Have you ever had one of those spiritual “duh” moments, where Holy Spirit reminds you of something the Father had already told you that you THOUGHT you understood? Well, I had one of those last week….
Holy Spirit reminded me of a word from the Father from over 5 years ago. If you listened to my teaching A Holy Shift, you may remember it. If you missed it, you can catch it on YouTube HERE. It is a very timely and encouraging word that makes some sense of this time of dismantling and uncertainty we are living in, personally, corporately, and globally. As I re-read His word to me, I realized that much of my frustration and disillusionment was simply because I really didn’t fathom the depth of its meaning, nor did I respond accordingly. Here is what the had Father said to me:
Child, you are a transition generation, like Moses wandering with the children of Israel in the wilderness. Those called to transition have to endure the death of what was, as well as the birth of what will be. Abraham, Sarah, Zechariah, and Elizabeth all experienced reproductive death and supernatural new life, as a sign and a testimony of what was happening in the stars and upon the earth. During this transitional time, the old religious structure is dying away by My design. If you build too soon, you will build according to the old ways – things that are so familiar you don’t even know to question them. Remember that you can always encounter Me in the Secret Place, where there are no limitations, as Moses saw My face on the Mountain
I still move within the old, because I love My people, but I do not desire to sustain the structure. It must be allowed to die, as the new begins to grow and flourish. So, My beloved child, love Me, follow Me, keep your eyes on Me, listen for My instruction, only do what I am doing. Do not fret or feel that you are a failure because you are not succeeding in things I am allowing to die. Outward structures morph and change, but the Secret Place remains the same. There are no limitations here. You get the blueprints up on the Mountain, face to face. Then you come back down to implement them. Any plans you receive otherwise are subject to demonic manipulation. Waste your life on Me, and revelation (not information) will come.
No one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new ; for he says, “The old is better!” -Luke 5:37-39, NKJV
The old wineskins that cannot contain the new wine are the leftover church structures of yesterday. Because I move within them, the immature assume that I move because of them.
In a time of transition, two things are happening simultaneously: the old is dying away and the new is being birthed. So, your assignment is 2-fold:
– To gracefully allow the old ways to die, not judging, succumbing to discouragement or trying to keep alive what I desire to pass away. This also involves loving and caring for those whose old ways are dying, as well as allowing Me to move as I choose within the old system.
– To go up the Mountain, into the heavenly realm to receive the blueprint for the new wineskin and to birth it into the earth realm through intercession and by Divine strategy.
Both of these require freedom from the yoke of man and false compassion, that would cause you, by human effort and good works, to attempt to resuscitate what I am putting to death. It would also cause you to replicate what has been done before, in order to please man or relate to people, rather than establishing the new and different.
Do not fear, My child, for you were created for such a time as this. And, as you are faithful, your reward will be great.
He then began to remind me that the last time the earth experienced a transition of this magnitude, Jesus showed up on the scene. Before that was what church historians call “the 400 silent years,” between Malachi and Matthew. During this time, there was no open, widespread revelation. Israel was occupied by the Roman empire, and, looking from the outside, it would have appeared that God had forsaken His people. But He was simply dismantling the old in preparation for the new covenant and the church that sprang forth from the wounded side of our Savior.
There has always been a hidden remnant who lived from the eternal realm and ate the fruit of the coming season. Two of these mentioned in Scripture are Simeon and Anna. Simeon’s name means “one who hears,” so he heard when God told him that he would not die before seeing the Messiah. Because he heard…. really heard… he saw a tiny baby being dedicated in the temple and knew He was the One. Luke 2:25 tells us that Simeon was “just and devout.” And his job was simply TO WAIT for “the Consolation of Israel.” Anna was in the temple day and night, worshipping and serving God with prayer and fasting. And she recognized Him, too.
These two individuals are prototypes of what it looks like to successfully navigate transition and to thrive during a time of dismantling. Their job was simply to WAIT and to WORSHIP. And because they were content with that, they heard God when it appeared He was silent and saw what others overlooked.
Perhaps you have been feeling that the things of past seasons are being dismantled. Perhaps you even feel disoriented or disillusioned. If that is you, may this word bring clarity and encouragement. No matter what God is doing in the earth, He is accessible to all. Investing your life in worship and in the Secret Place will bring eternal reward, no matter what the earthly season. May this beautiful and timely word from the Father encourage you… as you wait upon Him, knowing He is Faithful.
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint. – Isaiah 40:31, NKJV
Until next time…
-Virginia