Bride's Song

  On September 5, 2021, during Sunday worship I had this impression that Jesus was walking down the aisle by me with a lion at his side.   I began working on this painting.   I never know quite what will happen when I paint.   I thought the lion I was to paint would be majestic and wise looking but the lion instead was youthful, with eyes of anticipation.    I knew the painting wasn’t finished so I kept seeking Holy Spirit for what belonged in the fore ground.   The following week in Sunday worship I had the impression that Jesus was handing me a container of oil.   As I pondered many ways to depict oil in this painting an ancient oil lamp settled into my spirit.   This painting was emerging during the Jewish feasts of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.    I sent this painting out to my tribe, Incense Rising to see if they had any insight as to the meaning of this painting.  I certainly had my thoughts but I knew the richness of God...

In 2004 I was serving in Albany at the Capital Region Prayer and Healing Center as a worship leader and the founder/director of Bride’s Song.   During the years I was there 2001-2007 I met the most amazing Christian servants from all walks of life.  Susan Castell was one of them.  To me she was an Anna in the house of the LORD.  Anna was in the temple continually interceding for the coming Messiah and God rewarded her faithfulness by bringing her into the temple while Yeshua was being dedicated and letting her see the fruit of her intercession.  Susan said, that the Lord revealed to her that before Yeshua returns, there will be a corporate "Anna" ministry that will be interceding for His return.  Susan was an individual who knew how to wait before the LORD and listen to His heart, His voice.   Susan was a wonderful mentor to many and continues to share the heart of God where ever the LORD sends her.  Susan and her husband Billy were ma...

Heavens/Heaven Shamayim / Shameh   H-8064   Strong’s# The root of this Hebrew word comes from the root meaning, “to be lofty.”   As a noun it means, “heavens, heaven, sky, aloft and air.” The ancient root means, “breath” and “a place of the wind.”   Heaven often appears as plural in the Old Testament because the Hebrews understood the great expanse and vastness of heaven.   The plural form emphasized this point.   Heaven also referred to God’s dwelling place.   LORD God of Israel, there is no God in heaven above or on earth below like You, who keep Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.   1 Kings 8:23 Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all it is this day.    Deuteronomy 10:14 Worship opens the door to heaven.   Worship creates an atmosphere where earth and heaven meet.   Perhaps we can compare it to Jacob’s ladder...

Elohim (Strong's # H-430) is the first name of God that appears in scripture in Genesis 1:1.   In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Elohim is translated as God.    The name Elohim comes from the root, elah or el meaning, “strong or mighty.”   Elohim is associated with the idea of a “strong creator.”    The ancient meaning of El is “one who holds authority over others.”     The ending added to the word elah or el makes this word plural yet it is used with singular verbs and adjectives.    Elohim is plural but used as singular thousands of times in the Old Testament.   When elohim is used in the plural sense it is usually in reference to pagan gods and not referring to the God of Israel.  From a Christian perspective we can see the trinity expressed in this name (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) but the corporate Godhead was also part of the Hebrew understanding from the Tanakh (Old Testament Scr...

My own sheep will hear my voice and I know each one, and they will follow me. I give to them the gift of eternal life and they will never be lost and no one has the power to snatch them out of my hands.  My Father, who has given them to men as his gift, is the mightiest of all, and no one has the power to snatch them from my Father’s care.  The Father and I are on.   John 10:27-30 TPT So many voices clamoring for our attention.   Emotionally charged voices everywhere we go, across every part of our lives.   Who are we listening to?   Who is telling us the truth?   Who can we trust? Even in the most trusted environments such as church and family we can hear the wrong voices.   It is not that people intentionally want to give speak things that are not true but they are sometimes speaking out of what they know, their own agendas and what the world says, not what God says. There have been several times in my life where this battle against d...

 Holy Spirit is preparing the bride through worship, a worship that is deeply rooted in our hearts.  The Spirit is blowing on the smoldering coals within us and producing flames of desire to be with our Eternal Bridegroom.  It is not just knowledge of Him as Savior and what He has done for us, but a deep desire to be with Him.  This worship of the heart speaks His name as we open our eyes from sleep and is our last thought as we drift off to sleep at night.  It is a desire that causes us to search for Him in our everyday experiences.  It prompts us to look for Him in every circumstance.  It is worship that sings throughout our days, in the best and the worst of times.  This depth of worship will bring about the return of the Bridegroom.  Only God the Father knows the hour of His Son’s return and He is waiting for a bride who will be ready for His Son.  A bride who loves Him, desires Him and desires for Him to be her husband.  His br...

  Len Douglas, worship leader, musician and songwriter gave me this song to record in 2019.   Len, his wife Gail, our friend Marcia and I are an Intercessory Worship Team, Incense Rising.  We meet to worship, pray and plant God’s desires for our region through decreeing His Word and prophetic song.   Last year Len had been meditating on John 20 and Mary Magdalene’s encounter at the empty tomb on the day of resurrection.  This song is filled with a depth of emotion; of loss, then surprise and unspeakable joy.  “We seek the one we love so such, we brought the spices for a final touch. It’s an act of worship, in our own way but His love was greater and He couldn’t stay.”   Later in the song the lyric changes to, “He brought the spices for a final touch.” That resurrection morning the women came with their precious spices for Jesus.  It was their act of love that compelled them to go with their spices to the tomb that morning.  At that...

  The LORD of Hosts , Yahveh Tsebaot (Strong’s # H-6635) is the plural of tsaba which means, “an army, a company organized for war, soldiers, a mass of persons.”   It originates from the root, “to fight, to mass, to war.”  The ancient meaning is, “mustering of an army as a wall or protection.” This title is used when God sent His heavenly forces to aid His people.  This is the God of victory, who commands the angels, the hosts of heaven.  Awake to help me, and behold!   You therefore, O LORD God of hosts , the God of Israel, awake to punish, all the nations; do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors.  Psalm 59:5 The LORD of hosts leads the host of heaven in battle against the enemy of our souls.   The LORD of hosts will return with His armies as Captain of the hosts and defeat satan forever.  Worship is warfare.   When we worship our God with all our being we are agreeing with the LORD of hosts and His forces in heaven are m...

  My heart is on fire, boiling over with passion.  Bubbling up within me are these beautiful lyrics as a lovely poem to be sung for the King!  Like a River bursting its banks, I’m overflowing with words, spilling out into this sacred story.   Psalm 45:1 The Passion Translation I discovered the incredible passion of this psalm over 25 years ago walking in the misty morning on the coastline of the Olympic Peninsula.    I was on vacation with my family and got up at dawn and decided to walk the beach and talk with God.   I opened my NKJV Bible to Psalm 45 and started to read it as I walked along.   I don’t think I had ever read this Psalm before or if I did, I did not understand the depth of these words.   My heart felt like it was about to explode.   My heart became filled with words that I couldn’t seem to speak.   My silence was actually singing deep inside my soul and spirit.   When I returned to my home in New York, ...

In the Bible there are relational titles such as husband and bridegroom in reference to the LORD and Yeshua/Jesus .  The LORD refers to Himself in terms of a husband in reference to His relationship to Israel .  Yeshua alludes to Himself as the bridegroom as He preached about the coming Kingdom of God and in regards to His presence among His disciples.  We see this concept explained and elaborated on also by others writers such as Paul and John in the New Testament in reference to the Church, the bride of Messiah.   The relationship of husband and wife is the most intimate relationship there is. We see this from the very beginning of time.   And Adam said, “This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. ” Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.  Genesis 2:22-23 This relationship between husband and wife produces new life...

  In Luke 4:14-30 we read about Jesus returning to His home town of Nazareth.   He had just begun His ministry after being tempted in the wilderness for 40 days.   He returns to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.   Jesus went to the synagogue on the Sabbath and read from the scroll of Isaiah. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering if sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. The people in the synagogue were impressed by Jesus command of the scriptures and marveled at his words.   They requested a display of the miracles they heard about in Capernaum but Jesus does not respond to them as they expect.   Instead, He begins to speak the truth about the present state of things in the Israel and the crowd was enraged and tried to throw Jesus off the cliff.  What hap...

  The Hebrew word for redeemer is gaal or goel.      Strong’s meaning (H-1350) is, “to be the next of kin, to buy back a relative’s property, marry a relative’s widow, deliver, ransom and purchase.” Then they remembered and sought earnestly for God, then they remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God their Redeemer .     Psalm 78:34-35 Job makes an amazing statement in the middle of his anguish and loss.   Job declares the coming Redeemer and not only that He will deliver mankind but He will bring a physical resurrection.   Job was a righteous man that God allowed satan to inflict.   He suffered, he was humiliated, lost everything he had and eventually God brought complete restoration. “Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever!   For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and aft...

  The Hebrew word, Chalah means, “to grieve, to be rubbed worn, to entreat, travail, to be wounded and to be weak.” (H-2470, Strong’s)  Yes, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem and to pray before the LORD.   “Thus, says the LORD of hosts. In those days ten men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”   Zechariah 8:12 There are many Hebrew words for prayer but this word implies an intense seeking of God.   In Zechariah the nations are earnestly seeking the God of Israel; there is desperation and a great need to know Him.   There are times when we pray in desperation for God to reach into our situation and intervene.    We are rubbed worn, even grieved as we cry out to God to answer our deepest need or the deepest need of a loved one, a friend, a nation or even a stranger.   The only thing...