Spring is almost here!

I know that in most of the country this year, winter has just been brutal. Not just inches of snow but feet of snow have accumulated in New England and the upper Midwest. Not just days of snow but weeks of snow has been the norm this year. The snow and ice and cold has been unrelenting. The warmth of spring time seems like just a memory as the ice continues to accumulate and the heating bills just keep piling up. Some winters are like this. Some winters just seem endless. But today I want to remind you of the promise of spring! Not just spring in the natural when the crocuses peak their happy little blooms out of the ground, but spring in the spiritual. The time when you can finally shed the weight of heavy winter garments, winter hats and boots and scarves, and just let the light of God beam on you as you turn your face towards Him.  He wants to thaw your frozen heart. He wants to give you the warmth of His Presence. He wants you to bask in the warmth of His love for you. A never-ending love that brings peace and hope. Come on spring!! Come on end of winter!! Time to feel God’s Presence again and anew! Spring is almost here. I can hear the birds singing to welcome this new season. Amen!!

The Scorching Sun

So if you know me, you know that one of my favorite teachings and sermons is Lo, the Winter is past! (check out my blog in the archives). So that made this new revelation all the more powerful to me. I am not one who teaches that you have to live something to understand it fully, but I am one to say that really helps put your teaching in perspective. This summer in Oklahoma was the hottest on record ever. We are talking dust bowl days of the 1930's ever. I mean there were days that felt like they would melt your eyeballs. It was not uncommon to see a temperature gauge in the 110's and we were over 100 for almost 3 months. Nothing grew, I mean unless you watered it, basically the exceptional drought killed the vegetation. The ground began to cake and cracks were so deep, I remember a story on the news that a puppy fell into one and had to be dug out by fire crews. The trees withered up and went dormant. And going outside to do yard work, or take a walk was down right dangerous. It was often 100 degrees at 10 o'clock at night.
So what does this have to do with the Everyday prophetic life? Well, one day I had a revelation! It's not just winter that stops growth and fruition and harvest, it's the scorching sun of summer as well. I was thinking about my watermelon plant that grew 15 feet wide. That's right fifteen feet wide and had not one piece of fruit on it because the heat made it impossible to bear fruit. Now think of that from a spiritual perspective. Have you ever been in such a fiery furnace of persecution and trial that you are just trying to survive let alone bear fruit for the kingdom? Have your ever felt like the situation that you are in is so terrifically heated with anger or white hot rage that it feels like you are in a furnace? Bingo! That's what being in Oklahoma in the hottest summer ever has taught me. Sometimes you need to get out of the sun to get into the Son of God's plan for your life. Psalm 121:6 says, "The sun shall not smite thee by day," God promised His followers that the sun shall not smite or hurt them by day. I think of this as a spiritual event. The trials, the tribulations, the fiery furnace of persecution shall not smite you by day. Think of what an amazing prophetic promise. God knew that those times would come in our lives and He said you shall not be smitten! If you are in that place let me pray for you right now: Father in the name of Jesus Your Son, we come before you and ask for my brother and sister in Christ to be sheltered from every fiery blast that has come against them and for you to give them complete rest and peace under the shadow of your wings. This is Pastor Susan Living the Everyday Prophetic Life and rejoicing in the Lord's protection.

When winter left!

I was way up in Northwest Oklahoma on an early spring day. I was sitting at a stoplight facing west and looking north. Suddenly, the wind picked up and blew from the south and the leaves from the long hard cold winter that were strewn about the intersection began to swirl to the North! I heard in my spirit, "There goes winter!" And then the leaves just went flying straight north, and it was as if the the winter had sounded a retreat in that blustery moment and away with the leaves flew the cold, and the bitter, and the hardness and barrenness of that season.
This physical manifestation of the abrupt end of winter gave me a picture that the winter season can end abruptly, quickly and decisively. And so today, I was sitting at my desk at work and in the spirit, I saw a whirlwind come and blow my spiritual winter season away and I watched as it went north and left. I thought to myself now that was surprising and I knew that everything had changed in a moment and I felt the excitement of new beginnings and springtime.
If you are in a winter season, you might read my blog, Lo, the Winter is Past! and if you need to understand a microvision you might read Wait! Was that a Vision? But right now I want to pray for you!
Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray for my friend, my brother and sister in the Lord, and I pray that the wind of the Spirit will come and blow away the barreness, the cold, the bitter hardness of winter and launch them into the beginning of springtime! May miracles, signs and wonders, and gifts be poured abundantly upon them like the springtime rain! Lord Let it Rain! Let it Rain! Amen!
This is Pastor Susan Living the Everyday Prophetic Life in the glorious newness of spring!