God is speaking this Sunday

'But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong', 1 Corinthians 1:27.

It never ceases to amaze me that God chooses people, everyday people like you and me to share His Word. In the bible He called upon fisherman, tax collectors, and in the case of the Apostle Paul, even tyrants to preach His Word...and this method has not changed today! One of the primary ways God has chosen to speak to people is through people; this can take place over a coffee with a friend, a remark from a stranger, and most notably, through preaching.
When it comes to preaching we must note that some the very best public speakers can be the worst preachers, and the best preachers are sometimes very bad public speakers. What does this mean? It means that He isn’t always speaking just because a person who has alot of personal charisma is being entertaining, and it doesn’t mean that He is not speaking just becasue a person has a monotone voice!
In the next meeting this Sunday God will be speaking though the preacher, that is to say, if sanctioned by the Lord the preacher will be His instrument, His mouth piece to say what He wants to say. God is speaking to us through the preacher directly each Sunday, so is this out expectancy? I have noticed (and this is true of most churches) that in many Salvo meetings, the moment that God is going to speak through the preacher something happens...people switch off! It is almost as if as soon as the speaker has been announced people have an internal 'snooze' button and dis-engage. If you don't believe me, next Sun meeting have a look for yourself! This is the opposite to expectancy...are we expecting God to speak to us, assured that He Himself is speaking to us from Heaven through the speaker?

Sometimes sermons can be boring, but let’s not expect them to be boring, and expect to hear what He is speaking to us through His people!

Holy is He, Paul

The unforgiving servant

"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.'
The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.
"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.
When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?'
In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."
(Matthew 18:23-25).

"And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."
(Mark 11:35)

Glory Conference (Part 2)

*We still have to deal with the spirit of the Pharisees, systems of reason and logic; Faith needs to rest on the power of God and need not be something that is separated from experience.

*You can begin in the Spirit but then try and perfect or finish in the flesh; It is not only the foundation but every level that needs to be built by His Spirit; When you rely on your own strength in something God gives you you will end up miserable.

*When you ask Him something believe your going to get an answer.

*Do not evaluate the Spirits move by the criteria of the program you came out of.

*The Disciples were successful at proclaiming the Good News and performing demonstrations – even when they were rejected.

*To some you smell like heaven, to others death – your success cannot be measured by people’s evaluation but doing what God has told you to do.

*You don’t need permission to preach and lay hands, God says ‘go’; He is our Father not our Mother!

*The Spirit of revival is contagious – take it and use it – it is all by One Spirit.

*Common thread of revivals: When the Spirit came, they said ‘yes’. Welcome Him and let Him have His way.

*He stays where He is celebrated, not just tolerated or dissected.

*Church should be the happiest place on Earth.

*You feeling often display your relationship with God, your facial expression often shows your theology; you can tell almost anything by just looking at someone’s face.

*God’s presence and truth brings release from trauma – the days of counseling are numbered.

*Process healing? Nahman washed 7 times (2 Kings).

*For His glory we must be dependent upon and trust in Him.

*When a manifestation touches our heart we still need Jesus to carry it through to change our heart.

*The Holy Spirit supersedes all others (drugs/alcohol); people don’t want to see the menu but to be fed, they wan't to experience Him, ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’

*The devil will keep coming back to make you doubt, but He is the same God.

*He/She that perseveres inherits the promise.

Glory Conference (Part 1)

The following are some random notes from a 2007 'Show Me Your Glory Conference', feauturing Larry Taylor and Heidi and Roland Baker - some of which really captures what God is speaking to His church right now...

*Glory is God revealing Himself to us; it is Him showing up and bringing everything He has got with Him.

*His glory is not only being revealed but at this time He is revealing a knowledge of it.

*What is 'holy laughter'? It is the reality of laughter and joy in the Kingdom.

*Presentation of the Gospel: Good News/Holy Spirit/ Smile.

*'Emotionalism'? God created our emotions – what started the emotional experience? A spiritual experience with Him will touch your emotions.

*We need people that come from the throne room.

*A genuine encounter with Gods glory leaves you talking with Jesus – it is He who is with you when you are alone on Monday morning.

*It is the goodness of God that leads man into repentance.

*Let God have His way, let Him run the church.

*Let yearning rise up to Jesus – not anger or bitterness; praise Him, seek Him, go to Him, this desire is placed deep within us by God.

*Revival is the church being normal.

*The purpose of the law was to show people that they couldn’t keep the law.

*God is not comfortable in an atmosphere where there is no joy.

*When you see glory revealed you see Gods goodness revealed.

*We need to partner and link together.

*The church needs to lose control as He directs.

*Our starving are just as starving as those in Africa – the difference is they know they’re starving.

*Have a banquet and invite the poor, a feast for the lonely and outcasts.

*People in Australia sit home and drink because they don’t know there is Someone who loves them – our crippled are just as crippled as those in Africa but our crippled are emotionally so. Don’t be fooled by the disguises in the West – people are dying.

*If you desire healings, glory, manifestations - have a Holy Ghost party!

*Lack of spiritual hunger makes God furious.

*Healing from sickness is not always instant, sometimes it’s contending.

*Keep believing and loving, do not grow weak, PRESS ON.

*Emotions/sickness/sin all try and destroy Gods temple. Do not give up or stop short from what God wants to do.

*Evil has no right to inflict you who are holy – the apple of His eye.

*God likes to hang around people who are fun and child-like.

*The most enjoyable thing in life is relationship.

*Being a vessel and letting lose the anointing of revival releases revival – carry the Spirit and spread it around!

-Paul

The Salvation Army - Call To Prayer

Soap, soup………..and what was the other one??

The Soap Army…..The Soup Army…...doesn’t quite sound right does it? However, I believe this could be our greatest legacy, that of good works and secular bravado if we do not keep our focus as an Army of Salvation; certainly it is a worry when many secular people do not see the Army as a Holiness Movement that is a branch of the universal Christian Church, but rather as a ‘charity’. As a soldier, I take offence to this.
Please do not misunderstand me, part of the Army’s greatest strength is pioneering social justice, but I believe social justice and the Salvation of souls should not diverge (as a fork in the road), nor should they be ‘side by side’ (like railway tracks), but social justice and salvation should be interlocked, intertwined, not one without the other.
The previous post mentions the importance of being a ‘living river’ where He flows through, but I dare say that many in the Army today are but lakes, lakes polluted with self work, self effort, self satisfaction, and self appeasement and duty. Is this being harsh? Perhaps, but if we are not motivated by the Fathers love we have missed out calling – if we no longer care about the soul but the work then we are serving the Army, and not God.
The motivation of William Booth was the salvation of souls, and service to the widow, the orphan, the poor and the outcast was a means of sharing (showing) the love of Christ. The General did not feel like he could share the Gospel with a person who had an empty stomach, so he fed them, then saved them in Christ. The soap, the soup, these are to be Christ to the people, that the people may see Christ, repent, and be saved. So have we digressed at all? What do you think?

Consider the ‘Red Shield Appeal’, an appeal where in Australia thousands upon thousands of Army ‘collectors’ collect money by going door to door. Here we see many soldiers APPROACH the unsaved, not with Good News but with a request for money. We knock on people’s doors, collect money, use this money for social service, and this ‘work’ thus points to the love of Christ, opens people up for the Gospel, and therefore the people can find salvation
On the other hand, we could just share the Gospel and see them saved directly.

The loss of focus in some parts of the Army is evident by what a (as of yet) unsaved friend of mine told me when he had an interesting experience with a man from the Salvation Army yesterday. This is what he told me happened via MSN (name changed for privacy reasons):

Mr.X says:
some dude from the salvation army just rang

PAUL says:
thats pretty weird, what did he say

MR.X says:
was askin if i could knock on doors..he was a %$#@

PAUL says:
what? a guy rang asking if you could knock on doors?

MR.X says:
yes, and i sed nah sorry and he kept persisting and hes like..so u dont wana help ppl? and then he just sed hmm didnt think so and hung up

PAUL says:
he said "hmmm didnt think so" and hangup on you?

MR.X says::
yeah he was angry

PAUL says:
and he goes "what you don’t want to help people?'

MR.X says::
yeh he was tryin to make me feel guilty as if i never help ppl

MR.X says:
and i never get p&^* off with ppl but he was a JERK

I do not want to state that this man who used rudeness, sarcasm, and guilt is representative of the Army as a whole, but I think it illustrates how important it is to be motivated by the love of Christ. If I had the opportunity I would of told this Army ‘representative ’”If your work for the Army is just work, not participation with God, motivated by the Love of Christ for your brother, then don’t bother”.

Come on comrades, without Him we are nothing! He is not impressed by work that is not motivated by His Spirit, so why should we be? He wants people fed to be saved, not for His beloved to go to hell on a full stomach!

Soap, soup, and Salvation….Sounds pretty good to me!

Much love, Paul.

p.s When I door knock (collect) for the Army, I also try to ask each individual I approach if they have any prayer requests ….give it a try!