Fill Me Up

Acts 7:48, “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands…”

About 17 years ago I encountered what I call the manifested, overwhelming presence of God. I might even be able to say the reoccurring manifested overwhelming presence of God. This encounter, if you will, occurred during worship at the church I attended. I won’t go into details about the experience, but I will say that the reoccurring part happened at every service for a few years. Pentecostals might call this “revival.” And in fact the Assemblies of God did call it revival because this “movement” seemed to have been birthed at a little church in Pensacola Florida called Brownsville Assembly of God.

It was an incredible time. For me I associated this awareness of the presence of God with the service. I assumed that it was a fulfillment of when two or more are gather in His name that He is in their midst. (Matt 18:20) Some claimed the experience which was universally shared by thousands simultaneous was because of intercession. Other’s claimed it was an anointing or special call on a minister. Whatever the case, I chased that “presence” literally all over the world.

Tommy Tinney wrote a book called “The God Chasers” and I was very much one of these people. I made multiple trips to the “revival” in Pensacola. I went to multiple churches in Louisiana chasing this “presence.” Also included was an incredible trip to Argentina and a powerful meeting in California. The experience was also enjoyed in Mexico and El Salvador. But in the end, the “universal” manifestation of the presence of God seemed to dwindle. For me as an individual there remained the lessor connection in worship, but the “out pouring” seemed to be gone.

For years I wondered why the “revival” ended so to speak. I looked for whom to blame. I wondered to myself and aloud whether a minister’s sin had killed it. But what I know now is that “revival” in the universal, overwhelming, uncontrolled since is not meant to last. It really is meant to be a taste of what is possible. It is I believe in so many ways a gift of a glimpse into the Kingdom of Heaven, but for the presence to be lasting in the individual, the individual must discover God and His kingdom outside the corporate environment. We must experience the failure of the institution and edifice of church in order to be drawn to the overwhelming manifested presence of God outside of it. And it really in the end is not even an overwhelming manifested presence. In the end, as the Christian begins to “walk” in the kingdom of God, it is nothing more than the awareness of what is already there, namely Christ in you.

I don’t think that I have many “regular” or “daily” followers of this blog that actually view it on the web in its original content. If I do, no one seemed to ask why the song selection for the last several posts has not changed? The reason is what I write now.

In that time of “revival” years ago the worship was about “come Lord.” It was asking God to manifest, it was asking God to join. The preaching was about “getting God to move.” Today those same songs almost bring a sadness to me because there is such a deeper, ever present expression of God’s love and presence available all day every day in any environment. He is there waiting for you and I to simply be “aware” He is there. My prayer is not that God show up, my prayer is that He would fill me up with this awareness. The Spirit is there. The “fire” is there. The "river" is there. My need is the awareness. My need is to be so filled up that my spiritual eyes see nothing more than Him.

This is not to say forsake the gathering of the saints, or in any way say church, preaching, or corporate worship is unnecessary. After all, when Jesus’ parents lost Him as a child where was He found? In Church Luke 2 tells us.

This post has been on my heart some 9 days now, so why, and what' the point? I guess the point is that inside the kingdom of God, or better said, in the awareness of the kingdom of God inside of you there is a personal revival that not only rivals, but surpasses any expression of the presence God in a corporate way. When you experience it, it will be hard if not impossible to articulate. When you experience it, you will mysterious encounter others who are experiencing it as well, and though neither of you can communicate specifics you know that you share an experience. If you are outside this experience then I think it begins with “Fill Me up.”

For those of you are subscribed by e-mail I challenge you to go to the web version of this post and listen to the worship attached as I know it doesn’t come through on the e-mails.  Or here is the link if you are unable. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JobolRMC_Bg