Many moons ago before we left Mississippi Chuck grew some sunflowers in our back yard. I don’t remember it very clearly, but our daughter-in-love does. She told her children, our grandchildren, about it and they wanted to send PawPaw a picture of the sunflowers they grew in their back yard. Thanks to their Aunt Carrie who took and emailed us the pictures.
Here are Katie and Andrew with their sunflowers.
I don’t know about you, but I am so sick of people who have been caught in sin making statements to the press and to congregations that they made a mistake. What does that mean? More than not they are just sorry they got caught because they lost their influence and/or position. It would be so refreshing to hear them say like David, I have sinned against you Oh, Lord.
I must say that I did not see this coming with Todd Bentley. Even with a warning dream that God gave me and deep inner groanings and intercession for Todd that I carried through most of the Lakeland meetings, I did not discern that he was in sin. I only experienced a spiritual awakening and stirring in my spirit as I watched the meetings on God TV and as we were there in person. I saw the hunger of thousands of people and how God met them as they came. He was faithful to His word when He says “draw near to me and I will draw near to you”.
I have questioned the Lord about how so much good and so many healings could come through these meetings when Todd was in sin. I experience this years ago when a pastor through whom I learned much about the scriptures was in adultery. How can this be, Lord? Then last week as I was reading the word I turned to Acts 3:12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we made this man walk? Well, that is the answer. God is not limited by the vessel, it is all about our God and His response to those crying out to Him and His love and compassion for His chosen ones. It is about His power and Holiness.
I think those in leadership who knew of Todd’s previous sins and counseled him without exposure did not do him any favors. Classifying sin as a “melt down” unfortunately for Todd and the church left an open door for the enemy to cause further damage. We are entering into a time of major exposure. Hidden sin especially in the church will not be tolerated any longer. Todd Bentley and Tedd Haggard’s exposure are only the beginning. Jesus will have a bride without spot or wrinkle. Brace yourself, a house cleaning is coming and it will be heart breaking and will cause a real shaking. But the end result will be a glorious church.
At this point, I am praying for Todd and his family and I am asking the Holy Spirit to examine my heart and I am repenting for my own sins. I want to be a part of His glorious church.
In case you have been wondering where I have been, Chuck and I left last Tuesday to visit a place called Joy Mountain which is located in the boonies of the upper NW corner of North Carolina. When I say the boonies, I am talking boonies. The closest town is Hot Springs, NC and we were told that there was not much there except the springs.
Where we stayed there was no phone, no internet and no TV. There was black bear, turkey, deer, bats, snakes etc. The most important thing that was present was peace, the presence of God, angels and a hard working christian couple that God sent to be “caretakers” of this property.
It was a very faith building trip and I will try to tell you more about it later this week. In the mean time I have chores here to do.
This prophetic word was emailed to me this morning from Bill Burns confirming new beginnings.
The Trumpet by Bill Burns — August 18, 2008:
God is always faithful to give us signs to confirm His word. On 08/08/08, at our Friday night service (for those who were not here), we had an amazing demonstration of God’s presence at exactly 8:00 p.m. a tremendously heavy rain came. We could hear it thunder on the church roof. It reminded me of Hosea 6:3 — Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth. Then, the rain lasted for a short time and when Jeanine held up the 8- minute card for the preacher, it stopped. It didn’t just dwindle; it stopped as if a switch was thrown. I’m also reminded of the Olympic games and Phelps’ new record of winning 8 gold medals. God is demonstrating in this time of new beginnings a re- establishment of faith and a time of victory. I keep being reminded of a vision I had at our last conference, which is usually a time when God sets a prophetic pattern of what is ahead. I remember seeing in this vision a high plateau before us with a river running down from the top of it. God’s people were in the water down below and were trying to get to the new plateau; some were paddling and some were swimming, and we were really struggling to try to get there. The water was fast, rough, and turbulent, and we weren’t making much headway and had to really fight. That’s where we are now in transition. But, in the vision there was a point when the river changed the direction of its flow, and it began to carry us up to the plateau that God had prepared for us. I sense today that we are almost to that place. Don’t quit. Continue to fight through to reach that point where there is a change in the flow of the river that will carry you to a new place in the Spirit.
American Michael Phelps just won his 8th gold metal at the Summer Olympics on 8/16/08. This was on a day when thousands gathered in Washington, DC for a solemn assembly. The Summer Olympics started on 8/8/08.
I believe this is a prophetic sign that America is in for a new beginning. Change is coming.
Joel 2:15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly. 16 Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber. 17 Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the temple porch and the altar. Let them say, “Spare your people, O Lord. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”
18 Then the Lord will be jealous for his land and take pity on his people. 19 The Lord will reply to them: “I am sending you grain, new wine and oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations.
Tomorrow very may be on of the most important events of America’s history. There will hopefully be thousands of people who gather at the mall of Washington DC to fast and pray for America. The date is full of self prophesying of new beginnings since 8 is the number for new beginnings. We need to repent of our sins and pray to bring righteousness back which as the word says exalts a nation.
The last couple of days the Holy Spirit has been exposing to me my own sins and I have been repenting. The day of pointing the finger needs to be over and we as His people need to humble ourselves and pray and turn from our wicked ways, then he will heal our land.
I gathered in Washington Dc years ago with many brothers and sisters for the Washington For Jesus Gathering and in Nashville last year for the Call. I won’t be in Washington DC in the flesh this time but I do intend to be there in the spirit and participate in prayer as I watch on God TV. We are at a turning point in this nation and as for me and my house we choose the Lord.
August 14, 1948 Lucy Hope Bickham was born to William Smith Bickham and Christelle Lewis Bickham. Hope is my sister and I was 4 years old when she was born. Hope was born in a WW II military barracks that was converted into a hospital in Gulfport, MS. I can remember that they would not let me visit my mom so my dad lifted me up on his shoulders to the window of my mom’s room for me to see that mom was really ok. You know 60 years ago new mothers stayed in the hospital a long time and had to remain on bed rest even after they got home.
My mom told me that she came home in an ambulance and once she got settled in the bed with my new sister she looked across the room to see me pushed up in a far corner with a look of total despair. Almost exactly a year prior we had survived a Cat 2 hurricane with a 12 ft storm surge and now my mom comes home in a strange vehicle with a kicking, screaming little person. Do you blame me for being leary?
Christmas of that year we drove up to Jackson, MS and joined all of my mom’s siblings and their families to celebrate at my my Uncle Jimmy and Aunt Elrene’s home. That year the song “All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth” was popular and I would sing it inserting Hope’s name. Christmas morning my grandmother discovered that Hope indeed had 2 front teeth. Merry Christmas!
Our parents were very hard workers and we were really economically challenged most of our growing up years, but I never realized that much. Most of the homes we lived in only had two bedrooms and one bath and there were 5 of us including my grandmother. Hope and I slept in the same bed together and in the same room as my grandmother until I was in Junior High School.
First grade was a real challenge for her and all of the family. Mom could not get her to stay there. She would drop her off at school and by the time mom got home Hope was already in the house. She hated it so much that it physically made her sick. But despite the horrid beginning she really is very smart and excelled in all she did. She started having problems with her eye sight at a very young age, but she always loved to read and is still an avid reader.
Hope now has two grown children, Amy & Matthew, and one cutie of a granddaughter, Gracyn. Hope has worked herself up into a good position with the MS College Law School. About three years ago she developed a torn retina in one eye and even after many surgeries she became totally blind in that eye. She experienced some real changes in her life because of this loss of sight and helped take care of our mom in her last years while she was dealing with it. She has continued to work and had a couple of serious falls resulting in fractures because of her lack of sight. This year God did a miracle and she started seeing through her blind eye. Thank you Lord.
Well, Hope, I don’t know where 60 years went since that day Mom brought you home to that little house a block from the beach in Gulfport, MS that has since been washed away by Katrina. I do pray you have many more years and that they be full of health, happiness and joy. I pray that the Lord bless you and your family with His presence and all spiritual blessings. Happy Birthday Sis!
Friday the 13th of August, 1965 Charles Waggener Williams Jr was born to us at Tyndall Air Force Base which was about 30 miles from Pensacola, Fl where we lived. I was 21 and his dad was 24 but we were pretty immature and sure had no clue about raising a child. We were however, very excited about the coming of our first born. We called him Chuckie which he grew to dislike after becoming a teenager, but he is still Chuckie to me.
We had only been married 15 months when he was born. Charlie(Chuck Sr) was serving his two years active duty in the Navy and we were stationed in Pensacola at a small base. We were dirt poor. We lived in a hotel room with a kitchenette just off the beach until just before he was born and we were able to rent a duplex with another navy couple from South Dakota. It had no air condition and all I had to keep me cool while carrying him was one little fan which went every where I did. One night the fan gave out in the middle of the night and I thought I would not see dawn. We managed to scrape up enough money together to purchase another. I also spent a lot of time in the Gulf floating trying to stay cool.
Chuck Jr’s birth was the easiest I had. Charlie took me to see the doctor the evening of the 12th because I had an eye infection and had been very nauseated and vomiting all day. The doctor met us at the hospital and once he examined me came out and pronounced that there were two things going on. I was having a reaction to the medication he gave me for my eye and I was in labor. Charlie about flipped out. The doctor sent him home to get my personal items while they got me settled. You should have seen that bag. I had not packed much because I thought I had a couple more weeks according to my last exam. When I first opened that suitcase it almost took my head off. He had stuffed everything into that little case in a nano second and the pressure behind it shot my belongings in every direction.
I had almost no pain during this labor. Charlie and I played cards and laughed while I turned down two shots for pain. The last hour was a little hard, but Chuckie was born without difficulty.
However, the next day I was told that our son was having some lung complications and would have to remain in the nursery. A military hospital then was a total different ball game from private hospitals. Mothers were all in one big ward and they went to the nursery first thing in the morning and obtained their baby and took care of them all day. Everyone in the ward was able to get their baby but me. It was really hard and I would go to the bathroom and sit and cry. A really insensitive nurse chewed me out one day because I did not go and stand at the nursery window during that time and watch my baby. I was so scared I just could not do it and she accused me of not loving my child. Well, that helped a lot.
We were finally discharged home a week later. We were so poor that we had to borrow the ten dollars that it cost to get us out of the hospital. Thankfully they gave us formula. All of my family came down to see their new grandson and nephew. My mom stayed a week with me and Chuckie since Charlie’s ship left port a few days after we got home and was to be gone 3-6 months. I should have packed up and move the two of us back to MS where I would have had the help and support of our family, but I chose to stay there so we could see Charlie one weekend a month. That turned out to be a bad choice for Chuckie and I. I was so ignorant on how to take care of a baby and so anxious about being alone that he became anxious and cried day and night.
Chuck Jr had a lot stolen from his childhood through circumstances most of which were beyond our control. Poverty, ignorant immature parents, death of a sibling and a handicapped brother that took so much of our time. I have a lot regrets about how I handled things but I also see the mercy and grace of God. Despite all the things that could have hindered him Chuckie has become a son of whom we are very proud. He loves the Lord, is a good husband and a great father and son. I don’t think we can take much credit for the man he has become, it is a working of the Lord we serve.
The old fable about Friday the thirteenth is not true for us. It was not bad luck for us it was a day that a true blessing was brought into our family. Happy Birthday Chuckie!!! We love you very much and we are proud of you son.
Get ready for September! It is so huge on God’s timetable that it will mark one of the greatest shifts in the spiritual realm that our generation has ever seen:
• A season of suddenlies will begin.
• The confusion and deception ruling America (including within the Church) will begin to lift.
• The November elections will shift toward God’s will.
• The coming “great awakening” to America will go to a new level.
• The “presence movement” will begin.
A Season of Suddenlies
I have heard of divine “suddenlies” all of my life and have no doubt experienced a few. However, I have never been in what I would call “a season of suddenlies.” I’m in one now! And this new season is about to break forth in a significant way for those who have allowed God to prepare them for it.
I was already releasing this word when Chuck Pierce prophesied to me two weeks ago, “You will stand on the steps facing ‘The Mall’ (in Washington, D.C.) in September and decree: ‘Suddenlies are coming!’ Be prepared for I will begin to jar and to rearrange what needs to be rearranged.”
This season will usher in many changes - get ready!
Confusion and Deception Broken
The level of confusion and deception I have seen over America in the last two years both in the Church and without has been unlike anything I have ever witnessed. The level of it, especially in the Body of Christ, has truly been shocking to me. The list of areas in which it has manifested is broad: presidential candidate endorsements and prophecies, doctrinal error, relational breakups, disagreements over what is true and false revival, etc.
Add to this list a general weariness, complacency (one well-known leader told me he doesn’t think it matters anymore who is elected president - so much for shifting the Supreme Court!), disillusionment, disorientation, etc. - and it all adds up to incredible confusion and deception. I believe it is all linked to our war in Iraq, which is ancient Babylon. Babylon means “confusion.” It was not difficult for us to defeat Iraq’s physical army, but the principality - the spirit of Babylon - has been another story altogether.
Just a couple of weeks ago, however, I heard the Holy Spirit say very clearly to me, “I’m about to unravel the cords of confusion.” When I heard this I had the sense that it would begin in September.
In 2 Chronicles 20, God used Israel’s worship to “ambush” their enemies. The result was that these enemies destroyed one another! Expect the confusion to break off of the Church this fall and for God’s enemies to be ambushed.
The November Elections
To say it has been troubling to listen to prominent Christian leaders endorse certain candidates and/or prophesy that it is God’s will for those candidates to be president would be an understatement. Make no mistake about it, the turning of the Supreme Court and reversing the flow of death and anti-God laws that have flowed out of it is still God’s number one governmental agenda for America.
To elect a pro-abortion candidate that would appoint pro-abortion judges would be disastrous and could set us back 50 years. It doesn’t matter who prophesies or states otherwise - don’t be deceived by this. It is NOT God’s will for us to have a liberal, pro-abortion president!
I listened to one of the presidential candidates make a speech four years ago and heard one of the strongest abilities for deceiving and moving the masses that I’ve ever witnessed. The strength of this “gift” was very scary. I knew then he would be a candidate for president in ‘08. The good news is that the deception surrounding him will begin to break in September and the momentum of the elections will be decided at that time - if the Church prays. Please pray diligently and don’t be taken in by charisma and empty promises of change.
The Presence Movement and Upcoming Conference
The coming awakening will not be known as a prayer movement, apostolic movement, prophetic movement, teaching movement, miracle movement, gifts movement, glory movement, etc. It will include all of these, but the dominant emphasis and characteristic will be - His presence. He - not one of His manifestations or elements of gifting - will be the focal point.
Our ministry in Colorado Springs, along with many others I’m sure, has been privileged by God to help birth this. We were visited by the Holy Spirit on June 15 and asked to host His Presence 24/7 for 90 days, just as Obed-edom did with the Ark of the Covenant, which is also called “the Ark of His Presence” (see 2 Samuel 6:10-11).
We have suspended everything else to host Him. No classes, no preaching (even on Sundays), no programs - nothing but worship. It has wrecked us! His presence has been so overwhelming at times in our gatherings that none of us knows what to do. We are being ruined for “normal” Christianity.
It has become obvious to us that this assignment is on behalf of the entire nation. We are in the hidden, secret place with God, allowing the Holy Spirit to hover through our worship and birth a “presence movement.” God has spoken to us prophetically that this movement characterized by His presence will begin to be released to the nation in September.
To facilitate this we are moving our hosting of Him to a larger venue for the last 3 days, September 11-13, and inviting many to join us. We are confident that what we, and I’m sure others, have been birthing will be imparted to hundreds - perhaps thousands at that time.
When God spoke to me to expand the last 3 days for the purpose of impartation, I was not thinking about the fact that this would begin on our 88th day, which also begins the 8th year after 9/11/01. Eight is the Biblical number for new beginnings. (Many of you are aware that Chuck Pierce prophesied that America would enter into a seven-year season of war, which began on 9/11/01.)
We did not plan this visitation and the consequent 90-day assignment to begin when it did, making the 88th day September 11, ending a seven-year war cycle and marking a new beginning…but God did! Come and help us decree the end of the old season and launch this “new beginning” of the presence movement!
These 3 days will probably be unlike anything you’ve been a part of - no preaching or teaching, just worship 24 hours each day. (We, of course, always make room for intercession and prophetic release as the Holy Spirit leads.) Some of us may bring a blanket and pillow and, like Joshua of old, stay in His presence all the time, except perhaps to freshen up once in awhile (see Exodus 33:11). (If you are coming to the event, please secure lodging if you’re coming from out of town in order to have a place for your belongings, to clean up and to rest if necessary.) I am certain that those who come will carry His presence home with them.
Pastors and leaders, families, individuals, intercessors, worshippers…come. We are asking you to register in order to know how many to accommodate, but there is no registration fee. We simply ask you to bring a God-honoring offering to defray expenses. This will cost us approximately forty thousand dollars because of the building rental, chairs, P.A., bringing in worship teams, etc. (no worship leader will receive an honorarium. Their worship is an offering to Him, but we will cover their expenses). Klaus Kuehn, Rick Pino, Eddie James, Jeremy Burk and other worship leaders are coming to help us. It will be amazing!
You can register by going to www.usapostolicalliance.org
I’ll see you September 11th as we gather at 9:00 A.M. to do our part in releasing perhaps the greatest outpouring of the Holy Sprit this nation has ever received. Don’t miss it!
With anticipation,
Dutch Sheets
Dutch Sheets Ministries
Email: ministryinfo@dutchsheets.org
I am a little behind times. The movie Bella has been out now two years and I am just now watching it. I know that is really bad. We have such few movies made with Christian values and I had ever intention of going to see the movie to help support them and make a statement, but never got to the theater.
Chuck and I went to Best Buy Saturday to shop for a few things for him. While he was making up his mind I walked over to where the movies were located. I was looking for Amazing Grace since I heard Dutch Sheets talking about it on one of his teaching tapes. As I was browsing my eyes fell on Bella and it was on sale. I knew this was my opportunity.
Tonight we sat down after supper to watch Bella. I must admit it was a little hard to follow at first but it was a really good movie with a deep message. If I had to put it in one word it would be redemption. I highly recommend if you have not seen this movie please do so. Just make sure the Kleenex is close.