Your life

After praying in the Spirit, I felt God say that He wants my life.

Proverbs 23:26 “My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways”

Egypt’s use and obedience

After reflecting on the teaching on Joseph, I realise that Egypt was just there as a way to serve and preserve Jacobs sons (ie the nation of Israel), and it has really struck me that our attempts to do ANYTHING other than Gods devine will for us is futile!!!

Consider that the whole nation of Egypt was really only there to serve that one purpose, during the famine – to keep the nation of Israel alive!  If Joseph had have been disobedient then it wouldn’t have happened through him that Israel was saved!

Our attempts to get things done our way are absolutely futile and have no eternal value at all.  None at all!!  At least not in eternal perspective!!!

Defending God’s people

God told me that the way to defnd His people against the enemy is to teach the truth.

John 8:32 “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

“Plugged in” to God

I have had two experiences recently (in a dream state, although they are not dreams) where I am in Gods very presence and He tells me things – but it’s not through words that He tells me, but rather it’s like I get “plugged in” to Him and I am part of one consciousness with Him, and I just know His will.  (For those familiar with Star Trek, the best way to describe it would be like being connected to the Borg collective).

During these experiences, I don’t know everything, but I know just know all the details of what He wants me to know at that time.

I believe that when God first created man, He communicated to Adam and Eve like this – without actual speaking.  They were “connected” to God is a this very intimate way that did not require physical speach – although it would have been possible.  This too, is how I believe we will be when we go to Heaven to be with Him.  How else could it be that “What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.” Luke 12:3.  This would be the case if we all knew what everyone else was thinking, and has thought – if we knew all that God wanted us to know.  John 14:20 “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you”.

When I wake up, I forget a lot of the detail because there was so much!

Joseph

Where does God want me?  If I try to scheme my way out of things, like Joseph tried to in prison, then God won’t be in it, but if I trust fully in Him and let Him do His work, He will be in it.

God had something very significant for Joseph to do, but he needed to be prepared for it – Gods way.

Wild at heart weekend (John Eldridge)

Story of the tallents.  The issue is the 3rd guy didn’t like or trust that master, and that’s why he was cast in to outer darkness. The inaction or inability to RISK anything

Your actions will speak louder than your words.

God will change the story on us to develop us.  Look at all the leading men in the bible, none had a “safe” comfortable time.

Little boys need 2 things:
1) to know they are loved
2) validation that they are a man

The whole thing is a battle for the heart.  Who am I going to serve with my thoughts and actions?  Who am I going to agree with?  God just wants us to trust Him and fellowship with Him.

Desire is where the action is.  Paralized man at the river, Jesus asks him if he wants to be healed. It’s about the desire.

At the fall, it’s significant that they covered themselves – they didn’t want to be seen for who they really were.  Also, passivity of men at this point.  “Do I have what it takes?”.  We pose and hide behind things to become a false self.

When you meet a man you aren’t meeting the real thing – you are meeting a man in hiding.  We put our fig leaf forward because we don’t want to get hurt, or exposed etc to the real you.  “Do I have what it takes” – this is what drives the construction of the fig leag.  It’s a search for validation.  Ultimate fear for men is failure.

Inside every posing man is a wounded boy.

God disrupts the posing man (eg stop achieving at work etc) in order to bring him back and heal him.

The enemy knows our weaknesses.  He tailor makes things.  What he is looking for is an agreement that we accept it as our own.  Once accepted, this is the filter we see the world through.

Look for the agreement behind bad fruit.

Agreements to break
–  I can’t trust anyone
– People just let you down
– If it is to be it’s up to me
– I am not normal
– I can’t relate to people because i cant talk “rubbish”
– I won’t have enough
– I can’t trust God
– I might have committed a sin which will block Him from being able to help me and I’ll be left high and dry
-That I can’t fully trust Jesus because I will sabotage His power and be left in a bad place.
– That I will walk outside the plumbline and be exposed to the enemys work and therefore if I walk in faith it will be misplaced and I’ll be in trouble

What makes me come alive?
– relationships
– fixing things
– technology
– creating things / inventing things

Tips on hearing from God:
1) Ask simple questions (not urgent questions) – pressure kills everything it touches.  Ask simple questions without urgency and drama, and give Him time to answer.  Answers can be in the moment, a scripture, through someone, a truck, still small voice etc.
2) Surrender (an issue of the heart), where you are willing to hear “NO”.  “I am willing to hear anything you want to hear me”.  It’s often harder to hear the good things. “You can say yes or no, I surrender to you”.
3) Ask the next question.  “Can I change careers” – yes!  “When?” – 2 years. Etc

On big stuff, GET CONFIRMATION!!!  Test the spirits.

Busyness is your enemy.  Fight it – something has to go – what is it?  It’s hard to find God in the busyness.  Where you find your heart, you’ll find God – what is it that makes you come alive.

Religion is your enemy.

Do not rush the field – walk with God and get your instructions from God.  Get confirmation.

It can get worse before it gets better, but it will get better:
– fight it
– resist it
– pray it

Do not walk alone.  Satans plan is to divide and conquor.  You need a few men and women for the journey.  Jesus had the 3 and the 12.  You must have at least a few people who want what you want – life!!  John Eldridge doesn’t eg travel alone as there are too many temptations out there.

The will of God (notes from a sermon)

This is the will of God, do good. 1 Peter 2:15
In everything give thanks, this is the will of God. 1 Thes 5:18
This is the will of God, keep yourself from unlawful sexual relationships. 1 Thes 4:3
Serving others is the will of God from the heart.  Eph 6:6

Why does it feel like the fruit of my labour is always stolen away?

You work hard, but the fruit of your labour seems to slip away to others and Deut 28 (the curses part) seem to descibe how things are for you.

Deut 28:30-31 “You will be engaged to a woman, but another man will sleep with her. You will build a house, but someone else will live in it. You will plant a vineyard, but you will never enjoy its fruit. ³¹ Your ox will be butchered before your eyes, but you will not eat a single bite of the meat. Your donkey will be taken from you, never to be returned. Your sheep and goats will be given to your enemies, and no one will be there to help you”

It might be worth seeking God on any generational curses that might be coming down your family line.  (NB: Jesus didn’t come to replace the law, but to fulfill it.  We are not saved by the law – but by Grace – however, the consequences of the law have not been removed.  We are able to obey the law – because it is good – through Grace.  John 15:14 “You are my friends if you do what I command.”)

You may also be harbouring a bitter root judgement or expectation – ie. you expect things to go wrong in your life – so they do!  You expect things to be stolen from you – so they are!  The root of this is usually a lack of trust in God.  Ask Him to show you if this is the case!  Heb 12:15 “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many”

Do you back down in response to pressure out on you by an overwhelming “angry” type of person, even though you’ve put in the work and deserve the fruit?  Maybe you fear man over God?  Prov 29:25 “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.”

The enemy wants to control and manipulate you, and you will need to stand up to this in order to overcome it.  We can see from the following Bible verse, that God considers it a sin to allow someone manipulate you:

Rev 2:20 “But I have this complaint against you. You are permitting that woman—that Jezebel who calls herself a prophet—to lead my servants astray. She teaches them to commit sexual sin and to eat food offered to idols”.

Yes, we are to turn the other cheeck – but it is my belief that we do that out of a strength in God, and not out of being manipulated and controlled.