As the senior leader of the charismatic megachurch, Bethel Church, in Redding, California, Bill Johnson was one of many ministry leaders in the state who were put into an awkward position by Governor Gavin Newsom during the COVID-19 crisis in 2020 and 2021.

Johnson and other kingdom leaders worked diligently with local authorities to do what was lawfully responsible during the pandemic. But Johnson told me on a recent edition of the Strang Report, their biggest priority is to “maintain the values that we have as leaders of a church family.”

In other words, leaders could not ignore their duty to their congregations and their vow to God to continue to bring the gospel to the masses.

Ministry leaders like Johnson were forced to walk a fine line. In the end, however, God and His warriors won. When the COVID-19 restrictions were slightly relaxed, Johnson says the glory of the Lord came to his Bethel congregation “in ways we’ve not seen for a very long time.”

“As soon as they started to open up a bit, we were quick, of course, to meet together once again out in public,” Johnson said. “We put up a tent months ago because they didn’t restrict outside meetings. Night after night after night we had prayer meetings, and we were just crying out to God. Hundreds and hundreds of people would show up, and God has provided breakthrough for us. We are back in corporate gatherings—at about 50% capacity—and we’re inching our way toward full capacity.”

On Tuesday, churches received vindication as a California district court laid down a full and final settlement this week, the first statewide permanent injunction in the country against COVID-19 restrictions and churches and places of worship. Under the agreed statewide injunction, all California churches may once again hold worship without discriminatory restrictions.

“We have a responsibility before God,” Johnson said. “If you love people and they are in the second story of a burning building, you’ve got to let them know. You can’t make up excuses. We need to do it with grace and kindness and love. It’s just a mandate that we have from the Lord, to represent Him well with what you do. If we’ve been called into the positions we’re in, we need to love people well and serve them well, and to give them instructions on how to do life.”

During the pandemic, churches had been considered “nonessential” in California and therefore weren’t able to meet, despite other congregations being allowed to do so in other states. Churches who ignored the mandate were harassed and fined.

Pastor Che Ahn, founder of Harvest Rock Church and Harvest International Ministry, received threatening letters from the Pasadena criminal prosecutor saying staff and anyone who attended church would face criminal charges, each up to one year in prison, and daily fines of $1,000.

Those threats alone caused a great deal of anxiety for kingdom leaders in California.

“This past year has been like no other: that goes without saying,” Johnson says. “The lockdown, all of the restrictions in our country, but more specifically, I mean, who would have ever thought that the church would be called ‘nonessential’ and that the government would tried to levy fines on churches for holding services?

“It really has been a crazy season—an unexpected season. We were really warned of the Lord to get into the system and not be afraid of politics and politicians. We have worked really hard with our local authorities to do what is responsible in this pandemic. We’ve walked in good standing with the city and had good counsel with the health leaders. We’ve tried to be responsible citizens, but also responsible for the Lord to love people and serve them well. It’s been our approach to honor city government because we have meaningful relationships there. But, most importantly, we must be honorable to serve the church well, and that’s what we’ve committed ourselves to do.”

Johnson said other churches in the Redding area continued to meet, but due to its high profile, Bethel continued to receive criticism from the media for any actions deemed inappropriate during the pandemic.

“They [other churches] are not the focal point of the news,” Johnson said. “They’re not the focal point of public criticism. We felt that our responsibility was to follow the policies the best way we knew how, but also to make our presence known and to train our people to have their meetings in their homes. And so, we ignored all policies that said people couldn’t meet in homes and that sort of thing. We actually worked hard to support or to fuel or empower the people to meet in homes, and we’ve had tremendous breakthrough as a result.”

And once churches return to full capacity, Johnson said he expects even stronger breakthrough not only in California, but around the country.

For more of my interview with Bill Johnson, listen to the entire episode of the Strang Report at this link. Be sure to subscribe to the Strang Report on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform for more words that will inspire and challenge you in the power of the Holy Spirit. {eoa}

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When health concerns caused Laura Adams to retire in 2019, she knew God still wanted her to use her time and resources to be a blessing to others. When she saw her community suffering as the pandemic dragged on during 2020, she felt the Lord call her to provide tangible hope.

“The Lord put a fire in me to help them in way I possibly could,” she says in a recent The 700 Club interview.

“I have seen clear evidence across the board where my money has impacted and made a difference,” she says of her generous partnership with CBN News.

That’s why when the Lord told her to increase her giving to 60%, she obeyed without hesitation. “Why shouldn’t we bank on an organization that has the resources to make miracles happen in the name of the Lord?” Watch the rest of her testimony here.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced in March that his state would no longer enforce a mask mandate, unleashing backlash on his bold move. Some called the act “reckless” and compared it to “Neanderthal’s thinking.”

The state has now reported the lowest COVID-19 case rate since March of 2020, leaving Texans celebrating. Watch this Charisma News Update for more information.

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Do you struggle with not knowing how or what to pray? Have you made your requests known to God, yet you still haven’t received any answers? In the latest episode of the Flawed & Free podcast on the Charisma Podcast Network, How to Pray the Right Way, I partner with the Holy Spirit to teach you about the kingdom principle of prayer to ensure you are hitting a bullseye in the spiritual realm. I break down, line by line, the model prayer found in Matthew 6:5-13, where Jesus Himself tells us exactly how we as believers should pray. Join your faith with the kingdom of heaven and learn how to pray the right way to receive the answers God is patiently waiting to share with you!

For more guidance on growing in your relationship with God, learning to hear his voice and maintaining your purity while waiting on your God-ordained spouse, be sure to check out some of our other podcast episodes and subscribe so you never miss future content. I dive deeper into these topics and leave listeners with encouragement, fresh revelation from the Holy Spirit and wisdom to help you on your journey to freedom with Flawed & Free. {eoa}

Tyna Jalieba, CEO and founder of Flawed and Free, is the warrior princess who hosts the Flawed and Free podcast on Charisma Podcast Network. Tyna has spent almost 20 years as a registered nurse and five years as a family nurse practitioner and now utilizes those gifts in discipleship and kingdom building through healing and deliverance. As a spiritual warfare strategist, prophetic intercessor and deliverance minister, the Lord allows Tyna to steward and support the servants of God to free them from the flaws of their past into the freedom of their future.

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This may be the most important thing I have ever written. Please read it all the way through.

During World War II, Hitler’s Minister of Propaganda was a man named Joseph Goebbels. One of Goebbels’ rules of propaganda was known as the “Big Lie,” which stated: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie.”

This same tactic has been used to affect all of the unbiblical “social changes” we have seen over the past 70 years. This big lie rule is what convinced people that abortion isn’t murder, that marriage isn’t between one man and one woman, and as we watch the news today, we hear people espouse the big lie that there was at some point in the past a historical Palestinian nation. But, each of those big lies are the subjects of other articles.

Not one of those big lies would have been possible if it wasn’t for the big lie I am writing about today. The big lie I am confronting today has been spoken in many churches and will be loudly proclaimed in churches around the world this coming Sunday as they celebrate Pentecost. When spoken, this big lie will sound something like this: “The difference between the Israel of the Old Testament (The Jews) and the church (New Israel) of the New Testament is that in the Old Testament the Jews had an outward experience with G-D based upon works of the flesh. But, in the New Testament, the church had an inward experience with G-D based upon the infilling of the Holy Spirit.”

This big lie says the people of Israel in the Old Testament were moved on by the Holy Spirit, while the people in the church after Pentecost were filled with the Holy Spirit. While this may make for exciting sermons, especially on the day of Pentecost, it is also biblically untrue. There are many verses in the Bible that can easily debunk this big lie, such as Luke 1:15 (TLV), which speaks about the birth of John:

“He will be great before Adonai; and he should not drink wine and intoxicating beverage, but he will be filled with the Ruach ha-Kodesh just out of his mother’s womb.”

Notice John, a nice Jewish man, who was born over 30 years before the day of Pentecost, was filled with the Ruach ha-Kodesh, or Holy Spirit. This one example eviscerates the theory that people in the Old Testament (or pre-Pentecost) were moved upon and not filled with the Holy Spirit. But, for further evidence, let’s look at the prophetic words of Joel 3:1:

“So it will be afterward, I will pour out My Ruach on all flesh: your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.”

What an exciting prophecy about the pouring out of the Spirit of G-D, which will be poured out on all flesh! This powerful prophecy was declared fulfilled by Peter on the day of Pentecost as we read in Acts 2:16-17:

“But this is what was spoken about through the prophet Joel: ‘And it shall be in the last days,’ says God, ‘that I will pour out My Ruach on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.”

Please take the time to read these words spoken by Peter slowly. You will notice that when Peter stood in the temple on the Day of Pentecost, he didn’t say: “I know that Joel said that G-D would be pouring out His Spirit on all flesh, but He changed his plan because He found out that pouring His Spirit on people didn’t work, so now He is going to pour His Spirit into people.” No, that is not what Peter said that day. Peter stood in front of hundreds of thousands and said, “this is what was spoken about through the prophet Joel.”

Peter went on to tell those gathered that day what we read in Acts 2:38 that they should repent of their sins, be immersed and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit:

“Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let each of you be immersed in the name of Messiah Yeshua for the removal of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Ruach ha-Kodesh.'”

Please take a look closer look at the first two chapters of the book of Acts, and you will find that Act 1:8 promises:

“But you will receive power when the Ruach ha-Kodesh has come upon you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and through all Judah, and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Which is followed by Act 2:1-4:

“When the day of Shavuot had come, they were all together in one place. Suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And tongues like fire spreading out appeared to them and settled on each one of them. They were all filled with the Ruach ha-Kodesh and began to speak in other tongues as the Ruach enabled them to speak out.”

Which is followed by Peter quoting the verses from Joel included above, proclaiming that the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the people.

Please don’t read this as if I am saying that all of the Israelites in the Old Testament were Spirit-filled. I am also not saying that all of the Jews of today are Spirit-filled. What it does say is that G-D didn’t make a covenant with the nation Israel that He knew was impossible for them to keep, while also telling them that it was not difficult to keep, as we read in Deuteronomy 30:10-11:

“… when you listen to the voice of Adonai your God, to keep His mitzvot and His statutes that are written in this scroll of the Torah, when you turn to Adonai your God with all your heart and with all your soul. ‘For this mitzvah that I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it far off.'”

Romans 8 lets us know that it is impossible to keep G-D’s commandments without being filled with His Spirit:

“For the mindset of the flesh is hostile toward God, for it does not submit itself to the law of God—for it cannot. So those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Ruach—if indeed the Ruach Elohim dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Ruach of Messiah, he does not belong to Him.”

As you can see, in many other verses throughout the Bible, the experiences of the Spirit of G-D being poured out upon someone and someone being filled with the Spirit are synonymous.

I know that some of you reading this may be saying “So what? This seems to be a distinction without a difference.” However, the truth is that saying that the Israel of the Old Testament only had an external experience with the Spirit of G-D, but the church or New Israel now has an internal relationship with the Spirit of G-D is the big lie. This big lie is the root of the rejection of the Old Testament as relevant for believers. It is the foundation for the big lies about abortion, gay marriage, replacement theology, dual covenant theology, Christian antisemitism, and nearly every other false teaching that has become prevalent within the Christian World. It is also one of the reasons Jewish people reject the message of Yeshua.

The biblical truth is that in order to be a true follower of G-D, one must be filled with His Spirit no matter which half of the Bible you are reading. G-D made His Spirit available to Israel of old the same way He does today. The prophets were both moved on and filled. Moses was both moved on and filled. Samson was both moved on and filled. And today, no matter if you are Jewish or non-Jewish, we must be both moved on and filled.

This is why before we read the words of John 3:16, we read the words that Yeshua Himself shared with Nicodemus:

“Yeshua answered, ‘Amen, amen I tell you, unless one is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Before the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, Yeshua told Nicodemus that he must be born of the Spirit. {eoa}

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When we talk about birthing revival in prayer, it’s important for us to understand how prayer works. The impact of our prayers often isn’t immediately evident, and because of that, if we don’t understand how prayer works, we can get discouraged and give up just as we are on the brink of breakthrough.

To illustrate this, let’s consider the testimony of John Ramirez, who was formerly a Satanist high priest. Ramirez is now a believer, after getting saved and discipled under David Wilkerson’s ministry. Now his primary ministry is to expose the works of darkness. Ramirez says, while he was a Satanist, the devil told him he had to go into a neighborhood in the spirit realm to weaken it in the natural. This principle also applies to prayer. Prayer does things in the spirit realm, and over time, we see the impact in the natural. Often, it takes time for what we accomplish in the spirit to manifest in the natural. This is why we must hold fast our confession of faith without wavering, believing that He who promised is faithful (see Heb. 10:23).

We see this in the story of Daniel, who interceded for 21 days before the angel came and told him that his prayers were heard on the first day. A demonic force had opposed the angel and prevented him from coming to Daniel for 21 days (see ). The enemy didn’t want Daniel to get his answer, but Daniel persisted in prayer. If Daniel didn’t get discouraged and give up, neither should we. Daniel held fast to his confession, and we can too. Our prayers are making a way in the spirit.

John Ramirez ultimately turned to Christ because he realized he couldn’t touch Christians. He saw the spiritual difference in neighborhoods where Christians were praying; his curses had no impact there. That led him to seek out the God of the Christians. We need to hear this! Our prayers have more impact than we realize. Jesus has given us authority to tread on the powers of evil; they cannot harm us (see Luke 10:19). “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4b, NIV).

God hears us when we pray, and we can confidently declare that He will fulfill His promises. The problem is not with Him. The problem is with the resistance in the spirit realm and with our tendency to lose faith when we don’t see an immediate answer. We must remember that, in prayer, we are entering the spirit realm and undoing the works of darkness. We are preparing the way for the kingdom of God to break through. It is impossible to pray and have nothing happen—but we don’t always see it in the natural right away. We must remind ourselves of this truth so that we do not lose heart. Our prayers are a mighty weapon.

Listen to this episode of The Purpose Project on the Charisma Podcast Network for more about discerning your prayer assignment from the Holy Spirit and how to fulfill it. Subscribe so you never miss an episode of this Spirit-filled content. {eoa}

For more teachings and content from Margie Fleurant on prayer and intercession, follow her on Facebook and Instagram @MargieFleurantMinistries, and follow Margie on YouTube for video content including prayer calls, teaching and events. Check out Margie’s books and other audio content at

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Do you know someone who is down and out? Maybe they’ve gotten in trouble, and they don’t know how to get themselves out of it. They feel like they’re being hunted down, that they’re hated.

Maybe it’s you. Maybe you’ve run so far and so fast for so long that you really don’t know how to stop.

If this sounds like you or someone you know or love, you’ll want to be sure to tune in to my interview with Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman on my Expect A Miracle podcast on the Charisma Podcast Network.

No one knows better how the world’s system has a way of breaking our will and beating us down than Duane Chapman. He knows firsthand that when we’re at our lowest, life has a way of just pushing us down some more.

Duane has traveled down that same road of desperation and loneliness as many of the fugitives he captures. So, he knows how to talk to them, and they can tell that he loves the Lord with all his heart.

God has been with him all his life, even when he didn’t realize it. Duane knows how to get the attention of the fugitives from the law he captures with God’s compassion and understanding of where they are in life. And, right there in the backseat, he tells it like it is and tells those he apprehends about Jesus.

Join this lively discussion as Duane talks about how he got into bounty hunting, what his next venture is and how God is working in his life today. And … you won’t want to miss hearing how God brought him the new love of his life, Francie.

For my full interview with Duane “Dog” Chapman, listen to Expect A Miracle here. For more Spirit-filled content like this, subscribe to Expect a Miracle with Richard Roberts on the Charisma Podcast Network. {eoa}

Richard Roberts, D. Min., is chief executive officer of Oral Roberts Ministries and co-hosts with his wife, Lindsay, a daily inspirational TV program, The Place for Miracles. Dr. Roberts is also the founder of the Richard Roberts School of Miracles, hosting thousands of online students from more than 140 countries. Richard conducts healing meetings throughout America, as well as ministers to and teaches pastors in underdeveloped countries the fundamental principles of healing, seed-faith and the Holy Spirit, so they may do the greater works of Jesus in their regions of the world.

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Author’s Note: This article has been adapted from my book, Fulfill Your Dreams.

It’s important to understand our identity in Christ and how to overcome wrong identity beliefs. Awareness of our new identity in Christ is foundational to living the abundant life of an overcomer. His victory has become our victory!

In Colossians 3:3, the apostle Paul writes,”For you are dead, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Furthermore, in Galatians 2:20, he says, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God,who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

Paul’s language is clear: Believers are dead to their old lives and now live from new life in Christ. Our lives are hidden or found in Christ. In Colossians 3:3, the word “hidden” is from the Greek word kryptō, which means to keep safe, protect or hide. In the verse, the word implies to hide for the purpose of safekeeping. In other words, in Christ, we are kept safe, hidden in Him!

We are united with Jesus in His death and resurrection; therefore, we are of His image and likeness. We also have a new identity; it is a heavenly identity. Our true family lineage is that of Christ, for we are now born from above.

This is why Paul could say, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.”

Paul declared in Philippians 4:13 (NKJV), “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” It is Jesus who lives in you, through the person of the Holy Spirit who empowers you to live life at peace, confident and courageous through all of life’s ups and downs.

It begins with understanding who you are in God through Christ—completely loved, adopted and not forsaken—ever. Your past does not define you; the cross and His resurrection define you and your future.

Philippians 3:13a (MEV) describes Paul “forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” The past is closed, but the future lies ahead and is full of new possibilities!

We cannot live meaningful lives in the future if we are tied to our past failures and mistakes—or even our past successes. We must be able to learn from our past, without being controlled by it, to move ahead with what God has for us now.

The Grasshopper Complex

“Who are we to do this?” the Israelites questioned. (See Num. 13:1-3,17-20, 25-33.)

The Israelites were a good example of being tied to the past and unable to look ahead with what God had for them in the present. They still had a “slave mentality.”

Twelve spies were sent out, and they found the land to be productive, just as God had promised. But 10 of the 12 were shaken with fear—the fear of failure! After all, the Canaanites had walled cities; the Israelites were accustomed to tents. Oh, and there were giants in the land!

The 10 spies responded to Moses by saying, “Who are we to do this?” The root of their unbelief was a slave mentality. Their reasoning: Former slaves who live in tents do not win battles against giants who live in walled cities. The Israelites were free from the bondage of Pharaoh and Egypt, but they still saw themselves as former slaves and, therefore, concluded failure was inevitable.

In other words, their slave mentality caused the nation of Israel to believe they were unable to possess what God had promised. It was their false identity that empowered unbelief and allowed their fear to rule them. Unbelief and fear are debilitating.

As a result, they reasoned, “In our eyes we were like grasshoppers, and so we were in their eyes” (Num. 13:33). We are nobody; we are like mere insects that will get squashed! Conclusion: Failure is inevitable; grasshoppers do not win wars! The Israelites were still slaves in their own minds.

When the Israelites saw themselves as weak slaves, they wrongly assumed the Canaanites did also.

Joshua 2:9-11 records Rahab’s perspective of the Israelites: “I know that the Lord has given you the land, for dread from you has fallen upon us, and all the inhabitants of the land melt in terror before you. For we heard how the Lord dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. Our hearts melted when we heard these things, and no man had any breath in him because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on earth below.”

When they saw themselves as grasshoppers, the very reality of how others viewed them made no difference! They looked at how big the obstacles were instead of how big God is.

Assumption apart from God’s revelation leads to unbelief and fear. The Israelites’ assumption clouded the truth. By the way, assumptions are termites to relationships!

God invited the Israelites to partner with Him to accomplish great exploits, but unbelief and fear robbed them of a great privilege. Except for Joshua and Caleb, the spies looked at how big the obstacles were instead of how big God is. They were no longer slaves in Egypt, but they were enslaved in their minds by unbelief and fear.

It would be 40 years before another generation of Israelites possessed the promised land. The unbelief of the 10 spies distorted the truth and caused an entire generation to forfeit what God had freely given them.

This is the first part of a two-part series. Check back on soon for the second part. In the meantime, be sure to listen to Empowered for Purpose with Dr. Bob Sawvelle on the Charisma Podcast Network.{eoa}

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Once, we took our son to see the Rose Bowl Parade. Before start time, an unofficial parade-before-the-parade began. A group of “Repent or go to hell” sign carriers walked the route, shouting through bullhorns, “Confess your sins or go to hell.”

A man sitting near us started heckling them. Then one of the sign-carriers took offense and yelled back at him through his bullhorn. Soon, a tense in-your-face screaming match began. It was a teachable moment for our son—a real-life example of what not to do as Christ’s ambassador.

Sadly, the sign-carrier embodies what many people think of evangelism today. Just the word “evangelism” is loaded with negative connotations of pushing one’s agenda onto other people like this sign-wielding man.

Unfortunately, the cancel culture we’re living in is a reaction to some zealous people like this who may have overstepped boundaries in the past. Now in an effort to not “push” their faith on people of another faith, many Christians aren’t sharing their biblical faith at all. In fact, according to a Barna study, almost half of practicing Millennial Christians now believe it’s “wrong to share one’s personal beliefs with someone of a different faith in hopes that they will one day share the same faith.”

Yet we can and should persevere and share our biblical faith in loving, respectful ways. In fact, immigrants, international students and refugees who come to this country typically already assume you are Christian. They may even be disappointed if you held back from sharing what you believe. A Muslim friend recently confided, “If Christians really believed their faith, more would be talking about it.”

If you know you should be sharing your faith and want to practice good evangelism, listen to this episode of iHOPE Empowers on the Charisma Podcast Network. You’ll be inspired by how religious freedom in America opens doors for you to share your faith. Plus, you’ll be energized with practical, real faith-sharing stories that you can replicate for your family.{eoa}

Karen Bejjani is the co-founder and executive director of iHOPE Ministries, a non-profit ministry that is changing the way Christians think about sharing their biblical faith with people of other faiths. Since 2011, iHOPE has empowered tens of thousands of Christians with the courage, confidence and know-how to cross religious boundaries and extend God’s transformative love. As a fearless, relatable visionary and empowering coach, Karen has trained, coached and mentored thousands of entrepreneurs to build successful businesses while a senior corporate executive. Now she uses those same strategic skills to catalyze everyday Christian women to cross religious boundaries to share their faith. Karen champions iHOPE Ministries’ women’s initiative called the Blue Cord. Her powerful stories and practical coaching have catalyzed believers around the world to change lives for eternity. When she’s not empowering others to cross religious boundaries to share Jesus, Karen spends her time hiking forests and enjoying good Lebanese food with family and friends.

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This is an appeal to songwriters to explore the depths of writing songs that not only express the human heart but infuse the earth with the substance of heaven. Perhaps you’ve never thought of songwriting as being intercessory. However, our songs can be a catalyst for “on earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10b). There’s an opportunity for our songwriting to enter the very intercessory ministry of Jesus, our great high priest. When we enter the conversation within the Trinity and come into agreement with God, His will and work manifest in the earth. We take our legal position, purchased by Him, where we are seated with Him in heavenly places. Intercession then is the declaration of His Word, the prayer of His will and the decree of His dominion in the earth from a heavenly perspective.

In essence Christ, always living to make intercession for us, is right in the middle. He is pulling that which is of heaven into the earthly realm as He submits the earthly realm to the reality of heaven. In this ministry of intercession, we are carrying paradoxical tensions in a process of sanctification and redemption. Let’s step into these tensions, embrace them and write them into our songs. If we do, I believe our songs will not only carry an authenticity of heart but also the power of faith, the substance of things hoped for.

I’ve been on a refining and redemptive journey myself that translates into my songs as a worship leader. I’m learning life lessons about carrying tensions like heavy grief along with powerful grace; beholding vast beauty while going through deep pain; walking through great trials and finding indescribable peace, sorrow along with joy; experiencing heavy heartache while being filled with living hope. I’m encountering Jesus right there in the middle, living to make intercession for us. He’s pulling heaven into my earthly, messy processes. These themes are becoming the substance of my songs. But they aren’t just themes. They are actually opening something up.

I’m becoming a “Psalm 84 songwriter.” The psalmist longs for the beauty of God’s dwelling place and sets his heart like a highway toward home, the New Jerusalem. He is a sojourner on the way to the fullness of all things being restored. Beloved songwriters, this is who we are! We are “theologians of the beauty of God” (Mike Bickle). We are trekking the valleys, deserts, dark places and mountains of life on our way home to all things new. Along the journey, our songs are opening wells (connection with heaven) in the valley of weeping (our present earthly reality). We see this songwriting pattern in the Bible’s greatest songbook, the book of Psalms. High praises, laments and songs of remembrance, among others, actively infuse earth with heavenly reality.

Let’s write songs that activate Psalm 40:2-3: “He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet on a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God; many will see it, and fear, and will trust in the Lord.” We might be standing in a pit of earthy circumstances. But with our feet in the pit and our eyes on Jesus, our songs can enter His intercession. Our songs can reach into the mud and clay of earthly suffering and sorrow and pull us into intimacy with God. Our songs can dig into the earth and open up wells of heavenly encounter. In this, our songs are actively making intercession. And “many will see it, and fear, and will trust in the Lord.”

Be sure to listen to Destiny Destroyers: Renouncing Regret on the MAPS Global podcast on the Charisma Podcast Network for more engaging content like this.{eoa}

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