I'm Not Done With That Yet!!

That is what I heard the Spirit say to me tonight! "I'm not done with that yet!" This blog may seem like a rant but instead of trying to think out how I want to present this I am going to just write out my thoughts and let you do with them what you will.

I believe my generation has come to a dangerous place with the things of the Lord. We have come to this place where we think that since we are different we know better than our predecessors and we are beginning to so easily cast off the things of the past because we have something new. I believe we have built a new religious system that has so centered on the "new" thing that we have forgotten all of the Great things that have brought us to the places we are and are in danger of isolating ourselves from the fullness of Yahweh because some of it might not look "new" and might not be dressed in jeans and a hipster shirt.

Think about this. If you listen to most new "worship songs" you will hear mainly the same things; the love of God, not very many descriptions of our God, and catchy tunes (most of which are very mellow). What happened to the days of old when we describe Yahweh as Ruler of all, Ancient of day, Ancient one, King of all kings, Strong in battle, Mighty indeed. These days are almost gone. Fortunately there is a remnant left that seeks for total abandonment in worship.

Don't get me wrong, there are some modern songs that put me instantly in the presence of Yahweh but there are oh so many songs of old that still usher in His presence. Every time I hear the Crabb family sing "Holy Ground" I am brought to tears by His mighty presence. When I hear Ron Kenoly sing "Can't stop praising His Name" I instantly begin to dance and praise. Again don't miss what I am saying, We don't need to go back and just do those songs but we do need to be careful to not miss what God is doing just because it doesn't come in a "new" package. He is saying "I'm not done with that yet!"

I am looking forward to a day when we can bridge the generational gap in worship and join together to worship our Creator. Old and young can join hands and sing as one.

Rant complete

It's OK to take your time!!

So as I was leaving for work I noticed that my sunflower I planted had bloomed and deserved a photo op. I took the pic and got in my car to head to work. I looked back at the flower and made this statement. "You sure took your time growing!" As soon as it came out of my mouth I heard the Holy Spirit say, "And that's OK" It caught me off guard at first. And then I heard "Did you yell at the flower while it was growing because you wanted to see it grow faster? No. Did you get mad at the flower for taking so long? No. You just waited till it produced what it was intended to produce and then you enjoyed its beauty." Now this isn't the biggest sunflower but its beauty is like none other I have ever seen.

So many times in our journey and walk we are looked down on for our pace. How many of you have ever felt belittled or disappointed in because of someone else looking down on you because you were not at the level they thought you should be at. How many times did we feel discouraged because we weren't living up to someone else's par list. We have all been uniquely created and just as the different flowers God created will grow and bloom at different paces, we must realize that we are the same. Did you know that their are flowers that can take years to grow and bloom once in the life of the flowers? What if, by our words, we shut someone down who was designed for a once in a lifetime bloom and they never reach the fullness of what God has for them.

So here is my two part call to action. One, let us remember that all God's creations grow at different paces and it is our responsibility as fellow believers to encourage them and help them get to that day. Be patient and loving always lending a helping hand not a hand of judgement. Be ready to wait and see the beauty that is displayed once they do bloom. Second, do not allow the words of others to deter you from continuing to grow in the things of God. Renounce and rebuke any curses spoken over you and declare those assignments are broken. Hold on to the promises of God. Lay aside disappointments and discouragement and press on to the day you bloom as God designed YOU to and show off the beauty of His majesty!!!

Let's Return to Praise

The psalmist David tells us countless times to "Praise the Lord". As I was watching some church services on Youtube the Holy Spirit began showing me a few things.

1. Where has the Praise gone?

2. Where is the celebration?

3. Why has music become somber?

To start with I am not opposed to slower and somber music but I wonder where the praise has gone.  The Hebrew word that David used was Halal which means to be boastful. When was the last time you were boastful about your God? When was the last time you let people know what He had done for you? We love to worship God in a soft and reverent manner, that's easy, but when was the last time you gave God your very best praise in a way that demonstrated your boast in Him. David was so expressive to God that his own wife was embarrassed and gave him a hard time for it. He basically told her that he didn't care and to hold on cause he would do it again. No wonder God called David a man after His heart. 

In the Bible the Hebrews used feasts and celebrations as a way to honor God and demonstrate their loyalty and gratitude toward Him. After Christ's ascension back into heaven He promised the Holy Spirit would come. And He did. In the middle of Pentecost, In the middle of a feast, In the middle of a celebration. We need to reestablish a heart of praise that will release the key of David. Worship will usher in the presence of God but the psalmist tells us that praise is a weapon. The enemy can't stand when we praise, especially through circumstances because he looses the ability to wear us down. The bible says that God inhabits the praises of His people. When we praise Him we are establishing a throne in our lives that He can sit upon.

When we boast about someone we are expressing with excessive pride the things or achievements they have accomplished and performed. When we do this about God it automatically positions us in a mode of humility and acknowledges that He is Most High and is above all. As we acknowledge Him as the one who sits high on the throne of Heaven, we open up the door for Him to move in our world and situations. That is how praise becomes a weapon.

So I release you to go beyond what you know as praise and worship and begin to excessively express that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is still worthy of that same kind of praise that caused King David to loose his garments. Begin to Halal in every situation and at all times. With your coworkers, friends, family, the cashier at the grocery store, begin to boast in your God. Let's restore the praise back into our lives.

God is Redemption

God is Redemption.

Over the next few posts I really feel like Yahweh is pressing me to talk about some of the natures of Himself that have been lost or forgotten in large by the body of Christ. 

The first characteristic is Redemption. 

God revealed Himself in many ways to Abraham. More than any other person in history Abraham was shown and declared the Lord to be many things. One of the aspects we can learn about in the life of Abraham is that God is Redemption. You may notice I do not say God can redeem and I don't say He is a God of redemption but that God is Redemption. We must stop taking the nature of Christ and turning it into something He can do. IT IS HIS NATURE, not something He can do but IT IS WHO HE IS. When healing comes forth it is because He has poured out Himself. When you get one aspect you get them all! You just have to recognize them all and receive them all! Back to redemption.

So many times we forget about Gods redemption. Let's look at the life of Abraham. Abraham received a promise that He would become the father of many nations. One problem. Sarah his wife could not have a child. So Abraham thought he needed to help God out. He decided to have a child with his handmaiden. In case you didn't know that was not God's plan. Here is where God's redemption kicks in. 

In todays modern Church most people would quit, retire to the idea that they screwed up and messed up God's plan. Most would go on with regret and live the rest of their life knowing that they missed God's plan. But what did Abraham do? He learned the nature of redemption. Abraham learned that no matter what he had done God was ready to redeem him through his mistakes. He activated the redemption power of Yahweh and God caused Sarah's womb to open up and conceive Isaac.  

No matter what you have done or the mistakes you have made, remember that God is Redemption. He will bring back to you everything the enemy has stolen and everything you may have forfeited by default by your decisions. Yahweh sees you through the blood of His son and is ready to redeem everything lost. Remember His covenant with Abraham. He is Redemption.

Fight or Flight

One of the things that I really enjoy doing is listening. When I am sitting by myself at store, enjoying a coffee at a barista, mainly anywhere I go I listen. I listen to people talking. I listen the sounds around me. You could say that I am a very observant person. I'm not trying to eavesdrop but I pick up on the conversations around me. I have, through the years, discovered one alarming thing. The average american has lost the ability to fight. Now, I'm not talking about physically fighting but the act of standing up for what you believe in and standing your ground.

The closer we get to the next political election the more I hear people joke, or at least I think they are, about leaving the country depending on who wins. Sadly I have heard people who call themselves believers saying the same things. As if leaving this country is going to magically fix things. 

Put religion and faith aside and we still have a culture of americans who have had their fight response sabotaged and hardwired to flight. We can see this everyday in the yelpers who automatically yell injustice every time someone disagrees with them. What happened from the generation that hit the World Wars head on and fought to help establish peace across the globe? What happened from then till now to cause the majority of our nation to have no ability to fight?

I can't answer those questions with absolute answers but I can tell you this. 

I believe that Yahweh is raising up a new generation that will be trained to stand and fight against the evil one. There is a next generation army arising out of the ashes that will shake off every thing we thought we knew. It is going to be equipped to advance His kingdom not the ideals of man. It is going to operate and function in the power and anointing that the first church operated in. An army is arising! Are you going to take your place? Don't back down! Don't back up! Endure to the end!

Join the Army

It's not your weight to carry

The last five days have been an amazing time in the Lord. My wife and I have seen so many shackles broken off and chains removed from our lives and spirits. The Lord is beginning to do some incredible things in the earth. Something is moving, something is changing!

The thing that the Lord has shown me today comes from Psalms 3:3. "But you oh Lord are a shield around me, my glory,and the One who lifts my head. I cry aloud the Lord, and He answers me from His holy mountain."

The Lord is saying today do not carry a weight that is not yours to carry. You do not have to be your shield. You do not have to defend yourself. You do not have to worry about the future. You do not have to ...... fill in the blank. In this verse he says I am your shield. I am the lifter of your head.

So many times in life we feel like we have to have it all together.  We feel like we have to put on a mask of how life really is because we are depending on ourselves to establish who we are. The Lord is crying out saying "Let me be the lifter of your head", "I want to be your source", "I want to be your protector". The word says we can cast all of our cares on Him, he will be our refuge and our protector.

My encouragement for you today is to let Him carry your burdens and let Him be your strength. The Lord is a strong tower that the righteous can run into and be saved. No matter what you are going through, He doesn't want you to face it on your own. Proverbs 18:10

Remember this; It's not your weight to carry!

Keepin' it Real
Daniel B

Give Me Your Strength

Psalms 86:15-16 "But you, O Lord, are a God of compassion and mercy, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. Look down and have mercy on me. Give Your strength to your servant; save me, because I serve you just as my mother did."

Is that not amazing? The psalmist David has such a heart after the Lord that it overflows into everything he writes.

Remember this today that God IS compassion and mercy he doesn't have it but everything in Him screams compassion and mercy. He is the polar opposite of how our flesh functions.  We are quick to anger and retaliation but this says He is slow to anger.

So many times we use the only examples we have physically to judge and compare how the Lord must be that we cannot see. We must get past this engrained ideology that how our father was or is gives an insight into how our heavenly father is. The word gives us very clear depictions of the nature and character of Yahweh and we must hold on to our faith in the word and let go of the physical examples presented before us. Our flesh is imperfect and can always fail but our heavenly father never fails.

The second verse is my prayer for you today. If you are reading this then this is for you. The psalmist is crying out to the Lord for strength but not just any strength. He is asking for God's strength. He says "give me Your strength". I love this because he understands that anything done in his power will fail but if I can have the Lord's strength it will pass over all my understanding and will allow me to do things that I did not even think possible. When we get to this place it not only encourages us but it opens up the door for us to become a sign and a wonder in the earth. How cool is that!! The Lord is always looking to make His glory known through us. What better way to do that than to allow Him to give you the power and strength to overcome where it doesn't seem possible. You get a victory you didn't think possible and He gets immense amounts of praise and glory in the earth.

Wow I am crazy excited now!

Father I pray that Your glory and power be poured out on all that are in a place of struggle and heartache; to all those in a situation or circumstance where things seem hopeless I speak Your strength over them right now. Let your glory be made known through them. Not so they can brag about all the hard work that they put into it but at the end of the day they can stand back and say "If not for God, where would I be". Let your strength empower them to pursue you and your will beyond understanding. In Your son Jesus' name, Amen

The Lord is there for you always and you may not be able to see me either but send me a message or leave a comment letting me know what you are going through and how the Lord's strength is pushing you through it and into victory.

Till next time guys

Keepin' it Real
Daniel B