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January 30, 2007
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Catherine Brown: "A CALL TO BE UNDONE--GOD'S
SPIRIT IS SHAKING OUR HEARTS TO SURRENDER TO HIM"
"God is looking for
face-to-face encounters with His children, so that we might become so absorbed
by His gaze of love that we will be undone."
 As
I think of the year that lies ahead, my heart has been captured afresh by
Christ's love. We can do nothing apart from His love. His call to remain
(John 15) is a clarion message to the Church
in this hour. Our best plans amount to nothing, if they do not flow from hearts
that are undone by His love. May we be increasingly captivated by Christ and
experience His divine romance in order that we might bring our Heavenly Father
much glory and experience His joy.
Isaiah's
Commission and Background
Isaiah 6:1-9:
"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord
sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the
temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his
face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to
another and said: 'Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; The whole earth is
full of His glory!'
And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the
house was filled with smoke. So I said: 'Woe is me, for I am undone!
Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of
unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts.'
Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had
taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said:
'Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin
purged.'
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: 'Whom shall I send, And who will go
for Us?'
Then I said, 'Here am I! Send me.' And He said, 'Go, and tell this people....'"
Isaiah was one of the four major prophets of the Old Testament, with the others
being Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel. He prophesied for almost 40 years through
the reign of three kings: Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah. Isaiah lived in Jerusalem
in the 8th century BC. He received His commission in the year when King Uzziah
died in 740 BC.
Isaiah's vision of God colored His entire life mission. He had seen God with His
own eyes and lived; experiencing first hand the forgiveness of His personal sin.
From a face-to-face encounter with the living God, he was sent out to carry the
heart of God to the people of Israel.
The prophetic words and visions of Isaiah speak between judgment of Israel for
sin and rebellion, and yet never failing to underscore God's patient loving
plans for Israel's restoration. Isaiah presented the Israelites with a picture
of a holy and caring God who would restore them to Himself. God is infinitely
loving and tender to Israel, His vineyard.
God forgave His people for their sins time and time again. He never left
their side throughout their suffering, setting them free because of His great
love for them. Isaiah paints a picture of our God as one who speaks and has
power to act and who faithfully carries His people's burdens, even when they are
faithless towards Him.
Being Undone Daily
 Isaiah
said he was, "undone." What could it mean to
be undone to us in the 21st century?
Here are examples of being naturally undone
in our daily lives (with some humor):
ACCIDENTALLY UNDONE: If our shoe laces were accidentally untied, it could
lead to a trip and/or a nasty fall. Being accidentally undone isn't an
attractive option.
MALICIOUSLY UNDONE: What about when someone else does something to us
that causes us be undone? If another individual loosened our shoe laces without
our knowledge, this could be described at best as foolish behavior, or at worst
even malicious behavior (depending on the motivation behind the act), and might
cause injury or harm. Forcing someone to become undone isn't what Isaiah had in
mind either!
MISTAKENLY UNDONE: Have you ever had a button pop off, or a zipper
mistakenly come undone at an inopportune moment? Such occasions can, and usually
do, cause acute embarrassment and make us feel uncovered and vulnerable. Not
pleasant! I don't think this is what Isaiah meant when he referred to being
undone either. What then could "undone" look like?
PURPOSEFULLY AND THOUGHTFULLY UNDONE: To best explore this, we can refer
again to our shoe lace analogy. When we have consciously untied our shoe laces
of our own will, possibly after a long and tiring day, it is such a glorious
feeling to allow tired feet to rest! Wiggling swollen toes in the fresh air is
so relaxing! This purposeful, thoughtful choice to be undone is a lovely
experience. There is no fear, anxiety, or harm in it. We freely choose to enter
in and the results are delightful.
The Rosebud
 Have
you ever considered the unfurling of a rosebud, as each petal gives itself in
absolute surrender to the process of being uncovered?
Our Creator God, knows exactly how and when
to unfurl each petal, ushering every bloom through the process of being
completely closed, to opening up under His tender hand to become a thing of
exquisite beauty that releases and reveals glorious fragrance and becomes a joy
to all who gaze upon it.
Forcing the bud to open prematurely might destroy it, but God's timing is
perfect. We might compare and consider our hearts in such a way too. God is
looking for face-to-face encounters with His children, so that we might become
so absorbed by His gaze of love that we will be undone just like the rosebud. As
we encounter God's heart in such a way, we receive revelation and an impartation
of His love that equips us for mission, and our lives overflow in His goodness
and grace. Such life changing encounters cause transformation in us that
becomes a catalyst for divine transformation in the nations.
The Human Heart: Being Undone for the Love of
Christ
"In the shaking of God's
dealing with our hearts, the Bridegroom King is revealed."
Isaiah was pointing us to the truth that only God's Spirit can enable us to
surrender and be "undone." It is purposeful, thoughtful, and all for God's glory
to reveal the fragrance and beauty of Christ to each one of us, and in and
through each one of us. His love is trustworthy and unfailing.
Just like the petals of a rosebud, the protective layers of our heart (i.e. our
defenses, our weaknesses, our fears, and our pride) all melt away in the ardent
love gaze of our merciful Bridegroom King. Under His purposeful hand, His
perfect plans unfold in the heart that is undone in His holy presence with
lasting and fruitful effect!
 As
the atmosphere of Heaven touches earth, it consumes all and changes all that it
embraces.
In the shaking of God's dealing with our
hearts, the Bridegroom King is revealed. We realize afresh our need for a
Savior. In face-to-face encounters, we repent, and the ashes of our ways are
redeemed under God, to become things of amazing grace and beauty in His pierced
hands.
The call to mission is one born of intimacy
with Jesus. A heart undone, ravished by the unending love gaze of Christ, is the
only thing Jesus asks of us. Our response to His eternal, breathtaking love is
to say "yes" with our whole being, and follow the Master with all that we are.
We Are Revived for Mission!
When our hearts enter the blessedness of divine romance with Christ, we are
released to a lifetime of effective mission. To be carried in His heart is to
carry His heart of mercy to pursue people and cities until they are delivered
from judgment of sin and rebellion, and delivered into a loving, living, faith
relationship with God. Our mission must flow from being undone by His love;
for without it our mission becomes merely works.
His love is our preparation, causing holy devastation to our flesh to produce
purity and divine desperation in us, to continually seek Him with all our hearts
and make His unquenchable, agape Love known throughout the world. We are revived
for mission!
Isaiah 61:1-3:
"The Spirit of the
Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to
the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim freedom for
the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of
the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for
those who grieve in Zion--to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a
spirit of despair...."
I hope this short message from Isaiah's life will be fresh bread to each of
your hearts today.
Bless you!
Catherine Brown
Gatekeepers
www.gatekeepers.org.uk
Email:
admin@gatekeepers.org.uk
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Catherine Brown's Upcoming Itinerary:
February 11, 2007
St. Andrew's Church of Scotland
Main Street, West Lilbride
Contact:
admin@gatekeepers.org.uk or
http://www.gatekeepers.org.uk/events.php
February 22-24, 2007
Louisiana Amplifire 2007
Luke 10:27
569d Florida Blvd.; Denham Springs, LA
Contact: www.swiftfire.org or
info@swiftfire.org
"The daily prophetic words that are sent to our 130,000+ subscribers are made
possible by the purchase of products like those featured in this email. You may
purchase them directly from this email, or visit our online store at
http://www.elijahshopper.com."
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"Confessions of a Fasting
Housewife"
"Confessions of a Fasting
Housewife is a masterpiece of mercy, and will open up your
heart and mind to receive the grace to love God more than
ever." -- Victoria Boyson, Speaking Life Ministries
"With a whole
heart I gladly endorse the
content of this inspiring book. I trust it will do for you what it did for me.
After reading The Normal, The Deep, and The Crazy, I found myself more in love
with our Father God, who desires to see restoration happen in the lives of
countless numbers of warriors-in-waiting. I sense the Holy Spirit saying, "Come
out of your caves! The best is yet ahead of you! Just as I have done in the life
of this broken vessel--so will I do for you!"
-- Jim Goll
The
Normal, The Deep, and The Crazy by Catherine Brown, just about sums up much
of how it often is to be a person who is desperate to hear God speak. Get ready
to have your heart touched and then challenged to recognize and flee the
temptation to settle for an average Christian existence. You'll discover just
how close God can be to those who hear His heartbeat and stop to listen to His
voice! --Steve Shultz, The Elijah List
"This has an incredible combination of soaking
and rhythmic flow with some aggressive warrior undertones--some are overtones!
But it is very diverse, unique, and adventurous! This is a great CD for soaking
or more aggressive intercession.
Rick
Van Patten is an anointed and skilled Levite with a creative and diverse flow.
Over many years, Rick has learned to play just about any instrument. He has
developed training materials to help individuals learn concepts and theory, as
well as how it can be expressed in creative and practical ways. He and his wife
Joy are worship leaders that travel worldwide, and live in the Cincinnati, Ohio
area with their beautiful daughter, Zoe.
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