(Written by Rudi Swanepoel)

Our ministry theme for the New Year is:  Align your life with heaven in 2011. While praying and meditating on God’s word concerning the New Year we were thrilled to be stirred by the Holy Spirit. There is so much happening on earth these days: Global economic turmoil, political pressures, wars, evil terrorist plots, to name only a few. Not all that is happening is bad either, but the Lord spoke very clearly in our hearts. We are to focus on heaven in 2011!

Jesus gave us a perfect example: He said in John 5:19 “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.” Jesus makes this statement in a time of great turmoil. God’s people were suffering at the hands of the Roman Empire. Their freedom was slipping away from them. Their hard earned resources were channeled towards Rome while Jerusalem was neglected. Their spiritual leaders spoke of the coming Messiah, but were so fixated on titles and position that they did not perceive the timing of such an event. To them it was about rules and rituals. They fought with Jesus because He healed a man who suffered for 38 years on the Sabbath. Life in Israel at the time was very political, yet Jesus did not focus on political protocol. He did not align His life and ministry with the changing culture He was born into. He had His sights higher. Even amidst the cares of this world He found a way to focus on Heaven. He was on earth looking into Heaven at what the Father was doing. Look at the grammar of the verse. He is not saying: “The Son can do nothing of Himself except what He remembers what the Father was doing when the Son was still in heaven.” He used present tense! He focused on Heaven. He managed to see the Father’s actions in Heaven and mimicked them on earth!

You can be surrounded by many things. Life can happen around you and some days threaten to overwhelm you, but God wants you to look up. Focus on Heaven. Align your life with what happens in Heaven and not with what is going on here on earth.

Focusing on Heaven is all about alignment and proximity. Synchronize your actions with the action of God. Position your life with God’s will, plans and destiny for you. See what He is all about and make it your focus. Let His passions be your passions, His purposes be your purposes and His will be done in you as it is done in Heaven. This is nothing new, but oh so important today! Heaven is mobilizing! On earth there is an evil onslaught, but Heaven is all about salvation preparation! We believe a flood of saving grace is sweeping across the earth and will produce eternal results in thousands of lives locally and millions globally. We are about to see salvation on a whole new level. Souls headed for hell will see, encounter and embrace the Savior instead. God is focused on eternity more than our fleeting life on earth. One of the keys to understanding what God is doing in 2011 is to see it in terms of eternity. We also believe that in this next season the Lord is going to activate calls, purposes, destinies and dreams over many lives. He is about to raise up those that have been downcast, activate those wrapped in dormancy and put His words in the mouths that have been silent for a season. Get ready for many will experience breakthroughs on many levels of their lives.

A few months ago the Lord asked us a powerful question: “Are you an absorber or reflector?” As Believers we simply cannot afford to merely absorb the blessings, love and goodness of God. Instead we must reflect them into lives around us. We are God’s mirrors on earth. Are your reflective surfaces polished and shiny or dull and dirty? Are you a good representation of God’s love for humanity or a bad one? Do you reflect merely on the past or project God’s hope and glorious future to people? Are you so self-centered that you say: “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of us all?” If you depend on your title to accomplish your call, you’re in trouble. If you follow Him simply to pick up on the marvelous benefits and blessings, you’ll miss much of what He has planned for 2011.

If you mobilize with Him and join Heaven’s attack force you’ll taste victory. If you focus on heaven first, God will bless you more. If you embrace His plans and purposes in 2011 you’ll be surrounded with His glory and destiny. If you concentrate on doing His will He’ll concentrate His power in and through your life.

In this New Year: Let’s not be moved by man but by the Spirit of God. Let’s not fixate on temporary probabilities but zero in on eternal inevitabilities. Let’s reflect His glory before we share our shine with the world. Let’s represent Him before we present our self interests. Let’s live according to His word and not our own resolutions. Let’s be deep and not shallow. Let’s focus on giving more and not getting less in a troubled economy. Let’s be spiritual and not superficial. Let’s honor God with our actions and praise Him with our words. Let’s be open to possibility and embrace potential. Let’s not get in the way but align our lives along the path He takes us. Let’s find someone to bless instead of looking for someone to bless us. Let’s share the Gospel instead of gossip. Let’s align our lives with Heaven in 2011!