Fathers Day Message: “GATEKEEPERS”

Happy Fathers Day!!
Fathers are Gatekeepers.

Let’s explore the example of a Mordecai heart.

“The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availith MUCH!”

The Passion Translations says, “Tremendous power is released through the passionate, heartfelt prayer of a godly believer!”

James 5:16

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to Truth Slicker. I am so delighted to bring you a message to fathers. We love our daddies. There are so many wonderful daddies in the world that genuinely love their wives, love their families, and have amazing intentions for their families and for their kids. And whether you have, you know, been raised yourself, I'm speaking to fathers right now, in less than stellar circumstances, or if you were raised with an awesome father yourself and you know, you just kind of know how to do it. Either way, guess what? God is the ultimate father, and no matter the circumstance, He heals and restores and loves us to the place of maturity so that we are that fathers are able to love with the kind of love that is required to love their families. And this is not a message of try harder, work harder, do more, you're not doing enough. A new chapter of a whole new level of recognizing spiritual authority bestowed on God's kings. Yes, that's right. You are a king and a priest in the Order of Melchizedek through the blood of Yeshua. And it's a time, this is a message of awakening to who you are in Christ and who he really is. And there's no better way to find out who God the Father really is than in personal conversation, in personal encounters, and when we okay, we have access when Jesus died on the cross and shed his blood, that blood gave us access into the throne room, into the very heart of God. So Yeshua is a door, and we're so grateful for all he has done. And he's a door, not the end of the journey, but he's a door into the next phase, which is the ultimate goal of the heart of the Father, to bring us in to his heart. And and you can just picture coming in. Picture yourself as a little boy jumping up on Papa's lap and talking. He wants to hear your stories, he wants to hear about your life, he wants to hear the woes, he wants to hear the the hard things, the super difficult decisions, and all the pressures that are placed on men today. And so many um boys and men as they're growing up in this in this culture have been stomped on and told what they can and cannot say, and that they have to they have to do this or they have to act like that, or you know, with the feminist movement. It just has stifled men. And I as a woman apologize to you for for rising up in a place where God never intended us to be, either because there the the male influence was was not there, and women had to by default become all that, or they forced, they forced that because they thought that that was right, because that's what culture was screaming to be dominant in in culture in the family in a marriage, and we need to repent as women for doing that because that we we hurt ourselves when we do that and we miss the roles, we get them confused, we hurt ourselves, and we don't we don't want to do that, so we want to come out of agreement with the world's definition of who men and women are and come into agreement with what God is saying about women, about girls, about men, about boys, and God's heart is for boys to grow up with strong um examples and to to do hard things. Um that's when you realize how how strong you are, and that's when your true gifts come out. And um when I when I read this word that came out on Father's Day from Sylvia, it really quickened in my spirit because she talks about Mordecai and and um uh about a year ago the Lord said the word Mordecai to me. And you know, um I'll get into more of that in in my reading here, but I just really want to encourage men. And when you when you come, when you come to the Lord, you know, we draw near to him. He promises in his word to draw near to us, and he will reparent us. I'm just gonna pray. So, Lord, I've seen it, Lord. I've seen you do it, I've seen you take a person and go back in through their lives and mature them through the years that they missed out of having godly examples or godly people pouring into them. They they missed out on that, but Lord, you are redeeming time, you are going back through the timelines and you are growing, you are maturing, and you are speaking truth to your sons and your men's right now, even little boys, even babies in the womb and babies that have to be born yet. Little boys, we just bless you and we say, be all that God created you to be, and be free and be the strong protector that you are. It's it's so special to me that my husband's name is Chet, and it means fortified camp. And what a great name for a man. And and yet at the same time, it's because you are his fortified camp that he is able to do that, Lord. So bring families back into divine order, Lord, and we just we bless what you're doing. We're excited because you are, you are coming for your sons in a in a new level of glory that we've never seen before, restoring wholeness, restoring identity, and and just zapping confusion, just zapping false, you know, doctrines of demons that have come against our men and our boys, and and these boys will be at rest. These men will be at rest in in who they are in all their many facets and varieties of personalities, and it's just so beautiful. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord, thank you, Lord. So I I am going to share what I wrote. So just relax and receive the truth, let it wash over you wave after wave as I read through the the love of God just coming to you through this through this reading. It's about restoring fierceness to fathers. I'm I'm writing a book called Love is Fierce. And it's not it's not a physical fierce. This is this is when when we get on our knees and we we don't settle for a situation at hand, but we realized we are endowed with with royalty, we are endowed with power and authority from on high to change things. Um and so once can you imagine when when men get a hold of this, their families will no longer be an open door for the enemy to come in and out and and um bring um difficult things or bring consternation or anger or just random hardships because when the man does his job as the gatekeeper, that that door is sealed, shut. And only what the dad allows in the home is allowed to to to happen. It is it is being a king and a priest. Welcome, welcome. You are a king and a priest. Oh, restoring fierceness to fathers, real manhood, identified in Christ, courageous and just, keeping your home loving and pure. Happy Father's Day to my dads, Bob and Richard, and every papa. May you continue to be courageous as the gatekeeper of your own home. What's the qualification for this? Well, simply that you are a husband or a dad. The Bible says babies are your reward. Do you see them like that? About a year ago the Lord spoke the word Mordecai to me, and I've been discovering what he meant by that ever since. I believe Mordecai's are arising. We need you not in your own strength, but Holy Spirit empowers you to stand in your position. When I read this article by Sylvia, I knew it needed to be shared now. Enjoy, beloved. Recently, so this is Sylvia, recently during a time of worship at our church, I heard the Lord say, Fathers are gatekeepers. Oh, I felt an urgency in my spirit as the significance of men stepping into this place was highlighted to me. You may be familiar with teachings on fathers being providers for their families or fathers being priests in their homes, but you may not have heard a message on fathers being gatekeepers. I am very blessed and thankful to have married a man who has done a great job being a gatekeeper for our family. He doesn't strive in the role, but he takes it seriously, seeking God's wisdom along the way. The true heart, the heart of a true gatekeeper. To understand a gatekeeper's role, it is helpful to study how a gatekeeper would have functioned during Bible times. Oh, I love this. In doing my own study, the Lord brought Mordecai from the book of Esther to mind as an incredible example and picture of the heart of a true gatekeeper. We often hear of Esther, and many love the story of how God used the obedience and gifts of this beautiful young woman to help rescue a nation. But Mordecai is often an uncelebrated part of the story of Esther. I would venture to say that Esther would not have been prepared to be Esther had it not been for Mordecai, her uncle, who took her in and raised her after her parents' death. Think of that, an uncle stepping in. A closer look at Mordecai's life reveals to us prophetic keys that serve as a guide for modern-day fathers who aspire to be gatekeepers. Before we look at these keys, let's look at a role of a gatekeeper in Bible times. Gatekeepers are mentioned many times throughout scripture and were an important part of maintaining order. Gatekeepers were used for protection at three primary points of gates city gates, palace gates, and temple gates. One would expect a gatekeeper to be trustworthy, alert, and responsible. You would excuse me, you would only station your best at the gate because the safety of everyone else depended on them doing their job well. Gatekeepers often had charge of keys, and it would be their job to open and shut the gate, determining who had the right to enter. Now let's examine the keys. Four keys from Mordecai's life for gatekeeper fathers. Number one, gatekeepers take responsibility. Looking at the life of Mordecai, we find that he was not a gatekeeper in an official capacity, but he took on the role of gatekeeper in the spirit realm, which is just as important if not more. Well, we know it's more important because whatever happens in the spiritual spills into the physical. When Esther's parents died, Mordecai stepped up and took responsibility to raise her. This would have involved not only her education but her spiritual development and training. We can see later in the story of Esther that she walked in a great degree of favor. This may well be because she had been well trained to honor God and respect leadership and those in authority over her. Leaning into the voice of the Spirit, powerful gatekeeper fathers don't wait to be asked, but look for ways to advance the well-being of those entrusted to them. They are proactive and intentional to add their strength to the progress and development of those they love. Number two, gatekeepers are protectors. When Esther was taken into King Xerxes' harem, we find Mordecai's influence and position to have been a strategic one. To protect her from whatever prejudice or mistreatment she could have experienced, Mordecai instructed Esther not to share her nationality or family background. Daily Mordecai paced back and forth near the courtyard of the palace where the harem stayed, so that he could see or hear how Esther was and what was happening to her. Though Esther had been taken from her home, Mordecai continued standing in his palace, standing in his place as her protector. Later, Mordecai stepped into a gatekeeper protector role for the Jewish people when he heard of Haman's plot to annihilate all the Jews in Xerxes' kingdom. Mordecai, using these well loved words, challenged Esther to use her favor and authority to approach the king, begging for mercy for the Jews. Quote, for if you remain silent at this time, Esther, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place. But you and your father's family will perish, and who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this, Esther 414. So first, Mordecai was faithful with the one that God had put in his life. And when we're faithful with the little, God puts us in charge of much, and in this case, the whole country. What a great example. We know that Mordecai's relationship and influence with Esther caused her to shift from remaining silent to a place of realizing she was sovereignly positioned to help bring deliverance to her people. Esther's decision then shifted the course and history of a nation. Number three, gatekeeper fathers step into the courage God has given them, allowing the fierceness God has placed within them to arise. So I just want to speak to fathers. Do you ever feel something rising up within you when there's injustice? And but then you just kind of excuse it like, oh, well, that's just the world, it's just the way it is. Or I just want to say that that is the spirit of the living God rising up inside of you to do something, do something about it. And to I want to encourage you to not just stuff it or brush it to the side, but go to the Father about it. And what would you like me to do about this, Lord? And it may be pray, it may be something else, you know, um in the natural, and that's cool. So um, yeah, just whatever he puts on your heart, do it. The fierceness of these fathers is against anything that would threaten those whom God has placed under their care. A realm that modern-day gatekeepers must consider is the media and internet. Yes, we will get into that. And when President Donald J. Trump came came to be our president, I had such a deep revelation that he is a father to our nation. And he too has been faithful in the little, and God is entrusting him with our country, with much, and in a way, the world, because of his outreaching ripple effect of his his words, his actions, his his power that God's given him and authority. And and um yeah, so he's someone that we need to pray for. And it's interesting to me that those people who have not been fathered well, have not grown up knowing what it's like to have a human father that loves them, that values them, like like Mordecai did with Esther. And and when a father figure who genuinely loves and genuinely is leading, they resist it. They refute it, they fight it. There's a rebellion there because they have not known and they do not trust. So if that's you, um come. Come to the Father, ask him to cleanse you from the wrong, you know, wrong ways that people have poured into your life and in negative ways, and and just repent from being angry about that and and let there be forgiveness, let there be forgiveness. And remember, forgiveness is not does not mean you feel better or you feel like doing it, but forgive those fathers that were a bad example so that God can reparent you and and bring good fathers into your life so that you don't reject what he's doing. Does that make sense, guys? Okay, back to the media and the internet and the importance of being a gatekeeper these days. There are many intruders entering homes daily through these platforms, and gatekeeper fathers are needed to step into their God-given role to sound the alarm, helping their families navigate the potential landmines planted by the enemy. I read that Barna Group did a recent study showing 54% of Christians consume some pornography. Pornography providers plot to ensnare youth and even children at an early age so that they have the potential to be customers for life. Those participating are opening wide the door to sexual perversion in their families. This is exactly what the enemy wants, and a big part of why sexual perversion is rampant in our nation. The enemy invades where he has legal ground to do so. The gatekeepers must rise up, seeing the consequences for their families, and shut the gates to pornography. And what the Lord is showing me right now is men were not meant to be an island, but there is strength in numbers. And in America, that's especially challenging, you know, pull yourself up by your bootstraps and figure it out, and and you just you just gotta do this alone to prove you're a man. And and God just wants to debunk that lie, and He's showing me gatekeeper groups. So if you are listening to this message and you need support, you you know letting all pride go to the side, you know, you're you want. Want a group and and start a group. Start a group of men, either you from your church, from your workplace, your school, call it gatekeepers, gatekeepers, whatever you want to call it, but gather, gather regularly, have fun together, and and read the Bible together, pray for each other. This is such a target from the enemy that we have to we have to be um on the offensive here. And and you know, salvation is a free gift. We receive it with a prayer, right? With our whole heart. But everything, all the blessings of the Lord after that, I know he does give us good things every day. Every day there's glory to be beholding. But when there's something that you're going after, God will go with you. It's not, it's a fight, and it's it's accomplished through prayer, through tenacity, through um following the Holy Spirit, and it's not just sit on your hands and it's gonna happen. And that that's like with our families, and and so the Lord is showing me, you know, get a group, just a small group. I'm I'm seeing like six or seven, eight, maybe at the most, of people, but just five, even a group of people, of men that can get together, pat each other on the back, give hugs, and speak into each other, prophesy to each other, and and um the gates of hell will not prevail against that group in the name of Jesus. That fierce and righteous anger against what the enemy wants to do is a key. So remember, don't ignore that feeling that rises up of justice and and when things appall you. That's that's the holiness of God. And let that let that rise up and and capture that and say, hey, I'm feeling something here. This is something I need to act on. Okay, the fierce and righteous anger against what the enemy wants to do is a key for entrapped individuals to overcome their own addictions as well as free others in their care. So do you wait until you feel like you're clean and things are going well in your family and your marriage before you start a group? Heck no. Start a group right where you're at, and as you minister to others, God ministers to you. And just a simple little um example. Um, a friend and I were ministering to a young man, he was in his early 20s and just was asking for prayer, life was just beating him up, and he had had a rough upbringing, and so what we saw for him was when when he would play with his nieces and nephews and push them on the swing. I know this is so simple, but it's so profound and huge. Is as he played, as this young man played, it was healing his heart. As he opened up and and could let love in, God was healing his heart as he played with these other kids. And isn't that just beautiful? Because not only are these kids blessed, because kids look up to their uncles and cousins and grandpas and dads so so so much, and pouring into their lives will will heal him and the wounds of his youth. It was just God is so amazing, He is so good. So I encourage you to get outside of your head, get outside of your situation, and and do something radical like starting a group and inviting a couple people and meet together and see what happens. In cases where pornography addiction is already an issue, confession and repentance must come first, and then the righteous anger against what the enemy has stolen or plans to steal, along with spiritual accountability, will help to keep the gates shut. Yes, spiritual accountability is a big deal. Number four, gatekeepers are trustworthy and honor authority. It stands to reason that a gatekeeper must be trustworthy in someone who honors the authority of those who place them at the gate. In Mordecai's world, it is evident that the honored that he honored the authority of his God so much that he was willing to risk his own life and reputation to do what was right. In Esther III we see Mordecai unwilling to kneel and give honor to the wicked Haman. Of course, this so enraged Haman that an evil plot was set in motion, not just to kill Mordecai, but to annihilate all the Jews in the kingdom. But Mordecai's loyalty to his God positioned him for unusual favor, and Esther followed his example. Now this is getting out of your comfort zone big time, right? This is, you know, if I perish, I perish. And but doing it for the greater good, doing it in obedience to God and opening your mouth and speaking and doing it what you know to do. Gatekeeper fathers model trustworthiness and honor God and authorities by how they live their own lives. Your family sees and observes your life and will often follow the pattern you have you have set. Think about that. So just watch that. Watch yourself for the next week. What are these actions and consequences speaking to my family? And um yeah, and that's a good time to just pray, Lord, help me in this area. I want to be a better example here and help me to overcome my flesh, help me to overcome fear. And oh, the Lord loves those prayers, and he loves to infuse us with his power, his might, and his strength. And starting the day with declarations are such a powerful way to kick off each day. A prayer for the gatekeeper fathers. Let's pray. Fathers, as gatekeepers for your families, you often hold the keys deciding on what can come and go through the gate to your family. As you step up into your role as a gatekeeper for your family, I pray that your dependence would not be on your own strength, but that you would fully surrender to God's voice and leadership in your life. We need you, fathers. May you feel the Spirit calling you to fully step into your place as gatekeepers that take responsibility, that protect those entrusted to you, and who are trustworthy and honoring of God and the authorities in your life. Our God who calls you will be faithful to pour out his grace, empowering you with all you need to obey. And I also, you know, if if you've been a man and you see, wow, I have not done this in my life. I did not have a good example. I want I want to change this. I want to lead my family. I want to lead my wife and my kids. First of all, watch the movie Courageous. That is awesome and so encouraging. And it'd be cool for your men group to watch that as well as a fun night. Um repent. Repent to God for dropping the ball or for not even ever picking it up, and seeing, you know, your wives apologize to them, ask for forgiveness, and that you you want to take the the reins, and you're you're welcoming her input, but you realize God is calling you to protect your family, and you didn't do that. So just be honest and you'll you'll see the relief on her face. You'll see um delight. And and so, Lord, I just pray for this revelation that that husbands and wives, I just declare that they are coming into their positions according to their giftings and their callings, and they're learning how to mesh together as a powerful team and together, together going against the enemy, not one person on one side of the table and the other person on the other side of the table, you know, arguing back and forth. That's what the enemy wants. But see that we have an adversary who basically wants us dead, wants us to fall apart, and wants divorce, and wants the kids to be, you know, strewn about and confused. No, we just say no to all that and and just speaking it out. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord and and um begin to lead your family in prayer and reading the word of God before bed at night is such a wonderful family time, and it opens up conversations with the the kids open up and talk about stuff, and and kids are sponges to spiritual things. You watch, you they will surpass you so fast because the kids that God has chosen to be released into the earth at this time are a different kind. They are they are um fearless, they are um they're appointed for such a time as this, and and they are they are being prepared to lead and and to um bring the kingdom of God, bring the glory of God, and and so um don't hold them back, bless them and let them speak, let them sing, let them dance, and um but guard your guard your homes. You can anoint your home, get some oil, bless it, and and put the oil on the doorposts of your home, dedicating your home to God, asking God, Lord, is there anything in this house that should not be in this house? Show me. And and if he doesn't immediately show you, it'll come out. It'll come out, it might even just be laying on the couch in front of you, and you'll be like, Oh, well, that's not appropriate. Do you have books? Do you have things that are not um something God wants? Um sometimes when we go to different countries and we bring things back, um they carry uh demonic um entities with them, and that's a whole separate topic. But as priests of the house, um pray about that. Lord, is this something you want me to burn? Is this something you want me to pray over and cleanse with with the blood of Yeshua? And it's fine, and it's seriously with with prayer, it's that easy. It's that easy. So, but there are very much many stories that people have brought artifacts home from other countries or different places, and and they've had trouble in their homes, and they didn't know why. They didn't know why, but it was it was the artifact that carried demonic entities into their home, and that's we just don't allow that. So, yeah, kids, let let your dad be that um that um that w on watch and and rest in that and trust that and just enjoy that that he loves you so much, and um it may not always be fun because you'll see your friends or other people enjoying all this other stuff, but and you you're not you're not allowed to. But my prayer for you is that you will see that as love and as wisdom, and that that God will show you an alternative and be creative, be creative. So, fathers, happy father's day. And I hope this this message encouraged and blessed you with a little fire, but most of all, to come closer to the father of us all and his great love for us. He loves families, it's his families are his idea, marriage is God's idea, and we're taking it back.