RETURN TO YOUR RESTING PLACE

9/9/01

Hi Loved Ones,

Remember a few weeks ago when I sent out The Quickened Word with three sentences in it?

"When all else fails...DON'T QUIT. Remember Moses. He was once a basket case too. :)"

I had such a good time with that Word. It hit me between the eyes when I first read it (on a magnetic sign.) I laughed when I read it, then I laughed and laughed and laughed. At the time I wondered and thought, "Me thinks I laugh too quickly!"

Well, it must have struck a lot of people because I got more responses from that "Word" than most. Some thought it hilarious. Others wrote me thinking they had only received three lines and wondered if I could please send it again. That only made me laugh harder. :)

FORGOTTEN OUR RESTING PLACE

For some time now I have been hearing the Lord tell me, "You have forgotten your resting place." I knew it was true. This year I have identified a lot with Moses’ bouncing-baby-basket, riding the rough water in Egypt. (Ex 2:3)

With the Lord speaking to me about this, and with my thinking about writing this post, I walked down the hallway to go to bed. I turned the corner to my room and literally gasped. I saw the pillows, bedspread, blankets, sheets, mattress pad, and foam pad scattered all over the floor! (Sometimes God’s Words shout at us, if we will only listen.) That morning when making the bed, I had decided it was time for a new foam pad. My husband left to purchase one and when he returned we had other errands and I forgot about it until I turned that corner.

VISION OF A MATTRESS AND THE LETTER E

In the early 80’s I had a vision where I was pacing back and forth in front of my watchman’s window at night. I was very anxious and striving about waiting for the promises of the Lord and looking for Him to come to me. He told me I was striving. I then saw the large letter E that one sees on an eye chart when taking an eye exam. Then the same letter was on its back in bed, with its focus straight up in the air! I loved that vision and felt the Lord was telling me to keep my same persistent focus on Him as a watchman, but do it resting and not striving with Him about His timing.

Several years later I had a second vision where I saw a bed mattress upended. It was standing on its end, leaning against a wall. In 1989 Grandma Anna also heard the Lord say that our mattress had been upended and we were to rest standing up. Little did I know we would be "standing" in our rest in Him for 12 years. How does one rest standing up? I am reminded of being in the eye of the storm, where everything may be spinning around and quite chaotic. But inside that eye is a place so secure in the Lord, there is perfect peace and nothing can steal our joy - our assurance. It’s a place where we know we are safe, and we do not fear. It is also a place where we do not give an inch to the enemy and allow him any access to plunder our lives.

E FOR EXAMINATION

It was only recently that I remembered that Bobby Conner saw the letter E in his Shepherd’s Rod 2001 and one of the words he saw representing the letter E was examination. [Quote page 32: "The Lord stated, I am offering an Encounter that will bring about an Evaluation, that will release an Examination, which will produce an Endorsement that will bring about Evidence of My Enabling and My Empowering, which will result in the Emerging and Establishing of My kingdom."]

[Bobby Conner: http://www.bobbyconner.org/]

In my praying over this post and where we are in the time line, I saw a large magnifying glass and remembered seeing the same magnifying glass in years past. A magnifying glass represents close scrutiny, or examination. To my understanding it has been like a school exam or "test." (Ouch)

UP-ENDED TO EXAMINE OUR FOUNDATIONS

For the past twelve years the body of Christ has been through an arduous testing like the trials of Job. Job had this to say: "I have no peace, no quietness. I have no rest; instead, only trouble comes." (Job 3:26 NLT) "If I think, `My bed will comfort me, and I will try to forget my misery with sleep,' you shatter me with dreams. You terrify me with visions." (Job 7:13-14 NLT and Job 17:13, 33:15, 19)

As a body we have been thoroughly tested the past 12 years. For those of you in pain and woundings, I know that you will agree the past two years have been very difficult, and this year was worse, especially in the area of infirmity. I personally believe this year has been the grand finale and climaxing year of examination. In these 12 years, our lives have gradually become just like that bed: stripped, upended, undone, and turned upside down. The purpose was to get to our foundations in order to discard the old and replace it with the new.

THE END OF JOB’S STRIVING

At the end of Job’s story everything in his life had been turned upside down. The Lord had allowed him to be stripped of everything in order to reveal his foundation. Job’s final words were: "I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. You ask, `Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?' It is I. And I was talking about things I did not understand, things far too wonderful for me. "You said, `Listen and I will speak! I have some questions for you, and you must answer them.' "I had heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance." (Job 42:2-6 NLT)

What was the Lord allowing to be stripped? One of the most famous quotes in Job is: "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him." (Job 13:15 KJV) Why this verse has been lifted up in the church as a role model, I do not know. The New Living Translation says it this way: "God might kill me, but I cannot wait. I am going to ARGUE my case with him." (And that is an accurate translation of the Hebrew phrase ‘I will maintain’.)

Job’s final statement was not unlike Psalm 102 where it says, "I eat ashes instead of my food. My tears run down into my drink because of your anger and wrath.

For you have picked me up and thrown me out. My life passes as swiftly as the evening shadows. I am withering like grass. BUT YOU, O LORD, WILL RULE FOREVER. Your fame will endure to every generation." (Ps 102:9-12 NLT)

WHO IS IN CONTROL?

Job, and those tested like Job are finally coming to grips with the fact that God is totally Sovereign, totally powerful, and He does what He wants, when He wants. When we strive with God, we are arguing with Him.

How does one return to belief and thus their resting place? The very bottom line is accepting that God is SOVEREIGN. He created everything, He sees everything, He rules over everything, thus giving permission for evil and also using it for His own purpose. (Isa 45:4-13) He has and is absolute power and authority. Nothing can challenge that fact. He does and always will have the last Word on everything. Every little detail in our life is governed in and through His power and permission. Since we are His children, everything He does and allows is for our good. (Rom 8:28) And even if it is a painful spanking, even if it is judgment, it is because He loves us dearly. (Heb 12) If we have the foundation in our faith that says that God is Sovereign over all good and evil, then we can truly REST in His love, because we belong to Him.

THE FULLNESS OF TIME HAS COME

The scripture tells us that judgment first comes to the house of God. (I Peter 4:17) And after that, the world must go through its fiery furnace. Those who have yielded their flesh and carnality to the Lord through their fiery trials of the past 12 years, have been undergoing preparation and will be delivered from their fiery furnace as gold and silver. They will shine as a light to the trembling and sifting nations. They will be like a covering for those not yet in the storm. (Isa 32:2)

DELIVERANCE FROM FEAR IS VITAL

It is vital that as this fiery transition from the church to the world occurs, that we return to our resting place. If we have our eyes on worldly circumstances and not on the Lord, we will fear. The Lord wants to deliver His church from all fear.

The scripture says that He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters. (Ps 23:2) Sheep will not lie down if they are afraid. They must be free from sudden, startling dangers and free from tormenting pests. They are free when they see the Shepherd with them and know His personal care.

FEAR IS FAITH IN THE DEVIL

Sometimes when we get wounded from startling events it hurts a part of us that we can not touch, nor can we mend ourselves and fear begins to creep in. Did you know that fear is faith in the devil? And when we fear, we become tormented. "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18) When someone is tormented, they are in a state of unrest. Sheep can not rest when they are tormented.

UNREST IS UNBELIEF

When the Lord told me I had forgotten my resting place and I started praying for Him to restore it, He revealed my foundational need and led me to Hebrews chapter 4: Unrest is unbelief. I do not have the space to quote this wonderful passage on the rest of God. But it is the promise left for us, to come into His rest for the previous generation was in unrest because of their unbelief.

DELIVERANCE FROM FEAR BESIDE PEACEFUL WATERS

I had an unusual ministry experience recently and I felt it was a sign from the Lord of what He is about to do for His people in this area. During worship service I was quickened to pray for a person. I prayed for the person while playing keyboard, but did not have any personal opportunity. After the service, this person was sitting in a chair in the back. The Holy Spirit reminded me (John 14:26) and I casually went over and laid hands on her, and started singing my prayer over her.

I do not have a great solo voice, it is more of a supporting alto voice and this person is the last person I would have thought of singing over, as she has the most awesome and anointed voice! But the Holy Spirit was washing over me as I started to sing, and so I continued to just sing my prayer over her. It was not a real melody, nothing rhymed, no rhythm, just wandering notes and very simple. It was very peaceful and I just sang how He was sovereign and asked that He give her the grace to lay her burdens down and not carry them any more. I asked that the blood of Jesus wash all over her, and just kind of rambled on with melody and whatever came to my heart to pray via song. It was no big deal. Finally she crumpled back into her chair against the wall and looked like she was out for a couple minutes. When she came too, she had the most peaceful smile on her face. She radiated the Lord’s peace and love. She was obviously touched in her own little world so I said nothing and left to put away my music equipment.

SET FREE

She called me a few days later and told me what happened. The Lord had told her that I was going to pray for her that day and that she would never be the same. So she had been waiting in that chair for me! Evidently for years she always had a panic attack when she paid the bills, and when she called me she had just paid the bills without one. She was very excited! She had been delivered from a spirit of fear!

THE REST OF GOD IS NO SWEAT

This certainly surprised me, because all I did was sing my prayer. I did not take authority, strive, sweat, or carry on. I just sang my heart to the Lord about her in a very simple manner. This made an impression upon me, because the Lord had been telling me for many months that His priests were sweating. In scripture the priests of the Lord were not supposed to sweat. (Ez 44:18) I felt like I had been sweating for a long time, carrying music equipment back and forth, laboring in my prayers, laboring in warfare, and just plain laboring in life. "Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest…" (Heb 4) And somewhere in all the labors, I had forgotten my resting place.

I heard Mahesh Chavda say that he loves it when the anointing shows up in a meeting. (For many years he has been used overseas, in the miraculous.) He said things become so easy that one could say "peanut butter and jelly" and people might fall over and get healed and delivered! That really "stuck" with me as I mediated on that one!

HOW DO WE REST?

Rest in the Lord is just plain trusting in Him…. believing with all our heart that He is sovereign and that He truly loves us and uses everything for His purposes. When we trust Him to that degree, we learn the secret of abiding in His Presence and resting in His LOVE. With a personal God that counts the very hairs on our head, why sweat, why fear? (Matt 10:29,30; 6:25-34) He’s big enough to handle every little detail.

Lovingly,

Sandy

PS - As an update to this post, the Lord opened my eyes to the fact that in the past several weeks I personally know of 6 beds (from 5 households) that have had an update in their mattresses. In all of them but one, people are VERY thrilled with their new foundation to their rest. And while I was writing this post my husband was buying some box springs and a frame for our son’s room at college for $30. Thirty in scripture means redemption. This was strongly quickened to me that the foundation and resting place for the youth has been redeemed from the fiery furnace and their place has been bought and won for them!