The Spirit of Elijah
Listen to Bridgeway Church’s evening service, featuring a message from Michael Thorton on the Spirit of Elijah.
Listen to Bridgeway Church’s evening service, featuring a message from Michael Thorton on the Spirit of Elijah.
God calls us to be uncomfortable, though. So many of us desire to be used by God, but then we say “Well, except for that, Lord.”
The journey of faith is a paradox of these two journeys. As we pursue God, we are pushed out of our comfort zones and into the unknown many times.
If you’re in that place, or if you find yourself in that place in the future sometime, from the voice of experience I say this: it feels hellish because it is hellish.
Excessive negative self-talk can be debilitating and strip you of any power. Yet, you are made for so much more than your inner critic gives you credit for.
It wasn’t until I left the office that I realized the unnecessary aggravation was a set-up for divine opportunity.
God has designed your minds with the ability to easily grasp new paradigms. You are the breaker-ones, so far ahead of your time.
As with any seed that is planted, there is a growth process that goes on without the gardener’s hands being involved. And that process ultimately brings about a crop.
We have become doctors and nurses who are putting bandages on rotting corpses, when what people really need is a miracle.
I say no to things that wouldn’t allow me to live up to the full potential God wants for my life —so I can be rested and available for the things He wants to do in me and through me.
Six months later, the first draft of my manuscript was finished, so I thought that all that was left was to edit it and get it published right?
Wrong.
You are seated in the heavenly places! You are saved! You are My workmanship. You are righteous and holy. You are strong in the strength of My might.
And I recall the vessel that so comports to darkness — gives it occasion to breathe and occupy.
“The darkness that wins is the one we invited in!”
When we speak life and kindness over others, even if they remain non-responsive, our acts of encouragement are seeds sown into fertile ground.
I’ve found that when you’re searching for the Father’s heart, you find His gifts and His goodness in the loveliest places.
What I really love about this tradition is that we get to spend the month of February reminding my daughter she is loved and special.
Whether we’ve been hurt or were responsible for the pain in a relationship or friendship, hope is the gateway out of our heartbreak.
Sometimes when we make a mistake, we punish ourselves for it. We become angry with ourselves and repeat an inner mantra that we’re stupid.
Imagine the impact we could have in the lives of those around us if we practiced the art of loving ourselves well.
So many times we find ourselves in situations that seem endless, the victory too far away to see. We get discouraged, and we don’t want to keep going.
Maybe you would never admit to denying the power of prayer, but have you perhaps forgotten the importance of embracing its power somewhere along the way?
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted,” John softly spoke the words that both men had offered to others in times of brokenness.
There is no guarantee that they will choose to follow God, but they will know everything I can teach them about Him.