Manna for Mystics

Peace

2011-11-30T06:23:00.000-08:00

Pride, position, pomp, power, property, payment, do not equal PEACE!

Be Thou My Vision

2011-09-30T07:12:00.000-07:00

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

WSTK-ITV- It's Supernatural: Soaking Prayer Cindy Parton

2011-04-13T21:21:00.000-07:00

Hound of Heaven

2011-02-18T11:18:00.000-08:00

I fled Him, down the nights and down the days; I fled Him, down the arches of the years; I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from Him, and under running laughter. Up vistaed hopes I sped; And shot, precipitated, Adown Titanic glooms of chasmed fears, From those strong Feet that followed, followed after. But with unhurrying chase, And unperturbèd pace, Deliberate speed, majestic instancy, They beat--and a Voice beat More instant than the Feet-- "All things betray thee, who betrayest Me." I pleaded, outlaw-wise, By many a hearted casement, curtained red, Trellised with intertwining charities (For, though I knew His love Who followed, Yet was I sore adread Lest having Him, I must have naught beside); But if one little casement parted wide, The gust of His approach would clash it to. Fear wist not to evade, as Love wist to pursue. Across the margent of the world I fled, And troubled the gold gateways of the stars, Smiting for shelter on their clanged bars; Fretted to dulcet jars And silvern chatter the pale ports o' the moon. I said to dawn, Be sudden; to eve, Be soon; With thy young skyey blossoms heap me over From this tremendous Lover! Float thy vague veil about me, lest He see! I tempted all His servitors, but to find My own betrayal in their constancy, In faith to Him their fickleness to me, Their traitorous trueness, and their loyal deceit. To all swift things for swiftness did I sue; Clung to the whistling mane of every wind. But whether they swept, smoothly fleet, The long savannahs of the blue; Or whether, Thunder-driven, They clanged his chariot 'thwart a heaven Plashy with flying lightnings round the spurn o' their feet-- Still with unhurrying chase, And unperturbèd pace, Deliberate speed, majestic instancy, Came on the following Feet, And a Voice above their beat-- "Naught shelters thee, who wilt not shelter Me." I sought no more that after which I strayed In face of man or maid; But still within the little children's eyes Seems something, something that replies; They at least are for me, surely for me! I turned me to them very wistfully; But, just as their young eyes grew sudden fair With dawning answers there, Their angel plucked them from me by the hair. "Come then, ye other children, Nature's--share With me," said I, "your delicate fellowship; Let me greet you lip to lip, Let me twine with you caresses, Wantoning With our Lady-Mother's vagrant tresses' Banqueting With her in her wind-walled palace, Underneath her azured daïs, Quaffing, as your taintless way is, From a chalice Lucent-weeping out of the dayspring." So it was done; I in their delicate fellowship was one-- Drew the bolt of Nature's secrecies. I knew all the swift importings On the wilful face of skies; I knew how the clouds arise Spumèd of the wild sea-snortings; All that's born or dies Rose and drooped with--made them shapers Of mine own moods, or wailful or divine-- With them joyed and was bereaven. I was heavy with the even, When she lit her glimmering tapers Round the day's dead sanctities. I laughed in the morning's eyes. I triumphed and I saddened with all weather, Heaven and I wept together, And its sweet tears were salt with mortal mine; Against the red throb of its sunset-heart I laid my own to beat, And share commingling heat; But not by that, by that, was eased my human smart. In vain my tears were wet on Heaven's gray cheek. For ah! we know not what each other says, These things and I; in sound I speak-- Their sound is but their stir, they speak by silences. Nature, poor stepdame, cannot slake my drouth; Let her, if she would owe me, Drop yon blue bosom-veil of sky, and show me The breasts of her tenderness; Never did any milk of hers once bless My thirsting mouth. Nigh and nigh draws the chase, With unperturbèd pace, Deliberate speed, majestic instancy; And past those noisèd Feet A voice comes yet more fleet-- "Lo naught contents thee, who content'st not Me." Naked I wait Thy love's uplifted stroke! My harness piece by piece Thou hast hewn from me, And smitten me to my knee; I am defenseless utterly. I slept, methinks, and woke, And, slowly gazing, find me stripped in sleep. In the rash lustihead of my young powers, I shook the pillaring hours And pulled my life upon me; grimed with smears, I stand amid the dust o' the mounded years-- My mangled youth lies dead beneath the heap. My days have crackled and gone up in smoke, Have puffed and burst as sun-starts on a stream. Yea, faileth now even dream The dreamer, and the lute the lutanist; Even the linked fantasies, in whose blossomy twist I swung the earth a trinket at my wrist, Are yielding; cords of all too weak account For earth with heavy griefs so overplussed. Ah! is Thy love indeed A weed, albeit amaranthine weed, Suffering no flowers except its own to mount? Ah! must-- Designer infinite!-- Ah! must Thou char the wood ere Thou canst limn with it? My freshness spent its wavering shower i' the dust; And now my heart is a broken fount, Wherein tear-drippings stagnate, spilt down ever From the dank thoughts that shiver Upon the sighful branches of my mind. Such is; what is to be? The pulp so bitter, how shall taste the rind? I dimly guess what Time in mist confounds; Yet ever and anon a trumpet sounds From the hid battlements of Eternity; Those shaken mists a space unsettle, then Round the half-glimpsed turrets slowly wash again. But not ere him who summoneth I first have seen, enwound With blooming robes, purpureal, cypress-crowned; His name I know, and what his trumpet saith. Whether man's heart or life it be which yields Thee harvest, must Thy harvest fields Be dunged with rotten death? Now of that long pursuit Comes on at hand the bruit; That Voice is round me like a bursting sea: "And is thy earth so marred, Shattered in shard on shard? Lo, all things fly thee, for thou fliest Me! Strange, piteous, futile thing, Wherefore should any set thee love apart? Seeing none but I makes much of naught," He said, "And human love needs human meriting, How hast thou merited-- Of all man's clotted clay rhe dingiest clot? Alack, thou knowest not How little worthy of any love thou art! Whom wilt thou find to love ignoble thee Save Me, save only Me? All which I took from thee I did but take, Not for thy harms. But just that thou might'st seek it in my arms. All which thy child's mistake Fancies as lost, I have stored for the at home; Rise, clasp My hand, and come!" Halts by me that footfall; Is my gloom, after all, Shade of His hand, outstreched caressingly? "Ah, fondest, blindest, weakest, I am He Whom thou seekest! Thou dravest love from thee, who dravest Me."

Francis Thompson (1859-1907)

Jesus Culture - Rooftops

2011-02-08T19:39:00.000-08:00

Enjoyment of God

2011-01-28T03:49:00.000-08:00

“The enjoyment of God is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To fully enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows; but God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the ocean.”
Jonathan Edwards (1761)

Jesus Loved...

2011-01-19T19:58:00.000-08:00

‎"Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister [Mary] and Lazarus." John 11:5 & "Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples [John], whom Jesus loved." John 13:23--Four people listed as being loved by Jesus--We can all add our names to that list!

Hillsong United - Yahweh (Faith + Hope + Love) HQ

2011-01-13T06:09:00.000-08:00

Uncommon Currency

2010-10-26T20:16:00.000-07:00

In the natural, we all need to work to earn money to go about our daily lives. We spend years getting an education and learning trades that will help us provide for ourselves and our families. We interact with our families & friends, talking with them, hugging and kissing them, and so on. We're thrilled and grateful when we have a good job, home for our family, food in our bellies, education for our children! Without an income of some kind it's nearly impossible to live! In correlation, the Kingdom of God, which is of course a supernatural realm merging and converging with the natural realm, also has currencies for lack of a better word. Gold would be one epitomy of a powerful commodity that can be quickly turned into any currency around the world. God doesn't usually appear physically to us and sit down for a chat in our livingrooms or walk over and give us a hug! And yet, He is very present, as the Bible tells us, wherever we are in the four corners of the earth. We cannot escape His Presence! He longs for an intimate relationship with us and would like us to do and be the same. Praying, talking with the Lord, communing with Him, waiting on the Lord, is among many other things, a currency that is far weightier and precious, than gold. It can move mountains! It is the most common vehicle chosen for intimacy and communication in our relationship with our Creator! Prayer is hard currency! What is passionate prayer? Affectionate prayer? Wars, famines, and droughts have ceased after men and women have spent time in prayer! People have been saved, healed and delivered when the children of the Most High pray. "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." Praying is as real an act as putting your arms around the Lord Jesus like John the Beloved had the privilege of doing. Oh God teach us to pray!

Chew On This for A While!

2010-10-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

...Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Colossians 1:27b (NKJV)

True Spiritual Joys

2010-10-20T11:51:00.000-07:00

Man cannot live without joy; therefore when he is deprived of true spiritual joys it is necessary that he become addicted to carnal pleasures.

St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Who Is This God

2010-10-13T11:12:00.000-07:00

Click on the link above and enjoy everyone!

Communion by Third Day to The Passion

2010-08-28T10:57:00.000-07:00

Click on the link above and enjoy everyone!

Mystery of the Indwelling Spirit

2010-08-24T22:20:00.000-07:00

The mystery of the indwelling Spirit is one of the most neglected realities. Theologically I believe it but in reality I live as though I walk alone, even when I have a Helper, a Teacher, and an eager Friend longing to live life with me. O, to walk in perpetual conversation with the One who knows me best and loves me most, to walk by faith and not by sight, leaning into this invisible Companion.

Misty Edwards from a facebook post on Aug. 25, 2010

Experience

2010-06-07T07:20:00.000-07:00

“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience, but spiritual beings having a human experience.”

Teilihard de Chardin (1881-1955), Jesuit priest

Psalm 34

2010-05-03T21:07:00.000-07:00

¹ I will bless the LORD at all times;
         His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
² My soul shall make its boast in the LORD;
         The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
³ Oh, magnify the LORD with me,
         And let us exalt His name together.

⁴ I sought the LORD, and He heard me,
         And delivered me from all my fears.
⁵ They looked to Him and were radiant,
         And their faces were not ashamed.
⁶ This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him,
         And saved him out of all his troubles.
⁷ The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him,
         And delivers them.

⁸ Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good;
         Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
⁹ Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints!
         There is no want to those who fear Him.
¹⁰ The young lions lack and suffer hunger;
         But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

¹¹ Come, you children, listen to me;
         I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
¹² Who is the man who desires life,
         And loves many days, that he may see good?
¹³ Keep your tongue from evil,
         And your lips from speaking deceit.
¹⁴ Depart from evil and do good;
         Seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵ The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous,
         And His ears are open to their cry.
¹⁶ The face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
         To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

¹⁷ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears,
         And delivers them out of all their troubles.
¹⁸ The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart,
         And saves such as have a contrite spirit.

¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
         But the LORD delivers him out of them all.
²⁰ He guards all his bones;
         Not one of them is broken.
²¹ Evil shall slay the wicked,
         And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
²² The LORD redeems the soul of His servants,
         And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.

A Psalm of David (NKJV)

Every Christian

2010-05-03T21:00:00.001-07:00

"Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter.”
Charles Spurgeon

Thank You!

2010-04-03T08:53:00.001-07:00

Thank You Father for sending Your Son. Thank You Lord Jesus for suffering and dying for us. Thank You Holy Spirit for raising Jesus from the dead so that we might have life everlasting with the Three in One!

777

2010-03-24T07:11:00.001-07:00

The Number of The Feast!

Inner Sweetness

2010-03-14T08:56:00.000-07:00

"For it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God Himself, and unless and until the hearers find God in personal experience, they are not the better for having heard the truth. The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into Him, that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts." A.W. Tozer (The Pursuit of God)

Veni Creator Spiritus

2010-01-31T04:51:00.000-08:00

COME, Holy Spirit, Creator blest,

and in our souls take up Thy rest;

come with Thy grace and heavenly aid

to fill the hearts which Thou hast made.

O comforter, to Thee we cry,

O heavenly gift of God Most High,

O fount of life and fire of love,

and sweet anointing from above.

Thou in Thy sevenfold gifts are known;

Thou, finger of God's hand we own;

Thou, promise of the Father, Thou

Who dost the tongue with power imbue.

Kindle our sense from above,

and make our hearts o'erflow with love;

with patience firm and virtue high

the weakness of our flesh supply.

Far from us drive the foe we dread,

and grant us Thy peace instead;

so shall we not, with Thee for guide,

turn from the path of life aside.

Oh, may Thy grace on us bestow

the Father and the Son to know;

and Thee, through endless times confessed,

of both the eternal Spirit blest.

Now to the Father and the Son,

Who rose from death, be glory given,

with Thou, O Holy Comforter,

henceforth by all in earth and heaven.

Amen.

Rabanus Maurus Magnentius (circa 780 – 4 February 856)

St. Patrick's Breastplate

2010-01-29T05:28:00.000-08:00

I arise today

Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,

Through the belief in the threeness,

Through confession of the oneness

Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today

Through the strength of Christ's birth with his baptism,

Through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial,

Through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension,

Through the strength of his descent for the judgment of Doom.

I arise today

Through the strength of the love of Cherubim,

In obedience of angels,

In the service of archangels,

In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,

In prayers of patriarchs,

In predictions of prophets,

In preaching of apostles,

In faith of confessors,

In innocence of holy virgins,

In deeds of righteous men.

I arise today

Through the strength of heaven:

Light of sun,

Radiance of moon,

Splendor of fire,

Speed of lightning,

Swiftness of wind,

Depth of sea,

Stability of earth,

Firmness of rock.

I arise today

Through God's strength to pilot me:

God's might to uphold me,

God's wisdom to guide me,

God's eye to look before me,

God's ear to hear me,

God's word to speak for me,

God's hand to guard me,

God's way to lie before me,

God's shield to protect me,

God's host to save me

From snares of devils,

From temptations of vices,

From everyone who shall wish me ill,

Afar and anear,

Alone and in multitude.

I summon today all these powers between me and those evils,

Against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and soul,

Against incantations of false prophets,

Against black laws of pagandom

Against false laws of heretics,

Against craft of idolatry,

Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,

Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul.

Christ to shield me today

Against poison, against burning,

Against drowning, against wounding,

So that there may come to me abundance of reward.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,

Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ on my right, Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today

Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,

Through belief in the threeness,

Through confession of the oneness,

Of the Creator of Creation.

St. Patrick (circa 389-461)

Christian Mystics Musings

2010-01-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

Christian Mystic is not an oxymoron. Christian Mystics have been around all throughout the history of the Church, starting with the likes of Mary Magdalene and John the Beloved from the New Testament to Madame Jeanne Guyon (1648-1717) and Brother Lawrence (1614-1691) and many unknown brothers and sisters in Jesus to this very day. Many of us believers in the West have unfortunately been fed and taught to live a spiritually non-experiential everyday Christian life. In some cases we've even been taught to suppress spiritual feelings and live a more cognitive Christianity. How many sermons in the US or in the West have you heard preached on how we can encounter and practice the manifest Presence of God? Yet, God is patient with us and is renewing His bride, increasing the longing and yearning in our hearts for Him. MORE LORD is our cry! Give all of us a fiery passionate love for You Lord God! May we truly love You with all of our hearts, minds, souls, and strength! Love in Jesus, Clint (admin.)

Mystics

2010-01-05T19:54:00.000-08:00

Mystics are men and women who...are wonder-workers who have fulfilled Jesus' prediction that His disciples would perform greater works than He did. Their miracles fascinate us because they are windows to the supernatural. But more than that, mystics show us what can happen when God touches human beings. Their lives paint a picture of what men and women become when God transforms them.
We get the word mystic from a Greek root that means "mystery." A mystic is a person who is "introduced into the mysteries." Broadly speaking, all Christians are mystics. We believe that by faith we are initiated into the mysteries of Christ's death and resurrection. But most Christians are not mystics in the technical sense because we have yet to penetrate the Christian mysteries in depth. That's what sets a true mystic apart from the crowd.
Mystics enjoy a special closeness to God. They get rid of all the clutter in their hearts to make more room for God.

from the book "Mystics & Miracles: True Stories of Lives Touched by God" by Bert Ghezzi p. xi

Brown to Blue?

2009-12-18T19:24:00.000-08:00

Just a tiny child
Three years old,
And a mother with a heart
All of gold.
Often did that mother say,
Jesus hears us when we pray,
For He's never far away
And He always answers.

Now, that tiny little child
Had brown eyes,
And she wanted blue instead
Like blue skies.
For her mother's eyes were blue
Like forget-me-nots. She knew
All her mother said was true,
Jesus always answered.

So she prayed for two blue eyes,
Said "Good night",
Went to sleep in deep content
And delight.
Woke up early, climbed a chair
By a mirror. Where, O where
Could the blue eyes be? Not there;
Jesus hadn't answered.

Hadn't answered her at all;
Never more
Could she pray; her eyes were brown
As before.
Did a little soft wind blow?
Came a whisper soft and low,
"Jesus answered. He said, No;
Isn't No an answer?"

Amy Carmichael (1867-1951) Missionary to India

Higher Power

2009-11-21T02:29:00.000-08:00

"Jesus was not crucified for being a good citizen, for being just a little nicer than everyone else. The powers of his day correctly saw him and his followers as subversives because they took orders from a higher power than Rome or Jerusalem. ...Jesus reduced the mark of a Christian to one word. 'By this all men will know that you are my disciples,' he said: 'if you love one another.' The most subversive act the church can take is consistently to obey that one command."

Philip Yancy in What's So Amazing About Grace p. 239

One Hundred Men

2009-11-21T02:25:00.000-08:00

"Of one hundred men, one will read the Bible; the ninety-nine will read the Christian."

Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899)

Banishment Into Bliss

2009-11-06T23:19:00.000-08:00

"... Those whom he saves from hell, he brings to heaven. He turns exile into ecstacy, and banishment into bliss."

Charles H. Spurgeon (1834–1892)

Ad Infinitum

2009-10-29T21:34:00.000-07:00

Oh, we are not going to suffer in eternity, only here during this life for but a little while! We who love Jesus and suffer with Him now are going to experience unimaginable ecstasy forever together! Heaven is waiting! A new heaven and a new earth will be created! Eternity has begun! May the Lord help us be faithful now to His great commands and leading. O God, that you would give all of us a daily taste of and hunger for what is coming, Who is coming and is now in us. We will be rewarded with His wonderful Presence ad infinitum, breathing in bliss beyond any of our wildest comprehension! Waves of His Glory. Lavished with His love, worshipping before Him without inhibitions. Clint (admin)

Burning Heart, Flaming Tongue

2009-10-28T20:10:00.000-07:00

“A burning heart will soon make room for a flaming tongue.”

Charles H. Spurgeon (1834–1892)

JESUS-Full of Grace and Truth

2009-08-23T00:36:00.000-07:00

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’”
John 1:14, 15 (NKJV)

Lincoln's Proclamation

2009-08-09T15:00:00.000-07:00

By the President of the United States of America.

A Proclamation.

Whereas, the Senate of the United States, devoutly recognizing the Supreme Authority and just Government of Almighty God, in all the affairs of men and of nations, has, by a resolution, requested the President to designate and set apart a day for National prayer and humiliation.

And whereas it is the duty of nations as well as of men, to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions, in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord.

And, insomuch as we know that, by His divine law, nations like individuals are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world, may we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war, which now desolates the land, may be but a punishment, inflicted upon us, for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole People? We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power, as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us!

It behooves us then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.

Now, therefore, in compliance with the request, and fully concurring in the views of the Senate, I do, by this my proclamation, designate and set apart Thursday, the 30th. day of April, 1863, as a day of national humiliation, fasting and prayer. And I do hereby request all the People to abstain, on that day, from their ordinary secular pursuits, and to unite, at their several places of public worship and their respective homes, in keeping the day holy to the Lord, and devoted to the humble discharge of the religious duties proper to that solemn occasion.

All this being done, in sincerity and truth, let us then rest humbly in the hope authorized by the Divine teachings, that the united cry of the Nation will be heard on high, and answered with blessings, no less than the pardon of our national sins, and the restoration of our now divided and suffering Country, to its former happy condition of unity and peace.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this thirtieth day of March, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty seventh.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln
William H. Seward, Secretary of State.

Washington, D.C.

March 30, 1863

Into the Darkness

2009-06-09T19:58:00.000-07:00

... But beyond that again, utter blackness as if they had come to the edge of moonless and starless night.
Caspian shouted to the boatswain to keep her back, and all except the rowers rushed forward and gazed from the bows. But there was nothing to be seen by gazing. Behind them was the sea and the sun, before them the Darkness.
"Do we go into this?" asked Caspian at length.
"Not by my advice," said Drinian.
"The Captain's right," said several sailors.
"I almost think he is," said Edmund.
Lucy and Eustace didn't speak but they felt very glad inside at the turn things seemed to be taking. But all at once the clear voice of Reepicheep broke in upon the silence.
"And why not?" he said. "Will someone explain to me why not."
No one was anxious to explain, so Reepicheep continued:
"If I were addressing peasants or slaves," he said, "I might suppose that this suggestion proceeded from cowardice. But I hope it will never be told in Narnia that a company of noble and royal persons in the flower of their age turned tail because they were afraid of the dark."
"But what manner of use would it be plowing through that blackness?" asked Drinian.
"Use?" replied Reepicheep. "Use, Captain? If by use you mean filling our bellies or our purses, I confess it will be no use at all. So far as I know we did not set sail to look for things useful but to seek honor and adventure. And here is as great an adventure as ever I heard of, and here, if we turn back, no little impeachment of all our honors."
Several of the sailors said things under their breath that sounded like "Honor be blowed," but Caspian said:
"Oh, bother you, Reepicheep. I almost wish we'd left you at home. All right! If you put it that way, I suppose we shall have to go on. Unless Lucy would rather not?"
Lucy felt that she would very much rather not, but what she said out loud was, "I'm game."
"Your Majesty will at least order lights?" said Drinian.
"By all means," said Caspian. "See to it, Captain."...

The Chronicles of Narnia
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader pp 190-193
by Clive Staples Lewis

To Venture On Wilder Seas Where Storms Will Show Your Mastery

2009-06-01T07:14:00.000-07:00

Disturb us, Lord, when
We are too pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord when
With the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wilder seas
Where storms will show Your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push back the future
In strength, courage, hope and love.
This we ask in the name of our captain, who is Jesus Christ.

A Prayer of Sir Francis Drake

An Anvil

2009-05-31T22:22:00.000-07:00

"The Church is an anvil which has worn out many hammers...."

[1853 G. De felice Hist. Protestants of France I. II. v. 156 (tr. Beza to King of Navarre, 1562)] &
[1908 A. Maclaren Acts of Apostles i. 136]

Why Do The Nations Rage...?

2009-05-31T22:20:00.000-07:00

Psalm 2 (NKJV)

1 Why do the nations rage,
And the people plot a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break Their bonds in pieces
And cast away Their cords from us.”

4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh;
The Lord shall hold them in derision.
5 Then He shall speak to them in His wrath,
And distress them in His deep displeasure:
6 “Yet I have set My King
On My holy hill of Zion.”

7 “I will declare the decree:
The LORD has said to Me,
‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron;
You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’”

10 Now therefore, be wise, O kings;
Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear,
And rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest He be angry,
And you perish in the way,
When His wrath is kindled but a little.
Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.

Thy Thoughts Which Are To Us-Ward

2009-05-12T21:38:00.000-07:00

Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.

Psalm 40:5 (KJV)

Torrent of Thy Pleasure

2009-04-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

"They shall be inebriated with the plenty of Thy house: and Thou shalt make them drink of the torrent of Thy pleasure."

Psalm 36:8 Vulgate

The Hungry Birds by Sadhu Sundar Singh

2009-04-18T19:33:00.000-07:00

Once as I wandered in the mountains, I came upon an outcropping of rocks, and as I sat on the highest rock to rest and look out over the valley, I saw a nest in the branches of a tree. The young birds in the nest were crying noisily. Then I saw how the mother bird returned with food for her young ones. When they heard the sound of her wings and felt her presence nearby, they cried all the more loudly and opened their beaks wide. But after the mother bird fed them and flew away again, they were quiet. Climbing down to look more closely, I saw that the newly hatched birds had not yet opened their eyes. Without even being able to see their mother, they opened their beaks and begged for nourishment whenever she approached.

These tiny birds did not say: “We will not open our beaks until we can see our mother clearly and also see what kind of food she offers. Perhaps it is not our mother at all but instead some dangerous enemy. And who knows if it is proper nourishment
or some kind of poison that is being fed to us?” If they had reasoned thus, they would never have discovered the truth. Before they were even strong enough to open their eyes, they would have starved to death. But they held no such doubts about the presence and love of their mother, and so after a few days, they opened their eyes and rejoiced to see her with them. Day by day they grew stronger and developed into the form and likeness of the mother, and soon they were able to soar up into the freedom of the skies.

We humans often think of ourselves as the greatest living beings, but do we not have something to learn from these common birds? We often question the reality and the loving nature of God. But the Master has said: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.” Whenever we open our hearts to God, we receive spiritual nourishment and grow more and more into the likeness of God until we reach spiritual maturity. And once we open our spiritual eyes and see God’s presence, we find indescribable and unending bliss.

...The New Mystics + The Ecstasy of Loving God

2009-03-31T20:58:00.001-07:00

Romans 12:9-16

2009-03-07T10:22:00.000-08:00

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

Romans 12: 9-16 (NKJV)

I Want To Yearn For You

2009-03-04T06:22:00.000-08:00

Lord I want to yearn for You
I want to burn with passion
over You and only You
Lord I want to yearn

from the song "Yearn" by Shane Barnard (Shane & Shane)

We Live In Heaven

2009-02-04T22:31:00.000-08:00

"We live in heaven, we just work on earth."

Surpresa Sithole

Humility

2008-12-31T19:30:00.000-08:00

"Nothing gets a person so much out of the devil's reach as humility."

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)

Drenched With The Presence of God

2008-11-30T05:59:00.000-08:00

"The whole earth is full of the weight or significance of who God is. The prophets were deeply influenced by this understanding that the earth is drenched with the presence of God."

Rob Bell in Velvet Elvis p. 77

Paradoxes

2008-11-20T04:48:00.001-08:00

"It's not so much that the Christian faith has a lot of paradoxes. It's that it is a lot of paradoxes."

Rob Bell in Velvet Elvis p. 34

The Wind Blows

2008-10-17T00:38:00.000-07:00

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

John 3:8 (NKJV)

The Shack

2008-09-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

I Have Opened A Door For You!

2008-08-05T21:41:00.000-07:00

...This is the message from the One who is holy and true, the One who has the key of David. What He opens, no one can close; and what He closes, no one can open: “I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.”

Revelation 3:7, 8 (NLT)

Hidden Manna, White Stone, New Name!

2008-06-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

Revelation 2:17 (NIV)

Thinly Veiled Vengeance

2008-06-03T07:13:00.000-07:00

“Too many people have chosen to say terrible things to others under the banner of ‘telling the truth.’ This is not honesty but cruelty and thinly veiled vengeance. Honesty promises to remain tender and kind, full of hope and desire for the other person's growth. The more we remain honest with the other, the greater our desire will be to know and to be known, to know truth and to be pursued and seized by what is true, by the One who is true. Honesty frees us to care.”

from: Leading With A Limp by Dan B. Allender, PhD p. 122

Forgive Yourself Quickly!

2008-05-30T00:10:00.000-07:00

Back in February, 2008 I went on a ministry trip with my friend Surpresa Sithole (www.surprisesithole.com) to Rome. Something Surpresa said to me has been a much needed blessing in my life on countless occasions ever since. As I was bemoaning my personal sin to him he said, “...but you have to forgive yourself quickly though!” We as Christians know that as believers if we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (cf. 1 John 1:9), yet we often find it difficult to forgive ourselves and allow our own thoughts and satan to batter us with condemnation for a longer period of time than we ought.

The Shadow of Death

2008-05-13T04:27:00.000-07:00

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

Psalm 23 (KJV)

Off Its Hinges!

2008-05-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Jesus in Revelation 3:20 (NKJV)

O Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit! Thank You for standing at the door and knocking! O God, please open the door wide and walk through whenever You want! Would that it would happen daily, even moment by moment! O that I would know You are coming so I can be at the door waiting for You! Please pull the door right off its hinges! Help me to fully enjoy You after You come in! Deep call unto deep! Help my heart to receive all the blessings and treasures of intimacy with You that Your manifest Presence provides!

Keep You From Falling

2008-04-30T23:03:00.000-07:00

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Jude 24, 25 (KJV)

Watch You Burn

2008-04-30T06:01:00.000-07:00

“Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.”

John Wesley (1703-1791)

You Know You’re In Pemba, Mozambique When…

2008-04-12T22:50:00.000-07:00

From: Monica Miller

On a lighter note:

You know you’re in Pemba, Mozambique when…

1) You’re standing quietly in a crowd minding your own business and a baby on the back of the woman in front of you pees on your foot.

2) A monkey on a string bites you on the way to church.

3) You have to carry your Bible to the altar call, because someone might steal it.

4) Your skin lightens a whole shade after a shower.

5) When dressing up is considered wearing clothes that have only been worn once, and freshening up to go out consists of using a baby wipe.

6) You run around the back of the church during the altar call like a mad woman, because your scabies itch so badly.

7) You jump up and down for joy because you just got a light bulb in the bathroom.

8) Living with twelve girls in one room is considered ‘getting space’ (because you lived with 30 girls).

9) You are so moved by the Spirit you have to go jump into the ocean only to end up sitting on a rock crying as a strange fisherman picks a sea urchin out of your foot.

10) When the bathroom is a hole in the ground.

11) When goat for dinner sounds really good.

As you can tell, life here is as amusing as it is perplexing. We are happy, healthy and slightly dirty. More later. Love you all. Monica and Meredith.

From Expecting Miracles: True Stories of God’s Supernatural Power and How You Can Experience It by Heidi & Rolland Baker p. 44

Bible Reading

2008-04-05T11:50:00.000-07:00

“Some people read the Bible in Hebrew, some people read the Bible in Greek, but I read the Bible in the Holy Ghost.”

Smith Wigglesworth

He Is Risen!

2008-03-22T21:47:00.000-07:00

And we with Him!

Joy Inexpressible and Full of Glory

2008-03-12T12:08:00.000-07:00

Though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory.

1 Peter 1:8 (NASB)

Of Whom The World Was Not Worthy

2008-03-06T05:35:00.000-08:00

Please prayerfully read the following about my friend Surpresa and what recently happened to his brother in central Mozambique:

This is what Heidi Baker says from the Iris Ministries Blog dated October 22, 2007 (http://www.irismin.org/wordpress/?p=46):

#9. Surpresa Sithole, one of the four international directors of Iris Ministries, had to attend the tragic funeral of his brother Pastor Sithole and his cousin after a group of radical religious anti-Christians cut him up into pieces because he was preaching the gospel. Pastor Sithole will be greatly missed.

Here is the latest update I could find on Surpresa’s brother/cousin: (http://www.irismin.org/wordpress/?p=48):

Our International Director Surprise Sithole also flew in to be with us from South Africa. He recently went back to the very village where our dear pastor, Ezekiel Sithole, was martyred for the gospel. They cut off his tongue and lips to silence him. They said our movement, Partners in Harvest/Iris Africa, would be silenced. Surprise went back into the village in love and humility releasing forgiveness to those who killed his cousin. Thousands gathered to hear him preach. And hundreds were saved. Please pray for Pastor Ezekiel Sithole’s wife who is deeply troubled, very, very thin and left with many children to raise alone. “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven.” Matthew 5:11-12.

Surpresa’s brother is in fact his cousin who lived with him and his family when they were young so he has considered Ezekiel a brother ever since that time.

Ezekiel is now survived by his wife Theresa, their seven children and 130+ orphans that they help care for.

My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less

2008-02-29T07:19:00.000-08:00

My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus' name.

(Refrain)

On Christ the solid rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

When Darkness veils his lovely face,
I rest on his unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

(Refrain)

His oath, his covenant, his blood
Supports me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

(Refrain)

When he shall come with trumpet sound,
O may I then in him be found!
Dressed in his righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne!

(Refrain)

Hymn "The Solid Rock" by Edward Mote, 1797-1874

Revival Fire for the Poor in Spirit

2008-02-27T20:59:00.000-08:00

“I’m back in Africa after weeks of conferences in the West, and I’m facing another kind of conference: a gathering of the poor, hungry, ragged, barefoot, and sick from among our churches in the central region of Malawi. Carpets, air-conditioning and chandeliers have given way to dirt, blowing dust and the hot sun overhead. Hospitality rooms and coffee shops are replaced by iron pots of milled maize cooking over open wood fires. Hotel rooms with soft beds, clean sheets and warm showers have become grass mats under ripped and wind-blown black plastic coverings on a remote field with no electricity, water or relief from the night cold. Families huddle together in the dark to keep warm, without soap, toiletries or a change of clothes. Their threadbare shirts rip at a touch, and their teeth, hair and skin show the discolored ravages of malnutrition. They are weak. They hurt. And they long for ministry and love.

Malawi and northwest Mozambique are caught in yet more drought and famine. Four million people are in danger of starving. The world hardly notices. Shipments from aid agencies don’t make it to the remote villages where the need is greatest and where we have most of our churches. But we have called a “bush” conference to encourage our people, and Surpresa Sithole, one of our international directors, and I have come to preach the Gospel in this sea of need.

This has to be the poorest-looking conference the land has seen. Our property is off the main road outside the city of Lilongwe, a long journey on foot for many. We have a shaky platform of rough poles and boards, and we’ve strung some lights to use with a generator during meetings. There are no banners or signboards, no dignitaries in suits. As we set up and mix with the people, our clothes become covered with dirt. There is no parking lot full of vehicles and no handouts and no name tags. We are a band of human beings in the middle of nowhere, it seems, calling out to God for revival and the glory of His presence where all seems destitute and hopeless to the natural eye.

But this is what we live for, to preach the Good News to the poor and to bring life, love and joy to the saddest and heaviest of hearts. We present ourselves as instruments of righteousness to bring a foretaste of heaven into the least likely corners of the earth. We don’t come with fame and fanfare but instead arrive in weakness, with nothing to preach but Jesus and Him crucified. Nothing less than the power of the Cross will rescue and sustain these lives and hearts.

For three days we preach our hearts out, joined by David Morrison, our lead Iris missionary in Malawi. Hang on to Jesus! Never let Him go! Come to Him for everything! Don't throw away your faith! Bury yourself in His heart! Draw close to Him, and He will draw close to you. And this unspeakably wonderful Savior of ours will freely give you the Kingdom. Don't be like unbelievers, who worry about everything, but pursue righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and you will have what you need. Nothing can separate us from the love of God, not famine, not poverty, not anything!

And so the people move forward in waves to kneel, worship and receive more of His grace. The Holy Spirit brings healing to bodies and hearts. Tears and laughter are released. Emotions are set free. Bowing and falling, rolling and shaking in the dirt, the hungry of all ages become filled to overflowing with God Himself. He knows how to love His beloved until they feel loved.

The people are encouraged and overjoyed. Their testimonies flow. I still feel utterly weak and inadequate, seeing their needs, but I grow in confidence that the Gospel will triumph in their lives. What will God do in response? Open the hearts of His people around the world and give them the opportunity to learn the heavenly art of love all the more... Our only job is to love... And if love is real at all, it is practical.

We have to go, but we promise more visits and conferences. We are cheered with enthusiasm and affection. And I am praying that a supernaturally motivated and enabled wave of assistance from around the world will materialize out of the ever-increasing faith that we see before us. And that everything from weather patterns to politics will be transformed by an unstoppable spread of revival fire.”

An excerpt from Rolland Baker from Expecting Miracles: True Stories of God’s Supernatural Power and How You Can Experience It by Heidi & Rolland Baker pp 61-62.

Visions

2008-01-22T07:29:00.000-08:00

"For the first three and a half years after I received Jesus I had intense visions everyday."

From the Preface of Surprise "Surpresa" Sithole's new book: Rush Hour

Flaming Fire

2008-01-11T19:59:00.000-08:00

...he makes his messengers winds,
his ministers a flaming fire.

Psalm 104:4 (ESV)

Interior Castle or The Mansions Click Here

2008-01-10T05:02:00.000-08:00

by St. Teresa of Avila

Emptied Himself, Humbled Himself

2007-12-25T04:54:00.000-08:00

Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:5-11 (NASB)

Soaking Can Be Compared To Making Pickles

2007-12-24T00:10:00.000-08:00

“Soaking can be compared to making pickles. There is a classical Greek word study on the Greek words bapto, meaning to dip, and baptidzo, meaning to immerse. Making pickles is a good way to illustrate soaking prayer. The recipe called for the raw fruit to be dipped in boiling water to blanch or sterilize the cucumber, using the word bapto which means “to dip in and out quickly.” Then it called for the cucumber to be immersed, using the word baptidzo, and soaked in the brine and the pickling solution for several weeks. What happens during this soaking time is that the marinade or the pickling solution soaks deep into the flesh of the cucumber until it takes on the flavor of the pickling solution so that it no longer tastes like a raw cucumber. This is what we mean by soaking. May you be so marinated in the presence of the Holy Spirit, soaking in the River of God, that you no longer “taste” like your old, raw nature any longer, but you have taken on the flavor of the Holy Spirit. “Pickle us, Lord, in the marinade of the Holy Spirit. Soak us in your wonderful presence until we become more and more like You.”

from: www.living-light.net/soaking_prayer.htm

Breath Prayers

2007-12-23T23:04:00.000-08:00

“The Bible tells us to “pray all the time” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 Msg). How is it possible to do this? One way is to use “breath prayers” throughout the day, as many Christians have done for centuries. You choose a brief sentence or a simple phrase that can be repeated to Jesus in one breath: “You are with me.” “I receive your grace.” “I’m depending on you.” “I want to know you.” “I belong to you.” “Help me trust you.” You can also use a short phrase of Scripture: “For me to live is Christ.” “You will never leave me.” “You are my God.” Pray it as often as possible so it is rooted deep in your heart....Practicing the presence of God is a skill, a habit you can develop.”

from: The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren p. 89

Cultivation of Humility

2007-12-06T05:10:00.000-08:00

“Ultimately, there can be no effective expansion of your life’s mission and ministry, no fulfillment of the specific purpose He’s called you to, apart from the cultivation of humility in your heart and the weakening of pride in your life.”

from Humility: True Greatness by C. J. Mahaney p. 169

Enjoy God's Presence

2007-11-30T06:27:00.000-08:00

“...the spirit is as fitted to enjoy God's presence as is the crystal to reflect the sun.”

St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), The Interior Castle or The Mansions

Only Vaguely Realize We Have Souls

2007-11-24T10:15:00.000-08:00

“As this is so, we need not tire ourselves by trying to realize all the beauty of this castle, although, being His creature, there is all the difference between the soul and God that there is between the creature and the Creator; the fact that it is made in God's image teaches us how great are its dignity and loveliness. It is no small misfortune and disgrace that, through our own fault, we neither understand our nature nor our origin. Would it not be gross ignorance, my daughters, if, when a man was questioned about his name, or country, or parents, he could not answer? Stupid as this would be, it is unspeakably more foolish to care to learn nothing of our nature except that we possess bodies, and only to realize vaguely that we have souls, because people say so and it is a doctrine of faith. Rarely do we reflect upon what gifts our souls may possess, Who dwells within them, or how extremely precious they are. Therefore we do little to preserve their beauty; all our care is concentrated on our bodies, which are but the coarse setting of the diamond, or the outer walls of the castle.”

St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), The Interior Castle or The Mansions

In Everything Give Thanks

2007-11-22T02:34:00.000-08:00

“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NASB)

Clothe Yourselves With Humility...God Opposes The Proud

2007-11-18T04:58:00.000-08:00

Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

1 Peter 5:5b (ESV)

Union and Communion

2007-11-11T09:50:00.000-08:00

“The branch of the vine does not worry, and toil, and rush here to seek for sunshine, and there to find rain. No; it rests in union and communion with the vine; and at the right time, and in the right way, is the right fruit found on it. Let us so abide in the Lord Jesus.”

James Hudson Taylor (1832-1905), Missionary to China

Today’s Breathing Room Podcast Interactive Soaking Session With Brenda Craig and Candace House Click Here

2007-11-08T04:43:00.000-08:00

Cares of this World

2007-11-05T12:04:00.000-08:00

“As a man whose head is under water cannot inhale pure air, so a man whose thoughts are plunged into the cares of this world cannot absorb the sensations of that new world.”

Isaac of Nineveh also known as Isaac the Syrian (circa 700)

Called to Carry Crosses

2007-10-26T06:50:00.000-07:00

“I love the Jabez prayer—Lord bless me, bless me—but any theology that denies the reality of suffering is not a Christian theology. The cross is a bloody, painful, agonizing thing, and Christians are called to carry crosses.”

John Crowder

On Your Bed

2007-10-17T04:50:00.000-07:00

Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah

Psalm 4:4b (NKJV)

Would Not Depart

2007-10-05T23:40:00.001-07:00

Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses returned to the camp, his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.

Exodus 33:11 (NASB)

Consistently Carve

2007-10-05T23:01:00.000-07:00

“One of the most violent things you’ll ever do is wrestle down all the competing elements in your calendar and consistently carve out the time to shut yourself in the Secret Place....”

by Bob Sorge: Secrets of the Secret Place

Enjoyment of Jesus

2007-09-28T21:46:00.000-07:00

“Dear reader, there is nothing in this universe that is easier to obtain than the enjoyment of Jesus Christ! Your Lord is more present to you than you are to yourself! Furthermore, His desire to give Himself to you is greater than your desire to lay hold of Him.”

Madame Jeanne Guyon (1647-1717), Christian Mystic

Soaking

2007-09-22T03:52:00.000-07:00

“Soaking is not a new concept, but we are rediscovering it after so much of the modern life and contemporary noise has invaded our church meetings and our church life. Over the past 10 years or so, our modern definition of Christianity has finally turned from works and performance, to worship and intimacy.

Through the Renewal came to us a fresh revelation of the Father's Heart of God and the 20th century Church has been impacted forever. And so we have learned to just stay put, open our hands, close our eyes, and receive prayer, experiencing the most amazing manifestations and the deepest changes: forgiveness, healing, renewed strength, visions, commissions, confirmations, affirmation from the Father...

Taking time to simply be quiet for a few minutes in a day could demand planning and discipline. But what if we would simply "show up" and be silent before God, letting Him pour over us His affection, letting Him reveal our own hearts to ourselves, and as we do, finally learn to become familiar with God's language? In turn, we could just respond by whispering, "Yes Father, I receive, I let go, I give you, I will do, work in me, heal, save, restore..."

In the wake of the Renewal, for a couple of years now we have coined the term "SOAKING" as being that which we do when we lay down before the Lord, with no other agenda than to meet with Him, people praying over us in a non-interfering way, the sound of soothing music pouring over the room as anointing is being released and experienced.”

by Soaking.Net

A Peaceful Spirit

2007-09-21T14:39:00.000-07:00

“Acquire a peaceful spirit, and around you thousands will be saved.”

St. Seraphim of Sarov (1759-1833) Russian monk & mystic

God is Waiting

2007-09-20T07:27:00.000-07:00

“God is waiting on us to wait on Him.”

by Gary Oates

In The Presence of My Enemies

2007-09-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life;...

Psalm 23:5, 6b. (NKJV)

A Morning Prayer

2007-09-11T20:54:00.000-07:00

O God, may people see Your light shine from within me, taste Your salt through my pores, and fully sense Your presence, though they may not quite understand what they are feeling. May You Jesus be the fire that lights my eyes and the joy that fills my voice. Please be Yourself in my life today. Amen.

That The Son Of God May Be Glorified

2007-09-06T21:34:00.000-07:00

When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

John 11:4 (NKJV)

For God

2007-09-01T00:30:00.000-07:00

“We are not built for ourselves, but for God. Not for service for God, but for God.”

by Oswald Chambers

Communion of the Holy Spirit

2007-08-20T23:30:00.000-07:00

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

2 Corinthians 13:14 (NKJV)

Weapons of our Warfare

2007-08-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,...

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NKJV)

Experience the Manifest Presence

2007-08-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

“Our commitment is to help people worldwide experience the manifest presence of God.”

Michael Coleman
President, Integrity Music, Inc.

Fulfillment of Every Vision

2007-08-18T04:03:00.000-07:00

...The days are at hand, and the fulfillment of every vision.

Ezekiel 12:23b (NKJV)

Ecstasy and the Journey into Intimacy Click Here

2007-06-21T23:43:00.000-07:00

by Rev. Johnson Dorn

Soaking: The Key to Intimacy with God Click Here

2007-06-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

on the Australian Prayer Network by Gary Oates

How Firm a Foundation

2007-06-12T05:53:00.000-07:00

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

from the hymn: How Firm a Foundation by John Roberts

Soaking

2007-06-05T06:58:00.001-07:00

Soaking is no doubt easier to model than explain in written form. One of the differences that comes to mind is the comparison and contrast of soaking to “worship”. I don’t mean worship in the general sense, but in a typical worship time where most people sit or stand and sing to the Lord any number of songs—a very important and just as valid form of loving the Lord. Yet, in soaking, people typically lie down on the floor and listen to music either live or recorded (we use an iPod & a Bose speaker), listening to the music and words of the songs and actually focus on intimately communing with the Lord. I’d also say that one of the most common things that happens to people who “soak” individually or corporately is that they begin to literally feel the manifest Presence of the Lord—the best thing about soaking! Of course feeling His tangible Presence is even harder to explain and must rather be experienced.

Suffice-it-to-say that from my own experience and those who I know, say that they feel His Presence both spiritually and physically. Thankfully, I believe that if ANY believer begins to soak and asks God to experience His felt Presence—they will! He is faithful and I believe loves to reveal Himself in this intimate way. Soaking has finally helped me understand what a great benefit “waiting” on the Lord is. Waiting quietly for and in His Presence has such deep rewards that it is hard to put it into words. The weight of His Glory is wonderful! At times it is even difficult to get up under it! When His joy really hits you, true laughter is inevitable! The peace and love that the Lord gives to a soaker sets their hearts and minds to a complete rest and contentment, far away from any anxiety or stress.

After everyone is full of God’s Presence we love to go into a ministry time to those present by praying for individuals while the others exercise their spiritual gifts, placing importance on the edifying gifts such as prophecy, “words” of encouragement, pictures the Lord may give, impressions, etc. Also, a natural result of soaking is MORE hunger, thirst, longing, and yearning for the Lord! MORE intimacy with Him is the goal!

Boundless Grace

2007-06-01T09:04:00.000-07:00

“A man can no more take in a supply of grace for the future than he can eat enough for the next six months, or take sufficient air into his lungs at one time to sustain life for a week. We must draw upon God's boundless store of grace from day to day as we need it.”

Dwight Lyman Moody (1837-1899)

Lightning Bolts

2007-05-30T05:40:00.000-07:00

The voice of the LORD strikes with lightning bolts.

Psalm 29:7 (NLT)

The God of Glory Thunders

2007-05-30T05:32:00.000-07:00

The God of glory thunders.

Psalm 29:3 (NLT)