Shift! by Christy Williams

Anything that is alive, should change. We grow as children into adults, yet in between that process are stages. If a ministry is alive with the Spirit of God, it should be growing, changing, and evolving more and more into the image of Christ. Now, I know we don’t like the word- change, but it doesn’t have to have a bad connotation. We can grow from glory to glory. Change, shift, focus – should all be words that provoke us as Believers to take a closer look. Currently in the Body of Christ, the word “shift” keeps coming up. It also keeps coming up in my spirit. Folks, get ready, it is time to shift! Change is here.

Isaiah 60:1-2, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you.”(NIV)

Isaiah 1:19, “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land;”(NIV)

Mark 9:29, “And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.”(NIV)

We are entering into the season of change this New Year. It is coming quickly. God is calling for us to arise. He wants us to shift from fear to faith, from doubt to courage, from hiding to shining. God wants the world to see Him. He wants His glory to be experienced. He is ready to show out! His question to us is, “Are you willing and ready?” If so, get ready to eat the good of the land (Isaiah 1:19)!

Shine Empowerment Network was birthed out of an encounter with God during my prayer time around 11 months ago. We started by obeying the call of God with a one-night conference called, “Shine-Come to the Light Encounter.” It was a powerful night where many were touched by the hand of God. I preached a message from Exodus about Moses encountering the burning bush. Moses encountered the glory of God through that experience and left with instructions directly from God. He was chosen, appointed, and called yet unsure of his abilities to do exactly what God had called him to do.

He may have stuttered his way through fulfilling the call of God, but through it, He met the God of his ancestors. The one His mother had whispered to him about as she nursed him as a child. Through the burning bush, He met face to face, the One and true God. He had heard and been taught of all the gods of Egypt as a Prince, yet in his running from his sin, he ran right into the Most High God. He ran into the one and only one who held his destiny- to be a deliverer of God’s people, foreshadowing the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Let me share this with you. WE CAN’T WALK OUT THE CALL OF GOD ON OUR LIVES ALONE. It MUST be through His Spirit. We just have to be willing and obedient. The rest is up to Him. Folks, this is simply have I have decided to live my life. As Chris Tomlin sings on his Passion cd, “I will follow You- no turning back, no turning back.” God is not calling us to sit down somewhere, but to arise and shift into the promises of God that He dies to give us. It’s not time to quit but to refocus and advance.

Prayer & Fasting
Shine Empowerment Network’s “Shiners,” folks who simply believe and act on the fact that we are called to shine forth His light in a dark world(Isaiah 60:10), are committed to fulfilling the commission that the Lord has given us. We have been doing so faithfully for 10 months through prayer and fasting every Tuesday from 6am-6pm. By direction of the Lord, we will shift and start fasting every other Tuesday in 2015. These will be the first and third Tuesdays of every month. We have seen so much fruit from these days.

Testimonies of deliverance for individuals and others have poured in. Testimonies of financial breakthroughs, healings, and restoration have been sent in. Saints of God have received impartation from the Lord, grown closer to Him, and heard Him clearer in these times. Family members have been saved and lots more have been interceded for on these days. Praying combined with fasting can have exponential effects. He wants to start with you and then extend to others as you intercede.

Conferences 

At the very beginning of Shine, the Lord impressed on my heart that we would do outreach. One outreach that He showed me would have to do with backpacks. Recently, he has opened a door for us to participate with an agency already set-up and distributing backpacks to the community. We are partnering with The United Way with their “Backpack Snack Packs” outreach to the local elementary schools. We are so excited! I learned a while back that when someone is already doing something well, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. We should come together.

This January 8, 2015 we will participate in our first outreach under Shine Empowerment Network. I shared this information at our last Shine meeting and we signed up folks to help. If you would like to be added as a driver (we already have three), then please contact me by responding to this email or calling. The outreach entails packing small boxes into our cars (at least 4 drivers/cars are desired) and then driving them to your assigned school. The backpacks have to be received by the school anywhere between 12-2 pm. We will meet at 11am to pack cars at The United Way (929 Phoenix Street • Greenwood , SC 29646) and then set out. Sign-up ahead of time (864-337-4965) is a must and being faithful is also a must. We are representing God, by being called Christians. Let’s be His hands and feet, represent Him well, and SHINE!

The bi-monthly Shine emails will continue. These emails are designed to empower and teach. We believe that you are empowered through His Spirit to live out your faith and shine. We also believe that we are to continue learning because knowledge is key along with wisdom and understanding. Proverbs 24:3-4 (NIV) says, “By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.” We want to be houses for His presence ever increasing in wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, filled and shining with beautiful treasures. May we continue to be expanded in the knowledge of Jesus Christ!

The Rise and Shine Brunches will also continue being held once a month on a Saturday. This is a time of food, fellowship, and impartation through teaching. We will be periodically adding local guest speakers. Make plans to join us. Your presence is needed and welcomed!

As you can now see, change doesn’t have to be bad. Change happens, shifts happen, ALL for the glory of God. Let’s continue growing and make His light BRIGHT for the New Year. May you enter into the promises of God, may He bring restoration and reconciliation, and may He make your way prosperous as you are willing and ready to be obedient. Time to eat the good of the land- SHIFT!

Don’t grow weary. Change is on the horizon. Suddenlies are being released. Keep your hope up. It’s not time to faint, but to forge ahead. God is about to show out. Even recently God has been showing out in the sunrises and sunsets. This is only a foretaste to come of the creative power of our Lord. Get ready, get set- SHINE forth! Declare He is coming!