Let's Get Engaged!!!

Intercessors are weird. I know that. (I have a t-shirt that says I am not weird: I am gifted--I am believing that.) We isolate often. We fight our own insecurities, inferiorities, shortcomings. BUT when we armor up--look out! That love turns into a war cry that can be heard throughout the kingdom of darkness and sends terror into the demonic realm. The scrambling begins while we wreak havoc--destroying their assignments, maneuvers, their attacks. This IS an actual Jihad.

You should have a daily reminder that this is war. The devil HATES you and wants you in hell. His goal is to send as many people as he can.  Right now we have all power and authority over all the power of the enemy. Eventually he will be given power over mankind. Revelation 13:7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them…. His goal is to destroy marriages, relationships, and people in general--often with religion. Churchianity/religion is demonic. Everything that began in fire but did not continue, anything without the Holy Spirit is demonic.

The enemy hates you and the world hates you—I told you this was a Jihad!

John 15:18-19 If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belong to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.  The world should hate you.

Jerusalem City is filled with sight seers and soldiers—so is the church. 

Go hard or go home.

 There is a huge difference between a soldier and a civilian:

A soldier does what he is told. A civilian does what he wants.

A soldier is serving others and is willing to give up his life for those he is protecting. A civilian is serving himself and holding onto his life.

A soldier gives up everything that would keep him from obeying their superior. A civilian gives up nothing.

A soldier is the opposite of a civilian.

Luke 9:59-62 Be engaged or be entangled.

II Timothy 2

He chose us--fighters, overcomers--the ones who will defeat the enemy. Go past what you think. Enlistment  brings responsibility not perfection. Sometimes you will be wounded--people follow those with battle scars because they know they have proven they know what they are doing and know how to win. Jesus is scarred head to toe and He is the biggest war hero ever. He took more, did more, was more and He chose us. He did not recruit for numbers, academia or fun. He is looking for hearts, for lives. 

Sometimes people think they can be Christians without the war--similar to being in the reserves. Trained and ready but not a full time soldier. They are still a soldier but it is different:

1. You go home at night.
2. You know that you get to go home.
3. You are on call while you live your own life.
4. You have a life.

Are you tying to live in the spiritual reserves? Living in cushy Christianity? It is not the same as serving everyday as a soldier. Are you fighting in the army of the Lord or just going to church and looking "good".

 If you are entangled, repent and re-enlist.

If you are engaged--look around you. Who are you serving with? Who are you praying with? Who are you in agreement with? Who are you praying for?

Get engaged.

Double Coupon Days!!!

Do you ever cut coupons? You know those tempting little pieces of paper that offer you 50 cents off something you already wanted? Or something you wanted to try? Or something you will try just because you are going to save 50 cents so why not? And hey, if it is double coupon days, all the better! That same 50 cents just became a dollar!

But, you know how it goes for most of us—we are thumbing through the Sunday paper, we see something that interests us, there is a coupon and we tear it out. When we get to the store we forget we have it—usually until it is expired. So, even though we see “value“ in these little pieces of paper we don’t really value them.

Not everyone feels that way. Some people are considered “extreme couponers”. They are probably “extreme” in a lot of areas of their lives but this one is a mission, a religion of sorts. They post on Facebook about how much they saved, how much they got for how little money, etc. They sell their excess in garage sales, flea markets, on Craig’s list and Ebay and so on. They are proud of their accomplishments, and they should be. If they are good at it they can make a decent living at couponing. They have to be good at math; they have to be able to hold a LOT of information in their heads. They have to network, they have to befriend store managers, district managers, clerks. They have to know the community value of what they are buying—what sells and for what amount as well as what doesn’t. They have to know how much to give away and what to give away without becoming ‘god’ to someone, without becoming their source. They have to have thick skin so the insults and prejudices of people who think what they do and what they give is of no value will roll off their backs. They have to remain humble in the midst of praise by their fellow couponers.

These traits are valued in society. We admire people who “beat the system”.  People who “make good” in unusual ways. People who “go for it” (whatever ‘it’ is). But when it comes to God we disdain all of those things. We put on our little religious attitudes and make stinginess the main personality of God. Not my God.

The first time I heard read and understood what Job 42:10 meant I JUMPED for joy. I whooped. I hollered. I was over the top. I pray a LOT! Here was a promise to Job—the Job who went through horrible circumstances—the Job who had the most negative friends ever (I could do a whole teaching on philosophical, intellectual, negative friends but I will save that for another day)—the Job who gave us the example to pray for our friends, no matter what has gone on. God so honored that attitude that he gave Job double for everything he had lost. He also gave him a full life plus 20.

I know my Father. He is a generous God. He loves me. I would do anything for my kids. It is a shadow compared to how he loves me. I started praying that scripture. I have been met with scorn, disdain, and doubt. I have been accused of pride. Scoffed at. Laughed at. Challenged scripturally. None of that matters. I know God. I know his heart towards me and I know His heart towards the people he lays on my heart. He is not a stingy God.

Sometimes when you are interceding you have to go against the flow. You have to know the heart of God. You have to know the Word. You have to hear from God. You have to get His battle plan. You have to pray His heart. You have to store up the word in your heart. You have to know what to pray. You have to have a storehouse to draw on.

God likes doubles. When interceding, praise for the answers needs to be in your mouth while you are doing the warfare.

Psalms 149:6 May the praise of God be in their mouths

                        And a double edged sword in their hands.

Intercession needs to be accurate—succinct. Use the word.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double edged sword it penetrates even to the dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

Are you interceding for someone in distress? Hannah was barren. Her husband gave her double because of her broken heart. I Samuel 1:5.

Are you interceding for someone who is faithful? Do you know someone who has suffered loss?

II Kings 2:9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”

“Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied.

Are you hitting a brick wall when praying? Leviathan has a double coat of armor are you getting through both layers? Job 41:13

Praying for a pastor? A worker in the church who takes care of details? Leadership? Preaches? Teaches?

I Timothy 5:17 The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.

The Bible is full of doubles. Are you using them or are they like your coupons? Lost in what you have read? Unused until they are forgotten? Lost in the bottom of your purse? Or, are you an extreme couponer using every scripture you can find to pray over those you intercede for? Storing up treasures in heaven for them and for you?

Personally, I never use a coupon. I am that person who loses them, forgets she cut them, lets them expire BUT I am an extreme couponer in the Spirit.

Get into the word—it is Double Coupon Days everyday!

Be the Dog...

We had been in Guam a week when our dog, Bernie, got here!

I don’t know who was more excited him or I! I will say though, he showed the most excitement. He jumped back and forth between Mike and I. He panted, smelled, licked and then did it all again and again (to be honest I did a lot of that same stuff except the licking).

We hadn’t seen Bernie for a whole week which is a long time on a doggie clock—mine too actually. Bernie had no idea what was going on or if he would ever see us again.  How do you explain to a dog that he is going on a trip? I told him—you will get to go on a plane and we will come get you. But, how do you explain all these steps to a dog?

1.      Yes, everything is gone out of our normal home and I know it is stressful

2.      We are putting you in a box 1/4^th the size of your prior box

3.      We are taking you to visit relatives in Sacramento

4.      You will spend the night with them

5.      They will put you on a plane for your first time

6.      You will fly ½ way across the United States away from us to Houston

7.      Some stranger will get you off the plane

8.      You will be transported to a kennel, another first time for you

9.      You will spend the night with strangers and new smells instead of on our bed

10.   Some stranger will take you to another plane

11.   You will get to a new city called Los Angeles where another stranger will carry you in your box to another plane

12.   You will fly for several more hours to Hawaii

13.   Another stranger will take you to another kennel

14.   You will spend the night with more strangers and more new smells

15.   Another stranger will take you to another airplane

16.   You will fly for several more hours to Guam

17.   A stranger will pick you up and inspect you to make sure you are healthy

18.   Another stranger will take you to another kennel with more new strange smells

19.   Another stranger will feed and water you

20.   You will stay there for several days

21.   The newest stranger will come get you and hold you out to someone else

22.   Hey wait—these are smells you will recognize and voices you will know and we will be waiting

Even though everything is still new and all the smells are different you will be with us and you will calm down. “Want to go bye-bye” still means you get to ride in a car.

The option of sleeping on a bed is once again part of your routine. 

Sleeping in our suitcases is a new pattern for you—but for now no one cares while you get adjusted.

All of this reminds me of a saying Mike has, “Be the dog.” The first time he said that I laughed and though I know he would never insult me, I still had to ask what it meant.

He said, “Lock a person who loves you and a dog in a closet for 30 minutes. When you open the door one of them is living in the past and angry. The other one loves you unconditionally and is happy to see you."

Be the dog.

All of this makes me think of God. He may try to tell us what is ahead in our lives but what good does it do? We would want to know so many things: 

“What new smells?” 

“What is a plane?” 

“Why are you making me do this?” 

“What strangers?” 

“Do I talk to them?” 

“How long will it take?” 

“What if I don’t like it?” 

and on and on and on…

So, He tells us what He is doing with broad strokes. 

For example: “I am bringing you a husband.” 

“Wait a minute God; I don’t really want to be married. I have no idea what being married should look like. I have bad taste in men. How are you going to have me meet him?…..and on and on and on.” 

I have to admit when He said that to me and then confirmed it 3 times in one weekend, I still asked a LOT of questions but the heavens became silent on the subject while He worked some things into my character over the next 2 years. For a time I wondered if He was bringing me a man I talking to on the phone a lot. Eventually I thought maybe I was attracted to him (I can totally relate to Sarah giving Abraham Hagar so she could "work out the word of the Lord in her life"). I hoped he was the one and then I as I got to know him I hoped he was not. In my heart I knew he wasn’t for me.

I stopped asking and wondering and continued with my daily life. Then, when I was no longer thinking about it or expecting anything there he was. No doubts at all. I knew it was him. Just like when we picked up Bernie from the kennel in Guam and he knew it was us. I knew it was Mike when I first talked to him.

We can let delays trick us into thinking they are no’s. We can get angry at God. We can pout and be in a bad mood because our answers are taking too long. We can try to do it ourselves. We can side with the world against God (check your words). We can go back to our old ways. We can live in the past and refuse to move forward. We can do a lot of things that are not in our best interest. Don’t.

He spoke. He is able. He will.

Be the dog—just adore the creator. He knows your beginning from your end. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Nothing can separate you from His love for you. Relaxing and living in the moment will give you peace and a lot more understanding of where you are going. It is not wrong to plan. It is not wrong to look at the past. But when you park in either one you miss the present and after all isn’t that all we really have?

How many people do you know that are stuck in the past or the future and NOT living where Christ wants them? Are you praying for them? Are you wrestling a release of the past for them?

How many people do you see who are so busy planning they are missing today? Are you praying them into God’s plan for them?

Not to burst your bubble but we are a pretty self-centered lot so if you have seen it and recognized it have you asked God to show you a battle plan for them?  You would not even pay attention without the spirit. Selah

Did I describe you? Do you need prayer to get out of dwelling in the past? Are you living in the future and dying in today? If so let me know so I can pray for you.

  

Want the prophets' reward???

In the last days sons and daughter will prophecy—they may not all be prophets but just moving in the gifts.  Prophecy will not only move in us but our children and prophets will emerge as well.

1.  You will see signs and wonders.  You will move in gifts.

Acts 2:17 NIV

"In the last days, God says,

 I will pour out my spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophecy,

Your young men will see visions,

Your old men with dream dreams."

2.  You will prosper and be successful.

II Chronicles 20:20 NIV

Early in the morning they left for the Desert of  Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and the people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."

3.  You will receive their reward: 

                Receive the prophet and you will receive their reward.

                Receive a person of righteousness and you will receive their righteousness.

Matthew 10:41 NIV

"Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward."

4.  You will receive cutting edge revelation, God consults with his prophets.

Amos 3:7 NIV

"Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing

 without revealing his plan

 to his servants the prophets."

5.  You will be able to walk circumspectly within wisdom.

Proverbs 29:18 NIV

"Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint;

but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom's instructions."

6.  Gifts often come through prophecy and the laying on of hands by the prophets who are equipping and empowering you.

I Timothy 4:14-15 NIV

"Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the elders laid their hands on you.

Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress."

7.  Empower and equip you for victorious warfare. The blessings of the prophets keeps you firm in faith so you can fight strongly, accurately and victoriously.

I Timothy 1:18-19 NIV

Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, holding onto faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. 

8.  The blessings of the prophets restores families and protects in times of destruction.

Malachi 4:5-6 NIV

"See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction,"

Your will and obedience are vehicles for the spirit.

Know a prophet?

Support them:

• financially
• emotionally
• spiritually
• physically

and you will reap the blessings of the prophets....

What does this have to do with intercession? Does intercession apply here? Only if you want the blessings of the prophets.

Job 42:10 NIV

After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.

What are you doing today that is more important than supporting the prophets?

Me? I want the double portion.

I gave up being a hippie for this???? You bet!

RESPECT

Have you noticed how little of it there is today? When I was a teenager everything was changing, Hippies were taking over. The “Father Knows Best” mentality was being run over by a Mack truck of free love, LSD and pot. I suppose every generation of adults feels the same way about the teens. There were the beatniks and the beginning of rock and roll in the generation before me. I don’t know, I think we were worse. Bra burning, flag burning and neighborhood burning seemed a little more severe than weird poetry and finger snapping.

The thing I do know is no matter what was going on in society most of us were taught the importance of respect. I remember thinking at the time how outdated all that was. That “respect” was such an old-fashioned term and only old people cared. Now, when I wonder what ever happened to plain old respect it makes me wonder if I am just old and out dated. I don’t think so.

As parents it is our job to teach our children how to react to God by how we train them to respond to us. If we allow our children to question everything we do then they will question God. This leads to a lack of the “fear” of the Lord which is, after all, the beginning of wisdom.

I am always concerned and distressed when I see parents ask their 2 year olds what they want to do. Not that I think learning decision making is wrong but when the 2 year old runs the family with their “decisions” it puts a responsibility on the child they should not have to handle.

The other thing that happens in these situations is the parents manipulate the child into what they want them to choose. How does this train them in the way they should go?

I see several blockages to their ability to walk with the Lord as adults:

1. They grow up thinking that what they want is of utmost importance and have no respect for authority
2.  They learn to manipulate to get what they want
3.  They do not learn to fear God which is the beginning of wisdom

Wouldn’t it be better to teach our children how to humble themselves before the Lord? To hear God and be quickly obedient? To fear God and obtain the wisdom that brings? To respect authority?

You probably fall into one of 2 categories:

You either know someone who has children or you have children—ok that was a no brainer. 

Are you praying for them? Do you pray for the parents to stand up and be parents? To raise Godly children? Do you pay for the children you know so that they will grow into Godly men and women? Find the scriptures on children rearing, memorize them then ask God to show you who to pray for and how. Start declaring truth over their lives. We need a Godly generation to be prepared to mentor and train the spiritual babies.

Who are you interceding for today?

How THORNY are you????

 Our yard has bougainvillea, it is full of blossoms, beautiful and brightly colored. 

 Each blossom is several parts with a distinct 3 blossom white center.  The leaves are larger than the blossoms, shiny green and cover long thorns. The trunk is stout with vines shooting out many directions in their waving display of foliage, flower and thorn. These bushes can grow in pots and cascade down entire buildings. They can be grown in the ground and rise for several stories up a building or fall over like a firework gone off. 

 As Christians we are connected to the “true vine” Jesus Christ. He supports us in who we are. We shoot out in all our various aspects of color, adventure, personality, dimension, giftings and experiences--just an amazing view for those whose lives we come pass by in life.

 Did you see the 3 little white flowers in the center of the blossoms? The trinity stamped within the center of your life, your heart. That whiteness against the vivid color of the flowers and the leaves remind us of our sins removed and washed clean. The power of His accomplishment evident to anyone who looks our way.


In case you missed it, I mentioned thorns.  

They are long, sharp and hidden. What thorns are you hiding amongst the beauty of who Christ created you to be? Hurt feelings that have become bitterness. Sharp word to defend our position. Selfishness that demeans friends and family. Superiority that is condescending. How many other thorns are there? Which ones do you hide under the foliage that enhances your flowers? When someone reaches towards your beauty do they bring back a bloody wound from the thorns you use to protect yourself?

I love plants and have a green thumb that I inherited both from my nturall father and my heavenly father.  I understand John 15 where it says: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches ar picked up and thrown into the fire and burned, If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples....This is my command: Love each other."

This is one of the first chapters I memorized. I understand a plant never pruned gets all wild on its own. It is gangly—there are very few flowers, no fruit. I want the unproductive areas removed from my life, cut off burned up, gone. Do you? Realtionships that are not profitable. Are you willing to remove them from your life? Attitudes that make you less than Godly? Actions that cause others to stumble? Words that do not line up with His word? Thoughts that run amuk? How gangly is your life? If you are saved, He said you are already clean—are you staying that way? Are you memorizing the word? Are you living the word?

We had a mini-typhoon last week—probably my definition nothing official. Lots of wind and rain.

It blew most of the leaves and blossoms off my bougainvillea leaving all these gangly thorn covered shoots sticking out everywhere. Ugly is a pretty accurate term to describe it right now.

Nothing beautiful to look at—yet when I was walking I noticed that every place that the leaves were blown away have clusters of new leaves sprouting in their place. In a very short time it will be fuller, more beautiful than ever!

What storms are you going through? What is being removed from your life?  At some point this needs to be a lifestyle. Look around do you see storms raging against someone else’s “tree planted by living water”? Are you praying for them? As intercessors are we so consumed with all our own “issues” that we are not praying for the ones the Lord brings us?  Are we so busy “laying again the foundations” that we cannot get to the warfare we are called to do? 

Recently I had 6 ministries ask for prayer in one day because they were under such a strong attack. 

These attacks are taking a LOT of forms—physical, financial, spiritual, emotional. Maybe you have experienced the same things? Press in—get into attack mode. The fact that the onslaught is increasing tells me we should be doing the same. Did you see all those new shoots on those branches? The storms are done, the Son is out, the growth has begun.

Clean up, suit up, line up, gear up…we are moving up into a new realm. 

Ready?

Pests

What brought this up was moving into our new house in Guam. As you probably know I have lived in tropical climates before so I have dealt with the roaches, rats and ants. But I have not dealt with these little things.

At first I thought it was dust. But when the dust started moving I thought maybe I should look closer—yep ants, tiny, tiny ants. They are everywhere. They get in everything. Right now everything not in a can is in the fridge.

I was told—everyone has them like that was supposed to make it better.

I can handle the big ants. You know the ones outside that eat concrete. You see then in their busy little black trails going back and forth without stopping except to pick up food or help a wounded ant.

These are different and there are thousands! When I had the insurance agency there were some ants that got into everything. The exterminator told me about this gel stuff that you dot on with a syringe. It worked on the big ones so I thought I would try it on the little ones. I dotted it all over there was no danger of food contact. They really liked it!

As they walk in it, taste it, track it back to the nest, den—whatever you call it and voila! No one can reproduce; it dries them out and at least diminishes the population.

I went on a mission to find some here. I did and it worked! Twenty four hours later and there are very few around. I actually cooked and did not have to battle them while doing so!

I am sure many of you were called pests as small children—OK some of you never out grew it. We all know someone who is a pest. Someone who bothers us at inconvenient times. Someone who makes us want to scream until we realize sometimes we are the pest and sometimes we are pestered!

We should be pests to the enemy. We should invade their camps by the thousands. We should be IN their business. We should be inconvenient. We should be a nuisance. We should be annoying. We should destroy every seed they plant. Everything they try to grow in a person’s life. (see the intercession here?) We should be a Godly plague to them bring the blood of Jesus with us and contaminating their camp with the blood and watch them run.

The problem comes in when we are interceding, getting battle plans, battling over others, working in several arenas at one time concentrating on the magnificence of God, dancing the victory dance, moving in the praise realm, worshiping before the throne and battling. In the meantime, the enemy is dotting poison all over—it smells attractive—it is everywhere we walk (think). We drag it back to our homes and meditate on it. Eventually it dries up our spirits, poisons everyone we come in contact with, destroys our routine, and keeps us from our battles. If you are in intercession for someone it is your responsibility to hold your position and fight until that person is in victory. Otherwise you put the burden on the ones fighting with you.

It is time for us to grow up and take responsibility for what we are called to do.
Time to stand firm.

Time to avoid the poison in our paths. Water washes it off in the natural so what do you think continuous washing of the water of the word will do?

Time to be aware of our surroundings.

Time to stop blaming God for every difficult situation in your life.

Time to add discipline to our lives.

Time to seek wisdom.
Time to operate in the gifts.

Time to set the captives free.

Time to set our faces like a flint and win this thing

I am ready to see the return of Christ—how about you?