Has anyone of you gone through a negative experience or something tramatic in your life? It could be a loss of a loved one, a broken relationship, a loss of job etc. This experience may have happened many many years ago and you may think that the wounds have completely healed. But when something similar seems to be happening again, you go into 'panic' mode because the fears and the pain of that incident was brought back to your memory. You certainly do not wish to go through it again and you ever told God not to let it happen to you. Yet deep down in your heart, there is a niggling thought: can I really trust God? If God could not have prevented it at that time, what makes me think that He could stop this from happening again?
These doubts are dangerous and they are not from God. When you see certain incidents seemingly re-playing themselves in your life again, take heart. God is doing a mighty work of restoration. Of course we do not wish to even think about the bad experience, let alone face it again. Yet unless we are open for God to bring us through the process of restoration, the doubts in our hearts will never go away. And we will always be living in the shadow of 'what-ifs' and falling prey to the devil's attacks. God is going to the root issue of your fears, doubts and He is settling this once for all. He is providing you with His answer: the finished work of Christ on the cross.
First of all, when He brings you back to the memories of that terrible incident, let He show you that He was there with you. Just like Jesus was with the 3 Hebrew princes in the fiery furnace. He was willing and able to deliver you from that incident but He could not override our will. Perhaps our wrong believing kept us from seeing His power and deliverance but that is ok. It is of no importance anymore. Now He is going through the same fiery furnace with you and His way to 'take you out' of this bad experience is through the fire (which is like the way of the cross). This time round, He will show you how He not only could identify with your pains and struggles in the fire, He also has the power to deliver you. You can totally trust a Saviour who suffered a zillion times worse than you and died for you.
When you see what He has done for you in the fiery furnace, a picture of how He has totally crushed all our enemies under His feet when He resurrected, you will be convinced that the price has truly been paid. Your doubts will melt like butter under a hot sun. Your conscience will be satisfied that your Saviour paid the price for you, He became your scapegoat in that incident and God has fully accepted this payment when He was resurrected. Like how someone took your rap and went to prison for you. You won't know that your crime has been punished until you see this person walking free again. When He has delivered you out of the fiery furnace, you know victory is yours because Christ even burnt away the ropes of bondage on your hands. Yet there is not even a trace or smell of smoke on your body! This time round, the outcome is totally different from before.
And when you think about that incident again, it no longer evokes pain or fear like it did before. It was as if God totally erased that pain from the incident and all you can remember was Jesus was there with you and He paid the price for you. When that happens, you know you are forever delivered from the painful memories of that incident. You have finally let go of the past and now can move forward to embrace wonderful things God prepared for you in your future. God has completely restored you in that area and the enemy no longer has any stronghold over you. In Joel 2:25-28, you will see that what comes after restoration is that God pours out His Holy Spirit on His people. And we will praise the name of the Lord who has done marvellous things for us and we will never be put to shame again! Praise the Lord!
Friday, May 25, 2012
Friday, May 11, 2012
Jesus The Open Door
Some of you may realise that when God wants to get a message to you, He will keeping showing you a phrase or a certain verse. It can appear anywhere, from your daily devotionals or book reading or through another person or through the newspapers or even TV dramas! God has a thousand ways to get that message across. Since middle of March, I have been seeing this phrase 'Open Door' almost everyday. It came from three verses:
1) 'I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it.' (Rev 3:8)
2) '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.' (Rev 3:20)
3) 'I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.' (John 10:9)
Last week, I was in a Christian bookstore and this book caught my eye. The book is 'Jesus: The Open Door' by Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin. I bought the book and finished reading it because I wanted to find out more about the open door. Actually I was very excited when I saw this message 'Open Door' because I had been waiting for some things to come to pass last Sep but it seemed like nothing was moving. I prayed for God to open doors to my pregnancy, my book to be published and my ministry. Although nothing seemed to be happening on the surface, I knew God was working behind the scenes. Somewhere in Oct, I came to a point where I was happy to just fellowship with Jesus in this world of love where nothing else mattered. I was contented whether things moved or not.
Yet towards the end of last year, I received a Word from the Lord. He told me to 'arise and go'. I sensed that it was a call for action and this meant that things were going to change from waiting mode to action mode. In Feb this year, God showed me that He is indeed doing new things in my life and these will manifest soon. Immediately after that, I saw many things which I had been waiting moved very quickly, without my intervention. I knew it had to be God. After He showed me open doors in Mar, there were really many doors opened to me in that month. I was excited because after most of my dreams came to pass, God still kept showing me 'open doors' which meant that there are more blessings ahead!
I realised that the favour of God opens doors for me but the wisdom of God leads me to the right door to enter. I saw how two doors opened around the same time but the wisdom and the peace of God led me to the right one to step into. In John 10:7, Jesus says that He is the door. He closes the door on bad things and troubles; He opens the door to green pastures and blessings for us. In the book 'Jesus: The Open Door', I learnt that there is a Godward side and a manward side to every open door. God showed me that through the finished work of Christ, every door of blessing has been opened by Jesus. These doors could be salvation, healing, opportunities for service, prosperity etc. And what Christ has opened, no man can shut (Rev 3:8).
Yet there is a manward side to that door. This does not mean that we need to work for the blessings or strive to open doors by our human efforts. We can only work out what God has first worked in us (Phil 2:13). This meant that we need to be sensitive to hear God's voice for any instructions He has told us. In the new covenant of grace, that is how God writes down the 'laws' - in our hearts (Heb 8:10). Whatever He wants us to do, He will first write on our hearts, which becomes like a prompting for us to act on His Word. God has already opened the door but we need to make the decision to step through. Sometimes it takes a huge step of faith to enter that door. Not that it is difficult but many a times, what God told us to do is against the human reasoning.
That's why Jesus said in Rev 3:20, that He stands outside the door of our hearts and knock. If we hear His voice and opens the door (which would be doing what He prompts us to), Jesus will enter into our lives and work the miracles that had been promised. By speaking and walking in faith, we are effectively opening a door for Christ to enter and work powerfully in a certain area of our lives. In John 2:3, the account of the first miracle Jesus performed, turning water into wine, Mary, the mother of Jesus told the servants 'Whatever He says to you, do it.' The result was that the best wine was produced in abundance.
My brethren, what is on your heart today? What has God consistently said in His Word and told you to do? It is time to be bold and step on on His Word. You will not sink but you will walk on water like Peter. Peter would not have stepped out if Jesus did not say 'Come.' You know that God has spoken clearly for you are His sheep and His sheep listen to His voice. Like what Mary said 'Whatever He says to you, do it.' Then after you stepped out in faith, just rest and watch what Jesus would do next. And be awed...be greatly amazed!
1) 'I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it.' (Rev 3:8)
2) '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.' (Rev 3:20)
3) 'I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.' (John 10:9)
Last week, I was in a Christian bookstore and this book caught my eye. The book is 'Jesus: The Open Door' by Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin. I bought the book and finished reading it because I wanted to find out more about the open door. Actually I was very excited when I saw this message 'Open Door' because I had been waiting for some things to come to pass last Sep but it seemed like nothing was moving. I prayed for God to open doors to my pregnancy, my book to be published and my ministry. Although nothing seemed to be happening on the surface, I knew God was working behind the scenes. Somewhere in Oct, I came to a point where I was happy to just fellowship with Jesus in this world of love where nothing else mattered. I was contented whether things moved or not.
Yet towards the end of last year, I received a Word from the Lord. He told me to 'arise and go'. I sensed that it was a call for action and this meant that things were going to change from waiting mode to action mode. In Feb this year, God showed me that He is indeed doing new things in my life and these will manifest soon. Immediately after that, I saw many things which I had been waiting moved very quickly, without my intervention. I knew it had to be God. After He showed me open doors in Mar, there were really many doors opened to me in that month. I was excited because after most of my dreams came to pass, God still kept showing me 'open doors' which meant that there are more blessings ahead!
I realised that the favour of God opens doors for me but the wisdom of God leads me to the right door to enter. I saw how two doors opened around the same time but the wisdom and the peace of God led me to the right one to step into. In John 10:7, Jesus says that He is the door. He closes the door on bad things and troubles; He opens the door to green pastures and blessings for us. In the book 'Jesus: The Open Door', I learnt that there is a Godward side and a manward side to every open door. God showed me that through the finished work of Christ, every door of blessing has been opened by Jesus. These doors could be salvation, healing, opportunities for service, prosperity etc. And what Christ has opened, no man can shut (Rev 3:8).
Yet there is a manward side to that door. This does not mean that we need to work for the blessings or strive to open doors by our human efforts. We can only work out what God has first worked in us (Phil 2:13). This meant that we need to be sensitive to hear God's voice for any instructions He has told us. In the new covenant of grace, that is how God writes down the 'laws' - in our hearts (Heb 8:10). Whatever He wants us to do, He will first write on our hearts, which becomes like a prompting for us to act on His Word. God has already opened the door but we need to make the decision to step through. Sometimes it takes a huge step of faith to enter that door. Not that it is difficult but many a times, what God told us to do is against the human reasoning.
That's why Jesus said in Rev 3:20, that He stands outside the door of our hearts and knock. If we hear His voice and opens the door (which would be doing what He prompts us to), Jesus will enter into our lives and work the miracles that had been promised. By speaking and walking in faith, we are effectively opening a door for Christ to enter and work powerfully in a certain area of our lives. In John 2:3, the account of the first miracle Jesus performed, turning water into wine, Mary, the mother of Jesus told the servants 'Whatever He says to you, do it.' The result was that the best wine was produced in abundance.
My brethren, what is on your heart today? What has God consistently said in His Word and told you to do? It is time to be bold and step on on His Word. You will not sink but you will walk on water like Peter. Peter would not have stepped out if Jesus did not say 'Come.' You know that God has spoken clearly for you are His sheep and His sheep listen to His voice. Like what Mary said 'Whatever He says to you, do it.' Then after you stepped out in faith, just rest and watch what Jesus would do next. And be awed...be greatly amazed!
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Discerning God's Voice
Recently I just read a book by Priscilla Shirer called 'Discerning the Voice of God'. I was very ministered by what she shared in the book and I thought of sharing it with you. This book came at a point of time when God has been reminding me of John 10:27 'My sheep listen to My voice' just as I stepped up to be the care leader of a group. I knew that He was giving me an assurance that I was not alone in under-shepherding His sheep. I cannot underestimate the importance of hearing His voice as I took on this responsibility.
When I read this book, I was heartened to know that many of God's messages for the past few years, especially the past year was mentioned by the author. What I had been through, others had been through it too. It confirmed what I heard from God all along was correct, though sometimes the message might be bizarre, mostly going against the grain of this world.
In a world where we hear so many different voices, it can be hard to discern which is God's voice. Yet the bible promises us that we, His sheep listen to His voice, just like a newborn baby naturally listen to his dad's voice. Over the years, I learnt how to discern Jesus' voice from others as I got to know Him more intimately and responded to His voice. Eventually I come to know Him well enough to discern if He was speaking simply by asking 'Does this sound like God's voice? Is it in line with the character of a loving Father?' Over time I found out the characteristics of His voice and the resulting effects on me.
Firstly, I know that His voice will never cause me to be afraid for He has given me a spirit of power, not timidity. Many times we find Jesus telling his disciples and the people 'Don't be afraid.' His message will never cause fear in my heart for perfect love drives out fear. Fear has to do with punishment. His message always bring good news eventually for we, believers, will forever have hope because of what Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross.
Secondly, I have never found myself being condemned by His voice. Even if I did something out of wrong motives, He will convict me of that but He always do it lovingly. Then He will remind me that I am washed clean by the blood of Jesus and convict me of righteousness in Christ, not my sin. As I repented, He would often provide a solution and give me another chance to respond rightly. That is the grace of God.
Thirdly, I know God is speaking when what He tells me to do is challenging and I cannot do it without His anointing and His help. I have noticed that most times His instructions are either absurd or strange but when I obeyed anyway, I saw His plan and His purpose. I have also come to understand the importance of obeying immediately when He speaks. For example, if He tells me to witness to a stranger, and if I missed the opportunity, I might never see the person again.
Fourthly, we can separate God's voice from the enemy by the effect it has on us and our circumstances. His word always bring peace, joy and life in our spirit. We can feel a quickening in our spirit as it comes alive and then we experience an undescribable joy after He speaks. The feeling is as if our hearts jumped a beat. We will also feel very loved by God as He addresses our personal situation showing that He cares for us and we are always on His mind.
God's word always produces clear results. One of the evidences that God has spoken is when things in our lives change dramatically. Many times the effect of His voice is immediate. When you see things changing quickly without any help from you, you will know that the Lord has spoken and He is up to something. When He begins to move, the results will be immediate and obvious. Sometimes, His moves are very sudden, so when He tells you to prepare, it is best to obey quickly because you might not have the time to do so when He moves. By then, you will know without a doubt that God is performing what He has spoken. And often the first change you will see won't be in your circumstances...it will be in you!
Lastly, we can recognise that God has spoken when there is an obvious change that leads us and others to focus our attention on Jesus, learn more about Jesus and sing praises about Him. Hearing from God is so exciting because you can be totally sure that when God speaks, things change! God is bound by what He speaks and He speaks primarily through the Word of God. The closer you are in communion with God, the clearer you hear His voice!
When I read this book, I was heartened to know that many of God's messages for the past few years, especially the past year was mentioned by the author. What I had been through, others had been through it too. It confirmed what I heard from God all along was correct, though sometimes the message might be bizarre, mostly going against the grain of this world.
In a world where we hear so many different voices, it can be hard to discern which is God's voice. Yet the bible promises us that we, His sheep listen to His voice, just like a newborn baby naturally listen to his dad's voice. Over the years, I learnt how to discern Jesus' voice from others as I got to know Him more intimately and responded to His voice. Eventually I come to know Him well enough to discern if He was speaking simply by asking 'Does this sound like God's voice? Is it in line with the character of a loving Father?' Over time I found out the characteristics of His voice and the resulting effects on me.
Firstly, I know that His voice will never cause me to be afraid for He has given me a spirit of power, not timidity. Many times we find Jesus telling his disciples and the people 'Don't be afraid.' His message will never cause fear in my heart for perfect love drives out fear. Fear has to do with punishment. His message always bring good news eventually for we, believers, will forever have hope because of what Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross.
Secondly, I have never found myself being condemned by His voice. Even if I did something out of wrong motives, He will convict me of that but He always do it lovingly. Then He will remind me that I am washed clean by the blood of Jesus and convict me of righteousness in Christ, not my sin. As I repented, He would often provide a solution and give me another chance to respond rightly. That is the grace of God.
Thirdly, I know God is speaking when what He tells me to do is challenging and I cannot do it without His anointing and His help. I have noticed that most times His instructions are either absurd or strange but when I obeyed anyway, I saw His plan and His purpose. I have also come to understand the importance of obeying immediately when He speaks. For example, if He tells me to witness to a stranger, and if I missed the opportunity, I might never see the person again.
Fourthly, we can separate God's voice from the enemy by the effect it has on us and our circumstances. His word always bring peace, joy and life in our spirit. We can feel a quickening in our spirit as it comes alive and then we experience an undescribable joy after He speaks. The feeling is as if our hearts jumped a beat. We will also feel very loved by God as He addresses our personal situation showing that He cares for us and we are always on His mind.
God's word always produces clear results. One of the evidences that God has spoken is when things in our lives change dramatically. Many times the effect of His voice is immediate. When you see things changing quickly without any help from you, you will know that the Lord has spoken and He is up to something. When He begins to move, the results will be immediate and obvious. Sometimes, His moves are very sudden, so when He tells you to prepare, it is best to obey quickly because you might not have the time to do so when He moves. By then, you will know without a doubt that God is performing what He has spoken. And often the first change you will see won't be in your circumstances...it will be in you!
Lastly, we can recognise that God has spoken when there is an obvious change that leads us and others to focus our attention on Jesus, learn more about Jesus and sing praises about Him. Hearing from God is so exciting because you can be totally sure that when God speaks, things change! God is bound by what He speaks and He speaks primarily through the Word of God. The closer you are in communion with God, the clearer you hear His voice!
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