Don’t milk it for all it’s worth..

“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest.  And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.” - Leviticus 19:9-10

I love this.

I love this so much.

In this, we see a command not to take every penny for ourselves. Here is the message: some of our wealth was given to us to be given away. The LORD who controls the harvest and how fruitful it is says to you, “Look! Your harvest is bountiful  this month. You have all the riches you need. So give what I have portioned to be given away! Every last cent that you own has been given to you out of My love for you. Use it as I wish, and I wish to bless others with it.”

Isn’t He amazing?

You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

Psalm 40:5.

Oh what joy! That the LORD has been so good to me that I could never be able to speak of all His mercies. Even if I never ceased to declare them, this fleeting body would run out of breath. 

God is good, and He has done great things.

I will live to proclaim His goodness to me, for - oh! - it has been abundant.

I’m sitting in front of Exodus 32

Afraid to read, and afraid to confront my golden calves, but knowing it must be done.

I am Yours, I am Yours - for all my days, Jesus, I am Yours.

Genesis 18-19

If I don’t write up what I’ve learned reading this me in the next few days, please hassle me. The LORD is good and has given me great revelations through His Word on what it means to intercede in prayer, and how we should do it. He’s also taught me about how to (and how not to!) rebuke, and how to receive rebuke. 
Finally there’s lots more that I’ve learned about divine mercy, and lessons about sprinting forward in this race as we seek Christ. 

Please pray for wisdom and clarity as I write my posts; and do keep me accountable on writing them. This new knowledge is to be shared!

Genesis 14

I love reading Genesis. All these stories that you’ve forgotten. 

Seriously, this one is worth reading. Pick up your Bible right now! Or click this link, and read with me!

In chapter 14, Lot’s been abducted by a bunch of kings, and so Abram, with his 318 trained men, go in the night and defeat the kings and bring back Lot and all the others who were abducted, as well as all the possessions that were stolen.

What.

Whenever I think of Abram in the Bible, all I really remember is the old man Abraham, great in his faith. It’s wonderful to read more about how God works in his life.

What’s even more amazing, though, is what happens in verses 17-24. The king of Sodom, and Melchizedek (the King of Salem but also the high priest) come to greet Abram, especially since Abram’s just defeated his enemies. Melchizedek blesses Abram, and attributes his victory to the Lord. Abram gives him a tenth of all his belongings, affirming the truthfulness of these words. Then the king of Sodom is a pretty ungrateful man who demands to have all the people back, saying that he’ll let Abram keep all the material possessions.

And then Abram says no.

I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’

Abram was promised by God that he was going to be made into a great nation and that his name would be great. Abram had relied on his own plans before rather than trusting God before, and he knew that when his own plans backfired, it was God who rescued him. So this time he says no. He says no to the plans of man. He seems no to what seems logical, seems comfortable. He says no to relying on the gifts of earthly kings and yes to relying on God, so that should people even try to attribute his future greatness to man, they would not have adequate evidence to do so. He says no, because he trusts that when God makes a promise, He has the power to carry it through. I pray that you and I would do the same! 

But Noah found favour in His eyes

An act of mercy.

I wonder what it feels like, for Your creation to be made so very good, only for it then to turn against You in rebellion. I wonder what it felt like when You watched as what was beautiful turned rotten and perverted. For we saw what was attractive and just took it as we wished. We didn’t care who was hurt in the process; we didn’t care for Your will. We saw what would bring themselves pleasure, and we took it.

Isn’t this inherently the problem with our world? That people see what attracts them, and we make up their mind to just take it?

And it grieved Your heart. I’ve felt regret before. When that pain of, “what if I hadn’t?” just tears into your heart. God, we forget that You have a heart. We forget that You grieve. A Father, who provided only the best for His children, stands by as we tear down everything that He made to be good. And Your heart breaks. We had no intention to ever turn back to You; We had every intention of continual evil. 

O Lord, may sin grieve me as it grieves You. May the pain of man’s rebellion pierce my heart as it pierces Yours.

And yet, there was a glimmer of hope. A man called Noah, who found favour in Your eyes. You could have started again completely. We failed You. We were given the power to choose, and we failed You. You could have wiped us out, every one of us. You could have started again with a new batch, made without the mercy and gracious gift of the choice of obedience or disobedience; without the choice of life or death, of what You wanted for us or what we wanted for ourselves.

But You didn’t. You knew already that You were going to redeem Your people and restore this brokenness. You were willing to be patient.

And so, Noah found favour in Your eyes.

The hope of life after the flood. 

Sin is crouching at the door

2012. One day in.

Sin is crouching at the door.

Most people make resolutions, and we make them for many different reasons. Maybe you’ve made them for yourself; maybe your reasoning for wanting to work hard is to get a promotion, to be recognised for your hard work. Maybe you’ve made them because you think God won’t love you unless you make yourself perfect. Maybe you think nobody will want to date you or marry you if you don’t change. Maybe you  made them to please other people, like your parents. 

But, perhaps after prayer and being convicted, you’ve made them because in your heart you know that your life isn’t glorifying Christ, and you want it to. Maybe you’ve been relying on your boyfriend or your girlfriend too much, or let go of time with the Lord in your busy-ness. Maybe you’ve been distracted and you want to fix your eyes on Jesus again.

I don’t know what resolutions you made. You might have parts of the old flesh that you still need to cut off from the new creation. Perhaps you want 2012 to be the year that you stop procrastinating, gossiping, lusting, binge drinking, self-harming, purging. Perhaps it’s the year you want to let go of the porn addiction. Maybe you know you need to stop falling for the wrong kind of people. Maybe this is the year you want to stop spending all your money on worthless things.

Just know this: sin is crouching at the door.

The enemy hates when you are determined to fight in this battle. The enemy hates when you are determined to let go of addictions and look to the Cross. And he will do whatever he can to stop you.

He will lie to you. He will show you all the “good” of forbidden things. He will bombard you with reasons about why you should keep holding on. You will be more tempted in your determination to let go than before. If you are determined to start being wiser with your money, it may be that in the next few months, there will be potential purchases that you want more than anything else you’ve bought before. If you want to rise early to meet with the Lord, you may wake up feeling sleepier than you anticipated and want to just hide under the covers for a few more hours. If you want to stop falling for those who don’t really love you, you will start finding yourself more attracted to those who don’t love you. If it’s to let go of an addiction, you will find yourself itching to stumble more and more. If it’s to view your body as the LORD views it, beautiful and without flaw, then the enemy will keep telling you that you are ugly - and he will tell you over and over again.

Brothers and sisters, know that I am praying for you. I pray for your protection, I pray for strength, and I pray that you will hear His voice, when He says:

Beloved, let go.

I have bigger plans for you. I want to lead you out of the wilderness, and I want you to lean on Me. But you have to let go. Listen not to the enemy. He lies to you, for he hates you. But I will always speak to you in truth, faithfully, for I am the Truth. He will tell you not to listen. He will tell you that I am withholding pleasure from you. But beloved, know this. I withhold no good thing from you. In My presence, your cup will overflow, and you will lack no joy. Come away, beloved. Come away from the old, for I have made you into a new creation. Sin is crouching at the door, beloved. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it. I will give you the strength. You have all you need, and I will be with you always. Just let go, and trust Me.

The Stoning of Stephen

Now when they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out with a loud voice and sotpped their ears and rushed together at him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And falling to his knees he cried out wiht a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

- Acts 7:54-60

What a man of great courage in a moment of great terror.

This passage always moves my heart. Stephen saw Jesus rightly as the King that He is. His love for the LORD caused him to gaze into heaven, fixing his eyes on God and not the opposition before Him. And as he saw the glory of God, he was strengthened to reflect Christ radically as he forgave freely.

Seeing the LORD Jesus for who He is will only naturally lead to such courage. When our eyes are opened to see that He is great and He is for us, our hearts are filled with strength and boldness. May we be so filled with the Spirit that we fix our eyes on the things of heaven. May our eyes and hearts be opened to see and know the living King, so that we may be His witnesses to all the ends of the earth.

The lame begger healed.

What a story.

I’ve known it since I was young and did all the actions to that song. But the LORD gave me new eyes to read this passage (Acts 3:1-10) today.

¹Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. ²And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. ³Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. ⁴And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” ⁵And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. ⁶But Peter said, ”I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” ⁷And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. ⁸And leaping up he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. ⁹And all the people saw him walking and praising God, ¹⁰and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Here is a man who, because of an infirmity, was expected to do nothing more than to beg. He was cut off from the rest of the society, and had no hope for life except for the coins people would throw to him occasionally. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine having nothing to do all day except to lie at the feet of strangers and ask for their money and pity?

Then Peter and John come. They come, and they can’t meet this man’s material needs. But that’s not what they’re here for. Rather than throwing him a coin and going about his day,  Peter and John look directly into this man’s eyes. The look at his heart. They hear his request for alms but they see a greater need. They see why the man is kept at that gate every day. They have little to give when it comes to cash, but much to give when it comes to freedom. So Peter tells him, in the name of Christ, to stand up and walk; to walk away from the chains that held him to that darkness every day. Peter took his right hand and helped him up - and the LORD did it all. He made the man’s feet and ankles strong. The Spirit empowered him to go walking and leaping and praising God.

Many of you will know that the vision that the LORD has given me for my life is for ministry with the homeless, the poor and the mentally ill. I have a friend who sits out on a street corner, bound by his situation, every single day. He’s been there for over eight years. He asks for money, but I know he’s needing more than that.

I don’t want to put much more out there about this situation on my tumblr, but I am needing a group of prayer warriors to join with me in prayer. I will be sending out regular updates on how the LORD is answering them. The LORD is our strength, and we need the walls built around this man’s heart to be broken down. Like the walls of Jericho crumpled, I trust that the LORD will knock down the barriers to this man knowing life. If you’re interested in joining with me to pray and to see God do marvellous things in this man’s life, please write to me in my ask and let me know. When God’s people offer up their times and lives to His kingdom, great things happen.

O, Lord Jesus

I am so unworthy of Your presence.

I squandered the gifts You gave me. I rebelled in what I thought was freedom, but it was only death. And I gained a reputation. O, Jesus, I gained a reputation. And I was known. They knew what kind of woman I was. They knew that I was a sinner. Even the world knew. I wasn’t dirty just by the church’s standards - I was dirty beyond the world’s standards. 

And I heard. I knew that You were there and so I came. I came with an alabastar jar of perfume. I didn’t deserve to even see Your face, so I stood behind You. And I wept. O, my Lord, I wept. And those tears of brokenness and repentance flowed like a river to Your feet. I knew my failure. I knew. I fell to my knees. I was so undeserving even of this, my Lord. I was undeserving of the privilege to be on  the ground behind you, where I couldn’t see Your eyes, weeping onto Your precious feet. I wiped them dry with my hair and I poured out the fragrance of my alabastar jar. You deserve so much more than this. You deserve so much more than some perfume from a sinful woman.

And You turned to me. You turned to me and You said it out loud so that the rest of the world around me could hear. You told me: Your sins are forgiven. You declared it. My many sins have been forgiven. My many stains have been washed clean. For those who have been forgiven much, love much. O Lord, open my eyes. Open my eyes to see how wretched my sin is, that I may know the depth of Your forgiveness and overflow in praise, in a fragrance of praise pleasing to You.

O, beloved, do it all for the glory of God

O, beloved - why are we so caught up in this world? Why are we so worried about earthly things? Why do we indulge in momentary pleasures? Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we shall await a Saviour, the LORD Jesus Christ!

O, beloved - why are we forgetting? Why are we forgetting that the day will come as a thief in the night? Why do we allow ourselves to become distracted from the hope of His return? Why are we so easily seduced, when we know that it is on that day when we will appear with him in glory?

O, beloved - why are we so confused? We have been raised with Christ, far above the things of this earth. Set your hearts on the things of above, for that is where Christ is seated. Let go. Let go of the things of this world, for they lead to death, and cling to the hope that is to come. Cling to the cross and remember that you have put on your new selves.

O, beloved - let yourselves be renewed. Let yourselves be renewed in knowledge of the LORD and moulded into the image of your Creator. You were made to be a reflection of God. Be restored.

O, beloved - clothe yourselves. You are His chosen. You are holy and dearly loved. Clothe yourselves in love and all that it binds together. Be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, and patient. Bear with one another, for the LORD has been patient with you. You are members of one body, and you have been called to His peace, a peace that the world cannot understand.

O, beloved - let the word of Christ dwell in you. Let it dwell in you richly. Let it dwell and grow and blossom into teaching and rebuking and encouraging as we run together in this race. Meditate on it day and night and let it bear its fruit. Let it direct you in wisdom as it sheds light on your path. Let it steer you into songs of praise, let it tune your heart to sing a melody to the LORD. Let its promises spark an overflow of gratitude to Christ.

O, beloved - give glory to Christ. Whatever you do, be it word or deed, do it in His Name. Do it all for the glory of God.

What a King we worship

The Father…has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

- Colossians 1:12-13

Oh my word. What a King we worship. What a kingdom we have been welcomed into! Do you realise that we will serve, for the rest of an eternity, a King who washes the feet of His servants? Let that truth just flood your soul for a moment. 

God is worthy of all your praise, because of His power. And yet He stoops down washes your feet. And God is worthy of all your praise, because of His justice. And yet He stoops down in mercy and love.

I wish I had the words to communicate to you how complicated and wonderful His character is. The glory of God is carried in all that He is. Mighty. Powerful. Strong. He has a voice that sounds like rushing waters. When people’s eyes were opened to see the Son of Man in His glory, they always responded with reverence. And yet, He is a God who will stoop down to draw in the dirt, to free you from condemnation. He is a God who will forgive you and give you another chance to love  Him, when you’ve already denied Him three times. He is a God who will heal and restore you, even if the strength of your faith is weak, for He restores those who place their faith in Him. He is a God who is willing to be forsaken for you. 

I wish I had the words to describe. Words just don’t do Him justice.

Thy justice, like mountains, high soaring above Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

God is so great.

In our world today we are so about ourselves that it’s so easy to forget just how small we are.

And then one glimpse at Jesus, shining in glory, seated on the throne, and all you can do is fall to the ground with fear and trembling.

He is so holy. I am so small. He is so holy. He is so great. He holds time in His hand. Death could not hold Him down. Through Him all creation was made. 

Brothers and sisters, do you realise how great a God we worship?

I was made for His pleasure. I was made for His glory.

I want to Him to put life in perspective every single day. I yearn for more and more glimpses as I await that day when He returns and every part of me and all of the universe will just bow down in awe.

God is so great. I am such a small potato; not even deserving to be in His presence, and yet He delights in us as we delight in Him.

How is that possible? How can that be?

God is so great.

your life will not make sense until you realise you were made for a purpose

We were created to worship. We were created to lift His Name in all that we do. We were made to adore Him. We were made to know the King of Kings, to bring Him glory; to love and be loved by Him.

There have been Christians before and around me who have learned to realise His presence no matter where they are. Their focus on serving the King is so real, that their work is no less worship before the throne than their time of prayer. I long for that to be true for me, and I invite Him to open my eyes to see Him throughout my day. I was made to worship the eternal God of the universe, the great I AM, with every breath. May I never reserve Him for Sundays, or for mornings, or for moments before I sleep.

Oh Spirit, fix my eyes on Christ. Flood my soul with this truth, that in all that I do I live out my purpose. To Jesus be glory and honour and praise.

I am Jesus, the One that you’re not leaning on

I was the  One who brought you out of brokenness and depressin in the first place. Will you not trust that I will keep carrying you? I care for you. I have everything you need. You won’t be put to shame; I won’t let that happen. Cling to Me. I know it’s going to be hard work - but I will equip you and bring strength to your bones. When you turn to Me, I will sustain you and you will commune with Me in such a way that people can’t help but see Me when they look at you. I won’t put you to shame. The next year will be hard - that’s why you must keep coming to Me, for My burden is light and My yoke is easy. The next few weeks will be difficult, but you must remember that it is I who will fight for you. And the next year is to be My year, not yours. I love you. Remember that I am a rewarder of those who seek Me with all they have.

Trust Me, beloved.

I am Jesus, the One you will come up out of the wilderness leaning on.