Tag: humility

Heaven’s message… “Humble Yourself”!

I am captivated by the way Jesus always sided with the one who longed to communicate with God… to connect with heaven on earth. Have you noticed that throughout the story recorded in the Bible, the highest value is placed on our being quick to respond when God reaches out to us?

I love the prophetic because it is all about receiving and sharing the living word of God. God’s messages have power because they originate with him. When he sends a message, things change.

The deeper I trust and believe that God is always sending heaven’s message into earth, the better I will receive it. The whole point of the word becoming flesh in Jesus Christ was to make communion between God and humanity accessible. God’s plan is for the kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven in partnership with us.

There is a clear call to humble ourselves before God so that he can then lift us up in his time and his way. To all of us who long to see Jesus honored and worshipped in all nations and generations, heaven’s message is, “humble yourself”! If we will, I believe we will stand in awe of how loudly God is speaking into our world.

Prophetic voices are beginning to declare across the church that there is a coming together of the prophetic with people returning to Jesus as Lord around the world. We can be part of that movement! It begins with asking God to open us up once again to his voice and his living word.

It is incredible to imagine what could happen if we believe that God is pouring out his Spirit on all humanity in order for us to know him deeply. How would your day change if you knew God is sending a message of love to every person you meet? I believe he is doing just that.

The dream that God has put in my heart is that the Church will live overwhelmed by the living word of the Lord. There was a day that Jesus literally shouted out for everyone to hear, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” (John 7:37-39) He is still making it loud and clear. How amazing that we get to partner with him through the prophetic!

May God help us to humble ourselves and rediscover his heart for every person to know his voice and experience his life. He is still writing the same story. He is still siding with the ones who long to communicate with him… to connect with heaven on earth in Jesus’ name.

You are a blessing!

Is Community worth giving your life?

I am seriously loving this season of my life! I LOVE the church I get to pastor, KV East Saint John in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada.  By the grace of God, I want to give the rest of my life in building the church in my city. The biggest reason in my heart is that the people here need to have their confidence restored in authentic kingdom community.

Kingdom Community? 

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, which art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy Name.

Thy Kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth,

As it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

As we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

But deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom,

The power, and the glory,

For ever and ever.

Amen

Lord, we pray let your kingdom come & your will be done on earth as in heaven.

We pray let the government of heaven have it’s way here in Saint John

We pray let the culture of heaven flood our lives & relationships. 

The kingdom of heaven involves a “culture” reflecting life on earth as it is in heaven. Don’t make the mistake of pushing heaven to somewhere we go when we die. It is true that we do have the promise of being there after we die by faith in Jesus. But the good news that Jesus announced was that the kingdom of heaven has drawn near… here on earth. And so the prayer he taught his followers reflects that same good news.

Kingdom Community is unique in that it is community that is flooded by the culture of heaven.

I preached the following sermon on March 1, 2015 based on a letter written from prison by the Apostle Paul. In it, he stokes a fire in the hearts of the Church (community of Jesus) in the port city of Ephesus. Hope it stokes a fire in YOU! Click on the title to listen: “Living in Kingdom Community“

“Safe Hiding Place” or a “Place of Empowerment”?

The Holy Spirit knows what He is doing and He will lead us if we will stay humble, courageous and gracious toward each other….

The times we are living in, according to Bob Johansen of “Institute for the Future” (author of “Leaders Make the Future“), have produced a VUCA world…  full of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity.  He goes on to predict that the next ten years are going to be an incredibly difficult and challenging time for leaders.

How should we as Jesus followers respond to the world culture where we exist every day?  Will our churches serve as a hiding place where people can escape from a VUCA world, or can we be a place of empowering for people to turn and lead movements of change and promise as they are drawn to embrace Jesus and His teachings?

These are times of wide-sweeping and fast paced change.  I am concerned that many in the church are resisting the idea that the changes have begun and our world will never be the same.  While we enjoy the benefits of having peace with God through Jesus and the closeness of our church family and the security of our religious traditions, there is a world all around us full of people who are uncertain and some even terrified about the future.

What are we doing to position ourselves to communicate the hope we have for stability in our VUCA world?

The hope we have is in the kingdom of God.  You and I will not capture the attention of our world around us if we don’t seek God for wisdom and a plan that will provide hope and leadership to a culture that Jesus sees as sheep, helplessly wandering around in search of a shepherd.

I hope you are investing time in God’s word with new eyes searching out the principles of Jesus kingdom and his ways of living life and serving people.  I am completely convinced that we need new methods, ideas, new revolutionary approaches to expressing the presence of God in our homes, friendships, businesses and culture.  It is our world’s only hope.

There is a movement of people right now who are seeking God’s help as they deconstruct what they have become so accustomed to as “church life“. By His grace they are rebuilding lives and church families that are ready to lead in a revolution of love and service in Jesus’ name, in whatever community in which they live every day.

Changes are here and they won’t be easy.  But the Holy Spirit knows what He is doing and He will lead us if we will stay humble, courageous and gracious toward each other.