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Know that what follows was originally written in October of 2018. It was not written or intended for online publication and, in fact, was only intended to be disseminated among my small-group.
Recent events being what they are however, I find this message as timely and relevant now as it was when it was penned. In fact, as the issues addressed herein find themselves coming to the forefront, I believe it is of paramount importance that believers of all stripes pray and agree for our nation – and more importantly – for our little ones.
We are undeniably in a season of intense spiritual warfare – if you are not perceiving this, you’re likely not engaged or are simply not presenting a viable threat to the enemy. No offense if this is you, but get in the fight.
The battles we find ourselves embroiled in are myriad and touch aspects of our world from every perspective and level; global, national, regional, municipal, congregational, familial and personal.
The reason for this is that there is, and has been, a major shift taking place in the realm of the Spirit and it is being made manifest by the awakening of the people of God; a people who are humbling themselves, praying and seeking his face – a people who are repenting and turning from their wicked ways. True to His word, God is hearing from Heaven and is forgiving our sins and healing our land.
Enter the tantrums of the enemy…
I’ve often reminded fellow believers that innumerable divided by three is still innumerable. The point is that while the fallen are outnumbered 2 to 1, their number is still well beyond our reckoning.
History counts those who come to power through victory as conquerors and those who achieve power through intrigue as usurpers – the Adversary clearly intended to rise as a conqueror, but failed. He then resorted to intrigue, but even as a would-be usurper, still ultimately failed.
Presently, we find ourselves in a reality wherein these failed would-be usurpers stand as powers and principalities under the ‘god of this world’. What authority and dominion they have for the time they have left is all that there is for them; it’s all they are ever going to have until the King returns and final judgement is rendered.
With that in mind, you can see from a very practical standpoint why they rage against the current shift of the spiritual climate; a shifting towards awareness of the things of God… and let’s be clear, they are kicking and screaming at every conceivable level right now. This is for good reason and we are seeing these tantrums made manifest in the physical on a daily basis at every level, from global to personal.
Understanding this won’t stop the enemy’s attacks. It won’t stop the mocking, the jeering, the discouragement or the opposition; it can however gird you up in the understanding that what you’re hearing are the cries of a defeated foe. The battle is – and always has been – the Lord’s. His victory is secure and ours therefore, is assured.
Numerous times over the past few weeks, the Lord has brought this passage to my attention:
After him was Shammah the son of Age(e) the Harari. The P’lishtim had assembled at Lechi, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the P’lishtim. But he stood in the middle of the plot and defended it, killing the P’lishtim; and Adonai brought about a great victory.
2 Samuel 23:11 – 12 [CJB]
This passage has been encouraging to me for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that this one man, standing alone in a bean-field, managed to defeat an entire troop pf Philistines. For those not keeping track, Philistines weren’t exactly the smallest or weakest of peoples in their time.
Shammah is counted among David’s mighty men – and let’s be clear here, nobody who doesn’t deserve to be on that list, is. (You might also note the presence of Uriah the Hittite here, but that’s whole other article…) The point is that these ‘Mighty Men’ are counted as such because they stood firm in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds and emerged victorious through the grace of God our Father.
Out of curiosity I searched the etymology and meaning of the name ‘Shammah’ and found the results equally encouraging. Some sources state the meaning of the name to be “loss; desolation or astonishment”, while others posit “The Lord’s Presence” or “God is here” as the meaning. In either instance, looking through the lens of present circumstances, I see a clear message; “The Lord is present, the battle is His and the enemy will be astonished at His victory and at the greatness of their loss and desolation!”
Maybe I’m reaching, but I don’t think so. When the Lord presents me with something repeatedly, he is generally doing so because I can be quite thick – he wants to make sure I truly get the memo.
Recently I had an interesting ‘exchange’ that was the result of what ultimately amounted to the public mocking of my beliefs and the veracity I attribute to scripture. A friend and fellow believer witnessed the exchange and later discussed it with me. During the discussion I shared with him the Lord’s repeated bringing of Shammah to my attention; he added to this by likening the encounter to a ‘Nehemiah’ moment. True to form, off I went to check my scriptures; test everything, hold onto what is good…
When Sanvalat the Horoni, Toviyah the servant, the Amoni and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they began mocking us and jeering, “What is this you are doing? Are you going to rebel against the king?” But I answered them: “The God of Heaven will enable us to succeed. Therefore we his servants will set about rebuilding. But you have no share, right or history to commemorate in Yerushalayim.”
Nehemiah 2:19 – 20 [CJB]
What I found uplifting here is that, despite the mocking, subversion, attempted sabotage and ultimately, plans to kill Nehemiah and those helping him to shore up the wall, Nehemiah prevailed. He prevailed because he was stalwart in his task and would not be diverted from his goal, regardless of momentary circumstances. He prevailed because he had been tasked by God almighty, and the Lord is faithful and just. He prevailed because the Lord – DOES – NOT – FAIL.
All of this illustrates to me that it is not a matter of if our prayers will be answered and those answers made manifest, but a matter of when it will be so. I’m quite sure that I’m not alone when I say that there are issues I have been ‘praying through’ for quite some time. Years. I’m sure there are those among us who could say “Decades”. Some days the burden feels heavy and some days light, but every day we are to take up our armor, position ourselves in that bean-field and say to the enemy, “Not one more inch!”
But for how long?
After him was El’azar the son of Dodo the son of Achochi, one of the three warriors with David when they put their lives in jeopardy against the P’lishtim who were assembled there for battle, while the men of Isra’el had gone away. He stood firm and attacked the P’lishtim until his hand went into spasms, so that he couldn’t let go of his sword. Adonai accomplished a great victory that day; but the people didn’t return until he had finished, and then only to plunder the bodies of the dead.
2 Samuel 23:9 – 10 [CJB]
Our prayers will be, have been and are being answered. Again, the manifestation will come in His timing, for His purposes. In the meantime, let us hold our ground, warring against the powers of darkness, pleading our causes and stating our cases to the court of Heaven. Let us fight the good fight until we, like El’azar, cannot let go of our swords.
The Lord can and will see us through to victory; it is up to us to remain faithful, to keep praying and trusting. He never promised us an easy ride, in fact He assured us that if we abide in Him we would have troubles, for the world would hate us as it hated Him… He also promised us that when such things occurred, we should rejoice for He has overcome the world.
A New Season Approaches
To the victor go the spoils; and the spoils are well beyond the understanding or imaginations of mere mortal men.
Several years ago I became aware of a prophetic voice making, what I thought at the time to be, some fairly audacious claims. It’s one thing to grope with a vision and the implications therein or to move under the prompting of the Spirit, it’s quite another to boldly proclaim “thus says the Lord!”
Being fairly literal with regards to scripture, I hold those who proclaim such to rather high standard:
You may be wondering, ‘How are we to know if a word has not been spoken by Adonai?’ When a prophet speaks in the name of Adonai, and the prediction does not come true – that is the word is not fulfilled – then Adonai did not speak that word. The prophet who said it spoke presumptuously; you have nothing to fear from him.
Deuteronomy 18:21 – 22
The individual to which I am referring made a number of high-level, eyebrow-raising claims regarding the United States, starting with Donald Trump becoming President… which happened.
In addition to this, he has spoken regarding a number of other issues, but two seem to be leaping to the forefront as of late; traitors within our government facing military tribunals and the Roe vs Wade decision being overturned.
I highlight these because, as we saw during the confirmation process of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court Decision by which abortion on demand has maintained a status of legality, was quite suddenly thrust into public discourse. It struck me that several voices on the ‘far left’ seemed to jump to the conclusion that this decision was in jeopardy immediately following the announcement of his nomination.
We also saw, during the same confirmation process, an interesting dialogue between Senator Lindsey Graham and Justice Kavanaugh concerning the application of Military Law to Civilians. He specifically went about defining whether or not the United States can be legally considered to be ‘At War’ and which body of law, Civilian or Military, applied to those found to be actively aiding or supporting enemy combatants.
I personally do not believe in coincidence.
I do not serve a God of coincidence.
These two issues alone stand to bring sweeping change in our nation, and while I do long to see true justice meted out to those who may be subverting our nation, it is the latter issue I want to highlight.
Lately, I have noticed a marked increase in awareness concerning Foster Care and Adoption… and I mean significantly. As a Foster / Adoptive parent, it is not unusual for me to come across literature, news and information pertinent to the topic; after all, it is relevant to some of the ‘circles’ I run in – but this isn’t that. This is a prophetic cry, calling to the church to get active, to foster, to consider adoption and prepare their homes or “expand their tent-pegs”. The call is going out and seems to be intensifying in frequency and volume.
I like to think of myself as a fairly logical individual; logic is actually what I do; so I have to ask myself why is this happening now – and the answer is fairly obvious to me: Once abortion is removed as a legally viable method of birth-control (which is how it’s been used for decades now), we will find ourselves faced with a rapidly growing need for homes and families. God is readying his people to receive wanted, treasured, precious little ones and to raise them up as our own.
This gives me even more reason to keep fighting the good fight and praying on behalf of our nation, our leaders, our judges, our churches and our brethren. Now is the time to press and press hard. This isn’t an issue of immediate need, it’s an issue of life and death for a generation. It is high-time that the people of God threw down the high-places of the ba’alim and stood for justice to reign and for the right of the most innocent among us, to live.
I’m not certain what the future looks like in America; I only know that it isn’t the doom spouted incessantly by the talking heads on television. God is the one who determines the course, and it should be clear to all his people that America has shifted from a course of judgement and condemnation into one of justice and restoration. If you don’t see it, you haven’t been paying attention.
So get in the fight, stand in the gap, trust in the Lord, and never, ever, ever give up hope.
Rak Chazak V’Amatz! (Be strong and of good courage!)