A Statewide Call to Pray - Day Forty!

We have reached day forty of my blogs.  We now stand just ten days away from The Response in Houston.  It is a day of fasting and prayer.  It is day set aside to bow our knees before our God as a state and as a nation.  It is a day to confess our sins and to repent (change our minds) regarding the unrighteous acts that we have performed or agreed with by our lack of response.  It is a day to reconcile with Him and with each other.  It is a day to bring glory to the Lord's name.

I personally have been asking the Lord to reveal (uncover) those things in my life and ministry that have not honored Him.  It is very easy to point out the sins of others.  It is hard to ask the Lord to point out those sins in us.  And He has.  And honestly - I don't like what is revealed.  But like it or not, our first response is to bend our knee in humility and confession before our loving and merciful God who desires to correct us in order to redeem and fulfill our destiny in Him.

Now, on this past Sunday morning as I was trying to find a wristwatch that worked, replacing projection lamps and trying to focus on my message for the body, I received another email from Tracy Hamlin. (I really need to talk to him about this).  He was sharing about his struggles with the Lord regarding "learning Spanish."  And in the midst of it - the Lord gave this word!

“As a nation, the Mexican people have been treated as poorly by the US as any other race or people group.  Various atrocities have taken place on their land, and on the soil of the US, so much of which the general populations have no idea about.  It is all named AMERICA, and yet there is a massive division that has relegated those from below the river to menial tasks and places of disrespect.

It will take the same level of repentance as was given to the Host Nations to correct and begin to mend the ties between the Spanish speaking people and the people of the US.  The people of Mexico have been touted as illegal, and undeserving by a nation, and not given the ample opportunity that anyone else is given.  People are people, regardless of race, station in life, or skin color.  I created them all, and I love them all and esteem them all in the same manner, enough so to place My Son on the cross for the salvation and redemption of all.  I did not once make anyone fill out a form to come to Me, the only qualifier is the blood of Jesus, the Son of the Living God.

I am not condemning political polices and policing for regulatory and safety concerns, I am not endorsing law breaking, but how many of the ones that cry out ‘illegal’ have sin in their lives that goes unconfessed, unrepented.  Do you not know that you were brought in to the world as an alien yourself?  You are not of this world, and yet, you do not consider yourselves ‘illegal’.  The term illegal is not applicable to people.  They may be doing an illegal thing, according to the laws of the land which must be obeyed, that is not the issue on My heart, it is the pronouncement of a curse over an entire people because of barriers, geography, hatred, bitterness and strife.  My heart is grieved over the throw-away mentality of the governments of some of the states, some of the law-makers that jump on the band-wagon simply for the sake of the popularity contest of politics.  It is an evil root that has brought this issue and festered it in the hearts of those that lump themselves into the “white” category.  I am not dealing with races, I am dealing with heart issues.

Do you think that I am “white” or “black” or of this nationality, or came from this part of town???  Then why, ask yourselves, WHY would you treat ANYONE as less important, or label them with a derogatory name, when they are created in MY image?  Do you not see that you are equally defaming ME by this slurring?  You are saying to MY FACE “you did not create these people good enough to be equal to me and my skin colored people”.  That is hatred toward ME, now think about that.  I am reasoning with the hearts of man, to save the path of judgment that will come on the heads of those that refuse My correction.

So now you ask “Lord, how do we do this?”  The same way you have done it in the past.  On your face, on your knees, humbled to the point of humiliated, and broken before ME and before those that have been offended.  Take this matter seriously, the workers of the land have been poorly treated, and the land has suffered.  The native hosts, the original keepers of the land have been replaced by new keepers, and still the same thing is occurring, the land is bearing a curse because the keepers are cursed by the words and pronouncements spoke over them, and by the unjust treatment of those that feel they are in charge.  Oh, you must think it a coincidence that the stereo-type exists of landscaping and lawn maintenance - I don’t deal in coincidences.  I have placed that in motion, as a means to keep them close to the ground, close to the land, in touch with the land, in working covenant with the land.  I do not make a sweeping rash statement about the people, that is a label that has been put on by men, but that has simply been a distraction to this point, so that the eyes of the nay-sayer would not see the connection to the land.   But now, you see it.

Now, the land is crying out again to have the curse removed.  Now it is crying out for stewardship to be repaired, to be taken over again by the ones that will use the land for My Kingdom.  Lands will change hands, in gift, and in deed, and will be used for My Glory.  I will fill the Latin houses with joy and laughter, and the stigmas and limitations and low expectations will be broken off of this people.  I will say this again- I created man in my image, so look at man, look at ME and see that I am not a race, nor a look, or a color, I am the Creator.  I created man, and man has scoffed at My creation.  That is not a wise choice, and it is not one that I will tolerate in My Kingdom.  Take heed these words, and see to it that repentance is not a matter or method, or a matter of show, but allow me to orchestrate the timing and the place and the proper ones to be in place.  You have done measures in the past, but this is much deeper than you first knew, much more close to My heart that you were aware.  Return to Me, and see that I am the good God that brings all men to Me through My Son. “

My heart broke before the Lord.  I, like everyone else, have my opinions regarding immigration and border control.  And I could share those opinions with clarity and resolve.  But listen carefully - in this hour as we approach our God with humble hearts - our opinions don't count.  Only His! You'll notice that even the Lord was not condemning our need for safety and policies regarding the border and immigration, but His heart is breaking over our heart-view of a people.

During worship, as I reviewed His words regarding "resetting time" and going through new doors, His Spirit prompted me to act.  I stopped worship and as an entire congregation we left our worship and walked the length of our building to our fellowship hall.  In that room a Hispanic congregation meets. We went before them and bowed our knee in repentance.  We honored them.  We embraced them.  We committed to walk in covenant with them.  We have much more to do. We have to walk our talk, but as we journey towards Houston on August 6th - our talk must line with His.  This is about Him and His kingdom.