The Breath of the Beast   "They have sown the wind and reap the whirlwind." Hosea 8:7 Now is the time and season to establish safe environments. A tempest is stirring in the second heaven that is the Breath of the Beast. This is not the materialization of the Beast of Revelation but is a clear sign that the Beast has entered our sphere and is drawing close. This breath has disguised itself for a full generation as a halcyon -- a seductive breeze from the south -- but is now revealing itself in its true nature. Those who should be most concerned are the Samson generation -- Baby-Boomers like myself who came to the Lord during the Jesus Movement of the early 1970s. Having started in the spiritual many of us are now finishing in the flesh and are held captive by pornography, greed, and the pride of life. Our spiritual eyes have been plucked out and we are reduced to being the enemy's amusement. Yet, even in our bondage and blindness, my generation will be given a last opportunity to push against the pillars, and in death-to-self, destroy more of the enemy than we had during decades of self-ambition and indulgence. It is a time for prodigals to return but it is not a time for prodigals to play with the idea of returning. The Samsons who will not strain against the pillars of their strongholds will find the fruit of their sin reaped upon their seed, namely their own daughters and grandchildren. This is the very vortex of the whirlwind. The daughters and sons of the Samsons are at risk, not due to the judgment of God, but through the dues Satan extracts when we sow to the flesh. But, again, those who arouse themselves to a final effort will strike against evil within its very courtyards. "These speak evil of whatever they do not know, and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves." (Jude 10) Mankind, having sown relativism and hedonism for many seasons, will further reduce himself to animalistic levels. Yet, in these tempestuous times many of the lost will say "enough!" and seek truth and salvation. They will wander from structure to structure seeking fresh air and life. Some will find religious structures to be as polluted as the environments they are fleeing and will escape to Cities of Refuge in the wilderness. Others will find safe environments within established church structures, but the safety and purity will be maintained only by single-minded devotion to Christ, His Word, and the Holy Spirit. The Breath of the Beast will own some buildings and systems and the allegiance of the people will be severely tested. As the Beast's breath strengthens respiratory illnesses will rise and many who thought themselves healthy will succumb to a heavy congestion in the chest and lungs. One illness will replace another, will replace another. The Breath of the Beast would turn the heavens gray, a muddying of truth and error. But those whose principles are black-and-white shall behold great displays of atmospheric glory. Signs in the sky will merely be signs of increased corporate revelation. Dreams and visions will intensify in color. The spiritual world will so brightly shine that even fairest day will seem dim in comparison. Supernatural provision will become common. Young people will pick up swords discarded by the Samson generation and advance without fear against the enemy. Their battle cry will be: "This is not a time for Hobbits!" -- a phrase from the third Lord of the Rings movie, "The Return of the King." And, indeed, this will not be a time for those who live in comfortable holes and seek only to fill their days with mirth and pleasure. This will be a time of reaping what has been sown. Those who have sown for years, even decades, with little harvest will need help to gather in all that will be provided. The whirlwind that brings harsh judgment to some will bring great grace to others. Now is the time to establish safe environments, clean dwellings, and fortified storehouses. January 15th, 2004