Tag: life mission

My Story #10

I believe that God has woven an original “voice” in me. By voice I don’t only mean a speaking or singing voice. I am talking about a unique way of introducing life into the world.

From my earliest memories I have been part of a family and a community of people who know God exists and more than anything else they want to be at peace with how they are supposed to relate to their Creator.

The biggest gift of my life was being born into a family who introduced me to Jesus Christ. Now, wait a second before you figure you already know where I am going with this…

In some pretty fundamental ways I feel like I am just really beginning to get what it means to be a follower of Jesus.

I didn’t realize until recently that one of the most important treasures that I can find and share with God is my voice, my way of expressing my heart. For me, it happens when I listen to music, play an instrument or sing. When I find and express my voice, especially when I am focused on my heart and not distracted, I come to the moment with a genuineness that washes over me with the understanding that life is real and I am alive. There is something else that happens… God meets me there. Many times I plan on the meeting. But, most of the time I am surprised as I become aware of the the presence of God’s Spirit just being in the moment with me.

Often I wonder what He wants from me. But, with the eyes of my heart I peak over at my Creator and He just seems to be enjoying the music… weird, eh?

But, frankly it’s nobody else’s business because this is my voice and I am expressing it with the One who made me and still has a purpose for me. That purpose starts in our enjoyment of each other’s voice.

You see, I am coming to see that when I worship God with my real voice, He is able to come and begin to bring His voice to me and it is there that I can be set on fire and be a bright refection of His image in my world.

More than anything, I would love to see in my lifetime a movement of people young and old who have found their voice and discovered God there.

I believe that is what Jesus Christ showed us in his birth, life, death and victory over death.

To be honest, all of creation is waiting for you and me to raise our voices and make it our business to shine the image of God once again.

 

My story #8

The Loft Sessions – Walk in the Promise

I grew up at 82 White Street. I was given beautiful gifts by my dad and mom. One was their determination to take me into consideration in the late ’70s as I approached my high school graduation in 1980. My dad had received many opportunities to pastor churches in “better” places but we stayed there on White Street allowing me to finish high school years in the school system where I was at home. What a huge benefit that was to me. Thank you!!

Another gift was showing me the world of art. This is the dimension… the reality where I am at home and at peace. My mom was in love with music. It was most definitely her happy place. She meshed that into the way she raised me and nurtured the same love in me.

As I sit here this morning and write while listening to beautiful music by Jeremy Riddle of Bethel Music   I am being swept away into the realm where it all comes alive and the grave clothes unravel and fall off of me… music… art… creating with The Creator.

Will you come with me into this place? Will you let yourself go and free fall to soar on the breath of the Spirit on the wings of the art woven in to your very being?

Our Creator has knit creativity into us. At our response to His invitation it sparks to life and lights the world in a million expressions.

There is a growing congregation of us who have gathered around the world unknown to each other and yet we are waiting for you to express your art as you fall in love with the Son and His kingdom again.

I can’t wait!!

 

Birthday wish

There is a huge statement recorded in the Bible:

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms

with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” 

… every spiritual blessing?

Today is my birthday. I am sure considering the population of the world, there are thousands of us who share this date set aside as our DOB.

What do I wish for on my birthday? 

Well, I woke up very early this morning and couldn’t go back to sleep. I was thinking about my life and honestly worrying about some things. Then I began to connect with my heart, the things that matter most… and I thought about what I wish for. So, here on my birthday I thought I would post this as a prayer:

Father God,

Thank you for blessing me and all of creation in and through Jesus Christ. The indescribable gift of the kingdom You ushered in through him is everything we will ever need. Today is the day on the calendar when me and my friends and family will celebrate the fact that I was born and get to have a life. I am so grateful for them. Thank you for them and thank you for life. I don’t know if “wishing” is okay with you or not, but in this prayer I want to express my wish to you. I do wish that we would experience an era of time when all of creation would love you and the dwelling place and the family you have welcomed us back to and blessed us with more than we love ourselves. I wish that the prayer Jesus prayed for all of his followers would be our pilgrimage and chosen destiny:

 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

It would be so amazing to live in a time where that prayer became the heart cry of enough of us on the planet that we reached the tipping point and your glory would be clearly seen and known in all the earth. When I pause to think deeply about all of this I know a day  like that is coming and it motivates me to pray and live for a world like that. So, as I give and receive love today with my friends and family, I just want you to know, God that I thank you for it all and for welcoming me back home in and through Jesus.

Amen

A “breakthrough” in your mind

As I sat and listened to the sermon in our worship gathering yesterday, a light really came on for me on the inside. This was the latest message in the sermon series called “Hidden Treasure”. The focus of the truth being delivered was that we all have walls of limitation that we run into when it comes to fulfilling life goals and/or running after the dreams we believe in for ourselves. Our pastor was challenging the powerful mantra of our culture which says; “If you can dream it then you can do it!”. He was provoking us to face reality. It’s just not true… we can’t accomplish everything we set our mind to and our dreams don’t all come true. We run into walls of limitation.

Somewhere in the middle of his talk a bolt of spiritual wisdom from the Lord nailed me. He was talking about our need not only to believe in Jesus and be baptized with water but to also to be baptized with the Holy Spirit and power. My heart was already stirred up when he got me right in his sites and said: “You need a breakthrough in your mind to change your life”!

That was a good 24 hours ago and yet the Holy Spirit is continuing to work away on me. It dawned on me that many years ago I came to the end of myself in what I was able to conceive of and piece together philosophically about my beliefs, my life, my worldview. I am so grateful for that season in my life when I surrendered (even daily for a few years) to the Lord in prayer turning away from my self sufficiency and asking the Holy Spirit to come fill me with His love, power and gifts so that I could flow with what He is doing in the world. I can testify that over the years He has empowered me over and over again  to break through and tear down stubborn walls of limitation in my mind based on human thinking that is completely preoccupied  with the earthly realm. He has changed my life by renewing my mind with the realm of his kingdom which by the way has come and is all around us. I am convinced that His will for your life and mine is to be a place where the realm of heaven and earth meet and He is allowed to shine freely through our ordinary lives that Jesus truly is Lord. He wants His kingdom to come and His will to be done in and around us in our sometimes nasty earthly challenges as it is in heaven.

In one of Paul’s letters to his friends who were learning to follow Jesus in their very earthly lives, he coached them this way: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Colossians 3:1-2

It matters that you ask the Holy Spirit to bring a breakthrough in your mind so that the walls of limitation that keep you imprisoned can be demolished! He is faithful and if we will surrender our mind to him, meditate on His word as greater than our thoughts and emotions, He will set us free and we will experience His glory in increasingly practical and tangible ways. Baptize us Lord!!

 

Re:FUEL May 8 recap

Every Wednesday night we gather on site @ Kings Valley Church for “FUEL”. Our focus for FUEL is always worship & prayer in the presence of Jesus Christ.

As we gathered in last night, Pastor Kelly called us to remember 2 Cor 10:3-5:

 We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. 5 We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.

As we worshipped and listened for what was on the heart of God, it became clear that we should agree together for a clearer revelation of Jesus in the midst of us and in our region.

Many received personal prayer ministry in their prayer group and there was a profound sense of speaking the word of the Lord into each others lives!

It was so refreshing and such great food for our souls to hear a great testimony of a mom who has recently come to Jesus for a fresh start!

Everybody needs a time and a place to worship with a group of good friends in the presence of Jesus! That’s what FUEL is all about and we would love for you to be part of it… every Wednesday night in the KV worship center @ 7 pm.