alexanderraspberry - Tumblr blog

alexanderraspberry · 6 years

Text

God, Where Are You

The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” Judges 6:11

Undoubtedly we have all asked the question or some form of it: God, where are you? If you really are who you say you are, then where are you? I know no one is immune to struggles, but why this and this long? We struggle with this question because, admittedly or un-admittedly we hunger after knowledge and the truth: that there is a Heavenly Father that is indeed concerned with the realities of our life.

The truth that we have a Father that can set us back on course when we seemed to have lost our way, lost our purpose, our flare, our main reason for existing. God testing you or allowing you to go through trouble for a few months is one thing. But going through for a few years no doubt will prop open the door for doubt to enter in, having you to start doubting, not the existence of God, but rather His love and affection towards you. Doubting the revelation and truth that He is with you. This is the doubt I believe in which Paul referred to as the fiery darts of the enemy. When situation after situation, set back after set back, sickness after sickness continue to happen to you, you can't help but to have moments of doubt asking, God where are you? Do you even care? Are you even concerned about what I'm going through?In the military this is known as an Artillery Barrage. This is a barrier that is created from the on slot of rapid fire and excessive force from an enemy. My friends, make no mistake about it, you have an enemy that is locked and loaded and will not hesitate to use excessive force to kill, steal and destroy. If he can't kill you, he will begin stealing from you. Stealing your dreams, your destiny, your hope. If he can't steal from you, he will do what is necessary to destroy your family, your community, your thoughts.

Your enemy knows that the sustainability of the power of a Christian is not because you put on smell good and show up in church with the other saints each week. The sustainability of the power of a Christian is not linked to your Christological knowledge of the scriptures. Rather, the sustainability of the power of the Christian is in the capacity of your knowledge and the revealed truth to which you understand that God is with you!Hearing the declaration and living in the revelation that God is with you is a major priority on the heart of God.

If there was one thing that God could say to each and everyone of you here, it would be: The Lord your God is with you! This declaration and revelation has such a high priority in God's kingdom agenda because it produces faith, causes unusual favor, and equips you with divine strategy to be successful in any situation. Even the birth of Jesus is indicative of this significance. The prophet Isaiah prophesied that the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel, which means God with us. And the fact remains that whoever Jesus encountered, whoever He hung out with, their life was significantly transformed. Their purpose and destiny were made clear. Their mistakes were traded in for momentum in co-laboring with the Messiah.

Ordinary fisherman went from a dull life of barely getting by to traveling all over the world transforming lives. From those who were caught in the act of adultery, to those who were born blind, when they encountered Jesus, it was the revelation that God was with them. They received unusual favor. The winds of good fortune shifted in their favor!But the truth of the matter is this: Most times it is just hard to consistently live in the truth that God is with you when you are constantly being bombarded with the fiery darts of the enemy. And when the enemy’s artillery barrage—the rapid fire of attacks—continues to happen, you’ll find yourself in uncomfortable territory; where you are not only frustrated with your circumstances, frustrated with your life, but also frustrated with God, crying out in your prayers—God where are you? This is the similar season in which we find Gideon. Gideon is tired, frustrated, a thousand thoughts and questions enter and exit throughout his mind trying to figure out a solution to the ridiculous circumstance he finds himself in. Gideon along with his family and the Israelites are being oppressed by the Midianites

They are in a place where for years they have been dealing with a depressing economical setback. Everything that they work hard for, the Midianites come and steal it away from them. As a result the land in which they find themselves in severely lacks any opportunity for anyone to get ahead. Let me ask you a question... Do you feel like you are in a cyclical pattern that regardless of what you do, you can't seem to get ahead. Regardless of where you look, you can't seem to find the right opportunity- the kind of opportunity that will allow the anointing on your life to be maximized. This is the frustration Gideon wrestled with that had him to ask the question-- if God is with us, why are all of things happening?

Find Your Terebinth While Gideon is wrestling with the thought of wanting God to show up, something interesting is transpiring simultaneously. The Bible says that God shows up as an Angel, but before speaking to Gideon He is under the Terebinth tree. This is interesting because the Terebinth --a unique and prominent oak tree--plays a significant role throughout scripture concerning the presence of God. In Genesis 14, Abraham set his tent by the Terebinth and built an altar to the Lord. By Genesis 18, God and three other angelic visitors showed up at his house, ate with him and prepared him for the promise of his son Issac. When David fought Goliath, it was in the Valley of Elah, which means the Valley of the Oaks. And as we all know, David received the unusual favor the propelled him to victory over a giant. In 1st Samuel 10, after Saul is anointed king, he is instructed by the prophet Samuel to go to the Terebinth in Tabor to link up with others who are on their way to pray and sacrifice.

Let me encourage you that regardless of where you are and in spite of what you are up against if you are asking God, “Where are You?” It is going to be imperative that you find your Terebinth. Your Terebinth is the place of sacrifice, it is a place of a place of prayer. It is a specific location like Abraham where you pitch your tent with intentionality for the Presence to meet you where you are. Jesus said it like this: When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place. That word room that Jesus uses in this scripture is the Greek rendering tameion, which means a secret chamber or closet.

Friends this is powerful, because King David says in Psalms 91:1, He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High, Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. The reason it is so important that we find our Terebinth in which we seek God in the secret place is so that we might have a fresh and powerful encounter with His Presence.

#placeoffavor

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 6 years

Text

Learning How to Respond in Faith

Quick question: Have you ever prayed for something and felt like the answer you received was in total contradiction to what you asked for? Or even worse, felt offended or felt ignored? Well, today I want to explore the powerful faith of this Syro-Phoenician woman who teaches us not to merely ask in faith but to also respond in faith as a key to seeing breakthrough.

In the Gospel according to Mark chapter 7, we find a Greek woman who is horrified, confused, frustrated and in a panic as she is dealing with her daughter at home who has been battling with a demon. As Jesus enters into a home in a new city, His hope is that he can go unnoticed, at least for a few hours just so he can get refreshed. Having been unsuccessful in hiding out, Jesus’ whereabouts are found out. The Syro-Phoenician woman who is desperate to get her daughter any help that she can catches up with Jesus.

As she throws herself at His feet the scripture says that she continuously asked Jesus to cast the demon out (v.26). Finally, Jesus responds and tells her, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs” (v.27). Now at first, this response to her request seems like a flat out No as well as insensitive, as she is a female and being referred to as a dog. However, not only is that assumption contradictory to the character of Christ, but it also blurs our revelation in understanding why He would respond in such a manner. In response to what Jesus had just told her, she responds by saying, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children's crumbs(v. 28).” Whoa! Talk about a response! Can you really appreciate what she just said?

Essentially she told Jesus: I know that I’m not a Jew and that your extended grace will not be fully realized for all nations until your work is complete (Work on the cross). However, I have an immediate need. And based on what you just said about the dogs, I can relate to your response. See Jesus, we have a pet dog at home. And every time I serve food to my family I notice that my dog positions himself to sit on the floor right next to my children’s seats. He does this because, without fail, he knows that my children will undoubtedly drop crumbs from their food as they are eating. Jesus, if you are the bread for the children, then just break me off a crumb! This lady knew the universal truth of crumbs: That whatever ingredients are in the bread, the same will be in the crumbs!

Furthermore, the response that Jesus initially gives to her is not because he wants to write her off. On the contrary, it is to teach her and us a valuable lesson of learning how to respond in faith. His rough response was the texture needed to cause the friction that ignited her faith. Most of the times our asking God for help in a spiritual crisis is out of panic and fear. Although He hears us which releases His compassion in those moments, it is our faith that releases our answers.

Are you in a bind right now? Do you have an immediate need that you need God to attend to right now? If so, chances are you might be asking for help from a place of panic or even fear. Stop asking and start responding from a place of faith. How? Start using the scripture to pray His promises. While the lady probably didn’t know there Torah, she certainly took what Jesus said and used it right back to Him in conversation. Prayer seems to work a lot faster if you can learn to use His conversation. Start intentionally holding positive thoughts in your head at least three times a day (Philippians 4:8). Scripture tells us that He is able to do exceedingly more than what we can ask or think (Ephesians 3:20). When we get in a habit of visualizing (thinking) what we are believing for, He usually super exceeds our expectations! Lastly, start planning for the outcome you are expecting. Her response to Jesus referring to dogs eating the crumbs from the Children's bread is a reminder that dogs, before the food is even served, usually begin to get into position under the table, where they know the crumbs will drop. You and I have a responsibility to prepare (get into position) for what we are believing for. Learn to respond in faith and you too will have ignited such a fire of faith that causes all of heaven to respond to your need.

#faith

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 6 years

Text

His Voice Changes Everything

But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, "Children, you do not have any fish, do you?" They answered Him, "No." And He said to them, "Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch." So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. John 21:4-7

Have you ever felt unproductive? Have you ever seemed to be stuck in a season where even though you did what you knew how to do, you still came up empty-handed. Personally, I’ve gone through one of those seasons where it seemed like regardless of what I did, who I networked with, or even the new risks I took, I still couldn’t produce results.

In this pericope of scripture, we find a very important moment that helps us to understand what needs to happen in those moments and seasons where we feel unproductive. A few days after the resurrection Jesus decides to surprise a few of his disciples who have been fishing all night on the sea of Tiberias. Unproductive, having caught nothing they decided to make their way back to shore. As they were approaching the shore they noticed someone yelling at them. Unbeknownst to them, Jesus was standing on the shore asking if they had caught any fish. When they responded no, Jesus said, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”

In our seasons of being unfruitful, unproductive, and coming up empty-handed, I believe this is actually an invitation to press in our prayer time to ask the Holy Spirit where we need to specifically throw our nets. There’s never any substitute for taking massive action to see results. However, the resurrection of Jesus teaches us a more productive way, a more strategic way. The resurrected Jesus told them specifically, “Cast the net on the right side…”. Paul reminds us in Romans 8:11 that the same resurrection power that rose Jesus from the dead is now at work in us. Being unproductive is not an invitation to cast your bread on many waters. Rather, it is an invitation to sense (see in prayer) where God wants you to specifically cast your net.

Notice, that as soon as they listened to Jesus, they went from 0 fish to 153 fish. That’s a 153% return on a 0 investment just because they listened to the voice of the Lord. Let me encourage you in this season of unproductivity; Ask the Holy Spirit for specific instruction. Ask Him where you are supposed to cast your net. Perhaps you don’t know where you should work next. Don’t start applying to just any and everything, ask Him for specific instruction. Perhaps you’re business in beyond slow. Don’t keep looking for leads in the same places only to come up empty handed again. Rather ask the Holy Spirit to show you exactly where to get a bunch of new and qualified leads. His voice changes everything! He knows exactly where you will be most productive. Press in, hear, obey, and be productive beyond what you could ever imagined!

#hisvoice #prayer

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 6 years

Text

What is Leadership

What is leadership? Is it the intangible element of influencing others to follow a vision? Or is it influencing as well as equipping others to face and conquer their problems? Many times we commonly define leadership as being able to influence others to follow based on charisma and or vision. I believe that this notion of leadership is what sets up communities and organizations for failure, finding themselves in a cyclical pattern of "choosing" leadership.

While leadership should influence, it should do so with its highest priority set on influencing and equipping others to face and conquer their social, corporate, and or personal issues. Too many times we see organizations fail because their leaders in whom they were dependent on either has failed morally, failed to mobilize effectively, failed to communicate the vision effectively, and so on. When these organizations fail, then they blame the leader in whom they chose. Rather than simply choose leadership, institutions and organizations would do well to first redefine their paradigm of leadership.

Leadership should not be just about getting others to follow and casting vision. Rather it should be about realizing our values. When the people of these institutions and organizations are knowledgeable about the problems they are facing and can recognize how these problems effect their values (what is valuable to them) then they would be in a position to choose leadership based on values and not vision. Recognizing and seeing how problems effect our values puts a demand on our responsibility to lead in our respective lanes to try and correct the problem(s). Just simply wanting someone to come and lead takes the responsibility off of us to lead and allows us to become silent as we wait for our "leaders" to come up with a vision to fix our social dilemmas.

If you are a leader of an organization and or institution, take time to reflect on not just what's important to you, but what is important to the people of that organization. What are their values? What specific problems are you all facing? How can you equip and mobilize them as leaders to collectively fight and conquer the issues you are all facing? Resist the temptation to simply cast vision and measure the results of your efforts based on who is and is not pulling their weight according to the vision. Your vision will not put a demand on their leadership to take action. However, when you tug at what is important to them (their value system), rest assure, that you will have disciples ready and capable to turn the world upside down.

#leadership

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 6 years

Text

Relentless Grace

One of the most extraordinary things we can do as believers, those who accept the free gift of God's grace that he demonstrated by sending His one and only Son into the world to die, is to learn how to grow in this grace. This grace is not limited to a historical event to when Jesus died on the hill of Golgotha.

In other words what Jesus did on the cross was not the capacity of grace. It was a demonstration of love that permeates from the culture of grace. And let me be the first to admit, this can be a difficult revelation to grasp. One of the main reasons this may be hard to grasp is because by in large, we as His people have prioritized not growing in His grace, but rather, growing in The Church.

Growing in the Church is antithetical to the command we have to grow in His grace. Growing in the church consumes our minds and hearts with denominational responsibilities and traditional practices. Growing in His grace consumes our hearts and minds with responsibilities that we have as His children empowered by grace. A great example of this is captured in the story about the lady caught in the act of adultery. When they caught the lady, the men in the community (many Pharisees) were consumed with keeping with traditional practices. Deuteronomy 22:22 states very clearly that she and the man were both deserving of death.

But the example that Jesus gave us is this: He was not consumed with carrying out the Mosaic responsibilities. He was consumed with His responsibility as the Son of God to demonstrate grace. Grace is not a historical moment on God's calendar. Rather it is the culture that empowers us to demonstrate our identity as the righteousness of God in the earth.

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 7 years

Photo

The mindset of religion will always use the past to project traditions as our priority. Rather, the mindset of the kingdom will always use the past to project the possibilities into what we have access to. #keepexploring #lifeisnotoveryet #keepbelieving

#keepexploring #lifeisnotoveryet #keepbelieving

0 notes

alexanderraspberry · 7 years

Text

Finding Purpose When it Feels Like God is mad at You

The most common time we believe God is mad at us is when things in life seem foggy. I mean really foggy. Where it seems God hasn't spoken to you, bothered to hear or answer your prayers, and you are just thoroughly confused about life--more specifically, what you were put on this earth to do.

You got to know that supernatural grace to Jesus is what inhaling oxygen is to you. In other words, it is Jesus' pleasure to pour out continual grace in your time of figuring things out. In dealing with His church, can you pin point one place in the scripture where God continually stays mad at anyone for a sin or poor choices? (I'll wait)

Concerning your destiny, St. Paul reminds us that it is God that works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose (Philippians 2:13). Let me encourage you: If you feel like your in a place where God is mad at you, your life is not working, and you have no clue what next steps to take, take some time to get alone and begin to reflect. Begin to feel the vibrations of your heart. If God is in you working, you will instinctively know what to do. But clarity without reflection is not possible. Get alone and ask yourself continually, "What is my heart saying?"

Remember, it is not purpose that stands on the street corner yelling at you, "Here I am, here I am!" Rather, it is Wisdom (Proverbs 1:20). Wisdom is the invisible know-how. Begin taking steps in what you know and God working in you will begin to lead you in how.

Secondly, as you begin taking small steps in doing things you have experience and knowledge in, also begin to tell yourself affirmations that are rooted in truth. As humans we have been conditioned to absorb what we see and feel and accept it as the truth. And whatever we accept as truth, we live deeper and deeper in its reality. Thus this is why Paul also reminds us to think about good things that are positive (Philippians 4:8) and King David sets an example about speaking truth to our inner self, especially when your current reality makes it easy to feel that God is mad at you (1st Samuel 30:6). I admit, I speak to and encourage myself, especially when in seasons of confusion and not having all the answers as to what I should do next.

Lastly, do something, whether big or small, for someone else. When you put yourself in position to help someone else, God will always utilize your spiritual gifts to bring that person to a better state. Believe me when I tell you that, whether your spiritual gifts are generosity, healing, encouragement, prophecy, administration or anything else, when they are tugged on, nothing will give you greater momentum back into clarity and the truth that God is not done or mad with you, but rather is pushing you to do greater things than ever before!

0 notes