Zebra Ministries

Good morning Zebras,

For years I have resisted the idea of a fake tree but this year it was my idea.  Gary spends days procuring and lighting our ten-foot Christmas tree each year, so this year as an act of love I told him I’d rather he spends the time with God.

Fake trees have a lot of benefits, they are already pre-lit, they go up super quickly, and they have really really strong branches.  I’ve been able to hang ornaments I haven’t been able to hang for years and I can hang ornaments way out on the tippy edge because the branches don’t bend.  While most of the ornaments still hug the safety of the tree, there are a few daring ones that hang precariously on the edge.   

I have always loved my real tree, and I was unwilling to even consider changing, but I was wrong, I didn’t know what I was missing.  I loved the benefits of the real tree so much, I wouldn’t even consider letting go.

And that is how it is with God, people get so comfortable with the amount of God they have in their life that they are unwilling to let go and make the sacrifices it takes to get to the next level, to be totally filled and empower by the Spirit and able to do the impossible.

Oswald today talks about the different between the “holiness movement” in his day (1850’s) and the “rugged reality of the New Testament” saints.

“All that is required is a pious atmosphere, prayer, and devotion.  This type of experience is not supernatural nor miraculous.  It did not cost the suffering of God, nor is it stained with ‘blood of the Lamb.’  It is not marked or sealed by the Holy Spirit as being genuine, and it has no visual signs that causes people to exclaim with awe and wonder, ‘That is the work of God Almighty!’ Yet the New Testament is about the work of God and nothing else.”

I have a very dear friend who says, “All glory to God!” whenever she hears good news.  Some people get offended, but I know her heart, she wants to make sure God gets glory for everything good that happens in our lives. And I agree, people often take credit for the things God does.

But my heart is that God will start doing such powerful things with His people that it is obvious to everyone it could have only been done by God.

Pharaoh’s sorcerers could replicate the first of Moses miracles, but at some point, they realized they were out of their league.  That is the day I long for, the day when all of God’s people live lives that are so miraculous the world has to sit up and take notice. 

Love,

Jill