The Invitation to be An Original! - by Leif Hetland

Enjoy this word from Leif Hetland, one of the good friends of Blazing Fire Church

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

You are an original! There’s never been one like you before, and will never be one like you again. On the day God created you He didn’t have a bad day. Some people think that God must have made a mistake when He created them. No, He didn’t make a mistake. You are God’s original design, and He broke the mold when He finished his work of designing you! As shocking as that may sound, you were put on this earth, at this time, for a divine purpose. No one can fulfill your purpose but you.

 

God has written a book about every person. It reads, “BEST SELLER!” His book about you will always be #1 on the New York Times’ bestseller list. You do not have to be afraid of the future or fear walking through life without a purpose. Tomorrow is already Gods’ past, and next week is already His history. God is in your past, present, and all of your tomorrows! His thoughts toward you are awesome, more numerous than the sands of the shore.

"Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand Against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will save me. The LORD will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O LORD, endures forever; Do not forsake the works of Your hands." (Psalm 138:7-8)

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:11)

Just as you see a “forest inside a seed,” God sees your future and it looks bright to Him. What others cannot see, God already sees. He has big dreams for you, and He has given you the ability to dream along with Him. (See Ephesians 2:20)


Much Love,
Leif Hetland

We Are His Beloved Children by Pastor Lonnie Ellis

Romans 8:16 (NKJV)
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

1 John 3:1 (MSG)
What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it—we're called children of God! That's who we really are. But that's also why the world doesn't recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who he is or what he's up to.

How AMAZING and AWESOME is this. The Creator of everything seen
and unseen calls us His children. And because we are His
children we get to spend intimate times with Him.
Let's mediate and soak in that for a while.

The bible says in: Genesis: 1:26-28 (MSG)

God spoke: "Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting
our nature, So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea, the birds in
the air, the cattle, And, yes, Earth itself, and every animal that moves
on the face of Earth.” God created human beings; he created
them godlike, Reflecting God's nature.

He created them male and female.
God blessed them:  "Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!
Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,
for every living thing that moves on
the face of Earth."

WOW did you get that. Not only are we His children but He also created us in
Their image and reflecting Their nature (Father, Son & Holy Ghost).

Then He blessed us and gave us a commission to

"Prosper! Reproduce! Fill the Earth! Take charge!

Ok I know this is lot to take in. Read it again slowly and ask Holy Spirit to take it
to the core level of your being. Do it  daily, weekly or monthly until
it transforms your mind, body, soul and spirit in
who He created you to be.

I leave you with this:

May We Seek and Experience God Daily

My prayer is for all of us is, “Dear Lord, don’t let me miss You! Use me everyday
in a mighty way. Let me feel Your Presence and Your fresh renewal each and
every day of my life. I thank You for the memories of yesterday, but I
need to experience You today and expect great things from You
tomorrow. Yesterday is gone, but today and tomorrow I live in
expectation of a new and wonderful outpouring
of Your Mighty Spirit all around me.

Amen!

from page 127 in:

His Blessings are upon you!

Lonnie Ellis
Blazing Fire Church

Soaking by Sr. Pastor Brent Lokker

Since Paul Yadao's visit to Blazing Fire last month, I've been spending much more time soaking in the Lord's sweet presence and my heart has become softer than ever to Papa God's pleasure over me.  In this critical hour in which we are living, it's more imperative than ever that we "be still and know that He is God." (Ps 46:10).  That word 'know' is an experiential connection with the Father that He longs for and that we cannot live without! 

As the name implies, soaking is about being competely saturated in the glorious presence of our Maker without any agenda other than to enjoy Him and be enjoyed by Him.  In that place of intimacy, He will communicate truths to your heart you need in this moment of time.

Papa is wildly pleased with you and you MUST know this truth to the core of your being for yourself!  I encourage you to spend chunks of time daily setting everything else aside for the One Thing that can never be taken from you (Luke 10:42)

This Saturday, May 12th, we'll be providing an atmosphere for you to come and soak in the Lord's presence prior to worship, from 5:00-5:45 pm downstairs from the sanctuary.  Come and bless your Papa's heart and get your own heart blessed by Him at the same time!

We'll also have pre-service soaking nights at 5:00 pm on June 16, July 21 and August 18.

You Are The Boast of Heaven - By Pastor Karena Lout

"He establishes you from start to finish; to stand vindicated in your identity in the light of day as evidenced in the Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corin. 1:8 (Mirror Trans.)

Lately Todd and I have been reflecting on some really sweet memories with our son Josiah, as his high school graduation is quickly approaching. We're amazed at how time seems to have flown by, since we still remember so vividly the day he was born. He didn't need to do a thing for us. We fell in love the moment we laid eyes on him simply because he was our son. I've been enjoying going through pictures, cards and school memorabilia and recognizing the growth in him physically, emotionally and spiritually. I was remembering the milestones of his first words, first steps, first home run in little league, first time he prayed for me and Todd, first time he swam in the deep end of the pool, first time he cooked dinner by himself. And now as a teenager, getting his first job and driver's license. I was reminiscing about the the time he broke one wrist and sprained the other at the same time (yikes!), the way he'd get the attention of a whole restaurant with his silly faces and humor, waking his sister Sierra up every morning by throwing every single toy he owned in her crib, his constant silly singing and dancing throughout the house, our deep talks, the tears, the laughter, the fun.

Probably sounds like I could talk for days and days about my kids. You're right, I can! :) Just as your Father boasts about you to all of Heaven. He speaks with limitless pride about you. Your name is continually on His lips. There isn't a moment that goes by that He isn't thinking about you. The Father has captured every sweet moment of your life and recorded it all. "You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed." Psalm 139:16

Like most parents, as my kids entered public high school, I prayed that I'd given them all the tools they needed to grow up healthy and to make good choices. Growth and development is the Kingdom as we move from Glory to Glory to Glory. There always seemed to be a negative tone as people would warn me of the "dreaded" teen years which has actually proven to be quite the opposite! Todd and I celebrate every season of their lives as we watch them grow up into all Jesus has designed for them to be. With each year, my heart overflows as I watch them discover something new about themselves, excel in a new responsibility, or grasp the truth of the Father's love for them on a deeper level.

The Father delights in watching you discover and explore the expanse of His love for you. As each year passes, know that He is so pleased with how you've grown. After all, He has been involved in every aspect of it. He is cheering you on, celebrating every victory, every moment with you. Because of Christ's sacrifice on the cross, all that's His is YOURS so you can be confident that you are fully equipped to succeed, lacking nothing. As Pastor Brent says, "You are doing so much better than you think you are!" Sometimes we tend to focus on what we still need to grow in and become unaware of all of the many ways we've grown and matured. Be assured that the Father is extremely delighted in you and is smiling over you just as a proud Father would!

Love, Karena

Musing About God's Family by Pastor Russ Fochler

When I visited the Beit Hatfutsot museum in Tel Aviv in 1999, there was a simple sign over the door to the exhibits: “This is the story of a family”.  The story of the family of Abraham and Sarah has continued through thousands of years despite many upheavals and devastations.  The museum focuses on the many places throughout the world where Jews settled, prospered, were rejected and persecuted – and had to “move on”.  Despite this repeated pattern; the covenantal blessings of God - and a deep value for family, community, and God’s Word have kept this family through the millennia.

God chose Abraham because God "knew" ("yada") that Abraham would successfully establish his family on the path of following Him:

“Now Yahweh had wondered, 'Shall I conceal from Abraham what I am going to do, as Abraham will become a great and powerful nation and all nations on earth will bless themselves by him?  For I have singled him out to command his sons and his family after him to keep the way of Yahweh by doing what is upright and just, so that Yahweh can carry out for Abraham what he has promised him.'” (Gen 18:17-19 NJB)

Our eternal Father cares deeply about His family throughout time. And because of Jesus, even the gentiles who believe in Jesus have been grafted into the family of Abraham and Sarah.  Therefore, we are now also heirs to the promises that Yahweh gave to Abraham.

In my quiet times, I often journal my impressions of what seem to be God's messages to me.  One phase that He keeps giving me through the years is: “Generational blessings”.  While I don’t know the fullness of this phrase, I believe that it’s a multi-dimensional invitation: An invitation to intentionally seek and receive the blessings that God intended to come through my ancestors (and also spiritual fathers and mothers).  An invitation to steward those blessings - and add to them by walking in the good works God planned for me in Messiah Jesus (Eph 2:10).  And lastly, to prepare the next generation to live as sons and daughters of Father God – enjoying, stewarding, adding to, and passing along these blessings to further generations.  And these "generational blessings" are intended for all of God's family.

I understand that talking about future generations can be painful for those who have longed for families of their own.  But you need to know that you are very much included!  God issued comfort and a promise through the prophet Isaiah:

“Shout for joy, barren one who has borne no children! Break into cries and shouts of joy, you who were never in labour! For the children of the forsaken one are more in number than the children of the wedded wife, says Yahweh.” (Isaiah 54:1 NJB)

No one is left out of this multi-generational family story!  I encourage you to keep reading Isaiah chapter 54 through verse 6.

I learned just this week that the person with the greatest positive influence upon young Winston Churchill, the one person who showed him unconditional love – was not one of his natural parents (much as he admired them); but his governess Elizabeth Anne Everest.   Where would Winston – and this entire world have been without that love?  This is just one story of the power of sowing into the next generation.

Our Father’s heart is for His family to flourish and extend the government of His Son (Isaiah 9:6-7) from generation to generation.   His heart is that the multitudes that don’t yet “yada” their Heavenly Dad – will also take their place in His family.   All of creation groans with His heart – for the revealing of His sons and daughters (Romans 8:19). 

Lets embrace the generous heart of our Abba for His family!  The fields are ready for "harvest".

If you’d like to go deeper with this, I recommend meditating on Romans chapter 8, and listening to Kris Vallotton’s podcasts “Living From Eternity” and "Fatherhood and Family" (www.kvministries.com).

Your brother,

Russ

Becoming Known by Pastor Suzan Fochler

I have a pet parrot named Sam.  Every morning as each person in our family gets up and Sam hears our footsteps coming down the hall, he starts calling to us until we come out to see him.  Some days he is quite persistent!  And when the phone rings, or the door opens, he starts calling out “Hello!” until he is satisfied with the response he’s looking for.  He recognizes us, the sound of our footsteps, our voices, our faces.  He wants to be near us, to know that we’re there, to be in our presence.

I want to Yada you!

One of my favorite Hebrew words is the word “Yada”.  Yada means to know or understand.  More specifically it means to know and understand by experience.  The original Hebrew, based on hieroglyphic-type symbols means to be led through a doorway into an experience.  He wants us by experience to come to know who He is, as He by experience knows who we are.  This is not our Western concept of logically knowing factual data about someone, like what they do or look like, but a dynamic, relational interaction by which you come to know that other person intimately.

God describes Himself throughout the scriptures using a variety of different names that illustrate who He is, and what He is like.  And He gladly invites us to encounter each of these aspects of Who He is.  In a fascinating scripture in Exodus 6:3,  God says to Moses, “I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty (El-Shaddai), but by My name the Lord (YWHW or Yahweh) I did not make Myself known (yada) to them.”  Now Yahweh is a word so holy that the ancient Hebrews would neither say it or write it down.  Moses is being told that there was an experience available in God far more profound than what the former Patriarchs had experienced. I think this planted a seed of desire in Moses‘ heart to seek out more.  Later on in Exodus we read that Moses had the audacity to ask God to reveal Himself in the fullness of His glory, and communicate the meaning of this unspeakable name, YHWH.

Recognizing Heart Need

One of the aspects of God’s heart that I have been seeking an encounter with recently has been His tenderness.  That is fairly new and unfamiliar territory to me, as it was not part of my “normal” growing up.  At some point in my early life I stopped expecting to receive nurture and compassion so I learned to live without it.  It has been a process learning to open up my heart in this area, and it’s not always comfortable, but I know this is what my heart is yearning for from Him at this season in my life.

In Psalm 139:23,4 we read Davids heart cry to God:  “Search me, O God, and yada my heart!  Try me and yada my thoughts!  And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”   The word for wicked is actually better translated hurting or grieving.  David is asking God to enter into the very core of his being and reveal any place within that is hurting or stuck in grief...”Come on in God, I want to encounter You in a new way, in deeper places than I’ve every know You before!  Help me give You access into areas of my heart I’ve kept walled off from You!  I know You have plans for me to enter into that are beyond my wildest dreams, and this part of my heart is needed in order to get there!”

How does your Heart need to Yada Him?

We will never exhaust the fullness of experiencing all that He is...there will always be more.  Part of our challenge, I think, is to learn to tune into our own heart and allow a voice of yearning to rise up from within.  What is your heart in need of experiencing from God?  He wants to experientially know you, and in so doing, you will come to experientially know Him in ways you’ve never known before.  As our little Sammy so unabashedly, so tirelessly cries out to us, “I want to know you!” cry out to the One whose heart is already yours.  He will answer you!

With love,
Susan

Message from Paul Yadao our speaker April 14

We were created in Eden (Eden means the pleasure of God). This means we were created for God’s delight! The first face that Adam saw was the face of the Father. The first touch he felt was the touch of the Father. The first voice he heard was the voice of the Father. It’s all about the Father. We were created for that encounter!

When Adam was laying on the ground as a form of dust with no life yet, God breathed upon him the breath of life, Adam stood as a living being, not just a living respiratory system. That means every fiber of our being, spirit, soul & body has been designed for God’s presence!

Receiving the Father’s love is the first step—finally fully understanding beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are the Beloved of the Father. You are 100% accepted every moment of the day! You have been chosen for the purpose of love!

After I received the baptism of the Father’s love, all the limits were broken off me at that very moment and I was able to say, “Send me anywhere, Lord.” Fear was instantly gone because perfect love had been deposited. I received my inheritance. Inheritance is given in family, in true relationship—It’s not a salary or allowance. In the Kingdom, we don’t work for inheritance, we work from inheritance.

When I learned to stop striving and to receive, my life radically changed! Complete affirmation and acceptance of who I am freed me from all my religious thinking. Before, I got my identity from performance—from what I did—but once I believed the Father’s love, nations opened up before me. When I stopped performing, I discovered that everything in the Kingdom is to be received, not to be achieved.

It’s not a struggle to be intimate with God. The struggle comes when we think we are not worthy of him or qualified to be in His presence. Yet God is telling us, “You are my beloved! Your place is with me!”

God the Father is saying, “Come into my house! I have prepared a special place just for you! This is where you find the best view. It is in me—in my presence!”

The key is to be a good receiver! Start here: “Father, I am 100% accepted by you!” You will want to be with the one who loves you 100%! He is your dad! You are his beloved and your job is to be loved by your Father.