After the incredible and miraculous victory over Jericho, Achan's sin had caused a defeat for the entire nation of Israel before the tiny little village of Ai. Without question, this shook their confidence. If any pride had entered the camp after Jericho, it was dispelled at Ai. They were again made aware of the total dependence on the Lord for victory and their total obedience to His instructions. They would not win by their own might and power, but by His Spirit. There were other similar lessons about this that they would learn during their conquest of the land.

For the last two weeks we have discussed how the Jordan River, which represents death, overflowed all of its banks all of the days of the harvest. We also discussed how we are going to have to learn to deal with much death in our times, but keep on functioning and pursuing our purpose.

I want to take a break from our ongoing study of the last days to share with you some of the things that I believe we can expect, and therefore need to prepare for, in this coming year.

As I have mentioned before, what I am trying to accomplish through this Word for the Week study of the biblical prophecies of the end times is to not just understand what is going to happen, but also why. Then we will apply this knowledge to our daily lives so we can be free of the evil that will cause the wrath of God to come, as well as liberators of others.

I have been receiving communications from around the United States and Europe that are all reporting the same thing—they are seeing healings and miracles on a level like they have never seen before. This is a time of a great visitation of God to His people. Even so, I remain convinced that what we are now experiencing is a birth pang, a spiritual contraction that is preparing us for the birth of an even greater move of God, which I expect to take place this September/October.

       How can we not love the body of Christ? It certainly has flaws and shortcomings, but it is also the most unique and interesting entity on the planet when taken as a whole. This is why I have pursued (and am thankful to have done so) relationships with those in denominations and movements across the spectrum of the body of Christ. I have learned much from almost all of them. I disagree with many of them on some things, and some of these disagreements are great, but that does not negate appreciating the good things about them.

A prophetic friend of mine, Bob Jones, believes that World War III actually began with the assassination of Anwar Sadat. It seems that this is proving to be true. This is marked by many as the beginning of the hijacking of the Islamic faith by radical extremists that have now stirred up a nearly worldwide conflict. This war may be unfolding very differently than the world wars of the last century, but it is in fact proving to be a world war, and its potential is to be far more devastating than the last two combined.

         As mentioned previously, The Holy Spirit is “the Helper” not “the Doer.” He will do His part, but He expects us to do ours. It is good to be able to recognize the work of the Holy Spirit, but we must not stop there. We must go on to seek Him for what our part is and then do it.

          Commitment, loyalty, and faithfulness are all prerequisites for authority in any realm, and they are required for authority in the kingdom. Only those whose commitment to the kingdom is greater than their commitment to this world will be trusted with kingdom authority over this world.

     The following was a Fox News report that was very important and illuminated about the state of the church in America: