"I see men as trees walking" "And he shall be like a tree planted by rivers of water, that brings forth his fruit in his season, his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper"

Each and every saint - every child of God, is meant to be a conduit through which the Holy Spirit, like a river, flows. "He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water (but He spake of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive)"  When the river is flowing through all the saints present - they join together to form one mighty river of His presence in our midst. When only one person's river is flowing, this is a much weakened anointing than what could be. Notice too that the river flows out of the belly - the exact opposite of what takes place when we're in the flesh, feeding our flesh; usually we take into our belly, we consume, not give, yet, when a woman gives birth, out of her belly flows "living water", water that sustained life within her, so, as we release the Spirit to flow out of us, we release life unto one another - we water one another, with the words of life God speaks through us, as well as the anointing to heal, etc. As trees, we partake of the Holy Spirit's flow out of each other, we drink deep and are satisfied.
Our souls are like trees that drink of the Spirit's flow, as a river. As trees too, we stand and occupy the place He has put us in, not church necessarily, but the ministry He has called us to. We do not crowd our brother's place, or take it over with our roots, we send our roots down, not sideways. In any place where many trees gather, we see different kinds of trees standing together as one forest/army "neither shall one thrust another, they shall walk everyone in his path".
Some trees provide fruit, others provide shade, others shelter from the rain and some sacrifice their very flesh and blood on behalf of others. The time has come to flee Babylon for her judgment is upon us "BLOW YOU THE TRUMPET IN ZION, AND SOUND AN ALARM IN MY HOLY MOUNTAIN: LET ALL THE INHABITANTS OF THE LAND TREMBLE: FOR THE DAY OF THE LORD COMETH, FOR IT IS NIGH AT HAND" - This day, spoken of in Joel chapter two, is upon us. This is a prophetic chapter for the world wide Body of Christ today - This chapter is all about God reestablishing who He really is to His people and to the world. Religion has misrepresented Him for far too long and the time is now come to reveal Himself. "Joel" meand "Yahweh is God" - He will be who He is, not who Babylon says He is, an impotent, emasculated God, weak and unable to do much about the wickedness so prevalent in the world today. In Babylon, Satan counterfeits all God is, and replaces every aspect of God with a falsehood. Babylon has a form of godliness, that isn't real. Babylon practices a false love, a fake love that appears real outwardly but is self-serving and self-centered, designed to often make "self" look good. In Babylon, they turn to man for healing, for knowledge of spiritual matters, and for all God would provide. If we'd only seek Him alone, in this "Day of the Lord" we are entering into "a day of darkness and of gloominess" a "great people and a strong" shall rise up and appear "there hath not been ever the like - neither shall be anymore after it". They shall be "as a strong people set in battle array". No more playing church in religious ceremonies and traditions that have no power - "before their face the people shall be much pained". For they shall bring the power and the presence of the Lord God almighty Himself, before whom none can stand - they will rob the enemy of souls he's hoarded "they shall enter in at the windows like a thief". "The earth shall quake before them." "And the Lord shall utter His voice before His army; FOR HIS CAMP IS VERY GREAT" "For He is strong that executeth His word: for the Day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?"

Part two in five days 

Part Two

They continue, week after week, year after year, teaching their Bible stories, truth mixed with false doctrines, singing their songs, all the while submitting to and following each other, but never Christ. They seek each other's presence but never God's. They submit to flesh, not spirit (not the Holy Spirit, anyway). They submit to men, be it pastor or priest, rather than follow Christ. They substitute their religion for the relationship He's invested so much for them into, where He's alive in their hearts and services, choosing instead a dead religion, following a dead Christ, following self instead. Jesus' presence is cast away from their midst, they live for their flesh not for His Spirit.
They seek knowledge, not Christ. In Satan's kingdom, we're taught to become consumers, constantly seeking to feed and care for ourselves, whether it's pleasures, or food or possessions, and this pattern, this life style permeates our churches also. We're taught our Christianity is all about us, about consuming knowledge each Sunday. We're encouraged to be "hearers only", never doers, never walking in the Spirit but rather sitting in the flesh, despising the Spirit and pampering the flesh, which is where Satan wants to reside (after all, God cursed him by causing him to "eat dust"...we are made of the dust of the ground.....Satan curse is that as a disembodied spirit he will forever crave flesh..so when he inhabits flesh he passes this craving on to whomever allows him in). When, however, we crucify the Christ in us instead of our self, it allows Satan to have his way with us. Where, I ask you, are "doctrines of devils" taught? In churches! Churches that claim to be of Christ. To whom does Satan appear as an "angel of light"? To Christians, in churches that belong to him. He loves to pastor and teach us his ways, not God's. He will prophecy to us if we'll hear him. In short, he wants to be our god.
Who deemed Christ worthy of death at His first coming? His people, Satan's flock. Not the world, not the lost, his own people who thought they were God's. Who rejects Christ today when He comes in the person of the Holy Spirit? His people, Satan's flock. His people crucified Christ's flesh then and his people crucify Christ's spirit now. The same sin Israel committed has been repeated by churches, except that concerning Israel, it was God's will that they crucify Him, He blinded them so they would, but it is emphatically not His will that Christians today "quench the Spirit" and cast out the Holy Spirit from their midst. There can be no void - in the absence of the Holy Spirit, Satan will take the reins of our hearts and subsequently our services, every time.
The end result of leading Christ instead of following Him (MT:27:23) is "Let HIM be crucified". Religion makes a mockery of Christ. Religion puts a crown upon His head but it's a crown of thorns. Religion gives Him robes to wear but not to honor Him but rather to honor themselves. Religion says "look at me, outwardly I look like I am honoring God but I'm really dishonoring Him inside". They will take their reed/rod of authority and smite Him with it, rather than smite the devil and his ilk. And they will do all this to you too, if Christ dwells in you.
The Herod's of this world will always seek to kill the Christ's in this world. The false authority set up by man, by flesh, will always want to destroy true authority sent by God, by His Spirit "But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, EVEN SO IT IS NOW". "For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. To be carnally minded is death, because THE CARNAL MIND IS AGAINST GOD - THEY THAT ARE IN THE FLESH CANNOT PLEASE GOD, but you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, IF SO BE THAT THE SPIRIT OF GOD DWELL IN YOU, IF ANY MAN HAVE NOT THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST, HE IS NONE OF HIS".  Selah.
In church after church, in America and around the world, they have not the Spirit of Christ, The Spirit of God does not dwell in them. They are of the flesh therefore they cannot please God, no matter how beautiful their services and buildings appear. They have not the testimony of Jesus which is the spirit of prophecy. They have not a love for the truth. And so, judgement has begun in the house of the Lord, as He promised it would, for which I am glad. I welcome judgment so that God's people may be set free from an invisible prison in their minds and hearts, built by an invisible god (not invincible god), who lost the war for men's souls long ago. Selah. 

The very mandate of Babylon - which expresses the very heart of Satan, is revealed in Mt: 26:57 - "And they that had laid hold of Jesus led him"....
In denominational Christianity, anywhere people meet in Jesus' name but under the influence of Satan's spirit - this is the fruit, they lay hold of Jesus, His name, His word, His promises, even His spirit and THEY LEAD HIM, rather than following the Apostle's example, who, when they heard Jesus say "Come, follow Me", they dropped everything and immediately followed Him.
No, in church after church today, where Christianity is their religion, no matter how grand or beautiful they may appear outwardly (because after all, man looks on the outward appearance), no matter how magnificent the building they meet in, all they say, for God's glory - they lead Christ. They tell Christ what to say and do, or not say and do. Jesus prophesied the destruction of the "temple made with hands" - He no longer dwells there but now in the "temple made without hands", that is to say, our bodies, our hearts, humbled before Him, desiring to follow Him, not lead Him.
Yes, in religious services/churches, they're in charge, they're in control at all times from beginning to end.
They pretend to honor Him with their lips but their hearts are far from Him. Every part of the "service" from the worship to the offering, to the message to the altar call is all soulish, fleshly,not spiritual - it's all designed to build their kingdom, not God's. They use Christ for their gain, not give themselves for His gain. They desire to gather souls under them, to serve them, to glorify the name of their pastor, church or denomination. Christ is neither welcome nor free in their services. You are given no honor, no place in the service to minister in the anointing you walk in for they tightly control who may or may not speak and no one sent by God is ever allowed to speak or minister, though "he that receives you, receives Me". He comes to his people in the form of an Apostle or Prophet, in the power and anointing of the Holy Spirit, to deliver His people but alas "he came unto his own and his own received him not" but as many as received him, to them gave he power...)  They reject Him so they may remain in charge. He may say only what they choose. They put words in His mouth, rather than letting him put words in theirs. They pick what scriptures to share, and the understanding of those scriptures is their own, often influenced by Satan, who twists their meaning to keep people from knowing the truth. The Word alone without the Holy Spirit to illuminate it profits nothing. The Holy Spirit is not welcome even in many so called Pentecostal churches. Instead of "apart from Him we can do nothing", they say in their hearts "apart from us He can do nothing". Christ must have their permission - He may minister only when they say and what they say "And in their pride and in their flesh, they go from their service declaring they're blessed, not seeing this sin - Christ must submit to them".
They need their "world turned upside down". They need God's Spirit leading them, not Satan's. They need to become "followers of Christ", for the next step after they obey Satan's desire to "lead Christ", is found in Mt:27:2 - "And when they had bound Him, they led Him away, and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor". They bind Christ in their midst! They restrict Him and force Him to submit to man's will and authority. They use His name and His word, the Bible, all the while binding Him and preventing Him from ministering in their midst, as He wills, leading Him AWAY FROM THEM to His final destination - in their hearts they fulfill Satan's greatest desire - they judge Christ to be worthy of death and they crucify Him instead of themselves, who truly deserve it, in their midst, all the while singing hymns and psalms to him, and giving Him "offerings".
Yes, these churches crucify Christ and set Barrabas  free. Barrabas led a rebellion, which is what they're doing unto God. Then, after he's been crucified in their midst, in their hearts, they prop Him up and celebrate and worship Him, a dead Christ, a Christ who isn't alive to them, who cannot influence or direct them at all.

Part two in five days.....

With age comes a perspective the young can't see
because they've yet to experience maturity
(that my life is not about me).
But that's the price we pay -
the years we waste and days,
to bring us to the place
where our heart's sole desire
is to see God face to face
to welcome His embrace
For in His presence, all that we should not be
is conquered within us daily
that all we should be
may blossom and bloom
for Him to consume
the beauty we become, yearns daily for the Son,
and our souls drink the rain of His love poured out again and again
and we open our hearts fully to Him
that the fragrance of a heart restored to
it's original condition
will replace the former stench of sin.
Thereby we become another jewel in His crown.
Thereby we become another plant in His ground
That all creation might hear
that most joyful of sounds -
The song of the Bride
and the song of the Groom
echoing throughout eternity,
from our hearts, Lord to You
that we may be forever
Your eternal source of pleasure -
The work of your hands, the breath of Your mouth -
Serving You with our hands (deeds) and our mouths (worlds)
No more trying to resist You
but humbly seeking, oh Lord, to kiss You
as we approach Your throne of Grace
we seek nothing, oh Lord, but Your face.
As Simeon and Anna desired but to touch You
and see You - Oh Lord so do I - I need You
to remain in my proper place......

In contrasting Babylon (Satan's kingdom) with God's kingdom I keep seeing more and more Biblical examples - God is good. For instance, the story of the rich, young ruler's encounter with Jesus. What it teaches us is so important God includes it in three of the four gospels. In the story, the rich, young ruler runs to Jesus and kneels before Him and asks "what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" Seemingly a good question but unfortunately he's been around religion all his life which has taught him he can do something to be saved. He believes that by keeping the Law to the best of HIS ABILITY, a set of do's and don'ts, he can be saved. Nevertheless, Jesus tells him to keep the commandments, knowing full well he cannot, knowing that trying to keep the Law cannot make a man good enough to gain entrance to Heaven. Indeed, the young man calls Jesus "Good master" and Jesus tells him "none is good", but Jesus tells him some commandments to keep and he replies "all these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?"
Now Jesus strikes at the heart of Babylon, for Babylon is all about self, pride in ones self, ones accomplishments, self possessions. Jesus wanted the young man's heart. He wanted him to lay down his life by picking up his cross and following Jesus. Worldly wealth and riches usually keep us from following Christ because they end up taking the preeminence in our hearts - they become our heart's desire and focus. They aren't bad in and of themselves unless they prevent us from obeying and following Christ, but they aren't the problem, our lustful, corrupt hearts are.
The young man "heard that saying" to sell all he had and give it to the poor, and "he went away sorrowful for he had great POSSESSIONS". Now contrast his response with the new believers in the book of Acts who were full of the Holy Spirit (whom the young man caught in religion did not know), who when the kingdom of God displaced Babylon in their hearts "sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men as every man had need". This is how a follower of Jesus lives - he does not hoard money and possessions, he sees needs and meets them, for love can do no less. Self is no longer served, other's are served instead. They not only sold their possessions and goods but "neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the Apostle's feet; and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need."
The needs of the few were met by the largess of the many. No one who had a need was neglected. They were the opposite of the rich, young ruler who "went away sad", refusing to follow Jesus if it meant giving up possessions and pleasures in this life to gain them in the next. Rather than leaving Jesus the believers in Acts left all their worldly possessions and wealth - yet so many pastors today teach and practice the opposite, get as much as you can, build bigger and bigger churches and homes for this is God's will. It is a god's will, just not our God's. Lusting after money or worldly wealth is so dangerous to us and so anti- kingdom of God that when Ananias and Sapphira withheld some of the money they got from the sale of their possession, lying to Peter and the people about it, God struck them both dead. Less than thirty years after these passages in Acts took place, history shows us the Romans came in and took or destroyed the very lands and homes the believers sold. If we are truly living as citizens of heaven and not earth, nothing of this earth will matter to us, except souls.
When my wife and I were told by God to go to the mission field He chose for us, He told us to sell our land and home and we did without hesitation. We've given away cars. I've given the shirt off my back and countless ties because I believe Matthew 5:42 should be our lifestyle. "Give to him that asks you, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not you away" (and when you give to someone who borrows from you, expect nothing in return).
Living in America, the heart of Babylon, where everyone is obsessed with money and possessions, where even the churches have become "dens of thieves" and "houses of merchandise" "And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and the seats of them that sold doves" - they were profiting from God's people! They were making their living off them. And Jesus "said unto them, it is written, my house shall be called the house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves". In America, unbelievers see these grand churches, worth millions, and the pastors living in million dollar mansions and they associate God's house with money and greed, not prayer. They see no difference between the hearts of God's people and their own hearts. If our churches had Jesus in them we would find him healing the blind and the lame, and caring for the poor, the orphans and the widows.
The religious hate Jesus. When they saw "the wonderful things that He did....they were sore displeased." No, those whose hearts are set on things below do not want Jesus' presence in their midst. They only want to use His name and His words to gain wealth and power and fame. They want to make a name for themselves, not glorify His name. "There shall be false teachers among you" "and many shall follow their pernicious (deadly, fatal) ways, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of." As I said, the world mocks Christianity because of the pastors and televangelists who focus on money, making merchandise of God's people. "and through covetousness (wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions) shall they with feigned (fake) words make merchandise of you" - they'll lie to you to get your money, they'll twist scriptures to suit their purpose, they'll abuse and misuse the concept of tithing to get people to give their money to them - all in the name of Jesus. I wish Jesus would rid His house of them today as He did then, and I believe He will, even through this epistle I am now writing.
My heart's desire and my prayer is that God will raise up and release Bezaleels and Aholiabs into the Body of Christ today to help modern day Nehemiah's build the Bride of Christ - The New Jerusalem, properly. She's been "ruined by religion" but will be rebuilt in His image and likeness. "Bezaleel" means "in the shadow of God", depicting someone who remains close to, intimate with God. "Aholiab" means "Father's tent" - we desperately need wise hearted  people who remain in and have been raised in our Father's tent (house). We truly need "every wise hearted man, in whose heart the Lord has put wisdom, even everyone whose heart stirred him to come unto the work to do it". This word, this message The Lord has been pouring into me and now out of me these last two months here in Korea - I'm thrilled to see it repeated by other's, a few others. I'm confident this word will get out to all "who have ears to hear" and I'm believing a remnant will rise up and shake themselves free of all that is of man that they may become bound with all that is of God. LOVERS OF TRUTH COME FORTH!!!