Clean

You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. ~John 15:3-4

Yahshua the Word has been spoken to us, cleansed us. And as we abide in Him, we bear fruit. 

Abide—from a, denoting forward motion and bidan “to wait, remain, dwell”, the root of which is bheidh, which originally meant “to command” and “to trust” and is also the root word of FAITH.

Intercession

Intercession--noun. When you hold onto the Word for someone else because they can't or don't know to right now.

Worship

Focus on the Good:

Sometimes in life, people are faced with very difficult things. Things like death of loved ones, illnesses that are said to be incurable, rejection, hatred, fear. These things can seem an ocean of overwhelming ugliness in this world, and it can be easy to think that that is all there is.

People can try to distract themselves from these things with the good things in life. But few people really understand what that is or means. One cannot distract themselves from evil. One cannot look at a good thing that is on the same level as the evil thing and survive it.

We must focus on the good, and the good that we focus on must be far more real than the evil that we see in this world. Deeper than beautiful things like rainbows, puppies, or the kindness of a child. Deeper than nature or songs or poems. Deeper than the most awesome experiences or the most breathtaking views. The good that we focus on must be the ultimate good, the underlying foundational good upon which creation was built. Yahweh Himself.

It's not even things about Him or what He has done for us. It is simply to look deeply, forever, into the eyes of the Father who formed creation by His own Word: Himself. We can never look away.

And then, all we see in creation is simply a reflection of what is in His eyes. But He sees only truth. And the evil and sorrow and malice that can appear so real in this world are suddenly seen for what they are: illusion.

As we walk through illusion, firmly in reality, we can have joy in the midst of sorrows and peace in the midst of pain. And, marvelously, we please Yahweh, for we live in faith.

And our lives become worship to Him.

Relative Size

This is a picture of the Earth. The pale blue dot in the topmost sunbeam. It was taken from a spacecraft 4 billion miles away from Earth at the time.

That small, blue dot is Earth. And on that small blue dot is every human, vast landscape, forest, mountain, ocean, plant, bird, beast, hope, dream, and plan.

And bigger than it all is Yahweh. Bigger than the Earth and everything on it. Bigger than the sunbeams. Bigger than the whole of this picture. Bigger than the universe. And yet not separate from the universe.

We must have faith to see, but we must see to have faith.

Most of the world is looking at things through a pair of binoculars. These are perpetually held up to one’s face and distorting their perception of the world. The problems seem to be much larger and more terrifying than they actually are, and the beauties of this world, which are so much bigger than the ills, cannot be seen at all in their entirety as the binoculars only allow someone to see certain parts of the whole at a time.

But in reality, the whole is much bigger than that piece one can see through the binoculars. Goodness is much greater than pain. And when, by faith, we remove the binocular eyes, we can see truth and judge creation with wisdom and righteousness.  

Decide

Decide is a word that means "to cut off."

So when we decide to believe the Truth, we cut off the lie.

Sometimes it's that simple.

Recognize

There's a reason the word for sending people out ahead of the greater army into an enemy territory is called "reconnaissance."

The root word of reconnaissance is "recognize." Recognize comes from words that mean "again" (re) and "to know" (cognoscere.) So to recognize is to know again.

But once you know something, you can walk in it. This is true in the word "righteousness." The word "righteous" comes from "rightwise" which can be traced back to mean "to rule, lead straight, put right, move in a straight line" and "way, manner, wise." So righteousness is the directed way of wisdom. But wisdom is a word that can be traced back to mean "to see, to know."

Recognize also, from the 15th century, meant "to  resume possession of land."

Moses sent out spies on a reconnaissance mission to the Promised Land. Of the twelve spies who were sent out, only two recognized the land. Only two knew again that which Yahweh had always claimed to be theirs. Only two actually walked in and dwelled in the Promised Land.

Promise comes from root words meaning "to send before." Joshua and Caleb, the two spies, recognized the promise. They had seen it before, and they remembered. They knew. They were sure it was Yahweh's provision for them for they had faith. They were aware (the root word of faith.) And so, by faith, they claimed what was theirs, resuming possession of the land that had always belonged to them even as it belongs to the Father who is One with all of His creation.

Ultimate Faith

Yahweh created Himself. Creation was one with Yahweh, and so, when Adam sinned and caused the world to die, so did He.

In fact, Yahweh placed His life in Adam’s hands, literally. This is the ultimate faith. For when Yahweh did so, He knew that Adam could and would kill Him, but He also had the faith that He would be able to perform resurrection.

Yahweh, in some way, never separated Himself from creation. What creation went through, Yahweh went through. When Adam, by sin, killed creation, he might as well have taken a knife and murdered Yahweh as well. So that Yahshua dying for creation was not an event that took place four thousand years after the fall of man, but was a simultaneous occurrence that only physically manifested years later on a cross in Israel.

It was creation that separated itself from Yahweh, not at the point of death, but at the point of resurrection. For all have died, but not all have yet been resurrected. When Yahweh allowed Himself to fully bind with creation, He knew it would be the only way to keep creation whole, to give it any chance of survival. For He knew that when He resurrected, so would all of creation that was bound to Him. And so, it truly was ultimate faith, for Yahweh had enough faith not only to resurrect Himself, but to resurrect us all. 

One Word

The following words all have a linked root word:

Identity
Simplicity
Beyond
Before

Promise

Presence

Universe
Wholeness
Health
Holy
Safe
Safety
Salvation
Complete
Shalom
Fullness
Spread
Entire
All
Welfare
Forgiveness
Give
Soundness
Have
Plural
Elohim
Unity
Zadokim
Righteous
Directed
Reign
Regal
Straight
Lead
Author
Grow
Authority
Increase
Wisdom
See
Know
Speak
Word
Truth
Free
Love
Joy
Grace
Agreement
Pleasing
Favor
Peace
Bondage
Physical
Obligation
Be
Exist
Dwell
...

And I could literally go on forever, linking every word in all of Creation. But only One Word was ever really spoken. One Name.

Yahweh.

Oh Yahweh, our lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth. ~Psalm 8:9

Wisdom

Creation is psychosomatic.

The first sin was not eating an apple. It was not partaking of knowledge. It was believing a lie. This required setting aside the Word of Yahweh, severing ties with He who created them, and binding themselves to that which wasn't True. Believing the lie, Adam obligated creation to follow a way or path which never had been spoken.

Creation changed directions, like a river whose course has been artificially altered. The paths of righteousness were no longer open to Creation, or so the lie went.

But really, there was nothing wrong. Not because sin does not separate us from Yahweh, but because the redemption has always been there. And so, as soon as Creation fell, the opportunity was there for it to get back up again. Abraham did nearly 2,000 years before Christ was physically manifest on the Earth.

There is nothing wrong. There will never be anything wrong, but not all of creation yet knows this. Large portions of it still think, still believe, the lie. And so, psychosomatically, what creation believes is what manifests. Though in reality there is nothing wrong here, what appears on the outside are symptoms that really make no sense. The Great Physician has administered the cure, and yet the healing has not yet fully been realized. Why? Because of the lie.

But Truth is reality, Truth is unhidden. The Truth is that there is nothing wrong, for Yahweh saw creation and said that it was GOOD. And He leads us in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.

And the root word of righteousness is"rightwise." Which is from the root reg "rule, lead straight, put right" and wis "wise, way, manner." So the root word of ways is also the root word of wise.

But Creation does not have to follow this path that the lie says it must follow. The paths of righteousness have always been open to Creation. And Creation has always been...and is...on this path. In fact, it is the only path that really exists. It is only the lie that says that Creation is not whole. Only the lie the says that Creation is not Zadokim. Multiply manifesting righteousness.

Righteousness that came through Christ, Holy Spirit in a man, Yahshua, to redeem a lineage: the lineage of man. That man might redeem creation that we might ALL again follow the directed way of wisdom that is righteousness.

For the root word of wise is "to see." Which is "to know." And when we know the Truth, we no longer believe the lie. And we can walk in righteousness where there is nothing wrong. And the Truth has set us free.

I have taught you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in right paths. ~Proverbs 4:11

Obligation

I have always hated obligation. When I was a child, being told I had to do something automatically made a task less enjoyable. I found this especially true in English class, where being assigned a book made me dislike the book a little, even if I would have loved it had I but chosen to read it on my own.

And there is the key, choice. Obligation has a connotation of being against one's will. Or at least something one would not choose to do if the world were operating "perfectly." For example, most people would not choose, in a perfect world, to pay the electric bill, yet most people do so now because not to do so leaves them in the dark. Obligation often operates out of the fear of a negative consequence. The darkness of not paying an electric bill, the guilt of not repaying a kindness, the bad grade at not doing a book report. 

Yet paying bills, giving a meaningless gift, or doing a book report is not something most people would do on their own. This is where the problem of obligation comes in. Obligation is separating. Nobody throws themselves 100% into any task they do not desire to do. Thus, there is always a part of them that they hold back. The part that screams, "I worked hard for this money and now I have to give a substantial amount to the electric company." This part of them is the 10%, and the 90% that writes the check is separate from this 10%. 

(I say 10% arbitrarily, because I don't know exactly what percent of a person it would be, but I do know that it is less than the percent that writes the check because otherwise, the person wouldn't write it! The desire to have electricity outweighs the desire to keep the money you have paid for it.) 

But back on topic: the separation. Separation is always problematic. It is not identity. Identity is oneness. Identity is being One with Yahweh as all of His creation comes together as One in Him.

The worst way to be obligated is in relationships, and yet this is the most common way to be obligated. Obligation manifests itself frequently during this time of the year when people feel obligated to spend time with people they'd rather not spend time with or give people gifts they'd rather not give. But this type of obligation actually separates you from this person because it wakes up that little part of you that screams "why?" That part of you that doesn't want to do this thing. Then you are not only separating yourself from the person you felt obligated to do something for, but also from yourself as part of you wants to but part of you doesn't. 

And here is the most ironic thing ever. The root word of obligation is "to bind to." 

So let's redeem the word to its original meaning and purpose. If it is of Yahweh, we can throw ourselves 100% into the thing, creating unity. If it is of Yahweh, we will, through whatever we do or wherever we go, bind ourselves more to the people we relate with and more to ourselves. If it is not, it will actually be better not to do it. 

And here's the awesome thing, if it is of Yahweh, He will give you the desire to do it so that you CAN throw yourself 100% into the thing. Because Yahweh gives you the desires of His heart. And it is His desire to bring the world back together as One. 

Safe

The world does things backwards. This should, by now, come as no surprise, and yet every day Yahweh whispers mysteries into my being that show me just how backwards the world is.

It's funny, when I hear a revelation like this, I'm surprised. It takes a while for my mind to realize that THIS, and not what the world says, is how it is supposed to be--is normal. But each new revelation is a joy to receive, a dazzling splendor that opens me up just a little more to the Spirit and reality.

This revelation is about safe.

People have these boxes that are supposed to protect their valuables. They are usually made out of metal and have very strong locks that cannot be easily tampered with. The big versions are called vaults and are housed in banks. The smaller versions can be in someone's house or hotel room and are generally built into a wall or floor. These things are called "safes" and they are supposed to keep that which is valued safe.

But safe means whole.

Imagine if Yahweh, who values us beyond comparison, placed us in an airtight box that would preserve us in our current condition and keep us from being taken or tampered with. If this box were a really good one, it would also survive storms, floods, and fires. Nothing would ever reach us.

But we would never reach anyone, either.

Worse, we would be preserved in the condition in which we entered the box.

Ironically, that version of protection actually harms us. It keeps us from changing into what Yahweh has always wanted us to be. It keeps us from fulfilling our purpose. It keeps us from ever reaching the world, bringing all of creation together as One.

And so, the box isn't the safe. For in the box, we are damaged. In the box, people are in debt and incomplete. It is only when the valuable thing is out of the box that it can truly become whole.

One particular element is the most excellent at making wholeness: fire.

It is fire that is refining. It is through fire that Yahweh spoke to Moses. It is fire that comes with Holy Spirit and in which we are to be baptized. It is fire that, ultimately, burns away the debt, leaving us able to be joined to He who is One. Thus, we are identified. Thus we are complete. Thus, we are whole.

Therefore, in reality, the fire is the safe.

Salvation

Creation was perfectly united at one point. Yahweh, in six days, made all of Creation, and on the seventh day He rested, placing creation in the hands of man. This man, Yahweh's image, walked with Him in the Spirit, learning His Father's heart and establishing His Word. He was One with Yahweh and Creation. Thus all things were One and all things were glorious, perfectly the same thing.

And that thing was Yahweh's desire, Yahweh's heart. 

But then, man broke the link between himself and Yahweh and Yahweh and Creation, and all of creation was shattered. Like a mirror, dashed to a million pieces, the sundered creation became separate, and the Word of Yahweh, His desire, was no longer fulfilled. Indeed, the Word became words, and man created ugly things.

Because man, the steward of creation, lost something that day. He lost identity. He lost oneness. He lost being One with all things. Instead, he became self. Separate. Apart. A part. A portion of the whole, not having the whole anymore. This awful thing shattered man, too, into these many separate parts. His spirit was sleeping, his soul in torment, and his body always in labor. Man tried to put himself back together again, but he did not have the power. Instead, he cut himself into further parts by taking on debt in all of his futile attempts to fulfill himself. 

But Yahweh had a plan. For Yahweh so loved and valued His Righteous Creation that He sent the Word again, that whosoever binds Himself in unity (oneness) and perpetuity to the Word will not be separate but inherit Creation and be united as One with our Creator Yahweh. 

And so, restoration came, and He put the pieces back together again. He took what was shattered and made it anew, together as One. In unity and perpetuity. Forever. And He did it Himself, and He made us One with Himself. HalleluYah!

And this is salvation, making all things One, making things whole again. 

For the root word of "safe" is "whole." (sol)  

Provided For

Yahweh is 100% for us. He is also 100% provision. Pro- vision: to see ahead.

But of course Yahweh is provision. He saw ahead a long time ago, from the creation of the world, when He knew how history would play out. In seeing ahead, He saw what each of us would need and He placed it in our paths so that we could, when we were ready and when we could most use it, find it.

He saw, at the beginning and end of time, that I would one day need to understand that self and identity are at odds with one another and could not occupy the same place. He placed meaning in words in a language so old nobody is even sure what it was exactly, and preserved it through the generations and many evolutions of languages to modern English. He did this with two (actually five or six) words so that I, thousands of years after the original meaning of this word was lost to common speech, might find it and SEE.

That I, then, might see ahead, or back, to the beginning, having my own provision, which I might share with others who have their own provision, that all of creation might be...provided for.

And I am grateful. HalleluYah!

Identity

Identity is Oneness.
Self is separateness.

You must let go of self to get identity.

This Is Amazing

WHOLENESS
FULLNESS
ONENESS
COMPLETENESS

WHOLENESS-- from the word "undamaged." Linked root words: health, holy.

FULLNESS--entire, complete. Linked root words: many, much, abundant. To spread. (poly)

ONENESS-- Identity.
IDENTITY--Sameness, oneness. "the same."

COMPLETENESS-- Hebrew: shalom.
SHALOM--"peace." Literally, "completeness, soundness, welfare."

Oneness

The origin of the word self is "separate, apart."

I was thinking the other day about unconditional love. It's hard to imagine, sometimes, simply because it is so rarely seen. People's loyalties are divided. They will say one thing to one person, and another thing to another person. This is because people think they are against each other, and a neutral person in a situation, in attempting to pacify both parties, ends up dividing their loyalties. They cannot, then, love with completeness because they are only ever giving a percentage of the whole to any one person.

It would be easy to say that Yahweh, being infinite, can give completely to each and every person whether they're working together or separately. In war movies, I've seen both sides pray for victory. This isn't it, however. Even if He gives completely to both sides so that each side is filled to capacity, that would still only be giving a percentage or fraction of the whole--Himself--to each side. The part of Him that one side has could not also be had by the other side. This isn't it! Yahweh is not for one side and against another. His loyalties aren't divided. They don't have to be.

Yahweh is 100% for us. He is 100% for each and every one of us. That's actually where the word forgiveness comes from. To give completely.

And He can give Himself completely to each of us because we are each on the same team. We truly aren't fighting each other. The battle was never against flesh and blood. It is against self. Separation. Lies. It is against these powers and principalities and rulers in dark places. It is against being against.

Instead, we are FOR. 100% for. That we may all be One as Yahweh has always desired, always designed, it to be.

And when self dies and debt is removed, the joining can be complete, that we are all One in Christ, all things, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him.

Value and Promise

Value is when Yahweh says something is good.

If you look at Genesis 1, you'll see that Yahweh saw that creation was good on each and every day that He created. On the sixth day, after making man, He saw that all that He created was VERY good. And then, knowing that, He rested on the seventh day.

We can rest in value.

We can rest in knowing that we are valuable and have value.
Because Yahweh says so. And He is at rest knowing we are valuable and will come to that place He has promised us. The promised land that He has sent to us before we reach it.

Because promise means to send before. And so, though we have not yet reached the promised land, the promised land has already reached us.

The Interesting Thing About Slingshots

The Interesting Thing About Slingshots

The most interesting thing about slingshots is the fact that, for a time, the stone in the slingshot looks like it is going backwards, being pulled in a direction away from that in which it was always meant to travel. Yet, it is at this time that the stone is closest to being propelled forward in such a momentous way that everyone shall see and give Yahweh glory.

I’m putting on my goggles; I’m about to fly. 

Bear

We bear Christ on the inside of us. Yet, inside He cannot remain. Not because we force Him to manifest, but because His nature does not allow Him to stay hidden. He is there, inherently and eternally, but He also inherently manifests externally. He is both in and out. Omnipresent forever.

Provision

When I was a girl, I always wished for a suit of armor that no one could see, but that would protect me. I wished to hide myself from my peers, from those with whom I came in contact, that I might protect myself--my true self--from them.

At the same time, this was exhausting. I hated leaving my bedroom because I could never be myself. I always had to put on a mask for others. I remember expressing this to my parents, that being home was the only place I could truly be myself.

Of course, I had no idea who I was at the time. Because true Identity does not need protection. It travels in an inherently protected vessel: The Word of Yahweh.

I was watching "The Prince of Egypt" recently. This movie is a fictional portrayal of the story of Moses in Exodus. There are a lot of Kingdom elements in this movie, though it is obviously imperfect (the title still refers to Moses by his worldly identity as a prince of Egypt. I think "Deliverer" would have been a better title...)

One of my favorite scenes in this movie is at the very beginning when Moses's mother is placing Moses in this flimsy woven basket to set it adrift on one of the largest and busiest rivers in the world, The Nile.   If there had been any other way, surely she would have chosen another path. But this path of possible death was better than the option of certain death that awaited Moses should the Egyptians find him too soon. (Because they DID find him, but it's all about timing.) Actually, if you look at Hebrews 11 (vs. 23), you can see that Moses's parents were commended for their faith in keeping him safe.

So this young woman, Moses's mother, took her child, set him adrift in a basket, and prayed for his survival. The movie shows this basket flowing down the Nile for a long time, through many dangers. Crocodiles, hippopotami, river barges, overwhelming waves. And finally, at the end of these dangers came one of the worst of all: the discovery by the Egyptians, who could just as easily have killed him as taken him in.

With all of this, how could a simple woven basket have protected Moses?

It couldn't have.

The simple answer is this: Moses was not set adrift in a basket, but in the Word of Yahweh. The Word of Yahweh, which is unshakable and unbreakable. This Strong Tower that will protect you, guide you, deliver you.

Through oceans, torrents, plagues, monsters. Through those dark nights when you aren't sure what's what anymore and you can barely remember your own name. Through those days when you feel like you're running an endless marathon and you're sure the next step will be your last. Through those moments when you just want to lay down and rest. If you can't remember anything else, cling to the Word. That will get you home, to that place where Yahweh wants you, your Promised Land, that point of intersection on your geodesic line.

And best of all, this is all you have to do. Cling to the Word. You don't have to fight or strive or worry. Just hold on to the Word of Yahweh. And this is not exhausting as are the other options because as you cling to the Word, the Word clings to you. It surrounds you, encapsulates you, protects you, and provides for you. It's all I have, but that's enough.

And so, my wish is fullfilled. I walk always in a protective suit of armor that no one can see, but that protects my true self. The armor of Christ. And I don't have to do anything to have it. It is, so I am. And now that I have this protection, I can, instead of hiding my true self, actually shine. Because Yahweh's cool like that. He gives us what we've always wanted, but makes it even better. He makes it best.

The Cool Thing About Walking Things Out

The seeds of plants are below the ground, protected, safe, and often hidden. If one were to look only at the surface level of the earth, they might see nothing productive. Just some old dirt. Nothing fancy.

But below the superficial level is life, waiting, burgeoning with potential and purpose. All it needs to manifest are the right conditions.

But herein lies the issue. What happens if the conditions aren’t right? Nothing can successfully grow in a hostile environment. If you plant a seed that flourishes in cool temperatures in a place that is arid and hot, you cannot expect it to produce very much, and certainly not a crop of a hundredfold.

In the Earth, the only solution to this is to plant seeds that belong in cold environments in cold places. Either that or you can create an artificial environment—such as a greenhouse—to mimic the ideal environment in which a seed might produce life. Yet, such an artificial place is quite limiting. Taking the plant outside the greenhouse would kill it, and it will never know a free life.

However, in the Spirit, the solution to this issue is to actually change the environment. Because Yahweh has a place He wants a seed to grow, and He will not just give up on that place because the conditions are not yet ideal. In fact, He has the power to change the conditions and create a place where the seed of His Spirit can and does flourish.

That place is your heart. Your heart, the place where Yahweh always meant to marry seed and soil, Word and Faith, and create life. Yahweh knows what seeds to plant in what soil, and only together can they be made perfect.

But your heart, if you’ve been alive for enough time that you can actually read what I’m writing, had been corrupted. Somewhere along the line, a sickly seed was planted in your heart and it was allowed to grow, but the soil in which this seed would thrive could only be corrupt soil, and so this seed corrupted the soil of your heart as it grew. Soon, more corrupted seeds were attracted to and planted in your heart.  And that seemed to be all that would or ever could grow there.

But there, all the time, waiting below the surface, was the incorruptible seed of Yahweh’s Word, which lives and abides forever. Waiting all the time for the ideal conditions to manifest so that it could be made known.

And Yahweh raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in heavenly places so that He could show the riches of His grace to the coming ages. That He might make the seed known.

And all that needs to happen for these countless Words that now reside in your heart’s soil is that Yahweh change the environment. No, it won’t be easy. It is painful and hard. But it is worth it. Because there, down deep, is the Word of Yahweh…waiting.

Because there, down deep, is life.

Because there, down deep, is Christ.

Waiting.

On you.

Some Words manifest before others, because of timing and environment. Certain seeds can grow in various climates. Others are to grow only in specific conditions. Only when we have fully realized the change in the environment of our hearts will every seed manifest. And the fullness of Christ blooms within us.