Dear Mothers,

Well, it is snowing like crazy here in Iowa. Wanted to share also a recipe idea.

I am trying to fast for the radio show and have given up eating meat for a time. Last evening I fried up a big pan of vegetables in my cast iron skillet. It was onions and green peppers and a package of frozen vegetables. This consisted of cauliflower, broccoli and carrots. Anyway, after they were done, I put in some leftover spaghetti with sauce on it. No meat, of course. Christine, John’s wife, has fixed this before and it is very good. I would call it a vegetable spaghetti. Of course, now Wild Man had to have meat. So this isn’t a meal you would fix a man usually. But I do try to just stay with the fruits and veggies for now.

I am tryin’ to stay away from worldly foods. I think we have missed something when we have read the story of Daniel and his fast. Daniel didn’t eat the king’s food. Or the food of the world. He ate the simple foods that he was used to eating coming from a godly Jewish household. Daniel didn’t bow to idols. Not in his physical body or in his spirit.

I get teased a lot about not being worldly. But there is power in hiding away unto God. When you do go out in the world, you can discern spirits easier. Women are more easily deceived, I think. It’s because they aren’t made for the world and are geared to be sheltered. They are so anxious to please people. This is why they do so well in the work force as they please people so well and have servant spirits. They are called by God to be helpers of men. Of course, the world takes advantage of them. They knock the queen off her throne and get her to give her gifts to the world. She gives her strength to other women and her ways to destroy kings. In her pride, she refuses to care for the baby. She wants to please the world and not God. And the world causes her to cast her princess and her prince to the world to be taught and raised by unbelievers.

Mother is called to be keeper at home. But she cannot cast the idol of pride down. She has been too long in the world and the world becomes her authority. But the wages of sin is death. Death to the family and God’s will.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

I had a lot of interruptions yesterday so didn’t get to write all that was in my heart. One thing I want to say here is this. Ya know it took me 12 years of prayin’ to see my family come into order. But it won’t take you all that long. See, Jill and Dixie and I, and some of the others, found our truth as we went along. But we were trailblazers. And so are many of you! But with my knowledge of the Word and some others — and with what God does for you personally that I don’t know about — you will get a healed family in a lot less time.

See, many came after Edison and improved the light bulb. They took his experiences and added them to what they knew and then perfected the harnessing of electricity. I don’t think Edison could have ever even dreamed up a computer … yet still he had a part in it. I remember when I first got my e-machine and was writing to New Zealand and Australia — wow! I could hardly believe that all I had to do to shoot a message all the way to the other side of the earth was to punch a button. How unreal is that! And how many minds made the computer? It was many people adding knowledge and wisdom to knowledge and wisdom.

But Ladies, use up what I know and add it to what you know and increase in more and more power and understanding. And you know what? Your testimonies will far outreach mine. I will be forgotten someday. But some of you will shine like stars. I am a forerunner because I don’t listen to the world. Hey. Hey???? Do I have your attention? The world and its folks don’t know how to stay out of a divorce! They don’t know how to pray a wayward husband home. Take a dang shortcut and quit listening to the world. They are here to crucify you, but, Girlfriend, if you can live long enough, you will be able to turn around and save their life.

I mean many years ago, Jim was my enemy and an enemy of Jesus Christ. But I loved him and didn’t give up on him. And do you know how you got to know me? You got to know me because my husband supported me so that I could go to the world with a message that Jesus can heal your marriage. Jim became my power to the world to shout the Victory. The man that nearly killed me with heartache has become the hope to many other families. It is no secret what God can do. What He has done for others, He will do for you. The husband who deserted me and sinned against me one day gathered me up in his arms and said, “I am so sorry.” And he lived long enough to give me a place of stability to shout this Victory to the mountaintops, “Jesus came to bind up the brokenhearted and to set the captive free.”

Ya know bless Jill’s heart. She would come to my house as I wouldn’t eat for such sorrow of heart. And she would all but feed me. I always tell her that she was the reason I am fat today. But I would not eat days on end. The deep sorrow I felt was killing me. I was 5 feet 8 inches tall and was lucky to weigh 100 pounds. Often I lost weight and got to 95 pounds. I just wept and prayed all the time. But God delivered Jim and He delivered me! And I have told God that I have needed an eternity to praise Him for just this alone. He saved my Johnny Paul in 7 years. And YEEEOOOWWW look out devil, I see Mary Elisabeth comin’ down the pike with victory in her wings!

It’s shoutin’ time in heaven! Oh, yes, its shoutin’ time! I am pullin’ glory out of heaven and makin’ a place for it on the earth. I am binding the evil on earth and the Lord is breakin’ heaven loose for me. Praise Jesus! Its shoutin’ time.

Mountain Moving Faith

Ya know Wild Man would go to the mountains to hide out when he would hit the road. And Mama was at home moving mountains with her faith. I was speaking to mountains to be cast into the sea. Must have made it hard on a wayward husband who was tryin’ to hide out in the mountains that wouldn’t stand still. Then Papa got saved and never again saw the mountains. We were gonna go there so he could show them to me. But we never went. Maybe someday I will go alone but I doubt it. Oh, how I loved that man.

And soon it will be Thanksgiving! I can feel the earth fairly shake as I know all of my seeds are coming home. Christian Joy and her husband are traveling by car from NYC. Hungry hearts longing to see their loved ones again. John and his darling wife Christine and son Romeo will be coming Wednesday night from Missouri. Jimmy and his wife Aleksondra and their little baby girl will come from Illinois and get here Wednesday night. David lives near here and his family will come with the new grandson, Papa’s namesake. And Mary will come, too. Dan will be the only one not coming and he will come for Christmas.

Aleks called a few days ago and she said Jimmy wanted me to make bread for Thanksgiving. She said he missed my homemade bread. I haven’t made it since Jim died. I have never made bread for anyone but Papa. I even made it for him when he was gone, believing God he would be home to eat it. I can’t imagine making bread that Papa won’t eat. And yet Papa sends me his love from heaven, always encouraging me. I know he wants only what is best for me and our children. I know he wants me to make that bread with as much love as ever.

Papa only wanted the best for me after he was saved. He spent the rest of his life trying to make me happy. I am always at peace knowing how much he loved me and honored me. He loved our children and grandchildren. Always wanted what was best for us. He had a heart of compassion for us. His greatest grief was that he couldn’t do more for us. But I was satisfied and happy with whatever he gave us.

I followed this man wherever he went from the time I was 19 years old. And when he did leave me for the final time and went to heaven, I knew where he was and I never feel I am without him. I have never grieved as others grieve for lost loved ones. I just know where Papa is and I know I will see him again. When you are as close as Jim and I have been, you just always know where the other one is. That comes as you go through the pit of hell and come out on the other end. Then the Lord gives you a heaven on earth. And then Jim’s body wore out and he had to leave for heaven. I know he couldn’t help it. It was his time to exit and he went in peace and love. I accepted it and let him go. I submitted to him … finally I submitted to him. Before that, I wouldn’t let him go. And we argued about it. He said a few weeks before he died, “Connie, it is my heart. I am dying.” I screamed, “No, you aren’t!” I wouldn’t let him go. But when Papa knew the time was right, he went on ahead to heaven. I submitted to it. And I felt such a peace. I was able to minister to the children as they all 6 wept and cried out for him. The grief was controlled and peaceful. The minister there said he had never seen such love in a family. If only he knew that all of the love he saw came through years of prayers and intercessions.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

Ya know when I was a young Mom, I used to stay home and pray when friends wanted me to go here and there. My one neighbor used to say to me, “Well, all you do is stay in that house and read your Bible and pray.” And ya know back then in the 70s, my life wasn’t at all like everyone else’s. I was alone raising my children. I went to church and most of the people there were in families. You didn’t see a bunch of singles like you do now in church. The churches were made up of families. I used to sit in church and cry, wondering what I had done to deserve such a fate. But God had His hand on me. And now, 40 years later, I look at society and I see many Connie and Jims. Who would have ever thought society could have gotten that bad? The strong Christian families seem to have faded into the background and the hurting families have become the majority. Yes, Jill was raising her family alone, and a few others. But very few!

What I am trying to say is Jill and I didn’t know of some woman who had gone through what we were going through and had came out on the other end. They weren’t around. I think this is why it took me 12 years to get through it all. My pastor, bless his heart, would tell me, “Connie, take off your rose colored glasses. Jim will never straighten up.” I mean the majority around me thought I was not playin’ with a full deck. But what was going on is this. I heard a new song. I saw a new vision. My faith was not of this world. I ran to a different beat of a drum. God put a stronghold of faith in me that wanted to live and breathe and have its being in God.

Oh, Satan tried to kill my faith. He proved to me again and again, “This is not working. You are a fool to keep going with waiting for Jim to change.” At one point just before Jim was saved, healed and delivered, I had almost given up. But a flicker of hope like a dying fire still remained in my heart. I thought, “Well, what if God’s Word is true? What if I have come this far to give up just before the miracle?” And it so happened that my miracle did come right at the midnight hour. But, Wives and Mothers, I am tellin’ you what. You can’t keep bouncing off what your relatives or your neighbors tell ya. You can’t bounce off how old you are or how young. You can’t bounce off the world’s system of things.

I am here to tell you this. “You have to see victory in your heart. Ya gotta see it to believe it!” You gotta get a vision. You gotta get a new walk and talk. Change your name if ya have to. This is why I started to call Luanne “Annie.” I wanted to see her with an attitude. I wanted to see her like Annie Oakley lassoing her problems. We need to give that devil some problems. But we can’t do it by listening to the voice of reason or common sense.

The Bible calls the preaching of the Word foolishness to those who don’t believe. Anyone in the Word of God that had Vision didn’t have anything to do with the give and take of this world. This world has a law called gravity, and it has the law of sin and death. Its cause and effect. But we as women of God are set free of the laws of sin and death. Nehemiah had a vision to build the walls back up for his fellow Jews. Oh, the world scoffed and laughed their heads off at him and his poor and miserable relatives. But he kept his mind upon building his house. He believed in the impossible. God had built a stronghold of faith in him and he followed the Lord. Nehemiah was a man of vision and purpose. He heard a bell ring that no one else heard. He saw something no one else saw. He felt a faith that no one else understood. And this made him a leader for God. He was a trailblazer, a dreamer, a seer, a visionary. And so were the others written in the Word of God. David wouldn’t bow to an idol as he was not living in this present world. He was set apart unto God. He had never followed the world. He was a man after God’s heart.

Ring Victory Bells

Do you want to be something for God and a headache for Satan? Then take your rotten circumstances and throw them in the garbage and walk out your faith. Call yourself a visionary, a dreamer that can dream her way out of the hell and into the land of Promise. Inventors who established our country were like this. They invented things like the light bulb and the telephone. Electricity was always here from the beginning of time. But it took Thomas Edison who had a dream to learn how to harness it.

Your miracle, like the electricity, is in the earth now. Our prayers are answered now. But we have to bring them to us. We bring them by a power called faith. We walk out the miracle as we plan for it to come. We clean out our cupboards to receive the food we need. We make a feast to feed a husband who has promised to never come home. We wear a maternity dress when we are called barren. We speak our miracle and plan our life around our miracle. We don’t plan our life around the world and its ideas. We hear a distant voice of Victory calling us. We hear the chariots of fire in the heavenlies. We see warring angels fighting our battles for us. We dream dreams and we walk out visions. The world calls us crazy and we please the Lord as only He calls us to do. To walk by faith, as only faith pleases God.

Live out your visions and ring victory bells until Satan screeeeeeams, “Stop! I give up!” Don’t listen to this world. Don’t listen to the voice of the unbelievers. Anything we ask in Jesus’ name we can receive. Loose heaven with your prayers and bind the satanic things of earth. Nothing is impossible to us as we walk in Him. Covenant keepers are precious to God and He wants to bless them. It’s the time, too, for Covenant Keepers to be blessed. That is a word of prophesy.

I am very interrupted this morning. But one other thing I want to say is this. Edison was partly deaf and he said he was glad as he could stay focused better on his work. And we need to come away from the world and be deaf to it. Walk out your faith. Call things that are not as if they were. (Mark 11:23-24)

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

Through prayer last night, the Lord gave me such a teaching. I was too tired to write it down last night. And now Baby will be here in about an hour. I hate to start on this but will anyway. I just don’t have enough time.

But the Lord was speaking to me about the folks in the Bible who wouldn’t do what others wanted them to do concerning prayer. How some with leprosy would hear that Jesus was passing by, and would run out of the leper colony to see Jesus. It was against the law for a leper to be out in the marketplace. And the woman with the issue of blood pressed into the crowd to touch the hem of Christ’s garment. She, too, was going against the law as she wasn’t supposed to be out in the marketplace, either. And I think of the woman who asked if she could just eat the crumbs under Christ’s table. So many had to press in and beg for help. They pressed out of this world and into heaven to reach Jesus. Then the Mothers brought their children to have Jesus bless them. And the disciples said “Don’t bother the Master.” But the Mothers pressed in and waited for Jesus to bless them. And Jesus saw them and told His men to let the children come to Him. And in the pressing in comes the answer to our prayers. Folks about us tell us, in a way, “Don’t bother us with your problems. Give your problems to the Lord.” But some of us won’t stop — can’t stop — as we have a passion that will take us to Jesus. We are the wheels that squeak the loudest in the kingdom of God.

We live in a world with a boundary line around it. The rules are under the prince of the power of the air, “Satan.” The laws of sin and death are the laws of the land. The laws of cause and effect are here. Gravity is a law of this physical world. And yet we must pray and loose these laws over us. Whatever we loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. We pray and loose our prayers from Satan and a lever is pushed and heaven opens up to us and gives us our answer. We fight the devil all the time. Binding and loosing on earth and setting our prayers free to touch the heart of God.

Passion and strong love fires us and we press into heaven and grab whatever we can. We use up the earth and we go to the edge of the earth. We are always pressing on the boundaries of the earth, pressing on the boundaries of heaven. Because ya see, the law of the earth is this. “If your husband is an adulterer, he will stay that way” or “If a man is a criminal he will stay that way.” These are the laws of the earth. So unless we press out of this world with our prayers, we will keep getting more of the same. If we live our lives the way most Christians do? We will not see His glory. As we flounder around upon this earth and do what we did the day before and the day before that? We will not see His glory. We will keep seeing what we saw the day before as we live by the rules of this earth. But if we don’t care what folks think and we are willing to kick out the walls of the boundary line, we will see His glory. But we must run the race and know how to deceive the devil. And we had better know how to run a lot faster then the Christians around us. Because many of them ain’t winnin’? And as we run the race with passion and fire, we find in the end that we are winning the race for heaven. That it is all a project set before us.

Jesus uses the trials of this world to cause us to come into the place He has for us. We work out our own salvation. And as we suffer, we are made pure from sin. The flesh is burned and the spirit comes forth glistening with anointing and power. As we fight our battles, we cannot win. Only He is supernatural. And unless we fight our way out of this earth and into His world, we will not see His glory. And we begin to see that for us as believers, indeed all things do work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

His Anointing

And ya know, lately I have been helping my elderly aunt. She had bought blue shower curtains and didn’t like them. So she had me to take them down and put up pink curtains. After she looked at them, she said she didn’t like ‘em. So she bought some white ones and brought them home and she told me she didn’t like them, either. And now she is in a tither over it all and don’t know what on earth to do. You can imagine me standing there. My wheels turnin’ in my mind thinking, “Does this woman know there is a war goin’ on? And that abortion is killing over a million babies a year?” She don’t know any of this and she looks at me and my hillbilly ways and she says in disgust. “I am particular.” And I am thinkin’ “About what?” I don’t say nothin’ as the poor dear ain’t got a clue.

But ya know some folks don’t have any problems living on this earth? And some of us who have problems that only Jesus can solve wonder why we have it so hard. Well Good-night, Darlin’! We are the chosen ones! We have to touch the hem of his garment. Either that or flat out drop dead. Hell, I can’t afford to die — that’s why I have to keep on livin’. And I ain’t worried about bein’ particular about my shower curtains. I am just flat glad I can take a shower and have hot water, right? But somehow my whole life is on the edge and I am always screaming in the street for Jesus. I am long past worryin’ what people think of me and my rowdy kids.

Solomon got his wisdom because he wasn’t worried about his reputation or the life of his enemies or this world’s wealth. He was chasin’ God. He wanted the wisdom of God above anything this world has to offer. And when you are chasing a supernatural God in a natural world, folks try to shut you up. But as we cry out to Him, we call miracles out of heaven. We cry out for the anointing, but the world don’t understand that. And the more the world tells us to not bother the Master, the closer we come to His anointing.

Let us reach past the world and loose in heaven the things of God. Gotta go. Duty calls.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

It is such a cold windy day here today. I have Baby Olivia Rose, 3 months old. I just rocked her to sleep. She is peaceful in her little bed. I think I will make Potato Soup this morning after I write. It’s a good day to write and to make soup. Later on I want to tell you how to make your own chicken broth to use for different recipes. But this morning as I was rockin’ Baby, I was thinkin’ about the Lord. And I thought of how He loves our faith and how it touches His heart.

Last night as Aunt Toot and I visited on the phone, Toot says, “Connie, just keep prayin’ for Betsy (Mary) — she will come through.” And this is true ya know. We can’t give up until we see His glory.

Ya know every time the kids are home, and it’s after dinner and we are visiting in the living room, they want to get out all the Family notebooks of pictures. Some of the pictures Papa has in those albums, I keep thinkin’ “Man, I need to throw that picture away — I look like death warmed over.” One picture in particular that I wanted to throw away, John took out of the plastic to show me. “Mom, I love this picture of you with us kids.” I said, “Oh, Johnny, why do you like that?” He said, “Oh, I just do. Next time I come back home when I have more time, I want to take that picture and have it enlarged.”

Oh, that picture told a million stories as I looked at it. I was standing in front of the sweet magnolia tree. It was in full bloom. I was holding John as a baby and Joy was hanging onto my leg. Jimmy stood beside me. The spring winds were blowing our hair. We stood beside the house I had bought for 150 bucks down and 135 a month. Man, what a story. It was the worst time in my life and yet I had decided to not give up. My blouse was white with red roses and my slacks didn’t match. But the Lord had someone take my picture. I thought it was my worst day and yet the Lord saw my faith. And the things of this world are not like the things of heaven. He chooses the foolish things of this earth to confound the wise. And in our weakness, He is made strong. What the world calls great the Lord says is filthy rags. But the Lord celebrates faith and is drawn to it. The angels are drawn to the fragrance of faith. The Mother of Prayer and intercession entertains heavenly messengers. They love her and rest in her presence. Her tears are caught and put in golden vials. His Word is written on her heart and her words and prayers are engraved in His heart. The world doesn’t call her a trophy but the Lord calls her a champion of faith. She draws the comfort out of the Holy Spirit and His presence is in her midst. And as I was drawing each breath from Jesus those many years ago, someone took my picture.

What will Johnny do with that enlarged picture? Someday he may put it on the wall of his house. And in 30 years, maybe he will say to his children and grandchildren, “This is Grandma Hultquist. What a life she had!” But the most important question they will ask is “How did she come out?” As older Christian moms and dads, they will say, in other words, “Did she stay the course? Daddy, did Gramma Hultquist endure to the end?” And I can hear John say, “Yes, she endured to the end and she didn’t give up on God.” I can hear him laugh as I see John telling his grandchildren about Aunt Mary who drove Gram crazy. But Gram wouldn’t have Mary acting that way and she called down heaven on Mary. And Aunt Mary will be there to say, “Had it not been for Mama’s prayers, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Mama didn’t give up on me; she stayed the course. She ran the race and didn’t look back.” And it all depends on what I do today and every day by faith so that I can hear this conversation as I look down out of heaven. And if I give up now, I could see a much different picture. John would have to say, “Mama was so sweet but when Mary turned on her, she died of a broken heart. The life went out of her.”

Strongholds of Faith

And ya know each time God gets ready to move on our situations, the devil attacks us to try our faith. Our faith stirs up the heavenlies and seems to alert the demons to attack us. But the attack is nothing. It’s only smoke and mirrors. The devil deceives us and tells us to give up … that God isn’t working … but in truth He is. We take a big stick and smack Satan’s beehive. We wake him up with our faith. Anytime you go to attack the fort of evil, it is gonna start to fight back. But it is nothing — just deceptions and lies.

Satan fights with lies and condemnation. He tries to weaken us soldiers of the cross, telling us, “Your battle will be never ending.” Also “Your battles haven’t been won yet and therefore never will be.” And yet the Lord calls us to wait upon Him. To wait it out and to not become discouraged.

Waiting on faith means to wait upon God as a waitress waits upon tables. Faith is an action word, not a hunk of magic stone that sits there and doesn’t move. Waiting upon God in faith is like this. Say you are believing the Lord for a husband to come home. You surround your day with faith moves. You start the day out with the thought, “Today my husband will be home. What nice meal can I plan on fixing for supper?” Waiting on God means in this situation that you give the burden to the Lord. You are resting yet moving in faith. You are making a place in the closet for him to put his clothes when your marriage is restored. Because if you aren’t moving in faith, you will move in bitterness and fear. You will sit and imagine evil, still thinking you are just waiting on God. But in reality what you are doing is building a stronghold of wickedness.

Baby is crying.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers of Faith,

Ya know we can pray and pray and we get the victory? I have had so much victory lately. But ya know our Joy can get so full. I am like a balloon so full of JOY, I haven’t known what to do with it all. The Bible speaks of a JOY you cant contain. I am there. But the Lord tells me that when you capture or take over spiritual land, then you have to learn to abide on this land. To set up housekeeping upon this Promised Land. It’s hard as it is a new land acquired by faith. And it takes faith to live on it. You sorta plateau off.

In order to keep the victory you have won, you have to learn how to live on it. If you don’t learn to live on it, you will lose it. Like when I got the miracle of a healed marriage. It was hard to kinda go into that land of Deliverance. It was a miracle that I kept that land and inhabited it. Little demons were behind every rock, it seemed, trying to scare me out of the land. Jim was healed and working every day. And every morning after Jim went to work, the devil would say, “He ran out with the checkbook” or “You better check your purse; he has taken all of your grocery money.” And on and on went the accusing spirits. But one day I got up in the morning and before Jim went to work, I gave him all my money and the checkbook in case he wanted to run out. I had to call the devil on it. Of course, Jim was healed and for the next 26 years did nothing but bless me and make sure I had money in my purse and that all the bills were paid. My miracle had come, but could I live in the Promised Land? On the Land of “Healed Marriage” and a “Saved Husband.”

See, like the old pioneers of the middle 1800s who were seeking freedom in a new land. They had to get the land and inhabit it. And the first pioneers settled the land for many others to come to a safe new land. But Mercy! The first families who came had to endure Indian massacres and many hardships. They who got there first had to build not only their own homes but schools and churches and stores and roads. They had to find a way to long term live on this land. And to make a place where their children could grow up and have a safe place to raise their children. Many of you who are first generation Christians face this. And some of your parents and grandparents had the faith to take the land but didn’t have the faith to maintain it and bear fruits of righteousness on it. Some of your mothers got saved but never built a home for you to bounce off from. Their faith wavered and they limped along. This is where we as mothers now need to learn our lessons well. We need to make sure that we take the spiritual land from Satan and abide on it. But not only to abide but to build a testimony that will strengthen our own children when they fall and want to give up their Promised Land.

Often as John and Christine faced hard times, they would say, “Well, if Dad and Mom made it with practically nothing and they had six kids, I guess we can make it with one kid.” And boy, it’s hard goin’ when you are a first generation believer that set up housekeeping in a wilderness. And ya know the aunt that mocked me as a young mom now mocks my own children and grandchildren. We will always have the unbelievers about us chiding us. “You can’t make it. That’s impossible. You are sure to fail.”

When I bought this house seven months pregnant with two little kids already for 12,000 bucks? Mercy! My aunt walked in here and said horrid things. Jim was here long enough to get us moved in and he left us for his life of crime. Man, I could have given up. I went by myself to the hospital to have my baby and brought her home alone and took care of her alone. It was the coldest day of the year and the furnace went out. And the folks helpin’ me kept cursing me and tellin’ me they would never help me again. They had told me to give up on Jim and I wouldn’t so they were tryin’ to make me sorry. I wasn’t!

So you acquire the Promised Land by faith. And by faith you live on the Promised Land.

Many times as we pray, we will feel the spark or the anointing fall. But sometimes we don’t catch it. Or if we do catch it, we can’t hold it or maintain it. And the anointing drops come like rain and can come again and again and fall like mercy drops on our heads. But we aren’t good catchers ,,. or we aren’t good land for good seeds. Our hearts are hard with unforgiveness and the drops of God’s mercy can’t touch us or seep deep on our souls. But we must have a vision of our Promised Land.

When God tells us that we are being blessed, we must enlarge our tents. We must begin to walk by faith and make spiritual roads and schools. We can’t just take over the land and inhabit it but we must begin to build upon it and set down boundaries to keep the enemies out. We must become bulwarks and stalwarts to protect, like walls, our Promised Land. We have to stay focused upon our purpose and each day add another brick to the foundation of our dreams of our new land.

And we as Mothers must keep our focus first upon our own husbands and our own children. And as we stay focused, we will become a home built upon a hill for the world to see. We become examples and our children and our husbands are strong. And we build testimonies for the weaker family members to fall back on. And we build line upon line of God’s Word into our families. And we teach how to teach our children in Home School. And we start a new land and a new revolution one family at a time. One day at a time. One slap in Satan’s face at a time. And what stops us from entering the Promised Land and from maintaining it? Fear — only fear. Only the lies of Satan. Only the deception. Only the unbelievers who say it can’t be done. But we must build homes made of “All things are possible with God.” As we focus upon home and family, we walk out what is going on in the heavenlies. Jesus the church is under God and God the Father is the Lord of all. We fall into place as we keep our eyes upon the blood covenant of Marriage. We are stabilized as we keep our eyes upon the work God has set before us as Keepers at Home.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

A new lady on the letters group was telling me that she was believing the Lord for her husband’s hernia situation. I have testified of Jim’s hernia healing years ago but I am gonna tell it again.

About 3 or 4 years ago, after the fire, Jim did a lot of remodeling. And he moved a lot of heavy furniture by himself. The boys, of course, came over and helped, too. But Jim would get impatient and moved the piano by himself many times. Also my big hutch back and forth and across the room a lot. Well, back about 24 years ago, a doctor said Jim needed a double hernia operation. Well, Jim had this done at the hospital. But the doctor said the operation didn’t go well and it would probably all come loose and it did about 10 years later. Jim wore a man’s girdle and this would press the muscles in where they should be. But with him moving the piano and all, no girdle could keep that muscle in.

Well, so one night, Jim comes to bed and he said seriously, “Connie, I am really hurting. That hernia on my right side is bad — really bad.” Papa always called me Honey. So when he called me Connie, I knew it was serious. Well, immediately I knew something had to be done. Well, we didn’t have any money for a doctor. So I said, “Baby, I will stay up all night long and pray for you. I won’t got to bed until I know you are healed.” I had planned on wrestlin’ that demon of sickness all night long if that’s what it took. So we said our “Good-Nights” and I laid my hand on the hernia and started to pray. And immediately — I mean right now! — Jim’s leg flew in the air and the bed began to shake. It was wild! And I said to Jim, “What happened?” And he said, “You didn’t hear that POP?” I said “No” and Jim says, “I was healed. Jesus healed me. The hernia popped back in.” And after that, he was perfectly healed and never had to wear the girdle or anything again. He never had any trouble out of either hernia. And in the night, I woke up and praised the Lord for the healing again and the bed shook again. Now this was the power of the Holy Ghost. I can’t heal anyone. And why some folks get healed like that and others have to have an operation, I don’t know. I am just tellin’ you this true story to encourage your faith.

And one time, Jim came in the door with a bad headache. I heard him come in and met him in the living room. He told me, “Connie, I have a terrible headache.” Well, I called fire down out of heaven and Jim felt a shock and he was healed. As I gave the testimony to my relatives, who don’t know the Lord from a raccoon, Mary comes up behind me. She says, “Mom was prayin’ for Dad in the living room and the power of God almost knocked me over and I was in the bathroom.” I didn’t even know that Mary felt the Holy Ghost hit her until I was giving the testimony. And I turned around to Mary and I said, “You felt the power of God hit you in the bathroom?” And she said, “Yes, I did.”

My children have seen angels. When John was a child, about 4, an angel picked him up and put him in his bed. Mary has seen many angels before. And, of course, Jim has, too, and a lot of demons. But Jim is seein’ all kinds of angels now in heaven. Wow, I know he is enjoyin’ himself. I can’t wait to go, too.

Also, one time when I was about 23 and Jim was about 29, he had a big yellow boil under his eyelid. It was bad and the doctor was going to lance it. I was just learning about laying hands on the sick that they would be healed. Wild Man and me were playin’ badminton in the backyard. Anyway, I just went over to him and laid my badminton racket on his eye and claimed healing. I was just tryin’ it all out. And the boil popped and he was healed and he never had any more boils that I can remember.

But I pray for folks all the time. Most of my prayers are not answered. But every now and again, I hit the jackpot. So I guess I am worth putting up with. I don’t ever know when the Holy Ghost is gonna hit me.

The Waymakers

I talked to Christian Joy on the phone yesterday. She is something else! She is really encouraging me to make a homemade book. Christian Joy doesn’t claim to know the Lord but she is very creative. She designs clothes in NYC. She is the most creative woman I know. And her mind is so spiritual. She just squeezes creativity out of me. She tells me rare truths like, “Mom make a book you would love to read, not one you think others would like to read.” I guess I gave her a book I made years ago. I have forgotten it, though, but she loves it and it has dried herbs pressed in it. I can sorta see her dream for me but I can’t hardly grasp it. She says, “Mom, just make the book and I will take it to a publisher here in NYC. Don’t worry about binding it. Just make the pages and I will do the rest.” It’s hard as Jim has only been gone for 7 months. But I ain’t gettin’ any younger. What with doin’ all that Jim did, and all that I have to do with the children I care for and all, it’s kinda hard to think of a project like this.

I tell Christian by faith and to all who will listen, “I am a rich widow and I am gonna start a REVOLUTION.” Tall words for such a little woman. But I have a BIG GOD. And IF this is His will, then, hey, who’s big enough to stop God? Christian Joy tells me, “Mom, you would be popular in an underground society.” And I said, “Well, I would be there with good company as that is where homeschool started — it never started in the church!” And certainly Jesus Christ and His disciples were not mainstream. But what we hear in our silent prayer chambers from God will be shouted from the mountaintops.

He speaks to you women in the wilderness. Mother’s broken heart is open and He is able to enter her soul. She is always hungry for the things of God as she is always spiritually hungry. The bread of this world doesn’t satisfy her soul. She is a seeker, a visionary. Calling on the fire from heaven as she has no place else to go. Mother lives in the wilderness outside the church gates. She runs from the world, tired and breathless, looking for His face. Calling upon His rich anointing. Because nothing less then the fire will do. Nothing less then the anointing will work. Nothing less then the unseen hand can move her. She drinks from the rivers of heaven. From the brooks that never run dry. When she isn’t at the river, she dreams of the river. She tries to drink of the world’s rivers and oceans. And the water satisfies for a season. And each day, the thirst for His water of Life becomes a calling and a crying in her Soul. And through her exhaustion, she is weak yet runs to the River of Life to be filled with His anointing.

I hear many Mothers like Elisabeth and Mary crying in the wilderness. Mothers who have found out that this world has nothing to offer. And unless we call to God out of the mainstream, we cannot hear His true voice. As we press the outside walls of the world and all of its foolishness, we can hear His voice. As we stand alone to hear a voice and a message that has not been heard before, we will see His glory. As we press on as the world tells us, “You must absolutely STOP!” we will see His glory. As the devil tries to kill our HOPE as Mothers — but we won’t stop believin’ — this is where the glory is. This is where the glory starts.

As we fall off the earth with our faith, we enter the Kingdom of God were all things are possible. This is where the laws of sin and death don’t apply. This is His Kingdom where the laws of sin and death have been broken. We are sons and daughters of God here. This is where we died with Him and rose again to walk in newness of life. For we are crucified with Christ; nevertheless we live. And the life we now live, we live by the faith of the Son of God who loved us and gave His life for us. Sin and death, action and reaction, cause and effect live on earth. Not in His Kingdom.

Waymakers & Pioneer Spirits

Trailblazers don’t press on locked doors because they want to open it for the other believers. They don’t forge through a dark, dangerous forest of trees because they want to guide the body of believers. They press on to unknown territory because they can’t help it. Their souls are so weak and hungry, they know this world is not the answer. So they kick doors down to look for something to eat. They throw up their hands and know in their hearts that no matter what happens, this world has no food for their exhausted hearts. The Lord tells the shepherd, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” Well, the shepherd must find the spiritual food first. And as the heart hungry look for their Savior, it is automatic that they will guide and feed His sheep.

The waymakers don’t look behind them as they run like gazelles up the mountain. They run out of desperation. They run out of a need to see their children know Him. They run out of love for the family. They must see His glory or die tryin’. They run like chariots of fire until they feel His anointing. Until they feel the spark out of heaven and they know that they know that God heard them. They won’t rest until His glory comes.

The pioneer spirits run and seek and knock and hammer at the door of deliverance as if wild hungry wolves are nipping at their heels. Not because they want to please God, necessarily. But because they are desperate and they have been delivered before and they want some more deliverance.

The waymakers live on the miracles of God. As they press to the end of the natural earth and its way of sin and death, cause and effect, they enter the supernatural. And in this kingdom of the supernatural, the laws of sin and death are broken. And signs and wonders are the norm. And, yes, we have to use up the answers here on earth first. But when the world is killin’ us, it’s time to check out and enter the kingdom of Light.

We start living in the Kingdom of God when we become born again. But we have to press on the blessings of heaven or hammer at the door to enter the supernatural. And ya ain’t gonna find the supernatural until you are hungry for it. Why leave the comfort of the natural if you don’t need to? But some of you will press on as Mothers and Wives because your hearts are broken and you are looking for a city whose builder and maker is God. Where the normal is the supernatural. Where your thirst is satisfied. Where the only answer is the Blood of Jesus and the Bread of Life.

Love,
Connie

Dear Mothers,

Well, yesterday was an adventure. My furnace went off. My good neighbor next door, Chuck (Trudy’s husband), helped me to get it goin’ again.

Well, my furnace is in a real root cellar with a dirt floor. There is a small area where the furnace is and the water heater that has a cement floor. But you can’t get to the cellar except to go outside to an entrance. Well, about 2:30 this morning, I noticed it was very cold in the house and I knew the furnace had gone out again. Man, I laid in bed and prayed and asked the Lord to turn the furnace back on. The weather here in the Midwest is very cold right now. But the Lord spoke to my heart to endure this hardship as a good soldier. He spoke to my heart. “How can you start a Revolution if ya can’t have enough guts to go down your root cellar in the middle of the night and fix the furnace?” Well, of course, Jim has flashlights but I lost them right after he died. GO CONNIE! But the Lord put it in my mind to turn the car lights on and they would shine on the outside door to the cellar. So I get all bundled up for my mission at about 4 this morning. To get the cellar door open is unreal. The hook is broke that you latch against the house and so yesterday, I tied it back with an old telephone cord. Holding that door up with one hand and tryin’ to tie it with the other hand was a challenge. But I just kept prayin’ and believin’ God. But the Lord gave me courage.

Chuck had showed me how to fix the furnace if it did go out in the night. But he called after supper last night to ask me if the furnace was workin’ and of course it was THEN. But here it goes out in the night. I would normally get out my kerosene burner but I have to babysit and it would be dangerous for Olivia, 4 years old. Anyway, Chuck told me that if it goes out again, he would fix it in a different way and the heat would stay on. So I will call him later on this morning and I know he will come over and fix it.

The heat is on now. Thank the Lord! But, see, my house is over 100 years old. Well, I love it. But the root cellar is a scary place during the day, let alone in the middle of the night. I used to be down there a lot as I canned, etc. in the summertime. But I haven’t been down there in a long time. The cobwebs are like the air down there. You just have at it and walk through them. Yesterday, as I had gone down there, my hair was full of webs. But like the Lord says, “If ya can’t take a hit as a strong soldier in the little things, then how can you do the bigger things for the Lord?” It’s a test. Jim used to go down to the cellar a lot in the middle of the night if the furnace went off. He was stronger than I am to get the door up. But when we are weak, He is strong in us.

The Lord is teaching me courage. Before David killed Goliath, the Lord took him through many tests with bears and lions coming to eat his sheep. We have to learn courage. We have to learn to endure hardships. As we learn these things, we will enter the blessings of God. Satan wants to scare us off but God wants to help us to enter the Promised Land. Yes, there are giants in the Land. But our God is more powerful then any giant. Greater is He in us than he who is in the world. We are overcomers. We are the daughters of the Lord. He is our strength and confidence.

As Papa’s car lights showed me the way as I went down the old basement steps, I could feel Jim’s love guarding me. I always feel such a kindness and love as I think of Jim. All he cared about is that I would be cared for if something happened to him. Oh, I was not the perfect wife. But Papa loved me, anyway. He put up with me. And even as he is in heaven now, I feel his love and kindness. The thought of him gives me such rest and peace.

Love,
Connie

This morning I wanted to write but little Baby was cryin’ and wanting another bottle. So I held her and sang to her in my bedroom. As I was sitting there on the bed, the Lord told me to write about the vision I had last night of Mary. I saw her come in my front door with a dress on like the dress I had her wear as a little girl. I was very careful in how I dressed her, always in a feminine way. Her hair was curly as it once was. And I asked the Lord what this meant and He said this. The teachings that Mary had when she was little are coming up into her spirit. He said, in essence, “Connie, the devil has taunted you as a Christian Mother and told you that you raised Mary in holiness for nothing. But it was only that Satan attacks the truth of God.”

And as I sat in the bedroom holding sweet Olivia Rose, 3 months old, the Lord caused my eyes to see the books in my bookcase. I raised Mary out of old books of Wisdom from the 1800s. I would seek out these books to read to Mary and to teach her the deep wisdom of God. I would spend much time in prayer as I would seek out wisdom. I brought Mary to Dixie’s and she spent a lot of time with Jill. When Mary first married, she had pictures in her home of who she thought Ruby looked like. And they were pictures I loved, too. Mary knows Ruby and Ruby knows her. As I sang to Olivia Rose this morning, I sang to Wisdom and called her my sister and understanding my kinswoman. As I sang, it was as though the Holy Spirit whispered through me.

I am changed inside as I saw the Wisdom of God upon Mary. I feel that the Lord is saying that Mary will have a much deeper calling of wisdom upon her than I have ever had. Mary is a writer and she will write many books on the Wisdom of God. My mentor MaryL has told me, “You have passed down your mantel of writing to Mary.” Our Mary sent out thank you notes to all who came to her baby’s funeral. And so many have told me, “Oh, your Mary is a writer.” And she is. The writing she wrote about the soldier who fought a bloody battle for his country and his ring, is so powerful. It is about a young man who fought for his marriage or his ring. Brandon will be a mighty warrior for the Lord. Well, even now he is! He has always been a shepherd to Mary. And my writings I feel, up to now, haven’t been as good as the Lord wants them to be. But the writings on wisdom that will come out of this deep wound with Mary will produce some very spiritual writings.

Sometimes as we pray for our kids, we think the answer will come as we think in our minds. But I taught Mary when she was a child out of my own broken heart and many years of experience. I knew the wisdom of God. But this kind of wisdom doesn’t come upon a proud heart of flesh — it comes only upon the broken and contrite heart. The broken heart has to make a decision in the arena of fear and darkness. “Though he slay me yet will I trust in Him.”

Mary received the wisdom of God from me as her Mother. And now I have birthed the wisdom of God to Mary’s broken heart. “Oh, little bird with a broken wing, trust in God. Just because you find a high branch to jump from doesn’t mean you can fly. Your wing is broken and only Jesus can heal you. Only Mother’s tears can water you. Build your house upon the Rock Mother told you about. Not on the world’s sand. Mary Rose, remember the teachings of your Mother.”

God cannot melt His word into the rose’s thorn but only upon a bruised petal. He bleeds His crimson stain upon the pure white rose. We wish the petals to be pure white but they can’t be pure without the crimson stain of Christ’s blood. No matter how white the rose is, it is not truly pure without he crimson stain. And when a Mother goes to pray for the child of her heart, it seems her faith is tested. And the vision she has for her children seems to die. And it does seemingly die as it is a seed being tested. But Mother must endure the test.

Dear Mothers,

I am so Joyful, I feel like there should be a law against it? Mercy! I don’t really have much to write except to Praise the Lord. I slept last night. And when I woke up this morning, I thought, “I didn’t have to take Ibuprofen to sleep. And I didn’t take anything to sleep. I just had a good sleep.” Slept about 7 hours. I did wake up early but I prayed for my neighbors. Usually I have awakened in the night so fearful about Mary. Then I have to get up and get myself put back together again, as I would get anxiety attacks in the night. But God is setting Mary free and I know it in my spirit. I am happy again. I told the Lord this morning, “Lord, I want to just die happy now. Don’t allow me to have any more of these attacks. Just let Mary and Brandon do well … and let me have peace.” Well, I got the silent treatment from the Lord. I have a really sneeeaky suspicion that Mary and Brandon will be such testimonies that their story will have to be told. I haven’t talked to Mary again but I don’t feel a need to, either. I know she is doing fine and has the spirit of truth upon her. And I know she will be making some sound decisions from here.

Strongholds is what I want to write about. I have learned a lot from this past trial. Strongholds are the mindset of the person you are praying for. Evil mindsets come in our loved ones. And we pray to cast them down. As they have an evil stronghold, they are the mouth of the devil. And the biggest thing they do is condemn the one prayin’ for them. This is the biggest trick Satan uses is deception. He deceives our children and they begin to think that their thoughts of Satan are their own thoughts. So Satan comes in and builds a temple in them and teaches them the ways of death. And the Word tells us to cast down strongholds and all that comes against the Word of God in our loved ones.

Our loved ones get this teaching of Satan in them and it causes us mothers or wives to be afraid. We become amazed with fear as we look at the bad shape of the ones we love. Satan holds our prayers back and tells us we have no reason to believe God. That the situation is toooo bad, and not even God can change things. Well, by that time, Satan has built a stronghold of fear in the wife and mother. The stronghold of fear plus the stronghold of deception in your child or husband creates a paradise for Satan. You become as two in agreement with Satan. Fear and deception is what Satan loves and lives on. He can’t live in an atmosphere of faith. It kills him. Love kills him, too. And love suffers long and is kind. Love is never ending … it abides forever.

Ya know the devil would just torment me almost to death about Mary. But I couldn’t give up because I love her so much. I love her more than I can say. And even if she had chosen Laine, I would have loved her, anyway, and put up with this guy. But God is causing Mary to love Brandon and I know he loves her. Mary has the spirit of truth upon her now. Thank the Lord. And Brandon, I know, loves Mary and she told me how much she missed him. Thank the Lord! I am just a human being and my love for my girl is deep and everlasting. I can love her in a place of adultery and even the Lord has to look away. But I am her flesh and blood and God is pure and can’t look on sin unless He looks through Jesus within us. I forgive her! I am a sinner, too.

I say all of this as I know that many of you are on the same journey here. And I am not a teacher at all or worth anything if I can’t equip the saints for every good work. Hard times are upon us. We must know how to fight the good fight of faith. Our country is at war and things look dangerous. But we as believers are not of this world. We can’t live as though we are unbelievers. We must be able to call down fire out of heaven and know how to work righteousness in this world. Signs and wonders must follow us.

Praise the Lord

Ya know the Bible says that the Lord looks about the earth for those who will believe Him so that He can show Himself Mighty through them. Alaine, do you know where that scripture is? God is looking for women who won’t go for the money but will go for the real things of God. He is looking for wives who will stand on his covenant.

I told Mary a few days ago, “Mary, there is a miracle in the Marriage Covenant.” The Lord is lookin’ for women that won’t give up until she sees the glory of God. He looks for the woman who will stand alone when all the world is tellin’ ya, “Well, you are crazy. Your family will never be anything for God.” Or like my aunt used to tell me when Jim and I were separated, “Your husband probably has another family someplace.” And the prison guards told me, “Well, why do ya want him? He will never amount to anything.” And he wouldn’t have amounted to anything, either, except Jesus Christ had an angel come into Jim’s cell and talk to him. Rehabilitation wasn’t the answer as those prisons don’t teach anyone anything except how not to get caught next time. Duh! But Jesus Christ knows His stuff.

I mean I didn’t enjoy goin’ through 4 prison terms with Jim. And when he wasn’t in prison, he was in jail getting ready to go to prison. HELLLOOOO? It wasn’t easy lookin’ at him on the chain gang and think, “Oh, yeah, this looks good and I know he will be a Christian and come home and be a good family man.” And no one believed he would amount to a hill of beans. And I never worked a day after he was healed, saved and delivered of demons. And the Lord gave me 26 years of JOY with Jim. I finished my course when Jim died. The Lord gave me double for all I suffered. And the Lord wouldn’t have let Jim die until He did give me the double blessing. I wouldn’t let Jim die up to then. And he could have died many times, but God kept him. Even as he has died now, I never sense he is gone but always with me.

But in this physical world, I have finished my course of marriage. It is now carved in store, in a sense, that Jim never left Connie again and her prayers were indeed answered. I finished that course and came out with a face aglow with the power of Christ. And right afterward, another onslaught of Satan came against Mary. And now God has given me the victory there, too. And I will see many miracles come through Mary in Jesus name.

But I am tellin’ ya, Satan ain’t gonna just give up easily on your loved ones. We must not walk by sight in this world. We have dear friends who agree in faith, too. And we appreciate that. But when it gets down to it? It has to be you and God. And you are there to see the Victory and you almost experience it alone, too.

The twelve spies who went out but only two came back to say “We can take the Land.” Yes, there are giants in the land. But the woman of God is not afraid as her trust and confidence is not in what she can do but in her God who can do all things. Nothing is impossible with God! Blow the trumpet in Zion for the Victory is here! Mary Lehman at 76 (or 77, I forget) — she blows this huge Shofar and I can sense she is blowing it today as her stepson was healed of cancer. Praise the Lord.

Love,
Connie