Monthly Archives: April 2014

A Few Good Men “Igniting the Power of Prayer”

The first time I heard the title of this movie it was as if I heard the voice of God. My heart began to beat fast and I knew God was clearly speaking. This was the cry and desire of His heart. I suddenly had a revelation of many great things I knew could be accomplished in the Kingdom of God if only God had the hearts and obedience of a few good men. I had not thought of this for a long while until the day my brother in law, Pastor Bill Virgin published his first book titled, “Igniting the Power of Prayer.”

I knew I wanted to read the book he published for two reasons. The first is that as his sister in law I know his character and integrity. I’ll be honest here. I only want to read the works of those I know live with integrity in public and also in private. The second reason I knew I just had to read this book is that I know Bill is a man of prayer. When he says he will pray for you it isn’t just code for “maybe I will pray.” He will pray.

I was not disappointed. I was blessed and I was encouraged. That is why I want to share my heart with you.

I am not sure if Bill meant to save the best for last but I will tell you that in the case of “Igniting the Power of Prayer” he did exactly that.

The title of the final chapter is “The Call of The Watchman” To be honest, I got to the title page and began to weep. I could say much but I’m going to share what my brother in law wrote.

The Call of The Watchman;

Every young boy dreams of being a knight in shining armor protecting his castle – fighting off a vicious enemy’s onslaught coming to hurt or harm.

Movies through the years have helped portray the stoic watchman walking the wall and protecting their kingdom. Their keen, alert eyes are of utmost importance to those who live behind the walls trusting the watchman’s protection. A soldier must be loyal, alert and ready to lay down his life defending those who live in their community.

In the movie A Few Good Men, Demi Moore played a military attorney who defends two marine accused of killing a fellow soldier. After being asked, “Why do you love them so much?” she answer, “Because they stand on a wall and they say, “nothing is going to happen to you. Not tonight; not on my watch. “That is how we should view the call to intercession (prayer). We stand on the wall and keep watch for the enemy’s attack, saying, “Nothing is going to happen to our families or the church on my watch.” We MUST stand on the wall of intercession for our generation.

As I read this I kept thinking about what would happen if there were not just a few good men but “A Few Godly Men” who were willing to serve and protect.

Isaiah 62:6-7 “I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the lord, do not keep silent. And give Him no rest till He establishes, And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”

I remember the disciples could not remain awake. We are often guilty of the same. Thankfully, Jesus is continually interceding for us, however, we have a responsibility to also intercede for others. We must remain alert.

It seems strange but God has put it on my heart to “intercede for the intercessors” and to pray that God will raise up once again “A Few Godly Praying Men” who will storm the Heavens and change the course of history.

If you haven’t read “Igniting The Power of Prayer” by Bill Virgin you need to get this book as it will encourage you as you see lives changed through the power of prayer.

I am forever changed.

by: Pastor Pam Kacys
pam.kacys@cfcjesus.org

About the author:

Bill Virgin has been in the ministry for over 30 years. Bill attended Boise State University and Christ For the Nations Institute where he graduated. Bill went on to receive his Masters and Doctorate of Theology degree from Jacksonville Theological Seminary. Bill has served as youth pastor in Chicago and with Church on the Rock in Dallas, Texas. Bill now is Senior Pastor at Life Christian Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
You can order “IGNITING THE POWER OF PRAYER” by clicking the link: http://billvirgin.tateauthor.com/

By CFC on April 17, 2014 · Leave a comment

Surrendering Our Emotions

Our emotions are “from” God and “of” God and are gifts to be used to bring honor “to” God. God has given us emotions because we are created in the image and likeness of God and God himself has emotions. Our emotions are to be used carefully and purposefully to bless God and others. I am humbled and comforted to know that God has emotions and understands not only my life situations but the pain I feel when I am wounded. A favorite Scripture that reminds me of the tenderness of God is John 11:35 that reads simply, “Jesus Wept”.

Our emotions are powerful and can be used for good or evil like any other gift we are given.

Emotions can be a powerful witness of God’s love and character. They can be a confirmation of his great love for us and humanity when we use our emotions to express our love and concern for others who are hurting and broken. They can also be used incorrectly and be dangerous and cause great harm.

Our emotions are like electricity. When used wisely and handled with care electricity is a great and powerful gift that blesses many people. If not handled properly electricity can hurt us and cause great harm to others.

A perfect example of how one emotion can be used for either good or evil is the emotion of anger. It is a terrible witness to those around us and especially to those who are unbelievers when we misuse the emotion of anger. The Word of God doesn’t say that anger is wrong. The Bible says, “be angry, but sin not”. The anger is not wrong. It is o.k. to be angry for the right reason and at the right time and in the right situation, however, the person who commits sin out of anger is wrong. However, if that same individual became angry at an injustice committed against an innocent person it would be a “righteous” or right anger and would actually honor God as long as that person did not commit sin.

I often hear people talk about how we must learn to control our emotions. I want to ask them how they are doing with that. This is easier said than done. In fact, I can tell you that I tried for years to control my emotions with little success. It seemed that my emotions were controlling me most of the time. I never was really able to control my own emotions.

One day I prayed and asked God to help me control my emotions. God showed me that I was not capable of controlling my own emotions. I needed God’s help. He showed me through his Word that I should not concern myself with controlling my emotions but I should instead simply “surrender” my emotions to him and he would teach me how to use my emotions for his honor and glory. He showed me that he would also heal my emotions as I surrendered my emotions to him.

I prayed and I felt such a peace flood over me. I surrendered my emotions to God and asked the Holy Spirit to lead me and help me to use my emotions properly and with care. I asked God to help me use my emotions as a witness of his love to others.

Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we are not our own. We are bought with a great and precious price. Our bodies are to be used to honor God. Our emotions are to be used in the same way.

The Lord showed me that so often people misuse or abuse the emotions God gave them. They will use tear to manipulate others to do their will instead of God’s will. They will rejoice at an injustice instead of righteousness. This is the reason that many people are suffering with emotional illness.

Jesus died on the Cross and suffered stripes that we might be healed and made completely whole…body, soul and spirit. I pray that I may weep at the things that break his heart. I pray that I would rejoice at the things that bring him joy. I want my emotions to bring honor to Christ.

I believe that as we choose to surrender our emotions to God we will be healed in places we didn’t even know we needed to be healed. I thank God for freedom and peace of mind and heart.

Prayer for emotional healing:

Lord, I thank you for the Cross and the price you paid and the blood you shed that I might be made whole. I surrender myself wholly to you. I surrender my body, soul and spirit to you. I surrender my emotions to you. I acknowledge that in and of myself I am not strong enough to control my own emotions. I need your love and power. In every situation of life let me feel what you feel and respond as you would respond. May my emotions always honor you and represent you and your love. Help me to never misuse or abuse my emotions or dishonor you.

In Jesus Name, Amen

by: Pastor Pam Kacys

pam.kacys@cfcjesus.org

By CFC on April 11, 2014 · Leave a comment

Don’t Miss An Opportunity.

While traveling at the Knoxville airport I was sitting waiting to board a plane: I had the Bible on my lap and was very intent upon what I was doing. I’d had a marvelous morning with the Lord. I say that because I want to tell you it is a scary thing to have the Spirit of God really working in you. You could end up doing some things you never would have done otherwise. Life in the Spirit can be dangerous for a thousand reasons not the least of which is your ego.

I tried to keep from staring but he was such a strange sight. Humped over in a wheelchair, he was skin and bones, dressed in clothes that obviously fit when he was at least twenty pounds heavier. His knees protruded from his trousers, and his shoulders looked like the coat hanger was still in his shirt. His hands looked like tangled masses of veins and bones. The strangest part of him was his hair and nails. Stringy grey hair hung well over his shoulders and down part of his back. His fingernails were long. Clean, but strangely out of place on an old man.

I looked down at my Bible as fast as I could, discomfort burning my face. As I tried to imagine what his story might have been, I found myself wondering if I’d just had a Howard Hughes sighting. Then, I remembered reading somewhere that he was dead. So this man in the airport…an impersonator maybe? Was a camera on us somewhere?

There I sat trying to concentrate on the Word to keep from being concerned about a thin slice of humanity served on a wheelchair only a few seats from me. All the while my heart was growing more and more overwhelmed with a feeling for him. Let’s admit it. Curiosity is a heap more comfortable than true concern, and suddenly I was awash with aching emotion for this bizarre-looking old man.

I had walked with God long enough to see the handwriting on the wall. I’ve learned that when I begin to feel what God feels, something so contrary to my natural feelings, something dramatic is bound to happen. And it may be embarrassing. I immediately began to resist because I could feel God working on my spirit and I started arguing with God in my mind. “Oh no, God please no.” I looked up at the ceiling as if I could stare straight through it into heaven and said, “Don’t make me witness to this man. Not right here and now. Please. I’ll do anything. Put me on the same plane, but don’t make me get up here and witness to this man in front of this gawking audience. Please, Lord!”

There I sat in the blue vinyl chair begging His Highness, “Please don’t make me witness to this man. Not now. I’ll do it on the plane.” Then I heard it…”I don’t want you to witness to him. I want you to brush his hair.”

The words were so clear, my heart leapt into my throat, and my thoughts spun like a top. Do I witness to the man or brush his hair? No brainer. I looked straight back up at the ceiling and said, “God, as I live and breathe, I want you to know I am ready to witness to this man. I’m on this Lord. I’m your girl! You’ve never seen a woman witness to a man faster in your life. What difference does it make if his hair is a mess if he is not redeemed? I am on him. I am going to witness to this man.”

Again as clearly as I’ve ever heard an audible word, God seemed to write this statement across the wall of my mind. “That is not what I said, Beth. I don’t want you to witness to him. I want you to go brush his hair.”

I looked up at God and quipped, “I don’t have a hairbrush. It’s in my suitcase on the plane. How am I suppose to brush his hair without a hairbrush?”

God was so insistent that I almost involuntarily began to walk toward him as these thoughts came to me from God’s word: “I will thoroughly finish you unto all good works.” (2 Tim 3:7) I stumbled over to the wheelchair thinking I could use one myself. Even as I retell this story my pulse quickens and I feel those same butterflies.

I knelt down in front of the man, and asked as demurely as possible, “Sir, may I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?” He looked back at me and said, “What did you say?” “May I have the pleasure of brushing your hair?” To which he responded in volume ten, “Little lady, if you expect me to hear you, you’re going to have to talk louder than that.”

At this point, I took a deep breath and blurted out, “SIR, MAY I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF BRUSHING YOUR HAIR?” At which point every eye in the place darted right at me. I was the only thing in the room looking more peculiar than old Mr. Longlocks. Face crimson and forehead breaking out in a sweat.

I watched him look up at me with absolute shock on his face, and say, “If you really want to.” Are you kidding? Of course I didn’t want to. But God didn’t seem interested in my personal preference right about then. He pressed on my heart until I could utter the words, “Yes, sir, I would be pleased. But I have one little problem. I don’t have a hairbrush.”

“I have one in my bag,” he responded. I went around to the back of that wheelchair, and I got on my hands and knees and unzipped the stranger’s old carry-on hardly believing what I was doing. I stood up and started brushing the old man’s hair.

It was perfectly clean, but it was tangled and matted. I don’t do many things well, but I must admit I’ve had notable experience untangling knotted hair mothering two little girls. Like I’d done with either Amanda or Melissa in such a condition, I began brushing at the very bottom of the strands, remembering to take my time not to pull.

A miraculous thing happened to me as I started brushing that old man’s hair…. Everybody else in the room disappeared. There was no one alive for those moments except that old man and me. I brushed and brushed and I brushed until every tangle was out of that hair. I know this sounds so strange but I’ve never felt that kind of love for another soul in my entire life. I believe with all my heart, I—for that few minutes—felt a portion of the very love of God. That He had overtaken my heart for a little while like someone renting a room and making Himself at home for a short while. The emotions were so strong and so pure that I knew they had to be God’s.

His hair was finally as soft and smooth as an infant’s. I slipped the brush back in the bag, went around the chair to face him. I got back down on my knees, put my hands on his knees, and said, “Sir, do you know my Jesus?”

He said, “Yes, I do.” Well, that figures.

He explained, “I’ve known Him since I married my bride. She wouldn’t marry me until I got to know the Savior.” He said “You see, the problem is, I haven’t seen my bride in months. I’ve had open-heart surgery, and she’s been too ill to come see me. I was sitting here thinking to myself what a mess I must be for my bride.”

Only God knows how often He allows us to be part of a divine moment when we’re completely unaware of the significance. This, on the other hand, was one of those rare encounters when I knew God had intervened in details only He could have known. It was a God moment, and I’ll never forget it.

Our time came to board, and we were not on the same plane. I was deeply ashamed of how I’d acted earlier and would have been so proud to have accompanied him on that aircraft.

I still had a few minutes, and as I gathered my things to board, the airline hostess returned from the corridor, tears streaming down her cheeks. She said, “That old man’s sitting on the plane, sobbing. Why did you do that? What made you do that?”

I said, “Do you know Jesus? He can be the bossiest thing!” And we got to share.

I learned something about God that day. He knows if you’re exhausted because you’re hungry, you’re serving in the wrong place or it is time to move on but you feel too responsible to budge. He knows if you’re hurting or feeling rejected. He knows if you’re sick or drowning under a wave of temptation. Or He knows if you just need your hair brushed. He sees you as an individual. Tell Him your need!

I got on my own flight, sobs choking my throat, wondering how many opportunities just like that one had I missed along the way…all because I didn’t want people to think I was strange. God didn’t send me to that old man. He sent that old man to me.

By:Beth Moore

By CFC on April 8, 2014 · Leave a comment