"To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; To seek Him the greatest adventure; to find Him the greatest human achievement." -Augustine of Hippo
In the beginning of 2016, God told me to read the first few chapters of Genesis about the creation and while reading it, He pointed out some valuable lessons to me. Recently I felt a quickening in my heart to share some of these interesting …
“You can change your world by changing your words…Remember death and life are in the power of the tongue.” – Joel Osteen “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” – Mother Theresa GOSSIP. What an ugly word! …
“Royalty is my identity. Servanthood is my assignment. Intimacy with God is my life source.” – Bill Johnson
Its 
that time of year again where everything is a rush – the last appointments for the year, final business deals, Christmas shopping,
year-end functions, finalizing of holiday plans, etc… It seems days are too short for what needs to be done, time flies too quick and you find yourself running around to assure your list of “to do’s” gets ticked on time. Before long, one of the things that suffer as a result of the rush is your daily quiet time with Jesus. There is just not enough time in your busy schedule for your normal amount of time with Him, but “don’t worry Jesus, next year when things ‘are back to normal’ You will have Your quality time with me again…”.
This year, as I am pondering the “season madness” and whether it is truly worth the rush and stress, Holy Spirit once again reminded me of Mary in John 12 where she poured out the costly oil on Jesus’ feet after which she wiped it clean with her hair. Judas complained that this costly oil could have been sold and the money used for the poor. Careful before you judge Judas now! Many times we reason in the same ways. Once again though, good ideas are not necessarily God ideas. This story of Mary is so symbolic of our time with Jesus. Mary was willing to give the best of the best to Jesus, it cost her something but to her, Jesus was worth every drop. Even when others were judging her for it.
I’m reminded of a teaching by Angus Buchan in which he said to rise very early in the morning and spend quality time with God. The reply from a farmer at the meeting was: “Work on my farm starts early, I can’t afford to give that time to God” upon which Angus replied: “My friend, you cannot afford not to“. And I think of miracle upon miracle I have seen of how God honors our businesses/family etc when we honor Him with the best of the best of our day.
You see it is not about our good deeds, it is all about intimacy with the King. Making time for Jesus especially during the festive season, humbling yourself through pouring the best of your best on His feet, wiping it with your hair because He is worth it. And yes some days it will cost you something. But what a privilege! You see…2000 years ago you were worthy, intimacy with you cost Him something, it cost Him His life. In return He asks you for your time, for “just a few minutes more”, He longs for time with you. Even when it costs you something. And as you do that, you will find yourself entering into a new depth of intimacy with the King. An appreciating, loving, Bridegroom Who loves to give and give and give in ABUNDANCE. This is the greatest gift you will receive this season, it has eternal value and from that place of receiving from Him, you will be able to give from the overflow to others. Peace will fill your day, things and responsibilities will fall into place, the craziness of this season will be something of the past. As I am typing this, I hear Him whisper to each one of us… “I love you for all that you are, all that you have been and all you’re yet to be. Come away, my beloved…”
“Whatever God is urging you to clear away cannot begin to be compared to what He ultimately wants to bring you.” – Beth Moore
“We are made in the image of God; we carry within us the desire for our true life of intimacy and adventure. To say we want less than that is to lie.” – John Eldredge
“There are 256 names given for the Lord Jesus Christ, and I suppose this was because He was infintely beyond all that any one name could express.” Billy Sunday Do you know the Names of God? There are many…. God my: Healer, Provider, Holiness, Righteousness, …
Matt. 22:36-40 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”“Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is …
“The safest place in all the world is in the will of God and the safest protection in all the world is the Name of God.” – Warren Wiersbe
“In Jesus Christ on the cross there is refuge, there is safety, there is shelter, and all the power of sin upon our track cannot reach us when we have taken shelter under the cross that atones for our sins.” – A.C. Dixon
In January 2015 God started talking to me about the “Lion’s den”. On two specific occasions: I was praying for the protection of my house and the same for the venue where we used to have our fellowship gatherings once a week. During these two specific occasions, He pressed on my heart “Lion’s den”. I then asked Him one day, “Lord, what do You mean with “Lionsden”? I was thinking of Daniel in the Lionsden and wondered if He was warning me about something? But, He gently answered, “The Lion of Judah is with you because you invited Him, you acknowledge Him as your Protector and Shield. The same fate of those men who accused Daniel (Dan.6:10-24) and was later cast into the den of lions, will be that of the enemy if he tries to put a foot on your terrain. “…and the lions overpowered them, and broke all their bones in pieces before they ever came to the bottom of the den.” Heb.11 sais that faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. I, once again, became so aware that we need to be certain of what we do not see. Certain of what God says in His Word. Jesus said that He did not come to bring peace, He came to bring a Sword (Matt.10:34). The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit (Eph.6:17). Are you using this Sword that is available to you? Ps.91 sais that he who hides in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty…because then God does the fighting for you. Your job? To dwell with Him, hide in Him. KNOW what the Word says – read it, use it, BELIEVE it. To worship in Spirit and in TRUTH (John 4:24)! There are many scriptures in the Bible about your authority in Christ, His protection over you and your family. The spiritual realm knows the Truth. We need to know too. And declare it, over ourselves and our family.
Mark 11:22-24 “So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
Prov. 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.”
Matt.21:22 “And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
I love Psalm18, it reminds me of what it means to be “the King’s kid” 🙂 . Here is some of it – Read and enjoy!!! This is what happens when you truly cry out to God when your world seems under attack:
“…I will call upon the Lord….the pangs of death surrounded me…the floods of ungodliness made me afraid….In my distress I called upon the LORD and cried out to my God, He HEARD MY VOICE in His temple, and my cry came before Him, even to His ears. Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, BECAUSE HE WAS ANGRY…..He bowed the heavens and came down.…The foundations of the world were uncovered at Your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils….He sent from above, HE TOOK ME; HE DREW ME OUT OF MANY WATERS. He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me…..He delivered me because HE DELIGHTED IN ME….”
To hide in the shelter of the Most High and to rest in His shadow does not mean escaping difficult situations. It means that sometimes we might still be cast into the fiery furnace and by believing and speaking the Truth as did the three men in Dan. 3:17 “..our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king…” In that place, they met the “Fourth Man” like never before 😉 .
And, like David, we might have to face a true Goliath but get to kill it with a small pebble after saying to that giant (1Sam.17:45) “...You come
to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied…”
Sometimes we will face a dangerous lion but through Christ in us, get to overthrow it singlehandedly and eat the honey from the carcass – tasting the sweet victory that we have through Christ and only through Him.
We might still be facing a never-ending ocean with nowhere else to turn but, like Moses, will speak the Truth (Ex.13:13,14) “Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” Then wait and see the waters part!!
Sometimes God will tell you to walk in faith seven times around walls of captivity/depression/disease/oppression/etc and the seventh time declare: (Josh.6:16,17) “…Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it…”, then see the walls fall down flat.
The Bible tells us…What the enemy intended for evil, God is using for the GOOD (Gen.50:20). When we speak about God’s “good” then we don’t mean ‘good, better, best’, no, then we mean there is nothing better!
Psalm 91 carries on “A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you…Because you have made the LORD, who is your refuge, even the Most High, your DWELLING PLACE.” And then, when you have truly done that, you find yourself in the Lion’s den. THE Lion of Judah’s den! Where the enemy will not dare to tread! When God allows certain things, never forget that He sees the greater picture. You don’t. He already has victory! But know this, in that dwelling place, when the enemy comes knocking on your door, it won’t be you opening it! 🙂
God loves to thrill us with His answers… “When you pray, be sure that you listen as well as talk. You have things you want to say to God, but He also has things He wants to say to you.” Joyce Meyer Jer. 33:3 “‘Call …
“Being filled with the Spirit is simply this – having my WHOLE NATURE YIELDED TO HIS POWER. When the whole soul is yielded to the Holy Spirit, God Himself will fill it.” – Andrew Murray It has been a while since my last blog post, …
“Don’t rely too much on labels, for too often they are fables.” – Charles H. Spurgeon
Ps.139:13,14 “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.”
I am so very excited about this topic!!! This is something God has been working in me on and off over the last 10 years and recently again.
Craig Groeschel wrote a fabulous book called “Altar ego” (worth reading) in which he absolutely hit the nail on its head! I would like to start this blog by quoting him. (If you remember nothing else of this blog, thats okey!)
“Take your idea of your own identity. Lay it on the altar. And sacrifice it. Because until you’ve sacrificed your broken concept of your identity, you won’t become who you are meant to be.”
What exactly is an altar, you ask? Well here’s the definition thanks to Biblestudytools.com: “Structure on which offerings are made to a deity. The Hebrew word for altar is mizbeah, from a verbal root meaning “to slaughter.” Greek renders this word as thusiasterion, “a place of sacrifice.” In the developed temple ritual, the same word is used for both the altar of holocausts and the altar of incense. Thus, an altar is a place where sacrifice is offered, even if it is not an event involving slaughter.”
First of all… THERE IS ONLY ONE YOU! Nobody has ever or will ever be like you. We have been created to the image of an incomprehensible God(Gen.1:27), each one of us has been given a uniqueness of Himself that nobody ever had or will ever have. We can only live as our true unique self when we are in relationship with our Creator, allowing Holy Spirit to brood our uniqueness out of us like a hen on her eggs. The sad part is that if we do not walk in our true God-created-identity and uniqueness then t
here will be a part of God that the world will never get to know or see. We are like diamonds – each unique and beautiful in its own way. Many times when God speaks to me about people, He shows me diamonds or jewels! Do you now understand why the enemy is really out on a mission to steal from you, telling you that you should act, look, dress, speak, think, walk and talk like “them”?? What do “they” think about me. What do “they”say is acceptable to wear, think, be, etc? How do “they” say should I raise my child? … No, STOP, wait…who are “they” anyway?? Take God’s hand, keep your ear on Jesus heart, your eyes on Holy Spirit and be the best you you can be! In oneness with Jesus – live life to the full HIS WAY!
One sure thing I have learned in my personal journey with Jesus is never say never! Because then He will do just that! Especially if your “never” is attached to a fear! As Billye Brimm so beautifully puts it: “The reason that fear was so wrong for the children of Israel was that it showed forgetfulness of God. Whatever you are afraid of is bigger to you than GOD IN THAT INSTANCE.” And if this is the case, and if you are one of those Christians who sing so very wholeheartedly in church on Sunday mornings “I surrender all”, well then God will want to show you that He is BIGGER than your fears or preconceived ideas.
By saying “never say never” I do not just mean in the case of fear but also with pride, set ideas or mindsets, stubborness – those times you find yourself saying “I will never”, “this is not the way I do it”, “I was not raised like this”, “I will never visit this country”, “this is so not me” – those will limit your journey with God because He does not function within the borders of a box! They need to GO my friend!! This will become your testimony.
In 2015 a friend suggested I go to a conference called Mission Possible in the Netherlands, Europe. Back then I was still convinced that cities are not for me (even though I worked there a lot) so my answer or rather argument to the question was “Who wants to go to Europe? Not me! Rather send me to the Amazon or the Rockies or Africa.” (If you know me, you will know I am more of a nature gal). Well, sure enough, five months later I was in the plane on my way back from 
Europe,completely in tears that I had to return after such a wonderful “honeymoon” with Jesus! Most of my time there was spent in the small town Nijkerk as well as Amsterdam and Paris – two big cities. But I felt so spoiled. Every moment was a treat with Jesus. I came back feeling “homesick” on the plane and I realised: Where Jesus is, there I am at home and so very happy!” Today I am convinced that God can send me anywhere He wants to – because if He is there, then I would not want to be any other place!!
God has taken me through a recent uncomfortable, faith building situation. An “Abraham, take your son Isaac and sacrifice him because I am enough for you” situation. I was telling a friend of it a few days ago and my testimony of how faithfully God carried me through it (which I will not share now otherwise this blog will be loooong). I shared how God came from a complete different direction and challenged me, stretched me like a elastic band. While telling my friend about this I caught myself repeatedly saying “this is not the way I normally would do things”, “Im not like this”. Later that evening, God spoke to me while I was in the shower – yep, God speaks in weird places sometimes! He reminded me of the conversation I had earlier, and He asked me… “so how would you “do things”? If you are not “like this” then how are you?” Mmmm now there’s a thought! You 
think you are free of yourself till one day you are faced with a “sacrifice Isaac” situation and you realise to which degree you really are not!! Then you are back to the drawing board with God, once again laying down your ego/identity on the altar and saying “God, here I am. Mold me and form me the way You want to! You are the Potter and I am the clay.”
These moments of shaping and molding over the years, to me, are testimonies of being set free and keys to living life in abundance. With Jesus, this has become “our adventure” as my trust in God grows deeper daily and I get to conquer fears and preset ideas. These testimonies are part of my treasury of jewels.
Let go of who you think you are, fill yourself with Him!!! A while ago, during worship, the following words came to my heart which I immediately wrote down…
“Empty all of ‘me’ so I may be filled with all of You, God!” I saw a picture of Joshua kneeling in the tent of meeting where 
Moses met with God (Ex33:11) and then Moses would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua, did not depart from the tent. There is something about being emptied for God and soaking in His Presence – then going out and fighting winning battles with Him, looking through eyes of faith, reacting courageously where others would react out of fear, doubt and unbelief. No longer my will but His will, His ideas – this causes me to be so much more capable of moving in the supernatural and being used by God in which ever way He wants to. The new me. The real me. My “altar” ego saying: Christ in me, the hope of glory!
As Craig Groeschel so beautifully ends his book: “Now that you know who you are, you’ll know what to do. And whatever you do, do it all for the glory of the One who made you new.”
I love the “altar” ego of John the Baptist. When his disciples came to him to tell him that Jesus was now baptizing the people and that all were coming to Him in stead of to John, his reaction was so beautiful and such a testimony of a selfless life surrendered to Jesus, to be used by Him all to His glory. To John, Jesus was the meaning to his life. He answered, “He who has the bride is the Bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease.”
“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” -Seneca
“Holiness is not freedom from temptation, but the power to overcome temptation.” – G. Campbell Morgan “Be killing lust or it will be killing you.” John Owen One of the things that I love about the Bible is that in many ways, the Old and …