DON'T BE AFRAID TO GO AGAINST THE GRAIN

8/25/16

6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

Ezekiel 2:6 6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. Ezekiel 3:8

I've been thinking some lately, that there are a few among us who have, or are about to speak, bold words of prophecy to the church. These words don't seem to fit into the norm that many have spoken. Maybe you have felt like you are swimming upstream, because those words that you have been given aren't readily accepted by some. They aren't readily accepted because they have struck a deep place in the flesh, or they have gone against the grain of most of the words that are given in this hour.

We aren't told to follow the status quo; in fact we are told to take the narrow road, and sometimes this narrow road takes us places where only a few have gone before. These are the roads that many have taken that have been called to the waste places, and the wilderness. These are the very roads that our Lord traveled upon two thousand years before. These are the roads that Amos, and Ezekiel and Jeremiah took. They knew that the road would be filled with briars and thorns, and yet they decided to go anyway. They decided to go because that was their calling, but they also knew that they would have sweet fellowship with the Father on that road.

You see or hear other prophetic voices that speak only of the pleasant and serene things. You hear the pleasantries and the words of the pillow prophets, and you know that they have their place, but they have shied away from the road that you are on now. They have no desire to eat the bread that God would feed them here. Maybe God has told you to wait and not to speak or share those words, because many aren't ready yet to receive them. Or perhaps you are just too afraid to face rejection.

But just know that like the salmon that swim upstream, you also have your place, and that place is going against the current. True prophets are to not only build up, but to tear down, the complacence and the traditions of man. Sometimes the foundation is filled full of cracks, because others from a different calling, have decided to become part of the foundation. And now, the building can't be raised to its full potential, because some have built where they shouldn't have.

See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms to root out and to pull down, and to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.' Jeremiah 1:10

You may wonder why others haven’t been told the same things as you. Surely, it seems that God would have told them of these things that are to come. Surely, God would have told them not to trust in man alone. Why can't they see the deception of those who follow after a 'chosen' candidate, you ask? And yet, you know what is true, and you know the voice of the shepherd. And even those that used to swim upstream with you have now left their journey. They would rather swim in shallow water where it is much safer, and known to them. They may wonder where you had gone to, and why you aren’t joining in with them in their play. But if they had been more aware, they would have noticed that you left holding the hand of another, when you left. And that ONE is now guiding you up the rapids of the river.

Up ahead the river's currents have grown stronger now. All around you are the rapids, and the spray of the water hits your face as you continue up stream. The wind is blowing hard, as you travel up higher and higher into realms of the Spirit that you had not experienced before.

Continue the journey that you're on oh son or daughter of the Most High. Keep your eyes focused ahead on the ONE that has gone before, and know that He is around, before, and in, and above you, as go. What He began, He will bring to completion.

Selah`

Stephen Hanson