Zimbabwe Update

The enemy did his worst.

Days before we were to lead the worship seminar, the facility owner refused to rent to “religious groups.” Then she demanded quadruple the rent rate. The facility was left in shambles; traffic delayed the worship team, and few locals attended after all our efforts.

But God was glorified. Our worship, prayers and teachings hosted the presence of the King of kings. God’s presence filled the space and radiated to the surrounding community. At the ministry time, a woman who had been bent and in pain for 17 years received her healing. God changed the name of a man previously called “Shametime.” God named him “Righteousness.” These are just two examples of the many healings and deliverances. God shook the spiritual atmosphere of that poor mining community. 

The enemy also attempted to thwart our VBS at the local school. He used the headmaster (aka principal) to spit venom and throw up obstacles. But God sits in the heavens and laughs at the pitiful schemes of the enemy. The smiles and excitement on the children’s faces declared that we had accomplished our goal of loving them in Jesus’ name.

At my art station, the children read and drew memory verses. They thrilled at the opportunity to earn a sticker by reading the verse aloud. They relished in the privilege of having crayons and colored pencils in their hands. What a joy to watch them giggle and titter while drawing.

Two spur-of-the moment ministry opportunities convinced me of God’s promise for revival – in seed form. We witnessed a turning toward God in the community’s two industries, mining and farming.

The first opportunity seemed an unlikely place for revival. Music blared from the miners’ bar, which was a simple, crumbling cement structure. Ruckus miners spilled out of the bar shouting and fighting. Our ministry partners canvased the crowd to invite them to hear the gospel message. I doubted anyone would come. But come they did.

We started with half a dozen young men listening intently. Others joined – some still holding their drinks. The crowd had swelled, and the mocking laughter had disappeared by the time we offered personal prayer. Those hardened miners waited in line for an hour to receive prayer. No one gave up.

Many asked for deliverance from addictions and other strongholds. A couple of them received Jesus into their hearts – a seed of revival.

The second seed was planted in the neighboring farm. More than a dozen farmworkers listened to the gospel message with open hearts. Almost half of them asked to receive Christ, including the foreman. Doesn’t that look like the promise of revival?

As the resident missionaries continue to dig for God’s gold and plant His seeds in their community, they can rest on the promises of God – revival will come.

Yes, the enemy will continue to throw up a smoke screen, but he is a defeated foe.

God is the Victor!

What is Your Favorite Christmas Tradition?

And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Luke 2:7 NASB

What is your favorite Christmas tradition? Mine revolves around a nativity set. This particular nativity was the centerpiece of my childhood Christmas tree. I remember playing with the angel who dangles on a string above the manger. I also remember wanting to play with the animals. That probably explains why they needed to be reglued when I got the set.

My strongest memory is the open-armed posture of the baby Jesus. I always thought that Jesus was reaching out to hug me. The artist captured the love of God and the essence of the gospel in that tiny statuette. It resonated with me, even as a child.

For over 30 years, this same nativity with the open-armed Jesus has taken center stage under my own Christmas tree. As in my childhood, the presents piled high on either side, but the nativity remained central - physically and spiritually.

This year I decided not to put up a tree. But I still wanted the nativity to have a stage. I set it up on the hall tree by our front door and surrounded it with lights. Now the baby Jesus reaches out to hug everyone who passes through our front door. How appropriate.

Which of your family’s traditions are your favorite and why? Please share with us in the comment section.

Merry Christmas!

The Pattern for Power

And Jesus was saying to them, “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God when it has come with power.” And six days later Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John, and brought them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them. Mark 9:1-2 NASB

I confess these verses confused me as a new believer. At that time, I read the Bible as disjointed stories, like stitching together thousands of Sunday school lessons.

In that light, the story of Jesus shining in His glory on a mountain top seemed random to me. And the fact that certain disciples would not taste death until they saw the Kingdom of God seemed just plain wrong. All the disciples were martyred in the first century. Therefore, they are all dead and gone. I thought, it has been over two thousand years, and we have yet to see the Kingdom of God “come with power.”

One day I noticed that every time the transfiguration is mentioned, it is immediately preceded by Jesus proclaiming they would not die until they saw the Kingdom of God. Finally, I realized that witnessing Jesus in His glorious state was their window into the Kingdom.

This discovery was like a veil lifted from my eyes. I started to see patterns in scripture everywhere I looked. Now I am constantly alert for metaphors and contrasts and other literary devices. Even after 20 years of reading and rereading the Word, I am thrilled to find a new connection in scripture.

Now when I read about the transfiguration, I see this pattern:

1.     Confession of faith.

2.     Cost of discipleship.

3.     Mountain top / Cloud of His presence.

4.     Power!

The pattern is in all the synoptic gospels. In the narrative, Peter confessed to Jesus, “You are the Christ.” (Mark 8:29 NASB) Then Jesus declared, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Mark 8:34 NASB) Only then did Jesus call them to the mountain by themselves.

The cloud on the mountain represents the very presence of God. We know this from Exodus 19:9 where God spoke to Moses from the cloud. And from Exodus 40:38 where the “cloud of the Lord” rested on the Tabernacle.

Jesus called His disciples to come with Him up the mountain by themselves to be in God’s presence. This was their glimpse of the Kingdom of God. After this, Jesus displayed the Kingdom of God in power when He healed the demon-possessed boy that no one else could heal (Mark 9:26).

Beloved, this pattern surrounding the transfiguration is for every believer throughout the centuries. It’s for both you and me!

First, we need to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But we can’t just get our ticket to heaven and wait for the bus. We must take up our cross and follow Him. Again, we can’t stop at surrender. At His invitation, we must follow Jesus up the mountain into the cloud of God’s presence. As we bask in His glory and His beauty, we get a glimpse of the Kingdom of God. Only then can we demonstrate His Kingdom with power!

This time, as I read through this transfiguration pattern again, God highlighted the phrase “by themselves.” I believe He is emphasizing the intimate nature of this mountain top experience. God meets with each of us personally. Jesus made a way for us feel God’s presence, to hear His voice, to experience His all-encompassing love.

If you feel stuck in the duty of “pick up your cross and follow Him,” then I encourage you to accept His invitation to climb the mountain with Jesus. Come into the cloud of His presence and feast on His glory and His beauty. Experience the joy of your salvation. Be refreshed in the purity of His love.

I would love to stay there in the cloud of His presence. Wouldn’t you? One day, we will have that privilege; we will spend eternity basking in the love of our Heavenly Bridegroom. Until then, we need to come down the mountain and demonstrate the power of the Kingdom of God to all who will receive it.

In Memory of Her

Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her. Matthew 26:13 

How will you be remembered? Do you think about that? I do.

Mary of Bethany is remembered for her extravagant worship of Jesus. She broke a costly, carved bottle of alabaster filled with outrageously expensive perfume to anoint Jesus. The lavishness of her offering was so great that even the ones who believed in and loved Jesus were indignant (v.8). But Jesus honored her for her gift.

The occasion was Jesus’ last Passover. In two days, He would be sacrificed as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29).

It is no accident that Mary’s extravagant worship offering is in juxtaposition to Judas Iscariot’s betrayal. Wherever the gospel is preached, Judas is remembered for selling Jesus out for 30 pieces of silver. Mary and Judas are listed side by side. One remembered and honored for her lavish worship. One remembered for his betrayal and tragic death.

During Passover, the time that we remember Jesus’ death and resurrection, I am thinking of these two disciples. They both had close relationships with Jesus. They both had walked with Him for years. Yet, their legacies stand in stark contrast.

I, too, have a close relationship with Jesus. I have walked with Jesus for many years. What will my legacy be? When the gospel is preached, how will I be remembered? I am hoping I am remembered for my extravagant worship of Jesus. How about you?

The Finding

Sixteen hundred spiritually- hungry Christ followers from all over the Pacific Northwest jammed into a local church this past weekend. I had the privilege to be wedged in with them, singing praises to Jesus, listening to the speakers, and praying for revival.

The presence of the Lord was palpable. I received valuable prophetic words. And I made connections with other sisters and brothers in Christ who were previously unknown to me. I came away feeling physically drained but spiritually saturated.

Each of the speakers was a revivalist (Dr. Randy Clark, Dr. Heidi Baker, and Michael and Jessica Koulianos). In the Seattle area, there are already flames of revival burning. My church is one of them. We had come together praying for the wind of the Spirit to blow those flames into a wildfire!

Even though we were seasoned Christians, the first speaker wanted to “preach the gospel.” I thought that odd until I heard his message. He was attempting to fascinate us, again, with the gospel. Because we have heard the gospel, and preached it ourselves, so often we tend to lose our heart connection with it. Our wonder fades and route recitation takes over. The speaker hoped to rekindle our awe for the gospel by presenting it in a surprising way:

We were originally created in God’s image. We were meant to shine forth God’s glory. Jesus came to restore us to God’s image. That is why the New Testament makes a big deal about transforming us into the image of Christ. A measure of that is available to us now with the help of the Holy Spirit. Of course, that requires that we cooperate with Holy Spirit. But when our fleshly bodies die, we will fully radiate the glory of God. We will once again be made in His image perfectly. Now that really is Good News!

Transformed Beauty

[Jesus] was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. Matthew 17:2 NKJ

Lori was caught in a spider web of drug addiction and prostitution. Every time she tried to make a move, she became more entangled. Not that she was trying to free herself; she thought life was great. Yet, the pallor of death was upon her face. Photos from that time document her hard features and angry eyes . . . not at all beautiful.

During that season, I prayed that God would snatch her back from the enemy. And that is exactly what God did! He reached into the darkness and snatched her out of that black spiderweb.

God gave her a vision of Himself. He rescued and restored her. The vision of God has transforming power! When we focus on the life-giving God, we become beautiful with the beauty of God.

Today, Lori smiles into the camera with sparkling eyes. Her features are soft and her face shines with a deep-seated joy. What a transformation! Lori has gone from death to life, quite literally!

This is the power of the gospel! Jesus snatches us out of the clutches of the enemy. He delivers us from death to life. As we behold His beauty, we are transformed into His beautiful bride!

The Crux of the Gospel

Rather, their issues centered around disagreements with him over their religion, and a dead man named Jesus, who Paul claimed was alive. Acts 25:19 TPT

I chuckle every time I read this verse. The Roman governor, Festus, was perplexed as to what to do with the apostle Paul, who had been left in prison. When Festus assumed command, he expected the Jewish leaders to accuse Paul of some vicious crimes. Instead, they argued about “their religion” and about some dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. I chuckle because this Roman governor unknowingly speaks the crux of the Gospel in one sentence.

Who is Jesus to you? Is Jesus just some dead guy that people argue over? Or is Jesus alive to you? How you answer this question determines how you will experience life here on the earth . .. and where you will spend eternity after this earth.

If Jesus is just some dead guy to you, then He cannot help you in your day-to-day struggles. Jesus provides peace in the midst of the storm. He offers comfort and security in a dangerous world. He gives a deep-seated joy that cannot be shaken, come what may. To access all those benefits (and many, many others!) in your day-to-day life, you must believe that Jesus is Alive.

If Jesus is just a “good man” or “wise prophet” who is dead and gone, then He has no power to save you from the torment of hell. God – not a god, but THE ONE TRUE GOD – became a man to purchase our freedom from the grip of Satan. God wants you and me to live with Him in heaven, but Satan stole our hearts and our destinies. Jesus, the God-man, came to purchase them back. Then He rejoined His Father in heaven, where Jesus is Alive.

So you see, that question of whether Jesus is dead of alive really IS the crux of the Gospel. And your answer to that question has consequences in this life and the next. JESUS IS ALIVE!