- What I don't pray about:
- I rarely pray about material things. God knows what I have need of and what is best for me and it is my belief that when I am in his perfect will, he will bless me. At times I may be concerned about particular problems or needs and ask God for direction or answers in regards to those problems, but my prayer is not directed at asking for material things.
- I don't try to "convince" God or dictate to God, or rouse God or provoke him, or tell God. God already knows and God has a will that He is perfectly capable of carrying out. My efforts are not to direct God, like he is a powerful speeding bullet that I'm attempting to aim through prayer at an intended target! No. God is fully in control of HIS universe and my silly declarations and demands are foolish in His sight. When I pray, I'm not to be in "dispute" with God. But rather my endeavor in prayer is asking God to assist my understanding as he is working to mold my thinking, and conform my will to His will. I do not hurl petitions at God's throne as if to demand anything. I believe the right way to come before God is "asking", "seeking", and "knocking" with humility and thanksgiving, not "telling", "commanding", "whining", "begging", and "demanding". If I may add this note here: I am convinced that whining and complaining to God in prayer opens the door to evil spirits. It's a very dangerous ground to tread upon. I try to make sure that whatever I am praying about, that I am not in any sense whining or complaining.
- I also do not pray like I'm standing in a "good" place and praying for all those who are not faithful, who are not doing their job or living up to their potential (as if I am). I do not pray "down" to others. I do not pray condescendingly about others. But rather, the standpoint of prayer ought to be that we are all in the same stinking human boat. We all smell fishy. We are all sinking. We are all out in the middle of an ocean with no paddle. We are all bound to die without God's intervention. It is not "Oh God, help that unfaithful brother to be more faithful". Which implies that I must think I am faithful or else I'd be praying for my own unfaithfulness first and foremost. So it is "Oh God help all of us to be what you have called us to be: whether faithful or loving or patient or humble or wherever we are each lacking, for we are all indeed lacking in some area, but you have put a desire inside of each of us to live for you". Some may be doing better or worse in various areas at different times, but none of us have reached a place of being "better" than anyone else. And we all go through what Bro. Gunter termed our "6 o'clock". Somewhere in the world, it's 6 o'clock. It may not be 6 o'clock for me right now, but it will get here if I keep on living. So my chastisement or humiliation may not be here right now, but I'd better not get haughty or high minded over someone else' chastisement or humiliation or correction or whatsoever, because mine is coming, as sure as 6 o'clock and it will be much harder for me to endure if I have been haughty towards my brother or sister. So when I pray for others, I pray for all of us that are in the same boat.
- I also don't pray as a leader of a group. If someone asks me to pray somewhere, I do so, not as a leader, but just as one of the crowd. Based of what I've seen, I don't believe that praying "out loud" is a good idea for just everyone. Jesus warned about the Sadducees prayers. Praying out loud is primarily a ministerial function because it tends to be authoritative. Also because the person praying is mindful of listeners, it tends to not be a genuine prayer to God. The person praying can believe that they are praying for the will of God on the people, but God may see how caught up they are in their own agenda, and not having the mind of Christ. Therefore it is not good for a woman to lead prayer. If women are together, it's better if they all pray together, none trying to be louder than another nor draw any attention to themselves over another. Their voice shouldn't be louder than the rest of the sisters. Their manifestations shouldn't be efforts to draw attention to themselves. And their words ought not to be contrived eloquence to make others pay attention. Women should pray as equal sisters in Christ and any sister who seeks to excel over another should refer to the rule of thumb that if you seek to be great, you should strive to be the least and servant to all. Services are often called to order by the prayer of the Ministry, who speak as the mouth of God and this is their calling and position, so prayers that lead and call people to order ought to be done by the Ministry.
- What I do pray about:
- I pray for God to change my wicked ways; my thoughts; and my mindsets. I recognize that in order for God to do this, He will use circumstances, my health, and people. I pray for him to assist me in understanding what he is trying to show me through all the difficulties I encounter so that I can change and avoid further difficulties if possible. I know that mindsets are embedded into my understanding, my opinions, and my character traits due to my experiences and many other factors. I recognize that it takes God to dig deep and alter those mindsets as needed, and meanwhile I need God's grace to walk as He is directing me to walk, without rebelling or getting discouraged, until He accomplishes change in my thinking.
- I also "listen". When thoughts, circumstances, or people come to my mind, I talk to God about them and if the Spirit is present to cover that topic, I continue to pray about it, but if the prayer is "dry", then I move on to something else. I don't try to force God to talk about what He is not interested in talking about with me. I try to find the topic that He wants to talk to me about. And I also often pray for God to bring to my mind what it is he wants me to pray about and to lead me in prayer.
- More than anything, I pray for God's will. I pray for God's direction. I pray that when I don't hear a clear word or see a clear vision, for God to just somehow let me stumble upon the perfect path- because He is clearly able to do that. I pray for God to open my ears to hear his voice in the service, in the songs, in the minister's words. I pray for God to let me spiritually see what He is doing, and not be blinded by my human reasoning. I pray for God to veto the will of my flesh in favor of His will in my life and in everything I do and to correct me, to cleanse me, and to infuse his thinking into my corrupted thinking and renew me.
- I love God and I thank God for everything, for everything is working for my good because I belong to Him. I let God know that I appreciate His calling on my life. I tell Him often that He is my reason for living. He is my everything. He is my life. There is nothing, no hope, no purpose, no reason, no life, no joy, no expectation- all is vanity without him. Everything I am or ever hope to be, will be GOD. I'm not capable, mentally or physically of doing anything good, or great, or worthy of any importance on my own. I have no awesome words to speak. I have no excellent wisdom to express. All my "best" is filthy rags. But God is able to use me, and even "I" am impressed! I think about some of the words to the songs that just came to me, and I sang them, and I think "wow! I would have never thought to come up with that". But he just gave it to me. I think of some of the things He's taught me, and how much higher the understanding is than that which I had, and I'm just filled with adoration for God. Thinking this in prayer one day, I wrote the song "Lord I love the work that you're working in my life. And I love all the ways that you've changed me! and I love this path that you've caused me to walk upon. I love you, Lord, and I love what you're doing in my life!".
Monday, August 25, 2014
How I pray -August 25, 2014
The Lord impressed me this morning to write about prayer. Here are some things that began to flow to my mind about my own prayer and how God has dealt with me.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Plodding Along - Jan 28, 2010 revised August 6, 2014
Remember the ad for the Easy Button? I wish there was a Decision Button, that we could use to make decisions permanent.
Want to stop overeating? Just program in the decision, press "forever" and voila! You will never overeat again in your entire life because you made the permanent decision not to! You could do the same to stop smoking, drinking, lying, or any bad habits!
Think how different the world would be! New Year's Resolutions would be a sure deal. Creditors wouldn't have to worry about anyone ever defaulting and marriage vows would be a guarantee of life-long companionship! Alas, in reality, decisions are made, un-made, and revised every day, all the time, for every weather, according to every mood, and depending on every circumstance and feeling.
When I was obese, how often I would get so disgusted with myself and my weight that I would declare my decision to "eat only 500 calories a day!!" or "Fast every day except Tuesday!" and at the time I seriously meant it. But those "decisions" were based on rash, emotional, excited, and desperate feelings and circumstances. It was the sprint of the hare speaking, and not the plodding of the turtle.
Losing weight is a good example of certain decisions that cannot be done by making a rash, "determined" choice. There is no concrete to set the decision in to make it "stick". It's a slow process that will go through many different days, moods, encounters, and circumstances upon which the same decision must be repeatedly made again and again. No matter how determined you are "today", you will inevitably fail if you cannot maintain that same determination every day, all day long. So to lose weight, you must forget about the end result and focus instead on one day at a time life changes that you want to do "today" to a certain end. You will then have to make more similar decisions tomorrow, but it's a walk, not a sprint and you will most likely not see any results for a very long time.
If it seems like life is against us, it is. Life is a battle. Flesh is enmity against God. This is warfare we are fighting. And we can't win by brute strength.
No matter how fast you run, it will take your whole life to run this race! You might as well get your gear and prepare for the long haul. Don't take off flying without having your running shoes on because you won't last. All that will do is cause discouragement and make you think that you can't possibly run that fast for the rest of your life and you can't. Thankfully, we're not judged by how fast or slow we go, but by whether we kept on going, and endured to the end. This is not a sprint, it's a daily walk, a vision of where we want to head towards.
We're not trying to "get there" in one sprint. We're plodding our course in that direction and we are making traveling to that destination our new lifestyle. We sell out of our past habits and we buy into whatever will further our journey towards this new destination like one would sell their house that keeps them in California and buy a motorhome because their new course and journey is to travel towards New York. And we continue to travel in that direction for the rest of our lives.
When I fail, I get back up; when I'm discouraged, I keep plodding along anyhow; when I'm winning, I keep going, when I'm losing, I refuse to give up. I have counted the cost of living this new life and I have made the necessary arrangements in my lifestyle to afford it, and to pay it every day. Every day in sunshine or rain, I'm plodding along, little by little, day by day, waiting, hoping, winning, failing and always getting up, over and over again.
This is the only way to win.
Want to stop overeating? Just program in the decision, press "forever" and voila! You will never overeat again in your entire life because you made the permanent decision not to! You could do the same to stop smoking, drinking, lying, or any bad habits!
Think how different the world would be! New Year's Resolutions would be a sure deal. Creditors wouldn't have to worry about anyone ever defaulting and marriage vows would be a guarantee of life-long companionship! Alas, in reality, decisions are made, un-made, and revised every day, all the time, for every weather, according to every mood, and depending on every circumstance and feeling.
When I was obese, how often I would get so disgusted with myself and my weight that I would declare my decision to "eat only 500 calories a day!!" or "Fast every day except Tuesday!" and at the time I seriously meant it. But those "decisions" were based on rash, emotional, excited, and desperate feelings and circumstances. It was the sprint of the hare speaking, and not the plodding of the turtle.
Losing weight is a good example of certain decisions that cannot be done by making a rash, "determined" choice. There is no concrete to set the decision in to make it "stick". It's a slow process that will go through many different days, moods, encounters, and circumstances upon which the same decision must be repeatedly made again and again. No matter how determined you are "today", you will inevitably fail if you cannot maintain that same determination every day, all day long. So to lose weight, you must forget about the end result and focus instead on one day at a time life changes that you want to do "today" to a certain end. You will then have to make more similar decisions tomorrow, but it's a walk, not a sprint and you will most likely not see any results for a very long time.
If it seems like life is against us, it is. Life is a battle. Flesh is enmity against God. This is warfare we are fighting. And we can't win by brute strength.
No matter how fast you run, it will take your whole life to run this race! You might as well get your gear and prepare for the long haul. Don't take off flying without having your running shoes on because you won't last. All that will do is cause discouragement and make you think that you can't possibly run that fast for the rest of your life and you can't. Thankfully, we're not judged by how fast or slow we go, but by whether we kept on going, and endured to the end. This is not a sprint, it's a daily walk, a vision of where we want to head towards.
We're not trying to "get there" in one sprint. We're plodding our course in that direction and we are making traveling to that destination our new lifestyle. We sell out of our past habits and we buy into whatever will further our journey towards this new destination like one would sell their house that keeps them in California and buy a motorhome because their new course and journey is to travel towards New York. And we continue to travel in that direction for the rest of our lives.
When I fail, I get back up; when I'm discouraged, I keep plodding along anyhow; when I'm winning, I keep going, when I'm losing, I refuse to give up. I have counted the cost of living this new life and I have made the necessary arrangements in my lifestyle to afford it, and to pay it every day. Every day in sunshine or rain, I'm plodding along, little by little, day by day, waiting, hoping, winning, failing and always getting up, over and over again.
This is the only way to win.
Measuring Tool- written Feb 16, 2010
Bro. Myron Travis got up Sunday speaking about how we ought to measure our lives by the word of God. Bro. Welch then took up that idea and did a wonderful job expounding on that premise.
Bro. Welch had taken some carpentry classes and he was required in one class to build a box according to the pattern and measurements given. At the end of the class, the Instructor would measure and examine the box and a grade would be given based on how the box measured up to the plans.
Once the instructor judged the box, that was his grade. There was no back tracking. The grade would then stand, no matter what you did to the box after that.
But before the instructor judged the box, you could measure the box and judge it yourself, by comparing what you had to the diagrams and measurements given. You could make adjustments as needed. You could even tear it down and start all over if you felt it wasn't right.
So it is in the kingdom. We ought to measure our lives by the word of God now. We have an awesome opportunity now to get things right. There will be no more time to go back and redo things. We must make adjustments now, while we can.
Bro. Welch had taken some carpentry classes and he was required in one class to build a box according to the pattern and measurements given. At the end of the class, the Instructor would measure and examine the box and a grade would be given based on how the box measured up to the plans.
Once the instructor judged the box, that was his grade. There was no back tracking. The grade would then stand, no matter what you did to the box after that.
But before the instructor judged the box, you could measure the box and judge it yourself, by comparing what you had to the diagrams and measurements given. You could make adjustments as needed. You could even tear it down and start all over if you felt it wasn't right.
So it is in the kingdom. We ought to measure our lives by the word of God now. We have an awesome opportunity now to get things right. There will be no more time to go back and redo things. We must make adjustments now, while we can.
Dream March 13, 2010
In my dream, I was using this man's bible, trying to follow along with the teaching.
And the teacher said to "turn to 2 Thessalonians" but I couldn't find it. I knew where it was supposed to be, but it wasn't there, and his bible had SOME of the books of the bible but a lot were missing and, where there were books missing or out of order, it was filled ...up with stories and cartoon-like images that had to be interpreted to be read.
The images were meant to be read, but they weren't complete, so you had to guess a lot. Like the dog-beast-thing was up on top of something, a countertop maybe, and then the next picture, he was down on the floor as if he'd either jumped, fallen, or had been pushed, There was no way to "read" that without skipping important details or adding to it with your own imagination.
And when I woke up, I thought Wow, that's the way a lot of people's bible-understanding is. They are missing true knowledge, and they have added in fables and images that aren't complete or cohesive. And they've become so accustomed to these stories and cartoons, that they don't know them from the real word of God.
Lord, help us all to get all the stories and ideas out, and get rid of everything that isn't the real unadulterated truth of God, and help us to understand what is truth.
Deb
And the teacher said to "turn to 2 Thessalonians" but I couldn't find it. I knew where it was supposed to be, but it wasn't there, and his bible had SOME of the books of the bible but a lot were missing and, where there were books missing or out of order, it was filled ...up with stories and cartoon-like images that had to be interpreted to be read.
The images were meant to be read, but they weren't complete, so you had to guess a lot. Like the dog-beast-thing was up on top of something, a countertop maybe, and then the next picture, he was down on the floor as if he'd either jumped, fallen, or had been pushed, There was no way to "read" that without skipping important details or adding to it with your own imagination.
And when I woke up, I thought Wow, that's the way a lot of people's bible-understanding is. They are missing true knowledge, and they have added in fables and images that aren't complete or cohesive. And they've become so accustomed to these stories and cartoons, that they don't know them from the real word of God.
Lord, help us all to get all the stories and ideas out, and get rid of everything that isn't the real unadulterated truth of God, and help us to understand what is truth.
Deb
Peeking Above The Clouds - Written March 6, 2010
When I pray, it's like my head is lifted up, so I can peek at what lies just above the clouds. Before I met God, I didn't know that anything existed above the clouds.
Below the clouds I see life as other carnal people around me see it. It is a life of what "appears". But just above the clouds, I can see doors, possibilities, opportunities, and realities that I can't even imagine in my existence below.
The just shall walk by faith. What is seen is the reality of the natural realm. But there is another reality of the spiritual realm. When God shows us what His reality is, then we have a unique opportunity to do greater things than the reality of the natural realm would provide us. Because we have unique access to what's available above the clouds, we're not limited to our natural surroundings and conditions.
However, we are not a blind people who walk by the imagination of their own foolish hearts. If it doesn't exist above the clouds, then no amount of foolish conjuring will accomplish it below the clouds either. Walking by faith is living by what is above the clouds. We cannot live by what's above the clouds if it has not been revealed to us what is available there.
Faith is not something we initiate in and to ourselves. Faith must always initiated by God. God decided that Abraham would be a Father of many nations. Abraham had little to do with that decision. It was then revealed by God to Abraham that he would have a son. See how God initiated the faith by saying to Abraham "You shall have a son"? Therefore Abraham staggered not, but believed what had been revealed to him by God. Below the clouds, there was no way. But above the clouds, he would be a Father of many nations!
It was revealed to Noah to build an ark, that God would send a flood. Therefore he built. Below the clouds, there was no chance of rain seen. People laughed and mocked. But Noah had peeked into the heavenlies. It was going to rain and rain big time!
We are not a people who walk by human, natural sight or by what appears below the clouds. Faith is manifested by seemingly strange or confident things it has caused people to do throughout the ages, that resulted in great victory and blessings despite how absurd or unlikely it seemed before they received the outcome. They saw something from God and were so convinced of it because they knew it was from God, that they began to pursue it without wavering or doubting, no matter how incredibly silly it seemed to everyone else at the time. This was their faith manifesting!
Moses saw that a bush burned and wasn't consumed. The bush revealed, caused him to turn aside to go see. What God spoke to him at the bush, caused him to go to Pharoah! Pharoah certainly didn't see anything spiritual, but only saw what was below the clouds.
But Moses had had an audience with God. He saw that there, just above the clouds, above the natural circumstances, lay God's timing, God's will, & God's deliverance for Israel! And, despite how bad the circumstances looked, or how hard-hearted Pharoah was, the knowledge above the clouds was that God was about to deliver his people Israel!
That which is seen above the clouds is stedfast and unrelenting, not subject in any way to neither present circumstances, nor the attempted sabotage or negativity of unbelievers. It didn't matter how hard the Egyptians laughed and scorned the whole idea; that they temporarily made the Israelites work harder; or that they threatened them in every way they could think of. That which is seen in the heavenlies is sure! If God says it, you can bank on it!
One day I was in prayer, and I glimpsed above the clouds and I "saw" that I was a size 12!! Below the clouds I weighed almost 500 pounds at that time. But I knew what I saw and heard in the Spirit! And I embraced it! It may have seemed very foolish that day in service when I testified "God said, I'm a size 12. No matter what you see. No matter what it looks like. I "am" a size twelve! This was not a "gonna be" testimony! I said I "am" a size 12, and anything that's not a size 12, has got to go! Anything in natural reality that doesn't fit that heavenly reality, is a lie and cannot possibly continue to exist! God is true and everything else is a lie! And GOD said, I didn't say it, GOD said I am a size 12!!". This was my testimony in church and I sat down and I remember the people saying "Alright, well, praise God" as smiles filled the room.
Three years later, I'd like somebody to guess what size I was wearing?!! I've been a size 12 now for about 4 or 5 years. I didn't know "how" God was going to do it. I didn't know "when" he was going to manifest it. But one thing I did know: God said it and I believed God! And I refused to say anything any differently, despite all the pounds of opposition staring at me daily! And I refused to be discouraged by all the failed diets and inability to exercise, and exasperated attempts in the natural to fulfill a hope. I kept repeating what I heard from the Lord. And that which I saw then, that seemed so impossible to those living below the clouds, became a reality for me and now people hardly remember when I used to be so big.
Recently I've seen new things above the clouds. I see things that I never would have imagined for me! I see God taking me to places I never would have dreamed of. The opportunity is there. And it may seem impossible for the flesh, but I've seen it above the clouds, and I still believe God.
Even God did not let what "appeared" dictate to him on what could be. Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
We can each create our own world, but only by what is available above the clouds. Only by peeking into the heavenlies and seeing potentials and doors and opportunities that we can't see in the flesh. And then following those specific things. We can't just conjure up any idea and try to make it something of faith. Faith always has to be initiated by God. God reveals in the spirit realm, and we then have to believe, despite the natural world opposition.
In Science Fiction movies, I've often seen a machine that would make an ordinary looking object a transporter or a doorway into another realm, world, or reality. It may look like a rock, but it's really a door into a whole other world. Like in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe the children entered a whole other world through a portal in the closet.
But even in science fiction, not just any closet or any rock would do the trick. You have to find the right object, at the right place and time, in order to get transported into other realms. When I peek above the clouds, connecting with God's mind, I see where these doors are located.
I was sleeping when I saw a vision of someone I knew. I woke up with the voice of the Lord saying to me "You are peeking above the clouds". I got up to use the bathroom pondering what I had seen. The Lord said I was seeing something above the clouds, something possible in the spirit realm. An available portal through which a person could cross into another world if they wanted to. But all I had seen was this person that I knew.
The Lord said "What did you see?" I replied with the name of the person it was. The Lord asked again "What was she doing?" I said "She was just sitting there in a (band) chair with her saxophone." When I said that, for the first time I realized that in carnal reality (below the clouds) she did not play saxophone! The Lord let me see that in the heavenlies, His will for her was for her to play saxophone and be a part of the church band. Later on, when I told her what I had received, I found out that this was in fact her desire to do and she was wondering if God was in it or if it was just her own carnal desire.
Thank you Father, for the ability to see and live by things revealed above the clouds.
Below the clouds I see life as other carnal people around me see it. It is a life of what "appears". But just above the clouds, I can see doors, possibilities, opportunities, and realities that I can't even imagine in my existence below.
The just shall walk by faith. What is seen is the reality of the natural realm. But there is another reality of the spiritual realm. When God shows us what His reality is, then we have a unique opportunity to do greater things than the reality of the natural realm would provide us. Because we have unique access to what's available above the clouds, we're not limited to our natural surroundings and conditions.
However, we are not a blind people who walk by the imagination of their own foolish hearts. If it doesn't exist above the clouds, then no amount of foolish conjuring will accomplish it below the clouds either. Walking by faith is living by what is above the clouds. We cannot live by what's above the clouds if it has not been revealed to us what is available there.
Faith is not something we initiate in and to ourselves. Faith must always initiated by God. God decided that Abraham would be a Father of many nations. Abraham had little to do with that decision. It was then revealed by God to Abraham that he would have a son. See how God initiated the faith by saying to Abraham "You shall have a son"? Therefore Abraham staggered not, but believed what had been revealed to him by God. Below the clouds, there was no way. But above the clouds, he would be a Father of many nations!
It was revealed to Noah to build an ark, that God would send a flood. Therefore he built. Below the clouds, there was no chance of rain seen. People laughed and mocked. But Noah had peeked into the heavenlies. It was going to rain and rain big time!
We are not a people who walk by human, natural sight or by what appears below the clouds. Faith is manifested by seemingly strange or confident things it has caused people to do throughout the ages, that resulted in great victory and blessings despite how absurd or unlikely it seemed before they received the outcome. They saw something from God and were so convinced of it because they knew it was from God, that they began to pursue it without wavering or doubting, no matter how incredibly silly it seemed to everyone else at the time. This was their faith manifesting!
Moses saw that a bush burned and wasn't consumed. The bush revealed, caused him to turn aside to go see. What God spoke to him at the bush, caused him to go to Pharoah! Pharoah certainly didn't see anything spiritual, but only saw what was below the clouds.
But Moses had had an audience with God. He saw that there, just above the clouds, above the natural circumstances, lay God's timing, God's will, & God's deliverance for Israel! And, despite how bad the circumstances looked, or how hard-hearted Pharoah was, the knowledge above the clouds was that God was about to deliver his people Israel!
That which is seen above the clouds is stedfast and unrelenting, not subject in any way to neither present circumstances, nor the attempted sabotage or negativity of unbelievers. It didn't matter how hard the Egyptians laughed and scorned the whole idea; that they temporarily made the Israelites work harder; or that they threatened them in every way they could think of. That which is seen in the heavenlies is sure! If God says it, you can bank on it!
One day I was in prayer, and I glimpsed above the clouds and I "saw" that I was a size 12!! Below the clouds I weighed almost 500 pounds at that time. But I knew what I saw and heard in the Spirit! And I embraced it! It may have seemed very foolish that day in service when I testified "God said, I'm a size 12. No matter what you see. No matter what it looks like. I "am" a size twelve! This was not a "gonna be" testimony! I said I "am" a size 12, and anything that's not a size 12, has got to go! Anything in natural reality that doesn't fit that heavenly reality, is a lie and cannot possibly continue to exist! God is true and everything else is a lie! And GOD said, I didn't say it, GOD said I am a size 12!!". This was my testimony in church and I sat down and I remember the people saying "Alright, well, praise God" as smiles filled the room.
Three years later, I'd like somebody to guess what size I was wearing?!! I've been a size 12 now for about 4 or 5 years. I didn't know "how" God was going to do it. I didn't know "when" he was going to manifest it. But one thing I did know: God said it and I believed God! And I refused to say anything any differently, despite all the pounds of opposition staring at me daily! And I refused to be discouraged by all the failed diets and inability to exercise, and exasperated attempts in the natural to fulfill a hope. I kept repeating what I heard from the Lord. And that which I saw then, that seemed so impossible to those living below the clouds, became a reality for me and now people hardly remember when I used to be so big.
Recently I've seen new things above the clouds. I see things that I never would have imagined for me! I see God taking me to places I never would have dreamed of. The opportunity is there. And it may seem impossible for the flesh, but I've seen it above the clouds, and I still believe God.
Even God did not let what "appeared" dictate to him on what could be. Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
We can each create our own world, but only by what is available above the clouds. Only by peeking into the heavenlies and seeing potentials and doors and opportunities that we can't see in the flesh. And then following those specific things. We can't just conjure up any idea and try to make it something of faith. Faith always has to be initiated by God. God reveals in the spirit realm, and we then have to believe, despite the natural world opposition.
In Science Fiction movies, I've often seen a machine that would make an ordinary looking object a transporter or a doorway into another realm, world, or reality. It may look like a rock, but it's really a door into a whole other world. Like in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe the children entered a whole other world through a portal in the closet.
But even in science fiction, not just any closet or any rock would do the trick. You have to find the right object, at the right place and time, in order to get transported into other realms. When I peek above the clouds, connecting with God's mind, I see where these doors are located.
I was sleeping when I saw a vision of someone I knew. I woke up with the voice of the Lord saying to me "You are peeking above the clouds". I got up to use the bathroom pondering what I had seen. The Lord said I was seeing something above the clouds, something possible in the spirit realm. An available portal through which a person could cross into another world if they wanted to. But all I had seen was this person that I knew.
The Lord said "What did you see?" I replied with the name of the person it was. The Lord asked again "What was she doing?" I said "She was just sitting there in a (band) chair with her saxophone." When I said that, for the first time I realized that in carnal reality (below the clouds) she did not play saxophone! The Lord let me see that in the heavenlies, His will for her was for her to play saxophone and be a part of the church band. Later on, when I told her what I had received, I found out that this was in fact her desire to do and she was wondering if God was in it or if it was just her own carnal desire.
Thank you Father, for the ability to see and live by things revealed above the clouds.
The limbo game of humility - Written March 29, 2010
Mat 7:14 -Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
The way to that secret door is down, lower and lower and lower still. How can I go lower still? For my Lord loveth humility.
Remember the limbo game? At first everybody can just walk underneath the pole, and there are alot of players starting out. But as the pole lowers, there get to be fewer and fewer. The final competitors will be slim, agile and flexible, very strong, and have exquisite balance.
In the limbo game, you must glide underneath the pole without touching the bar and without falling.
In life, you must stay under the radar of adoration, exaltation, showing off, ursurping authority, living large, being in control, or exuding "self" in any way. But we must also not fall on the floor, wallowing in self-hatred nor failing to uphold our service to God.
It takes great balance to be low enough to not defend yourself when you're offended or when your rights have been violated, and yet not so low that you cast yourself down.
Many start out, but few there be that find that place of humility that is a godly choice to put on humility, trusting God, and not just a self-defeating mindset of self-abasement.
2Co 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
See MoreThe way to that secret door is down, lower and lower and lower still. How can I go lower still? For my Lord loveth humility.
Remember the limbo game? At first everybody can just walk underneath the pole, and there are alot of players starting out. But as the pole lowers, there get to be fewer and fewer. The final competitors will be slim, agile and flexible, very strong, and have exquisite balance.
In the limbo game, you must glide underneath the pole without touching the bar and without falling.
In life, you must stay under the radar of adoration, exaltation, showing off, ursurping authority, living large, being in control, or exuding "self" in any way. But we must also not fall on the floor, wallowing in self-hatred nor failing to uphold our service to God.
It takes great balance to be low enough to not defend yourself when you're offended or when your rights have been violated, and yet not so low that you cast yourself down.
Many start out, but few there be that find that place of humility that is a godly choice to put on humility, trusting God, and not just a self-defeating mindset of self-abasement.
2Co 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
Connection- April 13, 2010
I hunger and thirst inside, panting, craving, lusting for something. For what? For connection.
I want to feel a depth of connection that is felt immediately by others. So that my life becomes a water source, not for natural water, but for spiritual.
I want all my insights, revelations, writings, songs, and activities to manifest over and over in various ways, words, and expressions of how God is transforming my mind. I want others to understand that the depth of water that is being glimpsed here must surely be evidence of a deeper connecting stream because my well is far too shallow to afford the pureness of this water!
Just as I once desired a song that wasn't just a song, but touched people's lives and tapped into the vein of the Spirit. I didn't want to just be a singer, I desired to become a channel through which God was able to reach out to his people! Selah!
In Ecclesiastes - the preacher sought out acceptable words. Of all the words Solomon, the wise man, could have used, he sought the ones that were acceptable, true, valuable. He didn't want to give his own words, but words that were from a higher source. Of books, there is no end, even as there is no end to how many songs and choruses one could write or sing, but to find the one that is "acceptable" or right on time, valuable, and edifying, that is my longing!
Like a telephone. I don't want to be a dead phone that isn't plugged into the channel! There are those who look like a telephone, but there's no dial tone and no voice on the other end. But when you pick up a receiver and someone says "hello?" What a joy! We have a connection! Now in conversation, I can "touch" the person on the other end!
Like a lamp. I don't want to be a dead lamp, with no light. Some sit pretty, but if they're not plugged in, they do no good to anyone who is sitting in darkness. A lamp that is not plugged into a source greater than itself, cannot light the house. But when you stumble through the dark, and find a lamp that is connected to a power-source, what a joy! Darkness is past, and light fills the space and there is no more fear! What once was unclear is now abundantly clear and everything that was unsure is no longer uncertain!
Lord I long for more and stronger connection. I don't want to just be connected, but to have a good, clear, strong connection. I don't want people on the other end to be confused. I don't want God to be screaming "Can you hear me now?" But I want my connection to be clear and strong and without any interferences.
Debbie Hoffman Benfield
I want to feel a depth of connection that is felt immediately by others. So that my life becomes a water source, not for natural water, but for spiritual.
I want all my insights, revelations, writings, songs, and activities to manifest over and over in various ways, words, and expressions of how God is transforming my mind. I want others to understand that the depth of water that is being glimpsed here must surely be evidence of a deeper connecting stream because my well is far too shallow to afford the pureness of this water!
Just as I once desired a song that wasn't just a song, but touched people's lives and tapped into the vein of the Spirit. I didn't want to just be a singer, I desired to become a channel through which God was able to reach out to his people! Selah!
In Ecclesiastes - the preacher sought out acceptable words. Of all the words Solomon, the wise man, could have used, he sought the ones that were acceptable, true, valuable. He didn't want to give his own words, but words that were from a higher source. Of books, there is no end, even as there is no end to how many songs and choruses one could write or sing, but to find the one that is "acceptable" or right on time, valuable, and edifying, that is my longing!
Like a telephone. I don't want to be a dead phone that isn't plugged into the channel! There are those who look like a telephone, but there's no dial tone and no voice on the other end. But when you pick up a receiver and someone says "hello?" What a joy! We have a connection! Now in conversation, I can "touch" the person on the other end!
Like a lamp. I don't want to be a dead lamp, with no light. Some sit pretty, but if they're not plugged in, they do no good to anyone who is sitting in darkness. A lamp that is not plugged into a source greater than itself, cannot light the house. But when you stumble through the dark, and find a lamp that is connected to a power-source, what a joy! Darkness is past, and light fills the space and there is no more fear! What once was unclear is now abundantly clear and everything that was unsure is no longer uncertain!
Lord I long for more and stronger connection. I don't want to just be connected, but to have a good, clear, strong connection. I don't want people on the other end to be confused. I don't want God to be screaming "Can you hear me now?" But I want my connection to be clear and strong and without any interferences.
Debbie Hoffman Benfield
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