What’s your name?

I had a very vivid dream last night.  In the dream, I was sitting with a group of people.  There was a couple of men that were obviously under the influence of either drugs or alcohol.  There were some women there too, and a little girl.  The little girl’s dad had died and she was so incredibly sad.  The group of people just kind of sat there, looking dazed, confused, and really sad.  It seemed to be more than just the death of this young girl’s father that concerned them though.  They looked …. lost.  I looked over at this young woman sitting next to me and she begins to talk about how she’s going to go back home and get a job.  I begin to cry and I ask the young woman if I can pray with her.  She concedes.  As I reach for her hands, she says to me in an almost robotic voice, ‘it’s all about Jesus.’  I clasp her face gently in my hands, as I have so many times my own children, and I ask her what her name is.  She repeats again robotically, ‘it’s all about Jesus.’  I said, ‘I know.  But you matter to Jesus.  What’s your name?’  I woke up shortly thereafter.

I really believe that dreams are from God.  I have to admit, however, that I dream A LOT.  It is very rare that I don’t remember dreams.  And frankly, often they seem to make no sense.  There are never any great big beasts like John had.  There aren’t any 10 headed monsters or flying locusts.  My dreams are always about real people with real situations or myself.  Sometimes sporadic and strange, but still very real.  I’ve had a few that have turned out to be prophetic, but I have learned over the past 3 years to be selective on which dreams I actually choose to digest.  This one hit me.

I’m not sure what God is trying to convey exactly to me through this, but I can’t help but see the reality of my dream.  Certainly there are many that choose not to know Christ.  However, I honestly believe that there is an even greater number of people who understand that Jesus is God yet walk around like zombies in their own life.  While they may know who God is, they don’t understand their own worth.  People who, while believing God is real, still haven’t quite figured out that there is power in truly knowing Him.

While there is a very real human spirit out there that claims, ‘the power is ME,’  this is the reverse that claims victims just as easily with the thought, ‘I don’t really matter.’

Truthfully, even knowing Jesus, I have moments where I wrestle with my own insecurities.  I’m talking about something that goes beyond that.  Something that leaves people stuck in their misery never fully understanding that knowing God isn’t just about having a list of do’s and don’ts and making the grade.  It’s about getting to know a loving God who really does care about EVERY soul.  It’s about getting to know a loving God that wants to help YOU realize that not only are you important to Him, but that He has good things in store for you.

I don’t think God ever intended us to be zombies.  Kind of hard to have a relationship with a zombie, and frankly, they’re kind of creepy.  God didn’t create a bunch of creeps.  He creates beautiful people who were designed to live life in such a way that others would see His love through our lives.

God help me to live this way.  Help me to live in a such a way that people would see YOU through me.  That they would understand that their part matters just as much as mine.  That they would understand that they mean something to you.  That their lives have worth.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Energized by a spiritual workout!

After a couple of weeks of what seemed like an intense spiritual workout, I am left feeling a bit stronger and quite frankly … excited!

Isn’t God so awesome!  I love how He takes us through trials and tribulations, challenges us, reveals tid bits here and there, and then tells you .. okay, now ….. wait.  I would say I hate waiting, but I’ve learned to love it.  Especially when God is involved because the closer I get to Him, the more I can see how He really is very good at what He does.  I see His hand working in a very BIG way.  I watch and see how the revelations that He just gave me from reading His word come to life before my very eyes.  Then, an even greater feat, He reminds me of just how Big He is by taking time to show just how important ONE soul is to Him.  Wow!  He is incredible!

I can see Him orchestrating something really beautiful!  It used to scare me to think about the End Times.  I remember the night Obama first got elected.  I watched as the little red and blue map went from being about 50/50 to almost entirely blue in like moments!  I KNEW it was God and truthfully, it scared the dickens out of me!  I seriously cried because I thought Obama was the Anti-Christ and I wasn’t ready for the Rapture!  Seriously!  lol

Today, I’ve come along way and I now know, Obama is just a man.  He and his family need our prayers, but there is still no shadow of a doubt in my mind that God wants him to be president.  I’ve also, however, gotten a crash course over the past several years in spiritual things.  This course was from God Himself and I can now recognize the spirit of the anti-christ.  I mentioned this in my previous blog.

But the other thing I notice, is that God is beginning to wake up His church.  She’s been faithful and she’s been through a thing or two, but I can see that He is getting ready to really waken her up and help her realize the authority she has over the spirit of the world.  I can see how He has been drawing her in love, teaching her His ways, making sure …. she’s the one.  Making sure she’s the one who’s in this for love.  Making sure she’s the one who’s in this for righteousness and holiness.  Making sure she’s the one who’s faithful and loyal enough to handle the authority of doing what HE wants instead of glorifying herself.  Wow!

What an exciting time!  We are on the brink of Apostolic revival!  Can you feel it?  The fields are ripe!  I can see it everywhere!  Now it’s time for Jesus to showcase His bride.

Jesus is coming!  SOON!

Spiritual Awakening

I don’t know when it happened exactly, but I’m certain that there was a spiritual awakening that took place recently.  I’m talking a very real experience when my spiritual eyes awoke to Jesus and yet, another separate, but distinct experience where my eyes were opened to the spirit of the world, or the spirit of the anti-Christ.  I thought it was just me that had this understanding, but I highly suspect there are many that were awoke as well, however, they awoke into deception.

I’m putting this out there very plainly, and quite frankly, bluntly.  To some, this will seem judgmental, but I truly write this from a standpoint of simple observation.  I see so many people who live lives, not really living.  It’s as if they are always predisposed in their mind, thinking of other things.  It seems that these people are spiritually blind, yet some of their actions and words lead me to believe that they think they are spiritually awake.  I can see the influence of the world leading them.

I see many who believe and state they are following Jesus, but their lives simply don’t reflect that.  It’s like the haughty American who claims to stand with the country but doesn’t support the leadership God chose and instead fights against it.  I see a big slate full of hearts that are ripe for Satan and his band of demons to manipulate.  I see people who believe they know what ‘God is all about,’ yet they don’t take time to consider their own hearts before taking that stand.

Take for instance the Boston scene.  The uncle of one of the suspects stated that he thought the boys were influenced by something on a grander scale.  Certainly, they are to be held responsible for their actions, but this man recognized that there is something working on a bigger scale.  He spoke of his nephew and how a recent conversation with the young boy revealed to the uncle that the boy was under the influence of something.  I don’t mean drugs, the implication was some sort of demonic spiritual influence.  I couldn’t agree more.

It’s just like when the Twin Towers were destroyed, or the Sandy Hook shootings took place .. the events cause commotion, chaos, and fear and we spend time pointing fingers and being suspicious instead of realizing that perhaps God allows these things to happen because He’s waiting for us to look up and realize that we really do need Him.  Not only that, but we need to understand His ways.  God is not the author of confusion.  When He moves, there is no doubt in a man’s mind that He has been visited by God.

I don’t even know who it is I’m addressing in this particular blog.  Maybe I’m just throwing some thoughts out there and hoping that the souls that read it will seriously consider their own spiritual awakening.  The Bible says that even the elect can be deceived.  I pray that you make sure it’s Jesus you are following, and not the spirit of the world.  If you don’t know the difference, ask Jesus to clarify for you, He will.  He did for me.

May God have mercy on our souls.

Jesus went to Hell so we didn’t have to!

There is nothing like the infusion of fresh joy, excitement, and anticipation from missionaries coming in to visit your local church!  Wow!  Like John the Baptist being in prison, sometimes we need to be reminded that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light .. that people are being healed! .. eyes are being opened! .. and that revival has come!

As I listened to his stories, the message I felt so compelled by was an unspoken message.  He never said these words, but it hit my heart like brick .. Jesus went to Hell so we didn’t have to!  The Bible is clear, Jesus died and went to Hell .. stayed there for 3 days .. He took the keys .. then He came back!   He came back and showed us how it is HE who gives life.  It is HE who revives the soul!  It is HE who looks at the roster of Hell and decides who makes the list and who doesn’t.

How many times have we allowed our spirits to be vexed?  How many times have we allowed Satan to take our focus off of the path of Life and pull us into the drudgery of  anger, wrath, apathy, loneliness, bitterness, and all kinds of other ugliness?  Remember the fiery furnace?

Shadrach, Mechach, and Abednego were sent to the fiery furnace because they REFUSED to worship anyone other than Almighty God Himself.  The God who delivers!  The God who saves!  So King Nebuchandnezzar not only heats up the fire, but has it heated seven times hotter than normal!  So hot that it burned up the very men who brought them there.  In goes the 3 men and this is my favorite part, check this out …

^{Daniel 3:27 ‘}And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.’

Not only that, but the King saw a 4th, ‘like as the son of the gods.’  Who was it that was there with these men, but Almighty God Himself!

Jesus really did do it all!  It is my belief that His revelation is simply this .. Jesus wants us to LIVE!  When we are cast into the fire, we are NOT in Hell!  He may use those situations to help rid us of sins, transgressions, or wrong thought processes that have attempted to attach themselves to us, but we don’t have to go to Hell!  It is our job to LIVE!

I can’t help but think that this must be what people see in a Holy Ghost, Blood bought, Redeemed soul!  They look at us and they see us, consumed by fire, yet untouched by the flames!  They look at us and they may see our faults,  our flaws, and our struggles, yet they are literally perplexed as they see our overwhelming joy!  And if they aren’t perplexed, then perhaps it’s because YOU haven’t gotten the revelation yet … Jesus died so YOU didn’t have to!

We are consumed by fire, but you know what, God promises LIFE!  JOY!  PEACE!  Yes!  We have things that need to change!  But the beauty of the fire is that God will perfect us.  When we get focused on the dead stuff God is burning off us, we lose sight of the LIFE that we have been granted!  Check your eyesight and if you need glasses, let my words be your lens!

We have God’s resurrection Spirit inside of us and the best part is that when we fulfill the prophesy of joy and focus our intentions on life, we begin to help other people realize, they were never intended for Hell either!  Step up into Life!

Jesus IS the way!  The truth!  AND the Light!

When you fully realize the Power you have in Christ, He leads you into ALL truth.  He will provide what you need.  If you haven’t seen that you need water baptism in Jesus name, He will reveal it.  If you haven’t seen the importance of receiving HIS Spirit, He will show you and provide it for you.  Your job .. turn towards Him with all your heart and be determined to not let anyone or anything get in your way from trusting that it is He who really is God.

Oh Glory!  Jesus, I know that you hear me, but I write this prayer out for the sake of those who are reading these words.  I pray that those that read these words would feel conviction in their Spirit and allow you to revive and refresh their soul!  I pray that my words would resonate within their souls and help them see, you desire LIFE for them.  I pray that you would distinguish for them the difference between their actions that cause death and those that give life!  I pray that you deliver them from the oppressive spirit of unworthiness and any other unclean thought of death that has plagued them.  I pray that you provide what they need and empower them to live in the resurrecting Spirit that you have so freely, and graciously shared with us that they might be a light to others around them.  In Jesus name, AMEN!!

Walking down memory lane

I love to read the scriptures!  Especially the book of Acts where you see the apostles doing all these amazing things .. healings, casting out of demons, eyes opened, lame walk, etc.  What an exciting thing to read about!  What’s even greater though, is experiencing these things yourself!

Witnessing and seeing lives changed!  Watching as the spiritual eyes of someone you love go from darkness to light!  Watching the miraculous power of God take a dead sinful human and bring them into a life full of joy!  To see the language and actions changed and watch a miraculous cleansing occur in a life that had been previously filled with drugs, addiction, alcohol and all sorts of corruption.  It is no wonder  to me that there is a miraculous joy that comes from those who have experienced this!

Or what about the other miracles that we may not always recognize, but are just as glorious?  For instance, the baby Christian who walked with frailty and fear taking step and after step towards Christ, despite the overwhelming odds against her.  Watching these baby Christians overcome struggle after struggle and grow up to be confident, bold Christians facing challenges that would turn our tummy all with a smile and twinkle in their eye.  Not with pride, but a confidence that says, ‘I know my God!  I know what He is capable of!  I am not afraid!  I am saved!  I am sanctified for HIS purpose!  And I am loved!  Oh GLORY!  I AM LOVED!  What an AMAZING feeling!’

What a glorious thing to see!  What a glorious thing to experience!  When I think of all the great things God has done in my life and the lives of those around me, I literally feel like jumping up and down because I think .. if this is only just a glimpse of what He’s done, I can’t wait to see what more He’s going to do!!  Seriously, the excitement can NOT be contained in this human shell!!   Oh my goooooooooddddddddddnnnnnnnnneeeeeeeeesssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh how we need to encourage and share our testimony with others!  Not just to those that aren’t saved, but to those that have begun the journey … to those who have stumbled .. to those who have fallen and lie stagnant .. to those who have forgotten the joy because they got caught up in the pit.  Especially in those moments where our fruit of joy is so fresh!  That juice of joy can be spilled over and shared with those who have become dry and thirst for God’s glory!

Please share you testimony with someone!  Remember what God has done for you!  Remember how amazed you were when the miracle was performed!  Allow your heart to re-experience the moment you caught His gaze and realized He had been looking at you the whole time .. He was just waiting, patiently for you to recognize Him there with a smile on His face, arms open wide!  Remember the moment where you realized .. maybe … just maybe … it was intended for YOU too!  Because it is!  This glorious joy … this AMAZING love … was meant for YOU too.

Do you remember?  He’s there .. waiting to take you down memory lane .. only these memories are the ones to treasure and cling to.  The building blocks of a foundation that started all with HIM.

Jesus loves YOU.  THIS, I know.

 

Satan doesn’t know you …

I had an experience recently that gave me a revelation .. Satan doesn’t know you.  I had an encounter with someone who was severely under the influence.  This person has no recollect of the conversation, and I was certain, the words spoken, were entirely led by a demonic presence.  (They don’t call it ’spirits’ for nothing!)  The profound thing to me was being witness to this and being able to clearly discern what was happening.  In the past, have I not had some personal experiences in my life with demonic presence already, I might have been freaked out.  However, in this instance, I really seen a person who wouldn’t remember anything, so the only person that could be effected by the words spoken was the other person in the room .. i.e. me.

As I’m listening to the words of this individual, I’m hearing that my loved ones are being followed by Satan and all kinds of other strange things.  I disregard the comments and speak to the person directly, by name.  Again with the strange comments.  Then they start in on me.  ‘Dionne.  I remember you.  From before.’  This is the part where, had I not been privy to this strangeness from the past, I might have been freaked out.

It was then that I had the revelation.  The statement was made almost like an attempt to engage me, or trick me into saying or doing something that would somehow trip me up.  I imagine it was much like this for Jesus when the Pharisees kept trying to trip Him up back in the day.  Now, I’m not Jesus, but I do have His Holy Spirit in me, and I am thankful to say, He gave me the ability to see things from an entirely different perspective that day.  Have you seen the movie based off the ‘Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe?’  It’s the one where the girl on the beach is captured by these invisible creatures that appear to be giants?  Turns out that when the facade is over, the creatures are really just silly looking creatures with one big foot that have no capacity to do much of anything once they are seen.  This is how I see Satan and his band of demons.  He has no control over our lives unless we turn it over to him.  There, the secrets out.  He doesn’t know me, and neither does he know you.  I imagine he walks around with some sort of spiritual notebook taking notes on how you respond to his attempts to get your attention, but once you get an understanding of this, the gig’s up.

On the other hand, God knows you.  God doesn’t trick, seduce, or play on your emotions to get you to follow Him.  He allows you to explore for yourself who He is.  Go ahead and go where He doesn’t want you to go.  He won’t stop you, especially if you are adamant about going there.  But He’ll be patiently waiting for you when you finally realize that all those things you have been following were not Him.  He’ll be patiently waiting to pick up the pieces and help you rebuild what you were so hell-bent on destroying trying to prove your point that it was your life.  He never argued once with you about it.

I am in awe of God!  What does He want?  He wants us to be willing to let Him see Us for who we really are.  Here’s another little secret, He knows all this already.  After all, He is God.  Not to scare you or anything, but His word tells us that, “They were not faithful to the covenant I made with them, so I paid no attention to them.” Hebrews 7:9  All that craziness where you thought you were getting God’s attention … ummm .. He wasn’t even looking.  The only attention you were getting was from the demonic presence God allowed.  I’m sorry, but you were neglected.  You made your point, you wanted it your way, so God gave you what you wanted.  He wants us to be willing to show Him our sins and take accountability for it.  Yes, yes, you’ll have to pay the consequences of your actions in this world, but the good news is, He isn’t going to banish you to hell for those actions.  He already took care of that price by dying on the cross, but it’s not yours unless you choose to take it.  By taking accountability, it allows Him to help you stop doing things that are hurtful to yourself, harmful to others, and displeasing to God.

Repentance .. it’s not only the first step, it’s the most important.

See?  Satan doesn’t know you.  He’s just a tool God allows until you realize, it’s the attention of God that matters.

Happy day! 

Jesus Wept: A love story

The deeper my relationship with Christ gets, the more I appreciate what He’s done and IS doing for me.  This weekend, I was reminded of how there are times, I don’t always respond in a way that is pleasing to Him. It’s interesting because when I mess up, I know it.  If it’s a mistake, I fess up, clean up, and move on.  I take responsibility and understand that mistakes will happen.  Jesus still loves me.

Well, there are other times when, it isn’t so much a mistake that I make; I would categorize it more as negligence.  Admittedly, I am at times negligent to my responsibilities as Christ’s bride.  Times when I get caught up in my own selfish reaction or feelings.  Kind of like Mary and Martha did in John 11, when they lacked faith and blamed Jesus for Lazarus’ death.

Ugh … not an easy thing to admit .. but there are times when perhaps, I react selfishly .. when I feel my needs aren’t being met by a loved one .. or overreact to something that really isn’t that big of a deal .. maybe not watching my tongue because I’m ‘having a bad day’ .. or perhaps even not being careful of what or whom I share with.  Sigh .. there really is no justification for my behavior in those moments.  I’ve literally just given over to my flesh and am creating a mess.  A mess that literally, only Jesus can clean up.  Often, I’m not even aware of the damage I’m doing because I’m too focused on ME.  After reading this particular passage this weekend, I have a better understanding that Jesus really does get upset with us when we do things like this.  It’s something that I have to come to grips with, I’m not always at a place where I am going to be pleasing to my bride-groom.

Oh how I realize my need for Him!  How did Jesus react to the unbelief He encountered?  The Word tells us He was troubled in His spirit and groaned within Himself .. but how He chose to handle it … He Wept.  I can only imagine how it must feel for Him to not have His disciples on the same page.  Here, He spends time loving, healing, sharing, caring, and even letting these ladies in on what He has in store and how do they react?  Disbelief .. lack of faith .. negligent .. completely contrary to what He’s trying to accomplish .. yep .. we do a pretty good job of mucking up His plans.  Yet still, He loves us.

What amazes me …  He doesn’t freak out on Mary, Martha, and the Jews that lacked faith.  He dealt with His spirit by weeping .. showing us how to seek His face in times of trouble or frustration .. then He continued on His path and completed the miracle.  His reaction was nothing but pure love!  He gave Mary and Martha room to grow.  The good news is, He really is all about mercy and grace.

I can’t help but feel that the stories we read are constantly Him talking to His bride trying to get her to see that He really is all about mercy, if she would only look in the mirror and realize just how much room He gives her to grow.  If we could just realize that He would like us to give the same in return, to others.  If we could just realize how much He withholds His wrath from ALL of us because He wants to include ALL of us!  Will He have to draw the line some day?  You bet.  But today, it’s mercy .. it’s grace .. it’s Love.

And even when we don’t ‘get it’ … still, Christ loves us.  He continues to draw, continues to gently correct, continues to withhold His wrath, continues to teach, continues to lead .. continues to love.

If only we truly understood how much He really loves us ..  All of us.  The Bible .. it really is the greatest Love Story ever written.  The best part, you and I both play an important role .. and Jesus is going to show us each how to play our part.  He really is an awesome God!