A Nation within a Nation

 I would like you to ponder and search the scriptures for yourself about what I am going to share. It all started while reading 1 Peter  2:9 ;  "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, A HOLY NATION, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of  Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." 

 It was the expression of A HOLY NATION that caught my attention. As a believer, I began to realize that I am an ambassador of Christ of this HOLY NATION to proclaim the good news of reconciliation to a dying world. The more I grow in Christ, my politics have changed to a more eternal perspective. I am learning more and more that I can bring change in America on my knees rather then with my mouth .  God doesn't need my mouth to express my opinions and to get into aggressive arguments to get His work done.  The body of Christ, is a NATION WITHIN A NATION that  rules through prayer. Isaiah 9: 6 says " the government is upon His shoulders" and this is the government that I am submitted to for eternity: 

 Jesus Christ is the sovereign  ruler over all Nations. I am to pray for America, and her leaders, etc. but not to get emotionally involved anymore. With another election around the corner, I am expecting that it will be a real test  to see how much I believe and understand what I just wrote, namely that the church, (the body of Christ) is a HOLY NATION, WITHIN A NATION. "Lord Jesus keep me on my knees!" I pray. (2Chronicles 7-14)

THE BEST KEPT SECRET

How long can you keep a secret? One year, three years, a life time? We all have secrets that we don't want anyone to know until it is time, and so does God.  We are told in Deuteronomy 29:29 that, "The secret things belong to the Lord, our God , but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children's children forever." God kept one of the most amazing secrets ever revealed until St.Paul was converted. 

For three years, St Paul received revelation after revelations of God's best kept secrets in the Arabian desert. Many of these mysteries were given to St. Paul to share with the early church, concerning, who we are in Jesus Christ and who He is in us. 

In Colossians 1:26  through the Holy Spirit, St. Paul reveals  "The mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to His saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is CHRIST IN YOU, THE HOPE OF GLORY."  Brothers and sisters, how great it is to have this mystery known. Under the law, Israel could never know this mystery.  The Holy Spirit was always with Israel, but never IN the individual. It wasn't until Jesus came, fulfilled the law (10 commandments) and took His shed blood to Heaven's Mercy Seat that we could say "Christ in us, the hope of glory."

The more this reality of "Christ in you the hope of glory" is settled in our hearts, the more we will realize the importance of NOT letting anyone put us under the law by striving to perfect the old man of sin.  The good news is the LAW IS NOW BEING WRITTEN ON OUR NEW HEART by the Holy Spirit.  We no longer have to do, do, do, because Jesus has already done, done, done.  It is finished.  We are totally forgiven. Jesus has rescued us from eternal judgement, amazing grace.

We are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. He finds no fault in us. His blood not only COVERS our sin, but  takes it AWAY as far as the East is from the West. Because He lives in us, we are alive in Him forever. 

This is our true confession,"We are children of the living God, the hope of glory." His glory is in us, His church. We are the body of Christ on earth today to express his resurrection power and glory..

One day the Nations will bow to His righteous rule.  Until then, the secret is OUT.  WE ARE GROWING UP IN CHRIST  TO RULE WITH HIM!  We are being trained up NOW to walk in His righteousness and to BELIEVE His Word.  Jesus Christ is our future, and we belong to Him forever.

LEARNING TO SIT AT THE FEET OF JESUS

One morning , I was reading the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42, when the Lord gave me this revelation.  It is helping me so much and it really is a THOUGHT TO PONDER. You probably know the story and how Martha was busy in the kitchen, while Mary sat at Jesus' feet.  Martha  needs help in the kitchen, but Mary needs help for her soul.  Who is right? Jesus said that Mary had chosen the best portion, which will not be taken away from her. Why did Jesus say a thing like that?  Didn't He care about how much Martha is serving Him working so hard in the kitchen? Of course, He appreciated her efforts, but how much more it would have meant to Him, if Martha first desired was to sit with Mary and cook later? 

I was thinking about this and I thought to myself, "How many times have I tried to serve Jesus myself without even asking what He wants me to do? I just want Him to bless my agenda and hope it is His.  Could many of my works to serve be considered wood, hay and stubble?  That made me sad and I knew I was missing something. Mary was building on gold, silver and precious stone, by first letting the Lord serve her.  Mary wanted a deep relationship with him. 

Learning to walk in the spirit and not in my flesh (old nature) is an every day trial for me. The Lord is so patience, kind and gentle in His ways. I am grateful to be a CHILD of God, because He doesn't expect a CHILD to know everything or to do everything right. Children are learners and I have so much to learn about His ways.

Mary sat at His feet and let Him FIRST serve her.  THAT WAS IT. Her desire was to first sit before the Lord and not be so anxious to do, do do, but to be, be, be with Him, and then she would know what He wanted her to do, do, do.  Did He not say, "even as the Son of Man came NOT TO BE served, but TO SERVE and to give His life as a ransom for many."  (Matthew 20:25-28). 

As the Lord continues to bring His body together in the last day, it will be more and more important for each of us to learn to wait upon the Lord.  Why are we so anxious to serve the Lord, when we don't even know what we wants us to do?  If He is the HEAD and WE are HIS BODY, than how can we do anything that is holy , righteous and good apart from the Head.

 In our physical bodies, it is not the head that tells our body what to do and it responds?  How many times I have found myself running around like a chicken with its head cut off the head, only to find it may have been a good thing, but it wasn't what the Lord wanted me to do. What kind of a foundation am I building upon,gold, silver, gold and precious stone, or wood, hay or stable? A thought to ponder.

WHERE IS YOUR IDENTITY?

When I was a young Christian, it took me many years to understand true repentance.  I was taught to confess my sins, because I was a sinner and that Jesus had forgiven me. But, why did I still feel like I was going around and around in a circles and never free? It seemed like the same sins were always rearing their ugly head. Where was the FREEDOM and POWER of the cross to change me more and more into the image of Christ? (Romans 8:29) Something was missing

It wasn't until I understood this truth.  I SINNED because I was a SINNER. Sin was natural for me.  I had to identify with Adam's sin before I could identify with Christ resurrection. ADAM'S SIN was MY OWN ALSO. It was called the Original Sin.  Without true repentance of the the Original Sin of Adam (including Eve), I was like a dog chasing his own tail, Satan loved me confessing sin over and over again, but he sure did not want me to know the power of the cross that crucified Adam!  As I continued to ask God for more revelation of Adam's sin as my own, He gave me analogy to helped me to understand the POWER OF THE CROSS and what happened when I was born again.

"I was living in a house all alone, back in the hills of West Virginia.  Down in my basement was a machine making 'moonshine' by the gallons,and I was storing it in quart bottles, hiding them in closets, drawers and under beds throughout my house. No one would ever have known that I was making and selling moonshine, so I thought.  Then one morning the door bell rang.  I answered it. It was the law.  The officer entered, rushed by me and headed  for the basement.door. He went down the cellar stairs and quickly went right  to the distillery. He took a huge sledge hammer and totally smashed  it to pieces," It is finished." He declared. " That machine will never produce an ounce of alcohol  again.  I know that you have bottles hidden away, but the choice is now yours to drink or not to drink. As you hand  bottles over to me, I will smash each one of them and will continue to smash every bottle, because I know you have a many hidden .  This house has been sold and it has a new owner.  He said that you can still live here, but first he has to destroy the distillery. He said that He would help you to get rid of the bottles and replace them with a healthier drink."

For the first time I understood salvation.  The house was me, and the distillery was my Adamic sin nature. The bottles were my hidden SINS (plural) that I was trying to keep hidden to look religious. I was supposed to be a Christian, but it was so hard.  For the first time I realized that I needed to repent of the sin of Adam as my very own sin.  It was the Adamic nature that was producing all the sins in me and now I was beginning to understand the POWER OF THE CROSS.  The cross was the sledge hammer that crushed the Adamic nature. I was free from  the  power of sin and I knew what I had to repent of!  It was my identity in Adam.  I was conceived in sin in my mother's womb  (Psalm 51:7) and born into this world a sinner.  Then I was BORN AGAIN by faith into Christ became a saint. (One set apart to God)

I am forever grateful for Jesus, I now have a new identity. I am a new creation in Christ Jesus and all things have become new. Positionally,  I am no longer in Adam,(1 Cor 5:17) . The only difference is that when I sin as a believer, and I still do,  I DON'T WANT TO SIN.  Now I can go to Calvary and by faith receive God's unconditional forgiveness without any condemnation.  What wonderful grace and mercy has been extended to me and to whosoever will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. They too will be saved and made new.

The Power of Agreement

Jesus in Matthew 18:19-20 has encouraged us saying, "If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered in MY NAME, there I am among them." The POWER OF AGREEMENT is a very important reality to remember when we pray according to the Word of God.  Satan will try to bring division and confusion, seeking to hinder our faith, quenching the Holy Spirit from succeeding to accomplish His work through us.

 It is an age old Satanic scheme to take control of the world, by the POWER OF AGREEMENT. The devil knows, if he can get man together to agree about anything against God, that he will be able to take authority and rule away from God .  Satan has the power to deceive man, but he has no authority to rule over man. He is totally deceived.

This is very serious.  We believers need to know that Satan is still attempting to build his tower of babel through man's ignorance of his deceptions.  Look at the occult groups , the cults and the New Age movement. Their whole power base is the power of agreement. Satan is a master of deceit.  As believers, we can understand why our Lord is calling us out of this world's corrupt system.  It is evil, and our Lord wants us in a safe place hidden in Him, when judgement comes.
  
Nothing is new under the sun. As we read through the story of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11),  Satan is exposed in his attempt to unite the people by the power of agreement for himself. Fallen man did not know that Satan was behind this move to build the tower.  God had no choice but to scatter the people.  "Now they said to each other, 'Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly'  They used brick instead of stone and tar for mortar.  Then they said, 'come, let us, build ourselves a city, with a tower that REACHES the heavens, so that we may MAKE A NAME for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.' But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building.  The LORD said, 'Behold, they are ONE PEOPLE, and they have all one language, and this is ONLY the beginning of what they will do, and NOTHING THEY PURPOSE TO DO  WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR THEM. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.' " You know the rest of the story.

  Satan's scheme to glorify himself had to be foiled. If he had succeeded, the Lord knew that there would be nothing that man  purposed to do, that he couldn't accomplish.  Man would be as God. Satan would be in control of the whole earth through man. 

 There is only ONE NAME that WILL BE exalted on the earth.  His name is Jesus Christ. Proverb 18:10 says, "THE NAME OF THE LORD IS A STRONG TOWER AND THE RIGHTEOUS RUN INTO IT AND ARE SAFE. God's intervention that brought down the Tower of Babel preserved the earth for His Son's redemption.  God looked down the corridors of time, saw you and I and nothng was going to stop His love from redeeming us.



We may have to go through some hard times, but hard times will only refine our faith. But the Lord will protect us from the evil one. I truly believe Satan is already being confronted, as we have started to pray in ONE ACCORD by the POWER of the Holy Spirit.  Through prayer alone, the Lord is accomplishing His will, as we continue to come together in ONE ACCORD.  There will be NOTHING that the Holy Spirit can not do through us to glorify Jesus.  Daniel 11:32  "Those who know their God will do great exploits." The power of agreement is  RESERVED only for the body of Christ.

I have been greatly encouraged, witnessing many prayer groups and prayer cells developing all across the country.  We are coming together as the body of Christ praying for America.  God is at work and will save Amercia from the shemes of the evil one, if we will continue to pray.  He will do it.  There is ONLY one God reigning  over America and His name is Jesus Christ and He is the only way into the Throne of Heaven.

"God's Shalom/Peace

Have you ever thought of the difference between the peace OF God and the peace WITH God? Is there a difference?

John 14:27 says, "Peace I leave with you, MY peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." 

In this verse, our Lord was speaking to His disciples seeking to explain to them "His peace" that He was going to leave to them. He spoke in Hebrew, using the word "shalom".  He would have said to them, "Shalom I leave with you, My shalom I bequeath to you, not as the world gives, I give to you."

 Hebrew is a beautiful language, but when translated into our  English vernacular, we can miss the beauty of it's original intent.   For instance, according to the Strong's Concordance, you will find that the definition of the word shalom, (peace) includes "well-being, health, prosperity", not just peace of mind in the usual sense. The peace that Jesus left behind for us is literally His health and prosperity for our spirit, soul and body.  So when He said,, "My shalom I leave with you", He bequeathed to us as an inheritance, His very own health and prosperity through the person of the Holy 
Spirit.

Even the word "peace" in a Greek lexicon means peace and rest in contrast with strife.  The word denotes the absence or end of strife.  And as influenced by the Hebrew word "shalom", it also means a state of health, a state of untroubled, undisturbed well-being. God's will for us is to live by His Spirit in a perpetual state of shalom. 

Impossible, you say?  It sure is. Apart from Christ there is no peace with God. We must be born again to receive the peace OF God and the peace WITH God.   We may not realize it at first, but as we grow to know His heart, we will learn to rest in His shalom. It will take time.

But, we must always remember that the devil will try to disturb our sense of peace. Don't let him.  We have the privilege of receiving the  same peace that Jesus experienced with His Father, when He walked among men.  He trusted Himself  only to His Father. (John 2:25) By faith as believers, we now have "HIS PEACE" bequeathed to us. We can REST in Him alone for true love, and acceptance. As the Father loves His Son, so He loves His body, the church. We are hidden in Christ in God. (Col. 3:3) 

 His peace is truly not of this world. It is His gift to us and as we grow to understand His Kingdom is within us, we will confess that His kingdom is His " RIGHTEOUSNESS, PEACE AND JOY in the Holy Spirit", Rom.14:17.  This is just another one of our inheritance in Christ to enjoy in this life.

The PERSON of the Holy Spirit

The PERSON  of the Holy Spirit is so important to me.  I meet Christians every day that do not know that the Holy Spirit is a person, just like the Father and the Son are a person. What is a person?  I have given this some thought and have come to realize that it is very easy to think of a person as just a human being. But that is so limiting   Truly, Jesus came to earth, but that didn't make Him a person. He was the Son of God, the second  person of the Trinity from eternity past.


God is three persons, yet one God.  There has always been an eternal personal  relationship between each person of the trinity.  I don't confess to understand the Trinity.   It is far above me. But what I do understand, I still find amazing. 

 After my conversion, the Holy Spirit became very real to me. I was reading in John 14 through 16 where Jesus was speaking to His disciples at the Passover. He told them that it is important that I go away, but I will not leave you as orphans.  I will send to you someone, JUST LIKE MYSELF, and He will lead and guide you into all truth.  I thought to myself, " How kind of Jesus to send another person like Himself and not to leave the disciples as orphans."  That meant a lot to me.


I realized that when I was born again, the Lord had breathed His Holy Spirit into me and I became alive in Christ. Jesus meant everything to me. But, I had not  ACKNOWLEDGED THE HOLY SPIRIT AS A PERSON. As a result, I did feel like an orphan, wandering around trying to figure out my faith myself.  It was at that time in my walk that I realized that the Holy Spirit was NOT AN "IT", but a "HE".  That revelation changed my life. I now felt completed in my  relationship with God the Father , God the Son and GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT.  All three are still involved in working out my salvation.


I love the Holy Spirit.  He has taught me everything I know about Jesus, the Word and the Father. Without Him, the Word would be so dry, and dull.  Without the Holy Spirit, grace would have no meaning.  He continuously reveals Jesus and His sufficient grace for every situation.  The Holy Spirit brings the wisdom of God with His understanding. The Holy Spirit brings communion, the body and blood of Jesus, to be applied to my soul for physical healing and hope.


The Holy Spirit does not want any recognition or glory for Himself.  He delights in pointing us to Jesus and opening our eyes more and more to understand the finished work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. By the PERSON OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, He   brings us to the throne of Grace through the precious blood of Jesus.  Acknowledging the Holy Spirit in our lives is VERY important.  There is so much more to say, but I will leave with this.  THE HOLY SPIRIT IS GOD TOO!!!!

Highway to Holiness

This  past Sunday a dear brother challenged me to think about  "The Way of Holiness" in Isaiah 35, and what did I think it meant. I do have a few thoughts,but do not confess to have a complete interpretation. I would love to hear from you also on this topic.


In Isaiah 35,  I believe this scripture is an encouragement for Israel when one day they shall return to Zion with singing and an everlasting joy shall be upon there heads. They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.......It is prophetic to the Nation anticipating the day their Messiah will come and set all things straight. The Highway of Holiness spoken here, I believe is the Messiah, because Isaiah also says, " and the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray."

 I believe the Highway to Holiness is THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, HIMSELF, the long awaited Messiah of Israel..  He said in John 14:6, "I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE, No one comes to the Father but by ME." .There is only ONE HOLY GOD and He is our God.  His Name is Holy, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).  He is totally separate and above all other gods. In Matthews 7:13, Jesus is again talking to the disciples explaining the Narrow Way, "Enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction,and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the WAY is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few" .

I use to think that the Highway to Holiness was  hard work. I had to perform and be good.  It was all about my behavior. Didn't He say that the WAY was hard and few find it?  Christianity was getting very hard and quite boring, until the LIGHT BULB went on.

For me, it was all about FAITH in the Word of God. Did I believe that I had entered the narrow gate by identifying with the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, as my own? (Romans 6). Was it faith through grace, that Jesus had secured me on the narrow road to holiness? Would I be transformed as I grew to see Jesus from glory to glory?  Yes! There was such a peace to know that it was NOT by any works that I had done to get there or to even stay there.  

It is all about God's glory. We owe Him our lives.  To be hidden in Christ in God is the only way I know to walk the way of holiness. OUR WONDERFUL JESUS walked that road before us, the road to Calvary. He turns to us and says, "If anyone would come to me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.  For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and loses his own soul.." Now, when I close my eyes, I see Jesus carrying each one of us in His heart on the WAY OF HOLINESS bringing us HOME to His Father.

Christ our Jubilee

The year of Jubilee caught my attention this week and I would like to share with you some of my thoughts.  I realize that there is so much more than what I understand, but what I do know has richly blessed me.

The primary reason for the Year of Jubilee was to prevent oppression in Israel. (Lev. 25:14.17)  All hired workers were to be set free.  This was unconditional liberty.  All bond slaves were released even if the Jubilee Year came before the completion of  their six years of service.  This also included bond slaves who had earlier declined to go free in the seventh year of their employment.  All were set at liberty. 

Besides all the bond slaves and slaves to be set free, all the land was returned to its original owners. (Lev. 25:13, 223-28).  This law  preserved the identity of the tribes and their allotted inheritance of the land. (Num.36:4,7)


From what I have learned, this particular celebration has never taken place in modern Israel.  The ancient rabbis generally believed that the Jubilee was no longer in effect after the exile of the northern ten tribes (722 B.C)  because the biblical command was to be observed  for "all the inhabitants thereof" (Lev. 25:10). They believed that the Jubilee Year applied only when all the Jewish people were in the land, and each tribe in its own territory. They are still waiting for this event to occur ever since they have returned to the land in 1948.


As the Jews look forward to their year of Jubilee, we as believers already celebrate and rejoice in Christ our Jubilee. In the Old Testament (Isaiah 61) and in the New Testament (Luke 4) the Lord says " The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.  He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the LORD'S favor (Jubilee)..............." It is beautiful.  What Adam lost to Satan, Jesus bought back and restored to God.  We are free from all condemnation and the power of sin. Satan no longer has any control over our lives.  We have been redeemed, purchased by the blood of Jesus, never again to be under the law of sin and death.  The law of life in Jesus Christ  has set us free.  Jesus is our Jubilee. 




"The Feasts of the LORD" by Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal  for further study.

Something to think about

How many times have you heard  this verse? The Lord spoke to His disciples saying "Come unto me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.."Matthew 11:28:29. Over the years it has brought much comfort to many weary souls, who struggle in this life, and who reaches out to God for comfort and peace. How faithful He is to meet our deepest need. This verse has comforted me many times. However, I would like to share something that I have recently thought about and I would LOVE your thoughts on this.

I have been pondering this verse for some time,wondering about the possibility, could Jesus be talking to His disciples about releasing His people from the burden of the law? When the Lord first spoke this to His disciples, the Nation of Israel was still under the ceremonial laws and the moral law  It was a HEAVY YOKE and a great BURDEN on the people, striving to keep the law 24-7. Every year on the day of atonement the High Priest would sprinkle the blood of a perfect lamb on the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies. For one whole year the sins of the Nation were covered by the blood, but the people were still were under the burden of the law. But what has interested me is when Jesus says, "Take MY yoke  upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find REST for your soul." Was trying to help His disciples to understand that He was the the promised Messiah ,who would take away their sin and give them REST from all their striving? 1 Cor. 15:56 says "the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  BUT, thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."  

The one thing I LOVE about Scripture is how relevant it is and that it continuously speaks to life in every situation. Isn't it wonderful that the law of life in Jesus Christ has set us free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:1). We no longer have to struggle to keep the law or condemn ourselves when we sin.  Jesus has invited us to repent, (change our minds) come to Him and He will give us rest.  Could the REST that Jesus is speaking be pointing to Hebrew 4:9 "there remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has Himself also rested from His works as God did from His.  Let us therefore be diligent to enter the rest, lest anyone fall through following the same example of disobedience."The rest of God is really something that I want to pursue to understand more and more. Perhaps, we could discuss this together in another post.
    

Accepting Unmerited Favor

I don't know how it is for you but, I had for many years made "grace", God's unmerited favor, more of a doctrine, than a reality. Yes, it is a wonderful doctrine to acknowledge, but I have found that God's unmerited favor is not a subject, it is A PERSON, AND HIS NAME IS JESUS. When I  have Jesus, I have unmerited grace. Jesus and unmerited grace do not exist separately.  His unmerited favor is fulfilled  in His entire being and you can not separate Jesus from His finished work on Calvary.

When I began to see JESUS  as He really was, grace (unmerited favor) began to flow like a mighty river into every dry and empty area of my physical body, marriage, career, and finances.  The more I increased in the knowledge of  our Lord Jesus Christ and His finished work at the cross, the more God's unmerited favor was multiplied into my life. Honestly,  I have to admit,  before then, I was living in unbelief.  I believed for salvation.  I knew that I was a sinner and that  Jesus died for my sins, but I wasn't in faith for how much God truly loved me. I kept His love at arm's length.

 I had stopped at the cross and continued to live my Christian life repenting of sin, but never enjoying my salvation, until I found out that I was under the LAW and not under GRACE.  What a horrible place to be, always feeling judged and having to do, do, do.Then, one day my eyes were opened to what Jesus had done, done, done! I was a new creation that had never existed before. I no longer just looked at the cross but believed the gospel and came to experience my new life. I believed that I was hidden in Christ,when he died, was buried and raised again.  My identification in Christ set me free from the LAW.  Praise be to God! Condemnation was over and  the resurrected Lord was alive in me. Satan may try to  roar like a lion, but Jesus has kicked his teeth out!

I would like to tell you a story. I think you will get the point.  During the Koren War, a little orphan girl had captured the heart of an American GI. AS his love grew for her, He and his wife wanted to adopt this little orphan and raise her in the United States. Now, remember, this little orphan only ever knew the sounds of guns, army tanks, airplanes and rockets exploding . Her whole life had been lived in a war zone. After the war, the GI brought her back to New York to live with them in the city. The adjustment for her took several months before she would trust her new parents and new home.  It was too unbelievably beautiful and totally foreign  to her old life.  Every time the noise of a fire truck or police serine sounded off, she would run and  hide behind the living room couch.  She was so riddled with fear, that it was all most impossible for her to feel loved and accepted . Her emotional memories of Korea were still present and  hindered her from believing the best of her new parents. This continued for months, before the orphan believed that her mommy and daddy really did loved her and would protect her from harm. She wasn't able to emotionally grow until she believed and accepted her parent's love. Once she did believe and receive their love, she was able to respond and grow up as a normal little girl.

I don't know about you, but for years, even after I was a believer, I felt like that little orphan girl.  Every time I sinned, I felt condemned and wanted to hide. It was hard for me to believe that God really loved me, even when I sinned. I still fell short of His glory. I believed that Jesus had died for my sins, was buried and rose again, but FEAR kept me in the prison of my mind.  After years of this struggle, my heart finally believed that the Lord not only loved me, but was delighted in me.  He doesn't see my sins.  They were all on Jesus and He had dealt with them.  Praise the Lord, He ONLY sees the BLOOD of His dear Son. The more my eyes were fixed on Jesus and not my sin, I sinned less and less. I can now thank the Lord and receive by faith His  UNCONDITIONALLY FORGIVENESS.  Today, I understand how God is changing  me. It is from faith to faith, strength to strength and from glory to glory. The more that I see my glorious Lord, the more that I am changed AND SIN LESS.  He alone is worthy of all my worship.

Two Identical Trees

Often the Lord will speak His heart to us as we wait upon Him  in prayer. The following is an impression  I received while meditating on Psalm 1, and I would like to share it with you.
 
" I saw myself standing on a high hill looking down into a valley.  There were only two trees and they were identical, leaf for leaf.  I couldn't tell them apart. As I looked down into the valley, wondering what was going on, from behind me came a huge gust of wind.  It  blew over me and swept down into the valley with a  ferocious thrust, hitting both the trees unmercifully. I stood aghast.  What was  going on?

Leaves were flying all over the place.  It was like a snow storm of leaves.  I could hardly see. Then as the wind subsided, I began to notice how the tree on my left was totally bare.  There wasn't one leaf left on it. Dry leaves were piled up under the tree.  The tree on my right was totally intact.  The leaves were green and healthy and not one leaf was missing.  "Lord,' I cried out, "what are you trying to show me? "Then I heard an almost audible voice say, "Look at the roots."  But, I couldn't see the roots. The Lord then opened up the ground for me to see the roots..  The tree on my left, had very little root.  The tree on my right had strong roots that went deep into the ground .  I could see the roots reaching out for the underground body of water.

At first I didn't understand until the Lord spoke to me, " I am sending a strong wind to establish my Church in these last days.  There is a false Christianity that denies the power of my Spirit and it is a dead religion. It has counterfeited  my true Church, my Bride, and I want my Bride to know that I am her life. Those who hold fast to my roots  that I have put in them will weather this storm, others will fall away.  They never knew me.  Yet, I know them and will draw them once again to my cross for a real conversion.  Only one tree will stand upon the earth for all to see.  The Tree of my Son on Calvary".  I was very humbled and grieved in my spirit, yet I knew it was the heart of God to draw all men until Himself at any cost.  Christianity is not a religion, it is a relationship with the living God.  Jesus is resurrected and he is living His life in His true body the Church. A shaking is a good thing. God loves us and wants us to know Him personally and He will reveal Himself to us more and more as we surrender our lives to Him."