Commandments & Traditions

I heard from the Lord this morning about the commandments of God and the traditions of men. They're not always opposites. Traditions can be useful in helping us develop habits to remember the commandments of God. In communion we remember Jesus. There is Joshua and the memorial stones (Joshua 4). Priestly traditions were developed out of obedience to God to help them remember them and in so doing honoring Him.

Even though traditions are meant to help us, we have to revisit God and His Word regularly, so our traditions don't get off track. Traditions can help us or hurt us. If we stray away from the original Word or command of God that the tradition was meant to remind us of, adding, adjusting, etc. then we move away from the intentions of His commands. Traditions done out of supposed obedience to God, without knowing Him is not going to do any good and may even be dangerous. We read what Jesus said about this in Mark 7:

1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered around Him when they had come from Jerusalem, 2 and had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders; 4 and when they come from the market place, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots.) 5 The Pharisees and the scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?” 6 And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me.
7 ‘But in vain do they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’

8 Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”
9 He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition. 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, is to be put to death’; 11 but you say, ‘If a man says to his father or his mother, whatever I have that would help you is Corban (that is to say, given to God),’ 12 you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother; 13 thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.” Mark 7:1-13

Jesus gave this example to show that they were taking one part of the Word--that you should give offerings to God--and violating another part which says to honor your father and mother. They had a tradition which caused people to feel so compelled to give offerings that anything extra they had couldn't be used to help their parents. They would have to tell them, "Mom, Dad, sorry I can't help you out because any extra I have I need to give to God." Jesus wasn't happy with the traditions replacing the commandments of God.

Traditions are not meant as a replacement to the commands of God. If we don't stay close to the heart of God, knowing Him, and remembering Him, then we'll get away from His desires and our traditions will eventually replace His commands.

Father God, this time of year is a time of great traditions. I pray that everyone here in this community remembers the birth of Your Son Jesus during this Christmas season and all that it means. That they are not too busy to remember this. I pray that their family or church traditions are not meaningless, not something that takes them away from Your heart, Your Word, or commands. I pray that all of Your people, Your churches, who are celebrating the birth of Your Son, that their traditions are based out of wanting to honor You and stay close to You. That they draw close to Your heart and press in to know You and Your commands so they can keep them. So their traditions don't cause them to violate Your Word. 

Move upon Your people in this community and beyond. Let them remember You and draw close to You, maintain a desire to honor you, and not just be stuck in habits and traditions with no meaning. I pray they draw close to You the entire season--You who are the reason for the season. Let it begin now and continue throughout the year. Move upon Your people to examine their hearts, fill them with a desire to want to see where they've fallen into traditions, ruts, and habits that have side-tracked them from You. So they ask themselves, "Why am I doing this?" Lord, we want to remember Your commands, draw close to You, seek Your face, know Your Word, and obey it from the heart without getting sidetracked by traditions which have been ordained and modified by man, taking all the life out of Your Word.

Lord as people partake of communion, remind them of the purpose of it--to remember You and honor You. May we examine ourselves and draw close to You, thank and worship you. We desire to identify where we are in the body--Your body--and find our place in You and among Your people. Let communion come alive and become real to Your people. So it doesn't become routine or a ritual without meaning.

The priests had a certain way they would break the bread. I heard a Jewish person once say they did three pieces in a certain order. They represented Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He always wondered why poor Isaac, the second one, was always getting ripped in half. Then, he became a Christian and realized that it was the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and it was Jesus who was ripped in half for us. This tradition actually held a meaning that revealed the gospel of Jesus Christ. Traditions can be established on God-given patterns that serve a purpose and give a revelation.

The memorial stones were set up so that when the next generation asked why they were there, they would be used as an opportunity to teach. Traditions and memorials are not bad, its just not to replace a relationship with God, or the Word of God. We need both the written and spoken word of God. We need to know His Word and keep it, as well as be able to hear His voice fresh every day.

Lord, draw people close to You, to Your spoken Word and Your voice. We don't want to just honor You with our lips or actions, but want our heart to be close to You. We don't want to worship You in vain, or teach as doctrine the precepts of men. We don't want to neglect Your commands in order to hold on to our tradition. We want to keep Your Word and honor you in everything we feel, say, and do.

Guarding the Land, Clearing the Air--Waterford Come Alive!

A call is going out to God's people to not grow weary or faint in their well doing. The Lord wants His people to be encouraged so they won't get tired or discouraged in doing what's right. 

9: Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. Galatians 6:9

But we also need to know our place, our fight, and our task. Like when soldiers go out to battle, everyone knows their task--whether its communications, medics, or various weapons--they work as a team. They cover each other, yet each one performs their own assignment.

As believers, we need to remain focused on our mission. We shouldn't try to do everything ourselves, but just the thing the Lord has commissioned us to do. We will grow weary if we try to go outside our assignment. Of course we can grow weary staying within our call too so we do need to make sure we are getting the times of rest and refreshment that we need. But we especially need to remain alert so we stay within our assignment and stick to the mission God has given us. So what is our mission? We each have our own, but there are some things we are all called to. Let's look at a few.

Guarding the borders.
As watchmen for this community, we are to guard the various types of borders that give entrance:

• The physical borders of the township. We call upon God to send His heavenly host to guard the physical borders of the township. We pray for our law enforcement. 
• The borders of your land--your home, where you occupy.
• The borders of the womb. The womb is an entrance path into the township. We want to allow access to the innocent babies called to this community, so we want to stand against abortion. We pray that the ones called to be here are allowed to enter safely and placed in homes where they will be raised up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, trained in the specific gift and call they have. Proverbs 22:6 tells us to train up a child in the way he should go. Each child has a way, a path, they are to go. We want each one trained so they can find their path and travel it. 
• The spiritual borders. We call upon God to send His heavenly host to guard the spiritual borders of the township. We ourselves stand against the demonic forces that would try and influence our land and the people in it.

We proclaim:

• Clear the air!
• Sanctify the land!
• Send the wind!
• Send the rain!
• Purify the waters!
• Let the rocks cry out!
• Let the trees clap!
• Let Waterford come alive!

Having the rocks cry out like Jesus said in Luke 19:40 is not necessarily a good thing. If its happening its because God's people aren't praising the Lord. Yet, creation can worship the Lord too, so let's both do it--creation and the people crying out in worship to the Lord!

12 “For you will go out with joyAnd be led forth with peace;The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.13 “Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up,And instead of the nettle the myrtle will come up,And it will be a memorial to the Lord,For an everlasting sign which will not be cut off.” Isaiah 55:12-13

Let the hills, and the terrain of this community break out in shouts of joy! Let the trees clap their hands. Waterford, come alive! I see it coming alive and moving. Singing, joyful, lively, down to the blades of grass.

Shrewd and Innocent

The people of God are not to be naive, but wise and harmless.

16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. Matthew 10:16

Shrewd means to have sharp powers of judgement, and to be astute. Astute is the ability to accurately assess situations or people and use it to your advantage. We want to have proper and sharp discernment, wisdom, to be able to look at situations, people groups, or individuals, and accurately discern what's going on. What is the spiritual force behind this? What is going on mentally, emotionally, or intellectually? Use this knowledge to the advantage of the kingdom of God. God's advantage. If it's to God's advantage then its also for the people's advantage--the people who live righteously. These are the ones we want to have advantage in the earth--the righteous people of God.

This is the kind of wisdom we need to have, to be able to look at a situation and see what's really going on. So we know how to pray, speak destiny into the community, and as the ekklesia bind the enemy from what he is trying to do.

Thoughts
We are told to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

The devil is called the prince of the power of the air.

1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.Ephesians 2:1-2

So there are things that go in in the air, what we call the second heaven. There is the internet, television, radio, cell phones, wireless data, digital communication. These are words, thoughts, and images that fill the airways. The spiritual world communicates through these things. Of course spiritual communication still comes directly through the thoughts and words of people, through music, dreams, visions etc. But now its those things and more. So we want to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. We want to clear the air so people can be free from demonic influence of all types. So they can hear, see and know the truth. So their minds are free and no longer blinded.

3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 4:3-4

We clear the airways over Waterford so the people can clearly hear from heaven! Listen. Hear him. Clearly see the truth and what God, your Creator, wants to say to you. We want each person to find their gifts, fulfill their destiny, and enjoy fellowship with Him and each other. Remember, when the devil is locked up for 1000 years what will we do? We won't have him to fight. we will be in fellowship with the Lord and each other. Helping one another in love.

Vacant Land, Occupied Land, Come out from among them

In the beginning God made the land first. He made the garden and then put people in it.

28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”Genesis 1:28

Father God, give the land of Waterford to those who will honor you, those who will do what's right with it. We pray for the land to be purchased, given, maintained and occupied by those who will live righteously and do what is right with it, honoring You with this land. That Waterford is owned and occupied by people who will do what is right with the land in Jesus' name. That the enemy has no hold on the property or land. The land is loosed from his grip in Jesus' name. May the angelic host of heaven be sent to bring this to pass. This includes the residential, commercial, and governmental plots of land. The waterways, etc. Owned, occupied, and inhabited by those who do righteously. Be fruitful and multiply in this land. Send the people here and fill this land with righteousness.

Now when Israel was established, the Lord sent Abram to a land that was already occupied. God didn't give him a vacant land like Adam and Eve were put in. (Even though the devil was there so it wasn't completely vacant, but there were no other people there in the beginning).

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go forth from your country, And from your relatives, And from your father’s house, To the land which I will show you; 2 And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; Genesis 12:1-2

So people were already living in the Promised Land. The family of Abram grew into a nation outside of the land they were called to. The twelve sons of Israel grew into twelve tribes that  eventually came into the Promised Land, but they had to fight their way in. The Lord was with them. So in this case, the people of God had to conquer the land that was promised to them. 

Then Jesus came into the world.

16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16

He called a people to Himself from all nations--both Jew and Gentile. He gathered them to Himself. He prayed to the Father:

15 I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. John 17:15

His people are now gathered from among the people of the world. We're in the world but not of it. We are to come out from among the world and be separate from them.

14 Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15 Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? 16 Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said,

“I will dwell in them and walk among them;
And I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
17 “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord.
“And do not touch what is unclean;
And I will welcome you.
18 “And I will be a father to you,
And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,”
Says the Lord Almighty. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18

So God is calling us out of the world. He's calling us to be a people to Himself. Jesus said "Follow Me." He said to go into the world and make disciples of all nations. We want to be that people. We are to be separate while in the midst of this world. Not just physically living in a "promised land", but desiring the city of God in our heart. Not loving the world, but loving the ways of His kingdom.

16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them. Hebrews 11:16

15 Do not love the world nor the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 John 2:15

I keep seeing a gathering together of some kind of substance, which I think represents God's people, I see them scattered and separate but that they are being drawn to come together. As they come together they will be strengthened. In the early church they were persecuted and scattered. That scattering spread the gospel. But I feel like now there is a gathering He wants to do to strengthen us.

So we pray for God's people to:

• Be encouraged
• Not grow weary
• Know their place
• Know their call
•  Don't try to do everything
• Guard their borders--the physical borders of the township, their homes and the womb, the spiritual borders

Let their be...
A clearing of the airways!
A sanctifying of the land!
All of creation, God's people included, praising the Lord!


Waterford come alive!

We pray that:

• God's people are wise and shrewd, not naive
• Have sharp powers of discernment
• Are astute-accurately assess all things and use this ability to God's kingdom advantage
• All the airways--words, thoughts, images--be brought captive to obedience of Christ
• The air is cleared so the devil doesn't cloud minds of people any longer
• The light of glorious gospel of Christ shine in the hearts of people so they believe and be saved
• That believers become disciples and fulfill that they are called, ordained and commissioned to do

Father send the angelic host to clear the airways so people hear and see clearly, and follow You, behold You. So the people of this land are fruitful, multiply, replenish, and conquer what needs to be conquered. That they live as disciples, called out from unbelievers unto You. Your pure bride. We're like Adam, Abram, and Jesus. We fill the land, conquer, and gather unto You. I know Waterford is on Your heart. Move upon the hearts of the people. Let the influence of enemy be gone so people can hear and see and follow You as disciples in Jesus' Name.

Fill the hearts of Your people of this community, and beyond, with an encouragement, a strength, and a determination to fulfill their commission. We pray for the children and for the parents, that they guard the borders of their home, raising their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. As babies are brought into this community we pray they are placed in a godly environment. Bring godly influence over all the children of this community. Whether they live in Christian homes or not. Whether they are in public school, private school, or homeschooled. Bring at least one or two godly people to connect to the children. People they can look up to and respect. Mentors, whether family, teachers, neighbors, or whoever, those who will represent You to them, and they will look up to them and respect them, and want to know Jesus like they do. Flood the communities and homes so every child has someone they can follow who will lead them to Jesus who leads them to the Father.

Waterford come alive!

Put on the hearts of your people those things that will bring in the harvest and disciple the people. That they begin to think about, desire, and learn how to bring in the harvest and disciple the believers. We are called to be the innkeepers and heal the wounded. Lord, I pray that we be true innkeepers.

The Commission of the Community

This morning, I heard the word commission. Most of you have heard the term "great commission" in reference to the instruction of the Lord to preach the Gospel to the nations. As individuals we have a mission. Together we have a co-mission. The body of Christ has a mission and a commission. So does our families, churches, communities, and nation.

At the tower of Babel, the people were trying to work together to accomplish a big thing. It may have appeared that they would come into unity by working on the same thing (Genesis 11) but they were restructuring God's order of things. God designed the family unit to have its own authority structure.  With as little as two people, He made the first family. It is families who are to make up communities, and communities make up nations.

At the tower of Babel, they were working for their own desires. All of them together, to reach God's place in the heavens. Sounds similar to what Lucifer tried to do. So God confused their language and they were scattered over the earth, back to individual tribes and families like He originally planned.

In Acts 17:26-27 we read that God sets the boundaries and the times of men's habitations. God decides the boundaries of the nations, as well as when and who will live there. These things are set by Him. We don't decide that. Our purpose is to fulfill the mission and commission that He has ordained. We need to guard against getting side-tracked away from that mission.

The other word I heard this morning was communion. Which is co-union. When Paul talked about communion, or the Lord's supper, he revealed that there is a way to take communion unworthily. There is a right way and a wrong way to partake of the Lord's supper. He says we are to "judge the body rightly" and we are to judge ourselves rightly. We are also to wait for one another so we do it together.

27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.
28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep.
31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged.
32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.
33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come. 1 Corinthians 11:27-34

As we take communion, we are to honor the Lord first and judge ourselves as compared to Him. We also judge ourselves in relation to the body of Christ. We honor Him--His physical sacrifice--and we  discern our place in the body. So we are judging our relationship with Him and to each other. We wait for our brothers and sisters, allowing them to do this for themselves too. They judge their relation to the Lord and the body of Christ as well. 

So we have a commission (co-mission) and communion (co-union). It's not about trying to get everyone else to do the same things we are. That's not unity. That's man's attempt at unity. Paul says that some of them were weak, sick, and had even died physically because of not judging these things properly. 

Sickness is when the body is not working together with the head and the rest of the body. There is a natural flow to the physical body when every part is working together, cooperating with each part yet doing their own individual function as the head determines. Paul compares the body of Christ to a physical body and says that not everyone is an eye or a foot. We each have our place and we are to properly discern what that place is. (1 Corinthians 12).

So what is our commission? What is the commission of the community? Jesus sent out the twelve to the lost sheep, who were His people who were lost.

5 These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans;
6 but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. Matthew 10:5-8

Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. 

When you heal the sick you are bringing the body to a place where it functions as the Creator intended. A dead person is separated from the body, which is where his mission on earth can be completed. Raising the dead brings a person back into the place where he can fulfill his call. A leper is one who was cast out of the community due to his sickness. When we cleanse the lepers we are bringing healing so the person can come back into their place in the community. There is also a demonic force that tries to stop people from fulfilling their mission so we take authority over that as well and boot him out.

God desires us to be healed physically and to be properly connected to Him and each other spiritually so we can fulfill our mission and co-mission. Like the physical body, we work together to heal and restore each part.

Paul talked about our individual gifts and unity of the Spirit in Ephesians 4:  

1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love,
3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Ephesians 4:1-7

We each have a calling--an individual calling. Yet our dealings with each other are to be done in humility, gentleness, patience, tolerance and love. We are to be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit. It's not a unity of man's purpose we are building. Man's globalism will never work. Even if globalists have good intentions of bringing the world into peace and harmony, it won't come through man's attempts. It won't work. We learned that at the tower of Babel. It will come through unity of the Spirit.

Unity will not come through trying to make everyone like us. We do have the common purpose of working to honor the Lord and build His kingdom, but we're not all the same and we shouldn't try and function as if we were. Paul goes on in the rest of Ephesians 4 and talks about the individual gifts--leadership gifts and the individual parts of the body and how we need each other to function properly.

We need to properly discern our place in the body and our relation to others in the body.

Paul called the Corinthian church fleshly because they divided themselves according to human leadership.

1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ.
2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able,
3 for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?
4 For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one.
6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.
7 So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:1-7

Let's learn from this and look for the unity of the Spirit to fulfill our corporate commission.

Father God, we pray this for the people of this community--the individuals, the families, the churches, all those in this community, and the nation. Make it clear to Your people the mission You've given to them--the commission, their individual calling--and bring the families together so they discover their family calling. We ask that the families come together and find their place int the community.

Lord, bring the people to Waterford that You've ordained and commission to be here. We recognize that You are the one who sets the boundaries. Bring those who You want here to this country, this state, to Waterford, and even the individual neighborhoods. Bring the families, plant them here. Show them their call and purpose. Teach them to properly discern who they are to connect to. 

Even those who are already here, show them how to properly judge themselves in relation to You and to those around them, so they go to the right church, and connect with the right people, through whatever groups--jobs, clubs etc.--You want them in. We pray that they fill their mission individually and their commission as a group. Plant and connect, we ask in Jesus' Name.

Let the unity of the Spirit come so we properly discern that not everyone will be just like us. The unity of the Spirit allows for the diversity of people, families, churches etc. Those who say they seek diversity when they're really trying to build a false unity--expose that. Expose that here in this community so people see that unity through man is not the answer. We want the freedom for people to function in their individual gifts and call in their own lives, their family, the church, and throughout Waterford. Alert Your people so they make the proper connections.

The commission and the community. The mission of the community. The mission of unity. 

We will preach the gospel, heal the sick, raise the dead, and cast out demons so people pass from death to life, join Your body, are healed so they can connect and join to the community as You've called them to. We heal the sick so the people take their proper place and the flow of the body is as You desire. 

We take authority over the demonic forces of hell that would try and attack to keep people from fulfilling their purpose. We declare to the enemy that you shall not stop the purposes of God for this community--for the individuals, the families, the churches--for those who have a call and are ordained by God to be here. We shall fulfill the mission God has called His people to do in Waterford. No devil or demon of hell will stop it or interfere with it in any way shape or form in Jesus' name. 

Lord, stir up and wake up the people. Encourage them so they can find the hope of their calling.Wake them up to the hope of their calling. We do it for You who are the head of the body. Make it clear what this community's commission is. Let the community's commission be made clear. To the individuals and groups, as well as our part in the county, state, and nation. Let the commission to the community be made clear.

Holy Father we thank You, praise You, and honor You on behalf of all of Waterford. On behalf of the churches, the families, businesses, government, schools, and courts. We honor You and give You glory, praise and thanks. You created it all. You are the Most High God, yet You care for us with Your everlasting love. Thank You for Your great love. Encourage Your people by the Spirit so their commission and mission becomes clear. Let them properly discern where they should be connected in this community.

Thank You for raising up these groups. For the home-school group. We ask that Your Spirit move among them. So the mission and commission of the families to come together and educate their children, training them up in the ways of the Lord, be fulfilled. We come against the demonic forces that would try and interfere with this in Jesus' name. 

Raise up Your army and open the eyes. We open our eyes so we can see our proper connections to the body. Let the angelic host of heaven be sent to do Your biding in Waterford. Release them in a way that will accomplish the mission of Waterford--Your mission. Raise up Your people to partner heaven and earth together so Your purposes are fulfilled here.

Call to Maturity in the Church

I had a dream where the Lord revealed several things about the condition of the church and where He wants to bring us to. There were several different scenes all related to what was going on in a particular church.

First, there was a scene where two people were engaged in adulterous sex. I was in the room, in a separate bed but they didn't seem to mind that I was there. In fact, it almost seemed as if they wanted me to participate with them. At one point, the male subject quietly said something about losing his faith, so I began talking to him. I was surprised to hear that he attended this church. It surprised me to think that there are people in the church that are quite involved in sin.

Lord, we pray that the church loses her desire to participate in sin. Has the desire to be the holy bride she is called to be. That we desire a holy relationship with You in Jesus' Name.

In the next scene, I was in a room with some people, I made a statement and a woman said, "Oh, you must be catholic." I knew that she meant that I must still have a lot of guilt feeling. I said, "I was raised catholic." Then I wondered if I was carrying a feeling of guilt that I shouldn't. I wondered if I needed a greater understanding of the work of Jesus Christ to free me from sin and guilt.

Is there still a sense of guilt in the church that needs to be replaced with the knowledge of all that Jesus did for us? Was the church "raised" with a sense of guilt which needs to be replaced with the knowledge of holiness? Lord, I pray that Your church learn the reality of Your finished work on the cross and all that You did to free us from sin and the guilt of sin. Help us to understand the reality of being a new creation in You.

Then I was talking with an accountant-type person. We talked from time to time and I began to think that he must be pretty high up in the church organization--maybe on the church board. But I didn't want to ask him what his position was yet because I just wanted to hear what he had to say. It seemed like if I knew his position then that might change things. Towards the end of the dream I asked him what his position was. He said he was the treasurer. I understood that there was more than one treasurer and he wasn't the "top" treasurer, but I thought, wow, he has a lot of responsibility.

I seemed to know that I could have become impressed with who he was so I was intentionally trying to avoid finding out who he was so that wouldn't distract me from what he was saying. I needed to discern what he was saying not because he was "important" but because he was speaking truth. Lord, I pray that any vying for position that is going on in Your church, or people who might be trying to impress others for the purpose of recognition or promotion be exposed. Those who are "rubbing elbows" with the leaders for unholy purposes. Awaken Your people to any of this that is going on within their own heart. Instill a desire within us to hear what all of Your people have to say, not just those who appear to be an "important' person. 

It seems that as some groups get large, and certain people gain respect because of their anointing, there is a danger of falling into this political, worldly type spirit. This may be why the Lord likes smaller groups because there is not so much temptation to fall into pride because of recognition or selfish ambition. Lord, expose this in Your people, if there is any of this going on. Wake us up to it. Let the love of God and humility rise up in Your people so we are not led astray by pride or arrogance.

The Lord told Abram that He would make his name great (Genesis 12). However, this is something the Lord does. We shouldn't "promote" people because of their outward appearance, worldly status, or elegant speaking, but because they are called by the Lord. Oftentimes, people weren't recognized for their greatness until after they died. It's not important to strive for recognition or greatness now, but to follow the Lord and what He's called us to do. He's the one who will call attention to it if and when it needs to be done. 

Peter told the people not to look at them as if their own power or their own holiness caused the man at the Gate Beautiful to be healed. He directed their attention to the Lord who did it (Acts 3:12). This could be not only for the people's benefit, but for theirs, desiring to stay humble and resist all forms of pride.

Jesus said, whoever will be great among you let him be servant of all (Mark 10:43).

In the next scene of my dream some people were talking about money and they said there was something like $70,000 that came in to the church that year. I thought that seemed quite low for a big church/ministry like this one. I was comparing it to the income of our church and I knew they had a lot more people than we did. It didn't seem right. I thought there must be a lot of people not tithing, and not giving. Are there a lot of poor people in this church? No I don't believe so.

I asked if people weren't tithing. Some of them made it seem like it was immature to tithe. They didn't believe it was something they were obligated to do. I said that I was going to continue to tithe, and another lady there said she was too. I thought if everyone were to tithe, imagine how much money the church would have. I said that if they didn't want to call it tithing they could at least give a big offering. 

It seemed as if the people wanted to make it appear as if they were spiritual and didn't have to tithe. But in reality it was just an excuse to try and cover their stinginess. Making the evil (stinginess) appear good and good appear evil (Isaiah 5:20).

Then there were some people drinking beer and wine. I noticed it and recognized they felt the freedom to do that in this church. I turned around and saw a guy getting some out of a refrigerator and offering it to others. I realized the church stocked alcohol there and made it available to everyone. I said that my husband and I did that for a while. We took advantage of our "freedom in Christ" to drink alcohol, but then it got to where we were doing it all the time and we decided it was more of a hindrance and we stopped.

Lord, I pray that the church's desire for the Spirit of God increases more than the spirit of the world. I pray that even though You have given us freedom, we don't abuse that. I pray for wisdom, that we are led by Your Spirit, that we desire what You desire in our heart. That we come to a place of knowing what to stay away from and what we are to engage in. That we are not deceived, not under the influence of wrong spirits, but that we stay true to Your Spirit and walk in the holiness and righteousness You've provided for us and called us to.

Then the leader of this church and ministry--which is a worldwide ministry--was speaking and talking about not doing so many conferences and events. He wanted to focus on the church services and building relationships. It seemed that he had noticed people weren't building relationships with each other and wanted to remedy that. I thought he's getting things in order for when he passes away and the leadership passes on to someone else.

Once again, smaller groups. If the opportunity is not there for us to look for recognition and huge crowds to lead, or to get close to the leadership out of a sense of pride, then we will be able to build closer relationships and work together with others we know and care for. Instead of looking to take their place or be like them, or desire their call and anointing, we will be encouraged to fulfill our place and call. This is also the attitude we should pass on to new leaders. 

1 Timothy 3:1-7 speaks of not putting a new convert into position of an overseer in the church so will not become conceited and fall into the devil's trap. It's interesting that this passage of Scripture also mentions being "the husband of one wife...not addicted to wine...free from the love of money" among other things. These are also things addressed in this dream.

At the end of the dream, we were in a meeting room. I spoke up and said something to the whole room. I felt like I got some strange looks and was not real well received. I wondered if I should have said anything, but I also felt as if I needed to say what I did and not hide my feelings.

This dream seems to indicate a need for balance between having freedom in Christ and being bound by guilt. Yes we have freedom and yes we have discipline, and we need to walk in balance with both as the Lord desires us to.

Lord, bring an awareness to the church so they can respond to You, repent where needed, and grow up. Instill within us a desire to grow and mature in You. We want Your heart. Bring this revelation to Your people along with a desire to turn to You. 

When we see the Lord for who He is, and realize how we compare, it can ignite a desire to grow to be more like Him. We don't want to just tickle the ears of others, but we don't want to point fingers and condemn the church either. We want to reveal the beauty and holiness of Jesus. Shine His light so our own hearts are revealed in comparison to Him. Glorify the Lord. Magnify Him. Shine His light in our hearts so we can turn away from all darkness and respond to the Light. The pure in heart will desire Him. The pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8).

Those who are His will be drawn to the Light. Those who are not will be repelled by the Light. Just like His fragrance gives life to the living and death to the dying.

Release Your fragrance Lord! Smelling Him brings discernment to our heart so we can see truth. We breathe in His Spirit and become more like Him. We also are a fragrance of Christ to both those who are perishing and to the saved. The fragrance of Christ that we give off is death to those dying, and life to those who are saved (2 Corinthians 2:14-16).

Bring us into a place of maturity in You. (1 Corinthians 3:1-4).

We release Your fragrance and Your light into the community and into the church, to call Your people into a greater holiness. So they breathe in Your fragrance, are filled with Your Spirit to a greater degree, and are changed into the image of Jesus Christ. All of this so their heart's desires are the same as Yours. Bring Your church into maturity! Wake us up. Wake up all of our spiritual senses. We cooperate with You in Jesus' Name. Amen!

He Cares

This morning, I felt the Lord's heart concerning certain things being said about Him. Specifically the thought that when we go to the courts of heaven to pray on behalf of someone, that we are not to pray based on a person's need, but on God's purposes being fulfilled in them. I understand why people say this. I've said it myself. Its true that people need to discover His purposes for them, but when we tell people not to appeal to Him on the basis of their need, but on His purposes only, it makes Him appear selfish when He is not. It makes it look like He doesn't care about people's needs, which He does.

We've heard it said that God doesn't answer prayer on the basis of need alone, but the reason this appears to be true is because we don't always perceive what the true need is or how that need should best be met. Scripture that came to mind as I was talking with the Lord about this--

• God supplies all of our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19)
• Let us come boldly, or with confidence, to the throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need (Hebrew 4:16).
• He knows what you need before you ask Him (Matthew 6:8).
• If He clothes the grass and feeds the sparrow, how much more will He take care of you? (Matthew 6:26-33).
• God is able to make all grace abound towards you so you having all sufficiency in everything, have an abundance for every good deed (2 Corinthians 9:8).

He cared so much about our need for salvation that He sacrificed Himself, His only son, to take care of our need. This is quite contrary to putting His own purposes above the needs of others. He sacrificed Himself for the needs of others.

People don't always know what their true needs are. There may be times it looks like He is not meeting needs, but He really is. He knows how to meet that need so it is truly met. Sometimes we are looking for Him to treat our symptoms, but not a real cure. He is interested in curing us, healing us, meeting the real need. We need to seek Him to find out what the real cure is and how its to come.

In John 11 when Jesus got word that Lazarus was sick, He stayed where He was for two more days. By the time He got there Lazarus had died. It looked like He delayed and the need wasn't met. They said, 'If You would have been here he wouldn't have died.' But yes, He did meet the need. He just didn't do it in the way, or in the timing, they were expecting. He sees the big picture. He is in the eternal realm. He may not do it "instantly" according to our timeline, but He does have the love and compassion to meet our needs, wants them to be met, and will meet them if we let Him.

There may be various reasons for having needs. The enemy may steal from us, we may open a door through sin or carelessness, or we are in a period of growth or change that causes new needs. We might pray and there are times it may appear as if He is not meeting the need. But are we really seeing things from His point of view? He may be setting things in motion to meet the need but we don't see it.

It's also true that we might not really need what we're asking for. He may be drawing us closer to Him, trying to teach us His way more accurately. We may simply need to trust Him and wait for Him. There may be a source of our provision that He is trying to change. He might be trying to get our attention to show us these things but we are distracted. We might jump to conclusions and say, "God, You failed. You didn't meet my need," when actually He is trying to meet your true need. He is trying to cure, not just treat a symptom.

We might be expecting our need is going to be met in a certain way at a certain time. This may not be the case. This is why we need to seek Him because there might be something we need to do before it will ever be met. We might need an attitude adjustment first. We might need to do some certain thing.

Jesus didn't show up so Lazarus died. In the mind of Lazarus' family, He failed them. But He didn't fail them. Yes, He went past their deadline, but whose deadline was it? We set up deadlines, but they are not God's deadlines. We need to seek Him, and trust Him. They didn't even consider Lazarus being raised from the dead as an option. Sometimes we are blind to the option that God is trying to get us to look at. We are too narrow minded.

Jesus wept (John 11:35). He cared about Lazarus and the family. Even though the need wasn't met when and how they expected, He always cared for them.

Father, we pray that the people of Waterford and this region come to an understanding that You do care about them. Just because their needs haven't been met in the timing or manner they are expecting, we pray that they know You still care for them. You care. We pray they come to trust You, to seek You. That they discover what the true need is, and don't just look for treatment of the symptoms, or a quick and temporary fix.

Let this understanding come. Let it be released now in Jesus' Name. Let it be preached and understood. So they no longer accuse You of not caring when You really do care. That they don't give up on You, but press in and seek You. That they are not discouraged or feel hopeless, trying to solve it in their own way. We release this understanding now in Jesus' Name.

He cares. He wants to meet your needs. But you need to trust Him. You need to seek Him. You need to understand His ways--His timing and purposes.

He won't cater to sinful whims. Prayer is not answered if they are lustful prayers contrary to His ways. We ask and don't receive when we ask with wrong motives (James 4:3) Sometimes its the motivation of our heart that keeps needs from being met. He will not compromise His integrity, righteousness, or His purposes to answer a sinful, lustful heart. Like a parent knows, sometimes kids ask for things that aren't good for them. Maybe the timing is off. Maybe they can get the cookie after dinner, but they want the cookie right now and don't understand why you say no. They accuse you of being mean. On the contrary, the Bible tells us:

• Cast your care upon Him because He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7).
• Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. (1 Peter 5:7, Amplified Bible).
• Cast your burden on Him and He will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. (Psalm 55:22).

He doesn't quit caring when you are suffering through a need. He is not condemning you. He is trying to help you. Seek Him to find your answer! He has your eternal good in mind. Like the old saying, "Give a person a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a person to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." He's trying to meet your need in such a way that you learn something valuable that will continue to sustain you.

Pride can blind us from seeing the truth to the point where we blame God instead of seeing where we are missing it. But God is good. He is always good. Every good and perfect gift comes from Him (James 1:17). He is always right. Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so He may exalt you at the proper time (1 Peter 5:6). There's attitude, and there's timing. But there's always an answer. There's always a way out. No situation is hopeless. Go to Him.

We know that one aspect of faith is that what you look at is what will happen. Quantum physics tells us that when you're watching, things behave differently then when you are not watching. So, if you're looking at something and its not acting the way its "supposed" to --the outcome you want is not occurring, then you need to look at something different. Go back to the promise of God. Go back to His Word. What exactly did He say? Seek Him. Let Him show you what He wants you to "look at," the direction you should go. He knows where, when, and how your true need will be met.

The parable of the friend at midnight. (Luke 11:5-8) and the woman and the unjust judge. (Luke 18:1-8) both tell us that we need to be persistent. Persistent in going to Him. Ask. Seek. Knock (Matthew 7:7). Don't give up on Him. Don't think He doesn't care. Don't accuse Him and get mad at Him. Don't get arrogant about it. Don't think you're all alone. He loves you and He cares. Keep going to Him until you can clearly hear Him give you the answer.

He really does care about you!

Occupy Till I Come / Guard and Grow

11:  While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because He was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately. 

12: So He said, “A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return. 

13: And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’ 

14: But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ 

15: When he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him so that he might know what business they had done. 

16: The first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’ 

17: And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.’ 

18: The second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’ 

19: And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ 

20: Another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief; 

21: for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.’ 

22: He *said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow? 

23: Then why did you not put my money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’ 

24: Then he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’

25: And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’ 

26: I tell you that to everyone who has, more shall be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. 

27: But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”

Luke 19:11-27

Jesus told this parable as they were getting close to entering Jerusalem. The disciples thought He was gong to establish his kingdom right then. However, Jesus knew He was going there to die and return to the Father. In an effort to explain this to them, He told the parable to show that He was going to go far away to receive His crown, but there would be a time period before He would come back and establish His kingdom on the earth. They were to "do business" with what He had entrusted them with until He returned.

In verse 13 Jesus said for them to "Do business with this until I come back." The King James Version says to "Occupy till I come." Some translations say to invest, to trade, put this money to work etc. Basically He's telling us to do business, or work with, what He has given us to do. Produce fruit in the land He's called you to--your field or garden--and continue to do this until He returns.

The serpent came to Eve in her garden in the beginning. He was here on the earth because it was his area of domain before he rebelled against God. So, if the devil was here on the earth back when Adam and Eve were placed in the garden, were the other demons that fell with him here too? Did God put man into a demon-infested earth? If so, why? If He did, I think it would be for them to learn how to rule. Man needed to know how to take dominion over the earth (Genesis 1:28). If you are going to rule and have dominion, part of that means you will guard against anything that tries to take that away. They needed to learn how to use the authority of God to stand against the enemy. Of course they didn't and we have seen the consequence of that.

Years later, when Jesus came, He defeated the devil, taking back that which he took from man and returning those who believe in Him back to a position of authority in the earth as sons and daughters of God (Colossians 2:6-15). Now we need to learn how to "do business" until He comes again. We take authority over the enemy, boot him out of our garden land, and plant/build/do business/be fruitful with what the Lord has given us to work with.

Doing business until He comes doesn't mean for us to all become billionaires before He returns. God doesn't need us to make money for His kingdom. He owns the earth (Psalm 24:1). It means to continue to engage in what He's gifted us to do until He comes.

If money isn't the currency of the kingdom then what is? In order for us to engage in business or trade as He's called us to, we need to engage with other people. We all have gifts we're to develop in. Through relationships--family and business--we will strengthen each other, live fruitful lives, and help each other grow in our calling.

We're to "occupy" or maintain this business until He returns. We're not to be like the disciples, getting excited because it looks like the time for the kingdom to be established on earth is getting close. But we're to maintain, occupy, stay engaged in the business He's called us to. We have work to do now. We're still in the "occupying" time period.

"Father, we thank you for the opportunity to pray for Waterford and the surrounding area. We pray that Your people understand what it means to engage in business until You come. That we maintain,  don't slack off, fall asleep, or neglect what You've called us to, but stay engaged in the business/calling You've given us. We pray that Your people in this area wake up to that. That they are injected with encouragement so they continue in what You've called them. That they don't grow weary in well doing (Galatians 6:9). That they continue, maintain, and do business. Also, give them wisdom so they know how to be as fruitful as possible in what You've called them to.

"I pray that we also, as Your people, recognize and walk in the authority You've given us over the enemy. That we see both sides of this--to boot the enemy out of our land, and be fruitful and multiply in the land. We boot him out of the land, and walk in and occupy our land making it fruitful. Show Your people both sides of this. The land the enemy occupied is now fruitful for You. We're going to take land, mountains, systems, businesses, schools, governmental positions, arts, sciences, the institutions of the earth for Your kingdom. We take it and occupy it!

Wherever the soul of your foot treads is given to you. (Joshua 1:3).

"Lord, we've walked and received the land You've given us. This land is Your land and we receive it from You. We will not leave it vacant. We will work the land. We put it to work for You. We plant seed in this land so it bears fruit. We won't leave it empty for the enemy to come and try to take it back again. 

Check the borders. Inspect the fences. Maintain the borders and ensure the enemy is not infiltrating. Protect and guard the land--the field--God has entrusted to You! The Lord is giving us time and opportunity to see what we will do with what He's given us. We guard the borders and work the land!

Some may be good at working the land but not at booting the enemy out. They grow good fruit but its devoured by the enemy. Others may be good at booting the enemy out but don't know how to grow fruit, so they have the land but there 's nothing growing.  We need to do both--guard and grow, guard and grow.

Outside the protection of the city is "weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 25:30). Stay within the borders that God has placed you, where He has called you. The ones who didn't want the Lord to rule over them didn't receive anything from Him and ended up being slain in His presence. We're under His authority. Remember that and stay under that. Work with what He's given to you to work with. Those in rebellion against the Lord will suffer the consequences of that one day.

He didn't tell them to address the rebellious ones, He just told them to do business until He returned. When you work the land He's called you to, you will be doing your part. Some will be drawn to the light. Join with those who have a similar calling--similar business. Lock hands with them and support each other. Whatever position--field--you're in, connect with those people around you, strengthen each other. Grow closer to the Lord, produce fruit.

How do you judge success? How do you know you are fruitful? In the end the Lord will judge our "success." He will say, "Well done good and faithful servant" to those who kept the business.

"Father, show us, each one of us, what our "business" is and what "success" looks like for us individually. Show us how You see success in what we're called to do. What do I have to do so I can hear "Well done" from You? I want to judge myself so I won't be judged by You and condemned with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:31-32).

"Father, put it upon the hearts of the people to seek You and ask You what You've called them to do and what it looks like for them to be successful in Your sight. So they know what they need to do to  hear "Well done" from You. So the enemy is not leading them off into deception. So they know that they can know Your will for them. You are not keeping it from them. Teach us how to properly judge ourselves, and to properly hear from You so we know exactly what You want us to do. Show us how to know when we've accomplished that.

"Father, thank You for Your grace, the grace of the Lord Jesus, which includes the empowerment of Your Spirit to succeed in what You've called us to. Keep those doing Your business on the straight and narrow path--the highway to holiness (Isaiah 35:8)--so they will succeed in "doing business" until You come.

Judges & Teachers

I felt impressed to pray concerning judges and teachers. We are in the midst of the Supreme Court nomination for Judge Brett Kavanaugh right now. There is a fight going on over this position.

1 Kings 3:16-28
Two women brought their babies to King Solomon. Both had babies, three days apart. They lived in the same home. One woman laid on her baby while sleeping and he died. She swapped babies during the night and tried to claim the living baby was hers. They came before the king and he said to cut the baby in half and give both of the women half of the baby. The real mom said no, to let the other woman have him so he can live. By that the king knew she was the real mom and gave the baby to her.

I felt the Lord say through this that we need judges who don't just do what appears to be fair, but what is right. There are some crying out for what is fair, but not necessarily what is right. Fairness sometimes sounds good, but isn't always the right thing. In this case, one woman shouldn't have to have her baby killed just because the other one died, as horrible as that was.

We need judges who are fair according to God's standard of what is right, not man's standard. We want judges who don't judge according to man's opinion of fairness, but God's standard of righteousness.

"Father God we pray, in the Name of Jesus Christ, for truth, righteousness, and justice to prevail over man's idea of fairness. That we have judges from the Supreme Court on down to the local level who will stand for what is right, not just what is fair according to the cry of man. Those who are not judging by emotion, but judging according to truth and righteousness. Let them have the wisdom of Solomon. Place people into judgeship positions that will judge according to Your standards, all the way from the Supreme Court on down to local positions. Begin to remove those judges who listen to man, and follow after man, and replace them with those who judge according to Your standard of truth and righteousness. Remove and replace. Remove and replace. Begin at the federal level, and all the way down to the state, districts, county, and local levels. Remove and replace judges. Place Your judges in place who stand with integrity, truth, righteousness, and the wisdom of Solomon. Raise up these judges. Strategically place them in positions of influence that will impact our society for You and Your standard of righteousness."

In our education system there has been so many layers of government placed over our children in schools that the rights of the parents are being interfered with. What started as a teacher assisting parents in education has turned into the creation of principals, superintendents, local district boards, state boards of education, and a federal department of education. Layers of government over our children. Parents are the ones responsible for educating children, not the government.

Proverbs 1:8 says for children to hear their father's instruction and not to forsake their mother's teaching. Instruction and teaching are meant to come from the home--from the parents. That is God's standard. In Genesis 18:19 the Lord said He had chosen Abraham, and that he was to command his children after him, so that God's purpose would be fulfilled in him. God chose Abraham for a purpose and it was a family call. He needed Abraham to teach, instruct, and guide his family in the ways he, and they, had been called.

We are to teach our children the ways of the Lord, but also the ways of the family call and their specific place in that. Of course, some may appear to leave the "family" call, just as Abram was called to leave his father's house and go to the land the Lord showed him, but there are aspects of the family call each child is to fulfill. Some of it may be generations back. They may appear to be going their own way but they are fulfilling a family call from generations ago. In any case, the parents, and even the child, are the ones who will know this the best, not the government.

The parents are responsible for training the children according to their gift and God's call. Childhood is the time for them to learn this. Proverbs 22:6 says to train up a child in the way he should go... When they are young is when they need to learn the way they are to go. This should come from parental and family influence, not governmental or political ideas.

Layers of government have duped some parents into thinking the government is responsible for training their children. In reality, the government is infringing on the rights and responsibility of the parents. The schools have decided the curriculum and the social ideas they are going to teach the children and don't want the parents to interfere. They hide it from parents or tell them they can't fight it if they question or object. Many parents, especially younger parents, think that the government is the one responsible for their child's education. They think that is the way it is, but that is not true, the  parents are responsible--legally and before God.

"Father God, we pray for the educational system in our country. We ask that You dissolve the layers of government that don't need to be over our children. If we don't need a federal department of education then dissolve it. If it is interfering with Your plans, dissolve it. We pray for Betsy DeVos and those in the department of education, that they line up with Your truth and Your plan for the educational system in our country. Remove and replace those who oppose Your ways. Those who oppose the parent's right to raise their children. Bring in those who are willing to work themselves out of a job if necessary. Not just in the federal level, but state and local levels too. Remove and replace. Remove those opposing traditional family ways, who are in favor of governmental and socialistic agendas. Replace them with those who stand for truth and righteousness. 

Father, forgive us, Your people, the church, for not properly valuing our children as we should have. For going after money, prestige, and comfort, rather than raising and valuing our children. For not realizing the importance of loving and raising our children. Forgive us for neglecting and abandoning them. Our enemies have known the value of children and recognized if they can take them they can take our country, and our freedom. Please forgive us. 

We pray for the upcoming elections--for the judges and educational positions. You are the One who puts one up and takes another down. (Psalm 75:6-7). Promotion comes from You. We need to vote, but do what You do to turn our judicial and educational system around so it reflects the family values You intend. Turn this election to go according to Your ways. Wake up up the parents so they will take back their children and stand against the monster of governmental influence over their kids. 

We pray for homeschool families. We pray for strength, wisdom, resources, and protection. That the laws that try and prohibit us from homeschooling be defeated--for Michigan and all the states. That those that would try and take this right away be shut down. Homeschooling is not a right granted by government, but by God. Let parents realize that they have the right by God, and this country, to school their children as they see fit. It's not a right given by the government and the government can't take this right away, I pray for the homeschool coops that give support to homeschooling families. That they have all of the strength, resources, guidance and direction they need to assist these families.   

We pray for the judges and teachers Lord. Let the tides begin to turn in favor of Your ways in America. Forgive us for the neglect of our children. For allowing this to happen. Empower us now with courage, strength, and resources to stand against those opposing forces that are trying to rob us of our freedom to do what You've called us to. This is about us having the freedom to live according to how You've called us. By Your grace and mercy let the church arise. The remnant. We ask for Your favor and blessing on this country--on the judicial and educational system so they line up with Your ways.

Turn the tide for the young generation. The elementary, middle school, high school, and those entering college. Turn the tide for them. Let them know when they're being lied to and when there are attempts to deceive them. Let them learn to follow their heart, to follow You speaking to their heart, to value and follow Your guidance. Fill them with Your Spirit from a young age. Let the breath of Your Spirit go to the preschoolers and babies, filling them from a young age. Let Your Spirit guide them, protect them, and teach them. Let Your people wake up and see the truth, becoming sick of the lies and the petty accusations, the false accusations. Let them vote for truth and righteousness, and speak of truth and righteousness. Let the patriots of America become patriots of Your kingdom, and let the patriots of Your kingdom be patriots of America so we can fulfill the destiny You've called us to.

Priorities

Therefore, thus says the Lord,

“If you return, then I will restore you—

Before Me you will stand;

And if you extract the precious from the worthless,

You will become My spokesman.

Jeremiah 15:19

"Extracting the precious from the worthless..."

I felt impressed to pray for the church today--both the incorporated churches and the individual members--that they come to a more accurate place of properly prioritizing the things in their ministry and personal lives. That they let go of what is not from the Lord, and pursue those things that are. Extracting the precious from the worthless in the sense of going after the right things, and discerning the difference between what is God and what is not. Even what is valuable and what isn't concerning our time, space and money. May we pursue those things that are in proper priority according to God's plans for our lives.

Father, in the Name of Jesus, we pray for the church in Waterford, the individual and incorporated, so we learn to more accurately prioritize our lives and ministries according to how You desire them to be. That our time, space, and money be prioritized in way that pleases You. That we follow after what You've called us to do. 

Concerning the incorporated churches, that they let go of those things that You have not called them to do. Those ministries that are wrapped up or involved in things that are sucking up their time,space or money, that they let them go. That both the leaders and the people clearly see that those things are not something You have called them to do. So they set it aside and do not pursue it. We pray that they clearly see, and have discernment, so they are not using up their time, space, money, resources, people, energy, strength, or prayers on something You haven't ordained them to do. Let all the churches come into alignment with Your plan and purpose for them in Jesus' Name. Let this happen for the individuals and the churches in Waterford and beyond. Let this new sense of priority and discernment rise up in your people. Let it be sent from heaven with a heavenly breath, a cleansing breath of clarity. Bring clarity to the priorities of the churches, ministries and people of God. Let them clearly see what needs to be let go of, and what needs to be pursued in Jesus' Name Amen.

There was a hurricane that hit the east coast of the U.S. yesterday. The Lord showed me how the eye of the hurricane is surrounded by the chaos of the storm. The chaos is what the enemy wants to use to stop us, and to distract us. The chaos hides his purpose--the center of the storm. He uses the chaos to mess things up so his purpose can continue. The Lord wants us to see clearly so we don't get caught up in the chaos of the storm. The enemy hides behind the clutter and confusion. It steals our time, money, strength etc. keeping us from our purpose. 

We speak peace to the storms in our lives and to the churches. We speak life and peace. Peace be still. Storms, stop and be still so these chaotic clutters of confusion will not keep people from fulfilling their purpose. Peace, peace, peace. Be still in Jesus' Name. Storms, stop and no longer prevail in the lives of God's people in Jesus Name, amen.

Thank you Father for giving us the authority to speak and bring calmness and stillness. Once again, we ask for waves of discernment, proper priorities, and clarity so Your people can clearly see what You've established them to do in Jesus' Name, amen.