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2009 is Marathon Time

by Kimberly Johnson

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?
Run in such a way that you may obtain it.

- 1 Cor. 9:24

Last December the Lord began unveiling my course of 2009. As I was in prayer one morning, He spoke to me about what is ahead and the season of preparation for us:

"2009 is marathon time. There will be many legs of the race. Different talents and abilities will be needed to succeed. It is time to get physically ready for the race. You must be physically fit to persevere."

A few weeks later I found myself in Nashville, Tennessee helping out at Secrets of the Father's Heart Conference at The Fortress of Hope which is located in the old Marathon Motorcars factory. I knew God was trying to tell me something!

The word marathon received its meaning after the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C. during the reign of Darius the Great (Ezra 4-6, Hag. 1:1, Zec. 1:1). Upon victory over the Persians, the chosen runner went the long-distance of 26 miles 385 ft to deliver the incredible good news. So impressive was this feat that today marathons are still run according to this event over 2000 years ago.

Being a marathon runner requires endurance. It is not a short sprint. There are no breaks along the way. A marathon runner delivers a kingdom message. As believers, heaven is waiting for us to run with the message of the Kingdom. In fact, heaven is cheering us on:

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. - Heb. 12:1

This is an effort that we must be prepared for! Preparation is so important that the write of Hebrews goes on in verse 12 and tells us:

Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down and the feeble knees.

People of God, we must be ready for the race ahead! This is a time to assess your abilities and seek your course. Ask the Lord this day to reveal to you the path He has prepared before you. Ask Him to give you strategies to strengthen the weak things that will keep you from finishing the race. It's time to get up and start moving!!!

Ready to run!

Kim Johnson

February 12, 2009

We Will Not Rest

by Kimberly Johnson

November 13, 2008

Needless to say, the last few months have been quite intense in the area of governmental intercession. Ever since my trip to the DC area for the first 21 days in May, life has been an adventure of strategic alignments, divine appointments and covert prayer assignments that have launched our ministry into greater focus then ever before. It's no longer worship as usual. There is a mandate upon our ministry to train and activate watchmen intercessors upon the wall of our nation. America needs our prayers more than ever!

I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem;

They shall never hold their peace day or night.

You who make mention of the LORD,
do not keep silent,

And give Him no rest till He establishes
And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

Isaiah 62:6,7, NKJV

The battle has been intense for many of you (myself included). The Special Forces Prayer Team and those who joined in the 21 Days to Pray for the Nation have fought hard. I know that some of you are weary. Some of you are discouraged. Some of you want to quit. We've won some battles. We lost some battles. However, the Lord reminded me last week that, "This was just a battle. It's not the end of the war." To step down from this assignment is not an option. We must not "rest till He establishes" His kingdom upon the earth.

Press on to the high calling that the LORD has upon your life. In this hour God's prayer warriors must "walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." (Eph. 4:1-3). We must remain grounded in the Word of God and be active ambassadors of the Kingdom of Heaven, despite what the world may say. Bitterness, resentment and giving up your post are not an option for God's warriors!

On the wall of America,

Kim Johnson

Transition

by Kimberly Johnson

Recently, the Lord spoke to me that this is a time of transition for the Body of Christ. I, personally, am in a season where realignment is taking place. I have noticed that I am not alone in this shift. God is moving many of you out of your comfort zones and onto a new path of ministry that will set you on your course of destiny.

My journey with the Lord has been one of continual transition since the day I was filled with the Holy Spirit twelve years ago. I have learned through experience that as I move through this life from glory to glory, and increase in the knowledge of who God is, the fast track of the Kingdom can become bewildering. Wisdom and understanding are needed to proceed successfully.

Let's look at the word "transition". It is an interesting word, with several meanings that all basically mean CHANGE!!!! Webster's defines it this way:

1 a: passage from one state, stage, subject, or place to another: change

b: a movement, development, or evolution from one form, stage, or style to another

2 a: a musical modulation

b: a musical passage leading from one section of a piece to another

3 : an abrupt change in energy state or level (as of an atomic nucleus or a molecule) usually accompanied by loss or gain of a single quantum of energy

Although, transition is a noun/thing, it is dependent on timing and obedience. For example, when worship begins to transition from one song to another, the moment of transition must flow in perfect timing in order to be successful. The team must follow the worship leader's direction to flow to the next phase of worship. Without perfect timing, the result is disastrous! In fact, it can be painful to experience for the musicians as well as the listener! The flow is lost. The focus is diverted to the noise. The initial purpose of the transition is aborted.

We must learn to flow in God's divine timing. He is, after all, the Master Conductor. The grand music score was determined before time began. It was during creation that divine timing was set in motion. In fact, your specific plan was fully set in order by the end of the sixth day of creation. Your life, your purpose and your destiny in God is a sure thing when you follow His lead. He has never changed His mind about you. He is pleased with what He has created and planned.

God finished the great music score of the Kingdom and it is a masterpiece I might add! He has orchestrated each and every note of the created realm. We are each an instrument playing our part in the symphony of life. Sometimes we play with excellence. Sometimes we need to "rehearse" a few more times to get our part right. The great thing is He is faithful to bring us to fulfillment of the part we are to play. He knows what instruction we need. He knows which instrument He designed you to play. He destined you to play a distinct sound in the song.

Now, the Word says that God rested after the sixth day of "creating/ composing". His confidence in His accomplishment should give us the faith to trust in His plan. His divine providence allows us to rest in His finished work.

Hebrews 4:9-10: "There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His." (NKJV)

We must learn to enter into His seventh day rest to participate in the Kingdom song. Rest does not mean to cease. It simply means to stop striving for that which is already accomplished by the Lord - in Him, by Him, through Him. Today, He is calling you to seek His perfect timing for the transition on the horizon. Wait for His cue. You will not miss it. He is the Master Conductor and Creator of All Things, and He is faithful to lead you in your portion of the song.

Transition on! A new sound is about to be released through you!

Overtaking Chaos

by Kimberly Johnson

The Shift

A shift took place in our country on November 7, 2006. So many of us watched the news as the reports came in as one seat was overtaken by another. The gatekeepers in our nation changed guard. Many of the new watchmen who have arisen do not fit the model of what we feel are good influences in our nation for the agenda that we feel is right for this season. Many saints are struggling with defeat and questioning if their prayers really matter. Many are taking a break after a difficult battle.

If you are struggling with your prayer life, don’t loose heart. God’s ways are higher than ours. His plan is to prosper us and to increase His Kingdom upon the Earth.

Revisit the Vision

I woke up at 2:22 a.m. last Tuesday. The Lord said, “It’s time to revisit the vision.” I knew that He was talking about Isaiah 22:22 – The Key of David. If we rewind our nation to eight years ago we see the state of a union that was in disarray, scandal, and a mockery of what the system was created to be. The United States’ integrity and honor was being exploited. Around six years ago people were starting to experience dreams about keys, waking up at 2:22, staying in hotel rooms numbered 222, getting change at the store for $2.22 At this point in time things began to shift. With the elections in 2000 an awakening of the prayer movement on a national level came out when Dutch Sheets declared a 40 day fast that went from church to church via email. This God ordained fast shifted this nation and ground was gained. Things on a spiritual level changed. The season began for unseating unrighteous rulers and replacing them with righteous ones. The question of the hour is this: Why have things swung in what seems to be the opposite direction of where we were heading during the last six years?

The Release of Chaos

Things have been weird lately. Dreams have been strange. Co-workers are doing things that don’t seem “right”. Friends have gone in other directions. Life in general has been odd lately. In other words, things have just seemed a little choatic! Prayer has been difficult. Studying has been hard. Worship has been weak. I asked the Lord, “What is going on?” His reply: “Chaos has been released in the land. It came with the elections. It is here to send confusion in the Kingdom. Rally them (the saints) together to get focused again. Disillusionment cannot prevail against My plans and purposes.”

Chaos is an interesting word. In Hebrew it is tohu (to-hoo) which means formlessness, confusion, unreality, emptiness, vanity, or wilderness. The release of chaos in our nation can be likened to the City of Chaos in Isaiah 24:10.

“The city of chaos is broken down;
Every house is shut up so that none may enter.”
(NASB)

This City of Chaos is a worldly structure that is built on self-sufficiency, ideology, and whimsy – not purpose, dedication, and the foundations set forth by the Lord Almighty. “City” in this scripture is actually a place that is built with beams. It is a man made structure. If you read verses 1-9 you will see that this system is spinning out of control to the point that fear overtakes the inhabitants. They become locked up in their homes - ineffective, isolated and under judgment. This worldly system is consistently under judgment because of sin. They have turned away from the everlasting covenant and the end result is destruction.

Lucky for us, God is the master of making something out of chaotic disasters. The word tohu was first used in Gen. 1:2 where it refers to the earth as “without form”. Doesn’t it seem like things are “without form” in our world today? Turn on your TV, talk to your co-workers – what’s the latest buzz? Do you see the confusion that has been released? Just watch a morning talk show or turn on FOX News or CNN. Washington D.C. has gone nuts! The political arena is in chaos, confusion, vanity, etc. The strange thing is that all of this is in God’s plan. Remember taming chaos and bringing peace in the midst of confusion (or storms) is God’s specialty. Haven’t we been praying for His will be done? Haven’t we been declaring that His Kingdom come? If so, as keepers of His covenant we have to believe that the shifting of the gatekeepers is part of His divine plan to turn our nation towards righteousness.

Overtaking Chaos

We need to remember that we are in a war season. We must stay true to His strategies for this next battle to come out victorious on the other side. Each and every born again believer is seated in heavenly places in Christ (Eph. 1:3-6) and we need to battle from this perspective. We need to adorn ourselves in our heavenly armor and take up the weapons of our warfare. It is not a time for retreat; rather it is a time to strategize.

5 Strategies for Warring in the Spirit:

1. Focus: Our focus must remain solely on our purpose and destiny. Getting sidetracked will set you on a course of spiritual destruction. Wrong focus will set you up to backslide and open you up for spiritual attacks. We can’t let the media or non-believers determine the truth for us. We must tune our ear to heaven to find out His purpose and destiny. We must take time to sit down with the Lord and listen for His truth in the circumstances that surround us.

A heart that is set upon God is one that hears His voice and honors Him in all their ways.

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matt. 22:37, KJV)

All of our heart, all our soul and our entire mind are to love the Lord – this is our focus. A heart sold out for God will bring Him great pleasure, and set you up for success in increasing His Kingdom upon the earth. We need to remember the second command to love our neighbors as ourselves. We are fighting a heavenly war, not an earthly one. The Word says, “We wrestle not against flesh and with blood, but powers and principalities.” (Eph. 6:12). We need to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. (Eph. 6:10). We need to pray one for another and pray for the leaders in our country. Unity in our camp will bring disunity in the enemy's camp.

2. Ferver: We must posses a fire to press on no matter what the circumstance is. The Word says that “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16). 1 Timothy 2:1-3 states: “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

3. Faithfulness: We must stay true to God’s Kingdom no matter what the enemy throws our way. It is the just who live by faith. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. It is the foundation of this Kingdom. If you are not set in Who your alliance is to, it is time to search your heart and see where your affections lie.

4. Fight: A war cry must come out from your innermost being to stand up against the kingdom of darkness. With this cry comes the desire to become more and more equipped to combat the enemy. We need to understand our weapons of warfare, which are not carnal (earthly, natural). We need to understand worship, prayer, studying the word, and flowing in the gifts of the Holy Spirit to be successful. The ones that arise as generals are the ones who have pursued the things of the Spirit. You have a decision today: Are you going to arise in the gifts and calling the Lord has placed on your life or are you going to settle with being a boot camp drop out who lets everyone else tell you what to do spiritually? Are you going to be an effective servant of the Lord Most High, or a lukewarm saint who is ineffective in your own life and the Kingdom, too?

We need to understand our weapons. If we look back to the City of Chaos the main questions are: How did they get locked up in their houses? Who held the key? Was it the worldly inhabitants or the heavenly inhabitants? The Key of David is a critical weapon in this hour. We need to use the governmental authority we have in Jesus Christ to fight successfully in the spiritual realm. The problems is that many of the saints have set down their keys. They threw them aside thinking, “This is so last season!” They have forgotten that the scene in Revelation 3:7 continues: Jesus opens and closes doors in the spiritual realm as we release His decrees of opening and closing here on Earth. Have you set down your key? The Key becomes effective with prayer and worship. These are our main weapons of warfare that work in conjunction with the Spirit and the Word. Take time to be intimate with the Lord. To hear His voice and receive His love. This empowers you to be effective.

5. Finish: We must run the race to completion. Don’t fall short of your purpose by giving up. If you are having a hard time staying the course, align with others who are on track. Don’t isolate yourself in this season. Run with the finishers.

We have a battle to complete. My prayer is that each and every one of you have a renewed vision and a stirring within your heart of God’s purpose for you and His Kingdom.

*******************************************************

The Doorway of Worship

by Kimberly R. Johnson

"The word still stands to teach the song", I heard the Holy Spirit whisper in my ear. I was waiting in a prayer line at my church, wanting direction and hoping for a glimpse of my destiny. For several years the Lord had been giving me songs. They would come in the night, birthed in the morning and released during praise and worship in private settings. I stood in this line, released from the worship team by God’s direction, and at a loss as to what I should do next. "Surely, God gave me this talent for a purpose, didn’t He?" I thought to myself. The man of God came to me and prophesied, "You’ve been sitting on shelf. You’ve tasted. You’ve seen, but you are sitting on a shelf. The Lord says its time to get off the shelf and run with the vision!" I knew it was my time of release, but what do I do now?

Within weeks the Lord started opening doors to lead worship for different congregations. All of a sudden my schedule was full between my job and ministry. He was using me to bring people into His throne room through the doorway of worship. I found myself so awed by His presence after worship that I could not make it to my seat. Oftentimes, I would just sit behind my keyboard and drink in His presence, as others in the congregation did the same. What is the doorway of worship? It is the place where you move beyond the natural realm into the supernatural. It is where your spirit connects with God’s Spirit and you become united with Him. This is what we were created for. This is where He wants us.

I can lead you to the doorway of worship, but I cannot go through it for you. This is a journey that each one of us must make ourselves. The doorway is a place of surrender, totally submitted to God’s Spirit. It is a place where one is overcome by the glory of the Lord. Fear keeps us from going through. We become afraid that we will lose our identity if we enter His throne room. We struggle with our flesh, which is worried about what other’s think, and our soul which is used to it’s dysfunction and is afraid of exposure. "What happens if God touches me in this or that area of my life?", we think. I will tell you: Everything will change! We cannot stay the same if we allow Him to minister to us in His throne room.

I believe that we each have a song that He desires to sing over us and release through us. We cannot hear it unless we enter into His presence. The Word says, "The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me" (Psalm 42:8). Does your soul cry out in an expression of song to your Creator? When you lay down at night, do you continually praise Him? If not, let the Lord search your heart and reveal what is closing your doorway of worship.

David knew how to approach the Lord:

"Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he teaches sinners in the way. The humble He guides in justice, and the humble He teaches His way. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth. To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies. For Your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my iniquity, for it is great." (Psalm 25:8-11)

Let Him touch you today. You have nothing to lose, unless you like sin and dysfunction. You have all the riches of the Lord’s glory to gain. Open up the door and let the King of Glory come in! He will change your life!

Kim Johnson