Graham Cooke Day 1

These are my notes and observations of Graham Cooke's teaching last night. You will see why this is incredibly relevant and timely for me (and maybe for you). I look forward to what he has to say tonight.

Long discourse about various biblical people who experienced a sudden change in their life (the "suddenlies"). David, Hosea, Mary and Joseph to name a few. Didn't write all that down because I got the gist.

These are just my random and disjointed notes...not going to explain it all because I can't do it all justice. Also, not necessarily everything I post here is verbatim - just my impressions. To the best of my knowledge you can obtain this teaching on CD at his website...I believe it's called "The Suddenlies of God" from the "Prophets in the Wilderness Conference".

• Made a big deal about how some people will be irritated by this teaching. He says that usually he tells people that if they are irritated then it means the teaching is meant for them. But he said in this case if we were irritated, feel free to leave because it's not meant for us.
• Monologue here about the people in the bible that experienced the "suddenlies".
  
• Suddenlies will change you identity - personality - everything about you.
• You have to learn to see youreself as God sees you.
• A suddenly takes you to a place of being that is outside youre present place and you have to see yourself there.
• The Cross gives us closure so we don't have to past-focused people.
• God lives between your "actual" and your "potential".
• You are who you are right now, but you also are the you that is emerging. (Lilys note: interesting choice of words there, huh?)
• A suddenly takes you into a dimension you are not prepared for.
• God is redeeming time - a divine acceleration.
• Jesus is an enigma. We can't think we have Him all figured out. There is nothing systematic about Jesus.
• The church of the west has got it all wrong - money, headcounts, etc.
• How does God redeem time? He doesn't speed time up , he speeds YOU up. You have to learn to RUN!
• He'll give you 5 years worth of growth in 12 months.
• The Spirit of procrastination governs the church. We will put a "move of God" off until we are ready for it.
• The order of the day is He is looking for a leadership who is prepared to LIVE OUT OF CONTROL.
• Suddenlies do not respect you and they do not respect the people around you.
• Hosea wanted to marry a prostitute. He told the people around him that God told him to. These people said "God couldn't have told you. He isn't like that!". Well, He FLIPPIN' WELL IS!
• God does bizarre really well.
• Sometimes it's the hardest thing in the world to follow after God knowing you will lose people. (as in friends and relationships.)
• People who knew who you WERE won't get who you are BECOMING.
• When you say "yes" to the suddenly, you have take the anomaly it creates and know it's gonna mess with you. It will take you somewhere you hadn't planned to be. It will give you a new identity and a new sense of self.
• In your sudenly some people may not be able to "track with you". Some people may be able to accept you. You may have to move on from some relationships. You may have to accept some new relationships.
• You have to learn the discipline of "staying in the suddenly". You can't visit this place, you have to live here.
• Work with the Holy Spirit to figure out what your new direction is.
• Stop being ruled by your head, be ruled by your heart.
• Leave logic and pursue the Lord.
• In this new place you are not equipped for it, you can't understand it logically, you can only understand it with sensitivity to the Spirit.
• There is no logic to what God is doing.
• God will not be known logically...you have to know Him intuitively and instinctively.

That's the gist of it. So much of it so enraptured me that I was uable to write fast enough. So my notes are very fractured. But in a nutshell: he pretty much addressed every aspect of this place I'm in. Pretty darned much. My husband on my right and my good friend on my left kept nudging me.

In the end Graham asked everyone who thought they were in a "suddenly" season to stand up. I hesitated but my husband and my friend stood up with me and held my hands. Then Graham prayed and the one thing he said that really struck me was this:

"It's time to stop freaking out and realize that God put you here."

Part two tomorrow.