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Love says the things which need to be said, the hard things.

Lately I have heard the Body of Christ run the gamut of emotions and reactions, especially following the elections.  Everything from ‘the end is near’ to ’stock up on food, purchase a gun, barricade your house’ has been uttered ‘from the pulpit, so to speak.  A lot of this comes from prophecy in Scripture being not misinterpreted, but misapplied, or poorly timed.

Everything in the Word of God, whether the Logos - written form, or the Rhema - spoken/uttered form, is for the Body of Christ to hear.. but not all of it is addressed to the Body of Christ, not all of it is about the Body of Christ.

Case in point: there have been numerous, strong, and, I believe, accurate and authentic, prophetic words from the Lord delivered through some well-respected ministries detailing the hardship and blight and destruction coming upon this nation in the very near future.  I don’t doubt most of that.  I agree, and I agree it will be very dark in the days ahead.

But not for the Body of Christ.

There have been an equal, if not greater, number of prophetic words from the Lord detailing how the coming days will bring the Church’s finest hour, how her ‘land’ will have Light in the darkness of the world.  Light will shine in Goshen while the rest of the world is in utter darkness.

Which report will you believe?

While it may be true that colossal doom is fast approaching the world, does that mean that it is fast approaching you?  Where sin abounds, grace that much more abounds.  So, for instance, if sin has increased by a factor of 5 (whatever the measure is), automatically, by the law God established, as sure as the God-established law of gravity, Grace must not only match the increase factor, but must esceed it by that very same factor.  So, if sin is now sin x 5, Grace must at a minimum now be Grace x 5 to the 5th power.

So, where do you fall in this equation?  The collapses and destructions must fall upon you?  Are you aligned with the world this way?  You can be in the Body of Christ, and still suffer the woes befalling the world.  Its not always an automatic thing to be protected.  This is where the good fight of Faith comes in.

By now, you must know how God does things.  Its fairly clear how He takes cares of His people, even when they make mistakes, all they need to is turn, repent and get back into His Will, and He turns the situation around.  Its all over Holy Scripture.

And His Promises are sure: Jeremiah 29:11 says this:  11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (NIV).  That, to me, says that I have absolutely no business accepting for my own future the future which is to befall the world, it completely contradicts the Promise in the Word of God.

Moreover, Psalm 91 states that:  7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.  So, whose report are you going to believe?

No, I’m not acting delusional or feeding some spiritual serotonin addictive need to hear only happy words, only good things, only ‘yes and amen’.  I am a realist, and God really did say that.  He really did promise all that, and more.  He really is that Good.

God will move Heaven and Earth for us if that’s what it takes.  He’ll do it for just one person.

During a season of ravenous famine, we find this out about Isaac in Genesis 26: 12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him.

Isaac was not just kept safe, barely provided for, protected from destruction, etc.  He sowed during famine and increased by a factor of 100.  That’s how my God works.  When everything and everybody else around you is hell-bent on destruction and plummeting toward death, you get promoted, get a raise, win a new car, see record profits in your business, start hiring more people to help with demand, lose weight, get in shape, receive deliverance, complete your degree, etc.  God doesn’t half-step, He means what He says and does what He means to do.

Numbers 23: 19 says: 19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

I mean, how many more scriptures do you need?  What does it take for you to believe?  God cannot do that part for you, you have to choose that yourself, and then act on it.  Its not wishful thinking that moves mountains, its faith.  Raise your Shield of Faith, wield your Sword of The Word.  Decree and declare and establish.  Put on the whole armor of God.  Stand, fight, and then stand, therefore.

You’re either going to believe God, or you’re not.  You either listen to the fear-prognosticators of the world, or you don’t.  I’m not saying to avoid all of the information.  We cannot effectively pray if we are not properly informed.  But sift all of it through the Word of God.  His Promises really are “yes” and “amen”, but we must contend for them.  They belong to us, they have been bequeathed to us, but we must make the claims, file the petitions, water those seeds with the washing of the water of the Word.

I recently heard a prophetic word from a man of God about the terms, in order, “respite”, “resplendent” and “response”.   Respite, rest, is quintessential Faith-standing: once you have taken your stand, declared and decreed and established, believed and received, Faith rests in God, trusting, completely, that what He Promised, He will perform, and any part you still need to play will be made known to you thoroughly, and on time.

Resplendent is the time we are entering as a Body in Christ.  It will get so very obvious who the people of God are, we will shine like light shone in Goshen.  People who are lost in the darkness, the death, the destruction, will be drawn to that Light over , and from within, us.

Our Response will then be key.  What will we do?  God needs us to shine, to be resplendent, to prosper, to be in good health, to abound in blessings.   We must be the ones to reach the lost, those who need rescue from the dark.  We must be those who make provision.  The government is nobody’s savior, but we know The Savior, and we administrate His Kingdom Government Affairs on His behalf.  We must have the abundance in order to administer to the needs of those trapped underneath the rubble of the collapses of the world systems.  It is imperative that we do so.

And we have to believe for abundance.  This is no small matter.  God is rich.  His kids must be rich, have to be, not only in order to reach those suffering from the world-system-fallout.. but also to make up for all of those among us who, unfortunately, are not believing, not contending, for the wealth and abundance Promised to us.

This concept has Biblical precedent.  In the book of Joshua is described how there remained about 7 tribes which were “slack” in going in and taking the promised land.  Chapter 19 later states: 9 Out of the portion of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon: for the part of the children of Judah was too much for them: therefore the children of Simeon had their inheritance within the inheritance of them.

Not only do we need to believe for and claim abundance for ourselves and for those who are lost, but also for those already in the Family who are not believing and contending for enough on their own, perhaps not for anything at all.

We are well-past the time to debate which way to go.  I speak this to myself as much as anybody else.  I choose to align myself with the Lord.  I choose to believe The Report of The Lord.

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The topic in a prophetic forum I follow centered around knowing God’s Voice, as opposed to your own or the enemy’s.  The answer was so simple, I almost stumbled out of it.

Him.

He is The Answer.

Getting activated and developing the gift, and practicing and learning how to hear His Voice, those are all great things to do, great tools for your arsenal, fabulous to have in your repertoire..

But they mean nothing if you are not led by Him.  They are nothing apart from Him.

And He is Love.

Knowing His Voice means.. you know Him.

How many times do you say to yourself, “Oh, I believe that’s my wife/husband/daughter/son/dad/mom talking to me, I think”?  Most of us don’t even give it a second thought.  Why?  You know them.  You are around them all the time.  You talk with them almost every day.  You know their voice in a crowded room.

You’re familiar with one another.
You’re comfortable with one another.
You’re closer to them than any others.

So should it be with the Voice of God.

You’re familiar with Him.
You’re comfortable with Him.
You know His Voice even in a “crowded room”.
You’re closer to Him than to any other.

You know Him.

Therein lies the Key.  There is explicitly no other way.  He is the Door.  He is the Gate.  He is the Path.  Get close to Him, get to know Him, allow Him into your life.  Let Him know you, and He let’s you know Him, and all the rest is added unto you.  Seek Him while He may be found.

Get so close to Him.. that you get lost in Him.  I began to get close to Him (I used to be afraid of Him, He is God Almighty, after all), and all my fears began to melt.  Sure it takes time, its still dissolving for me, I’m still melting into His Arms, but whoa, what warm gooey Love He is.  He is Altogether Good, Altogether Lovely.

I remember the first time I sang a love song to Him.  I was petrified, but He held my hand, He held me, as I sang to Him.  We whispered sweet things into one another’s ears.  It was the most intimate moment I had ever had with Him up to that point.  I felt as if I had begun to open up and let Him in.

O, and for sure, I was petrified.  It seems almost comical to me, now.  Why?  Because I was afraid for nothing.  He is not a frightful Guy.  Sure, He’s the Lord Most High and all, but, wow, nothing like I had thought.

He’s actually sort of a Pushover, if you catch my drift.  He loves me.  Already.  With all my flaws and blunders, even my blatant, I-knew-it-was-wrong-beforehand-but-I-did-it-anyway sins.

He’s wild about me.  He adores me.  He gave His Life for me.  He shares His Throne Authority with me.

Same for you.

Get to know Him.  Really, its painless.  Does He still correct me?  Sure, every time.  Does it sting sometimes?  Yep-per.  Do I still feel loved and pampered when He does?  Every Single Time.

Human terms just can’t do this, they can’t really tell of this Love Man, and of His Love.

It just won’t hurt.  It may make you cry, but not of pain, or fear.. but of Love.

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The Word of God exists in Logos (written) and Rhema (spoken) forms.  Considering that this is the beginning of a new year (2009), and so many prophetic and end-time words have been brought forth, it seemed pleasing to Holy Spirit to discuss a bit about the Words released in this season, the Word in written (Holy Scripture) about this season and the intended audience for these Words.

Every Word in Holy Scripture is for the Christian Believer to read, to study, understand, meditate, search out it meanings.. but not every Word is to the Believer.  There are, basically, three groups of people that any particular Word from the Lord may be addressed to:  The Jews, the nations and the The Body of Christ.  Each group plays a role in these last days.  Each has a different ‘itinerary’, if you will.  Within each, of course, are warnings, instructions, admonitions, etc, based on, for example, which ‘church’ you belong to among the Body of Christ as listed in the Book of Revelation.  Another example would be the general Jewish population as opposed to clergy within Judaism, and within those groups, the higher ranking levels.. God has, at times, different messages for His chosen people in general compared to high level clergy and leaders who are charged with informing, educating and shepherding the Jewish people.

The same thing holds true for prophetic utterances.  A prophetic Word may not be intended for you, though you may be meant to hear it.  This is why it is important to know your position within these days, in these seasons.  What group are you in?

For those who have a true, authentic Covenant with the Most High God, the outlook is far better than for those who do not.  Conversely, those who do have a Covenant with the Living God will be held to a higher standard of accountability than those who do not.  Greater privileges (which indeed are available to any person who will receive Christ) come with greater responsibility, greater expectations.  While we can never ‘earn’ our way into God’s Good Graces (its a Gift, already paid for through the finished work of The Cross), we do touch our Eternal reward levels and such based upon how much we live for Him in this lifetime.  Moreover, God’s chosen people, the Jews, still have an active Covenant with the Most High God.  God is not through with them.  Its a forever deal (particularly when you talk about land on the Earth and the Jews).

Those who do not have a Covenant with the Most High God (the nations) have Words addressed to them, too.  To reach the lost, to snatch a soul from the grips of the fiery pits of hell, is a Great Commission of the Body of Christ.  The Holy Bible speaks to, and about, this population extensively, especially in the Revelation chapters.

With so many of the ‘gloom and doom’ vs ‘warm and fuzzy’ utterances in abundance, I felt led to try to clarify things amid the seeming cacophony of prophetic voices.  It is absolutely vital that you understand which group you are in, and within your group, what category (ie, repentant, back-slidden, living for Him, etc).  If you are in the Body of Christ, you have no reason to fear.  In fact, you are commanded not to fear.  Do not ride the fearful waves with the rest of the world.  Do not participate in the world’s economy.  You may be experiencing economic recession, depression, inflation, etc, but you don’t need to.  The coming storms (and they are coming) to the world and all its systems are not to come to you.

What does this mean, then?

Unplug from the systems of the world now.  If you have a Covenant with Almighty God, you should know your Benefits Package, your Inheritance.  The certainty of the dooms of the world need not be your certainty, unless you are still too attached to the world.  You are part of God’s economy.  There is no economic crisis in the Kingdom of God.  Heaven’s Economy is stronger than ever.  We can, and indeed are empowered to, and are called to, flourish despite the crises and collapses in the world around us.

How can this be so?

That is where Holy Spirit must turn the lights on for you.  You must know where you are, what is your position, where you should be to take advantage of your Kingdom Ambassadorship/Diplomatic Immunity protective guarantees, and how to get to the position(s) you need to be.  He will direct you.  He knows everything about everything.  And if you let Him, He will do it in such a way that not only will you  not miss a beat, but it will be as if you were never out of place.

God can even help you redeem the time.  He is not subject to time, we are, in this realm, but He is outside of time.  He has wanted to teach us how to master time for a good, long while now..

So in which position will you be this year?  Which would you prefer?  The choice is yours.  The doors are open.  The keys have unlocked them.  There are many, multiplied dimensions of treasures and treasure rooms waiting to be explored, appropriated.

We in the Body of Christ will be held accountable for how well we handle these treasures, what we do with them and how we bless the Jews, the nations and our Family in Christ.

Amen,

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OK, so I did something I don’t normally do: I confronted someone in the Body over what I considered maltreatment toward me.

Interesting, to say the least.  It gave me a healthy infusion of confidence.  I think I did it while staying in the Love of God.

Mind you, I had no designs on ever mentioning this maltreatment, just wanted to silently slip away, stay in prayer over the situation and roll the care of it over onto God.  Nothing more.

Something (SomeOne, Holy Spirit, I discern) encouraged me to explain, to vent, as it were, in a loving way (thank You, Jesus), just to do a quick “reality check”.  Just to ensure that I was not in error, not being hypersensitive.  I brought it to my Father and also to a spiritual mentor who is prophetic.  They both advised me to confront the issue with this person, for their own good primarily.   I agreed.

Taking my mentor’s suggestion, and after much prayer for Holy Spirit’s unction and heavy influence of His Love, I contacted the person, voiced my concerns about the pattern of “frosty” behavior from them toward me, and then opened the door for clarification, as I said that I could have been wrong.  Let us reason together before parting ways, I said.

I got the expected response.

“Its completely not true.. I just don’t know you.. I was preoccupied.. it takes a while to warm up to people unlike my compadres..”, etc (paraphrased).

I replied advising that its exactly because we just met that I was perplexed by their behavior toward me, which began seemingly without cause.  Again, I asked if I had offended them, or was there some characteristic of mine that was aversive/abrasive to them.  I also had to reiterate that this was a pattern, citing examples of how not only my contact info, but my very name, was “forgotten”, and , “now I have your personal email address” was a puzzling thing to say, since I have received several personal emails directly from this person to my personal email address since about October, 2008, and have submitted all my other contact info repeatedly online, in application forms, on sign-in sheets, et al.

I got no reply back to that.

And so it goes.

I will stay in love toward them, and their ministry.  I will keep them in prayer, they are a beautiful family and ministry.  But love says the things that are hard to say.  As I am learning, to not say anything would mean I would be outside of love toward them.  Jesus said to turn the other cheek, but then He also stormed through the Temple and cleared it out of thieves.  There is a time and a season for everything.  His Love for the Father compelled Him to do so.  The slivers of insight about the underlying issues that the Lord revealed to me by Holy Spirit pretty much required gentle action on my part.

Moreover, I’m not so sad anymore, and also not so irritated in my spirit about it.  I feel like I’ve done my job, and done it with Love.  I leave the rest in His Caring Hands.

Amen,

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I turn 41 this year.

Call me wonky, but that actually makes me dance!

When I hit 35, I felt like I had finally arrived.  By the time I turned 40, I had been promoted and transported, both employment-wise, and in the realm of the Spirit.  I am still in training, both vocationally and ministerially, still finding my kinship-cluster, as it were.  I turned 40, and I relaxed.  I focused.  I was catalyzed.  It was downright enzymatic.

So, imagine how I feel thinking of turning 41 this April!!

Yes, I know I’m weird.

My friends, my family, many of them, exclaim as much.  Not all, but many.  They also fall into all of those expected patterns of perception, and perspective.  Even one of my radical, prophetic mamas in the faith, Patricia King, calls this the ’second half’ of life.

Second half?  Second THIRD.

(PK, I forever love ya, gurl, but I gotta call ya out on this one!)

I plan on 125 years, minimum should the Lord tarry, that is, of a lengthy, strong life worth living, myself.  At 40, I entered the second 3rd of my life.

God has been counseling and teaching me on Redeeming the Time.  On the fourth day, God created Time.  The evening and the morning of the first day, He created Light, but it was the fourth that He made the sun, moon and stars, etc, and ordained them to be for signs and times and seasons (Genesis 1:14-19).  

If God created it, that means He is not subject to it; He’s outside of time.  If we are in Him, in Christ Jesus, new creative beings, with the spiritual DNA of our Daddy… then we also are not subject to it.  We are, in the spirit, outside of time, inside of Eternity.

Now, our physical bodies are definitely inside of time, and subject to it.  But note what this means.  Spiritual always, always, always, always rules over the natural.  Spiritual is more real than natural.  Spiritual created natural.  Spiritual is not subject to natural, unless we capitulate to that imbalance.  We are spirits, we have a soul, we live inside a body.  We have a free will, and we choose what rules over us.  Give that choice up to the world, and the choice will be made for you.

A lock has been clicking open for me in recent hours about this.  I have had the key all along, I just didn’t know it, certainly didn’t know what it unlocked, nor how to find that treasure and use that key..

We can redeem the time:

14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.  (Ephesians 5:14-16)

I am awakening from slumber in this area.  He has come to give me Light, on this and many other pursuits.  I am seeking His counsel, His mentoring.  Interpreting The Times, by Dr Chuck Pierce, is in my possession, now.  I claim that power, that anointing, that calling, that assignment, that wisdom, that gift, right now, in advance, by faith, before I even intellectualize it, before I even attempt to ascend mentally to it, before it is input into my subconscious.  I deposit that into my spirit by faith in advance (and retroactively), in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am quickened right now to claim that “older gets better” anointing, that Sarah anointing.  God had to change her name and do some work in her, but among the results: the older she got, the better she got.  To the point that men began to covet her.  We have modern day versions of her, in that sense: the late, great Eartha Kitt, the illustrious Josephine Baker, the silken-voiced Sade. .

There are certainly men in these categories, too, but, hey, I’m a girl, so I’m spotlighting sistas.

That anointing?  Mine.  I’m taking it.  I appropriate it now by faith in the Name of Jesus. 

So, yeah, no disrespect to youth, but we are still here, and we still have a plan, too.  We still have work to do.  Forgive those of us who have awoken late in the day, but please remember our father in the faith Abraham.  He was something like 75 before God even began calling him.

I am in good company.

Amen. 

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I’ve made a painful decision, because I have had to face some things about myself.  

I have apparently made an alignment mistake.

I won’t beat myself up over it.  Certainly not the first, likely won’t be the last.  It was an honest mistake, one not intentioned; I honestly thought I was responding to the gentle pushes and pulls of Holy Spirit.  Its likely that I actually was responding to Him in that way.. it just may not be meant to endure, at least not at this point, perhaps.

This pains me, as I feel sort of like a complete failure.  I have experienced this before.  A tremendous release in my spirit when I decided to let something go.  It had been a source of immense pressure and such.  I make the choice to just stop, to cease and desist, and I was immediately relieved.

Same thing here.

You know how you know when something is over before it actually is over?  

Same thing here.

Wow, and, from the first, from the beginnings, from the intake process, to the first interactions, I knew.  I just doubted.  I doubted myself, really.  I thought that it was just my own insecurities, or even my allowing the enemy to intimidate me through other people.  

Even recounting it this far makes me tear up a little.  It hurts, kind of near the core.  

I may as well be as transparent as I can, translucent, at the least, with you all.

I go through self-worth struggles from time to time; a result of a very difficult past which, though waning, still lingers.  Deliverance is a wonderful gift from the Lord our God.  Nonetheless, bad memories and self-destructive habits still need to be dealt with, and replaced with the Love of God.  Its a process, as I am learning.  He is most assuredly helping me in these areas.  I have the Very Best Therapist In The Universe.

But, yeah, I am grateful for the times I experience these things (not for the experiences/incidents themselves, I know they are not God’s doing, but He allows them so I work my faith-muscles).  

I am also quickened just now in remembrance of that scripture that says that whatever makes manifest is Light (Ephesians 5:13).  I know that I am a carrier of His Light and His Presence.  I also know that He has needed me to establish His Kingdom, His Presence, in certain areas of darkness and remain there for a season so He could bring some things down.  I could name a number of areas, like in the corporate setting, where He has done this, going back 10-15 years or more.

Perhaps that’s an anointing, perhaps that a calling, perhaps a gifting, or perhaps I am just obeying His leadings, His Voice.  I dunno, and not all that concerned at this point, I mean, He’s my Daddy, He keeps it all in Heart.

If I truly believe that I was sincerely and accurately following the Voice of my Beloved, then I gotta believe that He led me there to bring another level, or facet, of His Light into a darkened/hazed-over area of a particular ministry.  I could be completely wrong, and self-serving about this, though, so, I will let Holy Spirit correct me in everything.  

If that is the case, though, then perhaps it was extremely good that this has happened.  If it is true, then that is exceptionally good news for this group: The Lord is pleased with them, and is exposing all areas of imperfection, hidden dark areas, in preparation for the Glory!  In either case, I am led to believe that the Lord is calling me into prayer and intercession for this ministry, this family, these affiliates and the plans and purposes of God.

Though I stand in tears outside the gate, it is quite the esteem given to me by the Most High to have assisted Him in breaking up that hardened ground.  Lord, help me remain ever-humble, ever pliable to Your Spirit, ever-prayerful, ever-interceding on their behalf.  Holy Alliances and Alignments, whether recognized of man or not, are put into place by Your Doings.  I receive, Lord.  I submit unto You, Lord Jesus.

God said to me last night two things:  “Straightening Alignments” and “Strengthening Alliances”.  Somehow, I knew it was about this (and other things), even before I came to the decision.

Yes, Lord.  Even so, come quickly, Lord.   Amen.  periphery 

Are you driven?  Or are you led?  

There is something magnificent to be said of rest.Faith rests.  Faith is a good fight, too, though.  Why the contradiction? 

No contradiction.  We labor, we war, we fight, to enter into the Rest of God.  To enter into that place where we have come to the end of ourselves, to the point where Eternity takes full control, to the point where all we can do is thank Him, praise Him, worship Him, remain in faith, fully expecting the complete manifestation of all He has promised us to come to pass. The Blessing.  The Fullness of Time.

People talk about John Crowder, but this man has received a revelation, and revelations, of rest.  When you are at rest, you relax.  You relax in the finished work of the Cross.The work is done.  He did it.  We faithfully rest in Him.

Our rest is a witness, of Him, to the world, to our own souls.  The more we rest in Him, the more we, like children, trust in Him, the more He can be our Daddy.

Crowder goes deeper into His rest, he languishes in the Bliss of God. People at rest are more receptive to receive pleasures.  A deep tissue massage is not possible when a body is tense, hence the need for warmth, mood lighting, soothing music, warm oils, and a beginning massage to loosen the tensions of the day.  Only then, only when the body begins to relax, can we experience the healing, circulating, rejuvenating effects of deep tissue massage.  To attempt this before fully relaxing the body could prove painful, even damaging muscularly. Release, rejuvenation, relaxation, rest, only comes when we can receive it.  We must ensure we are led by Holy Spirit, not just any smooth-talking spirit. 

Once we know it is Him (His sheep know His Voice), we take His instructions to heart, step by step, and then, having done all to stand, we stand. We found the promises in the Word, we utilized our authority in Him, we spoke and acted in faith, we remain faithful to that Word…. and then we rest in it, come what may.  As 1 John 5:14-15 says, our confidence is in this: anything we ask of Him according to His Word, we know He hears us, and if we know He hears us, we know we have what we ask of Him.  And that is the more sure Word. 

Come to the place of rest.  Allow Him to relax you in Him.  Receive, then, not just His Rest, but His Pleasure, His Bliss.  He adores you.       

Amen.   

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There is an enemy in the camp.  We have moles.  Thieves are in the Temple.

I don’t quite understand subtleties. What I mean is, subtleties are in everyday life.  I don’t refer to  anything like modesty, or temperance or a gentle prod toward something beneficial or encouraging at all.I mean the sleight of hand, the watering down, the washing out.  Numbing out, blandness of taste, the clearing or mixing of something once bold.  It is evident in simple, everyday things, but speaks of a spiritual, viral nature, as it seems to be creeping into the things of the spirit.

For example, it used to be when a woman wore makeup, color cosmetics, you KNEW she was wearing makeup.  It may not have been harsh, but there was definite color enhancements, shading, contouring, and if done well, it was noted with comments.  Today, cosmetics companies’ biggest selling points are products that go on the face but look as if you are not wearing makeup.  I certainly don’t advocate looking like a clown or a stage drag queen, but, I dunno, call me kooky, but, if I am wearing makeup, I sorta want people to KNOW I am wearing makeup.  I don’t wear it everyday, so when I do, I want it to look special.  Perhaps that is my conundrum.  It is not a daily thing.

Same for what I wear.  I don’t normally dress up or formalize on a daily basis, so when I do, I want the effort and creativity to SHOW.  No, I don’t wear these boots everyday.  Yes, these are new earrings.  Thank you for complimenting my chignon.

But then, there are some things that I DO experience every day, like meals.  Am I alone in this?  I lean toward flavor in my cuisine.  Is this just a cultural ‘thang’, or does anybody else out there hear me?  Holla back.  I need to TASTE the food.  Blandness just won’t do.

Advice: if you NEED gravy with the item, its not flavored well-enough.  No, it does not have to be Indian or Thai level, not even Soul Food level, it just has to have some FLAVOR.  Salt and pepper it at the VERY LEAST.  Cayenne/lemon pepper, chili/garlic powder, lime/lemon juice, some sort of marinade, turkey drumsticks, cilantro, apple cider vinegar.. use any of these and you are then on the way to scoring major points with me and my compadres, capiche?

Anyone else connecting the dots here?  Remember that attempt years ago by that cola company to sell a ‘clear’ cola?  Clear cola?  If I have some caffeinated, high fructose corn syrup, calorie-laden carbonated beverage that can also clean my car’s fuel injection, by-golly, I want it to LOOK that way!  I don’t want some mind-job assault on my visual senses tricking me into thinking that its actually just Pellegrino with a little flavoring added.  I mean, what’s the point?  For what reason?

There are probably a few dozen other examples I could drone on about, but I think you are getting my point.  These may seem like harmless cultural or marketing oddities of a modern society, but they are not.  I sincerely believe that these are reflections of an attempt to condition the soul and spirit for something much more sinister.  

Take the concept of ‘white noise’.  What exactly is white noise?  The way I understand it, white noise is the general background hum, or hiss, or snowy fizz that is always in the background.  It can come from a host of things: the TV, radio, street lights, traffic, appliances, air condition/heater, etc.

Do you know, I can almost never sleep unless I have some white noise in the background?  

I am a city kitty, so I have hated visiting the south (even though it is gloriously beautiful and I adore southerners), mainly because of two things, the heat (primarily in conjunction with the humidity), and the quiet.  Not used to it.  Blooming uncomfortable.

Thank God for iPods.

I need to be de-conditioned, de-programmed in that area.  

I notice this ‘diluting’ trend in the pulpit more and more.  More and more, I have noticed a watering down of the Gospel.  A compromise, if you will.  The blander the message, the wider the appeal.  And it would follow, then, that the wider the appeal, the grander the offering will be.  Or perhaps, the more that can be reached and corralled into their respective cages-I mean, barns-I mean dens.  

We have been historically programmed to mis-understand Jesus Himself.  What must it be like to be the Ancient of Days Himself, and be mis-understood by your own creation?  To be mis-perceived because of the purposefully driven mis-teachings of the ones you called (or perhaps that called themselves) to preach your Word?  O, the false prophets.. O, the false teachers.. O, the false apostles and preachers..

Jesus came to shake things up.  Yes, He came to take back that which was taken, which was lost, which was stolen…but He also overthrew the money-changers’ tables in the temple and kicked those people out.  It was not a gently-executed ordeal..  I expect it was fairly bloody.  He chewed the elitist Pharisees up and spit them back out again on a pretty regular basis when He was accused or accosted by them.  He knew exactly what He was doing, and exactly what they were doing.  And He quoted scripture while He was doing it, which they knew, but did not believe, did not perceive right in front of them, and which they also hid from the masses of Jews, misleading them most of the time.

So, you see, this concept is nothing new.  There is nothing new under the sun.  Its just pervasive in newer, more far-reaching and more insidious ways.  The enemy has learned to use more subtle conditioning techniques, to get the masses accustomed to the concepts of watering down a thing, or making the artificial appear to be “clear” and ‘natural”.  Make them believe that its water, by having it look like water, smell like water, feel like water, sound like water and taste enough like water, that they won’t notice any subtle differences that are added in over time.  They drink it normally, increasingly, even, and then the more artificial we add in, until, they are drinking something completely different than water.  The world will never know.

Not just an analogy, by the way, that is actually a literal example.

The new world order is just about here.  And it will not be televised nor plop down with a loud bang.  It will seep in under the cracks and crevices of our lives.  The small capitulations, the slightly nuanced maneuvers, the light compromises, ever growing, ever more frequent, day unto day.

If you have NEVER actually cracked open a Holy Bible and actually physically read it, I highly advise doing so.  It amazes me what is actually written, it could actually be the exact opposite of what you may hear in a church service.  Multiple translations are good for study, too.. be Holy Spirit-led.  The main point is, don’t just believe what I say, or what any other somebody says about the Word of God, about what He is really like, about Jesus’ walk on this earth the first time… read it for yourself.  Actually physically read the first four New Covenant books, read the letters/epistles following, read the Old Covenant books for yourself.  Guaranteed, God will surprise you by what He actually says to you therein.  You may never hear/read it otherwise.  Its not considered ‘newsworthy’.

And then, drain that excess water from your view, add back in the color, put more flavor in your food (per your taste).  Throw on some bright red lipstick (if you are a woman) or deep plum, or frosty tangerine..find ministers who give you the Word full-stength, who bring you from milk to meat, and then mature you in the faith.  Find material and mentorship that sharpens and focuses and hones and refines and ignites using the Word.  

Now more than ever, we need that refiner’s fire of Holy Spirit, the washing of the water of the Word, the burning away of the dross.  Straight, no chaser, un-compromised, full-strength, undiluted, fear-free, bold and brassy Word of the Living God.

So be it.

Amen,

periphery

I think I found my grape “cluster”, if you will.. The work I am called to has been opening up to me like a huge stone door. I have just been brought to my knees in awe. God TV, founded and run by holy visionary pioneer Wendy and Rory Alec, have been airing shows related to eschatology (the study of the end-times).  The first series I watched in the wee hours of this morning is Apocalypse and the End Times.  Their guest was Christian, end-times expert, professor and news commentator Paul McGuire.The fact that a high-profile and well-loved and respected Christian network would present such incendiary programming impresses me greatly.  No punches were pulled: the discussion included topics like the Federal Reserve, Freemasonry, the Tri-lateral Commission and the Council on Foreign Relations. I love the fearlessness of Wendy and Rory.  Names were even mentioned, like the Rockefeller and  Rothschilds families.  It was clear that they intend in this series to expose and help collapse the burgeoning evil New World Order, and all its expressions, including currency and market manipulations, artificially generated food shortages, the “experimental” targeting of innocent people with electronic and chemical weaponry administered remotely, and the like. These folks are part of my cluster.They have also begun airing end-time films, like Megiddo. I got a sense that soon, based on the upcoming guest list for the series, they will be discussing the Nephillim and its role in great end-time deceptions, both before and during the rapture.God amazes me.  He loves us.  He wants us never fearful, for we are more than conquerors in Him, but extremely well-informed, all of us.Amen,periphery 

I have just spent the late afternoon/eaerly evening hours resting, spending  Time in the Arms of my Lover, this King of Glory.  

He makes me giggle.  I love spending time with Him.  I need Him with me all the time.

So, I am reading John Crowder’s latest book “The Ecstasy of Loving God“, and already getting a sense of a release to love, a release to enjoy the pleasures of God.  

Love, Who is God, needs expression in order to be truly fulfilled.  Love unrequited is Love frustrated (ask me how I know).  A lot of what confuses and bewilders people about God encounters, I believe, is the misinterpretation, the mis-perception, if you will, of God’s longings, His yearnings for us.

And we are the objects of His Love: humankind.  We’re the reason for The Plan, we are the reason for the Whole Show.  Family, children, offspring to raise up, train up and bequeath the Family Business to as an inheritance.

And, get this, the Will has been prepared, the Death has been accomplished, and the Executor of the Will has been forever Resurrected to Administrate that Will and ensure all inheritors, all named parties, are given all that is promised unto them.

He’s our Holy Executor, Love, Love’s Son, Himself.

But that’s just one benefit of this Covenant, and there are countless more.  However, I am just now learning, in very recent months, less than 20, about the bliss of His Love.

Bill Johnson described this sort of experience in his book “Dreaming With God” when he wrote how that narrow is the Way and strait is the Gate to Salvation… but once you are Inside, you find there is sooo much more (beyond the threshold) inside, than outside.  Were truer words ever spoken of this?

And His pleasure is just one, and one I am just beginning to perceive and experience.  

And without guilt.  He actually thanked me for spending Time in His Arms.  What a King is this?  Thanking me for the honor it is to me to dwell in His Presence, not to even mention laying in His Arms.

And “our song” played over and over again, for hours.. it was the Most Romantic Moment so far of my life.

To think that I can please the Lord, I can woo and romance Him.  I can make Him giggle and swoon with Love over me:

9Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck.

10 How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices! (Song of Solomon 4:9-10)

5Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: (Song of Solomon 6:5)

Romantic Moments.

Admittedly, the difficulties I had in even allowing The Father’s love in and on me were because of old baggage I carried.  Baggage from difficult family relationships, confused alliances, emotional mishandlings I suffered earlier in life.  His Great Love is restoring me, comforting and healing me, inside out.

But Romance?  I never really expected Romance, not even really in the natural.  I figured I was late to the show, it was too late, and that was okay with me.  I even told the Lord that.  I said I am fine with it being just me and Him, all business, getting the job done, then I can Go Home.

It was HIM.  HE’s the One who started talking to me about Love, and Covenant marriage, and connecting with another.

OK.  So then we started our “Therapy/Pre-marital Counseling” sessions.

Then, His Romance!

I was not aware He was actually also preparing His bride for Himself.  Makes sense, though; how can you love if you cannot receive it.  You cannot give to another what you yourself do not have.  True love must be received first from Him, from God.  Love is the True Teacher of love.

He Romances me.  He whispers sweet things to me.  He knows all my favorite things, my favorite colours, my favorite songs.  He remembers all of my dreams and desires.  He lets none of them fall.

He keeps me, I am a kept woman.

He tells me some of His Secrets.

He shares His Heart with me.

And He can cook!  Did you know that the Lord can cook?  Every recipe you can imagine.  When you think that you have ”nothing’ in your kitchen, He can put together a dish you could not have ever dreamed, and teach you to prepare it in ways you could never have thought.  I unequivocally aDORE a guy who can cook!

He’s a Dreamer.  He has Dreams, He imagines, He has Desires.  His Secret Wishes are coming to pass, but there are so many more.

He longs for us soooo very much more than we long for Him.  He is more eager to be with us than we are to be taken away by Him.

What kind of Holy Consummation will be that?

 I long for that Day.

Amen,

periphery