Monday, July 27, 2015

Discerning the Sucker Punch

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Discerning the Sucker Punch, 7-26-15


Lord I pray that you would bless Your family with a teachable spirit this day.


The Lord bless you, Family. I had a rough morning, and I had a temptation that hit me –a temptation of rejection and abandonment that hit me like a moving brick wall. Just before I was going to listen for the Lord’s message today. It nearly took me totally down –but I had recourse to find out whether this temptation, this thought that I had that was so discouraging was from God or from a demon. So, I’m going to share with you what happened.

When I first came into prayer, the first thing the Lord said to me was, "Don't let the devils take you for a ride like that! You should know when you get hit that hard that it's a sucker punch. I have many angels watching over you but you must choose who you will listen to."


A sucker punch is a hard blow that you’re not expecting, that comes out of nowhere, and has a really heavy emotional effect on you.


I was thinking, ‘Oh, no, Lord -please don't make me share this too!!’ And, it occurred to me that the rest of my time here on Earth before the rapture was going to be one confession of weakness after another. Oh, my gosh, please say it isn't so.


Jesus broke in, "Why not...isn't everything a teachable moment?"


With You, Lord? Always.


"Well then, teach."


I was afraid You'd say that...Lord, can't I have a private moment? Do I have to show ALL my weaknesses???


"Do I need to answer that Clare?"
No. (sigh)

So, this is what happened. I think all you dear ones can relate. Ever had a friend, a very best friend, someone you had really cherished and all of a sudden you weren't their friend anymore? They just weighed anchor and sailed away?

Well, I think we all have. I don't make friends, deep friends easily...as the Lord says, He entrusted Himself to no man because He knew their hearts. I found out the hard way how fickle and jealous hearts can be. Especially when your friend has a commitment to the status quo ...and you, they've discovered, are a little weird. Or maybe even a LOT weird. And overnight, your friendship raised its sails and disappeared over the horizon.

Well anyway, for the last few days I've been getting readings from the Scriptures about Judas and how He betrayed Jesus. That's never a good sign. And there was only one person I could think of that could hurt me as much as Judas hurt Jesus. And this friend, it seemed, was getting very busy...too busy to talk for days and had explained why, which I totally understood. But, I still began to feel something potentially painful was going on.

Well, this morning when I was preparing to hear the message, I was overcome with a sense of strong grief, to the point where I nearly fell to my knees. I tried to reason through it, but such a strong wave of rejection came over me, it was like someone just died. I am very familiar with that feeling, and I know where it leads to–and it’s never good. Here I was, getting ready to prepare a message for all of you and I got hit with a tsunami of rejection in someone I had really entrusted my heart to.

When you haven't discerned who is putting this in your head, you may very well fall for it while the other person may also be suffering their own trials. This is one way the devils separate close friends! No, it's imperative that you know the truth before that lie exhausts you with fear or grief.

Now, I at least know that I should always check in with the Lord when something like that happens. So, Ezekiel and I both went to prayer, and we asked the Lord for a rhema –an anointed word, from the Bible Promises. And when we did, Ezekiel got good readings. We both did. We got nothing but good readings about that person-not the kind of readings that I would get if they were betraying me–not those kind of readings at all, rather very good readings. But...some indications that something difficult was going on. Nothing about lying, or stabbing me in the back or anything like that.

I had reached out to that person but they weren't responding, even in the least little bit. And this wave of rejection was pounding me. My last reading in the Bible Promises was about getting into prayer. So, I dusted myself off and went straight to prayer. The very moment I sat down before the Lord with the intention of being there for Him, He said, "You've been hit with a temptation. It's not true." And emotionally, the grief began to lift off of me and I began to recover myself.


So, mind you: here the Lord had given me confirmations in the Bible Promises, and then spoken to me as well.

Well, about an hour later, the friend called me and shared the trial they had just been through that had nothing to do with dropping our friendship. So...here I am, Lord. Did You have something You wanted to tell us?


He began, "This is so common, and what I want to say to you all is that the devils will use this on you if you let them. Don't go into agreement with such things as this, come to Me and discern if there is any truth to it.

"How do you do that? You get an outside confirmation, something you cannot choose or manipulate in any way-you need a Rhema, an anointed word....from ME.

"Clare was able to recover and do this message because she had My assurance that it was a lie and she was under attack. What if she took the bait and ran with it, crying, grieving, totally messed up and unable to function? These attacks are far too common and My People do not know how to handle them, so they fall into depths of despair, thinking the false report was My Spirit warning them."

Lord, I've had that happen with my spouse or children. I’d get this terrible thought, ‘They were just killed in an accident.’ Or, my bank account, ‘You're hopelessly overdrawn -you made a BIG mistake.’ Oh, here’s my personal favorite: ‘You have a familiar spirit, it's not Jesus.’ That's my big oweeee! And, you know I ’ve come from the store, because I got delayed at the grocery store for some reason, and Ezekiel will be worried about me, or concerned about me, and he’ll tell me, ‘Well, I went to the Bible Promises and the Lord told me you were fine.’ So, he regained his peace. But how many times have we been thrown off track and not been able to regain our peace because we were afraid that something bad had happened. Wow...that is a way to stop you dead in your tracks...it steals your peace, it steals your energy, it’s discouraging. And, when the person comes home or things get straightened out –they feel badly because they made you feel badly. You know, it’s a vicious circle! So, the answer to all of this, to keep this from happening is to get a word from the Lord: is this true, Lord? or is this a lie? Am I being attacked?


He continued, "I call those sucker punches-you've just been knocked down and hit hard. They are immobilizing and unless you spot them before they get a foothold, they knock you out of commission until you can get to the truth of the matter.


"Some of you are too “mature” and “intelligent” to use the Bible as an oracle. You are the most likely to get misled or with no leading from Me at all because of your Pride. Many of you continue to ask for a word when I have taught you how to get your own word. Many of you continue to languish and say I'm not speaking to you, you never hear Me, or what am I doing wrong and so on.


"May I say, it's not what you are doing wrong, it’s what you are NOT doing. You're not taking the initiative to seek a rhema from Me. Unless you become like a little child...you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven. A little child doesn't ask its parent, ‘Are you sure it's okay? But isn't that fortune telling? Are you sure God will give me the right Scripture? How can God lead me to the right Scripture with my own hands when He's in Heaven and I'm down here??’ Hello? I LIVE in you.

"No, a little child simply picks up the book, prays like she's been told to pray and opens it. Then, wonder of wonders, God picked the reading!! She had the faith and the obedience to do a very simple thing and because of that I was able to instruct her."


As an aside, I just want to say that, here the Lord is not asking you to put aside testing the spirits. We must ALWAYS test the spirits. But, if you've been listening to this channel consistently you've already tested the spirits. He is asking you to Trust Him and not be looking to have all the answers as to why this works. You've already discerned Jesus is speaking. Now it's time to just trust and obey.


"So, I’m asking you to put down your university degrees and pick up a pacifier. It will do you a world of good to get closer to your childhood. want to be your Father, your Counselor, your Prince of Peace, but you are still too worldly. The intellectuals are your father, the scholarly are your counselors and you have no peace.

"For those of you who will listen and act in faith, I have some wonderful guidance for you. And, for the others who are still questioning Me, I'm sorry-you'll have to continue to live in the confusion of your own minds until you figure out that your way is NOT My way. When you figure that out, I will have answers for you.

"My children do not be stubborn. I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Don't be like a horse or mule, that has no understanding, that must be held in check by a bit and bridle. I am, in this moment, blessing you with a teachable spirit and Godly wisdom, if you will have it.



My sheep hear My voice. Press in, I am longing to speak with you."