faith unfaded

The word CONNECTION has come alive to me this past month. I see it everywhere. It has LIFE.

Not only do I see it, I feel in the very depths of my soul. I understand it. It’s part of the Last Days. It’s part of His Spirit being poured out. He’s working on us as individuals and then joining us together to rise up against the enemy in these last days.

If you don’t SEE it, you’re going to have a difficult time in the future. Because it’s here; it’s palpable; and the troops are being assembled quickly.

Many have been marching along or standing firm for awhile. Those of us who stayed outside after recess ended are having to make up for lost time.

BUT IT CAN BE DONE! He’s doing it. Not just for me. I’m seeing it everywhere. I see multiple bonds broken in people’s eyes within minutes.

I meet everyone’s eyes. I used to think I needed to see them. That wasn’t it at all. People need to be SEEN.

They need to be seen, know they are heard, and feel loved.

That’s it. Jesus did that. Now it’s our turn.

I want to see our church blossom and grow as much as anyone in any church. And we should 100% invite them, encourage them, and welcome them.

But that’s not the Great Commission.

It isn’t to go grab people for Sunday Service.

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

We’re supposed to be out there showing people the LIGHT. We are supposed to be vessels for Christ. The Holy Spirit is supposed to be working through us.

I get it. Life can derail you. I know what it’s like to be serving God faithfully one minute and spiritually deaf the next. I literally lost hearing in my right ear because of it. I’ve always known it was temporary, but I expected it to be healed by now. The Lord probably said the same thing about me.

But that’s okay. Because here I am now. He’s going to heal me and He’s already using me. I’ve wasted enough time not serving God. I certainly don’t want to waste any more time by worrying about when I wasn’t doing right.

Just start right now! It’s never too late!

I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that handing you a project I spent weeks working on for you or feeding you a meal I labored over all day is far less satisfying than a 5-minute conversation with you in the Spirit.

It’s all about CONNECTIONS!

I saw a young couple sitting on a bench outside Piggly Wiggly when I went to get drinks for the church dinner. I walked over, just slightly out of my way, and made eye contact and spoke. I could tell they were slightly alarmed.

I pretty much call out the reaction in people’s eyes, albeit gently, so I said. “Not used to people just talking because they are interested, are you?” They both shook their heads slowly. “Yeah, that’s what’s wrong with the world,” I said. (I know, I think I’m Confucius sometimes.) “We gotta stop walking around with our heads down and start connecting with people.”

This is the part where my kids would always go pretend someone else was their mommy in Albertson’s, I’m sure, but I’ve always loved people. If I didn’t do anything else but make sure everyone I saw smiled that day, I’d be happy.

I work hard on that. I really do! I miss a few but I try to make sure everyone I encounter is seen and that they know they matter. It’s okay if all they see is me at first. Because I know it’s not about me. And when the time is right, He might use me to point the way to Him. He might use someone else. I don’t care if I’m the sower, the waterer, or the harvester. As long as I’m in His field working.

And maybe blowing a few dandelions while I’m out there!

But we gotta stop beating people over the heads with our Bibles. Jesus never did that.

Woman, where are thine accusers?

Y’all want to take your mind off other people? Get that mirror out. He shows me stuff every day. Just yesterday, I had a chitchat with God.

I’m done. I’m good. No more lessons…it’s time to move forward.

No, you said in 2000 that you wanted to be purified more than any other piece of gold on the planet. I’m still refining you.

You KNEW that was the dumbest prayer I could’ve made. I changed my mind. Let’s stop. This is good. I like me right here.

No, prayers in the Spirit are eternal.

(5-minute whiny toddler cry ensues. I don’t like being told no, and He did it twice in rather rapid succession. Plus, if you don’t know anything else about refining gold, know that it’s heated up to almost 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.)

Fine. But You gotta do something to make this easier.

(Yes, I bargain with God. Yell, fuss, and take an attitude too. People get uncomfortable when I tell them about my conversations with God. You think He doesn’t hear your heart? Why not have your mouth say what your heart is saying anyway?)

While we are on individual journeys, God has given us two provisions to not feel alone. 1) An Unction with the Holy Spirit and 2) Each Other.

That unction with the Holy Spirit is powerful. I’ve talked before about my trip to Lowe’s in the Spirit to get a plumbing piece I was unfamiliar with yet explaining what I needed flawlessly once I got there. Same thing now. I’ve spoken prophecy; I understand the past. Not just my own past, but a deeper understanding of the world that comes only in the Holy Spirit.

Then we have each other. We are supposed to build each other up. Fight spiritual battles with, and sometimes for, our loved ones. We are to walk as those walked before us, leaving our footprints as a marker for those coming behind us. Don’t use something perishable like Hansel and Gretel did for those coming behind you. Not only will they get lost, but if you end up backtracking, you’ll get lost too. Use something eternal that will have spirit and last forever.

My 10 favorite verses about CONNECTIONS are listed below. For the entire page of verses, please visit https://powerministrieschapel.com/2023/09/30/verses-about-connecting-to-others/

• 1 Corinthians 1:10 “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment”
• Galatians 6:2 “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ”
• Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend”
• Philippians 2:3 “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves”
• John 13:34 “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another”
• James 5:16 “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”

• 1 Thessalonians 5:14 “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men”
• Proverbs 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful”
• Romans 15:1 “We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves”
• Matthew 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven”