Worshipper. Prophesy!

The nations will realize that I, God, make my church holy when worship is established at the center of their lives forever.'"

God grabbed me. God's Spirit took me up and set me down in the middle of an open plain strewn with bones. He led me around and among them—a lot of bones! There were bones all over the plain—dry bones, bleached by the sun. He said to me, "Son of man, can these bones live?"

I said, "Master God, only you know that."

Then God said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the church. Listen to what they're saying: 'Our bones are dried up, our hope is gone, there's nothing left of us.'

He said to me, "Prophesy over these bones: 'Church, listen to the Message of God!'"
God, the Master, told the dry bones, "Watch this: I'm bringing the breath of life to you and you'll come to life. I'll attach sinews to you, put meat on your bones, cover you with skin, and breathe life into you. You'll come alive and you'll realize that I am God!"

He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath. Prophesy, son of man. Tell the breath, 'God, the Master, says, Come from the four winds. Come, breath. Breathe on these slain bodies. Breathe life!'"

Therefore, prophesy. Tell them, 'God, the Master, says: I'll dig up your graves and bring you out alive—O my people! Then I'll take you straight to your rightful place. When I dig up graves and bring you out as my people, you'll realize that I am God. I'll breathe my life into you and you'll live. Then I'll lead you straight back to your rightful place and you'll realize that I am God. I've said it and I'll do it. God's Decree.'"

I prophesied just as I'd been commanded. As I prophesied, there was a sound and, oh, rustling! The bones moved and came together, bone to bone. I kept watching. Sinews formed, then muscles on the bones, then skin stretched over them. But they had no breath in them.
So I prophesied, just as he commanded me. The breath entered them and they came alive! They stood up on their feet, a huge army.

I'll make a covenant of peace with them that will hold everything together, an everlasting covenant. I'll make them secure and place my holy place of worship at the center of their lives forever. I'll live right there with them. I'll be their God! They'll be my people!

Ezekiel 37.The Message.Rearranged.Italics Mine.

Embrace Grace!

I received my Hillsong DVDs last night. I guzzled down the first two sessions by Robert Barriager and Judah Smith. Although it was the 2nd time I heard Judah's preaching, it still blew me away. It simply convinced me about my standing as a child of God and inspired me to keep serving Him.

You were never son by worth. You are son by Birth!
Today, Elissa told me of the comments that someone put in her tagboard. Someone was trying to plant condemnation in her mind. But praise God for His Grace!! His sacrifice on the cross means that we can leave all that rubbish behind and run towards the goal. Praise God that perfection is placed on us. Praise God that when God looks at us, all He sees is the blood of Jesus spilt for our shortcomings and flaws. Oh isn't it true that those who have been forgiven much will love much!

Why have we painted such an ideal picture of Christians? What is the difference between Believers and Non-Believers? Simply acceptance of Grace? Simply accepting the invitation to approach God. My desire to serve my God does not come from self-discipline or self-sacrifice. My character is far from those traits. My character is laid-back and non-chalent. Yet when I see love poured out for me, when I see such compassion despite my ugliness and my darkness, I long to have more of the Light. I become passionate for His cause and I become desperate for His presence. And in His presence, I have all I need. Literally.

There are 3 types of people. Those who ridicule Grace, those who misuse Grace, and those who embrace Grace. I think those who misuse Grace and those who embrace Grace appear to be similar at first. Both of these people take advantage of Grace. But in the long run, those who embrace Grace will start to bring forth fruit because they allow change to come in their lives and because they focus on Jesus, not on the number of chances they've been given.

Grace is not about the number of chances you have. Jesus taught his disciples to keep forgiving because they would be imitating perfection in doing so. They would be imitating God's infinite forgiveness. Grace is infinite opportunity to learn. Grace is Jesus calling out, "Forgive them, Father!" (Luke 23:34) and then stating the reply that He heard from the Father, "It is finished!" (John 19:30)

Do Something!

If I could summarise Hillsong Conference 2008 into 2 words, it would be DO SOMETHING.
It has been a call, stronger than ever, for the church to start acting like the church. A reminder that the church is made up of people and not of bricks and concrete. I received a Word at the beginning of the year that this year would be a year of change. Changes would happen to allow a hunger and a passion for God to arise.

This is a year of change. But the change doesn't only come from the Father. This is not just a year where we allow change to come. This is a year where we are empowered to make change happen.

When a woman came to anoint Jesus with expensive fragrant oil, some commented that it was a waste and the money could have been better used to help the poor. Jesus replied by saying that she had done a beautiful thing. We often highlight the extravagance of worship, and pouring out costly thing as a form of worship. But we often miss out the brilliance of Jesus when he said in Mark 14:7, "You always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them."

Whenever you want, you can do something! For too long, we've been waiting for God to make something happen. But God has given us the authority and the means to better the lives of others. Why are we waiting?