How the Enemy Plots to Divide Us

February 11, 2019

Lord Jesus, thank You. Thank You for revealing deeper layers of bitterness and how to conquer them. I pray that everyone who hears this message will take it to heart and use the wisdom You have given us. Amen.

My precious family, I want to continue with the seeds of bitterness and how you all have these vines growing and choking out God's life in your souls.

So, typically, the day after the message on the seeds, I awoke in the morning and had to make a call. While I was talking, Ezekiel wanted to add something, so he talked over me--which is a HUGE pet peeve! And there went Satan's ugly seed, right down into my gut. Of course, I wanted to share with the person what Ezekiel was saying, because it was important. But I had that knee-jerk reaction. Wow, could I feel it.

As soon as I got off the phone, I went running to the altar and confessed, then repented for reacting. But I could still feel that icky thing, down in my gut. And it was my knee-jerk reaction of impatience and a little bit of anger, irritation --because I was interrupted. See, guys? See all that pride in there?

Then I dropped a soda on the floor. Immediately, a nasty reaction started to shoot out of my mouth, but the Lord warned me when it happened, so I checked it in my spirit, and I didn't get ruffled--I caught it before it affected me. But I still repented, 'cause I knew there was somewhat of a reaction in there.

As I was wiping up the mess, I thanked Him for something to offer Him. Every time you are frustrated and do not cheerfully accept a situation, you gain a seed of bitterness. This is serious stuff! No wonder my motivation for music gets lost. I'm tangled up in the thorn bushes of this world, and in my frustrations, I take on a seed. That seed takes root and chokes off my creative energy.

What I need to say is, "God allowed that. Don't get angry, offer it to Him with joy! Put a holy smile on His face."

I thought to myself, 'Oh boy, this is gonna be a job for God--I can't hack it by myself.' I cried out, "Lord, I need your help!!!" Immediately the song from Exodus, "After the Bloody Waters Plague" came wafting into my mind: "Yahweh will surely save." It's repeated over and over again, at different speeds, and drawn out with the echo "Yahweh will surely save." And I responded, "You are my only hope, Lord; my only hope. This runs much deeper than I imagined."

Well, since then I have been trying to thank Him for everything. The beautiful things, the ugly things; the trials and the insults. All of them are being woven into His tapestry of Heartdwellers. I seriously believe that making very adamant proclamations of gratitude for everything He has given us is the only way to stay out of bitterness. This disease is far more pervasive than we think. I have found that the minute I get irritated with someone, that very minute, I have received Satan's seed and I must repent immediately.

Now I want to bring something up that I have found amongst those closest to us. My dear ones, some of us have been taking offense where no offense was made. This is causing division. A couple of days ago, I was talking to someone who was in tears on the phone. And when they explained to me what they were in tears about, knowing what I knew about the other person, I realized they took it the wrong way. That the other person was not at all being ugly to them or pushing them away. It's very much the kind of reaction I would have expected from the other person, at an invitation that was offered to him.

Some of us having been taking offense, when no offense was intended. And this is causing division. It is also a violation of charity.

"...If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have absolute faith so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and exult in the surrender of my body, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained; where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed.

I Corinthians 13:2-8

Dear ones, love is not easily angered, or hurt, and it keeps no account of wrongs. That means that if someone accuses us of something we never intended or did, we must forgive them immediately--or we end up with a bitter seed. Being easily angered or hurt is a sign of weak love and comes from the flesh and pride. Pouting and not resolving a misunderstanding when it happens is a sign of weak character which the Devil will exploit to cause division.

And when I say Division, I don't mean just between two people. Because when we are hurt by someone, we look for an ally. And we tell them what happened. And then that ally looks for another ally... and everyone gets sympathy. Unless we are very mature and onto the Devil's tactics to cause division, which at that point spreads through the Body.

One problem that the enemy exploits is that he knows our buttons, and he sets us up for a failure to love and forgive. He knows that if he can distort the meaning of what was said to someone, to make it sound like a deprecating attack against them, they will lose the joy they had before the remark was made. And they will cause the other person, who was totally misunderstood, to lose their joy. And that joy is gone, until there is resolution and understanding between them.

Dear ones, aren't there enough downers in the world? Heartdwellers is a place of love and healing; we are not like the world. The more mature and elderly among us tend to brush things like that off, because they have seen how Satan works, repeatedly, for decades. But the younger ones among us, especially those who feel inferior in some way or superior in some way. Or threatened... Can easily slip into defensive posture and withdraw from someone who loves them, because the enemy twisted the meaning of words said in total innocence.

All of us who are married know very well how the enemy twists words, even replaces them in a conversation. To injure the other partner, when what was said was totally innocent and not accusatory, and not meant the way it was taken.

Jesus, please help us. Have you something to say?

"I do." He began. "I have told you, My children, over and over again--you are under attack to be divided and conquered. Major attack. Every day, I might add. And it comes innocently most of the time, because you all think the best of the other person, which is as it should be."

So, in other words, what He's saying there is we tend to be dismissive of the flaws that we perceive in other people, or perceived attack. You know, we dismiss it. 'Oh, they didn't mean it THAT way!' I mean, that's the way we should be.

Continuing on with what Jesus said, "But when you begin to judge them, that they were harsh or curt with you, you have fallen from the grace of charity. It is impossible to keep love alive in a group of people who are still easily swayed by Satan that 'so and so offended me'. Because I guarantee you--this is where it comes from. Satan lies in wait for just the right time to twist something and sow division."

And on that note, I want to mention, a lot of times it will be when someone is either sick or has exerted a tremendous amount of energy or travelled a long distance. And they're very tired. And something comes up, and the devil sees, 'Ah! Here's an opportunity to cause hurt and damage!'

Jesus continued, "This is why I told you, that if you persevere in charity, the enemy will not succeed in dividing you. Once you abandon the door of charity and take offense, he has succeeded.

"'Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. Love is not self-seeking, nor is it easily angered, nor does it keep an account of wrongs and brood... It bears all things, believes all things'--YES! It believes all GOOD THINGS about the other person, not bad things! 'It hopes all things', ESPECIALLY when a soul is traveling through difficult changes in their lives.

"'Love endures all things,' retiring quietly to its own space and working things out with Me."

And that's what St. Francis used to tell the brothers. "If someone offends you for some reason, come quietly before me and work it out with me. And come back, completely resolved without any malice towards that person."

"'Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained.' Jesus continued, "Where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed'. It does not matter how prophetic you think you are, how much you are shown in the spirit, what privileges you have from Me--if you have not love and humility, you have nothing to stand on. You will sow division and destroy the good that could have been done and nurtured in those relationships.

"Attacks come from the outside, outside of My Heart. If you are living in My Heart of love they will not touch you. But if you are living in your own world, where the flesh is alive and well, you are a very vulnerable target. This is why I have brought you into deep dwelling prayer. You dwell in My Heart substantially for hours. When you leave this space--at least in your thoughts--you are strong in love and humility. If you do not dwell there with appropriate songs, you harden and stay just like the world you live in.

"Come to Me, all of you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. I will rejuvenate you with holy, heartfelt music. I will mend your souls and infuse them with My understanding, gentleness, and love. From this place, when you go out, you do not handle things the same way you did in the world. There is a tremendous softening going on, because I want to rebuild My Church with Heartdwellers--and that means a whole new spirituality from what you have learned in the world and from your former years.

"But if you are lazy and not attentive to what I am asking of you in dwelling prayer, you will continue to carry on with a hardened heart and not adhere to the ways of love that prove you belong to Me.

"They will know you are Mine by your love for one another. Remember, My children, remember. Whatever you do to one another, you also do to Me.

"They will know you are Christians by your love for one another."