The following article was written by Rick Joyner of MorningStar Ministries and is his first Word for theWeek for 2021:
The world is being brought to the “Valley of Decision” where all will have to choose between the light and darkness, good and evil, truth and lies. We are in the times that will separate the wheat from the chaff, and the nations as sheep or goats.
It is not just the U.S. that is headed for civil war. All of the social fault lines in civilization are having tremors, and we can expect increasing divisions with these social earthquakes. At the same time the greatest unity will be coming to God’s true followers. The most glorious event on earth that is now happening is the bride of Christ beginning to make herself ready for Him. This is why we are promised that the glory of the latter house will be greater than the former.
As we move deeper into these times the consequences of our decisions, or failure to make them, will be increasing as well. Your decision to follow The Lord with all of your heart, and take your stand for righteousness and against wickedness, could turn the tide of battle for the soul of your city or country. All who live in these times will ultimately be either a hero or a villain. Very soon no one will be able to sit on the sidelines.
The decisions we make today could determine whether we are strong enough to make the right ones later. As we approach the end of this age the importance of every decision and every action will be magnified. This means that what will bear good fruit will bear more, and what will bear bad fruit will also bear more.
All of the above was how I opened the last Word for the Week of 2019 and the first for 2020. I started this year with it again because it is as timely now as it was then. 2020 became one of the most challenging, strange, but glorious years of our lifetime, and in some ways, perhaps for all time. The lessons we learned from it will help us to navigate 2021 and beyond. We will start by examining the three most important lessons of 2020.
We must do more than seek The Lord for guidance—we must know Him as our Guide. There can be a big difference between following directions and following The Lord. We must seek The Lord, not just answers to our problems.
Government is not God, and science is not infallible, but we have been given a kingdom that cannot be shaken. To build on that kingdom we must seek it first, not second behind the temporary things of this life, and even our civil government is temporal. The King and His kingdom must be first in our heart and our devotion above all else.
Knowing the Scriptures and even prophecy accurately is not the same as knowing The Lord, obeying Him, and abiding in Him. Being devoted to knowing the Scriptures and sound doctrine is important, but eternal life is knowing The Lord, not just facts about Him.
2020 was especially designed to help us get to know The Lord. For decades a prophetic friend, Bob Jones, told us that 2020 would begin the decade of “entering God’s rest.” When I sought a word for 2020 I was given Psalm 23:2, “He makes me to lie down…” Covid-19 was used to do that for practically the whole world. What the enemy meant for evil turned into good for those who serve The Lord. We were forced to stop our normal routines and rest, causing many to find God again as the first love of their life.
Many used this time well, getting their priorities right and getting closer to The Lord. The spiritual life of virtually every Christian I knew went up. It was perhaps the strangest revival in history. When there could be no large gatherings, we got closer to The Lord, our families, and in the small cell groups we could gather with.
Because man was created at the end of the sixth day, his first day was God’s seventh day of creation, the day He rested. So, from the very beginning of man’s life, for him to enter into fellowship with God, he had to enter into His rest. The rest of The Lord is found by trusting Him. Adam must not have done this very well or he would not have doubted Him so quickly when tempted.
We, too, must do this well—trust Him—to make it through the coming times without falling. The positive to this is that the growing trust of those who keep the pursuit of God and His kingdom first in their life will result in greater glory and the demonstration of His kingdom as the authority over every other power on earth.
In the Book of Hebrews, entering God’s rest is equated with entering the Promised Land (read chapters 3 and 4). We will look back on 2020 as the year we began to enter our Promised Land. It may have been the most challenging year yet in the temporal things, but it was a year for positioning us on our Jordan River and to prepare us to cross over.
We may not have liked it, but it has been God’s grace to prune things out of our life that were not bearing any eternal or lasting fruit. For those who have embraced it and rested in their trust in The Lord, the true and lasting fruit will soon be yours.
In this dream, my family was looking forward to attending a city-wide worship gathering that was being hosted by a church in our area. On the day of the event, we arrived close to the start time expecting the church to be filled with Christians from all over the city. However, there were just a few people sitting in the seats and about fifty others were wandering around visiting with each other. With so many seats available, we were able to sit in the center section, close to the front.
While we were waiting for the meeting to begin, I looked at the platform at the front of the church and noticed that the entire platform was filled with chairs, music stands, instruments, sound gear and other equipment that was piled on top of one another in a tangled mess. Then I looked at a grand piano, which was located on the floor beside the platform, and noticed that there were a lot of papers strewn all over the top of it.
While I was pondering this, an acquaintance of mine walked over to the piano and began rummaging through the papers. After a few minutes, she stopped what she was doing and looked around the room. When she saw me sitting in the center section, she waved and motioned for me to come to her. The moment I joined her at the piano, she handed me some of the papers and told me that she wanted me to lead the worship along with her music team. Her request really concerned me, partly because it was already past the time for the meeting to begin and also because she expected the music team to use the equipment that was in a tangled mess on the platform. I expressed my concerns to her, but she brushed them off and told me that everything would be fine if I would just follow the music she had chosen. Then I looked at the papers she had given to me. When I realized it was sheet music, I told her that I can’t read sheet music. With a stunned look on her face she said, “How on earth can you play the piano and worship God without sheet music?” “God taught me how to play the piano and I worship Him from my heart,” I replied. Regardless of my response, she was still determined to use sheet music, so I returned the papers to her and went back to my seat.
By then, I knew that something was amiss, but we decided to stay and wait a little longer because we were still hoping to worship the Lord with the other believers that were gathered there.
While we waited, my daughter became so weary that she fell asleep. When I noticed that she was sleeping, I woke her up and told her that she needed to stay awake.
During the time we waited, a few people left because there was no worship, but most stayed and continued visiting with each other as if it was just a social gathering. When we finally realized that this was no longer a worship gathering, we decided to leave.
I had just begun to walk down the aisle toward the back of the room when suddenly, the glory of God filled the room causing me to fall face down on the floor. As I lay prostrate before the Lord, I was so overcome by His glory that I was totally unaware of anything other than God for a long time. When I became aware of my surroundings again, I heard the sound of people weeping and crying out to God in repentance, and I heard the sound of worship!
End of Dream
Comments:
This dream depicts a misconception regarding worship that is prevalent in Christian churches. What many churches presently call worship is not worship at all. It is mostly entertainment that glorifies people instead of God. However, this dream also depicts God addressing this misconception by revealing His glory to the church.
What is the glory of God?
The glory of God is the manifestation (uncovering, unveiling) of the nature, character and attributes of God. When God manifests His glory, He is allowing His character and attributes to be literally and clearly seen. In 2 Corinthians 4:6, it says that the knowledge of the glory of God is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. And, in Hebrews 1:3, it says that Jesus Christ is the radiance of the glory of God, He is the exact imprint of His Father’s nature and He upholds the universe by the word of His power. It is important for us to understand that Jesus Christ IS the manifestation of the nature and character of His Father – God Almighty.
Therefore, Jesus is going to come and manifest the glory of God to His Church! When He does, the burning, piercing light of His glory will expose sin and darkness in the hearts of His people. This will bring repentance and cleansing in His Church and our religious ways will be forgotten as, “…we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the His image from one degree of glory to another…” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Then people will finally worship God as He desires and to be worshipped.
How does God desire to be worshipped?
God desires to be worshipped in spirit and in truth. In John 4:23 Jesus said, “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
What does it mean to worship the Lord in spirit and truth?
First of all, worship is a matter of the heart. Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” This is true love, and this is how God desires to be loved. A heart that truly loves God will also truly worship Him.
In order to worship God in spirit, we need to be passionately in love with Him. In order to worship God in truth, we need to really know God, both Biblically and experientially. The more we know God, the more we will love and appreciate Him. The more we love and appreciate Him, the deeper our worship for Him will be and the more He will be glorified. This is true worship, and this is how God desires to be worshipped!
When the Bride of Christ loves God as He desires to be loved, and worships Him as He desires to be worshipped, perhaps then, the prophecy in Isaiah 60:1-3 will be fulfilled:
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
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In this dream, a large group of women (including myself) were in our familiar place, doing familiar things when suddenly, Jesus appeared in our midst and asked us to leave our familiar life behind to travel to a new destination that He had chosen for us. Some of us were willing to go to this new destination, but most did not want to leave their familiar place and familiar things.
Those of us who were willing then gathered around Jesus to receive instructions for how He wanted us to travel to the new destination. His instructions were as follows:
He wanted all of us to walk on a certain path and He did not want us to leave that path for any reason.
He wanted each of us to rely on Him for help, strength and guidance throughout the journey; therefore, He did not want us to physically support or carry one another, although we were allowed to encourage each other.
He did not want us to compete with each other along the way.
He wanted us to keep moving forward toward our new destination no matter what we may encounter.
He did not want us to compare our progress with that of others.
He did not want us to use any shortcut or any means of transportation in order to make our journey shorter or easier.
After Jesus finished giving us these instructions, He told us to be ready to leave by a certain time. We were hoping Jesus would tell us what we should do to get ready, but He did not. Instead, He let us decide that for ourselves.
We were also hoping that Jesus would tell us how far we would have to travel and how long it would take to reach our new destination, but He did not. Nor would He tell us anything about the new destination other than, that we would recognize it when we saw it.
While I was getting myself ready, I noticed a woman filling a large, accordion-style file box with documents she intended to take with her on the journey because she believed these documents contained knowledge that would be necessary and useful at the new destination. However, I sensed that if she took these documents with her, they would become a stumbling block that could prevent her from reaching the destination. But I did not say anything to her because the decision was entirely hers to make.
When the appointed time came for our departure, Jesus led us to the path that He had chosen. Then He pointed us in the direction of our new destination and sent us off with His blessing. As we began to walk along the path, we all assumed that the new destination could not be very far away, otherwise Jesus would never have expected us to walk there. Because of this, we tried to walk as fast as we could, hoping to get there as soon as possible. Before long, it felt like we were in a competition to see who would reach the new destination first. But then, I remembered that Jesus did not want us to compete with each other. Therefore, I decided to walk at a normal pace and focus on the path ahead.
I soon discovered that this path was leading us gradually and continuously upward. After walking along the path for quite a while, I became weary and a little weak, so I stopped and sat down on the ground to rest. But stopping to rest did not renew my strength. Instead, I became even more weary and weak. So I tried to stand up, but by then I had become so weak that I no longer had enough strength to stand on my feet. For a while, I just sat there on the ground, feeling frightened and confused. But then, I remembered that Jesus wanted us to keep moving forward no matter what. This made me realize that I disobeyed the Lord by stopping to rest, so I asked Him to forgive me. I really wanted to obey the Lord, but I didn’t know how to keep going when I was so weary and weak. After pondering this dilemma for a little while, I came to realize that I should have asked Jesus for the strength to keep moving forward. So, I asked Him to give me the strength to keep walking along the path, but He did not. Instead, He gave me the idea of crawling along the path. I did not like that idea at all, but I was certain that Jesus wanted me to crawl. Therefore, I pulled myself up onto my hands and knees and asked the Lord for the strength to crawl. Then I began to crawl forward along the upward path.
Jesus did give me the strength to crawl, which helped me to keep going. However, when other women walked by, they looked down on me in such a way that l felt humiliated. I also felt inferior to them because they could walk and I could not. This tempted me to compare my progress with theirs. But then, I remembered that Jesus did not want us to compare our progress with that of others. Therefore, I resisted this temptation and continued to crawl along the upward path.
Crawling slowed my progress considerably, but at least I was making some progress. After crawling along the path for a while, I saw a woman suddenly speed by me riding on a bicycle. Then, a little while later, I noticed a small bicycle rolling along beside me on its own, with no one riding it. I wondered if it belonged to someone, so I called out to another woman who was nearby and asked if she knew who owned that bicycle, but she did not. The little bike kept rolling along beside me, tempting me to hop on and ride it. But then, I remembered that Jesus did not want us to use any means of transportation to make our journey shorter or easier. Therefore, I resisted this temptation and ignored the little bike as I continued to crawl along the upward path.
Crawling also made my journey much more difficult, especially when I encountered obstacles along the path. Sometimes, I had to crawl past thorn bushes that scratched my face and arms, and my hands and knees were scraped and sore from having to crawl over rocks. However, I was determined not to stop again. So on and on I crawled, although I still couldn’t understand why Jesus would want me to crawl. Then one day, I began to realize that I was learning some very valuable lessons down on my knees.
When I first had to crawl on the ground while others were walking all around me, the humiliation I felt revealed the pride I had in my natural abilities. And the inferiority I felt because others could walk when I could not revealed the insecurity that was in my heart. Then, because having to crawl on the ground so severely limited my ability to move about and to see where I was going, I learned to humbled myself and ask Jesus for help, strength and guidance. And as the Lord helped me to keep crawling along the upward path, I gradually learned that natural strength, natural knowledge and natural abilities would never be sufficient to help me reach my new destination. However, I also learned that God’s grace IS sufficient to help me, for His power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). And by the grace of God, I eventually learned to rely on Jesus for help, strength and guidance.
The longer I had to crawl, the more I learned. I learned to surrender my life to Him and die daily to my selfish, willful ways. I learned to patiently endure suffering and hardship. I learned to persevere in faith and not give up. And I learned even more. I learned that God is always with me; I learned that God is always trustworthy; I learned that God is always faithful, and I learned that God loves me for who I am, not for what I can do. And the more I learned, the more my faith and trust in God and my love for Him grew as I continued to slowly crawl along the upward path toward my new destination.
One day, after crawling along the path for what seemed like a very long time, a faithful traveler, who was just ahead of me on the path, suddenly began jumping for joy and dancing with great energy and strength. Then suddenly, she was no longer dressed in her dirty travelling clothes. Instead, she was clothed in a pure white, beautifully embroidered gown and an equally beautiful, white embroidered scarf was covering her head. Somehow, she had just been transformed into the most vibrant, joyful, beautiful woman I had ever seen! Then, with a shout of joy, she ran up the path and disappeared from sight.
As I continued crawling along the upward path, I was so amazed by the transformation of this woman that I made a comment regarding her extraordinary beauty to other women who were nearby, but they misunderstood my comment. They thought I was sarcastically mocking her because I was envious of her. On the contrary, I was very happy for her. I tried to explain this to these women, but they did not believe me. And this made me realize that they, themselves had become envious of her because they had been comparing their progress with hers. But because I had already learned not to do this, I was not at all envious of the woman who had just been transformed. In fact, I felt very happy and blessed to be able to witness her transformation, and it was such a great encouragement to me that it increased my faith and determination to keep going.
I didn’t have to crawl much farther up the path before a sudden burst of strength and energy surged through me, causing me to jump up onto my feet and shout for joy. Another woman nearby also jumped and shouted for joy at the same time as I did. I looked at her, then at myself and realized that we had also been transformed. Both of us were now clothed in a beautiful white gown with an equally beautiful white scarf covering our heads. And somehow, our view of everything around us had suddenly and drastically changed. Before, I could barely see beyond the next step in front of me on the path. But now, I had a new and much higher perspective that enabled me to see above and beyond the world around me. Then we looked up the path and saw a large stone building situated in a light-filled clearing just above us, and we immediately recognized it as our new destination. When we saw that we were almost there, we shouted for joy and began running up the path toward it.
I arrived at the new destination just before the other woman and found myself standing in front of a very large, beautiful stone house that had stone steps leading up to a wide stone porch. Then I ran up the steps onto the porch and stood in front of a large, ornate wood door. As soon as I saw that there was no lock on the door, I knew that I had been given free access to this house because I had learned to give God free access to my heart on the path of transformation.
So I opened the door, stepped inside and found myself standing in a massive room that looked like it had been prepared for our arrival. On the left side of the room stood a very long, ornate wood dining table with many chairs placed around it. The table was covered with a pure white tablecloth and each place was set with glistening white dishes, white drinking glasses, white napkins and pure silver cutlery.
On the right side of the room, at the far end, I noticed a very large, beautifully carved door that was at least the size of a double garage door. As soon as I saw it, I somehow knew that this door would remain closed until an appointed time, and then the Lord would open the door and send us out to do His will. This reminded me of what the apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 16:9-11, “For a wide door for effective work has opened to me…”
The walls and floor of the room were made of large slabs of uncut stone that was unlike anything I had ever seen on the earth. As I stood there gazing at everything around me, a few other women entered the building and were standing near me, looking around the room.
Then, a tall, regal looking woman entered the room from a doorway located on the opposite side from where we were standing. We watched her walk over to the dining table and placed a few things on the table. It seemed like preparations were still being made, so I asked her if we had arrived too early. She looked at me and smiled, and then said, “Watch my back.” That prompted me to walk over to the table and look closely at everything that was on it. I noticed that one knife at one place setting was a little smudged, so I picked up the knife and showed it to the woman. She then took the knife from me and replaced it with a new, shiny knife. That is when I understood that she wanted me to be ready to assist her because many more would arrive at the new destination in the days to come.
Our new destination was so beautiful and unlike anything we had ever seen before that I couldn’t help but wonder if we were in Heaven and if this table was being prepared for the marriage supper of the Lamb. However, Jesus told me that we were still on the Earth, but we had arrived at a new and higher spiritual place of preparation wherein we would learn to live in the intimate fellowship, unity and oneness that He had prayed for in John 17:20-25,
“…That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me.I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
END OF DREAM
Comments:
For those who are wondering why there were no men in this dream other than Jesus, it was only because the Lord used women to represent those who are called to become the Bride of Christ, which includes every Christian.
All over the earth, there are many men and women who have been Christians for a long time, and yet they are more in love with the world than they are with God. But God will never be satisfied with that, so He has been lovingly and patiently trying to wake Christians up, grow them up and bring them into alignment with His heart and with His will. However, for too long many have been ignoring the gentle wooing of the Lord. Therefore, God began to use a stronger means of awakening. Though God did not create the Covid-19 pandemic, He has allowed it to use it for His own purposes. This has caused some Christians to wake up, but many still want their lives to go back to normal. However, God does not want that because our so called, ‘normal’ way of life and our ‘normal’ Christianity is what has lulled much of the Church into a spiritual sleep that has been turning the hearts of many Christians away from Him.
What God does want is for Christians to love Him and His Son enough to be willing to leave their normal, familiar life behind and follow the narrow path of transformation.. But many have not been willing to travel this path and of the few who have, some have tried to do it their own way, which can never produce the pure, spotless, mature Bride that Jesus is longing for. Therefore, God is now shaking everything that can be shaken (see Hebrews 12:27) both in His Church and in the world so that every Christian will awaken and see the true condition of their hearts. Even then, will they choose to surrender all and follow Jesus up the mountain of the Lord on the narrow path of transformation?
The apostle Paul spoke of this path in Philippians 3:7-14 when he said, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christand be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
For those who do choose this path, the cost will be great and the journey will be difficult, but the prize will be well worth it because Jesus will lead us every step of the way, lovingly guiding us “…until we all reach oneness in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, [growing spiritually] to become a mature believer, reaching to the measure of the fullness of Christ [manifesting His spiritual completeness and exercising our spiritual gifts in unity]” (Ephesians 4:13 AMP).
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From the onset of the Covid-19 virus outbreak, I had a strong sense that this thing was going to be big. This has proved to be true. As you know, the Covid-19 virus has become a world-wide crisis, affecting the lives of nearly everyone everywhere. Not long ago, many governing authorities and health experts around the world were assuring people that this virus was no worse than the common flu, and that the risk of contracting it was very low. But as Covid-19 began to spread beyond China, and the death toll began to rise, authorities and health experts began to realize the seriousness of this situation. While Covid-19 swiftly spreads, information and advice from health officials keeps changing as they struggle to understand how this virus works. Covid-19 is now dominating the news media. Every day, we are being inundated with alarming reports and statistics, and now many governing authorities are releasing dire forecasts for the possible outcome of this pandemic. The internet is also full of Covid-19 messages and advice from a variety of sources. Some are saying that there is an evil agenda behind this virus outbreak, and some say this plague is the judgement of God. Some are saying that Covid-19 is just a hoax or that media hype has blown it out of proportion, and many of these people are not taking the situation seriously, nor are they obeying the directives set in place to combat the virus. So much conflicting and changing information is being thrown at us that people are not sure what is true and what is false, what to do and what not to do. All of this is causing fear to rise in the hearts of people across the earth, and many Christians are also struggling with fear.
Since the beginning of this crisis, I asked God to speak to me about this situation and lead me in prayer according to His will. A few days ago, the Lord prompted me to share some of the things He has shown me because this is not only a critical time for the world; it is a critical time for the Body of Christ.
First of all, God wants His people to be prudent and take the Covid-19 virus seriously. We need to stay informed and we need to obey the directives that our leaders have implemented in order to fight this virus. However, we must not allow fear to enter our hearts. Fear is the opposite of faith, and it is a primary tool that the devil uses to undermine and destroy faith. Fear leads to death, but faith in God leads to life. The Bible clearly tells us that the devil goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. The devil is always looking for an opportunity to steal, kill and destroy. Therefore, we know that the devil will use Covid-19 to cause as much fear and death as he possibly can. Even so, God is in control of everything and He has set boundaries in this situation that the devil cannot go beyond. God did not orchestrate this virus, but He is using it to accomplish His purposes.
God IS with us in this. And as we do our best to obey the governing authorities, we must endeavor to keep our faith and trust in God, not in worldly protection methods. God has given each of us a measure of faith. Faith grows when we exercise it, so we must exercise our faith by standing against fear. Trust is a choice we make, so we must choose to put our trust in God. God wants His people to be fearless and faithful in the midst of this pandemic, so it is vitally important that we spend time with God each day – not to anxiously bombard Him with everything that is going on in the world – but to give Him thanks, to worship Him, and to give Him our love. We also need to spend time in the word of God and allow Him to renew our minds. And we need to be filled with the Spirit of God and allow Him to lead us in prayer. Philippians 4:4-9 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice….do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus….whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things….practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
I have taken this to heart for myself and have been purposing to stay close to God in the midst of this storm. Recently, we heard that some of the residents in the senior’s care home where my mother-in-law lives had tested positive with this virus. When I first heard this report, fear tried to rise up within me, but I recognized it right away and refused to accept it. I reminded myself that God provided this wonderful home for her, and I reminded myself of all the miracles God did to get her into this home and the happiness He has given her there. Suddenly, part of a song began to play over and over in my heart (God often puts a song in my heart and uses it to send me a message). The message playing in my heart was, “You are God alone, from before time began, You were on Your throne, You are God alone.” As I started to sing these words over and over, a peaceful assurance began to settle within me. Then I was led to surrender my mother-in-law and all of our family into God’s hands. As I did this, a strong resolve came into my heart and I said, “We are Yours Lord. Your will be done. No matter what happens, whether in life or in death, I will thank You and worship You.”
After that, I was led to pray for our family, for the Body of Christ and for people all over the world. I prayed that God would send out His light and His truth as a sword to cut through the darkness and bring a great awaking in the earth. I prayed that the truth would penetrate the hearts of people everywhere, and that they would choose to give their lives to God. The Lord also led me to call every believer to bow in full surrender to God. Then a vision I received many years ago came to my mind in which I saw a massive valley that was filled with trenches like those used in World War II. Lying in these trenches were many Christians who were sound asleep. The Lord then led me to pray that Christians everywhere would hear the call of God that is going forth right now and that they would wake up. I prayed that they would rise up and look up toward the standard of Jesus Christ that is waving high upon His holy hill. And I prayed that they would let go of the positions they had dug themselves into and leave their trenches behind, and that they would come together around the standard of Jesus Christ as one Church, bowing their knees and pledging their lives in allegiance to the King of Kings. (To read the complete vision, click on “Visions” in the navigation panel and scroll down to the post called, “Down in the Trenches”)
The next day, another part of the same song came into my heart and I began to sing the song again, adding those words to it. I sang, “You are God alone, from before time began, You were on Your throne, You are God alone. And right now, in the good times and bad, You are on Your throne, You are God alone.” This poured from my heart as a declaration over and over again. Then the Lord began to show me some things regarding Passover and Resurrection Day. In Exodus 12, the first Passover was instituted to save the Israelites and set them free from slavery to Egypt. In preparation for Passover, God instructed the Israelites to rid their homes of leaven. God instructed the Israelites to prepare to leave everything behind and follow Him. God instructed the Israelites to kill a lamb and apply the blood of the lamb on the lintel and door posts of their houses. Then He instructed them to stay inside their houses, and He told them to roast the lamb and eat all of it. God spoke to the through Moses and said, “The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.”
This year, Passover begins at sundown on April 8th and ends at sundown on April 16th. Resurrection Day is on April 12th – right in the middle of Passover. It is no coincidence that the Covid-19 virus is ramping up in the Western world as Passover and Resurrection Day approach. Right now, God is allowing this plague to shake everyone and everything in the world, including the Church. The Lord showed me that this time of Passover and Resurrection Day is an important, God appointed time for Christians around the world. This is a pivotal time for the Church. It is a time for a divine reset. As we are hunkered down inside our houses during Passover and Resurrection Sunday, it is not a time for celebration. It is a time for repentance and preparation. It is a time for Christians to repent and rid our hearts and homes of leaven. In 1 Corinthians 5:1-8 and Galatians 5:7-8, Paul uses leaven to represent sin and evil influences that had crept into the Church and were corrupting the truth. In Matthew 16:11-12, Jesus warned His disciples to beware of the leaven (the teaching) of the Pharisees and Sadducees. This leaven has gradually crept into the Western Christian Church causing many to be more in love with the world than they are with God. This grieves the heart of God. He loves us too much to leave us in this state, so He is allowing everything to be shaken. God wants us to be willing to let go of everything that has kept us from intimate relationship with Him. He wants to deliver His people from bondage to the world. God wants us to humble ourselves before Him and prepare our hearts for what He is about to do.
In the midst of this pandemic, during the time of Passover, God wants to give us a revelation of Jesus Christ as our Passover Lamb. He wants us to know the reality of what Jesus suffered. He wants the suffering and death of Jesus and the power of His resurrection to penetrate our hearts and bring us to our knees. He wants us to surrender our hearts and lives completely to Him. John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:24). It is time for us to behold the Lamb of God. It is time for us to let go of the world and fix our eyes on Jesus – the Lamb of God who gave His life for us!
Oh Church, let us bow our knees in full surrender to God. Let us repent and apply the precious blood of Jesus over the doorway of our hearts. Let us open our hearts wide to God that He may grant us a divine revelation of Jesus as our Passover Lamb. I pray that we would behold the Lamb and it would change our hearts and transform our lives! I pray that we will appropriate the precious blood of Jesus and rise up in the power of the resurrected King of Kings! I pray that God will fill us with His perfect love that casts out fear so that we will become fearless and faithful! I pray that we will become a living testimony of the love and power of God, so that the pure love and light of God can shine through us with a message of hope to this lost and dying world that God is on His throne and Jesus is alive!
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In November of 2015, I received the following word from the Lord:
“The Son is rising. The Son is rising! As My light shines upon the earth, it will illuminate and expose every place of darkness that is hidden in the souls of mankind. This shining has begun. You must choose whether you will turn your face toward the light and allow Me to expose and remove the darkness that is in you, or whether you will turn away and hide from the light because you don’t want to face up to the darkness within. Now is the time to choose. My light has already begun to shine. If you choose to stand and face My light, I will expose and burn away all darkness within you. Then, My glory can rise upon you. If you do not face the light and allow Me to expose the darkness, you will be choosing to remain in darkness. Then, darkness can overtake you. It is one or the other; choose NOW!”
I was surprised to receive this word from my Heavenly Father because for many years, He has already been exposing and uprooting areas of darkness in my life. Even so, I immediately cried out to my Father and invited Him to purge all darkness from my life. Then He informed me that the Son-rise word is not only for me personally. That is why I am posting it on this website.
He also explained that this SON-rise and shining would take place gradually over an allotted period of time. This is a season, during which the penetrating light of Jesus Christ will shine upon every person on the earth in order to give everyone an opportunity to respond to His request. He likened it to a natural sunrise, explaining that when the sun first begins to rise, the early morning light is gentle and cool. Then, as the sun gradually rises higher in the sky, its light becomes brighter and its heat becomes more intense. In the same way, the light of His shining will begin as a gentle conviction of our hearts that will gradually become stronger and more intense until we either choose to allow Him to expose and burn away the darkness or, until we run away from the heat of His intense, penetrating light.
God created mankind with a free will. Because of this, each person has the right to make their own choices and decisions. When people say, “I accepted Jesus as my Savior” or, “I gave my life to Jesus,” it does not necessarily mean that they have given Him authority or control in every area of their heart and life. In Revelation 3:14-22, Jesus exposed the true state of the Laodicean Church and advised them to repent. Right after that He said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” Jesus was not asking unbelievers to let Him in, He was asking Christians to let Him in! But He wants more than just to be allowed to have fellowship with us. Christians often say that Jesus is their King and Lord, but is He really?Jesus wants us to surrender our will to Him and truly allow Him to be the King and Lord of our lives.
The choices and decisions we make determine who and what will have access and authority in our hearts and lives. If we allow the devil to gain access to an area within us, darkness will reside there, and it will have the right to remain unless we repent and invite Jesus to come in and take control of that area. Then, He can shine His light there and remove the darkness.
My Heavenly Father gave me a vision that illustrates this very well. In the vision, I saw a room that was so filled with thick darkness that it was completely and utterly dark. Suddenly, one lit candle appeared in the room. Father asked me what happened to the room after that one little light entered. I replied that the area where the light was located no longer had any darkness in it, but there was still darkness in the rest of the room. Then He told me not to be afraid of the darkness that is filling the earth because darkness cannot overtake His light. Light will always dispel darkness.
I used to assume that the glory of God would rise upon every Christian when the time comes for the prophecy in Isaiah, chapter 60 to be fulfilled. But now, I have come to understand that not all Christians will automatically qualify to be vessels of God’s glory during that time.
Even a small amount of light will dispel some darkness, but God wants us to be filled with His light. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” God is calling us to come out of darkness into His marvelous light, so that we can become fully possessed by Him. Then, even when darkness covers the earth and thick darkness covers the people, the glory of God will rise upon us and people will be able to see that there is a God in Heaven who loves them.
I believe this season of shining began in 2015, but I do not know how long it will last. Therefore, I earnestly implore you to turn your face toward the SON-light and invite Jesus to expose and cleanse your heart and life of all darkness.
Isaiah 60:1-3, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Matthew 6:19-24, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
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I had a dream in which I was telling my granddaughter a true story to warn her about fantasies and false beliefs. As I told her the story, we were able to watch it unfold right before our eyes.
This is the story of The Red Sleigh:
A young woman lived near the base of a very high, majestic mountain. She would often look up toward the top of the mountain, wishing she could go there, but it was so high up that she thought it was impossible for anyone to reach. Then one day, she heard that a few people had recently made it to the summit of that very mountain. After hearing this report, she decided that it was possible for her to make it as well. The prospect of standing on that summit brought such a thrill of excitement to her heart that she began making preparations for her own journey up the mountain.
Now this young woman believed in God, but she also believed in many things that were not real and not true. From early childhood, she had been taught many fantasies and falsehoods, and these had become very dear to her heart. Her favorite fantasy was about a magic red sleigh that had power to move and fly through the air on its own without needing anything to pull it.
The young woman pondered all the usual ways to ascend such a high mountain, but she decided that they were all too difficult. Then she thought about the magic red sleigh. She decided it would be the easiest and best way to reach the summit, so she immediately set out to find a magic red sleigh. Somehow, she was able to acquire a small red sleigh and have it delivered to the base of the mountain. Now there was no snow anywhere on the base or on the lower slopes of this mountain, but the young woman was not concerned because she believed that the little red sleigh had magic power.
The young woman was so eager to begin her journey to the top of the mountain that the moment her preparations were complete, she stepped into the sleigh and made herself comfortable. The red sleigh she had acquired was a real sleigh with reins attached to it for guiding horses, but the young woman saw no need for horses because she believed the sleigh had magic power to move on its own. She thought the reins were just a means of controlling the sleigh, so she took the reins in her hands and began to shake them, commanding the red sleigh to transport her up to the top of the mountain. She expected the sleigh to begin moving, but there was no response. She shook the reins again and commanded the sleigh to go, but nothing happened. For quite a while she continued to sit there, shaking the reins and commanding the sleigh to take her to the top of the mountain, but it never moved at all.
Eventually, the young woman stepped out of the red sleigh and stood in front of it. She still believed it had magic power, but she thought it may need some help to get moving, so she decided to use the reins to pull the sleigh forward. Had there been snow on the ground, she would have been able to move this sleigh fairly easily because it was quite small. However, the base and lowers slopes of the mountain were covered with grass and stones and the terrain was very rough. Undaunted by this, the young woman took up the reins and began to pull. With great effort, she was able to move the sleigh forward a little, so she summoned all her strength and began to pull the sleigh up the slope. But alas, the red sleigh did not move on its own as she had hoped, and she was only able to drag it for a short distance before she became too weary to continue.
Then the young woman stepped back into the red sleigh and sat down to rest for a while. Regardless of the circumstances, she was still convinced that it had magic power. After regaining her strength, the young woman took the reins in her hands and shook them harder, while loudly commanding the red sleigh to transport her to the top. As before, she shook the reigns for quite a while, but it did not move at all. Once again, she got out of the sleigh and pulled it behind her, but she was only able to drag it a short distance before she became too weary to continue. Then she climbed into the sleigh and sat down to rest again. Still believing it had magic power, the young woman repeated this process again and again until she could no longer move the sleigh at all.
Now the young woman was so exhausted that she could do nothing for a very long time except sit and rest in the red sleigh. As she sat there, she began to wondering why it was not taking her to the summit. Eventually, she decided to look up to the top of the mountain hoping to receive help from above, but she did not see anyone up there. Then she looked down toward the bottom of the mountain hoping someone could help her. She could see some people standing at the base of the mountain, so she called down to them. When the people heard her voice, they looked up and saw a young woman sitting in a red sleigh that was situated a short distance up the side of the mountain. They did not know that she had pulled the sleigh up there, so they believed that the red sleigh was actually transporting her up the mountain. Because of this, they did not realize she was calling to them for help. Therefore, they just cheered her on and did not come to her aid.
Though the young woman was very exhausted and somewhat discouraged, she still held on to her belief in the magic red sleigh. Hour after hour, she continued to sit in the sleigh, hoping it would take her up the mountain. Near the end of the day, she finally decided to get out and take a good look at her situation. That is when she noticed that the sleigh runners were stuck in deep gravel.
Then the truth finally dawned on the young woman and she saw the reality of her situation. As the truth came into her heart, she realized that the magic red sleigh was only a fantasy and that it could never take her to the top of the mountain. She also realized that fantasies and falsehoods had been more dear to her than God, and that faith in them had actually undermined her faith in God.
Now that she knew the truth, she also knew that she would never be able to stand on the summit of that majestic mountain unless she was willing to give up all the fantasies and false beliefs and put all her faith in God. So, with a contrite heart, she chose to leave the red sleigh behind and put her faith in God alone. Then she looked toward the summit and asked God to lead her up the mountain.
Interpretation of this Dream:
The mountain represents what scripture calls, “The Hill of the Lord,” which symbolizes a higher level of spiritual intimacy with God. The young woman and other people in the dream represent Christians. The red sleigh represents the Santa Claus fantasy, but it also represents ALL fantasies and false beliefs. God specifically used a magic red sleigh in this dream because it would automatically be associated with the story of Santa Claus and his red sleigh. He wanted us to clearly see how the devil has used the Santa Claus fantasy to take Christ out of Christmas. Santa Claus and his red sleigh have even been accepted in much of the Christian Church, overshadowing the importance of the birth of Jesus.
In this dream, the woman had acquired a real sleigh, but she wanted to use it for a purpose that was the exact opposite of what a sleigh is designed for. A real sleigh can easily glide on snow if it is pulled by horses. It could even travel downhill easily on a snowy slope without being pulled by horses. But it is absurd to believe that a sleigh can travel up a mountain without any snow and without anything to pull it. This represents the level of deception the devil has been able to achieve in drawing the hearts of mankind away from God.
Children and adults are being inundated with the fantasy world of super-hero’s, princesses and all forms of magical thinking through the entertainment world of toys, games, television, books and the internet. People are also being constantly fed biased, misleading and false information through the news media. The devil has been using all of this to gradually deceive people into believing the opposite of the truth. More and more, good is being called evil and evil is being called good. Many Christians have even fallen prey to this, resulting in so much mixture and deception being brought into the Church that it is usurping the place Jesus should rightfully have as head of His own house and His own family!
Psalm 24:3-6 says, “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord?And who shall stand in his holy place?He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. He will receive blessing from the Lordand righteousness from the God of his salvation. Such is the generation of those who seek him,who seek the face of the God of Jacob.”
Moses climbed the mountain of God to meet with Him and the Lord spoke to Moses face to face as one would speak to a friend. God longs for all Christians to seek His face and ascend His holy hill, but we will only be allowed to ascend His holy hill and stand in His holy place if we repent and stop filling our soul with what is false and deceitful.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:8, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” If we repent and ask the Lord to cleanse us of our sins and purify our hearts, and if we seek the face of God will all our heart, we will surely ascend the hill of the Lord and find Him there, waiting for us with outstretched arms.
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On July 21, 2017, the Lord spoke some things to me about how many in the Western Christian Church view and treat Him. He told me that much of the Church is busy building monuments to Him instead of building a relationship with Him. He said that they treat Him as though He was just a dead historical figure instead of the living God!
The Lord also told me that many Christians are like stubborn, selfish sheep who are not listening to the voice of their Shepherd and are willfully going their own way. Others do not even know His voice. He said that many Christians think they know Him because they have read the Bible. But reading the Bible will only give them some information about Him. They will never really know Him unless they spend time building a personal relationship with Him.
The Bible makes this quite clear:
In John 10:14, and 27-28 Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd, and I know [without any doubt those who are] My own and My own know Me [and have a deep, personal relationship with Me]. The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they will never, ever [by any means] perish; and no one will ever snatch them out of My hand” (AMP Bible).
1 John 2:3-6 says, “And this is how we know [daily, by experience] that we have come to know Him [to understand Him and be more deeply acquainted with Him]: if we habitually keep [focused on His precepts and obey] His commandments (teachings). Whoever says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ but does not habitually keep [focused on His precepts and obey] His commandments (teachings), is a liar, and the truth [of the divine word] is not in him. But whoever habitually keeps His word and obeys His precepts [and treasures His message in its entirety], in him the love of God has truly been perfected [it is completed and has reached maturity]. By this we know [for certain] that we are in Him: whoever says he lives in Christ [that is, whoever says he has accepted Him as God and Savior] ought [as a moral obligation] to walk and conduct himself just as He walked and conducted Himself” (AMP Bible).
Matthew 7:21-23 says, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.Many will say to Me on that day [when I judge them], ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, and driven out demons in Your name, and done many miracles in Your name?’And then I will declare to them publicly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me [you are banished from My presence], you who act wickedly [disregarding My commands]'” (AMP Bible).
If we truly know Jesus, we will love Him. And if we love Him, we will want to stay with Him and obey Him.
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One day as I was reading Proverbs 1, the Word of God cut deeply into my heart and the revelation of it was planted within. Verses 20 to 33 contain a very important warning that convicted my heart and brought me to my knees in repentance. I believe this is an important warning for all Christians.
Proverbs 1:20-33 says,
“Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks; ‘How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you. Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”
After reading this, I felt led to look up the definition of the words simple and complacency.
The use of the word simple in this portion denotes one who is of very low intelligence; showing a lack of experience, wisdom, or judgement.
The word complacency means: a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of potential danger; satisfied with the current condition of self.
This portion of scripture tells us that Wisdom is always crying out, asking people to listen. Jesus is the Wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:30). He is not silent. He wants to have fellowship with us. He wants to help us and protect us and bless us. But each time we ignore the voice of God when He is convicting us of sin, when He is prompting us to do or not do something, when He is warning us of danger, or even when He is gently calling us to come and spend time with Him, we are choosing not to listen and we are turning our backs to God. Each time we ignore Him, we harden our hearts little by little. This leads us into a state spiritual complacency and we are lulled to sleep by a false sense of security wherein we continue to expect God to bless and protect us, as we naively think that all is well between us and God.
These scripture verses clearly show us that all is not well between us and God when we ignore His voice! It hurts God when we treat Him this way. God does love us and He does want to bless us, but how can we expect Him to listen to us and give us what we want when we are not willing to listen to Him or give Him what He wants?
We are also clearly told what God will do if we continue to ignore His voice calling to us – He will not answer us when we call to Him, we will have to eat the fruit of our own ways and will be given over to our own devices. The outcome of this is that we will be killed by our turning away, and destroyed by our foolish complacency.
However, this portion of scripture also clearly states that for those of us who will turn back (repent) and listen to God, He will pour out His spirit to us, He will make His words known to us and we will dwell secure without dread of disaster.
I believe many Christians have been lulled into a complacent state of false security by the Laodicean spirit of this age. This is what Jesus had to say to the Laodicean church in Revelation 3:15-20:
“I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot!So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.For you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing’, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”
I pray that Christians everywhere would heed these words.
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In this dream, I was standing outside on a city street along with other people. There were buildings lining both sides of the street. Suddenly, we heard a roar behind us. I looked behind me and saw a huge wall of fire coming toward us like a tidal wave. The fire was consuming everything in its path.
We were all frightened and started to run away from the fire. I was running as fast as I could, but I sensed that the fire was gaining on us. I kept running, but began to have a strange sensation that my hair was on fire. My long hair was waving in the wind and I could smell it burning. I knew then that the fire was going to consume me. As the fire overtook me, I thought to myself, “I’m going to die,” but I felt no heat or pain at all.
Interpretation of Dream:
The buildings along the city street represent what is built by man. The people represent Christians.
The fire represents God’s all consuming fire. I did not feel heat or pain because the fire did not come to destroy me, it came to burn up and destroy every impurity in my life.
The following are a few scripture verses came to my mind:
Hebrews 12 talks about how the Lord disciplines those He loves. In verses 18-29 it says, “See that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject Him who warns from Heaven. At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He has promised, ‘Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.’ This phrase, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of things that are shaken – that is, things that have been made – in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.”
In Matthew 3:11-12 John the Baptist says, “I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
1 Peter 4:17 says, “For it is time for judgement to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”
Isaiah 43: 1-3 says, “…Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through the fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.”
In September of 2017, the Lord told me that the time of shaking and judgment had begun for the Western Church. The purpose for this is so that we recognize our true condition and allow God to cleanse, purify and raise up a spotless Bride for His Son, Jesus Christ.
If we truly desire to become part of the Bride of Christ, we must make ourselves ready to meet our Bridegroom. We must learn not to resist God’s discipline. We must willingly lay ourselves down on His threshing floor and invite Him to remove the impurities from our lives. We must allow God to take us through watery trials that will wash away our filth. If necessary, we must also allow Him to take us through fiery trials in order to destroy and consume everything in us that is displeasing to Him.
The Bride of Christ will be made into His likeness. Then His glory will rise upon them and the Son of God will be revealed to the world.
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The following article was written by Francis Frangipane and posted with permission from, The Ministries of Francis Frangipane.
“Who is this that grows like the dawn, as beautiful as the full moon, as pure as the sun, as awesome as an army with banners?” -Song of Solomon 6:10
We were created for more than just having a religion. Indeed, in regards to satisfying our deeper longings, a time will come when we realize that religion is not enough. It satisfies neither us nor Christ. God’s Word reveals that Christ wants to actually, personally, know us (Matt. 7: 22-23).
You say, “But He does know us!” In His omniscience, He knows everything. But in His love He seeks to know us as His bride, where we live in unbroken union with Him. Because He purchased us with His blood, He has the right to our souls, our secrets, and our dreams. He wants the person we are when no one else is looking. Yet He will not force Himself upon us. This is not the way of love.
In truth, we love because He first loved us. We become committed to Him because of His commitment to us. This interpenetration of our lives with Christ’s – this oneness born of love – is the only destiny for the church for which Christ is content. At the end of the age, nothing short of oneness with Christ will sustain us.
God is Love
I know the fear of the Lord and that it is the beginning of true knowledge. I delight in the fear of the Lord. Yet, just as John wrote, we each must know and believe the love which God has for us (1 John 4:16).
Let us consider that the apostle who fell before Jesus as a dead man on the Isle of Pathos later wrote, “There is no fear in love” (1 John 4:18). The Lord knows holy fear is a strong deterrent from sin as well as a powerful ally in walking uprightly. Yet to draw near to Him we must know more than the fear of God; we must know “the love which God has for us.” It is this perfect love from God that “casts out fear, because fear involves torment” (1 John 4:18 NKJV). It is this love alone that can bring the bride of Christ into her destiny.
The Heart of God
You may be reading this, and the thought of seeking God, of drawing nearer to Christ, may have triggered an initiative to do so. Yet when the thought first awakened within you, urging you to enter His presence, something also quickened in the heart of Christ. He says, “You have made my heart beat faster, my sister, my bride; you have made my heart beat faster with a single glance of your eyes” (Song of Sol. 4:9).
Your glance, even if it was no more than the briefest anticipation of being with Him, made His heart beat faster. The King James Version reads, “Thou hast ravished my heart.” This is how the heart of Christ responds to our desire to be with Him.
Jesus is not returning simply to destroy wickedness; He is coming for a bride. At the end of the age our task is not simply to prepare for the Rapture or the Tribulation but to prepare for Christ Himself!
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready” (Rev. 19:7).
You see, our preparation is for Christ. The bride isn’t wallowing in fear at what is coming upon the world; she is being swallowed up in love at who is coming to this world! We are not being prepared for a date, but a marriage! There is nothing more important to Jesus Christ than His bride, the church. For her He died; for her He lives to make intercession.
His love proved itself capable and worthy of winning our full redemption. Our most noble task is to fearlessly surrender to Him whose heart beats faster with the single glance of our eyes.
Prayer response to this article: Lord, I confess, I’ve been distracted and anxious with my many tasks. Indeed, even my duties on Your behalf have, in a way, taken the place of Your presence. Master, beloved lover of my soul, I repent. I desire to know You, even as You have known me. Lord, I come.
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Adapted from Francis Frangipane’s book, The Days of His Presence, available at www.arrowbookstore.com.
