The "how" and the "what" of prayer

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1)

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. (Ro 8:26)

I was very blessed to be in a great prayer meeting last night. It was full of life and faith and the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit. We felt the presence of God, heard him speak to us through the prophetic word, and spoke out words into the heavens that will make a difference on the earth. I love meetings like that!

I hope it's not too controversial, though, to say that over the years I have been in many prayer meetings that I have not loved. Ones that have done more to stir a yawn than a prayer of faith!

I was thinking about this a couple of days ago, and it occurred to me: We need instruction to guide us how to pray; we need the Spirit to guide us what to pray. This is how is laid out in the Scriptures. When the disciples wanted to know how they should pray, they went to Jesus for instruction. When it comes to what we should pray for, Paul tells us that we need the Holy Spirit's help.

I believe the reason why many prayer meetings fall short of the mark is that they try to do things the other way round! The only instruction that comes is a list of what should be prayed for (sometimes this takes the majority of the meeting!) Very little guidance is given on how prayers will be ordered or made most effective; that is left to the Spirit.

I know that some direction on what to pray for is required. I'm not disputing that. But I don't want to go to a meeting just so I can say I've ticked all the boxes in the to-pray-for list. That has more to do with religion than faith. I'd rather leave a meeting with most of my boxes unticked, but knowing that that there had been a genuine encounter with the presence of God, and those things that did get prayed for made an impact in the heavens that will change the earth.

World Watch

I had the great privilege of attending the recent World Watch Conference. Speakers from the UK, Cuba, India, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Philippines spoke about how the kingdom of God is advancing in this world. Despite the crises; despite persecutions; despite natural disasters - God's church is growing and his people are a voice to their nations.

There is so much that inspired and stirred; it would be impossible to summarise it all. I hope at some point the video from the DRC will be made available online, as that was one of the highlights - as soon as it is, I'll post a link to it. It was a great example of the church not just growing but transforming the nation. Not only have 200 new churches been planted, but thousands of children who would otherwise have had no education are being schooled by the church. People from the church have also gone on to obtain high positions in local and national government. It truly is a church that is bringing the kingdom to that nation. What makes it all the more remarkable is that all of this work has been led by a man who started his walk with God as a boy in an English class taught by a man from our churches in the UK. Dave Emmett sowed his time into this boy - teaching him English, then leading him to the Lord, and discipling him in his ways - and as a result a whole nation is being reached.

It was also a conference of great teaching. Here are a few sound-bites [these are taken from my notes so word-for-word accuracy is not guaranteed!]:

Keri Jones
* One thing that will damage the people of God is smallness of vision.
* You need to go to the watchtower, not to see the world, but to see what the God of this world will say.
* Men of God are not echoes of the past, but voices for the present.
* All idols have clay feet; make God not preachers central.
* We live in covenant. When someone falls we are not to be like sharks circling to take a bite, but brothers there to pick them up.
* Our prayers must be based on what we know the will of God is.
* The cry from the cross, "Why have you forsaken me," was so that no child of God would ever have to say that again!
* You don't have to understand a miracle!
* Nations are shaking because a kingdom is emerging.
* Don't get ready - be ready. It's not coming - I'm living in it.

Tony Ling
* Most of a nations problems come down to a wrong relationship with God.
* Be very careful upon whom you lean.
* There is a rise of militant atheism.
* There is hope, because there is a prophet in the city!
* What good is a prophet in a cave?
* Hold the door against everything that does not bear the truth of Jesus.
* What we need are words, not just about the future, but about tomorrow. Now words.

Dr. Lemon
* If there is revelation there will be things said that you have not heard before.
* We need anointed brothers not just good brothers
* We have kept God locked up in the church!
* The Kingdom of God is a kingdom of excellence.
* Never rob anyone of their ministry [re. tendency of leaders to do too much]
* When the Spirit moves - participate don't spectate.

Miguel [from Cuba]
* If you think you are defeated - you are!
* Key to destruction: try to be fine with everyone.
* "Here comes the dreamer" - what God has put inside you comes out.
* You do not have to run after the blessings of God - they will follow you.
* In the darkest moment, is when the light shines the brightest [re. the church in Cuba distributing food and clothing immediately the hurricane ceased]

[Bullet points don't do the passion and vision of the speakers any justice, but may jog a few memories for those of us who were there.]

For the one in fifty-five

I am the one in ten a number on a list,
I am the one in ten even though I don't exist
Nobody knows me but I'm always there
Statistical reminder of a world that doesn't care.
~ UB40 - One in Ten

Statistics:
40,000 - Reported death-toll for the Chinese earthquake (source BBC News)
78,000 - Official death-toll for the Burma Cyclone (source Boston Globe)
193,700 - Number of abortions in the UK in 2006 - 1 in every 55 pregnancies. (Source Department of Health)

Here in the UK, the emotive subject of abortion has been back in the news as MPs voted not to lower the abortion limit from 24 weeks to 22 weeks.

Now, I don't claim to be an expert on the subject of abortion. I do believe in the sanctity and intrinsic value of every human life that is beyond price. I do believe and understand that in some exceptional and tragic circumstances a termination of pregnancy can be necessary. Most of all, I would say, I understand statistics... and as I have looked at the figures, I have to say, I think the battle that was lost in the Commons was the wrong battle in the first place...

The number of abortions in the UK that occur at over 20 weeks is around 1.5% and it is likely that most of these late abortions will be for medical reasons that are not bound by the time limit anyway. So even if the time limit had been dropped from 24 to 22 weeks it would have barely made a dent in the UK's shamefully high abortion rates. Now, I'm not saying these lives are not worth fighting for, every life is worth fighting for, it's just I think the most obvious problem lies elsewhere.

Of the seven legal grounds for an abortion in the UK, the one that covers serious illness or handicap in the unborn child only accounts for 1%. This means 99% of all abortions in the UK are of healthy children! The ground that is the most common is ground C - "The continuance of the pregnancy would involve greater risk of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman". When you unpack what this means in practice, it is considered that the mental stress caused by carrying an unwanted child falls into this category! So these are basically (with doubtless a few exceptions) the numbers of pregnancies aborted simply because the child is unwanted - these account for 97%! Of these the highest section, by far, is among teenage girls, with the peak at age 19.

I would seem to me, that if we want to make a real difference for the voiceless one in fifty-five, the real issues are a tightening up of the wording of ground C to bring it back in line with its original intention and prevent it being used merely for unwanted pregnancies, and a tackling of the thorny issue of teenage pregnancy.

Kindness and Repentance

Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? (Ro 2:4)

I heard a news article on the radio yesterday about the split caused in the Anglican church in the USA over the issue of homosexuality.

I don't want to comment on this directly, or about any of the people or the organisations involved. But I do want to give some general comments on the debate as a whole.

The Scriptures tell us it is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance. Both the kindness of God that reaches out to all men while they are still in their sin, and the repentance that this must lead us to if we are to come into the new kingdom order of God are essential if we are to present the good news of the Gospel without distortion. The polarization that can occur in any debate must not drive us to an extreme where we let go of one or the other.

Jesus was the "friend of tax collectors and prostitutes." These were the outcasts of society, the ones that the religious people did not want to associate with. We must guard against a new wave of pharisaic self-righteousness that deems that certain men are beyond the love of our saviour. I'm sure if Jesus walked the earth today he would upset just as many religious people by being the friend of homosexuals. The Gospel is good news to all men. We must be careful that we do not portray it otherwise.

However, although Jesus was the friend of tax collectors and prostitutes, he never condoned the common practice of extortion among the tax collectors, nor the prostitution of the prostitutes. His message and his ministry were clear from the very first day: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" The kindness of God reaches out to all men in their sinful state, but it does not do so to endorse any form of sinful lifestyle, nor to come just to meet our spiritual needs as we carry on the way we have always gone, doing our own thing. It calls us to repent. To radically change the way we think and act. It is not just the homosexual who has to repent and change his lifestyle when he comes to Jesus - we all do!

For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. (Ro 3:22b-24)

I thought about the word "repent" today. It is still a good word, but sadly because it is not common in everyday speech it has lost some of its true impact and accumulated some unwelcome religious baggage. I had a think about an alternative, and came up with this: "Defect!" It carries the same sense of radial switching of thought and allegiances, and the same result of transfer from under one kingdom to another.

"Defect, for God's kingdom is coming. Change sides, so you are on the winning team!"

Both kindness and repentance are vital to the gospel message. We must reach out to all men, regardless of what label society or even they themselves have applied. Note well, the Bible does not talk about homosexual men, but men who practice homosexuality. Society may define people by their sexuality but the Bible never does. There are not gay men and straight men, there are just men. In fact...

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Gal 3:28)

The only real division that is left is between those who have defected, and have brought their lives out from "doing their own thing" to being under the rule and reign of God, and those who have not.

Without repentance there is no entry to the kingdom, let alone leadership within it!!

Living in the Green Light

"Live as people of the green light. Don't wait for God to tell you to go. Keep on going until he tells you to stop." ~ Keri Jones

The cross marks the spot!

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (Mt 13:44)

In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Col2:3)

[Reflections from Life to the Nations '07]

One of the themes I noted from our Life to the Nations bible week, could come under the title: What to dig up, and what not to dig up!

Richard Anniss shared a powerful and stirring word on the Kingdom of God being like treasure. He challenged us if we had truly grasped how much it is worth; if we were truly living as if it was the most important thing to us. He shared how, even though it is a free gift of God's grace, it is still costly - very costly - it costs us our time, our energies, our very everything; but it is precisely this cost that speaks of its great worth. He shared how the great men of faith who have preceded us have left us revelation on the Kingdom of God that is like a map to the treasure. But what are we going to do with this map? Frame it, admire it, and proclaim what a great map it is? Or give our all to following the map and laying hold of the treasure.


Keri Jones shared on what not to dig up:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2Co 5:17)

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. (Ro 6:4)

Too many Christians, he said, are emphasising their old life, which is dead, buried, gone and forgotten, rather than their new life which they now walk in. They speak of being "sinners saved by grace" and emphasise the "sinner" - but when the Holy Spirit comes into our life he emphasises the "grace!" We were sinners, but we are not that any more, we are a completely new creation in Christ. We are sons, we are heirs, we are royalty. It is time to stop thinking about how we were, and start living as how we are!


Both Keri Jones and Tony Ling shared from Genesis 26, where Isaac redug the wells of his father Abraham, and also dug new wells.

There were a number of points they drew from this: Any one who tries to unearth biblical doctrine and practice that has been neglected for years will face opposition. What belonged to my father belongs to me. There is very little future for the man who neglects or abandons his inheritance. The truths we hold never need to be abandoned or replaced, they just need to be filled out.

"Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old." (Mt 13:52)


Finally, (in terms of this summary), Keri also shared on this verse:

It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out. (Pr 25:2)

God conceals things for his royal people, who will diligently seek him, to find them out. When something that was lost is found again, there is much rejoicing.

Leaders Hang Back

Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. If a revelation is made to another sitting there, let the first be silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged (1Co 14:29-31)

Hear me carefully on this one... Hanging back may not be something that immediately seems to fit with an eager desire to move in the spiritual gifts. And indeed there is to be nothing passive or fatalistic about our response to the Holy Spirit's stirrings in our lives or in our meetings. However sometimes we need to step back and see the bigger picture. Our gifts do not operate in isolation, but as part of the whole body. In 1Corinthians 12, in the context of Spiritual gifts, Paul expounds the concept of the body. Just as it is not good if one part of the body ceases to function, it is equally not good if the body becomes "a single member" - one gift, or more often one small portion of the total gifting, trying to do it all. It is in this context that our zeal to move in the gifts may need to be tempered with restraint. Not a restraint caused by a lack of passion to see the manifest presence of God in our midst, quite the opposite, a restraint born out of a desire to see them even more - as an expression of the whole body!

When I was a wee lad, I used to attend Scripture Union summer camps, in Scotland. It was at my first such camp that I gave my life to the Lord. Later on, I came back as a leader, and helped with the fun activities, sports, and spiritual input. As leaders, particularly during team games, we used to have a saying: "Leaders hang back!" or "LHB!" Whenever a leader got carried away with himself during a game of Frisbee-football or Ragger, and started to dominate the game, a cry of "LHB!" would go up from a fellow leader reminding him that the game was about the whole team getting involved, not a showcase for one talented individuals sporting prowess.

It is often the same in the church. Too often a majority of the work is done by a minority of the people. Too often, instead of being freed to move in their own spiritual gift, people look to the talented individual, the leaders, to perform that function. Too often the leaders are happy to maintain this status-quo, sometimes even accentuating it, seeking more of the spotlight rather than less.

It is into such situations that the cry of "LHB!" needs to be heeded.

Paul, when he addresses the issue of prophesy in the church, says that we call all prophesy, and in order for this to happen there needs to be an order and an awareness of one another. [This was the Corinthians main problem in many areas: they were zealous, but their zeal did not include consideration for each other.] Paul says "If a revelation is made to another sitting there, let the first be silent." This is the restraint I am talking about, the restraint that makes way for another man's gifting, even though he is quite capable himself to carry on.

The words "let the first be silent" are in the Greek "o protos sigato." o protos, can mean the first, but it can also mean "the leader [the prominent one]." sigato also carries not the sense of a external prohibition, but an internal self-restraint. So without too much of a stretch this could be translated: let the leader hang back in what he had to say. LHB.

At our Life to the Nations Bible week, our Apostle, Keri Jones, shared on the fist night (and on other nights) a powerful vision and direction for the churches. He shared his desire for congregations of God's people where there is a "quantum shift" forwards in the Holy Spirit. Not just the same people moving in gift week after week, but whole congregations moving in Spiritual gift.

This is where the bar is set in the Scriptures themselves. For it is not where one man shines in his ministry that God is most glorified, but where the whole body reflects the head - each part moving as he directs.

But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you. (1Co 14:24-25)

Bless me!

[Reflections from Life to the Nations '07]

Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, "Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!" And God granted what he asked. (1Ch 4:10)

But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."... And there he blessed him. (Ge 32:26,29)

You do not have, because you do not ask. (Jas 4:2)

Why is it that we often have a problem asking God to bless us? Is it because it seems selfish and self-centred (...and of course we are much to spiritual to pray in a self-centred way!)

Yet, Jesus instructed us to ask God for what we need. He told us that those who ask will receive. The problem is that often we think of our needs in a self-centred way, and so limit what we ask to just our own meagre requirements.

Yes, ironically it can that very self-centred attitude that keeps us from asking for the abundance of God's blessing on our lives. For if we only ask God for just what we need to get by, in what way does that benefit anyone else? God wants us blessed so that we can be a blessing; he wants us to have an abundance so that as well as our own requirements we have enough to bless others.

And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed (Ge 26:4)

God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth may fear Him. (Ps 67:7 NASB)

It is only a blessed people that can be a blessing. Once we have understood that, we too will cry out to God that he would bless us abundantly...

...and God will grant us our request.

Cream up!

Well, I'm back from a wonderful holiday in Portugal.

One of the first and most important parts of each day while we were away was applying suncream before we went out. Whilst it comes out of the bottle like a cream, when it is on your skin it feels like oil. I have to say I learned to enjoy my morning "anointing" before I went out into all that the day had in store.

In fact the Mediterranean lifestyle is "oily" in many ways. There is the smell of fish oils, the taste of olive oil, as well as the feel of the suncream oils. All of these are very good and positive things. In fact I heard on the Radio this morning further evidence of how healthy the Mediterranean oily lifestyle is.

As Christians, we too are called and designed to live an oily lifestyle. One under the continual fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told his disciples not to leave Jerusalem until they were clothed with power from on high. I thought of this every time I told my son not to go out of the apartment until he had "creamed up." It wasn't enough that we had done so yesterday, we needed a fresh anointing for today.

Now that I'm back, I'm seeking to apply this good habit in the spiritual. It doesn't matter how full of the Spirit I was yesterday; what counts for today is that I am full of Him today.

But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox; you have poured over me fresh oil. (Ps 92:11)

Then he said, “These are the two sons of new oil who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.” (Zec 4:14)

But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him. (1Jn 2:27)

Tragedy or Statistic?

The recent heart-wrenching tragedy in Virginia this week has made most people stop and think. Think about life and our own mortality, how one day you can wake up and have no idea it is your last. Think about the families who have been so cruelly robbed of loved ones. Think about what could drive a human to take such evil action. Think about guns and their control.

One thing it has made me stop and think about is the scale of human tragedy in the world today, and how we respond to it.

Joseph Stalin said, "One death is a tragedy, one million deaths is a statistic!" Whilst I totally disagree with his cold-hearted disregard for the sacred and precious nature of every human life. He did have a point in terms of our perception of tragedy. It seems we have an inbuilt limit to how much sorrow or tragedy we can empathise with, beyond that we shut off and cant or wont take it in.

Consider these three "statistics" and how you, or the media responded to them:

• 32 - The number of deaths at Virginia Tech in the shooting this week.
• 140 - The number of deaths in the Baghdad bombing yesterday.
• 270 - Conservative estimate for the average number of deaths every day for the last four years from violence, starvation and disease directly resulting from the conflict in Darfur.

Why is it that some tragedy moves us, yet others don't penetrate the indifference that shrouds our hearts? Is it that some are simply too big for us to comprehend and take in? Is it they are too far removed from our own situation? Or is it more convenient for us to live in a little bubble and block them out?

This week I heard an account on the radio about Darfur that moved me in a way that I had not felt before about this tragedy. I felt compelled to do something. I logged on to the Oxfam appeal website and made a donation. Not much I know, but it was something. It's always better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

400,000 deaths is not a statistic. It is the tragedy of the loss of a single life multiplied 400,000 times.

Companions

I'm back; quite tired after all the traveling: Cardiff, Hudersfield, Portsmouth in three days. It all went well, so thank you to all those who prayed.

The Elders and Leaders' conference was fantastic, just as I expected it would be - plenty to take away and chew over, on holding fast to our inheritance, responding to the call and living full of the Holy Spirit.

The wedding was also a really good time. Someone thought I was a "Minister" after my reading, so I guess that means I delivered it well! ;-) John and Jolene will be off on honeymoon now, and I wish them every blessing in their life together.

My time at the funeral was bitter-sweet. It was a deeply sad and moving occasion, but it was wonderful at the same time to see my uncles from America, and other family members that I only tend to see at such occasions. It was also a joy to discover that my cousin had a genuine faith in the Lord Jesus, and so is now in a much better place, free from all pain and suffering, and that on the last day we shall be reunited.

One common occurrence in each of these three very different events, was that in each case there was a meal together. Eating together is very significant in every area of life; even before you take into account the spiritual significance of the covenant meal, just sharing food with someone is an act of sharing life. What sustains you, sustains me.

I took away a real nugget from something that was shared at the wedding, as the bride and groom broke bread together. Not sure if I had heard it before, but it blessed me again even so. The word companion literally means "bread sharer"; from the Latin com (together) and panis (bread). Those we eat with, and especially those we break bread with, are our companions on life's journey through all the sorrows as well as all the joys.

A Glimpse of Heaven

Adrian Warnock has a post on his blog today in response to a cessastionist's concerns over emotional expression in worship. Normally I wouldn't post on something like this [to me, and most of my readers, there is no debate!] But on this occasion I have a story to recount. You see, although I am a passionate, all-out, dancing, clapping, hand-raising, kneeling, laughing, crying, charismatic worshiper; one of the most profound things I ever learned about worship, I learned from a cessastionist!

While I was at University, many moons ago, I had similar debates over worship with a friend of mine who was from a Brethren background. To him the only valid expression in worship was solemn reverent standing; to him even raising ones hands was too much. Although we had many debates (all of them pleasant) we always had to agree to disagree.

Then one day when we were both on a Christian Union weekend away, we all had a particularly powerful time of worship where the presence of God was tangible. I looked across the crowded room, and was astonished to see my Brethren friend with his hands raised, peace shining from his face, lost in worship of our Lord.

After the meeting, I rushed across to speak to him, to find out which of my many arguments had finally persuaded him. What he said to me in response has been burned into my soul ever since...


He said, "I caught a glimpse of what worship will be like in heaven, and I thought, 'Why can't I start now?'"


God did in one moment, what I in all my wisdom and persuasion had failed to do in months. The lesson he learned in that moment, is one that I believe holds for all of us. For if we think we have made it in worship just because we raise our hands, we are deceived!

The standard for worship is not set by those around us on a Sunday morning, but by those who are continually around the throne.

In worship, as in all other things we do for the Lord, our aim must be to see manifest on earth what already exists in heaven.

Thank you, Huddersfield

In the context of my review of Without Borders '06, I would like to give out a special public thank you to the team from Huddersfield Community Church who did such a good job of looking after Michael in Globetrotters 3. This freed Jacqueline to sing in the choir and me to sit under the ministry of the word.

This is the first year that Michael has been happy during the children's ministry. And the first year we have been able to leave him without one of us being in the group as a parent-helper. So this was a big blessing to us.

I'd also like to thank them for being so gracious to me when I turned up 20 minutes late to pick up Michael after the first evening meeting! [Partly due to a misprint on the literature, and partly due to a giant prayer-ring stopping me getting out of the main hall!]

Your hard work and service was greatly appreciated!

The Wild Ox and the Horn Anointing

God brings them out of Egypt and is for them like the horns of the wild ox. (Numbers 23:22)

[Of Joseph] A firstborn bull he has majesty
and his horns are the horns of a wild ox;
with them he shall gore the peoples,
all of them, to the ends of the earth;
they are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and they are the thousands of Manasseh.
(Dt 33:17)

But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
you have poured over me fresh oil. (Ps 92:10)

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. (1Sa 16:13)


Another theme that stood out for me from the Bible Week was that of the "Wild Ox" and the "Horn Anointing".

We all have an anointing in the Holy Spirit, but it is possible for us to put restrictions and man made limitations on it -- to "flask" it. King Saul was anointed with a flask of oil, whereas King David was anointed with a horn. We can play it safe, or try to conform to someone else's anointing. But God wants us to move without restriction like wild oxes under the unique "horn" anointing he has for our lives.

One example in particular that stood out for me is the difference in how we respond to what we hear. If we have heard the word of God, is that enough for us to step out in faith, or do we require some other confirmation? To move under the anointing requires a response of faith to the word of God. We have to have confidence not only in God, but in the anointing that he has given us.


God has said it; I believe it; I am able to do it; I am going to do it.

Nothing Less...

Here's another simple phrase from the Without Borders '06 Bible Week that has stuck with me.

"Never settle for anything less than the manifest presence of God in every meeting."

Keri said this on the opening night, when he shared that he had considered what the point was of another conference, another week away, another set of meetings. Like Moses, he came to the point where he said "If your presence is not going to be there, I don't want to go." Then as a declaration of purpose and faith he stated, "I am here!" He then shared on how God was not at the beginning, but in the beginning. God is never a spectator, he always desires to the main participator, the centre and source of all activity.

This is something that is resonating strongly with my spirit at the moment, and has been since the elders and leaders' conference last year when Keri again shared his vision for the Church, where God's manifest presence is always evident.

Since then I have felt an anointing accompanied by a sense of an imperative from the Lord concerning the spiritual gifts. They are not optional extras. They are not fringe benefits. They are the manifestations of the Spirit of God. The mark of God's presence amongst his people.

I was privileged to speak to Keri one-to-one after that first meeting, and he again looked me in the eye and said, "Never settle for anything less!" I am increasingly finding that I'm not just unwilling but unable to do so! (I'm finding myself at the front quite a lot these days) I can do without many things, but I cannot do without God's manifest presence. It is this, and only this, that makes us different from anyone else on the planet.