Do you feel like you are under fire at the moment?

For the past several weeks there seems to be some real challenges and trials going on in peoples lives including our own. But I want to encourage you that it is all for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Rom 8).

Last night I was asking the Lord about some things that were going on with us and with those around us, and why it was happening. During the night, Luke 4 came to my heart. So this morning I looked it up and it is the story of Jesus being tempted in the wilderness by the devil. And as I read it I thought too of the scripture in 1 Peter 4:12 "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ so that you may overjoyed when his glory is revealed."

Just like Jesus, our hearts are tested. Prov 17:3 "The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart." and James 1:12 "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."
The testing needs to happen so that we know what is actually in our heart and what we truly believe. Sometimes the things that come out and are shown are areas that may need some renewing of the mind, and other times they are things that show us actually our heart and motives are pure. So the testing of our faith is all for the good and the promises that come with that testing is the crown of life, is His glory and joy.

In the Luke 4 story where Jesus is tempted by the devil after the temptation he comes away walking in power and authority as it says in Luke 4:14 "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside." v 32 "They were amazed at his teaching, because his message had authority." v36 "All the people were amazed and said to each other, "What is this teaching? With authority and power he gives orders to evil spirits and they come out!" And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area."

I know for myself I want to be walking in this way, walking with power and authority, so that news about Jesus spreads throughout all of New Zealand, through all of the world and in order for this to happen I need to undergo some testing of my heart, some refining of the fire, so that I am a weapon fit for its work (Isaiah 54), so that I am a vessel useful for every good work (2 Tim 2:20-21).

Recently I was given a picture by two people, the same picture, and it was of grapes being pressed but in the pressing the oil was coming forth. I know that this is happening, that the pressing is happening but I am also believing that the oil of the anointing that sets the captives free will come forth even more, to see cancer flee, to see the lame walk, to see the blind see and so I encourage you allow whatever pressing may be happening in your life and believe that through it all the oil of the anointing will come forth, that like Jesus, the power and authority will come forth, and Jesus will be glorified on the earth and we will be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.

Obedience and Commitment are big things in Gods Kingdom

Reading in Acts 7 this morning the story through Stephen of Abraham being told by God to " Leave your country and your people and go the the land I will show you" So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. He gave him no inheritance here, not even a foot of ground. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child." As I reflected on this and the journey of Abraham stepping out in faith into a land that he received no inheritance in but a promise of what was to come for his descendants of which we live in the fruit of that, I thought of todays generations in which often is only doing things that we want to do or that will benefit us personally as we live for 'today' not worrying about tomorrow. A sense of if it feels good then do it, if it doesn't then we will move on - perhap...

I shared last night about 1 Cor 15:36 "What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body..." I was preaching on it last night and it will come up in video form later in the week on the GRM sight, mainly reflecting on we can sow things one way, but God raises it up as HE determines how it should look. But this morning I got more revelation which will be quite obvious to some, but to me it struck me afresh. When we sow something it get's buried, it cannot be pulled back up. It no longer has 'connection' with 'me' if you like. It gets 'covered over' unable to be pulled up. And yet I recognise in my own life how we can sow something but there are still 'strings attached' as such as we often are still determining or expecting it be rai...

Arise & Shine, let your voice be heard

To speak or not to speak – this is the question? Or perhaps it should be ‘how to speak?’ We live in a world where the rights of man are rising, the voices of differences of opinion are growing stronger and louder. The justice of the world, right and wrong as seen through our own eyes, starting to arise. I n this nation of NZ where "tall poppy syndrome' has been an issue as the accepted norm of the past, people are breaking out, rising up and learning to use their voice. As rightly we ought as Christians. All good things to happen, all needed to happen. For the bride to stand, awaken and arise and to shine for righteousness and justice. To stand up for the poor and needy, to speak on behalf of those who can't. With anything new, you have the swings in the spectrums as we all learn how to walk in a new way. We say things more strongly than we ought, or perhaps we say things weaker where watering it down and don’t come across to effe...

Things to ponder from the book of Luke

Some powerful stuff out of the book of Luke this morning that spoke to me 17:10 " So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty'" This really spoke to me how we expect and want the praise from man for what we do and yet we have only done what we were asked to do when we freely gave ourselves as bondslaves/servants to christ so why should we expect praise from man or from God? The other thing - actually there was heaps this morning out of Luke so take a look, but 18:8 "However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" The one question about will Jesus find people of faith who believe in what they have not yet seen? It is only faith that pleases God and so to be a people of faith.... A challenge. One more thing that I have to share is Luke19:11-27 the parable of the Ten Minas and about being faithful with what you have, but v24 "Then he said...

Are you comfortable and familiar with things?

This morning I had this picture where I saw two large different animals that had somehow turned up in my home and they were taking over the lounge and they needed feeding. They were peaceful animals but the space they took was huge, taking over my lounge. As I asked the Lord what these animals were I saw that they were ‘comfortable’ and ‘familiar’ and I saw I was quite happy for them to stay as they weren’t bothering anybody but they needed feeding and were taking up space. But I know that these ‘spirits’ are destructive to kingdom living. We can very easily become comfortable and familiar with things, with ways of doing things, of acceptance of things that are not of the Lord, of believing and justifying its alright if we continue to live the way we do, even of things such as pain and so we continue to accept it and live with it when the Lord may want to heal, things like ways of reacting, speaking or anger may also too be areas that you may have become comfortable and fami...

"A man's enemies will be the members of his own household" Matt 10:36

Recently we have been pondering how to deal with situations in our family that don't line up with the word. What action do we need to take? Are we being too harsh? Do we accept the behaviour or be considered by those around us as "too radical" or "too black and white"? "Where is grace in all of this? How do we love the sinner but hate the sin? What about forgiveness? What is the role of discipline? What makes that sin any worse than lying? What is true love? And there are a lot more questions going through the mind in how to work through this and know God's will and desire for the situation and the person. And firstly to say we have not come to any conclusions and are growing and learning day by day in this but I want to throw it out there. In Matt 10:34-39 says "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn "a man against his father, ...

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