PROPHETIC WORD: Put on God’s engagement ring of eternal promise! 💍 All things are new.
"Everything that is connected to your old life has disappeared, all things are fresh and brand new!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)
This word is for someone still clinging to the past. God is already starting something fresh and wonderful in your life. He's renewed your heart. He's given you the vision to see Him in new ways and you even hear His spirit singing at dawn. Something new and exciting is starting.
This is a new work. A new hope. A new vision. A new surrender. A new idea. A new longing. A new inner-knowing that Jesus is so close and near.
God has given you a new beginning. Fresh hope continues to spring forward.
Take every single thought captive and yield to God’s desires in your life. You are being made whole and new because your DNA is stamped with the glory of Jesus Christ. Your newfound faith has been rewarded!
You are a son or daughter of the Most High!
A life with Jesus is counter to the culture and society, but it's vastly more abundant and wholesome because it’s made new each day. God longs to see you set free from your past as you walk together in perfect harmony and newfound freedom! This is not a future gift, but has happened.
The Lord wants you to linger longer with Him this season. When digging a new watering hole, you might hit the dirt for a while, but you'll eventually find fresh living water to quench your soul! Stay in a place of worship, surrender, and be confident that Jesus, your Savior, is there with you!
Jesus told the woman at the well, "for when you drink the water I give you, it becomes a gushing fountain of the Holy Spirit, flooding you with endless life." (John 4:14)
Jesus is so very fond of you.
As I write these words, I hear wedding bells ringing in the distance from a church. The bells mark newness.
God is saying that you'll be singing in the springtime. Something is being made entirely new in you. Eyes have not seen, and ears have not heard what the Lord is about to do. Nations will rise, and strongholds will break at the mention of His name. The name of Jesus holds power. Joy is your portion. Hope, even in affliction, is where you shine.
Cast off anything that is not pure and noble in the eyes of our King and run with thanksgiving into the future.
God has set you apart with a mission like Paul's to unveil "God's wonderful gospel" (Romans 1:1).
It's a gospel that is not limited to man's understanding but releases true freedom for God’s people. Despair and defeat don't live here. Everything is marked in victory! The Greek word for gospel means GOOD NEWS.
The Good News is wrapped in mercy, kindness, salvation, freedom, complete trust, and knowing that God is all-merciful, all-powerful, and all-knowing. He is Jesus, God in the flesh, a Rescuer who came for all of humanity. The Good News of Christ triggers JOY! Despite what happens externally, your heart is full of hope in Christ Jesus.
The love of Christ sings from your soul like a bird chirping with freedom on the most glorious spring morning.
The Lord is giving you new sight and vision to see Him correctly and the ability to withstand any outside pressure. Your heart longs to be set free in Him. The whole kingdom of God is based on GRACE. We cannot earn favor or salvation. It's a gift from God. Jesus loves you because He loves you, not because you have earned His love. There's nothing you can do to increase this favor.
God loves you as is because you are marked forever as His beloved son or daughter.
A NEW ORDER
The power of the HOLY SPIRIT will be unleashed in new ways and something new is stirring across the land!
In Acts 19, revival breaks out by the power of God!
"The power of God caused the word to spread, and the people were greatly impacted." (v. 20)
In Acts 19 at Ephesus, God was working so powerfully through Paul that even his handkerchiefs and aprons healed people.
So local leaders tried to call on the name of Jesus and do the same thing, except they had no relationship with the Lord, so evil spirits overpowered them. This is when they realized spiritual warfare is very real and they were overwhelmed with fear “and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.”
My friend, do not take any magic or sorcery lightly. Get rid of any books, charms, images, idols, or other portals that open to the demonic realm. Even in Ephesus, believers there didn’t realize they were opening their lives to Satan and this is a very serious matter. Do not consult any horoscope for your future or serve Zodiac signs or even speak of these things. It’s extremely serious if you are a Christian. Look what happened to King Saul, who was once anointed by God but turned to other sources.
“So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He did not seek guidance from the Lord…” (1 Chronicles 10:13-14)
Witchcraft is rooted in control (control of others, control of your future, control of circumstances, control of anything outside God’s perfect will) and rebellion. Even the New Age believes in God but they will not acknowledge the resurrection power of Jesus. Jesus Christ unleashes freedom. What’s remarkable is in Acts 19, the people confessed, burned their books and “the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.”
Jesus healed them instantly and it sparked revival. The Lord can flip the script in an instant!
The enemy does not want you to know the Word of God and really tap into the heart of Jesus because it’s the weapon of truth. In the Bible, God’s people are given armor (Ephesians 6) and every piece is defensive except for the Sword of the Spirit, “which represents the Word of God.”
Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
The sword is both an offensive and defensive weapon. It allows you to fight and protects.
Ephesians 6:12 — “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Like a trainer, the Holy Spirit will teach you how to use the sword correctly. It’s great to read devotionals, listen to sermons and read prophetic words, but that’s just a little oil for your sword. You need a very real sword that God develops and personally customizes in the secret place. He will teach you, I promise.
Years ago, my well was dry. I found the Bible boring and could not understand what it all meant. Then God Himself opened my eyes. He just did it. Jesus will do the same for you when you meet with Him each morning. I encourage you to start a very disciplined learning and training season where it’s all or nothing with God. Just ask Him for His help. The Father will never turn you away.
We cannot afford to be elementary anymore in our devotion and understanding of Jesus. It’s time for higher learning.
PREPARE FOR HIGHER LEARNING: Get you a few Bibles in various translations that you can understand. If you want to understand the Bible with nourishment, get the NIV or New Living Translation (the Message is a great supplemental source) because they speak more to the heart. Most people don’t speak King James in regular life, so it can be hard to comprehend. These Bibles are written in easier language to understand.
You need hard copies of the Bible to underline and highlight and mark various movements of God along the pages. Apps and all that work in certain situations, but you need some hard copies that you can sleep next to and see on your nightstand. Soldiers keep their weapons close.
It will become your most sacred and prized possession. The Word helps us know Jesus in new and intimate ways. He’s our refuge and escape.
When you start studying the Bible, context is very key. Read and study the introduction pages in front of each book or letter so you know 1.) what the book is about and 2.) know the writer and who the audience is. Remember: almost everything Paul wrote in the New Testament was a letter, so read the messages as if you are gaining Godly wisdom from a spiritual father or mentor.
Ask the Lord to lead you to one page or story that’s new and something you’ve never studied before.
After reading the chapter, sit and pray with the Father and journal specific words the Holy Spirit is illuminating that caught your attention. Then go online and search “Bible commentaries for Acts 19” or whatever chapter you’re studying. It will give you context. Then tomorrow, you’re going to read the exact same chapter again unless the Holy Spirit moves you. Keep studying that same chapter over and over. The Holy Spirit is going to reveal how He sharpens the sword each day in new ways. Also pay attention to the footnotes. They will help you go deeper.
MOVING FORWARD: If you want to know your future, here it is: Jesus Christ is for you. He's created you to be a vibrant plant, rooted in Him, that colors the earth with greenery and brings eternal life into atmospheres.
Don’t tap into any sources that are outside of the Word of God. The Bible states clearly that we are not to worship angels or idols. Throw away anything that is not pure and holy. It’s all or nothing time!
You can trust in the words of Ephesians 1:11, which says, "through our union with Christ, we too have been claimed by God as his own inheritance. Before we were even born, he gave us our own destiny that we would fulfill the plan of God who always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart."
Paul puts it this way in Colossians 2:1-15 (MSG):
“Know that I'm on your side, right alongside you. You're not in this alone.”
2-4 I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God's great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we've been shown the mystery! I'm telling you this because I don't want anyone leading you off on some wild-goose chase, after other so-called mysteries, or "the Secret."
5 I'm a long way off, true, and you may never lay eyes on me, but believe me, I'm on your side, right beside you. I am delighted to hear of the careful and orderly ways you conduct your affairs, and impressed with the solid substance of your faith in Christ.
From the Shadows to the Substance
6-7 My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Go ahead with what you've been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You're deeply rooted in him. You're well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.
8-10 Watch out for people who try to dazzle you with big words and intellectual double-talk. They want to drag you off into endless arguments that never amount to anything. They spread their ideas through the empty traditions of human beings and the empty superstitions of spirit beings. But that's not the way of Christ.
Everything of God gets expressed in him, so you can see and hear him clearly. You don't need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything.
11-15 Entering into this fullness is not something you figure out or achieve. It's not a matter of being circumcised or keeping a long list of laws. No, you're already in—insiders—not through some secretive initiation rite but rather through what Christ has already gone through for you, destroying the power of sin.
If it's an initiation ritual you're after, you've already been through it by submitting to baptism. Going under the water was a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ. When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive—right along with Christ!
Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ's cross. He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe of their sham authority at the Cross and marched them naked through the streets.
MARKED FOREVER
When you believed in Jesus, you were given the Holy Spirit as an engagement ring. It guarantees your inheritance, seals us into God's kingdom, and gives us complete freedom!
The Lord is sealing your love relationship and union right now in new ways, fortified to withstand any enemy attempts. You have been made new, a complete and sparkling gem reflecting God’s redemptive power that’s ready to be revealed to the nations!
”Sing, oh barren one, sing!”
This season, make sure to really extend generous grace right now to the poor and needy. I feel God is pushing us to live by the impulses of the Holy Spirit and allow Him to reveal the needs of others in very new and unique circumstances. Go ALL IN this season! Be God’s special change agent who will go wherever He calls and do what He says. King Jesus is planting people along your path who need your help. This will be a new thing!
Right now, in my spirit for someone, I'm hearing "departure and exit." The Lord will confirm this in your heart, and God has already spoken about this matter or given you some kind of head start.
The Holy Spirit might be using these words for people in various ways. Look at the words used when the Spirit of God worked through Paul. The Greek translation said whatever touched his flesh had healing power.
Acts 19:12 — “…the diseases departed from them and the evil spirits exited.”
Reminder: Yield, yield, yield. Yield to the goodness of God and be eager and willing to serve others in new ways. Be expectant that Jesus is coming. Be diligent in studying His Word and approaching His throne with childlike wonder.
The Lord has helped many of you now realize how salvation is not based on religious customs or spiritual condemnations created by man, but by the power and influence of Jesus Christ who dwells within us.
Condemnation is not from God. It makes one feel guilt, shame, judged, fear, regret and unworthiness…it usually stems from a past mistake, trauma or experience. One red flag is that you’ll think about the past a lot instead of running towards the future. Or, certain atmospheres or certain people will make your spirit feel very unsettled and judged even when you don’t always know why. When people place shame on you, they say “you’re bad, you’re selfish or conceited, or what you did is bad, or you can’t be included because you’re different than us.” God wants you freed from these people.
Meanwhile, healthy conviction in Christ is how the Holy Spirit illuminates places we still need work. For instance, if a child is not obeying at school, a parent makes more headway by speaking to them with love and grace and openly talking about the matter. God does the same thing. He does not shame ever.
Healthy conviction teaches you to see God as a loving Father who wants to help. You come to the Father with a heart that realizes where you still need to be repaired and made new. God will highlight convictions in us constantly because He desires a constant renewing of our minds and a gentle spirit that recognizes anything outside His influence. He wants us “wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16).
The Lord is speaking about ONENESS to my heart. Remember, we are one humanity and one race. We are a God’s chosen remnant set aside by Christ. The Bible tells us "the church" is all the parts of the Body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:12 -- "The body is a unit, though it is composed of many parts. And although its parts are many, they all form one body. So it is with Christ."
Together, we’re stronger. Let’s build each other up because there is lots of work ahead!
Prayer & Scripture
May you continually be made new! Run your race and move forward with hope and assurance that God is leading the way. Do not despise small beginnings. God makes all things beautiful in their time!
Remember that all things are possible with God (Luke 1:37). Never give up on His promises.
The Lord wants me to talk about your completeness with Him. In Ephesians 1:23, Paul says “we are those filled by the Spirit of God, and we also complete God!” Isn't that extraordinary?!
Colossians 2 explains how "our own completeness is now found in him. We are completely filled with God as Christ's fullness overflows within us. He is the Head of every kingdom and authority in the universe."
We need complete and new vision to see God correctly. The Lord is cutting away all guilt and power of sin from our lives to be made completely new. We aren't bound to what man says about us, we aren't bound to our past transgressions, we aren't bound to our sinful nature, and we aren't tied to any condemnation.
We are free and complete because Christ dwells within our hearts! If anything happened in your life before, it ended when you chose Jesus. If you fell short yesterday, confess it to God, give it to Him and declare freedom in His name. We are not perfect, but made perfect through Jesus' resurrection power! People do not define us; God is the only One we serve. Chase His applause with all your heart!
“Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving." (Col. 2:6-7 MSG)
"What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us." (1 Cor. 2:12)
"This is what we speak, not in words taught to us by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words." (1 Cor. 2:13)
"Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person." (Colossians 4:6)
"Finally, believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God's word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart]." (Phil 4:8, AMP)
Psalm 96 (Passion)
Go ahead—sing your new song to the Lord! Let every one in every language sing him a new song.
Don't stop! Keep on singing! Make his name famous! Tell everyone every day how wonderful he is.
Give them the good news of our great Savior.
Take the message of his glory and miracles to every nation. Tell them about all the amazing things he has done.
The Lord's greatness is beyond description, and he deserves all the praise that comes to him.
He is our King-God, and it's right to be in holy awe of him.
Other gods are absolutely worthless. For the Lord God is Creator-God, who spread the splendor of the skies!
Breathtaking brilliance and awe-inspiring majesty radiate from his shining presence.
His stunning beauty overwhelms all who come before him.
Surrender to the Lord Yahweh, all you nations and peoples. Surrender to him all your pride and strength.
Confess that Yahweh alone deserves all the glory and honor. Bring an offering and come celebrate in his courts.
Come worship the Lord God wearing the splendor of holiness. Let everyone wait in wonder as they tremble in awe before him.
Tell the nations plainly that Yahweh rules over all! He is doing a great job, and nothing will disrupt him, for he treats everyone fair and square.
Let the skies sing for joy! Let the earth join in the chorus. Let oceans, thunder and fields echo this ecstatic praise until every swaying tree of every forest joins in, lifting up their songs of joyous praise to him!
Here he comes, the Lord God, and he's ready to judge the world. He will do what's right and can be trusted to always do what's fair.
