CHRISTMAS IN THE SECRET PLACE - IN CHRIST
CHRISTMAS IN THE SECRET PLACE - IN CHRIST.
Sunday, December 3, 2023, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
As we are now in the Christmas season, I will attempt to lead our church fellowship into the faith for an expectation of a supernatural encounter with Jesus Christ.
Even as a child, on Christmas, I was always expecting a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. I don’t know how to explain that expectation, but it was a pressing in from deep within me for the reality of His presence. There was no teaching in the church that would create that longing within me; nor did my family instill in me that supernatural quest. “God has placed eternity in the heart of man” (Eccl. 3:11).
When I think back now over the Christmas’ of my childhood on the farm, “Yes, there was always something remarkable about those days.” In reflecting, I believe I always found Christ in that secret place of His presence.
Every Christmas it is still that way for me. Jesus sends us a Christmas message every year in the sounds, lights, decorations, songs, gifts, family, and friends who share the season with us. If we will listen and watch, He will take each of us into that supernatural secret place. I give you a hint of where and how to experience this. It will not be in the lust of your flesh, lust of the eyes or any of the things you may be lusting after. It will only be found in Jesus in us.
Last week we shared the vision given to Brother Conner of the year of God’s Gavel (2023). Let us now go into the throne of God and his vision of the Ancient of Days.
BOBBY CONNER’S VISION OF THE ANCIENT OF DAYS
Bobby Conner was ministering in New Zealand a few days prior to the Day of Atonement.
Visions paraphrased for sermon content:
“Suddenly, without warning, I was transported by the Spirit of God unto the heavenly realm. I stood in front of an incredibly huge ancient door. It appeared to be of heavy brass or a burnt-bronze type metal. The door seemed to be locked and had not been opened for a long time, if ever.
There was a single slot type keyhole in the middle. A firm voice spoke over my left should, ‘Open this door!’ In uncertainty, I responded, ‘But I do not have the key.’
‘You are the key, extend your left hand and put it into the keyhole.’ My hand slid easily into the lock. ‘Turn your hand to the right.’ I heard the sound of a heavy thud with a click. The door was suddenly unlocked and cracked open, but only a small bit.
I heard a loud sound of rushing wind. I feel as well as hear the sound of rushing, living winds flowing by me into the open door. The aroma of these winds was the fragrance of beauty.
I was instructed to pull the unlocked door open wider. The door effortless opened. The most awesome rushing winds and brilliant different colored living lights and streams of liquid fire poured out exposing me to sounds and smell not yet heard or sensed on earth.
As suddenly as the experience started, it ended. I was standing stunned, still attached to the open door. I asked, ‘Lord what have I seen?’ He replied, 'You will be shown in due time.'
I was back in the room in New Zealand.
It was 3:30 am before sunrise on the Day of Atonement. I was lying in bed totally awake. The room was completely dark. There was a flash of bright light across the dark room.
Suddenly, the ceiling of the room began to fill with bars of beautiful, white golden light about eight inches apart. The ceiling disappeared in the blinding golden white light. I was caught up in the same experience as in New Zealand, but this time the experience was moving rapidly as if I was seeing a video that was in fast-forward mode.
When I got to the place where the first experience stopped, the vision slowed down to normal. I was standing with my left hand firmly attached in the lock in the open door. The winds of living fire rushed forth out of the open door. I was told to remove my hand from the door.
I was instructed to push the door wide open and enter. I was bathed and consumed by a Living Light that I have no words to describe. This dancing Liquid Light contains colors and brilliance that I’d never seen before.
The Living Light was so pure and bright that it was like a thick liquid, however, it was bright until it appeared as darkness. I pondered how this could be light and yet appear dark. Suddenly, an angelic creature stood near me and said, “Remember what was spoken of in Exodus 20:21: The people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness where God was.
When the angelic messenger said this, my mind became extremely active.
1 Kings 8:12: The Lord said He would dwell in the thick darkness.
Ps. 18:11: He made darkness His secret place; his canopy around Him was dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.
Ps. 97:2: Clouds and darkness surround Him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. A fire goes before Him and burns up His enemies round about.”
VISION given to Carolyn Sissom in 1996
I also had a vision where I was taken into this darkness. I have shared with our church family many times, but it seems appropriate to reaffirm Brother Conner’s visitation.
(The Lord took by the Spirit into a pavilion of darkness. In this place there was no evil. I saw some stars (perhaps five maybe seven). I asked the Holy Spirit where we were I did not know a scripture for this place. I heard, “In the beginning…the earth was without form and void and darkness covered the face of the deep.” I asked the Holy Spirit to take me from that place since I did not know what it was.
later found the scripture in Psalms 18:11: He made darkness His secret place: his pavilion round about Him were dark waters and thick clouds of skies.
8:9: He bowed the heavens also and came down and darkness was under his feet.
We could not leave that firmament by a straight way. He took me through other firmaments, though I did not see anything but thick clouds.
He brought me to a firmament of white clouds. I saw a man clothed in white (Jesus) sitting at a writing desk. From his pen came a rainbow that circled the whole earth. He then put the pen in my hand.)
RESUME VISION GIVEN TO BOBBY CONNER:
“In the midst of the Living Light a Form appeared which said to me, “You are to enter in!” I was terrified by the power and purity of this moment, and the awareness of my sinfulness. I protested. Saying, ‘Oh! No! I can’t enter in!’ I was commanded to enter in. I took a step forward and suddenly I was standing amid this Living Light. Somehow, I was being transported into an area of the throne of God.
My heart was pounding, and my mind was racing. My physical body was going through some very strange sensations. I felt extremely strong and terribly weak at the same time. I wanted to fall on my face and hide my sinful self from the gaze of His holy eyes. I felt the transgression of my soul. In this moment, He said, “You only stand because of MY GRACE!” In the midst of this Living Light, I saw the likeness of a Man (Daniel 7:13) of Living Liquid Fire; however, he was like no other man I have ever seen. Once again, I was a man captured between two worlds. I was drawn by His beauty and repulsed by my sinfulness.
He summoned me to draw nearer, saying, ‘Come follow ME!” I heard my voice asking a question, but I did not realize the words were coming from my own lips. It seemed as though it was coming from a long distance away. I asked in a trembling voice, as my body shook in total terror, ‘Who are YOU?’ He said the second time, ‘Come, Follow Me!’ I pleaded, ‘Please tell me who you are!’
Then He responded, ‘I AM! I AM THE WISDOM OF THE AGES. I AM THE VOICE OF THE PROPHETS. I AM THE POWER OF THE APOSTLES. I AM THE ANCIENT OF DAYS!’
My heart filled with an overwhelming comfort. I was totally sure that all He said was absolute truth. However, I was filled with awe and a holy terror.
I did not say this, but I thought it, ‘I must have died. I am in heaven!’
Suddenly the entire room was filled with a voice that penetrated every cell of my body, ‘No you are not dead.’ I even pinched hard on my arm to see if I had any type of sensation.
I was shaking and so petrified that I didn’t think any part of my body would move. Again, He said very assertively, ‘Follow Me.’ Knowing He was who he said He was, I determined to do all I could to totally obey.
He said, ‘You must fully follow me; step only where I step. Stay very close, right behind Me. The Holy Spirit can walk beside you, but you must walk behind Me.’ I can’t explain it, but the Father and the Ancient of Days are the very same, yet somehow different in their actions.
He took a step. Where His foot of fire stepped a footprint of brilliant, burning, flowing colors was left. I was almost weightless. I stepped into the footprint of swirling light. Living Light arising from the burning footprints, burst forth and shot through me, starting from my foot and coming out my mouth, eyes, ears and the top of my head.
I was filled with a joy and jubilation that I had never experienced. Each step released revelation and illumination about the Kingdom of God and His ways on the earth. On and on we walked. With each step, increased light and joy were released. With each step, revelation and understanding came.
It is only as we follow Him that we will receive the revelation He has for this generation.
1 John 1: 6-7: If we walk in the light as He is in the Light, we will have fellowship one with another.
The Lord is now releasing deeper understanding concerning the advancing of the Kingdom of God. We are seeing a people being prepared to lay hold of the authority of the Kingdom of God.
Genesis 5:24: Enoch walked with God and he was not.
Walking with the Ancient of Days will do the same thing for us now. As I walked, I was aware of less and less of me, and more and more of Him. If we are to walk with God, we too must seek to be pure and without self-seeking ambition.
The Lord warned in this experience that for every ounce of self-promotion that we engage in we will reap a pound of shame.
One question filled my mind. I wanted scripture to help me balance out this experience. As soon as I thought this, he said, ‘Yes! Everything must be based and established on My Word.’ I AM THE ONE REVEALED IN THE PROPHET DANIEL.’
Daniel 7:9-10: I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; his garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire; A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand times thousands ministered to Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.
This would also be like the Prophet Ezekiel saw when he wrote about his vision in Ezekiel 1: 24-28… Above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. Also from the appearance of His waist and upward, I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were the appearance of fire with brightness all around. Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord, So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.
I cried out, ‘OH LORD YOU ARE ALMIGHTY GOD. Please tell me about the door that was opened.’ He said, ‘Look back over your shoulder at the door.’ On the door, written in blazing gold, were the words, ‘The Gateway to God’s True Glory.’ The voice said, “Look, you have entered the door of Jeremiah 33:3: Call unto me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you know not.
I asked, “What was the sound of wind and words rushing past me when the door first cracked open?”
‘It was the intercession of the saints.’ The light and fire that shot past me out of the door were His answer to these prayers.
Those who have been truly praying and seeking shall now see great and mighty things which they cannot comprehend. Now is the time to see things as of yet unseen, and to hear things unheard of until now (Isa. 48: 6-7).
God said, ‘My people have called and I am answering their cry. I have heard the cry of Hannah. My answer is on the way. While they are yet calling, I will answer.’ Now is the time of the open door.
Standing there, I heard a great sound; it sounded much like a great waterfall- like Niagara Falls. “What is the sound I hear?’ He said, “That is the sound of the coming rain of heaven. It is about to rain.” Suddenly, thee was an amber glow coming down from above. It was drops of liquid tongues of fire and flames of fire falling all around me, rushing beside me, going toward and through the big open door.
The experience was much like the day of Pentecost; however, it seemed to be much more powerful. As this rain began to fall, heaven’s host were sent forth. With great shouts of joy, the angels were shooting forth through the open door. Many of the hosts were ready to wage war; they were prepared to fight.
Heaven’ host is now on assignment. There is great excitement in heaven. The coming rain from heaven will wash the minds of the saints.
The gap between heaven and earth is truly growing much smaller. The fire of the Lord will fall in many places this year. These burning hosts of heaven will activate mass healing in meetings as the Holy Spirit is given the place He should have in the service. These angelic messengers are coming with shouts of Holy, Holy, Holy.” (End of vision).
This is not the completion of the vision, but all I am able to compile in one sermon. The visions were given for the year 2023 and forward. Perhaps next week we can get into the Court of Heaven ruled in favor of the Saints of God. The Shepherd’s Rod, Volume XXVIII was written prior to Tim Sheet’s vision in October 2023 of the Hosts of Heavens’ Armies were released in the fall of 2023 under Lord Sabaoth and led my Michael the Archangel.
I also believe the Lord Jesus will visit us during this Christmas season as the “Light of the World.” As a prophetic sign, we purchased two chandeliers for the church of approximately 40 lights per chandelier. (I didn’t count the lights. – to be picked up next week.)
Interesting that the war in Gaza is mostly being fought in the night. The judgments against Gaza and the other nations in Amos 1: 6-15 are “in the night or ‘eventide.” It seems most of the war has been happening during the night hours.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries Church
10115 West Hidden Lakes Lane, Richmond, TX
Scripture from N.K.J.V. – I entered into the labors of Prophet Bobby Conner – vision given to him of the Ancient of Days from Shepherd’s Rod, Vol. XXVIII. Vision of pavilion of darkness given to Carolyn Sissom 1996; Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of those who I entered their labors.