|City on a Hill - Writings for Refuge

Psalms 115:16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord ’s; But the earth He has given to the children of men. From the very beginning, God gave dominion over the earth to the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, to enforce God's government over the earth in agreement with His will....to subdue it...to develop it....to tend it...all in agreement with God's perfect plan. When God gives something, He REALLY gives it. Adam and Eve's rebellion never voided the gift. Because God is faithful and true, His Word remains forever. Jesus won the dominion of creation back for mankind and God, freeing it from satan's legal claims to having a share in the earth. There are some glaring consequences to the truth of this responsibility given to mankind. God generally does not violate this arrangement of responsibility. The easiest way to say it is that "God looks for a man or woman." God searches the earth for a man or woman to agree with Him about what needs doing in the eart

There is an unprecedented level of intensity in world events at this very moment. Most of the world has become numb to the intensity, though. The constant and steady stream of news has dulled our senses to what is literally unfolding all around us. I don't say this only from observation, for this is prophesied to happen this way. Throughout the Bible there is a warning: the 2nd coming of Jesus is incredibly intense, but most people, even believers, will not notice it...like a thief in the night. When the thief comes in the night, you find out in the morning what was lost, after it is too late. Anyone who has been visited by the thief feels the loss once they are awake. There is much to lose in this generation. The idea of a thief coming to silently strip away what could have been ours is actually one of the major themes regarding the return of Jesus. Jesus said it several times, Peter said it, and Paul said it. The enemy isn't coming like a thief, JESUS is coming like a thief:

The most valuable real estate in all of creation is your mind...the central part of your heart, which is made up of your mind, your will, and your emotions. There is a great battle being waged over your mind, even right now. Distraction is vying for a piece of your mind, fear, perversion, anger, greed...and God. All these desire the real estate of your mind. That is because, whether you are willing to admit it or not, there is a great war being raged between the kingdom of darkness and the Kingdom of light all around us. It isn't people against people, it is spirits against Spirit...it is fallen angels against God. This battle is raging right now. It is usually manifested on earth as problems between people. The enemy seeks to make people his agents in the war, while God seeks to free anyone who would choose freedom. The enemy forces His way in, while God, unwilling to violate love, patiently waits to assist anyone who will ask. The enemy attempts to invade minds, while God's m

God is raising up a generation that will understand His purpose and respond. This generation is called "Jacob" in the Bible: Psalms 24:1-6 The earth is the Lord ’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters. Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord ? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord , And righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek Your face. WE are that generation, the Jacob Generation! In Matthew 24, Jesus described the signs this Jacob Generation will see...increasing in intensity and frequency...just as labor contractions increase and intensify...intensity, then calm...closer and closer...until hard labor happens, and then the Baby, called the Day of the Lord...what God cal

God made people in His image to be His family...to love them and to receive love from them. To love me and to receive love from me is why the One who could have created anything He wanted to CHOSE to create me...it is why He created you. God is the fullness of every good thing. God is infinite love. Infinite love MUST expand, and God DESIRED it would expand to me...and to you! You and I are a gift God gave God to be in partnership with...to know and be known...to be like Him...forever. We were made to rule and reign with God on a perfect earth, in bodies that would never die...forever. Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. God desired I would know Him and be like Him more than anything else I might offer Him. This is family. God desires family. God desires love. This very love that led God to desire the creation of people, is the same love that allowed for people to rebel against God. For love, God committed to not ordering

In its context, this is an end-time passage about Israel: Isaiah 30:1-3 “Woe to the rebellious children,” says the Lord , “Who take counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, That they may add sin to sin; Who walk to go down to Egypt, And have not asked My advice, To strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt! Therefore the strength of Pharaoh Shall be your shame, And trust in the shadow of Egypt Shall be your humiliation. Here, the imagery is plain, harkening back to the days of Jerusalem's destruction in the time of Jeremiah and Isaiah...when God kept telling Israel to trust Him and turn themselves over to Him...instead, they ran to Egypt...trusting in the king they could see, even the leader of the land of their former slavery, rather than in the perplexing plans of their invisible God. This is what God promised them even as they prepared to go: Jeremiah 42:22 Now therefore, know certainly that you shall die by

Everyone longs for satisfaction. Mankind is actually wired for satisfaction, and the primary driving force of mankind is actually fulfilling that desire to be satisfied. Since we were made for eternity, nothing less than an eternal source is capable of satisfying our hearts forever. People look for satisfaction in all sorts of ways, but only one source of satisfaction brings joy. Joy is actually the innate feeling that everything is right, or going to be made right...confidence in satisfaction. So what is it that satisfies? That is the question every heart longs to know. Adventure ...love...good food...a beautiful location...laughter with a good friend...a sunset...winning a game...these all touch it...but none of these can sustain satisfaction. These all hold elements of the One Thing that truly satisfies: Psalms 27:4 One thing I have desired of the Lord , That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord , And to inq

God has placed many dreams in my heart. Since I was a kid, God has been leading me through my imagined future. I have not always been aware of this truth, but the older I get, the more clearly I see it. The Bible is clear that God fashioned my heart “individually.” That means when He made me, He made me uniquely. No two people look identical, just like no two snowflakes are identical. No one’s DNA is identical…and even more so, no one’s heart is like anyone else’s. The dreams in my heart are completely unique. Psalms 33:14-15 From the place of His dwelling He looks On all the inhabitants of the earth; (15) He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works. This means that my hopes for what will occur in my life were actually tailored for me. The Darwinist would believe that we are all a blank slate, sharing the same basic makeup and structure, when we are born, waiting for external stimulus to form our personality, but the Bible teaches the opposite, that we were born

Jeremiah 31:28 And it shall come to pass, that as I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down, to throw down, to destroy, and to afflict, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord . God is doing a new thing in the earth. 1st, He is "watching over" His beloved by "breaking down, throwing down, destroying, and afflicting" everything that hinders wholehearted love between Him and those who would choose Him. THEN, He will "watch over" those who remain by building and planting. He is remaking the earth back to what the Father called very good. Jesus came 2,000 years ago to literally make "all things new." He started in the heart, but He will finish with the physical world we live in. Revelation 21:5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” When Adam and Eve said "no" to God's leadership, they literally killed God

Psalm 119:17 Be good to Your servant, that I may live and obey Your word. Right now I am riding in the back seat of our van working. It amazes me how much more like a roller coaster driving feels like from the back of the van, rather than how secure I feel when I am at the front of the van driving. I have never ridden back here, but I have to work today while we are driving, so here I am while Sam is driving (quite well, I might add). No matter how well Sam drives, I still feel out of control. I like to be in charge of things. I trust myself more than I trust other people…even my incredibly smart and capable wife. So I am working with one eye on the road…not getting nearly as much done as I would if I just focused on what I am supposed to do right now…work. While I was waiting for a file to download, I opened my Bible to see what God might tell me. I opened to Psalm 119:17. I read this verse and heard God say: I am the One who is good to you…I make sure you live and breathe. Whether yo

There is a longing for greatness woven deep in my heart. I want to be important and needed. I want to be seen for what I know, and can do...I want my potential...what I imagine I am capable of....to be expressed in reality of my life. This is impressed on the very fabric of my heart. I see it there when I imagine my future. Who I believe I am to become is the primary identity that drives my choices. Bit by Bit, God is revealing to me what He made me for. This is altogether exhilarating and frustrating at the same time! It is supposed to work this way. Every person was fashioned to be great. In Jesus' body, there is a lot of talk about leaders and followers. The Bible is clear that everyone, when living in full agreement with God, should be a leader AND a follower. God didn't create two classes of people. He created a family...a large living organism where every part has a distinct function... a purpose. The hand leads in some areas, and the foot in others. The hand needs the fo