Elijah knew the rain was coming, so he sent his servant out who saw a cloud as small as a man's hand. The servant didn't understand, but Elijah knew immediately. He ran before the rain began to fall (1 Kings 18:41–46). Can you feel rain in the atmosphere, can you smell the scent of rain with your spirit?
It's time to run as Elijah ran, in anticipation of the rain. It's time to build an ark, as Noah anticipated the rain. It's time to prepare a feast for the younger brother, because the rain is coming, and it will bring in a harvest.
Harvest Time!
A harvest is simply a season of reaping seeds that have been sown in the soil. It is a time where we reap the fruit of seeds we have sown.
Listen carefully, there are two types of fruit that will be revealed in this season. Because this season is a season of reaping, we will begin to see this reaping both in the Believers and the unbelievers, those who have walked with the Lord and those who haven't. It's a glorious reaping.
For many of you, it is going to be the long-awaited fruitful season of your lives, as the seeds that have been faithfully sown in secret will be revealed by the abundant fruit. It is a season of celebration! But many others will come face to face with the thorns that their harvest has produced, and the thorns will be evident and shocking to those who have sown them.
I felt the Spirit saying that this is a season of "REAPentance." There is grace on the season for a harvest of souls, a "mercy move" from Heaven, because many souls are going to reap what they did not understand they had sown. And as they reap these things, it will be shown before them what their lives have been.
Face to Face with Thorns
If we see thorns pop up in our own lives, we must be quick to go before the Lord in honesty. He is preparing His people, because many of us will be helping others who will be in their own season of reaping thorns. Mercy triumphs over judgment, which is why God brings the reaping, so that we can see for ourselves the fruit and then choose life. (Photo via Pexels)
Reaping thorns is for the purpose of mercy, not judgment. It is the process of coming face to face with what has always been there. Though shocking and painful, this sorrow can lead to life: It is the kindness of God that shows a person the way to repentance and wholeness. It's impossible to change the outcomes without seeing the problem. We can choose to be bold as a lion and not run from the mess, face it head on, embrace the pain, look at the issues in ruthless honesty, and take it before our merciful Father who waits with a robe and a ring. This "REAPentance" is for the purpose of restoration, not for the purpose of punishment. The revealing of thorns can either lead to godly sorrow which leads to victorious change, or worldly sorrow which leads to depression and darkness.
No one has to run away from their thorns. We can face them head-on, because we are able to come before the throne of grace with the boldness of a lion, receiving mercy, course correction, and restoration.
This is not a time to hide for fear of being canceled; it's a time to turn in full honesty to the Father for comfort. This is the stuff that testimonies are made of. Reaping thorns is not to bring shame but to discipline sons for the purpose of fulfilling the destinies marked out for the sons and daughters of God. "The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion" (Proverbs 28:1).
This mercy harvest that brings repentance will be accompanied and followed by the sweeping, healing rain of the Spirit. I saw a vision in my sleep of rain falling on dry, shriveled things. I watched as they absorbed the rain like sponges until they were completely restored. This rain is preceded by a "mercy harvest." The Lord, in His mercy, has sent a time of fullness when what has been sown finally comes to maturity—both good and bad harvests, fields of fruit and fields of thorns. This harvest is preparation for the great spiritual awakening that is already in the air.
The Harvest of the Sons of God
In the story of the prodigal son, though the elder brother was a son, he didn't understand what it meant to be a son. He saw himself more as a frustrated beggar than the son of a wealthy, loving father. He was comfortable in his small internal world with his pessimistic mindset, but he didn't understand that everyone around him desperately needed him to own his sonship... even his father.
Surely, his father must have longed for his older boy to accompany him as he embraced his lost son. But the elder brother disappeared when his little brother (still full of faulty motives) returned home for mercy. This story, told by Jesus, is not only a story of redemption but begs the question: What if the elder brother stopped acting like a servant working for a wage and became who he actually was, a beloved son in the family of the King?
What would've happened if the father was joined by the elder brother as he went out to meet his son preemptively? Or what if the elder brother was preparing the feast for his little brother while the father waited expectantly for his son? What if—instead of the elder brother being so troubled, confused, angry, jealous, and frustrated at his father's seemingly unjust celebration of his wayward brother—the elder brother understood who he was, that he had access to every resource he needed to prepare a feast for himself, his friends, and his brother?
What if the returning lost ones were to not only see their Father running toward them, but also the elder sons and daughters next to Him, carrying a robe and a ring?
Many lost ones are beginning to make their entrance into the Father's house. The "mercy harvest" of REAPentance prepares both the elder brothers and the lost ones for the coming awakening. For this harvest will reveal the sons of God, restoring both the younger and older brother. "For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed" (Romans 8:19). (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)
Prepare an Ark: The Rain Is Coming
God is preemptive and He's never late; we can partner with Him by preparing ourselves. The older brother was not prepared. He was completely out of the loop, and he also did not understand the reserves at his disposal. It's time for us to enjoy our own feast first and gain greater understanding of what it means to be in Christ, experiencing our own personal freedom and learning how to set others free.
Those who come face to face with their harvest of thorns are vulnerable to worldly sorrow. This kind of pain leads to death and all kinds of darkness. But the Lord kindly gives the gift of repentance which leads to godly sorrow—a kind of pain that leads to life and hope. Being aware of this is very important, as we have the privilege of gently helping others through this difficult process.
How to Personally Prepare
1. As we pray for the lost in our families and for our friends, our hearts will change toward them. Pray that they would not fall into worldly sorrow but be drawn into heart-changing repentance. Believe that God is answering your prayers!
2. We must forgive the lost ones now, while they're still in the pig pen. Remember, forgiveness doesn't equal trust; it is the act of releasing another from our own need for vengeance. We must be careful to guard against proud judgments concerning the lost or broken Believers, for we were once there.
3. Educate and prepare yourself regarding your own healing and wholeness so that you are ready to help the younger sons come into their own personal freedom. God has raised many inner healing and deliverance ministries to create powerful resources to help us prepare for a feast of freedom.
4. You may feel led to develop some kind of new Believer group or class in your home, neighborhood, or church. There are incredible book studies and other resources out there that can guide you through this.
"But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:4–10)
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Mandy Adendorff
Email:Â click here
Website:Â www.mandyadendorff.com
Mandy Adendorff has passionately released the Kingdom at home and abroad for over 30 years. She has planted an equipping supernatural school in Connecticut, teaches and ministers prophetically, and authors numerous books. Mandy is an artist at her core, creating art that impacts the human spirit. When she was fifteen years old she encountered Jesus, but because she is Jewish, she hid her faith until the fire inside couldn't be contained anymore and she has been ministering ever since. Mandy, her husband Stuart and their two daughters immigrated to the US from South Africa and are based in New England, USA.
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