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The Flagstaff

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Take the Land and Claim It for the LORD!

What is one of the first acts of war that occurs when an army invades a town, city or land? The former flag is replaced by one which represents the conquerors. Some of our men and women in the armed forces have witnessed this act firsthand. Most of us have only seen this portrayed in movies. A soldier might scale up to the high tower on the city wall, pull up the enemy's flag, throw it down to the ground, and then victoriously hoist his nation's flag!

Part of the message here is that the former rule has been eliminated, there is a new authority in the land, and all within that land will now abide under this new rule and reign as well as ascribe to new values and ideals of that sovereign power.

One vital purpose of flags coming forth in worship is making the prophetic proclamation that our LORD is taking this land. The first territory to be taken is that of our own hearts.

Remember the Sunday school song, "Your flag flies high in the castle of my heart?" Our Lord is on the offense and taking the high places in our hearts. It has not been so very difficult to surrender the initial areas, the lower places in our lives. But He is saying, "I want My banner to fly over your entire life, not just one room, one town or province, but the WHOLE territory." Flags that might be used in asking Him to take the high places in our hearts could exalt the names Jehovah Mekaddishkhem (The LORD Who Sanctifies You) or Refiner's Fire. Scripture says He sits and patiently skims off the dross until He can see His reflection mirrored in the vat of silver. It is His ultimate desire to fully possess us.

When we are occupied by Him, then He continues to advance His kingdom through us, sending us forth to push back the borders of darkness.

He begins to intercede through us and prophesy through us. As we worship Him in spirit and in truth with flags, they symbolize His presence taking new ground in both the spirit and the natural. His glorious presence inhabits our praises and moves into a region in a more tangible, manifest way. The light of His presence dispels the darkness. The banner of the Adversary is removed and replaced in the spirit by the His Banner of Love. What a heavenly aspect of warfare! The extended, appointed territory that He is desiring to take may be in our home, our local church, the neighborhood where we live, our city, state or country.

An anointed song written by Pam Singer, titled Jubilee has a verse that says, "Get thee up. Arise, unto the mountain. Take the land and claim it for the Lord. For great is He Who has spoken. Shall He not perform it?" A number of scriptures speak this message. Going back to Genesis, the LORD says to Abram, "Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are ---northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever. ... Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you."

The LORD speaks to Joshua: "Take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land." (Josh. 8:1)

The LORD commanded Moses in Deuteronomy 27:24, "Rise, take your journey, and cross over the River Arnon. Look, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to possess it, and engage him in battle." Again in chapter 10:11, He tells Moses, "Arise, begin your journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land which I swore to their fathers to give them."

It is important to note that Joshua, Moses, David, nor Jesus Himself went forth to extend the borders of the kingdom unless they were instructed to do so by the Father.

Certainly this must hold true for us today as well. We must not recklessly go forth with our flags honoring His name to take new land except as led by Holy Spirit. Jesus said that Satan cannot cast out Satan. If we have any common ground with our enemy, the Adversary, we cannot have authority over him and he knows it. Holy Spirit, You are the Refiner, the Sanctifer, the Husbandman of our hearts. We seek You to continue the work You have begun in our lives, and to continue to be the "groundskeeper" of our souls.

Flags in worship are an outward sign marking territory that is possessed by our LORD. A scene from the movie "Far and Away" depicted the Oklahoma land rush and how the settlers claimed their property by pushing a small flag into the ground. When the U.S. landed on the moon, our astronauts placed an American flag on the surface denoting we were the first to arrive (as though WE could claim the moon as OUR property!) The Iwo Jima Memorial immortalizes taking possession of land in war, as the soldiers team up to stake the ground with the American flag.

We are no longer merely involved in ground warfare, but seated in the heavenlies with Jesus. When we worship Adonai T'zvaot, Lord Sabaoth, Captain of the Hosts, God of the Angel Armies, He is moved out of love for His people to go to war on our behalf. Let us seek our Commander in Chief for what land He desires to capture these next few months and this next year. Listen for His voice to say, "ARISE, SHINE; FOR YOUR LIGHT HAS COME! AND THE GLORY OF THE LORD IS RISEN UPON YOU. NOW, ARISE GO FORTH AND ALLOW ME TO TAKE NEW LAND THROUGH YOU FOR MY GLORY!"

The Anointing Breaks the Yoke

In Acts 19:11 it is written: "Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them."

Donna Kelly, co-pastor of Passion and Fire Worship Center, writes, "Think about the incredible anointing of God's presence that accompanies worship!! It is those wonderful times of worship, when we enter into His magnificent Presence, that it is as though there is a dew falling in a gentle mist. Imagine that tangible anointing being captured in fabric, just as it did when Paul ministered under the anointing. As we worship our Lord with the garments of praise and worship instruments such as flags and banners, their meaning and intercession take on a new glory as God's manifest Presence anoints these worship instruments with the tangible anointing. We have anointed cloths with oil and prayed over them, but there is nothing like a cloth or flag that has been used to worship our Lord which now somehow carries a tangible anointing, That tangible anointing touches even those that we wave our flags over. Healings, deliverance and a powerful worship anointing is released, as we lift up our high praises, just as the garments that were taken from Paul's body to heal the sick, raise the dead, and bring deliverance. Worship instruments are not just a beautiful accessory, but they are worship cloths that carry the tangible anointing that God is using to impart a greater love and intimacy to His people."

To carry a tangible anointing, it is vital to bathe flags in worship and intercession before they are used, even as they are being brought forth in the workroom. The act of making them can be an expression of worship in itself. Creating an atmosphere of worship with a favorite tape or CD helps. Interceding to our LORD in the aspect of His character that is being expressed by the flag is also a wonderful way to begin to saturate the flag with His powerful presence. Praying over it before it goes into the holy of holies and on the battlefield is another key in having it carry the anointing.

Sherry Grubelnik has been an eyewitness to the "big hankie" anointing. "At the last ETH Convention I felt impressed to bring our daughter, Amber, who (the physicians say) is mentally retarded...the Lord impressed me to buy one of your flags...I asked the Lord which color -- I would have thought gold since so much gold dust was falling -- but no, silver is what the Lord told me...that particular one was also for breaking down the walls. That is exactly what Amber does anyway --- there are no walls between her and others, especially those who are hurting. She just zeros in on them. The Lord loves others through her." Sherry goes on to report that Amber took the flag to a church in Lubbock TX and they saw racial walls being broken down. Then Sherry took the flag to a prison for ministry and said, "Guess what, that flag is what they remember. They don't really know the meaning of them, but it is like I am at the front of a big battleship full of these men who love the Lord so much, but are rowing with all of their might...to keep going through the big high waves that are trying to overtake their ship. I can see that silver flag being waved back and forth at the front of their ship, without stopping --- silver for redemption! Wow! This has been so powerful. When the men write us, they always mention the flag." (The instrument described by Shirley is made of silver lame' with brick walls, and exalts our LORD as Baal Perazim, "Yahweh Breaks Through!")

All of this having been said, let's remember that like the hankies of Paul, flags are not to become an idol. While they should be respected and serve as a visual touchpoint of faith, it is the LORD, the Most High God, Who is the Power that touches hearts and changes lives. Flags point to HIM.

"The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our God." (Rev. 11:15) We await the seventh trumpet!

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