Being Human

All of us who have God’s Spirit born within are designed to pray (I Thessalonians 5:17). It is in our spiritual nature. Along with that, it is in our human nature to hold onto the burdens we should be lifting to the Lord. Being that intercession is a chief part of how I minister and being that I am human, I fall into that category—BIG TIME!

I have a tendency to wear stress like a jacket—not a light spring jacket, but a heavy leaded vest. Lately, the grief of what is happening to people in the world at large and in my own microcosmic world has nearly overwhelmed me. I am realizing that it is truly only by God’s grace that I carry on.

It is driving me to go deeper. I want to see and be a part of what the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is doing in these last days. I want to be a laborer for the Great Harvest—Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly [is] great, but the labourers [are] few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. - Luke 10:2 KJV

First comes the plowman and the seed before a harvest. I am like the plowman who is praying for the rain to bring forth the fruit.

Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. - James 5:7 KJV

I wept as I read James 5 this morning and cried out for Him to send the latter rain of His glorious presence upon the earth. And then my spiritual eyes caused me to ‘see’ something—something amazing about being human.

Confess [your] faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias [Elijah] was a man [anthropos—human being] subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. - James 5:16 and 17 KJV

What is amazing is that although we are jars of clay, we have the gift of a spirit that may be regenerated by the power of the Most High. And with that He gives us the ability to manifest that power!

And he [Elijah] prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. - James 5:18 KJV

Elijah was a human being just like you and me, yet look what happened when all he did was PRAY! So let us PRAY! Being human like Elijah, let us cry out for the spiritual latter day rain.

Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. - Amos 9:13 KJV

This is my deepest desire—to see and be a part of the greatest move of God on the face of the planet!

Are you praying to see this also?

This Little [Flash] Light of Mine

I have a small lemon-yellow flashlight that I pack in my suitcase whenever I travel. I have had it for years. It has even been all the way to the other side of the world with me when my husband and I ministered in India.

The last time I used my wee torch (as the British would call it) was the weekend I spent with my sisters at our First Annual Sisters Get Together last spring. There was a thunderstorm that first night, so I pulled my trusty flashlight out and announced that I was placing it on the coffee table of the sitting room in case the electricity went out.

The following morning the coffee table became the post for our kaffee klatsch, so the flashlight was relegated to a new location unbeknownst to me. The thrill of being among such beloved women caused me to forget all about the little beacon…until I was unpacking at home.

“Honey, did you see my yellow flashlight when you brought my luggage in?” I asked my husband. “Nope,” came his perfunctory answer.

I scoured the car after thoroughly emptying my bags and still did not find it. The thought came that I should call the inn and ask them to mail it back to me. The idea of asking the staff to hunt down, package, and mail a $2 flashlight was absurd. Finally, I admitted to myself that my tiny treasure was gone.

In the morning I plodded downstairs to make coffee. I was the first one up. As my manner is, I sipped a glass of water and began opening up the blinds in the living room. On the coffee table of the living room sat—you guessed it—my infamous yellow flashlight.

“My flashlight!” I announced to no one. “Thank you, Lord!” My first thought was to give thanks. But who found it?

This began the second great inquisition as I queried each member of the family who walked into the kitchen. “Did YOU find my flashlight and put it on the coffee table?”

“No, Mom, it wasn’t me.”
“No, Gramma.”
“No, Honey.”
“What flashlight?”
“No, Mimi. Can I play with it?”

When I had asked the last person, I made a happy declaration. “That settles it. An angel of the Lord has returned my flashlight to me!”

Why would the Lord bother to return my flashlight? At first I looked for a deep meaning behind it. But I think He did it just because He wanted to. Just to bless me. But it’s something I will never forget. Perhaps He simply wants me to always expect the miraculous and to remember to let my little light shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. - Matthew 5:16 KJV


P.S. I am called to intercede for God's women. Please leave a comment or email me with any prayer concerns. It is an honor to pray for you!

Are You Ready For This?

Up to this point, my blog posts have been pretty light-hearted. (Well, not counting the last one, of course:). I believe our Heavenly Father does not want our minds to be bogged down with worry, fear, and doubt, which is all a form of unbelief. In fact, Hebrews 3:12-19 severely warns God's people against unbelief.



According to Ecclesiastes, though, there IS a time for sorrow. There IS a time for war.

To every [thing there is] a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance…
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. - Ecc 3:1, 4, and 8 KJV
Remember what I posted at the beginning of the year:

Lately, what is impressed within me is that it is going to be “the best of times and the worst of times”. By this I believe the Holy Spirit is saying that we will see God move mightily in what will be tremulous times in the world. In the midst of great trouble we will witness the greatest harvest of souls for the Lord Jesus Christ that any human has ever seen along with signs, miracles, and wonders. [1/1/11 His Grace Is Enough]
Are you ready for this?

“How can I be ready?” you ask.

This requires a two-part answer, for as believers in Christ we are physical and spiritual beings.

Spiritually, we must prepare ourselves by spending time simply being quiet before the Lord of Heaven—seeking His face. I cannot emphasize this enough (to you AND to myself)! This includes searching the scriptures.

There in the inner chamber, I have asked Him this question myself—“Is there anything You need to reveal to me regarding preparation for what is ahead?”

This is what I believe He replied: “No. I will speak to you as you seek Me each day. Just as the children of Israel sought Me for manna each day in the desert, so shall you seek Me.”

As I have shared here in this blog, I have seen miracles in my own life. I also have been honored to minister to people in the miraculous. Perhaps the Lord would have me tell more about that in a future post.

Although I have never seen manna appear, I believe God has done this for His people. My point is that we are coming into a season of miracles! In the midst of this dark time, our God will sweep the earth with His glory and power. Those who trust in Him will daily receive resources and supplies from unexpected sources—even manifesting miraculously.

If this is true, should we physically prepare for a catastrophic event? I believe God has called individuals and ministries to be ready to serve in some capacity.

It is wisdom to have some food and water stored for an emergency, but I do not believe it is possible to be fully prepared in the physical realm for this type of thing. Just as Israel in their dire need had to trust in their Heavenly Father to care for them in the wilderness, we will be in a position where we must rely on Him.
And hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with great terror [awe-inspiring spectacle or deed]. Jer 32:21 KJV

Disaster is what it is going to take for many to come to Christ! It is also what will cause some to doubt who they are in Christ Jesus, but don't be counted among them.

When a crisis strikes, don’t fear—only believe! Believe He is willing and able to do miracles in the very dust and smoke of devastation as you walk out in authority. As in Acts Chapter 2, let us proclaim the name of Jesus Christ to speak life where there is death, healing where there is wounding, and hope where there is despair!

I am persuaded that nothing will separate us from the love of God (Rom 8:39)~

Dispatched

“Mimi! Mimi! Mimi!” my grandson called out to me for the umpteenth time.

I had been watching this just-turned-five rambunctious boy all day so that his father could finish doing laundry, packing, and emailing in preparation for moving. I was beginning to get annoyed with his insistence on having my constant attention, but I knew this day and this season in my life was coming to an abrupt close.

After living with Mimi and Pop for over a year and a half, ‘my boys’ were leaving. Tomorrow.

No more “I love you all the days!”
No more running hugs.
No more smelling the great outdoors in his hair as I hold him close.
No more kisses.

Not for a long time anyway. And it is tearing me up.

But the Lord is my salvation. He has let me cry on His shoulder for weeks now as I share my torn heart with Him. He has listened to my continuous prayers for my children and grandchildren.

And just the other day, He spoke something into my spirit that greatly comforted me~“I have dispatched all that is necessary to fulfill the plans I have for you and your family.”

I am not always certain whether I have heard God’s voice or if it is my own thinking. In this case, however, I believe I heard His voice, because ‘dispatched’ is not a word I would use on an everyday basis. It is a word that is used for official business and includes expediency.

How encouraged I am to know the Most High HEARS the prayerful cry AND DISPATCHES the answer as He sees fit.

I Want to Tell You What Happened Today...

Yesterday I was surprised to receive a lengthy email from a brother in Christ I hardly ever hear from. (I am refraining from giving too many details regarding people’s identities in this true story for reasons that will soon be evident. Identities and corrected typos are the only changes made.) The email's subject line read: I Want to Tell You What Happened Today...

I wanted to take my wife, Tai-Yu, to an ESL [English as a Second Language] class, close to our home. It's been a few weeks that I found out that our local church offered free ESL classes. Today I decided to take Tai-Yu to ESL class, which was at a local coffee shop near where we live.

When we arrived at the coffee shop, we met two other women who were there—one was the teacher and the other woman was a first-timer like Tai-Yu. I soon found out that these women were believers in Christ.

The woman who was there for [the] first time, whose name was Sonya, was from Iran. Sonya was highly educated, as well as many members in her family. Sonya, decided to tell her story, about how she met Jesus Christ, while living in Iran. I have to tell you, I heard this was happening in Iran *, but not from anyone from Iran.

As you might know or not know, anyone that is a Christian in Iran gets persecuted for their belief, usually jail. The name of Jesus is not allowed to be mentioned in Iran for fear of being arrested and imprisoned. Sonya told us that she came to know the Lord nine years ago, secretly. She kept this to herself for some time until she moved to [the] United States, approximately 2-3 years ago.

I was fascinated to find out that Sonya came to know the Lord with visions of Jesus in her dreams. She told us the dreams. Years later, a Christian woman in [the] United States pointed out to Sonya that the dreams were actual events that took place in the Bible. Sonya also told us that her youngest son became deaf through an accident that happened about 5 years ago, and that everyone told her that he would never be able to speak again. In another dream, Sonya was told to take her son to Dubai and that her son would be able to speak. The miracle happened and her son began to speak, not only in his native language but two other languages including English. I found this out for the first time today, that many of the believers in Jesus in Iran were Jewish people.

I am not good at writing any stories, so for me to tell this is pretty awesome. I forgot to tell you, the woman I am writing about, her husband became a Christ follower upon finding out that his son was able to speak. Sonya visited Iran a little while back, and discovered that the secret home where she would meet other Christ followers has grown to over 1,000 people, much since only a few people from the time that Sonya began her journey.

I have changed Sonya's name as I did not get permission to relay this story.

*PS. my friend in Christ, J.T., from Texas, first told me of the many things that are happening in the Middle East through dreams and visions of Jesus Christ, almost a year ago. I truly believe now...

I too had heard similar stories via the internet, but this is the closest-to-home account I have shared with others. May you be as thrilled and encouraged as I am!