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HEARING FROM THE LORD STEP BY STEP--By Peter CM/FM 3149 7/97
1. One of the main things that the Lord is trying to teach us in the Family--and it's perhaps the most important thing that we need to learn today--is to personally hear from the Lord, as well as to enact what the Lord shows us to do, not only in the big matters, but also in the little everyday matters. He wants us to involve Him in our daily lives and daily decisions as much as possible. This is a lesson He's been teaching me and others in WS, a lesson that all of us need.
2. We need to understand very clearly that the Lord wants to speak to us in prophecy, and that He wants to answer our questions--even our everyday questions. He wants us to bring specific questions to Him so we can get specific answers from Him, much more so than most of us have been doing.
3. I usually have prayer and prophecy six mornings a week with Mama, so in that sense I'm "forced" to stop and hear from the Lord and to get prophecy every day. But that doesn't necessarily mean that I'm operating in the way the Lord is trying to teach us to operate. I've come to recognize that in my personal work, in the letter writing I do, the financial decisions, the business matters, and even in the inspirational side of things, I need to bring questions to the Lord and get answers in prophecy much more than I have been. In hearing what the Lord has had to say on this subject, I'm convicted that I haven't gotten the point before this.
4. The way I've operated in my daily work for most of my time in the Family has been to pray desperately and fervently for the Lord to lead and guide and direct me in whatever project is before me. Then I have started to work, knowing that the Lord was answering as I got inspired and things fell into place. I have desperately prayed to begin with and asked the Lord to help me and to lead and guide me. I then went ahead doing what I believed the Lord wanted me to, or I followed the general direction which He showed me, the way He was leading and guiding me.
5. Though this may have been an okay way to operate before, the Lord is now trying to get us to go further by having us bring Him our specific questions and receive His specific answers and counsel in prophecy. He's trying to get us to bring Him much more into our decision-making process. It doesn't seem that He's satisfied any longer with us spending a great deal of time in prayer asking for His help and guidance, but then not taking sufficient time to listen to the specific guidance that He wants to give us in prophecy. I know I've been guilty of not listening enough.
6. I would venture to say that very few of us are stopping and actually pulling out our dictaphones and praying and asking the Lord to give us answers on specific questions anywhere near the amount that the Lord seems to want us to. (By the way, when I say "dictaphone" in this Letter, that's not the only method. You can also write or type your prophecies as they come. The point is simply to record what the Lord says.) I don't believe that the Lord wants us to go to the extreme and ask Him for a prophecy about every infinitesimal thing, but there are a lot of times when questions come up that we need answers to, or when we're not sure about what to do, that He wants us to ask Him for His answers.
7. What the Lord is trying to tell us now is that it's not enough to pray at the beginning, "Lord, help me with this project, I really need Your help," and then just go and do it. Even asking people to lay hands on you and pray over you isn't enough, although it might be a good beginning step. We need to not only hear from Him directly in prophecy at the beginning, but regularly check back with Him as the work progresses. Unless you stop from time to time and ask Him, "Is this the right way, or is there anything You want to tell me particularly about this today?" you can miss so much.
8. In the past, after having initial prayer for the project, I would generally carry out the directions the Lord had given without going back to Him in prayer for further directions. Since I knew the general direction He was leading, I just went that direction without going back to Him for further confirmations that I was staying on track with the way He wanted things done. I didn't ask Him specifically what to do about the more minor aspects of the project; I didn't ask Him if He had a particular way He wanted it done. I basically just found out what the goal was and then went ahead and tried to accomplish that to the best of my ability. I didn't involve Him in the details of carrying out His will.
9. I have since learned that even after the Lord has initially shown us the way to go on something, He wants us to continue to specifically ask Him if we're proceeding in the right direction. He wants us to keep the channel open so that He can speak to us in case He has some new information or new direction for us.
10. There are times when the Lord shows you to move in a certain direction toward something, and you begin to do so, but you also need to keep checking back with Him, because sometimes He may want to adjust the course. It's like being on a ship: You get out to sea, and you know you're supposed to go west, so you start going west. But then after a while the captain may fine-tune the course so you're headed a little northwest or a little southwest. But if you don't go back to the Lord, if you don't open the channel for Him to speak to you and tell you the course modifications, you might miss exactly where He wants you to go. The point that the Lord has kept bringing out is the need for us to not only pray but also to listen.--And to listen to Him on the subject more than once, if we want to get things right. Here's something He said that clearly makes this point:
A New Kind of Prayerfulness
11. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }A pillar in the principle of hearing from Me and following Me day by day is that you must frequently come back to ask Me and make sure that what you are doing is exactly what I want you to do. This is a principle of the Spirit.
12. You can't just get the general instruction in the beginning and then go from there without coming back to ask Me again and again if you're getting it right, to make sure you're not missing anything. You must realize that I'm not just talking about the spirit of prayerfulness and acknowledging Me, but I'm talking about hearing from Me, My direct Words of instruction in prophecy. That's the prayerfulness I'm looking for. That's the kind of seeking Me and following Me step by step that I desire.
13. I want you to not only acknowledge Me and look to Me and read My written Word and pray before you start your work, or before you start your meetings, or as you counsel and make your decisions, but I want you to actually hear from Me and get a confirmation on the direction you're taking and the decisions you're making. This is a new kind of prayerfulness, a new kind of seeking Me and following Me step by step. It is much more effective, much safer and much more dependable. (End of message from Jesus.)
14. {\b \i (Peter:)} The Lord wants us to have this new spirit of prayerfulness and He wants us to listen for His answers. He wants us to come back to Him again and again. He wants to be included not just at the beginning of a project, but constantly throughout. That is the kind of prayerfulness He's looking for today. He wants to be part of our daily lives, our daily decisions. He wants us to look to Him in all of our decision-making.
Leaning on the Lord's Directions Today, Not Past Experiences
15. I haven't utilized this new type of prayerfulness, of listening, nearly enough in my life. I've had a tendency to lean on my anointing and on my past experiences with Dad. But I'm seeing that even the good ways that Dad taught me in business or in financial management aren't always the way the Lord wants it done today. I was recently faced with some major questions about some needed changes in our financial giving. My mindset was to base this decision on the way I had always done it when Dad was here. He taught me well, and the way he showed me to handle these financial matters has always worked, so I naturally felt led to continue on in this manner. However, when praying about it and taking time to hear from the Lord, He showed me a different way to do it. After that, Dad added a message, part of which I'll include here for your interest.
16. {\b \i (Dad speaking:)} Well, folks, you know me--I was never afraid to make changes. I was never afraid to do new things in new ways, because I knew the Lord was leading me to do them in that way. That's how it is with you too; you've gotta be willing to change and do things the way the Lord shows you today. You can't just do them the way I did them, because it's now a new day, and if I were there I'd be doing them differently too. I've always told you that you have to seek the Lord every day and do what the Lord shows you to do today. Don't go by yesterday's battle plans, because if you do, all you can fight is yesterday's battles, and that means you'll lose today's battles.
17. So don't be afraid to move and change. Don't be afraid to do new things, even things that seem contrary to the way I did them. And even if they are contrary to the way I did them in the past, don't think that I would've stuck to my guns and done'm the past way today and in the future, because I was willing to change and to do new things in new situations and new times according to the direction of the Lord.
18. So don't get too hung up on the way I did things, especially if the Lord's showing you a new way to do something today. If I were there and He was showing me a new way to do it, then I'd do it the new way and I wouldn't give a hoot about the way I did it before. You've just got to follow the Lord, step by step, day by day.
19. Don't be hung up on things of the past, because you're moving on to the future, and you're heading there at a fairly rapid pace. There's lots in store for you up ahead; there's lots comin' and you've got to be ready and prepared for it. So don't look back--look forward. That doesn't mean to throw away all the past and forget it completely, because there's a lot there that's good for you--good principles, good guidance, the strength of the Word, and all the rest.
20. But you've gotta move forward with the Spirit of God. You've gotta move forward listening to His voice and following His plan, because He's the One Who knows where He's going. He's the One Who knows what needs to be done. So as you follow along faithfully, as you listen, as you cry out to Him, as you do what He says to do, you will be accomplishing His will and you will be swept along in His wake and you'll move faster and faster toward the goal that He has for you--the goal of His will, of reaching the world, of preparing all things so that He can return one day to rescue you all and rapture you into His arms!
21. So don't be afraid to move ahead. Don't be afraid to make changes. Don't be afraid to do new and radical things.--And you are! You are moving ahead, far beyond where I was willing to go when I was with you. You're willing to do it because the Lord is showing you to do it and He gives you the faith. He gives you the message and the vision, and it gives you the faith and the courage to do the job, to consider things like the GPU and going legal in that arena. Boy, I don't think I would've gone for that when I was there! But see, when I was there, it wasn't the time. But now it is the time.
22. Now's the time for other changes and other ways to move forward, and the Lord will reveal these to you step by step. You do your part, like He said, and He will do His part. And don't worry about it; go forth in faith. You can do that now because you came to the Lord and He gave you the message, which gives you the vision, which gives you the faith and the courage to do it. So do it! Just do it and you know the Lord will bless. As you do one thing He shows you to do, then He'll show you the next thing, and the next and the next, and on and on as you just keep moving forward, keep progressing, keep marching forward--forward into the future, forward into the Millennium, forward into His arms, forward to forever! (End of message from Dad.)
23. {\b \i (Peter:)} Now, what Dad said in this message doesn't mean we should throw away everything that Dad ever taught us, which he confirmed above. It's just that we have to do like Dad has always said to do: Follow the Spirit of God today, in the same manner that Dad always followed the Spirit of God, no matter where God led. If the Lord showed Dad to change the way he had been doing something before, even if he had been doing it that way for years, he didn't hesitate to go the new direction the Lord was leading him. If Dad had been in the same situation that I was in when faced with these particular financial questions, I believe that Dad probably would have done the same thing that we're going to do in regards to them, because the Lord would have showed him to do something different than the norm.
24. That's the whole point the Lord is trying to make: Sometimes He wants to do things different than the way we've always done them. And the way He can let us know that He wants us to do something different is if we include Him more in our decision-making.
25. I don't know about you, but for me it's quite different when I pray about something and sort of get a leading from the Lord or a word or a verse or a feeling, versus when I do it "officially"--coming before the Lord in prayer, with tape recorder in hand, waiting for the Lord to speak and recording it. When I take the time to pray and ask the Lord to "officially" speak in prophecy, there's a lot more to the answer--more explanation, more lessons, more teaching, and much more spiritual insight that I wouldn't get if I just prayed in my heart and asked the Lord, "Am I going the right way, am I doing the right thing?" and getting a "Yes, this is the right way," or something along that line.
26. There's a big difference. It seems that the Lord is trying to teach us to go to Him more fully on some of these matters in order to get fuller answers, even though we are capable, in many cases, of just getting a simple answer. Even if our feelings or our leadings are right because of the anointing the Lord has given us, He may have more to say.
Leaning on the Lord's Leadings, Not Just Our Anointing
27. We all have our talents and past experience, along with the gifts of the Spirit, which help us to do our particular jobs. We also have our anointing for the work the Lord has given us, which gives us the right leadings in matters. But we can't lean only on that anointing, nor on our gifts and talents. The Lord is making it clear that He wants us to hear from Him directly and personally so that we can be more certain of things, so that He can give us an even fuller anointing. The following is a very significant prophecy about our anointing:
28. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }I give each person gifts and talents--gifts of My Spirit, gifts of My anointing, talents in the natural. It all comes from Me, for these are the gifts and talents which I have poured upon each one.
29. With each position that people are in, I pour forth My anointing, and this allows them to do the job, helps them and gives them the necessary gifts. For without My anointing--the gifts of My Spirit and the spirit helpers that I give to each one--they could not do the job, for they would not have the wisdom nor the understanding nor the depth in spirit that they need. It is My anointing that gives them these things so that they may accomplish the task, so that they may do the job, and so that they may have confidence in doing it, knowing that I have gifted them by My anointing.
30. Though this gift of My anointing and the talents that I have given are from Me, still, you must not depend solely upon them, but you must also look unto My face to receive My direct guidance, so that you know for sure that the ways which you naturally feel about things--natural through My gifts and My anointing--are right. For you cannot depend solely upon these gifts, these anointings, these feelings, these natural leadings, because there are some things that are much greater than these, which require more than just leaning upon your anointing, gifts and talents. In those times, you must come before Me and seek My wisdom and voice directly.
31. I want you to use the gifts, the talents, the anointing that I have poured forth upon you. But you must also come to Me in prayer, listening to My voice and hearing My answers, so that I can confirm that which you feel, or show you new directions in which you may go, or give you answers that you could not have known otherwise.
32. For the anointings that I pour forth are not full and complete in themselves. If I poured full anointings on people, if I gave them all the wisdom that they needed, and all the understanding and all the answers, would they need to look to Me any longer? No. They would lean upon this anointing.
33. For many, their anointing is not that clearly seen in their own hearts and in their own minds because they have become so used to their anointing. They have become used to hearing answers through the anointing, through having the correct feelings and leadings. The anointing becomes one with them, becomes part of them, and it is part of them. So I do not pour the anointing forth in full measure, lest the one who is anointed forget Me.
34. The anointing that I give you is through those spirit helpers who have wisdom and intelligence, and they are there with you constantly, helping you to see things properly. But these spirit helpers are not Me. They are not all-knowing, and thus you must look unto My face and hear My voice. I give you these helpers--this anointing--to make the job easier for you. I have given you these helpers to commune with you, to put thoughts in your mind and in your heart, to give you the leanings and the leadings of the Spirit. That's My anointing.
35. But I do not give you full measure because these that help you are not God, and thus they cannot know everything. They are there to make your job easier--to make it more efficient, and to keep you moving in the right direction, but this does not negate the need to cry out to Me and to hear My voice for those things that you need to know.
36. I give each person gifts and talents, and they can use these, for it makes their work, their life and all that they do easier. But they cannot solely depend upon this anointing. They must look up to Me and receive My Words, My direction and My guidance, so that they may know that what they do is right. Thus they may go forth in full faith, for they have sought Me and have heard My voice.
37. They must come before Me in humility, in openness and receptivity, so that if I do have something to say to them, or guidance to give them, or a new direction for them to move in, they will be ready and open to receive it. For if they go only by their anointing, they cannot clearly get the new directions that I am leading in, and neither can they have full faith for the new directions unless it is confirmed by Me.
38. So you must use it all. You must use the anointing, the gifts and the talents. You must also use your direct link with Me and hearing My voice. And you must use your past experience as well--all of this put together.
39. But do not forget that I am the Lord your God. I am the only One Who knows all things. Therefore you must come to Me in faith and in openness, with a receptive heart, to hear what I have to say, so that you are not leaning only upon the gifts and the talents and the anointing, because these are not enough. It requires Me. I round it out and make it full, complete and whole.
40. So if you wish to be full and complete and whole in the work that I have given you to do, then you must use all of it--your gifts, your talents, your anointing, and My voice. Then will you have great success, then will you operate in the full anointing of God, and then will you accomplish My will in greater ways with greater ease. For you will be operating in the full power and anointing of God. (End of message from Jesus.)
41. ({\b \i Peter:)} 'So if we want the full anointing, we need to take time to hear from the Lord, to commune with Him, spend time with Him, and check back with Him regularly, to make sure that we're not going by yesterday's instructions or what "feels" right according to our anointing, but rather by what we know is right according to what the Lord has specifically told us.
42. After listening to the above prophecy, Mama thought it would be helpful to ask the Lord to clarify the difference between the gifts, the talents and the anointing, and the "full anointing." When we asked the Lord for further insight, He said:
43. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }I give talents to each person that is born, inborn talents, passed on from generation to generation through the genes of their parents. Each man needs these talents in his life as they help to make him what he is. These are natural talents given to all men. There are some to whom I give special gifts, those whom I have chosen for special tasks, special discoveries, special uses, great things that they need to do. I give unto these special gifts.
44. To those that are My children of faith do I pour forth the gifts of My Spirit. And when I give My children a job to do, I also give them a gift of My anointing.
45. The talents are those things that are passed on in the natural, by the miracle-working power of My creation. The gifts of My Spirit are those gifts that I give to My children who call out to Me and claim these gifts--gifts of wisdom and knowledge, of discernment, of miracles, of healing, of tongues, of prophecy; gifts of love, of soothing hands and comforting hearts, of sacrificial love. These are gifts of My Spirit that I give to My children.
46. The gift of My anointing is the gift of those spirit helpers who have gone on before you, who have done these jobs, and thus can give you wise counsel. The gifts of My Spirit are also spirit helpers that help you in the exercising of the gifts that I have poured forth unto you.
47. The gift of My anointing changes depending on the work that you do. If you are doing one job, then I can pour forth this anointing through the spirit helpers who help you in this job. But when you change from this job to the next job--a different job, a different ministry--then you lose those that anointed you for the first job and you take on new spirit helpers that anoint you in the next job. These helpers are designated and designed to help you do your work, your ministry. They are not on permanent assignment to you, but are on temporary assignment to help you in the specific ministry that you work on at this time. Whereas those spirit helpers that are assigned to you as gifts of My Spirit are generally on permanent assignment, for these gifts of the Spirit remain with you.
48. When I say that you cannot lean only upon your anointing, I mean that you cannot only listen to these spirit helpers that I have given you, that give you wisdom and counsel in your work. You must also come before Me to hear My voice. These spirit helpers that help you in your work are very gifted and they have a great depth of understanding. If you are attuned to them, they become so one with you that they are easily able to put thoughts in your heart and in your mind, so it becomes very natural for you to know what you must do in your work. For you are given the right feelings and good ideas through these spirit helpers, through this anointing.
49. It is easy to become familiar with this anointing, with the receiving of these thoughts and ideas through your spirit helpers, and thus it is easy to lean heavily upon this. But it is not enough, for these spirit helpers, these of your anointing, do not know everything. Nor do they always know the direction that I am leading, for they are not privy to all that I know. Thus I put forth the call for you to come unto Me and to seek My voice. Then all of this together--the hearing of My voice, the gift of your anointing, the gifts of the Spirit, and the natural talents--will help you to accomplish My will in new and greater ways.
50. In this manner you will be able to operate in the fullness of God, using all of the gifts I have given you--the natural talents, the gifts of the Spirit, and the gifts of My anointing. All of these together, along with hearing from Me and My voice, allow you to operate in the fullness of God, in full measure, and this I have called the "full anointing."
51. The fullness of the anointing is being able to use all that I have bestowed upon you, all of the gifts that I have given you, to be able to use them fully. This allows you to operate in the fullness of God, the full anointing of God. So use it all and do not neglect any part. Especially do not neglect hearing My voice, for it is through My voice and through My Word that you get the leading, that you find the direction in which you must go.
52. Without that direction, without that knowledge that you are moving according to My will, you cannot operate in full faith, nor use all of the gifts to their fullest. But when it all works together, when all the gifts and My voice are working together as one, it is as a powerful vehicle in which all parts--the engine, the transmission, the drive shaft, the tires, the fuel and the fuel mixture--work in unison. When all of this is finely tuned, working in full harmony, the vehicle can move forward with great speed, great power, in great unison, going farther and faster than ever before.
53. So use them all, but do not neglect My voice. Do not neglect coming to Me to hear clearly what I say to you. Do not lean solely upon your anointing, your gifts of the Spirit or your talents--for no one of these is enough. You need the full measure, all parts working together, along with My voice, that you may work within the fullness of God. (End of message from Jesus.)
54. {\b \i (Peter:)} 'To give an example of what the Lord is saying, my work is very different when I'm at home as compared to when I'm out visiting. I have certain gifts of the Spirit and spirit helpers that the Lord has given me which are permanent, like the gift of wisdom. I need it whether I am at home, counseling with Mama and attending to the needs and affairs of the Kingdom, or whether I am out holding meetings and talking with people. Then I have an anointing--other spirit helpers--that help me with my work at home, working on the GNs, writing letters, making decisions, etc. When I go out on visitation my anointing changes, and the Lord has told me that He gives me special spirit helpers for that time, which go with me on my trips but are not helping me at home.
55. So the point the Lord is bringing out here is that although He has given us many spirit helpers--both permanent ones, which help us exercise the gifts of His Spirit, like wisdom, knowledge and faith, as well as temporary ones which give us the anointing we need for our present ministries, and which change with our ministries--we cannot depend solely upon this anointing, as it is not enough. We must seek His voice and hear directly from Him in order to receive the full anointing which He wants to give us. When we do this, then both our natural talents, the gifts of His Spirit and our anointing for our ministries all work together to complete the full anointing that He has promised and has told us that we need.
56. Dad talks a bit about the anointing in the following prophecy:
57. {\b \i (Dad speaking:)} Honey, the main thing is that our folks need to get the point that they need to listen to the Lord a lot more. They need to stop and take time with Him. They're very used to operating in the anointing that He's given them, and in the past that was okay. Things might not have been done quite as well or as efficiently as they could have been, but the Lord has accomplished His plan in spite of us sometimes messing it up a bit by running ahead or lagging behind, just due to our not seeking Him enough. But so far things have gone well, the message has gotten out, and to a certain extent He's winked at our neglect to ask Him, and has just pulled us through time and again.
58. But now what the Lord is saying is that time is short. It's not going to be enough anymore for people to lean on what they've been used to operating with--the natural talents they have, or even the help and anointing from the spirit world. They're going to need to get a direct connection with the Lord and be in the habit of going to Him daily, if they're going to get their signals clear and be able to function and actually make progress in the days ahead. That's the goal.
59. The Lord has a plan laid out for us, His chosen Endtime Church, but the only way we're going to be able to accomplish it is if each one gets directly connected. And when I say that it's "the only way," that's not just a figure of speech. It is the only way--we literally won't make it through without it. So that's the point that needs to come across. The point isn't just that it will make it easier for you, or that the Lord would enjoy having more fellowship and time with us--although that's all true too. The point is that it's going to be imperative to your survival very soon, so you'd better start now! (End of message from Dad.)
Peter's Lessons on Prophecy
60. {\b \i (Peter:)} I'm certainly learning something about prophecy through all of this: I've learned how much more I need to stop and pull out the old tape recorder and do what the Lord said above. I need to ask Him things more, as well as confirm the things that I'm doing that He showed me to do.
61. Even if He's shown me to do something through prophecy, but then the circumstances change or something comes up that serves as a check--like someone raises an objection or another important point of view that we hadn't considered before--then before I finalize whatever I'm doing, before I put into action what He showed me, it's important that I double-check and confirm that what I plan to do is still His will. (This is especially important in long-term projects where it's much more likely that circumstances can change considerably between the time you start the project and finish it. That's why it's good to hear from the Lord regularly on long-term projects.)
62. Sometimes when Mama and I go back to the Lord in prayer He will give further information, instruction or clarification that radically alters the first course of action He had instructed us to take. When this happens, He also usually gives a good explanation as to why the change is needed and why He didn't or couldn't show us earlier. At other times when we ask for a confirmation on what He's previously given us in prophecy, He simply okays our present plans, or slightly adjusts them, or gives us more detail that helps us to fine-tune our plans and make our actions more secure, fruitful and prosperous.
63. This does not mean, of course, that you need to pray to confirm everything the Lord gives you in prophecy. For example, if you pray about whether you should go out witnessing or stay home and work on your mail ministry and the Lord indicates that you should go witnessing, you wouldn't usually need to pray again for a confirmation on that decision. But if something comes up that really changes the circumstances--like a huge unexpected storm, or you learn some new information that you couldn't take into account earlier, like perhaps one of your supporters is coming over to visit--then you might want to pray and ask the Lord again, just as a double-check to see if He wants to adjust your direction a little, or maybe He will lead you in a new path. The point is that we need to stay prayerful and open to the Lord's checks, and be ready to hear from Him in prophecy not only to receive His initial instruction and leading, but also, if necessary, to get a confirmation on the instruction we received previously.
64. I can think of one time recently when I didn't go to the Lord to hear from Him in prophecy regarding a course of action I planned to take, and I'm afraid it's going to cost me. I prayed about a matter using my normal mode of operation that I've used for as long as I've been in the Family--that of praying and getting a leading of the Spirit or a feeling or a verse and then putting it into action without actually hearing clearly in prophecy about the matter. There were some business decisions I had to make, and after praying I felt led to do a certain thing. But I didn't really stop and ask the Lord for a prophecy about it. After I did it, things didn't seem to work out so well, and I still don't know if they are going to work out favorably.
65. A few days after I did this, I got some further information in the mail that would have led me to do things differently if I'd had this information earlier. I believe that if I would have stopped to confirm my decision with the Lord, if I would have gotten into "official" mode with my tape recorder, formally asking, "Lord, how do You want me to handle this matter. Is now the time You want me to do it?" I believe the Lord would have told me to wait a while. Had I waited, then things would have worked out much better. I'm still praying that they will work out, but if they don't, then it's not going to be so good. I feel pretty bad about that, but if it teaches me this lesson, then I would have to say it's worth it. (Note: Things worked out just fine. Thank the Lord for His mercy!)
66. The Lord is teaching us all something new. He's taking us to the next step. He's gotten most of us to be at least fairly comfortable with the basic principle of using prophecy and knowing that He wants to speak to us fresh every day. Now it seems that He is trying to show us that He wants to be even more involved, that He wants us to be even more dependent on Him.
Being More Dependent on the Lord
67. It seems that for us men this point is a bit more difficult to grasp than it is for our women. Women seem to be more naturally inclined to want to ask the Lord and get answers from Him. They are naturally more dependent. It's more natural for them to feel like they don't have the answers, or that they have to search for the answers. Whereas we men aren't that way so much. When something needs to be done, we usually want to do it ourselves rather than lean on others or confess we might need help. We're used to making decisions, to leaning on our past experience, and God help us, sometimes leaning to our own understanding. It's just natural for us to be that way. But the Lord is trying to teach us to move out of that and to get more dependent, to get more in the spirit of prayer and "officially" asking Him what to do. The Lord makes this quite clear in the following prophecy:
68. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }It is difficult for My great men of valor, My mighty men of David, to learn to depend on Me and lean on Me, for they are strong. They are men of faith and strength. They are men of power, men of action. They are used to being strong and steady and courageous. They are used to being the ones who lift up the weaker vessels and provide for them, encouraging and comforting them. They are used to being the father, the shepherd, the husband. It is difficult for these, My strong men of faith, to lean wholly and heavily upon Me.
69. It is much easier for the women, the weaker vessels, for they are already weak in the flesh. It is easier for them to feel their need. But My mighty men can more easily learn to depend on Me if they come to Me frequently as My bride and love Me intimately. If they regularly humble themselves by loving Me intimately, showing their passion for Me as My bride, this yieldedness and this lovemaking will create in them humility, brokenness and dependence upon Me.
70. This will help their spirits to be more sensitive to Me and it will make it easier for them to humble themselves before Me in their day-to-day lives, in their work, in their relations with others and their decisions. This is especially important for those who are strong in themselves, who have many talents, gifts and strengths. If they will come to Me frequently and love Me passionately as My bride, if they will see Me as their husband, as their provider and protector, the intimacy that will develop between us, the womanly qualities of tenderness and weakness, will create a greater dependence on Me. The womanly qualities of the bride, those of submission, humility, weakness and dependence, will be more easily manifested in their lives. (End of message from Jesus.)
71. {\b \i (Peter:)} Lord help us stronger types to learn the lesson of depending more on the Lord, because that is true strength.
Letting Jesus Guide and Shepherd Us
72. Hearing from the Lord and including Him intimately in our daily lives is something we desperately need to learn and to teach others. As Dad said, "The most important thing that we can teach our disciples is to hear from God fresh every day." You see, if we can truly learn to stop, look and listen, to bring our questions to the Lord, we will find that it will solve so many problems, because we will then find all the answers that we need for the problems that face us, every time they come up.
73. I'll give you a practical example: There was a married couple in one of our WS Homes who have a good and loving relationship. They also have rather strong personalities, so sometimes they do not agree on certain matters, which can cause things to be a bit rocky at times. The shepherds of the Home frequently had to mediate between them, which was sometimes difficult and time-consuming. One time the shepherds didn't have the time to help them, so they suggested that since both partners had the gift of prophecy, they could simply bring the matter to the Lord and let Him solve the problem. They did, and the Lord spoke and gave them counsel which solved this problem! Praise the Lord! Now this couple brings all their differences to the Lord, as it's proven to be such a wonderful strength to their marriage. This was a practical benefit of coming to the Lord. It benefited both the couple and the shepherds.
74. If you open your channel for the Lord to speak to you, if you ask Him specific questions, or simply ask Him if He has any guidance or direction or even correction, He can shepherd you. And believe me, it's usually easier to have the Lord speak personally to you about some matter you may need to improve in than it is to have to hear from other people about it.
75. If you make time to "officially" come before the Lord for business or personal matters, He can give you the answers you need. You've just got to give Him the opportunity to speak.
Starting with Small Steps in Receiving Prophecy
76. Some of you who either don't have the gift of prophecy or are not so exercised in your use of prophecy may feel that it will be difficult for you to apply the counsel that the Lord is giving about this. One of our most faithful pubs workers felt this way to some extent, and the Lord said the following about him, which should be an encouragement to you as well.
'77.' {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }I want to give this one the gift of prophecy and I will give it to him, but I know that he feels very unsure and insecure about stepping out and receiving My messages. He sees the messages that I have given through other channels, and he feels that he isn't capable of receiving such long, flowing, detailed, intricate answers and messages, and is therefore hindered in starting. He is hindered in taking the first step because of fear that he will not receive the rest. But I will fulfill and I will answer and I will use his channel to pour out My answers regarding his work if he will step out by faith and open his channel to Me.
78. He is very used to making prayerful decisions by thinking, praying, reasoning, weighing up the pros and cons and balancing the effects, looking for the possible problems or misinterpretations, and basing his decisions on My Word and the wisdom, experience and knowledge I have given him. These things are good, and I use him and lead him to make wise, prayerful decisions and come up with good answers.
79. But these same answers that he reasons out with his mind, he can bring to Me for final approval and receive My answer in prophecy. It does not have to be a long, flowing, detailed answer, but he can start by simply receiving My approval or disapproval. If he wishes to have a message in prophecy to know My direction, answer and leading, he only needs to ask specifically that I speak to him in prophecy, and then step out by faith to give and record or write down that which I give him. If he starts with small steps, it will give him faith to expect more, and then I will be able to give him more and it will slowly grow into fuller messages.
80. I do want to pour My answers through him. I want him to be able to avail himself of My full power and answers, wisdom and direction through prophecy. It will make his work so much easier, faster, clearer, more efficient, and richer, more satisfying, challenging and exciting if he can come to Me with each question and hear My voice directly through his own channel. And he can, because I will pour it through. If he asks, I will not deny him. I will speak and he will hear and know that it is My voice. (End of message from Jesus.)
'81.' {\b \i (Peter:)} After this message was given for this person, he got really desperate with the Lord to receive the gift of prophecy, which the Lord has since given him, and which he has been using daily. It has been of great benefit to him and his work, and he says he wonders how he ever did it any other way. Upon receiving this gift of prophecy, our co-worker asked the Lord why he had not been able to have the gift before, since he had repeatedly prayed for it. The Lord answered: "There is a time for everything, and a season for every purpose under Heaven. You were not yet ready for the gift. There was not such a vacuum. Now the ground has been prepared and the seed can be sown."
82. Those of you who don't have the gift of prophecy should be encouraged by the prophecy given above. As you can see, the Lord commended our dear pubs worker for the way he made decisions even without the gift of prophecy. The Lord said he made prayerful decisions "by thinking, praying, reasoning, weighing up the pros and cons and balancing the effects, looking for the possible problems or misinterpretations, and basing his decisions on My Word and the wisdom, experience and knowledge that I have given him. These things are good, and I use him and lead him to make wise, prayerful decisions and come up with good answers." Obviously, if you don't have the gift of prophecy you can still make wise and prayerful decisions.
83. If you don't have the gift of prophecy, you should, of course, pray for it and give the Lord the opportunity to manifest the gift within you, even as the Lord said above, by giving Him the chance to even just give a simple yes or no in confirmation to what you feel you should do. However, if He's not ready to give it to you yet, please know that you can still start to apply the lessons and counsel in this Letter by praying over all of your decisions, making sure they are Word-based, and by keeping yourself open to the Lord's checks in the spirit. In other words, give Him the opportunity to get through to you in some way. You can also ask others to exercise their gifts and hear from the Lord for you.
"Listening Is Good--But Asking Questions Is Better!"
84. When one of our pubs team was praying about the first {\b \i Heaven's Library} booklet, the Lord gave a very significant prophecy in which He points out how important it is to stop, look, listen and ask.
85. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:)} It's good to watch and pray. It's good to seek and listen. Listening for My still, small voice is good, but asking Me questions is better. I can whisper to you all day, but sometimes the noise and confusion of the many activities of the day drowns out My voice. It's not that you're not making an effort to listen, and it's not that you don't want to hear Me, or that you're purposely trying to ignore My voice and proceed in your own strength and wisdom; it's just that you don't yet dwell in the fifth dimension.
86. So listening is good, but asking is better. As you go along and listen and check in with Me, this is good, and I can encourage and confirm. But when you stop all things and ask Me questions, yielding and opening your heart to Me for My direct Words of guidance which could greatly alter your mode of operation, then this is better.
87. If you do this at every step, then I can keep you from having to redo your work. I will instruct you step by step. I will not lead you along the path in one direction and then suddenly alter the course, if you have been following Me closely--not only listening, but asking Me.
88. I know that you may think this is hard and is asking a great deal of you, so I will give you an easier way. I say unto you that it is sufficient that you stop and ask Me one simple question: "How am I doing? How are things going with my work, with this project? Is there something I need to stop and check in with You about? Do I need to pause and ask You specific questions concerning the direction of this project, my work for You?" Then I can answer, because not only are you stopping to listen, but you are also asking.
89. Sometimes you do not know what to ask, and you groan within yourself when you think of having to set aside priceless hours of work time to seek Me on every little point. You wonder if you will even be able to come up with the right questions to ask Me, or if you will miss or forget or overlook the very question that I wish to speak to you about. So I make it easy.
90. If you stop at regular intervals to ask Me this question, then I will gently speak to your heart and say unto you, "Yes, I wish to speak to you concerning your work. I wish to instruct you. It is now time to come before Me and to lay your works before My feet and to inquire for My divine instruction." Or I will encourage your heart that all is going well, and that you may proceed onward. This is not so difficult.
91. The more difficult thing is if you do not stop, and if you then proceed onwards in your tasks without stopping to listen and ask. Then when you are finally brought to a halt, you may have to retrace your former steps, wasting many more priceless hours of work in order to correct and to perform My will just as I would have it performed.
92. So do this, and I will show you how easy it can be. I love you and delight to make things easy for you. You will see that it is not so hard after all, and it will be a lifesaver to you in the long run. Try it! (End of message from Jesus.)
An Example of Getting Specific Answers
93. {\b \i (Peter:)} Here are some very helpful tips on how to apply this lesson. We've included another prophecy as an example of the type of prophecy the Lord can give when you ask specific questions about your work. Although those who received this prophecy were asking about the Heaven's Library mags, the principles apply just as much as if you were asking how to proceed in any ministry. Whether it's baby care, shepherding, provisioning, ministering to a sheep, outreach, follow-up, prayer letters, etc., the Lord wants to be involved in everything.
94. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:)} I take you along step by step. Now that you have learned more about how to handle these stories, I can introduce some changes. I couldn't tell you about these before, or you would have had a hard time with it. But now that you are a little more familiar with the workings and the pipelines I have set up for My Word to flow through, and now that you feel more comfortable coming before Me with your questions, the time has come to open up My plan for the first book more fully.
95. It will be important to hook the kids, all of them, with this first book. You must include stories that will appeal to all the age groups: the young children, the MCs and OCs, the JETTs and teens, and yes, even the YAs and SGAs. Everyone will enjoy this book, and all will wait expectantly for the next one. So these are the stories I wish for you to include: For the younger children, you can use "Jet the Puppy." For the MCs and OCs, you can put in "Peril on Fisherman's Creek" and "Jamie's Friends," and for the JETTs and teens you can include the story of Amaris.
96. Then for book two you will have the parable of the king's children for the older ones. You can put in "The Adventures of Little White Hawk" for the OCs and MCs. You can put in the stories about the young people in the Tribulation for the JETTs, and you can put in the seabed story for the young ones.
97. Once you have finished book one and two, I will show you what to do about book three, for this book is also important, and you must start work on it soon. But finish book one first, and you'd better get started on it, for time is ticking. Keep looking to Me now, and I will lead and guide you. Fear not, for I will not lead you astray. (End of message from Jesus.)
98. {\b \i (Peter:)} Isn't it amazing how the Lord can give such specific answers and such clear explanation? If they hadn't been able to ask the Lord so specifically in prophecy, they might have come pretty close to hitting the mark. But by "officially" asking the Lord and opening the channel for Him to speak, He showed them much more specifically and they learned new things in the process. You can do the same if you will stop, look, listen and ask. Try it, won't you?
Spiritual Lovemaking: Burden or Blessing?
99. In this next message from the Lord, He acknowledges that it takes an effort in the spirit, a stirring up on our part, to hear from Him in prophecy. But He then encourages us that it doesn't have to be a big, long drawn-out deal to receive His messages. We don't have to "work it up" or exert a lot of effort. We simply have to come to Him in faith, yielded and open to what He has for us, and then He is more than happy to give us His seeds and precious Words.
100. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }It is a spiritual fight, an outpouring of your strength and spirit, to hear from Me in prophecy. I know it is hard because it means that you have to stir yourself up. You have to be desperate in spirit. You have to open up and create a vacuum for My Spirit to flow through. You have to be open and yielded and have a clean channel so that My messages can flow through. All of this takes a stirring up of yourself and your spirit to want to be desperate and connect with Me. That is a fight; that is hard. It is a spiritual battle each time to really cry out to Me, to be desperate and yielded. It takes mental, spiritual and even physical effort on your part. You have to put yourself in a position to receive. You have to be willing to be used. Like Bamboo, you have to be willing to be slit open and lay down so that My waters can rush through to refresh My people.
101. But My yoke is easy and My burden is light. Although it does take effort for you and it is work, it is not as hard as the Enemy wants you to think. He knows it takes effort and that it is a fight in the spirit, so he plays on that and tries to blow it up into a bigger mountain and make you think it's too hard, that it takes too much work. Therefore he tries to persuade you to not hear My voice and not even begin.
102. It's sort of like the before-battle-blues that any soldier experiences. He wants to fight the battle because he knows it's necessary, and he's not lazy or irresponsible, but he still experiences some thoughts of the cost. But the Enemy exaggerates the difficulties and blows things out of proportion in order to stop you and cause you trials. But I have said that My yoke is easy and My burden is light, and so it is.
103. Each time you come to Me with a prayer request and you put yourself in that position to hear from Me, I always speak and I always answer and give you what is needed. All you have to do is come. Just come and open up to Me and ask Me once again to give, and it shall be given. It doesn't always have to be a big, long drawn-out deal that makes you tired.
104. You don't always have to feel that you need to spend half an hour priming the pump and praising Me. It can just be a short prayer, a sincere prayer, a sincere reaching out to Me. I know the need, I know your heart, and I know that your heart is right with Me, so I do not require a big song and dance each time, where you need to bow and show Me how yielded and desperate you are. I know the state of your heart. Sometimes it takes greater faith on your part to ask Me for an answer on the spot, not having done anything yourself to prepare, except to ask and receive.
105. It's like lovemaking. Lovers who have been lovers for a long time know each other well, and it's not always necessary to have a long foreplay each time. Sometimes they just go at it, and it's still satisfying and fulfilling and the man gives the woman his seeds. So am I with you. We don't always have to have a long foreplay where you feel you must spend a lot of time praising Me and praying desperately for My answer. I hear and I know your heart and your desire to be desperate and do My will. I know you desperately want My will and not your own.
106. So just come to Me, naked in spirit, with no barriers between us. Ask Me to fuck you with My seeds and fill you with My answers, and I will. I won't fail. I'm not limited, and I will pour the needed waters of life through your pipe to refresh My people, to supply, to encourage, to direct, to guide, to answer.
107. All is in My hands to give. All is in My power to send. All is within My will to answer according to the need. So ask and receive quickly and fully! You need not struggle and strive and work it up; just open up on the spot, be hungry, excited and desperate, and I will give and give and give again! Just trust and receive, open and believe, and many waters will rush forth. Many waters will pour down abundantly, beyond what you ever imagined! I am ready and willing and waiting to send torrents of living waters through My open, receptive channels.
108. I keep you open, receptive and hungry throughout the day. The things that happen in your daily life--the events, experiences, lessons, tests and trials--are all part of My plan to keep you very close to Me, desperate and needing Me. So you need not feel that it must happen all at once in those few moments before you pray and beseech Me for My voice. It is an ongoing process, a living process, one which you live daily in all that happens in your life.
109. I am constantly keeping you desperate and close to Me. I constantly keep you under the faucet so that My waters can pour into you and overflow the scum and dregs that are not good for you. I keep you refined in the fires of My purgings. I tend to your garden and pull out the weeds. I carefully mold you and guide you and keep you on the right path, walking the way that is needed so that I can continue to use you and pour My messages through you. So do not worry that you must do something in your own strength to work up your desperation or yieldedness right before you pray, because I'm always working in your life to keep you just what I need you to be.
110. Just stay yielded, moldable and willing in your daily life, in your interactions with others, in your Word and prayer time, in everything. This will keep you soft and supple and yielded and desperate in spirit to receive My messages at any time. You do not even have to work at this or try to engineer it, because I take care of it all. All you have to do is yield and be open.
111. Your job is easy. Just like your Father David said: He felt he had the easiest job in the world; all he had to do was listen and hear from Me. It is easy if you let Me pour it through, and if you yield your all to Me and receive.
112. Don't worry! If you worry about it and think about the message and analyze it, then it is hard. It becomes very hard because you're not letting Me do it. You're trying to do it in your own understanding and looking at it through your own eyes. You must just trust that what I've said is true and right and what I know is best. You must not analyze after the message has been received. You must simply praise and rejoice and pass it on. You're just a pipe, a conduit, a channel, a little duct through which the water flows. When you worry about it, then you block up the flow. You slow down the flow and it gets backed up, and it takes more effort to suck the seeds through the blockage.
113. You have to determine each time you sit down to hear My voice that you're going to open up wide, very wide, and be full of faith and trust and let Me do whatever I want with you and praise Me for it all. Each time you do this and let Me pour through effortlessly, it cleans your pipe. It washes you cleaner every time. The more you open up and receive in full faith, the cleaner and clearer your channel becomes, because the waters can rush through so fast that they carry everything with it. So keep open, keep clean and keep yielding and praising.
114. It's not hard to yield; it's very easy. It's not hard to be open and desperate; it's very easy. It just takes faith. And faith is not something you work up and muster up by trying very hard. Faith is very easy too; you just trust. You simply ask and trust and receive what comes with praise and thankfulness, and this keeps your channel open and clear for the next message.
115. Praise is very important and very needed to keep your channel well lubricated and free-flowing. Praise lifts your spirit and fills you with faith. It helps to pull down My seeds, because I love to rush through an open, thankful channel, one who is loving My seeds, rejoicing over their entrance and happy for them. So the more you praise and thank Me for it all, the more I pump them into you and the more effortless it becomes.
116. Having a praiseful spirit is what counts. It's not that you must spend X number of minutes praising Me before a prophecy, but that you are genuinely thankful and express your thanks before, during and after the message is given. It's not the length of time you spend praising Me that I look at during a prayer and prophecy session, it's the sincerity of heart. Praise counteracts the fears and worries of the Enemy. That's why it's important to praise when receiving a prophecy. And since many people are tempted to worry about what they received from Me after they're done, praise is important afterwards, too. (End of message from Jesus.)
Prerequisites to Hearing from the Lord
117. {\b \i (Peter:)} It's encouraging to see how simply the Lord looks at it, that hearing from Him is not a complicated "works trip" that we're supposed to get into. As He said, He doesn't require a big "song and dance" from us. He just wants us to come to Him open and eager to receive, and He will gladly answer our prayer and fill us with His precious Words.
118. All we have to do is be open and desperate with Him. I'm reminded of the points brought out in the FSM ("Tips on Prophecy Meetings--Part 1") on the spiritual prerequisites that are needed if we want to hear clearly from the Lord. I'll repeat those here:
119. The most important requirements for hearing from the Lord are simply as follows: receiving the Word with praise and thanksgiving and putting it into practice, both the New Wine and the older vintages; asking the Lord to erase your own thoughts; being desperate with the Lord for His will; being yielded; believing that what you receive is from Him; and having the faith to give it! So if all you can remember are those main points, you'll do fine!
120. --If you are yielded and desperate to hear His Word, and call out sincerely and ask Him to not let any of your own thoughts get in the way, the Lord will do it. Faith, yieldedness and humility are the keys.
121. --When discussing the matter before prayer to decide exactly what issue you need to hear from Him on, or when formulating the question to ask the Lord, it's important to keep an open mind and heart. Like Dad has said, "The first requirement for finding God's will is having no will of your own" (MOP 114:12). One of the most important prerequisites to being a clear channel of the Lord's Words is to be yielded to whatever He may have to say. He may confirm the burden that He has put in your heart or what He has shown you previously through the other ways to know God's will. On the other hand, He may show you something completely different than what you previously thought or felt. But either way, you have to be open and yielded in order to get what He has to say (FSM 317, pg.2, 15,16).
122. Even if you have a strong opinion on the subject, if you'll be desperate to hear the Lord's answer and opinion, resolving to put your own aside, then I'm convinced that you can get a pure prophecy. We often have opinions or thoughts on subjects, and you might fear this will color your prophecy. But the Lord has made it so that we can always hear clearly from Him if we're simply willing to put our own thoughts and opinions aside and only want His will and His opinion. (For more on this point, you might want to read question #11 in "Tips on Prophecy Meetings--Part 1" [EDITED: "FSM 317, pg.15"], which covers very good points on how to clear your mind of your own thoughts or opinions.)
123. Another place where the Lord clearly brought out these spiritual prerequisites for hearing from Him can be found in "Mama's Surprise, Part 2," where He said, "For one to be able to hear My Words clearly and purely, one must be yielded, desperate, and hungry. One must be willing to give what they receive without fear of the consequences. One must have faith to trust Me when they hear My still, small voice speaking in their heart and mind. One must be following close after Me, eagerly taking in the hot New Wine of My Spirit. One must be doing his best to leave the old behind and to become a new creature in My hand" (ML #3134:106, GN 743).
Having the Right Mindset About Hearing from the Lord
124. In closing, I want to share an encouraging prophecy in which the Lord makes it clear that He is not asking us to regularly hear from Him this way to complicate our lives, but to simplify things and make our lives and work for Him easier.
125. {\b \i (Jesus speaking:) }Come to Me regularly and I'll give you all that you need. You can sail along almost effortlessly by comparison and make real good solid progress. And then as you make progress you will be encouraged, because nothing succeeds like success. So take the time to hear from Me, because time hearing from Me is like time spent sharpening the scythe. It's not wasted, it's invested, and it's a good investment with good returns. You'll really strike it rich if you come to Me and invest your time, strength and energy in seeking Me and hearing My voice.
126. And always remember that My purpose in this is to make it easier for you. People need to get over their wrong mindset or their preconceived ideas that hearing from Me is difficult or that it's a burden, because actually by hearing from Me, I want to and will make your work easier, and things will go more quickly. Plus you'll have a wonderful peace of mind in knowing that you are doing exactly what I want.
127. Hearing from Me for your work, for your priorities and regarding any questions you have is a habit, and you have to develop this good habit just as you have to develop any other good habit. It takes work, it takes reminders, it takes putting forth the effort, but pretty soon it becomes second nature--a whole lot easier. Then you hardly have to think about it anymore.
128. Remember, it takes so little time for such great returns. Even in just five or ten minutes you can get the answers you need and be refreshed, and in the long run you'll be saving a lot of time.
129. So change your mindset. Instead of thinking that hearing from Me in prophecy takes time, tell yourself continually that hearing from Me in prophecy saves time. You're making real progress as you're getting My Words, and the more you practice, the easier it will be, at a moment's notice, to come out of the wings, pick up the dictaphone, and hear My direct Words of encouragement and instruction.
130. To hear from Me in prophecy doesn't take a lot of preparation; that is, not if you've been staying close to Me on a regular basis--having your Word time daily, your prayer time, your prayer vigil time, your praise times, your times of loving Me intimately. As long as you're staying close to Me on a day-to-day basis, then you don't need a big rigmarole and a lot of preparation for most of your prayer and prophecy sessions. You just need to pick up the dictaphone, get quiet, pray, and ask Me your questions. It's just that simple.
131. When you hear from Me each day you'll find that it renews your spirit, strengthens your resolve, and clarifies your vision. It helps you to know what your priorities are, and then you don't have to worry or wonder if you are doing the right thing. You'll know that you are doing the right thing, because you've asked and you've received by faith, and you're just obeying.
132. So take time every day to hear from Me, to get the general counsel and the specific answers I have. Make it a habit to have daily counseling time with Me, daily conversations, daily teamwork meetings--and things will go a lot more smoothly, but especially a lot more quickly.
133. Sometimes the Enemy would try to get you to think that your work is a lot more complicated and time-consuming now that you have to have prayer and prophecy about so many things. But that's the wrong way to look at it, and when he tempts you to think like that, you need to rebuke it and remind yourself of what I told you--that it's not more difficult and time-consuming, but it's easier and time-saving. The more you practice it, the more you'll see it, and the more convinced you will become.
134. You can hear from Me anytime, day or night. Be constantly ready, constantly available. Always keep your channel open and clean and strong by having your faithful Word time, prayer time, praise time, and time spent with Me in intimate lovemaking. Then you'll always be ready, like an athlete or a soldier is always ready because he or she has trained and toned and practiced each day. (End of message from Jesus.)
135. {\b \i (Peter:)} Folks, the Lord is trying to get us to involve Him much more in our daily decisions. As He says, it will save time, things will go smoother and faster, more will get done, and less mistakes will be made. If we will apply the points the Lord is giving us in this GN, we will be able to operate more effectively and efficiently under the "full anointing" of God. With all we need to do to reach the world with His love in the time that remains, it would behoove us all to take this to heart and to apply it in our lives starting now. Don't you agree?
136. Let's help each other to put these important principles into practice and make hearing from the Lord in prophecy more of a habit in our lives! I want to continue to progress in this area, and I know you do, too! The Lord will help us as we continue to step out by faith and take time to hear from Him as often as we need to. God bless you and keep you in touch with the Lord's wonderful help from Heaven.
Love, Peter
Copyright (c) 1997 by The Family
