A couple of years ago I was speaking with an American woman who had come with a short term team for a few days to minister with us in Costa Rica. I was doing what I like to do more than anything else, and that is sharing my testimony of what God has allowed me to experience and learn throughout the years. I told a couple of miracles stories to her, and after I was finished I'll never forget her response.
She said, "I've never heard of anything like that before!"
That is one of the biggest compliments anyone has ever given me.
Look at what Isaiah 55:1-2 says. It would be best to read the whole chapter if you can.
"Wait and listen, everyone who is thirsty! Come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Yes, come, buy [priceless, spiritual] wine and milk without money and without price [simply for the self-surrender that accepts the blessing].
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your earnings for what does not satisfy? Hearken diligently to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness [the profuseness of spiritual joy]." (AMP)
I find this passage to be absolutely fascinating. God invites anyone at all to come and drink from His water. There are three requirement though. You have to wait, you have to listen, and you have to be thirsty.
If you are satisfied with what you know about God, or you don't have patience, or you aren't teachable, you don't get to drink.
Look down at verse two, it goes deeper and says to hearken "diligently." Diligence is something almost entirely lost in our generation, and I am calling for it to come back on us in Jesus name.
Two posts ago I spoke about persistence and perseverance in prayer. Today I want to talk about what I call second hand revelation.
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| Second Hand Store |
What I am about to say may seem too bold, some may even be offended, but if we hide the truth God gives us He is unlikely to give us more. Lately I have been hearing a lot about revival in America. People want it, they long for it, and that is wonderful. I can tell you that it is God's will for there to be another Great Awakening in the United States. There is a problem though, the vast majority of Christians in the developed world are living off of second hand revelation.
What does that mean? I mentioned when I talked about persistence that most believers are bench warmers, but it goes deeper than that. Most Christians, even those who are actually doing ministry, have stopped seeking God for themselves. Instead, they feed off of the revelation of other ministers.
I want to add a disclaimer here that it is not wrong to preach truth God spoke to another minister. We are a body and God reveals different things to different people and we all share it. That is the role of pastors. God speaks to them and they share with the flock.
But most people, even pastors and other public ministers, do that their entire lives. Instead of seeking God for His revelation of the Word, they study the words of other men and preach what they say. It becomes second hand revelation to the pastor, he then preaches it to the people, making it third hand revelation.
The Word of God is the Word of God, and is powerful no matter how many times it is repeated, but the fact is that the Holy Spirit does focus on different areas over different people at different times. In my own life, for those of you who have been reading my articles, you know that He has been hammering me with the message of consecration. But He may want to speak to you about His love!
If you only drink from my well, you will never know the flavor of home, that being your own water. It's like drinking from a cup someone else just drank out of. It is still refreshing, but it just isn't the same.
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| Just like Mama used to make. |
Think of it this way. When you move out, get married, and start your adult life, you get used to the new life, but there is nothing like going home and tasting your mom's cooking. It doesn't matter how well your husband or wife cooks, or the best restaurants, there will never be anything as good as Mama's.
Spiritually speaking, when you spend your life reading books and articles like mine, and only getting the Word from your pastor, it is the equivalent of always eating out while Jesus is standing there with a warm, home cooked meal, and you keep passing it up.
Second hand revelation is good, but there is nothing as delicious, refreshing, and exciting as getting thirsty, waiting patiently, and listening until that illuminating revelation comes to you! It is wonderful!
I urge you, take the time to meet with Jesus and let Him speak directly to you. It is going to take patience, you will have to wait until it is at His convenience not yours. When He finally does answer you though, it will set you on fire like you have never experienced.
It is famously quoted by John Wesley when asked how he attracted such great crowds, "All I do is set myself on fire and the people come watch me burn."
Set yourself on fire today, burn for Him. You may not be looking for crowds, but that doesn't make the presence of the Holy Spirit any less awesome.
Yesterday I had to go on a long drive, and as I was driving shouting my praise and singing to Him, I told Him, "Holy Spirit, I am so excited to have this time by myself to spend with you."
He said something that caught me off guard. "I am excited to spend time with you too."
He is excited to spend time with you, and not just a few minutes in the morning and before bed. He wants real, marriage building time. When you do that, He will give you treasures to which others will respond, "I've never heard anything like that!" If we get enough people drinking straight from His well, revival will not be far off.
“In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. ”
― John Bunyan
“In the silence of the heart God speaks. If you face God in prayer and silence, God will speak to you."
- Mother Teresa
Spiritually speaking, when you spend your life reading books and articles like mine, and only getting the Word from your pastor, it is the equivalent of always eating out while Jesus is standing there with a warm, home cooked meal, and you keep passing it up.
Second hand revelation is good, but there is nothing as delicious, refreshing, and exciting as getting thirsty, waiting patiently, and listening until that illuminating revelation comes to you! It is wonderful!
I urge you, take the time to meet with Jesus and let Him speak directly to you. It is going to take patience, you will have to wait until it is at His convenience not yours. When He finally does answer you though, it will set you on fire like you have never experienced.
It is famously quoted by John Wesley when asked how he attracted such great crowds, "All I do is set myself on fire and the people come watch me burn."
Set yourself on fire today, burn for Him. You may not be looking for crowds, but that doesn't make the presence of the Holy Spirit any less awesome.
Yesterday I had to go on a long drive, and as I was driving shouting my praise and singing to Him, I told Him, "Holy Spirit, I am so excited to have this time by myself to spend with you."
He said something that caught me off guard. "I am excited to spend time with you too."
He is excited to spend time with you, and not just a few minutes in the morning and before bed. He wants real, marriage building time. When you do that, He will give you treasures to which others will respond, "I've never heard anything like that!" If we get enough people drinking straight from His well, revival will not be far off.
“In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. ”
― John Bunyan
“In the silence of the heart God speaks. If you face God in prayer and silence, God will speak to you."
- Mother Teresa
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