Stand Together

Me: Lord, as I read the Old Testament I find it quite depressing, reading about king after king who did evil in your sight, and the whole nation suffering for it. It was such a joy to read this morning (2 Chronicles 13-14) of Abijah and then his son Asa, both of whom served you whole heartedly. It was good to see how you blessed them and the nation so much. It's a shame Lord, the good kings seem so few and far between!

Lord: Yes son, it is always a delight to me when anyone serves me whole- heartedly for the one thing I love to do is bless. I do not delight at all in causing individuals or nations to fall or suffer. My delight at all times, is to pour out My blessings from My limitless store. I do this freely and in extravagant abundance.

Sadly, I know the ways of mankind, and I observe with tears how generation after generation turns away from Me to follow the ways of sin. However in every generation there is a remnant who love Me, and serve Me whole-heartedly. It is through this remnant I work. I speak not only of Israel, but of all the nations on Earth. Yes, every nation on Earth has its remnant, its handful of believers, who worship Me in Spirit and in truth. I am raising up this remnant in your day. In the days ahead you will see those I am raising up, as they begin to make an impression on a world which has largely rejected My love.

I have commanded you to pray for leaders and the places of power and influence in the land. Continue in this work. But now I want you to add to that flow of prayer power, individuals who have held on to the truth, often standing alone. As you pray for them and hold them before me, fan the gentle wind of the Holy Spirit into your prayers for them, that the fire and light in their souls will be quickened. They need encouragement, they need fellowship, they need love. Most of all they need to know they do not stand alone. They will know they do not stand alone, as others stand with them. Stand firm in the gospel, hold on to the truth of My Word, tell your faith story to others and encourage an open sharing of testimony. For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy (Revelation 19:10).

Open a blog devoted to testimonies and stories that tell of My working in people's lives. Let anyone send them to you, perhaps with a photo of themselves, and give Me the glory. I want more people to hear the stories of faith, and turn to Me.

Trust.

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you for your love which passes all understanding and for being my God. I love you.

Lord: Good morning son, welcome to the club this morning and thank you for your company on our walk. We love you too.

I want to talk to you about Trust today.

Trust is a very precious commodity that has become quite scarce in many parts of human society. A baby learns very quickly to trust its mother to provide all its needs. This sort of trust is founded partly on an inbuilt chemistry I put there, and partly experience. Because mother, or in some cases father, or another regular person, always provides the child's food and milk, and keeps them feeling comfortable, a trust is built up, so that as experience expands so the trust increases. In adolescence, trusting others becomes more a matter of experience and sometimes shared experiences. In adult life, as man becomes more often let down and hurt by people, trust has to be earned, and depending on the degree of hurt, that can sometimes take a long time,

In society, trust is most often based on performance. If a politician can deliver the goods, people trust him or her. The problems arise when politicians have to do unpleasant things like raising taxes, or cutting services, then the trust relationship begins to break down. Trust based on specific performance is like chasing a cloud; just as you think you have caught it, it melts away.

The only sort of trust that really lasts and works, is a trust based on a love relationship. If you add love to the other elements in trust it adds a backbone and makes it stronger. This is why couples who stay in love, often seem to trust their partners more deeply than others.

The trust that man has in me, is based mainly on love. It starts as a person steps out in faith and tries me, like a child accepting nourishment from mother, and that develops into a love relationship, partly based on experience, but rooted in love. The trust begins to grow rapidly as knowledge gained from both study and experience grows!

It is not enough for me to tell you that you can trust me! The words need to be backed by experience or faith! Experience is gained by listening to, and believing, the promises I have made, and finding them to be true. The promises become like stepping stones leading from one to another and on. As each stepping stone is tried, and found to be firm and trustworthy, both faith and trust grow. Sometimes, in order to see if a promise stands up to the test, you have to put all your weight on it, like standing on a stepping stone, rather than skipping from one to the other. All my promises to you are trustworthy and sure. I will never let you down.

The other great element in trust is being trusted. When someone you love trusts you, you do all you can to be fully trustworthy and, as it were, repay that trust. Not only am I trustworthy, but I also trust you! Yes, I have placed into the hands of my church the most precious gift I have ever given, the good news of my Son Jesus. This Gospel has the power to change the world, by changing lives. It can begin to do that today, and I have entrusted it to you! I would not have entrusted it to you if I didn't know that you are well able to complete the task of delivering it. Yes, I know you can do it, that is why I am trusting you with it. Allow my trust in you to grow, as I have allowed your trust in me to grow. The reason I trust you is my love for you. And the trust you have in me is best founded in your love for me. Remember, love is the greatest power at work in the world today. There is no power greater than love. Love one another as I have loved you.

My Calling to You.

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you for our time together as we walk and for you being with me all the time. Lord I give you this day. Help me to walk in your way and do your will. Lord I love you.

Lord: Good morning son, Thank you for walking with us this morning and for being here for us. Yes, that might seem strange to you who always think of us being here for you! We are always here for you, but we enjoy your company and conversation, and we are grateful to you for giving time to us. Stay close and ever watchful. Let me lead you into a ministry, and into areas you have only dreamed of so far. We love you.

My children, I am calling to you today to step out of your comfort zone. Step out in faith and break with the spirit of this present darkness. Turn aside from all forms of greed and idolatry. The modern forms of idolatry are holding on to idealistic ideas I have not given you, of materialism and placing your trust in the things that money can buy. Idolatry today, as in days gone by, is turning away from me, and following after other gods who can give you nothing but heartbreak. Leave all these gods behind you and step out on to the path that I will show you, a path of righteousness and truth, a path which will lead you into a land of fresh green pastures and an abundance of fruitfulness. Do not let your lives be full of anxieties and concerns over things you cannot change. Instead look to me to show you the things you can change and the people you can bless.

So much energy is wasted, and enthusiasm lost, because you pursue that which is not your concern. Let your concerns be the things I lay upon you, and not what the world would have you be concerned about. For every need in the world, I raise up those who will rise to the challenge and meet that need. I will also raise up those around them to support and uphold them in their mission. But not everyone is to be concerned with every need or issue. Devote your energy and expertise to the things I give you, and bless and support the people I draw within your sphere. Pray for those I lay upon your heart. Heal those I give you  the gift of healing for, and prophecy over those to who I give you a word.

This calling of mine to you, will bring you out from your cover of 'safety', which is not a real cover, just a hiding place, and into a place on the front line where I am working. There, on the front line of battle, all the gifts I have given to you will be needed, as you fulfil all the tasks I give you. Here on the front line, you will need a daily dose of prayer and fellowship with me, a briefing session, where I can show you all that I want you to do. Then I want you to stay focused and do the things I command of you.

Watch out each day for the opportunities I am presenting to you, opportunities to share your story with a stranger, to pray with someone in need, to bless someone just because they cross your path and I point them out to you. I will present you with opportunities to encourage and build up someone who is low, or to raise up another who is fallen. Keep your ears open for those who ask after me and are seeking me. Sometimes their asking is done in a quiet, tentative voice. Listen out for them and respond. Remember, you are my witnesses. You are the bearers of my gospel, which is the gift of salvation to all who hear it. It is not for you to decide  who to share the good news with, only to share it and let my Holy Spirit do the work of convincing and conviction.

Children, this is new ground for many of you. Do not be afraid, be courageous, be bold and strong, and let me lead you. Together we can bring in my kingdom.

The Lost Garden of Faith

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you again for the beauty of the early morning sky and the brilliance of the stars you have placed in the heavens. I love you Lord.

Lord:    Good morning Martin. Welcome to this new day where the sun shines on many lives today, where only darkness had been before (ref to Amanda Knox' release). Do not worry, for those who commit crimes like that do not escape from me! Pray now for Hugh, that I may vindicate him also.
     

I want to talk to you this morning about uncovering the underlying faith of others.

Remember for a moment the fascination you felt on your first visit to Heligan, when learning about the discovery of the garden that had laid undisturbed under a layer of overgrowth and compost. How the team of gardeners and volunteers literally rolled up the years, and uncovered  what was underneath. Well, for many people in the country today, it is the same; the garden, which is their encounter with me and their early faith, has been buried by years of distraction, mis-teaching and neglect. You see, faith needs looking after, and a relationship with me needs diligence and care. Once faith no longer shines, it doesn't take long for all the distractions of the world to grow like weeds and cover the once beautiful and well-ordered garden.

For 75 years Heligan lay under a carpet, and the memory of its former splendour faded from memory. So with many of my children. For decades their first love for me has laid dormant under a blanket of sorrow, their first commitment to me lies forgotten, a fading memory! This story of lost faith applies not just to individuals, but to families, communities, and churches.

As part of what I am doing in the nation today, I want you to gather workers, to unroll the overgrowth of decades, to discover and re-kindle the spark of faith to its former glory, and make it even more beautiful for me.

The work requires a great deal of patience and love. Unlike working with new converts and the un-churched, this work is with those who think they are all right and haven't noticed that things are not what they used to be. Even worse, many believe that they have moved on, and that what they have now is better than it was when they first believed. They think they have matured!

It has to be a gentle but persistent work, just like unrolling the decades in the garden. There are many seeds and plants that are are still alive and must not be uprooted. Sometimes you will need to listen to and revive the stories of the past in order to understand the present, just as the gardeners searched books, records and plans to learn what to expect next.

Do not be afraid to ask me, for I remember every commitment ever made and can quote every prayer ever uttered. I can map every life I ever made through every joy and every tear. I know the path down which every soul has travelled, and I purpose to heal every hurt you have ever suffered.

As the gardens of faith are revealed, tread carefully and with respect, for though they have been neglected for so long, many plants are well established and will recover very quickly to blossom and flourish. This is what I want.

Ask and I will show you what to do, seek and you will discover, then step back, move on, and let me finish what I started so long ago.

All this must happen alongside evangelism. They both will bring souls into the Kingdom, back to me.

The Shield of Faith

Me:    Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day you have made. I love you Lord.

Lord:   The Shield of Faith
One of the great pieces of equipment for the Christian walk that comes from love, is faith. Faith is a greatly misused word. It has come to mean 'religion'. Mankind talks about people of 'different faiths', but what he really means is different religions. It would be more accurate to say, 'people who put their faith in different things'. I said that faith comes out of love, and that is what I mean. Faith comes through knowing me and beginning to trust me. It is one of the gifts I gave at Pentecost to equip the church for the mission ahead. Faith is the ability to believe in me and hold on to me even though the final outcome is not visible to human eyes. I highly prize faith in a believer and will honour the faithful.

Faith is not blind as some would have you believe! Faith many not yet have seen with physical eyes the outcome, but it is very much a part of using your spiritual eyes and seeing the thing I show you, so it has to do with living prophecy in your life. I speak the word and you hold on to the word until you see it fulfilled.

Faith is like the shield carried by a soldier. Just as a shield is a very practical tool used to protect and deflect, so faith is far from passive. Faith turns to counter the darts of doubt and scorn. Faith grows strong when when it is covered with trust in me. Faith also grows strong with spiritual understanding, so it is reinforced by a good relationship with me.

Many see faith as an individual thing and say, 'my faith is personal'. That is true only as far as faith is built upon your love and encounter with me. However faith is also a corporate thing. Sharing your faith, 'telling your story', why you believe, how you came to know me, and what I have done for you, encourages others who also tell their story. Combine these stories and you have a community of faith. To continue the soldier and his shield analogy, Roman soldiers would stand together in a tight group. Those on the edge of the group would stand with their shields together on the ground forming a wall of protection all round. Those in the middle raise their shields above their heads to form a roof. Thus the protection is complete against missiles arrows and even javelins.

I want my Church to be a community of faith, actively using their faith as shields to protect themselves and each other from the darts and arrows of doubt, unbelief and lies. Do not let you faith be aimless and 'blind', but rooted and grounded in love and trust in me. Be a faithful people for me. I love you.

When I am lifted up from the earth

2010
Sunday, 7 February
04:59:20

Lord: Come up here son, for there are things that I want to show you. What do you see Martin?

Me: I see a lonely Cross, high on a hill. The sky is clear, and the sun is high. The birds are singing, and there is a buzz of insects. There is a feeling a little like being in a churchyard. but it is a hill in a wide open countryside, with a view for miles in all directions.

Lord: Look to the horizon Martin, and what do you see?

Me: I see a great multitude of people streaming from all directions to the Cross. People of every age, and nationality. The rich and the poor, the strong and the weak, all walking together. It seems as though the Cross itself is giving them strength to keep moving. There are lots of different expressions on their faces. Some look really joyful, while others look bewildered. Some even look reluctant, but are still moving forward. At first, I thought there was no sound coming from the multitude, for all I could hear was the sound of the birds and insects. Then, as I listened, I heard a murmur. For a time it remained just a murmur, although the crowd had come considerably nearer. The level of the noise was not related to the distance, or the number. Suddenly I heard a shout. It grew to a mighty crescendo in a matter of a few seconds. Again it came, and a third time. The shout was a resounding "Yes! Yes! Yes!" The crowd surged forward and as they reached the Cross, it was as though the Cross itself absorbed them. For what seemed like a long time the crowd came forward, and the ringing echo of their 'yes' could be heard. Then all was still and there were no more people coming. The fields were empty and even the birds and insects were silent. Then a cold wind began to blow and the green of the hillside turned brown, and nothing would grow in the barren dryness. Dust filled the air and the sound of the wind drove out all other sounds. It was very bleak and very inhospitable.

Lord: Jesus said "...When I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." The Cross of Jesus stands high on a hillside where all can see it. Many find the Cross an offence, the whole idea of a crucified God abhorrent to them. Many are fascinated by the Cross, and like Moses at the burning bush, have turned aside to see it. Whatever the reason for coming, the Cross is like a magnet that few can resist. Huge numbers of people come to the Cross in silence, not wanting to draw attention to themselves and be ridiculed by their fascination or interest. They are often unaware that others too, some very close to themselves, are also moving towards me. The nearer you come to the Cross, the clearer you see Jesus. The clearer you see Jesus the clearer you see me! The three times cry "yes" is the cry I want to hear: "Yes Jesus, you are the Lord", "Yes Jesus, Forgive my sins," and "Yes Jesus, come into my heart." The acknowledgement of Jesus as Lord, and embracing all three, by asking Jesus into your heart, moves you forward with a rush, and you become one with the Cross. You are crucified with Christ. Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

When the full number have been saved, and I have gathered the church together, I shall take her to a place of safety. And the time of tribulation will begin. Those who are left behind will be given a short time to repent. Then shall the end begin, and the new age dawn.