Monday, September 21, 2009

The Season is Changing

We are all accustomed to changes in the seasons around the year. Changes in seasons may either bring joy or in some cases build up frustrations, depending upon the state of your health, the source of your livelihood, where you are, and the circumstances around you.

In Ecclesiastes 3:1 it says “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:”

Beloved, God has set seasons in the natural as we all know and similarly in the supernatural also (refer Ecclesiastes 3:11a). So it is important as a community of believers to understand the ways of the Lord and be in right alignment with Him, so as to experience joy unspeakable and full of glory (1 Peter 1:8).

In Jeremiah 8:7 the Lord says “Even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons, and the dove, the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration. But my people do not know the requirements of the LORD.”

Every season brings in either plenty or famine; promotion or demotion, it comes in and shakes the status-quo, and breaks the monotony, ushering in a new season, which does not operate on the old patterns; does not tread through the old worn out paths, but brings us into an unknown, unaccustomed place where we cannot sleep-walk through the motions, but forces us to depend on the Lord for His directions to lead us each step of the way.

In my childhood I used to love playing ‘snake and the ladder’, and in this game with every roll of the dice you move forward and when you reach the stage where the ladder is then you get promoted, or else if you land up in the snakes mouth it demotes you, which is a very frustrating experience. In the scriptures whenever God has intervened (i.e. Kairos moment: a divine intervention slipped into time to create a divine result) in the normal progression of time (called chronological time) it has always produced a supernatural decisive result.

Let me explain this a little bit, when the rich young man met Jesus (Luke 18:18-23), it was his Kairos moment with his Creator, instead of him walking away with joy unspeakable and full of glory, the scripture says he walked away sad, because he had many possessions. In contrast Zaccheus, who was also rich (Luke 19:2-10) had a similar encounter but he walked into eternal life with joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Beloved, each of our decisions create our position of joy or sadness, victory or defeat. The scripture says “Repent (change your mind) then and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times (a new season) of refreshing may come from the Lord”. If the season you are in is not refreshing you, then it’s time to evaluate, its time to bring about a change in your mind and re-align yourself with God’s perfect will and plan. Your change of mind and turning to God will in turn authorise God to intervene in the present season of subtraction and bring in a season of refreshing from His throne. It is the enemy who comes to steal kill and to destroy, but Jesus has come to give us life and life in all its fullness (John 10:10).

To highlight further we have just passed Rosh Hashanah last Friday (18 September '09) and are in a ten day period called the ‘days of awe’. This is the last 10 days of the 40 day period of Teshuvah (a word alluding to Repentance). Now Teshuvah is a time linked to Moses interceding the second 40 days when Israel sinned with the golden calf (read Exodus 32). Teshuvah's 40 days include 29 Days of Elul which began on August 21, 2009 and ended on September 18, 2009 with the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah).

Now we are in this 'ten days of awe' when it is said according to the Jewish custom that the gates of heaven are uniquely open for petitions and intercessions. This season climaxes on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) on September 28, 2009.

I truly believe that as the Body of Christ worldwide we have entered into a new and unique season, were the Lord is wooing His bride into the inner chambers; into the very ark of His presence. So be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in the coming days; especially in the areas where you need to renew your mind in order that you may enter into a season of refreshing like you have never experienced before.

Blessings,

Thomas Mathew

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