#696 The Kingdom Within

The ACTS Foundation Bulletin for
“Wednesday Women Warriors & Mighty Meditating Men”


The Kingdom Within in 2010!
#696 / by Susan G. McIntosh / susan@actsfoundation.com
December 30 , 2009

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As the Kingdom of God generation, we are called to communicate and demonstrate the Kingdom way of life. By all we are, do, and say, we are to preach, teach, and demonstrate the Gospel of the Kingdom of God until it has become a witness to such a degree that God can say at last, “My Church has done enough and the witness is sufficient.” It is then “the Spirit and the Bride will say, 'Come'” and Jesus will come for His Church. We, the Church, are His kings and priests (Revelation 1:6). We are new creations in Christ. The newness is manifested in the lives of those who listen to the Spirit and obey His voice and the Word. It is not “either/or”, it is “both/and” – listen, obey. Kingdom unfolds.

“Behold, He comes with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also who pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, says the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, The Almighty” (Revelation 1:7-8). God is ever-present. He is Eternal-nowness personified. He has been Himself in the past, is so today, and forever will be. I think this is why I am dumbfounded when I hear some church leaders preach that miracles are not for now. God is for NOW and He is the miracle worker. He brings Kingdom wherever He is invited. Revelation from God never changes or ends.

“...it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love Him. But God has revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep tings of God. For what man knows the things of a man,” save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 2:9-11). God has so much prepared for each of us for now. Yes, Heaven will be wonderful, but He, who never changes, has great things for us here, today! He is waiting to reveal much to us. To the extent that we are open to the Spirit of God, that this extent, we experience His Kingdom in our day to day living. Only the Spirit of God is going to tell us of the things of God, and no one else. If the things of God are expounded upon by human lips, they must come through revelation from the Holy Spirit in order to be Kingdom effective.

1 Corinthians 2:12-14 reminds us that it is the Spirit of God who freely reveals God to us. God says, Be still enough to know that I am God. George Frederic Handel cloistered himself away for three weeks when he wrote the beloved great musical work, “The Messiah,” and when he wrote, “The Hallelujah Chorus,” he commented that he felt as if he had seen the face of God. These musical works are full of exaltation of God because God revealed Himself to Handel.

I am excited about 2010 because I and many others feel assured that believers are going to experience the Kingdom of God in this coming year as never before, Amen! The choice is ours. Are we ready to embrace His Kingdom or are we content with life as we plan it? God put man in the Garden of Eden in order to walk with him and fellowship with him. We were made in His likeness, yet, we are not forced to fellowship with Him. We are given a choice. In 2010 I encourage you to choose to seek God as never before. Set aside time for Him each day. Invite God to reveal Himself to you. First off decide that you want to live His Kingdom on earth. Kingdom living may not always be convenient. He might rearrange your schedule. Be assured, the gifts He placed in you will be stirred up tremendously, for His glory. Kingdom means righteousness. Expect it. Yield to it!

In the Word of God the word mountain often symbolizes kingdom. When John spoke about a mountain in Revelation, the Jews knew immediately what he meant. The Jews no doubt surmised that Jesus meant, “Speak to this mountain kingdom, and it shall be removed.” They faced religious mountains and laws made to restrict them. Determine now that throughout this new year you will speak the mountain kingdom of this world to be removed and invite the Kingdom of God to rule and reign in its place--in you, your household, your family tree, your business or workplace, your community, and in your nation. We have been given authority to be kings and priests in the Kingdom of God. It is time we embraced our calling May we not waste another year. We are sons and daughters of the King. It is time we seek to really know the King so we can live in His Kingdom realm with Him to its fullest, here on earth!

Here is the key: Be led by the Spirit and you will experience sonship! (Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God!” If you are not sure how to hear from the Spirit of God, begin each day with an invitation, “Holy Spirit of God, I want to be led of You today. Help me to hear You, to understand You in the Word, and to live today as an heir to the King. Help me listen. Prompt me to obey. Father, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth, in me today, as it is in Heaven! In Jesus' Name, Amen.” It is going to be an awesome year! Politicians, financial institutions, and newscasters might speak a scary future, but we are of another Kingdom! Romans 8:15-17 is the truth we as sons and daughters of the King can expect to experience. We are adopted. We are heirs. We are royalty. We can be overcomers. We can lives in His righteousness. Brothers and sisters, we have connections! May we really seek to know the King this new year. The Holy Spirit is our connection.

AS 2009 ENDS AND 2010 BEGINS...WE PRAY GOD'S BLESSINGS ON EACH OF YOU AND YOURS. THIS HAS BEEN AN AWESOME YEAR WITH MANY TOUCHED BY THE POWER OF GOD. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE HOSTED US AND PRAYED FOR US AND HELPED US ACCOMPLISH THINGS FOR THE KINGDOM IN 2009
RALPH AND SUSAN MCINTOSH

The Call

# 694 The Call
by Timothy VanValin / tvanvalin@hotmail.com / December 17 , 2009

Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19) This verse is one that everyone knows but hardly anyone does. Make disciples. Okay. Seems like pretty clear direction from Jesus. Come to think of it, it probably couldn’t be any clearer. So then why do some people do it and others do not? Why is it so incredibly appealing to the people who are doing it but about as appealing to those who aren’t as their next Rotary Club meeting? After Jesus ascended into heaven the disciples wasted zero time in making more disciples. What prompted them to step into the Call so quickly? I think we’ll come to find the answers to these questions are not grounded in obedience but rather in trust and intimacy.

In a favorite story, Aladdin stretched out his hand to Jasmine and invited her up onto the magic carpet and into a whole new world with four simple words, “Do you trust me?” It cuts to the heart of what would hold Jasmine back in her old predictable life. God does the same. He’s always speaking, always calling to His people. He’s always inviting them up and into the Call and the story He’s been telling since before time began. And so, with God’s part completed, His Call through Jesus ripping clearly through our muddled thought and stagnate state, the question becomes this--What will we do with it? What will we do with His Call? Will we step into the unknown with Him? Will we trade what we know for what He knows? The answer to these questions depends on who we know God to be. All the vigor with which we respond and follow or all the excuses with which we decline stems from this and only this. After all, we don’t follow or obey anyone we don’t know intimately or don’t trust completely.

...If our focus is on the senseless pain in this world we’ll surmise God has simply abandoned His creations. And if He’s abandoned us then we’ll side with the crowd that says God no longer speaks to His people; believing that the Holy Spirit has somehow been muzzled. And if we can’t hear His still small voice we can’t be told what to do. And if we can’t be told what to do, then the only heading we have is our own, born of our own emotional sway and desire and the deafening proof of God’s absent voice and intervention. And so we’ll just go about our lives, much the way pagans do, and hope things work out for the best.

...Today, our face-to-face encounters with God occur during our time with Him in the Scriptures. And so we must approach our time together with a desire for intimacy. We must always ask, “Papa, can we talk? I need and want to know you more deeply, more intimately, today. Reveal Your heart to me in what I’m reading so that I can know You better.” That’s the prayer God has been waiting for. After all, His desire for us is not simply more knowledge about Him, but more intimacy with Him. That is what he offered Isaiah and that is what He is offering us today; an intimacy with Him that manifests itself in our own transformation and His glory. When this happens, answering the Call becomes the greatest honor we could ever receive. T. Van Valin

(From the Editor: These are excerpts from an amazing article. Timothy is a nephew of ACTS Board member, Jewel Van Valin. He has recently joined our writing team. You can hear his heart. In the future we will try and post his complete articles on our web. Due to space, we have given you a sampling. The second part of the article is focused on Isaiah 6. Read it and see the prophet's heart preparation in an intimate, close encounter with God and the response of Isaiah to The Call, “Send me.” Ask the Lord God, as Timothy has, to give you a personal encounter with Him and He will empower and enable you to be His disciple and to go and make disciples of all nations. Glory! God touched Timothy. Now the outgrowth of his walk with God is circling the Globe by emails and the printed version. ACTS reaches 47 countries each week. Pray for Timothy and his family. Bless them. Respond to The Call of God in a deeper way than every before, Amen. He needs you!)

We speak a blessed Christmas season over you and your entire family tree. We pray that you will have a worshipful Christmas!

If it were possible, we would invite you all to dinner at our home…”Father's House”, but, instead
we trust God to fill your home, apartment, and for some, prison cell or hospital room, with
His glorious LIGHT.

2010 is going to be an exciting year in the Kingdom of God—righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit! We need your prayers for us and our family tree. Be assured of our daily prayers for you and your family tree.

Blessings, Ralph & Susan McIntosh
on behalf of the ACTS Foundation Board and Team Members!

#695 One in Christ

#695 “One in Christ” / by Ralph McIntosh / Ralph@actsfoundation.us / December 23, 2009

On Saturday November 28, it was a great privilege for Susan and me to walk with believers from Manchester Anglican Cathedral to Salford Cathedral (Catholic) near Manchester England. The procession was made up of about 350 to 400 believers in Christ from many cultures and denominations including Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, Salvation Army, Pentecostal and more! There were awesome services on both ends of the march and there was singing and praising the Lord in the march itself.

The church leaders of each denomination wore their official attire and many of the marchers carried signs proclaiming “King of Kings,” “Word of God,” Light of the World”, etc. The banner at the front of the procession said, “One in Christ.” A number of national flags were carried too. The marchers passed out cards that also said, “One in Christ” and told the story of the event to people on the sidewalks. Each marcher had a sticker on the shirt that said, “One in Christ”.

Along the journey, which went right through a major shopping area, I was able to get one man to proclaim, “Here I am, Lord, use me!” I was also able to witness to a man begging after I gave him some change I had.

The peaceful march was an amazing show of faith to the community and was supported by attending mayors of both cities. We had wonderful police escorts who were very kind and professional.

There were a few people at the end of the march who protested but they were a minor voice compared to the unity shown by the majority of the people. I was thankful to see all the denominations worshiping together and proclaiming to the community their love for one another. It is so valuable to the Christian community to show the world that we serve one Lord!

Eph. 4:4. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
5. One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6. One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.Have you reached out to someone of another denomination recently? Have you attended their church? Have you invited them over for dinner? What have you done to spread the love of Christ beyond your favorite, comfortable circle of friends? Maybe you could organize an event like this one in your area!


A blessed Christmas ...to you from the ACTS Team!
From: Ralph & Susan McIntosh
Jewel Van Valin
Leonard & Kristin Gumm
Jeff & Rosemary Harris
George & Julie Hobbs
Pitt and Joy Gills
Aaron and Michelle Abergas
Susan Black
Earl & Sharon Washburn
Instituto El Rey Staff & Students



Christmas is...

Christmas is when we remember,
Once each year in late December,
How a God, so far away,
Sent His Son to come our way.
Christmas is what was foretold,
By the prophets wise and old.
Christmas is God's perfect gift,
To mankind, their spirits lift.
Christmas is a happy time,
Jesus birthday, and a sign.
Christmas comes again each year,
With eternal, Godly, cheer.
Christmas is, for you and me,
A most perfect way to see...
Christmas as God's visual call,
"Come, behold Him, Lord of all!"
Let this Christmas touch your heart.
From the world, come apart.
Let this Christmas be a gift...
You give God...His Spirit lift!

--Ralph E. McIntosh
(c) Copyright 1999
www.actsfoundation.org