 "May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance." 2Thess.3:5 |
|
JUNE 2009
[to better view this newsletter, click here]
2009 - Being Birthed to Give Birth
PART TWO: GATHERING AND MULTIPLICATION (Part One here)
INTRODUCTION Concerning the present year of 2009, I wrote previously about having entered into a season of increase and the wise stewardship of abundance. I also mentioned Joseph as an example of one who by correctly handling the abundance given him was prepared with ample supply when famine touched the land. In this regard, I would like to consider Joseph's journey in relationship to the present year of 2009 as a year of being birthed to give birth. A TIME TO GATHER Joseph's own year of being birthed by the Lord came forth when he found favor in the eyes of Pharaoh, whose dreams he correctly interpreted. In this regard, the Lord brought Joseph out of his personal desert and into an established position in Pharaoh's kingdom at the beginning of a seven year period of abundance. At that time, Joseph understood from Pharaoh's dreams that the seven years of abundance must be harvested in such a way so as to provide food not only for present use but also for the seven years of famine that were to come. Just as Joseph did not waste his lean years in prison by letting his gifts fall to the wayside, so too he let nothing of the abundance fall to the wayside during this time: During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it. Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure (Genesis 41:47-49). The blessing of the Lord's provision overflowed in the years of abundance and Joseph gathered in the left overs and stored it up for the lean years. Presently I am reminded of the prophetic word I shared in Part 1 in which the Lord said the "Josephs" of today will not be in want in hard times but will have plenty. The Spirit impressed upon me the second half of Malachi 3:10 as confirmation of this promise: "Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it" (Malachi 3:10). The context for this Scripture is one of tithing as seen in the first half of this verse: Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house. Although tithing is an Old Testament practice, the principle remains true today: honor the Lord with your harvest and He will honor you; give to the Lord and He will give to you. In this way, those the Lord is birthing as His own are a company of saints who have remembered Him in their obedience and who, living their lives for Him, have received an inheritance or "tithe" from the Lord with which to bless many. This tithe, as implied in Malachi 3:10, is to be "gathered in" and presented before the Lord, that is to say, it is to be laid at His feet for His purposes, and as this happens, this provision shall be multiplied and likewise there will be food or provision for His household (people) now and in the coming times. MULTIPLICATION AND MIRACLES The above promise played out in the story of the five loaves and two fish, as noted in Part 1. This miracle is also echoed in 2 Kings 4:42-44 in which Elisha and the servant fed one hundred people with twenty loaves of bread "and had some left over." Here again we find the principle of multiplication at work: when we gather in what we have and then give it away, the Lord will put His blessing on it and it will be multiplied to overflowing. Again, I am not referring to tithing specifically, but rather, wish to highlight the fact that as the Lord gives to us, our wise stewardship of His provision will result in increase. In this same regard I want to emphasize that I believe the present season is one in which we are now being poised to reap such a harvest. This harvest will come through the ingathering of seeds sown in the season prior and the day of small beginnings will now birth something greater than it's humble origins. More specifically this present time of gathering may take the form of completing projects or seasons of days gone by which will now begin to take the form of ripe fruit. For the Lord is swinging His sickle over the fields of our lives to harvest in the fruit of the previous season (desert years). In this way, the fruit of the season prior will also become the seeds for the season to come, even as Joseph's gifts in prison paved the way for his promotion at the time of his maturity. Again, what has been is now becoming the catalyst and preparation for a new level of life and ministry into which many of us shall be ushered or gathered into. At the same time, as is often the case, the very act that we perform in our lives, is the very thing the Lord is performing in us: as we gather, we are being gathered in! In this regard, I recently heard the Lord say He was rallying His armies, gathering us in and leading us home. That is to say, He is calling us forth from our seasons of exile and is now leading us along the road to take our battle positions where we can properly fulfill the callings upon our individual lives. A QUICK RETURN As we consider these things in regard to the present year of 2009, we can understand that much ground has been cleared in both the spirit and the natural. The Lord has been at work to prepare the way that He might safely bring forth and give birth to His hidden ones. In actuality, just as Joseph's being sent away to Egypt indirectly saved his life, sparing him further onslaught from his jealous brothers, so too many saints have been hidden away and have been plowing the ground in exile, but the day of redemption is now at hand. The Lord spoke to me about the present season of His Josephs through a picture and impression I recently had. I saw that many of us are like workers in the mountains, planting seedlings to repopulate the areas that were empty and barren. The seedlings we were planting were small, like the first glimmers of life and still needed time to grow in order to yield their fruit. However, I heard the Lord say that He is going to blow upon them with His breath and they will spring up "remarkably quickly." Even as I write this, I feel His mighty wind in my spirit and I hear Him saying that "there is a strong anointing that is going to blow and the trees of the forest will be abundant,' says the Lord. 'Your land will be populated. Your new growth will be blessed.' " NEW GROWTH AND ROYAL APPOINTMENT Concerning the Lord's reference above to "new growth" I would like to refer to Song of Songs 6:10-11 which reads as follows: I went down to the grove of nut trees to look at the new growth in the valley, to see if the vines had budded or the pomegranates were in bloom. Before I realized it, my desire set me among the royal chariots of my people. The above Scripture paints a beautiful picture for us...it reminds us that fruit grows in the valley – in the place where we experience our "lows" in life. It also portrays the direct correlation between this fruit coming to maturity and the transition from valley to royal chariot; to governmental authority. In this sense, many will begin to relate to the Shulamite in this story who was brought forth "before she realized it," that is to say "remarkably quickly" from the valley of new growth to be seated among the royal chariots of the king! How similar the pattern just noted resembles the life of Joseph, who went from prison to palace in a day. In deed, many today have likewise been prepared in the valley where their fruit shall likewise become the catalyst to thrust them forward into royal promotion! CONCLUSION In this regard, I believe 2009 marks the close of a season that was, thus signifying the completion of what the Lord announced in 2007: bringing His own up from the valley of death and into the light of life to behold the light of His face in the land of the living. This light will grow over His people's lives in this present hour in which, like Joseph, we will find increase at our doorsteps. Even so, we will mount up in the royal chariots of the Most High to govern these gifts and provisions in the earth. Birthed as stewards and governors of the kingdom which knows no end (Isaiah 9:7) and no lack, we shall be found standing firmly in Him through the coming seasons of abundance and the future years of storm. Therefore, let us hold out our hands to Him who wishes to fill them, for He christens us as "seed bearers turned harvesters" and He shall in deed fill our portions to overflowing! ...We whom the Lord shall harvest as He has His harvest in us...are about to acquire from Him a harvest abundant given to us...out of which He shall reap a harvest through us in the coming times...Blessings, Kimberly Lefebvre
"Fire from the Anvil" - prophetic words and articles. 
BLESSING
"May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and gave us, by his grace, encouragement eternal and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word."
(2 Thessalonians 2:16)
Note to artists: if you have released new music,books or artworks since we last corresponded, and would be interested in sharing a song or two on Soaking.Net, please send me an email to let me know.
Contact: soakingnet@gmail.com
I'm also seeking short devotional and edifying writings from our artists to include in our future newsletters. Let me know if you have material, or are interested in contributing in the future. |
|
|
THE KNEELING HEART - A SOAKING.NET NEWSLETTER To SUBSCRIBE, follow this link: Subscribe To UNSUBSCRIBE, follow this link: Unsubscribe NOTE: We manage our newsletters via InJesus.com. Make sure your SPAM folder is allowing our emails to come through. :) |