The Prophet's Heart

The prophet’s heart has been nurtured by a desire to know God. They’ve come to know that they are being pursued by the Almighty. The taste of what is to come drives them forward and upward towards Heaven. The glamour of the current narrative doesn’t have any resemblance of truth to the prophet. They seem to constantly probe the soul to find the places in their hearts that still having feelings for something beyond their numbness. For the prophet ethics are not up for debate they are absolutes in order for civilization to exist.

Abandonment isn’t some misfortune but a joyous privilege simply because what makes a man or woman of God, is the vision they have for God. The prophet realizes that there is an expensive toll to pay for intimacy, that toll is vulnerability. Because intimacy will require the greatest investment, which is time. It also requires partnership with the prophetic word which makes the community sustainable. Prophets desire deliverance and healing for others because it’s an ambition for excellence. This is the essence of servanthood, the nucleus for self emptying and humility. The prophetic word gives the prophet the opportunity to bring about social change. In other words, because of spiritual apathy there is a deafness in the lives of humanity and a prophet must open the ears of men and women. The prophet must move people from all walks of life to identify the needs of others before culture can receive a true revelation of what it means to have compassion. What the prophet confronts is a culture that identifies with personal wants, more than they identify with the weak.

There’s a society that lives with opposition by intimidation, and that opposition cripples their dreams, hopes and desires. In other words, if the Lord has truly raised us up, then the opposition from men and the demonic influences will not burn us out. It seems that the prophet is the kind of individual that possesses a focus that is much greater than the intimidation of demonic opposition. The need for justice has arrested the heart of the prophet. Because whatever or whoever has arrested our hearts, that is what our lives seem to be engaged in. The prophet will always challenge the worlds views and values. Those appointed to this type of ministry are people of virtue and values, convictions and commitments. They are guided by principle rather than personal ambition, and servanthood rather than being served. Their will has been confronted by a divine burden to build what the Lord yearns to be built.

For the prophet, the erosion of empathy for others is not tolerated. It must be confronted. However this will take an attitude towards others that refuses to degrade or treat people without dignity. Because the prophet has a heart that aches for God, their reward is hearing the Lord’s thoughts. Immersed in the thoughts of God, the prophet trumpets a call for humility to come and see. To know and to be known by the Almighty God.

Sincerely,

John Harke Team  

The Key of Intentionality

Isn’t it interesting that when you receive a word from the Lord it seems that everything around you conspires to pull your attention from what was said? Adversity, difficulties, crisis or even just the trudge of the grind of everyday life seem to work in concert to make us lose track of what God has spoken for this season. What this distraction produces is a lack of intentionality for pursuing the Word of the Lord spoken over our lives. This must not happen. There is too much that God wants to do through your life to allow this to rob you of the potential that God has spoken. 

That is why the key of intentionality is so important. 

Intentionality Brings: 

• A position of purpose and strength 

• Causes a re-ordering of your life to fall in line with what is truly important 

• Is a declaration that this is of the utmost value to you

• Opens your eyes to the doors that are opening to you to walk into fulfillment of what God has spoken

• Increases your sensitivity to the Holy Spirit

• Eradicates the emotional and strength robbers that are hidden in distraction 

• Releases joy in the midst of your work 

After reading just a few of the benefits, you might wonder why more people do not choose to be intentional with what God has spoken. The primary reason is that among other things, intentionality is an invitation into the new and the unknown. For most people, they would rather embrace the comfort of the mediocre that they know and can control over the reality of something new. This is a fruit of our fallen nature, and yet while it is understandable, it cannot be allowed to rule how we live our lives. Gideon is a prime example of this, he could have stayed at the threshing floor, providing for himself and his family, but God wanted to use Gideon to provide freedom for an entire nation. However in order to accomplish this, he needed to embrace the new and the uncomfortable.

Embracing Intentionality Means: 

• Saying no to certain things, people and situations that are vying to be a priority of your time and attention. 

• Being okay with the fact that people will not understand and may even reject you as a result of this. 

• Having grace and compassion for yourself because what you will walk into is so new and you will won’t have it perfect 

• Letting Go of Your Routine 

• Stepping out of your comfort zone, not just one time, or for a day or for a week, but a lifestyle of eradicating fleshly comfort 

• Choosing to sit still and take time to listen to the Voice of the Lord 

I encourage you to take a moment of intentionality right now, to silence yourself before the Lord and ask Him to bring to remembrance the Prophetic Word over your life. Allow Him to show you how to walk in it more fully, what to weed out of your life and how to re-prioritize it so that you can flow into the reality of the new that God wants to bring. 

Sincerely,

John Harke Team

The Platform of Tears

Tears are given to the church to relieve the pain. But has the body of Christ forgotten to weep? Is there a house that welcomes tears? Tears are a deep yearning for the voice of God to break in. We cry because we long for God to see, hear and act. We want the Lord to set our bones on fire. We no longer want the Lord to be a distant observer but a Father who is intimately connected with our suffering.

The groaning of our hearts feel the anguish of those who have had their identity erased. The ache for healing and restoration has become the sign that we have become fully engaged with humanity’s affliction. Apathy and indifference has been replaced with concern for our neighbor. The intense desire to bring emotional and spiritual comfort aches within our soul. We are broken with grief because we have been deeply affected by the distress of nations. The sight of abortion, the cover narrative of sexual promiscuity, the objectification of women and children caught in the trap of human trafficking, the lust for silver and gold and it’s purchasing power have lost its luster in the midst of sorrow. That burning sorrow for our neighbor frees us from the narcissistic attitude of our society. We then minimize our need to sustain our selfish causes and yearn to sustain our neighbor.

We agonize for those who were supposed to be the guardians of public trust, politicians, clergy and law in enforcement who have fallen into error and corruption. Because a community without the value of empathy, dehumanizes its neighbor and leaves a generation in captivity. What’s needed at this moment is the tone of prophetic intercession. These prayers are cries of hope, cries that plead for justice and mercy in the midst of the community’s exhaustion. Without shrinking into disrepair, these Intercessors weep for the redemption of the past, present and future. Physical necessities, personal safety, honor, and human dignity are what causes the shedding of tears for these prophets.

The only platform they have is the lament of their soul. For the cry of the intercessor is what keeps them from being numb for the carelessness of the unsympathetic. When there is an absence of emotion, society cannot reach out within the range of human emotions. Because prophetic intercession crafts the correct words to comfort nations. No one is able to overpower their hope because the awareness of God is greater than the awareness of suffering. For many, weeping for the disenfranchised turns into action. Simply because they understand that denial affects the social life of people living in a world which hides their pain.

Let us learn from the prophets of old who wept before they spoke, let us learn from leaders who wept before they acted. May our tears touch the Father’s heart so we can do what only He can do. Because weeping isn’t the end of the story it’s only the beginning. 

Sincerely,

John Harke Team

The Foundation for all Leadership

The administration of righteousness and justice is the foundation for all leadership. This is why battles are not necessarily won by just strength or mite, but they are won through the wise counsel of Godly leaders. Lovers of righteousness and justice feel a deep burden for those who have been exploited by others manipulation. That “smell of exploitation” mobilizes the righteous to both intercession and action. These leaders passionately remind those who have been assigned to them of their responsibility towards one another.

Confrontation takes on an essential role, however confrontation isn’t to prove how right we are as leaders and how wrong everyone else is. Confrontation is for the purpose of healing, transformation and the need for Godly solutions. What makes our speech beautiful is when we articulate the praises of God and prophesy the Lord’s heart in the area of crisis. Our voice becomes beautiful to the Lord when we quote what He has spoken to us. Our voice then confronts those who yearn to capitalize upon the misfortune of others conditions. We become a plumb line to the culture that is being pulled into a humanistic, philosophical mindset. For then, as leaders we diligently search for the right words to impart both understanding and revelation. With both eagerness and intentionality, we search for the right words, carefully choosing what we should say.

Every leader must weigh what he or she verbalizes, they must weave together a tapestry of truth, they must arrange their thoughts. Because timely words change the spiritual landscape of nations. The administration of righteousness and justice can’t be carried out unless the lips of leadership are filled with grace.

What does it mean to have lips that are filled with grace? I believe that it means to learn to lead people with generosity, because without generosity it’s virtually impossible to redeem them. When we look at the biblical context in Ruth we see Boaz leading with generosity. His heart is deeply moved by Ruth’s loyalty to Naomi and Ruth’s diligence in the field. Boaz then feels responsible to administer both righteousness and justice on behalf of Ruth and her mother in law. Boaz’s voice transforms the landscape of these two women in the narrative.

His overwhelming generosity breaks the vicious cycle of poverty and death, shame and humiliation.

Another example is the story of the Good Samaritan. Have we ever wondered why the Levite and the Pharisee walked away from the man who had been beaten and robbed? I believe it was because they were led by “time” and not by generosity. In other words, stopping to help disrupted their plans and therefore they missed an opportunity to love their neighbor. Which is what true justice is.

Both of these stories give us a tremendous framework for leadership and generosity as we look for opportunities to reach others. I am convinced that in the season that many of us are in, this important moment in our lives, the Holy Spirit is giving His church an awareness and a strategy to lead with generosity.

Sincerely,

John Harke Team

Don't Hit That Rock

“Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts drank.” Numbers 20 11 NASB

It finally happened. Moses, being pushed to the very edge of his patience by the infuriating behavior of those he was leading, struck the rock and caused water to flow from its hard exterior.

To the natural observer, this was a miracle; A powerful anointed man caused water to flow to meet the immediate need of the people. However the man at the center of this miracle knew that nothing could be further from the truth. When the red cleared from his vision and the blood pressure began to lower, the severity and weight of his sin became clear.

“But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them."” Numbers 20 12 NASB

Moses had allowed his emotions to push him out of alignment. Emotions aborted Mosesʼ destiny.

Some things to remember:

1. Moses is considered one of the greatest prophets of the Old Testament

2. This is the one that had delivered an entire nation from one of the greatest empires in human history.

3. He is also the one that seemed to have more patience than even the Lord Himself. See when God declares His desire to destroy the Israelites and build a nation out of Moses.

All this is to make it clear that Moses is no scrub. He is not a new Christian or an immature one. In fact, Moses literally co- wrote the book on God. However all of this did not protect or exempt him from the enemyʼs attempt to get him out of position.

The same assignment against Moses is the same that I believe we must be alert and war against in this season. Itʼs a time of promotion and new position for Godʼs people and the enemy would like nothing more than to spoil the harvest you have worked so hard to contend for.

The enemy will try to hijack your emotions to torpedo the towers of your destiny. We must not allow this to happen.

Unchecked Emotions will cause you to defile what God has marked as holy in your life.

I really want to encourage you to allow God to speak into the areas of your life where there may be sore spots or wounding so that the enemy cannot use it to manipulate you. These wounds become triggers that the enemy uses to sink your inheritance.

Sore Areas or Your Past Will Be Triggers The Enemy Will Use

The need to validate your ministry/life in the eyes of your accusers will get you to act outside of your character

If you arenʼt careful, you will spend more time trying to validate the call on your life in the eyes of others that you will totally miss the windows and doors of opportunity God is bringing to raise you above the accusation and naysayers.

We need to make sure to never use what God has given us to serve our own purposes. Moses used his authority in God to validate himself and shut the mouthes of the Israelites and their whining. This became all about Moses and his needs and nothing about God and His purpose.

Sincerely,

John Harke Team

Word of The Lord for 2019

Lessons Learned From King Ahaz 

When seeking God for this year, He brought me to Isaiah 7 and the story of King Ahaz, the king of Judah. The context of these verses is that the King of Israel and the King of Syria had formed an alliance with each other for the sole purpose of destroying Judah and its people. 

Now the house of David was told, “Aram has allied itself with Ephraim”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

Isaiah 7:2 

What We Are Told Has Major Significance on What We Believe 

  We need to take inventory of the voices that we listen to and what we allow ourselves to hear. This is hard to do especially in today’s social media driven society where tens of millions of voices and opinions are a few clicks away but nothing could be more essential in this season. What we hear and are told will shape our belief and how we approach the season we are in. Hear the wrong thing and it could have far reaching consequences. In verse 2, King Ahaz heard the news and it shaped their belief of what the future held for them, destruction. Their belief caused fear to come in. 

Who We Really Are is Discovered Under Pressure

The pressure caused King Ahaz and his people to step into fear. The news of the coming attack revealed what was in the heart of the king and the people all along. 

  This is not a season to run from the pressure. It is also not a time to wallow in it with a victim identity or a sense of hopelessness. It is not a time to run or wallow but a time to engage. There are many that seek to avoid pressure because like a tube of toothpaste, what is inside will come out and what is inside is who we truly are and who we are is sometimes not very pretty. 

  God does not reveal for the purpose of shame, He reveals for the purpose of bringing things to life. When we remove the stigma of shame around the areas of our life (the parts we try to hide) that might be like dead flesh and allow the light of God to come in (that often comes in the form of pressure) with a heart to allow Him to restore it, it will produce life and not death. 

  We must not run from the pressure because then we lose out on what God is wanting to reveal about ourselves. 

King Ahaz is Dominated by Anxiety 

  A sad but comical point in this story is in verse 3 when God tells the Prophet Isaiah where to find the king to deliver his message. It’s not in the palace, not while he is seated in his kingly court, sitting on his throne, rather he is standing by where people wash their clothes and by the aquaducts of the city. Fear had caused anxiety to grip him so badly that he clearly wasn’t even in his right mind. 

  Fear and Anxiety will cause you to do and behave in a way that are not in alignment with the position that God has given you. We cannot allow anxiety, which is worry about the future have any place in our lives. Don’t make a prophet have to come and find you in the laundry room. 

Emotional Brutality 

  Ahaz Became a Slave to the Wrong Words Which Brought Upon Him Emotional Brutality. Brutality means savage physical violence; great cruelty.  As referenced in the previous section, it is clear that Ahaz was so vexed and full of anxiety that it caused him to enter into a place of great torment. If we guard against anxiety, it prevents us from experiencing the type of emotional brutality that the enemy wishes to bring against God’s children. Anxiety is emotional torture. 

 

Practical Keys: 

• Set a daily practice to seek the voice of God 

• Take an Audit of the Primary Voices You Listen to and Allow the Holy Spirit to guide you on how to sift through what you should and should not be hearing. 

• Allow what  resonates with what the Holy Spirit is saying over you be the tuning fork. 

• Pair the guiding of the Holy Spirit with a new fervor to study what the Word of God in the Bible Says and allow that to further align you with what God is saying and to remove everything else. 

 Isaiah 7:4 ( BBE )

And say to him, Take care and be quiet; have no fear, and do not let your heart be feeble, because of these two ends of smoking fire-wood, because of the bitter wrath of Rezin and Aram, and of the son of Remaliah.

The Council of Isaiah is One of Hope. God Wants to Release a Message of Hope to Us. 

In verse 4, God raises up a prophet to go and give a prophetic word to king Ahaz. The theme of the prophetic word was Hope. God wanted to bring a message of hope to the king so that he could break his partnership with fear and anxiety. In this season, God is releasing words of hope for our situations and circumstances.

Partake of a New Nature 

The prophet Isaiah spoke to King Ahaz because the Lord wanted this king to partake of a different nature then the one he had. When God speaks, it is an invitation to step out of the prison of our present (mindset, will, emotions, position) and into an environment of faith. In an atmosphere of faith, mountains become molehills and nothing is impossible. 

Wisdom is Wise Behavior 

True wisdom is demonstrated with action. We cannot just know what is the right thing to do, we also have to be willing to take the actions necessary to live that reality. This seems like common sense but is difficult to do when the pressure of life is applied. 

Do Not Violate Your Values for Immediate Relief 

The caution here is that when the pressure comes, people will often violate their values to meet their immediate needs. These needs often present themselves as the need for emotional relief from the pressure of the situation. Our brains are wired to try and find an immediate resolve to what is causing us pain or pressure, even if the long-term affects are catastrophic. This brings us to the next point…

Short Term Fear Can Result in Long Term Irresponsibility 

Human nature is to just put band aids (short term) on things that actually require deep surgery (long term). We have to sacrifice the actions that bring a possibility of immediate relief and choose the promise of reaping long-term blessings. God will require us to have a long-term view of our present situations so we can avoid the pitfalls of setline for a bowl of soup instead of our birthright. (See Jacob and Esau) 

The Choice Between Faith or Fear 

When the prophet gives the king the message, it was an invitation to step into the realm of faith. In order to do that, he needed to divorce himself from fear. We will be presented with continual choices between what we partner with. 

Silence Under Pressure 

There is tremendous power in the words that we use and release even when we are under pressure. Blinded by the swirl adversity around us, it is often best to remain silent, allow God to strengthen us, and then take steps forward. There is a short-term relief that happens when we talk about our adversity and the struggle we are faced with. It also feels good to have others hear about it, however we have to be careful and discern whether by us doing this, it prevents us from getting through it to the other side quickly. Sometimes silence under pressure is best. 

The Prophetic that Disrupts 

God raised up a prophet to disrupt the atmosphere of fear that the king and his people were under. For those that are prophets and prophetic people, be ready because God will often embolden you with a word that is designed to disrupt (read confront) the death and fear that is in operation of those that you would minister to. Temper this with love. 

Isaiah 7:9 ( NASB )

and the head of Ephraim is Samaria and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah.

If you will not believe, you surely shall not last.”

The Slave master of Ego 

Why Didn’t Ahaz believe the word of the Prophet? Because he wasn’t aware of his inner enslavement to his ego. Ego doesn’t just mean you think you are better than everybody. Ego is about comparison. It is the pride of our intellect taking stock of who we are and how we stack up with others and our circumstances. Ahaz did this with himself and his kingdom and determined that there were no way the prophet’s words could be true. We have to shut down the voice of ego no matter how it manifests itself. We do this by rejecting comparison. 

The World Looks Much More Different When We Are Consumed by Fear 

Have you ever heard the phrase “making mountains out of molehills”?  That is exactly what fear does when it consumes us. It is like everything around us rises like mountains around us and we are in continually risk of being crushed under the vastness of our world. That is why vigilance against fear is so key. Take a look at some of the circumstances in your world and ask yourself, is how I see these circumstances a product of my vision that is clouded with fear? When we identify these areas, we need to start commanding the fear to go ask God to change our vision. 

 

Allow Your Faith to Be Built in the Scaffolding of Ambiguity 

  God intentionally allows some prophetic words to be vague. You might want to shout at this one. Why in the world would God want to be vague about His word?  The answer is so that those who hear them enter into the process of growing their faith. Anyone can take action and do when all the details and variables are laid out for them, but it takes someone of faith to be willing to take steps forward when they don’t have the full picture. Think of Abraham and the first order God gave him; to leave his homeland and his family and go to a land that He would show him. Pretty vague to say the least. God didn’t even give him a destination let alone details about how He was going to get Abraham there.

  If you are unclear about the details, take heart, you are in good company! However, this is not an excuse for inactivity, it is an invitation to take action so that in the midst of it, your faith is raised up. 

Identify and Reinforce Your Convictions 

  Without core convictions fear becomes the only alternative. When pressure is applied to your life, your convictions, the stance of your life, destiny and position I Christ will be revealed. If there is nothing there, its void will be filled with fear. 

Isaiah 7:11 ( AMP )

Ask for yourself a sign (a token or proof) of the Lord your God [one that will convince you that God has spoken and will keep His word]; ask it either in the depth below or in the height above [let it be as deep as Sheol or as high as heaven].

King Ahaz teaches us the politics can’t escape the prophetic.

  God is raising up voices in this hour that will be able to stand at the gates of the city and release prophetic words that causes a shift. These voices must have fear purged from their life in order to be able to carry the responsibility well.

 Take Your Prophetic Words Seriously… Take Action 

  I wonder if king Ahaz took the prophet Isaiah seriously? Because there is any repentance, no reform and no brokenness, rather, there was limp wristed apathy. There is a difference between hearing a prophetic word and receiving a prophetic word. To receive a word is to take it into your heart and respond with corresponding action. Prophecy is not a delivery, it is a spiritual transaction, a divine exchange. To test if you are taking your prophetic words seriously, ask yourself, “what actions have I taken to respond to the words that I’ve been given?” 

Pay Attention to What You AREN’T saying. 

  It wasn’t what King Ahaz did that brought him into captivity it’s what he didn’t say. This is a very important point because sometimes we remain silent in order to give fear a place to hide. Worse, sometimes we provide fear with ground cover by saying all the things we expect people of faith to say while all the while there is a narrative of fear running through our minds that we hope no one, including ourselves will notice. We cannot allow this to happen in this season of our lives. 

-       God is raising up leaders that will not Compromise Hearing His Voice

-       Ahaz is endangering himself and his people by not paying attention to the prophet. We must have a deep sensitivity to hear and pay attention when the Lord speaks. 

Isaiah 7:14

“Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”

Identify Repeated Behavior That Holds You Back

1. There is a grace in this season to address repeated pathological behavior that continues to keep you from moving forward. 

2. Have a Spiritual Perspective on Your Priorities

3. Ahaz ‘s indifference had blinded him from valuing what was important. God wants to show you how to place the main things that He has for you at the top of your vision and give you strategies to let go of the insignificant and the distracting. 

4. When God is With You… Choose to Live in a Way That Shows You Believe It

5. The king chooses to live as if God isn’t with him even though He is. As a result, he misses out on what God wanted to do in the moment for him and his people. We cannot allow this to happen in our lives. When God says He is with us in our situation, we need to let go of all the actions and postures associated with where we were before and take on the new behavior of a victor that has God on their side.

   Sincerely,

   John Harke Team