It was no small task making the decision to move forward with the altar IHOP, tokyo's growth this past month.
Since our launch, back in November of 2008, it's been a given that we'll be expanding in many ways as we move towards our goal of night and day 24/7.365 intercession over Japan and Asia. Firstly, as Abba leads more people to join us and secondly, by the addition of prayer sessions, prayer & worship sessions and various types of teaching & training encounters.
On June 21, 2009, we marked our first Sunday Night teaching session in which a vision was cast in a stairwell with royal blue carpet cascading down and an automatic motion detecting light. A location just as prophetic and symbolic of things to come as the date.
Among them, that we are on the basement level of a new thing God's doing in Japan. We are fast ascending and heeding the calling He's extended towards us to "come up here my beloved..." That we (the body of christ) still need the keys to open doors... but that they are coming soon. And that we are firmly planted in the river of the water of life that's spoken about in Ezekiel's writings and so, so much more.
The date however being the focus of this posting, has a scripture to match and a very good one at that.
Matthew 6.21 which states, "Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be." (NLT)
It is interesting that, before the throne of God, there is an altar containing golden bowls of incense which contain the prayers of the saints presented before Him. It is interesting that the name of this HOP is "the altar." It is also interesting that our focus is such a similar reflection to the things that are in the throne room.
That the prayers of the saints are the treasures placed before Abba on His altar....
That we come to His "altar" to offer up our prayers as sweet incense before him and so often, those offerings... those prayers are a reflection of the treasures we have laid up on the altars of our own hearts.
It's through the act of prayer and humble worship of the King of kings that we transfer those oh so precious cares, concerns and loved ones from one altar to the next. When we lay our hearts, our hopes, our visions and our dreams upon Abba's altar our treasures become His and His treasures become ours. It is as simple as this yet, there is so much more.
What better way than to spend time dwelling in a place literally called "the altar" to represent the location of our most precious possession? Which is and always should be, Him. After all, wasn't He Himself laid up an offering of sacrifice upon an altar once too?
Posts
