Out of the Furnace

Most of what i have learned has come out of furnace experiences. Furnaces are those places of fiery trials and adversity. Furnace experiences are common to all, but the effects or outcomes vary in accord to our responses. We can get burnt to some degree, consumed or refined. In the latter, God is with His own in the midst of the refining fires to guide the process of melting us down and separating our new natures from our old flesh; to conforming us to the image of the Son.

God speaks to us out of the furnace of adversity in the midst of the pain with His presence reassuring us that He is in it with us. He gives us words (scripture, visions, dreams) to apply to our burnt places for healing and encouragement. I have come to trust Him more through each heat. It is a good thing for me as i have more heat to go through yet.

There is also the furnace of His presence; intense, intimate times where we are overwhelmed and barely able to stand. I can see why we will need transformed bodies to remain there. I see it as the furnace that contains the other furnaces.

There is another furnace that is important to me, a place of intercession and worship called the Prayer Furnace, a little white house called the Prayer Furnace; (aka www.pegwatch.com). It has come to be an important place to meet with the Lord for many in the church at Winnipeg. It is a house set apart for set apart folks who set apart their time to meet with the Father, intercede for others and receive His Heart for things that matter to Him as well as us. To me it is a vital part of day-to-day of body life where we can connect with Him and to each other. I see Him changing us and the way we do church with each other through that place.

It has a lot in common with the nature of the IHOP's south of the border as it operates on a 24/7/365 basis, but on a smaller scale. We share the same Spirit and heart, pray for the church, our nations and communities; the peace of Jerusalem. It operates on a schedule, manned by single or small groups of intercessors. The people and groups are represented by families, small groups within our fellowship, as well as other ministries in the city of Winnipeg.

I find The Furnace to have many facets. It is a place where we can come to be alone with the Lord, to intercede for others and to intercede with each other in His presence. It is a comfortable place to come for worship with others. It is the family room of the church where we can enjoy the Father together. Some families come for their devotional times. There is always someone at the Furnace.

Also like the IHOP's south of our border, it is a place where God is intimate with us, speaking directly and in power. It is in our intimate gathering together where i have found there is real life. We often think of gathering in the context of the event(s) of our church experiences; like Sundays or conferences and the like. We often think of Hebrews 10:25 in that context. The context does concern our communion (with Him and each other) for encouragement to love each other and to do the works that come out of that. Communion implies intimacy in relationships. It is hard for that level of intimacy to be realised in the context of an event alone without vital relationships.

As good as the larger programmatic events can be, it is hard to be intimate with one another in the Lord in the event unless we are intimate with Him and each other first. It is hard to do that in the framework of a couple hours or in a programmatic context. Ultimately, I believe the gathering the Lord does not want us to forsake is the intimate communion of saints. Consider how one could really consider and encourage one another to love and good works apart from an intimate fellowship. it is in the intimate times we experience the Father together where we find life.

I think the mission of the Furnace defined on the Pegwatch home page facilitates that intimate gathering quite well;

To Gather those who tremble for joy
for the pleasure of the One
Who seeks those
who worship in Spirit and in Truth.

There is no question that this Furnace was birthed out of a move of God. It has been gently raised and cared for out of obedience to a burden given to Jonathan and Carolyn, a couple who put their whole selves in to see God work in ways that can only be His work. The working of their courage, obedience and love for the Father and His Children is an encouragement in itself, as they walk in an observable daily dependence on His hand. It is a real blessing to see it at work.

I believe God is using it to change us individually so that He can change us corporately. He wants to connect with us so that we can connect with each other. I believe this a prominent facet of Kingdom living. The more we connect with the Father personally, the better we can connect with each other and demonstrate to the world that we are connected.

I have learned a good deal in this furnace, especially that we are to connect, not so much in the ways that we have come familiar with but in ways we all have to learn. Much of what i will write about comes out of the furnace and those vital connections with the Father and His children.

Like any move of God, it needs to be handled in reverence, as it is His desire for His Children. It needs to be guarded especially in this age where worldly influences press in with a great intensity. Many moves of God have become mere forms of godliness, taking on synthetic structures out of the world and of our own motives.

We need to guard against the things that can come out of our collective flesh; our natures that harbour them. Pride, jealousy and fear are powerful inhibitors of any move of God. Satan is waiting to put down moves like this and will leverage our flaws. The thin edge of his wedge is mis-understanding. Therefore we need to be vigilant and take personal responsibility to have the Lord sift our motives and to pray earnestly for one another and for understanding.

Thank you for being with me so far. I hope that you would continue with me. All posts are for your comment and our mutual edification.

We are in deed Blessed in Him.