Revelation 22:12
Yes, I'm on my way!
I'll be there soon!
Ok guys, anyone who was anxiously waiting for Job to continue tonight I must apologise to profusely. Today has been an epic adventure and I just have not had enough hours to get everything done I wanted to. I have been unorganised and run ragged recently. In addition to this I had some bad news yesterday which has not helped my state of mind when trying to plan ahead for the next few days. I am also away from home for a little while and thus not able to be at a computer as easily or as often as I would like.
When I first arrived at my bed for tonight I had to get straight online asap to deal with my blog addiction. But first I picked up the Bible in my hosts house and it opened right at the last page. The first thing that struck me was the verse above. It sums up exactly how I feel right now, it sounds exactly like the beginning of every conversation I have recently, "Hang on, I'll be right there".
Just like in the post this morning I am often struck by how, when and where God chooses to speak to us. Even when we are so busy and have no time for anything or anyone He finds a way to speak to and comfort us when we take a moment just to be still. Just then His presence descends on us and we have perfect peace.
Showing posts with label Revelations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Revelations. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Monday, October 04, 2010
Lord of the Rings
Lord of the Rings in my opinion has to take the title of the best film adaptation of a book ever. With the exception of Tom Bombadil being left out there was almost nothing I was upset or disappointed by in this trilogy. There is some fantastic cinematography and images in these films, some absolutely breathtaking scenes.
One scene in particular has always jumped out at me. In fact it is not really the scene as it appears in the film, but a slight modification. This refers back to about 6 years ago before I "left" the Church and tried to make it on my own. While spending time at a Christian residential I experienced the closest thing to a vision I have ever had. One night while sat in a prayer meeting I saw as if I was part of it the scene from the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring where the combined forces of Men and Elves are fighting Sauron's armies. It was at this point it changed from what is shown in the film. Instead of the great evil, dark form of Sauron entering the battle, I saw a figure standing gleaming white. The light coming from the white figure was so bright it was impossible to see the source other than it was human shaped. Yet even though the light was too bright to see what was at the centre it was not painful to look at. The white figure then proceeded to attack the evil enemy in huge numbers, each swing of his sword.
Now I am not one inclined to visions, and my scientific mind can provide lots of explanations for such occurrences. However the fact that this was during one of the hardest and darkest moments of my life I feel it was not a freak or chance occurrence.
Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17
"In the Last Days," God says,
"I will pour out my Spirit
on every kind of people:
Your sons will prophesy,
also your daughters;
Your young men will see visions,
your old men dream dreams.
I think on subjects like this we should be wary about visions and their meanings. God is not the only one who uses visions, God is not the only one who talks to us. We can be under attack from the enemy so easily, and he is a formidable force. The only way to fight back is using the help of God. However attacks form the enemy can be seen to be such, nothing from the enemy can lift you like help from God. The enemy does not have it in him to be good, kind or nice. We should remember that God is the greatest, He is the strongest, He was the first and will be the last.
Revelations 1:8 (KJV)
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
A vision as simple as showing the greatness of God, showing God fighting against the enemy is not likely to come from the enemy. He does not want us to think he can be defeated. He does not want us to realise that using God's power we can send him packing with his tail between his legs.
Matthew 8:28-29
They landed in the country of the Gadarenes and were met by two madmen, victims of demons, coming out of the cemetery. The men had terrorized the region for so long that no one considered it safe to walk down that stretch of road anymore. Seeing Jesus, the madmen screamed out, "What business do you have giving us a hard time? You're the Son of God! You weren't supposed to show up here yet!"
Jesus had power and authority over any and all daemons. They knew who He was and they were afraid of His power, because of this they obeyed His commands. Jesus passed on this authority to His believers, He gave us the power over daemons when using His name.
Acts 16:18
She did this for a number of days until Paul, finally fed up with her, turned and commanded the spirit that possessed her, "Out! In the name of Jesus Christ, get out of her!" And it was gone, just like that.
Mark 16:17 (KJV)
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
In my life I have not been blessed with many very close encounters with God. Yet the few I have been blessed enough to experience have been awe inspiring and powerful, at least to me. I may not be a person who sees visions and can hear the voice of God regularly. I struggle to see signs and directions from God most of the time. But even though this is the case I know God is there talking to me all the time, in all situations, in all things. What I need to do is learn to listen to him, I need to quieten my mind to the world in order to hear more clearly. I need to learn to see with eyes that are not clouded by the distractions of this world. I am not naive enough to think I can get to a point where all my conversations with God are as clear as talking to another person but it is a good target to aim for. If I actively work on my relationship with God, spend time alone with Him looking and listening then hopefully I can learn to better hear and see Him.
One scene in particular has always jumped out at me. In fact it is not really the scene as it appears in the film, but a slight modification. This refers back to about 6 years ago before I "left" the Church and tried to make it on my own. While spending time at a Christian residential I experienced the closest thing to a vision I have ever had. One night while sat in a prayer meeting I saw as if I was part of it the scene from the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring where the combined forces of Men and Elves are fighting Sauron's armies. It was at this point it changed from what is shown in the film. Instead of the great evil, dark form of Sauron entering the battle, I saw a figure standing gleaming white. The light coming from the white figure was so bright it was impossible to see the source other than it was human shaped. Yet even though the light was too bright to see what was at the centre it was not painful to look at. The white figure then proceeded to attack the evil enemy in huge numbers, each swing of his sword.
Now I am not one inclined to visions, and my scientific mind can provide lots of explanations for such occurrences. However the fact that this was during one of the hardest and darkest moments of my life I feel it was not a freak or chance occurrence.
Joel 2:28 and Acts 2:17
"In the Last Days," God says,
"I will pour out my Spirit
on every kind of people:
Your sons will prophesy,
also your daughters;
Your young men will see visions,
your old men dream dreams.
I think on subjects like this we should be wary about visions and their meanings. God is not the only one who uses visions, God is not the only one who talks to us. We can be under attack from the enemy so easily, and he is a formidable force. The only way to fight back is using the help of God. However attacks form the enemy can be seen to be such, nothing from the enemy can lift you like help from God. The enemy does not have it in him to be good, kind or nice. We should remember that God is the greatest, He is the strongest, He was the first and will be the last.
Revelations 1:8 (KJV)
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
A vision as simple as showing the greatness of God, showing God fighting against the enemy is not likely to come from the enemy. He does not want us to think he can be defeated. He does not want us to realise that using God's power we can send him packing with his tail between his legs.
Matthew 8:28-29
They landed in the country of the Gadarenes and were met by two madmen, victims of demons, coming out of the cemetery. The men had terrorized the region for so long that no one considered it safe to walk down that stretch of road anymore. Seeing Jesus, the madmen screamed out, "What business do you have giving us a hard time? You're the Son of God! You weren't supposed to show up here yet!"
Jesus had power and authority over any and all daemons. They knew who He was and they were afraid of His power, because of this they obeyed His commands. Jesus passed on this authority to His believers, He gave us the power over daemons when using His name.
Acts 16:18
She did this for a number of days until Paul, finally fed up with her, turned and commanded the spirit that possessed her, "Out! In the name of Jesus Christ, get out of her!" And it was gone, just like that.
Mark 16:17 (KJV)
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
In my life I have not been blessed with many very close encounters with God. Yet the few I have been blessed enough to experience have been awe inspiring and powerful, at least to me. I may not be a person who sees visions and can hear the voice of God regularly. I struggle to see signs and directions from God most of the time. But even though this is the case I know God is there talking to me all the time, in all situations, in all things. What I need to do is learn to listen to him, I need to quieten my mind to the world in order to hear more clearly. I need to learn to see with eyes that are not clouded by the distractions of this world. I am not naive enough to think I can get to a point where all my conversations with God are as clear as talking to another person but it is a good target to aim for. If I actively work on my relationship with God, spend time alone with Him looking and listening then hopefully I can learn to better hear and see Him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)