Getting to the heart of things :)...

Hey everyone! Does anyone need victory? Because Jesus has got it covered! :) I just finished this painting for my friend Karen (she's in my small group), and I wanted you to get in on the action too. We've started this wonderful small-group tradition of spending our meeting times blessing on particular individual in the group, and Karen had her turn last time we were together! It was so special to be able to just bless and honor her; we prayed for her, gave her prophetic words that we had prepared ahead of time, washed her feet, and had some amazing breakthroughs together. My prophetic word to her came through this painting, and WOW, did God do incredible things in me as I created it, in her as I communicated what God had spoken to me, and in all of us as we let God move. To explain the picture, it's really all about victory, the victory that Jesus has achieved for us by His death and resurrection. His blood covers everything so that we can experience healing and victory in every area in our lives. So, when God first showed me this picture, He gave me a basic understanding of what it meant but I had NO IDEA of the true fullness of all He wanted to communicate. So the night before we were going to honor Karen, I asked the Lord to show all that He desired to say to her, all that He wanted her to know. And I asked Him specifically to pierce my heart with the word I would deliver to her because I cannot truly communicate it His heart if I don't let Him first transform my heart and change me. So, I asked Him... and not only did He pierce my heart but He took me into an encounter with His word for Karen. It was intense! What I understood about the painting before was just the surface of what He was saying... He told me that this was His banner over Karen's life, and I saw Him waving it over her as a declaration of freedom and victory. His very death proclaims over her that He has won the war on her behalf! Then I got this feeling in my spirit... and the only way I can describe it is that it's the exact same thing I felt when Aslan was slain (in The Chronicles of Narnia) and the powers of darkness thought they were victorious, but then He rose again and triumphed over them on behalf of His children. Jesus is our righteous, glorious King, and He has fought and won for us, His children. The final revelation the Lord gave me was something that had never occurred to me before. The phrase "Worthy, worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was slain" just kept echoing in my mind, so I went to Revelation 5 (one of my all-time favorite passages. it wrecks me EVERY TIME I read it) and it wrecked me again because I realized this: There in heaven, for all eternity, the angels and elders and living creatures never stop worshipping the Lamb that was slain. They will never stop proclaiming His victory and redemption for the saints. And as they sing for all eternity to the Lamb, they are declaring His victory for each of us here on earth. THINK ABOUT THAT. Anytime we face opposition or difficulty in this life, all we have to do is tap into the throneroom because our victory in Christ is being proclaimed there 24/7. I don't know if you're getting this but it BLEW MY MIND. I was a sniffling, teary mess with the weight of such a revelation, and with gratitude over such a wonderful Savior. I encourage you to let God wreck you the same way! Grab hold of that same revelation, and tap into heaven. Everything we need is there. That's why Jesus told us to pray "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."

Apart from that lengthy intro :), I do want to fill you guys in on what other stuff God's been up to lately... He's been doing such good things. I've really been connecting more lately with some amazing friends I've got up here. In fact, two of them will be joining me for my youth group's Winter Camp! I'm SO EXCITED :D. God's going to do radical, transforming, accelerating works among us, and I have the pleasure and honor of having their support as we sew into what God's doing. It's gonna be awesome! Please be praying for God to prepare the hearts of everyone who'll be coming, for Him to come down on us in glory, power and encounters like we've never experienced before, and that every person will leave that weekend having received a radical impartation from the heart of the Father of their identity and destiny. Do it, God!

Hey, I got to pray for a sweet little lady in WinCo today :). She had a big ol' brace on her leg because she had broken it during Christmas time. This was her first time out since then! It was a breakthrough for me to step out and pray for her but it was even sweeter just to love and honor her because it's rare for the younger generations to honor the older these days. I love you, Nelly! You're amazing!

Well, I'd love to tell you guys more but I need to do homework! That's what I get for sleeping in today... I cut off like 4 useable hours from my day :). Haha, you can see how I tick on the inside.

I love you all! Blessings on your week! Be filled to overflowing with God's love, transformed by His heart, and directed by fresh revelation from His Spirit!

Love and victory,

Melissa