A Heartbeat For You

Can you hear it?

Listen…the sound, small, but its there. Ta Tump, ta tump. Do you hear it now? Ta tump, ta tump, ta tump…

When you hear it, it becomes louder more definite. You begin to wonder why you couldn’t hear it all along. Ta tump, ta tump

The sound fills the air around you. It resonates in your insides. Your own heart, beating right in perfect synchronization with it. Your spirit becomes full like it could explode with love that comes with the sound. You hear it now don’t you? The heartbeat of God. Beating for the lost, beating for the hurting, beating with compassion, and now beating inside your own chest. Beating to see salvation, beating to see miracles, beating to fulfill your God given dreams, and passionately beating for God as God’s heart beats for you…

Ephesians 3:17-19 …so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Proverbs 8:17 “I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me”.

1 John 4:16-19 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears in not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.

God’s heart is beating for his people. He designed us to hear that heart beat and long for it. We are in a time right now where the heart beat of God is resonating throughout the nations. He has heard the desperate cries of His people and He is responding in outpourings of His Glory all over the World. We must honor those brothers and sisters in Christ who have paved the way through intercession, faith, and soaking in the presence of God.

As we press into God, who is our friend, our Dad, and our salvation. We begin to hear the beat. We begin to see people how God sees them, we begin to feel his love and compassion for those around us. The closer we draw into God, the closer he draws into us. Then, we don’t just hear the beat of God’s heart, we feel it too. It becomes part of us. Our spirit stirs within us and nothing can satisfy our desire for more of God.

The Heartbeat of Salvation…
This is the main beat of God’s heart. He loves each one of us with a love that is deeper than anything we could imagine. In doing so he desires for us all to be saved and receive our full reward and inheritance. The start of our intimate relationship with God is salvation. That is only the beginning. God is so awesome and wonderful that salvation is not all he has for us. Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”

The Heartbeat of Healing…
Unlike some beliefs God does not punish us with sickness or disease. He doesn’t pass out wrath as punishment. God wants the best for us. He also, wants us to be a testimony for His glory. Healing is for all, not just one or two select people. Again, healing is for us all. God will use healing even as a testimony to someone and in turn they will receive salvation. 3 John 2, Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers. Psalm 103:3 “Who forgives all our sins; and who heals all our diseases.” We are coming into a time where people are becoming more aware of the healing power of God. It is time for us to take a stand and do as Jesus did. Laying hands on the sick with authority and believing for healing. God’s heart is beating for healing. Beating to see us stand in faith for healing. We can stand in authority and speak his promises back to him. Remind him of his promises of healing. When we speak out in faith it moves God’s heart.

The Heartbeat of deliverance…
John 8:32 & 36 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Free! God is our deliverer. Freedom! God’s heart beats for freedom. The day of deliverance is at hand. I recently saw a program for people to attend called “Celebrate Recovery”. I thought how neat that was that they were offering something to people to help them. Then, when I really thought about it I became awakened by the truth that we should be celebrating deliverance. I don’t believe God would want us to stay in a state of recovery. Instead we should be moving forward in a state of freedom and complete deliverance. God’s Word states free indeed. What a testimony it would be to attend a meeting and say that we have been delivered for six months instead of sober. I hear the beat of God’s heart for freedom. His beat is more than we could imagine. We need to learn not to put God in the box of the World and understand that He always does it bigger and better.

The Heartbeat of Prosperity…
Deuteronomy 8:18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. This verse amazes me every time I read it. God gives us the ability to produce wealth. God’s heart is beating for prosperity. We are not meant to be poor, in debt, and stressed out. That doesn’t produce much of a testimony to others. His heart is beating for us to take the authority that He has given us. To step out in faith. If we want to be debt free then we need to take the steps to become debt free praying in faith. If we want to have a better job, then we need to pursue a better job. When you sow seed God will rebuke the devourer for your sake and the floodgates of heaven will open for you. Pull down your prosperity from the throne and step into advancing the Kingdom of God as he intends for us to do. God wants you to hear and feel the heartbeat of prosperity.

The Heartbeat of Creativity…
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Colossians 1:16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, , whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. God desires for His people to be creative. His heart beats strongly for creativity. He encourages us to ask Him for knowledge. God gives us desires and ideas. He will help inspire us on to be successful. Is there a talent or gift you have? Are you using it? God’s heart is beating for you to use the gifts, talents, and desires he’s given you to advance the Kingdom. To step out in faith and multiply your talents. God wants us to go after everything he has for us. Sometimes when we find that nothing happens with a talent or gift we have a tendency to think that maybe God doesn’t want us to do anything with it. Really, we should do our part to go after it. You will find that when you step out and try something God will bless you. His heart beats to bless you.

The Heartbeat of Our Destiny…
Jeremiah 1:5 Before, I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. God has a destiny and plan for each of us. Part of his plan is that we live a full and happy life. A life that encourages others to pursue a relationship with God. That is part of our destiny. When we seek after God and pursue our inheritance one of our main desires becomes soul winning. God created us and knows best how to fill us up. He knows best how to get our attention and wants our hearts beating together with His co-laboring together. Pursuing God brings us closer to the destiny and plan he has for us. We become excited and passionate. Longing for more of God. Nothing satisfies the hunger for more of God. We feel his heart beat. Beating for us and with us. That excitement in our spirits is the heartbeat of God encouraging us to become everything we are meant for… and more because God always does it bigger and better.

Feel his heart beating for you. Hear the sound of love he has for us. Draw close to God and let your heart beat with His. God will bring you into more than you ever imagined.

What Are You Waiting For?

What Are You Waiting For?

Are you waiting until you feel like you are perfect to witness to others?

Are you waiting for your stresses in life to lessen before you fully give yourself to God?

Are you waiting for everything to be just right in your life before you pursue the dreams God has placed in your heart?

So, friends are you waiting on yourself and your life to be perfect while God is waiting on you…

Mark 16:15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”

When you get saved there is such an excitement that you feel flowing through your body like electricity. You want to shout it out. You want to tell others. Many times I have heard leaders instruct new believers to wait. They would tell them that they should wait to witness to others when their life was the perfect Christian example. It never quite sounded right to me. Yes, I believe we should seek after God with our whole heart. In doing so with complete surrender, the Holy Spirit will help change us and guide us so that our desires for the things of the World become less and our desire for the things of God becomes stronger.

In John chapter 4, Jesus talks with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well in Samaria. Jesus tells her details about her life that he could not know. He shares that he is the Messiah. Because Jesus could tell her about her life when he did not know her it greatly impacted the woman. It was a testimony to her that this man who had asked her for a drink at the well was truly the Messiah because how could he know private things about her. She didn’t wait until her life became perfect. She immediately went out into her town and testified that there was a man who could tell her everything she had ever done in her life. Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony. Seeing how Jesus had affected this woman, they pursued him and asked him to share with them. After two days of Jesus ministering many more became believers. They told the woman that they no longer just believed because of what she had said, but because they had heard for themselves.

We do not have to wait to testify about the goodness of God or the message of the gospel. Many times in sharing with others our own faith is strengthened. It draws us in the arms of Jesus and pulls us closer to him. It is important to remember that if we are waiting for everything to be perfect we can find ourselves living for perfection and not living for God.

This is not just true for salvation. In many instances this is true in faith and action. It is far better to see the power and evidence of God then just talking about it. We are now living in a new move of God with a younger generation that does not believe in religion. They want to experience God and see evidence of God. God loves it when we pursue Him.

If we are praying for something in faith we need to move in that faith. There is action that spurs on the faith. The action we take is powerful. While speaking the word of God, praying in faith, and putting that faith to work produces results.

There was a time in my life where I found myself waiting on God. Waiting and living for perfection. Everything had to be perfect. I was striving and trying so hard to get successful results in my life. With God, we don’t need to strive. We only need to build a personal relationship with him and put action with our faith. The striving will only tire us out. Action working with faith is strengthening and energizing-accelerating us even closer in our relationship with the Lord.

During a time when I was a single mother struggling financially, I tried to strive so hard. It seemed like I came against road block after road block. I had been praying for a job that would provide for my children and help me to get ahead. It was difficult for me to see what God had placed in front of me. I thought it would come in a particular package. My father who was a mighty man of God had some real truth to share with me. I had a job interview where the job offered was strictly commission only. The manager who offered me the position showed me a storage room that I could have and turn into an office. I was like, “yeah right”. I shared with my dad about it. He said, “Haven’t you been praying for a good job that would help you provide for your children and get ahead”? I said, “Yes”. He told me to then throw some paint on those storage room walls and get started. It struck me what he was getting at. Put some action behind my prayer and get to work. I did and God helped me every step of the way. I even got an award from the company for all my hard work. Being that it was a commission only job it really challenged me to trust in God. It strengthened me and brought me closer to God.

I would not be where I am today were it not for putting some action behind my prayer of faith.
Not only did God answer my prayer, he turned the results from that prayer into a testimony of encouragement and faith for other single mothers.

It changed me so much that my prayer life became more effective. There have been many small daily miracles where God has done some awesome things. Just A Sheep Ministries came from a vision God gave me back in 2000. I chose to put action behind the vision, the dream God had given me, and walk in the prophecy stepping out in faith. The more I step out in faith, the more I feel energized and strengthened.

What are you waiting for? Waiting on God is one thing. There are times when we are fasting or soaking in the presence of God waiting for God to speak to us. If you find your self waiting for God to fulfill your dreams or waiting for your life to be a perfect example to witness, then you might realize that God is actually waiting on you. Waiting on you to trust him and step out in Faith. That God has seen your dream realized and is waiting for you to walk in it. Has a prophecy been spoken about you that you have not seen come true yet? Have you prayed about it? Have you called it forth? Have you taken a step of faith towards it? Don’t wait. Don’t wait for the perfect tomorrow. Start calling forth the dream. Put action behind your faith. Faith pleases God. It moves his heart.

Hebrews 11:6 and without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

The action in this verse is belief. Has God given you a business idea? Start praying for it. Start calling it forth. Start believing for it. Start walking in it. Did God not say we are to speak of things as though they are? When we seek God with our whole hearts we will find him. He wants to prosper us, bless us, and see us happy and full of joy.

Today, I say to you, “What are you waiting for?”

Step out. Step out! Move in faith today. You will be surprised at how God will answer that faith. Each day is a new opportunity to draw closer to God and to pursue the destiny he has for you.

The Lakeland Revival

In hearing about how God was moving in Florida, I began watching the revival every day to see for myself what was happening. As soon as I turned it on I felt a stirring in my spirit. Almost like an internal earthquake that hasn't stopped. Every day I feel this excitement as if something incredible could happen at any second. I even find myself looking around more to notice what is going on around me.

God is moving. Something is happening. Who is Todd Bentley? Does it matter? I don't believe it does. When people are being healed, saved, and delivered then why would anyone want to come against something that is having a life changing effect on people.

As the month of May went on, I knew I was going to have to go to Florida myself and see first hand what was taking place there. Boy, was I shocked at how I would end up going.

The month started out busy as I attended the "Awake Deborah" conference in Lynden Washington. That was awesome to see the passion for God these women have. I enjoyed the guest speakers (Patricia King, Heather Clark, and Stacy Campbell)and the messages they gave challenged my spirit. During the conference someone generously gave money for my father (who had bone cancer at the time and was in the final stages of the disease) to go to Lakeland Florida. I believe God provided the money and felt honored to be able to go with my dad.

The flight to Florida was tough on my dad and the preparation to go took an entire week filled with doctor visits and locating the oxygen equipment needed to get him there. It was not an easy task, yet God provided every step of the way. Once we arrived it looked like my dad was so exhausted he would not be able to attend the evening session. This was heart wrenching. My father is an amazing man who has a faith that really does move mountains. He has inspired me so much in life and we came all the way from Washington state so he could see this move of God he had been praying for.

When it looked as if he would not be able to go that night we (my sister, my brother, and my dad's brother) contacted the church (Ignited Church)where the revival had started in hopes of reaching someone who could help us. To our surprise we did reach a lady who just happened to be part of the churches healing team. Within 45 minutes of talking with us on the phone she brought some prayer warriors with her to our hotel to pray for our dad. This sweet lady arrived with a few children who were passionate about seeing God demonstrate healing and they prayed for our dad and us three kids as well. It was a very special demonstration of God's love working through others. After they left we began to get our father ready to go. In his weakened state along with the medication we didn't know if he would be able to make it. Once we got to the civic center where the revival was being held at that time, it was definite we were going to have to leave early due to my father not feeling well. As we pulled into the parking area at the civic center I immediately began getting a picture in my mind. I saw a great horse. The rider of the horse appeared to be coming back from battle and was carrying the flag of victory through the city streets. The people were cheering on both sides. When the rider turned, he lifted his helmet and I could see it was my father. I was deeply moved by this picture that the Lord had given me but was not sure what it meant. I did share it with the others as we looked for a parking spot. Once inside we found the lady who had prayed for our dad earlier in the hotel room. We told her we were going to have to leave soon. She went and found another lady who was part of Todd Bentley's prayer team. She spoke with my father and prayed with us as well before we left to go back to our hotel. It was difficult to leave the meeting when you saw people being healed and we wanted our father to be to be touched so badly.

The next day we decided to approach God boldly and join together as a small team praying and interceding for our dad. That evening our father was ready to go and you could sense excitement in the spirit. We got to the meeting late and found a spot in the very back of the arena. A young man offered his seat to me and I thanked him but refused the seat. I wanted to stay close to my dad. I noticed the young man kept staring at my father. My brother, Jordan who was the one standing behind my fathers wheelchair was talking to the man. Then, I saw the man praying for my father. Before I knew it, my father was out of his wheelchair and jumping up and down. I began to panic. I thought what on earth is happening. My father was so fragile I didn't think he should be doing that. My dad, suddenly passed out and they put a pillow from the hotel underneath his head. I tried to relax inside and give it all to God. This young man obviously had a desire to pray earnestly for my father and so I should let him do so. My brother and the man got my dad back into his wheelchair. The man continued to pray for my father. As Todd preached I felt such faith. The air around us was different and the spirit of God was moving. You could feel God's presence. Then before I knew It, Todd commanded people to get out of their wheelchairs. I watched as my father who usually needed help to even go to the bathroom, take off his oxygen, get up out of his wheelchair and begin to walk to the front where Todd was preaching. That was a long walk. People begin cheering on both sides of the aisle and it made me think of the picture God had given me the night before as we were pulling into the civic center. I will never forget that moment. The glory of God surrounded my father. In that precious moment under the anointing I watched my father do things he couldn't do since the last stage of the cancer had taken affect. It rocked my very being. There was about a 25 minute period from the time my dad had walked up there to the time he actually got up on stage with Todd Bentley. It was incredible. My sister, Melody asked the name of the man who prayed for our dad. He said his name was Emmanuel. I knew, then that God is ever surprising us.

When we returned home from Florida I believed my dad was free from bone cancer. It was a faith challenging moment for me when he died just six days later. It was hard to understand. Even with all the prophecies spoken of him. As I looked at my dad one last time I told God that even though it was hard, I knew he loved me and had a plan. No matter what anyone says or what the situation looks like to others. I choose to trust God. God has the best plan and I look forward to it. It was an honor to stand and testify at my fathers celebration of life service. He would have been proud that I was standing firm in the faith as he had done after being diagnosed two years ago. What an awesome testimony my father had and what an honor to witness his faith. The kind of faith Jesus exhibited when he walked the earth.

In God's plan you can't lose for winning. I believe my father would agree with me as he looks down on the bigger picture from Heaven.

In Lakeland I became forever changed. As God spoke through the young man Emmanuel to me saying, "Go now and do as I did". I felt something deposit into my spirit that accelerated me into the destiny God has planned for my life. I plan on visiting the revival again. I want to see and be anywhere that God is moving. To take up the cross and preach the gospel, lay hands on the sick, raise the dead, and do as Jesus did.

My hunger for God has continued to increase. I encourage others to open themselves up to God's plan and never put limits on what God can do.