P.E. Church Net - Revival News

P.E. Church Net

REVIVAL NEWS

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I R N N E W S D I G E S T Editor: Tony Black
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SPECIAL EDITION - July 2001
What leaders are saying today

Those who sigh and groan - Francis Frangipane
Friends of the bridegroom - Mike Bickle
Unconfessed sin and satan's lies - Randy Clark
Where are we from - Rick Joyner
Pointing the way to the 21st century church - C. Peter Wagner
Restoring America to godliness - Dutch Sheets
Learning to soar - Tommy Tenney
The release of miracles - Chuck D. Pierce

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Those who sigh and groan - Francis Frangipane

The true church is a child in the womb of God; what the Almighty feels affects us. We absorb into our spiritual DNA the great loves of God; His passions become our passions. However, there are things that He also hates. Without becoming self-righteous, we must allow ourselves to feel the Lord’s hatred for sin and injustice; we must receive into our spirits His attitude concerning violence, abuse and abortion.

I am thinking of Ezekiel. The prophet was commanded to walk through sinful Jerusalem and take note, not only of its perversity, but those who were affected adversely by it. “And the Lord said to him, ‘Go through the midst of the city&ldots;and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.”

There is a great tolerance in the church today. Instead of serving the passions of God, we serve a “philosophy” called Christianity. The ability to intellectualize and define right and wrong has masqueraded as obedience. Tolerance and compromise are now esteemed as virtues; to possess strong convictions is to be labeled extreme. Hear me, beloved, God doesn’t want us to simply live in the midst of sin; He wants us to sigh and groan over it.

The Lord continued His word to the prophet, “But to the others He said in my hearing, ‘Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity, and do not spare. Utterly slay old men, young men, maidens, little children, and women, but do not touch any man on whom is the mark; and you shall start from My sanctuary” (Ezekiel 9:4-6).

I know that many, in the past, have felt heartache concerning the sins of our society. We have protested abortion, fought it in courts and pleaded with those about to terminate their pregnancies. We have labored much, but gained little. In a quiet retreat from the fire of this heartache, we buried our feelings. Today, we barely hear the whisper of what once was outrage in our hearts. Even when alone before God we have tuned out the voice of our vexation about sin.

Yet, let us be aware that, to Ezekiel, the Lord said, “strike . . . and do not spare” those who do not mourn. And then He warned, “And you shall start from my sanctuary.” As leaders, as pastors and intercessors, as fathers and mothers, we must not be afraid to express our heartache and distress over sin. We must care what happens in our schools and what parades as entertainment. We must allow distresses to affect us.

Jesus said, “Blessed are they that mourn.” If the church today isn’t a revelation of the heart of Christ, even in mourning over wickedness, then we are positioning ourselves outside the passions of God. We are drifting toward a religion about God that is void of God...

Francis Frangipane. Full text at http://www.frangipane.org

Friends of the bridegroom - Mike Bickle

Friends of the Bridegroom is a ministry organization committed to equipping forerunners before the Second Coming of Jesus. Jesus declared John the Baptist to be the greatest man born of a woman. John described himself in his forerunner ministry as a ‘Friend of the Bridegroom’ (Jn. 3:29). He went before the First Coming of the Lord to prepare a people to receive the embrace of the heavenly Bridegroom empowering them to walk out the first commandment as wholehearted lovers of God. The Lord will raise up forerunners with this same focus before His Second Coming. Jesus also described the apostles as ‘Friends of the Bridegroom’ (Mt. 9:14-15).

Friends of the Bridegroom - Three Fold Focus

The forerunner ministry declares a 3-fold revelation of the beauty of Jesus as a passionate Bridegroom, transcendent King and righteous Judge. These emphases are vital themes for preparing the end-time church. In these days, the Holy Spirit is emphasizing these biblical themes that equip people to proclaim ‘The Forerunner Message’ as they experience grace to live a fasted lifestyle.

Our prayer is that we might have the same spirit as we seek to live and minister to others as ‘Friends of the Bridegroom’. Primarily, a 'Friend of the Bridegroom' is a reality in the Holy Spirit that we believe the Lord will emphasize in the generation He returns. It describes ministries that equip the church to live in her bridal identity with whole-hearted love for Jesus. As the Bridegroom's friends they focus on preparing individuals to live in the intimate embrace of our heavenly Bridegroom rather than drawing the bride's affections to themselves.

Paul described certain ministries in his day who preached 'themselves' in the midst of proclaiming the gospel. They showcased their own ministries resulting in believers being inordinately preoccupied with them (2 Cor 4:5; 11:20; Phil 2:19-21). 'Friends of the Bridegroom' also function as forerunners preparing the church in the beauty of the Lord to respond properly in the midst of the great end-time shaking (Heb 12:26).

Friends of the Bridegroom is also the name we use to reference a small ministry organization led by Mike Bickle that provides teaching and worship resources that seek to equip believers in this spiritual reality. This organization is currently researching and developing new ministry materials as well as gathering materials from the wider body of Christ along these themes....

Unconfessed sin and satan's lies - Randy Clark

Tonight, Randy spoke candidly about the lies of Satan and the deception of hidden sin and the need for confession and repentance. That you do not have to live a life that has no hope, leaving you useless and ineffective in ministry. As Randy called those forward who had unconfessed sin or who were burdened by unforgiveness, the altar area became packed. With much weeping and repentance the place was filled with the sounds which are a pleasing sacrifice before our Lord.

This is a church not used to phenomenon or with Toronto, so it was very interesting to watch their faces as Randy shared with them stories of their own heritage. The phenomenon that followed John Wesley as he conducted his open air meetings was amazing to them. As we ministered to them it was refreshing to pray for people that did not have a preconceived idea of what was about to happen to them. They did not know that they may fall, or do any of the things that usually are present in our meetings when the Holy Spirit shows up. It was with looks of pleasant surprise as they slowly succumbed to the presence of God. Sometimes a bewildered look would come over their faces as they realized they were falling backwards to the ground.

Later they would tell us that God had showed them things of his unconditional love and that they had never before knew that God could be so close to them. It was like a God that seems so far away came down and walked amongst the people holding them for the first time. Revealing his heart of love by coming in away that they could physically feel. Living by faith is what we do so much of the time but like with anyone of us, it is by faith we know our father loves us but every now and then it is good when he holds us, looks into our eyes and tell us how much he loves us. Tonight was such a night...

Randy and Rex in Bello Horizonte, Brazil http://www.globalawakening.com/

Where are we from - Rick Joyner

This year we have been taking a step-by-step approach to establishing a vision of what we are to grow up into as Christians. Last week we discussed how we are called to be a “&ldots;a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation...” (I Peter 2:9). We are called to be a separate nation within the nations whose very existence testifies of the excellencies of the King who rules over us. Christians should be strikingly distinguishable from all other people. We are in fact the “alien nation” within the nations, as we are a “new creation” that is vastly different from the Adamic nature of man.

This “holy nation” also has a different government. Of course, we honor the governments of the nations that we live in because they too have received their authority from God (see Romans 13:1-6), and they are our hosts. Our main purpose on this earth is to prepare the way for the kingdom that is to come, to serve its interests, not just the interests of the nations of this world. That does not mean that we do not seek to be a blessing to the nations, which now host us to the degree that we can, but we serve another King, Jesus. In all things we must place the interests of His kingdom first.

As we proceed toward the end of this age, the “holy nation” will become more distinguishable. Then it will increasingly become a bright light set on a hill in the midst of the darkness. The Christian community will become just that, a community within itself with a powerful and distinct identity. This does not mean that we must live in separate neighborhoods, but that the bond between Christians will grow so strong that they will become distinguishable as a community of people within the community. We will live by principles and laws other than those that the world lives by .

So that we can further our understanding of just how we are to relate to the nations of this earth, I want to briefly discuss the two different kinds of governments that presently rule this world. We will elaborate on a bit later on how they are distinguishable from the kingdom of God in their basic functions.

Basically, the present governments of this world can be separated into two kinds, the lawless, and the lawful. The lawless nations may have a strong authoritarian government, such as many of the communist governments, but if they have a constitution at all it does not have any real influence because the true rule is at the whim of those in power. In these nations the courts are not established for the purpose of providing justice, but rather enforcing the dictates of those in authority. In contrast to this, the lawful nations are those that are established on a constitution that has real strength, and a system of justice that is based on protecting the constitution and the rights of the citizens who live under it.....

Rick Joyner: Full text at http://www.eaglestar.org/

Pointing the way to the 21st century church - C. Peter Wagner

Praying in the Harvest:
Jesus' commission to His disciples is clear: make disciples of the peoples of earth. Today, a mighty wave of prayer has gone forth to see this commision fulfilled - every people group and nation hearing and receiving the Good News of Jesus Christ. As C.Peter Wagner says, "The world-wide prayer movement is out of control!" Millions of intercessors have prayed that the Kingdom of God would transform their cities and nations. Never before in the history of the Church have we witnessed more prayer lifted for the lost. The Harvest is near and even at our door!

Continuing to serve the Global Prayer Movement
Peter Wagner began serving as the Coordinator of the AD2000 United Prayer Track in 1991. The Prayer Track was a strategy to partner like-minded ministries and intercessors to pray for the unreached peoples of the 10/40 Window (a region stretching east from Spain and North Africa, to Japan and Indonesia). Global Harvest Ministries (GHM) was founded to administrate the coordination of this effort as millions of intercessor prayed "Through the Window. " Continuing this tradition, GHM serves intercessors, apostles and ministry leaders by networking ministries and prayer groups, mobilizing international intercessory projects, providing strategic prayer information, and offering cutting-edge conferences, resources and training.

Mobilizing the praying community
Desiring to see continued breakthroughs around the world, Global Harvest Ministries helps to initiate international intercessory projects such as Celebration Ephesus, where thousands of intercessors from around the world gathered to pray for the blessing and spiritual breakthrough of Turkey.

Currently, GHM is focusing on the 40/70 Window, a rectangular area stretching from Iceland to North Eastern Siberia in the north and Spain to Japan in the south.

Research and Strategic Communication
To affect spiritual breakthroughs this decade, it is essential to provide timely information for prayer to the Body of Christ. The Research and Strategic Communications Division manages this function through research, strategic prayer processing, and mobilization. Through the Observatory Research Center, spiritually relevant information and strategic prayer points are collected and communicated to the church worldwide....

Global Harvest Ministries: http://www.globalharvestministries.org

Restoring America to godliness - Dutch Sheets

Our School of Prayer - "Prophetic Intercession for the Transition of Our Nation" - was an absolute incredible time, as those of you who participated will agree. People from 31 states were in attendance, and they took home with them, to different parts of our nation, a fresh impartation of what God wants to do through our intercession. We believe the Lord did indeed give us direction and strategies to focus on as we intercede for our nation. Four areas of prayer were clearly highlighted:

-The need for reconciliation and unity between the generations, races, genders and denominations was a strong focal point. As reiterated many times by the speakers, we must pray for increasing interracial and intergenerational cooperation. I believe, as do several others, that God has brought an opportunity where tremendous reconciliation and healing can occur in our nation. We are praying fervently for this.

-We were again made aware of the stronghold of anti-Christian thought and action in the Supreme Court, and an urgent call to pray for the Court and the Justices was issued. Also recognized was the necessity of standing in prayer for upcoming Supreme Court appointments, as we did for the presidential election. This, too, seemed to be very major on God's agenda. We are going to organize much prayer for this.

-A great emphasis was placed on the crucial importance of prayer coverage for governmental leaders. The fact that our prayers are such a powerful, vital factor in their lives and work was strongly communicated, which resulted in a fresh commitment to faithfully intercede for them. We know this must go to a new level.

-The Lord highlighted New England as the focal point for national revival. This is the area of the first covenant between the Lord and out forefathers. Our government today is a liberal stronghold. As Lou Engle would phrase it, we're going to New England this summer to help "redig the wells of revival." Many of us believe revival in America will actually begin there.

Dutch Sheets: http://www.dutchsheets.org/

Learning to soar - Tommy Tenney

"They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings as eagles" (Isaiah 40:31)

Dear Friend and Fellow GodChaser,

Have you ever wished for wings? Have you ever longed to fly with the same freedom and grace as a bird? Did you know that God wants you have that kind of freedom? Children often pretend to be birds or airplanes, “soaring” on wings of imagination through backyards and bedrooms. As a child, can you remember feeling the wind against your face and flapping your arms, dreaming of a day when you’d catch a gust just right and find yourself in flight? I know I did. With eyes closed and arms extended, you could transport yourself (even if just for a moment) far from familiar surroundings.

It might seem like little more than a childish daydream, but I believe it is a divinely planted desire--one that only He can satisfy. We long to soar because even as children we understand that there is more to life than the limited reach of our experience, much more than we could ever grasp with our minds. God placed a longing inside of us, the “God-shaped vacuum” that cries out within us for freedom and fulfillment. Whether we’re children flapping our arms at play or adults raising our hands in worship, we’re really saying the same thing: There’s got to be MORE!

In the Scriptures, God speaks to this longing. He whispers to that desire within us: Do you really want to fly? I can show you how! “They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles.” (Is 40:31) God wants us to fly! He wants us to soar like eagles!

Do you want to soar like an eagle in your relationship with God? Are you tired of making exhausting efforts to get into His presence, only to discover that you’ve never even left the ground?

If you’ve ever watched an eagle in flight, you’ll notice something. They don’t seem to put a lot of effort into their flying. They don’t flap their wings that much. They spend most of their time soaring. Yet somehow, even without the excruciating effort, they attain amazing heights. Eagles know instinctively that the real strength is in the winds, not in their wings. They find an updraft, spread their wings, and stay there until they’ve reached their desired altitude. To the casual observer, it might appear as if they’re going nowhere and doing nothing, circling pointlessly over insignificant territory. But they are going somewhere: up!

If you want to reach new heights in God, why not follow the example of the eagle?

Find an updraft

Spread your wings

Stay there

Tommy Tenney. Full text at http://www.godchasers.net/

The release of miracles - Chuck D. Pierce

Jeremiah 33:3 in the Amplified is a key scripture for each one of us to pray now. "Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things, fenced in and hidden, which you do not know – do not distinguish and recognize, have knowledge of and understand." I am asking the Spirit of God to reveal to us things that we do not know.

This is a time of revelation, and the circumstances we are in are revealing our Lord in a way that we have never seen nor understood. He is revealing, rearranging, realigning, and repositioning us for our future. The enemy knows we are on the verge of a massive spiritual breakthrough in our lives. This breakthrough will cause a transference of wealth. This breakthrough will cause a fulfillment of promises for which we have been waiting. This breakthrough will give us strength for the next “advance” on the horizon. This is a time for crying out for that which is ours!

As you know, the Body of Christ has been going through testing. We should not see this testing as negative. Times of testing are always great to review and activate lessons of faith. In October 2000, when I was speaking at Christian International, the Lord spoke that He would be testing His prophetic people over the next nine months. That testing included many dimensions, but would refine our character and bring us into a new place of confrontation and outpouring. Last month He said this to me: "I am testing My vessels. There is a pouring out that is taking place in My Body. This is not the outpouring of My Glory, but the pouring out of My People's vessels so I can reveal My Glory."

This testing produces a RELEASE. The Lord has ordained time cycles in our life. In those time cycles, He already has set aside times of release so we can move from one phase or circumstance in our life into the next level of glory that is waiting for us. Deuteronomy 15:1 says this, “At the end of every seven years thou shalt make a release.” The next two to three months are months of release. Take this opportunity to cry out for release. Release from debts! Release from the hard oppression of labor that you have been under! Release from strategies of bondage that the enemy has had you in! Release from unseen snares that he has planned for you to step into in days ahead! Release from unforgiveness and bitterness and broken relationships! Release into a new authority, new anointing, and new level of glory!

A MIRACLE is an event that unmistakenly involves an immediate or powerful action of God. This action releases and reveals His character or purpose in our lives and environment. This release of power presses heaven's will into the earth realm. This release imparts knowledge, brings protection, witnesses His covenant, confirms our future, and motivates our faith into prophetic action to accomplish and fulfill the purpose and destiny God has for our life. Miracles cause us to stand in awe at God's divine power, authority, and His ability to intervene in our lives. Our environment attempts to squeeze out the supernatural realm of reality so that we cannot perceive God's love for us. As humanism continues to arise in the earth realm, we lose our expectation of God' intervention. However, this is a time of release where God is going to call attention to Himself and His purposes in new ways. This display of power will defy laws of nature and human logic....

Chuck Pierce: http://www.glory-of-zion.org/

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