Blog Archives

On the way to Prayer

5/29/2015

Acts 3:12-16
“… and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what happened to him.”

Whenever God moves, it is not a small, uneventful event, but always a source of wonder and amazement.

The moment Peter held the man’s hand and raised him, he was changed from lame to whole. Everything was changed: the man, his family and those who knew him.

This would be a day to remember, a day when God through Peter spoke a word, “…in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk,” and a man’s world was totally altered, a city was turned on its head. God’s normal is to amaze man. Man’s normal is to be amazed at God.

Peter does not allow the flurry of attention to stay on him. He is quick to dispel the notion that it is his doing, immediately giving the credit and the glory where it belongs. He will not and cannot take the credit for what belongs to God.

When we take the glory that is due to God, we are moving into dishonor and self-idolatry, making God a peripheral figure in the event.

Peter immediately points to Jesus. And immediately gets into trouble with the authorities.

In the middle of a revival, confrontation came. It always seems to do so. The religious response was, “We must nip this in the bud.”

Acts 4:1-3
“They all came; the priest, the commander of the temple guard, and the Sadducees, and they were angry. They were teaching about Jesus and the resurrection of the dead. “So they seized them and put them in jail...”

Whatever form “jail” takes, (spiritual, mental, emotional or physical,) it is meant to separate, silence or limit us. But God will not be stopped.

0 Comments

Stunned and Amazed

5/18/2015

0 Comments

Acts 2:6
“Stunned and amazed, (completely baffled,) they asked, “Aren't these people Galileans?” ISV

They were stupefied, not only by what they heard, but whom they heard it from.

Galileans were not considered the smartest, or best educated people in Israel; they were in fact seen as a backwater people, those who had little if anything to offer the culture or their religion.

However, when God’s Spirit touched them, that all changed.
Their words now had the power to change minds and hearts.
No longer fearful and self conscious, (uneducated, uncultured, and unaccepted,) they were now passionately bold and eloquent. Suddenly they were no longer watching from the sidelines, no longer peripheral. They were now, unexpectedly, center stage. The world was about to take notice.

When God moves on us, everything changes. We are not the same any more. The “Tongues of fire,” whatever form that takes for us, fills us and changes us for a divine purpose.

The Spirit gives us a voice and a boldness we did not have before; it strengthens us to overcome our fears and change lives.

We can no longer submit to the fear of man. If we do we will compromise and resist the hand of God.
Compromise dulls boldness and passion; it tries to “Fit in” with the old, to be “Acceptable,” to become part of the very thing that God wants to change.

The disciples embraced the Spirit and were changed from fearful to bold, from inarticulate to eloquent, and in the embracing of the gift they became a gift that changed a city and eventually the world.

“When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked, “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?”

And those who heard them were astounded by the evidence of God’s move and had their hearts pierced and changed.

Let us ask God to make us astounding.

0 Comments

Waiting

5/7/2015

0 Comments

Acts 1:2-4

          The church begins…with a gift, “I give you Authority…”
          And a command: “Wait!”
          That is our mandate as well; “I give you authority, now wait!”

          Waiting is not our strong suit. We are impatient. Waiting makes us restless, it reveals our inadequacies, our predisposition to worry, fear, and the need to be in control. We are planners; we set our clocks; we have our agendas; we have limits. We like to make things happen.

          The wait is our time of testing; here we must confront our doubts and inadequacies before being released into God’s greater purpose.

          “…Wait in Jerusalem…” Jerusalem was an unfamiliar, somewhat unfriendly and now dangerous place for them. Yet, this is where they must wait for an unspecified time and a promise they did not understand.

          “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.”   Acts 1:8

            “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem… Samaria… and the farthest parts of the earth.”

          With no instructions, other than to “Wait,” He left them.

          They were used to “Following,” “Being disciples.”
          Now they are mandated to “Go,” and “Make disciples.”

          But first they must wait for the “power” that will change them from “Followers” to “Makers.”

          It often seems that God does not give us specific instructions until He has empowered us.

          He knows we are impulsive, prone to act on our “own understanding,” and so we must learn to wait.

          Between the “authority” and the release of “power” there is the “waiting.”
          Without the discipline to wait, authority and power are easily misused.

          Authority and power are gifts that must be exercised with patience, learned through discipline. Patience (trustfully waiting), is a fruit we must nurture with the greatest care, usually in the midst of turmoil and life’s chaotic pace.

          We must wait. Timing is critical.
          “…the hour is coming, and is now here.” John 4:23

          Timing is not our strong point; we are all for rushing in and “dealing” with whatever we think needs to be done.

          Jesus knew this about His disciples and knows this about us. We must learn to wait for His timing.

          “So Jesus replied, ‘My time has not yet arrived, but you are ready at any opportunity!’” John 7:6

          The disciples must learn, as we must, to wait for the release of God’s timing and power.

Isaiah 40:31
“…but they who wait (trust, hope,) for the Lord (for His help) shall renew their strength;…”

          God’s work begins with us waiting, and in the wait our strength is renewed.

0 Comments

Changed!

5/1/2015

0 Comments

Acts 2:3
“Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.”

When the Holy Spirit filled them, they were suddenly changed, filled with wisdom, boldness and knowledge.

John 14:26
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things…”

The Spirit of God changed them abruptly and then revealed them to the world they lived in. Nothing would ever be the same again.

The wait was over; the “Power” Jesus had promised was now upon them.

Suddenly they began to speak in other languages. What would normally have taken years to learn, was learned in an instant.

It was no longer a matter of establishing oneself through learning and the approval of man, but by being submitted to the powerful leading of the Spirit of God.

They experienced the power to speak, to make themselves understood by all who heard them.

There was power in their words and the signs that followed.

Acts 17:6
“These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.”

Jerusalem was about to be turned “upside-down.” Once empowered, the wait was over; they were now released into their purpose. “Go! Make disciples, teaching them…” This now became more than a mandate; the “Go!” became a victory shout.

Mark 16:20
“And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word by the signs that followed. Amen”

Before they were empowered, they were a nondescript group of people occupying the upper floor of a building in Jerusalem.

When the Holy Spirit came, it all changed.

Signs and wonders follow when we move in obedience and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit of God.

0 Comments

Thinking Out Loud

These are short meditations on some of the thoughts and ideas we receive as we read, study or ponder the things of God.
They are short blogs meant to cause us to think, explore, meditate or simply delight in the things of the Lord.

Author

In a counseling career spanning over 30 years, author and teacher Martin Frankena has shared the life-changing power of Christ’s redemption with individuals and churches in America, Canada, South America, and Europe. Martin's heart is to further the Lord’s mandate of releasing people into freedom from bondages to experience greater wholeness and fulfillment in life. A major focus of the ministry is healing from generational issues.

Thinking out loud

On the way to Prayer

Stunned and Amazed

Waiting

Changed!

Thinking Out Loud

These are short meditations on some of the thoughts and ideas we receive as we read, study or ponder the things of God.
They are short blogs meant to cause us to think, explore, meditate or simply delight in the things of the Lord.

Author

Archives

Categories

Thinking out loud

On the way to Prayer

Stunned and Amazed

Waiting

Changed!

Thinking Out LoudThese are short meditations on some of the thoughts and ideas we receive as we read, study or ponder the things of God.They are short blogs meant to cause us to think, explore, meditate or simply delight in the things of the Lord.Author

Archives

Categories

Thinking Out Loud

These are short meditations on some of the thoughts and ideas we receive as we read, study or ponder the things of God.
They are short blogs meant to cause us to think, explore, meditate or simply delight in the things of the Lord.

Author