We are NOT all in this together

The meme on TV encouraging all to stay in is WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.

That means I am in this with people who depend on government, depend on science alone, depend on authorities or depend on corrupt governors of states like Illinois.

That's not my boat. I'm in a different boat.

We can't all be in the same boat, but we are all in the same storm.

Some boats will stay afloat, some will sink, some will be driven  off course and some will remain adrift aimless.  Other boats knowing the destination and being driven by the right winds of the Holy Ghost will arrive safely.

Find your boat, trust the captain.

For me and my house, I will serve the Lord.

It's time to Erect an Ebenezer Stone

I keep hearing the President describe what is going on as a war.  Certainly there is a battle with an invisible enemy going on.

It's not a war... yet.

Sure some have died, and some have suffered.  But a War would be different.  My question prophetically is this.. are we as a people, as the body of Christ ready to go to war?  Right now governments have us locked down, locked in, hiding in fear.  That doesn't sound like warfare.  There is a time to attack.  That time is NOW.

The enemy is using fear of a disease to accomplish all kinds of things.
Stopping Gathering together
Plunging our economy into chaos
Pitting one against another
Stripping away human rights... when we need PERMISSION to do something we have already forfeited our rights.

I am saying it's time to confront this head on.  Carefully.  With all the weapons we have.  Courage, Faith, Confidence, Prayerfulness, Purity, and Clarity.

Right now we are being told what to do, where to be, who can buy and sell and controlled.  This is NOT God's will for you.  We must stand up to the enemy.  Fear NOT.

Some will die as we take back the land taken from us. It's time to erect an Ebenezer and say, this far and no further.  We cannot be bullied as Christians.  Some will go to jail.  Some will be prosecuted.

1 Samuel 7:11Then the men of Israel charged out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down all the way to an area below Beth-car. 12Afterward, Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.” 13So the Philistines were subdued, and they stopped invading the territory of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.…

 We are Sheep of HIS pasture, not of the beast in Government.  It is time for war.. now run to the battle... it might mean leaving your house.

Return to Joy

People are losing Joy during these hard days.  They think they have lost what they had... they were living in Peace and Safety. Peace and Safety.

The stock market, the job market, everything was going great. 

Then an invisible enemy attacked.  Loss, death, pain, pestilence and fear rose up.

The lifeline so many had was severed as Churches closed.  They were cut off from what held them together.

Some tried to substitute other distractions to try to find their joy again.  The future looks bleak and bleaker. Those distractions were temporary.

This has become a time when we discover the truth about who we thought we were.  Not as strong or resilient as we imagined ourselves to be.  We despair at our weakness in the flesh.


Thinks were pretty tough when the Law was read to the people of Jerusalem and they came face to face with who they really were.  They recognized their difficulty.  Nehemiah was placed by God to encourage the People at that time. Here's what he told them:

“Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!”  Nehemiah 8:10

Now as we find things changing yet again, we need to rediscover joy.  It's there.  It's in the little things. It's in charity. It's in intention. Treat every meal, every time you sit down as if it were communion.   When you bless your food.. say Body of Christ, Blood of Christ.  This is an ancient tradition in certain parts of the world.  It may be that what we think of as communion was in fact a full meal.

The Joy of the Lord is STILL your strength.  It will be hard.. but God hasn't abandoned you.  He hasn't forgotten you.  He isn't ignoring you.  He is allowing all this to happen while keeping you under his wing.

There is a nest in a small tree in my front yard. A dove sits on it.  She has eggs she is protecting.  A few days ago we had a snow and rain storm.  She didn't leave her clutch.  She sad on it with her wings stretched out to cover and keep them from harm.

How much more does your and my father do what he does in covering you.  Yes it is hard.. but you are under the shelter of his wings.

The Change Coming in Church

I am watching Christians turning from western Religion as this test goes on.  What used to be OK is no longer. 

The words of faith, the words of hope and the words of mercy and compassion are strangely absent.  Some are in the arena, but the traditional church is stumbling.  Many will not make it. 

This is a classic rubber meeting the road.. and traction is lacking.

What this means is trend towards a better ministry model and away from the preaching pulpit centric model.  It is important.. but only one of the FIVE essentials. Those who wear the title PASTOR must now fulfill the role of that grace.  What is it?

The answer can be found in the ministry of Jesus. The New Testament account reveals that Jesus did five things:

(1) Jesus built His relationship with His Father,
(2) He preached the gospel of the kingdom of God,
(3) He met the needs of people,
(4) He made disciples through the power of the Spirit,
(5) He gave His life as a sacrifice.

These are the keys to true biblical ministry.  A return to this model will be essential when "Church" resumes.  I do not see that happening for a while yet. 

If you are a church leader and you measure yourself.. how are you doing?  I'm guessing you already know.  Perhaps this was not your calling.  Many won't make it.  This is God's great washing machine cleaning up the Body of Christ.

Good that will come from the Pandemic by 2022

Right now there is a fair amount of Gloom and Doom.  Death and a destroyed economy in the near future.

We are going to see if you are a believer in Romans 8:28 as I am, we will see some positive outcomes to all this.  Let's flash forward to April 18, 2022.  The pandemic is now clearly in the rear view mirror.

Here are a few things I see and you can look forward to:

As a result of the all out war on the virus, we will find ourselves better able to fight, not only this one, but flues, colds and other viruses that come along. I see a vaccine, but better than that a method for shutting it all down. Tamaflu on steroids.  Treatments will trump the need for vaccines.

The world of business will have changed.  It will be painful. Many unsteady companies will  fail.  Some of those which were always vapor enterprises (built on nothing) will fade in the light of day.  Some that disappear will come back in a new way.  On  line is going to get stronger, and as a result entry by new small companies which could not get shelf space at Walmart will find the internet the working avenue as new entrants to compete against Amazon (there will be some) will grow and prosper.

The hangover of social distancing will change what we used to do.  Crowded theaters, concerts, churches, bars and some restaurants will need to meet the new.  Once a venue consistently sells at 75% it will flatten.  SPACE will be a premium. 

Airplane flights will become enjoyable again.  More space.  Better ventilation.  this change will be essential but tickets will be more expensive.

Inflation will return, aggressively.  Food is going to become more expensive and the above mentioned things like airlines and entertainment venues will of nessesity become more expensive.

Theme parks, fairs and festivals will be attended, but with intentional distancing.  Total attendance will be affected.

There will be outbreaks and scares.  As a result sports will suffer.  Stadiums will of  necessity need to become wider in spacing and distance.  The idea that we can all be crammed in on bleachers every 18" per person will end.  This won't have to be imposed, people will space themselves.

The hangover from bad health practices will take time to heal.  Many out of shape and compromised people will have died.  The lesson will be learned by some.. but not others.  Bad health habits are difficult to break.

Trump will still be President.  I don't see a majority of the house or senate to hold him up.  Despite the foolish behavior of the left they will take back the senate keep the house.

Healthcare in general will be superior to what it was pre-Pandemic.  It will also be more expensive.

Bureaucratic and useless governance will fall away.  They already are, but more will come.  The foolish overreach of mayors and governors in many states will result in changes.  When the evil are charge the people groan.

Some flyover states will  now be even more attractive to business as the leaders of those states have excelled in good governance.   Red states rising.

Families will be stronger.  Education will have to go thru a change.  College attendance for Fall of 2020 and Spring 2021 will take a hard hit.  Vouchers will not become more  and more acceptable.  The clay feet of the education cabal will have been illustrated.  The fact that millions of teachers laid off but paid and yet did nothing... will cost them.

There will still be a radical liberal fringe but they will fewer.

New outbreaks of vigilante groups on the left and right will break out. They will  cause divisions even deeper in the body politic.  We must not lose this war.  It is more viral than any pandemic.

Church as we knew is changed forever.  Any pastor or leader who makes the false assumption that he or she can simply take the platform and begin  preaching like it was March 1 will find a disappearing following.  Each and every member needs to be touched directly  by phone or in person to firm up the relationship.  Most churches are really really bad at this.  Better at preaching and not great as being a pastor.  Business as usual will fail.

Internationally, China is a wounded badly, as is Russia.  Japan and South Korea are fine.  Europe is sick.  I don't see an EU in 2023.  Many of the countries have shown just how weak and insipid the EU really is.  Italy, Spain and France will think  hard about following England in a Brexit.  Germany is now the only country trying hold this together.  They want to OWN europe.. but can't.  They dropped the ball.

The global economy will got thru a very hard time.  Depression.  Then inflation.

Socialism will be shown for what it is.  Great until you run out of other peoples money.

Africa and Most of South America (other than Brazil) will stagger.  India  is going to suffer HUGE death loss from the virus.  And then herd immunity will occur and it will come out stronger than before.

I won't say thus saith the Lord.. but I see many of  these trends clearly.. and more.

The world will be a better place..but only after a great hurt. May we be strong enough to see that day.

Was 40,000 always the number?

As the decline in death counts accelerates and the exponent becomes smaller and smaller, the argument to continue our national nightmare in lock down is less and less tangible.

There will be many people pointing to Prayer, Social Distancing, Stay Home Orders, Drugs, Medical Care, Herd Immunity, Masks and Hand Sanitizers as reasons why this is working.

I won't argue that some of this is true.. yet perhaps the virility of the virus is overstated.  Surely those who were compromised already have been lost the most. They may not have made it into 2021 in any case.

Was it worth destroying the American Economic System for this?  Was it worth going into national debt at an insane rate in this?   40,000 is not insignificant.. but it could have been manageable without.

Here's what my best educated guess is.. you can take it or leave it.

 

Year of Jubilee? Not for Everyone

Most people reading this are well aware of the Jewish practice of forgiveness of debt and restructuring that occurred in the nation of Israel every 50 years.

This took place because it helped re-balance the economic systems.  Lands restored. Debts forgiven.

Some are wondering if right now we aren't in such a time.  That the economic upheaval taking place will cause a de-facto year of Jubilee.

I know this, there are a lot of bankruptcies that will take place in the next 12 months.  Many will ripple thru the economy.  It will have a domino affect.

It  did in Israel.  Who in their right mind the year before the Jubilee year would lend money to anyone?  Or buy land that would be taken from them.

I know  may people think this will be wonderful.. but Jubilee for one is economic disaster for another.  Someone is stuck holding a bag of debt now useless.

This long run is a disruption that can't survive.

The Price of Terror

We just came out of an unusual Easter Celebration.

Jesus was murdered by the rulers of his age because they feared the Roman's. 

The Apostle John reports this conversation:
John 11:49
But one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all! 50You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” 51Caiaphas did not say this on his own. Instead, as high priest that year, he was prophesying that Jesus would die for the nation,…

Who put that idea in Caiaphas's head.  That they would railroad Jesus.  We know that it was always going to be so in the rear view mirror.  It was prophsied.

YET...

Fear drives people to desperate measures.

Fear drove the Nazis to murder 6 million because Hitler by his demonic anointing was able to pursuade a nation that Jews weren't  human, that they were responsible for all sorts of evil things and deserved to die.

Fear has caused death and distruction globally for millenia.  Lies from  the pit of hell creates terror.

Now we have another terror.. disease... Pestilence.  It's real... People are dying... yet.. fewer than was thought.  The fear is real.. let us be wary of not allowing it to control us into doing something really stupid.

Like the ENEMY did when he persuaded Caiaphas to kill Jesus... and Jesus defeated the enemy of death 3 days later when he rose from the tomb.  Let us be aware that the enemy shoots himself in the foot every time.  Let GOD arise and His enemies..  SCATTER

I'd rather have dangerous liberty than safe slavery

No one should be foolish. No one needs to be reckless.  We do however have a choice.  We can be slaves to:

• Fear
• Anger
• Resentment
• Terror
• Denial
• Timidity
• Conspiracies
• Victim-hood

The devil is in the bondage business and if he can get you to submit to his plans.. he will.

On the other hand Liberty is dangerous.
We can walk into a burning building, we are free to do so.  Sometimes that means we should.  Sometimes we must.  Firemen do.

There is a caution that is needed, but walking in liberty must be dangerous only for you.  If you cause danger for others because of your liberty that is not liberty.. that is foolishness.

I will get in trouble here, but if you are carrying a virus for which as present there is no cure and you gather for any reason, family, religious or social you are endangering others.  Your liberty might kill grandma, yours or someone else's.

It is important to be very wise in these times.  "Your Liberty To Swing Your Fist Ends Just Where My Nose Begins". Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

Fear has Cost us all ... It didn't have to be that way

It is clear now from the exponential rise and fall of total loss of life due to coronavirus will be about 50,000 souls more or less by the time things start falling fast.  The total loss by August will  be less than 70,000.

This is about the loss of life from an ordinary flu season.  The old,  in-firmed and compromised are dying first.  Every soul is precious, but every soul has an end they must face.  Some who faced death and succumbed in this time were on the edge when they may or may not have become attacked by the Virus.

What has made this so much more difficult is how unknown this is.  How there is no "Cure" nor Vaccine for it.  Of course there are some efficacious treatments that are working in other parts of the world like France.  They are not yet widespread here.

The political forces arrayed against life are willing to sacrifice people in exchange for posturing.  Of course these same voices will argue that when measures are made to attempt to return society to some form of restoration, they will cry dollars over deaths.  These same are quite happy to promote abortions because having a child is "Inconvenient". 

So be careful who you listen to.  Who is speaking lies and truth.  The truth is Life is for the Living.  At some point we must bury the dead and move forward.  I think the instruction is understood for being careful as we move on.  Let us measure the cost of freedom and life versus virtual martial law and self confinement. 

50,000 by mid May, 70,000 by August.  Too much... you decide.  We decide. 

When we DON'T listen we perish

I have been walking out the reality of what is happening all around us.   Near Chicago where the virus is taking a toll. 

Yet there are huge islands of safety.  Distance.  Open air.

Chicago is governed badly.  So is the state of Illinois.  It is governed by people with agendas who fail to listen to anything other than the confirmation bias they insist upon.  If you are in their circles and come with a contrary opinion you are shut out and ignored.

This is how it is with many people.  The word says, Without a Vision, (a prophetic word from God), People Perish.  Proverbs 28:19

Many these days are pointing to prophetic utterances from the long past by David Wilkerson.  Or more recent Prophecies from Chuck Pierce.   They have standing and are important.  But what is MORE important is moving ahead as you hear from God in the moment, in the time. 

There is wisdom available by the Spirit of God that can help you right now.  Look for that.  I know and respect many prophetic voices, most of them are not nationally known.  Yet they speak the very truth of God for this moment.  They are hidden, but true.  Why?  Because they have nothing to gain or lose by sharing what God is saying.  Thy have no paywall, no entrance fee for attending thier conference, no collection plate.  They simply hear and say what God is saying.

Here is what the Lord is saying right now.. 

There are many voices competing for your attention in this time.  Heed words of hope.  Heed words of peace.  Heed words of encouragement.  The enemy of your soul wants to destroy hope and peace.  When you hear those words it will grate against the my Spirit inside you.  It will be dissonant.  Do not rail against them, some of those are in authority over you.  You must be wise at this time.  I need  you to breath, I need you to live.  I do in the earth what I do by your hand and voice.  So be wise. 

Yes, what I say to you seems to be doubt what you are being told.  This too is wisdom for the father of all lies is about.  You are being lied to every day.  You have the gift of discernment.  Hear and test if it is of terror or triumph. 

These days will come to an end.  Make certain you are there to meet it.  Do not fear. Be brave.  Be wise.   For victory is on the horizon.  Your salvation isn't in government nor in experts.  It is in ME.  I haven't left nor forsaken you.  This day in history represents the apparent death of hope.  What the destroyer didn't know when he thought he murdered hope  was that I am the word of Restoration.  I am resurrection. Live in me.  I need you to live, I need you to breath.
 

Strength

We must remember where our strength comes from.  Don't lose heart

If we understood this..we would be ready to face difficult things.

Let's remember

Under a Full "Pink" Moon

We are going into this week of remembering and celebrating the ultimate victory over death by Jesus and in turn, all of us under a super-moon. Called a pink moon, because it coincides with the flowering of spring.  Happens every year. Not the super-moon, but pink.

Many think this is a harbinger, that it means something. No, doesn't.  What does mean something is our victory over sin and death was culminated in a season like this a couple thousands of years ago.

That should be celebrated.

Not that we ignore the time and season we are in.  We don't.  Yet we take note for the future.  There will be a future. It will look different from the future we just left.  It might be better.  The normal is gone.. the new normal yet to be created.  We by our actions create this.

So let us not be caught up in or subjected to those things that are myths and old wives tales.  They do not count.  What counts is Jesus and his triumph over the ultimate enemy. 

The moon is beautiful.  There will be a Passover, as there is every year.  It happens with great expectation.  That eager anticipation is important.  I only want us to be sober and clear headed in this season.

This is not a time to become victims when the price was already paid for your victory.  Now go enjoy it.  The world will change but you can be certain in the immutable  God in Heaven who never ever changes.

Attributed to Terry Gene Bollea AKA Hulk Hogan

"In three short months, just like He did with the plagues of Egypt, God has taken away everything we worship.

God said, 

"You want to worship athletes, I will shut down the stadiums.

You want to worship musicians, I will shut down Civic Centers.

You want to worship actors, I will shut down theaters.

You want to worship money, I will shut down the economy and collapse the stock market.

You don't want to go to church and worship Me, I will make it where you can't go to church"

"If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Maybe we don't need a vaccine, Maybe we need to take this time of isolation from the distractions of the world and have a personal revival where we focus on the ONLY thing in the world that really matters.

Jesus

Holy Week is when Demons Manifest in Athiests. Here is how to deal with them.

You will hear all kinds of "News" programs from the godless media claiming Jesus is a Myth and he never rose from the dead. Happens every Holy Week. This video is really good. The fool says in their heart, there is no God. The believer knows better. It's not just a matter of Faith. it is the ONLY rational a non fool can come to. But they don't. They are blinded. Share this..the world needs Jesus.

A new order is being formed, who's hand will do the shaping?

No sober person believes 5 years from now will look anything like it did at the end of 2019.  Things are going to change. A lot.  Some for the better, some for the worse.

The people making the future are on the planet right now.  They are making choices, moral and economic.  What those choices end up being will create the world your grandchildren will occupy.

We think the political folks in government make those choices.  No they reflect the choices we are making when we are with others, when we are in business, when we vote, when we buy what we buy, when we deal with our loved ones.

These choices are the fabric of the life we will lead.  In the movie and in the book "The Shack" the personage of the Holy Spirit in allegory takes the protagonist to an apparently disheveled and weedy garden space. It looks like a mess.  Then he is shown what it looks like from above, from God's eye.
It is remarkable, orderly, beautiful and most important shows how all the choices made by him were what created this. Nothing by accident.

This vision gave him hope for the future.  How he (The Protagonist) is the creator of it as the victim or victor in life.  This same thing is true of us all that occupy planet earth today


We must start to intentionally make better choices.  Much better choices.  The voice of the enemy who comes to steal, kill and destroy is everywhere.  It is in our media, it is among those who propose Godless legislation, it is in our political environs, it is in our entertainment, in our education establishments, in some for profit business and even in the alleged houses of God.  Even with a robe and a ring, the misleaders are everywhere.

God is using this time to expose much.  We are learning how unessential some of these things are. 

So be brave, be strong for the Lord Your GOD is Mighty.  These strongholds of evil must be silenced.  We must not just pray but speak out loudly.

Choose this day.. it is what will make your future and the world's

When we Pray, we move the Hand of God in our Favor

We have a choice.  To live in faith or fear. To live in despair or hope.  There is an enemy of our soul, he preaches poverty, lack, death, disease and terror.

God is not in the business of terror.  He is giving us a hope and a future.  The present adversity will pass and we will emerge in more victory.  The enemy wants us to believe for the WORST.  God is willing BEST.

You choose.  As for me and mine,  I choose LIFE and life abundantly.

I encourage as many as can to post this, re-post this and recommend it.  We need hope in these days.  This may offer a lifeline.    IF I were on FB I would, but I have been banned....for HOPE

Palm Sunday is about HOPE.

What the Future Holds

There are some things that will remain ... after.

Family, Faith

Some will dissipate - fear will be overcome

There are going to be disturbing times ahead. The good old days ended on Valentines Day 2020.

These are now the today's we face.

Jesus on a mount gave instructions in the face of pain, poverty, persecution and uncertain times.  It's good to remind ourselves of this.

Read all of Matthew 5-7 again. Imagine that Jesus is here now saying these things to believers facing what we see all around us today. 

I particularly like the Freshness of the Message Translation.  It takes us out of the learned religious and puts it in words of NOW.

The Father Heart of God in this Crisis

Me: Okay, God, here's the thing. I'm scared. I'm trying not to be, but I am.

God: I know. Want to talk about it?

Me: Do we need to? I mean, you already know.

God: Let's talk about it anyway... We've done this before.

Me: I know, I just feel like I should be bigger or stronger of something by now.

God: *waiting patiently, unhurried, undistracted, never annoyed.

Me: Okay. So, I'm afraid I'll do everything I can to protect my family and it won't be enough. I'm afraid of someone I love dying. I'm afraid the world won't go back to what it was before. I'm afraid my life is always going to feel a little bit unsettled.

God: Anything else?

Me: EVERYTHING ELSE.

God: Remember how your son woke up the other night and came running down the hall to your bedroom?

Me: Yes.

God: You were still awake, so when you heard him running, you started calling out to him before he even got to you... remember? Do you remember what you called out to him?

Me: I said, "You're okay! You're okay! You're okay! I'm here."

God: Why did you call to him? Why didn't you just wait for him to get to your room?

Me: Because I wanted him to know that I was awake, and I heard him, and he didn't have to be afraid until he reached the end of the dark hallway.

God: Exactly. I hear you, my child. I hear your thoughts racing like feet down the dark hallway. There's an other side to all of this. I'm there already. I've seen the end of it. And I want you to know right here as you walk through it all, you're okay. I haven't gone to sleep, and I won't.

Me: *crying. Can we sit together awhile? Can we just sit here a minute before I go back to facing it all?

God: There's nothing I'd love more.

What the Coming Pandemic will cost in American Lives

By the 20th of April the death toll in the USA will be about 130,000.   It will begin to decline in intensity from there to end up a bit under 200,000 by the first of August.

This assumes that we do not discover a breakthrough treatment.  However once this has roared thru the susceptible population it will not return in the fall except in a few scattered events.

The damage to the economy will actually be worse than the damage to our population.  All pandemics stop when the susceptible host is gone.

We are going to survive this.  We will see a sunny day.  God is still on the throne.

Do not fear, but be aware that these things will come to pass.

I will be posting the numbers as the exponential increase in death goes on.  You can track it here:

The coronavirus is second

 The media is claiming that our primary enemy is unseen and is the Coronavirus. That would be easy to say except that's not our enemy. Our Real Enemy is fear hopelessness and despair which is equally as invisible but equally as damaging. Here's the truth, many people are going to suffer, some will die in this, but this will pass in time and we will see ourselves a different nation in time. We will see ourselves a different world in time.  It will be a better world and a better nation in time.  The only common denominator is time. Let's take advantage of the time.  Let us not waste the time.  Redeem the time because these days are indeed evil but they also are Redemptive.  We are in that season, the fullness of time, Kairos time