Light and Dark
We had only been in
California a couple days and already the Lord was showing me
some things. As we were walking out of a chicken restraunt a
beggar woman approached us asking for money. This was in a
nice area of Orange County. I told the woman no but that I
would be happy to pray for her. She started screaming at me,
literally screaming. You could actually see the demons
distorting her face. The Lord reminded me that I was in fact
"on duty", that I am a minister and that we are to be prepared
in season and out. I started to take things a little
more seriously, that was not the only incident. We also
encountered some real mocking spirits, we were just minding
our own business out in a public place, and these two guys
started talking amongst themselves but obviously loud enough
for us to hear. They were saying some real blasphemous things
about Jesus. They had no idea who we were but the Lord was
reminding me that Satan knows exactly who we are, because we
know who Jesus is.
What really shocked me
though was the lesson I learned in the next few days, at the
funeral and afterwards. There is a lesson in every experience.
Jesus is never wasting time, He is the redeemer of time. He
always has a plan, it is up to us to look for it. This is was
what going through my spirit the day I came home from the
trip.
" I saw light and darkness. I saw faces that were
hungry for Him but wouldn't submit, wouldn't let go of what
was familiar. I saw pain, greed, hatred, bitterness, anger. As
often happens we were done wrong. We got the short end of the
stick. All that mom left us, stolen by someone else. It wasn't
about the monetary value of the things. It was about
remembering the good and the bad of our childhood. Almost all
good. The only bad memory I have is that my mom and dad worked
too much and left us alone too much. How strange that when mom
died she was alone, I knew it would happen that way. But they
worked so much to build what they thought was a good life for
us, and to give us material things that they wanted us to
have. My dad built a business that he wanted us to have. His
version of family time was building something together. Wow,
that is so Kingdom. When he was alive he and my mom spent 7
days a week together. They built a legacy for us. We grew up
loved and knew we were loved. Maybe it was us who should have
spent more time with them. But we were always encouraged to
follow our own dreams.
Last week
after mom's death her new husband decided not to honor her
will. Not to honor what she desired for us. In the end it was
not my brother and I who got to lovingly go through her
belongings and things that were passed down from generations
of people we knew and loved. It was people who were strangers
to us, mere acquaintances. They got to go through her items
one by one and decide if they wanted them. There were no
memories involved. Her personal items dispersed according to
monetary value. We did end up with some family photos that we
were previously told were accidentally thrown away. Hmm, makes
me wonder about those other irreplaceable items. Things like
my dad's adoption papers, and the baby book my grandmother
wrote in when she finally got her son that was born to an
unwed mother in the 1940's. My dad's biological father's last
known address was some army base. He probably never even knew
he had a son, and now I no longer have access to his name. I
saw it once but can't remember it. Always had intentions of
copying that document but now it is who knows where. All of
that I may never see. All of that sorted through by people who
never even met my dad. All because of greed and pain. They
wouldn't let me look at anything. In the house sits a rocking
chair passed down through generations. They don't know any of
the people who sat in that chair, or the babies rocked in it.
Their reason is that they are doing things "in their own best
interest." Reminds me of the scripture that if we try to save
our lives we will lose it. They are grasping at straws. At the
funeral they had the opportunity to accept Jesus yet they
would not submit.
So, what is this all about? What do I see
Him doing? Why are we so mistreated, again? I am so tired of
being stolen from. I have given my cloak and gone the extra
mile a thousand times. Am I bitter? No, not at all, but I am
sad. Sad about mom's wishes not being honored? Sort of, but
mostly sad because they aren't looking to Him. They are
grabbing at earthly things rather than desperately grabbing
for Him. Yes Jesus loves me, and He will heal my heart. But
their's is beyond healing without Him. Only He can fill that
void. Does it appear that in this situation He has
temporarily left us?That is only appearance. He has safely
placed us in the protected fold so that He can go after that
"lost sheep". Yes He will leave the 99 to go after 1. All is
well with my soul. Will I give up all earthly possessions of
my family for one lost soul? Yes. How about for just the
possibility of reclaiming that lost soul, no guarantees just a
possibility? Yes I will. Will I continue to pray for them even
though they have done me wrong? Yes, even more so. I know how
the kingdom works and I know the wages of sin are death. I
know the final destination of those who refuse to surrender to
Jesus. And I know how much His heart grieves for them.
"
From our
Tribe to yours!
THE
WELL