The joy of the Lord is my strength
I have recently gotten some painful insight into the sin of presumption and being the loving person that I am I thought that I would share that “pain” with you. I know you just can’t wait to thank me.
So here is the pain I’m sharing – whenever we use the Word of God as an antidote for something we know is vital but we feel we lack we enter the realm of presumption. Case in point – “the joy of the Lord is my strength”. For me to use that word out of a place of perceived lack of joy in my life, no matter how “real” that perception may be is, in fact, presumption. Why? Look at what the Word is saying.
First, it is His joy not mine. If He is in me then there is never a time that I am “lacking” His joy. My presumption is mistaking the lack of my joy (feelings) for His joy. In truth the very purpose of my “perceived lack” is simply to remind me that my circumstances are not the source of my joy.
Second, the joy of the Lord IS my strength. The Word is not telling me to do anything. He (Holy Spirit) is declaring that I already have the joy of the Lord. That joy is not how I feel but the effect of His Presence in me. So once again, trying to use scripture to get something that I already have is very presumptuous.
Third, the joy of the Lord is my STRENGTH. Strength speaks of continuous empowering. It also speaks of many-sided empowering. It is the energy of God’s joy that empowers me. That means that I have access to the empowerment of the Lord’s eternal joy to invade and overtake all the temporal mental, physical, spiritual and financial problems, limitations and weaknesses that affect me. How presumptuous of me to invest more “strength” in my temporal than His eternal.
So let’s stop using this (and all) scripture as magic words that will somehow gives us the joy of the Lord but rather let us exercise with frequent declarations that “The joy of the Lord is my strength” and watch with excited expectation as Holy Spirit first awakens you to what you are declaring and then releases “rivers” of joy to fill up and overtake your whole being…..So……………. you can thank me now for sharing my “pain”..
Session schedule is as follows:
Thur. & Fri. @ 7pm
Sat. 10:00 am – 4:00 pm.
The School of the Supernatural II is a four session series that equips the Body of Christ to learn advanced strategies in the following areas and more:
?Angels: Their descriptions, Assignments, & Operations
?The Nephilim
?Spiritual investigations of towns, cities, and regions
?Spiritual effects of Apostolic Alignment
?The Seer
?Spiritual Orphans and their effect on the Body of Christ
?Hearing the voice of the Lord
?What is the fear of the Lord
These sessions will be imparted from the view of a seasoned
prophetic seer, who has received revelation from the third
heaven, and provides a practical daily application of the Word of God.
Pat and Val Holloran
Pat Holloran ministers primarily in the gifting of a seer/prophet. He has a unique ability from the Lord to see the spirit world with his natural eyes in his everyday life. They are founders of Harvest House International Ministries, a worldwide apostolic-prophetic worship and teaching ministry for the equipping of warriors and worshipers. They are based in Western Michigan. Pat and Val travel nationally and internationally, bringing prophetic insight, spontaneous worship music, teaching and impartation for God’s people to step into their God-given dominion.
Their ministry also equips the saints to know the destiny of the land that the people occupy for the glory of the Lord, and to make known the call of that land according to the perfect will of the Father in Heaven. They have a calling to bring the Body of Christ into becoming generational minded and to prepare the generations to move in the freedom and authority of God’s Word that the Lord has for all of us.
Come worship with us Friday April 8th at 7:00 pm as we release the healing power of God’s Love, Life and Light with Kevin Ford at The Shepherd’s House! All are Welcome to join us! You will not want to miss this!
God has been using Kevin powerfully in the gifts of healing and miracles! Countless testimonies of God’s wonderful healing power have been flowing out of this ministry! Bring someone who needs healing!
Kevin and Cynthia Ford are founders of Sozo Ministries and reside in the Albany area. They are also part of the International Apostolic Ministries (IAM) leadership team. To find out more about Kevin and Cynthia log onto www.sozomin.com.
“The Stand!”
“The LORD of Hosts – Before Whom We Stand!”
In this beginning of the second decade of the 21st century, the kingdom of heaven is making its stand. The spirit and power of Elijah is upon the Church, and together we are establishing the kingdom power of destiny into the hearts of God’s people. Elijah said, “The LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand!”
…Malachi prophesied that the LORD of hosts “will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers!” Destiny comes like a strong wind of the Spirit!
(1 Kings 18:15; Malachi 4:6)
June 7 – 10, 2011 in Albany, New York, the ministry family of International Apostolic Ministries will convene for the purpose of unity, worship, and profound ministry of His Word.
2011 NorthEast Regional Convening
of International Apostolic Ministries
June 7, 8, 9 & 10, 2011
Albany, NY
www.iamtheway.org/convening
Meetings at:
The Shepherds House
673 Columbia Turnpike
East Greenbush, NY 12061
Phone: 518-712-9325
In June of 2011 we will convene for dynamic praise & unifying strategies in order that we might STAND before the Lord and conquer the enemies of Christ Jesus throughout the region of the NorthEast and New England! This is our second Regional Convening of the northeastern states of our Nation. We will not be silent! We will shout the praises of our King with the great purpose of unifying our regions with purpose & plan as we proclaim the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ! The region is sure to be shaken. Our King will be glorified. Our praise will be passionate, profound and prophetic!
All are welcome! The nations are invited!
Register here
Advertise this event on your website or at your church!! Click here to download everything you need to advertise this event!
“Overcoming evil with good” is a biblical principal that applies to every aspect of our Kingdom life. So let’s apply this principle to another biblical principal – humility. The opposite of humility would obvious be self-absorption. People consumed with them are easy to identify because being around them is always distasteful. Unpretentious, genuinely humility is totally refreshing.
But that kind of real biblical humility is as elusive as it is desirable. It is oblivious that “trying” to be humble is in itself proof that we are not even close. So here is where we go back to our opening principle – “overcoming evil with good” If self-absorption is the “evil” what would be the “good”? What “good” would be so all consuming that “self absorption would be virtually eliminated? Before we jump to some obvious answers, let me interject a word – obedience. It is how humility actual gets worked into us. Consider this – when we are totally preoccupied with His overwhelmingly radiant goodness, consciously, continuously expecting it’s continual manifestation, self-consciousness is eliminated. When a camera flashes in your face, no matter what you look at all you see for awhile is that brilliant light. There is wonderful freedom here. Trying to be less self-conscious is not an issue any more. I am free to become obsessed with “seeking the Kingdom first” and then obeying in what ever way I can. Be careful – “seeing the Kingdom first” means that the Kingdom is your central focus. The Kingdom has lots of benefits but that not what you are seeking. Your job for example, or feeding the poor or preaching the Word — Mother Theresa often prayed that she would not let go of Jesus’ hands while she was feeding the poor. “First” means that it (Kingdom) occupies that place in your life that you use to occupy. “Doing” in the Kingdom is still all about you. Leaning into the Kingdom with such intensity that it is now defines you and then obeying when the Kingdom speaks – that’s real humility.
There will be a special service from 10:00 – 12:00 for the graduates of the Foundations for Kingdom Warriors class on Sunday, March 27th (There will be one service that day).
We will be having a special cleaning and work day on March 26th from 9:00 — 12:00 to keep the church building in spiffy condition. If you can help out, see Dave Cramer! Pizza will be provided for lunch.
One Saturday each month, we will have a special church work day
Winnie Bauer from Germany will be with us Friday, March 18th at 7pm, Saturday morning at 10am, and on Sunday, March 20th for the Celebration Service
Pastor Winfried is the leader in charge of OASIS Ministries International. He and his wife Lydia have three children.
During a visit to the Toronto Airport church (now TACF) in July 1994 his life and ministry were fundamentally changed. In the course of practical church work, there built up in him a ‘holy dissatisfaction’ with the present state of our churches. He became dismayed at the lack of insight in so many areas of church life and at the lack of understanding of practical leadership. Consequently, the restoration of the fivefold ministry has become a topic of central importance of OASIS Ministries.
Whenever “faith” is mentioned in a Christian setting, it is somehow assumed to be something that we have toward God. But the Bible’s definition of faith as “the assurance of things hoped for” actually has it’s beginnings, it foundations with God’s faith toward us. “Light be” was a faith declaration that brought the presence of creation in the eternal mind of God into the presence of creation in time. That original declaration of “faith” was made with us in mind – sort of like parents “believing” for a child by creating a baby room in their house long before they are even pregnant with child. However God’s “believing” was always in full “assurance of the things He hoped for”. From the moment of the fall to moment of Mary’s impregnation of Jesus, the pages of the Old Testament are filled with God’s faith expectation of the coming Messiah. All the temple structure, rituals, sacrifices, offerings, etc. – all those types and shadows were invitations by God for fallen man to attach themselves to God’s faith in the coming Messiah. Every animal sacrifice became a faith declaration that the real, final, perfect Blood of redemption was soon to come. And when the Messiah finally does come we discover a Life that was lived in Perfect faith from the time He was child to His last great cry on the cross “It is finished”. A closer look at Jesus’ public life reveals not just His wonderful perfect faith for the healing of all sickness, diseases and death but also continual astounding predictions of faith about His own death and resurrection, His seven faith “I am” declarations- “I am Bread of life, Door, Resurrection and life, Light of men, the Way, Truth and Life,” all His faith statements about the sheep that hear His voice, the other sheep that are not of this fold and far many more. The simple point of all this is that, just as our righteousness is “perfect’ because it is found in His perfect righteousness, so also our faith is perfect because it is found in His perfect faith. You and I cannot conjure up on our own true Biblical faith – “the assurance of things hoped for”. However when our weak and imperfect faith is placed inside of His Perfect faith then every act of faith on our part is invested with “the assurance of things hoped for”. God’s not looking for your perfect faith just like He is not looking for your perfect right behavior. Our walk of “faith” then is really not about “doing” great faith but “being” in great Faith – not ours but His!!!!~
