"Fire up!"

Stepping Out in RED Shoes!

- Day 75 -

Holy Ghost Provoking!

Have you ever been provoked?  That's when somebody keeps at you -- poking and prodding -- relentlessly pushing all your buttons, until finally --  BOOM!  -- You let go! -- Lose your cool! -- Burst forth in anger!  It's not a good thing.  Unless, of course, it's a "Holy Ghost Provoking!"  Now that's an entirely different story.  That's what happened to me today, when I stepped out of my house and into The Harvest, in 
RED shoes!

      provoke  =  to bring about,  to awaken,  produce,  evoke, 
                             call forth,  excite,  kindle,  instigate,  prompt, 
                             stir,  trigger,  motivate,  spark,  inflame,  fire up.


a poker  is a metal rod with a handle used for prodding and stirring up a fire.

to stoke   is to add coal or other fuel to the fire, setting it ablaze.

to stir up  is to move things around -- get things going.



For several weeks now, I've been arriving at church early for the first service and staying straight through the second service.  The early service is, for the most part, the same as the later one, only shorter. The worship time is shorter and the message, out of necessity, is more concise.  The second service has no official end time.  I love that!  God has full liberty to do everything and anything because  He's not on a time schedule.

I hate to miss out on God.  I've been that way since the day I got saved.  If the doors of the church were open and something was going on, I was there.  I just never want to miss out on any move of God if I can help it.  I suppose everybody's thought process is different, but mine is this:

What could possibly top a move of God?

If God is doing something, I want to be front and center.

I don't want to just see what's going on either.

I want to be found right in the midst of it all!

What's better than that?   Nothing!

Even though this morning's early service was well attended, it was still a smaller group in comparison.  I don't know, maybe 75 people?  We had a nice worship service.  Everyone seemed engaged.  We took up the offering and moved on to the preaching.  As the pastor greeted the congregation, he boldly exhorted the people to give a good praise unto the Lord.  People responded with clapping and a few shouts of praise.  The pastor, in the Spirit, seemed unsatisfied.  He shouted out... "Come on!  You can praise Him better than that!"  People clapped and shouted a little more.  "Let me hear a Hallelujah!"  he provoked again and again.

At first I just went along with the crowd.  I shouted out a praise, clapping with zeal.  But after one or two times of that, I noticed something very unusual.  I felt like I was being spiritually nudged and prodded.  It was wonderfully irritating.  What does that mean?  Well... my flesh was a little irritated.  Spiritually, I was being pushed around a little.  The pastor was pushing my buttons.  He was stirring up the coals in my heart and stoking the fire.  Every time he jeered a remark in my direction, I could feel my Spirit being moved.  Nudge!  Nudge!   Poke!  Poke!   He simply wouldn't give up!  The sensation got stronger and stronger!

Then it happened.  

The smoldering coals burst into flames!

KABOOM!

"Hallelujah!"  I shouted.  "Hallelujah!"  

Once again --  "Hallelujah!  Hallelujah!"  

By the time I hit the fifth "Hallelujah!"  BOOM!  The Holy Spirit stepped in to join me -- Well... actually, it was more like He took over.   The "Hallelujahs"   came from the deepest part of my core and pushed their way up through my chest cavity and out of my mouth like a volcanic eruption!

"Hallelujah!"         "Hallelujah!"     "Hallelujah!"      "Hallelujah!"    

"HALLELUJAH!!!"

"HALLELUJAH!!!"

"HALLELUJAH!!!'

I can't even describe the voltage that ran through my body when that happened.  All I know is that the people seemed to recognized the move of the Spirit and joined in with their applause to Him!  When it was over, I sat down in my seat, speechless, as leftover electricity moved through my body.


There's something so magnificent about such an experience.  I am not a novice at this, but even so, I am always amazed.  As a Christian, I know that the Holy Spirit lives in me.

The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 6:19...

 "Do you not know that your bodies are 

temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, 

whom you have received from God?  

You are not your own;"   

 But when that happens -- when the divine mixes in partnership with my natural man -- I become so aware that He is sharing Himself with me.   How funny that Pastor's message today included Genesis 15:1

"...I am your exceedingly great reward."

Being in His presence -- Walking and talking with Him --  Being filled and used by Him -- Intertwined in the Spirit -- Whispering secrets to one another.  That's what a Divine Relationship looks like.  That's a reward that surpasses all things!  I live for that! 

What a great way to end one week and start a new week.

In RED shoes,

Gail