God Has You Covered

The greatest protectors are not always the most visible. Special Operations teams work covertly, engaging in dangerous operations to protect a nation. Cops patrol by your home in the night looking to intercept those who might cause you harm. The quiet majority of good men and women who appear silent in times of peace will emerge when conflict develops to protect you when you feel the most alone and vulnerability.

Intercessors are willing to rise in the middle of the night to pray for you motivated only by a simple impression from the Lord. There are people you have yet to meet who are willing to step over the boundary lines of a restrictive relationship, not carrying what it costs them to speak out in your defense. 

In your time of need, God has you covered in ways you could not imagine. Do not let a fear of the unknown paralyze your faith. In the unknowns of life, God has you covered. You can trust Him.

When Dreams, Visions and Prophetic Words Miss the Mark

Many believers are concerned about what is transpiring on earth. Some of that concern can blind us to a greater reality. A fear-based concern will paralyze our faith because it is absent of hope.  Fear can cause us to believe and take stock in diversions.  To remain spiritually healthy, we must receive our insight and marching orders from the throne of God, not from a lesser dimension of revelation.

Paul addressed different levels of what he called “heavens.” We live on earth in the first heaven, where spiritual warfare is waged on the battlefield of human minds. The throne of God is established in the third heaven in a secure position of ultimate authority, forever unchangeable. It is in the second heaven between heaven and earth where spiritual battles are fought between light and dark, demons and angels, and where the prayers of the saints have a tremendous effect in determining the outcomes of earthly spiritual battles.

Kingdom vision and prayer assignments are created and released from the third heaven. From that secure place, we can pray with confidence and live in peace when life seems spiraling out of control. When visions, dreams and prophetic words are sourced only from the battle being waged in the second heaven, we will live in fear and limit our response to only what is seen in that realm. We can even get what appears to be a word of knowledge from the limitations of a second heaven revelation and actually miss the greater truth because what we have chosen to believe is not sourced in hope. God’s revelation, and even His warnings, always contain hope.

Jesus is enthroned in a place of ultimate authority at the right hand of the Father. As believers, we are seated there with Christ. This realization does not produce a fearful response to a world in decay and disorder, nor does it produce theologies or an understanding of the culmination of time that is wrapped in the dark cloth of disaster and despair. The sound and content of our voice will reveal which heaven we have chosen as our source of inspiration.

Of One Heart

Being of one heart has a greater impact than being of one mind. In a close environment where people work together toward a common goal, hearts that follow after God in love, create a healthy and cohesive work environment. 

The apostle Paul encouraged us in the second chapter of Philippians to be of one mind. That one-mindedness was the by-product of living together in an environment of love. Love is always a matter of the heart.  Many times, we miss what creates a by-product by focusing on the by-product and not what produced the by-product.

If a leader requires all team members to be of one mind, typically, that translates as being in lockstep obedience with the worldview and preferences of the team leader. That requirement actually creates a weakness in the team. It is a false unity and restricts Spirit-led creativity that only comes through a diversity of opinion. It also limits the breadth of expression and insight required to engage greater Kingdom exploits. 

For example, if you are a team leader who releases edicts of how your team should respond to the issues of culture in an attempt to maintain team discipline and portray unity to those outside the team, you are creating followers, not leaders. Work first and foremost at building a team unity around the fruits of the Spirit, not your opinions. If the hearts of your team members are right and expressing love and honor toward each other, even if they say or do something that differs from your opinion, it will all work out in the end because their hearts were right. This is the kind of working environment that creates trust and honor in a team because people know they are loved in their diversity, not only in their conformity.

Ride-Along

When I was a cop every once in a while, I would be assigned a ride-along. A ride-along is a civilian who has been cleared to ride with a patrol officer to see what life was like on the streets. Of all the people that rode along with me, each one left that experience with a greater understanding of the job.

I wonder what it would be like if we could have a ride-along program in other areas of life. What would it be like for someone to ride along with a small business owner struggling to make payroll and keep the doors open during an economic downturn? What would it be like to ride along with a young, single mom with two kids in tow working multiple jobs just to survive, or riding along with someone who has a different ethnicity or social status and on the receiving end of demeaning comments and behavior? What would it be like to be a politician, an honest one, trying to pass laws that only get passed in an environment of compromise?

Separation from each other’s daily struggles is where the danger of misunderstanding takes place. We judge someone before we know who they are or the struggles they face. It’s easy to lob judgmental grenades into the lap of someone who is living in a challenging situation, of which we have no firsthand knowledge or empathy. Perhaps the most life-changing thing that takes place during a ride-along is getting close enough to see and hear the personal struggles other people are experiencing. It’s in that connection where understanding comes, and a compassionate response can be offered.

Stop, Look and Listen Before You Step Outside

This morning, I finally got a picture of our puppy’s morning ritual. Each morning, she sticks her head through the doggie door to see if the way is safe before she goes outside. She does this every day. Ladybug is only six months old, but she is teaching us something.

Our culture is filled with legitimate issues that need our attention. However, those issues have offered some individuals and social agendas an opportunity to lure the undiscerning into places of deception. They are using heartfelt matters as bait to draw people out and prematurely align their lives and resources with diversions and hidden agendas. 

It would be wise to learn a lesson from my dog. Before we charge ahead when our emotions and the culture are wanting action, we need to stop and discern the environment into which we are about to step and unwittingly offer our support. When things heat up, it's too easy to allow our emotions, group pressure, and our desire to do something to cause us to make unwise and premature choices that put us in a place of emotional and spiritual jeopardy. 

Our home is close to a forest. Some mornings, as I sit in the darkness, I can hear the howl of a coyote pack who just made a kill. A few times, we have seen cougars. Our puppy would become an easy meal for these predators if she was not wise enough to stop and discern what awaits her outside the walls of our home, even in the familiar environment of our back yard.

Conflicting Sounds

It’s a bit after 2:00 am. A few minutes ago, I woke up and could not go back to sleep. I had a few things on my mind I needed to deal with so, I quietly got up and went into our living room to talk with the Lord. A few minutes after rising, I started my audio bible program to listen to the book of Ezra while following along with an open bible in my lap.

As I started to listen to the narrator, I also heard a beautiful piano soundtrack that accompanied the reading of the text. The music seemed out of time and confusing, not like what I was used to hearing. It soon became apparent to me the sound engineers made a mistake and placed a flute soundtrack on top of the piano music. It was hard to follow along, listening to the person reading the text with the conflicting soundtracks playing in the background. I was glad Ezra was only ten chapters long.

When I finished reading, I turned off the audio bible. The piano music that accompanied the audio bible stopped, but the flute music continued to play. At that moment, I realized my error. Last night, Jan and I were listening to some beautiful flute music on YouTube. When we went to bed, I closed my laptop but did not turn off the YouTube channel. When I opened my computer this morning to listen to the word, the flute music started once again.  I had two channels playing music at the same time, YouTube and my audio bible program.

Then I realized why the Lord had me get up to take care of some personal business. The day before, I made two decisions that were in conflict with a previous instruction from the Lord. The unresolved conflict did not allow me to sleep. My soul was restless. Just like the competing soundtracks on my computer that made it hard for me to hear the word, I had given the competing voices of human reasoning the freedom to speak. Their sound compromised a word the Lord had given to me previously.

This is a very unusual time in history. We need to be focused and clear in our thinking. We also need to be quick to rectify those things that impede our ability to hear His voice.  The Lord desires clarity in our lives. If we continue to allow outside voices to create a conflicting sound in opposition to the Lord’s voice, we will struggle to hear His instruction just like I struggled to hear the bible text being read through my computer. 

This is a loving warning for all of us from the Lord regarding the days ahead. He has things to say to us that will not be heard if we continue to allow competing voices to obscure the sound of His voice. 

Our Broad Strokes of Judgment

In the noise of the current social clamor, the voice of the Church can become diluted by politics, personal preferences, and undisciplined emotions. In this back and forth defensive environment, we can defend our preferred position to such a degree that we miss the essence of true justice. 

It is too easy to lump someone of an opposing opinion into a single group and, with a broad stroke of our narrow judgment, unjustly label them based on their heritage, profession, or worldview. If you don’t think this is true, ask a person of color, a good cop, or someone who happens to see life through a different lens. This form of judgment will always lead us to make unjust decisions. 

The Lord has something to say about that kind of unjust thinking. “Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent— both are detestable to the Lord” (Proverbs 17:15). I was struck by the word “both.” The Lord does not play favorites. His righteousness is meant for all, not just those we deem worthy or unworthy.

If, in our attempt to right the wrongs of culture, we only side with one opinion, our credibility as a healing and prophetic voice will be compromised. This will be especially challenging for those who have entered this time of social upheaval and continue to allow their undisciplined emotions to control their speech and actions.