When God Calls Us By Name by Joanne Moody

“But now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” Is. 43:1   Our Agape team was ministering two weeks ago in a marvelous worship filled church and as I got up to speak I felt the Lord prompt me to release the name Thomas. He had given me the name of Thomas that morning when I asked Him if there was any particular person he wanted me to highlight. I felt the Lord had said Thomas was a son.  As I asked the congregation if there was a Thomas among them nobody responded. I said, “I believe he is someone’s son and may not be here.” A woman from the back of the room spoke out; “It’s my grandson.” “What’s going on with Thomas?” I replied, “He’s a heroin addict and has been for 9 years.” The entire church joined in prayer together to intercede for Thomas’ freedom in the name of Jesus. We spoke aloud together and asked for Thomas to encounter the Father’s love so profoundly that he would never again be enticed by the spirit of addiction.             This morning, I received a message that Thomas has agreed to get on a plane and go to a Christian treatment center. There, he will receive Christ focused care for one year. Hallelujah. We stand together again to give praise to God for calling his beloved child by name.   When the God of the universe, the Great I am, the one who set all the stars in their places and named each one (Ps 147:4) sends a message from his heavenly throne room calling one of His children here on earth by name, everything changes. That God would take note of us amidst all of the things he keeps track of is for most of us, mind-boggling.  This is the kind of knowing referred to in Amos 3:2 “You only have I known of all the families of the earth.” The Israelites God chose, as His people were no better than any others.  God loves us no matter where we are or what we are doing. He knew us before we were born, and He alone knows the great destiny we were born to fulfill. Calling us by name is affirming that destiny.   Another time the Lord gave the name of Tristan and the message was that God really liked Tristan’s hair. The young man was not at the meeting but his friend called him and gave him the message during the meeting. The friend then reported back that Tristan was completely shocked. Apparently, Tristan had shaved his head the night before because he hated his hair. That’s how much God loves Tristan.   A young woman was called out by one of our Agape team at a meeting last week. She had never been to that church before or in an environment where the Holy Spirit was present in a palpable way. As our team member spoke the words the Lord had given him over this daughter of God she was moved in a way she later reported was life altering for her.   A young woman learning to hear the voice of God in one of our training meetings told me that I would meet a flight attendant named Lisa on my flight later that day. Yes, there were exactly three flight attendants on board and Lisa was one of them. We were able to deliver even more very personal messages to her from the Lord including where she lived and the number of horses and children she had.  If God is going to tell someone Lisa’s name you can be sure he has a greater message for her. She confessed to having believed in God but had given up because of pressures and disappointments in her life.  After this encounter she was overwhelmed with how much God loved her that he would send two ordinary people on her last flight of the day to tell her. The other flight attendant’s were also deeply impacted.   In both ministry settings and simply in daily life, the Holy Spirit has given many of our Agape team members the names, numbers, children’s names and yes, even the names of beloved pets. We ask God for these specifics not because we wish to be right or have attention drawn to us but because this is what Jesus modeled. The woman at the well in the gospel of John, chapter 4 is an example of how personally Jesus engaged with strangers. After meeting and listening to Jesus reveal the truth of her life she was forever changed.   Identity is the key to healing the human heart, mind and soul. God is our Father who desires relationship with His children and at the deepest core of who we are created to be is the need to be known, accepted and seen.  When we do not know how much God loves us, we look to be known and accepted in the world in ways that leave us empty, disappointed and even arrogant. Eph. 1:4 says, “And He chose us to be His very own, joining us to himself even before he laid the foundation of the universe. Because of His great love, He ordained us as one with Christ from the beginning, so that we would be seen as holy in His eyes with an unstained innocence.” His love and approval are free by faith in Jesus and only here will we find the acceptance that brings us complete peace.   Our mission as Agape Freedom Fighters is to help others first know their identity in Christ and then to experience the riches of an ever deepening relationship with God and that through the power of the Holy Spirit to help call other children by name and into the glorious healing embrace of the Father.   Today, may your ears hear the beautiful whisper of the Lord of hosts calling your name.   Love and  Joy in Him,                                     Rev. Joanne Moody   Visit us at www.agapefreedomfighters.org

Looking At Our Perceptions & Judgments by Pastor Russ Fochler

Jesus: The Judge Who Brings Life I loved Susan Fochler's talk on May 20th and follow-up encouraging email last week.  She shared beautifully about the way Jesus judges – a way that brings restoration and reconciliation to our hearts and relationships.  We so need Jesus’ help because we tend to perceive and judge in ways that are very destructive.  Ways that bring separation and death instead of life.  This dynamic started with the Fall of Adam.   This is a major reason why we need Jesus to renew our minds. (Romans 12:1-2)  And, it is our re-birthright to share in the mind of Christ! (1 Cor 2:16)   Last Saturday, May 27th we explored two passages from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 - 7 where Jesus taught about perceiving and judging:   “Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!”   Matthew 6:22-23 The Message     When the Greek culture of that time spoke of someone having an “evil eye”, it meant someone who was stingy and suspicious.  Just after this passage, Jesus goes on to talk about choosing to serve God instead of wealth/money -- living generously instead of being stingy.  And then Jesus talks about not worrying about our basic needs – about how well God provides as we simply ask, seek, and knock.  Our Heavenly Father knows how to give good things to His children.   “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” Matthew 7:1-2 NKJV   Please note: Jesus is not saying we should ignore evil or turn off the discernment Holy Spirit gives us.  In the next few verses in Matthew, Jesus tells us to be wise about not offering precious things to those who have no capacity to value them.  And just a bit further, Jesus calls us to discern false prophets by the fruit of their lives (evidence of a heart relationship with Jesus).   When Judging Becomes A Snare However, judging becomes a snare when the story I’m telling myself about a person leads me to decide what they deserve and don’t deserve, and what their value and worth is.    Have you ever sensed God challenging a story you’ve been telling yourself about someone?  It’s a good thing!  It means that we’re invited to “die to self” – to let go of our self-centered/self-protective projections and become open/vulnerable to Jesus’ true and life-giving perspective.  This happens to Mackenzie during the cave scene in The Shack.   How This Problem Started C. Baxter Kruger writes vividly in The Shack Revisited about what happened when Adam and Eve believed Satan’s lies about God and then ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  This is where our problem with perceiving and judging started.  I’ve italicized or bolded some of Baxter’s words for emphasis:   “His (Satan’s) chief deception is to invite us to doubt the Lord’s goodness, creating insecurity and anxiety in us -- which in turn drives us to independent action.  All of this is then shrewdly woven into the lie that we are separated from the triune God.  Adam and Eve believed the whispering doubt about the goodness of the Lord.  In the place of trust, love, and security rose doubt, and then fear, which inevitably turned them upon themselves.  They became self-referential and “chose independence over relationship” (Shack pg 125).  They became self-centered, making themselves and their own judgment their point of reference and discernment rather than relationship with the Lord.   …in the believing the lie of the evil one, they became blind.  They could no longer perceive the real truth about God or about themselves.  They hid from the Lord.     Why? Clearly they were afraid, but afraid of what?  Of course, their hiding comes on the heels of their outright disobedience, and most people would assume that they were afraid of God’s punishment.  But then again, how could Adam and Eve stand in the garden, the recipients of such astonishing blessing and love, and be afraid of the Lord?  Had God changed?  Had the Lord who created Adam and Eve out sheer grace and love, and poured such astounding blessing upon them, suddenly made an about-face?  Had he ceased to love?   Adam projected his own brokenness onto God’s face.  He tarred the Father’s face with the brush of his own angst.  He took a paintbrush, dipped it into the cesspool of his own double-mindedness and guilt and shame, and painted an entirely new picture of a god with it.  And it was this god, created in his own darkened imagination—not the Lord—that he feared and from whom he hid.   Adam was scared to death.  How could he not be?  He believed himself to be standing guilty before a divine being who was as unstable as he.  From this moment, our shame will disfigure the Father’s heart.  The projection of our fear will rewrite the rules of his care.  He will continue to bless us beyond our wildest dreams, but in our mythology we will never see it.” The Shack Revisited by C. Baxter Kruger   God's Punishment or Our Darkened Projections? Many of us were taught that God needed to punish mankind because of Adam and Eve’s disobedience; that God separated Himself from us until Jesus received God’s wrath and punishment on our behalf.  I believe the truth is, our loving Creator never separated from us.  Instead, our skewed perceptions, the projections of the darkness of our hearts upon God -- led mankind to emotionally separate from the eternal Trinity.   This lostness, this blindness is why our loving Father sent His cherished Son to Earth as a human – to reveal His true heart to us, as one like us.  Jesus absorbed the full force of our fears, hatreds, and rejections into Himself on the Cross.  Jesus came into our darkness so we can perceive God's light and love.   This is astoundingly good news! With trust in Y'shuah's love and goodness, Russ Fochler

Jesus: Our King-Priest Who Understands by Pastor Susan Fochler

Leo came into our booth, eyes downcast, clothes disheveled, tangibly oppressed.  He was elderly, much older than the average person who typically came. He knew what he wanted:  a prophetic word and a healing.  Michele and I then began to pray and ask God to show us what He would have us say.   Ministering Hope We both received similar words:  that Leo had been through some tough things in life, and that God was about to bring him into a sweet season of restoration and rebirth.  I drew a picture of a baby bird in a nest, beak open and raised, representing how God was going to bring the nurture and care into his life he had always yearned for.  We told him he could hope again.   Leo immediately burst into tears, his grieving heart pouring out to us.  Twenty years ago he had been watching “Miracle on 34th St” when, a long-shuttered memory from childhood came crashing back.  He had been forced to watch as his father tortured animals, and was ridiculed for not participating.  He had carried deep, relentless guilt and shame ever since.  Not because he had in any way been responsible, but because that’s the kind of burden kids take on when confronted with cruelty and trauma.  Releasing the Burden to Jesus Our hearts went out to him; although the wound was decades old, we knew that Jesus lives outside of time and could minister His love and hope to Leo.  He agreed to let Jesus minister to his heart.  As Jesus drew near and began to touch Leo with His tenderness and mercy, the agonizing guilt and the aching shame began to wash away and free him from years of life in the shadowlands.  The burden, never meant to be carried by man, went to where it belonged: the Cross. Our King-Priest Understands  Leo met Jesus, the Jesus who walked the earth as we do, and understands everything we have ever gone through.  Everything, without exception.  “For we have a magnificent King-Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who rose into the heavenly realm for us, and now sympathizes with us in our frailty.  He understands humanity, for as a man, our magnificent King-Priest was tempted in every way just as we are, and conquered sin.  So now we come freely and boldly to where love is enthroned, to receive mercy’s kiss and discover the grace we urgently need to strengthen us in our time of weakness”.  Heb 4:14-6  The Passion We all get a New Heart! Like Leo, we all can carry burdens that are not ours, and often don’t recognize it’s there.  But Jesus is always willing and ready to come and make the exchange only He can do: our ashes for His beauty, our mourning for His joy.  “I will plant a new heart and new spirit inside of you. I will take out your stubborn, stony heart and give you a willing, tender heart of flesh.  And I will put My Spirit inside of you and inspire you to live by My statutes and follow My laws”.  Ezek 36:26-7 The Voice.   I pray we all learn to come quickly and boldly before His throne of grace, knowing that mercy waits there to kiss us and restore us to fullness of life. He wants it for you more than you want it for yourself! With much love,                           Susan

Abide by BF prayer team leader Matthew Guillot

Abiding In Jesus! By Matthew Guillot In the book of John is the recorded testimony of Jesus our Messiah saying: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” –John 15:5 (emphasis mine) Later in verse 7 Jesus proclaims: “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” –John 15:7 (emphasis mine) The prerequisite Jesus sets for us to bear fruit, and for answered prayers is that we abide in Him.  If this is the prerequisite, then it is important for us to know what this means for us individually (to abide). There have been many times where I have been disappointed by an unfulfilled desire or expectation; even ones I thought were from God.   One of the most tempting things for us is to search inwardly to find a reason for unfulfilled desires, lack of breakthrough, lack of anointing, etc.  The enemy is more than happy to oblige, giving us plenty of reasons why we are at fault and why we should beat ourselves up for not being whom we want to be. I struggled with this for years and no matter how much breakthrough or encounters I had with Jesus, it never seemed to fix me. After years of going through this struggle I discovered something that would change my life.  Through an encounter I had at the Jesus Conference 2016 in Orlando Florida, Jesus showed up powerfully and I saw and felt more of Him than ever before. I quickly realized in this encounter, that I didn't even care if I ever got fixed, or my circumstances changed as long as I got to be with Him.  I came to a whole new understanding at a heart level of what was right in front of me in the scriptures; abiding in Jesus.  I wanted more than anything to just abide in Him.  It was simple. I just want to be with Him. I just want Jesus. Everything else seems to flow out of just being with Him. If  I want to bear more fruit, then I just need to be with Him.  If I want my desires fulfilled, I just need to be with Him.  If I really wanted to know His much higher thoughts (Isa 55:8-9) towards me to prosper me (Jer 29:11), which outnumber the grains of sand on the sea shore (Ps 139:17-18), I just need to be with Him. This has been the most freeing revelation I have ever received.  If I want to be the person God created me to be, I need to be with the One who truly knows who I am and allow Him to be the One to transform my heart.  It is ludicrous to think I could transform myself to the person I was created to be, when half the time I have conflicting, competing thoughts about who I should be.  I don’t have to, and shouldn’t try to fix myself. The whole point of the new covenant Jesus established is relationship with Him.  Without relationship, we are stuck in our independence to figure things out on our own, hoping God will bless how we are living.  This is how Israel lived under the Old Covenant, proving time and time again how impossible it is. Jesus came presenting a new way of living.  It is to simply abide in Him.  He sent us the Holy Spirit to connect us with Him (Jn 15:26).  This is GOOD NEWS!!!  All the pressure is off to figure things out on our own or to figure out a way to get breakthrough.  We can abide in the One Who is our breakthrough and watch as He eagerly moves on our behalf! Matthew Guillot To hear Matthew's sermon this past Saturday, "Give Me Jesus!" click here

Foundation of Covenant Love by Pastor Brent Lokker

“Long before God laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love." Ephesians 1:4 (TMB)

Long before this world was created, there was Papa...and Jesus...and Holy Spirit who loved each other deeply and honored each other sincerely and wildly celebrated one another. The richness of their affection for each other and the depth of their commitment to one another led them to desire to share this extravagant love with a multitude of others because fiery and genuine love must always find an outlet, an expression. It must find another one to pour its love out upon. YOU are that one!  This is what Yahweh's (Papa's) eternal covenant of love is all about.  A covenant is an ironclad promise that the Lord actually makes with Himself to be sure it will be fulfilled. Just as He did with Abraham, He says to you, "I've chosen you in order to bless you. I am blessing you because you are mine and for no other reason. I love you because I love you because I love you because it's My choice to do so.  Your purpose in this world, above all other purposes, is to be loved.  This is why I created you.  And not just to be loved in this life, but to be loved eternally.  That means forever times forever, with no end in sight!" Throughout history we've had horrendous misconceptions about the heart of the Father that have attempted to steal away our intimacy with Him. Jesus came to show us the true heart of our Father who approves of us and accepts us as His own. If you have the time, please listen to this week's podcast where I survey several thousand years of history to explain the covenant heart of God that has never changed: The Foundation of Covenant Love. Here is that Covenant of Love in its purest form described in Romans 8:31-39 (TMB) "So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture...None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us." It's time for you to agree with the true heart of the Father for you: "I'm loved. I'm wanted. I'm accepted. I'm favored. I'm blessed beyond measure.  This is just the way it is and I agree!" With Much Love, Brent

Stay Steadfast by Pastor Karena Lout

“I run with passion into His abundance so that I may reach the destiny that Jesus Christ has called me to fulfill and wants me to discover. I don’t depend on my own strength to accomplish this; however I do have one compelling focus: I forget all of the past as I fasten my heart to the future instead. I run straight for the divine invitation of reaching the heavenly goal and gaining the victory-prize through the anointing of Jesus." Phil. 3:12-14 (Passion Translation) I recently heard Heidi Baker say, “If you don’t quit, you win.” It’s interesting, over 80% of people that make New Year’s resolutions to join the gym in January, quit by the second week of February. We tend to want to run from discomfort and pain. After all, who enjoys that? But Jesus promised that our “light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” He’s committed to see us through!   A while back I met a sweet couple that have been married for over 55 years. They are both survivors of the holocaust. They weathered many challenges in life but told me their love for each other was stronger than the day they met. Pastors Brent and Suzanne have been faithfully pastoring in the Tri-Valley for 27 years. They are some of the longest standing pastors in our area. There’s something that grips me when I hear stories of people that have stayed steady and committed for years and years to what God’s set before them in life.   During the last 12 years that Todd and I have been youth pastors at Blazing Fire, there have been times that we wanted to throw in the towel. When you love hard, there’s always the risk that disappointment will hurt just as hard. But our hearts are committed to see the youth in our area experience the real, tangible love of Jesus. We’ve gotten to love hundreds of kids throughout the years who’ve come through our door and we’ve been a part of their lives long enough to now go to their weddings. What an honor!   I want to encourage you that your faithfulness in every little thing and every big thing in your life hasn’t gone unnoticed. It matters! You ARE moving forward. You ARE making a difference more than you know. Jesus is so proud of you. Keep leaning on Him for your strength. You weren’t meant to do this alone. Don’t quit now.

Life Giving Declarations by Pastor Brent Lokker

Many of you commented after last Saturday’s worship service how powerful the declarations we made together were for you. In your journey with the Lord, it’s vitally important you agree with His truth about who you are and what you’re alive for. Remember you are making these declarations regardless of how you feel. In fact, when you’re not “feeling” the truth (i.e. when you are bombarded with lies attempting to get you off track), is especially when you need to declare the truth.  Speak these life-giving declarations out loud daily and say it like you mean it.  As Bill Johnson says, “Faith is the currency of heaven.” That means that while all of God’s promises are true, you gain access by agreeing with Him.   Life-Giving Declarations:   I am a child who is dearly loved by you, Father! Jesus, you are in me and I am in You! I belong to You, Jesus, and You belong to me! Jesus, you have healed me completely! I am loved by You, Holy Spirit, and filled to overflowing with You! I am walking in the fullness of my original identity! I am living in wholeness where the ways of my being match the truth of my being! Who I am and what I do matters! I am in the light as Jesus is in the light! I am pure, I am holy, I am righteous, I am integrous! I am alive to love! I love God well! I love myself well! I love others well! I will take good care of myself with my decisions! I am alive at the time in history Papa chose for me to be alive! I live within the grace given to me for today! I have an A+ from my Papa before my day begins and nothing I do will add to nor take away from His approval of me! I live in peace! I live with joy in my heart because I belong fully to Father, Jesus & Holy Spirit!