A word of knowledge

Last night I had a brief, and simple, dream. I believe this dream is a message that someone needs to hear.

I was praying for an ethnic woman, probably Hispanic, and had a word of knowledge for her: ‘God is pleased with your faithfulness.’

Another man who was also laying hands on her immediately told me to stop. When I asked why, they said that she had received a prophecy in the past stating that she would marry a certain man and that the marriage turned out to be disastrous.

After an awkward moment I was filled with the Holy Spirit and turning to the man, I exclaimed, “If you want power then you must embrace the Holy Spirit!”

My thoughts are simply:

1. Some have been burned by false prophecy and thereby shun prophecy altogether.

2. Or, some have observed false and seemingly false manifestations of the Holy Spirit and thereby shun all manifestations of the Holy Spirit.

3. These will need to embrace the Holy Spirit—namely true prophecy as well as the other gifts—in order to receive God’s power.

4. Also, it is important to be very careful when criticizing and condemning any manifestation that is claimed to come from the Holy Spirit, because: Jesus says, “Whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin. (Mark Ch. 3 vs. 29: NAS). The context of this passage is simply that some were accusing Jesus of operating under the influence of a demon, when in reality He was acting under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

A similar mentality exists today, not only with those who hold a dispensationalist view (the gifts, and manifestations, of the Holy Spirit are not for today), but also with many in the charismatic circles, who accept some gifts and manifestations, but claim some others to either stem from sensationalism or the Devil!

My advice is to refrain at all cost from judging or criticizing anyone who may or may not be ‘manifesting’, or ‘operating’ under the influence of the Holy Spirit. This is predominantly an issue that is between them, God, and their spiritual leadership (it's their leadership's responsibility to provide accountability).

With reference to prophecy, my advice is to ‘test all things’ especially when the prophecy is given to you personally. There are true, and false, prophetic words flittering about. To complicate things further, there is also frequently a blend of true and false within the same prophetic utterance—discernment and wisdom are a must.

Clarification on 'Salvation' from Sin

This post is a clarification on ‘Salvation’ from Sin.

I believe that Christians can be grouped into two categories: the Regenerated, and the Carnal (1 Cor. Ch. 3 vs. 1). In this passage Paul says, “I could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, as unto babes in Christ. The word ‘spiritual’ here is pneumatikos in the Greek, which means regenerate.

God has graced both groupings of believers with the honor of having a ‘positional’ standing in His family. For instance both groups are justified because of Christ’s sacrifice, and I believe will therefore ultimately join the Father in the New Life.

In my previous posting, ‘Salvation’ from Sin, what I was attempting to say is that I believe a taste of the New Life is available to us while on Earth, not just for when we make it to Heaven. I wanted to propose that ‘salvation’ (as used by Paul) means to be truly set free from the slavery of sin, where this state of regeneration is evident in our earthly lives. Where the Holy Spirit brings us from the state of ‘positional’ regeneration to ‘actual’ regeneration. Whereas believers we mature from the carnal state of being to the spiritual state of being. I’m not saying that we will achieve perfection while on Earth, but simply suggesting that salvation from the bondage/slavery (addictions, or any sin that holds us in captivity: like lust, pornography, drugs, fear, doubt, pride, and etcetera) is available to those who persevere in lifting their gazes up to Him with hope. He will deliver in time. These are prayers that He will answer.

For this maturation to happen we need to die with Christ in order to partake in His resurrection. John 12:24 says that a seed will only produce fruit if it first dies. Jesus then says that to find life we first must lose our lives vs. 25. After we pick up our crosses, a symbol of dying daily, we will then be lifted high into the wings of His resurrection glory! And this is when, I believe, that He will freely flow from our bellies as rivers of living water (John Ch. 7, vs. 38).

The death will happen when the Holy Spirit does a transformational work on our hearts and spirits. True deliverance can only come from Him. It can’t be achieved by our soulish striving and works. At times all we can do is to continue asking Him for freedom; and He will then bring us into circumstances where that freedom becomes our reality. It’s prudent to realize when one of these circumstances is knocking on our door, and to embrace the trials and tribulations as opportunities for true regeneration.

Then His resurrection power will be all the more unhindered within us!

Authority

I was talking with some friends when the topic of obeying our callings came up. In reference to mission trips to foreign countries it was mentioned that some hold the methodology that if someone feels called to the nations but doesn't have much of a track record with 'conversions' at their home country that they should refrain from going until they're fruitful at their present location. The thought is that everyone is a missionary regardless of where they are (which is true); so why go to another country when your track record is so poor at home?

The thought came to me that even though the above argument makes rational sense that it is totally based from a natural thought process. It reminded me of the Esau mentality, where a person's life is operated by their natural mind. In a sense, where the logic of the human mind dictates our decisions and plans. I believe that the extreme form of this path leads directly into a humanistic lifestyle (which on another note I believe is directly linked to the great End Times deception).

At that moment I felt a powerful sense of the Holy Spirit. He descended on me like a burning cloak, and I felt Him both in my spirit and in my every limb. He then spoke and said, "At times a person's life doesn't have authority because they aren't walking in their calling. It is when we obey our calling that we will see the fruit of our labors. This is when we will walk in authority."

After this was spoken I exclaimed to my friends that I could sense the Holy Spirit all over those words! My friend immediately concurred that he too felt the Holy Spirit come with the above statement!

So, I think what God is saying is don't let a stagnant, or seemingly stagnant, Christian life deter us from obeying the calling that He has for us Today! Because it's when we embrace His calling and mandate for our lives that He flourishes through us to touch the world with His love and power.

'Salvation' from Sin

I was sitting in my living room and listening to Romans on the I-Pod when I felt quickened by the Holy Spirit. Quickly grabbing my Bible and notebook I read along while scribbling the notes that seemed to leap into me. Here is a brief summary of what I think God highlighted at that time (and sorry to the theologians who are reading this but this posting has absolutely nothing to do with Calvinism :-0

Beginning a foundation for the highlighted verses, I'll start with chapter seven. In ch.7 vs. 14-25 Paul talks about how there is a law of sin that holds us in captivity. At the end of the chapter he asks, "Who shall deliver me from this body of death?" (KJV, ch.7 vs 24) And he answers, "...Jesus Christ our Lord..." (KJV, ch.7 vs 25).

Ch.8 vs 3 says that Christ conquered sin inside the flesh (He did this by living inside the body which was in the likeness of sinful flesh but committing no sin).

Vs 4 follows this up by saying that He did this in order for righteousness to be fulfilled in us; however, this life is only for those who walk after the Spirit.

So the question is how does one walk after the Spirit, because we obviously all want to be 'saved' from this pervasive law of sin? Verse 13 says, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die." We can take this to mean that we have a choice to either fall on the Rock and be broken, or to pursue the natural method of self preservation and wait until the End of the Age when the Rock will crush all who are alive to themselves into powder.

Verse 23 gives an incredible amount of hope on a damp mood! Paul says that those who have the first fruits of the Spirit (they have heard the gospel and have had a taste of faith; my interpretation) groan inwardly, and wait in expectation the adoption and redemption of their bodies. In context he's obviously referring to the redemption of sin by being adopted as heirs of a resurrected Christ! But this is not something that any human has control over because if they did they wouldn't be waiting. So we must ask, waiting for what exactly? I thought as soon as someone says the sinners prayer that they are redeemed.

In verse 29 Paul said that who God foreknew He destined to be conformed to the very image of Christ. In the prior verses (26- 27) he said that the Holy Spirit is continuously working within our very hearts to help us with our infirmities. And this is so that we can be fashioned into the likeness of Christ! Will we ever be perfect while on this Earth, probably not, but I believe that God is preparing His end time army to be 'saved' from the 'bondage' of sin. That is, the sin that holds us captive. The sin that is addictive in the manner that it is our ruler, captor, and worst case scenario our god.

Hopefully this brings the well known verse in Chapter 10. vs 9 with another perspective: believe in your heart and confess with your mouth and you shall be saved from sin (Italics added).

Again, God will 'save' us! What I believe He has shown me to do is to literally follow chapter 8, vs 23: to look upwards with hope for the hour of our salvation! (Interpret this as while on Earth. Not to just be taken from this Earth.) Then chapter 10 verses 26-27 will become our reality: the Holy Spirit will reconstruct our hearts into the likeness of Christ!

He has also shown me that when the Holy Spirit begins to do this that it can be very painful. It may be an especially dark circumstance that God allows us to travel through. But He does this with the purpose of fashioning us through the process. Sometimes we may feel that we failed during this process. That's not entirely a bad thing! It simply shows us how weak and retched we really are! And God's words: He gives grace to the humble, really come to life! The beatitudes would also be a good resource if you are feeling beat up and condemned.

Then the next step is GLORIFICATION. After we are crucified with Christ (Romans 6 vs 6) we will enter into Christ's resurrection! And His authentic resurrection power, I believe, is the authority that the last day army will march with.

Foundation for Glory

As mentioned in previous postings I sense that God is aiming to release an explosion of His glory on mankind. A vision on how this may look is when there is a growing understanding with every Christian that we are His ministers. I believe He is going to move upon the lives of believers in increasingly powerful ways, where salvations, discipleships, pure love, and the power of the Holy Spirit is common place inside the marketplace (not confined inside the four walls of the church). Where the Spiritual giftings of the prophetic, wisdom, discernment, miracles, healing, word of knowledge, faith, tongues, and interpretation of tongues are manifesting in every believer every day!

The above is a brief description of deep wells of the Holy Spirit flowing from our bellies as rivers of living waters.

I sense that the Lord’s eyes are roving the Earth in pursuit of the righteous individuals who will desire Him to build lasting foundations in their lives in order to prepare them for His coming glory. He needs to change our foundations so that the old ones won’t be corrupted or destroyed by the new wine. He is doing this foundational work for our behalf! So that we can stand throughout His glory, and remain standing until our respective ends (this unfortunately has been a rare feat for believers).

I believe discernment says that there is urgency to the hour to get right before God. The time is now to revisit our hidden sins, and to place them under the Light. The light of transparency with our lives will propel us to victory far sooner than if we try to deal with our sins in the secret.

And of course prayer is a necessity. The prayer of, ‘Lord, please humble me and purify me. Please bring me to the place where I fall on the Rock and break. Please build Your everlasting foundation in my vessel.’ Is the type of prayer that I believe God is especially attentive to in this day and age. Why, because He’s totally enthused with the goal of sending His glory to us in a manner that the Earth has yet to see!

He’s coming in the form of the greatest revival of all time, before He returns in the flesh. The time for preparation is at hand!

Battling With Armor

While walking through the Kazakhstan wilderness in mid May a strange event triggered an important revelation for the Last Days Army. I had driven the R.V ahead and was walking back to join my father when I was beset by a swarm of strange Kazakh bugs. There were hundreds of them flying directly above my head in the form of a twister. I didn't have a hat on and was only wearing a tank top so it was rather annoying when they persistently landed in my hair and the open skin of my chest, arms, and face. It got so bad that I decided to run in the hopes that I would leave them behind. I ran about half a mile and was dismayed when they followed. They remained with me the entire segment, and when I reached my father I was surprised to not find a single flying pest near him. I asked him how bad the onslaught of bugs had been and he replied with surprise that there hadn't been any. I then shot my vision around and was dumbstruck to see absolutely nothing. There wasn't a single bug hovering over my head, or swimming in my hair, or planted on my torso. And during the entire walk back to where I had parked the R.V we didn't encounter any more bugs.

I was shocked the entire day and naturally wondered if God was speaking to me through this bizarre situation. What, if anything, did it mean? The more I thought about it the more convinced I became that the Lord was snatching my attention. And this was the conclusion that I arrived at.

I believe He informed me of the importance of Ephesians Ch. 6 vs. 10-20, the necessary armor to be victorious in fighting the principalities of darkness: the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Belt of Truth, the Helmet of Salvation, the Boots of Preparation for the Gospel of Peace, the Shield of Faith, and the Sword of the Spirit.

The flies were symbolic of the pesky demons that attack the Lord's people on a daily basis, after all WE ARE AT WAR. Too often Believers are caught wearing civilian attire while on the battle field. The result is minor injury, and up to even spiritual death. How do these attacks come? What form are they? I think the principalities of darkness are more deceptive and conniving than we think. And this is the revelation that came to me; demons shoot fiery arrows directly at us in the form of thoughts, feelings, and emotions; and indirectly through the words and actions of others (even friendly fire through Believers). So catch this; not every thought, feeling, word, or action is spawned from the flesh or mind of people. They are regularly 'demonic', and Believers are deceived into thinking that they are 'natural'. We are often beset by random demonic thoughts and feelings, and the horrible thing is we take ownership of them! The reality is that they didn't come from us, therefore they aren't from us, therefore we shouldn't ever own them (unless we intentionally dwell or believe them), and therefore we shouldn't even repent from them! After all the act of repentance is the act of confessing sin; and temptation is not sin. Sin is the result of giving into temptation. Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by Satan himself, yet He did not sin. In circumstances of random demonic thoughts and feelings descending upon us throughout the day, don't concede ground by becoming self absorbed with repentance, but rather lift up both the Shield of Faith and the Sword of the Spirit and strike the enemy down!

Faith proclaims that these outside attacks have no dominion over our minds. It's the knowledge and belief that we have been rescued from death and carnality. Enemy attack (thoughts and feelings of pride, perversion, deceit, hate, control, depression, rejection...) is not our sin!

Then take up the Sword of the Spirit and strike down the demons. Lift up your heart and lips and worship in the Spirit. Pray in the Spirit. Be still in the Spirit. Give your mind to the Spirit. All in all, live in the Spirit!

We are at war every day. Ephesians chapter six is a tutorial on how to equip ourselves to fight in this war. I believe that during these Last Days the principalities of darkness are going to exponentially strengthen. The times are going to become darker than anyone is capable of conceiving. The world will be tormented by dark spirits so much so that God will cut the days short so that even the elect won't perish! (Matthew 24 vs. 22). I believe the Lord is beseeching His Believers to be aware of the spirit realm on a daily basis so that they will be prepared for the imminent spiritual darkness that is soon coming!

Glory

As I was praying the Lord anointed me to pray for His glory to fill the Earth. During these intercessions my I-Pod malfunctioned and began to play Psalms 97 vs 1-6, which is the scripture quoted in the middle of Michael W Smith’s song, Open the Floodgates of Heaven. The verses describe the power and might of the Lord, and the ensuing effects that His glory has on the observers! Right after these verses were quoted the man began to powerfully intercede for the Lord’s glory to come in power!

I was instantly reminded of how the Lord had shown me during a prior intercessory prayer time that His glory is going to pour out of His bride in the approaching days, where when Christians touch the ‘lost’ the lost come into contact with the King of kings. Rivers of Living Water will flow from each believer and will flood the world with Light. The world will see the manifest presence and glory of Jesus, and as a result many will believe!

While recollecting the above prophetic sense, I was filled with another awesome feeling. I think that there will be numerous times when the Glory of God will descend in power during times of worship. When I say power, I mean like we have not experienced before! Where He will cloak church services with such intense Glory that people will be healed, delivered, restored, and saved without even talking to another person! Where direct contact with the living God who created the cosmos is common!

The sense that He has given me is that He is coming back for His Earth. He is coming soon, and wants us to prepare like we have never prepared before. Time is short. The needed preparations are many. I believe He is looking for a people who will ‘house’ His glory. He is looking for a humble people who are lovesick for Him and for the lost in this world. He is looking for a people who will obey His calling regardless of the cost. He is looking for a people that won’t take control of their destinies but will rather die to themselves so that they can live in Him. He is looking for these people so that He can fashion an End Times army that will usher in His Glory like never before seen!

He is coming, but first He is calling. He is calling us to stand up as Samuel did, and to say, “Speak Lord for I am listening.”

He is Returning!

A few days before I departed for Georgia Trisha and Myself found out that we're pregnant. The natural feeling was, 'this couldn't have been worse timing.' But rather than this I was filled with a joyous expectation that this child is from God and that the timing couldn't have been more perfect! After all God's plans are not always our plans.

While here in Azerbaijan I was filled for a longing to be home during Trisha’s pregnancy, and to be present during my child’s birth. During this time the Holy Spirit descended on me and I began to weep under an intercessory anointing. I sensed that God was saying, “I am coming back for My son. I am coming back for My children. I love My children and I am coming back for You.”

God passionately loves His children and I believe He is making His last preparations before His return! So what does that look like? The sense that I have had since the beginning of this walk, and I’ve made mention of this before, is that He is restoring the familial relationships on Earth. I believe He is greatly concerned with the relationships of, ‘fathers and their children…less He smite the land with a curse. Malachi ch 4: vs. 5,6.’ I think that these every day relationships are representative of God the Father’s relationship with His children, us. After all we are created in His image, and we do represent Him as His ambassadors.

So as I mentioned in the last posting, that He is coming for His bride, I believe that He is pressing on my heart that He is coming for His children. This repetition reminds me of His parables in the gospels. When He was making an especially important point He would tell numerous parables back to back that all revealed the same point except in different ways. This leads me to believe that what He’s saying is quite important! Again, I believe that God is saying that He aims at returning soon, and that He is sending forth the Elijah spirit to pave the way for that coming!

As the spirit of Elijah, in the form of John the Baptist, prepared the way for Jesus I believe that Jesus is sending the spirit of Elijah again, and that He is doing this now! Today, however, it is quite different because the Holy Spirit is here to bless all men. I think the spirit of Elijah that is going forth today is comprised of many of His children operating in a spirit of unity. What John the Baptist, as only one man, could do before Christ’s first coming, His children, as thousands today, can prepare a much stronger spiritual climate for His second coming. And that ‘coming’ is soon!

Into Azerbaijan

It took us 3 to 4 hours to get through the Azerbaijan border. The soldiers were in their teens, many carrying AK-47s, and had the most genuine smiles. They were laid back, jovial, and respectful, and very repetitive in their work. I would consider it ineficient and chaotic, but I'm sure there is some sort of cultural reasoning behind their methods.

The terrain is dry, large rolling mounds of dirt and rock littered with trash, and completely void of trees or shrubbery (except what has been planted). Many of the dirt mounds are glazed with balding grass, but that has been most of the natural life so far. One main road stretches through the country, with small side roads that branch off.

The people have been extremely polite. I pulled into a small diesel station, looking for an AZ sim card, and they didn't have one but the manager's friend called another friend to pick him up and he went and bought me one with the 20 menot that I gave him! In the meantime the manager made me tea! God bless the AZ people.

The police regularly stop to talk with us. Many of them have been courteous, and genuinely interested with who we are, and what the heck an RV is. Ours is the only one in AZ; and tourism (that's what we are to the police because organized religion is persecuted in AZ) is virtually unheard of away from Baku.

However, many of the police and plain clothed officers want bribe money from us. AZ is in the top ten corrupt countries in the world. Bribery is unofficially accepted. So far we have simply been saying 'no' and they have left us alone, I'm sure being foreign helps. They have many checkpoints along the way and if you don't give them any bribes then they have the ability to not let you cross over. In a twisted way it's kind of fun saying 'no' to a police officer, and pretending that I don't know what they're asking for, when I know.

We are presently at a wonderful friend's home. She is a jolly American with a ready smile and laugh, and humorous story. She's an awesome servant who has helped us in more ways than we can count! A sweet AZ young lady is her roommate who helps foreigners learn the language.

May God bless these wonderful people, and may He bless Azerbaijan.

Exiting Georgia

Today is the first day we walked since I’ve come. I walked the first nine miles, and am now going to drive the RV so that mom can walk the next section.

The scenery has been very nice. Swelling hills that look much like the black hills of South Dakota speckled with herds of sheep, with their respective shepherd. There are also numerous donkeys that free-range along the way. Chicken yards are interspersed between old run down farming shacks. And farmers curiously eye us up and down as we walk past. They also boldly peek in the RV windows because they have most likely never seen one before, especially driven by grungy Americans. Stray dogs freely roam the land, flee infested and straggly, one bit dad in the hand the other day so they’re apparently non to friendly.

As I’m writing right now I’m waiting to drive ahead in order to pick up mom and dad at the 22 kilometer mark, so dad can have a quick break before finishing his 30 kilometer day. An I-Pod is plugged into a speaker and playing the type of music that makes you feel like you have all day to accomplish your daily tasks. At first I disliked the folksy music because it made me feel complacent, but I’m quickly getting used to this day by day lifestyle of focusing on prayer, walking, and preparing for common basic needs like: finding water, making food, washing clothes and equipment by hand, emptying out the sewage, and the list goes on. The music is actually quite helpful in enabling me to relax. However, I only let it play for half an hour before changing it to worship! Intense worship is playing right now, and yeah baby, this is what pumps me up!

I’m asking God on how I can pray for Georgia during this last day, as we are approaching Azerbaijan. Georgia is traditionally a Christian country, believe it or not; it’s the last Christian land for a very long time. Surrounded on all sides by Muslim and Russian territory, in these last days they could very well be a beacon in the midst of darkness. However, the Christianity here is stagnant; it’s more of tradition, I think, than genuine commitment. So my prayer has been for a fresh wave of the Holy Spirit to awaken this land in order for them to turn back to their first Love. May the Lord arouse their hearts and breathe life into the dry bones. May Georgia arise as a burning torch that draws the surrounding Muslim nations to life in Christ. May Georgia spiritually prosper. May Georgia encounter the crazy glory of God that will bring real revival to this destined land.

In Georgia

The plane flight to Georgia took a while, and the entire time I was consumed with missing Trisha. A massive hole has been burrowed in my chest, and as I talked with her today, on Skype, it was even harder to see that she too emotionally feels like a locomotive ran her over.

Wow, mom kept on saying today that God has been asking a lot from His people lately. In a manner this is very true, at least for us. I wonder though if perhaps we shouldn't view it as out of the norm. I wonder if He is calling out on a regular basis for His sons and daughters to leave their worlds behind in order to follow Him, much like He asked the disciples to do. I wonder if God regularly feels neglected by His followers when we say, 'not now, Lord', or 'No'.

While it is true that obeying Him can be the most difficult decision to make of a lifetime, I firmly believe with everything in me that when we choose to follow Him through the valleys of darkness and discomfort that the end result will be a heightened glory of living. Victory and blessings come to those who truly follow their King!

So, on a practical note, we will either be walking from Georgia and into Azerbaijan tomorrow or the next day. We applied and received our visas to enter Azerbaijan today, and the entire process took only two hours! God is good. We have encountered some lovely YWAMers based over here that have been a tremendous blessing with taking care of a lot of the logistics in advance. It really proves to show that when God calls us on a seemingly impossible task that He will sufficiently provide for victory. Again, God is good!

Flying out Monday

Trisha and myself are in the cities, spending the last two days with each other before my flight leaves Monday. These last number of days of preparation have been laced with anxiousness for both of us. Our worlds have been turned on their heads. For Trisha, she has to move to the cities by herself in May, where she'll continue her education in a foreign world. The only people she knows are my brother, and her father (they have just recently been connecting for real for the first time!) I'm convinced that God is going to do a tremendous work in her life, but that doesn't mean it's going to be an easy ride.

I said my goodbyes to the wonderful people up in Duluth. When my section of the Prayer Walk is over I'll be moving into the cities with my beautiful wife. Then what's going to happen? Where is God going to bring us next? I don't have a single idea, but what I do know is that wherever He guides us, it's going to be filled with excitement and adventure.

So these are the two feelings that have been with me, anxiousness and thrill. The anxiety comes from not knowing what's around the corner, and the thrill comes from loving every minute of the adventures of life. In the Song of Solomon God compares Himself to a stag that is gallivanting over the mountains, and He is calling His bride (His followers) to come with Him! He wants us to experience the thrill of recklessly following Him with abandon (yeah, yeah, while never leaving behind wisdom :-)

I think in order for Him to truly hold the reigns of our lives that we need to let go. It's so easy to take them up out of fear. It's so easy to control our futures by laying out a long term 5, 10, 15, and 20 year plan that is filled with our goals, ambitions, and desires. What's hard to do, is during our petitions and requests (which are generally a good idea) to keep our ear next to His lips in order to hear His plans for us. What is He saying? Where is He leading? What vision does He have for us? Then, in my experience, the hardest part of all comes next; and that's to lay down our vision in order to fully embrace His. After all, His ways aren't always our ways (this has been more true than not with me).

It's hard, very hard, to obey; but it's worth every ounce of blood, tears, and sweat, because the affiliated joy that comes on the heels of obedience is simply surreal.

As Wise as Serpents

Wisdom is one of those themes that is never put to rest in the Bible. It is prevalent in both the New and Old Testaments. God's call for us to be 'as wise as a serpent' has strong implications, considering the Biblical representation of a serpent. The serpent was the creature that singlehandedly dethroned Adam and Eve, who were the most glorious creations that God had ever created. Satan himself is referred to as a serpent in numerous places. So why would God call on us to be like a serpent?

Because in the Bible the serpent symbolizes a creature that has potent wisdom. The serpent is affiliated with a powerful 'gift'. The gift of wisdom can be used for sordid gain, as is revealed by the serpent; but the second part of the verse calls us to be as innocent as doves. So God desires for us to have an uncanny perception that coincides with righteous motives and a pure heart. He clearly wants us to possess the ability to devastate the principalities of darkness by our ability to wisely discern between destruction and liberty, darkness and light, and foolishness and good judgement. For the purpose of expanding His kingdom, not our own.

James promises that anyone who diligently asks will receive this invaluable gift. He goes on to say that without this 'gift' that people are in danger of being tossed to and fro with every deceitful doctrine. It apparently is not good enough to simply be 'innocent', but God is calling us to acquire this sharpened ability to wisely discern. Why?

I think that the answer is simple; God is preparing His bride's defenses in order to withstand dark attacks. God is passionate about His bride, and He wants us to realize when we should keep our hand off the burner. He wants to inject wisdom into our DNA, and in order to do this He is requiring us to pursue it through our prayers and meditations. During these last days the 'gift of wisdom' will be like diamonds compared to rubble. Wisdom is not just a good idea, but rather a prerequisite for being effective during trying times.

Pure Priority

Loving our neighbors as we love ourselves, every day, no matter what major project is in front of us, regardless if we feel like it or not, this is the second most important command that Jesus has given us.

As the Middle East trip looms larger in my vision, the Lord seems to be quickening this truth to me. There is so much preparation, physically, spiritually, and logistically that needs to happen to effectively prepare. Yet amidst the sea of preparation He is showing me to never forget to show love to the sheep that are around me 'today'. What comes to me is that if we persistently dream of feeding the Lord's sheep tomorrow, with excuses of, 'when I have more funds; when I have more time; or when I'm in a healthy state of mind then I'll be able to give to others', that tomorrow may never come. The result could very well be that some of Jesus' sheep are left hungry. Perhaps our divine purpose for that particular chapter in our lives was to be a provider for a lonely sheep that no one else loved?

Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. He then said each time, 'then feed My sheep'. Regardless of where we are at in life, I think that this is a beneficial truth to meditate on. When it comes down to it, what is Jesus mostly concerned about? Our jobs, ministries, pleasures; or the lonely, forgotten, unloved, and lost sheep out there who are bleating to Him in their own way, asking for a miracle. I think Jesus' heart is to send them a miracle, and that 'gift' frequently takes the shape of a man or woman who has been equipped to share His manifest love with those who are in dire need.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do, I'm speaking for myself, is to look outside of ourselves in order to bring genuine love to those who are around us every day. They are out there, in groves of hundreds and thousands; and whether they know it or not, their inner beings are crying out for healing and deliverance and saving from anyone that will listen.

Understanding is Never a Prerequisite

I've been reading through Job, and for the first time I've really felt for what he went through. The man was truly righteous; this is apparent in chapter 31. He did everything that he knew to live a holy life before God. Then everything was taken away, leaving him in a pool of unanswered questions.

I think our inability to understand some of God's ways can tempt us to sin. If we don't understand we can be tempted to proclaim that He would never 'behave' in such a way. A number of times I've heard it said that, ' A loving God would never do that.' or, 'I would never be able to worship a God who would do that.' This is dangerous ground to tread on. I think that it's important to remember that God wasn't created in our image. Just because we would never conceive of certain things (the nature of judgement, discipline, hell...) doesn't mean that He doesn't. It's refreshing to meditate on the reality that we were created in His image, and that because of our propensity to indulge in sin that our inner mechanics are tainted as the result. This means that it isn't possible for us to fully 'understand' God. I believe with everything in me that our fallible minds are not capable to grasp the 'higher order' of His complex ways.

There are so many questions that I personally don't have the answers to. And when I think about them it causes my head to hurt. For me, what it boils down to is that He is love, and He loved me first; therefor I rest assured knowing that even in the case of my complete lack of understanding that His ways are good, and needed, and better, and beneficial. The heart of Job, where he worshiped God throughout his torture, is a wonderful concept to meditate on during these times of uncertainty. Even though our lives may be required while on this Earth, and we may never grasp an understanding of why things are the way they are, He asks us to obey and follow Him throughout. Because after we enter into the afterlife in the days or years to come, all of the 'unanswered' will be made known.

Embracing our Family

Today, I was meditating on Matthew 12: 47-50. Jesus said that whoever obeys His Father is His brother, sister, and mother. There is truly quite a bit of significance here. If you think about a healthy family dynamic, you understand that the camaraderie runs deep, real deep. Forgiveness is readily given, lots of consideration, love, understanding, and offenses are placed to the side to leave room for healing. When absorbing all of this I can't help but desire greater levels of cohesiveness and love with our Christian brothers and sisters and mothers.
One of the results of the prophetic dream that I posted a few days ago was that I became increasingly aware for the need of Christian community. I believe that in order to effectively battle the 'end time deception' that will only strengthen in the upcoming days, will be for believers to unite with one another with unheard of extents. I'm not just referring to the various ministries collaborating at an increased level, but for the camaraderie inside of the respective clusters of believers to solidify into genuine bonds of love. Where, when someone is wronged by their church that they love their brothers, sisters, and mothers at such an intense level that that love will indeed cover the multitude of sins. I suppose in order for this to truly happen we will need substantial amounts of commitment.
I believe that the trials we have undergone will drastically intensify in the days to come. If we can somehow achieve a lot of this groundwork before we are neck deep, than it will be much more manageable in the near future. So, when I pray, the message I have been receiving lately is that today is the day to prepare. And one of the ways to fill our oil lamps is to remain connected to our family, the 'body'.

What is Christian?

After Jesus had told His disciples that He was going to die Peter tried to persuade Him that this didn't need to happen. Jesus then said to Peter, 'Get behind Me Satan. You don't value the things of God, but the things of man.' Jesus then went on to say that in order to be one of His disciples a person needs to 'pick up their cross and follow Him.' and, 'Whoever will save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Him will save it.' Wow!!! This is hard to digest with all the promptings of the prosperity movement. So what does it mean to pick up your cross?
I think it means that we need to place God's plans ahead of our own. We need to live for Him, and not for ourselves. After all, His ways aren't always our ways. We need to keep our finger on His pulse by continually asking Him where He wants to take us. Then we need to obey, even if it goes against our desires (and I don't think that picking up one's cross is usually desirable).
God asked me one Sunday if I would give Him the reigns of control over the service (I was speaking that day). I believe that He has given us the choice to either touch the nations with His power and glory, or to place ourselves as the godlike figure over our destinies. The problem with following our own voice is that we automatically search after self preservation (just like Peter was doing with Jesus, when Peter was under the influence of Satan). But Jesus is asking us to follow His lead by dying to ourselves so that we can achieve greater glory in Him, and by His ways.
He is showing me that it is sooooo important to obey Him in all things, even if I don't understand His logic. After all, the concept of 'faith' sometimes defies logic. And to walk out our faith we need to rely on Him, not our own fallible and limited abilities.

Relaxing During the Raging Storm

Jesus wanted to be alone. He had spent the majority of the day ministering to the multitudes and must have felt physically, emotionally, and spiritually spent. He had been bombarded throughout the day on every angle. They just wanted to touch Him. That was all they needed for deliverance and healing, and He graciously let them. Thousands upon thousands of needy hands and sweating bodies pressing in on Him without stop. No brake, no breathing room, human mayhem, He was their Savior, Healer, God; He was all of this, but also a human.
And as He finally sent them away He was in desperate need of alone time with His Father, so much so that He also sent His disciples away too. More than anything, He needed to be alone with the Father so that He could recover from the strenuous day of labor. He told His disciples that He would catch up with them, and that they were to go to the other side of the lake in the mean time. They obediently left, and He distanced Himself from the remaining crowd by climbing the mountain.
Once reaching the summit He strengthened Himself by His Father. His Spirit was rejuvenated, albeit His physical body was probably still exhausted. After resting in His Father's embrace He decided to join His disciples. And His Father decided to create a thunderstorm, and as Jesus glanced at the lake He noticed that the surface was choppy, and that the winds were picking up major speed. Then the Father told Him to walk on the water, toward the disciples' rocking boat.
Jesus didn't hesitate to obey. He lived to obey His Father. I'm sure the thought of walking on the surface of the tumultuous waves was exhilarating for Him to think about. He made His way down the mountain side and as He stood on the shore He stared wide eyed at the looming tempest.
Then He took His first step. The lake's texture was soft, yet hard enough to support His weight. As He progressed further into the lake I can imagine that He was overwhelmed with the elation of the adventure. The waves rose to tower in front of Him before swooping down to bow at His feet, and then lifting Him high over their heads to exalt Him above the earth. He probably laughed out loud; after all, He had never experienced this while on Earth. He was walking on the storm ridden water!
He loves His Father, and His Father's adventurous heart. His Father is anything but tame. As Jesus obeys He knows that He can relax during the crazy happenings. He knows that His Father will always protect Him, and shield Him from harm as long as He listens and follows. At this time He most likely remembers what His ancestor had written in the scriptures. David wrote, 'Though I walk in the shadow of the valley of death I will fear no evil.' Perhaps He smiles to Himself, and perhaps He nods His head at how right David was. Perhaps He takes this time to praise His Father for creating such buoyant life on the Earth, and the opportunity to be thrilled to the core while living a life of worship and obedience.
Lightning strikes close by, and Jesus raises His voice to match His Father's. He laughs as the rain pelts down. He rejoices as the thunder breaks the sky, and as the waves swell high over His head before lifting Him into the ink filled heavens. He loves His Father. He loves His Father even more than His own life.
As God takes us into the mystery of the unknown, let's lift our voices and our hearts in praise and adoration, because He has created us to live life to the max! We can do all things in Christ who strengthens us. He gives us a strong mind. He gives us authority and power. He is good, and He promises to take care of our every need. Praise His name!

Dancing With the Holy Spirit

As the Holy Spirit led the Israelites by fire and smoke during their exodus from Egypt, so He wants to do today. What a crazy life to have lived! When the smoke by day or the fire by night stopped, then His people would put up camp; and when the Holy Spirit traveled they wouldn't hesitate to pick up their belongings to follow His leadership. They were totally dependent on Him for every form of guidance as well as sustenance. He wasn't just their tour guide, He also provided food and water. In the morning they would awake to find manna flittering down from the heavens and coating the ground. Can you believe the thrill of it all? When He would take them far from any source of water He would cause rivers of water to flow from rocks!
If any one of them at any point in time decided to go their separate way I can't imagine they would have lived for long before either dying or trembling back to their people and God. As I meditate on the deep significance of this chapter I can't help but think that in God's perspective it must have been more glorious than even the entrance into the promised land. When they arrived they were still dedicated to God, but only for a short time until the subsequent generations became wayward with other gods and values. At least in the wilderness He was their 'true' God, and they leaned on Him with more sincerity than they had at other times.
I find my spirit and soul crying out to God on a regular basis, 'Lord, teach me to be this intimate with Your Spirit. Where I only go when You go, and I stay when You stay. When I only do as I see You doing.' In the Middle East we are going to be 100% dependant on God for our every need. What this means is that we check our own senses of control at the door in order to fully embrace the Holy Spirit as our guide, protector, sustainer, and only God (instead of ourselves). I can imagine that God is greatly anticipating the moments that we will have together where He can say, 'These are my sons and daughters, and I am their God,' and where we can say, 'Dude, You rock above anything else!'
I find myself embracing all opportunities, I view trials as opportunities, as avenues that can instill the only foundation that will be needed to achieve victory in these 'last days'. To be totally dependent on the Holy Spirit, in tune with His voice, and enraptured with His ways (even when they're offensive) I believe is a prerequisite to being effective in the days to come. It can be like dancing. Where we need to know His mannerisms, signals, and heart in order to follow. It can be hard at first, and exasperating, but committing to learn His every way, and how He generally relates to us, will pay off big time!

Dream

The following is a prophetic dream that I had on 02/19/2009. The dream is in reference to the 'end time deception' that will be sweeping across the land. I remember that when I had woken my first thought was that a spirit of deception was at our doorstep, and my second thought was that we need to prepare ourselves by UNITING with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
A few months ago God gave me Malachi chapter 4: vs 5,6 as one of the scriptures that the Middle East trip is founded on. Basically, the spirit of Elijah will enter into the land in order to restore relationships with the inhabitants. I'm certain that the significance of the verses extends beyond what I currently know, but what is coming to me is that God is yearning for a unified bride before His return. The spirit of Elijah signifies a forerunner that will prepare the way for Christ (as Elijah was for Elisha; and as John was for Christ; so it will happen again for His second coming).
Unity (restoration of relationship) will assist in dispelling deception!



02/19/09
Halvorsen, David

Deception
In the morning of 02/19/09 right before I awoke God blessed me with this prophetic dream.


Disclaimers:
Some insights that I have with regard to the dream’s structure are as follow.
Firstly, I don’t believe that the people contained in this dream are meant to be taken as literal, but rather as symbolically representing the people groups that they are comparable with. For example I don’t think that my wife’s involvement indicates her specifically but rather God’s bride.
Secondly, I believe the straight forward answers from the antagonists, to my probing questions, in no way indicates that the deception will be so easily revealed in reality. I think that as the dreamer I was meant to know the truth in order to effectively prophecy.
Thirdly, I have listed some specific contents of the dream; however I think the dream is merely meant to convey a general point and the reader isn’t meant to read into every detail. I listed the details as I saw them, but it will be prudent to receive an overall sense of the dream’s implications rather than to be bogged down with distracting fine detail.

Dream:
It began with an organization that claimed it gave peoples’ donations to charitable causes. It logically had a draw on likeminded individuals, who were concerned with actively participating in good deeds. I was approached (or drawn to, I can’t remember which) by/towards this organization. Their method was that people should simply give to them and they would take care of the rest. You could put your regular, daily/weekly/or monthly, sum of $20 (this was the amount in the dream, but I don’t think it has significance) into a stocking and they would then empty the contents during after hours.
After speaking with one of their representatives and hearing their game plan I was struck with the realization that this was a scam and instead of the money being given to charity it was being pocketed by the organization’s leader. I asked the representative if this was true and he replied that it was. The organization’s leader emptied the money from the stocking on a nightly basis and kept it for his personal gain.
I could then see many people that I knew well that were active participants of this scheme. It so happens that those I knew were all believers. I took it upon myself to warn them of the organization’s deceit so they could see the truth for what it was. However, there seemed to be an oblivious stupor over them and my persuasive attempts had little effect. This is where the dream began to delve into more substance. After the believers were drawn in by the false spirit of goodness it was like a fishing hook was lodged into their mouths and the organization then began to real them in.
They were then put up in a hotel, with all of the pleasurable amenities. They were pampered in the most pleasingly luxurious ways. Massages, food, gifts, comfort, false love, great consideration and consolation, and the list proceeds; they were included/received into a society of likeminded people. The organization took a turn towards a community, a social network of close knit people. It broke my heart to see good people enjoying the company of a deceitful community. Interestingly enough the amount of money that these people paid out for charitable causes was nothing compared to the luxuries bestowed upon them. The cost of their involvement was well worth the care and comfort that was readily and cheerfully given.
After wandering through this community, that was taking place in an atmospherically homey hotel, I was again struck with the knowledge that nothing was as it seemed, and that an intense deceit was at hand. Where I once believed that the organization’s motive was for extortion, I now began to sense that a deeper scheme was at hand. I didn’t know what, but I could sense that something was most assuredly not right. I proceeded to mingle with the leaders of this group, and walking into a room that looked much like a kitchen does, I entered into conversation with a few people that were hanging out. One of these people happened to be the main leader of the community. He was telling a silly story on how he walked into a large hole that was right out the back door. I could see the hole that he was referring to by looking out a window stationed next to me. They were making light of this story, and by all means their mood was jovial and fun-loving. However, I could still sense the pervading spirit of deception clinging to these people. The leader then proceeded to speak of an angel, and it was evident that he was accustomed to visitations from this angel. I can’t remember its name, so we’ll just call it Gloria. Its name was very similar to a peaceful Christian concept, like Gloria is to glory. I then knew that the underlining motive of this group was to draw people into an alternative spiritual belief other than Christ crucified. My father then showed up and continued the questioning of this angel. I could tell that he was concerned and also wanted to get to the bottom of this deception. I found this time to exit the scene because it occurred to me that my wife was in this hotel and that I needed to rescue her from the enemy’s snare.
I began to search for her. I was compelled to do whatever it took to save her from these people. I knew that the deception was so strong that it could very easily begin to sink it claws into a believer’s mind and draw them into an alternative spiritual faith. While searching I came across a few people and was compelled to ask them who they believed that God was? Being that they didn’t readily answer my question I rephrased it and asked them if they believed that Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and God the Father were all God. The consistent answer was no. I then asked them if the human race was god, and they answered yes. They said that we are gods. With this they still recognized the presence of the Trinity, but adamantly denied them their deity. Throughout my search I readily saw many believers that I knew wandering around and partaking in the pleasures of this community. The community was comprised of many people that blessed and gave and had a false love towards all that joined them. All the believers that I witnessed were being taken care of, not taking care of. I observed that the believers weren’t asking questions about the different belief system, they were too enraptured with the good deeds that they didn’t feel the necessity of delving deeper into the heart of the matter. The stupor of oblivion was clear. I knew that if they just probed and tested and didn’t blindly receive that they would know the truth for what it was. I also knew that this humanistic approach to life, which was simultaneously submersed in spirituality, would begin to seep into their belief structure. They needed to leave this community before it was too late.
I finally found her. She was surrounded by people that loved her and gave her gifts. They were compassionate and caring; they listened and heard her heart. I barged into the room and told her that we had to leave, and that it had to be now. Taken aback by my demand she began to cry and expressed her desire to stay. She was befriended here and didn’t want to leave. The people around her began to tell her that she should make her own decision. They told her that she didn’t have to leave and that she should stay with them. The pressure was immense; they were transparently distraught over the thought of her leaving. My wife, forlornly looking at them, said.
“I am submitted to my husband. I’m going to go where he leads me.”
They argued with her, but she held fast to her convictions of obeying the scriptural principles. She didn’t understand why, but knew what the Bible said and chose to obey. I took her, and we left.
They gave us a ride, on a small yellow bus, out of the community. However, it soon became apparent that the woman who was driving was not taking us home. Driving up to another hotel she dropped us off and immediately left. This hotel didn’t have any pretension of wearing a ‘good mask’. It was blatantly evil. Even the walls had pictures of grotesquely demonic monsters painted on them. The crowd was anything but pleasant. We could here rowdy and obscene behavior down the halls and in the various rooms. It didn’t take longer than the briefest of moments for me to grab my wife’s arm and run with her out into the open air. We began to run away from the premise, but it occurred to me that we were countless miles away from home and that we would be sitting ducks if we chose to go on foot. Looking around I saw an electric vehicle that somewhat resembled a golf card, and hopping into it we raced off. Some surrounding people saw us take off and immediately gave chase. Throughout the night and into the day we ran for our lives. Dodging, barely escaping their clutch, yet in the end we succeeded! Narrowly escaping the death that began to transpire around us; our enemies began to kill one another, crazed with confusion and hate. They killed one another with their bare hands; with gory intensity they ripped one another’s throats out and smashed their heads in.
We made it out into freedom. Please, listen to my interpretation; because the time for this dream’s fulfillment is knocking on our door.

Interpretation:
Satan is constructing a community of his followers that will attempt and succeed in luring many of God’s people into his grasp. Drawn in by the false actions of good and of kindness, many will open their hearts to a spirit of deception. That spirit’s goal is to remove God’s children away from His righteousness and into enemy ranks. Through time His principles outlined in His word will be washed away and replaced with a false spirituality that leads to damnation.
My wife resembled God’s Bride. As His Bride we will face the dilemma of obeying His edicts by remaining in submission to His authority over our lives, or forever slipping into the enemies grasp. If His people choose Him, He will rescue them! It won’t necessarily be easy, by all means this time will be filled with hardships beyond comprehension, but He/we will be victorious by the end of this tribulation!

Prophetic insight:
The prophetic insight for now is that God is creating His own community! I believe that He is drawing His people towards Himself. This community of believers will have a draw on the world. Through the rising up of the saints God’s army will be established on this earth, and the war between good and evil will commence in a way never before seen. Our objective will be to stand firm amidst the crashing waves of trials around us. To forever reach out and rescue the floundering people in our lives. To provide God’s true love that no counterfeit can compare with. To unite and remain united inter and intra ministerial. To take a stand against the temptation of division and offense; a house divided against itself cannot prosper. We, together, are His bride and when He comes back, He is coming for His unified Bride that has been refined and cleansed through the fire. When we remain together, in submission to our leadership and to one another, then we will be safe from the enemy’s reaching grasp.
The call is for unity! Come and let us unite!

Leaning on His Understanding

It has been a few days, sorry about the tardiness...ENJOY!
Lately the Lord has been working on an area of my heart. He is showing me that I don't know everything. It's crazy, really, when I was fifteen I knew that I knew everything. Then I turned twenty and I realized how wrong I was, because I was presently that much wiser and more knowledgeable (I again knew everything). At twenty six, things have unfortunately not changed much. And this is apparently something that God thinks is necessary to cleanse me of. He is showing me that I don't know squat.
Proverbs chapter 3 is awesome for those of us that are duped into thinking that we've got all of our philosophies under control. Basically, it is only by leaning on His understanding that will see us through the quagmire of life. I'm realizing that in order to fully become dependent on God that I need to embrace this notion of humility (that His wisdom and understanding and strength are what will set my feet on the steadfast ground).
The chapter says that we need to lean on Him, and not ourselves, and that He will guide our step. Perhaps even into the refining fire of discipline, because "For whom the LORD corrects He loves." So I commit to follow Him wherever it is that He plans on taking me. If He takes me into prosperity than I will praise His name for the blessings; and if He takes me into adversity than I will praise His name for loving me to the point of purifying my heart (even though it is usually quite painful) for the purpose of drawing me closer in intimacy with Him.
No matter where He leads, I will follow. 'Though I walk into the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil...' So, my prayer is this: 'Lord, may I lean on Your understanding every day of my life, through the Middle East and beyond, may I cherish both blessings and trials. May I receive your gifts as well as your disciplines. Shape me and refine me. Purify my heart so that I truly lean on Your understanding and wisdom. By Your strength, may I be weak so that You can be revealed as strong. Guide me, Lord, and I will follow!'
It has become apparent to me that the only way we will succeed through the Middle East is if this revelation transforms into a daily reality. The strength and knowledge of man is not, and will never be, sufficient to achieve victory. The Lord will see us through the upcoming countries; in order to do this He is asking for our complete trust and dependence on Him and Him alone. I don’t have any qualms that it won’t be nerve racking at times; but perhaps as I battle through these feelings, and continue to present my actions as a humble sacrifice, that He’ll spit shine this marred vessel into a closer depiction of His image.
During the moments of tribulation it may not seem worth it, but as we choose on a daily basis to stay the course of humility HE WILL SEE US THROUGH to victory!

Peace that Surpasses Understanding

When Stephen was surrounded by a mob of angry, religious zealots he knew what was about to take place. He was standing before the door of death, and it would now only be a matter of minutes before he would be ruthlessly murdered for his crimes. He had openly defied Israel's law. He was persistent in preaching about this Christ fellow, which was heresy. Something akin to a demonic influence grasped at their hearts, and in one accord the crowd pounced on him and began to sink their fingernails and teeth into any open skin that they could find. They were mauling him like beasts would to fresh prey. During this moment Stephen looked up and saw the heavens open up, and he saw Christ sitting at the right hand of the Father; and his countenance was transformed into glorious awe. He wasn't concerned with what was happening to his physical body, because he fully knew that his spirit was immortal, and that it was now only a matter of time before he would enter into the new life with his Master, and Creator.
After they had their taste of his blood they drug him from the city and out into the open; whereby they received Saul's, a religious leader, blessing to slay him. The anger in Stephen's country men’s' eyes was terrifying for him to behold. He saw nothing but hatred in its purest form. Their countenances were morphed into contemplative rage as they purposefully surrounded him for the single purpose of brutally murdering him.
The first stone thrown may have missed, or it may have struck its mark, we don't know for sure. But what we do know is that after he was bloodied, and crushed, while lying on the red stained ground during the last moments of his life he accomplished a humanly impossible feat. He loved the men that hated him in return. They despised him to the point of beating him bloody before hurling stones at him until the entirety of his life forever seeped from his gashes. I can imagine as he looked into their eyes that he saw the smirking faces of demons. But a greater power was at hand! A peace that surpassed even his own understanding had taken root within him, which conceivably began when he had the open vision of his Creator. At that moment of his physical death a river of living water gushed from his belly and flooded into the tyranny surrounding him. The magical power from on high was love. He forgave them as his Father had forgiven him. He loved them as his Father had loved him. He laid down his life so that they could live. He set aside his rights for justice in order for his countrymen to taste the sweetness of forgiveness.
So when do we receive peace that surpasses understanding? I think this story of Stephen’s death (Acts chapter 7) tells us that peace comes from 1) an encounter with God; and 2) when we lay down our lives and rights so that our friends and enemies might live, and have abundant life! When we copy Christ’s example by picking up our crosses in order to follow Him, then, we open up our lives for the rivers of living water to miraculously touch the nations.

When Joy Comes

As I was walking today I was first filled with an incredible amount of faith that God would provide every provision that I need to embark on this walk. It was awesome, to not have a care in the world. No anxiety, no fear, no concerns, complete knowledge that God is in control, but the best feeling of all was a wonderful joy that filled me despite the fact that I was walking 12 miles.
So it occurred to me that when we obey God, no matter how hard or impossible the task, that He fills us with peace that surpasses understanding. It's amazing, really, to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that whatever may happen on this Middle East trip: imprisonment, abuse, hunger, persecution, and even possibly death, that I am in the Lord's hands doing precisely what I was created to do at this point in time.
The joy that is accompanying the act of obedience is worth all the associated sacrifices, and more. To be truly at peace in life is a state of mind worth savoring. There isn't room for depression, fear, anxiety, or any other negative feeling and emotion when your soul and spirit are brimming to overflowing with rivers of living water!
Come Holy Spirit, come!

The Time for Trust

As I walked today (in preparation for the Middle East) I was filled with a deepened level of trust for God's provision: spiritually, emotionally, and practically. I remembered the story of the disciples boating across the storm ridden lake. The waves must have been substantial enough for them to be afraid for their lives. It must have really been tumultuous because these were seasoned fishermen that were well accustomed to choppy lakes. I can imagine that the waves were crashing over the sides of the boat. Thunder and lightning was probably clashing all around. Gale winds berating from all angles, recklessly throwing anything not tethered down around like sacks of feathers. Perhaps the boat nearly capsized, or was about to when they panicked to the point of crying out to God for their salvation.
It's kind of strange to read about how God told them off for praying to Him. It really seems to go against my belief structure of how we should always be in a mindset of prayer. I suppose the moral of the story is that there is a time for prayer, and a time for trust. So what's the right time for trust, or faith? I guess my thought on this is if God has called an individual to walk a certain path, then there shouldn't be room for fear on that respective mission. Come victory, or even death, if He asks us to do something, or to go somewhere, then He also expects us to fully trust Him for our every provision. At this point maybe instead of exerting our limited energy on asking for something that He has already promised us, we should spend our time being productive in other ways, like focusing on the needs of those around us, or worshiping, or serving, or whatever else He is calling us to do at that given point and time. The disciples knew that they were meant to get to the other side, so they should have believed that it would happen regardless of a life threatening storm.
About prayer then, when is the best time to pray? This is just a thought, but maybe prayer/intercession should happen whenever something has not been directly promised to us. I'm not referring to the general promises in the Bible that are for everyone, but the promises that the Holy Spirit makes to us on an intimate and personal level. If the Holy Spirit has not promised revival for a specific church, country, family... or if the Holy Spirit hasn't promised that someone will get such and such job... Then it's time to pray it up, baby! It's time to pray in the revival that will shape and heal our respective family, church, or city! It's time to pray for whatever it is that God places within our hearts until He either says 'yes', or 'no'. Then if He says 'it is done' to a specific prayer, have faith that it will happen regardless of the seeming impossibilities.
These were just the thoughts that I had today. I'm fully aware that the topics of faith and prayer go well beyond what one simple blog can discuss. Hopefully this will be some food for thought. God bless!

The Will to Prepare is the Will to Succeed

In 1Cor. 9:24-27, Paul talks about how he strives to master his life so that he will be perfectly honed in order to achieve great victories for Christ. A wise man once told me that the will to prepare is the will to win. Victory rarely comes without the initial steps of preparation. I'll be the first to say that this is far easier said than done.
In preparation to walk through the Middle East with my father I've been alternating days with running and walking. It's been hard! I haven't worked out for about two years. And what's discouraging is that I'm snickered after walking a measly nine miles, and my father does 18 in one day (he aims at walking 100 miles/week). Being that I'm flying into the Middle East on March 1st, this means that I've got one month to take Paul's advice, by mastering my body in order to take first prize with this race that God has placed me in.
So what's the balance of faith and works? God has clearly led me to take on this trip, so won't He miraculously take care of my ever need? If I'm physically struggling under the strain of walking, or of the daily activities of being the support crew, won't He pick me up, brush me off, and breathe new life into my wearied bones and mind? I know that He will!!! I also know that He expects me to take this incredible faith that He has given me, and to utilize my every action to prepare for victory. Per James, 'faith is dead without works.' And the story of the ten virgins requires us to effectually prepare. Their faith told them that the Bridegroom was coming, and the wise virgins’ works were then in alignment with their faith by making sure that their lamps were always full.
So I will take the faith that He has given me, and I will utilize it as motivation to act. Today the act will be preparation, and tomorrow it will be boldly running in a race with the goal of taking first. I keep my eye on the ‘now’, because according to Jesus, ‘tomorrow will take care of itself.’ Matthew 6:34. I’ve found the answer to the ‘faith and works’ questions to be a wonderful marriage of the two. Works have a tendency to be much more powerful and authoritative when founded on the indestructible platform of the spiritual gift of faith.

The Pure of Heart Will See God: Matthew 5:8

During my devotional today I was filled with regret with how black my heart can frequently be. Even with good and Godly actions, much of the time my motives are selfish. I was struck with the realization that I am not always aware of the dark substance that all too often drives me. When I do become aware I can predominantly see selfish ambition, self exaltation, the desire for status, and greed; even as I list some of these murky corners of my heart I'm thinking 'whoa!' and God still passionately loves me?!
Today I meditated on Matthew 5:8, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God." And I was filled with a zealous desire to be purified before Him. Can you fathom the implications of this verse? To see God would be nothing short of of paradise on Earth! The parts of Himself that He has already revealed to me have been so exhilarating; and I find myself crying out, 'More, Lord, never stop!!'.
This was motive enough for me to strip naked before Him and lay at His throne (I guess His throne must be in my kitchen; and don't worry, I was fully clothed). I felt humbled when He gave me the sense that He was forgiving me; and I thought of how Isaiah had a similar revelation when he told God that he was a man of unclean lips; and how he couldn't fathom the thought of serving the almighty God when his heart was as black as it was.
How does all of this relate to the Middle East trip? Simply, I have this uncanny feeling that God is going to draw me insanely close to Him. And that in order for this to happen He will probably take me through the furnace of adversity in order to purify my blemished heart. I asked God the other day on what I was to expect when over there. The following Sunday a friend came up to me during the service, and she said that God had spoken to her the prior night. In a nutshell He told her that I was going to face lots of hardships in order to be refined for His purposes. Her message really witnessed to my spirit. I think that perhaps God was answering my question.
So I leave you with this: when you face hardships in life, no matter how trivial or severe, view them as an opportunity to step into the furnace in order to be purified before your Lord. I think if we see them as opportunities to draw closer to our Father instead of as distractions, or nuisances, that we'll be built up in Christ to a much more effective degree. It's difficult, we all know this, but let's commit together to try our hardest to make the pure decisions in the midst of trials. And according to Matthew, these pure decisions enable us to see God!

Preparing for Our Destinies: Matthew 25: 15-30

About five years ago God began to prompt me to quit lifting weights. Being that my body had become my identity I pressed His voice aside, and explained it away as nothing but my legalistic mind getting in the way. The Lord graciously increased His promptings by taking away my peace. It reached the point that every time I went to the gym my conscience grew unsettled, where I finally admitted that perhaps God was trying to get my attention. Because my dependency on pumping metal was as extreme as it was (when I would miss I would struggle with depression and crabbiness; and when I lifted I was then at the top of my game) it took me about another year before I finally came to terms with God's desire. I finally sacrificed the most important treasure to me at that time, and obeyed my Master.
After I decided to obey I could sense the Lord saying that He was preparing me to sacrifice greater things in the future. As I look back I can see that that sacrifice did indeed prepare me to make the most precious offering to the Lord today, my wife. As I wrote in earlier blogs, He told me to sacrifice Trisha in order to obey His calling by embarking on Prayer Walk Middle East.
As I have been meditating on Matthew 25: 15-30, and the following verses, I have been receiving renewed revelation of greater depth then what I had previously seen. Our obedience to Christ's calling is comparable to investing the talents that He has given us. He starts by giving a smaller portion of talents, and when we are wise stewards He then increases our influence. So, it could look like this. He starts by asking us to obey Him in the smaller decisions of life. And when He finds willing servants He then asks us to obey with decisions of greater responsibility and impact!
I obeyed Him by giving up working out. He then proceeded to ask me to give up my wife. I wonder, if I had never sacrificed my muscles, would the Lord have trusted me to serve Him on this present Middle East trip? I don't think He would have.
So my closing thought is this; if you feel prompted to obey God, and no matter the size of His request, DO IT! Your future destiny could very well be in the works!

The Calling

Continued from last post...
I was typing away on my novel on a Friday night, 11/27/2009, while listening to a live web-stream from the International House of Prayer in Kansas City. My mind wasn't on God per say, but the feeling came to me that I should pray. So I half heartedly complied while still plugging away on my book.
Then God suddenly hit me like a sack of bricks. I started to weep in the deepest way that I have ever experienced. During this I realized that God was up to something but I didn't know what. Wave after wave of the Holy Spirit relentlessly washed over me in the most beautiful manner. As I violently cried, the lyrics from Misty Edwards' prophetic worship set, that was playing on the live web-stream, seared into my soul and spirit. She was stating, 'Take a walk of faith. Take a walk of faith.' Over and over and over again, she proclaimed this; and these words completely transformed the inner works of my being.
About halfway through this encounter I knew what God was calling me to do. He was calling me to walk through the Middle East with my father. As soon as this realization struck me I began to weep with a renewed onslaught. This time I was mercilessly torn on the inside, that I would be leaving my wife behind for a little less than a year. I was in anguish for her, and didn't want to hurt her with this decision. She was in the adjacent room, and at this time figured out that something was haywire in the kitchen. She came into the room to console me and to ask why I was weeping and mourning.
When she came up to me she held me while I uncontrollably cried. She didn't know what was happening, and all I could say was how much I loved her and that how sorry I was. This was all that I could say.
Then, something I haven't told anyone yet, an inner ferocity came into me as I cried. I felt like a spiritual lion that was going to rip the principalities of darkness to shreds for Christ. I opened my mouth and while I didn't say anything in the physical, I could feel my spirit screaming for all that it was worth; and I wanted to demolish Satan and his hordes. I was being sent to ravish his lands for Christ, and to shine Christ's light in the darkest regions of the earth.
Then about half an hour later the experience stopped as suddenly as it had began. At this time Trisha had figured out what was happening, and when the anointing subsided from me she too began to uncontrollably weep. Her sorrow lasted for about the same length of time that it had with me. She was gripped by tremendous amounts of fear and anxiety. She didn't want to be left alone. At this time her mother also came into the room, and it was our turn to console Trisha.
The stronghold of fear was dealt a strong blow that night as Trisha and myself committed ourselves to obey God's calling. She released me to go; and I dedicated myself to follow God by going. The Lord's kingdom was victorious by the undying love of His children amidst a sea of anguish.

Choices Amidst Uncertainty

Continued from last post...
How was I to proceed with life during this time of uncertainty? My heart was to serve God to the fullest with however I was able to at any given point and time; but if He called me to travel through the Middle East could I commit to long term plans that would conflict with this potential calling? For instance I already felt led to attend Bethel Seminary, via distance education, so should I proceed along with this plan?
The predicament of not knowing where God was going to call me placed me in a quagmire of difficult decisions. After praying about the wisest strategy I decided to continue on with my life, as I had felt led to live prior to the Middle East question; this included attending Bethel Seminary, continuing with my work as one of the youth pastors at Great Lakes Church, working my registration job at the hospital, and most importantly providing moral support to my precious wife as she is submersed in medical school. I purposed to do all of these, but with the knowledge that at any moment God may ask me to leave.
Because of this possibility I opened up an exit strategy for everything that I was involved with. Throughout everyday life I left open the avenue for quick departure if called. For me, obedience was more important than anything else life had to offer. The scripture that God was searing into my heart was that He wanted me to hate everything in life in comparison with the love that I had for Him (Luke 14:26). I believe He wanted to place me through the process of choosing wisely with life's decisions; by continuously prioritizing His future calling (whenever it would come, and however it would look) in my DNA, where He consistently took first place, where His voice was truly the only substance that I looked to for guidance, and where I lived for Him above all else.
Then, He called me in the strongest way that I've yet heard Him speak.

Treading Carefully

Continued from yesterday...
At this point I needed wisdom, and lots of it. With this in mind I proceeded to run the question that I felt God was asking me, "Will you go to the Middle East if I call you?", by those close to me. The predominant feedback was, 'David, I think this could very well be God, but I'm not necessarily hearing "Yes, go for it.".' I have to be honest that hearing this from my family and friends surprised me. I was expecting at least a small amount of resistance, or extreme caution, but instead received major support.
After eliciting this feedback I still needed to hear concisely from God. After all, the costs of leaving my wife, seminary schooling, and employment behind for a little less than a year were simply too great to follow anything less than unwavering guidance from above. A question would simply not do; no, I needed either a yes, or no. So this was what I aimed to get.
The months that ensued gave me next to nothing, other than a strong level of peace in my spirit and countenance that whatever God called me to do, whether that be to stay or to go, that I would readily obey Him with everything that I had. I wanted to obey, nothing less, I simply wanted to stand up as Samuel did and to have the heart to say, "Speak Lord, your servant is listening."
One day, while I was having a personal devotion, the Lord spoke into my spirit. He told me, "Sacrifice Trisha (my wife)." That was it; that was all I heard. I said, "Lord, she's Yours." I wondered what context He was asking me to sacrifice her in; I wondered if it was in reference to the walk, or something else, or in general. Without knowing that He was referring to the walk, the last thing that I wanted to do was to claim that He was saying something that He wasn't. So I shelved the word in my heart and chose to continue to wait for clarification.
I hoped that He would expound sooner than later, but His ways aren't always ours. So apparently the name of the game was 'it's time to wait'.

The Beginning

So, it all began on Saturday, 07/18/2009. I was at the annual Omega Team conference, and during a prophetic ministry time I was kneeling by my chair and soaking in God's presence. The lines of people waiting for ministry were sizable so I had decided to press in by myself until the lines reached their ends.
During this time is when the Holy Spirit hit me like a sack of bricks. I started weeping and snotting all over the place. The sobs were deep sobs, very deep, not at all like the joyful tears during an anointed worship time at church, or during personal devotional times; it was like my spirit was crying with my soul, and throughout the experience my mind didn't have a clue on what was happening other than God was clearly up to something.
The experience lasted about ten minutes and then stopped as suddenly as it had begun. At this time one thought entered into my confused mind. It was a thought that I had never entertained before, or had ever prayed about, or had any desire whatsoever to do; the thought was, 'Will you walk across the Middle East with dad if God calls you to?'.
I immediately said, "Of course; but God has to call me first." I would do anything for the Lord; but something of this magnitude would have to be from the Lord, not from my own mind. This was the mentality that I held onto throughout the months to come. With everything I wanted to place wisdom above passion; and I wanted to obey God, not my untrustworthy feelings and emotions. So a new question posed itself; was this God's voice calling me, or was I flirting with a deceptive path that would forever change my life?
Tomorrow I'll post the proceeding choices that I followed in order to distinguish the Lord's voice from my own. Talk to you then!

The Purpose

Hi all,

The purpose of this blog is to provide a daily journal leading up to the greatest adventure that God has brought me to date. On March 1st I'm going to be joining my father, John Halvorsen, on a prayer walk through the Middle East; my involvement will begin in Georgia and will take us through the Middle East while ending on the border of China.
God has called dad to walk from Portugal all the way through Europe and Asia; his purpose is to pray for God's light to enter into those spiritually dark regions of the world.
The reason for this blog is to simply document the daily encounters that I've had and will have with God, thus far in reference to this trip, in the hopes that they will bless anyone who happens to read them! My aim is to blog daily until March 1st; after this I'll blog whenever I have access to the Internet.
Tomorrow, the spiritual adventure will begin! Stay tuned.

In His love,


david