A Ministry of Love

Just an observation from my study: it was not the world that hated Jesus; it was the religious people that schemed, plotted against Him and eventually manipulated to see Him crucified. It's of no consequence, though. He died for them too.

It's strange to me to hear of Christians who want to send me back to Africa, or put Islamic folk in concentration camps, are abusive to the LGBT community, and want to enact laws that force everyone to follow their rules. I'm just making an observation, but that sounds a lot like the Islamic extremists that Christians stand  against.

Jesus didn't force me to love Him. He drew me out to the desert place and spoke to me tenderly (Hosea). He didn't expose me, He picked me up and told me to go and sin no more (the woman caught in adultery). He gave me a drink of His living water, and made me an evangelist (the woman at the well). He let me worship him by allowing me to wash His feet with my tears and anoint Him with the best of what I had to offer. He knew that he who had been forgiven much loves much (Mary Magdeline). He knew that I would get so caught up in my foolishness that I didn't know how to get out on my own so He took my sin as His own and He died for me, so that I would always know the way home (Calvary). The foundation of His ministry was love.

Religion always wants to control, always needs to dominate, always accuses and shames. Religion enslaves and isolates, legislates, and overtakes. It quantifies, categorizes,  and  it qualifies. It demands that the surface always be perfect, even if the vessel is rotting from the inside out. If this is who I must be,  then I don't think I want to be a Christian anymore.

It will suffice to be a follower of Christ. I want the foundation of my ministry to be love.

Love takes a lot longer, and it's a lot scarier. It means that I must deal with my shortcomings first before I set to work on others. But it enboldens me to climb down out of my ivory tower. Love is intentional and is insistent that i make relationships, and cover the mistakes of others just as Jesus covered mine. It brings me out of hiding, it lifts me out of lying, and gently reminds me that I was once lost too. Love tells the truth, but doesn't force its hand. It's power under control.

It urges me show patience and to give grace, and strengthens me to do battle where it really counts and where it's only effective: in my prayer closet. That's where darkness is unveiled and the schemes of the enemy are thwarted. That's where I become bold and protective of the lost; I take captivity captive. In the secret place I make a show of the enemy and expose his lies. My fingers battle and my hands make war. I trouble the principalities and rulers of darkness and I strip them of their power. There I stand between the living and the dead, and I decree their ressurrected, abundant life. I worship the one whose crest I wear enblazened on the flag of my heart, and I am restored.

When I emerge from that secret place, I am victorious, and alight with glory and prepared to go out into this dark world again; to love.

#followerofchrist #sippingteawithjesus #john316

I am Giving Up Christianity Part One

I Am Giving Up Christianity

Part One

Authors Note:  This is my personal blog.  Because I am a prophet, I will sometimes release a prophetic word via this venue. However, for the most part, A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven is meant to be one’s peek into my personal discourses with the Lord.  With that having been said, the following discourse is not necessarily a prophetic word per se.  It’s just a discourse and my struggle with the season. If anything confirms in your spirit; amen.  If not, I prayerfully suggest you tuck it away for a later time. We test all things by the Spirit of God and keep the good (1 Thessalonians 5:21).

I have been struggling with some things for some time now.  By now most of my sphere of influence knows this.  I have been disappointed and angry.  I am frustrated and a little confused.  Today, I finally admitted what I have only alluded to in cryptic (and sometimes not so cryptic) posts and prayer.  I finally admitted for the first time out loud, that I am embarrassed to be called a Christian.   I said as much to the Lord. To my surprise, He sighed and said, “I can’t say that I blame you.”

I still love Jesus. I will always preach that He is the only way to eternal life.  I grew up in church, but I didn’t actually receive Him as my Savior until I was twenty-one. I couldn’t really figure out how to make Him Lord, so I backslid.  I tell people that although I knew that I had eternal life, I did not have a conversion experience until I was in my early thirties.  That’s why I love Luke 7: 36-50. The woman in that story reminds me of me.  I was so desperate for love and healing. When the Lord converted my heart, I was forever grateful. Jesus has forgiven me much, so I love Him much.  To this day, I still weep grateful tears at His feet, and I worship Him with tearful abandon. 

I consider myself to be pretty conservative. If the bible calls it sin; I call it sin. As a minister, I don’t have the luxury of making exceptions based on my opinions. However, as one who was like the woman in Luke 7, I struggle with disregarding or rejecting anyone; whether I agree with their lifestyle choices or not.  It has taken YEARS for the Lord to bring me to the place where I am, and He continues to work on me daily.  I can’t afford to be judgmental, or to try to control another’s journey with Him because I know the process: It’s easy to make Him Savior.  That’s a gift. It takes a lifetime to make Him Lord. That’s a choice. Jesus gives us all choices, and spiritually we all have a level playing field.  Either we want the life He offers, or we don’t.  I believe that as followers of Christ our job is to be living epistles. To be men and women of God who sometimes get it right, but who often get it wrong. We have one thing in common.  We have been forgiven much, so we love much. 

 I have been confident and proud to call myself a Christian until recently. I have watched as a movement that began as followers of Christ, who wanted a voice in government, become twisted into something else.  I love the idea of Christians living in the world wanting the impact the world through Christ; however, the moniker “Conservative Christianity” has taken on a meaning that does not reflect love, acceptance, and liberty. What started as a movement to change the world is…well, I don’t know what this is, but it is not Christ-centered, nor is it is changing the world. When did Christianity become a political machine that makes deals with the devil in order to gain control and political influence?

One of the reasons that the religious leaders of Jesus’ day did not believe he was the Messiah, was because Isaiah prophesied that the “government would be upon His shoulders (Isaiah 9:6).  Because Jesus did not come to overturn the oppressive Roman government, He could not possibly be the Messiah. They didn’t understand that Jesus did not come to upset the natural government. What need did he have to forcibly take a government that was created by human hands?  He said it in Isaiah 66:

This is what the Lord says,

“Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where, then, is a house that you could build for Me?
And where will My resting place be?
² 
“For all these things My hand has made,
So all these things came into being [by and for Me],” declares the Lord.

 He came to establish a new government; one in which anyone who would believe could be a citizen. That’s why Paul writes that Christ in and among us is the hope of God’s eternal glory.  As believers, our job is to build a spiritual Kingdom, not overthrow a natural one.  Our bricks are the people who come into relationship with Christ. Our mortar is the Holy Spirit.  Our cornerstone is Jesus Christ. Our current plan to dominate this natural kingdom called the United States through legislation and scheming is rooted in religion and idolatry. It is a testament to the futility of humanity, not the glory of a risen Christ.

I believe that God knew that the hearts of men were inherently wicked. He knew that they would create doctrines and denominations that were rooted in the spirit of offense, fear, religion, and control. He knew that as the Body of Christ, we would not even be able to agree on what day to worship. He knew that we would build churches that were split by doctrine, race, and class. So He gave businessmen the wisdom to establish a country where one could worship when and how they chose without fear of control by the government. 

He gave fallible men an infallible plan, and it worked. We have this wonderful country that relies on a system of government that limits power, but gives voice and opportunity to its citizens. He provided a country that assures equality despite not offering equity and promises liberty and justice for all.  Despite God’s infallible plan, the founding fathers had the same issue that men have struggled with from the beginning of time. The struggle of man is arrogance, willfulness, and self-deception and idolatry.   When we open these doors, we cannot control what comes in as a result.  Americans ascribed to a doctrine called Manifest Destiny. Manifest Destiny is the belief that our nation is God-given, therefore it is justified and inevitable that expansion in the U.S. would occur.  We killed in the name of God.  We enslaved in the name of God.  We destroyed an indigenous people and their resources in the name of God.  We stole the civil rights of others in the name of God.  We went to war in the name of God.  And now we want to legislate morality in the name of God. We repeatedly repent on behalf of the sins of our nation, but we fail to turn away from our idolatry.  Each time we justify an over-policing, we bow down to an idol god. Each time we voice disapproval at a mass killing but refuse to regulate gun laws, we sacrifice to an idol god.   When we let a child die in poverty and refuse to help the homeless because “they ought to get a job”, we sacrifice to an idol.   When we justify  the evil actions of an elected official because he’s willing to accomplish the agenda we set, we sacrifice to an idol.  When we tolerate or even- God forbid celebrate racism and sexism, we bow down to an idol. Every time we build another edifice or host another conference but leave a trail of broken, unhealthy, unloved and unrenewed souls in the wake, we sacrifice to an idol.

Democracy has not failed. The day that Christianity became an organization instead of an organism, we failed.  The day the national anthem became more important than Amazing Grace, we failed. We fail because seventy percent of the women who have chosen abortion identify as Christian.  We fail because fifty-four percent of Christian men look at porn at least once a month. We fail because half of all Christian marriages end in divorce. We fail because there are pastors bragging about their racist theology on social media.  We fail when we justify a rape culture, and ignore the abuse of women. When prophets create video messages instructing Americans who to vote for, but will not leave the lucrativeness of the church to witness to a dying world, we fail.  We fail because we curse the LGBTQ community and drive them from the ONLY one that can help them.  Yet the church’s perversion rivals the hedonism of Babylon. Epic Fail. We fail because we hate everyone else’s sin, but we justify our own. We fail because we build expansive campuses on the backs of people who are living in poverty.  We fail when we travel to the ends of the earth to build a well, provide schools, or rebuild a city, or to worship in Israel, but we ignore the cries of the broken hearted and the impoverished in our own country. When we reject those whose religion we hate, but refuse to evangelize, we fail. When we call the social justice that Jesus taught us “secularism,” and “cause oriented,” we utterly fail. Jesus said we should have done one without neglecting the other.  We get an F.

The legislated sin we see in our democracy is the result of a broken and hardened heart of a people who have traded prophecy for politics, reputation for repentance, events for evangelism, a ministry for money, and judgment for justice.  We have seen only fruitlessness in our ranks because our best efforts are missing one thing: The Christ, and the government that is upon His shoulders.  A conservative platform cannot fix that.  Deals with ungodly men cannot fix that. Religion cannot fix that.  Another legislative action cannot fix that.  As a nation, we are in trouble, and the Christians have to own their part. The church isn’t a reflection of the world. The world is a reflection of the church. We did this, and we will reap the full harvest of what we have sown. That’s not the Christianity that I signed up for, and I quit. 

To Be Continued in Part II

Out of the Chaos, We will Rise!

Out of the Chaos, We will Rise!

This morning I prayed (as I often do) for the nation and our election.   I felt led to pray for Donald Trump.  I have sensed for some time that God wanted him to be the President.   I began to pray for his relationship with God, and I saw clearly that the warfare taking place in this election was not to KEEP him from office  but to place him in office. The election will be hard-fought up until it is over.  Once again, the fight is for Florida and Ohio, as the territorial spirits battle to keep him from being elected, but he is God’s man.   

I fully understand that  even if for some reason HRC is elected, we will only be delaying the inevitable. God will only raise up another to takes Trump's place.  All of these things must happen so that the Kingdom can come forth.

With that having been said, I believe that it is the Lord’s will that he be given that appointment. I have reviewed many of the prophetic words that have gone forth, and the prophets have been very positive about his presidency. God has really had to minister to me about the future.  Although I see God’s ultimate purpose, the process for us to get there could be violent, divided and broken. I admit that when I took the first glance, I became frustrated and scared. But we don't have to fear in this temporal affliction because God is still in control. God has always used the chaos of man to birth out his best-kept secrets in plain view!  Out of utter chaos will come great glory. Even so, there are some things that the Lord desires for us to keep in mind. When we get out of step with God there are some very real consequences.

A Warning to the Body  1 Samuel 8: 1-21

 In 1 Samuel, leaders of the people of God demanded a King.  The Lord agreed, saying that Samuel should tell them what was going to take place.  Samuel warned:

¹⁰ So Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to the people who had asked of him a king. ¹¹ He said, “This will be the ^[d]procedure of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and place them for himself in his chariots and among his horsemen and they will run before his chariots. ¹² He will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and of fifties, and some to ^[e]do his plowing and to reap his harvest and to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. ¹³ He will also take your daughters for perfumers and cooks and bakers. ¹⁴ He will take the best of your fields and your vineyards and your olive groves and give them to his servants. ¹⁵ He will take a tenth of your seed and of your vineyards and give to his officers and to his servants. ¹⁶ He will also take your male servants and your female servants and your best young men and your donkeys and ^[f]use them for his work. ¹⁷ He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his servants. ¹⁸ Then you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

¹⁹ Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, ²⁰ that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” ²¹ Now after Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the Lord’s hearing. ²² The Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to their voice and ^[g]appoint them a king.

The people's hearts were hardened toward God's system of doing things, and they elected to do things the way other communities had done them.We are not electing a king, but we must be wise and refuse to be guilty of  the same sin as Israel. We cannot look to man for what only God can do. There is NO MAN that can bring about the promises of God.  We must look to Him and only Him for what has been promised. 

Many of our hearts became hardened in the frustration of the past season, and we have selected a candidate that fit what we have come to expect from our leadership. If he gets elected, we will get a leader who will:

Turn on the very people who elected him to the office.  He will blame the conservative, evangelical movement for the troubles in the nation. He will blame a mostly conservative senate and congress for not supporting him.

 Make enemies of our allies.  His history of strong-arming his opponents and bullying those he considers weaker will continue.

 Engage in petty squabbles, and try to use military force to get his way for personal gain and ego points.  The military will oppose him.

Systematically remove anyone who instructs or opposes him from their position.  He will not allow himself to be advised.

Will abuse his power, and his personal scandals will follow him into the office.

Surround himself with people who will do his bidding, some of whom will have questionable pasts and be woefully unqualified for their positions.

Overspend government money for his personal comfort and gain.

I hope to be wrong, but I believe his presidency will end in scandal (like Nixon). Pence will have his own issues with scandal, as some personal wrongdoing comes to the surface. It may not be very serious, but I am not sure.  However, I  do believe that eventually Trump will be humbled (and is being humbled) and yield his heart to the Lord.  We must begin to lift his case to the Lord and keep him in prayer.

We can expect in this next season that:

Race relations will dissipate as racists who believe they have an ally in office will begin to make war upon minorities.  Some minorities will reject peaceful protest and respond with violence. We will see chaos and division from the White House to the church house.

The nation will begin to turn on Christianity. The fight against radical Islam will actually create more Islamic sympathy. We will begin to see persecution of the saints like never before (http://coffeeandheaven.blogspot.com/2014/12/what-is-god-saying-for-2015.html).

The face of terrorism will not be Isis in this country. The face of terrorism will become radical grassroots coalitions/factions that will target the church and the government for its troubles.  Martial law, recession, and chaos will ensue. Some of these radicals will do heinous acts in the name of God.

The church will become divided as God exposes the spirit of religion in the church.  Religion is the enemy of the church, but it is the most insidious spirit in the church. We will see will known church leaders exposed for having ties to White Supremacy groups. Many other pastors who have become lukewarm and/ or weary in their assignments, will take their hands from the plow and leave the church.  More scandal involving church leadership will be exposed, others will unwittingly expose themselves in their behavior or social media rants. We will look raggedy and torn before the nation.

Many will leave the church and return to cultural and ancestral worship because they will not feel as if they "fit" in the church. 

I have prophesied this since 2008, but God is going to do a cleansing in the house of God. Millennials and the Gen X will exit the church in droves. This is already beginning as people seek the purity of God in action.  They want a church that does something. A line in the sand is being drawn as many begin to seek the Kingdom.  The traditional church will label these people as rebellious, liberal, and worldly.

Our God is Greater, and He is Mighty to Save!
This next season may prove to be daunting for all of us, but we must remember that our hope is in God, and the assignments that he has given us.  We must use the current season as a time of reflection and repentance. We must align ourselves with the plans and the purposes of God so that when we emerge from such a great transition, we emerge with the world's eyes searching for the church to bring hope. Above all things, we must pray. Perhaps some consequences can be abated or even avoided! Let's come boldly before the throne of grace and make petition to He who alone can deliver us. 

Rending our Hearts 

2 Chronicles 7:14

As Christians, we think that this election is about the lost.  It is not.  This election is about the FOUND! It is the hardness of our hearts that has created a platform for Trump, and there must be a repentant heart that begins in the house of the Lord. God is using the troubled time to expose the dross in our hearts and to bring those places of brokenness and sin to the surface. God is merciful and gracious! He is faithful to forgive us of all unrighteousness. However, we must see it for what it is and we must first tell the truth. Those places exist in even the most steadfast of us! God is calling us to shed all of our preconceived notions, biases, traditions, and stagnated mindsets.   I believe that while the nation is steeped in havoc, the Lord will be reconstructing our inner man.  He will deal with the hardness of our hearts, and heal our broken places. Those who have an ear to hear and a willing spirit will repent and turn away from their fleshly ways, as we are admonished to do in 2 Chronicles 7:14 As a result, God will heal our land.  He will heal not just our physical land, our spiritual landscape will be healed as well. Personal revival will begin to take place as people leave the place of complacency, stagnation, and compromise, and come into a place of passion and purpose for the things of the Lord.

Destinies  Fulfilled, and Room Made!

Even as the nation is in turmoil, many of us will find our place in the Lord. We will walk into our destinies, redeem the time and fulfill the longing and purposes the God has given us. Our gifts will make room for us! Those who have been faithful to a personal business or ministry will find that their platform has been established and our opportunities will abound. We must keep our eyes focused on the Lord as he transitions us.
God wants the Church to BE THE CHURCH! 

We are not called to dominate through strong-arming a country to bend to our will. We can only conquer darkness with light. We are called to be salt that seasons and light the brings illumination. If we do not use the principles and the word of God to direct our paths we become the very thing we hate: the American version of Isis. The government was never meant to save us, nor was it ever formed to teach us to live morally.  It is our purpose as Christians to bring the gospel to the world. The Lord is calling us to rise out of our complacency, leave the security of the four walls of the church, and BE THE VICTORIOUS, PECULIAR PEOPLE that He has established. 

The Kingdom is in us!

Joel 2: 16-17

In this passage, the ministers—those called to tend to the fires of the Lord, were instructed to weep between the porch and the altar.  They were called to worship, intercede, and make atonement there because it is a place where they could be easily seen. A remnant generation of ministers will emerge full of fire and purpose, but they will be full of the humility and love of the Lord.  They will stand up for the lost and the least, they will fight for justice and equality, and they will call the people to repentance and revival without apology. They will not hide behind their pulpits!  They will be seen in the community as more than "superstars of Christianity".  Signs and wonders will accompany them as they did with Peter on Solomon’s portico in Acts 3 as he healed the lame man, then preached the people into repentance.  These  emerging voices will be sold out to the Lord and will know no compromise.

He or she will not look like the norm.  They will be a multitude of races and cultures. Many of the fiercest evangelists will arise out of the Islamic nation. That is why we are must to WITNESS to them, not incarcerate them. In order to witness to them, we must be willing to show them the love of Christ.  One young woman I know has seen many Islamic women become open to the gospel because she was willing to make a relationship with them and simply share her love of God with them.  It was her passion for Christ that has won their hearts!

 Many of our most powerful intercessors and prophets will come out of witchcraft and the occult and out of the indigenous tribes. They will be tatted, and pierced, sleeved, and unusually clothed. They will come with signs, wonders, and miracles. Some of the most powerful of pastors and leaders will arise out of the African-American and Latino churches. That is why God cannot tolerate even passive racism in the pews. They will take to the streets, and be a beacon of light to a generation of millennials that have never experienced neither can they understand the division of race, sex, or culture which is our nation’s past.

God will raise up people who identify as homosexual, transgender, and lesbian, yet they will be filled with the Holy Spirit, and they will see many come to Christ. They will be a light of Christ to other LGBTQ people who search for the Lord with all their hearts. We will see a generation of LGBTQ people flood the pews.  As The Kingdom, our job will not be to judge them or try to “fix” them in their process. We must trust the Lord for their victory, for we will KNOW THEM BY THEIR FRUIT.

What the enemy means for the bad of God’s people, He will turn for our good.  What seems sold away from us will be redeemed, and what seems lost will be restored.  Out of this chaos, will the Kingdom EMERGE!!!

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: What is in store for 2016?This is the season of re...

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: What is in store for 2016?This is the season of re...: What is in store for 2016? This is the season of restoration and manifestation Joel 2:25-27:  24  The threshing floors will be filled...

What is in store for 2016?

This is the season of restoration and manifestation

Joel 2:25-27:  24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil. 25 "I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten-- the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm-- my great army that I sent among you. 

26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you; never again will my people be shamed. 

27 Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the LORD your God, and that there is no other; never again will my people be shamed.

How will this work?

Let’s look at some definitions: restoration 

noun res·to·ra·tion \ˌres-tə-ˈrā-shən\

: the act or process of returning something to its original condition by repairing it, cleaning it, etc.

: the act of returning something that was stolen or taken

This is the season where new processes begin!  God is acting on your behalf to restore your life to its original design.  Look at it like this: If you put an address in your GPS and head out on a journey, the GPS doesn’t factor in distractions, fill-ups, car problems, etc. It just calculates a course.  Along the way; however, we may get distracted by a new restaurant, or an unexpected accident.  Sometimes we miss our turn because we couldn’t get to the exit ramp because of traffic,or because we weren’t paying attention.  When the GPS figures out that you have gotten off course, it says: RECALCULATING. God is recalculating your journey to get you back on track to the original destination that he set for you! Now that is praise worthy! Go take a lap.  I will wait.

Manifest:  verb (used with object): to make clear or evident to the eye or the understanding; show plainly; to prove; put beyond doubt or question:

God is going to make your destiny and your purpose clear, and show plainly to your sphere of influence that indeed His hand is upon you, without a doubt, or a question. It’s a season of elevation, naturally and spiritually. Those who have remained faithful will see God tangibly move in their situation. It’s harvest time.  We will reap what we have sown, regardless of what we have put in the ground. With that in mind, examine your seed!  If you have sown faithfulness, love, loyalty, and even money that is what you will reap.  If you have sown disobedience, complacency, bitterness, and pride, guess what you will reap? This is the time to sit with God, and settle the matter. Though our sins are like scarlet, He can make us whiter than snow (Isaiah 1:18).   There is a grace to meet the new challenges that manifestation presents. There is no room for fear in this realm.  We can be afraid—but God expects us to flow in our new place anyway.  It does not matter how we go; we still MUST GO!  

How will this work in your daily life?

If we were a priceless painting, and we became damaged because we had been mishandled, damaged in transport, or carelessly used, restoration would be needed. If God were the artist used to restore us to our original greatness there would be some undeniable truths that are considered:

1.       The fact that restoration is even considered expresses the value that the Artist attaches to the work of art;

2.       The piece of art is unique, so the materials that the Artist uses to restore it must also be unique and of the highest quality.

3.       Because the work is so valuable, the process to restore it is painstaking, and

4.  requires patience and perseverance from all who are involved.

Because God considers us to be unique and priceless, He is concerned that His masterpiece has been damaged. He is  beginning a process in us to bring us to our original design. This requires Him to use unique experiences, relationships and opportunities that will restructure and rebuild us. This is a painstaking process, and God will spare no detail.  He will do this in the following ways:

A Return to the Basics:    God is calling us back to the discipline of prayer and a more disciplined life. There are many voices speaking in this hour, and the Lord wants us to be in tune to the voice that matters; His. He is also calling us back to corporate prayer.  There is no way that a San Bernardino, a Charleston South Carolina, or a Chicago, IL should go unchallenged by the Body.  It is time that we stop trying to legislate morality, and address these issues where they belong: in the spirit.  We are not wrestling against flesh and blood! If we don’t want governmental measures that compromise the plan of God, we must challenge it first in the spirit realm so that we have the WISDOM of how to challenge it the natural.  We will see a rise in prayer revivals, shut-ins, 24-hour prayer rooms and the like.   By doing the work in the Spirit, we will see an increase of signs, wonders and miracles begin to manifest in the natural, we will see the corporate power of the Body begin to become plainly visible, and the Body will be more effective in the natural realm. Worship will become literally trans-formative; the tangible presence of God will rest in the prayer-filled atmosphere.  Revival is about to break out in Australia; simply because they love worship. 

Faith:. In John 21, Jesus encountered the disciples who had toiled all night and had caught nothing. At Jesus’ instruction they cast their net on the other side of the boat and tried again.  This time they brought up a haul.  God is asking us hope against hope, forget past failures and try again.  The trying of our faith is what works patience in us, and patience brings maturity. (James 1:3)

Maturity:  God is calling the Body to a new level of maturity. We must let go of the past, and all other unfruitful emotional ties. We must let go of self-pity and living like victims.Our God is GREATER! God is going to challenge unfruitful mindsets, habits, and behaviors. If it can be shaken, it will be shaken! God will require us to submit to the gentle pressure of the Holy Spirit, and to refocus our attention to His priorities.  He will also require us to be more corporately-minded. God is calling us to unity.  Unity commands a blessing from the Lord (Psalm 133).

We will also have to erect and respect healthy boundaries within all of our relationships. This is not a call to isolate, but it is an admonishment to make sure that we are not permitting our natural relationships to trump our heavenly relationship with God. There is a difference between meekness and weakness. We cannot be angry when the enemy keeps coming in because we refuse to shut the doors.

Service:  This is the season for faith based outreach programs to MANIFEST and begin to take care of HIS people!   This requires unity, faith, and maturity.  We want to influence; not  be the ones that are influenced!

Business:  I have prophesied this since 2013 and I will continue to sound the trumpet in this area.  God’s hand is on small businesses.  Business ideas have no better opportunity than now to come forward.  A wise businessman once taught that new business owners should not say “Ready, Aim, Fire”! New business owners should say “Ready, Fire, Aim!”  Just start something; anything!  We will find the niche for our business only when we step out in faith.  I bind the spirit of fear that holds the Body of Christ in bondage.  God wants to bless our businesses, but if we don’t start it, He can’t bless it.  Let’s get it crackin’!

Random Insights: Here are some things that I sense will take place. They are listed in no particular order:

·         We will see a marked increase in the population worldwide. More specifically, we will see an increase in multiple births. 
·         Women who have not been able to conceive will do so this year; again we will see them get “double for their trouble” lots of twins, and other multiple births.
·         God’s hand will be on small business…we will see small businesses explode and become very lucrative (see above). This is especially true for healthcare businesses.
·         Don’t sleep on  Marco Rubio.  I don’t know much about him, but God’s eye is on him. Please pray against a presidential assassination attempt even after Obama leaves office. Regardless of our opinions, such an incident will throw our country into utter chaos.  The intercessors must stay on the wall for the safety of our country. 
·         We will continue to see the exposure of systemic race/culture/economic disparity. A major periodical/media outlet will do an expose’ type of report or film which will cause the rumblings of a paradigm shift in America
·         We will see significant breakthrough in the treatment of HIV and diabetes, and some forms of cancer. 
·         We will also see a breakthrough in technology especially from China. China’s economic progress is a game changer in business.  A few years ago, I saw a red star rising in the east.  The Lord said that this was China. China is about to be a force to be reckoned with! While we are focused on the Middle East, China will double its economic influence.
·         There will be in increase in lawlessness in America; we will see more terrorism and hate crimes in the land.  Some of these will feel like run of the mill terrorism, but they will be less organized and seem more focused on vengeance and hate rather than a political or religious agenda. I feel like there will be an attack on the scale of Oklahoma City, but I think it will be domestic terrorism versus from Isis or the like.  I am not sure this is for 2016, but I sense a major terrorist attack on three major cities; one of which is New York City.  The other cities will be a southern city and a western city. I hope to be dead wrong about this.  This is a job for the intercessors! Get on the wall and give God no rest until the plan of the enemy fails!
·         We will see a “streamlining” in the church.  Many churchgoers will return to house to house worship and small group fellowship, or shift their worship to smaller store-front style churches.  Mega churches that hear the cry of the Spirit will begin to really focus on small group worship.  Christians will begin to reject church programming and will begin to actively seek fellowships that focus on worship.
·         God’s glory will fall in the smaller houses of worship. We will see increases of signs, wonders, and miracles in those places. This is where revival will begin.

God is still working out the last part of this season, so FINISH STRONG!!! Overall, I believe this is a time to celebrate. Restoration and manifestation is not easy, but there is a tangible result to the process.  Let’s set our face toward the new and commit to cooperating with the Lord. He has given us the grace to be victorious over every challenge. I am going to stand on Psalm 66: 8-12: Praise our God, all peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard; ⁹ he has preserved our lives, and kept our feet from slipping. ¹⁰ For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver.¹¹ You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs.¹² You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.

Love to all of you!

RD 12/12/15

Random Stirrings

     I had a client yesterday, and as I worked, my mind kept going back to a post in my personal journal that I made on 05/6/14.  I remember praying that day, and I kept seeing a red star.  I remember stopping the prayer and waiting on God.  I heard the Lord say, "There is a red star rising in the east". I began to pray over the United States.  And I saw a red flag waving. The Lord said that China would become a formidable power in the days to come, and that their power would be felt economically first--with the development of some game-changing technology. Last Sunday, I heard a prophet visiting the church that I attend echo the something similar, then a friend mentioned it as he shared what the Lord had shown him for 2015.  With that in mind, I am inclined to accept the word as valid because the bible says, let that facts should be established by the word of two or three witnesses (2 Cor 13:1).

     I believe that prophets should always work to make the word that they give be encouraging, admonishment, and comforting in nature.  I have always been very concerned when I hear prophets only prophesy the judgement of God.  Don't get me wrong; the judgement of the Lord is very real however, He does not wield power impulsively and without purpose in mind.  I say that because I believe that there is will be acts of domestic and international terrorism that will drastically effect the economy of the United States.  I believe that we will see an uprising of right-wing extremist groups that will attack much like the Oklahoma City bombings carried out by Timothy McVeigh.

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: What is God Saying for 2015?

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: What is God Saying for 2015?: What is God Saying for 2015 "Enlarge the place of your tent; Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your co...

What is God Saying for 2015?

What is God Saying for 2015

"Enlarge the place of your tent; Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your cords And strengthen your pegs.” Isaiah 54:2

Overall:  This will be a season of great growth and expanded opportunity. There will be an increased hunger for the things of God and worship will shift to go higher in many houses of faith.  It will also be a season of acceleration in every area of our lives.  It is a Jubilee year in which God will eradicate debt (if we yield to his gentle leading and set order in our finances), deliver us from drudgery, and set us in our proper place in Him. God will show us that He is not slack concerning his promises! This is all in preparation for a revival in the Body of Christ that will be unprecedented and will bring many out of darkness into the marvelous Light. (2 Peter 3:9; 1 Peter 2:9)

What it looks like:

-This a year where we must enter into a Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4: 1-12). This does not mean that we get to take a yearlong vacation!  This means we must cease striving to “work” our way into a full and healthy relationship with the Lord. This not a heretical doctrine of demons that everyone is essentially saved, despite their decisions.  This is to remind us that as Believers we must accept our salvation, and our relationship with Christ at face value, and stop striving to be “right”.  Our righteousness is as filthy rags to Him (Romans 3:21-22).  We can never be “good” enough to earn His love, and we cannot not be “bad” enough to disqualify ourselves from His love.  His is pleased by our faith in Christ.  Therefore, we must cease working to be loved and/or qualified, and we must begin to seek God for our purpose in Him, and ambition only to complete our given assignment as He permits us. As a wise elder once told me:  “Stop trying to be good, and let God change you.”  This takes the wind out of a religious spirit that causes us to waste precious time flopping around and salivating at the altar like the prophets of Baal who were hoping to catch the attention of their God. We have His grace!  We have His love!  We have His acceptance! If we are human enough to accept that we have need of Jesus as Savior, He is God enough to change us through His process.   We must not fight that process by hiding the dross that has risen to the top in our lives and covering it up with vain works and religious exercises. We must yield by admitting our need for change; giving up our “right” to be right, and commit to doing all things HIS way. The work that He has begun in us will continue unto the day of Jesus Christ! (Phil. 1:6)

-God is going to settle some things. There are areas of our lives that have been hidden which will be brought to light. There are relationships, dreams, plans, and burdens that we have held onto hoping that God will do what we want in them.  This is a season where God is going to say “yes” to some things and an emphatic “no” to others. These matters will be made clear to us.  However God chooses to answer the question will be the final answer, so we must set our face to however that looks.  In some areas in our lives, that answer will bring great joy. In others, it may bring great sorrow. God is not a task master.  He will give us time to celebrate the yes’s and grieve the no’s. But He will not permit those of us who only want His best to build altars to our celebrations, nor will we be able to live in the grave clothes of the areas that die.  Whom the Son sets free is free indeed; but we must choose freedom. (John 8:36)

-The call to entrepreneurship will continue. Don’t be “scairt”. The hand of the Lord is on your business idea.  Start the process, and commit to working it out step-by-step.  The wealth of the wicked is laid up for the just (Proverbs 13:22)…but the just has to get it crackin’!

-Spiritual Leaders, World Leaders, Celebrities, and Mothers and Fathers in the Faith will continue to pass away or step down from their current positions.  There is a new generation of leaders being raised up.  Wise leaders are already grooming successors and distributing birthrights to those who have been faithful to serve. In this manner, the Body of Christ will take some hits as the Lord exposes the some of the darkness, inappropriateness, and misappropriations that some leaders (spiritual and community) have committed (Jeremiah 23:1). Make no mistake that God’s flock is not only the Body of Christ.  It is the entire world.  While judgment begins in the Church, the Lord has set his eyes to those in business, and in government.  (Daniel 2:21; Psalm 75: 6-8). Take heart!  All of this will bring a great healing in the Body of Christ, as the Lord reveals the sources of division in the Body, and a real quest for the move of the Holy Spirit will over take denominational-ism.

-The prophets will speak; and the Apostles will set order:   The Lord has set the mantles upon the Apostles and the Prophets for they are the foundation of the Church (Eph. 2: 20-21).  Many who have been overlooked, set aside, or have been found patiently attending to the things of God in obscurity are about to be brought to the forefront. There are no “superstars” in Christ!  This is not to celebrate any man, but those who have been earmarked for ministry will be set upon a firm foundation in this season as God begins to send out the prophets and the apostles to dig up fallow ground in preparations for revival. Apostles will begin new ministries, and set the five-fold ministers in place.  We will see the anointing of Moses among community leaders as God begins to set apostles in the Body, business, government, and community.  The prophets will issue a clarion call to the Body of Christ to “make straight the way of the Lord” (Isaiah 40:3).  Young (young meaning in ministry not in chronological age) prophets  and the prophetically tempered will accept their call and begin the arduous process of being “made” for ministry.  A word of caution for the zealous:  95% of what even a seasoned prophet does is in the secret place of prayer. Do NOT despise the days of small beginnings (Zech. 4: 10)!  Your intercession is like one who sits on the fence so another may cross over. Intercession will shift the atmosphere and change the climate. Seek the Lord in prayer and He will meet you there.  

-There is to be more civil unrest.  I began to prophesy in 2008 that the Lord was exposing the spirit of systemic racism, gender disparity and class-ism in the United States. We will continue to see the Lord exposing injustice and disparity in the United States. Please do not chalk this up to a race war.  This is not an issue of race, gender, class, or sexuality.  It is an issue of justice verses injustice.  I know that I am preaching into oncoming traffic, but the Body of Christ must stand on the side of righteousness.  Hate crimes against race, gender or the LBGT community is NOT the judgment of God.  It is an act of evil.  We must stand for the HUMAN rights of everyone—even those with whom we do not agree. We cannot be swayed by the manipulation of the media, social media, or the opinion of man.  The mercy that we measure out to the world will be the standard of mercy by which we will be judged (Matthew 7:2). In Obadiah, Edom was judged for sitting idly by and worse yet, raging against an already broken Israel.  In Amos Israel was judged for celebrating the troubles of others while haughtily thinking that because they were “chosen” that they were exempt for judgment. If we as the Body of Christ sit idly by and permit the abuse of civil and human rights, or worse yet, we work to protect those who violate the human rights of others, we are setting ourselves up to be judged.  What will happen when this spirit of hatred turns it eyes towards Christians?  How will the Body answer when it our human rights that is violated; not because of race or gender, but because we uphold the word of the Lord?  How will we respond when the government takes away federal funding and tax exemptions for our outreach ministries because we refuse to marry gays in the Church?  Who will be our Edom that sits idly by or worse yet will kick us while the Church is openly persecuted and abused?  That day will come!  It must come so that prophecy must be fulfilled.  If we search our hearts now, repent and extend our hands in love, prayer and mercy to those whose HUMAN rights are being trampled; we will see such mercy extended to us in the day of destruction.  This is also not just about judgment.  This is the Lord setting order so that real revival and a hunger for the heart of the Lord can come forward. Real revival will begin when the Body begins to walk in perfected (mature) love for HUMANITY.

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” Charles Dickens wrote this in the opening paragraph of Great Expectations.  That is what we will see in the upcoming year.  Many of us personally will see some great highs in God as He sets us in our proper place, eradicates debt, and heals us and sends us forth in destiny.  But the same hand that comes to set order for us personally, must also set order for us as a Body, and we will see some lows. But we must take the mindset of Job: “The Lord giveth, and the Lord takes away; but blessed be the Name of the Lord.

Rd 12/27/2014

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: I Need a Drink

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: I Need a Drink: God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us to do good works, which God planned in advance for us to live our lives doing.&quo...

I Need a Drink

God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us to do good works, which God planned in advance for us to live our lives doing." (Ephesians 2:10 (NCV)


My sister has decided to have a party for her students. As she was telling me how about it, you could her just a slight anxiety in her voice because like many of us in this holiday season, she is rushed, stressed, tired, and “peopled out”.  I asked why she did not ask me to come and help (I am a caterer), she said, “I did, and you said that you were not Florence on the Jeffersons.”  I frowned, and laughed. Yep, I did say that.
My sister and I are both ministers.  She is a gifted teacher, and preacher. She is married to one of the most anointed teaching pastors that I have ever met.  My sister teaches at a large Methodist university in Texas.  In between teaching classes and preaching, I cater.  We both care for aging parents, and we both mentor young, emerging leaders. As a wife, my sister still has to clean, cook, and take care of her generally self-sufficient husband. The hard part about this that all of us are also introverts—we genuinely love people, but there are times that the work becomes overwhelming, and tiresome.  We begin to look at the lives that we generally love to live and reduce to them to “everybody needing something from me”. We live the life of service to others.
As I prayed, a scripture that has been ringing in my spirit for the last several days came again to the forefront.  I picked up my bible and read it in its entirety: “15For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. 16Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16 (NIV).  Sometimes when scriptures sit in my spirit, it’s because a sermon is “brewing”, so to speak.  However, as I prayed, I realized it was the Lord speaking encouragement to me in this season.  “Ok, Lord,” I thought.  “It took a moment, but I got it.”
Anyone who is in a growing relationship to Christ is also called to service, because our lives are not our own.  The moment that we say yes to Christ, we are saying yes to living the life that has been planned for us before the beginning of time.  We are called out of self-centered living and loving, to a life of vulnerability, openness, care for others and agape love.  We do this for people who sometimes are selfish, dependent, thoughtless, entitled and demanding. If we are not careful, in our desire to “do our jobs” so to speak—we lose focus and become frustrated, tired, short-tempered and cynical. The call has not changed; but the place where we pull our strength has.  We move from living ministry to doing ministry.  We live ministry out of our call and our relationship with Christ.  We do ministry out of our own strength and obligation—and sometimes the fine line between the two becomes blurred.
I said as much to the Lord.  He said to me: “Ahh, so you see the difference.”  Then He asked, “Child, how did Christ manage to live a life of service when there were constantly people pulling on Him and needing his anointing?” At that moment, I heard Mark 1:35: “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed (NIV)”. He continued. “Child it is not that you will not become tired, but you must take time away from everyone, to rest and pray.  Come and sit with Me, not as one who is doing something for Me; but come to Me when you are heavy laden and find rest.  You don’t even have to speak.  I listen to your heart. Picture yourself reaching into your pockets and purse and giving me all your cares.  Then sit with Me quietly and allow me to restore your soul.  When you do this, you are drinking from My never-ending flow of Living Water, and not out of your drying well of human strength.  Renita (I knew that He was serious), taking a Sabbath is not a suggestion—it’s a command.  It’s okay to rest; and it is okay to say no.” Come confidently to Me and get your mercy, and I will give you the help you need.
I sighed.  It’s easier said than done; but it must be done.  The greatest joy that one can experience is to find purpose in life. However, it is easy to move from purpose to work; and it’s easier to take on obligation as a penance, rather than a reward. It is in those times, that I pray for the discernment to recognize the subtle shift and run to sit by the still waters of the Lord and find rest.

It is What it Is

This morning I woke up with a song playing in my head.  It is a song by Matt Redmond called “Blessed be the Name.” Sometimes walking with the Lord is like a radio station that plays in your spirit man all the time.  I call the station WGOD.  I hear songs, scripture, and revelation all the time.  I have learned to live with it (it’s actually not all that uncommon; I have heard many people talk about the same thing). It’s a background noise to which I am not always paying attention.  This morning I was tuned in bright and early.  I stopped to listen because I felt the nudge in my spirit that God had something to say. I knew it was important; the Lord does not make small talk, nor does he chit chat.

                Redmond’s song is a scripture reference to Job 1:21 which states “and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised." It is Job’s response to God permitting his children, and property to be taken away.  I admit, I became a little nervous.  “Lord, is something about to go down? Do I need to be ready?  My sister and I had just had a conversation about our parents’ health, and we are both very concerned about what the near future may hold. I have been through the deaths of three people that I loved and cherished literally one month apart from each other over the last three months.  I am still grieving the losses. One death I expected; the others were a complete surprise, so I am just a little gun shy concerning trouble right now.

  The Lord said, “If I did decide to take your mother or father today, what could you do about it?”  I shook my head.  Nothing.  I could do not one single thing about the decisions of the Lord. God is sovereign.  That means He does what He wants to do, when He wants to do it, and He is under no obligation to report to or consult with any of us.  He sometimes involves us in the process; however, in the end He retains absolute power.  It’s hard to accept that you can pray and fast, do everything right, but still lose the house, the car, the job or the family member.  Some storms we create ourselves when we try to control the direction of our own lives.  Other times we are like Job—unaware that in another realm there is a pre-meditated storm that is being prepared for us. To know that the storm comes not because of our disobedience or rebellion, but because of our faithfulness and integrity makes it that much harder to accept or understand.  It doesn’t seem very fair does it? I can think of a LOT of people who “deserve” hardship, but even the person with the most intimate relationship with the Lord struggles when God permits bad things to happen to good people.

                I was thinking about that when I said to God:  “Lord, it kinda sucks that good people get really bad stuff happen to them, and it seems that those who are wicked seem to get promotion, opportunity, and favor.  I am no hater, but how do I minister to people about your sovereignty when you permit something to happen in their lives that is devastating? How do I minister to myself?"

                The Lord’s voice was gentle, but firm.  “Renita, I do not need you to defend my decisions, nor will I defend my decisions to you.  My thoughts are not your thoughts, Child. My ways are not your ways,” He said, referencing Isaiah 55:7.  Even when you don’t understand, I do understand.  That has to be enough for you and for anyone that you encounter.  Even when you can’t understand why I do what I do, you have to trust Me. I see your entire life even before you take your first breath in the world. I know when you make bad choices; I know when you make good choices.  I also know how some things will affect your life, and how you will respond to it.  When I permit difficult circumstances in your life, I have already weighed the trouble versus the results, and I make a decision based on what good can come from your life despite the hurt that the circumstances will bring.  I don’t make these decisions lightly, Child.  When you are broken, I am broken; when you are disappointed, I am disappointed. I dislike seeing you grief-stricken, but I am willing to permit it, if I can see a benefit in the outcome. That is what you must trust.  I can and will take the most devastating situation and turn it around for your good. Oh, and Child, I am God enough to handle your fear, your disappointment, and even your anger.  I will love you through all of it. It’s not easy; it is what it is.”

  I sighed. When I was younger,  I thought Job was being super deep when he made a declaration to bless the Lord through his brokenness.  I could not imagine anyone being okay with God taking everything away.  However, as I have grown in the Lord, and especially since I have experience now a countless number of Job moments, I can see why Job said what he said.  It’s not that Job was just so holy that everything that happened to him didn't hurt.  He practiced what some of us take a while to learn; acceptance.  Acceptance isn't nonchalantly shrugging our shoulders and walking away.  Acceptance says, “Lord I am struggling with this, but I am willing to walk this out with You, and let go of all my pre-conceived notions of what should, would, or ought to be.  It’s enough for me to take this situation at face value, and to give You the opportunity to show me Your grace in it.”

  There is no pat answer to trouble. It’s insensitive and almost arrogant to assume that there is.  But we do have God’s grace to see us through to the other side—and we do have faith to know that there is the “other” side to look forward to.  David said it eloquently when he said in Psalm 27: “I would have fainted if I did not believe that I would see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.” He did live to see God’s goodness, and we will too. 

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: A Spiritual Law of Motion

A Cup of Coffee and a Slice of Heaven: A Spiritual Law of Motion: Ephesians 3:20:  Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or imagine, according to the power that wo...

The Balm of Gilead

              As I exercise in the morning, I often listen to gospel to help motivate me not to sit down.  Exercise is not my favorite thing to do; in fact, I consider it a necessary evil.  As I stretched, Karen Clark Sheard’s Balm in Gilead played on my Rhapsody.  Even though I listened to almost an entire playlist of various artists, it was her song that kept reverberating through my mind.  Whenever I have a song, a scripture, or phrase that continuously plays in my head, I know to pursue the Lord about it.  It is often His way of introducing a new conversation to me.  When I pay attention to the background noise in my heart, I am often gifted a nugget of revelation from the Lord.  So when I sat down to have coffee with the Lord this morning, I asked Him about the song.  He replied that He wanted to talk to me about some things that were on His heart this morning.

                I felt my heart sank.  As an intercessor, I often feel the Lord’s emotions when He is grieved about something.  I think that people think that the Lord is vengeful and wrathful and full of anger.  His wrath is real; make no mistake.  However, more often the Lord is sorrowful and grieved over the condition of the world—and the condition of Believers everywhere.  “Ok,” I said with resolve.  “What do you want to say?”

                The Lord did not hesitate.  “Renita there is a season of great acceleration that is coming for My people.  They will see great growth in their lives.  It is a year of Jubilee, and many will see Me hand move on their behalf for their needs. I will move many in this one season further than they could have ever gotten on their own in ten years.”

                “Well, that doesn’t sound bad at all.  You seem grieved.  Why is this grievous for you?”

                In response, the Lord led me to Jeremiah 8.  I read through the entire chapter, with my heart sinking as I poured over each word.  The Lord began to speak to me about the brokenness of His people, and how they have sought everything to manage their brokenness.  They have tried everything—that is, except Him.  He said many would not receive His best, because they were not willing to let go of their way of doing things.  In fact, this time of acceleration would be a blessing to many, but it would be a curse to others. He asked, “Renita, what is the entire Kingdom based in?”

                “Seed, time and harvest,” I replied immediately.  The Lord then said that there were those who had planted seeds of brokenness [sin, unrighteousness, control, bitterness, vindictiveness, unforgiveness, rebellion, etc.] that has taken root in them, and those seeds would harvest in this time of acceleration.   They would eat the fruit of their ways (Prov. 1:31). Literally, instead of seeing a time of Jubilee as they rested in the Lord, living off the harvests of seeds sowed in righteousness, they would experience a time of great brokenness.  “My people are sick, Renita”, He said. “They go to workshops, and retreats, they read self-help books, and seek relief from shamans, false prophets, and religious gimmicks” but they won’t come to Me.  They will not yield their ways, and their hearts to me to find healing redemption in Me.  Child, Is there no balm in Gilead?  Where is their physician?”  He led me to Isaiah 1: 6.  “⁶ From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness or health in [the nation’s body]—but wounds and bruises and fresh and bleeding stripes; they have not been pressed out and closed up or bound up or softened with oil. [No one has troubled to seek a remedy.] (AMP)”.  The Balm of Gilead was a salve that was known for its healing properties.  After the Israelites settled in the Promised Land, the Tribe of Gad who had settled in Gilead became well known traders in this healing oil because the trees that contained the base properties grow in abundance there.

“I am the Balm, Renita.  I am there Great Physician. Only I can bring them the healing that they need.” I would that My people would yield their hearts to Me, not only for salvation, but I want them to let Me be Lord.” 

“What must we do Lord, “I asked, including myself in the number.  I am need of that Balm too! “Lord, most of us, don’t really realize that we have made something an idol, or that we have not really submitted our lives to You. How do we know what we must yield to you?”

The Lord brought to mind a common refrain.  “Pay attention,” He said.  What is a recurring issue in your life?  Is it money? Is it relationships? Is it sexual sin, or compulsive behavior? Is it purpose or career? I call you out of darkness by irritating that which is holding you in bondage. When you identify those places Renita, first understand that they are only symptoms of a larger issue. In order for you to kill a weed, you can’t cut off the heads of the weeds, you must dig up the root.  You and My people must let Me get to the root of your issues so that I can heal you and then you can experience my best in your lives. It is a painful process, but when I heal you, you will be healed.  When I save I save you, you will be saved (Jeremiah 17:4).

I repent for those areas where I have not given the Lord access.  I call those places sin, and I yield those things to the Lord.  And for those places that I cannot muster the strength to yield I pray that He show me the truth, and that I allow that truth to make me free.  I pray that for my brothers and sisters in Christ—that we submit to the ministration of our Great Physician, and allow His healing oil to soothe our hearts.

A Spiritual Law of Motion

Ephesians 3:20:  Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we can ask or imagine, according to the power that works in us (KJV)

As I had coffee with the Lord this morning, I worshipped quietly, waiting on Him to speak.  I have noticed that when I come to the table with a lot on my mind, it sometimes takes a few minutes for me to submit to the quiet leading of the Lord.  I sang to Him as I sipped my coffee, and as I did my muddled thoughts began to clear, and the impending cares of the day began to recede.  I felt led to research Newton’s Laws of Motion.  I am not a physicist, or even a science buff for that matter, so the fact that the three Laws of Motions kept nudging me was in itself a message from the Lord.  Of all that things that I think about, I can easily declare that Isaac Newton and his laws are not one of them. As I read, the Lord began to deal with me about His “Spiritual Laws of Motion.” I was especially intrigued by a quote from a science teacher:  It’s not that people cannot understand the Laws of Motion; it’s that they do not believe the laws of motion.”  Whoa. That stopped me in my tracks. “Ok,” I reasoned with the Lord, are you saying that the reason that many of Your people are not progressing because they don’t believe?  That’s when one of my favorite scriptures began to reverberate in my mind:  Ephesians 3:20.  As usual, because I can be little slow on the uptake, the Lord broke it down for me.

“Child, it’s not the people don’t believe in Me.  It’s that they do not believe in the Me that is in them.  My people pray diligently waiting for Me to act on their behalf, and many times I am waiting for them to tap into the power that I have deposited in them to really see change in their lives.  Renita, I have given my people a treasure hidden in darkness (Is 45:3). That treasure is the Holy Spirit.  In My Spirit there is My wisdom, My way, My understanding, My authority and My heart.  My people use Me as a weapon to be wielded offensively or defensively, but they do not understand that they are not using me effectively.  They have reduced me to a feeling, or an indescribable spooky entity.” He sighed. “I am not just what gives them goose bumps in worship, nor am I a familiar spirit that helps them find their keys.  I am their treasure, a key to the hidden places that unlocks the mysteries of this world. If the enemy had known that this power would be released through Jesus’ crucifixion, he would have abandoned his plan. This is why Paul wrote in 1 Cor 2:6-8: Yet among ethe mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not fa wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, gwho are doomed to pass away. 7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, hwhich God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8 None of ithe rulers of this age understood this, for jif they had, they would not have crucified kthe Lord of glory. (ESV).”

Then He prodded me.  “What’s Newton’s First Law of Motion?”  I remembered that from Dr. Flower’s class in 7^th grade: “A body in motion tends to stay in motion.  A body at rest tends to stay at rest.”  He continued.  “If a body is a rest, what must happen for it to become mobile?”  Ok, this was easier than I thought. “A force must encounter the body that is at rest, so that change can occur,” I said confidently.  “Yes, that’s right. Child, I am the force that brings about change to the Body of Christ.  You have taught on power many times.  What is the power that I speak of in Ephesians 3:20?”. “Dunamis,” I replied.  “It’s the kind of force that is behind the legions of angels,  and the kind that causes dynamite to explode.  It’s what created the world; it’s what raised Jesus from the dead.”  “Right again,” He said.  “If I can exceed and do more than can be asked or imagined, why aren’t my people progressing?  The light finally came on.  “Because we don’t understand the power that works in us.”

He went further.  “Renita, do the Laws of Motion change just because you don’t understand them?”  No, they don’t.  “Neither does my power change just because My people don’t understand how I operate in them. Jesus came that My people would have life, and life more abundantly (John 10:10) However, if they want an abundant life, they must stop looking at My Spirit as a resource, and begin to seek me as the Source. “My people don’t understand that Jesus was sent to this earth as Word made Flesh (John 1:1-4), but He died so that my people could become flesh made Word.   I never intended for life to be a force that happens to My people.  I intended for My people to be a force happens to life!"

“Clutch the pearls”, I thought.  “Have I been limiting my life by not tapping into this power that I thought I understood?”  I immediately began to think of all the things that I needed to do in order to bring this power forward.  The Lord interrupted me.  “Child, this is not a revelation that should cause you to begin to strive. Accomplishment is not indicative of My power at work.   In fact, this revelation should cause you to rest in Me rather than work harder.  It is; in fact, the key to working smarter. “How do I do that,” I countered.  The Lord never missed a beat. “Pay attention,” He said simply.  “Before you run off and try to do something in your own power, began to pay attention to your natural and spiritual environment.  What season is this? What’s happening around you?  What thoughts keep coming into your mind?  What drives you, and why?  You can only answer those questions through Me. The key to tapping into My power, is to tap into Me.  I cannot be separated from My word; but knowing the word is not enough.  Let me be the Word at work in you.  I will reveal to you that which is  my priority through My word, your circumstances, your dreams, your frustrations, your relationships and your motives.  All you really need to do is cooperate with what you see me doing in your life.  Seek me for the strategy; and I will give you good success.”

Pay attention, then do what I am doing.  It seems so simple, but the simplest things to grasp are often the hardest things to practice! It takes real discipline to submit to God’s strategy, but it is well worth it to receive all that He has for us.  I am so grateful that He is longsuffering and patient, because it has been more than a notion to grab a hold of just a nugget of His wisdom.  However, I am willing to keep seeking Him because I want HIS PLAN. I just don’t want the basic no frills plan, I want the exceedingly, abundantly plan! My prayer for me and my brothers and sisters in Christ is that we be loosed from our own understanding, and that we can acknowledge Him in all our ways so that He may direct our steps (Proverbs 3:5-6). When we have managed that, then the Body (of Christ) will be in motion and stay that way!