CHAPTER 7 – GOD KEEPS COMMUNICATING

This posting is another chapter from my book entitled, Possess the Vision. It communicates the spiritual experiences and messages that were given by God shortly after we moved to California.

Pat and I were expanding relationships at our new church while God was simultaneously alluring us into a closer connection with Him. During this time, I experienced revelations from God that He delivered in several different ways. I have documented four of these experiences for you in the sections below. They are titled: The Audible Voice of God, A Vision of a Straight Path, The White Dove, and A Dream of a Living Cross. 

THE AUDIBLE VOICE OF GOD

One day, I was on my deck, catching some sun while gazing at the magnificent seacoast view (may add a link to previous posting here). When I had received enough sun, I walked back toward my loft door. Then, as I proceeded through the doorway, I heard a powerfully masculine and yet calming voice, speak my name. 

From the moment that this voice began speaking, everything around me started moving in slow motion – as if time itself was slowing down. The typical sounds surrounding me faded, and I instantly knew that I was listening to the audible voice of God. I immediately lost muscle control as my body became as limp as a jellyfish. My legs had suddenly stopped supporting my weight, my knees buckled, and I plunged downward through the doorway, out of control. My forward momentum now propelled my head onto a collision course with the glass top of a pinball machine that stood just inside the loft door. 

Psalm 29:4 The voice of the LORD is powerful; The voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

As I had no muscle power to shield my head from being slammed into the pinball machine, and I presumed that I was about to be seriously injured.

Amazingly, my muscle function recovered the instant that His voice stopped speaking. Consequently, I was able to get my hands and arms up to the metal frame of the pinball machine to protect myself from harm.   

I then reset my legs back under me and gradually stood upright. I then began looking around for the visible manifestation of God while waiting for the return of His voice. But neither happened. Not knowing what to do, I replied in the custom of the prophets who spoke, Here I am Lord. My heart was pounding as I stood there perfectly still, anticipating a reply, but there was none. Eventually, I walked off, being very perplexed. 

Subsequently, I could not help continuously thinking about the voice of God. It was so perfect. How could I not wonder about a voice so powerful and yet so soothing at the same time? How could I not wonder about this voice that exhibited perfect articulation and pace and simultaneously use inflections and tone to convey an attraction to it? How could this voice create such emotions of harmony and peace? Why would it call out my name and utter nothing more? I would get insight into some of these questions the very next day. 

The morning began like every other, as I had made it a practice to read a portion of the Bible every morning before prayer. I had set a goal of reading the entire Bible, and the scripture below was a passage that I read that morning:

Isaiah 43:1–2 But now, thus says the LORD, who created you, oh Jacob, and He who formed you, oh Israel: Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. 

This scripture was the confirmation of what had just occurred in my life. Chills ran up and down my spine as I realized that God had just called me by name. I belonged to Him now, and if I did not know it previously, I now knew that without a doubt, He would be with me through all the challenging times ahead. God was with me at that time and would be there throughout my future. He would be there for my walk toward His plan.

A VISION OF A STRAIGHT PATH

A few weeks later, God communicated to me again, this time in a vision. In it, I found myself in a forest of strange trees that had leaves that coiled up, looking something like a tightly wound watch spring. A path had been cut, perfectly straight through the trees that revealed the hills and dales below the foliage. Despite receiving this insight, I did not know what it meant at the time. I asked several people about it, but they could not interpret the vision either. Then one day, I read the following scripture. 

Isaiah 40:3 – 5 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the LORD; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth; The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

I now see it as a sign that God’s people must make a straight path to prepare for the second coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This message is for the bride. What did John the Baptist proclaim while baptizing men in the Jordan river for the repentance of sin? 

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

Matt 3: 1-6 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: 

     A voice of one calling in the wilderness, Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.

4 John’s clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

The Great Commission

And what did Jesus command the apostles (the 12 foundations of the bride) to do upon His departure? 

Matt 28: 16-20 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.

Are not these two commissions very similar? 

Psalm 27:11 Teach me Your way, O LORD, And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.

THE WHITE DOVE

One Sunday, we had an evangelist visit our church. We liked his message and resolved to attend his other services later in the week. I was hungry for the manifestations of God and desired to be at each service. Unfortunately, they were scheduled at noon each day, and this presented some work-related issues for me. One obstacle was that I had to drive across downtown Los Angeles to get to the church, and the commute time would be over an hour in each direction. Therefore, attending these services demanded that I be away from work for a substantial time. To solve this predicament, I planned to take an early lunch, attend the service, and then return to work and stay late to make up for the lost work time. 

Something extraordinary transpired on my commute to the second service that week. As I drove down the Interstate in heavy traffic, I saw a white dove off in the distance flying in my direction. As it flew closer, I could see that it was in my lane, flying straight toward me. As it advanced, I noticed that its wings were beating very rapidly and that it was looking right at me.

It became very apparent that the dove was flying toward my windshield, directly toward me. I braced myself as it neared, and at the instant of its anticipated contact, I turned my head away to shield myself from the impact. But nothing happened, and the windshield was undamaged. I speculated that perhaps the dove had swooped away at the very last second. 

I arrived at the service a bit late, but the minister did lay hands on me, and the Holy Spirit did manifest in me that day. I now see this experience as a sign that the Holy Spirit will support the earnest efforts of those who are diligently seeking Him.

THE LIVING CROSS

Some weeks later, God gave me yet another vision. In this one, I saw an old wooden cross standing alone on a desolate hilltop. I knew it to be the crucifixion cross of Jesus. It stood there tilting backward somewhat and listing to one side at about a forty-five-degree angle. It looked as if no one had been taking care of it. 

I lingered to watch, and then something moved me much closer to it, and I commenced to examine it in greater detail. My observation focused on the grain of the timbers that began to glow a fluorescent red-orange. The brightness of the wood grain now resembled that of an electric stove-top.  

Then the entire cross began glowing, faintly at first but slowly growing in illumination, until it was vibrantly gleaming. The cross that had appeared dead just moments before came to life! I could now see blood circulating through that grain, just like blood flows through the veins of our bodies, transporting nutrients and revitalizing energy throughout the body.

Next, the transparent wood took on a three-dimensional appearance. I could now see into multiple layers, and everything in the cross became visible to me. Subsequently, the glowing red cross began firing randomly colored photons of enlightenment in seemingly random directions. One blast at a time, these photons discharged in rapid succession like that of a machine gun. The cross of Jesus is alive! 

Below is a scripture in which Jesus tells a man to take up his cross and follow Him. 

Mark 10: 20-21 And he answered and said to Him, Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth. 21 Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.

I now realize this vision to imply that the Christians who seek to be members of the bride of Christ must have the living cross on fire in their hearts. If they do so, they will do what He did.

John 41:12 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 

Doing these things is how the bride prepares for the second coming of Jesus. The bride is ready for the return of the Bridegroom because she has taken up His cross. The cross of Christ must become alive in our hearts and minds. 

SERVING THE CHURCH

We were committed to our congregation in our attendance, tithes, time, and serving God and His people. But even in this capacity, God was showing us what was in store for the bride.

A VISION FOR THE ANNUAL CHURCH CONFERENCE

Our church held an annual conference that had become a tradition over its twenty-five-year history. People of God came from all over the world to teach, preach and worship God. 

One Sunday after the service, our pastor engaged Pat and I in a talk about the conference. He indicated that they lacked an illustration for the cover of the conference brochures. It just so happened that God had shown me something a few days earlier, and I presented it to the pastor. He liked it and had an artist drawn it up for the pamphlets. Here is a description of what I saw.

I saw a star that generated multiple sets of uniquely tinted light beams that flashed in all directions, some reaching the earth, very far away. The rays hitting our planet were sharp and penetrating and included the entire spectrum of light. 

Then suddenly, the star grew several times larger than its original size and brightness. 34 Because of this massive expansion; it was now closer to the earth, and as a result, it scorched our planet with its searing light. 

Isaiah 30:26 Moreover the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD binds up the bruise of His people and heals the stroke of their wound.

Afterward, the starlight slowly dissipated into a soft cloud-like light that encompassed the globe in a canopy. I believe that this is a foreshadowing of the things that must transpire before the fulfillment of God’s plan. Here is the explanation of what I saw in the vision above:

In the beginning, God communicated with His people from a great distance. However, in the future, His words will come in like direct sunlight in summer, and they will burn up those planted in stony ground. 

Matt 13: 3-8 Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.

Therefore everyone anchored deep into God’s good ground will understand His desire more clearly than ever before and this will kindle a revival that will spread across the earth. The result will be a massive harvest of saved souls. The Word of God will become known to everyone, and the people whose roots have grown deep into the living water of life will flourish, but all others will be scorched and die. 

John 4:13 – 14 Jesus answered and said to her, Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.

Then God’s love will encircle and protect the earth, and His people will prosper under His soft and gentle love.