Find Joash

(I drew the above picture the next morning after having the following dream.)

This dream began with me looking at what seemed to be a painting in its very beginning stages, where the scenery was lightly drawn out in pencil. The elements given the most detail were the two trees on either side of the rock wall, and the words 'FIND JOASH' written in all-caps on the top of the wall. The trees seemed to be silhouetted against the sky, with a hint of mountain tops drawn in the background.

At the same time I read the words 'Find Joash' in the dream, the words were spoken into my right ear. I got my bible and began searching for Joash. I found several: the boy king that was hidden away, then crowned at seven years old to be king of Judah.. Then, there was the king of Israel some years later that sat with Elisha on his deathbed. Gideon's father was named Joash, as well as the keeper of the oil for King David.

So, which Joash was I supposed to find? And, how would I know once I found him? And, what would I say?

Over the next few days, and after searching the scriptures continually with no success, I decided to let it rest awhile, then come back to it later.

Then, on Wednesday, September 4, we decided to go for a walk in Pisgah National Forest near Davidson River. As we approached the footbridge, we saw a tall, African American man standing in the middle, looking down at the water. He appeared to be in deep thought, as if something was weighing heavy on his mind.

We almost walked on by, but we felt the inclination to stop. We anointed the *bridge, and asked him if he minded if we took his picture to include on our website. He didn't, so we took the picture, talked to him about the love of Yeshua, and gave him a **card for our ministry.

We walked approximately a mile, then turned back. As we walked, we discussed the meeting we just had, and what it might have meant. When we questioned each other as to whether he might have been the Joash we had to find, the spirit came over us in a huge way. There was no mistake~he was the Joash!

We walked back, pleased with the fact that we had 'found' Joash. We pray Alonzo (aka Joash) also got something from us, so that he doesn't have to go look over a bridge to mull over the questions in his life.

(Did you notice how much the picture I took resembles the one I drew? God used the 'picture' to show me the location where we would meet this Joash!)

*https://plus.google.com/u/1/100202880263888261488?tab=mX&gpsrc=gplp0&partnerid=gplp0#communities/108920670148815214650

** www.philippiprospectministries.org



Given In Marriage

 

A few months ago, I had a wonderful dream about a young man we had gotten to know. He is in his early ‘20’s, and has a tremendous burden for other young adults in his community.

 

In this dream, there were eight young women lined up on a very narrow path on the side of a steep, rocky face. Each of these girls were wearing a beautiful purple dress, with a bouquet of white flowers in their hands.

 

They each moved in unison, one step at a time, on the narrow ledge. What they could not see was near the end of this ledge, where there should have been a step to safety, there was a wide chasm instead.

 

Standing there to help each one was Chris, dressed in a tuxedo. He gave each his arm, as if he were asking them to dance, and when she accepted, she stepped over the chasm as if it weren’t even there. He then led her a few steps further, where a minister awaited her arrival to perform a wedding ceremony.

 

This dream moved me considerably, as well as members of his family. When I told his mother about it, she informed me of the burden he had for some of the young women in his church who had not received salvation. He had led at least one of them to the Lord, and was counseling the rest about their lives thus far.

 

It was then that I understood my dream fully. Each of these young women were being wooed by the Holy Spirit, and were on their way to being ‘married’. That is, accepting Jesus as their Savior.

 

But, as we know, the enemy had them walking where they could easily fall. And, if they didn’t fall, he had a chasm waiting in front of them so that they could not cross on their own.

 

God had shown me Chris’ purpose in their lives: to help them across the difficulties that would keep them from their awaiting groom, Jesus Christ.

Out of the Whirlwind

In June of 2010, about two months before we gave up our house and set out on the road, God gave me a dream telling us how we were to go about our ministry.

In my dream, I was standing in our living room and, from the ceiling came a swirling wind that enveloped me. It continued to moved in a circular motion around me, resembling the funnel of a small tornado.

I was mesmerized by the movement of air around me, yet on the inside, it was peaceful and still. Then, out of the wind, I heard a voice speak:

“Your job is to tell those that already know.”

In the last three years, we have done exactly as were told. We have been sent to numerous people, all of which claim Christianity, but don’t live it. God has sent us to remind people of their commitment to Him. Some people pledge their lives to God at the time of salvation, or when God has brought them through some great trouble.

Just like the children of Israel in the Old Testament, when things were going good, they forgot their commitment to God, and He had to send a prophet to remind them that they were His people. Our mission, it turns out, has not been that different.

Since God spoke to me out of the whirlwind, I thought it would be interesting to see what else a *whirlwind was used for. (*In Hebrew, the word is translated as tempest.)

In 2 Kings, Elijah was taken up to heaven alive in a whirlwind.

In Job 37:9, we are told that the whirlwind comes out of the south. South, in Hebrew, is chamber. Does that mean that a whirlwind comes out of God’s chambers?

In Psalm 107:25, God commands a ‘stormy wind’ to come upon the people.

In Isaiah, there are three instance of ‘whirlwind’. In 5:28, Isaiah compares the turning of chariot wheels to that of a whirlwind. In 17:13, a mass of people running away from God are compared to a tumbleweed being blown by a wind storm. And 66:15 tells us that God uses a whirlwind ‘to render His anger in fury.’

In Jeremiah, there are two scriptures dealing with whirlwinds. In 23:19, God uses a whirlwind to show His fury against the wicked. 30:23 is a repeat of the same scripture.

Ezekiel uses some of the most symbolic imagery in Scripture to describe what the whirlwind was made of.

In Amos 1:14, God uses a whirlwind and fire to destroy palaces.

In Nahum 1:3, it says that ‘the Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.’

It would seem that most of the Scripture about whirlwinds is about when God is about to pronounce a judgment upon someone. That has been our experience in our journey thus far. Everyone that has rejected what God had to offer very soon had many troubles enter their lives.

If God ever speaks to anyone from a whirlwind, take heed. If the Scriptures are anything to go by, God means business.

Attenborough Black

The above image was given to me in a dream on the morning of March 15, 2013. I drew this sketch as soon as I got up to try to capture the message it seemed to convey. It seemed that I was looking at a picture~a very old picture. The man in the picture seemed to have somewhat of a Johnny Depp in the character of Jack Sparrow look about him. His shirt seemed to be made out of burlap fabric, because the weave was very coarse and rough. Even though the clothing was very prominent, it was the eyes that seemed to stand out the most. As the image faded away, the words spoken into my ear was “Attenborough Black.”

All that morning, I struggled to figure out just what ‘Attenborough Black’ meant. The only ‘Attenborough’ I knew of was David, the English narrator of nature shows. So, I googled the name, to see what popped up. I ended reading all about David and his brothers, Richard and John, but nothing really jumped out at me, so I mulled it over for the next two days.

The one thing that I had watched that first day that kept coming into my mind was a video of David Attenborough narrating a segment about underwater thermal vents, and the role they play in the oceanic environment. I had watched several different videos, but nothing really ‘spoke’ to me. But, at that point, I knew I was on the right track, so I kept searching. After finding nothing in search after search, I typed ‘David Attenborough’ one last time and looked through the list of websites that came up. I realized there was one I had not previously clicked. Within the first few seconds of the less-than-3 minute video, I found what God was leading me to find. (follow link below)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/habitats/Hydrothermal_vent#p00fff1y



Mr. Attenborough explained how life was sustainable for certain oceanic animals, even at high temperatures, and with no light from the sun. Until these creatures were discovered, scientists thought that no life could sustain without sunlight. It was then that I knew what the dream meant.

My daughter had met, about four months prior, a young man named Johnny that was just checking himself into a drug rehabilitation center after 14 years of heroin use. He had tried several detox centers during those years, but this time he had a new attitude, because he had asked Jesus into his heart.

The Lord led us to minister to him, which we did for 3 months, and he has become a new person. While he still has ‘urges’, God is helping him overcome all the temptation thrown at him.

As David Attenborough pointed out, life can be found in even the deepest, darkest places, even if others never thought it was possible.

Stomping the Snake

Back in 1995, God gave me a peculiar dream; one that I won’t soon forget.

 

My dad was called to preach in the mid-’80’s, just before I graduated high school. About 18 months into pastoring a small church, some harsh words were spoken between him and his sister, and he resigned from the position.

After I married in 1986, I was not in church much, but in 1995, I attended a revival in that church. During the 3 weeks that it ran, I developed a burden for my dad. I could see that he was truly called, and he was letting some trivial words be a stumbling block. The Lord gave me a dream to go along with the burden, as well as Rev. 22:10 as a way of explaining that it was to be done as soon as possible.

The dream began with me walking along a paved road, wearing cowboy boots. Just a few feet away, in front of me, was a huge black snake, about 10 ft long. The odd thing about it was that instead of a normal snake’s head, it was my dad’s head--bald with big, brown eyes.

I walked up to the snake and, although it looked harmless, I knew it was actually dangerous. I lifted my right leg, and stomped on the head of the snake as hard as I could. It made an impact, so I did it again. It was stunned, but not dead yet, so I lifted my leg higher and put more force into the crushing blow. That time, the snake rolled over, belly up, and died.

The morning after I had this dream, I was sitting on the side of my bed, reading in Revelations, wondering what to do. I knew I had to tell him of my burden; I had to be obedient. Suddenly the words in chapter 22, verse 10, jumped out at me: ‘for the time is hand.’ So, in my spirit, I asked the Lord, ‘The next time I see him?’ The answer came back: ‘The next time you see him.’

Just a few days later, I had the opportunity to speak to him in private. I told him my burden, that the Lord had told me that he should return to preaching. He gave me a sly ‘that’s none of your business’ look, and that was that. About three months later, when I saw him again, I repeated the first message. Same result.

The third ‘stomp’ came almost four months later. I and my two daughters had gone with them to a singing in Tennessee, and I had left my car at the Burger King in the town where I lived. Upon returning, we all went in for a burger, as none of us had eaten that evening.

I knew this was my last opportunity. It was February, and very cold. He went out to start the car, to warm up before continuing on to their house, another hour away. I did the same. As we walked out of the building, with tears in my eyes, I told him once more that the Lord had called him to preach, and that he should be obedient to that calling.

He started to cry, and told me he knew it, and had known it all along. He said he was waiting for the Lord to give him the opportunity, and he would begin again.

I walked away relieved; I had done my part. I was obedient, even though it was hard for me to tell my dad the words told me to tell him. But, I could not let his disobedience cause mine.