Ms. Annie led us in singing “There is a Rainbow of Mercy around Us”
Pastor Ray Shared…
Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of the 35W Bridge falling. That seems like yesterday to me but it’s been 10 years. I saw an interview of a man that was just entering onto the bridge and right in front of him it started going down. He said he just held onto his steering wheel and closed his eyes and his car fell 70 feet and landed on a piece of the bridge. He totally survived. Seventy feet is almost 7 stories! Wow.
I was thinking about it though. That was a Wednesday and I was hosting a service that night. I was there maybe a half an hour before the service just praying. We had a guest speaker from another country that was going to do the service but we went in anyway. I was praying at the podium in front of the sanctuary when I opened my eyes and there was an usher standing in front of me. He said the 35W Bridge is in the water. It fell, collapsed, and there are people in the water. I thought, is this for real? So, I told the people what had happened and we prayed over the situation and we probably had less than 10 minutes before the service started. There were already people in the water and we know there were people that did not survive. But some people did survive in some unusual ways. And some people didn’t take that route. They decided to go another route that day.
So it was time for the service to start. There was a man at the service and when he left, he just felt like we only had a few minutes, we didn’t have that long to pray for the people. The Lord reminded him that in less than a minute when we pray, things can change. The way the Lord reminded him was you don’t need 30 minutes to pray and declare what I’ll do. I thought that was a good picture of a rainbow of His mercy. It’s around us. And when we declare things in the Spirit under the anointing, we believe they come to pass. And many of them come to pass when? Now. Not because we are such a drive-through mentality but because He wants some things done now, today. So we can go on out ten years from today and look back and say “Wow, what change has come.”
You know Pastor Mac declared over this year “This year is going to be a year of change.” Is it? Yes. But it is not over. It is continual change, changes, changes, changes.
Scripture focus…
(1) In You, O Lord, do I put my trust and confidently take refuge; let me never be put to shame or confusion! Psalms 71:1 (AMPC)
In You Lord, we put our trust and confidently take our refuge, today. The blood of Jesus is a wall behind us. The past, everything in the past, it’s over and we are moving into the new, new days of change.
(3) Be to me a rock of refuge in which to dwell, and a sheltering stronghold to which I may continually resort, which You have appointed to save me, for You are my Rock and my Fortress. (4) Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the grasp of the unrighteous and ruthless man. (5) For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my trust from my youth and the source of my confidence.
(8) My mouth shall be filled with Your praise and with Your honor all the day.
(14) But I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more. (15) My mouth shall tell of Your righteous acts and of Your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is more than I know.
(23) My lips shall shout for joy when I sing praises to You, and my inner being, which You have redeemed. (24) My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; for they are put to shame, for they are confounded, who seek and demand my hurt. Psalm 71:1, 3–5, 7, 14–15, 23-24 (AMPC)
(17) His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun [indeed, His name continues before the sun]. And men shall be blessed and bless themselves by Him; all nations shall call Him blessed! Psalm 72:17 (AMPC)
A Psalm of Asaph
(9) They set their mouths against and speak down from heaven, and their tongues swagger through the earth [invading even heaven with blasphemy and smearing earth with slanders].
(11) And they say, How does God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High? (12) Behold, these are the ungodly, who always prosper and are at ease in the world; they increase in riches. (13) Surely then in vain have I cleansed my heart and washed my hands in innocency. (14) For all the day long have I been smitten and plagued, and chastened every morning.
(16) But when I considered how to understand this, it was too great an effort for me and too painful (17) Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood [for I considered] their end. (18) [After all] You do set the [wicked] in slippery places; You cast them down to ruin and destruction. (19) How they become a desolation in a moment! They are utterly consumed with terrors!
(22) So foolish, stupid, and brutish was I, and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. (23) Nevertheless I am continually with You; You do hold my right hand. (24) You will guide me with Your counsel, and afterward receive me to honor and glory.
(26) My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the Rock and firm Strength of my heart and my Portion forever.
(28) But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God and made Him my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works. Psalm 73:9, 11–14, 16–19, 22–24, 26, 28 (AMPC)
It’s kind of like the song that Ms. Annie was singing. It’s good for us to draw near to God. Let’s stand up for a few minutes and worship Him and honor Him and lift and thank Him with our spiritual eyes open. You know the way Asaph looked at things in the natural and thought it was one way until he got into the sanctuary, the presence, and then he saw things another way. We as children of the King of kings and Lord of lords, we take our place in the sanctuary. We take our position of power and God’s grace, His mercy like that rainbow around us. Protection by the blood, we see it this morning.
Prayed…
We worship and honor You this day from the sanctuary
Things will change but they will change in the right way because of who we serve
King of kings and Lord of lords, the Great I AM
The Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega
Thank You, thank You, Thank You
Not because of us, but because of You and what You have done for us
We are cleansed, we are healed
Things work out right for us
We are on time wherever we need to be
We have favor wherever we go
For the Lord God almighty is with us and around us
He is in us! The power of the Holy Spirit actively working and transforming, changing and rearranging each one of us today
Today, today, today—now!
Lord God almighty! You are our hope and our provider!
Right when we need it, favor goes before each one of us
Our steps are ordered by the Lord God almighty
We step where we should step
We stop where we should stop
We turn around where need to turn around and go back in the right way
Every mistake covered by the blood!
We are washed, cleansed, whole, and prosperous in every way
Today we prosper in what we put our hands unto
Our lips, the words that we speak, the prayers that we pray will have an effect today
This is a new day and Your mercy endures
We taste and we see that You are good—Your mercies are new today
Thank You, Lord!
Ms. Annie led us in praise and thanksgiving…
Continued praying…
Go around that bend
The right steps! The right steps!
On time, in time, evolution of time
There they are and there they go!
Recipes, every ingredient
All of those elements in Jesus’ name
Receive it today!
We will watch; we watch while we pray
Yes, take it! We take hold, receive, expect!
And enter into more, and greater, and enter in on through
Favor! Favor! Favor! God’s Favor!
It’s a shaking! Shaking!
It is and it shall be!
By faith we touch it and receive it and walk in it
Ms. Kay shared…
As we were praying, I saw like a room and some shelves. I saw the Lord nod to an angel and he went to the top shelf and he took down a chest. And when he was opening it, great glory came from it. And the Lord said “These are tools and strategies for this age, great change. And many will resist the change but they cannot resist it. It will overpower and great glory will begin to shine out. But it’s not going to look like we always thought. There is going to be a change, change, change. But it is going to be the highest and the best and new tools for this age, for this time. We have never been here before. We need new tools. Praise God.
Pastor Ray responded…
I am thinking on those new tools, the glory tools, the glorious tools from heaven above that rearrange and change and open and close. For the things that needed to be shut and closed, they shall be shut and closed. They are doors that the key holes will be removed from. The keys will be destroyed and they shall never be opened again. But then on the other hand, there are new doors of opportunities. One after another, these are the heavenly tools that will open those doors and they are opportunities for the new.
Continued praying…
New opportunities, strategies from heaven
Every moment spent with Him we grab into that treasure chest
Taken from the top shelf – from on high
Heaven’s ways, as it is in heaven it shall be on earth
By faith, we will enter into the new
Even the assignments, ideas, wisdom – they are new
They were never sent before because they were for these days!
For the change continues on, one change after another
One turn after another – a step here and a step there
Over into the new
Ms. Annie led us in a spiritual song…
♪ A highway will be there in the wilderness
The redeemed will walk in those steps
A highway I prepare, a highway for you to walk in
New doors, new ways, new doors, new ways
Just keep your ears close to my heart, to My heart
Keep your ears close to My heart and you’ll know
You will know, you will know the way you should go
The new way to go
You don’t have to fear because I am the open door
Just keep your ears close to My heart and you’ll know the way you should go ♪
Ms. Florence shared…
The Lord was just reminding me about the children of Israel when they came from Egypt to cross the Red Sea. This was a new thing that they did. It had never happened before that people could walk through the sea. And when they had come over onto the other side, Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, she took a tambourine and led all the women as they played and danced. And Meriam told them to sing to the Lord for He has triumphed gloriously! And so here is what the Lord is saying. This way that we have never been before, when we will have come through, glory will go back to Him. It will be no man. It will be no woman that will be able to take glory for what the Lord is going to do.
So He is giving us tools that the glory may be of Him. The glory will go back to God. And so I just thank You, Father, that what You are doing is a new thing. It’s a new way that no one has been there before. But do you know we are receiving that. We are walking in that and glory will go to Him. No man, no woman will take His glory.
Pastor Ray responded…
I love that we don’t have to know exactly the way to go but however you sang that, Ms. Annie, it’s basically just keep going. We keep moving. We keep our ear like you said close to His heart and those heaven-sent tools that we can only operate in or use if we are willing to give all the glory to Him. Otherwise there is no function. There is no operation. So, the place or the position or the steps that we are going into, You will get all the glory, all of the honor, and all of the thanksgiving, Lord. Amen.
