By Maria 3571 [2] 10/05

GN 1158 FD/MM/FM / FEAST 2006

Continued from GN 1157

135. (Mama:) If you've been "burned" through bad experiences in Homes that were divided, had a low standard‚ or where you saw or were a recipient of unloving and poor treatment by someone, you might be discouraged, cynical, or fearful, and not have much faith for your current Home and situation either. My loves, the Lord can wash your past away, and He can help you get over anything that hurt you, and help you to see new people, situations, and challenges, through the eyes of love and hope.

136. Not so long ago we had a particular young woman return to the Family. I'm sure there were a variety of reasons for this—among them probably seeing that the System was a dead end and a black hole, and also her own conviction that she wanted to do something for the Lord and give her life to something worthwhile. I suppose that having heard of the positive changes that were happening in the Family, she was looking forward to a loving Home and fruitfulness and satisfaction in her job for Jesus.

137. After she rejoined, she wrote looking for a good Home and was accepted into a Home across the world from where she had rejoined. After having spent everything she had for her travel, she landed in this Home and found to her great consternation that the Home was rife with problems—disunity and selfishness, fighting, yelling.

138. There wasn't much she could do, however, as she was pretty much stranded, not being able to raise funds for another location due to the restrictions placed on her by her Home. She, and some of our dear single moms, were at the mercy of some very hard taskmasters. They have since managed to get out of that situation‚ but not without some serious spiritual wounds.

139. When I read your letter, sweetheart, I just cried and cried. Such a sad, sad experience, and such a terrible thing to happen in one of our Family Homes that is supposed to be ruled by love. Instead of love, there was fighting and bickering and dishonesty, deceitfulness, and all kinds of bad spirits showing their ugly heads. I can't do the subject justice; I can't even begin to do it justice. After all that our Husband and Dad have done to show us how to love others, it's almost impossible to understand how a Family Home could treat our mates and friends so cruelly.

140. Peter and I are so, so sorry‚ and we personally apologize to you. We don't know how we could have prevented this, but we're going to certainly look into it. We know that some of the rest of you may have gone through similar experiences, and we just feel heartsick that this kind of thing has been able to happen. If it were possible, Peter and I would want to take each one who has gone through such hurtful treatment into our own Home, where we could somehow try to make up for the things you've suffered.

141. We would want nothing more than to love you the way you deserve to be loved, with Jesus' love, and to treat you with the same honor and respect that He would. We consider you our friends and mates, and it hurts us deeply to think that anyone in the Family would mistreat you in any way. When we went to the Lord to ask what we should say to this young woman, Dad said the following to her:

142. (Dad:) Thank you, dear one, for sending your report to Mama. These observations are needed, and they are helpful for the Family leadership as the Family goes through these restructuring changes. It's good for you to get these things out in the open and not keep them bottled up. Now that you have done what you could and committed the situation to the Lord, you just have to step back and let the Lord work. He will bring about what's best, even though it may take time.

143. The fight to better the Family is real, and the Enemy is doing all he can to hang on to any inroad he has gained. It's unfortunate that there are still some who just don't "get it‚" even after all that has been poured out in the Word, but you can't let that affect you adversely and cause you to want to give up. That's just what the Enemy would want, so don't yield to his efforts to try and discourage you. Keep doing what you can to fight for the good of the Family.

144. The changes will come about, and those who are stuck in the past and in the old ways of operating will eventually be moved to the sidelines. The Family will move forward, and as it becomes more and more in line with being what the Lord wants it to be‚ things which are not of the Lord will become more and more exposed and gotten rid of.

145. The Lord truly wants a Family of Love where there is loving interaction between all members. It is possible and it is what will happen‚ even if the Family becomes a very small Gideon's band in order for it to happen. The structure is being put into place‚ and the proper Word-based structure will replace the old, decaying structure in time. Help is on the way and will arrive in the Lord's time.

146. It's very sad that unloving interactions still persist when they shouldn't, and this grieves me as well as the Lord. But from my perspective, I can see that overall progress is being made, leadership attitudes are changing, and there is a core of Family members who are truly sold out to continuing on for the Lord, no matter what.

147. I know that the Family will make it and overcome all the Enemy's ugly attempts to stop the changes that need to come about. So keep "holding on‚" and hold on to the Lord and all His wonderful promises. Take up the white-hot new weapons that He has placed in the hands of all who will take them‚ and keep battling the Devil until he is forced to give up and flee. Just be sure that you are not the one who gives up, for you are guaranteed the victory if you don't give in! So keep fighting, dear one, and you are bound to win! (End of message.)

148. And that is Dad's message not only to her, but to all of you, and isn't that an encouraging one?

149. So, dear daughter, and those of you who went through this very difficult situation with her, and others of you who may have gone through similar situations that have disillusioned you and made you feel hopeless and like giving up, Peter and I plead with you not to give up. Please don't let these things hurt your relationship with Jesus or your faith in the Family.

150. I wish I could take you all in my arms and cry with you and make everything all right for you. But I know Jesus can do that, so please call on the keys of rising above and of forgiveness and perseverance and praise, and in time you will see the results, and our wonderful Husband will come through for you.

151. Maybe you're going through marriage problems or problems in your boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. Maybe the one you love has done or continues to do things that hurt you. Maybe you feel they're not understanding you or not meeting your needs. Maybe there's a major lack of communication or a gulf that seems impossible to bridge. Maybe you feel condemned or guilty for ways you've hurt them, but you don't know how to repair the relationship.

152. Jesus can fix anything—even a messed-up relationship—if He wants it to remain. Look to Him for answers and guidance, and have faith that there is hope in any situation, and He can give you the solutions. In some form or another they will always come down to love, humility, prayer, and communication—which remain the most effective problem-solving ingredients ever. One very powerful manifestation of love and humility is the yieldedness you show to each other on a daily basis.

153. When I have to give people counsel regarding their marriages, I tell them that the most important thing in a marriage is to let Jesus be the boss. You are going to have differences of opinion and differences in the way you see things, but how are you really going to know what's right unless you ask the One Who is the authority? If you both are willing to yield to the Lord and let Him make the decisions, then there won't be any frictions or resentments in your heart against each other.

154. I often tell people that a good way to let Jesus be the Boss in your marriage is to keep Him in first place in your lives in every way. Make Him the most important part of your marriage; talk to Him; love Him together; hear from Him together, and He will bless you and give you a happy marriage.

155. If your children or teens have been battling or struggling beyond the normal battles of growth; if they've been lacking for attention and quality input; or if they've even been getting into mischief or delinquency‚ you're probably faced with a wide range of painful feelings—from feeling discouraged and insufficient, even condemned for your lacks, to frustrated with or critical toward others in your Home or in your past who didn't give you or them enough help and support and input.

156. The Lord gave you those children‚ He didn't make a mistake in doing so‚ and even if you or others have made mistakes in their training‚ He can cause everything to work together for good—because He loves you and He loves them.

157. I know personally some young people in WS who were away from their parents in other Homes when they were young, and the folks in these Homes didn't have the same love and concern and care and patience that their parents probably would have had, and they went through some difficult things as a result. However, instead of letting it make them resentful, and instead of being weakened by it, these young people have learned from all the experiences that they have gone through, and they have become better for it. They are some of our very strongest now, and I admire them deeply.

158. We certainly wish that everyone would be loving and kind in every instance, but we also know that people aren't always going to be that way no matter how much we wish them to be and how hard we try to make them that way. But we also know that these things do not have to damage someone permanently, but instead, the Lord can turn them into great good and overcome any negative effects.

159. If you've been touched by disasters—storms, earthquakes, fires—or other events or accidents that have caused loss and damage to your property, your area, or even hurt or taken the lives of people you love, the "why" question has probably hit you more than once. You may not understand why, here and now, but the Lord can give you faith to believe that He has a loving reason for everything, that He does everything in love‚ and as you trust Him and praise Him, He can help you to see the good in absolutely anything.

160. Maybe you feel discouraged with your gift of prophecy. Maybe you still haven't received it; maybe it's stayed a "baby" gift for years—like mine, for example. Maybe you've gotten messages that were influenced or even tainted for some reason, and it's discouraged your faith. Maybe you struggle with the things you feel you should hear from the Lord about but you just don't feel you have the faith for. Maybe you've been hit with doubts about your own channel or that of others. Maybe you compare the more clear and flowing messages that others seem to receive with the shorter or less specific or halting ones that you receive.

161. The Enemy will try to use all sorts of things to cause you to give up on using this essential and powerful spiritual weapon—but if you persevere and keep opening your channel to the Lord, He will give you good things, answers, and faith to hear His precious voice.

162. Maybe you even think that you're not worthy to be in the Family because you battle with thinking that your gift of prophecy isn't good enough. Please don't let the Enemy discourage you about your gift of prophecy, because all of Jesus' words are precious. Even a few words in prophecy from Jesus are priceless.

163. He understands the level of your gift of prophecy and He will speak to you accordingly. He is proud of you when you open your channel to hear from Him, no matter what kind of messages you receive. Every prophecy is valuable and is God's love for you.

164. Sometimes our Husband allows some people to have more of a "baby" gift of prophecy so that we will work together and help each other. Those with a more exercised gift can help those with a less exercised gift, and in this way we teamwork with one another, which pleases Jesus.

165. Almost everyone in WS has a more mature gift of prophecy than I do, and I certainly have to do a lot of "teamworking" with them, to say the least. The Lord has spoken to me many times about why my gift is still a "baby" gift, but He has also recently told me that I need to progress in it so that when the time comes for me to use it more publicly, I'll be ready. I'm having to take those "do the humble thing" steps and get messages with others and not just privately.

166. If you don't know why your gift is still a "baby" gift, you should definitely ask the Lord for the reasons. Maybe it's a test of your faith to see if you'll still keep going anyway; or maybe it's that you need to have more faith and stretch your faith to receive more; maybe it's because you're insisting on a certain kind of gift and you need to yield to accepting what He wants to give you. There are all kinds of reasons, and you need to know what they are so you can have the confidence that you're doing your part.

167. Perhaps for one reason or another you feel distant from the Lord. Maybe you feel you don't see many answers to your personal prayers, or clear results from claiming the keys, and you wonder if it's because of some lack on your part. Maybe you're simply not a "feelings" person, and so you don't sense anything special or wonderful or beautiful when you love Jesus intimately or use other new weapons.

168. The Lord loves you‚ and that's a fact you can stand on no matter whether you feel it or not. Your obedience in drinking in the Word and being a doer of the Word means that you are close to the Lord, whether you feel close or not.

169. I've told you this before, but I'm going to repeat it again so you can be comforted. Well‚ at least I hope it's comforting. I rarely experience "feelings" in my walk with the Lord, compared to most people. Many things I just have to take by faith, just believing the fact that if I'll go ahead and do what He tells me to do, I'll be close to Him.

170. As I said above, I still have a very basic gift of prophecy. I don't get specifics. I've never had a vision that I received in prophecy. I've never felt "tingling," although I did have that waving experience when intimately loving Jesus that we told you about a long time ago in one of the GNs. I've never been "slain in the spirit" or had almost any other kind of emotional experience that you could think of. I've never had a departed spirit appear to me, and probably if I had, it would have scared me silly! And only once have I seen a flash of light from one of my guardian angels. And the reason I knew it was [one] was because we asked the Lord about it.

171. Nor have I heard any audible voices, although I did hear and see the rustling of the leaves of a plant once in my room, which when we asked the Lord about it, Dad said it was because one of my spirit helpers brushed against it. Well, I'd rather have seen and heard the rustling of the leaves of the plant than seen my spirit helpers, because it would have freaked me out, I think! So the Lord was merciful. I'm sure I'll see my spirit helpers soon enough, and maybe I can grow in my confidence in seeing them face to face.

172. I've never healed anyone (that I know of) or done any miracles (that I know of). I don't have any particular charisma, and in a Family crowd, I look and sound and act the same as everyone else, and there's nothing outstanding about me. I'm not a whiz at memory—far from it. I can't remember the details of the Endtime. I'm not very good at expressing myself in general.

173. When I start to think about all of my lacks and weaknesses, it can really get me down. So that's why I rarely think about them! It's a really good solution! You ought to try it. I don't have any feelings when I love Jesus intimately. And what more can I say? I just have to take it by faith that if I do what the Lord says, then He's going to, in turn, reward me for my obedience.

174. It's a life of faith for me and always has been, but I think my lack of feelings has helped to make me more stable and steady in my relationship with the Lord. Usually a person who has great emotional experiences or "feels" power in the spirit does not have these feelings constantly. But the fact that they don't have them constantly can lead to discouragement and doubts when the feelings aren't there, wondering what's wrong or what has happened. I don't have that problem.

175. I rarely have feelings—only a deep faith and assurance and peace that Jesus loves me and is with me—and those are the only feelings that are important to me. I can't tell if I'm close to the Lord through the way I feel; I have to check my obedience level in order to know.

176. So, although I'm not debunking spiritual experiences in the least—I think they're wonderful, and they're something that the Lord gives to many people for one reason or another—if you don't have them, you can likewise be happy, because then you don't have to be discouraged in the times when you don't have them. There's always a good side to everything, or maybe more than one.

177. Maybe you're frustrated with certain members of your Home, or your Home members overall—feeling that they aren't pulling their load, they're being difficult to live and work with, or for whatever reason you're feeling critical or self-righteous toward them. Have faith that even the most unlikely groupings of people can be transformed into a winning team when the Lord's miracles go to work and when humility reigns. He can give you new eyes of love with which to see those around you‚ which can then transform the situation by renewing your perspective.

178. If you're in a situation where the influences of the world, whether worldliness at large or specific cultural influences of your city or country, are dampening the fire and freedom of the spirit, you might feel a bit "stuck." Maybe you feel their influences yourself but you don't feel strong enough or know what to do to overcome them; or maybe you see the influences on others and don't feel that your efforts to help are going very well or that they're very open to receiving help. Jesus said, "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world," and His power through the keys can release any hold of any worldly influences on you or your loved ones.

179. Similarly, maybe you're stuck in the grip of Lethargy—and whether you realize it, or whether it's already put you to sleep, it's a bad position to be in, and it's hard to pull out of it. But our Love has given a special spirit helper, Styrian‚ with just the right power for this situation. If you want the Lord and your spirit helpers to set your heart and spirit on fire and to get you on track once again, they'll gladly do that for you.

180. Styrian is one spirit helper that I have to call on a lot, since I have a problem with being somewhat naturally lethargic. Maybe this surprises you‚ since you know that I carry a big responsibility, and you've also read in Dad's Letters about how I would try to help him to stick to his work and how I wouldn't let the Lord's Words fall to the ground.

181. Well, those things are true. I did help Dad to do his work‚ and the Lord has helped me to be faithful with His Words and the responsibility He has entrusted me with. But still, this is just a natural weakness that I have, just like so many people have, and I have to fight against it.

182. I'm slower than many people, and it takes spiritual and physical effort for me to stir myself up to do the work at hand. I don't naturally want to work hard, and often when I have a task to tackle, it's easy for my flesh to want to put off or to allow myself to get distracted by other things that I feel more like doing, instead of buckling down to the hard work at hand.

183. Well, I always get the victory, thank the Lord, and I always do the work I'm supposed to do, but it's just difficult. It's a fight sometimes. Because I don't have some sort of a spiritual mechanism that causes me to jump out of bed with a burning desire to work hard all day long. I think I used to be more like that when I was such a workaholic, but the Lord has cured me of that, and now I have to try a little harder to like to work hard.

184. As always, everything requires a just balance, which is His delight. I'm normal, like everyone else, and sometimes my flesh doesn't want to buckle down and work hard. I think my spirit is willing, but my flesh gets in the way. I have to call on Styrian regularly to override Lethargy's attacks and to anoint me with the get-up-and-go that I need to do our Love's work and to fight to stay close to Him.

185. If you have an overactive analytical mind, and find yourself regularly or constantly struggling with questions, criticisms, doubts, or other mind battles as a result, you might tend to feel like a bit of a "mucky flatlander" at times and wonder if you have it in you to keep living this life of faith, of believing the supernatural, of obeying the Word, when all these sometimes go so contrary to apparent logic and reason.

186. You have weapons at your disposal that are "not carnal but mighty" and which can cast down all imaginations, and you can use the sword of the spirit which discerns the thoughts and intents of the heart. Through the power of the keys turned to swords‚ Jesus can help you to separate that which is true from that which is false, and He can give you "power, love, and a sound mind."

187. The best way to discern what is the truth is to ask our Husband to show you by using your gift of prophecy. Or if you feel it's impossible to get the answers you need through your own channel‚ please ask someone else. Don't just draw your own conclusions and not let the Lord give His truth. Ask for shepherding, too, if you need help.

188. I knew a person who was very analytical and was always trying to figure out everything in his own mind. He was very proud and he thought that he could figure things out himself without the help of others. So he rejected most of the shepherding that was offered him and that he could have had. The Lord said of him, "He didn't want to hear from godly shepherds, so he drew his own conclusions‚ and his conclusions were usually wrong." Sad to say, this young man left the Family and the Lord's service several years ago. Don't let the same thing happen to you. Don't give up your crown.

189. Have you been caught in the thick of a media battle, or a legal battle, or other form of persecution? Are you feeling the trials and temptations of suffering for your faith? Or recovering from the after-effects of such an experience? The Lord wants to wipe each hurt away from your troubled heart, and He's going to bestow upon you the great honor that only those who suffer for righteousness' sake are worthy of receiving.

190. Sometimes you might feel like it's all just too much—too much is expected of you with the standard of discipleship, or the standard of membership, the board criteria‚ the Charter, the ever-abundant New Wine and the many suggestions, directions‚ and even requirements that come with all of this. You're starting to wonder—or maybe you've been wondering for a while—if you have what it takes to be a disciple and if you're going to make it. Don't give in to fear or discouragement—as some have—because the Lord wouldn't ask it of you if He didn't know that you could make it. Remember the Christians on the ice and the crowns descending. Please don't lose out.

191. Are you lonely? Do you have friends and co-workers, yet ache for someone to join your life with and have children with, and thereby feel complete? Or maybe you lack even for close friends and feel that you can't be intimate with anyone? Jesus knows that ache you feel, and He longs to fill the void with Himself and His comfort and love—and in time He may also bless you with the special human companionship you seek if you will put Him first. And if He doesn't give you a special someone, remember that He has a reason, and that reason is often so that He can use you in a unique way. If He doesn't provide your needs through "someone," you can be assured that He will provide them in another way.

192. Does your Home have enough finances to maintain and cover the basics, but do you really wish that you could have considerably more in order to really advance, and make progress, and take on the new projects and ministries that you feel called to?

193. Peter and I often see the need for and wish we could work on more projects too. Sometimes the Lord confirms that it is His will that we work on various projects, and He supplies what we need for them. And sometimes we just have to go ahead by faith and start working on them and know that He's going to supply, because He said He would‚ because we've asked Him specifically about it.

194. But other times He tells us that even though we would like to do so-and-so, that it's not His perfect time. This is sometimes why He doesn't supply the finances‚ because it's one of the ways He uses to prevent us from moving ahead with something that isn't in His perfect time. We just have to trust that He will give us what we need to get the jobs done that He wants us to do.

195. If you're struggling with missing loved ones, people you've been close to and depended on, because you're in a new Home or situation, take heart. There will be others who you can be close to and love and be loved by in the absence of those you have grown accustomed to being with. It takes time to know and love another person, but the Family is full of wonderful, quality people, and everyone has the potential to be a special and dear friend. Open your lives to one another and discover the love.

196. Are you plagued by fear?—Fear of persecution, fear of the Endtime, fear of the future in general, or of the Enemy and his attacks‚ or of anything else? Don't fear for your future, my loves‚ for it is as bright as all God's promises! Though we are guaranteed to endure persecution, though we are destined to go through the Tribulation, and though we are destined to do battle with Satan and his demons, we are above all destined to overcome and rule and reign forever with Jesus!

197. If you're feeling the pull of the world, finding it difficult to adhere to the post–renewal counsel to minimize the effects of worldly input and entertainment, and if you're having a hard time staying away from the tentacles of Bacchus, you can be freed!

198. Though we sometimes hurt our precious Lover and Husband when we let ourselves be drawn away towards unworthy distractions, He's always ready and willing to welcome us back, as well as to deliver us from whatever is keeping us from being fully His‚ when we call out for His help. Through the struggle you can actually be strengthened, if you refuse to give up, and if you keep fighting with the spiritual weapons at your disposal.

199. Someone wrote me a while back with a desperate plea to pray for them and to help them, if I possibly could. They were at the point where they felt like they were almost beyond hope and that Jesus didn't love them. I really cried when I read this young woman's letter. One of the saddest things to me is when someone feels that Jesus, our wonderful, precious, darling Husband, doesn't love them, or has withdrawn His love because of their failures and sins.

200. We always have to keep in mind that we're the ones that distance ourselves from Him because of our sins, because His love always remains constant‚ never failing and never ending, and He always remains with His arms out wide to welcome us back.

201. This dear one poured out her heart:

202. Mama, I feel like you're my last hope. Over the years I've had a lot of battles with worldly input. I would venture to say that this has been the one area in my life that I've never gained a complete victory in. I've even had united prayer for this several times, but I always seem to go back to my bad habits. They're almost like an addiction that I can't get over. Sometimes I think I'm doing better, but then I end up back at square one again.

203. A few months ago I started neglecting my Word time and prayer vigil and covering up about it. Of course I knew I was doing wrong, but I felt too weak to stop myself. It was very discouraging seeing how weak I was and what a failure I was at hanging on to the victories I'd gained. The Lord had always been so loving and always given me another chance when I've disobeyed Him, but I guess I've run out of chances. I've lied about so many things and I've disobeyed Him in so many ways‚ and then, something happened that I felt was the Lord punishing me.

204. I feel like my heart is broken, because if the Lord doesn't love me anymore‚ what can I do? I guess I feel like I don't deserve my place in the Family either, and the only thing left for me to do is to leave. I'm so confused right now. Please help me, Mama.

205. If any of you feel like you could have written the same letter—or a similar one—to me, listen as I read to you what our ever-merciful and loving Husband said to this precious one that He loves so much. He loves you this much also.

206. (Jesus: ) My dear child, come, sit on My lap and let Me hold you in My arms for a while. Let Me caress you. Let Me look into your eyes and wipe away your tears and fears. Let Me reassure you of My eternal love and unconditional care for you. If you could only see and understand even a fraction of the depth of My love for you, you would never question, you would never wonder so. My darling, My love is from everlasting to everlasting, and even though you fail many times, and because of this become faithless, yet I remain faithful.

207. You think that you have been too bad for Me, that you have failed Me and yourself too many times; you think you are undeserving of My love for you. Yes, My love, this is true, you are undeserving of such a love—this has been true since the very beginning. But My love was not given to mankind because they were deserving; far from it. I did not come to seek and to save those who had no need of a Savior; I came to rescue and to save the lost, those destitute and dying without hope of salvation.

208. My love is for you, not because of your own goodness or for the good works you do for Me; it is not measured according to your righteousness. Not by works of righteousness which you have done, but according to My mercy I've saved you, My dear child.—And My mercy and love is from everlasting to everlasting.

209. You've wondered if what happened to you was a punishment from My hand, a sign that I have given up on you and withdrawn My love from you. Let Me assure you that this is not the case. My darling, look up into My face‚ look into My eyes and tell Me what you see. Do you see contempt and harsh reproof? No, My love, there is nothing of that in My gaze, only perfect love and understanding—a love and understanding that endures and does not fade.

210. You will not be able to fully understand My hand in your life at this time‚ and you will need to wrap this up in a little bundle of faith and give it to Me, believing that I do all things well, and that whatever I do, I do in love, for this is the truth and this is the case. In time you will see My loving hand in this situation, and you will understand and you will know that this, too, has worked together for your good‚ because you love Me.

211. I wish to address your feelings of hopelessness, of feeling that I have given up on you, that you have gone too far and have been too bad for Me. My child, though you have fallen down many times and through disobedience and dishonesty have disappointed yourself and others, I have not withdrawn from you. I have not given up on you, My love. My hope and faith for you remain constant and undeterred. My mercy is renewed each morning—I give you a fresh start each day, a clean slate, and a blank page with which to write upon. My mercy endures forever‚ as does My forgiveness.

212. Remember what I told Peter when he came to Me and said, "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?" I said unto him, "I say not unto thee, until seven times: but until seventy times seven." If I expected such forgiveness of My disciples with their human limitations, how much more will I, your Husband, forgive you, My bride whom I love and cherish?

213. It is true that My hope and desire is that you are an obedient bride, one who loves Me above all else and seeks to please and obey Me, but you must understand that this is not only for My sake, but for your own. I am only able to bless, anoint, and prosper the obedient, and only through your obedience am I able to reward you in the way I wish. This is a principle of the spirit, one of the laws of the universe that not only you‚ but that I, too, am bound by.

214. I wish to bless you, not only with gifts and rewards that are pleasing to you in the physical, but also spiritual rewards of contentment and deep satisfaction and a feeling of purpose and joy. These are some of the most valuable rewards‚ priceless gifts that cannot be bought or sold.

215. I long to give you these things, My darling, but My power to do so is limited by your actions. This is why I have repeatedly urged you to follow closely and to seek hard after that which is good and pleasing in My sight, for I do long to bless you and to grant you your heart's desires. But you must seek first My Kingdom and righteousness, and then all these other things will be added unto you. But faith and obedience come first.

216. But all this has nothing to do with My love, compassion, and tender mercy towards you; that is another matter altogether. I love you simply because you are you, My creation, My bride, My love. Nothing you do or don't do is ever going to change that—that will never be a possibility. So rest assured of My love for you and be secure in the fact that My love for you will never change.

217. But I do also wish to encourage you to seek after and strive to do that which is good and pleasing in My sight. Seek to obey and to be a doer of My Word, that I can bless and prosper you, and that through your obedience I will have the necessary allowance to grant and give you all that I have in My good treasure for you. I love you! (End of message.)

218. And that's the end of this very, very beautiful message from our Husband. I hope that this has been a help to anyone else who might feel that there is no hope for you, or that Jesus doesn't love you. I know He loves you, and you can know it too because He said, "I have loved thee with an everlasting love."

219. Now that you've been privileged to benefit from this beautiful message‚ could you please give this dear one the gift of your prayers? If you have gone through a similar battle, you know how precious and valuable it is to have the fighting prayers of your friends and mates. So please pray for her and for anyone else you may know of who is fighting battles with feelings of failure and hopelessness.

220. No matter what your difficulty, what your circumstances are‚ or how big the mountains are, our dear Love has the answers. He has a plan, and He has wonderful things that He's going to bring out of it in your life. Haven't you found that to be true already? I certainly have. Sometimes we go through some long, dark tunnels, but we always come out on the other side, as long as we keep following Jesus and holding His hand.

221. Our wonderful Husband knows your heart and exactly what you need‚ and He will do whatever it takes to help you to be the best disciple that you can be for Him. You know what? He loves you so much that there isn't anything He won't do for you in order to make you happy and fulfilled in His service.

222. You mean everything to Him. He gave His life for you and He continues to give His all every day, because you are so important to Him. Your heart, your happiness and fulfillment in His service, your love for Him, are the most important things to Him, even more important than the work He has called you to do. He wants us to do our jobs well for Him, of course, but most of all, He wants us to be happy in doing them‚ to be inspired, and ready to share His love with others, and He's going to do whatever it takes to help us to reach that goal.

223. You can count on every single word our Husband says. Jesus never lies or misleads or talks just for the sake of talking—He means what He says—and if you will claim His promises, you will be blessed with the reward of your faith. Our Lover will change circumstances for you‚ improve things, bring progress‚ and whatever victories are needed. He will give you healing, protect you, supply for you‚ encourage you, strengthen your spirit through His beautiful written Word and His golden seeds of prophecy. Even if it's a step-by-step process, which it often is‚ don't be discouraged and don't give up, but keep trusting Him and expecting Him to keep His word, and He will.

224. We are surrounded by so much spiritual power that the Enemy knows he can't win if we keep wielding our spiritual weapons. That's why he tries so hard to keep us from using them, or to convince us that we're not very good at using them, so "why bother," or to get us to delay or to use them half-heartedly. It's because he's terrified of them‚ and of us when we wield that power! So let's terrify him, okay? Let's use our Husband's voice of prophecy to guide us and give us counsel each step of the way.

225. We have not only Jesus to speak to us whenever we ask, but we have so many spirit helpers who are also willing to give us instruction and encouragement. We also have the awesome power of intercessory prayer, which is a very mighty spiritual weapon, and through which we can ask our Husband to intervene on behalf of our loved ones to change any situation, to do miracles for us‚ to give us wisdom and anointing, and anything that we need.

226. And then we have our amazing spirit helpers who we can call on, we can talk to them, we can ask for their help, we can ask them to speak to us in prophecy whenever we want to.

227. And on top of that, the Lord has showered us with thousands of key promises on every subject, to fit any need we can possibly come up with. And many are just for our encouragement and comfort and inspiration. We are encompassed about by key power! We are sheltered and protected and given extra spiritual ammunition against any attacks of the Enemy through the never-failing power of the keys.

228. And here's a special new key promise for this Feast, something that I know will mean a lot to you, especially after you've worked so hard through the year of restructuring, and the year of strengthening, and this is Jesus' promise for you. It's a very, very special promise. Try not to look at it as just, "Oh, this is just another key promise for us, one in thousands that we have." But this one is very, very special.

229. This is the one that our Love decided was the very most important one, the most valuable one that He could possibly give us. This, I have a feeling in the spirit, is a very‚ very important and wonderful, marvelous key promise that He's giving us. Not that the others aren't wonderful and exceptional and tremendous and they're our life, but this is especially beautiful, this is especially meaningful, and we have to try not to be familiar with it. Because the Lord gives us so much love‚ and pours out His love words to us day after day, week after week, I mean I know I do, I get familiar with them, and I'm fairly certain you do as well.

230. But try to look at this as a very, very special gift from our Lover, one that He brings in a gift box and kneels down before you, and opens the box, expecting you to be dazzled by it, excited and thrilled by it! I believe if you will look at it in this way, you're going to see the results in a much greater way as well.

231. So here it is:

232. "I have bound you to My heart through the key of intimate love. Nothing can change the love that I have for you. When you need to feel a special touch of My love in your life, call on the key of intimate love. You will feel My arms around you, and My Spirit touching your spirit in a way that is just for you."

233. Dear Family, the key promises are a wonderful reminder of our Love's power and desire to care for our every need, so claim them, read them, memorize them, receive them from Heaven, and let them encourage your faith to claim great miracles.

234. Along with prayer, and our spirit helpers, and the keys, our dear Lover has also given us the power of praise. And praise is not only a beautiful personal way of expressing our love for Jesus‚ but it has so much spiritual energy and power that the Enemy can't stand it. Jesus has called praise an undefeatable weapon because it never fails to bring results.

235. We are so blessed with so many wonderful weapons to help us through our battles‚ and when you use them in faith, even when you least feel like it, the Lord comes through and helps you to see things more as He sees them. He gives you a measure of victory even when things are very difficult, and He gives you the grace to keep holding on till the full victory comes.

236. I know that talking about our spiritual weapons isn't a new topic, but we are talking about encouragement, and that's the whole theme of this talk. And using the new weapons is an integral part of being encouraged. If you want to be encouraged, you have to believe the Lord's words, and you have to put them into action.

237. This Feast time the Lord really wants to encourage you. He wants to deliver you from your addictions. He wants to give you victories you thought you could never get, and He wants to strengthen your spirit. He wants to pour His comforting love on every part of your heart and spirit, and replenish your faith and your spiritual strength. He wants to bathe you in His life-giving waters. But first we have to get ourselves out of the way, and we have to let go of anything that would cause us to not believe our Husband's love or His words.

238. Now, I'm about to ask you to do something, and I know you did a similar exercise in your Loving Jesus night a couple days ago‚ but after having soaked in the Word over these last couple of days‚ and listening to Jesus, and having all that quality time with Him, and after we've talked about all these various battles and struggles, you probably are starting to see things a little differently, and you'll be able to use the weapon of praise much more wholeheartedly and effectively as you give everything to Jesus.

239. So I want you to think about what is weighing on you right now; stop and think about it. Not just the little concerns of today, but any long-term concerns or worries that have been weighing on you. Think about what they are. And now let's all lift our arms together and praise our Husband for them. You can just silently tell Jesus about them and praise Him for them. Praise the Lord for everything about that burden that you can think of; the more specific you can get, the better. Praise Him for how it's strengthening you. Praise Him for how He's going to take care of it. Tell Him that even if things never change, He's wonderful, He's your Lover, your Husband‚ your reason for living, and you're not going to stop trusting Him.

240. I'm going to be quiet for a minute while you do that.

(Pause here in the tape‚ for a minute.)

241. Don't you feel better now? Doesn't it feel good to give everything to Jesus? You're so wonderful‚ dear Love. We love You so much.

242. Thank You, Jesus. Thank You, our dear, wonderful Savior. Thank You, our King‚ our Lover, our God. You are so beautiful, Jesus. You do all things well.

243. We adore You, our wonderful Lover. You love us so completely. We're honored that You love us unconditionally with Your pure and beautiful love. You love us like no one else can, not even the ones dearest to us on Earth who love us with great love. We are in awe at such a gift of Your love. Thank You, precious Jesus, for wanting to be close to us. Thank You for the blessing of our personal relationship with You‚ which is the thing we cherish above everything else.

244. We love You so much, Jesus, more than we can express in words. Our words aren't adequate to tell You how much You mean to us‚ because You are more than words, You are everything. Every time we look at Your beautiful creation, or see the love in someone's eyes, we're reminded of how wonderful You are. Every time we see how Your words change lives‚ we praise You for Your power. You can do what no one else can do.

245. You're our everything‚ dearest Love. You're our reason for living, You're the center of our lives. Thank You for the wonder of You. Thank You for Your never–failing love for Your children. Thank You‚ dear Jesus. We praise Your wonderful, powerful Name.

246. Doesn't it lift and cleanse your spirit to say love words and words of praise to our wonderful Husband, or even to hear someone else say them? As the Word says, praise is the voice of faith, and when we speak faith‚ the Devil flees. When we use our mouth to praise, it not only pleases our Lover, but it makes us happy as well as everyone who hears our praises.

247. Praise is a wonderful weapon of the spirit, and I love to use it! There are many ways we can praise our Husband and express our love and thankfulness to Him. We can say praise words, we can sing songs, we can make a joyful noise in music. And sometimes some of us feel that that's all we can make, just a noise, but at least it's joyful! We can read praise key promises, we can speak in tongues, we can sing in tongues, we can pray a prayer of praise to Jesus, and our whole life can be a praise to the Lord.

248. Some of these ways of praising the Lord are quite humbling, but that's good for us. It's sometimes humbling, for example, if you're not used to raising your hands in praise or using the gift of tongues to praise, but it's so liberating and uplifting, and Jesus loves it.

249. Tongues are contrary to the carnal mind. There's nothing reasonable or understandable about it. It's taking on the spirit and letting the spirit speak through you. It's a manifestation of the Lord's freedom. Speaking in tongues isn't something that we can do by ourselves, because it's a gift of the spirit. If you don't have the gift of tongues, you can ask our Husband for it, and then step out by faith and use it. He wants to give it to anyone who asks for it.

250. Speaking in tongues is a love gift that you give to Jesus. You have to give your tongue completely to Him; you don't know what He's going to say through you, or what it's going to sound like. That means you have to give our Husband total control and let Him use your tongue as He sees fit. You have to let Him form the words on your tongue and give the utterance. You don't do anything at all except say yes and speak the tongues. You show your dependence on the Lord when you speak in tongues, because you don't know what will come out and you just have to trust Him for the miracle.

251. In the beginning days of the Family, Dad spoke in tongues a lot, and he encouraged everyone to do the same. It was radical, because it was so liberating in the spirit. Sometimes people would stand around the campfire speaking in tongues together for minutes, and everyone loved it. They loved it because it was the presence of the Lord's Spirit.

252. Here's a little tidbit of information that you might be interested in. You've probably heard one of the common words in tongues, "Shondo," which was from our early days in the Family. Well, I asked the Lord for the interpretation of that, both to satisfy my own curiosity and so that I could tell you what it means for your encouragement. He said it means, "Praises to the Most High God," and "Praise to our God of brilliance."

253. Jesus said, "Tongues are fluid‚ and the meaning changes depending on the occasion and how My Spirit moves you. Even if you use the same words in tongues over and over‚ those words do not always mean the same thing. It's the language of Heaven speaking through you. Heaven knows what to speak through you‚ and you just have to open your mouth and receive the tongues."

254. Isn't that so interesting? I thought that was quite a revelation. A little one, of course; it's not going to change the world, I suppose, in any way, just to hear that these words don't always mean the same thing, and that they change according to the occasion. The Lord is so amazing, and the things of the spirit are so past our finding out—unless we ask Him. We never would have dreamed that, or at least I wouldn't have. Thank You Jesus!

255. It's important to keep our praises flowing to Jesus, whether it's speaking in tongues or using our earthly language to praise Him. He's our wonderful Husband and He deserves all of our praises.

256. In a minute I want you to join me in speaking in tongues as we raise our hands in praise to Him. Even if you don't have the gift of tongues, you can use your gift of humility and raise your arms to Jesus and ask the spirit to speak through you. And maybe when you're done, you will have the gift of tongues!—If you really ask for it, if you really want it.

257. Another way, which I think I mentioned before, to praise our Husband for His beauty and greatness, is by singing in tongues. Oh‚ you're already embarrassed enough and now you're probably quaking in your shoes! But don't worry, all you have to do is raise your hands and speak in tongues. So when you compare it to what you could be doing—singing along with me in tongues—maybe that will make you feel better and it won't be so bad after all! I'm the one who's going to sing in tongues, and if you will humble yourself by speaking in tongues and raising your arms to the Lord in praise, we will all humbly enter into His courts with praise together.

258. The Lord said this will be something that I can do as a little token of my love for Him and a way of doing the humble thing, and an expression of the beautiful freedom in the spirit that He's given us. Tongues, whether spoken or sung, are love words to Him, words of praise and adoration to our Husband.

259. I don't have any idea how this will come out, I'm just going to try to do the humble thing and pray that my spirit helper, who, unlike me, does know how to sing, will come through. Thank You, Jesus‚ for Your spirit helpers.

260. All right, won't you now all raise your hands and we can speak in tongues together, and we can praise our dear, wonderful Jesus in tongues.

(Mama speaks and sings in tongues.)

261. Hallelujah! Praise to our great God of glory! All power and majesty belongs to Him! Once I got started, it was hard to stop. I could have just kept going, but your time is short and I can do more of this in my personal time‚ which is exactly what you can do if you want to.

262. You can claim the keys of boldness and sing in tongues in your private devotions, and other times of united fellowship. But don't worry, singing in tongues isn't a new doctrine and it's not something that you all have to do now, although you can if you want to.

263. We have such freedom in His Spirit. We are unique among Christians. The Lord has given us such a special commission. We are called out and chosen to be His mouthpieces to share His words with a dying world. We are blessed with a wonderful commission to reach the lost with His words of love‚ and sometimes with His radical messages. Not everyone will like us or want to hear what He has to say through us, but those who recognize His Spirit will follow, and they'll be so thankful that we obeyed and had enough love to share His words with them.

264. Thank you‚ dear Family, for laying down your lives for His sheep. Peter and I love you very, very much. We pray for you every day. We admire you for the work that you're doing to bring His sheep into the fold and to teach your children His ways.

265. We're proud of your faith to obey and follow our radical Lover. We can't tell you enough how much we love you and need you. We couldn't do this big job of reaching the world, of exposing the Enemy's lies, without each one of you.

266. Peter and I love each of you so much. Even though we may never have met you face to face in the flesh‚ we're joined in spirit, and married in spirit to each one of you, because we're all serving our Lover together. We feel very close to you, because we know what you go through in order to be the disciples that the Lord has asked you to be. We know that the tests you pass are big. We know that the trials of your faith are very many. We know it takes a lot of love for Jesus to keep going through all the persecution, the difficulties, and the tests. And that makes the love in our hearts for you overflow. We really can't express in words how much you mean to each of us.

267. We want to tell you that we're going to do whatever we can to help you to fulfill God's commission as His Endtime Family. The Family is on its way into the future and we're very excited to be part of God's plan. We count it a privilege to work side by side with you, and we look forward to the day, either here on Earth or in Heaven, when we will be able to hold you in our arms and tell you how much we love and appreciate you. We'll have a big love feast together where we can shout and sing and praise our Husband for the victory!

268. In closing, I want to read a message from our Husband that He gave for you‚ dear Family. And just because I'm reading this message at the end of my talk doesn't mean that it's less important than the other things the Lord has led us to share with you; in fact, it's very important, and that's why I saved it for the end. I wanted these beautiful words from our loving Husband to be almost the last thing you'll hear, the thing that will remain in your hearts and minds as a reminder of how much He loves each one of you. And here is His message of love for you:

269. (Jesus:) My heart belongs to you, My precious loves. My Spirit, My body‚ My thoughts, My whole being are My gift of love to you. You are the center of My life, the beginning and the end of My universe.

270. You are the pulse in My veins, the air that I breathe, the light of My eye. You are the one that I think about. You are always on My mind. The day will come, My loves, when I will give you the full reward that is your right as My brides, and that will be a beautiful and wonderful day that will last for all eternity.

271. My dearest loves, call on your special key of intimate love whenever you want to feel Me close, and I will be right there beside you, inside you, and all around you. Even though I give this key to the entire Family to call on, it also has thousands of special key connectors, one for each one of you, My brides, so that when you personally call on this key, it will work in a special way in your spirit to bring Me close to you.

272. I want you to feel Me up close and personal as a special token of My love for you, My faithful, sacrificial, loyal, obedient brides. You have given much in the way of your obedience to the moves of My Spirit, and this key is but a tiny token of My love in return.

273. Don't worry if you don't "feel" anything in particular; just remember that I created your own connection to this key in the way that is best for you, so enjoy it and call on it and unfold the mystery of what I have in store for you.

274. For some people it might be in the form of "feelings," for other people it might be in the form of peace, or relaxation, or more quality time in our bed of love, or simply My blessing for your obedience. The manifestations will be tailor-made for each one of you, and you will feel the rewards and effects of this key of intimate love in the ways that I know you will appreciate and that you need.