SHEMITAH? RELEASE FROM WHAT?

MUSINGS ON THE YEAR 5775 - from the first Adam
September 25, 2014 - September 13, 2015
Shemitah - A Year of Rest, Release & Return...

My Historical Context 

I cannot speak for others, but when I was originally called to Mankato, in the Fall of 1992.  I was called to the city of Mankato and to the region surrounding Mankato. I was NOT called to join a particular Sunday morning congregation, as I was already a blood-bought and redeemed member of the Church. At that time, He spoke an invitation to me, to be a part of the end times work of God in this region. He told me that I would have to move here, live in their midst and that it would cost me everything. He told me He was going to change over leadership in the city, starting in the church, then in business, then in the government, and education. We have watched this word being fulfilled. 

The Lords Account 1992-1998

 I was also called to join a small band of men who were praying earnestly for this city and for this region. They were specifically praying for the revival harvest God had promised would come. 

In order to establish a bank account for such necessities as paying rent on a prayer room space with a library, a few of us were required to put a name on the account, so we named the account, "The Lord's Account." This band of men was the congregation that my family and I were connected to for the first six years (1992-1998) Our goal was to work with those within any congregation that had a heart for seeing revival come to this region. We offered an Apostolic Teaching format at the Holy Spirit Retreat Center as well as weekly meetings and weekly early morning prayer meetings. We recorded those teachings and placed them on Public-access television in Mankato, the metro Twin Cities and in Rochester, MN

In the years since 1998, all of the men that were part of that group have left Mankato physically, one has passed on. The Lord's Account was dissolved in 1999. So for me, my return to my inheritance, or 'my land' so to speak, is not a call to a single congregation, or even to a single stream, although I have enjoyed the fellowship of a few congregations since moving here. 

Evangelical Covenant Congregation (SEP 1995 - NOV 1997)
I was called there through a dream that God gave Chuck Parsons, during the summer of 1995;  which immediately upon hearing it, I began to weep involuntarily, right in the middle of a public restaurant! Chuck was inquisitive; "Is this dream about my church?" I managed to get out, "Yes it is!"
It is life and death isn't it? He asked. "Yes, it is," I answered. The Lord spoke to me right then, He was going to move in this congregation and it was going to begin in the class that Chuck was going to teach. I still didn't know what Chuck was teaching, but he told me later that God told him I was to come and help him, he never mentioned it to me before the Lord spoke. My direction was to help him. it turned out, that the class was based on Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby. It was in the context of this class that I really got to know Phil and Gena Hernandez. 

Wednesday Night (House) congregation (NOV 95 - JUL 2000)
For five years (1995-2000) we ran a weekly meeting in the Hernandez home, originally started by a word to Phil to open his home, to reach out to his co-workers, they came from Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and other congregations. Only a few weeks later, college students started coming, some from homes where the church was not even a consideration. This change from 30 somethings and forty-somethings to college students, fulfilled a prophetic word given in July 1995 to David R and Me that we would have worked among college students. This became a regional, city-wide outreach for salvation, for connection with God and for discipleship.  Phil approached the senior leader of Evangelic Covenant and they sent their Christian Education Director to the house meetings to inspect, the result was permission to continue as planned.

Christian Life Center/Covenant Family  (Nov 1997-2014)
This has been the longest standing congregational home to my family over the years. 
Five years from the Fall of 1997- Fall of 2002s at Christian life Center. 
Twelve (12) years from the Fall of 2002- Fall of 2014 at Covenant Family. 
In all 17 years. Meeting some of the guys from Christian Life Center (CLC) after traveling by bus with them to Washington DC, for Promise Keepers in October of 1997. 

I decided to visit CLC one Sunday morning, to experience their worship. At that time CLC was still meeting at Hoover School. Jim Dye was the pastor, he called me out of the congregation, declaring publicly my calling as a Prophet, He was immediately joined by Ron Meyer and Lyle Colwill,  All three of them laid hands on me and declared my calling as a prophet to this region. 

The months went by and in the fall of 1998 Lyle left Mankato for the third time, this time headed for North Carolina, Ron Meyer also left that year and moved to Spokane Washington, Gary McClain left a few years later and moved to Arkansas. Then the last member of this team to leave was also the first one to invite me to Mankato in November of 1991.  David Rosebaugh the friend who introduced me to Lyle Colwill left Mankato in July 2013 during his 21st year. 

LEADERSHIP TRANSITION (2000-2001)
Jim Dye was removed from the office of Pastor of Christian Life Center on November 30, of 2000. The day our 90-day sabbatical ended and I joined the church council under the leadership of Tommy Hutchins in December of that year. This was also a Shemitah (seventh) year of release, July 31, 2000, we released Wednesday Night (Jubilee) to help save the health of this congregation, at the request of Steve Youngblood. But the release took effect in September of 2000.

WELCOME! DON
In the Spring of 2000, while in a meeting in Kirksville, a pastor from Idaho was seated in the crowd, in fact, he sat directly in front of me. After a little worship and some comments, they instructed us to greet those around us. So we did, when he turned around, I looked into the eyes of this pastor from Idaho, and the Lord said, Say to Him, "WELCOME!"  I did and we both found ourselves immediately sobbing and hugging one another. 

I would find out later that this man gave up everything to come to Mankato similar to my own experience. In the coming weeks and months, we would find ourselves enmeshed in a transition of church leadership which would cost him and his wife their connections to her biological family. Since that time Don and I have been involved in each other's lives in many different ways. At various times and diverse places God has reminded and instructed me to say to Don again...W e l c o m e !

Thursday Night Prayer
Over the last four years Don and I have had the closest working relationship of the entire last fourteen years, We hit a stride working together in the prayer meetings that we had not experienced in earlier years, this is remarkable, especially since back in 2000 we were sitting on 'opposite' sides of the table during that transition. Evidence that a single Rhema word can change everything, this group feels a lot like the group I joined in 1992 except the emphasis is on prophetic intercession and prayer more than it is on preparing materials for a teaching format. 

In August of this year, (2014) Don stepped down from leading the prayer group that met on Thursday nights.
He felt that we were offering something that the CFC congregational leaders did not value. "Baking bread that was not ordered." When he stepped down no one asked him why. Six weeks later the elders announced to the rest of us their decision to permanently dissolve the Thursday Night prayer group.

This decision was first intended to be announced September 21, which would have fallen during the sixth year of 'servitude', however, it was delayed one week until September 28 and since Rosh Hashanah fell on September 25, the announcement was made during the year of Shemitah ('release'). So we have come to understand that it is a declaration of release over the 'Mankato seven' of the Thursday night prayer. In Exodus chapter 21, God's law required that every Hebrew man or woman who is under servitude must be released in the seventh year, to return to their own land, as a free man or woman. 

A few years ago now, up front in a worship meeting, Phil Hernandez leaned over and said to me, David, this... gesturing with his hands, is not your destiny! and I think he might be right.

In the end I think God is calling me back to His original instructions, the ones He gave me before the move to this city, "live among them and pay the price required to identify with the city and its people". I am to return to the calling and destiny over my life. 

I am not sure how that will work itself out. However, I know one thing, something has shifted in the heavens. 

Last week during the Prophetic conference as we were declaring justice over many situations. including the various acts committed during the transition of 2000, my right arm was instantly healed of tendinitis (tennis elbow) with immediate cessation of pain. It was like someone dialed down my pain to nothing, once it was gone I knew I was healed. This is somehow connected to 2000, and returning to the call to the city/region for revival.

In His service,

David Smith