Quick to Forgive

God is so quick to forgive! I moved up to Fargo this past week, on Valentines Day actually. My first week in Fargo was amazing. I live with an amazing pastor and his wife. They are so hospitable and just fun to be around. The meetings I have been around have totally been set up by Jesus. People are eager and hungry to hear about God, and how we can partner together to help Jesus reach Fargo. I have already seen 2 churches come on and a small satellite city opened up. It just has been really dynamic.

I feel an expectation for something great to happen here in Fargo. God has something up His sleeve. I just feel it in my spirit. Something else in my spirit says it has to center on this big flood that is predicted for Fargo. All the news papers and government people say it is going to be big. In fact they are filling 3 million sandbags preparing for it. But to be honest, I do not think there is going to be a flood at all, which I know saying that comes at the stake of being weird and overly charismatic. I think God wants to mobilize His church to stand up and pray against it, and push back the flood gates. I think He wants to show Fargo He is indeed alive and the He loves them. But how do you share that with a city who has experienced a flood the past 4 years running? How do you share that to a city that you just walked into, and on top of that you are the young guy?

Honestly, I think that is only the beginning of the supernatural things that God wants to do up here in Fargo. I think He is mobilizing an army of young people/youth that will see people healed, that will dream dreams and have visions, and maybe even raise the dead if called to it. I think the reality talked about in the book of Joel is quickly approaching us. I think Fargo is about to see it first hand. How do you prepare for that? How do you voice that in a society that is so skeptical and censored (the Western world in general)?

Nonetheless this is what I feel God doing. I feel Him preparing us for something great, for something huge. It is going to take complete devotion and surrender to Him. It is going to take the faithful to truly lay own their lives from Him. I think I was called to lead out in this movement. I think IWT is a catalyst that is going to launch something bigger than what we could have ever dreamed. I get to be part of it.

My vision for Fargo is great. I want to mobilize youth groups. I want to serve the homeless and heal the sick. I want people to walk out of hospitals because the Son shined on them, and peopled were healed. I want to see the Church mobilized with all denominations, Lutherans, Catholics, Methodists, Baptists praying together because we are one church seeking one strategy to reach the community we are in. I want resources to be freely given and freely taken for the sake of spreading the Kingdom to another neighborhood. And honestly I don't just want to do that, but I feel called to do it. I feel called to be an idealist that makes the ideal reality. And at times it all sounds crazy to even me.

But I am excited and I am happy. God has put me in the perfect place to do it, with the perfect ministry, and the perfect mentors. I am working with churches, in charge of brining in new ones and expanding our family to all denominations, and opening up new cities. That really excites me. I love working with Christ's bride. It is so rewarding, and I get to run the prayer committee, which is near to my heart and so important. God has just set me up!

By now you are asking what does this all have to do with forgiveness. This is just Matt being an idealist and going on a rant. Well this weekend I lost all of that. I sinned. Satan attacked me, and I gave in and fell. I lacked discipline, and I paid for it. After I sinned I was filled with so much guilt and shame I thought I was unqualified and ruined. I thought I would never win, and I look at my vision and saw it was too lofty, because I was dirty and not good enough.

As I usually do I quickly went to God and asked for forgiveness, and nothing changed. Guilt and shame was still lingering over me. I knew I was forgiven, but I didn't feel it. I still felt dirty and unclean. Then I told my leader and friend, James. I confessed to him my sin, and immediately I felt God begin to clean me off and heal me. Then James told me something that is so crucial for us to understand. He said, "You are forgiven. Jesus does not even remember what you did. There is no probation period to forgiveness. He has completely forgiven you and moved on, and you need to do the same thing" (maybe not exact, but it is close).

The minute I heard that something changed in my heart. God reinstated me. It was like He gave me the power to forgive myself. He told me all that He had for me never changed because I messed up. He assured me I was growing, and said He was so proud of me. He actually told me I was too hard on myself. Most of all He told me that He loved me and that would never change, and that He is always quick to forgive and reinstate us.

He forgave me. He healed me. He cleansed me. He reinstated me. And now the sky is the limit. And He is quick to forgive, so that all may join in. No one is exempt. God forgiveness is limitless, complete, and immediate. There is no one He want forgive. That is the God I serve and love to talk about. Now, I cannot wait to see what He is about to do!

Finally Moving Up to Fargo!

I know it has been a long time coming. Many of you heard that I was moving up to Fargo almost a month ago. But the day is finally here. I will be moving up to Fargo Monday, and will be living up there at least until October when the campaign goes through the Fargo area, which we have termed the Red River Valley with the local people.

So, why the delay? Why has it taken me a little over a month to finally move up to Fargo? The reason is that the Lord wanted to teach me something. He actually wanted to teach me a lot of things. He wanted to destroy the pride in my heart, so that I could receive His love. He wanted to destroy the pride in my heart, so that I could actually help people. He wanted to destroy the pride in my heart, so that I could see that I have nothing, but in that confession He would give me everything. He wanted me to receive the Kingdom that I had been denying by trying to maintain a prideful image of myself that was never true, and was in all reality killing me and granting me death.

For the past month the Lord has been drawing me into His presence and encountering me like never before. In fact, at the beginning of this journey He asked me to set aside 2 hours a day, so He could spend more time with me. It was the best decision I ever made, and surprisingly it was easy for the most part. I mean there were days it was hard to go to the prayer room and sit, but once I got there it was always amazing. God was so faithful to meet me and talk to me. He indwelt in me so that it was easy to stay in His presence for hours on hours. It had nothing to do with me being awesome and disciplined because the reality is that I am not. In fact, one of my biggest worries in going up to Fargo is whether or not I will be able to engage with the Lord in this same way, because it is so crucial to the Christian life.

It was in these times that God had spoken with me, and was dealing with the lies and the pain that was inside that I felt for the first time that I really had something to offer that could change the world. The Lord gave me amazing vision for Fargo and for the Impact World Tour, and even for the world in general. He communicated to me amazing truths about His heart for me and His kingdom. It was truly a dynamic one that is worth sharing, but there is so much to share. He took me up to His throne room and put me in His presence where every disease, worry, and affliction is removed and replaced with love, mercy, and grace.

For the first time I realized this this was not metaphorical. It is real. You can literally go to a place where all of your pain and hurts are wiped away. You do not have stop living to go there. Heaven is not some place that we cannot experience in the here and now. All that we have to do is stop denying God's love. We just give up our preconceived notions of what life is. We stop trying to live and ask God what to do, and then gently He wraps His arms around us and He lifts us up to Heaven and He heals us and gives us peace. He makes things right. This is what every Christian has to offer to the world. The path or way to God and His throne. We cannot offer some great sermon or awesome prayer. Those mean nothing in and of them self, but we know the way to the Father. It is the way that was given to us through and by Jesus and is empowered by the Holy Spirit. This is all that we have to offer, and this is why it has taken me a month to get to Fargo. It was the way home that Jesus was teaching me this last month. It was what He had to show me before I could go to Fargo.

Now I know the way, and now I am going to Fargo. I am a little nervous because I feel like I have a lack of vision and direction, even though God has given me more the enough. I am just not use to living with so simple instructions that seem kind of vague. I usually have more direction, more tasks. So this is all a little weird to me. It is a new way of life living with no need to strive and do things. My only job is to go to the throne every day to hang out with Jesus, and when I am able bring people with me, which is awesome.

I am nervous also because I feel a little empty, like my tire that has been made flat. I was on a mountain top Wednesday, and now I am little down, feeling a little lost and overwhelmed. But God has assured me I know the way, and the way has much to offer. Even though it seems vague. It is very powerful. Through us just simply loving God and loving God with people God shows up and miracles and supernatural things happen, because God is just so good. It is a simple lesson, but one that took me a little long to learn.

So, Monday, I am heading up to Fargo and I am stoked. I have nothing to offer and that is awesome, because now I can just love Jesus and there is no stress to perform attached. Through loving Jesus He will lead me to people and to places, and He will pour out and show me awesome things about who He is, and in that people will get saved, people will be healed, and a city will be changed. That is exciting, and I get to be a part of it just by simply loving Jesus, nothing more and nothing less. Great things are sure to happen.

In fact, He is already doing great things in Fargo. Last weekend was amazing. We had our launch weekend in Fargo. In our discipleship seminar we were able to begin training 70 leaders who will begin to work on opening neighborhood network centers across the region in conjunction with the local church. Praise God. We also saw God raise a little over $90,000 for the campaign, which means we have already raised 1/3 of our budget. And last weekend we are able to book our first venue at the Scheels Arena in Fargo. God is opening up so many doors to help bring transformation in Fargo. It is awesome to watch. It is almost like Fargo is a gift to me and the ministry. God just wants to show me what He can do, and it is 100% worthy of praise. We definitely serve an awesome God!

I would really appreciate your prayers for the move up there. Also, want to ask that you would pray for the team as we begin to encounter High Schools to schedule outreaches as well as other local churches to partner with them. Pray that we would walk in the grace and favor of the Lord. The last thing I want to ask that you would pray for is that God would continue to bless me with a fervency and desperation for prayer and His word, as we seek to build my inner man together. He is truly doing awesome things in me each day. Again, thank you all for your prayers and support! You all are a huge part of everything God is doing!

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One last thing I want to share with you. God has blown my mind this week with this one verse. Look up Isaiah 54:10. After you read it. Research the phrase about throwing the mountains into the sea, and why it is so widely used in the Bible. Then reread that verse. God will rock your world. At least He did mine. His love is so good! Let me know what He tells you. I am really curious to hear what you all hear through this verse. God bless!