I am sitting here in Colorado Springs looking at the beautiful Pikes Peak. It has been my view for the last week and will continue to be my view at least the remainder of this week as we hold a tent revival in the city.  We are overlooking this beautiful body of water that sits in a well groomed park. There are many activities going  on in this park and on the water. I have watched jet skiis zoom around the water, a little beach to swim, friends and families paddle boarding and fishing and a walking trail that goes a little over a mile around it. It is full of benches and little areas to gather and enjoy a time away or a picnic with the family. Honestly, I wish we had something like this closer to my home.

What a wonderful thing to do on your day off or to take a few hours to just rest. This park reminds me how important it is to rest for ourselves and to rest in God! We are such a busy people doing so many things we forget to take care of ourselves and we also miss opportunity to rest in the presence of our heavenly father. MT 11:28-30 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls." Thank you God for rest that can only be found in you!

I have to scratch my head on the fact that so many people are so busy that they miss opportunities in God to grow and feel peace. They are so busy doing their thing that they think the things of God is too much more on their already busy plate. They have it so wrong. They are allowing distractions of life to be a roadblock for a mighty move of God in their life. 

I am reminded of a day I was out driving country roads. The weather was kind of like today, a steady breeze and warm but not too hot. I had my windows down and the radio tuned into a great praise station. The perfect day! As I drove further out there became an interferance in my station. I was being interrupted in my praise. The static had gotten so loud I had to turn the praise music off and unfortunately it turned praise off too. I was so far out that road that I lost all signal.  

The Lord began to speak to me. He began to tell me "just like that radio station that lost its signal, My people are losing my signal! They are so busy with their things that they are not hearing me." I looked up the word signal and it is a gesture, action, or sound that is used to convey information or instructions, typically by a PREARRANGEMENT between parties concerned.  That is interesting! We are so busy we are missing important information (a signal from our heavenly father, and instruction he is wanting to give us.) We have a prearrangement with our heavenly father. When we were saved we answered the call of not only witnessing but a call that puts us in fellowship with him to reveal things personally and coorporately to us. Instructions that are vital for coming days of our lives! 

When there is a chance to come together for a revival and normal church services we need to take it seriously. It is a call to action for the things to come. If we miss it, we are not going to have what we need for the next step in our lives. People will moun and groan about a two week meeting forgetting that anything worth having doesn't come easy. But if they press in and are faithful what that time spent will do will equip them for what is to come!

Static starts out just a little here and a little there but it grows into something big. It will cause little to no change and break you down causing you to sit in the same place with no growth. What are the statics in your life? Those distractions that are keeping you back? Some statics are recognizable. They may be "I can't be at church today family is visiting or having a party, or my son has a game, I am so tired I am just staying home. After all I work all week." These are all things designed to keep you from growing. But there are some that we don't often recognize. 

Fear! Fear and faith can't coexist! If we allow fear to take over our faith gets pushed aside.  1 Kings 19 Elijah God's prophet had just had an amazing victory over hundreds of Baal worshipers. In verse 3 he became afraid and ran for his life becasue of a single threat. 

  • Fear distorts the truth and eats away at what God is doing in our lives. This makes it difficult to hear God because of the static that fear produces. 
  • We must have faith no matter the circumstance that scripture is true and for us! As God's children we can hear and know His voice and triumph over every fiery dart the enemy shoots at us.

Doubt is another static in our life!

  • Doubt states something about who we think God is. Not who he actually is. We have to remember God's nature is love and His promises are sure!
  • Struggling with doubt reveals our insecurities about either God's ability, our view of our standing with God, or our lack of deserving. 
  • When we doubt it becomes a hinderance. 

The enemy wants a person to believe that they are so far away from the protection of God that he can't possibly bring them out. 

  • The more we repeat a thing the more we believe it. The louder the static will become. 
  • Speak the word of God daily until it becomes second nature to you. 

Pride! Hebrews 3:15 "As has just been said: "Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you didin the rebellion."

  • A haughty spirit comes before a great fall. "I can do it myself." famous last words! Some people can't ever admit they need help and are too pridful to admit they don't know how.  Dan and I are facing the biggest steps in faith we have ever had to take. We are out here not knowing how to do things most days. We ask a lot of questions and seek advice and direction not only from our heavenly father but other men and woman of God who have done this before us. If we don't seek guidance we could be hindered in ever area.  
  • Remain teachable and don't harden your heart to instruction. 

Distractions are causing us to get so busy, trying to fit it all in that we never take the time to be still and hear from him, read his word, and focus on it daily. We hardly have time for prayer. 

  • What we make happen for His house he will make happen for ours. If we are so busy we can't take time for the things of God, our life will fill with static becasue we aren't really doing anything for the Kingdom of God. 

Shame! Romans 8:1-2 "There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the Law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death."

  • If the enemy can make us feel shame about our past, we can't accept our true posistion as children of God. This can become static in our lives. An obstacle that keeps us from hearing him. 
  • Shame makes us feel unworthy, unable to hear from him. 

How do we fight shame?  By our confession of who we are in him now and standing on what the word says! Static is an electric charge. If we allow the word of God to cling to us, our praise will make His presence show up and His word electric charge for our lives and it clings to us. 

  • We have to quit listening to everyone else. Quit going to the phone and quit rehearsing all of our problems. 
  • Quit inserting others in our relationship with God as a substitution. 

I am reminded of the pool of Bathesda in JN 5. This man was so busy explaining why he couldn't get in the water that he missed the fact that his healing had already taken place until he was told! 

We don't need to be told we are healed; we need to trust that even though it doesn't look like it, because the healer is a very present help in a time of need we are!

Finally, we have unforgiveness. Mt 18:19-22 and MK 11:22-26

"Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for them by my father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?' Jesus answered, 'I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times."

  • Most of us come to God to pray about our future not our past. 
  • But you can't talk to God about your future until you obey Him regarding your past. 
  • Refusing to forgive your earthly father or any person will hinder your communion with your heavenly father. 
  • Forgiveness may never change that person, it's about changing us and setting us free. 

Hopefully these are some clues to things that we can work on to gain freedom from the static enemy sends our way. Recognizing the distraction then taking measures to not let it in again are key to our victory over the situation. My husband says it over and over "you have a part to play in this!" 

I pray this blesses you my friends. I love you!