Be Encouraged; Take Heart; and Hold the Line: a Word from Quarantine

 

   As I sit here typing late at night, I am battling COVID 19. And let me just tell you, COVID is no joke! The waves of pain, fatigue, coughing spells, and night sweats add to the discomfort that takes sleep away each night. However, in quarantine, I have time to think, reflect and pray, and God has been showing me some things. He has been impressing upon me things to tell His Bride, the Church! 

   Throughout their history, God called upon His original covenant people, Israel, to quarantine. He called upon them to come apart from the world and seek Him. He called upon them to focus on his goodness and deliverance in ages past, and He called upon them to rely upon Him for deliverance from their enemies.

• At the first Passover, they quarantined in their homes with blood on the doorposts as the death angel passed throughout the land of Egypt while passing over them.
• At the Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot, they would build a booth and gather there to remember what God had done for them while making their wilderness journey to the Promised Land.
• In Esther's day, they quarantined while fasting and praying for God to deliver them from the wicked schemes of Haman who wanted to annihilate them.  And
• In Noah's Day, he and his family quarantined in the Ark for a year while the floodwaters were upon the earth! 

 And now, He has allowed the floodwaters of sickness to come upon me, so that I might quarantine and reflect upon and hear from Him. 

   In this time of quarantine, God is speaking. I choose to redeem this time of quarantine to hear from Heaven! And God has shown me 3 things He wants you to hear!

 

1. Be encouraged! You were made for this moment! Out of the billions of people who have lived upon this planet, He chose YOU to live here in America on Earth today! He chose you for this moment, and He has placed within you EVERYTHING you need to survive and thrive in this moment of time! You are His chosen child, adopted into His royal family! He will not leave you or forsake you. He wants to use you for His kingdom work, so that His Kingdom might come and His will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven!

   But you might object, "I'm not equipped for this task or this moment. I didn't see 2020 coming, and I don't have anything left to go on." To which He says, "I DID SEE 2020 coming. I HAVE EQUIPPED YOU, and I WILL GIVE YOU what you need to go on! So be encouraged child of the Most High God!

2. Take Heart! We're in a two-front war - the spiritual and the natural. What is happening in
the spiritual is manifesting in the natural. What has been declared by God in the Spirit, YOU WILL SEE shortly take place in the natural, BUT WARFARE HAS TO TAKE PLACE. Just as for Daniel of old in Daniel 9, warfare in the spiritual brought a Divine Visitation for Daniel in the natural! SO GO TO WAR! 

   

   I heard recently that Prayer is talking to God. Warfare is talking to the enemy. Revelation 12:11 "...and they overcame him by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of their testimony..." So talk to God [PRAYER], and talk to the enemy [WARFARE]. Pray and begin to praise Him for His goodness. Then begin to tell the enemy whose child you are. Remind the enemy of the authority that has been given you because of that relationship. And go to war in the Heavenlies for your family, your Christian brothers and sisters, your communities, state, and nation. DRIVE THE ENEMY OUT! And...

3. Hold the Line! That statement is an old military term meaning to stay in line and fight as a soldier. Hold your rank. Hold your position. Don't let the Enemy break through. Friends, NOW is the time to stand up and be counted for Jesus and Righteousness' sake! NOW is the time to walk by faith! NOW is the time to lift high the bloodstained banner and march on! NOW is the time to live for Jesus and light the way for others to get to Him!

   Again, God chose you, as He did Esther, for such a time as this! He chose you to be alive in these last days when He is doing a new thing on the Earth. He chose you to be a part of what he is doing. It's a topsy-turvy ride at times, as He is exposing corruption, bringing the wicked to justice, and calling the lost to Himself. But it's EXCITING! As the song says, "These ARE the Days of Elijah, declaring the word of the Lord." And one day, we will join with every kindred, tribe, and tongue and declare, "BEHOLD HE COMES, RIDING ON THE CLOUDS!" Until then, Be encouraged! You're going to make it! Take Heart! Go to war in the spiritual for God! And Hold the Line! He is coming soon! Have a blessed and victorious weekend in Jesus!