2020: Here Come The Elephants

Many are prophesying 2020 as a Isaiah 43:19 year ["Listen carefully, I am about to do a new thing, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even put a road in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert" AMP] and I 100% agree. This was the verse the Lord had me predominantly name each year with for the past 4years, until this year that is. I suppose because we have finally stepped into living in it not just prophesying it into being. This year is the Year of the Almond Branch [which I have spoken about already in my last blog post]. Jeremiah 1:11 - 12 " The word of the Lord came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied. The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.” I have expanded on this previously so I won't repeat myself here, but know to look for the 'blossoms' to bloom over lives, and then fruit to be produced going forth. There is also faith to seek, to have the eyes or vision of the Lord, and see it manifest in the natural as the Lord is faithful to fulfil His word.

What I feel to share beyond this however for 2020 are three important areas the Lord has been showing me: The 3R's, Elephants and being authorised for assignment. Here goes...

The Three R's: Revive, Restore, Rebuild.

I saw that the first 4-6 months of this year it was focused upon and important to give room to the three R's of revive, restore and rebuild. Many, many people have been through the hardest challenges of their lives within the past 2years specifically. So many of these people are leaders, voices and kingdom advancers in the body not unaccustomed to spiritual warfare, and not easily overcome. However this season has been one where they had fought through on so many fronts, determined to breakthrough yet worn down by the relentless nature of opposition. I honour you who have endured the dark night of the soul and remained faithfully close to your Saviour, even if you felt the distance within the disappointment and questions. You are victors with our Christ and these first moths of the year are for you to revive, restore and rebuild. I can't ignore specifically how many attacks on the heath of ones lungs there have been in recent months. The enemy has tried in so many ways to rob the very breath, both in the natural and in the life giving breath of God within us, it also connects with others prophetic words on the silencing and muzzling over the body recently. I believe the Lord will first address the breath by reviving us, He is giving us our breath back, room to breathe - letting go of holding ourselves in the posture of tension from our season of being on alert and guarded so our lungs can fully take in the deep breaths of God (even naturally) that we have so longed for. We will have the capacity to fully oxygenate our bodies to a healthy state again, so to speak, to be able to function at full capacity again, and even beyond. Prophesy to the breath...

Ezekiel 37:9 NIV

"Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’”

One of my dear friends shared with me yesterday that the first thing her and a friend did on New Years was to literally revive someone on the side of the road who had stopped breathing! It is important that we allow self and others room for the three R's and not rush process. Rubble is not a good foundation to build on.

Restore, this will be the next step, restoring the broken places, losses, and bodies. I understand that there may be some areas that are past the point of restoration, namely areas where the Lord won't violate the unwilling free will of man to restore, but He is faithful to restore us from the inside out, even if a broken spirit is all we feel we have to offer Him.

Psalm 51:17 "My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise."

Rebuild, as we are restored we can then more effectively partner with Him as He rebuilds the ruins around us that have taken cannon fire. Allow Him to rebuild differently where needed, the battle armed you with new arsenal and abilities to upgrade your ramparts. Creativity, I feel, will be a wonderful expression in the rebuilding. Also do not be discouraged by any opposition to your rebuilding, keep going. When they were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem there was opposition [Nehemiah 4], but the Lord builds with you, and is faithful and watchful to His word.

Here come the Elephants!

Holy Spirit has been highlighting to me for a few months, how 2020 will be the year of the elephants. It seemed a little strange to me at first until piece by piece He unpacked what He was showing me. This word is not just for the believers either, so keep that in mind as you read.

There will be people who emerge as elephants on the scene or continue to grow in their prominence, this won't be welcomed by everyone and requires discernment by the Spirit not our natural eyes. You will know them by the largeness of their vision or the way their presence fills a room because the Lord will have His hand, favour or presence upon them. Don't be intimidated by the largeness of your assignment or the assignments and vision of others - God is in it. There will be elephants of thick skins (an elephants skin is an inch thick) that protects and acts as a buffer for them to endure, yet an elephants skin is highly sensitive and they are one of the most empathetic of animals. It is this combination of compassion, awareness and healthy ability to not let things get under ones skin (offence) that will make strong leaders. Elephants are also able to remember pathways to take to find water sources, and will dig wells to find water for themselves and subsequently other animals in dry lands. Sound like 'roads in the wilderness, and rivers/springs in the desert' to anyone else? The other thing elephants are able to do is communicate over large distances with other herds via vibrations in the earth. To me this speaks of being aware that our tribes within the body across different territories and assignments also need to keep communication or awareness to the movements of each other as it will bring wisdom and understanding to the larger movements of God in this time. As well as 'keeping an ear to the ground' so to speak, having eyes to see and ears to hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying and doing with intentionality. I have realised and been repeating to my kids that in this day you need to decide with all the 'voices' of media, social, friends, teachers and self talk, that they need to decide whose voice is going to be the most important to listen to to keep them in their best. We need that too, that the voice of the Lord will be the loudest and constant source of stability and hope not hopelessness. Have big ears for listening, but to the right source.

Interestingly elephant herds are led by matriarchal females, with all looking after each others young. A beautiful picture of the importance of a nurturing body, functioning as family together. I have also noticed that after the Esther Call in DC in 2017 we saw women arise in a fresh boldness in voice, however in time, there came assignments to silence, squeeze and squash women so they would back off into obscurity or be hindered in advancement. While this was purely an enemy scheme, I did note the role of men come into play into this unknowingly. While it was fantastic to see the desire of more men arise into their place and destiny, I also saw the intimidation it created in them as women stepped up to the plate, either not wanting to be out done, uncomfortable with lack of control over them, sharing of strengths or just simply not knowing how to steward the lives of their sisters well from lack of experience. Then the world witnessed this play out on a public platform in the body with character assassinations over prominent female leaders, confirming yet grieving me to what I already had picked up on.

Further there gave way to a hidden 'virus' growing, of the members of the body and outside the body, cursing each other, which is infecting and disabling healthy cells. The words we are cursing over one another is causing 'friendly and unfriendly fire' both in the natural and in the spirit realm. We need to focus our efforts on how to best enable the success of others. There is a call to sanctifying of our hearts and mouths so that we may trumpet the call of the Lord. There may be grace, but really we should make no room for the junk that proceeds from our mouths, but urgently and especially those who are called to use their voice in this time. We cannot be ignorant of the effects of every word that proceeds from our lips. We need to let the Lord touch our lips with the burning coal that removes our iniquity. This happened for Isaiah BEFORE he was commissioned and sent on assignment [Isaiah 6].

The elephant in the room... I believe this is a time where no longer the elephant in the room will be ignored. Where we may have all been aware of the 'elephants' presence but chosen to ignore it, we are going to see many speaking up to address the elephant in the room from now on. People are no longer ok ignoring important issues that are breaking down lives, and care too much about others than the confrontation it may invite. I see people like elephants charging through big issues of this hour breaking their deceptive and binding power, and releasing TRUE freedom to a generation.

The weight of an elephant isn't easily moved, so trying to remove an elephant where they have positioned themselves is no easy task. This applies for both areas in need of reform, needing bold weight behind it to budge it, and also those in place who are appointed to be elephants now will not be easily moved.

This applies for any elephant, in any arena emerging. We see the weight of their influence and we have questions. There is nothing wrong with questions, God likes questions a lot. What we need to do is take our questions to Him so that we can understand where He is in it. I don't think God is expecting every elephant to get it right all the time, or even that they would be someone who personally knows Him - yet - in order for God to work ALL THINGS together for good.

The spirit of fear is more active than I've ever seen, but the Lord is louder and rescues from all snares. We must have strategies that overcome fear in loves power for this generation.

These elephants will be bold ones who have come into an authority and a governance, whether it is spiritually or naturally. Some of us need to go to God and ask Him to show us what our authority and governance upgrade looks like. We are called to rule and reign with Christ. The challenges we have faced have only equipped us all the more to do this at a greater level. Though opposed at the very entry point over the area in which one is called. I say to you, you are authorised for your assignment!