Lisa Great

Nature is a communicator of truth about God. When we stop to listen to the sounds of creation we will hear the voice of God in a way that is unique to creation.

Birds singing through the heat and cold is a reminder we can have a song in every season, knowing God takes care of us. “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Matthew 6:26)

Watch the way of an eagle in the sky. They make their nest up on high, yet them come low to the lake below for food that they grab with their talons in the water. Imagine the sight they have, to see that fish on surface level and the precision they need to grab it in the right moment.

Last night the rain fell with such abundance, it flooded some areas of our city; created a river in our backyard and on our front street. It only rained for maybe 45 minutes, but the abundance was undeniable. Elijah said, “There is a sound of abundance of rain…it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.” (1 Kings 18:41,45)

If you have ever looked up into the night sky away from the city lights, the stars shine like diamonds on a velvet backdrop. During the day the sun releases light and heat that cannot be contained or controlled. Psalm 19 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.”

These are just a few of natures identifiers that communicate what God is. He is the giver of songs in every season like the birds; He has a keen sense of sight and provides for our every need like the eagle; He releases abundance, literally more than we can contain like the rain; and He is declaring His glory to us night and day.

Everything around you is declaring who God is to you! Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

We have heard a lot about spiritual warfare, but we have heard very little about psychological warfare. I believe most spiritual warfare, people encounter, is psychological warfare. We are in a voice war. Whose voice are you going to believe?

Reading Isaiah 36 this morning yielded what I call psychological warfare tactics 101. Everyone of us hears voices that taunt, trouble, poke, pick on and invite us to yield to a voice that is inferior to God’s voice. This happens in our heads, so most people don’t reveal what they are hearing, but it is happening to everyone of us.

Rabshekah, is the title of a high ranking military officer from Assyria. He uses psychological warfare against the people of Jerusalem and Judah. I believe the tactics he uses are the same ones the enemy uses on us today. See if this resonates with what goes on in your head.

1. Speak in a place where they can hear you. ( v.2)
2. Speak the language the people understand (v.11)
3. Question what their confidence is in? ( v.4)
4. Ask them who backs them if they rebel against you? ( v.6)
5. Remind them they can’t trust Yahweh. (v.7)
6. Promise them provision if they follow you. ( v.8 )
7. Tell them God sent you to destroy the land. ( v.9)

Psychological warfare is manipulation that is hard to detect because it speaks truth, but twists it to get you to believe it. The goal of psychological warfare is two fold, one it seeks to get you to stop trusting in God. Two it seeks to wear you out.

Your battle is not against flesh and blood, it is against voices that speak through situations, circumstances and other people. The voices are speaking inside of you, twisting truth to convince you of a narrative that is not the Truth. Jesus said, you shall know the truth and the truth shall set your free.

Jesus’ voice liberates you and invites you to trust Him and forgive them. The voice of Rabshekah, questions everything that you trust in and erodes your confidence in God and others. This my friends is psychological warfare 101. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

Did you know it is natural to be a responder? We were made to respond. When a baby is hungry they cry; When a child bumps their head you know it; When a teenager finds out that girl he likes, likes her…We were made to respond.

Negative emotions pervert or pause our ability to respond. Disappointment causes us to stop hoping. Hope is a response. Depression stops our ability to respond, we hear good news but we have no reaction. Anxiety hinders our ability to respond to peace.

Have you ever wondered why the enemy does not want you to respond? Because if you respond, you come alive. Blocking your ability to respond, keeps you in the state you find yourself. When we respond to truth, we come alive. When we respond at a football game to a touchdown, we shout, we clap, we stand, we feel good.

When we respond to God in singing, giving, praying, we feel lighter, we sense the presence of God closer. We were made to be responders. And God is unlocking our ability to respond to good news. Negativity clogs our responders, that is why the news media does not share good news, for they want you clogged not released to respond.

This unlocking of your ability to respond is because good news is all around you and it is only getting better. I heard in prayer this morning, “Pray Psalm 24!” Psalm 24 says, “Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory.”

Doors are opening and will continue to open to good news. I do not know what door you need opened, but pray Psalm 24 is what the Lord is saying. Then get ready for a flood of good news. Rejoicing is a response and God is unlocking our responders, because good news is increasing. Responding to good news is healthy. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

Did you know it is natural to be a responder? We were made to respond. When a baby is hungry they cry; When a child bumps their head you know it; When a teenager finds out that girl he likes, likes her…We were made to respond.

Negative emotions pervert or pause our ability to respond. Disappointment causes us to stop hoping. Hope is a response. Depression stops our ability to respond, we hear good news but we have no reaction. Anxiety hinders our ability to respond to peace.

Have you ever wondered why the enemy does not want you to respond? Because if you respond, you come alive. Blocking your ability to respond, keeps you in the state you find yourself. When we respond to truth, we come alive. When we respond at a football game to a touchdown, we shout, we clap, we stand, we feel good.

When we respond to God in singing, giving, praying, we feel lighter, we sense the presence of God closer. We were made to be responders. And God is unlocking our ability to respond to good news. Negativity clogs our responders, that is why the news media does not share good news, for they want you clogged not released to respond.

This unlocking of your ability to respond is because good news is all around you and it is only getting better. I heard in prayer this morning, “Pray Psalm 24!” Psalm 24 says, “Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory.”

Doors are opening and will continue to open to good news. I do not know what door you need opened, but pray Psalm 24 is what the Lord is saying. Then get ready for a flood of good news. Rejoicing is a response and God is unlocking our responders, because good news is increasing. Responding to good news is healthy. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

I am a patterns person. I can see patterns, I can hear patterns, I may not know what they are saying, I may not have the answer to what they mean, but I can’t unsee what I see. 

Over the past two weeks, I have noticed a pattern forming of animals coming out of hiding and into visible locations for people to see. It started with a ride with two girl friends on Lake Barkley in KY. We were in a side by side, just looking at houses and the number of deer we saw was beyond anything I had ever seen. They were laying in grass on the side of the road unmoved. We even saw two bucks laying down, just watching us. 

Then I was in the smoky mountains and four bears, one mom and three babies literally came to our front porch where we were staying. Not to harm, just curious what we were doing and probably looking for food. 

I realize I am a city girl, so these are fascinating sightings for me, but they did not stop in country locations, they have happed in city ones as well. And people have been sending me photos of what they are seeing. Some friends from Warsaw, MO sent me a picture of an eagle taken off the back of the pontoon on the boat right next to them. Majestic bird. 

Last Tuesday I was with some friends in a house they are selling and I saw a hawk on a log, eye level out the back window. Not up in the tree, down low on a log. Then on Sunday, my housemate saw a hawk on our back deck with a bird in its mouth, just sitting there. 

Now on Monday, yesterday, I get another photo of a hawk on my friends truck, just chilling. And on the same day a friend sends me a video of 17 vultures on the lamp posts in the parking lot across from her house in Franklin, TN. Deer, bear, eagle, hawks, vultures. Animals of prey, coming near not to harm but for us to view up close. 

Pattern that cannot be denied. So I hear the Holy Spirit say, “The wolf will lie with the lamb.” I find that verse in Isaiah 11 and then it ends in verse 9 saying, “They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” 

What used to cause harm will no longer harm us, for the knowledge of the Lord is filling the earth. The narrative is shifting and creation is responding. Can you hear what the deer, the bears, the eagle, the hawks, the vultures are saying? God is healing earth again. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

Psalm 63 has been spoken through songs; prayed in prayer meetings; quoted in books; read in multiple translations; it is a Psalm we know, we have heard, we resonate with. Yet, this morning when I was reading it, I saw something I had not seen before. The word of God is living and active (Hebrews 4:12), so it is always speaking in now time.

Psalm 63:1-2 says, “O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water. So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory.”

Do you see what I see? A reality of a dry and thirsty land in which there is no water. Barren, cracked, exhausted, tired, bored, no color, no joy, no peace, only a land of longing, wanting, needing something. When people send prayer requests, it is coming from a dry and weary land.

But what is the answer to a dry and weary land, where is the opposite of something that is dry and thirsty? David, the psalmist says, the answer is in the sanctuary. The sanctuary is a place of power of glory. Power and glory are ark of the covenant language, it is a place of God’s presence. David met the presence of God in the temple of God with the people of God.

Life outside of the sanctuary is dry and thirsty. People search for water, look for satisfaction, but do not find it, so they come to the sanctuary looking for power and glory. The question is, are we hosting the presence of God so the people who come in the sanctuary can find what they are longing for? On the show Survivor, they have a place called the Sanctuary and it is said it is where good things happen. They get food to eat and rest for their weary body.

God’s sanctuary is filled with power and glory, and His presence is where we are satisfied. May we be a mobile sanctuary for those who are dry and weary, because we offer power and glory. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

A people who have been born into war, will resist peace not realizing peace is what they need and long for. They will resist peace, because it feels too vulnerable. One of the healings we will need as humanity as we enter into this kingdom age is a training in peace.

The three fold cord that is not going to be easily broken in our lives is righteousness, peace and joy. It starts with righteousness. Isaiah 32 says, “The work of righteousness will be peace, And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

Jesus Christ is righteousness and He has established righteousness on earth, but it has been buried under the trauma of war. The ending of endless wars, is the evidence of righteousness at work. Whether that was is inside of you or outside of you. When war ceases, righteousness gets the credit.

From righteousness we will experience peace. Peace is a person, it is a position, it is a disposition. All the spiritual warfare language will take a back seat, not because we will not deal with the enemies in the atmosphere, but they will not take center stage, for righteousness is ruling and peace is the result of righteousnesses rulership over nations and in our lives.

Then once righteousness exalts the nation, peace is the disposition of the people, we will experience joy unspeakable. This not heaven, this is what is happening on earth. Jesus said in Matthew 6, pray, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Righteousness, peace and joy are kingdom realities manifesting on earth and in you if you will surrender to them. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

Seasons is a common word in the body of Christ. We say we are in a season of waiting, a season of warfare, a season of testing, a wilderness season. I have said the same thing, but as I was thinking about waiting, I realized waiting is not a season it is a lifestyle.

Waiting for the wine is called fermenting for the sake of flavor profiles; waiting for coffee beans is called roasting for the sake of pulling out the richness of the oils; and waiting for whiskey or bourbon is called being barreled for the sake of pulling out the notes and colors.

When our waiting is holding out for some promise, then we want the waiting to end and the promise to begin. As I was pondering this idea of waiting, I saw in the spirit a statue with the word promise on it. And I sensed we have made the promise we are waiting for an idol.

Jesus is the promise; God our Father is the promise; the Holy Spirit is the promise. If in our waiting we are not finding Him who is the pearl of great price, we will be waiting for something to happen, rather than finding Someone.

My heart for the past two or more weeks has been crying out, I want You; I want to be one with You; You are all I want; You are all I desire. There is an ache in me not for a promise or prayer to be answered, but for Him. He is my one desire (Psalm 27:4-6).

I sense we have made the promise an idol and He is using the waiting to remove all the idols, so all we want is Him. He is the flavor profile we seek; He is the bold notes we love; He is the one pulling out the rich oils of His character in us. Waiting is not a season it is a lifestyle that makes us want Him. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

When you understand who the author of any book was speaking to at the time of its writing; when you know the culture of the people in whom a book was written to; when you do a little background study, it brings to life the words of the prophets and why they said what they said to the people in whom they were speaking.

Whether Hebrew idioms, cultural realities, or spiritual entities they worshipped or feared. When this information is understood, it does not diminish the reality of the truth, nor does it deny the power of the prophet who is speaking, it actually adds value to it.

If someone read something written to Americans and it said, “It’s raining cats and dogs”, if they took it literally, they would think what a sight that would have been to see. But we as Americans know very well that is not a literal statement, it is an American idiom. The same is true in Hebrew.

When Isaiah is speaking to the Jews who were in Babylonian exile, he spoke to a people who knew what he was talking about for they all lived in the same culture. Their culture had a spirtitual understanding of Egyptian gods and saw their horses as spiritual forces.

When Isaiah says “Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; And their horses are flesh, and not spirit” (Isaiah 31:3), Israel knew the prophet was demystifying their fear of Egypt. Not to scare them but to liberate them from a narrative that was not true. Men are not gods and horses are not spirits.

To this day Egyptian deities are worshipped and feared around the world, so the words of Isaiah are important for us to hear as well. Men are not gods and horses are not spirits. And the verse ends by saying, “When the Lord stretches out His hand, both he who helps will fall and he who is helped with fall down; they will all perish together.”

God is the only God; the Holy Spirit is the only Spirit; and Jesus is the God Man who walked on earth, died, was buried, rose again and is current present reality seated in heaven at the right hand of His Father. We have nothing to fear. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org

Every one of the 12 tribes of Israel had a role to play in the building of a nation. They complimented each other, for each was needed. Judah brought a piece of the puzzle that Naphtali did not have; Zebulun added value in a way that Gad could not. Each of the 12 played a key role in building a nation and what a nation it was and is that God has built.

The rainbow is a circle not a half moon. Our eyes cannot see it in its full circular fashion, so we see it as an arch, but it is actually proven to be a circle. The rainbow is a circle of the reminder of the covenant God has made with His people. Just as a ring is a circlular covenant to remind a man or a woman of their covenant they made with the other.

The covenant encircled Israel as God was making them a nation and this circle is still around us today. We like Israel are in the process of seeing nations built. Each nation brings a different piece of the puzzle to the table, but all the nations are encircled by the covenant God has made with them.

Psalm 2 says, “Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance!” Jesus asked for the nations and as a Son He was given the nations. When John spoke of this inheritance he said, “For God so loved the world He gave His one and only begotten Son into the world to save it!”

We are currently in a transition of the likes that Israel experienced in crossing the Red Sea; Naomi experienced in coming back to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest; David experienced when he brought the ark into the city of David; Peter experienced in that upper room when the wind blew and the fire fell. That level of transition.

And we have a role to play as a nation. The tribe of Issachar is said to have known the times and what Israel should do. Knowing we are in a time of transition of a proportion we have never experienced is critical right now. We have never gone this way before, but we are encircled by the covenant of God, and every nation has a role to play. Rejoice, God is working all things out for the good. Www.apostolicresourcecenter.org