New Beginnings and a New Focus

It has been a busy month with lots happening...new beginnings...new ideas....much prayer.

I was feeling stagnated. You know that feeling when it feels like you aren't moving forward and everything is blocking the best of your intentions. All of your plans are for nothing...and your prayers only reach the ceiling...and you cry out, "Why Lord? Where is my answer?"...

You check yourself...is there anything you need to do...are the motives of your heart right? Did you bring God into your plans and ask Him if this was His plan for you? Are you harboring unforgiveness toward someone? Did you pay your tithes and offerings? Most important...are you reading the Word every day, and asking Him for wisdom, understanding and guidance? Are you staying in a love walk when people cross you? Are you completely sold out to Jesus?

There was a lot of negativity around me, and in hindsight I can see where I got a bit of that "umph" in my spirit. We all have someone we know or around us, we love them, but no matter how much Word we give them, how much guidance....they just don't apply it. They murmur and complain, and don't persevere and just stand in faith, they are tossed with every wind of doubt that blows them off the fence, blaming the enemy for tormenting them or stopping their blessing, when it is within themselves. Then they tell it all to everyone, over and over and over, until no one wants to be around them. Never realizing that they need to shut their unbelieving mouth and get with the program. Your very own words will call it more of the same trouble until you start to praise God in the midst of it and win that battle.

If you could see into the spiritual realm for just a few minutes, when all the hosts of heaven are ready to do battle, you would hear praise and worship. Did you know that when the praise begins to resound throughout the spirit realm, the demons of hell have to cover their ears (so to speak), because they know this is a battle they aren't going to win!

We as Christians find it very easy to talk the talk, the battles most of us go through are mundane things of the material world. Now I'm talking general here...the every day thing of bills and responsibilities, food on the table etc. We get sick, and we pray for healing, sometimes it comes, sometimes it doesn't. And we complain and complain..and we gossip..and we hurt others, we criticize, never realizing the harm we are doing to ourselves.

I digress, I want to talk about praising God in the midst of the war, at the first of the battle. I'm talking about getting your hands in the air, and praising Him when all hell is breaking loose around you...when every direction you turn is blocked! You are getting sicker, when the Word says you are healed, your marriage is falling apart when God says the two of you are one in His eyes, that you have taken a vow....when your husband loses his job...when the bank is taking your house, when your child is dying...or on drugs...or on the streets.....as you lay on the floor weeping and moaning, and calling your friends for prayer....and then you complain about everything in detail.

You! (yes I'm pointing at you reading this!) Get your hands in the air NOW! Shout and start praising God for the situation, because if you weren't in that situation, you couldn't see God's hand moving in it! You want the enemy on the RUN? Start praising God for that deliverance, for that healing, for the answer, and start acting like you believe it.

When I call you for prayer on something, you drop to your knees and start praying...don't wait for all the juicy tidbits. Get praying, that is what you are called to do. Join together with others and be warriors for those that can't battle for themselves right now. We that are strong are called to carry the burdens for the weaker members of the Body of Christ.

Years ago, I fell very ill, I had always had a bad throat and chest, and I got sick. I didn't wear a medic alert bracelet so when I was taken into emergency at the hospital, and they wrote a prescription, they actually did me more harm due to drug allergies. Not once but twice.

I had a respiratory infection not unlike whooping cough, and I couldn't breathe with out coughing up a lung...so to speak...until I would vomit, I couldn't leave my bed to even care for my kids...ages 4 and 5 at the time. I was also looking after 3 children for a neighbor, a bit older, thank goodness, as they helped me care for my babies.

The only respite I had was when my 4 year old daughter would get up on my pillow and lay her wee hands on me and pray...or my best friend would come over and pray...I lost 17 lbs in just a few weeks...and one night called the east coast to tell my mother good bye, that I was going to die.

I was laying one evening on the couch, and I cried out to God...if you are not going to heal me...then take me home...because I can't take the pain anymore, I can't breathe, I can't function, I can't look after my kids or my husband...and believe me, it was a sincere cry from the heart....

As I closed my eyes I began to hear a soft murmur of voices and singing....and it began to grow and grow in crescendo...music so beautiful I knew it wasn't of earth, each voice different but blending in absolute perfection...and I could hear the words..."Glory to God in the Highest, Glory to the Lamb of God, Hallelujah to the King..." majestic voices soaring higher and higher!!!

I opened my eyes and the ceiling of my room had disappeared...and I could see what appeared to be a ring of clouds with blue skies in the middle...I could see tier upon tier of angelic beings....all singing...
Then I saw a hand, much as we see the artists depictions of the hand of Jesus, with a nail scar, and it came through the cloud ring, through the tiers of angels, and I felt the Master's hand touch the very center of my lungs! (In visions, I seem to be watching as an onlooker, yet experiencing what is happening).

The singing went on for a few more minutes, and then begin to fade. As the last sounds went into silence, I leaned to the side and begin to vomit into the bucket like I was never going to stop. (yeah I know..gross :)
Finally I stopped, I couldn't believe anyone could have that much fluid in their lungs!
Strength flowed into my body, and within a few hours, you would have never known I was even sick, meals were cooked, laundry done, the house cleaned, and I went back to my volunteer position the next day.

What I'm saying...is no matter what the situation...or how much opposition you face...Don't give up! Your answer...no...your MIRACLE ...is just around the corner.

I could go on with many more things that have happened...and proved to me that God is real...and He loves His children...but ahhhhhhh...I hear the chorus of hungry pooches a-calling me from the kitchen!

God bless each and every one of you, have a great weekend!