Perseverance

This last month in Winnipeg has been incredibly hot at times. We are not getting much rain either. I have not mowed the lawn in front on my home all month! Winnipeg weather can be like that...its a place of real extremes.

For some reason, the really hot stuff seems to arrive on Sunday. The last three weeks in a row now we have watched as Friday was "nice and hot", Saturday was "uncomfortably hot" and Sunday became "obscenely hot". The photo above was taken this past Sunday. It is a thermometre held by one of our folks somewhere later in the day while sitting in our prayer room. Yes, you are reading it right: its +96F!!!! That is +36C!! And, this is the third week in a row that we have hit that level. This week we had the added feature of high humidity to drive the humidex level (sort of like wind chill in reverse) into the low 40s...can you feel it?? We were there for our usual 7 hr set, sweating and praying and sweating and worshipping and...well, sweating. Did I mention there is no air conditioning in our building?

Now I realize that our current sufferings are neither permanent nor on the level of believers in the suffering church across the globe. I can only imagine what it feels like to hold prayer meetings in China where they are considered illegal, or in Lebanon right now where you can hear the bombs falling endlessly. We are hot but we are not going to die from it. And, it will end shortly. The troubles in the Middle East never seem to end and the bible suggests it is going to get much worse before it gets better.

Still, our "sufferings" are real to us when compared to what we are used to. Sadly, its often not about what you are suffering from but how far you have fallen from your original position that creates the pain. Having no A/C makes me realize that in North America we are sitting high in our comfort and quite unprepared for any kind of fall. A significant lifestyle disruption would cause more pain and hardship, confusion and offence in our hearts, than in most places on the earth. We are not ready nor do we really believe that trouble of any kind could ever touch us. The western church is proving the point weekly by doing very little to cause the people to prepare for anything different than maintaining where they are right now.

Hebrews 12 talks about God coming to shake everything that can be shaken. It says that only that which cannot be shaken will remain. The writer goes on to say that "since we have been given a kingdom which cannot be shaken...". Clearly the writer knows that ONLY the kingdom, the full rule of God on earth and our submission to His ways, His activity and His heart, will survive the sifting. And this shaking is by God Himself. It will be thorough. It will be driven by love. It will produce wholehearted lovers and followers who rely on nothing but the King of Heaven at the end of it all.

Maybe we need to be thankful for the heat? After all, how does one prepare for trouble other than to use every opportunity to embrace trials with thankfulness and trust in our hearts, eyes on Him and a view to a greater reality. Growing in trust is the opposite of harbouring offence and accusation against Him. It is a wonderful result of going through any trial. I want us to be able to say of God in our small shakings, no matter what they look like: "we love and trust you God! There is nothing in us that rises up in arrogance to question the wisdom of your ways". This will be critical in the years ahead. Trouble is coming and God is directing it. Let's get it correct in us now.

Brian Creary
Ministry Director

More On John...

Over the last few months we have been studying the 4 main reasons we exist as a house of worship and intercession here in Winnipeg. Each week we have considered the following areas and looked at what the Bible has to offer in fleshing out these ideas. They are simple and yet profound, as always.

We exist:

1. As a response to the call for a solemn assembly as detailed in Joel 2
2. To change the spiritual atmosphere in our city through joyful agreement with Him and His ways
3. To raise up and release prophetic intercessors, singers and messengers
4. To aid all in cultivating our own life of devotion to Jesus

Last night we were continuing on in our study of the forerunner calling (Point #3 on the prophetic messengers) and looking at the life of John the Baptist as a picture for us.

The interesting thing about John is he really knew who he was. That in itself should raise a challenge to most of us. If we were completely honest I am not sure most of us could say with confidence before God and man that we REALLY know who we are and why we are here. John knew. He lived a life that was intense, focused on a mission that was entirely unlike any in his day and destined to end tragically (from the viewpoint of this world anyway...I suspect it looked different in heaven).

As well, John was the first to declare "Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is near" (Matt 3:1). Usually we attribute this phrase entirely to Jesus and pass over the fact that it was John the Baptist who was declaring it before the baptism of Jesus. Why is that significant? Well, because the role he played in "preparing the way for the Lord" was directly connected to the message of the coming rule of God on earth. He wasn't just a weird guy who said "Look...Jesus is coming". He was an intense guy driven by his calling who said in fact "Look...God in the flesh is coming with all the force of His rulership....change your ways quickly before He arrives". It was a stunning call to a people who were not prepared to accept He who was about to walk among them. The people were steeped in sin. They needed to turn and get right with God before He looked them in the eyes.

And how much more so today? The King is coming once again to the earth, this time to the whole earth. It will not be a regional visit. The same call that was on John is visiting the church right now and the message is a familiar one: turn your hearts to Him and change your ways...He is coming and you will stand before Him. And this time, His kingdom will be fully realized and He will govern the earth as He sees fit. He will take it over. That is what we are praying for, if you think it through, when we ask "let your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven".

John said profoundly in John 3 that "the bride belongs to the bridegroom". He knew his call was to prepare the way and then, at the right moment, to get out of the way. It was his pure joy to do so.

Father, let this same understanding burn within the hearts of all who will prepare the way, in what is said and in how it is lived out in this hour!


Brian Creary
Ministry Director

Shane Says...

...that we are in a time like no other and we need to embrace the changes

...that God is raising up people, "forerunners" he calls them, that know the times and seasons we live in and are bold in declaring it to everyone.

...that, like many others in Scripture, they are called to prepare the way for a significant event in God's timeline...the King is returning to the Earth!

...they call the people to turn from their ways and make the paths straight for the coming of the Lord

...like John the Baptist and others, they are called to declare BEFORE the arrival of the One.

...they will move in power but live in humility and meekness

...they are nobody special

...they are you and me if we will hear what He is saying in this hour

...they get nothing of honour or reward in this life, other than misunderstanding and rejection by those who do not want to hear it.

...their reward is Jesus and Him alone

...they live out Psalm 27:4 for real

...their eyes are on eternity

...from houses of prayer like this one, forerunners will emerge that will see it, declare it and live it out, for the glory of God and the benefit of others.


Shane is a smart man! I'm glad I had him speak last night.


Brian Creary
Ministry Director

Divine Entertainment

Its funny to me how the trend in the last decade or so has been toward preaching delivered through entertainment. Speakers have moved their style far, far away away from the old image of the "fire and brimstone" preacher, severe in look and delivery. There was nothing funny about that era at all. In contrast, today's sermons are overwhelmingly entertaining, designed to relate to the lives of the listeners, and adapting humour as a means of holding the attention of the audience.

The trouble with it, of course, is if it is all (or even mostly) about the humour and pleasing delivery then it is worthless for growth in God. I am not against entertaining speakers if it can be tempered and used to hit the mark and thrust us forward in God. I am pretty sure God is ok with humour...He created us to enjoy it. Now if the preacher is using humour because he thinks he is funny and enjoys the laughs it brings, then I would suggest that he is sharing the spotlight with the King of Heaven at that point. That sounds like a bad idea to me.

Sermons that entertain also run the risk of being satisfying in and of themselves. There is a feeling of comfort that I have experienced at times, having sat through a fun and humour-filled message about...something...I can't quite recall the specific point I was going to take from it, though. There is a danger in all of these kinds of things that causes us to settle for less than we are called to in our journey with God.

Having said that, I believe that the ultimate entertainment to be experienced is actually found in God Himself and growing in the knowledge of who He is and what He is like. Consider Revelation 4, the Throne Room. The four living creatures encircled He who sat on the Throne and found themselves saying day and night "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come". It would be silly to think for even a second that they were required to do this as some sort of service to their master and were risking punishment if they failed to carry out their duty. These creatures were allowed to be this near to the creator and sustainer of all of creation. As they themselves declared, He is holy!

Some misunderstand the fullness of the term "holy", limiting it to mean "pure and sinless". That is entirely accurate, but only part of the meaning. To understand God is to understand that "holy" really means "set apart from". Well, set apart from what, you ask? From everything! He is beyond us. He is beyond understanding. He is beyond our grasp...unless He chooses not to be (and thankfully He does choose to be found by us!). He is transcendent.

Back to the living creatures, then. They encircled the One on the throne at close range. They survived being this close to the One who is perfect and just. They are not insignificant beings. And yet, they were free to experience this nearness. What is obvious in light of this is that their response must be pure. They are not grumbling under their breath about being forced to say this same phrase over and over in frustration. It is spontaneous and filled with honesty. They are seeing and they are proclaiming. He is Holy! There is no one like Him. It must be said over and over. How can we not declare it?!?!

Now that is divine entertainment. Who can watch TV after that?

The call to the pulpit in this age is to proclaim Him as He is. None of us do it very well because none of us can see very clearly. But, there is more...so much more. We pray Ephesians 1:17 almost every intercession meeting as it is the best biblical prayer I can find to answer the longing to see and know more. May He show us, all of us, more of Himself and may we be changed in heart and mind and behaviour because of it.

Brian Creary
Ministry Director

He Is Faithful

We had quite a day yesterday. As you may know, we are meeting in King's Fellowship for now (thanks again to Al and Sue Gordon for being so generous with their building and supportive of our efforts). We have loads of meetings each Sunday and are having such a good time learning and growing in the nuances that make a house of worship and intercession work. Each hour brings a new format and approach to worshipping through the scriptures (more on this is found on the "Mechanics" page). It has been challenging at times, but mostly it has been life-giving and lots of fun.

This Sunday we had one hour in which Yvonne led us by singing through Psalm 130 and 136. Steph partnered with her as she read and prayed through the passages. It was rich in meaning and so enjoyable to be a part of. We are singing through the scriptures! We are meditating on the truth that is in the heart of God and beginning to think more and more like Him.

Following their hour, Joel led us in an hour of exploring the theme found in Psalm 27:4 (...one thing have I desired). Steph and I partnered in praying and reading relevant passages and allowing the Spirit of God to guide us in our ever-deepening understanding of His truth on this topic. Here is a tip for you: Psalm 27:4 and Revelation 4 go really well together!! Trust me...or come next time to sing through it with us.

Orv and Gina led the following hour of Devotion, songs that express the heart of worship to the Lord. In this set there is always room to express ourselves in free and creative ways. I love these sets. Whenever I ask someone to lead one of these for the first time, I always tell them, "imagine you are sitting in your living room with your guitar or piano...now how would you sing out your love and affection to God with nobody there? That's what we want in this set..." And, they do it! Don't worry about getting all the songs right. Don't worry about how many songs are sung. Sing from your heart and let the rest of us sit and enjoy God as you minister to His heart.

I always speak at 6:30 and we had 30 minutes focused on the role of prophetic singing in a house of prayer. Shane interviewed his lovely wife Kristi on her journey in prophetic singing. There was some powerful insight for all of us in her story. Then Shane prayed for her! I love it when Shane prays. He can pray for me any time. The man believes it!

Then, for no reason I could explain at the time, the evening went sideways. We began our prophetic intercession meeting at 7pm with Johan and the team leading us. We always do 90 minutes each week on the theme of intercession for the city of Winnipeg. I was surprised to notice almost right away that what had been a free and easy day suddenly become difficult and heavy. Nothing seemed to be clicking. The people that came to pray were heard saying "wow, that was terrible" after their prayer was proclaimed.

Now, I am fully aware from considerable experience that feelings usually mean nothing in this activity. If it is wonderful, its great to feel but it doesn't make it any more powerful a prayer time. And, in this case as with others, NOT feeling good things didn't lessen the impact of our prayers together. Feelings here on earth don't really matter to God when He hears our prayers.

But, it makes staying focused really challenging. After almost an hour of pressing ahead, many were saying to me "we need to stop and ask the Lord concerning this". SO, we did...and He spoke a challenging word to us. "TURN...really TURN...I know you want to....I know your heart is focused to do so....but I ask you to make it real action....TURN". It was wonderfully challenging, painfully sweet. The Lord is so interested in His people being like Him that He calls us again and again. He got our attention with our own frailties, showed us that good meetings do not equal kingdom living and then challenged us in love to live it out.

Joel took over again on the keyboard at 8:30 and we went another hour responding to this challenge, singing through the issue of our need of Him, declaring our tendency to wickedness and weakness and generally asking for His will and not ours in our lives and in the life of Sanctuary.

His challenge is our invitation to more. We can say YES! and figure it out as we march forth in love. Suddenly, songs and prayers from the earlier sets of the day come flooding back. It all fits together. It all makes sense. You are the holy one on the throne of Revelation 4. It is our one desire to gaze upon your beauty and see you in this. My soul does wait for you more than the watchmen wait for the morning. Your love does endure forever. And we are in love with You alone.

He is not far off. Turn to Him. And pray for us as we do the same.

Brian Creary
Ministry Director

Wisdom For Living

I heard a great piece of wisdom recently. This wise lady said of her journey "Believe and stand on the promises BUT live for the presence". I love it! She is so right. There is much we are asked to consider, to believe and to act upon in the scriptures. It will take our entire lives of focus and dedication to feel we are attaining to any amount of it.

Consider the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. At first reading, it sounds thrilling to go after, a target so big and wonderful that we all want what Jesus is saying is for us. Yet, most usually also agree that it must be metaphorical and surely not something we can attain to in this world. It can't be for us? Right? For many, the journey into the Sermon stops right there.

For others, they believe it is for this time but quickly realize that NOBODY can truly live like this. That sense of failure and weakness comes with force and causes them to give up before they are forced to out of failure and embarassment.

I believe the Sermon is to be taken seriously and is attainable here and now. But, it is quite obviously so far above where we live that we are NOT going to do it well any time soon. It is a strange tension to set out on a course you know you cannot follow correctly in your condition. There are many others paths that can be chosen. But, deep inside you know there is no other course to follow. Forward we go...

However, the issue is less about succeeding and more about living. As my friend said, choosing to live for His presence in our lives needs to be first. Attaining to a higher accomplishment can never be first, no matter how noble it appears. We need to run headlong into the Sermon knowing that we cannot make it in our state, but determined above anything else that we want Him near us and filling our minds and hearts as we step forward. Succeeding is about saying "YES" and choosing to try. It is never just about making it.

So, will we be able to win the battle in our minds or wrestle successfully against anger (the spirit of murder....think about how serious this battle needs to be)? Maybe not anytime soon! But, winning is waking up and saying "YES" to your King as you lean into Him and find His presence.

Brian Creary
Ministry Director

Global Day Of Prayer

This Sunday we are going to be participating in a global event to pray for our little piece of the world and ask for God to change our city. In a way it is not anything different from other weeks, but I feel the importance of joining in with so many others (they say it is certainly millions) in a collective solemn assembly (see Joel 2 for more on that). Certainly the Lord Himself is stirring the heart of His people to cause them to rise and seek Him in this hour. It is the peculiar mechanism of intercession again: that we would be stirred by Him to pray to Him and say that the things that He said to say so that He would release power upon our asking! It's all about Him, in case you missed the point there.
I had heard that a respected intercessor spoke of the importance of asking for Acts 2 to become a reality in our city and it got me thinking about this. The kingdom of God moves forward in our city person by person, selfless action by selfless action, and will eventually culminate in Revelation 21...the dwelling of God with humanity once again. It is our glorious hope. What else are we holding out for if not eternity in His presence and this world fully restored to the way it was meant to be? He will rule it in fullness once again.

And yet, we can do all the things that we see Jesus do and still see little actual "kingdom change" for our efforts. Some would say, "well, it's really only about doing the right thing anyway" and there is truth to it. Although, to be honest about participating in the advancement of the kingdom is to realize that is is ALL ABOUT CHANGE. He is bringing His rule to the earth in fullness again and we are bringing it in part each day that we cooperate.

I think that Acts 2 shows us that there is more...so much more...on the schedule for humanity as we near the culmination of history. We are to stay steady in our partnership with Him in this and press into Him with wholeheartedness (think about what that really means!!) AND we are to ask Him to release the visitation of His Holy Spirit into our community like never before. It is on the agenda. It is fully in His heart to do so. He loves His church, His bride, and wants them empowered. Don't be fooled by seeing today's church only in its weakness and compromise; He sees it in its potential and loves it as His bride! And, He loves humanity in general and longs for people to turn to Him in repentance and love. He wants to come by His spirit and will do so in your city before His return.

On this Sunday, we want to focus on our city with diligence and ask for the Lord to send this visitation to us. It may come in waves over time, it may happen suddenly and change everything. It makes no difference to me. Send your spirit to our city, God, for in that place there is kingdom rule more fully established, hearts are turned and we see you more clearly.

And, His return to the Earth, to be with us forever, is closer still...

Brian Creary
Ministry Director