Pentecost prayer

As it is Pentecost Sunday this Sunday, and today I was at my favourite retreat http://www.hopeweavers.co.uk/) I had some time to reflect on what I have been hearing here and there from (it seems) all over the South's prophetic community.

The Brink.

The atmosphere is changing,
Can you feel it in the air?
The oxygen is growing
The breath of God through prayer..

Awakenings are stirring,
Whispers here, longings there
Can you feel it? Can you hear it?
The heartbeat we all share....

His people are awakening;
And stirring in the night;
The darkness is receding
Replaced with burning light.

All it takes is but a spark;
Just one flicker from a match;
In the charged electric atmosphere
An inferno quickly catch.

Revival! Is our heart-cry;
Once whispered hushly in the dark;
And yet as light grows brighter
Hope awakens in our heart.

Could it be here, could it be now?
I scarcely dare to breathe..
And yet this piercing longing
In His bride He loves to weave...

Sleeping Beauty! Church! Awaken!
And harken to His call,
Though He alone provides the match
Our prayers provide the oil.

Rags to riches

I wrote a poem at hopeweavers the other day.  My story, and I believe the story of all who share the Christian faith.


All-seeing God, I tremble low
My face towards the ground,
My filthy rags in tatters worn

My soul I fear hell-bound.

And at the point of greatest need
Destitute I scramble
His burning Holiness to great
In fear and shame, I tremble.

And then, that One, with burning eyes
Whose voice is as the thunder;
He comes so near, I fear I'll die
Bracing myself, I shudder

And yet-what grace! This mighty King
Who fashioned galaxies
He stoops so very tenderly
And lifts me to my knees.

I meet His gaze, and as I do
My stone-heart starts to melt
His liquid-love pierces my soul
Waves of washing mercy pelt.

I see the blood-red welts
Upon His hands and side,
Reminders of the bitter cost
He paid to save my life.

He takes a garment clean and white
As dazzling as the sun;
His pure and Holy righteousness
On ME He puts it on!!!

He carries me- lame as I am
At His table now I sit
A feast He's laid before me
And invites me now to eat.

From pauper now to princess
A true rags-to-riches tale
Nothing can snatch me from His grasp
His love will never fail....

God is all around us..

My boys both wrote worship poems today, I thought I would share them on here. Heart-melt :)

God is all around us (Joel, 10)

God is here.  God is there.  God is in the air and God is everywhere.
Look all around you, do you say 'God isn't there so I don't care?'.
But God is a Spirit that's why you don't see it.
What about Jesus, where is Jesus, is He everywhere?
Yes, He's up there,.. In Heaven!!!
Well can we get to Jesus?
Well, sort of, but can I get there?
Yes, but you have to... fall in a bit of lava.  No, well you could, but let's talk about the Holy Spirit.
He is in you. What? He is in me??
Well He is in your heart
He will lure you to safety.
He will stop you from being naughty.
But most importantly, He will take you to Jesus, to Jesus!
To save you from your sins,
And bring you to God, and bring you to God.

(Every good poem needs a verse about lava, in my opinion!)

God is good and great (Sam, 7)

O happy day happy day, we all like God!
O God is great, God is fab, God is good and we all love Him!
And He is great, fab, cool, good, nice, fab, great, cool, good, fab and nice!
O my God we all love you, we all love you!
You are the best!  We like you and you are the best, and O happy day, happy day
We all love you!

The Dove still seeks a resting place

Released from the ark, the dove goes looking for a place to rest her feet.  She finds none so she returns.  She goes out looking again.  She returns with a freshly picked olive leaf, the now-adopted international symbol of peace.  (Gen 8:9)

Then we find out that peace is not merely the absence of conflict; peace a Person.  Peace is the Presence of the Prince of Peace! His Presence, sweet Dove of Peace.   ...And then we read John declaring "“I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. (John 1:32)

At last, the Dove had found a resting place!  And so she remained... He came also to release The Dove.  Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. (John 20:21) 

The Holy Spirit is still looking for a resting place!  Oh to be be a resting place, where He feels comfortable to remain.  He indwells every single believer.  He is IN me for my sake... but He is ON me for yours....and the sake of the world. (Bill Johnson)

We are called to be Peace-makers, Presence releasers.  Changing the atmosphere. For the world waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God! (Rom 8:19)

What is more important than creating a comfortable place for the Holy Spirit to feel pleased to remain, and then crying out to Him to do just that??  He LOVES to answer and He LOVES to be found by those who will pay any price and pursue Him with all their hearts...  

Lessons from the lioness

"Now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel, 'what has God wrought!' Behold, a people!  As a lioness it rises up and as a lion it lifts itself; it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey and drunk the blood of the slain." (Numbers 23:24)

Not your usual pin-up Bible verse :)!

God tells us to look to nature to learn lessons about Him (Prov 6:6-8 amongst other places).  The People of God, are often like a great, sleeping lioness.  Like sleeping Beauty she needs to awaken!  And who is the enemy of the people of God?  (clue: Not flesh and blood! :) Eph 6:12)
How does the lioness devour her prey?  She takes the breath.  She squeezes the jugular until the breath has gone.  Our enemy breathes out lies all the time!  We need to be ruthless and start calling them out, not agreeing with them!!  Lionesses work together to bring about a kill.  They do not turn on each other!!  They are nature's best hunters!  We must work together to hunt out and destroy the breath of the enemy.  Lies about our significance, our security and our acceptance, about ourselves and others in our lives.

In a nature documentary, two captive lionesses and their pride-leader lion were released back to nature.  They were so used to captivity though they were too fearful to step through the open gate.  Their handlers decided to leave them until hunger forced their move, but fear paralysed them.  The handlers decided to help them out by killing a goat and leaving it down wind, just outside the open enclosure.  Eventually, the alpha lioness caved to her hunger.  She motioned to her sister, but the lion stayed put.  His fear was still greater than his hunger.  So the lionesses went to the goat, but instead of eating it themselves, they dragged it all the way back into the enclosure for the male lion to share.  They refused to shame him for where he was, but instead treated him as who he WOULD BECOME.  They saw his potential, and in sharing the spoils, with their encouragement the lion was then able to take the step of boldness to become WHO HE WAS ALREADY, the bold, pride leader.  We need to know and therefore become who we are already in Christ, and we need to treat and encourage others with the potential we see in them, not always according to where they are right now.

A lioness can be so tender and gentle, as she moves and cares for her cubs.  But she can also be wild and dangerous when her cubs are threatened.  The church, she needs to awaken to hear the cries of the needy, the oppressed! She, too, just like her Lamb/Lion Saviour is called to this paradoxical wild gentleness in bringing Heaven to Earth.  There is nothing more dangerous than a lion and a lioness who are awake!!!

(Big mention to Lisa Bevere for amazing teaching material on this topic, I learned so much!)