I Win because I'm with Him!

As we near the final chapters of Revelation I'm becoming more and more aware of God's heart. I pray my SOAP from today helps you to see how much God loves you. May your eyes be opened to His victorious win for you.

S = "Together they will go to war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them because he is Lord of all lords and King of all kings. And his called and chosen and faithful ones will be with him.” (Revelation 17:14 NLT)

O = At the end, everything is leading up to the final battle where all who are not of God will be defeated. The beast/Satan and all his deceived ones will gather an army to attack Jesus, and...they will lose! Jesus will reign victoriously because He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Those who are surrendered to Jesus will have the honor of being with Him as He defeats the enemy.

A = Just as you can be guilty by association...we receive honor and authority by association. I will stay close to Jesus and on His side. I will let Him fight my battles for me.

P = Heavenly Father, thank you for loving me and being gracious and kind to me. I praise You for Your kindness to allow me to share in Your victory. I ask for Your courage and strength to stay close to You and Your Son Jesus to the very end.

Stay Strong & Don't Leave Jesus!

I thought I would share my SOAP for today in hopes it will encourage you as you're SOAPing Revelation.  

S = "This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus." (Revelation 14:12 NLT)

O = The book of Revelation is "revealing" what will happen in the last days. There will be 7 final years of tribulation or torment. Those who had surrendered their lives to Jesus prior to the tribulation have been "raptured" or taken from the earth. Though the church (born again christians) is gone, many will turn to God, believing in Jesus. These new believers will have an extremely difficult time. Their belief in Jesus will result in great persecution and even death. Those who deny Jesus in the tribulation and worship the statue and take the mark of the beast will ultimately spend eternity in hell. Those who maintain their faith in Christ will receive the eternal reward of heaven.

A = I personally resolve that no matter what pressure comes my way I will stand strong in Jesus. I will obey God and His commands. I will patiently endure persecution, temptation and pressure against God's way of life. Jesus is my all in all.

P = Heavenly Father, I love you with every fabric of my being! I ask for your strength and help to live the life You've called me to. I will press into You and the victory You've given me through the resurrection of Jesus. Thank you for saving me and for being my rock and my fortress.

God's Word Never Fails!

Revelation chapter 10 continues the progression building toward the massive outpouring of sin's judgment on the earth.  God is still working to turn the hearts of mankind to Himself to be rescued.  He loves people.  His Word spoken to His servants has always been for the purpose of revealing who He is and to draw people to Himself.

Here's what was in my heart today as I SOAPed.

S = "When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets.” (Revelation 10:7 NLT)

O = God will make sure His plan comes to pass. His secrets were never meant to remain secret. He is not like man that He can lie or withhold His promises. He loves His servants. As a result of that love, He shares His secrets with them.  He promises that all He has said will happen.

A = I will maintain my trust in My God. I will rest assured that nothing from His Word will ever fail in my life. He is my Rock, defense, shepherd and King! I will wait on His Word.  I am safe in His arms.

P = Father of all creation. Thank you for loving me. I love Your faithfulness! Thank You that Your Word never fails. I ask for strength and patience to wait on Your Word to come to pass and to not move forward ahead of You and Your plan for my life.

Revelation SOAP

Revelation is not the easiest book to read; especially not the easiest to find something to readily apply to our daily lives. I thought I would help out those who are SOAPing with us by sharing what God is speaking to me today.

Here's my SOAP of (Revelation 9:20 NLT)

S = "But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood--idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk."

O = Though there must be judgement for sin, God is always merciful and good, looking to receive those who will turn from their sin. However, even after witnessing 1/3 of the world's population judged with their sin, they would not repent and turn to God.

A = I will worship God for His mercy and kindness to forgive sin. I will be humble & quickly repent of my sin and maintain a life-giving flow with God.

P = Father, you are so faithful and merciful to forgive and pardon my sin. Thank you for not holding sin against me. Thank you for seeing me as You see Jesus. I worship you, for You are good and Your mercy endures forever!

3 Clear God Directives for FLC in 2012

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting has changed our church!

Since the beginning, even before our first official service, Family Life Church has spent the first 3 weeks of the year to seek God through a special time of fasting and prayer. Every year we exit the fast with a God-given strategy, that when implemented, has worked. This year is no different.

3 Things from our Fast to Change the World...

ONE...FLC is to GO in 2012!

We are to step into our neighborhoods with specific Servolution outreaches and share Jesus. We are to reach out into our nation through the ARC (Association of Related Churches) and plant more churches to share Jesus. We are to aggressively cross our nation's borders into the international world and partner with missionaries and churches to reach other cultures for Jesus. FLC is to GO like never before.

TWO...We are to Believe for a minimum of 365 Commitments to Christ!

Acts 2:47b says, "...And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved." 80 people made commitments to Christ in 2011 during our weekend experiences and outreaches. Though I celebrate all that God has allowed us to witness, I am stirred to expect even more. I believe we are to see people turning to Jesus on a daily basis. Join with me in circling this vision in not only prayer, but in action through sharing your story and bringing people to church.

THREE...We are to Take the 90 Day Challenge!

For a year and a half, FLC has been working to secure a permanent location. We signed a lease in 2011 and have raised over $200,000 for our building project! That is amazing!!!

We now have 3 goals...

1. Raise an additional $60k to complete the build-out and get a Certificate of Occupancy.

2. Raise $100k for the C. of O. and to purchase chairs and some equipment.

3. Raise $200k to finish the build-out and completely furnish our dream with all the fixtures & equipment necessary.

Our challenge...from now through Sunday, April 29th, 2012?

* If you're not yet bringing God the first 10% of your income that you will test God in the tithe for 90 days. (Malachi 3:10 "...try Me now in this." God says.)

* If you're currently a tither, you will stretch and give above your tithe toward the building for the next 90 days.

1 Kings 17:13-16 is our promise from God that as we give Him the first we will always have enough.

Join with me and Stephanie as we take the steps God has so graciously given us to live out His vision and reach more and more for Jesus.

Day 21: Prayer & Fasting

Read and SOAP 1 Samuel chapter 23

David was surrounded by opposition. Even though he knew he was about to be betrayed, he still prayed and worshipped God. In the end, God came through. David found himself separated from his enemies, delivered from danger and resting in the stronghold of En-gedi.

David’s life was filled with trials. At times, he was running for his life, at times he was hiding out in caves. It was a fight. But there were two things that remained throughout David’s entire life: worship and prayer. David knew that when it came down to it – regardless of what he went through – that was all he needed.

Over the last 21 days, we’ve established a consistency in prayer, worship and drawing closer to God. Remain consistent, recognizing that this is the lifeline to strength and the only way to overcome any adversity.

“Dear God, thank You for this time and all that You have done in and through my life over these last 21 days. I commit to keeping this space open to You and trust that You are all I need. I love you and thank you. Amen.”

(Blog reposted with permission from Awake21.org)

Day 20: Prayer & Fasting

Read and SOAP Mark chapter 9

The disciples found themselves unprepared to deal with this particular situation. Because Jesus led a lifestyle of prayer and fasting, He was prepared to deal with the issue when the time came. He didn’t wait until the problem arose to prepare – a lifestyle of prayer and fasting had prepared Him for it.

Prayer and fasting prepares us for what lies ahead. We don’t have to wait for an emergency to arise before we prepare. Let us prepare ahead of time so that when confronted with adversity or challenges, we can face them head on.

“Dear God, as I set time aside today to pray, fast and seek You, I ask that you strengthen me, prepare me, and fill me with Your Word. God, You see everything and hold all my days in Your hands. You know exactly what I have need of before I even ask for it. Thank You for Your grace that enables me to face whatever lies ahead. In Jesus name, Amen.”

(Blog reposted with permission from Awake21.org)