My husband and I had an opportunity to visit my family in DC for Christmas, and it was on the plane ride home that I had an awakening.

Our plane was stalled before take off due to some lightning, so we patiently sat and waited. I graciously decided to give my much coveted window seat to my husband this ride, and I sat in the middle seat. I began to notice the conversation in the row in front of me, and though I usually try to give people their privacy and not eavesdrop, I could not help it this time.

The 3 passengers in front of me had introduced themselves and through our long wait for takeoff seemed to be finding comfort in each others’ stories of 2007.

I heard a sweet-sounding blond, southern lady telling her new friends how her husband had passed away earlier this year in the beginning of her 3rd pregnancy. She said she spent her entire pregnancy mourning the death of her husband, waiting to give birth to ease the pain only to find it was that much harder not to have him there to share all the sweet moments of their precious child.

It turned out that the gentle, middle-aged man in the middle seat had also recently lost his wife and expressed the difficulty of raising 2 teenage daughters by himself. Then, the woman on the aisle gave her new friends solace by expressing compassionately that she thought she had a hard year, losing her brother, being a single mom, and taking care of her elderly mother by herself, but her pain could not compare to her neighbors who had lost their spouses.

Needless to say, I began crying, almost sobbing, as I listened to what 2007 had brought these precious people. I felt, though, that it was a holy moment and that the Lord wanted to speak to me in that plane.

I looked over at my husband, who began asking what was wrong with me and laughing at me for eavesdropping and crying at the same time (he was not paying attention to the conversation), and feelings of thanksgiving and hope awoke in me.

Having gone through my share of trials and disappointments in 2007, I felt a strength and hope from the Holy Spirit fill me as I sat on that runway. I felt my heart begin to grow soft again, and I started to let go of bitterness and anger that I had harbored through such circumstances.

As I recounted all of the things I had to be thankful for, I began to focus on the hope that I have in my God, not my circumstances.

Maybe you’re reading this and you feel like you haven’t quite gotten your breakthrough or you don’t understand why the miracle you have believed God for has not happened. I want to encourage you not to let your heart grow hard or lose your faith in God. When we face trials in life, I really believe that the enemy is after our faith and hope in God . . . if he can destroy that, he can destroy our lives. We have to stand firm and trust in our faithful God. We may not understand why some prayers are not answered the way we’ve asked them to be, but one thing we do know is that we can HOPE in God!!

I love this Psalm . . .

Psalm 42:11 (NKJV)
¹¹ Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God;
For I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God.

I pray you have many holy moments with God this year, recounting His goodness and focusing on the hope that we can have in Him through all circumstances. Let HOPE and THANKSGIVING awake in you during this season . . . maybe that is the underlying breakthrough or miracle you need.

Kassie Fowler
Celebration Staff

Genesis 28 16-17 (NIV)
¹⁶ When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” ¹⁷ He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.”

I woke up Friday totally psyched about the prayer meeting to take place that evening. I wanted to get myself ready for an encounter with God and was praying for Him to move in a fresh and mighty way.

The scripture for my Bible reading that morning revolved around Genesis 28 and Jacob’s dream that he had at Bethel.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I have heard this scripture passage many times - Jacob sleeping with a stone for a pillow and angels descending up and down a ladder; then the Lord promising Jacob the same promise that he made to Abraham and Isaac - that he would increase his territory and that all of his descendents would be blessed.

But it was not until I reached verse 16 that God began to speak to me.

Jacob wakes up from his dream - and he has had such an incredible encounter with God that he declares “Surely the Lord is in this place and I was not aware of it!”

In that moment, God began to deal with me.

As tears streamed down my face the Lord spoke to me, “You have already received what you asked me for - I am here now.”

So many times in life we go around asking God for these “neon signs” to prove to us that He really is there. That He is aware of what is going on with us and what we are surrounded by.

I know I do.

I often ask God to give me some sort of revelation of His presence in my life. However, after reading that verse, I am reminded that God is ALWAYS with us. He promises to NEVER leave us or forsake us. God constantly surrounds us with His love and protection and sometimes we are just “not aware of it.”

I do not want to live my life this way. I want to always be aware of God’s presence.

Not only do I want to be able to see His hands in the obvious things, but also to be aware of His presence in the small things. To see Him in the ordinary; from the praise and worship service, to my quiet time, to a conversation held between friends, to helping a stranger.
I know that God is with me.

One thing I pray through this time of fasting and prayer is that, as a church, our faith and our knowledge of Christ would increase. That we would all be able to experience the presence of our God in our daily lives and that we would truly take the experience that we have here at church on a Sunday morning into the rest of our week.

Lindsay Vartanian
Celebration Staff

“Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?”

That is what Pastor Stovall asked us. It reminded me of a very powerful and life changing experience I had with God.

I was at a place in my life where I was quickly realizing that I was not in control of anything! Finances, relationships, self-control all seemed to be way out of whack and I had exhausted my Plan A and Plan B.

I knew that I needed God or I was just going to drown in these burdens. Out of sheer desperation, I sought God. I knew that I needed Him and that no one else was going to be able to help me.

If you don’t know how to seek God or how to pray, let me give you peace; just cry out to God.

There is no right or wrong way to do it. God sees your heart and knows your innermost being. Just be real . . .

And I needed to be real with God, so I planned a day when it would just be Him and I, no interruptions. I needed to put down my guard as the one with everything under control. As the one that is cool, calm and collected but a train wreck inside!

I got on my knees, asked God to forgive me of my sins and to help me be more like Him.

I wanted to experience Him in a fresh new way that would leave me different than when I started this prayer. I prayed for everything and everyone I could think of. I worshiped Him and gave Him thanks for everything He has ever done for me and in the midst of this day alone with God, I experienced an awakening.

As I prayed and cried out to God, the spirit of God consumed me and He allowed me a brief but life changing glimpse into His heart. It was an experience I will never forget.

I experienced the broken heart of God.

God’s heart that is broken for you and me.

I was unable to say anything and my heart broke like it had never broke before. I experienced grief on a whole new level.

God immediately spoke to me and said, “Why do you make choices that will take you down a path of destruction and pain? It breaks my heart. Don’t you know that I have plans for you. I want you to experience joy, love and peace like you will never find in this world. My heart breaks as I watch you suffer because you make wrong decisions. I am here waiting for you, longing to bring you on a journey greater than you can ever plan for yourself or even comprehend. Choose my ways.”

I will never forget feeling the pain that God feels for you and me when we make bad choices.

It seems so obvious that His way is the absolute best plan we could choose for our lives. However, daily we choose those things that turn us aside and cause us to stray from the plans and purposes of God in our lives.

Those little “oh, it’s not a big deal” compromises that seem so small . . . somehow that one little degree of compromise takes us hundreds of miles off course in the end.

It was specifically for these poor choices that God allowed me to experience how much it saddens Him as He watches us walk through these disappointing times in our lives. When He is just waiting for us to surrender to Him so we can experience the fullness of His glory.

I remember sobbing so hard that day that in the end my face was swollen and my body felt like a rag. I know this sounds bad, but I felt like I was walking on a cloud because I just encountered the living God. I had more peace, joy and a new understanding of God’s love for us and it was euphoric.

As Pastor Stovall asked during the Awakening series, “Have you really ever walked with God?” I realized that there are some of you that God is weeping for right now.

In this very moment His heart is broken for you and wants to wrap His arms around you and bless you.

I challenge you to fully surrender to God and humble yourselves before Him today. Get on your knees and cry out to God for a fresh new revelation of His goodness.

If you are reading this and wondering will I know God’s presence? Yes! It is not a mystery.  It is a powerful and life changing moment that is as real and sure as this computer you are looking at.

When you experience God there is nothing to question or figure out.

I am always blown away by the immediate response from our loving God when we humble ourselves and truly seek Him. God wants a relationship with us even more than we can comprehend. Let Him start an amazing work in you. Surrender to Him today and experience an awakening.

We are praying and thanking God that 2008 will be the year that God reigns in your heart and home.

Nicole Phillips
Celebration Staff

John 14:12-14 (NKJV)
¹² “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. ¹³ And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

Are you ready for God to do a supernatural work in your life today? Are you ready to feel the intangible…see the invisible…experience the unexplainable? Do you believe God can supernaturally intervene in your life?

In order to go deeper in the ways of the Lord, we must anchor in our heart the conviction that the works Jesus did we will do also. The Bible also says even greater works than these you will do because Jesus went to the Father (John 14:12-14).

The truth is the miracle working power of the living God is available to you right now through the person of the Holy Spirit.

You might feel that miracles in your life or ministry are impossible. But remember, a miracle is never a miracle to God; it’s a miracle to you. Miracles are a normal, everyday occurrence to God…and He wants to make them a normal every day occurrence in your life.

God is in the miracle working “business.” They are no surprise to Him.

How are you going to receive these greater works?

In 2 Timothy 1:6, the apostle Paul reminds Timothy to “stir up the gift of God which is in you”. If we set ourselves to seek Him by developing a regular habit of prayer, Bible reading and praying in the Spirit, the miracle working power of the Holy Spirit will be stirred up in you.

Paul goes on to remind us in verse 7 that “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

Go ahead, don’t be afraid to stir yourself up and ASK in the name of Jesus.

Your miracle could be right around the corner waiting for you.

I am ready for a miracle. Not because I have faith in my own righteousness or in my own ability to pray or because I believe in the power of my church, but because I have faith in THAT NAME.

Jesus said:

John 16:23-24 (NKJV)
²³ “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. ²⁴ Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

It’s all in that name…the name of Jesus.

Pastor Mike Pier
Celebration Staff

Genesis 22:9-10 (NKJV)
Then they came to the place of which God told him. And Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order; and he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

I’ve always been fascinated by this beautiful picture of surrender and sacrifice. Here was Abraham, willing to offer his only son, whom he valued and loved, as a burnt offering for God. I try to read between the lines and imagine how he felt - surely his heart ached as he arranged the wood sticks; perhaps his hands trembled as he gently placed his son on the altar. But Abraham surrendered without question. He simply obeyed. Ultimately, Abraham surrendered because he put his complete faith and trust in God.

What happened next was even more incredible: God told Abraham not to lay a hand on Isaac.

Genesis 22:13 (NKJV)
Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son.

I love how God not only honored Abraham’s heart of surrender, but He also opened his eyes to God’s faithfulness and provision. When we surrender and trust in God, He lifts our vision to see creative solutions. He enables us to experience fresh insights and facets of His character.

If you’re like me, you’re yearning for fresh revelation and enlarged vision from God during this 21-day period of prayer and fasting. Is God calling you to surrender something during the process? (besides steak and sweets) Perhaps it’s releasing a relationship. Or maybe letting go of an area in your finances. It could even be something deeper - pride, fear, shame, worry, or insecurity. Whatever it is, it may require sacrifice.

But God will honor your heart of surrender and sacrifice. Even more, He will then “lift” up your eyes.

Jenny Huang
Celebration Staff

Luke 7:11-14 (NIV)
¹¹ Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. ¹² As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. ¹³ When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.” ¹⁴ Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!”

Talk about an awakening! That’s what happened to this young man and to all of those around him. It speaks to me that there are lost people in our lives that have been given up on. We’ve built a “they’ll never get saved” casket around them and assumed there’s no hope.

Jesus has different things in mind.

There’s not a man-made label, stereotype, or lifestyle impervious to His touch. What He touches, He awakens!

I had a literal awakening the second night of the 21 day fast. At 2 a.m., I woke up to find my mind fixed on a friend of mine who’s in jail. It hit me that I needed to get up and pray.

I could feel I was leaving the ordinary and going somewhere way out of my normal, routine-driven life. After praying for my friend for some time, Christ put other people on my heart. I logged into my email contacts and found myself over the course of the next 5 hours emailing some 150 people, many of them lost friends and acquaintances of mine. As I sought to speak to each person unique and life-giving words, I felt waves of energy and hope.

The responses have been overwhelming. God is on the move.

It is the heart of Christ that all men would seek and find Him. As the sun rose, the sense grew stronger within me. Jesus began speaking to me about not giving up on anyone. What people had I labeled as dead spiritually with no chance of awakening?

Isn’t that the point of Jesus in Matthew 17:20-21?

Matthew 17:20-21 (NKJV)
²⁰ . . . if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. ²¹ However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

It’s these, the impossibles, that we fast and pray for.

And sometime back, maybe it was you or me someone had given up on for dead. But someone prayed. Maybe someone fasted. And we came to life through the touch of Jesus!

Let’s keep our eyes open and seek the Lord. And if you find it hard to sleep one night, maybe God is awakening something in you . . .

Pastor John D. Scott
Celebration Staff

Romans 7:21-25 (AMP)
²¹ So I find it to be a law (rule of action of my being) that when I want to do what is right and good, evil is ever present with me and I am subject to its insistent demands.

²² For I endorse and delight in the Law of God in my inmost self [with my new nature].

²³ But I discern in my bodily members [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh] a different law (rule of action) at war against the law of my mind (my reason) and making me a prisoner to the law of sin that dwells in my bodily organs [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh].

²⁴ O unhappy and pitiable and wretched man that I am! Who will release and deliver me from [the shackles of] this body of death?

²⁵ O thank God! [He will!] through Jesus Christ (the Anointed One) our Lord! So then indeed I, of myself with the mind and heart, serve the Law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

I have often heard people when faced with temptation or trial say, “the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14:38), and they are correct.

However, I believe that in error the emphasis is commonly placed on the flesh and its weakness. You see, as I read Jesus’ charge to his disciples, I read that “the spirit is willing.”

If you are reading this, your spirit is willing. If you have been thinking about fasting, your spirit is willing. If you have thought about tithing for the first time, your spirit is willing. If you know that you need to make a change in your life but just don’t know where to turn or which way to go, your spirit is willing.

As was the case for Paul thousands of years ago, so it is for you today as you read this. Whatever it is your spirit is leading you to do for God, you can be certain that your flesh will argue against it.

There will be plenty of reasons, plenty of excuses why it is not a good idea to press on. I encourage you with all my heart to press on, to lean on Jesus Christ and not on your own understanding.

If you have fallen, get up again. If you have stumbled, begin to run again with passion and determination.

2008 is going to be the greatest year of your life . . . indeed, the spirit is willing.

Josh Queitsch
Celebration Staff