Monday, February 28, 2011

De JaVu II - by Christine Beadsworth

Fresh Oil Releases

Deja Vu II

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ

I am still sitting under heavy conviction of the last Word I sent out. And as I do, I find myself understanding more and more why I wrote the following:

‘Now is not the time to be exercising your gift. Leave it at the altar and sort out these issues both with your older brother Jesus and your brothers and sisters in Christ. Then as an overcomer, you can cross over and receive what is promised you!’

From the time I came to know the Lord, my greatest failing has been that I have been quick to speak and slow to listen, instead of doing as the Word instructs us –‘be slow to speak and quick to listen’. For someone with a so-called prophetic gifting, this can prove fatal as I have so often caught a glimpse of something in the Spirit and thought I understood the whole picture and then being eager to share, have run with message, not realizing that I am unintentionally conveying the wrong message. I have heard a snatch of what God is saying and had the audacity to declare that I know the whole context and meaning He is trying to convey. I am beginning to see that my hastiness in carrying a message to those waiting to hear has most likely been to the detriment of those that I have so wanted to bless.

I have always enjoyed sitting at the Lord’s feet or so I thought- but now as I reflect back, I see that no sooner have we sat down to enjoy one another’s company, no sooner has He begun to speak, than I would think, ‘wow, that’s important, I must tell someone” and jump up and run off, leaving the Lord looking after me in consternation as He calls, “wait, wait, I haven’t finished speaking yet.’

This much I know – this crossroads we are sitting at is pivotal and in the season of removing blindspots and checking rear-view mirrors, we are at the place where we need to sit still until we hear and digest the whole message. And it is the love of God for us that keeps us here. It has always been easier for me to see the fault or sin in my brother, than to see my own. It is so much easier to read the Word of God and see how it applies to others rather than ourselves; so much easier to judge an outward situation than the inward state of our own hearts. The Word of God is sharper than a two-edged sword and will pierce to the dividing line of soul and spirit, bone and marrow if we will sit still long enough and let that Living Word do its work. Its real intention is to put to death the Pharisee in us and bring forth Christ.

I do not know where anybody else is at right now but I know the address of the crossroads where I am sitting:

Rev 3:19  Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love, I tell their faults and convict and convince and reprove and chasten [I discipline and instruct them]. So be enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent [changing your mind and attitude]. Rev 3:20  Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears and listens to and heeds My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will eat with him, and he [will eat] with Me. Rev 3:21  He who overcomes (is victorious), I will grant him to sit beside Me on My throne, as I Myself overcame (was victorious) and sat down beside My Father on His throne.

I understand that before I am a messenger, I need to hear the message and let the Word become flesh in me. As my beloved Jesus tenderly reproves and chastens me, I want to stay seated and eat the whole banquet He has prepared for me at this time. It is hard to stay seated as each plate He places before me is a mirror where I am seeing myself more clearly than I have in a long time. It is painful to lie still on the altar and let Him cut to the dividing line of bone and marrow. So much easier to leap off the table and run with the message of the mouthful of half-chewed appetizer than to swallow it and allow it to do its cleansing nourishing work….I have to keep going back to these verses and remind myself that this is what real Love looks like and feels like, it tenderly convicts and reproves and instructs because He wants to bring forth repentance that bears fruit. A quick kiss on the cheek never got anyone pregnant and if I want to bring forth good fruit, I have to allow this Word to lie in my bosom, day and night like the bundle of myrrh in Song of Songs 1, until my intimacy with it draws out every impurity and cleanses me deep within.

Things are not right between me and my Bridegroom. In my carelessness and haste to get where I want to go, I have hurt him in ways I never realized until now.  I have sung the song ‘it’s all about You Jesus’ but am beginning to see that mostly our relationship has been about me and what He can do for me. It’s revolved around my reaching my spiritual goals rather than about ministering first to Him. It has been extremely painful to realize the truth about myself through the eyes of my Heavenly Bridegroom and yet there is no condemnation from Him, only love and sorrow at the personal price I have paid over the years through my own skewed priorities. To look in the mirror and see self-centeredness is hard, but then to realize that my blindness to it has caused the very same thing to wreak damage and cause pain in all my earthly relationships takes it to a whole different depth. The realization that only the cross of Christ and the Blood of the Lamb can wash me clean, causes me to run to partake of the Body and blood of Jesus, that I may be forgiven and set free.

There is an old song, ‘here am I so unworthy of the Blood and yet it flows for me’. It is here as I kneel at the cross, as I deeply digest that communion meal of bread and wine with my Beloved, that I then begin to understand the length and breadth and height and depth of His love for me all over again. Then I wash my face and arise from that place knowing forgiveness and He says, ‘go and do likewise’ and I go and confess my faults to those this flaw has wounded and that course of the banquet He has prepared for me is complete.

He tenderly lays the next course before me and I look at that mirror-plate in shock …. self-righteousness! Oh no, not that too? And gently and tenderly the Lord begins to minister to me, revealing the hidden places in my heart where the Pharisee is hiding. And in His fiery love He cleanses His temple, overturning the tables under which the enemy has been hiding, setting me free from things I didn’t even know were binding me. And yes, its painful but yet its glorious as every barrier that has existed between us is removed and every obstacle to true intimacy is dissolved in the light of His love.

And I have to chuckle because the very Word I sent out just a few days ago is ministering to me and I fancied myself as playing the part of Zechariah, removing the dirty turban but instead the Lord has me cast in the shoes of filthy Joshua and someone else has gently removed my turban and is showing it to me. Isn’t it interesting how we usually imagine ourselves as taking the part of the hero or heroine in the play. No-one wants to be the victim or the villain….

I knew when I sent out the last article ‘Déjà vu’ that the Lord was asking me to lay my gift on the altar for a season and even though I couldn’t see the full implications, I was quite willing to obey Him. However in the days that have followed, my eyes are opening to see the need to lay that gift down and the wisdom behind His simple request. It is the laying down of the gift that deals a deathblow to self-centeredness. It is the humbling of yourself and the making right with your brother and sister in Christ that allows the power of the cross to liberate you from the hold that fault has on your life.

Jas 5:16  Confess to one another therefore your faults (your slips, your false steps, your offenses, your sins) and pray [also] for one another, that you may be healed and restored [to a spiritual tone of mind and heart]. The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].

Within this verse is a key that the church today has to a large extent lost and with it we have lost access to the tremendous power available to us. We all wear masks to hide our shame and our flaws, not understanding that whatever we keep in darkness has power over us. When we bring something into the light, it is judged by the light. Unfortunately we listen to the voice of the accuser who tells us that to expose our flaws and sins to the light will bring rejection from both God and man. The devil is such a liar. He knows that He was defeated by the work of the cross so the only ruse left up his sleeve is to tell us that to bring our sin into the light means certain rejection and judgment firstly from God and then from our brothers and sisters in Christ. The truth is that all judgment for sin fell on Jesus at the cross. Yes, we are guilty – we know that, but the awesome beauty of the finished work of the cross is that instead of rejection we receive acceptance. Instead of punishment, we receive forgiveness. Of course we know this in our heads but somehow we still expect judgment from our brothers and sisters in Christ. We expect rejection - and the fear of no longer being loved and accepted causes us to hesitate in confessing our faults.

However, the opposite is true. When one person has the courage to take off his mask, everyone else in the room breathes a sigh of relief and knows it is safe to remove theirs as well! And the accuser of the brethren runs round screaming in panic, “no, no, you are all so ugly…put them back on’ but his words are falling on ears becoming deaf to his lies as they experience the glorious freedom of walking in the light and having fellowship with the Father and the Son and one another.

Fortunately, as the banquet progresses, the Lord is interspersing His deep surgical work with doses of humor where I can laugh at myself as He kindly and without malice shows me how I appear through His loving eyes – and this causes relief to replace the panic that comes at being found naked before His gaze. Every time He effectively says to me, do you want to keep that ridiculous fig-leaf on or would you like to wear My robe of righteousness. There’s no guessing which I grab…

And so, my precious friends, I want to get the ball rolling and start feasting on this final course of the banquet our Jesus has prepared for us. Its called Just desserts and it’s the course where the enemy receives what has long been coming to him in our lives. I eagerly want to lay down my gift and leave it at the altar and confess my faults and failings before you. In the past you may have only seen my strengths but today I take off my mask and confess to you that in the past season I have been self-centered and self-righteous in many of my dealings with the people who know me best – my natural family and my spiritual family. I have not only been blind to those flaws in myself but I have seen and at times pointed them out in others. It is much easier to keep up an appearance of spirituality with those do not live with you or see your day to day conduct and I suspect that is why my email and internet ministry has been accepted and embraced. However, I can clearly see as I look back over the struggles I have faced in the last years, that the tolerance of these two thieves in my temple and the blindness to their presence, has resulted in me growing in favor only with those who do not know me very well.

I therefore, gladly and eagerly, in a desire to allow the Lord to rid me of their presence, lay my gift at the altar and repent. I will not be writing any articles for as long as is necessary as I seek the Lord for healing and restoration of every relationship damaged by these things.

 I want to open my heart wide to His searchlight, pay the necessary price to purchase gold refined in the fire white garments and salve for my eyes.  I want to fully digest and benefit from ‘the words of the Amen, the trusty and faithful and true Witness’ who I can trust to honestly tell me the good things He sees and the things He has against me as we sup together. My desire is to be wholly and completely a child of Light, within and without, at home and abroad, before God and man.
In His love
Christine

1Jn 1:5  And this is the message [the message of promise] which we have heard from Him and now are reporting to you: God is Light, and there is no darkness in Him at all [no, not in any way]. 1Jn 1:6  [So] if we say we are partakers together and enjoy fellowship with Him when we live and move and are walking about in darkness, we are [both] speaking falsely and do not live and practice the Truth [which the Gospel presents]. 1Jn 1:7  But if we [really] are living and walking in the Light, as He [Himself] is in the Light, we have [true, unbroken] fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses (removes) us from all sin and guilt [keeps us cleansed from sin in all its forms and manifestations]. 1Jn 1:8  If we say we have no sin [refusing to admit that we are sinners], we delude and lead ourselves astray, and the Truth [which the Gospel presents] is not in us [does not dwell in our hearts]. 1Jn 1:9  If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]. 1Jn 1:10  If we say (claim) we have not sinned, we contradict His Word and make Him out to be false and a liar, and His Word is not in us [the divine message of the Gospel is not in our hearts].



Christine
freshoil@polka.co.za 


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Sunday, February 27, 2011

Deja Vu - by Christine Beadsworth

Fresh Oil Releases

Deja Vu


Déjà vu - The phrase "deja vu" is French for "already seen" and is used to refer to when a person experiences the feeling that they have seen, experienced, or been someplace before even when they are sure that that is not really true. So, for example, a person who arrives at a new city they have never before visited may experience deja vu on a street, experience the intense feeling that they have been on that street at some point in the past.

Last night the Lord kept me awake until the wee hours of the morning. He showed me His people at a traffic intersection where the light was red for them. It seemed that it was staying red forever and they were growing impatient as they knew where they wanted to go, could see the long-awaited destination straight ahead, after the crossing - but the rules of the road required them to remain stationary until the light turned green. Frustrated as they were, the waiting time gave them time to look at the scenery around them and they had a strange sense that they had been at this particular crossroads before. In fact, the more they pondered, the more they realized that their life seemed to have gone in a circle, bringing them back again to this red light, where every door to their progress was halted. Round and round the same mountain. “ I have already learned this lesson” they silently shout to the Lord – “been there, done that, got the tee-shirt. I can’t understand why I have landed up here again. I thought I had followed all Your directions and was coming to the entrance to the manifestation of my promise and I seem to have made no progress at all. Just give me the green light to go ahead Lord, I have wasted enough time already”.

Then the Lord began to speak, “what happened last time you were at this place and the traffic light turned green and you took off at top speed towards your promised land?” The truth of it was an unexpected attack from the enemy had caused major damage, a road accident of large proportions, personal wounding and even innocent bystanders were hit by flying debris. The in-between years had been spent recovering strength, faith and confidence in God and healing from the damage inflicted yet doggedly pressing on in determination to access the promised land which could be seen up ahead. However the cost and the toll had been great.

Then I heard the Lord gently begin to minister understanding as to what He is doing by keeping the traffic light red. He is able to turn it to green whenever He feels it is safe for you to proceed but He loves you too much to watch you go through the same destruction all over again. He wants you not to keep your gaze fixed on your destination up ahead at this point. You have been brought to a halt in order to check your rear view mirror. If the eyes of your heart are open, it is simple enough to see what is ahead. However it is hindsight that brings the wisdom necessary to move you safely forward past all hidden dangers and enemy attacks that lurk in traversing the crossing ahead. He also wants you to check your blind spot. In order to do this thoroughly, you will need to adjust your gaze and turn your head away from your destination to check for any other vehicles or pedestrians presently hidden from view. Your destination is not going anywhere. It really is in front of you but the enemy of your souls is determined to destroy you as that light changes and you traverse that crossing – just as the dragon crouches to destroy the man-child as it is coming forth in Revelation 12. If you do not do these checks while God has brought you to a place of rest, your crossing will have the same result as the last time you found yourself at this particular point.

God did not lie when He said He would restore the years the locust has eaten. However He can only do this successfully by bringing you to a halt, turning back the clock so to speak and ministering revelation to you that brings hindsight or wisdom and understanding about the path of your life up to this particular moment. The feeling of deja vu is because God in His mercy wants to reveal to you that the very same blind-spot that caused the last train-wreck in your life has as yet not been discerned by you. You have been so intent on making up for lost time and opportunity that you have been breaking all the simple rules of the road that were set in place for the safety and wellbeing of both yourself and those around you. If you had seen this particular blind-spot in yourself, you would have dealt with it years ago because of your desire to be pleasing to the Lord and to make yourself ready. But you are quite unaware of it because your eye has been so fixed on your destination by faith.

Actually the Father has been trying to speak to you about it for years but you thought it was just the voice of the accuser and rejected it as persecution for righteousness sake without even considering it. The truth of the matter is that in every accusation of the accuser, there is at least one grain of truth. This is the way he works, whether it comes through the mouth of your brother in Christ with whom you disagree or your enemy.

In Zechariah, when Joshua stood before the high priest, he was in filthy clothing and satan stood at his right hand to accuse him. The accusation was based on the state of his garments. Even Zechariah as an observer could see he was dirty as accused. He also observed the Lord’s response to the accusation. Joshua was given clean garments by the Lord who acknowledged he was in a pretty bad state having just come out of the Refiner’s fire - but at the same time He rebuked satan and confirmed that this was indeed a vessel chosen by God in spite of the state he was now in. The thing about the refiner’s fire is that it brings all the impurities to the surface so they are painfully obvious to everyone observing you.

Even you are able to look down at your garments and see their state and repent before God – but one thing you cannot see is the state of your turban - which is a picture of what is wrapped tightly around your mind. You would have to look in a mirror to see that and there isn’t one in the throne room…or is there? Notice it is Zechariah who calls for a clean turban for Joshua. His brother in Christ can see what Joshua cannot see, that his mind is bound by something unclean. Zechariah does not speak out of intention to judge or criticize Joshua but to participate in his cleansing and full restoration. Remember that after this the Lord speaks about bringing forth His servant , the Branch. All the restorative and cleansing processes described here must happen in order to demonstrate how God goes about bringing forth this corporate Branch that will bear much fruit!

Even in present times, when out in public, we are grateful to a friend who tells us our label is hanging out at the back or we have a black mark on our face. These are things we can’t see ourselves and we know it out of love and in order to rescue us from humiliation and disgrace that they mention it to us. Concerning our spiritual state, God has been trying to show us what we are unable to see ourselves for years by using one brother or sister after another to try and show us the thing lurking in our blind-spots. However, because it has come in the form of a rebuke, has not always been spoken in love, it has appeared to just be an unfounded criticism and we have not received it and seen it as the enemy using them to persecute us unjustly.

Whatever situation we are in, there is always both the voice of the accuser and the voice of the faithful High Priest who speaks the truth in love. The brother or sister who, like Zechariah, hears what the High priest  about this brother obviously clothed in filthy garments, is considered fit to participate in the restoration process. It is not spoken from a heart of judgment but of joyful and purposeful participation in what God has already begun to do. “He needs a clean turban too. Bring it” Zechariah decrees.

In this season of waiting at the red light, God is releasing faithful Zechariahs into your life, who have seen your real spiritual state and heard both the voice of the accuser and that of the faithful high priest. They have observed the removal of the old garments and now God will use them to speak into what you cannot see yourself. They have been sent to minister into your blind spot and reveal it to you. They speak the truth in love. At this point, do not make the mistake of thinking this is the voice of the accuser. Satan has been accusing you in your mind for years telling you that you are unclean and not fit to be used by the Lord. That is not true, you are chosen by the Lord …but you are also in dire need of a change of garment AND turban!

The voice that comes in this season may be observing the very thing that you cannot see for yourself, the last stronghold that keeps your mind from accessing the full freedom of the sons of God. Do not cling to your filthy old turban. Let it be taken off your head by a brother or sister who loves you and is able to show it to you without condemnation or an intent to hurt you further. This is to set you free. Receive the ministrations of the true friends that God has positioned in your life in order to complete the restorative process.  Once you see how dirty that turban is, confess your faults one to another that you may be healed. Proverbs tells us ‘faithful are the wounds of a friend but the kisses of an enemy are lavish and deceitful’. And for those God desires to use as a Zechariah in the life of those you love, remember that Proverbs also says ‘he who rebukes will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue’. Speak the truth from a heart of love with the intention of setting your brother or sister free! Once they know or see for themselves that truth, freedom is instantaneous! They will hurl that filthy piece of binding cloth far from themselves.


I also believe this time of Sabbath rest; this interlude where one’s progress forward has been halted by the red light, is a time in which God desires to heal the wounds the Body of Christ has inflicted upon itself by accusing and harboring unforgiveness toward one another. Sometimes what your brother has against you is valid. There is perhaps just a grain of truth in His accusation - but our own spiritual pride causes a blind spot and we see no need to make amends for what we are not guilty of! However, this is the season of adjusting our focus, checking blind spots, looking in the rear view mirror at the path you have already traveled under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit. This is the season for the outworking of the following verses on a large scale as brother seeks to reconcile with brother and the family of God is healed.

Mat 5:23  So if when you are offering your gift at the altar you there remember that your brother has any [grievance] against you, Mat 5:24  Leave your gift at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift. Mat 5:25  Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way traveling with him, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison.

Lets consider Jacob, who on leaving Laban, is on the journey home to the area his brother lives…and he knows his brother hates him. He knows he needs to make peace and he is afraid. So he sends gifts and even sends the women and children over the river first!! Then in Genesis 32, we find him wrestling all night with God and prevailing. Then God asks him his name. In other words ‘what do others call you?’ How have others described you in the past seasons? Is there a characteristic that has stood out in their accusations? Jacob means ‘supplanter, swindler’. In other words, he took a position that wasn’t his to possess. He had ambition and he wanted what was rightfully his brother’s and was prepared to use any means of deception at his disposal in order to lay his hands on the inheritance of the first-born. Wow, was Jacob looking in a mirror as he wrestled with the answer to that question! What people called him was true. He was what people said he was! Ouch! He was face to face with himself for the first time. And then as he scanned over the time with Laban, he saw he had reaped in the same measure he had sown. He had deceived his father and had in turned been deceived by Laban. Until that night of wrestling, he had been so intent of obtaining the inheritance that he disobeyed all the rules of common decency and integrity. But praise God, with that revelation and light-bulb moment, God changed his name and his character, ‘ Israel ’ means ‘straightened of God’ or ‘he will rule as God’! And as he left that place with the sun rising upon him, limping from the touch of the One he had wrestled with, he went on to cross over and face his former adversary; the brother he had defrauded in his relentless quest for the inheritance, the brother who had something against him. And the proof of his changed heart is seen in his words as he met Esau:

Gen 33:10  But Jacob replied, No, I beg of you, if now I have found favor in your sight, receive my gift that I am presenting; for truly to see your face is to me as if I had seen the face of God, and you have received me favorably.

The season we are presently is that in which God desires to so heal our spiritual vision that we see the face of Christ in our former adversary in the Body of Christ. His accusations were not baseless – you have wronged him in some measure and even though he may be amplifying and exaggerating the fault in you, he has something against you! And now its time for you to be reconciled! As you read on in Genesis 33, you discover that God has also been working on Esau’s heart in the interim and he has already forgiven Jacob! The rift is healed, the wound mended. Only the limp remains!

Eph 2:14  For He is [Himself] our peace (our bond of unity and harmony). He has made us both one and has broken down (destroyed, abolished) the hostile dividing wall between us, Eph 2:15  By abolishing in His flesh the enmity caused by the Law with its decrees and ordinances [which He annulled]; that He from the two might create in Himself one new man [one new quality of humanity out of the two], so making peace.

The above verses were written describing the enmity between Jew and Gentile until the cross. How much more will the outworking of the power of the cross remove the hostile dividing wall between brother and brother as we forgive and embrace one another, having agreed with our adversary. We are exactly what they call us and praise God for the blood of the Lamb that can wash us white as snow and deliver us daily from the power of that sin!

Notice also that in the letters to the seven churches, every time Jesus tells them what is good in them and then He says,” but I have this against you…”. To those who overcome, there are specific rewards offered. But what does overcoming look like? Well, first it starts with agreeing with the one who has something against you – acknowledging that the fault does exist! Then follows repentance and seeking of forgiveness and being reconciled. Notice especially the counsel fo Jesus in Mat 5:24  ‘Leave your gift at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come back and present your gift’. I believe this is a specific instruction for us at this place of waiting. Now is not the time to be exercising your gift. Leave it at the altar and sort out these issues both with your older brother Jesus and your brothers and sisters in Christ. Then as an overcomer, you can cross over and receive what is promised you! If you don't agree with your adversary at this point, you will be handed over to the Judge and imprisoned for not following the rules of the road, instead of released into all God has planned for you.

The Body of Christ which comes out of this Sabbath rest, this enforced stop and wrestling with God until we acknowledge what He already knows and allow our hearts to be changed and our filthy turbans to be removed, will come out operating in resurrection power, with the deep wounds and tattered flesh healed, just as Jesus, the First-born from among the dead did. The estrangement and deep tearing in the Body of Christ will be made whole, the dislocated joints restored to their rightful places. Only the scars on hands and feet and side will remain as evidence that this is indeed the true Body of Christ – these are those who were wounded in the house of their friends! Wounded in order to be made whole, torn down in order to be rebuilt, raised up after two days and on the third day living in the light of the favor of God as He comes as the heavy latter rain in the earth (Hosea 6).

May our lives lovingly express truth [in all things, speaking truly, dealing truly, living truly].  May our lives at last line up with what our mouths are so quick to preach. May our blind spots at last be revealed to us and our hindsight fully equip us to make the necessary adjustments in our driving style as we see that light turn green and proceed cautiously across the intersection, moving in the newfound wisdom we have acquired. Enfolded in love, let us grow up in every way and in all things into Him Who is the Head, [even] Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). (Ephesians 4:15)

For He is our peace, our bond of mutual unity and harmony!
Selah





Christine
freshoil@polka.co.za 


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Tuesday, February 8, 2011

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by Marsha Burns -- 2/8/11

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by Marsha Burns -- 2/8/11:
Don't be afraid to take a break and relax. Your intensity in finding solutions to the problems you face will not even come close to the benefits of quiet rest in My presence and trusting Me to give you the necessary wisdom for breakthrough. This is not a time to tough it out in the strength of your own soul; it is a time to exercise resolute faith in My ability and willingness to bring you through every trial in victory, says the Lord. Only believe!
Psalm 107:28-31 Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; so He guides them to their desired haven. Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!

Monday, February 7, 2011

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by Marsha Burns -- 2/7/11

SMALL STRAWS IN A SOFT WIND by Marsha Burns -- 2/7/11:
Be filled again with My Spirit.  The days ahead will be filled with My Glory in the practical and commonplace things of life.  Maintain awareness, and see My manifest presence in unexpected ways, says the Lord.  Take nothing for granted.  My glory is all around you!
Psalms 125:2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds His people from this time forth and forever.

Reversal is not Rehearsal

Fresh Oil Releases
Reversal is not Rehearsal
Friends,
In the last few months I have found the following scripture to more and more of a reality in my life:
Mat 13:52  He said to them, Therefore every teacher and interpreter of the Sacred Writings who has been instructed about and trained for the kingdom of heaven and has become a disciple is like a householder who brings forth out of his storehouse treasure that is new and [treasure that is] old [the fresh as well as the familiar].
The Israelites ate manna on the Sabbath that had been gathered the previous day and in this season I have experienced that the Spirit of God has not so much been pouring out new revelation, but bringing to remembrance the revelation of the previous season and feeding and strengthening me with it. I have experienced the Lord doing this a number of times in recent days. And it is important to realize that being referred back to previous instruction and revelation does not mean that you have made no progress and must attend the class again! Instead it is an indication that the instruction contained in that learning module is about to come to an end, almost like revision of content before graduation. It is as if He repeats what He said at the beginning of a process, right at the end of that process as He brings that chapter to a close – in order to confirm and increase our depth of understanding as to His ways. This has the effect of dealing with any residue of fear or confusion that is still plaguing our souls and increases the depth of rest and trust within us, so that we may lie still within His hand and allow Him to do what only He can at this time! It is not our own strength or might that brings us into the promised land of our inheritance but His right arm and the light of His favor!
Psa 44:3  For they got not the land [of Canaan] in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them; but Your right hand and Your arm and the light of Your countenance [did it], because You were favorable toward and did delight in them.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to try my hand at archery for the first time!  I will not give you a description of the results but on coming home the Lord reminded me of something I had written concerning arrows. I dug it out and saw so clearly that His intention in unearthing the Word from the archives was to clarify what was happening at this time.  May it minister to you the joy and rest that it did to me!
The Arrow of the Lord 5th Jan 2006
Isaiah 49:2
‘In the shadow of His hand has He hid me, and made me a polished arrow; in His quiver has He kept me close and concealed me’
There is a time of being hidden and polished and refined as an arrow for the Lord’s purpose and then there is a time when He takes the arrow out of His quiver and puts it in the bow. The time has come for the sending forth to the target. This is the purpose for which the arrow was made and makes worthwhile all the time of rubbing and scraping and hammering, polishing and sharpening. The preparation was with a goal in mind. This sense of destiny is what has given the arrow strength and endurance to endure the refining.
What a sense of exhilaration as, at last the arrow is removed from the darkness of the quiver and into the sunlight, held firmly in the Master’s grip; and oh, the excitement at finally being fit into the bow! All the prophesies and whisperings of the Lord in the night season seem at last to make sense in the light and the target is clearly in view.
Then suddenly the arrow experiences something strange. Instead of being moved forward in the direction of the target, it is pulled back in the opposite direction to its destiny. It seems as if everything is reversing, although it is still facing in the same direction. Questions and doubts begin to assail this polished arrow and the tension of the bow string behind it becomes almost unbearable. The arrow feels almost backed against a wall. It can feel the tight grip of God’s strong right hand but the direction things are taking make no sense at all. The target is still in sight but growing further away by the second. What the arrow doesn’t realize is that the incredible tension in the string has stored up a large amount of potential or stored energy. The reversal is absolutely necessary to put into place behind the arrow, the power to propel it at lightening speed to the center of its target; and while it feels itself going backwards, the eye of the Archer is adjusting His focus on the target and making minute adjustments, which will make an enormous difference to the position and depth the arrow penetrates. God is taking aim because He doesn’t intend to just graze the enemy’s cheek. He is striking a death-blow and accuracy is very important.
During this process, the arrow is not required to do anything but lie at rest in the position the archer’s hand has placed it.  The pressure within and without seems to be rising to almost unbearable intensity and still the arrow lies still facing the target. Then suddenly, when the string of the bow is a full extension and the arrow has been equipped with maximum power and accuracy of flight path, the archer lets go! And that arrow flies at incredible speed and sinks right into the center of its target. And the mission is accomplished!
So, to every arrow out there who has been through a long and painful preparation process – rest and trust as you feel everything going in the opposite direction to what God has promised. This is a vital part of your journey. Going backwards does not mean you have failed the Lord somehow and are headed for yet another season of refining and purifying. If you can see the target, you are in the bow and the archer has deemed you fit for flight. You have been made ready internally, shaped and formed by the Master’s hand. The time of the refiner’s fire making a weapon fit for its purpose is indeed over. However, without this time of reversal, increasing pressure from behind and the seemingly increasing distance from your target, you would not be equipped with the supernatural power necessary to cause you to fly straight and true to your destiny. The time of release is about to come.  When you are at the point of maximum pressure and furthest distance from the target, do not misinterpret what God is doing! The moment of the fulfillment of His promise is at hand – you lie on the threshold of experiencing all that the Archer whispered to you during the days of painful polishing and sharpening. You have not misunderstood your purpose or God’s intention – once placed in that bow, you are on your way and the process has indeed begun, whichever direction everything seems to be going in!! The moment of release is known only to the archer. No-one watching has any clue exactly when it will occur – but occur it will - with devastating precision and effect! And know this too - from the point of release, everything will happen at lightening speed! God is about to do a quick work, a grand finale if you will, a masterful blow that displays the wisdom behind the length of time and minute detail applied to the preparation of a straight sharp arrow to accomplish His purposes.
Be greatly encouraged and be at peace with the external tension and pressure!
God is about to triumph gloriously!





Christine
freshoil@polka.co.za


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