Stir the Deep with Me: Lesson 4
Structure of the Word of God
Other Related Videos
Introduction to Mentoring Program
Lesson 1: The Process of Quiet Time
Lesson 2: Coming as a Bride
Lesson 3: Holy Spirit as The Teacher
Lesson 5: Perspectives for being in the Word of God
Lesson 6: What to Expect?
Lesson 7: Review and Mentoring Others
This video is the structure of the Word of God and some thoughts on why it is written as it is.
1 Corinthians 16:14 Let all that you do be done with love.
Here is a little something – simple and straightforward and yet so powerful – that God has been bringing to my attention lately – the look of love.
There is so much in a look. Sometimes far more than words and actions, for a look or the eyes reveal the heart. Others can usually sense what we are feeling. (Blog post on this topic) They may not know exactly what it is we think and feel, but they can usually sense the nature of it and our eyes are a big part of revealing that because they reveal our heart.
How many times have people been saying and doing one thing and yet their eyes say something completely different? How many times have we done that?
The look of . . .
Fear of what others think of you
Competition with others
Judgment on who others are or what they do
Jealousy for what others have
Lust for others
Arrogance that you are better in some way
Pride in who you are
Nothing in that you feel nothing – don’t care
Neglect in that you don’t really notice others
Control of others, their emotions, or actions
Disgust in who others are or what they do
Disappointment in who others are
But our desire should be to give a look of love, always.
A change in look comes from a change on the inside. I’m finding that as the Spirit grows me in God’s love – the looks I give are starting to come from a place of love. You can’t give what you don’t have. And the only real love there is is from God. And only by being united to Him in truth and spirit can you know and give His love, thus truly a look of love.
God’s love entails truth, compassion, openness, and sincerity. It expects nothing in return. It is active not passive and engaging not distant. When we know and have His love then it fills our heart, thus our words and actions and looks. Not that we will always look in love, because the flesh is still with us for the time. But as we gain a deep knowing of God’s love a shift takes place – where the flesh decreases and the spirit that holds God’s love increases, thus we see less of the former and more of the later.
What do your looks entail? For your family, spouse, children, strangers, co-workers, fellow believers, friends?
It is a tremendous prayer of a child to God to seek to know and to give the love of God because when we have His love in us it flows out of our lives into the lives of others in all sincerity.
Luke 11:34 The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.
Stir the Deep with Me: Lesson 3
Holy Spirit as The Teacher
Other Related Videos
Introduction to Mentoring Program
Lesson 1: The Process of Quiet Time
Lesson 2: Coming as a Bride
Lesson 4: Structure of the Word of God
Lesson 5: Perspectives for being in the Word of God
Lesson 6: What to Expect?
Lesson 7: Review and Mentoring Others
This video is on trusting the Holy Spirit to be The Teacher, your Teacher.
Being new to California, most all my friends and social life was wrapped up in the church we were attending – besides people I interacted with at work. My husband and I had met some nice people and were very plugged in to the church life. Leaving wasn’t easy but we knew what God was leading us to do. The more we read and sought in the Word, the clearer it became to us what would become of the church system (not true church) and we started to see it happening around us. It wasn’t our reasons but God’s leading through His Word. On the flip side, He was drawing us deeper into His Word. In brief this is some of what we read and saw, the church system as a whole is leading people to depend on the system not God, to cultivate and nurture a relationship with the system not God, to trust in the system for spiritual nourishment not God. The church often tries to play the role the Spirit should be playing in people’s lives.
Once I started to see what was happening in the church and how blinded I had been to it all, I had to follow God’s lead to another fellowship. As an old church goer, but fairly new true follower of Christ, I needed to establish God as my foundation, something the church always had been. I had trusted the church for my spiritual growth, to “feed” me, my source of truth, and so on. I thought God was my source, but honestly my relation to Him was through the Church. But now a shift was occurring in my life. I had been greatly influenced by others, but now my influence was God’s Word. I was new at cultivating a relationship with God, but I was on the path to building a foundation in Him, something I desperately needed, we all need.
After we left, there was one woman who beside my husband and family was my “fellowship”. It was that way for several years. I prayed about being in the fellowship God desired for me, but nothing manifested. I resolved to trust God that He was able to lead me where He wanted me. During those years, God and I developed a tremendous relationship. He truly became my Rock, my Teacher, comfort and counselor. I needed those “alone” years so that He truly became my foundation, not someone or something else. Over time, my beliefs shifted from being grounded in human teachers words to God’s Word – and that changed everything.
Once that foundation was established, then God started to bring into my life other godly women for me to “fellowship” with. It wasn’t the formal gathering of being inside a church, but souls hungry and desirous coming together real, open and honest. We talked about the tough issues, scripture, what God was teaching us. In that environment encouragement, prayer, exhortation, praise, and worship from the heart came alive. I began to understand what true fellowship was about. I think we get too locked in to how we think fellowship should be and we don’t trust God to truly lead us to what is best for us and those around us – and that various for each one of us.
Many of us have been so ingrained about what fellowship is that we are blinded to other true fellowship that God has in store for us. We get wrapped up in being in the “right” one because of what others have said that if we aren’t in the church system we’ll fall away. We don’t trust God to protect and provide. We push, seek and all the while neglect to trust God and develop a relationship with Him. People are often more concerned about being in the right fellowship than cultivating a real relationship with God grounded in truth – crazy how backwards everything is.
Our life is one of faith and faith is all about trust. The question is who is our faith in really? Those years alone with God put all that to the test as well as refined it. God knows what we need. But we need to follow His lead not man’s “should dos” . We need to abide in His Word. We need to trust that He can provide and protect us no matter where we are – and that level of trust comes from taking time to develop a relationship with Him.
This is a bit of side note, but relevant. I’m having an emotional morning . . . last night I had a horrible dream. It was weird and futuristic, but the basis is there was an earthquake and I was separated from my two cats. It was days before I could get to the place where they were. My heart felt like it was torn in a million pieces. I went searching for them among all the madness as everyone was trying to take care of their own. I finally found Malcolm curled up sleeping in a corner. I hardly recognized him. Dirt covered his white fur. I picked him up. He was much smaller because he hadn’t eaten or had water for days. He was weak and limp in my arms. I was trying to find him some water, but couldn’t find any and at the same time find Sophie, his sister. She is the more frightened one. I looked everywhere. I found a cat I thought was her, but wasn’t. I carried Malcolm around running looking frantically for her and I woke never finding her.
My heart is still aching in my chest. Its amazing how dreams create real emotions in you. But the thought of them so helpless, dependent, defenseless, and needing me to care for them and not being able to was overwhelming. Even telling my husband about my dream this morning tears started to fill my eyes. I love those little guys.
The love I feel is a nit compared to the love that God feels for us, and this is where this is relevant to this topic. We are just as helpless, dependent, defenseless, and needing His to care constantly. God loves us so incredibly much. But so often we doubt His love and don’t trust it. We trust man and those around us more. We don’t trust that He will really care and protect us. So, in our beliefs, we never fully step into that place under His wing. It was a hard dream, but reminded me about the depth of His love for His children.
I know many are struggling with this whole church situation. God loves you so much. We can trust His lead and that wherever we are He will guard and protect if we seek and abide in Him and His Word. The end is upon us. These days are tough. Things are changing just as Christ warned us. But God promised to always be there and protect and provide and He will not let His promises fail to His children who He loves beyond words. The journey God has lead me on has been exactly what I needed. It has been incredible. But I needed to trust Him and I was able as I understood His love for me, which came from abiding in His Word and cultivating a real relationship with Him.
Stir the Deep with Me: Lesson 2
Coming as a Bride
Below is the video of the second instructional lesson for the Mentoring Program, Stir the Deep with Me.
Other Videos for Mentoring Program:
Introduction to Mentoring Program
Lesson 1: The Process of Quiet Time
Lesson 3: Holy Spirit as The Teacher
Lesson 4: Structure of the Word of God
Lesson 5: Perspectives for being in the Word of God
Lesson 6: What to Expect?
Lesson 7: Review and Mentoring Others
In this video I talk about how to approach that time with God as a bride or wanting to be His bride – for the gentlemen someone you deeply love 😉
Sophie: During the Sneezing Days
The event I describe below occurred at the beginning of last year. This experience radically altered my perspective of my prayer life. Since then, my belief continues to increase in the power of prayer. Prayer is indeed one of the most powerful things we can do.
Malcolm and Sophie are two of my cherished treasures. God uses these Ragdoll felines to teach me many lessons, but . . . I have to seek those lessons. About a month and a half after they moved in, Sophie started sneezing. When it continued to progress to mucus flying out her nose, I took her to the vet and discovered it was an upper respiratory infection. On antibiotics, she immediately started getting better. After being off them for a couple of days, it came back and continued to get worse. We went through another around of antibiotics. Again, she got better, but after a couple of days it returned. Poor thing! I hated putting all these antibiotics in her because I was sure it would have long term affects on her little immune system. Once more, back to the vet. He took some cultures so in a couple of days we would know exactly what bacteria was the culprit. The next day she was sneezing up a storm, which was common because getting the cultures irritated her little nose. But at that point I had enough! I’d been praying for God to heal her, but it dawned on me I hadn’t sought for the lesson in all this. God, what are you trying to teach me? Obviously it wasn’t a lesson for Sophie, it must be for me.
Thankfully, God quickly replied. It had to do with the power of prayer for others. Here’s what I learned. I love Sophie more than you would think a human could love a cat. God loves me and all that concerns me is His concern. He cares for Sophie but also because of my love for her. When we care deeply about someone, God not only desires to help that person for her sake but also because of His care for us. His concern is heightened because of our concern – that is the nature of love. Heart-felt prayer spoken in faith shows we believe in God’s love for us. It’s critical that we believe God loves us because it affects our prayers. This is another reason we need to understand our value, last week’s blog. We need to have a sense of value of ourselves to be able to accept and believe God’s love for us so we can pray with the conviction that our prayers matter.
God needed me to understand this truth so I would pray for those He laid on my heart with the confidence that my prayers made an impact. I needed to believe that my prayers influenced Him because of His love for me, which then could affect the lives of others. Otherwise, my lack of belief drained the power of my prayers. See, my belief in the power of prayer had started to wane. I had started to think my prayers didn’t have THAT much impact. This mindset crept in as I was seeking to understand His sovereignty. He is in control and His will prevails so how much impact do my prayers really have? Not much was my thought until this situation. I didn’t realize how strongly I was holding this false belief until this lesson. I knew prayer was important, but I didn’t understand how much of an impact it had, especially mine. Now I know that my concern and love enhances His concern because that is love. This is the power of prayer of God’s children in numbers. If you had one child concerned about a pet – how much that would affect your heart. What if you had five children concerned – how much more would that affect your heart?
But it isn’t just about numbers, but about the state of the heart. There is power manifested when we intercede for another out of love. This is why our love needs to be with sincerity. Love is an extremely powerful force in our lives. It changes others. It moves the heart of God. This is why it is important to seek the love of God to replace our corrupted version of it so that we can truly love others because if affects our prayers for them. If we are just saying the words and our hearts are distant, then the power of prayer is sapped. That’s why vain repetitions are a waste of time. Matthew 6:7 But if we pray with conviction because we truly care it has a considerable impact. This is why sometimes God “lays” someone on our heart. We have a strong pull to pray for them, because the heart matters.
When I realized this insight about the power of prayer wrapped in love and sincerity, Sophie stopped sneezing that night. The cultures came back revealing a certain bacterium, but she was better. Isn’t God good? Glad I asked. She was going through what she did to teach me. I never would have stopped and sought if she wasn’t sick. And my seeking brought me to a very important lesson about the significance of heart-felt prayer.
God loves His children beyond what we can imagine. His heart for us is mighty and what concerns us concerns Him. Prayer is to teach us many things and one is how much He loves us. Even if He doesn’t seem to be healing a child or delivering them from an unhealthy lifestyle or friendship – know that He cares more so for that child because He cares for their life and that is amplified because of your care for them and His care for you. We can’t see the big picture. We don’t know what they may need to go through to learn what they need to learn. But God is listening if you are rightly related to Him through Christ. Proverbs 15:29 We have certain expectations about how things should play out, but God holds everything in His hands. If I hadn’t gone through the tough times I did as a kid, ones I’m sure my mom wished I avoided, then perhaps I wouldn’t have drawn near to God like I have. From those experiences, I learned my need for Him and the extent of His love for me. In the end, her prayers were answered, but it wasn’t a path she expected, but that path I needed to travel. We need to be careful of our expectations and make sure they are in God. If we are God’s and praying with the right heart and motive about a matter, we need to trust that God is working things out as they should be. We have expectations about what the best path or answer to that prayer would be, but we haven’t a clue. We need to trust in His divine wisdom to work it out to everyone’s best.
James 4:3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But the prayer of the upright is His delight.
Needless to say, my prayer life totally changed. Our faith is everything. Our belief affects the power our prayer holds. John 14:12-13 I needed and am thankful for this lesson to increase my faith in the power of prayer. And I’m very glad Sophie is no longer sneezing!!
Sophie: Today
Other blog on Prayer Mountain Moving Prayer
Stir the Deep with Me: Lesson 1
The Process of Quiet Time
Below are the videos of the first instructional lesson for the Mentoring Program, Stir the Deep with Me.
Other Related Videos:
Introduction to Mentoring Program
Lesson 2: Coming as a Bride
Lesson 3: Holy Spirit as The Teacher
Lesson 4: Structure of the Word of God
Lesson 5: Perspectives for being in the Word of God
Lesson 6: What to Expect?
Lesson 7: Review and Mentoring Others
These videos present a guide on how to spend those 40 minutes with God each day cultivating intimacy with Him.
Stir the Deep with Me
7 Week Mentoring Program
I started actively cultivating a deep, real relationship with God in 2001. What I gained is beyond tremendous in every facet of my life. My passion is to share with others what I have learned. Not to teach, but to give others the tools to drink from the fountain of living water themselves. I developed a mentoring program to help others to establish a quiet time with God to cultivate a relationship with Him. I’m posting the program on my blog for those who would like to participate on their own.
Other Related Videos:
Lesson 1: The Process of Quiet Time
Lesson 2: Coming as A Bride
Lesson 3: Holy Spirit as The Teacher
Lesson 4: Structure of the Word of God
Lesson 5: Perspectives for being in the Word of God
Lesson 6: What to Expect?
Lesson 7: Review and Mentoring Others
Watch the video below to hear more about this program.
Below is information on the program.
• Would you like to develop intimacy with God?
• Discover a love for the Word?
• Take your relationship with God to a deeper level?
• Have God’s promises be active in your life?
Stir the Deep with Me: One-on-One Discipleship Mentoring was created to help others develop their one-on-one relationship with God. Its goal is to cultivate intimacy with God and help others fulfill their ultimate purpose to being in a deep relationship with Him in truth and love. It isn’t a Bible study. It is establishing a lifestyle. It is a discipleship with coaching and accountability in spending quiet time with God.
Those with a desire to learn 1.) how to cultivate deeper intimacy with God 2.) how to spend quality alone time that builds a deep, real relationship with God, and 3.) have God as their first love are a good candidate for this program. Those who partake do with the understanding that it’s the journey to fulfillment of the first commandment to love God with all their heart, soul and mind and quiet devotion is of utmost importance among their priorities. It is for those willing to pass on what they will gain.
The 7 weeks include:
A. Participation in ~10 minute instructional meeting (video) each week including the following topics
1. The Process of Quiet Time
2. Coming as a Bride
3. Holy Spirit as The Teacher
4. Structure of the Word of God
5. Perspectives for being in the Word of God
6. What to Expect?
7. Review and Mentoring Others
B. Participation in a brief accountability and counsel meeting as follows:
1. 1st – 4thweeks- 2 times a week
2. 5th – 7th weeks – 1 time a week
C. Your commitment to 40 minutes of one-on-one time a day with God in His Word that will become a part of your daily life.
This journey only works if there is an active engagement and commitment. If you are ready to step into a deep relationship with God and thus the life God has waiting for you and make this commitment you will be blessed beyond measure. This program is the only beginning to a lifelong journey walking hand-in-hand with God.
For the past couple of months the Holy Spirit has been teaching me various mindsets to have in order to be able to listen and follow to Him throughout the day. When we learn to listen and follow the Spirit, our lives become truly powerful as we are consciously connected to Him, operate according to His will not ours, and act in His strength not ours.
Celebrate Each Day
The first mindset the Spirit taught me is to celebrate each day because it’s the only one we have. We will never have the opportunities we have today to love, give, learn, impact someone’s life and so on. We are to enjoy, embrace, and share what we have been given. We can’t go back and repeat a day, what we make of it is what it will forever be, and what we do today affects tomorrow. When you consider the impact and finality of a day, it’s amazing most of us live like we can repeat them. Today is what’s real, which leads me to the next lesson learned.
Psalm 90:12 So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 118:24 This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Stay in the Day
In my early twenties I tried to live by the phrase, live in the moment. Back then, it meant to enjoy each day and not get caught up in the past or future. But the Spirit’s recent instruction brought a bit of a different slant and importance to this mindset. When we are in the moment or stay in the day, as a friend calls it, we are more connected to the Spirit because that is where the Spirit is, therefore that is how we have a spirit-lead life. When our mind is elsewhere we aren’t engaged with Him and not listening to His voice and instruction, which is what we need to live by. 2 Corinthians 10:5, 1 John 2:27
The past is done and the future is unknown, but many of us live in one or both of these places mentally and emotionally. The past does affect our current moments because what we experienced and choose put us where we are today, but too often we are bounded by it. And one common way is through un-forgiveness. For years I had un-forgiveness in the form of “justified anger and pain” from things that happened in the past; it plagued my days sucking true life from them. When we don’t forgive someone and harbor ill-will against them, then that affects our current decisions, mindset and health. Un-forgiveness is a thief of life, freedom and joy. But how do we forgive truly? For many years I wanted to forgive but couldn’t. We forgive by the power of God working in us. As I cried out to God, He brought forgiveness into the depths of my soul, it was a process.
Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
The flip side is dwelling in the worries of an unknown future. (Blog I wrote on worry, Irrational Worry )We get caught up in worry about what might happen that we live this present moment in a future that doesn’t exist and that also is a rancid thief. There is a balance between being responsible and making good decisions that affect the future, and being consumed with worry about it. The former comes from a mindset of trust the other from fear. To overcome consuming worry requires trust in God, the One who is sovereign over everything. Trusting God is the fruit of cultivating a relationship with Him. Only by spending time getting to really know Him, can we truly trust Him. When we do the worry begins to cease and trust takes over; trust in Him, His love for us and His promises. We need to be listening to the Spirit, not worrying.
Matthew 6:24 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
When we stay in the day, then we can attune to the Spirit’s active leading. When we engage Him it changes what happens in our lives as His direction is perfect and complete for us. Take time to invite the Spirit into your thought processes.
Mindset of Praise
The third mindset is to be praise-oriented, which means to praise God throughout the day for Him, His promises, the things around us, and so on. This mindset is the ultimate worship of God, because it is real, true, heart-felt, and active.
This mindset isn’t about denial of what’s happening. It’s looking at a situation from a different perspective. For example, many are in the midst of a financial trial. This type of trial is a tremendous test and refinement of trust in God’s ways not ours, His provision, and sovereignty. We can either dwell in the mindset of being frustrated and complaining, or recognize God’s control and work, God taking care of our present needs, and seeking the Spirit’s counsel. Praise isn’t to be forced or contrived, but real. God cares about the heart. And praise without denial glorifies God. It shows we know Him, trust Him that He is faithful to do what He promises. It reveals we understand His perfect love for us and working in our lives. To gain a heart of praise comes from truly knowing Him and trusting in Him and His promises.
When God is our God there is always a reason to praise because of His love and care for us. We may not feel that in the moment, but our feelings aren’t reality. They are the sum of a whole host of things. The truth is the former.
Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Connecting the Three Mindsets
A praise mindset helps us to celebrate each day and to stay in the day (so that we can be spirit-lead) because we are aware and thankful for what is right before us. We are outward focused not self-absorbed and therefore more readily available to listen to and be used by God.
Considering these new mindsets, how do you change your thought patterns? Have you ever tried? It’s very difficult on our own. We don’t do it; God does it in us. When God instructs us, and we heed His instruction then He enables us. God rewires our brains. He has done it many times in me. Our part is to pray and keep these truths always before us. Acts 5:32
Through this instruction, I realized how much I’ve missed out on by living in the past or living in the future. I realized how ineffective I’ve been by being absorbed in those and not listening to the Spirit because my mind was busy somewhere else. Those are powerful motivators to drive me forward in what the Spirit has taught me. God is amazing in how perfectly He instructs and leads us to walking in the abundant life He came to give.
These are some powerful New Years resolutions to consider if you’re looking for some.
The Word is perfectly intricate, like a huge puzzle that as we put it together, by the guidance of the Spirit, it teaches, reveals, and explains the things of God. One verse links to another through the words and symbolism. It’s complex and perfect. I’m coming across some intriguing similarities between what I see happening among God’s people and what happened in the exodus out of Egypt. Here I’ll dive into some of them.
Exodus out of Egypt, House of Bondage
Egypt was once a place of refuge for God’s people. Under Joseph’s leadership, who is symbolic of Christ in various ways, God’s people were protected and provided for while a famine consumed the land. Through Joseph’s provision, Egypt had plenty of bread. During the Israelites stay, they grew in strength and in numbers. But as time passed, new rulers came into reign. Instead of helping the Israelites to prosper, they were hard task masters and put them under bondage. The Israelites were their workers to carry out their will. They were a large and free workforce for building the Egyptian empire. Egypt became spiritually know as the house of bondage. Exodus 13:14 The Israelites cried out to God because of the bondage, and in time God sent Moses. Moses not only delivered them but also ushered in a new covenant between God and His people.
Moses asked Pharaoh to let God’s people go so they could serve God in the wilderness. Exodus 7:16 Pharaoh resisted as his heart was hardened. Moses performed signs and wonders and Pharaoh’s magicians copied them trying to destroy the credibility of Moses. When Pharaoh continued to resist, God sent a barrage of plagues upon Egypt. The last plague was the angel of death passing through the land and killing all of the first born. God’s people were saved from the plague by eating unleavened bread and by putting the blood of a lamb on their doorposts. Exodus 12:15, Exodus 12:7 When the angel of death passed through the land, the cries of the Egyptians filled the air and Pharaoh finally let them go. The Israelites left the house of bondage following the voice of their shepherd, Moses, into the wilderness where it was just them and God. God instructed, taught, lead, protected, and provided. Joshua 24:14, 17
The journey through the wilderness for the Israelites served the purpose of learning about God, His ways and learning to trust and follow Him alone. God became their God. When they got scared, they cried out and God provided. But when God wasn’t providing as they desired, they wanted to go back to Egypt. They would be in bondage but at least they would be comfortable. But Moses encouraged them and God continue to show them His mercy. And for those who endured and trusted God at His Word, they entered into the Promise land.
Exodus out of the Corrupted Church System, House of Bondage
The Church System (CS), as a whole, was once a place of refuge for God’s people. For a time, God’s people grew in strength and in numbers, as the true bread, the Word, was plentiful. But as time passed and brought different leaders, new agendas came into play. They started to rule over God’s people and the true bread started to disappear. The leaders became task masters putting church goers in bondage to carry out their will. In many situations it wasn’t done maliciously or intentionally, but came about because of a lack of focus on the pure Word. It was about “good” works, programs, increasing numbers, and entertainment all in the name of God. All the while the CS grew strong and powerful, and mega churches became the new beastly goal. Cultivating true intimacy and discipleship with God in His Word was set aside for “greater” efforts. In time, some of God’s people cried out to God. And God responded by calling them out of bondage by Jesus, The Word, to meet with Him one-on-one in the wilderness to be taught, feed, protected and provided by Him. Ezekiel 34:22-27.
God is calling His people, the true Church, to Him in truth and spirit to His Word. Saints are gathering together in spirit to His Word as God is revealing Himself in powerful ways through His Word. Joe in Montana, Lucy in Nebraska, and John in Kentucky are leaving the CS that has become corrupted, clinging to God’s Word and seeking like-minded believers. I see this growing movement throughout the blogs I read. God is calling His true Church together in an incredible and unexpected way. They are coming together in the wilderness, out of Egypt, the house of bondage. Some are gathering in homes or small fellowships where God is truly the head and where the Word of God is at the center – not programs, church empires, or pastor’s salaries.
Judgment is coming upon the Church System, and perhaps is already upon it, as it did upon Egypt. In Revelation, we see the spiritual connection between Egypt and Jerusalem. Revelation 11:8 Sodom is also included to give us another hint of what the future holds. In the Bible, Jerusalem often symbolizes God’s people. This great city is called the Great Harlot in Revelation. Revelation 17:18 Throughout the Bible, God’s straying people are often referred to as harlots. It says she will be judged for her actions against God with plagues. Revelation 18:8. Interestingly, the plagues of Egypt and in Revelation have many similarities – and the language connects the two together to lead us to seek a deeper understanding. Ezekiel 6:11, 18:30, 24:21, Revelation 18:2-4
Just as Pharaoh resisted the call, so do many leaders in the churches and are leading many astray as people are mistakenly trusting in their counsel. Ezekiel 34:10 As Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, so are the hearts of many so they can’t hear or see the truth. Like the magicians, many false prophets are filling the churches to mislead people from the truth. Darkness is overtaking their understanding for a lack of love for the truth. They are working out of their own counsel and not God’s. As a result, they are being given over to a strong delusion. 2 Thessalonians 2:10-11 But those who attune to God’s voice will be protected by Him. Those who truly have the blood of the lamb, reflected in a relationship with Christ (Matthew 7:22-23), and have been eating of the unleavened bread (pure word of God not infiltrated with the lies of men) will be sensitive to His call and be protected. Revelation 18:4. They know their Shepherd’s voice from abiding in His Word. They will follow Him into the wilderness (outside the church system) as the people followed Moses to be led by God and taught, provided and protected by Him. And God will provide in every way by His mighty hand.
Coming into the wilderness isn’t easy. To hear the call to follow the Shepherd is sometimes filled with doubts and fears. And some are tempted to return back to the CS for comfort and ease as they rationalize the bondage. But being with God, taught by Him, provided and protected by Him is a glorious experience. John 6:44-45 It isn’t one to fear but to embrace. And for those who do, they will not only be abiding with God because in the wilderness is where He is at, but they will see His mighty hand perform all things for them. Lamentations 2:7 I believe this journey leads into the promise land if we trust, follow and endure until the end.
Interesting isn’t it? The parallel?
These are challenging days. Our protection is having a love for the truth. John 8:31-32 We are to abide in the pure Word of God and trust the Spirit to teach us, who was given to us for this purpose. 1 John 2:27. It’s critical to have a foundation of truth in our lives built up by the Spirit so we can test other’s interpretations. 1 John 4:1 If you put the Word of God above all else, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free and keep you free. Psalm 17:4, 2 Timothy 4:3
Living Light 