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https://clarioncallministries.co.uk

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The Joys and Sorrows of Church Planting

Church planters are a rare breed! Having planted two churches, my advice to the potential church planter would be similar to the advice that Spurgeon gave to his Bible sturdents who were contemplating entering the ministry. If you can avoid doing it, do so! Yet if you cannot avoid it, because you know without a doubt that you are in God’s will, do it with all your heart, soul and might!

There are many pitfalls in church planting. Many newly established fellowships are paid a visit by spiritual “gypsies” who are looking for either influence of leadership. It is tempting for the leader of a small work to accept such people gladly – after all  they “help” the numbers! Experience proves, however, that the eventual spiritual cost of endeavouring to discipline such people is not worth accepting them in the first place.

Then, there is the discouragement of having small numbers. There are holidays in the summer and every form of sickness in the winter. Everyone not present is greatly missed! Some become unhappy at being in a small congregation and so decide to leave and join some larger group elsewhere. Often, this is simply because of the commitment required in a church plant situation. Added to this is the lack of workers. The only mature Christians that the small congregation sees are the church planters themselves.

The logical conclusion to this is that no church planter should work alone in their quest for God. They need to be linked to a larger congregation who can help with manpower, music and money. The leadership of the bigger group may also assist should discipline be required in the church plant. Even then, it is helpful if the church that the planter is connected with has been a church plant itself. Its leadership will know and understand the problems experienced in beginning a new work first hand.

Is your chuch a ‘planting’ church? In the two years that Paul was in Ephesus, it was said of him “that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 1:8. This would have been impossible in both instances without a chuch planting programme.

New chuches are the most effective means of winning people for the Lord. They have no formality or ritual to uphold. This makes it much easier for the Holy Spirit to move so that Jesus can effectively build His church in and through them.

post-cutting-edge

The Cutting Edge

To be on the cutting edge of what God is doing we have to know God’s will, or mind, in all things. The only way we are going to fulfil anything that God is calling us to is to be filled with the Holy Spirit and with His power. (Acts 17:28)

This means commitment, which is a word what is not liked very much these days. It is a commitment to the will and purpose of God in all things. God is sovereign. He is the creator of all things. God is never wrong. He is perfect in all His ways. Can you trust Him to lead you and show you His will? God is always right.

To pioneer new works for God we have to get His blueprint before we begin. We have to know God’s mind, otherwise we will not know where we are going. We will only end up chasing our tails and going round in circles. I want to encourage you to get to the place where God can speak to you, and then work in and through you to fulfil His plan for you.

I find these days that many of God’s people are not sure where they are going. There is an unwillingness generally to be fully committed to the will of God and pay the price. If the Church is going to come to maturity, and fulfil its God-given destiny, then there has to be commitment. We cannot establish God’s kingdom by operating in the flesh, and leaving the minority to somehow pull us all through.

If our desire is to see more Church’s planted and more lives changed, then we need to know God’s leading. The only way we will know God’s plans and leading is by commitment. This will include total abandonment of our own ambitions and being willing to follow Christ whatever the cost. It may include giving up a comfortable lifestyle with a guaranteed income each month, and stepping out and trusting God to meet your needs. There is no other way to build for God than to have faith in His ability to look after you and meet your needs. Someone once said, “God will always pay for what He orders”. The only way you are going to know what He is ‘ordering’ is by knowing His will.

I can quite honestly say that all God has done through the ministry in Meriden has been by His grace and mercy. We have found God to be totally faithful, He does meet our needs. I believe the key to this is to stay close to Him, stop in His will and He will bring it to pass. There are times when things seem to be going haywire, and it becomes intolerable to bear, it’s times like that when you feel you want to give up. However, it is in those times that God tests us, we do come through because God is faithful. I want to encourage you to rise up and get on the cutting edge of what God is doing and believe Him for the impossible.

John Yates

Climbing the Mountain

For those who are following the plan and purpose of God there will be mountains to climb. The first thing we have to know is what is the Lord calling me to do? For the person who is committed to the call. of God on their lives, God has a plan for you. God wants you to fulfil that plan and to get on with the job of climbing in faith. Even to climb the whole mountain or to fulfil the big picture there are smaller ledges, banks and troughs to deal with on the way.

Are you still climbing or have you come to the place where you are just not able to continue? It might be that you are in a place where you can neither go up or down – you are just stuck?

In God’s plan for your life and mine there is provision to climb the mountain – to accomplish the climb. After all it’s God’s plan not ours and whatever He is calling us to do we will be able to do it. Often God will use what we are called to do to change our character and bring healing from the past, then develop us into the person He wants us to become.

In Genesis 22 we have an illustration of this in the life of Abraham. He was tested to the limit, even to the sacrifice of His own son Isaac. It’s only through our faith and obedience to the challenge that God puts before us that we find His provision. There is provision to fulfil the task set before you, but there are conditions. Abraham had no idea that there would be a ram in the thicket, His provision, see verse 13.

I want to encourage you to start to move forward, believing that God is with you. First believe that what you are being asked to do is from God and start to move. It’s in our willingness to move first that sets God’s plan of provision in motion. There is always a price to pay that brings the blessing and provision of God.

John Yates

A Voice Crying In The Wilderness

 

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness in Judea, and saying,
“Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near.”

This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: ”
A voice of one calling in the wilderness. “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight paths for him.
Matthew 3:1-3

John the Baptiser was a special herald of Christ, our Lord. He was literally crying in the wilderness of Judea. At that time there was a spiritual wilderness, confusion, rather like there is today. He was responsible for turning many sinners to righteousness, and a people prepared for the Lord. He prepared the people for Christ’s first coming. As Christians today, we are called to prepare the way for Christ’s second coming,

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the Name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I will be with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20

A Spiritual Battle

Ever since creation, the earth has been in a spiritual battle. Everything God created was good, and for His pleasure, but satan, a fallen angel had been cast out of heaven because he got too big for his boots, and disguised as a serpent,  persuaded Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden from the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” causing them to disobey God bringing a curse, and seperation (Genesis 3:1-10).

Satan continues to tempt men, until he is thrown into a pit for a 1,000 years after Jesus returns (Revelation 20). Consequently, we inherited that fallen sin, and the only way to be reconciled to God, is to confess our sins and invite Jesus into our hearts, to be born again. Victory can only come through the shedding of Jesus blood at Calvary, and nothing else (John 3:16).

Throughout history, God has had to intervene on the earth, due to man’s disobedience and wickedness. Noah, was the only one deemed righteous to build an ark, to save every specie and Noah’s family, as God flooded the earth. The tower of Babel was destroyed through idolatrous worship, and mens tongues were confused, and multiple languages ensued. That spirit of Babylon, is still at work today.

A Nation Chosen by God

The Jewish people have sufferd immensely through time. Why is this?
Because since satans fall, he has attempted to build an evil empire to deceive God’s creation. Trying to destroy the chosen line from which our Messiah comes. However God’s word says.

Come Zion escape, you who live in Babylon. For this is what the Lord Almighty says. “After the glorious One has sent me against the nations that have plundered you – for whoever touches you – touches the apple of his eye, I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know the Lord Almighty has sent me.”
Zechariah 2:8

Preparing the Way

So how do we believers today, prepare for the second coming of our Lord?
As already mentioned, we are to make disciples of all nations. But first and formost, we must repent wholeheartedly for our oun sins, the sins of the church and the sins of our Nation. “Let Your will be done.” Jesus is a voice in the wilderness, weeping for His bride, His creation,His church, the lost. He has had enough of being rejected through the rebelliousness of man.
His desire is for us as Christians to be co-workers with Him. We must not pray against His will & purposes to halt the covid. He is allowing society to be broken down and shaken to the core, so folks recognise their desperate need of a Saviour.

It is so important that we pray with understanding, maturity, in unison, within the framework of God’s word. Praying the prophetic  word into being, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

“I will shake all nations and the desired of all nations shall come, and I  will fill the house with the glory”, says the Lord Almighty. Haggai 2:7

We need an “Issacher anointing” to understand the times and the seasons we are living in, and God’s strategy for our prayers. Issacher was Jacobs son, one of the twelve tribes, the tribe were men, who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do (1Chronicles 12:32).

Fulfiling the Conditions

God’s greatest desire is to pour out His blessing upon His people and the land. However, most promises in the bible contain a condition that we have to fulfill, before that can happen. For example-a well known scripture on prayer.

“If My people who are called by my Name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sin, and heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14

The Condition – humble ourselves, confess, repent, turn around and sin no more.
The Blessing – God will forgive our sin, and heal our land.

Prayers & Proclamations

Who can understand His errors?
Cleanse me from my secret faults.
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
Let them not have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless.
And I shall be innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord my strength and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Forgive us Father, where we as a nation, have broken all the ten commandments since 1953,
Legalising witchcraft, allowing abortion, killing millions of babies. Permitting homosexualty, even in the church. Allowing same sex marriage. Not keeping Sunday special etc.
We also failed to fulfil our obligation to Israel, for political and financial reasons, with the Balfour and San Remo declarations. Allowing millions to be exccuted in concentration camps. Those that survived, only to be turned away at Haifa, and then be drowned.

Father, we are so guilty, have mercy on our land we pray, because of your loving kindness. Now we have been cut off from the ungodly powers of the EU, you are giving us a second chance. Help us to flow with your plans for your chosen people.
We thank you, that despite covid, the Jewish people are still returning home in fulfilment to Your word. You are making a way in the wildernes. Praise Your Wonderful Name.

During this time of “shaking” may ungodly structures and thrones be displaced, and You Father will be given Your righful place of Lordship in our land. Give us vision to see things as You do. We thank You Father, that you are seated on Your throne, exalted above every principality and power, above every king, queen, president or priminster and kingdom. As your body, may we be brought back into alignment with Your will for the UK. We ask that a mantle of prayer be released, to partner with the Lord to bring healing, deliverance and salvation to our land (Ephesians 1:17-23).

We thank you that we belong to another government, an everlasting government. Only through Your grace, can we walk in victory, under the banner of Jesus Christ, and only through the shedding of your blood at Calvary, and nothing else. Because He lives, we can face tomorrow, whatever happens. Hallelujah!

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and queens; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge and understanding. He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And the light that dwells with Him….

For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His Kingdom is from generation to generation, All inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to HIs will in the  army of heaven, And among the inhabitants of earth. No one can restrain His hand, Or say to Him, “What have You done?
Daniel 2:20-22, 4:34-35

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore my beloved brethren, we are steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that our labour is not in vain in the Lord.
1 Corinthians 15:57-58

Amen

Pam Yates

What Does God Require Of Us

“Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.”
Joel 2:13

“Let the priests, who minister before the LORD, weep before the portico and the altar. Let them say, “Spare your people, LORD. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, “Where is their God?””
Joel 2:17

Background

In these challenging, verses, Joel is summoning up the priests of the temple to weep between the porch and the altar. A period of baal worship had come to an end, however godliness didn’t ensue, but a spirit of indifference had set in. The temple was not repaired properly until 813 (2 Kings 12:6).

They were facing a natural, as well as a spiritual disaster. God is speaking through the prophet, for Judah to come to national repentance. Judgements of locusts, drought and harassment of local enemies had occurred , something we can identify with, and is as relevant today with the pandemic. and natural disasters happening in the world. We have turned our back on God, allowing secularism and godlessness to invade the church.

Future Prophetic Purpose

The prophetic purpose also of the book, was also to introduce the “Future Day of the Lord.” After repentance , God promises he would then reveal His sovereignty to Israel and the Nations in the last days. Interestingly, the name of Joel, means “Jehovah is God.”  Joel is also known as the prophet of the Holy Spirit.

“I will pour out My spirit on all peoples.” Joel 2:28-32

Both Peter & Paul use this passage as a prophecy to Christians in Acts 2:16 -21

In the New Testament, the old covenant was replaced by the new covenant, through the shedding of Jesus’s blood on the cross, the curtain was torn in two. Peter assure us

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possessions, that you may declare the praises  of Him who called you out of darkness, into His wonderful light.”
1 Peter 2::9

And,

He has made us to be a Kingdom of priests to His God & Father, to Him be the glory and  the dominion, forever and ever.
Revelation 1:6

Co-workers with Christ

So scripture clearly indicates, that as Christ’s body, we are all a kingdom of priests, having the privilege of being able to stand in the gap. Intercession  is not just for the few, but for us all. To recite a list of needs is not a  pleasing sacrifice to the Lord. He desires us to dig much deeper. To  communicate with our heavenly Father in the Spirit. To share His burden. to listen to HIs voice, and weep with His tears. To join Him in his heart cries for mankind, the church, the world. His love for mankind is limitless, and everlasting, and unconditional, and his desire is that none should  perish.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16

However, we worship a holy and righteous God, and  sin will separate us from that love, either individually, as a church, or a nation. God’s desire is for us  to act justly, to love mercy, and walk humbly before Him (Micah 6:8).

Going Deeper

May I be permitted to challenge us ALL to go deeper in the Holy Spirit, surrendering our whole will, mind, and spirit unto God on the altar Feeling His heartbeat, flowing with His desires.

Let Your will be done, Your Kingdom come on earth, as it is in Heaven. Matthew 5:10

The porch represents the flesh, the outer court worship, the altar represents the place of sacrifice, where our spirits meet with the Holy Spirit.

To travail, we stand in identification with our heavenly Father. He shares  the burden, we pray it through, sometimes we can encounter a deep anguish of the soul, an ache in the heart, which can cause one to groan and wail, praying also in tongues. This could at times also include lack of sleep and food.

“In the same way, the spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we should pray, but the Spirit himself intercedes through us through wordless groans.” Rom 8: 26-27

Jeremiah said, 

“Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day & night.” Jeremiah 9:1

Paul’s profound prayer in Philippians 3:16 illustrates the very purpose of life as a Christian.

“That I may know Christ and the power of His rising from the dead, sharing in His pains, and changing into the form of His death.” 
Philippians 3:16

Prayer of Repentance

Father, You alone are worthy to be praised. You created us by Your mighty power, and  redeemed us by You precious blood. Thank You Jesus. As representatives of Your  body “The Church” in our Nation, we have failed to keep your commandments. We have failed to stand on Your Word, we have compromised, embracing false philosophies and destructive ungodly thinking, polluting Your house.

We have ignored your calls to holiness , we kneel before you naked, poor and wretched. We repent of our sins and plead for Your forgiveness, grace, mercy and love, for the honour of Your Name is at stake.

Cleanse our hearts from within, and renew a right spirit within us. Enable us to walk into the future, with a desire to do Your will, and to live godly lives in Christ Jesus.

Lord, we know Your greatest desire is to pour Your Holy Spirit out on a dry and thirsty land. We ask that You may set on fire our pulpits once again, like you did in the past, for it is only Your anointing, that breaks the yoke.
The world has changed, but Your Word remains the same forever and ever. It is a living Word, which when it is sent forth, it will accomplish what it is sent to do, and will not return void.

As You are working Your purposes out on this earth, help us in our weakness to remain faithful, to stand and keep standing on Your Word. To be Your ambassadors of salvation, to those souls who are perishing on the highway to hell.
A thousand years is like a day to You. You are never too late or early, but we know You will be returning to earth very soon, to take up Your place as King of Kings and Lord of Lords of all the earth.

“Blow the trumpet in Zion. And sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of  of the land tremble; For the day of the Lord is coming, For it is at hand.” Joel 2:1

AMEN

Pam Yates

The Significance of the Day of Atonement

Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement begins at sundown, at the end of the ninth day of Tishri, the seventh month of the bible year. This year it began on the 27th September until the 28th 2020.
Of all the Jewish holy occasions, it is the most solemn. One can read all about in Leviticus 16, how it was observed in the Tabernacle and the Temple.

The Ten days of Repentance

Between New Years Day and Yom Kippur were ten days, know as the above, where every Jew searches his heart, and seeks to be reconciled with God and his neighbour.

On Yom Kippur itself a fast day of 24 hours,  is spent seeking God for atonement and forgiveness for all their sins. For them “The Day of Reckoning and Judgement.” Five days after Yom Kippur, comes Succoth, or the Feast of Tabernacles, lasting eight days.

The word of Yom Kippur comes from the Hebrew word “Kapper” ” to cover.”
According to this meaning, God covers the sin’s of the people by the blood of the sacrifice. It actually points to the Gospel !

“Christ died for our sins” 1 Corinthians 15:3   

The high priest assisted by 500 priests performed solemn and elaborate rites, for 7 days in preparation. He washed his body five times, ten times his hands and feet, in addition to the killing of two goats, lambs and bullocks, the red heifer was killed and it’s blood, sprinkled for the cleansing of the people from the  defilement of sin.
Numbers 16 and Hebrews 9:13

The climax came when the high priest, went into the most holy place, where the  Ark of the Covenant was placed. The shekinah glory of God was there, the  visible presence of God, by a cloud. When the High Priest came out alive, the  people were relieved, for they then knew their sins had been accepted and forgiven.

As Christians, we have the assurance that Christ fulfilled the law, of good  things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, but with the shedding of His blood at Calvary, that cannot be revoked.
It is Christ who has become our atonement, in Him all the law has been fulfilled. So

Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many, and unto him that look for Him, shall he appear the second time, without sin, unto salvation. Hebrews 9:28

In Judaism, there is no assurance for sins, for only the son of God can give forgiveness to those who come to Him in faith. To  a Christian, to depend on ones merits is a bleak prospect. Deep within Israel’s heart  though, she knows  her atonement is in Messiah. By His stripes we shall be healed, Eternal One, it is time that thou shouldn’t create Him anew!

Here the hope of Israel and the Hope of the Christian emerge. Israel is waiting  for Christ’s first coming, where the believer in the Lord Jesus, knows  that He already came and saved him. He looks forward to His second coming, when He shall establish His kingdom upon the earth. On that day, the Hope of  Israel and the Hope of the Church will become the “One New Man.” The King  of Glory will take His place.

So we  see there is a great parallel, of coming to gather. Understanding the law,  and the New Testament helps us to pray with understanding. This is a great time and opportunity to draw closer and identify with our Jewish brothers and  sisters.

Prayers of Repentance

Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love, according to Your great compassion. Blot out my transgressions, wash away all my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of my salvation, and  grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways and sinners will turn back to You.
Psalm 51: 1-3, 10-13

Prayer for Church And Nation

Father, have mercy on your Church, We have been half hearted and asleep, and  failed to fulfil your commands and precepts. We have compromised in allowing  secular and humanistic thinking to infiltrate it. We are sorry for not recognising our Jewish heritage.
We  humbly ask that you might raise up godly wise leaders, men of stature, to  rise above the parapet, to be a voice in the media, to bring a message of hope,  love and salvation, to a broken society in these uncertain days.  And I tell you  Peter, and on this rock, I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades will  not overcome it (Matthew 16: 18).

Prayer For Israel

We blow the shofar prophetically, just like it is done at the end of Yom Kippur, a clarion call to the Nations, for the Jewish people to return home according to Your Word. For the final ingathering of those who are to be saved, a mighty harvest, Jew and Gentile alike, into the body of Christ.

The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you,
The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.

“So I will put my Name  upon the Israelites and I will bless them.”
Numbers 6: 24 – 27

Pam Yates

Understanding The Times

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know
Him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be  enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparable great power for all who believe.
Ephesians  1: 17-19 

Paul here is writing while in prison to the Ephesians, to encourage  them. He had put himself at risk  preaching the gospel to them. His desire was  now for them to come to a greater knowledge and understanding of God’s  truths. For the Holy Spirit to illuminate God’s word to them , so they were  able to apply them to their own lives and in God’s service.

It is the same for today. A mature Christian is continually growing in Christ, constantly thinking and acting more like Christ. We won’t be perfect  until we get to glory, because we live in a sinful world, but God’s goal is for us to become more like Him.

For those God foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the  likeness of His Son, that he might be the firstborn among many  brothers. And those He predestined, He also called, those He called, He also justified, those He justified He also glorified.
Romans 8: 29-30

The good work God desires to do in us, is a spiritual, eternal  work, preparing us for future  glory.

Do not be Deceived

To understand the times we are living in, we need  to be soaked in God’s  word. To the spine of prophetic revelation. To have the wisdom and  knowledge of the prophecies in the bible.
We have to be careful we are not deceived. Prophecies that are man made,  can supersede or contradict God’s word and timing, and there are many out there.

Watch out that no one deceives you, For many will come in My Name,  claiming “I am the Christ”.  Matthew 24:4

Babylon is reappearing in a spiritual sense. The greatest enemy of the True Church is the False Church, and the bible tells us even the elect will be deceived.

For false Christ’s and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect- if that were possible. See I have  told you ahead of time. Matthew 24:24

Life on earth is being threatened, the antichrist is soon to come on the scene. Many will be deceived by him, but we have nothing to fear, as true believers, we are part of the kingdom of God, underneath the kingship of Jesus on earth. And we are also told,

“And God has raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms. For  above all rule and authority, power and dominion , and not only in this  present age but also in the one to come.” Ephesians 1:19-21

and, 

God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages, He might show the comparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness in us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6-7

It is vital we flow with God’s plans. We cannot pray against the  lawlessness mentioned in Matthew 24. To do so would hinder the return of the  Lord. The climate we are living in is ripening the wheat, the good and bad harvest. Good and evil will continue side by side until the end. The wheat  is ripening, but also the tares. Tares are difficult to distinguish until the wheat comes to fruit. The harvest will not be gathered in until it is ripe. Matthew 13:24-30

Revelation 14 speaks about the harvest of grain and the harvest of grapes. Grain brings salvation, and grapes bring judgement.

Then another angel came out of the temple, and called to Him who was sitting on a white cloud. Take your sickle and reap, because the time has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. So he who was seated on the  cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and it was harvested.
Revelation 14:15-16

Still another angel, who has charge  of fire, called to him who had the  sharp sickle. Take and cluster the cluster of grapes  from the earths vine. The angel swung his sickle on earth, gathered the grapes and threw them onto the wine press of God’s wrath. They were trampled in the wine press outside the city, and blood poured out of the press, rising as high as the horses bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia.
Revelation 14:18-20 

Prior to this will be the great tribulation, by now the saints will have gone in the rapture, depending on one’s interpretation of scripture! All the focus will be on Israel, the Jewish people will have made aliyah, and the gospel will have been preached to all nations, and then Jesus will return.

This is Our Prayer

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ , the Father of all glory, may give us the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of our understanding being enlightened;

that we may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at the right hand in heavenly places,

far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His  body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 1:17-23

Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit redeemed, cleansed, and sanctified  by the blood of Jesus. Our members, the parts of our bodies are instruments, yielded to God for His service and for His  glory. The devil has no place in us, no power over us, and no unsettled claims against us. It has been settled by the blood of Jesus . We overcome satan by the blood of the lamb and by the word of our testimony,  and we do not love our lives to the death. My body is for the Lord and the Lord is for my body.

Perseverance in Prayer

But you dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and  pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s  love as you wait for the  mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

Be merciful  to those that doubt, snatch  others from the fire and save them, to others  show mercy, mixed with fear-hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy-to the  only God our Lord our Saviour be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forever more.
Jude 20-24

Amen 

Pam Yates

Seeking The Heart Of God

Nehemiah 1: 4-11
When I heard these things, I  sat down and wept. For seven days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. verse 4

Nehemiah was a man who knew God’s heart. The wall of Jerusalem had been broken down and the gates burned, and God was grieved. Some of  the Jewish people had returned home after exile, but the place was in ruins.  Nehemiah was moved with compassion and grief for God’s beloved  Jerusalem.

He was a great leader, with many skills and giftings but more important though, he knew how to touch and reach God’s heart.

He was able to see the world from God’s  prospective.

He saw the need, and was obedient to the calling.

If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. John 15: 7a

Under His Wing

When we live a holy life before God, we too can have that privilege,  of sharing His heart. God gives us the burden, we are then led to persistently intercede, in the spirit, until we see the victory in the natural.

Nehemiah might have been considered righteous, but he was still part of a  sinful nation, and as an individual he prays on behalf of Israel.

Likewise this is what God requires of us. He uses people who are available, who feel His heartbeat, and love Him above all else, and who He  can trust to carry out His commands. Revelation is conditional upon obedience.

Prayer Changes Everything

Through Nehemiah’s life changing prayer, the world was greatly impacted. The wall of Jerusalem was rebuilt. His prayer was based on Moses law, and Solomon built his favourite prayer on Moses too.

The word of God was used as a legitimate copy of God’s word, to the point God can be held bound to what was written.

There has been an inadequate understanding within the body of Christ of the power of using the word of God in prayer.

So is my word that goes out from my mouth, it will not return to Me  empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
Isaiah 55:1

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do the  words of the law.
Deuteronomy 29:29

God is in Control

Nothing happens on earth and in heaven until God says. Speaking in faith  the spoken Word, releases powerful supernatural force, backed up by all  the resources of heaven. There is a miracle in our mouth when we send  the word of God prophetically.

The written prophetic word is authoritative, other prophecies given by man need to be judged and tested.

Declaration

No eye as seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived, what God has  prepared for those who love Him, but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, and the deep things of God. For  who among men know the thoughts of God, except the Spirit of God. We  have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God,  that we may understand what God has freely given us
1Corinthians 2:9-12

For who has known the mind of the Lord that we may instruct him? But we have the of the Lord.  v16

Confession

O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant of love, for those who love Him, and keep His commands, let your ear be attentive and you eyes open to hear your servant in praying for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins of the Israelite’s, including myself and my fathers house have committed against you. Nehemiah 1:4-6

Thank you Lord, for the trust you bestowed upon us in the UK, to nurture  your people Israel. However, we have miserably failed and are guilty. We  never fulfilled our commitment to the Balfour Declaration. We neglected  and failed to act when 6 million Jews were killed in the concentration  camps. We turned the Jewish people away from their homeland after the Holocaust. We repent, and ask for your forgiveness.

We are guilty of allowing anti-Antisemitism to continue, even in the church, and this brings us to “Weep between the portico and the altar.” Joel 2:17

We humbly confess, on behalf of the government, where ungodly laws have been introduced in the past. Lord have mercy.
Your word says,

“Righteousness exalts a Nation, but sin condemns any people.”
Proverbs 14:34

Restoration

Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying “if you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey My commands, then even if your people are in the furthest horizon, I will bring them to the place, as a dwelling for My Name.
Nehemiah 1: 8-9

We intercede for the final in gathering of Your people from the four corners of the earth. For all hindrances to go. We know you are whistling for them. May their ears be opened to hear your voice calling them, and to respond accordingly.

O Lord, let your ear be attentive  to the prayers of this your servant, and to the prayers of your servants, who delight in revering your Name.
Nehemiah 1:10a 

Proclamation

As for Me, this is my covenant with them says the Lord “My spirit who is on you, and My words that I have put in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the  mouths of your descendants , from this time on forever,” says the Lord.
Isaiah 59:21

For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one, and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in the  flesh, the law with it’s commandments and regulations.
Ephesians 2:14

His purpose was to create in Himself, one new man out of the two, thus making peace,  and in the one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility.

He came and preached peace to  you, who were far away, and peace to those who were near. For through Him, we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
Ephesians 2:14-17

Nothing happens on earth and in heaven until God says.

Pam Yates

Shavuoth

You shall observe the Feasts of the Harvest of first fruits of  your labours from what you sow in the fields. You shall  bring the choice first fruits of your soil into the House of the Lord  your God. Exodus 23: 16-19

This Hebrew festival has a variety names, each having a particular meaning and significance. Shavuot, Feast of Weeks, Feast of  Harvest, Day of Fruits and Pentecost. Shavuot is the Hebrew word for “weeks.”
Pentecost literally means fifty days.

In Old Testament times, farmers brought their first fruit offering of barley to the Temple on the Sabbath at  Passover. Shavuot celebrates the first fruit of the wheat harvest seven weeks later. Fifty days later after the 7th sabbath two loaves of bread, baked with leaven, as a wave offering, were brought to the Lord.

Another significance is the late spring, God’s gift of the ten commandments was remembered  on Mount Sinai. The 50th day after the Israelite’s were led out of captivity in Egypt. Exodus 19. The covenant between God and Israel. The Jewish people call  it the giving of the Torah.

God’s Timetable

God’s time table is remarkable, First He established His pattern for redemption in the death of His sacrificial Lamb. As death visited the first born of all the homes in Egypt not covered by the blood,  Israel, was set free from bondage.

Passover is memorial to freedom, Many years later, Christ concluded that sacrifice, setting us free from sin and death. Paul identifies Him, in the resurrection as “Christ the first fruits”1 Corinthians 15:23.
For it was on the morning of the offering of the first fruits of the barley harvest that He rose from the dead! The disciples waited 49 days after Jesus’s departure, just as the Jews waited 49 days  from Passover to Pentecost.

And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all  with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound  from heaven as of a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and  came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy  Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts 2:1-4

Peters Discourse

Peter then addressed his countrymen, witnessing to them in great  power urging them to “save themselves,” from this untoward generation, v10.  Many received the Word and were baptised, and the same day, 3,000 souls were added to them, Jew and Gentile proselytes, and the  Church of Christ was formed.

The meaning of the two wave loaves baked with leaven now brings significance. The Church of Christ (Jew and Gentile) is not without sin. It reminds us to look for perfection, not in the church, but in Jesus, the perfect Son of God, in whom there is no leaven of sin.

These 3,000 believers became the “spiritual first fruits” of the church of Christ, purchased by the blood of the Lamb!  It was customary on the eve of Shavuot in the Old Testament to stay up studying and discussing God’s  word. They were called the night watches.

It is the same as believers, we are called to be watchmen on the walls, and as we approach Pentecost, many prayer ministries will be fasting and praying at this time, especially in the wake of the  current situation we find ourselves in. For God, to pour out His blessings again on a dry and thirsty land.

Let us Pray

Father Your word says that “Godly sorrow brings repentance, that leads to salvation, and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death, 2 Corinthians 7:10.

The world is so far removed from what You created it to be. You are a loving, just God, whose desire is that no one should be lost. As believers we have to take responsibility, and feel the weight of  sorrow of living in a fallen world, so that we can enjoy the  expression of joy in salvation, when victory comes.

Throughout history, you had a perfect plan for mankind, from  Genesis to Revelation.

Forgive us Lord, we repent and renounce our wrong attitudes as a church, for forgetting where our inheritance comes from, the covenant You made with Your chosen people Israel.
We have ignored and neglected the roots of the early church.

“If some of the  branches have been broken off, and you being a wild olive shoot, have been grafted  in from the olive root, do not boast over the branches. You do not support the root, but the root supports you.” Romans 11: 17-19

Because of this, the church has become weak, and not able to stand in that authority that bestowed upon Peter, and all the believers in the Upper Room at Pentecost.
We have watered down Your Word, and  embraced ungodly practices in our land. Have mercy on us Lord, come and heal Your land for Your glory and glory alone.
Thank you for Your promises to all those that demonstrate godly sorrow.

Declaration

Repent and be baptised  every one of you in the Name of Jesus  Christ, for the forgiveness of sins, And you will receive the gift  of the Holy Spirit … The promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far off, and for all whom the Lord, our God  will call. Acts 2: 38

Father, our desire is to be fruits of righteousness for you, Philippians 1:11.
To continually offer to You our sacrifice of praise, the fruit of our lips confessing Your Name, Hebrews 13:15.

Come Holy Spirit, come. Come Holy Spirit, come. Come Holy Spirit, come!

To conclude let us sing or say this wonderful song written by William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army Send the Fire.

Thou Christ of burning, cleansing flame, Send the fire!
Thy blood bought gift today we claim  Send the fire!
Look down and see the waiting host, give us the promised Holy Ghost.
We want another Pentecost, Send  the fire today!

God of Elijah, hear our prayer, Send the fire!
To make us fit to live and die, Send the fire!
To burn up every trace of sin, To bring the light and glory in,
The revolution now begin Send the fire today!

It is fire we want and fire we plead, Send the fire!
The fire will meet our every need, Send the fire!
For strength to do what is right, for grace to conquer in the fight.
for power to walk the world in white, Send the fire today!

To make our weak hearts strong and brave Send the fire!
To live a dying world to save, Send the fire!
O see us on the altar lay our lives, our all this very day,
To crown the offering, now we pray Send the fire today!
Amen!

Pam Yates

Build Your House On The Rock

“Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and  the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had  been founded on the rock.

And  everyone who hears these words of mine and  does not do them will be like  a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the flood came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.
Matthew 7: 24-27 

Here in the UK and beyond, we have been having extreme weather conditions of late. Severe flooding, high winds, and typhoons and earthquakes further afield. In Africa and the Middle East they are experiencing swarms of locusts which  are destroying crops, of biblical proportions. We also have a world wide pandemic, Covid 19 is affecting every country in the world in some way.

All these things are causing devastation across our planet. Loss of lives and livelihood in  great proportion, and a global economic crisis. Have we reached Matthew 24: 6-8 You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not  alarmed. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes , in various places. All these are the beginning of  birth pains.

Alpha and Omega

As Christians we are being told by Jesus, not to be alarmed, these things must  happen before He returns. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.

The very core of our security is being shaken.
Can we honestly say, our security is in Jesus and Him alone?

This parable, analogy that Jesus was demonstrating, I believe was referring to  our own spiritual condition.
Is our faith grounded on God’s truths, the Word of God?
Is Jesus our Cornerstone? 

Isaiah 28-16
See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will  never be dismayed.

Our  foundation has to be upon the Rock, anything else will crumble and wash away.
Ministries that have not been founded on Jesus, but out of ambition, will tumble.
Big empires will be destroyed, like the walls of Babylon. Only the meek will inherit the earth, Matthew 5:5.

When we grasp the importance of God’s Word, that it is a living Word, a two edged sword that does not return void, we shall be able to stand firm on solid ground.

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:14

Can I encourage us all to pray the Word, proclaim it, prophecy it, and live it! Man’s words and thoughts are empty and limited, but God’s Word is eternal.

Declarations

Find rest O my soul in God alone, my hope comes from Him alone.

He is my fortress, I will  not be shaken.
My salvation and honour depend on Him.
He alone is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in Him at all times, O people, pour out your hearts to Him. For God is our refuge.
Psalm 62:5-8

As for God, His way is perfect; the Word of the Lord is flawless, He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.
For who is God beside the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God?
It is a God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; He enables me to stand on the  heights.
He trains my hand for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You give Your shield of victory; You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.
2 Samuel 22:32-37

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any other foundation other than the one  already laid which is Jesus Christ.
If  any man builds on this foundation using gold or silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw,  his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer  loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
1 Corinthians 3: 10-15

Proclamation

Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and  the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writing by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey Him-to be the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen
Romans 16:25-27

This is the Word of the Lord concerning Israel. The Lord who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the spirit of man  within him, declares I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling, Judah will be besieged as as well as Jerusalem. On that day, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to remove it will injure themselves.
Zechariah 12: 1-3

Grace to you and peace from Him who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits before His throne, and from  Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first born from the dead, and the ruler over the Kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us Kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and  dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Pam Yates

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