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August 27, 2025

I’m glad to be back in the saddle writing the post for today. I hope you enjoyed hearing from some of our friends. Ceci is recovering nicely from last week’s hip replacement surgery. It’s a slow process, but she looks forward to being on the other side of it.

The title of today’s post is:

The Snare of Denial

According to the dictionary, denial is “An unconscious defense mechanism used to reduce anxiety by denying thoughts, feelings, or facts that are consciously intolerable.”(1) This can be very detrimental to a person’s well-being. However, I contend that there is good denial and bad denial.

For example, a desert nomad awakened from hunger one night and decided he’d have a midnight snack. Lighting a candle, he grabbed a date and took a bite. Holding the date to the candle, he saw a worm, whereupon he threw the date out of the tent. Biting into the second date, he found another worm and threw it away, also. Then, the nomad paused to consider the situation. Deciding he might not get anything to eat if this continued, he blew out the candle and ate the dates.(2)

That’s good denial. Just pretend there are no worms and eat the dates. The fear is all in your head, anyway - eating worms won’t hurt you. I learned that from watching the History Channel show “Alone.”

Then there is the story of a stubborn, never-say-die general who was taken captive and thrown into a deep, wide pit along with a number of his soldiers. In that pit was a huge pile of horse manure.

“Follow me,” the general cried to his men as he dove into the pile. “There has to be a horse here somewhere!”(3)

That’s bad denial. Granted, it’s good determination, unshakable optimism, and noble leadership - he went first. But it’s still bad denial. Excuse my grammar but…there ain’t no horse in the manure!!! Just because you want something to be true doesn’t make it so. In a case like this, it’s far better to “dive” into the truth.

A lot of people in America have a case of bad denial, this “unconscious defense mechanism used to reduce anxiety by denying thoughts, feelings, or facts that are consciously intolerable.” I appreciate wanting to help gender confused individuals, but denial and multiple labels aren’t the answer. Certainly, castration and mutilation are not the answers. God said He made us male and female (Genesis 1:27), and that settles it. Common sense confirms it, and science even proves it - X and Y chromosomes. We must absolutely love the confused and help them deal with their pain, but not through denial.

Then there is marriage. People are supposed to marry the opposite sex, not the same sex. God took a woman, not another man, from Adam’s side, and she became his wife (Genesis 2:21-24). To believe otherwise is unhealthy denial. Some politicians and educators are in denial about this, as is the Supreme Court. I certainly don’t hate those who have chosen to believe and live contrary to what the Scriptures say regarding this. To the contrary, I love them as fellow humans and citizens, and do not want them mistreated in any way. But I cannot compromise the Scriptures.

And men can’t have babies!!! Talk about denial. Play word games all you want, buy fake breasts and pretend to nurse a baby, but at the end of the day, there is no baby in the “men can have babies” pile. No amount of denial and pretend games will change this fact.

Gender issues are by no means the only areas of bad denial in America. Denial is everywhere. Some in the church practice denial: “Portions of the Bible do not apply to me. God just wants me to be happy.” Some in the education field engage in denial: “DEI is more important than reading, writing, and arithmetic.” And some in the media are actually specialists in denial: “Truth doesn’t matter; reporting what we want people to believe is far more important.”

And then there is government. Some politicians in Washington, D.C. would rather have criminals controlling the city than have Trump remove them. It’s not that they like the crime and violence; they just don’t want Trump to get credit for fixing the problems. And they don’t want his help. In fact, many would rather have rampant crime than accept help from President Trump. So, they practice denial: “We don’t have a crime problem here!”

Government is overpopulated with “ostrich politicians” - head in the sand, blind to reality. In Chicago, Mayor Johnson, with his 6% approval rating and his city being the murder capital of the nation for 13 straight years, recoiled at Trump‘s offer to help clean up Chicago. Johnson called it “Tyranny!” Proverbs 26:11 comes to mind: “Like a dog that returns to its vomit, is a fool who repeats his folly.”

And we cannot forget the denial of gerrymandering. “We despise your gerrymandering,” say the kings of gerrymandering to the Republicans. “You are destroying democracy with your corruption. We don’t engage in this evil; we simply redistrict.”

And who can forget those on the left who are so upset about the investigations of liars, leakers, corrupt judges, “lawfare” prosecutors, dishonest and disgraceful members of Congress, a shadow government in the White House running our nation during Biden’s tenure, and other criminals in government. “These investigations are only revenge,” they shout, as the DOJ, DNI, and FBI turn over more and more documents. They’re in denial, refusing to believe that their previous shouts of, “No one is above the law!” are drowning out their current accusations and confirming their hypocrisy. With eyes closed, they just continue diving into the Trump Derangement Syndrome pile.

Jesus gave the antidote to denial in John 8:32: “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Consistent with this, Proverbs 10:17 tells us, “If you readily receive correction, you are walking on the path to life. But if you reject rebuke, you’re guaranteed to go astray” (TPT‬‬). And Proverbs 13:18 instructs us, “Poverty and disgrace come to the one who refuses to hear criticism. But the one who is easy to correct is on the path of honor” (TPT‬‬).

“The path to life” and “the path of honor” are available to all. According to God’s instructions to Israel, life can be chosen (Deuteronomy 30:19). Let’s pray that more and more people in our nation accept the truth and choose life.

Pray with me:

Father, we humans are “prone to wander,” as the hymn writer said (Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing).(4) We sometimes prefer the darkness of denial to the light of truth. Remind us that we do not have to stumble upon the truth; Holy Spirit has been sent to lead us into all truth (John 16:13). We can choose to follow Him, honor Your Word, and thereby choose freedom and the path of life.

We pray for those who have chosen to turn away from Your words of life and path of freedom. Bring them to their senses as You did the prodigal in Scripture. Break the deception off them. We ask that You remove the veil of darkness that blinds them to the light of the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4). Remove the influence of those leading people into deception. Jesus described it as “the blind leading the blind” (Matthew 15:14).

Continue to awaken the American people. Expose deception and corruption in government and media. Expose these things in education and entertainment. We declare along with the old but timeless song, “[Your] truth is marching on.” Awaken America to Your truth once again. Make it strong and loud. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Our decree:

We declare that we are aligning ourselves with Scripture and the truth is setting us free.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

dictionary.com
Craig Brian Larson Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1993), p. 59, adapted.
Craig Brian Larson, Contemporary Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers, and Writers (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1996), p. 110, adapted.
https://hymnary.org/text/come_thou_fount_of_every_blessing

August 26, 2025

Introduction

As you probably saw last week, we made a few temporary adjustments to the GH15s. Ceci had hip replacement surgery last Tuesday, and I’m playing nurse. She continues to recover well and thanks you for your prayers. I’ll be back in the saddle, writing the posts myself, starting tomorrow.

Today’s encouraging post is from Timmerle Kelly, Executive Director of the Reformation Prayer Network. Timmerle reminds us of the tremendous victories our prayers have generated, and exhorts us to persevere in seeing America reformed. Her title is:

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Reformation Rising

Some of us have been praying for our nation for a very long time, longing to see shifts that seemed not to materialize. Many had to regularly guard against the heart sickness caused by hope deferred, mentioned in the first half of Proverbs 13:12. We longed to reach the second half of the verse, which says, “But a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.”

As this year began, something changed. Prophetic words shifted. Victory began to manifest from the years of faithful prayers. Many began asking, “Could this be the year where the synergy of our prayers manifests in earthly fulfillment?”

A new government was seated in January 2025, and we began to watch as prayers that had been prayed for 30 years or more began being answered. In some cases, we could not have imagined how completely and quickly this would occur. We had elected a president, but God had chosen a man who would form a government He could work through. Many believers–some appointed by Trump, others elected–are now in high-level positions, such as Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and the Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee. But even those who are not Christians are clearly in place to carry out God’s plans for the nation. Jeremiah 1:10 is our new reality, “See, I have set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant” (NKJV).

We now join our prayers to the victories we have seen materialize. And the more we see, the more we long to see. Here are just a few of the astonishing victories we have seen in just the first half of this year:

One of the longest prayer battles we have fought has been the battle for life, which has raged since the Supreme Court’s decision on Roe v. Wade in 1973. This ruling was overturned by SCOTUS on June 24, 2022, which sent the battle back to the states. More needs to happen to stop abortion in America, but good things are happening. A few days after his inauguration, President Trump re-enacted the Hyde Amendment. His Executive Order states, “It is the policy of the United States, consistent with the Hyde Amendment, to end the forced use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion.”(1)
Adding to this victory was the passing of “The One Big Beautiful Bill.” It included a provision prohibiting Medicaid reimbursements to health clinics that provide abortions. This is being contested in the courts, but funding is being withheld until the case is decided. In California alone, the loss to abortionists is considered to be $300 million.(2) Over 100 abortion-providing clinics have closed or are closing across the nation thus far – including at least 41 Planned Parenthoods.(3) In fact, the largest Planned Parenthood facility in the nation, in Houston, TX, recently announced its closing due to a lack of funding.(4) We have much work to do, but we celebrate these victories!
Religious persecution of Christians and Jews has been another issue in which we are seeing positive change. We have seen Christians “de-platformed” from social media, and “de-banked” by major financial institutions for public statements of faith and political comments regarding biblical values. In February, President Trump launched a task force to “eradicate anti-Christian bias.” He additionally stated, “The law protects the freedom of Americans and groups of Americans to practice their faith in peace, and my Administration will enforce the law and protect these freedoms.”(5)
While watching a serious erosion of family values in America, we have consistently and fervently prayed Malachi 4:6, “He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse” (KJV). Still, we watched as attacks against family values escalated in recent years. This moved from gay rights to gay marriage, then to gender identity confusion therapies, resulting in the mutilation of children’s bodies and the threat of the loss of parental rights.(6) But in answer to prayer, President Trump has signed numerous executive orders to protect children, including one on January 28^th that reads, “Across the country today, medical professionals are maiming and sterilizing a growing number of impressionable children under the radical and false claim that adults can change a child’s sex through a series of irreversible medical interventions. This dangerous trend will be a stain on our Nation’s history, and it must end.”(7) And the President is working to stop this evil.
On another front, in February, the president banned biological men from competing in women’s sports. The next day, in order to prevent the retraction of federal funds, the NCAA (the largest governing body for college sports) aligned its participation policy with the executive order. NCAA President Charlie Baker said, “To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.”(8) In July, the U.S. Olympic Committee banned trans athletes from competing in women’s sports.(9) Thank you, President Trump, for making a righteous stand. Although it seems ridiculous, we do need legislation to support these changes, or a future president could reverse them. We must continue to pray that ruling bodies stand firm for common sense and righteousness.

There is so much more for which to be thankful. We could talk about the “cleaning up” of government initiated by the DOGE team, immigration and the closing of the border, changes in the leadership of our judicial and intelligence divisions, and the ongoing exposure of past political espionage. We could examine how all three branches of government are finally beginning to work together, and how other nations are being affected by our nation’s changes, including the ending of six wars around the world.

We are truly in the midst of a national and international reformation. See it, believe it, agree with it, shake off any complacency or doubt, and press on in prayer and intercession.

Pray with me:

Father, we thank You, for You are truly moving in our nation! We see the signs of revival and reformation! We rejoice in these breakthroughs that are rolling unrighteousness off America. We will persevere in our intercession, connecting heaven and earth in a synergistic momentum that can’t be stopped by anything hell can throw at it.

We thank You for the closing of abortion clinics and the losses suffered by this evil industry. As we heard clearly last Friday, we have a long way to go before this heinous activity is eradicated in America. We pray that You would give strategy to those working in this arena, both on the legislative side and on the front lines. And awaken the conscience of our nation.

Also today, Lord, we pray for the many children who are in the foster care system of America. Our hearts break over this. Please move on the hearts of Americans to help these children in need. Place them in loving homes where they can be cared for and learn about You.

We also pray for the children who have been trapped in gender confusion. We pray that You would bring about significant breakthroughs in this area, saving children and transforming their lives, as only You can do. All of these things we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Our decree:

We decree that revival and reformation will continue and increase in America and the nations of the earth.

Today’s post was contributed by Timmerle Kelly, Executive Director of the Reformation Prayer Network, a branch of Generals International.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

August 25, 2025

Introduction

As you probably saw last week, we made a few temporary adjustments to the 15s. Ceci had hip replacement surgery last Tuesday, and I’m playing nurse. She is recovering well and appreciates your prayers.

Today’s post is from our friend Gina Gholston. Gina reminds us to pause and remember what God has done for us, then share these experiences with others, believing God’s power will be released as we do. I know you will enjoy it. Her title is:

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Aim for the Glory

I recently spoke at a conference where the theme was “Miracles, Signs, Wonders.” As I was praying about the meeting, the Lord said to me, “Miracles, signs, and wonders are not just a theme; they’re a calling! I have called believers to work with Me as I work through them in power to make My glory known.”

Our efforts in the past season have not been in vain; much has been accomplished. And yet we will do more–the revealing of God’s glory is part of His plan for us. I once asked the Lord, “Where are we on Your timeline, and what do we do now?” Among other things, He said, “I am giving the church a space of time to advance with the demonstration of My power. Aim for the glory! To see, to know, to experience, and to show My glory must be the goal of everything you do.”

I believe we are still in that space of time, and the manifested glory of God must continue to be our aim. It’s time for the awakening we have entered to advance to another level. As we do, the demonstration of God’s glory will spark an awareness of Him that can come no other way.

The fourth chapter of Acts gives us a picture of this. At that time, the church was just being launched. They had recently experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit, empowering them to be effective witnesses for Him. There was great opportunity, but there was also great resistance and persecution. It was a critical point on God’s timeline, and they understood that their purpose in this time was to make Jesus known. So, their prayer was not “Lord, hide us from the persecution.” Their prayer was: “God, give us boldness to speak Your Word by stretching forth Your hand to heal and that signs and wonders would be done in the name of Jesus” (see Acts 4:29, 30). When they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken and they were filled once more with the Holy Spirit. The demonstration of God’s power gave them boldness to speak the Word, and the resulting miracles produced undeniable evidence of Jesus’ reality.

This must be our prayer, as well! We have come to an urgent point on the timeline of God’s plan, and He has given us this window to advance His Kingdom purposes. I believe the moment we are moving into will be marked by evidence of His revealed power and glory.

God once said to Me, “I am about to show My strength and demonstrate My power in and through a people whose hearts are fully dependent and focused on Me! The world WILL see and know that I am God as I send My people forth with the light and covering of My Glory! This is the time to rise and shine, and the dark world will respond to My Light!”

God has also been speaking to me recently about the church laying “memorial stones” by telling stories of our experiences with Him, enabling others to hear of His glory and power. We find this concept in Joshua, chapter four. As they were crossing the Jordan River into God’s next phase, Joshua instructed twelve men, one from each tribe, to gather stones from the river and use them to build a memorial. It would serve as a lasting reminder for the following generations of God’s miraculous intervention.

We, too, are moving into a new phase on God’s timeline, and He is saying, “Before you go forward, take this moment to remember what I have done to get you here. Remember what you have seen and experienced, and tell your stories, so that others will hear of My power and know that I am God.”

One of the most valuable treasures we have access to as born-again believers is not only the intellectual knowledge of God, but experiential knowledge. Intellectual knowledge is beneficial, but when it is grounded in experience, rather than mere words, it becomes much more powerful and compelling. Experience is a powerful witness. It cannot be dismissed as mere speculation, supposition, or assumption; it is undeniable knowledge gained by personal experience and observation. And when we talk about the Lord on the basis of our experiences with Him, our words become much more effective.

Many in our generation desperately need to be shown God’s power. He has made us His witnesses to declare and give them evidence of His reality. Regardless of how small or grand we may consider our testimonies, every experience with God is a treasure that gives us knowledge of Who He is. It is a knowledge that has been written on our lives by the Author Himself, allowing us to see, feel, and experience the demonstration of His love, power, and reality. When shared, these testimonies have the ability to convince others that He is real and His power is great, available to all.

We must reveal God to this generation by allowing Him to work through us to demonstrate His power, and also by sharing our testimonies. We must be bold to talk about His mighty works that we have seen and experienced. Tell your stories to your family; share your testimonies with those to whom the Lord may lead you.

One way we can do this is to use our social media platforms, sharing testimonies of how God has worked in and through our lives. Let’s lift up Jesus and make Him known. The world around us may not understand when we talk about the Ekklesia making decrees or engaging in prophetic assignments. But they understand when we share the testimonies of how Jesus healed us, provided for us, and helped us in our times of need. Where we’ve been on our journey could be where they are now, and our testimonies of the overcoming power of the Lord Jesus may be just what they need to shine light on their path and give them hope.

Pray with me:

Father, thank You for every experience You have given us, marking our lives and developing in us an unshakeable faith in You. Through those experiences, You have established for us a testimony of the reality of who You are. We ask that You would refresh us with the remembrance of the power and goodness You have shown to us. We ask that You would give us wisdom to confidently and effectively share those testimonies with others. Let our words become an unavoidable light that pierces the darkness. Bring freedom to many as the testimony of Jesus prophesies of His hope, love, and overcoming power. Grant us boldness to speak Your Word by stretching forth Your hand to heal, and let signs and wonders be done in the name of Your holy Son, Jesus! Amen!

Our decree:

We declare that we will not be silent, but will boldly share God’s hope and love everywhere we go.

Today’s post was shared by Gina Gholston and taken from her new book, Along the Journey. You can find out more about Gina at GinaGholston.com.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

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