Sons of Yearning

SONS OF YEARNING (God of Burning)

Flood our lives with hunger burning
Nations wait for sons of yearning
God of fire, Grace and Awe
We give to you, our lives our all

Lamb of God the Lion roaring
Deep to deep your Spirit calling
Heirs with Christ, in Promise stand
Arising called to take the land

Burn in your Kingdom bright
Christ the light giving sight
Hope of the nations, salvation is here
Visions that all may see
Glimpses of glory
With Signs & wonders, Your Heavens draw near

Marshall now your troops deploy
The works of satan to destroy
In Majesty you ride ahead
In victory risen from the dead

Til you again return one day
We’ll trim our lamps with oil and pray
Then angels praise will join our cries
And ring like bells from Heaven’s skies

The empty chair and prayer

Brendan Manning told a story about a lady who called at his door, about 35 yrs of age, in tears. She asked him to go and visit her dying father and to pray for him, citing the fact that she had asked her Pastor three times and he said he would but always seemed to forget amidst his administrative duties and busy schedule...

Manning arrived at the hospital to find the father with an empty chair next to his bed as though he had been expecting a visitor. Seeing Manning's inquisitive look, the man said, ‘Oh the chair’ and went on to relate why the chair was by his bedside...

He had struggled with prayer all his life and confided this to Manning as a life-long struggle and had after many years approached his Pastor with courage and told him that he could hardly pray two words and also that he got little or nothing from his sermons on prayer as they seemed to 'fly over his head'. The Pastor gave him a theological book by a Swiss theologian that he couldn’t understand either which was returned the next week.

The dying man went on to relate how it was a good friend of his, by no means the most ‘spiritual person that he knew, that had given him some simple but profound advice on prayer....

‘Prayer’ he said, ‘is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus’. ‘All you do is sit down next to an empty chair and by faith see Jesus on that empty chair, and he has promised to be with you until the end of time, then just speak to Him and listen as you would in a conversation with your best friend’

I am making a trip to INDIA and NEPAL soon

Your prayers are appreciated

My niece Bekkie Williamson will be there for 2 months

Check out the link below - thanks to Krista Burns for the video,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi4cAniXqvc

Destabilize your unhealthy equilibrium (a link to my sermon)

Sermon I preached in South City Church Dublin - 21/8/11

"Disturb your unhealthy equilibrium"!

Whilst away on holiday in W and SW Ireland I really felt I heard God's direction and passion downloaded to me. Much of this applies to me personally but was also very much I believe for the 'Western Church' in general and the church in particular that I have the privilege of leading in Dublin!!

Its a message about courage, passion for God and breaking into your destiny. Its about recovering a freedom that causes us to live boldly, even wildly for Christ.

Hope you enjoy!

A walk on the Wilder Side

Martin Luther King Jr. once observed that "the only real revolutionary is a person who has nothing to lose" There is a truth to this. Those of us with too much invested in the way things are will never embrace the revolutionary cause required for whole-hearted change.

Think Mandela, Gandhi, and as mentioned Martin Luther King Jr.......

"Free from reliance on the system they sought to overthrow, they were liberated to dedicate themselves to their revolutionary cause.

The submission to the threshold of a cross is at the root of our following Jesus; it changes the game completely. Now discipleship is not about mere attendance in church meetings; it is about how we develop, mature, learn, and relate to God. It is about divesting oneself of allegiance to a religious system or institution and embracing the freedom of having nothing to lose. Much of who we are as Jesus's people will depend largely on the quality of our discipleship.

A church as Jesus defined it ought to be comprised of disciples and not just admirers, or it is hardly a church"

Extracts from 'The Faith of Leap' by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch

Are we ready to 'take a walk on the wild side' as the song goes..? What are we truly reliant upon? How deeply is the Gospel imprinted on our own hearts, let alone upon our lips for others? Discipleship flows accidentally from lives that seek to walk intentionally by the Spirit. If you are a believer upon Christ that is great, but let us not allow a misplaced quest for security, convenience or a form of Godliness to become our raison d'etre, but rather Christ and Christ crucified, a life ravished by gratitude, revelling in and thankful for the Good News in which we stand! Found in Him. Watch what happens then!

Lets take a walk on he Wild side!

JS

My guess!

What would Paul have written to the 'church' in Dublin?

Dear believer in Dublin,


You are dearly loved by me and more so by our Lord Jesus Christ.
I thank God for you, for each one of you and remember you in my prayers. God sees all your good deeds, your perseverance, your faithfulness to the call in Dublin, your love one for another and stewardship of your lives. Most of all you are a people who love our Lord Jesus Christ.
I urge you though to remember the manner after which you first became a follower of our Lord Jesus Christ. You realised how far short you had fallen of deserving God’s grace and in many ways felt undeserving of the free gift of righteousness that has been bestowed upon you. You were undeserving, and in many ways still are, except that the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ has cleansed us from all unworthiness and imputed to us a righteousness that we get for free! Now live this second chance well and stop double guessing whether you are good enough, you are not of yourself, but in every way you are now as a New Person through the Grace and righteousness of our Lord and His finished work on the cross.
Amidst all the clamour of modern life in Dublin, and the vast number of opinions that the media, society and religious culture project all around you each day, I commend to you like never before to have ears to hear what the Holy Spirit would say unto you. Abide in the true vine and bear fruit to God. He is your Shepherd, your guide, you His church and Bride. I urge you specifically in this day to be reminded of the Gospel of our Lord and that the price paid for you was not just an entrance fee to get you to the party in Heaven but is also the daily bread by which you can grow up in Him and the bread that you break for others. We are no longer our own for Christ died for us to make us His own. So don’t believe those who tell you its all about you, and all about your every want, whim or convenience. Let me let you into a secret, its not! Don’t get me wrong here, our Father really is our Father! He loves to give good gifts to us His children, He sees the details of our lives and knows our prayers and heart cries before they even leave our lips! Its just that we can so easily make the focus and point all about us, often due to fears we may have or insecurities about our lives or our future. Remember that word of counsel that recalls the Father’s love for each one of us, ‘How great the Father’s love for us that we might be called children of God, and THAT is what we are!’ As children of GOD though, lets remember how we got to be His Sons, lets remember the price He paid for our adoption, the uncountable cost and suffering so that we could be counted His very own, and that is what we are. We say we are Christ-centered but what does that look like in our daily lives? Are we ravished by the Good News of His Grace or just trying to lead a life of virtue and principle? Are we living in an overflow of amazement for the Gospel and Kingdom in which we stand or just trying to survive another day in the race? Do we tell others about our Lord and their need for salvation? If not, are we ashamed of being different, of being considered a Jesus freak? May it never be so. Come back to where you first began, and pray that I too do so, come back to your first love. The Gospel is about Christ and His Kingdom not our every whim. Reject the lowest common denominator of SELF, and in this you too will find rest and your needs will be met in Him, by your Father in Heaven. Make Christ and His Glory your crowning glory. Make Him famous, seek His Kingdom first, and as our Lord taught us, He is indeed faithful to grant us all the ‘other things’ and to add them unto us.

The instinct of faith

23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. Hebrews 11v23

Did you ever feel like you had a gut feeling about how to deal with a situation but instead you did nothing in case you made wrong choices? Perhaps you only expect God to work in one way or another...?

Joseph's circuitous journey had allowed God time to cultivate a faith in Him that helped him see beyond his own lifetime. As such he made arrangements for his bones to be relocated along with the exodus of the Israelites that he knew 'by faith' would come to pass. Faith trusts and expects. Living by faith means preparing for what will come to pass! No ifs' or maybes'!

I come now to the remarkable verse highlighted above - verse 23. The plan of God that Joseph and the Patriarch's had foreseen began to accelerate under Moses. There is mention here however of a faith contribution that can so easily be overlooked in this whole episode of God's redemptive history. We can reflect momentarily that, as per Moses' parents, some lives and contributions of faith will only gain acknowledgement in Heaven. Moses' parents had faith in the most traumatic of situations. It seems that faith arose in the hearts of Moses' parents when they saw that there was something special about their child. We would I am certain all agree that all children are special and unique but this is not what seems to be implicitly referred to in this verse.

It seems that God gave Moses' parents faith that the little bundle in their hands had destiny upon His life. There is no mention though of a specific 'word' or 'prophecy' spoken over him, just an 'instinctive knowledge' that led to fear-defeating faith inspired actions.

Michael Eaton says this about this passage,

'This is a good example of the way in which faith is not so much based upon a specific word from God but on a kind of instinctive knowledge of what God's will is. They knew that there was something very special about this child. They knew the character of God was against child-murder. This was the kind of situation where they needed no special further word from God. Their faith was instinctive.'

Is it possible that believers like you and I are nullifying the God instilled ability to take steps of faith in our lives because we are waiting for a 'neon sign' type of revelation before acting? Listen, I agree, 'Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of God' however, are: the distilling of every Word we have heard in the course of our lives, the ongoing schooling and guidance of the Holy Spirit, maintaining 'faith and a good conscience' and the ability to interpret God's dealings in circumstances, any less important factors in our ability to walk and act by faith? Surely not.
Moses' parents had an instinctive faith impulse.

I believe that too often we outwit ourselves by over-reasoning situations when it would have been better to go with our gut reaction that is born of faith

not fear or the laws of probability. In outwitting ourselves we are robbed of the ability to act as people of faith who take appropriate actions at the appropriate times. The men of Issachar of old 'Understood the times and knew what to do' Our friends the Thomsons, in our home-group, highlighted this point shrewdly last week, rightly pointing out that a prophetic people not only can 'discern the times' but also know 'how to respond'. They understood the times but then also knew what to do!

This kind of instinctive working of faith empowers believers to make courageous choices that appeal to God on the basis of his known character.

Moses' parents knew there was destiny on this boy and that somehow God would make a way where there was no way. God did. The result of this was the protection of a deliverer leader through whom God would emancipate a nation.

Are you waiting for 'writing on the sky' when deep down you 'know' what you should do through 'instinctive faith'? If so, remember you have 'no ordinary destiny' as a child of the Living God. He will help you to understand the times and situations that you face and show you what you need to do.

JS

Market-place Ministers - feedback

I have just finished a meeting with Rick Heeren, who serves alongside Ed Silvoso in 'Harvest Evangelism'. This meeting and the Arise Dublin seminar we hosted yesterday were packed full of testimony and teaching of how God wants to transition his church to becoming more effective as 'Market-place ministers'. Here are the themes and thoughts in note form for you to peruse...these are just brief notes, let me know what you think.

* For too long church has expected the world to come to us. Its time to wake up to the need for the church to live well in the world and that the kingdom will come!

* The 'Market-place' refers to the business world and spheres of society where most people spend much of their life!

* Too many Christians dread Monday and live for the week-end. Week-ends are fun and necessary but we need to understand God's plan to use us in the work-place and to help bring Kingdom transformation.

* For this to happen we need a PARADIGM shift, our frame of reference as Christians must change eg. God's purpose for His believers (church) is to impact the world. This happens in different ways...from ethics at work, to using Godly prosperity to the benefit of employees, to evangelism and Kingdom demonstration or simply by praying for someone in need. Another paradigm shift is to understand that you have not 'arrived' when you become a full-time Christian worker...please! God has a unique DNA for each person and only the few called to this task should aspire to this. It is my opinion that it is a Godly ambition to excel and shine for God in the 'market-place'. This is not only normal for the Christian, it is where you can be most effective.

* paradigm shifts in brief (as taught by Ed Silvoso and his team)
- disciple cities and nations
- Reclaim the market-place
- Work is part of your worship
- Take the Kingdom of God to the gates of hell
- nation transformation is seen tangibly in the elimination of systemic poverty

* Pulpit and market-place ministers must work together in unity of spirit and faith for the Kingdom to come. Pastors equipping and blessing business and market-place ministers and the latter dedicating their work for the Kingdom and to the benefit of the local church

* Prayer is the foundation. Christ must be central with his Gospel. We cannot and must not try to effect city transformation without God! The concept beggars belief! Unity between Pastors is vital (as seen with Arise Dublin) This is unity with a purpose though, otherwise unity will eventually fade. Covenantal friendships with the King and His Kingdom the goal are an irresistible force for transformation of nations. Intercession is vital. No prayer, no change.

* Luke 10 gives a few key principles in evangelism the Jesus way (as taught by Rick Heeren)
- bless - speak your 'peace' (or Shalom), speak life...
- fellowship - some doors of God (and hearts) will open...stay around
- pray - look for ways to release the power&love of God eg. healing, needs.
- proclaim - speak the Gospel to open and receptive hearts

* believe and act toward God using the market-place as a place for His Kingdom to come, in various ways...no longer hiding but rather shining.

More to come soon...
JS

The deadly cocktail of mixing Law and Grace for the believer

It is becoming a better known fact to many Christians that they are not to serve and live for Christ through the Mosaic Law (Ten commandments and Old Testament commands) but rather to properly understand by revelation and subsequent life transformation the New Covenant, purchased by Jesus Christ our great High Priest!
Should this be news to you then you really really do need to look into this and study the fact that as a believer in Christ you are ‘no longer under law but under Grace’ and to fully begin to live in this reality.
For the purpose of this blog I want to assume that you know this. However I also want to assume that like me you may be finding the subtleties of living in the fullness of life that Christ has purchased for us sometimes elusive. Let me give you an example from my own life...
By and large I understand and can preach New Covenant realities for the child of God, our freedom in Christ, our great privileges, the fact that we are no longer under the curse of the Law, that Christ was the END of the Law and so forth. That means that God accepts and receives me as His son on the basis of the blood of Christ – His atoning sacrifice and not on my own merits. I understand that as I have started (under Grace – unmerited favour by the mercy of God) then so am I to continue ie. That Grace is not just the means of my Justification but is also the means of my Sanctification and to fulfil my destiny!

Along the way though I have discovered though that I can still end up living in a subtle fusion of Law and Grace

when revelation begins to wane or fleshly living starts to creep up and bite me from behind! Paul told the believer that there ‘is now NO CONDEMNATION’ for those in Christ Jesus....

how often have I told myself that I am living and believing correctly under Grace by the Spirit of God only to have to re-evaluate when the crippling power of condemnation or a sense of failure starts overtaking me. Its only when the effects of living under this for a while accumulate and overwhelm us that we realise that the cumulative effect of even a small amount of ‘Law based living’ will eventually cripple us like a pebble in the shoe of a weary traveller

. Perhaps you feel a sense of unworthiness and an inability to move into the calling and prophecies that you have received?

Maybe like me you have discovered that 'starting' is the easy part and you have lapsed back for seasons, even unconsciously, into adopting the Old Covenant approach of 'do and live' again rather than the life-giving 'live and do' of Grace?

By Grace we understand that we entered the Kingdom by faith (through Grace) apart from works and as such must continue in this manner, not abandoning Grace in favour of once more earning God’s favour and acceptance through our own efforts – surely the great default of many of us.

A revelation of Grace through a renewed mind appreciates that even a little bit of Law based thinking for the believer will bring condemnation and guilt and fail to lead us into the Spirit led and filled life we desire.

It takes one rotten apple to spoil the barrel. What I have discovered is that much of this Law based thinking comes through 'old defaults' from our past. We lurch back toward ‘human performancisms’ rather than allowing ourselves the right to receive by faith what we don’t deserve and enjoy the full rights as sons – unmerited favour and position by virtue of Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection – apart from works.

Its the subtle mix of Law and Grace based living that is the most difficult animal to catch and the most dangerous

It takes time to realise that as a believer there is no such thing as a balance between Law and Grace! We must go the whole way and cast out the slave woman Hagar (a ‘type’ of the Law) and embrace fully living as a child of Promise after Isaac (a ‘type’ of Grace) Cast out the Slave woman Paul told the Galatians! It sounds so harsh but this is what we must do to any ‘law based’ thinking. So if you catch yourself trying to earn God’s favour, or battling with a Spirit of condemnation due to feelings of unworthiness or other PERFORMANCE related means of living for God and possessing your inheritance then STOP and reconsider.

You start by Grace and you must continue by Grace. Your faith is the key.

Will you believe the scandalous freedom you have in Christ or not? Will you accept him and the New Covenant in all its fullness or not? Don’t think that by mixing Law based and Grace based living you can hedge your bets. No, it will ruin you.
Learn to identify what is going on in your mind by the fruit of your life. Condemnation, feeling a failure, fed up, drivenness...all BAD! Hope, courage, assurance, buoyancy and joy ...all GOOD!
Watch your life transform in Christ by living in and through the Gospel of Grace today in all its fullness, leave no stone unturned and identify those places where you have tolerated that deadly mixed cocktail of L & G for too long. Discover the difference!
JS.