Cascading

 Cascading. That's the word I heard at the beginning of 2020. I had a sense that situations and events would escalate and compound upon one another, affecting each other like dominoes. Covid was the first domino. I could see the long range impact, especially economically. I don't need to elaborate as we are all aware.

Before there was a run on toilet paper, I sensed it would be a factor, so of course I went to BJs and got a couple of large packages. I am responsible for my parents who are in their 90s so I often need to think ahead for them. Sure enough, two weeks later there was none in the stores.

Cascading has been the word all last year for me. I have shared it many times with friends and spiritual leaders. I tried to make them aware. Sometimes they took me seriously, sometimes they didn't. But, at least in hindsight, I would hope they can see the obvious now. 

Everything is altered. Everything. 

The second thing I heard was, "You are living in the borderlands. You are not there, (meaning what came before), and you are not there, (meaning a place ahead). The only thing you are taking with you is what will fit in a backpack". I have some ideas of what that is for me, but if you are reading this far, you can interpret it for yourself. 

Cascading means pour downward rapidly and in large quantities. Or:

To arrange (a number of devices or objects) in a series or sequence.

I might also liken it to a landslide. There are more things to dislodge in every arena so the structures that have been ruling will crumble.

However, cascading is also used to describe a beautiful waterfall or lovely locks flowing down someone's back. So, as usual, when dealing in the spirit, there is a dual reality.

Each and every morning and for large portions of each day for all of 2020, I have had the song "The Goodness of God" running through my head. I mean that literally. "All my life you have been faithful. All my life, You have been so, so good". And that will not change.

God has wanted me to know there has always been a cascading of His love. My experience of that is limited in comparison to what is available to know. However, last week I saw in the spirit, a deluge about to be poured out, coming like Elijah's cloud. I was standing on a high place overlooking a huge valley as it came closer and poured all over me.

There is an amazing cascading taking place that no man can stop and every man and woman can be empowered by. It will be astounding.

The deluge was the empowering presence of God to enable us to be all we were created to be and to fulfill our new assignments because we are coming into the"there" of the future as stated earlier.

As I stood on the mountain top I saw myself from behind. I was dressed in old time battle gear like a Roman soldier holding a standard, dressed in a skirt and cape. As I looked up the meaning, it said the cape was a paludamentum. It was scarlet or purple, or sometimes white. Putting it on was a ceremonial act of war.

The Roman military wore loosely regulated dress. There was no concept of standardized uniforms or of obsolescence, provided the garment remained serviceable. They could use armor handed down by family money, buy armor from soldiers who had completed service or use discontinued styles if they preferred or could not afford new. They could wear a mix of styles covering a considerable time period.

Pondering this, I thought there is no wrong way to join what God is putting together. It is a multigenerational, multifunctional, multicultural unit coming together just as we are, with what we carry. No need to alter anything. Just use what you have.

I was being given long range vision to always be ready to move forward at the discernment of the direction of God for the assignment at hand and was reminded of the old song, "I can see clearly now, the rain is gone. I can see all obstacles in my way. Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind. It's gonna be a bright, bright, bright sunshiny day".

Lastly, I sensed a rhythm, a strong regular repeated pattern of movement or sound comprising many elements related to forward movement. Life will require sensing the repeating pattern, there will be ups and downs.  We will be ebbing and flowing in the wildly exaggerated, startlingly excessive outrageous grace of God.