REWARDS OF RIGHT LIVING

“Men and women who have lived wisely and well will shine brilliantly, like the cloudless, star-strewn night skies. And those who put others on the right path to life will glow like stars forever.” Daniel 12:3

God’s glory shines around about you when you live in wisdom. I remember once being in a meeting in Las Vegas in 1992 where Benny Hinn was the main speaker. The first night he was on his way to minister, he was walking through the casino. As he started up the stairs to the conference room, a gambler came running up behind him, shaking his fist at him and screaming “I don’t believe in God!’ Benny Hinn turned around and looked at the man and said, ‘You are scriptural, brother!” The man looked startled and said, “Why is that?’ Hinn explained, “Psalms 14:1 says a fool in his heart says there is no God.”

Living in wisdom means living in the Word.  Allowing that life giving Word to dominate your feelings makes all the difference in your emotions.  You will be stable and strong instead of weak and off course. He wants to put you on the right path to life so you can glow like a star forever.

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

STAND AGAINST YOUR GIANT

“Goliath stood there and called out to the Israelite troops, “Why bother using your whole army? Am I not Philistine enough for you? And you’re all committed to Saul, aren’t you? So pick your best fighter and pit him against me. If he gets the upper hand and kills me, the Philistines will all become your slaves. But if I get the upper hand and kill him, you’ll all become our slaves and serve us. I challenge the troops of Israel this day. Give me a man. Let us fight it out together!” When Saul and his troops heard the Philistine’s challenge, they were terrified and lost all hope.” 1 Samuel 17:8,11 - MSG

You may have lost all hope in your situation today but take heart!

Jesus is always there for you and He makes a way of escape if you will listen to His voice. A young unexpected leader in the shepherd boy David arose from nowhere and defeated Goliath, first with his words, then with the action of his slingshot. Start speaking to your situation, start taking it down with your declarations, then take action as the Holy Spirit leads you. 

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

HE IS ALWAYS THERE

Other people may disappoint you or let you down, but Jesus never leaves you or forsakes you. God is a hiding place when you are in tough times. 

“God is the rock and strength of my heart and my portion forever...” Psalms 73:26. When it looks like there is no way out, when the doctors say they can’t do anything for you, Jesus makes a way. But you have to get into His Presence and find His way!!

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

PEOPLE SEE HIS LIGHT ON YOU

His presence is visible on you as you spend time with Him. Have you ever noticed other believers who are a joy to be around? Their very presence encourages you. I remember once as a reporter in Las Vegas 40 years ago going through a car wash one morning. Right before going there,  I had spent about an hour reading the Word. As I drove out on the other side of the tunnel, a homeless man holding a can of beer looked at me. You could see he was attached to that can. But he must have seen some kind of glory, since he tossed the beer into the trash and said “Well, if you say so!” And walked away. I was amazed - I had not said a word, His Presence said it all. Sometimes you don’t have to say anything either - just let His light shine through you. 

“No one lights a lamp and then puts it in a cellar nor under a basket [hiding the light], but [instead it is put] on the lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.” Luke 11:33 AMP

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

HE IS ALWAYS THERE

It may feel like you are all alone at times but really Jesus and His Holy Spirit are always there with you. Think about the people that so randomly cross your path and reach out to you in one way or another. Yesterday I was at the eye doctor for an annual checkup and the young nurse started talking to me about how her and her husband were trying to conceive. They had been married for three years. You know this had to be God, because Keith and I were not able to have children for the first three years of our marriage either. Until one Sunday morning, (after I had spent time at the church altar the night before, asking God for a baby), a traveling evangelist prayed for me. Low and behold ten days later I was pregnant with our first daughter, Angela. So I related this story to the nurse and it was such an encouragement to her. It turned out that another of her co-workers goes to the same church we do, City Church in Ventura, and had been ministering to her as well. The Holy Spirit had set the stage! I then asked if she would let me pray for her for a successful pregnancy. She was all for it so we had a great time of agreement right there in the opthamologist’s office. Who would think? Jesus would, because He was right there with us. And He is with you too today. So watch where He leads you and be sensitive to His open doors. 

“Therefore He is able also to save forever (completely, perfectly, for eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede and intervene on their behalf [with God].” Hebrews 7:25 - AMP

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

YOU ARE ALWAYS CONNECTED

I remember being away from God for about 18 months after I first got saved in the late 70ties. What was so amazing was during that time I never stopped listening to this one Christian artist. Her songs permeated my hard heart at the time and probably kept me from going off the deep end of despair.

I had a great budding career as a radio news director in Las Vegas for a CBS and later, an ABC station. But I kept looking for love in all the wrong places. However, as God's word flowed through this lady's music, it was like a fine thin knife that continually scraped the hardness off of my heart. Her music was my connection point to the Lord, as backslidden as I was. Musicians say that a melody will bypass your brain and go straight to your heart. I believe it, especially one with anointed words from heaven. When I finally did return to the Lord, it was a strong continual flow as I stayed in the Word daily and let Him talk to me through it. His word is His mouthpiece and He talks to you every time you open it up. 

God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon's scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God's Word. We can't get away from it no matter what. Hebrews 4:12 - MSG

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

THE POSTURE OF PRAYER

Many postures are described in the Bible when people prayed. Abraham fell on his face before God, and Moses prayed with outstretched arms. When he got tired Aaron and Hur had to hold up his arms. King Solomon knelt in prayer and Jesus prayed looking up to heaven.
 
But the way you communicate with God does not require a certain physical position, but it does give expression to the attitude of your heart. Kneeling before god is a visual image of submitting to his authority. One day every knee will bow before the Lord and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord, Philippians 2:9-11.
 
The Lord heard King Solomon when he knelt to ask God to bless the temple and God’s people. Elijah knelt earnestly (that means you are serious about it) when he asked for rain to end Israel’s drought. That prayer was answered as well.
 
Your earnest prayers: whatever posture you take, are always heard by God.  Remember it took Daniel 21 days to get his prayer answered, the Lord heard him the day he prayed, but the angels and demons were in warfare during that time until the answer manifested. 
 
Your posture while you are waiting is praise and thanksgiving. It is a demonstration that you are expecting to receive. The Lord likes His Thank You Letters in advance.

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

EXPECTING TO RECEIVE!

When you are expecting, you are regarding something as likely to happen.  Each time I was pregnant with one of my three children, I was expecting to receive a baby at the end of nine months. There was no doubt in my mind that my weekly increasing girth would end up in a newborn at the end of my pregnancy. My belief level was high because I had to keep letting out my waist as the baby grew inside of me.  What is growing inside of you today? Are you expecting to receive a miracle as impossible as it might seem in the natural today? Maybe you have dealt with sickness in your body, a financial wall or a relationship issue that just does not seem to want to change.  When Peter and John approached the man on the sidewalk who had been unable to walk since birth, he EAGERLY was expecting to receive….and when Peter said “In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth begin now to walk and go on walking.” Acts 3:6

Have an eager expectation that God is going to break through for you.  He is not a man that He should lie or a son of man that He should repent.  Has he not said it, and will He not do it?”  He is going to do it, just get your expectation up!
  
Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

EXERCISE DAILY IN GOD – NO SPIRITUAL FLABBINESS PLEASE!

Workouts in the gym are useful but a disciplined life in God is far more so, making you fit today and forever.” 

1 Tim 4:5-10 msg

Think of that! When you spend time with the Lord on a daily basis, you are not just building yourself up for the next 24 hours, you are edifying yourself for eternity.

Daily exercise is a great tool to get your heart rate up, increase your muscles and decrease body fat, but reading the word and prayer puts you into the river of life  that fires you up internally and never runs out. Think if you never had to go to the gym, pilates, core class or the elliptical again! You do of course in this life, but putting that same time into your spiritual life will carry you into the Presence of God - in your everyday life as well as once you leave this earth. There are so many translations you can access even on your smart phone these days, although I always like having a copy of the printed word around as well.  You never have to charge it overnight, for one thing. And your notes always stay in the margins!  But whatever you do to read and study the word and get into His Presence, just keep at it. It pays eternal dividends.

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

JESUS MEETS YOU UNEXPECTEDLY

Have you ever noticed the Lord will show up in the most unexpected ways? You can’t ever take Him for granted, that He is going to help you the same way He did last time. No, He wants to keep you on your toes, always looking to Him for answers, not to the last place he helped you. I am sure when Jesus met Mary Magdalene and the other Mary on their way from His tomb, that it was a shocking experience. They knew He was dead, they saw him die on the cross. It was over and finished, His glorious reign on earth - in their minds. But never let your mind overtake your spirit! When the angel appeared to both women at the tomb, he told them they would be seeing Jesus again soon. But have you ever been told something you find nearly impossible to believe? You try to put it in the back of your mind but it keeps popping up again. That is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, that is reminding you that the Lord is faithful to His word, no matter how dire the situation may seem. They DID see Him, He even spoke to them. So take heart today, He has an an answer to what is going on in your life, and it may be the last answer you ever expected to hear

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

THE PATH OF LIFE

God will always show you the way to go if you will get quiet and listen to His still small voice.  The point is, sometimes you need to find a peaceful place to do that. There are so many voices in this world, but there is only one that counts, that of the Holy Spirit.

I am currently in South Africa, and, while browsing an African market today, I clearly heard His voice.  There were so many vendors shouting out at me as we walked by, many selling what looked like ferocious African masks. I just didn’t see what I was looking for. All of a sudden the Lord arrested me to stop at this one lady’s booth. She was displaying beautiful beaded bracelets and necklaces.  After selecting several, I noticed she was reading a small black bible. I told her that I had been divinely guided to stop at her table (There were at least a 100 other vendors in that market, and it looked like they were not selling anything.) And bam! There was the Word of God on her table, a sign from Heaven telling me I was at the right time at the right place. She was blessed and we agreed that God is good all the time.  I also gave her this scripture which is for you today as well:

Psalms 16:11

“You will show me the path of life,

In Your Presence is fullness of joy,

At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Pray about joining our Sound Waves conference in Hilo in October and Maui in November. It could bring the breakthrough you are looking for. We will be sponsoring 20 Diamond Girls out of local shelters at each venue, and your presence will make a difference.

Love and Blessings,

Mary

THE VALLEY OF DECISION

Have you ever thought back about the moment you decided to ask Jesus into your heart? It was then, at that point in your life that you turned your life over to Jesus. Where would you be today if you had not said yes to Him? I have often asked myself that and am so humbled and blessed that I made the right decision. There will be indicators when your heart is leading you there. I remember as an unbeliever living in the Eastern mountains of Rhodesia, (now Zimbabwe), on the border of Mozambique, where missionary Heidi Baker now has orphanages. But in 1974, I was a macadamia nut farmer in the Vumba, (African for rain forest), 25 miles up a cliff from the nearest town. Where I lived overlooked five mountain ranges, it was a beautiful wild African landscape. But as stunning as it was, I remember standing out on a cliff and crying out to God, “There must be more to life than this….”  Within three years I was born again. How many of your friends or family are being led into salvation? When you see flowers begin to bloom, don’t wait, don’t hesitate, start to pray and see how He leads you. It may not be you saying anything, but it WILL be your prayers that bring them in.  Go for it.  Nothing is impossible with Him, just praying His promises.
 
Joel 3:14-16 AMP
 
“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!
For the day of the Lord is near in the Valley of decision….the Lord is a refuge for His people and a stronghold of protection to the children of Israel.” 
 
Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

NO FEAR HERE

Years ago as a radio news director in Las Vegas, I loved to witness to anyone I could about Jesus. However at this Country and Western station I worked at, this was not always the best strategy, since they were more interested in promoting beer busts and Loretta Lynn. So the management would take turns trying to upset me right before a broadcast at the top of the hour, a sure way to get fired in broadcasting.

One day it was ten minutes before ten, I was in tears after being unfairly berated, and I decided to call my associated pastor for counseling.  She quickly advised, ‘Mary, open your bible and start to read. God will quicken scripture to you and calm you down….’ I dove into a little pocket amplified I had in my purse and sure enough, the crisis was over. His words in your bible are full of life. When you are in any kind of situation, He is right there for you if you will take the time to open the Word. Or turn on the app on your phone. He will speak to your heart and give you peace. After all, Jesus is the Prince of Peace.
 
“And in no way be alarmed or intimidated in anything by your opponents, for such constancy and fearlessness on your part is a clear sign, a proof and seal for them of their impending destruction, but a clear sign for you of deliverance and salvation, and that too from God.” Phil 1:28 AMP

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

ANIMATED BY HIS SPIRIT

When you didn’t know the Lord, His Spirit was already dealing with you. You may have said in your intellectual mind like I did, ‘What possible difference could accepting the Lord make in my life?’ Your mind wars against your spirit before AND after you get saved, but at least afterwards your spirit is alive unto God and can feed on the Word of God to uplift and sustain you.

But as you know now, accepting the Lord into your heart changes everything, all your wants and desires. Because He is at the guiding light of your life instead of alcohol, drugs and relationships.

Take a look at Galatians 5:16

“My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you chose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence?”

Your life is propelled, moved and motivated by the Spirit of the living God, especially as you meditate on His Word. Let Him talk to you today.

 Making Room For the Anointing,

Keith and Mary

THE LIFE OF FREEDOM

“The person who accepts the way of circumcision trades all the advantages of the free life in Christ for the obligations of the slave life of the law. I suspect you would never intend this, but this is what happens. When you attempt to live by your own religious plans and projects, you are cut off from Christ, neither our most conscientious religion or disregard of religion amounts to anything.  What matters is something far more interior: faith expressed in love…” 

Gal 5:3-6 msg

The more you get into Jesus and His word, the more freedom you experience in your life.  Once you ask Him into your heart and His love starts to flood your life, all you want to do is to give that love away.  People say to me, Mary, when did you become so religious? And I gently correct them, saying ‘I don’t have religion, I have a relationship.’ Like Galatians says above, religion weighs you down with the “Obligations of the slave life of the law…” but Jesus offers you the free life in Christ.  The most miserable people you know can turn into the most joyful with a smile on their face when they are in relationship with Him. So go and express your love to someone today who is hurting and watch their countenance change. Your heart will be encouraged.

 Making Room For the Anointing,

Keith and Mary

SIT DOWN AND SIMPLIFY

Are you overloaded and just taking on more responsibility than you can manage?

Time to sit down and simplify. That’s what Moses had to do when he was getting worn out by judging too many people. People were standing before him all day long, from morning until night. His father-in-law Jethro warned him that he would wear himself out if he didn’t start delegating responsibility to others who could judge. The Lord doesn’t expect you to do it all. As a matter of fact God often requires His people to become pro-active in order to reclaim their land and achieve their dreams. 
 
Is there some area of your business and/or personal life where you have been accepting mediocrity and chaos? If so, this spring could be a good time to break with the old and embrace the new.
 
"The thing that you are doing is not good. You will surely wear out." Exodus 18:17-18 (NASB)

 Making Room For the Anointing,

Keith and Mary

THE BREAKTHROUGH

The minute the Philistines heard that David had been made king over a united Israel, they went out in force to capture David. When David got the report, he marched out to confront them. On their way, the Philistines stopped off to plunder the Valley of Rephaim. David prayed to God: “Is this the right time to attack the Philistines? Will you give me the victory?” God answered, “Attack; I’ll give you the victory.” David attacked at Baal Perazim and slaughtered them. David said, “God exploded my enemies, as water explodes from a burst pipe.” That’s how the place got its name, Baal Perazim (Baal-Explosion). The Philistines left their gods behind and David ordered that they be burned up.

1 Chronicles 14:8,10-11 MSG

Interestingly enough the amplified version says “God has broken through my enemies like the breakthrough of waters.” When you think how water, that simple H2O molecule, can break into the most impenetrable places as the force of a hurricane, monsoon or tsunami pushes it, it is no wonder that God could do the same thing for David as He can for you.  But look at the qualifier here: David’s breakthrough depended on him “praying to the Lord,” or inquiring of the Lord, as the amplified version puts it. People get impatient when they don’t see prayer answered right away, and some people even turn their back on the Lord.  Which I find ridiculous since your problem is with the devil, not God.  Remember how Daniel had to wait 21 days for his answer even though the angel had it in hand the day he prayed? Many times the only way your breakthrough is going to come is by you dropping to your knees. Surrendering your mind, will and emotions to the Lord will cause you to enter into His rest.  And that is where you will receive your breakthrough.

THE INVISIBLE MOVES THE VISIBLE

When you consider the fact that you are a spirit, you have a soul (which is your mind, will and emotions) and you live in a body, let’s consider the law of first mention here.  This is the principle that requires you to go to scripture where an event or doctrine is mentioned for the first time in the Bible. This principle also means you study the first occurrence of that mention, so you can grasp its fundamental meaning.

See, you are essentially a living spirit and you will live eternally in whichever realm you choose during your short term here on earth. The Message version of John 3:5-8 poetically describes the Holy Spirit as the “wind-hovering-over-the-water.” This is not something you comprehend with your natural mind, it can only be understood through your spirit.  Did you ever try to read the Bible before you were born again?

 It made no sense at all to your unregenerated thinking.  But once you asked Jesus into your heart, the words off those pages started to speak to you about your own personal life. That is the invisible Voice of the Lord echoing through these pages. How else could a man or woman become so changed in their thinking except by renewing their mind in a book that has been the world’s best seller for 2000 years.  And why is that? Because, like John 1: 1-5 says, Jesus speaks directly to your soul as you read His word.
 
“In the beginning [before all time] was the Word ([a]Christ), and the Word was with God, and [b]the Word was God Himself. 2 He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God. 3 All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him not even one thing was made that has come into being. 4 In Him was life [and the power to bestow life], and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines on in the [c]darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it].”
 
5-6 Jesus said, “You’re not listening. Let me say it again. Unless a person submits to this original creation—the ‘wind-hovering-over-the-water’ creation, the invisible moving the visible, a baptism into a new life—it’s not possible to enter God’s kingdom. When you look at a baby, it’s just that: a body you can look at and touch. But the person who takes shape within is formed by something you can’t see and touch—the Spirit—and becomes a living spirit.

7-8 “So don’t be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be ‘born from above’—out of this world, so to speak. You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it’s headed next. That’s the way it is with everyone ‘born from above’ by the wind of God, the Spirit of God.”

Making Room For The Anointing,

Keith and Mary

Stand Your Ground

We have a lot to be thankful for, even if all we are doing is breathing.  There may have been a truckload of garbage dumped on you mentally, but the best way you dig your way out of it is to stand your ground. Find someone else who is worse off than you are and pour His life into them. Soon the overflow will fall onto your situation, especially when you combine it with an attitude of gratitude.

Some people living in Hawaii’s Big Island near the volcano have lost their homes, with the memories, gone forever. The lava flows have destroyed over 70 structures, 12 of them family homes. We have the privilege of helping them recover this week as we minister to some of them during the Arise Hawaii Conference May 18-19. Join us if you can at the beautiful campus of YWAM in Kona, Hawaii, all day Friday and Saturday this week. We definitely understand if this is not possible but appreciate your prayers for the 20 Diamond Girls we sponsor this week to reach a new revelation of the goodness of God. Remember to “stand your ground” and let Him show you the way out.

Blessings to you.

Love,

Mary
  
1 COR 15:57-58
 With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort

Rise UP

IT IS SO INTERESTING WHEN YOU ARE FACING A SEEMINGLY OVERWHELMING SITUATION: IT IS NOT YOU BUT THE LORD WORKING THROUGH YOU. ONCE YOU RELAX AND SURRENDER IT TO HIM, HIS HOLY SPIRIT IS THE GREAT EPICOREGO OR YOUR CHOREOGRAPHER. THE STAGE HAS BEEN SET: IT IS UP TO YOU TO STEP OUT ON IT.

"I CAME TO YOU IN [STATE OF] WEAKNESS AND FEAR AND GREAT TREMBLING. AND MY MESSAGE AND MY PREACHING WEREN'T UNPERSUASIVE WORDS OF WISDOM [USING CLEVER RHETORIC], BUT THEY WERE DELIVERED IN DEMONSTRATION OF THE [HOLY] SPIRIT [OPERATING THROUGH ME] AND OF [HIS] POWER [STIRRING THE MINDS OF THE LISTENERS AND PERSUADING THEM]. SO THAT YOUR FAITH WOULD NOT REST ON THE WISDOM AND RHETORIC OF MEN, BUT ON THE POWER OF GOD." I CORINTHIANS 2: 3-5 (AMP)

MAKING ROOM FOR THE ANOINTING,

KEITH AND MARY