Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Please stand by...
Sorry for the lack of posts. It was my intention to post everyday, however, my last few weeks of school have gotten pretty intense. After starting college 25 years ago, I am just 3 weeks away from finally getting my Associate's. That in itself is a story for another time. I will begin posting more regularly after graduation on May 12th. Until then, please stand by...
Friday, April 6, 2012
Psalm 23, Isaiah 61:1-3 and...um...Metallica?!?
In September 2010, I was led by the Lord to take a Sozo class at the College of Sacred Scripture. Sozo is the Greek word meaning "saved, healed and delivered." This class focused on the supernatural ministry of Jesus Christ, inner healing and growing in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. One week we did an exercise on giving prophetic words and discerning what the words we received meant to us. During class we took a sheet of paper and wrote the first thing that came to mind through prayer based on given topics. One was a scripture verse and another was a song title or lyric. After we wrote our words on the paper it was passed to someone on the opposite side of the room to have the process repeated. Once all 5 sets of info were filled in, the teacher walked around the room praying and handing out the completed sheets based on who she felt led to give each page to. When I received the sheet selected for me I was a bit surprised. None of the other topics really stood out to me but the three I mention in the title of this blog.
The very first scripture reference was Psalm 23. Midway down the page, the third set contained Isaiah 61:1-3 and the title of a Metallica song - Harvester of Sorrow. WHAT?!?! I'm in a class full of charismatic youth and I get the name of a Metallica song written before many of them were even born? But that is God's humorous side. He really knows how to get to you. Harvester of Sorrow was my favorite song on Metallica's ..And Justice for All album, back in the day. WAY back in the day. We left class that night with one assignment - pray about the words you received on that paper and ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern the meaning of it all for your life. So home I went to look up Isaiah 61 and the lyrics for Harvester of Sorrow as it had been a very long time since I had even thought about that song. I had just recently read Psalm 23 again, so I focused on Isaiah.
Isaiah 61: 1-3 reads:
The Year of the LORD’s Favor
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
Psalm 23 reads:
A psalm of David.
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Harvester of Sorrow (I'm not going to copy & paste all of the lyrics just the parts that jumped off the screen at me)
I've loved, turned to hate
Trapped far beyond my fate
I give, you take this life that I forsake
Been cheated of my youth
You turned this lie to truth
Distributor of pain
Your loss becomes my gain
Anger, misery
You'll suffer unto me
Harvester of sorrow
Language of the mad
All have said their prayers
Invade their nightmares
To see into my eyes
You'll find where murder lies
Infanticide
Harvester of sorrow
Language of the mad
Harvester of sorrow
WOW - God really? How does this all relate? What does it mean for me specifically? These were my questions...then the answer came flooding into my spirit as I felt that familiar shaking feeling I had at the waterfall. It didn't matter what those lyrics meant to Metallica, but they related to the social injustices of this world. The very things listed in Isaiah 61:1 and this was my mission in life to harvest the sorrows of the people - to remove them from the 'fields' where they labor as captives, prisoners and slaves, to deliver them from the bondage of this world. Psalm 23 is the reminder of who is sending me and the promise of protection and safety. This was the Lord saying to me - You told me you were ready and willing with whatever I had planned for you. Here it is...will you go? With God there is no maybe. It's yes or no...so I sat there in the middle of my floor a crying mess as the reality of it all sunk deep into my heart for the first time... again the thought crossed my mind - life would never be the same. 'Yes Lord, I prayed...show me the way, give me Your eyes and Your heart for the broken people of this world' and at that the flood gates opened and Daddy showed me things I had never imagined - the shear depth of the pain in this world. It was too much to bear and I just sat there crying like I've never cried before...
The very first scripture reference was Psalm 23. Midway down the page, the third set contained Isaiah 61:1-3 and the title of a Metallica song - Harvester of Sorrow. WHAT?!?! I'm in a class full of charismatic youth and I get the name of a Metallica song written before many of them were even born? But that is God's humorous side. He really knows how to get to you. Harvester of Sorrow was my favorite song on Metallica's ..And Justice for All album, back in the day. WAY back in the day. We left class that night with one assignment - pray about the words you received on that paper and ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern the meaning of it all for your life. So home I went to look up Isaiah 61 and the lyrics for Harvester of Sorrow as it had been a very long time since I had even thought about that song. I had just recently read Psalm 23 again, so I focused on Isaiah.
Isaiah 61: 1-3 reads:
The Year of the LORD’s Favor
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.
Psalm 23 reads:
A psalm of David.
1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Harvester of Sorrow (I'm not going to copy & paste all of the lyrics just the parts that jumped off the screen at me)
I've loved, turned to hate
Trapped far beyond my fate
I give, you take this life that I forsake
Been cheated of my youth
You turned this lie to truth
Distributor of pain
Your loss becomes my gain
Anger, misery
You'll suffer unto me
Harvester of sorrow
Language of the mad
All have said their prayers
Invade their nightmares
To see into my eyes
You'll find where murder lies
Infanticide
Harvester of sorrow
Language of the mad
Harvester of sorrow
WOW - God really? How does this all relate? What does it mean for me specifically? These were my questions...then the answer came flooding into my spirit as I felt that familiar shaking feeling I had at the waterfall. It didn't matter what those lyrics meant to Metallica, but they related to the social injustices of this world. The very things listed in Isaiah 61:1 and this was my mission in life to harvest the sorrows of the people - to remove them from the 'fields' where they labor as captives, prisoners and slaves, to deliver them from the bondage of this world. Psalm 23 is the reminder of who is sending me and the promise of protection and safety. This was the Lord saying to me - You told me you were ready and willing with whatever I had planned for you. Here it is...will you go? With God there is no maybe. It's yes or no...so I sat there in the middle of my floor a crying mess as the reality of it all sunk deep into my heart for the first time... again the thought crossed my mind - life would never be the same. 'Yes Lord, I prayed...show me the way, give me Your eyes and Your heart for the broken people of this world' and at that the flood gates opened and Daddy showed me things I had never imagined - the shear depth of the pain in this world. It was too much to bear and I just sat there crying like I've never cried before...
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Have you ever walked in someone else's shoes?
Seriously. I'm not talking about swapping shoes with your best friend in high school or borrowing from your sister's or mother's closet. I'm talking worn dirty sweaty socks and shoes that are literally taken off of someone else's feet and put on yours. (Please forgive me, Tom, when you are reading this for describing your shoes that way, but you were there so I know you understand.)
This is where my journey to starting Rescued Ones begins...on Ometepe Island, Nicaragua in July of 2010, halfway up the Maderas volcano on our way to the waterfall. Three of us left our mission team in Costa Rica to go meet up with Tom and learn more about his ministry on the island. I was the required "third person" and up until three weeks prior to the trip I was fighting with God about leaving Costa Rica, the team and all that was familiar and comfortable. God won and well fast forward back to the halfway point..
I was having difficulty hiking up the volcano and was overheating, so I stopped to dunk my head in a pool of water to help cool down. In the process, my flipflops were soaked and made the hike even more impossible. (Yes, I know, I shouldn't have been wearing flip flops, but my other shoes were soaking wet and molding - another story all in its own). Tom pulls out a spare pair of flip flops and offers them to me. Because of the way they were molded to his feet, I had great difficulty walking in them, so here we are halfway up and as I'm feeling defeated and ready to give up, Tom says 'here wear these' and removes the shoes and socks from his feet and puts the flip flops on his own feet. You have to understand, I have this thing about feet, especially putting my feet into other people's shoes - I don't do it - not when the shoes are clean and dry and most definitely not when they soaked in sweat. Oh how I was stretched in that moment. I can only imagine the look on my face.
As we reached the top of the volcano, something happened to me. I will never forget that moment. There was a short wall of a rock we had to climb up to get to the base pool of the waterfall. As I looked across the top of the rock my eyes were level with where the waterfall met the pool and my body started shaking. Tom thought I was going to collapse or have a heart attack and told me to rest, but I was propelled forward by a force that I could not describe, I was shaking like a leaf and could not stop until I was standing under that glorious rushing water. I had no idea what was happening to me, but I knew I never wanted that feeling to leave. Before we left we filled my water bottle from this spring fed waterfall and I drank some of the best tasting water I've ever had.
I have since learned it was a move of the Holy Spirit, an encounter with God, or what ever you want to call it. In the moment all I knew was that I was rocked to my core and I walked out of that place seeing clearer, feeling alive like never before and just changed. I knew I would never again be satisfied with my life as it was before that space in time. The old was shaken away like one shakes the dust out of a rug and a new creation was born. The Bible talks about living water and I was standing there being washed in that precious water inside and out. The love of the Father was filling me to overflowing and starting a new thing in me. It has only increased over the past 2 years, so when He woke me up this morning with the words "the time is now." I knew immediately I was supposed to share what I have been previously unable to share publicly to this point.
So I ask again, have you ever walked in someone else's shoes? I pray if you haven't, that you get the chance and when you do, you realize the symbolism...It is not the other person or their shoes getting you to your destination - it is Jesus carrying you into your destiny. Sure there will be a process involved, these things take time, but every step of the journey is necessary. Sometimes you walk in your own shoes but sometimes you have to step into someone else's to see what you are missing or what is waiting. The past two years have been a journey, but I know I haven't seen anything yet. God bless all who read these words.
This is where my journey to starting Rescued Ones begins...on Ometepe Island, Nicaragua in July of 2010, halfway up the Maderas volcano on our way to the waterfall. Three of us left our mission team in Costa Rica to go meet up with Tom and learn more about his ministry on the island. I was the required "third person" and up until three weeks prior to the trip I was fighting with God about leaving Costa Rica, the team and all that was familiar and comfortable. God won and well fast forward back to the halfway point..
I was having difficulty hiking up the volcano and was overheating, so I stopped to dunk my head in a pool of water to help cool down. In the process, my flipflops were soaked and made the hike even more impossible. (Yes, I know, I shouldn't have been wearing flip flops, but my other shoes were soaking wet and molding - another story all in its own). Tom pulls out a spare pair of flip flops and offers them to me. Because of the way they were molded to his feet, I had great difficulty walking in them, so here we are halfway up and as I'm feeling defeated and ready to give up, Tom says 'here wear these' and removes the shoes and socks from his feet and puts the flip flops on his own feet. You have to understand, I have this thing about feet, especially putting my feet into other people's shoes - I don't do it - not when the shoes are clean and dry and most definitely not when they soaked in sweat. Oh how I was stretched in that moment. I can only imagine the look on my face.
As we reached the top of the volcano, something happened to me. I will never forget that moment. There was a short wall of a rock we had to climb up to get to the base pool of the waterfall. As I looked across the top of the rock my eyes were level with where the waterfall met the pool and my body started shaking. Tom thought I was going to collapse or have a heart attack and told me to rest, but I was propelled forward by a force that I could not describe, I was shaking like a leaf and could not stop until I was standing under that glorious rushing water. I had no idea what was happening to me, but I knew I never wanted that feeling to leave. Before we left we filled my water bottle from this spring fed waterfall and I drank some of the best tasting water I've ever had.
I have since learned it was a move of the Holy Spirit, an encounter with God, or what ever you want to call it. In the moment all I knew was that I was rocked to my core and I walked out of that place seeing clearer, feeling alive like never before and just changed. I knew I would never again be satisfied with my life as it was before that space in time. The old was shaken away like one shakes the dust out of a rug and a new creation was born. The Bible talks about living water and I was standing there being washed in that precious water inside and out. The love of the Father was filling me to overflowing and starting a new thing in me. It has only increased over the past 2 years, so when He woke me up this morning with the words "the time is now." I knew immediately I was supposed to share what I have been previously unable to share publicly to this point.
So I ask again, have you ever walked in someone else's shoes? I pray if you haven't, that you get the chance and when you do, you realize the symbolism...It is not the other person or their shoes getting you to your destination - it is Jesus carrying you into your destiny. Sure there will be a process involved, these things take time, but every step of the journey is necessary. Sometimes you walk in your own shoes but sometimes you have to step into someone else's to see what you are missing or what is waiting. The past two years have been a journey, but I know I haven't seen anything yet. God bless all who read these words.
The Flame is Ignited
I have created this space to share about the vision I have been given for ministry. This vision has been unfolding for exactly one year today as I set out with a dear friend to encounter the Furious Love of God the Father (to be affectionately called from here on out Daddy, Papa, etc.) at an event in Monroe, Michigan that has not only changed my life, but the way I view God and the way I experience His presence in my life. The Furious Love Event was like no other conference or meeting I've ever experienced. This event is one that those who know me or will get to know me will never stop hearing about. It began what is to be a lifelong journey with God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) based on Isaiah 61:1-3, sharing the love of Christ in the darkest places on earth to bring freedom to those trapped in bondage of social injustice, to bring an end to human trafficking, but oh there is so much more to it. The Furious Love Event was not actually the beginning, it goes further back, but I will share that story a little later. This event was the catalyst and the place Rescued Ones was conceived. It has been one long year and the birthing pains are here in all their glory and most importantly for His glory above all. I urge you to pray and join me as you feel called in what God is doing and oh how He is doing great and mighty things. I am excited to partner with a loving God to seek after His heart and reach His children and show them that no matter what their lives have been like, they are beautiful and highly favored sons and daughters of the King of Kings and heirs to the kingdom of Heaven.
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