1 Samuel 30:8 – So David inquired of the Lord, saying,
“Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them? ”And He
answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”
In the fall of last year I began to
pray about the New Year. I believe it is
important that we take time to pray and listen to what the Spirit is saying to
the church for 2015. You may say, “I’m still looking for the fulfillment of
last year’s promises.” I believe that
the years overlap and we build on them.
In 1 Kings 22:7 King Jehoshaphat was
in a very tough place with two other kings.
The king made this statement, “Is
there not still a prophet of the Lord here, that we may
inquire of Him? We are in perilous times. We are in a very tough place. We need to hear the word of the Lord. Why do
we need prophetic direction? God gives prophetic direction to position us to
enter into our assignment. Your place of
assignment in this season will be the place where you draw your supply.
In 1 Timothy 1:18 Paul gives these
instructions to a young pastor, “This charge I commit to you, son Timothy,
according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you
may wage the good warfare.” What do we do with the prophetic promises that God
gives to us? According to the Apostle
Paul we are to pray them back to the Father and use them to engage in warfare
with the enemy.
Prophecy is for our encouragement and I believe it is permission
for us to pursue these promises in prayer.
Over the last few months I have been hearing the following things about
this year or season we are entering into.
I want to share the following six things and submit them to you for
prayer. Please examine these things and
join with me in praying for greater insight.
- A Year of Reward - This will be a year of promotion. God is bringing promotion to those who have been faithful. Many of you have been faithful to God with very little reward. This will be a year of reward. Those who have been under assault, hard pressed, and continually attacked by the enemy will experience promotion.The attack that the enemy has brought against you has been to prevent you from entering into your reward. Promotion is defined as “the act of moving someone to a higher or more important position or rank in an organization.” [i] (Psalms 75:6, Psalms 3:3, Daniel 2:20-21)
- A Year of Release - Long term promises that have been delayed will be released in this season. Jude, the half-brother of our Lord wrote in Jude 1:3, “We must earnestly contend for the faith. Many of us have stood in faith. We have put God in remembrance of His Word only to experience delay. A delay can be defined as, “a situation in which something happens later than it should.”[ii] This is the season of no more delay. Things that have been delayed will be released in this coming year. Galatians 6:9 – “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” We are entering into due season. This will be a season where promises that have been delayed will come to fulfillment. (John 11:6-7, Proverbs 13:12)
- A Year of Resources - Psalms 50:10 – “For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” This will be a year that God releases the resources needed to accomplish our assignment in this season. This is part of the miracle that God is bringing. This will be a season of resurrection and release. In the last season we were in many of us experienced delay in the promised resources that we needed to carry out the vision. In this current season we are about to experience a release of resources. Seeds we sowed in past season will yield a harvest in this season. Proverbs 3:9-10 reads, “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase. So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.” Notice the words in the latter part of verse 10, “Your vats will overflow with new wine.” Overflow is a key word for this season. Where there has been a deficit, there will now be an overflow. (John 10:10, Luke 6:38, Malachi 3:10-12)
- A Year of Rage - We are in a season of warfare. We are going to experience both spiritual and natural warfare. We are currently in the Hebrew year, 5775. It is the year of the whirlwind. Things are going to be shaking, but we must stay in the eye of the storm. There will be continued conflict in the Middle East. There is going to be an increase of lawlessness and violence in our nation as well as other nations. The enemy is stirring up strife to bring division to prevent us from entering into the move of God’s Spirit that He desires to bring. God is calling us to be agents of reconciliation. We must be reconciled to our brothers and sisters in Christ. We cannot allow the attitudes and anger of our day to affect our relationships. Guard your relationships. Don’t allow political agendas, past prejudices, rumors and half-truths to influence your thinking. Pray through the things we hear on the news. Allow God to reveal the spirit that is working in what is going on. We must be a people of prayer. We must take time to listen and be led by the Spirit of God. (Matthew 24:6, Hebrews 12:27-28, James 3:16)
- A Year of Restoration – This is the year to pursue and recover all. Jesus said in John 10:10, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” What has the enemy stolen from you and your family? In 1 Samuel 30 David and his men came home to Ziklag, only to find that the Amalekites had taken their wives, children, and goods captive. David and his men found the town burned and empty. How did they respond to the loss of their families and goods? They wept until they had no more tears. In verse 8 we learn how David responded to this crisis. “David inquired of the Lord, saying, ‘Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?’ And He answered him, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.’” What is God saying to us in this season? “Pursue and recover all!” (1 Peter 5:10, Joshua 1:3, Psalms 23:5)
- A Year of Rapid Acceleration - I have the term, “acceleration” from a number of prophetic voices in the last few months. To accelerate simply means to “make something happen sooner or more quickly.” We must allow the Holy Spirit to remove any obstacle or hindrance that has the potential to hinder our advance.(Hebrews 12:1)
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