Pastors Mike & Shari May, with Zoey & her dog, Charli.

We are so glad you visited our website! It has been our family’s great honor to serve many of the amazing families in our community. Today, there are many challenges facing families in our nation.  Very mindful of this reality, we believe strong families remain God’s great strategy to bless nations. If your personal family story has been a source of great pain to you, we want you to know that we get it. We understand and sympathize. It’s not our assignment to judge. Figuring out family is tough, but the rewards are well worth the battle. At Pipeline Church we are committed to rekindling hope, vision & strategy in the hearts of father’s & mother’s, married, single or divorced, and rekindling hope in the hearts of students & kids. Family is God’s excellent idea and a strong family is worth fighting for. Even if you’ve felt trapped inside old family patterns we believe new family patterns are waiting to be discovered & enjoyed! We don’t claim to be a perfect family, but we are very grateful for our family.

If you’re looking for a church family that will believe in you & encourage you as you build a strong family, we’d be delighted to meet you at Pipeline this Sunday.

Revival in our families will bring revival to our nation.

Deuteronomy 11:10-12

For the land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered it by foot, as a vegetable garden; but the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year.

Divine Hydraulics is a phrase coined by George Otis Jr. and the Sentinel Group. It’s a phrase that has captured the imagination of my Father-in-law and others as they contend for transformation in their communities. These hydraulics have been put on display in dramatic ways in various places throughout history. One of the occasions the effect of these divine hydraulics was seen was in 1949 on the remote Hebrides Island’s off the west coast of Scotland. Concerned about the spiritual decline they were observing and looming oppressive cultural ideologies, a small group of saints began to press in to rediscover the ancient patterns that release the glory of heaven on earth in an unmistakably majestic way. These moves are marked by deep awareness of God’s holy presence, conviction of sin, leading to heartfelt repentance that leave lasting transformation in those communities sometimes for generations.

The idea of “divine hydraulics” is different from crusades and evangelism and other valuable approaches to outreach. These of course have their place and are very important. In situations where outreaches have been championed, seeds have been sown, yet the spiritual condition of the region remains headed toward lawlessness – this is the ideal climate for divine hydraulics. (Ps 119:126)

Fascinated by these types of moves of God, I have found myself on a journey to understand these ancient patterns or protocols that were revealed to these saints in their desire to see the kingdom of heaven manifest on earth as in heaven.

We’ve visited the Hebridean Islands, we have contended all night in prayer, we have also been part of Solemn assemblies like the Call and the Response USA, that the Lord appears to be using to “teach us how to pray” and help us walk together as we understand and recover these ancient truths.

This past weekend we were in Cleveland, OH for the most recent Response. I shoot video of the events helping document the team’s preparation behind the scenes. The team were staying in the Hilton Garden Hotel within walking distance of the Wolstein Center, the venue selected for the event. Due to some air conditioning issues we had been moved to a meeting room called the Armington room for prep. The team gathered the friday before the event to pray and cover final details. I was certainly caught up in the prayer time. In three days Cleveland was poised to be the scene of the republican national convention. Preparations to lockdown the city center were underway. It had been an interesting political cycle, with much concern regarding the candidates. On the news, racial unrest and violence against police officers was a constant theme, along with a brutal Islamic terrorist attack in Nice and staged political coup in Turkey. I was glad to pray. There was a focus and intensity of agreement to the prayer time that dispensed the fragrance of Jesus into the atmosphere.

As we continued to pray, I was reflecting on this journey in pursuit of “divine hydraulics”, I and many others had been on. Believing the Lord had “another arrow in his quiver” as my father-in-law says, were we wasting our time chasing a revival fantasy? or were we heading in the right direction …

The reason the Armington Room had this name was because it was the location of the Armington Crane a crane that was capable of lifting 15 tons. This historic crane which had loaded electrical power transformers was now preserved and it’s name plate embossed in gold. I was intrigued by our location and stirred by the agreement of the individuals I found myself praying with at that critical time. I asked the Lord if the 15 ton inscription had any significance & felt compelled to read Psalm 15. Psalm 15 is a psalm that speaks to the heart posture of those who are given access to the mountain of the Lord. It is worth remembering that the Psalms are the prayer book of the scriptures. The 5 books of the Psalms are our prayer response to a conversation initiated by the Father in the 5 books of the Hebrew law (or Torah). Eugene Peterson calls prayer “technology” and the psalms “tools”. Tools not so much for doing, but tools for becoming. Intentionally praying the Psalms, I have come to recently believe is the key to us becoming or maturing into the people of God. The psalms reveal the majesty of the voice of the Lord.

I started this blog quoting the verses from Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the law, where Moses is reminding the people that the land he is taking them into will be different from Egypt. It is a land of mountains and valleys a land where they must understand and remain aware of their need of his partnership – divine hydraulics. Trying to do things like Egypt in this land will not have positive outcomes. If they want this holy assistance they must understand they need to love Him & hold fast to him, by keeping his commandments “11v22 for if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do – to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, and to hold fast to Him – 23 then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you …”.

Deuteronomy 11 is a powerful chapter given to a nation poised to enter the promised land. God is in essence saying if you want access to me and the divine hydraulics you must love me & hold fast to me. The words hold fast can be translated cleave. Here we sat preparing for the Response in Cleveland under the Armington Crane, letting God know that we were not looking to a political party or candidate for the answers we needed. But we were humbly cleaving to Him.

“Jesus did not come simply to console us but to perfect us! This is exactly where He will take us once we are willing!” Francis Frangipane

In the Garden of Gethsemane we are given one of the most intimate glimpse’s of the Father’s perfecting of the Son. Yes, even Jesus submitted himself to a process of maturity. We are told Jesus “learned obedience through what he suffered”, he submitted himself to a process giving humanity an example to follow.

Gethsemane was one of Jesus’ pivotal head to head confrontations with the enemy. All of the head to head encounters Jesus had with the enemy are important, but a strong case could be made that Gethsemane was the decisive victory. At the very least it was critical preparation for the Cross. Christian author Max Lucado has said, “The Bible is the tale of two Garden’s, Eden & Gethsemane. In Eden Adam took a fall, in Gethsemane Jesus took a stand!”

“Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done.”

 

“Some have supposed that he was praying against the cross, and begging to be delivered from dying on the cross! Did Christ ever shrink from the cross? Never. He came into the world on purpose to die on the cross, and he never shrunk from it. But he was afraid he should die in the garden before he came to the cross. The burden on his soul was so great, and produced such an agony, that he felt as if he was on the point of dying, His soul was sorrowful even unto death. But after the angel appeared unto him, we hear no more of his agony of soul. He had prayed for relief from that cup, and his prayer was answered. He became calm, and had no more mental suffering till just as he expired. This case, therefore, is no exception. He received the very thing for which he asked, as he says, “I knew thou always hearest me.”

 

The Rev. CHARLES G. FINNEY, THE PRAYER OF FAITH, LECTURE V, LECTURES ON REVIVALS OF RELIGION.

If you look closely at Jesus prayer in John 17, there seems to be a powerful fusion taking place between the Father & Son. It even appears to be a higher level of union. Jesus pray’s asking for a restoration of his prior glory. Jesus is modeling something so profound in this winepress of Gethsemane. Something it seems heaven doesn’t want humanity to miss. The fortifying of his will is put on display and captured in such precise detail. How do we prevail in our moments of deepest anguish? Is there supernatural strength reserved for us in our time of greatest need? Does our receiving this strength require a certain preparation & heart posture on our part?

I am convinced Jesus is fully invested in us having access to his fullness in our desire to overcome. He desires to bring us higher than we can possibly imagine. He wants us to believe in his strength. His full vision for humanity would blow our minds. He doesn’t want to leave us swimming in the mud. He takes our willingness & commitment to this transformation very personally. Do we believe? Are we willing?

Exercise your imagination, it’s a game my daughter and I play where we shut off the TV or Netflix and she picks a picture and we draw it and color it together. That morning my wife’s brother was coming into town for a quick visit, so we were excited to be going to lunch with him. We  had a little time on our hands before we left. Zoe wanted me to draw a family of elephants, in the jungle, drinking water. So I googled a picture of an elephant and did my best to draw the picture to Zoe’s satisfaction. Then we colored it together. When the picture was done, it was time to go. We hopped into the car and went to meet Trey. He had brought a gift with him for Zoe — a beautiful leather shoulder bag; the perfect size for a four year old. Etched into the leather decorating the bag were elephants. Each elephant had its front leg lifted as if it were about to walk, but it was the only leg that was lifted. So it looked more like it was getting ready to stomp. A few minutes later, another of Trey’s friends came to the lunch with another, unexpected gift for Zoe. This time it was a stuffed elephant. There were altogether too many elephants in the room for me not to realize there was something important the Holy Spirit wanted me to learn from elephants …

We’ve been in kind of a holding pattern as a ministry. We closed the door on an incredible chapter of our lives when we shut the doors of Humble Skatepark and Fuel Cafe. These were two avenues the Lord gave us to serve our community for 12 years. But at the start of this year, we knew the season was coming to a close. Our feelings were mixed; excited for what was next, yet sad that something so meaningful to us and others was over. They say grief is proportionate to the value you have placed in something. So we are grieving as well as refocusing. It has been a very valuable time of rest. God has taught us many important things about abiding in Him and remaining in the center of His fullness.

In the midst of the transition we have been asking the question, what next? And what has been very clear is we are to move forward in the “Spirit of the Tabernacle of David”. That may mean as much to you as it did to me! I personally thought the Tabernacle of David was a thing of the past. You may have heard the argument, “that’s Old Covenant, we are in the New – that stuff is no longer important … etc.”  That is all well and good and yes there are critical differences between the Old and New Covenant, but I believe we would be wise to proceed with more caution when abandoning what is revealed in the Old Testament.

In the book of Acts(15:16) the disciples are discussing the issue of how to handle Gentile converts to Christianity. In the midst of the discussion, they quote the prophet Amos(9:11), who had foretold that the Messiah (Jesus) would return with a very specific agenda “to rebuild the Tabernacle of David”. It is a pretty fascinating statement even if it is the only real mention of it in the entire New Testament. If it were really a big deal, wouldn’t more attention be devoted to it? But maybe that’s the wrong assumption.

Could this actually be a profoundly important lens for us through which to engage in mission? What if the insights David had reveal essential heart attitudes that could propel communities towards regional transformation? So as a church we have been asking the Lord to help us understand what it was about David’s Tabernacle that touched Jesus so deeply that he is committed to rebuilding it? What is ‘the Spirit of the Tabernacle of David’?

To understand the Spirit of the Tabernacle of David, I believe it is important to look at the heart of the man. Although David’s Tabernacle is only mentioned one time in the new testament, David and his heart are mentioned more frequently.

David, the Shepherd King of Israel, was a man obsessed with the passion to create a dwelling place in Zion for the Ark or “the resting place of the presence of God” (Psalm 132). His Tabernacle, a tent structure, was different than the Tabernacle of Moses in a number of ways and it was also different from the Temple his son Solomon built. But of the three, the one that Jesus is committed to rebuilding is the Tabernacle of David. That says quite a lot.

So in this season of transition and waiting on the Lord, I have begun to ask him for insight into the Tabernacle of David. Who speaks with authority on this topic in this day?

Like I said, the Tabernacle of David wasn’t really on my radar at all, until recently. I’m not sure that is a good thing for someone who has dedicated their life to mission and evangelism to admit. But I don’t think my lack of understanding is uncommon. This began to change when Sean Feucht and Rick Pino came to Houston for 50 hours of continuous worship. It’s an event they called Fire on the Altar. I met them at my friend Doug Stringer’s office when they were preparing for Fire on the Altar. I have found Sean Feucht, Andy Byrd, Rick Pino, Mike Bickle, Bill Johnson & Ray Hughes to be very helpful in understanding the Spirit of the Tabernacle of David.  I am a rookie and my understanding continues to grow.

So what does this have to do with elephants?

While listening to some of Ray Hughes insights on the sounds and tones of the Tabernacle, he dropped another “elephant into the room”. Bull elephants are capable of releasing a subsonic sound that alerts other elephants in a 30 mile radius. While human’s cannot detect it – other elephants definitely can and when they hear it, they respond. They come to the region where the bull released the sound. When they arrive they gather in a circle and then begin to dance or stomp. As they stomp together in a circle, the ground begins to shake. The reason they gather is that beneath the surface of the ground, where the first elephant released the sound, is a water table. As they continue to stomp, “the water bearing sand soil beneath the hardened crust begins to vibrate and the sand layer liquefies, causing the hardened layer to collapse. The collapse will displace some of the wet sand out and form the banks of a sink hole; and a pond is formed”. It is a process scientist’s and engineer’s call liquefaction. So stomping together long enough the elephants actually tap the water table! I was kind of blown away, and after my day with all Zoe’s elephant gifts – I was much more than intrigued.

I believe liquefaction has a spiritual parallel and may in fact be the best picture of what happens in the spirit when our worship and intercession is released into the atmosphere. Eventually our worship and prayer shakes the sin clogged atmosphere over the region and we begin to access the glory table in the heavens above.

So I believe Ray Hughes insights on this are pretty important. King David was desperate to create a dwelling place for the presence of the Lord in Zion. His first effort had turned out in disaster, but his resolve was fixed and he would not make the same mistake twice. This time he would make sure he did it God’s way. According to the word of Moses, the Ark would be carried on the shoulders of the priests. As the priest’s carried the Ark, David danced the dance of a conquered King and sacrificed. It was a 9 mile dance from the house of Obed-Edom to Jerusalem. Clearly the picture of King David stripped, wearing the linen ephod and dancing with abandon is the picture of a man emptied of self and full of the Spirit of God. David’s heart was undivided. Like the elephants, David was a spiritual giant and he knew he was near a “Glory Table”. So he released the sound of his heart in a dance, unhindered by unbelief or any fear of total  surrender. Incidentally one of the Psalms he sung as he danced was Psalm 24, “Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in”. He was not hindered by the opinion’s of men or what men(even his wife) considered dignified behavior. He stomped because he knew he was near a ‘Glory Table’. And if he could tap into it properly ….

One of Ray’s other fascinating insights comes from the Hebrew word ‘Nehiloth’. It is one of the many Hebrew words in the titles of the psalms. This word is in the title of Psalm 5(and maybe others?). It denotes a song to be played with reed pipes or wind pipes like a flute. It is a pierced reed. Ray explains this ties in with the principle of ‘Hernholtz Resonance’. Resonance is basically how a flute or shofar works. The emptier the vessel, the lower the frequency that is released. So what? Well, Ray explains high frequencies affect our nervous system and lower frequencies affect our circulatory system — basically our heart! Maybe God’s heart is affected the same way when he see’s empty vessels pursuing Him in low tones?

For me there is no clearer picture of an empty vessel resonating the deep sounds of the Spirit of God than David dancing his way towards the gates of Jerusalem. It’s like a shofar. To create a shofar the rams horn is soaked in water and then the cartilage inside the horn is carved out, and a mouth piece is pierced into it. With the cartilage removed the air can freely pass through the horn. The horn must be empty to effectively resonate the wind pushed through it. If it is not emptied of the cartilage it is pretty useless as a horn. David on that day was not ‘full of himself’. He had been emptied and now he resonated with the fullness of the Spirit of God. He was a vessel fully consecrated to God and the sound released through him was deep.

For me all of this ties together in a very important way. Many of us have longed to tap into the ‘Glory Table’ over our cities and regions in an even more substantial way. If you’ve ever made the statement “There must be more”, I believe you are articulating that longing. Perhaps God still has a way to release his glory in unprecedented ways over regions. Perhaps now is the time for the spiritual elephants to gather at the Glory Table in their region and really stomp? Do you hear the sound of any bull elephants?

Subsonic Elephant Communication
play video

Liquefaction in New Zealand Earthquake
play video

I recommend Ray’s teaching on the Tabernacle of David & his teaching on the Warhorse.
www.selahministries.com

Andy Byrd & Sean Feucht’s book, “Fire & Fragrance: From the Great Commandment to the Great Commission”

and Rick Pino has moved to Austin to pioneer a movement in the Spirit of the Tabernacle of David.
heartofdavid.org

I recently had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Tamara Winslow. She is one of the co-editor’s of the Revival Study Bible along with Steve Hill & Winkie Pratney. The Revival Study Bible is quite a phenomenal accomplishment & resource, combining 2000 years of revival church history in the NKJV of the Bible. Dr. Winslow has much insight on the topic of Revival, many of the unreferenced footnotes in the Revival Bible are her research and it is solid. Her inductive bible study is also a very useful addition to the Revival Bible. And then there is this … she loves Scotland (my home nation) and has ministered there and in many other nations, including Singapore.

I wanted to post a small blog to point you in the direction of Dr. Winslow’s blog & recommend her resources. I believe her voice is an important & informed one for this season.

The Revival Study Bible is also available on Dr. Winslow’s site:

http://www.tamarawinslow.com/newsletters.htm

Towards the end of his life the revivalist Charles Finney wrote a small book called Revival Fire. I have been reading it, you can pick it up for only 99¢ on kindle. In Revival Fire Finney is in a reflective mood and is looking back at the differences he see’s in the lives of those converted in his earlier revival’s compared to those of later revival’s. He notices a difference. A difference that is of concern to him & in the book he attempts to give, as he puts it, a “fallible explanation”.

Finney was a controvertial figure and even to this day there are many who shy away from his theological position. I believe this is a mistake. It is said of those converted by the Lord under Finney’s ministry over 85% of them held true to their commitment and never turned away. By modern evangelistic stats this is a staggering percentage. So what was the key to Finney’s heart transforming impact? I believe that it was his understanding of Holiness and clarity on the all sufficiency of Christ. He did not pay these truth’s philosophical lip service and empty them of their power. But rather he was a powerful threshing sled used by the Lord to break up the fallow ground of men’s hearts, which gave the Holy Spirit the leverage he needed to bring thorough conviction of sin & righteousness in the hearts of men & women. I also believe his training/diligence as a lawyer & understanding of how to try a case was very useful to the Holy Spirit in the process of Awakening and Converting lost souls.

The “staying power” of those converted was also strengthened by Finney’s understanding & commitment to teaching the importance of the doctrine’s mentioned in the screenshot from Revival Fire;

1. The Atoning Sacrifice of Christ,
2. The Indwelling & Energizing of the Spirit,
3. Holy Walking & Communion with Jesus,
4. Being led by the Spirit,
5. Denying all ungodliness and every worldly lust,
6. Living above the World,
7. Entire & Universal Consecration,
8. Being filled with all the fullness of God.

So as a Pastor I had to look at this list and wonder when was the last time I taught on any of these areas? Is being ignorant of these doctrine’s a problem? I really think it is. I think they matter. It may even be THE problem. Ignorance of what Jesus has done on the cross is not wise. So at that moment I resolved in my heart, and asked the Holy Spirit “If you will teach me these things … I will give myself to them.”

We are very excited & honored to announce author, speaker and revivalist Winkie Pratney (http://www.winkiepratney.com/) will be returning to Pipeline for two weekends in August (11th & 18th). Winkie is co-editor of the Revival Study Bible and has written many other title’s including the discipleship manual Youth Aflame, Fire of the Horizon & many more. Winkie is an exhorter and has an ability to present often very complex & important bible truths in a very understandable way. Winkie & his wife Faye have been friends with Dr. Buddy & Carolyn Hicks since the 1970’s. They met during the Youthquake days, when God was moving in a powerful way amongst the youth of that generation. If you can, please do not miss these two incredible weekends with Winkie at Pipeline.

I have attached a classic video of Winkie in the 70’s teaching a message entitled “Be Ye Holy!”