Month: October 2023

I was praying the other day and speaking to the Lord about timing and what is taking so long with what He has promised me, personally. I am not one to talk about myself often with others, let alone with God. Not because I don’t have needs, desires or wants, but because I have nothing new to say, due to waiting on what we have talked about so many times before. In this discussion with the Lord about timing, He told me something that made a lot of sense and gave me a much needed timing adjustment. I know it was for me, but I think it is for many of us.

The Lord said, “There is no delay in what I have promised you, personally, it’s just that what I am doing is not only about you, it is bigger than you, so takes more time than just what I promised you.” As I pondered these words from the Lord, I understood I am apart of something so big, it is taking time for all of it to come together for the manifestation. If it was just about me, it would have been answered already, but what He has promised us individually is directly tied to what He is doing in us as a generation and that takes time. He sees us individually, but He is also looking at us as generationally with what is happening in this day and age.

I know it feels like the ache will never be met, but it is not about a what as much as it is about a who. Who this is about is God and His kingdom; what this is about is going to change the landscape of nations. It is as though God is on a macro assignment alignment right now and our micro is part of it, but is not the present priority individually, so we have to adjust our thinking to generationally. In the long run this is going to benefit so many at one time, just like a multitude came out of Egypt together, or a generation crossed the Jordan together, so we are living in a corporate time of God’s design, not an individual one. I hope this helps with what seems to be taking so long.

One thing that every human being steers clear of, avoids at any cost, is being controlled. It is though we have an aversion to someone controlling us. This is not a trauma response; this is not a rebellious action; this is how we were designed. We were not created to be controlled but to be complimented and to compliment others. Control is rooted in fear and perfect love casts out all fear, so we were not made to be controlled. When people resist control, throw off control, divorce control, run away from control, it is because they were created for freedom, not for control.

I was reading/praying Psalm 139 this morning and the Lord whispered to me, “I designed you, but i did not pre-program you. Your programming came from your culture not the kingdom.” I sat there and let those words sink in, deep inside of me, and what I saw was how God formed our infrastructure, but He did not program us to only know what He wants us to know and to only do what He wants us to do. God is omniscient, He is all knowing, He sees the end from the beginning, He knows everything, but He did not program us, Yahweh, is not controlling, because He is not fearful.

Psalm 139:1-2 says, “O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar.” He understands us, He loves us, He created us, but He does not control us. Jesus said, “It is for freedom you have been set free!” We were born to be free, created to be free, but culture has programmed us, people have controlled us, not God.

When people throw off control, we call them rebellious, a Jezebel spirit, insubordinate, disrespectful, but what if that is not what they are, some are definetly that, but what if they are breaking free from your control, your fear, your need to dominate and dictate them, what if they were designed to be free and they have realized Christ has set them free and so now they gladly serve Him, because He is not controlling?

I believe, what Psalm 110 says, “Your people will volunteer freely in the day or Your power!” A day is coming, fast approaching when power is going to set people free and what they will do is volunteer to serve, share, surrender to the God of all Creation who created them, for He will set them free and keep them free. No one wants to be controlled for we were all created to be free!

Processing with the Lord about personal issues can feel so small and insignificant in light of world issues going on. Yet it is in the removing of the personal speed bumps that the Lord can speak clearly about the really big picture happening and when He does it brings such peace and such joy, it makes life’s challenges manageable. Jesus said, for the joy set before Him, He endured the cross. The cross was a temporary moment that He had to go through in order to live in the eternal joy set before Him. Now we are not Jesus nor are any of our issues anything close to what Jesus endured on the cross, but the same spirits of mockery, intimidation, betrayal, they are in our situations as well. The enemy is a spirit and he is no respecter of persons.
What the Lord showed me today has brought so much joy, hope and peace, I can’t stop smiling and I hope it encourages you like it did me.

In the timeframe of 586BC a generation of people both righteous and wicked, were on the earth and they witnessed the destruction of the Temple in Israel. The Temple was and still is very valuable to Hebrew people because it was the place where God’s presence dwelt with them. One generation saw the destruction of the Temple, while another generation saw the restoration of the Temple when Solomon began the building project of it per his father David’s instructions and resources. Two generations, one saw destruction of a nation, the others saw restoration of a nation. Knowing where we are in God’s timeline for our nation is extremely important. Nehemiah was in the generation of restoration of a nation, henceforth, the rebuilding of the wall. Jeremiah was in the beginning of the captivity of a nation taken to Babylon and destruction of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar, henceforth the call to settle down in Babylon.

The question is where is your nation, right now. Are you in the destruction phase or the restoration phase? Solomon in Ecclesiastes 3 says there is a time for everything. What time is it for your nation? For the United States, we are at the beginning stage of the restoration of a nation. If you can see this is where we are, it will bring you great hope, joy and peace. What feels like a personal delay, is only a feeling, God showed me that this is so much bigger than me, it is about a nation and His timing is for a nation not an individual. This changed my whole attitude about how come things seem to be taking so long. God is restoring nations right now as we speak. Some are going to go through destruction and others are going through restoration. America is in the process of restoration not destruction, that is why we see so much rubble all around, but the builders are arising and God is restorating the nation. What is the Lord doing in your nation?

Does your heart ache for something it cannot access? Do you try to numb the pain of something that just keeps eating away at you? Are you one who wants to just ignore whatever it is you can’t do anything about? Life is hard, relationships are challenging, finances fluctuate, and promises don’t come true immediately. We do what we can to encourage one another in our struggles, we stand with each other in pain, we exhort one another not to sin, we speak to truth to one another in order to infuse life, and we pray for one another when we hear of a struggle. Yet, the ache still aches, the battle still rages, the relationship does not change, and the enemy says screams things about God and us that are just not true.

I listen to people all day long, I hear their struggles, their aches, their pains and I hear the struggle. It is hard to hear how people are hurting, how people are battling, how people are sick. There are so many promises in the word of God that we are more than conquerors, we overcome by the blood of the lamb, we are blessed and highly favored, but then our reality does not match biblical truth, it is like a sword in the very place that already hurts. I may never understand the why behind the what of this reality, but one thing I do know, is that Yahweh never ceases to be a lover, a listener, a leader and a Father in our life. He does not rejoice in our suffering, He is not glad we are in a battle, but rather He is bottling up the tears, listening to every word we speak, every cry of our heart and He is not deaf to our situation, no matter what it may be.

What I have learned in the waiting, in the wondering and in the wanting is the nature of God. Now that I know His nature, the circumstances don’t move me like they used to. But what I have also learned is the authority He has given me. I used to let circumstances toss me to and fro, but God has revealed to me who I am and in that I no longer let the enemy push me around like I used to. My friends, the enemy doesn’t want you to know who God is and He doesn’t want you to know who you are, for that is a double edged sword that defeats him with one swing, one word, one look in his direction. You and Yahweh make a great team. Be encouraged!

Yesterday morning in worship and now this morning in prayer I am hearing the Lord say, “The battle is being turned at the gate!” Over and over again i am hearing this phrase and it is coming with hope not fear. It is about the war in Israel, this I know, “The battle is being turned at the gate!” I open my phone and there is a news article on the home screen that says, “Due to weather, Israel has postponed its advance into Gaza.” Immediately the Lord says, “The battle is being turned at the gate.”

I open my Bible for I know this has to be a Bible verse, and sure enough, it is located in Isaiah 28 and here is what it says, “In that day the LORD Almighty

will be a glorious crown, a beautiful wreath for the remnant of his people. He will be a spirit of justice to the one who sits in judgment, a source of strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.” In what day is the first question I asked, because context matters and we must know what the context is to confirm what we are reading and hearing.

Isaiah 28:1-2 says, “Woe to that wreath, the pride of Ephraim’s drunkards, to the fading flower, his glorious beauty, set on the head of a fertile valley — to that city, the pride of those laid low by wine!” Ephraim is one of Joseph’s sons, who he had with Pharoh’s daughter when he was brought out of prison. His other son is Mannasseh. Ephraim means double fruitfulness. Remember pride puffs us, don’t forget fermented wine also puffs up, just like leavened bread. The proud are being laid low, by God Himself, for the Lord is still exalting the humble and humbling the proud.

The battle is being turned at the gate because the Lord is strengthening the remnant who is praying for the peace of Jerusalem, for they know in there peace we have peace. We are gatekeepers, watchmmen on the wall, ones who turn the battle at the gate. God can use any resource at His disposal to turn the battle at the gate, but yesterday He used weather, for we know our battle is not against flesh and blood but against spiritual forces of wickedness in high places and God Himself is turning the battle at the gate for He so loved the world He gave His one and only Son!

The Lord of heaven and earth, the God of all creation, the Master of our lives, Yeshua is His name, Yahweh is who He is and He alone is God, outside of time, far above the heavens and yet draws near to us on earth. There are many gods on the earth, but there is none like our God. Our God has eyes and can see, ears and can hear, a mouth and can speak. We serve a relational God, a faithful Father, Jesus is our brother, the Holy Spirit is our comforter, counselor and promise keeper. Oh who blessed we are who know Yahweh is God.

Yesterday we were driving through downtown Franklin, TN and coming out of a Catholic Church were a procession of people and they began to parade down with street with a statue of Mary. But what stuck me is they were carrying her on poles on their shoulders, just like Yahweh commanded the priests to do with the ark of the covenant. As we watched from our car, listening to their chants, I was reminded the devil is dumb, but he is a master deceiver. He cannot create anything, but he counterfeits everything. He watches what God does more than most of us do and he twists it for his own purposes. The scene was obvious as I watched it, the counterfeit was a marching down the streets of my city with people who were just as blind as the statue they were carrying and chanting to.

Psalm 135 is my prayer partner today on this 15th day of October and it says, “The idols of the nations are but silver and gold, The work of man’s hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; They have eyes, but they do not see; They have ears, but they do not hear, Nor is there any breath at all in their mouths. Those who make them will be like them, Yes, everyone who trusts in them.”

As we go to church today to worship, all over the world, we are singing to a living God, we are praying to a God that hears and speaks. Our God is in heaven, Psaslm 135 says, He can do whatever He wants! Once I was blind, but now I see, it truly is amazing grace that has set me free. Pray for your cities my friends for it is not buildings, it is people who can’t see and therefore are not set free. Only the truth can set us free, so we can see.

One of the things I enjoy doing, is watching game shows. I spend most of my day reading, studying, praying, processing what God is saying and ministering to many people, so when I get down time my go to is a television show that doesn’t need me to think, I can just relax, laugh and enjoy the show. This is why I love watching sports as well. One of the shows I used to watch when I lived in Malaysia was Wipeout. If you have never watched this game show, it is really funny and very entertaining. It is basically an obstacle course for adults, who have chosen to dress up in some very creative way to run the course. They have water being shot at them, big balls to jump on, spinning things to get over, all in an attempt to knock them off the course. Many fall down on the course and others fall off the course into the water below. It is a see it to fully understand it kind of show.

The Lord brought this game show to mind this morning as I thought about the reality that today is the last day of Tishri (Hebrew month); there is a new moon tonight: there is a solar eclipse today; there is a war happening in Israel; there are protests all over the world; there are attacks happening in France; and their are rockets in the air and boots on the ground in Israel. Signs in the heavens above and signs on the earth below. It can feel, look and sound like the perfect storm in the natural. Yet the Lord reminds me of a game show called Wipeout.

Life has a lot of things thrown at us to get us off course; the news sprays us with bad news all day long; people fight; money rises and falls; moons are new every month, suns go dark, but they are not to be ignored, nor are they to be feared. The enemy is trying to throw you off the course, but the Lord is trying to get you to the finish line to declare victory over the enemy. Now the choice is yours, will you let the many obstacles being thrown at you take you out, or will you lift up you eyes to where your help comes from (Psalm 121)? It’s a lot I know, I feel it too, but there is a God who has seen the end from the beginning and if He is not scared, neither should we be. The enemy is trying to wipe us out, but God is raising us up for such a time as this. We were born for this day, arise and shine for your light has come and the glory of the Lord is rising upon us. Rejoice!!!!!!

We have heard the phrase “rest in peace”, but have we ever really considered what that means. I hadn’t until this morning when the Lord said to me, “Peace comes from dying to yourself, while anxiety comes from promoting yourself.” There was no context for this conversation, my prayers were actually about how amazing God is and I was thanking Him for various character qualities I love about Him. Then the Holy Spirit says, “Peace comes from dying to yourself, anxiety comes from promoting yourself.” Wow. Just wow.

What I love most about God is that He always speaks the truth. Therefore, whether I understand fully what He is saying or not, does not change the truth He is speaking. I walked and pondered this thought this morning and as I was, the phrase, “rest in peace” came to my attention. We love our lives so much, we we love ourselves so much, we love to promote ourselves, talk about ourselves and tell others about ourselves. Then the church catches on to this and adds to this love of self theme and yet we are the most anxiety ridden culture in my lifetime. With so many self-help books, so much self- discovery, self-promotion, my truth, talk, why are we so anxious, lonely, depressed, addicted and angry if self is so wonderful?

Self is like the leech in Proverbs that cries give, give. Self is never satifsfied, self will never say enough. Self always has to have more. Self is the root of anxiety, fear, control, and all the other destructive issues people are dealing with, but when we hear we are to die to ourselves so we can live, we poo poo that idea, for it does not benefit self. Paul said in Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” If you want peace you have to die to yourself and live for Him. We Rest In Peace when die to ourselves. Peace comes from being dead to me not promoting me.

I was walking the dog and praying this morning and the words of Chuck Pierce wafted through my spirit saying, “The war is over the harvest.” Then the message from Jane Hammon I listened to yesterday came to rememberance as she spoke about watchmen on the wall, watchmen at the gate, and watchmen of the harvest. The Holy Spirit put those two things together and began to share with me how the battle has shifted.

For the past 10 years the battle has been about standing our ground, persevering through the wilderness, not quitting, not giving up, it was a stand and keep on standing season of contending for the promises of God. We learned so much in the past war season, we gained much stamina to stand. It was a time of 2 Samuel 23:9-10 “Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel had retreated. He arose and attacked the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand stuck to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day.” For many our hand felt stuck to our sword for the battle kept raging. But something has shifted, the winds of war have changed. It is no longer a time to stand our ground, a new command has been released.

We have a posture shift that has happened, from standing to pursuing, to advancing. The enemy is on the run, which is evidence that we have won., but the battle is not done. I can see the victory, I know we are not fighting because we are being attacked, we are fighting to possess the land, the people and the resources we’ve been promised. Oh that feeling of pursuing to possess is so different than standing to defend. The war is over the harvest, purse and overtake, that is the command on us now. We are in a 1 Samuel 30:8 time “So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” The winds of war have changed and we use go the way of the wind for we won, but its not quite done. Pursue, overtake and recover all!

What do you look for in people? What do you hear when people talk? What do you see when you look at people on the news, in church, on the street? The more hurt you are the more negative you are; the more healed you are the more gold you see in people. Self-protected people are deeply wounded people. Can you see past their walls to the pain they are seeking to protect? Can you see past their behavior, bad fruit or sin and see the person inside crying out to be set free?

Proverbs 11:27 says “He who diligently seeks good seeks favor, But he who seeks evil, evil will come to him.” What if your favor that you desire to have with God and man is directly tied to how you see people? Most of us don’t recognize how interconnected everything is. We have been taught favor is not fair, but it is fair, because Solomon says what you look for you find and if you look for gold in others you will find favor with God and people. Luke 2:52 says “Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” Jesus always looked for the gold in everyone He met, no wonder He continually increased in favor.

As I sat with six other women for hours the past couple of days, I saw gold in every story they shared, painful stories, powerful stories. Then as they asked me to share my story, I watched them see the gold in me, despite my history. They gained favor with me because of what they saw in me and I hope I gained favor with them because what I saw in them made me love them so much more. My friends, our favor with God and people is directly connected to what we see in God and what we see in people. This can happen when you are watching the news or sitting across the table from someone. Where are the gold diggers? Where are those who can see the gold in people no matter what fruit they are producing? Remember bad fruit Is the result of a hurting/unhealed root.