The Falling Mantles of Appalachia

The Psalmist said that he had inherited the testimonies of the Lord forever and that they were the joy of his heart. (see Psalm 119:11) The testimonies and works of those gone before us are our inheritance. All that God has said or done in history is ours. The apostles were given power to be witnesses. A witness in court is someone who has seen or heard the evidence and they have a testimony to present. It is only to the degree that we have experienced or encountered His power that we are then able to testify of it. We can also pass on the legacy of testimonies that others have left for us.

Moses did many great works and saw the glory of the Lord. (see Exodus 33) Joshua inherited a supernatural lifestyle from Moses. Elisha inherited a supernatural lifestyle from Elijah. The disciples inherited this from Jesus. Jesus told them they would do greater works. (see John 14:12) Jesus said the “greater works” would testify or be a witness of Father’s Presence in His life. (see John 5:36) Testimony in the Greek means to repeat or do again. All of the inheritance in which all of these received is also ours. We need to accept this inheritance. The inheritance becomes greater with each generation. As we add up the Biblical inheritance passed on, plus the works, prayers and proclamations of those just before us, we have such a great inheritance.

After the generation of Joshua had died, Israel fell away from the Lord. (see Judges 2:7, 10, 12) The reason for this was that no one kept the testimony going and the next generation didn’t know the works of the Lord that had taken place. They didn’t keep the momentum going. This is very important that we pass on the testimonies or it will be very tragic for our future generations.

Here in the Appalachian Mountains in the early 1800’s, Robert Sheffey was born to a prominent family. He was the youngest of five brothers. His mother died when he was two, and he was reared by an aunt in Abingdon, Virginia. Sheffey attended Emory and Henry College for a couple of years in 1839-40. He was eighteen when he was converted at a revival in Abingdon. His relatives wanted him to continue in the Presbyterian Church, but he became a Methodist and, shortly thereafter, he became an itinerant preacher. Eventually his circuit of churches spanned fourteen mountain counties in Virginia and West Virginia. He was called a “St. Francis of the wilderness,” or the “Wilderness Saint.”

Some of the stories of his life included the fact that Robert Sheffey had a sweet tooth. He would pray for the Lord to bless the little honeybees that made the honey. Once he went to a man’s house whose bees had not swarmed. The man figured that the bees had been frozen or insects had gotten them. Mr. Sheffey got down and prayed and asked the Lord to swarm the bees. Instantly there was such a swarm of bees that the man had to get more bee gums for the bees to live in.

Many of the stories about Mr. Sheffey related to his power in prayer. Some of his prayers concerned critical needs of the agricultural community. His prayers and miraculous works included praying for the need for rain in time of drought or the prevention of rain during the bringing in of the harvest. I think Mr. Sheffey knew what it was like to live a supernatural life style. I have heard stories of how he would pray and a cloudless sky would see rain come instantly and put out a fire that was about to get out of hand. I have heard how storms destroyed moonshine stills and they took the stones and laid the foundation for a church building. He loved the poor and helped them so much. He did supernatural works through his faith in God. His miraculous works were a blessing for the poor that money could not buy.

I have been in meetings and seen a cripple person that I knew was crippled, be healed instantly. In Africa, a deaf person interrupted my speaking to inform me he had just received his hearing while I was speaking. I have seen barren women have children 9 months after prayer. This happened in Africa and also has happened here in America. Just in the last few months, I have seen people healed as a result of prayer. I have seen people set free from addiction as a result of prayer and proclamation. Sometimes the works of God are hard to understand and hard to explain but that is just the way God is. That is the joy of living a supernatural lifestyle. This is normal Christianity.

I have read about the great Revivalists of our nation that saw numerous healings in their meetings and ministry. I have seen footage of short legs growing about a foot right before our eyes. This was before trick photography could have deceived the people. I have read how John G. Lake allowed doctors to put germs on his hand and watch them under a microscope. The germs disappeared. He was immune to disease.

These miracles are a part of our inheritance. Like mantles they are falling. As Elisha picked up the mantle of Elijah and proceeded to do twice the number of miracles, we likewise need to pick up the mantles that are available to us. They are falling. Some of them are falling from the great men and women of scripture. Some of them are falling from the great Revivalists of the past. Some of them are falling from the men and women that walked and prayed over our region. Some of them are falling in the form of impartation from those who walk amongst us now. They are falling. Holy Spirit will show them to you. It’s like a treasure hunt. It is exciting. It is yet to see what a generation with a willing and open heart will find. They will sell all they have and purchase the fields that contain the treasures they find. (see Matthew 13:44) We have promises stacked upon promises in our generation. What will we do with them?

Testimony will encourage the people to understand that God is not distant, angry or out of touch. We need to hear this more than the nightly news. It is much more encouraging. Are you willing to make the switch? What we hear from Heaven is so important in these times. It will be the difference between life and death. We will be distinguished as people of God instead of weak professing Christians. There are plenty of those around. Anyone can profess Christianity, as most of America does, but not everyone can profess the manifest presence of Almighty God is at work in their lives in a major way. It is time to encounter and experience more than we have formerly seen in our lifetimes. It is time to step into our inheritance. It is time to simply accept our inheritance. A scripture that I dearly love is, II Corinthians 1:20 that tells us that the promises of God are “Yes,” and we only need to say “Amen” to them. The testimonies of the Lord are sure and we need to tell them. (see Psalms 93:5) Testimonies are the spark that gets the fire going. Have fun.

The Spirit of Abandonment

In the 5th-6th century in Ireland there were monks who were called the Peregrine. These monks would get into a little boat off the shores of Ireland. The boat had no rudder or oars. They only had a sail. They trusted God to send the winds to take them where they were supposed to go. Their adventures were awesome. We must too have that Peregrine spirit. We must have that spirit of abandonment to Him and His purposes.

In 1966, Jackie Pullinger, at the age of 22, left Britain after sharing her heart about missions with a minister-friend. He told her that she should buy a ticket for a boat going as far as she could get and pray to know when to get off the boat. She arrived in Hong Kong, which in the 1960s was not policed and consequently had become one of the world's largest opium-producing centers ran by Chinese criminal Triad gangs. She established a youth club to help drug addicts and street-sleepers. She saw over 500 addicts set free. This is the result of the spirit of abandonment.

Paul has a vision of a man asking him to come over to Macedonia and bring the gospel. Upon arriving at Macedonia, things turned upside down. Paul and Silas ended up in jail but an earthquake happened and the jailer and his household became believers. They moved on to Thessalonica and trouble followed them. At Jason’s house they met with some devout Greeks and a large number of the chief women. The people of that city exclaimed, “These that have turned the world upside down have come here also!” (see Acts 17:6) The early believers were upside-down people. They were containers of oil and they inverted themselves so the power of God would flow out of them.

The spirit of abandonment was in the heart of Paul as he traveled the world going wherever the Spirit led him to go. It was in the heart of people like Abraham who left his fathers house for an unknown land. It was in the heart of David as he danced with all his might before the Presence of God in the streets of Jerusalem. It was in the heart of Elisha as he sacrificed his oxen and followed Elijah throughout the country. Scripture is full of people that lived lives of abandonment. They allowed their lives to be turned upside down not even considering the lack of comfort as being important. Some were tortured. There were those who experienced mockings, scourgings, chains and imprisonment. Others were stoned, and some were sawn in two. They were tempted. They were put to death with the sword. They went about in sheepskins, and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, and ill-treated. These were men and women of whom the world was not worthy. Many of them wandered in deserts and mountains and caves and lived in holes in the ground. (see Hebrews 11:35-38)

Abandonment was in the heart of the women who poured the oil on Jesus. When they poured oil on the feet or head of Jesus it was an act of great sacrifice. (see Luke 7:36-50 and John 12) As an act of their worship they gave all. In one of the stories it was a street woman and in another story it was Mary, the sister of Lazarus. Each of these ladies had to abandon their concerns and hesitancy because of the certainty of criticism. The alabaster box of sweet scented oil was worth a year’s wages. The seal was broken and the fragrance filled the house. Mary poured it upon Jesus. She stepped into her Kairos time and poured it out with abandonment. She didn’t miss her opportunity. This happened close to the time of His crucifixion and many believe that Jesus still smelled this fragrance on the cross. Contrastingly, Mary Magdalene came early in the morning to anoint Jesus’ dead body but she got there too late. He had already risen.

The pouring of oil in scripture was an act of adoration and worship. It also represents the anointing or power of God. In the parable Jesus told, five of the ten virgins ran out of oil. They were powerless. Another way of looking at the oil is to see ourselves as the container. We carry the power of God given to us by His Spirit. The only way to get the oil to flow out of a container is to turn it upside down. It’s the same way with us. The only way to get the power of God flowing out of our lives is to live an upside down life. If we are always careful to do everything right-side-up we will never flow. If we never dare to be different, we will never flow. If everything in our life has to be in order and pleasing to our friends, we will never flow. If we are stuck in a box called comfortable, we will never flow. God is looking for upside-down people.

Power always depends on the position or alignment of the container. This is a season to check and double-check our alignment. Are we in the place where God has called us to be? Are we at the right workplace? Are we a part of the group of believers God has called us to be a part of? The times of just working at any job and going to just any church is over for those who want to flow. We need to seek the Lord for direction in the smallest to largest things in our lives. If we are not flowing, it is not an oil problem but a container problem. Are we inverted? Are we upside down?

The beauty of the container is not that important. It might be bent or old. It’s all about what is flowing out of the container. A beautiful container sitting on a shelf is somewhat useless. An old ugly coal bucket turned upright and allowing coal to flow from it to the furnace is productive. I recall the prophecy that Robert Whitlow spoke over me about 12 years ago when we first met. He said I was like an ice cream salesman with all kinds of ice cream. The people were not so excited about me as they were the ice cream. The street woman’s name was never recorded, but what she did has been preached all over the world in all generations. God is ready to use a nameless generation. This is a generation that has power coming out of them instead of a desire for popularity. The power of big time names is coming to a close in the kingdom of God. The Christian popularity show is over. Jesus is the name above all names and that is being restored. Rejoice.

Revival in the Mountains

Growing up in the mountains of Southwest Virginia, there was always a revival at the local Methodist Church every summer. It lasted a week or so and there was always a good preacher that came and held the meetings. The pastor would open the services and the visiting preacher would preach great messages. Later, when I began to speak on a regular basis at the young age of eighteen, I went throughout the region and held revival meetings. They usually lasted for a week. They were held at different churches that invited me to come and speak.

A couple of summers I helped with tent meetings. These usually lasted much longer. Sometimes they lasted a month. The first one I preached in was with the Taylor Brothers. They were famous in the mountains and I had heard the stories of how they often had large baptisms after their revivals. Hundreds came into the Kingdom upon hearing their preaching. They were fiery speakers and preached long messages. I was only a teen and I usually spoke a good fifteen minutes and then I was finished. They usually had me speak first and then they would speak after me. I really felt small beside these giants. I remember some of the services in which I spoke that I struggled about not doing very well. When they were over, I just wanted to run away into the mountains and be alone with the Lord. I felt so small but I wasn't about to quit.

The first tent revival meeting lasted five weeks. My biggest desire was for my Dad to become a believer. He came to the meetings but never made a decision. He wouldn’t do that for another twenty or so years. I cried a lot over that meeting. The final week, Joe Burris came in from Independence, Virginia and did the preaching. He became one of my favorite speakers. He was a story-teller preacher. He was also fiery. Over the years he became one of my best mentors.

The next year, the Taylor Brothers gave me their big tent that they had used all over the region. It was a big tent back in the day. It held well over two hundred people. It was brown with two big poles in the middle. Another minister and myself set the tent up in an area called Corn Valley. This little community lay right at the edge of the mountains. There was a fire tower up on the mountain that looked down where the tent was sitting. I remember speaking the first night on the watch tower. (see Isaiah 5:2) Some of the local ministers that came didn’t come back. They went and told the community that we were Jehovah Witnesses. I never connected the accusation until later when I realized their magazine was called the Watch Tower. As you have heard me say before, I love prophetic actions. I guess the tower on the mountain was prophetic to me. It spoke of the watchful care of the Lord upon the region. I was feeling it even back in the day.

These are only a few of the many memories I have of revival in the mountains. I thought that I would always do evangelism. I said I would never pastor. Now its thirty-five years later, and I have done pastoral work thirty-three of those years. Yet, my roots are still about evangelism in these mountains.

Evangelism looks a little different for me today. Evangelism still requires bringing the message of good news. Here in the mountains this is usually called preaching. The message is very important. How can the people hear without a preacher? (see Romans 10:14) But there is more to evangelism than preaching. With a strong foundation of preaching the good news here in the mountains, I believe now it is time to go farther.

The revival in Acts 8 was taking place in Samaria. Samaria was a most unlikely place for a revival. Samaria was the place of mixed races. They were despised by the Jewish people. A good Jewish person wouldn’t even pass through Samaria. There were several important elements in the revival in Acts 8. There was the preaching of the good news by Evangelist Philip. There were also great miracles happening. The lame and paralyzed were being healed. By the laying on of hands, people were being Spirit-filled. There was crazy rejoicing going on. News was spreading and people were coming to be a part of this move of God. In the midst of all of this, an angel told the evangelist to leave town and travel towards the south. Going through the desert south of Samaria, Philip had a divine appointment. He met a eunuch from the court of the queen of Ethiopia. Philip led him to salvation and baptized him. The eunuch took the message back to Ethiopia and the word of God spread throughout that African country. Philip was then translated to the north and continued preaching the gospel throughout the north of Israel.

So, we can conclude from this scriptural example that the word needs to be preached. Miracles need to be happening. People need to be Spirit-filled. There needs to be crazy rejoicing. (The reason I call it crazy rejoicing is because that is the only way I can give the word justice in our modern culture. The word has been so watered down. Rejoice actually means to jump up and twirl around. That’s crazy isn’t it?) Angels need to be welcomed to join us in this harvest. (see Revelation 14:15, 16) The news needs to spread to the south and to the north and all directions. Entire nations need reformation. This is Acts 8 type revival.

Since we have laid the foundation here in the mountains of preaching the word, let’s continue to build on this foundation. What’s next? It’s time for the miracles to increase. Jesus said that miracles would follow those who believe. (see Mark 16:17-18) The day of miracles is not over! It never has been! To teach that the time of miracles is over is one of the biggest lies ever told. It has been told here in the mountains many times. It is time for us to step forward with truth. Jesus said that we would do greater works than He did Himself! The works He was referring to were miracles. Jesus said that works of miracles should cause people to believe. (see John 14:12) This is called power evangelism. When people see the goodness of God released through miracles, they are led to repentance. (see Romans 2:4) If we overlook this element of revival, we cripple our effectiveness.

Evangelism is for every believer. It is not just for preachers. Mary carried the news of the resurrection from the tomb. Every believer can carry the good news. Men and women alike are to carry the message. Psalm 68:11 predicts a time in which those who proclaim the good news will be a great host. The great host in this scripture is a feminine word in the Hebrew text. The NAS translation says, “The women who proclaim the good tidings were a great host.” The prophet Joel is quoted in Acts 2, as he proclaims that our sons and daughters will prophesy. Here in the Appalachian mountains women have been treated as second class. The churches have been most instrumental in the suppression of women in ministry. This is wrong and is another lie of the enemy. Every believer is called to proclaim the good tidings. This can be done in public gatherings or one-on-one evangelism. It’s time to go beyond the lies of the enemy and gather the harvest. In Christ we are neither male or female. (see Galatians 3:28)

The traditions of this region may not accept this truth. There may be some that will no longer want to listen to us because of this truth. However, there is such a harvest coming in that soon the bad traditions will look small. There is a part of the bride coming in that will not stand on the traditions of men. They will have fresh revelation and a resolve that shatters any desire to acknowledge bad traditions or even give them the time of day. As millions of new believers are coming into the Kingdom, soon tradition will be outnumbered. The vain and wrong traditions will be rendered powerless. We have focused on lies but this is a new day. The Son has risen with healing in His wings. A region is being healed. Revival is here. Will you join with me in proclamation?

Promised Land Living

After a time the Israelites are opposed by five kings that have come in an alliance against them. That’s a handful. They are victorious over these five kings but an interesting thing happens in this battle. The Lord sends large hail stones from heaven. Therefore, more are killed with the hail stones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.

An important key to good “promised land living” is to make sure the enemy is on the run. If we are running or cowering from the enemy, something is wrong. There are tons of scriptures to use to put the enemy on the run. Father holds in His hands just the right strategy to give us, to make sure the enemy is running. It’s important to recognize and make sure that the Lord is doing more of the fighting than we are. That’s a good balance. Even if a handful of the enemy is against us, greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. The name of Jesus is the greatest power source in the universe. The blood of Jesus has obtained for us the greatest victories ever known.

The victory is going well for Joshua and the Israelites. However, Joshua knew he needed more time because there was so much more to subdue. He commands the sun to stand still and it stood still for an entire day. This allowed time for complete victory. The earth had not seen such a time as this that a man could command time to stand still. Jesus also took charge over the natural when he commanded the wind to stop and the waves to become calm.

Promised land living allows us to take control of the natural. When major hurricanes are coming to our coastlines we can pray and proclaim for them to cease or take a different route out to sea. Instead of giving into what we are tempted to consider as the inevitable, we can proclaim the supreme will of God over our land.

Robert Sheffey traveled by horseback throughout the Appalachian mountains during the late1800’s. One day he came upon a man who had lost control of a fire that could have made its way to the mountains and caused major damage. There was not a cloud in the sky. Mr. Sheffey had with him his sheepskin that he used as a saddle blanket, prayer mat and sleeping mat. He knelt on the sheepskin and prayed. A rain came and put the fire out. That’s promised land living.

Promised land living allows restoration of the years the locust have eaten. (See Joel 1) This grace allows us to start again where we stepped off the path and then sometimes this grace will thrust us to where we would have been if we had never gotten off the path. The Lord can mature us faster than is natural. He knows the end from the beginning and can make all the minor and major changes resulting in our complete restoration. Joshua had great power with God. As these things happened before the cross how much the more they need to be happening now. God still causes time to stand still.

The conclusion of the battle with the five kings involves a solemn ceremony in which Joshua has his men of war put their feet upon the necks of the five kings. This was a proclamation of present victory plus future triumph over the enemy. It was a prophetic act, a thing done in the natural to proclaim the work of God amongst them and a continual manifestation of victory.

I love doing prophetic acts. While watching the Mobile Revival I have had an overwhelming desire to burn for God greater than I ever have. I love the roots of my Methodist heritage and the words of John Wesley when he explained that, “he would just set himself on fire and people would come to watch him burn." Remembering Wesley’s words and watching the Mobile Revival, caused a hunger to arise in me. On Sunday afternoon I went up to the old farm in Lebanon to spend some time in the mountains. I pitched my tent unsure of how long I would stay. I felt the Lord was calling me to the mountains to spend some time with Him, but I was unsure of why and how long. When it started getting dark, I lit a fire in the old rock circle that I had made 40 years ago as a kid. The fire began to mount as the flames reached upward. It was then that I heard Father speak to my heart that this was a prophetic action representing the fire that He was igniting in my spirit. It was worth the journey and the setting aside the hours just to hear Him say those words.

Several chapters of the book of Joshua are about the dividing of the land. Each of the tribes were given an allotment except the tribe of Levi. They were given something much greater. Their inheritance was the Lord. (see Deut. 10:9) As they ministered unto the Lord and the nation their inheritance was His Presence.

In promised land living, His Presence is enough. It is more than enough. When our hearts can genuinely say that Jesus is enough, we can begin experiencing more fully promised land living. Jesus told us in His sermon on the mountains to "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and the others things would be added unto us." (see Matthew 6:33) His Presence has fulfilled the hearts of men and women throughout the ages. Many have lived in obscurity with Him to find greater fulfillment than their peers. Some have walked amongst society daily with such an awareness of God that they often forgot they were still on the earth. There is a growing multitude of sold-out people that will give up whatever it takes to walk with Him in His manifested Presence. There are a people on the earth right now that no longer just want a visitation of God but their desire is to make room for His habitation among them. And they are doing it. He is here. His Presence is with us and He is enough. This is the pride and joy of promised land living.

In Joshua 17 we have the story of how the children of Joseph were given their inheritance. Although the divine providence of God had foreordained this beforehand, they complained. They were not satisfied and Joshua told them that the mountains were before them. They were people of great power and would be able to take the mountains.

I believe we are a people of great power. God is offering us the conquest. Take the mountains. He is calling us a people of great power. As the Lord addressed Gideon as a mighty man of valor, God is addressing us. Gideon hid in fear of the enemy but God called him forth. God is calling us from fear and complacency to become a people of great power. People of great power are followed by signs and wonders. Are we ready for the display of God’s glory to follow us? Are we ready to do the “greater works” that Jesus talked about? (See John 14:12)

The children of Joseph complained because they were given only one lot and they were many in number. However, that lot was lying right against the vast mountains. Joshua told them that the mountains were theirs also. The challenge before them was to clear the land and settle it. They had to take the trees and turn them into houses, barns, and furniture.

This is good stewardship. When we take what is set before us and use it for the kingdom of God, it impresses God. In some of the parables Jesus told, he concluded them with extra blessings on those who exemplified good stewardship. In these parables we see that Heaven's government is a little different than ours. We usually give according to need and God also cares for our needs. He is the Great Provider. But, God also reacts according to stewardship. I tell you, it impresses Him! For example, if we are out of work, we might consider volunteering. As God looks at our heart in volunteer labor, and sees us making good use of our time, He begins opening the doors for promotion. Good stewardship in the smallest of things will train us to handle the larger things. Pick up the pennies laying on the ground or in the bottom of the washer. How we spend our time, money and resources are very important to confident living in the promised land. A good conscience about our stewardship allows peace to reign and we can live in the confidence that God will provide everything we need.

Joshua told the children of Joseph that the outgoings of the mountains would be theirs. (see Joshua 17:18) As they occupied the mountains, they would enjoy what they produced. The same principle still applies today.

As we pray, proclaim, and occupy we will see new outgoings from these mountains of Appalachia. Any region that does this will see the fruit of the Lord going out to the nations. I have prayed and I am proclaiming that the outgoings of these mountains will be great. Like Joshua called the children of Joseph, I call us people of “Great Power." There is a new sound going forth from these mountains. As the sound of country music went out from this region and was heard all around the world, this new sound will ripple out to the far corners of the earth. It is a sound of praise mixed with a sound of war and it will rally believers to lay aside their differences and proclaim the greatness of our God. Songs will be written and recorded. Worship services will be recorded and the media will bring the coverage and exposure needed. Whereas in the past the media would sneak reporters in to video snake handling meetings, now they will openly record the great miracles happening through the power of God here in these mountains. Messages of cutting-edge truth will go forth from these mountains. Books will be written declaring truth that will reform a nation and the world. Occupy will be the song of the day instead of escapism that has haunted these mountains so long. Sunset mentality will be replaced with visions of a new dawning.

A spiritual river will flow from these mountains and there will be healing everywhere it flows. (see Ezekiel 47) One of the most beautiful sights on a river is a waterfall. The Psalmist tells us that deep calls to deep at the sound of God’s waterfalls. His conclusion of the matter is that all God’s breakers and waves have rolled over him. (see Psalms 42:7) You don’t have to be a beach buff to get excited over this. The waves are a type of the overwhelming manifest Presence of Almighty God rolling over us. In the previous verses of this psalm we see the psalmist in a process. The Psalmist used to lead processions of worship to the house of God. He kept festival. He was a “used to be” worshiper. (see Psalms 42:4) Then, in the next verse he begins to find hope and makes proclamation. He proclaims, “I shall again praise God!” Yet he despairs as he remembers the Lord from the mountains. (verse 6) Then, as if all of a sudden, he proclaims deep is calling unto deep. He hears the sound of the River. He hears the sound of the waterfalls. He feels the waves rush over him. He hears the sounds of the breakers roaring. Like the sound of a mighty rushing wind the breakers roar. He hears the Lord calling out commanded blessings of grace and lovingkindness. He has a new song in the night. All of this becomes a prayer upon his lips. Proclamation and prayer become one. Wow! That is promised land living!

Then Caleb steps forth. He was with Joshua forty-five years earlier when they spied out the promised land with ten other guys. He and Joshua were the only ones who brought back a good report and believed they should enter the promised land at that time. Because of the unbelief that scattered through the nation, they remained in the wilderness forty years. Joshua and Caleb were the only ones from their generation that lived to enter the promised land. Now Caleb reminds Joshua of his inheritance. (see Joshua 14) I love what Caleb said. He told Joshua that his strength was the same as when he was forty. He proclaimed that he was as able and as willing to drive out the giants now as he was then. Although he was eighty-five, his strength and resolve was the same as when he was forty.

This is a promise that we need to link into. Instead of expecting to get feeble with age, let’s expect to remain strong. Instead of talking about how our parents died and thinking we may do the same, let’s break the patterns. Sickness doesn’t have to take us out of this world. Enoch walked with God and God just took him. I don’t want sickness to have the glory for my departure from earth. Sickness has been glorified too much. The Church has played a huge part in glorifying sickness by claiming it is God’s will. This is not biblical. This is not what Jesus modeled. Even if I pray for ten people who are sick and there is no evidence of their healing, I will not change the word of God or my Father’s personality. Let God be true and man a liar. I will not back down from who He is and what He stands for to make excuse for myself or those around me.

We need to start proclaiming health. Proclaim that you plan to walk your mountain when you are eighty-five. Proclaim that you plan to have the same strength at eighty-five that you had at forty. Proclaim stronger ministry will come out of you as you grow older. As we say in the mountains, don’t ever think you are too old to cut the mustard. Live strong. Live healthy. Father is alive and well and His children need to model Him.

　

Caleb’s promised allotment was Hebron, a mountain city. In Abraham’s day it was called Hebron but a Giant name Arba had changed the name to Kiriath-Arba. Caleb was ready to restore the original name. With his tribe by his side he took Hebron back. (see Judges 1) It became a Levitical city and a city of refuge. Later, King David made Hebron his royal residence.

We have been given the power to restore the names, callings or redemptive purposes of our cities. If we see the evil or perversion in our cities, we can figure that God’s purpose was probably just the opposite. For example, if the enemy has brought extreme poverty, God has originally purposed wealth and abundant resources. If addiction is strong in a region, God has purposed freedom and health. If a town is known for depression, God has purposed joy for that town. The enemy is not hard to figure out. He cannot create anything so he just perverts the good things that Father has created. I like the way Mobile Bay, Alabama changed their name back to the original name given in 1507. Mobile Bay is now Bay of the Holy Spirit. Wouldn’t you love to live in a city with a name like that?

Sometime later Caleb’s daughter made a request of him for springs of water for her land. He gave her the upper and the lower springs. (see Joshua 15:9) As we say here in the mountains, she must have been a chip off the old block. She knew the power of making a request. Growing up on the farm I learned very early in life that a piece of land without a creek or a spring was almost useless for farming. She had to have water. Caleb’s response portrayed the fathers heart when he gave her double of what she asked.

Spiritually, we have to have water. Referring to the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, Holy Spirit is like a river that will flow up out of our innermost being. (see John 7:38) Father has invited us to come boldly before Him to make our requests. (see Hebrews 4:16) Don’t be overly surprised when you receive double. Father loves His children. The springs are opening up here in the mountains. The seasons of dryness are past.

I was always amazed with the spring we had on our farm. It supplied water for three households. One of the homes was below the spring. They laid a pipe and allowed the water to run continuously into a concrete water box. During all those years the water never stopped running. That’s a good spring. That’s the power of the lower springs. Again, may this be a prophetic picture of the spiritual water that is flowing out of these hills. Hello promised Land!