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Order Renewed

A little over two weeks ago, I had a dream in which I saw flashes of various mechanical and electronic system panels that were spinning out of control. First, God showed me these systems individually. Then He showed me that they were not (dys)functioning independently of one another but were connected. As I felt the system’s overwhelming disorder, suddenly, He made me aware of a simple control switch. He gave me the understanding that all the chaos would stop if I would just flip the switch. And so, I did. That’s when I woke up. 

This is what I believe to be the interpretation of this dream…

The control switch represents God’s light of truth, which in this case, is that He has given us all power and authority over that which battles for power over us. As we trust God in new territory, our faith is built and our minds are renewed in Christ. As we abide in Him, we are renewed in His strength to overcome that which tries to overcome us. When we choose to walk out God’s truth in faith believing, we come into His new order, where He works out our salvation for our good and His glory (Re 21:5, 2 Co 5:17). 

An important strategy here is to hold onto His directives and be determined to operate with Him and His ways. If we have inched away from Him and found that life feels out of control, it’s not too late to realign.

Sometimes, coming up higher means going back and picking up where we left off in a particular divine assignment to unstop the wells, so God’s stream can flow through us again in the way and at the level He intended.

Since all of our divine assignments flow together like streams into a river, when we shift our attention from the eternal to the temporal, we will sense a decline in momentum and value as our efforts prove life-draining. This is a time when the enemy of our lives likes to take advantage of our weakness, especially by provoking us to discount our actions to believe it’s just a little thing.  

God’s truth is that, when we remain in His specific directives for our specific divine assignments, we will find them to be life-giving, because God is our life-source and He is with us in them. He isn’t in draining distractions that lead to a bad attitude. But rather where He first instructed us to be, which is working alongside Him to build His Kingdom.

This is very similar to remaining in the place of God’s glory during tribulation, where attacks can feel fierce, and pain is a distraction that battles to provoke us to retaliate against others and God’s deep restoration of us. 

In the Bible, we don’t have to look any further than Ecclesiastes 1, where King Solomon’s pessimistic tone and analogies of life reveal his perceived loss of purpose. His tormented heart and attitude were greatly influenced by the distraction of his 700 ungodly wives (1 Ki 11:3). 1 Kings 11:4 AMPC reveals that, “For when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not perfect (complete and whole) with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.” 

King Solomon proved out that broken-heartedness can happen even during “good” times, when God is building all around us and that placing our attention on distractions leads to a bad attitude and destruction of life.

Like King Solomon, we are called to actively build with God in specific ways. And when our eyes depart from the heart of God in this, the enemy will take our time and energy as we hand it over. These little fox distractions can cause harm in the form of delay, which can result in us feeling stuck and disappointed. Ultimately, this kind of false surrender can cause us to feel exhausted with no redemptive victory to show for our flesh-driven efforts, only vanity. And unless we repent, we can miss God’s rewards.

Therefore, we must be careful to set our focus on The One True God and keep our hearts attuned to His, lest we fall to foolishness.

If you have gotten off-track, even a little bit, pray with me if you will…

Dear Lord, 

Thank You that Your mercy is new every morning. I repent of believing the lie that distractions, that cause me to turn from You, are like work breaks. I renounce this lie and humbly ask You to restore a good attitude in me. I declare Your truth that keeping my eyes on You and continuing to work alongside You will bring the breakthrough that You and I desire to be fulfilled. Help me to seek You, Your will, purpose and plan for my life instead of searching for new things outside of Your schedule. Help my heart to perceive the value of what You have already given to me. Help me to run in sync with You and not run from You. You alone are my best escape, not any vain imagination. So, help me to live out Your true vision for my life in it fullness. Thank You for this breakthrough of truth and understanding and for restoring Your order in my life.

In Jesus’ Mighty Name,

Amen. 

This devo was graciously re-posted by the Salem Web Network, which includes iBelieve.com.

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Reset Challenge

The Birds

Three weeks ago, I heard three individual birds sing on three different days. Where we live downtown, this is highly unusual, especially this time of year. 

On the first day, I was working at my desk in the 2 a.m. hour. The birdsong was coming from across the street. I looked out the window but didn’t see a bird in the darkness. Nonetheless, it stopped me in my tracks as I so enjoyed the sweet melody in the stillness of this early morning hour. 

On the second day, a bird sang again, early in the morning, just outside my bedroom window. It awakened me but I didn’t see the bird this time either. However, I enjoyed the melody nonetheless. 

On the third day, in the 7 a.m. hour, while making my bed, I heard a bird sing again, just outside the bedroom window again. This time, I looked out and saw her. It was a little brown bird perched on the branch of a perfectly symmetrical, but leafless, tree alone, singing with her whole heart. Her voice was loud, crystal clear, and her melody was indescribably beautiful. 

Each of these three times, I knew God sent the bird(s) to praise Him and to minister pure sweetness to my heart, which prompted me to praise Him along with them (Rev 4:11 TPT). I knew I was not alone, and I sensed there was more to it. So, I asked Holy Spirit what else He desired I see and know. 

Three Scriptures

First, He highlighted three scriptures. They are:

Luke 1:45 TPT, which says, “Great favor rests upon you, for you have believed every word spoken to you from the Lord.”

Then Psalm 55:22 TPT, which says, “So here’s what I’ve learned through it all: Leave all your cares and anxieties at the feet of the Lord, and measureless grace will strengthen you.”

And lastly, Psalm 72:7 TPT, which says, “In the days of his reign the righteous will spring forth with the abundance of peace and prosperity forevermore.” 

The Message

Holy Spirit then showed me a Word-vision, in which I saw “A New Day” spelled out. As He continued to build His message, this is what I believe it to be for anyone with whom it resonates:

It’s time for your whole heart to awaken and arise with your eyes wide open on Me to receive more of My new glorious day I have brought you to (Is 60). You have seen the beginnings of the manifestations of my greater promises. But there is much more in magnitude (excellence) that is very near. I require you to tangibly receive it as I bring you into it. In other words, there won’t be time for you to process long. I have given you that grace in the past in order to prepare you, in every way necessary, for the now that you see happening. It’s show time, daughter, which is the time I show up for you and align you physically into these greater promises. It’s time for you to receive them in manifest form, to fully step into them with your trust in Me, and not just dream about them anymore. It’s time for your heart to sing again as I make your dreams come true. It may feel like it’s happening fast and, in your face at times, but know that this is My doing and that you are ready. It’s not too much for you to absorb, because I revealed to you what would come to pass well ahead of time and even gave you wisdom and guidance in advance to help you advance now. So, you know what I AM doing and what you are to do. Just continue to faithfully follow My lead, and I will continue to reveal to you how to navigate, even more intricately, this new glorious place that I will continue to bring you into. Remember, I AM with you. I AM God and you cannot fail when you remain close to Me. So, keep stepping with Me, because I AM with you all the way. Remain in this life-giving place with Me, because it’s My time for you to reign with Me in greater, manifest ways and places that will make your heart sing again.

The Challenge

So, friends, God is commanding our attention. In this hour of shift, He is perfecting our hearts to align with His as we receive His invitation to stand alert and march forward with Him (Ep 6:15 TPT). Herein lies our challenge. Are we willing to let go of any old mind-sets, habits and schedules that would burden us in order to take on the new He requires of us? Are we willing to move onward in relationship with Him as light?

We know that God’s best requires a narrow path. And this narrow path may require some resets of attitude and actions of us in order to sustain the fullness of joy in God’s promises. His way of truth is the only way.

Divine resets begin in the heart and are purposed to help establish God’s holy and righteous intent for us in the earth. They are a necessary part of our growth process as they help strengthen us in Him to receive more of His blessings to be a blessing and to build His Kingdom.

So, for those who are willing, pray with me…

Dear Lord, 

Thank You that “You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness…You have laid your hand on me” for victory (Ps 139:5 TPT)! You say that by constantly using my faith, the life of Christ will be released deep inside of me, and the resting place of Your love will become the very source and root of my life (Ep 3:17). You say that then I will be empowered to discover what every holy one experiences—the great magnitude (excellence) of Your astonishing love in all its dimensions (Ep 3:18).

So, Lord, I believe You at Your Word, and I invite You to get me there. Reset my heart to rest in You as You show me the way along Your narrow path. I choose to trust You in this strengthening process.

In Jesus’ Mighty Name,

Amen.

This video-devo was graciously re-posted by the Salem Web Network, which includes iBelieve.com.

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Master-Peace

Every time I gaze at a sunset, I am reminded of my future. We all have one, you know. We’re all going somewhere. 

Jesus endured the agony of the cross for the joy that was set before him (He 12:2). He knew His future was joyous and involved mercy and honor on the other side of our painful judgment that He took upon Himself. He knew He was returning home and being established in a higher place of eternal life with exponential reach.

He was kind in leaving us with His peace of reconciliation to strengthen us for our journeys on earth (Jn 14:27, Ps 29:11, Ep 2:14 TPT). We know we are to follow Him as our Prince of Peace and allow His peace to rule in our hearts, since we were called to His peace (Co 3:15).

So, what is He leading you through and to?

What does mercy look like now and on the other side of your challenge?

It should look like Jesus in the midst and Jesus exalted when our eyes and thoughts are fixed on Him (He 12:2, 3:1).

He is where we find our resolve and rejoice of shalom (peace), which is “wholeness, health, security, well-being and salvation” (Tyndale Bible Dictionary).

He is about masterfully restoring and transforming us as we run to Him and come to know our glorious Jesus more. He is about having us receive and extend His love, truth and grace as He works out our salvation on earth. And about walking with us in His victory of purpose and vision for our lives, no matter what.

Shalom (peace) inherently points to our blood covenant with God. As a reflection of this, and as an expression of peace as fruit of His Spirit, it also points to our covenant relationships (with His people), including marriages.

In this light, a little more than two weeks ago, Holy Spirit revealed to me that He is supernaturally reconciling people to one another on a level that none of us could ever do in our own strength. He showed me that He is working to restore relationships that we thought were way beyond impossible and that we are going to see a fountain of life come through these to bless many.

Holy Spirit gave me a glimpse of how patiently and intricately He has worked to reconcile people on a generational level, while working out their salvation over years at the root. He has been masterfully working this wholeness to shift people’s legacies for dramatically better, fortified, lasting, more Godly futures. Legacies that can endure.

Holy Spirit revealed specific people to me, as a close-up example in my own life, and how He has strategically and miraculously linked them. How He is working to revive them and restore their bloodlines now and forward for higher blessing and much greater outward fruit for His Kingdom.

Soon, these manifestations of reconciliation will come into their fullness of purpose. Soon, as we continue to grow in God’s grace, we will see a greater shift toward these life-changing divine connections to be blessed through them and alongside them as we work together in newfound ways (1 Co 16:9). 

We will discover joy that overflows exponentially as God brings our brokenness into more of His Shalom (peace) of wholeness that delights our hearts.

We will experience our role in kingship in a new and more above-ground way. We will see how our David, Joseph and Job preparations paid off, where, like them, we ran to and with The Prince of Peace and were protected and restored to come into the authentic places to which we were called, anointed and appointed. 

We will experience the establishment of Psalm 85:10 TPT, which says, “Your mercy and your truth have married each other. Your righteousness and peace have kissed.” And Psalm 72:7 TPT, which says, “In the days of his reign the righteous will spring forth with the abundance of peace and prosperity forevermore.”

We will know, even more, Holy Spirit as our Person of Peace as we continue to experience His strategy of peace as our path to provide us with a more fruitful lifestyle of protection and projection in the earth that rules victoriously.

So, there are more walks of faith and sprints of new order before us as God continues to bring shifts in our marathon for the betterment of our lives and others. From darkness to light, where one day ends and another begins, He is with us working His plan. We must keep this at the forefront of our minds as we progress, lest we become self-sufficient and limit God’s best in our lives.

We can invite His super into our natural to help us by His grace-power. It’s the only way to receive and give maximum benefit. We cannot fail with Him.

So, pray with me if you will…

Dear Lord, 

Thank You for blessing us with peace and for giving us an “[unyielding and impenetrable] strength” (Ps 29:11 AMPC). Thank You for giving us “abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control” (2 Ti 1:7 AMPC, Ro 8:6). Let peace rule in our hearts and let our passions for life be restored, tasting joy in every breakthrough you bring to us (Co 3:15, Ps 51:12 TPT). Hold us close to You with a willing spirit that obeys whatever You say. Help us to put into practice the example of all that we have heard from You and seen in our lives so that You, as our God of peace, will be with us in all things, including in our relationships (Ph 4:9 TPT, Ps 34:14). 

In Jesus’ Mighty Name,

Amen

“Now, may the Lord himself, the Lord of peace, pour into you his peace in every circumstance and in every possible way. The Lord’s tangible presence be with you all” (2 Th 3:16 TPT). May His peace cascade over you and rest upon you (Ju 1:2, 2 Th 1:2 TPT).

To God be the glory.

This video-devo was graciously re-posted by the Salem Web Network, which includes iBelieve.com.

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Dominion Rising

As our Lord releases us more into our new dominion, He highlighted a key scripture to me about receiving His fullness of promise. It illustrates our unwavering walk with Him and reminds us that His Promised Land requires a promised lane. 

The key verse is Isaiah 26:2 TPT, which says, “Open the gates and let a righteous, faith-filled people enter in. Perfect, absolute peace surrounds those whose imaginations are consumed with you; they confidently trust in you.” Similarly, verse 3 in the Amplified Version says, “You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in both inclination and character], Because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation].”

Shortly after writing down the key verse, I took a break and felt led to look out the window. What I saw was an undeniable confirmation: A state constable had pulled up and parked in a public space, just outside my front door. This was most unusual, and I knew in my spirit that our Lord was giving me a visual for this message. 

So, I returned to my desk and looked up the word constable in Webster’s. 

Webster’s says that constable literally means an “officer of the stable. A high officer of royal court or noble household…The warden or governor of a royal castle or a fortified town…responsible for keeping the peace and for minor judicial duties.”

I was taken by this symbolism. So, in digging a little further I looked up the word con in “con-stable.”

I found that con can be an abbreviation for the words continue and confidence (Webster’s).

Then, I considered the numbers on the constable’s vehicle tag. They were 2199.

Two can be a Biblical number for change, or agreement like a covenant. One can be a Biblical number for unity and the priority of God. Nine can be a Biblical number for fruitfulness. In this case, double fruitfulness, because there were two nines. 

So, considering all of this, I believe our Lord is revealing that He is calling us to rest in His peace as we walk with Him into a new order of great blessing by His arrangement. We are to continue along this path with the eyes of our hearts fixed on Him, as our priority, believing Him at His Word and confident in His authority and grace. As we do this, we will realize, even more, that no challenge we face is too difficult for our God of the impossible, our God of Angel Armies. To our Prince of Peace, anything that comes against His plan is substandard and, therefore, minor in power and position. 

I believe God is reminding us to determine to walk on the high road of peace in any battle, trusting Him to reveal His wisdom and victory-strategies to us as we remain submitted to Him by faith, like Joshua, who was known for his careful obedience. 

If, at any point, we feel inclined toward uncertainty, we can remember God’s strategic Word in James 1:5-8 ESV, which says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”

Therefore, we must we trust God more than ourselves. We must remain steadfast in our faith, not leaning on our own understanding as we continue to enter into more new territory. We must keep moving forward, trusting that God knows what He’s doing and has our best interests at heart. This kind of stability requires intimacy with Him to see as He sees, which means our hearts must be wholly submitted to Him, like Caleb did as he entered into his Promised Land. 

As we proceed God’s way, He will deal with injustices and establish a new manifest order of stability and fruitfulness. Right now, remaining in His peace is the key to advancement. It won’t be as hard as the enemy would have us think. 

So, pray with me, if you will…

Dear Lord,

Thank You for Your gift of peace and for discipling us to walk closely with You. Thank You for Your peace-strategy that stabilizes us to advance in Your promises. Help us to continue to “walk in integrity and trust You without wavering” (Ps 26:1 TPT). Thank You for already having made the way for us to receive Your greater dominion by providing all we need, including Your wisdom. We choose life by Your Spirit, above our flesh; and we choose to submit to You fully by faith, believing You have our very best interests at heart. Thank You for loving us and helping us. We love You, Lord.

In Jesus’ Mighty Name,

Amen. 

This video-devo was graciously re-posted by the Salem Web Network, which includes iBelieve.com.

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Godly Division Encounters 

Two weeks ago, our Lord awakened me at 2 a.m., for two days in a row. Two days later, He showed me a vision of a load of laundry in a washing machine that had finished its last spin cycle. It had ended with all the laundry stuck on one side of the tub. 

I believe God’s message to be this:

A shift is coming in a distinct time and hour that will cause life to feel off-balance. But this shift will bring an end to what has been. Even though this cycle will be over, know it is truly one part of a two-part restoration process. My mercy and grace will not stop short. I will faithfully lift you into another cycle just beyond. It will be one of greater freedom and fullness. In My love for you, the second shift will foster a joyful revival to give you a more beautiful new beginning, as well as a hope and a future, and an ending that will glorify Me. I am sending you into a more honorable place to bear much more fruit for My glory.

Friends, you may know that two in the Hebrew language can mean “change.” Many in God’s Kingdom have been talking about double-portion changes or shifts happening during this year of 2022. And I agree that there are and will be important shifts. But what will the shifts look like in each of our lives? Because, it will be different for everyone. 

For me, well over a decade ago, our Lord revealed that I would experience a big shift in about two years from now. He clearly revealed what the shift would be and has spoken to me about it and confirmed it countless times over the years in order to prepare me. Therefore, I know that this big shift will not occur in 2022 but in about two years. Furthermore, about two years after He revealed this big shift, He revealed a second shift that will occur about a year after the first. This brings us into the years 2024 and 2025 with 2025 being a Jubilee year. 

One way our Lord prepares us for big shifts before us is in small increments in advance. So, in this most recent vision of laundry, God is continuing to keep His Word ever before me to motivate me to prepare as the two shifts near. God is tweaking my mindset to align more with His timeline, so I will not feel overwhelmed when they occur. God does this in love so, when the appointed times come, I will be able to power through in a fortified manner. 

So, what has God been speaking to you about forthcoming shifts? Has He revealed your next steps for Kingdom growth? Has He given you alert messages or any specific directions that seem big or small? Because we each need to hear from Him for ourselves.

Shifts require us to come out of our normal routines and make time and take action for what God is working to bring. Sometimes they feel like spring cleaning as our Lord leads us to align everything in our world with His new order. 

In shifting us, God reminds us to have an attentive hear, an active response and a deep, abiding trust to remain close to Him in the journey. I like to cite my Bible friend, Joshua, who courageously and obediently responded to God’s unique strategies for each battle in his Promised Land. Joshua didn’t lean on his own understanding. But rather trusted God above his own limited expertise, even though he was mentored by Moses.

So, apprehending God’s promises involves hearing from Him, believing Him for what looks impossible and laying hold of His truth with action by doing what He says above all else. In this light, in order to receive the dominion God has handed over to us, we must fight resistance God’s way in both familiar and new territory.

These are the two areas in which divisions occur as a result of gaining ground. And both are necessary (Matt 10:34). One involves a break-away from familiar resistance behind us. The other involves breakthrough against enemy resistance forward. We can encounter God in the midst of these divisions for protection and strategy when we seek Him.

Therefore, for us to forge ahead like Joshua and Caleb, we would have to depart from among those who are unwilling to go with us, while pushing back enemy resistance before us. In doing this, we can remember that our God is both our rear guard and our shield, who goes before us to make us victorious. 

Our covenant (agreement) with God must be stronger than any other so we can make right choices that represent Him well in the earth. This is what I believe the shifts, the twos are primarily about, which is God working out His righteous priority of covenant promises in our lives to reveal His glory.

God has measured out His grace for our journeys. He knows what it will take to help the willing power forward with Him to bring wholeness. God’s faithful ones will come out ready to enjoy new life on a greater level. So, let’s honor God as we continue to follow Him as Alpha and Omega (Re 21:6).

To God be the glory. 

This video-devo was graciously re-posted by the Salem Web Network, which includes iBelieve.com.