"Pay Out" for Persecution, "The Way", and a Shout-Out to Janine
This is a morning message from Witness 2 regarding persecution, the narrow path, and a shout-out to another Proverbs 31 woman, Janine.
Dream - "Pay Out" for Persecution
Lately, I feel I have been suffering more persecution than usual. As I read the book of Acts, I am comforted, and it is clear that much of what we are actually dealing with as true Christians is with demons working through people. In a moment, I will go back to that thought, but first, let me get to the dream.
In the dream, I was in my childhood hanging out with my friends. Though I liked these friends, they bullied me often. What is strange is I was in a wheelchair, and just in case readers are not sure - no, I have never been in a wheelchair. However, in the dream, I was symbolically crippled by these friends, though I did not realize it at the time.
In the next scene, I was in my teenage years, and this time I was with my parents. I was still in the wheelchair, but one day, I started walking. They were shocked, and though I wasn't that strong in my ability to walk, I was able to make do without the wheelchair.
In the next part of the dream, I was an adult. I felt much more free, but I found a bag of old items from my childhood. One of them was a letter from my dad. It was written about me, and it was a list of all the reasons he hated me in high-level and even superior vocabulary. It especially noted that he hated my Christian beliefs. Here is part of a letter he actually wrote me a few years ago when we were debating Christianity:
A Part of a Letter from My Dad Against Me and Christianity
So you have nothing to forgive me for than other being grateful and thankful that I was there to do what you should have been doing. Don’t quote me the scriptures because I know them.it is just a way for people like you to not do what you should be doing and then justifying those actions by archaic Bible verses you choose to throw out. The best way you an honor your beliefs is to live them. I would like to quote the Koran , the uphanishads, the Dhamapada, the Bhavad Gita, the Vedas, and the list goes on and on. If the Christian thing helps you great but you have no room to use them to try and justify your actions.
Elisha, I was so proud of you and I loved you so much but you had a lot of issues and they only got worse as you have grown up. I fear that your failure to accept reality as well as responsibility can only make things worse, essentially leaving you as a good cult follower. Remember how you thought about Jehovah Witnesses. But you can really be a witness for your Christianity and start by having your mom come live with you at times. Also you can let me know if you are still married after 10 years then I might believe you are trying to be a good person fulfilling your Christian duties and responsibilities. If you make it to 40 years like your mom and I have then you will have at least proven you are capable of having one decent relationship with all the heartache and tribulations that Jesse told us to do when he told us to pick up our cross. But no more Bible shit because it is only by their fruits you shall know them which means it is by the way a person lives that tells you their character.
[I will allow this. I am not a cult follower. I wrote my testimony about the JWs here. I follow Jesus Christ. I am still married to Witness 1. I am proving I can have decent relationships, and I have many now, with both men and women. These are my brothers and sisters in Christ! For Jesse, he meant Jesus, but I'm not editing.]
So I won’t discuss Christianity with you just like I won’t go into Santa Claus stories. If it helps you great but to me it means nothing other than if it is good advice. As far as relationships. Let’s see what you are willing to do to help your own mother, and I mean really help. Then after a few years of seeing a real change in you as a humble servant of Christ then I am willing to consider a reLationship. If you want me to give you other actions of the past in which you really hurt your mom and I then I can do it. But at this point, what matters is what you are doing now and what type of person you will be in the future. Really there is no more point of discussion other than if you want to help take cate of your mom by having her come stay with you at times.
Dad
[I did help my mom. I saved her on her deathbed, and had a vision of her in Heaven. Please read this testimony here.
Just to note, this is a long story about my mom, and my dad did EVERYTHING he could to block us from her. I will write another testimony in the future. I did everything I could until my mom's death.
To note, no one knows the full story. I am including this for authenticity in my writing.]
There is way more to that letter, and I can quote other aspects of it if needed in future posts. Honestly it is much worse, and I didn't have the heart to read it all. It is really cruel, and there are many sent to me. In fact, they are all saved in my emails. I feel they will be needed as I write my testimony. My dad never had grace, mercy, or forgiveness for me - ever.
I forgive my dad, but I'm sure he still thinks these things of me and much worse. This was pretty much the beginning of the end of our relationship. Note he said he "loved me" in the past tense! Oh, well.
I am loved by Jesus Christ forever and always.
Though I always had a rocky relationship with my family, when I became Christian, that is when things exploded in my life. Since I became Christian, that is when I lost most of my friends and family. Though they may still be "nice" to me, it is clear that I will never have the same relationships I once had due to following Jesus Christ. However, most have discarded me or think I'm eccentric. None support our real life ministry, except to watch from afar and perhaps mock me secretly.
Still, in the dream, I was happy and dancing freely around. It seemed to anger people, but I continued. Then, I looked back in the bag. I noticed, next to the cruel letter, was tons of cash! There were big bills, and I thought, "I wonder if these can still be deposited."
So, I went to the ATM, and everyone was very nice to me. The bills seemed peculiar and old, but somehow they worked. I think this represented spiritual money for persecution.
The message from God is He does NOT forget even one moment we were persecuted for Him, even if it was years ago - even if we had forgotten. God was showing me that He knows what I gave up for him - my own family - and somehow, someway, it will be blessed and rewarded. There will be a spiritual, or maybe even physical, pay out.
Another note is that when I reflect on the dream, I think God was showing me I was "crippled" in my past, but I didn't know it. The people around me, my friends and family, were supposed to love and inspire me, but they didn't. Although I forgive them, they were unusally cruel to me. I want to, again, note to readers that there is much more to the story with my dad and please check out my testimonies. They are not finished, so more are coming!
Going back to Acts 19, it is important to consider that the spiritual world is always at work, and when people harm us, it may be something working through them that is not even human, and these demons can even turn on the people using them:
The Sons of Sceva
11 And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” 14 Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” 16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all[d] of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled. 18 Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 19 And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
I have to be honest - this part of the chapter confused me. So, I did look into the commentary, and this site did a good job of explaining what was going on in layman's terms. To summarize, there were men using false ways for spiritual power, and this was exposed by the very demons they were using. The demons turned their back on those who used them, and this happens all the time. The situation that occured here made many realize the power of Jesus, and many came to Christ. Again, check-out the linked commentary if you are confused.
In the next part of the chapter, there are more riots and while there was peace at times, it seemed some type of strange event was always occurring to the new Christians.
That is exaclty what is happening for those truly following "The Way" - which is how it is referred to in Acts - the narrow path of Jesus Christ. The path is narrow, and most are not following it.
Now, the point of this morning message is that persecution is part of the true way of Jesus Christ. However, God records it, and He does not forget it. Every single tear you have shed because of the persecution you have faced is recorded in Heaven, and someway, somehow, there will be a pay out.
Going back to my post yesterday, we cannot fully understand the ways of God, and we must remain in patient humility through our trials. These trials are going to increase, undoubtedly, in the coming months in years. I am writing a lot, so please check out this post from last night if you missed it.
Moving on, I wanted to give a shout-out to a woman named Janine.
To Janine - A Proverbs 31 Woman
Last night before bed, I received two rude emails, and I was disheartened. I'm used to it, but it still sucks. This morning, I woke up to an email from Janine.
I haven't replied to her yet, but it was just a message of encouragement. It was about how she liked my writing, and how she was happy Witness 1 loved me and that my son was blessed. It included her thoughts on my writing, and that she appreciated me shouting out to her in recent posts. Most of all, she believes us - she believes me.
I prayed this morning and I asked, "God, who is this woman?" in a positive way, of course. Jesus said, "She is a rare Proverbs 31 woman."
The qualities she posseses are that she encourages other women doing the work of God. She is not jealous or envious. She values God's opinion. And now, I am proclaiming she is a role model to other women. Of course, I am sure there are many other qualties, such as her compassion and love, but I just wanted to name a few of the main ones. Her gentle and sweet spirit stand out to me, and her ability to encourage is unique!
I don't want her to think I am holding her up to too high of a standard. I know no one is perfect, and I am certainly not. But when I see a kind woman, I must rejoice!
There are other kind women who email me, and they are not to be dismissed. I am trying to start a women's Christian group with these women, and I pray it happens in Jesus's name.
However, for the purpose of this post, I just wanted to declare that Janine is a Proverbs 31 woman, and I truly pray God blesses her in Jesus's name. It is a message from the Holy Spirit through Witness 2 (Elisha) in the name of Jesus Christ.
Prayer of Thanksgiving from Elisha
Father in Heaven,
Thank you for the people you have brought to me in my life - my husband, my son, the 15 men of the council, and our true and avid readers and followers. Father, I thank you when people are nice to me in Jesus's name.
Father in Heaven, I am thankful I can write these posts, and I am thankful I can write this morning.
I am thankful for the dreams you send me and the interesting adventures!
I am thankful for the Bible, and I am thankful for those who believe what I am saying and do not constantly send insulting emails to me. Thank you for sending people who believe me.
Jesus, I am thankful for "The Way." My whole life, I was lost, in the wrong ways, and you led me to "The Way."
I am thankful for your grace and mercy upon me, and I am thankful you chose me to do this role.
I love you, Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending me all the people you have sent me, even those who have persecuted me. Father, I still pray for my dad, for his heart to unharden in Jesus's name. I pray for my family to come to Jesus Christ. I pray this blog can save as many souls as possible.
Father, I thank you. I want to quote Ralph Waldo Emerson for the final part of this prayer:
We Thank Thee By: Ralph Waldo Emerson
For flowers that bloom about our feet,
Father, we thank Thee.
For tender grass so fresh, so sweet,
Father, we thank Thee.
For the song of bird and hum of bee,
For all things fair we hear or see,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.
For blue of stream and blue of sky,
Father, we thank Thee.
For pleasant shade of branches high,
Father, we thank Thee.
For fragrant air and cooling breeze,
For beauty of the blooming trees,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.
For this new morning with its light,
Father, we thank Thee.
For rest and shelter of the night,
Father, we thank Thee
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.
With great love,
Elisha aka Witness 2