In the cool of the day

November 19,2011

For Noah preparation looks like picking up a hammer.

What does preparation look like to you?

By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and acted on what he was told. The result? His family was saved. His act of faith drew a sharp line between the evil of the unbelieving world and the rightness of the believing world. As a result, Noah became intimate with God. (Hebrews 11:7 MSG)

The prophetic warns us of things to come. For Noah preparation looks like picking up a hammer. What does preparation look like to you? The supernatural is often manifested through the super practical. I once received a prophetic word, from someone who I have great respect for, about writing training manuals and books. I obviously had to, by faith, pick up my laptop and start writing out of obedience to the word of the Lord. At the time I remembered a story I had heard when I was younger; a man had received a similar prophetic word to write and the Lord would use His books to provide for His family. The man never completed a project and struggled the rest of His life financially. That story caused me to get right on it. Waiting on the Lord is a biblical principle, but for many it has become an excuse to wait for God to do what He has already commanded us to walk in by faith. Faith requires action. Hebrews 11 is an entire chapter of those who, because of faith, did something for God. In our understanding of grace we may have missed that it’s grace through faith. For many grace means I can do whatever I want and God will bring me to a place of maturity. Grace is not only unmerited favor, but is also divine enabling. Gods ability to make you do what you are called to do, and to be who you are called to be. There must be a partnership with God. Healing the sick looks like extending our hands and commanding them to be healed. There is obviously timing, and a waiting season, but what are we doing to apply the word? As the Apostle James wrote: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”

If you are the senior leader of a ministry or a business owner the first step in believing the word is to write the vision. Share and pray the vision with those who are called to follow it. Repeat it every time you get together, and make it simple. When people in the team do something in line with the vision celebrate it. Including the team creates a culture of ownership. In the business world, owners are more invested then the employees are. For everyone else write the vision, wage war with it as Paul states, and make practical steps to see it fulfilled. Don’t be a afraid to pick up your hammer and get to work.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10 TNIV)

-Ivan Roman

 

 

Sept 3o,2o11

You have been set free!

President Abraham Lincoln issued an executive order January 1, 1893 during the American Civil War known as the Emancipation Proclamation.  In one day the lives of many of those living in slavery and oppression were freed.  They obviously didn’t have the technology and media that we do today resulting in many slaves continuing to work and live as slaves even though they were now free men.I believe that many in the Body of Christ also remain in bondage and under the yoke of slavery because they haven’t yet heard the truth in their hearts.

“Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.’” (John 8:34-36)

We have been set free by the finished work of the cross.  It is a finished work. However, this is not something we just need to be told over and over again. What we need is not head knowledge, but a revelation of the freedom given to us at the cross.

I once heard that elephant trainers tie a rope around the baby elephant’s leg and tie it around a stick in the ground.  When the baby elephant tries to pull away and feels the resistance it learns that when the rope is tied to it they can’t run away.  Grown elephants are tied down by a rope that could never hold them back, but their minds were trained when they felt resistance to know they are bound.There are things that bind us that are like the rope on Samson’s hands or the rope on the elephant’s leg.  It’s our mind that needs to be renewed to embrace what has already been done for us so we can run free.

In the story of the women caught in the act of adultery we see Jesus speaking to her and saying, “Go and sin no more.”  Jesus wasn’t just giving her a pat on the back.  When He showed her forgiveness and didn’t judge her she left not only with the knowledge that she can go and sin no more but empowered to go and sin no more. Our freedom has been purchased on the cross by Jesus, and the scripture says our sins are not only forgiven but forgotten. This revelation empowers us to break the bondage that has so easily ensnared us in the past.

So, friend, if you have asked Jesus to forgive you He has.  His love, forgiveness and mercy will empower you to walk in freedom.

Joshua 1:15,” until the LORD gives them rest, as he has done for you, and until they too have taken possession of the land the LORD your God is giving them.”

Take notice that the land already belongs to them all they have to do move forward.  Your freedom and deliverance has already been purchased it’s time to breakthrough.

What are the areas of bondage in your life?

What is keeping you from breaking free?

What are steps you can take today to move forward into your deliverance?

-Ivan Roman

 

 August 18,2011

Rise up and Move Forward

Recently in my devotional time I felt led to dive into the book of Joshua.  I have not been able to move pass the first few chapters.  I feel challenged, convicted, and stirred to possess the promises that God has promised for my family and I.  I have a feeling this study may become a series of blogs that will unfold week by week.  I pray you enjoy this study in the book of Joshua.

AFTER THE death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ minister,   Moses My servant is dead. So now arise [take his place], go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, the Israelites. (Joshua 1:1, 2 AMP)

The body of Christ is in a season of transition.  I am aware of many people that have changed the focus of their ministries, moved out of town, changed their careers, and  have undergone other major life changes.

“Moses my servant is dead,” stood out to me as I read this verse.  Imagine being the successor to the guy who delivered the Israelites from Egypt with signs and wonders following.   There is no place recorded in scripture that says that Joshua knew he would succeed Moses, we only see that he lingered in the presence of God after Moses departed.  Joshua was faithful to serve Moses forty years in the wilderness, was sent out to spy Jericho, and in total served Moses for eighty years.  I can’t begin to fathom what he must of felt when God spoke to him and said: “Now it’s your turn.”

We are in a season where the baton is being passed to a new generation of leadership.

In April of this year in prayer I had a picture of a door open up and watched as a man stood in front of the door contemplating what to do.  I heard the words, “cross over” and watched as the man was unable to because of the fear that was in his heart.  I then heard the word “sabotage.” Many have heard the expression,” You can take the person out of Egypt, but you can’t take the Egypt out of the person.”  After wandering in the wilderness for forty years the children of Israel had forgotten the promises of God and died in the wilderness still dreaming about how good it was in Egypt.  The door is a door of awakening, opportunity, and becoming fully alive to the things that God has promised for our lives.  It’s time to stop looking back lest we turn into a pillar of salt.

After an entire generation died in the wilderness  God raised up Joshua and commanded him to go and possess the land that was already his.

Every place upon which the sole of your foot shall tread, that have I given to you, as I promised Moses. (Joshua 1:3 AMP)

God’s response to Joshua was to rise up and take His place. Along with three separate occasions where God told Joshua to not be afraid, have courage and to not be dismayed.  Why would God tell Joshua repeatedly to not be afraid, have courage?  Probably because Joshua was afraid, feeling dismayed and lacked courage for this awesome feat that laid ahead of him.   God’s promise to Joshua was that He would be with Him.  Jesus has promised us, as His disciples, that He will never leave or forsake us. The lie of the enemy is that we need to be further equipped, have had more hands laid on us, been to more conferences, and read more books in order to accomplish what Jesus has already finished on the cross. When he said that it is finished he meant it. Excuses have kept the body of Christ back for far to long.

“seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.” (2 Peter 1:3 NASB)

It is time to lay ahold of the promise that God has bestowed upon us, cross over, rise, shine, and posses the land.   We may experience fear or lack of confidence moving into the new thing God is calling us to but remember we don’t go alone.

- What are some of the promises that God has spoken over you?

-  What are the fears and obstacles holding you back from them?

- What steps are you going to take to overcome them today?

 -Ivan Roman

www.afriendofgod.org     Please pray and consider sowing into our upcoming move to YWAM.

 

July 29,2011

Got Joy?

Recently I woke up to a memory of my older brother, Israel, and I sitting at the dinner table and for no apparent reason when our eyes met we began to laugh uncontrollably. The memory brought tears to my eyes, because I miss him. He has lived in California with his family and I haven’t been able to see him for close to three years, but the memory also brought a warm feeling in my heart. I miss those days with my brother when we were younger and had all the time in the world to be together before our lives took different paths. The memory stayed with me and I began to realize that this memory was triggered by the Holy Spirit. As I meditated on what God was saying to me these three scriptures popped up in my head:

Psalms 23:5 you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my [brimming] cup runs over.

Psalms 2:4 He who sits in the heavens laughs

Nehemiah 8:10…. the joy of the Lord is your strength

I realized that a lack of joy in our lives is the working of unbelief. When we have faith that Jesus will help us, guide us, and provide for us the only thing left is to praise God and laugh in the face of adversity.

Regardless of whether we are in the greatest or most difficult times in our lives the Lord invites us to sit down with Him, look in His eyes, and laugh together. Happiness is circumstantial whereas Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit and as such, will remain. Joy, along with Worship and the Word of God, are the greatest weapons of our warfare. It’s time to fully live the life that Christ has purchased for us. What if one of the greatest tools of evangelism wasn’t only what we said or how holy we appeared to be, but how filled with joy we were?

1 Peter 1:8- 9Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not [even] now see Him, you believe in Him and exult and thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy.

What would inexpressible, glorious, triumphant, heavenly joy look like?

I love the way my boys laugh when I tickle them, it’s just like when my brother and I were younger, and not a care in the world could keep us down. There is no fear or worry on the earth that can stand in the face of child’s laugh. What more perfect way is there to describe the inexpressible joy that the Father has for us than this image of a child completely secure in his Father’s Love? The scripture tells us that in God’s presence there is fullness of joy, and not only that but Jesus instructs us to ask that our joy may be made full. Some of us have become too busy doing the work of the Lord to take time to just enjoy Jesus, others are too consumed with worries to take the time to smile, let alone laugh, while others yet have never even heard that Jesus could be fun. God’s desire is that the cup of our hearts overflows with love and joy as He pours His spirit upon us. In the days ahead I predict that one of the greatest weapons that God’s people will need to lay a hold of is going to be the Joy of the Lord.

Romans 14:17- The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness, joy and peace in the Holy Spirit

Please help send the Roman family to the Mission field. Any sized gift that helps A Friend of God Ministries is tax deductible, because we are a Non-profit Organization.
-Ivan Roman

 

July 13,2011

Who am I and what is my mission in life? pt 2

In the past I have asked the question,” who are you and what is your mission in life?” Regardless of age I have watched people respond with shock, and very often with tears. After a moment of silence the prevailing response is simply, “I don’t know.” Jesus knew exactly who He was and why He was on the earth. Speaking to His disciples He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Likewise, when Peter’s eyes where open to see that Jesus was the son of the living God, Jesus essentially said to him,” You are blessed because My Father has shown you this.” He knew who He was, and as for His mission in life he declared of himself,” I have come that you may have life and life more abundantly.” Jesus also said of His mission, “the son of man was manifest that He may destroy the works of the devil. “

There is a goldmine of revelation in those one- liners, but for the purpose of this blog I want to point to the fact that Jesus could answer who He was and what His mission in life was with a single sentence: “I am the Son of God, and I am here to give my people abundant life by destroying the works of the devil.” I believe we should be able to do the same thing, but in our society most people would answer the question with their job title, race, or something that they do. This is not the truth of who they are. Who we are is not contingent upon what we do; this includes even important roles like being a father, mother, husband or wife. While these roles help to define us our children grow up and move out. Or God forbid we become widowed. The question still remains who does God say that you are?

Let me illustrate it this way; if we were going on a trip together what would be the most important piece of information to have? Most would answer by saying,” Where are we going and how long will it take to get us there?” However we have to take a step back and ask where we are starting from. Who you are cannot be answered without first knowing whose you are.

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Take notice of the progression in the sentence. It starts with God knowing us before we were even born, and then goes to what we are called to do. We can only know what we are called to do by first knowing the one who created us. There are lots of other illustrations of this point in scripture.
So if you find yourself unable to answer this question, then the problem probably lays with Whose am I. Once we get to know God as our father He will tell you who you are and what He created you to do.

For more on this topic check out www.afriendofgod.org and purchase Identity and Authority.

-Ivan Roman

 

 

July 13,2011

Are you living the life you were created for? pt 1

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

A pastor friend of mine told me years ago,” You are headed where you are going “. Driving from Albany, Oregon if I continue on I-5 N I’ll head to Portland eventually I’ll even end up in Canada. Looking at where you are going in life do you think you would still be happy with where you are headed? If the answer is no then don’t you think it’s time to change the direction you are going? Life isn’t supposed to just happen; we are called to live life on purpose. God didn’t create us to just occupy space and time but He created us to live! A famous quote by St. Irenaeous, “the glory of God is man fully alive,” is controversial at first but with further thought I believe it to be accurate. Most Christians have an understanding of God’s glory from an Old Testament perspective, the pillar of fire by night the cloud of glory by day that descends upon the people. I have experienced God’s presence resting upon me, and it’s amazing, but more often than not the presence of God we feel is the presence of the Holy Spirit that dwells within. The scripture, in Col 1:27, tells us that it is Christ in you that is the hope of Glory. Jesus was fully man and fully God the spirit of God rested upon Him as well as in Him. Jesus was the glory of God manifested on the earth and now we are called to be the same. Jesus ascended to heaven, breathed on the disciples; they received His Holy Spirit, and now as followers of Christ, God’s glory lives in us. So then, to fully live means allowing Christ to live His life through you.

In John 10:10 Jesus gives us his mission statement as well as the devil’s. It says the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy but he has come that you may have life and life more abundantly. Using that scripture as a litmus test, who would you say is having more influence on your life? If you are a believer and have been experiencing nothing but stealing, killing, and destroying, then it’s time to approach the throne of grace and plead justice on your behalf. If you are trying to live life to the fullness and don’t have a living relationship with Jesus you may be experiencing what I did before I fully surrendered my life to Christ. I kept accumulating more and more material wealth just to come to the conclusion that the things that I owned actually had ownership over me, and even worse still my relationships with those I loved was suffering.

But this is not God’s best for you. God has a plan for your life. If you don’t know Jesus asks Him to forgive you of your sins, and invite Him to come into your heart and make you a new creation. The old will pass away and the new will come. Jesus is not a thing; He is a person. Speak to Him, share your dreams with Him, and see if they line up with His dreams for you. He is the perfect Father and has an amazing life planned for you. If you know the Lord and are still struggling with living life to the fullest here are a few questions to ask yourself that I pray will help to get you headed in the direction that will release the most of God’s glory through your life.

Who are you? What is your purpose in life? If you have discovered your calling, please state that.

Now if you take away all the material things in your life, describe who you are and what is your purpose in life?

Are you living the life you truly desire? If not, why not? Explain.

What can you start today to take you in the direction you desire?

If you are having trouble answering the question who are you and what is my mission in life, the issue holding you back is a lack of understanding who’s you are and whose you are in Christ. Stay tuned for the next blog or purchase Identity and Authority manual. I also recommend Neil T. Anderson’s book Victory of Darkness. Email me your answers if you like. Ivan@afriendofgod.org

-Ivan Roman