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charity, darkness, demons, discerning the spirits, dream, entering his rest, finished works, following Jesus, joy, light, Michael Clark, peace, serving others, social gospel, spiritual power, thought life
The most obvious thing to do is not always what is right – in God’s sight
(Picture credits to http://dianawaring.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/iStock_000011493906Small.jpg)
The night before last I had a really strange dream in which I found myself standing on a sandy beach, knowing that the ocean was right behind me. I did not look back since what I saw in front of me was more interesting and quite amazing, so to say. Just a few meters before me a huge sand wall rose; actually, it appeared to me it was about 300 meters high (i.e., almost 1,000 foot). What was so stunning about this wall was that it looked like a mountain, but there was no way to ever climb it at the front side because all I could see was smooth. No rock overhang, no plants, merely smooth and hardened sand it seemed. Only at what I saw as the top of the mountain there was a sandy overhang of which I immediately knew it would be a lethal experience to step out on it since it was already cracking. Since we do not have such natural phenomena in Germany, I told Michael Clark about my dream and he said that there are sandstone cliffs in Western Washington that might look that way.
As I was still thinking about how dangerous it would be for someone to be on top of the cliff and not knowing about its brittle edges, I felt that God all of a sudden had lifted me up to the top where I stood well-protected in a kind of trench right behind these perilous edges. I felt secure there and had a good overview. The only thing I could not see was the beach where I had been standing before. It was all hidden because of that sandy overhang. As I was thinking about whether I should walk along that trench or what else I could do there, out of the blue, a young man’s face appeared right in front of me, exactly there where nobody could be able to find a hold on that brittle edge. I was still wondering about how he had got there, seemingly having climbed up that smooth wall, too, as I intuitively stretched out my right hand in order to help him climb the last steps. It was a normal human reaction, I think, since I thought if I would not help him, he would fall down and die. But God loudly commanded, “No!!”
I shrank back with fear and horror, wondering what could have been so wrong about helping someone in such a dangerous situation. Uhm, well…. Shortly afterwards, I saw why…. Or rather, I wondered about that man who, not realizing that I wanted to help him, had jumped over that sandy edge right into the trench all by his own efforts. He seemed to have some supernatural powers I did not have for I had solely relied on God to help me get there. But the worst thing for me was to see that young man’s body now. He was extremely pale and wore a beard; also, he was completely naked which made me wonder a lot. I thought it would not be “normal” to climb a hill naked although I knew that there are some crazy people who do such things (running naked, hiking naked….especially when there are many people around). Obviously, there had to be a demon that told him to do so (cf. Lk 8:27). And what was worse for me was seeing his genitals since they were not normal, either. His scrotum resembled a triangle and he had no penis at all. I felt all repelled by his vibes as I often do when I meet demons in several forms. And ‘Boom!’ the dream was over.
Actually, I was wondering a lot about that dream and shared it with Michael who helped me a lot regarding its interpretation, esp. as to that man’s appearance. In the evening yesterday God gave me more and more insights about the whole dream’s meaning, too, and after a rather short night of four hours, I felt I should write it all down this Monday morning.
The first thing that seemed strange to me was that the man did not get aware of my presence at all. He was so busy with doing his own thing, completely focused on his activities that he thought he was all alone on that mountain. He got there alone and he did not even realize that he was on top of that cliff since he kept on moving quickly. He was a busy guy, indeed. His eyes were not focused on God, but solely on what he was doing. He wore a beard as Jesus did, but he was so pale and had no spiritual life in his bones (no blood, no life). He had done an extremely difficult thing, that is, he had overcome this insurmountable height, seemingly all by his own efforts. Hmm…. The fact that he was naked pointed to his own conviction that he had nothing to hide; he did all things in the light, though not in the spiritual light of God. What that man did, he did in public so that everyone might praise him for his activities. Yet he was not clothed in Christ’s righteousness. He was all found naked (Mt 22:12; 2 Cor 5:3). His scrotum which hid his ability to procreate seemed to reveal his commitment to the triune God, BUT… he had no penis with which he could have had the proper fertility to bring forth spiritual fruit for God.
That man caused me quite a headache, indeed. 😉 Actually, I would have never thought that he could represent a false part Christianity that is always busy with doing good works for God, for example, feeding the poor, spreading the gospel as “missionaries”, praying for world peace and against wars and terroristic acts, praying for the right and against the “wrong” politicians, Christians who are doing any kind of social work… all in the name of God. However, all on their own reasonings which spring from Satan’s false ideas. Ouch!! You might object now that these Christians really do good works and if they do not hear the voice of God that clearly, they should do something… ANYTHING might be better than to sit around and see the world go down. Yes, that is Satan’s voice, for sure. He is the Master of Fear and Doubts. And he knows how to influence our thought life and give us a false bad conscience so that we are distracted from seeking the real God. If the devil succeeds in keeping our minds busy with what is happening in this world, he has won! And if we keep listening to him and try to change this world on our own, he laughs at us.
If it is indeed “God who works in you [and me], both to will and to work for his good pleasure,” (Phil 2:13 ESV), then we can be sure if we feel urged to do something without resting in God’s peace and feeling His joy about our doing, then its author was Satan. So simple. Is this truth too simple to be accepted by us?
Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, “As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest,’” although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this passage he said, “They shall not enter my rest.” Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” (Heb 4:1-7 ESV)
His works in which we should walk were finished from the foundation of the world. There is no need for us to invent new works which God seemingly forgot. If we do not really want to serve Him and our neighbors gladly and wholeheartedly, but act solely out of a bad conscience of sorts, we have been captured by Satan. Believe it – or not.
Entering the Promised Land 
I am still digesting this, Susanne. Bear w/ me, if you will.
I certainly agree that liberal theology or the social justice gospel is mistaken in its focus. It seeks, in effect, to define God in human terms. God cannot be limited in that way. Neither is He confined to a single political party.
Satan, you will remember, tempted Christ in the desert to turn stones into bread. This was a reference to the lust of the flesh (1 John 2: 16). Christ could have won over the crowds by catering to their worldly needs, i.e. providing bread (exactly what communism claims to do). That course would, however, have undermined God’s plan for Salvation.
The Gospel of Christ is both redemptive and transformative, in the most profound sense. It changes lives at a deeper level than mere bread alone. That is what the social justice gospel overlooks.
But bread is not wholly irrelevant. A starving child must be fed. And we are, as Christians, called to good works. Where I have difficulty is in distinguishing the good works God laid out beforehand for us to walk in (Eph. 2: 10), from those we attempt to accomplish on our own.
God’s direction is not as clear for some of us as it is for you. I envy you that. I do have faith that God will direct my steps. For the most part, that is all I can rely on.
It is always pleasure to discuss these issues w/ you!
Love,
Anna ❤
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Thanks for your honesty, dear Anna.
Of course, children must be fed when they are hungry. However, if you feed one, there are thousands and millions that are still hungry. So, which one(s) to choose? Which one(s) should be fed by us? And when? And how often? How much money do we have? Should we always say ‘Yes’ when someone asks us to give them something?
Oh well, been there, done that, dear sister. 🙄 And I did what I could because I thought I should. And then money was lacking when I needed it myself. Or I saw I had been cheated, lied at since the money I had given was sometimes not used for these purposes I had intended. 😦
Then I began to wonder. It was the first time that I asked God about that and saw that I ALWAYS – even as a child before I had God’s Spirit inside me – had felt compelled to do something in order to make this world a better place to be. And afterwards I was (most of the times) not happy, only somehow relieved of a burden until I saw the next one whom I should have helped in my own view. On and on the story goes….. and over the years Susanne got more and more clueless about what true Christianity was all about. I recall that I wrote two blog posts about my good and bad experiences on here too. Just searching for them….. Be right back…. 😉
Here are my Spirit-led experiences….. https://enteringthepromisedland.wordpress.com/2014/10/01/inspired-by-his-love/…… and here I describe the difference between those experiences that were caused by God’s and Satan’s voice https://enteringthepromisedland.wordpress.com/2015/01/23/entering-his-rest-but-how/.
Yes, it is always a pleasure to discuss these issues you, dear Anna! 🙂
Love,
Susanne ❤
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Indeed the need is never the call. The call is to walk with Him. The price of Jesus Blood paid for us to come before Him and become His tabernacle (being His Body) on earth. Bless you Susanne for being part of His trumpet sound!
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Thank you, Robert.
“Indeed the need is never the call” – Sounds good and is true at that! ⭐
Being part of His trumpet sound, that made me smile. 😉 Actually, I only keep trying to walk with Him every day.
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Some how I am reminded of when people told Jesus something about not letting him die on the cross. Ok not the exact wording but I hope you know which verse I am talking about. Any way That was a good intention of peter but Jesus said get behind me satan.
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That was a good comparison, Fred. Thank you very much for sharing! Here is more context regarding the Scripture you mentioned.
From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.” (Mt 16:21-27 ESV)
In these verses we read that not only Jesus had to die on the cross, but that He told His disciples to die in a similar way, though not physically; He meant dying to our old self life. Indeed, our good and even our best intentions are not that helpful if they are opposed to God’s will for our life. Well said, Fred. ⭐
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Thanks for wading through the deeper levels of revelation in this dream.
It gave me pause to do a check and take inventory, which is still ongoing as I write.
“Warm” Christianity is, can and will remain one of the most insidious weapons in the arsenal against the purposes of God. The goal is to deceive even the elect.
Although repulsive to give any more thought to than necessary it is, has and was always known about in God’s mind since the beginning of time. ( read God let it be created for several purposes- to strengthen the saints and to fulfil his eternal purpose for mankind-and the best for last——- nothing happens that first does not first cross the desk of Jesus.)
So, these acts of “cultural kindness” can be seen as a navigational tool to steer our walk and lives out and away from the comfortable ” lukewarm” waters which has flooded in to all of the streams of faith throughout Christendom.
Jesus in is eternal wisdom is showing the body again(ugh!) through the dream what he demonstrated numerous times over and over with the disciples.
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”Mt. 6:33.
He is so intense on maturing his body in the earth at this current time in history.
Without the revelation and leading of the Holy Spirit the things we think we are giving or doing will eventually be removed.Removed as in taken away,until such time as we seek and hear from him or until we discover we have been deceived or such time as the heavenly scales are measured.
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You’re welcome, Garry. Thanks for your comment.
In fact, you were rightly saying that there are more levels to be revealed regarding that dream. I could only share what the Lord had shown me up to that time I wrote the article. I feel that there are some deeper levels, still, which need to be discovered if the Lord wills.
The Scripture you shared fits perfectly. If we do not seek Him and His kingdom first, we will always be running around in circles, headless, clueless, directionless, and worn out at that.
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Yes, many more levels to drill down to.
Since I can remember my dreams have usually in more instances than not been for my own personal assessment. You see I came from a few centuries of orphans who never knew Christ who stood in the Sinai base camp and defaulted to Moses while refusing to go to have been immersed in his presence so they could transcend from slaves to Sons.
You name it and I have repented for anything and everything that revelation knowledge from the Holy spirit has provided. So many generations of junk( sin, time and land, idolatrous priesthoods to boot, etc, etc) from which the ancestors left behind courtesy of the wiles….. ALL so I could witness the enduring mercy of Jesus to fully restore me from orphanhood towards the direction of what a son could, should and with his guidance will walk in.
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” Or I saw I had been cheated, lied at since the money I had given was sometimes not used for these purposes I had intended. 😦 “
I came back to this post as I am feeling over whelmed urge to give to an online ministry (that feeds kids) that I found out about last week at a bible study. Thinking back I think I was guilted into giving when it was mentioned in the bible study. So now I am not sure what to do. I think I just need to pray about it but unlike you I don’t know how to listen to GOD’s voice.
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Fred, I just prayed for you that God might show you His will regarding that online donation. If you feel free and happy to do so, do it. But if doubts keep fretting you, it would be better to refrain from giving anything. Just my two cents…
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Susanne, your dream reminded me of something that Jesus warned us about when we are the sheep of His sheepfold…
As in your dream Jesus is the gate, the only way we can enter in to His sheepfold (the trench in your dream at the top of that high sandstone mountain). He picked you up from the sea of humanity and put your there. Jesus said that the gate is “straight” and the way is “narrow” (thus the trench) (See Matt. 7:14). This naked man climbed up by another way, his own works and efforts, was how he entered into the sheepfold where Jesus has placed you. These thieves come in by way of their own soulish abilities. Many of them climb up and gain access through scholastic-ism, gaining titles and degrees in institutions that are respected in church circles and by way of their knowledge of the Bible. They come into Christ’s sheepfold to steel the sheep away from their personal relationship with Jesus and draw their devotion from Him to themselves.
Susanne, I know from your testimony of being in the Christian cult that this is exactly what happened to you and the result was that these false leaders stole, killed and destroyed the spiritual lives of many in that group. I thank God that Jesus was able to draw you back to Himself in the Cleft of the Rock after all those wasted years you suffered through and brought you into HIS abundant spiritual life, and given you spiritual sight where you now see the impostures that come along in their nakedness for what they really are.
God bless you as you continue to abide in His cleft in the Rock. Thank you for boldly sharing your dream with us.
Your friend and brother,
Michael
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Oh, WOW!! Michael, that Scripture was truly bang on target! I could really feel God voice in my heart as soon as I had begun reading these verses. Thank you so much for sharing!!! XD
And your exposition is excellent! ⭐ I knew that the ocean behind me represented “people” (nations) who did not know God; therefore I was not really interested to look at the sea at that moment. The way how you related John 10 to my dream is really amazing, leaves me speechless…
May God bless you immensely, my dear brother!
Your friend and sister,
Susanne
PS
BTW, my boldness comes from God… 😉
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Susanne, what a heavenly difference between writing and speaking from the flesh and doing so by the inspiration of the Spirit. The same goes for the boldness that comes from “the pride of life” and that which comes into us from abiding in Christ who is our Truth. You are an inspiration to me is so many ways.
I am blessed to hear that what I shared with you was a help in your walk.
Michael 🐻
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What you shared was a great help and blessing, Michael!
In fact, reading what was written from the flesh bored me so much that I unfollowed many blogs. Although some bloggers are excellent writers, if they do not listen to His voice before writing, I am no longer interested to read their posts. There is only a handful of blogs I still follow and like to read because their writers are honest God seekers, a fact that always touches my heart.
You so often inspire me, too, Michael. Thanks a lot for being my friend!
Susanne 🐱
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I have been wishing that Father would use dreams to communicate with me for years-although I am not sure I would want to see what you see-however I remember when I asked Him why He would not talk to me audibly and finally one day He said–well if I did-would you even believe it was Me? to which I had to admitt-no
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Well, I do understand your disappoinment, Ken. It seems to me that women more often recall their dreams while men hardly remember them (exceptions confirm the rule). There were years when I kept a dream diary but either God did not want to tell me that much or I did not understand the dreams at all. Without the Holy Spirit explaining me more and more about the depths of the pictures I see, I would be completely clueless, still.
And there is no advantage without disadvantage… You nailed it! It is not always funny what I see in my dreams. How often did I awake in the middle of the night and my heart was beating like a hammer? Even last night…
In one of my dreams I was driving in my car through a dimly lit city I did not know. I drove and stopped at certain houses and stores, and drove, and stopped, and drove, and stopped…and I felt more and more exhausted over time, hurrying from one appointment to the next. Finally, I was so tired that I did not even realize that I was not yet back on the highway, yet I was driving waaaay to fast! Thus I lost control of the car since it could not be steered any longer. As I saw several immovable obstacles coming to light right in front of me, I realized it made no sense to brake at all. It was too late!!! Frightened out of my wits, I cried out to God immediately, “Is that the way I should die now???”
You can imagine how I felt as I awoke shortly afterwards. That dream was so real!! 😮
I prayed a lot about it and eventually I had to realize that my life has become way too busy and I have too much to do, day and night. In fact, I had similar dreams before, always as an announcement of an impending nervous breakdown. Although I drew certain boundaries lately, some things must be done (particularly as I have had two sick people at home – for months). However, I do need time for myself (mainly biking tours and prayer walks), too. My times with God where I can be all alone with Him are something I really miss that much.
I would appreciate your prayers for me, Ken. I keep praying for your health too and I hope all is well with your heart? 🙄
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You comment is an excellent exposition on how the unfathomable depths of our hearts and minds can be compared with those different biospheres in the ocean, Michael.
I am looking forward to reading your next blog post about THIS! 🙂
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Thank you, Susanne, for the encouragement. I am still praying for His guidance on this. I am also praying for the burdens you carry about serving your sick family and trying to run this blog and all the correspondence you have, that it would be pared back so that you can have more time with the Lord and that you could completely walk in our Father’s rest. 🐻
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You’re very welcome, Michael.
Thank YOU so much for your prayers! I really covet them. It is now 9:35 pm here and I need to hit the shower, still, since after my long biking (including shopping) tour I found no time as yet. 😛 And then I will take a prayer break. Much needed too. 🙂
Every blessing to you, my brother. You are in my heart and prayers always.
Love,
Susanne 🐱
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Thank you very much for the pingback to my blog, Michael. 🙂
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