How Do we Hear Jesus Speak?

It's not too late. Lynn Donovan here.

Tomorrow, February 12 at noon pacific, I'll be teaching a LIVE seminar via Zoom. 

You will learn how to discern the voice of the Lord. How to determine if the voice you are hearing is God, the devil or yours. And how to practice perceiving God when He speaks.

There is so much confusion and a lot of lies about hearing God's voice. So, if you are interested you can register for $20 now. Please have a Bible, pen and some lined paper. We will have time at the end to practice.

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Faith Teachings with Lynn Donovan

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Words over You

Dear SUMites, Blessing

I love you guys! I pray the following over you today:

May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble;

May the name of Jesus defend you;

May He send you help from the sanctuary,

And strengthen you;

May He remember all your offerings,

And accept your sacrifices.

May He grant you according to your heart's desire,

And fulfil all your purpose.

May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.

(Based on Psalm 20)

And --

The Lord bless you and keep you,

make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you.

The Lord turn his face towards you, and give you peace.

 


Loads of love

Ann


The Unequally Yoked Marriage: A Prophetic Picture

Hi SUMites, Ann here. Bed 

Today I wanted to tell you about a vision God gave me that relates to the unequally yoked marriage. It was a vision I received a few years ago, I didn't understand it at the time, but nevertheless I wrote it down.

A week or so ago, I happened to come across this vision again -- a description of it had been sitting in my journal for years -- and all of a sudden I understood it!

So I'm going to share it with you now and I hope it encourages you:

What I saw in the vision was a double bed -- A marriage bed, like this one here.

  • On one side of the bed there was a strong wind of suction that was coming from above, a suction power upwards.
  • On the other side of the bed there were helium balloons, rising upwards with their lightness.

So far so good. But what on earth did it mean? Well, here is the interpretation which I received:

The vision of this bed represents what is going on in a SUM marriage.

The believer's situation is represented by the helium balloons; the non-believer's situation is represented by the suction wind.

The believer's situation:

The believer has filled themselves up with the Holy Spirit and with Jesus. There is a power in that, and a lightness. It naturally carries them up, up, up, into eternity, towards God, and towards all good things that the Kingdom of Heaven offers. It is a lightness within them compared to the world outside, and it makes them rise. There's nothing much they need to do, it's effortless -- it is a natural outworking of their faith.

Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Colossians 1:27, NKJV)

The unbeliever's situation:

The unbeliever, meanwhile, also has an effortless power being exerted upon them, but it takes a different form. In their case, the power of God is on them, drawing them to him, with such power it is like a giant vacuum cleaner hose that they can barely resist: Swooosh, they're sucked up and towards him. They will have to make their choice to submit, but there is a power drawing them up, up, up ...

Scripture says, no one can come to the Father unless He draws them. 

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. (John 6:44, NIV)

We need to know, then, from this vision that God is drawing them. And it is a powerful thing. 

Both of these upward movements, for us and our spouses, constitute the upward call of God in Christ Jesus that is our prize:

I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14)

What vision says to me is that there is as much power on our spouses, as there is in our lives. It just looks different for us than it does for our spouse. We have His power in us, but our spouses have His power being exerted on them. The destination is the same: Eternity, represented by the upward movement. And the degree of power is the same: It is the power of the resurrection.

Ultimately, dear SUMites, this is what this vision is doing for us:

.. That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places ... (Ephesians 1:17-20, NKJV).

My friends, let's pray that we can understand and believe in his power in the lives of our unbelieving spouses.

Love

Ann


River of Grace!

Hello Sumites, Ian from hot and humid Sydney here. 

Pexels-ngqah83-884977
Photo courtesy of pexels.com and Quang Anh Ha Nguyen

I thought I’d tell you a story today.

have a frustrating relationship with my mother-in-law. Lyn is a lovely lady and in the almost 30 years we’ve been in each other’s lives, our relationship has been awkward and a little detached. It’s bothered me a great deal as this isn’t the norm in my relationships plus I had a wonderful connection with my mother. It causes me a lot of stress and anxiety and Fiona is impacted as well. Plus, I tend to beat myself up because I feel this relationship is a poor example for Fiona. "Why can’t I get over my pride and simply love Fi’s mum?"

Grace

A few months ago I was reminded of a quote on grace I’d read and heard many times over the years. It goes something like this:

“The true saints (read Christians) burn grace like a 747 burns fuel on take-off.” – Dallas Willard.

It’s a great quote. When I most recently heard it (twice in the same service) I spent time pondering it for a few days afterwards.

I think we all know intuitively that big planes burn through a lot of fuel to get off the ground. The environmental causes of recent years have only emphasised how much fuel aeroplanes burn through on every flight. Willard’s metaphor for describing a vibrant life with Jesus is compelling. We’re supposed to burn through grace and more grace.

Annual Visit

Soon after, Lyn and her husband were visiting for a couple of weeks. As we always do, Fi and I discussed how we (meaning me) would manage this visit. My response was to share Willard’s quote and to say that’s what we’d do: ask God for grace and more grace. Even every minute if we (meaning I) needed it.

Fiona understands the concept of grace. I think all humans understand the notion of ‘unmerited favour’. But for we lovers of Jesus, it really has an added meaning. I like how my Pastor defines grace: ‘it’s God helping us do what we can’t do in our own strength.”

The visit started with me asking God for grace often and repeatedly. My Pastor often encourages us to ask for grace for the next ten minutes. I was doing that a lot in the first few days. It was incredible how more relaxed and calm I found myself. And Fi noticed as well.

I sure was burning through grace that week.

What Happened?

When Fi drove her mum and husband to her brother’s place, her mum commented that she felt it was the “happiest she’d ever seen me.” When Fi shared that with me, I did a little dance! God is good.

The week reminded me that there is this unlimited supply of grace. It’s like an unending river that is never prone to drought or a power supply that never suffers from blackouts. We simply must dive into the river or plug into the socket or whatever analogy you might prefer to use.

How? By simply asking God for it. And not being too proud to keep on asking. Every ten minutes if need be. This is I believe what Willard meant when he wrote those words many years ago. He too had to learn the lesson himself, I guess.

Is there a relationship, habit, a something or other that you keep trying to ‘fix’ in your own strength? May I encourage you to try letting go and dive into the river where Jesus meets you with His endless supply of grace. And see what changes.

Go well, dear SUMites. God is so good and constantly thirsts after each one of us offering us more and more grace through His loving presence.

Big love,


A Rather Fabulous Week...

Hello friends, Ann here! Mothers daughters

In the last two weeks I've actually been on a cheeky little 10-day trip away -- A trip that turned out to be spiritually surprising.

I went on my own, leaving Bryce and the boys at home; and I can't believe the things I saw on this trip.

The trip was a ten-day stay at a Christian camp for parents and teenagers, where I volunteered on staff. The camp was designed to help parents and teens improve their relationship by doing various adventure activities together.

While not every parent-teen pair on the camp was Christian, the staff were.

So far so good, and to be honest I was in two minds about whether to go, thinking 'Meh...' But wow. Little did I know.

Here's the camp: JH Aotearoa

There is an American branch of it too: JH Ranch – Everlasting Adventure

Those who go on it frequently say it is life-changing. Having now seen it in action, I can see why.

Anyway, instead of taking my own teen on it, as I said, I arrived as staff. I duly got given a gorgeous group of five mothers to look after: all with daughters age 18.

This group of mothers was colorful, diverse, bouncy, and delightful. And they kept me on my toes as we talked about the ups and downs of mothering. 

I also got another job, however, that felt more serious, and this was the most impactful part: I got put on the prayer team. This job involved about eight of us meeting twice a day to literally storm the heavens for these parents and their children. J H crew

When I say storm the heavens, that's what it felt like. We didn't put time limits on our prayer time, and so we would linger as long as it took. We would pray, and pray, and pray, and pray ... We prayed specific things for certain parents and children, and we prayed for them by name. Issues would get brought to us, and we would pray through them. Sometimes we wept tears of intercession. Sometimes the Spirit showed us specific things to pray for specific people. And we saw answers to our prayers.

This went on for days. It was deeply moving.

What happens to a guest when they come into that environment for days? What happens when something is saturated in prayer? What happens when you have worship services every single day for those ten days, as well as teaching and ministry? I began to feel we had an open heaven over us. 

Lord, turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers!

That was our foundational prayer, and what we saw, over those ten days were:

(a) Salvations; and

(b) Numerous healed relationships between parents and their teenagers.

It was such a powerful experience for me to see those two things. After all, it can feel very dry when you're in a SUM and you're desperately waiting for just that one all-important salvation, right?  Indeed, this experience was so powerful that I have resolved to go back again next year and make this camp a regular part of my life.

Friends, do any of you have a relationship with a son or daughter that you'd like prayer for? Post in the comments and we'll gather round you in prayer.

Love,

Ann

p.s. The photo is of me with three of my staff team-mates. Firm friends.


Did 2024 Suck? Read This

Hello SUM Nation,

If your 2024 sucked (can I say that on a Christian blog?), then this post is for you: Get ready. Bible, pen and paper.

Lynn Donovan with you here. Open your paper Bible and underline this passage:

Nehemiah 8:9-10

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law. 

Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

So many, MANY Christians experienced a very difficult 2024. We lived through very specific and personal challenges to our family, relationship, finances and health. Sheesh. I lived through my most difficult year of my entire life in 2024.

But this year!!! This is our year to THRIVE in 2025!

And how do we do this. Cast off the old (wineskins) and step into the new. And I have a treasure from scripture to do just that.

If you have been a believer for a while, you have heard this passage over and over:

The joy of the Lord is my strength. Right?

I’ve heard this so many times but until recently I never really comprehended the full revelation of this passage. Like me, you have probably thought about the joy of the Lord as a happy feeling or something similar.

But I’m here to share that the joy of the Lord is SO MUCH MORE. The joy of the Lord, now think upon this, this joy is GOD’S joy. He lives in joy and is joyful about our lives and future. But what is the joy of God?

Glad you asked.

God’s joy is actually all of the following and more: It is of course a happiness, but also it is confidence, surety, provision, deliverance, healing, health, hope, revelation, discernment, power, authority….. All of HIS joy becomes our strength.

His joy gives to us all of these life qualities that lead to thriving. Wow, just WOW!

So, begin your day by praying this: “Holy Spirit, fill me today with the joy of the Lord.”

Then believe you have all these attributes from our good Father in heaven. His joy makes us STRONG.

The joy of the Lord IS OUR STRENGTH. And that is the meaning of this passage.

Now go your way and share your food and drink and know that THIS DAY IS HOLY and not a day of sorrow. But of joy and strength.

Thank you, Lord. Thank you. AMEN


The Story of the Horse and the Ox

Dear friends, Scan WWI era Unequally Yoked plowing

One of our SUMites, Susan Peterson, recently sent in the attached picture.

She said --

As my husband and I were leafing through an amazing old WWI era scrapbook, we came across this picture of the horse and the ox plowing in harness together because they were all their owner owned. BUT it made me think, "They still got the job done!"

Somehow this gave me hope in our SUM relationship.

Thanks, Susan! 


A prayer for the unequally yoked

Ann here. Figs and canaries

Whenever I'm praying for an unbelieving husband or wife, I've got a particular prayer I pray. It's this:

In the name of Jesus, I pray for [name] that --

God will set His eyes on him/her for good, and will bring them back to Him.

God will build him/her and not pull him/her down.

He will plant him/her and not pluck him/her up.

He will give him/her a heart to know Him, that He is God.

[Name] will say about God 'He is mine, and I am His'.

And he/she will return to God with his/her whole heart.

I pray this because several years ago God gave our ministry the verses from Jeremiah 24:5-7 - which contained the above words. He said that is what he is going to do for our spouses.

Every time I pray these words, then, I make a declaration of belief, and I know that I am praying in line with the heart of God.

Today, shall we all pray the above words over our spouses? Let's lift our voices to the heavens in unison!

Love you all, and I wish you a beautiful Friday.

Ann


We're Seeking Your Input: What's Been the 'Best of the Best'?

Hello SUMites. Best of the best 

We have a question for you:

We're compiling a collection of the best of the best of our articles as a resource for future readers, and we need your help.

Many of you have been reading along here for years. So, here's our question:

Do you have a favorite, stand-out article, or story, from our blog?

Is there an article that particularly helped you?

Is there a teaching that has particularly stuck in your mind?

Is there something from one of our books that particularly helped you?

Whatever it is, we'd love to hear it. So please, let us know in the comments, or drop us a line by email.

Many thanks

Ann, Lynn, Ian and team


A Guest Post from London

Dear SUM brothers and sisters
 
Today we have a treat: A guest post all the way from London. Krystyna Gajda wrote in the following, saying "I hope my following submission for a blog post will bless the SUM family, which is a great comfort to me. These events really happened. They still warm my heart so much when I think of them:"--London
 
A cherished neighbour and friend of our family, Monica, died. At her funeral, her family and friends joined in recognising her love of butterflies by wearing blue paper butterfly broaches.
 
Monica's coffin was covered in one of her hand knitted blankets, adorned with crocheted colourful butterflies she'd created herself,  being a virtuoso with needles and wool.
 
During the service, I saw what I thought was an autumn leaf on the ground of the church aisle. It was September, after all. The leaf bounced gently, gaining height and momentum. It appeared to be charting its own course. It was joined by other "leaves", gradually gaining our attention. 
 
The service continued.  Neil, one of Monica's children, in the front pew, turned to us. On his order of service, a butterfly had come to rest. It wasn't alone, as several, perhaps four or five, danced gently around us. Monica's daughter Louise, was due to speak. 
 
She was smiling. "Sorry, we're a bit distracted by the butterflies," she said, by way of explanation.
 
God finds such ingenious ways to lift our eyes and our hearts and to comfort us.
 
Me and my husband live in one room, which is not unusual in London. I seek out different times and places to pray. There is a church at the end of our high street which has a small side chapel open for prayer during the day - a miracle in itself, as many churches are closed during the week because of crime.
 
One day, instead of being alone, I arrived to see the priest preparing to say Mass. A man and woman were in two of the seats. We greeted each other and spoke after the service.
 
They were brother and sister, and Mass was being said for their parents, who had both died. 
 
I thanked them for letting me be there with them. They thanked me for sharing in the service, saying my presence had supported them. 
 
"What's your name?" they asked me. Krystyna
 
"Krystyna," I said. 
 
The woman's face lit up into a smile.
 
"Our sister is called Krystyna."
 
"She couldn't be here today. God sent another Krystyna.... you."
 
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,  4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ (2 Corinthians 1:3-5, NIV)
 
My name is Krystyna Gajda, I am married to Nick, and we live in London, the UK.