It has been a while since my last post and my poor excuse is that I have been really busy… Yes – a time management course is on the cards for early next year!

We have just finished our 2nd Ariel Gate Summit – Standing in the Counsel of the Lord (Jeremiah 23:18). The Summit started on Rosh Hashanah so we were very aware of the court of heaven and the opening of the books (Daniel 7:9-10). Apostle Natasha taught briefly on Rosh Hashanah and the judgments that were being decided in heaven during this time. But what impacted us most of all was her message about the counsel of God.

She explained that before the foundation of the earth, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit held a counsel about what they were going to do. They wrote books about everything that would happen and also books for every nation, tribe, tongue and person. That is right – there are books in heaven that detail all of God’s plans for everything. Each year at Rosh Hashanah, these books are brought out and read and there is a measurement taken as to how much has been accomplished. There is also a judgement regarding each of the books. (I will write more about that next time). The point she made that blew everyone away was this…

While this counsel was happening – we were also there. Our spirits which were created BEFORE were also in the counsel of God. We heard the plans of God and we VOLUNTEERED to come to earth and do our part. So David volunteered to come in his time, Peter wanted to be born when Jesus was on the earth, Moses chose Egypt and you and I chose to be alive in 2011. So when you feel like life is too tough or too busy and you wonder what it is all about – remember you CHOSE to be here with all the challenges! Talk about a different perspective.

Apostle Natasha tells a story of a man who was complaining to the Lord about his lot in life. He was moaning about his parents and the difficult life he had. Suddenly he had a vision and Jesus appeared to him and showed him a book. When the young man looked at the book, he saw it was the book about his life. Then Jesus told him to turn to the back of the book. When he did, he saw his signature written at the end. When he asked Jesus what that was, Jesus replied that the young man had signed to agree that he would come to earth and fulfil all that was written in the book. He had done this before he was even born. Before he came to earth he agreed to be born into the family he would have, agreed to go through all the trials and tribulations set down in the book so that he could play a part in God’s grand plan for the earth and mankind.

Is that not amazing! Just as Jesus agreed to be the Lamb slain before the foundation of the earth as His part in God’s plan, we agreed to our lives with all the challenges and sacrifices as our part. The problem is that we got amnesia when we left heaven. We have forgotten how excited we were to come to earth and fulfill our destiny. This is why we need to go back to the counsel of the Lord – so we can hear again and remember what God said to us. This is what God does with Job in Job 38. Job is complaining for 37 chapters and then God says to him:
Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! (Job 38: 3-4)
God is reminding Job that he was there when God created the earth and he should remember where he has come from and what God’s promises are over his life! In the same way, when we feel overwhelmed by circumstances or by what God is requiring of us, we must remember where we came from and what we originally agreed to. We must return to stand in His counsel and hear and see what He is saying and remember why we are here…