During the fast, the ministry I serve with, Hearts of Beauty (HOB), asked me to speak on the topic of spiritual warfare at the Georgia event. My most recent experience with the topic is our fast and the battle of faith it represents, so I told the leader that I would talk about the fast and the lessons learned during it. The retreat was this past weekend, just one week after the completion of the fast.

I want to share with you both a portion of the testimony I shared at the event and the results of the fast, so far. This weekend in Georgia, Jesus amazed us in so many ways as so many of His daughters were healed physically, emotionally, spiritually and many experienced great freedom.

He surprised me too as He tossed out most of what I had prepared to say and gave me other words and even had me sing on stage in front of 120 or so women! That is not something I ever thought I would do!

So here is part of my testimony. This follows me reading the Facebook post that was the basis for the blog post called, Katy’s Healing.

Presentation:

…When I awoke from that dream, I felt like it was a dream from the Lord and that it was intended to stir up the sense of justice in me. This is NOT right and it is NOT OK.

I honestly did not intend to write about a 40 day fast as I started to write that post.

40 days! That really was not my idea. We had never done a fast for that long before. But friends from all over immediately started jumping in and agreeing to pray with us and many to fast with us a few days or a part of the time and even some, for the whole time!

I felt such momentum on what I had written and I had to keep going back to re-read it because much of what had flowed out was inspiration of the Holy Spirit and not an idea from my own mind so I couldn’t remember quite what I’d written.

I felt so sure that this was of the Lord, that He had put those words into my fingers and I felt a certain understanding of the bigger picture that He was drawing through this fast.

The first weekend of our fast happened to be our church’s women’s retreat. We went up to Asheville, NC and had a great weekend, but it was not the greatest time to be fasting. I took a lot of juices with me, but surprisingly, it was really easy! I thanked the Lord for making it so easy. I told him, “I guess I kind of wanted to suffer for my girl in this fast.” He said, “No, I already did!” I could feel his sweet smile at that.

During the ^3rd week of our fast, a wonderful new friend asked if she could come over and pray with us. After several hours of prayer we did see the beautiful change in Katy’s back. Up until that day, the ribs on her right side were raised into a hump because of scoliosis. As we prayed, suddenly they were flat! It was amazing. We didn’t see it happen. They were just suddenly flat! It was Awesome!

Wow! Thank you Papa! What else will you do if your have already done this?

In my Facebook post I shared my heart to see the gospel fulfilled. I believe what Jesus said is true, no matter what I see with my natural eyes or my experience;

I am believing that His word will come to fruition. He said, “These miraculous signs will accompany those who believe: They will cast out demons in my name, and they will speak in new languages.. They will be able to place their hands on the sick, and they will be healed.” (Mark 16:17-18 NLT)

To me, this is pretty straightforward.   I believe…so this applies to me. My husband believes…so this applies to him. We have experienced laying hands on people and seeing them healed of many different things.

Something you probably don’t know about me, is that for the last 20 years or so, I normally get up early, 4:30 or 5 am, so that I have time to worship and read my bible in the morning before the day begins.

On the 30^th day of our fast, I was setting my alarm for 4:30 and told the Holy Spirit that I was doing that, but if He wanted to get me up earlier, He could. (I was thinking 4, since that is a favorite time of His.) Well the next morning, my eyes popped open at 3:00!   3:00?

I really think Holy Spirit was snickering over that one. Like, “Well you said I could get you up earlier!”

And I was wide-awake! AND, at that hour, I had just gotten a text from an awesome, prayer warrior friend, Angie, who regularly wages war in prayer while most of us are sleeping. I thought, who is texting me at 3 am?

Without knowing about our 40 day fast for Katy, at 3 o’clock in the morning, Angie had sent me a simple text, saying she thought of me and the Lord gave her this verse, Mark 9:29.

Mark 9:29 just happens to be when the disciples were not able to cast out the demon from the boy and Jesus did cast it out. They privately asked Jesus why they were not able to cast it out and Jesus answered, “This kind goes out through prayer and fasting.” Mark 9:29

 This verse has been in the back of my mind during the fast. I felt as though the Lord was giving me encouragement. Like, yes! You are on the right track with this fast!

Then, on the 31st day of our fast, I was inspired by a daily devotional that cited Galatians 3:13 to read the book of Galatians again.   Wow! I was mind blown and felt confirmation of the thoughts that have been stirred up in my thinking.

Over the years of praying for healing, many well-intentioned believers have suggested that perhaps there is some unforgiveness or a generational curse issue standing in the way.

Realizing that we may not have perfect understanding of the gospels, we explored these areas. As a result, I have forgiven everyone I could possibly forgive, and cancelled every possible generational curse. But it never really sat right with my understanding of the simple Gospel. So, in that early morning study, the revelation I received changed the way I think about healing and I believe cemented the outcome of our fast and the future of our personal/family ministry.

In the letter to the Galatians, Paul is restating the Gospel by which the Galatians had been saved. He is reminding them of the simple Gospel that set them free from the bondage of religion and the impossible burden of the law.

If you check out Deuteronomy 28, you will see that all the generational curses come from not keeping the law. Jesus fulfilled all the law. He alone has kept all the law and then Christ rescue us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written, cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree. Galatians 3:13

I saw that, in Galatians 2:18-21, Paul says: My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. That means that all the generational curses that belonged to my old self are dead too. They died when I died. They have not been resurrected.

 And, I saw that, in our new nature, we have been adopted as God’s own children. Therefore, the generational inheritance we have, now comes from our Father, who IS God!

“And since you are his child, God has made you His heir.” (!!!) Galatians 4:7

 “You are co-heirs with Christ Jesus,” (Romans 8:17) Christ kept all the law, he fulfilled all the law and so instead of curses, his inheritance is the blessings of Deuteronomy 28. As co-heirs, those same blessings belong to you and yours.

As I understood this, I felt SO encouraged about her healing!

 What does all of this have to do with Spiritual Warfare?

Well, last Sunday, less than a week ago, we completed of our 40-day fast. To be honest, I had big expectations that my daughter would be completely healed AND restored. I knew part of the way through what I would be talking about here and was SURE that I was going to come here with my newly healed and restored daughter and tell you about victory in prayer.

My husband and I and many friends have been praying for us to be able to handle the enormous change it will mean for us to suddenly be parenting a completely able teenager. I mean, look at all the encouragement I received from the beginning through the end.

 ***However…What I hoped for, believed for, felt encouraged in, did not happen in the time I had expected. ***

So far, her spine and ribs and a bit more talking are the only visible evidence of healing.

So, what am I to believe?

Well the enemy was trying to tell me that I am now disqualified from coming here to talk to you because I didn’t have anything good to report.

To be completely honest, I was feeling pretty devastated and over the next 2 days, went through alternating phases of really sad and really MAD!

You know how Janis talked about having the showdown with God in the mirror? Well I was having it out facedown on the floor in my house, driving down the road, at the gym, anywhere else I might be over the next two days.

It was like I was two people. One having a hissy, and the other, sitting back rationally, knowing that God was not surprised, God had not let me down, God had not promised me a date and all that I know of God had not changed.

I was part spoiled brat who had not gotten my way and part mature daughter realizing that I had made some assumptions that had led to my expectations not being met.

Thankfully the mature daughter took over pretty quickly. She knows that worship is one of the most effective forms of spiritual warfare.

But, have you ever seen Westside Story? Do you remember the ‘fight’ scene. They’re fighting and dancing and singing.

I had to sing-it-out! Praise Him and Yell out those lyrics as much to myself as to Him while ministering to my own soul and my own spirit in that time of worship.

Part of it looked like this:

Take Courage by Bethel Music (parenthesis added by me)
Take courage, my heart
Stay steadfast, my soul
He’s in the waiting
He’s in the waiting
Hold on to your hope
As your triumph unfolds (Angry Yell: Lord you said you are my Triumph!)
He’s never-failing
He’s never-failing

Sing praise, my soul
Find strength in joy
Let his words lead you on
Do not forget his great faithfulness (Yell: Lord! You have always been faithful, I know that’s not gonna change now!)
He’ll finish all he’s begun (I know you will, I know you will!)

And you who hold the stars
Who call them each by name
Will surely keep your promise to me (Lord you promised, Lord, your are the covenant maker and You are the covenant Keeper!  It is your name at stake here, not mine.  Lord, I know YOU will fight this battle on our behalf!)
That I will rise in your victory!

By Wednesday, having done this ugly, tearful, snot dripping kind of worship several times…..there was a shift. The warfare had largely concluded and the enemy was again defeated.

I have been reading my Bible almost daily for 20+ years and it has taught me who God is, and maybe more importantly, How God IS. It has allowed me to hear his voice. I’ve never worked at memorizing the addresses, but I have his word deeply in my heart.

• I am a friend of God. He calls me friend. And I call Him friend too.
• He has literally, tangibly held my hand when I thought I was at my end.
• Spiritual Warfare comes through intimacy. Our Intimacy with God scares the enemy more than anything!

If you don’t remember anything else I say today, please remember this:  The scariest thing about you as an adversary of the enemy is your intimacy with the Lord of Heaven’s Armies!

He is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies and He is on YOUR side. You should get to know Him.

Just as you have had quiet time here at HOB, It is critical that you make time for that at home too.

If you don’t have a secret place, you NEED to get one! Because everything that you are about to hear from Elaine about spiritual warfare comes from this relationship you have developed and are developing with Him today and tomorrow and the next day, in the Secret Place.

The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has become my best friend. My hand-holding comforter who knows me better than I know myself. Who reveals the beautiful thoughts he has about me to me.

There have been days when He spoke those beautiful thoughts to me when I didn’t know that day was going to be rough, but He headed it off for me with the truth He spoke in the early hours.

So, why did Jesus heal Katy’s back, but only partially, and not yet heal her of Rett Syndrome overall? I have no idea!

But what I can know is what I read in Philippians 1:6. “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

So I believe that He will finish it. I know that my girl will be completely healed and completely restored to the wholeness that God always intended for her.

So, though I have not YET seen what I wanted to see, or what I expected to see, I refuse to give my power to the enemy by agreeing with him.

I will continue to believe God’s word and God’s promises to me until I see the result that is promised. I know WHO I am believing, so I have power to stand and fight when it doesn’t appear to be going my way.

I believe one of these days at a HOB Georgia, I will bring my daughter with me and she will tell you her own healing testimony.

Thanks for listening.

The one who holds the stars in His hands and calls them each by name, is the same one who asked Abraham if he could count the uncountable stars to know the number of his future descendants.

All the while, this one who knew the exact number of the stars and the very names that He gave each one, knew the exact number and names of Abraham’s future descendants, including Jesus of Nazareth.

The vastness of the one who made every star, the creator and author who holds all of His unfurled creation in the palm of His hand like a chestnut*; compressed himself into the form of that very man, Jesus of Nazareth.

The one who is infinite and immeasurable poured the fullness of Himself into the form of a baby.  He lived, and somehow grew in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man.  He allowed Himself to die for us, to be put away in the earth and then…

On the third day, as a creator again, by the power of His Spirit, wrought new life to His human form, and through Him offered everlasting life to me.  When I accepted, He made me like Him, and again humbled Himself to live within me forever.

By the power that generates those myriad stars, my life, with Him, will go on forever.  By His incomprehensible love, I too will grow in wisdom and favor with God and man forever and like the stars, I am held by Him.

This blog was inspired by the song, “Take Courage” by Kristene DiMarco

* From: Julian of Norwich, “Revelations of Divine Love”

6:40 a.m. and I’ve been a wake for an hour already with thoughts rolling around in my head. I should be sleeping. No kids. Weekend away with my honey. Celebrating Papa’s faithfulness to us. It’s quiet. A preciousness in that word. It’s quiet. My soul is quiet.

Three weeks ago, my feet walked this same retreat center as the women of our church converged here for a time away with the Lord. 20 years before that my betrothed and I received vision for our future marriage on these grounds. The land here is indeed rich with deposits of Papa’s goodness, which is why we returned now.

I am referring to God a lot more as Papa after that women’s retreat. I didn’t have expectation for myself coming into the retreat, because I had a job to do. It was my responsibility to prepare a place for Him to meet with these precious ones, to host His presence in our prayer rooms.

As I sat in the first session, I felt squirmy as I heard the whisper in my head, “You are afraid of intimacy with me and others.” “Well, yeah!” I thought, “of course I do.” “I don’t even know how you can fix this one.” I felt a bubble of anger inside of me try to rise, and I desperately just wanted to push it back down. Then, the speaker, whose story I’ve come to know through friendship, unfolded a place of her own pain, where Papa had met her. She had felt ashamed at first, then embraced. It should have comforted me. Instead I felt kicked in the gut, hard! I began feeling lightheaded, panicky. I wanted to run. Not here. Not now. Not surrounded by all these women. How can you heal this wound?! The bubble was beginning to burst, and all I could see was ugly coming out.

He asked me to come and just lay this down by faith and give Him this fear of intimacy. So, with a pure act of obedience I wrote it down on a slip of paper and jammed in it a jar filled with what others were laying at His feet. Sisters could see my obvious pain and offered comfort. My emotions soothed some.

That night sleep eluded me. I fought and I was losing. As the morning broke, I heard in my heart, “Today, you will build me an altar.” I hate altars. He knows that.

In my experience, altars are where indescribable suffering happens, shameful acts happen, spits of hatred happen, prideful power displays are executed on altars. That was my framework for altars. “Why me, to build You an altar?! That seems very mean of You, Father…who I am supposed to somehow trust!”

I was venting as I walked and He reminded me of a childhood “altar” experience. He reminded me of where Jesus was during the experience, and then He showed me where Papa was. I knew Papa had been there weeping over this broken little girl, trying to hold her quaking body, lifting her up and embracing her, breathing life back into her.  That memory felt  distant. And my heart was still somewhat jaded. I walked on.

During worship, I had an image come to my imagination. In the imagined scene, I knelt bloody knuckled, exhausted lifting stones and placing them together to form this altar. Just as my strength failed me, Jesus smiling walked up whistling a tune. He asked gently, “Can I help you build this, sweetheart?” “Yes, please,” spilled from my lips. As He did, my burden also lifted.

I asked Him, “What are the stones?” “Your memories,” He frankly replied. “What must I sacrifice?” “Praise,” he said. Praise. I must sacrifice praise. Praise for all the times He has met me, praise for all the times he has wept with me, holding me. All the times, He showed me His wounds in His hands proving it was really Him.

That afternoon, I found myself sitting on a flat rock table, much like another stone table found in the Narnia stories. A song of praise softly lifted from my lips as I thanked my Papa for never leaving me. I thanked Jesus for healing my broken heart, and to the best of my ability I laid down the fear of intimacy. As I walked away lighter, I heard the whisper again, “Now I will bring the fire.”

That night as this diverse family of daughters worshipped, we formed a line that led us through a tunnel of our leadership team who prayed over us. As our pastor’s wife leaned into my ear to bless me, she said, “Father wants to tell you thank you.” My mind was completely blank. “I don’t understand,” I muttered back. “Just like God would have saved Sodom and Gomorrah for 10 righteous, there is about ten percent of the bride of Christ that is faithful. You are a part of that ten percent.” As the words reached my ears, I doubled over with a groan. Then it was as if I was blown by a Holy Spirit wind to the end of the line where I collapsed on the floor.

Even in Sodom and Gomorrah, I was faithful? How could that be? I certainly didn’t see it that way. I had seen myself as sinful, blackened by it. As I lay there completely clear headed, I shook as the word, “pure” washed over me continually. That night I slept as if on a cloud held up by angels.

The next morning I awoke at a familiar time 4:43. I had been waking up at this time for weeks. I felt prompted to look up the numbers. 4 meant door. 43 meant contending for a new level of authority. As I fully gained my senses, the voice came again, “I am going to seal this with a kiss.” Later at the final session of the weekend, the speaker that morning, began with the first words, “Papa wants to seal this with a kiss.” And He did.

The last three weeks have been filled with hot tears, wrestling questions, and sweet cuddles. “No more fear of the cuddle. The cuddle is safe now.” So, as I cuddle next to the man I love this weekend celebrating, I also cuddle up to my Papa who embraces me.

Twenty years ago yesterday at 4:00 p.m., I walked down an aisle, and became a bride.  I had no idea what it meant to be a bride.

That evening as we settled into our bridal suite, a hotel off the highway, I fumbled around in the drawer beside our bed to pull out the Gideon Bible.  Beside it lay a single pewter anchor fallen from someone’s bookmark.  I turned it over with my fingers, and heard a popular song running through my head, “The Anchor Holds”.  Immediately, the Holy Spirit spoke these words to my heart, “It’s going to be rough for a while, but I am your anchor.  I will hold you together.”  Honestly, I thought that an odd thing for Him to say as I began this journey with my husband.

Within two hours of saying I do, I found myself hopping on one foot, as I had fractured my other foot while running down concrete steps covered in bird seed in shoes a little too big, and a little too slick.  Within two weeks, I felt like a caged bird, trying to escape, yet knowing I had committed myself to a lifetime with this other person.  Don’t get me wrong.  My husband is a wonderful man.  I just didn’t know the depth of unresolved pain in my own hidden heart.

I had no idea of all the walls that I had built up to protect myself from being loved.  Love meant the chance of heartbreak.  It meant vulnerability.  It meant I had to come out of hiding.  I hadn’t known that my gut reaction would be to run, run as fast as I could away from this man who said he loved me.  I didn’t know that on my wedding night I’d feel shame, uncovering my wounded heart.  

For months, my dear newly wed husband didn’t know what to do with me as I paced nights across the floor.  He had said the past didn’t matter.  But it did. Because it did, my heavenly father put a rescue plan in place for me, and began to try to reach this broken one. 

For a time, the fears and pain subsided, until our children were born.  Then the anxieties returned with a vengeance, and my heart had slowly become emotionally divorced from my husband.  

For years, Holy Spirit had said it’s not time yet to open the past, but when I became pregnant with our third, I sought counsel.  The Lord said, “It’s time.” So, I began to allow Jesus to undo me, to brick by brick, take down the walls that I thought had protected me, but in truth had imprisoned me.  I began to forgive and receive forgiveness. 

My husband, who had every reason to step away, chose instead to come alongside, to walk with me.  He hasn’t been able to relate to my suffering, but he’s never left me alone in it.  And instead of growing apart, though believe me the road grew much rougher, far rockier than either of us could have imagined, we became one. 

A friend of mine says to newlyweds on their wedding day, “Welcome to the first day you die.”  Isn’t that what love really is; laying down your life for another?!  At least, that is the kind of love that endures the tests and the storms of life.  Isn’t that what Jesus is, our example of what laid down love looks like.  He laid down heaven, His kingship, His reputation, His comfort, His life with the hope that we’d say yes to His invitation to become His bride.  He promises to anchor us in His love, so that when the storms come, because they surely do, sometimes much quicker, and far more fiercely than we think, His love will be more than enough to hold us.  

Twenty years later, as I reminisce about the years gone by, I think about the truth in those words. The anchor holds.  Jesus has been the only thing that held these two broken vessels together.  Two broken vessels, now broken together.  He has always been faithful to His promises!  And this one, less broken heart is full of gratitude!

I wrote this 9 months ago, but felt, with some editing, it deserved a second look.  I hope you think so too:

In the little, 2 chapter, Book of Haggai, the Lord says to the people, “Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins?” (Hag 1:4) 17 years earlier, about a year after their return from Babylon, by order of the pagan King Cyrus of the Persians, the Jewish people they had laid the foundation of the Temple and the first layer of the wall. Cyrus was the most powerful king on the planet at the time. Isaiah had prophesied about Cyrus, by name, some 150 years before his birth. God had chosen Cyrus and set him, a pagan, in power to give the Jews financial and political support to rebuild the Temple of God in Jerusalem.

The Jews had gone to Jerusalem with earnest intentions of rebuilding.  After their strong start, however, they were threatened and ridiculed by enemy nations.  They needed to survive in the harsh conditions .  They allowed these distractions to keep them from completing their tasks.

Even after they had established their homes and resources, it just never seemed like the right time to continue with their assignment. It was easy to keep adding to their own homes and their own lifestyles. They were living in luxury, but at the same time, they lived in fear of the enemy, and were subject to intimidation.

The same can be said of the Church in the West today. We live in the greatest level of wealth the world has ever seen, yet only about 10% of professing believers think it is important to put your money where your mouth is when it comes to God.

Though we have plenty of everything, we constantly seek more. Just like the Jews in Haggai’s time, we are unsatisfied and always searching for more food, more drink, more stimulation, more things to satisfy our spiritual hunger and thirst. We seek comfort in newer and ever greater cars, houses, TVs, electronics… stuff, but we don’t put God first or turn to God for our fulfillment. (Haggai 1:3-7) As a result we are fat, depressed, over-stimulated, in debt and starving for true nourishment. Just saying…

When the remnant of the Jewish people, now living under King Darius, heard the rebuke from the Lord through Haggai, they repented by agreeing together and getting to work. Immediately our good savior sent this message of encouragement, “I am with you, says the Lord!” (Haggai 1:13) So the people got to work rebuilding the Lord’s house. I love the Lord. He asks so little of us before He can’t resist encouraging us!

When they got to work, he sent His Spirit and gave the whole group enthusiasm for the work ahead of them. (Hag 1:14) We would say that REVIVAL had come to them.

Notice the order of events: They got to work in obedience, THEN revival came to them.

In the West, we never seem to find the right time to obey Jesus’ simple command to us to, “heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those who have leprosy and cast out demons.”(Matt 10:8 NLT)  We worry, “What if I pray for someone and they don’t get healed?” “Will people think I’m a religious nut?” “Will I make God look bad?”  We want to see the evidence that “it works” before we step out in faith. But the Lord sent His encouragement after the people got to work.

Back to Haggai, a few months later the Lord sent another message through the prophet, “Does anyone remember this house-the Temple-in its former splendor? How in comparison does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all!”

“But the Lord said, ‘Be Strong…and now get to work, for I am with you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. My Spirit remains among you just as I promised when you came out of Egypt, so do not be afraid’.” (Haggai 2:3-5) Remember, this was under the old covenant when the Holy Spirit came on people and also could go away. How much more can we be certain of the Lord’s support in the work He has assigned us when His Spirit lives inside of us and will NEVER leave us? Be strong, my Spirit remains among you so don’t be afraid.

This talk about the former glory of the Temple speaks to me of the state of the Church in the West today. Does anyone find inspiration from the Book of Acts? That, in my opinion, is the former glory of the church. When the church walked in humility and in power and changed the World.

What would the Church look like today, if we had kept our first love and continued fulfilling Jesus’ commandments? We should be walking in greater glory now than the first century church. Instead we look to that time of former glory as the good old days.

But we don’t need to look in our rear view mirror, because Jesus said, “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed…Nothing will be impossible for you.”(Matt 17:20 NIV) Indeed, today the Church in developing countries is moving in the love and the power of the Holy Spirit. In many places around the world, believers regularly see blind eyes opened, missing limbs restored, people raised from the dead and former strangers to Jesus whose lives are transformed by knowing Him. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV)

The comparatively few believers in the first century church, with their great faith, were said to have “turned the world upside-down” with simple acts of love as demonstrated by Jesus. Now we number in the millions, but in the West the church is seen as a powerless anachronism or worse, a political persuasion. To the outside world, it does indeed seem like “nothing at all.” (Hag 2:3)

But we have good news! Like the people of Haggai and Nehemiah’s time, we can choose to change! We can repent and turn from the patterns of this world and be transformed by the renewing of our minds and by obedience to the things we have been called to do. The power of the gospel has not diminished, nor has the Holy Spirit within us lost His power.

Today, thanks to a new King Cyrus in the USA, President Trump, who is extremely supportive of the church, we too have a window of opportunity to repent and get to work. I pray we have eyes to see and understand the times we are living in. Imagine the potential impact we can have if the Church comes together now in answer to Jesus’ prayer for unity.

The Work We Are Called to Do:  Jesus left us a few commands that in the West, we have largely ignored. Here are the most visible ones:

• Love:  ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  (Matt 22:36-40, AMP)

• Move Quickly When Others Need Help:  “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matt 7:12 NIV)

• Overlook Theological Differences in Favor of Unity:  “Teacher,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us,” (Mark 9:38-40 NIV)

• Walk in Your Authority:  “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give” (Matt 10:8 NIV).

• Be Ready:  “You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” (Luke 12:40)

“ I will fill this place with glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!” (Haggai 2:7-9)

This promise fills me with hope, anticipating that our Temple, the Church ,will soon have wisdom, discipline and obedience to steward the gold and silver that comes in from the nations for Kingdom purposes.

But I think, as in history, it will come when we begin to walk in obedience to the Lord. Some things are trusted to the servants who steward well the little.

He said that He will bring peace to this place (the Temple/Church), but first He will fill it with glory! How will that be? After we begin walking in obedience. Our obedience as earthen vessels makes way for the power and the glory of God to be revealed to the world. When we are obedient, He can do things through us that are so clearly beyond our own ability, that He is glorified.  Then, “the future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” (Haggai 2:9)

Currently, in our Western lifestyles, daily spiritual opposition may not be an obvious threat of death, as it so often is in other places around the world. But opposition may come in the form of our fear of other people’s opinions or worldly or even churchy distractions from our assignment. Many times, warfare is as simple as believing the word of God and choosing to be obedient in the moment.

Obedience can sound boring or restrictive, but in truth it is our greatest freedom. Consider the freedom of letting the Father decide what I’m doing today, how, and when, and doing as I’m told without responsibility or credit for the result. It is fulfilling and energizing.   That is what Jesus meant when he told His disciples, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” (John 4:32 NIV) Like good food, obedience is nourishing and energizing. He did what He saw his Father doing, and said what He heard His Father saying. Then he got to watch the Kingdom come to Earth. Fulfilled! Nourished! Victorious!

I pray this little Book of Haggai will serve as a rally cry to our family, the Church. God promises us in Haggai that if we get to work on the things He has assigned us, then He Himself will be our peace.

We have been sleeping in our luxurious houses for too long! It is time to rebuild the Lord’s house. It is time for the nations to see the people of the Lord demonstrating His love, His might, His power to the world around us and overcoming the work of the enemy.

May the Lord bless you with His peace. May you see the world being turned upside-down in the wake of His love everywhere you go. May you be nourished, and victorious, and fulfilled by the heavenly food of obedience. The coming glory of the Church will be greater than the former glory!  Revival begins with you.

Reconciliation.  So many letters.  Such a big word.  To restore to friendly relationship, to restore harmony, to settle, to resolve.  Even more than that… A return to love.  A restoration of love.  A forgiving and releasing place.  A receiving forgiveness place.

I’ve been laying in bed recovering from a virus that’s been weakening my body for a couple of days.  “Eat and rest” was the trumpeted call at a women’s retreat last weekend.  Got that down the last two days.  In my quiet, which is such a rarity, my mind has drifted back to an event that occurred last year on March 19th, the last day of an annual Cherokee celebration of new beginnings and fresh starts.  At sunset, a crew of brokenhearted, children of the Most High ascended the mountain to perform a prophetic act of reconciliation over our region.

Weeks prior, almost daily my heavenly Father confirmed this is the place, this is the time, and you are to lead it.  Two things perplexed me though, why was I to lead this prophetic act and why this particular place?  The time had been confirmed by “My friend, always my friend”, a direct descendant of the Cherokee nation.  This day was not only a Cherokee holiday, but also a Jewish remembrance day of reconciliation.  

My home town has been riddled through the decades with racism, and religious piety, ickily slimed with it.  The heavenly Father made it clear to me that a prophetic act of reconciliation must be done over our region, before reformation could come.  He let me know that this act would be like a red carpet ushering in the reformation.  These things all made sense to me, but why me?  Why this place?  Every piece to this puzzle seemed so divinely important to Him.  

I asked my land warrior sister to help me research.  She found that Bald Rock, SC was the place where headwaters began, flowing down to the land beneath it, nourishing or polluting.  But something was still incomplete.

 I was compelled to go to a counseling session, where I’ve sat many times before with puffy, swollen eyes as Jesus has gently put back together this broken soul.  As I sat there, the light came on as to why He was asking me to  lead this. “You have forgiven much!” Rang in my ears. I was a survivor of the very atrocities we were going up on that mountain to ask forgiveness for, to seek reconciliation from.  Because I had chosen to forgive, release, and receive forgiveness not just for me, but for my bloodline, Jesus was now asking me to go represent my people group on that mountain.  To very specifically, lay out the sins of my people, the white man, and ask forgiveness of first the Native American, and then the African American.  I was stunned at the realization of the why, and the weighty responsibility that had just been handed me.  Everyone involved in the event thought I had done such a wonderful job researching it all out.  No. I had lived it as a child. The hidden, black, suffocating sins no one in the south wants to mention.  So, I had “the why me” puzzle piece.

My other question got answered the day before the event.  Another general in the Spirit answered me frankly, after my question of why there.  “Oh, I know why.”, she said matter of factly.  “That’s where satanic rituals are performed over the region.”  I almost vomited at her feet.  She proceeded to explain to me all the landmarks, what they are used for in the rituals, and that this had been the first place she had been sent to to pray over when she arrived in Greenville.  If I had not already fully surrendered this event to the Lord, and had a notebook full of confirmations, I would have been like Jonah on a boat to no man’s land.  

This appointed day came.  So did rains.  Our God used the rain to clear the site, then held it off of us like a sheet, by His hand.  Each person who came had been specifically picked by God to be there.  Unknowingly, the band chose to set up in the middle of the pit where sacrifices would have been burned.  A sweet sacrifice of praise to undo all the twisted-ness that had arisen before out of this place in times past. Now a sweet aroma of praise filled the air.  “May the lamb receive the reward of His suffering starting with me.”  The words hung in the air as all of heaven and hell watched.  Each people group was represented by a man and woman.  Native American, Caucasian, and African American.  We all presented our repentance for our generations of sinful hatred, pride, inhumanity.  We all received forgiveness.  We wept together.  We took communion together.  We praised God together. And we rang out a bell of freedom, of revival.

As I look back on this,  it was a huge deal to God for us to obey Him in this.  We have seen tangible changes in our region since then, like a grace that now flows down the mountain.  Purified headwaters, fresh and clean, flowing down.   Reconciliation is on God’s mind!  It’s where unity flows from, which is where God commands the blessing.  You may not be called to a literal mountain top, but maybe to an act of forgiveness of an estranged family member or even a neighbor.  Reconciliation involves both parties, which we can not control.  But we can still offer, extend a hand of love, forgiveness, and unity.  It will be like a sweet aroma in the courtroom of heaven, and will be pleasing to our heavenly Father!  It sets captives free, and ushers in His presence. 

Our Abba deeply loves us.  He cares about even the details of things long past.  The words of my Native American friend are forever etched, “My people have waited a long time to hear those words.”  Our confession matters.  Through time and space our words, our actions will carry His love or not.  Return to love, my friend.  Let it wash over you like a sweet spring rain.  

If I have one dream for my life, a dream to see fulfilled in my lifetime, it is for my family, and we believers as a united family, to grasp a deep security in our Father’s passionate love for us and for the world.  I dream for us to be overcome by His vast love, so big and so secure that our hearts are broken and set on fire for us to give it away to the waiting World.

Jesus did not come to earth, suffer, die and rise again, in order to bring another religion into the world. No. He came to introduce us to our loving Father, with whom our ancestors Adam and Eve walked in the Garden.  He came to show us the desperation of the Father to have our hearts reconciled to His heart.  He came to show us that He loves the WORLD,  that He paid the highest price for us to come to Him and be wrapped up in His arms once and forever.  He came to make us secure that nothing (no sin) can separate us from His love for us.

The second part of Jesus’ mission was to show us the full expression of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.  It is a Kingdom that reflects the heart of the King.  It is a Kingdom whose normal expression exposes darkness to Light, delivers people from chains and destroys the works of the enemy.  This happens through Kingdom authority and the Kingdom weapons of the Word of God and the Fruit of the Spirit.

Jesus was so sure of His Father’s heart for the people of the World, that He remained focused on fulfilling the Father’s desire.  He didn’t let politics, or religion or sin, or culture or appearance separate Him from the the people He came to save.  The same kinds of issues existed when He walked the earth as do today.  He didn’t focus on them.

He did focus on redeemable people. He focused on reconciling the world to His Father’s heart. He showed us how the kindness of God leads people to repentance. (Romans 2:4) He expressed the fullness of the Kingdom from which He came, and which He would leave with us.

Jesus brought the kingdom to us.  Then, He left it to us who have been made new and have the Spirit of the King living within us.  Now it is up to us to work the leaven of the Kingdom into the World.

Religion makes us afraid of our Poppa.   Afraid to trust Him, and know that we are entrusted with authority to demonstrate His will on Earth as it is in Heaven.  It puts contradictory ideas in our heads about the nature of the Father.  But Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me, has seen the Father.” Jesus is not the leader of a religion.  He is the King of a kingdom not of this world but brought to Earth.

2 Corinthians 10:5 says, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

Are there mindsets or thoughts about the Father that you need to confess to Him? Mindsets that disagree with what Jesus said the Father is really like?  Mindsets that make it difficult or impossible for you to trust Him?

If you ask him to show you the lies you have believed about Him, He will show you.  In His goodness he will give you the opportunity to repent and show you the truth that you have needed as a key to unlock a whole new adventure with Him.  Are you willing to exchange an old mindset to agree with Jesus?

I pray that the answer breaks your heart in all the RIGHT places and will free up a space in your heart for bigger, better new dreams.  The dreams that He dreams for you.

Order now through March 10, 2017 and get 30% off on all products!

Click here to order:  Our Products

Thanks for supporting WholeheartedWomen.org

This is adapted from a post on my personal page earlier this week:

This morning I awoke from a dream. In the dream, I was very aware of all of the current difficulties that my daughter, Katy and everyone responsible for her care are dealing with.  To enumerate current problems:

Katy was diagnosed almost 12 years ago with Rett Syndrome.  A rare genetic mutation that manifests as a neurological disorder.  As a part of Rett Syndrome, Katy lost the ability to talk.  She lost use of her hands for any useful purpose, like reading a book or using a computer or even to feed herself.  Her breathing is irregular, she either hyperventilates or holds her breath very often.  The breath holding has become a bigger part of the day and makes it difficult for her to concentrate on schoolwork.

Katy does walk, but, due to global apraxia, cannot continue in a purposeful direction for very long without assistance.  In the last year, it has become a problem that she constantly tries to scoot out of her seat, making it necessary to pull her back up into her chair.  She weighs about 100 pounds now so that is a tiring task.  We believe this is due to discomfort from scoliosis, another common Rett side effect.  Katy has one leg significantly shorter than the other and one forearm shorter as well.  This means she requires a lift in one shoe.  Her physical limitations mean that audio books and movies are her main activity.  Lately she seems to have lost interest in most movies.  She loves to be outside and the cool weather is good for that, but she does not perspire much, (another Rett issue), and that means that in warm weather we cannot stay outside for long.  All of this is the most obvious assortment of “steal, kill, destroy.” (John 10:10)  Essentially, Katy is in captivity to her body.  That is not OK.

Since the day of her diagnosis, almost 12 years ago, the scripture verse that I have clung to is John 9:1-5, “As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. “Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?”

“It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.  We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us.  The night is coming, and then no one can work.  But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.”

Immediately when we received the diagnosis, the enemy tried to come and say that it is because of our sin that she was born this way.  The word of God immediately came to me and I said, “No.  That is not true.  This happened so that the power of God could be seen in her.” The word of God is the truth and it is our only offensive weapon in spiritual warfare.  It is the very same weapon that Jesus used when He was tempted in the desert.

With this dream last night calling my attention to her suffering and ours, I feel that the Lord is saying it is time for His power to be seen in her.  Jesus said that while He was in the world He was the light of the world.  But later He told the disciples,  “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.  No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.   In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. (Matt 5:14-16) 

Katy’s healing must be a light to the world.  We cannot settle for her being happy in her current state.  Let God’s power be seen in her healing and be a light to the world that the power of God is real and the love of God is present for His people, for those who call on His name.  Let Katy not just be healed, but also, like the leper who came back to give thanks, let her be fully restored in all of her body.  Let her hands regain function, her limbs lengthen to be the same as the other side, her spine be made straight, her mind fully restored.

Katy is a co-heir with Jesus and everything that belongs to Jesus belongs to her right now.  Jesus’ perfect health and abilities belong to Katy.  We claim them for her now.  We want to keep calling out to the Lord on her behalf.  We want to persist in prayer and not give in until she is healed.

We believe the Love of God for Katy is without question and without measure.  We believe the Bible is not a history book, nor a work of fiction or mythology.  Therefore, Let us not be afraid to put Him to the test in crying out for her healing.

We believe that the blood of Jesus was shed so that our sins are forgiven and the body of Jesus was broken so that our bodies are healed.

So,

“As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it.  For God says,  “At just the right time, I heard you.  On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6: 1-

Please pray with us.  On Wednesday, February 15, 2017, my husband and I will be initiating a fast for the next 40 days.  It will end on Sunday, March 26.  If you are willing to fast, even 1 meal or 1 day with us and pray, we believe the prayers of many will be heard.  In Jesus, all God’s promises are Yes and Amen.   Let us believe his promises wholeheartedly and expect Him to answer with Yes and Amen!

In my day-to-day, life can seem like a fog that keeps my view of heavenly Father, myself, and others in an obscure blur.  Then, when I least expect it, God’s love comes bursting through the misty numbness lighting up my senses, and illuminating my shadowy heart. 

Around this time last year, the Holy Spirit directed a small band of warrior sisters and brothers to petition heaven for reconciliation of ethnic groups in our region by performing a prophetic act.  Our part of the Bible belt has been riddled with racism of one kind or another for generations.  A prophetic act is something you do in the physical that represents something in the spirit.  Scripture is full of such acts, especially in the major prophets, like Ezekiel. 

The details of what was done, I will share another time, though what occurred felt like it had been read from the pages of an adventure novel.  My story today is about the kisses I got three weeks prior. 

In January of 2016, I had been told by a fellow prayer warrior this prophetic act needed to take place on Bald Rock in SC.  I had never been there, so my husband drove us there to check it out one dreary morning.  Honestly, that day I felt sick… Sick to my stomach, sick to my heart.  The low hanging grey clouds reflected my soul that day.  I fought panicky, looming thoughts of sudden disaster, as we drove across town, and the mountains came into view.  My arch enemy was fighting me hard, but I did not yet know why.

As I stared at the mountains before me, covered in clouds pregnant with rain, I said a silent prayer, “If this is your will and this is the place, please let me see the sunshine while we are there.”

We wound up and around the snake-like road ’til we reached our destination.  The name, Bald Rock, fit this place perfectly, a stark bald sheer rock face on the side of the mountain covered in multi-colored graffiti.  This certainly would not be my choice for the Lord to meet with us to perform this act of reconciliation.  But as He so often reminds me, He chooses the humblest places to show His glory.

My family meandered down the face of the rock, as I casually shuffled my feet at the top.  A beautiful view of the Upstate surrounded us, yet the rain clouds hung lower, and my faith dropped along with them.  Surely this was not the place He had chosen.  Perhaps we had missed Him altogether.

Right as my impatience had almost overcome me, and I began to gather my family to go, I heard a faint singing.  I strained to hear the tune.  The music wafted upon the wind to my ears… the sound of a father gently singing to his daughter several yards below me.  Strumming his guitar, he sang the song my grandfather used to sing to me many years long gone,  “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.  You make me happy when skies are grey.  You’ll never know dear how much I love you.  Please don’t take my sunshine away.” 

As the sweet lyrics reached my ears, the sunshine began to break through the clouds creating a golden sheen on the mountain in front of us.  I began to cry.  Not only had the God of the universe heard my simple whisper in the car on the way there, but He had answered it in such a beautiful, sweet kiss to my heart. 

As if that was not enough, right after beginning our return home in our van, the music on the radio played, “Come to the mountain.  Come to the mountain of the Lord.”  My heart swelled within my chest, as my emotions were no longer able to be contained.

Sometimes, I wonder how I can forget the intimate love of my heavenly Father, but in the moments of the day, I sometimes get lost in the fog.  May the love of our Father break though your grey clouded days, and may His light shine bright!  “You are His sunshine…”