BREATHE

My Last Post...and Farewell

2010-12-08T14:23:00.000-08:00

To all of you who have faithfully visited me at my blog post...those of you who have commented, shared your own hearts and thoughts, have comforted me and encouraged me...I have not words that will thank each of you enough....
My heart is full of many memories of such sweet communion and fellowship...I will always cherish the love, the patience, and the respect you have shown...
But a call has come forth....
It is distinctively that of the Shepherd
and I must go with Him
I know that His Body will hearken to His voice
and the Word that He speaks to each of His little ones.
I love you...and will see you in His Light
I will know you, even as we are known
God go with you, be with you and in you...
With all my Heart................Shebet...( jOyetta )

The Touch of the Firstborn

2010-12-03T19:34:00.000-08:00

Oh touch of the first born
begotten of God
First born of heaven
now earth He must trod
Come to a manger
From glories unknown
Come down to man
from His Father's own throne
Meek now, and lowly
this Christ child did lay
into the night, to bring us "The Day"
Angels announced Him
and pointed to way
A star shined upon Him
"It's written", they say
Now in my life time
I hear a clear Word
One from the ages to ages is heard.
If you can recieve it,
have ears that can hear
the "Ancient of Days"
is about to appear.
Come down from Glory
to rule and to reign
Come once again to
establish His name
"I Am, that I AM
Begotten that's true,
I Am, that I Am
To make all things new
To baptize with fire,
to winnow the wheat
To give those that kneel
and bow at my feet
Who turn from rebellion
in their will and way,
surrendered in heart
to all that I say
Oh sheep lost and dying,
look now and see
All that you search for
will be found in Me.
Trust me, believe me
Give me your hand
Be still now, and quiet,
I'll help you stand
My hope and my promise
is eternal, it's true
It's yours for the asking
I'm waiting for you
The touch of the "Firstborn"
is near at hand
Choose if you will, choose if you can.

HAPPY AUTUMN

2010-11-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

I just want to wish all of you a blessed Thanksgiving Holiday....

Below is an e-mail a precious friend sent me...that says it all....

H A P P Y A U T U M N!!!

The 7 Ups!

1. Wake Up !!

Decide to have a good day.
'This is the day the Lord hath made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.'
Psalms 118:24

2. Dress Up !!

The best way to dress up is to put on a smile.
A smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.
'The Lord does not look at the things man looks at.
Man looks at outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.'
I Samuel 16:7

3. Shut Up!!
Say nice things and learn to listen.
God gave us two ears and one mouth,
so He must have meant for us to do twice as much listening as talking.

'He who guards his lips guards his soul.'
Proverbs 13:3

4. Stand Up!!

. . . for what you believe in.
Stand for something or you will fall for anything.
'Let us not be weary in doing good; for at the proper time,
we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good...'
Galatians 6:9-10

5. Look Up !!

. . to the Lord.
'I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me'.
Philippians 4:13

6. Reach Up !!
. . for something higher.
'Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and lean not unto your own understanding.
In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.'
Proverbs 3:5-6

7. Lift Up !!
. . your Prayers.
'Do not worry about anything; instead
PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING.'
Philippians 4:6

A POSITIVE THOUGHT

If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it.
He sends you flowers every spring, and a sunrise every morning.

Whenever you want to talk, He'll listen.
He could live anywhere in the universe, and He chose your heart.
What about the Christmas gift He sent you in Bethlehem ;
not to mention that Friday at Calvary .
Face it, He's crazy about you.

God answers Knee-Mail!

Key to the Christian Life

2010-11-14T07:51:00.000-08:00

I'm sure each of you have experienced a time when it seemed like your prayers bounced off of the ceiling...

For several weeks the Holy Spirit had been dealing with me about my prayer life (He still is)... I'd pace the floor at night with thoughts that defeated me before I ever knelt down...

In the earliest of the morning hours, I once again found myself pacing...crying out...Lord, I come...I do not seem to understand how to come anymore...is it sin in my life?...Help me.

I knelt down, half expecting an answer...racing thoughts once again filled my head...analyzing, condemning, reasoning with logic...all mixed with trying to get past my own needs and the obvious need to know how to intercede...

Until I heard my name being oh so sweetly whispered, "Joy" I had an instant conscious sense of the Lord's presence...that familiar and unspeakable visit that only He makes, right on time, full of mercy and grace...

"Joy, Look up...focus...I'm right here with you...focus...be still."

With the eyes that can see only those things that are of the Spirit...I saw Him...I saw Love...patience, kindness, long suffering and so much more in His gentle smile.

"I've been here all the while, waiting for you to just focus on the fact that I'm here...waiting for you to be still...Today I have given you a key that will open up doors to peace and rest...So many times I have heard you say, "there's something missing".....and I say to you, it has been your bondage to self made goals, works, and contemplation of imagination."

"Surrender your thoughts to me...your reasoning...your manipulating control of mind that wants to make a way where there seems to be none...I Am the Way...I Am the Truth...I Am the Life...these three are but one to you, nothing else matters...Come to me, sit with me for awhile, and let us reason together, let this be the beginning of your ministry unto Me, and my revelation to you."

Rejoice! For it is the Father's will, to give us the Kingdom....

2010-11-12T21:57:00.000-08:00

This morning as I turned on my computer and was faced, as usual, with the never ending news around the world...the one announcement that caught my eye, was that of Christians in Iraq being killed for their faith.

This news is nothing new...lives of Father's precious ones are being snuffed out all over the world...
My own heart is grieved at the apathy of my feeling any deep conscious and experiential identification with their horrific and solemn sacrifice...
I've never felt such helpless-ness like this before...almost a vulnerable hypocrisy, exposed to waves washing me to a transparency, leaving me uneasy in my comfortable-ness as a Christian...
Lord...I'm ashamed of my total lack of comprehension...true compassion and intercession on my brethren's behalf...my flesh knows nothing of the reality of such suffering...
I am obviously callous, indifferent, apathetic and pathetic concerning the complete surrender of my life to your interceding presence in me....
I confess to the morbidity of my confession...to the empty and clueless vessel that I am...
Help me....precious and wonderful Savior....Help me...
Explode within my heart..."Let there be Light"....move upon the voidness of my soul, Breath of God, Blessed Holy Spirit Word.
Let me kneel beside your interceding heart and "KNOW" with every fiber of my being, what great Love has come to deliver us from this sinful and cruel world, in total victory and promise of your eternal keeping, unto that Day...
Day Star rise within me, Shine in the darkness...an exceeding great Light...
You are Father, Lord, blessed and eternal Holy Spirit...my God...allowed be Your Name...I surrender to your kingdom...let it rule in me, in the power of your might, by your Word and your Holy Spirit...even according to your will and good pleasure...let it be done...
Let the love of the brethren be your banner over me with love.
Not just in word or deed...but in the strength of your faith, your wisdom, your fellowship...
Let me truly embrace those who face the reality of persecution by those who do not know the meaning of Love...who are zealous without knowledge...
They are just flesh and blood...tools of a more cruel and dark force of unseen principalities and powers that would destroy God's kingdom and his host's...
Fit me for battle Lord...in heart, in soul and in mind...
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever...Amen

LORD, HEAL MY BROKEN HEART

2010-11-02T14:11:00.000-07:00

Lord...I want to thank you that you do not put bandages on broken hearts...that you have promised to heal the broken hearted.
I still remember when my grand-mother passed away...and they said she died of a broken heart...How could someone who loved you with all their heart, die of a broken heart?
I never really understood...and for awhile, I didn't even want to understand...it was cruel to make my grandma suffer that way, to die that way...
Until I learned that, you my Lord, died of a broken heart...
that our hearts might be healed of their broken-ness...that our lives might be healed of the helpless and hopeless abandon to a fate we feel has absolute power over our destinies, our hopes and dreams...the desires of our heart.
Numberless people have suffered broken-ness in millions of ways...libraries and instituions have volumes of books that offer council and words of wisdom, even the Bible falls short of it's promises to those who walk in blindness and unbelief, in pride and self-centeredness....These bandages are helps to the broken hearted....but they will not heal it....
There's only One Way to heal a broken heart...and that is the Way of Love...the Light of Love...the Word of Love...the Spirit of Love...the Life of Love that heals to the uttermost...renews and strengthens with the Word of promise, the word of faith, the word of hope...that "ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD TO THEM THAT LOVE GOD."...
LORD, ONLY YOU CAN HEAL A BROKEN HEART.

What Grace is Mine

2010-10-31T14:54:00.001-07:00

LORD, I LONG FOR WHAT ONLY MY HEART CAN SEE...YOU FILL ME UP WITH FAITH'S VISION OF IMMEASURABLE AND VAST EXPANSES OF CREATION...I TOO CRY OUT, WHAT IS MY LIFE THAT YOU WOULD EVEN CONSIDER ME...

BUT MY SOUL SEE'S AND KNOWS THAT WHICH MY FLESH MIND CANNOT COMPREHEND.....AND I AM MOVED TO TAKE HOLD OF YOU...AND YOU ALONE.

YOU ARE THE SUN RISE OF MY SOUL, AND BEFORE THE SUN SETS, OR MY EYES CLOSE IN SLEEP...YOU ARE MY LAST THOUGHT, MY LAST CONSCIOUS BREATH, MY ONE DESIRE...

WHAT GRACE IS MINE, THAT YOU ARE EVEN MINDFUL OF ME...I AM YOUR HAND-MAID, YOUR SERVANT LORD...ALL THAT I AM, ALL THAT I SHALL EVER BE, MAY IT BE WORTHY OF YOU MY GOD, TO GIVE YOU GLORY AND HONOR AND PRAISE...AMEN

The Voice of the Spirit...

2010-10-23T10:47:00.000-07:00

"Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them" (Acts 10:20, NKJV).

It was God Who told Cornelius to send for Peter. It was God Who told Peter to go to Cornelius. When God brought these two together, Peter had hardly begun to speak when the Spirit fell on those who were listening. It should be seen that the success of the mission to Cornelius's house had less to do with Peters ability to speak and more to do with the audience’s ability to hear. When we speak only to whom we are sent then we will see dramatic results.Trying to speak to everyone in general and no one in particular is a colossal waste of time and demonstrates poor stewardship. We ought not to give ten coins to someone who can only handle five, and we ought not to give five coins to someone who cannot handle even one. It is clear that much time is wasted trying to convince, persuade, plead, argue, teach, and help people to whom God has not sent us. If we will wait for the Spirit of God we will save ourselves a lot of time, effort and energy. A worker who indiscriminately throws precious seed on rocky ground and gives pearls to pigs is not being a wise, faithful, and profitable servant. CB.

Thank you Chip

2010-10-09T23:13:00.000-07:00

Lord...when I first looked at this picture...it was so beautiful...but within the next second...I found myself saddened at the feeling of someone inside who couldn't see the beauty...they were sitting in the darkness of despair...their heart was broken...and they were hiding inside, thinking no one knew of their sorrow...

Lord...you not only see...you feel the heart of this precious one...you've tried before to comfort them...but they embrace their suffering as a means of punishing themselves for what they think they cannot undue or fix.....they've lost hope for change...for answers...

Lord...send your Holy Spirit to reveal who you are...search out their heart in the Light of your love...expose the unseen enemies of their soul, and the cruel warfare that comes against this one to destroy them...

Let them brake free from this bondage of lies and deception...take their burden upon you...speak your Word to their heart, giving them ears to hear...and let your still small voice reverberate within them..."I AM come, that you might have Life...and have it more abundantly...turn from your unbelief, and sin no more."

Dear one, go and open the window of your heart by faith...see the open way...the only way to peace and love and life.....cast away your fears and self-condemnation...He has come...he is waiting....his arms are open wide...come just as you are...for he's come to you just as you are....longing to hold you as his very own....

Breathe.................Live!

2010-09-29T13:20:00.000-07:00

"Put on the New Man, created in God's own Righteousness and true Holiness" (Ephesians 4:24).

More and more lately...I've had the sense of my inner man as separate from my physical being...My flesh is so burdened down with the physical and emotional ties to life...and the demands that are a part of just mundane everyday living can be exhausting...

The enemy of our soul uses the flesh to distract and destroy our conscious and most desperate needs of our spirit man...The enemy would blind us to truth, deafen our ears to truth...give us tastes of the pleasures of sin to deaden our taste for The Word of God.

So we are either walking in our flesh, according to the consciousness and dictates of our flesh...or we are walking in (with) the HOLY SPIRIT...in and with the conscious mind of Christ...seeing (having knowledge and wisdom) what is His will and purpose...hearing what is His word to us...and following Him obediently in truth and righteousness.

The flesh man can only proselytize itself...acting out, struggling in one's own strength, making commitments that usually fail, and just plain tiring of the repetitious routine of a lifeless commitment to vanity.

I love the way a Christian brother explains it...quoting

"Christianity is not memorizing certain doctrines or disseminating a systematic theology or having people repeat a so-called "Sinner's Prayer". Christianity is becoming one with a God-Man! You can have all the other in its proper place, but for too long that "other" has been offered as Christianity. And so people touch our beliefs, our doctrines, our religion, our theology, our zeal, but they do not touch a Living Christ."

We must come to learn that the New Man is the workmanship of God's own hands...It is the New Creation man...Christ becoming our righteousness and holiness. The Holy Spirit helping us to do what is impossible for flesh and blood to do...and what intellect fails to do also.

To be taught about faith in God according to what might seem logical to our own thinking or doctrine...our own interpretation...isn't always the mind of Christ...for His thoughts are not ours, and his ways are not always ours either.

The New Man becomes conscious of the right use of his will, his responsibility is to the Word that speaks within him...and the love relationship that is developing from the revelation of the person of Christ Jesus and the desire of knowing him even more...it is a decreasing of the flesh life, and the increasing of becoming one with Christ

Again, as our brother suggests... "people touch our beliefs, our doctrines, our religion, our theology, our zeal, but they do not touch a Living Christ."

I would declare also, that all is vanity and leads to death...except and encounter with the Living God, and the New Birth into Spiritual Life that only He can accomplish...he has made a way where there was no way...His promises are true...He is the Way and the Truth...

Where ever you are right now...what ever you are doing....quit trying to be your best as a human being....and become a New Man...who will be the best man...an over-comer of the endless struggle to be at peace with the lost kingdom of Self.....

Flesh and blood will not inherit the Kingdom of God..."Put on the New Man, created in God's own righteousness and true holiness." Ephesians 4:24

I wish you His Love, his peace, his joy and the Life more abundant and free........jOY

2010-09-20T00:11:00.001-07:00

BECAUSE YOU LOVE ME...I LOVE...BECAUSE YOU SPEAK TO ME...I LOVE
I HAVE FELT YOUR HOLY SPIRIT FLY WITHIN MY HEART AND COO THE SOFT MURMURING SOUND OF LOVE...THE SOUND OF GRACE AND PEACE AND REST.
HOW CAN I NOT LOVE YOU, MY LOVE

YOUR LOVE HAS COME TO REACH OUT TO ALL WHO WILL TO LOVE
YOUR LOVE HAS COME TO LIFT THE BROKEN OF BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT...

I HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN OF SO MUCH...AND YOUR LOVE'S MERCY REACHES OUT TO ME EVERY MOMENT OF MY LIFE...FORGIVING, FORGETTING, SUSTAINING, PREPARING, STRENGTHENING, KEEPING...ALL AND MORE IN THE POWER OF YOUR LOVE.

I CAN DO NOTHING BUT LOVE YOU...FOR YOU HAVE DRAWN ME TO YOUR BOSOM AND I FEEL YOUR LOVE PERMEATE MY VERY BEING...

I AM YOURS, AND YOU ARE MINE...MY LOVE... IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT I MUST LOVE OR DIE.
LORD, WHEN I FEEL LIKE I DON'T LOVE...I DIE...I DIE
HAVE MERCY ON MY SOUL FOR DOUBTING YOUR LOVE IN ME, FOR LOOKING TO MYSELF TO GIVE LOVE...
I AM LOST WITHOUT YOUR LOVE...AND WHEN YOU DRAW ME NEAR, GENTLY CALLING MY NAME, I CAN DO NOTHING BUT COME...FOR MY SOUL KNOWS YOUR LOVE...IT HAS DELIVERED ME FROM THE POWER OF SIN AND DEATH...IT COMFORTS MY SOUL AND BRINGS JOY UNSPEAKABLE AND FULL OF GLORY...

THANK YOU FOR THE PAIN OF NOT KNOWING OR UNDERSTANDING...FOR IT HAS PRESSED ME INTO YOUR ARMS AGAIN...

FORGIVE ME, FORGIVE ME ..LOVER OF MY SOUL, MY BELOVED ONE...MY GOD

My Covenant...My Pledge

2010-08-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

Lord: Teach me the REALITY of watching and praying

my spirit is willing, but my flesh is so weak...even as your Word warns...if I do not learn this lesson...I WILL FALL INTO TEMPTATION. Matthew 26:41

I know that it is only as I come into your presence...beholding your face...being still and waiting upon your Word...that I will know the perfect will of your mind...and feel the purpose of your Spirit...You are revealed...

Lord, I confess that I have not come to my Gethsemane...to get up and come kneel at your side and KNOW the battle and conflict of a prayer warrior...to be victorious in prayer.

I have not been bloodied with the sweat of such warfare...but I come asking that you would make me ready...prepare me Lord...use me. I know that my battle is not with flesh and blood...Dark forces, principalities and powers of the unseen world are my enemies...Spirit of God come upon me for battle...

I fear to take one step further without you...without your favor Lord...without your awesome power and Your very Life manifest in me...for these forces do not fear man...they answer to no man's name...there is no authority over them in the flesh...

I wait to do whatever is required of me Lord....to stand in the gap....let your faith be my own, let your will be my own...let your strength and power be my own....I lift up the cup of my trembling that I have feared was impossible to drink...

You have come to partake of it with me...you will walk with me through the Fire...You will consume the dross and I shall be your refined vessel....

Let these words of my mouth be witness to the desires of my heart...and the covenant I make with you this day...................Pillar Jewel 09/04/10

His Consuming Fire

2010-07-27T17:41:00.000-07:00

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear; he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire." Mathew 3:11

Wait for the Promise of the Father, which he also gave to those that heard it from him, saying, "John truly baptized with water; but you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost." Acts 1:4-5

"You will receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me, even to the uttermost parts of the earth.".....Acts 1:8

**************************

These scriptures are no less a promise to us today....and, oh, how much more we need His Power, the power of his Holy Spirit, to become his sons in the anointed administering of his Work and Will in the manifesting of his Life and Light in a crooked and perverse generation...

In the very best of us...there is no redeeming power of the soul...there is no hope beyond the grave...Flesh and blood will not enter in to His Kingdom...He is a Holy God...he alone will make of us a new creation through Christ Jesus...that same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead, will raise us...blood bought, cleansed of mortal corruption and changed in the twinkling of an eye...

It is His consuming fire, that removes the corruptible waste of our lives and fills us with his Holy Spirit, establishing his kingdom in our hearts, making us to inherit those things that pertain to that kingdom, in all righteousness.

"The things of earth become strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace." How many times I have sang that song, and didn't have a clue.

I've played church...christian...moral example...like I did playing house when I was a girl...I had many an example to follow, both bad and good...I chose the good...and never have been able to victoriously bring under control and triumph over the weaknesses of my flesh...I had all kinds of zeal...sincere desire...hope...and faith that it would come...I knew that it was only found in Christ....But I was trying to bring it about by my own effort....

After all I had been baptized with water...confessed my sins...was living the good Christian life...told others of the good news of the Gospel of Christ....but beyond that....I was powerless to live in the Power of that Gospel, from the inside out...Zeal, without knowledge is not Christ in me, administering His Kingdom through me...and the me of me...as dead as He has come ALIVE! in me...

It is the assimilation of my will into His...not to a dictator God...but to a Glorious King who rules and reigns in unfeigned love, justice, peace and righteousness...

I am His...and He is mine...and His Banner over me is LOVE.

I confess him as...King of Kings...Lord of Lords...Mighty, Wonderful, All Powerful...Holy and Just...Holy and Righteous is he...and though he slay me...yet will I serve Him...and though my heart condemn me...He alone is faithful and true....He will not deny Himself............

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFS-iD3jczM

Genesis

2010-07-23T15:04:00.000-07:00

LORD...even my God...You are the Way that is ever before me...I am hemmed in on every side, yet your life and light draw me onward through this valley of the shadows of death. Your Living Waters refresh my soul...the Light of your Presence restores my soul, and I am filled with faith and hope...with confidence and covenant to press on toward the mark of your calling...For I have heard the sound of your voice, calling in the wilderness...It is "Genesis" to my soul...and it is good. Your Holy Spirit moves upon the waters of my life, and calls me forth...

Walk with me Lord...though shadows come, and midnight falls...You are the Light of my salvation...I will Wait for the touch of your strong hand to lead me in the Way I should go...

Be praised and glorified forever and always.

THE STRENGTH OF SEEING

2010-07-07T13:07:00.000-07:00

You will be so blessed if you take the time to really meditate on these words...I say, "Oh my Lord, burn the reality of this message on my heart...let me never be the same after reading this wondrous and marvelous truth...May I ever SEE the strength that is mine through standing in Holy Places with saints made perfect...Amen

From the heart of Chip Brogden

“And when the servant of [Elisha] was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, ‘Alas, my master! How shall we do?’ And he answered, ‘Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them’. And Elisha prayed, and said, ‘Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see’. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha” (II Kings 6:15-17).
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4).
M
We look at the world and we see many things which hinder and distract. We look at the Church and we see many things which disturb us. We look at our own circumstances and become frightened, depressed, and anxious. We see the enemy coming to kill, steal, and destroy. We see angels of light presenting themselves as the servants of the Lord when they are, in fact, messengers of satan. We see many false visions, many false words, many false teachers and teachings. Alas! What can we do about it all?
From our point of view, these things seem like huge issues. It takes a considerable amount of effort to stand against these things. At times it seems we are sinking under the weight of so many burdens and things coming against us. We wonder if perhaps we will be completely swallowed up and overwhelmed by it all. When we look at the facts of the situation it does appear that we are hopelessly outnumbered and surrounded.HOW SHALL WE OVERCOME?
There is a secret to overcoming, and the secret is seeing. If we can only see, then we will overcome. Living follows seeing. We cannot live as overcomers until we see it. But once we see it, living it becomes natural. Doing follows being.
The problem is not “out there”. The issue is not the great host which has surrounded us. We would like to make that the issue, but the size of the army is irrelevant. I do not have to know what the enemy is doing in your life, because it does not matter. I only have to know what you see. When you look out from where you are, what do you see? If you see correctly, then nothing can defeat you. If you do not see correctly, the tiniest thing will quickly subdue you. The difference between victory and defeat is not in what the devil is doing or the direction this world is going, but in what we see when we look.
Most people look out and see themselves surrounded by an enemy. That is why they live their lives in desperation and fear of what may happen next. They see the devil everywhere they look. They are full of stories about what the devil is doing to them (or what he might be doing). But the overcomers look around them and see something different. They do not see as other people see. That is why they overcome.
To be an overcomer does not mean that we deny the existence of the enemy. We are not going to overcome by pretending we are not really surrounded. Denying the existence of the adversary will not make him disappear. We acknowledge and admit that there is a real enemy, a real spirit of Antichrist, that is out to destroy the Remnant and hinder the Testimony of Jesus. We also acknowledge and admit that more often than not, this spirit of Antichrist seems to get the advantage over us.
Even so, the issue is not the enemy. We may look at the enemy, study him, and build an entire movement around different ways to fight him. We can write books and hold seminars on “spiritual warfare”. But when we look out from the mountain, what do we really see? Here is the difference between those who overcome and those who are defeated: it is not in their ability to fight, but in their ability to SEE, and this seeing is not of themselves, but is of God.OVERCOMERS HAVE HAD THEIR EYES OPENED
Now Elisha’s servant looks out, sees a great host about to attack them, and cries out, “Alas! How shall we do?” Elisha looks out, sees a great host about to attack them, and says, “Fear not.” What a study of contrasts. Everywhere it seems people are crying, “Alas, alas, what shall we do, where shall we go, what’s to become of us”, etc. etc. Where are the ones who can say, “Fear not”?
I hope you will understand that the problem OUT THERE did not change. Both men faced the same army, both men faced the same circumstance, but one man said, “Alas!” and one man said, “Fear not.”
How is it that two people, looking at the exact same situation, can reach two completely different conclusions? The difference is in what they saw when they looked.
Some people become upset with me because they think I make it sound so “easy”. “But you don’t understand what I’m going through…” Brothers and sisters, maybe no one can understand what you are going through, and you may never understand what I am going through, but that does not matter. What matters is whether or not our eyes are opened. We should not spend time studying the problem when the Solution is right in front of us.
I can offer you nothing more than what Elisha offered, and that is, clarity of vision. “Lord, open his eyes that he may see.” Now the difference is just here: some people have had their eyes opened to see, and some people have not. It is quite easy to tell the difference. The first group is saying, “Alas!” while the second group is saying, “Fear not.” Now that is not a condemnation or a criticism, just a statement of fact. All of us are blind until someone prays, “Lord, open their eyes”. One day we will ALL see, and we look forward to that day when everything is made clear.
What must we do? How long does it take? It is not a question of spiritual growth, maturity, wisdom, or gifting. Elisha’s servant did not gradually begin to see more clearly. He did not study the situation for many months and finally hit upon the truth. No, one moment his eyes were closed, and the next moment they were opened. Either your eyes have been opened or they have not. If they are open then you can pray for the Lord to open the eyes of others. If they are closed, you can pray to have your own eyes opened.
People sometimes ask me what they have to do to obtain this great revelation of Christ. They think it is God’s way of rewarding us for a lot of hard work. Nothing could be further from the truth. To have one’s eyes opened is simply an act of grace, and God alone can do it, and will do it, if we will only ask Him. At the risk of making it sound “too easy”, I dare not make it any more difficult than that!
When the servant’s eyes were opened, he saw what Elisha saw. When Elisha said, “The ones with us are greater than the ones with them” it must have sounded like lunacy. It cannot be understood with words alone: the eyes must be opened. If words were enough then Elisha would not have prayed for the eyes to be opened. We should spend less time trying to understand “words” and more time praying for God to open our eyes. When our eyes are opened, then the words will make sense. Until then, words are like hieroglyphics – we know there is something significant there, but we cannot understand what it means.
Thirty seconds of seeing is worth thirty years of studying and listening to teachers. Five words of revelation are worth more than ten thousand words gathered from flesh-and-blood.
Someone asked me if I know “everything”. The answer is no, but I have seen enough to know what I am talking about. Testimony follows revelation, and the testimony consists of what we have seen and heard, not what we “think” we know, but what we KNOW we know.
It is the illumination of the heart that brings forth the knowing. It’s when we finally “get it” and we can say, “Oh, NOW I see it!” We do not mean, of course, that we actually had a vision, but we mean that what was previously hidden from us has now been made known to us. This is not reserved for apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. The Holy Spirit leads every disciple into “all truth” (John 16:13,14).
Elisha did not argue with his servant, or try to convince him at all. He just prayed for God to open his eyes. What a relief it is to know that it is not my duty to “defend the faith” or convince everyone of what I know to be true. I can just pray for their eyes to be opened, and God will reveal. It is so much better that way!THE WEAPONS OF OUR WARFARE
I want us to see that in this particular instance Elisha did not pray for protection. He did not pray for victory. He did not ask God to supply him with an arsenal of weapons. Why not? Because he saw that he was already surrounded by the chariots of fire and the hosts of heaven. When the victory is ours already we do not have to pray for victory. That would be like trying to enter into a room in which we are already sitting. No, if victory is mine then all I need is to have my eyes opened to it. If I have already OBTAINED it, I do not have to ATTAIN it.
How would our lives and our individual testimonies be different if we really saw into the heavenlies? Do you think it would change our words? Do you think it would change our actions? Do you think it would change our thoughts? Do you think it would have an effect on our surroundings?
Do you see yourself seated with Christ in the heavenlies (Ephesians 2:6)? Paul saw it, and prayed the Ephesians would see it. When the Lord showed me that I was raised together with Christ and was made to sit (past tense) in the heavenly places with Christ, do you think it changed the way I saw the world? Absolutely! No more was I looking at things from “ground level”, but from the heavenly realm. Things look decidedly different when viewed from above.
Elijah saw differently, and so he thought, spoke, and behaved differently. So often we try to adopt a certain way of thinking, speaking, and acting in hopes of becoming victorious. If this is your intention then you are already defeated. If victory lies in something you must do then you will never be able to do enough. “Acting spiritual” does not produce victory, for victory is not what I do or do not do: Victory is Christ.GREATER IS HE THAT IS WITHIN YOU
We who are the Lord’s Body are told, “Greater is He that is within you, than he that is in the world.” This is practically the same thing Elisha said to his servant: “The ones that be with us are greater than the ones that be with them.”
The situation is the same. The apostle John says a great deal about Antichrist, false doctrines, and false teachers. He sees the Church is surrounded by a great host of wolves who want to gain access to the flock and tear them to pieces. But he also sees what Elisha sees, that is, the One within us is greater than the one in the world.
John declares that no matter what comes against us, the One within us is Greater. It does not matter what you feel like, what you see, what you hear, what people say, or what the devil does. It does not matter if Lazarus is dead for four days and is beginning to stink. It does not matter if the girl dies before Jesus can get there. It does not matter if the waves are about to capsize the boat. It does not matter if Paul is stoned and left for dead. Lazarus will be raised, the girl will be brought back to life, and the storm will be silenced, and Paul will preach again.
The Greater is always Greater, and the Lesser is always Lesser. We only have a problem when see everything else as “greater” and see Christ as “lesser”. Remember, the difference between “Alas!” and “Fear not!” is in having our eyes opened. When you look, what do you see? May the Lord open our eyes to see Him as He is!

Peace That the World Does Not Give.

2010-06-19T20:01:00.000-07:00

Lord...thank you for your Presence at the funeral today...I don't think I could have made it without You there to sustain me...especially when so many didn't want me there.

My greatest fear is that of failing to have done all You required and then stand...steadfast and unmoved...

Thank you that the minister took the opportunity to confess your name before those who refuse to acknowledge it...

Their attacks were like vipers, come out of the fire...You were my defence and comfort...you delivered me from their lies...you are my confidence in Truth...they know not what they do...I do not hold anything against them...I too, am a sinner saved by grace...

I commit this day and my loved one into Your loving and merciful hands...discipline me, make me to see those things where I must ask for forgiveness, humble me in your presence, thank you for calling me to be a part of your family, for giving me your name...may I walk worthy of it. Amen

Lord, You Are My Happiness

2010-06-15T22:15:00.000-07:00

Lord, You are my joy and crown...the lifter up of my head, you restore my heart

in the confidence of Your faith...Your authoritative Word...

Renew a right spirit in me, Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me...

Take not your Holy Spirit from me Lord...my very life depends upon the Light of your presence in me...

All that I am in this life is as nothing to me...You are my joy and crown...

in the midst of every circumstance and situation...

every relationship and aspiration...

I bow before you...most Holy and Righteous One

I surrender to Your sovereign will...

I do this not REALLY knowing what HOLY is, Your

Righteousness is, what Surrender is, or even your

Sovereign will...

I desire with all my heart to come before you in all

Truth...with a spirit that is fully surrendered to

my circumstances in complete trust and faith that

I can walk with You unafraid, and rejoicing in You

as You lead me faithfully in the Way of Happiness...

Blessed are they.............Happy are they, that put

their trust in you Lord...

2010-06-10T10:30:00.000-07:00

Lord...do you feel my pain?...There's a part of me that KNOWS that you do...and there's a part of me that is standing here crying out your name...Jesus, Jesus, Jesus...hear my cry.

I have come to see that there is no depth in the walk I've been walking...It is because of my simple and uncircumstantial life Lord,,,and now I've stepped off and into deep waters where there is no footing...the current of the unforeseen has caught me and would pull me under, along with others who have suffered in the midst of this same fate....

I have known only light afflictions in comparison to this trial...I have been at ease and comfort, not knowing it...there is no depth in me... You my Lord were a man of sorrows and familiar with grief...You have said that, "it is better to agree with the Word knowing that we cannot enter Your Kingdom except through much tribulation...and that if we (I) want to reign with You...then I must suffer with You...

Lord...tell me...how do I tell these devastated and hurting souls how to surrender to more pain...how do I tell them that they must enter in to the straight gate, the narrow gate, when they are already being pressed to the uttermost...?

I do not want to tell them anything that would compromise Your Truth, that would compromise your Holiness, your sacrifice, your grace...I stand back and I am frozen and helpless to speak....HELP ME LORD! HELP ME!

Beloved of my soul...give me depth, and wisdom and the compassion and understanding that leads to Your Life, Eternal Life....make me a soul winner...a laborer in Your Harvest Fields...

Holy Spirit, reveal Christ, in all of this...that I and this family may come to know You in the power of Your Resurrection....that we might in turn declare your wondrous works and the heights and depths of Your Love.

Establish in me the promises of Your Word...1 Peter 2:9

Let us drink from your eternal springs, and be renewed...may we sing your high praises, even a sacrifice of praise...here in the depths, where there is no footing...bear us up in Your Faith...commanding this storm, "Peace, be still".......and I will rejoice with thanksgiving and in the joy of my salvation, and the salvation of my household, and Your household Lord....this I ask and pray, in Your Holy and Trustworthy name...amen and amen..........

"LORD, LORD"

2010-05-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

"After they had eaten, Jesus asked Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these other things?'" (John 21:15).When the saints gather together most of the activity is focused on "one another". This is important, but it is not the most important thing. Fellowship is good: but is Jesus enough? Gatherings are good: but is Jesus enough? Meetings are good: but is Jesus enough? Special speakers and special music are good: but is Jesus enough?Even with praise and worship it is possible to sing "about" Jesus and not truly worship Jesus. With preaching and teaching it is possible to talk "about" Jesus and not truly meet Jesus in what is shared. In prayer it is possible to talk "about" our needs and never actually commune with Jesus Himself. Among Christians I have discovered something. There is Jesus, and then there are all the things ABOUT Jesus that are NOT Jesus. Jesus Himself occupies only a small portion of what is said and done in Christian circles. Most of what is said and done is merely ABOUT Jesus, but it is NOT Jesus. I have learned that stress, strife, disillusionment, dissatisfaction, bitterness, anger, hurt, misunderstanding, and confusion comes from everything said and done by religious people ABOUT the Lord, and IN THE NAME of the Lord, that does not, in fact, have anything to do with Jesus Himself.

Shared from the heart of Brother CB

A STONE IN THE HEART

2010-05-27T19:20:00.000-07:00

I would like to dedicate this blog to a someone that I was introduced to in the Lord today....It is a re-post of the same blog I wrote much earlier...His love and mine to you dear Jacqueline.....

THIS MORNING AS I WAS TAKING MY MORNING WALK...THE LORD, IN HIS USUAL WAY, HAS TO GET THROUGH TO ME BY COMPARING SOMETHING IN THE NATURAL TO THE SPIRITUAL.
I HAD A SMALL PEBBLE IN MY SHOE THAT WAS MAKING IT VERY PAINFUL TO WALK. I STOPPED SEVERAL TIMES TO TAP MY FOOT, TRYING TO SHAKE IT DOWN OUT OF THE WAY, UNTIL I COULD GET HOME AND DISPOSE OF IT.
BECAUSE I WAS WALKING THE DOG, AND THERE WASN'T ANYWHERE THAT I COULD STOP AND REMOVE MY SHOE, (AT LEAST THAT WAS MY EXCUSE) I CONTINUED ON TRYING TO IGNORE THE OBVIOUS IRRITATION.
I'VE BEEN ASKING THE LORD TO GIVE ME HIS INTERCEDING HEART...WHEN YOU ARE NEARLY SHUT AWAY WITH HIM...AND NOT OUT IN THE WORLD, YOU FEEL YOU ARE NOT IN TOUCH WITH IT'S PAIN AS YOU COULD BE...AND GOD FORGIVE ME...YOU GET INSENSITIVE TO THE NEEDS OF OTHERS.
THIS IS WHAT I THOUGHT WAS KEEPING ME FROM RECEIVING AN ANSWER TO THIS PRAYER...
THIS IS THE PICTURE THAT HOLY SPIRIT REVEALED IN MY MIND CONCERNING THIS...
"JOY...LISTEN! YOU PREPARED FOR THIS WALK, BY PUTTING ON YOUR SHOES...YOU DID NOT LOOK INSIDE TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANYTHING THAT COULD HINDER YOUR WALK. THE SMALLEST STONE CAN HINDER YOUR WALK WITH ME. LOOK INSIDE! LOOK INSIDE!
YES, I SAID THAT YOU COULD COME BOLDLY BEFORE MY THRONE...IN THIS I WILL COMMAND YOU TO REMOVE YOUR SHOES, FOR YOU WILL WALK ON HOLY GROUND...EVEN SO...TO WALK WITH ME, TO INTERCEDE WITH ME...YOU MUST LOOK FOR AND REMOVE THE STONES THAT MAY BE HIDING IN YOUR HEART.
YOU HAVE IGNORED THE STONE IN YOUR HEART, THINKING TO REMOVE IT LATER...
REMOVE IT NOW!....REMOVE IT NOW....STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING, AND REMOVE IT NOW!
THEN COME AND FEEL THE PAIN OF A BROKEN AND CONTRITE HEART...THAT WHICH IS MY OWN HEART THAT INTERCEDES IN YOUR BEHALF...AND THAT FOR THE WHOLE WORLD...

Swallowed Up

2010-05-26T18:35:00.000-07:00

Lord, these two pictures struck my heart in a strange way this evening...the first one made me feel lost and swallowed up...like I feel in this world most of the time...I see people full of life and comfortable in their skin...they communicate well with others and are very knowledgeable...some aren't even Christians...and here I am some particle of dust in the unimaginable and measure-less expanses of human life...an empty brain...no purpose...no aspirations...just the endless longing of the your green pastures, your quiet waters of peace.

Today, we stopped for a quick burger...and I could hardly stand the noise and chatter...it was garbled and irritating...getting on the internet and seeing the endless and numberless attempts at sharing testimonies (and my own) personal relationship with you...their convictions, their interpretations...on and on...works, works, works...

"Restore my soul Lord"...hear my cry...Break me, crush me in your hand and make me into that vessel that once received Your Holy Word, that was filled with Your Holy Spirit Word...that Word that was poured out and running over...bring me to that secret place, in the deeps of my heart...come sanctuary in me, be my dwelling place...I have nothing else to say...Let my only words, be your very own...words of Life and Love and Grace...

I cannot live, if you do not Come my Lord...I am worthless without you...I love you, with such pitiful love...but it is all that I have...I give you all that I have...Be my vision, my revelation, my one desire....Bless everyone and anyone who hears what I am saying and is crying out to you for the answer to this same prayer, in Your Holy Name......jOY

LORD...GIVE US EARS THAT HEAR...AND HEARTS TO RECIEVE

2010-05-23T16:42:00.000-07:00

"ARISE, AWAKE!...AWAKE!...COME AWAY MY BELOVED, NOW IS THE TIME TO COME AWAY...COME NEAR TO ME, EVEN INTO MY ARMS. LISTEN, LISTEN, AND YOU WILL HEAR MY VERY HEART BEAT. DO YOU FEEL MY TEARS FALLING UPON YOUR FLESH...UPON YOUR FLESH?...I HAVE TOLD YOU THAT FLESH AND BLOOD WILL NOT INHERIT MY KINGDOM... I WANT YOU TO BE FLESH OF MY FLESH AND BONE OF MY BONE...I WANT YOU TO FEEL MY TEARS UPON YOUR SPIRIT...MY SPIRIT AS FALLING RAIN UPON A THIRSTY GROUND...I DESIRE TO GIVE YOU OF MY INCREASE...BE PREPARED, BE READY, BE STILL

I HAVE SEEN YOUR DEVOTION, YOUR HEART ON FIRE...

MY BELOVED...I WOULD HAVE YOU LIFT YOUR HEAD AND BEHOLD MY BROKEN BODY..THE WOUNDS IN MY HAND, THE WOUNDS IN MY FEET, THE WOUND IN MY SIDE..

MY PRECIOUS ONE, LOOK, LOOK, LOOK AGAIN...MY WORK ON THE CROSS WAS FINISHED...WHAT YOU SEE IS THE BROKEN LIVES OF MY CHILDREN...THEIR HANDS, THEIR FEET, THEIR SIDES PIERCED FOR MY SAKE...THEIR SUFFERINGS ARE BUT THE FEAR THAT COMES FROM WALKING IN DARKNESS. THEIR ENEMIES ARE DEAF AND BLIND...TWICE DEAD. MY CHILDREN HAVE TAKEN THE HAND OF THEIR ENEMIES TO LEAD THEM...AND BOTH WALK ABOUT IN THE DARKNESS, THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND...

BUT I TELL YOU THIS...MY LIGHT IS COME, AND THE BRANCHES OF THE VINE WILL BURN AND NOT BE CONSUMED...

BELOVED BRANCH OF THE VINE, THE FIRE YOU FEEL IN YOUR HEART IS MY CONSUMING FIRE...SEE,.... YOU ARE NOT CONSUMED...THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I HAVE MADE WITH MY BELOVED WHO WILL TURN ASIDE AND APPROACH ME...

NOW TAKE OFF YOUR FLESHLY SHOES, SO THAT YOU MAY WALK ON HOLY GROUND...YES, YOUR WORKS YOUR IMAGININGS, YOUR FEARS...

FEAR NOT...DOUBT NOT...

COME BOLDLY BEFORE ME...

LEAN NOT TO YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING

TRUST ME, AS I PREPARE YOU FOR THE WORK

THAT I AM ABOUT TO DO

BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.

EPHISIANS 3:16-21

2010-05-21T00:24:00.000-07:00

Dear God:I want to thank You for what you have already done.I am not going to wait until I see results or receive rewards, I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until I feel better or things look better, I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until people say they are sorry or until they stop talking about me, I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until the pain in my body disappears, I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until my financial situation improves, I am going to thank you right now.

I am not going to wait until the children are asleep and the house is quiet, I am going to thank you right now.

I am not going to wait until I get promoted at work or until I get the job,I am going to thank you right now.

I am not going to wait until I understand every experience in my life that has caused me pain or grief, I am going to thank you right now.

I am not going to wait until the journey gets easier or the challenges are removed. I am thanking you right now.

I am thanking you because I am alive. I am thanking you because I made it through the day's difficulties. I am thanking you because I have walked around the obstacles. I am thanking you because I have the ability and the opportunity to do more and do better. I'm thanking you because Father, you haven't given up on me.........Author Unknown

LORD BE THE GATE KEEPER OF OUR MOUTHS

2010-05-19T22:57:00.000-07:00

Understand this: No prophecy of Scripture is to be interpreted by an individual on his own; for never has a prophecy come as a result of human willing - on the contrary, people moved by the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) spoke a message from God. (2 Peter 1:20-21)

** But the person who has the Spirit can evaluate everything, while no one is in a position to evaluate Him. For who has known the mind of ADONAI? Who will counsel Him? But we have the mind of the Messiah! (1 Corinthians 2:15)

LORD, STRENGTHEN US IN OUR WAITING...WE HALT IN BEING QUICK IN THE LAYING ON OF HANDS...IN SPEAKING A WORD OUT OF SEASON...

GIVE US YOUR DISCERNMENT LORD...THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE THAT SURPASSES OUR OWN AND IS ABOVE OUR OWN THINKING AND WAY...MAY WE SURRENDER IN OBEDIENCE.... FOLLOWING AFTER YOU BLESSED SHEPHERD AND KING...LET YOUR ROD AND STAFF GUIDE US IN THE WAY...LET OUR LIPS BE FILLED WITH HIGH PRAISES AND JOY EVER MORE...AMEN

THE ONLY WAY OUT OF DARKNESS

2010-05-18T21:15:00.000-07:00

The Secret Place...a place where only my thoughts and inspiration is a galaxy unto itself before the Light of God's fellowship.
Where do my thoughts come from?
What is it that inspires me...
Somehow a word gives power to create...
and for me it creates Light...
and the Light frees me from the darkness...
I am no longer alone...
The Light goes before me...and I will not turn and go back into the darkness...
There is peace in the Light...there is Hope in the Light...There is Rest in the Light...
Not the light of knowledge...not the light of man's wisdom...not the light that turns to darkness...
But that Day Star that rises in the soul...
Where the Creator commands, "LET THERE BE LIGHT"
A Knowing...
It is the Spirit Word...the very Breath of God...
He alone can bring your broken heart, your broken spirit ...perhaps broken in mind and body... helpless and hopeless...
just reach out and ask Him to lift you into His Light...
Your life may be void and seem to have no purpose...
I'm not going to try to convince you that you've believed a lie...but you have...
or prove to you that what I'm saying is the Truth...
But I have told you of the Truth...He is the Truth...He is the Way...the Light and Life Eternal...
It's His work to draw you to Himself...and just now, I ask that He do that...
Are you willing to turn and walk into His Light...Are you willing to accept the fact that He has paid the price for you to be set you free from the powers of sin in your life?..
He does not blackmail you with condemnation of your sin...to get you to become a proselyte...
He only stands before you in the Holiness of who He is and offers you the only way out of Darkness...To free you from the penalty of death...because of the sin of disobedience that required a blood sacrifice to be free of the penalty...
Not the sacrifice of animals, or human life, or payment of any kind...
it would not change your heart...or deliver you from the BONDAGE OF THE HUMAN NATURE...
Only HIS SACRIFICIAL BLOOD which He shed on the cross of Calvary was sufficient to deliver us from this bondage...
IT WAS LOVE THAT PAID THE PRICE!
All you have to do is SURRENDER...
All you have to do is Confess...that He is Lord, that He is King, that You are His, as unworthy as you may feel, as filthy as you may feel, as numb as you may feel...as hopeless as you may feel...
Call out to Him..."Jesus, Jesus, Jesus."
Then wait...believing that He wants to take you as His own...to make you brand new, and give you the power of His Holy Spirit Word, that you may become a son or daughter of His...
Your works won't do anything for you...what you think you know, won't do anything for you...begging, pleading, crying, cursing,
Just let go...He sees your heart, He knows your mind, your motives, your ego, your emotions, your excuses...
All He wants, is you...to Love and be a part of the Life that has always been in Him from the beginning...
A Life He wants you to want...
A Life He wants you to choose.............................jOY

WHEN HEALING COMES

2010-05-18T20:10:00.000-07:00

Apr 26, '10 7:30 PM
for everyone

LORD, I WANT TO BRING BEFORE YOU THOSE WHO ARE REACHING OUT FOR HEALING IN THEIR LIVES...
THOSE ON BEDS OF SICKNESS, THAT FIND IT HARD EVEN TO PRAY, THEY HAVE BECOME SICK EVEN IN THEIR HEART AND MIND, THE SOUL AND SPIRIT...FEELING NUMB, DISHEARTENED, AND IN SOME CASES, JUST DON'T CARE ANYMORE.

I COME AGAINST THE ENEMY OF THEIR SOULS WHO DESIRES TO DESTROY THEM...WHO BEATS THEM DOWN WITH LIES AND PAIN AND HOPELESSNESS...
COME TO THEM..."NOW"...EVEN NOW LORD...REACH DOWN IN YOUR MERCY AND GRACE...IN THIS THEY WILL KNOW THAT YOU ARE GOD...BECAUSE THEY ARE HEALED, YES...BUT MORE TO THE POINT...THAT THEY ARE LOVED AND NOT FORSAKEN...
FOR THOSE WHO MUST SUFFER AFFLICTION...BE THEIR COMFORT, LET YOUR FAITH REMAIN IN THEM TO STRENGTHEN AND SUSTAIN THEM...
SURROUND THEM WITH ANGELS OF MERCY, AND TRUE COMPASSION...
LORD SURROUND THEM WITH YOUR EVERLASTING ARMS...AND THE JOY OF YOUR PRESENCE THAT WILL INFUSE THEM WITH THE STRENGTH OF EAGLES, THAT THEY MAY WALK AND NOT BE WEARY, RUN AND NOT FAINT...
YOU ARE OUR HEALING LORD...AND THOUGH YOU SLAY US, YET WILL WE SERVE YOU...FOR YOU ARE THE GOD OF LIFE! HERE IN ME, AND FOREVER MORE...AMEN

IF YOU COULD SEE WHERE I CAME FROM

2010-05-18T19:50:00.000-07:00

LORD, THANK YOU FOR THIS MORNING...THANK YOU FOR PREPARING MY HEART AND MIND TO FACE THIS DAY...I AM AT YOUR MERCY TO RECEIVE YOUR GRACE...

EVEN IN MY WEAKNESS, YOU CALLED ME TO LAY BEFORE YOU MY HEART

YOU ENCAMPED ABOUT MY SOUL AND SPOKE IN A STILL SMALL VOICE

YOU ALONE HAVE RENT THE VEIL OF MY HEART AND MIND

THE WIND OF YOUR SPIRIT BLOWS THERE FREELY

COMING AND GOING AS YOU WILL

YOU SHOW ME THE PATH OF LIFE

AND IN YOUR PRESENCE IS FULLNESS OF JOY

AT YOUR RIGHT HAND ARE PLEASURES EVERMORE

YOU FEED ME THE BREAD THAT THE WORLD KNOWS NOT OF

YOU, MY LORD ARE THAT LIVING BREAD

ALL GIFTS AND PROPHESYING WILL CEASE

AND THOUGH I UNDERSTAND ALL MYSTERIES

IF I DO NOT HAVE MY BEING IN YOU

I AM NOTHING

EVEN IF I HAD ALL FAITH AND COULD MOVE MOUNTAINS

WITHOUT YOU, I AM NOTHING

FOR IN YOU ALONE I CAN BEAR ALL THINGS

BELIEVE ALL THINGS

HOPE ALL THINGS

ENDURE ALL THINGS

ALL ELSE WILL CEASE AND FADE AWAY

BUT YOU, MY LORD, REMAIN

YOUR WORD REMAINS FOREVER

YOU ARE THAT LIVING WORD

YOU DWELL IN MY HEART

I LONG TO KNOW YOU

EVEN AS I AM KNOWN

TO PUT AWAY ALL CHILDISH THINGS

AND STAND PLEASING IN YOUR SIGHT

THANK YOU LORD FOR WALKING WITH ME THIS MORNING

FOR CAUSING ME TO MEASURE HOW FAR YOU'VE BROUGHT ME

IN THIS JOURNEY OF FAITH, THIS JOURNEY OF LIFE

FOR REJOICING TOGETHER OVER SAINTS MADE PERFECT

FOR THE CLOUD OF WITNESSES WHO REJOICE AND GIVE

PRAISE BEFORE YOUR THRONE

THANK YOU FOR THE BEAUTY OF YOUR FINISHED WORK

FOR APPOINTING TO US BEAUTY FOR ASHES

THE OIL OF GLADNESS FOR MOURNING

A GARMENT OF PRAISE FOR THE SPIRIT OF HEAVINESS;

THAT WE MIGHT BE CALLED THE TREES OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

THE PLANTING OF THE LORD

THAT YOU MIGHT BE GLORIFIED MY LORD

YOU ARE THE VINE

I AM BUT AN EXTENDED BRANCH OF YOU

FROM AGE TO AGE THE SAME

THAT I MIGHT BEAR FRUIT UNTO SALVATION

FOR AS THE EARTH BRINGS FORTH HER BUD

AND AS THE GARDEN CAUSES THE THINGS THAT ARE GROWN

IN IT TO SPRING FORTH; SO YOU MY LORD GOD, WILL CAUSE

RIGHTEOUSNESS AND PRAISE TO SPRING FORTH BEFORE

THE NATIONS.

I AM "NOW" CENTERED IN YOU

RELYING ON YOU

LISTENING TO YOU

WAITING ON YOU

SPEAK LORD, EVEN AS YOU WALKED WITH ME IN YESTERDAY'S GARDEN

YESTERDAY'S GARDEN....

I WALKED THROUGH YESTERDAY'S GARDEN

I'VE WALKED THERE MANY A TIME

NOW IT'S LIFELESS AND EMPTY

WHERE WEEDS AND POISON IVY CLIMB

YET THE ECHOS OF SONGS THROUGH THE AGES PAST

THOSE SWEET HALLOWED HYMNS OF PRAISE

REVERBERATE STILL ALL AROUND ME

IN SO MANY CHERISHED WAYS

"PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW"

STILL RESTS UPON MY TONGUE

I HEAR IT STILL WITHIN MY HEART

IT NEEDS BE EVER SUNG

SUNG WITH HALLELUJAHS

SUNG WITH GREAT AMENS

SUNG WITH GLORIOUS LONGING

WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS

SO I'LL LISTEN ER SO CLOSELY

TO LOVE'S SWEET, FAMILIAR REFRAINS

AND THANK THE GOD OF HEAVEN

AGAIN, AND AGAIN, AND AGAIN

AS I WALKED IN YESTERDAY'S GARDEN

I WALKED AND TALKED WITH HIM

AND REMEMBERED YESTERDAY'S BLOSSOMS

THAT BLOOMED THERE JUST FOR HIM

THEY TOLD OF THE OLD, OLD STORY

OF JESUS AND HIS LOVE

THEIR PRAISES, STILL TRIUMPHANT

NOW IN HEAVENLY REALMS ABOVE

THOUGH FLOWERS FADE BEFORE ME

THEIR FRAGRANCE FILLS MY DAY

EVEN THROUGH DESERT WASTE LAND

THOSE GARDENS OF YESTERDAY

I'LL LISTEN EVER SO CLOSELY

FOR LOVE'S SWEET MELODIOUS REFRAIN

AND THANK THE GOD OF HEAVEN

AGAIN, AND AGAIN AND AGAIN

LORD YOU ARE THE JOY OF MY SALVATION

2010-05-18T19:41:00.000-07:00

LORD; LET YOUR JOY REMAIN IN ME__THAT MY JOY MIGHT BE FULL.

NOT THE JOY OF HAPPINESS AS WE KNOW IT. BUT THE JOY THAT WAS YOUR OWN__

THE ABSOLUTE SURRENDER TO YOUR FATHER, THE GIVING OF YOURSELF TO DO ALL THAT HE HAD CALLED YOU TO DO. EVEN IN WAITING, EVEN IN NOT KNOWING, BUT IN TRUST AND FAITH.

TEACH ME THE MEANING OF THIS JOY MY LORD. LET MY HEART REJOICE IN YOUR WORD, THOUGHT AND THE WAY OF YOUR PERFECT WILL__WITHOUT LEANING TO MY OWN UNDERSTANDING AND REASONING OF THINGS.

IN HEALTH, RELATIONSHIPS, FINANCES, OR SUCCESS__LET ME NOT MEASURE MY JOY IN THESE EXTERNAL HAPPENINGS, BUT IN COMMUNION AND RIGHT RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU MY LORD.

I AM SO EASILY SELF-CONCIOUS__AND AS ONE HAS SAID, "A SANCTIFIED PRIG. OH LORD, EVEN MY GOD LET IT NOT EVER BE SO.

LET MY LIFE BE LIVED JOYOUSLY HID IN YOU. NATURALLY BREATHING IN YOUR SPIRIT, WALKING IN THAT SPIRIT, AND BREATHING IT BACK OUT IN UNCONSCIOUS JOY UPON OTHERS.

"PEACE BE STILL"

2010-05-18T19:17:00.000-07:00

Lord, I'm as still as I know how to be.
Open my eyes that I might truly see,
that knowing you is not how I feel.
Feeling will never make you real.
When I am empty there echos in me,
sighing and groanings my feelings
can't see...
Goanings that press to be ever heard.
But no human language has a word.
So look my Lord on this yearning heart,
who has come to be quiet
and set apart...
"Be still", you've commanded,
Now I obey.
Make me still like the storm
you commanded one day.
That I might know truly
on bended knee,
That Faith is the substance
of what I can't see.....JEL

2010-05-17T00:41:00.001-07:00

How often I have had great hunger or desire to do something and to be absolutely incapable of action upon that set thing, either by being physically, emotionally, or spiritually bound in such a way, that would render me helpless.

Lord, only in your fullness will I ever be able to fully appreciate and experience with confidence and grace, the faith that comes from your love and mercy.....It is your Holy Spirit revealing you in my heart that stirs the hunger, that brings forth the desire, even when I may feel spiritually bound......it is the call to worship, not to confess defeat...It is the time for rejoicing...as You soften my heart in the "Secret Place.".....

Lord, I believe that there are sounds that fill the heavens, that the human ears cannot hear....and it is the sounds of myriads of angels and heavenly hosts....the sounds of countless saints made perfect, along with those whose hearts ever sing the praises of your Majesty, power and grace...

Change us Lord, from glory to glory, even to your image....Transport us Lord, as we learn to walk in your Spirit into heavenly places....Heal us and restore us....conciliate us as your "New Creation"... we long to walk, worthy of you Lord....at one with you....glorifying you...ministering unto you....Teach us by Holy Spirit, the deep worship of you that satisfies your own longing.....even as the Bride longs to satisfy her Groom.......................

Let Your Word Lord dwell in us richly, in all wisdom; as we teach and admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in our hearts to you Lord.
Colossians 3:16 / KJV

SENIOR VERSION OF "JESUS LOVES ME"

2010-05-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

Here is a new version just for us who have white hair or no hair at all. For us over middle age (or even those almost there) and all you others, check out this newest version of Jesus Loves Me.

JESUS LOVES ME Jesus loves me, this I know,

Though my hair is white as snow

Though my sight is growing dim,

Still He bids me trust in Him.

(CHORUS)

YES, JESUS LOVES ME..

YES, JESUS LOVES ME,

FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.

Though my steps are oh, so slow,

With my hand in His I'll go

On through life, let come what may,

He'll be there to lead the way.

(CHORUS)

When the nights are dark and long,

In my heart He puts a song..

Telling me in words so clear,

"Have no fear, for I am near."

(CHORUS)

When my work on earth is done,

And life's victories have been won.

He will take me home above,

Then I'll understand His love.

(CHORUS)

I love Jesus, does He know?

Have I ever told Him so?

Jesus loves to hear me say,

That I love Him every day.

(CHORUS)

BEHOLDING YOUR SPIRIT, LORD

2010-05-12T20:27:00.000-07:00

Lord, this is the view I see with my spirit eyes...Your Word, the song of it, the Life of it is ever before me...to meditate, to study, to listen to, from the flesh's aspect, it never satisfies this perpetual longing in my heart for You. My heart cries, "Oh that I might know You and the power of Your resurrection!....Fill me Lord, even to overflowing...let Your Living Waters flow up to the banks for those thirsting after You, even as I....

"Let not your longing bring you to a halt...you could not see what you see unless you saw it through my own eyes...the eyes of my Spirit who reveals me and moves your heart to longing after me...

And it is so...to draw water out of the well...even springs of Living Water, welling up from within you....Behold My Spirit revealing Me...My Word, My Song, My Praise..........Now! launch out into the deep and let down your net for a draught!"

2010-05-10T23:54:00.000-07:00

Quote; from a sister in the Lord......... "Now, more than ever, we must learn to step into Him and pull away from the chaos and confusion of this world. In Him is where we find our peace and all the answers we need to face every situation in our lives. We must learn to linger in His presence and breathe the aroma of His love. Then we will be able to exhale His love into the lives of other’s. In the safety of His everlasting arms, we are fully equipped with the ability to become the very nature of Him and exude the aroma of His love."Ephesians 5:2, “And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling aroma.”Lingering in His presence...God bless you and yours,In His service,Terri

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

2010-05-07T19:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to

each of you mothers.

***********************

"Who can find a virtuous

woman? for her price is

far above rubies.....The heart of her husband safely trusts in her, so that he fears no spoil....She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life....She seeks the materials needed to produce what's needed for the family, working willingly with her hands...She also seeks out what's needed to feed her family...rising early, even while it is yet night, preparing and feeding the family and her servants....

Did I just read that right?....she fed the servants?....Wow!...that's a revelation....sounds like something my Lord would do....

She considers a piece of property, and buys it, and with the fruit of her hands she plants it....

Sounds like she manages the purse strings...do you think?She girds her loins with strength and strengthens her arms...she is confident in her gifts and abilities and that what she does is good for her family...she stays up all hours to finish her work for them....In all that she does she does not forget the poor and extends her hands forth to the needy...In the Winter months she sees to it that her family has warm garments to wear...and she presents herself in gracious and godly apparel...her husband being known among the elders of the community...she rules her house well with provision and through the merchandising of her labors...and she is clothed with the strength and honor of it...knowing it will make her rejoice in the coming days....She opens her mouth with wisdom; and to her tongue is the law of kindness....she looks well to the ways of her household, and is never lazy....Her children rise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he gives her praise......There are many other women who are good wives....But a godly woman excels them all.....Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain; but a woman that fears the Lord, she shall be praised........Give her of the fruit of her labors; and let her own works praise her in the community....

Proverbs 31:10-31

2010-05-06T11:08:00.000-07:00

Deep calls to deep in the sound of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me— a prayer to the God of my life. Psalms 42:7-8

2010-05-02T22:58:00.000-07:00

Lord; Someone who completely broke my heart and my trust has contacted me again...

I couldn't even open their e-mail. I remember how painful it was, for so long, in trying to forgive and forget.

And now I'm wondering if I've done either one....I know I have to forgive completely...to release the fear of what was said and done happening again...I know I probably will never forget...their may always be the scars...the thorn in the flesh, as it were, to remind me that You are the only one that can deliver me from the bondage of my spirit to unforgiving and resentment of any kind.

What great Love has delivered me from the bondage and power of sin in my own life....You want me to know the freedom of what complete forgiveness means...and I won't until I am made conformable to your death.

I can sit here at this computer and mouth off about how I should do this thing...what you expect from me...BUT...I must be truly WILLING...and...WANTING TO.

I will never have peace...with myself, with you or the person who hurt me until I do.

Help me Lord...help me to see the futility of carrying grudges...of wanting revenge...to be validated or the one in the right...to prove anything...What ever my reasons or excuses may be to continue in this state of unrest of my soul and spirit...None of these things will bring me justice or peace...and it actually inhibits the one that I am not forgiving.

I have head knowledge of your Word concerning what I should do....

Ephesians 4:32 says, "to be kind and compassionate toward those who have wronged us...forgiving each other, just as you forgave us."

You have told me that if I forgive the one who has sinned against me, that you will forgive me. Matthew 6:14

I remember when Peter came to you asking, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother (or sister) who has sinned against me? Up to seven times? And then you Lord answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." Matthew 18:21-22

You said that LOVE....COVERS....a MULTITUDE OF SINS...that if I forgive, then you will forgive......Lord have I kept this one who has been seeking forgiveness, from be forgiven, because I thought I had, and had not....and now you are making a way for them and me...because of your great love for us both?

FORGIVE ME LORD!

for keeping them in a state of wanting forgiveness and not being able to find it, and for any pain that I may have caused them...

I release them of all wrong doing Lord...I forgive them...for their sake, for my sake...and for your names sake...that Love might reign in our lives, even according to your Word.

Lord I ask...that this thing that I do, be sincere, and done in YOUR LOVE.

I remember....and not so long ago...that you asked me this question, when another hurt me...."jOY....are you willing to let this person be right even when you know they are wrong?.....

My answer was....Lord, I cannot do this until you show me the same lesson of Calvary's Love........."Father, forgive them...for they know not what they do."

I AM YOURS

2010-04-30T16:58:00.000-07:00

Why is it that I find it wrong to accept the fact that I am, in Christ, a devine expression of the Father's Son in my life?

Jesus did not think it wrong to be equal with His Father...the Word says that the fullness of his Father dwelt in Him...

Lord, truly you are Lord...you have said that I may come boldly before you...as a child comes before a parent, as friends trust one another, as husband and wives are one...

I confess that You are Lord, that You are King of Kings, that You are my God. I am yours because you chose me to be, even before this world began...I can't explain the greatness of such love...or the grace that has attended me through your mercy, all the days of my life...but I desire to be free in all that you have called me to be...to be strong in my convictions and commitment to the testimony of Your great love concerning the mystery of the Gospel, in revealing who you are in relation to the eternal and everlasting Father.

May this tiny seed, one day grow into a mighty tree...Fill me with the consciousness of your own thoughts and words, for they are life, and wisdom and joy unspeakable...

Let my inspiration be of none but You...make me alert to the new possibilities of your height and depths...fill me with your passion..."even as the rain for the seed which is sown in the ground".....................Isaiah 30:23

BLESSINGS IN HEAVENLY PLACES by Chip Brogden

2010-04-28T19:36:00.000-07:00

February 28

Today's Message from Chip Brogden

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).

For most of my life as a Christian I sought God for THINGS. When depressed, I would seek joy. When worried, I would seek peace. When weak, I would seek strength. When angry, I would seek self-control. When defeated, I would seek victory. Most Christians are taught to approach God and seek these things when they are conscious of some lack. For a time it seems they are given what they ask for, but soon they are back asking for more of the same thing. Today we ask for patience, and tomorrow we ask again, and the day after that we have to ask yet again. So it is with peace, joy, victory, and everything else.

Eventually we must learn that we have everything in Christ already. That thing called "patience" that we are so diligently seeking is not a thing at all, it is Christ. "Victory" is no longer a "thing", it is a Man. And so it is with everything else we need. It is certainly possible to seek spiritual blessings from God apart from Christ, or in addition to Christ. What a difference it makes to realize that He HAS (past tense) blessed us already - not with three or five or twenty blessings - but with EVERY spiritual blessing. However many there may be, we have them all. Where and how has He done this? Thank God, it was done the moment we received Christ and entered into Him as our All in All. God would have us seek Him first, and not His things. To Him there is no "thing", for they are all summed up into Christ.

BECAUSE OF LOVE

2010-04-25T13:50:00.000-07:00

LIKE SO MANY OF US....WE HAVE INSURMOUNTABLE STRESS AT TIMES IN OUR DAILY LIVES....THERE JUST DOESN'T SEEM TO BE ENOUGH HOURS IN THE DAY...

MY PROBLEM IS TRYING TO PICK UP EVERYONE ELSE'S AND THINKING THAT MAYBE I CAN FIX IT BY PRAYER.....I HEARD MYSELF SAY THAT TO MYSELF AND BOY! DID IT TURN ON A LIGHT BULB IN MY MIND...........

MY PRAYING DOESN'T FIX ANYTHING....AND THAT'S WHY I GET SO FRUSTRATED WHEN I DON'T GET THE ANSWERS LIKE I THINK THEY SHOULD COME OR WHEN THEY SHOULD BE ANSWERED....AFTER ALL...HAVEN'T I SPENT EXHAUSTING AMOUNT OF EMOTIONAL TIME AND EFFORT OVER THESE NEEDS....GOD! DO YOU HEAR ME?

DON'T YOU LOVE IT WHEN HE DOESN'T ANSWER....HE EITHER WANTS US TO LISTEN TO OURSELVES, OR GET STILL ENOUGH TO HEAR HIM...

I DON'T KNOW WHY...BUT ONE THING THAT WILL GET ME STILL IS THE WONDERFUL AND GLORIOUS FACE OF ONE OF HIS ANIMAL CREATIONS...

WE USE TO LIVE ON A BIRD PRESERVE...AND THERE WERE A NUMBER OF RACCOONS THAT WOULD COME SO CLOSE YOU COULD PET THEM....ALTHOUGH YOU DIDN'T DARE....

I WAS IN LOVE WITH ONE I CALLED KITTY....AND THIS PICTURE THAT POPPED UP WHILE PICTURE BROWSING REMINDED ME OF HER.....I FORGOT ALL OF MY PROBLEMS AND FRUSTRATIONS IN A SECOND....

THE SCRIPTURE SAYS...WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE TRUE, WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE HONEST, JUST, AND PURE...WHATSOEVER THINGS ARE LOVELY AND A GOOD REPORT...IF THERE BE ANY VIRTUE, ANY PRAISE...THINK ON THESE THINGS........PHILIPPIANS 4:8

IT'S HARD TO DO THIS WHEN ALL AROUND YOU SEEMS IN CHAOS AND/OR YOUR HEART FEELS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BREAK...OR WHEN YOU DESPERATELY HAVE A NEED AND ANSWER TO SOMETHING YOU ARE SO CONFUSED OVER AND CAN'T MAKE A DECISION ABOUT SOMETHING THAT NEEDS ONE...

THAT'S THE KEY......THAT'S THE LIGHT THAT WENT OFF IN MY THINKING.............PRAYER...........

I'VE BEEN JUDGING MYSELF FOR UNANSWERED PRAYER....AND SELF CONDEMNATION WILL NEVER ALLOW FAITH TO MOVE MOUNTAINS....AND MY FAITH WILL NEVER MOVE MOUNTAINS UNTIL I COME TO THE REALIZATION THAT IT IS THE "INTERCEDING CHRIST" WHO TAKES WHAT I BRING TO HIM AND THEN TAKES THAT BEFORE HIS FATHER, FOR THE ANSWER...

WHEN I TAKE IT TO CHRIST....I'M TO LEAVE IT WITH HIM...BELIEVING THAT WHATEVER THE ANSWER IS...IT IS JUST AND TRUE...AND GIVEN OUT OF LOVE....

THANK YOU LORD FOR YOUR PRECIOUS LITTLE CREATURES...FOR YOUR MIGHTY ONES TOO...FOR BIRDS THAT FLY IN YOUR ENDLESS SKY...I GIVE THANKS AND PRAISE TO YOU...

I'M NOT PRACTICING POSITIVE THINKING...BECAUSE SOMETIMES WHAT I CONSIDER TO BE THE POSITIVE ANSWER IS QUITE THE OPPOSITE OF GOD'S PERFECT WILL....

THANK YOU LORD THAT AS I SURRENDER ALL TO YOU...YOU HAVE PROMISED TO KEEP IT ALL, AND WORK IT TOGETHER FOR GOOD....BECAUSE OF LOVE....

LORD, ONLY YOU SATISFY MY SOUL

2010-04-23T18:29:00.000-07:00

Lord...nothing satisfies...
nothing.
You have come to present me to the Father...
I halt...my flesh trembles...
I am dripping with your blood...

What is this silence?
What is this pain in me
that causes my heart to groan
with words that cannot be uttered?

"YOU CANNOT UTTER WHAT YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND...
I AM IN YOU TO LET THE TRUTH SPEAK WHAT LIES IN YOUR HEART...
THE WORD SPEAKS IN YOU
INTERCEDING IN YOUR BEHALF
BY MY SPIRIT...
YOUR spirit CAN DO NOTHING BUT RESPOND TO MY GLORY
LIKE THE SEEDLING THAT REACHES FOR THE SUN
IN SILENCE...UNOBSERVED...

YOU TOO MUST SURRENDER TO THE HEIGHTS OF MY LOVE...
MY LOVE, AND THE LOVE THAT IS IN YOU, IS ONE...
MY DESIRE IS YOUR DESIRE...
JUST SURRENDER...
REST

LEARNING TO REIGN IN CHRIST

2010-04-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

This is a reprent of a blog I have one Ning....just read it again, and it still rings true for me....

I AM NUMB LORD...I JUST READ THE HEART'S CRY OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, AND I AM TORN BETWEEN MY OWN SELFISH NEED FOR YOU AND MY LACK OF SPONTANEOUS LOVE OF THE BRETHREN...I DON'T EVEN HAVE THE WORDS TO EXPLAIN MY HEART...AND I FALL BEFORE YOU CONFESSING MY NEED FOR YOUR HELP...I KNOW THAT THIS HOUR IS LATE...
I KNOW YOU WANT ME TO LEARN TO REIGN IN THE POWER OF YOUR SPIRIT...
LORD, I DESIRE TO REIGN WITH YOU...WHERE DO I START?...
YOU ASKED ME TO SURRENDER...PERHAPS I HAVE NOT SURRENDERED AS YOU WILL...
I CONFESS THAT I AM A SINNER...ONLY YOUR GRACE CAN SAVE ME FROM THE STRONGHOLD OF MY WILL...DELIVER ME O LORD MY GOD.
LET NOT THE ENEMY OF MY SOUL REJOICE OVER ME...AS HE ANTICIPATES HIS VICTORY...I SHALL HOLD FAST THE PROFESSION OF MY FAITH...I SHALL CLING TO THE CROSS WHERE YOU CRIED, "IT IS FINISHED"...AND DECLARE THAT YOU RULE AT THE RIGHT HAND OF YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN.
LORD, I CANNOT GO TO BATTLE, UNLESS YOU PREPARE ME...WITH UNDERSTANDING AND DISCERNMENT OF YOUR WORD...AND WHAT AUTHORITY IS MINE IN YOUR NAME...
I KNOW I WILL NOT BE DELIVERED BY SPIRITUAL WORKS OR WORDS AS IF BY MAGIC...I HAVE KNOWN THE DEFEAT OF SUCH IGNORANCE AND PRESUMPTION...IT IS SPIRITUAL PRIDE THAT HAS CAUSED IRREVOCABLE DEFEAT FROM DISOBEDIENCE TO YOUR PERFECT WILL...AS I WALKED IN SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS, PRIDE, AND VEILED ARROGANCE...
I HAVE SEEN THE FACE OF THIS HARLOT IN THE MIRROR...BUT I HAVE ALSO SEEN HER HEART...SHE IS SINNER LORD, YES...BUT SHE WAS A SLAVE.
HAVE MERCY ON HER LORD...HAVE MERCY...YOU BOUGHT HER WITH YOUR BLOOD....ONLY YOU CAN WASH HER AND MAKE HER CLEAN...ONLY YOU CAN CALL HER BY NAME, AND MAKE HER YOUR OWN...ONLY YOU CAN TEACH HER TO TRUST LOVE AGAIN, AND TRULY LOVE IN RETURN...
SHE IS NOT FIGHTING AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD...HER ENEMIES ARE INVISIBLE...IT IS AN OPEN ATTACK UPON HER SOUL, BY SATAN HIMSELF...
YOU HAVE MADE IT CLEAR THAT YOU WILL NO LONGER RESCUE ME OUT OF MY UNBELIEF...THOUGH YOU COULD...FOR YOU WANT ME TO LEARN NOT TO EVADE OR ESCAPE THE LESSONS OF FAITH AND CONFIDENCE IN THE POWER OF YOUR MIGHT...IT IS NOT IN MY POWER OR MIGHT...OR ANY OTHER...IT IS BY YOUR SPIRIT...
YOU HAVE TOLD ME THAT...."THE ENEMY WOULD FLEE FROM YOU IF HE SAW ME"
DOES HE SEE FAITH?...DOES HE SEE CONFIDENCE IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH?...DOES HE SEE THE PRESENCE OF MY SPIRIT IN YOU? WHO HAS ALL THE POWER OF AUTHORITY AGAINST HIM...

"WILL YOU LET ME MANIFEST MY GLORY THROUGH YOU?...WILL YOU WAIT FOR MY COMMANDS, AND LEAN NOT TO YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING...TRUSTING IN ME COMPLETELY?...I AM NEVER A MOMENT TO LATE FOR THE FULFILLING OF MY WILL OR THE KEEPING OF ALL THAT HAS BEEN COMMITTED UNTO ME...REST AT MY SIDE, BE STILL...AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD WHO REIGNS SOVEREIGN OVER ALL YOUR ENEMIES...WHO IS JEALOUS OF MY BRIDE TO KEEP HER IN ALL HER WAYS...IN THE HEIGHTS, DEPTHS AND BREADTHS OF MY LOVE...

jOY Lackey

COMMITING YOUR WAYS UNTO THE LORD

2010-04-17T11:02:00.000-07:00

Lord, I can't thank you enough for the faithfulness of Your Word...for Your keeping power, for Your guidance through the Narrow Way of this Life, as we follow You, Blessed Shepherd of the Flock.

Yesterday, we were to sign the final papers on a home....we had been praying that You, Lord, would have your perfect will in this decision...to open and/or close all doors....and right down to the wire...it fell through, because of hidden structural problems and damage that only the final inspection revealed...it would have cost thousands of dollars of repair, had we bought the home....and we nearly decided to pass by without the inspection...

Thank you Holy Spirit for Your moving upon our hearts and minds to do this inspection....

We are finding that in these last days....the Lord is training us to wait upon Him, right down to the wire. There are things we may not see, discern, or know about a decision we are making....and sometimes logic and trust can be betrayed for many reasons that only the Lord may know....Praise you Lord, that You go before us, that you lead us from behind, that you speak a Word in our ear..."go hear, or go there, stop!...wait....rest...by Your rod and staff you lead us in all faithfulness and keeping...

I'm trusting less and less in my own abilities to see, hear, and know...and desire with all my heart to have His mind, His wisdom, His knowing...and moving at the sound of His Voice in all faith, confidence, and obedience....

I commit my way to Yours Lord...lead me through the Narrow Way...

HE TEMPLES (SANCTUARIES) IN US

2010-04-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

April 16

Today's Message from Chip Brogden

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you. How often I have longed to gather your children together under my wing, as a hen gathers her chicks, but you would not allow it. Now your house will be empty. You will not see Me again until you say, 'Blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord'" (Matthew 23:37-39).

Jerusalem represents that which initially gave the Lord satisfaction, but no longer. It continues in the tradition and ceremony, in the outward things, yet it does not recognize Who the Lord Jesus is. The place of His rest used to be the Temple, but even it has become a "den of thieves".

He longs to have them, to gather them under the shadow of His wing: but THEY would not allow it. There is a place where the Lord is received: but it is outside of Jerusalem, away from the religious establishment, away from the scribes and teachers of Law, away from the Pharisees, Sadducees, theologians, Bible scholars and hypocrites, even away from the Temple in all its splendor. Just east of Jerusalem, in a little village, in a single house, He finally finds what He has longed for.

2010-04-14T10:59:00.001-07:00

I see no argument in the Lord Jesus, I only see Him. Seeing Him, I am convinced, and no argument is necessary.

COVERED WITH YOUR LIGHT

2010-04-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh [himself] with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth [herself] with her jewels. (Isa. 61:10)
I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and [that] the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. (Rev.3:18)

MY LORD, BELOVED OF MY HEART...THOUGH YOU SPEAK NOT IN WORDS, YOUR EYES GUIDE ME IN MY APPROACH TO YOU...MY SOUL IS FILLED WITH THE SOUND OF RUSHING WATERS AND THE STILL SMALL VOICE THAT WHISPERS IN THE WIND OF YOUR HOLY SPIRIT. GROANINGS THAT CANNOT BE UTTERED FILL MY HEART TO ACHING FOR YOU...

THIS IS THE CRY OF THE BRIDE, THAT LONGS TO MAKE HERSELF READY...TO BE HOLY AND ACCEPTABLE UNTO YOU...FOR YOU ARE A HOLY GOD...AND HOW SHALL WE COME UNLESS YOU REFINE US, AND MAKE US READY...

LORD, SUBDUE ALL THAT IS WITHIN ME THAT WAGES WAR AGAINST YOUR SPIRIT...CRUSH ME TO POWDER...REFINE ME IN YOUR FIRE...THE FIRE THAT MY FLESH DREDS AND REBELS AGAINST IN DISOBEDIENCE...TEACH ME HOW TO FULLY SURRENDER MY WILL TO YOURS...

I TRUST YOUR WILL AND AUTHORITY, I TRUST YOUR LOVE...SEND YOUR SPIRIT TO REVEAL THE ALL-NESS OF YOU AND HOW EACH MEMBER OF YOUR BODY IS ONE...I LONG TO LOOSE SIGHT OF MY SEPARATE-NESS...AND I KNOW THAT IT IS YOUR LOVE THAT UNITES THE BODY AS ONE...FOR YOU ARE LOVE...

THOUGH I HAVE WRITTEN WHAT MY HEART FEELS...IT IS THE SILENT MOVINGS OF MY HEART AND MIND THAT YOU HEAR...EVEN THE PRAISES OF MY HEART...THANK YOU MY LORD FOR THE SOUNDS OF SILENCE...THANK YOU FOR COVERING MY NAKEDNESS...AND FOR EACH DAYS ANTICIPATION OF YOU, AS I AM BEING MADE READY TO PLEASE THE BELOVED OF MY SOUL.

I TRUST YOUR WORD LORD

2010-04-13T12:01:00.000-07:00

THE KEY

I clutch the key of Your Word to my breast

I trust Your Word

You are faithful and true

like no other

I cling to Your promises

as much as each breath I take

Your Word is my life

my hope and my salvation

With the dawning of each day

I search for You

I lean to hear your voice

and open the gates of my heart

that You may come and go as the wind

In the evening, I search for You

and wait to say good night in peace

knowing that all is well with my soul

Thank you for the key my Lord

I hold it to my breast

I trust Your Word

You are the Faithful and True One

You are like no other.............jelackey

I'M ALWAYS THERE

2010-04-12T19:09:00.000-07:00

Beloved come aside
though storms may come and go
just quietly abide
with me, and you will know
that deep within your heart
I'm always there with you
You need not be afraid
The words I speak are true.

You are my prized possession
the price I paid for you
has sealed you as my treasure
My Sanctuary too

I come and go, just like the wind
you may not even know
I'll never leave you comfortless
Just breathe, and I will show
I'm closer than the breath you take
I'll always hear your call
and answer prayers you pray to me
no matter, big or small

I've come to sanctuary
within your very heart
don't doubt my love that takes delight
in what I can impart

I'll tell you things you never knew
but not to make you wise
for many think their wisdom
will take them to the skies

No, I share with no others
the wisdom only I
can trust to my beloved
my priceless blood bought prize.

Come walk with me beloved
along the narrow way
look not around at others
or grieve at what they say
for flesh and blood is not the answer
it always leads astray
for hearts are desperately wicked
I'm telling you this day

When you are prone to lean to hard
and not rely on me
I let you find out for yourself
that blind men cannot see.

Reach out now child, and take my hand
we'll leap to higher ground
where endless, glorious vistas
reverberate with sound

All Glory, Hallelujah!
All Glory, and amen!
The Lord our God triumphant
Is come, He reigns, within.

With rod and staff and two-edged sword
In me, oh can it be...?
My heart His Sanctuary
He rules inside of me....................

THOSE WHO SEE WITH THEIR HEARTS

2010-04-12T18:43:00.000-07:00

I THINK OF HOW MANY TIMES I THOUGHT I WAS IN LOVE...
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE WE SAID IT...
"I JUST LOVE THIS CAR...THIS FOOD...THIS DRESS...THAT BOY OR GIRL"
WE ATTACH THE WORD LOVE TO ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING WE WANT OR SEE...
THE EYES LUST OVER OUR FLESHLY DESIRES...
AND I'M NOT SAYING IT IS WRONG TO HAVE THE DESIRES OF OUR HEART...
FOR THE LORD LONGS TO GIVE US THE DESIRES OF OUR HEART...
IT'S THE DESIRES OF THE FLESH, THAT GET US INTO TROUBLE...
SOMETIMES THEY ARE PERFECTLY INNOCENT DESIRES...WELL MEANING DESIRES...JUST UN-DISCERNED AND MISGUIDED...
THE PICTURE OF CHRIST ABOVE HAS BEEN ONE OF MY FAVORITE...
BUT I HAVE COME TO FEEL THAT IT IS MY FLESH THAT IS DRAWN TO THIS IMAGE OF HIM...
HOLY SPIRIT...LOVINGLY AND SWEETLY CORRECTED ME BY SAYING,
"DO YOU SEE ME IN THIS SAME WAY WHEN YOU LOOK INTO THE EYES OF A CHILD...OR THE FACE OF A LONELY WIDOW, OR THE HOMELESS AND HELPLESS...?
CAN YOU OFFER THOSE SAME AFFECTIONS THAT YOU FEEL, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS IMAGE, TO THESE SAME PEOPLE...?
DO YOU LONG FOR THE ONENESS WITH THEM IN ME AS YOU DO WITH ME ALONE...?
AND I HAD TO BE HONEST...THE ANSWER WAS NO...
I WAS ASHAMED TO ADMIT IT...BUT I KNOW I CAN'T HIDE ANYTHING FROM HIM...
HE REPLIED,..."BEHOLD MY HEART...YOU SEE IT WITH THE LOVE I HAVE PLACED IN YOU...
BECAUSE OF MY LOVE FOR YOU...YOU CAN LOVE...
LET THIS LOVE OPEN YOUR EYES TO WHO I AM...
THOSE WHO LOVE SEE WITH THEIR HEARTS...
THE VEILS OF RACE, RELIGION, POLITICS AND FINANCIAL STATUS ARE TORN ASUNDER BY THE RULE OF MY KINGDOM IN YOU...
I RULE IN JUSTICE AND TRUTH...AND THAT GOES FOR THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY...
SOME OF MY MOST PRECIOUS JEWELS ARE UGLY TO YOU...
BEWARE! LEST YOU TRAMPLE THEM UNDER YOUR FEET...
JUDGE NOT LEST YOU BE JUDGED...
COME FOLLOW ME...
BEHOLDING BY MY SPIRIT.
IN THIS, IS SPIRIT COME...THAT YOU MAY LOVE.

THE BLESSING AND THE BREAKING

2010-04-12T17:24:00.000-07:00

by Chip Brogden

“And it came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread, and blessed it, and brake and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him” (Luke 24:30-31).
There is a simple truth demonstrated in this post-resurrection encounter with Christ. Can you see it?
I cannot think of a single Christian that does not desire the blessing of the Lord. We earnestly seek and desire God’s blessings on our life. We want the Lord to bless our spiritual life, our home life, our children, our finances, our churches and our ministries. Is there anything wrong with that? Of course not. But the fact remains that we do not always get what we ask for.
What does it mean to be blessed? The common assumption, I believe, is that when God has blessed a person then they will enjoy physical health, financial prosperity, and a general sense of happiness and well-being.
I want us to see that when Jesus blesses something He breaks it. The blessing results in breaking. The prayer for “more” results in “less”. The request for “increase” results in “decrease”. The prayer for blessing results in brokenness.
Do you want to be a blessing to other people, or a burden? Most Christians would say they want to be blessing to others. So God blesses them and then breaks them.
What is going on here? Simply put, the blessing of the Lord is in being reduced to Christ. Who is blessed? Not the one who is rich in spirit, but the one who is poor in spirit. The poor in spirit possess the Kingdom. Those who are broken are blessed, and those who are blessed are broken.
The heart-cry of a disciple of “more of Jesus”. How do we get “more” of Jesus? By getting less of us. With less of me there is more of Him. As I am decreased, He is increased. This is what it means to be blessed.
A brother in the Lord related the following experience to me. As he was watching television he says he came across a woman who was yelling, “Increase! Increase! God wants to increase you and all you have!” This brother says he staggered out of his chair laughing, and said, “Decrease! Decrease! Keep decreasing me Lord, till all there is left is YOU!” Friends, when we understand the blessing and the breaking then we will find ourselves responding the same way. What I love about this is the brother LAUGHED as he rejected the “increase” and embraced the decrease. This is what it means to take up the Cross.
We cry out for “increase” but God has already (past tense) blessed us with “every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). We have the blessing already. What we are lacking is the breaking. We want the blessing without the breaking. But it is not that we need more of the Lord, because we already have all of Him; we just need less of everything else.
After Jesus blessed the bread, and broke it, and gave it to them, their eyes were opened and they knew Him. Until you have the blessing and the breaking your eyes will remain closed. Blessings alone do not open our eyes. Indeed, blessings by themselves tend to close our eyes. We do not come to know Him in the blessing, but in the breaking. Then what we already have in Him will be revealed. Our eyes will be opened and we will see that He has been standing there the whole time.
Do you want to know Him? Do you want to see Him for Who He is? Do you want to go deeper? Do you want to have your eyes opened? Embrace the blessing AND the breaking; receive them both. If you are a bruised reed or a broken cistern, take heart, because you are making progress.

LIVING EPISTLES

2010-04-12T15:24:00.000-07:00

THIS MORNING...BEFORE I EVEN OPENED MY EYES...I WAS CONSCIOUS OF A WORD

"WATER"...THEN..."WINE"...IT WAS ALMOST AUDIBLE.

IT WAS JUST ENOUGH TO GET MY ATTENTION...I ROLLED OVER...

THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS SPOKEN IN THIS WAY...SEEMS LIKE IT'S NEARLY THE ONLY TIME AND WAY TO GET MY ATTENTION...

I KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE, THAT IF I DO NOT GET UP AND START WRITING DOWN WHAT I HEAR...NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY...I FORGET...IT'S GONE!

"IT'S SO COLD...I'M SO TIRED...I WON'T BE ABLE TO GO BACK TO SLEEP."....ONE EXCUSE AFTER ANOTHER....DOESN'T THAT SOUND FAMILIAR?...KIDS MOANING IN THE MORNING ABOUT GETTING UP AND READY FOR SCHOOL.

"I'M NOT GOING TO WAKE YOU UP AGAIN...DO YOU WANT TO HEAR WHAT SPIRIT IS SAYING?....YOU ARE NO LONGER A CHILD....I HAVE COME SOFTLY, AND WILL WAIT JUST LONG ENOUGH FOR YOU TO DECIDE."

I WAS UP IN A FLASH...GRABBING MY PEN AND PAPER...TRYING TO TIP TOE QUIETLY INTO THE LIVING ROOM, AS TO NOT WAKE THE WRATH OF MR. MOSES, WHO HAD A HARD TIME SLEEPING.

THEN AS USUAL THE WORD COMES FASTER THAN I CAN WRITE...A GOOD THING BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IT'S NOT ME THINKING IT THROUGH BEFORE I GET IT DOWN ON PAPER.

THE LORD HAS BEEN FAITHFUL IN MENTORING ME WITH HIS ORACLES...EVER SINCE I WAS A YOUNG CHRISTIAN....
I BELIEVE THAT JUST AS WE WRITE POETRY, SONGS, LETTERS OF COMFORT AND COUNCIL...THAT WORD THAT DWELLS IN YOU...IT IS ALONG THIS SAME LINE THAT HOLY SPIRIT SPEAKS AND REVEALS THE "LIVING WORD" THROUGH US AS ORACLES EDIFYING THE BODY OF CHRIST.

I SAY THIS HUMBLY AND FEARFULLY...COMPLETELY AWARE OF THIS VESSEL OF CLAY THAT IS LEAST OF THE SAINTS...

I HAVE NO AUTHORIZATION...EXCEPT HIS WORD WHICH HE MAKES KNOWN...

I AM MERELY A MOUTHPIECE... HE IS THE WORD...

HOW VAIN AND PRESUMPTUOUS OF ME?...I'M SURE THAT IT SEEMS THAT WAY...

BUT I FEAR THE LIVING GOD, ABOVE MAN...AND IF I LIE...MAN HAS NOTHING TO FEAR...HIS MIND SET WILL BRING HIM TO PEACE AS THE CONSUMING FIRE OF GOD MAKES ME AN EXAMPLE OF PRIDEFUL BLASPHEMY AND SELF-RIGHTEOUS PRESUMPTION.

THIS IS ALL WELL AND GOOD...UNTIL FATHER SETS YOU DOWN AND SAYS YOU HAVE TO BECOME TO OTHERS...WHAT OTHERS HAVE BEEN TO YOU.

I'VE ALWAYS BELIEVED THAT WE ARE LIVING EPISTLES TO MEN...AS WONDERFULLY MARVELOUS AS THE WRITTEN WORD OF GOD...IT TOO IS THE ORACLES OF MEN...
LIVING EPISTLES OF THE TIME OF JESUS...IS TIMELESS..QUICK AND POWERFUL AS THEY WERE AND STILL ARE MINISTERED IN GOD'S SPIRIT...AND AS THE SPIRIT GIVES LIFE TO THE LETTER.

BUT NOW IS HE CALLING US FORTH TO SPEAK IN THESE LAST DAYS...AS ORACLES UNTO HIM...CHRIST IN US...SPEAKING...LIVING EPISTLES OF HIS WORD.

AGAIN...IT IS A FEARFUL THING TO SAY, "THUS SAITH THE LORD."

SO VERY SIMPLY...I WILL FOLLOW MY LORD'S LEAD IN THIS LESSON TOWARD BECOMING A MOUTH PIECE FOR HIM...

"THE WATER AND THE WINE...

THERE IS NO OTHER KIND...

BY WHICH WE COME TO KNOW

THE ONE WHO LOVES US SO...

REJOICE UNTO THAT DAY...

THERE IS NO OTHER WAY...

REDEEMING REASON'S TIME

WITHIN THIS MORNING RHYME...

TIS COMFORTING TO KNOW...

AS ONWARD YOU MUST GO

THROUGH MINUTE AND THROUGH HOUR...

I'LL BE YOUR STRENGTH AND POWER...

THE ORACLES OF GOD...

ALONG THE PATH YOU TROD

WILL COME AND THEN WILL GO...

THE WORD YOU'LL SURELY KNOW...

FOR THEY SHALL SPEAK OF ME...

THAT YOU MIGHT ALWAYS SEE

THE TRUTH ALONG THE WAY, YOU WALK WITH ME TODAY."

I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT HE IS SPEAKING TODAY...I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT YOU CAN HEAR HIM SPEAK...HE LONGS TO FELLOWSHIP WITH YOU PERSONALLY...

THERE IS AN ORDER TO OUR SHARING...IT IS DECENT AND RESPECTFUL...IT IS UNDER THE POWER OF THE ONE SPEAKING TO KEEP IT IN LINE WITH THE SPIRIT'S LEADING, AND NOT THE PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS OF THE ONE SPEAKING.

IT IS FULL OF LOVE...PATIENCE...AND KINDNESS.

IT CAN ALSO BE FULL OF WARNING...DISCIPLINE AND CANDOR...

THIS NEW WINE CANNOT BE POURED INTO OLD WINE SKINS...LEST THEY BURST AND THE WINE SKINS PERISH. ...................JEL

OH THAT I MIGHT KNOW YOU LORD__IN THE POWER OF YOUR FULLNESS

2010-04-12T15:08:00.000-07:00

I'm always amazed at how the Holy Spirit guides and directs our learning in respect of revealing Christ...We have a weekly bible study...many of those who come are just new babes and are so hungry for the Word...they drink the milk of the Word ravenously.....Jesus himself commanded us, " feed my sheep."

But to feed the sheep, we ourselves must have knowledge of what they need to eat...and that is the Word....not just in Bible form, (words)...but in demonstrating the power of the Spirit.

For so long I was under self-condemnation...with the thinking, I did not demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit...because I did not see healing, and prophetic words, and revelation in my life...much of what I shared I learned or gleaned from others...I was like a baby bird that's mother fed it predigested food...I also came to understand, that it was OK to eat the food that was being fed to me by my spiritual mothers and fathers of the Spirit...I HAD TO GROW UP into the KNOWLEDGE of CHRIST....

I also came to know that the greatest demonstration of the power of the Spirit, was to have victory over my own flesh...to mortify it...and I still am...

My strength and hope is in the power of Holy Spirit who has come to give me revelation of Christ the Word and my place in Him...

He is effectually, and essentially establishing me in the Love of His Fellowship and that of the brethren...this is vital, crucial and elemental...that we be found formed and created new in the Spirit of Christ's mind and heart...in the revelation of the things of Spirit, that the Word might be manifest in us by the power of The Word...Christ is that Word...and we must come to hear His Voice in us...with Spirit understanding.

Then shall we demonstrate in power and authority the administration of His Kingdom...then shall we truly feed His sheep those things that will bring forth new life in them... and strength of faith and ministry...that we might all grow up into the unity of Christ, with one mind...to the ministry of worship and praise and honor of our Lord Jesus Christ....King of Kings and Lord of Lords......jOY

Today's sharing from Chip Brogden...perhaps made what I've said more clear...JOY LACKEY

March 18

Today's Message from Chip Brogden

"That I may know Him" (Philippians 3:10).

It is the FULLNESS of Christ that we are after, the revelation of Christ as He IN FACT IS. For too many Christians the Lord Jesus is "merely" their Savior. Thank God He is our Savior, but there is a depth and a richness bound up into the personage of Christ that goes far, far beyond "mere" salvation. Salvation is the narrow gate - coming into the fullness of Christ is the narrow path. The gate is only the entrance to something larger.

FROM AGE TO AGE THE SAME

2010-04-12T15:02:00.000-07:00

DEAR LORD ALFRED TENNYSON....

THE WORD OF GOD IS NEVER DONE

IT SPEAKS FROM AGE TO AGE THE SAME

HIS SPIRIT IS THE LIVING FLAME

THE WIND THAT BLOWS, WE KNOW NOT WHERE

FROM SOUL TO SOUL, ON BREATH OF AIR

TO BRING A WORD OF LIFE TO BE

THE FAITH THAT MAKES ME JUST LIKE THEE

STILL MORTAL, YET WITH PROMISE RARE

THE SON OF GOD WE RIGHTLY SHARE

IN ALL HIS GLORY AND HIS POWER

TOGETHER IN THAT WONDROUS HOUR

WHEN SAINTS MADE PERFECT SING "ALL PRAISE"

ETERNAL SONGS OF ANCIENT DAYS

IT FILLS THE VOID OF HUMAN HEARTS

THAT LIFE AND LOVE KNEW FROM THE START

WE'D BE OF HIS OWN FAMILY

ONE IN CHRIST...ETERNALLY...............jOY

In Memorial A.H.H.
OBIT MDCCCXXXIII.

By Alfred, Lord Tennyson
STRONG Son of God, immortal Love, 1849

Whom we, that have not seen thy face,
By faith, and faith alone, embrace,
Believing where we cannot prove;

Thine are these orbs of light and shade;
Thou madest Life in man and brute;
Thou madest Death; and lo, thy foot
Is on the skull which thou hast made.

Thou wilt not leave us in the dust:
Thou madest man, he knows not why,
He thinks he was not made to die;
And thou hast made him: thou art just.

Thou seemest human and divine,
The highest, holiest manhood, thou:
Our wills are ours, we know not how;
Our wills are ours, to make them thine.

Our little systems have their day;
They have their day and cease to be:
They are but broken lights of thee,
And thou, O Lord, art more than they.

We have but faith: we cannot know;
For knowledge is of things we see;
And yet we trust it comes from thee,
A beam in darkness: let it grow.

Let knowledge grow from more to more,
But more of reverence in us dwell;
That mind and soul, according well,
May make one music as before,

But vaster. We are fools and slight;
We mock thee when we do not fear:
But help thy foolish ones to bear;
Help thy vain worlds to bear thy light.

Forgive what seem'd my sin in me;
What seem'd my worth since I began;
For merit lives from man to man,
And not from man, O Lord, to thee.

Forgive my grief for one removed,
Thy creature, whom I found so fair.
I trust he lives in thee, and there
I find him worthier to be loved.

Forgive these wild and wandering cries,
Confusions of a wasted youth;
Forgive them where they fail in truth,
And in thy wisdom make me wise.

OH THE DEPTHS OF HIS RISIDING

2010-04-12T14:45:00.000-07:00

ENDLESS INNER SPACE
WHERE ORBIT WORLDS OF RESOLUTE-NESS.

SELF CENTERED OR EVER EXPANDING ATONEMENT?
A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD__THE MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR
WHERE CHRIST DWELLS WITH SPIRIT WORD

HIS WORK AND WILL TO PURPOSE BRING
HIS LIGHT TO REALMS WHERE FOUNTAINS SPRING
A FOUNT OF BLESSING TO ALL MEN
TO WASH AWAY THE POWER OF SIN
RECONCILED__AND NOW REDEEMED
FROM ALL THAT WAS NOT WHAT IT SEEMED

ALL NOBLE THINGS THOUGH GREAT OR SMALL
STOOD NOT THE TEST OF ADAM'S FALL
NO MATTER WHAT__NO MATTER WHEN
ONLY ONE WORK WILL CLEANSE FROM SIN

TO FREE US FROM LIFE'S ENDLESS STRIFE
TO DWELL IN PEACE__TILL I DO KNOW
HIS VOICE AND FACE UNVEILED TO SHOW
THAT FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY OWN HEART
HE WORKED TO BRING ME TO THIS START
TO WALK, THOUGH IN A NARROW WAY
UNTIL THE RAPTURE OF HIS DAY

UNTIL THE RAYS OF MORNING LIGHT
MEET THOSE WHOSE VISION IS THEIR SIGHT
THE MINISTRY OF THE INTERIOR
A WORK OF GRACE__AND THUS SO FAR
I DWELL IN HOPE MOST SANCTIFIED
BY ONE WHO IS MY CONSTANT GUIDE
I WILL NOT GIVE MY HEART TO FEAR
BUT FULLY LEAN ON CHRIST SO DEAR.

A ROSE IS A ROSE__WITH NO NOSE

2010-04-12T14:02:00.000-07:00

I CRAWLED INTO BED LATE LAST NIGHT. IT WAS COLD, AND SO WERE MY FEET. THEY TOOK FOREVER TO GET WARM, IT KEPT ME AWAKE.
THEN I HEARD THIS THOUGHT IN MY HEAD.
"A ROSE IS A ROSE, WITH NO NOSE."
I KNOW, I KNOW. I THOUGHT I WAS LOOSING IT TOO. BUT AS I SURRENDERED MY OWN LOGIC AND UNDERSTANDING, THESE ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS CAME.
1. A ROSE HAS NO NOSE...UNAWARE THAT IT SMELLS OF THE SWEETEST PERFUME.
2. A ROSE HAS NO EYES... IT DOES NOT SEE THAT IT THRILLS THE EYES OF THE BEHOLDER WITH IT'S BEAUTY.
3. A ROSE HAS NO MOUTH...SO IT FILLS OURS WITH PRAISE TO THE CREATOR OF IT.
4. A ROSE HAS NO EARS...TO HEAR WHEN WE SPEAK OF IT'S BEAUTY OR IT'S FRAGRANCE. IT IS NOT PUFFED UP__IT JUST IS
A ROSE IS A ROSE IS A ROSE.
IT'S ONE PURPOSE IS TO GLORIFY THE CREATOR AND TO BRING PLEASURE TO HIS HEART AND OURS.
A PLANTING OF THE LORD.
LORD__MAKE ME YOUR PLANTING__CONTENT TO BLOOM WHERE I AM. FRAGRANT WITH PRAYER__MY EYES FIXED ON YOU__MY MOUTH FILLED WITH PRAISE.
LET ALL WHO SEE ME__SEE THE REFLECTION OF YOUR IMAGE, THE BEAUTY OF YOUR GRACE.

GARDENS IN THAT LAND

2010-04-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

by Joy Lackey

My heart is full of glorious praise

for such a gift as these

that smell of heavens sweet perfume

each one to bless and please

Sprinkled through with Babies Breath

perhaps to just remind

that in the vase when all is done

not one will boast it's kind

For each in radiant splendor

the daisy and the rose...

the tulips and the lilies,

a sweet enchanting pose.

My heart is always gladdened,

when I take them in hand...

I always think of Heaven

and gardens in that land.

I think of walks with Jesus

of gentle words he'll say...

My Beloved Rose of Sharon

whose fragrance fills my day

A STONE IN THE HEART

2010-04-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

THIS MORNING AS I WAS TAKING MY MORNING WALK...THE LORD, IN HIS USUAL WAY, HAS TO GET THROUGH TO ME BY COMPARING SOMETHING IN THE NATURAL TO THE SPIRITUAL.

I HAD A SMALL PEBBLE IN MY SHOE THAT WAS MAKING IT VERY PAINFUL TO WALK. I STOPPED SEVERAL TIMES TO TAP MY FOOT, TRYING TO SHAKE IT DOWN OUT OF THE WAY, UNTIL I COULD GET HOME AND DISPOSE OF IT.

BECAUSE I WAS WALKING THE DOG, AND THERE WASN'T ANYWHERE THAT I COULD STOP AND REMOVE MY SHOE, (AT LEAST THAT WAS MY EXCUSE) I CONTINUED ON TRYING TO IGNORE THE OBVIOUS IRRITATION.

I'VE BEEN ASKING THE LORD TO GIVE ME HIS INTERCEDING HEART...WHEN YOU ARE NEARLY SHUT AWAY WITH HIM...AND NOT OUT IN THE WORLD, YOU FEEL YOU ARE NOT IN TOUCH WITH IT'S PAIN AS YOU COULD BE...AND GOD FORGIVE ME...YOU GET INSENSITIVE TO THE NEEDS OF OTHERS.

THIS IS WHAT I THOUGHT WAS KEEPING ME FROM RECEIVING AN ANSWER TO THIS PRAYER...

THIS IS THE PICTURE THAT HOLY SPIRIT REVEALED IN MY MIND CONCERNING THIS...

"JOY...LISTEN! YOU PREPARED FOR THIS WALK, BY PUTTING ON YOUR SHOES...YOU DID NOT LOOK INSIDE TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANYTHING THAT COULD HINDER YOUR WALK. THE SMALLEST STONE CAN HINDER YOUR WALK WITH ME. LOOK INSIDE! LOOK INSIDE!

YES, I SAID THAT YOU COULD COME BOLDLY BEFORE MY THRONE...IN THIS I WILL COMMAND YOU TO REMOVE YOUR SHOES, FOR YOU WILL WALK ON HOLY GROUND...EVEN SO...TO WALK WITH ME, TO INTERCEDE WITH ME...YOU MUST LOOK FOR AND REMOVE THE STONES THAT MAY BE HIDING IN YOUR HEART.

YOU HAVE IGNORED THE STONE IN YOUR HEART, THINKING TO REMOVE IT LATER...

REMOVE IT NOW!....REMOVE IT NOW....STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING, AND REMOVE IT NOW!

THEN COME AND FEEL THE PAIN OF A BROKEN AND CONTRITE HEART...THAT WHICH IS MY OWN HEART THAT INTERCEDES IN YOUR BEHALF...AND THAT FOR THE WHOLE WORLD...

WAITING

2010-04-10T19:53:00.000-07:00

Lord, for so long I have waited...gone through the days and nights, waiting. I wake thinking of You...walk through my days with you...my heart like the young girl I once was...still in love with You...I still desire to please You in every way... There were times, and even most recently, that I wearied with waiting...for now the beauty of my youth is gone, and I have nearly lost hope....like Sara who laughed in her tent...shall I bare any good thing for thee?.... But my Beloved, you dwell in the eternities, and who am I to dictate the time that you come and sanctify this life to Your own...So I will wait forever, if I need to...for you are my one desire, my only desire...and I too shall cry out, "Oh that I might know you and the power of Your Resurrection!".... Rouse me Lord out of my weariness, my apathy, and come to me...be my restoration...dress me in the garments of praise and faith, joy and the radiance of Your Light, Your Spirit Word....I delight in You my Lord...How beautiful You are to me....

DYING TO SELF

2010-04-10T19:33:00.000-07:00

...when you are forgotten,neglected, or deliberately ignored and you don't sting and hurt with the insult, but your heart is happy being counted worthy to suffer for Christ

...when people speak evil of your good, cross your desires, disregard your advice, ridicule your opinions and you refuse to let anger rise in your heart or even defend yourself, but take it all in patient, loving silence

...when you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, any irregularity, any annoyance, and when you stand face to face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensitivity, and you endure it as Jesus endured

...when you are content with any food, any offering, any climate, any society, any clothing, any interruption by the will of God

...when you never care to refer to yourself in conversation or to record your own good words, or to have people take notice of what you say, or to itch after commendations, it is when you can truly love to be unknown

...when you receive correction and reproof from one of less stature than yourself and can humbly submit inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising up within your heart.

Are you a dead person?

In these last days, the Spirit would bring us to the cross, that we might utter with Paul, "I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death."

- Author unknown

FAITH IS THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN

2010-04-09T05:06:00.000-07:00

Lord, I come to You this morning with so many needs

I am helpless, but to come and hold them up to Your

mercy and grace. I trust no other for the answers, except

that you use who ever You will as vessels to accomplish

all that is Your purpose and to Your glory.

I know that you hear the endless cries of humanity in a

way that we cannot...they are the same cries that led you

to the Cross...You have made away of escape...The Way of Love.

And still we are deaf and blind and naked in our shame.

May I kneel here next to you my Lord...will you give me Your

interceding heart...that I might know the Love that has come

to set the captives free?

Let this humble heart minister to You this morning Lord...hear

the prayers of the righteous who long for You...to worship You

and adore You...to give to you from those depths of our heart

which You have opened up, and sing glory, glory, glory, Lord

God Almighty. Worthy of all praise, and honor...worthy is the

Lamb."

ONE OF THOSE DAYS LORD

2010-04-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

BOY DOES THIS PICTURE CAPTURE HOW I FELT TODAY...

I'M REALLY SLOWING DOWN...AND MY ORGANIZATION SKILLS HAVE FLOWN THE COOP!

MADE A MASTER PIECE OF A LEMON MERINGUE PIE...THE KITCHEN LOOKED LIKE I BAKED EIGHT OF THEM...LOL

HOW DID I EVER RAISE KIDS?

LORD, THANK YOU FOR YOUR LOVE AND PATIENCE WITH THIS OLD LADY...FOR HELPING ME WHEN I FORGET SOMETHING THAT I TOLD MYSELF, JUST FIVE MINUTES BEFORE, THAT I WOULDN'T FORGET...I FEEL YOU BY MY SIDE...YOU'RE ALWAYS THERE...PATIENT AND EVER CONSOLING ME IN MY FRUSTRATIONS...I LOVE YOU LORD...I LOVE YOU SO MUCH....BE PRAISED, BE HONORED, BE GLORIFIED, IF YOU WILL, IN THIS SIMPLE BUT BLESSED VESSEL THAT IS SLOWLY BLOOMING WHERE I AM BECAUSE OF YOUR GREAT LOVE....................

HIS LOVE IS LIFTING ME HIGHER

2010-03-25T10:43:00.000-07:00

RISE AND SHINE AND GIVE GOD GLORY! GIVE HIM A SACRIFICE OF PRAISE! SHOUT, AND LET THE HEAVENS RING WITH THE WORSHIP AND HONOR OF HIS NAME!...MINISTER UNTO HIM WITH A JOYFUL AND GREATFUL HEART...YES! REJOICE EVERMORE...

TUPPERWARE DRAWERS AND TOUCHING THE SKY

2010-03-16T00:17:00.000-07:00

LORD, I JUST COULDN'T GO TO BED WITHOUT THANKING YOU FOR ONE OF THE MOST DELIGHTFUL BIRTHDAYS I'VE EVER HAD...I'LL NEVER FORGET IT.....

THE FIRST DAY IN MY LIFE THAT I ALLOWED MYSELF TO BE LOVED...WITHOUT ANY WALLS OF DEFENCE...AND BELIEVING THAT WHEN SOMEONE SAYS THEY LOVE ME...THEY REALLY MEAN IT.

IT ALL STARTED THE OTHER DAY WHEN WE HAD JUST ONE HOUR BEFORE WE WERE TO SIGN PAPERS TO BUY A HOUSE...AND I WOKE UP KNOWING THAT WE WERE MAKING A MISTAKE...

HOW DO I CALL THE REALTOR AND EXPLAIN?...

I'M NOT SURE THAT I SHOULD CALL...WHY AM I NOW SO CONFUSED WHEN WE WERE SO SURE THE DAY BEFORE?...

THEN YOU REMINDED ME OF THE WORD YOU GAVE CONCERNING WHERE WE ARE NOW...."DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE RENT...I HAVE GIVEN YOU THIS PLACE FOR A SEASON."...

AND OF COARSE, JUST LIKE ME, I WORRIED ABOUT THE RENT...AND FORGOT ABOUT THE WAY YOU PROVIDED EVERY LITTLE THING WE NEEDED TO SET UP HOUSE, AFTER LEAVING 40 YEARS OF "STUFF" BACK IN ARIZONA, WITH NOTHING BUT WHAT WE COULD PACK INTO OUR THUNDERBIRD....

I REMEMBER HOW EXCITED I WAS ABOUT THE HUGE DEEP AND WIDE DRAWER UNDER THE WALL OVEN....THE PERFECT PLACE FOR MY TUPPERWARE AND SMALL STORAGE JARS...THE LEAST OF THE DESIRES OF MY HEART, THAT YOU PROVIDED LORD...

WHEN WE FINALLY MADE OUR DECISION TO NOT BUY THE HOUSE, IT WAS LIKE A 1000 lb WHEIGHT WAS LIFTED OFF MY BACK...

YOUR DISCIPLINE FOR MY LACK OF WAITING ON YOU MORE FULLY, AND FORGETTING TO LET YOU LEAD IN THE WHERE, WHEN AND HOWS WAS DESERVED, REQUIRED AND JUSTLY GIVEN...

SINCE THEN, YOU HAVE WALKED WITH ME IN FELLOWSHIP OF A LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING THAT I CAN'T EVEN EXPLAIN...AND TONIGHT YOU CONFIRMED THAT LOVE IN THE MOST SPECIAL OF WAYS...

THE LAST FEW WEEKS I'VE HAD SUCH A DESIRE TO SWING IN A SWING...I ASKED HUBBY TO TAKE ME SOMEWHERE WHERE I COULD...I DON'T KNOW WHY, EXCEPT THAT IT IS AND ALWAYS WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS TO DO, AS A CHILD GROWING UP.

MY BIRTHDAY CAME AND WENT....THEN TONIGHT...A SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY WITH FAMILY....AN EVENING STROLL THROUGH THE PARK WITH LOVED ONES...STRAIGHT TO A SET OF SCHOOL YARD SWINGS....

YOU'RE JUST AWESOME LORD...AWESOME!....AND I RAN LIKE A CHILD TO THE SWING...AND PUMPED RIGHT UP TO THE STARRY SKY!

THE BONDAGE OF THE CARNAL FLESH AND MIND

2010-03-15T12:00:00.000-07:00

by Joy Lackey

From the day we are born, we learn or are taught to be slaves or visionaries...we bow to the bondages of the flesh, the mind and the spirit...or we follow that inner light that each of us are blessed with in the beginning. That Light which shines in the darkness, just enough to challenge us to come and investigate it's source.

Of coarse the enemy of our soul is perfectly aware of it's source, and will do anything to counterfeit it. He is a master at being an angel of light...a light that reaches only the flesh eyes and mind...the way to the soul. He would draw The Light from us through lies and deception and bind us with the chains of fear, doubt and unbelief...self doubt, condemnation, and pride....He knows that's the only way to keep us from the Truth of who we really are...and that he is not the Light that frees us from the darkness...

We do not perceive that his light is darkness... that his life is death, that it is the corrupted flesh... (DNA), and the mind, and spirit...he would have us accept the flesh life as the only true life there is...

He has convinced us that our emotions are our spirit...that our mind is our only reasoning whether sound or insane...that our flesh is our immortality, until we look death stark in the face...and that haunting and familiar lie that we have heard so many times before saying, "You will not die"...now laughs at our arrogant, and ignorant fate.

It is that same story of a beginning ions ago...In that perfect place and time where the eternal God of creation placed the first Adam and the best part of himself to love, in the oneness of his being...in the image of God....the Mind the Word...the Spirit. The masculine and feminine in complete harmony and purpose, in the fellowship of oneness and worship of God.

They walked in His Light...the whole of the garden was filled with the Light...it was all they did see and know...The Word of Spirit was what they heard and obeyed...their flesh, their mind and their spirit was pure and free of bondage in that Light...They were one with Him...made in His image, yes, but they COMPREHENDED Him not...

Therefore did He subject them to vanity...according to His own will and purpose...

The darkness could not confound God's Light...and in the subtleness of that serpent heart, that creature of iron matter, Lucifer conspired to reflect the image of Eve, that she might see her own beauty...and she was made subject to vanity...not willingly, but by the fore-knowledge of God...

Eve took of the fruit of vanity and her heart was lifted up, as she beheld her own image and imagined it to be her own...and she was filled with the lust of the flesh, and offered herself and the fruit of her body in the knowledge of carnality which had corrupted her...and beguiled Adam with her flesh and suffered him to surrender to her flesh and not the Spirit...

And they fell into darkness...and fear entered their hearts and minds...and they knew shame...and condemnation...as they came to hear that serpent lier who was a lier and corrupter from the beginning...who was filled with the deception of his own being, thinking himself to be of Spirit, and he was not...for he was God's tool of matter, created in the beginning to bring those who He had predestined in His foreknowledge to become members of the fellowship of His Spirit...

through the Last Adam who was the firstborn of the creatures from the corrupted flesh to Spirit...from death to Life by the choice of the Comprehension and faith in the Word of the Living God who was manifest in the flesh of His only Begotten Son...that One who was born of a virgin having the fullness of the Godhead manifest in Him from the beginning, for in Him dwelt the Alpha and Omega...The Spirit Word, the Pure Truth, the Way of Faith and Justice and Love...there was no shadow of turning in Him...He saw and heard with comprehension the Word of his Father who dwelt in Him in all authority and power...even as Patience had her most perfect work established in Him through his growing years under the tutoring of his flesh family...he set the example before us in all obedience to His heavenly Father, even unto death...

It is this bondage to our flesh, through carnal thinking, and emotion that blinds us to the reality of the invisible God...who requires the surrender of our god-ness to The Living and True God that longs to redeem us from the penalty of death...by reason of breaking the Law which corrupted us and separated us from a Holy and Just God, who's laws are immovable and fixed in the heavens and the earth...that bring Life or death through the operation of Faith's Seed and the conception of Spirit Life, or the corruption of the flesh, mind and spirit through the disobedience of God's eternal laws...

All that the Father God of heaven had...he gave, in and through His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON...to bring us back from death, to LIFE...Nothing we do or say will obtain this priceless and eternal place in God's kingdom...IT IS A GIFT...CHRIST IS THE GIFT... and to reject Him is to reject Life!

I can remember when this was first was presented to me...and I thought to myself..." How does this have anything to do with REAL life?...And it wasn't until mine was literally falling apart, and there were NO ANSWERS...that I turned to the ONE who has promised...the ONE who gives His WORD and keeps it...Maybe not in the way I think it should be done...but always for my good, and always for His glory...

I've said a lot here...but nothing is so important as that which draws you to the "REALITY of Christ Jesus"...God manifest in the flesh, crucified by His own creatures, brought back to life, by His Father, to show who and where THAT LIFE comes from...

The One who offered that Life to ALL who will turn to Him in faith, believing, with complete and obedient surrender to the Life of Spirit and His Word...It is the intercourse of His Spirit that births in us the Life of Christ, and the hope of all He has promised in bringing us to His fullness, ....in the knowledge and wisdom of the Truth which will give Light and revelation that will set us free from the bondage of our carnal flesh, our carnal mind and spirit to the freedom of the sons of God, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit...

jOY

NO TONGUE CAN TELL

2010-03-06T22:33:00.000-08:00

No tongue can tell

There's just no way I can put into words, what the deepest and best part of me wants to tell or say...that part of me that the Lord in His mercy and grace made alive and brand new...where there was sorrow and sadness, he gave me joy...where there was fear and doubt, he gave me peace...where there was turmoil and struggle in body, mind and spirit...he gives rest...It's not like what the world gives, or promises...it's foundation is sure and eternal...it is built upon the Word of God...that which is written, and that which He himself speaks to the listening heart, the hungering heart, the desperate heart, that longs for His presence and loving embrace...

I want that for you...you who might be reading this...I want that for you as much as I've ever wanted Him for myself. There is no other Love like his...there is no one as faithful and true...there is no one who will keep you in all your ways like Him...If you could only feel my heart, then you would feel His...for I have no heart without him...that was taken from me at an early age...but He came and held me like no one else ever did...He didn't speak...yet I heard Him, I felt His Love, it's not like our love...

Lord...please take what is on my heart and make it alive to this one who reads this...build a hedge around them and protect them from those unseen forces that would prevent them from hearing your voice, and feeling your loving arms...be their burden bearer...wipe their tears, ease their pain, whether it is physical, mental or spiritual...BE REAL TO THEM...in this sacred moment, this now moment...

Open their eyes and heart to your Truth...It is your Word that speaks in them, that is Truth...give them ears to hear....I ask this in Your powerful, Holy and righteous name...Amen

He loves you beloved...with an everlasting love...no matter what...no matter what...just crash on Him...surrender...all and everything...He will work all things together for your good...trust Him, believe, wait, rest....and REJOICE!

THE MAN

2010-02-22T20:28:00.001-08:00

LORD...SPEAK THIS WORD, EVEN ACCORDING TO YOUR WILL...THERE IS NO LIFE IN MY WORDS, BUT YOU CAN BE THE POWER OF LIFE SPOKEN IN UTTERANCE OF FAITH.

WHAT GREAT LOVE YOU HAVE FOR THE MAN YOU HAVE PLACED IN POWER OVER US HERE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA...FROM THE VERY DAY HE WAS BORN, THOUGH EVEN NOW, HE KNOWS IT NOT...YOU CHOSE HIM FOR EXACTLY WHAT HE IS DOING. I THANK YOU LORD, FOR THE MAN, MR. OBAMA...PRESIDENT OBAMA. I THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING HIM TO FULFILL YOUR PURPOSE, I THANK YOU THAT YOU ARE WORKING IN HIM TO DO YOUR WILL.

THERE ARE THOSE WHO HAVE GREAT POWER, THAT THINK TO CHANGE YOUR WILL...AND YOU LAUGH.

I HAVE SEEN YOUR HEART TOWARD HIM LORD...HOW YOU STAND WITH HIM, WHEN HE IS ALONE...HOW YOU SUSTAIN HIM WHEN HE IS OVERWHELMED. HOW YOU ARE HIS WISDOM, HIS COMFORT, HIS GUIDE...

I FEEL YOUR HEART, WHEN HE CHOOSES TO LEAN TO HIS OWN UNDERSTANDING, OR COMPROMISES YOUR WILL BECAUSE OF THE HOARDS OF PRINCIPALITIES THAT COME IN THE CLOAK OF FLESH AND BLOOD TO WAR AGAINST THE TRUTH.

SEND YOUR WARING ANGELS LORD, BUILD A HEDGE AROUND THIS MAN AND HIS FAMILY...SEAL THEM LORD UNTO YOU...RAISE THEM UP OUT OF CARNAL THINKING AND EMPOWER THEM WITH THE SPIRIT OF YOUR MIGHT...LET YOUR WORD BE YE AND AMEN...LET HIS WEAPONS NOT BE CARNAL, BUT MIGHTY TO THE PULLING DOWN OF STRONG HOLDS...

LET THIS MAN FEAR YOU LORD...REVEAL YOURSELF, EVEN WITH THE WRITING OF YOUR FINGER UPON THE WALL...GIVE HIM THE FAITH AND CONFIDENCE THAT COMES FROM KNOWING YOU...
EVEN IN THE MIDST OF CONFUSION...GIVE HIM THE STRENGTH OF A LION HEART...LET HIM SPEAK, AND THE ENEMY FALL BACKWARDS...

IN THE DARKEST HOURS...BE THIS MANS LIGHT...GUIDE HIS EVERY STEP...DELIVER HIM FROM VANITY AND PRIDE...I ASK FOR YOUR NAME'S SAKE THAT IN SPITE OF HIS POWER, HE COME TO RECOGNISE, NOT WITH HIS CARNAL MIND, BUT WITH HIS HEART...THAT YOU TRULY ARE THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE FOR ALL MEN, AND THAT THERE IS NO OTHER GOD BESIDE YOU...LET THIS PRAYER HAVE WINGS, AND FIND IT'S WAY TO MR. OBAMA, THE MAN.

A Love Letter To My Daughter Pt 1

2010-02-20T22:40:00.000-08:00

A Love Letter To My Daughter Pt 1: "An intimate love letter with eternal consequences."

2010-02-20T21:55:00.000-08:00

The Lord reigns...let the earth rejoice, let the multitude of the iles be glad for it. Clouds and darkness are round about Him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of His throne.

Even the people stood afar off, as Moses drew near unto your thick darkness my God...

But you, my God, have made a way...You are become the Way...whereby we can approach boldly unto you through your Son, who interceeds in our behalf...to give Light to those who sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death...to guide our feet into the way of peace...to give us knowledge of salvation and the remission of sins...

Now, you my God have commanded the Light to shine out of darkness, and into our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of your glory in the face of your Son Jesus Christ...in this we have treasure in our earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power my be of You and not of us.

Blessed Day Star, rise in our hearts, rise in our minds, our very soul...We will walk in the Light even as you are in the Light, your are the Light that shines unto a perfect Day.

2010-02-20T21:03:00.000-08:00

I love you, I love you, I love you....the only way I know how...I will sit here as you have asked and pray that your heart will be comforted...and each one who reads this will come for awhile and bow silently in their hearts before you, acknowledging your heart and the ache you have shared with us for the Love that you have for us, and the desire to be one with us even as you are with your Father...Be loved, my Beloved...c

My Daughter Pt 2

2010-02-12T21:13:00.000-08:00

My Daughter Pt 2: "This is a continuation of a love letter to His daughter from God the Father in heaven."

THE LIFE AND THE WITNESS

2010-01-28T21:55:00.000-08:00

DEAR ONES; TO THOSE WHO HAVE FAITHFULLY ENCOURAGED ME TO ADD TO "SHEBET' THE PSALMS OF MY HEART... I WOULD LIKE TO INVITE YOU TO VISIT "THE LIFE AND THE WITNESS WHERE I AM NOW SHARING ON THE NING NETWORK... AGAIN, THANK YOU, EACH ONE...........jOY

http://thesealandpledge.ning.com/profile/JoyLackey/

2010-01-15T10:01:00.000-08:00

LORD, THIS MORNING AS I SIT BEFORE YOU...I'M ALL OUT OF WORDS, THERE'S NOTHING LEFT TO SAY...IF I SAY I LOVE YOU, I FEEL HELPLESS TO LOVE YOU AS YOU DESERVE...iF I DESIRE TO PRAISE YOU...NOTHING CAN PRAISE YOU ENOUGH...ALL I CAN DO IS SURRENDER THE VESSEL THAT I AM, THAT YOU HAVE CREATED, AND ASK THAT YOU USE ME AS YOU WILL...I lOVE YOU LORD

2010-01-10T01:30:00.000-08:00

LORD, I THINK OF WHAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN LIKE, WHEN THERE WAS SO LITTLE NOISE TO DISTRACT THE MIND FROM REALLY GETTING QUIET...
NOW...EVEN WHEN IT'S QUIET, THERE'S A NOISE THAT YOU CAN STILL HEAR IN YOUR HEAD...THIS GENERATION IS PLUGGED INTO NOISE...PHONES, TELEVISION, THE INTERNET, EVERY IMAGINABLE INVENTION OF MAN THAT MAKES NOISE CROWDS OUT YOUR STILL SMALL VOICE...AND THEN WHEN ONE TRIES TO PRAY AND FELLOWSHIP WITH YOU, THE VERY THOUGHTS OF OUR HEAD ARE AT WAR WITH OUR HEARTS DESIRE TO BE QUIET BEFORE YOU.

BUT NOW, IN THIS VERY MOMENT, I GIVE YOU MY FULL ATTENTION, AND IN SPITE OF ALL THE NOISE IN MY HEAD, I FIX MY HEART UPON YOU. I ASK YOU TO QUIET THE STORM, AND COMMAND THE WATERS TO BE STILL...IF YOU ARE WANTING ME TO GROW UP AND DO THIS MYSELF, IN YOUR NAME...THEN TEACH ME LORD...TEACH ME TO DWELL IN THE SANCTUARY OF MY HEART, WHERE YOUR KINGDOM IS BEING ESTABLISHED, UNOBSERVED YET MIGHTY IN IT'S POWER...BY YOUR SPIRIT, BY YOUR WORD...LET IT BE SO..

2009-12-23T21:42:00.000-08:00

BECAUSE YOU LOVE ME...I LOVE...BECAUSE YOU SPEAK TO ME...I LOVE

I HAVE FELT YOUR HOLY SPIRIT FLY WITHIN MY HEART AND COO THE SOFT MURMURING SOUND OF LOVE...THE SOUND OF GRACE AND PEACE AND REST.
HOW CAN I NOT LOVE YOU, MY LOVE

YOUR LOVE HAS COME TO REACH OUT TO ALL WHO WILL TO LOVE
YOUR LOVE HAS COME TO LIFT THE BROKEN OF BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT...

I HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN OF SO MUCH...AND YOUR LOVE'S MERCY REACHES OUT TO ME EVERY MOMENT OF MY LIFE...FORGIVING, FORGETTING, SUSTAINING, PREPARING, STRENGTHENING, KEEPING...ALL AND MORE IN THE POWER OF YOUR LOVE.

I CAN DO NOTHING BUT LOVE YOU...FOR YOU HAVE DRAWN ME TO YOUR BOSOM AND I FEEL YOUR LOVE PERMEATE MY VERY BEING...

I AM YOURS, AND YOU ARE MINE...MY LOVE... IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT I MUST LOVE OR DIE.
LORD, WHEN I FEEL LIKE I DON'T LOVE...I DIE...I DIE
HAVE MERCY ON MY SOUL FOR DOUBTING YOUR LOVE IN ME, FOR LOOKING TO MYSELF TO GIVE LOVE...
I AM LOST WITHOUT YOUR LOVE...AND WHEN YOU DRAW ME NEAR, GENTLY CALLING MY NAME, I CAN DO NOTHING BUT COME...FOR MY SOUL KNOWS YOUR LOVE...IT HAS DELIVERED ME FROM THE POWER OF SIN AND DEATH...IT COMFORTS MY SOUL AND BRINGS JOY UNSPEAKABLE AND FULL OF GLORY...

THANK YOU FOR THE PAIN OF NOT KNOWING OR UNDERSTANDING...FOR IT HAS PRESSED ME INTO YOUR ARMS AGAIN...

FORGIVE ME, FORGIVE ME ..LOVER OF MY SOUL, MY BELOVED ONE...MY GOD

2009-12-04T22:33:00.000-08:00

Lord...when I read verses like these I am completely set back. I think of the those who came out of Egypt and couldn't approach or touch the Mt. of God lest they die...how no one but the high priest could enter the Holy of Hollies...

I come to you myself and confess that I am guilty of not realizing the seriousness of approaching a Holy God...How I'm sure I come with the corruption of my daily living, not coming clean before you in reverence and fear.

How do I say thank you for the shed blood of your Son, which cleanses me of all unrighteousness? How do I say thank you for the work of forgiveness, for your patience, for your undying love. Is it possible for even my praise to come before you untarnished by my wayward thoughts...by my lack of understanding and and outright apathy...? I confess being unenthusiastic and pathetically indifferent at times...half hearted and leaning toward being dangerously lukewarm...

You see all that is going on in my life...I will not use one thing for an excuse to be or feel the way I do...I simply come before you, just as I am and bow my head in shame and surrender. Thou art a consuming fire...consume all that offends you my Lord...this is my earnest prayer...

YOU'RE MY BELOVED

2009-11-08T13:52:00.000-08:00

You're my Beloved

you're my Bride

To sing over you is my delight

Come away with me, my Love

Under my mercy

come and wait

until we are standing face to face

I see no stain on you, my child

You're beautiful to me

so beautiful to me

I sing over you my song of peace

Cast all of your care down at my feet

Come and find your Rest in Me

I'll breathe My Life inside of you

I'll bear you up on eagle's wings

and hide you in the shadow of my strength.

I'll take you to my quiet place,

I'll restore your soul

Come rest in me and be made whole.

You're my Beloved

You're my Bride

to sing over you is my delight

Come away with me, my Love

By Kari Jobe__Gateway Worship

SOUL SONG

2009-11-05T12:28:00.000-08:00

Lord, those of us that do not have the specific gift which you have measured out to others, to play and instrument, or sing in tune like the thrill of your song birds...we come asking that you play upon our heart strings the melodies of Spirit, that our own spirits may soar to the heights of your love and minister what joy you are, what grace you are, what majesty, and power...be praised in Spirit and in Truth...let our songs be acceptable in your hearing, a worthy gift of our praise...our soul's song to you...

2009-11-05T00:16:00.000-08:00

Allelujah, allelujah, allelujah to THE great Lord GOD JEHOVAH, YAHWEY...from everlasting to everlasting...You are the ONLY TRUE GOD...the eternal, imortal, invisible God...You oh Lord Jehovah are the ONLY ONE TRUE GOD...Above all, ALL POWERFUL...Majestic, HOLY GOD...and to your Beloved Son, Yeshua Jesus Christ, be all praise, honor and glory to his Holy name...Lord God almighty, be worshiped and glorified for all eternity.

LET ALL OF CREATION GIVE HIM GLORY

2009-10-29T23:48:00.000-07:00

Lord...I've heard testimony of those who have heard the songs of creation...each in their kingdom join together in singing your praises, from the smallest to the greatest...the orbs in space sing together, the trees clap their hands, the flowers bloom their fragrance and vibrate in miriads of color and glorious praise...the birds thrill with the dawn and greet you with their song...and Oh the harmony of it all...

We are so deaf...so blind...and unmoved...

How is it possible that we have become so callous to the abundant Life all around us? How is it that we look no further than our own wants and needs...missing the testimonial display of your gifts that come down to us, dear Father of Lights?

You gave me life, that I might commune with you, bless you and praise you...yes...But you did it out of your LOVE nature, your Holy Spirit nature, that desires to be at one with your creation...

In this moment let my full attention give you praise...honor and glory to your name...I join with all of creation as we wait for the manifestation of the sons of God...All of creation groans to be released Lord...

Until then, I will glory in the testiment of your loving grace, in the beauty of the rose, the rush of a gentle breeze, the sound of a bird greeting the dawn, and strain to hear the singing of numberless stars in distant galaxies...

"In the beginning was the WORD, and WORD was with God, and the WORD was God...Be praised, and honored and glorified in all of Heaven and Earth...let everything that has breath praise YOU, let the rocks and rills, the rushing waters, and every heavenly host give YOU the praise you are due".............AMEN

BEARING THE IMPRINT OF IT'S ORIGIN

2009-10-25T21:48:00.000-07:00

Lord, is there a vibration in my heart that only you can hear?

That distinct cry of a child that a mother runs to.

There is a welling up in me, that can't be expressed in words, groanings from deep inner space...melodious discords of longing and searching.

Shall I find that right note,

that note filled with power that will fill all my being with songs of knowing praise?

Lord, accept these songs of my heart...fill the sanctuary of my being...Your temple with praises of Spirit Truth.

My inner man worships you Lord...

Most Holy God.

Oh present moment

Devine Ambassador

Declaring the will of God

Full of Glory!

Full of Joy!

Expect nothing beyond it

You'll lack nothing

Be satisfied

with my all sufficiant grace

Oh heart

Accept with abandonment

ever advancing

never halting

in winds of providence

Life's infinite voyage

Oh adorable moment.... SET YOUR MIND LIKE A COMPASS

spread with veils....YOUR EYES FIXED AND FIRM

holy in Your manifestation.... UNWAVERED IN MY PRESENCE

though shadows fall.... DO NOT TRY TO TURN

with utter devastation displayed.... NEITHER RIGHT NOR LEFT

I AM reigns!....STEP BY STEP

with secret and divine wisdom.... ALONG THE NARROW WAY

in every passing moment.... I AM THE "NORTH STAR"

My ceaseless increase.... I'LL GUIDE YOU ALL THE WAY

most excellent,

bears the imprint of divine origin........ JEL

2009-10-14T23:41:00.000-07:00

LORD, YOU HAVE SHOWN US THAT OUR LIVES ARE LIKE THE BLOOMING OF A ROSE...ONE PETAL AT A TIME.

EACH PETAL IS TIGHTLY WOUND AROUND THE NEXT IN PERFECT SYMMETRY. ONLY YOU, MASTER CREATOR, HAVE SET THE ORBIT OF IT'S UNFOLDING, AND ARE WORTHY OF THE OPEN FACE OF IT...YET YOU HAVE CHOSEN TO SHARE IT'S BEAUTY AS A TESTIMONY OF WHO YOU ARE.

ONE PETAL AT A TIME

THROUGH SUNSHINE AND THROUGH RAIN

ONE PETAL AT A TIME

TO GLORIFY YOUR NAME

TILL BUDDED FLOWER BE BLOOM

AND SENDS OFF SWEET PERFUME

ONE PETAL AT A TIME

MY HEART'S ONE SONG REFRAIN.................jOY Lackey

WONDER OF WONDERS

2009-10-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

CLOSER THAN A TOUCH ON MY SKIN
DEEPER THAN A BREATH I DRAW IN
STRONGER THAN A HURRICANE WIND
IS THE DWELLING OF YOU MY GOD WITHIN

Father, your Son said that he was going to prepare a place for us. Ever since I can remember, I've wondered how heaven could be more beautiful than the wonders of your creation here on earth. I've grieved at not being able to see even 1/10th of all there is here to see.

I just want to say thank you for all your creation. I'm sorry that most of us take it for granted. We distroy so much of your handi-work, some that has taken eons to finish. We have and are becoming so diobedient and disrespectful as stewards of this planet and it's resources.

If there is a heaven, and there is; How long would it last if flesh and blood should inherit such a kingdom such as yours. I say this in respect to the created world and the Kingdom that reigns in our hearts.

I love you Lord...thank you for the bears, the stars, and every ocean tide, the rocks and rills, the cattle on a thousand hills....thank you for uncharted lands of inner rhelms where you will conquer thrones and pricipalities in me, and set your kingdom, unobserved by human eye, and lift my spirit to where eyes have not seen nor ears heard, nor has it even entered into the mind, the things that you have prepared for your own...

Wonder of wonders...in what I can see...Wonder of wonders inside of me...Who can tell it?...............Joy

2009-10-13T01:07:00.000-07:00

LORD, ONCE AGAIN I HAVE COME TO THE PLACE IN THE DARK WHERE ALL I CAN SEE IS MY FEET...I DON'T KNOW WHERE I AM OR WHERE I'M GOING...I AM COMPLETELY POWERLESS TO EFFECT ONE THING IN MY LIFE. I'M ASHAMED THAT I'VE ENDED UP HERE AGAIN...AND I'M AFRAID.

YOU HAVE LED ME THUS FAR...AND NEVER FAILED ME...BUT MY HEART IS SICK, BECAUSE I LONG TO BE GROWN UP ENOUGH TO LEAD OTHERS IN YOUR WAY...I LONG TO SEE THEM DELIVERED AND SET FREE...

I HAVE NO MIGHT...I HAVE NO POWER...I KNOW IN MY HEAD WHERE IT COMES FROM...HOLY SPIRIT GRIEVE NOT AT MY LACK OF FAITH AND UNBELIEF...HELP ME LORD WITH MY UNBELIEF.

MY ONE CONSOLATION IS THAT NO MATTER WHAT A FAILIURE I AM, AND NO MATTER WHAT I THINK OR FEEL...YOU "WILL" FINISH EVERY WORK YOU START...IN ME, IN THOSE I LOVE, AND IN THE WORLD...BE GLORIFIED, AND HONORED AND PRAISED...BLESSED IS YOUR NAME ABOVE EVERY NAME. IN YOU IS POWER AND STRENGTH AND SALVATION...IN YOU ALONE.

A NEW DAY

2009-10-02T22:11:00.000-07:00

Lord...here it is another week has gone by...I can hardly keep up anymore.

One day just seems to run into the other.

That's the way the minutes go by for me...one thought of you to the next. I never feel alone, but I long to look upon your face more and more.

Help me to be more aware of the "New Day" in you...to perceive you as the rising sun that gives joy and blessing and hope.

That fills my heart with reason to rejoice in gladness and thanksgiving.

The nations rage...the earth is heaving from within...the oceans are breaking beyond their boundaries...and the souls of men run to and fro in fear and confusion...

I am so blessed to run to you for shelter from the storms of life...let me sit at your feet and share your interceding heart for this lost and dying world. Teach me of your compassion, your patience and forgiveness...

Teach me to stand firm against that which is pure evil and at war with you Lord...Give me knowledge, and wisdom that does not compromise your truth...Keep me in the narrow way.

Lord, give me a sound mind, a mind and spirit that is calm, at peace, and resting in the faith and confidence that, "ALL IS WELL" in You. This is the rest that the world cannot give, and it cannot be obtained through my own reasoning, reading, or seeking answers from man.

Thank you for the Holy Spirit that councils, comforts, and guides...thank you for the joy that fills my heart... the hope, the wonder, the revelation of who you are...all this and more rushes like a mighty river from the dawning of the new day...

I give you praise and honor and glory...I bow before you, magnifying your name which is above all names...in heaven and in earth

Thank you for this new day Lord. Blessed be your name.

HIS INEXPRESSIBLE PRESENCE

2009-10-01T12:29:00.000-07:00

Lord...You have brought me to a place where you are utterly inexpressible. I have spent my whole Christian life trying and longing to share you according to how I perceive you, with my own understanding, my own feelings, my own set of values and convictions...

I thought that I was walking in the way you had chosen for me...walking in your Spirit...

Until now...

How could I possibly think to express what is Your Devine Spirit, out of my own spirit? To manifest your Devine nature out of my carnal nature?

There were times when my spirit rose into the blinding Light of your glory...but now I see that the Light only obscured the open vision and I was left to interpret it by my own understanding and perceptions.

"Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things that you have prepared for us my Lord."

In my heart there is such a longing for the knowledge of you, your will and purpose...for me...your church...your bride.

From the time I became your own...I've desired to express through my life, my faith, and my testimony in service and love...to tell how you have replaced my fears and doubts with faith, hope, and confidence in your Word. How you have given me joy that the world never gives, in place of deep sorrow and despair.

Yes Lord...I have tried to express the inexpressible..and now I can do nothing but fall before you and confess my ignorant zeal...my proselytizing in my own spirit...

Oh Lord forgive me...do whatever it takes to empty me out of dead works...fill me with your Spirit Word that brings, joy, comfort, peace, deliverance, and healing and the very Life of Your Salvation to the hearer...

Work in me Lord, even according to Your Spirit Word, in proclaiming your inexpressible Presence.

I STILL LOVE YOU SO

2009-09-26T00:14:00.000-07:00

Lord...dare I speak your name? Dare I ?

All that I am betrays your Holiness

my eyes, my ears, my tongue

my thoughts, my will betrays

Lord...give me back the heart of my childhood

the eyes, the ears, the tongue of truth

where innocence was mine

through tender youth

Give back the joy of love to me

when it was all about you

and not about me

My first love, as your child in arms

Your Word made flesh

Your Word that charms

My spirit's tongue, did taste the wine

while at your table, I did dine

Songs of worship, songs of praise

songs I sang throughout the days

My eyes were fixed on none but You

My ears...your voice was all I knew

I longed to please your perfect will

My Lord, my God, I long so still

Your established law, which long before

the waves washed up on virgin shore

was set to keep a child like me

and give me faith, that I might see

Now that time has took it's toll

and all my doubts like billows roll

Your child again, I long to be

Where once I sat upon your knee

I heard you, clearly, lovingly say,

"I am the One and Only Way."

and I was so in love with You

and all you said, I knew was true

Now once again, before I die

and with this one and final sigh

I speak your name, that all may know

that I your child, still loves you so

................"JESUS"................................by Joy Lackey Sept. 2009

LEST MY HEART TURN TO STONE

2009-09-24T13:05:00.000-07:00

LEST I TURN TO STONE

STRIKE ME TO YOUR FEET IN LOVE

THOUGH MY FLESH SHALL DREAD

AND THINK IT'S SURELY DEAD

ALL FEAR IS WICKED, DESPICABLY MEAN

SUCH MISERABLE FAITH LIKE, MINE BE SEEN

ABORT MY LIFE...ALL MORTAL CLAIMS

WITH THOSE HIDDEN THINGS I CAN'T MAINTAIN

SOUL'S STRENGTH ROOT, IN WILL AND WAY

MAKE YOUR ASH HEEP,

WHERE POWDERED MORTAR LAY

I SURRENDER, PLEASE LORD, LOOSE THE BANDS

TO SWEET REPOSE, WITHIN YOUR HANDS

YOUR TRANSCENDENT WORK

OH LET IT BE

ENGRAVED WITHIN, WITHOUT IN ME

MY LORD AND MASTER'S HOLY GRAIL

IN THIS MY LORD, DON'T LET ME FAIL

HOLY, HOLY IS MY CRY

WITH JOYFUL TEARS AND PRAYERFUL SIGH

ALL ASCENDING PRAISE TO THEE

THANK YOU LORD FOR LOVING ME

MOST FAITHFUL AND ADORING ONE

WHO CHANGED MY HEART FROM HARDEST STONE

AUTUMN'S ART GALLERY

2009-09-22T19:52:00.000-07:00

Fall, the grandest

season of all !

Vivid colors from

the Master's palette

Living pictures of

technicolor and

stereophonic sound

Pungent and awesome,

subtle and soothing

Nature's artistry

the world it's gallery

A one man show

that shouldn't be missed

A seasonal spectacular

of glorious sights, smells and tastes

A bounty of fruits from the harvest

sculptures made without hands

What a splendid display!

2009-09-20T12:58:00.000-07:00

LORD...HOW SAFE

I FEEL IN YOUR

EMBRACE.

SHELTERED IN

THE ROBES OF

YOUR

RIGHTEOUSNESS.

IT IS ALWAYS

A QUIET, PEACEABLE

PLACE THERE.

WITH A STILLNESS, WHERE

I CAN COME TO KNOW YOU.

YOU ARE THE SATISFYING PORTION OF MY

LIFE...

THE LIGHT OF YOUR BEING, FLOODS

ME WITH GREAT JOY.

YOU ARE AS THE RISING SUN TO ME

THE LATTER RAIN.

MY UNFOLDING

MY INCREASE...

IN THE SHELTER OF YOUR LOVE.

JEL. Sept. 20, 2009

I MADE GOD SMILE !

2009-09-18T20:46:00.000-07:00

COMMON ?

One small stone
from the beach of life.
Rolled from the depths
of tempestuous strife.

One common crystalline,
opaque and undone.
held in God's hand,
held up to the sun.

One tiny treasure,
it's worth a mystery.
But it made God smile
when he looked upon me.

THE LIGHT IN DARK PLACES

2009-09-16T23:35:00.000-07:00

LORD...THANK YOU FOR TODAY'S OBJECT LESSON...

I DIDN'T EVEN THINK OF IT AS ONE UNTIL JUST A FEW MOMENTS AGO...

AND OF COARSE, AT A TIME WHEN IT'S QUIET...NO TV...HUBBIES IN BED, AND I CAN FEEL ALONE WITH YOU...

SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS TAKING THE DOG OUT...

SHE HATES THE RAIN...THE WET GRASS...

STRANGE...HUBIE BROUGHT ME A FLASH LIGHT...

I'VE BEEN WALKING ANNIE FOR HOW LONG?

BUT TONIGHT HE THINKS I NEED A FLASH LIGHT...

OK.....

OPENED THE GARAGE DOOR AND OFF WE WENT...

BACK IN A FLASH...

DOWN WITH THE GARAGE DOOR...

LAID THE FLASH LIGHT DOWN TO WIPE ANNIE'S FEET...

LIGHTS OUT!...PITCH BLACK!

COULDN'T SEE ANYTHING...

PANIC...WHO TURNED OUT THE LIGHT?

DID SOMEONE GET IN WHILE I WALKED ANNIE...

I COULDN'T MOVE...

AFRAID TO FEEL MY WAY...SOMEONE MIGHT BE THERE IN THE DARK...

"STEP FORWARD...YOU CAN SEE." (THAT STILL SMALL VOICE COMMANDED)

I CLOSED MY EYES IN THE DARK...REACHED OUT AND

SLOWLY FELT MY WAY ACCORDING TO AN INNER LIGHT,

LIGHT THAT ONLY FAITH CAN SEE...

LIGHT THAT FAITH CAN MOVE IN...

I CAN'T BELIEVE, THAT I DIDN'T EVEN THINK TO TURN AROUND

AND FEEL FOR THE FLASH LIGHT THAT WAS RIGHT

THERE ON THE SHELF BESIDE ME...

I CAN JUST HEAR ONE OF MY GRAND-CHILDREN SAYING, "DUUUUUH"

THE FEAR REMAINED MY COMPANION,

UNTIL I FOUND MY WAY TO THE LIGHT SWITCH...

BUT I "HEARD YOUR VOICE LORD"...

I TRUSTED YOUR LOVE, AND IT CAST OUT FEAR...

LORD...NEVER STOP TEACHING ME

I HAVE SO MUCH TO LEARN..STRENGTHEN MY FAITH

HELP MY UNBELEIF...I'M NOT A CHILD...WHO HAS TO FEAR THE DARK.

YOU ARE THE LIGHT IN MY DARK PLACES .

I NEED NOT FEAR EVIL.

YOU WILL WALK WITH ME AND LEAD ME THROUGH...

2009-09-14T23:21:00.000-07:00

LORD..THIS WORD PRICKED MY OWN HEART TODAY.

I HAVE FELT MY HEART BEGIN TO HARDEN...AND IT PRESSES OUT THE OIL OF GLADNESS IN MY SOUL...

IT IS A BURDEN I CANNOT CARRY BY MYSELF...HELP MY UNBELIEF.

PUT A NEW SONG IN MY HEART, SO THAT I CAN PRAISE YOU WITH GLADNESS AND THANKSGIVING...SO THAT I CAN TELL OF YOUR WONDERFUL MERCIES...WITH SONGS OF DELIVERANCE...

YOU SEE MY HEART...YOU KNOW WHY MY HEART IS SO HEAVY...

LEAD ME TO THE PATH OF THE LIVING ONES...RENEW MY STRENGTH OH LORD...

I AM FILLED WITH SORROW AND SHAME, AT THE STATE I AM IN...

I WILL WAIT, AND GIVE YOU A SACRIFICE OF PRAISE...

I SURRENDER ALL MY FEARS AND DOUBTS TO YOU...I COMMIT ALL THOSE THINGS I HAVE NO CONTROL OVER...TO YOU...

LEAD ME TO THE ROCK THAT IS HIGHER THAN I...SO THAT I MAY BEHOLD THE WORK OF YOUR HANDS, FROM ALPHA TO OMEGA, AND GLORIFY YOUR NAME WITH FIRM FAITH AND CONSOLATION...

RELEASE ME FROM THIS GRIP OF DEATH...YOU ALONE ARE MY HOPE AND SALVATION...

HEAR MY HEART'S CRY LORD...I CANNOT BREATHE WITHOUT YOU.

THE SOUL'S ALWAYS SEARCHING FOR ONE MORE EMBRACE

2009-09-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

I'M ALWAYS AMAZED AT HOW THE LORD SHEPHERDS THE DAY.

TODAY I CAME UPON A FRIEND'S BLOG POST...ONE THAT UNITED AND CONFIRMED THE WORD THAT WAS SPOKEN BY THE LORD, HOURS EARLIER IN THE DAY...

AT BREAKFAST, MY HUSBAND AND I DISCUSSED THE DISCONTENT WE FEEL SO MUCH OF THE TIME...

WHY?

WE HAVE SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR...WE LACK NOTHING...WE HAVE EACH OTHER...LOVE EACH OTHER...SHARE CHRIST TOGETHER...AND ENJOYING OUR RETIREMENT TOGETHER...

WHY?

ALL THROUGH THE DAY I ASKED MYSELF THIS QUESTION...

AND IT COMES DOWN TO THIS...FOR ME.

MY SOUL IS ALWAYS SEARCHING FOR ONE MORE EMBRACE...THE FEEL OF THE LORD'S LOVING ARMS ENFOLDING ME...

THAT (((KNOWING OF HIM)))...THAT REST THAT COMES FROM HIS ALL ABIDING PRESENCE...

THAT JOY THAT IS UNSPEAKABLE AND FULL OF HIS GLORY...NOT AS THE WORLD GIVES...BUT THAT WHICH IS FOUND IN HIM, AND HIM ALONE...

BLESSED ARE HIS ETERNAL ARMS...

"EMBRACE ME LORD."

BREATHE ON ME HOLY SPIRIT!

2009-09-11T19:01:00.000-07:00

Blessed Holy Spirit, because of you we are comforted and confident in our spirits that we need not fear.

You make known the "Beloved of our souls" that we may trust in Him and take delight in Him.

You fill us with faith that believes, by revealing Christ in us...and it is this faith that fears not...for His love casts out all fear.

It is Love that abides in us...Love that is not contrary, condemning or untrustworthy...it is not accusing or belittling...

this One who became obedient unto death and loved us more than His own glory...

Because of Love...not as the world knows love...but because of His unmerited love...I have peace of mind...rest from worldly expectations, and especially those that I have been relentless in demanding from myself, only to fail again and again...

My mind is sound in Him...it is at rest...it has found trust in what He desires for my life and from me...

Faith...Hope...and Love

Thank you Holy Spirit for revealing His Love.

Thank you for letting me walk in You, and the Word that ever guides the Way, the Truth and the Life before me................Breathe on me Holy Spirit!

2009-09-10T20:23:00.000-07:00

Lord...as I look from the inside out...You reveal yourself from the inside out of me.

You are the one abiding presence of my life....my daily bread.

Your very Word speaks in me...encouraging me in all my ways.

I'm lost without you Lord.

Thank you...Praise you!...for your Holy presence living in me.

May I never keep your Love Gifts to myself...Let me see the needs of others, and share with them all that you have given to me...pressed down and running over.

As I look out at a world that is desperate for you...more than ever let me share your heart, and pray the prayer of interceding...with groanings that cannot be uttered...yes, the groanings of Holy Spirit...the groan of eternal Love saying,

"Come walk with me, talk with me, let us reason together...let Me tell you of Life and Love and Joy unspeakable and full of glory!"...

Let Love abide.

SURPRISE !

2009-09-08T11:30:00.000-07:00

LORD...My heart is so full this morning...you are so wonderful to know my heart...to let me know that you love me...and to always surprise me in Birthday Party ways!

I needed so badly for someone to just say, "I love you...you're special to me." Twice I had called my only daughter to tell her I loved her, and before I could say it...she asked me to forgive her because she was so busy, and that she would call right back...and she didn't.

I was grieving over this, this morning...hadn't even gotten dressed...didn't want to face another day without some kind of one on one with someone....Yep...the same ol pity party that I've been to before.

Lord, forgive me...again... I've looked beyond your ever-present love, and in my way said it wasn't enough...Oh Lord...it is enough...You are my one desire above all else...

The door bell rang...the dog barked uncontrollably...I'm hopping about trying to get my cloths on....thinking, "who could that possibly be, this early in the morning?""Just a minute please" I hollered.....Opening the door....there stood my lovely daughter, with a bed tray...flowers (scarlet violets) Hot organic coffee, in a silver carafe, pastries, and fresh cut fruit pieces...

"Hi Mom...I wanted to serve you breakfast in bed this morning."...It makes me cry to think of it even now...but even more...that sunshine bright smile that is perpetually hers...even when her heart is breaking...She is and has been one of God's priceless gifts to me....Tawni Rae....named after her daddy...(Leaping deer, sunshine)....You could write a book about her life, and Father God's Grace Covenant with her...I was speachless...blessed beyond measure...and ashamed at the same time...It was like a surprise birthday party...she made me feel so special...a vacation at an Old English cottage...tea and crumpets...a french garden...all the above...

She was used to teach me a life long lesson...and to surrender my needs to the realization that...always...the Lord is by my side...my One Great Love. And that Love will come...fellowship will come...if by faith I trust in life's wondrous surprises......THANK YOU LORD.

2009-09-06T21:01:00.000-07:00

One of the most challenging things for me as a Christian...is to not give in to Satan's accusations.

Always...always is he ever there to discredit, discourage or try to make me believe that my God dis- approves of what I do or say for Him.

If the enemy of our souls can convince us that we are non effective...faithless...powerless.....pretenders. Then he will have effectively cut off our faith and confidence in the "Life Source" and "Life Force" of our spiritual being. It will stifle and neutralize the witness of our testimony...and the power that is in the Word that is spoken through us.

"Today! I choose! to believe in the keeping power of God's Spirit Word. By his promise...by his shed

blood...by His faith...I am his. I am bought and paid for...and willingly his servant...in what he would have me say... in word or tongue...in deed and truth.

THE APPLE OF HIS EYE

2009-09-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

Lord...You are the brightness of the Father's glory...

"The Bright and Morning Star"

The express image of His person...

upholding all things by your power.

The power of Your Word is might...

It has purged me from my sins...

You sit at the right hand of the Father...

Interceding for all men.

"Begotten Son"...yes!...and first to be...

inheriting His name...

Worshiped by His angels...

His ministers of fiery flame.

The earth and heavens declare your glory...

In the beginning they were made...

the works of your hands only...

their foundations you have laid.

Lord...now in these last days, speak forth...

in the same Word of power and might...

let the glory of Your presence in me...

declare before men...in their sight...

That we are the works of your hands, my Lord...

Oh let us take earnest heed...

for we are your heirs of salvation...

the "first fruits" of your own seed.

The worlds and the heavens will pass away...

in this I am happy and blessed...

that you are "The Word" that dwells in me...

In You I will find Spirit's Rest.

Yesterday...today and forever...

in You I'm delivered from death.

Not the laying down of this body...

but the promise of eternal Rest.

The promise of my spirit's new life...

Delivered from every trial...

delivered from every strife.

"Blessed High Priest" of my calling...

help me hold steadfast within...

my confidence and my yearning...

till that day when I enter in...

through gates of Heaven's homeland...

where my mansion waits on high...

to cloth this spirit's body...

"The apple of Your eye."

DON'T LET YOUR HEART BE GRIEVED TODAY

2009-09-04T10:40:00.000-07:00