Prayer for Today. Lord, Capture Me!

Psalm 19:14, "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer."

Lord Jesus, today I ask you to capture my mind, capture, my heart and capture my soul. Keep me, the total me safely in your hand. Empty this vessel of all substance except YOU. Fill me full with YOUR SPIRIT. Create anew in me the passion, power and deliverance of you VISION! Engage my total self to procure the desire of you heart through me. Fill this emptiness with an outflow of living water, creating a worthy vessel overflowing with your love, compassion and generosity. Help me to feel the hurting of precious lives that surround the place of my habitation. And thereby flow through me to aid and comfort those who are bleeding. They are bleeding-out the wonder of life, because of the mortal wounds of the enemy. Help me to stop the bleeding that is draining them of the very life you give. Anoint me to bring the good tidings of YOUR Gospel to a broken world.

Oh! That your Holy Spirit in me would bind up the broken hearted. Those whose hearts have been shattered by the deceitful, insidious enemy of their soul. Lord, set at liberty those held captive, held captive by their past. Release them today from their broken dreams and failed plans. Cause them to look to YOU for their total deliverance and life in YOU. In the Name of Jesus set them free! Loose the chains and open the prisons for them that are bound. May the Holy Ghost invade the dominions of Satan with such power that the chains will disintegrate at His mere presence. May the presence of the Almighty God be so powerful that the prison doors be hurled from their hinges and these eternal souls be forever set free.

Lord Jesus Christ, I pray this day for you anointing to fall heavy upon the Body of Christ, that we walk as you walked, talk as you talked and BE as YOU ARE the LIVING BREATH OF LIFE in an otherwise lifeless world. Lord, anoint us with the message of YOUR GOSPEL that all who will hear will accept YOUR LIFE and have that LIFE most ABUNDANT. Praise to our LIVING CHRIST, in JESUS NAME! Amen

Prayer for Today!

Lord Jesus, I pray that you make me a blank slate today. That you begin anew to create the person you want me to be. Remove from me the pride of the accomplishments and successes of yesterday. Today is a new day, a new beginning, to fulfill and display Divine tasks fresh from the mind and heart of God. Lord, remove from me the crushing weight of past failures and inadequacies. Help me to throw off the suffocating thoughts that paralyze my forward movement and hinder me from fulfilling your perfect work in me. Help me to be friend, neighbor, companion, father, grandfather, servant, pastor, preacher, prophet, intercessor, deliverer. Help me to be faithful, loving, compassionate, kind, enduring, helpful, gracious, holy, victorious, strong, reverent, thankful, pleasant, encouraging, supportive, gentle, consistent, anchored, gracious, resilient, humble, submissive, trusting, and obedient. And tomorrow, I will start all over again in order to make each day a new day in Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen!

John 9:10, “Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened? 11He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.”

Prayer for today!

Lord Jesus, make us one with you in desire and purpose today. I don't want to be
stuck (consumed) in religious tradition. Neither do I want to lose the spiritual virtue of past generations. We must remain flexible. A healthy tree can remain strong in the storm but if there is disease and rot the storm will expose that weakness. The storms are coming and only the spiritual virtue of our heritage in You can sustain us. Any other foundation will crumble an fall under the pressure of the storm. We stand in You! Amen

He Will Lift Up A Standard! part 2

God will set apart (sanctify) and identify as His the believers in His Kingdom. How is that going to happen? God will, by His Spirit, lift His Standard and His obedient followers will flow to it, when the enemy comes in like a flood. We are currently living in the time Isaiah described in chapter 59. In verses 16-21, Isaiah writes by the inspiration of the Spirit of God concerning the last days restoration of the nation of Israel. God brought salvation at the first Advent of Christ but Israel rejected Him. At His second Advent or second coming He will judge His enemies and restore salvation to Israel. The word “Redeemer” means kinsman redeemer, one who is related by blood to those he redeems. The restoration of Israel is at hand. The deliverance of the Body of Christ is even at the door.

The enemy has come in like a river over running its banks and causing great destruction and distress where ever it flows. The flood gates are open and just as Aaron and the priesthood were responsible for the disobedience and idol worship of the Israelites at Sinai, the leadership in Christianity must share the responsibility for where we are today. The strong emphasis placed on the doctrine of inclusion in the religious world has lead to a departure from the faith which was delivered to the saints of the New Testament. This doctrine must be reversed in the churches. Instead of inclusion, separation of the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world must be preached again from our pulpits. Although the gospel message is one of inclusion and is to all men, there always has been and always will be the Divine standard to be achieved. His holy standard can still be achieved in the heart of the submissive, obedient believer through the work of the Holy Spirit living within us. Jesus said that He (Holy Spirit) will lead and guide into all truth. John 16:13, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” The Truth is the standard but can not be achieved apart

from the indwelling of the Holy Ghost in the heart of the professed Christian.

Difficulty has arisen because of a departure from the leadership of the Holy Spirit. How can we be lead by Him if we are not first possessed by Him? How can we be possessed by Him unless we believe that He exists as the third person of the Godhead fulfilling Jesus' promise to be our comforter? John 14:26, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” The promise of the Comforter was as such to provide a Paraclete to lead and guide the Church as Christ's Advocate or on His behalf. The Holy Spirit is to lead the Church just as God lead Israel and Jesus led the New Testament Church.

The Hebrews writer tells us that if we are to please God we must first believe that He exists and secondly believe that He will reward us as we seek Him. Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Consequently, we must believe that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity, co-existing and co-equal with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. Those who reject the Person and work of the Holy Spirit reject the whole of God's plan and that is the root of the confusion. When this basic scriptural truth is denied, every doctrine built upon that foundation is at risk of dilution or discarding altogether.

The doctrine of inclusion came into existence because religious leaders wanted to accommodate people. It began with local congregations accepting individuals in various situations and circumstances. As public opinion became increasing more liberal, societal pressure expanded to include entire groups of people and lifestyles. Although the Word of God strongly condemns carnal, fleshly thought and lifestyles, the moral climate of our world demands that such behavior be accepted and embraced by the populace of the world including Christianity and the Church.

The Kingdom of God is a spiritual entity and as such has a spiritual administration. True, we all are mortal beings but God uses mortal beings in His Kingdom if they are subject to the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the work of the Holy Spirit must be embraced in submission and obedience. The tension comes with conflict between the carnal leadership of man and the administration of the Holy Spirit. Religious leadership has succumbed to the collusion of ambition, greed and pride. Therefore the door is thrown open wide for governance by man and the Holy Spirit has been expelled. Hence our present dilemma.

The question today is, “Am I going to follow a religious movement or the Holy Spirit?” The answer to that question will determine my affiliation with a religious group or being a part of the Kingdom of God. And the answer to that question will determine our eternity. My prayer is that we will allow the Holy Spirit to open our ears to hear what He is saying in this late hour!

He Will Lift Up A Standard! part 1

I am thankful today for the beginning of a new year. There is always a feeling of anticipation and maybe even apprehension as we look forward to this new beginning. I feel in my heart that there are battles ahead in which only the grace of God can sustain us. The devil is running rampant in our world and although conditions may appear bleak at times, Isaiah describes God's response when the enemy comes rushing in.

Isaiah 59:19, “So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.”

In the Old Testament economy, a standard was the identifying colors of an army or kingdom. It was necessary to be able to identify allies and enemies. God's promise to Israel was that He would stand with them against His enemies. This is a necessary principle in our spiritual warfare today. God will set apart (sanctify) and identify as His the believers in His Kingdom. Over time the lines between the Kingdom of God and the system of the world have become blurred to the extent that it is difficult to determine who is on the Lord's side. It is time to be identified with true believers in the Kingdom of God.

Exodus 32:26, “Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.”

Upon returning from Mt. Sinai after his Divine encounter, Moses found that the Israelites had fallen into idol worship. Because Moses had delayed his return, they fell back into old habits, the idol worship of Egypt. The priesthood which was to be set apart (sanctified) for service to God had become co-conspirators in the deed. Aaron, the high priest himself, had supervised the task of building a golden calf statue and presented it to the Israelites. They failed miserably in their first attempt at freedom, exhibiting the actions of their old life in Egypt. But now, Moses had thrown down the gauntlet. It was time to decide who would follow God into their new life in Him.

The final choice was not made here. The Israelites continued to be called to accountability throughout their journey. On one particular occasion as they were preparing to enter the promised land of Canaan, Joshua presented them with the same challenge. Joshua 24:15, “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Israel failed God many times but were given the opportunity to choose the right way. I think of the many individuals who died in the wilderness journey because of their disobedience. Here again they were called to accountability. It was time to choose. (continued part 2)

Where is Truth and Justice? part 2

We face a difficult time ahead as political leaders jockey for position, power and influence. For the most part it is all just a lot of noise like a sporting event. Each side supports and vehemently defends their team and believe it doesn't matter about the process so long as our team wins. But it really does matter how we play the game. The game builds character and integrity which embrace truth, justice and judgment. If the process fails to yield these attributes, how can we expect a government to lead in truth and justice. It is not what we say but what we do that defines us as person and as a nation. God help us!

Truth and justice lay abandoned in the street, discarded as refuse in the gutter. What happened to the promise “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” and “so help me God?” What happened to the greater good of all men, rather than the selfish and ambitious views of a particular political party or social group? What happened to the preference of others and their needs over the narrow constricted view of what we want? A self focused mentality has invaded and captured our conscious resolution and thereby affects everything we say and do.

In Isaiah 59:9-21, Isaiah gives a litany of sins for which Israel needs a redeemer. He observes that judgment, justice and truth are qualities absent from the life of Israel. Because there was no qualified mediator, God would provide salvation through the coming kinsman Redeemer. This salvation is in Jesus Christ whom they rejected at the first Advent. But God promises that He will forgive their sins and restore them in covenant relationship in the end. Isaiah 59:20, “And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD. 21As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.”

“and unto them that turn from transgression,” is a provision of the covenant but will be implemented through repentance and acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Messiah. That will happen to a remnant of Israel in the end.

The call of God to all of humanity is to repent and return to God. Any people who expects the favor and covering of God must approach Him in repentance and follow in obedience. One of the greatest judgments that God brought against Israel was their failure to uphold “truth and justice.” That principle is just as relevant to our country and our world today. If God brought the leadership of Israel to judgment because of their lack of truth and justice, He will do the same for every generation.

We must have the intervention of God in the days and weeks ahead. “Let the Body of Christ fall prostrate before Him, casting all care upon Him, and believing for His Divine and perfect will. And let His perfect will be exercised in me.” Amen.

Where is Truth and Justice? part 1

Isaiah 59:14, “And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. 15Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment.”

Here we are at the beginning of a new year. There are some people who will laud their great accomplishments and progress in this journey to a better world. Then, there are others who view the future with pessimism, bemoaning the lack of positive markers in the process of moving forward. However, we must admit that we, the inhabitants of this earth have witnessed both positive and negative events in 2015. We also must conclude that each event, situation or happening has presented us as a civilization the opportunity to right the wrongs, correct the injustice and return to truth.

We live in a fallen world and as such will continue to witness the same climate in 2016 unless we as a people choose a different path. If we continue with the same choices, making the same mistakes, the result will invariably be the same. As a society, we can't continue on this same path and expect a different outcome.

Therefore, we are required to make the difficult choices. We must choose to love others as we do ourselves. We must choose to do no harm rather than promote our own selfish ambitions and desires. Can you imagine how that one principle would change our world if only it were embraced by a majority of the earth's population. We must choose to embody truth in every thought, word and action. That principle alone would impact every person that our lives touch. We might not change the world but we would change our world. We must choose to treat every relationship justly and impartially. What if we actually treated others like we want to be treated. And, we could go on with our list but space cannot contain all that requires out attention.

We should be challenged as we look back on the activities of 2015. Did we do our best to affect the world around us in a positive manner for the Lord Jesus Christ? The whole of creation is crying out for a change. Are you pleased with the outcomes you have observed or does God's Spirit within urge you to make a greater difference in the time ahead? The challenge before us is, “will we make a difference?” Are we willing to invest ourselves to address the woes of our community, our city, ourstate, our nation and our world? (continued part 2).