Greetings!
We would all agree that the fraying moral and spiritual fabric of our nation is in need of serious repair. We have observed the overwhelming tidal wave of corruption and have rationalized, with human wisdom, our two responses of, either, placing bandaid solutions on insurmountable problems, or admitting defeat, concluding that this mess, we have made for ourselves, is beyond our ability to even attempt to repair.
What is out of our control, however, has never been beyond the Lord's control - the solution rests with Him - He has never left or forsaken us - He desires to show us the way out - if we would simply wait upon Him and obediently listen to His voice (reference John 10:27; Hebrews 13:5).
"...all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought
the favor of the LORD our God
by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth."
(Daniel 9:13)
Daniel experienced first hand the discipline of a nation that had turned their hearts far from God. He, personally, chose to live a life set apart. He did not conform to the patterns of the corrupt land he was held captive in. Instead, he sought the Lord, three times a day, in prayer as he submitted to living a life of obedience and dependence upon the Lord. It was because of his example, and the example of his three friends, that this pagan nation witnessed the powerful reality of the One True and Living God.
Time and time again, in the Old Testament, the chosen people of God would fall prey to the subtle influences of the world and sacrifice their covenant relationship with an eternal God to, instead, satisfy their fleshly desires in a temporal world. As a result, they suffered His hand of discipline and correction in an effort to turn their hearts back to love the Lord their God, to teach His commands to their children, and to walk in obedience to His will.
It was only then, with hearts fully devoted and lives totally surrendered, that His people experienced true peace, safety, and security from their enemies and became witnesses of God's eternal power to a lost and dying world.
"Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army.
For the battle is not yours, but God's.
You will not have to fight this battle.
Take up your positions;
stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you."
(2 Chronicles 20:15b, 17a)
Today, we as the Church, the Body of Christ, have found ourselves in no less the same set of circumstances. Many of us have fallen asleep in the pew, captivated by a world that is not our home, forgetting our calling to be Salt and Light, and conforming to the patterns fo the world instead of being witnesses of His love and impacting the world for the glory of God!
Instead of discipline the Lord is determined to draw us back to Him - He is standing at the door and knocking - calling His Bride to return to her chamber. Desiring her eyes would grow weary for worldly pleasure, and, instead find pure delight in gazing upon His beauty (reference Psalm 27:4).
He is sounding the trumpet for His children come before Him to be purified and prepared; willing to exchange a garment of sin to be dressed in white; and submitting to His cleansing process to be made spotless and holy, because He is holy. He is preparing us to face the battle with feet shod in the gospel of peace; allowing us to stand firm while eagerly anticipating His return. Will we respond to His call and open the door?
This past week I was sitting in the hospital waiting room as my mom was undergoing triple bypass surgery. Just a few days earlier they had determined that she was a "walking time bomb" and in critical need of heart surgery.
She had all the warning signs - tightening of the chest, difficulty breathing, fatigue, and weakness - but that wasn't enough to get her to the doctor. It was an unrelated pain in her side that had become so unbearable it drove her to a check-up. It was there that an observant anesthesiologist identified the greater and more pressing problem - the one ,that without repair, would cost her her life.
How much pain and trial do we go through that we often ignore, put off, or just plain dismiss, not realizing the greater damage we are causing by neglecting to face the issue head on? Pain is a signal that we have become much too adept at overanalyzing, medicating, or ignoring so we don't have to deal with the root problem. Our Lord, in His tender mercy and long-suffering, graciously allows painful situations, often using the foolish, weak, and lowly things to grab our attention, giving us many opportunities to respond so that we will receive the healing we are so greatly in need of.
My mom's recent surgery is a harsh representative of the critical heart condition of many believers who are vastly unaware that we are "walking time bombs" in real need of heart surgery. Many of us are aware and disturbed by the declining morality and increasing corruption of the world, yet we are too weak (or too distracted) to take a stand and do anything about it.
We are meant to be an army, but we have, instead, become an audience. We have breathed in the unhealthy, and artificial, subtitutes of the world for far too long that we are no longer able to discern the purity of the Truth of His Word (or His voice) when it is right in front of us. We have little strength to stand, and even less desire to fight; the world is closing in upon us - ready to lock us in and throw away the key.
We can keep on ingoring the warning signals as the moral and spiritual foundation of our nation continues to erode; we can remain weak and ineffective in a world in desperate need of the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ; or we can elect to go through the necessary surgery and allow the Lord to get to the heart of the problem and unleash His Power in us to give us the strength to stand and face the battle with boldness as the days continue to grow evil and the love of most grow cold.
We have little time to waste. The walls are continuing to crumble, and the earth, and all its people, are shaking. If we miss this warning sign and fail to respond at this critical time we will surely experience a cardiac arrest with the world leaving us to die in the streets instead of rushing to resuscitate us. Our only hope is in Jesus Christ. We must listen to our Great Physician and submit to the treatment plan He has placed before us:
Patient: The Church - The Body of Christ - The Bride
DIAGNOSIS:
"Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your First Love.
Remember the height from which you have fallen!
Repent! and do the things you did at first."
(Revelation 2:4-5a)
CONDITION: Unhealthy Heart at Risk for Heart Attack
Cancerous walls of wordliness have created an unhealthy blockage keeping the Saviors' blood from flowing freely through the Body and preventing the patient from speaking the Truth in love and becoming a source of Light to an even more critically sick and suffering world. The patient has lost connection with the Head (reference Colossians 2:19).
RECOMMENDED TREATMENT: 40 Days of Spiritual Nourishment
with special attention from the Great Physician
DATE OF SURGERY: SEPTEMBER 1, 2008
(Treatment expected to continue for 40 days)
This treatment requires 3 daily meals of fresh manna from the Word of God.
As the treatment progresses the patient will learn to wait upon the Lord as He performs a circumcision of the heart and removes the unhealthy areas that are preventing the patient from being wholly His. Access to the heart in this manner will allow the Great Physician the ability to write His Word upon the heart and turn the hearts of stone into a heart of flesh.
PROGNOSIS: HEALTH AND HEALING
Willing and obedient patients will experience the expected outcome of purification of the heart, deeper intimacy and greater knowledge of the Lord, and a strong desire to be an obedient and faithful witness.
Additional benefit will be an increased appetite to do the will of the Lord and a growing hunger and thirst for righteousness.
"Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Him
Who is the Head, that is, Christ.
From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament,
grows and builds itself up in love,
as each part does its work."
(Ephesians 4:15-16)
This surgery is avaliable to all believers who desire to renew their intimacy with Christ and want Him to become their utmost priority. It is especially critical for those who recognize the need, and long, for spiritual renewal and healing in our nation and who desire to see unity within the entire Body of Christ. The decision is up to each individual believer - the results are dependent upon everyone responding affirmatively.
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Over 200 years ago our founding fathers listened to the voice of God and took a stand for righteousness. Fully dependent upon God they led this nation to independence from the hands of an evil tyrant. Today, that tyrant, the great enemy of God, has gained ground that doesn't belong to him. This nation is a Christian nation that was founded by God to accomplish His purposes of bringing Light and Life to a dying world in need of salvation.
Today, we must heed His voice and return to Him with hearts fully consecrated and lives pure and blameless, obediently and faithfully accomplishing our Heavenly Father's business. Apart from Him we can do nothing. May He return to find His Bride purified and dressed, faithful, fully prepared, and watchful!
"For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us.
We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you."
(2 Chronicle 20:12)
If your heart is aching for this world to experience healing, then submit your schedule, and surrender your time, to sit at His table,
allowing the Lord to cleanse you and make you holy "by the washing with the water through the Word" (Ephesians 5:26).
Experience the supernatural power of "the living and active word of God" as it begins as a scalpel in the Lord's holy hand repairing your heart and then transforms to a sword in your heart to bring hope and healing to a lost and dying world
(Hebrews 4:12).
HEART RESPONSE
Simply Visit
www.trumpetandtorch.org and access the
Proclaim Liberty button at the top of the Home Page to find more detailed information about this upcoming fast.
Register online at the website to gain access to the Temple side of the site where you will find two devotional journeys to lead you meal-by-meal
through 40 days of consecration with the Lord.
Choose EAT at the Table of the King if you have never feasted with us before or WELLSPRING if you walked with us through the Lenten Fast of 2008 utilizing EAT.
(You can register by clicking on the Invitation Seal on the home page or the "Come Feast with Us" button on the Proclaim Liberty page - please be patient as we are finalizing the navigation of this page in the coming weeks)
Once registered you will automatically receive email updates as we prepare
for these 40 days of prayer and fasting.
Please forward this email to share this journey with your family and friends.
Upon entering the Temple side of the Trumpet and Torch website you can read the Introduction and Welcome Letters in preparation for the fast.
In addition visit the FAQ and Family Time sections on the Home Page of the website for detailed information regarding the types of fasts, preparation for fasting, and answers to many questions you may have.
Our prayers are with you as you accept this invitation and experience this holy consecration.
"Now to Him Who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy - to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen." (Jude 24)
For His Glory, Honor, and Praise,
Traci A. Alexander
Trumpet and Torch Ministries