These young men and women have trained for years. They have disciplined their bodies, minds and spirits. They have overcome injuries, setbacks, and dream-shattering losses, and used them instead to thrust forward toward their quest for the gold. It is their unwavering determination and sacrifice that ultimately positions them for the competition of their lifetime.

We, too, are challenged to “go for the gold.” Even though we are grieved by various trials, setbacks, and losses, through it all we are told to be exceedingly glad because the journey is about the genuineness of our faith being tested; our faith is infinitely more precious than the gold which is tested and purified by fire yet ultimately perishes.

Our trials are not meant for our destruction, but for our advancement.
As Abraham waited for the fulfillment of his promised son, things couldn’t have looked bleaker. Yet, the more Abraham was pressed, the more he rejoiced.
Being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body. He staggered not through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, that what God had promised He was able to perform. The more there was no hope, the more Abraham believed in hope! (Romans 4:16)

Do you remember when God spoke to Jehoshaphat in the middle of what looked like a hopeless situation? “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s” (2 Chronicles 20:22). Jehoshaphat was not being told that God would fight the battle while he stayed home. Jehoshaphat had to show up on the battlefield!

Faith is acted upon and tested on the battlefield. The spoils are awarded on the battlefield. The victory is won on the battlefield.

Everything depends upon our believing God.
Everything depends on a tested, trusted faith in God.

By faith, the elders obtained a good testimony… and it is by faith that we, too, obtain a good testimony.

Position yourselves! Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you.

Grab hold of your promise today. God, and God alone is able to perform what He has promised.

Advance across your battlefield and keep your eye on the goal. Go for the gold!

Members of the Congress

Of the United States of America

Request the pleasure of your company at the

58^th Annual National Prayer Breakfast with

The President of the United States

And other national leaders in the Executive,

Judicial and Legislative Branches of our government

Thursday, February 4, 2010

At eight o’clock

Hilton Washington International Ballroom

Washington, D.C.

What an honor to be a part of this bi-partisan annual event which brought together not only the President of the United States, but the Vice President, the Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and numerous members of Congress from both the Democratic and Republican parties.

My heart was deeply touched as I listened to their individual expressions of faith in God as the basis of their lives.  My heart resonated with theirs as I heard of their early days in Sunday school, learning scripture, and their deep appreciation for our prayers on their behalf.

At the same time I was acutely aware of the powerful political undertow that pulls on the lives,  thoughts, and speech of these public servants. Washington, DC is the high profile beachhead where these opposing tides meet head-on, where the biblical strength of personal faith is tested against the human urge to believe that the honest cultural beliefs of all others deserve an equal place: The ground is level at the feet of good intentions, whether from the Bible or the Bhagavad Gita.

Yet Jesus said, How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? (John 15:44). The biblical standard shares no level ground. It is a singular Truth that sets all men free.

These clashing currents are not new, they are why God urges us to pray for those in authority, to help set them free from those forces that are all too human.

Even as I received a personal invitation to attend the National Prayer Breakfast, every one of us has also received a personal invitation to “stand” in the place of prayer on behalf of “all those in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence… for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.”
1 Timothy 2:2

We are living in critical times and our voices need to be heard in heaven on behalf of all those serving in governmental leadership. Every day they face the cultural undertow. Our nation desperately needs a moral and spiritual awakening.

Aglow’s Targeted Prayer for Governments

When I asked the Lord about the purpose and significance of my being there I felt He said, “You are representing the collective prayers, anointing and authority of the Aglow ministry to the seat of the United States government. Your presence represents a higher authority, the authority of heaven.”

This year, each U.S. Regional Director will be taking a group from their respective regions into Washington DC to spend several days praying for this nation and for the government of the United States.  We must cry out for a move of God amongst the leadership of this nation on both sides of the aisle.

Our leaders and prayer warriors in other nations are fully engaged with the U.S. effort in praying for their national leaders, and have received miraculous favor with governmental officials in the past.

How the National Prayer Breakfast Began

It will interest you to know that the National Prayer Breakfast traces its roots back to 1935 in Seattle, Washington, with a local vision similar to that of the Aglow ministry which started in 1967.

Twenty-two years earlier, 19 business executives met together in Seattle to face a critical situation in the life of their city.

These businessmen turned to the 2,000 year old story of Jesus of Nazareth when Jesus invited a few of His friends to join him on the shore of the sea of Tiberius. There He demonstrated the generosity of God with an abundant catch of fish, the love of God in his reconciliation with Peter who had denied him; and the importance of sustaining relationships by gathering together around a meal to fellowship and pray.

Even after the critical situation that brought these Seattle executives together was over, they continued to meet regularly over breakfast. As with Aglow’s beginnings, like-minded individuals from other cities heard the news from Seattle soon other groups began to spring up.

Ultimately, breakfast groups were founded within the United States Senate and House of Representatives and have since become recognized internationally.  This year, 140 nations were represented at this Washington, DC prayer event.

This is a time for Aglow to bring our collective prayers, anointing and authority to bear for those who are in authority over us if we wish to reap the benefits of good government, which is a prized gift from God for the church’s welfare and advancement of the gospel.

Thank you for your faithfulness.

The word amaze means “to fill with wonder.” Those gathered in the house where this miracle took place stood amazed at what Jesus was able to do and their amazement caused them to glorify God.

Yet, some of the scribes sitting there were reasoning in their minds. Have you ever thought about the difference between reasoning and pondering?  Zacharias also reasoned with his natural mind which made him question the word of the Lord that the angel brought to him in announcing Elizabeth’s pregnancy.  “How shall I know this?  For I am an old man and my wife is well advanced in years.”

Because of his unwillingness to cling to his faith and believe, he became mute and did not speak until the day the word was fulfilled and his wife, Elizabeth, brought forth their son who became John the Baptist.  (Luke 1).

Mary, the mother of Jesus, received similar news from a position of simple faith. She was filled with amazement and awe at the word of the angel when he spoke about Jesus’ miraculous birth. Instead of reasoning in her mind, she chose to believe in a miraculous God as she pondered the word in her heart, then responded, “Let it be to me according to your word.”

Believing God brings light.

This year, as we walk toward the light, let us keep walking until all we can see is light…His fabulous light.  His light crowds out all darkness, doubt, and despair and fills us with faith.  The light of God causes us to see His majesty in expanded ways.

I believe, as we walk in the light, we, too, will be amazed at what Jesus does in our lives this coming year. We, too, will say, “We never saw anything like this!”  We will see Him heal diseases, make provision where provision is needed, restore relationships that have been strained or broken, bring in the lost, speak life over areas of our lives that have seemed paralyzed and immoveable.

Blessed is he or she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told them from the Lord.

Be amazed.  Glorify God.  Believe.

A New Year always seems to bring a sense of freshness and expectancy. Perhaps that is why resolutions for the New Year usually accompany the dawning of the new day.

However, after some days, weeks and perhaps even months go by, and the expected results have not surfaced, discouragement comes and soon our great resolutions are set aside with a sense of failure and disappointment accompanying the defeat.

As believers, we are to live with a vastly different mindset. When God set His plan in place it wasn’t with the “hope” that things might work out, like a New Year’s resolution. God’s plan was a done deal from the beginning.

Take for example; the promise God gave the children of Israel, through Moses, concerning the land of Canaan. The spies were to go into the land with the proclamation, “WHICH I AM GIVING TO THEM.” It was part of God’s plan.

However, it would require seeing beyond what the natural eye could see. Most of the spies sent to Canaan saw the mighty Canaanites only with their natural eyes and returned to Moses quaking in their sandals. Their report was bathed in doubt: “We were like grasshoppers in our own sight.” That is what looking at yourselves will get you, fear and uncertainty… even in what you believe you have heard from God for your future.

Looking at yourself and seeing your own inability will also tend towards wanting to blame someone or something else for your failure just as the Israelites did. God said of them, “I have heard the complaints which they made against Me!” Not only did they complain individually, they spread their doubt and bitterness to all who would listen. Their doubt caused all the congregation to complain because of their bad report about the land.

God’s plan and His reply to this sad situation was, ”But, your little ones, whom you said would be victims… I will bring in and they shall know the land which you have despised!” The steadfastness and surety of His plan would take place, though they would miss the blessing due to their lack of faith.

When God is in a thing – we need NEVER fear the results. The fear of man is without foundation. God is greater than ALL obstacles, interferences, human reason or weaknesses. What He has spoken He WILL fulfill.

As we enter this New Year, New Decade and New Season, there may appear to be some giants in your pathway. You may feel that you don’t have all the answers you desire. Do not make the mistake the Israelites did by seeing themselves only as grasshoppers.

We are contending for a new — a greater level of faith.
We are moving beyond measure into fullness.
We are walking an exciting journey in this adventure of faith.

Believe!

After he briefly shared his own personal struggle, he pointed to one of the other cashiers as if to emphasize the common plight. She’s a working mom with three kids who has worked at this particular store for years. He lowered his voice, “She’s crying continually because her hours have been cut and she doesn’t have the means to care for her family.”  

 Then, as believers do, he sought God’s promise as he paraphrased Psalm 33:19:

 The Lord will deliver our soul from death
 And keep us alive in famine.

“Famine” comes in many different ways. Famine speaks of lack or scarcity. Yes, it can be financial, but it can also come in so many other ways. We can even experience a famine of faith.

Let’s remember that with every test comes an opportunity to see the majesty and glory of God!   The majesty of God is often more sharply defined in difficult situations. What we think about God and His heart to care for us is what rules over the enemy from our inner man of the spirit. 

Let majesty dominate your mindset and be at peace. Expect to  see His hand move on your behalf  this Holiday season. 

I love this Christmas carol written by Charles Wesley:

Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

Born to set Thy people free:

From our fears and sins release us,

Let us find our rest in Thee

This season is a wonderful time to let the world see what Jesus came to give mankind. He came to give us life abundant and to let the world see His radiance in His people. 

Celebrate His coming!  Believe!

Staying in the moment can be easier said than done.  Life has a way of moving at such a quick pace and the demands for our time, our thoughts and our attention often seem to run counter to the very things that stir in our hearts.  Let me give you an example.

The Spirit moved powerfully at our Worldwide Conference.

Just four weeks ago, many Aglow men and women gathered from over 103 nations for our Worldwide Conference in Louisville, Kentucky.  The Spirit moved powerfully and there was such a strong stirring of  God’s Presence.

Speaking personally, when I come away from this kind of an event, I find myself wanting to “just focus on the moment.”  I want to feel the lingering reality of His Presence, the tenderness of His voice, the hovering of His Spirit.  I want to soak in the power of it all and let it go deep into my spirit.

Even as I spoke of the wedding celebration in Cana of Galilee in my last blog, there was a lingering at that joyous celebration. The guests were not rushing away.  Had they left, they would have missed the best wine, which had been saved for last!

I believe this is a time when we need to not only savor the moment, but to linger in His Presence.  We need to learn how to sit quietly with Him.  To court Him as a lover would court the love of his life.  We are too quick to rush on.  We often talk away His spirit rather than quietly bid Him to come closer.

He waits.  He wants to be wanted. Yet, he isn’t one to talk loudly, or to try to be heard over the din and noise of our many activities.

Remember, this is not a time when God is giving us a vision for the functionality of ministry.  He is giving us Himself. What a treasure.  What a gift.

Intimacy must be cultivated, learned, enhanced.  A.W. Tozer says it this way:

God has allowed His heart to be emotionally identified with men. Self-sufficient as He is, He wants our love and will not be satisfied until He gets it. Free as He is, He has let His heart be bound to us forever!*

He wants us to move to a closer place of intimacy with Him.

Let’s focus on the moment!

*A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, 1961

As you know, Jesus, His disciples and His mother were guests at the wedding. After the wedding had gone on for a while the supply of wine ran out. Jesus told the servants to fill several large pots with water and they did.

Worshipping during one of the Worldwide Leaders Summit meetings.

I sensed the Lord saying, Aglow has also celebrated the work of My hand these past 42 years. But as you began to sense that you were running out of the wine of My first outpouring, you did the only thing you knew to do. You filled the pots with water… waiting for My next outpouring. You knew that Aglow was something of My Spirit. You knew it had not come to its end. You have been faithful. You have waited on Me. And you did what you knew to do… you filled the pots with water. There is no condemnation. There were no evil motives. You have merely walked toward the light. You have been learning to live heaven to earth. You have contended for a new level of faith.

And now I am saying, I have come to turn that water into wine. I have saved the best wine until last. This is a new day for Aglow. The celebration will continue for there is another wedding feast yet to come, the wedding feast of the Lamb.

And Jesus performed a miracle at our conference that continues in our ministry today. Beginning with the board of directors meeting on the first day, continuing with International Council and Leaders Summit on days 2 and 3, our worship celebration on day 4 and the incredible, interwoven messages from God delivered by our speakers on days 5, 6, and 7, Jesus has touched our beings and transformed us.

The number 7, used over 700 times in the Bible and 54 times in the Book of Revelations denotes completeness and perfection. The number 42 is the number associated with Israel’s oppression and Christ’s coming to earth, both the first and the second time.*

The Lord has truly saved the best until last and He has great plans for us as we walk toward the light of His countenance.

* Biblical Mathematics, Ed. F. Vallowe, The Olive Press, 1998.