PROPHETIC WORD: This is your surprise season! God is bursting you forth, just like Perez!
DOUBLE THE PROMISES, DOUBLE THE BLESSINGS
But then he pulled back his hand, and out came his brother! “What!” the midwife exclaimed. “How did you break out first?” So he was named Perez, meaning “Bursting Out.” (Gen. 38:29)
I love this beautiful walk with God because He always breaks through with fresh revelation and new insight. The kind you sit there in awe and think: “What! How did that happen? How did I miss that? HOW WAS I BLIND TO THEM?”
People are about to say that about you -- just like our guy Perez in the Bible!
The story takes place in Genesis 38:27-29. Tamar is pregnant with twin boys through a terrible situation. However, the Lord protects her life because God designed her to have a great purpose in this world. She will become a very important mother to her children and these twins will change history forever.
So get ready because Jesus has double the blessings coming your way! I’m so excited about this entire word!
WHAT! HOW?
When we meet Tamar in the Bible, she has now experienced the death of two husbands, and she’s childless and alone. Her father-in-law Judah should provide her with the next son in line to marry, as was the custom of the day, but that never happens. Since women were valued based on birthing children at this time, Tamar’s life was basically over.
Then the story gets odd. Like, Lifetime Movie odd. The father-in-law Judah loses his own wife, and he’s grieving her loss and the death of two sons. Clearly his mind isn’t thinking right.
One day, Judah heads to town and Tamar puts aside her widow’s clothing and covers her face with a veil. Judah thinks she’s a prostitute.
“So he stopped and propositioned her to sleep with him, not realizing of course that she was his own daughter-in-law.” Gen. 38:16 🧐
Tamar gets pregnant with twin boys and when Judah finds out three months later, he wants her killed! Unbeknownst to him, Judah is actually the father of the boys (hello Maury Povich)!!!
The expectant mom is about to be burned to death when God steps in and helps Tamar reveal the situation to Judah.
At this point, Judah admits his sin and failure of his fatherly duties and records the first public confession of sin in the Bible. But the story today is really focused on the babies. The twins Tamar is carrying hold seeds of promise that need to come forth because they will radically change the history of the world!
So now the time of childbirth has arrived and the midwife is positioned like a quarterback ready to receive the snap and identify the firstborn son!
This was a monumental task because the firstborn received authority, power and prestige as a birthright. This is especially true for these boys because Judah will become a tribe of kings, so this firstborn child carries significant inheritance and kingship.
In Genesis 38:29, we arrive at the big moment!
The midwife is there in position, holding a red ribbon in her hand to identify who comes first. Suddenly, out bursts a teeny little hand from Tamar’s canal! The midwife instantly ties a red ribbon around this little fella...
But then he pulled back his hand, and out came his brother! “What!” the midwife exclaimed. “How did you break out first?” So he was named Perez, meaning “Bursting Out.”
The name Perez (perets) in Hebrew means: to breach or break forth, bursting forth, bursting out, whether through something, or out of something, breakthrough
The lineage of Perez’s seed would eventually lead to Jesus Christ, so the name here is important. The baby broke through to create a new order that Jesus would come to fulfill.
The second son was named Zerah -- which means “Dawning, Shining, Rising of Light”.
Both twins will later have their names recorded in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in Matthew 1:3. Scholars have debated for years why they were both included, but the meaning of their names likely reveal why. The first birth broke forth to reveal the Dawning, Shining, Rising of Light that Jesus brought to the world.
GET READY FOR THE NEW!
The Lord has such a beautiful word for you today. I know this is very specific and powerful for someone at this very moment because I was studying something else this morning and heard the word “Perez” pressed upon my spirit. So naturally I was like “who is that?!” Then Holy Spirit burst forth all this revelation and oh goodness, God has a word for you!
Sometimes we are holding onto long-awaited promises from the Lord and other times we are actually THE PROMISE. You are the answer to someone’s prayer right now. Perhaps you are Christ’s very own vessel chosen to go out and reach the nations through the words and inspiration He gives you. And although you can’t even see it or perceive yet, the Lord knows. He’s creating a fire in your soul to love others just like He does. But, remember that, “the race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong...(Ecc. 9:11).” Zerah popped his hand out first, but Perez was actually the one chosen to come forth ahead of the other. This little guy had divine favor stamped over his life. In other words, people around you might find success first or see their dreams long before you do, but God has not forgotten your destiny and birthright. He keeps saying “encore, encore” which is a second performance that surpasses the first. Sometimes the Lord really does save the best for last. Zerah was seen by others first, but Perez carried power and destiny with him.
No matter what you have toiled with, endured, heartache you’ve experienced or battles you’ve fought in this lifetime, the Lord is the only one who defines your purpose and destiny. His timing is always perfect. He is the Author, Director, Choreographer, Writer, Destiny-Designer and Heart-Definer of ALL THINGS when it comes to you. Even if it looks like others are ahead of you, Christ doesn’t define time like we do.
He can burst you forth and ahead at an acceleration that will leave others wondering “how did that happen?!” People will stand there someday soon just like that midwife and ask “where did you come from?”
You are the breach and breakthrough to generations of strongholds in your bloodline. The heavy warfare and tragic circumstances you’ve endured will ultimately burst you forth to redefine the history of your family.
You are right on the edge of your HOW SEASON. How did that happen? How did God do that? How did I miss them right in front of my eyes?
For some of you specifically, you’re right on the cusp of experiencing radical healing in your body, both physically and emotionally! They work in tandem. Others of you will receive power from the Holy Spirit just like He promised the disciples if they’d stay in Jerusalem for a little bit longer. There’s a gift in tarrying and lingering with Jesus. Others of you will experience the One True Promise — and that is receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit and understanding the Lord’s heart in new and intimate ways! Others will land a new job, career or opportunity that will leave you shaking your head and wondering “how in the world did God pull this off?!” Others of you have stood strong in the face of adversity and need the Lord to break you out of a situation holding you bondage to fear and fatigue. You need people and resources and a God who can do the impossible in your life. This uncomfortable place of stagnation has to be released. Jesus sees it all and He’s your rescue story. He’s coming. Keep holding on beloved. Do not give in yet, Jesus is coming for you. He loves you so very, very much.
Our Heavenly Father is the God of miracles!
I just heard the word “ring” in my spirit and specifically this definition:
: to have a sound or character expressive of some quality.
There is something within you that is unlike anything this world has ever heard. You are the Lord’s special chosen warrior who is called to do mighty things for His Kingdom and win hearts for Him and you will transform every single room you enter. The sound of your voice, the uplifting and lovely words that ooze from your spirit, changes and impacts lives. People are drawn to your wholeness, kindness and selfless character. You are music and poetry that God created as a gift to the world. We need you. You’re an original. Your life matters. Never give up. Your twins are coming!
IT’S TIME TO ‘BREAK-FORTH’
“Do I bring to the moment of birth and not give delivery?” says the LORD. (Isaiah 66:9)
When studying childbirth, if a hand or limb comes out first, like Zerah, it often signals a breeched position, which is not good, especially in Biblical times when medical intervention was scarce. Tamar had already seen the Lord deliver her from death, so I believe she was quite assured these babies would come despite the odds. In the same way, you have to trust what you know the Lord has told you even when it seems absolutely impossible right now! Some of the greatest moments in my life came when there was no human logical way for it to happen, and Jesus showed up in the 11th hour. I’ve seen it firsthand and I’m telling you, keep praying, worshipping, believing and pressing in with your Heavenly Father!
When Zerah reached out his hand, he was likely in a transverse position and blocking the birthing canal, so it was miraculous when this boy pulled back his arm so that laboring could continue. The boys were locked in the womb, and both had to work jointly to survive. You have to allow Jesus to take full reign in your life during this season and completely yield to His ways. This is a joint ‘birthing’ and you have to remain in sync with the Most High to bring forth these promises.
The Lord has spoken twins to me so much these last two years, especially during the lockdown during 2020. He was showing me that major, life-shifting promises for His children would break-forth in rapid succession. The first ‘birth’ is tied to the second promise. They work in tandem. We often talk about promises in our walks with Jesus, but we rarely mention the process. There is always a long and tedious process before the big moments! It will take an extraordinary set of circumstances to get them out of the canal, so only God can perform this delivery. It will happen for you in an astonishingly supernatural way. When we study gifts in the Bible, the gifts come various forms like revelation, knowledge, wisdom, power, teaching, prophetic and apostolic ministries, and the gift to discern the spiritual realm at a greater level, etc. So when you spend time with the Lord, THINK BIG. Jesus is in the business of building the body of Christ as a whole. When you “birth” promises in your life, they will always build up the kingdom in big and small ways. So for many of you, you’ll “birth” back-to-back gifts and it will launch an entirely new mission and walk with the Lord.
Many of the words Christ keeps having me share on this blog are repetitive about these promises because it’s so heavy in the spirit right now. This is a kairos time for people all over the world. These spiritual “birthings” will launch and be released at the same time rapidly worldwide to bring hearts back to the Father. There’s been a ton of intense warfare and distractions right now, but there’s always travailing before the time of birth.
If the parting of the Red Sea was your big escape from Egypt years ago, then this next promise will be your “crossing of the Jordan River,” followed by entering the Promised Land and a new era of your life. When the Israelites crossed and entered, it took action on their part, working in partnership with Christ. The Lord has very specific instructions for you and it might seem very simple and practical like being still and tarrying for a bit longer. But this is the time to obey every last detail.
The fact that the midwife was shocked to see Perez birthed first indicates to us that he didn’t just “arrive” but he literally “broke through.” It was a shock and surprising and awe-inspiring and no one could have predicted this to take place. Your ‘birthing’ will happen the same way. No one else knows what the Father taught you in the secret place.
But the miracle wasn’t just the birth -- it was also this woman Tamar. Momma and Daddy were just as important as babies.
Dad had power and prestige and social status. Mom was considered unimportant and less than and endured terrible circumstances. Yet, the Lord still rewrote her story. And guess what? She would go on to be the first woman listed in the lineage of Jesus Christ! It’s a big deal to have a father in the life of children, but moms can still do such powerful work and raise kings!
We see this in the life of Timothy in the Bible. Paul reminds him how the women in his life played a significant role in his godly upbringing. This is one of my very, very favorite verses in the entire Bible:
“I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” (2 Timothy 1:5)
My grandmother was my favorite person in the world and died when I was five years old. But she radically influenced my life and took me to church and introduced me to Christ. We were best pals. My middle name is after her. But her life didn’t start out great. She was abandoned by her own mother at a children’s home and didn’t get to experience holidays and receive special gifts. She didn’t have a mother to rock her to sleep or to share secrets and wisdom with. So I like to believe that she used that pain for purpose and I received so much of that love for five years and it’s sustained me for a lifetime! My Nana refused to allow her past to dictate her future and she impacted the world very much!
The very last gift she ever gave me was a giant She-Ra doll because this doll was known as the "The most exciting and powerful woman in the universe!" My Nana didn’t let me forget my worth.
And the lineage continued. My Nana had one daughter and that was my mom and she blossomed into such a woman of God who impacted countless lives. My paternal grandmother also deeply influenced many people. I’ve lost all the special women that came before me, but they showed me the power of Christ and how to impact the next generation. I’m not a mother yet, but I know the promise God has given me. My family line is not finished. In the meantime, the Lord allows me to love and steward hope in the lives of my nieces and nephews and spiritual daughters during this period of time. It all has purpose. Your entire life does, too. Don’t allow what you don’t have yet — to stall you from moving forward. The breakthrough comes in pushing!
Women have great significance in the Kingdom and Tamar, Lois and Eunice raised up future warriors! We can be the same influence to the next generation. We can honor our loved ones best, by sharing their stories without shame and speaking life into children and teaching them about their history and familial line.
The greatest parts of us, comes from the best parts of those who went before us.
If you didn’t have a good family, have no fear. You are the exact person the Lord loves to raise up as His own, His very precious and beloved Esther. You will start a new generation that follows you into Eternity. You will be the Tamar of your family.
WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
• The Lord is saying that some of you will follow a similar path as Tamar in this lifetime. Your life holds tremendous power. However, your greatest gift to the world is the child(ren) you will bear. For some of you, you will physically give birth to twins, while even more of you will soon birth spiritual twins. These are promises that the Lord planted inside you and the time of childbirth has arrived. The twins you hold in your womb will shift and completely change the atmosphere.
• The Lord is reminding us of John 2:11 in this season. Jesus has now walked in obscurity for three decades and He’s at a wedding that runs out of wine. His mother basically pushes Him to essentially “come forth” and “breach” and disrupt the old systems of the world. However, Jesus tells Mary that it’s not His time yet. She tells the others to simply listen to Jesus and He later turns the water into wine. That moment became Jesus’ first miracle and launched His ministry.
Sometimes it’s our very own mothers or other people who God gives the power to push us even when it’s not comfortable. Sometimes others can see the gifts and talents God planted in our hearts long before we do. And they are here to shake and move us into position. In reality, it’s really Christ orchestrating it all. That’s what happened with Perez. He burst forth on the scene just like Jesus as a gift to the world!
Perez was the very water that eventually led to the sweet wine of Jesus Christ.
Check this out...
The Biblical genealogy listed in Ruth 4 starts with Perez!
→Perez starts a line of boys born in the family
→That series of boys leads to Boaz, a direct descendant of Perez!
→Once Boaz and Ruth come together, they have a son Obed, who has Jesse, who has a shepherd boy who is the youngest and most overlooked in his family — but later he defeats Goliath and eventually becomes King David!
→David eventually leads to our King -- Jesus Christ!
Jesus could have chosen a perfect family to come into this world, but He selected a sinful family, born of descendants of Judah and Tamar who conceived children in a horrific way.
Why did He do that?
Jesus was showing us that circumstances or families or birthrights do not decide our future. We are not tied to names and labels, but we are defined by His glorious unveiling, mercy and redemption. And guess what? In the Gospel of Matthew, the very first book in the New Testament, we don’t see Mary’s name listed first or Elizabeth or the other amazing women in the Bible like Eve, Sarah, Rebekah or Leah.
Rather, we see our girl Tamar listed as the first woman in Matthew 1:3!
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob,
and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar,
and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram…
Which brings us back to those twins coming forth. Notice in the above genealogy, we only see one boy listed in each generation except when it comes to Tamar.
The names of Perez and Zerah are both recorded because both gifts are key here! They work in partnership and so will the promises Christ births in your life!
I think Tamar and the boys got their names added in the history of Jesus to honor the mother who endured double the heartache through the death of two husbands, but God redeemed her with two sons. She waited double the time to finally have children, but God accelerated her life with double the blessings in an instant.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Jesus is the Firstborn, we get to be His precious children who shine His light wherever we go! How special is it to be an heir to the King of all Kings?!
For those of you who are physically birthing twins in this lifetime, please understand that both children will start a lineage that will be powerful, and purposeful in the Lord's Kingdom. What a gift Jesus gave you!
So, stand still and just wait and see. Jesus is pushing these dreams and promises forth that have been planted by God and they’re ready to birth! Get ready for people to say: “HOW??!” and “WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?”
Remember the words the Bible says right before Tamar gives birth:
“In due season the time of her delivery arrived and she had twin sons.”
In due season.
In due season.
In due season.
In due season, the time of her delivery arrived.
“For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)
Your season is here!
✈️Destination: Arrived.
Thank you Father for this glorious story you taught us through the life of Tamar and her sons. You rewrite history over and over again and we can’t begin to fathom Your deep, penetrating love for every single one of Your children. Thank you for choosing us to raise up as Your own. You’re such a great Dad! Lord, I know that Your children are holding on to promises that You gave them long ago. We petition and plead that You comfort and hold them and sustain them in this hour until the time of birthing arrives. You are such a great and loving Father, too merciful and majestic for us to even fathom. You created the sun and the stars and all the little hands and feet of precious children around the world. Even though the Bible mentions the kingship of boys, we know through the life of Tamar and many women that they raised these kings. Women and men, girls and boys are all important and You’ve designed each one to have a specific purpose. Everything You make is perfect. Teach us to honor and love You in new ways, and give us patience like You have and the ability to love others just like You do. We love you so much Father. Thank you for this incredible teaching today and use us as vessels to share Your glory and power everywhere we go!
We remember the words from Psalm 89: “Our power is based on your favor! Yes, our protection is from the Lord Himself!”
We love You so much!!!
