Text: Genesis 15

God cut covenant with Abram in Genesis 15. In this cutting of the covenant, Abram took a heifer, a she goat, a ram, a turtledove and a pigeon. The mammals he cut in two down the middle of each and laid them side by side so that he could walk down between the pieces, but the birds were left whole.

Abram was preparing a place for God to come down and meet with him. After preparing the sacrificial meat, Abram spent the whole day keeping the birds of prey from eating the sacrifices.

Satan is like the birds of prey. When we prepare a place for God to come down, Satan is right there to try to take away some of the sacrifice or devour all of it. The sacrifice is likened to things we put away or do away with to make time for the Lord.

But Satan not only wants to destroy the sacrifice, but the place of sacrifice. The place is BETWEEN the sacrifice. Just like in this instance in Genesis 15, the example in the upper room in Acts 1 and 2, there is a period of waiting between the preparing of the place and when God comes.

And the anointing is needed for the time in between the preparation and the time when we actually meet with God. It is needed to help us to persevere till the time God comes.

In the upper room experience, 380 people gave up before God showed up!! If we will prepare God a place, He WILL show up!

Pastor Doyle related how his granny used to set a "place" at the dinner table for the Lord. This brought a renewed sense that the Lord was there with them, that otherwise they would have been missing. Matt. 18:20 says,"...where 2 or 3 are gathered in my name, there am I in the MIDST of them."

God's presence showed up between the cheribum on the ark of the covenant. His presence likewise shows up BETWEEN believers. That is why it is so important not to allow the devil to separate us!! This occurs many times between husband and wife. The Lord admonished husbands to give honor to the wife as the weaker vessel, because we are heirs together of the grace of life--THAT OUR PRAYERS BE NOT HINDERED!

Also when God is between us, we cannot control Him, but we can touch Him, and be changed by Him.

Eph. 2:13 says that He has broken down the middle wall of partition BETWEEN us!

I Sam. 20:23--David said let the Lord be BETWEEN me and thee forever.

We PREPARE a place for meeting God when we "hunger and thirst after righteousness", when we "lay aside the sin which doth so easily beset us", when we ask God to "search our thoughts and try our hearts and see if there is any wicked way in us", and when we "confess our faults".