Monday, December 9, 2013

Moving on from Jabez by Ian Johnson


Moving on from Jabez 

by Ian Johnson



A few years ago people were praying the prayer of Jabez made popular by Bruce Wilkinson's book "The Prayer of Jabez" based on 1 Chronicles 4:10

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, "Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!" So God granted him what he requested.

It works because God desires to "Bless you" "Expand your Territory" "have an intimate relationship with you" and "keep you free from evil."

There are a number of folk who have prayed this prayer for a number of years who are now wondering what has happened to the initial outpouring of blessings, or the receipt of things, they received as a result of asking for blessings..

Questions arise in their heart like has God now abandoned me? The answer is of course not, He is taking us into His ultimate blessing and expansion of our territory. Into the realm of Glory, into the full revelation of the love of the father for His Children. The natural outcome of a prayer asking for blessings is that God will take us into His rest..

God's Multi-dimensional Love

Programs and religion don't transform. Only a revelation of the multi-dimensional love of God as expressed in Jesus truly brings transformation in our world and in our surroundings. This is a season when we will get beyond our earthly requests and desires, to a place that starts to shake us free of one dimensional mindsets and remove things that are in the way of a radical revelation of the love of God. It's time to change your seasonal clothes.

How many times have you had a breakthrough and then reverted back to the way things were? We worry about receiving the approval of man rather than expanding beyond our current limits. But expand we must, into the freedom of rest in the Father. Freedom from religious mindsets and heavy yokes of dead works.

God's word is clear. Isaiah 54:2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

Religion hates it when anyone is set free. Present things are being challenged by the eternal Father. "Let them stretch forth the curtains of His habitations" Make room for the heart of the Father and enter His rest, be seated in heavenly places with Jesus our savior.

You can't qualify for further expansion, because the love of God has already qualified you as a Son or Daughter. The expansion of territory opens our eyes to the love of God, and the love of God reveals blessing untold. The love of God Transforms and draws us into His breast, to a place where the heartbeat of God is heard, so that our heartbeat and Gods heartbeat, beat as one.

Eph 3:17-18 And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is.

Expand Your Thinking

Many know about the love of God from an intellectual point of view; but few experience it because we get stuck in the limitation of our mind. We have set ideas of how our world works and where we fit into the scheme of things, however today is the time to expand our thinking. To move our tent into the glory cloud to the place of infinite provision, a place of supernatural food and supernatural drink that satisfies our hunger and quenches our thirst.

The biggest weapon the enemy of our souls has is to make us think that we have somehow failed God. Our adversary the Devil knows that if he can keep us pre-occupied doing "things", even if these "Things" appear to be Godly. He will prevent us from entering the chambers of glory, into the Fathers love, where we fall in love with Jesus.

Even if we don't mean it to be, much of modern Christianity is based on us "Doing Stuff". These are called dead works. The Lord is calling us out of the "Stuff" and into intimacy with Him! When Jesus died on the cross, He won for us everything that we will ever need. Satan's plan is to make us believe we are missing the mark! and then become pre-occupied trying to find the mark, and never enter a place of intimacy and rest with the Lord!

When Satan, tempted the woman in the garden, (Gen 3:6) it wasn't with great theological issues or points of doctrinal difference that he spoke to her about. Rather it was an appeal to her senses. He said; "Look! Doesn't that fruit look good! And the taste! Surely a loving God wouldn't keep something this good from you! You must have misunderstood his instructions!"

He used that strategy then and he uses it today! Satan says, "If you work hard for God and do everything with Excellence he will accept you" it's an appeal to your emotions and your senses and sounds good, but it keeps you from entering the rest found in the Glory cloud.

We need to expand our territory by abandoning ourselves to the purpose of God, and enter the rest Jesus has won for us.

Gal 2:20-21 I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  I am not one of those who treats the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die.

Hebrews 4:8-10 This new place of rest was not the land of Canaan, where Joshua led them. If it had been, God would not have spoken later about another day of rest. So there is a special rest, still waiting for the people of God. For all who enter into God's rest will find rest from their labors, just as God rested after creating the world

Romans 4:4-5 When people work, their wages are not a gift. Workers earn what they receive. But people are declared righteous because of their faith, not because of their work.

It's All About Faith

If you believe your evil works can disqualify you from God's blessing, then you must believe that your good works qualify you!  However nothing can qualify you! Jesus has made the way for you, not one bit of your work will stand on the day of judgment. It's not about works it's about faith in what Jesus has done for us!

I know this is hard to swallow in our "He that works hard gets a lot" world But asking for blessings will bring you to this place of rest. Don't fight the blessings, but abandon yourself to His blessings and dwell in His love.

Many are afraid to enter this place of rest because they somehow think that if they don't do some "works" God will consume them. You must learn to trust the fathers love and compassion for his sons and daughters.

Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; Lamentations 3:22.

Overwhelm us Lord in your love, a heart overwhelmed is transformed, a transformed heart loves, Love overwhelms our surroundings, Transformation continues, Our territory is expanded and Blessings flow

Ian Johnson
 
 
  
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7 Principles to Get Over Your Past 
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The Perfect Christmas Tree? The Cross


(weewillyd/rgbstock.com)
The perfect tree: Every Christmas season begins with a search for it. Why? Because a fragrant tree trimmed with lights, ornaments and shiny garlands is the focal point of so many holiday celebrations. How often during the years, in countless homes throughout the world, have friends and families come together, gathering in unity around a lighted tree and finding a moment of peace and goodwill.
The Christmas tree has become a tradition, taking such a place of significance during the holiday season that most of us spend precious time and effort creatively decorating at least one.
I can remember the first tree my husband, Terry, and I beautified, now affectionately referred to as the “newlywed tree.” This sparse timber was finely decorated with the tinfoil I took off the TV dinners I made for him the first year we were married. Admittedly, the tree wasn’t much to look at, but we did get great TV reception that first inaugural season!
As time progressed, we advanced to the homespun “preschool tree.” You know the one, adorned with all the choice artwork of a 4-year-old and topped off with those tedious but fun-to-make popcorn strings. During this season, our short, fluffy pine was decorated only at the bottom (4-year-olds can’t reach very high). The top remained empty ... except for the candy canes.
We soon graduated to the “garage sale tree.” How can I ever forget those money-saving years when we adorned our lackluster artificial tree, the entire backside of which was missing its branches, with treasures found at someone’s yard sale?
Then there was the country-charm tree, so pungent because of the countless cinnamon sticks on it that we lived with the windows open all season; the Victorian tree (country-charm tree gets a makeover); and the “risky partisan” tree, which leaned to the right the whole holiday. This year we will have a “grandparents tree,” with all the yummy candy canes on the bottom for little ones!
    (Note: Photo taken/added by Steve Martin. 
    Not in original article.)
As I recall these different decorations, I realize that my life’s most significant events are associated with memories of a tree. For in truth, it was the presence of a simple tree that led to the greatest celebration of my life. The intrigue of this tree did not come from its elaborate beauty, shining lights or sparkling garland; indeed it had none of these things.
Yet mysteriously it drew me. So powerful was its attraction that I found myself wanting to possess it for myself. This tree, although adorned with the boughs of brokenness and the scent of suffering, became the source of life and joy for me. Embracing it, I found wholeness.
Life flowed from the branches of this tree—the salvation tree—in spite of its rugged form. For hanging from its limbs was the finest and most exquisite ornament there has ever been, the body of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.
There He gave his life for mine, as His tears and blood stained the tree with the colors of Christmas, filling the air with the fragrance of the season, the eternal aroma of life.
At last I had found the perfect tree, the flawless symbol of Christmas. Shouldn’t this tree be the centerpiece of all our holiday celebrations? For where else can all the people of the earth be drawn together in unity? It’s only the cross of Jesus—the life-giving tree—that can bring every age, gender, social class, race and nationality together as one, with one purpose: to reach a dying world for Jesus.
If you are as convinced as I am that others are still searching for the perfect tree, then help me point the way. For when others find it, they will find Jesus, arms open wide, ready to give them the ultimate gift of Christmas … Himself. 
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 12/09/2013
Remember the “salvation tree” during your prayers this Christmas season and thank God for His “unspeakable gift.” Ask Him to use you to point others to this special tree. Thank Him for opportunities to share His love and message of redemption during this season. Ask Him to show you how you can bless those who are suffering from the effects of bad weather and economic conditions. Pray that God will use this time to draw all men to Himself. Remember Israel and the persecuted church when you pray for the nations of the world. Continue to pray for our president, those working with him, and those sacrificing themselves to preserve our freedoms. Pray that righteousness will exalt the nation. Phil. 4:6, John 3:14, 15; John 12:32.
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(Artwork added by Steve Martin.)


"May My Name be declared..." Jerusalem365




May My name be declared upon them,
and the names of my forefathers
Abraham and Isaac, and may they
proliferate abundantly like
fish within the Land.
GENESIS (48:16)


וְיִקָּרֵא בָהֶם שְׁמִי וְשֵׁם אֲבֹתַי
אַבְרָהָם וְיִצְחָק
וְיִדְגּוּ לָרֹב בְּקֶרֶב הָאָרֶץבראשית מ’’ח:ט’’ז



ve-ye-ka-RE va-HEM she-MEE ve-SHEM
ah-vo-TAI av-ra-HOM ve-yeetz-KHOK
ve-yeed-GOO la-ROVE be-ke-REV ha-ah-RETZ



Jerusalem Inspiration

The Hebrew word for name is שם - SHEM. The great Hebrew
master, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch explains that the word
name שם - shaym - is related to the word for ‘there’ שם - shom.
Rabbi Hirsch explains, “in the realm of the mind, by naming
and defining something, one puts it in its ‘proper place’.”

In this verse, Jacob is blessing his grandsons Ephraim and
Menashe by placing their ancestors name upon them,
establishing ‘their place’ within the spiritual legacy
of their forebears.

Give Someone a Meaningful
Gift of a Hebrew Name Certificate »







Jacob's Blessing
Watch the way Jews have blessed their children for 
thousands of years and how they continue to do so 
today using today's powerful verse from Genesis.

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Christians Apologize for Oslo
A group of roughly 40 Christian representatives from 
Oslo, Norway came to Knesset to apologize Wednesday 
on behalf of their communities for the harm caused to 
Israel by the Oslo Accords.

Read More »




Gold Name Necklace
A stunning 14K white gold necklace made to order 
with your name. This beautiful piece is handcrafted 
and made in Jerusalem.

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Jerusalem Daily Photo
Today's picture by Yehuda Halevi shows a view of 
Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. The mountain 
has the oldest Jewish cemetery of over 3,000 years old, 
and is located east of Jerusalem's Old City.

More Yehuda Halevi Photos »



Thank You
Today's Jerusalem Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored 
by George Akolgo Anamolga of the Netherlands, in 
honor of One Jerusalem for Israel.

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"What A Blessing"
Stay in Touch »
Shalom! I love Israel, and I pray for the peace of Israel 
and Jerusalem and I pray for the safety and security of 
Israel! God gave Israel to you, and no one can take that 
away from you! Greetings and with love, 
Maria S. Budapest, Hungary

Hola from New Mexico! What a blessing to start the day 
with an awesome scene from Israel, reminding me to 
"Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem." 
Gracias, Marydee M.


Blessing from Jerusalem,
Rabbi Tuly Weisz
RabbiTuly@Israel365.com




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Sunday, December 8, 2013

Purple and Light

The purple flowers remind me 
of His royalty...



...and the lamp post light reminds me 
of His ever guiding Hand.



Photos by Steve Martin. Dec, 8, 2013 in Charlotte, NC.

Show Me Your Face- Kimberly & Alberto Rivera (w/ lyrics)



Anointed music by Kimberly & Alberto Rivera.Thanks to the people who shared their photos.
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Paul Wilbur - Show Me Your Face - Lyrics

Steve Strang, Charisma - The Holy Land Continues to Surprise and Amaze Me


Strang Report, by Steven Strang, Founder of Charisma magazine

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A shot of Perry Stone (l) and Steve Strang overlooking a Shepherd's Field in Bethlehem
A shot of Perry Stone (l) and Steve Strang overlooking Shepherd's Field in Bethlehem (Facebook)
My sixth trip to Israel, which ended Monday, proved to be the most enjoyable I’ve had. It was full of surprises as I toured with Perry Stone from Dan on the Lebanese border in the north to the Dead Sea in the south.

If you read my previous Strang Report, you know I flew in early to meet with Christian and Jewish leaders. Prior to leaving, the agreement with Iran was announced—which greatly upset the Israelis. I interviewed Perry Stone on the prophetic significance of that news, which you can read here.

It was a wonderful tour with many new experiences as I traveled with my wife, Joy, and Tessie DeVore, the executive vice president of our book group, and her husband, David. Since I had been to Israel five other times and already had seen many sites, I thought I knew what to expect. But with every day came new experiences and many surprises.

I hosted a small tour to Israel back in the 1980s. It was mostly a tour of Catholic churches and Israeli museums. I also spent a lot of time on that trip in the Hadassah hospital since one of the ladies on my tour broke her leg! By contrast, my trip this year was about places in the Bible that have been excavated or are much as they were when the Bible was written—instead of covered with Byzantine-era churches.
It’s almost humorous that in some places, two churches will claim to be the real site of a biblical event—as is the case about the place in Nazareth where the angel appeared to Mary.

I don’t have space to give a detailed account of every stop. We made five or six stops every day for seven days! Although I did try to post something on Facebook at every stop (you can "like" me on facebook.com/stephenestrang). Here’s what I enjoyed most:
  • I was fascinated seeing the ruins of Ancient Greek-Roman culture at places like Banias, where there was a temple to the half-man, half-goat Greek god Pan (where we get the words panic and pandemonium) at what the Bible calls Caesarea Philippi, where Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say I am?”
  • The recently discovered ruins of Beit She’an, created by Alexander the Great, reminded me of what I saw in Pompeii, Italy. Our guide told us homosexuality flourished with other pagan behavior in Jesus' day alongside Orthodox Judaism. I had never seen the parallel in Jesus' day and the early church in how they existed side by side with gross paganism as similar to the new secular paganism we see in our own society that is often at odds with the biblical standards we value.
  • I enjoyed walking the extensive tunnels along the Western Wall of the Temple Mount. These weren’t open when I first came in 1979 with Jamie Buckingham. Back then, however, we were allowed to go in some digs on the south end of the temple that had just begun. To go back last week and see what's been done since then was astounding to me.
  • The tunnel that was dug many feet deep at Megiddo through solid rock to a spring to save the city during a siege was unbelievable engineering for ancient times. I enjoyed walking through them, even though it was exhausting exercise. And to think this is the prophesied site of the Battle of Armageddon!
  • I didn’t expect to be so impressed with the digs at Tel Dan that show the oldest city gates in the world. Certainly Abraham stopped here on his way from Haran, north of there, to the Promised Land. It was near here that God made His covenant with Abraham. It’s also the headwaters of the Jordan. In fact, the name Jordan means “out of Dan.” And since we were also at Beer Sheva in the Judean Desert, it gave new meaning to the biblical phrase “from Dan to Beer Sheva,” describing the extent of the country, like we might say “from Maine to California.” Many such expressions come alive when you visit the land of the Bible.
  • The new digs at Migdal, the home of Mary Magdalene on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, were only begun in 2009. Archeologists found a first-century synagogue where undoubtedly Jesus taught very close to Nazareth, where He grew up, and Capernaum, His home as an adult. They also found a first-century carving of a menorah—one of only four found in Israel, our guide told us. And they found mikvas, the ritual baths the Jews used, which was the pattern for our baptismal tanks we use in churches today.
  • The newly discovered Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed the blind man by putting mud on his eyes and telling him to wash in the pool, was discovered by accident only 10 years ago. Another place had been assumed to be the Pool of Siloam until then. It meant a lot to me to visit there, since our health book imprint for Charisma House is called Siloam.
  • I enjoyed the re-enactments of life in biblical times, especially at Genesis Land near Beer Sheva, where Abraham lived. In a desert setting in what is called the West Bank, there are big tents set up somewhat like the time of Abraham, and an actor playing Abraham describes what life was like while we sat in the cool of the tent and ate dates and apricots. I even had my first camel ride back to the bus!
  • Later, in the modern city of Nazareth, the YMCA has recreated Nazareth village to represent what it was like in the day of Jesus. This makes it easy to visualize life back then—watching a woman spin wool into yarn, seeing a man making wooden utensils like Joseph must have done. We also learned about agriculture and animal husbandry in the time of Christ. A man playing a shepherd even called a flock of sheep with an odd clucking sound, and the sheep came running! I had never seen a shepherd caring for sheep up close.
  • My first trip to Israel in 1979 was to the Sinai Peninsula to climb Mount Sinai with Jamie Buckingham. We lived in the desert for nine nights without even the convenience of outhouses! That helped me understand what life is like for the Bedouins who still live in the area. We also swam in the waterfalls at En Gedi, just off the Dead Sea!
  • In the process of that trip with Jamie, I didn’t experience what most tourists or pilgrims experience. Three other trips have been to attend conferences. So this time, it was important to me to experience things I had never experienced. One example is swimming in the Dead Sea, which was a weird experience, due to it being impossible to sink in it. On a more spiritual note, I decided to be baptized in the Jordan River. I feel my baptism at age 8 is still valid, and I avoided being baptized when I was at the Jordan before. But this time, I understood it was simply a reaffirmation of my following Christ in baptism.
What else can I say? I left out visiting the Mount of Olives and the Upper Room, the Jezreel Valley, Jericho, the oldest city on earth or Shepherds' Field near Bethlehem. Or did I mention the 2,000 year old boat preserved in mud in the Sea of Galilee and now preserved and on display? We visited kibbutzim, where strategic battles were fought for Israel’s independence and where the output for agriculture is astounding. We saw dairy cows that give much more milk than cows anywhere else in the world. One of the reasons is the Israelis found the cows give more milk if they listen to classical music!

Listening to Perry Stone teach was a highlight too. He did nearly 20 telecasts on location. Each was different, and the insights were incredible. Each one seemed better than the one before. When it comes to understanding Bible prophecy, insights from the Bible or interesting customs of the day that help us understand what the Bible means, Perry is without equal. Be sure to check out his website to see when these telecasts are airing on Manna-Fest in the next year.

There were also humorous moments. We had a lot of fun joking around with the tour guides and the others on the trip. That's part of the experience of visiting the Holy Land! And they had fun when, in Bethlehem, our host presented me with a special white goat meat no one else would eat. I enjoyed it and then realized at home we call it "Rocky Mountain oysters." Another time they presented me with veal tongue. Not bad tasting.

I’m going home feeling full, and it’s more than all the food they fed us. I feel I understand the land of the Bible. I felt my times of prayer and Bible study last week were significant. And I came away feeling more of a connection with the Israelis, whom I so admire.
But don’t take my word for it. Decide to visit Israel. The touring company tried to persuade me to try taking another tour after the disastrous experience I had in the 1980s. Stayed tuned. Maybe I will someday.
Steve Strang is the founder and publisher of Charisma. Follow him on Twitter at @sstrang or Facebook (stephenestrang).
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Suzy Yaraei - "Show Us Your Face Lord" - Rick Joyner's 30th Ministry Anniv.



Published on Dec 7, 2013

Suzy Yaraei - "Show Us Your Face Lord" - Rick Joyner's 30th Ministry Anniv. Accompanied by Don Potter on guitar.

Fri pm 12.06.13 at MorningStar Ministries in Fort Mill, SC

Videos filmed and shared by Steve Martin - to give appreciation to and love for those we support, through Love For His People, Inc.
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Saturday, December 7, 2013

Julie Joyner was also honored at Rick Joyner's 30th Year of Ministry Celebration

Julie Joyner
Dave Yarnes (VP of MorningStar Ministries)

Julie Joyner, wife of Rick Joyner, was also honored on the weekend celebrating his 30 years in ministry. Three of their five kids also were able to come Saturday night, Dec, 7, 2013 at the Fort Mill, SC church and ministry location.

We bless Julie for her steadfastness and her ongoing gift she is to all of us.

Steve & Laurie Martin
Love For His People

 

 
Julie also received gifts from the MFM, with Tom Hardiman,
and MorningStar Missions, with Jorge and Anna Marie Parrot.


Tom Hardiman, Jorge and Anna Marie Parrot