The Holy Spirit has burned a message into my soul that I cannot contain. I want this message to get into the hands of as many people as possible—people who are on the verge of spiritual shipwreck. I have never felt as great an urgency to open my heart to you.
Millions have left the church. Many who were on fire for God, even those who were effective vessels, have fallen and have abandoned their faith in Jesus. A famous Christian singer announced that he is now an atheist. Is that shocking? The real shock is that the church is not shocked, because this kind of recanting of faith has now become common.
Millions have left the church. This is the reality that Christian leaders do not want to talk about. However, facts do not go away. And the facts are these: an entire generation has virtually discarded the faith of their parents.
Perhaps you also were among those who were wounded on the battlefield, but did not get up again. The reasons are as varied as are the people themselves. It may have been an abusive church. It may have been an old habit that raged its way back into control. It may have been a divorce, a false teaching that weakened you, or the gravitational weight of the unbelief and skepticism of this age.
The most common cause is sudden tragedy. Something horrendous happened that ran you off of your theological map. You felt that you had no choice but to abandon your faith. You may be angry with God. You are not alone. There are millions in this condition.
Let me be frank, I believe that God is turning your heart back to Him. And He is also doing this on a massive scale with others.
He has done it before. Just prior to the fire falling on Mount Carmel, Elijah prayed these words, “Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” (1 Kings 18:37)
The Lord is doing this not only because He loves you, but because He wants to spare America.
“And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” (Malachi 4:6)
You are likely a casualty of the lukewarm American church. Widespread compromise has left her unprotected. The active ingredient has been left out of preaching—and that ingredient is surrender. And that is the reason that the power of God to stand against tragedy and evil has never kicked in.
The voice of the Holy Spirit is intensifying as He calls to those who are the fallen, the wounded, and the forgotten. His wooing is loving and hopeful, but it never disguises the truth.
And the truth is that, in America, entire churches are backslidden! And it is not unprecedented. Look at these verses: 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:15-20)
Okay. So you may have been caught in the cultural crossfire of the compromised church, or the toxic church—even the false church—but why should you lose your soul just to get back at false ministers and sick churches?
This is about you and Jesus. This is about a destiny that God still keeps for you. There is one thing that Satan does not want you to remember—it is the one thing that can break the chains of lies and heartbreak.
What Satan does not want you to think about is this: if you brush away the cobwebs of church politics, hypocrites, and unexpected tragedy, you will have to admit that the best days of your life were when you walked with God in fervent commitment. Those were the days of peace and joy.
The best days were the days before anybody and anything came between you and Jesus. You prayed and sensed that no matter what, everything would come out all right. Even those things that you still had questions about became unimportant, because of your total trust in the character and faithfulness of God!
You have never, before or since, felt anything like His sweet presence. Those were the best days, and those days can come again. Jesus is knocking and wants to have dinner with you alone. “I will sup with him,” Jesus promised.
I admit I am calling forth a divine desperation to come over you. I want you to break, I want you to yearn to come back home—to return to your best life, your only life.
There is an army rising up, composed of people that Satan thought he had, but is about to lose on a grand scale.
Won’t you turn back to Jesus, and reclaim your first love? Do your first works over again. Then, He will say to you, “Welcome back to the war!”
Hurts can us to stumble and even cause some to completely turn away, it is strange well not really, I was dreaming about starting a new church, and some people were coming telling me about this one, and that one, I am the kind of person if I want to know about you, I ask the Lord, people see past things God no longer see’s, and I want to know what he say’s, not what others may know, but back to the telling on people, I hit my desk and said stop I will not have this gossip in a church I build for Christ, and whoooosh I was ducking duct work floor joist, flooring and then upstair’s and through the roof, and I stood in front of Jesus and he gave me 2 Cor. 12:20-21, which mentions Gossip, slander, accusing, malice anger, and so on, but the reason I hated so bad, all mylife every time God started to move good in a church, BAM gossip and slander tore apart every good move of God that started, and people were hurt and destroyed, and some never entered a church house again, if we don’t have a made up mind, and are rooted and grounded in the word and have a good relationship we will fall away when things happen, thats why we must have a good relationship with Jesus, and still death tragedy especially when every one turns there back on us, as they did when my wife died 22 years ago, and I drifted back, the church said they didn’t know what to say, I loved my wife dearly and it crushed me and I got upset with God, and the people I needed to be around didn’t want to be around me because of my greif, I couldn’t sleep so I would drive from county to county all night long, 6 days at a time with out any sleep, and after 5 months I had a wreck, I was still holding on to the Lord but I wasn’t living as close as I did when she died, but I soon went back after Jesus with every thing in me, because there was a love there and a pulling I just couldn’t didn’t want to let go of, but a lot of hurts had piled up, and when the Lord told me to do this, to expose some things and tell the church there not ready, a bunch come at me so fast, I couldn’t take care of the hurts fast enough, and it got hard to get in his presence, and I said Lord whats wrong, and he Roger you have plastered over so many hurts I can’t hardly recognise you, and until you take care of them I am not going to receive your praise and worship, and I was crushed, because the one thing I said satan couldn’t take from was his presence, and he did, by the hurts, and I was so crushed satan yanked me down in a pit under the earth it looked like, and that quick the Lord jerked me back out, and said no you don’t you did this, you hit him so fast and hard he for got about some of them, but I ask for forgiveness and got it fixed, but I found out hurts do the same thing as unforgiveness, they will eventually cut you off from God, and church hurts can run deep, thats why Jesus said it’s better that a meal stone be tied around your neck and you be cast into the depths of the sea, rather to offend one of these little one’s,[ a young christian, because they may never go back to church.] and we have to watch how we treat the young ones, but we should never give up on Jesus, he if we really love him, you can do what ever to me, but I must have Jesus and his presence, thats the one thing I can not do with out, with out him theres no peace, sadly we can’t depend on to many these days to help us, people are consumed with self, to help others the way we should, by sitting with some one who lost a loved one if they need us, or a sickness, we were tought to do those things years ago, take Vets to V.A.H. if needed as Deacons, before we were pastors or Evangelist, we served, we went and visited the elderly, took them what they needed, now it seems like our natural affection is gone, we don’t even talk to we talk at some one, afraid some one might see and unfriend or unfollow us, some scream so much love, but show none, as a matter of fact right opposite, We just need to get back to the basic’s of God read his word, do unto others as we would have them do unto us, really love and mean it, people say it today, but I know the same one’s send out there assassins at night in the spirit to try and kill, people are hurting bad and they need real love, and real love some times has to correct, Why does God correct us because he loves us, and when we love him more than anything he will be what we want most, because in his presence all needs are met, because in his presence you don’t need any thing but him. Be Blessed
Oh…..this is so excellent MARIO …I praise God for His anointing your words here to be a huge wake up call to the Body of Christ ….we must bind up the injuries and the festering wounds of the church body so that then we can become the Bride of Christ ….submitting ourselves to His Perfect Love and uncompromising character ….trust in His flawless Integrity….always ❤️
Well Glory!!!! I will not be defeated and I will not quit in Jesus’ Name!!!!!!!!
That’s right NEVER give up, NEVER give in, NEVER quit desiring & LOVING Him!!!
As I read Mario’s words today, I believe I understand who he’s addressing in this context of his article today.
Mario (to me) is addressing those who’ve once been involved in the institutional organized main stream church houses scattered all over this nation and world. But who have found themselves for one reason or another lukewarm and disheartened with their religious experience. It is possible to have once felt a stirring ember of closeness to Jesus Christ and then to suddenly find oneself cold and indifferent spiritually by those who have not fully yielded to the Baptism of being Born Again.
Yet…the authentic Holy Spirit sealed Bride like universal church of Jesus Christ that is the woven Body throughout the earth by the supernatural Will of God, cannot be daunted in their love for HIM by any means at the devils disposal. Else Christ HimSelf wouldn’t have said to Peter;
“…On this rock I will build My church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.”
Christ’s church (which is not organized by men) is profoundly ensconced within Him and HE within her forever by the Sovereign Will of The Father. Because Jesus Christ is the Centrality,
” He is the image of the invisible God…He is before all things, and ‘by Him all things hold together’. He is also the head of the body the church;” (Colossians 1: 15, 17,18)
“Son of man, can these bones live?” (Ez 37:3)
Indeed, they can.
Churches are just dead…. people aren’t friendly and it feels like a waste of time…. I miss a place to worship… i hate the entertainment bands and you are in the audience watching….
This also one of the main impetuses to the ministry I want to stand up, and which is echoed in Greg X. Voltz’s song “Man Overboard”.
I can’t tell the number of times I’ve been benched, sat down or otherwise injured by “pastors” who wanted the best for their ministries, but showed no loyalty for those who stood by them at the beginning. (No, in almost all cases I was not at fault. Just others more talented and therefore more “desirable” came along.)
But, it’s not just pastors who hurt folks… We seem to do so to one another in oh so many ways…
But, what would have happened if someone’s worth had been shown to them just by someone checking up on them when they went missing?
thank you????
On Sun, Aug 25, 2019 at 11:12 PM Mario Murillo Ministries wrote:
> mariomurilloministries posted: “Many who were on fire for God and even > effective vessels have fallen and have abandoned their faith in Jesus. A > famous Christian singer announces that he is now an atheist. Is that > shocking? The real shock is that the church is not shocked because this ” >
Sent from my Verizon Motorola Smartphone
WOW Marioâ£ï¸â£ï¸â£ï¸â£ï¸
Now THIS fills me with HOPE!!!
YES! and AMEN! THANK YOU LORDâ£ï¸â£ï¸â£ï¸â£ï¸
Sent from my iPad
>
Mario, I hope you read this, for I wanted to send it to you as food for thought, because I think it keys into what you’re observing and I’m sure you can take it further. About 10 years ago, a friend of mine from Massachusetts wintered in Texas. He was not a churchgoer, but had once had a powerful private experience of Jesus, outside of church; still he was not convinced Christianity was the true faith or that the Bible was the true Word of God. When he returned from Texas, I asked him if he had checked out any of the churches down there? He said he had, but was turned off because, “It seemed to me everyone was tuned to WIFM – What’s In it For Me?” Wow! What a powerful observation. He used the analogy of a radio station frequency to both describe the church and express why he was turned off. I think there is a deep truth for us Christians in that. How much of our faith is based on What’s In it For Me? I must confess my own sin here. If that is the norm, it’s no wonder people lose heart when the storm so big comes in like a flood and it seems like there is no longer anything in it for them/us. We are human, we need to see/believe God is in it for us no matter what, but we also need – as you said so well – to be surrendered. The marriages that work best are the ones where I’m in it for you and you’re in it for me, no matter what. If I’m to have a healthy marriage with God, then I need to be in it for Him as much as He is in it for me, and I need to trust He is in it for me when circumstances and feelings and thoughts and the world and the devil rage that it is otherwise. It takes faith to believe God is always in it for me. Really, the devil’s whole agenda is to get us to believe God isn’t in it for us, so we’ll give up on Him. But we mustn’t believe the enemy’s report. As Elijah said on Mt. Carmel, (I’m paraphrasing by memory) how long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God then follow Him.” I’m sure the Israelites turned to other Gods, because their expectations of God weren’t being met; He wasn’t fulfilling His promises in time for them, so in desperation they turned to other gods that might meet their needs as they perceived them. That is the test of our faith, the test of the ages, will we believe God come what may, no matter what, or will we cave into despair due to greater faith in what we see and feel? Will we demand my way or no way from God or will we trust “He is perfect in all of His ways?” We need to trust the truth about God’s character. We need to hear and trust God’s good report. I know I need to hear the preachers that tell me God is in it for me, the preachers that help me feel there is something in it for me, because that is one side of God’s report. But I also need them to share the whole truth, to balance out their messages by declaring I too need to be in it for God. If they don’t also preach WIFG – What’s In it For God – then how will they build us up in our faith to live for, surrender to, and die for God? What marriage can survive if it’s all about me? There is much preaching these days on what’s in it for me; it brings in the highest number of people; but it doesn’t give a firm foundation – and is doing us no favors – unless it preaches that it takes the surrender of two to have a marriage. Indeed, God laid down His life for us, and still does everyday in the face of our hurts toward Him. Are we then to cry-baby when He needs us to lay down our lives for Him? I confess I have failed in this, and I pray for the grace to never fail God again. The just (justified and righteous one) shall live by faith (not feelings). God is worthy of our trust and surrender and laying down of our own lives, but that takes faith. “When the Son of Man returns, will He find faith on the Earth?” May God help us to believe and be set free by the truth.
I had a conversation with someone that was saying the section in Revelation about being lukewarm, wasn’t about what majority of Christians say it is, but this person said it was about aquaducts and how the water wasn’t hot or cold. SMH.
That’s just stupid
Mario I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your heart! I was once on staff at Christian life Center years ago in Santa Rosa in the midst of the total mess that eventually went on there. I would like to think however that my zeal for the Lord is greater than it has ever been and you are a part of my inspiration along with Lance Wallnau, Dennis Peacock, Graham Cooke, etc. in the midst of all this I have been very far from the organized church. (If I have any questions it would be regarding my position with that part of the church) I pray for His guidance and yours! May we all live to see “the greater works”, Rich Balswick
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Excellent word, thank you, Pastor Mario. It can also apply to those who have not turned away, but just feel they have lost some of their, “First Love”, and need to get back their closeness with Jesus and feel the Holy Spirit again.
I have experienced the war and the onslaught BUT…MY QUEST is to know HIM better and every trial draws me closer.
On Mon, Aug 26, 2019 at 12:03 AM Mario Murillo Ministries wrote:
> mariomurilloministries posted: “Many who were on fire for God and even > effective vessels have fallen and have abandoned their faith in Jesus. A > famous Christian singer announces that he is now an atheist. Is that > shocking? The real shock is that the church is not shocked because this ” >
Amen Bro. Murillo
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Mario thank you so much.
At the end of reading this I began to weep for some old friends of mine that I got saved with back in the 90s that today are such a mess.
Its so sad to see people that I once to served God with who loved the Lord with all their heart,served him with zeal in the condition they are in today completely backslidden lost their marriage even addicted to opiates or dead.
I hope I can be an instrument that God can use to redeem the ones who still have a chance.
God bless you.
https://youtu.be/KSxt3pFEy2A
Reblogged this on free73735 and commented:
I had a vision many years ago, of a huge coin descending from heaven. It was slowly spinning (like when you take a coin and spin it), only much slower. On one side was the Nation of Israel & the other side was America. It was “huge” very “weighty” and “stunning”. This coin had no heads or tails. I heard…. Israel & America are one!
Dear Mario:
What you have shared is true and accurate. I wanted to encourage people here that have felt like walking away from the ministry by sharing some testimony of my own. If I wrote to much I apologize for that but not for the incredible things that God has done.
In late September 2017 I felt the winds of change coming. I was teaching a small Sunday school group and wanted so hard to continue teaching where I was. The problem was there were people that did not like it when I taught on the area of Justice and Truth along with grace and mercy. I remember so clearly the Holy Spirit saying “do not be offended but continue to show honor. The pastor will call you and you will no longer teach here.” That happened the next week.
In March 2018 Benny Hinn prayed over me for healing but then the Holy Spirit had him bring me back up for a special importation of the Holy Spirit upon me. When I announced it to the pastor and elders I expected to receive their blessing but it was clear that that was not going to happen.
Once again, the Holy Spirit said”do not be offended but show honor to the pastor. Little did I know but a week later the pastor ended up in the hospital. The Holy Spirit said “show him honor by praying for him and he will be healed. Then you are released”. My wife and I went to the hospital and prayed for him and he was released within 24 hours afterward.
I had more or less chosen to sit on the sidelines and just have a little bible study. Being in our 60’s we felt like all the doors for teaching were closed. We decided to drive 25 miles to the largest ministry we could find where nobody knew us and sit quietly in the background.
Then in June of 2018 I felt to open our home for a bible study to a local struggling Hispanic group. A pastor that came from the Caribbean came and listened. He invited me to come to meet other pastors from the Caribbean. Listen, there were only 6 people in our Bible study and all Hispanic. We do not speak spanish but our hearts became one. One of those pastors he introduced me to is the head of nondenominational full gospel in all the Caribbean.
Come November my wife and I have been invited to minister the gospel to thousands of people at their national convention. Including over 100 pastors that will be attending from all over the world. We are in complete awe at how GREAT our God is.
I personally am convinced that the honoring of our past pastor even though we were removed from teaching was a time of the Lord observing and making sure we were ready for such honor and assignment to preach the gospel without compromise.
A true minister for Christ cannot have offense in their heart and have the anointing and power of the Holy Spirit upon them to preach the Word of God.