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Recently, God gave me an image of a big tree growing atop a very narrow, tall hill. “How can this tree grow bigger?” the Lord asked me. I replied, “I guess it would need to be transplanted. It can only grow so big with that narrow piece of land.”
There are some right now that God is doing a transplant work in. As I read about transplanting trees in the natural, some of the process surprised me. In the natural, trees must be prepared for transplanting for anywhere from six months to a year before the transplant even happens! It begins with pruning the roots. You do it months in advance so that the tree has time to heal before the transplant.
The Lord brought this Scripture before me, and as I sat on it, seeking the Lord’s heart, I heard Him say, “There have been many tears sown as seeds in this season. There have been many tears that have been cried, and I have collected each one. There have been many tears sown in obedience, in faith and in worship of who I am and My goodness while the battle has been raging. I have seen it all; I have seen the intense season of weeping that many have endured. In the intense season of weeping, I have drawn My people deeper. I have invited them to come deeper into My heart, to know the stability of My Word and My goodness; the anchor of My nature and the power of My name.
“For in the intense weeping, there has been a maturing and a fortification that I have been bringing to My people…a strength that cannot be stolen as they lean into Me. For the time has come for the weeping they have endured to come to an end and the season of harvest to be released. For many have felt like they endured much for nothing, but the opposite is true.
The timing of transplants is always either in the fall after leaves have been dropped or in spring before the first new growth happens. Thinking about these “seasons” spiritually, it is often when we feel like the Lord is doing the least with us that He is actually about to transplant us. We’re seeing old things drop from our lives. We’re not seeing new growth yet. We’re feeling somewhat frozen.
During the week of Oct. 16, 2022, prior to bedtime, I was earnestly seeking God in prayer at my home in Los Angeles, California.
In a dream, in a vision of the night, after what seemed like hours of deep sleep, I suddenly found myself at a church in Coffeyville, Kansas. There was nothing special about its appearance, except that there was not a lot of money in the building itself. The people themselves appeared to be financially struggling. There was something intriguing about the scene. This was no ordinary church.
I was observing myself from above, watching as the scene unfolded. The congregation had assembled. I stood up from my seat on the platform and was now standing behind the pulpit. As I yielded to the Holy Spirit’s direction, I began speaking and a hush came over the congregation. It seemed as if I had given up control of what I was saying while the words of my mouth came forth.
On Oct. 24, as I was spending time with the Lord, I went into a lovely encounter that I believe will greatly encourage you and position you for success in the days ahead!
Leaning into the presence of God in my recliner, I said, “Lord, I have been so busy. Please come and refresh my heart. Is there anything You would like to speak to me?”
Ever so gently, I heard Him speak: “Sometimes you do not need another word from Me. Instead, what you need is another moment immersed in My presence, wrapped up in My arms.”
Without a doubt, from Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is not a book of perfect people—it is a book of overcomers!
While you may be tempted to view people in the Bible as perfect saints, they are just as flawed as you and me. God’s Word, from beginning to end, is not a catalog of sinless, always-obedient, picture-perfect lives, but instead, it shares the stories of flawed-but-faithful men and women persevering amid trials and tribulations. They faced overwhelming obstacles, seemingly impossible situations and dangerous dilemmas that forced them to trust God.
Rather than a roll call of saints, the Bible is a book of overcomers. Just consider some of the best-known believers and what they had to overcome. In the Old Testament, Abraham had to overcome the deceit of others as well as his tendency to deceive. God promised that he would be the father of many nations. Yet into old age, Abraham and his wife, Sarah, had never conceived—until God gave them their son, Isaac—forcing them to overcome their doubts and the limitations of biological logic.
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