Wednesday, October 12th,
through Saturday, October 15th
2005
Ps 17:15
As for me, I will behold thy face in
righteousness: I shall be satisfied,
when I awake, with thy
likeness.
We
are in a time such as has never been
seen on the earth. Even though
there have been some great and awful
times in places around the earth in
past history, we are now seeing that
this is not just a single place but
the whole earth itself that is being
impacted. One event today can cause
kingdoms, thrones and governments to
be moved from where they once were,
never to return to their former
state.
Events of great magnitude has
impacted the earth and sent humanity
reeling as they begin to search for
the former days of “how it used to
be.”
So
much comfort and ease has
disappeared as people have faced the
stark reality of devastating change.
From Sudan to Indonesia, from China
to North Korea, from North America
to South America to the Islands of
the Seas, the world has opened its
eyes to the changes that face others
and them. The threat of
humanity imploding itself in utter
Chaos is only a heartbeat away in
any region.
Humanity lives with a hair-pin
trigger, cocked and ready to snap at
any moment, as turmoil abounds and
the earth becomes more restless.
The
“church” is seeking where they are
to fit into each event, as disasters
bring them out of their doors to
“meet the needs” of the increasing
devastations – tsunamis, fires,
floods, storms, earthquakes,
terrorism and war.
Rom 13:11-12
And that, knowing the time, that now
it is high time to awake out
of sleep: for now is our salvation
nearer than when we believed.
The night is far spent, the day is
at hand: let us therefore cast off
the works of darkness, and let us
put on the armor of light.
It
doesn’t take much of a prophet to
figure it out – the Word of God is
being fulfilled and will continue to
be fulfilled until the Day of the
Lord comes. So much is already
spelled out for us. There are
rumblings in every element of the
natural and spiritual realm as God
utters His voice from His Throne to
the thrones of minions and the
thrones of mankind, from the highest
to the lowest.
The
“Alpha” has spoken down through the
ages but now “the Omega,” - the
“AMEN,” is rising to speak, possibly
some of the last words to humanity
in a world as we now know it.
He
may be at the beginning of a very
long dissertation, or He may be in
the middle but He is speaking to the
earth’s inhabitants even now in very
clear tones, including the Church in
this present age.
There will be closure to some things
when He speaks.
His
voice will close a door that they
will never be able to open again.
Mankind in any realm thus affected
can try to go behind the door, pry
at the door, try to open it with all
their might, but when God’s hand
shuts a door – it is shut.
God’s voice resounds over the earth
and everything within the sound of
His voice is responding - those who
bless Him and those who curse Him –
those who heed His voice and those
who ignore it - all are responding
to Him in the most pivotal timetable
of earth’s history.
There are rumblings and shakings and
tremors that are unsettling everyone
- except His true Church who “have
ears to hear what the Spirit is
saying.” Here we are in the
middle of “history in the making” –
not only earthly history but
prophetic history. We
are watching things unfold that were
foretold of centuries ago and maybe
just days ago as prophecies today
abound with truth of how and where
God’s hand is released. .
We
are in a time when the Past, Present
and Future are preparing to
converge- prophetically.
While the last pages of Church
history are being written, we might
ask ourselves,
“What is my testimony and how will I
be portrayed on the pages by the
eternal scribes?”
Things are heating up all around us
so it may as well heat up in the
church. If not, then the
church will not be ready and
positioned for what is to come.
1 Cor 15:34
Awake
to righteousness, and sin not; for
some have not the knowledge of God:
I speak this to your shame.
What is God after?
It’s us!
It’s His church!
So,
here we are in the midst of a
changing world and we are changing
as well. While God has
awakened us to so much, this next
level is going to release His Glory
on us. It is worth it to push
in and press and pray in this hour
for the rewards are great, if we
faint not.
Ps 29:3-4
The voice of the LORD is upon the
waters: the God of glory thunders:
the LORD is upon many waters.
The voice of the LORD is powerful;
the voice of the LORD is full of
majesty.
It
is time that we as a church awaken
to the voice and purposes of God in
this season. Our soul is being
awakened to the moving and the voice
of the spirit of God as it reflects
into all the situations - To the
reality of the Word - To the events
of the world - Our part in
interceding the heart of God – our
part in preparing for times and
seasons yet to be unfolded in our
lifetime.
We
have had so many people come through
our doors over the past 8 years –
all kinds of people but with one
thing in common - everyone was
hungry and searching for something.
We came in our tattered garments of
spiritual pride and
self-accomplishments, offering to
God what was left of us after
religion got through with us.
Little did we know at that time how
much we needed the processes of God
to work in our lives.
We
were all coming out of a dry place
of hunger and thirst. Our lips
were parched and our hearts were
reaching for a lifeline of the
Spirit of God. How very much
we desired to step into the waters
of His presence when we realized
where they could be found. All over
the nation watering holes, oasis’ in
a dry land opened their doors for
us. We found these places
dripping with the anointing that no
one had really yet paid a deep price
for – it was just God’s gift to the
sleeping church – a reminder of His
scent.
It
wafted in upon our spiritual senses
and awakened something deeper within
us than we had ever known existed.
God
literally washed over us with an
overwhelming and
out-of-this-world-outpouring of
Himself.
-
Worship became more passionate.
-
Intercession erupted as vision for
the city and nations began to move
our eyes outside of ourselves.
-
Zeal for the Word of God could not
be quenched with casual preaching.
-
We desired the strength of truth!
-
We shouted when people ran to the
altars in repentance and then
joined them ourselves as we felt
undone in the awesome presence of
the Lord God Almighty.
God
just came down and met with us in
such powerful ways. Altars
were full of people crying out to
God, answering the call to
repentance and preparation.
But, how little we understood the
price of deep, heart-felt change
that would form us into the image
and likeness of Christ, for we were
only at the beginning of a very long
journey - one that would greatly tax
our strengths.
Everything was suspect in light of
God’s holiness as physically,
mentally, emotionally and
spiritually - our will, our mind,
our religion, our attitudes -
everything that did not look like
Jesus, smell like Jesus, walk like
Jesus, talk like Jesus, worship like
Jesus and serve like Jesus was
inspected by the Holy Spirit.
Sometimes God’s love is
confrontational.
This week I heard the Lord say,
“Merciful Judgment.”
How
little the church has understood
this part of God’s love.
Sometime His arrows, though painful,
are actually a lifeline of grace.
He has not been willing to leave us
in the condition that we came to Him
in at the beginning of revival
because the baggage we carried was
death to the move of God in our
lives.
These years here have been made up
of God and people on a collision
course as God has uttered His voice
to His Church. The years have
been all about what has happened
between Him and them.
-
Some found what they were looking
for and allowed God’s love to
probe deep into their hearts and
minds and do a work of
restoration, healing, forgiveness
and redemption. God’s arrows
have found soft targets –
hearts of men and women who have
melted at the sound of His voice.
We have seen those impacted by the
greatness of God as chains and
shackles broke off their lives.
-
For others, God’s arrows have hit
hardness of heart and been
repelled expertly by those who
avoid the sound of His voice.
We have seen some things that
depict the lowest of human nature,
revealing the depths to which the
enemy has gone to destroy and
disable the destiny of God’s
people and the Church.
-
Some have come with their hands so
full and struggling to “lay it all
down” to follow Jesus, unable to
receive the wonderful things that
God had in store for them.
It breaks our heart and frustrates
the grace of God when God wants to
work in people’s lives but there
is “no room.”
We
have watched the interaction between
God and man from a front row seat.
It
has been glorious at times and
heartbreaking at other times.
Everyone who has entered and left
through these doors has been changed
– every single person!
We
are changed by the choices we make –
one by one.
We
all decide how much, how far, how
big, how great a work we will allow
God to do in our lives.
It
is known of everyone who has come
more than once that High Places is
not a conference. Our mandate is
different than that. We know
that this is a place of “Encounter,”
a time in which God and man meets
for purpose.
-
It is a time of deep,
soul-searching, preparation and
God’s hand probing into the
deepest part of our hearts.
-
It can be rugged, hard and savage.
-
It can be uncomfortable and
invasive.
-
It is a time of war, first on our
own flesh and then on the enemy of
our churches, family, cities and
nations.
-
It is a time of Worship, Word and
Intercession.
There is a sound in intercession
that the world is still waiting for,
for when this level is hit, the
earth will feel the shaking of these
prayers.
-
You have not yet prayed like
you’re going to pray.
-
You have not yet worshipped like
you’re going to worship.
-
You have not yet eaten the Word
like you are going to eat it.
-
You have not yet humbled yourself
like you’re going to humble
yourself.
-
You have not yet sought God’s face
like you are going to.
-
You have not yet stood in the
Glory of God like you will.
-
You have not yet united like you
are going to unite with others.
-
You have not yet paid the price
that you are getting ready to pay
to go where you are getting ready
to go.
As
God’s Winds of Change blow over us
in this gathering, awakening a
deeper hunger for God, let us all be
prepared to allow God to have His
way in our hearts and lives.
Then we will truly experience the
thing we all search for – God’s
Glory! Let us all come humbly
into the presence of the Lord,
realizing that we are in desperate
need of change, yes, even after all
these years.
It
is not a time when we waltz our way
into the glory of God but a time in
which we repent our way into His
glory, prepare the way for His glory
and die to ourselves so that we may
see His glory come down.
But
before that time, there is an “old
man to kill.”
Are
we dead yet?
Pastors Loren and Esther Dummer wish
to extend the invitation to you.
God is moving powerfully at “Going
Up to High Places.” These are
“Word and Spirit Driven” - times of
challenge and preparation. The
worship is something that cannot be
advertised – it is Man meeting God
on a level of encounter that can
only happen when man has prepared
his heart, so come prepared as best
you know how. Lay the baggage
aside early and allow God to draw
you to a “Higher Place” than you
have ever been.
1Thes 2:8
So being affectionately desirous of
you, we were willing to have
imparted unto you, not the gospel of
God only, but also our own souls,
because ye were dear unto us.
