A City on a Hill | Oct. Monthly Blog

Build Your House Upon the Rock

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Matthew 7.24-27

At the end of His teaching in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus encourages His listeners to apply His instruction. Many had gathered to hear His teaching, and He warned them to listen and then put His words into practice. He knew that those that did would not be tossed about by the winds and the waves, as they would be building on a solid foundation rather than an unstable one. It is a good reminder to be anchored in the truth of God’s word in these unusual times. Take this time to examine your beliefs and their origin. Are they rooted in the truth of God’s word, or have they been molded by family, tradition, society, friendships, circumstances, hardship, loss, illness, or death? In this tumultuous world, it is easy to build our theology on our circumstances rather than applying the instruction from Jesus to the world around us. This is a season to go back to the basics. Strip everything else away and focus on your foundation. In Matthew 7.17-20 Jesus explains the difference between good and bad fruit, telling us that a bad tree cannot bear good fruit and vice versa. A good way to know if you’re living your life rooted in truth is by examining the fruit you produce. Do you cultivate an environment of good things: hope, peace, love and joy? When you enter a situation where there’s much negativity or anxiety are you one that brings the perfect peace of God or do you find yourself leaving that situation feeling anxious yourself? If you do relate with the latter example, this is not the end of your story. 

God is providing supernatural grace to break free from anything that has an origin other than Him. He’s taking us further and rooting us deeper than He ever has before, accelerating and multiplying the good fruit. The reach of the fruit will go far beyond what we could do in our strength. There’s speed and ease available to rewire any faulty beliefs and quickly move into truth. He wants us to build upon Him as our foundation. This word is for people that feel confused or tossed about by the winds and the waves. It’s for people that don’t feel stable and are feeling fear about what’s to come. If that’s you, take some time to read through Matthew 5-7 (The Sermon on the Mount). Examine your fruit with God and ask Him to show you if you are deceived or if any of your beliefs aren’t anchored in truth.  

 Helmet of Salvation

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

Ephesians 6.10-17 

What if every day we put on the armor of God? What if we envisioned that our mind was covered with salvation? We would constantly understand and appreciate that we are saved. We wouldn’t be trying to earn His love, we wouldn’t be trying to prove ourselves. We would live from a place of victory instead of for victory. So much time and energy are wasted in trying to sort out all the thoughts that are constantly going through our minds. Just think about all the things you thought of in the last hour. How many of them would be so different if you were living from a place of salvation?  This can become an identity issue when we don’t rest (and trust) in knowing that we are saved. When we don’t believe in our worth then we will question when others do or have a hard time accepting when people value us. Jesus died for us because He loves us. You wouldn’t die for someone you don’t deem precious. If we don’t see ourselves as valuable it’s as if we’re rejecting (not receiving) what Jesus freely gave us so that we might live.   

God is revealing to people how He sees them, transforming their minds with the truth of who He created them to be and their value to Him. There is a grace this month to receive your salvation and identity from God, making it easy to rest confidently in who you are. This word is for people who feel hopeless or defeated. This is time to take your thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10.5).  Allow your thoughts to be shaped by God. Spend time asking God what it looks like to be victorious in your life, and meditate on what He shows you.  Ask Him to show you the truth of what salvation means for you.  

A City on a Hill

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Matthew 5.14

What makes up a city?  The people: city leaders, business owners, workers, policemen, neighbors, etc.  A city is not a city without the people. God is speaking (and has spoken) truth to some people’s hearts and for a number of reasons they have felt disqualified to share what makes their hearts burn. Many would rather wait for someone they deemed more powerful, stronger, more spiritual, etc. to say what God has revealed to them, but God has revealed it to them because it is their word to speak. These people, to whom God has given a word to may feel isolated, hidden, or silenced. Often if people don’t feel like their voice is being heard, they choose to remain silent instead.  

God is filling these people with boldness to be the city on a hill that He has called them to be. It is time to shine, to turn your light on, and to not be ashamed or apologetic of how bright your light is. This word is for people that have received truth that the Lord has spoken directly to them and for a number of reasons they have not felt empowered, confident or bold enough to speak up and share. They may have questioned that what they were hearing was from the Lord. They may have felt like what God shared with them was only for them, but the motivation in keeping it to themselves is rooted in fear. God will not stop speaking to them about this thing that makes their hearts burn. That’s how they know it’s time for them to share. It’s time to speak up!  Know that the boldness of God will back you. Trust that His persistence is leading you and His spirit will meet you as you begin to reveal what’s inside of you.  

God is Bigger

“Let us, therefore, make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

Romans 14.19

In this emotionally charged time, it is easy to become polarized by our differences. But this is what divides us. Divided we are weak and united we are strong. Our focus needs to be on our commonalities and on the presence of God. What is He doing and saying both in our lives and corporately? Intentionally keeping Jesus at the center will unite us rather than divide us. We are gloriously different, created by God to be that way, and we should be able to celebrate our differences without letting them divide us.  

Righteousness, peace, and joy is the kingdom of God (Romans 14.17-18).  These should be manifest when you are in God’s presence. God is providing an opportunity for unity when we focus on Him, and what we have in common. He’s giving us grace for others during this time. He is replacing our offense with compassion when we are vulnerable and humble. This word is for people that previously focused on differences with others more than valuing the people themselves. It’s for people that have discovered that they’ve fostered offense in their heart, which possibly led to bitterness and hatred. Whenever we are faced with offense, we get to choose what we do with it. We can choose to take it on and partner with the offense, or we can process it with God, laying it down. God is providing a pathway to reconnection and reconciliation when we make ourselves vulnerable and humble. Ask God how He sees the other person and ask Him to speak to you about them. Ask Him to reveal any offense you may still be carrying, as He is bigger than it. It is time to lay that offense down in exchange for reconciliation. Give Him a chance to show you how.

©2020 All Rights Reserved

With prophetic insight from Bethany Hess

Written by Anne E. Ballard

At The Crowning Jewels our desire and our mission is to bring encouragement, to build others up and to bring comfort to people’s lives (1 Corinthians 14.3). As a team each month we ask the Lord what He’s doing in the coming month and for any words of encouragement he might have for people as a loving God. We realize that with a corporate prophetic word not all words are applicable to all people. If it’s prophetic it also needs to be encouraging and edifying. If our words bless you, please take hold of them and apply them in your own life. If it’s not specific to you, please pass it on to someone else who might be blessed. We do not sell prophecies; prophecy is a free gift from heaven. As a prophetic business, our mission is to bring encouragement and edification to people; our product is simply jewelry.

DECLARATIONS

We at The Crowning Jewels believe in the absolute, transformational power of declarations. We know that truth comes by hearing (Romans 10.17), and speaking truth is an active way for us to renew our minds (Romans 12.2). We invite you to partner with what God is doing and say these declarations for the remainder of the month. We would love to hear what God does! Please email us your testimony at tellyourstory@thecrowningjewels.com.

October's Declarations:

1. I am building my house upon the rock.
2. I live from a place of victory.
3. I am a steward of God’s truth and I boldly share what He’s revealed to me.
4. Righteousness, peace, and joy is the kingdom of God.
5. My mind is protected with the helmet of salvation.

Each month we design two limited edition pieces of jewelry, only available for that month, handmade with words and charms that reflect the monthly prophetic word. If this word resonates with you and you'd like to wear a reminder of its truths, click the pieces below to shop!