Presence or “Squatting Rights”

I have just finished reading the Book of Ezekiel and the last few chapters about the Temple has caught my attention.

For years and years I have being believing a lie from the enemy of God. Two and a half years ago this lie was exposed when I had an encounter with the Holy Spirit in church. You might want to sit down to read the next few lines. During our church meeting I was taken up (in spirit) into the clouds and met the Holy Spirit. Now my knowledge and awareness of the Holy Spirit has been minimal all these years, yet when I was taken into this encounter I knew instantly it was the Holy Spirit because I had just cried out “Spirit of Life I love you” and then I was taken (in spirit) into this encounter, awesome yes, but what’s better is today it’s more real than ever, as I have come to know the Holy Spirit much better since then. The fact that the Holy Spirit is a person, loves me (Romans 15:30), and desires fellowship with me (2 Corinthians 13:14) which I never knew has completely transformed my life.

Since this encounter the word “Presence” has been burning within me. It’s now captivating me, the Presence of God. God present with me. I have come to know the Presence of God - the Holy Spirit walking with me. I have been learning how to enter into His Presence, how easy it is to do so and I am learning more as I step in to the Holy Spirit day by day and I actually mean day by day. I have been reluctant to speak because so much has been changing, my beliefs have been turned up-side down and this has not been easy to adjust too. Answers to questions I asked did not satisfy me but only served to throw me onto the Holy Spirit for greater understanding. As I read God’s word and began searching out these things I have been amazed by what God has been teaching me. Sometimes I might not fully grasp what the bible is saying or indeed what the Holy Spirit might say, but as I continue to battle for insight, Holy Spirit  just draws me in and fills my heart and reveals Himself as I seek. At times I come to a certain position on an issue only for God to challenge that position soon afterwards, it’s just so rewarding and encouraging, the process mouth-watering excitement.

In January this year a prophetic word was shared by Lionel in church along these lines “God has moved by grace and favour amongst us, but a day is coming of Presence and Power”. This word has not left me, it’s an amazing promise for us to take hold of, but we need to take hold of it.

We all know what squatting rights means (if a dwelling is empty and one gets in and takes up residence, eventually they receive rights). Now if the Holy Spirit were to speak those words to you, what would you think? For me it clicked instantly and maybe so because of what I experienced since becoming a believer. Being a Christian if your temple: 

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit" 1 Cor 6:19  

Is unoccupied then we may have given squatting rights to Gods enemy. You may argue that if you are a christian your temple is not unoccupied. I believe when you become a christian you receive the Holy Spirit into your inner person your spirit and not into your whole body. This partly explains why as a new christian you can struggle with sin in your body or indeed in your soul, indeed Paul talks of struggling with sin in the book of Romans. You can be a Christian and have the love of God and peace of God within your spirit but yet  emotionally you can desperately lack peace. This point has caused much debate which I don’t have time for here, I just wish to let you know my stand on this point. Our bodies (temples) when baptised with the Holy Spirit are filled with the Holy Spirit and therefore fully occupied. This is a daily process as we are commanded to be filled over and over again. Now why be filled again if we are already filled, why be filled again if you were filled when you became a christian and why were so many in the book of acts baptised in the Holy Spirit when they were already christians. How come everyone baptised with the Holy Spirit in the book of acts can give you a date and time when they received this second baptism. You owe it to yourself to search out the answer to this question.

Over the last two years I have become increasingly aware of the amount of pollution we tolerate in the name of entertainment (books, television viewing etc some of these items glorify the occult, death, crime etc). Please understand I am not judging here, I have come to learn that the Holy Spirit just like a dove takes instant flight at the sign of danger or trouble. When you become a christian your spirit is sealed with the Holy Spirit (Eph1:13). Now it’s important to grasp a seal from God is indeed a seal, when the Holy Spirit takes flight, it’s the presence of God that takes flight. The Holy Spirit remains sealed in your spirit, you do not become a non-Christian.

 Matthew 12:43-45 we read about the man where an evil spirit came out of him:

"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order”

The spirit then returns:

 “And the final condition of that man is worse than the first”.

If the house (temple) is unoccupied we give evil spirits squatting rights and they will oppress us to stop the Holy Spirit being manifest in our being (Believe me I know of this personally – I believed and came into agreement with lies of the enemy and allowed his lies destroy me for years). We were designed by God to display his glory, designed by God to carry the full measure of His Spirit, this is our calling. God gives us the opportunity to fulfill our destiny, he does not force it on us, the choice is ours.

Many become Christians, but much less fulfill their calling or destiny. Many remain drinking milk as Paul says rather than eating meat; many fail to grow – Why? I don’t have your answer but I do mine. I became a Christian, great, but I stayed at the cross. I lived present-past (the cross 2000 years ago saved me), I clung to history and stayed at the cross (marvelous history though).

Today I live present-future (the cross saved me to live out of fullness of God (Presence) and change the future, one of the jobs of the Holy Spirit is to bring the Kingdom of God on the earth). When I became a Christian Jesus came into my spirit (inner man) but I did not furnish my house, I emptied my house as Jesus cleaned it up but I did not fill it with the Spirit of God. God never wanted to be confined to just my spirit like in the Old Testament when he was confined to the Holy of Holies in the Temple. When Jesus died the veil was torn and the Spirit of God was no longer confined in the Holy of Holies. Baptism in the Holy Spirit is similar, the Spirit of God falls on our whole being so we can then shine like Moses did and radiate Gods glory.

In Ezekiel 44 we continue reading about Ezekiel’s vision and take up the vision at the outer gate to the sanctuary.

Verse 2 "This gate is to remain shut". It must not be opened; no one may enter through it. It is to remain shut because the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered through it”.

When the Lord enters your temple we are told to shut the door and keep it shut, if the door is shut can squatters get in? When God comes into our body (temple) our spirit is filled with His glory. Ezekiel in the vision was told in three different ways to pay careful attention. Why? I would imagine the answer is ‘This is a really important point’. Here is the bit that’s important.

5 “Give attention to the entrance of the temple and all the exits of the sanctuary”.

If we watch what comes in and what goes out we learn much about the health of the temple (our life in Christ). If as commanded we keep the entrance shut what exits should give glory to God. The fact that Ezekiel was told to make sure the entrance remained closed means it is possible to open it and shut it as you so wish. Today we are given the choice to have our entrance opened or closed, but God tell us to keep it closed. Likewise we are told to keep being filled with the Holy Spirit, but just because we are told to do it does not meant we do, the choice is yours. Did you ever watch what leaves your temple, your words, actions, attitudes and testimony or indeed lack of these, if these items are not good, God is inviting you to come to him for a make-over.

We read in verse 7:

“In addition to all your other detestable practices, you brought foreigners uncircumcised in heart and flesh into my sanctuary, desecrating my temple”

What’s alarming to me here is though the Levites (the tribe set apart for service in the temple and for priesthood) did these things and had the entrance of the sanctuary open God left them in charge of the temple, but God only allowed them serve people, catch that – only served people.

Now the priests (verses 15-16) who faithfully carried out the duties when Israel went astray from God

"are to come near to minister before me. They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table to minister before me and perform my service”.

Note the difference, these ones get to minister unto God. These get to minister in His presence. This I know is the desire of each one of us who are true Christians (remember in New Testament times all Christians are priests). This type of service to God comes at a price, the price once you accept that Jesus paid the ultimate price on the cross for you is that you surrender to Christ which is impossible to do unless you are filled with the Spirit. You can not surrender without being filled (you can’t empty your temple without filling it else you will leave your entrance open and empty or lacking, if it’s not full / furnished it is open to other influences). A condition of being filled is to have clean hands and a pure heart else the Holy Spirit will not be at rest and remain. Unless you are hungry you won’t eat, without eating you become less and it’s also true in the spiritual realm, without eating you simply will not grow.

This vision of Ezekiel has so much truth for you and me (the temple of the Holy Spirit) today. It’s a great picture or comparison of religion and a faith built on presence, if we follow our idols (anything that takes a place before God in our life – the most obvious idol is the fear of man and thus relegating God in our life, or another putting materialism before God) we will miss out on His presence. If you are not in the Holy Spirit, I believe  you are in religion, you may be a Christian but still in the mould of religion and outside of presence and this is my belief of what Ezekiel was seeing.

Ezekiel 47 is a continuation of Ezekiel’s great vision but few of us see this chapter as an extension to what has gone before it, they are linked. This chapter shows you the what’s possible for every Christian, to live in the Presence or live in religion. The vision is - The river flowing from the temple. The river being symbolic of the Holy Spirit flowing out from the temple into the world. Our call is to be a blessing to the nations, when we flow with the river, we are a blessing to the nations. Without effort we produce fruit and healing in the nation. 

This is what we know of this vision. Most if not all of us miss what verse 11 speaks of:

"But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt". 

If we do not touch the river we will remain unfruitful and not bring forth life. Without the river (Holy Spirit) even though you may be a Christian there is no offspring, new life or fruit, you are living in religion. Believe me when I say for years I gave Satan’s crew squatting rights in my life, but in recent years the Holy Spirit has led me into that which Lionel spoke of in January, Presence.

In church we have just completed during the summer an excellent teaching series predominantly on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Can I challenge you to listen again to Fergus on Trinity Radio (or on iTunes) 17^th June 2012 and Andy 24^th June 2012 and Fergus again on the 2^nd September 2012. 

In their messages they spoke of the Holy Spirit and how important, no, essential the Holy Spirit is for us. Can I go further than that? If you received this as teaching and just teaching you are little different than the Pharisees that learned the scriptures but refused to come into encounter. God’s word is only an invitation to an encounter with God. Without encounter, without the Holy Spirit the Bible is just a book. Please as you listen, act upon the invitation. When Moses saw the burning bush (Exodus 3), he “thought”..., then he acted and “went over”. It was only when he went over that God spoke to him. Can I tell you this is a “burning bush” moment right now, you can just pass comment on my blog and move on or “step in” and consider my words or those of Fergus and Andy. I challenge you to camp here until you have an encounter with God.  

Ask God to help you and teach you, ask God to release His Holy Spirit and invite Jesus to baptise you with the Holy Spirit and then welcome the Holy Spirit and ask Him to teach you (Ask our church leaders to lay hands on you to receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit).In the book of Acts, everyone who was baptized with the Holy Spirit can point to a date, a time in history when this amazing promise of God was received by them…when did you receive this same promise. I am sorry for being so blunt here, but I promise you if you seek this promise and surrender to Him you will receive it.

The Holy Spirit, He and He only will know and tell you what needs changing and how to make those changes, He is the one that leads us into ALL TRUTH. I could keep going on but I know the Holy Spirit holds your solution. Be blessed on this your amazing treasure hunt. The Holy Spirit will unearth for you all your greatest dreams, wishes, wants and desires. He and He only knows what is best for you and He never gets it wrong.

Read Rogers words in the blog posted on 10^th September. I encourage you to want like Roger. What Roger speaks about is the most precious gift, The gift of the Holy Spirit, the actual person of the Holy Spirit. This is PRESENCE. Allow Fergus and Andy’s words transform your life. Believe me it’s too easy to miss what’s on offer here. Grasp your “burning bush” moment, just grasp it.

If you are hungry – just eat.

Declan D.

The Tattered Feather In The Old Church

Recently, I was at a funeral. The venue was in an old church that had probably been built 200years ago or more. It was very grand inside.

 The windows had stained glass in them and were lit up by the sunlight coming through them. The craftsmanship inside the church was exceptional and had me wondering how some of the masonry was both placed and carved to create some very intricate decor.

 Sometime in the past, somebody cared enough to build a church with the intention of God being worshipped in it for many centuries to come.

Parts of the church had been modernised of course, the priest now speaks into a microphone and there's even a facility for those who are hard of hearing to be included in the message.

As I stood, knelt and sat throughout the service, I was saddened by what I was witnessing, or to be more precise, not witnessing.

There was no passion in the building. It was as if it had been built a long time ago as a place of worship but had now become a place of regular attendance for a few people from an older generation.

During the service, there were some fantastic words spoken, yet the impact of them was lost on many. The Prayer that Jesus taught us in Matthew 6, known to many of us as The Lord's Prayer, where He teaches us to invite Heaven to become a reality on earth was just recited with no realisation that we were seeking a radical change in our circumstances by just saying it.

However, I've said enough about the negative side. Let's see what there is to learn through this.

Over the past number of years there have been things happening in various places around the globe that don't fit into our traditional idea of who or even what God is.

I remember hearing a story in Sunday school around 30 years ago, where there was a young boy in a village in Africa who needed to take a test in his school but wasn't allowed as he didn't have a pencil. He was upset at being left out and went outside the school room with his sheet of paper. He had heard about God providing and that 'Jehovah Jireh' was one of His names so as he sat there in the dirt, he started to pray for a pencil.
As he prayed, he rolled his sheet of paper in his hands and then suddenly realised that it was firm. He unrolled it to see a sharpened pencil inside!

Imagine the joy on this boy's face, and the reaction of his teacher when he arrived back in the classroom with his pencil!

His teacher wondered where he had managed to get a pencil, never mind one so fine and the boy replied "The Impossible God gave it to me!"

That story has stuck in my mind since I heard it. I've longed to meet the Impossible God and see Him act like this in me, and I'm delighted to say, that looking back, He has been doing impossible things in my life all along.

But I was talking about being at a funeral, in a church that seemed to be lacking something, and that something was the incredible life of Jesus Christ.
In fact, I could even say that Jesus had obviously left the building, after all, Stephen witnessed to this in Acts 7 in verses 55 and 56, just before he was stoned for blasphemy:

55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, 56 and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

But here's the thing: Stephen, had what we have, he had what Jesus gave us.

Stephen, "being full of the Holy Spirit" knew who he was and what he possessed was far greater than anything on earth. He had a boldness and a relationship with the Lord that was so great, he saw visions of Heaven.

You see, Jesus had left the building, but He promised that He was going to send a Helper when He was speaking in John 14:

“If you love Me, keep  My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

This is what excited me in that old church!
I mentioned earlier things that have happened around the globe when God has moved or started moving in and among people. One of these things was that people noticed feathers appearing, before revivals broke out or during meetings where the Holy Spirit was moving.

And this is what excited me. During one of the kneeling times in this service, I noticed in the corner of the pew, a tattered, old feather, just caught there in some dust.
I don't think it was a feather that just appeared from Heaven (it had the appearance of one that had been removed from a pigeon, possibly by a cat), but as is the nature of our God, He can speak to us in many ways.

He reminded me that even though I thought Jesus had left the building, the Holy Spirit was very much still there. Even though I didn't see any signs of revival, The Holy Spirit was very much still there.

Psalm 139 which David wrote says:

 "7 Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? 8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. 9 If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me." 

Jesus ascended into Heaven and He sent us the One who is called the Helper, The One who David said is everywhere!

The Holy Spirit is everywhere, just waiting to be discovered by us.
He is the unnoticed visitor in too many places,
He is the unseen friend in too many rooms,
He is the unheard voice in too many conversations,
He is the unrecognized person in too many crowds,
Yet He is always there.

There's a phrase that is often heard in Christian circles "The presence of the Lord was really there" and on the face of it, this might seem a bit daft, after all, if the Holy Spirit is everywhere, then surely you can't notice His presence more in one place than another?

I don't think so: Even though He is everywhere, we need to learn to find Him. One way of describing it is like smelling a rose, the closer you are to a rose, the more you are aware of it's fragrance. This is how it is with the Holy Spirit.
As we get closer to Him, we recognise His fragrance and learn to move where He is moving.

I don't want to miss out on what God has for me. He sent His Son to die for me, to give me Life, and then He sent me His Helper to help me live a life that will glorify Him.

I want to be someone who glorifies God in all I do. I want to be someone who learns the fragrance of the Holy Spirit wherever I go. I want to be someone who moves with the Holy Spirit wherever He decides go move, to be a sail that is blown in whatever direction He pleases.

I want to be one who not only recognises that the Holy Spirit is there, but is willing to do whatever He asks me to do.

Especially if it's in an old church that's got beautiful stained glass windows.

Roger C.

The Providence of God

You may not know but our blogs are read in over 50 different countries around the world, so I want to share with you a little of what God is doing in me and my family, Trinity Church Network, Dublin, Ireland.

Our Sunday morning expression of the love of God and our love for God has been amazing this past year. Our fellowship has being going through a difficult time this past two years or more but I find it so amazing and special to behold what God is doing in our midst. From one that did not enjoy yet attended our church so regularly over the last 20 years in particular I find myself in awe of God today and longing for what He is doing amongst us in these days. To hear our speaker thank all for contributing to our service yesterday was a treat to my heart and my spirit became one with Andy’s words, our morning was beautiful. Many more could have shared on the morning and indeed one has already shared by email afterward.

I wanted to share a verse about Hezekiah but time did not allow for it, so I will share it now and fill in what God is speaking into me in these momentous days. Our speaker spoke for a short time on Paul and Silas in Acts 16, about working with the Holy Spirit and seeing whole families restored in relationship with God. It was so short the message but punched way above its weight, it was powerful. God did amazing things because two men were obedient. What I wanted to share was similar to what our speaker shared and this really encouraged me.

Hezekiah had called the people of Israel to celebrate the Passover “out of season” because a sufficient number of priests had not consecrated themselves, nor had the people gathered together at Jerusalem. A Passover had not been celebrated for some time as the people’s hearts were away from God. As Hezekiah’s messenger called the people to attend many laughed and did not come, yet others came. Taking up the story in 2 Chronicles 30:17-20 we read:

“17 Since many in the crowd had not consecrated themselves, the Levites had to kill the Passover lambs for all those who were not ceremonially clean and could not consecrate [their lambs] to the LORD. 18 Although most of the many people who came from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, "May the LORD, who is good, pardon everyone 19 who sets his heart on seeking God--the LORD, the God of his fathers--even if he is not clean according to the rules of the sanctuary." 20 And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people”. NIV

Not only had Hezekiah “broken the rules” so to speak with the timing of the feast, but he dared to ask the Lord to pardon the people as they were not ceremonially clean to participate in the feast, and he believed in his God and knew and spoke pardon over the people again “breaking the rules” and declared that all those who set their hearts on seeking the Lord would be healed. Yes the Lord responded to his prayer and pardoned those who sought the Lord. That which was opposed to the people was broken off by one man Hezekiah, his faith in God and the boldness of his words. Hezekiah stepped into the prompting of the Spirit of the Lord and caused the Lord to break the chains off his people.

Hezekiah stepped in just as we heard Paul and Silas stepped into the Holy Spirits promptings in Acts 16 as we heard yesterday. All who attended our meeting yesterday and any of our church meetings are like the ones who set their hearts on seeking God. Jesus has pardoned each of us and it does not matter what rules we have broken or how unprepared we are to encounter God, if we seek Him the pardon of Jesus is applied to our life and healing is the response of God.

A few weeks back I spoke out one Sunday morning, when Moses obeyed God and made the Tent of Meetings, when it was finished the cloud of God’s presence came and occupied and filled the tent. The same was true for Solomon, he built the Temple of the Lord and when it was finished the cloud of God’s presence came and occupied and filled the temple. I then said when Jesus cried out on the cross it is finished, the Temple curtain tore in two and that Jesus make the way open for the cloud of God’s presence to come and fill the hearts of believers which is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Afterward God spoke with me about all the “unoccupied temples” walking the streets of our city, those made by God and in His image, just like you and me, the only difference being that they have not received the Spirit of God.

Their physical tent/temple, their body is made and they await the infilling of the Holy Spirit. When Hezekiah stepped into the prompting of the Holy Spirit he needed to believe that God would back up his words and come and pardon the people. We know Jesus has pardoned the whole world by dying on the cross, but most of us don’t step into the prompting of the Holy Spirit all the time and enable the Lord release his healing presence.

I was asked by a friend yesterday why I started painting prophetic pictures and teaching the children to paint prophetic pictures. I answered over 2 years ago God prompted me and then two people challenged me within a few days to paint and they mentioned the craftsmen in Exodus 31. I have just read that scripture and I have been struck with the provision of God. In the few chapters preceding Exodus 31, we see a list of commands that God gave Moses to build the Tent of Meetings, its furniture and furnishings. The list is extensive and exceedingly detailed as was the list for Solomon’s Temple.

The verses that caught me are as follows:

“1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3 And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4 to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, 5 in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship.6 “And I, indeed I, have appointed with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the gifted artisans, that they may make all that I have commanded you”  NIV

God provided the craftsman (and indeed an army of craftsmen), anointed him and filled him with the Spirit of God, to carry out the detailed command of God. Bezalel means the “shadow of God” and speaks of presence (Acts 5 tells us of the power in Peter’s shadow i.e. the power in the presence of God), is it any wonder God filled Bezalel with His Spirit, God completes his work; it’s what Bezalel’s name means .

The Spirit provided wisdom, ability, understanding, intelligence, knowledge and all kinds of craftsmanship. The Holy Spirit made it all work. The word craftsmanship means angel, messenger and ambassador and speaks of spiritual helps like as in Hebrews 1:14. The name Aholiab means “fathers tent” and Ahisamach means “my brother is support” The abundance of Gods provision for Moses who obediently fulfilled the command of God is just breath-taking, it oozes family and unity of the people of God all under the covering of the Father. These men were there, their parents having named them years earlier and God worked out in them the very desire their parents had put upon them, and used them in their time to be a blessing on the generations thereafter. Had Moses not obeyed, we may never have heard about these men.

Solomon inherited the works of their hands and placed these same furnishings in his Temple that was filled with the cloud of God’s presence. Not only did God give the command He provided the means to fulfil that same command. God completes His work. We are part of Gods project. We have a major role to play in God filling the “unoccupied” temples with His Holy Spirit. We are anointed and gifted to complete the task, we are called “Christians” meaning little Christ’s or “little anointed ones”. We are equipped with the ability, wisdom, revelation, knowledge and craftsmanship to co-operate with God and complete the “unoccupied temples” about us. In the book of Acts just look at the number of times people were Baptised with the Holy Spirit when the believers laid their hands on them. How many “unoccupied temples” are awaiting your hand be laid on them? So much of what God does is all about family and unity, we need relationship with our brothers, we need to be close enough to lay hands on each other.

Where am I going with this? I dare say I, and we can say and speak and cry out for our generation, churched, stumbling or un-churched people. I can ask my God or we can ask our God, the great I Am and believe in Him to come. To come encounter the people of our city and nation. I can say and you with me to our God, the creator and sustainer of all things on behalf of a people who are caught in an identity crisis, struggling in economic hardship, unemployment and a poverty mentality, to a nation whose finances are controlled by external nations, to a churched nation who have reacted to sexual revelations of the so called men of God in this land who have not personally encountered the Love of My God, a people who have disowned the God who created them and taken offence with God due to the actions and inaction of mere men as if it were God Himself who carried out these awful acts.

I ask, do you want to meet my God? If you want the Living God to come like a whirlwind into your whole being and fill you like he did Bezalel in the passage above or pardon you like the generation that Hezekiah’s words brought healing, or transform you completely like the first Christians on the day of Pentecost. If you really want this, if this is what you seek, if you are not sure about your identity or your god or about My God but you know you want more, I challenge you to seek my God and if you say yes and want more then get prepared now yourself to encounter the Living God, my prayer for you like the prayer of Hezekiah if you give me your permission to ask my God on your behalf, the only God who seeks out men is this:-


Jesus you have pardoned me (put your name here) 2000 years ago on the cross, on that Friday afternoon you paid the price and took my place and forgave me. Just as the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Life then raised you Jesus to life on that Sunday morning raise me (put your name here) today and bring me into an encounter with you that totally and completely transforms my life from this day on. I ask you God to stretch out your hand and I take hold of your hand and want to know your burning presence within me. Just as Hezekiah said all who set their hearts on seeking the Lord were healed, I say all who lift their hand to God will be healed, I ask you the living God to show yourself to me (put your name here) today and heal my life, body soul and spirit.

Like Hezekiah, I know the Lords answer and I declare over you that the Lord hears you and heals you this day and onward. The Lord rejoices over you with song and dance and feasts you with His daily bread. You are now the Temple of the Living God. The Glory cloud of God is now upon you (Christ in you the Hope of Glory (Colossians 1:27).

Just like when Moses, Solomon and Jesus completed their work, the presence of God in the Glory cloud fell and filled the Temple. I declare that the Holy One of God WILL FILL YOUR TEMPLE with His Glory Cloud the very Presence of the Holy Spirit. I DECLARE YOUR “UNOCCUPIED TEMPLE” IS NO LONGER UNOCCUPIED. As you fully hand over your Temple to God the Holy Spirit will transform you into His likeness. The Holy Spirit will fall on you more and more and you will in your life display and demonstrate the Glory of God to mankind. The Holy Spirit will work out in you the verse in 1 John 4:17 “because as He (Jesus) is, so are we in this world”.

There is no greater calling than to see Jesus manifest and demonstrated in you. This is the pinnacle of our destiny here on earth, this is your identity, and this is who you are. I have just come to realise this is who I am, it’s simply about becoming like him, the greatest honour I can offer God is to become like his son, this is my offering to God.

Does all this happen instantly? For most no, but hear these words if you have received the prayer above, God has placed His Spirit in you as a seed, This seed is for all of the above and MORE. You are a planting of the Lord. Every plant starts as a seed, becoming a tender shoot growing into a beautiful tree displaying the Glory of God. Believe me you are now a Glory carrier, and if you can’t believe me, believe it because God said so in His word.

You are destined for completion, step into it and be completed. If you don’t step you will never know. What have you to loose, try it, try Him, taste and see the Lord is good, believe me you will never look back. It’s the most amazing adventure available to man on earth.


Declan D

The Storm, The Saviour and the Sleep of Victory

Around 13 years ago, I was on my first Trans Atlantic flight, heading to Minneapolis on business. I had 2 travelling companions, one who had been to the US before, one who had never even left Ireland.
On the first leg of our journey, to Chicago's O'Hare Airport, the second companion was commenting how flying was good fun and how he had been told about turbulence beforehand, how bad it was supposed to be and that it was nothing to worry about.

Approximately an hour later, the pilot announced that there were storms ahead and that we were going to be in a holding pattern for another hour, delaying our landing. During that time, the plane pitched and rolled and dropped and rose. There was silence among the crew, the passengers and everyone was waiting for the flight to end as it was very uncomfortable.

This affected me for years after. I have flown on many long haul flights since, but have always taken travel sickness tablets (just in case) beforehand, I've been nervous flying and haven't particularly enjoyed it.

There weren't planes in the bible, but there were storms. The disciples seemed to get caught up in their fair share of them, usually when they were in the middle of a the sea of Galilee:

35 On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” 36 Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!” Mark 4v35-41, NKJV

In this instance, Jesus told the disciples that they were going to cross over to the other side. He prophesied to them the outcome of their journey, so if they'd decided to hold onto the prophecy, they would have known that they were in God's hands.

This however, isn't what I want to discuss in the passage of scripture.

A number of years after my flight to Minnesota, we were due to go on another long haul flight. I was getting nervous beforehand, and on the Sunday before the flight, I got prayer from Gerry Butcher about it. He asked God to remove the fear and enable me to relax more as I flew.

The flight went well. I still took travel sickness tablets, but was less nervous than I had been, yet I stil hadn't conquered my fear. It wasn't the flying I was afraid of, it was the turbulence. I didn't like flying through a storm.

God has been changing me over the last few years, and I've seen Him do things in my life that I've only noticed a while after they happened. Part of what He's been doing in me, is teaching me that it's ok to trust in Him.
In fact, it benefits me most when I learn to trust Him completely.

Last month, I went on another Trans Atlantic flight, which was followed up by an internal flight that was about 2 1/2 hrs long.
The first flight was fine. In the days leading up to the flight, I'd noticed that I wasn't nervous. I decided not to take travel sickness tablets or anything like them. It was a step of faith by me that I was willing to take and I was happy with the decision.

We boarded our connecting flight and were told immediately that there would be no in flight service due to the weather that we were going to fly through. I briefly thought about it but wasn't worried. I had decided to trust in God, so knew I'd be fine.
During the flight, there was quite a lot of turbulence, so much that the cabin crew stayed seated for the entire flight and kept their belts on.

About an hour into the flight, I fell asleep, and stayed asleep for approximately 25 minutes.
When I woke, My first thought wasn't about my flight, or my nap I'd had, it was about Jesus in Mark 4.
Jesus lived in a place of constant victory. He let nothing overcome Him and set the perfect example of how to be a Man on earth.
Jesus was able to sleep through the storm on the lake, something that I found myself doing for the first time on a plane in a storm.

So what's so significant about that?

When you can sleep through your storm, you have victory over it. I woke knowing that I'd moved into a new place of victory, something that had bothered me for 13 years no longer had a hold over me. Jesus had demonstrated to me how to be victorious in rest. This is why He was able to wake up and command the storm to be calm. It had no authority over Him, so it didn't worry Him.
He knew they were going to reach the other side of the lake, He spoke it before they left.
The disciples thought they were perishing, Jesus showed them how to have victory.

We often get distracted by what's going on around us, and let the circumstances get the better of us. I did this and ended up with something over me for 13 years that I shouldn't have allowed take hold in the first place.
If there's anything in your life that represents a storm that has a hold over you, give it to Jesus and ask Him to show you the victory that He's already won for you in that storm. Then trust Him and watch how the victory becomes a reality in your life.


Roger C.

The Heartbeat of Heaven

Over the last few weeks there have been a number of instances of the phrase 'The Heartbeat of God' coming up in different meetings.
During our last cell meeting in the west side of the city, we were privileged to be led in worship by Yvonne.

One of the songs that she decided to lead us in was the Jesus Culture song, 'Let it Rain'. She kept going back to this song over and over again while we were worshipping and using it to lead us into a deeper place with God.
As we worshipped, one phrase spoke to me deeply and it opened up a new place of revelation for me as to who God is and what our purpose is.

There's a line,

"Now the heartbeat of heaven, let us hear" which resonated with me.

I'd never thought about that line before but the amazing thing was that Yvonne mentioned during our time of sharing, that it was this line that drew her to the song for the night.
I go to the gym and there is a facility on most machines in the gym where I can check my heart rate, or my beats per minute.
At rest, my heart rate is somewhere around 65-68 beats per minute. When I'm exercising hardest, my heart rate peaks at over 192 beats per minute, almost 3 times as much.

My heart rate beats at a speed that is relevant to the function that is required of it.

This is something we begin to experience when we spend time with Jesus. The better we get to know Him, the better we begin to understand what He is doing, where He is moving.

Bill Johnson once spoke about a heart transplant, that the dead heart started to beat in unison with the good, alive heart. This is what happens with us when our hearts move closer to God. We begin to worship Him. We begin to understand Him. We begin to work with Him. We are ready to move faster when He moves and we are ready to sit in His presence when He wants us to rest with Him.

The desire for us to hear the heart beat of heaven is the desire to know God in a closer, more personal way.

God declared that David was a man after His own heart:

And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’ Acts 13 v 22, NKJV

Why was David a man after God's own heart? He spent time learning who and what God is. He spent time on his own, worshipping God when he was a boy.

He invented a completely new way of worshipping God. Up until David, worship of God required people to sacrifice an animal. David wrote songs and sang to God. He danced before God and raised the bar for what worshipping God was like. He was the one who wrote the first Psalms and he was the one who decided to create a temple where God would be continuously worshipped, all because his heart was after God's.

David's new move all those years ago was so profound that it has impacted us in a way that it became the new norm for worship. We find it weird if there's no worship in a meeting! That has come about by a man who found the heartbeat of God and introduced us to a new way of worship.

So, here's the challenge. Are you willing to have a heart that moves in unison with God's?
Do you want to worship Him like David?
Are you going to raise the bar so that God can say "This person has a heart like mine"?

Learn to hear the heartbeat of heaven and you will be astonished by what God reveals to you.


Roger C.

Getting dressed.

In the mid 90's, I visited the former city of Ephesus, in Turkey. I was on a package deal holiday and it was the one location I was keen to go to. It was an incredible experience, being able to walk along streets that some of the earliest Christians walked on and I spent the day taking photo's and marveling at the place.

At the end of the day, I looked at my camera and realised the day's photos were all missing. I had managed to load the film (remember that stuff?) incorrectly and it wasn't moving when I wound it on.
All I had left was the first picture of the Roman baths and one or two street shots. I seem to remember that city quite well though, possibly due to the lack of physical evidence that I was there!
The book of Ephesians reminds me of Ephesus, not just because it is the same city, but because I haven't been reading much of it recently yet always seem to remember a lot of it. So when I went back to read it a few weeks ago, I found that the Lord was teaching me about getting dressed. The armour of God was coming up in all circumstances for me so I listened to the promptings and started reading and studying.

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

Ephesians 6v10, NKJV
As I read this passage, I noticed that there was another message behind what was there in front of me. Paul told us to take care of different parts of our bodies, as a soldier would.

He started off by telling us to "gird our waist with truth". The belt of a Roman soldier kept everything in place, so it was a very important part of his attire. It's the same with us, we have to be sure that truth is wrapped around us when we go out every day. Being surrounded by Truth means that no matter where we turn, we know that He is there. Failing to do that allows our whole Armour to fall apart.

The next part of the armour is the "breastplate of righteousness". The breastplate covered all the vital organs, the heart, lungs, kidneys etc. Wearing righteousness as our breastplate is important not just because it protects our hearts from spiritual attack, but it means that our hearts will be in a place of righteousness and therefore will be protected. The lungs are also a major organ that's covered by righteousness. When you have the breath of Life in you, it's good to be surrounded by righteousness!

We then get our shoes on, "shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace". Put these shoes on and you're ready to walk in peace wherever you go. Jesus won the victory and He wants us to walk in the fruit of the Spirit.

We then pick up our "shield of faith". Believing that God is bigger and more able than anything that is thrown at us is key to us becoming better warriors for Him. Using our faith to block out both the obvious and the subtle darts of the enemy is how to resist the enemy.

"The helmet of salvation"- Knowing who God is and knowing who we are in God. When our heads are surrounded by the knowledge of God, there is no room for the enemy's thoughts to take root. Being focussed on God allows us to heed His instructions and knowing who God is, exposes the work of the enemy.

Once dressed, we can take up our weapon, "The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God". When God speaks, it happens. When God speaks, it is Truth. When God speaks, it is Jesus. Nothing can compete with Jesus, He is our sword.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it."
John 1v1-5, NKJV

Jesus is the Word, He is our sword. Jesus is our Salvation, the only way to get to heaven, (Jesus said "I am the way"), He is our Helmet. Our faith in Jesus is our shield. What Jesus does in us allows us to walk in peace. The breath of Jesus which has given us life ("I am the Life"), and the righteousness of Him surrounding our hearts is our breastplate. Jesus said "I am the Truth", He is our belt.

The armour of God is all about Jesus. Being surrounded by Him, Walking in His peace, Enveloped by His righteousness, Believing His way, Speaking His name, Believing His word.

Jesus is there to protect us in body (shield), soul (breastplate) and mind (helmet). His desire is to be involved in each aspect of our lives, to enable us to walk in peace and in victory.
Finally, there is no mention of protection for our backs. We are going into battle, not retreating, and besides that, who do you think has your back when you go out every day?
Next time you're getting dressed, remember what Jesus said:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
John 14v6, NKJV
Invite Jesus in, get Him involved and believe what He says, do this and you're ready to face the day!

Roger C.

Time to walk on the water

Last May, I posted a blog titled "A New Take On The Bible". It was referring to the story of Jesus walking on the water and was written from Peter's perspective. As is often the case, God likes to tell us more and more about the same passage of scripture, and so I've decided after sitting on this for a few months that it's time to share it.

 22 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. 23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. 24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” 31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
 Matthew 14 v 22-33, NKJV

 Starting from the beginning of the passage, the disciples had nothing to worry about. Jesus told them to "go before Him to the other side", yet I don't think they realised this when they were stuck in the middle of the sea, as the waves and wind tossed them around.
Jesus spoke into the situation, told them the outcome, and then sent them on their way. Often, we fail to hear what Jesus has spoken to us (ignore the promise) and we worry about our circumstances instead! Human nature hasn't changed much in 2000 years.
So in the middle of the night, the disciples are asleep and Peter is the watchman. Thinking about this story, it really would have only worked as well as it did if Peter was involved, the impulsive disciple, was the one to act first and think after. He was probably a bit bleary eyed when he saw Jesus- even though he didn't realise who it was coming towards him. The fright of what he saw would have woken him immediately.

Jesus was walking on the water- what a strange thing to do! Peter wanted some of this so he asked Jesus and was told to come. Peter stepped out of the boat and walked on the water to Jesus, but fear got into him and Jesus had to grab him as he called out "Lord, save me!"

So that's the story, but what was happening? Peter allowed his circumstances to become bigger than his God. He saw the wind and the waves and their movement distracted him from Jesus. He didn't realise that God was more in his circumstances than he knew.
This is always the case with God. He is always more involved in our situations than we will ever know. He holds us in the palm of His hand.

Now this is where it gets interesting. Jesus told the parable of the man who built his house on the rock and the man who built his house on the sandy land Matthew 7 v 23-25, NKJV. I heard it preached once that the difference is that the man who built his house on the rock was building it on the solid truth of God. Sand is made out of many tiny bits of rock, little bits of truth. When there is no foundation of God in our lives, or we just like little bits of Him, our houses fall down.

On Sunday last, Gerry Butcher demonstrated what it would be like if we only drank on a Sunday and didn't for the rest of the week. We would die of thirst. As in the natural, so in the spiritual. We drink of the Holy Spirit on a Sunday and forget Him for the rest of the week, we shrivel up and die.

Jesus was demonstrating how the Christian life should be lived when He came to the disciples on the water. Jesus spent time with the Father, was (is) the Son of God and was walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.
All through the Bible, the Holy Spirit is mentioned in in a similar way to water. The Holy Spirit is poured out, we are filled up, baptised in and by Him.
When Jesus walked on water, He was demonstrating that when your firm foundation is the impossible God, the impossible becomes possible.
When you are grounded in the Holy spirit, the impossible becomes possible, supernatural becomes natural.
Walking on the water wasn't just a shortcut to the other side of the lake. Walking on water was Jesus showing us how to live our lives. Peter sank because he took his eyes off Jesus. He let the circumstances overwhelm him.

Fix your eyes on Jesus today, spend time with the Father and allow the Holy Spirit to carry you into the impossible.

Roger C.