Lamentations 1:12, "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of His fierce anger."
I am back to this verse, due to some new information and meditation. This past Sunday during prayer time, a lady shared that in the past week, 3 young mothers had died from drug overdose, leaving 3 babies without. Now we are in what is considered a rural area. The news hit deep, my very cry in the above verse.
Now we have faced this drug war all our lives, from one type to another. Starting from marijuana to now everything under the sun; mixed together as last week in Cleveland heroin mixed with elephant tranquilizer. IT is has only deepened and multiplied. But we can truly say that it is heightening in its impact and death rate. So much so, I wonder if the church leadership is looking at what is coming on this current trend. when you consider that we have lost over 60 million babies from abortion, an entire generation. Now coupled with all the blood shed from what we have prayed and discussed on here of murder-suicides, homicides on streets, homes, rise in suicides, public executions, another huge population taken away. With this continuing death rate of drug overdoses, here is another huge population elimination.
We are systemically being removed from the earth as a nation
Consider the population of Israel in the Old Testament:
--70 went down into Egypt;
--603,550 men came up out after 400 years;1450 BC;
--During the days of Jehoshaphat in Judah there was over 1 million in the army; roughly around 900 BC;
Yet due to their sin war, famine, pestilence reduced them from over 1 million down to only 40,000 being carried away into captivity in 600 BC;
What happened to 960,000 men??
We have 300 million in our population of this country. AT what rate of death and removal do we finally say, uh-oh! we're in trouble!
And I am sure that these are things that you know and pray about. But with this trend where will we be in 5 years - 10 years - 15 years; how horrible does 20 years from now look like!!
such circumstances should stir in us a strong path of prayer to the our Father's throne. Drug addicts dying at record pace; without Christ and into an eternal hell. Death rate of murders at record pace, many dying without Christ, into an eternal hell. Tragedies, judgments, calamities happening at record pace. . . can you not see the eradication of a nation and the desperate plight of the church to respond rightly?!
Someone that studies this will say, i'm overreacting because the US is still one nation that is 'healthy' growing in population to death ratio. And I would rejoice in this as God's favor, however, God gives growth, as He did to Israel. And God can stunt growth and reduce and remove for sin.
Sin?! Unconfessed and unrecognized sin!!
Abortions are lessening they report; don't' rejoice, the reasons abortions are reducing is due to the birth control from ages 14 - 54 Fornication and adultery have never been higher in our society and in our churches. Remember a murderer will not enter into the kingdom of heaven via abortion. Remember also that a fornicator and adulterer will not enter in. Our generation has simply found a way to supposedly cover their iniquity. But the Lord knows.
Drugs - parents stuck in prescription drugs justify themselves while condemning street drugs. Its all the same, its addiction. I don't see how we can view this drug war as anything else but a demonic attack to destroy a nation from within. But is there a spiritual warfare raised by the church? "Please deliver my son, my daughter, my grandchild from this addiction" that is the prayer during a church service; but never addresses the forces of hell, the choices of the heart nor the desire of the Lord for them. How much damage must be done in the family, in society, in the church before we are provoked to respond rightly before the Lord. "This kind can come forth by nothing but prayer and fasting".
Yet the church views it as a hiccup and simply a matter that will fix itself, or the government will fix it. I do not believe we realize the depth and despair of this.
Now in the midst of this sorrow, just this past weekend I saw what seemed to be huge numbers of baptisms taking place. Many on social media reporting huge numbers of baptisms. And I would rejoice, but as you know in this day of unexplained 'cost of being a Christian' to many fall away, depart, leave that which seems in the moment to be real. Too many walk the aisle and profess Christ, only 6 months to 18 months later to be back in sin, and left the church.
Why? Partly due to man again putting their dirty hands on the Holy work of salvation. My dad calls them 'still-birth' salvations; there is no life in still birth babies. Their emotions have been stirred, but their is no work of God to save. It has all been fostered by man, the sin of humanism to get numbers up for baptisms and show 'success' in ministry. This is due to a failure to explain the Gospel with the power of the HOly Spirit bringing conviction and conversion. Only God can do the drawing and saving.
and even if there is no explanation of the Gospel fully, if God is in it, He will keep them.
These still birth salvations is just as much from hell as the drug destruction. So I pray that this new rise in baptisms is of God and for God. Only God knows the truth of this. But this much is certain as in all Christian testimonies, the test of time reveals whether it was real or not. We shall see.
I am not dismissing all these testimonies of awakenings or baptisms or answered prayers I am simply being discreet, cautious, not to give credit to God for something He had nothing to do with. I know no parents at a miscarriage or still birth that rejoice (we have had 3) and there is no joy at that. WE should be cautious in touting numbers, salvations, baptisms when in 6 months these same supposed children of God will be gone and have become children of the damned.
But there is an activity happening, that much we can see of the increase of prayer emphasis. The reports of spiritual activity in schools in Ohio, WV and NC. I will rejoice and continue to watch and pray for these places and moments.
In light of all that I have shared let there be a renewed emphasis of clarity and pursuit of holiness in and through God for these things:
1. Let us understand the spiritual warfare that is happening and where this taking us. This needs to be done by informing our churches, pastors, and ministry groups of these truths happening.
2. There must be the understanding of Biblical condemnation on these sins of our society. Too many won't address them, are ignorant of the Scriptures and reality of just how exceedingly sinful our sin is in the sight of God.
3. A call for holiness in the church. Pure, undefiled, spotless as the Bride of Christ. I have returned to this word more than ever, let there be piety among the brethren. Cast off self, and all carnal, worldly mindedness and practices that keeps us from our Lord's business.
4. Let the prayer times become battle grounds to take back all that SAtan has taken from us. A holy warfare that realizes the above mentioned and the high costs of eternity in these lost loved ones, church members and in society. There needs to be more spiritual example and teaching on this warfare. We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against the evils of Satan and hell.
5 Let us wait on God and seek His Divine hand. Let it not be named among us that we put carnal hands on Holy vessels of God; that we not be like Uzza who touched the ark thinking he was helping, but in reality he was disobeying.
I appeal to you to deepen your prayer life and your walk with the Lord. These are evil days, yet we know that in a moment "suddenly" a Divine visitation is possible. Our prayers for real revival is the answer to this. But the vessel used, blest and chosen is one who has clean hands and a pure heart whose tongue has not lied.