WHERE IS THE BOY?

by Grandma Olive (8/16/96)

I hear the screen door close

Knock - knock standing on his toes

Where is the boy?

Open the door grandpa.

"Oh, hello Joel."

He stands a moment - looks around

Climbs upon the bed where we sleep

Opens the window to hear the birdie cheep

Where is the boy?

I look out the window

There is the boy in his red swing

Swinging high in the sky

and grandpa standing close by

Hi, Joel Micah.

Where is the boy?

Standing on the stool getting a trim.

Where is the boy?

May I come in?

Where is the boy?

Here he comes, brown eyes twinkling bright

Rose colored lips, teeth so white

What does he hold in his hand so tight

White, yellow, and blue

Here grandma, they are for you,

Thank you.

Where is the boy?

Here comes a train down the track

Clickety-clack, Clickety-clack

There at the umbrella table he sat

Clickety-clack, Clickety-clack

Where is the boy?

Clapping his hands squeeling happy, happy

He is going in the motor home with grandpappy

He is most always filled with joy

In his hand he holds a small toy

Where is the boy?

He is standing at his mother's knee

listening so intently

as she teaches him from the Word of God

So he will know how on this earth to trode

Where is the boy?

Sitting so high in the chair

One, two, three, hitting the snare

While his daddy plays the piano and sings some more

Joel hits the cymbal on the count of four

Where is the boy?

Sleeping peacefully in his mother's lap

Daddy carries him upstairs for a nap

Where is the boy?

With red and gold hair and skin so fair

Home with his mom and dad

that's where

We miss you Joel

Wish you were here

A Young Man of God

Joel Micah is a young man destined to be a part of bringing the power and glory of Jesus Christ to his generation -- a revivalist and servant of the Most High God!!

You're a handsome lad Joel in your 7th grade homeschool photo (age 12) and we wanted to tell you Merry Christmas. May God ignite you with the fire of the Holy One in 2006!

All our love,

Dad & Mom

[Photos courtesy of Burvee Photograhy]

2006 40-DAY PRAYER FOCUS

Greetings to our friends in the name of Jesus. Are you ready for a new season of enlargement? Are you ready for Divine connections? We are excited about and looking forward to what God is going to do in 2006!

About a month ago we received a 40-Day Prayer Focus from Chuck Pierce (Glory of Zion International - http://www.glory-of-zion.org/). As we read through the focus, it so resounded with the Spirit of God in us, that we immediately began to use it in mid-November.

Shirley, Joel, and I began “Day One” in our home and what started out as a “normal” family prayer time turned into a God-time we will never forget! For 3 hours we poured our hearts out to God and blessed Him for “the good, the bad, and the ugly” of 2005. God responded to us and showed up in a powerful way. We knew He approved of the direction we were headed.

Since then, our church (The Love Church), has decided to do this prayer focus as a Body, combined with fasting and almsgiving to bring in the first 40 days of 2006. Needless to say, we would recommend you ask God if this is something for you to do. If you hear “yes”, and pray, and “watch for and recognize your Divine connections”, and obey in 2006, we believe you will begin to move into your season of enlargement and all that God has for you in 2006 and beyond.

CLICK HERE to go to the webpage with the 40-Day Prayer Focus that you can print out.

Keep pressing in to the Lover of your Soul. He is faithful to the end!

For His Glory,
Joe, Shirley & Joel Cuda

God's Interns

You have got to see what God is doing in Washington, D.C.!!

Lou Engle's interview about how God is using The Justice House of Prayer was on ABC's Nightline program earlier this week.

You can view the program online on Nightline's website at http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/ or get the direct video feed at http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=1357615!

This is very worth the 7 minutes of time it will take to see it. God is using people through worship/prayer to make a difference in our nation. This group of interns is praying 24/7 for the Supreme Court -- and God is moving and changes are clearly being made for a turn around of Roe vs. Wade and other matters of great impotance to life and liberty.

As a side note... This interview was totally positive toward what was happening there. I don't recall ever seeing that before with a major network... Could it be that God is beginning to do exactly what he said he was going to do with the media through the mouth of His prophet, Kim Clement (and many others)? I believe so... We're ready God!!!

50th Birthday Celebration

November 26, 2005

Part 1
by Shirley Cuda

"Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land."

Proverbs 31:23

On this day, at 5:31 in the early morning hours, a half century ago --- yes, 50 years! --- a tiny baby boy was born.

Weighing in at 7 lbs. 8 oz. and 21 inches long, his given name was Joseph Michael Cuda, who would one day become an anointed worship leader taking people "behind the veil into the Holy of Holies" and now the founder of Love and Fire Ministries.

But let's go back a bit, because this was truly a "miracle child". His parents, Charlie and Alberta, had just become newborn Christians a few years earlier. At that time, they had 2 children, Rick and Sandy, and their family was complete -- as far as they figured. But after their salvation, God put a desire in their heart to have more children and dedicate them (along with the other two) to the Kingdom of God.

When Alberta was 4 months pregnant with baby #4, she got up one morning and was preparing to drive to town, but Charlie said he didn't think she should go because he'd had a dream the night before that she'd been in a car crash. However being a young Christian, she didn't really take the warning too seriously -- not realizing it was from God.

Later that day, as she was driving with 2 of their children, a truck pulled out in her lane and was fast approaching for a head-on collision. There was traffic on her left and a yard full of people on her right side and she knew if she swerved to get out of the truck's path, she would hit that family. So the lives of her and her children were in God's hand.

The oldest daughter was in the back seat holding and singing to her younger sister when the truck hit. The steering wheel was jammed into Alberta's stomach and the doctor feared for several days that she would miscarry. But even way back then, Alberta knew the power of prayer of prayer. She totally recovered, ad by the grace of God nobody else was seriously injured in the car crash. Five months later, a healthy baby boy, Joseph (Michael) was born. Praise God!

Joseph was (according to his mother) as close to a "perfect" child as any could get. (As his wife I'm inclined to agree that had to be the case because he's so absolutely close to "perfect" now!)

He was an adorable child, with a head full of thick blond curls and wide-open clear blue eyes and a winning smile.

At a very young age -- 2 years or younger -- Joe showed great delight in music and his mother remembers from that time on he was always drumming on something! He took drum and guitar lessons at age 11.

Joe was a studious child -- loved school and was a perfectionist. He was never finished with a project until he got it exactly right. (I still see that trait today!)

When Joe was about 11 years old, God got hold of his heart through the life and teaching of the Apostle Paul. He began to carry his Bible to school and I believe that is when God began to develop the heart of evangelism in him.

By the time he was 15 years old, Joe and 2 of his sisters, Debbie (16) and Maria (13), were traveling to various churches in the Northeast region and singing as "The True Happiness Trio". The name of the trio came from the first song Joe wrote called "True Happiness" and it speaks of the love of Jesus being the only "true happiness" in this world. With the backing of their parents, the sibling trio were able to record their first album with that title song at a studio in Virginia Beach, VA. I thank God for those foundational years and all the training and prayers of his parents, and I know that carried him through some rough years ahead.

As the enemy of our soul will always attempt, satan began laying a trap for this "would-be warrior" for God's Kingdom. Joe's revelation of "true happiness" began to grow dim in the light and lure of a bright future in the music arena. He'd met up with a few other guys, long-time friend Tim Chamberlain being one of them, and formed a secular band and began to play first at school events which then led to other gigs. He and the others began to dream of a music studio and writing and recording their own music -- hopefully a major contract with a major record label.

In the meantime, his course was set -- set on college..... first to Berklee College of Music in Boston for 4 years, after which he emerged with a Bachelor Degree in Music Composition. From there he was offered a teaching associate position at the University of Massachusettes in the jazz department. There he pursued his Master's Degree while teaching undergrads to help fund his tuition.

The cost was great not only to his Dad's pocketbook, but to his future as well. Many precious years were lost -- although I won't say wasted, because God is able to redeem lost time. More about that later.....

CHECK FOR PART 2 TO READ SOME MORE OF JOE'S STORY.

Powerlessness: Unnecessary and Unbalanced part 3

"So how do we walk in the power of God? First, we must pursue Him. The life of power is a life of abiding in Christ... The hunger for the demonstration of power must not be separated from our passion for Him. But realize this, our hunger for Him in part must be seen in our lustful pursuit of spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 14:1). That is His command!" Bill Johnson

We must be in and stay in pursuit of an encounter with God. No one's live has ever been truly changed without an encounter. This is clearly seen throughout the Scriptures. We must be willing to do whatever it takes to receive these kind of life-changing encounters over and over again. We must be willing to go wherever we need to go.

Bill Johnson tells of an encounter he had in Toronto in 1995 and how it has changed his life and his ministry forever. You've got to get this book and read it if you don't have it yet. It is a powerful testimony of what pusuing God with all your heart can lead too -- even changing the world.

"Jesus healed everyone who came to Him," Pastor Johnson states. "To accept any other standard is to bring the Bible down to our level of experience, and deny the nature of the One who changes not.

"... If the average Christian life around me falls short of the Biblical standard, I must pursue against the grain. If people are not being healed... I will pursue the healing until it comes or the individual goes to be with the Lord. I will not lower the standard of the Bible to my level of experience."

I need more of this tenacity in my life Lord. I'm beginning to awaken to it, but I'm not there yet. Holy Spirit lead me into a life of obedience and power.

The author goes on to give some more practical advice about how to walk in the power of God but I don't have time to go into it right now.

I did want to mention one more thing that Bill Johnson mentions in Chapter 10, he says, "If we teach, preach, or witness and nothing happens, we must go back to the drawing board -- our kness. Do not make excuses for powerlessness. For decades the Church has been guilty of creating doctrine to justify their lack of power, instead of crying out to God until He changed them. The lie they came to believe has given rise to an entire branch of theology that has infected the Body of Christ with a fear of the Holy Spirit. It deceives under the guise of staying undeceived. The Word must go forth with power... Without question, walking with God in power will cost all who give themselves to this mandate. But the absence of power is even more costly."

The Holy Spirit is so important. He is living water to our thirsty souls. He is our comforter and our teacher. He is the very breath that we breathe. He came on the day of Pentecost in power and we still need that power today. I, for one, do not want to settle for any thing less than the power of the Holy Ghost being active in my life. And in order to keep it I know I must give it away. We must not settle for a powerless life or a powerless Church.


You can find "WHEN HEAVEN INVADES EARTH" by Bill Johnson at the MUSIC AND BOOKSTORE link on our website -- www.loveandfire.net. It is being offered at a 21% discount.