A Dream Of The Coming Darkness

Michael Edds

http://www.greatawakening.blogspot.com/

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Originally Posted in 2005

In the fall of 2004, I had a dream. It was so real and terrifying that I had to get up from my bed. The following is an account of the dream:

“I was visiting my birthplace, a small village in the beautiful Greenbrier Valley of West Virginia. I pulled my car off the road and parked in front of the old Methodist Church. I got out of the car to stretch my legs. The day was absolutely pristine and picture perfect. The sky was cloudless, the sun bright, and the air fresh and crystal clear. I was admiring the beautiful flowers growing in people’s yards. Many were busy working in their yards and gardens on such a gorgeous day. There was such peace and serenity.

I turned and looked toward the southeast. I was astonished at what I saw. A billowing cloud of complete blackness was suddenly approaching the town. It completely blotted out all light and scenery where it advanced and covered. It approached the village limits, which was a river southeast of the community.

I made the comment, “Oh my God, the Darkness has come!” I sensed great evil and danger in it. I looked around to see if anyone else saw what I saw. To my amazement, people were oblivious to the approaching wall of darkness. They were still busy working in their yards and around their homes.

I made the statement, “They do not realize what it will be like when the Darkness comes. All of the sun light, beauty of nature and peace will disappear when the Darkness moves in. Everything in their lives will suddenly and drastically change.”

I turned to get into my car to flee the approaching Darkness. All of a sudden, six motorcyclists drove out of the blackness and across the bridge into the town. I gasped, "The advance guard of the Darkness has arrived!" These riders were on black motorcycles and dressed in black leather from head to toe.

I jumped into my car as they approached. They slowed down as they reached my car and the leader yelled out, “Don’t you dare leave!” I locked my car doors as he approached and floored the gas pedal. My tires squealed as I fled. The motorcyclists pursued me and tried to force me off the road. I swerved into two and caused them to wreck. The rest pursued me for many miles and shot at me.

After some distance, I approached some men working on the road and asked for help or to make a call for me to the police. The cyclist were no longer in sight. I started to get out of the car but heard a voice from above warning me to not to get out of the car but to drive on. Finally, I realized that I was running out of gas and stopped down the road to refuel. I pulled up to a gas station and started refueling. The dream ended with me praying for God’s protection while I refueled.

When I awoke, I was trembling with fear. I got up to settle myself.

The parts of the dream that stood out were:

1. The Darkness suddenly came upon the land.

2. Before it came, all was serene, beautiful and peaceful.

3. No one saw it coming.

4. An advanced guard came into the community first on a reconnaissance mission.

5. The Darkness then moved in and totally blotted out all light and beauty. Life drastically changed for people.

6. I fled for safety.

America is on the threshold of something cataclysmic that will radically change life, as we know it. A wall of Darkness is about to suddenly fall upon this land.

John 14:13 tells us that the Holy Spirit will tell us of things to come. He warns us in advance to prepare us for what is ahead.

Hebrews 11:7 records, “…Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with Godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household….”

An advance guard of this Darkness is already at work. People are living in a false sense of complacent security. I believe that the cup of iniquity is full in America, which will unleash divine judgment upon this nation. Something is about to shatter the hardness of this wicked nation’s heart.

God has revealed to me that a Great Awakening is about to burst forth upon the scene. This Awakening will give America and the world one last chance to repent. Most importantly, it will bring the Bride of Christ together. Historically, Awakenings have preceded calamity. This could happen again. However, the coming Darkness may actually precede the Final Awakening and be the cause of people turning to God, which would bring about the Awakening.

May God’s people listen to the warning of the Holy Spirit and move with Godly fear to the saving of their households and neighborhoods. God desires for us to prepare an ark of safety to which people can flee for refuge when disaster comes. Let us listen and quickly move. Darkness is coming!

Further Comment, July 17, 2008

As I reread the dream that the Lord gave me, I believe that I understand what the "southeast" means. Southeast of my home county of Greenbrier in West Virginia is Washington, DC. I believe that whatever this Darkness is, it will come out of Washington, DC.

The Coming Great Awakening

Michael Edds

"Old Wells, Fallen Mantles, New Fountains"

I moved to a major U.S city in June 2000 to assume the position as Head of School for an interdenominational Christian High School . The school was new but had numerous problems, the most severe totally unknown to me. Prior to my arrival, a teacher had been arrested for involving a student in pornography. The teacher had been convicted and sentenced. Upon my arrival, the incident had become front-page news in the community. To say the least, I was shocked and stunned.

One night I could not sleep. I was very angry with the Lord for putting me into this greatly stressful mess. “Surely, I thought, I deserve better than this.” Around 2 am, I got up to sit on the couch and pout. In spite of my upset state, anger and disgust, the Presence of the Lord settled in the living room. God did not even pay attention to or address my complaint. Instead, His presence was so strong that I physically trembled. He spoke these words, “Old Wells, Fallen Mantles, and New Fountains.” He instructed me to get my Bible. By that time, I too had set aside my complaint. His Presence was so great that I did not know if I could survive it.

I opened my Bible to Isaiah 35: 3-7: “The eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing, for IN THE WILDERNESS SHALL WATER BREAK OUT and streams in the desert. AND THE PARCHED GROUND SHALL BECOME A POOL and the thirsty land SPRINGS OF WATER.”

I was directed to verse 19 of [Isaiah 43]: “Behold I WILL DO A NEW THING. Now it shall SPRING [BURST] FORTH . Shall ye not know it?”

The Lord was moving so quickly through the scriptures that I could hardly keep up. His presence was incredibly strong. I felt like I was floating. Leaving Isaiah, the Lord took me to Joel 2:23: “He will cause to come down for you the rain, THE FORMER RAIN AND THE LATTER RAIN IN THE FIRST MONTH.” Then Joel 2:28 was given which states: “It shall come to pass afterwards that I WILL POUR OUT MY SPIRIT ON ALL FLESH. Your sons and daughters shall PROPHESY, YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS and your YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS.”

Finally, Genesis 26:18 finished the scriptures that the Lord was rapidly giving me: “AND ISAAC DUG AGAIN the WELLS of water which they had DUG IN THE DAYS OF ABRAHAM HIS FATHER.”

The Lord revealed the meaning of this vision:

The Early Church experienced the fullness of God. They had the fullness, the gifts and revelation of the Holy Spirit. They were full of boldness, power and anointing. God turned the world upside down through them. The dead were raised, the blind received sight, the possessed were set free, the sick healed and the Gospel was preached to the poor. The anger of Hell was violently aroused. The more the devil persecuted and killed them, the more they multiplied and spread. So Satan changed his tactics. By 300 AD, Roman Emperor Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Empire. What Satan could not do through persecution, he accomplished through promotion, position, power, prestige, acceptance and prosperity. They SOLD OUT! The Church backslid and humanity later fell into the brutality of the Dark Ages.

The purpose of each Great Awakening or the bursting forth of a spiritual well was to restore an element of truth that the Early Church possessed back to the church. Luther restored ‘the just shall live by faith’. Wesley, Whitefield, Edwards and the First Great Awakening restored repentance, inward holiness and “Christ in you.” The Second Great Awakening with Barton Stone at Cane Ridge in the West and Francis Asbury in the East brought restoration in society through evangelism, missions, and great social renewal such as abolition, child labor laws, and suffrage movement. The Third Great Awakening of 1857 restored the power of prayer. Azusa Street Outpouring of 1905 restored the in filling and gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Lord stated that He was going to reopen all of the “old wells” of revival in order to restore TOTAL truth to His church.

Fallen mantles of ministry and anointing that rested upon the great men and women of God of old would be picked up and placed on godly men and women today to finish what was started long ago. They are the “Isaacs” that will revisit the old wells of revival and reopen them. The mantles of ministry did not die nor were they buried with Asbury, Wesley, Stone, Amanda Berry Smith and others. They have only been “on hold” until a generation would be born that could relate to them and pick them up. Isaiah 58:12 refers to them: “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places, thou shall raise up the foundations of many generations, and thou shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of paths to dwell in.” The Lord said, “What once was shall be again.”

Malachi 4:5 prophecies that “I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And He shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” He said this was not just a generational reconciliation between the old and the young. It is a restoration of His people to the Faith once delivered to the Saints, the Faith of our fathers. The Lord said He was tired of the apostasy, deadness, programs, personality cults, plans and politics that have nearly destroyed His church. He is going to restore HIS church by returning the “Faith of our Fathers to their children (descendants) and the children (descendants) to the Faith of our Fathers.” The old wells will BURST forth and the fallen mantles will be picked up. This will be a “suddenly”. Isaiah speaks of it occurring in the desert places and on the barren heights. In other words, it will happen in the most unlikely of places. The Lord continued His interpretation of the vision by explaining to me that “NEW FOUNTAINS” would gush or break forth also.

Something that has never occurred in any Great Awakening or in any historic move of God will exploded upon the scene in our day. Joel 2:23 speaks of God sending the former rain (the Old Wells of revival) and the latter rain (The New Fountains) in the SAME MONTH!! In other words, all of the moves of God and fallen mantles from Pentecost until now will be reopened and picked up and combined with a totally new thing from God. It will literally shake the church and the world. HE WILL RESTORE A CHURCH WITHOUT SPOT OR WRINKLE! He will not allow the church to go out defeated. HE WILL ARISE FOR HIS OWN NAME’S SAKE!

God has been preparing a “Joseph Generation” that has been enrolled in the ” School of Dung .” In this schooling, they have endured the pain of rejection, slander and isolation. The ‘Word of the Lord’ has tried them severely. They cry out, “God why? All I wanted to do is serve you. All seems to have ‘gone to hell in a hand basket’. It seems just the opposite of what You promised. I am lonely, the organized church thinks I am crazy, a fanatic, out on a limb. They have rejected me and hated me because of my love for you. WHY, OH LORD?”

God has been preparing and perfecting these Josephs in the darkness and in the prison houses of loneliness and isolation for a day and hour that they will be unleashed as a secret weapon on the kingdom of darkness. He has allowed all of these things to happen to them for their good. He has prepared a people that He can trust with His power, gifts, and anointing. In holiness, humility and boldness they will fulfill His plans in our day. They will give HIM the glory. They will give HIM total control of the coming Great Awakening. The door of their prison house of utter loneliness and rejection is about to open. Their “word” is about to come. That word is “the King has need of thee.” In a moment, they will be ushered from prison to position. In a moment, they will fully understand their long and severe sufferings. In a moment, they will be brought out into the light of God’s divine destiny for them. God will greatly use them to lead the Coming Great Awakening.

Along with this final Great Awakening is coming Divine Judgment. Isaiah 35:4 declares, “Your God shall come with vengeance, even God with a recompense.” God is going to overthrow the abuse and control of man in His church. He’s going to take back the ’ship’ that has been turned into a luxury liner and restore her back to her original state: a ship of war. HE IS GOING TO TAKE BACK CONTROL OF HIS CHURCH!! The Church is HIS bride, not someone else’s. Additionally, this nation is going to be greatly shaken.

The First Great Awakening preceded the American Revolution. Before the Second Great Awakening began at Cane Ridge, Kentucky, a massive epidemic of Cholera occurred. In its early days, the Third Great Awakening saw every bank in the nation collapse. This awakening was followed by the greatest disaster in American History when the nation was ripped apart and 600,000 Americans perished in the horrific War Between The States. A great earthquake hit California at the same time as the Azusa Street Outpouring. He is going to shake the Church and this nation. Only that which is of Him will be left standing.

A great hunger for repentance, seeking God, seeking holiness and seeking truth has exploded within the ‘Joseph Generation’. They have studied, researched and sought out the Old Wells of revival. They intensely hunger for God to do it again! They cry out, “Just one more time, oh Lord!” Programs, politics, personalities, manipulation, and plans in the church sicken them. THEY MUST HAVE GOD! They MUST be in His presence! They are meeting in the homes, in the fields, in the woods, in their prayer closets and any place that they can totally seek His face. Their despair has turned into an all-consuming hunger that says, “Give me God or let me die.” GOD HAS HEARD! He is about to reopen the old wells of revival, He is picking up the fallen mantles and placing them on men and women, and He is about to do a new thing!

Every Awakening has incurred the wrath and persecution of man. When the Presence and holiness of God confronts mankind, they must make a decision for or against Him. When they choose to reject Him, they lash out and fight against His messengers. In the mid-1700s, the Baptist in Colonial Virginia were beaten, imprisoned, and killed for preaching the Gospel. The Methodist circuit riders were jailed, tarred and feathered, beaten, abused and martyred for the message of God. The reason there is little persecution against the Church in America today is that there is so little of the Presence and Message of God to confront mankind. The world has heard how to get rich, how to prosper, how to have self-esteem, and to feel good. They have not heard the message, “Repent or perish.” They have not heard the anointed Word of God that demands a decision. Be forewarned, The Final Great Awakening will usher in a wave of persecution against the true Church of God . Old Wells of Revival are on the threshold of being reopened. Fallen Mantles of ministry are being picked up. New Fountains are rumbling beneath the surface and about to burst forth. Frank Bartleman (chronicler of the Azusa Awakening) once said, “To understand what God is going to do, we must understand what He once did.” The most incredible move of God will suddenly explode upon the scene.

Judgment and a great shaking are coming to the land and to the church. Persecution of the Isaacs and Josephs, the true saints of God will occur. However, they will be covered with such zeal and boldness, they will be like the Fathers of old: “And they loved not their lives even until death.” (Rev 12:11) God will harvest a holy remnant from this generation. He will have a church that is without spot or wrinkle, a pure bride for His Son. Be encouraged. Lift up your heads. Your God has come! “The King has need of thee!”

Settling On The Other Side Of The Jordan

Michael Edds

A Prophetic Word for the African American Believer

A few years ago while living near the beautiful mountain village of Summersville, West Virginia, I had a most extraordinary dream. The dream was divided into four parts. In the first part, I was leaving my position as the Headmaster of a private school. Secondly, one of my teachers was elevated to my former position. Thirdly, the board chairman who had lived in the community all of her life was moving away. In the fourth part of the dream, I was preaching to a large African American church on the subject, “You Have Settled on the Other Side of the Jordan.” In the dream, this great church had accomplished much and possessed a great national ministry. However, the Lord said that they had not reached the fulfillment of their divine destiny. As I preached, the powerful presence of the Lord descended in that mighty church. He began to give revelation and direction concerning the immense destiny that He had planned for them. The church exploded in worship and praise. I awakened from the dream.

The first three parts of the dream happened within a few months. I resigned from my position, the teacher I saw in the dream became the interim Head of School, and the board chairman and her husband sold their family business and left town. However, the fourth part of the dream did not immediately happen. In fact, I did not understand this portion of the dream. Five years passed as I continually pondered the dream in my heart. Recently, I was invited to conduct a grant writing workshop and preach at a large African American church in Chicago. I still did not understand the meaning of the message, “You Have Settled On the Other Side of the Jordan” but the Lord directed me to preach this message. As I studied the Word, the incredible prophetic meaning of the message in the dream was revealed.

Two and a half tribes of the Israelites found the rich farm and grazing lands to the east of the Jordan River to their liking. The tribes of Gad, Reuben, and half of the large tribe of Manasseh decided to settle on the “other side” of the Jordan and thus not cross over into the promised land. Moses and Joshua had given them permission to do so but with one major requirement, their warriors must led the battle in taking the Promised Land. Joshua chapter 3 records the miraculous parting of the flooded Jordan. The priests led the procession on a dry, divine path made through the flood waters. True to their agreement, 40,000 warriors of the two and a half tribes took the lead in the battle. Their divine destiny was to assume the reigns of leadership in battle and bring the rest of the tribes into their promised destinies and lands. What a great mantle of ministry was laid upon Gad, Reuben and half of Manasseh!

The Lord began to reveal the divine destiny that He has for HIS African American people. I was given an article written by Susan Castell which stunned me. The prophetic word given to her concerning African American believers was identical to what the Lord was revealing to me. She wrote: ” You have come to this land for such a time as this. It is now time to lay aside the weight of racial hatred and the sin of unforgiveness which so readily clings to and entangles you. It is now time to forget what lies behind and to reach forth to what lies ahead. It is now time to arise and seek Me for the fulfillment of your divine destiny.

Just as the survival of ancient Egypt and Israel rested on the shoulders of Joseph (a man sold into slavery by his brothers and carried away to a foreign land), so does the very survival of this great nation of America rest upon you. It is now time to embrace My plan and to allow Me to birth within you the heart and the attitude of Joseph who was able to forgive his brothers and those who had enslaved and imprisoned him. It is now time to embrace the cross of My Son and become a great blessing in the land of your captivity.

Even as man has seemingly succeeded in humbling you to the very lowest of places, so will I exalt you to the very highest place, even to the very throne of My Glory. As you humble yourselves under My mighty hand and allow the mind and heart of Christ to be formed in you, you will experience supernatural healing and deliverance from the many and deep wounds inflicted by those who have degraded, despised and humiliated you. As you identify with My Son and you begin to cry out: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”, you will enter into a new dimension of My Grace and Glory, and you will receive the revelation of Jesus Christ and His Resurrection power which your hearts have been hungering for.

It is now time to understand that all history, including Black History, is HIS STORY. It is now time to lift up your eyes above man’s agenda and catch the vision of My agenda. It is now time to declare with Joseph: “As for you, you thought evil against me, but G-d meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive…” (Gen. 50:20)

Arise my people, my Joseph company, whom I have brought from afar and planted in this land for such a time as this. Look unto Me and I will unveil the meaning of your history. Look unto Me and I will reveal the mystery of your many and long sufferings. I am the L-rd your G-d, and besides Me, there is no other. Look unto Me and be healed of the wounds of your captivity. Look unto Me and I will make you free to be my instruments of healing and deliverance in this land of your divine destiny.”

The fullness of the prophetic meaning of the message, “Settling on the Other Side of the Jordan,” came into full focus. The Great Awakening that is soon to burst upon this world as a final witness will be led by a “Joseph Company” that God has been preparing for a long time. This Awakening will bring God’s holy remnant together as a Bride without spot or wrinkle. Divisions, separations, and walls will collapse as the Church comes together to fulfill her final destiny. Each tribe that composes the Church has a promised destiny, a specific divine mission to fulfill. Leading the way to bring all tribes of believers into that fulfillment will be the African American believer. Just like Gad, Rueben and Manesseh, a mantle of leadership will rest upon them. God is an excellent bookkeeper. All of the weary years and long generations of blood, sweat, tears, unpaid slave wages and rejection WILL BE PAID IN FULL! It will not come from the White House, the Supreme Court or from Congress. It will come from the hand of the mighty God! Just like Joseph, they will be suddenly ushered from obscurity to the fullness of divinely appointed leadership. What man meant for evil, God will turn into good for the saving of many lives. The mantle of leadership will be laid upon them by a divine Hand. They will lead the rest of us into our appointed destinies. I believe that the Holy Spirit is stirring within them now. Divine gifts within that have been given for this prophetic hour are now being activated and released. Understanding of the long night of their suffering is being revealed to them. The heart of Joseph is reaching perfection within them. God calls them to fulfill their destiny. The Jordan has parted before them. They lead the way for the rest of the Body of Christ to follow. Pay day has finally come!

The final part of the dream was fulfilled. I preached this message to a great church in Chicago. The Lord came down in that service! Isn’t it incredibly ironic that God would reveal and speak this message through a white man, a descendant of slave owners from the South, a region that once deprived them of their most basic rights. Isaiah 60:10 states, “The sons of your oppressors will come bowing before you. All who despised you will bow at your feet.” God fulfilled the words of the prophet on the day I preached the message, “You Have Settled on the Other Side of the Jordan.” May God soon fulfill His prophetic word to these divinely called leaders of the Coming Great Awakening.

“O Africa, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not plead thy cause, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth.” - Lyman Beecher