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No matter what, rejoice!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (AMP)  Rejoice always and delight in your faith; be unceasing and persistent in prayer; in every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.

I have chosen to read a letter of Paul’s over and over each week. The first one was the letter to the Philippians. A reminder to be joyful at all times. The second week was the letter to the Colossians. A reminder to focus on Jesus no matter what. This week I am in 1 Thessalonians. A letter to a group that would have every excuse to run, but are encouraged to stand firm. He ends the first letter with the encouragement to rejoice and remain thankful to our God. No matter what is going on, can you still thank God?

What do you do when things do not looks so good? As a pastor, when attendance is at an all time low? How about when half the church just stops giving, and/or given up on the tithe? We do not receive a salary, so it is not like any of that matters as to why we are showing up and serving every week. Are we still proclaiming the Gospel? Can they find Jesus in every message? Are we growing in our spiritual maturity as a body? Those are the questions that I choose to focus on.

Philippians 4:4 (AMP) Rejoice in the Lord always [delight, take pleasure in Him]; again I will say, rejoice!

Ephesians 6:18 (AMP) With all prayer and petition pray [with specific requests] at all times [on every occasion and in every season] in the Spirit, and with this in view, stay alert with all perseverance and petition [interceding in prayer] for all God’s people.

Galatians 6:9-10 (AMP) Let us not grow weary or become discouraged in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap, if we do not give in. So then, while we [as individual believers] have the opportunity, let us do good to all people [not only being helpful, but also doing that which promotes their spiritual well-being], and especially [be a blessing] to those of the household of faith (born-again believers).

Here is what I am choosing to do, I am not going to quit and I am not going to run. I am persevering, because there is an enemy out there looking for those he can devour. I am battling this spirit of oppression that has infiltrated the body of Christ and I am calling them back to the joy of the Lord. The enemy has lied to them long enough. Joy is their’s. It is a promise of His great love. The devil wants us to quit on the precepts of God. He wants us to believe that God picks and chooses who He will bless. So many have lost heart and are just going through the motions. That is not how we should be living. What can shake the body of Christ from this bondage of lethargy and apathy?

Ephesians 3: 16-19 (AMP) May He grant you out of the riches of His glory, to be strengthened and spiritually energized with power through His Spirit in your inner self, [indwelling your innermost being and personality], so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through your faith. And may you, having been [deeply] rooted and [securely] grounded in love, be fully capable of comprehending with all the saints (God’s people) the width and length and height and depth of His love [fully experiencing that amazing, endless love]; and [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God’s presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself].

I want you to know the fullness of God. I want you to know that He sees every struggle. Is Jesus more than enough? That is the biggest question we should ask ourselves. If so, rejoice! I pray you are filled with the love of Christ, that you can rejoice again. In Him is fullness of joy! Even if it is a sacrifice right now, especially if it is a sacrifice right now. Do you want your freedom? Go get it! Jesus has already paid the price for it, now receive it with your whole heart.

Hebrews 13:15 (AMP) Through Him, therefore, let us at all times offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name.

Abba, our Father, our Creator, we are so thankful for being the God who covers us with a Banner of Love. Thank You for sending Your Son, so that we know the fullness of Your love. Thank You for sending us the Holy Spirit, so that we may be filled at all times. Thank You for the revelation of You through the written Word, as inspired by the Holy Spirit. We repent for becoming lethargic, for the apathy of our hearts, and for going back into slumber when you have called us into Your glorious Light. We surrender our hearts, minds, will and emotions to You. We desire to do all that you have commanded with joy. First, to love You will all of our hearts, with all of our soul and with all of our mind. Second, we will love our neighbor as we love ourselves, in the fullness of love that we received through Your Son. We choose to forgive what we beliefs, unwarranted expectations, on thoughts of how You should treat us. You have never mistreated us and we are repent for ever feeling this way. We are rejoicing in Your mercy and lovingkindness. We are choosing love today. We are choosing hope today. We are choosing joy today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Live and Love like you believe God is Good

James 1:17 (AMP) Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above; it comes down from the Father of lights [the Creator and Sustainer of the heavens], in whom there is no variation [no rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [for He is perfect and never changes].

I celebrate the month of November by posting one thing a day that I am thankful for. It is something I have done for the past few years as it helps us become aware of the goodness of God. God does not bring calamity, temptations (James 1:13) nor sickness into our lives. If we view God as a punisher in our life then how can we see Him as wanting to see the best for us. Is that not why He sent His Son (John 3:16).

Preceding this verse is another: “Do not be misled, my beloved brothers and sisters” (James 1:16). We can still be misled. How? Through our mind, will and emotions. Paul talked to the Corinthian church about such, “But I am afraid that, even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, your minds may be corrupted and led away from the simplicity of [your sincere and] pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). We have to align our minds with the truth found in His Word.

James 1:19-22 (AMP) Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving]; for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires from us]. So get rid of all uncleanness and all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted [actually rooted in your heart], which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth].

There is never a reason for those of us in Christ to walk around holding onto unforgiveness. Just because I have pain from a situation does not mean I have not forgiven. It is whether or not I dwell there that makes the difference. Many times we like to dwell on a feeling, on a thought, on an emotion and it effects our will to serve for Kingdom purposes. It becomes “me” center focused. I have been around many types of people in the church these past 25 years that I have been saved. My age, and the fact that they were “saved” before I was, makes it difficult for them to see me as a leader in their lives. Then there are those that are close to twice my age and love to glean from my growth. I am constantly directing them to the Christ that changed me and encouraging them to abide in Him. Then there are those that think their talent is so great that they should not have to serve anywhere they are not seen. These are the ones that keep us in leadership having to walk on tip toes. I have to be honest that I have allowed them to suck the joy out of serving. Nothing we can do can change that heart, only the Holy Spirit can. I cannot allow them to affect my willingness to serve. “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the best of the land” (Isaiah 1:19 AMP). Obedience deals with our actions; willingness deals with our attitude. Faith is the decision of my will. I have to keep making that decision each and every day.

Do you know what the deluding ourselves by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth is? That we are against each other and God is against us. “You are looking [only] at the outward appearance of things. If anyone is confident that he is Christ’s, he should reflect and consider this, that just as he is Christ’s, so too are we” (2 Corinthians 10:7 AMP). We are to believe the best in and about each other (Philippians 4:8).

Do you really believe that God is good? We can believe Him to be our Creator, but have you believed Him to be your Sustainer? You believe Jesus to be your Savior, but do you believe Him to be Lord over your life? Do you visit with Him on occasion, or do you abide in Him? A confession without repentance (a heart change) will leave us empty. A mind not renewed in the Word can be easily deceived. A mind focused on everything about myself has to be renewed. I am to love Him with all of my mind. It is when I am rooted and grounded in that love that I can believe that He is a Good God! There is not a day that does not go by that I do not speak thankfulness to Him. He never changes in His Goodness, do not be misled. Live and love others like you believe He is Good.

Abba, our Creator, our Sustainer, we honor You today with our praise and thanksgiving. You are a Good God. You are full of Mercy and Grace. You are Love. You sent Your Son as a Perfect Sacrifice to redeem us. Thank You for Your unselfish Love. Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit that now dwells in us. We have been empowered to walk in the fullness that You originally planned for us. We repent for being misled and deceived by circumstances and/or thoughts. We repent for walking around with unforgiveness allowing it to plant resentment and bitterness in our lives. We acknowledge that by the renewing of our minds with Your Word that we humble ourselves to the Truth. We cannot be deluded that freedom is found anyplace else. Our desire is to see Your Kingdom established here on earth as it is in heaven. That is because of Your Goodness that we can see it happen. We desire to be a part in Your Presence. We desire to see Your Name glorified. Forgive us for the times we have made it all about us. We choose forgiveness today. We choose joy today. We choose hope today. We choose love today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Dream Big

Matthew 6:33 (AMP) But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also.

Psalms 37:4 (AMP) Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and petitions of your heart.

Philippians 3:10 (AMP) And this, so that I may know Him [experientially, becoming more thoroughly acquainted with Him, understanding the remarkable wonders of His Person more completely] and [in that same way experience] the power of His resurrection [which overflows and is active in believers], and [that I may share] the fellowship of His sufferings, by being continually conformed [inwardly into His likeness even] to His death [dying as He did].

Ephesians 3:16-19 (AMP)  May He grant you out of the riches of His glory, to be strengthened and spiritually energized with power through His Spirit in your inner self, [indwelling your innermost being and personality], so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through your faith. And may you, having been [deeply] rooted and [securely] grounded in love, be fully capable of comprehending with all the saints (God’s people) the width and length and height and depth of His love [fully experiencing that amazing, endless love]; and [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God’s presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself].

These are verses that I stand on for my own life. If you read from top to bottom you will start to see what my heart’s desire is. I want to know Him more and do His will. My dream is to have a place to disciple others to draw closer to Him. Right now, our church has been having to meet on Sundays at one thirty in the afternoon due to us not having our own building. As pastors, we are looking and dreaming of other locations until we can buy what we want. The discouragement comes when it seems that we are all alone in this vision. I know that is not true. Elijah fought the same thought patterns (1 Kings 18:22), when God told him there were 7,000 (1 Kings 19:18).

This summer I was asked to take some teenagers to camp. A few years ago we had developed a team, now we do not meet weekly. It is something I grieve, but I pray it is only temporary. The group I took consisted of my youngest son, three other teenage boys from other churches and three teenage girls, all attending another church. The camp was over a five day period, starting on a Saturday, which means I was not going to be at my home church on Sunday. There were people I put in place to handle certain things, but life happens and not everyone was there. Discouragement set in once again. People have walked away from us since the transition (people that said they would support the vision). Giving has taken a tremendous drop in the past two years. How can we move to a location and even pay double in rent that we are now, or how would be even support our own place? I was serving, but I can tell you, I was hurting. I am glad I went and served. Why? I found out that I was not the only one with these experiences. Actually, I found out that I was more seasoned in this part of leadership and was able to make a new friend. I was able to give someone hope. I was able to tell them that you can survive and even thrive, even though others have walked away. We are grounded in the love of Christ. We keep our desire on knowing Him more and establishing His Kingdom. Stay strong in His power. Find out who Christ is though the “I Am” statement and make them personal. Do not let the vision die!

Then that is all the camp was about. My youngest was encouraged with Brandon Dixon, a baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals. His team won the world series in 2011. I loved this because that was my grandfather’s favorite team. I remember him being so excited that year. Brandon did not have the way of getting to the major’s like we thought he would of. It was a God way. He did not have a promoter or a recruiter scout him, he had a friend. He said he just kept God first no matter what. Even if his family, while growing up, was not in church, he was. Just do not quit. Eli has a dream of playing ball in college and this really encouraged him. Like Brandon, Eli is a pitcher.

We also heard from Aaron Knight, the director for the camp. A few summers before we had heard the camp had been sold to a developer and would be torn down. Aaron had a vision for the camp and started pursuing a way to save it. He started with maintaining the grounds, even when he did not own it. It was over a year before the developer would even have a meeting with him. Then when he did get the meeting, the price was in the millions. The guy had nothing, he had never fund raised before, and he does not have a huge church. He did have a vision. My take away: “Do not give up on life because circumstances are not what you hoped for.” They are almost two years into the lease purchase agreement and they hope to have it paid off by the end of this year. It does not make sense. God still performs miracles today.

My husband and I have been sowing this summer for our miracle. We have a desire to have at least 7 acres in the city limits. Our desire is to be in walking distance to the high school here. We have a piece of property we are believing for. The cost for this piece of land is $350,000. Why? We want to have a place open 24 hours, and 7 days a week. A place of worship and community. We want a laundry facility open to the public. We want a community kitchen. We want a place where families can be restored. We want a place for people to worship and pray. We want a climate controlled basketball facility. We have a vision board that we put out every Sunday:

Please pray for us as we have a big dream. No dream is too big for God. Connect Church does have a building fund. We are no where near being able to purchase the land as of today. That does not mean that it will not happen suddenly!! We are standing on Hebrews 11:1, Amos 9:13-14 MSG, Isaiah 43:18-19 and Psalms 44:3 TPT.

Dream big dreams! Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and petitions of your heart. (Psalms 37:4). My joy and hope are secured once again!

Jehovah Shammah (the Lord is present), You are worthy of honor and praise. Our hearts desire is only You. Thank You for sending Your Son so that we are now grounded in Your love. Let those roots of love go so deep that nothing else matters. Thank You for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Thank You that we know Your voice, we know Your character and a nature and we will not let the circumstances of this life discourage us. Thank You for the renewal of Your vision for our lives. Thank You for giving us big dreams and trusting us with establishing Your Kingdom here on earth. Thank You for the gift of the five fold ministry. Thank You for the gift of the body (the church). We repent for judging, for envying, for jealousy, for coveting, for familiarity and for being self focused. We do not want to be enslaved to anything that does not bring freedom and glory through Your Name. We choose love today. We choose hope today. We choose forgiveness today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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The struggle of acceptance

Ephesians 3:16-19 AMP May He grant you out of the riches of His glory, to be strengthened and spiritually energized with power through His Spirit in your inner self, [indwelling your innermost being and personality], so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through your faith. And may you, having been [deeply] rooted and [securely] grounded in love, be fully capable of comprehending with all the saints (God’s people) the width and length and height and depth of His love [fully experiencing that amazing, endless love]; and [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God’s presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself].

I struggle with acceptance. In my previous post titled, “Stepping out of fear into my hiding place,” I mentioned how I am coming out of being an extreme introvert. Yesterday was another challenge for me. We have had to do video worship before, when we were lacking musicians, for a season. Yesterday was such a day. When doing video worship I and others will stand in front of and face the congregation to worship (a style of leading). Thankfully the screen for the lyrics were above everyone’s heads. However, now we are live streaming the service. Now I have to be mindful of my face. Something that I was told to me to do in the past. I was told that I had the look of someone who could bite a car in half. Wow! That was sure encouraging to hear!!

The above scripture was needed for me yesterday and I hope it encourages you to do the hard things. Without the Holy Spirit I would not have been able to stand in front of people. He is who energizes me. He is the one who I want to reflect in my innermost being and personality. He is the only one who can soften that face of mine. How? I am rooted and securely grounded in the love of Christ. Even though it was someone “in Christ” that told me that I had the look of someone who could bite a car in half, that was not what Christ would say. Christ would never tell you something that made you feel unlovable. His love is endless!

I do not like that I struggle with acceptance. I do not like not feeling uninvited. So what do I need to do? Verse 19, above, tells me that I get to know this endless love more when I allow Him to work through me through practical experiences. I can know all those scriptures in my head, but until I step out (in courage) I am not going to know the true richness of those Words. In order for me to be complete, made whole, I have to give the Prince of Wholeness something to work with. I had to stand up in front of the church yesterday and lead worship by video. Why? Verse 20 has a promise…look for the key word “now.” Now follows a responsibility on my part.

Ephesians 3:20-21 AMP Now to Him who is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams], according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever. Amen.

When I yield the feeling of not being accepted and rest in Him (faith in action, not the absence of acting), He can fulfill His purpose. His purpose is superabundantly more than I can thing or dream of. I have often read the scripture about seeking first and foremost the Kingdom and all things will be given to you also (Matthew 6:33). If we really believed that and did that with all of our hearts, the things we thought we wanted would pale in comparison to the fulfillment of walking in your purpose. That is where I want to be.

Praying this encourages you to step out a little more into your purpose today.

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Inward Reflection

Psalms 42:6 (NASB) Why are you in despair my soul? And why are you restless within me? Wait for God, for I will again praise Him. For the help of His presence, my God.

I like how David talks here, that he is going inward as to why his soul is in despair. An inward reflection is the stance he decided at this moment. Right now we are preparing to teach a series in our youth on how our emotions and memories are often tied together. They can, if we allow them to, define who we are. David had very high highs and some very low lows in his writings, but God still refers to him as a man after His heart. David was full of emotions, sometimes in his writing you can tell he was led by them. He had to make a conscious decision to allow God to lead in the midst of his brokenness. There are times you can see great strength coming out at the admittance of his weakness.

There are times that we try to come out of the despair by ourselves. We will go and tell those around us who will listen so that we can get a sympathetic hear. We try to numb it with watching videos. Some use substance to take away the pain. Even in our frustrations and in our pain, the one we can run to is our Father. Especially when you are angry, tell Him, He knows your heart anyways.

Ephesians 5:2 (TPT) And continue to walk surrendered to the extravagant love of Christ, for he surrendered his life as a sacrifice for us. His great love for us was pleasing to God, like an aroma of adoration – a sweet healing fragrance.

When I think of healing I do not always think of a physical need for healing. Some of our wounds are not able to be seen. Mostly I think of emotional healing. I do not like the way I react sometimes. In order to get to the root of that wound, I find that surrendering to the extravagant love of Christ, the one that we are told is there, I have to allow it to surround me. We can receive Christ as our Savior and not really receive this love. Some of us think that we are not lovable. We thank Him for saving us from hell, without realizing all that He wanted to restore within us. I walked this way for years. I truly realized what freedom felt like when I, that I do not have to be surrendered to my wounds, that I can receive a healing deeper than my physical needs.

I want to tell you that it is okay, not to feel okay sometimes. Charles Spurgeon once said, “I have a great need for Christ. I have a great Christ for my need.” He will not just take away the pain though, He wants to bring you through it. There is growth in that process. There is an understanding that happens so that we can love others when they are going through things. I have learned that in my hurt, I have hurt others. I have kept people at a distance so that I would not get hurt again. When I get to the root of my hurt, I can start to heal.

“I have a great need for Christ. I have a great Christ for my need.”

Charles Spurgeon

I was talking with the other youth leaders and told them that one of the reasons that I seemed so stand offish, not approachable, in my early years of leadership, was because I felt like I had to be perfect growing up. In turn, I would often snap real easily at people if I felt like they were lazy or messy. I was the oldest of three (ages five and three, my sisters are twins) to a single mother. My mother was nearly twenty four when she left my abusive father. When we finally got a place of our own, I felt pressure to make sure things were taken care of. We had chores, like all children should, but to a single mom who was trying to better herself, there was not much availability to have a messy home. Everything was always put away. Dishes were done immediately. My sister use to talk about how clean my house was when she would come over. I do not stress about it like I use to. I do the dishes in the mornings now (well sometimes). My sisters were younger and it seemed they did not “care” as much as I did, or maybe did not notice, that these things stressed my mom out. Later, I realized that I inherited that stress. This is at no way a fault of hers, it was something that I did not know how to process as an eight year old. Now that I am an adult, and with ability to surrender into His extravagant love, I can get to the root of why I stress. I did not like feeling that way, why God do I despair? He will help you work through to the root, if you let Him. I still tense up about some things, but I am getting better. You may need to talk to someone who specializes in this, that is perfectly okay. I would just encourage you to find someone who is grounded in pointing you back to Christ.

In Isaiah 9:2-7 (MSG) it talks about the promise of Christ, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—light! sunbursts of light! You repopulated the nation, you expanded its joy. Oh, they’re so glad in your presence! Festival joy! The joy of a great celebration, sharing rich gifts and warm greetings. The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants— all their whips and clubs and curses— Is gone, done away with, a deliverance as surprising and sudden as Gideon’s old victory over Midian. The boots of all those invading troops, along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood, will be piled in a heap and burned, a fire that will burn for days! For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us! He’ll take over the running of the world. His names will be: Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness.
His ruling authority will grow, and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings. He’ll rule from the historic David throne over that promised kingdom. He’ll put that kingdom on a firm footing and keep it going with fair dealing and right living, beginning now and lasting always. The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies will do all this.”

There are no limits to the wholeness He will bring. I like that. However, it does not leave out my surrender to to the process to receive that wholeness. Jesus knows what it feels like to be hurt and to have to work through the emotions to process that hurt, so in turn He could walk in perfect love. It is a process. It is okay in that process, like David, you feel despair. On the other side is immense joy!

John 15:11 (NLT) I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!

If you need prayer or someone to encourage you please feel free to email me at amanda@desiringformore.org.