1 Chronicles 6:32
And they ministered before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until Solomon had built the house of the LORD in Jerusalem: and then they waited on their office according to their order.

I ran past this and wanted to share this really quickly...

In the above passage, a family of worship leaders (The whole 6th chapter is a genealogy of worship leaders...!!) gives us a model for how to operate in our office today. After Solomon built the house of the Lord, the Bible says that they waited on their office... The word waited is translated as stand or stay...

Picture this...You're in line to go to P.F.Changs...There is an hour wait...When you grab the little buzzer...You are committed to that table as soon as it is available...Surely those who arrived earlier will get to a table before you, but after a while you will be seated...So you stand/stay in line....Knowing that there is a seat for you...

This is what these worshippers did...With the realization that a return to the "floor" was inevitable they stayed and waited on their office. We must remember that we are worshippers at all times...Not just on the worship floor, but between Sunday's we should be deliberate in studying and meditating on the Word. Praying with all manner of prayer, and singing in the natural and the Spirit...The worship leaders in the text remained committed...They remained faithful to their office..I was reading a Joe Pace book and noticed a definition...He defined faithfulness as staying committed when you could easily leave...

Let's remember to remain committed to our Lord...Behind closed doors...On our jobs..In front of our children...At all times...God Almighty is watching...

35 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; 36 And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 38 Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou? 39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. 42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
43 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me. 44 Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. 46 And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! 48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. 49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel. 50 Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these. 51 And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.

John 1:35-51 (KJV)


Dearest Tribe of Judah:



Well,well,well...Did you catch that opening passage..? Here we see John as lead worshipper. I know we've talked about some "not so popularly mentioned" worship leaders in these e-blasts...Moses, Abraham, the 10th leper, Elijah, all not so popular or recognized as David. But the logic in that is to show that David was not the only worshipper that God loved...He loved them all, and yes..He loves you just as much...No matter who does it, it is worship that God desires from us all...If you can see the most unlikely person in the Bible worshipping God then it will be very easy to see you as well as one who can sit in the Father's arms, lay your head on His Chest and feel his heartbeat.

But what happens after you feel His heartbeat...? After you've had revelation of who He is...? After your private worship walk has brought revelation and inexplicable truth to His realness and authenticity..? The next part is displayed beautifully in the above passage...John (as worship leader) ignites an excitement and passion that causes him to completely LOSE "the crowd" or his followers and causes COUNTLESS MILLIONS to encounter Jesus Christ. John sees his cousin Jesus and says Behold, See!! Look!!! It's the Lamb of God walking by...Now...I did not add the exclamation point to that scripture passage...If you look in your own Bible you will more than likely see it there as well...That exclamation point captures the passion with which he ministered...A man who had knowledge of Christ was saying to his followers (congregation) STOP LOOKING AT ME and BEHOLD THE LAMB...! STOP FOLLOWING ME & FOLLOW JESUS!!! Now if that ain't the essence of worship leading then I should lay down the mic and join the sewing circle.

The passion can not be overstated... John had proclaimed for YEARS that Christ was coming and even HERE and when Jesus was walking by, Andrew did not have to think twice...He left John to follow Jesus. But the beauty inherent is John's faithfulness in leading worship in the wilderness...Painting the picture...Paving the way...Making His way straight and clear. The second beauty in that is John wanted to turn his followers AWAY from himself...He was deliberate...In this passage and in the other passage where he sent them to ask..."Are You the Messiah or should we seek another"...In effect, John was saying to all who followed him..."Y'all better quit looking at me and find Jesus...(Boy...This'll preach for sure...) John had effectively, in all of the years of his ministry, painted a vivid picture of who Christ was... So vivid that Andrew did not wait for the hammon B3 to swell...He did not wait for lightning and all of this other modern-day "confirmation"...(Which is most folks way to say, let me stall or procrastinate from doing the will of God...It's still disobedience...Only in slow motion.)

What if we, who were called to lead worship, did just like John and said There He is,follow Him... to our congregations...? Do you see that the above passage typifies what we today call the "domino effect" where one left and got another one, and that one convinced another one, and so on and so on, until, if the truth were told YOU came to follow Christ as well... John started the chain reaction that caused YOU to follow Christ... Now your responsibility is to lead others...Away from yourself, and into Christ...Wel...l What does that mean...? Well...The truth is...There should be no one in your local church that is waiting for you to lead worship over another member of your team. Your leading should not be worship "running" where your vocal ability is the focus of the service...The way that you play should not get "the crowd"...If you "get" them let me ask you this...Can you heal their body...? Can you deliver them with an outstretched hand...? Guess what...Jesus did...Jesus could...And do you know what He did..?

33 Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. 34 But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved. 35 He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light. 36 But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me. 37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me.

John 5:33-37 (KJV)


He pointed people to the Father...There is sooo much more to see here...When Christ turns and asks them What are you searching for...When they ask where do You live..When He says Come and See...I'll tell you what...Since I've heard that I am rather lengthy, I'll cut it short right here...But Ultimately, if we are effective leaders, then people in our congregations will encounter Christ in much the same way...And I'm not talking about the snotting and crying on Sunday morning...I'm talking Monday- Saturday...Where their walk of worship draws their neighbors, friends, and co-workers...Not necessarily to your church...But to Your Saviour....Not only them, but our families, friends, co-workers, classmates, and everybody else will recognize that they've been led into the Presence of Jesus where ALL of their needs can be met...Our first lady Missionary Colbert preached a message on Jonah one Sunday a few years ago that I will never forget. In that message she said that Jesus's favorite word was Come..That's His ultimate will for everyone...When we show them the way to get to Jesus, He will do the rest..He will tell our hungry congregations, Come and Dine....Come without money and without price... And when the Lord's Body hears that on their worship floors every Sunday, then they will know the voice of the Lord when He says Friend, come up higher....Praise God...!

The only other thing to add is how infectious pointing people to Christ can be...Look at Andrew again in the opening passage...The Bible says that he went to go get his brother so he could follow Jesus as well...Well... Do you remember when Jesus fed the 5,000+....? Do you know who found the little boy and brought him to Jesus so that he could share his little lunch...? Andrew...

JOHN 6:8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, 9"There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?

As we all know...All he had to do was get the lad to Jesus...Jesus did the rest...As a result EVERYONE who had the pleasure of being in His Presence were blessed to experience a miracle and eat with the Master....

I salute all of you worldwide who have made the pursuit of Christ your life's goal. To all of you who work in ministry do the work of the Lord, but do not forget the Lord of the work...Hold each other up in prayer that God's Will is ever done by all of us...His will for us to point souls to Him so that He can effect tangible change in their lives and in the lives of those to whom they are connected...

It is Communion Sunday this coming Sunday...Let us remember this week the Lord's sacrifice for us and remember our commitment to sacrifice for Him. No man takes our lives (tells us to crucify ourselves/puts us on a fast...) we lay them down...

Do you remember the exchange that Jim Carrey and Morgan Freeman had in Bruce Almighty where Jim Carrey asks him ..."How do I get the people to love me without manipulating their will" (or something to that effect...) and Morgan Freeman tells him (paraphrasing)"...If you figure that out, then you can have this job...." I was praying and listening for God on what to write about this week and came across this passage of scripture...We all know it, but the part where Christ asks where are the other nine literally jumped off of the page as I read it over..... The last e-mail that I sent dealt with God being sick of His children giving him traditional mechanical worship... He knows the difference between what is authentic (spirit and truth) and what is disingenuous ( mechanical and warmed over)..And He hurts over it... The last few e-mails that I sent, both here and to the Deacon board mentioned that we absolutely can not do the work of the and forget the Lord of the work... Sadly stated, this is what grieves the Lord most in this end-time hour....

The other nine, on the surface, went about doing what the Lord told them to do right..? He gave them an assignment to go shew themselves to the priest...And look at the power of God....As they went...THEY WERE HEALED...!! Everything's cool right...? It was...Until one returned....

The advent of Jesus Christ into the world changed the fundamental nature of worship...In the Old Testement worship was call and answer...Look at my man Moses.... Exodus 19:20

20And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.

In the New Testement worship was best typified by those who initiated a worship experience without provocation...Like the 10th leper who came back....Like Bartimaeus who just heard that Jesus was passing by and began to cry out.... Like the Ethiopian eunuch who was simply reading his Word and longing for understanding... Once Jesus Christ arrived then all of the old "shadows" of the law were fulfilled in Him. Consequently, there is no longer needs for olden day priests and levites to give us access into His presence... He is the Way...When we forsake Him, (in prayer, fasting, devotion, etc....) we don't get in... He hurts and asks...Where are the other nine.....? Can't you feel the frustration in Jesus' voice there...? He really wanted to know where they were...Why hadn't they returned...? Think about this....

In any given church setting what percentage of people really "enter in"...? As a worship leader Sunday, after Thursday, after program, after conference I literally beat myself up wondering...Did I lead these people into (as Pastor says) meaningful worship....? If 90% didn't "go up" why didn't they...? Aren't we all saved...? Don't we all have a relationship with God...? Was it me...? Was I prepared...? Did I sing the wrong songs....? What happened...????? Before I beat myself to a bloody pulp Christ reminds me that there must be passion for Him...Do you know how pastor says that sometimes he wishes that he could bottle the Word up that he's preaching and just make us drink it..? I believe that even he sees that most just lack the desire for Christ. Look at this....

65And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

66From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

67Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?

68Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

69And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

70Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?

71He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.

That 66th verse just cuts me to my heart every time I read it... These people walked away from Jesus...Church people....Workers in ministry... He came unto His own and His own received Him not... They went only so far and DECIDED (Here is where volition is key to worship... ) that they would walk away from the Fountain of Living Water.... Just like the other nine...They came to Jesus....And went.......Never to return...Healed.... Doing what what Christ told them to do...(Can I use the B-word....?) Busy....

And again, I reiterate...All would probably be fine were it not for the 10th leper...The 10th leper proves that there is a remnant, (for lack of a better word...) that understands that the truest worship emanates from a sincere heart who can interrupt his daily schedule to turn back to His Healer.... Unprovoked... Without a worship leader.... No Hammond B3... It would be nice to have Dameon playing in our ears everyday so that we can get into worship mode at home and prepare for the worship service...Or have Pastor break down the 91st Psalm every night so that we can take notes...(Remember when he did it at the concert a few years ago...????!!!! That was the whip...Who has that tape...?) But God is looking for our desire towards Him....
Song of Solomon 7:10
I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me.... But if I am too busy to worship Him throughout my day is my desire towards him...? And here is where bishop Patterson's story fits (about the couple in the car...) God's desire towards us is unchanging...He SO loved the world and especially His own... So who moved....?

The passionate can not hide their desire toward God...They will worship Him in their private time....When the music stops... On the way to work... At work... They don't mind (Like my man Moses...) turning aside to find out the bush that is on fire is not consumed.... It is there where Moses encountered God.... He was busy....He was working...But the Bible records that he said to himself that I will now turn aside to see why the bush was not consumed.... This is what the 10th leper did... Cleared his schedule to encounter Christ again .. (And there was Christ in the same place where he had first encountered Him....Oh God...Take me back to the place where I first received you....Don't EVER let me forget to return to my first Love...) The result...? He was made whole...His latter condition was better than his former and better than the other 9..... Let's live as worshippers who are determined to please the Father's heart to the point where He is not looking for us...After the consecration... After we're blessed financially...After we get the victory.... Let us not be the ones counted among the other nine....?

To offer true worship is our choice...God will not make us worship Him... But He will miss us when we don't...

Give Me This Mountain !!! Josh 14:6-15 Matt. 11:12


Jos 14:6 Then the sons of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, said to him, You know the thing that Jehovah said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea regarding you and me.
Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Jehovah sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land. And I brought him word again as it was in my heart.
Jos 14:8 But my brothers that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I fully followed Jehovah my God.
Jos 14:9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, Surely the land on which your feet have trodden shall be your inheritance, and your sons' forever because you have fully followed Jehovah my God.
Jos 14:10 And now, behold, Jehovah has kept me alive these forty-five years as He said, even since Jehovah spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. And now, lo, I am eighty-five years old today.
Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me. As my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out and to come in.
Jos 14:12 And now give me this mountain of which Jehovah spoke on that day. For you heard in that day how the giants were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. If Jehovah will be with me, then I will be able to drive them out, as Jehovah said.
Jos 14:13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.
Jos 14:14 And Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, to this day, because he fully followed Jehovah, the God of Israel.
Jos 14:15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba; that one was a great man among the giants. And the land had rest from war.
Mat 11:12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of Heaven is taken by violence, and the violent take it by force.



Understand first and foremost that this lesson is not for the squeamish, weak and faint of heart..This lesson is for those of us within this church that have made up in our minds that I WILL GET TO MY NEXT LEVEL..I WILL DO SOMETHING THAT I'VE NEVER DONE BEFORE..I WILL WALK IN PLACES THAT I'VE NEVER WALKED BEFORE...AND I WILL NOT BE STOPPED...I WILL NOT BE DETERRED....Whatever it costs,whatever it takes...I'm going to my next level..Now it just stands to reason that if you're going TO one place then you are leaving another..There must be an EXODUS. So when I think of the Word Exodus, the first people that come to my mind are the Children of Israel..So in my study of this particular lesson I went all of the way to the book of Genesis. I read about the birth of Jacob and Esau...And the Bible says of these 2 gentlemen that even in the womb these 2 brother's struggled and were at war...The Lord spoke to Rebekah and told her that there were 2 nations in her womb...( F )...And as I began to look at some of the current news events of the middle east...God Bless my President...He had a road map for Peace.....But he didn't anticipate a few of the major roadblocks that the endeavor would encounter. So the children of Isreal are born and as a COVENANT PEOPLE..They just keep growing and growing ( According to God's Word to Abraham ) to the point where Pharoah says in EX. 1:9 that the children of Israel are More and Mighter than we and decides to enslave them...But what I love about this is that just 3 scriptures later the Bible says that the more that they were afflicted, the more they multiplied...Now take a few moments and try to absorb that concept...And looking at this one can better understand Ps. 34:19 where it says Many are the afflictions of the righteous..Naturally it does not make sense...But when you look at it in the spiritual sense...( F )... One of the world's most powerful rulers... intimidated by a people, not the nation of Israel,but at this time the Children...Look at somebody and tell them don't you take God's Children lightly.. (That didn't have a Sec.y of State, or Prime minister or Head of Health and Human services because they had evolved into the Theocracy that God intended for them to be... Totally dependant on God.) who were only favored with the grace/touch of God...So get the lesson..Look at who you are in God and see how the enemy REALLY VIEWS YOU... The fact of the matter is that the devil is intimidated by you because you are the favored and beloved of God.. He knows that God is greater in you than anything else that is in the world..He knows that you are more than a conquerer through Jesus...! So you should wake up every morning and tell the devil that he is already defeated by the power (in)vested in you.

In our text we are reminded that it was these 2 gentlemen featured that are the same 2 that spied out the Promised land and said, forget what the other 10 are talking about....Is there any wonder why the enemy works overtime in getting you to stay out of your Word..He knows that if you EVER mess around and find out who you are, he will have trouble drawing you into rebellion against God. That's what TRL youth Ministries is all about..Empowering young people to know who they are in Christ...So the Lord raises up a Deliverer..And when I think of Moses, who is exemplified as a type of Christ, I draw some parellels to our Leader here at Stephen Temple COGIC... ( F ) And just as God articulated His plan of deliverance for the chlidren of Israel, then, I believe that He has, just as eloquently articulated His vision to our pastor..Not only for Stephen Temple..But For this city and even this county and state...So the book of Exodus records the help me say CONFRONTATION between Pharoah and Moses, the crossing of the Red Sea, The journey to Mt. Sinai and many other significant events within the life of these now delivered chlidren of Israel...Now if one carefully studied this old church as they are sometimes called, they could draw comparisons to the modern-day church...


So they are taken from Egypt/bondage and are taken into the wilderness or TRIBULATION....So between these two destinations there is a period of what Webster defines of great misery or distress...Now the test in the wilderness for the believer is simply who will trust God all the way to the Promise/End..And as Pastor has given the mandate to go to the next level..As the Prophetess in agreement brought out the Word of God on last week that we are now crossed over..It's time to take a spiritual evaluation of our lives and see exactly How have we come out of our wilderness....? Have we continued to trust God...? Did we go through murmuring and complaining..??Did we doubt the Man of God...? The Bible teaches us that tribulation is sort of like a selection process..Where ONLY The STRONG ( In the Lord ) survive. The Bible tells us in Proverbs that if you faint in the day of adversity then your strength is small...And as I began to look at this I began to think of the Thanksgiving Message given by Deacon Hamilton....And as he began to testify in his message the Lord began to tell me Sometimes you have to go through THIS to get to THAT...So from that point 'til this God began to deal with me concerning going to my next level in Him..Every message since then for me dealt with coming up a little higher..I began to rehearse my notes and buy Cd's of the services. Look at somebody and tell them Sometimes you have to go through THIS to get to THAT..I can't preach that today, but tell somebody else really quickly again...This lesson is entitled Give me this mountain, but you've got to know that NO one goes from mountaintop to mountaintop..In between there are valleys that are designed to test your very faith...David called them the Valley of the shadw of death, but the most profound statement that he made is that I'm walking through this valley...

Listen to God's instructions to the C.O.I. before they go in and POSESS in : CEV
Num 33:50 While Israel was camped in the lowlands of Moab across the Jordan River from Jericho, the LORD told Moses
Num 33:51 to give the people of Israel this message: When you cross the Jordan River and enter Canaan,
Num 33:52 you must force out the people living there. Destroy their idols and tear down their altars.
Num 33:53 Then settle in the land--I have given it to you as your own.
Num 33:54 I will show you how to divide the land among the tribes, according to the number of clans in each one, so that the larger tribes will have more land than the smaller ones.
Num 33:55 If you don't force out all the people there, they will be like pointed sticks in your eyes and thorns in your back. They will always be trouble for you,
Num 33:56 and I will treat you as cruelly as I planned on treating them.

So as a people of POSSESION, we must first recognize that getting into the Promise Land, or going to your next level will not be without struggle..But people of possession are also a dominion minded people... If God spoke His Word to you that you are going to your next level you must realize you must be ready to fight..There enemies that you will have to engage..I told you that this is not for the squeamish but pump your fist with me and say WE ARE WARRIORS..! WE ARE STRONG>>! WE WILL GO IN AND POSESS..WE WILL CONQUER IN JESUS NAME..!! Somebody said if you see new levels then you will see new devils. God Promised them a land flowing with milk and honey, grapes as big as melons, houses..wells...And what I love about God is that He gives them the heads up on what else to expect once they reach their next level...You will have to remove the squatters off of your land. Turn to your neighbor and say Neighbor, let's go a little higher...!! The first thing to point out is that the chlidren of Israel are into the Promised Land , there are still some area's in that land that have yet 2 B conquered.. Never become complacent with just crossing over. God wants to do exceedingly, abundantly, and above what we can articulate or fathom. Never settle....Expect greater than what has been expected..Go from one glory to the next..From one victory to the next....

Now Caleb reminds Joshua of what God said about him in Num 14:24 But My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and has followed Me fully, I will bring him into the land into which he went. And his seed shall possess it.Deu 1:36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him I will give the land that he has trodden upon, and to his sons, because he has fully followed Jehovah.

So Caleb had help me say another spirit...One that wanted to fully or wholly follow God..So out of over 1.5 million people who started out on the original Exodus, Caleb is almost the lone survivor besides Joshoua, to actually see this Promised Land..It's because he has another spirit. Lift your hands and say Lord give me another spirit..The devil can't do anything with somebody with another spirit..Another spirit looks right in the face of adversity and says I am well able. Another spirit goes against the religiosity of church groups and clicks and says No Matter What I will follow God..

Raising A Righteous Generation Mal. 4:5,6 Mk.11:12-14,20,21

5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."
12 Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry. 13 And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14 In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again." And His disciples heard it. 20 Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."

These last two verses of the old testament are very significant, in that, it is the preamble to about four hundred years of silence between the old and new testaments. God breathes these last two scriptures and closes the Old Testament with concern over family and its functional relationships. The NLT of the Bible reads that Elijah will turn the hearts of the parents to their children. ..Fathers to their sons…Parents to their children…Or YOU TO THE GENERATION BEHIND YOU… In fact that word is a derivative of the Heb. Exp. Ab meaning, father,grand,fore,ancestor and even a plural meaning suggesting ancestors of BOTH GENDERS…So the word actually spans generations.. So this lesson will be for both parents and their children…And it won’t matter if you have biological children or not. This lesson will challenge you to see yourselves as parents in the kingdom of God. Parents with a great responsibility…

God closes the OT saying that He will send Elijah to turn a generation around and issues this challenge to you the reader…And then silence…

Now we first need to understand that this particular scripture is written in a tense that is exclusive to God’s Word alone. It is called the prophetic past tense. Meaning that it has already happened, but at the same time, it has yet to happen. Do you see that we are dealing with a God who is Omni-Present (Exempt from the laws and limitation of time and space) Another scripture that illustrates this is Psalms 68:18 where it says…18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.

Psalms 68:18 (KJV)

This is how the Word becomes ALIVE, because as you read this today and relate this Spirit or heart of Elijah to the prophet John, who was destined to be the fore-runner of Jesus the Messiah, we can also, as we unfold the Word today Dec. 31st 2006 on the eve of this New Year understand that Messiah, Christ Jesus, is coming again and this time there is still be released into the Earth the heart of Elijah, but this time the heart of Elijah will have to rest on YOU…

It is no secret that the devil has declared an all out war on the family…I did a series of research papers on the family and was stunned to find these facts…Because of the rise in divorce there was also now more teenagers having babies, more unwed mothers, blended families, and couples who were opting to cohabitate without the bond of matrimony. The 2000 census reported that while nuclear families dropped well below 25% of households, the number of cohabitating adults had risen by close to 1000% from 1960 to 1998 (C. Dobson). Black family stats..Ebony, in their Nov. issue shared these stats..more than 70% of black children are born out of wedlock..Marriage rates within our community has declined 34% since the 70’s compared to 17% for all other groups. Consequently, the U.S.census suggests that blacks have the lowest marriage rate of any other group.One sociologist concluded this startling fact that a black child was more likely to grow up living with both parents during slavery than during this new millenium..The writer suggests that the welfare state embraced in the 60’s made it easy to replace the black father in the home with a government check and the disheartening and poignant result that we see today is the annihilation of the traditional black nuclear family. The homosexual agenda and their lobbyist are in the ear/bed of the country’s liberally moderate politicians and saying that since heterosexual couples can’t or won’t stay married, then we don’t need marriage protection and the definition ( 1 man 1 woman ) that it upholds. Consequently we still haven’t seen passage, on a national level, of the FMA.. The devil doesn’t want it…It would frustrate his plan of keeping fathers out of our homes. I believe that he has worked so relentlessly at getting fathers out of our natural homes so it would be that much harder for our children to fathom a Heavenly Father. When you think of the attributes of a father…Priest...Provider...Protector... You can understand why he wants to eliminate this aspect of your children's development.

So God is going to send Elijah before the coming of that great and terrible day…Before judgement..When you consider the direction and tone of Pastors teachings these past few years…As you gauge the signs of this rapidly closing age by the events around us and around the world..Jesus is soon to come..And this lesson suggests that there will be revival in the hearts of the younger generation..A revival in the home…In your house..In your bloodline…Both natural and spiritual…Through Elijah…

Now what was so super special about Elijah that God would choose to exact His purpose on the younger generation..? Elijah, for those of you that know his story, was a uniquely exceptional man and prophet..Just before I was terminated at the dealership God took me into Elijah’s story…(Tell the story..Prophecies,miracles..etc..)In Matthew 17:3,4 he appears with Moses at the Transfiguration and it is widely accepted that he and Moses will also return as the 2 witnesses that will prophesy in The Holy city. The Bible says in Rev. 11 that the beast will make war with them & kill them in front of the whole world..But after 3 and a half days they will rise and ascend to Heaven…Elijah was a true man of God..But perhaps the most significant aspect of his life that God wants you to see this morning was that Elijah poured himself into another young man, Elisha..God had instructed him in I Kings 19:18 to anoint Elisha the Bible says..” To be prophet in thy room.” Or as the NLT translation says as your replacement…By the time God received Elijah into Glory, he had fulfilled his last assignment…Deliver another prophet…Produce another man of God…Pour into the younger generation so that after you are gone, the work of God will continue…And on a greater scale…

Elijah poured himself out and into young Elisha..By the time he left to be with the Lord he left his anointing behind along with the revelation that God didn’t need a prophet in Heaven..He needs a prophet on the earth…Some of us are very business savvy..But guess what..?? God doesn't need that is Heaven...Some of us are financial geniuses ..But guess what..?? God doesn't need that is Heaven...Some of us can quote from Genesis to Revelation and can deliver a “word” in prophecy at the drop of a hat..But guess what..? God doesn't need that is Heaven...I had an episode about a month ago thinking about my father…He could really cook some ox tails.…He's sleeping in the bosom of Abraham now and I wish today that I could taste his ox tails again. I didn't even ask for the recipe..More importantly..He didn't share it..Consequently, people may cook ox tails, but they will never be like my dad's. Mother Germany took Lata into her kitchen on many occasions...Sowing into her "kitchen life" and into her marriage. Our marriage is better today because of it....New members need that kind of guidance and nurturing..

One thing that the story of Elijah teaches is this..Whatever God has placed in you…Are you anointed enough to leave it behind.. This message is about a year in the making because I remember talking to Dameon about this time last year about me training another worship leader...Look at the Word of God..I Kings 19:19 So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him. Don’t go to the grave with your knowledge of the Word..So you know how to pray through..? You can unfold the mysteries and secrets of God..Great…To be honest you shouldn’t even carry your pecan pie recipe to the grave..It is selfish..

Look at the Word in I Cor. 4:15 15 For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.16 Therefore I urge you, imitate me. Everyone can tell this next generation you ought to be doing this…But a father will set the example….A father is the model of what is being taught.. . If the church is to continue to thrive and flourish tell somebody we’ve got to beget..Beget means to birth..We were not called in the church to be barren.. Our faith and belief system without works is dead .We‘ve got to work this harvest to produce righteous sons and daughters. Isn’t ironic that when a woman is getting ready to deliver a child that they call it labor…I had an interesting experience when we had Caleb….With our first 2 children Lata delivered naturally..Consequently they were both relatively quick births.. With Caleb Lata had the epidural..This slowed the process considerably, because it was harder to feel the contractions..(Which are necessary to begin the pushing.How many of us are numb and don’t know that it’s time to push..Desensitized..Unable to feel the pressure


Pastor has, these last few weeks, has been sharing from his heart about his father in the Gospel Dr. Stephen…How he had a natural father, but he was a drunk… Look at the Word in I Kings 19:20.. 20 And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, "Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you." ..Elisha already had parents. But Dr. Stephen adopted him at a young age..Without papers or an adoption agency..He had adopted him in his heart and poured into him for years.. Grooming him to take the ministry to another level… Pastor has been speaking these last few months of an apostolic anointing and vein that he’s been flowing in and one connection that I’ve made is the fact that all of the apostles in their writings in the Bible speak of their sons…spiritual lineage..Spiritual bloodline..Can I show you this in the Word of God..Turn with me here to

Gen. 17..And when Abram was ninety years old and nine the LORD appeared to Abram and said unto him, I am the Almighty God walk before me and be thou perfect . 2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly . 3 And Abram fell on his face . and God talked with him, saying 4 As for me behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations . 5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram but thy name shall be Abraham ; for a father of many nations have I made thee . 6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful , and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

Brief exposition..Exceeding fruitful….Make no mistake about it God still wants our lives to produce fruit…In order for a seed to be productive it must first die..That’s the Bible..So in order for us to produce righteous seed we must first have put to death all works of the flesh and get ready to acknowledge God and His Supreme Soverienty in our lives..After that realization we must then get ready to walk from the Heb. Exp. Meaning come along,behave oneself, grow, run along, and the one I found most striking..Lead….Which suggests that someone is watching how you are LIVING..Where you are walking…What your attitude is toward God..Toward the church..Toward your brothers and sisters… Walk before God and look at somebody and give them the Word of God..You Be Perfect from the Heb. Exp. tamim…Full of integrity..Complete..upright...sincere..Without Blemish..HOLY..HOLY..!!Pastor preached this so clearly a few weeks ago..( Notes..) This is the most critical phase in turning the next generations heart toward the fathers..The parents must show the generations behind them this standard of living..The enemy has every single ungodly lifestyle in the limelight. Available to see 24/7..What if we took this next generation under our wing and taught them Godly principles of living…Like our pastor & his wife in the financial seminar…Like our forthcoming marriage seminar..What if their children did for someone else what they did for us… What place would the devil have in this new generation…None..It’s time to bear fruit…

Jesus walked past the fig tree and was hungry..And if you do the research on it he was craving the greek exp. Peinao which means craving the very least of what is required to survive… And what is the least that the Lord requires of us in Romans 12:1...And I know that that is where His heart was in addressing this fig tree because when you look up that nothing in the Strongs you find the grk. Exp. Ouden meaning no thing or person..No man..no woman..No son..no daughter…So he is a bit perturbed at the fact that his hunger for souls was not satiated or satisfied…The tree is planted…Watered..leafy…But NO FRUIT..!! Healthy in every other aspect..But where is the fruit…Who was won to the Lord by your lifestyle..? When did your faith work the soil of this earth to the point of production….God said Be fruitful and multiply…Romans 8:19 says..19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God…Be fruitful and multiply…

Finally the responsibility shifts as the scripture unfolds..The Children have a responsibility also..To turn their hearts..( The center of a persons character..Their minds and conscious thought…The location of moral,ethical, and spiritual activity..)..To the fathers…Trusting..Teachable…Respectful…Hungry/Passionate for both God and Godly principles…To be determined to cleave to the anointing that is being bequeathed and imparted tothem..
Let me show you out of the Word These two examples to fortify my point..I Kings 19:19-21...& Ruth 1:13-18..
19 So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him. 20 And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, "Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you." And he said to him, "Go back again, for what have I done to you?" 21 So Elisha turned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them and boiled their flesh, using the oxen's equipment, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and followed Elijah, and became his servant.

13 would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!" 14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung Transliteration: dabaq—Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary..cling or adhere; figurative to catch by pursuit :- abide fast, cleave (fast together), follow close (hard after), be joined (together), keep (fast), overtake, pursue hard, stick, take.—Strong's Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary

to her. 15 And she said, "Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law." 16 But Ruth said: "Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me." 18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her.

Their hearts had been turned…It can be done..It must be done..If not..then the curse…

I believe,since God has never changed His mind or wavered I believe that this curse is still pain..( From The fall of man in Gen. 3:16) To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you."

No one can deny that this generation is hurting…I heard Joyce Meyer say that hurting people hurt people…It’s time that we let the healing begin here with the people of God…