Articles
Persistance | The Brick | Value | Unconditional Love | Abundance of Rain | Are you willing to Listen to God
The Nathaniel Generation must rise up at this Crucial Time
Jesus said to Nathaniel (Gift of God), “…. You were under the fig tree. I saw you”. Fig tree signifies the nation of Israel and Nathaniel was a true nationalist, he prayed for his nation. Jesus saw and heard Nathaniel’s prayer while he was alone under the tree interceding for his country. Our Lord assured Nathaniel, “……. You will see greater things than these. Truly, truly, I say to you, hereafter ye shall see heaven open and angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
The need of the hour are gifts of God (Nathanaels) to rise up with passionate prayer for nations …… to see heaven open and activate angelic intervention in these perilous times. This is the time for the Nathanaels to use the strong name of the Lord Jesus for our nation. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against wicked powers and rulers of the dark realms. We need angels to be released.
Will you be a “Gift of God” in times such as these? We need to see greater things during the financial crises and for the forthcoming elections. The heavens must remain open.
Pray for India, the nations of the world and for the peace of Israel.
Persistance
In 1883, a creative engineer named John Roebling was inspired by an idea to build a spectacular bridge connecting New York with the Long Island. However bridge building experts throughout the world thought that this was an impossible feat and told Roebling to forget the idea. It just could not be done. It was not practical. It had never been done before.
Roebling could not ignore the vision he had in his mind of this bridge. He thought about it all the time and he knew deep in his heart that it could be done. He just had to share the dream with someone else. After much discussion and persuasion he managed to convince his son Washington, an up and coming engineer, that the bridge in fact could be built.
Working together for the first time, the father and son developed concepts of how it could be accomplished and how the obstacles could be overcome. With great excitement and inspiration, and the headiness of a wild challenge before them, they hired their crew and began to build their dream bridge.
The project started well, but when it was only a few months underway a tragic accident on the site took the life of John Roebling. Washington was injured and left with a certain amount of brain damage, which resulted in him not being able to walk or talk or even move.
“We told them so.”
“Crazy men and their crazy dreams.”
“It`s foolish to chase wild visions.”
Everyone had a negative comment to make and felt that the project should be scrapped since the Roeblings were the only ones who knew how the bridge could be built. In spite of his handicap Washington was never discouraged and still had a burning desire to complete the bridge and his mind was still as sharp as ever.
He tried to inspire and pass on his enthusiasm to some of his friends, but they were too daunted by the task. As he lay on his bed in his hospital room, with the sunlight streaming through the windows, a gentle breeze blew the flimsy white curtains apart and he was able to see the sky and the tops of the trees outside for just a moment.
It seemed that there was a message for him not to give up. Suddenly an idea hit him. All he could do was move one finger and he decided to make the best use of it. By moving this, he slowly developed a code of communication with his wife.
He touched his wife’s arm with that finger, indicating to her that he wanted her to call the engineers again. Then he used the same method of tapping her arm to tell the engineers what to do. It seemed foolish but the project was under way again.
For 13 years Washington tapped out his instructions with his finger on his wife’s arm, until the bridge was finally completed. Today the spectacular Brooklyn Bridge stands in all its glory as a tribute to the triumph of one man’s indomitable spirit and his determination not to be defeated by circumstances. It is also a tribute to the engineers and their team work, and to their faith in a man who was considered mad by half the world. It stands too as a tangible monument to the love and devotion of his wife who for 13 long years patiently decoded the messages of her husband and told the engineers what to do.
Perhaps this is one of the best examples of a never-say-die attitude that overcomes a terrible physical handicap and achieves an impossible goal.
Often when we face obstacles in our day-to-day life, our hurdles seem very small in comparison to what many others have to face. The Brooklyn Bridge shows us that dreams that seem impossible can be realised with determination and persistence, no matter what the odds are.
Even the most distant dream can be realized with determination and persistence.
The Brick
About ten years ago, a young and very successful executive named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his sleek, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.
He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child darted out, but a brick sailed out and – WHUMP! – it smashed Into the Jag’s shiny black side door! SCREECH..!!!! Brakes slammed! Gears ground into reverse, and tires madly spun the Jaguar back to the spot from where the brick had been thrown. Josh jumped out of the car, grabbed the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, “What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!” Building up a head of steam, he went on. “That’s my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?”
“Please, mister, please. . . I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!” Pleaded the youngster. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop!” Tears were dripping down the boy’s chin as he pointed around the parked car. “It’s my brother, mister,” he said. “He rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up.” Sobbing, the boy asked the executive, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.”
Moved beyond words, the young executive tried desperately to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapes and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.
It was a long walk back to the sleek, black, shining, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE -a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. . . Some bricks are softer than others. Feel for the bricks of life coming at to you. For all the negative things we have to say to ourselves, God has positive answers.
Value
A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill. In the room of 200, he asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?”
Hands started going up.
He said, “I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this.” He proceeded to crumple the dollar bill up.
He then asked, “Who still wants it?”
Still the hands were up in the air.
“Well,” he replied, “What if I do this?” And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now all crumpled and dirty. “Now who still wants it?” Still the hands went into the air.
“My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.
Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way.
We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value. You are special – Don’t ever forget it!
Unconditional Love
A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam. He called his parents from San Francisco.
“Mom and Dad, I’m coming home, but I’ve a favor to ask. I have a friend I’d like to bring home with me.”
“Sure,” they replied, “we’d love to meet him.”
“There’s something you should know the son continued, “he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mind and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live.”
“No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us.”
“Son,” said the father, “you don’t know what you’re asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can’t let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about this guy. He’ll find a way to live on his own.”
At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him. A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn’t know, their son had only one arm and one leg.
The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don’t like people who inconvenience us or make us feel uncomfortable. We would rather stay away from people who aren’t as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are. Thankfully, there’s someone who won’t treat us that way. Someone who loves us with an unconditional love that welcomes us into the forever family, regardless of how messed up we are.
Tonight, before you tuck yourself in for the night, say a little prayer that God will give you the strength you need to accept people as they are, and to help us all be more understanding of those who are different from us!!!
There’s a miracle called Friendship That dwells in the heart You don’t know how it happens Or when it gets started But you know the special lift It always brings And you realize that Friendship Is God’s most precious gift!
Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.
Abundance of Rain
The Lord has put into my heart today to talk about prayer. The Lord surely knows that I need to learn and you need to learn. I need to obey, you need to obey. I need to follow, you need to follow. I need to pray and you need to pray. Children of God, praying we know is talking to God. Praying we know is hearing from God. Praying we know is listening to God. Praying we know is God listening to us and we listening to God. Praying we know is communicating with God. Prayer we know is to commune with God. But the Holy Spirit told me a couple of months ago, the definitions of prayer is the place where God and we become one. It is definitely talking to God; it is definitely listening to God. It is definitely pouring out your heart to God and it is definitely God pouring His heart to you. Revealing His mind to you; it is you opening up to God and God opening up to you. It’s all there. But the prime definition is that God and we become one in prayer.
Elijah was a man of prayer. A well-known anointed prophet and a mighty man of God. The Bible talks in 1 King 18, the prayer of Elijah. He had just come out, after a big show down with the false gods of Baal. He challenged those false prophets, and he prayed unto the Living God and the Living God sent the fire from heaven, thus Elijah proved to the whole world that God Jehovah is the only living God. After the big contest, he is on the Mount Carmel and there the Lord teaches me and you.
My beloved, we all have needs, we all have wants in our lives. We all have desires. We are all looking forward for something good to happen in our lives. All asking God for something. Someone is asking God for a job, someone is asking for a physical healing someone is asking for family restoration, someone is asking God to bless her/his child. Someone is asking for a visa, someone is asking for peace. Each one of us has something to ask God for. And my child of God, therefore you and I must learn the principles of powerful prayer. It is not simply asking God for a visa, blessings, peace or anything that we need. Yes, He will answer. As we grow in the Lord, as we mature ourselves in the Lord, our prayer must be powerful and fruitful.
Our prayer must press forward because the title of this message is “God will give abundance of Rain in your life.” Abundance of Rain; is what Elijah told, and the same anointing is flowing into the church now through this unworthy mouth piece, and I prophecy and proclaim abundance of rain in your life in the name of Jesus.
My God said that He will make it come to pass. God is not talking about physical and practical rain. He is talking about His provisions in abundance in your life; spiritual provisions, material provisions. I tell you all what you need for a blessed life on this earth and for an eternal life forever with Christ. Abundance of Rain. Jesus said, “I have come that you shall have life and have it more in abundance”. God’s abundance is all ready for us beloved. Jesus says, “It is finished
Are you willing to Listen to God
Summary
Mary was given
1. Great Challenge
2. Great Choice – Are you willing to be the in the shadow. Mary asked no question other than “how can it be?”
3. Great Risk
4. Great Leap
Focusing on God means, “Are you willing to listen to God? What ever gets your attraction gets your ears! When you listen to God, your faith rise. Trust is built on listening to God’s word. Implicit obedience.
Mary was spontaneous, submission, sacrifice, commitment. It is not easy to sing a song before everything happens. Mary impacted the world. Elizabeth was filled with the spirit and she prophesied! God affirmed Mary through Elizabeth! No one can impact if your source is limited! Mary’s only source was God! She said “Be it unto me according to your word”! God still wants to take lives and impact the world!
Reference
Luke 1: 23-28
Luke 1: 39-43