TOUCHING GOD

*a late post

from my_sarisari_store.typepad.com

This picture always reminds me of how ancient people flooded the places where Jesus was during His ministry on earth, as recorded in the New Testament.

“That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases…” Mark 1:32-34 (NIV)

“For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.” Mark 3:10 (NIV)

The sick, the poor, those who's hope left is only God, came rushing towards Jesus.

How about now? We can't see Jesus roaming around so we can run to Him to touch Him and be healed. Yet, if a tangible touch isn't possible today, perhaps we can just touch His heart.

If there's healing by merely touching His cloak, how much more if we touch his heart?

I believe that if God puts value to a faith of someone who perseveres despite of the raging crowd just to seek his healing, He cherishes it more if a person simply puts his faith on Him despite of a seemingly impossible situation.

Every time we seek Him amidst the darkness we face, every time we go through the “crowd” of obstacles in life, and still trust Him-- God is worshipped. And every time God is truly worshipped, He is touched.

“A large crowd followed and pressed around him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched His cloak, because she thought, “if I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

“At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from Him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched me?”

“You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, “Who touched me?”

But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.” Mark 5:24-34 (NIV)

People, until now, are desperate for “God”— and our act of desperation comes in many ways. We long for miracles, we hope for the impossible. It’s in the tiniest cry of our hearts. Therefore, we want to get in touch with a higher power—or God. Many will try to touch Him, but few are felt. For when God asked, "Who touched me?" I believe it was more than a physical contact but a connection in spirit. If in touching the edge of his cloak, people in the past received physical healing. We have this hope that right now, wherever we are, by touching His heart through worship, we can receive healing in our wounded hearts and bruised souls.--- something we truly long.

“People brought all their sick to him, and begged him to let the sick just touch in the edge of His cloak, and all who touched Him were healed.” Matthew 14:35-36 (NIV)

IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH

My church, Victory Christian Fellowship's annual Seven days Prayer and Fasting is about to end. And attending prayer meeting every night these past few days reminded me of something I've read from Rick Joyner's The Call, which touches me every time... I hope that for you, it will be the same. :)

"...Then I was in a different place, beholding a worship service in a little church building. As sometimes happens in a prophetic experience, I just seemed to know everything about everyone in the battered little room. All were experiencing severe trials in their lives, but they were not even thinking of them here. They were not praying about their needs. They were all trying to compose songs of thanksgiving to the Lord. They were happy, and their joy was sincere.

I saw heaven, and all of heaven was weeping. I then saw the Father again and knew why heaven was weeping. They were weeping because of the tears in the eyes of the Father. This little group of seemingly beaten down, struggling people had moved God so deeply that He wept. They were not tears of pain, but of joy. When I saw the love that He felt for these few worshipers, I could not contain my own tears.

Nothing I had experienced gripped me more than this scene. Worshiping the Lord on earth was now more desirable to me than dwelling in all of the glory of heaven. I knew that I had been given a message that could help prepare the saints for the battles that remained on earth, but now this did not mean nearly as much to me as trying to convey how we could touch the Father. Genuine adoration expressed by even the most humble believer on earth could cause all of heaven to rejoice, but even more than that, it touches the Father. This is why the angels would rather be given charge over a single believer on the earth than to be given authority over many galaxies of stars.

I saw Jesus standing next to the Father. Beholding the joy of the Father as He watched the little prayer meeting, He turned to me and said, “This is why I went to the cross. Giving My Father joy for just one moment would have been worth it all. Your worship can cause Him joy every day. Your worship when you are in the midst of difficulties touches Him even more than all of the worship of heaven. Here, where His glory is seen, the angels cannot help but to worship. When you worship without seeing His glory in the midst of your trials, that is worship in Spirit and in truth. The Father seeks such to be His worshipers. Do not waste your trials. Worship the Father, not for what you will receive, but to bring Him joy. You will never be stronger than when you bring Him joy, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”