Mary led group in worship…
Pastor Ray shared…
A friend gave me a mini-book called “My Heart, Christ’s Home.” It has a welcome mat and a door on the cover. Robert Boyd Munger wrote it in the 50s. He based it on Ephesians 3:16,17 “May he grant you out of the rich treasury of His glory to be strengthened, reinforced with mighty power in the inner man by the Holy Spirit himself indwelling your innermost being and personality.” That’s what we’re asking for when we sing the song, “More of You, Lord.” Verse 17, “May Christ through your faith actually dwell, settle down, abide, make His permanent home in your hearts.” Where? In your heart. “May you be rooted deep in love and founded securely on love.” So skipping ahead a little bit, he had some personal things he talked about after he invited the Lord into his heart in the joy of that newfound relationship. He has a cool perspective on this. That’s why I wanted to read you a few parts of it.
[start excerpt]
I said to Him, “Lord, I want this heart of mine to be Yours. I want You to settle down here and just be fully at home. I want You to use it as Your own. Let me show you around and point out some of the features of the home so that You may be more comfortable. I want You to enjoy our time together.” He was glad to come in and He seemed to be delighted to be given a place in my ordinary little heart.
[So the first room they looked at was the study.]
We looked at it together. Now in my home, this room of the mind is a small room with thick walls, but it’s an important room. In a sense, it’s the control room of the house. He entered with me and looked around at the books in the bookcase, the magazines on the table, the pictures on the walls. As I followed His gaze, I became uncomfortable. Strangely enough, I had not felt bad about this room before but now that He was looking at these things, I was embarrassed. There were some books on the shelves that His eyes were too pure to look at. On the table were a few magazines a Christian has no business reading. As for the pictures on the walls, the imaginations and thoughts of my mind, some of these were shameful. Red faced, I turned to Him and said, “Master, I know this room really needs to be cleaned up and made over. Will You help me shape it up, change it to the way it ought to be?” “Certainly,” He replied. “I’m going to help you. I’ve come to handle things like that. First of all, take all the materials that you’re reading and viewing which are not true, not good, not pure, not helpful and throw them out. Now put on these empty shelves the books of the Bible. Fill the library with the scriptures and meditate on them day and night. As for the pictures on the walls, you will have difficulty controlling these images. But I have something that will help.” He gave me a full sized portrait of Himself. “Hang this centrally. Hang it on the wall of your mind.” I did and I’ve discovered through the years that when my thoughts are centered on Him, on Christ, the awareness of His presence, His purity, His power causes wrong and impure thoughts to back away. So He’s helped me to bring my thoughts under His control. But the struggle remains. If you have difficulty with this little room of the mind, let me encourage you to bring Christ there. Pack it full with the Word of God, study it, meditate on it and keep clearly before you the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then they went into the dining room. From the study into the dining room they went. The room of appetites, desires. Now this was a large room, the most important place to me. I spent a lot of time and hard work trying to satisfy all my wants. I told Him, “This is my favorite room. I’m sure You’ll be pleased with what we serve here.” He seated Himself at the table and enquired, “What’s on the menu for dinner tonight?” “Well,” I said “My favorite dishes. Money. Academic degrees. Stocks with newspaper articles of fame and fortune as side dishes.” These were the things that I liked. Thoroughly secular fare. There was nothing so very bad in any of them but it was not really the kind of food which would feed the soul and satisfy true spiritual hunger. When the plates were placed before My friend, He said nothing. However, I observed that He did not eat. I asked somewhat disturbed Savior, “Don’t You like this food? What’s the trouble?” He answered, “I have food to eat that you do not know about. My food is to do the will of Him that sent me.” He looked at me again and said, “If you want food that really satisfies you, do the will of your heavenly Father, put His pleasure before your own. Stop striving for your own desires and your own ambitions. Your own satisfactions. Seek to please Him. That food will really satisfy you. Try a bit of it.” And there about the table, He gave me a taste of doing God’s will. What flavor! There’s no food like it in all the world. It alone satisfies, and in the end, everything else leaves you hungry. Then they went into the living room. There was a quiet comfortable room with a warm atmosphere. I liked it. It had a fire place, a sofa, overstuffed chairs, a bookcase, and an intimate atmosphere. He also seemed pleased with it. He said “Indeed this is a delightful room. Let’s come here often. It’s secluded and quiet and we can have good talks and fellowship together.” Naturally, as a young Christian I was thrilled. I couldn’t think of anything I would rather do than have a few minutes alone with Him in close companionship. He promised, “I’ll be here every morning early. Meet me here and we will start the day together.” Morning after morning, I’d go downstairs to the living room. He’d take a book of the Bible from the bookcase, open it and we’d read it together. He would unfold to me the wonder of God’s saving truth, recorded on His pages and make my heart sing as He shared all He had done for me and would be to me. Those times together were wonderful. Through the Bible and His Holy Spirit, He would talk to me. In prayer, I would respond. So our friendship deepened in those quiet times of personal conversation; however, under the pressure of many responsibilities by little this time began to be shortened. Why, I’m just not sure. But somehow I assumed I was just too busy to give special regular time to be with Christ. This was not a deliberate decision, you understand. It just seemed to happen that way. Eventually, not only was the period shortened but I began to miss days now and then there were mid-terms and finals and that stuff. Matters of urgency demanding my attention were continually crowding out the quiet times of conversation with Jesus. Often I would miss it two days in a row or more. One morning I recall coming down the stairs in a hurry to be on my way to an appointment, as I passed the living room, the door was opened. Glancing in, I saw a fire in the fire place and Jesus sitting there. Suddenly in dismay it came to me. He is my guest. I invited Him into my heart. He’s come as my Savior, as my Friend to live with me. Yet here I am neglecting Him. I stopped. I turned hesitantly and went in. With downcast glance, I said, “Master, I’m so sorry. Have you been here every morning?” “Yes,” He said, “I told you I would be here to meet you.” I was even more ashamed. He’d been faithful in spite of my faithlessness. I asked Him to forgive me and He did as He always does when we acknowledge our failures and want to do the right thing. He said, “Well the trouble is that you’ve been thinking of the quiet time of Bible study and prayer as a means for your own spiritual growth. This is true, but you have forgotten that this time means something to me also. Remember? I love you. At a great cost, I’ve redeemed you. I value your fellowship. Just to have you look up into My face warms my heart. Don’t neglect this hour if only for My sake. Whether or not you want to, remember, I want to be with you. I really love you.” You know the truth that Christ wants my fellowship, that He loves me and wants me to be with Him and He waits for me and He’s done more to transform my quiet time with God than any other single fact. Don’t let Christ wait alone in the living room of your heart, but every day, find a time and a place, then with the Word of God and in prayer, you may be together with Him.
[Then they were in the rec room. One evening he was exiting his house and Jesus was standing at the front door. He was going out with some buddies.]
He said, “I want to go with you.” He said awkwardly, “I don’t think, Lord, that You’d enjoy where we’re going. Let’s just go out tomorrow night together and we’ll go to a Bible study. We can hang around and read the Bible.” “As you wish,” He said back. “Only I thought that when I came into your home, we were going to do everything together. Be close. Be companions. Just know that I’m willing to go with you.” I said, “We’ll go someplace together tomorrow night.” Of course, that whole evening, he said it was the most miserable night.
[So then he went through the bedroom. One time he came home and Jesus was standing at the door. We’re talking about our hearts, right?]
And he said, “Something stinks in this house.” What? “I think it’s upstairs.” Right away, he said he knew in his heart… The way he described it was he had a little closet at the top of the stairs and it was locked. It was two feet by four feet. Before he accepted the Lord, he put some things from his past in there and locked it up because he liked them and didn’t want to get rid of them. So they walked upstairs together and He said to the man, “I think it’s in this room right here. There’s something dead in there.” He said “I can’t give Him the key to that room.” Jesus said “I can’t stay up here. I’m going to take My bed and move it out on the porch downstairs. It stinks.” So he gave Him the key. “I’m going to give this to you. Please do something about it. I can’t.” He goes, “I know you can’t but I will do it.” He opened up the door of the closet from his past of things he wanted to hold onto. Cleaned it all out, washed it, repainted it and made it new. Then he got this revelation, a thought came to him. I said to myself “I’ve been trying to keep this heart of mine clean and available for Him but it’s hard work.” I started one room and no sooner have I cleaned it, then I discover another room is dirty. I began on the second room and the first one is already getting dusty again. I’m getting tired of it. I’m tired of just trying to maintain a clean heart and an obedient life. I’m not up to it. Suddenly, I asked the Lord, “Is there a possibility that You would be willing to manage the whole house?” He’s reminding himself about what happened in the closet. “Operate it for me just as you did that closet. Could I give to You the responsibility of keeping my heart what it ought to me and myself doing what I ought to be doing.” I could see His face light up as He replied, “I’d love to. This is exactly what I came to do. You can’t live out the Christian life in your own strength. It’s impossible. Let me do it for you and through you. That’s the only way that it works.” But he added, “I’m not the owner of the house. Remember, I’m here as a guest. I have no authority just to take charge since the property is not mine.” In a flash, it became clear. Excitedly I exclaimed, “Lord, You’ve been my guest and I’ve been trying to play the host. From now on, You’re going to be the owner and master of my house. I’m going to be the servant.” Running as fast as I could to the strong box, I took out the title deed to the house, describing all of its assets and liabilities and its condition, location, situation. Then rushing back to Him I eagerly signed it over, giving title to Him alone for a time and eternity. Dropping to my knees, I presented it to him. “Here it is, all that I am and all that I have forever. Now you run the house. Just let me stay with You as a house boy and as a friend.” He took my life that day and I can give you my word there’s no better way to live the Christian life. He knows how to keep it and how to use it. A deep peace settled down on my soul that has remained. I’m His and He is mine forever. May Christ settle down and be at home as Lord of your heart also. [end excerpt]
Isn’t that sweet? Such a different perspective. What are we talking about? Holiness. A yieldedness. Yes, He is in us but there are things that we need to yield over and do like this picture presented. Bow down and give it all. Give everything. Not hold back.
Mary led group in worship…
♪ Welcome Holy Spirit, we are in Your presence… Fill us with Your power… Live big inside of us… ♪
Pastor Ray shared…
We’ve come to give and our prayers go up out of this place on a high tower and going forth. Where He wants them to go, where there is a need for it. Are there needs? Yes. We’ll start praying in the Spirit for the storms and tragedies and fires, worldwide events that are happening right now. Yesterday, we took everything and brought it up to the Lord all together. We prayed in the spirit about it.
Mary continued leading group in worship…
Group begins to pray in the spirit…
A joining… watching over it… take that turn… turn, turn, turn… we speak that wall of protection and safety… by the blood of the Lamb… ministering spirits, go and work on our behalf… work to protect… go, go, go… move on out… things that are stirred up, be calmed down… calm down in Jesus’ name…
By the power of that name and the authority, things will not stay the same. For things will continually change and be rearranged, but the Church must rise up, stand strong, and speak and declare this is the way it shall change… this is the way it will turn… And things will turn and they’ll turn up and turn out and move forward as the Church steps in line with one another. So we pray over every stream of the body of Christ… we pray for strength for the body… positions of authority in the body and in the earth… kings, presidents, positions of authority… let wisdom rule…
Every kind of pressure from the enemy, we poke it… we put the sword of the Spirit in it and say, “Calm down. Stop in your maneuvers against the body, against the church and leaders… we prepare for better days and ways… Your will, Lord…
Mary led group in worship…
Prayer for America and President Trump…
Father, in the name of Jesus and according to your Word, we pray for those in authority in our nation. We lift up President Donald Trump, his family, his staff, and cabinet members. Let Your Word cling to them, and let them not depart from Your plan. Strengthen them with mighty power by Your Spirit to stand against wickedness, lies, and deception. Guide President Trump’s decisions; let Your light shine upon his path and show him the path of reversal for every evil way. Continually surround him with godly men and women who impart wise counsel to him. Cause the way of the wicked to be set to confusion and come to nothing. Deliver us from the traps and snares the enemy has laid for us, and let the wicked be caught in their own devises and be brought to shame. We take authority over the plots and plans of the enemy against this nation. Let prideful and lying lips be silenced in Jesus’ name. Slanderers will not be established in America. We pray for our congress, our supreme court, our military leaders, and our intelligence agencies. Let the wisdom that is from above reign in this nation and be constantly speaking to our leaders. We exercise the authority You have given us to tread down all the power of the enemy. We cast down and demolish imaginations and arguments that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God, and we bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. We bind spirits of strife and division, civil wars and tumults, spirits of hostility, lawlessness and blasphemy, and fires from hell that have burned in our cities.
We speak grace and peace over America. We pray and believe for the voice of truth, salvation, revival, and restoration to be proclaimed and heard across our land. Grant unto your servants everywhere that with all boldness we may speak your Word. We pray for a mighty outpouring of your Spirit with signs, wonders, and miracles. We expect the wisdom of this world that is earthly, sensual, and devilish to depart and vanish until Your mighty work in America becomes a beacon of hope for all people everywhere. We expect the voice of rejoicing to be heard in our nation for your goodness, mercy, and prosperity in Jesus’ name, Amen.
