Regain your First Love

Lord: For about sixty generations now, my church has been passing on the good news about Jesus, but there are many corners of the world that are still untouched by the good news. Even after all these generations, and after all the effort, the church is distracted from living and preaching the good news, by focusing upon things that are nothing to do with the gospel and do not give life to my people. I did not come to earth to found a building preservation society, nor did I come to form and support a church of surrogates, priests and ministers, who do all the work while the people do nothing!

When I called you to me, I filled your hearts with excitement as you realised the truth and committed yourselves to me. I opened your eyes, to see what I was doing in the lives and hearts of men and women, as they turned to me for salvation. I laid needs upon your hearts to pray for. I allowed my Holy Spirit to use you in prophecy, knowledge, discernment, tongues and healing. I filled your hearts with love for those around you, and your voices with praise and worship for me.

I have not changed! The gospel has not changed! The Holy Spirit is still there, but I do not hear the worship that comes from the heart. I do not see any more the excitement of seeing me at work! Where is that love you had for me when you first believed?

Has the last 2,000 years watered down the gospel? No! My word stands forever and for all time. You, my people have allowed the clamour and senseless mutterings of the world to distract and deceive you! You have listened to the lies of the Evil One, and have let go of My commandments and my statutes. You have turned your eyes away from Jesus and have allowed the bright lights and loud music of the world to distract you, and lead you away from my path. As you have wandered further away from me you have become deaf to my voice, and oblivious of my call. Even your leaders have been listening too much to the world's wisdom, which is not wisdom at all, and have created a theology to fit the world's ideas, instead of allowing the world to see the truth.

As the institutions of worldly power are shaken by my hand, and many become fearful for their future as the props they were leaning on fall, you my people, must stand firm on the rock which is not shaken and which cannot be moved. That rock is Jesus! Hold tightly to the truth revealed in Jesus and spread abroad the Gospel! Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and listen, as I speak to you through Him. Learn well, how to hear my voice, and remain obedient to me, for only those who hold on to me will not be shaken in the days and month ahead, as I shake again and again, the institutions of men.

Hold on firmly to my truth, and my commandments. Endure the laughter and mockery of the world for a little longer, for before the year is out, many of the rocks and safe places, in which they trust, and on which they have based their whole lives, will shake, crumble and fall into a pile of dust!

Be ready to reach out your hands to help those who fall and draw them to the safety of the rock, which is Jesus. Do not reprove them. It is for My Holy Spirit to do the convicting Reach out and draw them home. Nourish them with the words of life. Live out the gospel of peace and love ,and regain and relive the love you had for me when you first believed. Regain the excitement you felt when you first saw me working and lift your hearts and your voices in praise and worship to me.

Let your light shine brightly in the darkness of the world. Be a lighthouse, a beacon, to draw all men to me. Do not waiver or be daunted by the task, for I have equipped you and will provide for all your needs and all the needs of those to whom you minister. I am the Lord your provider, and I love you.

Suffering - Sin

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you that this is a day you have made specially for us to enjoy. Help us to stay in the centre of you will, that in all we do we may please you. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning Martin. Thank you for joining, and walking with us, this morning. We love you too.

 Today I want to talk to you more about my love. There are many who choose not to believe in me, because they say they cannot reconcile a God of love with the suffering they see around them. Oh, how Satan has blinded their eyes! It is because I love mankind so much, that the full effect of man's sin hasn't destroyed him already! Suffering is the direct result of sin. When mankind chose, using the free will I gave him out of love, to disobey the only command I gave him in the garden, he opened the way for sin and suffering to take over. It was a simple case of cause and effect. By disobeying my command not to eat the fruit of that tree, and that tree alone, man chose to take the consequences of his action.

At that time in his immaturity, he was not ready to deal with, and use, the flood of knowledge, that came upon him as a direct result of his action. When your children are young you do not allow them to play with certain tools or pieces of equipment, as they could be dangerous to life or health. As they grow and mature, these things can be introduced to them and they can be taught to use them properly and safely. The fruit of that tree was forbidden to them for that reason. I did not intended to forbid it to them forever! If I had intended that, I would not have placed the tree there in the first place!

There are lots of things I have placed in the world for the use of mankind. Plants and berries, rocks and trees, crystals and gems. Some of them are give to make the earth beautiful, because in my love for man, I want this special environment I have made for him, to be beautiful and pleasant to live in. Man has, in his immaturity, placed the wrong value on many, things and has misused the gifts I have given him, finding uses for them that I never intended.

Many plants, nuts and berries are attractive and appealing, but are poisonous if eaten. That is because I did not create them for man to eat. Some have medicinal properties, or contain natural chemicals that can be used as antidotes or for healing ointments. Certain metals and gems have been given great value and are used as currency, to be hoarded and owned by a few, when their real purpose has yet to be discovered, and in some cases never will be now, because it is too valuable to be wasted on scientific research. The misuse of these materials and plants that I have generously provided has given rise to greed, which in turn has led to wars, and both greed and war lead to suffering.

Suffering also arises from ignorance, because in his arrogance man does not seek me for the answers to sickness, injury or need. Daily you can see the results of mankind not listening to me. Daily, men and women make pronouncements about things they know nothing about, and in many cases their 'authoritative' statements cause others to suffer.

Many work in areas they have no feeling for, or love of. Lawyers, who do not care for right and justice, but are lining their own pockets. Bankers, who have no interest in the needs of their customers and investors, only in their profit and bonuses. Politicians, who have no care at all for their constituents, but seek their own glory. In every walk of life people suffer in jobs they hate and are ill suited to do. They suffer because they are trapped by the greed of others. These things are not of my making; they are the results of sin and greed.

My love for mankind is so great, that I have not totally destroyed him many times! My love is so great that I put in place, for man to use, everything that he needs, to be fully provided for and for the earth itself to be self sustaining. It is man, in his immaturity, that has abused and misused all I have provided for him. But he doesn't need to do this. If only he would stop turning his back on me and just acknowledge the miracle of creation and the wonderful provision I have made for him. If only he would stop from his busy-ness, trying to get rich, and begin to explore the riches I have provided for the good of all mankind.

I call on my people everywhere, to stop seeking after mammon and seek first the kingdom of your God. Seek the righteousness that I desire of you. Instead of looking inward, open your eyes to those around you. Instead of opening your mouths in slander and curses, bless those around you and wish them well. Tell them of me and of my love. Pursue all that makes for peace and goodwill. Then, and only then, all the riches that most men seek, will be added to you. I am the Lord who created you and loves you.

Language of the heart

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for our walk and your company. Thank you for listening to all my ramblings and concerns and for the wonderful peace you give me when I have unloaded it. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning Martin. Welcome to the club this morning and thank you for your company. I love to listen to your ramblings. I always love it when my children talk to me out of their hearts. I would rather hear one faltering prayer from the heart than an hour of prayers written by another. The prayer from the heart doesn't need to be well composed or even coherent, I know what you are saying because I read your heart.

That is why praying in tongues is so helpful. You don't need an accurate word for word translation, as long as it flows from your innermost being. Think of it a bit like a computer. You can feed into the keyboard your English words and symbols, but inside the message is racing around the chips in a totally different language. Were you able to slow it down to a speed you could decipher it you would still not understand it unless you first learn to decode, or interpret it. The language of the heart is a spiritual language that is used in Heaven. You can feel it, and understand it, but you don't actually need to run it through the intellect or language centre in your brain to understand it. You only need to do that if you want to describe it to another person. Like the language of love it needs no words. This is why the good news about salvation is universal. You don't need to be a great intellectual to receive it, and often the highly intellectual person finds it hard to receive, because it doesn't always conform to human understanding and knowledge.

You will remember from your childhood a saying that was very common: 'Feelings ain't Facts.' Well I want to tell you that feelings are a very important part of the language of love and the Kingdom. I gave man the ability to feel. I also gave him another sense which the world calls instinct. Nine times out of ten what you think of as instinct is a spiritual nudge from me. Learn to discern what is from me, and don't be afraid to ask me. There are so many gifts and abilities I have given to mankind that still lie dormant because he has grasped knowledge above life. Knowledge does not give life, but living life brings knowledge. The tree of Life was more important than the tree of Knowledge. Choose Life!

So, pray your prayers from the heart. Don't be concerned about their composition or beauty, just pour them out to me. I love to hear them and I honour and hold precious, every prayer from the heart, prayed by anyone. Listen to the prayers of others, and hear in them the love that wells up from the heart, and be glad that your Heavenly Father hears, through the tears and the sighs. He hears through the pain and the hurt, and he alone reaches into that secret place and delivers healing, warmth and comfort. Open the door to let his love in. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. Whoever opens the door of their heart to me, will find I come in, and with My Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit, we make our dwelling within you. Why? Because we love you.

The Gifts of My Spirit

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

Lord: Good morning Martin. Welcome to the 5 O'clock Club this morning and thank you for joining us on our tour of the estate. We love you too.

I want you all to get to know My Spirit, for in the days to come you are going to need My Spirit with you all the time, working closely with you, and directing your pathway. It is through My Spirit that you are able to take up the battle cry Jesus is Lord! Let My Spirit be in your speaking. Commit every word you say to me and let My Spirit put the words into your mouths. As you allow the Spirit to speak through you, you will begin to notice the prophetic nature of your words. It is the prophetic word, the word from me, that will break down the barriers the Evil One has built up, that keep the children of men from hearing me speak to them. The prophetic word will smash through those barriers and speak comfort to those who tremble and are afraid.

It is My Spirit who gives you all the gifts and tools that you need in ministry. It is My Spirit who equips you to walk the Christian walk. Out of my store house He gives the very latest and most advanced tools to help you break down the works of the Evil One, and build up and strengthen the faint hearted.

It is through My Spirit that I dispense wisdom and knowledge. Notice how I group those two gifts together! Wisdom gives you the ability to use knowledge and to discern truth. When mankind stretched out his hand and took the fruit of the tree of knowledge, he acted without wisdom. Wisdom helps you to use and understand knowledge. The gifts that I give through My Spirit are very special and the wisdom I give is not worldly wisdom, but divine. Into a specific situation I will drop a word of wisdom or a work of knowledge. Use them carefully and in a timely way. By that I mean use them when I direct. Speak into the appropriate moment, for my words are spoken into the 'now!' An undue delay can mean that the word loses its power, because the moment has passed. So exercise wisdom as you speak the word of knowledge.

My Spirit also distributes the gift of faith. Now here I am not speaking of the faith to believe in Jesus, although that is also given by me. No, this is a specific gift, given by My Spirit to those who already believe in me. It gives to the receiver the ability to hold on and believe for, the things he cannot see, the things others hold as impossible. That is why I am linking faith with  gifts of healing. One of the reasons the church does not see as much healing as I want to perform, is that it lacks the faith to ask! I want all my children to have the faith to ask me, and to believe that I hear every prayer, for it is when the church believes that I am Almighty, that miracles and healing follow.

Healing is a special gift. Those who deliver the gift of healing exercise faith, while not being the recipient. The gift is specifically for another, the one who needs healing. It is wrong to think of one person as a healer. Jesus is the healer, the Holy Spirit is the bearer of the gift, and one with faith delivers it. Sometimes it requires faith on the part of the receiver, but that is unusual. The main requirement of the one to be healed is that they are open to the love offered as the gift is given.

The ability to speak in other tongues and to interpret them is also a gift of My Spirit. Once again this should not be confused with the natural ability to speak in foreign languages. Speaking in tongues is directly related to speaking My Word. It may be used in prayer, or to deliver prophecy or wisdom, or on rare occasions it may be used to preach to a congregation who speak a different language. The gift of interpretation is specific to prayers and words given in tongues, and is not just the ability to translate other languages.

I want to deal lastly with distinguishing between spirits. The western world has largely ignored the spiritual realm for so long now, that it has forgotten that there is a battle going on all the time between good and evil. This battle takes place in the spiritual realm, because there are spirits of evil as well as the Spirit of God. Many things are spoken and done, not by the Spirit of God, but by the Spirit of Darkness. He can be very hard to distinguish because so much of what he says is lies that tickle the fancy. Some of his lies are what people think they want to hear. Distinguishing  the spirits is therefore a vital tool for all believers. When a voice inside you says, "Hey, hang on, that doesn't feel right," that is the moment to stop and re-evaluate the situation. You may think that sounds like conscience. Well it is. I put man's conscience there in the first place when I breathed into him the breath of life, so the God shaped bit of man responds to the gift of My Spirit.

In the coming months as I work in the world, all the gifts which My Spirit has distributed amongst believers will be needed. Accept them thankfully and learn from me how to use them. They all require an element of faith to use, but I have already supplied you with enough to use what I am giving. Be bold be strong, and be courageous. I am with you, Jesus is with you, the Holy Spirit is with you. We love you.