Are You Coming?
Yesterday I was deep in prayer, when I received a vision. I wasn't really sure about it - whether it was from God. When this same thing happened a while back, God spoke to me saying, "Look for my signature." If God gives me a scripture right away, or there is something about the image, that calls me to pray, somehow I receive the revelation necessary to know.
Here is the vision:
I see a man on a dark horse wearing a tall hat, scarf, heavy coat, and boots. The clothing appears to be from the early 19th century. The man has medium length hair and full sideburns. As he sits on his horse, he turns around and looks at me, I know he wants me to follow him. "Are you coming?" he asks.
The vision ends, and I think to myself, he must be a circuit-riding preacher. As I contemplate the vision, I am reminded of the scripture, "Follow me, as I follow Christ." 1 Corinthians 11:1
Jesus asked Peter, and the other disciples to leave their nets and follow him. All of his disciples responded by becoming "followers." We must answer this same call: to follow him.
I asked myself, why did God choose a man on a horse? Was he a preacher? A traveling preacher, going from village to village, week in and week out, visiting his churches planted throughout the countryside? Was this a call to a new ministry? Was it a call to go deeper with him? Was this man, a guide that would take me into a new land, or territory that God wanted to show me? Was it a call to travel and speak or preach or pray? I thought about whether this message was for me personally or was it for the church? I believe it is for both.
There are several other visions that came to mind. Once as I was praying, I sensed his presence so powerfully. Suddenly, I saw a motorcycle with a sidecar coming towards me, and then pass in front of me and continue moving out of sight. I thought to myself, This must be an invitation from God. He must want to take me with him. I got excited, but rather than staying in his presence, I got up to go the bathroom. When I returned and began praying again, God spoke to me and said, "This time don't leave me."
God wants us to spend time with him. He wants an intimate relationship with him, but it only comes with a commitment of time and devotion. Both of these visions were invitations. When Jesus chose his disciples, they knew it was something special. Later on, he spent the night in prayer deciding on who the 12 would be. We need to see the invitation as something special.
When Elijah threw his cloak on Elisha, (directing Elisha to follow him), Elisha wanted to take care of his personal matters first, and then come. But Elijah, showed him he had to be "all in" and come now, or forget about it. Elisha did the right thing, he realized that the invitation was a holy thing.
I am also reminded of the parable of the rich man who was inviting guests to his banquet. He sent his servants out to invite his guests but each one had an excuse. Each of them believed that their personal matters took precedence over the invitation. The Lord tells the story as if he were the rich man, and those invited were the ones he calls. Unfortunately, we can hear the call, but out of fear, or unwillingness to make a commitment, we find a way to make an excuse. Jesus ended his parable with these words, "For many are called, but few are chosen." Matthew 22:14
We must be careful to listen to his call to us: "Today if you hear his voice. do not harden your hearts as they did in the wilderness." Psalm 95:7
I believe that this vision is also for the church. We are at a crossroads, and are considering purchasing a large building to accommodate the steady growth we are experiencing. This has the potential to expand our ministry, our visibility and outreach to the nearby communities. The purchase of this building, could also provide new opportunities in the variety and scope of the ministries that we currently offer. Perhaps, the man on the horse, is looking at us and asking, "Are you coming?"
We have to look at our hearts and our intentions. On the one hand, we could look at this opportunity to purchase, as an attempt to build our own kingdom, the "Kingdom of Bethany." Or we could be in the process of making a name for ourselves, like the people who angered God by building the Tower of Babel. Or, perhaps this is the enemy's plan for us to take on so much debt that we can no longer meet our commitments to our missionaries.
Maybe --- But, what I believe to be true, is this:
God is showing our church that we need to trust him and follow him. I believe that this act of faith, the purchase of the building, could be a prerequisite to the revival for which we've been praying. The man on the horse, a circuit riding preacher, is very much like our church today. We are bringing the message of God, to many different communities each Sunday, by way of television. Through technology, we do not have to put "miles on the saddle," Instead the message goes out through one voice to many communities at the same time!
God does not want us to act in fear of the "what ifs," but to embrace the path he is placing before us. We need to make the quality decision like Elisha. We have to slaughter the oxen, burn the plows and run hard after God.
I was reminded of a movie, "Field of Dreams." The message that the main character (Kevin Costner) received was, "If you build it (a baseball field), they will come." Perhaps, if we are obedient, to buy this building, the Holy Spirit will answer with fire. He will bring the people of the surrounding communities to experience the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and he will bring revival to our churches, our cities and our nation.
So the question God poses is this: "Are you coming?" Let's answer him with an emphatic, "Yes! Yes Lord! We are coming!"
