2 Corinthians 8:9 
For you know the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.

I heard a brilliant point about the poverty of Jesus a while ago...  If there was any king in the world who deserved to arrive in fanfare, the most prestigious palace and beautiful of settings, it was Jesus.  Jesus is the King of kings.  He created everything we see, and everything we don't see!  (Col. 1:16)  You would have expected His manifestation and birth on Earth to have been a bit more prestigious.

And yet, the Creator of all things arrived to one of the poorest families in Jerusalem, a family who couldn't even secure a room to stay in at the time of His birth.  And His first crib?  A bed of dirty straw where animals eat.  This doesn't sound like royalty at all does it?

This is the humility and security of our King.  In no way ever does He feel the need to show off His majesty and all-consuming power.  Ever.  The only time He did while on Earth was out of compassion.

It is an incredible thought!

But why?  Why would the King of all kings do such a thing?  Enter this world in such humility?  It baffles the reasoning mind.  You see, Jesus didn't need a thing to know His identity.  Jesus didn't need any external form of power or authority to know who He was and where He was from.  He also needed to show this world the power of the "other world", the Kingdom of Heaven.

But another incredible reason is that Jesus willfully chose not to have such wealth and riches and be born into hard-working poverty so that mankind could be redeemed from the slave-driving antics of the enemy!  Dictatorial leadership and slavery is a brainchild of satan.  Jesus came under it in order to redeem us from it!

Friends, Jesus gave up His riches for you and I!  He gave up His authority in this world so we could have it!  My friend, by the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus, you have been redeemed to a position of royalty and authority!  Don't ever use this identity to wield power over others, it should be used to serve others.

If your heart only longs to glorify God and see His Kingdom established here on Earth, God will bless you to be a blessing!  God wants to bless the nations through you.  Thank Jesus that today you can access a life of success and blessing because Jesus gave up such a life.   Believe today the work of Jesus on your behalf, and begin to walk in His blessings.  Step by step, you will find yourself blessing more and more around you as you simply walk in who you are as a Royal child of the Creator!

There is NOTHING Like the Manifest Presence of God!

Exodus 33:14 - 16
The LORD replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."
Then Moses said to Him, "If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.  How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us?  What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the Earth?"

As you may know, the context of this conversation between God and Moses is that God said to Moses that He will send them an Angel to lead them into the Promised Land from that point on, and no longer would He Himself go with them.

This is an interesting point to take note of.  While theoretically, we know that God is everywhere.  But He is not Manifest everywhere.  Much like water vapour is everywhere, it's strength and power is felt in stronger measures:  Water vapour, condensed water droplets, rain, a river, an ocean, the depths of an ocean.  You get the idea?  In the same way, the Presence of God is everywhere (like water vapour) but is felt in deeper measures where He chooses to Manifest Himself.

Moses didn't want the comfort of knowing God is everywhere all the time (omnipresent).  Nor was he even satisfied with the physical presence of Angel leading him!  (Most of us would have settled for that!)  Moses had already experienced something greater...  the Manifest Presence of God.  And He could no longer live without it.  If God's Manifest Presence was not going to go with the Israelites into the Promised Land, Moses would rather have the Israelites stay in the desert where His Manifest Presence was.

Friends, as children of God we have the privilege of knowing the direct connection to God Himself.  And when we tap into that, even our physical appearance will change!  (See 2 Corinthians 3:13 and 18!)  There is nothing like the experience of being touched by the Manifest Presence of God.  To be in a place where His Presence is there in Glory.  It is life-changing.

His Presence distinguishes us from other people.  His Presence makes us radiate.  His Presence brings joy.  His Presence brings peace.  People can see someone radiating the Presence of God, even unbelievers.

Friends, God wants us to be refreshed in His Presence.  God wants to Manifest Himself among us!  In our meetings, in our times of worship and prayer, in our homes, etc.  It is not a list of to-dos that He is after in order to come.  He is not waiting for us to clean ourselves up.  He is just looking for hunger.  Do you long for the Presence of God?

I don't know about you, I am not satisfied with a few songs and a well-worded prayer.  I want Him!  I want His Presence.  I long for a touch of the Manifest Presence of God!  I find if I haven't experienced His Presence for a period of time (sometimes this is a few days, sometimes a few weeks!), my heart starts to long for Him.  Like a thirst that comes out of nowhere, I start craving Him.  Often, that craving becomes so strong all it takes is one favourite song in the car and His Presence manifests.  That's the power of hunger.

If you don't have such a hunger, don't be condemned!  Next week we'll cover this in further detail.

Until then, may you experience the Presence of God in greater measures!  Especially this Sunday at the church gathering!

In Honour of Richard Baasch

2 Corinthians 4:16 - 18
Therefore we do not lose heart.  Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.  For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

This week, along with his own family and friends, the family of Highway lost a precious friend.  Richard Baasch passed away on the morning of Tuesday 7 February 2012 peacefully.  This post is dedicated to, and inspired by, Richard.  May what our Heavenly Father has placed on my heart today inspired by Richard's life inspire you in whatever it is that you have faced in this life, or are facing right now.

Some of you may not know Richard, but many of you will.  Either way, he is been a faithful and joyful member of the Highway family for almost two decades, and his presence will be missed among us.  The challenges that he faced and the way in which he faced and overcame them are well worth dedicating this post to.

Richard was commonly seen in the front rows of the church, walking to them before the service began using his walking aide.  For those that don't know, Richard has battled to walk ever since he was hit by a car in his matric year about four decades ago.  Many said he should've died, but through constant prayer and the declaration of God's Life throughout his life, he overcame every challenge possible to lead as normal a life as possible.

Obviously, when one has a deep conviction from Scripture that God wants people physically well and healthy, it is difficult to see others (especially friends and family) in pain or battle in this life.  I don't believe we should ever stop praying, or accept it as God's will (Scripture is too overwhelming to do that) but we also recognise that there is the reality of trials when living in a fallen world.  (Bill Johnson says that these are the sufferings the Bible talks about in Scripture - the tension of knowing the Truth of God's Word verse the facts that we often face everyday).

And this is why I have highlighted this passage here today...  The more we know the Truth of what is happening (and has happened) to us in the Spiritual Realm, the more hope we get.  These momentary troubles associated with this fallen world are seen by God, and I am convinced they will be comforted and honoured by Him when we see Him in His fullness!  The Father will remember those trials we went through, and He will encourage us beyond what we could ever imagine. This is a Glorious Day to look forward to!

I am very careful to highlight the fact that all the Glory of the God is reserved for that day in the future, because I think the church for too long has put off so many of the Promises of God for the future.  While I believe the revelation of the Fullness of the Glory of God is a Day well worth looking forward to, I also believe a lot more of God's Promises are available now than we realise!

But it is in times like these that we turn to the Truth that some of our best days are on the other side of this life.  And how happy I am sure Richard would be about that!  It was this Hope that kept him going.  And it is his example that we can take encouragement from.

When we realise the Love of our Father, and what He will do for us on the other side of this life for the challenges we have faced, it will inspire and encourage us to get through anything!  We can receive the trials that we face today with a confidence that God sees them, and won't forget them.  Our Loving Father will never forget what we went through!

So friends, I want to encourage you and remind you today...  what awaits us on the other side of this often troubled life is a Life free from all pain, sorrow and grief!  What a Hope we have!  What a Day to look froward to!

Like Richard, may this Truth inspire you to face your trials head-on and with joy!  Knowing your Dad won't let you down!

Richard Baasch, thank you for the inspiration that your life was.  We will always remember it.  We look forward to seeing you in Glory.

Sorrow Is Temporary, Joy Is Eternal

Psalm 30:4 - 5
Sing to the Lord, you saints of His;
praise His Holy Name.
For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favour lasts a lifetime;
weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

Many of us know this verse, especially the last part.  But it is a pity that "familiarity breeds contempt".  We become so accustomed to a saying or verse, that it can lose its power.  As Christians, we need to be so careful of this unfortunate reality.  Take John 3:16 for example, it is one of the most powerful verses in all of Scripture, yet because we know it so well, the power in its truth seems to have less of an impact on us.  We need fresh revelation to regain the power in these verses.  I believe this is what the Grace Revolution is all about.  But that's for another day and another article.

The point is, don't let the power of this verse here be watered down by familiarity.  It is a powerful truth!  Let's have a look at it...

God's anger only lasts for a moment, but His Favour lasts for a lifetime!  Isn't that stunning?  Now, put this into the context of God's plan, and we see that this is a clear picture of the Cross.  God's anger is not as infinite and eternal as His Love, Grace or Favour.  God is by very Nature Loving, Good and Kind.

Now, that is not to water down the danger or severity of sin.  But we need to recognise that God's anger and punishment was dealt with because He Himself absorbed all sin and death into the body of His own Son Jesus.  (In fact, He absorbed it Himself because He was in Christ at the time of the Crucifixion! 2 Cor. 5:19)   Friends, God's anger toward sin has been appeased!  He took it upon Himself and dealt with it!  Now what remains are eternal days of Favour!

But you may not be living in days of Favour.  Well, this is why the next verse is so important; "sorrow lasts for a night, but joy comes in the morning."  Friends, sorrow is temporal!  We must understand that we will go through trials in this life.  It won't be easy.  There will be times when life is tough.  But the good news is that there will be breakthrough!  Joy will come!  No matter what we are facing, we can be confident that eternal days of Joy and Favour will come to us!  Whether it is in this life or the next, either way, we will enjoy eternal days of Joy!  This is what Heaven is all about; JOY!

Friends, with such a hope, it is so much easier to face this life.  No matter what we are going through we can face it with an expectant hope that God promises us days of Favour and Joy.  This brings such hope to any situation.

I know that many of us face trials over this Christmas holiday period.  But be encouraged that God cares for you more than you know.  And He wants you to know that any stress or difficulty you may be facing is only temporal, and there is a joy that you can even tap into right now that lasts for eternity!

The Power of Knowing Your True Identity

1 Corinthians 13:12
Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

As you can see by the red text, I would like to draw your attention to the final phrase in this verse...  "even as I am fully known."  This gives us a great indication as to what Paul was referring to when he said "now I know in part, then I shall know fully."  He was talking about his very own identity.  Not who God is, not what God is like (which we will eternally see more and more) but Paul was referring to his very own identity, who HE is.

God knows exactly who you are.  But not in the way you think.  God sees you as who you truly are, in the spirit.  He sees your true value.  Remember, He paid the highest possible price for you (1 Cor. 6:20), He gave up everything He had to buy you back (Matt 13:44), that's how valuable you are.  You are more valuable than you could ever imagine.  You may not yet know it, but God knows exactly how valuable you are.  You are more precious and valuable than all of the world's minerals and resources combined!

Paul is saying that even he hasn't clearly seen his true identity.  He has an idea of it, he sees a reflection, but he hasn't seen it in its entirety.  And there will come a day when he, like us, will see who we truly are.  After all, it has been said so often that we are like Jesus even in this world!  (1 John 4:17)  (Now, let me say, it doesn't necessarily say that we will only experience this revelation after this life - something to ponder!)

Friends, the more we come to understand (by revelation) how valuable we are in the eyes of the Creator of the Universe and the more we come to understand who we truly are and who He created us to be, we will live remarkable lives!  We will live lives of unconditional Love toward one another, we will live with a strange positivity as we are unaffected by the negative circumstances that surround us, we will live powerfully and with authority.

I pray that today, we would come into a further revelation of our true value, our true identity, and so be further transformed outwardly into the likeness of the Image of Jesus, our Big Brother.  (2 Cor. 3:18)