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Source: Heartdwellers
Clare
de Bois: The Lord’s wisdom and blessing
is with us, Heartdwellers.
JESUS:
Your flesh has been with you
since conception and has a will
to survive of its own. It
has its own knee jerk reactions
to perceived threats. Hunger, cold,
violence, criticism. Oh, there is no way
to explain to you the power the
flesh has over your members. The
Spirit has a much different agenda:
seeking love, affirmation and a purpose.
It's when the two get mixed
up or one overpowers the other
that the trouble begins. There
is a constant struggle for supremacy
as long as one is not dominated
by the other. Once a soul
settles into their flesh, well, the
battle is over. The flesh has
won. From time to time, glimpses of
what could have been bubble up
into your consciousness but are quickly
put down by the pleasures of the
moment and the perceived inconvenience
of reaching for your dreams.
“When
a soul is born again, and I am given complete access to the
desire nature, I begin to turn
that arrangement upside down. By My Spirit you become aware of
something greater than survival and
pleasures of the moment, you begin
to long for your Heavenly homeland
and the freedom you will have
there. You begin to remember
key moments when I presented you
with a dream or vision or even
a word of prophecy. And something
within stirs. At that point, I
begin to take your hand and
lift you up from your bed of
indifference and failure, lost purposes,
and impossible dreams.
“Then
the struggle is on. There are
some so self-disciplined that this
seems a very little issue to
them. On the other hand, much
of what motivated them before their conversion has to do with the
world, power, influence, fame and
glory. Yes, there is still
corruption in those who are converted
who seem to show remarkable self-control
and accomplishment. There are still
things that are there, deep down,
almost unrecognizable, that tend to
influence their decisions.That, too,
is the flesh. Although it seems
not to be carnal, it's just as
carnal as gluttony.
“All
of you are still a work under
construction. None has arrived.
And the moment you perceive that
about yourself, I will quickly come
to your rescue with a lesson in
humility, lest you perish through pride
and presumption.
“It
is a very rare soul that
immediately puts to death all of
their flesh and empties themselves to
give Me supremacy in their lives.
And to this I say, even
you who have done this thing,
still have only Me to thank, for
I gave you that disposition and
grace.
“In
the end Clare, all have fallen
short of the glory and perfection
of God.”
So,
why did you bring this up Lord?
“I
want all of you to know that
each of you are on the very same
rungs of the ladder as the soul
next to you. Forget this idea
of being ahead of anyone in
sanctity, it is a false notion all
together. You see, what gives
the appearance of a soul being
ahead of others is pure grace-and
grace is My possession not theirs. So, were I to remove all
grace, you would fall back to the
bottom rung again. Grace allows you to
cooperate, grace strengthens you in perseverance, grace holds you in place
when you would have collapsed and run
away. Grace fills you with
understanding, grace instructs you about
the outcome of
your decisions. Grace moves your
conscience to behave
in obedience to My known will.
Remove grace, and you have nothing
of any value left. Period.
Because then the flesh takes over.
Then that squat, determined,
self-‐willed flesh begins to make
your decisions.
“You
see, this perspective is sadly lacking
from ministers who are trained and
graduate seminaries. They learn to
conquer the world, not conquer
themselves. I would rather have one
raw diamond that is onto his
flesh, than ten finely faceted gems
that don't have a clue.
“This
is another reason why people are
leaving the churches-‐they are not
being taught how to conquer their
flesh. In fact, they are being
taught how to have the appearance
of holiness on the outside without
having the capability to conquer their
own particular passions.
“My
People, as you rise up to serve
Me, be particularly careful about the
inner man. Know yourself well and
rely totally on My all sufficient
grace, or you will fail. If
you lift yourself up above others,
you are still lacking in
understanding. When you see that all
that is good comes from My
grace, you will walk humbly before
Me and before men and seek Me
everyday for the way to go and
the power to accomplish it.”
Oh
Lord, forgive me, I feel like I
am putting these thoughts in my
head, not You.
“Perhaps
you feel that way because I am
continually feeding these thoughts to
you, Clare. Truly, each day, your
mind gets filled with more and
more of My thinking, that's just
natural by association. That's
normal. You begin to act, look
and think like the one you spend
the most time with. Do not
fear, Clare, you are not making this
up. Look at Me.”
I
changed my focus from the computer
to Him, and His face became ever
so clear and tender. He looks so
much like Ray Downing’s
paintings of Jesus. So much.
His expression was tender and almost
plaintive...are you
going to doubt Me, too?
I'm
sorry Lord, I am my own worst
enemy, as You said.
“Well,
to your credit, if you didn't test
the spirits you would not be a
good example to others. You do
have to be careful. But
understand, when the gate of virtue
has been abandoned, that is when the
devils enter.
“Meekness,
humility, awareness of your frailty
and complete dependence on Me: those
are the hinges on the gate of
virtue that will protect you‐even
from yourself,the worst adversary.
“But
do not fear. With each new day,
as you grow in awareness and
obedience, it becomes easier and
easier to know without a doubt I
am your source of strength, your
One and Only Source.”
This is an excerpt. For the full text, go here
