Amanuensis

Zechariah 9:1-17 The oracle of the word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrach and Damascus is its resting place. For the Lord has an eye on mankind and on all the tribes of Israel, and on Hamath also, which borders on it, Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise. Tyre has built herself a rampart and heaped up silver like dust, and fine gold like the mud of the streets. But behold, the Lord will strip her of her possessions and strike down her power on the sea, and she shall be devoured by fire. Ashkelon shall see it, and be afraid; Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish; Ekron also, because its hopes are confounded. The king shall perish from Gaza; Ashkelon shall be uninhabited; a mixed people shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of Philistia. I will take away its blood from its mouth, and its abominations from between its teeth; it too shall be a remnant for our God; it shall be like a clan in Judah, and Ekron shall be like the Jebusites. Then I will encamp at my house as a guard, so that none shall march to and fro; no oppressor shall again march over them, for now I see with my own eyes. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. For I have bent Judah as my bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword. Then the Lord will appear over them, and his arrow will go forth like lightning; the Lord God will sound the trumpet and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts will protect them, and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones, and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine, and be full like a bowl, drenched like the corners of the altar. On that day the Lord their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a  crown they shall shine on his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the young women. 

My enemies will be vanquished. Those who do not follow me will not prevail. They have built wealth, surrounded themselves with luxury, created fortresses in which they feel safe. But all that will cease to exist. The question is – whom do you serve? Continue to serve me, even when all around you seems to suggest that life is easier – better – when you serve yourself – money – fame. Those are fleeting, and at the end of your time will mean nothing. When I return, all will be stripped away. Many will be lost, but some will be saved by turning to me. See, even at the last minute, there is hope for the lost. When I return, I will take up the battle for you. You will be at peace. (2018) 

Deuteronomy 28:1-14 “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God: Your towns and your fields will be blessed. Your children and your crops will be blessed. The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed. Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be blessed. Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be blessed. The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven! The Lord will guarantee a blessing on everything you do and will fill your storehouses with grain. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do. Then all the nations of the world will see that you are a people claimed by the Lord, and they will stand in awe of you. The Lord will give you prosperity in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you, blessing you with many children, numerous livestock, and abundant crops. The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them. If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom. You must not turn away from any of the commands I am giving you today, nor follow after other gods and worship them.”

And so it was in the beginning and for quite a few years for your nation. You followed me and obeyed my commands and I blessed your nation. But, as always with my people, slowly the compromises slipped in. One small thing here, another there. Until your hearts were gradually hardened to me, and open to the enemy who offered “happiness” and “authentic living” and “prosperity” and “ease” and “pleasure”. So many false promises and false gods to worship. And I was inched out of your personal lives, your homes, your neighborhoods, your cities and ultimately your nation. It was, as is all incremental sin, hard to spot as it happened. But it is impossible to miss now. You are a godless nation, but for my remnant.  (2021)

Revelation 14:1-20 Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.” Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.” And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.” Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!” Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped. Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.

All who are mine are marked. That mark is not visible to the human eye, but you have been given the spirit of discernment. You know who is truly mine. Pay attention. Do not align yourself with those who are not mine. That is not to say do not associate with them. You must, if you are to help them understand my word and what I am. But do not follow anyone that does not bear my mark. The times are perilous. Your enemy knows how to speak in a way that sounds like it comes from me. Pray over everything. When in doubt, back out. Better to pull away at the wrong moment than to be drawn into lies and deception. 

The day is drawing near. Babylon will be soundly defeated. I will return to judge your earth. Do not be found on the wrong side of that judgment.  Help as many as possible to see truth. You fear what will happen here. Fear what will happen after I return. What is allowed to happen here before my return will pale in comparison to what will occur to those who find themselves on the wrong side of my judgment. I have given you a heart of love for the lost, beginning with your brothers. It is a source of sadness and pain for you, I know. But it is necessary for you to feel these things that you might power through and keep working to help them. If you did not feel such love, you would be able to just walk away and leave them to their own end. Yet, you cannot. You are not weak, you are not codependent. You are on a mission from me. Yes, you are in a deep spiritual battle with your brothers. They are enveloped in darkness. Pray fervently before dealing with them. But do not give up on them, I have not. There is yet a chance for their salvation. No, you cannot save them, but you can assist them in seeing Truth.  Their souls are wrapped in lies. Eternally deadly lies. Hang in there. What surrounds them cannot harm you. You are mine. I have already defeated that darkness. Those spirits know that you are mine. That is why they continually attempt to weaken you, to frighten you, to push you back. Stand firm. You are mine and I am yours. They have no power over you other than what you give them. Give no ground. Do not move. I will fight this battle for you. You are surrounded by my warriors. They will allow no real harm to come to you. Do you believe? Will you trust? It all hinges on the answers to those two questions. Yes, your belief and trust will waver. I know. I understand. Just allow me to fortify you in both areas. Ask, my child. Constantly seek my help. Choose to trust. Choose to believe. First the choice, then come the assurances. You are my precious child. I will not allow your ultimate defeat, though there will be setbacks. Power on.

Yes, this is harsh. There will be persecution. There is much persecution of my followers already. It is growing all over the world. It is surprisingly prevalent in this hemisphere. Yes, you are used to seeing and reading about persecution of believers in Africa, in muslim nations, in Asia. But here…in the US, in Canada, in Europe? Yes, even in all these places. It has begun and will continue and worsen. Be prepared. You enemy may “win” some battles, but is aware that the overall war has already been won by me. Hence, his upswing in attacks. The time is growing short. He knows that. But, so do you. Hang on to that knowledge. I am coming soon. (2018)

2 Kings 4:44 “And sure enough, there was plenty for all and some left over, just as the Lord had promised.”

As was true for Elisha, so it is true for you.  I will provide for You always.  There will be plenty for you, and some left over – so that you can share with others less fortunate.  Have I not said I would not leave nor forsake you?  Have I not promised to care for you?  So it will be.  Stay peaceful.  Does it seem so much that I, who created all, can multiply food supplies?  Or that I, through my prophet, can bring back the dead to life?  Or that I can cure leprosy?  And really, don’t you see that Elisha’s actions, and Naaman’s actions – none of that was really necessary for me to do what I wanted.  I could raise the dead without anyone’s help.  I can cure leprosy without the person dipping in a river.  But, I do that so people will see and understand and believe.  So, now, you profess to believe in me.  Can I not do anything in your life that I choose? Trust me.  I will help you to change your life for the better. I will honor all your attempts at obedience.  Just trust me. Naaman almost forfeited being cured b/c of his pride and his expectations as to how I would do things.  He expected Elisha to meet with him in person, to waive his hand and Naaman would be cured.  Don’t make the same mistakes.  You don’t have any idea how I will do the things I will do in your life.  And, I don’t have to appear before you to do them.  Do you believe?  Really believe? (2005)

2 Kings 17:15 “They worshiped worthless idols and became worthless themselves.  They followed the example of the nations around them disobeying the Lord’s command not to imitate them.”   

Watch yourself, see how much you follow those of the world.  How much are you obeying me?  How much of your life is patterned after My Word, and how much after what is around you on this earth?  Watch you don’t become as worthless as the Israelites were to Me at this point. Just as I allowed my people to be conquered and carried off to Assyria, so you, too, will be carried off by whatever it is that you follow.  How far away from Me are you right now?  How much farther do you wish to go?  You have strayed from Me, from My path.  You have allowed the sinful desires and practices of this world to distract and mislead you.  Be careful. Take note of what happens after time.  Are you not afraid of becoming even more enslaved to your lusts and desires, to this world?  You should be. Just as wrong as it was for the new settlers in Israel to worship idols in my towns, so is it wrong for you to worship me in my Church, while bowing to idols in your life. (2005)

Deuteronomy 23:9 “When you go to war against your enemies, be sure to stay away from anything that is impure.”  

You are in a spiritual war, and your enemy would like nothing better than to separate you from me. Be on your guard. When you engage the enemy, when you stand up for Me and my Word, his focus will be on you. One of the main ways he gains power over you is through sin. You will be enticed to sin. You will be enticed to cut corners in your relationship with me. Be on your guard at all times. Be in prayer at all times. Listen for my voice and do not listen to the loud voices and noises competing for your attention and your focus. If you slip, stop, repent and go forward again. Whatever happens, do not allow him to get you with guilt or a feeling that you cannot return to me. You can always return to me. I am the source of what you need to prevail and your enemies know that. Trust me. I will provide all that you need. But, you will not do this perfectly. Do not stop because that is true. (2021)

Deuteronomy 28:32  “You will watch as your sons and daughters are taken away as slaves. Your heart will break for them, but you won’t be able to help them.” 

So many of you have lost your children to this manufactured division – the race/gender/sexual preference/political/religious/doctrinal/economic divisions that have been sown into your society. You mourn as your families are ripped apart. Any attempts to breach the divides are rebuffed. Some of you relent and begin to honor the lies that are being put forth today as truth: diversity, transparency, intersectionality, privilege, systemic racism, white supremacy, tolerance, speaking truth to power, women’s choice, abortion as healthcare, democratic socialism, climate change as a political force – and so many more. Others of you are holding to truth – My Truth. It is a very difficult road today, and will be more and more difficult as the days progress. Holding to my values – to “conservative” values – will not just be unpopular, but as you are beginning to see unfold, will make you the domestic enemies of the 21st century. Your lives will be made more and more difficult. But, do not despair, for I will honor you. I am with you. I will not forsake you. And when it is time – in my perfect timing – it will end. But until then, do not allow yourselves to be shaken. Do not falter in your walk. Do not abandon your faith. Do not compromise your beliefs.  (2021)

Deuteronomy 21:1-9. If someone is found slain, lying in a field in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess, and it is not known who the killer was, your elders and judges shall go out and measure the distance from the body to the neighboring towns. Then the elders of the town nearest the body shall take a heifer that has never been worked and has never worn a yoke and lead it down to a valley that has not been plowed or planted and where there is a flowing stream. There in the valley they are to break the heifer’s neck. The Levitical priests shall step forward, for the Lord your God has chosen them to minister and to pronounce blessings in the name of the Lord and to decide all cases of dispute and assault. Then all the elders of the town nearest the body shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley, and they shall declare: “Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it done. Accept this atonement for your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, Lord, and do not hold your people guilty of the blood of an innocent person.” Then the bloodshed will be atoned for, and you will have purged from yourselves the guilt of shedding innocent blood, since you have done what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

Guilt of sin and crime are not just those of the individual but of the entire community. Why should I not judge your nation for all of my innocent children murdered in the womb? Is it not the fault of the entire nation? Your nation has not only actually passed laws permitting this abomination, but grants community money to pay for it. Your nation has made an industry of murder and the sale of the parts of these precious bodies. Why does it surprise you that your nation is under my wrath? Why should I not abandon you to your blatant sin? Why would I return to you? Yes, I have forgiven you and all those who committed this act but have repented. Yes, I see your individual hearts. But, as a nation, there has been no repentance for the practice continues. The heart of your nation continues to be hard. I love you, but will not coexist with this. Choose. What is the desire of your heart? Is it to return to the Nation I blessed, that blessed me? Or is it to continue to murder the innocent and profit from that sin? (2021)

Luke 10:1-12 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.”

I am sending you. You are a harvest worker. Pay attention. Some will welcome you and my Word, others reject you. When you see a person’s heart is too hard, move on. When you are openly attacked and rejected, look to me for strength and comfort and move on. Do not waste time on those who will not hear, who will not repent and be saved, who will not turn to me. Time is too short. Plant your seeds and move on. You will not see the ultimate harvest. Some will respond immediately, some will respond later when you have already left their lives. Some will not respond ever, and will not be saved. You cannot change that. It is their choice. Offer them my Word and allow them to decide what to do with it. Do not allow the darkness and evil of this day to discourage you. I am. I will prevail in my time. (2021)

2 Kings 1:1-4  After Ahab’s death, Moab rebelled against Israel. Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers, saying to them, “Go and consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, to see if I will recover from this injury.” But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘You will not leave the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!’” So Elijah went.

Just as I had Elijah ask King Ahab, “Is there no God in Israel?” I ask you – have you no God? Why do you turn to things, events, the world for your answers? Do I not still exist? If you wish the right answers, if you wish your life to really work, turn to Me. No one but Me. I am the way, the truth and the life. You need nothing and no one else. You have lost your first love. Return to Me, and you will be restored. I haven’t gone anywhere, I am not going anywhere. I’m right here waiting for you to return. I do love you, my child. Nothing will change that, no matter what you do. I love you. Simple. Unchanging. Eternal truth. So stop letting your brain run wild. Submit your thoughts to Me and I will make them healthy and uplifting. I can and I will. My own people rejected me. So I gave My word to the gentiles. They knew they were not my favorites. Many knew that they were entirely undeserving. So, they were more grateful for their salvation than the Jews. So it is and should be with you. You were deeply lost in your sin. You were walking a very dark path. You once remembered the magnitude of My grace toward you. Return to that knowledge. Rejoice in what you have been given. Stop focusing on what you do not have, because really you already have all that matters – you have the promise of eternity with Me and your Father. Notice that the Jews in power in that day did everything to destroy Paul and Barnabas – and anyone who preached My word. So it is today. Do not be surprised, nor dismayed. Just as I protected and drew close to them, so I will to you and all my children today. It will get worse. Christians will continue to be hated, spurned, even persecuted. But, it has always been so, really. You just don’t have the experience, as you were fortunate that I planted you in what was, up until recently, a Christian nation. But watch, it is worsening. You will be hated, if you continue to follow me. The choice is yours. 

Psalm 139 is for you. Study it. Read it daily. Live it once again. (2004)