God of the Breakthrough! Prepare for unexpected territories and new beginnings!
“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children…”
Romans 8:16
A heavy thunderstorm drenched the earth this weekend as I sat cozily inside my house and spent time with Jesus. The sky was bursting forth with rain early in the morning as God watered my soul. He’s a Father who is so near and close. He replenishes all that was lost. The love of Jesus comes to rescue, save and empower us!
We are in a very sensitive time in the spirit. The Lord is drawing His children closer through very divine circumstances. He’s intercepting many lives right now and awakening people to King Jesus in new ways. In the past, people came to know the Lord through churches and movements or religious systems.
…But this is a new order.
God is awakening people in powerful, life-shattering ways all on His own. He’s restoring childlike wonder and belly-aching laughter to your life. The Lord never forgot about you and He’s redeeming everything you lost.
IT’S YOUR GOLDEN HOUR.
Millions and millions of people are running to know Jesus deeper and more intimately. Many people have been planted right along your path. They will look to you as a leader. The fire of Christ is blossoming all over the world. There is a hunger down deep in the souls of people that can’t be contained or controlled.
Some of these individuals even knew God all their lives, but it was through the divine workings of Christ that made them more aware of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Grief, tragedy, fear, trauma, sorrow and hardship will especially do this. Remember, the Holy Spirit came when the disciples and followers of Jesus were in a state of mourning. They had seen Jesus with their own eyes and now He was gone. God was about to send someone to serve as Comforter, Helper, Counselor and Encourager. The Spirit of Truth arrived.
“He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.” (John 14:17 NLT).
For some of you, it’s difficult to explain what has happened in your life during the last few years. Many relationships have even changed. Many of you have grown and flourished and you're hungry to serve and love God's people even more.
The Lord has taught you to move forward sometimes even without closure. Everyone can’t go. Little by little, you have released the baggage to walk into new freedom and childlike zest. Jesus is your Lord and Savior but He also calls you friend.
The Lord intercepted your life right inside your home. God nudged you to read the Word of God and it’s like a light bulb went off. Suddenly you could perceive Scripture in such new ways. The Living Word came alive and thumped through your spirit. Everywhere you went, the world became brighter. The butterflies flapped in the wind, heart clouds formed in the sky and even some words spoken by children seemed to be divinely inspired.
All of creation came alive.
You even became more curious about Heaven and spiritual realities. The Lord gave you this inner-knowing that everything is intricately connected in some wondrous way that cannot be explained with human wisdom.
Jesus is at the center of it all.
Somehow, in His infinite glory and divinity, King Jesus has wooed His children from a deep slumber. A fire has been lit down deep in your soul.
Creation is groaning right now, awaiting for the Lord’s sons and daughters to now walk into your full God-ordained purpose. We must remember that the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead still thumps inside our spirits.
This is not the end.
It’s just the beginning.
The deep well of Jesus is bursting forth in this hour. It’s not by our might, but His power. May we walk into every environment as sons and daughters of the King of all kings. You are chosen and so loved and God is calling all His wayward children back home into His arms. Even when our hearts are anguished, we remember that the same God who parted the Red Sea still guides our footsteps even today. He is the one who calms our fears and reignites our faith with awestruck wonder.
Remember to keep your hope on things above.
"For all that the world can offer us—the gratification of our flesh, the allurement of the things of the world, and the obsession with status and importance —none of these things come from the Father but from the world. This world and its desires are in the process of passing away, but those who love to do the will of God live forever." (2 John 2:16-17 TPT).
The Holy Spirit is saturating us with a deep longing to know our Father. Even when we can’t see, we still believe.
GOD OF THE BREAKTHROUGH
As I sat with the Lord, He immediately brought me to a passage that highlighted David’s first major battle. The Philistines heard that David had been crowned the king of Israel. He received huge opposition.
It was during that first major battle when David learned about the “Lord who bursts through!”
2 Samuel 5:20
So David went out and fought with them at Baal-perazim and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So he named the place “Bursting.”
In Hebrew, the name means Lord Of Breakings Through, Possessor Of Breaches.
Sometimes we really need a breakthrough God who barrels through anything standing in the way. We get to see the majesty of His Kingship and equally remember how God really cares about the details. He loves us as individuals. He gives us a new identity in Him. He’s not a God who just breaks through but He is the Breakthrough. And perhaps we need this reminder especially today because so many people are on the edge of something magnificent. This is when we sometimes become hopeless and it is the prime breeding ground for the enemy.
God is reminding you today: HE IS LORD OF BREAKTHROUGHS. HE’S BURSTING THROUGH ON YOUR BEHALF THIS WEEK!
Your enemy might not be a who, but a what. Maybe it’s even fear of something great. Perhaps God has called you to do something different that goes against the culture and environment around you. Maybe God has promised you something so outrageous that you can’t do anything but surrender to the process and allow Him to lead. Some of you need to get out of your own way so that God can step in and do the heavy lifting. Others of you will be the very first people in your family to serve the Lord with a devoted heart and passionate zeal. You will break the generations of strongholds in your family.
The Lord loves leaders who are willing to be small, so that He can be large.
A NEW LEADER IS CHOSEN
The way God promotes people in the kingdom is much different than the world. There are no overnight successes when God raises up leaders. The Lord prunes and prepares and strengthens His leaders in vastly different ways than society.
By the time you’re called to the forefront every last ounce of self-allegiance has been decimated. It’s a process that will take years.
David was anointed to be king around age 15-17.
He saw samplings of success from 30-37, but only in parts.
He didn’t walk into the fullness of his kingship until age 37.
The Lord is reminding us: “Don’t rush the process. Every step matters.”
When we get to the start of David’s kingship, we learn five things right away.
There’s levels to greatness.
God is with His chosen leaders because there’s always a mandate attached to help others.
There will be resistance when you’re on the cusp of breakthrough.
The Lord’s strategy will be different each time. That’s why we have to constantly seek His will.
Sometimes God will even have you come from the back by the balsam trees.
Today’s Scripture reading comes from 2 Samuel 5. (I have pulled selected verses to mirror the five points).
So David became greater and greater, for the Lord God of heaven was with him.
David now realized why the Lord had made him the king and blessed his kingdom so greatly—it was because God wanted to pour out his kindness on Israel, his chosen people.
When the Philistines heard that David had been crowned king of Israel, they tried to capture him; but David was told that they were coming and went into the stronghold.
The stronghold is a place of safety and protection where we go to get quiet before the Lord for strategy. David had a physical place, possibly several, just like we should, too. It might be your closet, it could be the bathtub, nature hiking or even your car. But there’s value in finding a place to properly hear and worship the Lord.
Then David asked the Lord, “Shall I go out and fight against them? Will you defeat them for me?” And the Lord replied, “Yes, go ahead, for I will give them to you.”
So David went out and fought with them at Baal-perazim and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So he named the place “Bursting” or ``Breakthrough.”
Later the Philistines returned again.
When David asked the Lord what to do, he replied, “Don’t make a frontal attack. Go behind and come out by the balsam trees. When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the balsam trees, attack! For it will signify that the Lord has prepared the way for you and will destroy them.
David did what the Lord commanded and destroyed the Philistines again. He was wise enough to always wait for the Lord’s instructions even when he defeated the same enemy before.
In fact, David beat the Philistines three different ways.
God used strategy, faith and preparation in obscurity to help David defeat Goliath.
At Baal-perazim, God gave the men supernatural strength in their hands.
The third time, the Lord spoke through sound and divine instructions. That’s why it’s important to become attuned to God’s voice. He’s still speaking. We get to choose who and what we listen to for directions. God is speaking through the balsam trees of your heart. Get ready to listen! Marching orders are coming! This is a season of BACKSIDE BLESSINGS.
Remember, when Christians accept Jesus in our hearts, we also become heirs to the throne. We are God’s children. So the same kingship and access David received also belongs to us in the new covenant.
Therefore, our Father will give us a strategy to overcome and subdue anything we face. Sometimes we will win on this side of heaven, other times it will be with Jesus, but victory will come.
We just have to yield to Christ when He shifts. We also have to be willing to step forward even when we are afraid. God can use our very own hands to deliver the victory.
Notice what David says in 1 Chronicles 14: ‘God has broken through my enemies by my hand like a breakthrough of water...’
Sometimes we just have to show up so that God can show out.
This week, pray that God will come and BREAKTHROUGH LIKE A RAGING FLOOD on your behalf! We want and need more of Him. HE IS THE BREAKTHROUGH.
Some people even need a bursting through of rejuvenation and joy and life more abundantly to overcome everything the enemy has tried to steal in recent years. We need a bursting through of a tired spirit, or hardened heart, or even boredom or apathy. We need a breakthrough of passion that arrives like a raging flood to get us moving to do work for the kingdom. We need a breakthrough of favor to chase after the Lord’s best with all our hearts and never look back. We need a breakthrough of new wisdom and revelation knowledge that will speak to our current situations to receive God’s divine instructions. We even need a breakthrough of peace that calms our tired souls.
We need a breakthrough of creativity to help more people live in freedom and strength to fulfill the mission God has given us.
We need an overwhelming flood of love that comes in like a rushing wind and saturates our spirits. We need an avalanche of revival and faith that does not grow weary.
“God has broken through my enemies by my hand…”
The Lord doesn’t just give victory — He allows us to participate in the miracle, too.
CHAMPION DEFENDER
David was successful even against Goliath because he knew one key thing we must understand even today: “the battle is the Lord’s” (1 Samuel 17:47).
Many people tell the story about David and Goliath as if it's an underdog story. David didn't see himself as an underdog because God had already anointed him as king. And God is not a man that He shall lie. So David knew that if God spoke something it would happen. He also knew that each battle required a different game plan.
The same is true for you. If God spoke something to you, it will come to pass, period. For nothing is impossible with God.
David foreshadows someone much greater. Our champion, Jesus Christ, also arrived in obscurity and was of lowly profession. His own brothers and hometown refused to acknowledge Him as Messiah. He seemed weak to the people, but through that same humility, God unveiled His glory. We should never despise small beginnings. While man looks at the outward appearance, “God looks at the heart!”
1 John 3-6 TPT :
Here’s how we can be sure that we’ve truly come to know God: if we keep his commands. If someone claims, “I have come to know God by experience,” yet doesn’t keep God’s commands, he is a phony and the truth finds no place in him. But the love of God will be perfected within the one who obeys God’s Word. We can be sure that we’ve truly come to live in intimacy with God, not just by saying, “I am intimate with God,” but by walking in the footsteps of Jesus.
ENCOURAGEMENT
The rain is coming, so keep scanning the horizon. Be so sensitive to the spirit that you can feel the shift the moment God switches up things.
Open your ears. Jesus is speaking through sound.
Surrender to His will even when He’s doing something completely new this time.
The Lord never changes; His instructions can.
Be patient and wait for Him.
The Lord is doing a NEW THING. FRESH. INVIGORATING AND EXCITING. SOMETHING YOU’VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE. It’s all going to look different.
The momentum shift is coming. Do you feel it yet? The pendulum is swinging in your favor.
YOU ARE MARKED BY JESUS.
The Lord never forgot you because you always kept Him first. All this time He’s been setting you up for something magnificent.
If He told you ahead of time, you’d mess everything up. It can only come in parts.
Right now you’re in a season of surrender, and watchful waiting. Continue to honor this current season and location, but also prepare for the next because it’s right around the corner.
It’s closer than you think.
The sound of bells are ringing in the distance. It’s marking a new revival and something fresh and extraordinary in your life.
Eyes have not seen, ears have not heard what the Lord is about to do.
GOD IS RESTORING REST.
Some of you are in a ‘hibernating’ season.
Things in the natural seem to be slowing down. It’s going the opposite to what you envisioned.
You are in a cocoon. Being prepared. Ripened for the journey ahead.
The Lord will unleash you at the right time to walk into victory.
Every great leader in the Bible went through hibernation and restful watching periods.
You’ll come out better than you went in.
I know the waiting season is hard.
I know it can be confusing when you know the Lord is shifting things and you can’t perceive the move just yet.
That’s all by design. He loves to surprise His children.
Keep holding on.
The Lord is about to breathe a fresh wind on your spirit to flourish.
Rapid acceleration will wash over your life.
You’ll be able to make more progress by doing less.
It’ll be so powerful, perhaps even strange, that it might take you a moment to perceive the new thing.
This is also cutting time.
Let go of anything that is no longer part of God’s plan for you.
He’s ushering in something FRESH. INVIGORATING. LIFE-CHANGING.
YOUR CHILDLIKE SPIRIT IS ABOUT TO RETURN.
You will know how bright your light shines when exposed to darkness.
DIG DEEP.
Sometimes we want God to spoon feed us.
Other times, we have to DIG. This is the digging season. It’s time to open up the Word of God and spiritually get fed unlike ever before.
The power is in the Word. Battle back with Scripture.
You’ll need it for where you are going next.
A DOOR OF HOPE IS HERE.
Isaiah 43:19 “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”
Numbers 23:19 (NIV) "God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?"
"For nothing will be impossible with God."
Luke 1:37
A few weeks ago, the Lord spoke the words "unexpected territories," and that term hasn't left my spirit. I continue to ponder and marinate the meaning to understand what He's saying.
Here's the thing — I know about unexpected territories. There was the time I decided to face witch doctors in a Malawi, Africa, village because they were terrorizing the kids on the way to school. As I sat on banana mats with a local widow, I could only face forward and pray as the men growled and made all these animalistic noises behind us. I was in such fear that my hands trembled until the witches eventually left. God was teaching me about the power of prayer and to wage war in the spirit. His power is made perfect in weakness.
Jesus taught me how to be brave because there would be unseen realms I'd someday fight.
Then there's the time I climbed the mountains of the Peruvian Andes during the pandemic to reach some of the most isolated villages in the world. The air was so thin I was sure death was imminent. All the while, my guides, heavy pagan worshippers, told me that it was good fortune for someone to die on the trail. God has a sense of humor. There's always a more incredible lesson waiting.
For this one, I physically suffered and shivered so violently during the nights that I literally begged God to keep me warm. I was pelted by ice storms and was so overcome with altitude sickness that my face swelled like an Avatar character. I learned the importance of preparation over planning. I planned the trip well. I did not prepare by packing correctly or easing into the altitude.
Preparation and strategy will always triumph over ignorance.
I also saw village children running from the valleys to get school supplies, and it felt like Heaven on earth when I saw the kids. As I climbed and hiked the rocky terrain, I was surrounded by sheepherders and learned why Jesus came for His lost ones. And, perhaps most miraculously, that heavy pagan worshipper decided on the last day that my advice made sense. He left his "other concubines" to passionately pursue just one woman who captured his heart.
Love always wins.
I know about unexpected territories, but nothing scared me more than nine months ago.
The Lord woke me up with a dream to start blogging and teaching. For five years, it'd been just the two of us. He revived me and brought me back to life after losing my mother, and God helped me regain my footing. Even though I was alone, I was never lonely. God comes for the spiritual orphans, and He showed up for me time and time again. Jesus became my very best friend. Finally, the Lord pushed me out of the nest to teach others all I had learned.
I gave the Lord 100 excuses on why it couldn't work because it wouldn't align well with my career and other dreams. Yet, our loving, amazing, gentle Father poured out His heart and explained why. We must plant seeds now for the generations that will follow. The world needs faith leaders who don't come from seminary school because we attended Jesus' school of hard knocks. We live spiritual realities in real-time through our own hardships.
There is power in the tongue, and our life might be the only Bible anyone ever reads. God wanted me to be strong and brave.
Still…I was afraid to write.
I knew how to praise God from the hospital bed when cancer ripped through my blood. I knew how to praise God when my precious mother left this earth too soon. I also learned to praise God when it seemed like I lost everything familiar. The Lord taught me so much to now help others.
So here I am standing.
Weak, but strong.
Hopeful in affliction, confident that God's plan was always better than mine.
So, on Feb. 9, 2022, I followed King Jesus into unexpected territory. I simply started to write exactly what He showed me.
In the following months, I watched before my eyes as the Lord delicately walked me through places that were never part of my plan. I have gained wisdom, purpose, strength, and even a fiery zeal that I didn't know was inside me. I have learned to faithfully walk this journey with others and go to the hard places. When others quit them, I will not because God didn't abandon me. The Lord has rapidly accelerated everything with this ministry. When the Lord says He redeems time, He really does. He can do way more in a short period if we just trust Him and follow. I’m a living testament to this truth.
My heart has grown larger, and I long to know the Father even more intimately. I want others to know Him the same way.
Most of all, I have learned the importance of chasing God's plans over my own.
It's the unexpected territories that reveal the true essence of our hearts. It's the unexpected territories that change lives, including our own.
Following the Lord means we imitate and strive to be just like Jesus. We have the Word of God at our disposal to learn and study His playbook. He also speaks forth divine knowledge to help others. He's a patient, kind and loving Teacher.
He nourishes our souls and revives us back to life. He heals us and tenderly sets us back up on our feet. Each day we grow stronger and stronger.
We become tenacious and resilient.
Steadfast and assured. Bold.
The Lord chisels the fruits of the spirit inside our souls as we learn to be patient and actively wait.
Then one day, destiny comes calling and everything changes. God simply says "go" just like He told Abraham. By faith, you move. Other times we pivot. We follow God's path because His plans always supersede ours.
I'm not hiding behind my story anymore. I'm thankful for it all. It was hard, painful, and stripped me of every last piece of pride — but every part was worthwhile. I'm safe inside His arms, and like a child, I'll chase my Father every time. The name of Jesus will always ring louder in my heart. His glory will always beam brighter than the periods of hardship. I am ready to help others find the same kind of freedom.
To others going through something similar right now: understand that a day will come when Jesus puts everything in order. He will restore and redeem you. You will look back and know that every single moment had a purpose.
Jesus is removing chains that hinder your advancement. He’s healing your body.
He's giving you the freedom you never felt before. He's stripping what doesn't belong anymore.
Justice will be served.
Things that were blocked are starting to move — so begin believing. You've waited for your moment all your life, and it's here. Joy and laughter — abundant laughter — will follow you in the days to come.
You will dance and sing because nothing goes to waste with the Lord. Remain steadfast. Full of hope. Joyful even in suffering.
Chase the heart of the Lord so much that you become like His echo on earth.
BE THE LIGHT.
Many of you are in a transition stage and ready for the next chapter — even though you don't know precisely what that means.
You feel the change.
The unsettling.
The desire for more.
You are hungry.
Even unruly at times, passionate about going against the status quo because the old way doesn't work anymore.
You've outgrown your environment.
The lights and dazzle of the world won’t move you.
The applause of man doesn't soothe you and never will.
You're headed one way, and that's forward.
Like Ruth, you're saying, "where you go, I'll go. Your people will be my people."
So get moving.
Something glorious awaits.
Ruth's unexpected territory wasn't at the gate of Bethlehem. It happened when she stumbled upon Boaz's field. The woman who lost everything and fought hard to reclaim every last ounce of dignity was now destined to become a new wife and mother.
That morning when she set out for the fields, I believe all of Heaven was anticipating the big reveal. Ruth thought she was just going to work. So did Boaz. God had a bigger plan in mind. Divine favor was clashing with perfect timing. It's a story that only God could write.
That's how the Lord works best…when we least expect it. He works wonders in the mundane. He loves to write storybook endings.
For Ruth…first came heartache, sorrow, and loss. Then she learned about the God of Israel. Next came love, then marriage…then a baby boy in a carriage.
The boy was named Obed. From his line came King David. Then Jesus.
Yet the path towards destiny all started with one step forward. Ruth dared to leave everything she ever knew to chase after the unknown. God honored her greatly.
Wherever you are today, please know that you are loved. God has not forgotten you. People are praying and believing for the moment Jesus restores and redeems all that you lost. No weapon against you will ever prosper. The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord.
This week the Lord woke me up to the word "FRESH." Something fresh and new, inviting and exciting, is coming! Perhaps you are the fresh thing. The Spirit of God is beating through your heart, and your passion for King Jesus shifts the atmosphere. The gifts He's implanted inside you reinvigorate and renew people's hearts.
Others might sleep on you, but God has not and never will. He always had a set time for you to arrive. Hold fast. Remain confident in Him, joyful in affliction, hopeful that He will burst on the scene like a raging flood and knock down anything standing in the way. There is a movement happening on the earth right now.
A shaking…a stirring for the Lord's children to forget the past and run into the future with all their hearts.
Something magnificent awaits. That something is Jesus. He loves you, believes in you, and is coming for you.
Prepare for a FRESH WIND.
Fresh — New; recently made or obtained. Sweet; in a good state; not stale. The newness of strength; renewed vigor; opposed to weariness or fatigue.
Wind — "Wind" is one of the most used metaphors in the Bible, and wind can be translated to "Spirit" in Biblical or spiritual terms.
The Holy Spirit changes atmospheres.
He moves whenever He wants.
He changes everything.
I am a living testament that the Holy Spirit will intercept our lives on His time. I didn't grow up in the Charismatic Movement and didn’t learn the gifts of the spirit, and I most certainly did not know how to perceive God's voice. It's not something I received at church or through some mystical experience. After my mom passed away, I opened her Bible and found a sheet of paper she left behind titled: "Five Ways That God Speaks…" and in her handwriting, she outlined all the answers.
The Holy Spirit was one of the answers.
Instantly I felt a shift in my spirit. I just came alive. Each day I'd search over and over again and read each answer. I opened the Bible and really studied for the very first time. I realized God had been speaking my entire life, but I was giving myself credit for all these divine revelations I received. It was the Spirit of God working that whole time.
My mom was notorious for cleaning out her Bible, yet she purposely left behind that one sheet of paper for a reason. It was the first time I perceived a "sign and wonder" right in front of my eyes. My transformation was so instant that still, to this day, I struggle to properly convey what happened to me. Immediately powerful dreams started, and I'd have all these incredible experiences. It's like a lightbulb went off, and everything got brighter. Suddenly Scripture came alive. Most of all, I really, really fell in love with Jesus.
Therefore, I will spend the rest of my life reminding people how God is big enough to meet you right where you are. Simply ask the Lord to reveal the Holy Spirit to you. Read Acts 2 over and over again. Listen to sermons on the Holy Spirit. Most of all, keep Jesus as the center of everything. He is the One who transforms. There's power in His name. Ask the Lord to teach you and impart revelation you did not know until today. He really will do it. Come with an open heart into this next season and allow the Lord to drastically change your world!
YOU ARE DESTINED FOR GREATNESS.
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper [the Holy Spirit], to be with you forever, even the spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you" (John 14:16-17).
“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the spirit" (John 3:18).
“On the day of Pentecost, all the believers were meeting together in one place. Suddenly, there was a sound from Heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting” (Acts 2:1–2).
Then He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20:22).
“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18).
