Judgment - A Kick in the Face
I have been praying for our nation every day, like I am sure a lot of you have been. We are all concerned for the events of our time, and the turmoil that seems now like an ordinary occurrence. Beginning around 2004, I started receiving many of what I call my "judgment visions." One of the first, I entitled, "Judgement, Mercy, Judgement, Mercy..." . You can read this earlier post, as an introduction to the following vision.
The vision I received just two days ago, was confusing to me to say the least, so this morning as I was praying for clarification, God gave me two additional parts which I believe are all to be taken together.
The Vision
I saw a man standing in front of me with a look of defiance upon his face. There was an underlying sense of determination mixed with rage. He was dressed in business attire with his hands grasping the opening of the jacket, tearing his clothes apart as if he were Superman. The man's chest was bare.
Only a few seconds passed, when I saw the next part of the vision. I was in a car on the far right hand lane. A large semi truck was passing me in the lane to my left. On my right was a truck pulling a car carrier attempting to merge into my lane. Both trucks were slightly in front of me. We were heading towards collision. The scene was paused; nothing moved, I was just looking over the scene, assessing the situation. There was nowhere for me to go. Even if I were to slam on my brakes, the long trailers on either side of me would still crush me. There was no way out. Then the vision ended.
I thought much about this vision, not really understanding the meaning of the man tearing at his jacket and exposing his bare chest. I had the thought that this vision concerned me alone. So I prayed along these lines, thinking that I had so annoyed the enemy with my prayers, that he was planning to take me out. But I believed that there might be a deeper meaning, so I continued to pray to get a full understanding of the vision.
As I prayed this morning, I received these next two parts:
First I saw that I was holding a bowl of black beans in front of me. I heard myself say, “There are only beans. There are only beans!” The black beans were plain, unspiced. There were no vegetables. There were only beans in the bowl.
Then, suddenly, I saw a foot coming towards me, to kick me. I recognized the kick to be a martial arts movement called a “spinning round house.” I only saw the lower portion of the leg with the back of the calf facing me and the heel coming towards my face. The intention was clearly to cause harm.
Now I have two visions, within two days, that show attempts to cause me bodily harm. The other two visions describe the motive or the reason behind these acts of violence. In the first vision, we see a man who is carrying anger, and the desire to use force, to take care of business his way. His chest is exposed, because he is trusting in his flesh, and his personal strength and abilities to over power me. The man sees me as a threat. Why? Who am I? If I were a normal average woman, as I look to be, I would not be a threat to anyone. But the truth is, if we are followers of Christ, we are no longer helpless. When we have Christ we have everything!
Who or what does the man represent? He can represent the natural man who has no need for God. He is not willing to submit to God’s ways. We see this in our nation right now. It is as if people are taking sides. Those that are in agreement with humanistic thought and the world’s view are taking their stand against God’s word, against God’s values, and against God himself. We should not be taken by surprise by this. Paul warns us that we are the fragrance of Christ to those who are being saved and the stench of death to those who are perishing.
I believe that this vision is a warning to Christians, to be prepared for difficulties ahead.
Now about the beans, what is this all about? Beans are a poor man’s food, sometimes referred to as “peasant food.” They are also a wholesome source of protein to vegetarians, of which I am one. But who was doing the complaining? It was yours truly - me! I was dissatisfied with plain beans. There were no spices, no vegetables, nothing to make it more palatable. Who do I represent? Complainers - those that feel entitled to better treatment, better everything.
I remember praying at the altar one day, when suddenly I heard God speak to me. He said, "Stop Complaining! Do you want to be like the Israelites and wander in the desert for 40 years?" I was shocked, caught off guard by God's directness. I immediately repented. I never realized how much I complained. After promising God that I would really, sincerely, try not to complain, within ten minutes of leaving the altar, I found myself complaining! "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?" Romans 7:24
As I look at our nation, I see that we are a nation of entitled, complainers: "I am entitled to_____. I need _____ so, the government owes it to me. I want ______ and you are wrong for denying it to me. The government exists to make my life easy. We are not yet progressive enough. You are a ______, if you do not think the way I do or value what I value."
On the other hand, I see another group, those that have a desire to take us back to the “good old days.” The days of prosperity, the days where marriage was between a man and a woman, the days where most families could afford a home on one income, and days when children walked home from school at lunch time because their moms had lunch ready for them. A day when you knew your neighbors, and there was still the pledge of allegiance and prayer in schools. A day when grandparents were taken care of by their own grown children. A day when nearly everyone went to church on Sunday.
These groups are at odds because their values are at odds.
When Donald Trump was still a candidate, he was highly successful at drawing people under the banner, “Make America Great Again!” I knew in my heart what these people wanted, but I was afraid for them. I knew that to make America great again, by “pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps,” or by "taking matters into our own hands," would only delay or hinder what could only be accomplished by God. I knew if our prideful hearts, would say, “We can rebuild America!” then we in actuality, cause greater harm than those that we think are doing their best to tear America down. We become like the man in the vision, that boasts pridefully, "I can do all things in my strength. I will stand up to those who are against me, and overcome them myself!" This is defiance. This is self-will, self-determination. It is an afront to God. (Remember that God destroyed the Tower of Babel, and scattered the people for those same prideful, arrogant attitudes.)
We need to see that we as the church, have walked away from God. In many ways we are no different than the people around us: "None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one. Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive. The venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes." Romans 3:10-18
We have not been good stewards of what God has given us. We were to protect and defend our God-given rights, our Constitution, and the freedoms that were purchased by the blood, sweat and tears of our forefathers. We are to seek God, to put him first. We are to consider our ways, and to establish laws in our land that reflect God’s goodness. When people were saying, "Make America Great Again,". I couldn't help but remember what a God fearing man once said:
“America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” Alexis de Tocqueville
Let us take inventory. Our nation is responsible for the blood of the unborn children, because our laws give a woman or an insistent man the right to murder. We are responsible for grieving The Holy Spirit, by our tolerance and even indifference to sexual sin. More than fifty per cent of marriages end in divorce, and it has become popular to live with someone on the grounds that “We are engaged.” Some live together with no justification, whatsoever.
We are reaping now what our sins have sown. Our acquaintances, friends, and even loved ones have become entangled with alcohol, drugs, broken marriages, pornography, child abuse, depression, sickness and disease, suicide……..
There was a time in the past when a nation lived as we do now, having a culture that supported all that was bad. It was ancient Israel.
I would like to take you to a book, in the Bible, entitled "Hosea." This book shows how God feels about sin, and the waywardness of his people. God revealed his heart to the prophet Hosea, because He wanted him to experience the pain that He felt in his own heart. God loved the Israelites, but they were like an adulterous wife, always going astray. It seemed they could not remain faithful to him. Again and again, they broke trust with him, pursuing idols and worshiping the Baals. So, God commanded Hosea to marry a prostitute. Gomer was her name. When she bore children, Hosea was to name the first one, “Jezreel,” because God planned to punish Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel. The second child was given the name “Lo-Ruhamah,” which means, “not loved,” because the Lord was not going to show love to the house of Israel any longer. The third child, he was to call, “Lo-Ammi,” which means “not my people,” for the Lord said of the israelites, “You are not my people, and I am not your God.” Hosea 1:8
To Hosea, his children, became a constant reminder of Israel’s unfaithfulness and the punishment that God was preparing for them. The Lord was going to “put an end to the kingdom of Israel.” Hosea 1:4
God wanted Hosea to feel betrayed, as he did, so Gomer was unfaithful to him, and took another lover.
The Lord’s ultimate plan was always to restore Israel to himself. When sin became too great for the Lord to tolerate, he brought judgment upon Israel, to punish them for their wicked and unfaithful acts. He used prophets like Hosea, to be his spokesperson, to help the people to understand his heart, and to return to him in repentance. God has been and always will be ready to forgive, and to restore his people.
“The Lord said to me, “Go show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adultress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.” Hosea 3:1
If this scripture were written for today, it might say: “Love her as the Lord loves the Church, though they love the world and the money that affords them the lifestyle that makes them happy.”
This next passage, I believes summarizes the sins of Israel, but notice how they resemble the sins of our nation.
“Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites, because the Lord has a charge to bring against you who live in the land: “There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land. There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed. Because of this the land mourns, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the fish of the sea are dying.” Hosea 4:1-3
When I see the parallels between our nation and Israel, I see that God has been patient with us for quite some time. He has allowed us to prosper, but our choices have been selfish. The throne that was to be reserved for God, has been replaced by our idols: money, and everything money can buy, self-gratification, our houses, our vacations, our vices, and our pleasures, food, drink, sex, thrills, etc.
The vision in its four parts reveal God's warning to us. if we simply reduce the vision to the descriptive words that the pictures elicit we have:
The man tearing his clothes: defiance, tearing apart, exposure, anger, the flesh, a show of strength, power.
The unavoidable collision: hemmed in, no way out, certain doom
The bowl of beans: Lack, plain, meager provision, desire for other foods, not enough
The roundhouse kick: attack, intention to harm, martial arts, kick, strike
The man represents our transgressions against God. He demonstrates defiance against God's people, and against God's ways. There is a book that describes America’s defiance, that you might want to read, by Jonathan Cahn called the “Harbinger.” It was a book about God’s judgement against America. I have still four visions about warnings for America that I have not yet shared.
The collision is God’s declaration of punishment for our wicked ways. God has held back judgment for a time, but I believe that the events over this past year, are only the beginning. In the vision, there was no natural way of escaping the impending impact. However, in repentance, and turning to God, the door may be opened for God's mercy and deliverance.
The bowl of beans may show God’s decision to hold back his blessing. Without God's blessing, our formerly prosperous nation, “the land of plenty,” will suffer lack, and become “the land of lack and loss.” Just as God removed his love from Israel, God can remove his blessing from our nation. Again, prayer, and repentance is the means to restoration.
The kick could represent an attack from North Korea. The spinning roundhouse kick is a martial arts technique found in Taekwondo, a Korean martial art. God uses things that mean something to us personally, so he can speak in a way we understand. In this case, as a teenager, my brother got involved in Taekwondo, and became somewhat obsessed with practicing his kick. Whenever I would be standing near by, “minding my own business,” I would suddenly have a foot in my face. He never struck me, but he got a lot of pleasure out of trying to come close.
I believe that the Korean leaders, are enjoying their attempts at “coming close” with their missiles. They are enjoying all the attention on the world stage. It is only time, poor decision making, or even an accident that could suddenly turn a prank or tease into all out war.
So, what are we to do? Wring our hands? Worry? Curse our government leaders? Blame everyone except ourselves? The answer has never changed:
“If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven. I will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
Be blessed! And pray!
