Don't Submit to Fear!

We got back from Mom’s (Central Point) last Thurs. the 2^nd – I had gone to Aunt Gloria’s graveside service, then left (3:00) right after, picked up William and took off for the coast. Mom went to the potluck and had a great family time; the family decided that they were going to get together more often, they were feeling like there’s not many family members left and they were feeling the loss.

We’ve had a great week of being in God’s presence, listening to wonderful sermons (Francis Chan, David Wilkerson, BH CLendennen - Soldiers, and a new guy Robert Morris) and some wonderful music (we downloaded a lot of David Wesley’s more recent stuff). We’ve been in prayer a lot more and sensing God’s presence a great deal more. In fact, He’s really been taking care of us ‘weatherwise’. These past few days, more blustery storms – the wind comes up like we’re in a corridor of sorts, from the S, SW, sweeping between the trees from the coast like a train, sometimes gusts of at least 50 mph or more. One night, we shook so much, we thought it had to be category 1 hurricane force! But our tarp remained in tack – flapping like crazy – but it stayed put! In fact, last night during the height of one such gust that just wouldn’t quit, William started praying that the demons who wanted to destroy us in this, told them to leave in Jesus’ name. Instantly the wind stopped completely and it didn’t show up again for several hours!

Last night we were listening to a sermon by Robert Morris called “Stop Tolerating Jezebel”(1 Kings 16 – 22) – wow! I realized so much of what I had gone through in my life; William too. The Jezebel/Ahab spirit(s) attach to people from someone else: Jezebel is a spirit who has to control (characteristics which are manipulation, witchcraft, pride and arrogance stemming from insecurity and fear, religious, immorality) and it always is coupled with an Ahab spirit (submission, yet very strong in other areas like: warrior – leader, conquer, multiple talents, etc.) either by marriage, parent/child, etc. and sometimes even both being in the same person.

Neither spirit has to be gender specific, Jezebel /Ahab can operate in a man just as much as a woman. The person who is called to be close to God who have to fight these spirits, the only way to get free from it is to have Jesus get you free, under the power of God – deal with it directly (like Jehu - 2 Kings 9 – by screaming out, hollering at it with a shout – with the anointing of God). Only Jesus is the King, Priest, and Prophet. It is a subtle spirit, yet strong and it always comes after the Prophet especially. You have to repent from tolerating it in your life – she always goes after the church. She was the high priestess of sexual immorality. That is what is happening to our country/world today. Killing children by the millions every year/selling children/women into sexual slavery, allowing homosexuality, etc. We, as a country and as a church, have submitted to this spirit.

Anyway, I realized how much I had submitted, out of fear, to these spirits for 45, so many years of abuse, yet God turned it all for the good. William, too, had these spirits come after him his whole life, and especially since he is a Prophet, it has tried to shut him down over and over. But, through Jesus, we have the victory!

Bastendorff Beach

 

With all our prayer/listening, etc. lately, God has been coming to the both of us in the same way in some ways, to remind us of our oneness between each other and between us and God, this morning and yesterday morning, we both awoke with the same song (God sings over us during the night and most mornings I wake up to a song): yesterday it was Shoulders by King and Country and today it was First Love by Petra. We discussed it this morning and basically our total surrender and trust is in God, that we give all things over to Him and He takes care of us, that we stay one with Him, in love with Him and he is and will blow our minds with the things He has and will do for us. I’ve been brought back to reading Ps. 121 over and over lately and today was prompted to read Ecclesiastes 2:12-26. It was funny, because when I first turned to that page and saw ch. 3, I thought to read that, but was drawn to ch. 2. Looking back over my life, I realized how much of my life was wasted/worthless pursuing things that don’t matter; yet, at the same time, pursuing God constantly (multiple bible studies, constantly in church, etc.) and how that matters.

Another thing we discussed, that through the grace of Jesus, He was rich (in all things), gave them up to become dust like us, to live in poverty so that we can become rich in Him. (2 Cor. 8:9-10, 1 Tim. 6:17), and to be rich in this world is really a hindrance (Matt. 19:23-24). Why did the rich man go away depressed? Because he loved his riches more than God (Matt. 19:16-22). I was on FB yesterday, and a friend jumped in to chat with me. She first asked me if I’d financially support her son to go on a mission trip and I replied how little we make, would love to support him, but we go for weeks sometimes with not even pennies in our pockets. She jumped in immediately and asked if she could pray for us (like others in the world who think we are poor and miserable), and I said yes she could; however, that this lifestyle is a choice, that God asked us to live this way so that we can be free from the bondages of this world and seek Him, then to go out as He directs, to minister to others), and told her that we’ve been doing this for over 2 years now in our RV and love it. She then commented on how much our place in Colorado meant to her, how she and her daughter loved (and still speaks of to this day) to come in and do artwork. She commented on how unique our ministry was and how much she was blessed by it. She seemed surprised/shocked/unable to really take in what I was saying that we choose to live this way and we’re ok, well provided for, etc. Other people have said that we must be ‘out of the will of God to suffer like this’; what most people don’t realize that we are LIVING the Bible and we are NOT suffering! Just like Jesus and His disciples (and others in the Bible as well as throughout history) that we do not live for ourselves, we give up ALL to serve God, that we live like Jesus – homeless really – to minister to others, that God CALLS us to live this way. His hand is greatly on us, holding us up, and we have more joy and freedom that most people who say they are living for Jesus (yet consumed by slavery of this life).

deer in the apple orchard last fall