斷定谷　

世界正被帶到「斷定谷」，全要在光明和黑暗、良善和邪惡、真理和謊言之間做出選擇。我們正處在將麥子從稗子中分別出來的時候，萬國不是綿羊就是山羊。

不單是美國邁向內戰，所有文明國家的社會斷層線都在震動，我們可以預期，分裂將隨著這些社會地震而加劇。就在同個時候，最大的合一將臨到神真實的跟隨者。現在地上正在發生的最榮耀事件，就是基督的新婦開始預備好自己，這即是何以我們蒙應許這殿末後的榮耀必大過先前的。

當我們更深向著這些時候移動，我們所做決定的後果，或是做錯決定的後果也會隨之增加。全心跟隨主、為公義站立對抗邪惡的決定，可以改變你城市或國家靈魂戰役的形勢。所有存留在這些時候的人，最後不是英雄就是壞人，很快就沒有人能夠成為旁觀者。

我們今日所做的決定能確定我們是否夠剛強，可以在未來做出正確的決定。當我們接近這世代末了，每個決定和行動的重要性都會放大。這意味著結好果子的將結出更多善果，結壞果子的也將結出更多惡果。 

上述這些話就是我去年對2019年的結語和2020年的開場白，今年我再次這麼做，因為現在和當時一樣適時。2020年成為我們這一生中，在某些方面，也許是有史以來最挑戰、最陌生，但也是最榮耀的一年。我們從中學到的功課將幫助我們朝向2021年和以後的年日航行，我們將從檢視2020年最寶貴的三項功課開始。

1. 我們單是尋求主的引領還不夠─我們必須知道主是我們的引領。在跟隨指示與跟隨主之間可以有很大的不同，我們必須尋求主，但不單是尋求我們問題的答案。

2. 政府並不是神，科學並非絕對正確，但我們被賜予一個不能震動的國。要建造在那個國，我們首先必須來尋找它，而不是次於這些今生短暫的事物，甚至連我們的政府都是暫存的。萬王之王與祂的國度首先必須在我們的心中，成為我們的奉獻，超過一切之上。

3. 明白聖經甚至精準預言，不同於認識主、順服主和在主裡。致力於明白聖經和健全教義固然重要，但永恆的生命在於認識主，而不單是與祂相關的事實。

2020年特別設計來幫助我們認識主；我的一位先知朋友鮑伯瓊斯（註：已於2014年回天家），這幾十年來一直在告訴我們，2020年將開始「進入神的安息」十年。當我為2020年尋求主的話，主給我詩篇廿三篇2節：「祂使我躺臥…」。新冠病毒被用來讓幾乎全世界進入安息，仇敵的用意是要帶來傷害，對服事主的人卻是好的。我們被迫停下原本的正常生活並進入安息，促成許多人再次尋找神，讓神成為他們生命中起初的愛。

許多人善加利用這段時間，調整好他們的優先順序，更多親近主。幾乎我所認識每個基督徒的屬靈生命都提升了，這或許是歷史上最奇怪的復興。當沒有大規模的聚集，我們反而更親近主，更親近家人，也更親近我們可以聚在一起的細胞小組。

因為人在第六天被造，人的第一天就是神創造的第七天，祂在這天安息。因此，從人的生命開始，人要進入與神的相交，他必須進入祂的安息。主的安息是在信靠中找著，亞當在這方面做得不太好，否則他不會一被誘惑就那麼快懷疑神了。

我們也必須在信靠神這方面好好做，得以安然度過要來的日子而不跌倒。這樣做的好處是，當那些一生不斷在追求神和祂國度的人更多信靠神時，將帶來更大的榮耀和祂國度的彰顯，其權柄大過地上的每個政權。

在希伯來一書中，進入神的安息等同於進入應許之地（請參閱3到4章）。我們將回頭看2020年如同我們進入應許之地的一年。在短暫的事物裡，2020年可能是最具挑戰性的一年，但這也是在我們的約旦河就定位，預備跨越的一年。

我們或許不喜歡，但那是神的恩典來修剪我們生命中不結出永恆和長存的果子。對那些欣然接受並且安息在信靠主的人，真實且長存的果子很快就是你的。

特別備註：我去年用每週一話的平台分享我一直在寫的美國遺產，今年我會回到每週一話寫更多先知性話語，但我仍會一月一次繼續發表美國遺產概要，如同額外紅利般與您分享。這麼做是因為尊榮我們的父母是唯一帶著應許的誡命，可以使我們得福，在世長壽，這是我們此時迫切需要的兩個祝福。

 (摘自喬納word for the week, Week 1, 2021)
 

The Valley of Decision 1

    The world is being brought to the “Valley of Decision” where all will have to choose between the light and darkness, good and evil, truth and lies. We are in the times that will separate the wheat from the chaff, and the nations as sheep or goats.  

         It is not just the U.S. that is headed for civil war. All of the social fault lines in civilization are having tremors, and we can expect increasing divisions with these social earthquakes. At the same time the greatest unity will be coming to God’s true followers. The most glorious event on earth that is now happening is the bride of Christ beginning to make herself ready for Him. This is why we are promised that the glory of the latter house will be greater than the former.

         As we move deeper into these times the consequences of our decisions, or failure to make them, will be increasing as well. Your decision to follow The Lord with all of your heart, and take your stand for righteousness and against wickedness, could turn the tide of battle for the soul of your city or country. All who live in these times will ultimately be either a hero or a villain. Very soon no one will be able to sit on the sidelines. 

         The decisions we make today could determine whether we are strong enough to make the right ones later. As we approach the end of this age the importance of every decision and every action will be magnified. This means that what will bear good fruit will bear more, and what will bear bad fruit will also bear more. 

         All of the above was how I opened the last Word for the Week of 2019 and the first for 2020. I started this year with it again because it is as timely now as it was then. 2020 became one of the most challenging, strange, but glorious years of our lifetime, and in some ways, perhaps for all time. The lessons we learned from it will help us to navigate 2021 and beyond. We will start by examining the three most important lessons of 2020.

1. We must do more than seek The Lord for guidance—we must know Him as our Guide. There can be a big difference between following directions and following The Lord. We must seek The Lord, not just answers to our problems.

2. Government is not God, and science is not infallible, but we have been given a kingdom that cannot be shaken. To build on that kingdom we must seek it first, not second behind the temporary things of this life, and even our civil government is temporal. The King and His kingdom must be first in our heart and our devotion above all else.

3. Knowing the Scriptures and even prophecy accurately is not the same as knowing The Lord, obeying Him, and abiding in Him. Being devoted to knowing the Scriptures and sound doctrine is important, but eternal life is knowing The Lord, not just facts about Him.

         2020 was especially designed to help us get to know The Lord. For decades a prophetic friend, Bob Jones, told us that 2020 would begin the decade of “entering God’s rest.” When I sought a word for 2020 I was given Psalm 23:2, “He makes me to lie down…” Covid-19 was used to do that for practically the whole world. What the enemy meant for evil turned into good for those who serve The Lord. We were forced to stop our normal routines and rest, causing many to find God again as the first love of their life.

         Many used this time well, getting their priorities right and getting closer to The Lord. The spiritual life of virtually every Christian I knew went up. It was perhaps the strangest revival in history. When there could be no large gatherings, we got closer to The Lord, our families, and in the small cell groups we could gather with.  

         Because man was created at the end of the sixth day, his first day was God’s seventh day of creation, the day He rested. So, from the very beginning of man’s life, for him to enter into fellowship with God, he had to enter into His rest. The rest of The Lord is found by trusting Him. Adam must not have done this very well or he would not have doubted Him so quickly when tempted. 

         We, too, must do this well—trust Him—to make it through the coming times without falling. The positive to this is that the growing trust of those who keep the pursuit of God and His kingdom first in their life will result in greater glory and the demonstration of His kingdom as the authority over every other power on earth.

         In the Book of Hebrews, entering God’s rest is equated with entering the Promised Land (read chapters 3 and 4). We will look back on 2020 as the year we began to enter our Promised Land. It may have been the most challenging year yet in the temporal things, but it was a year for positioning us on our Jordan River and to prepare us to cross over. 

         We may not have liked it, but it has been God’s grace to prune things out of our life that were not bearing any eternal or lasting fruit. For those who have embraced it and rested in their trust in The Lord, the true and lasting fruit will soon be yours.  

Special note: Last year I used the WFTW platform to share the Heritage Briefs I have been writing. This year I will return to writing more of a prophetic word for the time in the WFTW, but will continue releasing Heritage Briefs once a month and also share them with you as a bonus. This is done because to honor our fathers and mothers is the only commandment with a promise, that it will go well with us, and we will have longevity, and these are two blessings that we desperately need at this time.