Day 3
The effects of the fast have definitely been prevalent today. Headache, slight light dizziness, and feeling low on energy were all part of my day. I even took a nap this afternoon, woke up having had an interesting dream that I can only remember bits of and pieces. So far I have sustained completely on liquids. I will be going to purchase gum and or mints tomorrow to have on hand at all times, lest I offend someone with the horrid breath I have had today! I have brushed my teeth three times already today!
I woke up this morning remembering most of a dream I had last night. Here is what I can remember: I was in an athletic race of running and swimming, but I only saw the swimming portion of the race. I had been running and got to this river where there was dangerous things trying to get the people in the race. I swam my portion and I was up on a high bridge getting ready to move on to the next portion of the race when I saw down below someone struggling in the water. Some people (friends I believe) warned me not to help the person and to keep going on the race. I neglected to listen to their counsel and jumped off the high bridge into the water. I knew instantly it had been a bad idea and may have been a trap set for me. I tried to get to the other person to help, but knew that we were now both in trouble. Next thing I know there are these green snake like creatures with antennas on them. Actually there was only one that I could see I think. It attacked and bit me and then I woke up.
So that is my dream. I could apply it to things that have already taken place, but am also taking it as possibly a sign to be cautious of doing this again. How can we continue to run our race if we constantly jump off track trying to help others. It goes along with a prophetic word that someone gave me a week ago about the fact that the Lord saw my feet carrying others burdens for them also, and that I didn't need to do that anymore. That I needed to realize that the Lord would carry theirs as well as even my children's. We are meant to only carry our own and to run our own race. We can't run the race for other people. As much as we may want to sometimes, and as much as we may want to set the captives free, we are to see what the Lord is showing us in situations, and only come to the aid of others when He directs. So often I have had the desire to set people free when it wasn't the Lord's timing and I have regretted not heeding His restraint. ~Forgive me Father and guard me from making that mistake again~
So todays church message was really good. It made me think of a conversation I had with someone a couple years ago. Before I tell you the comment they made, let me first tell you that they are not in the same place today as they were when they made this statement. The comment they made was "I completely ok with mediocre." This was in reference to where they were in their walk with God. They are anything but mediocre now! Thanks be to God completely! Anyway, the comment struck me so much that I wrote it down on the back of a nearby envelope and put it in my Bible for awhile and prayed that this would change. I had heard that God would prefer us to be cold or hot rather than lukewarm, and knew that I had read something along those lines but could not recall where. Today we talked about it in depth at church. What the verses mean and why it says He would prefer cold or hot over lukewarm. Here is what I gleaned from today at church as well as from what I have been reading:
Scripture Reference REV 3:14 "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
If you think about what happens to a piece of ice when brought out into a room and left for a period of time, it will eventually turn to room temperature. If you think about taking a coal or a burning ember and bringing it into a room and leaving it, eventually it will become room temperature. Eventually it becomes like it's surroundings. It becomes the temperature of everything around it. We are called to stand out in our surroundings. To not become the natural nature of all that is around us, but to walk with God in the spiritual. We are called to be the light in the darkness.
When Enoch was on the earth, it said that he walked with God. He litterally walked with God. (He was also the first human listed in the Bible to give a prophetic word.) Enoch was empowered by the presence of God to live his life in the supernatural aspects of God. Because of his intimate relationship with the Lord, he lived a life in faith of God's ability here on earth. Would we not do the same if we were able to walk with God? If we were litterally able to dwell in His presence would we ever doubt His ability or even consider the life of mediocrity? Would we not constantly live a life of signs and wonders? Would we not see things as He sees them and minister accordingly?
Throughout scripture we see the Lord giving revelation to His people in the supernatural. Noah was given not only revelation but a specific plan for saving the human race. Abraham and Moses, both received revelation from the Lord as sons of God about what they were meant to do in their life. Are we not His children as well. Did some point occur in history where He just decided that He didn't need to talk to His children anymore. That He was just going to sit back and let our feebile human minds try to decipher everything and handle things in our own strength? Did He all of the sudden decide to let everyone become lukewarm, when we very clearly read in that passage that He would spit us out of His mouth. How can so many well read, and educated people miss out on so much that is written clearly in the Word?
Look at this story in Scripture: JN 21:1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
JN 21:4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
JN 21:5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"
"No," they answered.
JN 21:6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
JN 21:7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
JN 21:10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."
JN 21:11 Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore.
The other disciples had been unable to pull the net into the boat due to the weight and number of fish. Simon Peter climbed aboard and through faith and the ability of the Holy Spirit, single handedly dragged the net ashore! So often we read through Scritpure and miss out on the smallest details. Only by spending time with the Lord, and drawing close to Him do we remember His supernatural power and ability. Later on in the next chapter in Acts 1 we read :
I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
We are called to not only be batized with water but by the Holy Spirit as well. But what does that mean? To so many the language of the Holy Spirit is completely foreign. And as with learning any foreign language, I have learned that it is one thing to learn the vocabulary, and a few phrases here and there, but to be completely fluent in a language, you must immerse yourself in a culture that speaks that which you are trying to learn. Hence my recent move to be part of a Spirit filled church. Spirit filled meaning that it's congregation truly seeks out meeting with God when they gather, worshipping Him, being equipped to do the work of the ministry, and to be strengthened and built up in Christ. A true New Testament church!
Eph:11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
God didn't sent apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to do the complete work of the ministry. Theri responsibility was to prepare God's people for works of service. This is how the body of Christ is built up. How can we fill the Great Commission if only a few are doing the work we are all called to do? If anyone was capable of doing the ministry all on their own it would have been Jesus, and yet even He fed into 12 that were sent out to eqiup others. We are all sent out with gifts to build up the body, to further the Kingdom of God. How malnoursihed is the state of the church today if we are not doing what we are called to be doing? How distant have we become from what we have been made to do. In a new testament church, it was not only a home for the presence of God, it was also a learning center for the language of the Holy Spirit. People not only worshipped God in church but they were equipped to hear Him, and after hearing Him, they were able to give something to someone else to build them up. The congregation prepares their heart to come to church, to worship, and you came expecting to be equipped for ministry. You asked GOd to give you a gift to bring with you so that you might be used to strengthen someone else.
Think of the Bible, with it's foreign language, being a menu to eat from. When you are in a foreign country, certainly one of the first things you want to do is know how to order from a menu so that you may eat! Take that menu in it's foreign languge, and you can study it for years, learn the ins and outs of how it has been prepared, why it is in the order it is in, who wrote which part, how each compliments another part, and know every precise detail by memory. You can go to school and learn all sorts of things about the menu, and be able to teach others about the menu as well. If we never eat from the menu though, what good is it to us to have learned the language and study it for years? It must not end in the study of the menu, we must partake of what it says, what if offers for the betterment of the Body of Christ. So many are so close to the menu and yet so far from the meal.
1 Cor 8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
At what point did we decide that this part of the menu was no longer being served or necessary? At what point do people willingly decide that they are satisfied with just glancing at the menu, perhaps memorizing a few of the entrees, and then putting it down without ever ordering? At what point did it become so expected to be luke warm, that we would think so little of ourselves to believe that God does not have food for us that He wants to serve us continually so that we might feed others? Why does the majority of the church body today, rely solely on the few that have decided to sit at the Master's table to dine with Him. Are we not His favored children as well? Can we survive knowing we are living off the crumbs falling from the lips of our teachers?
I want to feast on what the Lord has for me! If I fast and get that greater understanding, how much sweeter the food will seem on the other side!
I woke up this morning remembering most of a dream I had last night. Here is what I can remember: I was in an athletic race of running and swimming, but I only saw the swimming portion of the race. I had been running and got to this river where there was dangerous things trying to get the people in the race. I swam my portion and I was up on a high bridge getting ready to move on to the next portion of the race when I saw down below someone struggling in the water. Some people (friends I believe) warned me not to help the person and to keep going on the race. I neglected to listen to their counsel and jumped off the high bridge into the water. I knew instantly it had been a bad idea and may have been a trap set for me. I tried to get to the other person to help, but knew that we were now both in trouble. Next thing I know there are these green snake like creatures with antennas on them. Actually there was only one that I could see I think. It attacked and bit me and then I woke up.
So that is my dream. I could apply it to things that have already taken place, but am also taking it as possibly a sign to be cautious of doing this again. How can we continue to run our race if we constantly jump off track trying to help others. It goes along with a prophetic word that someone gave me a week ago about the fact that the Lord saw my feet carrying others burdens for them also, and that I didn't need to do that anymore. That I needed to realize that the Lord would carry theirs as well as even my children's. We are meant to only carry our own and to run our own race. We can't run the race for other people. As much as we may want to sometimes, and as much as we may want to set the captives free, we are to see what the Lord is showing us in situations, and only come to the aid of others when He directs. So often I have had the desire to set people free when it wasn't the Lord's timing and I have regretted not heeding His restraint. ~Forgive me Father and guard me from making that mistake again~
So todays church message was really good. It made me think of a conversation I had with someone a couple years ago. Before I tell you the comment they made, let me first tell you that they are not in the same place today as they were when they made this statement. The comment they made was "I completely ok with mediocre." This was in reference to where they were in their walk with God. They are anything but mediocre now! Thanks be to God completely! Anyway, the comment struck me so much that I wrote it down on the back of a nearby envelope and put it in my Bible for awhile and prayed that this would change. I had heard that God would prefer us to be cold or hot rather than lukewarm, and knew that I had read something along those lines but could not recall where. Today we talked about it in depth at church. What the verses mean and why it says He would prefer cold or hot over lukewarm. Here is what I gleaned from today at church as well as from what I have been reading:
Scripture Reference REV 3:14 "To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16 So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
If you think about what happens to a piece of ice when brought out into a room and left for a period of time, it will eventually turn to room temperature. If you think about taking a coal or a burning ember and bringing it into a room and leaving it, eventually it will become room temperature. Eventually it becomes like it's surroundings. It becomes the temperature of everything around it. We are called to stand out in our surroundings. To not become the natural nature of all that is around us, but to walk with God in the spiritual. We are called to be the light in the darkness.
When Enoch was on the earth, it said that he walked with God. He litterally walked with God. (He was also the first human listed in the Bible to give a prophetic word.) Enoch was empowered by the presence of God to live his life in the supernatural aspects of God. Because of his intimate relationship with the Lord, he lived a life in faith of God's ability here on earth. Would we not do the same if we were able to walk with God? If we were litterally able to dwell in His presence would we ever doubt His ability or even consider the life of mediocrity? Would we not constantly live a life of signs and wonders? Would we not see things as He sees them and minister accordingly?
Throughout scripture we see the Lord giving revelation to His people in the supernatural. Noah was given not only revelation but a specific plan for saving the human race. Abraham and Moses, both received revelation from the Lord as sons of God about what they were meant to do in their life. Are we not His children as well. Did some point occur in history where He just decided that He didn't need to talk to His children anymore. That He was just going to sit back and let our feebile human minds try to decipher everything and handle things in our own strength? Did He all of the sudden decide to let everyone become lukewarm, when we very clearly read in that passage that He would spit us out of His mouth. How can so many well read, and educated people miss out on so much that is written clearly in the Word?
Look at this story in Scripture: JN 21:1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 "I'm going out to fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
JN 21:4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
JN 21:5 He called out to them, "Friends, haven't you any fish?"
"No," they answered.
JN 21:6 He said, "Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
JN 21:7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
JN 21:10 Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught."
JN 21:11 Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore.
The other disciples had been unable to pull the net into the boat due to the weight and number of fish. Simon Peter climbed aboard and through faith and the ability of the Holy Spirit, single handedly dragged the net ashore! So often we read through Scritpure and miss out on the smallest details. Only by spending time with the Lord, and drawing close to Him do we remember His supernatural power and ability. Later on in the next chapter in Acts 1 we read :
I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
We are called to not only be batized with water but by the Holy Spirit as well. But what does that mean? To so many the language of the Holy Spirit is completely foreign. And as with learning any foreign language, I have learned that it is one thing to learn the vocabulary, and a few phrases here and there, but to be completely fluent in a language, you must immerse yourself in a culture that speaks that which you are trying to learn. Hence my recent move to be part of a Spirit filled church. Spirit filled meaning that it's congregation truly seeks out meeting with God when they gather, worshipping Him, being equipped to do the work of the ministry, and to be strengthened and built up in Christ. A true New Testament church!
Eph:11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
God didn't sent apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to do the complete work of the ministry. Theri responsibility was to prepare God's people for works of service. This is how the body of Christ is built up. How can we fill the Great Commission if only a few are doing the work we are all called to do? If anyone was capable of doing the ministry all on their own it would have been Jesus, and yet even He fed into 12 that were sent out to eqiup others. We are all sent out with gifts to build up the body, to further the Kingdom of God. How malnoursihed is the state of the church today if we are not doing what we are called to be doing? How distant have we become from what we have been made to do. In a new testament church, it was not only a home for the presence of God, it was also a learning center for the language of the Holy Spirit. People not only worshipped God in church but they were equipped to hear Him, and after hearing Him, they were able to give something to someone else to build them up. The congregation prepares their heart to come to church, to worship, and you came expecting to be equipped for ministry. You asked GOd to give you a gift to bring with you so that you might be used to strengthen someone else.
Think of the Bible, with it's foreign language, being a menu to eat from. When you are in a foreign country, certainly one of the first things you want to do is know how to order from a menu so that you may eat! Take that menu in it's foreign languge, and you can study it for years, learn the ins and outs of how it has been prepared, why it is in the order it is in, who wrote which part, how each compliments another part, and know every precise detail by memory. You can go to school and learn all sorts of things about the menu, and be able to teach others about the menu as well. If we never eat from the menu though, what good is it to us to have learned the language and study it for years? It must not end in the study of the menu, we must partake of what it says, what if offers for the betterment of the Body of Christ. So many are so close to the menu and yet so far from the meal.
1 Cor 8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
At what point did we decide that this part of the menu was no longer being served or necessary? At what point do people willingly decide that they are satisfied with just glancing at the menu, perhaps memorizing a few of the entrees, and then putting it down without ever ordering? At what point did it become so expected to be luke warm, that we would think so little of ourselves to believe that God does not have food for us that He wants to serve us continually so that we might feed others? Why does the majority of the church body today, rely solely on the few that have decided to sit at the Master's table to dine with Him. Are we not His favored children as well? Can we survive knowing we are living off the crumbs falling from the lips of our teachers?
I want to feast on what the Lord has for me! If I fast and get that greater understanding, how much sweeter the food will seem on the other side!
posted by Jackson at 7:51 PM
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