Come a Little Closer.

 

So I used to think the Lord had favourite people. I used to think He loved some people more than others.

But as I read the scripture about Joshua's encounter with the Angel at Jericho, which says in Joshua 5:13–15 (KJV):

13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?

14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant?

15 And the captain of the Lord’s host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so.

As I read this, I realized that the Lord deals with us based on our intimacy with Him.

When Joshua encountered Jesus in the Old Testament, he wanted to know if the Lord was on their side or the enemy’s side. But the answer was simple: "Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come."

Here we see that it is our relationship with the Lord that makes Him attend to us faster than anyone else. Intimacy with the Lord sets us up for encounter, and for us to enjoy the realities in God's kingdom.

God is looking for men who will forget their position, their title, and the money they have—just to seek a deeper relationship with Him. All these things are important, but who does your soul belong to? And what does it yearn for?

I’ve come to realise that those who follow God never lose their way.

In the Old Testament, we knew God the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit. It was in the New Testament we realized that the Word is Jesus, and He is the Commander of the Lord’s Army. So the theophany Joshua experienced was Jesus.

1 John 5:7 (KJV):

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

He doesn’t pick sides. When He comes, He comes to carry out what He came for, and then He goes.

He is calling us today into the deep waters of His Word. He’s saying, “If only you can come a little closer, then I will show you all you need to know concerning yourself.” And the truth is, we are the ones who benefit from this intimacy with God.

It takes one who has been in bondage to understand what freedom truly offers—and God is offering that freedom to us today through His Son, Jesus.

He is saying: “A little closer... and I will come closer also.”

So make that decision today—to COME.

Stay Revived!

What Does Faith Mean to You?

What makes faith real to you? Faith has been given various definitions, yet there are moments when I question whether I possess the substance needed to attain the reality I seek.

Today, as I sit watching a movie, I am reminded of the Israelites who left Egypt. They witnessed battles and victories but often fell back into bondage. I found myself asking my sister, "Did these Israelites easily forget?" It didn’t take weeks, months, or years for their past to slip away; they often forgot God’s faithfulness. The currency we need to trade for the reality we desire is not lacking, yet we fail to recognize it.

Today, however, I gained a new perspective on faith. I see it as creating or holding a vivid mental picture of the reality I desire, one that becomes stronger than the opposing circumstances surrounding me. So as I approach God, I come with the intention to reclaim my purpose.

Defeat can stem from the many bonds we've faced. Sometimes, after being bound for so long, we fail to see what God is trying to do. I trust that God has a plan to bring us to the Promised Land. We have witnessed His abilities—His signs and wonders—but we most time still struggle to muster the strength to envision the end, the Canaan that God desires for us. Exodus (The Exodus)

Today, let us not only thank God for the victories we have won, but also ask for the strength and courage we need to birth the reality He intends for us. Carry with you the conviction that faith is a powerful mental picture of the future we desire. As JJ said, when God wants to raise seers and prophets, He first works on their minds, for every picture He shows us is a reality that needs to be birthed or altered.

For too long, the enemy has held our minds captive. When the Lord declared, "Without your transformed mind, I can do nothing," He understood that the negotiations we must make, the history He wants to change, and the battles to be won all begin in the mind. 

When these words resonated in my heart, I asked the Holy Spirit to work on my mind. Though I may not have lived for a hundred years, the time I have spent has brought experiences of hurt, rejection, failure, slander and victories. As I become vulnerable to God, He performs a miraculous work—He heals my soul and renews my mind. Without a transformed mind, He can do nothing. 

Stay Revived!

I Kept Wondering: At What Point Did We Lose Our Freedom?

 I Kept Wondering: At What Point Did We Lose Our Freedom?

At what point do we forget the name of God?  

At what point do we forget how to lay hold of the Great One?  

At what point do we forget to search Him out?  

At what point did the enemy creep in and bind us?  

At what point can we be made prey to the enemy's toys? At what point do those toys become our god?  

These thoughts crept into my mind a few nights ago. After watching a movie about Moses, I conversed with JJ, who asked, “But how did these once-great people become slaves? How did they get to the point where taskmasters were placed over them?” 

I replied with a biblical reference: “A Pharaoh who didn’t know Joseph and all he did for Egypt arose.” But then I wondered, what if it wasn't just the Pharaoh who forgot Joseph? What if the Israelites also forgot who their God is? Yes, they knew that their forefathers had a God; they kept talking about going to worship Him. But what if they had forgotten that this God could be their source of everything? Because they forgot, the enemy laid claim/stole their freedom through the mouth of Pharaoh.

Bondage doesn’t just come upon a person; one becomes bound when they stray from that which makes them free. God's Word in John 8:36 states:

"So, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."

However, when we lay low and forget how to engage with the Son of Man, we forget how to trade with Him. The enemy doesn’t just sow tares; he claims our freedom. 

While men slept, the enemy sowed tares. When we thought that our character didn’t matter, the enemy seized that opportunity to plant seeds that would bind our marriages, our businesses, our children, our ministries, and our ability to transition between seasons.

Because we slept and forgot how to do business with the Great One—the one who has the ability to keep us free— we began to play with foreign objects and succumbed to the tricks of the serpent's spirit, telling ourselves it didn’t matter. We convinced ourselves that we were on the right path.

But there is only one way: Jesus. We must choose His way to truly know whether our path will lead to freedom or bondage.

Stay Revived!

Nighttime Victories

I had a profound conversation with a very respected head of my unit in church. During our discussion, he mentioned a person he knew who had interceded for hours over the years. He concluded by saying, "You can see the result of his secret place in his life; it is quite evident." Those particular words planted a seed in my heart and marked the beginning of a new season for me—a fresh call to deep waters. It felt as though the Lord had ordained those words for my own victory.

Unable to navigate the afternoon, my nighttime began to transform into my time of seeking. At first, it began as mere human effort, but suddenly, the floodgates opened. Even during moments when I wanted to sleep through the night, it seemed the Lord had been waiting for me to start this journey. Much like Moses, who climbed Mount Sinai after years of being a shepherd, I began to encounter the Lord at this mount, and that was when my liberation started. Once liberated, my mandate unfolded.

Just as my summons became a communion, there were moments when it felt like a choir was being held within me, prompting me to arise to this communion. The Lord wants us to stray; in the beginning, it might just be our strength, but He takes it from there, granting us victories in unexpected places. The more I showed up, pressed in, and sought Him, the more I was being freed from strongholds I never knew existed. 

I had waited so long for victory, but as I came to the Lord daily in this nighttime season, He worked in me, one victory after another. At exactly three a.m., I felt these words in my heart: "While men slept, the enemy sowed tares."

Matthew 13:25:

"But while everyone was sleeping, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away."

 This isn't just a saying; it's a reality. There are victories to be claimed at the gates of the night, if only we would rise up and lay hold of them. In that moment, we can seize the enemy before he even attempts an attack.

God wants to reach out to you, but He is waiting for you at the gates of Adullam. There are tares to be uprooted, and there are victories to be won.

Stay Revived!