Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV) says ‘To everything there is a season,A time for every purpose under heaven’
I hold a strong conviction about this, and I think we frequently fail to address it and become frustrated.
Practices that once functioned in our lives seemed to end. This often led us to push on harder, simply trying to do things on our own strength.
But what if the season has shifted and something different awaits you—connecting, engaging, and stepping into the space where the Lord is waiting?
In Psalms 139:5 (TPT) David gives this amazing revelation about what the Lord is doing right now in your life.
‘You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way,
and in kindness You follow behind me
to spare me from the harm of my past.
With Your hand of love upon my life,
You impart a blessing to me’
This was not the intended direction for today’s message, yet something has just shifted, and this is where He is guiding me to go. So let’s follow Him and see what we all can learn on the journey.
When we read the above scripture, we see something very interesting, but also essential.
‘He has gone into our future to prepare the way,
and in kindness He follows behind us
to spare us from the harm of our pasts.’
But how often do we spend time dwelling on the past and worrying about the future?
Secondly, and this is where it becomes crazy, the second part of the above scripture reads:
‘With His hand of love upon our lives,
He imparts a blessing to us.’
So is this in our past or our future?
To me the answer to the question above is neither.
As I actually believe this is in our present: ‘Right Now’.
Could it be that the reason we do not receive all of His blessings is that we are actually in the wrong place?
We are so busy dwelling on our pasts or worrying about our futures that we simply miss what He is doing or has for us ‘right now’ in the present.
In 1 Corinthians 3:5 (TPT) Paul writes
………whether it’s the present or the future—everything belongs to you!
So what is missing in this statement from Paul?
‘The Past’
If anyone needed this revelation, it was Paul, as His past was filled with chasing, jailing, stoning, and killing Christians.
But it is also so important for us to learn too.
Your past does not define your future, unless we choose it to.
But how many of us are really choosing to do this ?
Also, as we have learnt above, our past does not even belong to us either.
But I wonder how many of us fully understand this and live it, If we are honest.
Here’s a question for you.
How many things are in your mind and heart right now from the past?
How many of these thoughts have placed you in a position of being unable to move on or resolve things with others?
What would it look like if all of these were given to Him today? So as the scripture above says, ‘ in kindness He can follow behind you
to spare you from the harm of our pasts’.
Secondly,
How many things are in your mind and heart right now that contain worry about the future?
How many of these thoughts have placed you in a position of being unable to move forward?
What would it look like if all of these were given to Him today? Trusting that He is faithful and has already gone into your future to prepare the way for you.
Thirdly,
How many things are in your mind and heart right now that contain ‘concerns’ for the present?
Well, these things are ok as ‘concerns’ are something I believe the Lord is ok for us to have.
As concerns look at a problem and prompt you to pray for a solution and to take the next step.
While worry keeps you circling the same problem, leading to mental paralysis, rumination, and no actual change.
To conclude,
How many of you would like to receive a blessing from the Lord right now? As the last part of our scripture today mentions, ‘ With Your hand of love upon our lives, You impart a blessing to us’.
I’m seeing this in my life and in those I’m privileged to walk with. Where Ephesians 3:20 has now become a lifestyle, and I have so many testimonies of this. As His mighty power works in them/me and accomplishes all this, He is achieving infinitely more than our greatest requests, our most unbelievable dreams, and He has exceeded our wildest imaginations! He has outdone them all, for His miraculous power constantly energises us.
Guess what! He is also waiting with your blessing, in your ‘present’ right now too!
Challenge Time
1. Are you ready to let go of your past ? All disappointments, regrets, mistakes and failures.
First I would like to share about a remarkable vision I had one night as I was worshiping Him.
The Lord showed me a fire in front of me. As I enquired what this was and what it meant, He said, “This is your fire for putting disappointments on”. So I had a few disappointments, so I placed them on the fire and they turned into incense, raising up to heaven.
The Father then said, “The problem is a lot of my children’s fires are going out. As they choose instead to hold onto their disappointments rather than put them on their fire.”
When I heard this, it made me very sad.
Then a few days later I asked Him about regrets, mistakes, and failures, and if there is a fire for them too, and what about things people have done to us?
He said to me, “Are they not all disappointments towards yourself or in others?” I said yes Lord.
What an amazing revelation that He has prepared for each of us a fire, eagerly awaiting all our disappointments in ourselves and in others. So they can be turned into incense and rise up to Him in the heavens.
So if you’re ready, I want you to ask Him to reveal to you your fire in front of you, then one at a time you can put every disappointment, whether in yourself or others, on this fire!
Take your time
After you have finished, follow this with a prayer like: Thank you, Father, for following behind me to spare me from the harm of my past. Amen.
2. Are you ready to hand over your worries about your future and those worries about others’ futures too ?
If so, we can do this next. With a simply prayer like:
Father, I hand over to you all my worries about my future. I believe you have already gone ahead of me to prepare an amazing future for me because you are so good. I also handed my worries about others over to you too. I thank you for going ahead of them to prepare the way too.
3. Welcome to the ‘present’. I am so proud of you for everything you have done today. Now let’s ask Him for the blessings He has awaiting us right now! By saying a prayer like: Father, I thank you for all You have done, also doing right now in my life and preparing for me in my future. I am ready for you to place your hand of love upon my life, and I believe you are imparting a blessing on me right now. Amen.
4. Take some time to worship Him, to give Him thanks, and to praise Him.
I cannot wait to hear your testimonies from this remarkable message from Him. So please send them to me at craig@encounterministries.org.nz.
Let me finish by praying for you and giving Him thanks too !
Father, I thank you for all you have done and are doing in and through the life of your children right now! Thank you for going into our future to prepare the way for them, and also thank you for your kindness following behind them to spare them from the harm of their past. Lastly, thank you that your hand of Love is upon all their lives and that you are imparting a blessing on and into them right now! I give you all the glory and honour forever and ever, amen.
For those of you, who want to place an offering at the alter or plant a financial seed in the fertile ground of the Lord. Maybe you could contribute in someway towards His House, we are currently building. To equip the saints for ministry, then release His word through them, in a variety of ways.
Below is a link to a secure website, so you can do this safely online.
https://give.tithe.ly/?formId=87bf3759-ef4a-4ae2-ac5d-902b82587e44
Or our bank account details for New Zealand memebers,
Encounter Centre – 03-0481-0007448-000
If you require a receipt for tax purposes please email to info@encounterministries.org.nz
Craig Patten
Founding Pastor/Prophet
Encounter Centre & Ministries