Tag: vision

Two golden thrones side by side in a grand hall
Christian living, Family, God encounters, Uncategorized, Visions

The Two Thrones

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This post gently touches on themes of church abuse and anger. Take your time, and be kind to yourself as you read.

By Carolyn “Charismata” Weaver

Anger raged inside of me, as someone I loved shared that church abuse not only had wrecked her faith in God, but that she had not even told me the half of what had happened to her.

We are living in a time when the airways are pregnant with offense.

As a believer in Jesus, who has traversed an extremely uphill battle in my own healing journey, understanding how to walk in forgiveness, yet also how not spiritually by pass my God-given emotions with the purpose of making righteous judgments and decisions has been like a giant pendulum, often swinging one way and then another.

Story after story of horrible trauma and abuse, especially sexual, most often by church leadership or on church property, that should be most of all safe places, fill the news. Church leader after church leader have fallen and will continue to, as God has promised a great cleansing of His house will occur in this season.

Beyond that, people have continuously been pitted against each other. And many times, my ears have been filled with blanket statements of “All Christians are …”, or “All gays are…”, or “All white people are…”, or “All black people are…”, or “All politicians are…” Fill in the blanks.

We seemingly are blinded to the battles that are raging in the unseen realm. “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against powers, against world forces of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly supernatural places.” Eph. 6:12

Personally, I’ve processed through many of instances of deep, dark trauma, as well as bearing the story of many other precious souls as we together look to Jesus for healing.

So, many times, it has felt like it would easier to just not know one more story. To bury my head in the sand or turn my head the other way, to have even kept my own heart sealed up – sometimes seems like it would have saved so much heart ache for myself.

Yet, the pain is there. The ache is there. Hiding from it doesn’t produce anything good. Just more delayed pain.

The hidden places – it’s where lies live. In the darkness. In the dark recesses of my soul, where I’ve not let the light in yet, not let the story to be told. It is where I still can be held captive.

Freedom comes through Jesus. Freedom comes from letting His light in, His truth in.

One of my life verse has been “I acknowledged my sin to You, and my inquiry I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord (continually unfolding the past til all is told), then You instantly forgave me…” Psalms 32 AMP Classic

I know the best way is to step into the light. So, I am…

For the past two decades, I have asked Jesus to come into some very horribly dark places in my past. My father had been a pastor when I was growing up, yet he invited every perversion possible into our home – to the point that I was forced to live two, very different lives – the life of the good, little Christian pastor’s daughter who presented very well, made good grades, and sang in the choir and the life of the shatter child who was forced to participate in satanic rituals and was trafficked to whoever my father wanted to make a quick buck with. And it’s not just my story. It’s the story of many, many precious ones. (For more of that healing journey and how Jesus has walked me out of that, you can check out https://forthesilencedones.wordpress.com, and my husband also gave an excellent interview on his point of view with Lisa Meister, which you can find on my website, here.)

Many have asked me how could you even have stayed in the church all these years? Stayed a Christian even? When so many, seem to leave their faith for so little, in comparison?

Well, that is a complicated answer. For many years, it was because I was afraid not to. Afraid God would zap me, like my fire and brimstone pastor/father taught me. Beyond that though, as a teen I met a real God, a real Holy Spirit, and on my healing journey, I met the “REAL JESUS”. He’s not anything like my father growing up had taught me. Jesus is kind, good, patient, real love, real compassion.

On the healing journey, I also learned the power of forgiveness. The power of releasing people and horrible things that had happened to into the hands of the only one who could hold such offense. God.

I know many people have different opinions about forgiveness. Some think you must ask for it. Others almost say “I forgive you.” to just by-pass the wrongs that have been done, with no consequences. Neither of these are what I’m talking about.

See, Jesus on the cross offered forgiveness to anyone and everyone who would receive it, but He doesn’t force it on anyone either. They have to receive it. “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing.” Stephen later followed His example. And even in the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus said, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive those who have sinned against us.”

It doesn’t mean that there are not consequences to those actions though. Someone who commits crime, still may need to serve some jail time. And the foundation of the throne of God is justice. So…

Justice means making a wrong, right. Oftentimes, part of the consequences of wrong behavior is having to make whatever you did wrong, right to the best of your ability.

There is something really powerful about forgiving or releasing people and evils done to us into the “Righteous Judges” hands, because only He can rightly judge. I know this. I’ve seen Jesus walk me through this time and time again, and it releases me. It helps me to heal.

Yet, Jesus, God, gets angry. Scripture is clear that the Holy One, who is perfect love, hates evil. For those who say that we are to live unoffended, well, Jesus didn’t. He was certainly offended at evil. He was especially offended at the Pharisees, and He let them know it by calling them “Sons of their father, Satan.”, and other unpleasant names. He was offended at the evil in His day.

Evil, violation of God’s moral laws, makes Him very angry, because it hurts us. He loves us, and anything that hurts us, hurts Him. I don’t believe that He wants us to by pass those emotions, stuffing them away, in order to live this peaceful life all the time.

Hearing about a child who has been molested by a pastor should shoot your anger out the roof. If we don’t have a reaction to evil, no one will be motivated to do something about it. The reaction of anger and disgust is appropriate, and justice for the victims should be dealt to the abusers. By-passing our emotions, which are God-given, can swing us into complacency, which will then allow these atrocities to continue. That’s not the heart of God.

He wants us to feel those things, to take action if need be, like to report it to the police, but then to release the people involved to Him, because again, He is the one who can handle them.

Ephesians 4:25-26 AMP says “Be angry at sin – at immorality, at injustice, at ungodly behavior, yet do not sin; don’t let your anger cause you shame, nor allow it to last until the sun goes down. And don’t give the devil an opportunity to lead you into sin by holding a grudge, or nurturing anger, or harboring resentment, or cultivating bitterness.”

I have been able to walk this out better when the offenses perpetrated were against me, than I have when someone I love that has been wronged.

So, I didn’t even see this coming. I was enraged when I hung up the phone with my loved one. I wanted to go hit a tree or throw some toilet paper against a wall. I knew something was very wrong inside of my heart, so I attended a prayer meeting, to ask for help.

One woman timidly said, “Jesus, show her what’s in her inner temple that needs to be cleansed.” And that simple prayer did the job.

In the last several years, we have walked through two major church crisis. The first one had felt like an ugly divorce of church family that we loved dearly. Offense, selfishness, egos, and division had set in, which led to a hurtful split.

The second had appeared as if a con-artist (not a judgment, just the best one word description I could think of to describe how it felt) had taken the pulpit and had twisted the meaning of spiritual authority to the point that all had to bow to his wishes or be excommunicated. And that’s exactly what happened. We began to try to speak up, and our family was excommunicated, along with many others as they spoke out through out the past few years.

At the time that we had left the church, we had tried to address things Biblically by going to the elders for help, when we had been denied access to the pastor. At that point, we were shut down by the elders as well, so leaving felt like our only recourse. In recent months, the tables changed.

I thought I had forgiven these people and released them to Jesus many times. But when I hung up that phone with one that I love dearly and heard the depth of pain she still carried and saw the path of destruction it was leading too, I raged inside.

The pastor of that former church had recently been fired, and we had responded with a letter, explaining the hurt the church leadership had caused, because the current leadership had requested it. I decided to reread the letter I had sent, to see if there was a clue as to what needed to be cleansed in me.

And then I saw it like a laser beam… Blame.

I had judged the entire past and current leadership at that church as being the ones to BLAME for the choices of those who had been hurt.

Everyone has choices to make. Even when evil is perpetrated on us, we all have a choice with how we handle that. What I had done was lay all the blame at the feet of the church leadership as a whole, not just the pastor who had just been fired. And it was flat out wrong to do that.

Shocked that I had so easily fallen for the same hook, line, and sinker, I quickly begged God to further show me what I had done. I could still feel the weight of the rage in me.

That following weekend, I listened as a friend spoke on “offense” at a women’s conference. As she spoke, in her southern accent, I clearly heard her say, “Don’t let ‘a fence’ build up.” Over and over, that’s all I could hear was “a fence”, and then it occurred to me that whenever I hold onto “offense”, it creates “a fence”, which separates me from others. In order to have unity, we have to be willing to tear down “the fences” that we have built, and be a bridge builder, not an “a fence” builder.

A couple of days later, I still sought Jesus to show me further what was in my heart, because the feelings of deep seated anger still rose in my heart every time I thought about the church situation. All of a sudden, I saw Jesus, in my mind-eye, gently offer His hand to me. I looked down to see myself sitting on a throne, a seat. With great compassion, I heard the Lord say, “Sweetheart, you’ve slipped into the judgment seat.” He had tears in his eyes as He continued. “This seat next to you would be much more comfortable.” I glanced beside me to see another golden, padded seat next to me. Both appeared very similar in size and design. I took His hand, to reseat myself as He suggested. “This is the mercy seat. It’s a much better position to view life from.”

I burst into tears, profusely asking forgiveness for taking the judgment seat. He smiled at me, and said “The mercy seat is the much wiser choice to sit in, to view life though, and to make judgments from.” I nodded, and quickly sat down in the mercy seat. I had chosen this seat many times before in my healing journey. It shocked and sadden me that I had made a gravely, wrong choice, without even consciously being aware of it.

The next day, I determined in my heart to revisit the church property from where the hurt had occurred. I decided to go to the gym first to help get out some frustrations I was still feeling. I randomly hit play on YouTube, and these words began to play.

“I’ve been the judge. I’ve been the assuming that I know what’s best. Forgive me. Father, forgive me. I sought my own justice. I said in my own heart, I’ll do it my way instead. Forgive me. Father, forgive me. Back to the mercy seat, Lord, I am running. I’m running…” – Lyrics to Mercy Seat by Kim Walker Smith, Jun. 2024

I was stunned. I listened to it on repeat the rest of the day. I could feel the shift in my heart, and the weight of the judgment lifted. It was like a fog dissipated from my eyes, a clouded lens was removed that I had been viewing the world through. Finally, I could see clearly again, which I didn’t even realize that I wasn’t seeing clearly before.

That is the nature of deception. When you are deceived, you can’t see it.

I followed through with a prayer walk around the old church property. Immediately, I jumped into my own thoughts and petitions, but I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit in my heart, say, “Stop and listen to what I have to say.”

So, I did. And I heard the words of a compassionate Father who loved that land and the people on that land who had served Him well, who did still have pure hearts and yearned for a genuine move of His Spirit. I also felt His deep hurt over those who had been hurt and even those who had been deceived into hurting others.”

I questioned whether or not I should walk a lonely trail that bordered the back fence and ran along the property line. As I did, a huge white hawk with black stripes swooped over my head and landed at the entry to the trail, seemingly waiting for me to come. As soon as I reached the entrance, it swooped again into the forest behind the building.

This time as I walked, I came into agreement with all the Lord had said, and as I reached the end a huge rock graced the path, so I sat on it, and quietly whispered a prayer to see the hawk again, if I was on track. I decided to release all the remaining judgments and pain that I felt I needed to while sitting on the rock. With tears streaming down my face, I listed off offense after offense not just towards me but toward all those I love as well. Again, this was not about holding accountable those who had done wrong or not. That had already been done and was at that point out of my hands. It was about releasing what had been done and the people who through it had come from to Jesus and allow Him to judge it.

The moment I finished, the hawk swooped in front of me once more and off of the property. Peace filled me. As I walked back across the parking lot to my car, I could feel the presence of angels coming to fulfill the purposes that God had intended all along. I slipped into an unlocked prayer chapel by my vehicle and left a simple note on the table that read, “I forgive you.”

As we face so many painful exposures going on in our world right now, which is only going to increase in the days to come, because God is the one bringing it, the posture of our heart is super important. In our inner court, are two thrones – the Judgment Seat or the Mercy Seat. It’s up to us to decide which throne to sit on, to view our life through, and to make decisions from.

Choose wisely.

Waterfall cascading through white mist
Christian living, Family, God encounters, prophecy, Uncategorized, Visions

No Shrines This Time

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A year and a half ago, I stood on the grounds of where part of the second great awakening occurred – the home of the Cane Ridge Revival, which is less than an hour from Ashbury, where the current outpouring of God’s spirit is just starting.

While walking the grounds at Cane Ridge that day, I felt like I was in two places at once. Standing by an old worn, wooden fence, I could almost see the fiery preacher standing on the mound in the middle of the cow pasture. In the center of the grounds stood an antique, 1800’s camp-meeting building which was now enshrined in a more modern structure. This revival had begun when different denominations had gathered together to pray in unity. Amazingly, the Holy Spirit fell and the flow that came from it affected the world.

More on the Cane Ridge Revival – https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-45/revival-at-cane-ridge.html

As I’ve listened to the reports of the Ashbury revival getting underway, what has stood out to me is that no one man is leading it. It is being led by Jesus. It is primarily the younger generation, multi-cultural, multi-denomination all in unity making room for the presence of the Lord in ongoing worship for ten days now. It is spreading fast like a wildfire, an outpouring like Niagara Falls (see Kathie Walter’s post about that on Facebook).

Recently, when I’ve been on college campuses, in my Spirit, there has been this overwhelming anticipation of God showing up. I also just wrote about this next move coming through the younger generation here – https://blossomingheartsstudio.com/2023/02/01/designed-with-purpose

The Lord has been saying for some time now through many voices that God’s spirit will be poured out in many places, some you would not expect, in homes, in businesses, in churches, on college campuses. It reminds me of our own journey of finding the Holy Spirit in multiple different places. From Episcopal to Methodist to Baptist to Charismatic to everything in between God’s spirit is on the move. For more of our own journey, read here. https://wholeheartedwomen.org/2019/04/27/unexpected-journey/

Back to the day we visited Cane Ridge, as I came around the corner of the building which housed the original camp-meeting structure, the Holy Spirit boomed in my spirit, “This next move of My Spirit will not become a shrine! No man will be able to put their hand on it. No man will be able to claim it and make it about them or their kingdom. I am done with man’s shrines!” No lie, as I careened around that last corner of the building and sauntered up to the locked, wooden doors, I squinted to read the words on the plaque in front of the building. There, imprinted in pewter, were the words “The Cane Ridge Shrine”. I gasped.

This next move will not have man’s hands on it. It will not be about a man or a man’s kingdom. It will be about Jesus. It will be about Jesus’s Kingdom. And it will sweep our nation and the world, beginning with our youth, like the most huge waterfall gushing rapidly.

We are entering the age of the Waterbearer (the Holy Spirit) being poured out without measure, and the Lion of the Tribe of Judah roaring. The enemy can not stop that.

This, my friends, I believe, is the beginning of what we have been waiting for, longing to see our whole lives. Don’t try to control it, put a dam on it, or manipulate it in anyway. Just jump on in it!

With much love and anticipation

Purple and red balloons
Christian living, dreams, Family, God encounters, Visions

My Birthday Blog – The Gift of Today

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As I sit here to write this, I don’t fully grasp the hope I feel in my heart, an odd peace, an unshakable faith. This year has already held a few emergency runs to the ER with friends and extended family. Already held a few hands during some very challenging events. I’ve found myself grappling with some evil schemes on levels I didn’t want to believe were possible.

It’s only Feb. 1st. And it’s my birthday.

I’ve already been stretched beyond what I’ve felt capable of.

And yet, I’ve not felt forgotten or alone or helpless. I’ve felt held. Even now, I see Jesus smiling at me in my mind’s eye speaking hope that everything is going to be just fine. He doesn’t see things the way we do, does He?

In my processing of the past 53 years of being on this planet, I’ve asked many “whys” of the Lord. I’ve heard people tell me that that question is not a good question to ask the Almighty, and yet, I’ve never felt the Lord upset with me for doing so. And there have been times He has answered that. Most of the answers revolve around shifting my perspective to seeing things through His eyes, which is much different than mine.

I remember one such moment, when I asked Him about some current events that seemed so very overwhelming, and I saw Him walk up to me with the globe in His hand like a ball, with a cheesy smile on His face. He just communicated to me that He was in control. I was not. And that was OK. I could trust Him. He’s got this.

That’s difficult to see though when your one of best friends has just found her daughter unresponsive, and you are standing in an ER room holding tightly to her hand. It can be difficult to see when you are tenderly cupping the other hand of your spiritual papa who has been told he is now on hospice, while you pray for every moment of his life to be fulfilled. Or when you kiss your mama’s forehead and tell her I’ll see you soon, as she meets Jesus. Or when you are swimming in a sea of anger, because once again Jesus asks you to let Him into a new level of pain in your heart.

And yet, faith keeps rising – faith (trust) in a loving, compassionate, good God who keeps changing my perspective.

You know I once thought I’d never make it to 40 years old, and truly I’ve been almost taken out multiple times in these 50 some years. I’ve walked through some extremely hot fires, and traversed waters that I thought would surely wash me away, and yet, God’s unfailing love and goodness keep chasing me down. Ps. 23

I got up early this morning to go to breakfast with my family and a friend, just as the sun rose. You all know I love a beautiful sun rise. Jesus spoke to me a few months ago, that as one day is ending the next has already begun. What hope there is in that! A new day, a new horizon, a new hope has already begun even as the day is fading.

Recently, during a different hospital visit, someone I love who faced major surgery said “People tell me that I need to stop smoking. That it will kill me some day.” I wondered where the conversation was going. “But I say, every day is a gift, and I might as well live it up how I want too.”

Sadness pricked my heart, and I kindly responded, “You know, every day is a gift. But I rather live each day to bless and help someone else.” That statement is not to say how great I am. I am not all that. Yet, I just don’t want to live this life to make myself feel good, for my pleasure, and benefit. I mean I like all those things. But I want something more. I want my life to have a positive effect on this world around me. I want to shine light in the darkness.

I want to be there to hold my friend’s hand and stand in rock-solid faith with her as she faces the impossible, because we love the God of the I aM Possible. I want to be there to speak life to my friend who just got the death sentence and see that through the eyes of eternity. I want to spend time crying with the survivor who went through hell on earth, like I did, and then show who Jesus really is. I want to love my own kids well, and show them that life is worth living, and fighting for, and there is a bigger picture than just me, trying to gain things for myself. I want to love my husband every day, showing him value for who he is in my life.

You know, I have a feeling that there are going to be many more challenges to traverse in the coming seasons, and yet, I see and feel this faith and hope growing in a good, good God who loves us unconditionally, who is not surprised by what happens, but instead, He holds the playbook, and I can trust Him.

I can lean back into His great love, and just BE, because I know He’s got this! And that is my birthday wish for you too. Lean back into His great love for you, and live each day as a gift to be used to bring some light to this dark, dark world. Love you all so much friends!

A tall waterfall in a green forest
Christian living, Family, God encounters, prophecy, Uncategorized, Visions

Designed with Purpose

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The first section of this blog is the second part of the word I felt the Lord gave me at the beginning of December. (There are several parts to it, which I believe the Lord will have me release at different times.)

The words are as I heard them in quotation marks, because I want to honor God’s voice as I perceive it, and don’t want to add my own interpretation to it. Following that though, I do feel prompted to flesh it out a little. Obviously, I am human, and I may be off, and this is not the canonized scripture, but I believe it carries the heart of the scripture. I also look for outside confirmation of words, and it was immediately confirmed. This is as I heard it.

“You are truly at the brink of the greatest outpouring this world has ever seen of. My glory.  My Holy Spirit is being poured out with out measure in this last time.  There will a great wave, a great influx of soul.  Like the waves of the oceans, they will be swept into the kingdom.”

“This generation, this generation that has had identity theft coming against them, this generation though they have been turned over to the enemy for a season, this generation will be the ones to rise up and throw that Jezebel lying spirit off the balcony.  Eunuchs did it in my Word, and again those who have lost their sexual identity, these very ones will run to the Lamb of God, be forgiven of their trespasses and rebellion, they shall know their true identity in Christ, and they will cast off the Jezebel that has sought to steal their identity to cut off their generations.  That pride flag will be torn down, and a spirit of humility will sweep this nation.”

This generation has certainly had identity theft committed against them, and many, many have bought it hook, line, and sinker. I truly believe as this generation of young people have the blinders pulled off their eyes, and they begin to see that they were deceived by agendas that have sought to steal, kill, and destroy them – not just their sense of self (of their individual identity), but also to cut off their generations (families from being formed and babies from being born) – that they will rise up and throw off that lying spirit as the Eunuchs did to Jezebel in 2 King’s 9:33.

What do I mean by identity theft?

In 2022, a suspension bridge in India that had been designed and built during the British rule many decades before collapsed with 100’s of people plummeting into the river below killing over a 100 of them. The bridge had been structurally sound when built, but in recent times fallen into disrepair. Engineers had shut down the structure to repair the damage, but they did so in a hurry, and with no regard to things like weight limits. After a short few months, the bridge was reopened right before a festival. As hundreds crowded the bridge, the cables began to give way under the weight crashing into the water below.

Much like this bridge, God has an original design that works, and it has worked and will work for eternity. His original design is family – a man and a woman in covenant procreating children. Over time, mankind has damaged that structure, creating pain and hurt from broken covenants, abusive behavior, etc.. This has caused the need for repair. Instead of going back to the original design and restoring the bridge to what the original intent was, we have tried to in our own rebellion against God, or even with the belief that God no longer exits, made the bridge the way we wanted or to different standards, even changing the look of the bridge entirely, and as a result it doesn’t hold weight. It will eventually collapse, because the structure is not sound.

What does Jezebel have to do with it? I really don’t like throwing around the Jezebel spirit word, but Jezebel. as the person in the scriptures, was a cruel, manipulative, controlling ruler. The spirit of this age many times has those controlling and manipulative attributes. In scripture, Jezebel even intimidated the prophet Elijah who had called fire down from heaven, causing him to run, questioning his call and identity. That spirit always cause identity theft. Isn’t that the same thing happening today? People questioning their identity, their calling, floundering around not knowing who they are, why they are here, and what they are to do with their lives.

Some would look at God – the great three in one – and say well, where is the design of family in God? Yet the Trinity is actually the perfect picture of what family is supposed to look like. This may rock your thoughts a bit, but study this out for yourself. God is family. He didn’t procreate the Son. He was always already present in the Godhead, but consider this. God is three in one – God, the Father; God, the Son (Jesus); and God, the Holy Spirit (mother). Now, wait a minute. God is not female? Right?

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew pronoun for the Holy Spirit is in a feminine form, meaning the Jewish culture attribute the female qualities to the Holy Spirit. Some qualities listed about the Holy Spirit are comforter, helper, friend, wind, the dove, peace-giver, the one who hovers, gives life, and creates. Sounds like a mother to me? In Genesis, the word says that God created man and woman in His image, which is a male and female image. The Trinity represents the purest form of the perfect family structure.

I understand that some may read this and say that I’m not educated or that I’m judging people. The fact is I have several people who I love dearly who have lived alternative lifestyles. I have seen the short and long-term fruit of those who have accepted the changes in original design. In fact, I recently asked an honest question to a precious friend who had been in an alternative lifestyle for decades. My question was in all these years, have you known anyone in your circles that have had good, long lasting fruit, meaning long term peace, love, joy, happiness from it? She thought and thought. Her answer was “No. Everyone I know is still searching to fill that hole in their heart. Everyone I know is dealing with depression, suicide, drugs, alcohol, etc., and are searching for peace.”

To the opposite, I also have seen that as people have received the true love and truth about who God has created them to be as a daughter of God, that their sexual identity automatically begins to changed intended for it to be. The way they think and feel begins to change, and their lives begin to bear good, long lasting fruit, like joy, peace, love. Depression, anxiety, suicide fall away, as they live in who God created them to be. Sexual identity is almost a by-product, as they grasp their calling as a son or daughter of the living God.

I too have gone through some of those changes, because having been raised in a extremely sexually abusive environment, being female for many years did not felt safe to me. So I believed that it was safer to carry extra weight, and to dress down. This is super common among abuse survivors. Yet, as I realize more and more who God has created me to be and that I’m safe being a female, I feel more comfortable in my own skin. I desire to wear make-up and look pretty.

I don’t come from a stand point here of pointing my finger. My heart is full of compassion for the people standing on the broken bridge. In fact, a person who identified as A-sexual recently asked me why did I think I had authority to speak into this topic. My answer was pretty simple. I do understand many of the thought processes that lead to those beliefs, and I have compassion on those who don’t understand who God has created them to be, because I’m still growing in that myself. I know how strong lies,and hurts can be driven into a heart. But I know the healer of the broken heart, and I’ve seen how He can change lives around, and give people a whole new identity in Him.

I firmly believe that God created us – all of us with design – a design that was actually made after His image. Gen. 5:2, Mark 10:6 Obviously, mankind has screw that up through many things – drugs, genetic manipulation, rebellion against the original design, etc.. And sometimes, there is not a pat, easy answer to the screw ups. Mankind has sought to reinvent the bridge. It has since the beginning. Pride resulting in rebellious fists against the creator has led to many falling to their death off a broken bridge that can’t hold weight.

Yet, this is why Jesus came. He came to make a way for us to be back in a family. A real family. A way to be back in fellowship and relationship with the perfect Father, Mother, and Big Brother. And when we find our place in that family, He will show us who He has really created us to be.

I believe in this generation those blinders will come off, and this generation will be able to see truth, and they will throw off the lies and the agenda that has sought to destroy them and their generations. That will happen as they come to know the real Jesus, who loves them and cares for them like no other, and who has made the way for them to be apart of His family.

Part of this great move of God I believe will come from just this – thousands and thousands realizing their true identity in Jesus, throwing off their pride flag, and humbling themselves before God, receiving true love, so perfect that it casts out the fear and manipulation and the lies. I’ve seen it with a few. Many more are going to follow. God will raise them up, just as He did those Eunuchs, and they will overthrow the very system that has held them captive.

 

Hands holding glowing sparklers in the dark
Christian living, Family, Seasonal, Uncategorized

Reflections of 2022

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At some point during the past three years, I realized we are not playing the same game anymore. I’ll dive into that more in my next blog. With this realization that the game (the times we are living in) are changing rapidly, the Holy Spirit has been leading me into new ways of doing things.

When you own a business or ministry, there should be a gradual evolving into new things. With several things like my classes, there has not been another model for me to go by, so it truly has been a step by step leading of the Holy Spirit. If you’ve taken a class, you know what I mean!

As I’ve reflected back on this past year, my heart is filled with gratitude for the many opportunities of ministry that I’ve stepped into. I so value the trust that others have put into what we are being led to do.

Here are some highlights of what the Lord did in and through our business. I wish I could share individual stories, because those are what matter most, but those stories are for those people to share. We had so many more God moments than I could ever number, and as a community I see each of us moving closer towards maturing and growing into all God wants for us. What a blessing to walk alongside of so many amazing people, and to have a small part in their stories of overcoming and becoming the person God made them to be.

Highlights:

  • Continued to do monthly art classes with Switch (a local organization that helps people out of sex trafficking)
  • Spoke at several conferences and events (Special thanks to Called to Peace, SC Aglow, and Georgia Shaffer for allowing me the opportunity to minister to your groups.)
  • Had the honor of sharing part of my testimony with Adena Hodges on her podcast called “Testimony Mountain” on YouTube.
  • Ran several 6 week art classes called “The Invitation” Encounter Class
  • Established the monthly Encounter Art Class
  • Met with many one on one, prayer ministry time, which is the greatest thing to see someone encounter Jesus and who He has created them to be
  • Created several commissioned art pieces and reproductions
  • Taught special themed encounter classes for events
  • Published a new book, “The Bride Arising: A Vision of a Bridal Journey”
  • Painted live at two youth events, which was challenging, yet a blast!

My reason in listing these things, is to give you more of an idea what we are about and doing. I’m grateful for each opportunity, and for the beautiful people who I’ve met along the way.

As we look to a new year, I’m reminded that each day is a gift. We can use that day to please ourselves, to live for ourselves, and what matters most to us. Or some of us can just mundanely do the same thing every day, without thought much about it. Or we can live the gift of today with thoughtful intent to reach out and love someone else that God has placed in our lives. I want to do the latter as much as I can.

Make each day count by loving those in your life well, and you will find yourself surrounded by those who love you in return. May your 2023 be filled with the gifts of friendship, identity in Christ, and knowing how much you are loved and cared for by God. You matter. Your story matters. Make it a great one!

Much Love,

Carolyn

Ruins of an old stone abbey on green grass under a gray sky
Christian living, dreams, Family, God encounters, prophecy, Uncategorized, Visions

A New Hope Rising

blossomingheartsstudio

This post gently touches on themes of grief and the loss of a parent. Take your time, and be kind to yourself as you read.

Recently, I was at a funeral – my mom’s funeral.  As the lid of the casket closed, two of our former pastors solemnly walked through the doors to greet my sister, who they had come for.  I meandered across the room shaking hands, and receiving thoughtful glances as I made my way to greet my old friends.  Unknown bridges had been burned in the past, but we had not been the ones to light the fires to them.  Once torched, we had sought several times to rebuild, to reconcile, but to no avail.  

It had been almost a decade since we last met.  As I approached them yet again with a welcoming hug and a greeting of genuine, “It so good to see you,” it felt like I had just hugged an icicle – hard, cold, unresponsive.  Not a word was returned. 

Later, I wrestled with all my ball of knotted up gut responses in the presence of a trusted friend.  With many tears, I talked to Jesus and encountered His presence.

I sought reconciliation still with these pastors.  “Jesus, maybe if I just write one more letter.  Maybe if I just trying explain one more time where our hearts were, why we left when did, etc., etc.?”

There are only a handful of times that I have seen Jesus truly angry, like turn over the tables in the temple angry.  Honestly, in scripture, the only time I read about Him that angry is when He encountered the religious leaders of His day.  He never seemed to be mad at the prostitutes, or the sick, or the demon-possessed, or the dishonest tax collectors, or even the Roman dictators.  But with the religious leaders He commonly said some scathing comments about them.  “White-washed tombs filled with dead men’s bone” would probably qualify as some of those type of comments.  

So, I found myself begging for reconciliation with these former pastors to Jesus, who seemed really, really angry.  The answer I got was well, not what I expected, but it went way broader than these pastors really fast.  In fact, this message is not really about these individuals at all, but they seemed to be representing church leadership in general.

He has repeated this message over the course of the past month and a half, different ways, but over and over again to me.  Even this morning, the directive has been to write this down, and share it.  There is no desire on my part to throw these particular people under the bus.  The reason I mention them at all is for context. For whatever reason, His answer to me was a firm “No,” to seeking further reconciliation.  It was more like “It’s time for me to intervene.”  

Please understand.  I’m not saying any of this as a judgment statement against all churches.  In fact, in this engagement with the Lord, I kept feeling like I needed to ask forgiveness because I got them in trouble, which was silly.  I hadn’t done anything to cause them pain, though evidently they had thought so.  I also quickly realized Jesus’s words were not just directed towards them, but the American Church in general.  Also, my family and I do meet in the corporate environment with other believers, and it is wonderful.  The following is not meant to be a blanket judgment across the American Church from me.  I have a healthy respect for the scripture that says, “Don’t judge, lest you be judged.”  I know I miss the mark all the time, so this is just a reiterating of what I have heard that He has been saying this past month, and feel now is the time to share it.  

In my mind’s eye, I saw the tip of an huge iceberg floating in the sea, and then the finger of God came and tapped the tip, flipping the entire iceberg upside down, so that huge, immense bottom was now above water and was visible for the world to see.  Then, I heard these words.

“Those who have represented my church, who have represented me, in their pride, in their arrogance, who have offered fake fire, and a puny god, who made my kingdom their kingdom, who have made their name great instead of my name, their day of judgment has come.  Only the tip of the iceberg has been shown, but I am tipping the iceberg upside down, and the world will see the giant iceberg underneath.  It must be done, or the American’s destiny will not be fulfilled.” 

“The shaking in the four walls has only begun.” 

“Exposure.  Exposure.  Exposure.”

“You have called for the judgment on the broken in this nation, you have turned your eyes away from the needy, the bleeding.  In fact, you have been disgusted by the little, hurt lambs, while instead you have fed the wolves.” 

“Enough is enough.  The tables are turning.  The tables are turning.  I will cleanse my house of this witchcraft, of this wickedness.”  

“They have misrepresented my heart.  They have caused the little ones to stumble .  The children cried for a rope to pull them out of the pits, and instead they have offered them a noose.  They have brought judgment on themselves.”  

“Don’t look to the four walls anymore.  Don’t try to be like the old structure at all.  Yes, there is some good still there. Yes. I am still using organized churches, but a shift is coming and is already here.” 

“Millions have been driven out of buildings, out of the man’s kingdom structures, and into their homes.  I am and will pour my spirit out in the homes, businesses, in the street. The enemy won’t contain my spirit behind four walls anymore.”  

“On the contrary, my ecklessia will return to her roots,  house to house, home to home, family to family, heart to heart.  I will build my true ecklessia.  Not with bricks, but with living stones, with me only as their chief corner stone.”

Yesterday, I sat in a movie theatre with tears streaming down my cheeks.  In front of me on the big screen was a church that had been partly destroyed by the Civil War.  The bell tower had been damaged with the bell itself now covered in ashes laying on the floor in the center of the shell shocked nave.  “Mama always said that the bell of the church is the voice of the church which rings out hope, but look the church has lost her voice,” said the character in the movie as he looked at the structure.  (Paraphrased)

The stark scene reflected the feelings in my heart.  “The church has lost her voice,” I repeated in my head.  And yet as the movie continued, the scenes changed to later showing the same fallen bell, covered in ashes and snow.  As the wind blew across it the words “ New Hope” appeared.  

There is no power in a church building unless the Holy Spirit resides there.  The traditional church were my mom’s funeral had been held was as empty and cold as my former friend’s hug had been.  

How many lost souls have found only condemnation, a list of do’s and don’t’s, a bar too high to jump, a noose to hang themselves on; instead of a rope to be pulled out the dark pit they have fallen into, and a gospel that is empty of good news.  

Our Hope has been, is now, and will always be found in Christ alone.  “He did not come into the world to condemn the world, but to save it.”  

In this season of civil war, A New Hope is and will rise out of the ashes of the destruction of former institutions we called church.  It will be the true Bride of Christ, the true Church, the true Body of Christ arising with the real Jesus as our leader, our lover, our Bridegroom King.  He’s not done with the American Church, but He must clean house, and rebuild His true church to restore Her voice.  Only He can do this.  It may not look like we think it will, but He can and will have His Bride, His Church.  

God truly loves you.  He relentlessly is chasing after the rejected ones, the ones who have been judged, ridiculed, and left on the road side to die.  He came to seek and save those that are lost.  

A great harvest is coming, but they will come because they have met the real, true Jesus who loves them with a love, so pure, so strong, so compelling.  Our New Hope is found in the true Jesus alone.  

Ironically, when I was a child, my mom used to sing this little song about a bell ringing. “If I had a bell, I’d ring it in the morning. I’d ring it in the evening all over this land. I’d ring out justice. I’d ring out freedom. I’d ring out a love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land.” (paraphrased)

Let the bells ring out Hope again!

The movie referenced is “I Heard the Bell” by Sight and Sound Theatre 2022, and the song is “If I Had a Hammer” lyrics © T.R.O. Inc., Tratore/ Songwriters: Lee Hays / Pete Seeger.

Silhouette of a person dancing in a field at sunset
Christian living, Family, God encounters, prophecy, Visions

The Day I Danced Out Of Church

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Something was wrong.  I knew it, but couldn’t put my fingers on it.  

Sure.  There were things in the natural that I saw that weren’t sitting right.  But this was something deep below the surface – something not visible – like slimy things hidden in dark places.  

As soon as anyone asked questions, tried to turn the light on, their flashlight was tossed out – X-ed out – including ours.  

Yet, the problem seemed even deeper than one place, one building, one enterprise.  It gnawed at me.  The Holy Spirit had been stirring things up in us for months.  

“When Heidi comes, you will know for sure…” the Holy Spirit whispered inside.  

Heidi Baker is someone I respect highly, and she was coming to our neck of the woods.  After an infamous talk entitled “Don’t Eat Your Family,” (a rebuke regarding Christian cannibalism – verbally tearing your family apart), she pointed towards the back doors and said, “It’s time for you to dance right out of here.”  

I turned to my husband in shocked surprise.  “I think she’s talking to us.”  It was a few weeks later, but…

Then, came the moment.

The moment I thought I’d dread.  The moment I walked out of those doors – out of the same place I had said my vows with my husband, raised my babies, walked through for the last twenty-six years of my life.  It was surreal.

Yet, the oddest thing happened.   

I caught the glance of a friend from across the auditorium, threw my arms around her neck, and instead of tears of sorrow, joy bubbles began to pop up inside me, making me laugh like a little girl.  

It was almost embarrassing, except I didn’t care.  Like I’ve heard about in the natural (because I’ve never actually been drunk) when you are drunk, you don’t care what others think.  

In fact, I could not stop laughing, not even when the well-meaning elder glumly offered his last words to me.  Heaven must have been rolling, because I could not contain myself.  

Kindly, I patted his arm, and managed to say, “It’s OK,” snicker, snicker.  “We are gonna be just fine.”  His shocked look said it all.

I held onto the pew as more laughter bellowed out.  I kind of slid across the back wall, holding myself up with my hands, and with a slight skip in my step pushed open the doors, as I met my family in the foyer.  

Does that count for dancing out?

So, why am I telling you this?  

And no, I’m not going into a church bashing session, so you can let out a deep breath now.  

It’s more about something that has been changing and is changing in me.

It’s far greater than me though.  It is a change, a shift that I believe will eventually effect us all in some way or another.

I learned a long time ago, that anyone, and I mean anyone, especially me, can go stupid.  And yes, in my opinion there was a bit of that stupidity that happened in that season at that church.  Quite honestly, since I had been in a leadership position, serving on the prayer team as a leader, I had briefly become apart of it all.  

Yet, the problems that church went through aren’t isolated issues, because of one rogue leader.

It’s a problem I’ve heard about countless times and has shut down every move of God.

I first began to see things differently when I went to hear a woman I had never heard of speak in a hotel room – well, not much bigger than one.  She was unlike anyone I had ever met before, and she carried a presence of God that demanded attention or her peels of laughter did.  It was both, actually.  

By the second meeting I went to, I was up on the front row, because I was trying to prove to myself that what I was sensing from this woman was real.  As I sat there, it was as if someone stood behind me, took off the top of my head, and poured new information in.  

The speaker wasn’t even talking about the church and church structure directly anyway.  She was just retelling lots of amazing stories of God moving in miraculous ways, but her point was that He wanted to move in everyone’s lives this way.  

Now, I “knew” that, but I guess I’d not really “seen” that, and what I had been experiencing in our church situation had become more of a pyramid structure of performance.  

All of a sudden, in front of me, instead of pyramids, either right side up or upside down, I saw a level playing field.  Yes, each person had an important position to play and everyone used their gifts in unity for the winning score for the team, but there was only one coach, and it wasn’t the charismatic leader in the front.  It was Jesus.  He was calling the plays.

This rocked my world, so much so that without even saying a word about any of it, I was kindly dismissed from the leadership role I had held.  I don’t think it was coincidental, but probably providential.

God wasn’t done though shifting my mindsets.  And still isn’t for that matter.

Shortly after this, we were on vacation.  On my morning stroll with, I was having a little talk with Jesus, and I was telling Him all about our troubles.  I began to ask Him what the structure of the church was supposed to look like, what was His intentions.  All I could see was the mess men through the ages had made of it.  

It was like God would begin to move and pour out His Spirit, and bam, someone would grab the glory and move of God and try to make it their own.  That is a very simplified way of looking at things, but basically that what seems to happen over and over and over again.  

Kathie Walters says as soon as someone says God is moving HERE, in US, like WE have anything to do with, it’s done.  God will move somewhere else, because He refuses to have men’s hands on it.  He knows what men will do with it.  Make it their own.  

So, I digress.  

I was having a hard time seeing things through a positive frame at that time of kicking sand.  So, again, I was asking, “What’s it supposed to look like?”

As I shuffled my feet near the ocean’s edge, I had a matrix moment.  I didn’t see numbers break through scrolling in front of my face, but as I asked the Lord what His idea of what His church should look like, I began to see something very different in my mind’s eye.  

At first, I saw what looked like bubbles or circles.  Then, as it clarified more it was like cells, lots of them, interlocking, exchanging energy, living, breathing, growing.  Honestly, I was stunned.  What did this mean?  

I pondered the cell image, and as I began to ask questions, the Lord began to speak about it.  

It wasn’t about a certain church building or land that the Lord wanted to pour His Spirit on.

It wasn’t about a man’s kingdom or enterprise at all.  It was about His body, His Bride.  

All the cells were comprised of families of people, believers from all over the world, functioning together as one body, in unity, answering to the head, Jesus.  It was and is an ever moving, growing, expanding, beautiful body of Jesus.  

What we had become involved in was seemingly a one man show, an enterprise as it was put to us.  

The move of God had morphed into a man building his kingdom, because he claimed the move of God as his.  He took off the gloves of humility that the Lord had instructed him to keep on, and touch the Holy, held onto the glory, and made it his own.  

What the leadership had wanted was a charismatic leader who would take their God-given dream to make it a reality.  Though I believe their original intent was good, in my opinion, it cost a lot of people a lot of pain, as building any man-made kingdom usually does.  

Some structure is good.  Throwing off all restraint is not.  That leads to chaotic anarchy.  This is not some rebellious attitude that all forms of leadership are bad and should be over-thrown.  That’s fascism.  

Yes, even family needs structure.  There are relational lines and some rules laid down by the law of love that we abide by, and as we mature and grow, we should all be flourishing in a culture of honor, in mutual submission, not lording over each other.

The parents want their children to out grow them, to excel and succeed in life.  It is an ever growing, living, thriving unit.  

When one hurts, we all hurt.  When one celebrates, we all celebrate.  When one falls, we all go down to help the one who is hurting.  

There are boundaries and consequences in family –  in learning to grow up.  In fact, if we lovingly held people to some consequences and did not look the other way, we might have a healthier family unit, and abuse would not thrive.   

This is what it was meant to be, what it was meant to look like  – a lot like love. A lot like washing feet.  A lot like lifting one another’s burdens.  It’s what Jesus said would make us irresistible to the world – the way we love each other.  

After I danced out, the Lord took us on a six or so month journey of going to almost every denomination and some non-denominations.  

You know what we experienced?  

His Spirit alive and moving in them all.  All of them had a piece, a beautiful color to weave into the master design.  All of them…. 

So, whether you go to St. Such and Such or Bedside Assembly as we used to call it in college, or whether you have believers in your home or meet at a coffee shop, the Holy Spirit desires to be poured out through all of us, for all of us to be the living, breathing, growing thriving body of Christ.  

It’s not about the four walls, the great programs, the charismatic apostle, the amazing sermon, or the women’s luncheons.  Those can be good things, as long as it doesn’t become a self-gratifying social club, and those things aren’t stealing your focus from Jesus, your time from true intimacy with Him and others?  

These days, I still find myself seeing the Kingdom from a much broader, life giving view.  

We fellowship on a regular basis with other believers, because it’s important.  Isolation is not a healthy course in the long run.  We need each other.  We need accountability.  I know I do.  

You are a king under King Jesus.  You are priest under His Priesthood.  There is no Junior Holy Spirit.  We all get to play on the same field together.  

Until we come together as one body, as one Bride, I don’t really think we can accomplish the full mission that we are here to do.  

Let’s fix our eyes on Jesus and let Him pour His Spirit out on all of us, not just the church leadership.  When we are looking to them instead of Christ, it is a lot of expectation and pressure to put on them anyway.

Who knows?  Maybe you’ll find yourself dancing out of some pyramid one day to healthy family cell outside of traditional structure or maybe you’ll find your family cells within more of a structured environment?  

The point is we are all the body, the Bride of Christ.  He is our head, and we answer to Him.  

We walk in love, honor, and mutual submission with all our brothers and sisters, honoring and developing the gifts in each one we meet.  That’s family, and a Kingdom Family is what we are called to be.

Sun rising over the ocean shoreline
Christian living, Family, prophecy, Uncategorized, Visions

Sunrises

blossomingheartsstudio

“Lord, I need to see a sunrise at the beach.”  Those words have been slipping from my lips a few times recently.  It’s been a few years since I’ve seen that beautiful scene in that setting.


So, when on vacation, I’m the one rolling out of bed at 5:00 am to go strolling on the beach to see the sunrise.  Yeah – that one – the one grabbing my ball cap, pulling it over my bed head hair, slipping on my flip flops, and practically escaping like a bandit out in my pjs.  


To me, sunrises on the beach represent hope, dreams, a new day dawning.  And when I’m there, I just can’t wait to see the ball of fire piercing the horizon.  Though the last few times we have been to the beach, the morning horizon has been clouded with storms, and the sunrise – hidden, I’ve still been out there, hoping, waiting, expecting.  


I know it’s still there, of course. The sun is still rising behind those grey clouds, but it’s just not the same as seeing the blazing glory waking up the world.  

 
So, I’ve been complaining a bit to the Lord…  It has felt like cloudy, stormy, grey skies for a long time now, blocking the promises, the dreams, the hopes of God. 

Delay after delay after delay of things I know the Lord has promised.  Sometimes, it has felt my hope has wained.  I wonder how Abraham, the Father of our faith, managed to not only keep his faith alive, but to actually grow in faith of the fulfillment of the promises. 

 
At the beginning of summer, I pulled the covers up to my chin, and sleepily said once more, “Lord, I could really use a sunrise at the beach,” meaning I really could use some hope, some glimmer that these crazy promises from you will be fulfilled.  


Immediately, the Lord shot back, “Carolyn, the sun rises every morning.  Why don’t you get out of bed and come see it?”  


The moment of decision came.  I swung my legs over the edge of the bed, slipped on my shorts, pushed my ball cap over my head, and shoved on my tennis shoes. 

I don’t live anywhere near the beach, but I have a peaceful golf course of rolling, grassy hills that a neighbor introduced to me to within walking distance.


I padded down the twisting, dewy path, past an old country club, up and down the hills to the back of the course, and around a mist-covered pond with geese floating across it. Disturbed by my intrusion, the flock took flight. The rhythmic beating of their wings and honks filled the air as the majestic birds flew over my head .  

The early morning sun’s rays glowed on the grassy hill ahead of me.  I quickened my steps so not to miss the moment.  


It happens in a moment you know, that precise time when the sun peaks over the horizon line.  


As I rounded the bend, reaching the top of the hill, I turned to face east.  There in front of me, the rays began peeking through the trees like shining beams of liquid gold.  


The simple beauty caught my breath for a moment. 

“Wow, Papa!  I had forgotten.”


A couple of weeks passed of the me encountering the sunrise, but my heart still felt heavy with the longing of the specific sunrise I had asking for – the specific promises that remain unfulfilled.


I felt the Lord beckon me again, but this time as I began to climb the final hill to where the sun’s rays had already begun to cause to ground to glow, the Lord’s voice rung strong in my ears.

 
“Sweetheart, why don’t you just enjoy the sunrise I give you, instead of longing for something different, “ I felt a pause, and then He continued.  

“Daughter, the sun is always rising where ever you are.  The rising and the setting are every day.  I am present with you in every moment.  Stop longing for what you don’t have, but look for what I am doing today.”

“Look for me in this day dear one, and at the right time, you’ll have your beach sunrise again – in my time, in my way.”

I walked further down the path as He continued.  “I will give you hope for the promises to be fulfilled, and I will fulfill those promises at the right time.  Both come from me. Don’t be discouraged that it’s not happening the way you think or at the place you think.  I am always at work.  I’m in every moment, in every sunrise, in every sunset, and I will not disappoint you.”

“If you keep your focus on what you don’t have, you will miss me in the moment called today.” 

I continued to walk down over a bridge and then back up another hill, while a hawk swooped near by.


“Life is about journeying with me.  Not a destination.  At each promise fulfilled, there will be a new horizon in front of you to reach.  This is for all eternity, not just your journey on earth.  There will always be a journey with me, a new adventure in me, growth in me, new horizons with me for eternity.”


I allowed His words to sink deeply into my heart.  


I have a tendency to always be looking to what’s not completely healed, what’s still broken or incomplete, or what I don’t have yet, like the next goal or the next horizon, to the point that I miss Him in the moments many times.  


He is always working in our lives, journeying with us, healing us, comforting us, encouraging us, and forming us into the beautiful sons and daughters that He has created us to be.

  
Yet, if we are always discouraged about what hasn’t happened yet – the promises that aren’t fulfilled, the healing that hasn’t manifested yet, the pain that still lingers, etc., then we will miss what He has done and is doing on the journey where we are at.  We will miss the sunrises and sunsets.  We will miss the thousand ways that He is at work in us.  


Paul said that he had learned to be content or at peace in whatever circumstance He found himself in. 

Whether hungry or well fed, whether healed or having just been beaten, etc., he had learned the art of seeing Jesus in his “moments”.  He kept his eyes fixed on his Lord and what he was doing today.  


“Savor”, “relish”, “taste and see” the Lord’s goodness every day, the glimmers of His presence in our every day. 

Think about “Whatever is good, lovely, of a good report…”   That’s seeing our Lord in the present, and enjoying what He is doing. 

That’s living in the Kingdom, and seeing things from His perspective.


Have you ever just looked back sometimes to see how much you have grown, to see how far you have come?  
It’s a beautiful thing to see the good fruit of the Holy Spirit’s work in your life.

 
Ask Yahweh to show you.  Ask Him to show you the glimmers, His involvement in your day to day life.  Even in the mundane of life. 

Like when your teens crowd your bedroom for a late night chat, or in the washing of the dishes with the clean, smooth, gleam of the porcelain in your hands, or in the unexpected call of a friend, etc.. It may not come in the way you expected or the place you expect, but He is there. He is at work bring about His good plans for our lives.


He is always present, always good, always working for our good.  


May you savor the sunrise wherever you find yourself today, discover Yahweh in your moments, and trust Him to fulfill His promises over your life in His perfect timing and way.

Storm clouds over crashing ocean waves and a grassy shore
Christian living, prophecy, Visions

The Flood

blossomingheartsstudio

Has anyone felt overwhelmed in the last few weeks? I have.

Three years or so ago, myself and several others continually got visions and words of this coming flood, like a tsunami type of flood.

The connotation was that it would feel overwhelming, but God would be in it. And the results would be good.

I remember seeing in a vision people thrashing in the water, fighting it, thereby nearly drowning.

Others tried swimming upstream, wearing themselves out in the rising torrent.

Some refused to step into the water, trying to ignore it altogether, but as it continued to rise, they were swept downstream.

Still others just leaned back into the flood waters, floated, and laughed playing in the waves, trusting that they were held by the Lord.

A friend reminded me of this vision before Christmas. She said she has held onto it so many times, leaning back into the arms of the Lord and trusting that He’s got this.

As things in our world seem more and more like rising, torrential waters, like the days of Noah, I have a choice to make.

If I fight what Yahweh is doing, I will feel like I’m drowning. If I try to go against it, swimming against the stream, I may find myself exhausted. If I ignore the water altogether pretending it’s not there, it will come all the same. I may thereby endanger myself into being swept away in doubt, fear, and disbelief.

The best choice is leaning back into the waters entrusting my life and those I love into the hands of God, who loves me, and will work everything out for my good.

In this place of surrender, I can relax even in a tsunami that feels completely over my head. I can’t drown in the love of God. In His arms, I am safe.

I actually can come to the place of playing and laughing in the rising waters, knowing He has this crazy world in His hands. He is on the move, and His glory will fill the earth.

Keep your eyes on the true Lord Jesus. Let Him hold you in the middle of the flood.


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