Before I get into the core of this blog I'd like to share my heart and view point on a few of the spiritual gifts. As a Christian I believe visions, prophecy, and speaking in tongues, are still true and active today. 1 Samuel 10:6-7 "The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you." Acts 2:17-18 "In the last days, God says 'I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.'"
Now I could go deeper into all of this and get all smart and philosophical, but I want to address another topic.
STORY TIME! I want to share a story of my lack of faith because, let's be real, we all have moments like that. My church, The Gathering LA, had been praying for a new building for quite a while and back in March of 2016, God had given me a vision. In my vision I saw a theater and on the marquee it read "TGLA Coming Soon. Summer June-July 2016." Now I had told my pastor and his wife about my vision but I left out the "Summer June-July 2016" factor because in all honesty I doubted that it could happen in that time. In March, having a new building in a theater by summer seemed SO impossible, yet on July 3, 2016, we as a church had our theatre set grand opening. The day before God had reminded me of my vision and my heart was instantly saddened by my lack of faith in God's promise. 
Exodus 6:1-2 "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Now you will see what I will do to Pharoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country.' God also said to Moses, 'I am the Lord.'"
Exodus 6:6-8 "Therefore, say to the Israelites: 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgement. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as possession. I am the Lord.'" Personally for me, I have been in a waiting season. God has given me a promise over my life and I feel as if I've just been sitting as nothing happens or moves forward and then I begin to think, "Was this promise even from God?" It took just the Israelites fourty years of wandering in the desert before they saw the Promise Land. It took time, but God still held true to His promise to them.
We must wait on the Lord. He knows the time and He knows how His promise will come through. I know I have tried to figure out God so many times and even plan out the miracle He could do.
The second we stop waiting on the Lord is when your trust in Him and His promise begin to diminish. No one said waiting on God's promise wouldn't require work, or that it would be fun and easy, but how you respond to waiting on God's promise will be a reflection of your heart. Hold on to your trust in Him, walk out in faith with the same joy and trust as you did when you first received that promise. Each and every trial is a lesson to learn and an opportunity to grow. Don't grow weary and try to take control because you think you've "got it figured out". And when you get to your Promise Land, don't forget the journey that Christ took you on to get there.
Deuteronomy 8:2-5 "Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these fourty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during those fourty years. Know then in your heart that as man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.'"
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