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6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-17-2025 January 17, 2025 Don’t Give Up On Your Miracle The Give Him 15 posts are always written and recorded the afternoon before the day of their release. Thus, I am just now reporting on the Livestream Healing Summit that occurred Wednesday night. (For more information on this, you can read Monday’s post.) The prayer time was very anointed; I feel it was the strongest of the three we have done. (The previous two were live gatherings.) Numerous words of knowledge were released, some very detailed. Faith was very high. I have NO doubt that many people were healed. I am also confident many more will be healed as they watch the recording; you can view it on YouTube here. During the prayer time, Holy Spirit reminded me of a text I had received a few days prior. It was regarding Acts 10:38 and the Greek word for “healing” (iaomai) used in this verse: “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him” (KJV). The text was informing me that in Greek history this word often has the meaning of a healing that occurs progressively, over time. We typically assume that when Jesus or the disciples healed people it was always instant. This word tells us that wasn’t necessarily the case. It can mean that the healing or cure began at that moment and continued until the person had fully recovered. I was fascinated and motivated to find out more about this word and did so in an article from Greek scholar Rick Renner. After sharing the testimony of a profound but progressive miracle, Renner said he inquired of the Lord for more insight. Holy Spirit led him to Acts 10:38 and a study of the Greek word for “healing,” iaomai. Renner said: “This word iaomai is a very ancient word for “healing” — so ancient that it was even used in Homer’s time. It mostly denoted healing that came to pass over a period of time. It is for this reason that the word iaomai is often translated throughout Greek history as a treatment or cure or remedy. Thus, it depicts a sickness that has been progressively healed rather than instantaneously healed… “It unmistakably tells us that there are many people who, from the moment they are touched by God’s power, begin to mend or be cured. In other words, this means that all healings are not instantaneous; certain people are progressively restored to health over a period of time. They become better and better until ultimately they are completely cured. Although this type of healing is not instantaneous, it is nonetheless miraculous. “The picture of iaomai is similar to a physician who gives medicine to a sick patient and expects the medication to do its invisible, internal work to produce a remedy for a physical problem — but with supernatural results. When this type of healing power is at work, the person praying for the sick may not see immediate results. But that person can be confident that because he has prayed in faith, healing power has been imparted. The complete manifestation of healing may take time. But if God’s power has been imparted and received by the person’s faith, that healing power has started its invisible, internal work to reverse the sick person’s condition and bring him or her back to a healthy state of being.”(1) Wow! Wow! Wow! Though the meaning of this word is new to me, the truth behind it is not. I have observed several divine healings that were progressive; I have personally experienced some. And for those questioning, I am speaking of physical conditions the medical community said were incurable. When a person is prayed for and an instant miracle doesn’t occur, their disappointment at times can almost be felt tangibly. When the person is encouraged to believe that God has honored the prayer and that the answer will come, it is often difficult for them not to give in to the disappointment. Believe me when I say I understand this. Holy Spirit is even showing me that repeated failures to receive instant healings have caused some to become disillusioned regarding supernatural healing altogether. God wants to reverse this! You are now armed with the biblical knowledge that progressive healing is often how God works, even doing so through Jesus and the early apostles! When I was reminded of the text explaining this to me Wednesday night during the prayer time, I KNEW the Lord was telling me healings were “beginning” for individuals. Yes, some were no doubt given instantaneous miracles. But to many others God was saying, “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise” (Hebrews 10:35-36; KJV). The Passion Translation words it this way: “So don’t lose your bold, courageous faith, for you are destined for a great reward! You need the strength of endurance to reveal the poetry of God’s will and then you receive the promise in full” ‭‭(Hebrews‬ ‭10‬:‭35‬-‭36‬;TPT‬‬). If you have been prayed for and did not receive your healing instantly, this DOES NOT mean that you, or the person praying for you, didn’t have faith! It means that for you, God wants to do it a different way! DON’T THROW AWAY YOUR FAITH, YOUR CONFIDENCE! Hebrews 6:12 also tells us to not give up on our faith: “So don’t allow your hearts to grow dull or lose your enthusiasm, but follow the example of those who fully received what God has promised because of their strong faith and patient endurance” (Hebrews‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ ; TPT‬‬). These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.(1 John 5:13-15 NASB) ... I added this - RON I KNOW this is an important word for many of you. Receive it. Declare your faith everyday: “By the stripes of Jesus I am healed!” Do it multiple times a day just as you might take medicine several times each day. Let’s stand together for the iaomai of “the Lord our Healer” (Exodus 15:26) to now manifest. Pray with me: Father, we stand in agreement with those who are believing for their healings. We appreciate doctors, of course, and their role in healing, but there are many that must have supernatural healings. Miracles. We ask that any and all disillusionment be broken off them. You said truth makes us free (John 8:32; we embrace the truth of today’s word. We stake ourselves to our brothers and sisters now and stand with them in confident faith. We declare that through faith and patience they will receive the provision Christ purchased for them! We also continue to ask that gifts of the Spirit be released into Your people, equipping them to release healings and miracles. We believe You are launching another movement of signs, wonders and miracles around the world, and we agree in prayer today for this. And finally, as Lou Engle and Matt Lockett have instructed us, we continue to ask You for the type of anointing possessed by Jehu to also be upon President Trump and his team. (The zeal this produced in Jehu caused him to eradicate the evils of Ahab and Jezebel from Israel.) We ask You to give Trump and his team wisdom, and to fill them with Holy Spirit. Give them strong revelations of Christ and His salvation. And we pray for Your supernatural protection over them and their families. We also ask for this protection over all those attending the inauguration and inaugural events - expose and stop all plans to harm people. We ask for this in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. Our decree: We decree that the supernatural healings Holy Spirit has begun in people will manifest fully in their minds and bodies, in Jesus’ name! *********************** Remember from yesterday’s post, that the Lord directed our friend Gina Gholston to issue a call for intercessors from all across America and other parts of the world to release prayers and decrees in unison on Sunday, January 19th [2025] at 12:00 PM (noon) CST. For more information about Gina’s The Shout That Shatters Prayer Assignment, please visit her website: GinaGholstonMinistries.org or Gina’s FaceBook page. ****************************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. ---------------------------------------------------------- https://renner.org/article/healing/

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-16-2025 January 16, 2025 Lift Up A Shout Introduction Holy Spirit gave Gina Gholston a dream recently that included a prayer strategy. I believe the strategies given to Gina in her “Paint the Borders” (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) and “Prayer Over Our Water Structures” dreams have and will continue to bear great fruit. We must continue to cover our land in prayer, however, as we know terrorists have entered. This dream is another encouragement to pray together. Gina shares: ********* “On January 3, 2025, the Lord gave me a dream in which I was with a large group of people who joined hands and formed a circle around a huge map of the United States. The map was moving about, as if being shaken by a very strong wind, and it seemed as though it would be ripped apart. Then there was a sudden surge of the anointing of Holy Spirit that came over us, and I heard the Lord say, ‘Release a shout that shatters, dismantles, and causes evil agendas to fall and crumble!’ “Instantly we lifted our clasped hands toward Heaven and released a loud, long shout of praise unto the Lord! As we did this, the map settled down, then began to rise. “The Lord then instructed us: ‘Take hold of My covenantal promises, release the shout of triumph, and walls of opposition will fall, giving you access to this land. I am giving you a window of time in which to advance with My purposes. The time is now.’ “When I awoke from the dream, I was immediately led by the Lord to read the sixth chapter of Joshua. I felt a sense of urgency. It was a sense that we have been allotted time, and we must follow Holy Spirit very intently and precisely within that time frame! “The day after having the dream, the Lord led me to post it on my social media pages. Almost immediately, after posting the dream, I began receiving comments from many who had been sensing similar alerts. I also began receiving messages about compiling decrees and prayer directives for intercessors who are currently in a time of praying and fasting for the nation. With the help of fellow intercessors, I compiled a list of prayers and decrees, and released those on my social media pages and website. The Lord also directed me (Gina) to issue a call for intercessors from all across America and other parts of the world to release those prayers and decrees in unison on Sunday, January 19th [2025] at 12:00 PM(noon) CST. The response has been tremendous! “As I have been praying about this dream and prayer assignment, one of the things that has been highlighted to me is an emphasis on unity. The people in the dream were united in faith, obedience, focus, and their shout. “As I have been thinking about this, I’ve thought of how over the past few years we have seen intercessors uniting and the impact of this. There is now an alert company standing on the wall of intercession throughout this nation and the world, ready to respond in a moment to the alerts and instructions from the Lord. "I feel this is the company of people represented in the dream. There was a unity among us, and in that moment, the anointing came as we joined hands and united our shout. When the anointing was released, it set into motion a necessary shift and the rising up of the map/the nation. “Power and anointing is released when we come into agreement with the Lord and align our movements and words with Him. As we take hold of what He has promised in unity and faith, we will see the effects. God’s power will be released through us to accomplish His purposes. “God is showing us that this type of unity is something we are going to see more and more from this time forward. As we hear and focus on Him, take hold of His Word and promises, unite and align with His will, He will release the anointing through us that shakes, shifts, and destroys yokes. All for His glory! “As I read the sixth chapter of Joshua, one thing that really stood out to me is the importance of timing. Those in Joshua’s day had stepped into the timing of the Lord to move forward into the next phase of His plan. He had given them the land, but they had to hear His instructions, trust Him, and obey in that appointed time in order to possess the fullness of what had been promised. “The Lord is impressing on me strongly that we have a window of time, and in that allotted time we must be attentive and responsive to Holy Spirit’s leading. The timing of God is critically important, and the Lord said in the dream, ‘The time is now.’ “Our obedience to the assignments of the Lord will open the way for the wind of Holy Spirit to blow, bringing the prophesied awakening revival and reformation . . . because it’s time!” ********* Pray and decree with me: Father, we respond to Your call. You hold our gaze; our eyes are on You. We are attentive to Your voice and will follow Your Spirit as He leads us. We will not hesitate in our response. We will not fear! We will release the shout of triumph, lifting our collective voices in a unified sound, declaring that You alone are God. We have no King but Jesus! The anointing that destroys yokes is in us and will be released through us. It will shift that which needs to be shifted and move things that need to be moved. Our shout will shatter strongholds over cities, states, and this nation. It will shatter strongholds over the Church and over Your people. Walls will fall. Eyes will open to see truth. Ears will open to hear truth. And Your truth will cause us to triumph in every purpose and intention You have for this hour. We lay hold of Your covenantal promises, set our faces like flint toward You, and will advance with Your purposes. We will not grow weary in our assignments, and will see Your salvation manifested in our time and land! In Jesus’ name, Amen! We decree that walls standing in opposition to the will and purposes of God will crumble and fall! America shall be saved! ******************** For more information about Gina’s The Shout That Shatters Prayer Assignment, please visit her website: GinaGholstonMinistries.org Click on the link below to watch the full video.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-14-2025 January 14, 2025 The Promised Revival I released a post on New Year’s Day regarding a 21-day fast for the new year, (January 1-21) called by Lou Engle and Matt Lockett. The Daniel Fast (see Daniel 1:2; 10:2-3) and prayers are requested for President Elect Trump, his Cabinet (for which Senate hearings begin this week), and for revival. That post can be seen HERE. Cheryl Amabile and The Briefing released a follow-up post a few days later. It states: We are republishing a powerful Briefing from 2021 that recounts three profound revelatory dreams received just after Biden’s inauguration, encouraging intercessors not to lose hope. Two of the dreams, from Charlie Shamp and Gina Gholston, connect a coming move of God with the extraordinary outpouring that occurred in the Hebrides Isle of Lewis in 1949. Notably, Donald Trump’s mother was born on this small Scottish island of revival, where she frequently returned to visit family. We sense Holy Spirit drawing a prophetic connection between Trump’s return to the presidency and a door of opportunity that could usher in this move of God. As we approach Donald Trump’s second inauguration, let us pray with renewed faith for that promised revival that is nearer now than when we first believed! Dream One–Azusa Street Revival Shortly after the elections of 2020, while we were focused intently in prayer for the nation, Chris Berglund had a remarkable dream. In his dream, we were shooting arrows throughout America and people were catching them. Wherever they were caught, the arrows became pencils. Each person who caught a pencil would then write out a statement. The statements all said essentially: “Seymour’s 100-year prophecy is about to come to pass!” William Seymour, known as the leader of the Azusa Street Revival, released a prophecy in 1909 as the revival was starting to wane. He declared that in about 100 years there would come another move of God that would make the Azusa Revival pale in comparison. This was quite a declaration from a man who had experienced the shekinah glory of God, saw limbs grow back, tumors fall off, and countless people sent to the nations as carriers of the glory that God manifested there in Los Angeles at the turn of the century. Dream two–The Hebrides Revival Not long after Chris’ encouraging dream, we received word that Charlie Shamp of Destiny Encounters International had a profound dream. Below is a transcript of Charlie sharing his dream: 1/22/21 - Last night I had a vivid dream in which I was brought to a door of a church. It seemed like a very important place where revival had happened in the past. The door was closed tightly with a padlock keeping the door locked. It seemed that the door had not been opened for a very long time. Interestingly enough, the door was crystal clear, like glass, but it couldn’t be broken. You could see clearly that the glory of God was inside. It was thick in this church. I looked to my right and there was a man wildly rocking back and forth and weeping uncontrollably. I immediately recognized it was Lou Engle. When he saw me, he came over and hugged me and said, “You made it!” I looked at him and asked, “Where are we, Lou? What is this place?” Suddenly I knew we were standing in front of the door that Duncan Campbell had spoken of in his sermon “When God Stepped Down from Heaven.” Lou looked at me and smiled and said, “You see it? You can hear it. This is the door of hope and it’s about to open.” Then he started crying again and said, "Charlie you didn’t lose hope for America. We’re going to live in the days of Awe of God in this country. We’ve been chosen by God to be door-keepers of awakening!” He then handed me a nail and a hammer and said, “Stand here and continue to pray with me. When the door opens they will come and we must pierce every ear before they go through the door. [For an explanation of this practice, see Exodus 21:6 and Deuteronomy 15:17.] Only those who are marked at the doorpost will enter in. This is the revival of the bride.” I then woke up crying from the encounter and felt as though I was still holding the hammer and the nail. [Cheryl says] Our team was gripped by the exhilarating statement in Charlie's dream that “the door of hope” connected with Duncan Campbell and the Hebrides Revival “is about to open!” This powerful move of God off the coast of Scotland in 1949-1952 was characterized by the fear of the Lord resting spontaneously upon entire regions, bringing conviction of sin and dramatic conversions. Men and women would fall into trances and be radically transformed by the depth of their revelation of God. According to Campbell, the revival that swept through the Isle of Lewis and the surrounding islands was birthed through the prayers of two elderly sisters, Peggy and Christine Smith. Some claim that these women were the great-aunts of Donald J. Trump; others dispute this. Regardless of any familial connection, these sisters, who never had children of their own, clung to the promise of Isaiah 44:3 for their spiritual descendants: For I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, and My blessing on your descendants; (Isaiah 44:3) Dream Three–The Coming Revival On the heels of Charlie Shamp’s dream, we were stunned to hear of another confirming dream through Dutch Sheets’ Give Him 15 prayer devotional on February 10, 2021. Dutch shared a detailed account of a dream by Gina Gholston, summarized below: On 2/2/21 Gina dreamed she was standing with a man she did not recognize and together they were observing the United States of America. She could feel a strong anointing emanating from this man, which caused her to have an indescribable hope for the nation. They watched together as eagles, like warplanes, were flying across the country and releasing arrows into the land. The eagles were dripping wet from wells of revival that had suddenly been uncapped and were gushing water once again. The water was flammable, so everywhere the eagles flew they caused fires of revival to burst forth. Before long, it seemed as though all of America was burning with these holy fires. [Many of you will remember this dream and the planting of arrowheads throughout the nation.] As Gina’s dream continued, the man, whom she noticed was speaking with a heavy accent, said to her, “This is how America will be saved! Do not doubt it! There is coming a sweeping move of the Spirit of God that will ignite America with the fire of His presence. This will bring a swift, undeniable awareness of God and an awakening.” At this point, the anointing and the presence of God was so overwhelming that Gina fell to her knees and wept uncontrollably. Then, just before waking, she looked up at the man who had been speaking to her and suddenly realized he was Duncan Campbell of the Hebrides Revival. [Cheryl says:] When the Lord brings repetitive dreams like this it certainly gets our attention. We believe the message is clear: there is hope for America and it’s tied to the long-standing promises of a coming revival. The dreams suggest it is time for the fulfillment of those promises. We also believe it’s time for prayer. In Zechariah 10:1 the prophet wrote, “Ask the Lord for rain in the time of the latter rain.” Lou said it to Charlie in his dream, “Stand here and continue to pray with me.” Let’s finish these 21 days of prayer well. If you haven’t been participating with the Daniel Fast, consider doing so for the last week. Contend in faith for these key objectives. (Let’s do so now): Prayer: Pray for a Jehu anointing to rest upon President Trump and his Cabinet, empowering them to fulfill God’s purpose in sweeping away the “house of Ahab” in America. Father, we ask for this now. Pray for Donald Trump to be filled with the Holy Spirit during his time in office. Ask for divine wisdom to rest upon him and his administration so they may govern with righteousness and justice. We ask You for this also, Father. Pray for the door to open for mass revival and the ushering in of a Third Great Awakening in America. May this nation return to God and carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. Make it so, Lord, in Yeshua’s name. *************************** Check out other interesting dreams and updates from Cheryl and the team of intercessors she is associated with at TheBriefing.us Click on the link below to watch the full video.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-13-2025 January 13, 2025 An Upcoming Online Healing Summit With all of the changes and challenges currently taking place in America and around the world, it is important that we not become distracted from God’s agenda. In the midst of global crises, devastating storms, acts of terrorism, apocalyptic fires, historical elections and inaugurations, etc., we must remember that God is working in the unseen realm. Today, I want to remind you of good news regarding His plans and purposes. Part of the coming revival will be a significant increase of signs, wonders and healings. My friend, Ken Malone, was given two dreams on New Year’s night, both of them picturing some of the things on God’s agenda for 2025. In these dreams, he saw anointings and distinctives of past revivals, and was shown that God would combine and release them in the coming revival. One of the outpourings he saw was the great Welsh revival, which was characterized by worship, strong conviction of sin and many conversions. Another was Azusa Street, which, among other things, was a restoration of Pentecost. And still another was the Voice of Healing movement of the late 1940s, 50s, and early 60s, which saw thousands of healings take place as the gifts of the Spirit (listed in 1 Corinthians 12) were restored to the church. Many prophetic voices have declared that we are moving into another season of these gifts, with many healings and miracles being released. I wholeheartedly concur. What is our part in this? When Elijah was told by the Lord it was time for rains to come, ending Israel’s drought, he released declarations and intercession in order to “birth” it (1 Kings 18). When Daniel became aware that it was time for Israel’s restoration, he entered a time of fasting and prayer for it to occur (Daniel 9). Zechariah 10:1 tells us that when we discern it is time for the rain of Holy Spirit to fall, we are to ask for it. The point is that God works in partnership with His people, as we spoke of in Friday’s post. He has blessed us with the privilege of being involved in the fulfillment of His plans. Ezekiel was told to prophesy to the breath of God, Holy Spirit, telling it to blow on the dry bones of Israel (Ezekiel 47). Jesus told us to command His Kingdom authority into earthly situations, and command the release of His will (Matthew 16:18-19). We do all of these things, of course, at His leading, and according to His will. Nevertheless, God wants our involvement. With this in mind, a group of leaders I am associated with have felt we are to release our faith and prayers for the birthing of this prophesied new season of signs and wonders. We are contending for it in the spirit, not trying to “wrestle” it from God or to force His hand, but to move in faith and obedience to “birth” it. Accordingly, we have conducted two healing services at my brother Tim’s church in Ohio (The Oasis Church/Middletown, OH), which were joined through livestream by many churches and thousands of individuals around the country and in other nations. We have received reports of hundreds of healings, including terminal illnesses. We feel we must continue to release our prayers and faith to stoke the flames of this emerging miracle outpouring. Therefore, we will be holding another Healing Summit at Tim’s church in April; we’ll begin announcing the date shortly. However, we have also been led to do a night of prayer for healing by video this upcoming Wednesday night. The same team of leaders that has been present at the Healing Summits in Ohio will be joining Tim by video, to pray for people throughout the nation and nations Wednesday night (1/15) at 7PM Eastern time (OasisWired.org). We will all join in praying, releasing words of knowledge, and believing with those joining us for healings and miracles to occur. We will also be praying to birth this fresh season of signs and wonders throughout the Earth. We want to see healings occur, not just through us, but through believers around the world. We are contending for this. If you need a miracle, join us Wednesday night and believe with us for your healing. If you have a family member that needs healing, encourage them to join us. And even if you do not need a miracle yourself, join us in prayer and faith for others. Let’s make this a night in which a wave of the power of God flows throughout America and around the world. Let’s make it a night in which gifts of the spirit are imparted to believers throughout the Earth. We know this has begun; let’s fan the flames. In Ken’s dream, he was in a tent service, much like those in the Voice of Healing movement. Surprisingly, there was no platform, podium, or speaker; all emphasis was on Christ and the Holy Spirit. During worship, Ken was undone by the presence of the Lord, and was told by Holy Spirit that we were waiting for “Mashah.” Ken did not know what this word meant, but upon awakening from the dream, he looked it up and discovered that it was the Hebrew word for “anointing.”(1) An anointing is coming to the church that will magnify Christ, not human vessels. It will release conviction, deliverance, salvation, pentecostal baptisms of fire, and many signs, wonders, and miracles. Acts 10:38 says God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power, enabling Him to do good works, healing all that were oppressed by the devil. He wants to do this in our day through us, Christ’s body. Join your faith with ours for this, and join us this upcoming Wednesday night at 7PM as we appeal for it once again. Pray with me: Father, Your Word tells us it is possible to “have not because we ask not” (James 4:2b). Let it not be said of us that we failed to experience a new era of signs, wonders, and miracles simply because we did not ask. We are asking You for this NOW. And we know that just as occurred in the book of Acts, these miracles will awaken many to the truth of the gospel and the reality of Jesus Christ. Bring to the church Your mashah that produces miracles, delivering people oppressed by the devil. We ask for this to occur on Wednesday night, and also that gifts of Your Spirit be released to believers all over the world, enabling them to release signs and wonders. Roll into one the different anointings from past revivals. We believe this is coming, therefore we speak it and act on it. And finally, we continue to pray for protection over our government leaders, and over our nation in general. We are hearing warnings, especially regarding President Elect Trump, that terrorists present in our nation have plans to take his life. We forbid this from succeeding, in the name of Jesus. We pray for a protective hedge around him and those associated with him. We also pray for those suffering such devastating losses in California and the Appalachian region. Our hearts break for them; we ask for Your comfort and supernatural help. All of these things we ask for in the precious name of Yeshua. Amen. Our decree: We decree that God is anointing the church with the Holy Spirit and power, to do good works, and heal those oppressed by the devil. Click on the link below to watch the full video. 5 min read January 13, 2025 An Upcoming Online Healing Summit With all of the changes and challenges currently taking place in America and around the world, it is important that we not become distracted from God’s agenda. In the midst of global crises, devastating storms, acts of terrorism, apocalyptic fires, historical elections and inaugurations, etc., we must remember that God is working in the unseen realm. Today, I want to remind you of good news regarding His plans and purposes. Part of the coming revival will be a significant increase of signs, wonders and healings. My friend, Ken Malone, was given two dreams on New Year’s night, both of them picturing some of the things on God’s agenda for 2025. In these dreams, he saw anointings and distinctives of past revivals, and was shown that God would combine and release them in the coming revival. One of the outpourings he saw was the great Welsh revival, which was characterized by worship, strong conviction of sin and many conversions. Another was Azusa Street, which, among other things, was a restoration of Pentecost. And still another was the Voice of Healing movement of the late 1940s, 50s, and early 60s, which saw thousands of healings take place as the gifts of the Spirit (listed in 1 Corinthians 12) were restored to the church. Many prophetic voices have declared that we are moving into another season of these gifts, with many healings and miracles being released. I wholeheartedly concur. What is our part in this? When Elijah was told by the Lord it was time for rains to come, ending Israel’s drought, he released declarations and intercession in order to “birth” it (1 Kings 18). When Daniel became aware that it was time for Israel’s restoration, he entered a time of fasting and prayer for it to occur (Daniel 9). Zechariah 10:1 tells us that when we discern it is time for the rain of Holy Spirit to fall, we are to ask for it. The point is that God works in partnership with His people, as we spoke of yesterday’s post. He has blessed us with the privilege of being involved in the fulfillment of His plans. Ezekiel was told to prophesy to the breath of God, Holy Spirit, telling it to blow on the dry bones of Israel (Ezekiel 47). Jesus told us to command His Kingdom authority into earthly situations, and command the release of His will (Matthew 16:18-19). We do all of these things, of course, at His leading, and according to His will. Nevertheless, God wants our involvement. With this in mind, a group of leaders I am associated with have felt we are to release our faith and prayers for the birthing of this prophesied new season of signs and wonders. We are contending for it in the spirit, not trying to “wrestle” it from God or to force His hand, but to move in faith and obedience to “birth” it. Accordingly, we have conducted two healing services at my brother Tim’s church in Ohio (The Oasis Church/Middletown, OH), which were joined through livestream by many churches and thousands of individuals around the country and in other nations. We have received reports of hundreds of healings, including terminal illnesses. We feel we must continue to release our prayers and faith to stoke the flames of this emerging miracle outpouring. Therefore, we will be holding another Healing Summit at Tim’s church in April; we’ll begin announcing the date shortly. However, we have also been led to do a night of prayer for healing by video this upcoming Wednesday night. The same team of leaders that has been present at the Healing Summits in Ohio will be joining Tim by video, to pray for people throughout the nation and nations Wednesday night (1/15) at 7PM Eastern time (OasisWired.org). We will all join in praying, releasing words of knowledge, and believing with those joining us for healings and miracles to occur. We will also be praying to birth this fresh season of signs and wonders throughout the Earth. We want to see healings occur, not just through us, but through believers around the world. We are contending for this. If you need a miracle, join us Wednesday night and believe with us for your healing. If you have a family member that needs healing, encourage them to join us. And even if you do not need a miracle yourself, join us in prayer and faith for others. Let’s make this a night in which a wave of the power of God flows throughout America and around the world. Let’s make it a night in which gifts of the spirit are imparted to believers throughout the Earth. We know this has begun; let’s fan the flames. In Ken’s dream, he was in a tent service, much like those in the Voice of Healing movement. Surprisingly, there was no platform, podium, or speaker; all emphasis was on Christ and the Holy Spirit. During worship, Ken was undone by the presence of the Lord, and was told by Holy Spirit that we were waiting for “Mashah.” Ken did not know what this word meant, but upon awakening from the dream, he looked it up and discovered that it was the Hebrew word for “anointing.”(1) An anointing is coming to the church that will magnify Christ, not human vessels. It will release conviction, deliverance, salvation, pentecostal baptisms of fire, and many signs, wonders, and miracles. Acts 10:38 says God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and power, enabling Him to do good works, healing all that were oppressed by the devil. He wants to do this in our day through us, Christ’s body. Join your faith with ours for this, and join us this upcoming Wednesday night at 7PM as we appeal for it once again. Pray with me: Father, Your Word tells us it is possible to “have not because we ask not” (James 4:2b). Let it not be said of us that we failed to experience a new era of signs, wonders, and miracles simply because we did not ask. We are asking You for this NOW. And we know that just as occurred in the book of Acts, these miracles will awaken many to the truth of the gospel and the reality of Jesus Christ. Bring to the church Your mashah that produces miracles, delivering people oppressed by the devil. We ask for this to occur on Wednesday night, and also that gifts of Your Spirit be released to believers all over the world, enabling them to release signs and wonders. Roll into one the different anointings from past revivals. We believe this is coming, therefore we speak it and act on it. And finally, we continue to pray for protection over our government leaders, and over our nation in general. We are hearing warnings, especially regarding President Elect Trump, that terrorists present in our nation have plans to take his life. We forbid this from succeeding, in the name of Jesus. We pray for a protective hedge around him and those associated with him. We also pray for those suffering such devastating losses in California and the Appalachian region. Our hearts break for them; we ask for Your comfort and supernatural help. All of these things we ask for in the precious name of Yeshua. Amen. Our decree: We decree that God is anointing the church with the Holy Spirit and power, to do good works, and heal those oppressed by the devil. ******************************* Click on the link below to watch the full video. -------------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 4871.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-10-2025 January 10, 2025 Your Prayers Matter My friend Dr. Greg Hood released a prophecy approximately a year ago in which he said: “…I began to see - all over this nation - lighting strikes occurring. This took place in big cities and small towns, significant places and places the world would consider insignificant. And I heard the Lord say, ‘this meeting, this Ekklesia gathering, has gathered lightning bolts for striking. There will be a release of lighting all over this nation, in the natural and in the unseen realm, and this will be a sign that God is breaking down the thrones of the enemy.’ I heard the Lord say that He is releasing a terrible day on the enemies of the nation. And that as you leave this place you’re carrying - and becoming - the lightning bolt for your city, for your town, your community, wherever He has placed you. God has now labeled you a lightning strike.” How amazing that we are those who release God’s power, referred to in this word as lightning, into the Earth. Our prayers do indeed release His actions. There are many Christians who believe prayer is only a devotional activity, a way to connect with God. They don’t believe prayer is actually necessary, enabling God to accomplish what He desires on Earth. In my book, Intercessory Prayer, I state: “God has given us a Bible full of answers to the ‘whys’ of life. The one I want to address here is: Why pray? I’m not speaking of why in the sense of needing this or that. Obviously, we pray because we want or need something. I’m speaking of why in the context of God’s sovereignty. “Do my prayers really matter? Isn’t God going to do what He wants anyway? Most people, even if only subconsciously, believe just that. The proof is in their prayer life, or lack thereof. “Can my prayers actually change situations? Does God need me to pray, or does He just want me to pray? Some would argue an omnipotent God doesn’t need anything, including our prayers. “Can God’s will on Earth be frustrated or not accomplished if I don’t pray? Many would brand me a heretic for even raising this question. “But these and other questions deserve answers. I’ve discovered that understanding the ‘why’ of doing something can be a great motivating force. The opposite is also true. “As a kid, I wondered why a sign said: ‘No Diving’ in the shallow end of the pool. I dove anyway. Then one day, I hit my head on the bottom. I don’t dive in the shallow end anymore. “As a child, I wondered why I was forbidden to touch the pretty red glow on the stove. I found out. “Someone said, ‘To err is human, to repeat it is stupid.’ I’m sure I’ve qualified for that on occasion, but not regarding these two things because I now know why I shouldn’t do them! “When God says, ‘Pray,’ I want to know it actually accomplishes something. I’m not into meaningless religious exercises, and my time is valuable - so is yours. Was S.D. Gordon correct or not when he said, ‘You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed…Prayer is striking the winning blows…service is gathering up the results?’(1) “If God is going to do something regardless of whether or not we pray, then He doesn’t need us to ask, and we don’t need another waste of time. Let’s just worship Him and leave the rest to God’s sovereignty. “If, on the other hand, John Wesley was correct when he said, ‘God does nothing except in response to believing prayer,’(2) I’ll lose sleep for that. I’ll change my lifestyle, turn off the TV, even miss a meal or two. “Obviously, I believe prayer is necessary. Though God IS sovereign and all-powerful, Scripture clearly tells us that He limited Himself, concerning the affairs of Earth, to working through human beings. “Is not this determination to work through humans the reason the earth is in such a mess? It isn’t because God wills it so, but because of His decision to work and carry out His will through people. “Is this not the story woven throughout the Scriptures? 
 God needing faithful men and women?
 God needing a race of people through whom to bring the Messiah?
 God needing prophets?
 God needing judges?
 God needing to incarnate Himself, to produce a human Messiah?
 God needing human hands to heal, human voices to speak, and human feet to go?
 “Doesn’t God tell us to ask for His kingdom to come, and His will to be done (see Matthew 6:10)? Surely He wouldn’t want us to waste our time asking for something that was going to happen anyway, would He? “Didn’t He tell us to ask for our daily bread (Matthew 6:11)? And yet, He knows our needs before we even ask (Matthew 6:8). “Didn’t He tell us to ask that laborers be sent into the harvest fields (Matthew 9:38)? Yet the Lord of the harvest wants this more than we do? “Didn’t Paul say, ‘Pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified’ (2 Thessalonians 3:1)? Yet this was already God’s plan. “These things are clearly God’s will. Why, then, am I supposed to ask Him for something He already wants to do if it isn’t that my asking somehow releases Him to do it? “Either God wants the earth in this broken condition, or He doesn’t. If He doesn’t, which is certainly the case, then we must assume one of two things: either He is powerless to do anything about it, or He needs and is waiting on something from us in order to bring about change. In his book, Confronting the Powers, Dr. Peter Wagner said: ‘We must understand that our sovereign God has, for His own reasons, so designed this world that much of what is truly His will He makes contingent on the attitudes and actions of human beings. He allows humans to make decisions that can influence history…Human inaction does not nullify the atonement, but human inaction can make the atonement ineffective for lost people.’(3) “This truth could intimidate us with the responsibility it reveals, or even condemn us over our lack of prayer. But another possibility exists. Responsibility can also be a privilege; and it can be enjoyable. Jack Hayford made the following profound statement, ‘Prayer is essentially a partnership of the redeemed child of God, working hand in hand with God, toward the realization of His redemptive purposes on earth.’(4) “Let’s rise to the occasion and embrace God’s incredible invitation to be co-laborers with Him…to be carriers of His awesome Holy Spirit and ambassadors for His great Kingdom. Let’s represent Him!”(5) Pray with me: Father, Your plan to create a family - in Your image and likeness, filled with Your very life and breath - is beyond amazing. It is truly beyond our ability to fully wrap our minds around it. But You did. And You assigned us the responsibility and privilege of managing our home - planet Earth - according to Your Kingdom principles. We carry Your presence and release Your life, no longer through Adam’s dominion, but through authority delegated to us from Christ. Therefore, in His name we ask You to strike our land with Your cleansing, delivering, and healing power. We ask for Your salvation, order, and restoration. We appeal for justice from heaven for the removal of evil from our nation, and the nations of the earth. Send worldwide revival and reformation. Use the devastation from the recent hurricanes and fires to awaken and save many people. Bring comfort, strength, and help to them. Grace, grace, grace. Give help to our leaders trying to implement appropriate changes. Give them sound ideas and wise strategies. And protect them as they lead us. Please also protect those who attend the inauguration. Expose and thwart the many terrorists now in America. We know America has sown the wind and is reaping the whirlwind, but in the midst of our reaping we ask You for mercy. Again, all of this we ask in Yeshua’s name. Amen. Our decree: We decree that we are taking our place as God’s ambassadors on Earth, releasing His love and power. ******************************* Most of today’s post was taken from my book Intercessory Prayer. Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------------- Paul E. Billheimer, Destined for the Throne (Fort Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1975), p. 51. https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7288243-as-john-wesley-once-said-god-does-nothing-but-in C. Peter Wagner, Confronting the Powers (Ventura, CA: REgal Books, 1996), p. 242. Jack W. Hayford, Prayer Is Invading the Impossible (South Plainfield, NJ: Logos International, 1977; revised edition, Bridge Publishing, 1995), p. 92, 1977 edition. Dutch Sheets, Intercessory Prayer (Bethany House Publishers: Bloomington, MN, 1996), Chapter 2.

7 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-9-2025 January 9, 2025 Light Overcomes the Darkness In today’s post, I am continuing the theme of God’s light and lightning overcoming darkness. “The war between spiritual darkness and light is prevalent throughout Scripture. A powerful picture of God’s light prevailing over the darkness of satan is the Cross. John 1:4-5 says, ‘In Him was life and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.’ “The word used for ‘comprehend’ actually has a dual meaning. It is the Greek word katalambano, which means to ‘comprehend’ or ‘apprehend,’ including not only apprehending mentally but also physically.(1) We apprehend thoughts, but a policeman also apprehends criminals. The powers of darkness could not understand or comprehend Christ’s intentions; He outwitted them at every turn. Nor could they overpower or apprehend Him. “Several translations use this ‘overpowering’ aspect of the definition to translate verse 5. Wuest translates it: ‘And the light in the darkness is constantly shining. And the darkness did not overwhelm it.’ Moffatt says it this way: ‘Amid the darkness the light shone, but the darkness did not master it.’ And The Passion Translation states, ‘And this Light never fails to shine through darkness— Light that darkness could not overcome!’ The Cross was a battle between light and darkness. Light won. God arose and His enemies were scattered. “Bob Woods, in Pulpit Digest, tells the story of a couple who took their son, age 11, and daughter, age 7, to Carlsbad Caverns. As always, when the tour reached the deepest point in the cavern, the guide turned off all the lights to dramatize how completely dark and silent it is below the earth’s surface. The little girl, suddenly enveloped in utter darkness, was frightened and began to cry. Immediately she heard the voice of her brother: ‘Don't cry. Somebody here knows how to turn on the lights.’(2) “All creation was terrified, groping in the darkness of sin. Two thousand years ago, God announced to His groping and frightened humans, ‘Don't cry. Somebody here knows how to turn on the lights.’ “I believe satan has some recurring nightmares. One of them is when lightning flashed in heaven and kicked him out (Luke 10:18). He probably hates thunderstorms. The lightning is a horrible visual reminder and the thunder sounds like the majestic voice of God! "’The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered His voice, hailstones and coals of fire. And He sent out His arrows, and scattered them, and lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them’ (Psalm 18:13-14). "’The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD is over many waters’ (Psalm 29:3). “Imagine satan’s horror when the light and glory of God flashed at the Cross, the same light that had expelled him from heaven. I can hear him screaming, ‘No!!! There it is again! It kicked me out of heaven and now it is defeating me on Earth!’ “At the Cross, the counterfeit, so-called ‘angel of light’ met the true Light and lost his authority over the earth. Then, the ‘Light of the World’ implanted Himself again into humans - ‘For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light’ (Ephesians 5:8) - filling them with His very glory! “For the first time satan understood what God meant in Isaiah 60:1-3: “‘Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and deep darkness the peoples; but the Lord will rise upon you, and His glory will appear upon you. And nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.’ “For the first time, satan understood that the Old Testament temple was a picture of born-again believers, and that the glory of God that overcame him was in every one of them. “Many believers are not aware that we are filled with the very glory and light of God. When Paul appealed to the Corinthians he said, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, ‘Do you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?’ (1 Corinthians 3:16) He used the Greek word naos for ‘temple,’(3) which always referred to the holy of holies, not the word hieron, which referenced the entire temple. Paul was literally saying to them - and to us, ‘Don't you know you are the holy of holies?’ “The word ‘dwells’ is taken from the Old Testament word shakan, from which we get shekinah. The ‘shekinah glory’ was the abiding glory found in the holy of holies. Paul was saying that through Christ the shekinah glory of God now shakans or dwells in us (see 1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:12-19).(4) We are the new holy of holies, a temple of living stones not made with human hands, but by God Himself. Second Corinthians 4:6-7, in the KJV, says it this way: “‘For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.’ “This glory overwhelms spiritual darkness. Israel carried the Ark of the Covenant, representing the presence and glory of God, into battle (see Joshua 6:6). When the Ark set out, a shout would go up, ‘Rise up, O LORD! And let Thine enemies be scattered, and let those who hate Thee flee before Thee’ (Numbers 10:35). Psalm 68:1, also a warfare verse, is a quote of this verse in Numbers. The presence and glory these verses speak of now abide in us. What we are to understand is that the key to victory is carrying the presence of God into battle with us. He rises and scatters His enemies through us! We are now His ‘ark’! “John 1:5, our opening verse, has one more often overlooked nugget. Because of the verb tenses and mood, the phrase ‘the light shines in the darkness’ would be more accurately translated as ‘the light is CONSTANTLY shining.’ The light that overcame darkness is still shining - the victory lives on, released through Christ’s body as we enforce it in His name! “In his first All-Star game, Roger Clemens, the great pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, came to bat for the first time in years. He hadn’t had to bat formerly due to the American League’s designated hitter rule. After watching a blazing fastball by Dwight Gooden whiz past him, Clemens turned and asked the catcher, Gary Carter, ‘Is that what my pitches look like?’ "’You bet it is!’ responded Carter. “From then on Clemens pitched with far greater boldness, having been reminded of how a good fastball can be so overpowering to a hitter.(5) “We often forget how powerful the Holy Spirit in us is ... how destructive to darkness is His lightning sword. It has supernatural power to overcome the works of darkness – when we release it with confidence. “Just as the Israelites carried the presence and glory of God into battle, so must we. All that was in the Ark of the Covenant is now in us: the Bread represented Life, the rod represented priestly authority, the tablets represented the law of God. And the glory that was upon it now shines through us. “Act like it! Strike with the sword - speak the Word! ‘Let God arise and His enemies be scattered’ (Psalm 68:1) - through your intercession.”(6) Pray with me: Father, we enter Your gates with thanksgiving, as the psalmist instructed us to do. We thank You for our redemption. Thank You for placing Holy Spirit and His glory in us, making us Your innermost sanctuary, the holy of holies. We thank You for answering our prayers regarding our nation - You are restoring us back to You and Your destiny for America. We thank You for the revival coming to America and the nations of the Earth, which will save a billion souls. As You have shown us in recent dreams, we thank You for Your light and glory striking our nation to defeat the powers of darkness and release Your light of truth. We release this light over our government, our schools, homes and churches. We release the lightning sword of Your word to drive out darkness and continue its cleansing work. Expose the deep state and eradicate them. Restore our institutions to their appropriate actions. Sweep over our nation. We pray for the protection of our leaders - in Congress, the Supreme Court, and the Executive branch. We hear warnings from numerous sources of planned violence; please expose these plans and bring protection. And we pray for Your grace to be extended to those in California suffering from the fires. The loss is astronomical - please bring grace and comfort. We also continue to pray for the relief efforts from the hurricane destruction in Tennessee, North Carolina and Florida. Please give provision to those needing it, and creative ideas to those helping in the recovery efforts. We ask all of this in Jesus’ name. Our decree: We decree that light will overcome the darkness of our land, in the name of Christ our great King. **************************** Today’s post was taken from my book Intercessory Prayer. Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------------- Spiros Zodhiates Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible – New American Standard (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 1984; revised edition, 1990), p. 1846. Craig Brian Larson, Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1993), p. 133. Joseph Henry Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1977), p. 422. James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 7931. Larson, Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching, p 72, adapted. Dutch Sheets, Intercessory Prayer (Bethany House Publishers: Bloomington, MN, 1996), chapter 11.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-8-2025 January 8, 2025 LIGHTNING: LET IT FLOW THROUGH YOU INTRODUCTION Lightning struck the U.S. Capitol and Washington Monument on New Year’s Eve. Was this a sign from God? Because of past dreams given to prophetic leaders, I believe it was. For the past two days, I have shared three of those dreams regarding the lightning of God coming to America. Today I want to share with you from my book Intercessory Prayer, regarding God linking the subject of lightning to intercession. FROM THE BOOK “This was about the coolest thing I had discovered since baseball. I was in the fifth grade, had recently procured my first magnifying glass, and discovered I could hold it at just the right angle to the sun and create fire. I burned a piece of paper on the playground; then, a brilliant idea leaped up from my fallen Adamic psyche. I called my friends over, assuring them I had a really cool demonstration. Looking at Duncan, one of the bullies in the class, I said to him in my best ‘You’re the lucky guy’ tone of voice, ‘Duncan, hold your hand out. I want to show you something.’ “Duncan didn’t leave his hand there very long. He chased me all around that playground! Some guys just can’t take a joke. “Is there a picture of intercession hidden anywhere in this? Yes. Paga, the Hebrew word for intercession, is also translated as ‘strike the mark.’ The reference is Job 36:32: ‘He covers His hands with the lightning, and commands it to strike the mark.’ When God releases His light, causing it to flash forth from His presence like lightning, its striking the desired target is likened to intercession. “Habakkuk 3:4 (AMP) also speaks of light flashing forth from the hand of God: ‘And His brightness was like the sunlight; rays streamed from His hand, and there [in the sunlike splendor] was the hiding place of His power.’ “We are like a magnifying glass in one sense; no, we don’t add to or magnify God’s power — but we do let the ‘Son’ shine forth through us, directing His light to desired situations, allowing it to ‘strike the mark.’ “Have you ever seen a tree struck by lightning? If so, you’ve seen a picture of intercession. Lightning is so hot it literally changes the molecular structure of pine trees and twists the trunks until they look like the stripes on a candy cane. The temperature in a lightning bolt can reach 45,000 degrees Fahrenheit, hotter than the surface of the sun. That’s hot stuff! And God uses this to picture His judgments against evil. No wonder the Scriptures say, ‘As wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish before God... The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord. ... He raised His voice, the earth melted’ (Ps. 68:21, 97:5; 46:6). GOD IS LIGHT “Numerous Scriptures associate God with light or lightning. “1 John 1:5 tells us: ‘And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.’ “At times, His light, or the release of it, is associated with His glory. Luke 9:29, 32 tells us: ‘And while He was praying, the appearance of His face became different, and His clothing became white and gleaming... Now Peter and his companions had been overcome with sleep; but when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men standing with Him.’ (We read in the margin of the NASB that the word ‘gleaming’ means literally ‘flashing like lightning.’ Wuest also translates it this way.) “Sometimes, this light, lightning, or glory of God is released in His mouth and often called a sword: “Ephesians 6:17: ‘And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.’ “Revelation 2:16: ‘Repent therefore, or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.’ “The following Scriptures speak of God’s light in the context of Him dealing with His enemies: “Psalm 97:3-4: ‘Fire goes before Him, and burns up His adversaries round about. His lightnings lit up the world; the earth saw and trembled.’ “Revelation 8:5: ‘And the angel took the censer; and he filled it with the fire of the altar and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.’ “These last two Scriptures associate the release of God’s light with the context of deliverance for His people: “Psalm 18:14: ‘And He sent out His arrows, and scattered them, and lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.’ “Psalm 144:6: ‘Flash forth lightning and scatter them; send out Your arrows and confuse them.’ “According to these and many other Scriptures, God is light, and at times, this light or glory flashes forth from Him as bolts of lightning. Many times the Bible says that in order to deal with His enemies – whether for Himself or His people – God simply releases this glory or light into the situation. It flashes forth like lightning, and PAGA HAPPENS! God’s power ‘strikes the mark.’ “And He releases this lightning through our intercession! We must boldly release the power of the Most High into situations, allowing the victory of Christ to manifest. He has given us His sword; He has given us His name. We must use them! “Position yourself toward the Son and allow Him to shine through you, striking the mark! Wield the laser sword of the Spirit. We often forget how powerful Holy Spirit in us is – how destructive to darkness is His lightning sword. It has supernatural power to overcome the works of darkness – when we release it with confidence.”(1) Pray with me: Father, we are amazed when we consider that You have made us Your heirs, co-heirs with Christ. We also marvel that You allow us to partner with You in releasing Your Kingdom, Your power, on Earth. We have accepted Your love, and have embraced Your plan. We thank You for exposing the works of darkness in America. You are cleansing and healing, for which we are very grateful, but we ask for more. We intercede for our nation, asking for Your lightning to flash forth, striking and tearing down the strongholds of the enemy. Consume the plans and works of darkness, liberating our land. And may Your glory fall on every inch of America, saving and delivering millions of people. We ask for this in Jesus’ name. Our decree: We decree that the lightning of God is coming to our nation, destroying the works of darkness. ************************* TRIBUTE TO OUR DEAR FRIEND I want to end today’s post by paying homage to a great friend and mentor, Quin Sherrer, who graduated to heaven Monday night. She was 91. Quin has written over 30 books, and I have read from her writings multiple times on Give Him 15. It was Quin who, for years, prodded me to begin writing. I was very hesitant to do so because I did not believe I possessed any writing skills. Quin believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. Not only did she urge me to write, but she also prayed for several years that I would do so. I have always believed that God used her to birth the writing I have done over the past 30 years. Quin was a devoted wife and mother, a faithful intercessor, a great writer, a wise mentor, a friend to many, and most importantly, a lover of God. She will be greatly missed. While we, along with many, grieve our loss, we also rejoice for her gain. On the flyleaf of Quin’s Bible are the words: “He that formed me in the womb, He shall guide me to the tomb; All my times shall ever be, ordered by His wise decree.” —John Ryland (1753-1825) Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------------------- Dutch Sheets, Intercessory Prayer (Bethany House Publishers: Bloomington, MN), 1996.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-7-2025 January 7, 2025 Paga - Strike the Mark! Yesterday, I shared two dreams about lightning in the Give Him 15 post. As you may know, the Capitol and Washington Monument were both struck by lightning on New Year’s Eve. Was this a supernatural sign? I believe it was. Today, I am sharing another dream about lightning as it relates to intercession, which was given to my friend, Steven Springer. One of yesterday’s dreams was also given to Steven. Today’s dream was given to him in September of 2023. THE DREAM Dutch and I, in a group of five people, were in large, futuristic war machines. Dutch had a standard which held three banners/flags. The top flag was white, with red letters that read “The Love of the Lord.” The next banner was the Appeal to Heaven flag, and the third was the American flag, which was very tattered. We followed Dutch in formation, advancing quickly toward a battle in front of us. We each had amazing weapons that shot laser lightning. On the side of the weapon was inscribed, as if it was the brand name, “Paga.” Every time we shot the weapons we hit the mark, never missing our target. Dutch would then get out of his vehicle and plant the standard into the ground, as if to mark new territory claimed for the Kingdom! As the spear-like flag pole was thrust into the ground, springs of water would gush forth. I (Steven) would then declare, “Let your Kingdom come and let the awakening well be unlocked!” Angels would then appear - to keep watch over the territory we had taken back. After each battle, Dutch was given another standard containing three more of the same flags, with the U.S. flag being less tattered. We moved from battlefield to battlefield, and the process was repeated. Then, as we approached another battlefield and were positioning ourselves to fire, General George Washington came riding to us out of the woods. As he looked at the standard with the banners Dutch was holding - the Love of the Lord flag, the Appeal to Heaven flag, and the American flag - he said to us, “Remember Gettysburg, and in the spring is when kings go to war. There will be a revolution and reformation that must take place.” He said again, “Remember Gettysburg, and in the spring is when kings go to war.” The fear of the Lord came upon us. We all got out of our vehicles, fell to our knees and began to pray. We were asking for gates to be opened, and that the Lord would give our nation back to the sons of the Kingdom and heal our land. As we did, lightning struck twice, and the land was healed. New growth came up from the ground. And as the banner of love waved in the wind it released a sound over America. End of dream. INTERPRETATION There were five of us in these battles, which were obviously spiritual, not physical. In Scripture the number “5” represents “grace,” and the five ministry gifts Christ gave the church in Ephesians 4:11-12. David carried five stones to his encounter with Goliath. Together, these reveal that God graced us with His gifts and anointing to win our spiritual battles. The three flags represent 1) God’s redeeming love (Song of Solomon 2:4; John 3:16); 2) Prayer (the Appeal to Heaven flag); and 3) America. The American flag was tattered, picturing the United States’ broken condition. They reveal that God wants to heal us through His love and the prayers of the church. Our weapons fired laser lightning! They were inscribed with the word “Paga.” Steven didn’t know until looking up paga that it is the Hebrew word for intercession - prayer was our weapon! Paga has several nuances of meaning, which I teach on extensively in my book, Intercessory Prayer, all of which provide pictures of what our prayers accomplish. One of its meanings is “to strike the mark” (think bullseye).(1) In the dream, our weapons (prayer) released laser lightning, which struck the mark with accuracy. This is actually spoken of in Job 36:32: “[God] fills His hands with lighting and commands it to strike the mark.” The phrase “strike the mark” is indeed the word paga! This dream - and the verse in Job - is telling us that our prayers release God’s lightning, with accuracy, against His foes. Paga also means “to encounter” and “to mark boundaries of territory!”(2) Combining all of these definitions: through intercession, we encounter spiritual forces, releasing God’s power to strike them with precision, taking back territory and staking claim to it for Him. All of that is in the word paga!!! It is significant that the banner of love was above the Appeal to Heaven flag. God is love (1 John 4:8) and His power, released through our prayers, is motivated by love. Our war is not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12). We love people and want to see them saved; even those who oppose the Lord. As we took back territory from the forces of darkness, the land was being healed and the flag (America) was being repaired. Wells of awakening (revival) were opening, springing up from the ground. At some point George Washington, leader of the American forces in the Revolutionary War and our first president, came to us with a fascinating message. Part one of his message was “Remember Gettysburg.” Gettysburg was a battle – not in the war Washington fought – but in the Civil War. This is significant. The Civil War was internal, a war amongst ourselves, not against another nation. We were destroying ourselves from within. Gettysburg was the turning point in this war. Then Washington (in the dream) said, “In the spring is when kings go to war. There will be a revolution and reformation that must take place.” I believe this could have a dual meaning. The first part is a quote from 2 Samuel 11:1, just before David committed adultery with Bathsheba. Rather than lead his troops into battle, David had chosen passivity, carnal pleasure, and compromise. This was very costly. Secondly, the phrase could be alerting us to literal timing: the “turning point” in the spiritual war, this “revolution” for America’s “reformation,” may take place over the next few months, especially this spring. We are not finished in this spiritual war to restore America! We must persevere in our intercession. As we did so in the dream, as well as humbling ourselves before the Lord, lightning struck twice, this time not from our weapons but directly from Heaven. When it did, the land was healed, and the banner of love released a sound over America. Will there be two significant events that occur in America this spring, perhaps two specific battles? I don’t know. But I am certain that we must remain diligent in our praying. In tomorrow’s post, I’ll share some of the teaching from my book, Intercessory Prayer, regarding God’s lightning being released from our intercession to strike the mark. Pray with me: Father, we, like Joshua, want to listen to You diligently, and obey You quickly. We listen to and obey Your words from Scripture first and foremost, but we also do so regarding Your prophetic words. Holy Spirit leads us in our intercession. At the very beginning of 2025 You have emphasized lightning and we are listening. You have reminded us that through our prayers, You are removing the masks from government leaders in our nation. You have also reminded us that Your power, Your lightning, is released from our intercession, and Holy Spirit guides these prayers causing them to “strike the mark” with great accuracy. And You have reminded us that they are to be motivated by Your love – they are for the healing of our land. We will not grow complacent as we enter into this new year. We accept Your alert and admonishment that our generation’s Gettysburg, our turning point, is coming this spring. We ask You for great sensitivity and discernment as we remain on our posts and appeal to heaven. Help us to stay alert and watchful. In Jesus’ name we pray this. Amen. Our decree: We decree that this spring we will be sensitive to Holy Spirit’s instructions and win our generation’s Gettysburg! ************************* You can find out more about Steven Springer at GlobalPresence.com. Click on the link below to wath the full video. ------------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 6293. Ibid.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-6-2025 January 6, 2025 ⚡ Lightning Strikes the Capitol ⚡ Today is January 6, the day on which the presidential electoral votes are certified in Congress. This can proceed because the vote for Speaker of the House on Friday was successful, reelecting Representative Michael Johnson (from Louisiana) to this position. Had the voting for this position gone on for days, as it did in the previous term, the electoral votes could not have been certified today. Thank you for praying regarding this. The history of this day, January 6, makes it inappropriate to comment on the 2020 elections and the past four years in today’s post. My comments are related also to the lightning strikes in Washington, D.C. on New Year’s Eve – one on the Capitol, the other on the Washington Monument. November, 2020, through January, 2021 was one of the most tumultuous seasons in America’s history. I, along with millions of Americans felt there had been “inequities” in the Trump/Biden election. I crammed no less than ten last minute prayer rallies, in eight states, to an already busy schedule. Many were praying with us that the corruption would be exposed. This was actually the birth of Give Him 15, as we know it today. My dear friend Chuck Pierce, a very trusted prophet, later told me – when this 3-month season ended and Biden was inaugurated -- that he had known we would not see the outcome we were looking for. “But I knew you had to keep praying,” he said. “I prayed for you intensely, sometimes all through the night, asking God to keep you encouraged. The prayers of the church were saving America,” he told me. “And although you did not see at this time the exposure and turnaround you were interceding for, you will receive everything for which you prayed. Your prayers were birthing the future.” When Chuck told me this, I realized God had delayed Trump’s second term and allowed Biden to take office in order to radically expose the level of corruption in our government. I actually wrote entire GH15 posts stating this. The Lord has accomplished this exposure, and the swamp turned out to be a cesspool. During that election season, in December of 2020, Holy Spirit gave my friend Don Lynch, who is now in heaven, a powerful dream about lightning. Don said: “In the dream, the lightning of God filled the skies over Philadelphia. I (Don) was standing in the doorway of a very small shed from colonial times. I could feel a silky thread in my hand and could sense the tug of it as it flew in the wind. My eyes followed it and I could see that it joined with another string, which had a skeleton key attached that sparked with electricity. I knew it was God’s lightning that was flashing, causing the sparking on the key. I realized we had been waiting for this storm. In the dream, I saw an odd container that could collect the power, held by Dutch Sheets. “In this dream, God was using a real event in history to paint a picture for us. In actual history, Benjamin Franklin flew a kite in a storm, with a key attached to its string. This experiment was to conduct electricity. He was assisted by his son, William. Dutch’s first name is also William. In this parabolic dream, I saw William Dutch Sheets holding the container and collecting the power; he was collecting the lightning of God! Like a child with wondering eyes, Dutch looked up and said, ‘The air is alive! The air is alive over America!’ He breathed in deeply and seemed to be energized by the lightning of God. “Dutch then removed the energized key from the kite and the scene changed; an ancient door now stood before him. He put the sparking key into a hidden lock. As he did, the energized key activated a mechanism inside the door. The ancient door burst open and angels of God were released into the nation. They were not sluggish - they were active!!! They weren’t there to negotiate, but to establish. “Dutch then said, ‘We did it! We did it! We did it!’ Holding the container, he said, ‘Look. We have all we need to finish. Lord, we welcome your lightning to America!’” End of dream. In Scripture, keys represent authority (Isaiah 22:22; Matthew 16.18-19), the authority to open and close, lock and unlock, bind and loose. Lightning represents the power and glory of God. Job 36:32 tells us God “fills His hands with lightning and commands it to strike the mark.” The phrase “strike the mark” is actually one word in Hebrew, paga, the word for intercession.(1) Incredibly, lightning striking a structure is used in Scripture to picture God’s power being released through our intercession! In the dream, God’s powerful lightning energized our key of authority, enabling our intercession to unlock and open ancient doors. When we did, angels were released into the nation to activate and establish. ANOTHER LIGHTNING DREAM A few weeks after Don’s dream, on the day of Biden’s inauguration (January 20, 2021), my friend Steven Springer had another dream regarding lightning. Steven said: “In the dream I was taken up over Washington, D.C. It was very cloudy and you could barely see the buildings below. Then, lightning struck the top of the White House! Winds began to blow and I saw rain, lightning, and hail coming down from heaven. As the winds blew a clarity came across the city. Then, one by one I saw rubber masks coming off people - you could actually see them for who they really were, very hideous looking under the masks. An exposure of all things hidden and masked was occurring. Then I saw a large broom come down out of heaven and begin to sweep across the entire nation, starting with the Capitol in Washington, D.C. As the hand swept across the nation all sorts of evil was revealed and removed. “The resulting cleansing brought awakening! I saw many people getting out of their beds, stretching and yawning, realizing it was day! The night was over and a new day had dawned! “The sweeping continued to go across other nations of the earth. They were being swept clean of corruption and decay, so that awakening could come in a mighty revival and outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The resulting revival brought fire! The fires burned up the debris left behind by the broom. As the dust settled it looked dark and scorched. But as an outpouring of Holy rain was released, new life began to sprout up everywhere. There was such joy and happiness on peoples’ faces; even the land itself seemed to rejoice.” End of dream. As we prayed intensely in late 2020/early 2021, our prayers were releasing God’s lightning, the cleansing power of Holy Spirit, to expose corruption and cleanse our government. We had hoped this would be completed in 2-3 months, but God knew just how deep it was. Though the delay was frustrating at the time, we can now see it was necessary. I believe the lightning strikes on New Year’s Eve were reminders of what our prayers have accomplished, AND that they are still needed. More strikes will come. I’ll say more about lightning in tomorrow’s post. Pray with me: Father, in this hinge moment in history, as Your Ekklesia on Earth, we use Your keys of authority and release Your lightning into the nation. Power from Your presence is striking the land. We believe we are to influence this land with the decrees You lead us to decree. We must dismantle evil structures and rebuild. Psalm 11:3 says, “If the foundations are destroyed, what will the righteous do?” You have called us to be a Nehemiah company that restores the gates and walls of America. We will use the keys given to us by Christ to do so. We will open the ancient gates and release the heavenly host to come and help us. “Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O gates, and lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory” (Psalm 24:8-10). Unleash Your lightning, oh God! Cause Your thunder to roll across the land, terrifying Your enemies. Roar with Your majestic voice! Hold nothing back – strike and strike and strike again. Shock the enemy with the fierceness and swiftness with which You move. Expose and uncover until evil knows it has nowhere to run. Let the power of Your lightning strike the mark. Today’s decree: We decree that we release the lightning of God into the land uncovering every hidden thing that stands in His way! *****************⚡***************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no.6293.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-3-2025 January 3, 2025 Introduction In praying about today’s post, I felt that the following word Holy Spirit gave my brother, Tim Sheets, was appropriate to share at the beginning of this year. As you will see, it puts a fresh wind in our sails. The title is: Grace Winds Psalm 18:6 (The Passion Translation) says, “In my distress I cried out to you, the delivering God, and from your temple-throne you heard my troubled cry, and my sobs went right into your heart.” This phrase gripped my heart when I read it recently, prompting several days of prayerful reflection. After that time of pondering, Holy Spirit began speaking the following word to me: “The Father and Heaven’s King have turned their faces toward the Ekklesia. They have turned their faces toward Kingdom sons and daughters. For the season of great reformation will soon come and the sons and daughters are now to receive the needed refreshing from the present war season. Times of refreshing will now come, energizing the Ekklesia for the reformation era, the most supernatural era I have ever led. A new level of authority will be seen functioning through the heirs. This will rapidly grow in demonstration as they are restrengthened, renewed and re-visioned for the great reformation. Know that the outer band of wind has begun to blow. It is carrying signs, wonders, miracles, healings and supernatural deliverance to the heirs. Father’s face is turned to the heirs. The King’s face has turned to His bride, and grace winds are beginning to blow. Receive from this supernatural flow of refreshing and empowerment.” The Scriptures sometimes state that “God’s face is turned toward us” or “He causes His face to shine upon us.” God turning His face toward someone refers to Him energizing them with strength from Heaven. The turning of His face toward us can mean His mercies light upon us, His compassion. It can refer to His grace extended to us, His favor. When the eyes of the Lord are on us, His supernatural power extends to us. Wherever Father sets His gaze, His power is there. Trust that His supernatural power can reach you wherever you are. This is a special season of the Father and Heaven’s King, Jesus, turning their faces toward the Ekklesia. It’s a time when He comes to realign, refocus, refresh, and renew you. We are never out from under His gaze; His fathering heart is always set upon His sons and daughters. This is a time to receive refreshing and empowerment from Heaven to step into a new supernatural era. The word Holy Spirit gave me emphasized so clearly that grace winds are beginning to blow. This phrase resounded in my spirit. In Scripture, wind symbolizes Holy Spirit and His moving on the earth. It can also symbolize revival, a move of the Godhead bringing fresh outpourings from Heaven. Wind cannot be seen, but its power and effect can be felt. In other words, Holy Spirit isn’t seen with the natural eyes, but His effects are very real and discerned supernaturally in our souls. The blowing of wind prophesies a refreshing on the work Holy Spirit is already doing. This happened on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2. There came a sound from Heaven as a mighty rushing wind filled the upper room where 120 people had gathered. They couldn’t see Holy Spirit coming in, but they could hear Him. The sound that day is sometimes referred to as sounding like a hurricane, or a train bounding down the tracks. The 120 gathered in the upper room heard the sound of a grace wind and were filled with power from on high, which sparked a new move of God, affecting nations and people groups from all over the world. The outer band winds have begun to blow on a new move of God in our times. I believe something big is up and something incredible has begun. 2025 will be a year of Holy Spirit winds building. Weather forecasters know a hurricane is close because the outer bands begin to reach the shore. They also know greater and stronger winds are coming behind the initial band. One after the other, the bands grow in intensity. As I have been praying about this word from the Lord, He revealed more to me saying, “For great winds from Heaven will surely blow upon the King’s Ekklesia. Mighty winds are building, historic winds. Holy Spirit winds will begin to blow, one after the other, each one stronger than the previous, until full-blown power is seen. Full-blown power from Heaven, ordained for your times, will be experienced until the full effects are felt all over the Earth. Building winds, powerful winds, winds affecting transformational change and winds growing in forcefulness. Wave after wave of Holy Spirit wind bands have begun and the resistance of hell will be blown away by this wind. The resistance of man and evil attempts to stop God’s plans will be blown away as the King's Ekklesia declares His will and purposes. “The sons and daughters will be carried forth, borne upon these Holy Spirit winds. Their sails are filling with prevailing, guiding, and refreshing winds. Winds of grace are blowing across ripe harvest fields carrying good news of redemptive power, the King’s forgiveness purchased upon His cross. They are grace winds of great deliverance blowing away hell's bondages, confusion, addiction, sin, brokenness, fears, and hopelessness. Grace winds are clearing the minds of prodigals, lifting the demonic fog off their minds and revealing the pathway home. They are grace winds carrying angel hosts for the time of reaping, blowing in the harvest rains, the latter rains. I have turned My face toward the Ekklesia, I have turned My face toward the harvest.” In the prophetic word, Holy Spirit called this is a “season” of great reformation; not just a quick few weeks, but a season. The sons and daughters of Christ will receive an outpouring of refreshing that will activate a new Pentecost, a supernatural season of Holy Spirit outpourings. A fresh Kingdom move has begun and times of refreshing are coming. Receive it. The Greek word for refreshing is “anapsuxis;” one of its meanings is to relieve stress or to cool down(1). It pictures someone overheated by exertion, sitting in a cool breeze. Receive Holy Spirit’s cool breeze and chill out. Take a breather with Father God, and catch your breath. Holy Spirit has come with outpourings from Heaven many times, and in this season, He’s coming again with fresh winds, new anointings, and times of refreshing. Believe that the Lord has turned His face toward His Ekklesia, and the grace winds are blowing. Pray with me: Father, the past season has been difficult for many. Disease, financial pressures, wars, societal decay, a corrupt and foolish government in America and elsewhere implementing destruction and chaos, and much more. These things wear down the human psyche. And yet, in this time You have found a faithful, persevering remnant that has “run through troops” and “leaped over walls” to battle the forces of darkness (Psalm 18:29). They have contended using Your spiritual weapons, warring through Your divine strength, and they have prevailed. Now we thank You for turning Your face to us. We receive Your promise of refreshing and reviving in Your presence. Let the fresh winds of Holy Spirit blow over Your sons and daughters. Cause Holy Spirit winds to blow across this nation and throughout the world. Let the effects of the wind be seen and felt, bringing great encouragement to the body of Christ, and a great harvest. Renew, restrengthen, re-vision, and refocus Your laborers. Refill us with Your Spirit and power. And Father, we agree with thousands around our nation as they fast and pray the first 21 days of this year. As violence and terrorism occur here in our nation, we pray for protection over our families and leaders. We ask that President-Elect Trump and his team be covered with Your protective hand, and be given great wisdom. We pray this also over our Supreme Court and Congress. And we ask You to intervene in the vote today for Speaker of the House. Prevail over any confusion, whether it be caused by people or demons. We bind every plan intended to implement strategies that are not Your will. All of this we pray in Jesus’ name. Our decree: We decree that Father's face is turned to the Ekklesia. Grace winds are beginning to blow, carrying signs, wonders, miracles, healings, and supernatural deliverance. **************************** Today’s post was contributed by my brother, Tim. You can learn more about him at TimSheets.org. Click on the link below to watch the full video. ---------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 403.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-2-2025 January 2, 2025 God’s Agenda for 2025 As I ponder what I believe is on God’s agenda for 2025, and therefore what I will often address on Give Him 15 posts, the two words that come to mind the most are revival and reformation. Progress toward these two things will speed up greatly this year. The revival that has begun will intensify, producing many conversions and great miracles. Reformation and its changes to society and government will also experience increased momentum. I believe 2025 will prove to be one of the greatest years of change in America’s history. I believe, in fact, that President Trump’s first day in office could end up being one of the most significant days of change EVER in our country. My guess is that he and his team will make a statement, hitting the ground running. I suspect that hundreds of executive orders have already been written, awaiting only Trump’s presidential signature. For many of us, they can’t come quickly enough. There will be tremendous opposition, of course, but the opposition will fail if we, the church, continue to feed the flames of revival and reformation with prayer. As we think about these two phenomena, here are some things to realize and remember: Revival is described in Mark 16:15-20; reformation is described in Matthew 28:18-20. Revival rebirths; reformation rebuilds. Revival can spring forth quickly; reformation is a process. Revival changes hearts, inscribing with them God’s ways and laws; reformation transforms minds and thoughts, planting God’s laws in the psyche of a nation. In the context of revival, Jesus is Savior; in the context of reformation, He is King and Lord. Revival saves and heals individuals; reformation saves and heals societies and nations. Revival comes through the “preaching” of the “gospel” (Mark 16:15-20); reformation results from “teaching” what Christ “commanded” (Matthew 28:18-20). Revival releases power, signs, and wonders; reformation implements God’s ways and wise methods. Revival fuels and steers reformation; reformation can and should be the long-term fruit of revival. THE FUEL OF REVIVAL Only transformation in millions of people’s hearts (revival) will provide sufficient momentum to reform a nation to God’s ways. We can try to reform a nation to His ways through good laws or education, but this will not fully produce the needed changes. Racism is a good example. Well-meaning laws and educational changes have not produced the desired changes. Heart changes from God, on the other hand, produce the needed desire and willingness for a nation to be transformed. The new birth creates a hunger for the bread of God’s Word, a thirst for the river of His Spirit, and a desire to emulate and please Him. This is why I say revival must feed and steer reformation. GOD USES UNBELIEVERS A word of caution: When we speak of reformation, it is unbiblical to suggest that God uses only believers. Many of His principles and laws work regardless of who applies them. God spoke of Cornelius as “devout” before he was born again. He acknowledged Cornelius’ prayers and generosity, saying they had built a memorial in heaven, and used his home in which to pour out His Spirit on the Gentile world. (See Acts 10) Jesus does not reject unbelievers, nor did He suggest that they shouldn’t be leaders, whether in government, business, or any other endeavor. Certainly, the ideal and God’s desire is for everyone to be born again through Jesus. But while on earth, Jesus demonstrated God’s heart to all people. He loved them, ate with them, ministered to them, treated them respectfully and kindly, and even blessed them. (The exception to this was the proud, hypocrites, and those who oppressed others.) Matthew 9:9-13 (NASB) tells us: “As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s office; He said to him, ‘Follow Me!’ And he got up and followed Him. Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and began dining with Jesus and His disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, ‘Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?’ But when Jesus heard this, He said, ‘It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. Now go and learn what this means: “I desire compassion and not sacrifice,” for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.’” Benjamin Franklin called for prayer at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia on June 28, 1787. Franklin proposed that the Assembly begin each morning with prayers, asking for God’s assistance and blessings. He also requested that a member of the city’s clergy officiate. His motion was made during a contentious period when the Convention was at risk of breaking up over a dispute between large and small states. Franklin believed that God governs human affairs and that the Convention would fail without His help. He also referenced daily prayer during the contest with Great Britain.(1) Though many believe Benjamin Franklin became a believer later in life through the ministry of George Whitefield, he was probably not yet born-again when he called for this prayer! God can and will use individuals in our government who do not know Him - from Trump downward - to reform our nation. I do believe many of them who don’t know the Lord will become believers, but they do not have to be born-again for Him to use them. Pray for God’s wisdom to flow through ALL of them, AND for their salvation. As we enter this great season of change, we must be diligent to fervently pray for our nation, calling forth the promised revival and reformation. Pray with me: Father, we continue to join our hearts in agreement for the things You laid on the hearts of Lou Engle and Matt Lockett [see yesterday’s post]. We pray once again for the Jehu anointing to rest on President-Elect Trump, his cabinet, and all working with them. We ask that You give them the determination, wisdom, and strategies necessary to sweep away the “house of Ahab” and its ungodly ideologies in America. Give them Your agendas, not their own.(2) We ask that President-Elect Trump have a powerful encounter with You, and that he be filled with Your Spirit. Make him a man of prayer, just as the prophetic word from Kim Clement said.(3) Place an insatiable hunger in him for Your Word. Teach him to hear Your voice, and to know Your ways. And we ask You for a Third Great Awakening, a spiritual revival the likes of which has never been seen. We cry, “revival, revival, revival!” Pour this out, not only on America, but throughout all the earth. We ask for Ezekiel’s river to increase until it flows at its deepest level (Ezekiel 47). And we ask this all in the great and holy name of Jesus. Our decree: We decree that America is being revived and reformed by the power of Holy Spirit. ****************************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. ------------------------------------------------------------ Benjamin Franklin and the Constitutional Convention See the GH15 post from January 1, 2025. Ibid.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/january-1-2025 January 1, 2025 Happy New Year! It’s good to be with you again. And we are going to start the year off with a bang! Introduction My friends Lou Engle and Matt Lockett are spearheading 21 days of fasting and prayer, beginning today, to launch us into 2025. They’re calling for a Daniel Fast, based on Daniel’s 21-day fast in Daniel 10:3, during which he fasted meat, “pleasant foods” such as sweets, and wine. The reasons and prayer focus from Lou are delineated in the following release by Cheryl Amibile in "The Briefing". The title of her briefing is: The 2025 Jehu Fast After decades of mass prayer and fasting for the nation, we have come to a critical juncture for America to turn back to God. We stand now in a window of historic opportunity for governmental reform and national revival, but we must see it through in prayer. As President Trump prepares to take office in 2025, we urge you to join us as we govern in prayer over the government. Today’s briefing lays out a prophetic vision for Trump’s second term, along with clear prayer directives from Lou Engle to unify our intercession. Let’s shape history together through prayer and fasting! We’ve sensed a shift in the nation since the A Million Women gathering in Washington, D.C., on the Day of Atonement, and experienced a breakthrough with President Trump being elected. Now it’s time to pave the way for God’s agenda to be accomplished through his administration. For this purpose, we are launching a national 21-day Daniel Fast, January 1-21, led by Lou Engle, in partnership with Matt Lockett (Executive Director of Bound4Life International and the Justice House of Prayer in Washington, D.C).Daniel’s 21-day fast (Daniel 10) shifted Cyrus’s mindset and prevailed over the powers of darkness, changing the whole Persian public policy. We believe right now we have an opportunity to see the government of our nation impacted, the deep state removed, and ideologies shifted. However, for this to happen, we believe the church needs to “get into the chariot of Jehu.” Jehu was anointed king by the prophet Elisha during the reign of Ahab (2 Kings 9). King Ahab was one of Israel’s most infamous leaders, who allowed the idolatries of his wife Jezebel to infiltrate the nation and corrupt the culture of God’s people. The Lord’s purpose for Jehu was to destroy the house of Ahab and eradicate Baal worship from Israel. Rabbi Jonathan Cahn recently prophesied to President Trump at the Inaugural National Faith Summit, declaring that his life and calling followed a similar template to Jehu’s. Other prophetic leaders have sensed the same. Lou Engle was stirred a few weeks ago while reading 2 Kings 9–10, noting that it was during Jehu’s second ride that Jehonadab, the conservative leader, climbed into his chariot. Jehu then exclaimed: “Come watch my zeal for the Lord.” Lou has sensed from God a strong exhortation that in Trump’s second term, the church must “get in his chariot” by supporting him in prayer. Let us intercede for God to put a hedge about him, that the right cabinet members would be put in place, and that the president and his administration will sweep away the “house of Ahab” that has been seeking to destroy this nation. Along these lines, Matt Lockett had a fascinating dream in September of 2022, which we believe paints a prophetic picture of our responsibility to pray for Trump. In the dream, Matt and his team from JHOP (Justice House of Prayer) were with Donald Trump and other intercessors, standing outside a fast-food restaurant. They were in a single-file line, waiting to go through the drive-thru that had not yet opened. It was understood in the dream that they were to keep Trump’s place “in line” and “drive him through” when the window opened. Matt’s team has prayed regularly regarding this dream for the past two years. Just after the A Million Women prayer gathering on the National Mall in October [2024], President Trump surprisingly showed up at McDonald’s to work in the drive-thru window. For most of the nation, this was just a human-interest story and a photo op for the would-be president. However, for Matt and his team, it was a sign that the “window” was now open to “drive” Trump through the election.Then, approximately a week later, President Trump was pictured in another window—this time, the window of a garbage truck! Once again, the images were all over the news. It suddenly struck Matt with prophetic clarity that his original dream was not just about “driving” Trump through the election but through an ongoing agenda to “take out the trash,” so to speak, in Washington, D.C. We resonated with Matt’s insight, recognizing God’s intent to use President Trump to address the wickedness, idolatry, and corruption in the nation’s high places and policies. Our prayers must “drive” this agenda. Another prophecy that has shaped our intercession for the president-elect is a word given by the late Kim Clement in 2007. Clement had specifically prophesied that Trump would become a trumpet. He went on to speak of a president fitting Trump’s description who would have “hot blood” and would raise the walls of protection around the nation. He said this leader would rapidly change the economy. In the same prophecy, Clement declared of this man: “God says, ‘I will put at your helm for two terms a president that will pray, but he will not be a praying president when he starts. I will put him in office, and then I will baptize him with the Holy Spirit and My power.’” We have often pondered Donald Trump’s spiritual legacy. His great-aunts were instrumental in the intercession leading up to the tremendous move of the Spirit in the Hebrides Revival (see The Briefing 088 -The Promised Revival). What if God has ordained for that holy stump [this great revival] to sprout again at this time? It may be that President Trump is a sign and a symbol of an outpouring God desires to spread across America and beyond. Therefore, as we head into these 21 days of a Daniel Fast, let us pray daily for the Jehu anointing to rest upon President Trump, his Cabinet members, and all those in leadership. Pray that they would sweep away the “house of Ahab” and its ungodly ideologies that have taken root in America. Ask for grace to empower them to accomplish what God desires - not their own agendas - but God’s purposes in this second term of President Trump.Secondly, let’s pray daily for President Trump to be filled with the Holy Spirit while in office, as was spoken in Clement’s prophetic word. Let us also pray for all the men and women in his Cabinet, that they would be filled with the wisdom of God as they navigate complex decisions, according to Daniel 2:21 (NIV): “He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” Lastly, we have always recognized that transforming government alone would not be enough. America must experience a Third Great Awakening - a spiritual revival - in the hearts of men, women, and children alike. This aligns with a prophetic dream we received in 2020, in which there was a massive gathering and fervent cries of “Revival, revival, revival.” May this be our ongoing prayer until our communities are swept up in the fire of God’s Spirit. Pray with me: Father, we begin by giving You thanks for the answers to prayer we have received up to now. Recovery, restoration, and reformation all involve processes - tearing down, uprooting, planting, building. We have embraced the process of seeing America restored to You and Your purposes for her. As we join our hearts in fasting and prayer at the beginning of this year, we ask for momentum to increase. We ask for the Jehu anointing to rest on President-Elect Trump, his cabinet, and all working with them. We ask that You give them the determination, wisdom, and strategies necessary to sweep away the “house of Ahab” and its ungodly ideologies in America. Give them Your agendas. We ask that President-Elect Trump have a powerful encounter with You, and that he be filled with Your Spirit. Make him a man of prayer, just as the prophetic word said. Place an insatiable hunger in him for Your Word. Teach him to hear Your voice, and know Your ways. And we ask You for a Third Great Awakening, a spiritual revival, the likes of which have never been seen. We cry “revival, revival, revival.” Pour this out not only on America, but throughout all the earth. We ask for Ezekiel’s river to increase until it flows at its deepest level (Ezekiel 47). And we pray all of this in the great and holy name of Jesus. Our decree: We decree that revival and reformation are coming to the earth, covering it as the waters cover the sea. **************************** You can find out more about this article and more like it at TheBriefing.us Click on the link below to watch the full video.

4 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-25-2024 December 25, 2024 There will be no Give Him 15 posts on Dec 26-31. Thank you for your understanding as our staff takes a break. We will see you again January 1st! Merry Christmas! O Holy Night Incarnate: “to embody in flesh; invest with a bodily form.” From the Latin word incarnāre “to make into flesh.” Have you ever wondered what was going through Christ’s mind before Holy Spirit transformed Him into a microscopic seed and carried Him to the womb of a young girl? He was about to become breakable. Did He wonder how it would feel to no longer be omnipresent? Omniscient? Omnipotent? Did He wonder how physical pain would feel? Hunger? Thirst? Weariness? Cold? Heartache? Loss? Christ knew He would have to: fight His way through a birth canal, be fed, be bathed, learn to crawl, develop balance and walking skills, form words, grow, and gain knowledge. He would experience sleep, scrapes, blisters, and callouses. He would enter the realm of time. He would bleed. One has to wonder if Jesus ever reconsidered the plan/process. Since He was “the Lamb slain” before we were even created (Revelation 13:8), I don’t suppose He did. Yet, just before Holy Spirit held Him and began the transformation, there must have been at least an emotional, “Here we go…I’m about to be human!” And then He was - there was no turning back. Numerous questions come to mind as I consider Christ’s humanness: As a child, when did the first awareness of who He was begin to set in? When did He first look up at a star-filled sky and think, I made that. When did He first recall saying, “Let there be…” When did the calculus of our solar system begin creeping back into His memory? Did He ever have a nightmare? When did He stop asking Mary questions and start explaining things to her? Did His siblings wonder at His gifts, intellect? Who was His best friend growing up? What did His laugh sound like? What was His favorite color…food? Was there any food - which He, of course, created - that He didn’t like?! At what age did His carpentry skills begin superseding those of Joseph? Did they ever joke about it? How old was He when Joseph died? How did He deal with the pain? How did He react the first time He saw a serpent…or first observed cruelty, violence or greed? When He heard lightning, did He smile? (Luke 10:18) And when did the love that demanded His humanness - the passion for His eternal bride - begin welling up in His chest? As He fashioned wood in His carpenter shop, did He ever pause and gaze pensively toward a hill in Jerusalem? Did He wince when He drove nails? We will never truly understand the ramifications, intricacies, and complexities of the incarnation. Merging the limitations of “humanness” with an infinite God simply can’t be computed by human brains. Indeed, Paul referenced Christ as God’s “indescribable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15). But it is healthy to ponder it, nonetheless. We must, in fact. It is imperative that we consider the cost to Christ. It’s essential that we wonder at such love, marvel at the plan and stand in awe at its audacity. So this year on Christmas Day, take some time to think about it. Sing, or listen to Silent Night, Away In A Manger, O Holy Night, or your favorite Christmas carol and intently consider the words. Recapture the wonder. Read the story again in Luke’s gospel. Close your eyes and try to envision Mary’s angelic visitation. Put yourself in Joseph’s shoes - how hard would it be to believe Mary’s story? See the stars, the stable, the manger, the Christ-child. Then, converse with Abba and Jesus. Thank them…for Christmas, yes, but also for the cross. The purpose of Christmas was the Cross. I leave you today with the lyrics of one of my most loved Christmas songs: O Holy Night. My favorite line is, “Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.” Now, do yourself a favor and use this link to watch/listen to Josh Groban’s version of the song. This YouTube version gives us a visual of that holy night when Christ was born. Maybe even gather the family and watch it together. You’ll be glad you did. (For those of you watching today’s post, we will provide the link in the description below.) Merry Christmas! ********************* Click on the link below to watch the full video.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-24-2024 December 24, 2024 There will be no Give Him 15 posts on Dec 26-31. Thank you for your understanding as our staff takes a break. We will see you again January 1st! Merry Christmas! A Fun Christmas Memory “In the same region, there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock at night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. And so the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army of angels praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among people with whom He is pleased.’” Luke 2:8-14 (NASB) “Great joy…for all people,” are some of the words spoken by the angel on the night of Christ’s birth. And could the world ever use a dose of that! We live in precarious and perilous times, punctuated by evil dictators, lying and fear-mongering governments, power-crazed politicians, woke educators, God-haters, and a worldwide pandemic. In the midst of evil and chaos, let me remind you that joy is of the spirit, not the emotions, and therefore is not based on circumstances. Happiness is based on circumstances; joy, however, is a fruit of the spirit and therefore flows from Holy Spirit in you (Galatians 5:22). In the angel’s announcement above, great is the Greek word megas, from which we get the English word “mega.” Megas is over and above, above and beyond, more than enough. And as my grandkids would say, ginormous. I felt today to encourage you to think of a joyful Christmas memory. It could be from when you were a kid, or as a parent or grandparent enjoying a kid/s. Perhaps it’s from a gift you gave, or one you were given. Maybe it’s a sleigh ride, a ski trip, a family trip, the Nutcracker with mom or a bowl game with dad. Think of something and let it unlock some joy. Laughter is good. God said it’s like a medicine (Proverbs 17:22). Think of something from a Christmas past that’ll make you laugh. Maybe I can help. We once had a dog named Mercedes. Sadie, as we called her, was a Boxer. God used Mercedes greatly in my life. She taught me patience, humility, poop-scooping, and the price of dog ACL surgery. I didn’t actually mind the poop-scooping in and of itself, it was the mocking laughter I could see in her eyes as I did it that bothered me. We bought Mercedes - yes, I paid for these lessons - because we moved to an area where there were coyotes and foxes, which we knew would endanger our two other small dogs - they needed a bodyguard. Besides, everyone needs THREE dogs. But it backfired. Mercedes took over. Ceci and the girls actually went to obedience school with her a few times. That helped - she learned to sit. She came home and asserted her dominance by sitting on my chest. Seriously. I was stretched out on the floor watching a football game, nice fire going, when she proudly looked over at the girls and sat on my chest. “Good girl. Good sit,” they said. Then there was the time she TP’d (toilet papered) the backyard. Yep, she did. We had a fenced backyard, so when leaving, we, at times left the back door open a foot or so to allow the dogs some freedom. We came home one day, and there was a trail of toilet paper from the powder room (for all you guys, that’s the half-bath you keep clean for guests) leading through the family room, out the back door, and into the back yard. Once in the backyard, it seems that Sadie’s creative side kicked in. She went over, under, around, and through. She made circles, figure 8’s, and squares. Then she did her business while I cleaned up the toilet paper. And if you don’t see the cruel irony of that, then you’re pretty slow. I swear she was laughing. But perhaps the most humiliating experience with Mercedes was when I had to chase her around on the roof of our two-story house. I was hanging Christmas lights - you thought I had gotten off the subject of Christmas, didn’t you - and with the house layout, it was a simple step onto our daughter’s bedroom window seat, then out the window and onto the garage roof. From there, I could walk to the remainder of the roof, even the higher parts. I was on all fours, carefully placing hooks for the lights on the gutters, when suddenly I heard a noise behind me. I turned, and there was Mercedes - she had joined me! I panicked. If she fell off and hurt herself, Ceci and the girls would never forgive me. My tone of voice and panicked attempt to grab her scared her. She began running and wouldn’t come to me. So I chased her, which caused her to run more…Kevin Costner became known to the Native Americans as “man who dances with wolves.” I became known in our neighborhood as “man who dances with dog on roof.” True story. Remember something today that makes you laugh. If you can’t think of anything, picture me with a 70-pound, well-trained, obedience school graduating Boxer sitting on my chest. The Message version of Proverbs 17:22 says, “A cheerful disposition is good for your health; gloom and doom leave you bone-tired.” Laugh. It’ll do you good. Pray with me: Father, in these precarious and perilous times, punctuated by evil dictators, lying and fear-mongering governments, power-crazed politicians, woke educators, God-haters, and a worldwide pandemic, we can still have joy. Cause the spirit of joy to rise up in Your people today. Even those in difficult circumstances or who have suffered loss, let the strength that comes from joy arise in them. Temper their grief with moments of joy. If it needs to be a supernatural impartation, please do that. And we thank You for Jesus. He brought us mega joy. “Joy to the world, the Lord has come.” Because of Him, we can rejoice. Remind us to remain focused on Him this Christmas season. And even on a day in which we speak of laughter and joy, we still remember the babies. A reversal of Roe would be the greatest gift we could receive this coming year. Do whatever is necessary to give us 5 or more Justices who will find the moral strength to reverse it. In Christ’s name, we pray, amen. Our decree: We decree that joy unspeakable is ours today through Christ. ***************************** Click on the link below to watch the full video.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-23-2024 December 23, 2024 For the next several days, you are going to hear some favorite posts, hand-picked by Dutch. They are about this wonderful Christmas season, and we think you will enjoy them. There will be no Give Him 15 posts on Dec 26-31. Thank you for your understanding as our staff takes a break. We will see you again January 1st! Merry Christmas! Two Women At Christmas As we approach Christmas, let’s consider the story of two women who were significant in the birth of our Savior, the promised Messiah: Mary and Elizabeth. The younger one seeks out the older. Lives touching. Mentoring occurring. A divine encounter, a God-set up. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is unique in history. Yet she had a humble beginning. Pastor Jack Hayford says we may wonder about her, “Was Mary possibly only a plain girl with simple faith, raised in an ordinary home, scheduled for an arranged marriage, and headed for an uneventful future married to the town carpenter? The suggestion that she was ordinary comes from the words Mary sings: ‘For He has regarded the lowly state of His handmaiden. He has exalted the lowly’” (Luke 1:48). Hayford adds: “God clothes Himself in the ordinary so He can come to ordinary people—you and me.”(1) Mary and Elizabeth. Both were having miracle babies who would affect history. Both women could have been labeled “disgraced” by their Hebrew peers - Elizabeth for being barren, Mary for being pregnant before marriage. Both knew God intimately, were worshipers and were acquainted with Scripture. The Christmas story began not in Bethlehem but in Nazareth, where Mary received the message from Gabriel. He disclosed God’s plan for her life. “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!... Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” (Luke 1: 28-32 NKJV) When Mary questioned Gabriel how this could happen since she was a virgin, he explained: “Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for that reason also the holy Child will be called the Son of God… and His kingdom will have no end.” (Luke 1:30-35). Mary, in bold obedience, replied, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word” (verse 38). And the angel departed from her. “We can hardly fathom the bewildering moment Mary experienced,” Freda Lindsay reminds us. “That she was a privileged vessel, chosen to bear God’s Son, is wonder enough, for she is a participant in the miracle of the Incarnation at a level no other human being can comprehend. It is clear she did not claim to understand it herself, yet she was obedient,”(2) At first, Mary was troubled, pondering the situation. But the angel had told her some great news: “And behold your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. For nothing will be impossible with God” (verses 36-37). Mary may have wondered just why the angel told her Elizabeth was pregnant. But she got up and hurried to see Elizabeth in the village of En Karem in the Judean hill country, about 65 miles away. How did she get there? Did she go in a caravan of camels or donkeys? Did she have morning sickness? Was Joseph, to whom she was engaged, okay with her going? We don’t know the answers. However, she quickly got to the house of her relative, Elizabeth, who was married to the priest, Zechariah. When Mary entered their home, the baby in Elizabeth’s womb leapt with joy (Luke 1:41). But get this: Elizabeth not only praised God in a loud voice, but she was also filled with Holy Spirit (verse 41). (I wonder if she would have had this experience with Holy Spirit’s infilling if Mary had not come). Mary did not even have to explain to her that she was pregnant, for God had revealed it to Elizabeth. She said to Mary, almost as a prophecy, “Blessed are you among women. Blessed is the child you shall bear. Why am I so favored that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:41-43). Think about this: Elizabeth was six months pregnant, five of those hidden in seclusion. Her husband, Zechariah - a priest, could not talk to her. He had been struck mute when he questioned the angel who came to him after he had burned incense in the temple (Luke 1:20). The angel told him that his wife, who was barren and advanced in age, would bear a son. They were to name him John and he would be great in the sight of the Lord. (He was later known as John the Baptist). While she was expecting her baby boy, Elizabeth’s husband could only communicate with her by writing on a wax tablet or with hand motions. Did her seclusion also mean she did not fetch water at the well when other women were there or even intermingle with them in the marketplace? A Jewish wife in those days prepared the meals, cared for the children, made and washed the clothes, went to the market, and tended the lamps. She was expected to be a good housekeeper and an affectionate mother who set the “love level” in the home. Sons usually went to study Torah at an early age and learned a trade from their fathers. Girls did not receive the formal training as sons did, but evidence shows both Mary and Elizabeth knew the Scriptures. Since Elizabeth was the wife of a priest and daughter of a family of priests from the house of Aaron, she probably heard much godly talk from guests in her home. Mary’s song of exaltation - Magnificat - contains references from Hannah’s prayer nearly a thousand years earlier as she praised God for her baby Samuel. Mary was possibly still a teenager. The advice and wisdom of an older woman would be valuable as she pondered many things in her heart. But didn’t Elizabeth also need her company? Mary stayed with her for three months (Luke 1:56), observing and confiding in her, and no doubt receiving mentoring, love, and spiritual insights. Elizabeth may have talked to Mary about how to be a good wife and she was surely a great encourager and influencer, giving her a blessing and honor. They obviously spent time together worshipping the Lord. Mary provided Elizabeth with companionship, conversation and most certainly helped her with household chores. They each had something of worth to share in this short-term but significant relationship. Just think, Elizabeth was the first human to acknowledge Jesus as the Lord–while He was yet unborn. Let’s not fail to recognize Holy Spirit’s part in this first Christmas drama concerning these two women. As we have already mentioned, first Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary (Luke 1:35). Then He filled Elizabeth and the baby in her womb with Himself also. Finally, even Zachariah. On the eighth day after their baby’s birth, when they took him to be circumcised and to announce John’s name, Zechariah was filled with Holy Spirit (Luke 1:67). His tongue was loosed, and he was able to speak again. So he, a priest, began to prophesy about both the coming Messiah and about his son, John, who would be a forerunner for Him. This Christmas season as we reflect on the various people involved in the birth of Jesus, let’s draw lessons from their examples. Are there younger people in our lives we could encourage? Mentor? Are there those we can pray for to receive Jesus as Savior? Or to receive Holy Spirit’s touch? God is looking for ordinary people–like you and me to help make a difference for Him in the lives of those with whom we interact. Divine connections. He has given us a story to tell. Jesus is the reason for the season! Let’s go share this great news. Pray with me: Thank You, Heavenly Father, for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Help us to be bold to share this good news, especially during this Christmas season, and bring others to Him for their salvation. Thank You that just as the angel told Mary nothing is, or ever shall be, impossible for God, so may we believe for the miracles we need also. We ask this in the name of Jesus, Amen. Our decree: I will never doubt God - for He who promised is faithful - even sending us a Savior, the very Son of God. ************************* Today’s post was written by our dear friend and author Quin Sherrer. You can find out more about Quin here or at Quinsherrer.com. Click on the link below to watch the full video. ------------------------------------------------ Jack W. Hayford, The Christmas Miracle, Chosen Books, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1999) pp. 39, 41. Freda Lindsay, Luke 1:26-56 comments. Spirit Filled Life Bible, 3rd edition NKJV, (Jack Hayford, Executive Editor, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, TN. 2017) p. 1450.

7 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-20-2024 December 20, 2024 For the next several days, you are going to hear some favorite posts, hand-picked by Dutch. They are about this wonderful Christmas season, and we think you will enjoy them. There will be no Give Him 15 posts on Dec 26-31. Thank you for your understanding as our staff takes a break. We will see you again January 1st! Merry Christmas! Today I am sharing a special Christmas post written by our good friend, Cheryl Sacks. The title is: A Christmas to Remember It was just before Christmas, and we were two months behind in our mortgage payments. On January 1, our home would go into foreclosure. Hal and I had no money to buy Christmas gifts for each other or for our five-year-old daughter, Nicole. When Nicole gave us her Christmas list, it contained only one item…a pair of blue jeans with pink flowers on the pocket. I was praying fervently that we’d have money for Christmas and that we would not lose our home. Yet, I was starting to feel discouraged. The next day, Nicole came home from school and handed me the school newsletter. The school was asking us to participate in the Christmas tradition of giving to those in need. I had a clear sense that we should try to do something for one of the three families the school wanted to help…even though we ourselves were in desperate need. The newsletter listed specific needs for each family, simply labeled as families A, B, and C. I noted that Family B needed clothing for a five-year-old girl. Since I wanted to include Nicole in the shopping process, I decided we would adopt Family B, so that she could relate to giving to someone her own age. The next afternoon, Nicole and I went shopping at K-Mart. As we pushed the basket along together, we looked for some item of clothing that would be right for a little girl her age. Soon, we came to a rack of girls’ jeans, and Nicole spotted a pair with little pink flowers on the back pocket. “Oh!” she said excitedly, “I just know the little girl will want these!” Into the cart went the jeans with pink flowers. My mind was already racing ahead. If the parents didn’t have money for jeans, then they wouldn’t have money to purchase a shirt to complete the outfit. “Now, let’s find a blouse or something to go with these jeans,” I told Nicole. Soon we found just the right thing – a pink sweater with a black and white panda bear on the front and a matching pink shirt. I was rejoicing at the blessing of giving this special gift. Yet a few minutes later as we stood in line, my excitement waned. There in the basket was the exact item my daughter wanted for Christmas...jeans with pink flowers on the pocket...in just her size. Now with my last $25, I was going to buy them for someone else’s little girl. I thought of how I’d always believed in giving sacrificially. Years before, I had learned about “seedtime and harvest,” sowing and reaping, from Oral Roberts. Whether you have little or much, just like a farmer, it’s not wise to eat your seed, but to plant it and watch it multiply. I’d seen this truth work in our lives over and over again. Yet, right then, I was wavering. “Lord,” I prayed. “If what I’ve believed about “sowing and reaping” is really true, then I need You to prove it to me now.” We checked out at the cash register and went home. But all throughout the day I was still vacillating. I began contemplating wrapping up the gift and giving it to Nicole rather than to the little girl in Family B. That night as I pulled out the wrapping paper, I still did not know what to do. Finally, I walked into Hal’s office where he was studying and told him what a struggle I was having. I reiterated what he already knew. Our own daughter had asked for jeans for Christmas just like the ones I had purchased to give away. How much sense did it make to give them to someone else’s little girl? “I believe I know what we’re supposed to do,” Hal said. “But take some time to pray and hear from the Lord what He wants you to do.” I opened my Bible and the pages fell open to Ecclesiastes 11:1-6: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days…He who observes the wind (and waits for all conditions to be favorable) will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap…In the morning sow your seed and in the evening withhold not your hand…” It was evening, and I was considering withholding my gift. It was clear the Lord was telling me not to wait for conditions to be favorable…to cast my bread upon the waters. I wrapped the jeans, pink blouse, and panda bear sweater in white tissue paper as the school had requested and wrote “Family B” on the outside of the package. Later, as I was wrapping some small items for the woman in Family B, Hal walked in. “What size is the man in that family we’re giving to?” Hal asked. I looked at the sheet and replied, “Medium.” A few moments later, Hal entered carrying his new gray sweater vest. “I want you to wrap this up and give it to the man on the list,” he said. “Oh, that is your favorite piece of clothing!” I said. “We should always give God our best,” he said. And with that I wrapped the gray sweater vest. The next day, Nicole took her gifts to school. As was the tradition, the children brought their gifts forward during a school assembly and placed them at the foot of a manger cradling “baby Jesus.” These presents were first and foremost a gift of love to the Savior. As Nicole shared with me about presenting our family’s gifts to the Lord, I was reminded of how God demonstrated the principle of sowing and reaping through the life of His Son Jesus Christ. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will never die but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). God gave His only Son, His most precious possession, first ― then received many sons and daughters in return. Through the principle of sowing, God reaped the greatest harvest in the history of the world. The next Sunday afternoon I was getting ready to go to the evening service at our church. I heard the doorbell ring and looked outside the window to see a white station wagon which I recognized as that of our friends Mario and Cathy Rossetti. They lived just around the corner and our kids attended the same school. As I opened the front door, Mario began unloading boxes filled with gifts. The boxes kept coming and coming. There must have been fifteen boxes or more. I noticed they were all wrapped in white tissue paper. “What is this?” I asked. But before Mario could answer, my eyes scanned several packages. Each one was marked “Family B”! “Oh,” I grabbed my heart! “The jeans with the pink flowers and the panda bear sweater. They’re in one of these boxes! The gray sweater vest. It’s in there too!” Then I remembered Hal saying, “We must always give God our best.” I breathed an awe-filled prayer. “Lord, You knew this all along! When I was standing in line at K-Mart complaining, You knew. When You led me to read the verse in Ecclesiastes, ‘Cast your bread upon the waters and you will find it after many days,’ You knew!” How had I ever doubted God’s Word? A half-hour later, Hal pulled into the driveway after running errands. “Hurry, we’re late for church!” “Hal,” I said. “Could you come to the bedroom for just a moment? I have something to show you!” “I’ll look at it later,” he said. “We’re going to be late.” “You have to come now,” I said, and I took his arm and directed him into our bedroom. There, on the floor, were the furniture, and everywhere in between were boxes and boxes of gifts. “What is all this?” he exclaimed. “Do you know who Family B is?” I asked. “No, who?” he said. “WE are Family B! WE are Family B…you, Nicole, and me!” On Christmas Day we opened our presents. Among the gifts were a man’s gray sweater vest size medium, and size five girl’s jeans with pink flowers on the pocket, and a matching panda bear sweater and pink shirt. “But what about the poor little girl?” Nicole asked as she opened her gift. It would be years before she would learn the significance of that Christmas gift. It had been only a few years before this that the Lord had called us to leave our secular jobs and start the Christian ministry which is now BridgeBuilders. We didn’t yet have many supporters, and we often went without a salary. We were completely dependent on the Lord to provide for our needs. During the week between Christmas and New Year’s, we received a call from a pastor in another town. He and his wife were coming to Phoenix and wanted to stop by and drop off a gift. We were excited to see our friends and receive what I thought was to be the gift of a turkey. “We can definitely use it!” I said out loud. We opened the door wide and greeted the couple. As they entered, the pastor pulled a check out of his pocket and handed it to Hal. We learned that the pastor had challenged his congregation to give to the Christmas missions fund the same amount of money they were giving in gifts to their friends and family. The collection had been split between our family and an overseas missionary. Hal and I looked at the check…it was made out for $1500! Fifteen hundred dollars! Exactly enough money to catch up on our home mortgage payments. Pray with me: Father, through the years, when money is tight and pressures grow great, You often remind me of this story. I know You never want us to forget that we are in a covenant relationship with You, and that if we will act in obedience to plant seeds of kindness, love, and resources, You will be faithful to multiply them. You said, “Give and gifts will be given you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over will they pour into your bosom. For with the measure you use when you confer benefits on others—it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38). Help us to become even more like You, Father, and Your giving heart. You gave first, and You gave the greatest gift. Amen. ************************ Today’s post was contributed by Cheryl Sacks. You can learn more about Cheryl and Hal’s work at bridgebuilders.net and prayersaturated.life. Click on the link below to watch the full video.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-19-2024 December 19, 2024 The Unintended Christmas Carol As we wind down our work schedules leading up to Christmas and the holidays, and perhaps wind up our last-minute shopping, I thought a change of pace might be good for our daily posts. Today, I’ll be sharing interesting facts about three of the most popular Christmas hymns of all time, along with the complete lyrics of each. We’ll end with a short prayer and a link to one of these beautiful songs. You’ll enjoy this. Tomorrow, I’ll do the same, sharing some information I’m quite certain most of you won’t know, and ending with my all-time favorite Christmas song. The video link I’ll send will move you to tears. You’ll thank me. Joy to the World “Joy to the World,” written in 1719 by Isaac Watts, has been the most-published Christmas hymn in North America. It was not written as a Christmas carol but as a poem about the reigning King, based on Psalm 98. “Stanza three…alludes to Genesis 3:17-19…speaks of Christ's blessings extending victoriously over the realm of sin…Stanza four celebrates Christ's rule over the nations…called to celebrate because God's faithfulness to the house of Israel has brought salvation to the world.”(1) Here are the words to this famous hymn: Joy to the World O Little Town of Bethlehem “Phillip Brooks was a distinguished man of faith and intellect. A Boston-born Episcopalian preacher, he'd earned a Doctorate of Divinity from the University of Oxford, taught at Yale University, and publicly advocated against slavery during the Civil War. But he's best known for penning "O Little Town of Bethlehem" after a life-changing journey. In 1865, Brooks rode on horseback from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, where he participated in the Church of the Nativity's five-hour-long Christmas Eve celebration, complete with hymns. Returning home, this experience proved so profound that he channeled it into the song sung in churches to this day. Its first public performance was held three years later, performed by the children's choir of his church [The Church of the Holy Trinity in Philadelphia] on December 27.”(3) Until then, this musical, “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” was still only a poem. Brooks asked his organist, Lewis Redner, to write the music. Here is Redner’s interesting explanation of how the music came to him: “As Christmas of 1868 approached, Mr. Brooks told me that he had written a simple little carol for the Christmas Sunday School service, and he asked me to write the tune to it. The simple music was written in great haste and under great pressure. We were to practice it on the following Sunday. Mr. Brooks came to me on Friday, and said, ‘Redner, have you ground out that music yet to “O Little Town of Bethlehem”?’ I replied, ‘No,’ but that he should have it by Sunday. On the Saturday night previous, my brain was all confused about the tune. I thought more about my Sunday school lesson than I did about the music. But I was roused from sleep late in the night hearing an angel-strain whispering in my ear, and seizing a piece of music paper, I jotted down the treble of the tune as we now have it, and on Sunday morning before going to church, I filled in the harmony. Neither Mr. Brooks nor I ever thought the carol or the music to it would live beyond that Christmas of 1868.”(4) How wrong they were! O Little Town of Bethlehem Silent Night “Silent Night” is the world’s most-recorded Christmas song, with more than 137,000 known recordings.(6) In 1818, “Father Joseph Mohr, in Austria, is preparing the music for [Christmas Eve] midnight mass and asks his friend Franz Gruber, a schoolteacher, to write a guitar accompaniment for a poem that he had written two years earlier. That night, the two men sang their brand new song at St. Nicholas church, and one of our best-loved Christmas carols was born. “A commonly held myth is that this was because the church organ was broken – possibly because of flooding from a nearby river. However, nobody knows the true reason why it came to be composed on guitar – perhaps it was because Joseph Mohr also played the guitar. A version of “Silent Night” recorded by Bing Crosby in 1935 sold a whopping 30 million copies.”(7) "Silent Night" is about a calm and bright silent night, and the wonder of a tender and mild newborn child, words written in 1816…not long after the Napoleonic wars had taken their toll. The priest went for a walk before he wrote it, and he looked out over a very quiet, winter-laden town. He was inspired...the town was at peace.”(8) And this provoked the classic, “Silent Night.” Silent Night Pray with me: Thank You, Lord, for coming to earth and making Your blessings flow, far as the curse is found. Your right hand has gained the victory for You (Psalm 98:1), and You have made known Your salvation and revealed Your righteousness to the nations (verse 2). You tell us to “shout joyfully,” breaking forth with praise (verse 4); that the seas roar, the rivers clap, and the mountains sing for joy (verses 7-8) because Christ is coming to judge the earth with righteousness and equity (verse 9). As we ponder the wonder of Your great gift to us, Father, we thank You, along with Phillip Brooks, for the everlasting light that shone in the dark streets of Bethlehem. In that quiet town, on that night so long ago, the hopes and fears of all the years met in the birth of our Savior. Thank You for this great gift. ************************** Link to: Silent Night, sung by Chris Tomlin Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------------- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joy_to_the_World https://hymnary.org/text/joy_to_the_world_the_lord_is_come https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/60596/origins-10-popular-christmas-carols https://www.hymnologyarchive.com/o-little-town-of-bethlehem https://hymnary.org/text/o_little_town_of_bethlehem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Night https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1xW4JCVM4y33tbZBycYmYqG/5-facts-about-silent-night#:~:text=A%20commonly%20held%20myth%20is,Mohr%20also%20played%20the%20guitar https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/lists/7-beloved-christmas-carols-their-origins https://hymnary.org/text/silent_night_holy_night_all_is_calm_all

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-18-2024 December 18, 2024 David’s Elite Fighting Force “So David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam, and when his brothers and all his father’s household heard of it, they went down there to him. Everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented and bitter gathered to him, and he became captain over them. Now, there were about four hundred men with him.” (1 Samuel 22:1-2) The above verses speak of the beginning of David’s preparation to be king over Israel and of the beginning of his elite fighting force, referred to in Scripture as David’s “mighty men” (2 Samuel 23:8; 1 Chronicles 11:10-11; 12:1; 28:1). Some historians consider this the most skilled group of fighting men in history. This is obviously subjective and in no way intended to be a slight to the great warriors who have existed throughout history. It is simply to point out what an incredible fighting force they were in their time. It is important to know the context of these verses. David had recently been anointed as the next king of Israel (1 Samuel 16:12-13). At the time, He had no idea of the process that would occur to prepare him, a process that would take twenty years! This is true with most of us when we hear prophetic words about God’s future plans for us. We assume they will happen relatively quickly and indeed, some do. At times, however, God is announcing His plans for down the road…sometimes many roads. The current king, Saul, had no intention of allowing David to take his position. To stop David, he turned against him, no doubt motivated by demonic spirits that controlled him. Saul was insanely jealous and eventually even became a murderer, killing priests of God (1 Samuel 22:16-19) and attempting to murder David. Due to these attacks, David had to flee. He landed in a cave named Adullam (18:11; 19:10; 22:1). God used these years of David’s life as part of his preparation. In no way am I suggesting God was behind these attacks on David or the evil that overtook Saul. I’m merely pointing out that He used them as part of David’s preparation. David wrote several of the Psalms from this cave, learned to persevere and forgive, developed character and a high level of trust in God, grew in his ability to receive revelation, and matured in his wisdom. David also became a leader. It is not enough to be a slayer of bears, lions, and giants. Wielding a weapon is not as powerful as wielding wisdom. Fighting skills, though important for David, did not equate to wisdom, hearing from God, and leadership skills. The same is true for us. The ability to war spiritually against satan’s forces, though very important, does not qualify us for other responsibilities in God’s Kingdom. These will require different aspects of maturity. David’s Mighty Men Back to the context of these verses. Other outcasts joined themselves with David at the cave of Adullam. They were described as those: In distress - the word also means “anguish, stress, disability, even confinement.”(1) Their difficulties were so severe as to be disabling; they were completely trapped and confined by their circumstances. In debt - they were poverty-ridden. Bitter - this is actually two words in Hebrew, meaning literally, “bitter of soul.”(2) Life had been cruel to them; they were down and out, in great anguish, trapped in poverty, and bitter at their plight. The passage says David became the “captain” of these 400 “losers,” or so they seemed. Here is what I believe satan was likely saying to David: You think you are the new king over God’s people? Okay, here is your army. Let’s see how you enjoy leading these hopeless, helpless, decimated misfits. Satan excels in his mocking attempts to discourage us and defer our hope, until the discouragement becomes debilitating and robs us of faith. God, however, was saying something else to David: Look through My eyes, David - this IS your army. Do with them what I had to do with you. You were the youngest, the smallest, and the least respected in your family, but I saw what no one else could see and chose you to be king over Israel. You cannot see it with your natural eyes, but I have sent you world-class warriors. Love and lead them, and I will help you train them into one of the greatest fighting forces the earth will ever see. And, by the way, you are not worthy of leading thousands in My Kingdom until you are willing to love and lead the 400 down-and-outers. David passed the test. And so did the 400! Some of these warriors killed hundreds of enemy soldiers in single battles (2 Samuel 23:8; 1 Chronicles 11:11); one fought until he could no longer control his fingers, so he held on to his sword with his heart and kept fighting (2 Samuel 23:10). When the battle was over, they had to pry his fingers loose from the sword. Another warrior jumped into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion (1 Chronicles 11:22). Over time, and as their numbers grew, the mighty men also developed spiritual gifts and anointings. It was said of the soldiers from the tribe of Issachar that they had understanding and discernment of the times to know what Israel should do (v. 32). This was not stated in the context of the priesthood or government, but of David’s army! Talk about “intel”! Holy Spirit has been speaking to me, through David’s “mighty men,” about the prayer army He has created today. Honestly, we were far from impressive thirty years ago when He began. Go back twenty more years, and this army didn’t even exist! Intercessors were VERY “few and far between.” The church looked more like David’s cave-dwellers: poor, distressed, and holding on ‘til the rapture. But God saw something else - warriors at heart! And Jesus, the “Son of David,” went to work by His Spirit. He trained, restored gifts, equipped, seasoned, poured out revelation, and increased wisdom. Many in His body have become a true Ekklesia - authorized representatives of His Kingdom authority on earth. No longer cave-dwelling outcasts, they are mighty men and women of faith, equipped for the spiritual battle of our times. These warriors have matured in His Word and ways, been filled with Holy Spirit, honed their gifts and discernment, learned to use their spiritual swords, and are ready to win the spiritual war now being waged. I say to this remnant of warriors: “Be strong in this hour! Our King is the true King over all the earth. He is Owner and Ruler of all, presiding over a Kingdom that will never cease, not only in its existence but also in its expansion (see Isaiah 9:6-7). And He is coming to reap the harvest of the ages, pouring out the former and latter rains for harvest (see Joel 2:23). You are ready for this! You have been trained and equipped! Now, be bold, strong, and fearless. Announce Christ’s victory and declare His harvest over the earth DAILY - over your families, cities, nations, and the earth! YOU ARE HIS VOICE!” Pray with me: Father, we ask for an infusion of new strength and determination for those praying to see America revived and transformed May we be found faithful as we serve Your purpose in our generation. We thank You for the incredible calling You have on our nation. Cause the fires of revival to burn in our nation as never before. Again today, we pray for our government; it is out of control. Lies abound, injustice is rampant, unrighteous laws are enacted, and our government is now weaponized against its citizens. Bring down these evils. Expose them. Continue to awaken the American people to the corruption. We pray for those on the front lines of this battle against the giant of unrighteous government; give them great endurance and faith. Work miracle after miracle to turn the tables on the darkness ruling our land. We pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen. Our decree: We decree that the army of God is ready and equipped for spiritual war, and will prevail in this hour. ******************************* Click on the link below to watch the full video. -------------------------------------------------------------- “Strong’s Hebrew: 4689. מָצוֹק (matsoq) -- anguish, straits, stress, confinement.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4689.htm. Accessed 7 August 2024. “Strong’s Hebrew: 4751. מָר (mar or marah) -- bitter, weep bitterly, bitter of soul.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/4751.htm. Accessed 7 August 2024.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-16-2024 December 16, 2024 Keep Your Faith Anchored Today, I want to talk with you about your faith. We must continue to anchor ourselves to what God has said He is doing at this time. In my book, The Power of Hope, I state: Jeremiah 29:11 says: “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope.” Strong’s concordance tells us the word ‘hope’ in this verse is the word tiqvah. It has two meanings: ‘an expectancy’ and ‘a cord, as an attachment.’(2) The second definition is especially fascinating. Hope connects us to our future. In this same book, The Power of Hope, I share the following story of God encouraging my faith for America. God has been faithful in giving me anchor points like this tree over the years regarding His plans for America. And, of course, His plans for America are joined to His plans for the world. It is easy to lose sight of these plans if we focus on the circumstances around us, especially when we see evil at today’s level. The anchor for faith in these times is the Word of God, what He has promised. When I stake my faith in His words, faith displaces fear. God Wants to Save! Do not underestimate the power of God’s love. He loved the world SO MUCH that He gave His only Son to save us. God sees the fallen earth through this lens of compassion. His passion is to redeem, not destroy. Hear Him say to Abraham, Sure! I’ll spare the city for only ten! (Genesis 18:32; my paraphrase). Revival to America and the world is not being wrestled from the hand of a hesitant God, but offered from His merciful heart. Most definitely, we live in a time of great evil, and the wickedness of some is hard to fathom. But DO NOT ALLOW THIS TO BLUR GOD’S HEART. Yes, He will shake down the wickedness, but He will also release His abounding grace. Anchor to this! When a demonized, evil Herod killed the babies in Christ’s day, God did not abandon His plan and bring Jesus back to heaven. He stayed the course, and He will do so today. When His followers were murdered, burned at the stake, and fed to lions, God didn’t throw up His hands in frustration and destroy the planet. He stayed the course and allowed their blood to become seed He would use to turn the world upside down. It is appropriate to grieve in difficult times. It is reasonable to experience righteous anger. But it is not okay to give up. Our Redeemer is on a mission, and He needs us to stay focused on that mission. Speak His words. Remind yourself of His promises. Worship. And stand! Pray with me: Father, we know how the story ends: You conquer evil once and for all, banish the serpent, and restore the earth. And we know how the story of this season will end: You will shake down evil and bring the greatest revival planet Earth has ever seen. You will NOT be outsmarted, out-maneuvered, or overcome. The worthy Lamb is also the conquering Lion; the gentle Shepherd is also the white horse Rider. He holds the keys, and He is the Supreme Judge. We are following Jesus. We represent Him and His victory at Calvary. We are His reaping force, His liberators, and we move in His authority. We bind every strategy of hell to stop this great harvest, confuse the church, and steal our faith-filled hope. We are and will continue to release living water to the “stump” called America, and this stump will grow into a tree once again. Then, we will release this living water as a river to the nations of the Earth, and entire nations will be saved and transformed. Nothing can stop this - it has already been decided. We send these words into the airwaves, the atmosphere of the earth today, and declare that they will accomplish everything You intend. Not one word will return void, because we do so in the name of Jesus. We command a shaking into the strongholds of darkness in the Middle East and around the world. And we release the love and salvation of God to people there and elsewhere. We ask for all of this in Yeshua’s name. Amen. Our decree: We decree that we, the Ekklesia, are steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord; this will not change. ************************* Click on the link below to watch the full video. -------------------------------------------------------- Sheets, Dutch. The Power of Hope: Let God Renew Your Mind, Heal Your Heart, and Restore Your Dreams. Charisma Media, 2014. p. 3. James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990. ref. no. 8616. Sheets, Dutch. The Power of Hope: Let God Renew Your Mind, Heal Your Heart, and Restore Your Dreams. Charisma Media, 2014. pp. xiii-xv.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-13-2024 December 13, 2024 Intimidation Is a Trap “Just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts.” (1 Thessalonians 2:4) Proverbs 29:25 warns us regarding “the fear of man,” referring to it as a snare. The Passion Translation says, “Intimidation is a trap that holds you back”; The Message Bible reads, “The fear of human opinion disables.” Indeed, the fear of human opinion leads to people-pleasing, compromised values, yielding to peer pressure, and bowing to political correctness, all of which “disables” the church. A desire in the church to be viewed by the world as progressive and tolerant is a snare satan has used to conform people to his way of thinking. The need to be liked and/or accepted outweighs the Word of God to many believers, causing compromise, lukewarmness, and a lack of fruit. The damage caused by the fear of man has been catastrophic to our nation, leading to the spiritual decay of three generations. Today, I’m going to share from three references that give us pictures and insights into this trap called “the fear of man.” Aaron The first is in Exodus 32. In Moses’s day, many of the Israelites had bought into polytheism. They believed in Yahweh but also in the existence of other gods. After their deliverance from Egypt, Moses had been on Mount Sinai for several weeks receiving God’s laws and ordinances for this new nation, Israel. He was gone longer than expected, and many of the people began to think he might never return (v. 1). Perhaps we need another god to help us since Moses, who represented Yahweh, is evidently not coming back, they reasoned. Pathetic! Aaron, whom Moses had left in charge, was then persuaded to fashion a golden calf for the people to worship (vv. 2-6). Pathetic times two! God was understandably angry and sent Moses back down the mountain to deal with this rebellion. Upon arrival, Moses’s choice of words to Aaron made it clear that God was holding Aaron partly responsible for this sin: God’s summary statement in verse 25 is VERY telling: “Aaron had let them run wild disgracing themselves before their enemies” (MSG). Another translation says, “Aaron had let them get out of control to be a derision among their enemies” (NASB). Aaron was intimidated by the uprising of the people, which caused him to compromise. The language of verse 25 - “Aaron had let them get out of control” - makes clear that had he stood his ground, God would’ve backed him. Leaders in the church must refuse to be intimidated by the whims or unbiblical desires of people; giving them what they want will never be an acceptable excuse to God. King Saul Another example of an Israelite leader yielding to the fear of man is in 1 Samuel 13. King Saul had been instructed to wait seven days for Samuel, a prophet and priest of Yahweh, to arrive and offer the necessary sacrifices for securing a military victory (1 Samuel 10:8). God permitted only priests to offer these sacrifices in Israel, not kings. But Israel’s enemies, the Philistines, had made their move, amassing a great army with which to attack them (1 Samuel 13:5). Without God’s help, things weren’t looking good, and without the sacrifices, they wouldn’t have this help. Saul waited almost the entire seven days for Samuel to arrive; but toward the end of the seventh day, with his army “scattering from him,” he disobeyed God and “offered the burnt offering” himself (vv. 8-9). Who showed up just as he was finishing the sacrifice? The prophet and priest, Samuel. The delay had been a test from God; and Saul, snared by fear of the Philistines and the scattering of his people, had failed it. God’s response to Saul through the prophet was essentially, I need someone to rule as king who will obey Me, regardless of what circumstances, enemies, and the people dictate. I need a man after My heart (vv. 13-14). “Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.” (1 Samuel 15:22-23) How many leaders in the church have “rejected” God’s Word, compromising in attempts to prevent people from scattering? The Jewish Leaders There is one final passage that gives a dire warning regarding the fear of man. At the end of Christ’s ministry, He had been teaching and performing miracles; many people, including Jewish leaders, now believed He was the Messiah. Yet, because of their fear of man, they would not acknowledge their belief in Him: What an indictment - loving the approval of men more than the approval of God! Interestingly, the Greek word translated “approval” (doxa)(1) is also the New Testament word for “glory.” Therefore, the indictment against these leaders should be translated as The Passion Translation words it: “For they loved the glory that men could give them rather than the glory that came from God!” (v.43). The glory they were receiving from man outweighed the glory of God. Sadly, this could be said of many leaders in the church today: popularity, approval from people, large crowds - these mean more to them than the glory of God. I believe God is changing this. Many leaders are discovering that the praise of men no longer satisfies. They’re also realizing that “powerless Christianity” is a contradiction of the Bible. They are awakening to the fact that we have lowered the standard and watered down the wine. We traded the glory of God for men’s applause, sound doctrine for storytelling, the power of Holy Spirit for personal comfort, and prayer for innovative ideas. Three lost generations and an apostate nation later, they have realized this isn’t working. And God is calling them back to the pattern found in the book of Acts. Our prayer comes from there today. Pray with me: “And now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant it to Your bond-servants to speak Your Word with all confidence, while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the Word of God with boldness. And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. And with great [megas/mega](2) power, the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant [megas/mega](3) grace was upon them all.” (Acts 4:29-33) Amen. Our decree: We decree that Jesus is building a bold church the gates of hell cannot overcome. ********************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. -------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990. ref. no. 1391. Ibid., ref no. 3173. Ibid.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-12-2024 December 12, 2024 Simplicity “But only one thing is necessary; for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:42) Ecclesiastes 7:29 says, “God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated” (GNT). I’ve always felt the latter part of the verse was true about women, and I’ve been told emphatically that the first half is true of men. But I now believe it is all true for all of us. I can complicate almost any problem, regardless of how simple it might be, making it huge and complex. And I don’t like it when someone else trivializes it or gives me some simple plan to fix it. Somehow, I just seem to feel more important when I have big problems with complicated solutions. No doubt about it, I’m an Ecclesiastes 7:29 kind of guy! We must learn to de-complicate life, but we must especially uncomplicate our relationship with Christ. Paul said to the church at Corinth: “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3; emphasis mine). Life can be very complicated; theology can as well. At times, if we’re not careful, both can get downright confusing. But the Lord impresses on my heart time and time again, “There is nothing complicated about a relationship with Me.” The great A. W. Tozer said: Tozer also said, “There are occasions when for hours I lay prostrate before God without saying a word of prayer or a word of praise – I just gaze on Him and worship.”2 Sometimes, no words are needed as we enjoy God’s company. In 2 Corinthians 11:3, “simplicity” is the Greek word haplotes. Its most literal meaning is “singleness, without dissimulation or duplicity;”3 or “the opposite of duplicity.”4 The verse is saying that in our devotion to Christ we must not be double-minded. We must guard against anything causing dissimulation, division, or a watering down. It is okay to be multifaceted in our gifts and activity, and it is wise to be broad-based in our understanding, but in our approach to relationship with Jesus, we must be very single-minded. Allow no other person or activity to crowd Him out. To take Him for granted or allow Him to simply be one of many priorities will weaken us spiritually. “One New Year’s Day in the Tournament of Roses parade, a beautiful float suddenly sputtered and quit. It was out of gas. The whole parade was held up until someone could get a can of gas. An amusing aspect of this was that the float represented the Standard Oil Company. With its vast oil resources, its truck was out of gas.”5 Often, we who have within us the well of salvation fail to drink from it. And, like the Standard Oil float, we sometimes run out of gas. Drink from the well daily. Don’t allow Christ to lose His wonder for you. In Christianity Today, Philip Yancey wrote: I’m afraid this describes many Christians’ relationships with the One we call Faithful and True. We’ve known Him so long, become so accustomed to Him, well, you know.… Don’t ever stop being impressed with Jesus! Do you ever listen and not really hear? The word “listening” in Greek is the word akouo, which means not only to hear, but to understand.7 One definition said, “To understand, hear with the ear of the mind.” Jesus repeatedly said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9; Luke 8:8; 14:35 NKJV). This places the responsibility of hearing on us. We must choose to posture ourselves in a way that allows us to truly hear. In Luke 10:38-42, Jesus commended Mary for listening (akouo),8 while Martha was busy in the kitchen. He said Mary had chosen the good thing, which would produce lasting fruit. Interestingly, the word for “obey” in Scripture (hupakouo)9 comes from the same word. The prefix hupo means “under,” making the literal meaning of this word, “hear under.”10 The biblical concept of obedience is: (1) hearing and understanding someone, then (2) bringing your will under what they have said. Mary was truly hearing (akouo) Christ, which would allow her to obey (hupakouo). May we be more like Mary, having unencumbered ears and truly willing to listen, hear, and obey. Pray with me: Father, life gets complicated at times. Our plates get full and we sometimes say we “don’t have enough hours in a day.” But You told us in Ecclesiastes that we complicate life. You have challenged us that no matter how busy and hectic life gets, we must keep our relationship with You foremost and simple – uncomplicated. We know that if we truly listen, You will speak to us both in our hearts and through Your Word. We choose to listen. We choose to have listening and hearing ears. And we choose to bring ourselves under what we hear from You; we choose to obey. We draw near to You, confident that as we do, You will draw near to us. We pray now for our brothers and sisters in Christ. We pray for refreshing to those who are weary, peace to those who are anxious, and endurance to those who are tired. We ask You for the Spirit of revelation to intensify among Your people. Holy Spirit, would You lift the veil in order that those who have never known they could hear Your voice would now begin hearing and enjoying intimacy with You. We ask for these things in Christ’s name, Amen. Our decree: We decree that we have ears to hear what Holy Spirit is saying to the church and that we will obey. ******************************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. -------------------------------------------------------- Rowell, Edward K. Quotes and Idea Starters for Preaching and Teaching: From Leadership Journal. Edited by Edward K. Rowell, Baker Books, 1996, p.181. Ibid., p.181. Strong, James. New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance. Thomas Nelson Incorporated, 2003, ref no. 572. Zodhiates, Spiros, editor. KJV Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible: Hardbound. AMG Publishers, 1991, p.1808. Larson, Craig Brian, editor. Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching: From Leadership Journal. Baker Books, 1993, p.181. Larson, Craig Brian, editor. Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching: From Leadership Journal. Baker Books, 1993, p. 68. Zodhiates, Spiros, editor. Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. AMG Publishers, 1998, p. 1802. “Strong's Greek: 191. ἀκούω (akouó) -- to hear, listen.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/greek/191.htm. Accessed 12 May 2023. “Strong's Greek: 5219. ὑπακούω (hupakouó) -- to listen, attend to, obey, answer.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/greek/5219.htm. Accessed 12 May 2023. “Strong's Greek: 5259. ὑπό (hupo) -- by, under, under authority” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/greek/5259.htm. Accessed 12 May 2023.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-11-2024 December 11, 2024 Running with the King’s Heart Second Samuel 18 is a sad chapter. King David’s traitorous son, Absalom, is killed and his coup overthrown. A “runner,” as they called them back then, needs to run with the bitter-sweet news to David: “The rebellion is over, but your son is dead.” A fast, gifted runner named Ahimaaz wanted to carry the news, but David’s general chose an unnamed Cushite, and off he went. Ahimaaz, however, was not to be denied: “Please let me also run” (v. 22). The general finally said okay, and Ahimaaz took off. He was so fast that he eventually passed the Cushite and proudly delivered the message to David that the coup was over. “Speed” had won…or had it? When David then asked about Absalom, Ahimaaz answered with embarrassment that he didn’t know. He hadn’t cared enough to find out about David’s son! The Cushite then arrived and gave David the full message: “The coup is over, but your son is dead.” Ahimaaz was very fast. He started last but arrived first. This gifted man ran in vain, however: "You will have no reward for going," the general had said (v. 22). Ahimaaz didn’t have the complete message. And he didn’t have it because he was not aligned with the king's heart. David had not only defeated an enemy, he had also lost a son. Ahimaaz eventually stepped aside in ignorance, insignificance, and embarrassment as a nameless individual took center stage and delivered the complete message. Our message will always be deficient in some way if it isn't connected to the King's heart. I'm speaking, of course, of God our King. The pleasure of God is and must remain the ultimate goal of our running. The glory and exaltation of the Son must be our desire. His passion and priority of harvesting sons and daughters into the family must become ours. God is willing to share His heart for America and the worldwide harvest with those who desire it. But beware - His heart is broken. When God touched my heart with His on October 4, 2000, I wasn't ready for what I felt. I thought mine was going to break in two. When He was finished, I had become a man with a cause - and ruined for life. Yes, ask for an impartation of God’s heart, but know that when you receive it, it will cost you. Why Are We Running? Why are we “running,” laboring for spiritual causes? Is it for personal fulfillment, fame, glory, self-aggrandizement, to make a name for ourselves? Or are we, like the Cushite in this passage, content to remain nameless? Is our motive advancement, a position to display our gifts or our speed? Are we wanting to build something big? In Philippians 3:14, Paul said, "I press toward the mark" (KJV). His goal, or “mark,” as he called it, was clear. In verse 12 (NASB), he said, "I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus." The Gift Mentality Unfortunately, the charismatic movement, as wonderful as I know it was, gave many a gift mentality: We ran on the strength of our gifts. The very word "charismatic" means "grace gift." This often led to a performance mentality: running to set records, to be first, to be the best, to be the biggest. "Build 'em big and build 'em fast!" became the mindset of many in the church. Overnight sensations were, and in many ways still are, the order of the day. There is nothing biblical about this mindset! Persistent, progressive, hang-in-there, long-term building should receive more honor than something produced quickly. Sadly, it does not. But far more character is needed to build a work or ministry over a long period of time than to enjoy something that springs up quickly. One of the basic problems with this unbiblical philosophy of success, aside from its inherent pride and self-exaltation, is that if any part of our vision is born from ambition rather than God's heart, we are soon running for ourselves, not the King. Zeal that was originally intended to do something for God, often becomes a zeal to remain successful. This change can be so subtle it frequently happens without us even realizing it. The church in America is inundated with ambitious Ahimaazes - people running for their own fame and success rather than for God’s heart. Vision for the future must not be our starting place. Vision, born of God's heart, must be our starting place. The questions we must continually ask ourselves are: How well do I understand and relate to the King's heart in this matter? Is that, and that alone, my motive for running? Was His heart the birthplace of my vision? Our speed or giftedness NEVER validates our running. Holy Hubert Hubert Lindsay (“Holy Hubert”), a gentleman used greatly by God in the early days of the Jesus People/Charismatic Movement, exemplifies a life lived according to God's heart. “The Jesus People Movement” was used by God to bring thousands of drug-addicted, sexually active, disillusioned, and rebellious young people into the Kingdom of God. Like King David, who was not called by his father to join the “Potential King Pageant” (see 1 Samuel 16), nothing about Holy Hubert's appearance or personality caused him to stand apart. But like David, he possessed something more important: God’s heart for a generation. I once had the privilege of hearing Mr. Lindsay speak. He told of his calling to minister on the University of California at Berkeley campus, and spoke of the miracles and salvations. He mixed in some humor, and we all laughed, cheered, and applauded. What impacted me most, however, was a passing comment Holy Hubert made about how his ministry at Berkeley had been birthed. "I became so burdened for this generation," Mr. Lindsay said, "that I would walk the streets of the campus - sometimes all night long - weeping and interceding for those lost kids. I pled with God to save those young people." God had given this man His heart for a lost generation. The Lord answered Hubert’s cry - because it was His own - and gave him a revival. Church historians agree that the Jesus People movement was incredibly significant in the entire spiritual renewal of the '60s and '70s. And when tracing the roots of The Jesus People Movement, one invariably ends up at Berkeley with Holy Hubert Lindsay. Lindsay’s burden cost him dearly, however. His broken heart led to broken bones - not to a large salary or a huge congregation. Lindsay and his wife were beaten on numerous occasions, stabbed, mocked, and ridiculed as they preached the gospel on campus. His wife eventually suffered brain damage from this, and Holy Hubert lost his sight due to the beatings. Just as the apostle Paul, they bore on their bodies the marks of the Lord Jesus (see Galatians 6:17). The Lindsays picture for us the principle of running with the heart of God, allowing that to become the motivation for ministry. This releases pure revival, keeping it free from the debris of pride and selfish motivation. The Charismatic Movement’s overall weakness in this regard, however, resulted in a generation of Christians who believed giftedness qualified one for ministry. Character and God’s heart were replaced by other priorities and motivations, which inevitably led many to build personal kingdoms. A cooperative heart was superseded by a competitive heart. Travailing, agonizing prayer was replaced with innovation and the strength of our gifts. Last, and probably most tragically, success was measured not by how well we knew the Father but by how well-known we were. Speed, fueled by ignorance, raced forward out of control and with deficient messages. Ahimaaz passed the Cushite, and the King wept. Now, we are in desperate need of an alignment; our fast-moving, state-of-the-art churches are pulling hard to the right and left. A "presence" revival, built around intimacy with the King and His version of success, will be required to correct this. Pray with me: Father, like an automobile traveling down a well-worn road, the potholes of undealt-with ambition and desire for success knock us out of alignment. Before we know it, like Ahimaaz, we are running for our own fulfillment, not Yours, speeding down life’s highway in search of self-worth and success. Passion for You will correct this. We believe this has begun. As it continues, our hearts will burn for You, not for our own fulfillment and personal kingdoms. Religion will be replaced by relationship; intimacy with You will be our desire and the fuel for our activities. Give us Your heart for lost and hurting people. Give us Your heart for the broken, wounded, and confused. Give us Your heart, even for the rebel. Break our hearts for them - give us many who will walk the streets, weeping for those who are so lost. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. Our decree: We decree that the heart of God is being imparted to the church, making us nameless, faceless, and powerful. *************************** Portions of today’s devotional were taken from my book Praying for America,(1) which is no longer in print. Click on the link below to watch the full video. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Sheets, Dutch. Praying for America. Regal Books, 2001.

5 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-10-2024 December 10, 2024 The Dance of Passover In 1 Kings 18, Elijah assembled the Israelites on Mount Carmel in what was to be an epic showdown between Yahweh and Baal; Israel was worshiping Baal in this season. Ahab and Jezebel had led Israel into deep idolatry - much like America’s ungodly, immoral leaders have done. The attendees of the Democratic Convention in 2012 literally booed God “off the stage” and out of their platform. Why not? America had already expelled Him from their schools. The homosexual movement in America has mocked God, using His symbol of covenant, the rainbow (Genesis 9:13-16), as their symbol. Obama followed suit, again mocking God’s covenant - marriage, this time - by lighting the White House in the colors of the rainbow when the Supreme Court made homosexual “marriage” the law of the land. Biden hung the rainbow flag front and center at the White House, pushing aside Old Glory to do so, as transvestites bared their “breasts” on the White House lawn. Ahab and Jezebel would have been proud. In Elijah’s day, Israel was experiencing judgment for this idolatry and its accompanying perversions, a three-year drought that was ravaging the land. America’s troubles, too, are from our rejection of God and His Word. Israel’s judgment was accomplishing its purpose, and repentance was now possible; thus, the showdown on Mount Carmel. I’m confident America’s shaking will awaken us, as well. Elijah prophesied that rain was coming and then called for the contest (I Kings 18:1-2, 19). As preparations were being made, he challenged Israel, “How long will you halt between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal is God, follow him” (18:21 KJV). There was as yet no answer. Israel still couldn’t decide between Yahweh and Baal. The word for “halt” (pasach)(1) is fascinating. The Hebrew language is pictorial. A word or number presents a picture that can represent several things; the meaning and/or application of the picture is determined by the context. Regarding this word, for example, picture the up-and-down movement of someone jumping or hopping; that is pasach. Therefore, it is the word used for “hop, skip, or dance.” At other times, the up-and-down movement represents pain, not celebration. Thus, it is also the word for “limping, lame, halt” (a synonym for limp). It is also used for “hesitate,” because to hesitate is to move backward and forward, mentally or physically, while trying to decide something. Pasach is also the word for “pass over” (Exodus 12:13, 23, 27): “When I see the blood I will pass over you” (v. 13). The spirit of death “leapt” or “passed over” the Israelite homes that had the blood of lambs on the lintels of the doors. And a derivative, pesach,(2) became the word for “Passover.” Putting this back into Elijah’s question to Israel, God was essentially asking them in 1 Kings 18:21, Why are you hesitating, halting about who you honor, serve, and trust? You could and should be dancing the dance of covenant with Me, the dance of Passover. Instead, you are limping the limp of Baal. The Complete Jewish Bible translates verse 21: Then, the showdown began. Baal’s prophets went first, trying to get Baal to answer by fire. But God had paralyzed the demons behind Baal, and they couldn’t perform. His followers tried many things to get him to respond, including leaping and dancing (pasach). Don't miss the revealing irony that Holy Spirit is bringing by using the very same word for their dancing worship of Baal as He uses for Israel’s limp. Baal’s dance always becomes a limp. His worshipers then cut themselves, and blood “gushed” forth. Baal demands pain; he craves and demands bloodshed. Meet America. For many years, we in America danced the dance of Passover. As a result, we were protected, made prosperous, and became the envy of the world. Then, we traded partners. America has been dancing with Baal for decades now, mocking Adonai and His covenant, partying away. But like the Pied Piper, Baal’s “services” aren’t free. He required a price for the party, demanding the blood sacrifice of our children; now, he is demanding their mutilation. He has provoked our children to cut themselves, seeking peace they cannot find. And he has unleashed further violence and death in our land: murder, rape, riots, child abuse and more. We now stumble along with Baal’s painful limp, as he plays his flute and drinks the blood. God’s word to America, just as it was to Israel, is this: How long will you hesitate between opinions, limping Baal’s limp? Return to Me. We’ll celebrate the Passover Lamb again, dancing together in the joyous dance of freedom and victory. I’ll heal your wounds, restore your families, revive the land, and reinstate your destiny. We’ll run together, taking My salvation to the nations of the earth, healing the broken, and freeing the oppressed. May we accept His gracious offer! Join me, please, in asking. Pray with me: Father, we in America have sown to the wind and are now reaping the whirlwind. Like Israel, we traded the Passover dance for the limp of Baal. The death toll from this choice is in the tens of millions. Were it not for Your redemptive power and love, it would ultimately be America’s total annihilation. Mercy is being offered to us, however; not because we deserve it, but through the only appeal You accept, one offered through the blood of Your Son, Jesus. Forgive us for spurning You for demons. Forgive us for sacrificing our children and families on the altar of pleasure and depravity. Forgive us for mocking You and Your covenant of marriage. We ask for the salvation of all who have been deceived into turning away from You and rejecting Your ways. Lord, You broke the rule of Baal off Israel, and You can do so for America. We ask for a reviving of America’s heart and soul, a deliverance from evil, and a return to good. You told us to ask for spiritual rain when we discerned it was “time” (Zechariah 10:1). We are asking, and the rain is coming. We believe this is a season of breakthrough. We ask You for this, and all we have prayed for today, in Christ’s name. Amen. Our decree: We decree that America will choose the dance of Passover, and be healed of her Baal-worshiping limp. **************************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. ----------------------------------------------------------- James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990. ref. no. 6452. Ibid., ref. no. 6453.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-9-2024 December 9, 2024 Epoch-Making Revival One of my favorite verses on revival is Acts 3:19: “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” As is often the case, our English translation doesn’t fully convey the Greek content. The phrase “times of refreshing” is loaded with meaning. “Times” is translated from the word kairos, which means “opportune time.”(1) Wuest, a very literal translator of the New Testament, uses the following phrases to translate kairos: “epoch-making periods” (see Acts 3:19); “strategic, significant period” (see Acts 12:1); “strategic, epochal time” (see Acts 19:23). Using his words, kairos times are strategic, significant, and potentially epoch-making. America must experience an “epoch-making” revival.(2) I looked up the hyphenated phrase “epoch-making” to gain full understanding. It means “significant by virtue of ensuing historical developments,”(3) “a period of time characterized by momentous events or changes,”(4) and “a fixed point of time from which succeeding years are numbered.”(5) That’s what we’re after - momentous events and changes. A revival so great it is historical, one from which succeeding years are numbered, like epoch-making and historical floods. The year is remembered, like the Johnstown Flood of 1889 or the Big Thompson Canyon (Colorado) Flood of 1976. The size of the flood is measured by how often one of that proportion comes: a 50-year flood or a 100-year flood. We want a flood of the river of God so great that people will speak of it the way they speak of physical floods: a revival of such monumental proportions that it is historical. Breathe On Us, Oh God! The word “refreshing” in Acts 3:19 is also important. Anapsuxis is compounded from two words, ana and psucho. Strong’s Concordance says ana means “repetition, intensity or reversal.”(6) Zodhiates agrees, and adds the word “increase.”(7) Psucho means “to breathe, blow or refresh with cool air.”(8) Here are five definitions of anapsucho or anapsuxis: “to draw breath again” “to revive by fresh air”(9) “to cool or refresh with a breath” “to regain strength” “Restoration”(10) In this verse, Peter is saying that if we respond properly to the Holy Spirit, it will create a kairos time for God to once again breathe on us; revive us with a fresh breath, restore us, and give us new strength. I also like the concept of intensity in ana. God wants to breathe on us again intensely. Peter was apparently thinking back a few days to Pentecost when the breath of God blew intensely, once more filling humans with the Spirit and life of God. In Ezekiel 37:1-14, dry bones are used to represent spiritual death. To reverse this, God first caused the bones to reconnect; then He put skin on them, “but there was no breath in them” (v. 8). The prophet was then told, “Prophesy to the breath…say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life”’” (v. 9). God’s breath bringing life is what occurred in Genesis 2:7. He breathed into Adam’s lifeless body, infusing it with His life. In Acts 3, Peter thought back through history - Genesis, Ezekiel, Pentecost - and prophesied that it could happen again if the people would obey the Holy Spirit. They did and God did; and it has happened since, on numerous occasions. God is ready to do it yet again! He wants to release His breath, another wind, to our generation, and He wants to do so with great intensity. Buy the Opportunity! We must seize the moment. Twice the New Testament tells us to “redeem the time” (see Ephesians 5:15-17; Colossians 4:5, KJV). "Redeem" is translated from exagorazo, meaning “buy or purchase,” and “time” is kairos. We are told to buy the opportune time.(11) Indeed, opportunities must be bought; they cost us - time, energy, abilities, money, even our very lives. If we don’t spend what is necessary and “buy” them, opportunities can be lost. We must not miss our opportunity to change the world! Let’s buy the opportunity for an epoch-making revival. Seek Vision for the Harvest Allow God to birth vision in you, vision that will motivate you to faith and action. Vision is a life-changer, a rearranger, a cause producer. Its hunger can be insatiable, a motivating force creating energy and energizing creativity. Vision moves us from mere mental assent to physical exertion. It separates the hearer from the doer, a convert from a disciple, and mediocrity from excellence. Vision is also what separates a ripe harvest from a reaped harvest (see Matthew 9:37). Let’s ask God to increase vision and passion for a historical, epoch-making revival, and for hearts willing to buy the opportunity. Pray with me: Father, we ask You to increase our passion and vision for the epoch-making revival You have planned. Light the flames of passion in the church to such intensity that no price will be too great to pay. Awaken hearts to seize the moment, and buy the opportune time You have created. Bring vision to believers, motivating them to write history. Breathe on the dry bones of the earth and give them life. Save and deliver, redeem and transform. Make this an epochal, historic revival - unlike any other. We believe entire nations can and will be born-again in a day. Do it, we pray! Send the rushing, mighty wind of Acts 2. Give us miracles on the level of Acts 3 that cause thousands to be saved. Blow Your breath all over the world. We ask these things through Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. Our decree: We decree that the life-giving breath of God is bringing an epoch-making revival to earth again, and this cannot be stopped! *************************** I encourage you to visit YouTube, where you can listen to the song, Revive Us (Revival in Belfast) by Robin Mark. Click the link below to watch the full video: Today’s devotional was taken from my book Praying for America,(13) which is no longer in print.

6 min read https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-6-2024 5🌟 December 6, 2024 Let's Finish This! As the book of Ezra opens, Cyrus, king of Persia, allows a remnant of Israelites to return to Jerusalem for the purpose of rebuilding their Temple. Seventy years prior, God had allowed Israel to be taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, because of their apostasy. Later, they came under the rule of Cyrus when he conquered Babylon. God then moved upon the heart of Cyrus, a pagan and idolatrous king, to permit this return. He even stirred Cyrus’ heart to help the remnant raise the needed funds for rebuilding (Ezra 1:1-4), and returned to them all the vessels and utensils Nebuchadnezzar had plundered from the Temple. A remnant returned to Jerusalem under Zerubbabel’s leadership and began the work. Ezra tells us: It has always intrigued me that many younger Israelites shouted for joy while some of the older ones wept. We are left to wonder why the older folks wept. Joy? Grieving lost years? Realizing just how far they had to go? One thing is certain: their perspective was different. There is one more certainty about the celebration which took place that day: it was a bit premature. Satan had plans for the project, also. Daniel 7:25 tells us he attempts to alter “times and laws.” The Hebrew word used for “time” in this verse means an appointed time;(1) the word for “laws” means, among other things, the decree of a king.(2) God our King, appoints our times and seasons; He also decrees His good plans and purposes for us, both in His written Word and prophetically. However, this verse tells us satan tries to alter those times and decrees. We know he can’t do so by overpowering or outwitting God; he attempts to do so by attacking us. Daniel 7:25 also reveals one of the ways satan tries to do so: by “wearing down” the saints. The Hebrew word this is taken from is never used in Scripture to describe physical fatigue, only mental and emotional weariness. Satan attempts to wear us down in our souls, causing us to “grow weary” (literally: “lose heart”) in our efforts (Galatians 6:9). Fear, discouragement, lack of endurance, hope-deferred, and other emotional responses attack our faith and, if not guarded against, can cause us to lose heart. If this weariness occurs, it can alter our God-appointed times. This time-altering strategy worked against the remnant sent to rebuild the Temple of God. Satan’s method in that situation was to work through other people in the region: These “propagandists,” or “counselors,” as other translations refer to them, were basically lobbyists, individuals hired and sent to the king with accusations and misinformation. They succeeded in planting concerns in him that, once the Israelites rebuilt their temple, they would rebel from his rule and cause great problems in his kingdom. The Israelites, rather than remaining strong and trusting God to help them overcome this, yielded to fear and discouragement. The result? The rebuilding of the temple stopped for 16 years! All they had produced was a foundation. During this time, though abandoning God’s house, the Israelites began building their own homes and businesses. They attempted to justify this by saying it must not yet be God’s appointed time for the Temple to be rebuilt. Opposition, however, should never be allowed to determine what we believe to be God’s will. Nor should this be something used to judge whether or not it is His appointed time for something. Eventually, God had enough of their complacency and raised up a prophet, Haggai, to deliver His message to them: When the people responded appropriately to God’s words, He was quick to respond with grace and favor. Turns out it wasn’t those in opposition to God that were His problem; He was well able to deal with them. His people were the problem! What God needed was a people of faith who would not succumb to fear, discouragement, or self-centeredness. When they were able to shake off these things, God favored them once again and said, I am with you! Let’s go! A month later, Haggai encouraged them by prophesying again, Like this remnant in Israel, many in the church of America have grown weary in their prayers for revival and the rebuilding of our nation. Lobbyists, media opposition, unrighteous laws, intimidating government agencies, elections that didn’t go our way, ungodly politicians - satan has used these and more, attempting to wear us down. Some responded just as these Israelites did, deciding it must not be time for America’s turnaround. Yet many did not! God now needs for us to persevere in our faith and prayers. We must not allow satan to alter our appointed times and God’s promised recovery by wearing us down. Don’t be intimidated. God can deal with His enemies, just as He did in Haggai’s day. Determine that nothing will stop us – wars, threats, fear, discouragement, setbacks, unbelief – nothing. Let’s finish this! Pray with me: Father, You have begun a good work in our nation. You’ve raised up a remnant of people determined to birth revival, and see America accomplish all You have destined for her. We are determined to see righteousness in our government once again, determined to see the young generation of Americans come to know You, and determined to see world-wide revival - at least a billion souls. We will not stop with only a foundation. We will not yield to opposition, fear, confusion, unbelief, discouragement, or selfishness. We will finish this! We WILL finish this! Raise up Haggais in our day with Your words. Stir the hearts of Your people. We ask for an infusion of strength and hope. We ask that mental fatigue and emotional weariness be broken off of the praying church, the remnant. Send a wind of Holy Spirit to us now, we pray. Stir up hearts that once burned with fire for revival and breakthrough, but have now settled for less. Stir up the hearts of pastors who have chosen to settle for less than the fires of revival. Stir up intercessors who have allowed the fire to go out. Awaken us all to Your passion in this hour. May there be a roar of intercession that is released in this nation and the nations of the earth. We ask You, “Rend the heavens and come down!” We make these requests in the mighty name of Jesus, Amen. Our decree: God is with us; we will arise and build..! ****************🌟*************** Click on the link below to watch the full video. --------------------------------------------------- “Strong’s Hebrew: 2165. זְמָן (zeman) -- appointed time, occasion, season; time.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2165.htm. Accessed 12 May 2023. “Strong’s Hebrew: 1882. דָּת (dath) -- decree, law.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1882.htm. Accessed 12 May 2023.