All posts tagged: Holy Spirit

My Beautiful Tension

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Every Sunday morning before I take the pulpit to speak, I wrestle with what I am about to deliver: Is this of God? Is this what the Spirit wants me to share today? Have I study enough, prepared enough? Many mornings I am led to preach something other than I prepared. Other times I walk to the pulpit, heart pounding, not knowing what I am going to say. I would love to say I am spot on every time, but that wouldn’t be true. I miss him sometimes – but when I do hear Him and obey Him, it’s glorious. Every afternoon I take sometime to reflect upon the message preached. I celebrate what God did during service. I praise him for the response of His people to His word. Sometimes I second guess what I shared, even though, I know He was in my preparation. Did I miss God? Was I obedient to His voice? I thank God for testimonies heard I weep sometimes – especially when I don’t see Him move Than again …

Sprinkled for greater works

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The Reference 1 Samuel‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬ NLT “Now the LORD said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.” 1 John 2:27 NLT “But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie-just as it has taught you, abide in him.” The meaning The word “anoint” means to rub or sprinkle on; apply an unguent, ointment, or oily liquid to. Persons in the Old Testament were often literally anointed with oil. For example, priests were anointed for their special service to the LORD (Exodus 28:41). Literal oil would be applied, but as a sign of the Holy Spirit upon their lives and service. The oil on the head was only …

7 Reasons why God won’t use you

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Throughout time, God has, in His Sovereignty, chosen to use people to accomplish his purpose. When he needed a deliverer for his people in Egypt, he called Moses. When he needed to finally save men from sin and damnation, he chose Mary to bring Jesus into the world. He used a stick to part the Red Sea, a little boy’s lunch of fish and bread to feed thousands. He even spoke through a donkey at one time. So God is in the business of using people to accomplish his plan. But as much as God wants to use us, sometimes he cannot adequately use us because we get in His way. The following are 7 reasons God cannot adequately use you. 1. You steal His Glory I am the Lord ; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.  Isaiah 42:8 ESV Satan was banished for it Nebuchadnezzar regretted it Herod was killed for it. Simon was cursed for trying to buy for his glory Paul …

How to live a Spirit Empowered Life

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How active is the Holy Spirit in your life?  Are you living the abundant Christian life the Jesus promised to all his followers?  I believe it all depends on how much access and freedom you give him to truly live a Spirit empowered life. The case for the Spirit The first question to ask is where is the Holy Spirit in the Bible and how involved is Him in the grand scheme of things. In the Old Testament  We first find Him in the beginning as the source of life.  He strives with men.  He is the very manifestation of God.  He has a special relationship with Israel; he guides and empowers men from all walks of life to do exploits for God. In the New Testament In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit’s role in the ministry of Jesus and in the Early Church is on full display. In fact, the Holy Spirit launched the public ministry of Jesus.  As we read the gospels and particularly the Book of Acts, He is also involved in the …

Refreshing Times of Reconciliation

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This short epistle (letter) written by Paul to Philemon has one of the most powerful messages on conflict resolution in the bible. This story is not only a powerful demonstration of the gospel to transform lives (“formerly he was useless” but “now he is indeed useful,” v. 11), but also a demonstration of the powerful impact the gospel can have on human relationships as well (receive him “no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother,” v. 16). Apparently during Paul’s three-year ministry in Ephesus, Philemon heard the gospel and was saved. He began serving the cause of Christ in the Colossian community, opening his home for a group of Christians to meet there regularly. At some point, Onesimus, one of Philemon’s slaves, fled to Rome, possibly having stolen money (or property) from Philemon and now a fugitive. Onesimus somehow came into contact with the apostle Paul and became a Christian. As he grew in Christ, he spent much time and effort helping Paul, who was severely constrained by his imprisonment. Paul thus wrote this letter as an appeal to Philemon to appreciate …

Rolling Up your sleeves

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1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. The idea “of preparing for action” is much like the phrase “rolling up your sleeves.” God is calling us to roll up our sleeves and get to work on the most important thing in life – our faith, our relationship with him. Two thoughts from 1 Peter 1:13 1. Prepare you mind for action. Be Sober. This means to take a serious look at life. There must come a time in the life of every person when he or she must ask the hard or most important questions. What am I doing with my life? Where will I go if I were to die today? What is the meaning of all of this, God, Jesus, this world, church, suffering, my faith and christian life etc…? Am I on the right track? Am I sober? Am I right with God – am I growing as I should – is …

100 Years of Fire

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Four days ago I had the privilege of revisiting a very historic Church right in the heart of San Francisco. They kicked off a three month celebration of 100 years of fruitful ministry to the city. The senior pastors of Glad Tidings San Francisco, Forrest & Christina Beiser are my spiritual parents. With them I served the Church and the city for about four years. So I was very glad to be back. We had a special time celebrating and looking back on all the great things God had done and all the pastors and their families The Lord used in the process. Robert and Mary Craig, founders of Glad Tidings Temple and Bible Institute, were part of a religious movement that since the early 1900′s has become the largest branch of contemporary Protestantism. The history of this part of Christianity is remarkable, and so is the history of the development of Glad Tidings Church. This movement emphasized that GOD could be a part of every area of life, that GOD could be experienced, and …

It is Mine!

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Now therefore, give me this mountain of which the LORD spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall be able to drive them out as the LORD said. The Story This is a story we are all very familiar with… the story of the children of Israel before they actually entered the promise land. In the text above, Caleb comes to Joshua and reminds him of things that happened about 45 years earlier when God told them to enter the promise land. He (Caleb) and Joshua were two of the few that went up to explore the promised land and actually returned with great news and faith – that even though there were giants in the land, they were going to stand on the promises of God – that every piece of land they walked on shall be theirs. Well, we know that some of the other guys came back with a …

FIGHTING Demons with a Machete

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It should also be of interest to you that most of the new church – the independent churches that have sprang up and are springing all over the continent of African are lead by men and wormen that left local churches from every major denomination in Africa (from the Assemblies of God, Baptist, Catholic, Methodist ect…). And usually these young men and women left because of a lack of leadership – one that inspires, impacts and deploys, lack of opportunities to use their gifts, because those in charge felt threatened, a lack of gospel power and Holy Spirit’s fire, and a lack of vision to do church differently – take risks – do new things – do some out of the box ministries. tap into the energy of the young.

Divine Appointments

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El Roi – The God of Seeing I have studied Genesis chapter 16 many times but didn’t realize there was a deeper truth hiding in this verse 13. The angel of the Lord comes to Hagar and begins to speak some very comforting words to her. We understand that Hagar is in this place because she we kicked out of Sarah’s and Abraham’s home after bearing a child for the couple. After the angel appeared to her and began to talk with her; she mentions something very profound – but you will miss it if you don’t pause for a second or two to dig a little deeper.  She said,  “you are the God who sees.” Hagar is impressed by the perceptiveness of God as revealed through his angel-messenger. This is seen in the name she gives to the Lord; she calls him ’El Ro’i – meaning – God of seeing. For she is saying – here I have seen him who looks after me. Divine Appointments A similar thing happens again in the New Testament where Jesus comforts a non-Hebrew woman …