A few years ago, while living near the beautiful mountain town of Summersville, West Virginia, I had an extraordinary dream. The dream was divided into four parts. In the first part, I was leaving my position as director of a private school. Second, one of my teachers was elevated to my previous position. Third, the chairman of the board who had lived in the community all his life was moving out. In the fourth part of the dream, he was preaching to a large African American church on the theme “You have settled across the Jordan.” In the dream, this great church had accomplished much and had a great national ministry. However, the Lord said that they had not reached the fulfillment of their divine destiny. As he preached, the mighty presence of the Lord descended on that mighty church. He began to give them revelation and direction about the immense destiny he had planned for them. The church erupted in adoration and praise. I woke up from the dream.
The first three parts of the dream happened in a few months. I resigned from my position, the teacher I saw in the dream became the interim director of the school, and the board president and her husband sold their family business and left town. However, the fourth part of the dream did not happen immediately. In fact, I did not understand this part of the dream. Five years passed as I continually reflected on the dream in my heart. Recently, I was invited to do 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 across the Jordan,” but the Lord directed me to preach this message. As I studied the Word, the incredible prophetic significance of the dream message was revealed.
Two and a half tribes of Israelites found the rich farm and grazing lands east of the Jordan River to their liking. The tribes of Gad, Reuben and half of the great tribe of Manasseh decided to settle on the “other side” of the Jordan and thus not cross into the promised land. Moses and Joshua had given them permission to do so, but with an important requirement, their warriors were to lead the battle to take the Promised Land. Joshua chapter 3 records the miraculous parting of the flooded Jordan. The priests led the procession down a dry and divine road crossed by the waters of the flood. True to their agreement, 40,000 warriors from the two and a half tribes took the lead in the battle. His divine destiny was to assume the reins of leadership in battle and lead the rest of the tribes to their promised destinations and lands. What a great ministry mantle he put on Gad, Reuben, and half of Manasseh!
The Lord began to reveal His divine destiny for His African American people. I was given an article written by Susan Castell that surprised me. The prophetic word that was given about African American believers was identical to what the Lord was revealing to me. She wrote: “You have come to this earth for a time like this. Now is the time to put aside the weight of racial hatred and the sin of unforgiveness that so easily clings to you and entangles you. Now is the time to forget what lies behind and to reach for what lies ahead Now is the time to rise up and seek me out 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 taken to a foreign land), the very survival of this great nation of America depends on you. The time has come to embrace My plan and allow me to give birth to the heart and attitude of Joseph, who knew how to forgive his brothers and those who enslaved and imprisoned him. Now is the time to embrace the cross of My Son and become a great blessing in the land of his captivity.
Just as man has apparently succeeded in humiliating you to the lowest places, so I will exalt you to the highest place, even to the very throne of My Glory. As you humble yourself under My mighty hand and allow the mind and heart of Christ to form in you, you will experience supernatural healing and deliverance from the many deep wounds inflicted by those who have degraded, despised and humiliated you. By identifying yourself with My Son and beginning to shout: “Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they are doing”, you will enter a new dimension of My Grace and Glory, and you will receive the revelation of Jesus Christ. and His power of Resurrection that their hearts have been hungry.
Now is the time to understand that all of history, including Black History, is YOUR STORY. Now is the time to lift your eyes above the agenda of man and catch the vision of My agenda. Now is the time to declare with Joseph: “As for you, you thought badly against me, but Gd did it for good, to make many people stay alive …” (Gen. 50:20)
Arise my people, my company José, whom I brought from afar and planted in this land for this time. Look at me and I will reveal the meaning of your story. Look at me and I will reveal to you the mystery of your many and long sufferings. I am the LORD your Gd, and besides Me, there is no other. Look at me and be healthy from the wounds of your captivity. Look at me and I will set you free to be my instruments of healing and liberation in this land of your divine destiny. “
The fullness of the prophetic meaning of the message, “Settling Across the Jordan”, came into full focus. The Great Awakening that will soon break out over this world as a final witness will be led by a “Company of Joseph” that God has been preparing for a long time. This awakening will unite the holy remnant of God as a Bride without spot or wrinkle. Divisions, separations, and walls will collapse as the Church unites to fulfill its final destiny. Each tribe that makes up the Church has a promised destiny, a specific divine mission to fulfill. The African American believer will lead the way in bringing all the tribes of believers to that fulfillment. Like Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh, a mantle of leadership will rest upon them. God is an excellent accountant. All the grueling 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 Congress. It will come from the hand of the mighty God! Like Joseph, they will suddenly go from obscurity to the fullness of divinely appointed leadership. What man wanted to do for evil, God will make good to save many lives. The mantle of leadership will be placed over them by a divine Hand. They will lead the rest of us to our designated destinations. I believe the Holy Spirit is moving within them now. The inner divine gifts that have been given for this prophetic hour are now being activated and released. The understanding of the long night of your suffering is being revealed to you. José’s heart is reaching perfection within them. God calls them to fulfill their destiny. The Jordan has parted before them. They mark the way forward for the rest of the Body of Christ. Payday has finally arrived!
The final part of the dream came true. I preached this message to a great church in Chicago. The Lord descended in that service! Isn’t it incredibly ironic that God revealed and spoke this message through a white man, descended from slave owners from the south, a region that once deprived them of their most basic rights? Isaiah 60:10 says, “The sons of your oppressors will bow down before you. All who despised you will bow down at your feet.” God fulfilled the words of the prophet 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 Great Awakening to Come.
“Oh Africa, may my right hand forget its cunning. If I do not defend your cause, may my tongue stick to my palate.” – Lyman Beecher