Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Secrets for Abiding

If you've read many of my blog entries, you'll know that I am passionate about learning to pray and to encounter God through studying His Word. It was a pleasure to be given the opportunity a few weeks ago to share some of this passion with the students at Bethany College of Missions in a class I entitled "Secrets for Abiding". Admittedly, I can't take the credit for much of the content as I have been taught by many others over the years -- first-hand, via books, and through online teaching... and by the best teacher of all, the Holy Spirit (John 14:26).

If you're interested in listening or reading more, you can find my notes and audio by CLICKING HERE.

Here's a sneak peek:
As we have real encounter with the Lord in His Word, the Word can more readily flow out of us from a place of personal, experiential understanding (Eph 3:19) and empower us to grow in love for Him and others (1st & 2nd commandments: Mat 22:37-40; Mk 12:29-31; Lk 10:27). Our first calling as believers is to wholeheartedly love God which is impossible without both cognitive and experiential knowledge of Him. As for other callings; preachers, teachers, prophets, evangelists, intercessors and worshipers can all be more effective in ministry when the “inner-storehouse” is filled with the Word of God, which comes from a lifestyle of abiding (Jn 15:7-11).

The Joy of Listening to God

In my own struggle to learn to pray and listen to the Lord, I've been encouraged by the writings of many others who have been on that journey as well. One such author is Joyce Huggett.
Here are three very practical points from her book The Joy of Listening to God:
  • Guarantee God a certain time each day [specifically for listening prayer]: five minutes in the morning, perhaps, and five minutes in the evening. Don't set your heights too high. You can always give God more time than you promised initially but if you earmark half an hour and manage only five minutes your listening will be drowned by guilt feelings.
  • The most unselfish prayer is the prayer you pray when you least feel like it. Then you pray out of love for God, not because it appears to benefit you.
  • The crucial time is when we are not formally praying at all. True prayer must be integrated into our life. There is something phoney about the person who 'lives' in church but has a very bitter tongue.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Sound of the Final Trumpet

My heart is exhilarated this morning as I study and pray in the Prayer Sanctuary! I woke up this morning remembering that today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish Feast of Trumpets, and considered how in my own heart today I wanted to acknowledge longing for the sound of that trumpet and return of the King, Jesus Messiah. The musical prayer watch we're streaming in via the internet (check it out here!) is singing and praying around the New Testament passages of the Second Coming of Jesus Messiah with the sound of the final trumpet and the team even has trumpet accompaniment! My heart can't help but leap with longing for that Day... the reality, glory, and drama of it all will far eclipse that final battle scene in JRR Tolkien's "The Return of the King"... this previous post unfolds the story much more thoroughly than I will here.

I pondered these passages:
Revelation 10:7 - ...in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

Revelation 11:15 - Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever."

1 Thessalonians 4:16 - For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God.

And then received this email from some dear friends:

Today, the first day of the Jewish 7th month, is the Feast of Trumpets (Numbers 29:1/Leviticus 23:24). The word Teruah means “shouting” or “raising a noise”. The sounding of the shofar during this Feast is calling for the Messiah to come. To the Messianic believer the Messiah has already come and we call for His second coming thus fulfilling the Feast of Trumpets. In traditional Judaism, this Feast has also been called Rosh Hashanah (Head of the Year) and is considered the Jewish New Year.

It is very significant that according to Torah the shofar is to be sounded on this Feast day. For the sound of the shofar is also meant to stir fear in the heart and to inspire teshuvah (repentance) Amos 3:6 The Feast of Trumpets marks the beginning of a 10 day period of prayer and repentance which culminates on the fast day of Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). These ten days are known as the Days of Awe.

Waiting for the return of our Mashiach Yeshua,

Dennis and Joy


Yes, Jesus Messiah, You alone are the King that I want and I join with many others around the world today in praying that You would come home!