The Need to ASCEND with David MacFarlane

The 2014 International FCA Convention kicked off last night with a delicious meal and a great message by David MacFarlane! David shared about why we need to ascend in God’s presence from the story of the transfiguration of Jesus in Matthew 17:1-8.

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.  Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.”  When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

We need to ASCEND because what do matters! We need to do the important things: We need to ascend into His presence! Here are some reasons why we need to ascend:

Apart Matters! Choosing to get apart to spend time with Jesus matters!

Surroundings Matter! Your surroundings matter! “We need to create environments where people can encounter God!”

Change Matters! Jesus was transformed before them. We live in a world where there is tremendous opportunity, but we need to change to engage with what God is doing. “The future belongs to people who are willing to change for the right reasons.”

Evangelism Matters! “The devil doesn’t want us to share our faith with anybody, but evangelism is the greatest need we have in our world today.”

Nerve Matters! We need courage. The Bible is full of encouragement not to be afraid. We tend to be afraid, but God says “don’t be afraid!” It takes courage to hear God’s voice and obey what God is saying!

Destiny Matters! God had a plan for their life and had purposed for them to be there for the transfiguration. He had chosen them for a purpose, but they had to come down from the mountain in order to walk in their destiny.

When we ascend and meet with God we can “come down from the mountain” transformed and empowered for the ministry and destiny that God has for us!

I’m looking forward to what God is going to continue do the rest of this week as we ASCEND into His presence! Follow along and join the conversation at the #fcaconvention on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.