BIRTH OF THE LAST-DAYS REMNANT
by David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

The prophet Samuel is a type of the last-days holy remnant—a prepared body of believers that rises out of the ruins of the old, decadent church.

Hannah, Samuel’s mother, birthed her son through bitter tears and much prayer. “And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish” (1 Samuel 1:10).

Try to imagine the scene: Hannah was at the temple every day, on her knees before the altar, crushed and broken because she was childless. As she wept, her adversary—her husband’s other wife—made fun of her. “And her rival
also provoked her severely, to make her miserable, because the Lord had closed her womb” (1 Samuel 1:6).

There are three important things I want to point out from this passage:

* First, the remnant that Samuel represents is born in grief and intercession.
* Second, those who pray and grieve after God’s heart will be provoked by adversaries.
* And third, God’s remnant is always going to be misunderstood!

Note what happened to Hannah as she prayed: “And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk. So Eli said to her, ‘How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!’” (1 Samuel 1:12-14). Eli and his sons represent the dying, corrupt church that has forsaken the Lord’s way. Eli was so out of touch—so dead in his spirit—he thought Hannah was drunk!

When Hannah was praying, she was filled with grief, burdened for the birth of a son. All she could do was move her lips because of her groaning in the Spirit. She prayed, “If You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and . . . will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life” (1 Samuel 1:11).

Here are two distinguishing marks of God’s holy remnant:

* They pray like Hannah. Their burden is deep and their heart is stirred because of the wickedness in God’s house.


* Like Hannah, they give themselves to prayer every day of their lives.

God wants to make you like that. He wants you to be able to touch Him and hear from Him. He wants to give you a ministry to others who will come to you with their burdens and trials. And as you pray for them, His Word will come forth!

GOD’S POWERFUL ARMY

by David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

Something very powerful and awesome is going on in the world today—something beyond human comprehension—something that will affect the whole world in these last days.

God is preparing a small but powerful army of Christians, the most dedicated army on the face of the earth. The Lord will come forth to command them to do exploits; He is going to close out the ages with a pure, devoted, fearless remnant.

All my life I have heard stories about our godly forefathers who hated sin. These men and women knew God’s voice and spent hours, even days, in fasting and prayer. They prayed unceasingly and had the power and ability to successfully stand up against immorality in their day.

These forefathers have long since passed on. But God is in the process of raising up another army and this time His warriors will not be made up only of elderly, gray-haired fathers and mothers of Zion. This new army will be composed of both new and seasoned believers, both young and old, ordinary
Christians who lay hold of God! A whole new realm of ministry is about to come forth!

The denominational church system appears to be in the throes of death. It has almost no influence in the secular world, no mighty power in Christ. Some accuse me of being “hard” on pastors. But I am in touch with many godly pastors who grieve as I do over the backsliding in the ministry today. There is
a holy remnant of godly pastors in the land, and I thank God for every one of them. Yet, it is still a fact that more and more ministers are racing down the road of compromise.

The Bible warns that we are not to fret! God has a plan and it is being manifested. It is put forth plainly in Scripture, mostly in the first four chapters of First Samuel.

The prophet Samuel is a type of God’s last-days remnant. The Lord chose him amid the worst of times and hid him away in training until it was time to bring forth His new thing. God told Samuel, “Behold, I will do something in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle” (1 Samuel 3:11).
What would so amaze and startle all who heard it? It was the judgment of God on the backslidden religious system and the raising up, training and anointing of a new, holy remnant!

What God did in Samuel’s day, He does in every generation. Indeed, in every generation there has been a remnant, a praying people after His own heart.

Bankrupt church wants donations for pastor’s sick wife ferried in limo

By Zachary Roth

The Lookout – Fri, Nov 4, 2011
 
Some members of a bankrupt Orange County, Calif. megachurch are expressing outrage after fielding an email request for congregants to deliver food to waiting limos so that it can ferried to the founder's sick wife. The appeal comes weeks after a lawsuit charged that the founder of the Crystal Cathedral house of worship, Rev. Robert Schuller, and his family had been paying themselves lavish salaries and other benefits while the church was in financial straits.


"They've completely depleted the church's funds," one member, Bob Canfield, told the Orange County Register. "But they have shown that they have absolutely no remorse for what they've done. They're still being chauffeured around in limos. We, the congregants, have nothing."

An email sent recently by Crystal Cathedral administrators said that Schuller and his wife, Arvella, "would appreciate meals over the next three to four weeks." It added: "They are to be sent to the church in order to be transported to Arvella. The limo drivers could pick up the dinners or meet in the Tower Lobby around 4:30 p.m."

Arvella Schuller has been suffering from pneumonia, and the email asked that the food be low in sodium and include items such as fruit, meat, soup and eggs.

Crystal Cathedral Ministries filed for bankruptcy last month. A lawsuit filed by creditors alleges that the Schullers borrowed more than $10 million from the church's endowment fund, and used it for salaries and regular church expenses.

"R.H. Schuller used his control and influence to cause the [cathedral] to enter into the agreements that benefitted himself and his family, to the detriment of the creditors and in breach of his fiduciary duties" to the church, the suit charges.

A spokesman for the church, John Charles, said the food request was in keeping with the church's commitment to Christian charity. "As Dr. Schuller always says, 'Find a need and fill it,'" he said. "I think that's what we were trying to do here."

But Canfield sees things differently. "These are millionaires who have limos and chauffeurs," he said. "Why in God's name would they want the congregants to deliver meals? It's ludicrous."

Want more of our best national affairs stories? Visit The Lookout or connect with us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/bankrupt-church-wants-donations-pastor-sick-wife-ferried-182015520.html

It’s (Past) Time for a Charismatic Reformation

In honor of Reformation Day, here are some complaints I’m nailing on the Wittenberg door.

 

Long before there was an Occupy Wall Street, Martin Luther staged the most important protest in history. He was upset because Roman Catholic officials were promising people forgiveness or early escape from purgatory in exchange for money. So on October 31, 1517, Luther nailed a long list of complaints on the door of a church in Wittenberg, Germany.

Luther’s famous 95 theses were translated from Latin into German and spread abroad. Like a medieval Jeremiah, Luther dared to ask questions that had never been asked, and he challenged a pope who was supposedly infallible. Through this brave monk, the Holy Spirit sparked the Protestant Reformation and restored the doctrine of grace to a church that had become corrupt, religious, dysfunctional, political and spiritually dead.

“I’ve grown increasingly aware that the so-called ‘Spirit-filled’ church of today struggles with many of the same things the Catholic church faced in the 1500s. We don’t have ‘indulgences’—we have telethons. We don’t have popes—we have super-apostles.”

I am no Luther, but I’ve grown increasingly aware that the so-called “Spirit-filled” church of today struggles with many of the same things the Catholic church faced in the 1500s. We don’t have “indulgences”—we have telethons. We don’t have popes—we have super-apostles. We don’t support an untouchable priesthood—we throw our money at celebrity evangelists who own fleets of private jets.

In honor of Reformation Day, I’m offering my own list of needed reforms in our movement. And since I can’t hammer these on the Wittenberg door, I’ll post them online. Feel free to nail them everywhere.

1. Let’s reform our theology. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. He is God and He is holy. He is not an “it.” He is not a blob, a force, or an innate power. We must stop manipulating Him, commanding Him and throwing Him around.

2. Let’s return to the Bible. The Word of God is the foundation for the Christian experience. Any dramatic experience, no matter how spiritual it seems, must be tested by the Word and the Holy Spirit’s discernment. Visions, dreams, prophecies and encounters with angels must be in line with Scripture. If we don’t test them we could end up spreading deception.

3. It’s time for personal responsibility. We charismatics must stop blaming everything on demons. People are usually the problem.

4. Stop playing games. Spiritual warfare is a reality, but we are not going to win the world to Jesus just by shouting at demonic principalities. We must pray, preach and persevere to see ultimate victory.

5. Stop the foolishness. People who hit, slap or push others during prayer should be asked to sit down until they learn gentleness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit.

6. End all spiritual extortion now. Christian television ministries must cease and desist from all manipulative fundraising tactics. We must stop giving platforms to ministers who make outlandish claims of supernatural financial returns, especially when Scripture is twisted, deadlines are imposed and the poor are exploited.

7. No more Lone Rangers. Those who claim to be ministers of God—whether they are traveling evangelists, local pastors or heads of ministries—must be accountable to other leaders. Any who refuse to submit their lives to godly discipline should be corrected.

8. Expose the creeps. Churches should start doing background checks on traveling ministers. Preachers who have been hiding criminal records, lying about their past marriages, preying on women or refusing to pay child support should be exposed as charlatans and shunned if they do not repent.

9. Stop faking the anointing. God is God, and He does not need our “help” to manifest Himself. That means we don’t sprinkle glitter on ourselves to suggest God’s glory is with us, hide fake jewels on the floor to prove we are anointed or pull chicken feathers out of our sleeves to pretend angels are in the room. This is lying to the Holy Spirit.

10. Let’s return to purity. We’ve had enough scandals. The charismatic church must develop a system for the restoration of fallen ministers. Those who fall morally can be restored, but they must be willing to submit to a process of healing rather than rushing immediately back into the pulpit.

11. We need humility. Ministers who demand celebrity treatment, require lavish salaries, insist on titles or exhibit aloofness from others are guilty of spiritual pride.

12. No more big shots. Apostles are the bondslaves of Christ, and should be the most impeccable models of humility. True apostles do not wield top-down, hierarchical authority over the church. They serve the church from the bottom up as true servants.

13. Never promote gifts at the expense of character. Those who operate in prophecy, healing and miracles must also exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. And while we continue to encourage the gift of tongues, let’s make sure we don’t treat it like some kind of badge of superiority. The world needs to see our love, not our glossolalia.

14. Hold the prophets accountable. Those who refuse to take responsibility for inaccurate statements should not be given platforms. And “prophets” who live immoral lives don’t deserve a public voice.

15. Let’s make the main thing the main thing. The purpose of the Holy Spirit’s anointing is to empower us to reach others. We are at a crossroads today: Either we continue off-course, entertained by our charismatic sideshows, or we throw ourselves into evangelism, church planting, missions, discipleship, and compassionate ministry that helps the poor and fights injustice. Churches that embrace this New Reformation will focus on God’s priorities.

J. Lee Grady is contributing editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter at leegrady. He expounds on these topics in his 2010 book The Holy Spirit Is Not for Sale (Chosen).

CARELESS WORDS

by David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 - April 27, 2011]

“But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:36-37). We seem to think our words simply fall to the ground and die, or vanish into
thin air and dissolve into nothingness. Not so! Our words live on—they do not die!

You may say, “But I only told this gossip to one friend and he promised never to repeat it. It will end with him.” No, it will not! Every single word you and I utter is recorded, written down in eternity, and we will hear them all repeated to us at the judgment.

I recall coming under deep conviction after sharing a vicious bit of gossip with a friend. What I said was indeed true. It was about a moral situation I had had to deal with concerning a minister. His name came up in the conversation and I said, “Don’t trust him. I know something about him!”

Even as I mouthed off, I felt condemned. The Holy Spirit whispered to me, “Stop right there! Nobody needs to know that. Don’t say more, because there’s no purpose to it. Even though it’s true, don’t repeat it!”
\
What I had already said was bad enough. But then I blurted out the lurid details! I knew I should have been quiet and sure enough, I was deeply convicted by the Holy Spirit. So later I called my friend and said, “I’m sorry, that was gossip. I was out of order. Please don’t repeat it. Try not to even think about it.”

Is my sin covered by the blood of Jesus? Yes, because I fully acknowledged that I had sinned and I allowed the Holy Spirit to show me some of the legalistic pride left in me. I allowed Him to humble me and heal me! Now, whenever I begin to say something against somebody, I obey the Holy Spirit as I hear Him say, loud and clear, “Stop!”

DRY BONES CAN LIVE!

by David Wilkerson

Ezekiel 37 is all about God’s desire for us to lay hold of the promises of His new covenant—learning how to truly live by entering into the blessing of the covenant.

We have all heard the story of the “dry bones” that Ezekiel speaks of. It is important to note that these vessels lying lifeless on the ground were under the covenant. You see, the Lord had told them, “O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!” (Ezekiel 37:4). They had heard God’s covenant promise: “I will
put My Spirit in you, and you shall live.”

Yet, even though these dead bones had the new covenant promise preached to them, they had not yet entered into the enjoyment of its blessings. Many believers today know of God’s new covenant—yet they can hardly believe it, because it sounds too good to be true. They say, “I know God has given us the Holy Spirit to indwell us. And I know the Spirit takes it upon Himself to cause us to obey Christ. Oh, I want that blessing badly, but how can I obtain it for my life?”

There is something we must do. Ezekiel writes that God told him to prophesy, “Thus says the Lord God: ‘Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live’” (37:9). Then Ezekiel says he prophesied as God had commanded, “. . . and breath came into them, and they
lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army” (37:10).

Suddenly there stood before Ezekiel a great army, alive and breathing! The Holy Spirit had filled all those dead bodies with life—and now they were prepared to do battle. In an instant they had entered into the full enjoyment and blessings of the new covenant. God’s Spirit had taken His rightful place in
them—and He was bringing about all the promised changes.
 

ENLARGE MY TERRITORY

Jabez’ prayer requesting blessing and increase from the Lord might be described as:

·   A prayer of divine agitation i.e. it breaks the spiritual status quo, passivity and inactivity in our lives

·   A prayer of faith, hope and love in the goodness, power and authority of God

·   A prayer that is a choice for God in overcoming personal circumstances, problems or a past trauma and stepping into the new purposes and plans God has for each one of our lives.

When we pray for God to bless us and “enlarge our territory,” we are praying from the perspective of a lifestyle that has experienced the investment of God with the expectation of a supernatural return that releases fruit that will last for all eternity. The result of us receiving God’s blessing is (a) adoration to the Lord and (b) equipping and empowerment for effective service for God. When we ask God to bless us it releases His limitless power, goodness, love and favour. God’s blessings release His Kingdom!

It’s NOT a selfish prayer because it is a prayer that glorifies God because it is about asking God to enlarge our life so that we can make a greater impact for Him. This type of prayer will cause a paradigm shift in our thinking and appropriation of blessing as we walk with God.  It is a prayer that is released from the heart that believes in the God of miracle working power to bring transformation in the nations.

When we enter into the realm of increase and acceleration in our ministries by the grace of God, there are a few basic principles we need to understand:

1.  Resource – where our opportunities overtake our abilities - Our physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and financial resources are all stretched when we shift from the position of where we presently stand into the faith place of where we declare we hope to be. God is faithful to send us His Holy Spirit, angelic assistance, strength by grace and people and resource to enable us to fulfil the God-given assignment or mission before us. The prayer of Jabez for “enlargement” begins with acknowledging our need to decrease so that God might increase in us.

2.   Relationships – where God orchestrates divine opportunities, appointments and sovereignly ordained destiny milestones - It is important to acknowledge that Jabez’ prayer for spiritual enlargement encompasses the need for new and ongoing God-ordained relationships, strategic connections and Kingdom alliances as we interact with others both in the body of Christ and in society. There are certain people in our lives whom God has entrusted with keys to unlock destiny.

3.  Area of Influence - When God increases our “territory” for His glory, it is with the intention that we impact our sphere of influence for the Kingdom.  We will experience increased responsibilities, but we can rest in the knowledge that with the gift of “call” comes the grace to walk in the call and all that it encompasses.

4.   Surrender – surrender teaches us to trust God in a deeper way. God will not lead us where He is not willing to sustain us.  Surrender is a pre-cursor to sustenance = divine provision.

“Enlarge my territory” isn’t a place where our training or past experience can take us although they may serve as a foundation for a new Kingdom building work. It is only out of the abundance of being enlarged by God’s grace that we gain the experience we did not have to fulfil the Kingdom task(s) before us. To ask God to enlarge your territory is another way of asking God, “Lord, use me  - give me more ministry opportunities to bring glory to  You!”

God teaches us how to manage the resource He has maximised in our hands.  Stewardship is the gift of wisdom and compassion in management of God-given resource for the purpose for which God intended it to be used ….. to bless and be a blessing!

In His great grace,
Catherine Brown

Don’t Let Your Pulpit Be Defiled

Visiting ministers can be a great blessing to any church. But if you don’t do your homework, you could be inviting disaster.

A friend of mine recently told me that the leaders of a ministry invited a prominent American preacher to speak at a conference. During discussions about the engagement, the preacher’s handlers explained two of the terms of his visit: (1) he was always to be addressed as “apostle” by anyone who spoke to him; and (2) he was to be ushered out of the auditorium and into a green room immediately after he delivered his sermon, to guarantee that he would not have to fraternize with the audience. He needed his privacy.

If I had been on the other end of the telephone conversation that day, I would have offered this reply: “Please tell Apostle Arrogance that since he is so concerned about being bothered by the little people, never mind. Just don’t come. We don’t need the disease he is spreading in the body of Christ. God bless you.” Click.

“I have heard horror stories of ministers who required their hosts to provide shopping money, certain types of exotic bottled water, limousines and manicurists. A childish rock star might be expected to ask for these luxuries, but such behavior is reprehensible for a minister of the gospel. Don’t cater to their appetites.”

That may sound harsh, but I don’t think there’s any other way to prevent the spread of this plague. The “celebrity syndrome” is still alive in 2011, in spite of the recession, and the only way we are going to stop big-headed charlatans from corrupting churches is to boycott them. We need to hand them a pink slip. I recommend these safeguards:

1. Investigate before you invite. There are many wonderful traveling ministers who carry genuine anointings and can bring great blessing to churches and ministry events. They have been called by God as evangelists, prophets, teachers and apostolic leaders—and those who walk in the anointing of the Holy Spirit will produce fruit wherever they go.

But there are also imposters on the preaching circuit. Some of them once carried the anointing and lost it; others actually entered the ministry as fakes and learned to prey on naïve congregations. Don’t give anyone a platform who has a questionable record. Always find out who they are accountable to. If they have no relationships, no oversight or no reference board, you are taking a great risk by having them in your church.

2. Slam the door on egotism. The celebrity syndrome is easy to detect. Does the visiting preacher have a servant’s spirit? Or does he come across as cocky and unapproachable? Any man or woman engaged in ministry should have the attitude of Jesus, who was willing to ride a donkey into Jerusalem and wash the feet of His disciples. If you allow a prideful, unbroken preacher in your pulpit, you are giving a spirit of Lucifer the opportunity to infect your congregation.

3. Don’t feed the spirit of entitlement. Every traveling minister appreciates a gracious host. You show honor when you provide him or her with a nice hotel room, meals and transportation during their stay. But you should be alarmed if a preacher demands celebrity treatment.

I have heard horror stories of ministers who required their hosts to provide shopping money, certain types of exotic bottled water, limousines and manicurists. One preacher who recently ministered in Australia demanded a certain type of steak that had to be flown across the Pacific Ocean from the United States! A childish rock star might be expected to ask for these luxuries, but such behavior is reprehensible for a minister of the gospel. Don’t cater to their appetites.

4. Don’t tolerate financial rape. I know of an American minister who traveled to a church in Canada and insisted that the pastor rent a civic auditorium that seated more than a thousand people. The pastor couldn’t afford the hall, but the evangelist said she wouldn’t come unless a large venue was provided. In the end, the evangelist canceled the trip because not enough people registered for the conference—and the pastor was left holding the bag. His church went bankrupt.

A true minister of the gospel would never push a church to go into debt just to satisfy his or her egotistical need for a big crowd. Jesus was just as comfortable preaching to a few disciples as he was to a multitude, and He didn’t base success on numbers. If you fall into the numbers trap you will be sorry.

Also, a shepherd who cares about his or her flock will never allow a visiting preacher to manipulate a congregation financially. Visiting speakers who spend 30 to 45 minutes begging for money, or making outlandish claims of “supernatural returns” for investing in their work, are sheisters who need to leave the ministry and find a job on a home shopping network.

5. Beware of strange fire. A minister imparts his life, not just the words of his sermons. That is why it is so important for preachers of the gospel to walk in humility, sexual purity and financial integrity. If a minister has allowed compromise in any of those areas, his anointing will be hindered and he may pollute your pulpit and leave a toxic environment in your church.

I talked to one pastor in California who had invited a speaker to his annual conference. But before the speaker arrived, the pastor learned that this man often used drug imagery in his sermons and even compared the Holy Spirit to marijuana. When he asked the speaker to refrain from such references, the man arrogantly refused. Thankfully the pastor did the right thing: He politely but firmly canceled the man’s visit.

It is possible for us to “just say no” to the charlatans, shysters, con men and rock star evangelists who have never submitted their lives to the discipline of the Spirit. Please heed the warnings, inspect the fruit and be willing to disinvite.

J. Lee Grady is contributing editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter at leegrady. His latest book is 10 Lies Men Believe (Charisma House).

THE CURE FOR UNBELIEF

by David Wilkerson
[May 19, 1931 – April 27, 2011]

I searched my reference books and found lists of ways to “cure” unbelief, but none of these dozens of things touched me. So I asked God for something simple and He gave me two thoughts on how I can rid my heart of unbelief:

1. Lay hold upon every worry, fear and burden. Take them all to Jesus and leave them on His shoulders!

“Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).

Beloved, this is God’s personal invitation to you, His request: “Put it all on Me! Do not carry it one hour longer. I care about everything that is happening to you and I am big enough to take it all for you!”

Not long ago someone in an extremely stressful situation called me seeking a word of encouragement. But I was overwhelmed that day by so many problems, I could not handle even one more, so I answered, “I’m sorry but you’ll have to call some other time. I’m too overloaded right now.” Thank God, He is never stressed out! He is never overloaded! His shoulders can carry the load of all His children! He urges us, “Lay it all on Me!”

“Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved” (Psalm 55:22). Go down your list right now:

“God, I give You this, and this, and that. I give You this burden, this trouble, that relationship, that problem.” And be fully convinced that He cares!

2. Launch out in full faith on the written Word of God. Take up the Lord’s challenge to live by His Word!

“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). You must be able to say, “I’m going to live and die by God’s Word to me!”

I ask you: How is it that we can trust His Word for our eternal salvation, but not for our daily needs and problems? We can believe Him for the hardest part. Why is it harder for us to believe for help, guidance and power over sin? “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24). God promised this to you, so let Him take on the burden of keeping you! Go to the Lord and challenge His Word. Tell Him you are going to stake your life on it!

Show Him you trust His every word—and be blessed!
 

Do You Really Know the Father’s Love? by J. Lee Grady

Many people struggle to believe God loves them because of a dysfunctional mom or dad.

This past weekend I spoke to some students at a college in New Hampshire. Knowing that many young people today come from broken homes (more than 1 million children today are the victims of divorce), I felt I needed to talk to them about the fatherly heart of God. I wasn’t surprised when several people’s eyes got misty as soon as I mentioned the word “father.”

“What about you? Do you have emotional wounds resulting from your upbringing? If so, these hurts can block your understanding of God’s unconditional love.”

What about you? Do you have emotional wounds resulting from your upbringing? If so, such hurts can block your understanding of God’s unconditional love. I encourage you to not only forgive your parents but also to renounce unhealthy mindsets you may have adopted because of trauma. Make sure you believe the following:

1. Your heavenly Father will never abandon you. Nothing is more traumatic to a child than a family breakup. Children often blame themselves for divorce—and they experience acute feelings of insecurity. They can also develop the wrong idea that if their father or mother was willing to walk away from them, God will do the same.

Believe the truth: God says, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Heb. 13:5, NASB). Earthly parents may break promises, but God is always faithful.

2. Your heavenly Father will never verbally berate you. I recently met a girl whose parents wanted her to be a boy. As a result of their disapproval, they criticized her constantly, told her she was ugly and demanded that she stay in her room most of the time. As a result of this constant criticism she struggled to receive love and found it difficult to believe God could ever love her.

Believe the truth: The Lord is a loving Father who speaks tenderly to His children; and even when He must discipline us, it is for our good. James 5:11 says: “We … have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.”

3. Your heavenly Father will never abuse you. I have an African friend, Medad, whose cruel, domineering father beat him with the same stick he used to beat his mother. Medad still has scars on his back, chest and stomach from his father’s angry outbursts. Finally, his father piled the family into a car, drove them into a rural area and ordered them to get out of the vehicle. He cursed them and left them to die. His father’s behavior made Medad angry and vengeful until he found salvation in Jesus.

Believe the truth: God is not an abuser. He is a good Shepherd who protects us. If you were abused by someone, either physically, sexually or verbally, recognize that God did not approve of that behavior and He wants to heal you from the pain of that experience.

4. Your heavenly Father will never withhold affection from you. I’ve met dozens of men whose fathers never once said to them, “I love you.” Many of these guys struggle today with addictions to alcohol, drugs and other mind-numbing substances because they don’t know how to process the lack of security they feel. And women who never received healthy, non-sexual affection from their fathers often end up trapped in a promiscuous lifestyle because they’re searching for the love they were denied.

Believe the truth: God is crazy about you and He wants to shower you with love! Isaiah described God as a Shepherd who gathers His lambs and carries them in His bosom (see Is. 40:11). As a believer in Christ you always have access to the Father through the Holy Spirit (see Eph. 2:18). He wants you to be close to Him.

5. Your heavenly Father will never abandon you financially. A loving parent, no matter how small their income, can make a child feel secure by providing food on the table, a warm bed and clothes to wear. Unfortunately, in these days of deadbeat dads and struggling one-parent families, many people grow up financially crippled. God doesn’t automatically give people Cadillacs if they tithe, but any follower of Jesus can bank on God’s promises of provision.

Believe the truth: Jesus said the Father knows we need food, clothes and shelter. “Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:31-33). We serve a generous God.

6. Your heavenly Father will never act in an unstable manner. I have a friend whose father was a secret alcoholic. As a boy, my friend never understood why his father was nice one day and angry the next. He blamed himself for his dad’s erratic behavior—and to this day he still carries some of the pain of that emotional trauma.

Believe the truth: God is not unstable. He never gets drunk, high or out of control. 1 Sam. 15:29 says God “will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind.” Circumstances never affect God’s nature. He will always, always, always stay the same.

No matter what fatherly wounds you may have suffered, and no matter how long ago the pain entered, God can heal your heart and fill in the gaps. Reach out and receive the Father’s embrace.

J. Lee Grady is the former editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter a leegrady. His most recent book is 10 Lies Men Believe (Charisma House).

Is Revival Possible?

Perhaps the question itself sounds skeptical. After all, don't we believe that "all things are possible with God"? But our culture is drastically different from cultures that have experienced great revivals. Isn't it?

Maybe we should first define what we mean by "revival". It's not a specific event, as when you see a sign on a church building reading, "Revival - June 20". A genuine revival is when people newly discover the truth of God's Word and are filled with passionate love for Jesus. It is a fresh wind of the Spirit of God blowing upon the people of God. It is a valley of dry bones made to live again. This doesn't happen in a single church or denomination. It may start with individuals, but soon it spreads to others, crossing denominational lines, like fire jumping from field to field.

There is a growing sense among many that revival is coming, simply because it is so desperately needed. It has been during such times of departure, hopelessness and sin that revival has come to those who earnestly sought God.

In the Welsh revival of 1904, God chose a young man named Evan Roberts. Born in a Christian home, at the age of 12 he left school to work in the local coal mine to help his injured father. The following year he joined his chapel, seeking never to miss any of the meetings. He became a Sunday school teacher at an early age.

When Evan was 26 he prepared to train for Christian ministry. Warned by his mother that this would be a hard life, he replied, "I am willing to work for my Redeemer till my dying day." On September 29, 1904, while attending a meeting with fellow student Seth Joshua, Evan heard him pray, "Bend us, Oh Lord!" This gripped Evan's heart for two hours till the next meeting when he prayed, "Bend me, Oh Lord!" It was here that he received the Power (the baptism of the Holy Spirit). Following this experience Evan was consumed with a passion to evangelize. During the month of October he sought God's guidance as to how to do it. He experienced visions confirming to him that God was about to descend in revival power. This was the beginning of an awakening that would not only impact the church in Wales but also would make front page headlines all over the world.

Much has changed in the world since then. The influence of church was central to society, whereas now it is on the periphery. A reversal of the situation would likely not happen overnight. Rather it will be a constant battle to win back Kingdom ground that has been lost to the enemy. It will be a struggle both in individuals and in the corporate life of the church for God's perfect will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Are we up for the challenge? Are we willing to cry out, "Bend me, Oh Lord?" We must be bent away from our will and conformed to His before revival can come.

For more information on the Welsh revival of 1904 visit their website at welshrevival.com.

Rob Bell Not the First Megachurch Pastor to Step Down

G. Jeffrey MacDonald   

(RNS)--For pastors with ambitions to reach huge audiences, there's often no better platform than the megachurch, which has given rise to powerhouse media empires from T.D. Jakes to Max Lucado to Joel Osteen and many others.

 But some high-profile pastors are opting to leave congregational ministry altogether to pursue publishing and other media ventures full time. And that, some observers say, carries its own risks and rewards.

 On Thursday (Sept. 22), up-and-coming pastor Rob Bell announced he's leaving Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, Mich. in December. Bell's best-selling book, Love Wins, raised more than a few eyebrows with the premise that hell doesn't include eternal torment. Now he's moving on.

 "Our founding pastor, Rob Bell, has decided to leave Mars Hill in order to devote his full energy to sharing the message of God's love with a broader audience," the church said in a statement.

 Bell's resignation makes him the latest in a string a celebrity pastors who have said goodbye to weekly sermons, potluck dinners and other staples of church life. "A New Kind of Christianity" author Brian McLaren, "Crazy Love" author Francis Chan, "Deep Church" author Jim Belcher and the popular British Bible scholar N.T. Wright have all left their church leadership positions in recent years.

 Having left high-profile pastoral roles, these big-name pastors have become prolific publishers. But not all evangelicals are convinced the gospel is well-served when pastors trade a local flock for a global one.

 Within hours of the Mars Hill announcement, best-selling author and Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren was on Twitter, saying pastors who leave churches have less impact and no base for credibility.
 "Speaking tours feed the ego = All applause & no responsibility," said one Thursday tweet from Warren. "It's an unreal world. A church gives accountability & validity."

 It's not uncommon for megachurch pastor-authors to consider leaving church leadership, according to Rick Christian, president of Alive Communications, a Colorado Springs, Colo., literary agency that represents megachurch pastors. At a certain point, some feel more like a CEO than a shepherd, Christian said, and can be tempted to leave the headaches behind -- especially when they're making good money from royalties.

 But he encourages them to go slow and remember that "there's something inherently great about the accountability that comes with" leading a congregation. Authors who leave that world incur new risks, he said.

 "You can have somebody who leaves for the wrong reasons and becomes a lone ranger," Christian said. "They're just running and gunning for the Lord on planes, in hotels, zipping around at 30,000 feet. You can lose touch very quickly."

 Others agree parish life keeps communicators grounded. Elaine Heath, associate professor of evangelism at Southern Methodist University's Perkins School of Theology, noted a long history of leaving the parish for wider outreach opportunities -- even Methodism founder John Wesley gave up a settled pulpit to be an itinerant preacher.

 But in today's world, she said, book tours and online virtual relationships are not enough to sustain a pastor's moral authority.

 "Sometimes God calls someone like Brian McLaren to a `global parish,'" Heath said. "What I need to know in order for such a person to remain credible, is that they are still part of a local faith community with whom they pray, worship, and serve in ministry. ... Nothing can take the place of flesh and blood community."

 To be sure, many megachurch pastors still find value in sustaining congregational ties. Lucado, for instance, earns his living from various publishing ventures and the royalties on more than 80 million books sold, but he still serves without salary as minister of preaching at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio.

 "From a business standpoint, I just think there is a grounding that happens in the local church," Christian said. "It's not for everybody.

 Seasons can change; callings can change. But if you're called in (to church ministry), make sure you're called out for all the right reasons."

c. 2011 Religion News Service. Used with permission.
Publication date: September 26, 2011

Your Pastor Is on the Firing Line—Please Pray!

by J. Lee Grady

This Sunday is Pastor Appreciation Day. Here are six specific ways to pray for your spiritual leaders.

Often when I speak to a group of aspiring ministers, I greet them by saying: “Welcome to the war.” I also remind them that when they signed up to join the front lines of spiritual battle, a bright red target was painted on their backs. Ministry can be wonderfully rewarding, but let’s not kid anybody: Most of the time it’s a thankless job full of headaches, disappointments, conflicts, loneliness, frustration, petty complaints and tight budgets.

And while we might assume all pastors lead megachurches and drive new cars, keep in mind that the average church in this country has 75 members and the average pastor makes less than $34,000 a year—and may work an extra job to feed his or her family. The statistics are alarming: 90 percent of pastors work more than 50 hours a week; 70 percent say they don't have any close friends; and 45 percent say they've had to take a leave of absence from ministry because of depression or burnout.

“It’s normal for leaders to have emotional highs and lows, but when discouragement becomes debilitating it can knock them out for good.”

My friend Eddie Taylor, pastor of Church on the Hill in Dalton, Ga., has faced his share of ministry pressures and has looked burnout square in the face a few times. He dug deep in the story of Elijah (see 1 Kings 17-19) to learn how to survive, and he recently shared with me a message about how to pray for people in leadership. I decided to share his main points since October is Clergy Appreciation Month.

I’m sure your pastor would appreciate a nice card next Sunday, but he or she would be doubly blessed to know that you were praying regularly along these lines:

1. Pray against witchcraft and manipulation. As soon as Elijah stepped into the fray and challenged Israel’s idolatry, Jezebel went into attack mode. We must never be ignorant of Satan’s schemes (see 2 Cor. 2:11). The enemy targets Christian leaders, aiming to pull them into immorality, deception or pride; or he dispatches human messengers to control or discourage them. You can expose these demonic plots through prayer.

2. Pray for courage. Elijah had guts. He not only got in Ahab’s face, but he also organized a public showdown to challenge Jezebel’s false prophets. Yet right after the fire fell from heaven in response to Elijah’s prayer, Jezebel threatened him—and the Bible says “he was afraid and arose and ran for his life” (1 Kings 19:3, NASB). Leaders are called to confront, but they can’t do it without supernatural boldness from God. Ask the Lord to make your pastor brave.

3. Pray against depression. After Elijah fled to the wilderness, he started acting like a burned-out pastor. He prayed: “It is enough; now, O Lord, take my life” (19:4). It’s normal for leaders to have emotional highs and lows, but when discouragement becomes debilitating it can knock them out for good. Pray that your pastor will draw fresh joy from the wells of salvation daily.

4. Pray for rest. After the intensity of Mount Carmel, Elijah went a day’s journey from Beersheeba and slept under a juniper tree. Sometimes what pastors need most is a day off—yet many feel driven to perform, either because of people’s expectations or self-imposed demands. What makes matters worse is that many pastors have not empowered others to help with the workload. Pray that your pastor not only gets enough sleep, but that he or she gets times of refreshing away from phone calls, e-mails and constant “emergencies” that can surely wait.

5. Pray for the touch of God. Elijah found supernatural strength after his wearying experience on the mountaintop—not just because he ate and slept but because the angel of the Lord touched him twice (see 19:6-7). Pray that your pastor receives a double portion of the Lord’s presence. It is only the Lord’s supernatural anointing that enables us to minister in the power of the Holy Spirit.

6. Pray for disciples. Even after Elijah heard God’s voice on Mount Horeb, he was tempted to think he was the only true prophet left. But the Lord told him there were 7,000 prophets who had not bowed their knees to Baal, and He instructed Elijah to anoint Elisha as his successor (see 19:15-18). God does not want leaders to do their work alone. We are called to a long-distance race that involves multiple generations! Pray that your pastor will arrange his priorities correctly so he can invest his life in younger leaders.

P.S.—Don’t hand this list to your pastor next Sunday and tell him or her that you are praying these things. (As in, “Pastor, I’m praying you will have the courage to confront the gossips in this church—especially Mrs. Clack!”) No one wants to feel manipulated by prayer requests. Instead, pray in secret—and ask the Lord to uphold your pastor with the same grace He gave Elijah.

J. Lee Grady is the former editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter at leegrady. He’d like to hear why you love your pastor, or how your pastor has blessed you or your family. You can post tributes to your pastor in the comment section below.

Don’t Live Frustrated!

by Joyce Meyer

The key to a life of peace is accepting God’s amazing grace

I spent a lot of years being frustrated about a lot of things. But one of my biggest problems used to be the frustration I had about me. I didn’t like myself.

So I tried very hard to change. I didn’t like my personality. I felt like I was too bold, straightforward, loud and expressive. Along with that, it seemed that every message I heard at church (and we were in church a lot) just pointed out more things that were wrong with me. I remember at times wondering, How can one person have so much wrong with them?

I tried over and over to be like people I thought were what I should be like. And I tried very hard to be “good.” But all my trying just made me very, very frustrated!

Eventually, two things happened that helped me get a breakthrough. First, I came to realize the truth about who God created me to be. He was the One who gave me this personality—and He was not going to help me be somebody else! And second, I learned from 1 Peter 5:5 that my pride was keeping me from getting the help I needed from God to make the changes He wanted me to make.

Let’s take a look at this verse. It says, “Clothe (apron) yourselves, all of you, with humility. ... For God sets Himself against the proud ... [and He opposes, frustrates, and defeats them], but gives grace (favor, blessing) to the humble” (AMP).

It was very eye-opening to realize that much of my frustration was happening because God was frustrating my efforts to change myself in my own strength! My pride—trying to change myself instead of depending on God and trusting Him to change me—was actually keeping me from getting what I really needed.

Every time we feel frustration, it means we’ve stopped relying on God and are trying to make something happen on our own, in our own way. Pride says, “I know it all, and I don’t need any help, thank you.” And God hates pride. But He gives grace to the humble.

Well, I finally understood that God would give grace to me if I would humble myself before Him and totally depend on Him to change me. The truth is, I couldn’t change myself.

I had to say, “God, I’ll change if You change me.” And I had to receive the grace of God to trust Him and stop trying to do it myself. So what is the grace of God?

One common definition is, “God’s riches at Christ’s expense.” This is true, but there’s more to it.

Grace is also, “God’s power coming to us freely, enabling us to do with ease what we could never do on our own with any amount of struggle and effort.” His grace is available to us every day of our lives for every situation we have. We just have to receive it by faith—which God also gives us.

If we put our faith in God and really depend on Him, He will give us the ability to do what we need to do.

I really want you to get this, because we all have situations in our lives that are difficult—some more than others—and God doesn’t want us to be miserable while we’re in them. He wants to give us a special grace to go through these times with peace and joy. When we do, this attitude is what will minister to people around us and cause them to want what we have.

So what are you doing with your faith? Are you putting faith in yourself, trying to do on your own what only God can do? Are you trying to solve your own problems, change yourself, get your boss to promote or recognize you, make your kids do what you think they should?

Instead of frustrating yourself and putting yourself in opposition to God, put your faith in Him and trust Him to do what you can’t. When you do, His grace will come to you and enable you to do what you really need to do.

That’s amazing grace!

“Removing the Head of the Serpent” by Kay Winters

Recently I had a prophetic experience that clearly portrayed the condition of the church in America. My husband and I take evening walks that sometimes bring us through affluent neighborhoods. We enjoy viewing luxury homes with their beautiful waterfalls and fountains. Sometimes I venture to curiously peer into the backyards of these homes, finding exquisite pools, sports courts, fireplaces, and landscaping that mirror a Thomas Kincaid painting.
As we enjoyed our walk on this particular evening, suddenly my husband blurts out, “Snake!” After jumping in the opposite direction, I saw a three foot rattlesnake about a foot away from where we had been walking. Having been raised on a farm in Georgia, I am familiar with the behavior of snakes, especially poisonous vipers. Snakes react to ground vibration and I was mystified as to why the snake was not hissing or coiling to strike us. To our surprise, the snake ignored us, and slowly slithered in the opposite direction. The snake seemed to be right “at home” in the landscape of the neighborhood.

We decided to alert the homeowner regarding the snake. I rang the door bell and was greeted by a man in his 40’s. I said, “Sir, there is a rattlesnake in your front yard. Perhaps you might want to dispose of him.” He froze and didn’t respond. Knowing the snake could quickly escape, I continued, “Sir, this is a neighborhood with lots of children.” Finally, after another long pause, he replied, “Ok, give me a moment”. I could tell he did not want to be bothered, but my last statement provoked him to action. After what seemed like an eternity, the homeowner emerged from his garage with a six foot pole with a huge razor-like blade attached. I thought to myself, “I said ‘rattlesnake’, not ‘alligator’.”

As we approached the rattlesnake, I was amazed that it was still moving across the landscape at a snail’s pace. The homeowner looked terrified as he cautiously approached the snake from behind. He repeatedly raised his weapon high in the air, practicing his potential strike, yet hesitated to deliver the death blow. Not wanting to embarrass him, I kept silent, yet my thought was, “What is wrong with you? Remove that serpents head now”!

Serving God or Mammon

At that instant, I knew this experience paralleled the present condition of the American Church. The homeowner represents the Church and the rattlesnake represents Satan. Satan is not intimidated or threatened by the Church. In fact, he wanders in and out of the Body of Christ often without resistance or consequence. There is no need for Satan to hiss, coil or strike at us, since we pose little threat to him. He knows the focus of the Church at large is not Christ-centered, but instead self-centered. We have set our hearts on temporal treasures, in lieu of eternity, seeking the hand of God, instead of the face of God. Even our ministers have been deceived, esteeming the size of their congregations, offerings, and buildings as the measuring rod for success. A distorted “prosperity” gospel has taught us to use our faith almost exclusively to obtain larger homes, cars, and 401K accounts?

Our spiritual eyes have been encrusted with an infection that has distorted our vision. Blinded by materialism, we pursue Mammon, while Satan lies quietly at our feet. Our pursuits of pleasure have hardened us from not only the cries of the needy, but also the whispers of the Holy Spirit. We neither want to answer the doorbell, nor have our routine disrupted in any way. In effect, most of us are wearing a sign that says, “Do not disturb!” We have to be provoked to emerge from our comfort zones to serve at home, at church, or in our communities.

Like the church of Laodicea, the American Church has been deceived by riches, having become unaware of our spiritual poverty and blindness. As a result, many American Christians unknowingly worship the idol of Mammon. In His mercy, the Lord has used the downward spiral of our nation’s economy and monetary system to warn us not to trust in uncertain riches, but in Him who freely gives us all things to enjoy (Revelation 3:15-19, Luke 16:13).

Trampling on Serpents

We are destined to trample on serpents and scorpions, crushing Satan under our feet. However, one key element that enables us to triumph over the works of the devil is the depth of our repentance. Only profound repentance of our spiritual complacency and idolatry will cure our spiritual blindness, enabling us to identify the serpents in our lives. No longer ignorant of Satan’s devices, we can shake the kingdom of darkness, cause Satan to flee, and erect a “No trespassing!” sign on the landscape of our lives.

Luke 10:19 “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

We must become a generation of snake killers, as our battle is against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual wickedness in heavenly places. As soldiers of the cross, we must exchange our cordial passivity for a violent militancy and remove the heads of the serpents in our lives. Indeed, His power working in us can break any yoke, cut through any chain, and His light in us can overwhelm any depth of darkness.

I John 3:8 “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

The snakes we encounter will hiss, coil and strike in fear at the Greater One who lives within us. As we exercise our authority and God given power, many of these serpents will flee in fear. But what about those serpents who resist and refuse to exit our lives? We must say, “Off with their heads!” (James 4:7, I John 3:8).

Source: Prepared the Way International

Prepare the Way of the Lord

by Rob Winters

In March of this year, approximately a week after the earthquake in Japan, I abruptly awoke at 1:23 a.m. I did not give it much thought, until I again suddenly awoke at precisely 1:23 a.m. the very next night. Knowing that the Lord was speaking through this prophetic sign, I carefully examined all the 1:23, 1:2-3, 12:3 and 123 scriptures in the Bible. I discovered in the 123 verses a clear prophetic message to America. The first thing that caught my attention was that two of the 123 scripture passages in the Gospels proclaim a sober message to prepare the way of the Lord, by making a straight path for Him.

John 1:23 says: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,”’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” Mark 1:2-3: “As it is written in the prophets: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.” “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’”

There are many aspects to New Testament prophetic ministry, including signs, wonders, miracles and prophecy. However, the missing ingredient in many prophetic ministries today is repentance preaching. Unfortunately, over the past several years, many have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, proclaiming what the church wants to hear, instead of what the church needs to hear.

In contrast, John the Baptist, without one recorded sign, wonder or miracle prepared the way for Jesus’ first coming by simply preaching a message and administering a baptism of repentance. Today the Lord seeks to condition and commission a prophetic company of ministers with a message and mantle of repentance, in order to prepare the way not only for an unprecedented, worldwide revival and end-time harvest, but also for Jesus’ second coming. Therefore, judgment must first begin in the house of God, starting with the foundation—His apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (1 Pet. 4:17).

Before we can prepare the way of the Lord, we must be prepared by the Lord. In other words, before we can make straight the way of the Lord, we have to straighten up. Indeed, America’s pulpiteers must experience a purging and cleansing prior to the corporate purification and transformation of our churches into temples of glory.

Ministers must therefore lead by example—confessing and forsaking sins such as ambition, greed, pride, jealousy, prayerlessness and pornography. Without genuine repentance, anointed and convicting messages of repentance will not be heralded from America’s pulpits, and the church at large will be left to drown in a quagmire of sin.

Because of the Sins of Her Prophets
After years of intercession for and passionate prophetic pleas to his beloved Israel, the prophet Jeremiah was heart-broken over Israel’s take-over and exile to Babylon. Jeremiah’s lamentations, recorded in Scripture, reveal that the root cause of Israel’s backslidden spiritual condition and resultant captivity was “because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests” (Lam. 4:12-13).

In the Old Covenant, prophets, priests and kings were divinely delegated, authoritative offices through which the Lord achieved His purposes. Prophets proclaimed and kings executed divine will, purpose and direction. Priests, on the other hand, interceded to God in behalf of the people.

However, in the New Covenant, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers comprise the foundational authority structure of the church. Through these offices, the church—Christ’s ambassadorship of kings and priests, is edified and equipped to execute the Lord’s end-time purposes in every kingdom of this world. These earthly kingdoms include governmental, educational, marketplace, media, arts and entertainment venues of our culture (Eph. 4:11-12, 2 Cor. 5:20, Rev. 5:10).

Therefore, the degeneracy and looming judgment of America is due to the sins of not only our prophets, but also the entire authority structure of the church, which includes pastors, teachers, evangelists and apostles.

For example, some pastors, for fear of losing members, have cowered from preaching on tithing and fasting or against adultery and fornication. Apprehensive of losing popularity, financial support and airtime, some evangelists have refrained from decrying sins such as abortion, pornography and drunkenness. In order to maintain friendly associations and not “rock the boat”, some apostles have failed to raise higher standards for righteous and holy living, prayer, and accountability for their network members. Indeed, ministers’ fear of man and love of money not only have kept America spiritually lukewarm, but also have prevented revival fires from burning throughout our nation.

To continue reading this prophetic message, click here and go to "Prepare the Way of the Lord: July 2011."

About the author: Rob Winters is president and co-founder of Prepare the Way International, an itinerant prophetic ministry based in Phoenix. Prepare the Way's mission is to ignite a spiritual revolution and reformation in America through preaching repentance, prophesying restoration and promoting revival. Material in today's Prophetic Insight was adapted from Prepare the Way's prophetic bulletin, The Messenger. The newsletter is available on the ministry's website, preparethewayint.com.

The Greater the Affliction, the Greater the Reward

by R.T. Kendall Daily Devotionals - By Love Transformed

See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand! —Galatians 6:11

Some scholars have suggested that Paul's thorn in the flesh was that his eyesight was deteriorating. Whether it was partial blindness or not, we do not know. Perhaps it was a disability.

Whatever our thorn in the flesh is, and regardless of whether we have asked for it to be removed (as we surely have), I urge all of us to realize that it is there because God says it is still right for it to be there. It is true that God will use you all the more and all the better because that disability is still there.

I once asked Joni Eareckson Tada, "Would you like to be healed?" I thought she would have a quick answer, because I thought everyone asked her that. But it was as though she had never even thought about it! Finally she said, "Yes, but," she continued, "the most precious time of my day is when they put me to bed, and I am alone with the Lord. I am so afraid that if I didn't have this paralysis, I wouldn't have that intimacy."

The reward for being patient and not complaining is worth the wait. It is what helps ensure a great reward when you get to heaven. In my opinion, because of this kind of affliction, when one doesn't complain, the reward will be far, far greater.

The greater the affliction, the greater the reward. The greater the suffering, the greater the anointing. All this is guaranteed if you and I don't give in to self-pity or complaining.

The thorn in the flesh gives us the possibility of a greater reward than we would have had. The greater the handicap, the greater the impairment, the greater the disability, the greater the reward if we don't murmur. Here below you may have felt it was a deprivation. In heaven you will say (if I dare use this word), "How lucky I was to have it." I guarantee that this is the case.

Revival: It Requires Obedience

by A W Tozer

But why do you call Me "Lord, Lord," and not do the things which I  say? - Luke 6:46

It is my conviction that much, very much, prayer for and talk about  revival these days is wasted energy. Ignoring the confusion of  figures, I might say that it is hunger that appears to have no  object; it is dreamy wishing that is too weak to produce moral  action. It is fanaticism on a high level for, according to John  Wesley, "a fanatic is one who seeks desired ends while ignoring the  constituted means to reach those ends."...

The correction of this error is extemely difficult for it entails  more than a mere adjustment of our doctrinal beliefs; it strikes at  the whole Adam-life and requires self-abnegation, humility and cross  carrying. In short it requires obedience. And that we will do  anything to escape.

It is almost unbelievable how far we will go to avoid obeying God.  We call Jesus "Lord" and beg Him to rejuvenate our souls, but we are  careful to do not the things He says. When faced with a sin, a  confession or a moral alteration in our life, we find it much easier  to pray half a night than to obey God.  The Size of the Soul, 18-19.

"May this never be true of my life, Lord! I see the futility; I'm  convinced of the need. Now enable me by Your Spirit to live this  obedience. Amen." 

Revival: Not Just Intensity of Prayer

by A W Tozer

He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And  he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and  manifest Myself to him.  - John 14:21

Intensity of prayer is no criterion of its effectiveness. A man may  throw himself on his face and sob out his troubles to the Lord and  yet have no intention to obey the commandments of Christ. Strong  emotion and tears may be no more than the outcropping of a vexed  spirit, evidence of stubborn resistance to God's known will....

No matter what I write here, thousands of pastors will continue to  call their people to prayer in the forlorn hope that God will  finally relent and send revival if only His people wear themselves  out in intercession. To such people God must indeed appear to be a  hard taskmaster, for the years pass and the young get old and the  aged die and still no help comes. The prayer meeting room becomes a  wailing wall and the lights burn long, and still the rains tarry.

Has God forgotten to be gracious? Let any reader begin to obey and  he will have the answer. "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he  is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father,  and I too will love him and show myself to him" (John 14:21).
Isn't that what we want after all?  The Size of the Soul, 20-21.

"Lord, help me to obey Your commandments. My spirit is willing, but  my flesh is weak! I long to live in that obedience, in order that I  may know the Father's love and manifestation to me. Amen." 

Today's "Insight for Leaders" is taken by permission from the book, Tozer on Christian Leadership, published by WingSpread Publishers

Which do your leaders need? Which do you need? A mentor, a coach, a shepherd, a discipler, a consultant?

by John Purcell - Transform

What's the difference, anyway?

One of the great mistakes i keep making in my life is trying to do life by myself, without God and without other people that God puts there for me. There are times when every leader and every organization can benefit from support. Actually, a more Biblical statement would be that we all need support all the time. The question is:  In addition to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, what KIND of support do we need?
 

I find that there is a great deal of misunderstanding among the above terms, and the great risks of this confusion are these:

 

• You may attempt to support one of your leaders and take an approach that doesn't work for them.
• You may have very different expectations between yourself and someone you want to support or someone you want to support you. The result could be disappointment, disillusionment, lack of growth, and wasted time.
• You may not know that the very thing you need is available and, as a result, not get the support and help that you could use.

So here is the Transform Glossary of Terms to hopefully clarify this for you once and for all. If you have somewhat different take on some of these descriptions, that's OK. There is not universal agreement. But my hope is that this Glossary will still be extremely helpful to you going forward and encourage you to be more involved with leaders, clarifying your role. i also hope it will give you the freedom to enlist the kind of support for yourself that you need right now and in the future.
 
Mentor -- Someone who comes alongside you with advice and counsel that comes from their wisdom and experience. Based on this definition, most mentors are more experienced than you in at least one specific area. Therefore, they are often, but not always,  older than you. In many other countries the culture is such that mentors must always be older.
 
Coach -- Someone who comes alongside you to offer support, encouragement, and accountability to help you grow in one or more areas of your life. A coach takes the primary approach of asking powerful questions to pull out of you what the Holy Spirit and your experiences and wisdom already have put in you, keeping you accountable for your own actions and growth. A coach does not have to have as much knowledge and experience  as you do in any particular area but does need the coaching perspective, which most often comes from coach training.
 
Shepherd -- This has the widest variation of definitions of all of these terms, which is one reason that churches struggle so much to be successful at "shepherding" their people (they haven't defined what that means for them). I personally use it to mean caring for someone's whole life, as opposed to just their leadership role or growth in a specific area. This could include mentoring, coaching, or discipling.
 
Discipler -- A person who intentionally invests his life in others to help them grow spiritually. Biblically, the outcome should be a more mature believer who does the same in the life of others (2 Tim 2:2).
 
Consultant -- Someone who assists an organization, in our context a church or some ministry of a church, by assessing the organization and then advising it on what it should do to be more effective in a specific area or in general.
 
Organizational Coach -- You may not be familiar with this term, but, after reading the above definitions, you might best understand it as someone who comes alongside to coach the whole organization, as opposed to the pure consultant who "mentors" the organization. So the organizational coach asks questions, draws out of the leaders what they think they should do, helps them put a plan together that they can believe in, and supports them with accountability to follow through.
 
How do you select what you should offer or obtain for yourself?

I have found that very often a leader or organization truly needs a combination of the above approaches. They may think they want mentoring, for an individual, or consulting for an organization, but the best action steps, most likely to actually be implemented, will come out of a coaching approach. Or they may want coaching, personal or organizational, but along the way they really need to be challenged to consider taking a specific road.
 
The Gospel
 The most important example of this last point is that we all forget the Gospel all the time. I sure do. And i need someone in my life who has the permission to remind me of that and speak the Gospel truth back into my life. In fact, whichever of these specific roles you are in, your responsibility is to let Christ work through you in the life of the others. "Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'"