Chapter 1   Assignment: Encourager

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"Sarah savored the heat of the sun, as it peeked in the window and warmed her head and

shoulders. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, contemplating all the glorious

things that had happened in such a short time since arriving back on Earth. The last six months

seemed to emerge from her thoughts into a vision; the people of God living in the utopia of Jesus’ millennial reign on Earth. It morphed into what looked like a ribbon of hope, beauty, healing and cleansing, twisting itself into a bow and then changing colors. The ribbon then developed into a bouquet of roses, with the sweet rose fragrance filling the room with a profound awareness of the Presence of Jesus. In addition, the tender rose florets reminded her of the fellowship with Him and all the forever friends that she had come to know and cherish."

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Chapter 2   A Contemplative Trek

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"Sarah climbed a small ridge that was the entry point to the valley of Megiddo, she remembered the aftermath of the battle that was not. Ringing in her ears was the awful sound of thousands of birds ripping the flesh of those who had longed to attack God. That day, she had wanted to get away from there as quickly as she could. As she rounded the top of the ridge and the valley slumbered before her, Sarah was awestruck. There before her, over a bed of pallid, crushed bones, rose the most beautiful array of flowers than she had ever seen on Earth. They were tall, reaching forth with a myriad of colors. It was like a glorious bouquet, five or 6 miles long and at least 3 miles wide. The aroma of so many varieties of flowers, she wondered if she could even enumerate them, burst forth with loveliness. It was incredible!"

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Chapter 3   Ruminating and Preparing

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"She reflected upon the physical changes that Jesus had made in the environment; they were so complete that it truly astounded Sarah. There had never in all of history, been a cleansing of the air, Earth, and water so profound, as when Jesus personally cleansed the Earth He created. It felt so clean to breathe in unpolluted air, and eat chemical-free fruit. Sarah recalled how the plants, water, and air had first responded to the very Presence of Jesus, the Creator, becoming healthy, clean, robust and more beautiful. In the early weeks, Jesus encircled the Earth, removing the unhealthy chemicals, garbage, and waste, sending them all to oblivion. He alone is Creator; He alone is able to extinguish. After that first season of adjustment, Sarah had explored and engorged her senses on the beauty of the Earth, which through Christ was restored to the fullness it was created to be. Earth itself had groaned under the weight of humanity’s polluting ways, waiting for the day of its redemption; now it rejoiced! Sarah was breathless with the powerful beauty of this land of plenty."

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Chapter 4   Breaking the Ice – Blessings Flow

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"A tall, slim fella, with thick, bushy hair chose a large puzzle piece from a child’s puzzle and shared, “My name is George. My life has been so fractured, it felt like a puzzle with a thousand pieces, pieces that I couldn’t fit together. I felt broken and sad. Ever since I received Jesus as my Savior, the pieces have been coming together, each fitting into the right spot and helping me to feel a wonderful peace. Coming here and living with you, Jesus, is like the last piece of the puzzle has fit into its proper place; I am completely fulfilled.” George went to his seat amid lively applause."

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Chapter 5   Hiking Grandeur

"When Sally finally slowed down, Sarah stopped, stretched, and took a deep breath. When she released all the air she had drawn into her small frame, she looked at her friend and giggled. Sally was laying prostrate on the hard rock, with her cheek pressed against its warm, hard surface. Sarah queried, 'Why are you laying down? I think I’m going to sit on this huge boulder,' indicating a perfectly shaped bench-rock.     

Sally explained, 'When I arrived, the Spirit whispered to me that if I listen to the rock, very carefully, I would begin to feel the vibration of his praise. I do feel it; it’s like a low rumble, a building up of unexpressed emotion. This is just the beginning! Wow! Now I’m OK to come and sit with you.' ”

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Chapter 6   The Kingdom of God

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"Jesus was in no hurry, for He was not bound by time. He welcomed each moment and utilized every minute in Divine purpose. His stride was relaxed and steady, yet He greeted those nearby by name and blessed each one. Sarah was not surprised then, that as they rounded the crest of the pass into the valley of Megiddo, there were thousands accompanying Jesus and those from the class. Jesus invited everyone to relax upon the flower-strewn valley. Children who had skipped along continued to play in the valley, rolling down the hillsides, which were carpeted with floral beauty." 

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Chapter 7   Rest & Ensuing Intensification

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"She felt the gentle Spirit show her how much He loved not only her, but also her loved one. His tender words calmed the swirling emotions, 'I have loved him from before I even created time itself, as I have loved you. The deepest truth is that only I am able to see into the farthest reaches of a person’s thoughts, emotions, and decisions. Your faithfulness to share the truths of my love and grace shone like a guiding flashlight into your brother’s anguished soul. He suffered profound agony in life; but under all the pain was a sweet little guy who wanted to be loved. That little fellow (though he was older by human standards, he was young in terms of eternity!) took an ever-so-slight step of faith, as you had indicated for him to consider; it was the beginning of faith in his soul.' ”

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Chapter 8   Rejoicing Reunification

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"Leroy further explained, 'In the face of my constant barrage of vitriol against God, you patiently shared how the love and grace of Jesus Christ heals the deep wounds of abuse and trauma. You gave me little snippets of what faith looks like in everyday life. Perhaps you did not realize how our talks were setting a foundation for my salvation, but thank God (he briefly lifted his hands and face toward Heaven) that He used our visits to give me things to chew on. I chomped on the words you shared, often cogitating for days, trying to maintain my anger and hatred. With each visit, my cynical heart softened to the grace and love that you shared; I longed for them both myself. I was tired of the ugliness that oozed around my anger and hatred; I longed, with a yearning deep inside me, to love and be loved. When I finally admitted that fact, I realized that I truly had a choice to make. Did I want to stay with my anger and bitterness against God, or did I want to find out if there could possibly be a God who would fill my life with love, like what I observed in my little sister’s life? I’m so thankful that I chose to ask, ‘Jesus, if you are real, show me.’ That same night, He came to me while I slept and showed me His wounds; when I touched Him, He filled me with His love and healing. When I awakened, I asked Him to come into my life and heal my brokenness.' "

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Chapter 9    A Stroll with Jesus

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"Jesus gestured toward a quite café and spoke in the strong, loving, baritone voice that Sarah had come to love, 'Would you like to eat with me? I love spending time with you, just visiting together.'   

They were all touched by the genuineness of Jesus’ words. There were no underlying pretenses, or hidden agendas; with Jesus, there was only grace, love, and peace, all in great abundance. They all chimed in, 'Sure!' Sarah pondered, as they walked in and sat down, of the blessings of this time with Jesus. She knew in Jesus’ presence, abundant blessing flows. Anticipation built, slowly at first, but it kept welling up in her soul, like a spring being wound up tight. At some point, this spring of-the-blessing-of-the Lord would be released and it would surprise them all with its power and provision."

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Chapter 10   Children’s Blessing

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"A toddler hollered up to Sally if she would start a song they could sing and she thought for only a moment, the began the beautiful children’s song of renown, 'Jesus Loves Me'. In only a moment, voices from all around lifted up this truth, echoing the sweet refrain, 'Yes, Jesus loves me; the Bible tells me so.'     

The procession came to the Temple already in worship of Jesus. Sally was gently released, whereupon she merely knelt before Her Lord. In a rippling of bodies, the entire populace followed her example, not out of a sense of duty, or to belong to the group, but with true, honest, deeply heart-felt worship. God was among them; their joy of life flowed like a flood, overcoming even the tiniest of little tykes. Children were most precious in their expression of love and worship, dancing before Jesus, then running up to Him and laying down at His feet, wrapping their little bodies around his feet, legs, and even pulling on His arm in fun. He knew their love and they knew His."

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Chapter 11   Refuge of Wonder

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“ 'Oh,' Sarah sighed. 'Thank you, for helping me when I was so tiny, and for bringing me here now. I am wondering, where is this in the universe? And how big is it? I can see beauty all over, with such colors as I have never seen!'   

Daddy God chuckled and responded, 'It is actually outside of the universe. It would seem scientifically that there is no end to the universe. But We are outside of the universe because we created it. These unique places We have created for our little ones, who endured such overwhelming trauma within the confines of the universe, are these are places of safety and peace and all are beyond the universe in a dissimilar realm. There is no address here and no one else can come here. It is for you only, for your joy and remembrance of how much you are loved. It is as big as you would like it to be. For here, you are with Us in a very unique way. Here, you are able to create with Us, merely by thinking.' ”

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Chapter 12   To the Hurting, Broken Children

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"One little guy jumped to his feet and lifted his fist in victory, exclaiming, 'Yes, I want you and I need you. Please forgive me of all the rotten stuff I’ve done.' He ran to Jesus, jumping over his friends’ heads, as they sat on the ground, and into Jesus arms. Jesus blessed him, 'Ben, I do forgive you; in fact, you will be a strong leader to whom many people will learn from.' Ben jumped on the back of the rock and onto Jesus’ back, putting both of his scruffy arms around Jesus neck. Jesus jumped up, to Ben’s delight, and said, 'Who’s that on my back?' With everyone guffawing loudly, Jesus finally found who had him, He just ducked and leaned over with his right shoulder down, reaching with His right hand and swinging him around to hug him tight."

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Chapter 13   New Every Morning

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"As a confirmation of the love of God for Sarah, the Spirit introduced a new thought to her, through a picture of  pretty white flowers. Sarah saw in her mind the morning glory vine, with its beautiful cone shaped flowers. She heard the Spirit’s gentle wisdom, 'Every morning, there is a new flower blooming. That particular flower only lasts for only one day; the next morning another flower will open with renewed beauty. For humanity and angelity, the Father, Son, and I are always the same, like the vine itself. But we are also new every morning, even every moment, similar to seeing a new floral beauty with the new day. Our love is a constant, but the expression of it is endlessly new. Our love for you cannot grow, for it is already at the greatest fullness, well beyond your human capacity for comprehension. For this reason, every day, there will be new expressions of our love for you to experience. From your perspective, our love is new every morning. From ours, that love is eternal and more profound then even can be held in all of creation.' ”

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Chapter 14   High and Holy Blessings

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"The whole family rose in unison and serenaded sweetly, almost like an endearing hug,

'Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul,

Thank you, Lord, for making me whole,

Thank you, Lord, for giving to me,

Thy great salvation, so rich and free.'

Sarah loved this mountaintop blessing. She knew she would always cherish it. She felt like a little child, not wanting to leave the circus. But this was so much more than a circus event; the blessing of Jesus always grows, compounds, and is multiplied! Every day in His Presence is more blessing, more alive, and more abundant than she experienced even the day before. As the song floated off in the breeze, Jesus did an 'Allemande Left' with all the family, blessing each individually and intimately. Giggling, swooning, and swaying in all that love was the norm in the gazebo that beautiful day."

  

Chapter 15   Pensive Moment with the Spirit

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"In quiet peace, Sarah tried to stop thinking a moment. It was a new discipline she was trying, closing down her mile-a-minute brain and just stopping the thinking. Often, as she quieted her thoughts, the Holy Spirit would speak to her, whispering to her open mind and heart. Sarah struggled to quiet her thoughts, even focusing on her breathing and slowing that down too. She was not very adept yet, for even focusing on the physical things of the body was a thought process. So she tried to even set that aside and be completely silent…."

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Chapter 16   Powerful Proclamation in Paint

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"She relaxed and watched, as Mark began to make broad strokes of color on the metallic surface. As she watched the form and color of his painting build, Sarah was truly in awe of the capability God had placed in him, to co-create such inspiring paintings. Neighbors and friends drifted in, sitting on the benches, standing behind them, and even more sitting in front of them. All around were whispers and 'ahhh’s' of the beauty he was painting. As the crowd grew, the awe grew. Great, sweeping, white-capped waves pommeled the sandy shore. It was as though every person could feel the power of God’s love pouring over them, enveloping them in a love so complete that its depths could not be fathomed."

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Chapter 17   New Path of Blessing

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"Sarah forced herself to slowly meander down the path and enjoy every moment of all that the Lord had arranged. A bit further down the path held another corner tightly it its grip. Sarah took the turn with her head surveying high and low the gorgeous foliage. The exclamation, 'Oh my!' escaped her lips when the path ushered into a huge, oval floral room. The rhododendron, hydrangeas, hollyhocks, and butterfly bushes were simply luscious in their regal floral display, which dwarfed Sarah by at least several feet in height. Numerous invitingly-adorned loungers had been arranged in a smaller oval; some were even rockers. Sarah loved rockers and sank into one, relaxing her head back and her feet up, to revel in the loveliness surrounding her."

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Chapter 18   Meandering in the Spirit

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" 'Be with us, Lord, as we walk this beautiful path, ever lifting up praise to you, Jesus.' They sat in expectant silence for a long while, listening, then together had come to the end and both whispered, 'Amen.'    Sweeny shared, 'I felt the Lord saying, ‘Come with me down this path. Come and dance!’ That sounds wonderful; let’s go!' The two gals held hands and skipped down the lane, in a joyful, playful meandering in the beautiful, Mediterranean woodland. Soon they began to hear just a whispering of an uplifting tune, which became a lovely sonata as they drew closer. Sarah and Sweeny slowed to a brisk walk, listening intently as they approached the burgeoning symphony that supported the singers. In the distance, they saw the forested path give way to a meadow, with luscious grass dotted with a rainbow of flowers. The closer they came, the more beautiful the music resounded."

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Chapter 19   Pockets of Discomfort

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"Their walk was of purpose, so it was more than a meandering among the beauties of the forest. After quite a little bit, Sarah began to be aware of the first pocket of discomfort. She could sense tendrils of discontent floating in the morning breeze through the boughs of the evergreens. Soon, it became an acrid smell, uncomfortable to her nose and unnerving to her sensibilities. She breathed a prayer of consecration, 'Jesus, be with us in a very special way, as we enter in this more intense area of serving you. Thank you for this precious blanket of love that you have covered over us and for the wondrous protection of our glorious angels.'   

Sweeny also felt the uptick in intensity; however, she had been so prepared for this ministry that she took it in stride. In fact, the intensity merely strengthened her resolve to follow the leading of the Lord. She joined with Sarah in her prayer, but her heart was singing praises at what the Lord was doing in and through the two ladies. She could hardly keep the lid on her excitement and anticipation of all that the Lord had prepared for them to do."

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Chapter 20   A Feast for the Faithful

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"Sarah was a bit unsteady when she arrived, for thought travel with Jesus was unnervingly fast. After a bit, her body seemed to settle and she began to take in all that was happening around her. They had come to  a hillside, with billowing hills as far as she could see, in every direction, all filled with people. They were singing, laughing, dancing, and worshiping. Sarah felt a bit overwhelmed at the sheer number of people, which she guessed may be in the millions. She felt the gentle whisper of the Spirit, 'Yes indeed, there is a great number, yet every individual on every hillside is precious to us. This is all of the faithful, throughout all of history, who have sought the Name of the Lord. Welcome to the Feast of the Faithful. You are precious, my Little One, Sarah.' ” 

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Chapter 21   Attempted Commotion

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"Sarah gasped, along with all of humanity who were sprawled across the many hills surrounding her. She saw and felt a great belching of the earth. Along with billowing sulfur-smelling smoke, the earth spewed out a singed foul-smelling creature who was unmistakably the leader of all the hideous demons who followed, puked out of the pit for the last season of their attempt to cause commotion among humanity. Satan landed among a crowd, plopping down next to a woman who screamed and shuddered, as she scampered quickly away from him. The rest of the bunch retreated in a broad circle to give him plenty of room. They didn’t want to even be near the loathsome, pitiful fallen angel. The demons landed splat, sprawling along the hillside just below their miserable leader. They all just shuddered for a while, shaking off the horrible ashes that were ever present at the edges of their appendages.     

Jesus had full control of all of them and they knew it. He specified the parameters of their limited season of partial freedom, 'You have only a very short season to do your bidding. Your presence here is not to benefit you, but to test the hearts and minds of humanity. You may not harm anyone; you are bereft of any power over humanity. There is only one provision for your presence among us, to challenge every single person in their choice to follow me. There may be one or two who have not yet made the choice to live a life of grace in my Presence forever. If you are able to roust out any, who within their own hearts are denouncing my grace, power, love, and provision for them, as you have, they have complete freedom to join you. Do your behest quickly, for I will not allow this to linger on.' ”

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Chapter 22   Crowns of Righteousness

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"Sarah watched the throng as they arrived, sat down, and worshiped the Lord God. Everyone knew something was imminent; they could feel the blessings, as if they were hanging in the air like minuscule water droplets, waiting for the release of the elation they held. In this garden, Jesus humbled Himself before Father God. Sarah perceived that this was completely different than any other gathering she had experienced while back on Earth. She remembered most gatherings as chock-full with excited discussions of all that God was doing in their midst. This assemblage, conversely, felt powerful in adoration of Jesus. As far as she could see, prayer, singing, and worship abounded. Sarah noticed Sally and stood up to join her, as she made her way to where Jesus stood. He was in communion with Father God and the Spirit, uniting not only with the Godhead, but also with the people of His creation."

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Chapter 23   On into Eternity …

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"Sarah was able to see in that spiritual realm, as she had learned so long ago. She saw angels gathering the demons, even Satan, into an ugly mass of demonic flesh. Three angels flew around the fluttering mess, fast and furious, so much so that the demons were unable to even focus on them. Once again, the earth opened up, just to the north of the valley. It almost looked like a belching volcano, ready to spew out its muck, but waiting patiently instead, following the will of the Creator.

Jesus rose up to face the demonic hoard once more, for the last time. He pronounced judgment upon them, 'You were once beautiful, my creation to hold beauty and grace in your wings. I loved each of you dearly, as I have loved every one of my creation. I gave you the power to choose your way in life, to embrace love and grace, or to choose pride, selfishness, and evil. It was your choice to make and now, you will receive for all time, indeed, all eternity – with no end, the consequences of your choices. You will never again be able to torment these who have chosen a life of love. You will yourselves live in torment.'    

Upon hearing Jesus’ pronouncement, shrieks of horror blasted out of the demonic mess. The angels began to fly even faster, with the effect of rolling the doomed demons in the air, toward the open pit. As they arrived just above the sulfur-hissing pit, the angels stopped and hovered. The demons had been unable to fight against the power of the angels in their super-speed flight, and were completely caught off guard when they stopped. They flopped around in the air and fell, shrieking as they hit the molten lava. The volcano belched a sulfuric spit into the air, which promptly fell back in, just as the earth closed up, seemingly satiated by the new arrivals."

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