The Almond Chronicles--Part 3

In Part 2, I quoted from Kathryn's letter, wherein she showed some hostility toward me and the spiritual warriors that had joined in our prayer campaigns. From her perspective, ours was the "Satanic army," while hers was "the Army of the Lord."

Any time there is such opposition, each side always believes it is on the "right side." It is for each individual to discern and decide who is who. Yet for my part, it was necessary for me to treat this in the same manner that Moses did when his calling and authority were challenged by Korah in Numbers 17. You see, it is not for us personally to defend ourselves against such charges, because we are not self-called. It is for God to decide, since He is the One who calls and leads.

We were also to allow Kathryn's army to lay siege to us until Feb. 8, so that she could test our strength and also have opportunity to repent and change course.

Then we were led to give the situation to God and let Him determine who was truly called, and which army was really the Army of the Lord. We prayed to give up our staves and lay them in the temple in heaven. The one that bore almonds would be divinely validated.

Hence, we prayed to lay up our staves on Feb. 8, 2001, along with Kathryn's staff and others. On the same day, Robert was led to commission Michael to come against the Red Dragon (to prepare for the coming war); and I was led to commission Peniel, as follows:

"We ask that your mighty Angel, Peniel, be commissioned with Your Word of Transfiguration and sent out to destroy the man of sin with the brightness of Your Presence and Your Face.We humbly ask that You glorify Your saints with the light of Your countenance. Fill Your people with Your Fullness, even as we petitioned You seven years ago. . . We ask that You fulfill Your vow in Numbers 14:21 that You swore in the presence of Moses, Your servant and friend: 'As truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord'."

I had totally forgotten about this petition two weeks ago when I awoke with the revelation from John 17:1, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Sons." You see, Kathryn's main hangup was my teaching on the Restoration of all things. In essence, she did not believe that the glory of God would fill the whole earth. She thought this was a "Satanic" idea. To me, however, it was simply God fulfilling His vow.

The Lord told us: "My ruling will come at noon, February 21, 2001."

Sunny Day had scheduled a meeting at the DoubleTree Park Place Hotel in Minneapolis on the afternoon of Feb. 21, 2001. A number of people drove or came by plane from some distance. One couple asked me to pick them up at the airport, as their plane was due to arrive at 11:32 a.m. They were Mr. and Mrs. Berry.

I immediately had the understanding that they represented the "fruit" of the almond rod that would bring forth "berries." But if so, their plane would have to arrive at noon, rather than on time at 11:32. Well, their plane came in on schedule, but they had to wait on the runway for another 15 minutes while another plane left their gate. Hence, they arrived precisely at noon, Feb. 21.

We knew then that Aaron's Rod had borne fruit, according to the Word of the Lord, and that this revelation was conveyed by the Berry's arriving on schedule.

The Second Meeting on February 22, 2001

Sunny Day had also scheduled a second meeting the next day, 2/22, at Arise and Shine Fellowship, where I was ministering. We took note that the Candlestick in the tabernacle had 22 almonds on it (Ex. 25:33, 34). Each of the 6 branches had 3 almond bowls, but the 7th (center) branch had 4. So 6 x 3 = 18 on the six branches, plus 4 on the central branch brings 22 almonds in all.

22 almonds on 7 branches, of course, is a mathematical representation of pi, which is 22/7, or 3.14. It is the same revelation found on the 8th day of Tabernacles, which always falls on the 22nd day of the 7th month (Hebrew calendar).

Pi is the 16th letter of the Greek alphabet and has a numerical value of 70. It is the numerical equivalent of the Hebrew letter ayin, which also has a numeric value of 70. The ayin literally means an "eye," and was originally written in the shape of an almond with a dot in the middle.

The Hebrew word for "almond" is shaqed, from the root word shaqad, which means "to watch." Hence, the almond is shaped like an "eye," and has to do with watching or awakening.

This, we believe, was behind God's plan for us to hold the second meeting on the 22nd. It was to connect the revelation to the almonds produced by Aaron's Rod in Num. 17.

For this reason, ten years later in 2011, we see Feb. 21 and 22 as "watch dates." These are not just any watch dates. These are specifically associated with the almond, which means "watch." Along with these dates, we might also include today's date, Feb. 20, because it is the first Sunday after the Second Passover, as I have written earlier. As such, it is a type of day of resurrection, when Christ's eyes opened in the tomb, and He awoke.

For this reason, we ought to watch this 3-day period, Feb. 20-22.

Jeremiah's Commission

When the prophet Jeremiah was commissioned (Jer. 1:10), he was given authority to do a particular job. Whenever God commissions anyone, the authority to do the job comes with the commission itself, and God also equips the person to complete the job successfully.

In Jeremiah's case, he was shown "a rod of an almond tree" (Jer. 1:11). We read,

¹¹ Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, "Jeremiah what SEEST thou?" And I said, "I see a rod of an almond tree." ¹² Then said the Lord unto me, "Thou hast well SEEN; for I will hasten My word to perform it."

Dr. Bullinger's notes explain the meaning of the almond tree. The Hebrew word, he said, is shaqed, "a watcher, or an early waker, because it is the first of the trees to wake from its winter sleep." Normally, it awakens in February.

The word also carries the meaning of "hasten," because it seems to be in a hurry to wake up. Thus, God told Jeremiah, "I will hasten My word to perform it."

The emergence of the almond revelation this month indicates that God is now hastening to perform His word. That word, I believe, is specifically the commission of Jeremiah to tear down Babylon and to build up the Kingdom of God. This commission carries with it the glory and presence of God, as well as all the equipment and provision necessary to do the work.

In February of 2000 we learned that the first-fruits were marked off in February in biblical days. The best of the trees were marked with a cloth, indicating that the first-fruits offering would be taken from that particular tree. February was the first indicating sign of the full harvest in September. Prophetically speaking, then, February is like a first-fruits sign of the divine plan that is outworking in any given year.

In this case, we are seeing revelation of the glory of God. It is a starting point, and so we ought to watch for further signs in the months and years ahead.

In Part 4 I will show other aspects of the revelation from 2001, because the revelation goes far beyond the Church under Pentecost challenging the authority of the overcomers. It also has national and international significance.