The Caged Lion and The Staircase - Prophetic Word for 2021

The Caged Lion

I saw a caged lion and knew he represented the church i.e. the body of Christ in the United Kingdom. The cage door was open but he was lying inside, wounded and weak, with a tired glare in his eyes. This past season had severely wearied, hurt and bruised him, yet the main reason for this was not that he had been faced with adverse, difficult circumstances or an enemy attack, but the fact that he had been caged and opted to remain so despite the reality that the cage door was standing wide open. Due to his long confinement, the lion had not been mentally and physically prepared and fit to see the enemy attack come and deal with it well because he had forgotten how to respond like a true lion in the wild. Chosen confinement, false comfort and increasing apathy had compromised and dulled his natural responses. His true lion instincts of alertness, anticipation, wisdom, well discerned attack and retreat seemed long forgotten. His skills had been weakened and seemingly lost.

This transition into the new year and season is vitally important for the church to rest in the Lord and allow Him to heal those wounds with His oil and wine, and to receive refreshment and new life energy from the Holy Spirit. If the church chooses to come before the Lord now and as the next season unfolds, He will strengthen, restore and encourage her to be led out of the prison of religion and secularism. Those who choose to yield to Him and follow Him, those who choose freedom in Him, the Lord will retrain to think, act and respond like a wild lion again!

A wild lion is wise to know when to hunt, what to hunt (nothing that is above his strength and capacity) and how to successfully feed himself and his family. A wild lion is wise to choose to rest when the heat of the day is strongest. A wild lion’s senses are alert to detect dangers from afar, anticipating an enemy attack long before it happens. A wild lion displays the glory of God's creation!

A wild lion knows its territory and makes full use of it! He also seeks to expand it! He rules and dominates with great wisdom and authority. He releases an unmistakable sound and scent to keep his enemies at bay! And he successfully raises young cups to walk in his glorious footsteps one day. 

The enemy has sought to deal a huge, defeating blow to the caged lion to fully break his spirit and rob him of all remaining strength and desire for a different, vibrant life. The Lord seeks to heal the wounds and bruises obtained and heal the cracked spirit of the church of the UK. He seeks to lead her out of the cage, away from a sad existence of repetitive, senseless motions from one end of the cage to the other without getting anywhere, gaining territory or really achieving anything.

“Lion of the UK, body of Christ, the spirit of antichrist has seen your weakness and broken in on you like a caged, dull, defenceless victim, a shadow of what I made you to be in this hour! Let me minister to you in this season of transition, and then walk you out of the cage you have lived in - swiftly and decisively! Do not look back, there is nothing to lose! Allow me to restore you to your God-given, glorious ‘wildness’: To wisdom, alertness, discernment, strength, authority, successful hunting, fruitfulness and devotion to nourish your family, as you display my glory to the realm assigned to you, a realm which will continuously expand! If you refuse to come to me now, your wounds cannot heal. If you refuse to leave your cage, the enemy will continue to control, torment and defeat you. Come out, follow me! NOW is the time!”

“Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.” Jeremiah 33:6

“If you return to the Almighty, you will be restored...” Job 22:23a

The Staircase

I saw a narrow, simple staircase leading down into a dark, empty room, and I saw the United Kingdom as a person slowly descending on it - not really wanting to, but knowing it had to. I sensed that the Lord was saying that He was going to bring the UK into a season of great humbling, a descent into the lowest place. There was a sense of great heaviness and gloom.

However, I saw another person which represented the church i.e. the body of Christ.  They had the highly important role to come alongside the nation (person) of the UK and descend together with her whilst speaking tenderly to her, and compassionately lending their arms for support and comfort. The Lord’s heart was for the church to accompany the nation during this descent to impart hope and strength, and to keep the nation from despairing and giving up. It was a very slow descent down the stairs as church and nation walked together, and it was a very moving scene.

When both the church and the nation reached the bottom together, I suddenly saw the beginning of a staircase opposite, ascending from this lowest dark place! The person representing the church was pointing the nation to it and cheered them up: “See, look! There is a way up! Come, let’s walk together!” Due to the fact that the church had been supporting, comforting and loving the nation all the way down to the very bottom of the first staircase, the person representing the nation had enough strength, will and energy left to choose to start to climb up. The ascending staircase was slightly luminescent and it looked like it was made of a different material than the staircase leading down.

As church and nation ascended together, light was increasingly illuminating the stairs from above, and as church and nation looked all the way up, they beheld a radiant figure in a simple white, sparkling and shining robe standing at the very top of the stairs, waiting with a beaming smile. It was Jesus, the Messiah! It now became clear that the light that had illuminated the ascending staircase, even down to the very bottom, was radiating from Jesus’ robe, from Himself.

“Strengthen the limp hands and steady the feeble knees! Say to those with anxious hearts: Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance. With divine retribution He will come to save you.” Isaiah 35:3

“But then I will win her back once again. I will lead her into the desert/wilderness* and speak tenderly to her there.” Hosea 2:14

31 December 2020

 

http://ukpropheticwords.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-caged-lion-and-staircase

Prophetic Word for Brighton, England

 

Brace yourself! - Prophetic Word for the Body of Christ

 "Brace yourself. Brace yourself for my glory which will be made visible and evident, and for the resulting persecution unleashed by the spirit of jealousy which responds hatefully to the salvations and outpourings of my Holy Spirit. 

The enemy knows his time is short (Rev. 12:12) and he seeks to draw his last breath and exhale all the wickedness he can. Strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. Brace yourself in my strength, for the systems of this world will not hold together for much longer now. Do not be afraid but delight greatly in the fact that I have intentionally placed you into these times on the earth. 

As you see with my eyes and absorb more and more of my Spirit, you will consider all things glorious, not only salvations and healings and signs and wonders but also sufferings and persecutions and humiliations. Consider me... consider me, and you too will overcome. Consider me and you will be braced with my strength, and you will stand. 

The right perception will lead you to perfection in me and you will not fall prey to the great deception that is now shrouding the vision of those on the earth who don't know my Spirit. 

Brace yourself... be firm in me, take your stand in the land you have been appointed to. Not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord."

Susie Molina

http://ukpropheticwords.blogspot.com/2020/08/brace-yourself-prophetic-word-for-body.html?q=molina

Prophetic Word for 2020 (& beyond)

I saw a big city. Many high rise buildings that had been standing for a very long time suddenly collapsed and crumbled. In place of those disappearing structures I saw new buildings emerge instantly and very quickly. I felt there was going to be an exchange of structures and functions. This could relate to business, economy, political roles and much more. The year 2020 will bring upheaval and powerful, swift emergence of new things. Long established structures will crumble suddenly, not because of external destruction but because they have been in a state of decay for too long. In their place, new "towers", buildings, positions, organisations and people will rise up quickly and with great strength. This will cause a lot of disorientation to those who are used to the old structures and who are unprepared and undiscerning. It will, however, not be a big surprise to the people who walk very closely with God. They will have anticipated this according to Amos 3:7 "Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.". 

People will generally struggle with disorientation as many landmarks they have used as reference points will be gone and other structures will be in place. The people of God, however, will have an opportunity like never before to reassure, give guidance and introduce God's divine compass. Many people will listen to them, however those with severe pride and hard hearts will dismiss them and continue to try and find their way in their own strength. This will trip them up, injure them and the consequences will be severe in some cases. 

Dead religion will feel more cold and carry the air of dark, icy death more than ever. Superficial religion will cause people to feel sick as if having eaten too much candy floss which pleases the taste buds but does nothing to nourish the body. True worship and the places of gathering where true worship is lifted up will have a new warmth and light that is more recognisable and distinguishable than ever before. Those who are hungry and humble of heart will flock to these places and cause the light to glow brighter and warmer.

This is a year of intense separation, and those who have camped on the middle ground for a long time will find that it is no longer comfortable but utterly dangerous. The middle ground will split and darkness will starkly separate from light, causing a deep trench to be created. It will be dangerous for those who refuse to choose. Even for those who choose blatant darkness there is greater hope of deliverance as the people of God will seek to establish flexible bridges to enable a crossing from darkness to the light. Those who have been camping in the middle, refusing to move, will fall into the trench which will widen and deepen fast. I saw the trench floor covered in tar pitch which will hold people down very powerfully and cruelly. It will be very, very challenging to leave that place.

Wrong priorities and choices will be a lot more costly in the days to come. Right, God-breathed choices will bring great blessing and reward. Dependence on the Spirit of God for EVERYTHING is absolutely vital. 

Joshua 24:14-15 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” 

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." 

Revelation 22:12 "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be."

Susie Molina

http://ukpropheticwords.blogspot.com/2020/04/word-for-2020-beyond.html?q=molina

Where Paths Divide - Prose

                                       

Where paths divide

choices collide

a no or yes

is as weighty

as life or death

What I've left behind

was not a path

of the easy kind

but with all the obstacles

on that windy road

the greatest barricade

was always in my mind

Where paths divide

destinies collide

if I take one step

all is decided

the future set.

Then I feel the sound

of fragrant love

see the shape of a gentle hand

which steadies feeble steps

and splits the rocks

as I walk

into the promised land.

Prophetic Word: The Double-Edged Tip of the Sword - a Time of Separation

A few weeks ago during our regular prayer meeting on a Tuesday night at Hastings 24-7 Prayer, I saw (with my spiritual eyes) the tip of a double-edged sword, and it was moving forward slowly, very sharp, cutting and separating as it moved. The scripture that came to mind was Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires."

This is a very critical point in time where God, by the power of His living and active Spirit-Word which proceeds from His mouth (and which we are to echo!), is beginning to cut through the body of Christ, making a separation between those believers that are soul-led, and those that are Spirit-led.

I felt that the two edges of the tip of the sword represented the true ministry of the apostolic and prophetic, and that the prophetic was twinned with the pure, undiluted truth of God, and the apostolic was twinned with the love of God to implement the prophetic expression of the desire of God for His people, Jesus' bride-to-be.

 

As this word stayed with me over the last weeks and as I kept pondering it, I saw that the sword tip also symbolised the alpha, and the handle of the sword the omega of God, and that the moving-forward and completion of this process of separation through His (S)word would accomplish from beginning to end the full revealing of His will and nature in the earth.

As our society is rocked by many political issues, and as and our standards and values are polluted more and more by the influx of immorality, the calling into question of the very nature and identity of humanity in the image of God (sexual expression without borders, LGBT, abortion, euthanasia) along with the uprooting of the eternal principles of the word of God, the body of Christ is heavily influenced by this move, and many individual Christians, church groups and even whole denominations are pulled into darkness. 

This is an urgent call from the Lord to His people to make a choice now as His double-edged (S)word moves forward. The fence is no longer a safe place. Luke-warmness will no longer be comfortable or sustainable. Those who choose to remain in the grey zone will be cut off, separated from the holy Kingdom of Light. The Lord is not doing this out of anger but out of the purity of His love: "He sent out his word and healed them, he rescued them from the grave." Psalm 107:20. This process is meant to completely separate us from everything that is death so we can be fully filled with His eternal life!

As this process continues, let us search ourselves and pray for ourselves first, so God will find us as people who are led by His Spirit, faithful to His Word, fully standing in His light. We are not to point fingers at other Christians or churches or denominations in this process as the Lord begins with us first! But let us also pray for the body of Christ, for people to choose well at this critical time, and not to be drawn into darkness with the rest of the world.

For those who do not want to choose, the relentless pull of darkness will be too strong to resist; they will not have the Holy Spirit-infused power to stand as they have depended on their soulish desires and prompts for too long. May God have great mercy on those who are undecided as the time to choose is becoming very short now.

Revelation 3:15-16 "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

Ezekiel 34:17 "As for you, My flock, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Behold, I will judge between one sheep and another, between the rams and the male goats."

Matthew 13:49 "So will it be at the end of the age: The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous..."

James 4:4 "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God."

Romans 8:7 "...because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God's Law, nor can it do so.

2 Corinthians 6:17 "Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you."

Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

Romans 13:12 "The night is nearly over; the day has drawn near. So let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light."

Isaiah 35:8 "And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way. The unclean will not journey on it; wicked fools will not go about on it."

1 Peter 1:16 "For it is written, You must be holy, because I am holy."

Romans 8:14 "For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God."

2 Corinthians 11:2 "For I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. I promised you as a pure bride to one husband--Christ."

Susie Molina

http://ukpropheticwords.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-double-edged-tip-of-sword-time-of.html?q=molina

Reflection: Becoming Manna

Last night I dreamt that I was getting a new surname. My actual surname is Molina (after having been married to my husband 11 years ago). In the dream, I was going to be named "Mills". I thought, well I do not want to give up my present name, so I'm going to be called "Molina-Mills". When I awoke, I thought this was rather funny - the word / name "Molina" already means "mill", so why have the same name in English? Why the strong emphasis?

As I have learned to understand and interpret the metaphoric language of God over the years, I knew there was something more to this. I searched the word "mill" in the bible and felt led to a particular passage which talks about the process the Israelites applied to the heavenly manna to be able to eat it:

"Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. The people would go about and gather it and grind it between two millstones or beat it in the mortar, and boil it in the pot and make cakes with it; and its taste was as the taste of cakes baked with oil. When the dew fell on the camp at night, the manna would fall with it." Numbers 11:7-9

 

Even though I have read this passage before, I now became fully aware that the manna which God rained down from heaven to feed His people wasn't actually eaten in its original form - it had to be processed! The process of grinding, beating and boiling is rather brutal if you really think about it. Intense energy and pressure and heat is applied. Yet, instead of destroying the precious manna, it actually releases the nutrients and makes it digestible. Any type of grain is much easier to digest when it is processed properly.

A few years ago my dad brought the health benefits of flaxseed (also called linseed) to my attention. As I began looking into it, I soon found out that the way to get the very best out of these incredible seeds was to actually eat them crushed or ground so the body can absorb all the valuable nutrients inside instead of just sending the closed seeds through the stomach and intestines (they remain closed throughout their journey!) and out again.

As I was pondering this further, two things unfolded in my heart. First it showed me that the revelation, our spiritual food, which God gives us all the time to nourish us, strengthen us and cause us to grow in faith and love is not given just to be 'swallowed'. We gather the revelation, and we then grind it, beat it and boil it to get the essence out of it! We study, investigate, ponder, pray and ask Holy Spirit for insight, and we keep doing this with intention, investing time and energy - making real effort!

"By putting the best in, we get the best out" is a quote I found in a magazine a while ago and which I put on my notice board next to my desk. Lack of pressure, energy and heat would slow down the processing of manna in the best case, in the worst case it would be a waste altogether and leave the manna in a state unfit to be eaten and enjoyed. We need to invest our time and give it our best effort if we want the best result! The Bible uses the word "diligence" a lot in this context.

So - we need to treat the precious revelation God gives to us through His written Word and by the Holy Spirit as something we need as much as our bodies need food. Our spirit needs it and depends on it to stay alive and be richly nourished and to continuously grow. 

The second insight were the words "becoming manna" which I suddenly heard in my heart. I was surprised as I have never heard that phrase before. I googled it and could not find anything on it whatsoever. As I continued to ponder this, I was reminded of these words from the Bible:
 
"Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:35

"In this is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world." 1 John 4:17

Jesus our Messiah is the true bread of life. He nourishes us and gives us life. Without Him our spirits are dead - without constant connection with Him we begin to starve! We are also like Him in this world if we have become His children. We have been united with Him (Philippians 2:1), we dwell in Him, have our being in Him and Jesus dwells in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. He wants us to feed the lost and hungry in this world so they can get a taste of God:

"But he answered them, 'You give them something to eat.'...” Mark 6:37

My sense is that God is actually calling us to become manna! He provides the food, He gives it freely - we could not produce it ourselves! He first "gathers" us to Himself. He then begins the intense process of grinding and beating us - not because He seeks to harm or injure us, but because in His wisdom He knows that the rich treasure of nutrition can only be released this way! He turns on the heat - He "boils" us and prepares us so the lost can finally be fed!

As children of God, we are called 'the body of Christ':

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." 1 Corinthians 12:27

So, if Jesus is the bread of life, and we are His body, united with Him, it only makes sense that we, too, are manna to the world! I for one have decided that I want to yield much more now to this much needed process of beating, grinding and boiling - even though it can be rather intense at times, but I was not supernaturally born again and made into manna just to lie on the ground and go all mouldy! I am here to be food for a starving world! Food that others can benefit from and be nourished and strengthened by. 

We have the awesome privilege of becoming edible, palatable manna to give others a true taste of heaven - a taste of the one living God!

Reflection: BREXIT

After the EU referendum polling day on June 23rd and the national declaration of the referendum result on June 24th, debates still carry on everywhere, including the media. Scrolling down facebook continues to reflect people's intense emotions regarding the decision of the UK to leave the European Union. There are those who feel triumphant after this decision. Others are deeply upset and desperately hope there will be a re-vote, or they post how badly the world economy and international relations have already been affected by this decision. Again others try to be "all cool" about it, saying it's not going to change that much for us.

I have tried my utmost to verbally stay out of it which required a lot of self-control from an extrovert, passionate German like me. You bet I have had my own thoughts on it. I have lived in the UK for over nine years now, and the list of things I love about this nation and its people is very, very long. I think it's safe to say I have spent some of the best years of my life here, and I still love it. I know me and my husband are here because God has called us here until He calls us elsewhere, whenever and wherever that is.

Well, I'm also German. A "mainland European". Although my heart doesn't quite beat to the steady, structured and ordered German mindset and rhythm of life, I still feel connected to my homeland and its wonderful assets in many areas of life. And I see myself as an earth pilgrim too, loving the diversity of the many languages and cultures which cover this "pale blue dot" in the universe.

This may explain to you my emotional and mental dilemma: I listened to the warnings of those who claimed to know all the bad that might happen if the UK disconnected from the EU. I also heard what those who wanted Great Britain to vote "leave" expected to improve if the country chose to no longer be part of the EU. My mind was having arguments with itself, and it soundlessly shouted especially at those who seemed to demonise not only the EU as an institution, but in fact, the whole of Europe. My heartrate went through the roof several times! Through this onslaught of thoughts and emotions displayed by many people as well as inside my own self, I finally interrupted myself - and took a step back. A large one. 

I stood and looked, and then I asked myself: "What is really going on here?" And instead of getting side-tracked and emotionally dragged off to a place I never wanted to be at, I wondered: "What is 'fact' as far as it goes for me personally?"

Fact is: I have not been to university and studied world politics, economics or anything along those lines. I do watch the news, and I'm very interested in history and current events. I know a little about how Germans and a few other mainland Europe countries tend to view the UK. I know how many people in the UK view mainland Europe, including Germany.

God has not given me ANY revelation on whether the EU is demonised and works for the antichrist! Neither has He clearly shown me that the EU is simply full of nice people who are just trying to bring the countries of Europe together more. I have observed a few issues on both "sides" of this whole Brexit issue (before the EU referendum was ever discussed) which I could comment on. But really, do I have the big picture? (And really, who has?..)

Interestingly enough, after the results were in about Britain leaving the EU, some "neutral" political and economical experts (who hadn't been shouting to back either side of the Brexit previously) were interviewed on the news, and they were asked what they thought would happen next. You know what they said? "Honestly, we don't know. We will have to wait and see." How freeing it is when someone is actually honest. They simply said they didn't know.

One thing I know for sure is this, and I'm now particularly speaking to my fellow brothers and sisters in the Christian faith: I have rarely seen such a nasty display of pride, animosity and disrespect as I have in the run up of this EU referendum, and it still doesn't stop now! People express triumph (before knowing what the far-reaching consequences of this result will actually be!) and tell the "remain" voters to just get over it and be quiet. There is a large amount of sulking "remain" voters as well who wish the worst on the "leave" voters. Links to articles are posted on how bad things are already getting, and some even demand a re-vote.

You know what also really made me raise my eyebrows? Many people around me said they had heard from God regarding what to vote - "remain" or "leave", and I'm sorry to tell you, but just in case God did in fact have a black-and-white view on this decision: 50% of you heard wrong!

Finally - the decision has been made. We will now need to live with the consequences, whatever they may be. I'm pretty sure we will ALL get a few surprises over the coming weeks, months and years in regards to this decision.

What is really burning on my heart to say right now is this.

What is the state of our heart right now? Whether we have voted "remain" or "leave", what does our heart look like right now?

Throughout this whole process, we may have forgotten that while nations and the plans of God for the nations may be of great importance, really what comes up an awful lot in the word of God is that He cares about our heart - our motives, feelings, and the direction of our thought life. 

"The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7

"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." Proverbs 4:23

What have you thought and felt towards people who are not of the same opinion as you? How have you thought about them, talked to them and written to or about them?

Seriously. What have the last weeks and months revealed about the intents and thoughts of our hearts towards others? 

"But I say to you that anyone who is angry with a brother will be subjected to judgment. And whoever insults a brother will be brought before the council, and whoever says 'Fool' will be sent to fiery hell." Matthew 5:22

Have you ever wondered if this was a test - a test so we could see what would come up from our own hearts, out of our own mouths (or fingers while typing), through the fire of contention?

If it helps, I'm going to freely admit at this point that I have failed this test big time! Emotions, hidden views and thoughts came up in me that I had no prior awareness of! Bitterness and annoyance and self-pity and self-satisfaction in "knowing better"... Sound familiar?

"For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder." 2 Corinthians 12:20

Further more, I'm wondering if the intensity of raw emotion regarding the EU referendum has revealed what we really rely upon in this life. "Britain needs to stay in the EU to make the EU stronger." - "Britain needs to come out of the EU to 'become great again'." Do we rely on our own government? On our great history and its achievements? On independence? On connection with certain bodies of power on this earth? Sure, if you don't believe God exists, that's all you will have left. But as a believer?.. What are you honestly relying on?

"Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save." Psalm 146:3

I wonder what God feels, and what is on His heart right now.

While we are still waiting to know what the full consequences of the Brexit will be, there is one thing I am desperately hoping we will do as believers, and do it now:

Turning away from pride, mockery, offense, self-righteousness, self-pity, anger and opinionated arguments.

Instead, turning to JESUS. True love. Forgiveness. Honour. Humility. Quietness of spirit. 

"Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal." Isaiah 26:4

"Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." Colossians 3:13

"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." Ephesians 4:2

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." Colossians 3:12  

And yes. Pray for the future of Great Britain. Pray for the future of Europe. Pray for governments, leaders, politicians. 

But let us please, please guard and watch our own hearts as followers of Jesus. Let us never behave like this again. Let us embrace each other as believers, no matter how much our opinions differ. And let us embrace fellow believers across the nations. We need each other! And together, we need our beloved Jesus! He is our only treasure! Our only hope!

"What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ." Philippians 3:8

Unyielding Star - A Poem

 Unyielding star (a lament)

Old men are sitting, exhorting

young men are running, exploring

both deeming to know the elixir of truth and success

yet powerlessness has become their shameful dress

Oh God strip us naked

of our filthy garments

and lead us away

from our murky swamps

Fill us with glory

and clothe us with light

to walk like Jesus -

unyielding star in the darkest night.

If I don't emerge shining inside and out - 

my life nothing more than a magnet of flout...

Mercy, mercy, mercy, God!

Reflection: Scared to be too grateful too quickly?

 Over the years I have come across a phenomena in the Western world which I would like to call "Christian atheism". It is very sobering to see that among believers, faith in Jesus and the teachings of the bible are accepted as truth in theory, yet when it comes to real life events and circumstances, they are not actually believed and applied. This whole issue I have come to observe could fill a book in itself, but right now I would like to focus on something I have observed as being very common (sadly) in our Christian lives, even as I was growing up in a Christian home in Germany. 

We sometimes come across a difficult circumstance or a problem in our lives. A lost purse or key. A health issue. Financial struggles. We pray and ask God to intervene and help us. "Lord, help me find my lost purse. - Heal me from having these stomach cramps. - I'm struggling financially, help me to balance my books."

So we pray. And God answers. We get our purse back. We come across someone who recommends a natural remedy that stops our stomach pain. We get a surprising money gift. And what is our reaction many times? We rejoice... and just get on with life. Or, even worse: We analyse the situation, saying: "Well, yes I prayed, but the solution would have come 'naturally' anyway, it wasn't necessarily God."

In view of what the actual truth is, I find this attitude rather sad, at times even sickening. Let's take a look at what the Word of God says:

"For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." Colossians 1:16-17
"For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen." Romans 11:36

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17God made EVERY thing. Every particle, cell, quantum, and every invisible thing, too. The world and everything in it only functions in perfect balance because He is the One holding it all together. The very breath we breathe was given by God. And every good thing, whether small or big, comes from Him, too.

The kindness, generosity and goodness of God goes much further than we could ever understand in our little human minds:

"He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." Matthew 5:45

Whether human beings deserve it or not, and whether they are aware of it or not... They receive His kindnesses and blessings every single day in countless different ways.

If every single good thing is from God anyway, we would actually have reason to thank Him every day, all the time, for an innumerable amount of things - let alone, for HIMself -, even before He has answered a single one of our prayers. He controls every thing. Therefore, whatever circumstance comes to your aid or blessing, He allowed it - He holds it all in hand!

So - what is wrong with us?... Romans 1:21 explains:
"For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened."

Here it is... our thinking has become futile - meaning: useless! - and our foolish hearts are darkened, they have become cold and hard.

We clearly have got a major problem. The good news is: There is help. God has given us everything through Jesus... not only the forgiveness of sins so we have access to heaven after we die, but on top of this God is wanting to give us the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16) and a soft heart (Ezekiel 36:26) that is able to acknowledge Him rightly and hear Him well - believing hearts that trust Him and understand our utter dependence on Him.

Let's not be hesitant to be grateful - we could never, ever be grateful enough to God for all He is and does for us. Worship and thanksgiving is to be as natural to us as breathing. We could never be too grateful too quickly, or be grateful enough, even if we never slept again and thanked Him 24/7 for the rest of our lives!

Father God, transform our hearts and minds today. Thank you that your truth sets us free. Help us not take anything good for granted, especially your very presence. Amen.

Earth and Orb Vision

God often speaks to me through dreams, visions and words in the night. In the early hours of this morning, just before I woke up, I saw a vision of earth. It was relatively small, as if seen from a distance. I then saw that earth was running out from below, as if being liquidised - and it ran into an invisible drain. (The force at work seemed to be stronger than gravity.) I knew immediately that this meant that earth was running out of time.

Then I saw, right above it, a pale, blue orb. It was the same size as the earth had been. I knew in an instant that it represented the church, the body of Christ. I then saw that this orb was sucked up from above, sucked into eternity by levity - but actually really by the power of God.

I believe God will give more revelation as to the full meaning of this, and I am sure and know He is speaking to many people around the globe about the times we are living in at present. But the two scriptures that came to me in connection with this vision were these:

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away." Mark 13:31

"Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath, the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail." Isaiah 51:6

It is safe to say that we are fast approaching the end of the age which Jesus spoke about in Matthew 13. It is time to lay aside all indecisiveness and make our citizenship in the kingdom of heaven secure by unwavering faith and trust in Jesus, truly making Him Lord of our lives without compromise.

Philippians 3:20 says: "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ."

Life is no longer business as usual - simply watching the daily news is telling us that. I hear some people say that "there have always been wars, conflicts and natural catastrophes." - Do not be deceived. This is not the time to escape into the illusion that life is just plodding on as always. Earth is running out of time, folks! And the time is NOW to make sure we belong to the kingdom of heaven - to the kingdom of the King of kings. Jesus is the way. The only One.

Abode - A Poem

 Abode

I step into your room
Here by your side linger neither shadow nor gloom
Surrounded by a misty, silken, fragrant blanket
Mark me with your name -
Imprint it on me as on a silvery planchet

Hidden from from the eyes of the world
Into your arms I am curled
The light of your face so warm
On my skin, my head, quieting the storm
Here I will stay, here I will be
Nested in your life, your ageless tree.

S. Molina

New Age of the "Knights of the King's Communion"

 

Yesterday during a prayer time I repeatedly saw (with my spiritual eyes) the image of the round table of knights who put their swords on the table, with the ends of the swords pointing towards the centre. I also heard the words "One for all, all for one".

This morning as I sat with God at home, the whole imagery came back to me so strongly. I then did a bit of "superficial" research and found this:

"A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a monarch or other political leader for service to the monarch or country, especially in a military capacity. Historically, in Europe, knighthood has been conferred upon mounted warriors. During the High Middle Ages, knighthood was considered a class of lower nobility. By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior." Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knight

The next image I saw was the disciples sharing the last supper with Jesus before He was crucified. Very often, paintings of the last supper show a long, square-shaped table around which the disciples are sitting with Jesus. But what I saw was, again, a round table, with the disciples and Jesus sitting together.

I'm sensing that God is now ushering in a New Age of "Knights of the King's communion" - a fellowship of believers who are - and see themselves and each other - completely equal with their brothers and sisters in Jesus, their fellow knights! The only reason we are able to be one with Jesus and each other is the gift of grace through the death and resurrection of Jesus! There is nothing we can really do to "be" united as only the blood of Jesus can achieve this - and it already has! We just need to wake up to it and allow Holy Spirit to renew our minds and heal our spiritual sight so we cease to function with unhealthy hierarchies, and do away with a linear approach to everything, putting ourselves and other people into limiting boxes. 

There is a reason why Jesus prayed the following prayer right before He was killed. He knew full well that He Himself would become the answer to this very prayer - by the cross:

John 17:11

I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.

We ARE one! Jesus is the head. We serve one King, who knighted us when we said "yes" to Him, and we are His commissioned communion, united through grace in love, and it is time we claim the earth back for our King! Tradition or ritual does not make us one... Jesus does - and already has!

Ephesians 4:4-6
"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."

'The Message' translation

"You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness."

Playing ping-pong... I am engaged!

 As the years have gone by in my walk with Papa God, I sometimes wondered why there wasn't more "ping-pong" action going on, more closeness, more togetherness. I was longing for this constant connection, this close walk and not the occasional bumping into each other shortly and then getting on with life (on my own, as it often felt).

Then I realised the secret about playing ping-pong! When the ball comes "pinging" towards me, I have to "pong" it back! I became aware that God was actually giving me so many signs and hints along the way... sometimes a word through someone else, a sign in nature, even a dream at night... And what did I do with it most of the time? I got excited that God had thrown a ping-pong ball at me and held on to it, as if I was scared to lose it again, instead of playing it back to Him and engaging with Him through it! 

Papa God is so relational! He loves to be close to us, walk with us and speak with us all the time as we are walking in His purposes for our lives. He will keep playing the ping-pong ball to us, longing for us to play it back so we can enjoy a game together! Playing ping-pong is just a metaphor here really. God longs to communicate with us, every day, all the time! And there are so many ways He longs to do this! He is very inventive and create, you know! :-)

So next time a ping-pong ball from God is flying my way, I want to engage! I want to play it back and see what happens! I want to ask questions. I want to search it out. The more I will do this, the more skilled I will become in playing ping-pong, I'll have more amazing and thrilling games with my Papa in heaven. And when I decide to start a game of ping-pong with Him, I know He'll respond. And as I'm doing this, I will realise that, rather than God engaging in my life, I am engaging in HIS life!

Our being engaged with God shows we are preparing for a wedding, after all! :-D

Pink pelican

 When I went to school, I was an outcast. I was hated, despised, ignored, ridiculed and abused. If you are asking me at which of the schools I went to, I have to reply: All of them! I am not one of those who think back of those "good old school days" nostalgically. I hated school, and it felt like prison to me.

Now... what does this have to do with grace? 

I find that God is the best at healing even a painful, ugly and shameful past that can't seem to be made undone. Especially not the heart-wrenching memories that sneak up on you at will.

Just as I was reading through the blog of a lady that has inspired me in my walk with God over the years, I stumbled across something that might mean nothing to most people. To me, it was a healing God-nudge. A gentle touch of grace.

The lady blogger put a picture on her blog of herself petting a pink pelican. While thinking that this was a really cute picture, I suddenly stopped - and remembered. 

I remember that day at school. I was giving an answer to my teacher in a context I don't remember, but I do know that I meant to say "pink flamingo". For some reason I mixed up birds in my head and said "pink pelican", and the whole class exploded in mocking laughter. "Pink pelican, hahaha! How stupid..." Now, if you're wondering why I was so "touchy" - a silly 'mistake' like this would be thrown in my face for weeks or months on end, to point out how terribly stupid I was. This was only one of many occasions, but it was one more puzzle piece to a very sad picture of my everyday life as a school girl.

Now I was sitting here, staring in unbelief at the pink pelican picture. And to make sure I wasn't looking at a plastic bird by accident, I googled "pink pelican", and - lo and behold - they do exist! :-)

Yes. I do feel laughter arise! While thinking I had mixed up the two birds, said something wrong by accident and made a fool of myself (yet again!), I was saying something right. Pink pelicans do exist! My God was watching the scene those years ago, smiling knowingly because He knew I was right and they were wrong. I don't feel like executing revenge on those kids who were just looking for another reason to mock the class fool. (Had the class fool been someone else - I might have done the mocking myself!) 

Nope. No revenge. I'm just feeling like Papa God hasn't forgotten that little, yet painful memory. I can see Him smiling so warmly at me. He looks at me and sees no fool. He looks at me and loves me. With one little gesture He has deleted yet another sting in my heart. May all mockers and former class fools experience that loving grace. It's releasing joy and peace. I'm so rich.

Born to fly!

 In the last days, we could hear increasing screams from our rooftop just above our little flat. As we live only 5 walking minutes away from the sea, we realized that a seagull baby was living on our roof, fast growing in size and volume. We hear its little feet go "tap-tap-tap" as it's walking around on the roof, sometimes it even chooses to sit on our bathroom skylight, which reveals the "baby" is actually relatively grown up, only the colour and the voice is still quite distinguished from proper adult seagulls. It's so interesting to observe how the parents, who cared for their baby so well for a while, keep flying off for longer periods of time - not so much to find food for their child anymore, but actually to encourage it to be brave and making an attempt to fly so it can leave the roof it has known for about six weeks now. The cries of the baby sound quite desperate at times, I'm sure it must feel abandoned and doesn't quite get why the parents who have so wonderfully looked after it all this time are now refusing to feed it and leave it to it's own devices on that roof more and more.

But - there is a whole big world out there! A world full of adventures, beautiful views from the air, a sea full of delicacies to feed on... and the parents know this! They know and they don't want their child to miss out! After all, they can see it's now big enough to use those amazing wings. The wind is ready to do its part to lift the little grown-up and carry it higher and higher...

Do you feel like God is abandoning you where you're at, and that the spiritual food you were used to is no longer being provided in the measure it was in the past? Maybe Father God can see how you've grown and matured with excitement, and now He is taking off and beckoning you follow Him, to leave your very familiar spot on your "roof" to see what more He has to show you "out there". You may feel like the roof you're on is the safest place in world, as far as you can see now, the views from that spot are pretty good - why risk loosing what you know in trying to use wings you have never used before? After all, you might fail! You might fall! What if you do and can't get back up on your roof again?...

When Father God calls you and encourages you to fly, He only does this because He knows you are capable of flying, and because YOU WERE MADE TO FLY! Will you spread your wings and let the wind of His Spirit take you out to sea? Out to see? Leave the familiar... leave what you have known! It's time to fly!

Say good-bye to "Independence Day"

Times are changing. We are walking into a new day. People in many different nations have been celebrating the "Independence Day" over many years. The impression has come that God wants to pronounce a new day for the church (especially in the western world) - a "Dependence Day".

Many Christians have been living their lives mainly by and for themselves. They have put God on the sideline of their lives, treating Him like a hobby, a feature, an "interest" next to many other activities and interests in their lives. Independence has been equated with freedom. We have not lived our lives in obedience to and for the glory of God, we have instead lived in obedience to our own convenience, comfort and selfishness. Our own glory has been our main drive and goal. This is a dangerous state to be in.

What is true freedom?

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." John 8:36

What have we been set free of? Sin. And - our own mastery! 

"For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died." 2 Corinthians 5:14

"We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." Romans 6:4

If we believe that it's "normal" and "fine" to live for ourselves, we are deceiving ourselves.

"For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." Romans 14:7-8 

We need to embrace the truth if we want to make our lives count for something.

"(Jesus says:) I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5

It's time to embrace a new day - the "Dependence Day". It's time to submit ourselves to God fully, to make Him our foundation, our only source of security and provision (instead of our jobs, family, friends, health insurance, the government etc.).

The shaking around the earth will increase rapidly. Everything will be shaken that can be shaken. Only if we are learning to be fully dependent on God, we will be able to stand. It starts with a choice.

Made for eternity

Made for eternity - big words.

Reality is: Our day-to-day lives are very present to us. All the stuff that our "here and now" is made of, is always before us: Our family, our job, school, hobbies, our health. We feel save and are happy if it's going well (when the bills get paid, we are successful, we get to enjoy life, we're healthy and fit), and we struggle if it's not going too well. Our efforts are concentrated on making it go well as far as we can, so the here and now is good as possible.

At the same time, reality is: Things that seem very big to us, very dramatic, significant, even essential, are sometimes smaller than they seem. To us, we are the centre of the universe in our lives, but how much time have we got on planet earth? What in our lives is going to last?

"Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.' Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." James 4, 13-14

In our relationship and walk with God, things that can seem insignificant, pointless and futile at times, mean so much more than we often realise.

At times, when we pray, we wonder: "Where, after all this time, is the answer?"

When we worship, we sometimes ask: "Where is the glory? Is His presence really here?"

When we give love, time and time again, we might think at times: "Where is the appreciation? Does it even matter - the word of love I speak, the gesture of love I make, the heartfelt love I invest?"

To not lose our hope and set our priorities right, we need to always maintain a heavenly perspective. If we don't learn to live our lives out of a heavenly mindset and with an eternal perspective through the Holy Spirit, we'll continue to shovel precious gifts like our love, time and resources into a bottomless pit.

How do we keep a heavenly perspective, then?

This heavenly perspective is necessary on three levels: concerning our life on earth, and concerning our position and destination.

"For we live by faith, not by sight." 2. Cor. 5, 7

 "Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Col. 3,2

If we know Jesus and have received the gift of eternal life through Him, planet earth is not only just a temporary place to be, but we have a parallel position we need to be aware of:

"And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus." Eph. 2,6

In order to set our priorities right in the visible and invisible, in the present and for eternity, we need to remind ourselves what will remain when all is said and done:

  God - and people.

"Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." John 17,3

Knowing God is eternal life. We can know God more every day, by talking to Him, listening to the voice of His Spirit that lives inside of us, by reading His word (Jesus is the living Word!) and by sharing every part of our lives with Him.

"...‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and, ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.'" Luke 10, 27

The first commandment needs to come first in our lives, always. Everything else has to submit to this command - otherwise we're missing the point and purpose of life completely.

"....He has also set eternity in the human heart..." Ecclesiastes 3:11

Eternity is in our hearts right now, no matter how hard some people will try to deny this and insist that with death, nothing will be left of us and we will be non-existent. Every person chooses where he or she will spend eternity - in the presence of God, or away from Him, which is hell.

As born-again believers, our Spirits have come to life, eternity has begun, no matter if we feel it or not. Our life doesn't need to be a meaningless, empty blob, spiralling downwards, without purpose.

Touching God with our worship, words and our love is like touching eternity, as He is the one filling us with His eternal Spirit.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:19-20

Whatever we invest into God now, and into loving others, is our eternal inheritance. And God - who is perfect love impersonated - will be our greatest reward. We are made for eternity - let's live accordingly.

Back to base camp

I'm on a journey. For me, living this life is more than an endless chain of getting up in the morning, eating, working, eating, going to bed at night, and the same the next day. It's not a stroll through the park, feeding the pigeons and going back home - walking in circles. Instead, for me, life is the journey up the mountain.

It's a constant way upwards. And the climb up the mountain is challenging. It's thrilling, exhausting, sometimes painful, yet exhilarating. The very fact that I'm moving upwards doesn't mean it feels good all the time. The higher I climb, the thinner the air gets. It takes the body time to adjust to every new stage of height, and that, apart from the effort of climbing, isn't very pleasurable.

But the higher I climb, the view gets better. It gets more amazing, and the higher I am up this mountain, the further I can see. Every success gives me a boost to move on. Every breath-taking view promises more beauty to see as I keep going.

But what do I do if the weather gets bad? Or if I'm getting too tired, too worn out? What happens if I have trouble breathing?

If I'm facing the rock in front of me for too long, that is all I see. Grey, hard stone. The higher I climb, the lesser flowers and plants I get to see. But I need to face the rock wall because if I'm not in a secure place yet, looking backwards in order to see how high up I've come can cause me too stumble and fall.

But what if I have lost my way? I mean - seriously lost it? I don't know where my position is, where I need to go and if I have enough strength or air to do the next step and climb any higher. My head is full of the theory of the mountain and climbing it, in my mind I've got it all figures out, but my body simply can't do any more. I'm lost. Completely exhausted and lost.

When that happens, there is one thing I must do: Go back to base camp.


That doesn't mean I'm giving up. And it doesn't mean I'm not going to reach the top of the mountain eventually. But if I don't go back now, I could seriously risk of never reaching it and dying on the way up!


So - back to base camp, now.


God - is - love.
God - loves - me.
Jesus - died - and - rose - for - me.
I - belong - to - God - through - Jesus.


That is where the journey began. If I rest in that place, long enough, and then start again, knowing that this remains true all the way up, I might just get a little further the next time.

The essence of life

What is the essence of life, the very substance of our existence?

It must be more than mere matter, more than wood, stone and glass. It must be more than light or darkness, gravity or air, blood or skin. Deeper, higher, richer in content than everything touchable, and yet untouchable for our hands.

The things that matter most to us, are shapeless - love, pain, joy, passion, compassion - and yet they shape our souls, express themselves without a clearly defined image, still so undeniably.

Putting God - the Creator and the very essence of life indeed - into a shape, box or frame - is absurd and reflects our human foolishness, puts it on shameless display.

God is beyond - and yet so close. Higher, greater, stronger, holier, more loving, more compassionate, more of everything... and yet His breath flows through us, inside of us... beyond oxygen and carbon dioxide... our spirit already knows this.

It was made to love Him.