Cannot see, but can feel

Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

I am really struggling with how, and even if to share some of this, but the Godliest man I know reminded me of God’s gift to me to write, and commanded me to do so. My testimony one of pride, and sanctifications blows of humility cause anxieties in pointing to details about me; it is never about me, only to show you Him through being open about my life. I seek no honor, and even struggled standing in the pulpit for over a year, and the attention it drew to me. But, what God gave me a glimpse of yesterday rattled me so, I must share in some way. Acts 2:17 ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
Evil is among us; it always has been, and until Jesus casts Satan and his demons to eternal condemnation, it always will be. There is a world we cannot see, but we can feel, and with his strength we can attest to. We can take it to the extremes of denying it’s existence, or even to the opposing viewpoint of blaming everything that happens to us on the devil’s wiles. Somewhere between those two is the spiritual realm that has existed since creation. Satan has limited power, but Satan does have power, a power greater than you, until the Holy Spirit resides in you. 1 John 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. This does not mean you have a life of ease, but you have declared victory eternally, no matter the trials and pain your enemy brings; you win in the end through Jesus, but you are at war while you walk this earth as His disciple.

I was in prayer yesterday, interceding at a place immersed in a deep spiritual warfare battle; attacks coming of great proportions. The attacks have increased, and we agreed the only thing we knew to do was to pray, for wisdom in how to know what to do. We prayed for discernment of what the problem may have been; I was not prepared for what God showed me in prayer, it was the evil that lurked upstairs. I was completely overcome by the presence of darkness that lived above my head at this place. I have only felt that one other time in my life, in a muslim mosque in India, a feeling of evil that only can be described as oppressive. I hate that feeling, that knowledge, that glimpse into another world and the burden that it brings. My primary spiritual gift is discernment, and I have many times described it as both a blessing and a burden. Seeing through things brings great responsibilities and many times great angst in wanting to run from what you know you can’t. Such a time is this, what God gave me a glimpse of, I must confront.

In the midst of it all, and even later as I was trying to seek counsel, I wept uncontrollably. I have come to realize that was both the fear that resides in my flesh, my sin in me, and the intimacy of the relationship I had with God in those moments of another world. You can never be in the presence of our Lord and not weep. I found myself so mentally and physically exhausted, I could not hardly drive home, and for the remainder of the day, the simplest tasks seemed difficult. So many thoughts and scriptures seemingly floated through my head until the evening, as the war raged on, but God reassured me through his Spirit within me, as he gave me passages and wisdom till I slept, and thankfully gave me rest with no nightmares and warfare that came after India’s trip.

Why do I tell you just a glimpse of my yesterday? Because I truly believe we are living in the last days, and God wants to use little old me to encourage you to repent and believe. At the root of my ministry is my hearts desire to get you to seek God every day, for that is when and how my life changed. How will you recognize evil; how will you discern truth, or will you fall prey to wolves in sheep’s clothing? Only through your relationship with your heavenly Father, only through your diligent heartfelt pursuit of him daily in prayer and his Word. When you feed the Holy Spirit who lives inside of you, you strengthen him and he nourishes you. The relationship grows out of the heartfelt pursuit of him, and the gifts and wisdom he brings to you, feed the desire and grows the circle of an abiding relationship with Jesus Christ. It is ONLY in that abiding relationship that he will give you the glimpses and discernments for these days such as these.

You must understand the evil that lurks among us, many times playing out openly in today’s society, many times in leadership roles of society. In a movie called the Devil’s Advocate years ago, Al Pacino playing Lucifer asked why a young Keanu Reeves why he would not join his team. He went down the list of the people he had in powerful places; he proclaimed of how he was at the peaking point. What he failed to proclaim, was that he was about to fall after he did, when Jesus returned. Y’all……we are somewhat living that movie from 20 years ago, moreover we are living in the last days biblically. God may be wanting to use you in these last days to draw others to himself. God may be wanting to show you things that will blow your mind, and with that do heavenly work with your Creator. God has things and plans in store for those who seek to be his disciples, calling you to difficulties that come with eternal heavenly rewards. How will you know if you never seek him with your heart? How will you be able to see, if you never open your eyes to the Truth that lies in a world among us, that we cannot see, but can feel and attest to?