Praying for Ashes: Leaving the Ninety-Nine

By MIchael Westview

Do you know the way to maneuver your life to be as impactful to the world as possible? How effective do you believe you are at facing the challenges of this modern life?

Are you ready to face the changes and challenges of life? Will you emerge as a victorious warrior?

Navigating the "valley of the shadow of death"

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Oct 10, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685566883

MIchael Westview

Michael Westview has written other books within the Christian genre to help in the equipping of the saints of the true church of Jesus Christ. From his unique perspective after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2016, Westview writes about his "valley experience" and the faith in Jesus Christ needed to overcome and win the challenges of each day (www.michaelwestview.com).

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Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

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Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2022 by Michael Westview

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Cambridge Edition: 1769.

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Trilogy Christian Publishing/ TBN and colophon are trademarks of Trinity Broadcasting Network.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Trilogy Christian Publishing.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-68556-687-6

ISBN 978-1-68556-688-3 (ebook)

Acknowledgments

To Jesus, who has provided so much confirmation, insight, and understanding on how His love completes every human heart. May I always have ears to hear Your voice in the stillness of the morning, impressing my spirit as to which path I should take.

To my mother, who time and time again has proven to be the encouragement needed to complete the projects.

To the readers who need to be affirmed and confirmed in His love and how it corrects and reverses any perceived detriment.

Contents

Introduction

Event

SECTION ONE

Chapter 1: What’s Love Got to Do with It?

Chapter 2: The Valley of the Shadow

Chapter 3: The Beauty of Process

Chapter 4: A Different Type of Expectation

SECTION TWO

Introduction: The Way

Chapter 5: The Way of Rescue

Chapter 6: Lamp and Light

Chapter 7: Holy Strongholds?

Chapter 8: Protected to Win

SECTION THREE

Introduction: The Truth

Chapter 9: Tenacity

Chapter 10: Cross It Out!

Chapter 11: Foundations and Painted Walls

SECTION FOUR

Introduction: The Life

Chapter 12: Living in the Light

Chapter 13: No Fear

Chapter 14: Endurance

Chapter 15: Surpasses All Understanding

Chapter 16: The Covenant

SECTION FIVE

Introduction: Discussion

Chapter 17: Is Ash Really the Answer?

Chapter 18: The Cross Is for You!

Appendix

Introduction

Do you know what you’re ultimately looking for?

Would you consider you’re looking for the love and unconditional acceptance of God? That whatever you have done in your past, He loves you the same. But after you receive Him, He loves you too much to leave you where He found you.

Now, you might be saying to yourself, Isn’t that the guy on the cross that died thousands of years ago? Yes, He is. You also might be thinking, But that was a long time ago, and why does He matter today — in my life now? Answer: He rose from the dead and answered not only your but all of humanity’s greatest needs! And He wants to know you! He prepaid your trip to heaven after this life experience is over.

I have met His presence and power.

Maybe this issue about the end of this life — this issue you might be trying to avoid thinking about. Well, this is the issue that is the very thing you really need to think about!

If you answered, No, I’m not — I’m already saved. Read this book. No one will ever arrive and be the perfect Christian before finishing their life here! If you think that you have reached perfection, I would really make sure you know Him. All of us have the call to go deeper in faith with the help of God’s love distributed by the Holy Spirit.

Now, I know God and His love could be deemed as very abstract — this book will attempt to help you with that. He did give all of us an imagination to be used as a tool — to a limit point. But caution! It is not to be completely, 100 percent, relied on! If the imagination is used too much, it will lead to going beyond reality — you do not want to live completely in your feelings. Conversely, God is not only in your imagination; He is more real than all of mankind can readily understand.

God’s love is not — and will not — be maintained by you, nor is it given to you because of a performance-based to-do list that you finish.

You see, a brief background: Ever since the garden of Eden, mankind has been incomplete and in a constant state of looking. Inside of our souls is a space only reserved for our Creator’s love, and because of The Fall (Adam and Eve), we are unable to fill that space with anything else — an impossible situation. It is because of this very need of a higher eternal love that mankind goes beyond itself to find it — even into rebellion from the Creator — to fulfill its own needs, only to fail. Humanity’s heart quietly longs to satisfy the looking itch on its own. Mankind fails miserably as we self-medicate within our own devices, attempting to meet our deepest needs with only a metaphoric Band-Aid.

Your goals for your life might involve looking for a significant relationship, friendships, career/money, a house, or a nice car, but really you are looking for the significance and love of a heavenly Father. The relationships all of us look for cannot go the distance as far as being truly as unconditional as the acceptance and love of Almighty God — our Creator and heavenly Father. This is the highest love! Humans mistakenly use human relationships — in addition to the material — as a means of substitute for the love of God; this will never work out. No one knows all of your thoughts during our lives except our Creator — and He still sent Jesus! More often than not, most of us never receive from the key-life people in our lives a basic human understanding of what love really is; most people do not understand how to convey it to another person — since they weren’t shown — without an agenda attached. This basic human love is the precursor, an introduction of sorts, to the real love of God. Human love is of the temporal and can be forsaken.

His love will not only affirm His existence while sustaining you, but it will also stabilize your heart, mind, and emotions. As one becomes closer to the Lord, the more tangible His love is to experience. He ultimately wants to walk with you through the changing situations of your life.

When you were born, a provision within your spiritual heart was made to want to know your Creator. We still need to have a connection with the One who made us. The problem is that our own plans and rebellion have caused us to deny the obvious in whom we need.

In the Bible, in John 14:6, Jesus describes Himself as the way, the truth, and the life; He is the Savior of the world. There are three sections within the book labeled as such; each section will take you down a perspective metaphorically that will help to understand that He is who He says He is despite our spoiled spiritual condition. But God can always make someone new — only if they want to be!

The sections of this book need some definition — some macrostructure. Generally speaking, The Way chapters discuss the prospect of following Him, The Truth chapters describe the foundations upon following Him, and The Life chapters describe successfully living for Him as He brings us out to the life, joy, and peace we all seek. After the three sections are reviewed, the last two discussion section chapters give an understanding — but not an overall summarization — of the three previous sections. Read and refer back to review these sections for the ideas for possible promotion. I would like all the readers to have the sections understood within their proper contexts and scriptures cited.

Again, I have experienced Jesus since 1985 first hand and will share with you my personal experiences throughout this book. Don’t get me wrong; I am not setting myself up to be some sort of spiritual authority; however, I do submit to you this material for the stirring of thought in order to gauge a thorough discussion. There are many diamonds or insights buried within the pages that hopefully will change your life — you must dig for them. It is within these pages I pray you see His thoughtfulness and love for you. I believe it will take all of eternity to really understand His love.

His care over the years has so been magnified by some of the most challenging of circumstances from my health issues.

Please understand: I first am speaking to myself when an issue is introduced within each of these chapters. This love of God in Jesus is attracted to the admitted and confessed weakness of an individual. Within that humanity — a humility — God’s presence, love, and power can be esteemed into strength because it is His strength and power and not our own. In other words, the only way to receive and understand the ideas of what I’m sharing with you is when you first come to the conclusion: (1) you’re human and not any better than anyone else; (2) you’re not always strong (as much as you want other people to believe you are); (3) you realize there is more to this life than being born to grow up to earn a paycheck only to spend it in your later years on healthcare and medical insurance. If there is no openness for these considerations, you probably will have a mental challenge to receive the message — you basically will block your own progress!

One of the most apparent pitfalls and results of pride is not having the ability to be taught or guided. No one, no matter how old or experienced they are, should rely completely on their own understanding. For this very reason, I include quotes from various other well-known teachers of God’s Word.

Bobbie Houston from Hillsong Church, Sydney, Australia, one year told her conference audience (my paraphrase) that the battle for faith and His victory in this world is as real as to feel the seat they were sitting in. As I watched this episode on television, she then proceeded to say (my paraphrase), The return of our Lord and King Jesus Christ is more real than ever, and then proceeded to ask her audience to touch their seats again. Her example reached me that afternoon. This King Jesus I speak of within this book is coming back to claim His church and His planet. Until that time, there will be the chaos of invisible battles within the minds of people and within our environment that are manifested in the physical; the darkness of this world draws to its last breath, waiting for its incarceration to begin.

It is my prayer that as you read, you will realize the only reason for living is knowing the loving heavenly Father and His Son Jesus, along with His purpose for your life. We live such temporary lives that are concerned with such trivial things that, in the light of eternity, do not mean anything — all of us need reminders of this. The gospel’s teaching is completely opposite of the world’s knowledge.

Another purpose of this book is to assist you in your understanding of how far God chose to reach you with His love — His concern and care. Would you allow me to be somewhat of a tour guide that lays out a metaphoric or virtual description of God’s love for you? It is my goal and prayer to describe and detail experiences you might be able to relate with.

Just so that you know, in order to save space within this book, a detailed description of my testimony is contained within my other book, His Presence Still Speaks — if you are inclined and interested to know my testimony and spiritual background from years ago.

You probably will have some questions while reading this book. That’s okay — having certain doubts or questions are reasonable; that can be a very profitable place for you. There are so many unmatched deep truths and wonders of Jesus Christ, and yet, I’m so privileged for Him to be sharing with me at all. His wisdom is like a swimming pool, and I don’t necessarily want to stay in the shallow end all my life!

As you go through the book, I hope you become a reader if you are not one currently. Make questions to be addressed at a later time after each chapter, and at the end of each section, make up your own mind after reaching out to a local pastor of a Bible-believing church.

Please note: because of the current state of the world — with its many judgmental and false finger-pointing — the following must sadly be included:

Let’s not be ridiculous. None of this book or any other book with my name on it should be misconstrued as additional Scripture. The Bible and the saving grace of Jesus Christ are all you need for salvation.

I’m just a believer in Christ Jesus that has been compelled by the Holy Spirit to write glorifying and inspiring text based upon Him, compelling and extrapolating my heart from my present and past experiences. I do not have nor will ever claim to have the exclusive on all the answers of life in Jesus — I am still constantly learning myself! I will quote information obtained from others in every work; otherwise, consider all other ideas an extrapolation from myself with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Thank you in advance for your valuable time.

Now, let’s begin!

May He give you the love and the joy of His heart,

Michael

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him

— Psalm 34:8–9, NKJV

‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ Says the Lord, ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool’

— Isaiah 1:18, NKJV

Event

There was a significant event that took place in March 2002 that changed my life forever. It articulated God’s heart by me having to experience the supernatural first and forehand in order to be used by the kingdom of God. Although it was not a near-death experience, nor did I ever leave my body in the spirit at any moment, what transgressed confirmed, I believe, my participation in the end-times of planet earth before the rapture of the church of Jesus Christ.

To conserve space within this publication, I described the event in the previous book, His Presence Still Speaks, published in late 2020 by Trilogy Publishing. I would encourage you to look into that publication for the entire description of events.

Section One:

The Investigation

Chapter 1:

What’s Love Got to Do with It?

And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma

— Ephesians 5:2, NKJV

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us

— Romans 5:8, NKJV

Love that must be earned is basically useless.

— Henry Cloud

There has been, in recent decades, the over-usage of the term love and how far its extension and meaning go. Depending upon the context of a conversation, the meaning of love can be a relative range, for example, from ice cream to a husband toward his wife.

Some synonyms for love include attachment, affection, adoration, devotion, cherish, tenderness, and even worship. Should someone have an adoration and a tenderness for ice cream? I certainly hope not!

Some people would say to feel love is to have a gooey feeling, while others seem to believe it is a decision of responsibility and devotion. Why would there be such opposing opinions? We tend to explain our thoughts and feelings based on our own experiences and interpretations. How would those same people describe the love of God, the Creator that made them? How would they know that love from God when their interpretation of the love concept in general has been based on something that is not real? A temporary feeling?

When some associate ice cream and how much they love it — not to mention how it is given out like cards in a casino — what is the true meaning of this love label, and would Jesus agree? How could the eternal love of God be categorized the same as it is used in the world? The world does not use this term in its proper context, and therefore, we really miss out on the blessing of God.

Each of us is uniquely made (Ephesians 2:10) within His image, a separately admired work of God. We are a blessing that pleases Him. Each of us understands and reacts differently to life experiences. These positive and negative reactions to events shape and mold our personalities and attitudes for our entire lives. The role models within the years of our upbringing leave behind evidence trails that form an individual’s perceptions.

In my life, for me to not be close to certain key people caused me to later in life have trouble in discerning the love of God; this lack of exposure took many years to overcome. Therefore, more investment in our children, along with healthy relationships and personalities, makes it easier to receive the love of God in Jesus we all really need. Many people need assistance in understanding this vital need.

The love of God approaches every person based on their understanding of what love really is. The world and its false perception of the love of the Father of creation make it even more critical to understand the lengths and means He tries to reach every person with His affection.

You’ve Got…Personality

It is my belief that emotions are tied to the personality of the individual; the importance of their interpretation and how they are expressed is key. Each personality has its strengths and deficiencies — the evidence of fallen humanity — within a sample of the relationship context (parent, at work, and as a friend).

Our five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch) are constantly attempting to interpret the world in which we live. The human spirit will not be able to interpret the eternal divine love of God; it is only by the oversight of the unique and loving Holy Spirit that the revelation can be truly acknowledged.

In Florence Littauer’s book Personality Plus: How to understand others by understanding yourself, she gives the strengths (pages 22–25) and deficiencies (pages 85–88) of four main types of personalities: sanguine, melancholy, choleric, and phlegmatic. Each individual has a dominant personality and a recessive personality comprised of these four personality types that make the overall individual. Please note that each strength and deficiency for each label has been summarized by myself from Littauer’s book within the two entries listed below.

STRENGTHS

SANGUINE

Emotions:

Enthusiastic and expressive

Good sense of humor

As a Parent:

Makes home fun

Turns disaster into humor

At Work:

Inspires others to join

Thinks of new activities

As a Friend:

Makes friends easily

Envied by others

MELANCHOLY

Emotions:

Deep and thoughtful

Analytical

As a Parent:

Wants everything done right

Sets high standards

At Work:

Orderly and organized

Likes charts, graphs, figures, lists

As a Friend:

Makes friends cautiously

Faithful and devoted

CHOLERIC

Emotions:

Strong-willed and decisive

Unemotional

As a Parent:

Motivates family to action

Exerts sound leadership

At Work:

Seeks practical solutions

Delegates work

As a Friend:

Has little need for friends

Will lead and organize (efforts)

PHLEGMATIC

Emotions:

Low-key personality

Sympathetic and kind

As a Parent:

Is not in a hurry

Doesn’t get upset easily

At Work:

Peaceful and agreeable

Avoids conflicts