Jeremiah 8:19-20 New Living Translation (NLT)
“19 Listen to the weeping of my people;
it can be heard all across the land.
“Has the Lord abandoned Jerusalem?” the people ask.
“Is her King no longer there?”
“Oh, why have they provoked my anger with their carved idols
and their worthless foreign gods?” says the Lord.
20 “The harvest is finished,
and the summer is gone,” the people cry,
“yet we are not saved!”
Grace & Peace,
A few years ago specific encounters with the Lord led me into preparation for a coming harvest. I’m grateful for having made it this far on the journey, because the process has been very hard. It has been a process that consisted of a lot of challenges including, loss of several loved ones, family and marital attacks, pruning, repentance, sorrow, emotional attacks, ministry conflicts, financial challenges, more loved ones passing away, dying to self, and many others things that would take a lot of detailed explanation. Though the journey has been tremendously grueling, God has been beautifully faithful and ever so close. I felt like I’ve learned more in the past few years about myself, God, His grace, mercy, and purpose for my life than all the other years put together.
As I began this journey in 2017, I was given an outline of my process, which I called “Process To Harvest”. Now I understand why it was necessary for such an intense process to take place in my life. God has, and is revealing more deeply to me, who He is and what He is doing. Understand that this revealing is taking place on a personal intimate level, as well as on a collective level for the Body of Christ. He has a plan that will fulfill His desire to revive His Church, the Body of Christ, and to reap a massive harvest by reaching the world through Us as One with Him.
So, what I want to share with you, the Body of Christ, are aspects of my journey, called the “Process to Harvest”. I’m going to begin by first sharing the pre-process outline, but before I do, I must preface with a couple significant intimate encounters with God that began to change my life over 3 years ago.
As I freshly reflect on this journey, I remember the Lord speaking to my heart about healing me from rejection. Soon after, those details began to become more clearer and the process centered around certain particular wounds from my past and some present at the time, was more than I could bear apart from His amazing grace. I didn’t realize how deeply the stains of hurts could settle in, as life goes on. By His wisdom and love He wanted to get in where no one else would be allowed to go, and where I never wanted to go.
The Father made His rounds, and entered into my life for a season of pruning, and it tenderized my heart in such a way that I never want to forget.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. ~John 15”1-2, ESV
That led me to a specific night. I remember laying in bed as my wife was sleeping. With my back facing her I was in deep pondering over my life. As I reflected over the whys and the why not questions to God, I came to a sudden pause with tears drenching my pillow. Somehow I was able to adjust my focus, and my perspective of questioning shifted. I no longer was self focused, I repented and began to ask God what is on His heart. At that moment, I heard myself requesting for the disciple John’s place (John 13:23). “Lord please let me rest on your chest, let me hear what the beat of your heart wants to pound into the ears of my heart, connect our hearts like siamese twins”. It still amazes me that He gave that desire (Ps. 37:4)
What I heard next brought another round of tears. I melted, and was saddened when I heard in my heart, “my people aren’t one”. That quickly took me back to a church revival that I closed out during the end of service. At that time the Lord began to share through me to His people the 4 areas of the LUV Challenge which I wrote in a previous post https://communiontable.home.blog/luv-challenge-letter/. After I heard that (my people aren’t one), John 17 quickly came into mind.
I’m only sharing a portion here, but please read and reread this chapter for yourself until it sinks way down in. God kept telling me, “this is the prayer of my dear Son, and if any prayer would be answered it will be His!” Listen in on this portion of our Lord’s prayer for His Body of Believers;
“20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
Isn’t that precious and powerful? In essence our union with Christ, our unity & harmony with one another; leads to harvest. People actually will believe more by this than what we are saying, Hallelujah! This is what has transformed my life and ministry. This is why I either can or can’t be apart. His desire and prayer must be my experience and message, and I learned that it will either be gladly received in the name of Jesus or utterly rejected, even possibly in the same name.
See, this is what the pruning is for. This is what the journey is for. This is what the “Process to Harvest” is for. Whether we know it or not, like it or not, we are all in process. Not only during this season of Covid-19, but while many other numerous world issues are going on, the church is in process, because the Father is saying in the season of pause, “the process must process us into a shifting of God revealing Himself like never before”. The decade of 2020 vision everyone is talking about isn’t about God’s lack of vision for a putrid world, it’s about our vision, and how His Body, and the world must see Him as He Sovereignly wants to be revealed without our permissions, mindsets, mentalities, ideologies, boxed-in 4 wall divided theologies, and personal ambitions.
One more thing before I share the pre-journey outline of key ingredients for my “Process to Harvest”. I also heard the Lord say to me one day, and this was meant for us all; “In these days, it will not be so easy to resist my Spirit”. In His sovereignty, those that will be His will be one, and will reflect His unified glory as one to those that need to believe. Friends, an unprecedented harvest is coming. It’s the Father’s heart, the Savior’s prayer, and the Holy Spirit’s accelerated strategy on the earth for this season.
I ask you; will you process with Him? Move quickly and ask Him to bring you up to date and prune what needs to be pruned, and align with Him what needs to be aligned. Here’s my pre-journey ingredients that have been essential for helping me become more equipped during the “Process to Harvest”. In my prayers. Grace and Peace!
Outline
1. Hunger (Matthew 5:6; Psalm 63:1-8; Mt.4:4/ Luke 4:4
2. Humility (Phil. 2:5-9; Psalm 10:17; 2 Chron 7:12-15)
3. Help (Psalm 121:1-2; Romans 8:26-27)
Healing and Wholeness (Luke 4:18; 1 Thes. 5:23-24)
Heightening …”20 I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” (John 17:20-23)
& the…Awareness of It (Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Peter 5:6; Eph. 2:6-7)
Honor (2 Timothy 2:1-21*)
4. Harmony (Personal and Collective)(Acts 1:12-14; Rom. 15:5; Psalm 133; John 17:20-22; Eph. 4; 1 Cor. 12)
5. Harvest (Good & Plenty) (John 4:32-38; Acts 2:46-47; Luke 5:1-11)
I will gradually expand on the details of each one in the near future. The important thing to remember is that we all have our own intimate process. However; these ingredients are essential. In the meantime meditate and reflect on each ingredient and scriptures. Get alone with God and give Him the invitation to process your life. He’s knocking, listen for His knocking (Rev. 3:20).
