Elijah in a cave

Greetings in Jesus' name brothers and sisters. I would like to say first off that you are all dear to me in the Lord, and many posts, and replys have been great blessings to me. It did however, concern me a few months ago, as well as recent posts, when I hear(d) the doubt that seems to prevail in many of our hearts concerning God's ability to rise up in mighty power in our day. Many posts I've read have seemed to glorify and be enamored with past moves of God, yet completely deny anything God might do in our day. For instance many of you have spoken negatively concerning the Brownsville Revival, passing it off as being nothing more than charismania, flesh, and even satanic. I tell you you couldn't be further from the truth. I am a youth pastor in Michigan and was saved at the revival. I was blessed to live there for three years and was trained and taught by some of the greatest men of God and men of prayer that I've ever known. Many of whom were actually discipled by Leonard Ravenhill (who many of you hold in high-esteem, so do I.) Sonny Jaynes, for instance, the dean of men at Brownsville Revival School of Ministry, was discipled by brother Ravenhill, and was in prayers meetings with him everyday of his life. My brothers and sisters, I encourage you to not end as Elijah ended. Elijah at the end of his ministry came under intimidation and wound up in a cave telling God that he was the only one left, and guess what HE WAS WRONG! Friends, you are not the only ones left who are truly seeking God and going after revival. YOU ARE NOT! There are many sincere and dedicated brothers and sisters that you refuse to acknowledge because you accuse them of barking like dogs and the likes. (Which is a complete like by the way.) Friends God is more than able to move in our day, DO NOT Exalt the name of doubt and unbelief above the name of my King! HE IS NOT WORTHY Of that honor! Burning,Jeff

Greg, I hope you don't mind me posting this here. I see and hear the desire in your heart for the Lord to dwell in your midst, etc... Quote: "the Church needs to seek Him like never before"May I offer this. It is a dream I had less than a year ago.In my dream I am visiting someone’s huge modern house. The house is equipped with everything including indoor basketball court and full gym.(I used to be a personal trainer, so of course, it had to have a fully equipped gym!) I leave the house and drive away in my car that I used to have – a BMW. I drove to a Kmart or Walmart parking lot where they have the swingsets for sale in the summer. There are two other ladies there in light, flowing clothes. (about my age 34) They take me to a house out in the middle of nowhere, like a prairie. This house is a small simple farm-type house with a wrap around porch. Inside there is nothing – only a bed in each bedroom. Just plain wood floors,etc.. The only thing I noticed that was decorative were pink sheer curtain blowing in the windows.(my favorite color is pink). I was not a prisoner there but knew I was to be there for along time – if not forever. An older, distinguished gentleman with silver-grey hair came to the house and He came into my room. He layed down on the bed. I was a little nervous at first because I felt a sort of intimacy with Him but hoped he did not expect anything from me. He said He just wanted to rest there. I was relieved and then proceeded to ask Him about the house. He said “I have all My girls set up like this.” I felt that he was taking care of us in this way in these simple but sufficient houses. Interpretation: After the dream I felt that this dream was showing how I have been leaving materialism and my own dreams for myself behind, trying to get rid of a lot of things “not needed”, including not needed activities, traditions, etc… I went to the ‘lower end’ store parking lot to where the swing sets were – not needing status and also becoming child-like. Also the house was in a prairie setting-wilderness or desert(I am out of the church system) At that time I felt the Lord was still just showing me that I was to continue in this way. Not until my friend had another similar dream about me (having a yard sale and selling everything off; thanks Sharrie!) It reminded me of this dream again and I began to think about the Lord coming to rest there. It suddenly occurred to me to look up the verses about the Lord having nowhere to rest His head. There it was: Luke 9:58-62 Everyone who He told to follow Him had something they thought, at the time, was more important to do before they followed Him completely. I felt that they were holding on too tightly to these “other things” –like most of us –material things, relationships, traditions, man's teachings, etc…They put these things before Him, and because of this He had no where to rest His head, to dwell. In my dream at the “simple house”- the Lord came to rest His head! There were no distractions, no “things”, in the way or put before Him. Everyone seems to be running around wondering how to get “more of the Lord”, more of His presence, His power –how to get Him to dwell with them on a consistant basis. In this place of SIMPLICITY He will come and dwell (rest His head)! When we stop putting other things before Him, when we GET RID OF EVERYTHING NOT NEEDED; He will come and rest. Blessings! Chanin

Standing Alone There are people who can move in crowds, and who will act when they have others supporting and encouraging them, but many fade out when it is a case of facing this tremendous thing alone. Superior greatness is shown by taking personal responsibility whether others do so or not. . . . Superior greatness is willingness to stand for what God has revealed as His will, though we have to stand alone. It may be one against many, there may be a considerable amount of alone-ness, but that is where the test of our spiritual measure comes in, in initiative and responsibility that does not wait for an organization to come into being to deal with the situation, but makes it a personal matter-and a thorough-going one, too. T Austin-SparksStanding alone, moving towards an awakeningThe people of the Lord are instructed to pray “as in Heaven, so on Earth”. One of the things the Lord has set out to accomplish as an answer to this prayer is a planting of a great measure of discernment among His people. The things sought for and received as grace and gifts from Heaven bears the mark of Heaven. It is the investment of Eternal qualities in that which has not yet reached its goal. It is the Spirit of Christ at work bringing the people of the Lord to maturity.An awakening brings Heaven to bear on earthly matters. This is what is yet to be seen in these very modern expressions of spirituality in the name of being “what God is doing today”. An awakening is needed to bring in a full measure of spiritual discernment, an ability to see what comes from God, what truly represents Him. Veracity is an old fashioned, perhaps an obsolete word. Even as I write, my spelling program reacts with red underlining – wrong, not here, you cannot do that. Veracity is something we need to pursue – it lies at the core of praying “as in Heaven, so on Earth; it lies at the heart of an awakening, a true revival.Lars W.

First off a warm and generous welcome to you Jeff!So glad that you are here and have opened up your heart to us.Many posts I've read have seemed to glorify and be enamored with past moves of God, yet completely deny anything God might do in our day. For instance many of you have spoken negatively concerning the Brownsville Revival, passing it off as being nothing more than charismania, flesh, and even satanic. I tell you you couldn't be further from the truth. I think there may be a misunderstanding in what is constituted in being "enamored with past moves of God". I believe it is the missing elements of past revivals, repentence, humility, brokeness, the fear and Holiness of God, the preaching of God's word and so forth. Not to say that these aspects are altogether vacant, but where is the emphesis?Interesting timing, I heartly recommend unto everyone a message I just listened to yesterday: Holiness or "Blessing" From Art Katz. Though he is in part commenting on the issues with the Toronto 'revival', it is very applicable to the thoughts being presented here. By far the most balanced treatment I have yet to hear. A few comments and defenitions;From Lars:Veracity is an old fashioned, perhaps an obsolete word. Even as I write, my spelling program reacts with red underlining – wrong, not here, you cannot do that. I love that!ve•rac•i•ty \\ve-"ra-se-te\\ n, pl -ties 1 : devotion to truth : truthfulness 2 : conformity with fact : accuracy 3 : something true (c)2000 Zane Publishing, Inc. and Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. All rights reservedFrom Chanin:Everyone seems to be running around wondering how to get “more of the Lord”, more of His presence, His power –how to get Him to dwell with them on a consistant basis. In this place of SIMPLICITY He will come and dwell Indeed, is it "more of the Lord" in the sense of what He can do for us? Or is it in surrendering our purposes to His greater purpose?sim•plic•i•ty \\sim-"pli-se-te\\ n 1 : lack of complication : clearness 2 : candor, artlessness 3 : plainness in manners or way of life 4 : silliness, folly From Greg:There is a holy-disatisfication within me and a despertness to seek God. But that does not imply that I go out and accept everything and what everyone is saying is what God is doing. I am seeking Him in the closet and each day goes by and God is blessing me and bringing me closer to Him and His purposes for my life.Amen, I could not agree more, this word has become fixed in my conscious;au•then•tic \\e-"then-tik, o-\\ adj : genuine, real — au•then•ti•cal•ly \\-ti-k(e-)le\\ adv — au•then•tic•i•ty \\'o-'then-"ti-se-te\\And lastly:Its a desperate time brother and this requires desperate actions. The Church needs to seek Him as never before. Extreme situations require extreme measures. God will show Himself strong in those who seek Him with all their heart. Satan is very active in all this and He knows that those who are AWAKE in the Church are trying to fetch strength from God, He is offering many easy roads and substitutes which are not necessarily from Him but ARE not God's best. re•vive \\ri-"viv\\ vb re•vived; re•viv•ing 1 : to bring back to life consciousness, or activity : make or become fresh or strong again 2 : to bring back into use — re•viv•er n

I believe it is the missing elements of past revivals, repentence, humility, brokeness, the fear and Holiness of God, the preaching of God's word and so forth. Not to say that these aspects are altogether vacant, but where is the emphesis?Where Is The power?~ I heard a story of a traveling evangelist who came to a church and gave a message and then an alter call. He invited all those who would wanted prayer to receive the power of God to line up on the left side of the church and all those who wanted to receive God's brokenness to line up on the right side. Well, it seems that about 95% of the folks got in the power line and the other five got in the brokenness line. After they were all lined up he walked over to those in the brokenness line and turned to the others and said, "I will pray for these and they will get their brokenness and they will also be the ones who get the power." God does not give out His kingdom power so that we can go out in our rebellious hearts and do exploits for Him. He gives His power to those who want the fellowship of His sufferings and to be made conformable to His death. No pain, no gain. No death, no glory. We must fellowship with Him in His sufferings before we will know Him in His power. We have seen for years this sham of men and women who parade before us in our meetings, claiming to have power in the presence of God. For a long time the best they could come up with was stretching legs; now they fill teeth with gold and claim the manifest presence of God with gold dust on the people. When God's real power shows up on His broken ones, there will be no doubt. But the true sign of His men and women of power will not be the overt signs that men seek after. No, it will be the sign of the Messiah, one who comes in all lowliness and humility, waiting for God to lift them up in his due season and not before. This I am willing to wait for. I want nothing to do with the dog and pony shows that call themselves the power workers of God as they parade across the stages of churches and conference rooms, boasting of their greatness (in all humility, of course). I am reminded that the two final witness in Revelation are dressed in sackcloth and not shark-skin suits with gold rings on their fingers. The smooth clothing and fine jewelry are found on the Great Whore later in the book. Do not be fooled by the counterfeit false prophets, apostles, and wonder workers of this hour. Look for the brokenness of Christ in those who say they are of Christ. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This article by Michael Clark can also be found on www.awildernessvoice.com

Excellent.Chanin, I believe you would love the Art Katz message I mentioned, this is a echo of the same...

I will take a look at it! Thanks!In Him,Chanin

A central item picked up from Art Katz’ Holiness or BlessingKatz did not say this, but this is what I heard:Anyone, any spiritual power can ”bless” you.Only God, the Holy One of Israel, can sanctify you and make you fit for the Kingdom.Are we able, even willing to acknowledge the difference between the holy and profane?

Lars,Great point when you said:"Are we able, even willing to acknowledge the difference between the holy and profane"?I would only add; we desperately need "disernment" prior to the act of acknowledgement, which precedes the act of repentance (turning from the profane to the Holy).Clutch ;-)

It is perhaps profitable to define discernment as conscience stirred and awakened.We desperately need such an awakening, which will come by means of prayer, a church displaying practical holiness and by solid, biblical preaching all this generated by the presence of the Holy Spirit – underlining Holy.Lars

Amen.Holy

Any revival or awakening in God’s people must be accompanied by an appreciation for the holiness of God. It is debatable whether the Church today has ever known the holiness I am referring to, but certainly we have a great repository in scripture in the books of Exodus, Deuteronomy, Leviticus and Numbers. I look for a Last Days’ people, a remnant people of God, who have that same press upon their spirits as the plate that pressed against the forehead of Aaron, ‘Holiness to the Lord;’ a people who are conscious always of what they say and what they do as being before a holy Judge. Such a jealous regard for the holiness of God has been lost to us. Do we really know what the holiness of God means? This revelation is a provision from God, and if it is deeply inscribed upon our hearts, it will be a safeguard against the cheap and flimsy age in which we live. Art Katz

We need to be reminded that the Holy Spirit means the Spirit of holiness, and before we think that we can obtain the advantage of the Spirit of God as being the Spirit of power or any other benefit that accrues to us through the Spirit, we need to be aware that in its first ministration, the Spirit of God is the Spirit of truth, the Spirit of righteousness and holiness, and then, when received on that basis, He will become to us as power and the other forms that are needful in this life. Art Katz

Elijah did end up in a cave. And as the days grow darker, so will the community of those following foolishly after the cross grow smaller. Elijah encounterd God in the temple alone. It was not a "annointing" nor a message that shook the foundations of the temple. Instead it was merely the voice of him that called. HOLY HOLY HOLY IS THE LORD OF HOSTS THE WHOLE EARTH IS FULL OF HIS GLORYThe Holiness of the Lord alone can save us. As the Jeremiah criedWho would not fear You, O King of the nations? Indeed it is Your due! For among all the wise men of the nations And in all their kingdoms, There is none like YouAs the days grow on, the world will grow darker, but Lord make my fire burn brighter for you

I was reading this today from A.W. Tozer's The Pursuit of Man and thought it may be useful in this thread. I have no direct personal experience with Brownsville so I can't speak much concerning the movement there but perhaps those who have can use this excerpt to help prayerfully test the spirit of what they have seen and heard, at Brownsville, or at any so-called move of God."For myself, I fear any kind of religious stir among Christians that does not lead to repentance and result in a sharp separation of the believer from the world. I am suspicious of any organized revival effort that is forced to play down the hard terms of the kingdom. No matter how attractive the movement may appear, if it is not founded in righteousness and nurtured in humility it is not of God. If it exploits the flesh it is a religious fraud and should not have the support of any God-fearing Christian. Only that is of God which honors the Spirit and prospers at the expense of human ego. "That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 1:31)"In Christ,Ron