2010 — A Psalm 91 Year

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While praying a few days ago, I heard the Lord speak about 2010, “It’s a Psalm 91 year.” 

Psalm 91:1 immediately came to mind: “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”  

I felt the Lord further impressing me that if we will meditate on Psalm 91, its truths will be sustaining for us and will provide protection for us. God wants His people to possess this psalm in our hearts and appropriate its promises for our provision in the days ahead.

Receiving the blessing, provision, and protection in Psalm 91 is conditional on several key words in the first verse – dwelling in the secret place and abiding under His shadow. It is about putting Him first and dedicating special time to be alone with Him, to listen to Him and to act upon what He speaks.

Over the past few months, I have been consistently hearing that God wants to do a work of dependence on Him within His people. At this time in history, when there is a thrust to remove “In God We Trust” from our currency, God wants to restore to His children “In God We Trust” as a deep reality of the heart. In the process, greater understanding of what true faith is will be required. Abiding in Him, keeping close to His heart, and putting the truths of His Word, such as are found in Psalm 91, deep inside us, are the keys to having the kind of trust that will fearlessly depend upon Him.

Everything we need to live the victorious Christian life is found through abiding in the secret place of deep intimacy with the Lord. 2 Peter 1:3 assures us, “… His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who has called us to glory and virtue.”  John 15:7 promises, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done for you.”  

I will be pondering Psalm 91 in days and weeks to come, getting it firmly planted in my heart and decreeing it over my life and the lives of loved ones, and making it mine. Will you join me?

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Flowing in the Prophetic Seminar

We’ve got an exciting seminar coming up at SALT International for intercessors and prophetic people in January, 2010.  Apostolic teacher Steve Driessen is my pastor.  He and his wife have taught me much of what I know about intercession and prophecy.  I guarantee that this seminar will unlock doors of understanding in the prophetic realm for you.  Here’s the info: 

Flowing in the Prophetic
Level 1: The Prophetic Anointing 

One Day, Six Hours, Propelling Your
Prophetic/Intercessory Gifts to New Heights 

Have you ever longed to:   

• Hear God more clearly and more often?
• Be more certain it was really Him you were hearing?
• Better understand your dreams and visions?
• Or didn’t even know where to start?

This seminar is for you, no matter what level you are currently operating in prophetically.  Apostolic teacher Steve Driessen will impart prophetic understanding that is practical, easy to relate to, and life-changing. 

Topics include:

1.)  The Ministry of Jesus in the Church
2.)  The Prophetic Intercessor: Having a Hearing Ear & Seeing Eye
3.)  Anointed to Serve
4.)  An Open Heaven
5.)  Visions and Dreams: The Language of the Holy Spirit
6.)  How to Interpret Dreams 

Two additional levels in the Flowing in the Prophetic series will be available in months to come.

Flowing in the Prophetic — Level 1: The Prophetic Anointing

 Details: 

Saturday, January 16, 2010
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

The Siekman Center for Junior Achievement
2^nd Floor – The River Ministries Center
300 N. Appleton St.
Appleton, WI  54911 

Cost: $60.00 per person or $100.00 per married couple
(includes training materials and lunch) 

Pre-registration with payment required by January 7, 2010. 

 Payment may be made at the SALT website,
http://www.salt-international.com/conferences.shtml 

Or by sending a check or money order to: 

The River Ministries / SALT
P.O. Box 1271
Appleton, WI  54912

Questions?

E-mail: intercessors@salt-international.com 
Phone: (920) 213-2062. 

Answered Prayer: Swine Flu on the Wane

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I am delighted with the report currently hitting the news: swine flu is on the wane.  Back at the end of August, I posted what I was hearing from the Lord about swine flu (H1N1) — that if we would pray for the waning and nullification of this disease, God would do a “wonder” and stop it from devastating the nation.  At that time and for months to come, government sources were predicting a “pandemic” that would sicken half the people in the U.S. and kill between 30,000 and 90,000 people.  I was hearing that this was a “false prophecy,” but that the word curse and fear attached to it needed to brought down.  The main point was that if we would intercede to stop this disease, God would answer.  Some of you contacted me and told me you were hearing the same thing.  I would imagine that thousands of intercessors across the nation were hearing God’s counsel on this disease and faithfully responding to His call to prayer.

I find it interesting that the wane to the virus cannot be attributed to vaccinations against it, since the vaccine is only now becoming readily available to the general public.

Four thousand people have reportedly died from swine flu.  They are not just a statistic.  Each one was a valuable person who is mourned by his or her loved ones.  However, from what I have read, it appears that scientific testing has not been going on wholesale to determine who has the H1N1 virus and who does not.  Much of the reporting of cases is based on symptoms being described by patients, which means that many of the cases could have been due to other viral infections that act similarly.

In spite of the unexpected waning of the H1N1 spread, the CDC continues to put out warnings that we could experience a resurgence of the disease during the winter months.  This need not happen, if we continue to pray protection over the nation and decree an absolute end to the disease.

I am so encouraged to see God answer the prayers of His people in this matter.  May it give us renewed courage to press in whenever we hear God speak about things He wants us to intercede for — knowing that He will answer, if we will be obedient and believe.

Previous Post: God’s Answer to Swine Flu

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Favorite Worship Music

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Below are links to some of my favorite worship music — ones that aren’t the obvious, universally-liked artists that are easy to find.  Most of this music can be found at MySpace or YouTube, if you want to get a full listen before purchasing.  And a lot of them can be downloaded through iTunes.

Daniel Brymer – Let Your Healing Flow

Justin Rizzo – Found Faithful  (IHOP worship leader)

Jonathan David Helser – The Reward and Walk Through the Walls  (MorningStar worship)

Stephen Roach — Closer to the Burning  (Same ordering page as Jonathan David Helser — scroll down page)  (MorningStar worship)

Rick Pino – Songs for an End Time Army (my favorite of Rick’s so far). 

Iona — Book of Kells (Celtic worship)

Lenny LeBlanc — All for Love

Rita Springer

Jessie Rogers – Out of the Fire  (Brownsville Revival-style worship) (This is from Lindell Cooley’s store.)

Lindell Cooley — Encounters

Savoring the Sanctuary of His Presence (Part 7)

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In previous posts, I spoke about the corporate worship setting at great length.  But what about our personal worship, just Him and us? 

And there was also Anna, a prophetess …. She was very old … who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. – Luke 2:36, 37 

And the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. –  Exodus 33:11

Here we see an old woman and a young man with something in common that set them apart from everyone else: they loved the sanctuary of God’s Presence.  They loved ministering to the Lord’s heart by lavishing themselves on Him.  They did not go in and out of His Presence: they stayed there – because they wanted to be wherever He was.

In Anna and Joshua’s day, the Lord’s Presence rested in the structure where corporate worship was conducted.  (By the way, there are still physical places in our time as well, where God has been so sought after by true worshippers that His Glory-Presence continually rests tangibly in the building.)   But we have something that Anna and Joshua did not have.  Jesus promised that when He ascended into heaven, He would send the Holy Spirit to dwell in the hearts of believers (John 14:16, 17), and that we ourselves would be the temple of God (1 Corinthians 6:19). 

The Lord is still looking for people who desire not to depart from His Presence.  Worship and awareness of Him can be a lifestyle.  We do not have to step out of dwelling in His glory.  We all do step out of it and into natural-man ways from time to time, but we don’t have to.  The goal is to stay there.  It is what Jesus referred to in John 15 as “abiding in Him.” 

Some of us think we have to go from one great conference to the next to experience wonderful worship, miracles, and glory manifestations.  But Jesus wants us to learn how to tap into dwelling in a state of worship, having communion with Him throughout every day, not needing the hype that is part of some corporate worship gatherings in order to be satisfied.  We are to find our complete satisfaction in Him, not in the tools that are used to facilitate worship.  

Corporate worship is wonderful, and I dearly love being in that setting, but we must somehow learn to go beyond only experiencing God’s touch in that way.  Pure worship flows out of relationship with Him.  And since we are the temple of His Presence through the Holy Spirit indwelling us, we can stay in the sanctuary of worship all the time, beyond what Anna and Joshua had.

Previous: True Worship (Part 6) 
Next: Favorite Worship Music

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True Worship (Part 6 )

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John 4:23 tells us “… True worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship Him.”  God is still looking for people who will give Him the true worship He longs for. 

True worship is not fervor over how uplifting or how exciting the music is.  We can be in performance-based praise settings that appeal to our senses, make us feel good, or get us dancing to the driving beat, and think that is worship.  Really, it is not much more than music executed so well and with such energy that it pleases our flesh.  This is the only “worship” experience many have ever known. 

I once had a vision that illustrated this type of attempt at worship.  Jesus was standing outside two huge oaken doors leading into a ballroom.  He was waiting in happy anticipation for the doors to be opened so that He could come in.  Everyone on the other side of the doors was rejoicing and dancing because of Jesus, but they forgot to throw wide the doors and announce that He had come.  Perhaps it was not so much that they forgot; maybe they didn’t know they were supposed to.  So Jesus continued to stand and wait, and all the while people were rejoicing about Him without having Him present among them.  It was like celebrating at a wedding and forgetting that if the bridal couple is not in the room, the whole celebration is without meaning.

Essentially, the problem in this kind of scenario is that the “worship” is about us — are we enjoying the music, are we feeling good, do we get a “high” from the worship experience.  When we shift from it being about our satisfaction to what satisfies the Lord, that’s when we come into true worship.  We have then “opened the doors” to Him and He can make glorious entrance among us, reveal Himself to us, and truly fellowship with His people. 

This is what the Lord longs for.  It is what we are really longing for as well.  True worship provides genuine satisfaction for both the Lord and His beloved people, and it lasts beyond the momentary experience.  Anything less may give us a temporary thrill, but we end up feeling empty when the excitement is over.  We need to entreat the Lord to bring us into true worship and to keep us there.

Over the last few posts, I have put a lot of emphasis on worship in the corporate setting.  Next time, I’d like to delve into personal worship.

Previous: Worship and the Holy War (Part 5) 
Next: Savoring the Sanctuary of His Presence (Part 7) 

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Worship and the Holy War (Part 5)

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Undistracted worship is a challenge.  In the corporate setting, we’ve all experienced the sudden mysterious technical difficulties sound equipment can develop, the unexpected and badly timed remarks others sometimes make just as we are entering the sanctuary door, and myriads of other minor disasters.  From that point on, focusing our complete attention on the Lord becomes a colossal struggle, and there may be times we do not succeed in overcoming during the entire worship phase of our service.  None of this is coincidence.  It is Satan’s deliberate assault.  

Why does he make such a concerted effort to derail our worship?  We have already seen in the previous posts that worship is a warfare weapon that puts the enemy’s camp in disarray and that worship decrees the kingdom of heaven into the earth.  Hell is not going to let those things happen without a fight. 

But there is another reason as well. Ezekiel 28:11-17 gives us a description of “the king of Tyrus” which many Bible scholars believe is really referring to Lucifer and what he was like before his rebellion against God.  Verse 13 says, “… the workmanship of your tabrets and of your pipes was prepared in you in the day that you were created.”  A tabret (sometimes translated “timbrel” or even “tambourine”) was a percussion instrument, probably a drum. “Workmanship” has the extra meaning of ministry or occupation.  This reference possibly indicates that Lucifer was once the lead worship minister in heaven. When we understand that the ultimate purpose of the entire universe is to worship the Lord God Almighty, we see what an important position Lucifer held.  But Isaiah 14:12-14 informs us that this one who was adorned with great beauty and had the prestigious honor of leading worship, became prideful (“I will ascend … I will exalt my throne … I will be like the Most High.”) and decided he would rather be worshipped than be the worshipper. 

He desired to usurp worship for himself then, and he still does today.  This is his primary goal – to divert worship from the Most High God to himself.  We see his maneuvers all through history – deceiving mankind into idol worship, distracting man’s attention from adoration of the King of Kings, even tempting Jesus to worship him: “All these things will I give you if you will fall down and worship me” (Matthew 4:9).  

The holy war of the ages, in a nutshell, is about who will be worshipped.  We who believe the Scriptures already know what the final outcome will be: “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10.11). Until that final day, we are honored with an invitation to participate in the universal conflict by worshipping King Jesus and by interceding on behalf of His worship being accomplished.

Previous: The Marriage of Worship and Intercession (Part 4) 
Next: True Worship (Part 6)

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The Marriage of Worship and Intercession (Part 4)

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Worship and intercession go hand in hand.  The person with a true heart of intercession will quite naturally find himself slipping into worship, because both of these aspects of prayer are fueled by the Holy Spirit and flow out from our spirit-man.  Worship is the propellant which sends our prayer-rockets heavenward and gives them the “boost” to make it all the way to the throne. 

Those of us who are intercessors have a very important role in the corporate worship setting, especially within church fellowships where entreating God for His Presence to settle in is understood. 

Let me explain about His Presence, first of all, for those who may not have experience with what I am speaking of.  God is omnipresent, meaning that He is capable of being everywhere at the same time.  So, in that sense, He is always present among His people.  When I refer to His Presence being among us, however, I mean a tangible sense that He has drawn very near (termed by some His “Manifest Presence”).  For the spiritually attentive person, God’s Presence will be suddenly felt, whereas it was not felt moments before, and we know He has “entered the room” or “come down” among us.  When we worship with clean hands and a pure heart, experiencing communion with the Lord in this way should be the norm, once we know that we can expect it. 

Within my church family, it is a rare gathering where we do NOT have His Presence manifest among us.  In fact, we normally do not shift out of our corporate worship into the sermon portion of the service until we know He is among us tangibly and that He has been pleased with our adoration.  Sometimes our worship goes on long past an hour, and sometimes we never do get to a sermon, because lavishing our love on the Lord and reveling in His response is what He wants for our entire gathering time. 

Obviously, a worship team that can flow with the Spirit is key in both bringing the congregation to a place of pure focused adoration and attracting the Lord’s Presence.  But the intercessors are also important in accomplishing this goal.  When I am in the corporate worship setting, I know that I have work to do.  Both worship and warfare for breakthrough into His Presence may be necessary.  (And remember, worship is a form of warfare in itself.)  I stay sensitive to what is happening around me, listening for the Spirit, paying attention to the current atmosphere in the room, intensifying my intercession for breakthrough if I sense that it is not easily happening. 

Without intercessors who are paying keen attention to what is going on around them spiritually during the corporate worship setting and taking the intercessory steps needed, the manifest Presence of God may never come down upon the congregation during its gathering.  Intercessors are needed to discern and follow up with prayer (and possibly prophetic responses) concerning what we are discerning.  Our intercessions, warfare, and prophetic responses can be done discreetly, so as not to draw attention to ourselves and thereby distract others. 

Why would warfare be necessary during worship?  There are several reasons.  People can hinder heightened worship by bringing spiritual baggage with them into the corporate setting – sin issues, demonic problems, bitterness, unforgiveness, worries, lack of peacefulness, lack of being prepared for worship through prayerlessness, and just general distractions.  These things affect the atmosphere and hinder worship for the entire body, and require overcoming intercession / warfare.  Even when our hearts are right, and we have prepared ourselves for corporate worship, distractions can be presented deliberately by Satan to hinder us from connecting with the Lord. 

Next time we will talk about why Satan makes such an effort to hinder worship.

Previous: Worship Establishes God’s Kingdom in the Earth (Part 3)  
Next: Worship and the Holy War (Part 5)

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Worship Establishes God’s Kingdom in the Earth (Part 3)

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And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven saying, “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever.  — Revelation 11:15

You shall also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto you: and the light shall shine upon your ways. – Job 22:28 

It is fun to be in a corporate praise setting.  We enjoy glorifying the Lord with beautiful melodies, vibrant instrumentation, and wonderful lyrics expressing our love for Jesus.  And when His Presence gathers thickly all around us, it seems like heaven on earth. 

But what the Church is only beginning to understand is that our worship goes beyond our congregational (or home) setting and breaks down the enemy’s walls in cities and regions.  It puts demonic forces to flight, so that they are no longer able to oppress whole people groups.  Worship opens the floodgates of heaven over a wider geographical swath than just the little band of believers who are actively participating.  It brings blessing and freedom to those around them as well. 

How does this work?  We have already quoted James 4:8: “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”  When we worship, we are drawing close to the Lord.  He is attracted to us through worship, and fastens His attention upon us.  Worship goes on constantly in heaven, so when we participate in it, there is a holy union that takes place between our earthly domain and the heavenly domain. 

Heaven is a place of light and goodness.  When we worship, we draw down that same atmosphere around us.  And when light comes, darkness and the dark spiritual beings cannot remain and function as they would like to. Light cannot be easily contained; its nature is to emanate outward.  Thus, when we worship, we draw down the light of the Lord around ourselves – but it spreads outward to our neighborhood, our city, our region. 

When we worship, we are doing the will of God in the earth.  The Lord’s Prayer says, “Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven”(Matthew 6:10). God’s kingdom is established in the heavenlies.  He has given us the honor of partnering with Him in reestablishing it on earth.  (I say “reestablish” because the kingdom was established prior to mankind’s fall, and there has been a process of restoration to that original state going on in the earth ever since Jesus secured entire victory through the cross and resurrection.)

Every time we speak or sing of the majesty, greatness, power, and glory of God, we are decreeing it and affirming it in the earth and over the powers of darkness.  We establish God’s authority and His glory in the earth by verbalizing it.  Extolling God’s love and mercy in our worship is a holy declaration that opens the way for the establishment of His love and mercy around us.  Adoring Him for His faithfulness releases His faithfulness in the atmosphere around us to a greater degree.  When we sing of His greatness, His goodness, His power, those things are loosed among us.  This is not to say that God’s mercy, faithfulness, greatness, and all the wonderful qualities that make up His character are limited in some way, and that we make them bigger by our worship. But there is a cooperating between us and heaven that takes place through worship that causes the goodness of God to be manifested more fully in the earth by honoring Him aloud for those things. 

Am I saying that worship is only accomplished correctly by verbalizing it?  Absolutely not.  Worship is not only an outward act; it is a continual attitude of the heart.  There are times of deep intimacy with the Lord where words could never express our love for Him.  Heartfelt adoration of the Lord is of great value, while mere lip service is of no value whatsoever. But the speaking forth of audible worship has been neglected by some, due to a lack of revelation of its importance.  It’s time we come into a better understanding of the impact of the sound of worship. 

As in previous posts, I again want to stress that we don’t use worship to get revival and awakening in a region.  We worship purely to honor the Lord for Himself alone.  But the by-product of that worship is annihilation of hell’s grip on our region and full-blown establishment of the kingdom of heaven on earth.

Previous: Worship — Weapon of Warfare (Part 2) 
Next: The Marriage of Worship and Intercession (Part 4)

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Worship — Weapon of Warfare (Part 2)

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For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. – 2 Corinthians 10:4

God has given us many weapons with which to overcome the enemy of our souls – the Word of God, the blood and the name of Jesus, our faith, and the word of our testimony, for starters. (For a fuller discussion of the spiritual warfare weapons, please see my post, Spiritual Warfare: Our Weapons.) Worship is primarily to honor the King of Kings, but it has a by-product effect of being a weapon of warfare. 

2 Chronicles 20:1-30 tells the story of Judah being attacked by an army too great for them to overcome.  The people gathered themselves together at Jerusalem to seek the Lord in prayer and fasting. 

Look at how King Jehoshaphat opened their prayer gathering:  

And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, … and said, “O LORD God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? And do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the heathen? And in your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand you? Are you not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and gave it to the seed of Abraham your friend forever?” (vs. 5-7) 

What was Jehoshaphat doing?  He was worshipping. Jehoshaphat and his people were in dire distress and fear, yet they worshipped. 

By verse 14, we see one of the Levites of the house of Asaph prophesying the Lord’s protection and direction to the congregation.  Worship paved the way for revelation – which is another of the spiritual warfare weapons.  I also find it very interesting that the prophecy came forth from the worship team.  Asaph’s family line were directly responsible for leading the worship in the temple.  There is a correlation between worship and revelation.   

What did the people do, upon hearing this prophetic word?  “And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before the LORD, worshipping the LORD.  And the Levites … stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with a loud voice on high” (vs. 18, 19).  Their immediate response was worship. 

But King Jehoshaphat’s next move is entirely surprising.  He sent out an army to meet the foe (v. 21), with worshippers going before, whose only job was to praise the Lord! As they worshipped, God caused such confusion among the enemy that they killed each other (vs. 22, 23).  

There is a dynamic of worship that we do not fully understand in the natural.  Worship is the continuous sound in heaven’s throne room, and when we unite with that worship, we create a holy connection between heaven and earth.  God delights in our demonstration of love for Him, and draws near to us (James 4:8). 

How does this worship become a warfare tactic, then?  Worship of God Almighty afflicts the demonic world with confusion.  This is what happened in Jehoshaphat’s story.  Demons abhor the sound of worship.  It puts them in disarray.  This is why verbal worship, rather than just inward adoration, is needed.  As we worship, the heavens are opened over us and authority flows down from the throne to overthrow the strongholds of the devil.

Next up: How worship establishes God’s Kingdom in the earth

Previous: Worship and the Intercessor (Part 1) 
Next: Worship Establishes God’s Kingdom in the Earth (Part 3)

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