All posts tagged: presence of god

Where do you feel the closest to God?

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I met with a friend a few days ago. He took me out for some Mexican Food at a place call Sol Mexican Grill. The food is amazing there. At the end of of our wonderful time together, I asked him the following question: “My church is not growing, what else do I need to do? He looked at me and said, “I don’t know! I don’t know! What kind of answer is that? I thought to myself. “There is a lot of stuff you need to do, and all of them are equally important. But, there is one thing I would focus on the most,” He added. At this time he proceeded to tell me a story about a friend: “My friend went to Italy for vacation and he came back very excited about his visit. So I asked him what excited him the most on his trip. He said, it was a visit to one of the historic Cathedrals in Rome that blew his mind. He told me he had never felt that closed to …

Benefits fo Genuine Worship/ Part 2

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Every opportunity we have to meet with and worship God is an opportunity for God to release into our lives all of His goodness. When He shows up, he comes with healing, deliverance, and power. Worship releases God’s promise I remember hearing an old preacher many years ago saying the following… “praise is the plow that prepares the heart for the planting of the promises of God.” – Psalm 103:1-5 says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Sometimes, before there is a healing, a deliverance, a releasing of love and mercy or the comforting presence of God, there must be worship. This is one of the easiest ways to walk in God’s blessings. Heartfelt, genuine worship of the King. Worship has …

Holy Spirit: Hover over me – Rest upon me

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Genesis 1:2 The Spirit of the God was hovering over the waters Have you ever wondered what your church or your life would look like if there was a genuine and authentic move of the Spirit of God. I long again for the day when we would embrace His fullness in everything we do. I don’t mind all the new and creative things we are doing in our churches and the efforts individual believers are exerting to please God. But I am longing again for a move of God through His Spirit, because I’m convinced that where he is there is freedom, power and the ability to do greater things for God. He makes everything easy when He shows up. It is like the working of His mighty power within. When He is there, we do not only preach and teach than let  people go home without experiencing what we talked about in our sermons – we do it like Jesus did it: teaching, preaching, healing, and delivering those oppressed by the devil by the power of …

listening: a greater service than speaking.

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Christians, especially ministers, so often think they must always contribute something when they are in the company of others, that this is the one service they have to render. They forget that listening can be a greater service than speaking. Many people are looking for an ear that will listen. They do not find it among Christians, because these Christians are talking where they should be listening. But he who can no longer listen to his brother will soon be no longer listening to God either; he will be doing nothing but prattle in the presence of God too. This is the beginning of the death of the spiritual life, and in the end there is nothing left but spiritual chatter. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together (New York: Harper & Row, 1954), pages 97-8.