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I would like to share with you some writing that a friend of mine 'Trina wrote.  Trina recently got saved and has been on fire ever since.  She started writing down her thoughts over this past summer and the difference between what she was writing before she was saved vs after is notable and I belive you will find it encouraging.

            &nb sp;                         &nb sp;       Before Jesus

Trina's losin faith in what she knows, hates her music an her "forclow".  Every calorie's a war, an she wishes she could be a dancer, and that she never heard of cancer.  She wished God would give her some answers, and make her feel beautiful.

I remember feeling low.  I remember losing hope.  I'll remember all the feelings and the day I'll try to make them all stop.

            &nb sp;                         Have Faith  (with Jesus)

If we have Faith, and believe that we are in God's care, then we can believe that the Lord is with us everywhere.

His Angels have been sent to protect us from any harm, and to teach us about love, and keep our spirits calm.

This heavenly love surrounds each of us every single day, and today, because you are so very special to me.  I asked the angels to bring a little more love your way.

If you were blessed by reading these words from Trina's heart, please leave her a comment here!

Mark Douglass

Monday, October 30, 2006

The Winds of God are Blowing II
Category: Religion and Philosophy

This is a second part to the first word I shared earlier in the week. 

     I saw buildings fall over as the winds of God blew.  The buildings were destroyed completely and the wood smashed.  The torches lit the fallen buildings on fire and as the fire burned the buildings were raised up within the fire and I could see people walking around inside the fire.  Then I saw a large giant of a figure of terra cotta that stood like a man and its height reached the sky.  The terra cotta giant was painted to look like a soldier and I could see that there were many people inside its hollow interior, but the figure had no life in itself.  I watched as it toppled over and many of the people that were inside were injured in the fall.  Shards of the terra cotta covered the ground where the figure had fallen.  Many left the area immediately.  Some I took to be ministers left, but others stayed and mourned near the figure in great bitterness and tears.  There they died with their eyes closed.  I saw the rest walk to a great river very wide and the depth was unknown.  Some played on the banks, while others dipped in their toes.  Still others leaped into the river diving down as far as they could go.  I saw people leaping into the river with inner tubes as well.  Others climbed onto sailing ships bound for the ocean.  There was great joy on the river.

Mark Douglass

Sunday, October 29, 2006

The Winds of God are blowing!
Current mood: thirsty
Category: intense Religion and Philosophy

I see the winds of God are blowing.  "And as the winds are blowing in the natural so shall My winds blow in the spiritual."  I see flickering coals of God across the country that are being blown to life in this season.  The Lord has established these coals at predestined locations and they have had to learn how to stay lit in a cold and dank place.  The Lord shall fall like the hail and strike like the lightning and the enemy does not know where the next strike will come.  I see the Lord dancing in the heavenlies as he rains on the earth and reigns over His people.  The winds are blowing the coals to a renewed  and greater manifestation of His presence. passion, and life.  There is a collective panting for His presence that the Lord has heard and although you have often felt alone and solitary in your passion for the Lord and His Glory, surely you have not been alone for the Lord hears His people and your voice has not gone unheard but is heard in the unity of the people He has pre-established for the purpose of preceding His move.  Let the forerunners be renewed and be encouraged for the Lord has heard your cries.  Many have come to a breaking point and have felt that they cannot continue, but this breaking point you feel is not you, but the breaking point of the bonds that have prevented you from the freedom He is offering in this season.  The pressure you feel is the pressure of bonds that have become too small as you have grown and grown, and in order for you to continue to grow the bonds must be broken, but God has pre-ordained that they shall be broken if you will stand firm in your faith and take another step of faith.  There is a step of faith that will forever break these restricting bonds.  I see freedom in finances on both ends of the spectrum, rich and poor.  Freedom in relationships and ties that have held you from the fullness of His Glory.  Freedom from strongholds in people's lives.  Where you have felt like a lone branch carrying the Fire of God, He shall make you a torch in this season and nit you together with others to burn brightly and share the burden. TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!!

Mark Douglass

A few years ago I was looking for a creative outlet.  I wanted to learn more about the essence of creativity itself.  I chose blacksmithing because blacksmiths used the rawest of materials from the earth to form their tools.  I did not want to go to this extreme, however a lack of working funds was a problem.  I prayed for provision.  I searched the internet and learned about blacksmithing but the tools were expensive.  Then one day as I was meditating on the problem I entertained the thought that if I had prayed for provision, then God had already answered my prayer.  My responsibility was to not waiver in my belief.  I chose to believe my prayer had been answered.  As it happens there was a large resource of industrial metal waste in an area nearby.  The landlord gave me permission to use whatever I wanted as long as I didn't create a mess.  My vision began to enlarge as I sifted through the debris.  A piece of electrical conduit became a pipe for an air supply to my forge.  The discarded brake drum became the fire pot, and a hand pump from Walmart provided air pressure.  An old metal drum allowed me to create pure charcoal from wood lying about.  Before long I had a hot fire in my new forge. 

My next goal was to make a pair of tongs to hold projects with.  I had 3/8" mild steel that had been taken from old railings.  I mangled piece after piece into unusable lumps.  At the end of the day I still had not made a successful pair of tongs.  Frustration began to set in.  I took a break and decided that I would not go inside until my tongs had been made.  With determination fueled by desperation I laid hold of the steel one more time and hit it harder and with greater intensity.  I was going to have my tongs or else!  In about ten minutes I had my first pair of workable tongs.  I was on top of the world! 

If you look at the photo on this site of me holding one of my first knives, you will notice that it is not an attractive knife most people would be proud of.  I have gone on to do better work, improving a little more with each effort, but this one was my first workable and properly tempered blade intended for use on my barbecue. 

I want to encourage you to believe that if you need something, and it is within the will of God, then He has already provided.  For me, what needed to shift was my vision to see what was right there in front of me with a creative eye.

Mark Douglass

  A few years ago when my daughter was only 1 yrs old, she spiked a fever early one morning.  My wife brought her to our room and remarked that Kate was burning up and we were out of Advil or Tylenol.  She would have to go to the store.  She tucked our screaming baby next to me and ventured out for more medicine.  I had been working many hours that week and although I sympathized with my wife going out so early in the morning I wasn't sure who got the better end of the deal. Kate may have had a fever, but her lungs were plenty healthy!  I tried to console my suffering little girl but she would have none of it and screamed all the louder.  I wanted to have faith to have her healed but early in the morning, grumpy, with a screaming baby that couldn't understand or be reasoned with, I couldn't seem to find a whif of faith.  As Kate screamed I became more desperate and determined that I would seek God on the matter and have an answer.  I laid my hand on her and began to pray.  She struggled and screamed all the louder.  I gently maintained contact without resisting her and sought the Lord.  Nothing.  I could sense  nothing!  I prayed, "Surely Lord you can handle a little baby!". I began to sense a trickle of His Presence and I knew that if He was showing up, then he must be answering my prayer, so I decided to thank Him for His Presence and healing.  The very moment I thanked Him, the Power fell.  He is and was awesome!  After just a few moments my relentlessly screaming child was fast asleep, both arms over her head and face to the side, she was the perfect picture of contentment.  Fifteen minutes later my wife arrived with the Advil.  "What happened!"  she asked, knowing our daugher well, she couldn't believe her eyes!  "Well, I prayed for her and the Lord answered", I said.  Wendy stared in amazement and touched Kate's forehead.  "She's still hot".  I said nothing.  "I want to give her the medicine."  "Go ahead", I said, "but she won't need it".  "The Lord will finish what He started".  Three times Wendy came back to me and three times I told her it was ok to give Kate the medicine as far as I was concerned, but she would not need it.  Wendy didn't want to be one of these kooks that deny their children medical care in the name of faith.  I understood her concern, but I also knew the Lord had done a miracle here and I refused to disbelieve Him on the matter.  I stepped into the bathroom and prayed fiercely, "Lord! Vindicate my faith in you!"  Not that Wendy didn't have faith, she does, and I completely understood the quandary she found herself in, but I wanted to believe for the entire healing and see it happen.  Wendy went ahead and gave the medicine.  Before the medicine made it to Kate's belly, the fever was completely gone.  Wendy brought Kate to me to feel her head and take her temperature.  No fever, and there is no way the medicine had time to act.  Glory to God!!  Let me hasten to say that if our children need medicine, we give it to them, but we go to the Lord for healing.  Medicine does not heal.  The Lord heals.  I hope this blog has been a blessing to someone!

Mark Douglass

 A few years ago the Lord spoke to my heart that He was tired of being worshipped in pieces.  He showed me a picture of a body that had been dismembered and groups of people would come and say,"We like the arm, we will take the arm and worship it."  Another group would come in like manner and take a leg or an eye and worship it.  Each group would go their way with the body part of their choice and reject the rest.  This is very grieving to the Holy Spirit. 

     I have been to a number of different churches recently of different denominational and non-denominational backgrounds.  Of the ones I have visited, they all share one thing in common.  Little to no power.  Some go to great lengths of technology to draw the current generation into the doors, but ultimately for what?  Others schedule meetings with young people in their neighborhood asking them what motivates them to attend church and what is missing.  Can a dead man speak for himself?  But if I point out the distinct lack of the Presence of God, then I have introduced a divisive theology.  Really!?  Paul made it clear that love was the greatest of the gifts.  Paul continues to point out that he speaks in the tongues of men and of angels daily, but if he doesn't have love, then it is not helpful.  My point here is that he spoke in the tongue of men and angels AND he had love.  Love is the highest, but what makes us think that we can attain to the highest when we refuse the least of the gifts of God.  Look God in the eye and tell Him what part of Him you refuse.  Can you do it?  I could write an entire book on defending the presence, power, and gifts of God but it would do little good to a hard heart.  Yes, a hard heart.  The example for the church's relationship with Christ is the marital relationship.  That is why we are the bride of Christ.  So, who wanting to get married says, "Gee, I'd like to spend the rest of my life with you, but do I have to wear this ring?"  "Why don't we just chat once a week or so." "Do we have to sleep together?"  How long would this relationship last?

The gifts of God and the presence of God was never a divisive issue in the early church.  Never.  He is the whole point and for me and my house, we will not compromise on the matter.  Heal your neighbor and he/she will come to Christ.  The power of God never goes out of style.  Despite his great education Paul determined to know nothing but Christ crucified and the demonstration of Spirit and of Power. 

It is time for the church to take her place in the battle in unity with Christ.  We can ill afford to compromise the fullness of God we are offered in these last days.

Mark Douglass

In the context of vision for what I am writing today I would more accurately portray as "extreme desire".  So, it is my extreme desire, that I believe God has stirred in me, to see "the church" operating as a culture of faith in God, unity of the brethren, loving one another as Christ loves the church, interracting with God and each other, breaking bread and sharing the Lord's Supper as a daily habit not out of a sense of duty, but out of love because it is the natural result of the love of God in the Church.  This kind of daily pursuit of God and unity turned the known world upside down.  I believe it is this kind of unity that God answers with power to heal, save, and deliver ALL.  Many who have walked in the ministry of healing have struggled with why some get healed and others do not.  When I look at scripture I see a missing element.  The unity of the church interacting with one another in Christ daily.  Programs existed and were important, but also few.  Administration was established to meet the needs of everyone and after that it was the leaders job to be in the presence of God.  

 The internet cannot provide everything necessary, but it could be a place to begin.  So I ask you to consider the saints around you.  Slow down.  Stop and talk.  Pray together and love one another.  It is this love that distinguishes us from the world.

Mark Douglass

NOW FAITH! and Mom's Apple Pie!

 

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. NKJV I learned in chemistry that in order for you to smell something, there must be a substance of what you are smelling actually in your nose. (Think of the good things like bread and apple pie.) Further research reveals that when I look up the word substance in the Hebrew in this context, the concrete interpretation actually means "essence". I am suggesting that there is an aroma to real and immediate, in the present tense, faith. It's like arriving at my mother's home, walking in the front door and smelling her famous apple pie. I can smell it in the living room but the pie isn't found there although I search. I move through the living room to the kitchen, the aroma strengthens but no sign of the pie. I open the oven, still no pie. I know that pie is here. I know the character of my Mom, that she loves me and knows that her pie is my absolute favorite. Mom wouldn't make a pie, cause me to smell it, and then deny me a piece of it! Would she? I'm tempted to doubt, but I push the thought aside. Back off evil thought from the pit of hell! We're talkin' about Mom's apple pie and I won't be denied the truly important things in life, and I know my mother has that pie for me somewhere! To the dining room aaaand YES! There is Mom's beautiful apple pie sitting there waiting for me! A piece has already been cut and placed on a plate. Hot steam rises from the coffee nearby mingling with the aroma of the pie. But best of all, and most important of all, there is my Mom sitting next to the window, watching the birds at the feeder and waiting to visit with me awhile.

If you can "smell" your miracle in the Spirit, it is yours. If you can pick up the aroma of what you are hoping for, IT EXISTS and not only that, you can have it. "Now faith" is smelling what has already been prepared for you and knowing that because you can smell it, it does exist and you may lay hold of it. Matthew 11:12 "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

But don't forget the best part of sharing time with the One who created all, and made it available to you by dying for you. He loves you and has prepared everything ahead of time. Don't forget to take time at His feet. It is the best part!

 

 

Mark Douglass