Prince of Peace > Social Media

That's a "Greater Than" sign, in case you didn't know.  It's there because we so often forget that Jesus embodies peace and He's the Prince of our inner kingdom. We get on the internet and BOOM!, a bombardment of stressful information, conversations, advertisements and so on, come rushing at us.  Social media seems to be one of the largest thieves of peace out there.  It's a great tool, but in order to keep our core values intact, we really have got to let the Prince be involved.  Most likely that would change a lot of things and help us to go to bed much more clear at night. Ya know?  Here's a great passage to help us out:

When we take in hours of what the world is dishing out, or what other brothers and sisters are getting from the world, it infiltrates our spirit. Really, it creeps in and takes over in time.  Thus, we are allowing an eviction notice to be placed on the castle of our hearts; "Thanks for being the Prince of Peace and all, but I would rather let the trolls in and take charge for now." Of course none of us would thoughtfully do this, but it's imperative that we have a constant position of welcoming the Prince of Peace to rule in our heart's kingdom. Without this intentionality, and with ample screen time, we get pretty .... un-peaceful.  God forbid we have a large imbalance of social media and time with the Prince.  We can eventually become trolls. Oh yes it's true.  We don't want to become that. What is a troll? In today's internet jargon it's someone who lurks about behind the screen, looking for something to disagree with or be offended by.  Here's a truthful quote by Christian Hip-Hop artist, KB, describing internet trolling:

Ewwwww! We don't want to become trolls.  Embarrassingly, I must admit that there have been times when I was hiding under that bridge, waiting to pounce. Several time it was silently in my heart. Still, I was being an ugly troll and my heart knew it. However, even if we have done this, there is a grace-filled Prince calling us back to the place of peace all the time.  We can turn right around, walk away from the swamp and let the Prince of Peace, our Jesus, lead us into the Father's heart for our lives. And trust me, His plan is a whooooole lot better than the mayhem that is our current media situation.  Friends, as elections are on the horizon, let's let the Prince of Peace have the floor, not the controversy. This time around we can stay in a place of peace no matter what's going on out there.  Then we'll know exactly how He would have us vote, how He would have us relate to people and most importantly, how He would have us pray.  God bless us all as we remember His place in all this.                                                                                  Love, Todd

Pausing in the Presence of the Process

Ephesians 3:20 promises us this, “Never doubt God’s mighty power to work in you and accomplish all this. He will achieve infinitely more than your greatest request, your most unbelievable dream, and exceed your wildest imagination! He will outdo them all, for his miraculous power constantly energizes you.” We are in a “He will outdo them all” season right now, for God is going to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all we can even ask or think. He is bringing increase to our hearts and for what sets our soul on fire. I believe God has us all in a process on our journey with Him, a process of discovering who we really are in Jesus. I want to encourage you to take your greatest request, your most unbelievable dream and your wildest imagination, and place them at the feet of Jesus. There is something indescribable, something that is hard to put into language at times when we place the things in our heart at His feet. It’s out of the obedience of our heart that we lay down the things we pray, dream and think to the One who constantly champions our prayers, dreams and thoughts. For several months, especially during this COVID pandemic, I have felt and sensed God’s invitation to take us deeper into the inner core of His heart, a place where the Holy Spirit desires to take us, a place of intimacy that awaits us every time we choose to pause in His presence. The Lord is continuing to woo us on our journey with Him, into His embrace, a place where we are healed, set free, delivered, made whole, forever loved and awakened to the reality of who He already sees us as, for we are seated together with Him in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). Holy Spirit, help us to see ourselves the way Jesus already sees us! I want to encourage your heart with this life-giving passage out of Psalms.  Psalm 62:6-8 declares, “For He alone is my safe place. His wrap-around presence always protects me as my champion defender." There’s no risk of failure with God! So why would I let worry paralyze me, even when troubles multiply around me? God’s glory is all around me! His wrap-around presence is all I need, for the Lord is my Savior, my hero, and my life-giving strength. Join me, everyone! Trust only in God every moment! Tell him all your troubles and pour out your heart-longings to him. Believe me when I tell you—he will help you! Pause in his presence.” I want to declare and release over us that hope is rising and God is bringing increase. The water level is rising and God is taking us to higher heights and deeper depths in the Spirit, to know the truth of who He is and who we are. Holy Spirit, continue to lead and guide us into all truth for it is the truth that will set us free. More, Holy Spirit!                                                                   Love,                                                                             Pastor Joel Pollard

Walking Upstream

Last Thursday was World Day against Trafficking in Persons, established to raise awareness about human trafficking and to encourage survivor support. This year the United Nations highlighted first responders who identify, support and seek justice for victims. Seeing God move in this area has been a passion for many years. I’ve been really impacted spending time with survivors over the years but God began to shift my focus to prevention and bringing awareness, especially in high schools. I was reminded of a high school in Oakland I spoke at a few years ago. Almost every student shared about their personal experience with abusive relationships or of friends who were victims of trafficking. Of course my Mama heart broke as they shared. I became more angry at this injustice and at the same time, encouraged by their passion to bring about lasting solutions. If you haven’t noticed, our younger generation is rising up, becoming more and more compassionate and determined to do their part to see change in many areas of injustice. David Batstone, the founder of Not For Sale, said something many years ago that really challenged and inspired me. He said, “Pulling drowning people out of the river is compassion, but we have to walk upstream to solve the reasons they are falling in. That’s justice. I believe Holy Spirit wants to give us solutions that will impact those around us and bring transformation in every area of life. Even in the middle of a worldwide pandemic, where so many are experiencing a lot of fear and lack, my prayer is that the church will be a beacon of hope to those who are searching.

“Your lives light up the world. Let others see your light from a distance, for how can you hide a city that stands on a hilltop? And who would light a lamp and then hide it in an obscure place? Instead, it’s placed where everyone in the house can benefit from its light.” Matthew 5:14-15 (TPT)

My prayer is that as you “walk upstream,” God would begin to reveal the answers you are seeking for challenges in your own life. I pray you would feel the compassion of Jesus over your situation. I also pray He would show you the light inside of you that He wants to shine in your family, your workplace and your community. May you have peace and confidence knowing He took those very steps upstream as He went to the cross. He became justice for us. He is the answer to every heart cry, every disease, every injustice on the earth. Let that be our source of hope!                                                                Love, Karena

Restoring Vision

Not long ago I started to recognize I was losing focus and a sense of direction. I felt like I was going through the motions. I couldn't quite put my finger on what the problem was. I was journaling and processing with God, but felt pretty stuck. Then I saw something in a movie, a biography about a woman who herself was doing a lot of "processing with God" and a truth about God's heart jumped out at me. I was focused on getting a specific answer when He was wanting me to gain a greater understanding of His heart for me.  The message to me was that when things start going sideways in my life, it's time to remember who I am and what I'm alive for. I looked back over my journals and recalled the important prophetic words over my life. I started to agree with what God said about me, even if I couldn't see it fully yet. I focused on the primary calling in my life, and heard Jesus as He validated that call. I sat with Him, simply experiencing Him enjoying me, as I enjoyed Him. As I started to re-focus on "the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:14), His beauty and His goodness regained pre-eminence. That sense of wonder and awe at His kindness and relentless, attentive love, softened my heart and restored the confidence of His favor that ever shines on my life. God created us to seek a sense of purpose and direction. The need for a sense of reward and wellbeing is engrained in the very neurobiology of our brain. So if we aren't finding satisfaction in our lives, it can be tempting to seek out something, whether it's a substance or an activity, to help fill that void. These things aren't always bad, in and of themselves, but can quickly become recurring habits or addictions that drain the vitality of our lives and keep us from God's best. Our need for a reward is not the problem, but the way to seek to get that need met is. God has a better plan for each of us! He is calling us to sit with Him to learn, just as He spoke to Abraham, that He is our exceedingly great reward. The more we live in that reality, seeing Him in everything we do, the more satisfied we will be in life, in both the big things and the little things. I bless you with fresh vision and a renewed sense of purpose in your life. That you may recognize how He is growing you in the experiential knowledge of the height, the depth, the width and the length of His love in you. God is doing a work right now to establish the reality of our union with Him as never before! With love on this journey with you,                                                         Susan

The Bigger Picture

Anxiously awaiting great moves of the Holy Spirit gripping every part of the globe, many of us are feeling largely like we are in limbo. Life as we once knew it a few months ago before the coronavirus outbreak has been severely disrupted, plowed over by circumstances beyond our control. This has been very trying universally and globally across every nation. In the midst of this, the Lord has been speaking to His people. The world is in His hands and He just recently showed me that He will turn the affects of the virus around for good. There is hope ahead and a way out of this into something far better than where we were before. The virus has an expiration date and when time is up, it will be time for an amazing future to unfold with unexpected victories. During this time the Lord has been showing me how very important it is to engage Him in relationship in the deepest, honest and intimate ways. He’s calling on us to be proactive and to prepare ourselves. This is the time to load up on things from His storehouse for the world; things like compassion, mercy, miracles, healings, hope, restoration, love, joy, peace, wisdom and divine objectivity. We are being imbued with all of these and more everyday while we engage Him and acknowledge His friendship and tenderness. He shows Himself most tender and loving the more honest we are with everything. He is teaching us deep, tender love in the midst of our  drawing close to Him. The postman goes to the post office depot first to get the mail and packages to be delivered. Just so, we postmen and postwomen are being called to the depot (our relationship with Him) to get all the goodies we are going to bestow upon the world. We are at a purpose and destiny crossroad. He showed me that we are being prepared as a massive army of light to assault the forces of darkness in the world. We are getting readied with weapons of love and compassion. Many of us are going to be called up to be captains, lieutenants and generals in this coming push back of the enemy. It’s going to look like a revival we never expected. Some parts of it will look like things we’ve seen in the past, but there are new experiences up ahead. He showed me people in the market place across the world will be experiencing His touch and coming to us for explanations. We are being prepared for an evangelism explosion like no other. This will be the answer of the Lord to a world ravaged by the virus and darkness. Stay in intimacy with Him. Welcome Him in all you do. Tell Him everything - every secret - every mistake - every desire - every joy - every little thing. He is the Great Psychiatrist for sure. He will embrace you with His warmth, tenderness, understanding, wisdom and insight. Nothing nor accusation can possibly separate us from such a bond of friendship. Such was the result of the blood Jesus poured out for us. Make intimacy a habit in every part of your day. We can focus on all the trauma going on around us if we want to. It’s a choice. That will only serve to exhaust and discourage you. I know it takes time to shift our attentions away from what appears to be an unrelenting catastrophe. Focus on the bigger picture and find peace and courage. He has won. We are His glorious army of light that He is perfecting. We get to bless the world with treasures from our storehouse of intimacy with Him and it’s going to be alright. The more we see Him, the more we become like Him to the world.

Ephesians 6:10-18  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Love, Bill

The Light That Leads Us Home

Recently a good friend of mine was praying for me. She (and Holy Spirit) acknowledged times in my life as a young teenager that I had to make some very difficult decisions without any guidance. These were painful and traumatic experiences. I didn’t know how to ask for help and I didn’t know who to ask even if I could. Since Todd and I have become foster parents, we’ve found many children and teens in the system have the same difficulty. They often feel they have to be overly responsible and have trouble acknowledging when they need help because they’ve become so accustomed to caring for themselves.  A few years ago, Jesus said to me, “I don’t only want to be your Savior. I want to be your King.” He wants to lead us. Our American culture often gives us the message that we need to be self sufficient and muscle our way through life. It requires a great deal of vulnerability to invite Jesus to lead. Control can appear more appealing than trust because it gives us a false illusion of protection, especially during these times of uncertainty. I’ve found that surrendering areas of my life and in my heart that still feel “in process” can be scary. But Jesus continually reminds me that my unanswered questions are just as important as the answers I’ve already been given. He wants to meet us in the middle of our stories, in the middle of our “messy” and guide us through.

“I will stay close to you, instructing and guiding you along the pathway for your life. I will advise you along the way and lead you forth with my eyes as your guide. So don’t make it difficult; don’t be stubborn when I take you where you’ve not been before. Don’t make me tug you and pull you along. Just come with me!” Psalm 32:8-9 (TPT)

“The government will rest on His shoulders. And He will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

When you know the true nature of Jesus, inviting Him to be your King is the safest place to be. For those who don’t know the goodness of who He is yet, there is an uncertainty about how He will use His power. In the earthly sense, we sometimes associate power with control or even abuse. But Jesus always uses His power to heal, to love and to make all things work together for our good. We may not fully understand His ways, but when we know His true nature, surrendering becomes much more inviting.  I pray that in the middle of uncertainty and unanswered questions, you would find Jesus lighting your path. I pray you would have courage to acknowledge any area that self sufficiency has taken the driver’s seat and allow Jesus to show you a different way. Your needs are valid. You don’t have to muster up strength and do life alone. Jesus is right there to guide you, to care for you, to lead you back home.  Love, Karena

Straight Ahead

Admittedly, I was such an Amy Grant fan back in the day. (still am, actually) Yes, I saw her in concert about seven times when I was a teen.  In 1984 she released an album called, “Straight Ahead”. That thing played on my record player and my cassette player, (That’s right boys and girls. I said cassette player), over and over and over again.  That whole album reached me deeply, but all the more so the title song.  Every time I heard it I committed my path to the Lord, again and again. “Straight ahead, I can see Your light. Straight ahead, through the dark. Straight ahead, there’s no left or right. Straight ahead to Your heart.” I just knew that nothing would ever make me look to the left or right…… ….But life has countless things to look at on the left and on the right.  In fact, there are voices on both sides, and behind, calling us over.  I’m convinced, now, that there are millions of distractions in this life, trying to steal away our time the the One Who Is, the One with all the right answers, the One Who loves us more than we love us. Social media has got us looking everywhere but up much of the time.  For me, it’s very disheartening to see Jesus followers bickering back and forth, looking over to the left to see what this one’s saying, looking over to the right to find more fault in what that one’s doing.  We’re looking toward media and what they are bringing us. We’re numbing out in various ways because all of this is so overwhelming. Yet, the Maker of the Universe is still ahead of the path we said we were going to take in the first place.  He’s got a big bucket of peace to pour over us.  He’s got the know how to navigate through everything. What if we all stopped looking at each other and started looking only at Him?  He is looking at all of us with perfect love, so when we look at Him, we’ll start seeing what He’s seeing. Part of that would be seeing each other rightly.  Also, strife would disintegrate. This has been on my heart so much that I’ve been thinking of writing about this for all of you this week.  Interestingly enough, (and not a coincidence), a dear friend messaged my wife and me this morning and said this: “I dreamed that I was in the middle of a search on the internet.  I wanted to get back to the original screen, so I kept pressing the left arrow over and over but I couldn’t find the screen I wanted. Then I heard a voice say, ‘You can’t go backward.  GO FORWARD.’ I woke up, and as soon as I opened my eyes, two Scriptures came to me in a flash":

I would say that God is confirming my writing this email today.  I believe He wants us to recommit to looking straight ahead toward Him. He’s there with a constant invitation to “Come up here. Come up now.” no matter how many times we wander. Praise God for His desire to see us live a better life!                                                                                                         Love, Todd