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Why does God speak to us while we are sleeping?  Is this a question you have ever asked?  It is also a question some would never consider.  They would not consider it because they do not believe it is a reality.  Others do not believe God is exist, so why entertain it.  In addition, there are many who do believe in God, but they deny He would do such things. Many people have concluded these types of experiences were just for the early believers. Lastly, there are many who live in this reality.  

We will find testimony of these experiences in the Scripture.  Not just once, but time and time again.  The first account in the Bible is when God gave Abimelech a dream.  In Genesis 20:3 we find God visiting Abimelech to warn Him about taking Abraham’s wife.  Likewise, many people today can give testimony of God speaking in dreams.  God interacts with people while they sleep.  The first answer to this question is simple.  Why does God use dreams or other experiences to communicate while we sleep? He does this because it is His right do it. 

We are created for His good pleasure.  It is His right to will His ways, His purposes, and the means through how He does it.  We must tread lightly when we speak on matters concerning what we think God will or will not do.  I say this because many people argue about how God interacts with mankind.  Learning about God’s ways is essential to accepting who He is. It essential to the Kingdom of God and the building of His Church.  If we want to know what He says about Himself, we must accept the document that testifies about Himself. 

The Bible is the Word of God to those who know God.  To many (not a perspective that I share) it is just a book of stories or opinions to ‘guide’ us.  The reality is nobody believes the Bible until they encounter God.  It is a witness about Him, it is not a letter that replaces Him.  The Bible is only for the time we live on the earth.  When we die, we will not need the Bible because we will stand face to face with its author.  Those who accept God’s Truth will accept “all scripture is God breathed” according to 2 Timothy 3:16.   If you do not believe the Bible in its entirety, I propose this.  If you confess to believe Jesus raised Himself from the dead, then you must believe all scripture is God breathed.  You cannot deny one without denying both.  The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is the same Spirit who penned the Scriptures with the Apostles hands.  Accepting the Bible as the infallible work of God is a requirement to believe in Jesus’s claim of God. 

There is a tragedy within the Church concerning the Bible.  There are some who stand behind a pulpit and undermine its validity.  Many would rather argue about being right about God than being rightly related to God.  What does that mean?  It means the arrogance of man tries to convey self-imposed wisdom that elevates itself above what God says.  It means people say things about Him that are not true.  Wait a minute, that sounds a lot like how the devil acts?  When we are rightly related to God, we trust Him, even if we do not understand Him.  We trust Him because we have come to know He will not mislead us.  We do not rely on our own understanding.  We rely on His Word.  If we do not believe Him, it is simply saying we cannot trust Him. If we reject His Word, then we argue a position that our words are superior to His. 

There are ministers that still mispresent God’s nature and how He speaks to people in the present.  They challenge the testimony of the supernatural is a thing of the past.  I am sorry, but the Gospel of the Bible, is the message that testifies of a living God.  One that redeems man into relationship with a supreme being that holds the universe together by His word.  A being that says nothing is impossible for Him.  Find me one person in the earth who can declare this about themselves? This relationship with God restores intimacy with experience to His Spirit.   Explain to me why any minister or believer would accept any notion otherwise?  Why would anyone even want to eliminate those concepts in the first place?  I will tell you why.  It is because the pride of man would rather appear to be right about God instead being humble.  It is the drink of poison sweetened by a lie.  If you will, a drink from the devil himself.

God likes inviting us into time with Him through dreams and other experiences.  The second answer to the question is this.  God promised He would speak in this manner in Joel 2:28 and re-emphasizes it in Acts 2:17. We need to recognize the same Spirit of God speaking through Joel was also speaking in the Apostle Peter.  Likewise, I am writing about experiences in which I am testifying that God is communicating with me.  I am just one of the Body of Christ who accepts and encounters God in this way.  Remember I mentioned that book; “What was it again? Oh, that’s right the Bible.”  The Bible has been giving testimony about this for thousands of years, there is nothing new here.  Encountering God establishes our ability to know Him, not just knowing about Him.  This leads me into the title of this chapter. 

It was early morning.  I was still sleeping.  I heard His voice, like someone talking in my ear, “Would you drink poison?”  After this question I opened my eyes to wake up.  I repeated the question to myself, “Would I drink poison?”  My first thought was, “uh no.”

  It has been said there is no such thing as a stupid question.  Well, I let you be the judge of that statement, but a good question will provoke constructive thinking.  There is no one better to ask you a question other than God.  When God ask questions, we should conclude instantly it is for our good, not His. Hopefully when God asks us a question it does not start off like it did in Job 40:7-8.  “Gird up your loins like a man; I will demand of you and you will answer Me.  Will you also annul set aside and render void My judgement? Will you condemn your God, that you may appear righteous and justified?”  We must remember Adam and Eve’s question in the beginning too.  God was not asking where they were because He could not find them.     

I began to ask the question over and over in my head. “Would I drink poison?”, stirring up my thoughts seeking a response from the Holy Spirit.  This is what we call praying. (LOL) The next thought to ring through my head was the word ‘cupbearer.’  I do not have any connections with any cupbearers.  So, I would have to go to the next best place.  I went to the book of Nehemiah.

Nehemiah was a cupbearer for King Artaxerxes.  There is not in-depth day to day detail on Nehemiah’s routine, so I did a little studying. The obvious role of the cupbearer was to ensure the safety of a king.  He had to be capable of sifting out poison that could be covered by the sweetness of wine.  He had to drink the wine Himself at the risk of knowing it could be his last drink.  Historical records give account these jobs were highly esteemed.  It was a noble task to be a cupbearer.  You had to be extremely trustworthy. You could die for drinking poison, but you could die for being a traitor. 

A king would have dinners and gatherings to discuss his affairs.  During these the meetings the cupbearer had to be present.  The king would discuss matters that would be confidential.  He would do so in front of his cupbearer.  Do you think a king would discuss his private matters in front of someone he could not trust?  A cupbearer had to have a deep well of integrity and character.  I assure you a cupbearer unable to keep the Kings plans hidden would be pouring his own drink of death.  The cupbearer’s job was to make sure the king or his guest would not be poisoned.  He had to ensure the kings secrets were sealed with his lips. 

No one in their right mind would drink poison.  No one in the right mind would want to be poisoned.  So why would anyone in their right mind want to believe a lie?  A lie is poison.  It just comes in the form of words, not liquid.  The Holy Spirit, or the Spirit of Truth, is the cupbearer in the Kingdom of God.  It is His job to protect us from drinking poison that is sweetened by lies.  His job is to separate the Truth from a lie. He is the living witness testifying on God’s affairs.

Jesus describes the Holy Spirit in John 16:7-15.  In verse 13 we read, “But when He, the Spirit of Truth (the Truth-giving Spirit) comes, He will guide you into all truth (the whole, full Truth)  For He will not speak His own message on His own authority; but He will tell whatever he hears from the Father, He will give the message that has been given to Him, and He will announce and declare to you the things that are to come that will happen in the future.”  The Holy Spirit has many names. He is the Helper, the Counselor, Advocate, the Intercessor, and the Witness.  His message will always testify of Truth and destroy the works of deception.   

In the fourth chapter of John, we find Jesus chatting with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well.  We find an extraordinary work of the Spirit of Truth in this matter.  When you take a closer look into the cultural dynamics, Jesus presses the envelope against social boundaries.  He was not concerned about racial and segregated approvals.  He strikes up a conversation with her and asked for a drink of water.  The first words out her mouth where, “How is that you, being a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan, and a woman, for a drink?  For the Jews have nothing to do with the Samaritans.” 

We see clearly that racism and segregation at its finest work in the mist of this cultural atmosphere.  Jesus, however, was not enslaved to the stronghold of lies that would degrade a woman or reject people because cultural division.  How could He reject her?  He was present when He formed her in the womb according to Jeremiah 1:5. I say this to make a point.  The Spirit of Truth could not do what He was about to do if Jesus tried to be politically correct or submit to carnal thinking.  The Lord talking to a Samaritan, and a woman, was unacceptable in that moment.  The work of the Spirit could not help this woman unless Jesus was above ‘man made’ social boundaries.  God has the solution to our social dilemmas.  He has had them from day one when He created us.  The only thing in the way is us and man’s arrogance.  If we would humble our self and lean on His understanding, we would see the issues resolved through the power of His Spirit. 

Jesus tells the woman this.  If you knew who I am you would ask me for a drink, and I would give you living water.  Her comment was, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; how then can you provide living water?”  From her perspective all she could see was a man with no bucket talking nonsense about water that lives.  Who had ever heard of a term like “living water?”  From the Lord’s perspective He was gazing into her soul. He was preparing to reveal the secrets of her heart. He was looking at someone with spiritual dehydration because all her relationships were leaving her thirsty. 

Jesus looks at her and says this, “Go and call your husband.”  Her response to Jesus was, “I have no husband.”  Jesus responds with the secrets of her heart revealed to Him by the Spirit of Truth and says, “This is true, you have had five husbands and the man you’re with now is not your husband.”  After this she comes to acknowledge Jesus as a prophet.  She then exclaims that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Christ, and when he comes, he will tell us everything we need to know and make it clear to us.  Jesus tells her point blank, “I who know speak to you am He.”

The woman takes off into town and starts telling all about this encounter with the Christ.  She was so overwhelmed by a life changing experience, she forgot to take the jar of water she came to the well to fill.  However, she left with living water that a jar could not carry.  The only place this living water can be stored is in the well of her heart.

The woman at the well is a type of shadowing that represents humanity.  We are made in the image of God.  Our physical design craves water and food to sustain health and life.  On the other hand, our spirit is created to be fed too.   When Jesus looked in the soul of this woman, He looked beyond her physical condition and saw what His Father was seeing.  He saw the well of her heart was empty and Her Spirit was dry.  As Jesus was speaking to this woman, His words were supernaturally breathing God’s Spirit into her heart and bringing her to life.  He was resurrecting her from spiritual death.  He was replacing the poison of lies she had been drinking with living water that never dries up.

The well of all hearts can only be filled with the living water that comes from God’s Words.  “Man does not live on bread alone, but from every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Until our Spirit is filled with God’s Spirit our souls will constantly stay thirsty.

The runner is speechless.  With barely any breath he soaks in a blanket of heat.  Drops of sweat slowly bead down the forehead and drip off his hair.  Small puddles begin to grow under his head on the asphalt. His heart pounds through his back as he is lying down. His eyes follow drifting clouds above. His mind continues to race while his legs have stopped.  The race was still going, but this runner’s race was over.  The background noises fade from the cheering spectators.  The only thoughts loud enough to hear are his own.  The thoughts of accomplishing a race he had tried many times to finish. 

It did not matter how the runner started.  What mattered was how he finished.   Are we not like a runner?  Life requires us to have a place to start.  It does not matter how we start.  It does matter how we finish.  It does not matter what “it” is.  We all want to start something.  Pick a subject and fill in the blank.  It could be an iron man race for one person.  It might be refacing the house so it can keep up with the trends.  It will be different for all of us.  Many of us start a goal with good intentions and zealous ambition.  In these moments of ambition, it feels like nothing can stop us.  We leave the starting line filled with strength.  We see the finish line as if it is right under our nose.  Somewhere along the way, those good intentions accompanied with zeal start fading.  Our steadfast pace turns into a slow crawl.  Then we come to a point where we are not even moving at all.  We begin to question what went wrong because we started so strong.    

  Jesus is no stranger to asking questions either.  With a large crowd following Him, He started with this, “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower.  Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?  For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’”  This is a passage from Luke 14.   The runner I mentioned earlier did not run out of money, but he did run out of endurance.  Could he be feeling a bit like the person Jesus was describing and wrestling with a bit of embarrassment?  How many times have we found ourselves with no more endurance to continue too?  Jesus lead the crowd to a provoking invitation.  It was simple, but not easily accepted.  He left this on the table for them to chew on, “So then, any of you who does not forsake all that he has cannot be my disciple.”

Jesus was not trying to stop the crowd from following Him, or was He?  Jesus knows people.  I bet there were many in the crowd that day “jumping on the bandwagon.”  I think Jesus’s real goal was to expose motives. He wanted to challenge them on why they were listening to His words. He wanted them to think about why they were following Him.  God is not fooled by our actions.  He knows why we do the things we do, even if we do not.  All our motives are laid bare before His eyes.  I think He knew some were following the crowd and not necessarily following Him.  His goal was to redirect those who were following blindly.  

At the end of Luke 14 Jesus remarks, “He who has ears to hear, let him listen and consider and comprehend by hearing!”  Jesus had no intention of turning anyone away.  His intention was to start them on a journey they would finish.  He wanted those listening to realize the cost.  He wanted them to understand what it meant to be a disciple. He knew everyone in the crowd was not willing to make such a commitment.  He did not want larger crowds for social popularity. He knew all that were present were not really listening to Him.   Why would He say, “he who has ears to ear, let him listen,” if people were not actually listening? 

God knows humanity.  He knows some are great with commitment.  He knows some are not.  He knows getting started on anything can be tough.  How much more does He know the difficulty in finishing?   

Many of us start off strong with God.  He fills our hearts with understanding.  He makes us a new creation through the power of His Spirit. We leave the starting line with vision.  Somewhere on the narrow path we stop. We stop because we get tired from frustration.  We lose endurance through doubt.  We stop moving because of discouragement.  I am no stranger to throwing in the towel myself.  I have quit on the Lord many times out of frustration.  I have grown past that now because God’s promises exceed my faithless attitude.    

God makes a declaration over anyone who accepts Him.   He makes a promise to us that He would never leave us or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6)   God wants us to come into alignment with His thoughts.  Once we make the commitment to believe Him, he ties himself to us. The three-legged race articulates this well.  

The three-legged race is a race where your leg is tied to another person’s leg.  The only way you can run is when your leg and the other person’s leg operate in unison.  The principle is to work together to reach the finish line.  The two legs joined must work at the same time.  If this does not happen, there will be resistance between the two running.  In the same way, we must learn to sync our actions with His. Then we will be working with Him and not against Him.  God ties His Spirit to us, and this is how we maintain endurance. 

God has invited us to a three-legged race.  He will tie His leg to our leg.  He will set a pace of steadfastness so we will endure.  He will teach us how to move with Him.  He will guide our steps into a path with the least resistance.  When we trip as we learn, He will reach down and pull us up.  His arm will wrap around us again and again as we secure our footing.  He will pull us closer than a brother.  He will be the voice of hope in the noise.  His voice will stand out from the crowd to strengthen along the way.

From earlier, we remember the runner’s race was over.  He is still lying on his back.  As his eyes gaze upon the clouds, a shadow appeared.  A hand stretched out toward him.  He reached up and gripped firmly.  The runner stood to his feet in tears.  High fives lined up one after another.  The pats on the back reassured his race was over.  He looked back and stared at the finish line he just crossed.  He tried many times to finish this race without success.  Even though he came in last, that was irrelevant.  He remembered the words of his trainer from months ago.  His trainer promised to be with him till the end.   It was his trainers hand stretched out in the shadow that helped him up.  The runner stood proud from his finished work of success.  

In a similar way, we must remember our race with God is not about being first.  He who is first will be last and he who is last will be first.  It does not matter how we begin with God.  What matters is how we finish with Him.  God is not looking for performance that produces perfection.  Jesus’s finish work on the cross brought perfection for us.  God is looking upon our faith.  When our faith begins to tire like a runner, we must find His pace for endurance.  We will endure because we are not running alone.  In the end, we will see God’s hands stretched out waiting for us.

– Jonathan Blanchard

 It is amazing to think that all things in the earth still start as a seed. Everything you and I partake of on a daily routine is evident of this design. The tree that stands tall was once hidden in the soil below. That hidden seed sprouted into the warmth of the sun from the work of germination. The seed matured into a tree that provides oxygen for our lungs to inhale. This routine has been on repeat for thousands of years. The Almighty has magnificently orchestrated His work of life to sustain us day in and day out. The cycle of re-seeding continues for our sake to produce oxygen, vegetables, cotton, fruit, and every other consumable crop year after year. However, within the simple understanding of a seed’s purpose there is a great parallel that unlocks a bigger picture: a plan to preserve the knowledge of God in the earth. 

Why don’t we start with an orange for example? People enjoy oranges because the taste of citrus is sweet in our mouth. They are healthy with vitamin C that contributes to our immune system. A fresh-squeezed glass of orange juice goes well with the morning pallet. This fruit creates opportunity for business and economic success. The orange is no stranger to supply and demand. As a result of this demand the farmers keep replanting orange seeds so the marketplace can keep selling them. What if one day a farmer plucked an orange off his tree to learn his orange was seedless? What if oranges stopped producing seeds? What would eventually happen to the survival of the orange? The answer is self-evident. The orange would not exist past the last crop planted. The orange would be no more. Now let us be realistic here. You and I both know if you plant an orange seed the orange tree will produce oranges with seeds. We have no power to change the structure of God’s laws of nature. Nor would anyone want to stop the reproduction of oranges. These thoughts are self-evident concerning nature and creation. All seed-bearing plants will continue to reproduce more seed bearing plants. Oranges will produce more oranges and apples will keep making more apples, but if no one replants these seeds then they will die off. Likewise, there are spiritual seeds that must be replanted just like natural seeds are being replanted. 

What is a spiritual seed? Where is it planted and how does it grow? The answers to these questions will help parallel a bigger picture. Before I go into these questions let’s steer into the bigger picture. The bigger picture is the clash of two kingdoms still warring against each other in a conflict that is invisible to the natural eye. It is the war between light and dark, the struggle between the Truth versus a lie, the stand-off between righteousness and unrighteousness. The confrontation 

between light and dark has been hard at work before you and I were breathing. These forces warring against each other are seasoned in their craft of warfare. On the side of darkness, their agenda is to steal, kill and destroy. This is accomplished through seeds of deception, delusions, and unbelief towards anything about God. In the kingdom of Light the stance is to preserve, defend, and give life according to God’s declarations. This war continues between the two kingdoms in each generation. As stated, this is not a new war, it’s the same war ongoing in every time period. With each new year the real difference is a new generation of offspring. Just think about this point of view. Every person you have ever read about in history has looked upon the same moon you and I look at every night, as well as the same ocean, sun, and stars. The time we live in now has never been. There is only one year called 2020 and there will be only one year called 2021. Once that year has passed you cannot relive it. The only difference occurring in each generation is a new seed of offspring, a new group of people walking the earth that have never done so before. Within each generation there is a war between those who will believe a lie and those who will embrace the Truth. There is a replanting going on both sides of the fence. One side is planting truth in alignment with God’s words and the other side cultivating the seeds of the great liar, the devil. There is need to replant and to preserve the seed of God. It is important for this to happen so ALL may come into the knowledge of God and come to know Him. 

The spiritual seed I mentioned is just like a natural seed. This seed must have a place to be planted. A natural seed must have soil; so does a spiritual seed. The soil for the spiritual seed is the heart. How does a spiritual seed live in a person’s heart? The spiritual seed takes root in our heart by what we believe. Spiritual seeds are words. God’s words are His seeds and the devil’s words are his seeds. Those words will become part of my person when I accept them, and I will act and think in accordance with those words living in my heart. These seeds will take root and grow into fruit in my life and will be displayed through my behavior. The difference between the two seeds is that one seed will bear fruit with God and the other seed will bear fruit without God. This is explained in Hebrews 10:16 when the author was quoting Jeremiah 31:33, “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts and will write them on their minds.” If God can put laws in our heart and write them on our mind so can the devil. The devil’s work is to steal God’s seed and stop its reproduction from bearing fruit. The devil’s tricks are old and with each new generation he gets to break out his tricks again and start all over. God’s spiritual seed is His word. God’s word is what holds all things together. His written word through Scripture is the best instruction manual for mankind written to this day. The Bible is an irreplaceable gift for our life. However, there is a great delusion among God’s people that still think God only 

speaks through the Bible. This is a lie and great trap to keep people from knowing God on a much deeper level. The idea that God does not speak in the present tense like we talk to each other on a daily basis is a form of heresy. It is putting words in God’s mouth and basically lying about His nature. Why would anyone follow God unless you could communicate with Him and not just about Him through a letter? 

To wrap this up, we all are farmers. We may not be planting oranges, but we are planting seeds in our life and the lives of others by the words we speak. We are either planting seeds in accordance with God’s words that will bear the fruit of His Spirit. Or we are planting seeds that are bearing fruit contrary to His nature. God knows that if we do not replant His Word in our children (and those around us) it will be choked out by lies. In Deuteronomy 11:18-19 God instructs, “Therefore you shall lay up these My words in your minds and hearts and in your entire being, and bind them for a sign upon your hands and as forehead bands between your eyes, And you shall teach them to your children speaking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you rise up”. There is a field of hearts, a field larger than any other time before. There are billions of hearts living in the earth and each one is created to carry the knowledge of God. There is only one way to re-seed a generation. Those who carry the seed of God, His words, must replant His seed in those fields of hearts. 

The word “tungsten” may be familiar to many people; especially those with a science background.  If you are like me, when I first heard the word, I had no clue what it was.  I thought to myself, what an odd name and how do you spell it?  I did the next best thing to calling a science major and hit up Wikipedia.   After the search engine pulled up the results, I dove in.   Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on earth almost exclusively combined with other elements in chemical compounds rather than alone.  

As I continued reading, I learned this metal is also known by another odd word.  This word is identified as wolfram.  That is right, wolf next to the word ram.  Wolfram.  I furthered my study in absorbing insight on this rare metal and was quite impressed on its unique properties used to strengthen other metals.  Thanks to Wikipedia I had caught up on those days in high school when I slept in class twenty-five years ago.   By the looks of our direction you would think this is about geology, but it is not.  God has an amazing way of unlocking spiritual revelation through what is surrounding us in creation.  This word has many parallels.  It will take me several parts to unfold the fullness of its purposes.  In this write up we will focus on how tungsten unravels the effects of our tongue.  Let us continue from where this all started. 

It was March 6, 2019, when I heard the word “tungsten,” whispered into my ear.   I came to quickly and sat up on my bed.  As I was waking up, I repeated the word to myself a couple of times, puzzled.  I had never heard this word before, and l as mentioned it just sounded odd.  I was not sure who the messenger was that whispered it, but it was clear enough to wake me up and get my attention.  I figured it was an angel, but it could have just been the Lord Himself.  I got up and started to pray into the situation.   As I was praying into this, I heard the word pronounced as two words, “tongue” and “sting.”  This play on words gave me clear direction on where this was heading:  the sting of the tongue.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”  This nursery rhyme is more like an endorsement for bullying.  Anyone can attest the muscles in our mouth can wield a damaging sting.  When our tongue joins with hatred and anger it will spark damaging effects.  The Apostle James writes, “And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is a world of wickedness set among our members, contaminating and depraving the whole body and setting on fire the wheel of birth (the cycle of man’s nature), being itself ignited by hell.  For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea animal, can be tamed and has been tamed by human genius (nature), But the tongue can be tamed by no man.  It is restless (undisciplined, irreconcilable) evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who were made in God’s likeness.” James 3:3-9.

The pun that unfolded this interpretation is centered on the effect of our tongue.  We ALL stand guilty of hatred and anger in our heart at some point.  In those heated moments we have cursed, slandered, criticized, and proudly elevated our self-righteous positions.  The effect was a tongue-sting towards another person.  There is not one person who can claim innocence of these shortcomings at one time or another.  Our guilt before God with careless words is clear. 

However, God is not shocked at the actions of man.  He is full of mercy, slow to anger, and extremely patient.  Why is God patient with the immaturity of man?  He is patient because He sees our full potential.  The potential to walk in an upright position with Him and demonstrate His nature to the world.  If we want to obtain the higher calling in God, we must embrace His discipline.  His discipline for our immaturities will put an end to the negative effects of our tongue.

  In our society we have a court system that states, “innocent until proven guilty.”  It takes evidence and a jury to prove an individual’s guilt.  Why, because it is the duty of the people to bring a just judgement about someone they do not know.  No juror wants to go to bed wondering if they sent an innocent person to prison.  However, the Kingdom of God has a court of a higher position. 

God’s justice is far superior than our court system.  His rulings are superior because He is all knowing.  He is the just judge.  God does not use the phrase ‘innocent until proven guilty.’  God does not need a trial with jurors to find evidence.  God is the witness and will testify to all our actions.  If we drive the stinger from our lips into the back of another brother or sister God is listening to this slander and gossip.  When we criticize leaders where God has clearly said to pray for our leaders, He is not turning a deaf ear.  God’s justice states we are “guilty until proven innocent.”  God is just and right in this verdict. Romans 3:10 declares, “As it is written, none is righteous, just and truthful and upright and conscientious, no not one.”  The Kingdom of God is not built through words that tear down but with words that build up.

Likewise, the Church must mature in her actions towards one another. No one in the Church can claim to love God while hating their brother or sister.  According to God that is a definition of a liar in John 4:10. Here is the verdict. God has already judged sin and provided an escape for our guilt through Jesus.  We will either strengthen those around us or we will tear them down.  We must reverse the sting of the tongue by bearing fruit through repentance.  The devil’s oldest trick in the book is to sow division.  He let that trick out of the bag with Cain and Abel.  The Church cannot prevail against the gates of hell if the Church is building the walls hell’s gates. 

The Tungsten Effect is about God strengthening His Church and expanding His Kingdom.  As we mature into God’s nature, we will reverse the sting of our tongue.  We will not fall into the devil’s schemes that reap division and wound others.  We will become the Church that Jesus promised.  We will become a body of believers that will not tolerate slander and uphold a higher calling in God.  In the same way tungsten is used to strengthen metals, we will strengthen each other.  We will reverse the effects of our tongue through the actions of repentance and forgiveness.  This will empower the Church to stand against the Gates of Hell.

– Jonathan Blanchard