Sometimes I get real intense in prayer and other times I back off. Sometimes it was so pressing and there were resistant forces and even some emotional wounds that I've backed off longer than I should have. And then the Lord calls me back, but I resist sometimes because I remember the pain in my emotions. It's not always bad like that, but sometimes it is. Once I get back, I am always glad that I did, because there are many rewards and sometimes, I will get to see some of the fruit of my labors and that brings a great joy.
How do we know if we really trust Jesus or not? He's the member of the Trinity who is most like us because He knows what it's like to live as a human. If we have a trust issue with Jesus, it will affect our relationship with those we love. Several years ago, I felt like I had a trust issue with Jesus. So, I asked, "Jesus, do I trust you completely?" I sensed there was still hesitancy. So, I asked Him, "When is the first time this mistrust happened?" I asked, "Jesus, is there a wall?" He said, "Yes." "Will you show me?" "Do you really want to see it now?" This time it was His voice speaking. I said, "Yes, of course. I don't want there to be a wall between You and me."
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:1-2
I was filled with the Holy Spirit three weeks before I went to college, and I immediately became a serious student of the Bible. I remember waking up early and reading Scripture at my tiny desk in my dorm before my roommate woke up. My hunger for God's Word became insatiable, and my studies laid a strong spiritual foundation that I've built on ever since. One thing I discovered in those early days is that the Bible is all about Jesus. It is never boring when you realize this! It becomes like a puzzle to solve.
In historical narratives in the Bible or church records, we seldom read about the offspring of significant figures such as the original 12 apostles. For example, Peter was married, yet we find no record of his children carrying forward his traditions. Despite the belief that our progeny should surpass us, the zeal necessary for this progression is often not instilled in the next generation. The explanation? They do not have to pay the same price or undergo the same dramatic conversion experience their parents did. This essay will outline seven challenges that arise in generational Christianity:
The Divine intervention in the history of this world in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, as revealed in the gospel by John, is in the terms of Father, with the desired result of constituting His family and believers becoming His children, His sons. It is a wonderful thing to think of and to contemplate, that God has broken through into the history of this world and of man, with this great object and all that it means. Looking back over these four aspects of the intervention of God in Christ, we see that these are not watertight or self-contained, but they are but aspects of one relationship.
Have you ever heard someone say, "There's just something about them."? People sometimes say this when they can't quite put their finger on what it is that makes a person stand out from the crowd. I like when I hear it said about someone who's a Christian. Because when we are led by the Holy Spirit and God's love flows through us, there is something that just draws attention—something beautiful and unique.
I believe the following is a biblically 'safe' statement to make: when God acts in the earth, the Holy Spirit is the source of power that makes what happens take place. When Christ said: "the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed me to preach," He was defining the intrusion of God's authority and action into human affairs - to bring back into order what was out of order (Lk.4:18-21). By this, He demonstrated the kingdom of God. Furthermore, Jesus said: "I must preach the kingdom of God" and about 'The 12' it says, "He sent them to preach the kingdom of God" (Lk.4:43; 9:17).
On August 14, 2023, while I was in a personal time of worshipping the Lord, Holy Spirit spoke the following word to me for those of the Body of Christ who are standing (or soon to be) at the doorway of transition. It's a time of choices. It's a time of digging up the former wells that were never meant to be buried and forgotten in the first place. It's time to get back into the race and run with the horses. If you've been finding yourself being drawn back to something you laid down on your own accord and not by the instructions of the Lord, then this word is for you.
One common misconception among Christians is that man cannot understand God's ways. We often hear people use the phrase, "God's ways are not our ways" referencing the verse in Isaiah 55:8–9, which says: "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts." People will misinterpret a verse like this and then draw a conclusion. This particular Scripture has been used to explain the reason we can't know why things happen in life.
