BEWARE OF THE IDES OF MARCH
Disoriented some, by the bitter throes of a long, hard, winter trek through the desolate ruins of what was once known as the High Places, which are now the “Cage” of every mean and hateful “Bird” on the planet, the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul and unclean spirit imaginable (Revelation 18:2,¹wcv), still, I was encouraged on my descent with a stunning vision of the Age To Come, howbeit, the combination of it all through that never-ending Land of Thickets, Bandits, and False Brethren seemed to have taken a bit of a toll on me. Nonetheless, between the foothills of the High Places and what seemed to be, off in the distance, a peaceful Land of Civility, lay the dreadful Valley of Bitter Weeping through which ran this Old Heartworn Highway. There was no way around it. I knew, that Passing Through the Valley of Weeping would reveal my Old Man for exactly what he was; the Lust of the Flesh, the Lust of the Eyes, the Pride of Life, and a Lying Spirit to cover it all up. I also knew that it would reveal any religious pomp, unforgiveness, or lust I might still harbor in the hidden recesses of my heart; for the Valley of Bitter Weeping might also be known as the Valley of Repentance, Restoration, and Strength, the Valley of TRUTH, the Valley of Piercing HONESTY: for when Passing thru this Valley of Bitter Weeping, everything hidden in the dark recesses of our heart is revealed. Nothing is spared! We either come out a Partaker of the Divine Nature or “A Walking Contradiction, partly Truth and partly Fiction.” (Psalm 84)
Once through it, if I made it, the Ides of March would be a welcome sight to this weary traveler, for the Spring of the Year was certainly at hand with not a Thicket, a Bandit, nor a Foul Thing in sight. I had no idea that a magnificent Shire of this size could be anywhere near this close to that City Not Made By The Hands Of Man. Then again, perhaps it wasn’t. Perhaps things weren’t quite what they seemed to be. Yet surprisingly so, this Old Heartworn Highway, coming up out of that Valley of Bitter Weeping, in which I found Great, Deep Pools of Blessing and Strength formed by the tears of Godly men gone on before me, ran right out into and through the rolling hills of what seemed to be, a most magnificent Province. A Shire, so to speak. Still and all, I found it strange that even in the most remote nook and cranny of the place there was not a Lodge to be found for the Wayfarin’ Man (Jeremiah 9:2, ²&¹wcv), so, I set out looking for the River of Delights, upon whose banks I might rest, repair myself, and set myself aright for a spell. After all, I had entered the Ides of March, Spring had arrived, and how refreshing it would be to Drink Freely from the River of Delights! (Psalm 36:8,¹wcv)
In the course of searching for my whereabouts, I struck up a conversation with one of the local, passing citizens, who just happened to be the Governor of the Province….saying, “Pardon me, m’ man, could you be so kind as to point me to the River of Delights?
His reply? “WE DAMMED IT UP
I said, “YOU DAMMED IT UP?” “WHY?”
He replied, “To make a reservoir for the Province.”
I said, “That was the River of Delights, the River of Great Blessings and Promises, God’s River of Refreshing!!! It NEVER runs dry!”
“Well”, says he, “We were afraid (Revelation 21:8) it would flood the Province, so we dammed it up. We can’t trust God with the weather! We use our intellect around here.
I said, “IT’S STAGNENT!” (Jeremiah 2:13)
“So?” Says he, “It’ll clear up one of these days, besides, we feel safer this way. This way, we can control it!
The Governor, who seemed unable to contain himself, went on to say, “You know, many a Wayfaring Stranger, like yourself, has come through here making their way to that so-called City Not Made By The Hands Of Man, and the greater majority of them, having passed thru the Valley of Bitter Weeping, the Valley of Baca, stop here to rest and gather their wits. Having taken stock of themselves, they make it no further. They NEVER leave! You see, their FAITH, having been shaken to the core, troubles them to the bone and they go no further, for they found that their FAITH, their CONFIDENCE, and their STRENGTH were nothing more than RELIGIOUS FACADES that were brought to naught in the Piercing Honesty that resides in the Valley of Baca.” (Psalm 84)
“Now I am here to tell you”, said the Governor of the Shire, “If there truly is a God, they might have known about Him but they DID NOT KNOW HIM AND HE CERTAINLY DID NOT KNOW THEM, therefore, they could not access the wonderful Pools of Blessings and Strength out there in the Valley of Honesty, however, our Utopia is full of Pools of Blessings for those who miss the mark. That is OUR MINISTRY!
“Indeed, because their FAITH, was not only shaken beyond measure but also brought to naught, we teach them to settle for what they can see. We console them and teach them to live with their weaknesses and COEXIST in the wonderful realm of the natural where compromise is a virtue.” (Ps.84:6)
“My goodness”, proclaimed the Governor of the Province, “Here in the Shire we have the finest of Churches – take your pick – they range from the Woke to the Joke, from the Spiritual Manifestations of Emotional Flesh to the Fleshly Devastations of the Spirit. From the Bane to the Vain. From the Trimmings and Trappings of the Outer Court to the Wilderness Worship of Golden Calves and Red Heifers. From the Worship of the Intellect to the Worship of the Body. From the Muslim to the Hindu, from the Hindu to the Jew, from the Jew to a Reasonable Facsimile of Jesus and Everything else To Boot. Why, for the Highly Religious we furnish Popery, and, for the Highly Spiritual we furnish assorted and sundry versions of the Holy Spirit, without the EVIDENCE, of course! We have it all! However, the ONE THING you will NOT find here is The Godly Kind, after all, who would want to be a Partaker of the Nature of a God who makes His children pass through Valleys of Bitter Weeping; the Valley of Piercing Honesty, the Valley of Baca.” (Psalm 84:5,6,7)
“If you want to know what HONESTY is”, said the Governor, “The Truth is, very few of you Pilgrims make it beyond the Shire.”
Without provision, and without a good night’s sleep, I shook the dust of that place from my feet, and, By FAITH, I moved on out onto that Old Heartworn Highway towards my destination; that City Not Made By The Hands Of Man.
However, upon leaving, I glanced over my shoulder and nonchalantly replied, “Oh yeah, by the way, Governor, what’s the name of this place?”
“Oh, I thought you knew”, he replied, “Why, this is MYSTERY BABYLON!!! (Revelation 17:5)
To which I replied, “BEWARE OF IDES OF MARCH m’ man!!!” (1 Thessalonians 5:3)
My soul, it has horizons more distant than the dawn,
But the darkness, Oh this darkness, I must get beyond.
My soul, just like the eagle can soar before Your Throne,
Yet I am but a creature who dwells in flesh and bone.
There are dreams I cannot get to, motives I dare not trace,
Oh, how I need You on my journey through this place.
Sometimes I can reach out and touch you, soon I will lay hold
Of the Glory that surrounds You, and Keep You for My Own.
I can see your Mountain, there’s a River runnin’ through,
I see a table in the Wilderness with silverware for two.
I see cups of Living Water, I will never thirst again,
Where even the sparrow longs to build her nest.
Out on that Heartworn Highway, out where it all unfolds
Between the Kingdom and the World, Out on that Roman Road,
There are dreams I cannot get, Motives I dare not trace,
Oh, how I need you on my journey through this place. Keep You For My Own / ©will callery
Psalm 84:2,5,6,10
2. My soul longs, even faints for the City of my God, for the courts of my King², My Heart, my flesh, my Spirit and my Soul weep for You, Oh Ancient of Days²
5. Blessed is the man whose Strength comes from the Lord; whose heart is set on that City Not Made By The Hands Of Man².
6. Who, when passing through the Valley of Bitter Weeping, make of it a Place of Springs from which those who follow suit, may freely drink².
10. For one day in Your House, O Lord, is far better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my Father than rule in the Palaces of the wicked. (Vs.5,6,10,²&¹wcv)
SUMMARY:
If we could only grasp the depth, the breath, and the height of His Great Love for us, we would lay down our antics to spend every waking moment with Him. “For eye has not seen, nor the ear heard, nor can the heart of man even imagine the wonderful things God has prepared for those who truly Love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9, ¹&²wcv)
To discover the depth of the message, you must look into the Scriptures of this “Post”.
God will bless each and every one of you who reads this and takes it to Heart!!!
Comments are much appreciated and may be left in the “Comment Box” below
¹wcv / My Emphasis, My Version (Always taken from the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Arabic interpretations, definitions, and connotations)
² / My Insert(s)
Letters From Over Yonder, The Deep Fetch, The Covenant, & Ain’t It So / published by William & Cynthia Pub. Co.©2023 {All Rights Reserved}
