, Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? ( notice where Jesus is there is His Peace) 39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind and said to the sea "Peace be still" and the wind ceased and there was a great calm (there is power in the name of Jesus)

The day you were truly born again, Jesus gave you a promise "I will never leave you nor forsake you" Jesus through the indwelling Holy Spirit is continually with us. He told us in John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither be afraid" And again Philippians 2:9-10  Therefore God has highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven,and those on the earth, and of those under the earth. In other words at the mere mention of His name JESUS even the demons must flee, He will take over our storm and in the middle of it we will find peace.

Two years ago I had realized that I desired a closer walk with Jesus, it was a journey of trust and faith. One I really didn't know where the path would lead me personally but I was willing to go the journey. Recently while I was praying I heard myself say Lord what ever it takes I want to walk closer to you.
As soon as the words were out of my mouth I said "oh no" because when you pray "whatever it takes" expect God to run with it.

Needless to say, two storms began to emerge on me and I cried out to Jesus, I'm drowning. Sitting at church  a couple of Sundays later, it was a service to minister to our storms, as I listened God said very gently "Linda, it is in the middle of your storm that your will be walking closest to me, because in the storm I am with you, holding on to you I promise I will not let you drown."

I would like to say my storm ended with that, but it didn't. I asked my Lord how much longer and why is this so necessary. He send me to James 1:2-4 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials 2 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance 4But let endurance have it's perfect work, that you may be mature and complete lacking nothing

Now I see Lord you are building endurance in me. There are times in our life that we must stay on Trust Street awhile, sometimes longer than we want. It is on this street of Trust that we see nothing changing, yet we still believe, we still trust, our faith is growing stronger, and yes our endurance is strengthening so when the next storm comes will will be prepared. We will have the testimony of our past storms to assure us God is still God and He is good.

As I prayed this morning, my Lord spoke very softly to me and said "Linda, I have seen your tears and I have heard your prayers, be assured this storm will not last, I have everything under my control."

This is word for anyone going through a storm in their lives. Storms, and valleys are only for a season. It is for our learning, for us to walk closer to our Jesus. That is why we can have joy in spite of the storm. We will get to the other side, be encouraged, press on, be steadfast, Jesus loves you and as His word says "greater is He that is in us, than  he that is in the world"

Be Blessed, Be Real. Someone is watching us who may not know Jesus, let them see Jesus in us in the middle of our storm.

Let The Fire Fall

With each day that we walk with Jesus, we should be walking closer to Him. With each passing day it should be more about Him and less about us. Yet, every now and then we need to do a self examination to see where we are in this journey of faith. So let us take a good look at who we are.

So often people will call themselves Christians because of a childhood decision that was made years earlier, yet nothing in their lives says Christ lives in me. The scriptures tell us that Jesus said "If I be lifted up (speaking of His death) then I will draw all men to Me." So if our lives lift up Jesus in how we speak, in what we watch, in what we say, how we behave, and in our lifestyle, then the lost will be drawn to us not because of who we are but because of who He is in us. Do you need help in this area?

Our title of this post is "Let the Fire Fall" often we sing this in our popular praise and worship music. One day as I was talking with my Lord and thinking of this song, Jesus spoke to my spirit and said "Do you know what you are asking for, when you pray for this?" Well, apparently I didn't because He went on to explain "My fire is a consuming fire it will consume everything that is not in Me, every thought, every action and every ministry that is not in Me and under My blood. It is also a purifying fire it will purify everything that is of Me." Are you ready for that He says, and I am asking you today are you ready for that. As I said yes Lord, I lay my flesh on the altar consume my flesh, consume any motive, any thought, any plan, any purpose that is not of You and purify me Lord in everything that is of You. Just let me say and testify the pain is the same whether it is the consuming fire or the purifying fire.

In the Old Testament whenever a sacrifice was placed on the altar God answered with fire. Remember Elijah and the priest of Baal, when Elijah placed the sacrifice on the altar God sent down fire it consumed the offering and even licked up the water around the offering.

Malachi 3:3  He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness.

When you speak to one who refines silver he tells you this, In order to purify the silver to get rid of all infirmities I have to hold the silver over the hottest part of the fire. I have to sit an watch it continually so that it will not stay too long and become damaged. If asked how do you know when it has been in the fire long enough, the refiner will say that part is easy, when I see my reflection. What a picture that has been painted for the children of God.

Are you ready to move deeper in your relationship, are you ready to move deeper in your worship, are you ready to move deeper in your praise, are you ready to move deeper in your study of His holy word. Then pray Lord sent down the fire, I am ready Lord consume anything in me that is not of you and purify everything that is. God is ready to get His bride ready, are you ready?

This has been my prayer for awhile now and I am amazed at how God is moving and working in me and around me. I continue to pray this even now because I know that the out come of the finished work will be worth it all.

Paul prayed I have been crucified with Christ it is no longer I who live but Christ Jesus lives in me.

I too, say crucify my flesh, I want more of Jesus and less of me. Thank you Jesus, for You are faithful and true.

The Day God's Mercy Saved Me

Psalm 150:6 Let everything that has breath praise the lord.

So do you understand that our praise to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are essential in our everyday walk? We praise Him for who He is: He is the creator, redeemer, savior, Lord, King of Kings, Alpha and Omega, He is faithful, just, holy, true and I could go on and on. He is worthy of all our praise in good times and bad times; because without Him we would be nothing, so did you wake up today? Then lift up your voice to praise Him and Him alone.

Psalm 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name

We thank Him for what He has done for us. Think about what has He done for you today? Why He saved me when I was lost and traveling the pathway to Hell, He will always love me, He will never leave me nor forsake me, He is faithful even when I am not, He is my provider, He watches over me in the night keeping evil from me and me from evil.

Psalm 91:5-6,10 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day 6.Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.10 No evil shall befall you. Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling.

The above scriptures have taught me how to praise God and to be thankful for all He has given and done for me. Psalm 91 has been my prayer for His protection. It is this that I am praising God for and so thankful that His mercy saved me and enabled me to write this to bring Him Glory.

I live in a downstairs apartment. If you divided my apartment in half I actually have two apartments above me. As in most apartments there are times when noise from upstairs finds it way downstairs. But this time things were a little different.

My dining room table is also my desk; I use my laptop, and study the word there. Behind me is my china cabinet. You will usually find me here in the evening and then different times during the day.
At 2:30 am on Saturday morning August 4, 2012 I woke up. I said "Lord, what do I need to pray about and since my children were on the rode to Florida I prayed for their safety. Yet I just couldn't seem to sleep, I prayed, I tossed and turned and occasionally I would hear sounds of arguing from upstairs. At 5 am the thought crossed my mind "Well, you might as well get up, you aren't sleeping anyway, go get on the computer" so I sat up then the next thought came "Don't do it" so I laid down and in peace fell asleep. At 5:20 I was awakened by a loud BANG I got up and went to see what it could be. I found white powder all over my bible and laptop, so I looked up and to my horror and shock there was a bullet hole in my ceiling. It entered at just the right angle to send it pass my chair and hit and busted the door on the china cabinet the the bullet bounced into the,living room. If I had gotten up at 5 am I would have been struck by a 45 in the head. Evil of domestic violence was taking place upstairs and MY GOD spoke a word to me that caused me to lay back down.

Six weeks earlier, God had spoke a word to me to do something, I didn't do it at the time because I wasn't sure it was from me or Him. Afterward, I knew it was of Him and I said Lord I never want to disobey you again. I began to pray Lord let me be so in tune to you that when you say jump I jump, when you sit I sit, when you say move I move, when you say stay I stay. God said to me that when I began to pray for that He was beginning to work in me to prepare me to obey. You see obeying 3 little words "DON'T DO IT" would mean I would live and not die.

Where Am I Going?

I have found myself without a local church to worship at. Now what do I do? I began to pray for the Holy Spirit to guide me and direct me to the church of His choice for me. I visited several churches some more than once, and deep down inside I knew those were not the churches where I belonged.

I Corinthians 12:18 says: "But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased"

As you begin to seek the direction and the church God would have you to go to remember the scripture above and listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Often times we stay or go to a church because it is convenient to our home, or comfortable to what we are used to, we may like the seats, the singing and last but not least the pastor. But that is not the basis for why we should go there. We should be willing to be placed by God; Himself, into a body of believers as He has chosen. This may not be your first choice.

So how do you decide if this is where God wants you. When walking with Jesus, as you sit and listen to the word of God, the Holy Spirit will confirm in your inner man if this is where you need to be.

I have been at the my church now for a year and a half and I am truly in love with the body here. Yet, when I first sat down the very first time, I was diffidently out of my comfort zone. It was smaller than I was used to, yet a very pretty church, praise team and music was great, the anointing on the pastor was obvious, great message. But I was not used to such praise and adoration of Jesus during the praise and worship time. I stood there unsure of what was happening around me and at the same time I knew I liked it. It was right. People were honestly telling Jesus they loved Him and I found myself saying "I love you Jesus, I adore you" I knew I was home.

Following Jesus meant I left what I was used to and was willing to let the Holy Spirit guide me to the place He wanted me. I have never been happier, I am feasting on the Word of God each time I enter the doors, and I am serving my Lord as He directs me. I make no decision without asking Jesus first.

The Pruning Shears

To understand what I am about to say it is necessary to go back in time. In the 70's and early 80's I was a new christian, hungry for the word and listening to my pastor and teacher believing what they were saying without even a question. Then came what I call my "Wilderness Years" when I chose the pleasures of this world over my relationship with God. After repentance and coming back to my Lord I really began to dig into the word myself, seeking a closer walk with God. During this time I began to realize that through the years people had many times taken the scriptures out of context of how God had intended it. Sometimes people will say "that was for that time, it is not for today." I have even heard" people who do that are of the devil".

2 Timothy 3:16-17  "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work"

You see the three letter word "ALL" do you know what it means in the Greek you guessed it. It means exactly what it says "ALL". Every word written is as much for us today as it was for the early church. If it weren't God would have left it out, right?

Matthew 12: 31-32 " Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men,but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

Powerful words Jesus is speaking. He was directing it to the religious leaders of His day, who had just said that Jesus cast out demons by the power of Satan. This warning is for all of us, maybe we don't understand something, perhaps we do not believe something but never give Satan credit for anything that may be of the Holy Spirit.

John 15: 1-2 " I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit"

When you are walking with Jesus, He will begin to show you teachings in your past that do not line up with His word. He will begin to prune these wrong teachings and wrong way of thinking out of your mind . Now you will need to replace this with the truth of God's pure word. This is called renewing your mind. It is a hard thing to realize that most of what you were taught in the beginning was error but awesome to also realize God is willing to spend time with you and teach the truth of His word. Yes, we need preachers and teachers these are gifts and callings Jesus has placed within the body (His church). Our responsibility is not to accept everything that is taught without first searching the scriptures for yourself. There are times when confirmation within your spirit will come from the Holy Spirit that this is right and sometimes He will tell you it is wrong, but mostly God wants you in the word so you will learn directly from Him.

This was the pruning of wrong things, but what about the pruning of right things. Yes believe it or not God will prune things out of your life that once was okay but now God says" I'm moving in you for something else, if you don't go with me now I will find someone else who is available and willing." This is what happened to me about one and half years ago.

I was happy and comfortable at my church. I loved the people, the message, the singing and I was serving God in many areas. Then I began to feel a stirring in me a restlessness and at times even a sadness I thought it was because I was grieving the death of my mother. Then I realized God was saying it is time to leave and I really didn't know how. I was afraid if I left I would not be used to serve again. But, finally I left. I did not leave in the way I should have but perhaps if I had not left at that moment I may not have left at all.

When I left, to follow Jesus, I said Lord maybe I just need to sit at your feet awhile and really learn from the Master. I had been pruned so I could bear more fruit.

Kingdom Living requires Kingdom Giving

This writing is about stewardship in God's economy. Fancy title for TITHE. One cannot walk with Jesus without dealing with how do we spend our money, how do we contribute financially into His kingdom through our local church, again another way to say " do you tithe".

Over the years I understood that according to the scriptures we are to tithe from the first fruits, this is 10% from our gross income. But for many years I looked at my debt and looked at my net and said " there just isn't enough" so I gave 10% of my net and called it a tithe. When the company I had worked at for many years decided to close its doors, I found myself 56years old and out of a job. I decided to become self-employed by cleaning houses and would also do cakes for different celebrations. I knew that in order for me to be successful at this I would have to tithe from my gross income. So I began my adventure, following Jesus and depending on Him to provide for my income. I tithed and when it seemed so small I would add an offering on top of it. But my finances were little and I seemed to be always living the "not enough" or "barely enough".

I would  pray that God would lead me and show me what I needed to be doing. People would testify how God was blessing them abundantly because of their tithing, and I would weep" Lord what is wrong with me, where is my sin." I reasoned since I  was struggling just to stay afloat then there must be sin in my life. I would listen very closely to each sermon hoping with each one I would understand what I was doing wrong. I prayed" Lord show me my sin so I can repent and turn from it." Then finally early one morning when it wasn't quite morning and I was not asleep yet not fully awake, God spoke this word to me.

"It is easy to serve me, it is easy to praise me, it is easy worship me, it is easy to give when you are on the mountain top. But I am looking for a people who will serve me, praise me, worship me and give when you are in the valley as well as the mountain top."

I knew this was for my growth for me to learn how to trust Him and not myself. For me to say this was easy to digest would be a lie, yet I knew I wanted to be a person who would keep on keeping on believing and trusting in Jesus and Him alone.

Eight years have past and I am still living in the "not enough" and the "barely enough". Sometimes I think if I hear Malachi 3: 8-11 one more time, or hear someone say "well I always tithe and God always meets my needs." I could scream. Does anyone understand what I am saying?

Yet, I remember the word God gave me and I cling to it. I know and believe it will not always be this way. Even now I am brought to tears, because there have been times when I just had to pay the bill and when I did that the tithe was gone and all I had was an offering. I would try to catch up but couldn't because then another bill or gas or groceries would take some more. I grieved because I felt like a failure. I would daily pray" Lord give the wisdom in how to use my money wisely". Then I would tithe and things would be fine for awhile. Then it would happen again. "Lord what do I do" finally He would say "Just as my mercy is new each morning, begin again anew". So I did.

3 John 2 says: "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers".

This is saying God does not want us live in lack in any part of our lives. Lack came into this world at the fall of man. Jesus has redeemed us from that. I believe this completely and absolutely, I may be in lack now but this is not forever, God will and is going to bring break through into my life. I just need to remain steadfast in my walk, in every area of my life: in my service, in my praise, in my worship and in my giving. God sees my heart He understands my desire to give and give some more and when I fall short He loves me and picks me up and says "begin again" and I do.

Do You Know Him 2012