A Note to My Readers

I’d like to ask a favor of those of you who have read my books at some time in the past. If you enjoyed them, would you be so kind as to take a couple of minutes to review the ones you have read at Amazon?

Reviews help authors immensely in spreading the word about our books, and I would appreciate your help in this way so much. You don’t have to write paragraphs unless you want to. A couple of sentences are enough.

Even if you did not buy the book at Amazon, as long as you are an Amazon customer, you can review books you have read elsewhere.  (You can also copy and paste your review to Goodreads, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Apple iBooks if you choose, but Amazon is the biggie that helps the most.)

Besides reviews, word of mouth /social media recommendations are also a huge help!

Thank you so much! I appreciate it no end! For your convenience, here are the links to my titles at Amazon:

 

The Intercessor Manual

 

 

 

The Intercessor’s Companion:
Bible Ammo to Win Your Battle

 

 

 

Your Intercession Questions Answered

 

 

 

House of Prayer ~ House of Power

 

 

 

The Spirit-Filled Guide to Personal Prophecy

 

 

 

The Names of God

 

 

 

All-Surpassing Peace in a Shaking World

 

 

 

Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God

 

 

 

Encouragement from God’s Word

 

 

 

Hotline to Heaven: Hearing the Voice of God

 

 

 

God’s Word on Healing

 

 

 

How to Pray and Read the Bible

 

 

 

River Life: Entering into the Character of Jesus

 

 

 

Teach Your Kids to Hear God!

 

 

 

The Homeschool Guide to Raising Prayer-Filled Kids

 

 

 

Character Building for Families, Volume 1

 

 

 

Character Building for Families, Volume 2

 

 

 

You Can Know the Future — The Holy Spirit and You (Part 2)

But when He, the Spirit of truth, has come … He will show you things to come. — John 16:13

Since the beginning of time, mankind has longed to know the future. I believe that this desire was implanted within us when God first made man in His own image. Because of the entrance of sin, many throughout history have sought to quench this God-given thirst wrongly, by tapping into occult spirituality. However, man’s wrong usage does not detract from the Lord’s nature as a foretelling God. He still invites His people to seek Him in this area today.

In the Bible, the Lord spoke to both Israel and the Church of their past, their present, and their future. He also speaks to us about our personal lives in all three of these time zones as we commune with Him in prayer. Christians usually do all right with Him speaking about the past and the present. But, because miracles and present-day spiritual gifts were discouraged by many churches for a long time, some people still get nervous with the idea of the Lord speaking about our future, other than what is specifically recorded in Scripture.

We don’t need to be afraid of seeking God for information about our future. Jesus already told us that part of the Holy Spirit’s purpose for being shed abroad in our hearts is, “He will show you things to come.”

Now, we do need to be careful not to get out of balance with this. God set a precedent of telling us about the future in the Bible. He delights to speak of what is to come. But He also withholds information. Having a constant need to know is unhealthy, so we shouldn’t overdo it. There is a time to know, and a time to walk by faith, not knowing. God uses both to help us grow in relationship with Him.

Sometimes the thirst people have for future revelation leads to being indiscriminate about where they are receiving information from, even listening to evil spirits, thinking it must be God. It has also led to inordinately exalting those who happen to get some predictions right. We have put our prophets in a very unsafe position of feeling pressured to perform, always having to speak about what lies ahead. As a result, unreliable, immature, and wounded prophets have sometimes gained large followings of people who hang on their every word.

Why does God tell us things about the future?

• He likes to share His secrets with His trustworthy friends. Amos 3:7 says, “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets.” (Because New Testament believers now have the Holy Spirit dwelling within, we can all, in a measure, partake of this promise.)
• He wants us to begin taking preparatory steps to come into His plans for us.
• He is giving us vision toward which we can stretch our faith — because God’s plans are too big for us to accomplish in our own strength.
• He uses revelation of the future to build hope and a sense of purpose in us.
• He wants us to pray into what is yet ahead. As we bathe the future in intercession, we partner with Him for it to become reality in our natural world.
• He sometimes forewarns us of trouble ahead, but with that will also give His assurance that He will be with us in it and that He will take care of us.

Why does God withhold knowing the future from us?

• He has our good at heart at all times.
• Knowing ahead of time about deep struggles and sadness which will befall us would cause us to be fearful and despairing. Knowing these things before their time would steal our joy in the present. God gives supernatural grace in the moment for difficulties we must go through.
• Our immaturity — if we knew many of the wonderful plans He has for us, we might try to rush into them in our own strength instead of waiting for Him to put them together. He knows what we are mature enough to handle at any given point in time, and in His wisdom conceals from us whatever would be too much for our egos to handle.
• He wants us to seek Him more than we seek revelation.
• He wants us to inquire of Him for guidance, which He then doles out as it is needed. Our faith is built as we take one step at a time, holding His hand in trust, letting Him lead us.
• He likes to surprise us with good gifts. He is the God of suddenlies.

As you ask the Lord to show you things to come, keep in mind what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:12: “For now we see dimly through a glass, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then shall I know even as I am also known.”

In addition, remember that the Body of Christ sees and knows together. Anytime you hear of a prophet who knows it all, beware. God gives pieces of the puzzle to several, so that together we obtain one big picture. He wants us to depend upon Him and each other.

Next time, we’ll talk about how intercessors can handle wisely what we hear about the future.

 

Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God, by Lee Ann Rubsam

 

 

The Spirit-Filled Guide to Personal Prophecy, by Lee Ann Rubsam

 

Getting to the Truth — The Holy Spirit and You (Part 1)

But when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth  — John 16:13

I love John, Chapters 14 and 16, where Jesus tells us about the Holy Spirit, Who has now come to live in the heart of every believer. In Old Testament times, the prophets experienced the indwelling of the Spirit (1 Peter 1:11), but the rest of God’s people did not. They depended on the prophets to give them the Word of the Lord. How different it is today, when every believer can hear God personally and sense His Presence within. What a blessing!

The Spirit is our ever-present friend, comforter, guide, and teacher. He continually points us to Jesus. We can come to know Him even more deeply through the Baptism in the Spirit, which is not an end in itself, but an entrance into a satisfying adventure of intimate fellowship and partnership with Him.

I so appreciate knowing Him as the Spirit of Truth. I frequently pray that He will expose portions of my thinking which are not in alignment with truth. I pray this often for my loved ones as well — especially if I see areas of their thinking, speaking, or actions which don’t line up with God’s heart.

It could be a self image issue which needs to change — because, unfortunately, we tend to believe negative things about ourselves due to past hurts, unkind words which have been spoken to us, or lies that spirits of darkness have injected into our minds. It could be a perception of God’s nature which needs to change (again because people say wrong things which take root, or because the devil whispers slanderous thoughts to us about the Lord). Often, deception enters in through all the stuff we encounter in everyday life in a sinful, God-opposed world.

Sometimes the Spirit needs to correct doctrinal error in us — teachings which are generally believed and taken for granted within our particular church circles. We have a habit of passing around various ideas which become accepted over time because we hear them so often. If a prominent pastor or teacher says something, pretty soon other pastors and teachers are also saying the same thing. After we hear the same idea from several different sources, we start believing it as gospel truth. Sometimes it isn’t, and it takes the Holy Spirit ministering His truth to us to reveal that and reorder our thinking.

Generally, He guides us away from error and into truth by making a particular Bible verse stand out to us. Suddenly, the light bulb goes on that the Bible doesn’t really say what we were told for so many years that it said!

He may also use a solid Bible teacher to point out truths we had never seen in the Word before — but it is up to us to be like the Bereans in Acts 17:11. They received the apostles’ teaching eagerly, but also searched the Scriptures to make sure what they were being told was really so!

The Spirit also guides us into truth by prompting us in our spirit that some idea we’ve been harboring isn’t quite right. He may cause us to feel uneasy about something we hear said. We must listen to these subtle warnings and not dismiss them just because our rational minds can’t identify any problem. The Spirit knows what we cannot discern through our natural senses.

The Holy Spirit’s work of bringing us into truth is a lifelong process. We rise to ever-greater truth as we fellowship with Him in prayer and the Scriptures, until that day when we are with the Lord and all darkness is purged from us. The Spirit is continually cleaning up error in us and enlightening us to real truth. Deception comes off in layers. Sometimes we inadvertently allow new layers of it to become attached to us, so He patiently removes those as well.

I believe one of the best ways we can accelerate the work of truth in our lives is by actively inviting the Spirit of Truth to guide us into all truth. James 4:2 tells us, “You have not, because you ask not” — so let’s ask! Then we stay open-hearted to Him and let Him do what we’ve invited Him to do.

Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). All thanks and praise to Him for sending the precious Holy Spirit to us, so that we can experience the reality of this promise!

Do you have thoughts or a testimony on how the Spirit is guiding you into all truth? Perhaps you would like to share by leaving a comment.

 

For more on the work of the Holy Spirit, see Lee Ann’s book, Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God.

 

As You Pray for America

I am so encouraged by what God is doing across America within His Church. The intercessors are beginning to arise in greater numbers, and people are gathering together to pray with others for our nation. Finally, we are waking up out of our sleep!

As we see so much turbulence around us, this is not a time to fear, but to be confident in our God, Who is committed to answering the concerted prayers of His people.

In one of our prayer gatherings a few weeks ago, as we were entering into prayer for our nation, in my spirit I saw a hand, palm upward, with the fingers curled toward the center of the palm. And the Lord spoke that He holds victory in His hand. He said He would release that victory as we intercede together. He said we could pray with confidence in His willingness to pour out victory in response to our prayers. Our prayers uncurl His fingers to release His victory plans (which He has already decreed) into the earth.

Still, I found myself just a few days later feeling very low over what we were seeing in the news (during the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings). But the Lord spoke to me again, “You must not let yourself get under the burdens. You must have confidence in your God.”

It is very easy to fear when we get our eyes and ears on what people are doing and saying. That’s not where we are called to be as prophetic intercessors. We are to stay focused on the Lord, eyes on Him, hearts set on His agenda. Sometimes there is a struggle in our minds to maintain that place, but we must keep coming back to it, if we falter.

We need to remember where the real battle is, too. It is easy to see people as the enemy we are battling, but never forget what Ephesians 6:12 says about this: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, … powers, … the rulers of the darkness of this world, … spiritual wickedness in high places.” While it’s a very familiar verse to many of us, we have to keep reminding ourselves of it, because it is easy to become angry with people, rather than understanding the underlying, root source. Yes, there are wicked people doing wicked things. But the evil spirits pulling their puppet strings are the real enemy.

With elections coming up soon and a vicious battle for a Supreme Court seat fresh in our minds, we must recognize that what looks like a political battle between Democrats and Republicans really is not. It is a spiritual battle for whether righteousness or evil holds this nation in its grip. It is about wicked spiritual beings wanting to have complete control over this nation. Please do not think I am saying one political party stands for righteousness and one for evil. It may sometimes look that way, but the war goes much deeper than that.

In our prayer gathering, we don’t pray against people or political parties. We pray for righteousness to be exalted in our land. While we don’t pray against particular people in government, we do pray that those who do not stand with Bible principles will be removed from office and have their influence broken, if they refuse to have a change of heart. We ask that people of integrity and righteous principles would be placed in government office and other places of authority. We plead for the people of our nation to come to Jesus, which is by far the most important result we look for.

How can we pray effectively in a way that releases God’s plans into our nation?

• We can never go wrong by using Daniel 9:3-19 as our model. Daniel identified with his people in repentance, humility of heart, and fasting.
• We pray according to what we see and hear by the Spirit of God, rather than only by what we see and hear in the news. This requires quieting ourselves and asking God for His counsel on how to pray.
• We pray much in tongues. As we do, we grow in understanding what God intends to do and how to pray in agreement with Him. Romans 8:26 tells us, “Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities [weaknesses and limitations]: for we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us ….”
• Use Scripture to contend for God to prevail. “It is written” is a powerful way to war.
• Join together with others in prayer meetings. There is so much more power in the corporate gathering of intercessors agreeing together in our petitions. Jesus said, “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father Who is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:19, 20).

I encourage you to keep pressing in to the Lord until we receive the results He intends. God is eager to answer, as we place our confidence in Him and pray His purposes into our nation and the earth.

 

The Intercessor Manual,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

 

 

The Intercessor’s Companion,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

Tips for Hearing God More Clearly

Do you want to hear God more and with greater clarity? We should all seek to grow in hearing God more frequently and more accurately than we currently do.

Maybe you don’t think you hear God much at all — yet. It could be you are hearing Him, but not recognizing how much He is already speaking to you!

Here are a few tips for better hearing:

Value the small things God says to you.

Limiting our expectation for hearing God’s voice to only monumental revelation can really hinder our ability to hear Him. We want to know about the future, we desire a word of guidance, or we look for an entire blueprint for the next five years of our lives. But those aren’t the only ways God speaks — in fact, they will be in the minority.

Most of our everyday conversations with loved ones are not made up of pivotal, life-changing discussions. We talk about the day-to-day events, and we enjoy doing it. God doesn’t only speak about the big stuff, either.

Gentle thoughts such as “Don’t be afraid; I’m here,” or “I love you, and I will always stand with you,” or “Just trust Me and I’ll take care of you,” are God talking to you. These are the kinds of things He says most of the time. He is delighted when you treasure the little things He speaks.  Respond to them gratefully, record them in your prayer journal, and allow them to bring you into affectionate conversation with the Lord.

God’s voice is not like the opinions and speculations of man.

What He says has a different tone from what we hear and see in our natural world, because He knows way more than the “experts” in the media. God never has to speculate on how things will turn out. He’s always out in front of current situations.

God never projects anxiety over the future. It is finished, and Jesus already has secured the victory, remember? He’s not nervous and worried, wondering whether His people will pray enough or do all the right things to make life on earth go well. Because He isn’t wringing His hands, He doesn’t speak anxiety into us, either.

Sometimes Christian leaders temporarily get off in the flesh and say things like, “People of God, it’s all going down if we don’t pray harder / preach louder / get more involved. God won’t win this one if we don’t get out there and DO!” That’s a spirit of fear speaking, not the Spirit of God.

God’s voice will inspire awe of Him, but not fear about our circumstances. He will show us what steps to take. He will prompt us to pray earnestly, but from a position of being confident that He will answer, not from a place of panic. “For you shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rearward” (Isaiah 52:12).

God’s voice does not feel like a club beating us over the head.

The Spirit will convict us of areas where we are not aligned with Him — sinful thinking, speaking, and habits. But condemnation, shame, and accusations are the devil’s tools, not God’s. The Lord’s reproof carries with it a sense of His sorrow over our wrongdoing, but also His assurance that He still loves us. There is hope attached to His correction.

Shut down the background noise.

We need periods of undistracted quiet if we hope to hear the “still small voice” of the Holy Spirit. That might mean shutting off even the Christian music at times. Some people are uncomfortable if they don’t have background sound. Really, it’s all about habits. Just as you formed the habit somewhere along the line of always having sound going on around you, you will have to accustom yourself to the “sound” of quiet. Try it for a short period of time, and then increase the silent time gradually.

In addition to turning off physical background noise, we must learn to shut out the clamor of too many voices pouring into our heads through news and social media. We are bombarded with opinions coming at us from all directions. Deliberately cut out, or at least limit, what you read or listen to in the way of people’s ideas. When our ears and eyes are constantly absorbing what others think, our brains become overloaded. Our thoughts swirl out of control. When the mind is overstimulated, it is difficult to hear the Lord deep down in our spirit. Learn to reduce the barrage of your natural senses, so that your spiritual senses can gain the upper hand.

When we shut down distractions, we make way for the Lord to speak to us about His eternal perspectives.

Ask the Lord questions.

Ask them one at a time. Then wait for His answer. This is one of the best ways to begin hearing Him more clearly. Our Father loves conversation time with His children. We do well to give Him the opportunity.

I hope some of these tips will be useful to you in your quest to hear the Lord more clearly. Would you like to share tips you have found helpful in hearing Him? By commenting, you may provide just what someone else needs!

 

Hotline to Heaven: Hearing the Voice of God —
A short, no-nonsense tutorial by Lee Ann Rubsam

 

 

Hearing God Through Your Dreams Workshop

Is God Speaking to You in Your Dreams?

Throughout the Bible, God spoke to people in dreams. He still does today. The problem is, most of us don’t understand the symbolic language of dreams, so we’re missing the message.

 

Explore how YOU can hear from God through dreams!

 

Join us for a dream interpretation workshop with prophetic teacher Lee Ann Rubsam

 

Saturday, October 13, 2018
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Did You Miss the Dream Workshop? Awww!!

But here’s the good news — We have it available for you as an mp3 or CD set recording with an optional study guide

HERE

You will learn:

• The various types of dreams and their purposes
• How to tell the difference between God-dreams and self-dreams
• What to do if you dream of bad things to come
• How to remember your dreams and their details better
• Keys to interpreting your dreams
• How to apply the dream messages God gives you to your life
• Hands-on practice with interpreting each other’s dreams

The Green Fountain Inn
604 S. Main Street
Waupaca, Wisconsin

Maximum Group Size: 25, Pre-registration required.

$25.00 Registration Fee

Fee includes coffee, lunch, and study guide

A free-will offering will be taken.

Register Now

(Overnight accommodations are available at The Green Fountain Inn.)

Got questions? Contact us!

 

 

Jesus: Architect of Your Future

The Bible tells us in 103 places not to be afraid. And yet, many of us struggle with fear, especially about what the future holds. It’s something I personally battle, although I have been gaining ground against it through the years.

Because it’s still a struggle, the Lord often speaks to me about fear. Recently, He said to me, “Don’t worry about tomorrow. Jesus is in your future.” This was a joyful reminder to me!

Jesus is with us in the now. He is our Immanuel, God with us. But at the same time, He has also gone before us, preparing the way. And, He is already waiting for us there in our future. We just need to catch up to where He already is.

The primary reason we fall into fear is that we have not yet fully grasped God’s nature — how good and utterly faithful to us He is. But another major reason we fear is because we so easily forget that He has a definite plan for each of us with specific purposes He is committed to helping us fulfill. In 2 Timothy 1:9, He says that He “saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the world began.”

Before the world began, He had already called us. Before the world began, He had already designed a life blueprint for each one of us. He is the master architect, Who has meticulously thought out and planned for all of our life events. Not only is He the architect, but He is also the project manager, overseeing the building of our lives from beginning to end. He will see us through to completion. He is both the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Philippians 1:6 expresses it this way: “Being confident of this very thing, that He Who has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

Recently, the Lord led me to meditate on Psalm 16:5, 6: “The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup: You maintain my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yes, I have a goodly heritage.”

The “lot” spoken of is the destiny He has planned for us — our lot in life. The “lines” are boundary lines defining that lot, as with a plot of land. So the Lord is telling us that He has given each of us a certain territory which is uniquely ours. He maintains it and carefully watches over it. He has not given us a desolate plot of land, either, but a “goodly heritage.” He has planned for it to be pleasant, a delight to us.

Now, sometimes we have to see our lot through the eyes of faith. It won’t always look pleasant from a human perspective. Circumstances — sometimes for extended periods of time — can be very hard. It’s difficult then to see through the murk to where it will ever get better. Temporary troubles tend to becloud the long-term picture.

When life looks bleak, if we determine to look at it through the Lord’s eyes, we will gain a higher perspective. Meditating on and declaring verses such as these in Psalm 16 are practical ways to attain to His viewpoint. We begin to see, believe, and speak with conviction, “He truly has given me a good life, a great destiny, with a great future.”

Verses 8 and 9 of Psalm 16 take us a little deeper into seeing the good plan our Architect has for us: “I have set the LORD always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also shall rest in hope.”

The inheritance our Architect has planned for us includes a glad heart, a soul which rests in hope, and a satisfying destiny. If we purposefully keep our focus on Jesus, knowing He is right beside us, we will not be shaken with fear. Truly, “the lines have fallen unto us in pleasant places, and we have a goodly heritage.”

Here’s a classic song from Steve Green to encourage you along the same lines:

 

 

All-Surpassing Peace in a Shaking World,
by Lee Ann Rubsam

 

 

Before Whom We Stand: The Everyman’s Guide to the Nature of God, by Lee Ann Rubsam