Prayer (pt. 1)...

[Still looking for my face..]

Jewish History:
Ten Commandments are given to the people and then put into a box called The Arc of the Covenant. The Arc is placed in a temple, in like the inner, INNER section of the temple. Now, ONLY ONCE A YEAR, there was only ONE person that was allowed to enter the inner section of the temple, the "Holy of Holies", the High Priest. He sprinkled the blood of a goat or calve onto the arc as a blood sacrifice for the whole nation's sins. This inner section was SO holy that it is said that the high priest had to tie a rope around his ankle, so that if he were to get struck dead by God, his dead body could be pulled from inside the room. THIS CEREMONY IS VITAL!!!! So, Jesus shows up, and he is referred to as a Prophet, a King, and a High Priest.

Hebrews 9:11-15
11When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. 12He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. 13The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. 14How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

15For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

Jesus' blood nows has SUCH AN IMPORTANCE. He enters by his own blood, and becomes our mediator to God, AND NOT JUST ONCE A YEAR!!!! BUT DAILY, MINUTELY, SECONDLY, we can converse with God through prayer.

Now that we have an eternal connection with God, prayer falls under a new light. Now, it goes from being "I should pray" or "I need to pray", to "I get to pray".

My way to God can be daily, minutely, secondly thing. Will this change my perspective?

Reset...

"God, I have gone too long without you. I have forgotten your touch, your embrace, your breath. And I've grown comfortable with being uncomfortably distant from you. It's all I've know for the last three months. So here i am, crawling away form you because I dont want to accept my failures, to embrace the pain, to dive into the tension. But I hear you... thundering behind me. As I crawl, I hear the trees falling, the world withering, the earth shaking in you passionate pursuit for me, broken me. Tonight, you have arrived behind me. I can feel your presence; your breath is heavy on my neck. Tonight, we meet here. Tonight, I am reminded, in your arms, that I am loved by the star-breather. Make me who you want me to be..."

this is my story. moving right along...

This is me...

"Our excuses will define us if we let them." -The Bearded Wonder [Freddy Williams]
Excuses cause paralysis. They choke us and hinder us from burning and becoming who God wants us to be. Excuses = FEARS, FAILURES, BUSY, BOREDOM
(a few of mine..)
FEARS:
-being alone/avoided -uncertainty
-failure - letting go of control
FAILURES:
-consistency -loving
-fooling everyone -authenticity
BUSY:
-school -satisfying everyone
-volleyball -maintaining relationships
BORED:
-with every day that I wake up and wait for something to be handed to me (a nugget of life)

This is me:
I am broken and desperate for someone to put the pieces back together
And for too long, I have tried to put them back together by myself/under my own will.
This is my circumference, my edges, where life is LIVED (although, not necessarily where life is FROM).

Luke 15- The Parable of the Lost Sheep
And despite the fact that I am lost, Jesus LEAVES the flock of sheep, in DESPERATE search, PASSIONATE pursuit to find me. And when he does, HE CELEBRATES W/ EVERYONE!

That is the Gospel. That is the essence/substance in which my identity can be found

So, according to you and the world, who are you?
=> A broken, worthless, lost, fake, misguided sheep
According to Jesus, who are you?
=> A broken, worthless, lost, fake, misguided sheep WHO IS WORTH BEING PASSIONATELY PURSUED FOR...

That is a picture of love. Essence, soul, substance.
That is where Jesus resides, calling for you to join him.

Time to start digging...

Foundation...

Lately, things have been... dry. I find myself wandering down paths that i know will waste my time, and clinging to the things that i think i need/ things that i think will help to refresh me. But, nothing seems to be real or fufilling. And then, i step back and survey, and i cant help but to wonder... "what has happened?"

I mean i was there...
I was in the prescence of God, in His arms...
It was all so real. It was all so satisfying.

"what has happened?"

But, God has begun to take me back to those moment and exposing a trend in every one of them...

every inch of that moment was derived from the very person of Jesus and the very breath of God

At no point was i distracted by the things such as appearance, atmosphere, timing, effectiveness; anything physical thing that created a barrier between me and God because i was not concerned with what you thought of me, nor the lights, nor the creative elements.
It was me and God.

It was me, in my brokeness, hand in hand with Jesus, reaching with hands of need, praying prayers that refused to be unheard.

When everything was stripped away, nothing was left but me and Jesus.

What got me to that point?
Better yet, what DISCONTINUED me from being there?

Jesus is my foundation. I have piled so many things on top of me that i continuously focus on what i can do to relieve some weight, and i have forgotten that he is the reason that i wake in the morning and lift my hands to worship my father, despite what may come my way.

Take me back. Just me and you. So that the only place left for me to find myself is in you...

Future Glory, The Dream...

"This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!" Romans 8:15-17 (The Message)

we confrim who we are through who God is, our Father, our Daddy...
we accept the calling, a life of love and serving...
we share the life of Jesus, INTAMCY!!!!!
(it gets better!!!!)

"That's why I don't think there's any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what's coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens." Romans 8:18-21 (The Message)

in the midst of experiencing life through confirming, accepting, and sharing...
we anticipate what God will do next, grander and more magnifficent than ever before...
we dream of the day that we are fully alive through Christ...

This is the dream...
This is the coming reality...
Are you ready for what God will do...
Are you ready to swim in the deep of God's dream...

"Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens"...

Weiss

A Link in the Chain...

We werent created to journey alone.

If God has given us a mandate to carry on what he has started, then we must carry the torch together.

If we are unified through Christ, then why dont we live life together?
We dont live life in the trenches with each other.

And it worries me...

If we cant experience God together at an intamate level outside of where we meet ("the Church"), then how will we ever learn how to love each other like God has called us to do?

we wont know each other, and we will push each other away, afraid of actually allowing ourselves to be known by the other.

we lose sight of God, because we are to busy trying to tackle life by ourselves, by our own strength.

you are a link in God's chain...
you need us, and we need you...

I need you.

God allows us to be a part of what he is doing.

It's on us...

Weiss

Wondering...

i find myself looking over my shoulder, wondering what the kid behind me thinks about me praying by myself...

i find myself looking over my shoulder, wondering if the person behind me knows that i thrive on God's love...

i find myself wondering...

when did i let the standards, opinions, and accusations of others get in the way of knowing my Father?

Knowing Him is eternal life...

so...

When will the kid behind me wonder why im praying outside by myself?
When will the kid behind me thrive on my love because of the love i thrive on from God?

When i know my Father, intamately, passionately, the opinions/standards of others will be shaped by the love that God can give them.

May we know Him...

create a community
create a culture

I wonder what it will be like when the heart of my Father will beat in me...

Weiss