Manna for today

In the pursuit of him I am finding myself as God created me to be and in that am dreaming like never before.  What if we could not be derailed from God's plans and he planted all these things in us to use for His glory in the body of Christ, His church?  What if He gives us grace for the day each day?  What does that look like?  

Sitting at the breakfast table contemplating these ideas this morning, I was reminded of the Israelites in Exodus wandering through the wilderness.  Ex 16, God has heard the people's grumbling and has promised a release of meat by night and bread by day.  Just enough for what is needed at that moment with the warning not to save it for tomorrow for it will rot and burn away.  He started talking to me about exactly this in the reality of today.  He gives manna the bread of grace and wisdom we need for the day inviting us to take and use it for THAT DAY.  He gives us MEAT at night.  I am learning that dreams are some key times God likes to speak truth, revelation and insight to cleanse, release, energize and let us chew on in pursuit of him.  I get great revelation through the day and hear him well but the night season is where the really deep things come; when I am quiet and still and my mind and defenses are pushed out of the way.  It is in acceptance of the provision for today that God reveals his glory, for the Israelites as glory in the cloud.

What if revelation IS given for the day intended to be used fully for THAT day?  All the grace, wisdom, understanding, provision IS fully provided for THAT DAY and more will be given for tomorrow?!  And if dreams are treated as meet and not just tossed away as a thoughtless mistake of the night... How different life may look...

Pursuing Pain

What an amazing journey this is!  After a beautiful hour of worship class started with "pain is a good thing".  You can imagine that didn't go over incredibly well!  This month is about wholeness and identity.  Neither of these can be accomplished without letting God into our lives, REALLY letting Him in and allowing healing to happen to those places that are not at peace.  The goal of the process is always for our good to become closer to God.  It's about taking those painful places that God reveals and allowing Him to exchange the emotions and beliefs of those places with His thoughts, His voice, His comfort and His love.
I am thankful that God started this process in me eight years ago so now going through things is deepening my relationship with Him.  Emotions have never been an easy thing for me but I am realizing they are a part of life and are meant to be expressed and used.  This last week I have realized the anger I have toward all the injustices I have experienced.  And then I laugh.  I have been placed in the perfect place to train up in ministry to help others gain freedom and watch the Lord get His revenge on all that has been stolen from His kids!!

Three years ago tomorrow a close friend/sister lost the battle here on earth.  She's lived through hell so it's a miracle she made it as long as she did but I know God had AMAZING things to do through her.  I believe she was given a choice to stay or go and she chose to go.  I don't blame her for it but I wish she could have had the right support and enough drive to make choices toward breakthrough...who knows what she would be doing now!  The devil has SO overplayed his hand and I've had ENOUGH!!  Her story drives me to a deeper desire to be a hand in God's vengeance  and I'm all in!

A Season of Angelic Encounters

It's amazing the stories that have come up in the last week, encounters that students' children have had!  This video was shared in worship track last week.  Although I personally haven't looked up the English translation of this yet, it is incredible.  There is only one actual person in the recording studio during this! The second video is Jason Upton.

How High Do You Want to Go?

The topic of the month is intimacy.  Wow this can be exhausting in such a good way!  The first way to increase intimacy with the Lord of course is to spend time with Him.  In this multi-tasked, get it done now culture, laying aside time to just BE with God who I love but cannot physically SEE is challenging.  Sure I could go with the normal church checklist of well, let's get the time in first thing and do all these things in that time so I can say I did it...but I'm not here just to get the thing done and say I've accomplished it.  It's amazing the revelation that comes just BEING with him.  Of course that means the DO-ER rather than just the BE-ER needs to die, then I have to get through the religious barrier of finding the RIGHT answer or the RIGHT way to be with God.  That's SO silly!  He made me, knows my every thought and He knows that my way won't be like your way because we are not the same person!

We have now had a full week of intentional extended time with the Lord.  I challenge you to try it.  Spend 20 minutes or so at first and build up to an hour +.  You'd be amazed what can happen in that time!

Here with school and that on the side I feel like I have now been in an over the top conference (you know the ones you get all excited about have a blast at and leave overflowing yet exhausted) only this conference has gone for two weeks and has 9 months in length!!  Expanding capacity will be SO worth it!

The Lord has just started showing me visions in worship and I love the fact that with that I have permission to bring out the art tools and release that vision.  Last week it was oil pouring out of a pitcher bringing new identity and vision to all who came seeking.  I love that we all see in part because this was the only piece I saw then someone spoke up about seeing rain falling on fertile soil and a variety of flowers blooming from those places...the bottom of the picture that I didn't have!

Today I came a little better prepared with some specific art supplies in hand saying, God if you want me to do more show me, otherwise I'm happy to just let that sit unused.   He had been speaking to me over the weekend about being planted and that being His work and our pleasure to receive.  Psalm 92:12-13 [Amplified version] "The uncompromisingly righteous shall flourish like the palm tree [be long-lived, stately, upright, useful, and fruitful]; they shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic, stable, durable, and incorruptible].  Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God."  He brought this up in the beginning of worship and asked as a corporate question, how high do you want to go?  As high as you want to fly you have to choose to go deep.  There are streams of living water running endlessly deep but you have to choose to get past the surface and keep seeking more.  This is the image I received.

I hope you ask yourself this same question and if willing ask for me and set aside some time to just BE with Him!

It's About Relationship

We all sat down completely energized to start the week and Sonja says, 'How does it feel to be in week FOUR'?!  I laughed inside thinking God this is week two for me and I am still in shell shock.  Only you know how to accelerate my acclimation to be in step with the rest of this group. 

It's easy to do almost anything for a week especially when it is something you like.  As the days go on I realize I have 9 MONTHS of doing this!  Nine months with this amazing group of people.  That means we are truly going to be building relationship and growing and stretching together.  It's not going to be like those three day events where you spill your guts, get cleansed, set on fire and then leave those people you did all that with to go back to the comfortable ordinary life.  No no, this IS now the normal, intentionally extraordinary, uncomfortable yet safe place to be.  Maybe because of where I have been I keep waiting for stress or distrust or...something to break out.  With each hour with this group that passes I find that is not happening.  When they say this is a safe place to gather and stretch, they mean it and we are learning to create that culture outside the four walls of the building we are in.

Everything we are doing right now is to learn the importance of relationship and the heart first.  As we go out and do life, we cannot do it well without first being connected to the one who sends us.  I hardly sit still ever and I have been a DO-ER not a BE-ER but I'm learning to love this new place :)

Off to class.  Be blessed!

Dig Deeper to Fly Higher

It has been an incredible week working with the Lord to see this day come; the first day of ministry school!  I have had the desire to go to school for so many years it seemed surreal to be walking it out today.  Even just walking into the room as worship began everything about being there felt RIGHT.  Forty men and women living busy career and family lives taking time out to come together to know the Lord more and to seek bigger adventures with their King.

Dig deeper to fly higher seemed to be the theme of the day.  We came together in worship not only to give thanks and praise with a group of talented musicians but today was about occupying ground, standing in agreement with God that He wants to bring breakthrough.  Today was the beginning of bible study and small group.  We began the journey of defining what digging into the word will look like over the year.  At the end of the day we got into small groups to build relationship and soar to higher places with God together.  I can't wait to see what the rest of the week brings!

Those Who Dream

When the Lord brought back the captives to Zion, we were like those who dream.  

Then were our mouths filled with laughter and our tongues with signing.  

Then they said among the nations, The Lord has done great things for them.  

The Lord has done great things for us!  We are glad!  

Turn to freedom our captivity and restore our fortunes, O Lord,

as the streams in the South [are restored by the torrents].  

They who sow in tears shall reap in joy and singing.  

Psalm 126: 1-5