We have been in a multitude of storms…and through the storms, the Lord wants us to be prepared – not just to survive, but to advance in faith and be victorious.
Vision of the Lord
Over the last few weeks, Holy Spirit has been reminding me of a vision I had during worship in June of 2018, and I believe it is timely and necessary in this hour. In the vision, the Lord appeared to me and was gazing upon me in love. He came near, bent down and kissed me on the cheek. He then turned to leave and beckoned me to follow Him. In the spirit, I heard Him say, “Will you come with Me?” My heart immediately leapt and my body followed. How could I not follow the One who satisfies my heart, in whom is my life?
We began to climb a mountain. It soon turned into a steep and rocky crag. In the vision, it was impressed upon me that there was no room for carrying extra weight; everything unnecessary needed to be released and left behind.
The higher we went, the more difficult it became. My thoughts became filled with how hard it was, how desperately I needed water; even taking a breath became a challenge. My thoughts soon became focused on only one thing – staying close to Him. When I looked at Him, I no longer needed anything else. His breath became mine and my thirst was quenched.
Will You Follow Me Into the Storm?
The sky was becoming darker. I could see a storm just ahead of us at an even higher elevation. The Lord turned to me and asked, “Will you follow Me into the storm?” My heart responded yes again, and soon the storm enveloped us. It was cold and the wind was fierce; I held on to Him for dear life. The storm grew into a tempest and I could not see anything around me at all. I could hear the howling wind and knew that everything in its path was being shaken.
In the next scene, there were lightning bolts being shot to the ground. Where they hit, fires started. The Lord turned to me and said, “In this storm, you have received My form. As you became one with Me, you became infused with power. I will send you forth, and wherever you are sent, My power will be released and strongholds of darkness will be shattered. My Spirit will be released in power and transform; many souls will be reborn. My life in them will begin to be formed.”
Then it ended.
Piercing the Darkness and Possessing the Double
Over the following weeks, Holy Spirit kept bringing me back to this vision, reminding me of other visions I have had of His people being formed into arrows. He led me to Zechariah 9:12-14 (KJV):
“Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee; when I have bent Judah for Me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man. And the LORD shall be seen over them, and His arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the LORD God shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.” (Photo via Pxfuel)
According to Strong’s Concordance, the root word for the name Judah (yadah) can mean “shoot (arrows)” and also “praise.” The name Ephraim means “double fruit.” This is not a time to retreat or hide! The Lord is calling us to go into the storm with Him, receive His form and pierce the darkness as He sends us forth in power! He desires to render double to His people – the reward of righteousness and the reward of “the double” in spoils for what the enemy has done.
“For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them.” (Isaiah 61:7 KJV)
Lightning Strikes: You Are Coming Into Your Fullness
I sensed Holy Spirit impressing upon me to look up lightning. Lightning is caused by negative and positive energy colliding. We can see, even in the natural, that good and evil are colliding, and we are nearing the apex. Evil is reaching its fullness (Genesis 15:16; Revelation 18:4-6), but the sons and daughters of the Most High, filled with the Spirit of God, are coming forth in their fullness!
Lightning is five times hotter than the surface of the sun! I believe that this is symbolic of the greater works that Jesus said we would do. When we stay focused and hold on to Him in the storms, we receive this power! I heard, “For as evil is reaching the fullness of measure, My people, My peculiar and priceless treasure, are being formed into weapons with precision of skill and hearts committed to perform My will.”
How to Breathe at High Altitudes
As you climb higher in elevation in the natural, excess baggage will hinder, slow you down and even endanger you, as it can throw you off balance!
“Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us, looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the Cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-2 AMPC)
Added weight hinders our ability to breathe at high altitudes. Remove the hindrances! Come closer to the Lord than you ever have before and receive His life – so close that you are in sync with His heartbeat, breathing His breath! Lay aside all those things that hinder and distract – even old thought patterns, habits, religious works and belief systems that are contrary to the Kingdom of God.
I heard, “Everything you think you know, for higher ground, you must let go. Be in sync with Me, step by step; you will be filled with My thoughts as I give you My breath.” (Photo via nara.getarchive.net)
Riding the Storm Like Eagles
As I was pondering these things, Holy Spirit whispered, “They that wait upon the Lord shall mount up with wings of eagles” (see Isaiah 40:31). I thought, Well that’s good, but not exactly what the vision was about. Then He told me to look deeper.
“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31 KJV)
We all know that the eagle uses the storms to rise higher. I can even see that this is speaking of advancement – running, walking… I always thought of it as waiting patiently, even with expectancy, in order to get strength to go forward. But the vision was about being one with Christ. I looked it up in the Blue Letter Bible app so that I could gain greater understanding of the original language through the tools found there (i.e., Strong’s Concordance and the Lexicon). I was very surprised.
In the Hebrew language, the phrase “But they that wait” is the Hebrew word qava. There are multiple definitions, but one is “to bind together.” Through the Lexicon’s definitions for qava, we can see this verse is telling us that we are “to wait” and “be strong” and “twist” like the binding of rope, with “tension of enduring,” so that we may “remain.”
“Mount up with wings of eagles” – we can only do this part in the strength of Christ, who has all authority and power. As we rise up with Him through the power of the Spirit, we will be above the storm and see as He sees. He has already overcome, and He sees the end from the beginning. He knows every plan the enemy has, and He has the strategy necessary for us to advance His Kingdom in the midst of the storm.
You Were Created for This Time – Lean Into Him!
You were created for such a time as this. No matter how dark and fierce the storm, lean into Him. He is your life – the very source of your being. Receive of His strength and His faith.
I hear the Lord saying, “Press in close; hold tight to Me. Let all else go; be set free. You said you would gladly follow Me. Come with Me, be filled with power; it is needed in this hour. You have prayed to be transformed; change will come from Me in this storm. I am forming My weapons, for the day is at hand; you will go forth in My power and possess the land.”
Alane Haynes
Eternal Truth Now Ministry
Email: eternaltruthnowministry@gmail.com
Website: www.alanehaynes.com
Alane Haynes was radically saved in 1981, when the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to her. She immediately received salvation, deliverance and a supernatural healing of her body and mind. An apostolic and prophetic teacher and speaker, Alane has authored four books. The first, “Moses – Shocked in the Desert,” was birthed from a prophetic dream and many nights of Holy Spirit waking her to “Write what I tell you.” She podcasts through Charisma Podcast Network; “Stirring of the Waters” is her show. Alane and her husband Kerry are co-founders of “Eternal Truth Now Ministry,” and are broadcasters on Holy Spirit Broadcasting Network (hsbn.tv). They are passionate about the power of God’s word, and desire to see people fulfill their God-given destinies and bring His Kingdom to the earth. When they are not ministering, Alane and Kerry enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren, and outdoors enjoying the beauty of God’s creation.