Accessing God’s Presence

Do you long to experience God’s presence more than you now do? If you are a believer — one who has accepted Jesus’ atonement on your behalf and who has yielded your life to His Lordship — you don’t have to jump through hoops to get there. You don’t have to follow a ritual, say a certain set of words, or ask God’s permission to enter into His presence. He invites you to perpetually live there.

Let’s see what the Bible has to say about this:

Psalm 91:1 — “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” This first verse of this beloved psalm is the gateway into all the other promises it contains. God desires for us to constantly live in His presence.

John 15:7 — “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done for you.” John 15 starts out with Jesus telling us He is the vine, and we are the branches. If the branch is not attached to its source, the vine, it withers and dies. The implication, once again, is that we are meant to stay attached to Him continuously (and thereby also to His presence). We are not meant to come and go.

Under the Old Covenant of the Law, there was a specific form which had to be followed exactly in order to enter the presence of God.

The progression for getting into the Lord’s presence started with the outer court of the tabernacle/temple, where sacrifices were brought to be burned on the altar by the priests. Past the outer court was the Holy Place, where the golden lampstand, the table of showbread, and the incense altar were. Only the priests were allowed in the Holy Place. Finally, there was the Holy of Holies, where God’s presence rested upon the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant. The high priest was the only one who ever got there, and then only once a year. If he did it wrong, he died.

That was all before Jesus’ atonement on the cross.

But what happened when Jesus said, “It is finished”? The curtain which divided the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the temple ripped, from the top down. God had torn the veil between Himself and the common man. He made the way of access to Himself available for every believer, and it all came about through Jesus’ once-and-for-all sacrifice of Himself. His blood forever speaks for us on the mercy seat in heaven.

Too frequently, we hear Christian leaders inviting us to perform certain steps to “get into the presence” of God. It sometimes involves a sequence of actions they want us to take, much like passing from the outer court, where we spend time reflecting on and repenting of wrongs we have done. Some teachers talk about making a “sacrifice” of some sort, in order to enter an intermediate “holy place,” where we praise and worship for a period of time. After the leader feels we have praised and worshiped sufficiently, he might invite everyone into a process of saying certain ritualistic words, such as asking God for permission to enter into His courts. Then, after we have done all the right stuff, we can confidently come before the Lord with our requests.

Ugh! It’s not right. The apostle Paul exhorts us to “rightly divide the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), and this ritualistic attempt to gain favor with the Lord so we can enter His presence is not discerning the divide between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant in Christ. It is coming back under the Law, but not with animal sacrifices like the Old Testament saints did. Now it’s got a new spin — still with ritual attached. In the process, we have forgotten the veil is already rent, so that we now have the privilege of dwelling in God’s presence.

I love both private and corporate worship, and yes, I understand that spending time adoring the Lord makes us feel nearer to Him — rightly so. With all the distractions we experience on an hourly basis, we tend to forget to stay in our dwelling place in Him. Worshiping the Lord helps us draw near again. It lifts us out of our everyday distractions. Really, it is not that we have stopped being in God’s presence; it is that we have become unaware of His nearness.

In the prayer gatherings my husband and I lead, worship is our first priority. Before we head into intercession, we spend time worshiping God with the help of music which lends itself well to that goal. It helps us all to lay aside the busyness of the day, to settle in, and focus on the Lord. As we all get our attention fully centered on Jesus, His presence does seem to be more tangible to us as a group. But mostly, we worship Him because He is worthy, not so we can experience the goosebumps of feeling His nearness, and certainly not to butter Him up so we get our prayers answered!

The Lord wants us, heart and soul. He wants our attention. And, He wants us to come to the place of recognizing that we have constant access to Him — not through steps and forms, but because He has thrown open the way through His Son. He wants us to see ourselves as living continually in His presence, not coming and going on visits to His throne room.

We have the Holy Spirit living, breathing, and burning in our hearts at all times, always wanting to remind us that not only do we live in His presence, but He has brought His presence right into our hearts. He is always there inside. You don’t have to go through rituals to be catapulted into His audience. You might not always “feel” Him, but He’s still there. Believe His promise, and make it your goal to grow in your awareness of your constant union with Him.

 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, who has passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

For we do not have a high priest Who cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one Who was in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. — Hebrews 4:14-16

Come boldly, because Jesus has already made the way, and your Father has invited you to live in His presence. Come boldly, because the Holy Spirit’s dwelling place is now inside of you. Live in His fire, His counsel, His love, and His peace. Because He said you can.
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Yes and Amen
God’s Promises from Genesis Through Revelation

(Choose from King James Version or Modernized King James Version)

Before Whom We Stand

Honor the Work of the Holy Spirit

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While we see (and will in the near future continue to see) many Charismatic ministries exposed for gross sin, never forget that there are faithful Charismatic leaders who have not strayed. This is a Church-wide problem, not exclusively a Charismatic problem.

Voices are already being raised, saying, “Do you see the fruit of these so-called spiritual gifts? We want nothing to do with prophecy, words of knowledge, tongues, or any other supernatural manifestation. It’s all fake.”

No, it’s not. And heading from one extreme of the spectrum to the other is not helpful to anyone.

The Holy Spirit still says, “Desire spiritual gifts” (1 Corinthians 14:1). His gifts are dear to His heart and should never be despised just because some have misused them. He also says, “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophesying. [Instead] prove (test; examine; discern) all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21).

The reasons vary for why people wish to throw out any supernatural manifestation of God’s Spirit. Some have been disappointed by shysters who wreaked havoc on them or their loved ones through false gifts. Some are grieved by leaders who did not discern falsity, or who chose to let it go on when they knew it was fake. Many do not wish to make the effort to discern for themselves whether something is “off.”

There is no excuse for laziness in discerning, by the way. God expects it of each of us individually. In fact, as we draw closer to the end of time, every believer must learn to examine what is said and done for whether it aligns with the Bible. Each of us is required to be sensitive to the whisper of the Holy Spirit, so we are not led astray.

The Lord highlighted these two verses to me recently:

Numbers 11:25 — “And the LORD came down in a cloud, and spoke to [Moses], and took of the Spirit which was upon him, and gave it to the seventy elders. And it came to pass, that when the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied without ceasing.” What struck me in this verse was that the Holy Spirit loves to manifest His presence through prophecy. Prophecy is part of the essence of Who He is.

Numbers 11:29 — “And Moses said to him, ‘Do you envy them for my sake? Would God that all the LORD’S people were prophets, and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them!'” It has always been God’s heart to put His Spirit upon people (and since Jesus ascended, to place His Spirit within us).

Consider how He has further made His desire clear to us in Joel 2:28, 29: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also upon the servants and the handmaidens, in those days, I will pour out My Spirit.” Peter confirmed the beginning of that endowment of the Spirit on Pentecost, as recorded in Acts 2. While Joel said, “in those days,” Peter said, “in the last days” this would happen (Acts 2:17). We are still living in those last days, and God is still pouring out His Spirit on all people.

Do not allow the failures of some — or even many — Charismatic leaders to intimidate you into denying or despising the spiritual gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10. Contrary to what some are saying, the Lord has never yet rescinded His gifts from His Church. They are still much needed today, perhaps more than ever. We should value whatever gifts the Lord offers us. To scorn or refuse them grieves and insults Him.
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The Spirit-Filled Guide to Personal Prophecy

The Dream Book: A Practical Guide to Christian Dream Interpretation

Eschatology Is Not a Bad Word

Image by Ronald Sandino, from Pixabay

Eschatology: the study of end-time events. I have heard numerous Christians say they want nothing to do with any of it. “It’s confusing. It isn’t important. Loving Jesus is all that matters.” The truth, though, is that it matters to Jesus — a lot. It is part of His story, and He wants us to pay attention to what He says about the end times in the Bible.

Jesus spoke extensively on the time of the end in the gospels. It was a major emphasis of the apostles in their letters to the early Church. They consistently reminded believers to be ready and looking for Jesus to come for them at any moment. The Old Testament prophets also spoke at length on the last days. Clearly, end-time events are important to the Lord, and He wants us to be informed about what is to come. We won’t get it all down pat, but we can all understand way more than we do.

I grew up in a liturgical church where we rarely heard anything about Jesus’ return. Once a year, we sat through a frightening sermon, taken from 2 Peter 3:10. Basically, the message was, “The earth is going to be cinderfied by God. Any of us who are still alive then will be burnt to a crisp, so get your act together now.” That one little snippet was all we were ever given. Good for us!

The after-church discussion at our dinner table amounted to my parents expressing their terror of becoming black toast. As an eight- or nine–year-old child, I simply thought, “It will probably only hurt for a second or two, and then I’ll be with Jesus.”

I married a Jesus People kind of guy. He had a different story of how it was all going down. He and all his buddies had inhaled Hal Lindsey’s book, The Late, Great Planet Earth. I never read it, but I think all the cinderfied earth was still somewhere in there. But there was also a “great catching away” (Rapture), a “Great Tribulation,” and a thousand-year reign of Jesus on earth coming first. It was a whole new weird theology to me.

I was skeptical and stubborn. I guess I wanted to cling to getting burnt to charcoal for some reason. But, I did what has been a faithful standby for me all these years. I said, “I am not swallowing this unless You show it to me in the Bible, God.” And He did. Not Hal Lindsey’s 1970s version. Just Bible verses which began to pop out here and there, much to my awe and illumination. I became one of those (gasp!) pre-Trib Pentecostal people who now looked forward to Jesus coming for His bride.

Twenty-five years later, a new take on the end times was introduced into my horrified brain by the apostolic/prophetic community. Now I was being barraged with “Jesus isn’t coming back any time soon” stuff. “He can’t, because if He does, your children’s children’s children won’t have the chance to fulfill their prophetic destiny.” (???) “Rapture-smapture! We are going to turn the earth around in its tracks, solve all mankind’s problems by supernatural revelation, and then hand our perfected planet on a platter to Jesus. He won’t come back until we do it all!” That’s a tad bit exaggerated, but you can tell the smidgen of humor is to get my point across, right?

So, what did I do? I began asking the Lord again to show me truth in His Word. I set aside a Bible just for my new eschatology adventure, and every time I ran across a verse that had any whisper of the end times in it, I underlined it in red. Doing that kept me standing strong through the latest barrage of uncomfortable teaching.

The project took a couple of years, but it was worth it. Along the way, I noticed that the early apostles were hugely focused on Jesus coming back for His people. They mentioned it all the time! And they believed it could happen at any moment. They heeded all Jesus had told them on the subject, like Jesus’ exhortation to continually watch and be ready for Him, because “the Son of man will come at an hour when you don’t think He will” (Luke 12:40).

Am I trying to convince you to join my pre-Trib camp? Nope! I have often said that I don’t think any of us have the whole picture exactly right. Some of the puzzle pieces don’t fit for me yet, either. We will understand it all much better after it happens.

But do realize that studying the end times in your Bible is exceedingly important, even if it is confusing sometimes. It’s precious to the Lord when we search the Scriptures to learn as much as we can about what comes next on God’s timeline — because it is a subject dear to His heart. He loves it when we converse about it with Him. He wants to put a deep longing in our hearts to be fully united with Him, in our glorified bodies, seeing and knowing Him as He is, face to face. We are meant to desire Jesus’ literal rule and reign on earth — yes, because of the restoration and justice He will bring — but even more, because He will receive all the glory He deserves.

And there’s still more after that: the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven, as described in Revelation 21 and 22. So much good stuff ahead! Sheer blessing for us, but ultimately, it is all for Him.

“Love His appearing” as 2 Timothy 4:8 says. Be on tiptoe for that catching away of all the saints “in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Corinthians 15:52), so that we will forever be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:17). Look forward to Jesus setting all things right on earth at His physical return, and the heavenly Jerusalem we will enjoy with God through all eternity.

And get as informed as you can now about it all by studying what He has said in the Bible. Eschatology is meant to bring hope, joy, and peace into our hearts. It helps us to know God’s heart better. Let it do that for you.

Related post:
Is There Still Going to Be a Rapture?
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All-Surpassing Peace in a Shaking World

Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God

You Are Not Elite (And That’s OK)

In the more than fifty years I have been involved in Spirit-filled churches and parachurch groups, I have seen in most of those groups the notion that we were the best group in town. The theme was consistent: We are where it’s at. We are the ones who carry the plan of God. Ugly, when stated so matter of factly, isn’t it?

I heard it said in private conversations and, sadly, from the pulpit. (One pastor apologized publicly the following week.) Sometimes it was subtle, and at other times, it was quite blatant.

Or, how about these lines?

• Revival will start with us.
• This group knows how to pray God’s kingdom in like no other.
• The destiny of America/Israel/our state/region/city depends on our prayers alone.
• If we don’t do it, nobody will.
• We are God’s instrument to bring about __________.
• Jesus can’t come back unless we usher Him in. (Seriously???)

Honestly, we need to stop it. It is delusional! We should love our local fellowship, but at the same time realize that we aren’t the end-all. Other people besides us have the call of God on their lives — separate from being part of our group. It doesn’t all hinge on our little corner of Christianity. In fact, if we could see the big picture, our group or flavor of the Church is probably a small sliver of the whole.

Consider Elijah’s conversation with God in 1 Kings 19:14 and 19: Elijah says, “I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts, because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant … and I, even I only, am left.” God responds, “I still have left to Me seven thousand in Israel whose knees have not bowed to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

Or how about what John the Baptist told the religious leaders in Matthew 3:9: “Don’t think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you, God is able to raise up children to Abraham of these stones.”

So much for thinking it all hinges on us — any of us. While it should humble us to realize we are not the elite ones, people who are necessary for God’s plan to survive, it also takes from us all inordinate pressure.

Consistently through the years, I have reminded our prayer group that we are one small gathering among thousands of intercessory groups who are also praying the same things we are, led by the same Holy Spirit. When we see that we have gained a mighty answer to prayer, we rejoice, but always with the understanding that we are a piece among many other pieces in God’s vast army of prayer warriors. We all work together.

No, you are not elite. Your group is not elite. I would especially like to repeat this to our friends in the apostolic/prophetic movement, which I have identified with for many years. We are each special in God’s eyes, yes — special simply because we are loved by Him and moving with Him by His grace. But so is every true believer and every gathering of true believers. We are one with the greater Body of Christ, not elevated over our brothers and sisters.

It’s important to consider this often. And if we drift back into thinking we are of a higher caliber than others, it is time to repent from the depths of our hearts.
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Check out Lee Ann’s books and audio resources.
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The Purity of Simple Prayer

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Sometimes Christian teachers make prayer sound kind of ooky-spooky, with a lot of hard-to-understand, mystical lingo. Because of the complexity of what is often taught, it can be discouraging, even to those of us who have been intercessors for many years.

As we mature in prayer, we become more adept at following the Spirit’s leading — not through techniques, but through the intimacy we develop with Him as we interact with Him in conversation and thoughtful Bible reading.

It’s still good to learn from mighty prayer warriors who have gone before us. I’ve gained a lot of wisdom from veterans such as Wesley Duewel, Lynne Hammond, Rees Howells, and E. M. Bounds. Perhaps those of you who have read my materials have learned a few things, too. Learning from others is always good as long as we keep it in balance by remembering this:

Prayer and receiving answers to prayer doesn’t have to be complicated.

It all comes back to what Jesus said of His kingdom, “Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter into it” (Luke 18:17). What does a little child do? In a healthy home, he trusts his parents. In the same way, God our Father wants us to trust Him, to come to Him with an unwavering belief in His love for us and His desire to give us good things because of that love.

Hebrews 4:16 puts it this way: “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” That’s what children do in a healthy family. They come boldly with their requests.

Does coming to God as a small child mean we should remain childish in our understanding and behavior? Of course not. Toddlers throw tantrums when they don’t get their way. They can’t grasp abstract ideas. They don’t always know what is best for them. Parents must put strict boundaries and safeguards in place, so they don’t do harmful things to themselves, like running out in the street in front of a car or drinking drain cleaner. The apostle Paul said, “When I was a child, I thought like a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish things” (1 Corinthians 13:11). The Lord wants us to keep a childlike trust in Him, but He doesn’t want us to stay immature.

We are meant to grow up into adult sons and daughters who discipline our thoughts and words, who are considerate of others, and who don’t make rash decisions. Father is training us up to behave like the royalty we are, able to handle serious responsibilities well, and whose kinship with Jesus is evident to all — because we look, act, and sound like our elder Brother. One of these serious responsibilities is prayer.

We can pray maturely and still do it with simplicity. 2 Corinthians 11:3 says, “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity which is in Christ.” I love that phrase, “the simplicity which is in Christ.” What Jesus taught in the Gospels about prayer was simple and yet deeply profound — deep enough to challenge the most seasoned intercessor, while at the same time easy enough to be understood by a child. Simple enough to make the religious leaders of His day wish He would just be quiet! It messed with all their legalistic maneuvers to get God’s attention.

Legalistic maneuvers to get God’s attention. This is as much a pitfall in our day as it was 2,000 years ago. We have to continually remind ourselves not to go there. We already have Father’s attention. He has been listening intently for every cry of our hearts since we became His children when we first believed on Jesus. But our human thinking seems to long for systems we can manipulate for the desired answer — like gumball machines. Maybe you aren’t old enough to remember what those were, but I am. Put in the correct coin, yank the lever, and out pops the gum. Prayer doesn’t work like that. God refuses to be our gumball machine.

I think it’s time to get back to prayer as it was meant to be: sincerely coming to our Father in heaven, trusting Him to answer us with good gifts. Learn His ways so that you will love Him more — not so you can manipulate something out of Him. Leave the gumball machine mentality behind, instead, praying with childlike belief in your Father’s goodness. And do it from a pure, simple heart.

Image by Garrett Johnson from Pexels

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The Intercessor Manual

Your Intercession Questions Answered

The Winnowing Fan

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For several months I have been praying deeply into sexual and spiritual abuse going on in the Church, particularly among leaders. This was mainly triggered by the awful things being revealed daily about IHOPKC — The International House of Prayer in Kansas City. But it doesn’t stop there. We continually see reports of sexual and spiritual abuse going on throughout the Church here in the United States and across the world — again, almost daily. We will see much more in the weeks and months ahead.

As I have been praying into the many facets of the abuse tragedies that are taking place, a major focus has been to plead that the Lord would utterly cleanse His house of all the gangrene in our midst. He gave me this word about what He is doing at this time:

… He [Jesus] shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn. But He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. — Matthew 3:11, 12

A winnowing fan or basket (some translations call it a fork) is a utensil, often woven, which acts as a sieve to separate the useful grain from the chaff (the inedible husk).

Jesus is in the process of separating the vile from the holy in His Church. And He is doing it furiously in this hour.

Many of us have watched as conservative Christian leaders have scrambled to cover up or minimize the sins of major figures in their particular stream of Christianity. They have scornfully labeled those who have courageously spoken out against wrongs perpetrated against women (and men) within the Church as just being left-wing radicals, rabid feminists, and #MeToo folks.

I am a morally conservative woman, who is not in any way a feminist. I have been of the opinion since Day One that God has been behind the #MeToo movement. Yes, it is a secular movement. Yes, there are extreme people within it. But when the Church drags its feet and refuses to address sin issues, God will often take those same issues to the secular front and sound the alarm there. Such a shame that we, His people, have not been doing the job! I thank God for the awareness that #MeToo has brought to the table.

What a grief this is, that in the Church, no matter what denomination or persuasion, we have looked the other way as sexual assaults have been acted out against women, men, teenage girls and boys, and even younger children, within church walls. Too many refuse to believe it is happening. Too many just want it to go away, because, “Look at all the fruit of Minister So-and-So’s ministry! — the healings, the prophecies, the powerful teaching! He couldn’t have done what they’re saying!” (Yes, he could — and did.) And then the next cry, “Let’s just forgive him and RESTORE him!” (Yes — restore him to Jesus, but not to platform ministry, please, or to any other position where he can do it again. And by the way, report him to the police.)

What about those whose lives have been forever devastated? What about those who have turned away, not only from the church doors, but from Jesus, because they were not believed, and then were accused of being the problem instead of the victim? How did they see Jesus being lived out in His people?

When I was young, I could not fathom what Jesus meant, when He said in Matthew 7:21-23:

Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord” shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven.
     Many will say to Me in that day, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? And in Your name have cast out demons? And in Your name have done many wonderful works?”
     And then I will plainly say to them, “I never knew you. Depart from Me, You who work iniquity.”

I understand it now, for we see it going on all around us.

We must stop making excuses for them. They are being led by their flesh and demons, not by the Spirit of God. They are not “such a good man (or woman).” We also must stop hiding their sins to save the organization or to make our nice, comfortable little world roll on untroubled. Jesus Himself is pulling the covers off. Don’t resist that. Stand with Him and with righteousness, no matter the cost.

And please, please, pray for the victims. Pray for them to be healed. Pray for them to be believed and accepted in Christ’s body. Embrace them and cry with them. Pray for the Good Shepherd to go after those who have left Him behind because of the sins of hireling shepherds. Intercede for them to come back to the fold and to feel safe among us once again.
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Note: If you have recently subscribed and have not received my free e-book, Overcoming Spiritual Bondage, please contact me at leeann@leeannrubsam.com. I’ll be happy to send it out to you by return e-mail.
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Yes and Amen: God’s Promises from Genesis Through Revelation

KJV or Modernized KJV

When You Need an Answer to Prayer

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When you need an answer from heaven:

• Sometimes relentless, persistent intercession over a lengthy period of time brings the breakthrough.
• Sometimes it’s one hour or one night of intense intercession, and then it’s done.
• Sometimes it’s fasting that puts us over into victory.
• Sometimes setting it all aside to just worship brings the answer.
• Sometimes it involves a decree of what we know to be God’s will in a given situation.
• Sometimes we need brothers and sisters to gather together with us and agree.
• Sometimes it is consciously speaking down into the earthly realm from our position of being seated in heavenly places in Christ.
• Sometimes it is looking upward toward heaven and saying, “God, I yield it all to You.”
• Often, a simple prayer to Father is all it takes.

We have concocted too many formulas. So many, “This is the only right way to pray” teachings. But look in the Bible. God has given us many examples of how to pray and receive. We just have to stay close to Him and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

And, above all, trust. Trust Him that even though we pray imperfectly, He hears our hearts. He transforms imperfect prayers into perfect, completely effective prayers. It’s all about looking at who He is, not about confidence in our ability to pray rightly, or, on the other hand, despairing over our own inadequacy. We are all inadequate by ourselves.

Ultimately, each of us learns how to pray by simply investing time in prayer, especially the prayer of  seeking His heart. I can give you pointers; others can do likewise. But you must find your own way — and you will, as you seek Him above all else.

“… For he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” — Hebrews 11:6
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The Intercessor Manual

Your Intercessions Questions Answered

A Word from the Word

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Sometimes, when the Lord gives me a simple word, He just wants me to savor it for an extended period of time. As I do that, the word becomes precious, something I won’t easily forget. He builds more understanding of its meaning into my heart as I continue thinking about it. That’s the way it has been for a couple of months with Hebrews 12:2, “Looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith….” It’s about keeping our eyes fixed steadfastly on Him, no matter what’s going on around us.

For a few weeks now, I have been in quite an intense time of intercession over a particular matter. I’m glad the Lord highlighted this part of Hebrews 12:2 before the crisis that I’m lifting heavenward began to unfold. As many of you know, when we are in the middle of serious intercession we can get weighed down in our emotions. That’s when “looking to Jesus” / “fixing our eyes on Jesus” is most critical.

Shortly after first hearing the message of Hebrews 12:2, the Lord also highlighted Psalm 109:4 to me: “For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself to prayer.” (Some translations say “but I am in prayer.”). This goes hand in hand with fixing our eyes on Him. The best solution to a problem is to set aside our own thoughts, arguments, or fix-it plans and just go to prayer about it. We deliberately take it to the Lord and expect in faith that He will work it out as we persevere in interceding.

There’s one more thing we should do to keep our hearts peaceful in the middle of troubling situations or heavy prayer assignments. Psalm 119:78 reveals it: “Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt perversely with me without a cause: but I will meditate in Your precepts.” We keep God’s Word before our mind’s eye — what it speaks of His nature; verses promising answers to prayer; His principles of purity, truth, goodness; His promise of a glorious future with Him forever.

If you don’t know where to start, try reading, listening to, and thinking on particularly uplifting sections of the Bible, such as the Psalms, the Beatitudes in Matthew 5, and some of the smaller New Testament epistles.

If we tie these three concepts together and consciously practice them

• Keeping our gaze upon Jesus,
• Staying in an attitude of prayer,
• Continually reminding ourselves of what His Word says,

we will live in a place of joy and peace we could not possibly maintain otherwise. We will think the thoughts of God. And, our intercessory prayers will be powerful without making a wreck of us in the process.

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Encouragement from God’s Word

All-Surpassing Peace in a Shaking World

Deception Warning Alerts

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We have a growing problem in the modern Church. It is emerging through ministry leaders, such as those mentioned in Ephesians 4:11: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Not all of them are equipping/perfecting the saints as intended by the Lord. Instead of helping the saints grow into maturity, some are claiming “new revelation” which cannot be supported by the Bible (or even worse, contradicts the Bible). Some of the very people who have been called to protect God’s beloved children from being “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14) are infected with those errant ideas themselves — and teaching them to others.

I don’t believe the majority of them are intending to promote wrong things. They enthusiastically believe the deceptions they are popularizing. Often, it is a result of these leaders listening to one another or reading each other’s works without questioning or discerning what is being said, and then passing it on because it sounds convincing. They have too quickly swallowed someone else’s “revelation” without checking it against the Bible. After a while, even more extreme teaching arises, built on the faulty foundation of previous dubious ideas. Error breeds greater error.

We should keep this in perspective. There are indeed many faithful leaders who are doing their best to stay true to God’s Word. They are not basing what they teach on Bible verses lifted out of context or on a supernatural experience alone. They take their job of feeding God’s flock very seriously. But, with social media at everyone’s fingertips, new opportunities have arisen for unreliable teachers and prophets to gain vast followings, especially through YouTube.

How do we escape being bamboozled in the midst of it all? Let’s look at some spiritual and common sense guidelines to help us:

Avoid “new revelation” not mentioned in the Bible. If Jesus or the first apostles didn’t teach it, or if it wasn’t known to the New Testament Church, that’s an obvious red flag. If believers over the entire last 2,000 years had no knowledge of it, it isn’t genuine. Yes, sometimes teachers in our time rediscover truths that were lost or watered down over the centuries. God will use people to resurrect what has always been in Scripture, but that is not the same as coming up with totally new stuff.

Beware of teaching which is based solely on a verse here or there. These are usually verses lifted out of context, most often from the Old Testament. They are frequently obscure verses, but people wanting to come up with a new angle will build massive teachings around them. It’s been going on since the Church began, but we haven’t learned our lesson, yet, have we? Consider the new teaching in light of the whole Bible. Scripture can always be relied upon to interpret other Scripture.

Does the teaching measure up against the “many witnesses” principle which Paul taught? Paul charged Timothy, “And the things which you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit those same things to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2).

Paul repeatedly warned Timothy to avoid and shut down “other doctrines,” “fables and endless genealogies which minister questions, rather than godly edifying,” “profane and old wives’ tales,” and “vain babbling and oppositions of what is falsely called science” (1 Timothy 1:3, 4; 4:7; 6:20). He warns that these teachings will only lead to more ungodliness and eat away at their listeners like gangrene (2 Timothy 2:16, 17), leading people to err from the faith (1 Timothy 6:21).

Does the supposed new truth take you into any kind of legalism or self-help? Measure the “revelation” against Paul’s letter to the Galatians. If the thrust of the teaching is methodology you must follow exactly in order to please God or to receive what you desire, it is off-base. While truthful instruction can still give us practical ways to move forward with Jesus, it will always point toward dependence on Him, not toward what we must ritualistically do to succeed.

Does the teaching follow legalistic patterns which provide your magic prayer bullet for getting answers? Immerse yourself in Jesus’ extensive instruction on prayer in the gospels. How does the new teaching stack up against what He said? What did the apostles in the New Testament say about intercession and receiving answers? How did the Old Testament saints succeed in prayer? Find out by reading their words — without a running commentary from someone trying to expand upon it or take away from it.

God does not put us through difficult hoops before He is willing to grant our requests. He does not disqualify our petitions on minor technicalities. Anytime someone tells you that eureka! they have discovered a brand new or long-hidden way to pray which will give you answers every time (if you do it exactly, infinitesimally right), just run. They are deceived and are lying to you.

Does the teacher major on supernatural manifestations above all else? Take note if the person rarely talks about Jesus, His atonement for us at the cross, and core scriptural truths. Is the focus on supernatural encounters and signs, rather than on the Lord? Signs and wonders follow believers who focus on the gospel. Let’s not get that turned around to where we are chasing the signs and wonders.

An alarming trend right now is prophetic people claiming to interact with deceased saints — and they want to teach you how to do it too! This is a dangerous deception. Beware of the fixation with the “cloud of witnesses” (Hebrews 12:1), which, in the Bible, is a reference to the people of faith listed in Hebrews 11, along with others like them. But currently, all sorts of silly teaching about how to interact with the cloud of witnesses is being spewed upon gullible Christians. 1 Timothy 4:1 warns that “in the latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils.”

If a Bible teacher puts a new spin on the meaning of a verse, don’t take their word for it. Check how that verse reads in several translations. Read the before-and-after verses to see if what the teacher is saying fits. When they tell you a word or phrase within a verse actually means such-and-such in the original Greek or Hebrew, look it up in a concordance or two to see if they’re correct — especially if you’ve never heard it presented like that before.

What does the Holy Spirit say to you about it? If the teaching is something new to you, listen to whether the peace of God is ruling or not ruling in your heart about it, as Colossians 3:15 instructs. Does it set right, or does it make you uneasy? Ask God to speak to you about it through Bible verses. He will. Just give Him time. John 14:26 promises, “But the Comforter, Who is the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name, shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.”

The best protection against new revelation deception is to prayerfully read the Bible — all of it — over and over. It will keep you “girded about with truth” (Ephesians 6:14), so that you won’t get off in weird places.
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The Intercessor Manual

Yes and Amen: God’s Promises from Genesis Through Revelation
Available in King James Version or Modernized KJV

Words for Weary Prayer Warriors

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What are we to do when we have carried on in unrelenting intercession for a very long time, but we don’t yet see the fruit of our labors — when things just seem to go from bad to worse?

Yes, we know we are to be “steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.” And we know He has promised, “Your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). But it gets discouraging sometimes, doesn’t it?

One way to stay fresh and strong so we can continue on to full victory in our prayer battles is to take extended time to build (or rebuild) our love relationship with Jesus. Intense intercessors are prone to getting so caught up in the work of intercession that they risk growing distant from the Lord Himself. It’s easy to lose touch with Him if we expend all our prayer efforts on getting answers. We need rest times with Him, too.

But Lee Ann, doesn’t Ephesians 6:17 tell us, “Having done all to stand?” Yep! But every wise military commander knows that if he pushes his soldiers too long and too hard, they are going to fall over in a heap right where they’re standing!

In our day, incessant work is admired and encouraged, and this has carried over into our church fellowships. However, take a look at what Jesus said to the apostles after they returned from their first preaching assignment: “… Come apart into a desert place and rest awhile” (Mark 6:31).

You are no doubt very familiar with Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” We know the passage in our heads, but how many of us regularly live it out?

We tend to subconsciously think that if we don’t keep at the intercession constantly, or strenuously enough,  the answers won’t come. Whether we realize it or not, this is depending on ourselves rather than the Lord. We think the whole world will come crashing down if we don’t keep interceding. Meanwhile, Colossians 1:17 tells us, “… By [Christ] all things hold together” in the universe. We forget Who is capably in charge. We also forget that He has tens of thousands of intercessors across the globe at His disposal. It is not all up to you or me. When we think it is, we’ve stepped over into a strange performance mentality. We may have also forgotten what Jesus said about pagan people’s prayers: “For they think they will be heard because of their many words” (Matthew 6:7).

So (GASP!), I’m telling you now, it’s OK to take a break from all the intercession to just be with Jesus. Place your focus on getting to know Him better. He won’t be mad, and He’s got plenty of other prayer warriors He can assign to the task for a while.

What does taking time off to just be with Jesus look like?

• Get quiet before the Lord and ask Him to let you experience the secret place of His presence.This doesn’t mean you have to get caught up into a heavenly experience. Just keep it simple: “Lord, I want to be with You, to rest in You, to know You better.” (See Psalm 91:1.)
• Ask Him questions about Himself and what’s important to Him. Wait for Him to speak. He might even remind you of a Bible verse which answers your question. He might not say anything right then, and that’s OK. Maybe He will respond when you least expect it.
• Sing songs of worship and praise. Something slow, with simple words and not too busy-sounding, works well.
• Give Him thanks for all the big and small things He has done for you, even in the last day or so. There is something powerful and rejuvenating in what the old hymn says, “Count your blessings. / Name them one by one. / Count your many blessings / See what God has done.”
• Meditate on a couple of the Lord’s names in the Bible. Most of them reveal something about His nature. If you need a place to start, I have a web page for you — The Names of God. There’s also a corresponding book with the Bible references if you want it.  
• Listen to an audio version of the Bible, especially the Psalms. Getting the Word of God in through our ears is life-giving.

Here are a few more Bible verses which encourage us to simply spend time in the Lord’s presence:

Song of Solomon 2:10 — My beloved spoke and said to me, “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.”

Isaiah 30:15 — For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest shall you be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength….”

Job 37:14 — … Stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God. 

So, don’t feel guilty about taking a break from intense intercession to just be with the Lord. You can still lift quick requests here and there throughout the day if you feel the need. Just take a break from straining into the load.

Always remember: you are not just a prayer machine who is constantly expected to spit out intercession in God’s factory. It’s not up to you to keep the answers production line humming along at top speed. You are a child who must take time to fellowship with your Father. And, if you do, you will bear even more fruit because of it.
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The Names of God

The Intercessor Manual