Friday the 15th January... I was heading out to the first Burn 24/7 for Perth in 2010. This time we were going to worship for 20 hours. A hunger and willingness by over 10 worship teams had necessitated we extend the Burn this time to fit everyone in. It is a sign of things to come.

On the way there, I stopped in at the shop. I needed a bottle of water. All this burning makes you thirsty! When the guy scanned it, it came up as $22.22. It was obviously a mistake, but as he re- entered the barcode to correct the mistake, an involuntary smile swept across my face. I knew the Lord was speaking to me.

As I stopped to grab some grapes on my way out the door at the fruit and vege shop - the same thing happened. They were weighed and came up as $2.22.

As I drove down to the tent at McCallum park I was reminded of the scripture in Isaiah 22:22...

"I will lay on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one will shut; and what he shuts, no one will open.

When Sean Feucht, Director of Burn 24/7 had visited us in October 2009 - he had mentioned that the Lord had been speaking to him through the numbers 22/22. He and our close friend Rick Pino had had a series of encounters where the Lord had spoken to them through the numbers 22/22. They believe that the Lord was speaking to them about the Key of David and about a place in worship where God was re-aligning us back to HIS PRESENCE - and back to His heart. That God was opening a door to a new creativity and a new sound and that He was opening a door of revelation and clarity which would RELEASE the sound of life to the barrenness of the land making it come alive!

I believe we are in a pivotal time where God is indeed giving His body the keys to the gates of the city. As we entered into the first Burn for 2010, we had as our backdrop, the skyline of the city of Perth. As I and what ended up being over 90 other worshippers and intercessors from ALL over the Body of Christ, lifted our worship to the King of Kings, I could smell the Swan River and hear the noise of the cars bustling over the causeway. It was not simply another Friday night in an insignificant city. Something significant was taking place in the city of lights on Friday night - Perth may be the most isolated city in the world but satellites show it to be the most brightly lit capital on the globe. A company of minstrels, dancers, worshippers and intercessors were letting their light shine!

My word for this year is to KEEP CONTENDING. I am going to be CONTENDING FOR THE GOLD! The gold is the GLORY OF GOD. I will be contending this year to see the glory of God coating us like a thick layer of honey; falling upon us as HIS CHURCH, in a way we've not seen happen before in this city. I believe that as we come together in TRUE UNITY as HIS body and His Bride, He will pour out His Presence upon us and release LIFE to our city.

As we enter into not only a new year but a new DECADE, I believe God is aligning us as a company for Kingdom advancement. I believe He is going to GIVE US THIS CITY because we are not precious about having to cling to our denominational and church 'identities' but we are allowing Him to form us into a company with a worshipping community with a CITYWIDE identity. The next decade will see us digging NEW WELLS of unity in our worship and intercession. We will see the fruit of what we are establishing now in the years to come.

The other night, as I pulled into the driveway, I looked at the clock. It was 22:22pm. I had just taken Dave to the airport to hang out with Sean Feucht for the week at the Call2All in NZ.

May the pursuit of HIS PRESENCE in our meeting together at the Burn be our standard. Let the Lord build for himself a house, a habitation of His glory in this hour and in this city!!

Love and fire!

Cate

  One of many photos taken during the night - this one taken around 4.30am.