The Seed Of FaithIn The Hands Of

The Believer

June 2011

KoinoniaSummer Edition

The word has such a multitude of meanings that no single Englishword is adequate to express its depth and richness. It is a derivativeof koinos, the word for common. Koinonia is a complex, rich, andthoroughly fascinating Greek approach to building community orteamwork.

Koinonia embraced a strong commitment to Kalos k'agathosmeaning "good and good", an inner goodness toward virtue, andan outer goodness toward social relationships. In the context ofouter goodness, translated into English, the meaning of koinoniaholds the idea of joint participation in something with someone,such as in a community, or team or an alliance or joint venture.Those who have studied the word find there is always animplication of action included in its meaning. The word is meaning-rich too, since it is used in a variety of related contexts.

Sharing

Koinonos means 'a sharer' as in to share with one another in apossession held in common. It implies the spirit of generous sharingor the act of giving as contrasted with selfish getting. Whenkoinonia is present, the spirit of sharing and giving becomestangible. In most contexts, generosity is not an abstract ideal, but ademonstrable action resulting in a tangible and realistic expressionof giving.

In classical Greek, koinonein means "to have a share in a thing," aswhen two or more people hold something, or even all things, incommon. It can mean "going shares" with others, thereby having"business dealings,” such as joint ownership of a ship. It can alsoimply "sharing an opinion" with someone, and therefore agreeingwith him, or disagreeing in a congenial way. Only participation as acontributive member allows one to share in what others have. Whatis shared, received or given becomes the common ground throughwhich Koinonia becomes real.

Relationships

To create a bond between comrades is the meaning of koinoniawhen people are recognized, share their joy and pains together, andare united because of their common experiences, interests andgoals. Fellowship creates a mutual bond which overrides eachindividual’s pride, vanity, and individualism, fulfilling the humanyearning with fraternity, belonging, and companionship. Thismeaning of koinonia accounts for the ease by which sharing andgenerosity flow. When combined with the spiritual implications ofkoinonia, fellowship provides a joint participation in God’s gracesand denotes that common possession of spiritual values

KOINONIA

What is the fallow ground of our lives? Well as I sat to write this the Lord said that itwas the lost opportunities that have been put to one side in order to fit in the world’sagenda. The fallow ground is like the field that has been left to grow wild. It once wasploughed and used to bring forth a harvest and fruit. But now it has become anabandoned piece of land that is serving no purpose and has become ineffective to itsimmediate surroundings..

God is saying that this has happened to His body the Church it has abandoned its firstlove so as to please its surroundings, instead of being the life changer that He gaveHis only Son to die for. The fallow ground is the minds of some of His people who haveswitched off to the call on their lives. What this message is about is a prompt from Godto relight the field of calling in the people of God to put new life into not only their livesbut to bring the fruit of the harvest into the world about them. This message is a 7 stepmovement to bring about a harvest mindset. To produce a harvest that will be of thechoicest exotic fruit. To produce a Kingdom mindset in the people of God.

Step 1.

Removing the stones and weeds from the field

Before anything can be used it needs to cleared so as to produce a clean sheet tobegin the work of the Harvest. A farmer would set about this by clearing all the stonesout of the field and placing them on the edge of the field. May I suggest that’s what weneed to start in our mind set. We need to put all the things that interfere with the waysof God and to place them to one side. You see the farmer makes a wall out of theloose stones and it has a use as it becomes part of the edge of protection around thefield. The same is true of the things that we set aside, as some of these things can beuseful and be part of a defence system. And as we get into situations that requiredefending against we can call on some of those things to be a weapon of protection.Once all the stones are cleared and the overgrowth which for me is the cover ofdisguise that keeps us away from the truth of God’s purposes. It’s time to take all thatovergrowth and to burn it.

(Step 1 is preparation time. Clear the overgrowth and remove the stones.)

Step Two

Ploughing the soil

Then comes the ploughing of the hard ground, this can be a tough job as the groundhas become very firm and the first cut into the ground will take a lot of energy and time.Think of this when you ever start a new way doing something it always seem to behard to do and to maintain. I remember this when I started the (“Hidden Rain”) wordof the day. I found the first week great no problem, but as each day passed I began towonder in my thoughts and started to doubt that to do it each day seems a bit timeconsuming and could I do it better. There you go my stones started to return to do itwhat I thought was a better way once a week write the whole lot. But that was not whatGod asked me to do, so I quickly put that stone of (I can do better) back to the edge ofthe wall and returned to the daily posting. Since that time there has been nearly 700people visit the word of the day and its been over 150 days since its beginning. So Iencourage you to persist in doing something as you proceed in the journey, it will notbe long before the whole field gets ploughed.

( Step 2 is ploughing with persistence)

HIDDEN RAINwww.ktcoth.com

Step 3

Waiting for The Rain

The next step needs patience as it requires waiting. For me this is a hard discipline tolearn, but one that is absolutely essential to getting the very best from anything we do.For without the rain there would be no cultivating as the soil would be too dry and therichness of the soil could not be used for the rest of the harvest process. So to put intoour faith walk we need to lay open the work that we cleared and ploughed and wait forthe right time to go forward. This is the work of the Holy Spirit that is the rain thatneeds to fall. So as we lay this out in prayer and wait the rain will come and when itdoes get ready to move as this will be time to plough a new season into being.

(Step 3 Wait for the Holy spirit to Rain down on your field)

Step 4

Plough The Refreshed Ground

This step I like to call the mixing bowl, as it takes the soil that has be moistened by therain and turns it into furrows of beautiful soil that is ready for the next stage. So for usthis means that we take the ideas and the callings that we have and we then serve inthe strengths of them in the local church and communities that we live in. Or even if Idare to say in the work places and with family where we spend a lot of our time. Thisis where we really grow in confidence and it is also a fantastic opportunity toevangelise.

(Step 4 Plough the Refreshed Ground and share the experience)

Step 5

Add the Fertiliser to the Ground

The next area to look at is where does all the richness of the soil come from and howdoes it get into the soil. Well this can be a bit smelly and not everyone will like to dothis as it takes participation and a lot of proclaiming. First you have to collect themanure and then you have to deliver to your field. For me this is a soaking part of theprocess and it requires a little homework and a lot of prayer. Finding out the promisesof God on your field means that you will have to research to find out what the Biblesays about your field. That will take time as there is so much information in thescriptures about all circumstances. Then when you have discovered the promises it isthen that you have to pray and meditate on them this is the fertilising part of theprocess. Once this has been done it would be good to come alongside someone whoyou trust and to ask them to pray with you on this. That then seems to be the good timeto lay the fertiliser onto your field and to start the next part of the process.

(Step 5 Soak in the Word and fertilise the ground)

Step 6

Plough the Ground of Expectation

This for me is the part that most try to do without following the the first 5 stages aboveand that is why so many seeds never turn out a harvest. They have not had the propercare given to their environment so that it does not stand a chance to survive. So as youplough the ground for the third time remember that as you do this that this will be the

The turning point of seeing your faith come alive and what is in the unseen is about to become seen. This is atime to gather the seed bags as the soil is in the right state to receive it and the time has come to plant seeds offaith in the entire field.

(Step 6 Plough with a mind set of expectation)

Step 7

Plant The Seed

The best bit and properly the bit that everyone likes doing and that is setting out the seeds so as to be in a placefor the harvest to happen. I really believe that it is a time that most people enjoy as Christians in their walk.For it is this time that most Christians find it easy to declare the truths of God, and that it is only a short timebefore what they say in faith becomes reality in the seen. This then is the blessing that poured out on all whenwe handle the fallow ground and use it for the Lord to glorify the Kingdom Of God

(Step 7 Celebrate the Seed Planting)

Planting By A River Bank Not A StreamProphetic Word May 2011

By Kevin Hussey

I have noticed that many people, have placed their hopes on things that aren'tseen. Nowhere else is this truer than in the world of faith. Many people spend alot of time planting their seed along the edge of the stream. It is has led to peoplebelieving in false hope and when things do not happen that they put their faith in.They become disillusioned and give up on the things that they were hoping for.This has led to many believers giving up on their dreams and their ambitions tobe effective witnesses in the Kingdom of God. I have found that if they hadplaced their seed in the correct place along the banks of a river they would notbe so disappointed in the results of their faith.

The problem with words of faith, if it not handled in the correct manner, cancause more harm and false promises, that's why so many believers have givenup on their calling because they did not see the effect of the stream when itbecame a river. Many people felt comfortable planting their seed next to a smalltrick of water believing that it would become a mighty tree. The trouble withstreams is that they get bigger and are often swallowed up by other streams.This occurs many times in our calling for when we come alongside people whohave planted their seed along the riverbank that is not seen. People tend to thinkthat these people have missed the boat. When in actual fact these people havevision and will be around to be an effective witness in the future. The trouble withplanting your seed along the stream bed is that it is in danger of getting washedaway. So I would encourage you to plot your seed far from the stream bed andfocus on where the river will eventually settle. This I call the big vision as this iswhere God wants us to be we can be of more effect with a river mind set than astream mind set. It says in Ezekiel chapter 47:7

" when I arrived there I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. Hesaid to me this water flows towards the eastern region and goes down into the

Arab where it enters the sea. When it empties into the sea and the waterbecomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live where ever the river flows.There will be large numbers of fish, because the water flows there and makes

the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live.

This passage I believe is what happens when we plant our seed along the banksof the River. We are here to be witnesses of the Kingdom to a dying world, andwhat this says to us is that if we plant correctly we will bring life to this world andthere will be plenty of supply. As I meditated on this I thought how wonderful it isto receive from God promises that not only make a change would bring hope.

A Renewed Mind

TheTransformed

Life

Once we realise who we are we then have the new information tobe able to find out what it is that have been put on the earth for.For God wants to work through you and me not any imitation orany other person than your true self. So now that you have seenthrough the previous article “What Are You Like? That a lot of theactions that you do are sometimes not the right thing to do but arejust preconceived ideas that have been put there by others. Therecomes a time in your life or maybe more than one time, you startto think about if things could be better or if they will be bettersomewhere out in the future.

Well the good thing is there is a solution to your identity whichyou may have not considered before. That thought pattern goesback right to the creation moment when God created humanbeings to be in the likeness and the image of Himself. And Godsaid, Let us make man in our image, like us: and let him have ruleover the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over thecattle and over all the earth and over every living thing which goesflat on the earth. And God made man in his image, in the image ofGod he made him: male and female he made them.

So what a thought right at the beginning we were meant to becreative, not just in our early years but also in our entire life span.For it is the renewing that brings strength; Isaiah 40:31 says; Butthose who are waiting for the Lord will have new strength; theywill get wings like eagles: running, they will not be tired, andwalking, they will have no weariness. What it takes is for us tolisten to Him and there are many ways in which we can do thatthrough our worship of Him. Of course if you do not have arelationship with Him then you won’t understand Him, so the firstthing is to ask Him to come into relationship with Him as this willthen start to produce the correct fruit from the branch. Which bythe way is a metaphor to living in the right relationship with Him.The vine (Jesus) being the source of supply from which the branch(us) gets it’s nourishment. In other words we are the branches inwhich the supply from the roots and the vine pass through toproduce fruit.

You see it is not by achieving by our own strengths that we get thebest results. We can see that through the western world by itscontinuing pursuit of result driven mind set. No we never feeltotally fulfilled that way all that seems to happen is that we justneed something else. What we need today is a new attitude to whathappens when we approach things with a clean heart or as I should

Say a new approach to the way that wethink. Psalm 51:10 says; Create in mea clean heart, O God; And renew aright spirit within me.

By being in the spirit helps when arenewed mind is being created as it iswhen we are open to change we see themost effective change. Also cominginto agreement with something opensup the window of opportunity to have atransformed life. So as it says in Phil2:2; Make my joy complete by being ofthe same mind, having the same love,being in harmony and of one mind.

The Next Step is living

BeingTransformed

Once the mind has been renewed then it will automaticallytransform your life. It will start to be a creative part of youproducing new opportunities. Most importantly it will helpyou to remain strong and empower you to resist thetemptation that have had such a grip over you in the past.For an example of the power of a renewed mind we onlyhave to pick up the Bible and go to Matthew 4 and see thetemptations that Christ went through after spending 40 daysand nights in the desert. When tempted to be part ofsomething that went against the truth he kept on remindingnot only Satan but also his mind the truth. He quoted backthe word and promises of God . He also knew that Satanwas trying to use thought patterns to destroy all that wasplanned for Him.

By reminding yourself of the promises, it has an effect onhow we do things. For as it says in Ephesians 2:10 For byhis act we were given existence in Christ Jesus to do thosegood works which God before made ready for us so that wemight do them. He made ready a plan for us but He is notgoing to force us to do it, as it says so that we might dothem. Then as we take onboard the promises and truth wehave the weapons that help us to defeat the things thathinder our inheritance.

The interesting thing about that encounterwas that when it was finished it says and Hewas hungry. I believe He was not just hungryfrom not having any food, but that He gotexcited about how powerful the word of truthwas against the enemy. And what we canlearn from this is that if we spend time notlistening to the world as it tries to bombardour minds with an array of visual andauditory information. Then we can replace itwith words of truth it feeds us with new lifeand ultimately produce brand newopportunities.

So as we come to an end of these articles Ithink we can see a pattern forming. Once wecome to terms about the way we think wehave then something to compare with theword. By weighing up the life decisionsagainst the Word we then have a time ofreflection. So by finding out What you arelike you then come to a relationship with thecreator and that relationship then forms atrust. From that trust comes a truth and thattruth then becomes a tool to renew the mind.Once the renewing of the mind happens itbecomes the agent for transformation.

Once transformed it then produces fruit thatwill have a lasting effect not only on yourselfbut also on those closest to you and the entire

Ephesians 4:24

And put on the newman, to which God has

given life, inrighteousness and a trueand holy way of living.

Investing in Idea’s

01273 930112

It’s Not Always

About What You See

This Chapter talks about this in detail. We will see by studying thispassage that there are lots of things that come out of a life that isfollowing God and as we approach with a heart set on finding this truemeaning of a relationship with God. Verse 1 sets in mind that we havean assurance that when this earthly temple comes to an end that wehave a much more permanent temple and that is one not made byhands. It is not put under the authority of the fleshly body but underthe creator Himself. There is nothing like the Godly temple that we goon to a a believer in Christ.

The Earthly body is subject to many trials and burdens in which thereis a heaviness of slavery. Which after time becomes tiresome and canif not put into perspective with the future place that we as believershave with God for all eternity. This makes us feel like the verse saysin Romans 7:24 “O wretched man that I am”. We are here for a timein which we have a journey as well as every one else, to be a witness.But when we go from this earth we will leave it the same as weentered it naked and with nothing. When we enter into the new life ofthe heavenly body we will be clothed with garments of praise andwith garments of righteousness and glory. We will be delivered out ofall earthly troubles and we shall be washed clean by the blood of theLamb. Made to be clean in front of our God. This is the believersassurance not insurance but something that is so absolutely assuredthat it becomes something (Faith) in this journey here on earth.

The journey here on earth is one that will shape the building stones ofthe heavenly body. Whilst were here on earth it is our life's purposeto use all that God has given us to proclaim the wonderful heart of thecreator Himself. We are placed here with all our circumstances andwith fellow journeymen for a reason and that reason is to minister tothe environment the Gospel (the good news) of a saviour that will notonly minister to the the heart of the community but also to the wholeworld. The most important thing of all is that this will be workedthrough each one of us as we surrender to Him, with all that we have.God loves a willing heart and that heart has the potential to be thecatalyst to changing the world to the message of the good news. Thenby the receiving of that message there will be a newness that will seethe world operating in a KINGDOM mind set, full of absolute truthsthat will bless the people, community and the nations in which we livein.

As in all things. its about what we put our faith in and as we put ourfaith in the Kingdom promises we will see that it is not all about whatwe see in the physical but that it is also about what we put our trust in.Make that your goal as we look at the work of the Holy Spirit in ourlife’s.

"And I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened toyou. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If ason asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he givehim a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil,

know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the HolySpirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:9-13).

The way in which we get closer to God is by prayer and previously in this passage He shows us a way in whichour prayers can be effective and have power in them. Then once we understand the power of prayer comes anunderstanding of the relationship that He wants with us. Its all about the Kingdom and how by living theKingdom lifestyle we become participants of His purposes.

God is in the business of relationship and He intends to bless each person. The only thing that we have to do is tocome into relationship with Him by accepting His son Jesus. Once we come into that relationship, we thenbecome citizens of the Kingdom and then we fall into the promises of the King. When Jesus left us He said thatHe would send another who would encourage us and guide us in the way we should go. Sometimes we get thisand when that happens we know that we know that He as been present. But how much more exciting would it beto in a continuing state of relationship that in all we do there is a constant relationship with the Holy Spirit.

Too many times I hear Christians say come Holy Spirit or Holy Spirit be here today. But the truth of the matter isthat the Holy Spirit is always present as soon as we accepted Jesus and became a new creation. Its only then thatwe experience a change and that change seems very evident when we first come to the Lord. But after a littlewhile we let the flesh take over again and then we settle into a life that starts to resemble the life before we weresaved. How much more would it be if we grew in our new creation mind set and then allow God to work throughus to fulfil His plan for us and the rest of the world. I believe that when we look at this we will see where otherthings have got in the way and that it has ruined the progress in our spiritual life. What can we do to resolve this?

Well I think its about taking what Jesus said about what will happen after He left us and went to heaven and thento accept again that He sent the person of the Holy Spirit to be in relationship with us. Ask again to be remindedof this and to start again being the new creation that you were designed to be. How you ask? Well how about justpressing in by prayer and asking Him. For He said in His word that we should ask (Praying means asking in otherwords bringing it to God) so start to re-energise your prayer life. The greatest of witness for God have alwaysbeen those who spent time in prayer. It is amazing how The Holy Spirit loves to act on the promises of God andas He hears the promise He totally acts upon it and expects it to manifest. The only barrier that hinders this is usas we get in the way. Once we surrender to the Holy Spirit and begin to respond to His prompting we will seethings begin to happen. So why not decide to seek His ways by asking or should I say talking to God and waitingon the Holy Spirit to reveal His purposes so that we can declare it to the world.

Pressing In on theSpirit of God

The fruit of the Spirit as stated in scripture says there arenine fruits of the Spirit. What God is doing is giving us atarget so that we have something to aim at so that we knowhow we are doing. You need to honest as to your positionbecause if you are not it will not help the end result. Weneed to do some investigation in to where we are. InGalatians 5:16 it's says that we should live by the Spirit andnot by the flesh. When your flesh is fighting the things ofGod there is a battle going on. Living In the Spirit meansthat when we were saved we took on a new nature a Christnature. It wants to be Godly but the flesh fights against thatat times. God works through us when we look to Him wealso see it through the signs in nature. We all know what theflesh wants because it let's us know through our feelings.And that some times causes us to do what is not alwaysgood for you. When we become new creation in Christ wethen have a conflict arise, the flesh says to us what you orothers want to happen and we get guided by that. But, whenthe Christ Spirit guilds us through the fruit of the Spiritwhich is the very character of Christ. It is our guild to beingmore like Him in everything we do. The flesh nature is inconflict with spiritual nature. The acts of the flesh are manyas it says in Galatians it stats just some of the effects of theflesh being manifested through the lives of those whofollow after the flesh. But when we live by the Spirit andthen start to walk in the Spirit we have a different list thatsets out ways of doing something. The whole list is Godsway of saying that against such things in the list we do notneed the law because it becomes not necessary because itbecomes powerless. It also becomes a fantastic way to makedecisions by using the list we can make wise decision thatwill have an effect on our generation. So take a look at thelist and use it a guild in your daily walk.

loveJoy

PeaceLong suffering

KindnessGoodness

FaithfulnessMeekness

Self control

Against such things there is no law

So when we come to our God in worship it is trueto say that we need to express ourselves in a trueheart. That way we reflect the true essence ofworship and that in turn shows in our expression.

Living IN THE Spirit

HIDDEN RAIN

VERSE OF THE DAYwww.ktcoth.com

T ouched by the Holy SpiritOnce the promise was released into being by Jesus there was no doubt that the effect onall of history was going to be changed. That was the effect that the release of the HolySpirit was going to have not only on the disciples but also on every believer that was tofollow. The only thing that was going to stop this was if false teaching was going to grievethe Holy Spirit. That as we know throughout the following years was to have a major effecton the church, that ultimately saw the effectiveness of the good news be restricted to just afew. But I believe that throughout history the truth of the Spirit has seen wave after wave ofrefreshing. That as each wave has hit the nations there has been a change that has had adramatic influence on society. We only have to look at the welsh revival and many othersto see the way in which life's have been effected.

For me I believe that there is a hidden rain that has been gently laying down it's refreshingwater on a land that is dry and has been totally barren of the promises that Jesus has forit. That rain is starting to produce hidden streams that are beginning to be visible to thebelievers of 2011/2012. The touch of the Holy Spirit is starting to change the face of thechurch, where individuals are being set apart and empowered to enrich the body like neverbefore. The result of this outpouring is different to waves in the past. Because the church isunaware of it. The church is waiting for something to happen, they built up over the years adam of expectation on the promises of God. In some cases it's been years of waiting andwaiting which has resulted in the a build up of the reservoir. Which in turn has stopped thewater from refreshing the uninhabited land and that in turn has left the nations in need of afresh look at how God is going to move.

It's about the hidden rains effect on the reservoir that is of interest today, because as itstands today the dam wall is struggling to hold back the water it has got to a point that it isa breaking point and all it needs is just a drop here and there to burst the dam wall. That isfor me a time of prayer as we see the effect of a hidden stream entering the reservoir.What wdoes that mean for you and I, well it's time to be open to Holy Spirit to be ready forthe touch that will empower you with the creative power to believe that what God haspromised He is about to release on the nations. Never before in history has this wateringbeen needed as it is today. One by one each individual has they surrender to the will of the

Are Y ou

Ready For

The

Hidden

Rain

father will in turn build and refresh the body. It's time to seethe barren land completely submerged under the promisesof God.

That's when we will see a newness to the church of the likethat we have never seen before. It will be a haven for thelost and it will minister to the generation that has lost thepower to see absolute truth. That time is coming and thething to remember is that the hidden rain which no one hasseen fall is touching individuals in such a way that no oneknows from where it comes. In turn that is giving the glory toGod and not man.

The dam has 7 water ducts and these are the ways in whichGod has poured out his Spirit in the past. But this time it isgoing to be a release that will see all 7 opened up becausewithout the 7 being opened there is danger that the dam willbreach it's Walls. In the past we have seen healing, the wordand many signs and evidence of the Holy Spirit flowingthroughout the land and changing the environment. But Ibelieve that we are about to see something totally different.A people who accept each other because of the way inwhich God has touched the individual heart. He hasempowered them with the gifts of the Spirit and as we seethe effected that that has on them we will see a change infamilies and communities in all nations.

Let's be ready for theTouch of the Holy Spiritin this time of refreshing.

HiddenRain

A Verse To Start the Day

PrayingIn the Spirit

Praying in the Spirit is a biblical principal and is encouraged to be practised. Not only in times prayer, but onall occasions.

JUDE 1: 20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit

So how are we to to pray in the Spirit? And what is praying in the Spirit?

JOHN 14: And I will make prayer to the Father and he will give you another Helper to be with you for ever,Even the Spirit of true knowledge. That Spirit the world is not able to take to its heart because it sees him notand has no knowledge of him: but you have knowledge of him, because he is ever with you and will be inyou. I will not let you be without a friend: I am coming to you.

Well one way is by speaking in tongues. There is a difference to praying with the mind and praying intongues. I recently watched a science programme where they scanned the brain to see what the effect ofpraying with the mind against praying in tongues. There was a surprising result when they scanned theperson. Praying with the mind there was a lot of activity in the front lopes of the brain. But when the samescan was done when the same person began to pray in tongues, there was very little activity in the sameplace. In other words praying with the mind means you pray not only to God, but also for other peoplearound you to understand you, while praying in tongues is directed directly to God only. This is why theapostle Paul encouraged Christians to pray with the mind at church. This goes with scripture and shows ushow true the word of God is.

1COR 14: 14-19

For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is it then? I will praywith the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with theunderstanding also. Else if thou bless with the spirit, how shall he that filleth the place of the unlearned saythe Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he knoweth not what thou sayest? For thou verily givest thankswell, but the other is not edified. I thank God, I speak with tongues more than you all: howbeit in the church Ihad rather speak five words with my understanding, that I might instruct others also, than ten thousand wordsin a tongue.

But as you can see by this verse it is to be used with wisdom because it is not to be confusing to others. Sowhen praying in tongues is to be used regularly and to be a powerful witness to the world. But if we are withothers who don’t understand this then it is better to pray with the heart the very things that God has placed onyou. So as you can see by this, that it is the heart of God that speaks through us to the environment and thatHis purposes are to be fulfilled through us His body here on earth.

EPH 6:18 with all prayer and supplication praying at all seasons in the Spirit, and watching thereunto in allperseverance and supplication for all the saints,

John 4:24 “God is Spirit and His worshippersMUST worship in Spirit and Truth

So does that mean that rayin in the Spirit is only when we use tongues? Not at all

1COR 12: 29-31 Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all [workers of] miracles?have all gifts of healings? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? But desire earnestly thegreater gifts. And moreover a most excellent way show I unto you.

Tongues is only one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but it is not the only gift of the Holy Spirit. If notevery christian recieves the gift of speaking in tongues, how could the apostle Paul encourage allchristians to pray in the spirit, if praying in the spirit means to pray in tongues? This would notmake any sense at all. If we taught tongues and expect people to use it when they have notrecieved it from God then it would be of no use as it would be like talking on a telephone that theother person speaks a completly different language. The communication cords have been cut off.That what would happen with us and God because it not what we recieved it what we give to beaccepted by others, and in that there will be no acceptance from God. That what causes ineffectiveprayers. Because the Spirit intercedes for us according to Gods will.

ROM 8:26-27 And in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity: for we know not how to prayas we ought; but the Spirit himself maketh intercession for [us] with groanings which cannot beuttered; and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because hemaketh intercession for the saints according to [the will of] God.

But God can and does guide you through your own language for God speaks through the heart ofthe person and the Spirit prompts a person to express His heart through the relationship theprayer has with Himself. The main thing is that we should as it says in Ps 37:7

Take your rest in the Lord, waiting quietly for him;

And Hosea 12:6

Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep kindness and justice, and wait for thy God continually.

This article is just a appetizer for the only way to experience a life that is full of the Spirit in Prayeris by surrendering to God and allow Him to work through you.

Praying In The Spirit

should be content, use what we have to it’sfull potential. For it is better in God’s eyes if we use whatgifts we have to there fullness, rather than try so manydifferent things that if we are honest God has not asked usto do. It is there that arguments begin, and when they startit gets more and more difficult to resolve. Time has cometo put things right not only with God but also with eachother.

T h e P e a c e o f G o d | ARTICLE BY Kevin Hussey

The Peace of God

.

T h e P e a c e o f G o d | ARTICLE BY Kevin Hussey

Check out more wordsOf encouragement on

www.theencourager.wordpress.com

Coaching That Makes A Difference

KOINONIAThe Call Of The Heart

Visit The Websitewww.ktcoth.com

Words of encouragement to reflect on

It's the blueprint for the church to be effectivein the world and to each other.

Acts 2:41-43

AuthenticFellowship

What is fellowship?In the New Testament it's described as

Koinonia

Meaning of Fellowship

The word has such a multitude of meanings that no single English word isadequate to express its depth and richness. It is a derivative of koinos, the wordfor common. Koinonia is a complex, rich, and thoroughly fascinating Greekapproach to building community or teamwork.

Koinonia embraced a strong commitment to Kalos k'agathos meaning "good andgood", an inner goodness toward virtue, and an outer goodness toward socialrelationships. In the context of outer goodness, translated into English, themeaning of koinonia holds the idea of joint participation in something withsomeone, such as in a community, or team or an alliance or joint venture. Thosewho have studied the word find there is always an implication of action includedin its meaning. The word is meaning-rich too, since it is used in a variety ofrelated contexts.

Sharing

Koinonos means a sharer' as in to share with one another in a possession heldin common. It implies the spirit of generous sharing or the act of giving ascontrasted with selfish getting. When koinonia is present, the spirit of sharingand giving becomes tangible. In most contexts, generosity is not an abstractideal, but a demonstrable action resulting in a tangible and realistic expression ofgiving.

In classical Greek, koinonein means "to have a share in a thing," as when two ormore people hold something, or even all things, in common. It can mean "goingshares" with others, thereby having "business dealings,” such as joint ownershipof a ship. It can also imply "sharing an opinion" with someone, and thereforeagreeing with him, or disagreeing in a congenial way. Only participation as acontributive member allows one to share in what others have. What is shared,received or given becomes the common ground through which Koinoniabecomes real.[Relationships

To create a bond between each other is the meaning of koinonia when peopleare recognized, share their joy and pains together, and are united because oftheir common experiences, interests and goals. Fellowship creates a mutualbond which overrides each individual’s pride, vanity, and individualism, fulfillingthe human yearning with fraternity, belonging, and companionship. This meaningof koinonia accounts  for  the ease by which sharing and generosity flow. Whencombined with the spiritual implications of koinonia, fellowship provides a jointparticipation in God’s graces and denotes that common possession of spiritualvalues

Like all things fellowship takes time to develop. Its about what you build thefoundation of relationships upon. If you start trying to build on a picture ofperfection or what you see is the right way to do it, you will never get to see thevery best in fellowship. Many times it gets swallowed up by everyone trying tobuild what they want out of it. But like any building project you need goodfoundations to start it off. And the best place to look for those foundations is in thescriptures, especially in Acts as we see the template of true fellowship as we readthe book of Acts 2 verses 41-43.

They then that received his word were baptized: and there were added [unto them]in that day about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in the

apostles` teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers. Andfear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done through the

apostles.

Once a believer accepts Christ it is very important to then move on and to be partof the body of Christ. By moving on we learn by the apostles teachings. Getting toknow His word and living a life led by the spirit is key to fulfilling our individualscalling on life. And key to that is fellowship, without fellowship it is hard to getthe encouragement and the support to learn about how amazing the new live inChrist will be. By meeting with others in fellowship it brings something veryspecial into your relationship with Christ. True fellowship is a place where you canfeel completely free and secure amongst others that have only your best interests atheart.

It’s when we are in this environment we begin to see the true relationship that Godwants us to be. By being in this relationship we begin to build our lives on firmfoundations. Then we can be ready to go deeper with God and with each other. Iam so often amazed at people think that something is going to work first timewhen they have not even surveyed the ground on which they are building. Thesame is true of groups at the early stages of growth. The key thing to remember isthat there has to be trust and honesty. And early on there has to be a commitmentto not sharing about others outside of that meeting group, or else there will only befoundations that are built on sand and that is a recipe for disaster. So it good to getall to agree on this and to move on to building on foundation that are sure andsteadfast. There where the building blocks come into being. Those blocks are thegifts amongst the room and to find out them only comes from relationship.

Every successful group exists because of the gifting's in the group and how theyoperate in a team. I have found that as a individual feel there feet in a group theyuse there gifts to benefit others. So just imagine your group operating this waywhat would it look like?

Here is a suggestion to how a group operates in such a manner,

1. Leads 2. Facilitates 3. Hosts 4. Prayer Journalist 4. Worship

5. Events Coordinator 6. Interceder 7. Communicator.

Leaders set the programme, Facilitators set the scene and pace, Hosts welcome theguests. Prayer journalist records the prayer needs. Worship Leader prepares theworship style and time. Events Coordinator sets the calendar of events. Intercessorkeeps the prayer needs flowing in the group. Communicator does the newsletter.

This is only a suggestion and you may find one or two may do more than onegift at the same time. If each group could operate in such a manner just

imagine how powerful that group would be in witnessing to the world theKingdom of God.

It’s About BuildingThe Right Foundations

Written By Kevin Hussey

Prayer is always a part of our service and should be partof every day life. But how many of us really know whatprayer is about. This study is designed to see what Godmeans by prayer and what are the things that hinder ourprayer life and things that we need to do to release thismost important part of our life. If you need to communicatewith someone you need to approach him or her by contactand the only way to contact them is to see them personally,or you use the telephone or write to them. If you do notuse any of these methods then it is impossible tocommunicate with them.

So how do we contact God in our prayer life, I believethat it is not us but it is God who graciously hears ourprayers. And this is because He loves you and me so muchthat He even went to the ultimate sacrifice to let us knowHim, By letting His son Jesus come down to earth and dieon the cross for us. He tried to touch this world personallybut we rejected him and sent Him to His death. He triedover centuries to communicate through the prophets. Yetwe have rejected them. There is so many times in our historythat we have had the chance to get closer to God. But thishas always resulted in a brief time of refreshing in our lives.God has been changing peoples lives over the last fewyears and it has been a wonderful time, but I believe thatit is time to get down on our knees and get closer to Himso that we can hear what He has to say to us.In this study will look at what hinders us and what stops usin our lives from drawing into His presence and ultimatelyinto His revelation for our lives.

HOW ARE YOU COMMUNICATINGAT THE MOMENT

TELEPHONE = are you picking up thereceiver (listening to the Spirit)

LETTER = are you reading the post(The Word)

PRAYER = are you letting Him in onyour life daily to speak to you..

There are at least seven things thathinder our prayer lives and ouropenness to God they are.

1. Idolatry2. Wavering3. Hypocrisy4. Self Righteous5. Pride6. Enemies of the Saints7. Cruelly oppress the Saints

PrayerA Divine appointment

IDOLATRY

Let's start with Idolatry. What is Idolatry?Where is Idolatry today and how can wediscern it in our lives?The word Idolatry means in the dictionaryto be a worshipper of idols; devotedadmirer making a god out of it.In the scriptures it means idols that areused in a household as a shrine for worship.So what things do we have in the modernday that take the place of our time withGod. Are we ruled by things in our homesor are we letting God be number one inour lives. Is the television in our homes pre-programmed into our thinking, in such away that you can say I know what I wantto sit down and watch. What time and dayor days that those programmes are on.Does it become a necessity to see eachepisode or can you say no to watching it.Is watching the football more importantthan anything else in your life. Does it takeyou away from what God has set out foryou to be. Is it more important for you tobe a husband and a father or a personwho has time for people.In the book of Acts we have a example ofidolatry although very harsh I believe it isno more harsh than what we are doingtoday. Let's look into it in more detail.Acts 7: 43

You also took up the tabernacle ofMoloch, and the star of your god

Remphan, Images which you made toworship; And I will carry you away

beyond Babylon.

In the desert as the Israelites were makingtheir way to the Promised Land theIsraelites got caught up in Idolatry. Andthis idolatry was not mild it was horrible.But when it started it was properly saidthat this is harmless and it won’t interferewith what God wants to accomplish in yourlives. This is sometimes where we are withsomething it starts off as if it is harmless

to us, but as it grows it really does show itself aswhat it really is. It also gets harder and harder tobreak habits as they take hold.The Israelites got to this stage where things got sogross that they were sacrificing their children. It issaid that as they sacrificed the children that theywould beat drums so loud that it would drown thesound of the children's cries. I wonder if we have got into this trap withmaterialism that we are so engrossed into it that wehave allowed it to take hold of our kids. I believethat instead of drums we have a much morepowerful instrument in our midst it is called advertsand peer pressure. The drum of this is drowning thevoice of reason and it is grasping the very necks ofour children and killing them.The longer that we allow this to persist the harderit is to get out of it. We as adults are also allowingthe voice of materialism to take hold of us by beinghooked into the earning war. That the more we earnthe more we spend and the more we spend the morewe need to work. God does not want us to becaught up in this. He wants us to think of our earningas a giving tool not an owning tool.But as time as progressed this as been allowed tocreep in and pollute our minds. So are you allowingidolatry into your life and what can you do tounblock this in your pursuit towards a closerrelationship with God.

Prayer a divine appointment | ARTICLE BY Kevin Hussey

WAVERING

Wavering is the second on our list ofthings that stop and hinder our prayer life.The word waver is defined in thedictionary as; Oscillate unsteadily, flicker,quiver, falter, become unsteady, begin togive way; be irresolute or undecidedbetween different course's or opinions, tobe shaken in resolution or belief.James 1:6-8 says;

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting,for he that doubts is like a wave of the

sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.For let not that man supposes that he willreceive anything from the Lord; he is adouble minded man, unstable in all his

ways.

So wavering is an important thing for Godto bring to our attention and it is also veryimportant for us to discuss it. The scripturein James really says it all, in that if youdo not ask in faith, and expect that askingto come to be. Then it will end up infailure.You see God's promises are true and youboth have faith and believe them or youdon't. The consequence of your choicedetermines the outcome. And this is wherewe get either nearer to God or furtheraway.It is a matter of choice that we worshipHim and determine ourselves the coursethat we are going in. God wants us to besacrificial in our decisions towards Him

HYPOCRISY

Hypocrisy means in the dictionary it sayssimulation of virtue or goodness; dissimulation,pretence.

Titus 1:16They profess to know God, but in works they denyHim, being abominable, disobedient, anddisqualified for every good work.Many will come to deceive you; they will come insheep's clothing. They do look like the real thing andin many ways they seem to do the right things. But inGod's eyes they are an abominable people and Hedetests them for the way they guide people into theirtraps of false religion. This is properly one of the mostdangerous of all the hindrances in that it ultimatelyleads you down a path of dependence on what theyteach and the way they have to do things. Rememberwhat Jesus said"you will know the truth and the truth shall make

you free."

(John 8:32)

So be wary of them and always test what theysay. If in any doubt always go to a person inyour fellowship who you know has a deeprelationship with God and ask their advice,better still why not ask them to show you in theBible where it is and maybe even ask them tostudy with you. Do not forget that;"where two or three are gathered in my name,

there am I in the midst of them"(Matthew 18:20)

SELF-RIGHTEOUS

In the Dictionary it says about being self-righteous as a person who only thinks of him orherself in any situation it is only what is in it forthem. The example in the Bible of this is in Luke18:11,12,14 says;

Prayer a divine appointment | ARTICLE BY Kevin Hussey

"The Pharisee stood and prayed thus withhimself, "God, I thank you that I am not likeother men-extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or

even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; Igive tithes of all that I possess." I tell you, thisman went down to his house justified rather

than the other; for everyone who exalts himselfwill be humbled, and he who humbles himself

will be exalted."

These people again look right they even seemto act right. They do church things in theprescribed way. But their heart is not in it theyare always looking around to see who to makean example of. They have hidden agendas intheir own lives and these are only there todemonstrate their own outcome. Which is tolook good and right in front of other people.In other words they are looking after their owninterests instead of being what God wantsthem to be a sacrifice for others and theirneeds.This is very sad in many ways because it notonly effects them but it has many effects onother people. They feel judged by those withthis attitude and they have a feeling of notfeeling worthy or able to contribute to the restof the body. Even though they have a greatdeal to offer and what is most interesting inthis is that the very people that they persecuteare the people that they need to help themgrow in their relationship with the Lord.

PRIDE

The next thing on the list of things that stop us fromreceiving from God is the subject of pride. Which hasit's meaning in the dictionary as; Overweeningopinion of one's own qualities, merits. A deadly sin,arrogant.The Biblical meaning has a few meanings but it is bestdescribed as someone who puts him or herself in aposition of grandeur that has not been obtained bymerit. The act of lifting ups their own station in life tolook good in front of others. It tends to lead a personvery quickly into trouble, especially as makes theperson or even a nation very presumptuous of theirpower and position in the world.It is very much like a disease in that it boil inside ofyou, and as it does this it's effects come to the surfaceand although things may seem to be going well onthe outside. Inside there is a volcano waiting toexplode and when it erupts it will cause a lot ofdamage not only to the person or nation but toinnocent people around them. There are many casesin history where a nation has got proud, but theoutcome is always the same. It gets brought down toits knees. Let's take a very good example of this inDaniel four; we have a good example of this in KingNebuchadnezzar. Verses 28 - 33;All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. At the endof the twelve months he was walking about the royal

palace of Babylon, that I have built for a royaldwelling by my mighty power and for the honour ofmy majesty?" While the word was still in the kings

mouth, a voice fell from heaven: "KingNebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdomhas departed from you! And they shall drive you

drive you! And they shall drive you from men, andyour dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field.

They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seventimes shall pass over you, until you know that the

Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives itto whomever He chooses." That very hour the wordfulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was drivenfrom men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wetwith the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like

eagles' feathers and his nails like bird's claws.

Prayer a divine appointment | ARTICLE BY Kevin Hussey

How great was this king yet it was pride that brought him down. Even though he was warnedabout it, he ignored that warning it says that after twelve months that he was walking alongthe wall of his palace. You can just imagine this man head high in the air, prancing along witha air of arrogance nobody like me as ever done such wonderful things and has ever had sucha wonderful nation as this one, was his thoughts.

How many of us have ever done anything and we really feel that we have done well.Everything goes really well and it seems that nothing can go wrong. We have no thought thatthere can be any other solution to the problem. We see things from one focus our ownperspectives. The problem is that things are not always the way we see them there is a biggerpicture. The only thing we see is what we have been programmed to see, by the ways thatwe have been brought up and the culture that we live in.

Nebuchadnezzar was in the same situatuation he had his vision guided by what he saw hisculture and his family ways. Being king, the only thing to show was that it was successful. Itwas to show materialistic wealth of the nation and the size of the kingdom and the gloriousbuildings that arrayed the land. It is no wonder that he became arrogant and conceited abouthis situation.

If you were in his position would you not feel proud of your achievements, would you havelistened to the warning that was issued. If things seem to be good and things were gettingbigger and better you were becoming wealthier and more prosperous in every way. Do wedo this today with the things that we own or the position that we obtain in society . Has thistaken the place of the call that God has given us, to be an ambassador of His and to do therole of an ambassador, which is to be a representative of God in a foreign land.

ENEMIES OF THE SAINTSSo what else stops our prayer life. We are in a battle and everywhere around us there is abattle going on in the spiritual realm. It is the devils plan to stop the saints from breaking intothe promises of God.Psalm 18: 35-41You have also given me the shield of your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Yourgentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me, so my feet do not slip. I havepursued my enemies and overtaken them; Neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed.I have wounded them, so that they could not rise; they have fallen under my feet. For you havearmed me with the strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up againstme. You have also given me the necks of my enemies; so that I destroyed those who hated me.They cried out, but there none to save; Even to the Lord, but He did not answer them.

P r a y e r a d i v i n e a p p o i n t m e n t | BY Kevin Hussey

The Shield of salvation willguide you

There are people that we spend time with on a Sunday who are enemies ofthe saints. What do I mean by this, well they come along to see what ishappening but do not or are not taking part in worship. Then when they haveobserved they then criticise the things which they have seen. What may youask does this have to do with hindrance to pray.If you study and meditate on the scripture in psalms then you will see that ifwe allow these people to effect us then it is going to stop our communicationwith God and will put us out of the will of God. And ultimately it will makeour journey more difficult to walk. Let's look at this passage and see who weare in God and what position we should take with the enemies of the saints.

You have also given me the shield of your salvation;

You see that God has given, that means He has permitted and appointedyou and entrusted you with the liberated life to be victorious. God has put ashield around us. That shield means that it is like scales they overlap eachother so that there was a strengthening of the shield around us. So God hasmade you to be victorious in your life, which means that when an enemy comesagainst you putting doubt and trying to stop you from receiving what Godhas said that he has given you.So how do we contact God in our prayer life, I believe that it is not us but itis God who graciously hears our prayers. And this is because He loves youand me so much that He even went to the ultimate sacrifice to let us know Him,By letting His son Jesus come down to earth and die on the cross for us. Hetried to touch this world personally but we rejected him and sent Him to Hisdeath. He tried over centuries to communicate through the prophets. Yet wehave rejected them. There is so many times in our history that we have hadthe chance to get closer to God. But this has always resulted in a brief timeof refreshing in our lives. God has been changing people’s lives over the lastfew years and it has been a wonderful time, but I believe that it is time toget down on our knees and get closer to Him so that we can hear what Hehas to say to us.In this study will look at what hinders us and what stops us in our lives fromdrawing into His presence and ultimately into His revelation for our lives.

P r a y e r a d i v i n e a p p o i n t m e n t | BY Kevin Hussey

TELEPHONE are you picking up the receiver (listening to the Spirit)

LETTER are you reading the post (The Word)

PRAYER are you letting Him in on your life daily to speak to you..

Prayer is always a part of our service and should be part of every day life. Buthow many of us really know what prayer is about. This study is designed tosee what God means by prayer and what are the things that hinder our prayerlife and things that we need to do to release this most important part of ourlife. If you need to communicate with someone you need to approach them bycontact and the only way to contact them is to see them personally or you usethe telephone or write to them. If you do not use any of these methods then itis impossible to communicate with them.

Your right hand has held me up,

The right hand means that there is authority there. And when Godholds you up, he holds you up with the full authority and power thatcomes from the creator.

Your gentleness has made me great.

Because God is so gentle and is so full of mercy he has made yougreat, he takes the foolish things of the world to confound the wise.(1 Cor 1:27) The word great means that you become great multiplyand increase. So if God sees you as great then should we not seeourselves that way? We should from this moment release in our livesthe thoughts of multiplication, in a way of our greatness and to keepon multiplying these thoughts until we grasp it has God sees us.

You enlarged my path under me,

When we see ourselves has God sees us then it says in the word thathe will enlarge your path, that means he will make that area in yourlife like a roomy pasture, you will not be restricted in a small place,but there will be so much room and so much food to choose from.People think that you are restricted when you become a Christian,but this is far from the truth. When you have a relationship with Godthere is an abundance of supply and your life becomes so widespreadand diverse, that you will never be able to touch all the freedom thatHe has given you. That means that we must be careful that we do notoverdo it and try to accomplish everything. If we try to do this, thenwe will only burn out and this will cause us to miss what God wantsus to do. So listen to the voice of God and only do what he wants youto do. and to those who are in a deep relationship with Him.

P r a y e r a d i v i n e a p p o i n t m e n t | BY Kevin Hussey

AND FINALLY

If you keep away from all these things that hinder your prayer life.Then you will be successful because God's word says that if you askthen you will be answered, and if you seek you will find, if you knockyou will receive. God loves you so much there is no other relationshipthat you will ever know that will last for eternity as that of therelationship you have with Him.

God Bless you and keep you in all that you attain in this greatadventure called PRAYER

Investing in Idea’s

01273 930112

CONTACT US ON 01903 507797OR VISIT ON

www.ktcoth.comFor further information

Inspires Change

Applying Design To Creativity

KOINONIA

Investing in Idea’s

01903 507797

Products That Make A Difference

www.ktcoth.com