The combination of the church and the bride has been a message the Lord has been cultivating in my heart since my early 20s. Especially in the last two years, He has given me a clear directive to focus my attention here. As a result, He has been speaking to me in greater detail regarding this.

In February 2020, I released a word that the Lord was preparing us for “the hour of power.” In August 2020, through a vision of the bride becoming unattached from Jesus’ heart, the Holy Spirit gave me His revelation regarding the global church: “We no longer look like the church birthed in Acts, baptized in fire; we have become a weak church because the church has lost her power. She lost her power because she unfastened herself from her first love’s heart.”

Unfastened from God’s heart, the church lacks understanding and her beloved identity. She does not understand the weapons of warfare. Intimacy is the gateway that will bring understanding to the meaning and capability of each piece of armor. The power of God is deposited in those who have heart postures rooted in purity. From purity to power, the pure in heart see God (Matt. 5:8).

We are empowered through our union with Him (Eph. 6:10). We cannot be in union with someone we do not fellowship with. Union is a connection formed in the secret place. Power is activated in the knowing: to know Him is to have intimacy and to have intimacy is to know Him— “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine” (Song 6:3a). In the knowing, you receive His power.

Many “know” and are familiar with Psalm 91 as a prayer of protection. Psalm 91:1 (AMPC) says, “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty [Whose power no foe can withstand].” You may “know” the Scripture, but do you know the Most High? Your stability will come through abiding in the secret place and knowing Him.

In August 2020, I heard in the Spirit, “The Lord is looking for His covenant keepers.” Our natural keys will not unlock the door to the secret place, but rather this key is seen with the spiritual eye, looks like a covenant ring and is named “the key of intimacy.” In the Hebrew, the word for “dwells” is yashab, Strong’s 3427; to sit, remain, dwell. Additional words used in the definition are “married” and “marrying.”

The secret place of protection is a place for those who are married to the presence of God. Many find themselves teetering from a stance of love and believing the promises of God back to fear struggling to ward off the lies of the enemy, they are unstable. But as we read above, our stability comes from dwelling. The wise warrior will choose the empowerment of union.

Paul wrote of this union and of its importance one verse prior to the instruction of wearing the full armor, and it is a small but most vital key in battle that is often overlooked. “In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides]” (Eph. 6:10). After union with the Lord is addressed, then Paul writes regarding the full armor: “Put on God’s whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies and the deceits of the devil. For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere” (Eph. 6:11,12).

The secret place will be the shelter where intimacy’s key unlocks mysteries, promises and dreams that position you to “conceive and carry out unique developments” and blueprints for the next outpouring, the new wine. (Excerpt from prophetic word, “Wait Now, I’m Coming.”

On Nov. 3, 2020, at 1:32 a.m. I heard in the Spirit, “The global church will be reformed through intimacy.” “Reformed,” defined by Webster’s Dictionary 1828: “corrected; amended; restored to a good state; as a reformed profligate”; the reformed church, formed anew, as a reformed profligate.

“Profligate” defined: “An abandoned man; a wretch who has lost all regard to good principles, virtue or decency.” I believe the Lord is saying that through intimacy, identity is restored, and we will be formed anew, reestablished in virtue. We will abandon “abandonment” as we are healed from the orphan spirit and take on our identity as mature sons and daughters, reformed through the rebirth of our salvation.

The date I heard that “the global church will be reformed through intimacy” was Nov. 3, 2020. If we read the numbers Hebraically, from right to left, we have , and the Lord highlighted 2 Peter 3:11 (TPT), which reads, “Since all these things are on the verge of being dismantled, don’t you see how vital it is to live a holy life? We must be consumed with godliness.” In context, the Scripture prior is referencing the coming day of the Lord taking everyone by surprise. The Lord is returning for a pure and spotless bride, a bride who has made herself ready, and there is an urgency in the Spirit petitioning to live holy and consecrated lives through the restoration of intimacy. {eoa}

For more of this article, continue reading here.

Amy Sutherland is currently based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is the founder of Ablaze Global Productions, a ministry-production company formed from her dual call to minister to the church and the unreached around the globe. Investing years in ministry and the entertainment industry she has had the opportunity to develop her giftings in a unique way for such as time as this. From award-winning actress and producer to speaking and ministering prophetically worldwide, she desires to awaken and make ready a fiery bride for her King. Amy serves the body globally with prophetic words, insights, training and encouragement, though she specifically ministers to leaders.

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Seeing God as our heavenly Father cannot be accomplished until the cross is made real to you, Pastor Todd White says.

“I have to know the love of God to experience God,” he says. “To physically, mentally, spiritually experience the love of God is to be filled with His fullness.”

Before we can get to that point, White says, we must understand that the message of the Bible is summed up in the finished work on the cross. Then, “you can understand why you’re on the earth,” and make yourself “ready as the bride” to await the heavenly bridegroom’s return.

The readying process must occur so that the “debris” of sin is cleared away, White continues. “There’s nothing that takes the debris out except for the blood of Jesus, because the blood of Jesus speaks better things.”

The blood of Jesus “cleanses your conscience from dead works to serve God.”

For more on how having a clear conscience allows us to know God and serve Him better, watch this recent message from Todd White now.

I want to talk about a subject that’s very important, especially considering what’s going on in our country and in our society.

Whether or not many Christians want to acknowledge it—and some simply refuse to—we are in the midst of a very intense spiritual war. The enemy is hard at work at disrupting the lives of believers and causing as much chaos in our culture as he possibly can. I want to talk about what that means, how it applies to us and how each of us needs to be equipped to fight the devil.

On the Strang Report podcast, I interview kingdom leaders who have important things to say about our culture and about how we, as the church, must respond. In fact, I recently interviewed Pastor Mark Burns, and I was stirred by some of his comments about how the problems in this country, including critical race theory, religious persecution and some of the other crazy things that are happening, can simply be labeled as spiritual warfare. Burns spoke about how Christians need to plead the blood of Jesus and how we need to take our God-given authority over the enemy a lot more seriously.

I agree with him 100%. Ephesians 6:12 says we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers. I’ve talked about this Scripture many times. We have published magazine articles and books about it. John Eckhart and Kim Daniels are two of our leading authors in this area. But it’s something the body of Christ desperately needs to hear right now.

The truth of the matter is, however, there are entire segments of the body of Christ, the church, who ignore the devil. They don’t talk about him, and they try to leave the devil alone and hope he leaves them alone.

Well, that doesn’t work.

And some don’t really believe in the power of the Holy Spirit, or they don’t understand the concepts of binding and loosing. But for the believer, I want to emphasize how crucial waging spiritual warfare against the enemy is. I’m assuming that you have a quiet time every day with the Lord. If not, you need to. We have to refuel. We have to get our marching orders for the day from the Lord.

But in that quiet time, when we’re dealing with the Holy Spirit, when we’re asking the Lord to give us power, we need to pray diligently for our country. Satan has blinded so many people.

I’ll use just one example—critical race theory. I will admit I haven’t really studied it, but I have followed it in the news. Critical race theory teaches that in 1619, when the first slaves reportedly showed up in Virginia, America was founded for slavery. The British Empire had slavery; not just in these colonies, but all through the Caribbean and other parts of the world. The British actually ended the slave trade in the 1830s, about 30 years before America experienced a bloody civil war.

Slavery is a terrible scourge, perhaps America’s greatest sin. But society must realize that America wasn’t the only country or region to enslave people. Many countries in the Caribbean and in Europe, as well as Brazil, practiced this abomination. My point about critical race theory is that America was founded on Christian principles and not on principles like taking slaves for cheap labor. It is the church that must spearhead a return to those Christian principles to once again become the nation that God intended it to be.

But that’s going to take believers, especially spirit-filled, Pentecostal, charismatic believers, getting involved in spiritual warfare. People like my good friend, Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King Jr., have been involved in spiritual warfare and battling the enemy for many years. She believes in the power of the Holy Spirit and that we can conquer Satan’s attacks.

In Pentecostal and charismatic circles, which is my tribe, we believe in spiritual warfare, rebuking the enemy and taking authority. I believe we will have deliverance. Principalities and powers are causing division in our country, and we need to pray against them in the name of Jesus.

I deal with this issue in detail in my new book, God and Cancel Culture. I believe it’s the most important book I’ve written so far. It is my way to try to encourage people, especially Christians and other conservatives, to open their eyes and see what is happening in our country. We all need to understand it better and how we are to fight the enemy that is bearing down on us. Some of this is revealed in God’s Word, and, other times, the Holy Spirit will open our eyes and open our spirits to know how to respond.

You can order a copy of the book in two ways. One is on my website, . There, you can get any of the books I’ve ever written. You can also go to and pre-order the book now. They will send it to you on the release day, Sept. 7, the day after Labor Day. I hope you will be encouraged to order one and discover how we, as believers, must band together to fight the enemy in this most chaotic time in our country.

Click here to listen to this entire podcast. Please spread the word about it to your followers on social media. Be sure to subscribe to the Strang Report on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform for more podcasts to inspire you to experience the power of the Holy Spirit. {eoa}

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God has been preparing His people for this notable hour of history as the containers and dispensers of His life and His goodness. He has been pouring in the treasures of His Word and soaking us in the anointing of His life in preparation for our appointment in the presence of the King.

Everyone has an appointment with the King. Everything we have been through thus far has been preparation for this divine appointment. For those who have been diligent to work with the Holy Spirit in fashioning the ministry He has assigned to you and have persevered through the trials of birthing your assigned portion, God calls you faithful!

I recently shared in my last word about the upcoming Shmita year on the Jewish calendar that will begin on Rosh Hashanah 5782 and falls on Sept. 7 on the Gregorian calendar. God created the Shmita to be a Sabbath year of rest for the people and the land. Every seventh year God ordained a time of rest, forgiveness of debts and the release of slaves from captivity. Obedience required the faith to know that God would provide supernaturally during this time.

Living in rest is a walk of faith! Obedience to God’s commands releases the blessings of God. Obedience to God’s ordinance for the Shmita allowed Him to release supernatural signs and wonders on behalf of His people. We are now heading into an appointed and very supernatural year of divine miracles where we cease from our labors and from striving, and God rises to His place of lordship in our lives and over the affairs of this world.

The day of rest that is upon us falls in a year represented by two—5782 and 2022. The number two in Hebrew is bet, and its form denotes a house or a container. Some Jewish scholars understand the number two to be the mirror of one. Two also signifies the principle of two witnesses. In the season ahead, we will see a people coming into conformity to the mirror image of God, as they enter union and rest in Him. We will see God bear witness to His work in man, where He alone determines the matter and the outcome. In the year of two, God will align Isaiah 22:22 with its counterpart of Revelation 3:7-8, to place open doors before His faithful servants that no one can shut, and to shut doors that no one can open.

“I know your works. Look! I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it. For you have a little strength, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name” (Rev. 3:8).

This is a word for many who have preserved through the trials and who will now see doors opening before them as God goes ahead to prepare their way. For the Lord is now rising in His people to begin to build His house according to His design. He is about to release His builders and open great and effective doors to get the work done.

“The nations shall fear the name of the Lord, and all the kings of the earth Your glory. For the Lord shall build up Zion: He shall appear in His glory” (Ps. 102:15-16).

Sept. 7 is Rosh Hashanah; it is the Feast of the Blowing of Trumpets and the beginning of 5782. I sense God is saying as He did in Joshua 1:11, “Prepare food, for in three days you will cross the Jordan to go to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.'”

The Lord is saying that it is time to break camp and move out into your destiny. We are entering a supernatural day of rest as we move into the day of battle. This is the dichotomy of the hour—rest and war, and darkness and light. When Israel crossed over the Jordan to possess their promised land, they were crossing over into war. The COVID trial we have been walking through in the world has been a disturbing one, allowing dark forces to push a demonic agenda. Yet through it all God has accomplished much in and through His people.

In the days ahead, we may see strange times come upon the earth, but God’s plan will always be unfolding toward His end—and He wins. There are great times of testing coming, and God’s people must dig deep and take these trials as opportunities to build muscles of faith. Always remember that God has chosen you for such a time … He must therefore believe in you! Continue reading. {eoa}

Faith Marie Baczko is the president of Headstone Ministries International—a ministry that is rich and robust in the purposes and plans of God. She is a prophetic teacher and author, bringing significant revelation to mobilize, equip and strengthen the body of Christ for this momentous hour of history. Faith is an international speaker and has garnered enduring relationships with leaders united in passion for truth and enduring Revival. Faith is the author of several books; her latest release, now available on Amazon, is called A Rising Called For! Visit our website;contract@.

In the journey of hearing God’s voice today effectively and accurately, you need the practical and personal work of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus clearly told his followers that those who hear His words and put them into practice are wise!

“Whoever hears these sayings of Mine and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on a rock. And the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house. And it did not fall, for it was founded a rock” (Matt. 7:24–25).

To avoid error in the day in which we live, it is vital to grow in the submission to the Holy Spirit and learn to depend on Him. As you do so, you will find yourself walking squarely and safely in the center of the path He has for you.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5-6).

Here are 10 essential and practical guardrails that will keep you on track as you learn to master the art of hearing and following God’s voice:

1. Don’t Make It Complicated! It is not hard to hear God. We tend to overcomplicate the whole matter.

The following three simple steps will help you in hearing God’s voice:

— Step 1: Submit to His Lordship. Let’s ask Him to help silence our own thoughts, desires and opinions. We want to hear only the thoughts of the Lord. Take the advice given in Proverbs 3:6–7: “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.”

George Müller was an Englishman, one of the great evangelical champions of the faith. He lived this first principle. By faith alone, he supported vast orphanages. He would pray daily for the provisions to feed these hundreds of children who were under his care. One of the secrets in George Müller’s walk with God was so simple, yet it is rarely taught today: He told his followers that if they wanted to hear from God and pray in faith, then they first would have to cleanse themselves of their own opinions. Another word for this is “submission.”

We can’t hear God if we have a preformed opinion on an issue. We must submit to His lordship. We need to consciously submit our thoughts, our opinions, our preconceived attitudes and notions, and even our traditions, to the Lord.

— Step 2: Resist the Enemy. We can use the authority Jesus Christ has given us as His disciples to silence the voice of the enemy. We can stand firm in our position as God’s own children. We need to learn what it means to apply the blood of Jesus over our lives. We can resist the enemy, who comes to our mind with all sorts of fears and plausible doubts. God’s Spirit in us will make us able to do what we can never do solo, and Jesus’ powerful name will convince Satan to leave. The apostle James wrote, “Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil ,and he will flee from you” (4:7). Submit first; then resist.

— Step 3: Ask a question and expect God’s answer.

We should ask the very question that is in our heart, bringing it before the throne of Almighty God. Then we need to wait for Him to answer.

We should not expect to get an answer to pop right up (“You’ve got mail!”); rather, we should wait expectantly, believing that as we have submitted to God and resisted the enemy, we will be “filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding” (Col. 1:9b).

At times, an immediate reply may come. The vital third step after submitting and resisting is to expect God to act.

2. Allow God to Speak However He Chooses. We should not try to dictate to God the guidance methods we prefer; rather, we must listen with a yielded heart. There is a direct link between yielding and hearing.

He may choose to speak to us in a method that we are not accustomed to. He can speak through His written Word, through a person, through dreams or visions, or through a quiet inner voice.

Having submitted to Him, resisted the enemy and asked for an answer, we should not dictate the way we want Him to respond to our request. Let’s receive grace from His storehouse, the grace of expectant yielding.

We need to always allow God to speak in the way He chooses.

3. Confess Any Known Sins. A clean heart is a prerequisite to hearing God.

We read in Psalm 66:18: “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.”

If the Lord doesn’t even hear us, then we’re not going to receive the answer that we’re hoping for—because He hasn’t even heard the question yet.

The third tool for hearing God’s voice is foundational to the ABCs of Christianity—the confession of sins.

We need to confess our sins to our Father in Jesus’ great name. He is waiting to forgive us.

4. Obey the Last Thing God Said. Why would God give us new orders if we haven’t obeyed His last ones?

He’s waiting for us to do what He’s already told us to do. This alone could be a primary roadblock.

If He has already spoken, and we already know what is required of us, then we should go do it—for Jesus’ sake! It’s an issue of obedience.

5. Get Your Own Leading. God will use others to confirm our guidance, but we must learn to hear the voice of the Lord for ourselves.

God is a jealous God. That means He wants to talk with us personally. We need to become secure in our own identity in Christ. We must realize that we are sons and daughters of the Creator of the universe and that He wants to relate to us in our own right.

We should not be wrongly codependent on others. At the same time, we should not jump the tracks by cultivating an independent and rebellious spirit.

We need to hear God for ourselves. {eoa}

For the rest of the article, visit .

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After a word of knowledge concerning a woman who was heavily oppressed mentally and physically, the Holy Spirit said, “It takes the faith of a corporate body to lift up such ones who are heavily oppressed. Even the angels participate in aiding such a one for it is the source of great power.”

“Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10, NKJV).

I know this verse applies to a sinner who comes to repentance, but the principle speaks volumes to us concerning the importance of the one, and the faith and agreement of the local body to aid the suffering one, or even unbelievers who may be in our midst.

“But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you. How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification” (1 Cor. 14:24-26, author’s emphasis).

The local body needs to have a revelation of how heaven moves for the one.

When a church comes into agreement for any member of the body who is sick, oppressed or going through a severe trial, it becomes a great source of power for them.

Other Examples of Corporate Faith and Power

My wife was remembering when a man with a mask appeared through a window outside of the place where she worked at as a single woman many years ago. This frightened her and fear gripped her. She went to the local assembly and asked for prayer, and one of the pastors led the congregation in proclaiming the protection of Psalm 91 over her. It created such a force in the realm of the Spirit for Carolyn that she was able to go back to work without any fear.

We had returned from some meetings in one city where corporate prayer was made on behalf of the pastor’s wife. Her life appeared to be in disarray. Her business and health seemed to be failing. Fear and discouragement were setting in. Corporate prayer and power were released for her in the assembly. Love and encouragement were given. Soon God began to move on her behalf and manifested answers to her needs.

Results of United Praying

When Peter was thrust into prison by Herod the church gathered to pray constantly.

“Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church” (Acts 12:5).

What were the results of this united praying? The power of God was released, and an angel was sent to deliver Peter from prison (verses 6-11). When he realized he had gained his freedom, he went to the house of Mary.

“So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying” (Acts 12:12).

The church has got to learn to assemble in the power of the Spirit.

United Fasting and Prayer

I heard one oldtimer tell the story of an epileptic boy for whom the church fasted and prayed for two days. When they came together in the corporate assembly the power of God was manifest and the boy was completely delivered.

God often spotlights an individual so the church can come into faith and agreement for their needs. So much more power is released where there is a spirit of unity and agreement. Most believers in the church today are not familiar with this kind of united power. It is the day where we must discern and judge these things spiritually. There are many examples of this in the Scriptures. Even when there is practice of sin in a known member of the local body, church members have tremendous power and authority to deal with that one as a final measure to root out the leaven in their midst (1 Cor. 5).

“In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (verses 4-5, author’s emphasis).

Peter and John Threatened

Here is another marvelous scripture containing prayer on behalf of Peter and John, who were severely threatened for preaching and healing in the name of Jesus:

“Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:29-31, author’s emphasis).

Corporate prayer released the power of God, filled them all with the Holy Spirit and shook the place where they assembled. This prayer had to do with preaching the gospel in boldness and power. Unless the spreading of the gospel and the advancement of the kingdom of God becomes the church’s primary motive, we’ll be limited in our prayers. Often we ask amiss to consume it on our own lusts (James 4:3). Power is granted to those who are seeking first the kingdom of God (Matt. 6:33).

United Prayer Gives Birth to Corporate Power and Revelation

United prayer not only gives birth to corporate power, but also to revelation and instruction/direction from the Lord. For example, in Acts 13:1-3, five ministers were ministering to the Lord and fasting when the Holy Ghost spoke direction that changed the landscape of the early church.

“Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.”

We’ve got to get into the classroom of the Holy Ghost and learn these things. Too many leaders and churches are following the production of the purveyors of the self-help, motivational, you-can-have-it-all, success in life, grow-your-church seminar founded on the mere wisdom of man, which God has not chosen, instead of the power of God. This has caused a great glorying in the flesh that God resists (1 Cor. 1:26-29). Let us remember that the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:25).

Many of the things released in corporate meetings will be instructions and directions of the will of God for the local assembly. Often they will come from guest ministers who move in the Spirit and will speak the wisdom of God into that body. This operation has manifested in our own lives and ministry of late in nearly every place and church we’ve gone to. We will pray forth mysteries and ask God to reveal His will to a people.

For instance, recently in the state of Oregon, at least one church came into the dealings of God and the stirrings of the Spirit that were birthed through prayer and the word of the Lord that came through our vessels. The pastors were so moved that they transcribed the utterances that came by the Spirit in the meetings we held there. This has happened a number of times where churches rehearse what the Lord said. That kind of honor and reverence and subsequent obedience to the word of the Lord will produce results in any assembly.

Any church with spiritual leadership can move in these profound and prolific things because of a lifestyle of prayer. In these dark times in our nation, heaven on earth will manifest for those who are seeking the Lord right now. The Lord lifts up His voice to His army (Joel 2). Instructions, assignments and deployments are coming for those who learn to pray and interpret mysteries. The power of God will be released in corporate prayer. All you need is two or three in faith and agreement for Jesus to be in our midst in power.

Let us call to attention and order our solemn assemblies and move into God’s mysteries and miracles for this day and hour.

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together” (Heb. 10:25a). {eoa}

Bert Farias’ books are forerunners to personal holiness, the move of God and the return of the Lord. They also combat the departure from the faith and turning away from the truth we are seeing today. The Tumultuous 2020s and Beyond is his latest release to help believers navigate through the new decade and emerge as an authentic remnant. Other materials/resources are available on his website, Holy Fire Ministries and YouTube channel. You can follow him personally on Facebook, his Facebook ministry page or Twitter.

My good friend, Mark Burns, an evangelical Black pastor from South Carolina, pulls no punches when he speaks about the powerful havoc the issue of racism is wreaking on our country.

Burns is convinced that racism is an “all-out assault from the gates of hell,” and that there is only one way it to battle it. It’s spiritual warfare at the highest level, and Burns says the effort must come from Bible-believing Christians who want to eradicate this abomination and bring peace and unity to America, where division continues to grow exponentially every day.

“Those of us who are of the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ know the only real way to combat this is to invoke the power of the Holy Spirit through the blood of Jesus Christ,” Burns told me on a recent episode of the Strang Report. “We, as believers, really need to begin to fight the demonic forces that we cannot see. That can only be done through the power of God’s Word.”

I’ve done two other podcasts with Mark previously about racism, which you can listen to here and here.

Burns says he sees our nation right now as “a dangerous place.” He says the critical race theory, which is now being taught in our schools, is a “danger to democracy” and “a form of communism,” an ideal that threatens the very fiber of our free nation.

“The critical race theory, essentially, says that every institution in America is inherently racist,” Burns says. “If you are born white, it says you are, by definition, a racist. This is backwards thinking and ultimately is connected to the effort to divide us so much that our very democracy, this republic, is in danger.

“With the critical race theory, we don’t need to try to figure out all of the details. We just know that Satan is behind it. And it’s going to take us pleading the blood of Jesus to get rid of it. That means having more patience and love and understanding and listening more to the Holy Spirit and how to communicate the message of Christ. It’s not Black God, white God or red God; He is just God. We need to get more and more spiritual leaders to speak to that in the spiritual realm. We all believe in the power of prayer and how we can move mountains.”

Burns, dubbed by Time Magazine as “Donald Trump’s Top Pastor” and named as one of the 16 People Who Shaped the 2016 Presidential Election, has written a book he says will publish in the next 30 days titled The Trump Card: Fighting Racism With Trump’s Policies and Not BLM Propaganda. In the book, Burns explains how proclaiming yourself as a patriot in America and supporting Donald Trump, in recent years makes you a white supremacist in the eyes of liberal Democrats—whom he says have “hijacked” this country.

“I believe that white liberals have opened a Pandora’s box and really don’t know how to close it,” Burns says. “The word patriot has now been considered by the liberal left, the anti-religious liberal left, as a dog whistle to mean white supremacy or a racist epitaph. That is untrue. The reality is that we’ve had so many Black Americans who fought for the freedom of this nation; Black men and even Black women have fought and died representing the red, white and blue and the independence of this great nation.

“They made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can be considered a nation that is a nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. They are slapping those who have died in the face by declaring to be a patriot means that you essentially are a Trump supporter and you are a racist. This is false.”

Click here for more of this fascinating interview with Pastor Mark Burns, and spread the word about it to your followers on social media. Be sure to subscribe to the Strang Report on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform for more podcasts to inspire you to experience the power of the Holy Spirit. {eoa}

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Times Square, synonymous with New York City, got a special visit from Metro World Child Sunday School Program on June 9, 2021. As part of celebrations for the reopening of New York City, the New York Police Department invited Metro World Child (Metro) to bring good fun and joy to the streets.

Metro’s staff members dressed in bright neon T-shirts, distributed candies and fliers and had several highly engaging sessions from their iconic yellow Metro sidewalk truck at the center of Times Square. There were interactive games, Bible stories, prayer and raffles for a TV, a laptop and a hoverboard as part of the celebration. Several hundred children and adults from all over the world participated in their programs.

Some former Metro kids joined the celebration. Veronica Jimenez, now a women’s conference speaker, who attended Metro’s program 40 years ago when she was 12 years old, said, “Attending Metro’s program was the only happy memory I had growing up in an abusive environment in Brooklyn. I can’t imagine how my life would have turned out without it. I am so thrilled to see Metro is still serving the city today after 40 years.” Quite a few locals came to the staff members to share their Metro stories from when they were children, including a security guard in Times Square.

The Rev. Dr. Bill Wilson, founder of Metro World Child, told the crowd in his opening address with the NYPD, “Metro continued to serve New York City during the pandemic through food pantry and online children’s program. We are excited to celebrate the city reopening and ready to go back to the street to serve the kids!”

At 72 years old, still driving the school bus to pick up kids for Sunday school, Wilson said, “Out of my own painful experiences as a child, one man made a difference in my life, putting me on the path to do the same thing for children all over the world who are just like I was. That’s what I’ve spent my entire adult life doing. I am grateful that I can continue to serve New York City and this great country I love.”

About Metro World Child

Metro World Child is a global, faith-based humanitarian organization dedicated to serving children throughout New York City, various urban centers and rural communities around the world.

Metro World Child was founded in 1980 in Brooklyn, New York, by Wilson. His original passion when he moved to New York was to reach at-risk, inner-city children exposed to violence, crime, drugs, gangs, neglect and poverty. As someone who was abandoned himself at age 12 by his alcoholic mom on a street corner in St Petersburg, Florida, he knows the desperation of hopelessness at the young age. His heart was to reach children through high-impact, fun and exciting Sunday school services.

Now, 40 years later, Metro World Child is still headquartered in the heart of Brooklyn, reaching thousands of inner-city children and their families through fun and engaging Sunday school services, personal visitation and mentorship programs in the five boroughs of New York City. Before COVID, Metro served on average over 20,000 children in New York each week. Its global outreach now is much greater, though; Metro World is currently in a total of 13 countries, reaching over 250,000 children weekly. Metro World Child is now the largest Sunday school in the world. {eoa}

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With the world’s spiritual crisis worsening, Awakening Prayer Hubs, a prayer movement contending for awakening and transforming revival in the nations, is transforming prayer warriors into prayer heroes in their cities.

And, intercessory prayer generals are supporting the efforts.

Mike Bickle, director of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City says: “Awakening Prayer Hubs is a strong expression of bringing prayer to the local level so that intercessors can contend for revival in their city. Being a person of prayer is one of the most portent callings in one’s life. Jennifer LeClaire is a person of prayer. She is the real deal; a true gift to the body of Christ.”

Awakening Prayer Hubs already has hundreds of prayer hubs in dozens of nations, with new leaders joining every day. Jennifer LeClaire, founder of the Awakening House of Prayer Global Movement, which includes Awakening Prayer Hubs, believes we are going to see the greatest Great Awakening in the history of the world, and it will spill over into the nations of the earth for the glory of God. She believes we’ll see a movement greater than all previous moves of God put together.

“God gave me a prophetic word about a Great Awakening in 2007, and we’ve been waging war with this prophecy for 14 years,” says LeClaire. “Our mission is to bring together a diverse group of intercessors in cities around the world for one vision: spiritual awakening in the nations.”

LeClaire, former editor of Charisma magazine, is an internationally recognized author, prophetic voice to her generation and conference speaker. She carries a reforming voice that inspires and challenges believers to pursue intimacy with God, cultivate their spiritual gifts and walk in the fullness of what God has called them to do. She is hands on with Awakening Prayer Hubs through daily interaction on digital platforms, including the mobile app and Zoom broadcasts.

“Jennifer LeClaire is one of the bright and shining lamps of this present-day prayer inflammation in the earth,” says Lou Engle, founder of TheCall and TheSend. “Not only fanning the flame of the many prayer movements through her writing, she is now igniting a prayer moment that is being multiplied across the nations.”

James Goll, Cindy Jacobs, Patricia King, Barbara Yoder, Dick Eastman, Dr. Michael Brown, Becca Greenwood, Bishop Bill Hamon, Che Ahn, Larry Sparks and Alveda King—the niece of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.—and others are also standing in support of Awakening Prayer Hubs.

“God raises a standard of prayer in every generation,” says King, who serves as the social justice adviser for the Awakening House of Prayer Global Movement. “The prophetic prayer mission and ministry of Jennifer is now a movement.” {eoa}

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Have you ever hired a professional to prune a tree in your yard? Dave and I have someone to do that for us, and there are times when he’s cut the branches back so far that I’ve said to him, “There is nothing left. You have totally destroyed our tree!” But he told me, “You just watch and see.” And sure enough, before long the tree was much better looking than it was before.

Just like trees need pruning from time to time to remove dead branches or areas where there is overgrowth, you and I need to be pruned or reshaped at different times in different areas of our lives. We may not enjoy the pruning process, but when it’s over, we’re much better off than we were before.

You see, God wants us to be at our very best—spiritually, emotionally and physically.

John 15:2 (AMP) says, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that continues to bear fruit, He [repeatedly] prunes, so that it will bear more fruit [even richer and finer fruit].”

It’s good for us to stop and evaluate our lives sometimes and ask God to show us if there are things that need to be cut off because they are hindering our growth in our relationship with Him. Ask yourself: Am I dragging around “dead branches” in my life? Maybe it’s a bad relationship, an old wound from your past or a negative attitude that keeps you from enjoying life to the fullest.

It would be nice if we could see what God sees and say, “Yes, God. Let’s get rid of that dead branch.” But many times we’re too afraid to give up what we know for something new that we just can’t see or understand.

The truth is you can be miserable dragging those dead things around, or you can go through the pain of letting God “prune” them away. Even though it’s uncomfortable, the best thing you can do is let God prune you, because after the hard part is over, you will see some amazing results!

God doesn’t want you to struggle all the time. He loves you so much that He will never give up on you. As we allow Him to speak into our lives, He teaches and trains us to be kind and gentle, peaceful and patient, loving and forgiving like Him. But we cannot develop that “fruit” on our own.

John 15:4 says, “Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself without remaining in the vine, neither can you [bear fruit, producing evidence of your faith] unless you remain in Me.”

In other words, we need to spend time with God.

Our relationship with God is about much more than going to church on Sunday and reading the Word as a religious duty. He wants a personal relationship with each of us.

When we stay connected to God through meaningful Bible study and prayer, we’re remaining in Jesus. God wants us to be so rooted and grounded in His love that nothing can shake us—so we’re able to bear good fruit in even the hardest, most difficult seasons of life.

God has a good plan for your life. He wants to take you to the next level in your relationship with Him, but there are some things that He wants you to leave behind—past hurts, insecurities or anything you look to for a sense of security other than God Himself.

Don’t ever be afraid to surrender to God, so He can prune the things that are hurting and hindering you from moving forward in your relationship with Him.

The apostle Paul said, “One thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the [heavenly] prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14).

Make a determined decision to let go of the past and press on to experience a fuller, richer, more abundant life in Christ.

Pray today: “God, I’m tired of dragging this heavy load around with me. I’m ready to let it go, so I can get on with my life and experience a closer relationship with You. Help me to know that You love me and that You will work everything out for my good.”

If we will totally give ourselves to God, He will give us His best for us. It may not be what we thought we wanted, but it will be exactly what we need. And it will be greater than anything we could have asked for. {eoa}

Please note: The views and opinions expressed throughout this publication and/or website are those of the respective authors and do not necessarily reflect those of Joyce Meyer Ministries.

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