Lazarus, Come Forth!

~You know the waters have been beyond rough of late...and there didn't seem to be any answers...and the Lord was quiet....Is that not THE WORST silence of all?!?!...Hurting beyond hurt - physically, emotionally spiritually; bloody knuckles from pounding on Heaven's Door, and still God is silent....And yet, He was teaching me and showing me....Allowing me to have my "Peter Moment" (Matt. 26:74)....It wasn't pretty....It wasn't living a victorious Christian life....It was a nuclear meltdown.

~Sleep helps...and I truly think the Lord "knocked me out for the count" on the couch yesterday...2 hours of blessed sleep on an icepack. Praise God there wasn't any freezer burn! ~Three very dear friends wrote to me - ministering the Lord's comfort. (You know how it is when you know you've just won the spiritual brat contest, and yet your friends still hang with you!)....Three friends...God's three....Thank-you, Lord!....And through it all, my husband's prayers.

~And then this morning, in the quietness and stillness of the morning, 2 Corinthians 1:8-9 blazed across the page...."For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia; that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead."

~Beloved, there are simply those things that God will bring the sentence of death upon within ourselves so that we do not trust in ourselves, but in Him. And just when we think that we've learned to trust Him in one area - He will bring another area to the Cross for crucifixion. Why? Because when He crushes the flesh out of us - the centrality of the flesh that thinks it is self-sufficient - when there is nothing left upon which to rely but Christ, Himself, then we are at a point of crossing the Red Sea, because then we do not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead. It will be that point in our lives when the answer will be Only One - Jesus Christ, the Glory and Lifter of our head...My God in Whom I put my trust. My God Who IS Faithful and True. My God Who will NEVER leave me nor forsake me.

~I will not be able to say, "Look at me. Look how faithful I was. Look how hard I prayed. Look how much I fasted. Look at this or look at that. NO! It will be - LOOK TO THE CROSS, AND YOU WILL FIND YOUR ANSWER! LOOK TO THE EMPTY TOMB, AND YOU WILL FIND HE IS RISEN! NOW, LOOK TO THE LAZARUS WITHIN YOUR OWN TOMB, AND YOU WILL HEAR HIM CALL YOU...."LAZARUS COME FORTH!"

~Beloved, please let me remind you...Lazarus had NO FAITH TO BE HEALED!!!! Lazarus was D-E-A-D!!! DEAD!!! That which is dead has NO faith! It's dead! But then, Jesus shows up outside our tomb...and tells us that His Glory will be revealed if those OUTSIDE the tomb will believe. He didn't tell Lazarus if he believed. No! He told Martha that if she believed she'd see the Glory of God!

~Beloved, we're either in a Lazarus situation, or we're Martha - called to believe to see the Glory of God revealed in someone else's stinking stench of flesh death. It is tortuous at times to stand by and watch the flesh be killed in someone we love....but as we do, we are to believe for them that the Glory of the Lord will be revealed.

~What is the color of Glory? I think it is pure gold..."that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 1:7

~Suffering is one area that we just don't want to deal with...and yet, it is just as much a part of our Christian walk as servant hood and laying on of hands. Suffering kills the flesh, and it stinks! But Beloved, we are called to partake in not only His sufferings, but in His consolation to those who ARE suffering.

~In verse 7, the Apostle Paul writes: "And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation." Is this what Jesus meant when He said, "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you." (John 6:53)....and in v. 60, "Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, "This is a hard saying, who can understand it"....and then many left Him....but Peter answered Him in v. 68 "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."
~John 6:63 "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life."
"Lazarus, Come forth!"

When Answers Aren't Enough

I'm just going to tell you flat out that I'm struggling right now....and there are no answers yet...and the emotional pain and distance from the Lord that I feel is beyond my words to tell you...because right now....I'm angry....and I'm angry at God.....Angry, because at the bottom of my anger is profound pain for which there is no human consolation right now. My child's heart is searching...my adult mind is trying to wrap myself around an answer that is simply not here right now....I can tell you that the Lord brought the words to this song to mind this morning...so I searched it out on the internet...and thank the Lord, it was still available. Maybe you don't need them....but I do! ....I haven't heard this song in years! But God knew I needed it~

When Answers Aren't Enough
by Scott Wesley Brown
Verse:
You have faced the mountains of desperation
You have climbed, you have fought, you have won
But this valley that lies coldly before you
Casts a shadow you cannot overcome
Verse:
And just when you thought you had it all together
You knew every verse to get you through
But this time the sorrow broke more than just your heart
And reciting all those verses just won't do
Chorus:
When answers aren't enough, there is Jesus
He is more than just an answer to your prayer
And your heart will find a safe and peaceful refuge
When answers aren't enough, He is there
Verse:
Instead of asking why did it happen
Think of where it can lead you from here
And as your pain is slowly easing, you can find a greater reason
To live your life triumphant through the tears
Chorus:
When answers aren't enough, there's still Jesus
He is more than just an answer to your prayer
And your heart will find a safe and peaceful refuge
When answers aren't enough, He is there
When answers aren't enough, He's still there

1 Cor. 1:27 and Susan Boyle

~Have you seen her yet? Susan Boyle from "Britain's Got Talent 2009" on YouTube! (The Brit's version of America Idol, and it comes complete with Simon!) This clip is making the rounds like wild fire - and rightfully so!
~I must tell you that sometimes, the only way to define extraordinary is through tears.
~What a powerful example of 1 Corinthians 1:27..."[No] for God selected (deliberately chose) what in the world is foolishness to put the wise to shame, and what the world calls weak to put the strong to shame.
~Now, for all dial-up users, like me...this will take time. Please wait for it. I promise - you will be stunned!
~So the next time you wonder if God can use you...maybe Susan Boyle's experience will encourage you to be all God has ordained for you to be in Christ - before the creation of the world!
~Be blessed!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Rest in My Goodness

~Let's look at a couple scriptures today:
~Ephesians 3:19 (Amplified) "[That you may really come] to know [practically, through experience for yourselves] the love of Christ, which far surpasses mere knowledge [without experience]...."
~Psalms 23:6 (Amplified) "Surely or only goodness, mercy, and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life..."
~"Goodness". Strong's Concordance #19 - "agathosune" - "Beneficence, kindness in actual manifestation, virtue equipped for action, a bountiful propensity both to will and to do what is good, intrinisic goodness producing a generosity and a Godlike state or being. Agathosune is a rare word that combines being good and doing good."
~Remember when Jesus was addressed as the good Teacher? And even Jesus replied that there is only One Who is good and that is God. (Matthew 19:16-17)
~So many scriptures that many of us can quote off the top of our heads; yet the Lord wants us to EXPERIENCE HIM IN THE REALITY OF WHO HE IS...and WHO HE IS - IS GOOD! Praise God that He wants to share Himself and Who He Is with us!
~It was two days ago...I was physically, emotionally, spiritually spent....To say that I've experienced exhaustion from this last year of physical challenges is an understatement. And the prospect of facing yet another surgery and all that entailed - personally, professionally, physically, financially, etc. - seemed more than I could face - again, in such a short period of time.
~It was Tuesday morning....and my Bible pages smeared like oil on water...my mind just didn't comprehend the pages I was reading...."God!", was the best prayer I could sigh.
~Then the Lord spoke, "Crista, just rest in My Goodness."....What did that involve?....Absolutely nothing but obedience on my part....sitting...not reading...not praying....just being....And then the Lord brought the 23rd Psalm to remembrance..."surely goodness and mercy shall follow me"......
~God's goodness....Who He is in His goodness....is with me all the way....not because of anything in particular, because I just haven't had it to "give"....but just because of Who He Is.
~Oh yes, I've sung the song...."God is so good...God is so good....God is so good, He's so good to me." But now, there is even more of an assurance of His Goodness in my heart...for me...just because of Who He Is....And He is all that and more for each and every one of us, because He is no respector of person.
~Beloved...when we've done all...stand...and rest in His goodness...and He will prove Himself strong and gentle on our behalf.
~And by the way...at this point...no back surgery! Yesterday, the doctor said my back didn't look as serious/involved on the MRI as it did one month prior on the CT scan. So for now...more conservative treatment. Praise God! Praise God! Praise God from Whom ALL blessings flow!
~We are loved by our Good God!

TRIUMPH!!!

"Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it." Colossians 2:15-NKJV
"[God] disarmed the principalities and powers that were ranged against us and made a bold display and public example of them, in triumphing over them in Him and in it [the cross]." Colossians 2:15-Amplified
"Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors and gain a surpassing victory through Him who loved us." Romans 8:37
~Beloved, let's look at the Cross and the victory we have in Christ and through Christ! The Lord brought the above scripture from Colossians "home" to me one day while watching "The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe".
~Aslan had offerred his life to the white witch in exchange for Edmund's. We watch in profound horror and agony of heart as Aslan is taken to the stone on which he will be murdered. The white witch and all her demons surround him; watching and participating with full glee and taking immense pleasure in the intense onslaught and barage of excruciatingly painful inflictions upon him leading up to his death; the white witch piercing him with her black spear. Edmund is free and Aslan lies dead. Mourning and grief and despair come upon the sons of Adam and the creatures of Narnia.
~Toward the end of the movie, Peter and Edmund find themselves in a climactic battle (amored Beaver at their side) with the evil white witch and her army of demons. Boldly flaunting Aslan's mane, Jadis - the evil white witch and her hoard pound the earth in a furious attempt to destroy all in their path.
~Susan and Lucy have gone to the place of Aslan's resting place....finding his lifeless body...they mourn and grieve....In the apparent loss of their friend, they turn away to return to their brothers. Despairing of life, the hopelessness which envelops them leaves them feeling empty handed and without consolation.
~And then a stirring causes them to turn around....the stone on which Aslan had lain is broken in two...and we experience the resurrection of Aslan! Come to life with a mighty roar which shakes the heavens, he nuzzles his two friends, then urges them to climb on as he gallops full speed - swifter than the wind - to the scene of battle.
~Aslan and the eagles defeat not only the demon hoards, but the white witch, herself! All the demon hoards who so heartily rejoiced over the death of Aslan, were now put to shame in their defeat!
~The very one whom they had put to death, returned to life to triumph over the enemies of Narnia!
~Beloved, rejoice in the fact that the One Who was put to death for our sins, has conquered death, hell and the grave! Because He went to the Cross for us, and rose again, our enemies have been defeated and publicly humiliated in his resurrection!
~May we take these words to heart today from Horatio Spafford's writings, verse two of:

"It Is Well with My Soul"

"My sin--oh, the bliss of this glorious tho't---

My sin--not in part, but the whole---

Is nailed to His cross and I bear it no more.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

It is well --- with my soul,

It is well, it is well with my soul."

So, no matter the foe who tries to defeat us - know that he IS defeated! If God be for us, who can be against us!

WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH CHRIST WHO DEFEATED OUR ENEMIES!!!! PRAISE THE LORD! PRAISE THE LORD! PRAISE THE LORD!!!

Happy Easter! He IS Risen....He is Risen, INDEED! Hallelujah!

An Urgent Message and Storm Dream

~Please understand that what I'm about to share with you is out of a desire for us as the Church to be prepared for what is on the horizon. As a minister of the Gospel of Christ, I have a responsibility before God to warn as He so directs - no matter what man may think. This is a strong message today, and I know there will be those who disagree. Yet, it is out of God's love for us as His Church that He wants us to be prepared for what is about to occur so that we will be ready - not only for ourselves and our families, but for those to whom He wants to minister during these days.
~Beloved, we are to be wise and discern the days and the times. Please understand that God gives us warnings and His words through His true prophets so that we will be prepared. It is up to us then to listen and be wise.
~Beloved, I truly believe we are on the cusp of disasters beyond our imagination here in the United States, and we as The Church need to be ready to minister to the Body of Christ and non-believers alike for it is the heart of God that no man perish, but come to the knowledge of God and salvation through Christ.
~Beloved, we are to all have our hearts right before Him. If there is sin, STOP IT!, confess it and repent - TURN AROUND - for that is what the word "repent" means. The Holy Spirit is THE ONE WHO EMPOWERS US TO CHANGE!!! That which we cannot do for ourselves, HE WILL DO - FOR HE IS FAITHFUL AND TRUE!!!
~Beloved, GOD DOES NOT WINK AT SIN! HE IS HOLY! Please hear the Lord's calling us to come out of Egypt...the places which hold us in lukewarmness or demise and defeat. We are MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH CHRIST JESUS AND IF GOD BE FOR US, WHO CAN BE AGAINST US! God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a SOUND mind!
~Beloved, God tells us in His Word that lukewarmness is an abomination to Him and He will literally vomit us out of His mouth! Rev. 3:14.
~Beloved, if we are not in the Word daily, then we are to do it! God holds us each accountable! We have His Word, saints! We are not to have any other primary source than Him and His Word...for I tell you the truth, to do so, is idol worship. It is not what so and so says, IT IS WHAT THE WORD OF GOD SAYS!!!!!
~Church, we are to rise up into the Holy Army of the Living God to which He has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light! And I tell you the truth, many of us have been lulled to sleep by false doctrine which soothes our itching ears and is intended to appeal to our flesh.

~I awoke from the following dream Saturday morning:
"I had been home in our house by myself, when I looked to the southern sky. It was a deep purple red, and I knew that it was moving northward. To say that it appeared ugly is an understatement! I knew that this approaching "storm" would literally rip apart and shred everything in its path, and I had no sense that our house would be standing afterward. I tried phoning my husband at his work, but the employee answering the phone didn't know if he was there or not. My cell phone itself could connect the call, but there were some structural problems as I tried to put it back together. I looked at the clock...It read 3 pm. At that exact moment, my husband walked in the door. I was so relieved that he had come home early, because I needed him there with me as we prepared for the storm. And we were going to need to take cover...down deep where the storm and debris could not reach us.

~I believe this dream speaks of an impending disaster, the magnitude of which we will not be able to comprehend, and we need to be prepared; not only physically by storing supplies, but most of all - spiritually, by going deep with the Lord. Please read Psalm 91. I also believe that the hour of 3:00 pm indicates The Trinity - in that this dream came from the Lord.
~Last evening, we attended the service at Plainwell Assembly of God and Pastor Dave Alderman preached on Hebrews 12:18-28. God will shake everything that can be shaken...and Moses trembled in fear at the base of Mt. Sinai, because so awful and terrifying was the sight of what the Lord was doing. This is the same Moses who met God at the burning bush and God allowed him to see His glory as He passed by.
~Please know that I do not post this information lightly. On March 7, 2009 David Wilkerson posted an urgent message on his blog that Believers store up at least a 30 day supply of toiletries and non-perishable foods, because of God's wrath which is coming to the United States for her iniquities against the Lord. You may click on the hyperlink to Pastor David Wilkerson's blogspot for March 7, 2009 to read the complete warning. I very much respect the ministry of Brother Wilkerson.

http://davidwilkersontoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/urgent-message.html

~Beloved, I know there are those who believe contrary to what I've written to you. God gives us the freedom to choose what we are going to believe. However, America continues in her abominations and God is just. There are consequences to turning our collective back on God and His ways...period.

Ephesians 5:3-6 "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience."

1 Peter 4:17 "For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?

In closing, I'm also posting the link to a vision the Lord gave me back in 2006 if you want to read it. It is long, so I won't post it on the blog.
http://www.etpv.org/2006/satr06.html

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. Rev. 2:29

~Beloved, now is the time to make the most of every minute He's given to us....for the time is short. Who do we truly serve? The Lord or self? May our lives truly be lived as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable before Him...as a sweet smelling aroma.

Emotional Surgery

~What I'm about to relate happened back during my primary counseling years - somewhere in the early 90's. The Lord directed me to a wonderful, Spirit-filled Christian psychologist after my in-patient stay at Minirth-Meier in 1990. Joan let me know right at the starting gate that she wasn't my healer....There's only One Healer - and His Name is Jesus Christ of Nazareth. You see, I could verbalize this truth, but the Lord wanted me to know in a much more personal way. (He is just so long-suffering and patient and compassionate in what He does to reach us so that we "get it".)
~I cannot tell you specifically what happened to get to this next point, but I can tell you what the Lord did to heal me...and that's what's important.
~As she often did during our sessions, Joan prayed for the Holy Spirit to heal the innermost parts of my heart...the places that I didn't know how to get to anymore, because they were hidden so deeply within the recesses of my broken heart.
~As we went to the Lord in prayer, I saw myself in my previously buried memory outside my Grandma Tillie's chicken coop. I must have been about 4 or 5. My mother spewed obscenities over me and vented her anger on my bottom end, because I didn't want to go inside to collect the chicken eggs. Who would? The chickens always pecked my hand, and I was little! (Can't blame them for wanting to protect their shelled brood!)
...The vision continued as I saw myself crying and unprotected from my mother's wrath.....AND THEN, Jesus stepped into the picture. He took me into the chicken coop, and He covered my hand with His...and I saw in a moment that the chicken pecked His hand! He took the pain for me as I retrieved the closely guarded eggs!...And then as He led me back outside, I saw my mother waiting for us and loaded for bear. Jesus looked her square in the eye and told her to leave me alone, because I was going with Him. (At this point, my mother was not saved.) I heard my mother scream at Him, "Who in the h--- do you think You are?" To which He calmly replied, "I told you to leave her alone and that she's going with Me." The Lord completed my new memory by taking me by the hand and leading away from my mother.
~Beloved - HE IS THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA...THE BEGINNING AND THE END....AND THE IN-BETWEEN!
What is impossible for us to do for ourselves, HE IS ABLE TO DO!
~I had absolutely no idea within my conscious self that this memory lay buried beneath the surface, but the Lord did. He brought that which had been in darkness to light. And in so doing, He brought His healing to what had been unknowingly, an extremely emotionally debilitating experience!
~What He did was to give me a new memory so that the old no longer held the power it once did.
~This reminds me of something the Lord told me about 15 years ago, "My child, first and foremost, I AM a heart surgeon. Yes, I desire to heal the physical, but often it is the emotional which needs the greatest healing."
Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever."
For He Who is able to heal our "today" is also with us to heal our "yesterday". Be blessed.
(An excellent reference: "Healing for Damaged Emotions" by Dr. David Seamands)