Cleansing

Hi there.... Someone asked me about cleansing the imagination yesterday and another person asked me about it a few weeks ago so I thought I would write what has worked for me.

Cleansing your imagination so that Holy Spirit can use it and you can trust what you see is extremely important.

I have led people into heavenly encounters many, many times only to have them pull back and disengage because of offense.  When I asked Holy Spirit about it, he said that they had hit a wall and had to be willing to deal with their 'stuff'.  So beware of taking offense.  It usually is a symptom of a deeper issue that Holy Spirit is trying to shine the light on.

So this is what I started out doing many years ago. I had a very hard, seared heart before I got introduced to Jesus and it really grieved me so I asked Holy Spirit for a tender heart. (1Tim. 4:2,  2Kings 22:19, Psalm 51: 10-12)

Second whenever I quit hearing Holy Spirit I would humble myself and go apologize to whoever I needed to.... I kept repenting till his voice/presence was with me again.  (Now I know it's my angels that were hanging around).  You see words that are full of the fruit of Holy Spirit attract Angels  (Gal. 5:22-25) while words that are  full of self and the fruit of self attract demon spirits. (Gal. 5:19-21).  I didn't care what other people thought of me, I needed Him! Desperation works!

Third, I worshiped  a lot... I wanted to be like King David that sang to the Lord.  I wanted to bless His heart because he had done so much for me.  I never ever wanted to grieve Holy Spirit.

As I began to worship all these bad images would come to my thoughts and I tried to stuff them but it didn't help... Holy Spirit said I needed to acknowledge that they were apart of the old me. Then I would confess that they were not the new me and I would ask Jesus to wipe them away from me...  If they wouldn't go away immediately I would ask the Lord what else I needed to do.  Sometimes I had to go apologize to someone.. Sometimes I had to go make it right  etc.   Then I would ask Holy Spirit to help me hate the things that he hated. 

You see we will never get rid of the sin we like.  We have to get to the point where we hate the sin and the death it brings before we will ever give up the pleasure of it.  All sin is pleasurable for an instant but the Bible says it leads to death and it sure does! (James 1:14-15)

So back to cleansing....  Holy Spirit helped me to fast track a lot of cleansing with the power of God's word.  There is supernatural power in God's word to bring it to pass when you mix it with faith. And faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.   So I would ask Holy Spirit for a promise and when I felt a line or two get highlighted in my Bible I would write it down and start to think about it and speak it over myself and even try to sing it over myself till I knew but I knew it was mine.  Then I had power to fight off the things that led to bad images. 

You know Holy Spirit had me read the Book of James over and over for a LONG time. (many months) I wasn't allowed to read much else in my Bible. Some lady gave me trouble because I wasn't reading the whole Bible every year. I recognized a religious spirit speaking through her.... You decide who you are going to listen to. 

I won't say it's easy.  I've taken lots of ridicule from family members because I won't watch a lot of the TV shows or movies out there. If Holy Spirit says no... that's good enough for me.  He's more important.  I don't make a big deal of it and I certainly don't have a 'holier than thou' attitude. I just quietly leave and go to the kitchen or my room and do something else.  I want my imagination to be Holy Spirit's drawing board at any cost.

Is it worth it?  Yes, yes, yes!  We are spiritual beings!  We are in a war and we win through HIM!  If we won't quit we will never lose!  How many Angels do you want waiting for you to wake up in the morning?  How many people do you want to see saved, healed and delivered?  How many Heavenly Creatures would you like to have as friends?  I have a lion named Reign and a green-striped Tiger  named Emerald that come and  guard me while I sleep.  There's nothing like it!   If you'll keep on this journey the veil between Heaven and Earth will get so thin that you'll be learning how to function in both places at the same time.  It's amazing!  Our brains have the capacity for us to live in two dimensions at the same time.

Holy Spirit will make it worth your while!  You can never, ever out give him!  Whatever sacrifices you have to make he will compensate you for,,, over and over again.

So have fun! I decree that You are more than a conqueror through Him that loved you!  Heaven is closer to you than your hand in front of you!  I pray for Joy in your journey and sweet, sweet fellowship  with Him and your angels and may you always be passionate for Holy Spirit, Jesus and the Father and their Kingdom! Amen!

Big hugs and blessings,
Brenda Gale Thompson

(Thanks to www.tonbridgesearch.com
for their carwash cartoon and to
 http://www.tiger-pictures.net/  for their tiger picture.)

Run a Strife Check

I wrote this for the Facebook Group, "Come To The Table" May 17, 2013

"Run a Strife Check"
Scripture: 1 Pet 3:3-6

I remember the time I was praying and praying and getting no answers. I was getting really frustrated, asking, "God don't you care? Can't you see what's going on here?"

I sat down after my kids were in bed and said, "That's it! I'm not leaving this chair till you tell me what's going on and how I can change this situation."

I had no clue where to go so I opened my Bible and it fell open at the page where this verse jumped out at me, " Where there is envy and strife there is every evil work." (James. 3:16)

Hello! God had my attention now. I was so frustrated and upset with my husband I could spit. Not good I know, but he didn't want to talk to me so any hope of discussing the issue was postponed for the moment.

I asked Holy Spirit what the big deal was and he told me to go to 1 Pet. 3.... As I started reading, it resonated in my spirit. It reads, "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight." (1 Pet 3:3-4)

That's a laugh. My Spirit was anything but gentle. I was born for war and I loved winning. A quiet spirit? Hmmm that needed some thought. How to have a quiet spirit....peaceful, content, relaxed where the connotations I got as I meditated on this verse.

I could see that I had some work ahead of me. I continued reading and then I got slammed by Holy Spirit as I read, "For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. They submitted themselves to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her lord. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear." (1 Pet 3:5&6)

Whoa, whoa, whoa! I couldn't believe God was telling me to defer or give in to my husband when he's wrong! I thought, "How stupid is that? I mean what's the point of having a brain if you're not allowed to use it!?"

Holy Spirit put up with my tirade for a bit and when I had quieted down he said it's a trust issue. You don't trust me enough to let me work on him for you. You're manipulating and controlling things to meet your own desires.

Nailed! Holy Spirit got me again. All I could say was, "You're right."

I had to start trusting Holy Spirit to work in my husband's life and not interfere. I wasn't allowed to control or manipulate situations to get what I wanted, no matter how much my flesh screamed. When I went to the Lord and complained, He responded, "Didn't you mean it when you said you wanted to be a living sacrifice for me? Didn't you mean it when you said that you would pay any price to carry my glory?"

He was right, I just wasn't expecting that my cross would be so hidden and inglorious.

So, while I was waiting for the Lord to work on my husband he was working on me. I learned how to go to him for strength for the day, for help when I didn't get the sleep I thought I needed, for comfort when I didn't get the support I thought I needed, for protection when we came under attack, for provision when the money ran out ahead of the bills, for good teaching when I was alone.

I can look back and thank God for all the hard times cause it's made me so much stronger in God. I know with certainty that there's a promise for every situation I'll ever face and that my God is backing me to the hilt. And Praise God I even found some scriptures to help me to become a gentler woman! Hallelujah!

So now when my prayers aren't getting answered I immediately ask the Lord where have I missed it or dishonored my leaders (husband, pastors, etc.) I've finally learned how to keep my heart with all diligence! Yahoo! God's good!

I hope my story helps you avoid some of the pitfalls I went through!

Bless you today!
Big hugs,
Brenda Gale Thompson