Bringing to living Waters from the very presence of God through God's Words.

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SUFFER FOR HIS SAKE
20th May 2021


Now, let’s stick with loving Jesus when He’s in heal mode; active heal mode.
"...The Lord is saying there’s going to be healings. There’s somebody here. You, that young lady, God is saying..."
How many of you like to watch that? How many of you like to be the person giving words of knowledge to people? How many of you just love the idea of being used like that by God? When you touch people, they fall. You don’t even touch, they fall. Ah power!
That’s you with Jesus taking a beautiful selfie. You can show someone the selfie and say "This was me and the Lord healing someone of cancer. This is me and the Lord healing someone’s leg."
Then when the Lord goes over to suffer mode, fasting mode or pray-till-you-sweat blood mode, you say 'you know what? I’ve noticed people have different callings. This isn't my calling.' and you chicken out.

Where is your selfie with the Lord from when He was being disgraced?
Like Peter, you say

'Me? Who? My name is Peter. Jesus? Who is He? I Don’t know Him'.
The third time, the Bible says he [Peter], swore with oaths:

'God punish me if I know that Man',

Because Jesus was in suffer mode.
We don’t like suffer mode. How can we suffer? (Sings)
'Me I no go suffer lie lie, I no go beg for bread.
God of miracles na my papa oh'

God of miracles? What about God of suffering?
God please save us from us. May God save you from you.
May you not read the Bible paying attention only to the things you like.
May you be willing to suffer with Jesus as much as you love to enjoy with Him.

From a message by Pastor Ita Udoh

The Path by Rick Joyner
Chapter 1

THE VOICE (1A)

I thought every step would be my last. The hunger, thirst, and weariness all combined into the greatest crisis I had ever experienced. Death had to be very close. The fog was so thick I could only see a few feet in front of me, and it seemed to perfectly fit my mental state. I was determined not to stop as long as I was still conscious, but I knew that could not be much longer.

I was trudging through a dense forest on a narrow path. My eyes burned. My clothes were frayed so badly, they hardly gave any protection from the thorns and sharp limbs that stabbed at me continually. I had gone far beyond the point where I thought I could not go any further and each step was torture. Death became desirable. Even so, if I died I did not want it to be because I gave up. I knew that if I ever stopped I would not be able to start again, so I plodded on step by tortured step.

I thought of why I had entered this wilderness. I had been shown a great purpose on the other side. Now my whole purpose was to die while still trying to go forward. This would at least be some measure of victory against this wilderness that now seemed sure to be my doom.

Just when I was sure my next step would be my last I saw a faint sparkle through the fog ahead. I thought I must have imagined it and that my mind was playing tricks on me, but I gathered all of the resolve that I had to stumble forward a few more feet. I saw it again. It could not be very far, so I determined to reach whatever it was.

I emerged from the forest and was standing in front of a small lake. It was the most beautiful water I had ever seen, not just because I was so thirsty, but it was like a scene out of heaven. The water was a deep blue that sparkled from within. Large rocks and trees seemed to have been arranged around it for a special beauty. It looked completely natural and yet divinely landscaped.

I tried to kneel down, but fell on my face at the edge of the water. As thirsty as I was I just stared at it for a long moment. The water seemed alive with light. It then occurred to me that it must be some kind of radioactive pool. It could kill me to drink it.

“So what!” I thought. “I’m going to die if I don’t drink it, so I might as well try it.” Still, I cautiously dipped the tip of my finger into the water and touched it to my tongue. It felt and tasted strange. It was charged with some kind of energy, but it was also sweet. I felt energy and drank more. The more I drank, the stronger I felt.

I kept drinking until I felt stronger than I ever had in my life.It was as if every cell in my body was being awakened. Just moments before I felt worse than I ever had, and now I felt better than I ever had. I went from hell to heaven, from being on the edge of death to being more alive than I had ever been. I was in awe.

I began to look around. My eyes had brightened so that I could see through the fog. The water had not only quenched my thirst, but my hunger as well. “What kind of water is this?” I thought. Then I began to think that the water had been radioactive and had done something very strange to me physically. I considered that it probably would kill me pretty soon, but it would be a wonderful way to die! I felt so good it was hard to be negative about anything.
The mental clarity was as invigorating as the energy I felt flowing through my body. I could never remember feeling this good or sharp. As I looked around I seemed to take in every detail quickly. I saw things I would have never noticed before even if I had stared for a long time. My mind was going at hyper-speed, but with order and precision.
I was thinking that if I would have had this water while going through the wilderness, it would have been the most enjoyable journey ever, not the death walk it had been. I was then startled to see a man standing so close that I could not believe I had not seen him approaching, especially with the way I was able to see and take in so much.

“Who are you?” I asked. “Does this water belong to you?”

“This water belongs to anyone who will drink it,” he replied.

“Are you an angel?” I asked.

“No. I am a man like you,” he replied.

He stared at me for a moment and then continued, “The stream that feeds this pool was very close to you in the wilderness you just came through. You could have refreshed yourself with it at any time.”

“I did not see any stream in that wilderness,” I protested.

“You did not see it because you did not look for it,” he replied, dispassionately.

This was a shocking thought. If I could have had this water through the wilderness I would have run through it singing praise to God instead of suffering the torture I endured!
“I was not told anything about this water in the wilderness,” I replied.

“Even the youngest disciples are taught where to find this water and how to drink from it daily. Is there no discipleship left? Did you not have a mentor to teach you this?” he said.

“No. I did not have a mentor. And there is not much discipleship left,” I answered.

The visitor hung his head as if deeply grieved. Finally he continued, “Well, your endurance was impressive. It will serve you well on this journey, but you must save your endurance for the battles ahead. *The wilderness is intended to be hard, but not as hard as you made it. The living water is available to sojourners at any time and in any place, if you stay on the right path. When you are on the right path it will always be close to you, so find it, drink it often, and never go far from it.* This is one of the most basic lessons you must learn for where you are headed and what you are called to do.”

“I don’t think you will have to tell me that again,” I responded, “but how do you know where I’m going and what I’m called to do?”

“I’ve been waiting for you and the others. I’m here to help you. There have not been many coming this way in recent times. This has to be the result of there not being much discipleship left. Are there no fathers left?”

“Spiritual fathers and mothers are rare in these times,” I said. “I think, in general, the leaders have given themselves to building organizations more than building people.We do have some great ministries and organizations being raised up, but great saints are becoming rare.”

“What about you?” he inquired.

“I am as guilty as anyone else. I have not been a good father or mentor. I too have spent more time building organizations than building people,” I replied.

“Would you do it differently if you got another chance?” the visitor asked, looking at me as if this was the most important question he could ask.
“I would like to try,” I answered. “I’ve always been clumsy in relationships, but I know how important it is. I just have not done much about it.”

“You are correct,” the visitor replied.

“The world has had the greatest ingathering of new believers in history in your time, but very few are are finding this path. If they do not come here they will not be prepared for what is coming upon the earth. If they are not prepared,they will be lost.”

“What is coming?” I asked.

“Do you not know where you’re going?”

“I do know I am going to the mountain, but you spoke of something coming. What is coming?” I asked.

“I know you have been to the mountain and that you have fought battles there, but what is coming is the greatest battle there has ever been on the earth. It is the last battle.

“We are here to prepare you for your purpose, to finish what has been lacking in your training, which is much more than I was expecting. We must get started. I’ve brought you these,” he said, and held up a new set of clothes that he laid on a nearby branch.

I looked at the clothes and then back at him, but he was gone. I was sure he could not have moved fast enough to get beyond my vision that quickly, yet I could not see him. I thought he must have been an angel as I turned to look at the clothes.
The clothes were made out of a material so thin and light they did not seem to have any weight. I thought they would be too fragile to wear. I tried to make a small tear in the tunic to test it, but as hard as I tried I could not tear it. I then tried to poke a small hole in it with a sharp stick, but as hard as I tried I could not even make a mark on it.

I removed my torn rags, washed in the pool of water, and put on the new clothes. There were boots, a cape, and a hat, all made out of the same material, and they all fit perfectly. I then heard the voice of the man who had just been with me coming from the forest. I could not see anyone in the direction the voice seemed to be coming from.

“They are more than clothes. They are part of your armor. You will need it to get where you are going now.”

“Where am I going now?” I asked.

“You are going to your home.”

“Who are you?” I asked, still looking for the source of the voice. “Where is my home?”

“I am the Voice that cries in the wilderness,”he said as he stepped out of the forest so close that I could not believe I had not seen him. Then he continued as if he had heard my thoughts.

“You did not see me because I cannot be seen until I move. Are you prepared for this journey?” he asked, looking at me with great intensity.

“With this living water I feel ready for anything, but honestly the answer would have to be ‘no.’ I am not prepared. I know I’m going to the mountain, but I don’t know how to get there other than to follow this path. I have not been this way before,” I replied.

“I am not surprised. Those coming here now are like an army that does not even know how to hold their weapons, much less use them. Even those who have been leaders of thousands who show up here are weak, with minds that have not been renewed or transformed. They are worldly, foolish, and not prepared even for this journey, much less for what is coming upon the earth,” he lamented.

“I’m sorry. I’m as guilty as anyone, but what can we do about it?” I asked.

“We must do the best we can with what we’re given to work with, but we are getting very close to the last battle. It will be the climax of the ages, the ultimate battle between light and darkness. You are so far from being ready for it,” the Voice continued to lament.

“I’ve never known anything but battles my whole life. I’ve known the last battle is near, and I’ve been preaching and writing about it for years. But not many want to hear about it, and of those who will hear it, few will act on it. I don’t even think I have done much to act on it. Few have set their affections on things above and not the things that are on the earth.

“I’ve not been here before,” I continued, “but it does seem familiar. I do not know what you mean by ‘my home.’ I’ve had many homes. Am I going to one of them?”

“Do you remember what you were seeking when you began this journey?” he asked.

“I do,” I replied.

“You are seeking the city that God is building. You want to be a part of what He is doing, not just what men are doing. That is what everyone who comes here is seeking,” the Voice continued. “This seems familiar because you have been here before. You have passed this place a few times in the circles you have been going in. You will understand all of this in due time, but you are right to think that you are not ready for the journey. You are not ready.”

“What do I do to get ready?” I asked.

“You are already doing the main thing—walking this path. You admitted to not understanding even the basics about the living water. You do not feel ready. Maybe you are humble enough to learn what you need fast enough. It is those who think they are ready who are always the first to get lost here.”

“I really do not remember being at this pool before, but I do feel that everything is familiar,” I said. “You even seem familiar.”

“Everything here changes over time,” the Voice continued. “You have been here before, but it did not look like this. You must understand this for the journey. The familiar things you are looking for to give you bearings are not the same, and you are not the same.

Therefore, your guidance must come from your heart, your spirit. You must see with the eyes of your heart more clearly than you see with these eyes, or you will not stay on the right path

The Path by Rick Joyner
Chapter 1

THE VOICE (1B)

“There is more than one path?” I asked.

“Yes, and all but one go to a place you do not want to go. There are delusions, deceptions, distractions, and traps all along the path. They are all there to divert you from your purpose. It will take more discernment, more wisdom, and more courage to stay on the right path than anyone has.”

“Then how can I make it?” I asked.

“You will need help. You will need the Helper. You will have to depend on Him and stay humble enough to keep depending on Him.

“You must also have the living water.

You must never let it out of your sight again. You must drink from it as soon as you begin to thirst. Even drink when you are not thirsty when you can. It will keep you alive. Staying close to it will help keep you on the path.”

Everything he said seemed to go deep into my heart because my perception was so keen. I felt that I could recall everything perfectly anytime I needed to. I have been such a concept-oriented person that I struggle to remember details accurately and consider this one of my greatest weaknesses. I was elated that I could perceive and remember every detail with such clarity and depth now. I felt as if a whole new part of my mind had been opened.

The Voice drew his head back as if he was suddenly interested in something and said,
“You have understanding. The mental clarity you now have is because the Spirit quickens your mortal body. The Spirit will turn your weaknesses into strengths. If you will walk in the Spirit, you will always be strong in what you need. To make it to your destiny, you must abide in the Spirit. The waters you are drinking are Spirit and life. It was the Spirit that quickened Moses so that he did not grow weaker with age, but stronger, and his eyes never grew dim.”

“Do you mean I can feel like this from now on?” I asked.

“You can, and even more so. It is up to you. How well you learn this will determine how well you do on this journey and whether or not you complete it. To feel as you do now, to think as you can now, and to be able to see as you can now, is the natural state of the new creation you are.”

“I don’t think I have ever been as close to death as I was just a few minutes ago,” I said. “After drinking this water, I don’t think I have ever been this alive. I have a mental clarity I don’t remember ever having except when I was before the throne. Just a few minutes ago I could hardly think at all. Now you say I can be this way all of the time?”

The Voice moved to stand right in front of me and looked intently into my eyes, and said, “You not only can, you must remain as you are now. When you are in the Spirit, you are before the throne. His kingdom is within. The King is in you. You are His temple. To walk in truth is to know this and to live in His presence.
“Until one is born again they cannot see the kingdom. But just because they are born again does not mean that they see it,” he continued. “Few of those who are born again in these times are opening their new eyes, their spiritual eyes. Few who are coming here now have seen the kingdom. It is a marvel that any get this far with so little vision. This is why so few are making it through even part of the wilderness.

“The Lord gave the warning, ‘Woe to those who nurse babes in these times’, or ‘Woe to those who keep their people in immaturity’. His warning was true—this is the great tragedy of your time.”

“I know this is true. I have been preaching it for years,” I agreed.

“Yes. You have, but what have you done about it?” he asked.

“I guess not much. Not as much as I should have,” I confessed.

“It is the tragedy of your generation to have brought in the greatest harvest of the age, but then lost most of it. There is an even greater ingathering coming, and this must not happen again.

“There is great rejoicing at a single sinner that repents, and there is great lamentation when a single one falls away. There are not many true disciples because there are not many true shepherds. You have excelled at making converts, but you are not making them into His disciples. The Great Commission is to make disciples. The Lord gave a definition of what a disciple is, and we have few who make it even this far because you are not making disciples. This is the bane of your age.”

“I am guilty,” I confessed. “I knew better, and even grieved over this, but did not do much about it.”

“This is why the judgment of teachers is even more severe,” said the Voice. “Your shepherds have been feeding themselves and have not taken care of the people. Now the final battle is near. We have an army where even its leaders do not know how to fight. Right now few could even survive the first attack. There are already many needless casualties because of this.”

“How will we win?” I asked. “We do win. It is written.”

“We will win because of our Captain, but this battle is for His people. He has already won. Now you must win. I came at the beginning of the age to help prepare the way for Him then, and I have come again at the end of the age to prepare the way for Him again. I do this by helping to prepare His people. Now the first thing that must be done to prepare for Him and the times is to make the leaders into disciples. They will not know how to make disciples if they have not been disciples.

“No one can make it on this path who is not a disciple, and they certainly won’t last long in the battle without being one. There should be multitudes that are on this path now, but there are few.

“You are the generation that was given the greatest resources, the most knowledge, the most freedom, but so few have come to the knowledge of the truth. Where are the shepherds?” the Voice lamented.

“I am guilty of everything you’re saying,” I confessed. “I have been a poor teacher, and an even worse shepherd.”

“You have judged yourself rightly. Because you have judged yourself, you will not have to be judged, but you must repent. True repentance brings change.

“‘The last shall be first,’ the Voice continued. “The generation emerging is called to be the greatest of all. Right now, it is in the worst shape of all. This happened on your watch. Even so, ‘where sin abounds grace does that much more abound.’ There is still grace available to change this if you repent.”

“You are the one who prepares the way for the Lord. You are here to prepare us for Him. How can we make this great change? The fabric of Christianity in our time is very thin. We are as weak and unprepared as you say. What do we need to do?” I begged.

“As I said, the next step is the next step on this path. This path will prepare you, and I will help you. I was with John the Baptist to do this in his time. It begins with repentance. You cannot stay long on this path without a strong foundation of repentance.You must be quick to see your sin—quick to see your mistakes and to correct them.You are quick to see your sin and mistakes. This is helpful, but you have not been quick to correct them, and that can be your doom.Repentance is more than feeling sorry for your sin, it is turning from the sin.
“Only a foundation of repentance will keep you humble enough to walk in the grace of God. Humility is to be teachable and dependent on the Holy Spirit. This has not been a foundation that many have built upon in your time. You must start with preaching and teaching repentance. You must start praying for the Spirit to come to convict of sin. Your generation hardly even knows what sin is.

“I prayed for the judgment of God to come upon my own nation. Then I had to challenge the false teachers and prophets of my time. This is a basic duty of the prophets. Where are your prophets? Where are your apostles? Where are the shepherds who will protect God’s people from the great deception of your time? Why are the wolves allowed to devour God’s people right in front of them and they do nothing?

“I was taken up so that I would not see death so that I could return to prepare the way for the Lord. The Baptist loved the people enough to warn them. He loved them enough to risk his life to tell them the truth and to stand for the truth that could set them free. Where are those that can be used to prepare the way for the Lord in your time? Where are those who will even risk being rejected for the sake of the truth?”

“There are some,” I replied, “but not many. They are not well known because not many will listen to them, but there are some.”

“We do not need many. If they have courage and a resolute heart, it will be enough. If they have courage and a resolute heart, they will find this path,” the Voice continued.

“Many think they are on the path of life, but have long ago departed from it. Only with the foundation of repentance can one find and stay on this path. Where the foundation of repentance is strong, there will be a victory over sin, not just remorse about it. The deadly trap for your generation is that they hardly know what sin is, much less how to turn from it.”

“Everything you say is true,” I admitted. “I may be the chief of sinners in this time. I have taken comfort that I have not committed the major sins since I have believed, but I have committed one that is worse. I have seen the Lord. I have seen His glory and His throne, and I have still become lukewarm. I have become frivolous and wasteful of my time. I should be walking in much more than I am, but as you witnessed, I did not even have enough spiritual sense to seek the living water in the wilderness.

“I know I have fallen far short of the devotion that the Lord deserves from me. This is the most difficult part of all—I am the most zealous for the Lord that I know of, and I am lukewarm. The King deserves better.
“You are right to be disappointed that I was not stronger when I got here, but it may not get much better with others who come. They may all arrive here in bad shape, but they will listen to you. They will repent, and they will walk this path with great courage.”

“You are right in your judgment of yourself and your generation. The flock of the Lord is in very bad shape. As Jeremiah lamented, the sheep have become lost sheep because their shepherds have led them astray by making them turn aside to the mountains and hills, to things that will keep them excited and keep them moving. They are being led to the things of the Lord, but not to the Lord Himself. Many are now lukewarm because they have so much, so many distractions. Others are lukewarm because they are worn out from all the hype and continuous running to and fro.

“You are right about your generation. Even so, the biggest victories can only come with the biggest battles. Your generation has failed, but it does not have to end in failure. Those who repent will be given the grace to change. Then they will be given one of the greatest honors of the ages—they will be allowed to fight in the last battle. All of the prophets and righteous ones have been waiting to see these days. You are living them.

“I was surprised by the condition that you, and the few who have made it this far, have come in. But now I see strength. If the others who come have this and can keep it, then you will prevail.”

“What is that strength?” I asked.

“You are quick to repent. You are not afraid of an accurate evaluation of yourself. You do not try to hide your faults or make excuses for them.That is a foundation that victory can be built upon. Only with this accurate evaluation will you fully embrace the cross as your hope. The power of God is the cross, and those who live the life of the cross will live in power.
“To be changed into the image of the Lord, you must see His glory with an unveiled face.Excuses are the biggest veil that keep people from seeing Him as He is, and from seeing themselves as they are. Those with this veil do not change. Even if they see His glory it is distorted through the veil they wear, so they are not changed by it. If you keep this humility it will not take long to get you ready for your purpose.”

“What is my purpose?” I inquired.

“You are a forerunner of the forerunners. You are to help prepare those who will prepare the way for the King. They are the mighty ones that have been prophesied since Enoch spoke of them. They are alive now. This is their time, and you are called to help prepare them.”

“Since Enoch did not see death, does he also have a part in preparing the way for the Lord?” I asked.

“After the Fall, Enoch was the first to recover the most basic purpose of man—to walk with God.The message of Enoch has been for every generation. He too was taken up as a testimony that this is the victory over death—to walk with God. To walk with God is to eat of the Tree of Life. The mighty ones he was shown that come at the end of the age were given their authority because they will walk with God as Enoch did.

“Enoch has a special part in these times. Those who stay on this path and make it to the city of God do so because they learn what Enoch learned. After you have learned from me you must learn from him. Those who do not learn repentance first almost all fall to pride.The worst pride can be thinking you are closer to the Lord than others. Repentance has to come to prepare the way for the Lord so that you can walk with Him and not stray.”

The Voice then motioned for me to follow him on the path. I followed. The living water and the thrill of the journey made me feel young again. I was thankful to have been able to talk to someone about the poor leader, teacher, and shepherd I had been. I knew it was true, and this gave me hope. I had the exuberance of starting over again, knowing I was being given another chance. I had found grace. I wondered if there could be any gift more wonderful than being given another chance.
As if listening to my thoughts, the Voice turned and said, “The gift of being born again is the great gift. It is the gift of starting over.”

“Very true,” I acknowledged. “I feel that I’m being given a whole new beginning again, almost like I’m being born again, again. Even if I failed again it would be better to die trying, to die in this wilderness, than to not try at all.”

“The Lord gave us day and night so that we could wake up each day to a new day. Every day is a new beginning.Repentance is waking up again to a new day,” the Voice explained.

I was awake like I had not felt for years, and maybe ever. I was on the path again to the greatest adventure one can have in this life, seeking the city that God is building