"And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. Then he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and placed the wood in order, and he bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And He said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me. Then Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son."Genesis 22:7-13

According to Jewish tradition, God told Abraham that the ram's horn – otherwise known as a shofar – should be blown on Rosh Hashana to remind people of the sacrifice that God provided Himself when Abraham was about to offer Isaac on Mount Moria. It's abundantly clear that this event in the life of Abraham and Isaac foreshadowed God the Father's offering of His Son, providing Jesus as a sacrifice for all men. Brothers & Sisters,let us take the time to examine ourselves, turning from sin again, toward our loving Creator, as we celebrate the fact that our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Through His perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God, Jesus, God's forgiveness is eternal and His love, everlasting. THE LORD HIMSELF PROVIDED!

" But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat."1 Kings 19:4-5

In this passage, Elijah had become so weary running from Jezebel that he sat under a Juniper tree and just asked the Lord to take his life. But the Lord knew exactly what Elijah needed and He sent forth a messenger to revive and nourish him. I love it. In His infinite mercy, God sent an angel to minister to Elijah. And that was just enough to help him get up and continue to do great things for the Lord. We've all been under that tree, haven't we? Some of us are there right now. Perhaps you know a saint who is growing weary and in need of refreshment. Let's be available for the Lord, to be that messenger and supply his or her needs. Make a meal, give a gift, offer your time, maybe even just bring a word of encouragement -- perhaps that's all he or she needs to get up from under the Juniper tree and keep on keeping on for the Lord! Brothers & Sisters, when you supply a need for someone else, you are acting as God's messenger. And proverbs says that he who refreshes others will, himself, be refreshed! TIMES OF REFRESHING ARE NEAR!

"Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will show you great and mighty things, which you do not know."Jeremiah 33:3

In today's society quick money. It's slogans are "have it your way" and "have it hot and and have it now". How easy it is for us to fall into this "quick money mentality". It has almost become who we are. But in God's kingdom there's no quick money. We can't always have it our way and now. When we are caught up in this fast mentality, we lose the true meaning of patience. True patience is the ability to wait on the Lord through trials without complaining and worrying; it is to be tested and persevere through trial. We need to be patiently waiting on the Lord to answer us in a new way! We cannot shortcut the things of God. If we want a deeper anointing of the Spirit in our lives, we need to avoid this fast mentality. We cannot have a deeper walk with the Lord without spending time in his Word, without spending time in intimate prayer, without walking in repentance and humility, and practicing a life of holiness. Is this a tall order? Yes, but when we are focused on God and patiently waiting on Him to answer -- He will preparing a blessing beyond our imagination! Brothers & sisters, let's not settle for a hamburger, fries and coke — when the Lord has a delicious, heavenly feast prepared for us! DON'T SETTLE FOR A BURGER!

"Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ."1 Thessalonians 2:11-12

When the twelve spies were sent into Canaan to spy out the land, ten returned with a bad report. Their assessment was that it was impossible to conquer the land that God had promised them. Forgetting how God had led them with a pillar of fire by night, and fed them manna from heaven during the day, brought forth water out of a rock, and parted the Red Sea, they saw the situation with only their natural eyes, failed to walk by faith, and succumbed to fear. Joshua and Caleb however, returned with a good report. Refusing to be discouraged by what they saw, they fully trusted that their supernatural God was not going to break His promise to His people, Israel. We are living in days where the world looks bleak, and the evils seem to grow more threatening and dangerous. How will we react? Will we be devastated and terrorized like the 10 spies with a bad report? Or will we do something extraordinary -- will we walk by faith like Joshua and Caleb, trust in the love and power of our God, and seize the opportunities that are at hand? Brothers & Sisters, let's walk by faith and stand firm in it, facing every challenge, and laying hold of every opportunity that awaits us. May Joshua and Caleb be our examples of faith and courage in these days. With our God going before us, we also, can take the land, glorifying Him in every battle. WHICH REPORT WILL WE GIVE?

"For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled."2 Corinthians 10:3-6

I'm all the more reminded that we in the Body of Messiah are already at war spiritually. Constantly contending in our minds, we battle over thoughts and emotions which flow through them. The enemy often attacks by bringing up issues from our past. Failures, regrets, wounds, and traumas all have the potential to drag us down into doubt, darkness and despair. Our tremendous challenge is not to respond to these memories with old destructive thought patterns. Our victory lies in responding to these thoughts and feelings with the mind of Messiah as new creations in Him. While we don't necessarily ignore thoughts and feelings from the past, it is vital that we don't allow them to control our souls and emotions, but that we take them captive through prayers and declarations inspired by our spiritual mind. For example, is the enemy speaking rejection to me causing me to feel unwanted and unloved? I will respond that I am ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED and that the Lord has shown His love to me in many ways by His spirit and through His Body. A powerful illustration from the Old Testament is the Lord's forbidding the Leviticus priests from entering His Presence if they had touched any dead thing. This is a lesson for us - leave the old, dead mindset behind, the ways that you used to respond to things in the past - instead, enter the Holy of Holies and commune with your Lord! Brothers & Sisters, the battle over past issues is won when the Mind of Messiah in us takes authority over their meaning, purpose and definition in our lives With Jesus on the throne of our hearts and minds, everything in our past is brought under His authority and works together for our good! YOU'RE AT WAR!

"If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?"Luke 11:13

Do you truly want to be monopolized by the Holy Spirit? Let's face it -- the degree of fullness of the Spirit of God is in direct proportion to the intensity of our true desire. The reality of the spirit-filled life is -- we have as much of God as we truly want. Brothers & Sisters, let's seek to have a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him. Let's allow the Holy Spirit to monopolize our lives and in doing so -- we'll be empowered to do the great things God has called us to do in these days! BE MONOPOLIZED!

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me."Isaiah 6:8

A young couple was visiting a reknown jewelry store in Harare, Zimbabwe. They browsed through cases of magnificent diamonds with their gleaming yellow light along with many other splendid precious stones. Among those beautiful stones, one in particular caught his wife's eye. It was completely lusterless and didn't seem to be in the right place."That is one terrible looking stone, do you see that?", the she said. The curious husband asked a clerk if they could see the stone. The clerk opened the case, took out the stone and held it in his hand for a few minutes. When he opened it, there was a perfectly flawless stone. There was not a place on it that didn't gleam with the splendor of the rainbow. "How did you do that?", they asked in surprise. "This is an opal", he replied. "It is what we call the sympathetic jewel. It only needs contact with the human hand to bring out its wonderful beauty." Merely a touch brings out this stone's beauty. We live in a world where beauty is hidden under pain, sin and suffering. How many lives only need the warm touch of human sympathy, love and compassion, to make them gleam with a radiant splendor? Reach out and touch someone this weekend for His glory! Share with them the love of God and not only will they receive a glimmer of joy, but you will gleam with His radiance too! When the Lord asked whom shall I send, Isaiah replied "here am I". Brothers & Sisters, let's say "here I am" today and be used by the Lord to bring out the beauty of those around us! TOUCH SOMEONE AND BRING OUT THEIR INNER BEAUTY!