One of the best things from 2020 is one of my go-to songs, Rattle by Elevation Worship. It speaks life to my bones… IT IS what the song talks about. Yet for the last week or so my mind sings it as Battle… I wished one of my talents was to write songs but alas… it’s not. Someone, please write me a battle song that moves me as much as Rattle and This is a Move by Tasha Cobbs. I love music. I love to sing. I love to dance. Trust me, you don’t want to hear me sing or see me dance. Why is battle running through my mind like a dedicated runner, with 40,000 miles on his legs? Because sometimes I feel like God is using an end-of-the-world problem generator to let us know it’s almost time and we never know what’s gonna happen. You catching what I’m throwing? This year has gotten out of hand! Whew! It’s almost over…
Let’s face it these things we are surrounded by are not brought on by God. We all know who is responsible for the evil in the world. He is a desperate little worm and wants to get as many souls in the depths of fire as possible. He isn’t dumb. He has read the book just like we have. He doesn’t want to get lonely in the most famous hot spot on the planet. And I don’t mean the hotspot on my phone. We are going through a test. Maybe I wasn’t prepared for this test and probably didn’t study up as much as I thought because the things of this world have taken me by surprise. Is that a shock? YEP! Where is my trust? What am I doing? Am I more concerned with the world around me than what He wants? I’m thinking I’m not but then why am I a worrier and not a warrior? I mean… if I know He has this then what is wrong with me?! Right?! Needless to say, I’ve been praying a little more as of late. While praying, I had a vision of us in a small house out in the middle of some acreage. It reminded me of an old house setting from an old western or Little House on the Prairie. While we were in the house cooking, cleaning, playing games… we were at peace… We were singing, dancing, having fun and didn’t have a care in the world… literally, nothing fazed us. Outside however was the darkest of dark surroundings with clouds, tornados… things flying around… hail, rain, thunder, lighting… the biggest, scariest, meanest storms you would ever see. This house was completely enveloped by it and yet we were inside without even acknowledging it. Really?! How many of us wouldn’t be looking out the window? Watching the news? Or my favorite… go to bed to try to ignore it was even out there?
I mean I love a great thunderstorm. The rain and thunder… mmmm a great night's sleep. But I don’t want hurricane-force winds coming and blowing us down. Know what I mean? How could anyone remain calm? This wasn’t an “everybody gets scared” situation. You know we all get scared but in this case, we didn’t even know it was out there. How can that be possible? Because we were prepared and the battle wasn’t ours to fight. It belongs to the Lord. He has warring angles that go to battle. Our part in this you ask? Battle rattle.
Battle rattle is the stuff a soldier carries to get through the day, from mission-specific gear to general supplies. So how does battle rattle apply to us? Well… first we must acknowledge there is a battle… am I right? Every soldier must be prepared for whatever battle he/she is going into. Most of us believe the battle is drawn along political parties, religions, and what is going on in the world around us. How are you getting ready for the biggest battle you have ever faced? It doesn’t matter what the battle is… we must prepare for them all the same. Business going under? Cancer? Politics? Bad health? Failing in school? Overwhelmed as a parent? Covid and all the garbage it has brought on us? This list could go on and I would not be able to cover what your battle is. We all have a battle. This is our battle rattle: turn of the television, prayer, praise, worship, Bible study, and speak life and not death, spend time with family and friends that build you up and not tear you down. Keep our mouths shut and march around Jericho until the walls fall.
Once you have your battle rattle in place and you begin to grow, you will find your purpose. God has given me a purpose that I am just beginning to fill. Hey! I’ve been busy being a kid, teenage mom, mom, wife, grandma, employee and oh my the hats I have worn! Getting here was His timing. It has taken me until this week to get something that was spoken over me 15 years ago. My Mom was an amazing woman of God and I love her very much. To say I miss her is an understatement. When she passed, I had several people tell me the mantle has been passed. It made me feel good but I could not see God using me. I wasn’t smart. I wasn’t mature. I made bad decisions. I could see how other people saw me. They didn’t think I was spiritual enough, yadda yadda yadda. Ya feel me? So I was wallowing for a bit. Now, as I have stated before, it’s okay to wallow for a while but we cannot stay there. I’m pretty sure we have been in a place that we THINK we know what other people’s opinions of us are. And whether that assumption was right or not didn’t matter. God has a purpose for you. He has a time and place. Everything has a season. This week while walking down the hall at work praying for our Nation, WRM, the business, our family… you get it… I was in battle mode. While walking I could hear “the mantle has been passed”. Stopped. Me. Dead. I didn’t move. This is something I haven’t heard in 15 years. It shook me to my core. Started walking some more and I heard it again. “it’s time, the mantle has been passed”. Y’all I was covered from head to toe in goosies. And as I am writing this, I am again. I know they say that doesn’t mean it’s the Holy Spirit, but for me, I’m pretty certain I’m about to begin walking out what He has called me to do. It’s a little eery and a lot of fun. Let me tell you something, there is no mistaking when God speaks to you. This is something that was not discussed with a lot of people and hasn’t been brought up since she passed. I shared this with Todd later that evening. The vision of the house in the storm and God letting me know it was time was all on the same day. Peace is all I have. The storm is going on around us and it is ugly. Yet, God is on the throne, and even if… He is the great I AM and will not leave or forsake me. And I will straighten my crown and move forward with His purpose.
This is what the Lord has been placing on my heart this week… we are not fighting the battle. He has the battle. It may not go the way we think it should but we are human… He is the I AM. My prayer for you is that your eyes are open and you can see hills full of horses and chariots of fire. My prayer for you is that you are in the house singing and dancing without realizing the storm has you surrounded. I pray you are surrounded by warring angels fighting the battle for you. Battle rattle. Get ready. Let’s go!
And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
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