As we were driving home from our ministry weekend in NY state last Sunday, the highway was mostly clear, there was some rain off and on and as we approached the sunset, we were blessed with an amazing view of the sun coming down over the horizon. We had our worship music turned up and Rachel was taking beautiful pictures and recording a video. The view was breathtaking. The way the sun shown through the clouds nearly stopped me in my tracks right there on the highway. As we were praising the Lord for this beautiful view, I was reminded by the Lord that He works everything out for good.
Romans 8:28
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose
Earlier that day, we all packed up, had a wonderful breakfast, and headed over to the church for our last service. It was a message on the great commission. As we were sitting in service, many from our team left to travel back early and make their flights. Christy had left to go pick up her daughter. A little while after she left, Mariah realized that Christy still had her suitcase in the back of Christy's truck. She contacted Christy, but she wouldn't be back in the area for a bit.
Lamentations 3:25-26
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
26 It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
As service ended, more wonderful people came up to be baptized. I believe that weekend there were well over 20 people baptized and experiencing the freedom of deliverance paired with it. I had never thought how well the two paired together. As the old man dies with Christ and the new man is risen, you are revoking the enemy's right to oppress you. It's the perfect opportunity to assist with deliverance. I don't think there was a more beautiful moment than when Liv was baptized. She has gone to church with Pastor D for a while and the bond that they shared during her baptism made me cry like a baby. The freedom she experienced was truly the hand of the Lord picking her up and holding her up to us. Showing her spirit off to all of us as if to say "She is my prize, she is MINE, She is beautiful". I had never wanted to cry for anyone elses salvation, more than hers. I saw my old self in her. I saw the new creation in her as she came out of that baptism experience. I was so thankful that the Lord had blessed me with the discernment to assist in her freedom that day.
Acts 2:38-39
38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
The last baptism that was done, turned into a manifestation. Different members of the team had all come together at different times with different words from the Lord. The teamwork in the Spirit in those couple hours was something that I had never experienced before. It was amazing. I had no idea that I was capable of having the Holy Spirit flow through me in that capacity. We were ministering, casting out demons, healing his heart through words of wisdom and knowledge. At one point he was covering his ears and Mark received a word to begin singing Jesus loves the little children and Jesus loves me this I know. Slowly his hands came off of his ears. Rachel knelt down in front of him and repented on behalf of his mother for the past abuse he suffered. It was beautiful, but it was exhausting. This went on for what seemed like two hours. Finally he was able to get back up and he began to walk with Pastor D around the church grounds. As they were walking the demons cried out "Enough" and fled in the name of Jesus. The gentleman was delivered and the Spirit laid him out cold in the field. We all left him alone for a bit. As he walked back to the tent after about 15 mins of being out cold, you could see a change in his face and countenance. He still has deeper levels of past trauma and forgiveness that he will need to deal with in the Lord's time, but he looked like a different man. He stood taller, his eyes were bluer and more vibrant.
2 Corinthians 10:2-4
2 But I beg you that when I am present I may not be bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold against some, who think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,
This is why I love deliverance. It truly changes people. As we were wrapping up, Christy had driven over to Jake and Rachel's restaurant. Kevin got the call and we drove over there to meet her and pick up Mariah's suitcase. We all had a wonderful meal of wood fired pizzas, salad, fruit and chicken riggis that were delicious. Then we said our goodbyes and went out to head home.
As I was on the highway enjoying that breathtaking view of the sun coming down through the clouds, I was reminded that we wouldn't get to see that view without every event unfolding the way that it had that day. If Mariah hadn't forgotten her suitcase, If those baptism's hadn't taken place, if that deliverance wasn't needed, etc. I could have been eating chicken nuggets and rushing to get home. The Lord reminded me that HIS timing is the only timing we need. All things, even if they seem like setbacks, will work out for good.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
There is a reason that you are where you are. There are reasons that you see the things you do and experience the things that you do. It's not a coincidence that you are in a certain place at a certain time, no matter how random you may think things are. There are always divine appointments at work. I can just picture angels at desks with multiple monitors all going at once. The Lord providing instructions on when and where people should be places and those angels working it all out like a league of divine dispatchers. Not only making sure you get to your destination on time but also throwing road blocks and rerouting you based on the times that you try to go your own way and throw things off course.
As we continued driving the road began to curve to the right. I lost sight of the sunset and had to keep the wheel slightly turned to stay on the road. Then the Lord let me know that this curve, this bend in the road that took my eyes off of the sun, was like sin.
Psalm 106:43
43 Many times he delivered them, but they were BENT on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin.
Proverbs 3:5-6
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Now I can sit here and type about how sin will keep you from seeing the straight and narrow, how sin can really get you off course and I would be right. What I can't do is say that I am sin free and lecture you on how to be that too. We all sin differently. Some may be curved toward drug addition, alcoholism, porn, sex addiction, lying, cheating, stealing etc. Even though most Christians can say that they are not living in sin on purpose, that doesn't mean that they are sin free. As I thought about what to write or how to put this all together, I asked the Lord to reveal to me what my curve in the road is. Then boom...Chick fil a. Now here I am saying woah Lord, that's your chicken. You can't be riding in this car with me telling me that I can't have chick fil a anymore. What the Lord simply reminded me of was the fact that anything that we go to for comfort that isn't the Lord is sin. Some turn to drugs, some to alcohol, some to comfort foods (that's why they are called comfort foods) some turn to you tube videos, tv shows, video games, some turn to secular therapy and prescription drugs. So many people are just chasing their own fleshly comforts, and I am not exempt from this just because my sin looks different than yours.
Romans 7:22-23
22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.
1 John 1:8
8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
As I was repenting for chasing food and sugar for comfort, the Lord reminded me of the straight highway that I had driven a few miles back. The road was straight, I could see so far in the distance, the road was clear, the sun was shining and there was little to no effort needed on my part. Even if I needed to take my hands off of the wheel for a moment, I was free to do so. Then I was reminded of the effort needed to stay in that curve. My arms had to be active in turning that wheel and keeping it turned. I couldn't let go, I'd most likely wreck if I did. Even though the curves in the road didn't last that long, the Lord put it on my heart that if I was driving like that for hours, days, weeks, months, that my arms would be exhausted and it would be harder and harder for me to stay in my lane, let alone on the road. It takes effort to stay in your sin. It's fleshly effort. You pick up that bottle, you lay in that bed unmarried, you do that drug, you eat that food, you turn on that video game, you turn on that tv and change the channel. You choose your thoughts, thoughts of jealousy, anger, hatred, racism, political battles. You choose your opinions. You have to put effort into your sin.
How amazing would it be to just REST IN HIM. How amazing would it be to have that peace, that joy, that simplicity of the fact that He is yours and you are HIS. It takes more effort to stay in sin than it does to rest in Him.
Exodus 33:14
14 And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
Psalm 91:1
91 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
It's time for the wheat to separate form the tares. It is time for disciples to rise up and speak truth and life into this nation. It is time to stop feeding congregations milk when they clearly need a steak chucked at their faces.
Isaiah 60:22
22 A little one shall become a thousand, And a small one a strong nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.”
There will soon come a time when everyone is at each other's throats. There will soon come a time where you'll have to take a stand one way or another. Between Matthew 24 and Revelation, we will see Christians being killed for their beliefs. We will see houses and families divided based on the truth of the word. In the book of acts Paul was stoned and dragged out into the city. They beat him near death for preaching the truth. Can you handle being stoned for the Lord? Can you handle being martyred for the truth of the Gospel? Can you even handle losing a few Facebook friends or having people look at you weird for sharing a little bit of Jesus? Can you handle people not wanting to have lunch or get together with you because the Christ you bring into the room with you makes them uncomfortable in their sin? Can you handle the narrow path? Is anything worth going to hell for, is anyone worth going to hell for? We are running out of time for you to be lukewarm and not go all in with the Lord. Is the life you are living worth being spit out by the Lord when that time comes.
Matthew 24:36
36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.
Acts 14:19-20
19 Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there; and having persuaded the multitudes, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. 20 However, when the disciples gathered around him, he rose up and went into the city. And the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.
Yet here is the thing about the next part of that story. As Paul was laying there, stoned nearly to death, the scripture points out that the disciples (not the church members, the disciples...wheat vs tares) the disciples gathered around him, he then rose up and entered the city and on the next day he went out to another city. We need to keep our fellow disciples close to us. We need to keep our Spirit family close to us. I can imagine that being stoned nearly to death and dragged would hurt pretty bad. Yet, with the power of the Lord as the disciples gathered round him, he rose up. There is power and healing in the Lord. There is power in a gathering of true disciples that can never be experienced any other way than with a gathering of the saints. We don't need more churches or church services. We need discipled saints to gather in the name of Jesus, now more than ever.
Rise up, it's almost furnace casting time and that hell fire burns for eternity. The Lord is separating the wheat from the tares. Scripture says that both grow together. it is possible to sit in church, read your bible and still be a tare as the word says that you will grow with the wheat. The question is, will you be gather into the barn of our heavenly father, or tossed into the fires of hell?
Matthew 13:30
30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”
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