1 Samuel  17:51  Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

The Old Testament  is filled with  stories about how  brave men would go into battle and slain hundreds and thousands of their enemies with the sword. 

We also have the opposite, how others would use the sword for their own personal gain, going against the Lord and his commandments. 

Today is no different from Old Testament times.  While we may not have a physical sword, we have another type of sword that can cause us to increase our territory and help others, or cause damage to those around us.

The sword that we have today is the word of God.   This type of sword can be used to encourage, edify, praise and uplift those around you.  It can also cause death if not used correctly.

The sword that I am speaking of  is our tongue. 

Ephesians 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

Just like any weapon in our hands, we can  use it  for good or for evil.

Our sword or our words, should be used to edify , uplift and encourage.  If we see someone struggling, an encouraging word goes a long way.

The sword that we have today is the same used in the Old Testament. In can be used for good, or cause damage.

We can slain our enemy in praise and prayer, or we can damage those around us by speaking words that condemn and hurt.

Let’s be sure that we use our sword to kill our enemy, and not those closest to us.

Proverbs 23:23 Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.

Living outside of the United States has its disadvantages at times when it comes to certain product that I need in the kitchen. 

There is one particular product that I buy when I  see it on the shelves even if  I don’t need it,  because when I do need it, I know I won’t find it. 

During the holiday season I realized that I did not have my can of crushed pineapple and went looking for it at all the stores, but had no luck in finding it.  I had to make other arrangements since this was a vital ingredient in one of my dishes.

The verse above says to buy the truth, in other words attain the truth, own the truth.  And when you have it, don’t sell it or surrender it.  

We know  the truth will set us free in all areas of our lives.   We are not to part with the truth for appeasing to others, or to seek temporal pleasures. 

Having the truth will give us wisdom, instruction and understanding.  It is more than ever that we need these key ingredients in our lives today.  When we don’t have the truth, or try to make excuses, our ingredients fail and we can find ourselves stumbling over our words.

Since I did not have my can of crushed pineapple for a certain dish, I had to prepare  another dish.

When the truth is not present in our life,  we find ourselves making a dish that we are not too happy with, and then we try to correct it with some fancy topping, hiding what is really underneath. 

Let’s stick to the truth, because  the truth  and only the truth will set us free.

Luke  22:55 Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them

In the verse quoted above, Jesus was taken prisoner and Peter was following at a distance.  It is here where Peter was confronted three times as being with Jesus, and each time he denied it. 

If you compare the other gospels, you will read that Peter swore and raised his voice.

Sitting by the wrong type of fire can cause many of us to do things that we should not do.

The fire that Peter sat by to keep him warm was just that, the wrong fire. Many of us find ourselves in that position. I know I have several times.

Fire has many meanings in scripture, such as a symbol of God presence in the burning bush, purifying, His everlasting fire, inspiration and spiritual power. It can also mean judgment of God, and it also was one of the plagues of Egypt. 

Peter sat by the wrong type of fire in the company of others. We later read that God’s grace and mercy was upon him as Jesus himself restored Peter three times, each time for denying him.

After the restoration, Peter was found in the fire once again. He was baptized in the upper room with tongues of fire!

Friends, the world can offer us many warm fires out there, but there is only one true fire that will comfort us, guide us and keep us on the right path.

The fire that we should seek should be the same fire that Peter received in the upper room. This type of fire fills you with the Holy Spirit, and other around you will be astonished as you flow in His anointing and power.

Seek that treasure, the fire of God!

May you be abundantly blessed this day.

By Claude Widmer

Psalm 10, 17 You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, 18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more. (NIV)

As we have entered this New Year with prayer and in the Presence of the Lord, he has been speaking very clearly and the message that rang in our ears was unmistaken. As we look to Him this coming year in all that is happening on the globe, I believe that he will do a special work in the Body of Christ to meet the needs of the so many oppressed in today’s world.

Please let me share the word of the Lord that we have received for this year.

For indeed says the Lord, I have heard the cry of my people. It is almost like in the days of Moses, when the people were oppressed and heavy burdens were laid upon them. So it is today, not only in the world, but also in my Body.

My people have been oppressed and nobody is there to release them and bring them into true freedom. There are many so called  fathers in my Body, but a lot of them do not represent me. They are fathers when all is good and as long as the children obey and act as they want them to act. In fact, they are not even caring and providing for them, but they are enriching themselves from their children.  There are not many true shepherds that really care for my people and feed them and raise them up into full authority.

But I have heard the cry of the afflicted and seen their hearts desires says the Lord. There are many that had a longing for true Fathers and Mothers in my Body and I have been raising up true Fathers and Mothers. But they have been oppressed themselves says the Lord. But this time is over and I am raising them up all around the world. The new Generation of Fathers and Mothers have been laying there like seeds under the ground.

It has taken a long time for them to mature and they had to endure many Fathers and Mothers that did not treat them the way I wanted them to. But I have become their Father and their Mother. And as David grew up under Saul and yet grew into a true man after my own heart that was leading Israel well, so have they grown up under a lot of persecution and oppression, but they have not been corrupted by it, but been purified through the fire and shine like stars now.

What has been hidden will now be revealed says the Lord. So I want you to know that many that have been oppressed over the years, will now be released. The fatherless will no longer be fatherless and those that were terrified will have to fear no more! For I am going to change things quickly now and those people that have abused their authority, will no longer be able to abuse it. For I myself will fight for the cause of the weak and I myself will be releasing the oppressed.

It will indeed be like in the days of my Prophets, where I spoke that I would no longer delay my words, but make them come true quickly and swiftly. In your mind you will think: But how is this possible oh Lord?  But with me all things are possible and I am able to change any situation around and work in every circumstance.

So watch as the true Fathers are released and know that they will bring freedom to my people like Moses of old did. They will put out their rod and miracles will happen, like when Moses stretched out the rod at the sea and a way was made that did not exist before. So they will make a way where there was no way before and my people will not only walk into freedom, but will start taking the new land that belongs to them.

This will not only look nice, but will cause lots of trouble for the existing structure that is holding everything under control and imprisoned. But when you see the structures breaking apart and some things turn sour, do not be afraid, because it is indeed my work says the Lord. Structure has given you guidelines and security, but no longer shall you trust in manmade things, but I will be your security and I will be your guide says the Lord!

You have been led by the structure of the church and it has given you safety, but no longer shall anything else than I give you a hold. For I am your God and I will lead you by the hand. I will direct your path and I will teach you what true church is about. For where I am in your midst, true church has started (Matthew 18,20)!

This will also be the sign of the new fathers. They will no longer point you to themselves or to their organization, but they will raise you up and help you to know me! For as I have shown you the Father, so will they show you the Father!

So when trouble arises and all is not like before anymore, look up to me. No man will be able to terrify you any longer, for I am defending the fatherless and the oppressed and I myself will watch over them says the Lord.

Matthew 24:22  And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.

For the past week, the Turrialba Volcano has been spewing ash and gases.  This has caused the evacuation of residents and livestock.   The streets and homes are now covered in ash, as is the livestock.  The farmers have been pulling up their crop to save what they can.  The winds have blown the ash to other cities as well.

In Scripture, ash is a symbol of mourning, Samuel 13:19  Then Tamar put ashes on her head, and tore her robe of many colors that was on her, and laid her hand on her head and went away crying bitterly.

While in church, our pastor had the following message to share with us:   “The Lords coming is sooner that we think.   Time is going fast”.

The Lord had been waking him up at 2:00 and 3:00 a.m.   each time with the same message, that He is coming soon, and each time he would direct him to look up ashes in scripture. 

He continued with his message:  “Has  Costa Rica lost something   so valuable that we are in mourning?   What is lost, or what are we loosing, what has been removed from us that the country finds itself in mourning?”

We were also reminded that it was one year ago that Costa Rica had a devastating earthquake in “Cinchona”, and the area has not recovered.  Lives , homes,  and jobs were lost last January.

We read in Jeremiah that God used ash to warn of the coming judgment

Jeremiah 6:26  O daughter of my people, Dress in sackcloth and roll about in ashes! Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; For the plunderer will suddenly come upon us.

So what are we to do?   What is the answer for us here?  The answer is found in scripture:

2 Chronicles 7:14  if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Costa Rica, like many other nations has lost its’ Biblical worldview. It is no longer what is right in the eyes of God, but what is right in the eyes of man, politician, environmentalist and so on and so forth. 

But we are His people, a chosen generation, and when we pray and humble ourselves for the sins of our nation, He will hear us. 

Costa Rica is not alone in this.  Many nations are in rebellion against His Word, His warnings and His will.

Let this year be a year where we pray for the nation in which we live in, and for other nations as well.   It is then we will see the salvation of our Lord and His blessings fall upon the land.

May you be richly blessed this day.

I would like to introduce to you the Follow Him School.  If you desire to learn more about the things of God and increase your relationship with Him, consider taking an online course, I highly recommend it.

Below an introduction to the online school.

These are challenges we face every day as Christians. And that is exactly what the Lord wants us to equip each one of us for. He wants to bring you to a position from where you can do more than barely keep your head above water – to a place of release, where you can truly take steps and not only receive blessing but are able to pour it out to others.

Full of excitement and joy we would like to introduce to you the Follow Him School; an online school where you can take courses about different subjects from your home. It is a bible school with the emphasis to put into practice what you have learned.

At the Follow Him School we help you to receive the equipment and also to apply it so that you can go forward in your calling and fulfill the mandate that the Lord has given you. If you start to follow Him you will see miracles happen and life will turn out to be exciting and full of the works of Jesus!

Perhaps you wonder if that could be something for you. Would you like to…

• get to know the Word of God better and apply it in your life?
• Know the plans of the Lord for your life and put them into practice?
• be consumed by the fire of God and be equipped for ministry?
• Get to know the love of the Father and pass it onto others?
• learn how to transform others into followers of Jesus and build the kingdom of God?

Have you found yourself in some of these questions? Could you answer some of them or even all of them with “yes, exactly”? Then you are at the right place at Follow Him School!
To enroll in a course you only have to go through three easy steps:
Step 1: Register into the Follow Him School

Step 2: Login with the user name and password that you will receive from us at: http://www.followhimschool.com/

Step 3: Chose one or more courses to study.
Saturday, January 9th the following courses will start:

Details and costs of all the courses you will find here:

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us! We gladly answer your questions or recommend you a course that you could start with.

We are looking forward to this coming time together with you! May the Lord shower you with His blessings!

Hose 4:6  My people are destroyed for lack of Knowledge

While in prayer last week the Lord directed me to this verse.  As I continued in prayer, the Lord continued with the following:

I desire to pour my wisdom and knowledge upon my people, but not many are asking and those that are asking I will give, and give in abundance says the Lord.

It is only by my wisdom and knowledge that you will be able to succeed and not by the efforts of man.  Seek my wisdom, seek my knowledge, for these are two ingredients that will cause you to prosper.

Fernando and I have begun the year seeking the Lord for His will on our lives. We are asking for the Lord to pour His Wisdom and Knowledge upon us, not only for our gain, but for us to be able to pour out on the Body of Christ. 

I challenge you to ask the Lord for His Wisdom and Knowledge upon your life this year, and wait and see the blessings that will follow!

May you be abundantly blessed this year.

 By Fernando Nietzen

Matthew 7:13 -14 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it¨

I recently went to the coastal town of Golfito in Southern Costa Rica and had several hours to spare  for the return flight to the capital.

During this trip, I went for a walk to explore the trails and neighborhoods and came across a beautiful property. Since I love working in metal, I was impressed by the gates made entirely of iron.

One gate was huge for the driveway and then further up the road there was the walk-in gate;  the detail and handicraft was very well done and one could tell it took a lot of creativity and time.

Back home, I began reading a book we recently purchased called “The Greatest Words Ever Spoken”   These are Jesus’ own words broken down into over 150 categories. I was immediately drawn to one topic which I considered perhaps the most important: “Eternal Life”. I thought: what could possibly be more important than what Jesus Himself says about Salvation?

I was surprised to read the author affirming that these are the most important words any of us will ever read. These words come from the lips of the One who decides who enters heaven and who does not.

The verses quoted above  pretty much sum it up.  Because Jesus equates believing with doing what He tells us to do, we could say that believing is the first step to receiving the gift of eternal life.  If we believe, we enter that small gate, the narrow road leading to life is the doing part.  Salvation is both – an instant decision and a process, a gate and a road.

Notice that the believing and the doing refer back to Him, we cannot believe in other philosophies or in our own goodness.  Likewise, we cannot be doing things that we consider to be good and will hopefully get us into heaven. We ought not to be doing things with wrong motives either.

We need to be seeking His will and doing what He has told us to do for He alone is the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Jesus.

Let us enter the gate which leads to salvation and then continue on the  the narrow path to life abundantly –  in Jesus.