Hungry

Today I was joined by Mina and Jon two awesome people. We adhered to the rules of no striving and having fun particularly well. We had great fun catching up and chatting away. After a bit of natter we got to praying and we had such a lovely time praying and hanging out in the presence of Jesus we didn't leave the office! We finished by doing some prophetic art, with crayons! Mina said we could use paint once we had proven we could use crayons, only joking, but probably good news for my office carpet.


Part of what the Lord was doing with us today was leading us to be hungry for Him. We can go and try as hard as we like to claim land but revival comes when the reviver comes. We invite Him and he comes, nothing else can bring revival to a person, nothing else can bring revival to a city, only him and his presence.


Are we hungry for him, are we so hungry for the presence of Jesus everything else is loss. When we are fully given over to Jesus, when we have grasped that we are one with Him and sitting with Him in heavenly realms our reality doesn't change, but our perception of it does.


You could beg the lord, petition for Him to draw near it won't change a thing, He already has. He came near to us in the person of Jesus on the cross and has never drawn back. All we need to do is to recognise who he is and what he has won for us and step into it. When we chose to join Jesus in heavenly realms, Holy Spirit comsumes us and our hearts burn for Jesus, we throw aside all other things that make us unclean and hunger and thirst for righteousness, for purity so that we may see Him. When His love and presence consume us, then we will see his kingdom come around us for it will have come in us.


There is an amazing Hymn by John Wesley call let me see thy face and die, and I think this captures brilliant a snapshot of a heart that was so hungry for Jesus it saw revival come, because it came in him. Wesley said I set myself on fire and let the world watch me burn. Do you want to set yourself on fire?


To Thee, great God of love! I bow,
And prostrate in Thy sight adore;
By faith I see Thee passing now;
I have, but still I ask for more,
A glimpse of love cannot suffice,
My soul for all Thy presence cries.
I cannot see Thy face, and live,
Then let me see Thy face, and die!


Moses Thy backward parts might view,
But not a perfect sight obtain;
The gospel doth Thy fulness show
To us, by the commandment slain;
The dead to sin shall find the grace
The pure in heart shall see Thy face.
I cannot see Thy face, and live,
Then let me see Thy face, and die!


Surrounded by the saints of old,
We now by faith approach to Thee
Shall all with open face behold
In Christ the glorious Deity;
Shall see, and put the Godhead on,
The nature of Thy sinless Son.
I cannot see Thy face, and live,
Then let me see Thy face, and die!


By John Wesley

Maranatha

Today was the beginning of a journey to start praying in and claiming the university and campus for Jesus this summer. I am planning on every day i am working at philly over the summer to head out and pray in the reaping of a mighty harvest that awaits us in this new season of student work in the city.

On the first day of this adventure I was joined by the wonderful Tim Maiden. We went over a few ground rules;

1. We go as Children of God
2. No Striving, we will let Holy Spirit do it
3. Have Fun
4. Stop and bless/pray for/help anyone the Holy Spirit points us to especially the poor

We started by reading some scripture, praying and enjoying the Holy and heavenly presence of our Father in heaven. I am increasingly convinced that simply His presence is the key, wether we are at rest or out breaking in the kingdom, He is the one who does it. We are hungry for revival and the only way we will see it is if His presence becomes manifest.

I believe it was wesley who said, I simply set myself on fire and let the world watch me burn. In this whole process it is not about putting in lots of effort and hard work in the hope we may see Him come. He dearly loves us and his presence his touch in one moment can set our hearts at rest and transform any situation. He does it, only Him, all Him. We are just in the process of putting that into practice in all the student places.

After a wondeful time in His presence we wandered off to Encliffe student village. On the way however we went past crookes valley church, the big derelict one on crookesmoore. I have for a long time felt the Lord leading me to pray for it to be returned to its intended purpose, to be a home for his family. As we walked up to it some people were in there looking around so we sauntered in as nonchalant as you like. In fact, so nonchalant we nearly got locked in!!!

As we stood and prayed there the Lord showed us the place filled with students hungry for His presence, worship raw and powerful, His presence come in so much power no one could stand for the weight of His glory! We prayed in faith we would see it.

After thinking we had actually been locked in and realising the door was just closed we headed up to encliffe student village. We only made it as far as the grass in the middle and here we stayed in worship. Just as there is a battle won in the old testament which was won by worshippers going first and worshiping, so we felt that we win the battle for this ground by worship.

So we prayed maranatha, Lord come, Jesus come. Jesus come.