Word for 2017: Be Ready to Discern!
A Proverbs 31 Prospective is back for 2017!
Satan thought he successfully ruined this ministry in 2016 but nope! We serve a God who brings dry bones to life.
So 2017...what should we expect? This is the very question I asked God in prayer the first Tuesday of the year. He replied with the title of this post--Be ready to discern.
There will be an awakening this year but only to those who can discern the voice of the only true living God.
Matthew 24:5 For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Messiah,' and will deceive many.
This verse spoken from Jesus Christ Himself couldn't be truer in 2017. Some of you may think this word may not apply to you since you are already saved, but don't be so quick to blow this off.
God spoke this word to me concerning this year:
"Things will be taken to another level and everything will be questioned by Me. Prepare for tests, to strengthen your love for Me. But great is your reward! Great is the reward for the one who humbles themselves and allow my Spirit to reach the innermost untouched parts in them. Challenges you have faced for years I will overcome if you let Me. The country is about to be shaken and I must prepare my people. This starts with knowing my love and letting my love heal you. The balm is here. But too many people are ashamed to apply it in the places it is needed. My mercy stretches for those who mourn and long for my presence. Many of my people who are unsaved and those who are lukewarm are dealing with a lack of fulfillment and it has lead them to depression. This is because your spirit longs for Me and I am drawing you away from the toxins and into my love. Discern my voice from the evil one"What should we take from this?
All of us must humble ourselves and allow God to pour into every part of us. It doesn't matter how long you have been saved, how many ministries you have, none of that matters. God wants our attention so He can bless us in ways He never has.
Another year brings us closer to the great falling away the Bible warn us about. Many of us who proclaim to be Christians will fall off and give heed to deceiving doctrine. Only those with discernment will be able to hang on, and only those with a true desire for God will be given discernment. This year it's more important than ever to cling to Christ with everything you have. Our father wants to clean us and clothe us in fine linen to be able to send us out to be walking testimonies for His love, faithfulness, and His blessings. But how can He clean those who say they are already clean? Better yet how can He do anything with you if you won't even bother to show up?
Jesus tells us the parable of the banquet, a parable that will mean a lot in 2017:
Luke 14:15-24
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
There's a common theme in this parable. Every one of the King's invited guests rejected Him because they were more focused on worldly things. One guest was too focused on his new acquired property, another guest was too focused on his oxen, which was like an important tool in that day because it was used to carry heavy loads. So he was focused on work. The last guest was too focused on his spouse. What are we too focused on to show up for God? Is it our jobs, our families or social media? The King said in the beginning of this parable that He was prepared to bless these guests with the kingdom of God. He was prepared to bring the blessings from Heaven here on earth. But since the guests were too focused on the world to show up, the King went out and chose to bless the humble instead. Take note of that this year!
This is the same for us. We cannot rest on our promises and think it will come to pass when we're not even seeking Him. However lets not get anything twisted. This isn't about stuff. This isn't about blessings. God has these things in store for us, but the biggest gift God has for us is Himself. He gave Himself up on the cross to die for our sins, and He is constantly looking for ways to grab our hearts and our attention because He loves us so much. Psalms 34 tell us,
Psalms 34:8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
God is a precious amazing perfect God who loves us with all He has--and He has the world and the heavens. Use this year to get away from the debates, the snapchats, the movies etc., and focus on your Father who wants to heal you. Let Him in. Let Him shine light in all parts of you.
Here is the last part of the word God gave,
Don't look left or right in the excitement of things coming to pass.
He then showed me an vision of a vehicle moving from a dessert to an open field of fresh delicious fruits. In this vision I began to look out of the car window at the beautiful field and God told me to focus on the driver (Him) instead. If we allow excitement to drive itself too deeply in our hearts, we would get out of the vehicle and run to enjoy the fruits, abandoning the driver. If you do this, you will be no longer moving forward to get to better things. You will be stuck at that place, not knowing there's better in store and God was moving you further than that. Have patience as things manifest. Wait until God says you have arrived. That way you and the Father can enjoy His goodness together. Don't abandon the Blesser for the blessing. The Blesser is the blessing. There isn't a blessing without Him. The moment He leaves, what was good becomes cursed.
Happy 2017 everyone!
Fear and a False Sense of Peace
Let's take a look at Elijah. One of my favorite moments in the bible is when Elijah shut down the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. This story makes me so proud to belong to the Lord! God really showed off His might in this incident. During this time Ahab ruled Israel and he was an evil ruler. He and his wife Jezebel brought in idols and murdered God's prophets. Ahab finally met Elijah, the only prophet left. Basically Elijah challenged Ahab to a showdown. His mighty God against their man-made lifeless gods. He asked Ahab to gather the 450 prophets of Baal and meet him on Mount Carmel. Here was the challenge:
Who says there aren't any light-hearted humorous moments in the Bible? It tickles me every time to read about how the prophets of Baal called on their gods all day begging for fire to consume the bull. Elijah even taunted them a bit. He told them,
Then it was God's turn.
Elijah was so confident in the wonderful God we serve he made it harder for God by the world's standards. He asked for water to be poured over the offering three times. Even though Elijah had his fun, he knew the purpose of this showdown. It was to remind Israel of the only true living God.
Instantly Israel begin to repent and they turned from their idols and looked to God. Think of the amazing faith Elijah showed! Think of the damage he did in satan's camp by simply allowing God to use him in bold ways. He challenged the king who was seeking to murder him and put everything on the line trusting in God's ability. What amazing faith! We all have a lot to learn from this moment about how to be a bold servant for Christ.
We've all had superb moments similar to Elijah's in our own way. Maybe you had a week when you did everything you wanted to do. You spend time with God, you read your word, prayed for hours and it was great! Maybe you went witnessing and God used you to perform a miracle in someone's life. We had those moments when we are kicking satan's butt and holding God close. It feels great right? But many times satan says to himself "I know just what to do." That's when his weapon of fear comes out of the boxes. This is exactly what satan did to Elijah. Elijah went from the prophet so confident in God's ability that he arranged a showdown at Mount Carmel, to a man in fear hiding. Just that quickly! Satan used Jezebel to place a spirit of fear over Elijah. After hearing what he had done on Mount Carmel,
When we operate in a spirit of fear we forget the power of God.
Some of us are in this place right now in our lives. It feels like the harder we try to do right by God the more satan attacks us and you don't want to fight anymore. Seclusion and sleep seem like the only way to achieve peace. On top of that you feel like a failure because you've been brought to this place. This is where satan brought Elijah because he was angry at the damage he made. Pure retailiation. You don't know your own power. Your prayers are powerful and a spark of your faith can heal all wounds and move mountains. Satan hates this and he hates you. So he wants to scare you into a place of dormancy to prevent you from defeating him.
Here's how beautiful God is. We tend to look at ourselves in this situation and call ourselves failures like Elijah did. However we serve a God who is understanding and loving. God responded by sending his angels to comfort and feed Elijah. God knew Elijah was going through a lot and He dwelled with him--loving him and strengthening him.
God asked Elijah,
God knew the powerful man He raised Elijah to be and He knew he was bigger than satan's attacks. He then reminded Elijah of the God he serves.
A quick note. God came to Elijah as a gentle whisper. How beautiful! God is so tender and gentle with us because He loves us so much. This is definitely one of my favorite passages in the Bible. Moving on. God repeated himself,
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
God responded by giving him instructions concerning the destruction of his enemies. This was reassurance he would be okay.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
God responded by giving him instructions concerning the destruction of his enemies. This was reassurance he would be okay.
Sometimes we need that reassurance. God knows it's hard. However let satan's attack push you closer to God instead of further. God loves you and it's during hard times when He wants you near Him the most so he can comfort and strengthen you. That was one moment in Elijah's life. Through that encounter with God Elijah defeated fear. Please read the last post, 2016....Hand of Deliverance or The Finger of God for reassurance that this year is a year of deliverance. You will be delivered from satan's blows and you will be who God called you to be. God is not disappointed in you. God looks at you and despite His mighty ways He approaches you as a gentle whisper. Be encouraged brother and sister and remember you never fight alone. God is there with you. Call on His name. Many times we feel alone when God is sitting next to us the whole time. Call Him. Be encouraged because it wont be like this always. Your deliverance is set to come forth this year. Be bold and most of all have faith because you serve a powerful God who loves you endlessly. Peace doesn't come from dormancy. Peace comes from knowing God is with you in times of good and times of bad. This is how Jesus was able to sleep comfortably despite the fact that a horrible storm was tossing the boat. With His words He commanded the storm to end and peace instantly came over the waters. He gave us the same ability through faith. Allow God to strengthen you and get back in the game. God is with you. He knows you can overcome this because you are His.
2016....Hand of Deliverance or The Finger of God
It's been a while! First off let me start by saying Happy New Year! Better late than never right? We're now in the second month of the year, and God gave me a word concerning 2016 that I've been sitting on. First off let's praise God for what He did in 2015. In the previous post New Year, New Places, God gave us a word concerning 2015. He promised to take us to new and higher places. He told us there would be 2 kinds of people: people who will be given more, and people who will be given things but it will be taken away. I seen this come to pass in my life and in the lives of people around me. How about you? Some of us may have felt bitter because we were taken to higher places but experienced warfare. More warfare comes with the territory of elevation. Be that as it may, when you look back at some of the warfare you experienced you'll see even then you were blessed. There were some of you in the bunch that had things taken away in 2015. Even that is a blessing, for a person who is corrected is a person who is loved. If a parent allows their child to do whatever they want and if they let their child play in dangerous areas without protection or correction, we would look at that parent and say they don't care about their child. God cares about you. He is not fighting you, He is fighting those demons surrounding you that are trying to overcome you. He doesn't hate the sinner, God hates the sin.
So wherever you found yourself in 2015, rejoice because you made it to a new year and a new season. I asked God for a word concerning 2016 and I didn't hear anything until sometime in the middle of the night. I heard a gentle voice tell me in 2016 people will either experience God's "hand of deliverance, or the finger of God." I immediately begin to think of how this word related to the word for 2015. It seemed almost identical, at least on the surface. But when God begin to breakdown His word, I was shown 2016 will be vastly different than 2015.
Hand of Deliverance
In 2015 God promised to give some people elevation, and now in 2016 He is promising deliverance. This isn't the same thing. For example Saul experienced elevation but he didn't have full deliverance of some things. Saul started off a humble man. However he suffered from a disconnection with God due to his lack of seeking Him directly. Even with this flaw God still gave him elevation. On a quick side note, we have to be mindful that elevation has nothing to do with perfection. God doesn't bless us according to our greatness because we have none. God blesses us according to His greatness because His greatness is true and everlasting. Going back to Saul, after Samuel anointed him to be king God elevated Saul's heart.
1 Samuel 10:9-11 As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day. When he and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he joined in their prophesying. When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, “What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?”
Through the Spirit of God, Saul was anointed and elevated. However Saul needed deliverance in an area of his life and didn't receive it. This lead to his disobedience later down the line. In the beginning of Saul's elevation God did mighty things through him. He gave Saul victory in war, and through this the people of Israel came to respect him as king. One particular battle against the Amalekites, God commanded Saul,
1 Samuel 15:2-3 I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
1 Samuel 15:2-3 I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
However after defeating the Amalekites, Saul looked at their possessions and thought it looked too good to destroy, so he didn't. For this reason God regretted making him king. Through His servant Samuel God rejected Saul as king. So in this scenario Saul received elevation without deliverance, and this caused him to lose it all. So some of you are probably wondering, "why didn't God deliver him? He was setting Saul up for failure." The answer to that question lies in Saul's flaw. He didn't have a true connection with God. Instead he turned to men like Samuel for guidance instead of God. Later in his life he turned to mediums. There's nothing wrong with reaching out to a pastor for help. We must double team the devil so reach out to your family in Christ as much as you can. However you and God must have a relationship, as well. That happens by seeking Him and allowing Him to continually transform you, and this brings about deliverance. Saul wasn't delivered because he never seeked God. He started off as a humble person, but it didn't end that way. God tested him with a little elevation and his pride and failure to know the God who blessed him led to his disobedience and rejection as king.
This leads me to my first point. This year will be a year of deliverance for many. Last year many of you were elevated but still fell to sin. Satan uses your falls to justify why you are undeserving of more. However our ways are not God's ways. God elevated us last year and He watched our response to see if we can handle the abundance that is set to come this year. However God didn't judge us based on our falls. He judged us based on our hearts. Many of you have been elevated but may still struggle with addictions, distractions, you name it. Your heart will determine whether or not you will experience God's delivering hand or the finger of God. Opening yourself up to God's deliverance requires a heart after Him. Even after a fall. It requires humility and these were actions Saul didn't display. Know the God who elevated you in 2015. Know the God who loves you, who gives you breath in your nostrils. Know the God who forgives, who looks at you and smiles every time you seek Him. God doesn't care how filthy you are when you come in His presence. We care though. We look at the disgusting horrible things we've done in God's sight and we want to hide. However God looks at us in our filth and smiles because He admires us for having the strength to come to Him in repentance despite our dirt.
Satan thought he had you last year. Even in your elevation he used your weaknesses like puppet strings to pull you back into the mess God delivered you from. This brought about an overwhelming feeling of hopelessness. Some of you probably think there are addictions and weaknesses you suffer from that you will always deal with. That's not true! This is your year of deliverance. God will close doors this year that you thought would never close. And because of that deliverance you will have no strings holding you back from the high places God wants to take you to. Now I feel the need to be specific because there are many deceivers out there. When I speak on elevation and higher places, I am not just talking about financial and career increases. I do see God unleashing these gifts on His people in 2016, but I want to specify that I am referring to blessings of the supernatural and in this world as well.
I know these are words, but hear me on this. The only one who can stop your deliverance this year is you. Satan can't take it from you. Satan won't be allowed to come into your camp and take your blessings as plunder anymore. However what Satan can do is convince you to forfeit those blessings, and believe me he will use this tactic more than ever in 2016. Prepare to have your mistakes thrown in your face. Remember, satan is an accuser. This is what he is going to do. Thanks to Jesus Christ it isn't the sin itself that pulls you away from God. It's what the sin does to you. In other words, when we come to God in true repentance we will be forgiven. By His stripes we are healed. But sin does something to us and this is why God wants us to stay away from it. Sin opens us up to satan's lies and closes us from God's love through our guilt, and self-condemnation. If we fall we must resist the urge to want to distance ourselves more from God. If we come to God immediately after we fall with a true desire to change, the sin is wiped clean and forgotten about. Saul certainly didn't receive deliverance because God didn't want to deliver him. Saul didn't receive deliverance because he didn't seek God and he didn't allow himself to be transformed by His love. This takes me to my second point. Unfortunately there will be some who will experience the finger of God instead of deliverance due to pride and other factors blocking them from humbling themselves and seeking God.
The Finger of God
Let me be frank--there will be judgement in 2016. Fortunately for us God's judgement comes after many warnings. Let this be a warning. If you have even a slight feeling you may be in this group repent. Better to play it safe and repent than to turn your back to God and walk right into judgement. God's heart will soften to any heart filled with true repentance no matter what you've done. He will immediately begin His plans to deliver you. God judgement will go hand-in-hand with God's deliverance. This means many who will fall into this group are people who took something from you. It will be those who hurt you, and those who have plotted against you behind your back. We are to pray for these people. The bible talks about the fingers of a human hand God used to speak judgement on a group of people who stole and enslaved the people of God. Here's how it begins:
One thing to point out before I move on. These people were celebrating while God's people were enslaved. This seems to always be the case! How many times have you felt like doing the right thing has gotten you a first class seat at the bottom of the barrel? Meanwhile as you suffer you have to sit there and watch friends on social media who have the slightest care about God, live like kings and queens. On the surface it seems like we can't win. It causes us to grow weary in doing good. God promises us many times in the bible that those who rebel will not prosper. Their day will come just like your day will come when God will wipe the tears from your eyes so you may never cry again. We just need to trust God and avoid comparing ourselves to others.
Going back to Daniel 5, in the middle of their celebrating,
Daniel 5:5-6 Suddenly the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. The king watched the hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his legs became weak and his knees were knocking.
Can you imagine? I would be terrified as well. None of the new age diviners and enchanters could figure out what the writing said. King Belshazzar then turned to Daniel to interpret the message. Daniel informed him,
Daniel 5:18-26
“Your Majesty, the Most High God gave your father Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty and greatness and glory and splendor. Because of the high position he gave him, all the nations and peoples of every language dreaded and feared him. Those the king wanted to put to death, he put to death; those he wanted to spare, he spared; those he wanted to promote, he promoted; and those he wanted to humble, he humbled. But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.Notice God's reasoning for bringing about His judgement. It was pridefulness. King Belshazzar didn't have a heart for God. He trusted in his position and he didn't trust in God. He allowed his heart to be filled with pride instead of God's love. Similar to Saul's mistake right? The night Daniel gave King Belshazzar this word he was killed and thus stripped of his seat. I am not speaking death on anyone, but there will be people stripped of the greatness they claimed to have. Those who think their greatness comes from social positions, jobs, income, and other meaningless things will be in this group. A humble heart, meaning a heart that recognizes greatness only comes from God will be rewarded this year. The deliverance group will be given the blessings this group will lose.
“But you, Belshazzar, his son,have not humbled yourself, though you knew all this. Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways. Therefore he sent the hand that wrote the inscription.
“This is the inscription that was written:
mene, mene, tekel, parsin
“Here is what these words mean:
Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.
Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting.
Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”
Now zooming out, America will experience judgement this year. We as a country have been in rebellion with God for a long time and this year God will begin His judgement in louder ways. However His people will be protected through His Holy Spirit. So we must be in tune with the Spirit. We also need to continuously pray for this country. We need to pray for this world. There are world leaders with prideful hearts who think they are higher than the Almighty God. God will show Himself to be great and mighty. The question is will you be the object of His wrath or will you be on His team?
It's not too Late
The key here is in the heart. We must renew our hearts. We need hearts after God. We need humble hearts. Sin and good deeds won't determine it. It will be how humble the heart is, and how much that heart wants God. Invest in a relationship with Him. Anyone with a true urge to turn away from sin, pride, and their harmful ways will receive deliverance. None of us are perfect, but a heart after a perfect God will cover our flaws and give us another chance. Make it a priority as we enter month 2. I wish you blesses this year and I look forward to another year with you!
Weeds Among US
There's a lot going on in the world today. In the past couple of weeks we had the Paris shootings, the San Bernadino shootings, and surfacing incidents of police officers murdering African American men left and right. These issues are one of many similar situations that have been going on for some time. After the Paris shootings, I asked God about this incident. Many times we want to know why God allows for people like those involved in ISIS, racist police officers, and crooked leaders to remain in place. God lead me to the parable of the weeds.
Matthew 13:24-29 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’The garden of Eden was a time when Heaven met earth. When God created Adam and Eve and the contents of the garden, He sowed good seed as Jesus tells us in the parable. We all know the unfortunate story. Satan slithered in and tempted Eve first and Adam came second. They ate the forbidden fruit and sin was introduced. With sin came death and a veil between us and God. This is when weeds began to sprout amongst God's seeds.
“‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”
In this parable someone asked the owner why He allowed the weeds to continue to grow? This is a good question. Why doesn't God just get rid of ISIS? Why is it people who have hurt and scarred us are free to live their lives? It may sound crazy at first, but this is because of God's amazing love. Pay attention to how the Owner responds:
‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”
What Jesus is telling us is their time will come. The people on this earth who are doing evil things and won't repent and accept Jesus in time will be separated from the wheat and burned. Jesus told us He will come like a thief in the night. But fortunately for us God is extending mercy when we repent until that day comes. If God decided to just yank away the weeds like the servants suggested in the parable, then during the times we were too close to danger and sin we would have been destroyed with it. Not to mention our unsaved loved ones would be yanked away as well. Thankfully we serve a God who doesn't delight in punishing us. He would rather give forgiveness after repentance. He would rather use every moment He has our attention to love on us. He wants to show us why we need to let go of the sins chaining us down and come to Him. However God's mercy is an limited-time offer. As long as you are alive you have a chance to be saved. But the moment you breathe your last, if you didn't surrender your life to Christ you will not be with Him in heaven. By surrender, I don't mean say the prayer for deliverance and go back to the world. Don't be deceived. Instead have a relationship with Christ. If you fall, fight! Get back up and take the gift of salvation you were given when you accepted Jesus into your heart.
Jesus can come at any moment. Jesus can come in the next 30 seconds. Jesus preached more about hell than heaven and He constantly told us to be prepared. Once He comes it will be too late, pencils down. He will examine your life and grade you. He won't grade you by the amount of community service you did, or the amount of money you had on earth. Instead He will grade you based on how well He knows you. Those who are labeled as weeds will be told "Depart from me, for I never knew you."
So what do we take from all of this? There's evil in this world for sure. Everyday we hear of murders, threats, and lies. Not to mention there are people we encounter everyday with evil seeds in their hearts. We have all asked God at one point or another how could He let this go on? Remember what Jesus said. Let he without sin cast the first stone. God hasn't taken them away from this world because of His mercy. To clear the field of weeds now could mean destroying us in the process. By relenting God is showing us mercy along with those practicing evil. He is also going after the lost sheep and saving souls everyday. Let's not get things twisted for a second. No evil can prevail as long as God is God. He is still in control. As we dwell amongst the weeds, we are guaranteed safety by staying near God. We have dominion over the weeds. If we didn't the weeds would swallow us up and no wheat would successfully grow. Groups like ISIS and Islamic extremists are beheading and killing Christians everyday, and yet the church is still growing. Souls are still getting saved and miracles are still happening. Christ is alive and stronger than ever.
Acts 2:17 ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.
Today I see videos of children laying hands on people and healing through the Holy Spirit. God is not dead. He is not succumbing to the evil in this world and neither should we. God loves all of us, even the weeds in this world and He is relenting for a chance to save as many weeds as possible. At the same time He is protecting the wheat by giving it the rains it needs to grow. Even with persecution increasing more everyday, we rejoice because we know Jesus defeated death. We have nothing to fear because we are behind a mighty shield--a shield that is protecting in life and even in death.
Praise be to the Almighty God we serve! He is mighty, merciful, and His love endures forever. Cling to Christ in these last days as the weeds continue to grow among us. There's a reason why I captialized us in the title. Let it be a reminder that Christian persecution will come to the U.S.. In fact our leaders are setting the stage for it to take place. Just because there isn't as many weeds in our field, don't get comfortable. I repeat, DON'T GET COMFORTABLE. The weeds may not have fully surfaced, but you better believe the roots are taking form in the dirt. Jesus told us no servant is greater than their master. If He went through it, so will we someday. Keep Jesus close to your hearts and continue to fight the good fight. For the day will come when God will silence the evil in this world.
Revelation 21:4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
End-Times Prophecy: Prepare through prayer! *Late Post from Thursday*
I heard these words, "Obama will be president a third term."
I was half asleep, so those words didn't register with me. God begin to repeat those words in my spirit until I woke up enough to realize He was speaking to me. So I acknowledged God's words and begin to write that sentence down. God then followed with these words:
"Obama will be president a third term. He will control the food and resource supply. People will need to get rations because of some event that will happen. Just when people can't be more sick of it, they will come with promises of life returning to the way it was, the desire to have it all back. That will be when the mark will be introduced, government care packages, "Obama aid." People who receive the mark will receive an amount of startup money to bring them back to where they were financially based on their previous income. Yet the Christians will suffer. My people will be the scapegoats for every suffering and will be called out for not being willing to move on and receive the mark. We will be hindrances stuck in the past that everyone wants to forget. It's going to be something that bad that people will just want to move on and the mark will be pushed as the way to do it. "Can we all just get along," "can we move forward," "yes we can." We will be deemed the hold up, the blame for the last remnants of violence left in the world. Obama will be the ultimate hero while the pope will be the main world authority. He will be used to validate everything Obama says and suggest it is right in the eyes of God. Only this will be a fake god, a perception of the Messiah that isn't real. People will love this new god, this false messiah because it will tickle every itching ear. Christians will even begin to accept it in excitement thinking at last people are beginning to accept Jesus! Their guards will be down. This fake messiah will be hard to decipher. The only way will be through my Holy Spirit. I am coming soon. They will mock me and get you to worship a false version of me, an accepting version of the Messiah wanting to rescue people from their sins by saying there is no more sin. There will be a false sense of freedom and peace that will bring about slavery. No show, movie etc will be given voice, no one who will speak the truth, my truth will be allowed to speak. When television and the Internet resumes after the mark is introduced and the chains are lifted that was introduced after the disaster, then the new TV and Internet will only be propaganda for the beast system. People will be programmed, and the propaganda will be scientifically designed to activate a robotic zombie like mindset placed in those who receive the mark. I am coming soon daughter. Be bold. People will tell you you are crazy when you share the words I have told you. Be bold and have courage for I am with you. I will silence the mouth of everyone who speaks against you. This will not be a popular message, in fact you will receive enemies from this. I stress I am coming soon. Tell my people right now they are not ready. Church leaders are operating out of fear, a fear of losing the items of this world. Let it go! Better to lose here than to inherit the earth and be dammed in hell. Get prepared and seek me. Only those who seek me will inherit the kingdom of Heaven. Only those who know my face will be able to decipher my face from the false one. There will be a slaughter coming soon. Not a physical slaughter but a spiritual slaughter. A wave of apostasy will attack the churches and those who cling to the items of this sinking ship will go down with the ship. Are you ready to suffer for my sake? Be prepared my people. Wake up for I am coming soon. The tribulation has begun and only those who call after my name will make it to the gates of heaven. I have spoken."I didn't add any words to this prophecy, and I am not going to explain what I took from this prophecy. I want the Holy Spirit within you to speak to you and give you meaning. What I will do is explain what to do with such a prophecy.
Let's take a look at the book of Jonah. First here's a little background. Jonah was a prophet. One day God spoke to Him saying.
Jonah 1:2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
Jonah responded by running away from his calling. He ignored God's request and decided to run away. During his rebellion he decided to get on a ship with hopes of going to Tarshish. God stirred up a huge storm. The Bible describes it as a "violent storm," and it threatened to destroy the ship. The other occupants on the ship began to pray to their gods out of great fear. They felt the best bet for survival would be to toss off some of the cargo so the ship would not sink in the midst of the storm. The shipmates begin to speak with each other trying to figure out who was the cause of the storm. After casting lots they all discovered Jonah is the root of it.
Jonah 1:10-12 This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)
The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.”
After finding out they had no other option, the men asked God for forgiveness and threw Jonah into the sea. God allowed a giant fish to swallow Jonah. He stayed in the belly of the fish for 3 days and 3 nights. It was during this time Jonah spent time with God and accepted His calling. God convinced him through love. God loved on him during this time, and tended to the things Jonah needed to move forward. Jonah praised God in the belly of the fish,
Jonah 8:9 “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’"
God made the fish vomit Jonah and he was prepared for his purpose. Now to my point. God then gave Jonah the same word to give to the people of Nineveh. So Jonah took off. Once he arrived to the king of Nineveh, he spoke the word God gave him.
Jonah 3:4 Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
Let me pause for a second to make a point. We all have the ability to operate in the prophetic because of the Holy Spirit in us. Granted a prophet/prophetess may be a little sharper with these prophecies only because God has a specific purpose He wants them to fulfill. But don't let anyone convince you that only some people can hear the voice of God. Jesus died so the veil could be torn. His death meant we no longer needed to go through man to speak with God. Not only will God talk to you, but He enjoys it! He enjoys hearing from you, and He will speak with you. Ask God to sharpen your ears so you can recognize His voice. God will answer this prayer out of His faithfulness. The gift of prophecy is not about being right. It's about being faithful by speaking the word God gave you even if you look crazy to others. At this point Jonah was literally walking through the city shouting, in 40 days the city will be overthrown. I'm sure he seemed like a mad men to some. He probably sounded like someone you would see talking to themselves on the train. But Jonah was transformed from a rebellious soul to a faithful man.
Fortunately the Ninevites listened to God's warning.
Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink. But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence. Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
God's grace is amazing.
This infuriated Jonah. It's understandable from one prospective. Jonah was sitting there thinking, "Now God, you went as far as to have a fish swallow me just to bring me here. I come and finally do as you say, and you turn on me by relenting?! I knew this would happen, but yet I just spent all my time walking around this city shouting something that didn't even happen! Now I look like a liar!" Of course Jonah said it classier compared to how I just did.
As I said earlier, prophesying ins't about being right. When I say this I don't mean you can say any old thing and say it's from God. No! We only should speak words God has given us, but once that word is given your job is done! If God relents like He did in this case it doesn't make sense for us to dwell on us being incorrect. It isn't us speaking these words, it is God. And in this case God had mercy and changed His mind. Instead of Jonah focusing on his "inaccuracy" he should have focused on the blessing he was. Because of his faithfulness a whole town was warned, they repented and were saved. That is what matters. God replied to Jonah,
We focused on Jonah for minor points, but here's the big point. Prayer works. No matter what people say. The people of Nineveh turned from their ways and cried out to God. If we do the same this chilling prophecy may not come to pass. Pray against these events everyday. Ask God for mercy. We must pray for America and the leaders making the decisions on the behalf of this country. For all of the readers outside of the U.S., pray for us as well as your own country. This spirit of the antichrist surpasses country borders.
Preparation is key. This is why God gave us the gift of prophecy. Jesus warned us,
Revelation 2:10 'Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Only by staying close to God can we stand the trials because He can keep you one step ahead. It's no coincidence that this is the last days and we are filled with things to distract us. Our phones alone are capable of pulling us away from God for hours or even days if we let it.
Don't ever forget the times we are living in. We are in the last days. Don't get caught up in politics, social media, work, school, relationships, or the worries of life to the point that you forget the bigger picture. I urge everyone who hasn't to give their life to Jesus Christ. He is the only way to everlasting life and everlasting love. I am sounding the alarm. Satan is on the prowl looking for victims and Jesus is coming soon. Get prepared!
Please share this post and sound the alarm as well. We must get together and pray against this.
Overcoming Identity Crisis
Chastity Owens
Contributor
Founder & Clinical Director of Owens Behavioral Health
Let’s face it: America is suffering from an identity crisis. 2015 is marked by increased racial and sexuality tensions. Recently, the Lord told me to write a post about Rachel Dolezal - the former National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) president in the state of Washington. She became infamous on June 15, 2015 when America found out that she had been identifying as a black woman when genetics indicates she was born white.
Rachel’s story was augmented by racial and sexual tensions. On June 17, 2015, a white man, shot and killed nine people in a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina - including the pastor of the church. This hate crime was among many of the shooting deaths of African Americans. Between August 9, 2015 and August 9, 2015, 30 unarmed African American men were killed in police shootings.
Today, African Americans are being slain daily at the hands of police brutality. Coupled with the dozens of gang-related black on black violence on a weekly basis, we are losing a significant amount of black lives to violence. Rachel’s identity of blackness placed her amid the nation’s identity crisis; characterized by America borrowing from the culture of the African American community while murdering its sons and daughters.
Around the same time as Rachel’s identity crisis, Olympian gold medalist Bruce Jenner underwent a gender transition and requested that the nation refer to him as Caitlyn. Bruce said he felt more comfortable as a woman and wanted to be acknowledged as a woman. While society’s reaction hung in a balance, the American public really did not have a moment to process Bruce’s new feminine sexuality.
After his announcement, Bruce’s internet searches began redirecting you to Caitlyn Jenner. The internet - the source of information for many - changed Bruce to Caitlyn in a matter of minutes. That’s powerful! I hope you are paying attention. While Bruce was publicly accepted by mainstream media for his sex change, Rachel said she often felt condemned for her decision to switch her race.
I was puzzled when the Lord told me to write about Rachel because she has not been in the news in months. Imagine my surprise when I saw she once again was in the news when she admitted on the multicultural talk show “The Real” that she was, in fact, born white. Her admittance was received with a standing ovation from audience members. Rachel’s uncertain demeanor convinced me that she still has a ways to go to overcome her identity crisis. This is not a judgement but an observation.
In the same way that Rachel has suffered a physical identity crisis, America is suffering from a spiritual identity crisis. A close read of James 4: 1-12 reveals 3 steps America can follow to overcome its spiritual identity crisis.
James 4:1-12 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
Let’s tackle this identity crisis by jumping onto our first step.
Step 1: Check Your Motives
Conflict is often a key indicator of an identity crisis. Fights and quarrels evoke external conflict. Unfulfilled desires evoke internal conflict. According to the bible, these types of conflict can cause people to want to hurt each other - even to the point of death. When our wants and desires control our lives to the point that we are willing to hurt each other, that’s when our motives are too deep. When we depend on ourselves to fulfill our desires, it can become an overwhelming distraction because we are operating in an assignment that is not meant for us. That desire can become a distraction. Rather than fulfill our desires, we are to bring our requests to God in prayer (See Philippians 4:6).
Prayer allows us to check our motives. It allows God to look at the heart of the desires, our motives to decide if we have enough spiritual maturity to handle the request. He also looks at the long-term consequences of this request. Some people think they should receive every request they make before God. Lies! God grants requests based on His riches and His glory. Ultimately, the request can either bring us and others closer to Him or it can only fuel our own selfish desires. For this reason, prayer is necessary because it allows us to check the motives for our requests.
Step 2: Submit Yourself to God
The second step to overcoming an identity crisis is to submit yourself to God. At some point, we have to come to terms with the fact that we are involved in an ever-going battle between God and the devil. God is a gentleman. Unlike the devil, God will not force himself on you. God gives you the option to choose Him. The devil does not. This is why we must actively submit ourselves to God. When we take a step towards God, He comes toward us. When our hearts and minds are focused on Him, He purifies us.
Submitting to God requires us to deny ourselves - our desires - and follow God. The bible says, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God” - Luke 9:23-27.
Step 3: Know Your Role
Step 3: Know Your Role
The third step to overcoming an identity crisis is to know your role in Christ. After you have submitted to God, He calls us now to be kind to one another. The bible says that we are not to slander one another. We are not to speak against our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are not to speak against the law and judge it. We have a Lawgiver. We have a Judge. We have a Lord. We have a Savior and His name is Jesus. He is the one who is able to save and destroy.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:1-2.
In addition to our roles as worshippers, we are sons and daughters of God. The bible said that anyone who is led by the Spirit of God is a son of God. We submit to the Lord, not as a slave that is bounded by fear. We have received the Spirit of adoption and we can cry out to God as our Father. His Spirit testifies with our own spirit that we are children of God. (Romans 8:14-16). Hallelujah!
When we receive a revelation of who we are and who we are in Christ, the strongholds of an identity crisis melt away. Therefore you are no longer outsiders (exiles, migrants, and aliens, excluded from the rights of citizens), but you now share citizenship with the saints (God's own people, consecrated and set apart for Himself); and you belong to God's [own] household - Ephesians 2:18-19. Who am I? I am a child of God. Who are you? A child a God. What is America? One nation under God. Despite the fact that America is now characterized with racial and sexual tensions, it does not change our identity. Perhaps it is time for us to return to our first love, check our motives, submit to God and know our role in Christ.
