Call to the Rain

Let it Rain...

“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, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.” Hebrews 12:1-4

“Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;” 2 Peter 3:11-14

“And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the£ Lord God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” Revelation 19:6, 7

As I write this blog, my eyes keep glancing out the windows of my office to the horizon, I see flashes of lightning and thunder. Now, in the natural, it is a lovely day, 80 degrees and sunny, but in my spirit I see storm clouds coming, great and mighty storm clouds, unlike any day the world has ever seen before, nor shall ever see again. I sense a day upon us unlike any time in history. It is a season of transfiguration, a time of the kingdoms of this world to collide with the Kingdom of Our God! A rapid moving of the consummation of all things is at hand. I can hear the beckoning of the Lord Jesus crying out –

“Come My children, for truly the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Come to Me my children, for this is the hour that my prophets spoke of - A time of the end of all things, as you know them. A new season has begun and the balances are in my hands, to weigh the hearts of my children. No longer will you say it is the beginning of spring and we have plenty of time until winter falls upon us, for I tell you that today is the day of the winter storms of Heaven. Today is the day of the early rains of spring. Now is the time for the latter rain of my presence! Walk with me in this rain - or you will be washed away by the foolishness of your willful hearts. For no longer shall I wait to heal the dryness of this earth, prepare for the rain of God!”

After Jesus had walked with His disciples for nearly three years and was reaching the end of His redemptive mission here on earth, He spoke these words to His disciples:

“For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works. Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” Matthew.16:27, 28

He then took three of His disciples, Peter, James, and John and brought them to a high mountain where He was transfigured before them. His face begun to shine like the brilliance of the sun and His raiment was as white as light. Then He said to His disciples - Arise, and do not be afraid.

“Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.” Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.” Matthew 17:15-18

When I read this scripture I asked myself; what is it that Jesus is saying here? This sounds like a strong rebuke coming from the Lord. What does He mean when He says, “…how long shall I be with you?”

This is what I believe Jesus is saying here. After nearly three years of intensive training, demonstrating for them the works of the kingdom and teaching them how to move in the Spirit, to heal the sick, raise the dead, and cast out demons, he arrives at the final chapter of His life here on earth. He is transfigured in front of their eyes while having a conference with the Father, Moses, and Elijah, regarding I suppose, the weeks that lie ahead and the cross. He proclaims to them His impending death and resurrection. He tells them about the glory of His second coming and the end of the age. Then, He is confronted with the progress of His disciples. Its report card time and Jesus being dissatisfied over the outcome, cries out, “…How long shall I be with you?” In other words, don’t you realize the hour in which we live? My time is short. You have been with Me for over two years and still you do not know how to operate in the Kingdom. Class is over kids and the time for kingdom advancement is now. Where is your faith? This is their wake-up call. This is a hearts cry to stand at attention and pay attention. This is exactly where we are today.

We are at a time such as this, and God is wooing the bride to awake from her sleep. How long does it take us to be trained? How long does it take us to move out in Kingdom power and resurrect this dead world? God is calling us to stand, to listen, and to learn. In the global economy of God’s timing, School is almost over. Individually, if it has not begun, it needs to start now. If it has, then we need to move beyond head knowledge and start doing the works of the kingdom. You might be asking yourself, how do I know if I’m ready? That’s easy. The prerequisite to doing the works of the kingdom are outlined by Jesus comments after His rebuke in Matthew 17:

“So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20

He is looking for recipients of mustard seed faith. His is looking for servants that have tilled the soil of the hearts and prayed – God plant that seed in me. He is looking for folks that will take what they have and be “doers” of the kingdom. The heart cry of Jesus is that whatever measure we have been given – we would give it away. It is in the doing that the increase comes. By giving away the measure of faith we have, He will fill us with more. It takes a little action to get a reaction. He is looking for saints that see the big picture and in seeing… they will discover the power of His resurrection and the Kingdom of heaven. This is a small investment…, to do such mighty works…, a little seed that can move mountains. It doesn’t get much easier than that. We have become too professional in our outlook of the church. If Peter waited to graduate from seminary to do the works of the kingdom, we would have never read about Peter in the scriptures. We have to get back to the simplicity that is in Christ Jesus and leave big business and professionalism to the rulers of this world. Remember the greatest in this Kingdom are those that have become as little Children.

For the last several decades, the church has been anticipating a tremendous harvest from the Kingdom of God. We have looked upon the landscape of this world spinning out of control - and prayed, “Father, send us revival….” We watch as the separation of light and darkness draw lines in the sand and the culture war wages on… lashing out at values that were once the norm. We bow our knees in prayer as we see the horror of global terrorism, war, and the crisis of the Middle East. We pray the more as this world quakes its way towards destruction. We grab hold of each other, searching for the hem of His garment as this planet is shaken by earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, and natural disasters… all the while the world seems to head down a path of no-turning-back. Yet, through it all, we press in and press on, knowing that Our God Reigns. So we call out for the rain of His presence… we cry out for the Latter Rain of His Glory, and we, in Holy Spirit desperation, pray, “Father, THY KINGDOM COME… on Earth, now, as it IS in Heaven! We are looking for that End Times breakthrough… that only the Lord of all Glory can bring.

You know, in the fall and winter months, the Mediterranean world reverberates with excitement and anticipation of the olive harvest. As they should, olives take time to grow. The average tree can take up to seven years to produce enough fruit to yield a harvest… and even then, each tree only produces three to four quarts of oil. That’s the buzz… You can hear it in the streets, “the olives are ripe, and abundant… the Harvest is at hand….” You want to shout it from the rooftops, - Listen dear saints, dear keepers of the oil, prepare your hearts for the harvest… for today the olives are ripe for the pressing…. 

Yet, remember dear ones, dear keepers of the oil, each tree will only yield enough oil for itself. Be mindful, be fruitful, and keep your jars full, wick trimmed, and hearts set ablaze, for the groom is about to leave His chamber and the bride he desires to see is an “extra” virgin bride whose decanter is full and whose light is set ablaze.

Yes, we are very much like the olive grower waiting for that final harvest. We watch as the orchard moves and sways to the changes in the weather. We cry out to God when drought is upon the land for fear that the harvest won’t come. We cringe, then pray, asking the Lord of the harvest to send forth the spring rains. We wait and we fertilize, crying out for the winter rains…. Yet, through the years of waiting, we are suddenly struck with that promise from Heaven… “…Let us now fear the LORD our God, who gives rain, both the former and the latter, in its season. He reserves for us the appointed weeks of the harvest.” Therefore, we press on and pray the more…. We can sense, in the Spirit, the times they are a changing, so we stand with the words of Joel: 

“Fear not, O land; Be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done marvelous things! Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field; For the open pastures are springing up, and the tree bears its fruit; The fig tree and the vine yield their strength. Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, and He will cause the rain to come down for you—The former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.” Joel 2:21-24

That is what we are waiting for… we are waiting in anticipation for a Holy Spirit outpouring like no other… a Latter Rain visitation of Jesus upon this earth. I hear constantly, “the rain, we so long to see, is coming….” You can feel it in the air, like the stillness before a storm, the moisture level has risen, the barometer is off the charts, and the climate is changing before our very eyes. We all want revival, we all want the Word of God to go forth in power and transform the lost and the destitute in a final wave of His presence.

Yet the Lord would say there is a precursor to the out-pouring of this rain. Jesus is so full of rain it coming out His pours… bursting through like a Gatorade commercial. Nonetheless, to the breaking of His heart, He holds back the rain…. Though the waters are ready to burst through the heavens – He says – Not yet, Hold back a little longer… the time is now but My bride, she’s not ready.

You see, for the last few days, every time I went to pray the Lord kept showing me this picture. In this vision, I saw a massive stone wheel; slowly turning… the picture was so vivid I could almost hear the sound of crushing as I watched the intensity of this stone wheel turn. I asked the Lord what it was. He spoke these words into my heart:

“The hour has come for My anointed ones…. My olives, which stand before me, are now, this day, ripe for the crushing. The season of new oil is upon you and you shall go forth and pour yourselves out upon this land; for I have seen the agony of My people – I have heard the cries of My saints. Within their bosom lies the fruit of My labor - To birth in them a tsunami of My presence… and in their labor they shall birth the deluge of My deliverance and My love. Their labor has reached its final hour and the birth of this out-pouring is that of New Oil… Golden Oil from the olives of My Latter Rain, for know this day, that I have called you to a new place…. I have called you to lie beneath the stone of my pressing. I have watered my olive trees with visions of my Latter Rain and now they have grown ripe with the hope of my outpouring. This day I have begun the shaking. This day I have begun to gather my olives. For at my feet lie olives, ripe for the pressing. Now, this day, My Spirit will begin to gather…. So listen to Me now… your services are needed. Come with me… lie down upon the floor of My alter… come with Me… lie down beneath the Stone of my pressing…. For the oil from this press will usher in my Latter Rain.”

As I pondered upon His words, I saw again that massive stone… and then the picture zoomed out and I saw a spigot or gutter extending out from the base of the stone. Out of the stone dripped Golden Oil. As the stone wheel turned, the oil went from dripping to pouring. Below the spigot was a bucket. It had become so full it was overflowing. The flow soon turned into mighty splatters. Looking from above the bucket, I saw the heavens and the earth below – then the bucket burst open, releasing its contents upon the face of the earth. Then I saw the legs of people standing upon the earth. They were looking down at their feet in amazement. They all were standing in this Golden Oil… and the oil began to rise… amazed they looked up to Heaven, eyes beaming with the Glory of God.

Then the voice of the Lord spoke, “A new glory is rising and shall cause your feet to be transformed from bronze to iron.” That was when I saw a new strength enter the people of the Lord… and then I saw Jesus rise above all and begin to walk through the Land. His stature was mighty and His body filled the whole earth.

The Call of Jesus in this Hour

God is calling us into a new day. He has planted within our heart the desire to see His glory. He has placed within us the cry and the prayer to call forth the Latter Rain – to usher in the deluge of His presence. However, there is something vital that needs to happen in this ushering.

He is not only calling us to press in… but to be pressed, crushed, under the presence of His Holiness. You see, without the complete yielding of our hearts to Him, the Oil cannot come, and it is the Oil that brings forth the rain and the rain becomes as golden oil. So what does it mean to be pressed, to yield ourselves to Him completely?

Just yesterday, the Lord spoke to my heart and said, “The fire you desire is My desire, but that torch is only lit on Heaven’s alter of worship.” You see pressing happens in His presence. When we press in and worship the lover of our souls we are crushed by the incredible nature of His love for us. Worship is a lifestyle. Worship is adoration. Worship is a lover pressing into to Him with such urgency, because she can’t do anything else, she has to be with her Lover. Jesus adores you. Jesus is so in love with you that He wants you to be with him and the door to His kingdom is worship. Worshipers are lovers, they are so sold out to be in His presence that constantly have their eyes upward looking for Him and His presence. Worshipers are like the Shulamite bride of the Song of Solomon. 

“Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—For your love is better than wine. Because of the fragrance of your good ointments, Your name is ointment poured forth; Therefore the virgins love you. Draw me away!” Song of Solomon 1:2-4

The kisses of the King draw us. The heartbeat of is presence changes us. Through intimacy with our Lord, we can proclaim, like the Shulamite, “The king has brought me into his chambers.... He brought me to the banqueting house, And his banner over me was love.” You see Jesus is looking for a people so hungry for Him, so thirsty for Him, so desiring Him, that they are as lovesick as He is, and when they hear the sound of His voice their hearts leap inside of themselves. Listen to the words of the Shulamite.

“The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he stands behind our wall; He is looking through the windows, gazing through the lattice. My beloved spoke, and said to me: “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; The time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grapes give a good smell. Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away!” Song of Solomon 2:8-13

 Since our destiny is set to be the bride adorned in white and married to the King of all creation, we might as well start now, adorn ourselves with His presence, and pursue Him. It is only in worship and adoration for Him that will bring us into the hour of great anointing. He invested everything, His very life, to create a people, lovers, that will be an extension of His hands, doers, that will see what He sees, and march out, full of the Holy Spirit, and heal this land.

Last night I had a dream, in the dream I was standing on the beach with some folks, and it was dark, like a red sky. All around us were zombies, the walking dead, trying to devour us and kill us. The tide came in. It was a red tide. We were splashing water with an ore on the zombies. As soon as the water touched the zombies they began to dissolve. I saw the red tide cover the beachhead and thousands of zombies started dissolving into the sea. Then I heard the voice of two dissolving in the waters. One said, “I can feel the Holy Spirit’s presence.” Then the other said, “Well that makes sense, He created us.”

Then I watched as the tide receded, like a tsunami inhaling, drawing back to the belly of the ocean. When it did I looked at the beach and more zombies popped up out of the ground, attacking and aggressively pursuing us. In a panic, we started running for our lives. I looked to the left and saw solders running as well, some were riding Segways, and others were simply running.   Everyone was running towards a wall trying to jump over. Then I saw a man with no legs riding a motorcycle. He was trying to help a child over the wall, but couldn’t because he had no legs. Then I woke.

As soon as I woke I heard the Holy Spirit say, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit says the Lord.”

You see a powerless church has no legs to stand on. When the tide of His presence recedes for a season, if we aren’t filled with His presence, with living water, with the golden oil of anointing, we cannot stand. Our fight is weak and tiring. We spend more time running for our lives than we do changing the lives of the walking dead. It’s important to get this. The very DNA of humanity was designed to respond to the presence of the Holy Spirit. They will melt in the heart of His presence when they feel the red tide upon them. We are in warfare, and this fight is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, powers, and forces in dark places. The Lord has positioned each of us in strategic places around the planet. Wither individually, or as an organization, we are encamped like clusters of grapes, being prepared to engage in this Holy battle. But it is only in Him and through Him that will change the hearts, souls, and minds of this world. 

This is not a political fight at is a spiritual fight. We are called to bring life to the walking dead. However, know this, a tide that recedes, recedes only for a season, and the tide that is coming back, is a tsunami Christ blood that will flood and saturate the land.

Awhile back, the Lord spoke to my heart about the strategic planting of His people in strategic places upon a battlefield. I was in a trance, and the scene that I saw was, as one would see if they were watching an old civil war movie, watching a camp of Union soldiers strategizing their advancement into battle. These outposts of His kingdom were placed strategically about at various locations, waiting for their next move to engage the enemy. Even now, I can see the white tents clustered together with soldiers moving about, lighting fires to warm their coffee, and preparing their weapons for battle as the morning sun begins to rise and the dew lifts from the landscape.

Suddenly, the Lord showed me the valley of the battlefield. I was looking up at the skies above the valley and saw massive storm clouds covering the sky like a powerful blanket, shaking and moving with incredible intensity. Then the Lord spoke to me very powerfully and said,

“Call to the winds.” Then the sky began to move, and He said, “Call to the North, Call to the South, Call to the East, Call to the West.” Then the skies began to move, and blow, and thunder.

So, I cried out to the winds. I cried out to the North winds, and the South winds, and the Winds of the East and the West. I cried – “Lord, send your power,” and the sky began to turn like the development of a might hurricane.

Then the Lord showed me a lake that was overshadowed by the storm. Then he showed me a massive drop of rain hitting the lake.  When it hit, mighty ripples flowed out from it, and the Lord said, “Call to the rain!”

And I cried out, “Send your rain oh God.” I kept crying out, “I call to the wind, I call to the rain, I call to the North, the South, the East and the West. Send your rain oh God.” Then the Lord showed me the hurricane that was building above the valley and out of the hurricane came forth-small cyclones, waterspouts. Suddenly these tornados landed upon His people, individually, like little cyclones spinning in the hearts of men.

Then the Lord said “speak to the rivers and the streams, call to the ground to release the waters of His presence.” And I saw people standing on the ground and suddenly, water came forth from the earth like what would happen if someone squeezed a wet sponge, and the people were getting soaked, and the water turned into a stream, into a river unstoppable.

Then the Lord showed me a Bell Tower. It was a like an old Spanish mission bell tower... (like taco bell) and the Lord was standing next to the bell tower with a staff in His hand. He took His staff and began to hit the bell. With incredible force and rhythm he hit the bell, and the sound of the bell went out throughout the Land.

Then I heard a voice say, “Blow a trumpet in Zion, sound an alarm upon my Holy mountain. Call for the elders, let the saints come out of her chamber. Blow a trumpet across the land.”

Then I heard the Lord say as He swung and hit the bell.  “This is my mission bell and I am on a mission, I have a mission to complete.”

Poppa loves you dearly. He wants to rain down His presence upon you and move in the lives of your families, communities, and the region you live in. The Lord has called and placed churches and people around various regions around the world like outpost of the Kingdom of Heaven, strategic outposts positioned with purpose to advance His plan in this day and hour. There is a great outpouring on the horizon. The Lord is on a mission to bring about a great work.

The Lord would say to us, “Listen Sweet Vine, Sweet Vineyard of mine, you are the winds..., you ARE the mighty winds of change,” and the Lord would say to you, “if you rally to His heart’s cry and respond to the sound of the mission bell, that the Lord, the King of Heaven, will blow upon you with such a sweet, sweet, fragrant wind that you will become (collectively) the force that He will use to usher in this hurricane of Heaven upon this land.”

Please know that today is a day of refreshing. Today is a day for setting the captives free. The Lord is looking for the bride to come together in a unified force and call for the rain of God. His promise to you is to

“Ask for rain in the time of the latter rain. The Lord will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field for everyone.” Zec 10:1

And when you call He will answer. “Yes.” He will respond with massive drops, one for each of you. Then He will cause a rippling to take place. The cyclone will be His passion - His power - the ripples will be the outflow of His love..., and this outflow will become a highway in the midst of dry land and the people will begin to hear a sound – a fresh sound in their ears, a tune and a melody from heaven designed especially for them.  For He is about to paint the landscape in living color, He is about to paint the land with His glory and play a melody of mercy to this generation.

So the Lord is saying: So arise you elders, you tribes, arise and come to My sanctuary. Say to the mountains, “Bow before the Lord of Glory.” Call to the rivers, Call to the streams – “Release the waters of salvation, release the waters stored up for this hour. For I have a plan and a purpose, my flower, I have a plan for power in this hour.”

Press in this day to the pressing of the Lord. Only then will we walk with Him in this final hour. The promise is that of a new filling, a new glory. When we yield, He will not only release this anointing, He will trade our feet of brass (representing the need to be cleansed and healed all the time) for feet of iron (representing His strength, where we transition from the healed to the healers). We will become a people ready to walk in this final hour.

Zechariah, in chapter four, when desiring to see the restoration of Judah and the temple, was caught-up in a vision. An angel approached him, awakened him from his sleep…, and said, “What do you see?” Zechariah responded, telling the angel what he saw, and then he asked the angel what it meant:

 “…What are these two olive trees—at the right of the Lampstand and at its left? …What are these two olive branches that drip into the receptacles of the two gold pipes from which the golden oil drains?”

Now the angel was taken back, he should have known what olive trees and the golden olive oil were, but he didn’t. The angel said, “…Do you not know what these are?”

Admittedly, Zechariah said, “No, my lord.”

Then the Angel said, “These are the two anointed ones, who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.”

You see, we have something that Zechariah did not have. We have the Holy Spirit, the resurrected Lord of all glory, and the lesson form Zechariah. You see unlike an oil lamp, an olive tree has an endless living supply of oil, forever producing, forever replenishing. Our desire is the same – only bigger. Let’s not stand before the Lord and ask, what are those olive trees? If we are going to press in we must be pressed in His presence. Only then we shall watch as the Lord anoints His tabernacle (Exodus 40:9-11) and fulfills the words of Jesus, as we proclaim His kingdom to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:4-8). For the call to His church, in this last hour, is to have lamps filled with oil, lamps that burn without ceasing (Exodus 27:20; Mathew 25). This is what all of creation is groaning for (Romans 8:22-27). Consider the words of Jesus, and ponder and pray regarding these things:

“Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.

“And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

“Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour £in which the Son of Man is coming.” Matthew 25:1-13

Now is the time to look up!” A new season has begun. God is on the move and He is searching for His bride to take her place and arise… to be the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, for the Kingdom of God is at hand! It is time to move-on folks.