Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new and beautiful day. I love you Lord.
Lord: Good morning son. Welcome to the club this morning and thank you for your love and devotion. I love you too and I always will love you.
Down the ages, and in every age, the Church Established has tended to formalise and encase the Christian life in rules and regulations, even to the point of only allowing certain 'suitably qualified people' to pray in public. This is not to be the case amongst you. It was never my intention and it has prevented the church from growing and becoming the bride I long for. Prayer is grounded where the people are, in the people. Everyone, yes everyone, has both the right and the ability to pray prayers that I can hear and answer. I want my people to pray. I don't mind if they are not literary works of art as long as they come from the heart and are born out of love for me. When a couple get to know one another, conversation grows and they begin to share thing hitherto unshared with anyone. As the conversation grows trust increases and the relationship deepens. So it is with us. I want to talk to you and I want you to talk to me.
Yesterday I spoke about you asking. Today I want to talk to you about you listening and me answering and sharing with you. The first and only reason why prophetic words are scarce in any age, is that my people are too busy to listen to me. Many church elders, preachers and pastors are so busy 'doing things for me' that they neglect seeking me and finding out what I want them to be doing. Just because something 'needs to be done' it doesn't mean you have to do it. For every work and ministry in the world I have prepared people to fulfil that work. Often these are the most unlikely people. So no one should rush into anything without seeking me first.
In the early days of the Old Testament, when I laid down the ground rules for Temple Worship I allocated tasks and ministries to the various families. This may seem very rigid to you now, but it was to establish the principle of every member ministry as distributed by me. See also the first letter St Paul sent to the Corinthian Church, Chapter 12. 11. "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines."
The important part of the verse being, "Just as he determines."But how do you know what my will is if, as soon as you have asked, you walk away, feeling good because you have asked? It's like asking your wife what colour she would like the kitchen wall, and then without waiting for the answer going off to the shops to buy the colour you want!
Watch, wait and listen
Because your lives are so full of 'doing', it is hard to watch, wait and listen. All three require you to stop, lay down what you are doing and apparently do nothing. In truth all three are activities that require full attention. A soldier on the watch tower has to watch for any enemy movement, throughout his entire watch. He cannot sleep on the job, for it is at the moment of sleep that the enemy will arise to attack. Watching requires many faculties: using your eyes to see any shifting shadows or glints of light, using your ears to hear any sounds that shouldn't be there. It requires you to be still, so that your own body doesn't act as a distraction for you or a target for the enemy. It also requires a sense that most humans have lost through neglect: being so in tune with both your body and the environment that your instinct will tell you when something is not quite right.
Spiritual watching is much the same, except that the eyes and ears you use are your inner or spiritual eyes and ears, and your stillness comes from being at peace with God. It is when the bodily senses of sight and sound are de-tuned and the inner senses in tune, that you can begin to hear the sounds and enjoy the sights that are there all the time but are blotted by the physical senses. It takes practice and in a way needs to be taught, and it goes against the human idea of being cerebral or intellectual. It also takes time. At first it may take a long time to 'tune in', but with practice it can become like switching on a light switch.
So, what will you hear? Well, I often don't use words that need to go through the interpretation process of the brain. My word can come to you as pictures, ideas, inspiration, or something whispered in your ear. Everything I say to you is relevant and important, so your journaling of what I say and the conversations we have is good. It helps you to go over what I have said and be clear about it, and it also opens up my word for others to hear. Much of what I say to you is personal because I love you, but when I give you something that is to share you will know instinctively in your heart. For example this word is for you to blog and share.
The more you watch wait and listen the easier it is for me to speak with you and you to hear. That is why I have taken to waking you so early. At this beautiful hour in the morning we can be alone together without distractions and can love each other and converse freely. I used to share this hour with my Son, and now we share it with you. I long for others to share this time with us so that they may hear my voice and catch a glimpse of the things I have in mind. Let my Spirit quicken your mind and open up to you a whole new universe of delight, as I reveal my plan to you, for you and for my world that I love.
Lord: Good morning son. Welcome to the club this morning and thank you for your love and devotion. I love you too and I always will love you.
Down the ages, and in every age, the Church Established has tended to formalise and encase the Christian life in rules and regulations, even to the point of only allowing certain 'suitably qualified people' to pray in public. This is not to be the case amongst you. It was never my intention and it has prevented the church from growing and becoming the bride I long for. Prayer is grounded where the people are, in the people. Everyone, yes everyone, has both the right and the ability to pray prayers that I can hear and answer. I want my people to pray. I don't mind if they are not literary works of art as long as they come from the heart and are born out of love for me. When a couple get to know one another, conversation grows and they begin to share thing hitherto unshared with anyone. As the conversation grows trust increases and the relationship deepens. So it is with us. I want to talk to you and I want you to talk to me.
Yesterday I spoke about you asking. Today I want to talk to you about you listening and me answering and sharing with you. The first and only reason why prophetic words are scarce in any age, is that my people are too busy to listen to me. Many church elders, preachers and pastors are so busy 'doing things for me' that they neglect seeking me and finding out what I want them to be doing. Just because something 'needs to be done' it doesn't mean you have to do it. For every work and ministry in the world I have prepared people to fulfil that work. Often these are the most unlikely people. So no one should rush into anything without seeking me first.
In the early days of the Old Testament, when I laid down the ground rules for Temple Worship I allocated tasks and ministries to the various families. This may seem very rigid to you now, but it was to establish the principle of every member ministry as distributed by me. See also the first letter St Paul sent to the Corinthian Church, Chapter 12. 11. "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines."
The important part of the verse being, "Just as he determines."But how do you know what my will is if, as soon as you have asked, you walk away, feeling good because you have asked? It's like asking your wife what colour she would like the kitchen wall, and then without waiting for the answer going off to the shops to buy the colour you want!
Watch, wait and listen
Because your lives are so full of 'doing', it is hard to watch, wait and listen. All three require you to stop, lay down what you are doing and apparently do nothing. In truth all three are activities that require full attention. A soldier on the watch tower has to watch for any enemy movement, throughout his entire watch. He cannot sleep on the job, for it is at the moment of sleep that the enemy will arise to attack. Watching requires many faculties: using your eyes to see any shifting shadows or glints of light, using your ears to hear any sounds that shouldn't be there. It requires you to be still, so that your own body doesn't act as a distraction for you or a target for the enemy. It also requires a sense that most humans have lost through neglect: being so in tune with both your body and the environment that your instinct will tell you when something is not quite right.
Spiritual watching is much the same, except that the eyes and ears you use are your inner or spiritual eyes and ears, and your stillness comes from being at peace with God. It is when the bodily senses of sight and sound are de-tuned and the inner senses in tune, that you can begin to hear the sounds and enjoy the sights that are there all the time but are blotted by the physical senses. It takes practice and in a way needs to be taught, and it goes against the human idea of being cerebral or intellectual. It also takes time. At first it may take a long time to 'tune in', but with practice it can become like switching on a light switch.
So, what will you hear? Well, I often don't use words that need to go through the interpretation process of the brain. My word can come to you as pictures, ideas, inspiration, or something whispered in your ear. Everything I say to you is relevant and important, so your journaling of what I say and the conversations we have is good. It helps you to go over what I have said and be clear about it, and it also opens up my word for others to hear. Much of what I say to you is personal because I love you, but when I give you something that is to share you will know instinctively in your heart. For example this word is for you to blog and share.
The more you watch wait and listen the easier it is for me to speak with you and you to hear. That is why I have taken to waking you so early. At this beautiful hour in the morning we can be alone together without distractions and can love each other and converse freely. I used to share this hour with my Son, and now we share it with you. I long for others to share this time with us so that they may hear my voice and catch a glimpse of the things I have in mind. Let my Spirit quicken your mind and open up to you a whole new universe of delight, as I reveal my plan to you, for you and for my world that I love.
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