A Very Personal Word

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you for every blessing you have poured upon us, and for your loving kindness. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning son. Welcome to the club this morning and thank you for walking with us this morning. We love these times spent with you, and the conversations we have. Please keep sharing with us and we will continue to share with you.

I know you are struggling with some of the passages you are reading in the Bible, but as I said before, hang in there and do not worry too much about what you think it means. Just absorb it and hold it for a time when you will need it and I will make it meaningful. You see, my word was given in many different circumstances, and through many different people. Although every word is inspired, not every word is relevant to you at this moment in time. When it is needed I will open it for you. In the meantime it is food for your spirit and an extra layer of defence against the flaming darts of the evil one.

The words of Jeremiah, and the words of Ezekiel, which you are reading at this time, are particularly pertinent for the world today. For my wrath is against those who do evil things and live godless lives, following the evil ways of the devil. Stand aside from these evil deeds and have nothing to do with them. Focus upon Jesus who is your saviour and listen to me as I speak to you.

My work for you at this time is gathering in the harvest! Throughout your ministry you have been in a ploughing and sowing situation. The land you have ploughed has been hard like rock, and the roots of evil that have had to be dug up have been deep rooted, but you remained at the task until it was done, and have sown a seed which will itself take root, and in the years to come flourish. This time, since you moved, has been an important time in your ministry. I have given it to you to recover, rest, and be refreshed.  What lies ahead is a time of gathering in, a harvest.

As you use this time of rest, draw near to me and drink of the water of life I give you. Feed on the word I speak to you. Grow strong in the strength I give you, for what is needed of you in the months ahead does not need human strength and endurance, but the strength that only I can give.

Many years ago now, your sister received a vision from me. It was of you, standing on a hill, with your hands in the air, powerful for the Lord. The road you have travelled has not been an easy one, and the task to which I call you, will not be easy, but if you stay close to me, and use the power I give you, then together we will complete the task, and gather into my kingdom those whom I am saving.

I give you a new name, "Benaiah!" Do not be afraid, for no one shall be able to stand before you. My Word shall be a two-edged sword in your hand, and my Spirit shall go before you, cleaving a way through into the lion's den. There you must rescue those who are enslaved by sin, and in the power of the Evil One.

Use a part of your time with me each day to keep the channel between us clean and open, so that my Spirit can flow freely at all times. Listen to my commands to you and act upon them.

Me: Lord, I really don't see myself as a fighter, more as a plodder!

Lord: That's right son, you are a plodder! You set out to do something and you stick at it until it is done. But you are also a soldier prepared to do battle. The name your mother gave you is Martin. Martin means 'warlike'. St Martin was a Roman soldier and a great man, who found that the battle against sin was a battle worth fighting.

Remember, as you go where I send you, that those who you are going to rescue, are my beloved children. Allow my love to flow through you and bring them gently home. I love you, and I love them.

Which way Lord?

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day, Thank you for the clear shy and the brilliant stars, and the moon that gives me light to walk the dark path. Thank you for your company and your guidance. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning son, welcome to the club this morning. I'm so glad you liked the celestial show I laid on for you this morning. Though the path may be dark, if you always walk with me I shall be a light for you to see and a lantern for your feet. Trust me.

Martin, this time each morning walking with me and spending it in conversation, is very important both for you, for me, and for others as well. I would that all my children would spent a good time with me, uninterrupted and in constant communion with me. Not only do you benefit from this time, but all those for whom you pray benefit as well! I hear all your prayers as you ask them, and you have time to hear my replies. Encourage others to spend time with me.

As you walk with me and begin to rely on me for all your needs, you will begin to see me work in new and wonderful ways. As you encounter forks in the road you are walking, ask me to show you which way to walk. As you meet with opposition, ask me for words to say. As you meet with difficulties, commit each one to me, and let me do the sorting. Let your prayer always be, "Which way Lord?" or "What should I do now Lord?" Then listen, as I instruct you.

If you look at the examples of this in the Bible, you will see that I often said things like, "Assemble and do nothing!" or "Watch me work." Then, as the people watched, I have given them the victory without their needing to lift one hand! Sometimes, indeed often, I will tell you what action to take, and then you will move forward in power. But remember always, the power is mine, not yours, and the action you take is at my command. All glory must be given to me. I am the Lord who guides you. I am the Lord your strength.

I know, and I understand your weaknesses, but it is when you are weak that I am strong. It is when you are low or cast down that I can raise you up. When I raise you up, you can be a strength to the weak and an encouragement to those who are cast down. Remember always that one encouraging word, offered in love, can change a life and save a soul.

Always speak in love, never in hate. Give all your anger to me, and let my love take over and heal the hole that is left. Always be ready to forgive, just as you have, in Jesus, been forgiven. Keep your eyes fixed on me and seek always the Kingdom of Heaven. That is your destination and the place to which I am leading you. A place near to my heart. A place I have prepared for all those who love me. A place where you will be near to me and those whom you love and where you will feel at home. I love you.

More re-imaginings

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for walking with me this morning and for this new day. Help me to serve you Lord in all I do and to praise you with my whole heart. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning Martin. Thank you for joining us this morning and for your good company. Yes, I say good because we do enjoy your company, and our conversations with you, while we walk. We love you.

The word I gave you on your last Sunday at Stithians, I want to apply more generally today. When you left the parish I intended that word for the congregation gathered there. Today I want to speak it to a wider congregation.

Yesterday I spoke to you about reaching out to those who had forgotten their commitment to me, whose faith had become buried in decades of neglect. That is re-thinking, or re-imagining evangelism.

On 21st March 2010, I said through you, to the congregations of your three churches, at Stithians:

Put Jesus in the Centre.

Read the New Testament and reveal what it has to say about the Church Jesus built, and compare it with what we, man, has built.

The time has come when tinkering and re ordering is not enough. We have to re imagine, not using man-made structures as our template, but Jesus.

Imagine a church without buildings.

Imagine a church without clergy.

Imagine a church without liturgy.

Imagine a church run not by a PCC but by prayer!

These were not words to be brushed aside and forgotten, but were meant as a stimulus to get the churches moving towards the church I want. Only a few have taken it seriously, but are finding it hard to think big against the tide of institutional conservatism!

There are so many different ministries within my church which need to be opened up with new imaginings.

All forms of evangelism, and the use of all forms of media and communication. Being where the people are and being known there. Yes, even in the chat rooms, on facebook and all the other types of twitting and cheeping!

One of the things that really surprises souls on arrival in the Kingdom, is the variety of music. In Heaven we love music as a way of expressing ourselves, but it's not at all like church music! Oh, we have that as well, but the main expression of praise, gladness and joy, is much more up-beat and noisy! Much more foot tapping and hand-raising type music!

Art speaks to the heart as well, and is a powerful form of evangelism and teaching. Actions also speak louder than words, and one act of love in Jesus' name is more effective than a thousand sermons for bringing people into the Kingdom.

I want my Church to be full of joy and for their joy to be infectious. The world makes a big show of being jolly and happy, when underneath souls are crying in pain and loneliness. My joy, which the world cannot give is deep inside and permeates the whole being.

I want my Church to dare to believe My Word, the Bible. I gave it to you to be the central pillar of truth and teaching, but you have listened to the voice of the deceiver and, without realising it, have come to believe that there is no truth in it. The Bible stands as truth. It is the only rock in your age that does not shift. Jesus is my Word, The Bible is all about him from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation.

Bring Him back into the centre, where he belongs, and turn your eyes upon Him. As you gaze at Jesus you will see what I see, a hungry world of hurting men and women who need me. You will not see one single spire or roof fund. You won't see one single PCC meeting, synod or assembly of deacons; you will see a harvest field ripe and ready for the reapers. As you look for evangelists and pastors you will not find the big names. What you will see is a fellowship of believers, where all are evangelists and all are pastors to each other, where the sick are prayed for together and where my Holy Spirit flows.

Pray for the traditional pastors and evangelists, that they will also catch the vision of shared mission and shared ministry. I want you and them to live Jesus every moment of every day. I want you to be Jesus in the home, in the workplace, in the schools and universities, in government and all the armed and civilian services. I want Jesus in the banks and in the stock exchange, so that I can rebuild  and recreate your society to be just, fair, prosperous and Jesus centred.

You may initially say this all seems like pie in the sky. But the world, mankind will not see the difference Jesus can make unless YOU, who are Jesus in the world, are where the changes need to be. Unless you are there to show the way and speak My Word.

Stretch your imagination and think My thoughts. Re-imagine what it means to be a Christian. Put Jesus back where He belongs, in the centre.

Remember, there is not a place on earth, not a single person, not a trade or industry, not a colour or a creed, where I do not want to be. All the earth is mine and I want it back, because I love the lost and I feel the hurts of the damaged and the pain of the lonely. Help them to reach out and touch me, that I may heal your land and build My Kingdom.

Tell My People I love them

Me: Good morning Lord. Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new and beautiful day. Thank you for the clear shy and the bright stars. Thank you for the promise of a new and perfect day. Help us lord in all we do to bless this day. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning Martin, welcome to the club this morning. Thank you for joining us and for your company. We love you too.

Tell my people I love them, tell my people I care about them. Though it is me who brings disaster upon the institutions man cares so much about, I still love them people. Show them that they must put their trust in me and not in the creations of man, for as me and women trust in me and stand with their feet planted firmly on my word, my power is released through them and they will see miracles all around them.

Ask my people why they find it so hard to believe in the God they say they follow. If they say they believe in me why do they not believe and trust in my word, the Bible. The Bible was not written down to deceive or misguide, but for instruction and as a foundation of truth. From the book of Beginnings (Genesis) to the Revelation of John, you will find truth unshakeable, and teaching you can trust. As you read it, read it with a mind open to me and to the revelation I will show you through it. Read my word in an attitude of listening prayer, and let me speak to you. I speak deep into your inner being and write my words onto your core memory so that it effects every cell in your body. A daily dose of my word is like medicine to the sick, and food to the healthy. You don't have to worry too much about being 'learned', just read the word and let it soak into your every being. Let every day either start or end with a good dose of my word and it won't be very long before you find that the words you have read and absorbed will bring forth a fruit in your life you never expected.

As you listen to me in other ways, be always ready to check what you hear against my written word. I never contradict my word. I will often lead you into new ways and enlighten you with new revelation but it will aways be able to stand against my word in the Bible and seen to be consistent and true. As you test my word be careful to prayerfully discern what is the word, and what is a human interpretation of the word. Religion had added many things to my word which only cause men and women to stumble and stray. Strip away the extra and the gospel becomes a highly sought after product! My pure, unadulterated word, brings salvation. The extra, added by theologians and religious people brings captivity and bondage. I want all my people to be free of captivity. The only bondage I accept is the bondage of my love, freely given and freely received.

    Tell the people I love them,
    tell the people I care,
    when they feel far away from me,
    tell the people I am there.    Written by Leonard Bartlotti
    © 1972 Gospel Publishing House

Recording My Words

Me: Good morning Lord, Thank you for waking me this morning and for this new day. Thank you for the rain that waters the earth and fills up the lakes and rivers, watering the dry and parched land. Thank you for your Holy Spirit that flows like a river and waters your people with the spiritual water of life. I love you Lord.

Lord: Good morning Martin. Thank you for joining us this morning and for our time together. We love you too.

Martin, I want you to start typing and let the flow take over. Up to now I have started talking and you have typed away a few sentences behind me, but now I want you to enter into flow, and type as I give you the words. It may not seem much of a difference to you, but it helps, because your intellect doesn't get in the way so much.

It is very much the desire of my heart that more people should communicate with me in this manner. It's not so much what you say to me, but what I say to you. I want my people to be aware of my voice and what I am saying to them, not just in the 'now', but for always. I don't waste my words. Every word I utter is food for the creation, honey to the lips and water to the parched. When I give a vision or a dream, it takes some thinking about to fully appreciate what I am saying to you. So also, with the words I speak to my Church. For centuries the Church has pondered and thought about my word in the Gospels and applied that word for each generation. Sometimes the Church has been so engrossed in theological discussion, it has missed my word for that specific generation. I want you to do both: to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest the written work in the Bible, and also to listen, note and record the spoken word I give you. Then let those who read later also reflect upon what I say.

When the word I give applies to an individual or a group or even generally, I will quicken the heart of the reader and speak to them through that word. Often you have found that a word I give you doesn't seem to mean much to you, but you later find it really speaks to someone else. That is because, as I said before, no word of mine is wasted. And every Word I speak is for the Now, somewhere.

Recording My words is a ministry in itself. Let the record of My words be readily available, and encourage others who hear and record my words to share them openly.

I also speak loudly through actions. The testimony of My working in people's lives is a powerful witness. Which is why I want my Church to be real about sharing your story. All men love a story, and a five minute testimony is worth an hour's theological teaching, because it is already applied to life. Even if you think your story is not worth telling, it is worth the telling, because to someone who hears it, it will be a light on a dark pathway, and a means of them finding Grace.

For you Martin, seek out these real life stories, and encourage the owner to share them through the published word. Let all the world see that I am at work in the lives of ordinary men, women and children, healing, blessing and saving them. This is My work and is worth the telling. I love you.

Hold to the Truth

Lord: It is not a coincidence that I have placed many books about creation in your path at this time. I want my church to be well informed about the truth of the scriptures, especially the book of Genesis and the creation accounts. Those early days, when the earth was still new, are important to man's salvation. In those chapters I have laid out quite clearly the story of the fall of man, and from that account it is quite clear that he needs a saviour. In the account of my servant Noah I have shown very clearly that every man woman and child on the planet today is closely related. As I have ordered the genealogies, I have emphasised the generations, so that it is quite clear how many there are and the tight time scale involved.

In the months ahead you will be amazed at the crumble of the evolution theory and long time scale. Even after all their hard work and deception, those who believe the lie will not be able to hold on to their position, as a tide of new evidence is released on the world. However they will come up with even more wild assertions and new theories, as they struggle to hold on to their ground. They do this because to acknowledge my hand in creation would mean that they would have to abandon their position of 'centre of the universe,' and would have to accept that all men of every race are brothers and sisters. They would  have to accept that man has fallen and needs supernatural help to be saved. I will do all I can to bring as many as possible into my kingdom, but sadly some will refuse me and refuse life. Because I have given them freedom of choice, they will remain outside, but I still love them.

Encourage one another to read the Bible and believe what you read. You don't need to do this blindly; there is plenty of evidence shouting the truth at you. Pray that I shall enlighten you to the truth. Pray that you will discover for yourself the wonderful truths of creation that back up every word of scripture.

Many will laugh at you, but hold your ground. Those who acknowledge me before men, I will acknowledge before my Father in Heaven. No one who stands for me will be put to shame. I love you.

A New Boldness

Lord:    Over the coming months you will witness an increase in the manifestation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially the lesser used gifts. Some of these manifestations will have a high public profile, and there will be attempts to ridicule them. However my work is my own responsibility, and no one will need to defend me. I shall confound the so called 'wise' of this age, and reveal my wisdom in a way which will make the wisdom of the world look as small and insignificant, as indeed it is. Watch out for my Spirit working and rejoice when you see it. Pray for those who you see being used by me, and bless them.

Boldness
At this time I require my Church to recover the boldness it enjoyed in the first days after Pentecost. The boldness to speak about me, without embarrassment. The boldness to call upon my name as you pray for healing, deliverance and guidance. The boldness to use the higher gifts of prophecy, knowledge and discernment. Boldness to preach and teach the true good news in its completeness. The boldness to believe me and trust me, even when the odds seem stacked against you.

Without being argumentative, I want my Church to speak out for the truth and to hold on to my higher standards. Do not compromise the truth. If you are in doubt about what is truth, then know this: My Word always stands.

Encourage the regular reading of My Word. The Bible must be read with an open mind. By that I mean open to Me. There is a lot in the Bible that seems like a mystery, some of it even offends  modern delicate western sensitivity. Read it with simple acceptance and pray for understanding. Do not struggle with truth. I long to tell my people what they want to know but they either don't ask me, or they don't accept what I am telling them. Be open to my spoken word to you. Yes, I do speak directly to all my children who are open to hear my voice. Encourage them to listen and show them how to hear my voice.

I said that you would be seeing an increase in the manifestation of spiritual gifts. Be prepared also to receive and use the many gifts I have given you. Yes all of you! All who receive my Son as their saviour, are able to receive my Spirit, and therefore to be equipped with all the gifts they need. Remember the gifts of the Spirit are not some sort of status symbol; they are articles of equipment for the soldier to use as he goes about his business. I delight in pouring out my Spirit on all who will be open channels. However, I cannot flow through channels that are blocked by unbelief, sin and prejudice. These need to be dealt with, so bring them to me in prayer.