Michael Danforth
Showing posts with label testimony. Show all posts
Showing posts with label testimony. Show all posts
The Marriage of the Visible and Invisible
Editor's Note: This is not your normal "Release this prophetic word to the world" kind of post. Michael Danforth is a prophet in Yakima, WA, and this was part of his monthly newsletter for the end of 2013. Michael is a reliable Northwest prophetic voice, and the word has been judged profitable, if unfamiliar in its presentation.
I felt
compelled to write to you about a few of the outrageous transitions that are
going on in the spirit and how they will impact the years to come.
I
have always seen faith as point of entry. It’s the doorway into the
supernatural and the unseen world of the spirit. Once we step through these
spiritual doors by faith, from that moment on, we should expect to see the
invisible with our own eyes. Many have asked, "What do you believe will be
one of the most significant revelations in 2014?" Without hesitation, I
have said, "The marriage of the visible and invisible." In other
words, what is visible will be seen in a different light and what is invisible
will become just as apparent as what is already visible.”
Before
I go on, let’s settle the issue that I am not your normal everyday prophet. To
many, I come across as being a little less sociable and a bit dysfunctional. If
my mother were present today, she would be the first to say, “Michael was
always a bit withdrawn and had a tendency to view the world around him with
extreme imagination.” Of course, none of us knew then, that even as a child, I
was seeing the world from a prophetic perspective. The world I engage in has
always been very different from the visible world around us. I know many of you
could attest the same.
Like
some of you, in my youth, my spiritual understanding and sight was not nurtured
like it could have been. Therefore, it took me a while to realize that what I
was seeing was not just some wild figment of my imagination, but invisible
realms of God’s kingdom.
I
have a confession to make. During the last number of years, I have been slow to
become fully transparent about what I have believed to be the intended outcome
of God’s intentions for humanity. Much of my concealment was because many
already viewed me as being unreasonable and less practical when it came to
spiritual things.
I
sadly confess, as a result, though I have carried the appearance of being a
spiritual forerunner, I found myself dialing down the extreme radical nature of
the kingdom of heaven within me. Looking back, I can clearly see how I let the
fear of man restrain me from exhibiting the expectations of Father on the
earth. Nonetheless, that was then and
this is now.
Let
me encourage those of you who have felt somewhat restrained because of the
peculiarity of the Spirit of God working in you. The box of confinement is
ultimately being destroyed for the purpose of manifesting whatever revelation
of heaven that has been in you since the beginning of time.
Let
there be doubt, God is piloting His people completely off the known charts of
spiritual flight. I believe one of the reasons this nation and other nations in
the world are in the condition they are in, is because many people in the kingdom of God have allowed the fear of man to
hinder the revelation of heaven in them. Again, I am an example of those who
have appeared spiritually radical, but have exhibited far less than a 100-fold
potential. Therefore, the power of acceleration is upon me and is readily
available to anyone who has a desire to make up for some lost time.
There
is one important thing to remember about forerunners, whether it relates to
spiritual things or natural things. Most want to participate in the eventual
fruit of their labors; however, most are unwilling to be identified with the
stigma and ridicule that is often a part of their journey to get there.
For
a number of years now, I have referred to a spiritual gathering of the saints
that would redefine what it means to see eye to eye. Many have interpreted an
“eye to eye” encounter as people on earth coming together viewing each other on
the same spiritual plane. While this sounds reasonable enough, the fact is,
there will always be those who will be willing to lay everything on the line
for the sake of the Kingdom, while others will not. In this respect, many will
continue to have difficulty seeing eye-to-eye.
Nonetheless,
spiritual maturity is indeed on the rise and those who appeared to be living
beneath their relational potential in the Father, are now approaching a new
definition of what it means to not only have a face-to-face encounter with
Jesus, but with all the saints of God.
Having
an eye-to-eye encounter with the saints of God reaches far beyond any earthly
meeting where everyone seems to be on the same page. Even before Christ, there
has been a continual invitation to interact with the saints of God, in heaven
and on earth, simultaneously.
A
time is coming when the people of God on earth will no longer refer to those
who have come and gone, and whose permanent dwelling is now in heaven, as being
dead. Nor will they view them in the past tense. Every day, there are countless
people who are exiting this earthly realm and entering into the heavenly realm,
thus heaven is now their final dwelling place.
However, there are also those who are ascending and descending from
earth to heaven, yet earth is still their primary dwelling place.
As
I have mentioned in earlier writings, this Kingdom ascending and descending has
widened the eternal gate of glory between heaven and earth. This means that the
appearing of those in heaven on earth will become more frequent. It also means
that those on earth will frequent heaven far more readily as well. .
The
body of Christ has broken a barrier of understanding of what it means for God
to be the “God of the living, not the dead.”
Mark
quotes Jesus as saying,
“But
regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of
Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I
am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not
the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.” (Mark
12:26-27)
Jesus
is making it very clear that when God spoke to Moses and said, “I am the God of…”
it meant that God was still the God of those who had once lived on the earth,
but are now living in heaven. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are still very much
alive, even more so. Thus the words of
Jesus when He said, ‘you are completely mistaken if you think I am the God of
dead corpses.’
All
the saints in Old and New Testament times, as well as, anyone else in God who
has gone before us, are very much alive. The primary difference is that they
are a living revelation that their true citizenship is in heaven, not on earth.
I have long been aware that not only do angels gather with us when we come
together, but even the saints of God who once walked upon the earth.
While
this might sound eerie and spooky to some, for others it is a glorious
expectant reality. If we are serious about hanging on to the doctrine of
repentance, then we should be repenting for excluding the rest of the church,
the body of Christ that is still very much alive in heaven.
For
years, I have nurtured my sight, my spiritual senses, to see thousands come
together and participate, in the spirit, during our public gatherings. This
will soon become an eventual visible manifestation. Like Jesus on the Mount of
Transfiguration, Moses, Elijah and countless others, will begin to appear in
plain sight. Jesus was extremely sincere when He said, “Greater things than
these, you will do.”
A
good friend of mine, who has entertained angels for years, told me that before
he saw his first angel with his own eyes, he started acting as though they were
with him all the time. He would talk to them and refer to them continually. He
even went as far as making sandwiches for them during various lunch times.
Sound ridiculous? Of course it does. However, on one occasion, while he was in
the kitchen preparing lunch for himself and his invisible friends, he heard a
giggling sound coming from the other room. When he went to investigate, he saw
three angels setting in his living room. When he saw them, they looked just as
shocked that he could see them as he was. I forgot to ask if he made enough sandwiches.
For
me, one of the most troublesome things about our western Christian culture is
that we have a desire to go far, but not too far, certainly not far enough.
This is why "forerunners" are so necessary in the kingdom of God .
One of their primary purposes is to venture out into the depths of the Spirit,
beyond our current state of spiritual understanding and reveal the hidden
knowledge of the Spirit.
Theory
is a supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something. Theology
is the study of religious faith, practice, and experience. Either theory or
theology alone is sufficient to transform one’s mind into the mind of Christ,
thus our eternal state. Like faith, they are a point of entry, one of which is
designed to lead us into a genuine encounter with the Spirit of the Lord. The
future will be filled with a generation that will break the barriers of
theoretic and theological understanding. Their revelation will include both
knowledge and experience.
Isaiah
writes,
“…For
the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as
the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9)
Hosea
writes,
“So
let us know, let us press on to know the Lord…” (Hosea 6:3)
True
knowledge includes the act of knowing, hearing and seeing. In fact, it involves
all of our senses. Its intent reaches far beyond mental knowledge about someone
or something. In these passages of scripture, the Hebrew meaning of “knowledge”
is to know God in the sense of personal experience, not just literal
understanding. It means to experience the ways of God, to know His paths and to
know His heart.
Michael Danforth
COVENANT: SEATTLE PRESBYTERY – JUNE 1971
Editor’s
comment: This covenant was made in 1971 by a group of Seattle pastors under the
leadership of Dennis Bennett of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, a group composed of 30 North
American traveling 5-fold ministries, with a core group of 8 local pastors. It
took them a full week to work this out, but after serious discussion, it was
accepted and signed both by the 30 delegates, and later by many other pastors
in the Seattle-Tacoma Metroplex.
God
used this covenant, as a starting point for creating a city church, to great
effect in the Kingdom. Many of us believe that God is eager for us to lay aside
our “distinctives” and form regional fellowships, regional communities of
faith, composed of many congregations, and believers without congregations.
I
present this example as a testimony of how it was done once. There is more
historical information here.
1. We whose
names are signed below believe that God has set us as leaders within the body
of Christ in our area. We will respect the others whose names are signed below.
(A: 1 Corinthians 12:12-28; Psalm 133.)
2. If at any
time we have any criticism or complaint against any of the others, we will take
the steps prescribed in Matthew 18:15-17 to retain the fellowship of our
brothers: first, go to the person alone; second, if necessary,
go to him with two or more witnesses; third, if necessary,
bring the matter before the whole group. Thereafter, we will abide by any
decision reached by the whole group. (B: Exodus 23:1; Leviticus 19:16; Psalm
15:3; Proverbs 6:16, 19; 20:19; 26:20; James 3:l-10).
3. If another
person brings to us any criticism or complaint against any of those whose names
are signed below, we will direct that person to take the steps prescribed in
Matthew 18:15-17. If the situation requires, we will be willing to go with that
person as a witness. We will not entertain any criticism or compliant against
any of the others whose names are signed below, except in the presence of the
one against whom the criticism or complaint is made. (B: above).
4. We will also
respect all other leaders within the body of Christ in our area, upon two
conditions: first, that we recognize their lives
and ministries as being morally and ethically sound (C: 1 Timothy 1:3-4; 2
Timothy 2:19-22; Titus 2:7-8); second, that they show
due respect for the scriptures (D: John 14:23-24; 2 Timothy 3:16-4:2; 1 John
2:4-5) the Lord Jesus Christ (E: John 5:22-23; 10:7-9; 14:6; Acts 4:12; 1
Corinthians 3:11; 8:6; Ephesians 1:20-23; Colossians 1L18; 1 John 4:2-3); the
Holy Spirit (F: John 14:16-17, 26; 16:13-14; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11); and the
body of Christ (G: Matthew 18:17; 1 Timothy 3:14-15; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17;
5:12-6:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; Hebrews 13:7, 17, 24) in our area.
5. We will
likewise respect any ministries whom God may from time to time direct to our
area for the up-building of his body in our area, provided that they fulfill
the two conditions stated in paragraph 4 above. (H: Matthew 10:40-41; Acts
11:22-24; 15:32-33; 18:27; 1 Corinthians 4:17; 16:10; Philippians 2:19-29; 3
John 5-8).
6. If at any
time we have reason to believe that persons are seeking to minister or exercise
influence within the body of Christ in our area, who do not fulfill the
conditions stated in paragraph 4, we will not give our endorsement or support
to their ministries or other activities, and we will notify accordingly the
other leaders whose names are signed below, as well as any members of the body
of Christ in our area who look to us for spiritual leadership. (I: Matthew
7:15-23; Galatians 1:8-9; 2 Timothy 3:6-9; Titus 1:9-11; 3:9-11; 2 Peter 2; 1
John 4:1-6; 2 John 7-11).
7. We agree that
any one of us will no longer be recognized as a member of this group, if at any
time:
(1) He
voluntarily withdraws from this covenant;
(2) He moves to
a place of residence outside our area;
(3) After fair
and careful examination by the group it is decided that he no longer fulfils
the conditions stated in paragraph 4.
8. New leaders
may at any time be added to this group, or former leaders reinstated, provided
that they fulfill the conditions stated in paragraph 4, and that they
voluntarily and sincerely accept the commitments contained in this covenant.
(NOTE: The above
principles can easily be adapted for a local congregation, especially where
they apply. It would be hoped that local pastors would recognize the discipline
of their various local churches, and stand by a brother pastor or leader when
discipline has been applied. Such a member should not be received by another
local congregation until the problem has been made right.) -J.A.W.
From James
A Watt, one of the elders of the Latter Rain Revival of 1948.
“The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy.” Revelation 19:10
Resurrection On Scene of Car Crash
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
By Adam Brandon Short
This past week, everything changed for a Redding mother of a three-year old child. Angela Toth, a 2nd Year student at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry, and her husband were there to witness what proved to be an incredible story of God’s intervention.
While stopped at an intersection Sunday night November 8th, Angela and her husband witnessed a car crash that occurred when a young mother ran a red light. In the car was the mother’s 3 year old baby.
Angela and her husband rushed out of their car to the scene, and being an EMT, she offered help to the mother. The baby died on impact, and Angela quickly dialed 911. While on the phone, she had a light bulb moment to pray, and she began praying in tongues. The rescue operator seemed a bit confused.
With the ambulance on its way, Angela and her husband began to pray for the 3 year old baby. Within minutes, the baby came back to life! And by the time the ambulance arrived, the baby was alive and taken to the hospital.
From the Healing Herald.
Testimony: Man Healed While Swinging Him Like A Bridge
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
By Dawn Richardson
“What?!?” I replied. “Well, that’s going to stop right now!” So, we prayed for him. And I asked him how he felt. “A little better, yeah,” he answered. “On a scale of one to ten, what is the pain?” I asked. “Probably an eight,” he explained. “Okay, we’ll keep praying. God, thank you that the pain is going down! Let’s see it totally leave!” In the moments following the pain went to a “7.5″ and people began giving him prophetic words as we prayed. We were recording the prophesies on an audio recorder so, I said, “stop the recording.”
It stopped.
“I have a picture,” I said, “we are swinging you like a bridge, holding your arms and feet and just swinging you and when we swing you, you are going to be totally healed.” Faces in the room turned to shock and wonder. I explained that God likes it when we step out of our comfort zone into faith and I mentioned the story of my friend’s foot being healed. “Well,” the man turned to me, “I would let you swing me, but the thing is, I actually can’t.” “What do you mean?” I questioned. “I have titanium in my back and movement like that would hurt my back.”
“What?” I exclaimed, “well, let’s get that taken care of! that’s easy! Titanium can dissolve just like that!” My friend Sam piped up with a story in which he saw titanium dissolve in a man’s forearm when he prayed for him. So, Sam prayed for the titanium in this man’s back to dissolve. And most of the rest of us popped into praise and prayer exclamations. haha! The Presence of God was in the room like a net pulling in a load of fish, we were being yanked up into the Lord’s boat. haha. After a bit of hot sauna Presence prayer, the man said we could swing him. He was coated in God’s goodness and ready for the next step of faith. Two men took his hands, two men took his legs, and they swung him. And I about fell over in Holy Spirit tornado laughter. haha. I LOVE GOD!!!! I love co-operating with Him!
Well, after some swinging, he stood up and I asked what level the pain was at. He said, “it’s a six. really. it’s going away.” I screamed and lept. Also, in the midst of all this he mentioned that his father recently was told he has brain cancer and that this man was scheduled for a brain check-up soon. Someone immediately said, “we break those words off of you. You have the mind of Christ. There is no cancer in you and we break off any anxiety or fear related to that.” It was becoming clear that much more than a series of headaches was being healed and set free.
Well, as we stood there, he said, “it’s a four.” And I yelled and jumped up and down, all the while laughing insanely in red-cheeked, blushing love for Jesus! “YES YES YES!!! Thank you, Jesus! haha!” And then, he paused in a sort of slow speed moment of evaluation, “It’s gone. It’s gone. Really. All the pain is gone!” HAHAHAHAHA! He was in shock. We all began to laugh and celebrate and he simply stood there in utter shock. Then he smiled and chuckled. He asked if there were magnets around so he could check to see if the titanium left his back. Someone looked, but the magnets weren’t large enough to work, so he said he would let us know after he went through the airport Thursday. He always sets off the metal detector on account of the titanium, so he was expecting to not set it off and therefore know the titanium was gone.
AWESOME!!!!!!! Healed of migraines while being swung like a bridge!!!! HILARIOUS!!!! I love it! God is definitely my favorite AND ONLY God to follow! haha! He’s the Creator! And He’s creative!
And wow, is He normal.
from The Healing HeraldThe Spiritual Readings Tent!
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
As an intern with Campus Christian Fellowship on Western Washington University's campus, one of my assignments was to do some sort of public outreach event on campus (in addition to our more ongoing outreach) at some point during the year. I had the urge to do...something you don't see every day! I got the idea from a campus we send one of our missions trip teams to each spring break (California State Stanislaus). I'd heard the stories and figured we had to do it on our campus some time. So what did we do?
We got a big tent, made walls with bed sheets and put it out in Red Square (the busiest most central part of campus) with a big sign across the front of it that said "FREE SPIRITUAL READINGS". The idea is that people are hungry for something spiritual...anything! So they stop by... God gave us a great day of sunshine in the 70's and the tent was full (with two visitors at a time) from 10am-3pm!
When people stopped by, we'd ask them if they were a "spiritual person" to get an idea of where they were at. We'd then explain that (to one person's great disappointment!) we weren't going to read their palms or use a crystal ball. But, we would say that we believe God is real, knows them personally, and can speak to us! Some would be surprised at this. Then we would say we'd start by praying for them. I was surprised that nobody had a problem with that! We would then ask God to show us things about their lives to encourage them and to show His love to them. As we prayed for people, God would always give us things to encourage them with and reveal to us things about their lives. 1 Cor. 14:24-25 says that if all prophesy and an unbeliever enters, the secrets of his heart will be disclosed and he will fall on his face and worship God and declare that God is really among you! And we saw this happen...
We prayed for Grant and Shelby together in a 2-for-1 spiritual reading session. They said they believed in a creator, but were not involved in a specific faith and had never really encountered God. God gave us images and words for Grant about a difficult but rewarding journey he was on to Oregon, that he was a person very respected by others and that he had a gift of leadership in his future career. Surprised, he told us that he was planning to move to Oregon after college to start a business! We then prayed for Shelby. God showed us about her gentle heart, and her love for music (turns out she played at least 5 instruments!), and how she likes to dance. She was also shocked at the accurate words. Grant then asked, "So, wait...how did you say you know this? Can anyone hear from God like that?" We told him that God speaks to all that know Him! I then felt the need to tell Grant and Shelby that God can also heal people. "Wait, like, broken leg healed?" he said. I then shared with him some testimonies of healings I've seen, including God growing out short legs. Grant was fairly excited at this point to tell us that his leg was about 1/4" shorter than the other and asked if we'd pray for him. Of course we did!
We had him sit around the fountain and hold out his legs. Sure enough, one was barely shorter than the other. I prayed for him and then asked him what was happening. He said he wasn't sure if he was making it up or not, but his leg was tingling! We didn't tell him that he may feel anything beforehand. I then had him hold both of his legs out again and they were completely even! Praise God for loving Grant and Shelby so much to encounter them like this!
Overall, it was a packed day and the grace of God was so tangible. We had SEVEN people accept or recommit their lives to Christ! Thank you JESUS!!
Jim & Shaaron Coleman heard good things about a recent Outreach at Western, so they asked Jonathan Taft to write up a testimony about it.
Testimony: The God Squad
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
These particular videos are not about the Northwest, though this kind of thing is going on in our region as well. Please hear this as a testimony: God is doing this; He wants to do more. Pray for more workers in the harvest.
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("Testimony: The God Squad").
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions invited; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
These particular videos are not about the Northwest, though this kind of thing is going on in our region as well. Please hear this as a testimony: God is doing this; He wants to do more. Pray for more workers in the harvest.
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("Testimony: The God Squad").
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions invited; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
Gatekeeping in my Neighborhood
Several years ago, my family was in a tough way and needed to find a home to rent. We made two lists: things we needed in a home, and things we wanted in a home. Through a series of miracles, financial and otherwise, we actually purchased a house that had everything on both lists. We were elated.
But the elation was short-lived. Our home had everything that we knew to ask for, but there were some things we didn’t know to ask for. In our first week living there, I learned of three drug dealers on our block. I watched drug deals go down at the front door of the house across the street while my kids played in my yard. They knew about that dealer, and they told me about the other two dealers on the block, and which houses they lived in.
This was absolutely not OK with me. I talked to the authorities, and they told me about the standards of evidence that they needed in order to intervene. I talked to other neighbors, and they shook their heads and “tsk tsk’d”.
Then I talked to God. More precisely, I whined at God. “God, why is this going on? This isn’t right! Make it stop!”
It seemed as if he let me vent for a while, and when I paused to catch my breath, He interrupted. “So what are you going to do about it, Son?” Hunh? That stopped my whining immediately. Once my head stopped spinning, I asked more intelligently, “Uh… what can I do?”
He gave me some prayer strategies: some specific ways to address the situation in prayer, rather than through legal means, social means, or whining. The specific strategies aren’t important except that they involved me obeying Him, and they involved me making some particular declarations over my neighborhood. Throughout the process, God used the metaphor of a gatekeeper with me: the one who decides who can come in and who cannot.
So I obeyed: I prayed the things He said to pray for, the way He said to pray it. It was odd stuff, so I did it in the middle of the night and the wee hours of the morning: I didn’t want someone calling the cops on me! Fundamentally, the decree to the "gates" was: "Welcome in the Holy Spirit, and the human spirits of the people who live here, and their legitimate guests. Keep out every other spirit, human or demonic."
Suffice it to say: it worked. Within 30 days, the three dealers were gone. The one across the street sold the house to a family with a daughter the same age as my daughter. The other two just picked up and left, leaving empty houses. All three houses were soon remodeled.
I was stunned. I don’t think I’ve ever seen prayer answered in more detail than I did in this adventure: first our house, then the removal of the drug dealers. Life was good!
Then my next door neighbor invited a woman to live with him. She brought guests: two silicon implants for him, two full-blooded wolves for herself, and a host of demonic co-habitants. Life was no longer good.
I called every government agency I could think of that might have some authority with wolves: federal, state, and local agents told me time and time again: “No sir, wolves don’t belong in a residential neighborhood, but yes sir, she does have the necessary permits for them. There’s nothing we can do about it.”
I ignored the time that they lunged from the back of her Toyota pickup and nearly ate me. But when they tried to eat my daughter (they didn’t succeed, but just barely – she was unscathed), I confronted the neighbor: politely, gently, because he was a wimpy little guy and I didn’t want to intimidate him. But the wimpy little guy got big and snarly when I suggested that the wolves shouldn’t live there: he cussed me up one side and down the other in his rage, and vowed in no uncertain terms that they were not leaving, not today, not ever!
Hokay! That’s not going to work!
So I tried prayer. Again, I whined at God; again, He interrupted, but more quickly this time. “What are you going to do about it?” Again my slack-jawed “Hunh?” Then He went on, “You’re my representative in that neighborhood. It’s up to you. What’s your decision? Do they stay or do they go?”??
That floored me. I didn’t have a theology to deal with that kind of a question, but I didn’t hesitate. The wolves wanted to eat my daughter, and God was saying that it was up to me? “Heck no! They cannot stay. They have to go!” and I knew I was speaking with the authority of a judge announcing a decree.
That very weekend, they moved out. No explanation. The guy that cussed me out and shouted that they were staying, took their wolf-house down himself, packed it into the Toyota truck and moved it away. We never saw the wolves again, or their owner with the implants, except once, and the Police arrived en masse with drawn weapons to make sure that didn’t happen again. No explanation for that either.
Since then, I’ve tried to exercise this authority in other ways, and when I felt that I was following God’s leading rather than my own, I have found that things often unnaturally change.
I have also found that I need to increase my skill in wielding this power: I watched a porn shop close after I made some decrees, only to be followed by another in its place, and that one was more firmly rooted (though it has a “going out of business!” sign on it regularly). A pagan worship center was closed, only to open up again a couple of blocks away.
These are curious stories, and true ones, but what’s the purpose?
I have developed a couple of guiding principles from these events, and the others that surrounded them (this was an interesting season in my life!):
1) God delegates authority to His representatives in an area. (My “area” of influence was only a couple of blocks; others’ territory may be smaller or larger.)
2) He takes that delegated authority very seriously. When He gives authority, He means it.
I guess there’s a third principle:
3) I probably ought to exercise the authority that I’ve been given, and I probably ought to exercise it for good purpose.
I know I’m nothing special. May I suggest these principles for the life of the church in this season? May I suggest these principles for you?
The Pilgrimgram comes from an elder Pilgrim about the thing we call "church." Seldom politically correct, this is what I hear God saying to and among His Church today. Feel free to share it with others.
Shared in the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
The Dead Raising Team
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
I've written about the Dead Raising Team (the DRT) in the past. This is another description of them and their work.
This is our heritage here in the Pacific Northwest. If "healing is the children's bread," then resurrection from the dead is the children's meat and potatoes.
Please pray for the Dead Raising Team: more opportunities, more resurrections, more boldness. We need more of this in the church, and in our region!
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("The Dead Raising Team").
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions welcomed; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
I've written about the Dead Raising Team (the DRT) in the past. This is another description of them and their work.
This is our heritage here in the Pacific Northwest. If "healing is the children's bread," then resurrection from the dead is the children's meat and potatoes.
Please pray for the Dead Raising Team: more opportunities, more resurrections, more boldness. We need more of this in the church, and in our region!
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("The Dead Raising Team").
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions welcomed; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
Spectacular Dead Raising Testimonies
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
This is the most amazing testimony I've ever heard. I know the two men giving the testimony, and I know them to be trustworthy witnesses, so I have to believe them.
Both of the men in the recording are part of the greater Pacific NW: both are from northern California. (Yes, northern California is part of the greater "northwest" region; so is Vancouver, BC!)
These stories illustrate how the spiritual warfare is going in Muslim nations: the spirit behind Islam is terrified of the Spirit of God, but the boldness of the Christians in their testimony, in their reliance on miracles, means the gospel is growing at a record pace in the heart of the Muslim world.
There are three testimonies in this audio recording. The first two are overwhelming and hard to miss. The third is just as significant, just as miraculous, though it's easy to overlook: 90,000 believers turned out for The Call in Indonesia, the largest Muslim nation, one of the most aggressively Muslim nations on Earth. For those of you who know what's been going on in Indonesia, this is stunning.
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("Spectacular Dead Raising Testimonies"). Note that there is no video; this is an audio clip.
Testifying: Dan McCollam, from The Mission, sharing with Bill Johnson of Bethel Church. Also available on YouTube.
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions welcomed; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
This is the most amazing testimony I've ever heard. I know the two men giving the testimony, and I know them to be trustworthy witnesses, so I have to believe them.
Both of the men in the recording are part of the greater Pacific NW: both are from northern California. (Yes, northern California is part of the greater "northwest" region; so is Vancouver, BC!)
These stories illustrate how the spiritual warfare is going in Muslim nations: the spirit behind Islam is terrified of the Spirit of God, but the boldness of the Christians in their testimony, in their reliance on miracles, means the gospel is growing at a record pace in the heart of the Muslim world.
There are three testimonies in this audio recording. The first two are overwhelming and hard to miss. The third is just as significant, just as miraculous, though it's easy to overlook: 90,000 believers turned out for The Call in Indonesia, the largest Muslim nation, one of the most aggressively Muslim nations on Earth. For those of you who know what's been going on in Indonesia, this is stunning.
If you have difficulty playing this clip, click on the title ("Spectacular Dead Raising Testimonies"). Note that there is no video; this is an audio clip.
Testifying: Dan McCollam, from The Mission, sharing with Bill Johnson of Bethel Church. Also available on YouTube.
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions welcomed; please share.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
Olympia: Summer’s Outreaches & Recent Testimonies
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Here are three testimonies on a single subject. I suggest that we learn a lesson.
As you may know these ministry outreaches have changed the lives of many. Daniel 12:3 “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”
D.I.S.I.RE Ministries
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions gladly received.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
As you may know these ministry outreaches have changed the lives of many. Daniel 12:3 “And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”
I know of no other way to reach the amount of people that we are able to reach in a day than by joining with a community event where great numbers of people will be gathered. Isaiah 65 says the Lord is found by those who are not even looking for Him. We have found this to be true.
A good example is the family that came to Lakefair not knowing we would be there.
Seeing the sign for a Free Encouraging Word stopped. The first one after receiving her word left encouraged and tearful. She returned with a sister, then an aunt, then the mother, who brought grandma, then the niece and her daughter. As a result of the words given to this large family storms were survived over the next 3 years because of what the “Ladies in the Park” told them. Not only that but one of them was completely set free from irrational fears and her 3 year old daughter was healed from something the doctors did not know how to.
Then there is the young man who woke up with the thought that he was going to have a spiritual experience this day. He didn't know where to find it. So he headed to Lakefair thinking this is where he would find it. He comes to the Free Encouraging Words tent where the team not only gave him a Word from the Lord but led him to a saving knowledge of Jesus. He left a grateful man.
Thank you for your past support and looking forward to the many souls Jesus wants to save through us this summer outreach season.
D.I.S.I.RE Ministries
Visit Northwest Prophetic for a complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word. Submissions gladly received.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
The Prophetic Word That Saved My Life!
In the Spirit of Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Here are three testimonies on a single subject. I suggest that we learn a lesson.
A testimony of a prophetic word to Pastor Rick Thale,
given by James Berkley of the Elijah Commission, August 26, 1999.
By Pastor Rick Thale
On August 26, 1999 James Berkley came to our Church to release God’s gifts of prophecy, teaching, and worship. My wife, Kate, and I received a prophetic word from James that went as follows:
"The enemy is going to attack you not for the first time but the second time. Do not worry, the Lord God will protect you and raise you up even before the attack can get started. This will take place in 3 months time."
There were more words that night but this one in particular caught my eye, so I watched for it. I had no idea what to expect. I did know from scripture that I did not have to fear. The Bible example came to me of Jesus prophesying to Peter in John 21:18 saying,
"Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish."
The key word for Peter here is "When you are old". When the Sanhedrin imprisoned Peter threatening his life, he had a prophetic word from Jesus which gave him great courage. "When you are old", Peter was not yet old! Paul tells us in 1 Tim 1:18 to "wage a good warfare", "according to the prophecies previously made concerning us". Therefore, when Peter realized he was not yet "old" as Jesus had prophesied, he had faith and confidence to overcome! Hallelujah!
Back to my story. I was sitting in my bedroom on a Tuesday night at around 11:30PM. I was in the midst of some strife over an issue in my life. All of a sudden, I felt as if an arrow had been shot into the back of my thrown. The next day, as I had done so many times before, I went to work not feeling well. I thought I would just work off the sickness and move on with life. Well it did not turn out that way this time! I was worse than ever. I then took off work.
I was going to go deer hunting with a good friend and if I missed work I thought I would not be able to go hunting so off I went. Well on Thursday I went hunting but man was I ever miserable. I was useless! I sat in the truck uncomfortable and horribly sick. I knew I had to push my way through this because I had such a full schedule for the weekend.
I had scheduled a 3-day Motorcycle class for the weekend which cost $50.00 several months earlier. To miss the class would force me have to reschedule and that would be months later. My schedule was too jammed to do that. I attended the whole thing! I attended the Friday night book session. Saturday, I barely survived the riding portion.
The trial was not over here because I had to do a Church Service on Saturday night. Boy, did my dear friends let me know how horrible I looked! Many prayed for me but to no avail. I was already in a full-blown attack. Sunday came early and off I went to complete the skills and testing, I finished at around 3:00 on Sunday.
Going home, I went straight to bed! I had a fever and was breathing very shallow. I had to put pillows under me to sit up all night to be able to breath. The next morning, on November 20, I told my wife I had better go to the Doctor’s office. By this time, things were progressively worsening. By this time, I was breathing 165 breaths per minute. When I arrived at the doctors office, they sent me straight to the emergency room at Black Hills Medical Center in Olympia. Man did the doctors and nurses flew into action. I was admitted right into ICU. I had an oxygen mask on and the doctors were desperately trying to figure out what was wrong with me.
Wednesday morning at 3:35AM, things worsened. My wife, Kate, who was at my bedside, could see I was going away. She hit the button for help as I took her hand. I looked her in the eyes and said, "Remember the word from James Berkley? We are walking through it right now" I then passed into a coma.
For days, I was in a deep coma. The doctors could not figure out what was going on. Then they found I had a blood staph infection. They told my wife it was at a high enough level to end my life. On top of that, they found I had full-blown pneumonia in both lungs, both upper and lower. The oxygen deprivation to my brain had now been eleven hours. The doctors prognosis to my wife was I would not make it, and if I did there would be months and months of restoration to motor skills, learning to talk and walk and such. The doctors had move quickly so they started by suctioning my lungs. Later the doctors told me only 5% of all who go through this procedures make it through. On top of that, my blood hemoglobin level was at 17. I was told people die at 14.
On the fourth day of the coma the doctors finally discovered I was having a ketoacidosous attack. They have never seen one this bad. The doctors were administering five times the insulin that the average person would receive. The also had me on the two strongest antibiotics known to man at the highest dosages possible.
On the fifth day, I started to come out of the coma. However, I do not remember anything until day seven.
On day eight, the physical specialist came in to see. She was shocked! Calling her boss in because I could walk, talk and sit up!
On day nine the head of the hospital Dr. Black paid me a visit. These were His words, "Boy you got a microscopic virus, but it hit you like an 18 wheeler".
On day eleven, the doctors sent me home with an oxygen bottle. I only needed that for two weeks! During my first doctor’s appointment after the incident, my doctor told me "it was a miracle". He could not explain what happened or why I survived. He went on to tell me one of the issues of why I was hospitalized was enough to kill me having two would guarantee my demise. Having four meant there was no hope. Not to mention I was supposed to stay in the hospital for two months, and go through physical therapy for another three months. I don't know about you but I think God did plenty to stop the attack before it could get started. The nurses in the doctors office afterwards told us that my doctor was pulling his hair out with concern because He could not figure out what was wrong or how to help, he was helpless.
Two weeks after my discharge from the hospital, I went in for a hemoglobin exam. I was told not to be too excited because it would take at least 2 months for my levels to normal out to between 12 or 13. Another shock treatment for my doctor. The test came back at 5.5. In unbelief, He re-tested. This time it was at 6!
Well there it is! This truly is God’s hand and not man’s. What a testimony! I hope you can see what I was trying to tell you.
God Bless,
Pastor Rick Thale
Olympia Foursquare Church
(Now GloryHouse Foursquare Church)
Olympia, WA
thalesgloryhouse@juno.com
For clarity to the dates: I received the prophetic word from James Berkley on August 26 1999. I went into the Hospital on November 20th, I went into a coma November 21st . I left the hospital on December 31, 1999.
Pastor Rick Thale
GloryHouse Foursquare Church
thalesgloryhouse@juno.com
via Elijah Commission
Visit Northwest Prophetic for the complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
A testimony of a prophetic word to Pastor Rick Thale,
given by James Berkley of the Elijah Commission, August 26, 1999.
By Pastor Rick Thale
On August 26, 1999 James Berkley came to our Church to release God’s gifts of prophecy, teaching, and worship. My wife, Kate, and I received a prophetic word from James that went as follows:
"The enemy is going to attack you not for the first time but the second time. Do not worry, the Lord God will protect you and raise you up even before the attack can get started. This will take place in 3 months time."
There were more words that night but this one in particular caught my eye, so I watched for it. I had no idea what to expect. I did know from scripture that I did not have to fear. The Bible example came to me of Jesus prophesying to Peter in John 21:18 saying,
"Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish."
The key word for Peter here is "When you are old". When the Sanhedrin imprisoned Peter threatening his life, he had a prophetic word from Jesus which gave him great courage. "When you are old", Peter was not yet old! Paul tells us in 1 Tim 1:18 to "wage a good warfare", "according to the prophecies previously made concerning us". Therefore, when Peter realized he was not yet "old" as Jesus had prophesied, he had faith and confidence to overcome! Hallelujah!
Back to my story. I was sitting in my bedroom on a Tuesday night at around 11:30PM. I was in the midst of some strife over an issue in my life. All of a sudden, I felt as if an arrow had been shot into the back of my thrown. The next day, as I had done so many times before, I went to work not feeling well. I thought I would just work off the sickness and move on with life. Well it did not turn out that way this time! I was worse than ever. I then took off work.
I was going to go deer hunting with a good friend and if I missed work I thought I would not be able to go hunting so off I went. Well on Thursday I went hunting but man was I ever miserable. I was useless! I sat in the truck uncomfortable and horribly sick. I knew I had to push my way through this because I had such a full schedule for the weekend.
I had scheduled a 3-day Motorcycle class for the weekend which cost $50.00 several months earlier. To miss the class would force me have to reschedule and that would be months later. My schedule was too jammed to do that. I attended the whole thing! I attended the Friday night book session. Saturday, I barely survived the riding portion.
The trial was not over here because I had to do a Church Service on Saturday night. Boy, did my dear friends let me know how horrible I looked! Many prayed for me but to no avail. I was already in a full-blown attack. Sunday came early and off I went to complete the skills and testing, I finished at around 3:00 on Sunday.
Going home, I went straight to bed! I had a fever and was breathing very shallow. I had to put pillows under me to sit up all night to be able to breath. The next morning, on November 20, I told my wife I had better go to the Doctor’s office. By this time, things were progressively worsening. By this time, I was breathing 165 breaths per minute. When I arrived at the doctors office, they sent me straight to the emergency room at Black Hills Medical Center in Olympia. Man did the doctors and nurses flew into action. I was admitted right into ICU. I had an oxygen mask on and the doctors were desperately trying to figure out what was wrong with me.
Wednesday morning at 3:35AM, things worsened. My wife, Kate, who was at my bedside, could see I was going away. She hit the button for help as I took her hand. I looked her in the eyes and said, "Remember the word from James Berkley? We are walking through it right now" I then passed into a coma.
For days, I was in a deep coma. The doctors could not figure out what was going on. Then they found I had a blood staph infection. They told my wife it was at a high enough level to end my life. On top of that, they found I had full-blown pneumonia in both lungs, both upper and lower. The oxygen deprivation to my brain had now been eleven hours. The doctors prognosis to my wife was I would not make it, and if I did there would be months and months of restoration to motor skills, learning to talk and walk and such. The doctors had move quickly so they started by suctioning my lungs. Later the doctors told me only 5% of all who go through this procedures make it through. On top of that, my blood hemoglobin level was at 17. I was told people die at 14.
On the fourth day of the coma the doctors finally discovered I was having a ketoacidosous attack. They have never seen one this bad. The doctors were administering five times the insulin that the average person would receive. The also had me on the two strongest antibiotics known to man at the highest dosages possible.
On the fifth day, I started to come out of the coma. However, I do not remember anything until day seven.
On day eight, the physical specialist came in to see. She was shocked! Calling her boss in because I could walk, talk and sit up!
On day nine the head of the hospital Dr. Black paid me a visit. These were His words, "Boy you got a microscopic virus, but it hit you like an 18 wheeler".
On day eleven, the doctors sent me home with an oxygen bottle. I only needed that for two weeks! During my first doctor’s appointment after the incident, my doctor told me "it was a miracle". He could not explain what happened or why I survived. He went on to tell me one of the issues of why I was hospitalized was enough to kill me having two would guarantee my demise. Having four meant there was no hope. Not to mention I was supposed to stay in the hospital for two months, and go through physical therapy for another three months. I don't know about you but I think God did plenty to stop the attack before it could get started. The nurses in the doctors office afterwards told us that my doctor was pulling his hair out with concern because He could not figure out what was wrong or how to help, he was helpless.
Two weeks after my discharge from the hospital, I went in for a hemoglobin exam. I was told not to be too excited because it would take at least 2 months for my levels to normal out to between 12 or 13. Another shock treatment for my doctor. The test came back at 5.5. In unbelief, He re-tested. This time it was at 6!
Well there it is! This truly is God’s hand and not man’s. What a testimony! I hope you can see what I was trying to tell you.
God Bless,
Pastor Rick Thale
Olympia Foursquare Church
(Now GloryHouse Foursquare Church)
Olympia, WA
thalesgloryhouse@juno.com
For clarity to the dates: I received the prophetic word from James Berkley on August 26 1999. I went into the Hospital on November 20th, I went into a coma November 21st . I left the hospital on December 31, 1999.
Pastor Rick Thale
GloryHouse Foursquare Church
thalesgloryhouse@juno.com
via Elijah Commission
Visit Northwest Prophetic for the complete archive of regional prophetic words, or to submit a word.
Cool blogs:
• The Pilgrimgram • Firefall Zine • Tall Skinny Kiwi • Darpa's Domain • Bill Johnson • The Internet Monk
Resources
• Be a Hero! • Bethel Redding • Graham Cooke • Church Soundguy • End Time Prophetic Vision
Ministries
• Northwest Equipping • Healing the Northwest • Mosaic Northwest • PacificMinistries • Revival Town • Rivers of Grace • Storehouse Ministries
Missions
• Youth With A Mission • Int'l House of Prayer KC • Int'l House of Prayer NW • Int'l House of Prayer WA • Disciple the Nations
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