“The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.” -Psalm 25:14 NKJV
Last week, the Lord showed me an important Biblical principle. That is that Jesus often withdrew to pray. He went into the wilderness to seek the face of our Father, Yahweh. I called Linda and I said, “Linda, you are second in command as the Executive Director at Thread of Hope. God has a message here to give us. I’m sending you into the wilderness to pray and seek the face of God. The mission is that the Holy Spirit will reveal to you what He is trying to show us as leaders. Furthermore, you are to tell me anything that the Holy Spirit shows you regarding me. Whatever it is a rebuke, a reproach, a word of encouragement, whatever it may be, you are to tell me. Please shut down everything and close yourself in. Go before God on behalf of yourself, Thread of Hope, and me. I want to know for sure what God is saying.”
Linda is a woman of prayer and dedication to God and His Word. She is determined to follow in His ways. She cannot be moved when the Holy Spirit reveals truth. I was certain that the Bible verse quoted above which guides my life would manifest itself.
The passage is found in Psalm 25:14, “The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.”
In order for us to hear the secret of the LORD, then we must be living for Him in all areas of life. This means walking in obedience to Him. Because of this is why I follow God with all of my heart. I do not yield, bend my knee to anything, any deity, or any person. I know that God speaks, and He is very clear and precise. We should resolve to have a completely surrendered life. This is the best and the blessed life. Here is where God lovingly corrects us and rebukes us and gives us encouragement and hope. Here lies the secret of making all the right choices. Every single choice we make from where to go on vacation to whom we are to be married to is all shown here.
God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, speaks to me on a daily basis. I do not do anything if God has not told me to do it. God has been faithful to me. He has always revealed what was happening, what was to come, and how I was to act, say, and do in all situations. Every word and every action continues to be executed exactly as to what He has revealed to me. His secrets are completely said and shown to me. You may ask how. Let me explain.
God will give me a warning. He will tell me what is happening behind the scenes. He will give me a vision, or He will give me a dream; and at every step of the way, He will tell me how to act and what to say. When I am to open my mouth and when I am to keep my mouth shut. When I am to reveal what I know or when I am to pretend that I do not know. He will tell me why He is leading me down this route. Therefore, I knew that God would show my godly executive director and friend if I was in any way, form, or shape out of the will of God. I also knew what God has shown me about the present and the future of Thread of Hope. I have known this for the last two years. I needed confirmation in the things that the Lord had said to me and if I had heard correctly. I knew God would confirm it through his servant one of my lifelong friends, Linda Knowles. I was anxious for Monday morning to arrive. I wanted to know what God had told her. Imagine my delight when God did not tell her anything I had done wrong. There was no rebuke.
I said to Linda, “I want to know in order what God has told you. I want a one-word description of what He has told you." I said that because I knew that God was giving a theme. I did not want her to know what God had told me so that she would flow in the Holy Spirit without being influenced.
What she had to say is what is inspiring the next several days of devotionals at Thread of Hope. She will be writing based on those one-word descriptions and the message God gave her.
Please look with me at this incredible list of words she was given: consuming fire, concealment, sins, consecration, cleansing, backsliding, choice, and hope. All in order! These words were given in order. Does it need to be any clearer as to what the message is? Let me share with you the message the Holy Spirit told me that Linda confirmed.
God revealed to Linda that He is a consuming fire meaning that when we stand before His presence, anything that we have concealed is coming forth just like Moses had to take off his shoes because he was standing on holy ground. That which is hidden, concealed within us, is going to meet the fire of the Living God. This is where the sins are exposed. The sins like deception, lying, and all forms of hypocrisy that separates us from the Living God will be purged by His consuming fire. It is here where those who are serious with God will repent and consecrate themselves in humility before God. This is where the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all our sins and wickedness. Once the choice is made to follow Christ, this is the point where we do NOT turn back to our old way of life in sin as Jesus said, “Go and sin no more.” People seem to forget that Jesus had said that a number of times. In other words, Jesus said, “You better not sin or something worse is going to happen to you.”
We all have a choice as to whether or not we want to live a life of sin, deception, and lies or take the free gift of salvation, change our lives around, follow Christ, and live under the blessings of God. Finally, it’s just like God to start off by saying who He is, what He does not tolerate, the way of escape through the blood of His precious Son Jesus Christ, the choice being ours, and finishing with the greatest promise of all. We have hope in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross. There is no hopelessness regardless of what you have done, thought, or believed. The blood of Jesus covers all sins, washing us as white as snow. It’s all about repentance.
I know God is speaking loud and clear. The revelation that Linda has been given will be shared with all of us. Yesterday, without Pastor Eddie Masih knowing, he preached on the same theme regarding the Holy Spirit revealing the secrets of the Lord to those who seek Him, the importance of prayer, and being in the Spirit. There is no doubt on any of our minds that God has spoken to us individually and corporately as a team. God is on the move! This is not a time to be playing games. Sins will be exposed. Lives will be given the opportunity to reject sin, be cleansed, consecrate themselves, and to choose to live in eternal life with Jesus Christ.
Our hope in Him brings victory and blessings into our lives. Choose life by choosing Jesus Christ. The choice is yours. Take it.
Rev. Dr. Teresa Allissa Citro
Founder and President Thread of Hope, Inc.