Author: lisagreatenebeli

In the Old Testament the enemies of Israel were visible; their warfare was with a physical enemy; the combat was earthly, identifiable with the eyes and even fought with physical weapons. David saw Goliath and defeated him with a literal stone and slingshot; Samson pushed against actual pillars and brought down a temple which killed many Philistines; and Jael actually put a tent peg through the head of Sisera while he slept in her tent. Enemies you can see may seem more easily defeatable, but they are not any less intimidating. Remember Nehemiah and the words spoken by Sanballat and Tobiah intimidating the workers on the wall around Jerusalem? Their words paralyzed the people and one decree from the king stopped the work they were doing.

In the New Testament, the apostle Paul says in Ephesians 6, our battle is not physical, but spiritual. We have moved from ground warfare, hand to hand combat, from a physical enemy we can see, to a spiritual enemy we hear. Voices seek to initimadate, lies seek to paralyze, and words seek to torment. The rise in mental illness in our nation is due to the onslaught of voices people are hearing, believing and obeying. We are in psychological warfare on a daily basis. Is it any wonder Joyce Meyers book Battlefield of the Mind was so popular?

Praying Psalm 3 this morning the psalmist said, “O LORD, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, There is no deliverance for him in God.” The Holy Spirit said to me, “Adversaries are vapors without substance what waft in but are easily rebuked and resisted. If you don’t resist and rebuke adversarial vapors, they will rest and remain in your thoughts.” Immediately I heard the verse, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you!”

Friends, we have been given authority to resist and rebuke the lies of the enemy. They are only vapors, they are easily rebuked and resisted, but we must stop entertaining them; echoing them; and believing them. The adversary told the psalmist, there is no deliverance for him in God. That is a lie. What is the adversary that is increasing and arising telling you? Write it down, read it, look at it, it is not true, it is a vapor you are to resist and rebuke. The warfare is real, the vapors are wafting in, but we must rebuke and resist them for he is the father of lies, so nothing he says will come to pass. Repent of letting the lies of the adversaries rest and remain in your thoughts. We have a Savior and His name is salvation, Jesus!!!!

Can you see what God is doing among the nations? Can you hear what God is doing in the land? I know the news media is trying to get you to believe we are going back into a 2020 2.0, but puppets are not God, they are just speaking what their masters are telling them to say in order to obtain their pay. Remember the Wizard of Oz? How the Oz was projected on a screen as being larger than life, even intimidating? Can you picture the scene upon them entering emerald city? But one little dog named Toto grabbed a hold of the curtain in which the Oz was hiding behind and exposed a small man, who projected himself as larger than life.

Friends, this is how Satan works. Jesus defeated the devil, not on the cross, but while He was in the grave. Yes when He died He went and took back the keys to death and Hades, no longer would Satan have the power to destroy a life, for the author of life was in the underworld known as Hades, fully alive as God. Oh if only we had a revelation of what happened during those three quiet days on earth. I can almost hear the fear in Hades, as they thought they were victorious, only to find out He was right there in their headquarters. The devil is like Oz, he projects a big image, but is a small man who has no power, no authority, no keys.

When Jesus was on earth it says in Luke 4, “There was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice. But Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be quiet and come out of him! And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm.” Demons like to make a scene upon departure. Can you hear the demons leaving our country? Can you see the enemy on the run? I know the devil is making a scene, kicking up dust, tearing down bridges and trying to create fear with another disease, but friends, listen closely for it is the sound of the enemy going out not coming in. He is going to be cast out of the nations and without doing us any harm. His reign of terror is over, God’s rule of love has begun!!!!

One of my favorite things to do is pray the Psalms. The rich revelation that is released is like honey dripping from the comb. Oh the sweetness of God’s word, there is no taste I crave more! Today, Psalm 1 led me in prayer and where it took me brought great delight to my soul. Join me this morning on a prayer journey in Psalm 1.

Two people are described in this Psalm, one is blessed and the other is wicked. The ways these people walk, talk, act are identified so clearly, it is not hard to know which one we are. The blessed man is planted by streams of water, delighting and meditating day and night on God’s words; bearing fruit in season. The wicked on the other hand is sinning, scoffing and speaking counsel that does not benefit the hearer. The Bible say, “The wicked are like chaff which the wind drives away.” The righteous is strong, stable, steady, but the wicked is like chaff ready to be blown away. The demarcation could not be more obvious.

Two things struck me today, one was how the wind can so easily blow away the chaff. If we don’t like the wickedness we see, all we have to do is call for the east wind to blow and scatter the wicked from our land; or call for the four winds to blow and remove the wicked from our nation. Wind is the answer for the wicked to be removed. The second thing was how the righteous bear seasonal fruit. I am helping a friend who is a private chef and I am learning a lot about food. Just the other day we were looking for pomegranates and she said, it is not in season, that is why it is hard to find.

Fruits have seasons and when we know what fruit is in season, we will know where to find our harvest for that season of our life. Friends, if you are struggling to find the fruit for your season, maybe it is because that fruit is not in season, but there is one that is. Stop trying to find pomegranates in blueberry season. You may have to change the recipe a bit, but you will not have to strive to find something that is not in season, when there is an abundance of fruit for this season if you know what you are looking for.

One final word from this Psalm, even though not all fruit is in season all year long, we do have leaves that do not wither if we remain planted by streams of water and Revelation 22 says those leaves we have are for the healing of the nations. What a mighty God we serve, who knows what season fruit we are being given for food and for never letting our leaves wither for He is always about the healing of nations.

Perspective can try and determine reality, but perspective is based on our interpretation of what we see. Perspective is based on our history, our reality, our database of truth. Perspective matters, because it comes from thoughts and informs thoughts. But what if there was something greater than perspective? What if there was a higher level of understanding that wants to influence our perspective? What if our perspective is earthly, linear, one dimensional and there was another measure of which we had not considered?

Experiences, opportunities, situations all have a way of changing our perspective on reality. I spent over 10 hours this weekend watching Season 4 of The Chosen in various movie theaters. I had never seen one episode, so yes, I was thrown into the middle of a story, I know from reading in my Bible, but did not know on the silver screen. I had no history with this movie, which gave me fresh eyes to see things others may or may not have seen; to hear things others may not have heard. I had a different perspective, because I had no history with this movie. Yet, my life will never be the same again after this weekend for I had a major perspective change from what I saw in those theaters this weekend.

Jesus of Nazareth is about to change our perspective on who He is and what He can do. Jeremiah 32:27 says, “Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?” What we see as not probable based on our history is about to revealed as easily doable for the God of Creation, the Lord of every Nation. He still can save a nation in a day; He still heals the sick; He still opens blind eyes; He still puts coins in fishes mouths. Today, like no other day is a great day to remember there is absolutely nothing too difficult for Him. He rose from the dead, what can He not do?

As in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the son of man. The days of Noah were about many things, not just one thing. It was about the obedience of a man who had never seen rain yet built a huge boat. It was about a generation that was wicked in a way we do not understand. It was about a deluge of water that washed away the wicked and established the righteous. It was about a renewed covenant between God and man with the sign of the rainbow. It was about a vineyard and three sons; a raven and a dove. It is not just a nice story, it is rich with revelation, just like the son of man, Jesus the Christ, who is the embodiment of the word becoming flesh. Oh the depths and riches of God, they are truly unsearchable.

I was reading Acts 10 this morning and the Lord said to me, “I am washing away the dirty doctrines inside of my people.” Dirty doctrines, what a phrase. I know it is God when I have never heard it before. Peter, in Acts 10 has a vision, and it is of unclean animals that he is told to rise up, kill and eat. Peter says, no way, never done it, not doing it. But then, “A voice came to him, Get up, Peter, kill and eat! But Peter said, By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean. Again a voice came to him a second time, What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy. This happened three times, and immediately the object was taken up into the sky.”

We are filled with dirty doctrines of men and God is coming with a flood of revelation to wash us clean of these dirty doctrines, but so often, we like Peter are holding on so tight to what we have been taught we can’t hear what God is saying. Peter was locked into the law of Moses and could not embrace fully the kingdom of God. We are no different. A flood of revelation truth is building and about to be loosed on the nations, for we are in the days of Noah, but we must be willing to be washed clean of dirty doctrines. Dirty doctrines we have come to hold very dear. This will not be easy but it is necessary for our feet need a fresh washing and Jesus has the basin full of water ready to be poured out.

In October 2022 the Lord spoke to me and said, “Watch April!” Confirmation after confirmation came to me that this was a word from the Lord. I shared this word with many people privately and even spoke about it, hashtagged it and was all in that we were to “Watch April” 2023. But God did not say which April, He just said, “Watch April!” April 2023 came and went and I was so disappointed because nothing happened, there was not anything to watch in April last year, but another month come and go.

Prophetic words can be challenging because we assign a time to them, out of our own desire for something to happen right now. But prophetic words are eternal, they linger in the atmosphere until they come to pass if they were truly from God. Abraham and Sarah receive a prophetic word in Genesis 12 about having a child that would lead to generational legacy, but it did not come to pass for 25 years. The word lingered in the atmosphere for 25 years before the time for that word came to pass. The Bible says in Psalm 105:17-19 “He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters, He himself was laid in irons; Until the time that his word came to pass, The word of the LORD tested him.” Prophetic words are not instant potatoes, they linger in the air until the prophetic time aligns with the prophetic word.

It is now the end of March 2024 and for the past three weeks the Holy Spirit has been whispering to me, “Watch April!” I have been shy to say anything because of what happened last year when I said, “Watch April!” But this morning the Lord was clear, I needed to make it known again, the Lord is saying, “Watch April!” What are we going to see, I am not sure, the Lord did not tell me, but what I do know is we are to “Watch April!” The atmosphere is ripe for a manifestation of God of the likes we cannot comprehend, so anything is possible. All I know is we are to “Watch April!”

Risking the religious label that I am out of touch with reality, that I am a pie in the sky teacher, that I can’t see or face reality, I want to share with you what I see in the spirit. I was reading Acts 6 this morning about Stephen, a man full of wisdom, grace and power, who was falsely accused by the religious leaders of preaching against the temple in Jerusalem and the Law of Moses. This was a huge accusation for those who loved the current temple system and were bound to the law of Moses. To be Jewish you had to love the temple and the law. Stephen, a Jew living in Judah, believer in Yeshua, the Messiah and operated in power. This was a threat to the system that was still standing, so they falsely accused him, which was common practice for the religious leaders of that day.

Reading this chapter and the challenges Stephen is facing it says, “They stirred up the people; they put forth false witnesses; but his (Stephen’s) face shone like an angel.” As I read that, the Holy Spirit showed me a spiritual spa treatment the people of God are going to be given. It was likened to me in the spirit like the 6 months of beauty treatments Esther underwent before she went before the king. This is not a girl thing, men get manicures, pedicures, spa treatments as well. What I saw is a weather worn, storm tossed bride, who is hardened by the many challenges she has faced. It is not that she wants to be this way, her circumstances have put her in survival mode and she knows no other way. I felt the mercy of God on the people of God, because they have gone through some really tough stuff.

I see a spa treatment coming for the people of God, it will soften our faces, so like Stephen we look angelic. It will heal our hearts, so our words penetrate with kindness, love, joy and peace. This spa treatment will give us the fragrance of Christ we are lacking that will draw people to Him, not push them away from Him. This spa treatment will take a while to penetrate us because many will not believe they deserve it. Sin will fall off us as the spa treatment does its exfoliating work. The toxins will leave us as the epsom salt baths do their work on us. It will put the bride of Christ in a place of rest she has longed for but did not know how to obtain. This is the Lord’s idea, it is the Lord’s doing, for He loves us and sees us and knows what we need. Softening us is what we need, for we have been hardened by the circumstances of life. We are entering into a spa treatment season.

A day, 24 hours, it seem so insignificant in light of weeks, months, years, decades or even generations. However, there is great power in a day. In a day things can change forever. People get married in a day, people die in a day, promotions are spoke in a day, cataclismic events happen in a day. A day has so much power, so much history, so much value, yet as we wait for the day, whatever day we are waiting for, it can be laborious.

Then the day happens, it feels like a suddenly, because the day has finally met the promise, the day has revealed a problem, the day oh the power of the day. People try to predict the day Jesus is going to return; others are watching what will happen on the day of the eclipse; still some are waiting for the day they get their big break. It is no wonder Jesus said, “Today is the day of salvation!” And the Psalmist said, “Today if you hear His voice do not harden your hearts!” And Solomon will not be left out as he said in Proverbs 27 “Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.”

If you were to map out your life up to this day, you would find not weeks, months or years, but days that have special significance in your history. The day you were born, the day you got married, the day your child was born, the day you gave your life to Jesus, the day you graduated, the day, the day, the day, the day. My friends, do not squander the day, do not curse the day, for today is the day where anything is possible. I am not sure what you are believing for, waiting for, longing for, but as long as it is called today, anything is possible. Rejoice with me today, for today could be the day that changes our life forever.

When the Holy Spirit speaks like one of the beatitudes, I open wide my ears and take heed. Here is what I heard, “You have heard that it is said people want to be seen, heard and loved, but I say people need to be healed, sealed and revealed.” Since being in Tennessee this phrase seen, heard and loved is pervasive, I had never heard it before, but here I hear it all the time, so when the Holy Spirit said this to me, I knew what He was talking about.

Friends, can I be honest with you…humanistic Christianity does not transform a life, only the power of God can do that. What my husband says is, “One touch from heaven changes everything!” We go for years of counseling so we can feel seen, heard and loved, but many people have no transformation that is lasting from counseling. If we could experience once touch from God’s power, our lives would never be the same again. I have experienced the power of God. I remember feeling like I was lying on an operating table as I laid on a prayer floor and God did surgery on my soul. I did not just fall down, I got back up a new person. I can’t explain it with words, but I know my life has changed forever because of the power of God.

Humanistic Christianity sounds good, feels good, for a moment but it has no lasting effects. We must experience the power of God. God can heal you with a word, seal every breach in you with a touch, and reveal to you who He is in ways that are indescribable. Life coaching sermons, seen, heard and love declarations, do not transform you. They may comfort you for the moment, but only power can eradicate anxiety, fear, depression. Only the finger of God can cast out generational spirits, demons and tormenting voices. Church, we need the power of God to heal us, seal us and reveal to us who He is. We do not need to be seen, heard and loved, yet again by another person, what we need is to die to ourselves and live for Him who sees us, hears us and loves us. We need to repent of humanistic Christianity and return to biblical Christianity.

I was out walking Hunter, our dog, this morning and the breeze was blowing at a perfect speed, the clouds were moving at the pace of the wind, the sun was beginning to rise and the temperature was cool enough to enjoy a morning walk. The birds were singing, the squirrels were playing, the other walkers were talking with their friends and I was talking to God. Many days I start my prayers with praise and thanksgiving, but today I started it with “How are you doing, Lord?” My mind struggled with this question, for He is God there is never a bad day with Him, but still the honor in the question felt right, so I waited in silence in case He wanted to answer. No answer came, but still the question felt right as the way to start the day.

After navigating in and out of neighborhoods; up and down hills; and meandering through parking lots, I came upon a grassy field with what looked like an altar in the distance. I said in my heart, Lord, is that an altar? The closer I got, on this church property, the more it looked like an altar, not a man mad altar, a God designed altar for those who had eyes to see it as such. For some it was just a stack of rocks, but to me it was an altar. As I knelt down in the grass by that altar this morning, I gave my life to the Lord afresh and anew just like I did in 1991 as I knelt down in that Lutheran Church in MN facing that old wooden cross. No fireworks then, no signs in the heaven then, and none today, just a sense of saying, after all these years, I am still yours and You are still mine.

While kneeling there, looking up at the sky, in wide open spaces, I gave my life to Him again. Not to be sen by men, not to be heard by neighbors, not to be loved by people, but just because I wanted Him to know I see the altar you set before me; I know the words that say, we are to be a living sacrifice; and I want you to know I love You, I see You, I hear You. No worship team led me to this place, no prophet gave me a word, nope it was just a spontaneous moment with me and my God. I pray you find moments of intimacy with God, in places you would not expect, for He is not in a building made by the hands of man, He is Christ in you, the hope of glory. This is the mystery that is rooted in history and is going to change our trajectory forever.