John 16: 33 (ESV)
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
There is no denying that we are in quite a time of upheaval. The word ‘tribulation’ in this scripture is used as a translation for: a pressing, pressure, oppression, affliction, tribulation, distress, trouble, anguish, burdened, persecution, and straits.
I am grateful to be alive and immersed in the Kingdom of God on the Earth to witness and co-labor with Christ in this moment of eternity. As the world system is alarming with chaos, war, threatened economic collapse, the demise of entire global countries, geological and cosmic disturbances…among other catastrophic events. How do we look at and process these happenings? How we see these events is a choice. You can choose to entangle yourself with the world system or you can choose to see the events as God sees them.
We are experiencing a division. Possibly the greatest division of our lifetime. This division or shaking is for freedom. It may not look that way to you if your eyes are focused on this frequency/dimension but if you allow Holy Spirit to give you eyes to see and ears to hear, you will see and hear what God is doing all around us. Freedom has never been easy. It has been fought and died for to attain and to maintain.
What is God doing within His people? He is calling us out of religious bondage. Those that enjoy their captivity will fight and resist Him. As a nurse I was always surprised and dumbfounded at the women who were beaten and abused by their boyfriends or husbands and somehow would defend them…even to their own detriment. Stockholm’s syndrome is a mental disorder in which a hostage develops a psychological bond with their captors. The captor controls all aspects of the hostage’s life and is often physically/sexually abusive.
While our government’s corruption is exposed, do we continue to think that they have our best interests at heart? Or our medical systems. After the exposures lately, do we continue to trust he medical profession to diagnose and treat us without the bias of their connection to big pharma?
What about Spiritual abuse? It is a form of coercive control where religious or spiritual authority is used to manipulate, intimidate, or harm an individual. Isolation, misuse of authority, shame, control, ignoring boundaries, sexual abuse, financial pressure all work together to break the soul of the person being abused causing them to lose their self-worth and their freedom to choose.
I am convinced that God is calling people out of a religious structure full of control and abuse. The call from God has been sounding for many years. Warnings to abusive leaders were ignored and now we see the exposure of godless leaders who love the structure more than God’s people. While some have repented, the majority have not. Some parishioners have left the structure and control, while others are making excuses for their errant leaders. We are seeing a huge demonstration of Stockholm’s syndrome in the Church. Only those that have ears to hear and eyes to see will be able to leave the structure that has kept them bound for so long.
Why do they stay? Fear of the unknown; Fear of exposure; Fear of what others may think; Fear of being persecuted; Fear of making waves or causing division; Pride; Financial reasons…the list goes on and on. The brainwashing of the Church has been going on for years…but God is on the move and to move with Him during this time and to experience the freedom that He is offering, we must:
- Come out from among them…move away from our captors.
- Develop a close a personal relationship with Holy Spirit.
- Trust in the Lord to lead and guide us into TRUTH asking Holy Spirit to show you the scriptures with new eyes.
- Ask Holy Spirit to show you the truth, no matter the cost.
- Find like-minded believers who are on that same quest…to Know Him and the power of His Resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings.
My belief is that the Father is making the world very uncomfortable for the reason to wake them up and hopefully return to Him. He is doing the same thing to the Church. The Religious Structure that exists today in most churches is not what Jesus intended when He said, “I will build my governing body, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” Unfortunately, the gates of hell are within many churches. Sin is rampant in the lives of believers. I guess the glitz and glam of mega churches, nor to legalistic bondage of overzealous puritans haven’t found the formula to be able to present His people as a formidable foe over evil.
The control that comes from leadership is many churches stifle the callings and giftings of most of the congregation as they are told week after week that they are in the church to support the vision of one man who is trying to build his own kingdom. Ridiculous! Most church-goers don’t know what their mission on earth is or why they were sent to earth. The talents, gifting, and dreams in the congregation lay on the floor of the sanctuary as dry leaves of fall wither and fall to the ground, and eventually crumble. The pastor looks for the validation of his existence from the very people who receive no empowerment to find the reason for theirs.
Liberty is not free. It will cost you everything and it can only be found in Christ Jesus Himself. The systems of this world including the religious Babylonian system in the church with it’s confusion and mixture, will fall. It will feel like chaos and catastrophe, unless you look higher into the frequency of the spirit realm. When you align yourself with the purposes of God it will all make sense…unless you are subject to a weird relationship with your captor.
The systems of the world in the church is in a head on collision with the purposes of God. If you stay in the system, you will feel the shaking and the tribulation of this. But there is an ark made for you. Jesus is your peace, truth, light, life, breath, faith, and hope. As the systems fight to stay alive you can live in peace, joy, and love in the spirit. You can learn why you were made; What your calling is; What talents, gifts and heavenly deposits you possess to affect the earth.
John 14: 27
“Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid”.
Take courage and make the change to align with God’s purposes.