Our True Identity

Last week the Lord put on our hearts the vision of the army being arrayed (Habakkuk 2:1). This week He is showing us the purpose for His soldiers (one of the main ones being justice – Isaiah 56:1, Zechariah 7:9-10). Alongside this primary mission the Lord has also been saying to Israel (and to me personally) – know your identity.

On Monday night we heard a powerful teaching about the Generation of Jacob (Psalm 24) and about Jacob himself coming into his true identity with God (Genesis 32:22-32). This realization of his identity didn’t come easily but he actually had to wrestle with God Himself, before the Lord could give him the blessing of his heavenly inheritance – the name of Israel (beyond that of his earthly father’s blessing from Isaac). It is not posted yet but I highly encourage you to keep checking into the Succat Hallel Podcast to listen to the full teaching by Steve Carpenter.

So today, during my personal time with the Lord, it was like the Lord spoke through a megaphone and said to me: “You better know your identity in the army, in My Son, Yeshua, and in my Kingdom.” I know that this word is not just for me, but also for all of us. We cannot merely assume our identity during this season, but we have to know our identity. How can we maintain and carry out the duties of our position in His army if we don’t know what that position is?

Identity is not necessarily what we tend to think of as our “Calling”. There is a much deeper sense of identity that belongs to all of us. That identity is rooted in the glory of Yeshua:

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6-7

Our identity is defined by our inheritance with Him. If you look through the Bible most often times a man was identified by His father’s name, “O Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest” (Haggai 2:4, etc). Although I am not a Bible Scholar what I can draw from this is that this way of introducing someone in the Bible had to do with establishing his identity. A son is given His inheritance through his father, and so when the name of the father is mentioned, it gives the reader an understanding of the man’s lineage, and thus his inheritance. Our inheritance is given to us through the covering of Yeshua,

“For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.” (Hebrews 9:15)

The Lord gave the inheritance of His Kingdom to His first-born, Yeshua (Revelation 1:5). Only by entering into fellowship, into covenant with Yeshua can we receive that eternal inheritance, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.” (Ephesians 1:18-19)

So that being said, our identity is not placed in a job title (given by men), or even the things we do on this Earth, but our identity is rooted and established in the love of the Messiah, that He would lay down His life for is friends, that we too might share eternity with the God of all creation. Our identity is found by “putting on” Yeshua,

“For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Galatians 3:26-27

“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3

We can only be recognized by the Lord through His Son, so just as Jacob had to put on goatskin so that His father, Isaac, would recognize Him as Esau, we must put on the flesh of Yeshua, that the Mighty God of the Universe may recognize us in His Son. This is our identity and the hope of our calling, “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27

So before any spiritual gift, or job description for the Kingdom, we must first recognize the Name that is above all other Names, that has been written on our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3), for that is the Name we bear (Jeremiah 15:16), that is the Name we represent (Colossians 3:17), and that Name defines who we are (John 17:11, 20:31) – Yeshua.

We are the body of Christ, and once we understand that is our identity, then can we understand our calling. 1 Corinthians 12

Ephesians 3:14-21

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Colossians 2:6-8

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

John 15:5

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Base of an Olive Tree on the Temple Mount

Boker Tov (Good Morning) Jerusalem!!

So here are just a few random things to check out:

The Succat Hallel Podcast where you can download (for free) into iTunes the weekly teachings we have been hearing at Succat Hallel. I very highly recommend this!!

Check out my new page, Praying the Word to learn how to pray for Israel using scriptures the Lord is revealing to me here.

The International House of Prayer in Kansas City, MO has launched a live webstream of their Prayer Room for free. Incredibly spirit filled worship 24/7 (it even plays in our prayer room from time to time . So if you crave to worship the Lord with music that amplifies the sounds of heaven check it out!

Habakkuk 2:1

The Lord is so incredible!!! So much is happening right now here – spiritually. The atmosphere has broken open, the army of the Lord has been arrayed, the positions of the warriors have been assigned and they have been placed, and the Lord has given the word for a releasing – a mighty releasing!! The glory of the Lord, the splendor of the King is raining upon the nations. Something unlike history has ever witnessed, since the life of Yeshua, has begun to unfold.

In Psalm 110:3 it says:

Your troops will be willing

on your day of battle.

Arrayed in holy majesty,

from the womb of the dawn

your young men will come to you like the dew.

The word “arrayed” means¹:

- a group of things arranged in an impressive or structured way

- a group of antennas arranged to increase their effectiveness

- to arrange something for display or in readiness for use

- to arrange troops for battle

The Lord has arranged His army in an impressive and structured way that has increased their effectiveness. Since the “womb of the dawn” this morning the Lord has released something powerful and magnificent (we felt it in the morning watch today starting at 6am). He has stretched out His arm that, “The LORD will lay bare his holy arm in the sight of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God” (Isaiah 52:10). The Lord has been calling forth a generation that is not defined by age but is defined by the position of one’s heart towards His call and the Spirit of the Lord. He has called them forth and brought them together and Has set them up, and equipped them for such a time as this, for this specific season on the earth. He has given them the priveledge to hear His words of releasing and to speak them into movement, and the time has come to speak the releasing.

In Isaiah 9:7 the Lord says that His zeal [the work of Yeshua the Messiah and the passion He sets in the hearts of His people] will establish and uphold the government of His Kingdom with justice and with righteousness. He chooses to use His servants to carry out His will – His perfect and powerful plans. What an awesome God we serve that He would choose the lowly man to be the generals and warriors in His army and that He would give us responsibility to further His Kingdom and to carry out His plans!

The past few days the verse that the Lord has been using over and over again is Habakkuk 2:1 –

I will stand my watch

And set myself on the rampart,

And watch to see what He will say to me,

And what I will answer when I am corrected.

Psalm 27

So one of the verses that has really been stuck on my mind since I’ve been here is Psalm 27. A few weeks back I went to my favorite spot in all Jerusalem – the side of Mt. Zion by an olive tree and spoke this chapter over the land.

I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.

Psalm 27:13

The site overlooks the Kidron Valley, Ben Hinnom Valley, Potter’s Field, and the Judean Wilderness. It has become my personal “watch” site, where I sit and fellowship with the Lord and pray for Israel and Jerusalem (it’s like my little “prayer garden” . So join with me in declaring over the land Psalm 27:

¹ The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?

² When evil men advance against me
to devour my flesh,
when my enemies and my foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.

³ Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then will I be confident.

⁴ One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.

⁵ For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
and set me high upon a rock.

⁶ Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the LORD.

⁷ Hear my voice when I call, O LORD;
be merciful to me and answer me.

⁸ My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
Your face, LORD, I will seek.

⁹ Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
O God my Savior.

¹⁰ Though my father and mother forsake me,
the LORD will receive me.

¹¹ Teach me your way, O LORD;
lead me in a straight path
because of my oppressors.

¹² Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
breathing out violence.

¹³ I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.

¹⁴ Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD.

Jordan, Dead Sea, Jericho Excursion

Greetings! Last Tuesday I was so blessed to go on a little excursion (in part with Living Bread) to the Jordan to the original baptismal site of Yeshua and get baptized myself!!! This place is not accessible to regular tour groups because you have to make an appointment. Afterward a smaller group of us (the people staying where I’m at) went to the Dead Sea and then to Jericho. It was a wonderful opportunity to see the land and fellowship some more with Living Bread and the people I’m living with.

A couple things to note in the video: the bowed palm trees grow that way (crazy!) they are not broken. On the other side of the Jordan looking out (behind the church) is the actual Jordan (the land).

Things are getting very busy but they are so wonderful! Last night it rained for the first time in forever!! (Israel is under the worst drought it has ever had in history – the water rates have increase 275%!) Last Thursday the Chief Rabbi called for a day of fasting:

“The poor and the needy seek water, but there is none.I the LORD will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them” (Isaiah 41:17).

The Chief Sephardi Rabbi Shlomo Amar today called on all capable of fasting to do so and to pray this Thursday 14 January that God will end the drought which has brought devastation on Israel’s water supply and seriously endangered our agriculture. As America, England and the European mainland have been enduring severe bouts of snow, ice and low temperatures, Israel has been experiencing summer-like weather. We are still in the season of the former (early) rains (The latter rains begin around the Passover season and usually continue until early May). Israel has had a few rains-but not nearly enough to make a big difference in our water supply. In a notice sent today to rabbis and synagogues across the nation, the Chief Rabbi wrote: “Because of our sins the water situation is in a serious state. Our duty in this situation is to scrutinize and examine our actions and bring ourselves close to God with all our hearts. We must be repentant with broken hearts and anyone who is able should fast, if not a whole day at least a half day” (“Chief Rabbi calls fast day for Thursday”: Matthew Wagner, Jerusalem Post: Online Edition, 11 January 2010).

PLEASE PRAY:
*That Israel will humble herself to seek the Lord for restoration of her water supply (Isaiah 41:17-20).

*That God would mercifully send a fullness of both former and latter rains between now and May on both Israel and our neighbors.

“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,  if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.  I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

2 Chronicles 7:13-16

So God has heard and it is raining (but please keep praying for rain – not just physical but the rain of the Spirit too)!!! The Lord is so good! May the Lord bless you from Zion to the ends of  the Earth!! Shalom!

Verse of the day:

But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,
slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Psalm 86:15

John 17

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

John 17:24

I have been stuck on these words since about a month before I came to Jerusalem and now that I am here, it is almost as if they constantly vibrate in my heart and in my mind with ever increasing power and reality like the beating of many drums. This is the desire of Yeshua’s heart and He is molding my heart more and more to match it.

I don’t really even know where to begin since my last update. SOOOOO much has happened (and it hasn’t even really been that long)! The Lord is working incredibly and is shaping me and breaking me and building me back up again until I fit perfectly into the calling He has prepared for me. December was a season of falling more in love with my Bridegroom and learning how to worship (and lead worship) in Spirit and in Truth. It was a time of being overcome by the sweetness and tenderness of His heart. It was also a time of learning the land and the culture and being equipped (2 Timothy 2:15, 3:16-17) for what He has planned.

On New Year’s Eve the Lord began to open up the floodgates of Heaven to my heart and every day His Spirit is increasing and the sound of His calling is becoming louder and clearer but the number one priority of the Lord’s heart is John 17. That was the first verse the Lord gave me this year and I believe that it is also going to be the theme for this year as well. It’s about Revival, it’s about grace, and it’s about bringing those He has already called by name into the throne room and letting them learn to fall in love with the Beloved.

I am so excited about what the Lord is doing and how He will be moving!! Tomorrow I am going to Bethlehem to help with an English class by helping out with the children (which will most likely be on a regular basis). I am also going to be talking to the Pastor of a wonderful little Arabic congregation in the Old City (which has become the congregation I attend here about serving with them. I will also begin plugging in with Living Bread by joining a few outreaches with them to Jericho (when my Watch schedule at Succat Hallel allows . I will also be doing a few of the tours with them to places such as  the Jordan to the original site where Yeshua was baptized.

The Watches I am leading alongside my roomate at Succat Hallel are really wonderful. The Lord keeps teaching us new things about worship and intercession. Our watches are really led by whatever the Spirit is doing in that moment. We have done everything from really intense intercession worship for Jerusalem (and the nations) to ministering to the workers (people ministering here in Jerusalem) with the gentle love songs of His heart. I play piano and sing almost on a regular basis but there have also been some watches where I have been interceding through dance and flags and I have even played the djembe (which I didn’t know I could do – lol .

The season of serving has begun!!The doors to serve are opening and I am beyond excited to join Yeshua by working along side Him and blessing His Name by blessing others. This year is a year of Revival, it is a year of Angels, it is a year of John 17, it is a year of favor and doorways and gateways being opened, and it is a year taking the prayer movement out of buildings and creating “prayer rooms” in the hearts of men!

PS – I really want extend a blessing to all those who are praying for me and who have blessed me with support. Thank you so very much for serving the Lord through your gifts and your prayers and He hears them. I ask that the Lord would return the blessings to you in immeasurable amounts and that He would continue to pour out new revelations of His power and His love into your spirits, that you “being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Eph. 17-21)

For Unto Us a Child is Born!

So today is Christmas!! Being here, in the land of Yeshua, going to Bethlehem, it just puts a whole new depth to what Christmas really is. The world has tainted the meaning of this day so much. Last night I went to Christ Church right outside the Old City for a Christmas Eve service. The atmosphere in Jerusalem was buzzing yesterday with tourists from all over the world coming to celebrate the birth of Yeshua in His homeland – the Promise Land! It was so interesting though to go to that service. They had a wonderful little set up with cookies and warm drinks and we saw lots of people from Succat Hallel. We went in early because we figured there would be no seats by the time the service started (and we were right – we got there an hour and a half early!).

The hour before the service started was dedicated to singing Christmas Carols. As I sat there singing some of them, it was like all of a sudden I realized how far we have strayed from just the simplicity of celebrating His birth – it’s not about the star or the Wiseman or the merry gentleman or presents or Mary – it’s about Yeshua Ben Adonai, Immanuel – God, the Living God coming to walk this lowly earth among us, a sinful people, because Melekh Ha’olam (the King of the Universe) LOVES us!

This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:22-24

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

These are things I know, things I have been taught before I could even say them but today the truth has become a simple yet powerful reality as I walked through His city, and sat in the fields of Bethlehem.  As I sat in that Church last night I really wanted nothing more than just to worship Him and thank Him for His life.

There was one part of the service that really hit a chord within me. Instead of going through all the Advent Verses we went through the whole story of God’s redemption for His people and the world starting in Genesis with the fall of Adam all the way up to the Messiah. At one point, I think it was Isaiah 9:6-7 was read in Arabic (ps – I got to meet this guy later – He owns an awesome little falafel shop in the Old City) and then another verse later was read in Hebrew. As that happened I was so awestruck in seeing – literally with my own eyes that THIS, this is why He was born –

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. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. John 17:22-14

Prayer Movement

Shalom and blessings from Jerusalem!! Wow – the songs “He has done great things” is ringing in my ears right now. His grace is sufficient enough and His love is more than enough for everyone!!! The time with the Lord here is so sweet and tender. The things He is showing me are far greater than I could ever imagine!

We have started doing our “Watches” at Succat Hallel. These consist of about a two – three hour time period where I go (usually with my roommate) and lead the time through prayer and worship. There really is no handbook protocol on how to do this – the founders really just let you be attentive to the Spirit and what direction He wants the watch to go. Sometimes it will be focused on Intercession for a specific topic or sometimes it will be focused on worship. The ones we have done so far have been focused on His beautiful love. Usually what we do is play worship songs through the computer they have while we intercede. Occasionally I play the piano and sing a little bit. My favorite time for that is the morning watch (6am-8am) because I feel like I get to awaken the watchmen and the people with His declarations of love. J He has really blessed me by teaching me about dance intercession (and with flags) – how to be a worship leader through dancing and through the use of flags! J We had one watch during a Wedding reception that was going on outside on the patio of Succat Hallel – talk about seeing the beauty of His covenant of marriage, not only physically but spiritually – as He is the Bridegroom and we are the Bride!!!

I keep sayings this but it’s so true, I am so privileged to be here. One of the neatest things I’ve been experiencing here in Jerusalem is not only the power of the Word made flesh – Immanuel, God with us, but the beauty of the community of believers here. Everyone pretty much knows everyone and they all love each other and look out for each other. Just a few months ago I was reading and listening to stories of these people whom the Lord has made into powerhouses of prayer and heneni (here I am), in the midst of them!! I feel like I’ve moved from the edges of the prayer movement and right into the frontlines with the David’s, and Daniels, and Ruth’s, and Esther’s (speaking of Ruth – I live on Naomi street – ha! Isn’t God’s way so perfect?!!) Being here in God’s city I can feel that everything I know, everything that happens on the Earth really seems to flow out from this place. I really don’t know how to describe it to you in a way that would truly explain this feeling.

Tonight at Succat Hallel we had a very anointed speaker from Korea come teach us about what the prayer movement is really about. It’s not about praying for our business (ourselves), it’s about non-stop prayer for God’s prayer that existed before the world began!!! Check out John 2:16-17, Mark 11:17, Isaiah 56:7, Isaiah 55:7, 1 Corinthians 2:6-7, 9-10 for more detail. Prayer is about speaking the will of Adonai and His will right now is for Jerusalem. Can you even imagine, this place, these people are who and what He has chosen, this place and these people are whom and what He desires, this place and these people are who and what He longs for!! And here I am – little lowly me who feels as though I know nothing compared to all this – and I wonder, what I am doing here and the Lord keeps reminding me, “to carry my banner of love for all to see, to invite them to the banqueting table” (Song of Solomon 2:4). As we sang tonight – “Oh, how He loves us so, Oh how He loves us, how He loves us so”!!!

That cry is becoming so powerful for me here too. The other day my roommates and I went to the market and on the way home we showed our newest roommate (from Finland) the Via Dolorosa, the Mount of Olives and then we also went to Caiaphas’ house and the afflictions of Yeshua became more powerful and more vivid for me than they have ever been. Caiaphas was one of the High Priests of Yeshua’s time and after He prayed in Gethsemane He went down through the Kidron Valley and up into Caiaphas’ house as a prisoner.

His house has actually been preserved very well. There is a place in His house called “the pit”, they are almost pretty sure that in this place Caiaphas would have put his prisoners and beat them. There was a huge tour group that went in first but afterward the three of us went down on our own. I could barely stand at the thought of what happened on the stones I stood upon. I could just see Him laying on them in pain. I sat in the corner and Natalie went over to a post that had a Bible on it and it was opened to Psalm 88. In her broken English she read it aloud. I cannot describe to you the power of that moment. After we spent some time there we arose from the pit and went out into the garden area behind the church. This area is also where they believe that Peter denied Yeshua three times, and they have steps that Yeshua would have walked on as He was led to the city. As I looked out on Jerusalem I could feel the anguish that He must have felt as He looked out on the city He wept over. Then also the heart wrenching pain Peter must have felt as he realized He had done just as Yeshua said He would – deny Him three times. I grabbed onto one of the rock ruins and looked up to where Caiaphas’ house was and I imagined Peter doing the same barely able to stand at the gut wrenching agony he felt.

His love is so powerful. He came for the least of men and made Himself even lower so that by His wounds we are healed, and through His pain we have been set free, and from His death He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because we are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God. Galatians 4:4-7

Much love and blessings to you all through the love of Yeshua Hammashiach!!




Gethsemane and the Via Dolorosa

So today I went to Gethsemane! Umm – there really aren’t words. Originally my roommate and I just decided to go walking to the Old City – so we did. We got so lost in there – it’s like a maze of all these little tiny streets. The cool thing was is that is was still pretty early – so a lot of the shops weren’t open yet. It was really quite – compared to how it is later in the day where it’s so loud with people you can barely hear yourself. It was mainly just the local vendors getting their shops organized so they really didn’t bother us, which was a God thing.

As we walked up and down the streets I would see children playing and young men pushing carts of food and things through to different shops. I couldn’t help but constantly think about Yeshua walking through these streets during Passover and playing with His friends – hearing the laughter of the children. The smells of the place were incredible – I smelled so many different scents it was almost overwhelming! From bread, to incense, to herbs and spices, to perfume and oils. Then eventually we ended up outside Damascus Gate. Thoughtfully we had grabbed a map at the tourist center before going on our little excursion so as soon as we got to the Damascus Gate we pulled them out to start figuring out where we wanted to go – and I was trying to put the spatial relations of all the Holy Sites together. We figured out where the Via Dolorosa was and decided to go for it and then walk up to Gethsemane.

So we went and it was sooo quiet, which might come as a shock to some people who have been there before. For those who do not know, the Via Dolorosa is the road in which Yeshua carried the cross on as He went to Golgotha. As we walked in silence up the road I tried to imagine what it must have been like. It was probably so contrary to how it was when we walked it – there would have been shouting and children watching wondering what on Earth the commotion was about – then there would have been His disciples and His family. I can’t even begin to imagine what they must have felt – how there stomachs must have turned around inside of them as they watched their Savior – their best friend, their leader taking upon the shame of their sins, our sins upon His shoulders.

As we exited the walls of the Old City at the end of the road and walked through Lion’s Gate on the Eastern side of the wall, before us was the hill where in is Gethsemane. It was breathtaking. I can’t imagine Yeshua walking out the gate and looking back up to where He had prayed earlier a prayer for Himself, His disciples, and then for you and I today and remembering through the pain He was suffering, that is why He walked upon this Earth, that is why He carried the cross upon His shoulder, that is why He was crushed and His bones where broken and His face disfigured – that those whom the Lord gave Him may be with Him where He is!!! (John 17)

We then made our way up to Gethsemane. When we got to it, they have preserved it as a gated garden that is pretty small. As we walked into the little area (you can’t actually walk into the area but around it) I stood and stared for a while – trying to picture Yeshua’s face as He prayed. I pulled out my Bible and started to read John 17. As I was reading a tourist group came up and surround my roommate and I as they talked about the garden. The tourist guide described an olive press (which is what Gethsemane means) – how they would crush the olives against the rocks and the oil would spill down into the dirt and then become separated from the dirt. At the end of her discussion she pointed back to that image as Yeshua being pressed in this time – so much to the point His pores opened up and He sweat blood.

Then she also showed the group something really cool!! She pointed at one of the olive trees and showed them the ingrafted olive branches (Romans 11). That was something the Lord was revealing to me before I left – that I am being cut and grafted into the tree of life!! That was a complete God moment!

As we left I heard so many different languages: French, Spanish, Nigerian, Hebrew, English, etc and I couldn’t help but remembering:

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,

did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

but made himself nothing,

taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a man,

he humbled himself

and became obedient to death—

even death on a cross!

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

and gave him the name that is above every name,

that at the name of Yeshua every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue confess that Yeshua Hamashiach is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:5-11

There are sooo many stories I want to tell you guys of things that I have seen and heard here (and only in the past two days)!! But I don’t have enough time at the moment.

Succat Hallel is awesome! I have been going to the morning watch (6am -9am) because the Lord has been waking me up and I love love love watching the sunrise over the city. He is so glorious and marvelous and greatly to be praised!!!! Unfortunately I don’t have pictures from Gethsemane because I wasn’t planning on going so I didn’t take my camera – but I’ll go again later possibly to get pictures. But here is a really powerful video that we watched during morning watch today to leave you with while you ponder these things (it’s not me this time .  Love you guys!!! Shalom!!

Boker Tov!!!

So forgive me for the flick flubs and any thing that is not completely historical – I was a little tired when I did this and I still have sooo much to learn! Ps – I never ended up going to Gethsemane – maybe another day if I have time but I did get to go on a tour of God TV which was pretty cool .  God is sooo good! I do have one personal prayer request – if you could pray that the visa extension (applying for a work visa possibly) to be able to join with Living Bread right after this instead of having to leave and then come back would work out exactly how the Lord wants it I would be so blessed – and keep praying for Jerusalem!! The Lord is sovereign and amazing!! Blessings!

Here I Am!!

I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.

For great is your love, higher than the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,
and let your glory be over all the earth.

Psalm 108:3-5

So here I am – in the city of the Lord, the place He set apart for His people – the Promise Land!! Among these pathways walked the prophets who foretold of His coming, the Kings who worshiped their Lord, humble people who loved Him with all their heart, and God Himself made into flesh – Immanuel – God With Us! Mmmm, the thought of that makes all within me tremble.

I will tell you what though, this city is in desperate need of the Savior that dwelt among its streets a little over a two thousand years ago. There is such a spiritual battle going on – but God has the victory!! Praise be His name!!

So what did I do today? We arrived in Tel Aviv at about 9:55am. After all the airport stuff I got on the Sherut (shared taxi – like a shuttle) and went to Jerusalem where they dropped me off at my apt!! It’s a nice a cozy little place. I have 3 roommates right now but two of the girls leave on Thurs. They are from the previous Short Term group. After unpacking and settling in, I went with one of the other girls to the Old City and she shopped for gifts while I took in the atmosphere and cultural climate. It’s about the same weather here as it is in Houston. I am pretty tired so I am going to go but here are a couple pictures to leave you with! Thank you so so so much for all the prayers and please keep them coming!!!

Giant Menorah

The building on the right is Succat Hallel and below is the Hinnom Valley

Walking through the Old City

Street decorations

Mt. Zion (accross from Succat Hallel)!!!!!! The street going below is leading into the Hinnom Valley

PS – I get adds in Hebrew on websites now on my computer – and google came up in Hebrew, formatted on the right hand side of the page when I used it!! LOL

Becoming a Partner

As most of you all know, over the next year I will be serving the Lord in Jerusalem that His love may be revealed. (If you would like to know a little more about what I will be doing check out my post “Following the Lamb Wherever He Goes“).  As I have mentioned before in this blog, the most important thing I will need for the journey is prayer support! Pray not only for me, but for those whom God is calling to His name as well, that they would be open to receive His love that He so freely offers!

I’m excited about the opportunity and experiences that lie ahead. As you can imagine, a trip like this requires financial support from a number of people. Since I will be “living” over there for almost a year I will need financial support for a monthly basis. The cost for both ministries per month is about $1,000 (about $16,000 for the whole trip – including air fare). This will cover housing, food, transportation, and any other various needs. If you could pray for God’s provision for this journey I would be so grateful! If you would like to come along side me in this journey by supporting me financially you may send your gifts to:

Living Bread International Church
PO Box 101
Cantonment, Florida 32533 USA

 

Be sure to mark clearly:

1) who the support is for
2) when I will be in Living Bread volunteering (March 2010 – November 2010)
3) who its coming from
4) the donor’s address

 

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! I pray that the Living God would bless you beyond measure as you partner with me in this journey! I pray that He would give you fresh revelations of His incredible love daily as you seek His face and as He seeks yours! In the name of Yeshua Hammashiach (Jesus the Messiah) – Amen!

 

PS – Don’t forget to “Subscribe” to this blog to receive email updates of what God is doing in Jerusalem and Israel.

A Little About Me :)

The Rock from which I was cut:

As I look back, even before I was born into this world, I can see God’s mighty hand of love upon my life. Right from the start I can see that God had a plan for me. I was adopted at about 2 weeks old. Today I look back and realize that my birth mother could have easily opted for an abortion, but by the will and power of El Shaddai (Almighty God) she chose life – that I might have life. So from the beginning I can see God’s work in my life, but it still took time for me to realize that (you can read more about adoption in my post Huiothesia).

I initially accepted Christ as my Savior when I was nine by looking and observing the relationship of my own Dad had with Christ, and I wanted the same. Not too long after I entered into middle school and was exposed to things I had never seen or known before. Gradually I began to stray away from my intimacy with God.

In Middle School I became infatuated with culture, philosophy, and other religions and slowly started to wander away from my relationship with God as I began to look into these other factors. I was trying to find my identity in something else, other than the One who created me.  I became extremely depressed and very very lost. I started to seek different ways to alleviate this sorrow that I felt inside. I turned my back completely on God and put my attentions on the opposite of Him for a brief time.

By the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, my parents caught up to what was going on and sent me to a Christian counselor. Through the process of seeing the counselor and much prayer through our church, God was beginning to really beat me upside the head and open my eyes to His power. Through this time of struggling to find out who I was, God kept pressing into me with His love, never giving up on me.

Eventually I agreed to go to a Christian Fine Arts Camp during the summer (as suggested by my counselor). When I went I saw people that looked like me – a guy with a blue mohawk, a girl wearing lots of beads and baggy clothes, etc. The camp was just a rainbow of diversity as far as everyone’s backgrounds and lifestyles, but God was a unifying source for all of them.

Every night we had a worship service and I saw these people just rip open their hearts before their God and pour their souls out to Him because of the love and grace Christ had bestowed upon them. I saw genuine and unbridled passion expressed towards their Savior and I remembered that same intimacy I once had in my life with Him. I saw them use their creative abilities (art, songwriting, acting, dancing, etc) to worship their Father who had given them those talents. It opened up my eyes to see that there are people in the world who genuinely love God who may not be the first people (by appearances) you would normally want to approach. I saw that it was okay to be a Christian and have a strong creative and artistic drive.

I began to understand that although I could live my life in rebellion against God, He will never budge (away from me) and His love is truly un-conditional (Romans 8:37-39). I was His child first and foremost and He wanted me back in His arms (Galatians 4:4-7) and He wasn’t going to relent until I was in that place.

I was starting to  grasp the power and grace of the cross and that God stooped down lower than all of us because He loved me and desired me to be with Him where He is. I was beginning to grasp the magnitude and power of His grace and what His Son had done for the world. So I re-dedicated my life to Him at the age of 13 and really began to live in a passionate relationship with Christ that extended beyond Sunday schools and church walls. It took me coming to the realization that “accepting Christ” isn’t just about saying a prayer, it isn’t just about going to church but it is about a real. living, intimate love relationship with the Son of God – Jesus Christ. It also took me realizing that although I turned completely away from Him He still loved me, He still loves me. Nothing I could have done would ever change that because He came and died once for all time for the sake of true love (Hebrews 9:11-28). For that – I have fallen in love with my Redeemer and my Savior who literally saved me from death, because His love is stronger, His jealousy unyielding as the grave (Song of Songs 8:6). Even death cannot detain His pursuit for my heart! He once was, He will come, and He is alive and moving today – wooing my heart and yours that we may be with Him in glory! [Please read Hebrews 9:11-28 for more info ]

I believe my testimony is my life journey. Since that time (freshman year of high school) I have still had a few trips and stumbles on the path of Christ and am by no means blameless. At this point (10 years after the fact) my relationship and love for Christ is at an all time high. I am passionately in love with Him and desire to live out my life according to His standards and His heart, striving to go deeper with Him day by day.

At the moment, God is really teaching me how to glorify Him through every second of my day, how to cling to His strength in faith, and what it really means to live life unto Him completely, wholly, and without compromises (although these are pretty constant lessons to learn). I just recently graduated college with a BFA in Theatre and now after college, my ultimate and strongest desire in this time of my life is to truly live for Christ and follow His heart- following the Lamb wherever He goes (Rev. 14:4).

After the experience of re-dedicating my life completely to Christ, the Lord placed a burden on my heart to reach out to the nations, extending His love to all people. In high school my dream was to be a missionary for the glory of my God, Jehovah. Over the past year that desire has been accompanied with a new one, to stand as a “watchmen” over Jerusalem through prayer:

“I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night, you who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” Isaiah 62:6-7

How is God moving my heart today?

God is so sovereign and righteous! Who am I that He would stoop down from the glory of His throne to rescue me – to grant me freedom? I am nothing. I lose it all to gain all of Him. Though I am imperfect and fallible – He is my rock and my refuge. Though I am weak and broken – His love for me still abides, even when I have crawled into the darkest of caverns – His love is never, ever separated from me.

I am in love! I am captivated! My Savior has melted my heart and there is nothing in the world that is as wonderful as He! His passionate gaze has locked into mine and my heart gives way within me. No words can describe it, no dance could express, no song can be sung, to do justice to the majesty of His love within me! “He is the seal upon my arm, upon my heart – His love is as strong as death, jealousy unyielding as the grave, and many waters cannot quench this love”! I am in love with a lamb, and I will follow Him wherever He goes.

He has placed within me a desire to see the nations fall in love with Him, to see His glorious city and those whom He has chosen to return to Him as the Spirit and the Bride say “come”! Oh how He loves us! How He weeps over those who have not yet acknowledged His love, how He longs for them to know the fiery love within His heart!

I love to worship Him, I love to dance within His throne room and lay at His feet. I love Him! Ani ohevet Yeshua (I love Jesus)!

Isaiah 51:1-16

Unveiled Faces

Wow! Baruch hashem Adonai (Blessed be the name of the Lord)! I am so blessed beyond words! The Lord has poured out His love in mighty ways to me this past weekend as I am wrapping things up here in Corpus Christi. I love to see how He has answered prayers that were cried out to Him over the past decade – my goodness He is so faithful!

About ten years ago the Lord placed in my heart a dream – it was His dream – to see the world changed for His glory – to see the nations fall in love with Him the way He has allowed me to fall in love with Him. Now, after ten years of countless prayers about where should I go, how should I serve, let me be where You are Jesus – He is drawing me into Jerusalem. Words cannot do justice to the excitement and awe that is within my heart!

The Lord is so in love with world – for He gave the world His only Son! Like Hosea He pursues us with love that won’t relent until He has it all – our hearts. He longs to see the face of the bride, He longs for her veil to be lifted that she may look into His eyes clearly, to see a love that is stronger than death, that conquered death, to spend eternity with her! I ask that you would join me in praying that over this next year that our Lord would lift the veil off the face of His bride and give her fresh revelation of His love. Especially His Chosen People.  When I refer to the “bride” I refer to those whom the Lord is calling to His heart – His children, His body, the church.

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:17-18

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

Revelation 22:17

PS – I still am so blessed by all the prayers that have been sent my way and towards Jerusalem. I ask that you keep praying for His glory to be revealed in marvelous ways as I pray that the Lord bless you immensely as He reveals to you new aspects of His love each day!

Boldness

It’s time to pray for an anointing of boldness to testify and to prophecy the name and the glory of the risen One, Jesus Christ! God is moving and it’s time to get onto the train of His garment as He travels through the nations. No more fear, seek the Lord while He is near beloved!!!

“Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the LORD. ¹¹ “Many nations will be joined with the LORD in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you. ¹² The LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem. ¹³

Be still before the LORD, all mankind, because He has roused Himself from His holy dwelling.” Zechariah 2:10-13

God has been moving at IHOP (International House of Prayer)! Check it out at http://ihop.org/watch

The Suffering Servant

So, for those of you who are now following through email, you’ve probably figured out by now that not all my posts will necessarily be all about the specifics of my journey to Jerusalem. Everything I post on here are  the things God is showing me and revealing to me (which ultimately lead to my journey in life  and contribute to the preparations and walking through) this journey into His Holy Land.

This post is for an update about my time over in Israel though.

First I have to say thank you, thank you, and may the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth bless everyone who is praying for me and the people over in the Middle East! God has really blessed me by answering the prayer requests I posted a week or two ago. Half my funds for the journey have been met, the Visa information is being worked out (as much as it can be at the moment), and I have a plane ticket for Saturday, Dec. 12 to fly half way across the world and into the land of milk and honey!

Not only are those technical details being worked out, but God is really working on my heart as well. He is preparing me for the things to come. The theme lately is that Love is not true Love without suffering. I just finished reading a wonderful book by Dana Candler, Deep Unto Deep: The Journey of His Embrace (which I very highly recommend). In the last chapter she discusses topics like being “consumed in Love’s fire” (Song Sol. 8:6-7) and the “sting of that fire” as well as “the heights and depths of Love’s consumption” and “divine possession” (all in relation to intimacy with Jesus Christ). She walks through those times in our journey where the tops of the mountains have been covered up by the clouds and we dwell within the deep valleys of His love, when our faith is really tested as we reach through the shadows and the dark of night within our spirits for our Beloved Bridegroom.

One thing she talks about in particular is the story between the Lover and the Beloved in Song of Solomon 5, where the Beloved is knocking on the door of His lover in the middle of the night drenched in the dew of twilight. This picture has stood out so vividly in my mind this week. As Dana is describing the story she writes, “. . .we see this kind of powerful possession when Jesus comes as the SUFFERING SERVANT to the bride in the Song of Solomon (5:2)”.  She continues by pointing out how the Lover is so possessed by the love of the Bridegroom that even in the middle of the night she goes out to search for Him in the darkness because she is lovesick for Him (Song of Solomon 5:8).

The picture of Christ as the SUFFERING SERVANT standing before me, asking me to come and to follow Him, even thought the dark of the night, has gripped me. It has made my heart melt, knowing that depth of love that forsook everything to have all of me. It went outside the city gates (Hebrews 13:11-13) so He could be a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1-2) so that the veil might be pulled back (Matthew 27:51, 2 Corinth. 3:17-18) and so that I may enter into the inner chambers of His heart (Ps. 27:4, Song of Sol. 1:4) and commune with Him (Song of Solomon 2:4).

Oh, how my heart desires to respond in the same way! To forsake everything to have all of Him! To lose my own life to gain life through His own – for there is a love as strong as death, a jealousy unyielding as the grave, and many waters cannot quench this fiery love (Song of Sol. 8:6-7)!!! Oh, to be consumed wholeheartedly within His passionate flame, to surrender all I have to His power and His tenderness, that the words of His mouth (His living word) might kiss the depths of my soul and awaken the sleeping desires within me!!

How I pray that the consuming fire of love would catch a flame within your hearts and burn away all that is dead within you, and awaken the seeds of love between you and the one who is the Bridegroom over all the earth! I pray that the veil would be lifted from your face, like a bride and that you and the Son of Man could just gaze into the eyes of each other. Oh, that He would awaken your heart to the deepest intimacy possible with Him and that when all the world looks upon you they may know that the Lord Almighty, El Shaddai is your King and your beloved and that they may arise and call Him blessed! Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh Ata El Shaddai (Holy, Holy, Holy are You Lord Almighty)!! In the name of the slain Lamb, Yeshua, Amen!

There Is A Trembling

There is a trembling in my belly, a trembling in my bones, a trembling in my heart. My lips quiver with Your words. My tongue is soaked with the honey of Your spirit; my stomach is soured by the weight of Your words. My soul is stilled by Your presence and I am caught captive in Your hand. I have been entrenched into stillness. I have been provoked to my face by the power of Your spirit, by the thunder of Your voice. It rumbles within my body and I cannot contain it. It is so intense that all I can do is lie still, facedown in Your hand. I cannot move until You move me, I cannot speak until You move inside me.

Your works are too great to be weighed! Your power is too awesome to be comprehended! You spirit is too intense to withstand!

 

You are the bright and morning star

Of David

That glows within my trembling heart

Who can contain it?

I am the branch grafted into Your tree

You are the vine that nourishes me

 

Holy

Holy

Holy

Is the King

Holy

Holy

Holy

Is the One who sings over me

 

“Deep calls to deep

in the roar of your waterfalls;

all your waves and breakers

have swept over me.

By day the LORD directs his love,

at night his song is with me—

a prayer to the God of my life.”

Psalm 42:7-8

Following the Lamb Wherever He Goes

I am so excited and blessed to tell you about a wonderful opportunity that I have. Over the past decade, the Lord has placed a burden on my heart to reach out to the nations and over the past year, to stand as a “watchmen” over Jerusalem through prayer:

“I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night, you who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” Isaiah 62:6-7

In God’s word He says that if we delight in Him, He will give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4) and He is doing just that! In December of this year, I have the blessed opportunity to travel over to Jerusalem to work with two amazing ministries. The first ministry that I will be serving with is Succat Hallel (Hebrew for Tabernacle of Praise), a 24/7 house of prayer in Jerusalem that desires to minister first unto the Lord, pray for peace in Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6) and intercede for Israel and the nations. The building overlooks Mount Zion and the Old City of Jerusalem. There is also a second prayer room in the City of David, the area where the original Tabernacle of David stood.

I will be considered short-term staff, serving a minimum of 30 hours per week from December 15, 2009-March 10, 2010 at Succat Hallel by interceding for Jerusalem and the nations through worship and prayer, assisting in the practical help (cleaning, admin, etc), as well as participating in outreach to the city with partnering compassion ministries. To learn more about them you can visit their website at http://www.jerusalempraise.com/website/.

The second ministry I am blessed to have the opportunity to serve with is Living Bread International Church. I will be with them from March 2010 until November 2010.The corporate offices of Living Bread International are located in the City of Jerusalem, where I will be residing with them. The Church is located in Jerusalem at Damascus Gate as well as in Jericho.

Living Bread has an aching heart to bring the wonderful news of Christ to the refugee camps within Israel.  There are 27 refugee camps in the country that were formed in 1948 and 1967. In these camps the people are lacking education, basic humanitarian needs, and job skills. Living Bread is committed to serving these people by providing them with aid and education while sharing the love of Christ. They also spread the Good News of Christ through “Door of Hope”, a television broadcast, which now this past year is being broadcast to 133 mainly-Muslim nations within the 10-40 window, as well as in Israel, West Bank, Australia, America and Europe. The Living Bread International Church website can also give you some more insight to their ministries at http://www.livingbreadchurch.com/.

I’m excited about the opportunity and experiences that lie ahead. As you can imagine, a trip like this requires financial support from a number of people. Since I will be “living” over there for almost a year I will need financial support for a monthly basis. The cost for both ministries per month is about $1,000 (about $16,000 for the whole trip – including air fare). This will cover housing, food, transportation, and any other various needs. If you could pray for God’s provision for this journey I would be so grateful (I will have more information about the financial details a little later). And, most importantly, I also need your prayer support for the entire time I will be over there. Prayer is the fuel that allows us to be successful as we follow God’s leading to “make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19).

I am hoping to use this blog as a way to inform all of you what God is doing on my journey. On the toolbar to the right of the page the second box labeled “Subscribe” you can follow the link to sign up for email updates for whenever I publish a new post. That way you will always be informed of what is going on.

In addition, I will be updating the first box on the toolbar to the right labeled “Praying for Israel” with the different verses that God reveals to me to pray over in regards to Israel. I would encourage you to join me in prayer for Israel, God’s chosen people and the Arabs and all who dwell within God’s Holy Land.

I will be praying for you, that God would bless you in a tremendous way and that you may experience the majesty of His love daily!

Links To Check Out:

Succat Hallel Video : This video that is a really good description of what Succat Hallel is (the ministry I will be with from December – March). It’s half way down the page (the video w/ the fire animation above it). The guy who is talking the most is Rick Ridings, the founder of Succat Hallel.

Burning In the Womb: From the belly of Jerusalem: Video from Jerusalem. The man – Sean Feucht, is the founder of The Burn, a group that does the 24 hr prayer and worship here in Corpus – and all over the world, focusing on the idea of “contending, worshiping, and blazing” ! The woman, Karen is the director of Living Bread Ministries in Jerusalem.

PS – If you could join me in praying about visa information right now I would be so grateful. I am trying to discern what to do about the transition between the two ministries, because I will either have to renew my visa (by leaving Israel and then returning) or apply for a different one from the start. Please pray for God’s direction and hand upon this aspect of the journey – that He would move things exactly the way they should be.

Ezekial 21 – The Lord’s Heart

“O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.” 2 Chronicles 20:6

This morning I was reading Ezekiel 21 and my heart became heavy as I read about the intense judgment of the Lord. Then I thought about the day when the Son of Man will return again, and how that judgment will be (Nahum 1:6, 2 Chronicles 20:6) and how is heart feels towards the people of the earth. He began to speak to my heart about His and these are the things He reveled to me:

~~~

Do you see the pain on My face when I have to cut off my children? Do you see the anguish in My heart when they must be rebuked? Time and again I have waited, I have longed for their hearts and time and again they refuse.

The LORD said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” Hosea 3:1

Oh, that they would stop hiding their faces from Me! Oh that they would cry of their wilderness to Me – “I love You” in return!

My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside, show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. Song of Songs 2:14

“Therefore I am now going to allure her;

I will lead her into the desert

and speak tenderly to her.

There I will give her back her vineyards,

and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.

There she will sing as in the days of her youth,

as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

“In that day,” declares the LORD,

“you will call me ‘my husband’;

you will no longer call me ‘my master.’ Hosea 2:14-16

Do you hear the intense pounding of My heartbeat? Do you see the fire that surrounds my heart that will consume all those who are not already already within Me?

This is what the LORD Almighty says: “I am very jealous for Zion; I am burning with jealousy for her.” Zechariah 8:2

For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. Deuteronomy 4:24

Why are the tongues of my sons and daughters so silent? Have I not asked them to stay with Me and watch? Have I not asked them to open their mouths and their hearts to sing My heart song to the nations that My glory may be complete?

“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” Mark 14:34

I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But you said, ‘We will not listen.’ Jeremiah 6:17

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 18:18-20

I am gathering My army – I am calling My true disciples who will follow Me wherever I go. They will know the call by the beating of My heart that will reverberate inside theirs like the pounding of a thousand drums, and they will come, and the banner they will carry will be My banner of love.

. . . They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. Revelation 14:4

He has taken me to the banquet hall,

and his banner over me is love. Song of Songs 2:4

Anointing the Feet of My Beloved

This past weekend I was so blessed and privileged to have a “Mary of Bethany” (Mk. 14) moment with my Savior. It started with me getting pretty sick (sore throat, etc) on Thursday and not giving my voice or body rest. Friday I went to the Burn and still I did not rest my voice. After about two hours, my voice was completely gone. I couldn’t even hum or whisper a prayer. At first I was so frustrated. What can I do to cry out to You, my God? So for a while I danced, but even in the dancing I was tired and weak. I tried to push through it because even in my weakness He is strong and my love for Him doesn’t fade. After quite a few hours I finally came to a place of resting and intense longing to worship my King! My heart was literally aching to show Him love, but how? In that moment it was as though He reached straight into the depths of my heart and melted everything inside of me and all I could do was sit in awe of the one who first loved me.
A picture of what it must have looked like as Mary kneeled down upon the dirt floor amidst the disciples and the Pharisees, and poured out her perfume of love to anoint the feet of her Redeemer all of a sudden flashed through my mind. She must have taken one glance into His eyes – those eyes that burn with desire, and overwhelmed by those eyes that gazed into the depths of heart, all she could do was weep at His feet. There were no words to speak, there was no melody to hum because a “love that is a strong as death, jealousy unyielding as the grave, and a love that cannot by quenched by many waters” gazed upon her and called her love towards Him “beautiful” (Mk 14:6). Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, calls my love towards Him “beautiful” and tells all around me, “Why do you bother her? This is all I long for. She is mine and I am hers. Nothing can touch her because I am here.”

Here, in this moment, there is nothing else
All that I know is the beating of Your heart that vibrates all around me
And the sustaining power of Your breath that fills me with the quiet of peace
In the stillness, it’s just You and me

Words cannot be uttered
Songs cannot be sung
That are worthy enough to ascribe to You the glory of your love
Your fiery gaze peers into my soul and I am overcome
My heart reaches in longing to bless You, to love You in return

Here in this communion let me stay
To know the awesome power of Your love
To hunger and thirst and to be filled to overflowing from the cup of Your love
In the embrace of Your wounded arms I melt
Your blood covers me
It is the very river of desire that flows through my heart
You reach into my soul and with just one touch You awaken the consuming fire of love within me
And all I can do is fall down at Your feet
And place my little heart within Your own

This is all You desire
This is all You long for
Beyond the music
Beyond the words
Is the complete devotion of my heart
To live for You out of worship
In the fullness of Your spirit
And in Your life giving truth

This is how I will worship
This is how I long
By laying at Your feet
And pouring out my heart
Beyond the music
And beyond the words
And in the quiet
I am wholly Yours