The Kingdom Of God Is Within You

Dear Tabernacle Family,

We are Kingdom people! According to Jesus, the Kingdom of God is not a natural place but rather a supernatural place; a secret place. It is an interior Kingdom where we receive healing and deliverance directly from the mindful, indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is the King in this Kingdom and He reins in us from the inside out. The fact that the Kingdom of God is within you means the situations and circumstances we face become powerless before the inner strength we have in Him. I Cor. 4:20, “For the Kingdom of God is not in word but in power.” Inward righteousness, inward peace and inward joy bring inward power. David said in Psalm 51:6 “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part you will make me to know wisdom.” Wisdom is the revelation of who God is and the internal recognition of how His Kingdom works in our lives. (Sophia - insight into the true nature of things)

Romans 14:17, “For the Kingdom of God is not meat or drink but righteousness peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Not what I eat or drink, not what I think or what I say, not what I do but who I am in Him!" Matthew 5, 6, & 7 tells us, “Blessed are we who choose the lifestyle of the Kingdom through Surrendering all that we are and all that we have to the King." Our ambitions and plans; our thoughts and our actions need to be determined in light of this heavenly and eternal truth.

This Kingdom is an upside down kingdom for sure. Subjects of this Kingdom are ready to say and do what seems strange to the world. They are willing to give when others take, to love when others hate, to help when others abuse. How do we do that while we are still citizens of this present age? By living in the age to come. By touching heaven and changing earth. By literally living, thinking and acting like citizens of another kingdom and living our lives from the inside out.

Kingdom Blessings,

Pastor Jo Ann Angelo

God Communicates with Us

Dear Tabernacle Family,

Recently in a youth group bible study, I was sharing with our students about how God is so faithful to meet us and speak to us no matter where we are in life. In fact, all throughout the Bible we see God either directly speaking, using an angel, or a messenger to speak to people who didn’t think God had anything to say to them.

I think we often discriminate against ourselves based on our age. How many times have you said, "I’m too young to do this" or "I’m too old to do that.” Honestly, we use a lot of journey-markers to internally discriminate against ourselves. Have you ever said, “I don’t have enough money,” “I don’t have the skill,” or “I’m not at this place in my life yet?”

I was reading about David’s life recently and this commentary just jumped out at me.

The commentary said this: ”And young as he was, David thought of God, and talked with God, and God talked with David, and God showed David His will/plans/purposes.”

How awesome is that? What I love even more is you can apply this statement in so many different ways.

You can fill in any perceived weakness and replace it where the word “young" is. You can fill in so many words here, “young as he was:" “tired as he was," “addicted as he was,” “poor as he was,” “ rejected as he was.”

Imagine if you started saying this over yourself?

"As tired as I am, I am going to think about God, talk to God, and God will talk to me, and show me His will!"

"As poor as I am, I’m going to think about God, talk to God, and God will talk to me and show me His will!”

“As (fill in the blank for yourself) as I am, I’m going to think about God, talk to God. I know God is going to talk to me and show me His will!!!”

Psalm 119:9-16 MSG

How can a young person live a clean life?

By carefully reading the map of your Word.

I’m single-minded in pursuit of you;

don’t let me miss the road signs you’ve posted.

I’ve banked your promises in the vault of my heart

so I won’t sin myself bankrupt.

Psalms teaches us how to stay on the path with God.  How do we do it? By hiding God’s word in our heart. By carefully reading the map. By looking for the road signs God has posted for us.  By communicating, talking and listening, with God.

God’s communicating with us all the time. And you don’t have to be special to hear God. You just have to be like David. And (blank) as you are, you can still think about God, talk to God, and God will, for sure, talk to you and show you His will.

Blessings,

Mark Passarella

Happy Father's Day

Dear Tabernacle Family,

Father’s Day brings so many different thoughts to mind.

I think of those who are becoming new dads. At the birth to our first child, Tom held our little girl in his arms. She was crying and he spoke to her softly and tenderly. She stopped crying to listen. She knew his voice. How often do we listen for our heavenly Father’s voice and really hear? When He speaks, His children know that they are in His care.

What about the kid-raising years? Like many families, our kids longed to be near their dad and to gain his attention. Over the years, my husband has been “dad” to numerous kids who needed that father’s attention, such as the time Tom escorted three young ladies to the door of their Junior Prom. He dressed in his suit and bow tie, and treated each one with such respect. What about our Heavenly Father? The Spirit of God dances over us. He delights in us and we are the apple of His eye. Our esteem and self-observance rise out of such treatment both from an earthly relationship and from God’s attention to us.

In the later years, relationships shift and parents become friends and sojourners in this life. I think of my own father and the relationship that we have. My daddy has been a provider, guider, decision-maker and friend. I am grateful for his faith and his prayers over his family. Every call is cherished and every event is a memory-maker as I drink in his last years here on earth. Even last night I asked his advice and learned as I listened. In this season of life, I am reminded that Heaven can touch earth and that the veil between them is often very thin. Someday my dad will step through that veil, and the weights of this world will drop off. What will also be left behind is the faith legacy he is building. His consistency of faith will remain as a guide to so many that he influenced in his lifetime.

Every one of us are in different circumstances regarding fathers. Some rejoice, some mourn, some wish, some are hopeful, some have given up hope and some have unresolved hurts. To all of my friends, may you know the Love of the Heavenly Father and His great joy over you. May you come to a new understanding of how the Father sees you and His great love for you. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads!

In His Name,

Pastor Sharon Baldwin