When under attack

As the new year begins and all are optimistic about the future, realize the strategy of the enemy is to pop your balloon of faith and expectation by hitting you hard right at the beginning so you don't gain MOMENTUM for the whole year. We are told not to be surprised when we feel the fiery darts of the enemy, but we usually are.  Our responsibility is to give God glory and advance in our Spiritual growth under attack instead of glorifying the enemy by proclaiming what he (the enemy) is doing.  Our conversation should reflect the  mentality of a conqueror and the words coming out of our mouth, the word of God instead of fear or failure. 
  The enemy always attacks those that are close to the heart of God, but our victory is in the name of Jesus. We cannot avoid it , there is a spiritual battle and we have to fight.  We will never come to a place where we  outgrow the battle, but we can come to the place where we bring the battle to the enemy.  Some quick principles and strategies to be aware of: 


*  If enemy can't stop you he will slow you down with  Delay, Deceit, Distractions, Disappointment
* The enemy usually attacks just before there are transitions, blessings, and promotions headed your way
* Failure cannot happen in your life without your permission
* YOur battle is not against spouse, children, boss etc. but spiritual forces which have already been defeated
* Spiritual warfare is centered around the placement of the Son in our life, family, city
*Struggle is the proof you have not been conquered
* Satan's favorite entry point is often those closest to you
*YOu will not win a Spiritual battle with Logic
*Warfare surrounds the birth of a miracle
*Crisis occurs at the curve of change
*Satan attacks those in line for promotion
* Those unwilling to lose rarely do
* Battle is your chance for recognition in heaven and the enemy camp


( Summarized from  teaching by James Goll in "Deliverance from Darkness")
Ps. 18:37

Jesus at a Muslim wedding

My oldest son Jordan (22) has had a friend named Osama since he was 12 years old.  Osama's family is from the Sudan in Africa  and yesterday Osama got married in a traditional Muslim ceremony.  It was quite a cultural, spiritual and gastro-intestinal experience for me.  From the brightly colored dresses to the turbaned Imams ( teachers) who spoke of the sacred institution of marriage from their perspective, to the shrilled seemingly random screams coming from the women- "ay yay yay ya".  It was a good experience for me to see a couple hundred Muslim people enjoying themselves and celebrating with real  joyful expression and singing and dancing .  Honestly, it further eroded a false mind-set of Muslim people as my enemy and terrorists and instead  I begin to see them as humans, brothers, deceived by a religious system.  I know the kingdom of God is within me and that I am the temple of the Holy Spirit and so I wasn't afraid of any religious kling-on spirits attaching themselves to me, rather I was there to sow some seed and to be a light and so I began praying in my Spirit and at one point as I was experiencing his heart for them  I said to my wife -"Jesus really loves these people!" and he died for them too.

The final ceremony of the evening was why I was there and was a total set-up.  In a different room where the singing and dancing would take place, people started to gather and several little well dressed and well mannered littel children, 2nd and 3rd graders were flitting about and being silly like all children are.   As is my nature, I began to talk to the little kids sitting in front of me and asking them their names and joking with them and laughing.  We began to share names and I really took to this sharp 9 year old little boy named Yasin.  He and I exchanged names and I asked him to teach me how to say things like "I love you" in Arabic and in 10 minutes I had a new friend.  

The God moment came when I could see in this little boy's eyes that he trusted me and liked me and he wanted to ask me a serious question.  He had already told me that he read the Koran everyday. He also told me that he was named after one of the prophets and I just smiled and continued to talk and joke and relate instead of being argumentative and maybe it was that attitude that allowed him to ask me what appeared to be a burning question for him.  He said "you are a Christian aren't you"?  I said yes.  He said "we Muslim's believe that Jesus was a prophet too, but we have over 1000 other prophets".  I replied ( and it had an anointing on it) that the difference between Islam and Christianity hinges on the belief that Christians believe Jesus is more than a prophet, but that he is THE son of God.  A light went on in his head and he said to me in kind of a conciliatory way- "yeah I saw a show once where Jesus healed a man's ear that was cut off by a sword.  Did he really do that?"- and the door is now open.

Upon reflection,  I was in awe of how H.S. gave me his heart for this group of people  last night which broke down a barrier and opened a door to share a seed of the kingdom of heaven with a young boy, who in a way represents  a whole generation of a harvest field that we don't have to go to, but has been brought to us. He was seeking truth, It was natural to share with my new little friend and easy and unforced and I pray that along his path others water it and it continues to grow and that he come to the knowledge/experience of the Son of God and becomes a light for his people.

Its already done

When I was a junior in high school there was an arm wrestling championship for the school by weight class and the winner would go on to represent the high school in a district wide championship.   I was a wrestler, and for my size (122 lbs at that time), I was pretty strong so I signed up.  I beat all my challengers fairly easily, but when I found out that my opponent in the championship round was a senior named Jeff Kawaguchi who was also on the wrestling team and a better wrestler than me and a black belt in Judo and had rippling muscles with a body shaped like a giant letter V, my confidence teetered a little bit.  We had one week until we would arm wrestle during lunch time in front of the whole school and daily Jeff and his senior buddies would walk by and try to taunt me and intimidate me.  He tried to instill a fear in me so that I would give up even before we had the contest.
I decided however to be courageous and that I had a chance to win, since we were basically the same size.  For the 5 days previous to the match,  I would visualize myself beating him and also see the shocked look on his face and the cheers from all the underclassmen.  In my mind I would experience the thrill of victory.  Instinctually, spiritually, I knew that this was important and more than an arm wrestling contest for me, but a life lesson that I needed to learn. 
Because it was done in my mind, I was calm and relaxed about it when it came time to do it.  Not surprisingly it happened just the way I visualized it.  My enemy slithered away in defeat and shame and I felt 10 feet tall.  I went on to win the district championship as well 
I am not trying to be a proponent of positive thinking, but wanted to highlight a principle of faith.  When you know something is already done in the natural or the spiritual it is so much easier to walk through that circumstance or challenge with confidence.  In the Christian life everything is already done on the cross: your salvation, healing, sanctification, blessing etc.was accomplished 2000 years ago.   We were saved 2000 years ago, not when we asked Christ into our lives.   We were healed 2000 years ago, not at the point in time we ask for healing.  We were blessed 2000 years ago, not when we prayed for provision yesterday.   When we approach God from the standpoint of " its already done"- faith can do its job. 
Just like my classmate Jeff, the only weapon the enemy has is fear and intimidation, he is already defeated and you are already victorious.

Being still- key to intimacy

All believers that want to enter into a more intimate place with God in their relationship find that there are two major obstacles continually holding them back:  Distraction from without and distraction from within.  Both are enemies of intimacy because they are voices external and internal that call to us so loud that we cannot hear the still small voice of God.  Stillness is not the the goal, but the means to the goal of knowing God's heart and the way he gently moves and prompts. In becoming still we are not trying to do anything, but be in touch with God through Holy Spirit at a moment in time without forcing it or being in a hurry and without an agenda.  Most of us have made several attempts to have a "quiet time" only to be overcome with the distractions either outside or inside and so in effect we become discouraged and give up and try to serve the Lord in our busyness.  If we are serious about being intimate with the Lord we will have to overcome the distractions.  Even if we are able to get away from television, telephone calls, computers and children and minimize the external distractions, the chaos in our minds and discomfort and confusion of solitude make us eager to get busy again. The outer noise is used as a shield sometimes to keep out the confrontations we go through internally.  Like anything, the good habits of stillness and solitude can only be built by continued practice.  If we take care of setting aside the time and getting away from the external distractions, then half the battle is won and here are some thoughts on eliminating the internal distractions:

1.  When the "list" of unfinished tasks comes into your mind, write them down.

2. When the enemy reminds you of your sinfulness or unworthiness, confess and put on Christ's robe of righteousness.

3. When your mind is flitting all over, focus on a vision in your mind of Jesus with you

4. Spend time with him when your mind is still because of engagement in automatic activities like driving, bathing, exercising etc.

5. When not "feeling" anything, begin to sing and listen to the spontaneousness of your heart.

*Waiting on God is never a waste of time, more is accomplished in our stillness than all of our best efforts combined.  What is important is not where you are, but the fact that you are moving forward into greater intimacy.  2 Cor. 10:4-5 says that we can  take our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.  Through patience, persistence and discipline on our part and the power of the Holy Spirit, over time we are able to break up the foundations of how our mind operates and re-establish and rebuild the process and new thought patterns. This is what Paul had in mind when he talked about being transformed by the renewing of our mind in Romans 12:1-2. Also in Phillipians where we are encouraged to put on the mind of Christ, as we are in him, we begin to see and think the way he does.

Our goal in all of this is nothing less than intimate communion with the father and the son.  (summarized from writings of James Goll- practicing his presence)

Validating the message; healing.

At some point in our lives we will all deal with severe sickness and/or death either personally or in a friend or loved one to such a degree that if we are believers, we will have to process the concepts of God's goodness and his ability and will to heal into a personal and experiential theology. I very clearly remember when I heard that my friend Tim had liver cancer to such a degree that he did not have long to live. I had not seen Tim for a couple of years because we had moved away, but when we lived near by him and his family we were very close. My wife and I went to see him on the first Saturday after we found out. We knew after we saw him he would not make it through the night. This was the first time for me that I actually had someone die in my presence, literally in my arms and although I was happy that we were there for his wife and son, somehow it was not enough. I knew that his family had been robbed, the body of Christ had been robbed and we were all seemingly helpless to do anything about it and I was beyond sad, I was mad.

At the funeral, a mutual friend of ours came up and said to me " it just doesn't seem right does it"? To me it wasn't right, and although well meaning people said the Lord wanted to take Tim home and that it must have been God's will and timing, it seemed inconsistent with the nature of God to me that he had anything to do with Tim's death. Why would God give this family a miracle son in their late forties and then take the boy's father away? The truth of the matter was that it was the Devil who came to steal, kill and destroy and the Devil was responsible. Jesus came so that we would have abundant life, not liver cancer. Because God is so amazing and benevolent he is able to work all things for good and even in that tragic situation he was gracious and his peace and comfort was available, even though it was not his will and he was not responsible for Tim's death.
So the next year and a half of my life, I immersed myself in study, prayer, missions, conferences, reading, healing rooms and anything that would give me experience and shine the light on why healing does and does not happen. The following principles/truths are what I have come to believe and put action to, and although subject to change I feel confident about sharing them. I have at least in good conscience wrestled with what I believe the word of God and Holy Spirit say about healing. I endeavor to follow through and walk in the truth of God's revelation until my experience lines up, not the opposite. I will not let my experience or failure cause me to change my understanding of God's heart or nature and thereby change my profession of faith and actions.

*Some of these statements will expose religious traditions as incorrect and invalid and that is on purpose and by design.

1. First and foremost it is always God's will to heal and deliver someone. He has revealed himself as healer. It is his nature, it is who he is. In Exodus when Moses was leading the children of Israel out of Egypt it was the very first of the seven redemptive ways he revealed himself. " I am the Lord that heals you" Exodus 15,ps. 103:1-8
2. Jesus used healing to validate his message, and we are arrogant to think people will listen to the message of salvation without the same validation. We have changed his message if we are not about healing and deliverance. Our gospel message is just another philosophy if it does not include supernatural healing, I cor. 4:20
3. No one understands everything about healing, but it is revealed more to those who pursue it and practice it

4. Although there are gifts of healings, a special anointing is unnecessary. There is no need for a healing impartation. Jesus has already given his disciples all authority. Obedience to the word of God through faith is all that is necessary and it is considered basic Christianity according to the word of God to heal the sick, cast out demons and raise the dead. Luke 10:1-12
5. Jesus said speak to the mountain, not to God about the mountain. He has given us authority in his name to speak to the Spirit or sickness directly and make it go.
6. God has already done everything he is going to do - in other words healing has been accounted for in the atonement. By his stripes you have been healed. (past tense)- It is up to the believers to walk in faith to make the healing manifest.
7. Faith increases as we walk in our authority and increase our experience to pray for healing.
8. All believers have the ministry of reconciliation - 2Cor 5:17-21. we have been given the authority to reconcile people unto God via Salvation, healing and deliverance.
9. The Bible says 5 times that he (Jesus) healed them all. Not all who deserved it or all who had faith.
10. In ministering healing, We are proclaiming what is already done, get out of the time limit. In a sense, he does not heal one by one, it is already done on the cross and we are just releasing it.
11. Begging God to heal people makes it seem like we are more loving and compassionate than he is, when in fact he wants them healed and delivered much more than we do. That is why he gave us the authority to do it.

12. God's will is done whenever we do it. The provision for healing has been made and the responsibility given to the body of Christ.
13. When healing ceases to become an event, but a lifestyle then it begins to flow.
14. The church says get sin out and you can be healed. Jesus says be healed first then don't sin. Healing is a sign to the unbeliever.
15. We don't need faith for healing, but once we have faith to receive Christ, we get the healing (and salvation, and deliverance) that comes in Christ.
16. Isaiah 53 "we are healed"- 1 Peter 2:24 we were healed- what happened in between was the cross.
17. Healing deliverance and salvation are really one and the same in the eyes of Jesus. Matthew 9: 1-8, Jesus heals a paralytic by telling him "your sins are forgiven".
18. Jesus has committed to (all) his disciples the ministry of healing, not just the twelve. Luke 9,10- Matthew 28 - john 14:12, john 20:21
19. God is never trying to teach someone a lesson or humility through sickness and disease. Jesus never said that and we should not say that. To believe that is to really misunderstand the heart and nature of God.
20. "Believers will lay hands on the sick and they shall recover". It is His reputation on the line not ours. The only thing stopping the healing God has for mankind is the people he has commissioned to do it.

Angelic intercession

The more I grow in my faith, the more I realize the importance of prayer and how operating in that realm is really where any battle is won.  I am an intercessor and I pray for my church and pastors and leaders regularly as well as the city and region and nation and the nations that God has put on my heart. I pray healing for people every week in church and in healing rooms as well.  As an intercessor, I stand in the gap of what is missing in someone else's ability or understanding of what is needed or what they lack.  I am a go between, an intermediary, taking a middle position.  An intercessor intervenes in a situation with the intention of reconciling two parties who don't see eye to eye. A prophetic intercessor reminds God of his promises and brings before him issues of injustice.  Jesus Christ is the perfect example of an intercessor, his life is a continual intercession bridging the gap for us (Heb. 7).  All believers are called to be intercessors, some to more of a degree than others, but I believe more people would take on the high calling of intercession if they really understood the Spiritual dimension of that ministry.  There are some kingdom principles of angelic partnership in accomplishing the intercession that when understood takes the pressure,spotlight and weight of responsibility off of us to pray, but instead make it a joy and privilege.   In the battle for souls, healing and advancing the kingdom, Angels are the airforce and we are the ground troops or the army.  For too long we have not communicated and strategized with the host of heaven in our intercession and if we did, I contend we would see more results. 

Angels usher in the presence of God and his glory, sometimes we are aware of it and many times we aren't.  They are the connectors of heaven and earth with assignments from the father that are based on our prayers.  That is why the heavens remained open after Jesus' baptism and why Jesus told Nathaniel in John chapter 1 that he would see angels ascending and descending on the Son of man.  Angels pronounce God's will, whether that is in a visual manifestation to Mary or dropping the thought into our minds during our prayer time or giving us knowledge and wisdom in our dreams or even visions.  In more ways than we think it is really God putting on our hearts his will and giving us direction in prayer through the agency of his angels who are our partners in advancing the kingdom of heaven.

Not only are the angels involved in bringing us into the presence of God and revealing his will, but they are involved in our praise and worship.  They come from the throne room where worship is continual and they  help us develop and enhance our ministry of worship to the Lord and understanding of his heart so that we can intercede properly.  Then in response to our worship and declaring of God's will which is because of the ministry of angels, God  sends more angels in response to our prayers.  They bring the answers and the provision and come to do the warfare in the heavenly realm.  The angels bring healing, deliverance, protection and strength to God's people.  They reap and gather for him.  I doubt most people could differentiate between the Holy  Spirit answering a prayer directly and the response coming from an angel on mission from the heavens.  Whenever I pray for anyone for anything it is always with  the understanding that there are angels waiting for assignment to fulfill the will of God in response to my prayer and I boldly ask for God to send his angels.  Even  now as you are reading this I pray that a Spirit (angel) of revelation would reveal this truth to you in such  a way that it would increase your faith and the boldness and effectiveness of your prayers.

Seeing yourself in the book

I love the story of the boy king Josiah in 2 Kings 22-23 and how he was zealous for the Lord God.  If you remember, the priest Hilkiah  found the Book of the law in the temple when they were doing renovations.  They had been going on as a society without the word of God for quite some time, but when they found the book and Josiah read it and had it read for all the people, the most incredible thing happened.  He saw a prophecy that called him out by name, revealing his identity and mission even though it was written 300 years earlier in 1 Kings 13.  He saw himself in the book, his identity was revealed, and because of that he could turn away from idolatry and sin and lead his people in the worship of God.  I am starting to see myself in the book.  Are you starting to see yourself in the book?  Do you realize that your destiny and identity is known by God, and he is waiting for you to find the book and find yourself in the book.  You are a priest and king who has been called to cut down the high places and lead others into a relationship with the true God.