1 Thessalonians 1:5-7

"For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake. And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the Word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia." ...

What a beautiful clip of scripture this is! Once again Paul is telling his converts plainly, honestly, and humbly, that he had, from the beginning, presented the gospel to them as it is always meant to be presented- 'not in word only, but in power, and in the Holy Ghost'.

Now, 'in power' and 'in the Holy Ghost' are really the same thing. The Holy Spirit always comes to us 'in power', be it for salvation, comfort, Word of Wisdom or Knowledge, rebuke or whatever- because He is, as are the Son and the Father, Almighty God. Paul also adds, 'and in much assurance'. This assurance that he speaks about comes from the knowledge that the Spirit of God is backing them up, as He always will as we faithfully and accurately give out His Word. Paul also presented the Word 'in much assurance' because, as we've seen in previous studies, he had received his commission from Christ Himself, and he KNEW the gospel!

He wasn't presenting worldly programs, graphs, charts, schemes or promises of health and wealth. Remember, back when Christ apperhended Paul's life on the road to Damascus, the risen Savior, Jesus Christ, hadn't revealed Himself to Paul as an idea or a philosophy or as a system of do's and don't's- He simply revealed Himself, and that is exactly what this lost world desperately needs this very hour- the pure revelation of Christ!

The Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us, and He wants us to know and realize the state that we are in (all of us, as individuals helplessly lost in sin) so that we will cry out to Him and receive both ;forgiveness of all our sins, and from that moment on- uninterrupted- eternal life.....

Paul also mentions the way he had behaved before them, and how as a result they became followers of him, and of the Lord, and 'receiving the Word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost', they actually became examples to other believers. Beloved, this is contagious Christianity! Nothing less than the Holy Ghost backed preaching and presenting the resurrected Savior will do. Paul knew this, and his followers knew it.....

May the worldwide body of Christ in this hour also know it.

Pastor Jim Ewing

Ephesians 1: 17-23

"That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, accordng to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, Which is His body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." ...

This is our second look at a portion of scripture that we looked at a few says ago, and I want to hit it from a different angle in this particular study. One of the things that I love about God's Word is that it is so rich, and one look at a number of books, chapters and verses in His Word is often just not sufficient to give us enough of what was originally intended for the reader, and so we'll take another look here at the end of the first chapter of Ephesians.

In the first study, I stressed the importance, even the absolute necessity of realizing as believers that everything that we receive, we must receive from God- be it wisdom, understanding, anointing for a particular ministry, even rebuke and discipline. If we are not in tune with what He is doing in and through us, and if we are not coopperating with Him, we will be open to all sorts of spiritual obsession and confusion, which will render us less effective in truly bringing the risen Christ to others....

Now I want to discuss what the apostle Paul was explaining to the Ephesians (and in effect, us), concern ing who Christ is to the church, and just who and Who's we are. Paul stated in verses 15 and 16 that he in fact prays for them, that they would understand these things, because he knew that if they came to an understanding of them, they would not be victims of any false teachings, or any demonic diversions that might pull them away from the genuine gospel message, and that they would become mature saints of God, able to present the living, risen Savior- in the full power of the Holy Spirit- to those around them.

They in turn would pray and teach others likewise, so that the lost would not only come to a saving knowledge of Chrst, but also become spiritually equipped to present Christ in His reality to those around THEM-and so on, and so on...

Paul prayed that God would grant the Ephesians wisdom and knowledge- the wisdom and knowledge that can only come from God Himself, for only God has the true perspective of the state of the lost world, and of His own remedy for it's salvation. He wants them to understand that the Father raised His Son from the dead, and that Christ is head over all. ALL. "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:10 & 11)"...

He also wants them to understand just who THEY are. Even today, so few of us in the Church seem to really know who we are, because we're usually taught a bunch of do's and don't's by our clergy, rather than why we are a holy people. It is God Himself who has MADE us holy by the precious blood of Christ, and we absolutely must see ourselves as He has declared we are. He could not make it more plain- We are His Holy Church because we are IN CHRIST, and HE put us there!

Christian, never again see yourself outside of Christ- You are in Chri st, and that is God's doing. Knowing that fact alone will set many believers free from the defeated lifestyle in which they have- maybe for years- ignorantly resided. No more!

You are a child of God, and we, the body of Christ, are to carry His fulness to this lost world "...the church ,which is His body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all- Eph. 1:23". That is our commission......

Lord Jesus, May Your fulness be made manifest in us, be shown to the world in us, Your Body, and that we would present YOU, not a mutated imitation of You, but You in Your reality, in Your beauty, in Your power, in Your love, to a world that so desperately needs you.
We recognize, Lord, that this can only be done as you empower us, and as we yield our members up to You. Grant this, Lord- In Your most Holy name we pray...Amen.

Pastor Jim Ewing

http://www.sos-love.net/

My friend Barb from http://www.sos-love.net/ that I have known for quite a few years has just sent me this email that I want to share with everyone here.

"Hi David!

Glad you included me in your invite with this move.

I have written a brief up date for you of what I have been 'doing' and experiencing in the 'post' PMI days.

It seems I have spent the past 7 years in the wilderness places and this summer God began to bring me out and many things began to open before me. He has brought much restoration to me in areas where I determined 'dead' and 'lost'. He has also brought back and restored to me friends from the past that had once shunned me and pushed me aside leaving me alone. Total and absolute restoration in many areas.

Through the 'wandering' He has sustained, healed, trained, and prepared not only me but also a place for me. I have been to foreign lands to minister His truths. At His word to 'Be established in that place' I have provided spiritual covering for many ministers and fellowships in the Philippines through a ministry organization established, at His request, called Beauty for Ashes Restoration Ministries Int'l. The main purpose of is to provide 'safe haven' for those injured in the body to provide for healing, training and equipping and sending forth. So that those the enemy 'thinks' he has conquered and those purposes the enemy 'thinks' he has squelched will be restored and will be established upon the earth as God plans. The primary purpose is to establish a physical retreat/training center for those who are broken to physically come and experience His love as their wounds are dressed and they experience healing to the point of restoration and strength to press onward into His purposes in their lives as they establish His kingdom on earth. A virtual one is also feasible with the exception of my lack of expertise and association with those who have like calling/vision at this point in time.

Through BFA we have traveled to several countries, the Philippines where we have established ourselves with oversight of a dozen or more churches and have plans to join with a sister ministry in establishing schools and also a child sponsorship program for the civil war torn areas in Mindanao where the Muslim activists still raid villages, take hostages and murder at will. Uganda and Kenya where they also seek oversight and the establishment of schools and assistance for their orphanages. There are others where we have been invited but do not have the workers or the finances to move on at this time.

I have also been wandering from fellowship to fellowship as God led and held meetings in our home for a couple years until one day God said "it is time to stop wandering". We entered into a small church plant in our area and have been there for a couple years now. They share the vision I have had for many years for our area and region. I have been attending as a 'pew' sitter while my husband jumped right in and became active within the leadership as adviser and intercessory. But this past summer I began to experience the prophetic anointing as I had in the past and even more so. I thought my usefulness was over when I was expelled from PMI...I apparently thought wrong. Praise God for second and even third and fourth and more chances!

Since the end of June many things have been changing in my life in the area of spirituality. I don't know if anyone can share with me in this or not but I have experienced a tremendous 'shift' in the spirit realm over the summer. I experienced a season of dreams that like I had not before and doors are open that had not been open before locally. I have had such an upsurge in dreams and revelation from the Lord; so much so this past week I have experienced 2 or more dreams a day/night. Many I sense are for the overall church and some for the fellowship I attend.

I was reading one of Suzy's posts from years ago and can relate to what she was saying about not seeing the activity of the enemy, yet knowing it is there and must be dealt with and yet having an acute sense of what the Father is doing and where He is leading. I have been 'seeing' much of what He is doing and where He is leading but do not seem to be able to find others who also 'see' as I do or even care at this point....that is a bit unsettling as I am quite sure that what I am receiving is from Him and I am not the only one.

The leadership has called for and formed a Prophetic Round Table at our church and to my surprise I was requested to head it up. I have agreed even though I 'think' there may be one more suitable/experienced. Please keep this in prayer as I step forward into this position. I want to be able to articulate to those who sit with me there what God has been showing me as I stand watch, in ways they also can gain insight and spiritual understanding. I also want to be able to 'see' the things God has placed within them for sharing.

I would appreciate it if anyone can share with me their experiences and if they can relate to what I have been experiencing in the past few months in the way of increased and even deeper revelation from God. The basic message being that it is past 'time' for the church to awake and sober up and the time is very near when those that refuse to do so will be left in the past as others move forward.

Thanks again for the opportunity to share and be a part of the group. Looking forward to insights! I have thought of and prayed for you often over the years, thinking of your Desert Ministry as I wandered through 'my desert'.

Blessings to you all!

Barb

Pastor Tilson and Shekinah Fellowship

I have known Pastor Tilson since 1973.

Pastor Tilson comes from a long family line that has a history of ministry for the Lord. Therefore he has an understanding of ministry that comes from his families God imparted wisdom. He has dedicated his life to the ministry. I know that he has sacrificied a normal existence for the ministry. Selling his home and using the funds for ministry and ending up in his cabin.

Always willing to give up anything for the sake of ministering to others. He does not live in a large home behind guarded gates, he lives in a cabin in the wilderness, he drives an old pick up truck.

During the course of his ministering to others God has brought him across the path of others in ministry who are well known and some who are not so well known.

He and I love the desert places and ministering to others out there far away from all distractions.

http://desertministry.multiply.com/

Shekinah Fellowship under his watch has been in homes in southern Ca, in a commercial building in Lake Forest Ca
http://www.yellowbot.com/saddleback-valley-plaza-shopping-center-lake-forest-ca.html , in a school directly across from the mission in San Juan Capistrano http://www.missionsjc.com/info.html, in various hotels in southern CA http://tinyurl.com/6hsdr2 and in the mission field of Lake Havasu Arizona http://www.lhcaz.gov/

There are numerous outdoor venues that Pastor Tilson has ministered at such as the time he got the city of San Clemente to allow an outreach at their pier. He built a stage and preached the Gospel message with the City fathers blessing.

Pastor Tilson has gone to Africa to minister to others over there:http://shekinahfellowship.blogspot.com/2008/06/rwanda-mission-come-holy-spirit-i-am.html

Both Pastor Tilson and myself (David) love meeting anyone that wants to meet us. We take time out of our own schedules to go to places where we get to know the people who express a desire to meet with us. Some meetings turn out to be very spiritual and edifying, others just simply meetings. We have found that the Crystal Cathedral (Robert Schuller)http://www.crystalcathedral.org/ is a fantastic place for most of our meetings with others. There is an inviting atmosphere their. Our spiritual father Lonnie Frisbee chose to be buried there.

Where are we located now? No where but where we happen to be personally at the moment.

When we were in Lake Forest we lost our lease due to redevelopment of the Plaza that we were in. The decision was made to not get into another building since we were not interested in just building another "church." We would meet in homes as simply the Body of Christ. We are not interested in building another "Name Brand" church organization. We are just some men who love Jesus and serve Him.

Tilson and I love street ministry. Not group street ministry, but the 'divine appointments' kind that God sets up where things happen one on one.

I paint houses and Tilson is a building contractor for a living. We minister.

We have talked about one day seeing if perhaps God would want us to rent space in the hotel that is now located in the same spot that Shekinah Fellowship was in on Ocean Blvd in Long Beach CA.

We just may one day have a meeting there to see what comes of it. If everyone shows up and God moves then we will see if arrangements can be made to have regular meetings there. We are currently in prayer about it along with another pastor who has expressed the same thoughts.

Why would we want to do this? Because we have a desire to once again display the power and presence of God in reality as a body of believers. All of us recall those incredible meetings during Brant Baker's watch at Shekinah Fellowship. The magnificent manifestation of the person of the Holy Spirit during his meetings is not something that one can ever forget. I call it "The Real Of God."

I know that there are some of you who long for the reality of God's manifested presence. Your tired of the pretenders and the circus acts that you see around you. You have tasted of the real of God so it is impossible for you to go along with the crowd that says God is moving when you know that He is not moving. O how you long to once again sit in the genuine authentic presence of God as He moves upon people in ministry.

Sure you have sat under the academics of the teaching of the Word of God in an intellectual capacity. But there was no manifested presence of God as you checked the time once again to see when the meeting would be over because you were bored. Leaving the building in the same state that you entered it in. Yes there are some anointed teachers of the Word of God where this does not happen such as Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel. But then there are those teachers that you wonder how they ever got to where they are.

You know how everyone lingered after the Shekinah Fellowship meetings. The Holy Spirit filled everyone to the point that they couldn't wait until the next meeting. Most people left in a totally different state then when they came in. Don't you miss that? Hasn't it been such a long long time since you last experienced God's manifested presence?

You were once deeply impacted by Jesus Christ at Shekinah Fellowship. It is our desire that before your time is up here on this earth that you might just one more time experience God moving at Shekinah Fellowship during our watch.

What do you think? Use the 'comments' link at the bottom of this post and share with us what you think. What are your thoughts about us having a meeting in Long Beach? Do you miss what you experienced during Shekinah's meetings? Should we have meetings in Long Beach today?Tell us what you recall about those meetings during Brant's watch, share with us.

We are counting on your input, we need your input.

If you don't leave any comments then we won't know that you care. It will save us the effort of going in a direction that we should not go in or it will encourage us to continue forward. Let us know...

David Sloane

Pastor Tilson And His Wife On PTL In 1984