Our story, “It’s time to laugh” starts with a story about Abraham and it is a story that can include you. By the time you have finished reading this, I expect that you will be so blessed and encouraged that you too, will laugh the way Abraham laughed... The bible tells us that Abraham lived in a strange land because of a promise from God. He never had a bible! He really did not even know who God was. Some Hebrews thought that God was merely known as “He who has no name”. Moses had to ask His name when he had an encounter with God in the burning bush. God’s reply was I Am! What did Abraham think when God asked him to leave everything familiar to him and go to a foreign place? God told him to leave everything behind him, but he did not fully follow instructions at that time. Like us, he had to learn some things. He took Lot with him and that led to disaster. He went with his father and got as far as Haran where he remained for five years until his father died. After that, he started his journey. Abraham originally lived in a place that worshiped just about anything and everything but God, so he had no real reference point, no mentor and no precedent to draw from, other than that still small inner voice of the Spirit. This is your best guide, for want of a better word. The Spirit of God is your counsellor. He is your advocate. He is your teacher and He will always lead you in truth. Jesus said so in John’s gospel. See John 14:11-17, 26; John 16:7-15. The word of God teaches us also. See 2 Timothy2:15 and 2 Timothy 3:14-17. The bible says that iron sharpeneth iron and about having Godly appointed relationships. There is safety and wisdom in those matters, but there are also times when we go to another person for advice, we are not sure if we will receive the right counsel. Paul conferred not with flesh and blood and the revelation we received from his Spirit led teaching is simply amazing. See also 1 John 2:20, 27; John 8:31-32; 1 Corinthians 2:4-16. I am not advocating that we do rash and foolish things, rebel and ignore advice, but please ensure that if you do go to someone else that they are really qualified to guide you properly! Regardless of their education, training and qualifications, all of which we recognize and acknowledge, they are still human and fail. God asked Abraham to do something unprecedented. He had no one to go to for advice! As I said, he did not have a bible to search through so relied on the guidance and leading of the Spirit of God on his journey. Please remember this. |
It seems to me that God specializes in doing things that are spectacular, dramatic, remarkable and out of the box. He created all there is by speaking it into existence and if there was nothing before that, creation itself is unprecedented. The next thing I see is found in Genesis 1:26 when God said, “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness”! That sure was unprecedented! The angels looked on in astonishment and marvelled at God’s words. Job asked a profound question. Job was going through some problems at the time, but what he said here is profound. It is truth. Some translators could not handle this and substituted the correct words to read as if we are a little lower than the angels! No! | What God did to Abraham had never happened before and it will never happen again. He spoke to Abraham on this wise
My friend, we have to start from where we are at a given moment. We have to take that initial step (under the Lord’s direction of course) because if we do not take that step nothing will happen. You cannot go on a holiday somewhere unless you travel to your destination and do so by taking the very first step. You plan for it, see it in your mind’s eye, pack clothes, obtain tickets, get a passport and do all those things first, but until you make your move, you will go nowhere. This psalm was written to celebrate Israel’s deliverance from captivity. The people had been in captivity for so long, they or their children at least knew nothing about the blessing. They knew nothing other than living in a foreign land, subservient to foreigners. Many of God’s precious people seem to be living like that. They are believers. They love the Lord. They read His word. They pray, attend church, tithe, sow seed and do all that Christians do, but nothing is working for them—or is it? |
I am here to tell you that God is on your case and is in the business of breaking the mould and doing something unprecedented. You could wake up tomorrow morning and find that things have changed. Like the Israelites, you too will think that you are dreaming and you too can declare Go on... give a shout. Have a chuckle. |
Pray right now as the Israelites did in Psalm 126:4 It’s time to laugh saints. The reason is simple. That’s the sort of thing God told Abraham and it made him laugh. There are two kinds of laughter. One is the victor’s laugh. The other is a scorner’s laugh, or one of unbelief. Hebrews 11:9-10 says that Abraham sojourned in a land of promise, as if in a strange country... for he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder is God. What he saw was so amazing—so unprecedented that he laughed for joy. We are people of joy, or should be people of joy. Paul said There is a place for holy reverence, fear, awe and respect for God but not to the degree that there is no joy and one comes to God in fear and trembling, or in such solemn silence that it is like being in a cemetery. The Kingdom of God is a joyful one. There is great rejoicing, so learn how to smile now and then. Many believers have been going through fire and water. They seem to be up to their necks in it but God brought them through then and He is no respecter of persons. If he did it for one, He can do it for you also, but this time, it will be unprecedented. What David said in essence was that we had to go through it to get it! My friend, I am here to tell you that if you are going through it, you are coming out the other side. I like the scripture that says It came... to pass! The situation may seem grim and the problems immense at present, but if they came, they will pass. Once through and out the other side, it will be so unreal, it will seem as if you are dreaming. You too can laugh like Abraham. When Sarah head the angel tell Abraham about his and her son, she also laughed. She was 89 years of age. Imagine... Can this really be true? At my age? I a going to have a son? She had been barren all her life and now God told her that things were about to change! I’m telling you that although you might have been broke all your life, or you might not have a job when you are considered too old to work; you do not have the training or experience; the economy is failing and people are losing their jobs too—that there is nothing too hard for the Lord! She had a son just as God said and called him Laughter (yiṣḥāq). You may know him by the name Isaac! When God told Noah to build an ark, there was no such thing as rain. People would have thought that he was crazy, but God told him something! Has He told you something also? Well, He spoke to Noah and told him that rain was coming and it did. If He told you that something was coming—it will! We are in a period in time when God is about to do some extraordinary things. They are also unprecedented. They may seem so remote now that it seems like a dream, but dream on. When Jesus came, it seemed unreal. No one ever did what He did before. No one spoke like He spoke. When He cast out a devil, the people marvelled and said so. See Matthew 9:33. In Luke 4, Jesus cast an evil spirit out of a man and amazed those present. When the Priests and Pharisees tried to arrest Jesus, the officers couldn’t touch him. They reported that no one had ever spoken like Jesus (See John 7:46). God is definitely in the business of doing things that go above and beyond the norm. They are so way out it could make you laugh, so you may as well have another laugh now. He is in the business of doing once-only events. He will not create another Adam. Sin only came once. Man could only be disconnected once. God will never send Jesus again. Jesus could only be born once. Jesus could only die once. You can only be born once. You can only be born again once. In Isaiah 43:18, God says Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Do not live in the past. Look to what God has in store for you. Whilst it is good to have fond memories and the like, there are times when it is best to leave the past behind and embrace what God is presently doing and perhaps take it one step further. Isaiah continued God is telling those who listen that something new and exciting is coming. He does this you know. What is He doing? Well, there are many things. They include getting His people prepared for the return of His son. We have all the signs of it. Jesus told us what to look for and it is not the end of the world in December 21 or whatever date it was. That’s crazy and is nothing to do with God at all. If you want to know what those signs are, read Matthew 24 and 25, then take a look at the Middle East and at the Church. It’s all happening. Another thing God is doing is pouring out His Spirit in unprecedented way around the world. It will surprise a lot of folk. Jerry Saville started to preach on this and it scared him. He dropped it and immediately got into financial difficulties until he repented and regained momentum. One of his books titled “The God of the breakthrough is visiting my house” deals with that. It is not only about money of course but that folding stuff is what is required to achieve what God wants done on the earth. Our ministry projects are not hinged around building a big church as is often seen. We will however need new facilities from which we operate, including a church and will have churches wherever God opens doors. We have many very practical projects on the drawing boards that will teach people how to create a viable business, to grow their own food, to become independent on increasingf utility costs and avail themselves on renewable resources. We will help improve their education in realistic and practical ways differing perhaps from the acceptable "Christian colleges and schools" I see all too often. The problem is that the church has interpreted scripture through the eyes of their own experiences, rather than allowing the Holy Spirit to teach them (see 1 Corinthians 2:13). They are blind leaders leading blind people but those days are over because God is about to do a new thing. This wealth transfer is not coming to everyone. Some folk just cannot handle money. Others misuse it and abuse the privileges of having it such as using ministry funds for personal use, which is something we abhor. Those who are not doing things correctly will be removed. I speak as a prophet on this matter. Those with a God-given mission will receive it. As I said, it is not only about money. It involves a whole way of living and that is going to take a miracle to achieve. All things are possible to those who believe in the possibilities of the impossible. You may be going through some problems right now and feeling hurt, disillusioned, disappointed or saddened by events. Jesus’ You might be going through birth pangs concerning your vision right now as we are, but the promise is real and it is being birthed. One day soon we will all give that final push and the baby is given birth. You might have been going through some stuff, but the day is here when it has all changed. It will seem so unreal, so fantastic, we will have to pinch ourselves Like Sarah and Abraham we can and will laugh. My friend... it is time to laugh! |
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