Saturday, May 14, 2016

Every Knee Will Bow and Every Tongue Confess That Jesus Christ is Lord

Every Knee Will Bow and Every Tongue Confess That Jesus Christ is Lord

I am so amazed and loving the Lord on a whole new level because He humbled Himself and put off the heavenly glory that is His, to come to earth the 1st time as none other than a vulnerable baby. A baby that is completely dependent upon others for his needs. He grew into a man and experienced every emotion and temptation we do, but He CHOSE not to sin. There is always a choice with sin no matter how strong the temptation. He was modeling for us how we ought to walk humbly with each other. And more importantly our posture toward God and how we are to come to God with the faith and trust of a little child. He is our model, and not men, for how to walk before God and man. 

But, the 2nd time, I said the 2nd time!....He comes in ALL POWER AS A MIGHTY KING and every knee, I said EVERY knee will bow, and EVERY tongue will have to confess - as the evidence will be right in there faces their hard hearts no longer having an excuse - that Jesus Christ is Lord!!! And those who are true believers, with the fruit thereof, will be in awe because with Him comes the full manifestation of their redemption and salvation! What a glorious day that will be!! I just want to shout! That's what's in my spirit today! Had to share it! 

And P.S. that day will so far exceed any attempt of Hollywood's to portray the end of this age. Are you ready to face the Maker and Creator of all! The Bible says in Romans 14:11 that one day every knee will bow in submission to Him, and every tongue will confess that He is in fact the Lord of all! You might as well do it now while there is time.

In love He waits until all have heard the Good News. And friends, with technology the way it is, we are very very close to that time when all have heard. Don't wait until it is too late! Bow and confess now! 

JESUS LOVES YOU WITH AN INCOMPARABLE LOVE! HE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN LOVE YOU WITH HIS TRANSFORMING LOVE FROM THE INSIDE OF YOUR BEING!

Jesus Christ: Jesus Christ Was Dead Long Before He Died on the Cross

Jesus Christ was Dead Long Before He Hung on a Roman Cross

September 9, 2009 at 11:29am
The fact that Jesus Christ was Dead long before He died on the Cross is not an original statement but today it is new revelation to me. I heard it before and understood it but it has now been revealed. Jesus was totally submitted to the will of His Father. He had no consciousness of Self apart from God. And we are to function in exactly the same way. It is not impossible because although He was God, He did not walk in His full glory as God while on the earth. If He had, it would make it impossible for us to imitate Him. He was fully man and fully God but walking as fully Man. Hard do describe and even harder to understand.

But I don't want to get into all of that. What really hit me today as I laid in bed processing what He was revealing was how Jesus was dead to self before he physically died on the cross. He walked in total submission to God as we must to be true carriers of His glory. Last night as I was signing 3 sympathy cards for friends who have recently lost loved-ones I went to Romans 8:38 & 39. And I left my Bible open there for the night. This morning I was pondering on how Jesus was really dead before He ever experienced the Cross not realizing what I would read minutes later. Then my loving Father knowing that I needed this revelation for my own life, confirmed it to me in Romans 8:10, 11 & 13. Don't you love how you can read a Scripture over and over again, high light, circle and bracket it over the years and then one day voila! The revelation comes. Romans 8:10, 11 & 13 reads:

"And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." ...[Then on of my favorites, v. 13] "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God these are sons of God."

I will be pondering this all day. I am sure there is so much more there but wanted to share. Plan to revisit later.

Have a wonderful day in the presence of the King of Glory!

Friday, May 6, 2016

Identity Series: Why No One Else Can be You - Interactions Between Body, Soul, and Spirit

We know that God made each person individually and that no 2 people are the same, not even identical twins. We each have our own set of fingerprints, irises, retinas, ears, lips, tongue, voice, toe print, teeth, gait (how you walk). Isn't that amazing? And that only covers the physical attributes; then there is the personality.

Why discuss this? We all need to know that we are the original piece of art and to value that fact. I can't be you and you can't be me so there is no need for envy and jealousy. We each have the same value to God - whether potential or realized. That makes jealousy of another person not only ridiculous but wasteful. Why would you want to be someone else? The world needs you to be you. Let other people be themselves.

A few days ago, in my post on "True Encouragement of the God Kind," I covered the difference between the soul and the spirit and the importance of first encouraging a person's spirit before building them up in their soul. That is, speaking over them the word of God as Holy Spirit reveals ensures their ability to receive the soul edification in a fruitful and beneficiary manner. Actually, in most cases, the word of the Lord to their spirit will have the effect of encouraging their soul. That's because a word from God causes everything in a person's life to rise.

In this post I want to focus on the intersections between the spirit and the soul, the soul and the body, and the spirit and the body. There is indeed a biblical hierarchy in the functioning of the human being as a triune being. There are numerous Scriptures on God's soul being delighted in someone upon whom He consequently pours out His Spirit. Jesus is a prime example at His baptism. See Isaiah 42:1; Matthew 12:18.

THE BLESSING OF INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY

This may seem somewhat out of place but it is very important.

Having been made individually unique by God means that we each have an individual responsibility to Him, particularly in terms of a relationship. Our first responsibility is to love and obey God, the to love everyone else, (Matt. 22:37-40) and obeying those whom God has placed in authority over us, (Ex. 20:12; Eph. 6:1, including government (Rom.13).

I Peter 1:22-23:
22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,
23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,24 because “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.”
WHAT ARE THE BODY, SOUL, AND SPIRIT?

Your body is your physical presence; your soul is your mind, will, and emotions; and finally, your spirit is the part of you that connects with God (which is alive for the Christ-follower). However, the spirit of a person who does and is not connected to the leadership of Jesus Christ, is dead. (See post on "True Encouragement of the God Kind," for more details).

BODY AND SOUL INTERSECTION

For the average interaction for the average person on a daily basis. A person makes a decision and follows through with physical actions. In other words, you decide to get out of bed to go to work so you get out of bed, wash your face, brush your teeth, take a shower, get dressed, fix the hair (women do their make-up,) get in the car, and go to work. That's pretty self-explanatory. However, how a person makes certain decisions, particularly, those on which God has expressed an opinion, makes a difference. That is where the difference between someone who is saved and someone who is not would make a difference. And that is where the spirit and soul interaction would kick into gear. Knowing that God approves or disapproves something would make a difference to a Christ-follower but little to none to someone who has not given over control of his life to Jesus Christ.

SOUL AND SPIRIT INTERSECTION

This is where the Holy Spirit goes to work on a submitted repentant saved (Christ-follower) individual. This person has seen the need for a Savior and has accepted the Lord's gift of salvation to be redeemed to God the Father in fellowship. Now the soul, as we saw from the previous post mentioned above, is essentially what the Bible refers to as the flesh; it's the personality. It is comprised of the mind, the will, and the emotions. It's the "stuff" on the inside that makes you, you and not like any other person on the planet. The soul is the part that became unregenerate when Adam sinned and lost fellowship with God in the Garden of Eden. That loss of fellowship meant that all future human beings would have to live apart from God for eternity. His action banished theirs and all future mankind from God's presence for ever. That is why Jesus died - He obeyed the Father and came to earth to die to redeem that intimate relationship that man once had with God. That God's original plan when He made man, because He knew man would sin. He made a family, and He was going to get that family back if He had to come to earth and die Himself. What does that do to your definition of love?

So the lost soul became corrupted by sin after the Fall and the Bible says that the flesh, or soul, is naturally at enmity with God. That enmity remains until a person come to God in repentance and receives His Son's gift of salvation. At that point, the Holy Spirit comes and begins the sanctification and transformation process and the spirit awakens from death. It is a form or resurrection. That means the difference between the unsaved and the saved is the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes to live inside the new believer to transform the person until they meet Christ face to face. In other words, it is a transformation that lasts a lifetime.

The Holy Spirit is constantly revealing Christ to us so that we can walk in the Way of the Lord Jesus Christ. What is the way of the Lord Jesus Christ? He had one aim, to obey the Father's wishes at every turn, As One Who is, and was, one with the Father never operated outside of the Father's will. The Holy Spirit's job, so to speak, is to make us an exact replica of the Son within the unique person God has made you and I to be.

Some scripture references to the soul and spirit connection:
1 Thessalonians 5:23
 23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 
Isaiah 26:9
With my soul I have desired You in the night, Yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; For when Your judgments are in the earth, The inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. 

SPIRIT AND BODY INTERACTION

I have on several occasions made a decision to do or not do something and "found myself" doing the opposite of what I had decided. Sound odd? Once I remember making a decision to stay home on a snowy day instead of going to see David Wagner, a prophet. I found myself going to my closet, choosing an outfit, getting dressed, and going to the event. I was happy that my spirit obeyed God's directions to go and moved my body to do so. I can only count a few occasions of this as normally, you make a decision in your will then follow up with physical movement of your body. I find that the Lord will do this for those who have submitted their will to Him as the One Who knows best for them anyway. I was making a decision not to attend something I had already intended to attend, only to renege on that decision based on the weather, as if God has no control of the weather. Thank God because I was really touched during that meeting.

However, on the other side of things is doing what you know is not good and what God has forbidden because it is not beneficial to us or anyone else. Even the Apostle Paul had the same struggles we do.

Romans 7:15-20 New King James Version (NKJV)

15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. 16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. 17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

CONCLUSION

No matter who you are or whether you feel like it. I am telling you, you are unique and special, God's rare jewel that no one can imitate. Once we discover our need for God and get into a right relationship with Him,  we are able to discover, often with some guidance, our reason for being. Knowing why you are here and getting on the path to accomplishing you destiny gives you a spark to operate in a passion that can only come from knowing who you are in Christ. It is how you begin the journey to  becoming the men and women He created us to be. That may take a lifetime, and is designed that way so that in dependence on God we can finish our journey well. Please realize that God is not looking for perfection as in without mistakes, before He can use us in His Kingdom, He can use anyone who is willing to become His child operating in childlike faith. He is looking for those who will walk in the type of perfection that says I will follow Christ's example in obeying my loving Father and letting Him, by His Holy Spirit, direct my life. That is entirely our decision.

The goal is to submit to God so that your human spirit aligns with God's holiness, continually transforming your soul, which in turn commands your body to act in agreement with God's ways. That is how we live lives of blessing. Deuteronomy 28 is full of the promises of God for complying with His ways, as well as the curses that come from ignoring and disobeying them. That's because disagreement with God leaves us open to the wiles of the evil one. It is how we got into this predicament in the first place, where the Garden residents decided to question what God had already told and shown them. Now we know that all of the commandments come down to only 2: 1st loving God (through obedience) - most importantly, and 2.) Loving each other - 2nd most important.

My prayer is that you discover Him so that you an discover the true you and avoid the need to imitate others in ways that threaten the essence of the amazing person He has made you to be. Paul said, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ." That means there is only one person we imitate, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Author of salvation.

God bless you!




Thursday, May 5, 2016

The Cross and Spiritual Warfare - Colossians 2

ALL OF YOUR WARFARE ENDED AT THE CROSS OF CALVARY!!!

COLOSSIANS 2




YOUR NEW IDENTITY


13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses,
14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us.
This Scripture speaks about our death to sin when we come to Christ repenting of our sin and turning to Him Who is the one resurrecting us to live in His overcoming power. And as if that were not enough, His death on the Cross removes our need to adhere to the law which was stacked against us; we could never obey all of it. So He accepts us, kills our evil fallen flesh and causes the human spirit to be alive in Him. In doing so He makes us holy, righteous, clean, and justified (just as if we had never done anything wrong.) So that is our new identity in Christ, 2 Cor. 5:17 calls us new creations, with the passing away the old you, and the arrival of the new you. Now that's exciting! But there's more.

AT THE CROSS: VICTORY IN SPIRITUAL WARFARE

And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

This is where we win over the enemy of our souls, who resists and attacks us whether or not we are aware of it.

AT THE CROSS, JESUS:

1. NAILED THE DEAD LAW TO THAT DEAD TREE

(THEN HE ADDRESS OUR  ACCUSER BY)

2. COMPLETELY DISARMING SATAN AND HIS DEMONS. As if that weren't enough

3. HE ALSO MADE A PUBLIC SPECTACLE OF THEM, MEANING HE HUMILIATED       THEM, AND FINALLY,

4. TRIUMPHED OVER THEM.

DON'T LET ANYONE STEAL YOUR REWARD IN CHRIST

18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
19 and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.

The Lord knows that even when we know the truth and even when that truth has been revealed to us where we know beyond the shadow of a doubt that it is truth. The enemy, the world, and at times even we ourselves will go against that revealed truth but we are to "hold fast" to Jesus our Vine, so that we can be continually nourished us and remain in unity as the Body of Christ. As we remain united in Christ, God will bring increase. It's amazing how important unity in Christ is to spiritual warfare. No one makes it as a lone ranger. That's a sure-fire way to be a casualty in this invisible war; a war more dangerous than all natural ones combined. However, even though it is dangerous because the stakes are much higher, it's one that's already been won.


DON'T RETURN TO THE LAW; STAY IN CHRIST

20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations---
Finally, Paul reminds us that in addition to remaining connected to Christ and His Body, we need to avoid the tragedy of returning to the impossibility of life under the law, which He has already "taken out of the way."  The world is under the sway of the law and its penalty for sin. Not so for the believer who has trusted Christ as his Savior. ANYONE CAN BECOME A BELIEVER! He came for everyone. "FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD, THAT HE SENT HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT WHOSOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT PERISH BUT HAVE EVERLASTING LIFE." John 3:16.


CONCLUSION


If you remember nothing else, hold fast to the fact that at the Cross Jesus removed our need to fulfill the Law because He has already dealt with that impossibility; and as we follow Him, we do, too. He has disarmed our enemy at the Cross, and has absolutely humiliated Satan and his entire governmental structure, triumphing over them once and for all. In a nutshell, Jesus' death on the Cross ended spiritual warfare. That is the reason He was able to say, "it is finished." He had done His part; now it is our turn to walk in that revelation as we are seated with Him in heavenly places according to Ephesians 2:4-7. It's up to us to stay seated with Christ on His throne of victory.

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

God bless you! 









Monday, May 2, 2016

True Encouragement of the God Kind

What do I mean by "True Encouragement of the God Kind?"

We often think of encouragement as telling or hearing nice things about ourselves to lift us up. Sometimes, we need it because we are experiencing difficulty. Other times, we need encouragement because we rarely receive it; while at other times it's because we have done or said something praiseworthy. All this is true. But for true encouragement of the God kind, the kind that transforms the soul, it does not end there. But before we get into that discussion, let's talk about the soul and the spirit. We know the body is our physical presence, but not everyone knows the difference between the soul and the spirit. Many just link the together but they are very different components of the triune being of body, soul, and spirit. I'd like to point out the differences (and similarities) to get to the crux of our discussion about true encouragement. Please refer to your Bible's concordance for additional foundational Scriptures.

THE SOUL

Your soul is the essence of who you are as an individual, your personality, meaning your individual mind, will, and emotions. Your mind is where you process, file, and store information and memories, etc. Your will is just that, you decide to do or not to do something and you follow suit. Your emotions are you feelings a bout something or someone in a nutshell. Now, the soul may be operating from a place of true perception or delusion, that is completely false perception with no basis in the truth. In other words, a person may be making decisions that affect themselves and others from facts and the truth, or from fantasy and lies. When the Bible refers to the "flesh", it is actually referring to the soul of the person. The soul is very much active, alive making demands on the body all the time. This is the only unique part of us that is all us that is eternal. Until a person is individually and volitionally born again spiritually into Christ, the soul rules the roost and the spirit is dead.

THE SOUL OF THE BELIEVER BECOMES MORE CHILDLIKE AND ACTS MORE AND MORE LIKE JESUS AS HE GROWS IN CHRIST; BUT THE SOUL OF THE UNBELIEVER IS MORE COMPLEX,  MANGLED, AND INTERTWINED THAN A RUBIX CUBE.

THE SPIRIT

The spirit of the unregenerate person who has rejected Christ and does not have a personal relationship with Him, is dead. That is what happened at the Fall in the Garden of Eden. Man's spirit died and can only live again when revived, similar to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, upon submitting Jesus as Lord. Once the person gives his life over to Christ, He begins to take on the image of Christ. In other words, the Spirit of God comes to dwell in him to begin the transformation process, which lasts a lifetime. The Father's goal is to transform all Believers to look exactly like His Son. That is why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:18 about true followers of Jesus Christ:
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Do you see that? Those who follow Christ, which is doing as He did and still does, obey and do the will of the Father, are being transformed into Christ's image. And I might add that in the Father's eyes, that is a finished work. It is the Holy Spirit's job to get us to the finish line.  

So the human spirit, which becomes indwelt by the Holy Spirit at salvation [This is the model Jesus shared with Nicodemus in John 3 about entering the Kingdom of Heaven, makes the believer into another 'smaller' Jesus. You see the Father wants to fill heaven with His Son's lookalikes, not with registered aliens. By this I mean, people who sign up at some earlier point to follow Christ, but somehow forget the following part. They have registered but they are still aliens, strangers to Him. These are the ones to whom He refers when on that day, many will way, we did this thing or that thing in Your name, and He will reply, "I never knew you."

Matthew 7:21-23
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

No, we know that God is not mocked (duped). Whatever a person sows, that's exactly what he will reap, Galatians 6:7:

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

So a person into whom the Holy Spirit seals the imaged of Jesus Christ is growing in His likeness all the time. There is on attempt to dupe or deceive God that Jesus is Lord where it is not borne out in the person's life.

THE REGENERATE SPIRIT OF A PERSON IS MARKED BY A CHILDLIKE SIMPLICITY AND FAITH AND LOOKS MORE AND MORE LIKE JESUS AS TIME GOES ON.


SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE SOUL AND SPIRIT

Both the soul and the spirit are eternal. Both come into being at conception. Both are destined to look like Jesus and be like Him in word, in deed, and in thought.

GETTING A WORD FROM THE SOUL OF THE PERSON VS. GETTING ONE FROM GOD FOR THEIR SPIRIT

The soul also gives off information that a person who is a soul reader can pick up in the soul realm. This is dangerous territory on which to tread as that is the "business" of the occult and witchcraft. One needs to tread very carefully here not to use information gained in the soul realm to manipulate and control a person. You are not listening for the screaming loud voice of the soul but the still small voice of the Spirit. And if you are a soul-reader, never give a word from here to gain an advantage or some level of benefit. Always seek God for a word to encourage the person in their spirit. There are those today who instead of operating in a prophetic gift (which is always in service to God and not for our own gain) are actually engaged in the occult, which defined as "peering." These people peer into people's souls for their own benefit. I have even caught people trying to peer into my soul.

Word to the wise: A mature prophetic person is not so enamored of his or her own gifts; instead, their only object of admiration and adoration is God. We all go through that phase of amazing ourselves with the gift until we realize it's not so amazing to hear God and to do what He says. It's rather expected according to John 10:27. The encourager is simply acting in service to others as He represents the interests of God.

TRUE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE GOD-KIND

Now that we have that background, back to our subject matter of true encouragement.

True encourage of the unregenerate and that which is aimed at the regenerate is not altogether different. Why? Because the spirit is the foundation of the person. To the one, unregenerate, their spirit is dead and not alive to God. To the other, regenerate, their spirit is alive, pointed to and defaults to a "yes" to God. It is the soul that battles against the spirit's desire to obey God. 

So no matter how you slice it, encouraging the soul of a person who has not accepted Christ yet, will only make the person prouder and less likely to see their need to submit to God. TRUE ENCOURAGEMENT ADDRESSES THE SPIRIT OF THE PERSON. If the encourager is in touch with the living God and His Mediator Jesus Christ, God gives that person the key to open up the unregenerate spirit in an encouraging manner that sets them up to receive freedom in the Savior. Encouraging the regenerate soul and believer in Christ, gives another key to advance the person in his or her calling in God.

Therefore, if the desire is to "encourage" a person to walk in and toward Godliness, the person should first and foremost be encouraged in their spirit. The only difference between the type of encouragement is in the key God gives to encourage them, believer or non-believer. For example, an encouraging word from God for an unbeliever will contain a key to their salvation and subsequent freedom. Any word that works against that is not from God.

CONCLUSION:

This post came out of a prayer session where the non-believer was pumped up in the soul and in all of their accomplishments so that by the time the Spirit to spirit word came, "the Lord wants you to be like a childlike," the person was unable to align in order to agree and t submit to God. I pray that by God's grace it happened later on. To me it appeared as if the same hardness toward God came back.  I was disappointed but I know that God is not moved by my disappointment and the fact is, His word cannot return to Him void. It will accomplish the task for which He sent it. My prayer is that the word took root and the Lord will work to bring life in dead areas of the heart and spirit..

Anyone can encourage the soul. As a matter of fact some of the largest churches are filled to the brim as the souls of the people are pumped up to self-importance, while God is touted as the blessing-machine and a sidekick. Friend, it takes a person who knows God, and whom God knows, to bring a now word of encouragement to someone who needs it.

The lesson I've learnt is that starting the prayer and encouragement time with a word from the Spirit of God to that person's spirit (not their soul) is foundational to the rest of the time and perhaps their life. It will cause them to decide whether to draw closer to God in humility or away from God in pride and smugness. I know God is still at work and will continue until He isn't. My concern is, we can never know when a person has rejected Him one too many times, or when their time on this earth is up.

As ministers, all members of the Body of Christ are sent to encourage people with the word of the Lord, not just a select few super-gifted people. And while there are different levels of gifting, anyone can prophesy if they have ever read the Bible. There's no higher form of prophecy than that. And the word may be as simple as "God loves you" or "God is going to help you today." Sometimes it's a directional word or a warning, but it is always the word of the Lord that the person needs at that time to encourage them.

Finally, I am not saying that God never addresses the soul of a person. After all, that is who the person is. However, when God (Who is Spirit) is the Source of the message, it is a spiritual word. In order for the word to be transformative He has to be the Source (via His Holy Spirit.) His keys are not soul keys but spiritual keys that unlock the soul. And you don't have to look far. The Bible is full of them.

KEY: WHEN GOD ASKS YOU TO ENCOURAGE A PERSON, BRING THE WORD HE IS GIVING OVER THEIR LIVES, NOT WHAT THEIR SOUL WANTS TO HEAR SO THAT IT CAN BE PUFFED UP. BRING THE SIMPLY WORD GOD HAS  GIVEN FOR THAT PERSON THAT WILL OPEN THEM UP TO MORE OF HIM SO THAT THE ENCOURAGEMENT IS TRUE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE GOD-KIND!!!!

Other Great Sources Along This Line and Right on Point are:

1. The Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest) for May 3 titled, "Vital Intercession." Today! Here is the link just go to May 3: http://utmost.org/ .
2. Ephesians 6:18
3. Matthew 6:24
4. Revelation 2:4