Follow Me!

By Bonnie Jones

February 2023

He bowed the heavens also, and came down with darkness under His feet. (Psalm 18:9)

I heard His voice saying, “In the midst of the darkness I call unto thee. Will you follow Me?” I answered, “Yes Lord!” “Then lay down your life, your agenda and follow Me!”

He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters and thick clouds of the skies. (Psalm 18:11)

Recently the Lord has been speaking to me a simple yet profound and defining word, FOLLOW ME! He told me that I worry about needless things. Follow me! He said, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Lamp unto your feet. Do not let your heart or mind be troubled. Do not let doubt or fear enter in. You follow me!”

This was not a suggestion. It was a COMMAND! I believe every Christian is faced with circumstances, some larger or of greater importance or impact. Oftentimes we look for the answer in the natural realm. Even when we press into the Lord, sometimes we don’t receive our answer in a timely manner. Of course, that is according to our time not necessarily the Lord’s. Sometimes the answer is right in front of our face, but we don’t have the wisdom to see or understand. Therefore, we continue to struggle to find the answer because of spiritual blindness and/or spiritual immaturity. And that process can lead us in a circle or down a wrong path.

Once again, the Lord said, “Follow Me as I lead you through the promises of “Yes and Amen. They are all set before you and each one has its own reward. You are challenged by circumstances as each Christian is. But My Bride trusts Me and walks through the fire of affliction. She does not stop there and rest, she continues moving. Jealousy and pride will stop her in this valley. Do not desire that which I have not chosen for you. Follow me!”

As human beings we tend to be self-focused. Even if we don’t verbalize it our thoughts can take a detour called “what about me?” Christians are citizens of the kingdom of God and their focus should be to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.(Matthew 6:33) I believe the Bride is the remnant church that has matured by walking through the fire of affliction. She does not focus on the circumstance she’s facing, instead she looks ahead toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-15)

The Bride cannot look back to the past. Remember Lot’s wife? From the moment she turned and looked back to what she left behind she never took another step forward. And that one act of disobedience resulted in incestuous circumstances. And the children of Israel kept murmuring and complaining about what was instead of praising God for the Land of Promise that lied ahead of them. Pride set up in their heart and their end result was death in the wilderness. A whole generation suffered the consequence and never entered the Promised Land. His Bride must be wiser!

The Sign Post

I know when the Lord shows me the same thing or repeats a message in two consecutive dreams, I had better pay close attention. He’s speaking loud and clear and I better get understanding and pass it on to the body of Christ. It was a busy night of dreaming and I’ll admit I can’t remember everything I received. However twice I saw the same signpost very clearly and the second time I was proclaiming the word, “Follow Me!”

In the first dream I was standing at the edge of a dirt road facing a corner lot. The surroundings gave the appearance of being in the country. From where I stood I was facing a lovely two-story green house. The large yard was neatly landscaped, and I noticed how the back yard sloped softly to the edge of a large private fishing lake. I knew the family was inside and there was talk of them selling the family home. Yet they did not want to sell because of the private fishing lake. As I’m looking toward the water, I noticed a sign post midway to the lake. At first I thought it was a street sign however there was only one name on it whereas most signs have two names giving direction to go one way or the other. The post as well as the sign was brown and it read, “Elan.” Although it was rather square on the edges, it seemed to be pointing to the lake.

“ELAN”

A short time later, I had another dream. In this dream I’m seated in the front row of a church. A young lady on the left-hand side of the sanctuary stood beside the piano and began making announcements. An older lady entered from the right side and walked in front of me carrying the brown “Elan” signpost.  She placed it in the aisle next to the front row pew opposite me. When I glanced up and saw the sign, I knew I needed to share about my previous dream.

When the young lady finished her message, I walked over and took the microphone. Bringing attention to the sign, I explained how it indicates that we are at a crossroads in our Christian journey. Each one of us! No one is exempt! There is only one way we can go. We must follow Him! You see when the woman placed the “Elan” sign in the church, it was pointing to the doors at the back of the sanctuary. And the glory of the Lord was shining brightly on them. It was an invitation to “FOLLOW ME!” We must be willing to lay down our agendas and enter the heart of Christ, conforming to His image, so that we may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death. This is death to self! And the fellowship of His sufferings is the fire of affliction.

Paul says it this way: Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ  and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;  that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,  if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:8-11)

I believe we’re at a time of demarcation and we MUST quit fooling around and get serious with God. Too many Christians have been riding both sides of the fence and that’s why their prayers aren’t being answered. They have one foot in the world while the other one is shod with the gospel of peace. In reality they still maintain a significant amount of fear and therefore lack godly wisdom. We all want revival but it must start with the body of Christ first.

Oaks of Righteousness

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper. (Psalm 1:1-3)

Hebrew variations of Elan include Ilan, Elon and Alon, which all mean “oak tree.” In Isaiah 61:3 we are called trees or oaks of righteousness that glorify the Lord through our life. And it’s a promise of Jesus for long life, provision, and family. A tree is a symbol of where God meets with humanity and blesses them as a part of His family. These oaks shall rebuild old ruins and prepare the way for future generations. (Isaiah 63:4) And according to Psalm 1:3 these oaks of righteousness shall bring forth fruit and live in prosperity.

Now I want to go back to the first dream and tie it in with the second. Elan is the key or signpost in each dream. In the first dream the sign was in the backyard pointing to the lake.  Although the homeowners wanted to sell, they didn’t want to leave because of the private fishing lake.

Baptism and Revival

I believe they are holding on to the promise of the next move of God. The fishing lake represents a place of baptism and revival. Like the Jesus movement from the 60s, they’re waiting for their promise of yes and amen. They have walked through the fire of affliction and counted the cost. The fact that “Elan” is near the lake indicates their promise is near at hand and pointing the direction where it will take place. Many oaks of righteousness shall arise from fishing lakes born again, baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit and power.

Elan was also found in the church where the glory of the Lord is waiting for the body of Christ to follow Him. I believe there’s still a lot of religion in the church and that’s why many still wavers in their faith and can’t make a full commitment. But the glory is available to whosoever will “Follow Me!” It’s decision-making time for the body of Christ. She can no longer ride both sides of the fence.

Whereas the lake represents a move of God outside the church where radical transformation takes place. When they hear the simple gospel; “God loves you and sent His Son Jesus to die for your sins. You are forgiven!” They won’t be bound by religion, and they’ll freely receive all that God has for them, salvation, baptism, and infilling of the Holy Spirit. And they will be on fire for God. These are the “Elan’s” coming forth from the riverbanks.

This is the last day outpouring Joel prophesied in chapter 2 where God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh. And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the remnant whom the Lord calls. And He is calling them today to “Follow Me!”

Just before Jesus ascended to heaven, He told the disciples, “John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. And you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:5 & 8)

Shepherd’s Rod 2023