2023 and Beyond Prophecy
God’s Time and Your Personal Calendar
As I was in prayer, the Lord spoke to me and indicated that this New Year, 2023, will not bring in the expected change and new beginning that many worldwide are anticipating and hoping for. Although it has been celebrated with fireworks and music and revelry, and festivities, in actuality, it is issued in as just another day. No spectacular events that go beyond the surface, no breakthrough, no change, and no relief of the difficulties and trials that have bogged you down for so long. Though you desire to get rid of the past and begin something new and exciting, you are still plagued with things that were not resolved before this new year. Part of you rejoices with the entire world, while another part of you feels saddened that there is only a continuation of the personal trials that you had hoped would be finished by now, so that you could start afresh and new.
The Lord says that the calendars that are known and observed are not the times and seasons that are prescribed for your personal life. The new day is still pending, though now it seems very disappointing. But wait! There is a purpose to all of this. The personal trials that you are enduring that cause you to feel so alone, misunderstood, abandoned, criticized, isolated, are coming to an end for you, and on God’s calendar for you, a personal New Year for you, with a new day, and hope that is no longer deferred, is coming for you. The world may not recognize your new beginning, that ends an era of pain and suffering, sorrow and grief, loneliness and abandonment, betrayal and accusations, exploitation, slander and abuse, but you will celebrate, rejoice, and have new life and vitality that you thought would never be forthcoming because of the longevity of your personal trial.
Many times, while others celebrated, whether superficially and momentarily, you wept. You felt so isolated in the difficulties that no one noticed or cared to share, understand, support you through. You were blamed for the things you are struggling through, and you could feel and sense that you have been on your own Isle of Patmos, banished from the rest, for things you did not sign up for, things out of your control, and things you were not responsible for. Yet, that day of deliverance did not happen for you as you had hoped for, prayed for, and January 1st, for you, is just another day.
Your day, on God’s calendar, is coming for you. Angels will celebrate with you. Your Job comforters will put their hands over their mouths, and those who are your wicked enemies will groan at your release. But your day of deliverance is at hand. Your labors will produce a harvest of good things. Your chains will be broken off you. The prison doors will open, and you will walk out of that place of feelings of darkness and defeat, to certain and complete victory, but you will never be the same again!
Personal victory is at hand for you in God’s timing for you. Delay is not denial. It is coming, and it is perfect, and it is complete, and you will know it, feel it, and the losses will give way to the gain. The past will be a memory of some of the greatest and fiercest battles you have ever endured. The door will slam in the face of the enemy, who will not be able to pursue. The naysayers will be silenced in shame. Those who abandoned and accused and slandered you will be embarrassed. Because when your day of deliverance and victory comes, you will be in the winner’s circle, and the trophy that you receive will come with a promotion from the Lord, as He raises up your arm in the sight of all your enemies and proclaims your certain victory.
The purpose of your trial is preparation. You could not be prepared for what is coming without enduring hardness as a good soldier in Jesus Christ. Although your battle has been long and hard, and seems so unfair and so horrific, you have proclaimed your battle to be the Lord’s. You stand on His promises, His infallible Word, even when you have to do it all alone. You have not only given it to God, and believe it is His battle, and He will fight for you, but you have submitted your full self completely to Him. You have given up the reins of your life. You have given over the control of your situations that have spiraled out of control. You have been praying, believing, watching, waiting, hoping, and fighting the good fight of faith, often very alone. Many have not found a praying group to stand with you, fight with you, and stick with you through the duration, but God has not abandoned you. You are never alone. Jesus is the One who stands alongside to help you, and He will never leave you, forsake you, condemn you, blame you, shame you, accuse you, but your day of deliverance is already decreed and written in heaven, and will be executed on earth in your life as it is in heaven, and your sorrow will be turned to joy. Your mourning will turn into dancing. Your new day with a brand-new beginning is coming for you!
The Battle is the Lord’s Versus the Battle that is the Lord’s!
Just as Jonathan and his armor bearer fought against the enemy without an army, without permission, without recognition, without notice, to defend a half-acre of land, and brought down the enemy for the entire nation of Israel, your tiny battle, in comparison to the bigger one will be very significant. Let me explain:
What you must see is this, because they are not the same thing at all. The battle that is the Lord’s is all that you are going through, and all that He will empower you to win. But this is a very small thing in comparison to the battle that is the Lord’s battle. One He has called. One He has declared. One He will win, and one He has been preparing His trusted warriors to participate in. You see, when you have endured the worst trying of your faith, and endured the suffering, the delays, the pain, the impossibilities, the grief, the losses, you have only been set up for the Battle that is the Lord’s. Your personal preparation that is worse than what they call boot camp or officer’s training school, is not with a lot of others. This is personal. This is important, and this is beyond human hope. But the isolation has been planned by God, not to keep you boxed in, or banished, but to be in the secret place of the Most High God. You have learned that He is your hope, your peace, your protector, your provider, your vindicator, your helper, your healer, your deliverer, your Savior, your Lord, your God in whom you can trust. He has become your total source, because, in reality, in experience, there was no other way, no other hope, no other resource, no other remedy. God became your all in all, even though you have seen no change. You are battle weary, but your new beginning is coming as you receive the reward for your faithful endurance, unfailing faith and trust in God.
You could not find a leaning post, but you will become a pillar in the house of the Lord. Wimps do not win wars, and the untrained and defecting and quitting and unfaithful and unbelieving cannot be ready warriors in God’s army, to fight the battle that is the Lord’s.
Yes, He has a battle, and it is coming. You will be ready to fight His, because you will have completely won yours, hand in hand, and heart in heart, with the Lord. You trust in Him. He trusts in you. How great to be trustworthy, to be promoted, to be one who can be depended upon, that has seen warfare and did not run, did not hide, did not cower, did not back down, did not defect, did not quit, did not leave your post, but stood, firmly on your faith and trust in God. Now you will be ready for the big battle. Not personal anymore, but His. He fought with you in yours to give you complete victory, and you will fight in His until the victory is won.
In the last days, perilous times will come. The love of many will become ice cold. Truce breakers. Self-serving. Breaking covenant with God, Who, by the way, is God! He allowed the testing of your faith, and is with you in every moment of it. Do not despair. You’re coming through it, out of it, and the day of your deliverance is assured if you refuse to give up, quit, and your own faith will not become shipwreck. You choose to stand, wait, trust, believe, and you will receive! Hold on! Change is coming, and our breakthrough is assured! Trust in God, who will not only bring you forth, but you will be forever changed. You will not be weak, but strong. You will not be dependent upon others, but dependable. You will not be lonely, but you will be sought after. You will be a pillar of strength, a leader that has experience on your own front lines, and you will be perfectly ready for the battle that is the Lord’s.
The Tributaries and the River of His Glory
God showed me tributaries before I saw the river of His glory. I saw all these little lines of disconnected streams that were long and narrow. God informed me that these were a picture of the streams that came forth from the river of His glory in the lives of His people. They were fighting, tested, tried, lonely and small. But they were connected to Him. He warned that in the battles that are personal, His people would be tempted to allow other things to clog the flow, interrupt the power to prevail, by fear, doubt, unbelief, loneliness, disconnection. Nothing must interrupt your trust in God, regardless of the longevity and fierceness of the battle you face. Faith cannot fail now. You are too close to the end of it to give in to emotional responses, naysayers, the confusion of the enemy, lack of support of others, and the feeling of complete isolation. Don’t clog up the arteries with worry, self-condemnation, and complacency. Do not give into the feelings of weariness and battle fatigue, for God is looking for and preparing warriors, not wimps, and those who will not break rank, regardless of the on-slot of the enemy. Your personal battle seems horrific, but you are not only connected to Him, and receive vitality and life and strength from Him, but He showed me a very important shift that is coming shortly. Pay attention. The shift is this: The flow into the tributaries of individual believers from the river of His glory is going to shift into the opposite direction! The tributaries will flow back to the river. Do you see this? Out of your inner most being will flow rivers of life, living water.
You will flow into the river of His glory. This is a very important shift! You can say, how can this be? This is what will happen, if you do not give into the trying of your faith and quit. You will be a reliable well-spring in the middle of the dessert that will blossom like a rose. You will bear fruit in the wilderness, bringing back life to the one Who gives you life. You will bear fruit that brings glory to the God of glory, and you will be a benefit, not just a beneficiary. You will become a conduit of His glory, not just receiving, but giving back.
Come on! See this shift that is coming. Flowing back to Him who has always flowed into you. This will only happen to those who will endure this time of testing and be willing to finish the battle and receive the promotion, because they will be ready, willing, and enabled to lead the troops because of intense warfare experience. These are not war games, and you know you have to win the battle that is yours so that you will be part of the war, and fit to face the big challenges ahead for the Kingdom of God that is without end. By the way, we win. God will not lose the war. He is God. He will not choose those that are called, but did not stick to their calling, did not keep the faith. He cannot trust those who do not trust in Him at all times.
Roller Coaster Ride
I saw the roller coaster that many are on. It is a wild ride, and this one is not a thriller, or amusing, or entertaining, or desired. This is not fun. Many of you that are going through the fiery trials of your faith, have been on this roller coaster ride that jerks you around. Sudden twists and turns, ups and downs, and things out of control, upside down, and none of it for pleasure. None of it seems to make sense, and you just want off the ride. No one going through this is choosing it. You want to be off this miserable ride that seems to be endless, and have your feet on solid, stable ground. In your heart there is a stability, but emotionally, mentally, physically, financially, situational, relational, the ride goes on. Jerking, unexpected twists and turns, sudden upheaval, and when you are just hanging, upside-down, you feel like gravity is going to do its best to cause you to come crashing down. But somehow you remain in place. There is no seat belt that is visible to you, and your own arms and the arms of the flesh cannot save you. There is no one running to the rescue and no one cares about your screams for help and your- emotional terror, except God. It is the hand of God that has given you the ability to endure this horrible ride.
You are still longing to get off. I see the sudden halt to this for you. You are coming off the roller coaster ride that was never pleasurable, predictable, stable, or desired. You will stand on solid, stable, secure ground. You will be unhaken, immovable, and you will abound in the work of the Lord. However, the ride continues for the world.
Disturbing, frightening, sudden twists, turns, jerking, jolting occurrences are coming. I see this worldwide roller coaster that the entire world will be on that is unpredictable, earth shaking, overturning, and they will not have security and stability. You will watch, but you will not ride. Your ride is over. Your security is absolute in the Lord. Your ride ends just on time to observe the events that shake the nations, shake economies, disrupt peace, end pleasure, and the ride continues. You come off and are victorious over all the personal trials and tests and the wild ride that is worldwide will not be your destiny or destination or experience.
Behold, I Make All Things New for You!
New is new and near. This is not a redo, a make-over, a do over, a rerun. This does not have the elements of the past, the failures, the tests. That is over. No retest scheduled for you. You will not only be given new, created things, but you will be new. Old things will pass away. The past will not dictate and the materials of pain and suffering and sorrow and grief and alienation and abuse and rejection and misunderstanding and weakness and infirmity and affliction and losses and regrets and failed harvests and hopes that were deferred that made your heart sick will be a history that will not repeat itself. You are free. You are delivered. You are new, and what God creates for you is not using materials. He speaks. Just as He spoke, “Let there be light,” your light will come. It will not have one drop of darkness, defeat, despair, detachment, destruction, in it. The pain of the past will give way to the victory, the triumph, the promotion. You do not have to revisit the pain and graveyard of your dreams and plans and hopes. You will be in the palace, not the prison. You will be on top, and will not be walked on any more. You will have the honor that comes from God, and the days of your mourning will be over. Change is coming for you, and you will experience sudden change.
Sudden Change
Sudden, unexpected change is coming. There is a polarity of this. True believers will experience the unexpected changes in their lives, families, ministries, that are sudden, and unimaginable. The sudden blessings will come to those who are the called out who stayed in place. They are in and not out of the presence of God where joy will replace sorrow. Provisions, promotion, and blessings upon blessings that are miraculous and unthinkable are coming.
At the same time, sudden change is coming in the world. You will have stability in an unstable world. You will have provision when others are filing for bankruptcy. You will have enough to live, give, and reserve, while others are floundering. You will have light and be light in a lost and dying world. You will flow with life, and you will be a light house, a safe harbor, a refuge and strength to the weary, the lost, and you will be a part of God’s battle to issue in His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
Oh yes, a harvest is coming. Revival is coming, and His warriors will not only be revived and refreshed and renewed and empowered, but used for His glory. God is not going to lose the battle, your battle that is His, but He is not going to lose His battle as He declares war. You will be ready, not to feast, but to fight, to win, and then to bring back to the One who died for you, saved you, delivered you, precious souls for His kingdom. You will not want to be on the outside, looking in, on the bench waiting for opportunity to work in the harvest field. You are to be ready, to be set in place, and you will be empowered to go, and win a war.
The Dense Fog
This morning, driving to church on the most familiar roads, the same ones I have traveled without fail hundreds of times, became unusually challenging. It was January 1st, and what a great day to go to the house of the Lord! A new year, beginning with prayer, worship, singing, praising, prophesying, as we assembled in his house. I always am at the church hours ahead of time, to open the doors, to turn the lights on, the heating and cooling system on, to pace and pray and prepare for others to come. But today, January 1st, the fog was dangerously thick. On the news they warned people to stay home. They were not to try to navigate in it, because the visibility was barely beyond there headlights. I experienced this first-hand this morning.
At the end of my street is a busy highway. I had to turn left and that increased the danger. The speed limit is maximal on this highway, and visibility was so impaired, that I was concerned. I could hardly see even the lights of the cars coming and going. I had to be extremely alert, and once I made the decision to enter the highway, I could not hesitate for a moment. There was no chance of second guessing a decision. I was praying. Once on the highway, a most familiar path, I could not see land markers that were familiar, predictable, and unchanged. I could not see signs or sign posts. I could not see intersections until I was right by them. I could not see the traffic lights that I knew I was approaching until immediately before me. I could not see the lights of vehicles approaching in oncoming traffic until directly in front of me, and I could not see the lights of vehicles behind me. It was very frightening.
I had to slow down, be on complete alert, take extra precautions, pray, and with all that, I still missed my turn that I am so familiar with, because it was not until I was there that I saw the intersection at all. I had never been in fog like this before in my entire life. It was daylight, and lights on my vehicle did not benefit me at all. What had been familiar was strangely unfamiliar, like uncharted territory. I knew that this was a prophetic sign for this year. Although I missed my turn, I had to turn around, back up on the already dangerous highway, and get back on course. I was watching. I was alert. That is how impossible the journey had become, even though I knew the way.
The Lord reminded me that the prophets will not see clearly, but as they are looking through a dark, cloudy glass. They will know in part and see in part. This year will be like that. We are not going to see clearly. The familiar, the expected, the past frame of reference, the predicted, all will become vague and unpredictable. God is not going to give us the vision that will see the future that is in His hands. He will reveal the way, enlighten the path, and go with us into the unknown that is clear and known to Him. We will not be able to predict the predictable, because it is not going to be predictable at all. The forecasters will be surprised with the changes that occur that are totally unexpected to them.
God is totally full of surprises, good and bad, depending on where you stand, and He will do a new thing. His new and created thing that makes things new for you are unknown, uncharted, unpredictable, unimaginable. If it was part of your vision that you had, it is not unimaginable. If it is part of your dreams that come true, it does not take on the element of what He said, that he will exceed our expectation, imaginations, and that eyes have not seen, ears have not heard, neither has it entered into the hearts of man what God has prepared for those who love Him. So, if you have written the vision, it does not qualify for the unseen. If you have prophesied it, then it is inferior. It is seeing through the fog, and not clear vision.
The reason is that we must walk by faith and not by sight. If you can see it, you hear it, you expect it, you know it, that does not require faith. It is your faith that is being tested, and your outcome is far beyond your personal prophetic gift and vision. It removes the expected to give way to the unexpected. It has a greater glory and grace and outcome than one could see, prophecy, know, or anticipate. God wants and requires us to walk in the steps He ordains for us, by faith, not sight or feeling. Circumstances and disappointments and delays and difficulties do not detour His plan, His purpose, His will that shall be accomplished in you, your life, your family, your ministry, your destiny that will be accomplished on earth as it is in heaven, and is for heaven’s sake, and you get to participate in it and enjoy the benefits of it as you partner with God and become an heir of God and joint heir with Christ Jesus. You are part of something way bigger than your vision, your insight, your gift, yourself. You are part of Him!
Slow Down
The Lord showed me that this year, although we want things to accelerate and speed up, at the beginning of this year, the pace is going to be slow. You may feel delayed. I say, feel delayed, because God is always on time. Your times are in His hands, and they are always perfect. He cannot perfect what concerns you until it is complete. He is the author and completer/finisher of your faith. Don’t be in such a hurry in the first three months of this year. The pace may seem too slow. The familiar may seem dreadfully unfamiliar. The things that were predictable became unpredictable, and the things you understood became unworkable. Your past frame of reference did not help you get through the fog when you could not see the signs, the lights, the road ahead, the crossroads, and what worked before was insufficient.
But you will get there! You will not crash. You may make a wrong turn, but that will be corrected. Do not blame yourself when you are maneuvering through dense fog that impedes your vision. Trust that if you make a wrong turn, that God will steer you back on the path. You are not perfect but are being perfected.
No one is able to remove spots, wrinkles, blemishes, imperfections in your life. The accusers, naysayers, abusers, condemners, the haters, the people that are holier than thou, are not your boss, your instructor, your owner, and they have no right to correct you. God is the Lord of your life, and He is the author and finisher/perfecter of you. He that began a good work in you, not some other entity or person, will perfect it. You are His beloved, His property, and He owns you, abides with you, is in you, and will order your steps, and cleanse and purify you (and that is in process now). So hold on. He will give you beauty for the ash heap of your life, the oil of joy for your mourning, the garment of praise for your heaviness. Trust! You will come out, and you will be changed, and perfected. God will do it, and you will be a vessel of honor that He will mightily use for His glory.
The fog will lift. By service time, when others made their way to the church, the roads were bright, the sign posts and traffic lights and intersections were able to be seen, and they did not have to drive in the fog. I did. You will. Because you are not on the road to just go somewhere, but to become a light, become a signpost, become a path finder, and lead the way to the house of God, which is not a church building made of brick and mortar. You are a kingdom warrior, salt and light, and although you endure the fog and uncertainties in even areas that were formerly most familiar and understood, you will navigate to your destination, and be issued into your destiny purpose for the kingdom of God and His glory.
Delivered for a Purpose
Even as the Lord said, concerning His people that were in bondage in Egypt, “Let My people go that they may serve me, you will be saved and delivered for a purpose. Your battle will be won. Your victory is assured, but your destiny purpose is not a personal pursuit or kingdom, but His. Your reward is honor, integrity, recognition, approval, and productivity in His kingdom so that you can expand His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Flow back to the river of His glory, and become a benefit to the benefactor, a warrior that is ready to fight, unrelenting in faith and obedience, and trustworthy. We win, so what are we waiting for? Let’s get on to the business of the Father, and finish the race that is set before us, keeping the faith. It is all or nothing, and when you give it all up to the Lord, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
