Friday, January 29, 2016

Take Away the Stone

“Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb.  It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.  Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’” John 11:38

Father, there are many who are in a cave.  Lord, I pray for the abortion-wounded who have been lying dead to true life to come out of the cave into the light and find true life, healing and freedom.  Lord, we ask for you to use Deeper Still to help take the stone away.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

In the verse above, there is a cave mentioned and a stone.  This verse comes from the passage in John where Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, has died and been buried in a cave.  Jesus has come to bring him out of the darkness of dead and into the light of life. 

The Greek word for cave is spelaion and according to Strong’s Concordance it means…well, a cave, and it goes on to say by implication, “a hiding place”. 

Lazarus was dead so they had to bury him in a cave.  He didn’t choose to go into the cave, but he was there and without miracle intervention, there he would stay. 

For the abortion-wounded, many are in a cave, not dead in a literal sense, but not truly living either.  Tucked inside a cave, they remain hidden with a gigantic heavy stone rolled over the exit making escape seemingly insurmountable.   Some like the cave.  It seems safe.  And the stone is a surety that the secret will remain hidden in the cave.  Existence may be stifled, but it appears safe.  The problem is you are still in a cave.  As long as you are in a cave, you are not free. 

For those who want the stone removed and want freedom, the stone seems too heavy to lift away.  And by all earthly standards, it is.  However, the Lord doesn’t ask or desire for you to lift the stone by yourself.  He has called others to “Take away the stone”.
 
The Deeper Still team is equipped and called to help remove the stone.   The Lord says, “Take away the stone.”  And just like Lazarus, those who have been dead inside can then come out and experience true life, free from the confines of a cave. 

To those who questioned why Jesus was asking them to remove the stone, “Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?’” John 11:40

Oh friends, let the stone be rolled away and believe.  When you do, you will see the glory of God. 


Friday, January 22, 2016

God's Not Afraid of the Dark


“If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. “ Psalm 139:8

Lord, I pray the abortion wounded and participants of Deeper Still would receive this truth that you are with them and have never left.  And I pray those considering abortion this day to have a revelation of your presence and that you are a very present help in time of trouble.  Lord, you alone can rescue. We ask you to rescue.   Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Abortion is dark.   There is nothing about abortion that brings life and light.  Abortion brings death and darkness.  The Lord is light in the darkness.  God has never been afraid of the dark.  Jesus singlehandedly took on the greatest darkness and evil when He chose to take all our sin upon Himself, give His life for us, and go into the depths of hell to conquer sin and death for all eternity. 
Jesus wasn’t afraid to take death head on nearly 2000 years ago and He persists in pushing back the darkness.  The enemy laughed and thought he won the day Jesus hung on the cross.  However, he didn’t know the end of the story.  From the moment Jesus cried “It is finished”, the enemy’s laughter ceased.  In that moment, he was finished, death was defeated and the curse of sin conquered.

Every time the doors of an abortion clinic are opened, the enemy laughs, thinking he has won a battle.  He doesn’t realize there is more to the story. 

The Lord gave me a picture the other night during a worship service. ..

The room was dark and there was a shadow on a table.  It was me.  It was the day I had my abortion.  There were screams.  My mind was foggy and I wanted to escape.  I wanted to be rescued, but still I didn’t move.  It is all as if it was a bad nightmare from which I can never awake.  Then I saw the Lord.  He was there.  He was there with me that day in my hell.  Beside the cold sterile metal table, He knelt.  He cried.  He prayed. 
Perhaps you may not believe He was there with me that day.   If I make my bed in hell, behold, you are there.” Ps 139: 8.  He was there.

What was he praying?  I believe He was praying for the end of my story.  See, the enemy isn’t able to see the end of the story, but the Lord can.  He knows the end of the story.
I wouldn’t allow the Lord to rescue me that day.  The hardness of my heart wouldn’t allow the Lord to penetrate at that time.  However, the Lord knew there would be a day when He would have my heart once more and I would be truly and fully His again.  He knew there would be a day when victory would be my shout and cry and the enemy’s laughter would cease.  The Lord knew what the enemy meant for evil, He would use for good, for the advancement of His Kingdom. 

The same is true for you.  The Lord was with you in your darkness, praying for you, loving you.  He knows the end of your story.
No, the Lord is not afraid of the dark.  He knows the end of the story and the victory is His.


Monday, January 4, 2016

Is Forty Years Too Long?

“For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand.  He knows your trudging through this great wilderness.  These forty years the Lord your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing.”  Deuteronomy 2:7

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for those whose journey has been long.  Lord, I pray for this year to be a time of release and a time of stepping out of the wilderness and stepping into your promises.  Lord, I pray for Deeper Still to be a vehicle of transport from the wilderness into the wonder of Your faithfulness.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

The Lord spoke the above to Moses.  Moses had been in the desert forty years with the Israelites.  The time was coming near when the Israelites would end their wandering and enter into a season of promise.   The Lord had spoken that it would be Joshua and Caleb who would bring the Israelites’ descendants into the promise land. 

I have to wonder if Joshua ever questioned if the time would ever come.  Was forty years in the desert too long?  Forty years of wilderness is a long time. 

I am forty-one years old now and there are hurts that are nearly forty years old.  There are people and patterns that haven’t changed in forty years.  There is a mountain that seems insurmountable.  My heart longs for change, longs for promises, and desires resolution and restoration.  There is a hope of possibility lingering.  I am faced with the challenge of choosing to continue in faith or lying down and giving up the journey towards promise. 

Did the Israelites ever give up on the journey?  Joshua’s faith may have been strong, but surely some of the younger Israelites wondered from time to time if the promises would truly come to pass. 
Is it a sin to question?  My humanity doubts not the Lord but other humans.  I don’t believe that God isn’t big enough.  The question is whether another human will follow Him or choose the path of least resistance and continue in long formed patterns.  The beckon of free will is both a gift and burden.

However the book of Joshua drips with faith.  The Israelites and Joshua believed.  What did they believe?  They believed the Lord was with them.  In the first chapter of Joshua, the words, “Be strong and of good courage” are found four times.  It takes courage to go forward in faith.  It takes courage to keep moving toward the promise after forty years of wandering.  Many times it is those last few steps that take the most courage.  When you see the Jordan, it takes courage to step in. 

For those who have wandered in the wilderness of an abortion-wounded heart, the Lord is calling you to step out in 2016 and enter into the promise land.  The Lord is with you. He has been with you the past 5, 10, or 40 years.  He never left.  He has blessed you in the wilderness but now it is time to cross over the Jordan.  Forty years is not too long.  The Lord is able to do a mighty deliverance.  The words the Lord spoke to Joshua ring true for His people today:

“Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9

Go to www.godeeperstill.org to register for your retreat today.  2016 is the year of stepping out into your promise.