(Acts 2:42-43). These apostles were special messengers that were anointed by the HS to do miraculous works. As the church fellowshipped w these people a sense of awe and wonder of God come over them. Wow. Shows us how much we miss it. We need the right fellowship.
“But going on ahead to the ship, the rest of us set sail for Assos, intending to take Paul aboard there, for that was what he had directed, intending himself to go by land [on foot].” (Acts 20:13).
What caught my eye about this verse was that instead of jumping aboard a ship to journey onto his next place, Paul walked there by himself. I read that this could have been because it was a shorter route by land but also it could have been that in order for Paul to keep his flame burning for God, he denied himself the pleasure or the rest he would have aboard a ship, as the route he took was not a an easy one but actually very dangerous.
How many Christians could have that said about them? They deny themselves of pleasures or a life of ease, so that the Presence of God is alive and shown powerfully in and through them? In truth I can’t even say that about myself.
I can imagine Paul did enjoy his time alone with God on his walk but if the terrain was so treacherous then how much was he really enjoying that walk while treading his path in sandals and a robe? Really puts things into perspective for us modern day believers as we live life for ourselves and our comforts instead of protecting our relationship with special Presence of God; whatever the cost. Doing what we need to do for the protection of our inner lives so that when people look at us it’s not us they see but the glory of God radiating through us.
Really how many Christians can honestly say that they have an intimate relationship with God on a daily basis? Not just going through the motions of religion. Religion is deceptive. It can be made of a routine of doing all the right things. Spending time with God. Reading the Word. Praying a list. Relying upon our own strength and wisdom instead of God’s. Or even resting upon our laurels with an aim to be positioned in the church to do an important task. To the outsider it may look and sound like we’re doing and saying all the right things but are our hearts right as we do these things?
If we compare our fervency to know God, the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings to the Apostle Paul’s in the Bible, I bet the majority of us fall way short (Phil 3:10). And we accept that’s the way it is and excuse ourselves by saying we’re sinners saved by grace. When I don’t think that’s what God intended for us when Christ died for our sins; half-hearted faith that’s worked out by means of our own power. Or even positioning ourselves in a comfortable place within the church to serve. He wants us to venture beyond our understanding of Him. Reach for more of His Presence and allow Him to live and move and to actually have us (Luke 11:10-13, Acts 17:28).
So what are you actively doing in your life to encourage growth into new understanding of who God is? Or even to experience God in new ways? Are you seeking God for more new revelation of Him in His Word? In order to live closer to Him and give Him the ability to show more glory through you? Or have you entered into a state of just floating around, satisfied in your understanding of who God is, creating a sheer boredom in your walk with Him?
At this point in my life I am praying that God would do a new thing in me. That He would reveal new facets of Himself to me. Yearning for Him to get more of me and I yo get more of Him. Satisfy me. Pressing in. Its a daily challenge and I admit that I fall short but I praise God that, I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus (2 Cor 5:21). I find the more I press into God the more He helps me to experience Him in a real way. That’s grace. Taking that time with Him everyday to just sit and commune with His Spirit. To worship Him. To adore Him. To plead for His amazing grace to help. To listen to Him speak to my heart. Putting away all distractions. To just be with Him.
It’s a choice between settling for the mediocrity or going after more of Him. How much might our relationship with God grow if we seek to do that every day? And turn our lives around from either settling on the mundane life or riding out the chaotic life to a life of peace. It would transform our attitudes or our perspective and virtually change our lives.
I want to encourage you to consider how you can seek to know God more deeply. Ask Him to make your heart ready and expect Him to overwhelm you with His Presence. Yearn for it. Thirst for more. Ask, seek, and knock for more of His Presence (Luke 11). Jeremiah 29:13 says, we will truly find God when we seek Him with our whole-hearts. Now that’s a challenge worth the fight.
And they who know Your name [who have experience and acquaintance with Your mercy] will lean on and confidently put their trust in You, for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek (inquire of and for) You [on the authority of God’s Word and the right of their necessity]. (Ps 9:10)
https://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000651360
Written with teenagers in mind, I share an honest story of my failures but also of lessons learned from being a rebellious teenager. Fighting a battle, losing a couple of lives in the process, you’ll read the book and be touched. Hoping that it will help you to see your responsibility in your life. And seek out the ultimate answer to your issues.
YouTube
— Read on m.youtube.com/watch
The truth about supernatural healing. Our unbelief built out of our experiences instead of truth in Gods Word creating the right doctrine on the POWER available to children of God. Watch and be challenged in your thinking. And really look for Gods will
Boy if we even think we have touched the tip of understanding Who God is and really what He’s about, we need to stop and consider why we call God God. If God is God should He not do things beyond our comprehension; wonders that are mind blowing, such as healing the sick, breaking bondages in peoples lives? Do things that we can’t possibly explain? If so, why don’t we see more of this everyday? The last few months have been eye-opening to me as I’m learning about these truly glorious facets of God that only express themselves when a person is really searching in faith. I feel like I’ve been blown away. All these years after Bible College and enormous amounts of Bible study on my own and in group settings I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface. To be honest I think sometimes we try to simplify the Bible enough or pick it apart to understand it that we can really take the wonder right out of it.
I was filled with the Holy Spirit in January and during that prayer I felt a warmth on the lower portion of my back. Which God later revealed during that prayer He had touched my hips and healed them.
Tuesday night of the following week we had a meeting before the addiction ministry at church for table leaders to ask the counseling Pastor for help with any questions we might have in leading our tables. The room was totally full that night. The first question that was asked had to do with helping the people around their table get passed losing someone to death because of substance abuse. Others offered answers and the Pastor did too. I felt the Holy Spirit nudge me to interject by mentioning we needed to bring Him into that ministry. I told Him that He needed to speak thru me if this was something I needed to say. I put my faith Him and when I opened my mouth I could literally feel the Spirit. It felt like if you were sitting in front of me you would’ve seen Him jumping out of my chest. The power that came out of my mouth when I spoke was unexplainable. From my point of view it was beautiful like music. It was like God was breathing out of my mouth speaking HIS words. I said, ‘we have no need to watch these people die. If we are filled with the Holy Spirit we have power to cast demons out, raise the dead, break these people free from their addictions.’ Everyone in the room had their eyes intently fixed on me. They were listening as I spoke but I am afraid most of them missed what God was saying through me. Except I noticed the Pastor was watching and by the look on his face I sensed he saw something different. I don’t know what he saw because we never spoke after but I hope he heard God speak. A guy approached me afterwords and said he agreed with everything I said. We need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and bring that teaching into the addiction ministry.
At Saturday night service later that week I was given an opportunity to sing in the worship band at church. This was the second time I actually had both a microphone and ears to hear with. I went in prior to this feeling like I was missing the secret presence of God that I’d obtained at that Tuesday night meeting earlier in the week. And I really couldn’t figure out why. But I was prayed up before I went to practice before service. After practice I felt as if I had been snubbed by one or two people in the band. Whether or not I was or if it was just my inability to perform well I do not know. But I felt compelled to go by myself after practice and get in one knee and ask wthe Holy Spirit for help.
We got back on stage for worship service and I began to sing with the band. Really I didn’t feel prepared and I continued to ask the Holy Spirit to help me worship. Well He did. Right in the middle of one of the songs the Pastor jumps out on stage and began to talk. The ear piece to hear everything the band was doing was in my better ear. It had been hard to get it in so I wasn’t taking it out. I’d felt like God also told me to leave the ear piece in so I couldn’t hear.With my weaker ear I tried my hardest to listen to what he spoke.
I heard, ‘there was a girl who made some bad choices… one day she was driving in a car and came to an intersection where she couldn’t see. She went and a semi hit her car and pushed them. (This was when I covered my face, realizing he was speaking of me and I turned it to the side and started weeping). This girl was injured. She couldn’t walk, or talk. She had to relearn. And he pointed to me. Well now here she is singing.’ That’s a shortened version of what he said but about only what I heard.
The applause came and the only thing I thought to do was lift my arm up and point upwards to make it clear that ALL GLORY AND PRAISE BE TO GOD. That was when God said in my spirit ‘keep doing this for ME.’
I can’t understand the Holy Spirit. He is SUPERNATURAL in His workings . But by faith I can accept what I do understand. I have to receive the filling of the Holy Spirit, separately from my salvation. Luke 11 says ‘To ask, seek after and knock for more of God’s Spirit to be poured into our lives. The answer God gives according to Scripture is that He is a good Father and to those who continue to plead for more of the Spirit, to them more will be given.’ In the original text it was written that this plea comes from a person who sees themselves of a lessor position as compared to God. This is key to really grasping this truth. Everyday that I ask for the filling of the Holy Spirit with faith I receive a SUPERNATURAL power that is beyond my comprehension.
I am waiting. God is not through with my story. I am waiting for HIM to do something through me that is only explained by HIS POWER. That’s the answer. I can’t understand but just believe so that I can receive. Be available. And remember it’s my FAITH that fuels HIM to do the impossible in my life and to those lives He uses me in.
God revealed to me sometime after the prayer in January to receive the filling of the Holy Spirit, that 17 years ago I craved God’s Presence with such a desire that it lead me to get on my knees and plead for more. It took place in the dark on my bedroom floor. I lifted up my hands up to the ceiling and received something coming down. It went into my mouth and satisfied me. I immediately jumped into bed and in the morning, because of my lack of short-term memory, I did not remember and therefore I told no one what had happened the night before.
All these years later I connect the dots to see how the Spiritual gifts God had given me since that night have been expressed over the years and when my heart was right I have been given the privilege to use them for His glory. Such as to sharing my story in front of hundreds of people. Along with teaching, writing, mentoring, and singing. Without even understanding why my fervency for God has at times been so passionate, now I understand. It’s not me. Never has been. Never will be. It’s the Presence of God through the Holy Spirit expressing Himself in and through me as I submit to Him. As I seek God with all my heart.
I have seen God come through in my life so many times and it’s only when I put all my faith in HIM and Him alone. I’ve prayed over our cars. I’ve prayed for healing for sickness. I’ve prayed fervently about lost jobs. I’ve prayed for salvation of many and had the privilege to lead some of those to the Lord. I prayed and prayed and prayed to write my book. And in 2013 it was published. Entitled A Life Redone: My Journey to a Life if Freedom. It wasn’t me. I cannot boast. Just putting my faith in God has done those impossible things.
Learn about it. Put your faith out there to get more of God’s Spirit and see what happens. Look for a deeper revelation of WHO GOD IS and what HE wants to reveal to you in your searching.
I spent a few hours at my moms house in March after that prayer that took place in January. Mike dropped me off so he could meet with a friend. It was snowy out so he had the truck to use. I’d prayed that God would help me to speak in that conversation. That afternoon was one of the sweetest days of conversing I have ever had with mom and Keith. I shared with them my experience since being filled with the Holy Spirit and the heart revelation that God gave me. As I spoke I could feel it was the power of the Holy Spirit speaking though me. My mom and Keith also said they sensed that as well. I think they received what I said. After I finished sharing my revelation Keith spoke up and said, ‘you could write another book on just what you shared.’
One night later that week Mike and I had dinner out. I shared with him about the Holy Spirit revelation I had. After I finished he also said I could write a second book on what I’d just shared with him what happened. Shortly after that I prayed for Mike to receive the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. I felt led when we got upstairs to our bedroom to pray over him again. I felt it was a more sincere prayer and I could feel power in it.
Shortly after I began thinking that maybe this revelation was something I needed to pass onto my Pastor. I figured I’d pray and wait. Later that week I started thinking that again. That morning talking to Mike on the phone he said he’d read Mark 13 and said we needed to read it together. Verse 11 said, ‘don’t worry about what you’ll say. For it will not be you speaking but the Holy Spirit.’ It struck me as I read the passage aloud to Mike. When we got to the end of the reading we talked about it and I spoke of another verse that had spoken to me. Not mentioning verse 11. Then I prayed silently if this was Holy Spirit speaking He would tell me again. As soon as I was done praying Mike spoke up and said what about verse 11? I’m like, ok God. Ok. I’ll go.
I can’t understand the Holy Spirit. He is SUPERNATURAL in His workings . But by faith I can accept what I do understand. That is this: I receive POWER by faith. Asking for help that is beyond me. I now understand that I need to ask for a fresh filling of the SUPERNATURAL power of the Holy Spirit daily. It is beyond my comprehension. I have to receive it like a child by faith.
I am waiting. God is not through with my story. I am waiting for HIM to do something through me that is only explained by HIS POWER. That’s the answer. I can’t understand but just believe and be available to receive.
I want to challenge you to go deeper in your understanding of who God is. Ask Him to reveal Himself to you in new ways. All the different parts of Him. See if your relationship with Him gets stronger. And be ready to have your understanding of God blown up and allow Him to teach you greater things. Isaiah 55 says, ‘God’s ways are higher than our ways. His the thoughts higher than our thoughts’. Allow Him to teach you that there’s so much more to discover about Him. He waits for you to search for Him intently with all your heart to reveal more of Himself to you (Jer 29:13). Go after it like nothing else. You won’t be disappointed. You will find the ultimate satisfaction that you long for in your inner man.
Therefore let us go on and get past the elementary stage in the teachings and doctrine of Christ (the Messiah), advancing steadily toward the completeness and perfection that belong to spiritual maturity. Let us not again be laying the foundation of repentance and abandonment of dead works (dead formalism) and of the faith [by which you turned] to God, With teachings about purifying, the laying on of hands, the resurrection from the dead, and eternal judgment and punishment. [These are all matters of which you should have been fully aware long, long ago.] If indeed God permits, we will [now] proceed [to advanced teaching]. (Heb 6:1-3)
A Life Redone: My Journey to a Life of Freedom. https://www.authorhouse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000651360
Special guest Laura Harding, author of
— Read on waterford.viebit.com/player.php
An interview on a local station sharing a bit of my story from my book A Life Redone: My Journey to a Life of Freedom.
My Help Comes From the Lord (Isa 41:10 & Psalm 121:1-2 NIV) – from Labyrinth by David Baloche – YouTube
— Read on m.youtube.com/watch
Such great music to pour into your heart. Scripture out to music. This is my favorite song from this album. Take a listen
But blessed are those whose hope is in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat and worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit (Jer 17:8).
Spiritually speaking if we are like trees firmly planted along the riverbank of God, and we have roots that reach deeply into the water, how can we be a mediocre Christian? Wouldn’t, if we were flourishing, be sold out for Christ? Wouldn’t we order our lives around Him instead of Him around our lives. Would we not make decisions and speak purposely and thoughtfully so we wouldn’t dishonor God? How would our lives be so drastically different if we were to do those things such as learning to love God with our lives, first and foremost? Would we see life through a clearer lens? Would not our perspectives on life change? We would not be full of dread or fear or anger but instead peace and harmony because we’d see that God is on our side. That no matter what we face we can do all things in the power of Christ.
It’s much easier said then done so how do we plant ourselves deep within Gods presence? I think it’s a work the of Holy Spirit. But we have to cooperate. Meaning we have to do our part. Opening Gods Word daily has to be apart of our life. Asking Him to speak directly to our hearts and being receptive to what we read. Listening for that still small voice of the Holy Spirit as we walk through our day and bring obedient to those promptings.
In a flourishing Christians life there is no room for half-heartedness. So go after it. Otherwise, how are you stewarding your life and is it fulfilling or are you unsatisfied? Are you producing spiritual fruit or are you dry, withered, worn and weary? Where do you want to be in the next year? Do you want to look back at the end of the year and see you’ve grown and changed or be disheartened that you’re still the same person you’ve always been? You want to celebrate climbing mountains or remain in the valley? The choice is yours. Where do you abide?
I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.
(John 15:5)
A Life Redone 