After a week of abject horror, amidst a sea of slander, libel hurled at our country's leadership from pastors and pulpits, amidst personal off-color remarks, persecution and harassment, as foretold by Jesus Christ Himself, from friends, family, the workplace, so much so that I almost seethed with anger, the Lord heard my cry! I am a part of intercessory prayer groups who repent, pray, seek God's face continually in the earnest hope of God turning His wrath from this nation and world. Many say they pray, but they turn back to their everyday life and seek ways to escape, so much so that they are oblivious to sheer evil in their midst. The Lord spoke to me a few weeks ago, beginning with, "As in the days of Noah...." Over the days and weeks He has continued to speak to me, until this week He allowed me to witness heightened injustice in a brief span of time.
I have had to fall on my knees and repent for my anger and hurt countless times this week. I would wake up, praising His Name, only to fall into this period of sadness as I read His word in the mornings. Last night, after witnessing further hypocrisy firsthand, I asked Abba Father to please speak to me and show me something. I fell into a deep sleep of dreams or visions and awoke to these words: "Arise and shine for the Glory of the Lord has risen!! He repeated it to me over and over again upon rising. I literally danced in praise to my King, the Great God of all Creation!
My fingers flew to the passage in Isaiah 60 to record in my heart the message Abba was giving to me:
“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
4 “Lift up your eyes and look about you:
All assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters are carried on the hip.
5 Then you will look and be radiant,
your heart will throb and swell with joy;
the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,
to you the riches of the nations will come.
6 Herds of camels will cover your land,
young camels of Midian and Ephah.
And all from Sheba will come,
bearing gold and incense
and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.
7 All Kedar’s flocks will be gathered to you,
the rams of Nebaioth will serve you;
they will be accepted as offerings on my altar,
and I will adorn my glorious temple.
8 “Who are these that fly along like clouds,
like doves to their nests?
9 Surely the islands look to me;
in the lead are the ships of Tarshish,[a]
bringing your children from afar,
with their silver and gold,
to the honor of the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor.
10 “Foreigners will rebuild your walls,
and their kings will serve you.
Though in anger I struck you,
in favor I will show you compassion.
11 Your gates will always stand open,
they will never be shut, day or night,
so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations—
their kings led in triumphal procession.
12 For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish;
it will be utterly ruined.
13 “The glory of Lebanon will come to you,
the juniper, the fir and the cypress together,
to adorn my sanctuary;
and I will glorify the place for my feet.
14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing before you;
all who despise you will bow down at your feet
and will call you the City of the Lord,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
15 “Although you have been forsaken and hated,
with no one traveling through,
I will make you the everlasting pride
and the joy of all generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations
and be nursed at royal breasts.
Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior,
your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17 Instead of bronze I will bring you gold,
and silver in place of iron.
Instead of wood I will bring you bronze,
and iron in place of stones.
I will make peace your governor
and well-being your ruler.
18 No longer will violence be heard in your land,
nor ruin or destruction within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation
and your gates Praise.
19 The sun will no more be your light by day,
nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
20 Your sun will never set again,
and your moon will wane no more;
the Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your days of sorrow will end.
21 Then all your people will be righteous
and they will possess the land forever.
They are the shoot I have planted,
the work of my hands,
for the display of my splendor.
22 The least of you will become a thousand,
the smallest a mighty nation.
I am the Lord;
in its time I will do this swiftly.”
Awake, children of God! He is speaking to His people!
After reading these words I thought certainly something has happened in the world, so later I decided to check Google. All I saw was social news of CMT awards highlighting the revealing outfit of a defiant youth, celebrity gossip, the newest movie to be streamed and other such notices, "As in the days of Noah...." This apathy, discord and chaos or sheer blindness to the spiritual battle that is being waged in the heavenlies at this moment in time will not succeed in diminishing the vision I received and the words God Almighty has spoken to me! I know my Redeemer lives! Regardless of what I see, hear, or experience over the next days, nothing and no one will steal my joy or damage my faith. If anything, it will become even stronger! You see, I choose to not look at the things before me or doubt that God hears my prayers and those of my fellow intercessors, the remnant standing in the gap. Because I know that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence not YET seen! I also know that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds! This is His battle, and He has already won!
If anyone reading this blog identifies with anything I have testified of here, then rather than listening to biased media or engaging in meaningless conversation and media posts, fall to your knees and seek God's forgiveness and repentance and stand in the gap in prayer. Instead of reading the papers or social media, seek the Word of the Lord! All the answers to any question is found in the pages of the Bible. Jesus says that even the elect, meaning those we would look to for truth, like pastors, will become blinded and deceived and will turn away from His Word. I have witnessed this in many I respected as men and women of God. When I have been accosted by anyone, I offer all I know, the Word of the Lord. I do not need to defend my belief in God or discuss my thoughts other than offer this explanation of God being the final say in all things.
My daily Bible reading further confirms the message Abba spoke to me as I read from Matthew 21:25-28:
"And there will be strange signs in the sun, moon, and stars. And here on earth the nations will be in turmoil, perplexed by the roaring seas and strange tides. People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then everyone will see the Son of Man coming on a cloud with power and great glory. So when all these things begin to happen, stand and look up, for your salvation (redemption) is near!"
