Jesus came to set priorities. He came to set things in order. He gave us the perfect example of how to prioritize our lives. He said, where your treasure is, there your heart is also. If you don’t understand the heart of God, you won’t understand the kingdom mindset. Jesus gave us the opportunity to join our hearts with God with his blood sacrifice. God said that he knows our hearts are joined with him by where our treasure is. Where your treasure is, there your heart is also. You can have as much stuff as you want as long as God has your heart. People for living for getting money and having things have their lives torn apart. We can’t live for that. We weren’t created to live for things. We were created to live for and in a personal relationship with God.

Every time we bring an offering to God, his heart catches fire because our hearts are aligning with his. God sent Jesus to us to bear his heart and teach us how to align our hearts with his. God sent Jesus to bear his soul so that his heart and our hearts can come together - so that we can have an intimate relationship and connection with him. That is why it is so important for us to bring our tithes and offerings to God. We are demonstrating where our hearts and priorities lie. God isn’t looking for our money, he is looking at our hearts. We have to shift our thinking about giving and make sure that we approach our finances from a kingdom mindset.

There were three main feasts in the Jewish tradition, and they were all connected to times of harvest. The feast of Passover celebrated Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt. The feast of Pentecost, which came fifty days after Passover, celebrated the handing down of the Law of Moses. The feast of Tabernacles, also called the feast of booths or shelters, remembered God’s provision during Israel’s forty years in the wilderness after the exodus from Egypt. Every year, people would come from all over Israel to the temple in Jerusalem and would build shelters around the wall of the temple. They would then live in these shelters for the duration of the feast.

John 7 tells the story of Jesus’ visit to the Feast of Shelters. He snuck into the festival on the last day to observe the sacrifice. The festival would end with a sacrifice on the altar. Once the offering had been given, a priest would fill a giant jar with water from the pool of Siloam. Siloam is translated as “sent” or “sent one”. Water in the Bible signifies life and the Holy Spirit. Another priest would bring a jar of wine. Wine in the Bible signifies the joy of life as well as sacrifice. The priests would pour the water and wine together over the altar after the sacrifice was given. The water of life mixes with the joy of life over the sacrifice, just as blood and water ran from Jesus’ wounds on the cross.

At this point in the festival, Jesus cried out to the crowd to come to him if they were thirsty. If they believed, come to him and out of their spirits would flow living water. Jesus was actually revealing himself as the Messiah at this point. His blood sacrifice brings living water – the Holy Spirit – who leads us to the greatest life we can get. In chapter 8, Jesus says “I am the light of the world,” referencing the time of the festival, on the last night, when giant lamps were lit on the altar and all attendees lit lamps of their own in response. He says “If you follow me, you will not wander in darkness.” Jesus revealed himself as the Messiah – both life and light.

He also revealed himself as the forerunner of the Holy Spirit. By promising to bring living water, Jesus was referencing the Holy Spirit.

Acts 1 - The word “earth” means atmosphere. Go into any and every place and bring me (Holy Spirit) and inhabit. When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you receive POWER. Go into the World, but not in a physical sense. Go into the world with the Holy Spirit’s power. Go into the world and change the ATMOSPHERE. Take the Holy Spirit with you into your daily physical life. We are growing something in the natural just as much as the spiritual. We go from one glory to another glory as we let the Kingdom of God lead us. We need to create this environment at Church and in all of our worlds.

This week – our Holy Spirit Conference - will be so much bigger in the spirit than what we see in the natural. When we build in the natural, it makes way for God to move in the spirit. The small group (CCC Atlanta) that we started with began to grow a small atmosphere that the Holy Spirit could live and operate in. Now we have a bigger, more intense environment for the Holy Spirit to live in. We have conditioned our world to house Him. When we leave the “church”, the atmosphere follows us. As we move deeper into our understanding of the Holy Spirit, the bigger the atmosphere that surrounds us. As we add members to the church, the bigger the atmosphere as a whole. The atmosphere is where change happens. Changed physical reality is a SMALL manifestation of the larger more important change in the atmosphere. Changing and growing your Holy Spirit environment is the key to changing the hearts of people and revealing the Holy Spirit to the World.

God is placing a new burden on some of us. It is a burden of the Holy Spirit to go to a new place. It’s the burden of the vision - to not just be an integral part of this church, but to take on God’s calling and to take on the vision of the calling. Going through the fire is the best thing for vision. It makes the vision stronger and it makes you stronger. You have to be willing to go ahead of the rest and plow the hard ground. You have to be willing sacrifice and do whatever it takes to bring about God’s vision.

God really does work all things together for good for those who love him. Paul, speaking from a Roman jail to one of his favorite churches in Philipi, reported that the Christians in Rome had become bolder because of his imprisonment. Something that the devil tries to use for bad, when God has the hearts of the people, God will use it for good. People have to be willing to put their lives on the line for the vision and burden of building God’s house. I am praying that over the next few days that this burden will come upon us.

What gets me up praying for this church is seeing people about to get started on the great adventure. There is unlimited potential in God’s house. It’s like a crucible – God’s fire is unquenchable. Sometimes you find yourself in the fire of God and all you can do is cry out to God.

But that is part of preparation for carrying the vision and building God’s kingdom. Some of us are going to get this feeling and feel this burden. It’s going to feel weird. It is like God asking you to come up, move forward, and come farther - showing you where he wants you to be.

God will challenge you in one of three areas:

1. Money – you have got to slay the money/giving giant. It is a giant that torments people and holds them back. It keeps you at the start. If you ever flinch when we take an offering, you haven’t slayed the giant. You ought to be rejoicing! How awesome it is that we get to give to God? That he would even receive our offering? That he would even take the time to receive it, because he doesn’t always.

2. The giant of Attendance – the giant of being in the house and coming to the house of God. The hardest thing for some new Christians to get is starting a new lifestyle and adjusting their world to get plugged into the house of God so that it becomes automatic and becomes a priority. Everything happens in the house of God.

3. The giant of Servanthood - understanding that your are a servant and that God uses servants.

When you win in all three of these areas God has a clear passage to you and he will bring revelation to you and put things on you that you wouldn’t be able to carry before. My prayer for next week is that a bunch of people defeat these things. People who haven’t gotten it yet to get it.

That happens through pastoring and leadership in the church. Pastoring people is leading them. Shepherding is about sheltering God’s people, protecting them and leading them into green pastures so that they can get fed. Speaking faith filled words over their lives that the Holy Spirit can get on. Then these words become true. God gets on it and puts his power on it. Bring the crowd into the core. There is something about building strength and stamina in the Spirit. We do it together, at times like Holy Spirit conference, so when we aren’t together, we have the stamina to stand on our own – in our own world.

Get a hold of someone and get them on the journey. Put God first and see what he will do.

Hey guys - check out this message from Pastor Jeff explaining the nature of Jesus as our mediator in times of trial.

Job 1 - Job was blessed beyond belief. Satan questioned Job’s integrity because he had been given everything, but Job had no reason NOT to be a great man. God told Satan that he could test Job - he just couldn’t kill him.

So Satan attacked Job in an extreme fashion, and Job had everything – his family, his wealth, his fortune - stripped from him. Not surprisingly, he was puzzled. He started wondering why all this stuff was happening. He wished to be dead all throughout the book. Job trusted God, but he still wanted to know WHY everything was happening.

Job 9:32-35 - Job asked for a mediator to come between him and God so that he could question why all of these things were happening to him. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to cry out to God and ask Him why everything was going wrong, he just didn’t have any reason to think that God would listen.

We don’t live our lives asking for destruction. When we face trials, we don’t ask God for more. We can all relate to Job to some extent. When we get to the times of trial, we have to know that we know about the gifts and blessings that God has given us. This has to be engrained in our heads and hearts.

1 Timothy 2:1-6 - There is only one mediator that reconcile us between God, and that is Jesus Christ. Job didn’t have that reconciliation. We can’t take for granted the blessings that we have been given. We CAN cry out and ask for help. Job couldn’t cry out because he didn’t have that mediator like we do. We have the authority as men and women, wherever we are, to go STRAIGHT to God. Jesus is sitting next to God in the throne room interceding for us and advocating us to the Father.

The encouragement here for us is not just to KNOW this, but for us also to see it and take hold of it. It’s easy to “know” these things, but not as easy to walk them out. We have to be in the House every time the doors open, no matter what our circumstances say. We don’t always have the faith to do life on our own, but that’s why we are surrounded by amazing people in the House.

If you want the amazing life that God has for, you’ve got it. The more we tell God that we want the plans and purposes that He has for our life, the more we will get. When we are doing what we were created to do, our lives are filled with joy and contentment. Step out of your comfort zone this week during our mornings of prayer and the Holy Spirit conference, and see how amazing your life can be.

Well, after a week in Europe Jill and I really ready to be home and will be there tonight at church.

I am sitting in Dusseldorf airport thinking about how great America really is. We have so much freedom, our life style and affordability is truly the best in the world.

Being in Europe reminds you that a move of God does not last forever. Every village you go to there is a church, a big church, a big empty church. We did attend mass by accident Sunday night and there was a healthy crowd but nearly all were over 60.

The reformation started in Germany. A fervor and passion rose up in the German young people and soon spread around the world. Where are all the passionate young people in Europe living out their dreams for Christ?

We must never loose sight of the importance of keeping our young people engaged in C3. It is of utmost importance that we allow them to express love for God in their own way. It’s hard for us oldies. Sometimes but you just have to spend a few days here to see that unless the young are kept in church, all that will be left is the buildings with no body in them.

Dean & Jill

Hey guys - Amazing message by Pastor Steve Deal on exercising spiritual authority…

Romans 8: 18-23 - In this scripture, Paul tells us that what we suffer now is nothing in comparison with the glory God will give to us – the full rights we have as children of God. We have been given the authority as children of God to perform miracles, signs and wonders, but we don’t practice using our authority that often. As with anything, as you grow with something and get used to it, you become better at doing it. This same principle applies with the things of the Spirit.

We have to exercise our spiritual authority and gifts. Just as our faith gets built up and grows through prayer and worship, so our ability to use our spiritual authority will grow as we step out in faith and use what God has given us. We have the word of God and the Spirit of God backing our authority and bringing things to pass on our behalf, although we don’t always see an immediate result or effect. God gives us the force and the power to back the authority He has given. God the father is standing behind us as Christians, enforcing what we say and giving us the power and authority to make things happen.

So why doesn’t it always seem like anything happens? We aren’t exercising our faith or moving in our gifts. The word of God works. There is enough power in one Scripture to heal everyone around us. One word from God has the power to heal the world. We have to exercise our authority to speak the word into situations. We come expecting. We have to be desperate for God and desperate for something to happen. Then, we move in faith, exercising our spiritual authority and expecting God to move.

Part of using our gifts is allowing ourselves to be controlled by the Holy Spirit. We have put a bad connotation on the word control. We don’t like to be controlled. But we are all controlled by something (Romans 8). The definition of being in control is being able to direct a person, situation or activity. Out of control is no longer being able to manage. Under control, in case of danger or emergency, being dealt with safely or competently.

Those who are dominated by the sinful nature, think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. When your sinful nature controls your mind there is death. But if the Spirit controls your mind there is life and peace. Our sinful nature has never cared for the laws of God and therefore those controlled by a sinful nature can never please God. When led and governed by the Spirit, he begins to shape your thoughts and actions, and it becomes obvious who is controlling you based on your fruit.

There is a constant struggle raging in our minds between our sinful nature and our desire to serve God (Romans 7). Sometimes we get worn down because we are constantly fighting and constantly make the wrong decisions. But there is no condemnation for them who belong to Christ Jesus. The power of the Spirit has freed us from the destructive power of sin and destroyed sin’s control through Jesus.

The battle really kicks in during worship or when we are praying, but we have to press through. The Spirit begins to reveal things to us when we continue to focus, expect and cry out for God. God comes when we cry out to him. God wants to be desired, but how many of us come to him with that kind of desire? We have to get passionate about God again.

You have to come into the presence of God and unload (Psalm 66). The Bible says to cast your burdens upon Jesus because he cares for you. Then, worship him. Fan your spiritual flame and the spiritual gifts God has given you. God has anointed us to do amazing things. Look at the nature of Jesus: He’s not going to break you. He wants to encourage you and build you up. The Holy Spirit is always with you. He is just looking for some expectation.