The Video is here. This video departs from the newsletter so I recommend you watch it (10 min).
This trip to Poland and Denmark consisted of a 7 Mountains conference, two Heart Plan workshops, a church service and a dozen meetings with Kings operating in different mountains. The first workshop was in a Catholic church, and the second was for business men and women. The schedule was hectic, but fun and energizing. Maria Lalik organized the trip and led the workshops. I think it was the most productive two weeks ever. We are seeing a healthy transition from preaching and teaching in conferences to helping people to take the next practical step in their dream. Seeing what the Lord does on these trips always leads to new insights into how the Holy Spirit is working. The general theme of Kingdom stays the same, but the Lord is very dynamic, and new approaches and improved results are very much the norm.
Chosen by God – As kids, most of us have experienced choosing sides for sports. It’s nice to be chosen first and it’s very deflating to be chosen near the end or not chosen at all. This trip to Poland was a reminder of how chosen this nation is and how special her people are.
Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? James 2:5-6 NIV
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. John 15:16 NIV
We are all inclined toward the safety of being servants, hiding from responsibility for our own lives. The concept of feeling chosen by God is laid on a foundation of feeling chosen by our natural fathers. It is dad who teaches us how to ride a bike and draws his children into the adventure of life. We usually get our confidence to try new things from our fathers. The totalitarian rule over Poland for 40+ years left two generations of men without the freedom to dream. Communism instills servanthood in everyone and represses the primary function of fathers. Now, in many cultures, there is a sense of being fatherless, generations who have to relearn how to dream and feel chosen by Father God.
What it feels like – Watching this live transition from “servant” to “chosen” with permission from the Father to dream is an amazing phenomenon of Kingdom right now. The primary consequence is love. When you release a brother or sister to feel chosen and they truly experience God’s permission to explore the desires of their own heart, there is sense of being loved and chosen more deeply than they ever have had. Helping them through this experience feels very fatherly, and the love you get in return is an amazing experience in itself.
Everyone is invited – Another way to point out this process is the sense of invitation that the Holy Spirit has put in the Kingdom. People of all faiths and of no faith are being invited into this place of being ourselves and co-laboring with the Father at the same time. Finding the synergy and fellowship in your own mountain cuts through every religious barrier and unites people around the themes of their heart instead of the denominations in their head. We had people saved in a business conference because of this compelling invitation from the Father into the Kingdom. Feeling generally chosen is good; feeling loved by fathers and the Father is even better, but finding the specific purpose of your life in Christ in your own heart’s desires answers life’s biggest question, “Why am I here?” That’s very powerful and practical! It’s also a fun way to live… an adventure with Jesus. It really is the gospel of the Kingdom. I spent hours with unsaved people (my favorite part of the trip). Instead of discussing their sins and inadequacies, I helped them identify the dream God had already put in their heart and how that dream fit into the larger picture of what God was doing in the nation and the Kingdom. The result is friends who love me and see Jesus. It works exactly the same for believers. Our message is no more and no less than the gospel of the Kingdom. It’s the goodness and mercy and love of God that draws us into His Kingdom. We misrepresent the nature of God when we emphasize rules, sin and judgment.
Here are a few of the Kingdom ingredients that we saw in Poland and Denmark:
Wisdom – People are choosing to live from their hearts instead of by a list of religious rules or expectations imposed by others from the outside. Jesus really does reside in us. Liberty and the presence of the Holy Spirit really do go together.
Style of Leadership – Leadership in business, church and government are slowly beginning to awaken to the fact that humans are not machines and cannot be treated like obedient servants. The best managers have learned to draw out the heart motivations of those with whom they work. They are not just judges of performance; they are lovers of people who are connected with their own hearts. They don’t just pass down the rules and the instructions; they can listen. They can make work fun because that is one of the basic ingredients of the Kingdom – it’s a party.
Have a plan – Instead of waiting for God to do everything, these “friends” and Kings have given themselves permission to be very strategic about their future and to ask their Father for the desires of their hearts. They do plan to pray, but they realize prayer alone is not a plan.
Count the cost – There is always a financial aspect to having a dream or plan. There is a Spirit of Wisdom leading His people to evaluate their dreams in terms of cash flow. They are regarding the ability to create wealth and get results as a spiritual attribute that can be learned and imparted. They don’t expect someone else with money to magically show up and fund their dream.
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? 29 For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Luke 14:28-30 NIV
Mentors – We saw John Godson start a monthly training day for young people from all over Poland interested in politics. He is very much a father, and has seen success in the political mountain. The hearts of fathers are being turned toward their sons in every mountain. The practical aspects of getting the help we need to make our dream come true feels OK now. We seek out mentors who have practical experience. And we connect with a team of people who share our heart and have the skills we lack.
There is a spirit of resurrection in Poland. Against all odds these people have risen from the ashes and it’s easy to feel the winds of revival in the church, growth in the economy and reformation in the culture. We will make it so.
