The Far-reaching Rivers of Life

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Oswald Chambers' My Utmost for His Highest amazes me with how relevant it is still today, after almost 100 years of time passing by.  As a friend and I discussed today, truly "there is nothing new under the sun. (Eccl. 1:9)"  So today, I simply want to share an excerpt from that book and pray it blesses your heart as much as it did mine.

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The Far-reaching Rivers of Life

September 6

He who believes in Me, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." (John 7:33)

A river reaches places which its source never knows.  And Jesus said that, if we have received His fullness, "rivers of living water" will flow out of us, reaching in blessing even "to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8) regardless of how small the visible effects of our lives may appear to be.  We have nothing to do with the outflow--"This is the work of God, that you believe..." (John 6:29).  God rarely allows a person to see how great a blessing he is to others.

A river is victoriously persistent, overcoming all barriers.  For a while it goes steadily on its course, but then comes to an obstacle.  And for a while it is blocked, yet it soon makes a pathway around the obstacle.  Or a river will drop out of sight for miles, only later to emerge again even broader and greater than ever.  do you see god using the lives of others, but an obstacle has come into your life and you do not seem to be of any use to God?  Then keep paying attention to the Source, and God will either take you around the obstacle or remove it.  The river of the Spirit of God overcomes all obstacles.  Never focus your eyes on the obstacle or the difficulty.  The obstacle will be a matter of total indifference to the river that will flow steadily through you if you will simply remember to stay focused on the Source.  Never allow anything to come between you and Jesus Christ--not emotion nor experience--nothing must keep you from the one great sovereign Source.

Think of the healing and far-reaching rivers developing and nourishing themselves in our souls!  God has been opening up wonderful truths to our minds, and every point He has opened up is another indication of the wider power of the river that He will flow through us.  If you believe in Jesus, you will find that God has developed and nourished in you mighty, rushing rivers of blessing for others.

Excerpt from "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers

Wow, this is crazy how much this speaks to where I'm walking right now.  Help me follow these Kingdom principles, God!
I found this on the sacredcharge.com website.  They have some really awesome resources for people going after a lifestyle of prayer and fasting - you should check it out!  : )

"Beware of any work for God which enables you to evade concentration on Him. A great many Christian workers worship their work. The one concern of a worker should be concentration on God, and this will mean that all the other margins of life, mental, moral and spiritual, are free with the freedom of a child, a worshipping child, not a wayward child.
…. There is no responsibility on you for the work; the only responsibility you have is to keep in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom after sanctification is the freedom of a child, the things that used to keep the life pinned down are gone. But be careful to remember that you are freed for one thing only- to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.
…. God engineers everything; wherever He puts us our one great aim is to pour out a whole-hearted devotion to Him in that particular work.
(O. Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest; April 23rd selection)

Pain is temporary, while growth is permanent

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..."pain is temporary, while growth is permanent"...

These words resound in my mind today as I face another day - waiting, praying, asking a lot of questions, reminding myself of simple little promises from God like this, and trying to keep my chin up amidst the pain.

Migraines. 7 straight days of migraines. I praise God for giving me some lucidity right now to even write about it.

Tomorrow I go to the neurologist to try to get some answers.

So, for the last 7 days I've been staying with my parents and have focused on trying to keep my mind off the pain.

I've been reminded of how much I love what I do, and I really miss being in the Prayer House, spending time with the Father on behalf of people in need-on behalf of a city in need. I've realized how much I truly cherish the people I've been walking with this past year. They've been such a strength to me, and I've learned so much from their devotion to the Lord. I can't wait to get back and walk out this journey - this lifestyle of prayer. I can't wait to move forward in the organic, relation-based ministry God's given me.

There's so many beautiful people - so many stories. Perhaps one day I'll be putting it all together in a book? Who knows.

But one thing I do know - there's treasure in Baltimore. There's so much purpose - so much potential. And I get to be a part of it.

So right now I'm continuing to take it easy. The other night I pushed myself to get back for the Thursday night prayer meeting I lead, and ended up not sleeping at all that night because the nautia and pain was so bad.

God knows what is best & I will follow Him. I just praise God for the beauty that I'm seeing right now in the things He's doing. Please keep praying for my health. It's been a continual struggle this year - if it's not one thing it seems to be another. But God is faithful. I have no doubt about that. And He's come through in some awesome ways.

Do it again, oh God!

..."pain is temporary, while growth is permanent"...

God Belongs in My City – Baltimore

It was a beautiful spring day in Baltimore. The air was fresh and crisp and the sky perfectly clear, giving the War Memorial Plaza right in front of City Hall a very peaceful and calm atmosphere. To those passing by nothing seemed strange or unusual. Yet for some reason a pleasant serenity abounded, rather than the constant hustle, bustle, and crowded streets of the city. Something was different about this day.

Then, about mid afternoon, hundreds of people started pouring in from all corners of the city, each humbly clad with a t-shirt resounding their heart cry, “God Belongs in My City.” They flooded into the plaza not with chants or shouting, course gestures or angry fists, but only a silent prayer on their hearts – for God to end the violence that has pillaged their city year after year.

Baltimore – one of the top murdertroplises of the nation, with a high percentage of those crimes involving teens and young adults. But the news on this day will ring of not another young person dying on the streets, but of hundreds of young people standing up for their God, believing in His power to turn the tide of the violence in their generation.

The beauty of the moment reached its climax as nearly no one was left standing on the plaza. Everyone had fallen to their knees in desperate prayer for their city. Could God really move in a city like this? Their answer would be a unanimous, “yes.”

And He is moving-even now, as they each left that plaza changed, on fire, and excited about taking this prayer back to their homes, schools, churches, and places of work. While they begin to lay hold of their newfound call to prayer, a tide will shift and the prayers will become greater than the violence in this city.

God belongs in Baltimore and He will come in response to our prayers. Join the movement and see a city known for its violence become a city known for its change.