Ahava Love letter - "Dreams Do Come True - Part I"

              Ahava Love Letter   

 “Dreams Do Come True – Part I”

“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.” Joel. 2:28,29

(I believe these next Ahava Love Letters  will be some of my most timely ones. You will not want to miss one, and read all  – however many that ends up being - to get the full picture. So read on, and learn a bit of how He leads us on!)

Dear family of friends,

It was dark outside. And inside the bedroom too. But when I suddenly woke up Sunday morning, Dec. 12, 2010, at 5:20 a.m., I had learned to expect that something was coming. I like it when those bright red numbers shine at you, and you don’t have to get up. But when you do, because the Lord is about to tell you something that you know you need to write down before you forget it, a blessing follows.

(Sidebar: Numbers mean more than just being numbers to count with. Consider the number “5”, which stands for “grace.”(I also like the “grace” given towards us all. “Hannah” is the Hebrew word for “divine grace”. Nice!) He continually reminds me of that. Those clock numbers of 5 and 20 - “5 x 4 x 5” - means “a lot of grace” to me, each time I see that combination of numbers upon wakening.

Might you learn to think like that too? It will not only build your faith, applying the meanings to numbers when you see them, but it will also give you a thankful heart, as you realize more often that He is sharing with you through all things. Numbers included.)

Immediately the Voice came in my thoughts, to share this Ahava Love Letter.

“Write to them that dreams do come true.” (The ones He gives us.)

The Lord then began to remind me of this one dream that He gave to me almost 20 years ago. As I share it, know that it is meant to encourage you in your dreams. The ones that you have already had, and the ones that will surely come from the Lord. He is speaking a lot these days through dreams and visions.

In the late ‘80’s and early ‘90’s, our family of Laurie, Josh, Ben, Hannah, Christen and I lived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. At this specific time of the dream, it was near the completion of another seven year cycle for Laurie and I.

 Mahesh and Bonnie Chavda, Art and Ruth Maki, and Mike and Leslie Adams were seriously praying about where the ministry, known then as Mahesh Chavda Ministries, was going to move to. South Florida had been the location since the Chavdas came from Texas, but now the Lord was calling for a natural location move for the spiritual growth of these and more families to come. Regular times of prayer and fasting were occurring among us, and in Good News Church, for that specific prayer concern. We started at least three years before we felt the time would actually occur for the major change. A wise thing to do.

Phoenix, San Francisco, Austin, Texas and Colorado Springs made up the top four consideration list. Charlotte, NC was a distant fifth, being it was the “belt buckle” of the “Bible Belt”. The word had been spoken that we wouldn’t really consider a move to such a “religious” section of the country. Not what was desired.

Not only would Mahesh Chavda Ministries be transplanted, but the thought of starting a new church was also in the mix. (Sidebar: Charlotte already had at least 700 churches, ranking it among the most per capita in the USA, around 1990. So why start another one there?)

But a few of us, who had some input, had the inclination of moving to Charlotte. We knew of the city’s physical location and the spiritual “heritage” that had already been established here. Laurie and I felt this for sure, primarily because of this being the former location of Heritage, USA and Jim Bakker’s PTL. (We still had our three “lifetime memberships” in hand since 1985, though no longer any good.)

We also wanted more connection with the thriving prophetic ministry of Rick and Julie Joyner and the team of Morningstar (Steve Thompson, Leonard Jones, Matthew Donovan, John Holcomb, etc.). Along with Mike Bickle’s team in Kansas City (another honorable “tribe” in the Lord’s army), our hearts and heads were pointed this way. After the “discipleship and shepherding movement” that we had benefited from for many years, we believed this to be the next move of the Lord – the prophetic movement. Both of these ministries we held in high regards in our hearts, for many reasons.

“We’ll just keep praying,” I thought to myself at times, while basically leaving it up to the main leadership to hear from the Lord.

In the spring of 1991, the Lord gave me a dream. It was one of the most vivid dreams I have ever received, and this one I knew was to be shared immediately with others. So I scribbled down the “picture” I saw in the dream, while yet at home that following morning, before going into the office. When I got to the MCM office down the street a few hours later, and sat at my administrator’s desk, I grabbed the first blank paper I had. It was the back side of a cassette tape set album master cover that had been misprinted. (It had the word “anointing” misspelled “annointing.” In case you have misspelled it before, remember this. You don’t want to miss the anointing.) J

As usual, being I hadn’t wanted to waste this absolutely good paper, on the backside, I had a pile of these misprints sitting in the back of the Fort Lauderdale office. Now this one piece had the prophetic dream picture drawn on it. At the time, I didn’t fully understand what it would end up being. Usual case when the Lord gives you something in the beginning.

(Sidebar: That first MCM public office was then located under the second story home of Mrs. Rodriquez, whom I wrote the rental checks to each month. It was also across the street from the Fort Lauderdale High School, home of the “Flying L’s”. (And I thought our 8^th grade St. Patrick’s football team name of “Shamrocks” was really corny. But their mascot name took the top prize. Maybe that’s why the Flying L’s weren’t any good at football in those days.)

David and Anna Selby’s kids Chris and Lisa were attending there at that time. David had recently been my boss at Derek Prince Ministries (1987-1990), for the first time, just a mile or two down the road. They had been so kind as to let us stay in Chris and Lisa’s bedrooms, with our four kids, for the first two weeks after we had moved to the Atlantic coastal city on that hot August day in 1987. (Our long-time friend, Michael Blade, drove the 24’ UHaul from East Lansing, MI to there. After helping his family move six times, he wanted to bless us back! We also weres topping three days at Heritage USA/PTL, in Charlotte, NC, to use our three “lifetime memberships.”)

Back at the Selbys, the kids of both families adjusted to our two week stay. We were so grateful for that demonstration of love, and the many more that followed. The Lord’s goodness and provision came also through them, the Selby family.)

After I had drawn out on the “anointed” paper what I had remembered from the dream, I first shared it with Bonnie, being Mahesh was out of town again. (He was averaging 256 days a year away from home on ministry trips during those days.) Then I put it in the “may not ever happen” file in my home desk drawer. It stayed there for three years.

Fast forward, three years to be exact, to May of 1994. Bonnie and I made an “investigative trip” to the Charlotte area. We stayed at the home of Harry and Louise Bizell, of Lamb’s Chapel. It was a beautiful, nine bedroom, nine bath home located just 10 miles due south of “uptown Charlotte”, on 60 acres, just before the South Carolina border. Rick and Julie Joyner had once lived on the property too, when they had moved earlier to the Charlotte area. They had occupied the small, two bedroom gray house, with a typical southern front porch attached, that was also on the property.

I’ll have to stop at this point for now, being I am running out of my “two or three pages per letter” room (and your time!) But just to give you a hint of what is to come…the Joyner’s former bedroom, complete with the black pot belly stove/fireplace that blue birds got caught in from the roof flue, would become my new administrator’s office! Rick shared later that he had angel visitations in that room, which he also wrote in one of his books. (Or said in one of his messages, which then went into a book?)

So be watching for Part II next week! See what the Lord has done, as He continues to fulfill dreams.

Ahava to my family of friends,

Steve

P.S. A big “Welcome!” to our new readers, especially those from the Beit Tikvah meetings we hold every Friday night (on the former heritage USA/PTL property!), as part of Antioch International Church’s desire to bless Israel and learn of our Jewish roots. Feel free to share this “freely” with whomever you’d like also.

P.S.S. Love For His People, Inc. sends monthly financial support to believers “on the ground” in Jerusalem, and to an orphanage in Accra, Ghana, cared for by a Messianic Jew named Ephraim. We also give as we can to assist a very reliable work in Hyderabad, India, called Lighthouse Center India, founded by John Ebenezer. We appreciate your special gifts.

You can donate now on-line by clicking here http://www.loveforhispeople.com/ for our website “Giving Opportunities” tab, or by sending checks to the address below. Todah rabah! (Hebrew - Thank you very much.)

©2011 Steve  Martin      Love For His People, Inc.  P.O. Box 470035   Charlotte, NC 28247-0035

 Facebook page: Steve Martin  Twitter: martinlighthous  Blog: http://loveforhispeople.blogspot.com/  Love For His People, Inc. is a charitable, not-for-profit USA organization. Fed. ID#27-1633858.  Tax deductible contributions sent by mail or given on-line will receive an e-receipt for each donation, for you to print out. (Saves the ministry on postage and envelopes!) Plus you too can bless others through your favorite ahava letterman!                                                                                                       

 Ahava Love Letter #11       In the year of our Lord Jan. 18, 2011