Category Archives: Awakening

The Fire In Your Eyes

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lighteyes2I’m sharing this weekend with hundreds of women keen on a deeper experience with God. Hunger is palpable at Valor Conference this year! As promised earlier this morning, I’m making the Powerpoint from my session available for download. Unfortunately, it will make little sense unless you attended the session or take the time to view it (free of charge at the link below).

View the Power Point, here.

A certain fire illuminates the eyes of one who is enlivened with desire for the God-kind of life. More than a twinkle, this blaze is visible to the onlooker as a sign of an emboldened inner existence. This fire in the eyes elicits both envy and interest, making the spirited life attractive to others. During this prolonged season of transition, however, the fire within many has waned or even died. Eyes that once shone with eager hope, now smolder in grave disappointment. What is the essence of that fire? How does one get it back?

My Valor Conference address is now available for you to view on demand, here. Please feel free to chat back through the “reply” link, below. May your eyes burn ever brighter with renewed intensity as you forge your divinely inspired future.

Click now to watch “The Fire In Your Eyes”.

The Death of a Prophetic Word

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Sometimes a prophetic word has to die. Every hope of that word coming to pass, every hint of possibility must be exhausted before its season can dawn. Every seed I’ve planted in my garden soil this month, was dead. As every farmer and gardener does, I purchased dead seeds in faith, believing. Likewise, you have “purchased” or bought into a word of promise. Upon hearing the word, faith arose in your heart, allowing you to purchase it for future manifestation. At that point, the word is nothing more than a seed of potential. It must endure the process of death and burial before it can become a living word in you.

At the time of sowing, a seed is not even worth eating. Seemingly worthless to the naked eye, this seed holds innumerable, unleashed possibilities. When it’s fully dead, that’s precisely the moment to plant a seed, by burying it in the soil of the heart. That divine idea you’ve bought into, must now be hidden in your heart. Most divine seeds never make it this far. They lie on the shelf in the garage, or in the kitchen catch-all drawer, never reaching their destination. Believe in your dead seeds, enough to sow them back into your own heart. Revisit those packets of seed (journals, notebooks, cd’s, etc…). Cast your seeds by rehearsing them aloud and they will sink deep into your heart of hearts. Since your seed is of a supernatural nature, it will take supernatural stimulus to awaken it. There’s nothing more supernatural than the Word of God and spirit-induced worship. The more you read the supernatural stories recorded in scripture, the more active your worship life will become. These two very simple but supernatural practices will water and fertilize your seed, hastening the sprouts! Remember, the things of the Kingdom must be simple in practice and practical in application. You can do this. You can. Your supernatural seed does not respond to soulish stimulus. Many have attempted to awaken their seed by willing it to pass, or calling on the arm of flesh. Our best-laid plans and resources are incapable of bringing divine seed to life. Nothing but total devotion and focus on Christ will crack the shell that encases your new life.

Prophetic Words Are Being Resurrected

The Lord spoke clearly to me on Sunday evening, May 6. He said, “I’m resurrecting dead prophetic words!” The words of Christ flooded my thoughts, “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life,“ John 12:24-25. This He spoke of His very death, burial and resurrection. He is the Word made Flesh, the embodiment of all we believe! Just the same, the word cannot live in your flesh, until you are willing to see it first dead and buried. Be willing to lose first, in order to gain.

Expect the following to happen in the coming days:

  • You will be drawn to old prophetic words that have not been fulfilled.
  • You will begin hearing other prophets declare things you heard long ago.
  • The Lord will begin placing you in assignments reminiscent of a prior season of your life.
  • Echoes of past prophetic words will come to you through various outlets (media and print).
  • Others will remind you of things you had forgotten.
  • There will be new wind on old prophetic imagery that once spoke to you.
  • If you are in ministry, the Lord will enliven the promises that birthed your ministry. Visit those early words.
  • You will move beyond hope to expectation. Your thoughts will be flooded with confidence of the fulfillment of prior promises.

Resurrection is possible, now, because many things have died in your life. Without waxing morose, let us agree that it has been a season of great loss. This pruning had to happen for the life of your promise! Because of your losses, you are now in position for resurrection! Say goodbye. Mourn no more. Get ready to rejoice as the day of resurrection has now dawned upon your life.

So your prophetic word has died, has it? Congratulations! You can now receive your word in the process you were destined to walk.

Break Open the Smelling Salts

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Smelling salts.  Just like that, I heard the words smelling salts when conversing with the Lord last Friday.  While pressing in for definition, the following thoughts came to me.

-Someone is out for the count.
-That someone won’t wake up without extreme intervention.
-That someone is the sleeping bride of Christ.

The sleep that has the church subdued, isn’t sweet or enchanted.  Actually, it’s quite the bad dream that arrests the senses of God’s people.  The boogeyman of our nightmare is (a) the post-modern preacher who deludes the masses… (b) the lukewarm brethren who discourage church growth with latent sin… (c) the disinterested youth who refuse to adopt our traditions…  Sound vaguely familiar?  To the sleeping it seems that our worst fears have come true.  The illusion is but a stupor induced by a spell.  The language of that spell is the hopeless babble of carnally-minded believers. 

The real-life situation is far from hopeless.  To the contrary, I’m more hopeful for awakening than ever before!  The boogeymen in this scenario are harbingers of revolution, if not reformation in the church.  The purpose of the post-modern preacher is to force us to examine our doctrines, once more.  What’s the worst that could happen?  If we stand on the Word (as assumed) either the doctrine will be affirmed or refined.  Otherwise, anything that can be shaken will be shaken, right?

If the lukewarm brethren are hindering growth, the awakened bride holds the power and position to challenge them. As for the disinterested youth… perhaps their wandering journey will take them to new frontiers in the Kingdom.  You see, I’m completely married to the idea that we belong to Christ.  As His bride, we have full assurance that He will never leave nor forsake us.  If His Word cannot lie, we will emerge as a glorious church without spot or wrinkle.  What plagues the church, in her dreamstate, are illusions of destruction.  This nefarious preoccupation with what’s wrong with the church prohibits us from seeing the answer.  We must awaken to something greater… to an encounter with the One we love. 

Now, about those smelling salts…  according to wiseGEEK, smelling salts have also been known as ‘sal volatile’, for their ability to produce a reaction.  En vogue in the 1800′s to arouse frail and fainting ladies, the salts are making a comeback.  The British Journal of Sports Medicine mentions that salts ”have recently undergone a resurgence of interest by athletes as a pre-game stimulant or as a ‘pick me up’ when performance is flagging.”  Certainly, smelling salts have been included in first aid kits in the event of knock-outs or faint-inducing spills.  Coaches are again using the salts to bring their players back to consciousness.  [Not ironically, the last great awakening in the U.S. took place in the 1800's.  Maybe The Coach is ready to get the game going, again.]

Smelling salts of antiquity were also known as salt or spirit of hartshorn.  The hooves and horns of the hart, or deer, were ground to extract their high levels of ammonia.  This process is no longer needed now that ammonia can be synthetically made.  The deer in scripture symbolizes the passionate pursuer of the heart of God.  In Psalm 18:33 we read, “He maketh my feet like hinds’ [feet], and setteth me upon my high places.”  My husband also informs me that deer hooves are split for greater traction when climbing.  If we are to become the smelling salts of the earth, it won’t be for our wierdity.  It’ll be for the sake of our chase.  The catalyst for the awakening, will be the passionate soul who dares to climb the heights in relentless pursuit of his Holy God.  The horns of the hart speak of heart-felt intercession.  It’s a simple recipe for a really potent concoction.

So, when the Lord whispers, “smelling salts” into my spirit, He’s about to break open a pack.  Thank goodness, a little spirit of hartshorn goes a long way in producing an awakening effect.  It only ever takes a few chasers to rouse the sleeping masses.

A Word of Confirmation
After hearing me share on the smelling salts this weekend, one of my friends (and an intercessory prayer warrior) handed me a transcript of a prayer session that happened three weeks ago.  Here’s an excerpt:

Thank you for the smelling salts that you are breaking over us.  You are causing your bride to awaken.  You said that we are the salt of the earth.  You are renewing that salt within us.  We declare an awakening to our first love.  You are not condemning the bride… You have been gazing upon us all these years, upon our beauty because you love us, and you know the end from the beginning.  Let this message ring clear… there is no condemnation.  Our lover, our Lord has broken the vile over us… -Claudia Valenta

 

You can actually purchase the salts pictured above, here.  Consider this the image credit :)

A Young Fresh Anointing

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Just two nights ago, I had a dream very spiritual in nature.  The past two days, I’ve sought and gained assistance with interpreting some of the dream’s symbolic elements.  Maybe, this will bring you as much encouragement as it did me.

John 16:8 NIV ”When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.“

The Dream

An old friend, (who happens to be an agnostic), traveled with me to a conference.  She will remain nameless for the sake of anonymity.  We arrived to discover that Jesus, himself, would be the featured speaker.  I was, of course, elated to hear the Lord speak in person.  My friend was ambivalent, seeing she was a faithless person.  Watching the platform from a distance, we noticed the Lord making his way through the crowd.  With him was a young girl, whom I intuited was 9 years of age.  Giving up hope of getting close, we went to the resource tables to purchase conference materials. 

Moments later, we turned around to find Jesus approaching us with the young girl leading the way.  Great awe and conviction struck my heart in His presence, making it difficult to look him in the eyes.  As I looked down, my eyes caught the young girl’s face.  She was seeing into me.

She openly declared to the Lord, “Melissa and ______ (my anonymous friend) are backslidden.”  Her words were heavy with grace and completely void of condemnation.  She spoke not to the Lord, but rather for the Lord and for our benefit.  As her words filled my ears, I was shocked and awakened to the truth of my spiritual state.  While it seemed perfectly logical to hide, everything in me wanted to run straight to Jesus.  I looked to his face to see whether I was accepted or rejected.  But once we locked eyes, everything was set right within me.  Before the chance to open my mouth came… forgiveness was dispensed.  My friend was also brought into right relationship with Jesus.

Interpretation

My friend represents the unbelieving world and many who are in denial of the Christ they once believed.

I represent the contemporary body of Christ.

The conference does not indicate a specific event.  It does speak of the confluence of contemporary church streams, who are hungry to hear what “Thus saith” is for this hour.

That Jesus appeared as the featured speaker, tells me He is about to release an authoritative word to the Church.  It will capture the heart of the bride.  There will be no doubt that Jesus, himself, has stepped into certain men and women who have availed themselves to Heaven’s purpose.

That I felt hopeless to encounter Jesus, myself, is the state of most believers in this hour.  They see God moving from a distance and resort as I did, to the resource table (books, cd’s, blogs, etc…).  But that is precisely where the Lord found me!

The young girl represents a rising ministry, prophetic in nature.

Her age, nine years, represents the number of judgment.  A fresh anointing is upon the prophetic to speak a word of judgment, that awakens the hearer to grace.  Remember, her words caused me to run to, not from Jesus.

Because she revealed the hidden things of my heart, I was undone before the Lord.  The innocence of the child, further verified her authenticity as an oracle of God.  Our pursuit of holiness will bring about an undeniable acuity to the prophetic gifting.  Even the most calloused sinner will be defenseless against this gift.

Forgiveness came the moment I understood my state.  Jesus read my heart, and released me with his gaze.  Had I not looked the Lord in the eyes, there would never have been an understanding of forgiveness.  There is much emphasis on verbal confession (and it is important!)  However, there must be an intimate beholding of Jesus, to understand grace -and to be fully absolved. 

The girl spoke both to me and my unbelieving friend.  In times recent, the prophetic has been received only by the church.  We are shifting into a new era where the accuracy of the gift, as well as the manifest presence of God, will cause the unbelieving to listen and marvel.  This must be in order to harvest the end-time draught of souls.  As a note of interest, the hidden name of my friend means “loved.”  For God so loved the world…

False Doctrines, Doctrines of Demons, and the Traditions of Men

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The road to Zion is filled with all manner of hindrances and stumbling blocks.  Observe and you will witness seekers of truth precariously venturing, and stumbling into road blocks, IED’s, and even sinkholes along The Way.  These dangers have been planted by insidious fellows throughout the timeline of humanity.  My dear prophetic friend, the responsibility rests on us to do as Isaiah, John the Baptist, Jesus and many others whom the Lord has called.  Raise the “voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’“ 

The purpose of this post is to illuminate who and what is causing these breaches in The Way.  Our duty as discerners is to do more than circumvent the dangers.  It’s time to rally a construction crew who are willing to fulfill Isaiah 40:4, “Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.”  The three obstructions that must be removed are false doctrines, doctrines of demons, and the traditions of men.

False Doctrines

heterodidaskaleo – another or different doctrine that deviates from the truth

1 Timothy 6:3- “If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.”

False doctrine = the lusts of unrenewed flesh tainting the delivery of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Peter writes of these false shepherds, “For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error,” 2 Peter 2:18.  False doctrine may deliver any of the following results, according to the Galatians 5:17-21 litmus test for the operations of flesh.

  • Teaching that disdains the moving of the Spirit, or the gifts of the Spirit.
  • A ministry that is “called” to police the body of Christ.
  • A doctrine that is powerless to deliver its followers from darkness.
  • Uncleanness, perversion, and lust that goes unchallenged outside of the pulpit.
  • A strong spirit of ungodly control. (Order is necessary, however, domination stifles.)
  • Manipulation is abundant.
  • Strife and competition abounds.
  • There’s a fixation on material wealth.
  • The gospel is used as a means to accrue wealth.
  • Such a ministry is more concerned with setting themselves apart from the Body of Christ, rather than benefiting the Body.

When men and women refuse to surrender areas of unrenewed flesh, the doctrines they teach will become an amalgamation of spirit and flesh.  Such doctrine discourages seekers of Truth from continuing down the path.

The Doctrines of Demons

didaskalia daimonion – the teaching or precepts of evil spirits or messengers of satan

1 Timothy 4:1-4 “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.  Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.  They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.  For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.“

In the words of Jesus, hypocrite = pharisee.  If demonic doctrines come through hypocrites, they are taught through satan’s ambassadors to the church – the pharisees.  We would expect demonic doctrine from Oprah and her new age henchmen, or L. Ron Hubbard and his followers.  But would we expect it in and among our own ranks?

Paul describes the conscience of the hypocrite as seared or branded as a slave.  Unfaithful to the law, themselves, they possess the undeniable mental state of a slave to the sins they abhor.  This soulish brand of shame serves to stir up their angst against the very same sins in other’s lives.  Graceless consciousness of sin will drive a soul to ascetically strive for divine approval. 

The pharisee pursues righteousness through the arm of flesh.  Thinking dominated by the flesh, invites demonic interaction.  Bottom line? When we exchange the goodness of Jehovah M’Kaddesh for an algorithm of sin management, satan steps in to fill the spiritual vacuum.

The doctrines of demons (as taught by a pharisee) will be marked by the following: 

  • A denial of the power of God’s kindness. (Romans 2:4)
  • Inflicting inordinate or excessive (extra-biblical) regulations on adherents.
  • Undermining the goodness of the Lord who gives us all things to freely enjoy. (1 Timothy 6:17, Deut 26:11)
  • Dehumanizes followers by denying them the right to enjoy the pleasures that God has scripturally sanctioned.
  • Denies that Jesus can transform a soul by the indwelling of His Spirit.  Change is forced through external regulations.
  • Paints God as an impersonal deity who demands blind obedience, rather than a personal God who walks alongside us as a teacher and Father.
  • Portrays God as more pleased with self-denial than humble thankfulness. (Psalm 51)

Undue emphasis on the flesh only bolsters its desires.  Demons understand this propensity well.  Pharisees and their followers are sin’s greatest unlikely proponents.  Deep-seeded sins generally lurk under a camouflage of piety.  Look to avoid the shame-branding of the conscience by these Spiritless perfectionists. 

The Traditions of Men

didaskalia entalma anthrōpos – the precepts and commandments of fallen and weak mankind (apart from Spirit)

Mark 7:6-8 He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.  They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’ You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.”

Tradition can both preserve and preempt sound biblical doctrine.  I am rather fond of many traditions of the church, which have served to protect, reinforce and enrich the faith.  As Jesus clearly noted, however, there exists harmful traditions that undermine the knowledge of God.  Some purporting to know what He desires, have ingnorantly implement mandatory practices that have caused the cessation of true worship.

Jesus put it this way in Matthew 15:16 GWT, “Because of your traditions you have destroyed the authority of God’s word.“  Churches that exalt the tradition of men above the Word possess no power to demonstrate the authority of God’s word.  Rather than fulfilling the Mark 16 commission to create disciples of Christ, they “travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are,” Matthew 23:15. 

The traditions of men will produce the following fruit (based on Matthew 23 and Mark 16):

  • Creates a stiff-necked people who are set in their ways, rather than open to progression and the move of the Spirit.
  • Tends to the micro-management of insignificant things.
  • Places great importance on outward demonstration, and powerless to affect the inner man of the heart.
  • Creates division.  Those who fail to observe these traditions are shunned or not deemed worthy of fellowship.
  • A spirit of error enters to reinforce the importance of dead works.
  • Titles and positions of hierarchy are important and coveted.
  • The authority of the believer is suppressed.
  • Signs, wonders and miracles are replaced with vain proofs of “faith”.
  • Portions of the Word that challenge these traditions are ignored or distorted.

These impediments in The Way will be called out.  If we do not reform, those entering the path will either defect or rise up to clear the path.  It’s time we move.  In the words of Jesus, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you,” Matthew 21:31.