"Silent No More"

Dear Friends,

I have a most precious "real life" story to share with you. It is the story of one very brave and amazing woman. Her name is Karen Elliott and she lives in San Antonio, Texas.

What Karen is about to share on this podcast (listen to it by clicking the link) and written pages will cause you to weep as as well as rejoice at the forgiveness of the Lord and His power to wash away deep traumatizing shame and sorrow.

Share this story with young women, friends, and others with a painful past or current trauma. It is not recommended that you share this with young children due to the sensitive information regarding abortion in it as well as a few detailed graphics.

This testimony has now been aired all over Europe and Israel as well as the USA and other Nations and countries. The Lord is using this tremendous story to tell of His Mercy and Grace.

If you are touched by Karen's brave sharing, please send her an email and bless her as your sister in Christ. If you need someone to talk to about a similar series of events, Karen is on of the most discreet and kind women you could ever share your broken heart with.

In His Shadow,
Mary Lindow


“Silent No More”
Testimony of Karen Elliott
karen.steve@sbcglobal.net

Thank you so much, Ladies and Gentlemen, for the opportunity to speak to you today. I’d like to share my heart, my life with you. All I ask is that you please listen with your heart!

You know, I used to ask myself what I wanted to be when I grew up. There are so many things that interest me that I just wanted to embrace them all. Art, fashion, interior design, real estate. I was an art major in college, I had five years of private painting lessons, and painting is a chapter in my life which isn’t over just yet. I have been under contract with a modeling agency in Texas, because I believe that mature women need to be equally represented in advertising, a trend that is just now coming to the forefront.

I design interiors for people because I believe God wants us to flourish in our surroundings. Another one of the things I do is to consult with women about their wardrobes…what sort of styles they should wear for their body type, what colors look good on them, even how to organize their closets so that getting dressed can be easy.

But on a more serious note, I’d like to share some of the secrets that have been hidden away in my closet. Because you see, all of those things that I loved and embraced were on the surface. Underneath, there was a secret that I had buried -- a secret that I told no one.

I was born to loving parents who were and still are very much in love with each other. (Karen's Mother has recently passed away). I was raised in a Christian home and went to church. I accepted Jesus and was born again in my mother’s bedroom when I was only nine years old. I was already selfish and self-centered and wanted my own way. I already needed His saving grace.

I got married at 19 after two years of college, long before I knew who I was and what I needed in life, much less what I had to offer someone else. That was what we had in common, and we were soon disappointed in each other. I went to work immediately while my husband went to college and then law school.

So much of our life was focused on when we got out of school that we forgot to invest in and enjoy the present. The goal was more important than the means by which we would attain it.

Church was no part of our life and neither of us thought too much about it. I occasionally remembered that I felt God had called me to the ministry as a pastor’s wife, but it seemed that no longer had any relevance in my life. All that mattered is that we had two darling little girls. After seven years together and much of the enemy’s intervention, we divorced and I went to Atlanta to live with my parents.

At 25, divorced with children, and with no college degree, I felt ill-prepared for the workforce and I had to tell everybody within the first five minutes of meeting them that my ex-husband was an attorney. My whole life had lost its focus.

I had to support myself without my ex-husband’s education and credentials. It seemed that I had no identity of my own. You know, when a couple is divorced, the woman is suddenly no longer “the wife.” The man still has his name, he still has his career, he still has his education. If the woman did not have a career before marriage, she has to establish herself on her own. If she marries again, she has yet another name and a new identity to assume. It can be very confusing. A woman may ask, “Who am I, anyway?” She searches to establish who she is. Who she was is not who she is anymore!

Though I had been a Christian most of my life, my identity was wrapped up in being the wife of my ex-husband. So when my marriage ended, I experienced an identity crisis. God wanted my identity to be wrapped up in Him, not in another person.

After my divorce, I started dating, and for the next couple of years I had very stringent rules for myself. But the unthinkable happened! I found myself pregnant! It was not the Immaculate Conception! I was old enough to know better! How could I have been so stupid? The choices I had made had trapped me!

The devil began warring on my senses. Now I felt I had no choice! If I were to have this baby, my ex-husband could say that I was an unfit mother and might try to take my children away from me! I felt I had to act fast. I decided I had to terminate the pregnancy. I made a call to a man I knew who made the arrangements for an abortion. The details are as vivid as though they all happened last week.

I could not have been more than four or five weeks pregnant. After the procedure, I passed a tiny piece of pink flesh which was the beginning of a little baby. It was not a blood clot like we sometimes have during periods of heavy flow; it was unmistakable. I will never forget what I saw.

That image has haunted me, when I least expect it, and has never been forgotten even though I have kept my secret entirely hidden for many years. In a book by Francine Rivers called The Atonement Child, many passages pierced my heart. The words expressed so many thoughts and emotions that I have felt. I would like to share one of these passages with you.


Quote:
“She had sought a way out, any way out, and then had lied to get the money for an abortion, sacrificing her unborn child. And since then, she had lied to herself and others. Sowing seeds of destruction. Why had she done it? To hide her shame? To pretend the past couldn’t harm her? To avoid condemnation? And what had she accomplished? She was ashamed, hurting, and condemned anyway. She could have made a hundred excuses for herself – and did – but none mattered. None helped heal the secret pain within her because her own blood cried out against her. You can’t run away from God!”


I had thought that an abortion wouldn’t matter, that no one would ever know, and I would just continue life as usual. Isn’t the woman the one to make the choice about what happens to her own body? Why hadn’t I made another choice a long time ago, saving myself from this dilemma? I thought that the decision to abort was the end of it. God did forgive me when I wept and repented before Him. How could I have known that it would come back into my conscience more than 30 years later with such glaring detail?

I married the man whose baby was aborted. We were only married a month when he filed bankruptcy. Life seemed to be a financial roller coaster and we were doomed with financial woes. No matter how much money we made, we never had enough to pay everyone who wanted to be paid. We were not tithing and we were not going to church. I was taking birth control pills and got pregnant!

The next year our precious son was born and now we had what you could call a “blended” family. I tell you about the financial problems so you can see that I began to live under a curse of insufficiency. Bill collectors were always calling. There was never enough money.

Our marriage just unraveled with all sorts of sin. By this time I had become an astrological expert, and I could, with just a few details of your birth date, time and location, tell you more than you knew about yourself. I attributed it all to God who was All-powerful, All-knowing, and All-creative. He was absolutely able to put all of your characteristics and personality into your tiny body depending upon when and where you were born. I was VERY convincing and had a lot of “believer-followers.” My door was always open and the coffee pot was always on.

Then one day, in desperation, I knelt down beside my bed and I asked Jesus to help me with my life and my children. I had not been doing a very good job with any part of it. He was right there as soon as I called His Name. Soon after that we enrolled the girls in a Christian school.

I began to feel that we needed some continuity between school and home. We started going to church and one morning I just could not quit crying. The pastor invited me to come to his study the following week to talk and right there I was baptized in the Holy Spirit. When I left the church, my car just transported me to a church member’s house, where I never had been before. They welcomed me and invited me to stay for lunch with them and the youth pastor who was also visiting at the time. As we discussed the Holy Spirit, they asked me to renounce all the forms of the occult.

I had been involved in everything - astrology, fortune-telling, tarot cards, ouiji boards, tea leaves – you name it! It was then that I received my prayer language and I began to pray in tongues.

A friend of mine called the next day to tell me that she had given birth to her first child in a neighboring state. I could not tell the baby’s astrological sign and I still cannot to this day. I was totally delivered from all of the occult! I burned and destroyed all of the books and items related to astrology, worth more than $1,000! God miraculously set me free from that whole part of my life! I thought I was no longer under the curse, but problems continued to plague our marriage and I ended up divorced again.

Within a couple of years, I married again. This time I decided that I was only going to marry a Christian. I might as well have said I was going to marry the next red-haired man who crossed the street! I started going to church and praying with this man, but my spirit was warning me. I charged ahead into a relationship that was like oil and water.

We were never able to live in harmony even though we stayed married for 13 years. My children were unhappy, our finances were pitiful, I was deathly ill, and we were living in a constant state of war.

Because I was not able to keep current on the payments, I was given a notice of foreclosure on the house. I went through the house proclaiming all the scriptures in Gloria Copeland’s wonderful book entitled, GOD’S WILL FOR YOU IS PROSPERITY. I spoke to the windows, the doors, the walls, the floors! No devil was going to take them from me!

I entered a state of faith in God’s Word and one night before the house was to be sold on the courthouse steps, I received a call from a man who offered to pay the court in return for a second mortgage on the house! It was a stay of execution! The Lord had delivered me and my house!

During this marriage, the government demanded our boat and trailer to pay taxes we owed, the bank repossessed our car, we could not pay our mortgage payments, and I finally had to file bankruptcy to keep my home. Another stay of execution! I ended up paying off the court, the fees, and all my debtors because my original in-laws loaned me the money and told me THEY did not want my house!

I shall always be grateful for their kindness to me in a time of need. Over the next few years, I fully repaid them by the grace of God, who always made a way for me. During this whole period of my life, I would be under so much pressure, unable to sleep because of so much tension. I plunged from one crisis to another, and the relief that came was always temporary….another crisis always hit.

I remember getting up during the night in turmoil and to begin thanking God for my blessings. As I did this, I would eventually come to the place of true praise with my hands lifted to Him, dancing around in my kitchen! I would sing, “Count your blessings, name them one by one, count your many blessings, see what God hath done!” The Lord did enable me to overcome my circumstances.

However, there were some other circumstances that came into my life which were not financial. It was my health. I found out that I had fibroid tumors which required a complete hysterectomy, and while in the hospital, the doctors discovered a lump in my breast. This, of course, is part of the lingering curse from having had an abortion, though I did not make the connection then.

After this time, I came into a new season in my professional life. I had become a successful businesswoman in real estate in Atlanta, Georgia. One of my coworkers was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Exactly one year later she died and was buried.

My emotions were raw over the loss of my friend. I left the next day to help my youngest daughter move to Philadelphia. While there, I discovered a new lump in my breast. Alarming as that new health concern was, there were still more scary circumstances of a different nature just around the corner.

As I flew back to Atlanta a few days later, two Canadian geese were sucked into the engine at takeoff. We had to make an emergency landing back in Philadelphia with foam on the runway.

Completely shaken, I vowed that if I only had one year to live, like my friend, I would not live my life like I had been!! I set about to change it. I filed for divorce and put my house up for sale. Within a few months, my housing and marital status had changed.

Then, one day, my high school sweetheart – Steve- and I began a long-distance friendship by telephone. I called it a “phoneship!” I was in Atlanta; he was a thousand miles away in San Antonio, Texas. The Lord said to me one day as I was dressing, “I have chosen Steve to restore the years the locusts have eaten in your life and for you to do the same for him.”

A year after I had decided to change my life, Steve came to see me. We only saw each other on four different occasions. Then we got married in Georgia and I moved back to Texas. Over the last fourteen years Steve and I have been closely involved with various people, churches and ministries that have continuously taught us in the ways of the Lord and helped us understand that together we have a call to the nations! We can say now that we have a global vision. One day the Lord impressed me to have the word “restoration” inscribed in our wedding rings, which Steve did the very next day. Truly, we are experiencing restoration in its fullness. Jesus will transform your life when you let Him!

Once I was scheduled to go on an antiques- buying trip to Paris on the first of March with my employer, an interior design firm. As I was praying about it, I distinctly felt God by His Spirit say, “No.” That was on a Saturday. Two days later at a Christian conference taught by Alan Vincent, I introduced myself to the woman sitting beside me. It was Mary Lindow from Colorado. She felt impressed to invite me to join her and the U.S. ministry team at the first-ever Women’s Conference in Strasborg, France, to be held in three weeks. I told her I would pray about it and let her know. My husband was very supportive and encouraged me to go. All week I enjoyed the teaching of the Word, but I secretly was in turmoil over this decision. Satan was constantly telling me I wasn’t good enough.

Finally, on the last day of the conference, as I was sitting at the back of the room it seemed God said to me, “Karen, you are 60 years old. When are you going to start?” You see, I had told the Lord for years that I wanted to be on the cutting edge of whatever He wanted to do on the earth! Immediately, I realized that God DID have something for me to do. It didn’t matter if I felt unsure and inadequate. I had listened to too many years of Satan’s accusations against me, seeking to diminish me and tell me I could not be useful to God. He had kept me squelched under his thumb long enough!

It is true that you put Fire on God’s altar when you answer, “Yes!” I did say, “Yes, Lord, yes!” It felt glorious! I ran to tell Mary that I would go! Two weeks later I was in Germany and France in life-changing ministry as part of the team!

After I returned home, I was on my way to a prayer meeting about abortion. There were representatives there from an organization that is seeking to end abortion through America’s court system. The organization is called the Justice Foundation. As I was driving, I said out loud, “Well, God, I hope You don’t expect me to have anything to do with that!”
At that moment, the Holy Spirit filled my being and I began to realize that what God wanted was no less than what I wanted for myself. “Restoration!”

Near the end of April I wrote out my personal statement, also known as an affidavit, admitting the secret of my abortion. God led me to share the affidavit with Mary while she was visiting me later that same year in June. I also shared it with a friend of mine, Eileen Vincent, who later became very involved in Prayer for the Justice Foundation.

They were both so kind and understanding, and prayed with me to have the courage to do everything that God was calling me to do.

Well, my affidavit lay there – hidden in the file folder all summer.
What was I waiting for?

I had been asked for the very first time to give my testimony and it was for a Christian women’s meeting called AGLOW in San Antonio, Texas the following September. I knew that God wanted me to finally reveal my secret – that which had remained hidden for so, so long in the closet of my heart.

I knew I must first share my testimony with my husband and children. Their reaction was wonderful. Instead of shame and condemnation, they were so accepting of me! I was so proud of them!

I went to the Justice Foundation to have my paper notarized and turn it in. As I left their office, I felt that something really remarkable had happened. My act of obedience to reveal the secret in my closet would allow God to use me in new ways. Two thousand affidavits were turned in from all over the country and were finally sent to the Supreme Court of the US to help overturn legalized abortion in America! I was so pleased that my affidavit was among them.

I have come into full agreement with God’s TRUTH, and that truth is that “it is not in the human or legal interest of any mother to kill her own child. A mother’s true interest is in her child’s LIFE and her relationship with her child. Abortion should come to an end.”

I don’t know what the statistics are, but women who have had abortions are much more likely to develop breast cancer and they are also very often unable to have more children. The Lord allowed me to have a son in spite of my sin. The blood of
Jesus is enough, for He has forgiven me. I asked for and received that forgiveness more than 35 years ago. But God wasn’t really through.

He has been leading me to give my testimony so that all of us who have been through this awful act will have the courage to come forward and admit what we have done.

By coming out into the open, we can end hell’s grip on our lives. We can be free of the trauma, the guilt, and the shame.

Researchers describe something called, “Post Abortion Syndrome” as a woman’s inability to process the fear, anger, sadness and guilt surrounding her abortion. She may have trouble with these emotions as well as grieving the loss of her baby, and coming to peace with God, herself, and the others involved in the abortion decision. A woman can experience many lasting effects from an abortion, including, guilt, crying, flashbacks, sadness, anger, anxiety, sleeping problems, relationship problems, alcohol abuse, depression, eating disorders, drug abuse, and suicidal thoughts.

Those secrets that remain hidden continue to have power over you, and what I’m wanting to do is to help women see that if they can come to terms with abortion, that Satan’s hold and power over them would end. Like a bomb, I had to detonate abortion’s power so it wouldn’t be something that Satan could use to keep me bound.

In answer to my question, “What was I waiting for?” God has a plan for my life that is constantly unfolding. That date with AGLOW in September was another turning point in my life. It was the same month in 1969 that I had had an abortion, ending a little life so recently begun. I began my journey of sharing my testimony and doing my part to help end abortion more than thirty years later.

Is there anything hidden in your closet?
Has Satan been talking to you, like he talked to me, keeping you silent and squelched, unable to answer the Lord’s call, like he did to me? Has he rendered you ineffective in your life?

Today we can break agreement with the enemy.
We can choose to believe what God says about us. We can say, “Yes, Lord.” Why don’t you make a decision to give 100 percent to Jesus? He’ll take you to new places, doing new things, and He will restore the years the locusts have eaten in your life!

Whatever we have done in the past or whatever has been done to us or someone we love will lose its power when we put our fire on God’s altar by saying, “Yes, Lord, Yes!” Whatever the Lord God asks YOU to do, do it!

If there has been an abortion in your past,
I encourage you today to silence the enemy once and for all!!!
Won’t you decide today to be silent and shameful no more?




Duplication and re-transmission of this writing is welcomed provided that complete source and website information for Mary Lindow is included.
Thank You
Copyright © 2012 " THE MESSENGER " ~ Mary Lindow
www.marylindow.com

“WE PREPARE HIM A PLACE”

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By Mary Lindow

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Your works are wonderful, I know that full well."
Psalm 139:14

WE ARE STRANGE AND EXQUISITE CREATURES.
We can ache for God tremendously; yet find ourselves getting nervous if God gets too close! After all, the closer God gets, the more we hear the call to be “unpolluted”.

It is both exciting and frightening to hear that call!


A STORY
“Once upon a time there was a little plant that was small and whose growth was stunted, for it lived under the shade of a giant oak tree.

The little plant valued the shade that covered it and highly enjoyed and lavished the quiet rest that it’s majestic friend provided. Yet there was a greater blessing prepared for this little plant.

One day a lumberjack entered the forest with a sharp ax and cut down the giant oak! The little plant began to weep, crying out, “My shelter has been taken away”. Now every fierce wind will blow on me, and every storm will seek to uproot me!”

The guardian angel of the little plant responded, “NO! Now the sun will shine and showers will fall on you more abundantly than ever before! Now your stunted form will spring up into loveliness, and your flowers, which could never have grown to full perfection in the shade, will laugh in the sunshine. Many will say, look how that plant has grown. How gloriously beautiful it has become by removing that which was it’s shade and comfort!


THE TRAINING OF A SPIRITUAL COMRADE
We need to see that the Lord wisely trains his soldiers by calling them to difficult travels and service. He strengthens them through wildernesses and mountains. God knows that spiritually armed Soldiers can only be developed in battle and are not developed in times of calm. We can only become true seasoned soldiers of Christ when we train and serve in the preparation time of the inhospitable surroundings.


TRUST FOR A SEASON!
It's all about trusting God in the end. Oh yes it is!
We often ask in the heat of difficult battles whether they are mental battles, spiritual battles, and financial battles…
”Will He REALLY refresh us in this time of struggle?”
His Loving Word says so.

“For I satisfy the weary ones
And refresh everyone who languishes."
Jer. 31:25


THE LORD IS PRODUCING STAMINA…
…WHETHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT!
“Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial;
For once he has been approved,
He will receive the crown of life,
Which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
James 1:12

THE FATHER IS URGING US TO RUN TO HIM, TO CRY TO HIM!
He is there! Even in this fog of struggle, loss, anxiety, or seeming success! He wants us to be desperate for Him and is training us to rely on His voice. To make our decisions based on His plan for the whole earth!

TIE YOURSELF TO THE HAND OF GOD!
Get a "rope of expectation"(the word of God) and tie yourself to it.
Hold on! The boding evil is nearly over!

“The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.
So let us put aside the deeds of darkness
And put on the armor of light.”
Romans 13:12

INTIMATE PLACE OF COMMUNICATION
It would be a powerful opportunity for all of us to get on our knees in an “intimate place of communication” with the Lord, and refresh our commitment to purity, and with a willing heart to yield to the bidding of the Father.

They charge like warriors; they scale walls like soldiers.
They all march in line, not swerving from their course.
Joel 2:7


LET OUR HEARTS WILLINGLY...
…Give Him Room to Move Freely in our daily actions in this Life.

We do this by clearing away or removing anything that feeds and pampers our flesh and our own concepts of the Kingdom.

WE PREPARE HIM A PLACE
At throne in our hearts from which He can reign
and activate His anointing.

"No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—
He wants to please his commanding officer."
2 Timothy 2:4

1 John 2:27
"As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him."


***********************************************
Duplication and sharing of this writing is welcomed provided that complete source and website information for Mary Lindow is included. Thank You Copyright © 2011 " THE MESSENGER " ~
Mary Lindow
www.marylindow.com

2011 – "An Unscripted and Formative Year" - A Prophetic Perspective

By Mary Lindow and the Holy Spirit

In the moments of waiting and listening for the insights from the heart of the Lord for the up and coming year, two words have reoccurred.

The two words are- “Unscripted and Formative”

The following terms defined, set the tone for what I have been given to share with you Dear Reader, in regard to the Father’s heart towards you personally, His Bride collectively, and those in rebellious resistance to His plan.


Definition:
Unscripted - Spoken or delivered without a prepared script; impromptu.

Definition:
Formative – serving to form or shape something, especially having a profound and lasting influence on a person's development.


The passing of time is nothing new to mankind and certainly not to God. The redeeming of time however is a unique and event that can save someone from error or evil.

The Lord has a tireless passion for redeeming lost years, lost time and lost people.

“Redeem me from human oppression,
that I may obey your precepts.”
Psalm 119:134

And so the Lord has plans set into motion for this next year that only He knows about and also which only He can execute. These plans are formative, they have a purpose within them to form and develop the lives of those on planet earth. And, the Lord is not going to pass out scripts or roles to those who feel that they deserve a place on the stage where these plans will be presented. He Himself will set into motion each specific event.


LEARNING HUMILITY IN THE HIGH PLACES
When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
But with humility comes wisdom.
Proverbs 11:2

Many powerful men and women who were in elevated and highly visible positions of leadership politically, spiritually, and in the sport and entertainment fields, were uncovered as frauds and vile abusers during the past year of what appeared to be a virulent year of repeated and embarrassing exposures.

The Lord is again FIRMLY warning many out in these arenas, large and small, that there is still an opportunity for you to redeem the time. The falsifying of your claimed insights from God to manipulate financial support, fame, notoriety and honor for good deeds will no longer not only be tolerated, but will in fact be double-stamped with the seal of  “liar and thief” if the appeals for connived support are not stopped. God is not behind what you have requested in His Name.

Some of you have gorged yourselves upon the offerings of widows and those who foolishly gave on impulse due to your slick emotional pleas and contrived media images and heart tugging background musical interludes. You have robbed and stolen from others whom God has anointed and blessed in smaller settings, and their cries for help and assistance have not gone unheard from the Heart of heaven.


UNDERGIRD THE UNDERDOG
The Holy Spirit would have you soberly hear the following words.

"There will be a fresh wave of conviction to "undergird the underdogs" and a trending back towards smaller, steady, and steadfast ministries and servants who have faithfully plowed and served in seasons of loss, lack, and persecution. Rob nor more! You have more than muzzled the servant who has been plowing, and you will be judged for feigned ignorance towards their needs and suffering.

To those who feel as if they are more graced, more anointed and who think that they have a "special and more unique calling" that needs a preeminent opportunity to instruct and be seen...
... beware of the pride of life, the lust for power, and the wares of selfish ambition. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves. Philippians 2:3

You will be found upon the trash heap of loss and sorrow if you grasp and hold tightly to what was never really yours to begin with. It is mine, mine, mine! If you cannot accept the terms of what I request, you will be known as a divider, weak, and immature. 
Again, I will not bless your intentions or your ambitions. You rob the Body of authentic Kingdom service by remaining secretive and destructive to My purposes.

 James 3:14

But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.

James 3:16

For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

"You have heeded another voice, one who would put you upon the pinnacle of the world and promise you all power and wealth if you but just bow down.The Lord wants you to know, (although I tremble at even delivering this), that you have already bent one knee downward. 

Get up and RUN from deception and self-indulgence, blatant lying, and entitlement!

You can be sure that using people or religion or things just for what you can get out of them — the typical indicators of idolatry — will get you nowhere, and certainly nowhere near the kingdom of Christ.

You have been taken in and spoiled by religious smooth talk. I am furious with people who are full of religious sales talk but who really want nothing to do with Me. You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You're out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain.

So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it. If you don’t, you will be one of the next in line for public exposure. Everything you hide in darkness and in deceit will be brought out into the spotlight for all to see.

Do not waste your time on useless productions and glamor, silly busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham they are. It's a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ. 
"  

Wake up from your sleep, 
 

Climb out of your coffins; 
 

Christ will show you the light! 


Watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get.

These are desperate times! Don't live carelessly, unthinkingly.

Make sure you fully understand what the Master wants."

 
GOD MOVES AMONG THE CASTAWAYS
“Has not my hand made all these things, 
and so they came into being?” declares the LORD. 
These are the those I look on with favor: 

those who are humble and contrite in spirit, 

and who tremble at my word.”
Isaiah 66:2

You've probably never been marooned on a desert island. But you may know pretty well how it feels. In a world of bad relationships and superficial relationships and broken relationships, a lot of people know the feeling of being emotionally marooned, abandoned, and maybe even discarded. Because of some of what you've been through, you may feel like you're the castaway.

But your days on that island may be almost over. In fact, it could be that all your failed or frustrating relationships have actually been preparing you to experience the central relationships you were being readied for.
Anyone who has ever felt like an emotional castaway needs to hear the fabulous promise of Jesus Christ in this word for 2011 from the Word of God. Jesus says to all those who belong to Him, "I will not leave you as orphans. I WILL come to you.” John 14:18

This is the same Savior who says, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews. 13:5

He's the One who promised, "The one that comes to me, I will certainly not cast out."

John 6:37

And from now on, that promise of Jesus can be all about you,

"The one that comes to me I will certainly not cast out."

The Lord would say these words to you.

“You now understand the pain of betrayal, losses so great that you can no longer talk about them. You have ached in such agonizing despair, that at times you have begged me to let you die.  Friends have turned and chosen to see you through blinded eyes of their own making, and have refused to help you to find your footing again, thinking they are doing you a service by letting you grovel and weep in painful loss and sorrow. You have been reduced in the past season to identifying with those who were forced to make bricks for Pharaoh without straw. 

I too was a man of sorrows and endured the shame, in order to be formed, shaped and made ready for the moment of redemption.

And so shall it be with you. Redemption from the losses will come to those who choose obedience over pleasure, servanthood over being the served one, and letting go of the dreams of greatness you cling too, no longer using my name or gifts as a calling card.

Maturation is the call of the moment. Let the follies of your dim visions fall away.

I have a more perfect way that I am forming in you and for you.

I have caused you to cease from striving, from worrying, and from being anxious. You now rest up again my chest, waiting, trusting, wanting only ME. You have become kinder, a better listener, a more trusted confidant.

I can work well with those attributes. Just Watch Me in this Year.

I WILL Open the Way of Hope and shine Light on the pathway for those who have ceased from manipulating the moment.”


SEARED OR SOBER?

“The spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.

SUCH TEACHINGS COME THROUGH HYPOCRITICAL LIARS, WHOSE CONSCIENCES HAVE BEEN SEARED AS WITH A HOT IRON.”
~ 1 Timothy 4

To have a seared conscience means to cause something to wither. To make (someone's conscience, heart, or feelings) insensitive.

Without the willingness of heart to fall upon the rock of God’s word, allowing every strength and support of our being to be fully broken, the wicked heart of mankind will continue to allow the searing effects of indifference and insensitivity to the effects of their choices to permeate more and more of the moral and sacred places of society.

I have been impressed to warn believers that the increase of sexual lures and smutty language has begun to pay a toll much larger than they realize.  Many women who call themselves a follower of Christ have sadly joined the ranks of those who bare their deep cleavage and bellies (and more) as acceptable choices, joining in with “edgy fashions” and have been lulled into trends that sell away the sweetness and purity of a holy life. The warning voice of the Holy Spirit has been pushed away in order to better receive the leering complements from men.

Dear Sisters…
...Redeem the time.  

The Lord says, “Wash yourselves clean from the stink of sexual prowling for validation, and come back to the place of simple beauty.”

Many men who call themselves believers have been equally lulled into patterns of television viewing that sears their minds into accepting whorish strutting and teasing to appear attractive and necessary to their manhood.

1 John 2:16
For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

RUN from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.  Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Honor God with your bodies.

Ephesians 5:16
Redeem the time, the days are evil;


MATURED AND SOLEMN

Sobriety-The quality of being matured or solemn.

Huge numbers of people are being brought to ruin because they are not thinking; thoughtlessly causing hurt or inconvenience to others is the devastation of thousands, and many a precious soul has been shattered through carelessness. The Lord is asking you to "consider your ways," and return to a walk with "The Still Small Voice" and begin a familiarity with him yet again. With conviction, it would be the most profitable relationship you could fall into! While you covet to see the world, you are a stranger at home.

1 Thessalonians 5:8
But since we belong to the day, let us be sober.


PRAYER AND A THANKFUL HEART

Colossians 4:2
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

As I close this word and insights for the year, I will share the last whispers the Lord spoke clearly to me.

“Each day, upon waking, where does your heart and mind wander to? Is it the plans and lists of things you must accomplish for the day? Is it the meal you are about to eat? Is it worry and the bracing yourself for another grinding day of dealing with the pressures of life?

Return to those early awakening moments where you and I share in the dialog of my plans for you. Each day you have to live and to give, you have been given the opportunity to impact someone and to do a kindness or act of training for another. Where has your thankful heart wandered? Without it, evidence of bitterness and drudgery will manifest and sour even the brightest flower of hope.

Return to the heart of the issue and clean away the rusty decay of treadmill thinking. Each day can be a fresh adventure into Kingdom purpose or, a continual repeating of  a dreary existence. Choose ever so wisely.”

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken,

let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.”

Hebrews 12:28

Duplication and sharing of this writing is welcomed

as long as the complete message and website information

for Mary Lindow is included.

Thank You! Copyright © 2010-2011

" THE MESSENGER "
Mary Lindow
www.marylindow.com

"HIS MERCY REDEEMS"©

Dear Reader,

If you click on the picture below you will immediately be taken to
the anointed Music Video called "YOUR MERCY REDEEMS".

Sit back and allow the Presence of Christ to wash over you, show you Mercy, and give
you comfort. Lift your Heart in worship to the One who fully understands all of your
needs and who hears all of your heart cries.

In His Shadow,
Mary Lindow
www.marylindow.com
www.globalprayerrooms.com

"THE REAL TRUTH ABOUT FAITHFUL FRIENDS"

By Mary Lindow



In our world that has gone crazy with slander, betrayal and treachery, there has never been a greater time that we need true and faithful friends.



I don’t mean the “friend” that you might greet over the backyard fence or in a bookstore coffee shop. I mean someone who understands the “staying power” of mortar to brick when tsunamis of sorrow or loss or trauma hit you full on in the face.



“True Friendship isn’t about being there when it’s convenient.

It’s about being there when it’s not.”



GENUINE FRIENDSHIP INVOLVES A SHARED “EVIDENCE” OF CARING

and concern, a desire to see one another grow and develop, and a hope for each other to succeed in all facets of life.



TRUE FRIENDSHIP INVOLVES ACTION

Doing something for someone else while expecting nothing in return; sharing thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or discouraging criticism.



I personally, have been blessed beyond the wildest of my dreams with friends that have so lovingly walked with me through devastations, loss, illnesses and times of deep agony. They held my heart in their hands and lifted it up to the King of Mercy and healing, and would not let go until He himself brought refreshing and Hope.



Each of them has also passed through deep pain and times of near death, be it emotionally, physically spiritually or relationally. And out of all of this trauma a deep bond was forged by the Hand of the One who Himself calls us Friends.





“If one falls down, his friend can help him up.

But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!”

Ecclesiastes 4:10






TRUE FRIENDSHIP INVOLVES RELATIONSHIP.

Many people say, "Oh, he or she's a good friend of mine," yet they never take time to spend time with that "good friend." Friendship takes time: time to get to know each other, time to build shared memories, time to invest in each other's growth. 
My experiences have taught me that if someone loves things, positions, or titles more than relationship, than when times get tough, holding onto things and position are wedges that ruin friendships.



Trust is so very necessary to have true friendship. We all need someone with whom we can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations. We need to be able to share our deepest secrets with someone, without worrying that those secrets will end up on the World Wide Web! When we fail to be trustworthy with the private and sacred secrets of our friends it can destroy a friendship in a hurry.



FAITHFULNESS AND LOYALTY ARE ESSENTIAL TO TRUE FRIENDSHIP.

Without them, we often feel betrayed, left out, and lonely. In true friendship, there is no backbiting, no judgmental thought, no turning away. 

There are often very tender and emotionally difficult times in Godly friendships, where we will be required to lovingly address a very painful and difficult situation with someone we dearly love and respect. It will cost us the risk of even perhaps causing a temporary pain to a loved friend in order to help them see where there might be a weakness of character or some deception that would otherwise ruin them.





Real and true friendship involves freedom of choice, accountability, truth, and forgiveness. Peter and Jesus give us this example: Peter, afraid for his life after Jesus is led away from the Garden of Gethsemane, denies knowing Jesus (John 18). As He is led away by His accusers, Jesus looks at Peter and says, "I knew you would deny Me, and I forgive you" (John 21).




REAL FRIENDSHIP LOOKS AT THE HEART,

NOT JUST THE "PACKAGING."



Genuine friendship loves for love's sake, not just for what it can get in return. True friendship is both challenging and exciting. It risks, it overlooks faults, and it loves unconditionally, but it also involves being truthful, even though it may hurt. A false friend will “skate over” the issue and pretend to be passive and indifferent to any situation that might put them into a place of asserting any personal emotion or investment.



Proverbs 27:6 really states this so beautifully.



“Wounds from a friend can be trusted,

But an enemy multiplies kisses.”



TRUE FRIENDSHIP REQUIRES CERTAIN ACCOUNTABILITY FACTORS.



Real friends encourage one another and forgive one another where there has been an offense. Genuine friendship supports during times of struggle.



Real friends are dependable. In true friendship, unconditional love develops. We love our friends no matter what and we always want the best for our friends.



We pour out willingly and with joy from our own personal resources and talents and gifts so that our friends might be refreshed, blessed, and given joyful times of rich celebration of sharing the blessing of the Lord that we have been so lavished upon by Him.



I HAVE BEEN LOVED SO VERY DEEPLY BY MY DEAREST OF FRIENDS.

They whisper to me in the night seasons when I cannot seem to hope or see my way, and the tell me of the love and future that the Father has for me. They give wise counsel and pour into the wounded places of broken promises, betrayals, and anxiety, the perfume of grace. I have feasted upon their kindness until I again sing and rejoice in God my Savior. They have taught me to rest and enjoy the gift of sharing in their abundance.



The taste of food and simple cups of coffee are much more savory to me in the company of a friend who can sit and sound the depths of the love the Father has for us, regardless of who might be listening to us dialog.



“Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,

And the pleasantness of one's friend

Springs from his earnest counsel.”

Proverbs 27:9



WHEN WE INVEST INTO FRIENDSHIP,

It costs us time, personal sacrifice and energy. We give before the need becomes so great that we see our beloved friends humiliated and groping. We listen ever so intently to the voice of the Lord our God as His tells us of the prayer and help our weakened members might be facing. A friend who walks in the imitation of Christ extends the hand of mercy, grace, and help, way before the foot of their companion stumbles.



“Greater love has no one than this,

That he lay down his life for his friends.”

John 15:13



WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO LAY DOWN OUR LIVES FOR OUR FRIENDS?

I think we all know the answer and if we are willing, can hear even now the prompting of the Lord to assist one of our friends and perhaps in loving sacrifice, minimize our own importance and “perceived needs” in order that our friends would be made whole and walk again without weariness and discouragement.



"A FRIEND IS SOMEONE WHO KNOWS THE SONG IN YOUR HEART,

AND CAN SING IT BACK TO YOU…

…WHEN YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN THE WORDS."



Lip service and action in friendship are huge measuring rods to gauge the depth of care that we might have for our “so-called” friends. I have walked among the rich and among the poor and the most important determining factor of friendship in those settings is the freedom to be able to share and enjoy with them regardless of the lack or abundance of material substance. There can be bitter grasping and a sour clutching of even the smallest of morsels when someone is bound by the fear of “sharing.” Yet, even among the most beautiful and affluent of places, when friendship in Christ is the focus, earthly things pale in the light of mutual gratefulness for all the Lord has done among us as friends.



DON’T LOOK TO BE ONE WHO HAS MANY MANY “ADMIRERS”

and acquaintances. Again. True friendship in a Christ-like focus is like a family in a Royal Kingdom. It takes us into another place of intimacy and faithfulness that the World finds impossible to sustain.



“A man of many companions may come to ruin,

But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

Proverbs 18:24



A PERSONAL MOMENT OF THANKS

I wish to say to those of you (you know who you are!) who have been so very abundantly kind and true to myself and my husband and our children, your unconditional arms of compassion and strength have been like a hedge of protection and a safe place to rest under the shadow of the wings of our King. The times when I was strong and you were weakened were a joy to me as I was able to in turn, surround you in prayer, love, and grace. This mutual “Dance of abiding in unity” and fidelity of friendship has granted to us a family that lasts for Eternity.



AS WE CONTINUE TO GROW IN MATURITY AND TRUST

in the Power of God’s redemptive love, may the world come to know that there are friendships found in the “Beloved” that create a bond between heaven and earth that no distress, no tragedy and no devastation can destroy.



Let us continue to allow the Father to grow these beautiful vines and woven cords of strength as we yield to His service offered to one another, in sacrificial honor unto the ONE who paid the ultimate price for our ability to have Friendship with Him.



“But you, dear friends,

Build yourselves up in your most holy faith

And pray in the Holy Spirit.”

Jude 1:20





Duplication and sharing of this message is welcomed provided that complete message and website information for Mary Lindow is included. Thank you. Copyright © 2008

“THE MESSENGER " ~ Mary Lindow

www.marylindow.com