Lessons Learned from Jill Austin's Dancing with Destiny

I'm nearing the end of the late Jill Austin's Dancing with Destiny.
 
This chapter is about strategies for soliders, key things as a praying person you can ask for and know God will equip you for the unseen battle called intercession.

This chapter deserves a book of its own. I took a course on this subject because I've always had a sensitive ear for God and would be a step or two ahead of others. For years I felt it was a curse because few could relate to me or me them. Researching this topic and really praying on it helped me see being a messenger for God's kingdom is a blessing.

But like Spiderman, it also requires great responsibility.

I think we are very close to the place where the word prophecy isn't so scary or abused as it used to be. The phrase "thus saith the Lord" was beyond worn out and sometimes applied during wrong times. Sometimes people meant harm, and most of the time, they didn't. They were simply acting without guidance and were like me when I turn on the supermax hose on the car wash.

Out of control.

Jill makes an excellent point I need to take seriously, because I haven't been. I want to be an effective vessel for Him and that means the things of this world can't appeal to me or have a hold on me more than Christ does. One of my issues is gossip. I love news and I love reading. And more often than not I find my browser heading in a direction that seems like news, but it's gossip.

My choices put a black eye on the incredible things God could do if I was giving Him clear access. So if you are someone that stands in the gap in the name of Christ in prayer, don't forget to pray for yourself. Ask God to open your eyes and ears not only to His ways and what He has for others, but what He's seeing in you. What convicts me might not be a conviction for you.

For some, I know great people of prayer very solid in Christ who watch "R" movies. I just can't. The last movie I remember was John Travolta's Face/Off. That movie was well written and acted but I felt such evil my spirit was out of whack for days. Sometimes there are even PG-13 movies I have to walk away from. But that's my conviction, and you need to ask God for yours.

A lot of people struggle finding the balance between what to say when God gives them something, and when to be quiet. I tell people my life is about trial and error, mostly error. If I see something, as Jill wrote, like a flower, I'll wait on it, pray about it.

If I get that "burn in my belly" I've learned for me, I'll probably be speaking about it. I keep praying and when the time comes, that burn is out of control. I just know. But I refuse to use the words, thus saith the Lord. If God gives me a message it's for His glory and for the person to seek Him for the rest of the answer. I don't make generic promises, but if I sense something, and I've got that burn, I'll share it---and tell them to go to God with it for more. That way it isn't about me and I'm not making fleshy promises.

Sometimes I get a whole lot of information, downloads I call them, and I'd blab it all over the place. Yea, don't do that. Again, after prayer I came to realize that information was His sacred time with me to give me prayer directive. Some people aren't willing to hear the things I couldn't wait to share about them or a loved one. Finally I'm pretty much to the point that when I have a sense about something, I go to Him first. I'm starting to see things unfold that I had an inkling about, but I knew it was not for me to say, just pray on. It's so much sweeter when I do things His way.

That's the base of the chapter. If you think messengers of God are brilliant, perfect people, take a look in the Bible. Jonah was pretty rebellious when it came to obedience. Jeremiah was the "weeping prophet". I can relate to him. Often after a move of God that I prayed about to some degree, I'm emotionally wiped and I cry my eyes out. I've learned to not schedule a lot when I sense such a move coming, because I won't be with it and I know it.

Again, trial and error. God is gracious and He's not expecting you to know it all. In fact, you never will because then He's not necessary. If you say too much or too little, let God know you goofed and you don't want to repeat it. If your heart is pure, you'll get plenty of other opportunities.

 Julie Arduini is a writer and speaker residing in NE Ohio with her husband and two children.  Her first published fiction work is included in Delivered by the Peculiar People Postcard Project.  To see her complete writing and speaking resume, please visit her at her website.

The Negative "-ion" Series

We continue to scratch our heads when we look and see the readers that visit here and where they come from. We're not here as often as we like but we are so grateful for you. We truly just our three moms who are navigating deeper waters of Christian faith...by faith. We're willing to let God use us in spite of us.

This is the case with today's post. I have no idea why He's downloading to my heart, but I am so grateful and wanting to be a good steward with what He gives. A month or so ago a series of events hit around me and I was in prayer tying to piece them all together.

God let me know there is a common denominator: deception. As a whole we're believing a lie and the lie is that we are the defeated one. The Lord is loving on His kids letting them know it's not so. Deception is just a word, a negative word that has -ion on the end. The thing is, He's ready to exchange those negative -ions for positive ones.

So the first download He gave me was getting rid of deception. Embrace the truth that the real defeated one is not you. It's the true defeated one, satan. He's desperate and talk about a recession, now there is an organization on a failing budget. The defeated one has to use cheap tricks because it's all he can afford. So the negative -ion words I will share are ones the defeated one has been using on us because they used to work. In Jesus' name, we're done with those words, choices, and beliefs. We're instead embracing the + -ion words.

So if you fell for something or someone in 2009 or earlier that left you thinking how on Earth did I fall for that deception? You're not alone. You're not alone if you've spent a season or more thinking you are the defeated one. You aren't. You are a celebration. A Child of Christ. A miracle, a wonder. His delight.

I hope this touches your heart. I'll be sharing more of these thoughts here. If you want a sneak peek, I invite you to find me on Facebook. I have a group called Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe where I send the -ion messages once a week to them first. I'm also sharing those messages at The Cypress Times.

Have a wonderful week living it out in celebration!


Julie Arduini is a writer and speaker residing in NE Ohio with her husband and two children.  Her first published fiction work is included in Delivered by the Peculiar People Postcard Project.  To see her complete writing and speaking resume, please visit her at her website.

Heart of God International Haiti Update

Yesterday we posted a letter from Heart of God International regarding their presence in Haiti, an update, and prayer points. Here is some bittersweet news regarding the latest. Please keep the people of Haiti in prayer.


January 14, 2010
Pastor Dicksent Alive


Dear Partners, Family, and Friends,
Thank you so much for your incredible display of concern and support for our situation in Haiti.

Colonel Dave Young, Executive Director of Heart of God Haiti, just got off the phone with Pastor Dicksent who reported 160 children survived, and 40 children from the school were killed in the earthquake. Specific details are still sketchy but Dicksent said all ten of the teachers have made it through! The school building is completely destroyed. Dave will be communicating with him over the next few days to determine exactly what we need to do to help them.

Dave only had a few minutes with Dicksent, but in that time shared that the remaining 160 students' families are huddled in a tent in an open field away from the destroyed buildings and homes. Dave said Dicksent is in very rough shape (as you can well imagine) but covets your continued prayers.

For continuous ongoing updates, please follow the blog on the Heart of God Haiti website. CLICK HERE

Thank you one and all!

Jan Ross
President/Co-Founder
Heart of God International

How you can help Haiti: Heart of God International

The Narrow Gate Girls are friends with Heart of God International. We've worked with Jeanice McDade and Jan Ross with their book, Women of Passions: Ordinary Women Serving an Extraordinary God. Heart of God International has a presence in Haiti and all donations go right to Haiti for the people of Haiti. If you're looking for a way to help, Jeanice sent this note out for consideration. Let's pray.


January 13, 2010
Emergency in Haiti


Dear Partners, Family, and Friends,
As you have probably heard, Haiti was hit with a devastating earthquake yesterday afternoon. Reports being shown by the news stations are showing a lot of damage and destruction.

We just spoke with Dave Young, Executive Director of Heart of God-Haiti. Our understanding is that HG-Haiti has its operations in the area where the earthquake hit the worse. Because communications are cut off, there is no way of knowing the extent of the damage or the number of our people who were affected. We can be sure, however, that some, if not all, of the Haitian team members and children are in desperate need of our prayers at this point.

Although you are more familiar with my work with JournEzine and in India, please join me as we pray for a miracle for HG-Haiti:
• Pray for the safety and well being of our Haitian team members
• Pray for the safety and well being of the children, many of whom live at the school
• Pray that medical services and supplies will be quickly available as necessary and adequate to fill the needs
• Pray that communications with home base in Rochester, NY will be quickly established so an assessment of the situation can be made and plans devised to get as much assistance to them as possible
• Pray that our team members and children will be protected
• Pray for those who are hurting and devastated emotionally, for those who have lost loved ones, for those who are injured or buried in the rubble, pray that rescue workers will quickly find the missing
• Pray that God will reach out His hand of protection and hold close to Himself those who serve Him and seek to help others in this time of disaster
• Pray for Dave and Julie Young, Executive Directors of HG-Haiti ... they are naturally devastated and feeling helpless to do much until there is some communication
• Pray for wisdom to know what to do and how to do accomplish it
• Pray that people will respond generously to the pleas that are going to be made for funding to provide as much emergency assistance as needed, not only for HG-Haiti's team but for all those who have been affected by this tragic day
Young and Company, Dave Young's CPA firm in NY, is providing matching funds, dollar for dollar, for all contributions received from generous donors to provide emergency assistance in Haiti. Please click here to make your 100% tax deductible contribution.


Please pray with me for Haiti and all those affected by this tragedy:

Father God, we can only hope and pray that our friends, the children and team members in Haiti have all escaped any injury or harm. We ask that You bring peace and comfort to those that need it during this critical time. Father I heard from news reports that while the city was in chaos people were running in the streets screaming your name. I am thankful that in the midst of turmoil and destruction that Your name was heard. Lord, I lift up the entire HGIM team, but especially Dave and Julie as they wait on baited breath for any news. Father, this situation is of no shock to You; You are not shaken by it and sit firm on Your throne. Lord help us to have faith in Your will in a time like this when we struggle to understand. Lord, lift any fear that we might have and replace it with trust in all circumstances; we need it more than ever. I ask all these things in Jesus' name. Amen

Please forward this email to everyone you know who will pray. Help us spread the word and help us to raise a substantial amount of funding to help our brothers and sisters in Christ during this critical time.


God bless,

Jeanice McDade
Vice-President/Co-Founder
Heart of God International Ministries

Note: Please forgive me if you receive duplicate copies of this plea for prayer and emergency relief assistance. We are trying to reach as many contacts as possible by sending to all our email lists. If you appear on more than one list, you will receive a duplicate copy. This is not an attempt to spam you but to make sure all our contacts are contacted. Thank you for your kind understanding.

Great Article I Recommend

I found this an interesting article because over at my blog, I'm going through Jill Austin's book, Dancing with Destiny. This article originated at the ElijahList. This year my heart's cry is for people to shed the old lies and embrace restoration and celebration in Christ. This article is a good one.


Doug Addison:Spiritual Identity Theft - a Tactic of the Enemy

I woke up the day after Christmas after several dreams where I saw the enemy trying to steal peoples' destinies. As I prayed about it I heard the words "identity theft." Oftentimes, things that are happening in the natural realm reflect what is happening in the spiritual realm. The rise of identity theft in the world is symbolic of what is happening spiritually to people all around the world. I saw two covert strategies that satan is trying to use against people to keep them from seeing, finding, and fulfilling their life purpose and destiny in God.

Strategy 1: Getting Us to Believe that We are Our Behavior

Bad experiences or painful pasts can negatively affect our present. There are forces of darkness that want us to believe that we are the only ones who suffer with these issues and that it is unchangeable. This is simply not true. Too often our sin and emotional baggage gets linked to what we believe about ourselves. In other words, our personality and identity becomes associated with the things we struggle with.

The strategy of the enemy is for us to believe that we actually "are" how we feel or behave, which is not true at all. Satan wants you to believe things like: you "are" depressed, unhappy, worthless, unable to change, stupid, a failure...the list could go on and on. It is important to realize that our feelings and behavior are situational and we can change them—the truth is feelings and behavior are not who we really are. They might be things that we struggle with, but they are not our identity, or who we are in Christ.

This includes the things that you may think about yourself at a deep level. You might not consciously believe them, but you find yourself thinking them or saying them about yourself on a regular basis. Most people don't see that there is a direct connection between the way they view themselves and their destiny.

For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. Proverbs 23:7 NKJV

Strategy 2: Dying Too Much to Yourself and Losing Your Passion

Satan wants to steal our identities and take away any hope for change. When he is able to get us to believe the lies about ourselves in Strategy 1, he then uses Bible verses out of context as he did with Jesus to release a second deadly attack against our destinies, by getting us to over-respond to our sin.

To experience a radically transformed life we must have renewed thinking. It is interesting that while writing about how to find God's will for your life, the Apostle Paul says that we must first change our thinking by renewing our minds.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2 NKJV

The process of renewing your mind involves a principle called dying to yourself. There are several verses in the Bible that talk about dying to the sinful nature or "old self" and allowing God to live through us. This is a necessary process for transforming your life. However, it is also a very misunderstood principle. Satan wants to get us to take this to the extreme and believe that we must die to all the heart desires and plans that we have.

The truth is—dying to ourselves does not mean that we cannot have any desires or ideas of our own. If that were the case you would become a robot for God. God wants us to be His sons and daughters and to have authority on the earth. God created the earth and we are created in His image. Therefore, we all have the ability to be co-creators to expand His Kingdom on earth.

God wants to give us good things that we want and desire once our motives are right. It is no wonder that so many people don't know their destiny; it may be because they have died to any desire they may have once had.

Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 NIV

Dying to yourself means that your heart has the right intentions. Not all of our desires are necessarily from God. Quite often God will give us a passion or strong desire to fulfill something in our lives. Passion is important because it brings about a divinely inspired drive to accomplish things for God.

The Remedy: God's Good Intentions for You

A really great thing about God is that He sees us as who we are becoming through His love and power. As He looks at our lives, He knows our past, understands our present, and can see us in the future, all at the same time. His love, mercy, and grace are unfathomable. Imagine the possibilities if we could see ourselves the same way that God sees us. Much of the time we are not able to see our purpose and destiny with much clarity, so we are required to rely on faith.

The principle of faith allows us to trust that there is something special and unique for us, even if our experiences have been the opposite. Sometimes there is great resistance or even setbacks before we are able to get into the fullness of God's desires for us.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1 NIV

We need to be certain of the fact that God has nothing but good intentions for us, even though we may not see them yet. You'll see this in this powerful Biblical principle:

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

These are God's intentions for us. His plans are to prosper us, to give us hope and a future. If you read on, you'll see the benefits of grasping this.

Then (after you discover God's plans for you) you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:12-13 NIV

We must see what God is doing in our lives and work with Him to bring it about. It's time to take a stand against what satan has in mind for us and come into line with God's wonderful intentions for us.

If people can't see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; but when they attend to what He reveals, they are most blessed. Proverbs 29:18 The Message

Our Identity is in Christ

The foundation of my life is this: in Christ, I am a new creation, and all the old thoughts and behaviors no longer have power over me. I am being renewed every day with God's love and character. I share in God's divine nature because God's Spirit lives in me. I am free from condemnation and have the strength to live my life free of despairing thoughts and the competing desires of my flesh. I am God's workmanship, created to do good works, which God has prepared ahead of time for me to accomplish. I am more than a conqueror through God who loves me. I have a clear mind and can make good decisions. I am increasing daily in faith, strength, wisdom, and love. I am able to love others because God has first loved me.

Doug Addison
InLight Connection
Email: info@dougaddison.com

Doug Addison's Itinerary:Note: Events are subject to change at the ministry's discretion. We suggest you always check first with the event contact listed here and/or directly visit their website for latest updates on each event.

January 10, 2010 (10:30am)
Doug speaks at Sunday morning service
The Father's House
833 E. March Lane; Stockton, CA 95207
Contact: 209-478-5200 or tfh@thefathershousestockton.org

January 16, 2010 (7:00pm)
Platform for the Prophets Conference
Speaker: Doug Addison
The Gathering Place of Simi Valley
9 West Bonita Dr.; Simi Valley, CA 93065
Contact: thegatheringsimi@yahoo.com or 805-522-5916

January 17, 2010 (10:00am)
Doug speak at Sunday service
The Gathering Place of Simi Valley
9 West Bonita Dr.; Simi Valley, CA 93065
Contact: thegatheringsimi@yahoo.com or 805-522-5916

Maria's New Year Resolution

New Year’s Resolution

I am so grateful that through all the changes we go through in this life—the disappointments, the ups and downs of this world, the good, the bad, and the ugly-- In the midst of the business of our days—when some days, all we need is a constant….

His love is unconditional.

His mercy is new each and every morning.

His grace is overflowing.

His peace is available always.

He offers forgiveness anytime we repent.

I am so very grateful for the constant of who Jesus is in my life.

Unfortunately, like most people, the holidays bring on many stressors.

Today, now that the hustle and bustle is over, I am so grateful that I can go to His Throne room, and He is still there.

Waiting for me.

Always.

Waiting for me to stop and be still.

Stop.

Slow down.

And just worship Him.

He is the constant in my life that I will be ever grateful for.

Even when I think He’s not listening, He is.

Even when there are days when I think He has forgotten about me, He hasn’t.

Even when circumstances in my life have allowed me to feel distant from Him, He’s still right next to me.

Whispering in my ear that things will be OK---pleading with me to lean on Him no matter what.

Teaching me that His grace is sufficient.

His love is overflowing.

And it is truly all I need.

Such peace there is knowing these simple, true facts of His word.

My New Year’s Resolution is to truly believe all He says and all that He is, and to be ever present in His presence.

Maria and her family reside in NE Ohio. She and her husband are the parents of two. Their daughter is a person with hemipelegic cerebral palsy.Because of her experiences, Maria provides parent-to-parent support for families involved in her local early intervention program. Her gift for writing has come directly from the Lord since her daughter’s diagnosis. She writes a monthly column entitled, “Special Parents, Special Kids” for the Mahoning Valley Parent magazine in Ohio; and has expanded into Parent magazines in parts of Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
She is also a contributing author at http://www.mommiesmagazine.com/.Maria's first published work is in Jan Ross and Jeanice McDade's Women of Passion's anthology, "Ordinary Women Serving an Extraordinary God". Both Kim and Maria have been selected to have their work tentatively included in Lori Wagner's upcoming book, Quilting Patches of Life, Volume 2.

We're On the Winning Team!

Of course I couldn't get it to cut and paste but I feel this is a message from God He wants the masses to know.

It's over at my blog today. Check it out!

By the way, the blog is a few years old but the site is new. If you like what you see, would you tell others and/or subscribe? Thanks!

Remember, we're on the winning team!




Image From: Photobucket

Julie Arduini is a writer and public speaker from NE Ohio. Her most recent work, Who Hung the Moon (Upside Down?) is featured in James Stuart Bell's God Encounters. Julie is excited to launch her Surrendered Scribe newsletter which features a short story exclusive for newsletter subscribers: Discovering Nancy Struthers. To learn more about Julie and her work, please visit her at Julie Arduini.com.

Lessons from a Cast Iron Tub

As you get to know me, you'll realize I'm the lady with a story for everything. God takes the daily stuff of life and teaches me, and then I tend to write about it. So here goes the cast iron tub. I sense this is something for someone out there, and I'm learning right with you!

Our house is a 1939 Colonial with a cast iron tub with peeling paint. We've had three different kinds of "tub people" in there giving us their ideas and estimates. Perhaps because the estimators worked with products they always dismissed replacing the tub, but always said they advised against to because it was a cast iron tub.

The tub is too heavy and impossible to move out of a small bathroom and out of an old house.

It's a heavy burden that would be easier to take care of it you buy a pretty shell to surround the tub, throw down a new liner to hide the flaws, or buy a nice kit that you can gloss over the paint.

Gee, that sounds like my approach to how I handle conflict in my life!

Like the estimators, I also get in my head that I have to deal with the entire process that moment. Cast iron tubs aren't meant to come out easy. It isn't pretty trying to picture a group of workers hauling a tub out of a small bathroom because it's not reality.

Last week a new estimator came in and looked at the tub. Without a beat he asked why we never replaced it. I explained the workers before him and their reasons. He shook his head.

"We take the tub out a piece at a time. This way you still fix the problem, but in a doable way, not some cheap fix that will have your tub showing new peeled paint in a year or so."

Knock me over with a feather! That spoke to me on so many levels. Instead of thinking I'm a failure because I'm having trouble trusting God with finances (which is a lingering issue for me) I realize I'm throwing some paint on a tub because I'm afraid I can't carry the tub. I can't. I can deal with it a piece at a time and know God is doing a greater work in me this way. I tend to think in marathon ways instead of sprints. The tub showed me a true work is a work in progress, and one that takes care of the issue, not just temporairly hides it.

Does this speak to anyone?

If you're thinking about fixing a cast iron tub, take it from me, do it a piece at a time.

(This originally appeared in a group message over on the Facebook group: Julie Arduini: The Surrendered Scribe


Julie Arduini is a writer and public speaker residing in NE Ohio with her husband and two children. Her heart is to encourage readers to find freedom through surrender. She knows that has to start with her, so she's surrendering the good, the bad, and maybe one day, the chocolate. She'd love if you bookmarked her website and signed her blog guest book at JulieArduini.com. She also went all techie and created a gadget you can use on your iGoogle page. Feel free to add it and tell others.


Photo courtesy photobucket