Voice of the Bride Coming Out of the Wilderness

Cleansing and Healing the Land

By: Susan Deborah Schiller

I went walking down the road past our ranch that leads deep into Indian territory. Walking for miles into the desolate wasteland of buffalo, antelope, sagebrush, and empty beer bottles, I noticed the road changing with every mile away from “civilization”. Weeds began to take over the road, due to lack of use.

There was virtually no traffic at all – one truck passed in the course of a couple hours. In places, the desert sand had covered the road entirely.

Strewn up and down the road were empty beer bottles and cans. I wondered if anyone out there was driving sober.

Surveying the litter, immediately, the phrase “Highway to Holiness” popped into my mind. I felt that my presence, as I prayed and walked, was interceding for the people of this vast land. Our love for the land and its people, in and of itself, is a prayer.

Prayer isn't always about having the right words to say… it's about tuning our heart to God's frequency and it changes the atmosphere around you. Sometimes prayer comes in a song.

"I will allure her and bring her into the wilderness and speak comfortably to her, and she shall sing there." ~ (Hos.2:14)

Desert training. Learning to sing in the wilderness.

I think of several men I know who were trained in the desert: Moses, David, Paul, Jesus. Were they seeing what I saw? Did they see and hear the things I was seeing and hearing? What did the desert do to their hearts?

I learned later from local residents that the road is not well traveled but there is a little Indian town that people have heard about but know little of… and it’s so far out that it’s basically off the map. I felt very much drawn to those Indians. And I felt called to intercede for the land and to claim it for the King of kings and to rename it the Highway of Holiness… the Highway of the King (Isaiah 62).

As I worshiped, I sensed God saying, “Will you be my bride?” My heart melted and I immediately responded, “Yes!”

Suddenly it felt as if the Lord and I were traveling at supersonic speed, passing whole continents. I felt His dominion and authority inside of me and I knew He wanted to have all nations and all continents know how much He loved them.

Somehow, at the same time, I could also see tiny details… like individual people groups in places the world had not yet noticed. I sensed He was asking if I would be willing to go to the places no one had yet ventured to reach, places perhaps others did not dare to go because they were undesirable places … not anything one would put on a travel brochure.

In my spirit I felt an excitement and a draw to these areas and I replied, “Yes, yes, yes!” And then I heard, “Many are called, but few are chosen.”

His Bride knows her authority and uses it to intercede for the nations, even down to the little details of unreached people groups. She uses her authority to go to the ends of the earth, even to places others have not yet gone. She is completely dependent upon Jesus Christ and she exerts power and authority to take dominion over the earth… but not in the way many people think that looks like.

She heals the land wherever she goes. It's not about taking over, being in control, having ownership, or being in charge. It seems to be about making heaven real in this world. It's choosing love today. It's humble acts of service that usually go unnoticed and unappreciated and without compensation.

We live in a house that sits on a high place over this valley, in the middle of an Indian reservation. The previous occupants lived a rowdy, drunken lifestyle, which polluted the atmosphere in this area. When God is present it stirs things up and darkness is exposed.

It’s time for us to forget “business as usual” and to be about our Father’s business… to cleanse and heal the land, through acts of righteousness as well as our prayers.

Later that night, I woke up startled in the wee hours of the morning, as a drunken driver plowed into our pasture, breaking fence posts. The fence must be mended right away. This is both spiritual and physical labor.

There is a work of healing and restoration to be done, and it begins in our own lives. We must begin on our own property – our lives – and mend the fences, close the open doors, eliminate the enemy’s footholds, and take back our own ground… by living in the Light, confronting and exposing darkness, and choosing love. It's walking in Love, living the13th.

From Isaiah 62 …

“Walk out of the gates. Get going! Get the road ready for the people. Build the highway. Get at it! Clear the debris, hoist high a flag, a signal to all peoples! Yes! God has broadcast to all the world: ‘Tell daughter Zion, “Look! Your Savior comes, ready to do what he said he’d do, prepared to complete what he promised.”’ Zion will be called new names: Holy People, God-Redeemed, Sought-Out, City-Not-Forsaken.”

We are creating our future world by our choices, attitudes, and words today. We can cleanse our land, by choosing Love and Light! We make Love known. We embody Love.

This blog post is actually a journal entry in my diary, from August 2009, in my very first days of being a Lone Rancher. I'd love to hear your story – there's a comment box below where you can write 10 or 10,000 words 🙂

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With all my love,

Sue

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Tagged as: Choosing Love Today, Deborah White Dove, Life Story Writing, On the Way Home, Real People Real Stories, Writing a Life Story