Remain in Faith

We have entered the season of storms. For some people around the world it is the rainy season, where lots of rain falls every day and it makes it a challenge to travel from here to there. For others the tornadoes, thunderstorms and flooding are hitting their area. This is just life in the weather, this is not to speak of the storms in relationships that arise expectantly, or the lingering storms that have been there in those relationships. Then there are the financial storms that seem to pop up as that bill comes with a balance you were not prepared for, or that vehicle breaks down, or that job is lost or promotion denied. There are many situations and circumstances in people’s lives, that are like storms that bring change and challenge we did not see coming.

 

Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world, you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” Jesus knew that we would have trials, storms, trouble in this world in which we live. We would think, we were used to challenges, but we are not, we know we were made for abundance not lack, for health not sickness, for life not death. This is the challenge, eternity is set in our hearts, we know things should be better, but for many it seems to never change or get worst. Prophetic words give us encouragement, situations change and we experience relief for a moment, but nothing seems to remain. The question is this, did Jesus experience any less challenges than we do? The answer is no, the Bible says, “No temptation has seized you beyond what people normally experience, and God can be trusted not to allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. On the contrary, along with the temptation he will also provide the way out, so that you will be able to endure” (1 Corinthians 10:13). What we experience is normal, but as believers we have an advantage in our adversity.

As believers we have what I call the God advantage, though our situations may be similar to those in the world, because we live in the world, the Bible says we are not of the world. However, for us to respond differently to challenges than the world, we must remain in faith, no matter what situation we go through. In Luke 9, Jesus sent the 12 apostles out on their first ministry trip, when they returned they reported to Jesus all that happened, their faith was operating on that trip, but two verses later while Jesus was preaching to a crowd of 4,000 people it came time for people to need to eat, so the disciples say to Jesus, send them home, but Jesus, who remains in faith in every situation, says, you feed them. The disciples had no frame of reference for faith in what seemed natural like eating dinner, but Jesus did.

 

As believers, we are called to remain in faith, whether we are on some ministry trip or doing something we believe requires “faith” or whether we are going to work, helping a friend or raising kids. Circumstances should not cause us to come out of faith. When we are struggling in our marriage, we are called to remain in faith; when our finances act funny, we are to remain in faith; no matter what the situation, we are called to remain in faith. Jesus fed the 5,000 in Matthew 14, then immediately He got in a boat with his disciples and a huge storm arose and Jesus was sleeping in the boat, so the disciples woke Him up in a panic, Jesus upon awakening, said to His disciples, where is your faith? I believe when we get worked up because circumstances in our life change, Jesus says, where is your faith? We are called to remain in faith all the time. Faith is not something we compartmentalize in our life, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Remain in faith and watch God do miracles in your life. No matter how small the situation, remain in faith and you will not be under the situation, but continually above it. You have the God advantage, you are a person of faith, now remain in it!

Habitation Reformation

Many recognize we are not where we were, but we are not yet where we are going. Other realize, we know what has been, but are unsure of what is coming. Some are pointing to another wave of salvations, some are pointing to another visitation, and some are not sure what to call it. But everyone that has eyes to see and ears to hear know something of the likes we have never seen before is about to happen in the body of Christ on earth. Names like harvest, revival, outpouring, reformation, awakening, and even revolution have all been thrown around, but no clear picture of what is coming has taken hold in the most amplified voices in our nation and the Christian world. People with platforms, pulpits and places to proclaim the message, are not saying, yet, what God is speaking to the ground troops. People who do not have platforms other than Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo or Soundcloud are saying what God is doing, but their voice is yet to be amplified on a large scale, but God is about to turn up the volume on these people’s voices, for they are speaking the same thing, for they are hearing the same voice, for they all have the same head over the church, Jesus the Christ.

These men and women are not seeking to be seen or heard, they are seeking to be faithful. They have allowed the fire of His presence to purify their character, they have learned to walk in His ways, they have sought the face of a man, not the applause of people or the wealth of another. They are the ones who made it through the narrow gate that leads to life, they are the ones who are living in childlike dependence and they are hearing the mysteries of the kingdom, for they have been mining the depths of God’s heart and soaring into the throne room of God’s courts. These people have used their patio as their platform, their prayer closet as their war room, their car as their sanctuary, and they have learned how to commune with the King of kings. They are without title, without system, without the trappings of religion, they are free to sing a little louder, pray a little longer, and linger like a lover. They have learned what it means to become one with Him in spirit and in truth. These are the coming ones who will preach the gospel of the kingdom.

God is about to unlock the third fold of His threefold message of the kingdom. It is nothing new to God, nor to history, but it will be new to our generation. It will build on the past and lead us into the future. It is not a competing message, it is a completing message. I will complete the gospel of the kingdom message, it will mature the body of Christ, it will cause us to exponentially increase in the prosperity of our soul (3 John 2). Are you ready for more of the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven?

In the 1500’s Martin Luther led a Salvation Reformation. He preached that we are saved by faith, not by works. It was a reformation that changed the way we view salvation. In the 1900’s we had a Visitation Reformation led by William Seymour. God restored the Holy Spirit’s power and operation in the lives of believers. It was a powerful addition to the salvation reformation. Now, we are on the verge of another reformation, a Habitation Reformation. A habitation reformation is going to reveal to us that we are called to be ONE with Christ, according to John 14, 15, 16 this is the desire of Jesus Christ, that we would be One as He and His Father are One. The habitation reformation is going to bring us into oneness with Christ. This will be adding to the salvation reformation and the visitation reformation, not replacing it.

What the Lord showed me is that the salvation reformation was like Passover, everyone must come through the blood shed on the cross to be saved; next he revealed to me that the visitation reformation was like Pentecost, everyone is to be filled with the Holy Spirit, operating in power and speaking in tongues; and the Lord said, the habitation reformation will be like Tabernacles, everyone is invited into oneness, but just like salvation and visitation, not everyone will want to engage in it. This habitation reformation, will complete the cycle of the feasts of the Lord and make us complete as the body of Christ. Remember, Ephesians 4 says, we were given 5-fold leaders to train us, equip us and deploy us, so we may be mature and complete lacking nothing. The habitation reformation voices are about to arise in the earth and we will see a habitation reformation like nothing we have seen before in our generation. There is about to be people who literally have become one with Christ in character, power, authority and joy. We are on the verge of a habitation reformation!

Who Are You, In My Life?

Many people come into our lives and if we do not know who they are, we will miss why they have come into our lives. There are three types of people God will send to walk with us. Knowing the difference between the three, will help you understand more clearly, who they are for you and then you will be able to steward them well. People, money and revelation all need to be stewarded well, if we want people, money and revelation to increase. For what you value increases, that is why knowing who they are, can help you give them the value they deserve, so you can attract more people into your life.

 

One type of person that comes into your life are Paul type people. These people are coming to coach you, mentor you, lead you, train you in some way. Paul type people are not going to hang out with you all the time, but as you learn to value their role in your life, you will realize they carry wisdom to help you in your walk with Christ. In the Bible, the apostle Paul, was a mentor to many people. He would plant churches in various cities, raise up people to lead those churches, then he would move on, but he never left those people behind. He carried them in his heart, so they would write him letters with questions, concerns or comments and he would respond by writing them back. The more they valued him in their life, the more helpful he was to them. I believe everyone has at least one Paul in their life and some people have more than one Paul in their life, but these Paul type people, knowing you, love you, speak truth to you, but they are not people you are hanging out with daily, they are more of a mentor type person to you. Learning how to value the Paul’s in your life is critical, for they do not share their wisdom in passing, the more they are valued, the more they release what they know to you.

 

A second type of person that comes into your life is the Barnabas type person. This is your largest section of people in your life. Barnabas people are your friends, your cheerleaders, your go to people for fun, friendship, processing, playing and practicing whatever you are working on. They love to laugh with you, cry with you, hang out with you, do life with you, remember, Barnabas was a son of encouragement (Acts 4:36). Most people have a lot of Barnabas’ in their life. Some stay for a long time, others come and go after a short stay, but just like the Paul’s in your life, the Barnabas’ need to feel valued, if you are going to keep you them in your life. We are social people, we like to do life with others, this is healthy for us, loneliness is not what we were made for. The Psalmist said, “God places the lonely into families.” We all need our Barnabas’ but we must value them if we are going to keep them. Reach out, say hi, ask how they are doing, take them to coffee, send them a card, invite them over for dinner, do something, for you need them and they need you. The more you value your friends, the easier it is to make friends, for very few people don’t like to be valued.

 

A third type of person that comes into your life is the Timothy type person. These people are ones that God is bringing to you for discipleship purposes. They may be young believers, or immature Christians, they may be seeking out someone to show them the ways of the Christian walk. They are usually teachable, seeking advice and looking for answers. Timothy’s are usually immature spiritually, so you need to extend them grace as you seek to help them grow. When God sends you a Timothy, He is inviting you to be a Paul to that person, take it as a compliment, from God, that He is entrusting these people to you. There are so many people, that are not sure who’s voice they are hearing; who want to do the right thing, but have never been discipled. Look around you, has God placed Timothy’s in your life to disciple and you did not notice them? They need to be valued, for they are members of this body and need you, that is why God is bringing them to you. Share your testimony with them, let them watch you live for Jesus, much is caught, as well as taught. They are watching whether you know it or not.

 

Who are you in my life? That is a great question to ask when people are brought into your life. Now of course unbelievers are brought into your life as well and the way you speak and act, will reveal Christ and His nature of your flesh. For you are a living epistle, you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. People are seeking right now, more so than in our recent history and you need to know who they are in your life, so you can serve them, well. Jesus said, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field” (Matthew 9:36-38). You are standing in the middle of a harvest field, now it’s time to find out who that person is, in your life and value them!

Holy Visitation and Fire Convocation

While in prayer this morning, the Lord and I were discussing a holy visitation. What sparked this conversation was a friend of mine in Hutchinson, KS said on Facebook, “Is anyone else done with all this rain?” It was an innocent question, but Johnny Enlow in his blog about the Kentucky Derby and how God is speaking to us prophetically through that race said, the odds of Country House winning was 65-1 and the number 65 is significant. Johnny, then said we should read all of Psalm 65. Well, I did, and what I read in there was “You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain, for so you have prepared it. You water its ridges abundantly, you settle its furrows; you make it soft with showers, you bless its growth. You crown the year with Your goodness, and your paths drip with abundance. They drop on the pastures of the wilderness, and the little hills rejoice on every side. The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered with grain; they shout for joy, they also sing.” Therefore, I was thanking God for all the rain that has been falling, for the rain is God visiting the earth with abundance.

The idea of a holy visitation language is not new, for Rita Springer wrote a song called Holy Visitation, but the wording that God used with me in prayer that was new, is a Fire Convocation. He said to me, WE ARE ON THE VERGE OF A HOLY VISITATION AND A FIRE CONVOCATION. A holy visitation sounded like God coming down as the Holy One of Israel, as the God of heaven yet again touching earth. We as believers long for a holy visitation, it sounds like revivals we have either heard of in the past or been involved in. But when God added the words Fire Convocation, I knew we were entering into some new territory. To start, I had to brush up on what a convocation was and it is a large formal gathering in either the academic or ecclesiastical realms. In this month of graduations, that play on words is brilliant, but that is our God.

What else is brilliant, is that we are in the shadow of Passover on our way to Pentecost on the Biblical calendar. I am not predicting a date, but I do think we are in the right season for what God is calling a holy visitation and a fire convocation. For Passover was a holy visitation as the spotless lamb of God was crucified for the sins of the world. The blood of Jesus alone makes us holy, so a holy visitation sounds like people that have yet to get a revelation that Jesus Christ is Lord, may have their eyes opened as this holy visitation manifests on earth. Then with Pentecost only 32 days away as of this writing, we are set for a fire convocation. If you remember, the apostles, Mary, the mother of Jesus, the other women and Jesus brother’s were all in the upper room (Acts 1:13-14), were in prayer and supplication. They did not know a fire convocation was going to happen like that, but they were obeying the last command Jesus gave them, which was to stay in Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father (Acts 1:4). They obeyed and they stayed!

Ladies and gentlemen, we are on the verge of a holy visitation and a fire convocation. This is what the Lord told me, but I like to listen for the echo, from others who are hearing the same thing and today, May 8, 2019, Mario Marillo put out a blog titled “On The Verge”. You can’t make this stuff up. Mario says, “I feel something stirring that man cannot stop. I believe we are on the verge of the explosion of divine miracles.” Sounds like a holy visitation and a fire convocation to me, what about you? I believe it is high time we pray and supplicate before God for a holy visitation and a fire convocation. Our nations, our families, our friends, our finances, our fellowships, need this more than we know, but God who initiates this idea says, WE ARE ON THE VERGE OF A HOLY VISITATION AND A FIRE CONVOCATION!

Townhouse Theology

History has a way of repeating itself, if we do not learn from history. When Jesus walked the earth, the religious leaders of his day, the Scribes, Pharisees, Chief Priests and Elders of the people, missed the revelation of the kingdom of God. When Moses was leading the children of Israel through the wilderness, the leaders and many of the people, could not see what God was doing in their day. If we are not careful, we will miss what God is doing right now in our day. Romans 15:4 says, “For everything that was written in the past was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures, we might have hope” The Scriptures are there to help us, but if we are not careful they will hinder us, just like they did the religious leaders of Jesus day.

 

Chuck Pierce on Sunday April 28, 2019 said, “If you are not willing to be flexible, you will be the old wineskin.” God is pouring out revelation at such an accelerated pace in our day and age, that if you are locked into your theology, your way of doing ministry, your old wineskin mindset, you will miss the move of God that is manifesting in our day. This is not an inditement, this is a plea, to repent, for the kingdom of God is here. When Jesus, said to the people in His day, repent for the kingdom of God is here, He was not telling them not to repent of drinking, swearing, lying, stealing, sex before marriage, even though these things are not appropriate for a disciple of Christ. He was telling them to repent of old mindsets, old ways of thinking, old theologies and understandings of God.

 

Theology is the study of the nature of God and religious belief; religious beliefs and theory when systematically developed (dictionary.com). Theological schools will train you in their theology or understanding of God. That is why you have Baptist theology, Lutheran theology, Catholic theology, Charismatic theology, Pentecostal theology. In Jesus’ day, they had Hebraic theology, Mosaic theology, Davidic theology, Prophetic theology, Eschatological theology. Everyone one has their own idea of who God is and how God operates, but Jesus said, repent of your theology, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. I believe the Holy Spirit is speaking the same message today, repent of your religious theology and get a townhouse theology.

 

Townhouse theology is a theology you are able to lock up and walk away from to follow Jesus. You are not selling it, or abandoning it, but you are walking away from it. It will be there when you get back, if you still want it, but it is not hindering you from following Jesus, now! The best thing about a townhouse is, your yard is mowed, your driveway is shoveled and everything outside the house is taken care of. That is why you can turn off everything inside and walk away without your townhouse experiencing neglect. We need townhouse theology, we need to walk away from somethings in order to follow Jesus, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand, again, right now!

 

Many people have said, oh how I wished I lived when Jesus walked the earth, the challenge is, they don’t realize we are living in the days in which Jesus is walking on the earth. Remember what Colossians 1:27 says, “To whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Christ Himself lives inside of you through the Holy Spirit, that means Christ is walking the earth today, in your flesh and bone body. “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (I Corinthians 3:16). We are living in Bible days right now today, I pray you choose a townhouse theology, so you don’t miss the kingdom of God on earth, today.