Posted on FaceBook Dec 31, 2020

KINGDOM REVIVAL 9

Hello, Kingdom

“then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chron 7:14

That was God’s promise to Solomon should His people humble themselves, pray, seek His face and turn from their wicked ways. That has been the focus of my last 8 KINGDOM REVIVAL posts. I first brought up the need for revival in a post on Nov 5, 2019, and a short time later stated my word for the year would be REVIVAL. I started the year 2020 with several posts, the last one (Jan 7) concerning revival. Then a strange thing happened a few months later: COVID-19 was unleashed on the world. Now, here we are on the last day of 2020, and we continue to struggle with the affect this virus has had on this nation and the world. There is chaos wherever you look. Political parties are in shambles, regardless of which side of the fence you reside. Churches are in conflict with governments. Churches are even at odds among themselves.

I never thought the word I chose for the year would take on such significance for the entire year and beyond. Yes, beyond, because we’re not done yet, not even close. Revival will continue to be my word for the New Year 2021. We must get this right. We need to re-ground ourselves on the Word of God, return to the basics in order to move forward. We need to raise our voices in One Accord, pray for His forgiveness, turn towards Him and away for our sinful lives. Only then will God hear us, forgive us and begin to heal our lands, just as God promised in 2 Chronicles 7:14.

Have a very safe, blessed and Happy New Year’s celebration tonight and bring in the New Year on a good, prayerful note.

Posted on FaceBook Dec 18, 2020

KINGDOM REVIVAL 8 Repentance

Hello, Kingdom

“. . . . and turn from their wicked ways . . . .”

And now we come to the final ingredient in the recipe for revival, as given us in 2 Chronicles 7:14, which is repentance. Scriptures give several examples of God’s wrath unleashed, or threatened to be released, on His people. Yet in each instance, His mercy is also on display.

– Genesis 3:21: God banishes Adam and Eve from Eden after they disobeyed his command to not eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. But, showing His mercy and to make a point, He clothed them with animal skin.

– Genesis:5-9: God’s wrath with man is apparent when He causes Noah to build an ark to save his family and 2 of every animal on earth before destroying the rest of humankind in a great flood. There was no opportunity for repentance.

– Genesis 19: God decides to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their sinful, wicked, ways. Abraham, learning of the impending destruction, pleads with God that if he could find 50 good men (and eventually just 10), the towns would be spared. God agrees, but angels found only Lot, warned him to gather his family and leave immediately. Lot could convince only his wife and two daughters to flee with him. But Lot’s wife looked back and was turned to a pillar of salt.

– Book of Jonah: God instructs Jonah to go to the city of Nineveh and warn the people He would destroy it in 40 days because of its wickedness. Jonah takes the scenic route, going away from Nineveh by boat, and returning inside the belly of a great fish. Jonah was running away in fear of going to the wicked Nineveh. When he finally arrives and preaches the message God has given him, he does such a good job, the King and the people repent and turn from their wicked ways. God relents from destroying them.

These are but four examples. In the first God banishes but shows mercy before following through. In the second, God saves Noah and his family, but destroys everyone else. In the third, God, after allowing the righteous to flee, follows through with the destruction. In the fourth, God gives opportunity for repentance, gets a great response and relents from the promised destruction. Now we find a similar situation as Jonah, in 2 Chronicles, when God gives Solomon the “recipe” for revival.

In 2 Chronicles 7:14, God gives us the promise of restoring our lands. The story of Jonah later in Scriptures, is an example of what “turning from their wicked ways” can accomplish. That promise of hope is as valid today as it was when Chronicles was written. God may not have created this pandemic, though He could have to test our faithfulness. Had we as one body responded and repented immediately at the onset, things might look a lot different today. Have we become so lost that God resorted to wiping out many? Whether this pandemic was created and unleashed by God, or He is using it for His good, the response by us should have been the same: repentance. This pandemic gave us an opportunity to draw closer to God, to choose a path of personal and spiritual revival, a reset of our walk with Jesus Christ. How well have we done? How have YOU responded? Many of us thought this pandemic would end on Resurrection Sunday way back in April, but here we are 8 months later, still in the middle of it all. Now we may be hoping that it will end with the season celebrating the birth of Christ.

Now, as then, and way back 2000 years ago, our focus is still off-center. We are looking for a quick fix rather than a life-style change. We must turn from our wicked ways, seek God’s face, pray and humble ourselves before God.

I’ll leave you today with God’s Word from Ephesians 4:30-32: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ Forgave you.”

Be Blessed!

Posted on FaceBook Dec 16, 2020

KINGDOM REVIVAL 7

Hello Kingdom!

Before we look at turning from our wicked ways, a couple additional comments about prayer and seeking God’s face.Before giving us the model prayer during His “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus tells us (Matthew 6:5-7):

“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many rewards.” In verse 11, Jesus tells us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Jesus wants to pray to His Father. Whether short and sweet or more drawn out, He wants fervent, heart-felt prayer, as we seek to draw closer to Him and to see His face. As we seek His face, the Holy Spirit will guide us: “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26-27)

See how closely prayer and seeking God’s face are interconnected? Scriptures are replete with the need and call for prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is powerful and power-packed. Time and again, scriptures tell us to pray for what we want and God will provide according to our needs. He already knows our hearts, but He wants us to take that humble step of being dependent on Him and asking anyway.

Those 7 words in verse 11 referenced above are truly powerful. They point back to the early days of the Israelites march to the Promised Land. Shortly after crossing the Red Sea, thus escaping the pursuing Egyptian army, and entering the wilderness, the people began complaining because they could find no water and were hungry. God provided for their needs in a unique way. He caused manna to fall from heaven every morning and quails to appear every evening (except the Sabbath). But He cautioned them to collect only what they could consume each day, no more. Anything left would be infested with worms by morning and thus useless. God would provide for their needs every day. He allowed them to collect two days worth the day before Sabbath, so they would not have to work by collecting on the Sabbath.

His prayer reminds us that without Him we are nothing. We are to pray every day to Him, asking for Him to provide our needs, our daily bread.

May your needs be provided today and every day. Be Blessed.

Posted on FaceBook Dec 612 2020

KINGDOM REVIVAL 6

Hello Kingdom!“ . . . and seek my face, . . .”

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Our last ingredient, prayer, actually goes hand in hand with this ingredient. Prayer turns our focus towards God, which is our attempt to seek His face. However, as we shall discover, we cannot see His face. I ended the last Revival post stating that He was asking us to do the impossible: to seek His face.

In Exodus, Moses asks God to show him His glory. But God responds, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see me, and live.” (Exodus 33:18-20.) He then places Moses in a crack, covers his eyes and passes him, removing His hands from his eyes, allowing Moses to only see His back. And in Isaiah 59:2, God tells us, “But your inequities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear.” So, in Exodus, God tells us we as humans could not see His face and live. 2 Chronicles tells us God wants us to seek His face, an act that if successful, would kill us. And in Isaiah He tells us that our sins have hidden His face from us, so that He would not hear our prayers.

God wants us so committed to Him, so focused on Him alone He wants us to seek his face, an action that, if successful, would kill us. Obeying God’s will in this would take a leap of faith. It’s like the African Impala. The Impala is a beautiful animal, one that can jump 10 feet up or 30 feet forward. Yet a 3 foot wall surrounding the Impala will trap him. The Impala will not jump where he can’t see his landing spot. He has the ability to easily jump the enclosure, but his lack of faith is impossible to overcome. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen,” God wants us to completely trust in Him, so much so that He has given us an escape clause, through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Scriptures tell us that the only way to God is through Jesus (John 14:6.) A few verses later Jesus tells Philip, “He who sees me, he has seen the Father.” God has made it possible to seek Him by seeking His Son. That’s a foundational Truth and a key ingredient for revival. We must continue to get back to the basics, hold fast to these Truths, in order to forge ahead. Thus far we’ve stirred in humility (surrender,) prayer and seeking God. One more ingredient to add to the pot: repentance. We will discuss that next time.

Until then, Be Blessed.

Posted on FaceBook Dec 2, 2020

KINGDOM REVIVAL #5 Proper Prayer

Hello, Kingdom!

“and pray . . .”The next ingredient in our recipe for Revival is prayer. After recognizing that God is in control and humbling ourselves in surrender to Him, we continue that journey towards revival in offering our prayers to God. For some of us (very few, unfortunately), well tuned into our walk with Christ, a simple “Thank you, Jesus,” might fit the bill. But for most of us, it will take more, much more. Brother Lawrence, a 17th century friar, spent every waking moment praising God in everything he did and saw, whether slopping pigs, cooking, cleaning, whatever (The Practice of the Presence of God.) These are two examples from opposite ends of the extreme, but that’s not enough for what God is asking in 2 Chronicles 7:14.He wants more than prayers from each of us. Yes, scriptures tell us to ask that we might receive (Matt 7:7, Mark 11:24, Luke 11:13, John 16:24.) Individual prayer can sometimes go wrong. James 4:2-3 tells us, “You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” James is telling the 12 tribes that they are praying wrong hearted. They are praying for their own selfish, lustful desires. This paragraph ends by referring to what I talked about in the last segment, the first ingredient in our recipe for Revival: “God resists the proud, but gives Grace to the humble.” (Verse 6) Look closely at 2 Chronicles again. God is talking to Solomon and tells him He has heard his prayer. Then He addresses Verse 7:14 to the people of Israel by saying “if my PEOPLE will humble THEMSELVES,” “turn from THEIR wicked ways,” “will forgive THEIR sin and heal THEIR land.” As Christians, we are grafted into all God’s promises to the people of Israel as His adopted children. God wants His people to come together in one accord to pray for one common theme: revival of their hearts and land. Prayer not for any individual lustful wants or desires, but universal prayer for communal healing. That is a clear ingredient for revival, yet as a people we are stuck.

I’ve commented several times concerning this pandemic. God may not have created it, but He is surely using it for His good. As churches were shuttered many months ago, and people were told to “shelter in place,” we should have been focused on God, drawing closer to Him, humbling ourselves and surrendering to His will. Then as churches began to meet again, we should have been giving Him all the praise and glory in Thanksgiving. Yet many of us grumbled at having church doors shuttered, then complained (and still are) about social distancing and mask wearing in church as churches were allowed to open again. As a whole, we have missed the boat. But it’s never too late.At the onset of this pandemic, Pastor Jimmy Evans, Gateway Church, and others joined together in UNITE714, centered around 2 Chronicles 7:14, calling for everyone to join together at 7:14 am and 7:14 pm every day to pray this scripture, the scripture that calls us to join together in communal prayer for healing. There are roughly 24 time zones in the world, which means that there would be two time zones praying in unison every hour of each day across the world. The US is included in 6 time zones, which means prayers would be lifted up half the day, two six hour stretches. That’s a lot of prayer going on. Do you think God would hear those prayers? If you think this ingredient is such a difficult one to add to the mix, wait until we look at the next ingredient. God is asking us to do the impossible: seek His face. Until next time,

Be Blessed!