I used to be a pastor of a church which had many people who had migrated to
America from Africa. In that church, I
heard visions and prophetic words on a regular basis about snakes and the
ultimate thing that you didn't want was for a snake to bite you. This was probably the case because many in
the congregation had at one time in their lives lived with the very real
possibility of being bitten by actual snakes.
One example was of a member who received a word from a visiting pastor from
Ghana which said, if you go out from under the umbrella of the covering of this
church, the snake will bite you. That
guy proceeded to leave the church and what happened in his life certainly could
be associated to the analogy of being bitten by a snake. But he did recover. I think that having received that word in
advance, even though he went against it, helped him to ultimately recover. God never does anything without first
alerting some of His prophets. (Amos 3:7) So awesome!
The reason for this article is that I want to share with you some recent
insights I have experienced in my own life as I have literally been bombarded
(in a good way) with prophetic messages from many different sources about
snakes attacking me and my household.
The first one came a few weeks ago that there is a green snake with a red
ruby on its forehead and it is very angry at me. It is gossiping and lying about me. The reason is because in the past, when it
has tried to get me, I overcame the attack, killed it, and lifted up its skin
to expose it to the world for what it really is. Of course not everyone chooses to see the
truth, but at least the lies of the enemy are exposed for those who love the
truth and are not blinded by their own ideas.
So the green to me meant, "green with envy", anger, etc. The red ruby on the forehead meant something
precious that is designed to entice me to reach for it. If I would come out from the covering of God
to reach for whatever that represents, I would be bitten.
A week and a half later, I was in a car accident in which the driver unwisely
went through a light. It was not
technically his fault, but if I had been driving, I wouldn't have gone. It was as if he was reaching for the red ruby
on the green snake. The red light. The result was that we were hit by a van and
a car. The most serious impact was at
the back door where I was sitting. And
so the word of warning was accurate.
Because the driver reached for something that he shouldn't have reached
for, going through a light turning red, the enemy was able to try and kill
me. And he might have if God had not
miraculously protected me.
I learned from this that the attacks do not even necessarily have to come
from me stepping out from God's protective covering. It could even be through someone that I am
with.
But more prophecies about snakes kept coming. Another one was that there was a black snake
trying to gain access to my house. It
had tried the doors, the windows and any crack it could find but it couldn't go
in. So it went underneath the house and
found a hole. But just as it was about
to go into the hole, a double edged sword was placed in the hole and the snake
was not able to enter. The sword
represents the word of God and the Holy Spirit that should be on guard in my
life 24 hours a day seven days a week.
If the sword is removed even for a second, that snake who is on stake
out at that hole will slither in and do its destructive work.
Later on, I received another word that there is a hole in my life that the
enemy would like to gain access through and it is a family member. And so as the head of the household, it is my
responsibility to continue to make sure that the word and the Spirit are being
applied 24/7 in my family members life in order to protect not only him, but
also myself and the other members of the household.
Then another prophecy came just a few days ago while I am in a different
country for ministry. (even at the time of this writing) Another black snake is in the shadows trying
to hide. I saw it and I was able to grab
it and remove it, but what I didn't see is that it had already laid eggs. Many eggs.
The purpose for the prophecy was to show me that snake eggs had been
planted against me. I discerned that
they were seeds of discontent and little gossipy lies being planted by those
who are jealous or who I may have rubbed the wrong way. Some were there planted by others as a hedge
or as a retaliation for things that had been exposed in their lives or
ministries through prophetic means.
I was with a group of people including some from a team from the
Philippines who were with me. I said
that I believe that this prophecy was referring to the Philippines where there
are some who are against me that the devil is able to use because of openings
in their lives. Then one person said,
"yes, but it's not just in the Philippines, it is here in this country as
well."
I didn't pick up on that in my spirit because ministry in this country has
been really wonderful and I was not aware of any attack like this. But then I got socked a few days later when
it was revealed that I had stirred up a hornets nest... or rather, a snakes nest. But thank God for His warning so that my
heart would be prepared for the attack.
How many of you know that when you go where God wants you to go and say
what God tells you to say and do what God tells you to do, you're gonna get into
some trouble?!? Can I get a
witness?? Amen! :-) He
always is faithful to protect, lead, guide and He works in all of these
things. He is IN CONTROL!
The enemy is on a stake out just waiting for that moment when we might
reach for something that we shouldn't or for us to get lazy for a moment and
remove the protective sword of the word and the Spirit. These are perilous times and the enemy isn't
playing games. he intends to steal, to
kill and to destroy. We must stay in
grace, blessing, covering and we must stay in the word and walk in step with
the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 26:41a (NIV) “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”
