Be HIS Witness

He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”—Acts 1:7-8

This was Jesus’ response after His resurrection to the disciples.  What was the question you ask? “Are you restoring the Kingdom to Israel at this time?”  Jesus pretty much tells them look God in His own authority has periods and times set and these times and periods won’t always be something you will know or should know etc.  God has times and periods already in motion from the beginning of time to the end of time.  What is my role and function in this?? Jesus tells them after His initial response--- your role and place in God’s times and periods is to be a witness, and for this you will receive some help—my Holy Spirit. This might seem very Christianity 101 but how come it’s so hard to do that one thing? Be a witness. 

I’ve been pondering upon this for about three weeks now. I think sometimes too much knowledge of theology or the Word gets in the way of the supernatural pure power of the Holy Spirit. We want to explain everything by the theories and interpretations of the Bible. Don’t get me wrong I’m not saying we need to put aside the pure gospel. What I am saying is sometimes like the Bible says; too much knowledge puffs up.  Too much theology gets in the way of me walking in the pureness of God’s spirit and simply being a witness.  On my way to work this morning something spoke to my spirit: “be my witness.”  Just that…and then it kept ringing in my ears—“you will be my witness.”  Sunday at church we heard pastora say “forget about representing the church, REPRESENT JESUS!” This is very true.  We are not called to be Jesus’ attorney and defend Him, he can do that on His own. We are called to be a witness.  It’s so true how easy it is to play church and just attend a church meeting and use only that meeting time to worship God in song and raising of my hands.  Nothing wrong with this—not at all, but God and Jesus His Son called me to something big— that as I do that something, I’m worshiping, investing in the Kingdom, and touching heaven!! Jesus’ answer is clear to all of us---the Kingdom isn’t just for Israel the Kingdom is for everyone and when you are a witness you are taking the Kingdom to the ends of the earth and to mankind. “Be my witness”  Jesus says.  He says this every day and until He returns.  That’s my calling---to be His witness. That’s the reason to fill myself with Holy Spirit power to—Be His Witness.

Remember, until we fulfill the purposes of God  we will be truly at peace with ourselves and our life.  The main purpose we are here is to be His witness. When we tap into this I promise we’ll find the answer to our questions.  And we’ll be at peace and rejoice that we’re a part of that question and answer Jesus had with His disciples thousands of years ago.

So go now and BE HIS WITNESS….

Freedom

“Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed.  So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith.  Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.”---Gal 3:23-25 NIV

“Before this faith came, we were all held prisoners by the law. We had no freedom until God showed us the way of faith that was coming. In other words, the law was our guardian leading us to Christ so that we could be made right with God through faith. Now the way of faith has come, and we no longer live under a guardian.” New Century Version

What a revelation for me!!! What a renewal and refreshing thought!! I used to always think and believe the law in the Old Testament was something so how you say limiting and demanding.  But no when it was in effect it was to be a guardian!! It was to say “hold people down” until Jesus came—until the fulfillment of faith came—until it was time to believe and live freely.  Now that we are living in the grace of Jesus, we live a life in freedom but not a freedom in our flesh but a freedom in spirit!  Our flesh’s version of freedom will not please God—it will please itself. That’s why the law was needed—so flesh pleasing wasn’t running wild and ruining people’s lives.  Now that we are justified by faith it means we are made righteous even though we are not always righteous.  This sounds so simple but God has been revealing this to me; so man I am understanding salvation more clearly. A result of this revelation is I’m loving more…I’m loving the lost more---I’m judging less. I am not thinking things in my heart that is condemning people no matter who they are---I’m not always successful in this, but I am allowing God to work in me.  I believe many of us especially those of who were born in the church need to have a revelation of true salvation and how it works. We need to understand the concept of grace and Jesus justifying us.  We like to justify ourselves all the time, but how does Jesus justify us? We no longer need a guardian we have Jesus, and our relationship with Him isn’t one of guardian and person needing guardianship but rather a love relationship with passion! A Passion for prayer and the word and passion for spreading His gospel. The reason I wouldn’t  and couldn’t evangelize before was because I didn’t have a true understanding of salvation and God’s gift etc. But man the past 2 weeks I’ve had such eye opening revelation on this topic---its given me the chills no joke. I have felt the fear of God like never before and a reverence for His work---its unexplainable. Yesterday I had an experience I was sitting down with my Bible and prayer journal in hand and started writing. All of a sudden as I was writing I started to weep and something took my hand and I kept writing. They weren’t my words—they were God’s words.  I wanted to stop writing out of fear---but kept doing it---and when I stopped read what I had written and God again spoke to my life. He was writing me notes on this topic based on my devotional time.  I was fed so much I went to church stuffed!! I kept thinking about this topic of faith and being justified by faith.  What justifies me is my faith---if I believe in Jesus for salvation I must believe Him for everything else. The enemy attacks our faith because that is what justifies us and opens us for blessings! 

We are no longer under a guardian---so why act like we need one??? In our intimate relationship with Jesus we know what we can and can’t do but it’s not a burden to us—but rather out of our love and devotion we just do!  We don’t desire anything of this world—we don’t desire the off limits---we want nothing to do with it.  So why would we act like we need a guardian?? We have Jesus and He has us;  there’s nothing more spiritually romantic that this!

Adelante!!

Bea Z

Generation Glory

Iglesia Cristiana Adonai

Going Through the Process

“There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him.  After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.”—Mark 7:32-35 NKJV

Wow What a passage!! So much revelation for me here------- this is the 2^nd Word from the Scripture that confirms what God has been teaching to my Spirit this whole year and what I’ve been sharing to some and speaking on Thursdays at our sessions.  WOW…God is good!!! I am praying 11^th hour breakthroughs meaning breakthroughs right at the end of the year and confirmations from God are right on!!!  Read the text above---the people “begged Jesus to place his hand on him.”  They were begging Jesus to work a miracle---Jesus not only worked a miracle He did it HIS WAY!! And His way was nothing like what the people were “begging” for.  The man didn’t do anything wrong it’s just Jesus had another method in mind!!

Jesus first pulled the man aside where no one saw… “away from the crowd.”  Jesus breakthroughs won’t always be in my typical prayer request mode---Jesus will expect and need me to spend time alone with Him to see His power.  Once alone Jesus touched the man, what the crowed asked him to do,  but in an odd way.  His fingers in the man’s ears?? Spitting? Touched the man’s tongue?? What a gross healing process.  What a way to work---and then He simply says, “Be opened.”  Why not do that right from the beginning?? Because He had a process!! And He wanted to see how wiling this man was to be healed---would He get in the way of the process?? Would He question it? Would He complain or murmur? Would he have an attitude? Or compare himself to other healings..well the others weren’t healed this way?? Why me?  It was Jesus own thing---He could do as He pleased and well the man just wanted a breakthrough.

 How bad do we want to see God answers in our life??? Some of us want results but we at the moment a process of God starts in our life start with the complaints, suggestions, and analyzing.  We quickly get in the way of what God wants---in the summer I had a moment of interruption. I almost got in the way of a God process and I wanted to rebel and quit.  I wanted to cut back because I felt I was doing the same thing over and over.  I felt God had something for me and why should I have to invest so much?? Well that was and is God’s process for me.  Would I have stopped I would have interrupted my own process.  Why the spitting Jesus?? Nothing more gross than that?? Who likes to be spit on? Jesus was humbling this man into a breakthrough.  God knows if we were to receive the fullness of Him we’d get so puffed up. Sometimes with the little God lets us see we feel we’re God’s gift to the church. LOL….well maybe that’s a little exaggerating but you get me.

At Jesus command the man was able to speak and hear.  That was some spit!!  Trust God’s touch and process---He knows what He’s doing.

 It says Jesus looked up to heaven---and sighed----wow---Jesus was involving heaven.  Any process from God to bring us a bigger blessing and revelation is from heaven.  Any breakthrough is from heaven.  Any unexpected answer comes from heaven.  Luke 3:21 says Jesus prayed and heaven’s were opened---what was He praying?? 

 What are you “begging” God for?? How long have you been begging Him?? How about you stop begging and start being part of God’s process for you?  Do you know what that is?? Have you had enough insight to see it? Sometimes everyone around us can see it expect us!!  The process won’t be revealed until you get alone with Jesus daily. Until you let Him take you away from the crowd---

 God is good and His mercy is great---- 

Adelante!! 

Bea

Generation Glory

Iglesia Cristiana Adonai

Your Victory Today

17)Though the fig tree does not bud

   and there are no grapes on the vines,

though the olive crop fails

   and the fields produce no food,

though there are no sheep in the pen

   and no cattle in the stalls,

18) yet I will rejoice in the LORD,

   I will be joyful in God my Savior.

19) The Sovereign LORD is my strength;

   he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,

   he enables me to tread on the heights.

                                    -Hab 3:17-19 NIV

These words from Habakkuk are meant to be a song—at the end of the chapter is the footnote “For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.” So not only does it tell us its meant to be sung but its meant to be sung with a stringed instrument I prefer a guitar.  What a song!! What a praise and worship.  Habakkuk hasn’t received the best of news!! He’s just been told by God that Babylon will come and pretty much invade the people as a judgment.  And Habakkuk believes God. He foresees the disaster and invasion.  Fear even comes over him in vs. 16 he says, “I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled..”  He sees the reality of this moment and his human reaction is everything human!! But then at the end of vs 16 he also says, “Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us.”  Even in his fear there’s hope. Hope in the words God has spoken.  The book of Habakkuk is a dialogue between Habakkuk and God.  Habakkuk asks and God responds. What a relationship!! Now that’s intimacy!! Habakkuk asks God when will you administer justice? Your justice? How long will you put up with wickedness in these people?? God responds in chapter 1 vs 5 and says the following famous line: “Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.”  That is God’s response to describe the devastation that Babylon will bring upon the peoples.  What is interesting is many times we use this verse alone and out of context.  We use it to say something big and good will happen to my life.  I don’t disagree God can use a verse to speak but its important we read the verse in the context of the text.  How is it being used?? What is being said? And what is God talking about in this particular case?? And well the Word of God is the word of God He can use it how He sees fit!! However we must be careful to use it within the text and not give it our own human twists.

What led me to read Habakkuk was I received an email with this verse (vs 5) as the verse of the day. I read it and thought what a nice verse when read by itself! J  Let me see why God is saying this and who He is saying it to etc. Not that it can’t apply to me but I wanted to understand it better.  And that’s how I read the book of Habakkuk today!!  If you read all of chapter 1 you will find vs 5 isn’t so much a beautiful promise from God but a dreadful prophetic word of a devastating judgment.  God was going to judge the heck out of them people!! And it was going to be so bad no one would believe it if they heard it.  Wow what a different meaning it takes when we put it into context.  So rest assured if you got this vs texted to you today God isn’t going to slam the life outta you. LOL. You’re in good God hands!! What I did take away from chapters 1-3 is Habakkuk’s response to God’s words: WORSHIP AND SINGING.  Wow…what a man of God.  What a great man of God.  What an example.

Habakkuk doesn’t forget God always enjoys a good song.  And although His heart is troubled and worried He has time to pick up a guitar or a stringed instrument and sing some praises to God.  Its during this worship he receives the strength He needs as evident at the end of the chapter and book.  “The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.”  What started out as a man fearful and shaking in his boots of upcoming events turns into a man strong enough to “tread the heights.”  He was low in spirit with fear now he’s climbing mountains. How’d he do that?? Worship took him there!!

Let’s worship the heck out of our situations that want to burden us today!! We’ll end up climbing great heights before the day is over! Your victory today will be found in worship.

Adelante!!

I'm a Lover

“Because he[b] loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;

   I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;

   I will be with him in trouble,

   I will deliver him and honor him.

16 With long life I will satisfy him

   and show him my salvation.”

                                    -Ps 91:14-16 NIV

This Psalm has been my motto and prayer this entire summer---today as I once again prayed it back to God I focused on these last parts of this great Psalm.  The reason I stopped here is because I was telling God how because I love Him He rescues me.  Then I thought back to a time I didn’t know if I loved God. A time when the enemy had me question my love of Him and not only that but my devotion. It got to a point where I realized I was never in love with God. Let me explain I thought it was love or not even that—it was religion and in religion there is no love.  There is only following a set of rules and regulations but no room for love.  No room to fall madly, deeply, passionately in love with God. No room to fall in love with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. No room for it because we’re busy doing religion we’re busy following the list. And there we go marking the list of things we “need” to do for God to love and answer us.  And then here comes Ps 91:14---God says, “Because Bea loves me I will rescue her.”  Wow!! All it takes for Him to listen and rescue me is me loving Him!! The thing with me was He knew I didn’t love Him and that I was only going through the motions. Would I have loved Him I would have done and not done many things.  If there were love I wouldn’t be counting down the things I did for Him.  I wouldn’t be demanding my ways and desires over His.  I wouldn’t insist on many things of the flesh and I wouldn’t put priority over the flesh rather than the Spirit.  It wasn’t until the end of last year I was able to say the 3 little words to God---and mean them!! It was the best and happiest moment of my life when I realized I loved God and JC His son!! It was almost surreal and then the feeling that came with it even more surreal.  When I go before the Lord in prayer and worship in my devotional hour and time I always feel that same thing I did like when I first realized I loved God.  Its funny because God’s love or my love towards Him makes me feel so special like I’m walking on clouds!! And so that’s why the enemy didn’t want me to find this true love. He wanted to take away the promises that God’s love draws to my life.  There are so many of them but Psalm 91:14-16 is good enough for me.  IF all I had was this promise it would suffice!!  Look at them promises:  protection, God listening to me, help in time of trouble, long life, God honoring me, me receiving salvation from God---wow!! All activated by me loving God!! Sounds so simple but yet its so complex because some of us have been living in false love. I don’t want to burst your love bubble but it wasn’t until I had this revelation that I was able to step into a real love relationship with God. Maybe you were once in love well Rev talks about that kind of relationship with God. One where the “first love” is lost and we’re called to return to that first love. So this means its possible to fall out of love with God (us with Him) but never God. He will never stop loving us!!

I’m activating my love promises today with God.  I need His help and refuge!! And its good to know loving God doesn’t come with nothing. And even if it did with everything I’ve experienced of His love so far its more than enough!!! One of the things I was never able to do is tell God “I love you.” Why? Because I knew it wasn’t true. I loved being busy at church, clapping, singing---but it wasn’t coming out of my real love for Him but rather a desire to please others and look good to others.  When I started doing things out of my real love for Him not only was my service better but others were coming to a better relationship with God. There was no room for pride and ego n love but a lot of room for it in religion and religious pattern. Even my language changed especially my language of prayer and worship.  Wow I sit back now when I’m worshipping and I say I better write this stuff down because its good!! I never used to worship God—my busywork didn’t let me.  Falling in love changed everything.  It changed everything including my service and priorities even in the ministry.  Through me falling in love with God others came to this love---so it worked both ways. 

I want us to really ask ourselves…do I love God? Can I tell Him those 3 words?? If so, where are those words coming from? A heart that truly loves or a desire to love? Only we can know the truth.  Let God lure you with His word and help you fall in love with Him.  He won’t disappoint. 

Adelante!

-Bea

Generation Glory

Loving to remain Holy.

“He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him.”—1 John 2:9-10 NKJV

We’ve all read this passage before and if you’re like me they are passages I skim through and maybe don’t meditate on or use to evaluate my place in the Kingdom.  Certainly when I started into the Kingdom lifestyle I didn’t dive into this passage and didn’t make my way towards this kind of meditation.  The writer is talking about me (a believer) or someone who claims to be a “believer or in the light.”  Then he adds a “but” statement….if you claim to love God but don’t do this then it means that.  Here is some tough truth!! Some pruning from God---is needed for growth.  If you’re like me and want to excuse myself out of this verse you say, “But I don’t hate this person….I just dislike them” or  “I just don’t like being around them.” Or “I just rather not associate myself with them.”  If we allow the Holy Spirit to speak we can’t deny the fact this verse most certainly applies to us no matter how much we try to excuse ourselves.  It all comes down to this---If I don’t love my brother or sister no matter who they are---I am in darkness. If I don’t love my brother or sister in Christ I will STUMBLE!! Imagine that??? Not loving a fellow brethren can make me fall into fornication?? Can make me fall into immorality? Can make me fall into any horrible sin?? YEA!! What?? Why? How? Read the verse above---“…there is no cause of stumbling in him.”  Meaning if I do NOT love my brothers and sisters there WILL BE “cause for stumbling.”  

 The NIV says, “Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light, and there is nothing in them to make them stumble.”  This clears it up a little more…the stumbling opportunities are inside of me not the other person!!  Why is this?? Because if I live in the light I can see my own faults and sinful lusts etc.  If I am in darkness like when I hate my brethren I can’t see sin inside of me.  So I fall into it.  Sounds very simple but it’s very complicated!! Why complicated?? Because there are so many issues and divisions that arise within the church.  There are different personalities and reactions---different ideas and perceptions. And we just love to hate!! That’s it right there---we love to hate those who don’t agree with us, we love to hate those who are different, we love to hate those who don’t live like us---I speak from experience. Truth be told God is still molding me in this area, but I am coming out victorious. Today I heard Pastor Bill Johnson talk about how when God prunes us it’s an opportunity to grow. And how it’s not punishment but rather a growth opportunity. I am most definitely being pruned in my love towards the brethren.  Now we know we are to love others even those who don’t know the Lord but this is focusing on my brothers and sisters (the church).  There are many out there who love to hate the church and they are believers.  I agree there are past hurts and bitterness’ but when it comes down to it---those who hate will stumble!! Loving and forgiving my brethren is more for me than them---so I won’t stumble so I can grow so I can be perfected in love. 

 What happens is if I don’t love the church (God’s people)? I won’t grow. I won’t see His glory! Because He manifests himself in the body (the church).  He will work in the body as a whole!  He is coming back for 1 bride (body). So if I can’t come to peace and love with them…it will be hard to be “caught up” with them.  

I will be talking about this and sharing my experience in this area this Thurs. 

Adelante---see you all at 7 on Thurs!

Bea Z.

Generation Glory